Dinner From The Garden

Other than the rice/chicken I threw together, we had a delicious garden dinner! We are so grateful for the blessing of growing a garden! Everything was yummy and we can't wait to try what it produces next!

Pooped!

They really do just wear each other out! This moment was caught after a morning run and weeding in the garden for two hours!

Drum Roll Please...

After TWO years we now have a bathroom door! Thanks babe for figuring out a way to allow our guests to not feel so awkward!

Live & Learn

This adorable face...

Who loves to do adorable things like cuddle..

Did this not so adorable thing to our family room!

Found the RED paint - check

Made RED paw prints all over our bed - check

Ate my Geology book - check

Ate a roll of paper towels - check

We still LOVE her and are pretty okay with the first really bad thing she did. We could hardly scold her as we were laughing so hard. We knew we should have put her in her kennel for those 30 minutes because we could tell she was upset we were leaving. Oh well, live and learn!

ScrapFest 2009

This year our ScrapFest was in Park City, Utah! Thanks again to Molly's aunt and uncle who have an unbelievably beautiful condo where we were all treated like queens! I mean hello our own big beds and bathrooms?! The best part was, there was a maid service so we didn't have to clean afterwards! Although we shared a lot of emotion, and some germs (we had a sicky), it was so memorable! Thanks again ladies! Miss you - until next year!

Me and Beth picked Sarah up at the airport and took her to the temple since she hadn't seen it in 15+ years! It was so neat!

What goes up...

Must come down! Alpine slide!

Don't worry we didn't tell them that Molly was pregnant!

Our yummy late night snack!

Proof that we did scrapbook!

Me playing around with Molly's camera!

Sarah playing around with Molly's camera - ugh!

Sarah and I were outside taking photos and we saw this fence behind the condo and we looked harder and both screamed (out of excitement) because there was an old cemetery! We grabbed our shoes and snuck in through the fence to see all these cool headstone. Some had moss and most were from the late 1800's. It was an unexpected surprise!

My idea - but I had Sarah take it!

We are all nosey when it comes to cemeteries (right?) and we were thrilled to find this little treasure at the caretakers cottage where it said the names, ages, and reasons for death!

Scrapfest 2009!

The Fruits {Vegetables} of Our Labor

Today was a rewarding one!

It has rained nonstop for like 15 days so our garden has:

1} been neglected so it is over grown with weeds and

2} been producing beautiful plants

We still haven't figured out why watering the garden does nothing yet when it rains things pop up over night!

Phillip working in the garden.

Shelby watching and wanting to help but she had already had one bath for the day and the mud would have been cause for a second.

Our first pick from the garden!

And 100 later, we still have 3/4 of a row ready to be picked and eaten!

Nap Time

Sushi...YUCK!

I swore I would never try sushi. It has never appealed to me. Well the day after I got back from Arizona our friends invited us to go out. I figured Jenni and I would just get something else, but then I decided that maybe I'd just try one bite. So on the count of 3 the two of us took a bite!

I can't say I LOVE it, nor do I LIKE it, but I ATE it. It was just ok and I think I'm just not a fan of sea weed. Me and Jenni did get a yummy spicy dish with veggies, noodles, and beef.

Will I try sushi again...sure!

Arizona

My trip to AZ started off a little rocky with a two hour delay. The highlight though was running into one of my friends Crystal Schofield from third grade! It was so fun to chit chat and catch up! The first thing my mom, Tim, and I did when I landed was hit up Gecko Grill (of course) then us girls got amazing pedicures! They used these hot stones and we were in heaven! I had them paint my nails too.

We ended the night seeing Wolverine. The next day my dad and Stacey picked me up and I spent a wonderful week in Pima having all the Mexican food my heart could desire! I tell you what I was almost sick of it when I left...almost! These were the moments I will remember.

(By the way that is Max, Shelby's dad and his tongue is the biggest thing I've ever seen! It's so big it doesn't fit in his mouth and is sunburned on the end).

I was able to spend the weekend with my mom and Tim again plus my brother and nephew. We spent the morning having water fights (yes my mom let us play inside too)!

Then me and this rad chicka went to lunch to celebrate her birthing day! She was sooo embarrassed!

And at the end of the day/trip I was able to go to my aunt Shawna's wedding! It was really fun and I wish her and Jim the best!

I was sad to leave, but my hubby and diggity dog missed me too much to stay any longer! Thanks for all the fun memories everyone!

*Moments not pictured but oh so important:

Sitting around at grandmas house talking and fighting over who got to sit in front of her for her to play with our hair (I won because I am the favorite oldest granddaughter and I was visiting).

Seeing Angels and Demons with my dad and Stacey.

Spending 4 glorious hours at Scrapbooks Etc (You wouldn't understand unless a} you've been there before or b} you are a serious scrapbooker)!

Singing "The Wheels On The Bus" with my nephew over and over and him being able to sing it all by himself to me on the phone now!

Having a delish bbq at my grandparents (oh man their new kitchen rocks)!

Seeing my grandmothers beautiful life story that she has dedicated her whole heart to.

Spending my traditional Tuesday afternoon with G-ma and Lynn (Casa, Medicap, Walmart, Thrift Shop, and the Scrapbook Store).

Random Updates

A bunch of random stuff has happened lately, so in no particular order...

We finished spring semester with good grades!

We've now started summer semester...full time ugh!

I am working at the Graduate School at Utah State part time!

We have a new addition to our family...SHELBY!

We've taken a few extra naps (Phil and Shelby have synchronized their snoring)!

We got our garden planted - finally!

Phillip & Shelby spoiled me for Mother's Day with beautiful flowers, a yummy breakfast, and wii fit! We also had Phil's mom & dad, and his sister Machelle & Tim (her husband) over for dinner!

We put up a fence for Shelby to play!

And this adorable couple got engaged!!!

Thank You

I have to say thank you to my dear friend Crystal Schofield who I haven't seen in over 10 years! She just happened to be on my flight to Arizona last week and we were able to sit by each other and catch up a little (last time I flew to AZ her sister was on my flight)! She shared THIS amazing talk with me and I want to share it with you!

I promise to have an update soon on all our crazy happenings!

Who Knew?!

Garden?!

This cute guy (although insanely dirty)...

...spent the entire morning (after not sleeping for 2 days) in the pouring rain picking out all the dandelions in our future garden. He says it was just an excuse to play in the rain and mud as an adult.

 

I wonder if we just aren't meant to plant a garden because last year THIS happened, and this year it rained all day! I guess we'll have to try and till later in the week after Phillip and his brothers go on their annual hiking trip.

Spring Fever

The semester is coming to an end and studying for finals is draining!  Of course the sun is out and oh so very tempting! Naturally we needed to eat lunch, and we both were itching for a break, so we hurried and packed a yummy lunch and had a picnic at first dam (which is like maybe a mile from our house)! We really only stayed for 30 minutes because we both have papers to write and more than enough studying to do, but it was a perfect little escape from reality!

Feeding the ducks!

Don't look at our ugly feet (Mom I can't wait for our pedicures)!

Yeah for sunny days!!!

Conference Time

house cleaned...............check

homework done............check

projects lined up...........check

i love general conference where I can park my bum on my comfy sofa and listen to the wonderful messages while in my jammies! plus i can get a few projects done too!

hApPy gIrL!!!

I got my May issue of Creating Keepsakes today and I spent the afternoon reading it cover to cover!  When I came to the last page {which I am learning is a hidden secret} I found the most amazing news! Basic Grey has partnered with Moda Fabric and made one of my favorite lines into fabric! Oh man I am already designing a quilt pattern and thinking of sewing projects!

This Is AMAZING!

Laugh of the Day!

My uncle sent me this HILARIOUS email and as a current student {struggling in math} it cracked me up!

St. Patrick's Day

We decided at the last minute to throw together a little St. Patrick's Day dinner with Phil's sister Malissa and her {very} serious boyfriend! I swear they are the cutest couple!

We kept it very simple with just green accented things. So green sherbet drinks w/ 7up...

...with bbq chicken, pull apart bread, potatoes, and green beans. 

Then my aunt and I were talking and she gave me a rad idea to make a green edible fruit arrangement. So I got to work melting white chocolate to dip the fruit in lime green and dark green. I used this cute basket...

