My thoughts and us now

Bekah my amazing strong roommate
James meeting Santa for first time
Best shot of open gifts
Little Zoey dear sleeping
Me after getting ready for my Christmas eve dinner of "godless Chinese" (Jon Taylor says)
Jonathan and our darling niece Kira Christmas 2009 in NC




Well I suppose its about time that I post something since I am now living in California and Jonathan is in Virgina. Merry Christmas to all since its today and all. Well lets see. James and I are loving it here, we have a wonderful little puppy named Zoey. She is such a sweetie. A joy to have, and a great snuggle buddy. We also have a roommate, who's husband is on deployment until next month at some point. So we are fairing quite well. Us two gals, our dogs and James. She is quite busy between church, school and work. I will take what little time we get. James is doing really well. He loves having Jack and Saddie to play with ( the parents to my puppy) and Bek too. I he talking up a storm and kissing mama all the time ( I make him mind you, but still lol). He is just as smart as ever and is growing up way way way too fast. He is nineteen and a half months old. I am meeting a couple about nanning for them sometime next week. I really hope that I get it so that James can have a little friend and so that we can have a little more of a side income as well as an outlet. I am waiting also on my refurral for my colposkyopy. I will up date you all as soon as I know something about that. I have been having too many migraines so I have recently been put on some new meds that are helping maybe... it maybe too soon to tell. I really hope that they get ride of them though... I had 10 - 12 in about 12 days. Mind you my stress level has been something that I have been choosing to not deal with. I refuse to deal with how much I miss my husband (until I had my break down a week and a half ago lol). MY father in law told me today that I put out a really tough exterior but underneath it, he knows I am really soft on the inside. I make fun of Jonathan for that very thing. Hahaha, I guess in the end, I am the same. Well thats is about it other than Jonathan is really missing his wife and son. We have been apart for over two months now. He is in North Carolina now with Cam, Nikki, and Kira having a blast. I am so glad that they are close by. He will be on hold soon, so James and I will go to him hopefully. After that, Jon will go to Maryland.... than here to Cali!!!! I love that I can eat a popsicle in the end of December, just put on a jacket and be fine going to the store. Well thank you for listening to the rantings and ravings again

James

Look out folks..... baby James is starting to walk. Here is a little clip of him doing so as well as his backwards crawl enjoy

James and his mohawk

For those of you who would like to see his new hair cut here ye go :D

Our family 5/27/09

I know its been quite a while since I have written so I shall at last fill you in to the best of my knowledge.

As of right now, Jon is almost done with school and feeling much better about things to do with that. Which also means, we could get transferred to our new house sooner than October. Look out Cali here we come!!! Jon is still talking about one day doing Law school, as you all know he mostly works his way through the thought. He has brought it up several times and maybe seriously considering it. He is loving his time home with his family and loving that James is also turning into a daddy's boy :D

James just turned one and is loving screaming at me at just about EVERYTHING!! He is also trying to break out of his crib! He is always trying to help me out and pull everything I could ever need and more out of the kitchen cupboards lol. I just went to check on him and he was into his towel drawer and had pulled them all out and sittin on them. Silly boy. He has learned how to say "I do" and "I do it" and in the right places. He is just about to take off runnin too!!! Look out world. He HATES the vacuum cleaner hahahah My little helper is pullin out all the dvds we own..... love his help. Where would I be with out him. We took him to the park the other day and went down a few slides.. don't really think he liked that much. Then we pushed him on a baby swing... he had a love hate relationship with it lol

Me, well lets see I just got back from a trip to Utah and Idaho( about a month) lol and have since had a kidney infection caused by e coli. I pretty much wanted to die!! The worst pain I have ever been in in my life!!! I have been busting my butt to clean the heck out of my house and are having four ladies over for a late breakfast today... I am meeting new ladies and liking Chicago more and more each passing day. I went on a date with one of the other wives last friday for dinner and a movie, IT WAS AMAZING!!! We have decided to do it every two weeks... I also got a unlimited pass to go tannin and a ESPRESSO MAKER for moms day :D
Well thats all I can think of now lol enjoy some pictures and the little bit of in site to my life :D

Leaving

Today has been a bitter sweet day. Jon has to be at school on our last night together and he may not be home tonight :( So here are some pictures of the two of them in the last day for two and a half weeks, if you would like to see them.

