Burroughs Family Happenings

Meet Baby Evie

2011-08-29T17:08:00.000-05:00

I haven't updated in a while. In case you haven't heard our big news...please meet our newest addition!
Evalyn Rebekah, born August 11 at 10:55 am. She was 8 lbs 2 oz and 20.5 inches long at birth. She's since grown to be over 9 lbs in her first 2 weeks!

We are ecstatic to have her join our family. She's a little diva, and so fun! She already has Daddy wrapped around her little finger. I have to admit that Mom's not far behind. :) She's growing so fast and learning so much. Thank goodness for pictures to remind me of how little she was.

Baby Shower!

2011-07-25T19:14:00.000-05:00

Here's the pics from my baby shower. It was so fun! I didn't mention, during the diaper changing game, my friend, Marissa, would randomly shoot us with a water gun, b/c you never know when the baby will pee on you! Can you guess that she has a son??? It was a wonderful shower! I had a great time!

Junk Room to Nursery Transformation

2011-07-25T18:34:00.000-05:00

With Evie coming, we had quite a bit of work transforming our storage/sewing room into a nursery. Almost everything in the room to begin with had to be stored somewhere else, sold in the yard sale, or given to charity. Sam wanted to document the whole thing. So I've made collages of each step. First is the dreaded before picture. M-E-S-S-Y!

Picking a crib set was not as easy as I had thought. By the time we found out we were having a girl, PB had discontinued the crib set I wanted, and ebay was no help in finding a decent one used. So I started my search over, looking for a new crib set that Sam & I agreed on. For two people who agree on most things, this was harder than I anticipated! We finally agreed on one, and even though the original tan walls would have matched just fine, Sam really wanted to paint. So we chose a pretty green for the walls. BTW, if you'd like to see the crib set, here's a link to a picture: Crib Set

Once the room was painted we could start bringing in the furniture, and it finally started to look like a baby's room. Sam repainted the doll cabinet white and replaced all the hardware. My favorite part are the green glass knobs that I found on clearance at Target.

And...here is what it looks like today. We're still not quite finished. There are some shelves that need to go on the wall. A few things on top of the dresser that need a home (although most of them will end up on a shelf.) I've picked out some curtains at Bed, Bath & Beyond, but I'm hoping that they will go on sale. Since she won't be living in her room right away, I'm holding out a bit longer for a sale. The curtains are pink with white swiss dots. I made the art work above her crib. My talented sister in law made the bows hanging from the ribbon. So now we wait. My due date is this Saturday. I'm talking to her about coming on Thursday. That day sounds good to me! LOL

Memorial Day

2011-06-06T15:12:00.000-05:00

For Memorial Day we had a cookout with friends at the Jones' house. One of our contributions to dinner was this angel food cake. I decided to make it patriotic by coloring the batter red, white & blue. Ok, so I didn't have to color the batter white! I love how it turned out! So pretty!

My little friend, Mia Jones agrees, too! She was so excited I was bringing "Angel" cake!

We have pictures of progress on the nursery, but I think the camera is downstairs and I avoid taking the stairs more than necessary right now! Ha Ha Our camera is actually dying, so we have to get another before the baby is born. Any suggestions on a good point & shoot? I'm not quite ready to upgrade to a DSLR the same year I have a baby. Ü So, more baby stuff coming. My shower is in 2 weeks so I'll definitely have pictures from that!

Nursery Inspirations

2011-01-05T14:38:00.002-06:00

So, I'm sitting on the couch this morning, and TV is really boring! Drew Carey was never destined to host The Price is Right! Bleh! So I started wandering around the internet and ended up on the Pottery Barn Kids page. Of course I sucked Sam into looking at it with me...sorry Cerner, I promise he works most of the time, we'll call it a smoke break! Anyhoo...I've picked 2 nurseries that I want to use as my inspiration to create our nursery! I say inspiration, because I just can justify spending over $100 on a fitted sheet, crib sheet & crib skirt when there are so many free tutorials out there, and I can buy the fabric for less than that. Especially when I want to splurge on an upholstered swivel rocking chair. Sigh! So comfortable!

So here're the inspiration rooms.

I'm not sure how to recreate the polka dots. I'll have to look for fabric b/c I am not (repeat NOT) sewing individual circles on anything! I'm not that crazy!!

The boy bumper reminds me of a quilt I saw on a blog that was made from old shirts her husband had worn out. I like the idea of using Sam's old shirts for something for the baby!

We won't find out what we're having until sometime in February, but you know me, I'm always planning ahead. Whatcha think?

Announcement (could July be overtaking February as my favorite month?)

2011-01-05T14:26:00.001-06:00

Most of you are already aware of this, but some of you may not have heard...around July 30 Sam and I will be welcoming a new addition to our family! We are so very thrilled. (Understatement of the century) Here's the picture of our little seahouse from about 2 weeks ago. The head is at the bottom.

Yesterday we got to hear the heartbeat for the first time during our 10 week check up! It's been a bit rough on my body (I've been on a pseudo bed rest since Dec 9), but totally worth it. The good thing is that I'm used to being alone most of the time, so I'm not usually climbing the walls, I just have to adjust to watching Sam doing all of the housework. It's harder than you might think. I've had to get over the guilt that he works a full day and then comes home to have to clean the house as well. He assures me that he's happy to do it, though. Gotta love that man. I do get to go the church on Sundays, so that helps with the cabin fever. So that's where we are right now. We meet with our new and permenant Dr on the afternoon of the 18th. Hopefully, things will be better by then and I can start moving around again. If not, it's all good. I'm getting some good internet nursery inspiration and if I could ever remember to bring down my crocheting, I could proably finish up all my mostly finished projects! LOL So if i can get on the ball with that, I'll post pics as I complete something. I just wanted to thank all our wonderful friends and family who have suffered along with us for these long 14 years. Thank you for your prayers and encouragement. We're are so thankful to have all of you in our lives! I can't wait to introduce you to baby Audrey/William???? Still working on names. Maybe I'll put up a poll sometime much later!

My first tied quilt

2010-08-21T12:05:00.001-05:00

I finally finished my first tied quilt! It was much easier than I expected it to be. Even with my OCD making me stitch it from below so all my ties were straight on the stripes! I'm going to give to me new little nephew who is due to be born any day now. I'm feeling inspired to make another one soon. I love projects that I'm actually happy with them once they're done!
**UPDATE** My little nephew was born today! He's so cute!! I can't wait to meet him!

A new taggie

2010-08-17T10:27:00.001-05:00

Sam has a cousin that I've teased him for years doesn't really exist because I've never met her. This "imaginary" cousin just had a beautiful baby girl named Zoe Rose. I wanted to send her something, so I decided to make a crinkle taggie. I sewed some plastic to the inside therefore not only does it have all the different ribbon textures to rub between her fingers it also makes noise to entertain! It was definitely a learning process, and there are some things I will do differently next time I sew on plastic. For example use a zig-zag stitch, but I like how it turned out. The back is a cream corduroy that I just adore. I went a bit more romantic than I usually would for a baby gift, but I wanted it to match her beautiful name! So, Eowyn, I hope to get to meet you some day and congratualtions on your sweet little girl.