 

...and had the arrangement all pretty and sitting on the table. I used green grapes, kiwi, and strawberries. Only minutes before they arrived, the table was bumped and it came crashing down! I cried {only because I didn't take a picture first}! So the dang fruit {which I hate anyways} was grudgingly placed in this LAME dish and I drizzled the few remaining drops of chocolate over the top. Oh well! My husband said it still tasted great and in the end that's all that mattered!

We played a few games, including wii Mario Kart which was hilarious, and ended the evening with a yummy Andes mint dessert Malissa made!  So fun!

sPrInG bReAk!!!

We did a whole lot of nada for spring break - which was actually really nice! I quickly jotted down the random things we did each day.

Friday:  We both got done with school by noon and let me tell you we were stressed right up until the end! Phil had 2 huge tests two days in a row and I had a five page paper and huge design theory assignment. Needless to say we were stoked to have a week off! I had to do a few things for the shower I was throwing Saturday, so that took up most of my afternoon. We did go over to our friends house to play games for a short little while. My silly hubby locked us out of our house which led us to a nice visit with our neighbors next door. We then ended the night in jammies watching tv, eating treats, and figuring out our summer semester schedules.

Saturday:  I got up earlier than I'd like to on a Saturday morning, but happily did so because my friend and I were throwing the sweetest girl a baby shower! It was a complete success and we planned everything down to the food perfectly! The sun was out and the snow had melted, so Phil and I took advantage and got all the Valentine decor boxed up and under the house and pulled out our St Patrick's Day stuff. Then we went grocery shopping with some friends and decided to do a bbq at the last minute (On a side note, while at Walmart there was this lost 18 month old boy. He was running up and down the isles screaming and so I grabbed him because no one would. He stopped crying and I took him to the front - he was lost for a good 15 minutes - and the mom finally found him and she was LAUGHING! I was so mad!). Anyways, our bbq was fun and us girls chatted the whole time while the boys played this new airplane game on the wii - nerds! I helped my friend Nikki make her Twilight Pajama Party poster (it's for our movie night for Relief Society) and handouts, then when they all went home I threw together my poster for the Relief Society birthday and handouts for that. I crawled into bed at 2:30 am...not realizing it was technically 3:30 am!

Sunday:  We grudgingly woke up at 7:30 am (I hate daylight savings and losing an hour) to go to church. We thoroughly enjoyed our meetings although we were small in numbers due to spring break. We had a few couples over for dinner and combined what we all had on hand. We had a small pork roast and someone else had an elk roast, so we added rolls, potatoes, and corn to the menu plus picnic cake for dessert. The guys played wii while the girls talked and then we played the bate and switch and got the guys to play 'hand and foot'. SO fun! When those friends left (they both had very tired babies), we were invited (at 11:00) to another couples house to play 'scum'. Finally calling it a night in the wee hours of the morning!

Monday:  We woke up to a beautiful white out and 2 feet of snow (after sleeping in longer than I'd like to admit)! I spent some of the day purging our office and re-organizing. We had an awesome family night with some friends after having them come over for some yummy soup and cornbread!

Tuesday:  We slept in again and have resigned ourselves to do so the rest of the week! I spent a good part of the day in the office continuing the projects started the day before. Phil had a meeting later in the afternoon and then he and a friend went out to sushi (YUCK). I got together with a few friends to make cards/scrapbook, but lets face it, we all just ended up talking! I loved it! Phil and I ended up watching Australia, which was good but I swore the movie was going to end like 5 times. We didn't crawl into bed until after 2:00 am (refer to the first sentence for the day)!

Wednesday:  The sun was out which meant a bike ride was a must! I started the day with laundry and ended up going shopping with a friend. Phil got to babysit her baby while we ran around town. Her and I finished my dvd project (another post) and I am thrilled to have that crossed off my list! Her and her husband ended up coming over for dinner and playing cards for a few hours! So fun! After they left we watched a movie and then called it a night.

Thursday:  I am glad to say that we only slept in until 9:30 (a vast improvement from the rest of the week)! I was adamant that I finish the office...but didn't quite do so. I cleaned and did a few projects as I went (hey I couldn't help myself when I found old to-do's). At least there is now an end in sight! I got side tracked easily and ended up making chocolate chip cookies Phillip went on another bike ride with a friend in the afternoon. He then spent the remainder of the day working on a paper. He spent the evening helping a friend with his car, and another friend with an electrical problem. We ended the night catching up on a few tivo'd shows.

Friday:  We slept in a gain, but I got invited with the neighbor girls to lunch! Phil went on a nice bike ride while I was gone. We had a lazy afternoon although I tried to work on the office and Phil did his research paper. We ended the night at our friends playing Settlers of Catan (because they got a new expansion pack so we could have 6 players).

Saturday:  We started the morning with homemade biscuits and gravy! I hitched a ride and went grocery shopping with some friends, then spent the afternoon at Sam's Club with another friend. I spent way too much money, but we were so in need of a big stock up! Phil helped a friend uninstall and reinstall a water heater. Then we went over to our neighbors for some good dutch oven cooking and a movie! I did sneak in a little reading just before bed and Phil graciously gave me a 3 hour pedicure!

Sunday:  I still had a lingering headache from the night before which increasingly got worse so we didn't go to church. After trying to sleep in and use all my tips and tricks to make it go away, Phil ended up going to the store to get me some Dr. Pepper. Unfortunately my headache never went away and I missed out on a birthday party, and games with friends. I laid on the couch all night, and after my stomach started bothering me I ended up just going to bed.

Twilight!!!

In case anyone is wondering...Twilight comes out in 18 days {yes, I will be going at midnight}!!! I can't wait! I figured I'd share a little secret though!

 

Target is having a 3-Disc Deluxe Edition opposed to the 2-Disc Specials everyone else is offering! 

Click {here} for the link!

Simple Date Night

We started our night with a fun dinner of appetizers.

We each picked one that we wanted and then decided on one together. We tried to be a little healthy so we also had a salad. 

After dinner came the not so fun part...but very important. We re-did our budget! We have felt the overwhelming need to get our food storage lately, so we successfully figured out a way to accomodate that and plan for a possible future move (grad school next year).

 

And then we decided to have a little fun and play the Wii! It helped the both of us lighten up after such a serious topic! Yeah for simple date nights!

Valentines Day Continued...

So because Phillip had to sleep this weekend, he said that he had a Valentines Day surprise that he'd do on Tuesday!  After getting to sleep in, I woke up to the yummy aroma of blueberry muffins (my favorite kind too)!

Then I opened an adorable card with a cover that said something about coloring my world...and Phillip wrote about how kids must be onto something when it comes to stress because they never have any!  So to cure us of our stressful week, we were going to be kids for the morning and laugh while watching cartoons and coloring!  It was silly and fun, but it really did help!  I love that my sweet husband was so creative and thoughtful!

Happy Valentines

On Saturday morning Phillip got home from work around 8:30 am, and woke me up so he could take me to breakfast!  My favorite breakfast is biscuits and gravy, but since they are a little hard to make, he opted to take me to IHOP instead!  So yummy!

{Don't mind the awesome morning look for me and 24 hours of no sleep for Phil}

After breakfast we picked up our taxes from our tax guy (yeah for having them done so early) and found out we were getting returns!  Although we paid an arm and a leg to get them done, it was so worth it!

Then it was off to the hospital to visit this adorable baby!  Miss Morgynn!  She gave her mommy a run for her money after 23 hours of labor, but she was oh so worth it - all 9 lbs 2 oz of her!  We have already dubbed ourselves her babysitter!  

Phillip ended up going to sleep for the rest of the day (he had to work at midnight).  I did wake him up for our traditional heart shaped meatloaf Valentines dinner.  I even found this yummy new pomegranate sparkling cider!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I'm Going To Be An Aunt...

AGAIN!  It's a boy! 

 

This precious little guy is gonna be a big brother!