Today so far nothing has really happened lol, but we did get up about an hour ago so.. still plenty of time. Lets see Jon is still in school, and doing very well. Last I heard he was at an 88% average and all he has to do to graduate with honers it to get 90. Not bad at all. James is crawling around the house only eating things I don't want him to. We are trying to teach him to eat cheerioes no such luck except the one lonely one that had been on the floor who knows how long. Hahahah Things are going well though, honestly, I cant complain. I am looking forward to coming home with in the next few weeks!!! Still making all the plans in me head as to what I am going to do :D Can't wait. Well anyway the reason to write today was to show you my new hair cut and my hair color that isn't quite so new lol I don't look so great, but still I hope you can get the idea

Well hello there :D Just thought I would add a few little videos I took of James. Things are going great with us and just keep getting better. I have met some more new friends and I look forward to hearing from the doctor tomorrow. Jon is doing great in school and still liking it more and more. James is starting to crawl, its like a mix between a military and regular crawl.. all and all pretty dang cute :D He also loves his bday present( daddy opened it early) and another video of that :D Love love love, The Taylors

Mushroom Pork Chops
( for some reason it wont let me put up pictures here is the url of where I got the recipe if you would like to see what it looks like http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Mushroom-Pork-Chops/Detail.aspx)

• 4 pork chops
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 pinch garlic salt, or to taste
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup

DIRECTIONS

1. Season pork chops with salt, pepper, and garlic salt to taste.
2. In a large skillet, brown the chops over medium-high heat. Add the onion and mushrooms, and saute for one minute. Pour cream of mushroom soup over chops. Cover skillet, and reduce temperature to medium-low. Simmer 20 to 30 minutes, or until chops are cooked through.

Jon and I loved this one. He said he has never had pork this moist, he kept calling it chicken. We also had mashed potatoes with it. The mushrooms and onions made a GREAT gravy

Mushroom and Swiss Chicken ( ulr http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Mushroom-and-Swiss-Chicken/Detail.aspx)

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 2 cloves crushed garlic
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Cajun-style seasoning
• 1 cup chopped green onion
• 1 (8 ounce) package sliced fresh mushrooms
• 4 slices Swiss cheese

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Combine oil and garlic in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Add chicken breasts and coat well with the oil and garlic. Sprinkle with the vinegar and Cajun seasoning.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.
• Remove chicken from oven and cover with green onion and mushrooms; then add a few more sprinkles of oil and vinegar and return dish to oven for 15 to 20 minutes more. Remove from oven and immediately place 1 slice of cheese on top of each chicken breast; cheese will melt. Serve immediately.

Teriyaki Chicken (ulr http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Teriyaki-Chicken/Detail.aspx)

Ingredients

• 1 (3 pound) whole chicken, cut in half
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Directions

1. Rinse chicken halves, and pat dry with paper towels. Place chicken cut side down in a 9x13 inch baking dish.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine sugar, soy sauce, grated ginger and garlic. Mix well, and pour mixture over chicken. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
4. Bake chicken uncovered in the preheated oven for 1 hour, basting frequently. Test for doneness, making sure there is no pink left in the meat. Let cool slightly, then cut into smaller pieces to serve.