Peas and Carrot

2010-07-15T11:15:00.000-05:00

If you've been following my garden posts, I had one lone carrot to actually make it. I've been waiting for 3 long months to pull it up and see what we got. If you know me, you know that waiting is not my strong suit. I like to peek. Well, today I got to pull up my carrot with high expectations...and this is what I found.

2 inches!!! Now you may be saying..."You're soil was too compact." Oh contraire, my soil is potting mix and compost. It's so lofty, it looks down on the other buckets. I haven't tasted it yet, so I don't know about flavor. Sam and I will nibble it when he gets home. So here is today's harvest from my shady patio. A baby carrot and some more peas. I have to say I've been impressed by my pea plants. I was about to pull them up last June because they peas were bitter and I figured that it had finally gotten too warm. They definitely want to live though. I went out the next day to commit pea carnage when low and behold it was covered with new growth. These are the first harvest from that growth and these peas are sweet again! Yum!

So now I'm getting ready to start my indoor seeds for fall plantings. Any suggestions? I'll do lettuce again, just not so many this time. Probably more peas. I thought about broccoli. We'll see how motivated I get. BTW, my lone pumpkin is oranging up quite nicely. Now it just needs some pumpkin siblings. We're are being re-roofed this weekend. I sincerely hope that everything survives.

Magical Floating Straw

2010-07-06T11:38:00.000-05:00

You know your last drink was too sugary when you find this!

As I've most vocally complained about, I have an awful summer cold. My voice is cracking like a preteen boy. As a result I am taking Mucinex and drinking a lot. I complained to Sam yesterday that I feel like I'm on an all liquid diet! Anyway, when you are drinking a lot, you look for variety of beverage. However, upon taking my glass to the dishwasher this morning and finding the straw sugar-glued to the side of the glass (how did that happen??) I've come to the conclusion that I consumed too much sugar yesterday. So, to make up for that I believe by glass will look like this for the rest of the day...

Go Tigers!

2010-07-02T23:40:00.000-05:00

After 2 weeks here, Spencer is headed out in the morning. His suitcase is a black Samsonite rolling case...not very unique. So I whipped up this felt luggage tag for him. Of course it has his name in the white section, but I'm not posting that on the internet!! Ü It's not perfect, but I'm pleased with my first attempt. I may make some more!

Spencer the Rocker!

2010-06-30T20:59:00.003-05:00

Spencer has really enjoyed rocking out to Guitar Hero this week! He really gets into the songs. It's so cute!

Disclaimers on my camera work:

1. Sorry about the quality of the video, I took it with my camera & it was dark in the room (no video camera. if you want better quality videos, buy me a video camera!!! Ü)

2. I know it's sideways, but when I saved it up and down, it was so dark you couldn't really see anything. (once again, go with it our get me a video camera!! LOL)

3. I know it's 2 mins long, but he really starts getting into toward the end (there's even a foot change at about 1min and a half!) AND if you have good ears, he starts singing along toward the end too!

PS~If you're wondering, it's not him hamming it up for the camera either. He was doing it long before I got the camera out!

more Eclipse Pix

2010-06-30T15:24:00.005-05:00

My friend Mandy took these pictures! Too much fun!

All the party goers over the age of teen!

Team Jacob (oh the poor misled)

Team Edward!

Marissa and I both called home while we were waiting for the movie to start. Mandy thought it was too funny and took a picture!

Eclipse Party

2010-06-30T12:35:00.000-05:00

Eclipse opened last night, and of course I was there at midnight! Here are some pictures of the decorations and stuff. I don't have very many pictures because my camera battery died! GRRRR Thank you Sam for getting it to recharge when I could not.

Mandy found this awesome cake design! She did most of the work, I just frosted it. I love how it turned out!

Mandy's daughter Mia enjoying the cake and getting a black mouth in the process! She was so funny!

The party was a lot of fun. People wore their Twilight themed shirts and we wrote our Twilight names on our cup (I was Edward's Girl). There are a few pictures that I need to get from Mandy. Ones of all us girls being silly and one where I put on my Halloween cape and pretended to be Volturi! LOL Can't wait to see it again, as you know I will!

Eclipse Party

2010-06-25T16:40:00.003-05:00

I just finished designing an invite for my friend's upcoming Eclipse party! I love how it turned out and I got to learn a new photoshop skill in the process. Gotta love youtube tutorials! What did we do before the internet??

Taco Soup

2010-06-24T12:10:00.000-05:00

We love taco soup! We eat it all the time. It's something we generally have everything on hand for it...however, I recently went to make it and I was out of beans!! BLASPHEMY! I quickly rememdied that, and here is the result!

I love how pretty it is and it's good for you! It's extremely versitile too. We once put less water in it and entered it for a chili cook-off. We won hottest chili which made us laugh b/c we were cooking for a venue with children, so we didn't make it as hot as we normally like it!

Taco Soup

2 cans kidney beans
1 can diced tomatoes
half a bag or so frozen corn
1 cup salsa of your choice (we like Pace Hot)
water to make it soupy

Heat to boiling. Turn down and simmer until ready to eat.

Possible Toppings:
shredded cheese (cheddar or mexi blend)
sour cream (we use fat free, I actually prefer the flavor)
black olives
crushed tortilla chips
chopped cilantro
jalapeño slices

Ok, so I've never actually tried the last 2 toppings, but it sounds good (well except for the cilantro, YUCK!) Enjoy!

Baby Shower Pix

2010-06-22T12:28:00.000-05:00

Here are the promised pictures of Marissa's baby shower. I think it went well...I had a lot of fun. I decided to collage everything, b/c it was a lot of pictures. The first is a summary of the games. We played the how well do you multitask??? The players had to hang clothes on the line while holding a baby that was having a "Mommy can't put me down or I will scream bloody murder day!!" I especially love how Wendy put her baby in the bag Kangaroo style. In the end Rissa's sis-in-law Jennie had the fastest score...Congrats Jennie! The other game is always popular. It's the match the baby event to the candy bar name. The prize is the candy bar. Yum!

Here's the food table. We had a salad luncheon. There was Brocolli Salad, Asian Chicken Salad, Pasta Salad and Cookie Salad! So yummy!!

Enjoying baby Ethan. On of the best things about a shower after the baby is born is that you get to hold him! He is so beautiful and a snuggler! I especially love the picture of just his face. So precious!

Lastly, you can't blog a baby shower and not show her opening the presents! I love her facial expressions! Congratulations Marissa on the new addition to your wonderful family!!

Baby Craft

2010-06-20T22:20:00.004-05:00

As promised, here is the craft I referenced last week. It's a cute doggy rattle made from a sock! I got the idea from Homemade by Jill. I love her blog!

I'm super pleased how the face turned out. It's the first time I've tried satin stitching. Now, I have lots more socks...additional ideas?