8 Years!!!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this man!  We celebrated our 8th Anniversary today!  He is amazing and I am truly blessed to be married to him!  We had a crazy busy schedule and didn't get to do much together until dinner time.  We ate at Olive Garden and then came home for a relaxing evening where I surprised Phillip with a present he's been wanting for a long time!  He had no clue that I had been saving money behind his back forever (oops)!  I gave him a card that said "Sometimes I just don't know why I put up with you..." then the inside said "...and then I remember you put up with me!"  Then I wrote something like "And since "wii" put up with each other for this long...!"  

He just kept saying are you serious?!  No way!  It was a fun surprise!

Valentine's Day Ideas

Just thought I'd post a few simple and cute ideas for Valentines.

10 Things I Love About You Album

14 Days of Valentines

Homemade Coupon Book

Homemade Valentine Card

Dinner (heart shaped meatloaf)

Heart Shaped Giant Cookie

Valentines Survival Kit

Make a "Love CD"

Scavenger Hunt

Pizza With a Message

14 Days of Valentines

Just a reminder that February 1st is quickly approaching if you want to do the 14 Days of Valentines. If you don't know what I'm talking about you can click here for some ideas. Remember the key is simple and inexpensive. I always start at the dollar store. They have cards 2 for $1 and lots of cheesy heart day items. This year I got most of my items at the dollar store, then found a few other things at the grocery store. The first day I like to start with something that goes on the mirror or another idea from last year was this. So below is just a few items that I already purchased. Remember to have fun with it!

 

Mmm Mmm Good

I don't know what it is about stormy days, but I LOVE to bake! Today is no exception! Phillip requested cookies, and we are out of bread so those are at the top of my list. I figure I might as well do a batch of rolls while I'm at it. My house smells so yummy (who needs a candle)!

• Make chocolate chips cookies
  
• Make bread for the week 
• Flash freeze homemade rolls

Amy The Great

So I worship the ground my friend AMY walks on! She introduced me to reader through gmail and my life has gotten just that much simpler! I am truly loving it! It's like one stop shopping! So I have taken the links off the side of my toolbar because I hated having my friends/family exposed to blog stalkers. Plus I was checking my blog to see if anyone updated, then checking the ones I hadn't added. On top of that blogger is pretty much retarded half the time and people would updated, but it never said they did. Okay, sorry for ranting. Check it out my friends, it saves me precious time to do more important things like clean my house!  Happy Wednesday!

My New Bible

This friends, is my new bible! I am in L-O-V-E! I highly recommend it! If you don't have it, you can purchase it here or run out and buy it today. EVERYTHING in it is so yummy! Yeah for real recipes!

It's Finally Here

The idea has been rolling around in my head for years, and I finally just took the plunge.  Although it isn't anything like I envisioned, and there are million things I'd change {the perfectionist in me}, I just did it!  I made it simple and easy and there's no turning back now!  Enjoy!

{Update: There will be a new recipe added everyday that follows my dinner menu for the month.}

Serious Icicles

Since our next semester starts Monday {and we both are taking roughly 17 credits}, Phillip and I have spent this week cleaning and purging so we can be organized from the get go!  When I suggested he put all the Christmas stuff away he laughed and told me the lights would have to wait because they were kinda sorta buried. I was confused so he pulled me outside and showed me this:

Not 20 minutes later the entire thing came down {luckily Phillip heard it and jumped out of the way in time}!  So he didn't get out of the chore!  One funny thing about the icicles on our house is they are all completely sideways!  The wind blows so much and so hard here that they end up that way.  Anyway, long story short...Christmas is all put away and we are making huge progress on out to-do lists!

I Swore...

I swore to myself that I wouldn't add links to the peoples blogs I stalk, but I finally decided that I was wasting too much time everyday going to each persons blog and seeing if they updated it.  So, I caved.  With school starting in a week and taking 17 credit hours I figure I will save myself time in every way shape and form.  Starting with my internet use.  So if I forgot to add you, or you would like to be taken off, just email me.

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone had a very MeRry ChRisTmAs!  I am still in shock that it's over, but I am thrilled to share with everyone the most thoughtful and amazing gift my husband made!  He was more excited to give me the gift than anything else this morning.  He even cried when he gave it to me! 

Since starting his new job and doing the graveyard shift I mentioned to him a few times that it's hard to sleep at night when he isn't there to cuddle with.  So apparently he conspired with some wonderful people and came up with an awesome gift!  I had no clue what was going on {other than he was gone hours on end at our neighbors}.  And hello, he is incredibly talented because he sewed it himself {who knew}!  

So without further delay...let me introduce....

Phil-In

He kinda reminds me of Shrek, but my husband was even so thoughtful as to make him match our room {brown, sage, and tan}.  Not only that, he even used the really soft minkee fabric.  And for extra measure, his arms are really long so I can wrap them around me!

On a side note, we made it home to Logan ALIVE!  We were getting a little nervous because the roads were REALLY bad and the snow was coming down so hard.  We even stopped to pull people out of the snow banks {thanks to our 4 wheel drive Land Rover}.  We came home to a TON of snow that hasn't been plowed yet.  In fact there is so much snow that we can basically walk right onto our second step on our porch the snow is that deep.  We love it though!

Move Over Betty Crocker

This year I was bound and determined to make plates of Christmas goodies, and since we have been snowed in all week, I was able to do just that!  I made caramels, andes mints, spritz, almond toffee and, peppermint kiss cookies.  It was so fun!  And check out my cute apron my mom made me!  LOVE IT!

DONE!

I finally got all these bad boys mailed out!  Ahh...what a relief!  I am disappointed because 1} I didn't get them out December 1st, 2} They consumed far too much of my time 3} I didn't get to use my favorite picture from our photo shoot, and 4} They don't look anything like the idea I had in my head.  Oh well, right?!  Merry Christmas!

sNoW!

{To the hymn of "Oh What Do You Do In The Summertime"}

Oh what do you do on a snowy day when all the world is white?!

Do you crawl back in bed,

and pull warm covers over head,

and read the entire book TWILIGHT?!

Is that what you do...so does my husband!

Proof!

Parade

Just a few pictures of us at the  Safford light parade, which was really neat, but very cold!

YO DAWG

So it's no secret, we LOVE boxers.  My dad is lucky enough to have two!  Shelby and Max.  Max is Shelby's dad and let me tell you, he is huge.  This picture makes them look so small.  Max is as tall as me when he jumps up!  Phillip walked the dogs almost everyday while we were there.  He wants a boxer so bad!  Some day babe!

Games

You better believe we busted out the dominoes while in Pima!  We ended up going over to my grandparents one night and they had an entire spread of snacks...which rocked and kept us going 'til the wee hours!  So fun!

Little Jaron

I loved every moment I got to spend with this little guy!  He is so fun to be around.  Aunty Nay taught him how to say Ho Ho Ho {although it only came out as Ho Ho}!

Thanksgiving

We were so very blessed to go down to Arizona for Thanksgiving and spend a week and a half with my dad and his family.  Thanksgiving dinner was delicious, and it was so great to spend the day with everyone!

Bridal Shower

I had the opportunity to throw a shower with my sister in laws for Phillip's sister Machelle who is getting married in January!  It was so fun!  I had about 24 hours notice to get the invites done because we changed the date so I got creative and used what I had and kept it simple!

We played some cute games and had a delicious lunch!  She scored on presents and I think I embarrassed her a little with my gift which was "first night"!  Gotta love a blushing bride!

And then right before we left to go back home to Logan I got to stop off at my aunt and uncles house and see their new baby girl Shawnie Ray Harmon!  They finally got their girl, and she is adorable.  I made her the boppy she is laying on along with some cute bows!

TWILIGHT PARTY!!!

{WARNING: PICTURE OVERLOAD}

I finally gathered some of the pictures from my little Twilight party!  It was so fun and crazy!  I of course didn't get everything done that I wanted to and when I got there everyone helped with the finishing touches (thanks for doing the apple votives and setting the table ladies)!

Here were the invites {thanks Amy}!

Here are pictures of the table {red & white polka dot and black zebra striped theme}.

We started with a simple peppercorn ranch salad topped with fresh parmesan cheese.  For the main course we had spicy {sorry} spaghetti and strawberry pretzel jello.

Then we played some cheesy fun games, starting with a bubble blowing contest!  This was so hilarious!  The catch was, you had to do it with vampire teeth.  It was ridiculously hard and I think only Heather was able to blow a bubble {you go girl}!  The best part was no one said a word because we were laughing so hard and drooling!

