The March Share

we're expanding by 2 feet!

2012-01-28T10:25:00.000-07:00

And no, we're not adding on to the house just yet. We've been busy cooking this little cutie:

That's right! We're going to have a little baby in the March family :-)

Baby is expected to arrive around August 8, 2012.

Baby stats:

How many weeks- 12 weeks 3 days

Size- baby is the size of a peach- a cute, sweet little fuzzy peach :-)

Bump- no, but I've been bloated because I started eating bread again...

Sickness/aversions- YES! I've been sick since the day we found out. I can't keep much down without taking Zofran. I also have some major aversions to sweets which is so unlike me.

Emotions- nervous and super excited! We waited a long time for this and experienced some complications at the beginning but the doctor checked everything out and the baby looks PERFECT so we're trusting that and choosing to just ride on the feelings of joy :-)

We are so incredibly blessed and are thankful for our many friends and family who have been praying for us during this trying time. We love you all so much!

I'm in the home stretch

2011-08-11T08:38:00.000-06:00

Today is day 25 of 35- I only have 10 days left on my detox diet. I'm actually starting to notice some changes. Here are the stats as of this past Monday.
Weight- 135
Body fat- 23.2%

I've lost a total of 7.8 lbs and .6% body fat. My body fat percentage has fluctuated the most...last week I was down to 22%. My nutritionist said these things change from day to day, but we're looking at overall results, so I'm still doing well. Also, it's important to note that anything between 20-25% for women is quite good. Women need more body fat than men so that we can have babies and feed them. I say all of that to say I'm not really concerned with that number.

Here's the biggest change- I HAVE ENERGY! I am able to actually get out of bed in the morning (usually around 7) and get moving! It's amazing. I get so much more accomplished during the day. And get this- I've even been to the gym- TWICE! Granted, I only stayed for 25 minutes each time, but that's 25 minutes more than I had been! I've found that I really don't mind the elliptical and I can do that for about 15 minutes before I need to change it up. However, I like going around mid-morning because there's no one else there to judge me. See, I went earlier this week around 4:30 and there were TONS of people there working out. I did my thing, got on the elliptical for 15 minutes, took a short break, then got on the bike for 10. AndI could see all these people giving me these looks like "really? only 15 minutes? I've been on this treadmill for 45." It makes me feel worse about myself. But mid-morning is just fine. There's a cute little pregnant lady who likes to read while she rides the bike and an old grandma who walks the track. This is where I fit in. And I like it.

Another thing that has changed is I'm cooking so much more. The food I'm cooking is also much healthier (obviously). I've come up with some pretty tasty recipes. My favorite from last week is homemade egg drop soup. Now, you could add some chicken or tofu to this and I'm sure it would be great but it didn't fit into my daily nutrition plan for that day, so I just had veggies and egg in mine. Here's the recipe- bear with me because I made it up.

2 cups of vegetables- I used lima beans, okra, green beans, and carrots- they were all frozen
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 can of chicken broth
1 tsp corn starch
2-3 eggs
salt to taste

First I sauteed the vegetables in the olive oil. Since mine were frozen and I needed the extra calories, this worked out well. I should have added salt at this point, but I didn't and I regretted it.
After the veggies were cooked and had soaked up all of the yummy fat, I added in the chicken broth. Let the broth heat up and almost boil. Add the corn starch next to thicken the broth. Bring the soup to a boil. Once it is boiling, scramble 2-3 eggs and drizzle them in the pot. The egg will cook almost instantly. Serve with salt or soy sauce. I can't have soy on my diet, so I used salt. The okra and lima beans in it were so yummy, but I could've done without the green beans and carrots. Maybe if the carrots were cut up more they would have been better.

I had this for lunch one day and then again with dinner that night. Even Heath liked it.

Another recipe that I have liked that was new for me was mashed cauliflower. I don't really care one thing about cauliflower. I'll eat it when it's in a vegetable mix, but I don't like it raw or alone. However, I kept seeing recipes for mashed cauliflower that supposedly tastes like mashed potatoes. I LOVE mashed potatoes and gravy, so I felt like I needed to give this a try.

1 bag frozen cauliflower (I used the King Soopers brand, small-ish bag)
3 tbsp butter
salt and pepper to taste

Boil 4-6 cups of water (salted).Throw the bag of cauliflower in the microwave for about 2 minutes to thaw it out. Add cauliflower to boiling water. Cook for about 7 minutes of until really tender. Drain and reserve the water. Add butter, salt, and pepper and mash. Add water back into the cauliflower as needed for smooth texture (this is instead of milk, but you could certainly use milk I suppose).

I'm definitely more creative with food than I was before. And we're not eating out as much since it's so hard to find food at a restaurant that doesn't have milk, soy, sugar, wheat, some other grain....but it's definitely been a blessing because I'm feeling better and so is our checking account!

Successes!

2011-07-25T21:55:00.000-06:00

It's the little things that keep me motivated....

(By the way, I did make the almond milk lime ginger ice cream- it was a little too spicy, but it was good!)

Today I met with my nutritionist again for our little weekly get-togethers. She weighed me in and reviewed my food for the week. And guess what- even though I didn't eat a single vegetable on Saturday, I still managed to lose 4.5 lbs! That's right ladies and gentlefolks, I'm down to 138. And I was so happy :-)

Here are some more small successes from today:

One thing my nutritionist mentioned was my lack of raw vegetables in my diet. I hate salad. Absolutely HATE salad. And there are not any vegetables that I currently eat that I would be willing to eat raw. You see, I have a texture problem. It has plagued me my entire life. If the texture of a food is too "crunchy" or too "mushy", my gagger pushes it back out. This is how I feel about raw vegetables every single time I attempt them. I told my nutritionist she was crazy if she thought I was going to eat a raw vegetable. Heck, it's a major feat in itself to get me to stop smothering them with cheese!