BTW, I did get the extra blue off his face...don't you just love the Tide To Go Pen?!?

Shower Cake

2010-06-19T02:34:00.000-05:00

It's 2:30 in the morning, but I'm finished so I'm blogging it. Somehow this cake ended up looking more like a birthday cake to me than a baby shower cake when all was said and done. I think it's the shade of blue frosting...way brighter than I was going for. Sam has forever ruined the bear for me too. He calls it a Grateful Dead Bear...there now it's ruined for you too! BTW, after I took this pic I decided that the tops of the scallops didn't look finished, so I added a large star at each top point. It turned out really pretty, but my new pictures didn't...all blurry. Did I mention that it's 2:30 in the morning! LOL Anyway, this is my very first tiered cake and I think it turned out pretty good. Happy Born Day Baby Ethan!

Baby Shower Memory Game

2010-06-16T15:29:00.000-05:00

I finished making the memory game for the baby shower this weekend. It's the first time I've used the Stampin' Up! I'm Here stamp set. Don't you just love the little feet?!?

Newest Invite

2010-06-11T10:23:00.000-05:00

Here is my newest card. It's an invite for my girlfriend's baby shower. This is the first time I've used SCAL, a computer interface, with my Cricut Machine. I love the effect of cutting out the pinwheels!

crafting update

2010-06-10T11:18:00.002-05:00

FYI, I did make something last night. However, I am giving it to my friend Marissa for her baby shower, so I can't post it yet. Blame her for following my blog (Hi Rissa!). So, hold tight, there is something super cute coming.

Blick

2010-06-10T11:02:00.003-05:00

Being sick sucks...just in case you were wondering.

Dear body,

Why can't you get sick the winter when normal people get sick??? Why now when I could be enticing early aging and skin cancer at the pool? My Hawaii tan has faded thanks to you...by the way, I'm having less than pleasant thoughts toward you right now. Thoughts that would make my mother's hair curl. Don't ask, you probably don't want to know. So, if you could please comply and get over yourself, I would be much obliged.

Sincerely,
C

Just Jenny's Crochet

2010-06-09T17:19:00.004-05:00

Like the look of crocheted items, but don't have the skill/time to do it yourself? Like funky designs? Find yourself pining for those winter mornings now that it's 95 degrees outside? Then welcome to Just Jenny's Crochet!

Jenny is a super talented mother of 4 boys! Crocheting her creative and girly outlet. I never get bored looking at all of her creations! Her boys are super adorable too! Today she announced monthly GIVEAWAYS! You can click here to enter! Good luck!

Garden Update

2010-06-07T20:40:00.000-05:00

Ok, so here's what the plants looked like when I took them from the little pots I showed you earlier and put them into the ground. They are so small!! Then, keep going and see how everything has exploded!!

Whirled Peas

2010-06-07T20:38:00.000-05:00

I've really been pleased with the peas...We picked our first ripe pod earlier this week and ate the peas raw. So sweet!! I also love how pretty the plant is!

The Greenbeans!

2010-06-07T20:36:00.000-05:00

Here is my first harvest of greenbeans. I planted 7 plants this year, and They are producing nicely. I definitely like bush beans better than vining ones here. Below are some greenbean babies. So cute!

The forest of lettuce

2010-06-07T20:34:00.000-05:00

The lettuce is still growing strong. It's really yummy! We had to spray it with organic bug spray b/c the ants thought it was yummy, too. Back off little ants!!

The carrot

2010-06-07T20:32:00.000-05:00

Here's my carrot...it's holding on. I can see that the root is getting thicker and is white right now. I can't wait to eat it! What you can't see is that there are bunny tracks behind it (I think). Thankfully nothing was eaten, so either Maggie was outside and ran it off, doubtful, or I have not idea what made those two oval impressions in my bed, highly likely. I'll continue to think of them as bunny tracks and he didn't eat because it wasn't ready yet. Ü

Weed or Not a Weed? That is the question...

2010-06-07T20:29:00.000-05:00

I don't really know what this is...I didn't plant it this year, but we did put some herb seeds there last year, so I'm letting it grow to see if it's actually a plant or a weed...any guesses?

The Pumpkin Plant

2010-06-07T20:27:00.000-05:00

It's amazing how the mini-pumpkin plants have grown! If you look close at the 2nd picture, you can see what's left of the first pumpkin flower. I should have taken a picture of this morning when it was open and pretty. Oh well, I trust your imagination...here's a hint, it looks like a squash flower!

Bill Cosby, Scouts & Jello Brand Jello

2010-05-01T12:14:00.002-05:00

Do you remember the Bill Cosby sketch where his wife makes him get up and make breakfast, so he feeds his kids Choc. Cake, his wife has a kanipshin, sends him to bed and he says the classic line..."where I wanted to be in the first place." I've decided boys start training for this attitude (manipulation??) early. I had the Webelo scouts over today to help making roller boxes out of Jello Boxes for our next Quarterly Activity. They cut the dowels pretty well (Sam was there to instruct and supervise most of that). Then we were drawing squares with rulers so I'd know where to cut the holes on the front and back. They just didn't get the concept! It was really comical, but now that they've gone and I'm redrawing the squares, I've had a thought...Did they just pull a Bill Cosby on me??? Anyway, I learned a lot about Clone Wars and Kongregate games while they were here, and I didn't have to cut the dowels (which is good, b/c as crafty as I am, I can't use a miter box. I cut the plastic instead of the wood!) Thanks Webelo's for your help and the education!

Scouts

2010-04-21T13:38:00.000-05:00

You should be so lucky to be in cub scouts! One of my new church responsibilities is to oversee cub scouts. Man has that been a brain overload! It is totally different than Activity Day girls!! However, if you ever get the chance to work with the boys it's totally fun! I had to take a picture of this marshmallow catapult that Sam built with the Webelos! Come on, where else do you get to shoot marshmallows! The Pinewood Derby is next week, I'll be sure to take pictures of all the cute things we do then!

A big mixed catch up post

2010-04-21T13:26:00.000-05:00

Ok so here's what I've been up to these last few months. We'll start out with what I've been doing this Spring. Here is my flower garden. It started the spring as an empty spot of dirt. With the help of my very good friend and resident flower expert, Mandy, I planted a bunch of bulbs and a few Clemson colored annuals. Go Tigers! Here is the first tulip to bloom! I was so excited!!

Here is my hanging flower pot. I love how pretty and pink it is. The butterfly used to be on the top of a bird feeder, but a stupid squirrel knocked it off last fall trying to steal the food.

This is the beginning of my veggie garden. I have 2 kinds of lettuce already in and will be planning the rest shortly. This year I'm trying my hand a peas, greenbeans, mini-pumpkins and I had 1 carrot come up.

Ok, so here's my birthday pictures. Unfortunately we didn't take any pictures from Sam's birthday, so you only get mine. Are you shocked at how pink it is?? I had a small group of friends come over, and we rocked out to the Beatles' Rock Band!

Coming Soon...