Now I have to preface the next game.  We played this awesome jeopardy game, but I didn't have time to finish it before the party.  Originally I wanted to do it on red fabric with black and white zebra print letters at the top that said TWILIGHT.  I got the letters cut out, but never finished putting it all together.  I also never got the questions put on the back, so we still played the game, just make shift, haha!  Great fun though and Britny knew almost everything!  She amazed us with the trivia she knew!

And each girl had a bag on her chair that included a bookmark, a Twilight cd and a t-shirt that said:

{god grant me the serenity to know that Edward is not real, the courage to live in my own reality, and the wisdom to know the difference}

The front of the shirts had a red polka dot heart and even though I didn't finish all of them, there was a black button at the corner of the heart.

We headed to the theater shortly after the game {which was around 10} and we got great seats {there were people there at noon}.  We took along my good sport of a husband to chaperone us and save our seats while we played card games down on the floor of the theater {eww it was gross}.  We were apparently pretty cool because girls kept wanting to play games with us and we were stopped numerous times to read our shirts and take pictures of us.  

The party was so fun and I'm grateful for friends who were able to be silly with me!

On to my thoughts about the movie...

• I didn't love it, although the second time I saw it, it grew on me.
• Phillip was on chapter 2 when we went and he loved it, and is dying to find time to finish the book!  
  
• It was funny, but annoying how all the girls screamed as each new character came on screen.
  
• It screamed low budget film to me, and I pray they realize the phenomenon when doing the second one.
• I didn't like how they did the meadow scene, but the bedroom scene...enough said!!!
• I hated the tree scene and got pissed when they show him running.  In fact I laughed because it looked so dumb!
• I really didn't prefer any of the characters although James and Emmett were great and I think they fit their parts perfectly.
• What the crap was up with Jasper?!  I hated his stupid look all the time!
• I LOVED the baseball scene, and that's when I kinda liked Alice because she pointed her toe every time she pitched - so funny!
• I know people are going to be upset with me, but I thought Edward wasn't cute at all, and Bella wasn't a good actress because she seemed to stutter and not finish her sentences.

Okay, sorry, I just get really nit picky because I think that this book is an amazing fantasy that just can't be turned into a movie!  Will I own it? Of course, I just pick it apart because Twilight is on a precious pedestal to me!

Reading Pillow

Here's another post I completely forgot about doing!  Since my husband is an avid reader, I made him this macho {49ers} reading pillow {the tan fabric is corduroy}!  I was afraid he'd think it was too girly, but he LOVED it and uses it every night when we read in bed!

Brownie Points!!!

My hubby surprised me for no reason with a gift on our date night!  The next book in a new series one of my all time favorite authors is writing!  I didn't even know the book had come out!  He made my heart go pitter patter because of his thoughtfulness!  Love you babe!

Oops I Forgot

Okay so I feel terrible because my sweet and thoughtful friend Beth made me this adorable {and that's an understatement} pin cushion for my birthday and I totally forgot to post it to show it off!  Thank you Beth for allowing me to be the recipient of your endless talents!  Love ya!

Pumpkin Obsession

I just can't get enough.  I have made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies at least once a week the past few weeks.  Really I know it's an unhealthy obsession!  Here are the two recipes I keep alternating.

Ingredient 1

Ingredient 2

Ingredient 3

That's right folks.  It's as easy as 1-2-3!  1 box of spice cake mix, 1 - 15 oz can of pumpkin, and 1 cup of chocolate chips!  Bake for 15 minutes at 350.  It makes 3 dozen cookies!

The second recipe is from scratch.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup pumpkin

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup oil

1 egg

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda dissolved in 1 tsp milk

1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

1 tsp vanilla

Combine pumpkin, sugar, oil, and egg.  Mix together and add flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt along with dissolved soda.  Mix well, then add vanilla and chocolate chips.  Drop large spoonfuls of dough onto lightly greased cookie sheet.  Bake 10-12 minutes at 375 degrees.

Thriller

This is a little late, but my sweet husband surprised me with tickets to see Thriller a few weekends ago!  I loved the dancing and had a blast going with Malissa, Machelle, & Tim {Machelle's soon to be hubby}!  We ate at the yummy Olive Garden and got home in the wee hours of the morning, but it was so worth it!

She's Engaged!!!

Congrats to my adorable cousin Telicia 

who got engaged to Matt this past weekend!

We are so excited for you guys!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Fall Walks

I LOVE living in Utah, I LOVE fall, and I LOVE that I can go to the public library and get LDS books on tape!!!  I have been trying to get in as many walks as I can before the snow comes and it gets too cold.  I download said book on tapes onto my iPod and walk 2-3 miles everyday because I am so absorbed in my books.  I kept thinking I had a little more time to take pictures of the beautiful changing leaves, and then one day I noticed that overnight the leaves had mostly fallen to the ground and turned brown.  It was so cool to be walking down this street with leaves up to my ankles.  So I grabbed my camera this morning and even though the leaves had blown away and been picked up, I still thought it was neat to see the heaping piles!  Fall comes all too quickly and is gone in the blink of an eye, but I absolutely love it and I appreciate it so much more knowing it is so short lived.  Sigh...as I type this I am watching the news and it is supposed to snow tomorrow.  The temperature dropped 20 degrees in one day, and the overcast days have been hinting that we need to bust out the hot chocolate and add more soups to our dinner menu.  Bring on the cold and snow!

Halloween

We had a simple Halloween this year.  We went to Firehouse Pizza for dinner {YUM} and then headed over to a Haunted Miniature Golf Course.  

It was a great course and their decor was amazing!  This was our favorite hole!

We killed enough time re-doing some holes that we were able to go see a midnight showing of an un-named scary movie - which the sickos that we are actually liked {the psychological part of it}!  We hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween and scored on candy!

 

October Visiting Teaching

Back Home...Finally

There's so much to catch up on!  First of all, we got a call conference weekend to help out a family member whose original babysitter ended up not being able to watch the kids.  So we headed down to Sandy for a week to help out.  Then we came home for a day and a half so I could do laundry and I hitched a ride to Arizona with my aunt and uncle while Phil went hunting.

Arizona

The drive was long {as always} but it was very eventful!  I was the booger magnet {enough said about that}!  I downloaded a few books on tape and slept a lot.  We made a really cool scenic stop just outside of Page where I got a picture of their family.

The first thing I did when I got there was meet up with my friends Sarah and Molly {and her new son Bo}.  We didn't do Scrapfest this year, so going out to dinner had to count {we missed Beth - who moved to UT and Tina - who was camping with her family}.  We ate at yummy Macayos and had a blast talking!

Then Friday night was my grandparents traditional Halloween party!  I didn't get very many pictures, but I love the one of my nephew Jaron in his Halloween costume and the one of us changing him on the floor.  We had Neds Krazy Sub and made Haunted Halloween Houses!

I got to go to lunch with my aunts and girl cousins at Gecko Grill and I spent more than 8 hours at glorious Scrapbooks Etc!  We had a blast Saturday night playing slaughter ball, eating pizza, and having rootbeer floats.  David's homecoming was amazing and his talk truly made you feel the Spirit.  By the end of the meeting when we were singing Well Done the tears were flowing!  We stayed for all the blocks and I was thrilled to go to Relief Society with family and sit by my long time influential friend Amy {Hurst} Stewart!  We ended the whirlwind weekend with a yummy traditional Sunday dinner and games til the wee hours!

Hunting

Although my amazing hubby didn't get a "Bambi" hunting, he did catch some yummy fish which he grilled up for us last night when he got home.  We had yummy butternut squash, salad, veggie rice, and of course the trout!  He did good!

I Can't Wait!

The countdown has begun! I am officially stoked {thanks Amy}!

27 Years Young!

First of all, thank you for all the well wishes and phone calls.  Yesterday was my 27th birthday!  I despise birthdays because as many times as you tell yourself they are just another day, deep down we hope that it's special.  In the end my birthday turned out great!  

I woke up to these beautiful flowers and a card from my sweet hubby!