FYI- I had a very hard time cutting the chicken in half, but this was FANTASTIC!! I would do it with someone suggested drumsticks... I also doubled the marinade and cooked it over night and used brown sugar.. all the choices were TO DIE FOR

Buffalo Chicken Chili (ulr http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Buffalo-Chicken-Chili/Detail.aspx)

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 pounds ground chicken breast
• 1 large carrot, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, chopped
• 5 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon ground paprika
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup hot buffalo wing sauce (such as Frank's® REDHOT Buffalo Wing Sauce), or to taste
• 2 (15 ounce) cans tomato sauce
• 1 (15 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 (15 ounce) can white kidney or cannellini beans, drained
• 1 (19 ounce) can red kidney beans, drained

Directions

1. Heat olive oil and butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Place chicken in the pot. Cook and stir 7 to 10 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink. Stir in the carrot, onion, celery, garlic, chili powder, cumin, paprika, and salt and pepper, and cook and stir until the onion is translucent and the vegetables are beginning to soften, 3 to 4 more minutes.
2. Stir in the hot sauce, tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, and white and red kidney beans. Bring to a boil, and simmer over medium-low heat about 1 hour, until the vegetables are tender and the flavors have blended.

FYI I just added it all and cooked it in the crock pot. I cooked the chicken first and did one huge can of crushed tomatoes and a huge kidney beans. I added everything else just more of it. If you don't want it so spicy.. you can add more butter. We loved this and are still enjoying it :D

Feb 25 2009

Hello all,

Just thought I would fill you in again and share some really yummy recipes if you should feel the need to try them.

Jon is doing well and loving his new class. He is aloud to talk and feels more at ease. He missed passing his first test by just a little bit and had to study all day yesterday. He was a little bummed, I am sure today was better. He is now officially in a band with friends Brandon Steineckert ( the drummer for Rancid) Brian ( used to be music something or other for several bands) and the former bassist for Funeral For A Friend. Jon is pretty stoked about it and thinks the only reason its working now in his favor is because he has other things to take up his time like work, family and his own music. Jon and I are feeling much better about his dad's condition. He can hopefully be back in work on Monday after dealing with the hospital and such for about three months. It Jon's twenty fifth birthday on the 1th of March. I am so proud of him and his many sacrifics and love he so freely gives to us, his family. I am so lucky to call mycself his wife :D

James is just about crawling. He has been doing so backwards for like two months, but now he gets down on all fours and rocks back and forth. Jon said he saw James moving his one knee forward. I would be suprized if he isn't crwaling by the end of the week. Its so fun to see him practicing the many things Jon and I show him. He talks so much. Today he met a little girl about his age and he wouldn't shut up!! Maybe he was hitting on her. James is much farther advanced than the little girl. She doesn't even say "mama" and James has been saying that for about four months :D His fourth tooth is poking out. He is loving food and spending timw with mama and daddy. He plays hard and rests less :D
I guess that brings us to me. As many of you know, I have been having health issues as of lately. I have recently found out I have HVP. Something that can be transmitted from one partner to another, or I guess can be developed by bacteria infections ( as in my case). Its the main cause of cervical cancer. Even if the HVP goes away on its own, I still have to worry about the cancer fact until I die. I had an abnormal pap and was told that I am not aloud to have kids until it shows as normal. I had a colopscopy today and saw two inflamed areas that they were worried about. I should know something by next Wednesday. Jon and I have been working out with our new toys ( treadmill and weght set) and shedding the pounds. I have lost maybe 5 or so pounds since I have been on it. I also have been cooking alot and making fun and healthy meals. Here are a few of them. Please feel free to try them and enjoy as we have.

James being a rockin fool. I haven't watched this, but Jon filmed it today and thought I would share. James had three teeth now and chipped one the day after he got it in :( Other than that.. nothin too much is goin on. Jon is hopefully starting A School this week. Its been really nice though to have him home a bunch this week. Well we love you all and will keep you posted

James, Jon and Em

Today was a fun filled day. We had a photo opp and then James and I went to a ward play date. After we had our fill of other kids, we went to Sweet Tomatoes :D Right after we got home, I got a call from a friend who has a friend who wants to get rid of a couch and love seat and has a truck to do so!!! Hopefully we will have them this week end with out having to pay a cent!!! I got a call from my mama too and then my daddy. Its so great to hear from the family. I just thought that I would write a note, oh and bye the way, I am feelin so much better!!! Thank you for all the love. James and Jon were being silly at the dinner table, so I thought I would add that video as well! Love you all, Em