2010-04-19T16:09:00.002-05:00

Ok, so I realized the other day that since I disbanded craft group (ok, so people stopped coming) I haven't really made anything. Never fear! With my new toys (serger and cricut YEA!) there are some projects rolling around in my head. Stay tuned as new stuff is on the way!!

Ooh Shiny!

2010-04-11T15:52:00.002-05:00

Ok, so I had a total ADD moment in Primary today. I was teaching my first sharing time in forever. I split the kids up and gave each group a word strip with missing words. They were to look up the scriptures and fill in the missing words for each strip. This doesn't really take any involvement from me for a couple of minutes. While I was waiting, a child came in late with her mom and needed to be sent on to class. I took her down to class and saw that they were coloring the finger puppets I had used in the earlier lesson. I ran down and grabbed her a puppet pack to color with her class. Then I sort of meandered down the hall, looking at my watch wondering if I was time to knock on doors to give the teachers their 5 minute warning when it hit me...I'm supposed to be teaching right now!!! We all had a good laugh over my Ooh Shiny moment!!

The Twilight Chicks

2009-11-20T11:40:00.000-06:00

Marissa, Mandy and I all got Twilight inspired shirts for the premiere. Mandy's and mine both say Bite Me...don't you just love that phrase!!

Twilight Saga: New Moon Party

2009-11-20T11:39:00.000-06:00

My friends and I got together and had a New Moon party before 3 of us went to the midnight premiere! It was sooooo much fun!! Mandy did a fantastic job decorating with the ideas from Maggie's Dinner Dates. If you haven't seen the movie, it is well worth it. I didn't like the first one (though it has grown on me in the last year), but I adore this movie!! New Moon is my favorite book, and they did an excellent job making the movie true to the book. I can't wait to do this again in June for the Eclipse premiere! BTW, the paper in the corner is my winning perfect score NM quiz. Yes, I am a nerd!! LOL

What big eyes you have!

2009-11-04T16:04:00.000-06:00

This year for Halloween, I pulled out our old costumes and gave them an update. Some of you may remember when I made these several years ago. Sam is the woodcutter and I am Red Riding Hood. This year I finished our costumes by hemming Sam's tunic and adding an axe. For myself, I made the apron and vest. I also had to cut my cape down 2 sizes so it wasn't so big. The bottom left is the scene I painted and put in the back of the Mazda to decorate for the Trunk or Treat. If you can't tell, it's the Wolf jumping to eat you! Sam asked where his body was, I told him to shut up. LOL I initially thought of cutting out the mouth so that you had to reach in to get the candy, but thought better of it. The children are friends of ours. The adorable, Mia, was also dressed as Red. Her mom has pictures of the two of us together. Her older sister Olivia was a fifties girl. Isn't she just gorgeous?? Mandy and I were talking about how she was going to have her hands full once Livvy is old enough to date. On the other side are my sweet friends Megan and Anna. Megan is an elephant, but poor thing hated wearing the turtleneck. I totally sympathized. I hate wearing turtlenecks too. Anna was great! She's a monkey, and I wish I had taken a picture of her feet, b/c her mom had made the cutest monkey shoe covers to go with it! I talk about these kids alot! So now, you have a face to go with the names and stories. Ü The top is of Marissa and I. She was dressed as a gypsy. I love the bright colors. You'll have to go to her blog to see the awesome costume she made for her husband. He was a very classy pirate! Sorry Jim, I didn't get your picture. All in all we had a fun time. We only had 12 trick or treaters on Halloween night, but that's ok. Now to pull out the Thanksgiving decorations! I love this time of year.

Labor Day (has sound)

2009-09-26T15:00:00.002-05:00

Upcoming Projects

2009-09-26T13:25:00.000-05:00

I love when Joann's has a pattern sale! I've been watching for a Simplicity sale because I wanted to make the pajama pattern. Have you noticed that it's hard to find cute nightgowns that are not grandma gown, but not teenage nighties? I love this pattern and can't wait to make it! Well, the sale was 5 patterns for $5, and I wasn't sure if you got the sale price if you bought less than 5, so I picked out the other 4 patterns. I'm totally syked to start these. Especially with some of the fabric I pulled from the remnant bin.

Happy Fall!

2009-09-26T13:20:00.000-05:00

Ok, so I haven't blogged in a while. I've been working on the same project in craft group for 3 weeks, and I didn't actually finish the project before that. That's not entirely true, I did complete a pair of baby shoes (so cute!!), but they don't match, so I'm still trying to figure out which one I did wrong. Ü Here is my new rag wreath. I painted the turkey and then tied all of the wreath. It's a great project for leftover fabric,or in my case, fabric you inherited from your grandma that is out of date. Love you Grandma, but some of these fabrics were blah! Anyway, super easy project, just a little time consuming.

Yum, Cheesecake!

2009-07-30T12:59:00.001-05:00

I love Bakerella's blog! She has such cute ideas and is a really talented food photograper. (I am not, which is why you get one picture out of the eight I took!) I decided to try her recipe for cheesecake and it turned out. Even if it does have the rather large pacman mouth crack in the side (looks around innocently). Sam and I made this last night and it was really easy. I did some research on how to prevent cracking and most people suggest a waterbath when baking. I'll have to try that next time. I'm thinking about cutting it into slices and freezing them b/c I love love love frozen cheesecake!

Update on the Pizza

2009-07-30T12:45:00.002-05:00

It was delicious! The one I pictured wasn't quite cooked long enough, but the other two were better. None of them were particularly crispy on the bottom. I think next time I'll cook them on the bottom rack so the bottom will cook faster than the top. Homemade pizza is definitely being added to our fav list! BTW, does anyone have a good recipe for a pizza sauce? The ones I find are always too thin and too bland. I don't want my pizza to taste like a can of tomato sauce.

Our Garden 2009

2009-07-30T12:44:00.000-05:00

We realized the other day that we hadn't posted anything about our garden this year. This is really surprising because our home improvement project was to redo the patio this year. I really like how it turned out. The tall side fence was solid when we moved in, but we took down the slats and Sam reattached them in the open pattern here so that we can get some sunlight and air in the back. There were pavers covering the 2nd half of the patio, but between Maggie being out there (ew!) and the fact that they were not put on a bed of anything, they had to go. We put some sand and pea gravel in instead. Sam built me the large planter. Didn't he do a beautiful job!! And you've got to love my city, Lee's Summit gives away compost for free! So that's what we filled it with. This year we started with plants from Wal-Mart. I won't do that again. While some plants are doing well (the zucchini, tomatoes & cantaloupe) others look sick and/or strange. The cucumbers are curling. It's so strange. In all the times I've grown cucumbers, I've never had them grow like this. The one I picked last week looked like a Zat gun! Next year, I will plant from seed and go for a bush variety. The butternut squash looks terrible.
(it doesn't help that when it was growing across the ground, Maggie trampled it one day), but it is really producing. At last count, we had 6 squash growing! I thought the zucchini would never produce, it kept blooming flowers and then dying, but we finally have 3 zucchini growing. I LOVE NATURE, it's so cool as long as I don't have to spend too much time in it! The green beans have been my biggest disappointment. They really look sick. I wonder if they need fertilizer or something. I'll have to try a different variety next year. I planted the peppers by the tomatoes, but I don't think they get enough sun since the tomatoes went crazy!!! I've already majorly cut them back once, and I may do it again before the season it over. Then comes the canteloupe. I think that's the prettiest plant we have. We've already had to redirect it from taking over the tomato cages and Maggie's doghouse. We have about 5 canteloupe growing. Here's the pickle, only Sam eats canteloupe! For me they are a definite YUCK!! I'm going to have to research ways of preserving canteloupe or give them away. Any suggestions?
I had to include this photo b/c I really like the squash flowers and you can see a new squash growing in the uppper left side.