I was alone pretty much all day.  My husband didn't get home from work until 9:00, but I didn't get to see him until 10:00!  It was so sad.  But he made up for it by having a super fun surprise!  So my first instructions were to change into jammies!  Then we drove up the canyon {which even though it was so late and dark, you could still see all the pretty colors of fall by head lights}.  We arrived at our destination which was a little camp spot where he immediately started a warm fire.  We ate by fire light our yummy Cafe Rio salads {with spoons because he forgot to grab utensils}!

Then he busted out the sparkling berry cider to do a toast in my honor!

Then for my birthday dessert we had smores!  I loved it!  

He even got cinnamon graham crackers!

Then we looked at the stars and talked until 1:00 am!  

The evening was creative and thoughtful and I am so grateful for my amazing hubby!

Happy Birthday To Phillip

My totally rad hubby turned 31 the other day!  It's so sad when you get older because it tends to be just another day.  Poor guy had to get up for work at 5:30ish and he didn't walk in the door until about 8 pm.  His mom took him to lunch so that brightened his day.  We ended up having his sister Malissa, and cousin Megan over for dinner {his weird request was spaghetti w/ black olives, hot italian sausage links, and pepperoni - think pizza on pasta}.  Here are a few pictures of some of the presents I gave him.......

{He has always wanted this picture of Einstein}

 {He has been begging for this book about Einstein}

He really was spoiled by so many sweet people!  After opening presents we walked next door to the neighbors and had cake.  He made my life easy this year and asked for an ice cream cake so I let Coldstones do the work!  This is their cookie dough cake because my husband LOVES cookie dough {and that's an understatement}!  When I went to pick up the cake I got to enjoy their free 'make a wish foundation' ice cream social - yum!

 

Happy birthday to my amazing hubby!

River Rafting/Camping In Moab

Even though we got a late start Friday night and a little storm was rolling in, we still headed off to Moab and arrived in the wee hours of the morning {1:30ish}.  We're so glad we went because the weather was beautiful and it was fun to hang out with everyone!  We weren't there long so there isn't much to blog about, but here are some pictures...

Feelin' The Love

My amazing friend Amy gave me the "I Love Your Blog" award and I am completely flattered! Thank you so much for making me feel cool like you Amy!

 
Here is what you need to do if you have been chosen as a WINNER!!!
1. Pick 7 of your favorite blogs
2. Winners can put the logo on their blog.
3. Link the person who gave your award to your blog.
4. Name the 7 that you are giving the award to with their links.
5. Leave a message on their blogs so that they know they've won!

I randomly chose 7 of the blogs I read by drawing names out of a hat so I didn't make anyone feel bad.  Natalie, Valerie, Angie, Beth, Megan, Amber, and Kristin.

Shameless Plug...

It's that time again!  My mom has always had the tradition of playing Christmas music on September 1st!  I love it because it gets me in the mood for Christmas cards.  That's right friends.  I am offering my services again this year.  I will be designing Christmas cards for $10 a design.  I am also offering my services of making your cards if you find yourself short of time.  {If that's the case, I charge for materials and it's $1 per card}.  Feel free to pass this along to friends and family.  Remember, the holidays creep up quickly {that's why I get a head start} but if you plan ahead you'll get those homemade cards out just in time!

Visiting Teaching

I am confessing that I didn't get my Visiting Teaching done last month because mainly I was out of town.  But my goal was to get it done early this month, then stay on that track.  I read the August message last month hoping I would be home in time, and I fell in love.  So Sunday and yesterday I whipped it out to more thoroughly study it.  I made tons of notes and highlighted the heck out of it!  Then I got to thinking about what I could make the girls and I reread my favorite quote and in the first few words it said "drink".  So I put together these cute little water bottles in about 15 minutes.  And yes, I did my visiting teaching for the month of September last night! 

"All of you need to drink in deeply the gospel truths about the eternal nature of your individual identity and the uniqueness of your personality.  You need, more and more, to feel the perfect love which our Father in Heaven has for you and to sense the value he places upon you as an individual.  Ponder upon these great truths, especially in those moment when (in the stillness of such anxiety as you may experience as an individual) you might otherwise wonder and be perplexed." - Spencer W. Kimball

Blessings Be Upon You...

I just want to share with all my blogging friends a neat testimony building experience I had regarding personal revelation.  Friday morning had been so rotten with our fridge going out.  To top everything off I had what I thought was a migraine coming on.  I was stressed about us finding jobs, money, and how in the world we were going to pay for the new fridge.  After 'trying' to clean my kitchen I finally told Phillip that I had to lay down before my head exploded.  As I laid in bed my mind would not shut off.  The thought kept coming to me that I needed to go to lds.org.  Finally I just got up and went to the website.  So as I'm on the home page I'm thinking to myself why in the world do I need to be doing this when my head hurts so bad?!  I start looking around and I see employment.  I click on it, enter a little info and the first thing that came up was a cable installer position.  The pay was amazing, it was for the fall semester, and they didn't necessarily want someone who was trained but would like someone with a little experience.  So I quickly email the person acting as though I was Phillip.  I sent him his resume and let him know that he had 8 years of experience, and his first degree was in Telecommunications.  Not 10 minutes later Phillip had a phone call from the guy wanting to meet with him within the hour {I thought it was crazy because it was 5:00 pm on a Friday}.  So off my amazing hubby goes to an interview and wouldn't you know it's better pay than we thought because they had never seen someone with such experience, they give him a $10 allowance a day for lunch, and he gets a company vehicle.  Oh and did I mention he starts tomorrow morning?!  I know crazy.  So, if it wasn't for my killer headache that made me lay down so that I could listen to a gentle prompting, then we wouldn't have received this amazing blessing and opportunity.

Peach Days

We had so much fun at the Brigham City "Peach Days" today!  We went with Phil's sister Malissa, and his cousin Megan {both go to USU}.  Also my really good friend Beth ended up meeting us there with her cute kids.  We made it just in time to see the parade and boy howdy was it a long one, haha!  We did laugh and make fun of a few floats {which wasn't very nice}, but the one that almost brought tears to my eyes {the real heart felt kind} was the LDS Family Services float.  It had all these cute families with their adopted children on it waving and playing together.  It was really neat.

  

We had a yummy dutch oven lunch of ribs, potatoes, and beans.  We walked around to all the vendors and Beth and I took her kids to get their faces painted, and then of course we had to stop at the local scrapbook and fabric stores!  I ended up getting terribly sunburned, but it was fun and worth it!

Un-Welcome Home Present

We are so glad to be home again!  We have started the job hunt and are crossing our fingers.  Luck would have it that the 3 year old fridge that was left here by the previous owners went out this morning.  UGH!  Turns out it's the compressor and apparently no one replaces compressors because they cost more than a new fridge.  So I went to Home Depot today to buy the cheapest one I could find...and fridges aren't cheap!  The best part of this whole ordeal is that they don't keep fridges in stock {or so they say} and our new one won't be delivered until the 13th!  So, we will be using our awesome camping coolers until the Home Depot delivery truck graces us with it's presence...which won't be soon enough!  Argh!  What an 'Un-Welcome Home Present'!

I Miss Him...

I had the privilege of watching my stinkin' cute 18 month old nephew Jaron all week and from the moment he woke up cuddling with me to the moment we read scriptures before going to bed I cherished it all!  I miss him so much and his fun personality.  He was so sweet and I have never watched a child that was as good as he was.  Here is a cute picture of him having a {sugar free - don't worry Jen} banana popsicle.  He just kept saying mmmmm!  Aww, I miss him!

Storm

Arizona always the coolest storms!  All I wanted when we were down there was to have a good monsoon.  I got exactly what I asked for.  Here is a crazy short video of a thunder and lightening storm that lasted 2 hours.  The lightening was like a constant strobe light and the thunder was a constant rumble.  Some reports said that in 1 hour there was over 1500 lightening strikes!  It was wicked!!!

Book Nerd

So I stood in line at Walmart and was one of the first 50 people to get my 'Breaking Dawn' copy!  I even owned the copy an hour before my friends in Arizona!  That's great and all, but it meant nothing!  Weeks later and I still haven't finished the blasted book that I swore I would have read within 24 hours of holding it in my hands.  Life happens and since I can't say no to anyone, I never found a minute of spare time to myself.  When we went down to Pima to visit family and take care of a few things, I snuck into my aunts amazingly comfortable bed to do a little reading.  I still haven't finished the book, but I'm getting there.

