not just Thanksgiving

Today was Monica's birthday and I've been thinking about her all day. There are some really great things about Monica. Here are a few:

1. She takes excellent photos - of my wedding, for example
2. She likes to ride with the windows down and the music loud during the summer
3. She has lots of clothes, sharing a room with her was great
4. She also has lots of accessories.
5. She gives me advice on outfits and potential clothes purchases - even from far away when I send her a picture of me in a dressing room on my cell phone
6. She's not afraid to go to a concert by herself.
7. She likes to workout with me
8. She makes awesome mix cds
9. She wears the same shoe size as me
10. She's a good dancer - danced hip hop in high school
11. She lives art
12. She makes good life decisions
13. One Christmas we woke up in the morning to pictures of Christ hanging all over. She had prepared a "lesson" with scriptures - it made that Christmas meaningful
14. She's not shy anymore. I still remember the first time she asked a store clerk a question on her own. I was like, "that's not Monica."
15. She's taught herself to cook (after avoiding it for a long time!)
16. Speaking of cooking - she once added milk to boxed brownies instead of water. When asked why, she said, "I don't know, milk just goes with brownies."
17. She's good at keeping friends
18. She's a Sagittarius (that's Rob's mom's contribution. I asked what that means about Monica and she said, "she'll take forever to get married cause she'll take forever to pick from all her choices. she's a lifetime learner, always wanting to learn something new. she's more interested in learning something than actually doing something.")
19. her taste in music is improving
20. speaking of music, I once chastised her for having a bunch of songs on a mix tape with a lot of swearing. I later made fun of her for having a mix tape with Christian rock music on it. I found out later she had taped over the swearing with the Christian rock and I felt both proud and horrible.
21. when we were little I once cut her hair and told my mom that she did it (okay, that's not necessarily something I like about Monica - just a funny story)
22. she's good at sleeping and shopping
23. she's independent in her testimony of the Gospel (I think that Christmas morning was the first time I knew that for sure). that's a sigh of relief for a big sister
24. she's always up for a narcissistic photo shoot (see below)
25. We don't last too long before we're arguing about something (like, she thinks my outfit is dorky or something), but I still get very excited when she's about to come home again!

Okay - I got to 25 and since that's how old she turned today, I'll stop there.

Happy Day, Monicorn! My 25 was yucky, if you felt that way at all today, I hope you know you are awesome and we love you and you'll do great things.

This one's for you monica!

Flashback to Halloween '09. The Tacher family all dressed up for the first time. We were all Pirates, and baby Clara was our parrot. You like Mark's wig?



Halloween day, in halloween outfits


Clara in a kitty hat, that was way too small, though it fit Leah at this age.


Here are some other random pictures I have taken over the last month....enjoy Monica, and others too, like Jacob & Lisa.


Clara decided she wanted to crawl, this was around Halloween...well now she is getting to be a pro at it. She picked it up really fast, and she is already pulling herself up to stand.

bunch of wackos

i have been looking through old folders and HEY remember when i sent you all this picture?
still is funny.

hey nat.

i am sure you have some pics of those little girls of yours....

food storage and emergency preparedness

My Aunt Susan, knowing I was interested in food storage, told me about the website Food Storage Made Easy. It’s pretty great and you should check it out. They recently hosted a 7-day challenge as a way to test your level of preparedness with the food storage and emergency kits that you have, which is a really great idea! I have to admit, I was too intimidated by the challenge and didn’t actually do it. But, in an effort to learn more (and get a coupon for one of their products just by making this post), I read up on responses from people who DID actually participate in the challenge. So, here's what I could have learned: (By the way, this is great timing - General Conference time is the time of year I want to designate to reviewing and improving our emergency preparedness)

Day 1: Natural Disaster -”It’s a Flood”

• We totally don't have a family meeting place - and I think that's the scariest of all. We need to decide on one. I don't know if we should have a few options...? Like at BYU all the wards have emergency plans. Our ward was supposed to meet on this one field, but if that was gone, there was another place to meet.
• We would have done fine with eating food from our Emergency kits for the day and we have a first-aid kit in their too. (we each have our own in each car so it's accessible when we're at home or when we're on the road).
• We don't have a "grab" list for if we have to leave the house quickly. It's hard to think of what I have that I couldn't live without, to be quite honest.
• Cooking without power and all the food in the fridge is spoiled!? Cereal w/ powdered milk for everyone!
  