2009-07-30T12:31:00.000-05:00

Here's what's growing so far. This is our roma grape tomatoes, a butternut squash, a cantaloupe and a funky cucumber. We also have some greenbeans and zucchini. Oddly enough, our basil did not come up, so I'm going to try herbs in the house next.

Homemade Pizza

2009-07-27T18:27:00.000-05:00

I was so pleased with this that I had to share it. This, my friends, is my very first homemade pizza that I made entirely by myself. Not so impressed? You have to understand that Sam is the bread maker in our family. I have only recently begun to examine if I have breadmaking skills. Now, I tell you, things are definitely looking yummy. Does it taste good?? Who know...it's still cooling downstairs while pizza #2 is cooking. Ü

Hippity Hoppity Hop

2009-07-23T17:25:00.000-05:00

I love this pattern! For the next couple of weeks in craft group, we're crocheting. I found some really cute patterns on etsy.com. This pattern was actually sent me for free from a kind seller as a bonus pattern. I love how it turned out. It's a little big for the doll (meant for a 6+ month old), but the doll is the closest sized model I had. Now to go shopping for yarn to make the rest of the patterns!

Monogram Picture

2009-07-15T13:45:00.002-05:00

It's crafting Wednesday again! This week I found this super cute idea on A Feathered Nest. I'm particularly pleased with how it turned out for a couple of reasons. One, I completely freehanded the letter and the leaves (my printer is currently out of ink so I had no choice). 2nd, with the exception of a frame, I had all the supplies on hand! I love free crafts! Marissa came to craft group this week and made some super cute cards & tags. I wish I had been in the frame of mind to take a picture before she left. I really liked how the turned out. Now off to find an idea for next week.

Where we are on Baby Quest 2009

2009-07-13T13:13:00.002-05:00

As most of you know, Sam and I have been working with a Reproductive Endocrinologist for the past 9 months, trying to get pregnant. While, I'm enjoying being on the drugs that stabilize my PCOS symptoms, the other drugs have been hard. Mostly because they mess with my head, and I can't think straight. The last 2 times we've had an IUI (insemination), Sam has called everyday to ask me if I'd remembered to take my drugs. The ones I've taken everyday for that last 9 months. :) So, anyway, after 3 unsuccessful tries of insemination, our doctor suggested that we stop wasting our money going that route.

The next thing to try is invitro (IVF). Since our insurance doesn't cover this, and we've pretty much wiped out our savings with these last procedures, we're in a holding pattern for the moment. IVF will cost us approximately $10,000. We're trying to save all the money we can right now, and will be cutting back on a lot of things. The good thing is that we have to keep our high speed internet connection for Sam's work, so I'll still be online to keep you up to date on our blog or emails! So anyway, that's where we stand right now. We'll keep faithful that someday we will have children, and do our part to pay the doctors to make it so. Thanks for all your support through this. I'll update again when we have more news.

Update on Ribbon Coasters

2009-07-13T13:11:00.002-05:00

So I finally got around to polyurethaning the ribbon coaster today. Total bust! The ribbon curled in on itself. YUCK! So I tossed it. Good thing I didn't enjoy making those. LOL Stay tuned for this week's attempt at cute felt monogramming.

More Potato Stamping

2009-07-13T13:09:00.000-05:00

I've been at it again with the potatoes! Our ward (church for all you non-Mormons out there) had it's annual Christmas Enrichment activity this weekend. I taught the potato stamping class, and we had such a good time. I decided to try some new designs. I came up with the bee there. I think that next time I'll put the wings on either side of the body. My favorite is the carrots! My friend, Mandy, really liked the picture from the internet, so I decided to try them. So easy to cut out and so cute!! (I still think they look like feathers, but I love them anyway!) I'm thinking about putting some onesies up on Etsy. Let me know what you think.

Ribbon Coasters

2009-07-08T14:10:00.000-05:00

I haven't updated in a while, but I wanted to share this weeks craft. We made coasters out of curling ribbon. It was kind of a pain, and your hand really cramps up. However I think it's a cute idea. Marissa made the one on the left. I really like her color combination. I went for a rainbow theme, but it was not as effective as I hoped. We still need to polyurethane them, but I was done for today. You can see the instructions at Chica an Jo.

My adventures in cooking part 1

2009-06-16T11:04:00.003-05:00

Ok, our Stake Presidency issued a 90 day challenge to become more self sufficient. To do so, they sent a letter laying out some goals for families to work towards. Some of those goals were to bake bread and make meals completely from scratch at least once a week.

The meals from scratch wasn't really that much of a problem for us b/c Sam and I have been slowly moving away from using mixes recently. The bread was more of a challenge as I have never made bread by myself except for sweet quick breads. (I make a mean chocolate chip pumpkin bread...YUM!) So a couple of weeks ago our RS set up a breadmaking class at church, and I successfully baked 2 loaves of white/wheat bread (under supervision). So, last Wednesday for craft group, we decided to try making bread on our own. I found a new recipe that you're supposed to be able to completely make in your Kitchenaid. It was a Honey Oat Wheat bread. Let the games begin...first, I think this recipe was for a bigger Kitchenaid than mine. So kneading it was a trick, but I succeeded. Feeling pretty good about my new breadmaking prowess, I was just about the put it to rest and rise, when I noticed that I had forgotten to add the eggs!! So, back in the bowl it goes, I crack in 2 eggs and start the mixer again. It starts splattering eggs all over the place!!! Ahhh...so I quickly add more flour, and finally get an acceptable lump of dough again. I put it in a bowl on the stove to rise a little worried about what the 2nd knead has done to it, but it rises, albeit slowly. I punch it down, shape it up and put it in the bread pan and set it for the 2nd rise. At this point everyone has left to finish at home, and the oven is no longer being used. I went ahead and turned in on to 375 in preparation for baking and so the stovetop will be warm to aid in rising. They rise beautifully and I am once again excited. I put them in the oven to bake know that the oven should really be nice and hot and set the timer for 40 mins. The fact that I've forgotten something is in the back of my mind, but I ignore it.