Where Are We?!

We are in Pima, Arizona at the moment with a bunch of things 

going on.  I do have an update coming, so be patient.

Just Hours Left...

There's just hours left until the release of "Breaking Dawn" and my amazing friend Amy made a bookmark for the fanatics out there {me} although who plans on even putting it down!  Hop on over to her site and don't forget to post a thank you!  Does anyone else feel like it's Christmas morning?!

{Oh and after I emerge from a fun filled weekend, reading said book, and going to a scrapbook getaway, I promise to post pictures of our trip to Yellowstone}

Introducing....

BIG BLUE!!! 

 

We LOVE our new car!  It's a Land Rover Discovery with some fun perks!  We love the two moon roofs, AC for each seat plus volume control, and the fact that it has a 7 passenger option came in handy in the first few days!  We were so lucky to stumble upon this deal.  It truly is a sad story though.  The girl we bought it from was such a sweetheart!  She and her husband are 30 and have an 8 and 4 year old.  She was telling us that her husband had been in and out of the hospital but was selling the car because he wasn't driving it much.  Well after more test driving we just knew hers was the one for us.  {On a side note, you can call Land Rover and give them the VIN number and they'll tell you the entire history of the car including maintenance so we knew this car was treated well and taken care of}.  So we called her and left a message saying we wanted it and would have the cash in hand the next day.  Well we never heard from her.  The next morning we got a call from her sister saying that her husband had passed away the night before, but was so grateful we had decided to buy the car because it wouldn't be a financial burden anymore.  Anyways, it was so sad when we met her and paid off her remaining balance on her loan.  Things like that break your heart but it just makes us that much more grateful for the gospel and it helps us recognize there is a greater plan than our own.

I Am

I am: overwhelmed with projects (as always).
I think: the summer has flown by too fast with not a lot accomplished.
I know: Phillip loves me.
I want: to have children.
I have: a millions other things I should be doing right now.
I wish: we had a car since ours was totaled.
I hate: having commitments when I want to do something else.
I miss: my mom.
I fear: getting stung by a wasp/yellow jacket since Logan is infested with them!
I feel: grateful that we walked away from our accident.
I hear: the swamp cooler.
I smell: my hubby making pancakes!
I crave: vegetables and starburst, but not at the same time.
I search: for items all the time because my husband is constantly losing something.
I wonder: when/how we will be blessed with children.
I regret: only a few things in life.
I love: getting pedicures and back tickles from my hubby!
I care: that my house is clean and my meals are planned a month in advance.
I always: read before I go to bed.
I am not: skinny, nor will I ever be, but healthy is all I aspire to be.
I believe: that 'what you put in is what you get out'.
I dance: to my aerobics video.
I sing: all the time!
I don't always: mountain bike with my husband everyday.
I fight: with myself over what is most important on my to-do list.
I write: the checks to pay our bills.
I lose: track of time when I am scrapbooking.
I win: randomly when we play games.
I never: drink milk!
I listen: to my iPod when I go walking.
I can usually be found: at home making something for someone else.
I am scared: of losing my hubby.
I need: to pack for camping tomorrow instead of blogging.
I am happy about: my kitchen being almost completely remodeled, along with our office!

I tag: Anyone who reads my blog!

Miracle...

...is the only word I can think of, but somehow it doesn't do justice to the gratitude we are feeling!  We were on our way to the Real Salt Lake soccer game because we scored cheap tickets.  We were just getting on the freeway and were going about 65.  Phillip was driving and this guy tried to get in our lane.  Phillip tried to avoid hitting him but there was another car so he moved back but that dumb guy was pushing us over again and it made us overcorrect.  We spun and flew across 4 lanes of traffic where our front end hit the median and then flung around and hit my side of the car and we slid another 100 yards along the median.  We couldn't breathe because of the airbags and I couldn't get my shoes on, but luckily we both were able to get out of the car.  My glasses at some point flew off into the backseat {maybe because of the airbag}.  We couldn't believe the distance we traveled without being smacked by another car, and the fact that we finally came to a stop on the shoulder against the median so we weren't blocking traffic.  We had to be checked out by the firefighters and EMT's, but more than anything we're just bruised, and banged up.  Sore feels like an understatement this morning!  Phillip's back hurts {which is always a recurring thing due to all of his accidents}.  My right arm is very sore and bruised because of hitting the median on my side.  My neck and back are sore too.  My left shoulder hurts because it was stuck in between the seat and center console {which totally bent}.  And I knew my upper legs hurt but it wasn't until I got to take a shower that I saw all the bruises and welts which were from the airbag.  Anyways.  We said a prayer of gratitude at our first opportunity because we were able to walk away from a potentially BAD accident.  My in-laws brought their camera {the one time I took mine out of my purse} and we got pictures after they had already moved the car and were putting it on the tow truck.  We got a few of the skid marks across the highway and median, but we forgot to get some of the damage underneath.

Hit Me With Your Best Shot

We have loved playing softball the past few weeks with our ward!  Phillip happened to be out of town this last week, but I still went.  Our last game for the night was against a really aggressive team who had to follow the rules 'by the book'.  Well the rules are that you pitch to your own team.  So they asked me to play 2nd base when they were up to bat, which was fine, but they started pitching before we were all out on the field and as I turned around the ball comes flying at me {without even touching the ground} and it hits me in the calf.  INSTANT BRUISE!  I say I'm fine and kinda try and walk it off knowing that if I stop it's going to hurt worse, when all of a sudden the ball is flying at me again and I did kinda stop it, but it hit my chest.  Come on, give me a break!  Needless to say I iced my leg for 2 days, but man I was in pain!  This picture was taken about 5 days after so it's looking much better!  Haha!

I'm Back

A few weeks ago Phillip, his brothers, and his dad went on a backpacking trip to Buckskin Gulch (see pics below).

  While they were doing a 'guys weekend' the wives decided to have a 'girls weekend' scrapbooking and watching chick flicks!  

Now if any of you have been to one of my scrapbook parties or scrapbooked with me you know I never get more than a layout or two done.  Well my friends, I sketched, printed pictures, put together materials, and had zero sleep for 24 hours in preparation for this particular weekend.  I had 47 pages planned and guess what...I finished most of them, including the journaling!  I only have a handful of scrapbook pages done from the time we were married and I finally decided that simplicity and not being a perfectionist is the only way to get our scrapbooks done.  None of these are in chronological order, and this is only half of the pages I completed (I promise to get the rest uploaded).  I am proud of myself for just letting go (aka not worrying about what others think of my style), getting pages done, and not spending exuberant amounts of time on each layout!  I feel a sense of accomplishment!  I will say though, having a blog helped with quite a few pages because the 'journaling' was already done and thought out.  The colors seem a little off in the scans, but I am posting them anyways.

After our fun weekend we got to enjoy an entire week at home in Logan!  We made a goal to get involved in our new ward as much as possible.  We started with the Bishopric coming to visit us Sunday to get to know us.  Phillip hit it off with the 2nd Counselor immediately and they began going mountain biking every other morning.  Then Wednesday the Relief Society came to get to know me.  Immediately after, I went with them to book club, which I made homemade cookies for 'just because'.  The next morning I went with some girls from the neighborhood to a fun little class while our husbands put in tile in the 2nd counselors home.  That evening we fed them because they couldn't get into their kitchen and then we all went to coed softball (which was a blast!).  We fed them breakfast on Friday and then got a call in the afternoon because their house flooded.  Needless to say I made 4 fish and talapia stretch for the neighborhood (hmm sounds like a familiar story) for dinner because no one had eaten and everyone was just trying to help them get everything out of their house and dried.  I realized (and this has always been my moms motto - and it was mentioned in the Ensign) that if you just jump right in...what you put in is what you get out.  It was an amazing week and I felt so happy and involved!

What have we been up to since then you might ask?!  BABYSITTING!  We just got done this evening (7 days) and I am ready to go to bed for a few days!  My own comfy king size bed has never looked so inviting!  So to all my friends who read my blog (does anyone?!), I am back from my blogging hiatus!