Day 2: Pandemic -”Time for Quarantine”

• I was feeling pretty good about this one, we have extra toilet paper (I finally have Rob convinced on the importance of having a storage of items like this - even if that means huge Costco pack of tp). Then the last rule of this challenge, which is that we have to wear face masks. We don't have those yet, we've been meaning to ask Rob's mom if she can get some from her work but we should just buy them.
  
• A lot of people on the website and facebook have good ideas for sanitizing, we are lacking in that area too, I guess

Day 3: Every Day Emergency -”Dinner Guests?!?!”

• I love two things about this challenge - I love that it's for an every day emergency. It can be hard for people (me too until recently) to imagine a natural or financial disaster, but those everyday emergencies can be alleviated by having food storage or cash reserve, or car kit, etc. One time when Rob and I were dating I took him on a drive to one of my favorite places. It was Sunday and he was starving. Rob is not his pleasant self when starving. No worries - I had a car kit in the trunk and he had his choice of a granola bar or applesauce cup! The other thing I love is that people actually did it - they reported on the dinner they made that night!
  
• I think I'm pretty set on this one. We eat from our food storage a couple times a week and, because I'm my father's daughter, there's always a side dish or two!
• Someone made the comment about the real challenge being not getting in a fight with the husband during this - she probably means because he invited the guests unexpectedly in the first place. However, I think just the stress of an everyday situation (not to mention natural disaster or financial disaster!) is something that can be avoided by, not only being prepared, but by "practicing." Eating food storage, reviewing emergency kits together, talking about these things. ordering food from the cannery together, etc. Doing challenges like this one.
  

Day 4: Economic Crisis -”Money is TIGHT!”

• It just occurred to me that by this day, I would not have been able to spend any money for 4 days - and there's 3 more days!
  
• I don't know the first thing about how to deal w/ having the water turned off. There are good ideas in the comments for how to substitute for toilet water, etc, but I would just be stressed out.
• Also, I sure hope these emergencies occur before we have children, and not after, ever.
  

Day 5: Natural Disaster -”Earthquake!”

• Total flunk. No car shovel, no computer back-up. We have food in the freezer - but no way to cook it or heat it (or make a smoothie with it).
• This brings to mind what we should be asking for for Christmas
  

Day 6: Diet Disaster -”Healthy lifestyle”

• Thank you, Weight Watchers. And, I missed my workout to write this blog.
  
• PS. I don't actually know what "from scratch" means. Maybe I do this most of the time already?
  

Day 7: Every Day Emergency -”Why Didn’t you Ask for this Sooner?”

• I have powdered milk, but not the other items (shelf-stable butter or eggs). No bake cookies? I actually feel confident that I could come up with a few things that don't require butter or eggs. I won't think of them now because I'm tired, and also because I might be wrong and I don't want to be (but Stephanie, in a real emergency, you don't have the luxury of being wrong).
  
• I guess I could have completed this challenge by asking a neighbor. But, ahh, we have been ultra lame about getting to know our neighbors, which is an important lesson. I'll want to be on good terms with them if I'm needing their help, if I'm needing to survive something with them, etc.
  

thanks nylands!

For Sunday Dinner Stephanie and Rob spoiled us by cooking us DELICIOUS Indian food. They will have to say what everything was, I just know that it tasted yummy in my tummy. Some people's tummies got too full (see pictures below). My favorite was the naan that Rob grilled on the BBQ. Y-um!!! Thanks again Nylands!

James liked dinner, he ate too much. Darn Fast Sunday for shrinking your stomach:

four months old now!!

Thanks to Monica (the pro blogger) I can now post. My baby is four months old today! Leah and I took some pics of Miss Clara...Leah was my assistant, mostly helping her smile and look at the camera.

What a pretty girl....or am I just biased?


You gotta love that face...she gets no sympathy around here with a cute boo boo lip like that.

Leah wanted a turn at the camera....so she took this one, not too shabby. Speaking of Leah...the next three photos are of her jumping, her new favorite past time (our downstairs neighbor must hate us). She lines up toys and jumps over them, lines up diapers and jumps over them, she even trys to jump over the baby...which gets her in trouble. So here's Leah and one of her many talents, she's jumping over the baby's blanket.