Ding...40 mins. Woo hoo fresh bread, by myself!! I open the oven and they're not brown. WHAT??? I touch it and it's still doughy. I look at the stove and realize that somehow I turned the oven off!! So I turn it back on (I really should have removed the bread, but I didn't). Set the timer for another 40 mins and wait. Ding...this time the house smells like bread, good sign. I open the oven and the top crust is a little darker than I would like, but since I'm cooking in glass pans, I can see the sides are brown, so it should be done.

I pulled to bread out of the oven and slide the loaves out of the pans and onto a cooling rack. Worried about if they're done, I immediately slice into one loaf to see what all my goofs have done to it. It looks and tastes fine. A little chewy, but good. Then I look at what I just did to the loaf. In slicing while it was still hot, I've squished the loaf! Oh well. Guess if I make all the mistakes the 1st time, maybe when I make bread for this week, it will go better! LOL Here's a picture of my squished loaf.

Pretty Clipboards

2009-06-03T22:01:00.000-05:00

I wanted to do something different this week, and I got a new calling on Sunday as Primary Secretary. So like peanut butter goes with chocolate, I think being a secretary goes with having a clipboard. Of course I can't just have a plain clipboard...what's the fun in that?!? So this week in craft group we covered clipboards to make them pretty! I made the turquoise and orange one, and my friend Marissa made the rainbow/red variety. I love them, and can't wait to use mine to pass something around on Sunday!!

Superheroes to the rescue!

2009-05-27T15:57:00.000-05:00

I just adore this week's craft!! I found an adorable pattern at pukingpastilles.com for a reversible superhero cape and we made them this week. My girlfriend, Mandy, made the girl version, but had to leave before she finished. I can't wait to see hers as well.

Bandana Pants

2009-05-13T19:07:00.003-05:00

Today in craft group we made bandana pants (shorts). It was a super simple pattern I found at http://blueyonder.typepad.com/photos/bandana_pants/. You just need 2 bandanas and some elastic for the waist. So cute and so much fun to make!!

More baby crafts

2009-04-30T11:27:00.000-05:00

This week for craft group I went back to a baby craft. I saw this idea on Handmade By Jill's blog (see link on side for some really cute ideas). This was really simple, but so cute!!

New Skirts for tax day

2009-04-15T19:04:00.000-05:00

Today's craft was to make new skirts. After much fussing I finally finished mine. Here's what it looks like. I should have made the elastic waist a bit tighter, but hopefully I'll be needed more room in my waistband in the near future. As it is, it stays up, so I'm not sewing the elastic again. I plan on wearing it to the temple of Saturday. As this is my first skirt, I'm pondering tucking away another skirt just in case! LOL

Homemade Bread and Butter

2009-04-06T13:01:00.001-05:00

All you LDS folks out there know that this past weekend was conference weekend. For my non-LDS friends, twice a year we have a two day general conference where we receive instruction from our general leaders of the church in SLC. Sam and I have the BYU channel through our cable provider, so we watch conference at home. That's a lot of time at home! Between sessions on Sunday we decided to try our hand at some bread and butter. We'd made bread before (this was an old mix we found in our food storage), but we'd never intentionally made butter before. Anyone who was friends with us during our foray into ice cream making knows that we unintentionally made really sweet vanilla butter no matter what ice cream recipe we used!! The butter was so easy to make! We used 16 oz. of walmart brand heavy whipping cream as our base. I let the cream come to room temperature (about 90 mins) and then dumped it into my food processor. Turned on my most beloved appliance and about 3 mins later we had butter!! I saved the leftover liquid to make pancakes with later this week, and began washing the butter.
It only took 2 rinsings to get the water clean. I didn't do a great job squeezing the excess rinse water out, so it's a little moist. We added a pinch of salt (literally Sam pours a small amount in my hand) I'd guess that it was about 1/8 of a teaspoon and stirred it in. Sam can't really taste the salt, but I can. In the end we made about 7 oz of butter. Next time we're going to try cream from a local dairy to see if it's any different. Yum and easy! You can't get any better than that!

The Finished Quilt

2009-04-01T12:26:00.001-05:00

It's Wednesday, and as promised here is my finished quilt. Can I just reiterate that it gave me fits and like Tiggers with honey, I definitely don't like quilting!! LOL I cheated and didn't lay it flat for a more flattering (and mistake hiding) picture! Yes, I'm vain, what can I say.Ü Now where is that baby to wrap it up in??

Happy Happy Birthday, Sammy, dear!

2009-03-30T18:25:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Sam's birthday last week and he's made it to 35! Wow that's old! LOL I tried to recreate his old Trailblazer on his cake, and think I did a pretty good job, but man did my hand ache afterward. Mother nature decided that he needed 4 inches of snow for his birthday, which made helping a new member move in so much more enjoyable. His present from me he actually got early, because I got us tickets to go see The Phantom of the Opera two days prior. No matter how many times I see it, it's still so beautiful! He had fun talking to friends and family on the phone and opening his gifts. Maggie got a gift too. Sam's mom sent a Clemson colored gecko for the animals to fight over. Of course with Maggie there is no fight. If she wants it, its hers. Obviously, she wanted it. All in all it was a fun day and I'm so happy that he was borned 35 (count them 35 WOW) years ago. Ü

Baby Quilt

2009-03-30T18:15:00.000-05:00

Ok, so those of you who watch my blog regularly, know that I usually post what I made in craft group on Wed or Thursday. Well, I took the pictures last week, but was slack about posting it. I found a fat quarter pack at Wal-Mart that I totally feel in love with! I decided that I would try my very first quilt. Let me just tell you that I will NEVER EVER complain about the price of a quilt again!! It's a pain!! I don't know how people find this calming and therapeutic??? I learned that I can't cut straight (even with a rotary cutter and ruler) and I can't sew straight. Sure you look at my strips laid out on my table waiting to be sewn together, it looks like it matches up...oh ho...but when you actually sew them together, you learn that some of them are wider than the rest and throw all your corners off! ARGH you shout (and the dog looks to see if you've finally lost it) I actually got farther than this last week. I started machine quilting it, but had to stop when I ran out of white thread. Sadly, I've been to Wal-Mart at least twice since last Wednesday, and haven't remembered to buy more thread. I will finish it in craft group this Wednesday and will publish the photos of the finished project. Needless to say, I ask that
you not look too closely, but treat it as abstract art. Now, that I've determined that I'm not doing this again, what am I going to do if I have a boy?? No worries, I'm sure I'll come up with something, and as I'm not pregnant yet, I still have time. Ü

The Last Onesie

2009-03-18T08:12:00.000-05:00

I had one last onesie left over, so I decided to do a second embroidery. I found this butterfly in a Precious Moments coloring book. I just scanned it into my computer and resized it to the appropriate size. I think it turned out really cute. It's kind of sad to not have anymore onesie's to decorate. Guess I'll need to come up with something else to work on. Today for craft group, I'm helping a girlfriend with her current beading project, so no pictures of finished projects. Still trying to figure out what to do next week. I just picked up to adorable fabric, and I'm thinking about decorating some burp cloths. I'll have to wonder around the internet and see what strikes me!