Will Return...

Crappy Day

Two trips to Home Depot:  $97.44

Throwing away a shirt, pants, socks, & shoes:  $60

Hours spent under the house:  9

Hours lost working due to rain/snow: 1

Having a handy husband:  PRICELESS!!!

The time finally came where something in our house broke.  Well technically it didn't break.

Some moron thought that you could use a dryer vent and duct tape for plumbing.  Needless to

say, we kept smelling this foul smell.  I am way weird about smells and sanitation, so I

begged my hubby to look under the house.  I knew the yucky smell wasn't coming from

inside.  I thought maybe an animal got under the house and died - you just never know after

winter when things thaw out.  So the awesome guy that he is he got under the house and all

of a sudden I hear this hacking and I look out the window.  My dear sweet husband is on his knees hurling into the bushes.  The verdict...crap was everywhere!  Lesson to the dork that 'thought' he could do plumbing...duct tape doesn't fix everything.  I am so grateful that my 'Mr. Fix-it' installed an entire new plumbing system.Then he cleaned the concrete and topped it off with a good Clorox scrub.  The poor guy totally burned his lungs and throat.  When he finally finished at 8 pm he quickly showered (after throwing away his clothes) and we left for the evening.  The smell of the bleach permeated the entire house, but for me that was a piece of mind knowing we weren't breathing in the poop fumes!  So another shameless plug for my man who saved us a couple hundred dollars by doing the 'dirty work' himself!

fRiEnDs

I have been so blessed throughout my life to have amazing friends!  I had the opportunity to see two of these great friends that I haven't seen in a few years!  

I first got to spend the afternoon with my friend Natalie, who I just love chatting with about anything under the sun!  We have so much in common including the fact that her mom is friends with my moms childhood friend, who lives in California {small world}!  We are both the oldest in our families and we deal with life's challenges and daily experiences in similar ways.  We got to talk about family/friends, cameras, photography, and life.  Our friendship started back in 2001 when we first moved to Utah.  We were both newlyweds and we'd play games and hang out because they lived across the street and lets face it, we were on strict budgets.  I miss those days {sigh}.  When we moved back to Arizona they came to visit us, and shortly after they moved to the other side of the country for a while and even through the miles we still were able to keep in touch {especially through the blessing of blogs}!  I loved every minute of hanging out with you Natalie and I love your new home!  You are a wonderful example to me and I watch you more than you think {not in a stalkerish way, haha}.  Welcome back to Utah!

The second friend that I got to see was Erika!  Erika and I go back 12+ years!  It all started with me asking for her picture because I thought she was cool and really good at basketball.  She was my rock through everything and anything and I could always count on her.  In high school we spent hours playing the piano and singing, not to mention the fact that our guest room became her second bedroom.  I love that she can be trusted with any secret, and that she never judges anyone or gossips.  She is also sentimental and saved some of the notes we used to write each other and we had so much fun re-reading them!  She even had a funny one from when I was dating Phillip seriously and I hadn't even graduated yet!  Erika and I can also not see each other for years and pick up as though nothing had changed.  We had Cafe Rio and sat in her cute kitchen for hours talking.  Oh and of course had brownies and ice cream!  I loved talking about all our crazy stories from back in the day!  Erika, I am grateful for our friendship and the closeness we've always shared!  I swear if it weren't for some of those heart to heart talks, I wouldn't have made it through our senior year!  You are an amazing example of selflessness.  You rock Allstar!

SOLD...and BOUGHT!!!

My rad friend Sarah bought my Mac Mini...and I bought a new Macbook!  I am so excited...for the both of us!  She's going to love it, and I'm already enjoying the portability of the Macbook!

Sarah's new computer!

Deneigh's new computer!

GILGAL

Since Phillip's older sisters came into town for his brothers homecoming we all went to this really odd park called GILGAL.  It's just some guys backyard and he did these crazy weird art pieces.  Here are a ton of fun, random pictures from the day!

The BIG Surprise

Yes it has come to my attention that we have been M.I.A. for a few weeks...and I can finally share with you why!  Phillip's parents went to France to pick up his brother Steven from his mission.  So while they were gone me and Phillip, and Machelle {his sister} and Tim {her boyfriend}, redid 2 rooms in their house!  The first reason we concocted this surprise is that they never would have done it for themselves.  The second reason is that by doing this huge project we were taking care of Mother's Day/Father's Day, birthdays, and Christmas for the rest of the year.  So for 2 weeks we ate, breathed, and slept remodeling the basement!  We forgot the before pictures so it isn't as dramatic and you can't appreciate the work that went into this project by just showing the final outcome {Thanks Machelle for sending me the pics}.  I will say though that they feel like totally different rooms!  

The first room used to be the sewing/craft room and office.  It is now just the sewing/craft/scrapbook room.  It is bright and fun!  One of my favorite things about the room is my idea of using a lazy susan and putting dowels in it so we could put all the rolls of wrapping paper on it and spin it around.  I loved organizing everything and Machelle's idea for the fabric makes the closet seem like art, haha!  I love that this room feels happy!

The second room used to be Phillip's room, and then it was the dance room.  Guests would stay in this stark cold room and now it has a much warmer feeling about it.  Not only did this room get a fresh coat of paint and new hardwood floors {put in by Phil & Tim}, but it now has a designated purpose.  It is the office/guest room.  The futon allows guests a space to sleep, but still has an office feel for Phillip's Dad.

Only 219 Days Left

School's Out For Summer

So I changed my song on my iPod because I swear I can't get this chorus out of my head!  I am so excited to be done with finals!  I have a million things I want to do this summer.  Phillip finished yesterday and he's such an awesome hubby because he started tilling the garden and boy howdy are we gonna have a big one.  We got the following done so far...

(So basically all the tilling and this tiny little flower box - 

which is actually the ugly hitch on our trailer, but I had to spruce it up)

And then the following happened...

(turn off the sound on my iPod to hear what I'm saying)

Just as we were about to go outside to plant out gazillion and one seeds, I looked out the window and it was snowing!  What the heck?!  It's April, well May tomorrow.  Crazy enough, this was as it was starting.  It has since gotten worse and we have a thin fresh layer of snow on the ground.  The crazy part is it was really warm yesterday and the sun was out this morning.

wHaT?!

sNoW...at the end of ApRiL?! 

 

It's sticking...and there's lots of it too!

  

So when exactly should we start planting our garden?!

Tagged

My friend Sarah tagged me and I decided to surprise her and actually play along! I admit the last time I played along was in this post...and again in this post. So folks, this is rare! Sarah...you are welcome, haha!!!

{ 7 Random Things About Me }


1. I only like jersey knit sheets { and I have converted my husband }! This has posed problems with getting a good nights rest when we are away from home!

2. I HATE milk! I refuse to drink it. My mother-in-law has finally accepted this after 7 plus years of being married into this family.

3. I LOVE the snow and cold! I could watch it snow for hours! When we lived in Colorado Phillip and I loved to sit in jammies on a Sunday afternoon and read by the fireplace!

4. I LOVE to go camping but we rarely get a chance to go! We have a HUGE camping trip planned for this summer though!

5. We bought a cute place back in June of last year and have only lived there about a month all together because we have been taking online classes and traveling between Arizona and Utah.

6. Because of number five we haven't had callings in almost a year. In fact, we've only been to our ward once since moving here! The second time we tried to go while in town we got there just as everyone was leaving because it was stake conference. I miss the ward family feeling of belonging and giving service.


7. I am beyond stressed right now because it is the end of the semester and I have a few papers and finals due all at the same time  { so why am I wasting my time blogging }!

What's In A Name?!

I am enlisting the help of all my blogging friends! I need name ideas for something pretty darn special! As most of you know my mom and I are doing the 3 Day 60 mile Breast Cancer Walk and our team needs a name. Any suggestions would be super! Feel free to email them to me or post as a comment! Thanks!

Eat Your Heart Out

My husband had to go to Arizona last Thursday to do some bids for a few contractors to do their home theaters.  He knew I was jealous that he got to go to Arizona, but also that I was bummed because we wouldn't see each other for a week.  So he got home really late Wednesday night because he had gotten me these beautiful flowers!

He also splurged and got us ice cream...

 

...and we watched The Ultimate Gift!

What an awesome movie!  I recommend it to everyone.

So as I sit here and download my pictures and do this post I am missing him like crazy.  On a happy note, I get to go pick him up tomorrow afternoon at the airport.

In the mean time all I've done here at our house in Logan is...homework...homework...and projects.  I've thoroughly enjoyed all the snow though!  To all my friends in Arizona who have their air conditioning on, EAT YOUR HEART OUT!

One Happy Girl {ME}

I have a new favorite mascara (click here)! Nuff' said!

Oh No I Didn't!!!

I went on a shopping spree! Well, sort of! Phillip and I love to read and someday we hope to have an extensive library in our home. No library is complete without the classics of course! So we found out that Barnes & Noble had a huge selection of classics in hardback for only $6.36 each! While I was out and about today I decided to run in the store and see what they had in stock. Let's just say the guy checking me out thought I was nuts. He kept looking at my pile with a blank face. After he told me the total and I was paying, he said are you planning on doing some light summer reading. The only words I could muster up was...maybe. This doesn't complete the collection, but it adds to the 7 others I have on my shelf at home. Yeah for books!

Happy Easter

I hope everyone had a fun Easter! We started off the morning with the Candland's traditional Easter breakfast which was absolutely delish!

The Easter bunny made it to our house and we were spoiled!

We had a family get together after church


and a yummy dinner.


The twins did a lot of the cooking...


and made this amazing chocolate tree.

I am so grateful that we were able to reflect on the true meaning of Easter and the magnificent sacrifice that was made for each of us. I just want to share with you my favorite quote. It's by our beloved Gordon B. Hinckley.

"The magnificent expression of His love came in His death when He gave His life as a sacrifice for all men. That Atonement, wrought in unspeakable pain, became the greatest event of history, an act of grace for which men gave nothing but which brought the assurance of the Resurrection to all who have or would walk the earth."

Milk...It Does A Body Good {NOT}

Okay I'm not shy about it...I despise milk! I think it is the nastiest tasting thing ever! I have never had a glass of milk, until the other day. I went to a doctor who recommended that I drink 2 cups of whole milk a day. Phillip and I both laughed when he said that because it just so wasn't going to happen. Well my sweet mother in law went and bought me a gallon and everyone waited for me to drink my first glass.

And it is just as terrible as I remembered! In fact the whole night I kept thinking about the taste and making myself ill. Since then I've managed to get down one more glass but it is pure torture I tell you! We'll see if I can drink more before it goes bad!

Good News Minute!

Okay, I have a good news minute to share! I got a scholarship! Yeah! It's the Gregory Carl Trevers Memorial Scholarship. It isn't huge, but it's enough to cover books each semester (which are absurdly over priced) and I am eternally grateful! Go Aggies!

Utah or Bust

The car is loaded, the engine is running, and we're finally going home! We've had a few days of delays. I've been struggling with a sore throat all week, then I had a terrible migraine on Friday that kept me flat on my back. Then Saturday after running errands we were no where near leaving. And Sunday afternoon I came down with a bad case of the stomach flu. So even though I'm not feeling so great and my husband is annoyed that we are leaving so late, we are on our way!

UpDaTeS

Absorbed, buried, consumed, immersed, involved, occupied, overloaded, overwhelmed, plugging away, swamped...in other words...

BUSY

We ran away (again) down to Tuscon and then Safford for almost a week. We enjoyed seeing family and eating at yummy hole in the wall Mexican restuarants and of course being spoiled by my Nanny (her cooking is delish)!

I spent a good portion of our getaway enthralled in reading and Phillip helped Travis fix his bike.

We got back to Mesa in time to help our friends, the Grasteits, pack and load their moving van. Even though it was work, we had so much fun! They are moving to Utah and only about 45 minutes from us! =) After helping them for the day, we did what any couple with no kids would do on a Friday night! We did homework! Haha! Boring I know, but we were a little behind and had two tests to take.

Saturday morning my mom and I had an awesome shopping spree! I tell you what, we are the clearance queens. Our plan was to run over to JoAnns to get some thread to start my curtains because for the time being we have some sheets up in our windows (give me a break - I'm trailer trash aren't I?). Well JoAnns led to Target which is where our first big find was! Roman Shades! Now I had bought the fabric to make my own, but lets face it, I don't think I'm going to get 5 windows done in a few days. They are just plain silk red, but I can't complain, especially when they were only $11.24, regularly $44.99! I'm going to spend that much just in buying the rods.

The problem was, they only had 4 of the 35 inch and I needed 5. So we tried another Target which led to Bed Bath and Beyond where we found my mom her curtains which her 75% off plus 40% off that. Her total was $6.74 per panel! Nuts I tell you! She wasn't planning on doing her curtains until mine were done, but we were on a roll. So we hit another Target to get some sheets to line the curtains and lo and behold I found my next deal. I have been searching for months for a back side for my placemats and a bottom half for my kitchen curtains. Luck would have it that I found a set of king pillows (which I can get 8 placemats out of) for $7.48 and a fitted sheet for the curtain part for $22.08. I know there is more on my part to do, but I couldn't buy fabric for that much - well that I like. So here is a sneak peak of what I've got cooking!

The Kitchen (red/black/tan)

The Bedroom (brown/sage/cream)

The Office (black/white)

And if you haven't figured it out yet, we're going home to Utah the end of this week!!!

Southern AZ Trip

We had so much fun running away last week! We didn't have any plans or time constraints (that's probably what made it so enjoyable)! We headed off to our friends house out in Florence Wednesday night to spend the night and see their new house. From there it was an hour drive the next morning to our first stop - Casa Grande Ruins. We thought it was really cool and quite interesting.

After that we drove over to Kartchner Caverns and splurged a little on the longer and better (so they say) tour. It was really awe inspiring and we were so glad we went. We couldn't take pictures inside, so I pulled one off the internet.

After leaving Kartchner Caverns we finally got to Bisbee where we stayed in the most amazing bed & breakfast! We can't say enough good things about this place! We loved it so much and it's quaint inviting atmosphere that we stayed an extra night! Bisbee was such a cute town. Everyone was so nice and always saying hi. We spent most of our days shopping in the antique stores and hours going through old postcards (we love to collect the old ones, especially with writing on them - weird I know). We even found a handful of different temples, some dating back to 1903! We made a few friends, including a dog named Alice. We got the opportunity to eat the best biscuits and gravy in the world at the Bisbee Breakfast Club. It has been in gourmet magazines and the New York Times. It was so worth it (yes, we ended up going twice)!

We did get a chance to stop over in Tombstone. It was fun to say we went, but man I've never been anywhere that charges you for EVERY LITTLE THING! I don't mean to sound cheap, but it was kind of ridiculous. We saw a re-enactment of the fight at OK Corral, and window shopped.

At the end of our trip we were able to go to Phillip's cousin's Eagle Court of Honor in Tucson. He did an amazing project with an estimated 425 man hours! It was huge! We are so happy for him and his awesome accomplishment! Way to go Bracken!

Days 6-14

We have decided to run away for about a week and go where the wind blows us. So, I am posting the rest of the 14 days of Valentines because when I get back I'll probably be posting pictures from our trip and Valentines will be over. Hope everyone has a happy heart day!

Day 5

Just a quick post about the 5th day of Valentines. On Phillip's mission in Uruguay they nicknamed him "osito" which is like teddy bear or little bear. So I saw this cool PEZ dispenser that was a bear and gave it to him today. The card said something about being my cuddly bear so it all went together.

Day 4

On the 4th day of Valentines I gave my hubby a movie night kit! We were planning on using it for FHE tonight, but we had so much homework that we didn't finish our tests until a little after 11:00 pm and weren't about to start a movie! We spent the ENTIRE day studying for one class because the exam was due by midnight. It wasn't hard, there was just so much reading. I like the books where there are pictures, charts, or graphs that take up half the page! He read to me, then I read to him while he tickled my back...we were just trying to get creative and stay awake. We're glad to be done with those boring first few chapters! We're off to hit the sack - finally!

And yeah for our new First Presidency who will do amazing!