Taggies

2009-03-04T13:07:00.000-06:00

So, this month we are continuing on the baby theme. (it's just too much fun!!) I was looking for a new project, and saw that someone was selling taggies on etsy.com. I looked at it and thought...I can do that! So, Marissa and I went to Joann's and picked out our fabric (contrasting so the sides would be different) and this is how they turned out!

For those of you that don't know, a taggie is a baby toy with various textured ribbon tags on it that babies like to rub. I remember doing that with the tags on my stuffed animals a million years ago!! I'm really pleased with how cute these turned out, and I got to use the embroidery function on my sewing machine!! All in all a really fun day!! Now, what are we going to do next week???

Last of the Onesie Crafts

2009-02-26T15:12:00.001-06:00

We finished our month of onesie crafts this week. We had a good time tie-dyeing. They turned out really cute!

Potato(e) stamping

2009-02-18T18:06:00.000-06:00

Today we potato stamped! It was so fun, I had to restrain myself from doing more than 2!! I did restrain myself as my last onesie will be used next week for tie-dying. I let Sam pick out the designs, so of course we have a rocket ship. I found this really awesome paint online at http://www.dharmatrading.com/. The stamping idea came from a segment on Martha Stewart. All in all, a fun way to spend my birthday morning. Now what else can I stamp???

Week 2 February Craft Group

2009-02-11T21:04:00.000-06:00

Today we tried our hand at embroidery. Momma found a really cute website that sells patterns. It was lots of fun, but not something I would take up full time! Mine is called "Monster Speaks". You should check out the webpage http://www.urbanthreads.com.

Petits Fours

2009-02-10T12:40:00.003-06:00

Monday, my friend Marissa and I made petits fours for Valentine's day. Here is my half. It was so much fun and they are yummy!
Happy Valentine's Day!!

February Craft Group

2009-02-04T15:10:00.000-06:00

As many of you know, I host our Ward's (church's) weekly craft group. This month we're decorating onesies! Today was our first effort. We did iron on transfers. They turned out sooooo cute!! I was so excited by how cute and yet so easy they were! I have to give credit to PCCrafter.com for their adorable artwork as well. I have 6 onesies left to and it's a good thing that my friend Melissa took the transfer sheets home, or I would have to buy more onesies for next weeks craft. Keep and eye out for more pictures of our decorating efforts. We're tie-dying, potato stamping & embroidering.

Our craft group with our finished products.

A close up of the fronts.

Of course, I had to decorate the backs too. More is never too much!!

Our Christmas

2008-12-25T15:39:00.004-06:00

Ok, so we took a lot of pictures this Christmas. I just upgraded to Picasa 3 and it has a slideshow feature. So I thought I would make a slide show of all our pictures. We had a great holiday season, and really enjoyed our cookie making and delivering this year. A big thanks to Jenny Orchard for the edible ball bearings (dragees to you non-Dr watchers) and edible glitter! They really set off our spritz cookies. Christmas eve was fun. We did a little carolling and then we watched Get Smart. Too fun! Christmas morning started with taking care of the animals, of course. They can be soooo demanding. Ü After they started their special breakfast we were able to settle in around the tree. Now the presents are open, dinner is in the oven, and we are getting ready to spend the evening with friends playing games. We hope all of you had as wonderful of a season as we had!

Mia playing with her Christmas mice

2008-12-25T15:29:00.004-06:00

I couldn't resist taking a couple of videos of Mia playing with her Christmas mice. She was just too cute! Of course, as you see in the first one, having the camera at her level can be even more interesting then the mice.

Christmas Around the House

2008-12-16T11:48:00.000-06:00

I decided to take some pictures of our Christmas decorations around the house. I'll try to remember to go out at night and take some pictures of the outside decorations. I LOVE THEM! I really think that we have a chance to win the neighborhood holiday decoration contest this year. Of course I am a little biased. Maybe I'll take pictures and have you vote.

We downsized the tree this year, so I couldn't even put half the decorations on it, but it's still really pretty.

I love my mantel! It's so pretty in silver, glass & red.

This is as far as I've gotten with the Christmas cards. Hopefully they will make it out in the next couple of days.

2008-12-16T11:44:00.002-06:00

The tree here was crocheted by my dear friend, Jenny Orchard. She's so talented. Check out her blog at justjennys.blogspot.com Thanks for the tree Jenny!

The snowmen are invading the upstairs!! This is my shelf at the top of the stairs. If you look close, you can see that I need to repair one poor snowman whose nose fell off!

I love window clings! These little Santa's jumped into my cart on a recent Walmart trip! That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Also, you get to see the snow on my patio.

I really like this table with some of my nativity and angel decorations.

Snow Day

2008-12-16T11:41:00.000-06:00

We're having our first "big" snow of the season today. It snowed an inch or so last week, but melted the next day. This snow is likely to stick around, since we're not forecasted to get above freezing in the next week. This morning's temp was 10°!

I had to take these pictures of Maggie wiped out after playing in the snow. She loves to eat the snow! She's just too cute in her bandana. That she got on her last trip to Puppy Jail (aka the wonderful pet boarding facility we take her to when we go out of town.)

Girls Day Out

2008-12-16T11:34:00.000-06:00

Marissa Carlson and I try to spend one day a week doing something out of the house. A couple of weeks ago we visited the Bingham-Waggoner Estate in Independence, MO. It was beautiful!! It is a restored Victorian house that right now is decorated for Christmas. Almost all of the furniture in original to the house. It was very Meet Me In St Louis.

Time Out For Women

2008-12-16T11:26:00.000-06:00

Some girlfriends and I attended Time Out for Women in Omaha, NE a couple of months ago. We had a wonderful time. It was really nice to get to know each other better. Time Out for Women is an event sponsored my Deseret Book that is a weekend of beautiful music and inspirational speakers. Friday night we listened to the music of Jenny Oaks Baker (a violinist). It was wonderful and she was adorable!

We stayed in a phenomenal hotel. I wish I had taken pictures of the lobby, it was beautiful! Of course we had to stop and enjoy the cookies and cocoa by the fire Friday evening.

2008-12-16T11:20:00.001-06:00

After we got back friday night, we all brought some chocolate to share and had a little party in our room!

I really enjoyed this weekend. I was uplifted by the messages shared and by the music. If you ever have a chance to attend, I would encourage you to do so. It was so worth it!

Oh the weather outside it frightful!

2008-11-08T21:13:00.001-06:00

This year I have gone Christmas ornament crazy! I just can't help myself. They are all so pretty and they bring me joy!! LOL I haven't actually started decorating yet. I'm giving my Thanksgiving decorations a chance. Ü We will decorate in 2 weeks. That's a week early because we'll be out of town Thanksgiving weekend (woo hoo to all you SC folks!) I'm chomping at the bit to do it. Sam and I have been going back and forth over where to put the armoire in the kitchen for December (that's where the tree goes). We bought a slightly smaller tree this year b/c last year our humongous one was a joke. It took up half the kitchen...almost literally. The new tree in prelit, so Sam is excited. I'm not the only excited one...someone on our street has already put their lights up and is turning them on! I've so far resisted turning on the carols only b/c I'm afraid that I'll be sick of it before Christmas actually gets here. I did that with Halloween. We decorated the middle of September, and by October 31 I was so over Halloween! So happy beginning of the holiday season to all you out there who like me are ready to deck them halls!

Grocery Bag

2008-10-15T15:28:00.000-05:00

I've been sewing for craft group this month. Here is my attempt at a grocery bag.

Apron

2008-10-08T14:30:00.000-05:00

I made my first apron! I designed it and it actually worked!! Now, what can I cook???

Our First Missouri Garden

2008-07-15T13:58:00.000-05:00

2008-07-09T15:42:00.000-05:00

Maggie enjoyed being outside with us and was curious as to what we were doing.

2008-07-09T15:40:00.000-05:00

You know me, if I have to make something, it's going to be cute! One year we planted a garden and didn't mark what we had planted. Of course once it grew, it became a daily mystery as to what we were going to get. This year, I want to know what to expect!

2008-07-09T15:37:00.000-05:00

The finished product. I can't wait for them to grow!! They have already survived their first MO thunderstorm, although I'm wondering if we should have drilled a few more holes in the bottom of the bucket. The corn especially was slow to drain. Still, I'm just like a little kid watching in wonder for the first signs of life. Even though I know they won't sprout for at least a week, I still look hopefully every morning.

Cat Napping

2008-07-09T15:33:00.000-05:00

This I just thought was too sweet. You can't be still in our house without kitty coming to join you.

Girls Camp

2008-07-09T15:31:00.000-05:00

I worked at our Stake Girls Camp this year on the cooking staff. Boy was that a lot of work! The other ladies cooking with me were just terrific. I didn't particularly enjoy the standing in an unairconditioned kitchen for 16 hours a day, but I really enjoyed the people I met. We had a really good time goofing around and talking all week long. Spending time with the girls was really uplifting and made me miss my sister. The bottom picture is of me with my friend Marissa Carlson. She was the camp leader over the 2nd year girls. It was great to be able to see her there. We're so used to spending time together, that I think we would have gone through withdrawls being apart for a whole week. I'm not sure I would go back, but I'm really glad that I went.

Refinishing the Patio Fence

2008-07-09T15:24:00.001-05:00

After many delays we've finally refinished the patio fence! The stain Sam chose turned out a bit more orange than we expected, but it has dried to a nice color. It's so nice to have a handy husband who can make things look so nice!

Take me out to the ballgame!

2008-06-13T15:04:00.000-05:00

Cerner had a company sponsored activity at the local minor league team. We had a fun time. We had great seats, 6 rows behind the home team dugout. The first picture we are looking away because of a foul ball. Duck man! It was a low scoring game with the T-Bones (home team) finally scoring a homerun in the bottom of the eighth inning. They went on to win, beating the Fargo team 1-0. Go Team!

My new passion

2008-06-09T21:18:00.000-05:00

Ok, I had to blog this just because it made me happy. I have a new girly passion. My very good friend, Marissa, treated me to my first pedicure today. Most of you who know me, know that I think feet are ugly, but how can something painted so cute be considered ugly?? Ü So sorry for the foot picture, but I thought it was too cute and had to share!

Family Visit

2008-04-19T13:32:00.000-05:00

My family came to visit for Spring Break. We had a great time visiting the church history sites, the KC Zoo, and Mom & I spent an afternoon at the Hallmark VC. On Friday, my Aunt Linda and cousin, Kelsey, came up to visit as well. Who knew you could comfortably fit 9 people in our house! We capped off the week by going to the T-Rex Cafe. If any of you have ever seen The Rainforest Cafe, it's pretty much the same, but with a Dinosaur theme. The boys had a great time. Of course we forgot to bring a camera, so these pictures are off of my phone. The boys ordered a dino sized rice krispie treat that came with "paint", brushes and mini M&Ms to decorate their dinosaur. The girls ordered homemade s'mores. Mom, Dad and I shared a huge Chocolate Extinction, which Sam finished off after work. Yum!

Happy Birthday Sam!

2008-03-29T13:08:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Sam's 34th birthday last night. We went out for dinner at Chili's and ate yummy cake. (if I do say so myself Ü)

2008-03-29T13:03:00.000-05:00

He huffs and he puffs and he blows the popcorn away! I had a lot of fun making this cake. (Well all except the frosting part...for some reason the frosting wouldn't stick to the cake...very strange.) As I'm sure a lot of you know...Sam LOVES popcorn. When I saw this cake design, I knew it would be perfect for his birthday.

2008-03-29T12:59:00.000-05:00

Even at 34, one of the best things about birthdays is OPENING PRESENTS! Swami says... Milkshakes and smoothies are in our future along with sweet tunes to wake up to! Happy Birthday Sammy!

Here Come's Peter Cottontail...

2008-03-29T12:55:00.000-05:00

The Easter Bunny was able to find us in MO! Unfortunately this is the only picture we took that day! LOL We had a lovely day of church and dinner with the Carlson's. I brought macaroni and cheese. It was the first time some of them had seen macaroni and cheese prepared that way. I assumed they liked it...Sam and I loved it, of course. All and all it was a successful Easter even though we weren't able to share it with family or spend it in the South.

Maggie in the curtains

2008-03-29T12:51:00.000-05:00

I couldn't resist this picture. We had to move the furniture around in our room when we got a new bed. As a result, Maggie's bed was moved under the window. Apparently she thinks the curtains are her new blanket! She makes sure that she's behind them before she lays down. Sometimes she gets completely behind the curtains so that all you can see is her nose sticking out. She's too funny. (BTW, the small pillow used to be a throw pillow for our bed, but she decided that she needed a pillow for her head and stole it in the middle of the night.)

Happy Birthday Me!

2008-03-29T12:45:00.000-05:00

We celebrated my 32nd Birthday this year by going out to dinner with our friends, the Carlson's. We found a Moe's in the middle of nowhere KS. Definitely not a good as Clemson's Moe's, but still better than Chipotle. I had a yummy chocolate cake with Fluffy White frosting and Barbie colored candles. It was a great birthday!

Valentine's Day

2008-03-29T12:36:00.001-05:00

We took this picture after our Stake Valentine's Dinner/Dance. We left after the dinner because we didn't know anyone there, and we were extremely bored. ...Yawn... So salvage the night (and the fact that we were dressed up), we drove over to KS to have a special dessert at The Cheesecake Factory. Yum! Now that's worth spending 45 mins curling my hair!

A closer look

2007-12-31T15:29:00.000-06:00

Sam wanted a more close up picture of the snowflake.

Snowflake

2007-12-18T08:58:00.001-06:00

During the last snow on Saturday, Sam noticed that there was a perfectly formed snowflake on our fence post. It was so cool, we had to take a couple of pictures of it.