But then I went to the store and remembered that I like rhubarb. You see, I probably wouldn't know that I like rhubarb if it weren't for my separated-at-birth "sister" Gina. Gina and I were attached at the hip when we were younger. I honestly can't remember a weekend in 5-6 grade that we didn't stay the night at each other's house. Many times though, we ended up at Gina's house. And Gina's sweet momma, Bonnie, loves to make food that I would never think about eating. And she would always say "Well you can just try a bite"- and most times I did. Sometimes I still didn't like vegetables, but sometimes it wasn't so bad. You see, Bonnie is a consumer science lady (that's home ec to you common folk). And she knows how to cook. In fact, I took a cooking class from her in high school. She really knows her stuff. Well, one time after a sleepover, Ms. Bonnie attempted to make us rhubarb muffins. Something happened with the muffins and they fell flat so she dumped the batter into a casserole dish and made rhubarb crunch. And it was the most delightful stuff I've ever eaten in my life. Yummy, bready goodness with sugary swirls in it and a sharp tang of this redish-green stuff.

So I decided I liked rhubarb.

So today when I was at the store, I bought some rhubarb. And you know what I did with it?

Well I couldn't turn it into muffins or bread or a breakfast casserole.....

So I turned it into sorbet.

That's right- sorbet. Perfect for a hot summer night. Rhubarb pieces, a couple of strawberries, and some water in the blender. Then pour that into the automatic ice cream maker. The result was the most sour tasting, couch staining, yummy "raw" vegetable I've ever had.

I call that a success.

My husband also made me some butternut squash curry soup for dinner. The jury is still out on whether or not all this squash I'm eating counts as a vegetable or more of a root, but I'm going to count it as a vegetable. Hey- if jicama and lima beans count as vegetables, then SURELY butternut squash does too.

Right?

Diet- week 1

2011-07-23T21:09:00.000-06:00

So this week has been nothing short of awful. I've been moody, craving EVERYTHING, and have had some incredible headaches. But my nutritionist keeps insisting that this is all part of the "process" and that my body is just reacting to getting rid of all the "junk". I'm not sure I buy it, but I do know that my belly bloat has gone down, so we'll see.

So as I shared before, my dietary restrictions change from day to day. Each week, I have 2 days where I prep for detox, 2 days of detox, and 3 days of eating "approved foods".

Today is an approved food day. So here is what I've eaten today:

Breakfast- hard boiled egg (I woke up late and just needed to eat something before lunch)

Lunch- curry chicken- made with coconut milk, cranberries, and cashews

Snack- apple and peanut butter

Dinner- lunch leftovers

Ok so, I didn't eat a single vegetable today, but I figure one day out of 35 is ok. I did keep myself limited to only approved foods (yay!) and I stayed within my calorie budget for the day. Overall, I would say it's a success.

Tomorrow is my last day for "approved foods" before I start prepping for detox. I found an amazing recipe online for lime ginger almond milk ice cream. I'm thinking I will have this for an afternoon snack tomorrow with some berries. I'm not sure that ice cream is in my food plan, but it includes all kinds of things that are and are good for me- almonds, ginger, lime, maple syrup, and berries! I think that overall, it's a win.

Goodbye Cellulite....

2011-07-20T20:22:00.000-06:00

Hello skinny jeans! Ok, maybe not quite... I will probably never wear skinny jeans no matter how skinny I am.

As of Monday, I have started a 5 week nutrition program to help me start feeling better about myself. There have been so many things that have contributed to my not feeling well, but I finally got sick of all of it and decided it was time to put on my big girl britches and suck it up and do something about it. So here's the backstory:

When I was in high school, I was extremely thin. I was never anorexic, nor did I ever think twice about anything that I ate. I was somewhat active at the time, thanks to Coach Slaton's daily death drills, but I never had to exercise. When I graduated high school I weighed 105 lbs.

Flash forward to college: I gained, not the freshman fifteen, but the sophomore 50. Yes, 50! I ballooned out due to some bad eating/sleeping habits and stress. I also had some other medical problems. I was treated for irregular periods and ovarian cysts and eventually in the fall of 2006, I had a laparoscopic surgery on my uterus to check for what might be causing these problems. After my surgery, I was down for a while and was bloated from the gas that they put in my stomach to do the surgery. I wasn't able to wear jeans again until thanksgiving, and even then, I had gone up a size from my pre-surgery size. This is when the weight gain began.

By the time I graduated college, I had lost most of the weight. I was back down to about 120 lbs and was feeling pretty good, although I was nowhere near as thin as I had been in high school. I was ok with that because I actually liked my figure better and felt more confident than I had before.

Since graduating college, my weight has fluctuated, my periods have continued to be irregular, I've had terrible acne that won't go away, and I've generally felt tired ALL THE TIME.

Every doctor's solution seemed to be some magic pill- birth control. "If you just go on birth control it will regulate your cycle and get everything back in balance." And that's what I did....for a long long time. And nothing helped. After having some terrible stomach pain, associated with an ovarian cyst, and caused by my birth control pills, I decided to quit taking any synthetic hormones. I felt like I needed to rid my body of these toxins. This was back in September, just 2 weeks after my wedding. I ultimately had some other issues that made it even more important that I discontinue synthetic hormone treatments, so I stopped immediately.

After this, I decided to start paying closer attention to my body. When I realized at the beginning of May that I hadn't had a period since February, I became concerned. I wasn't pregnant so what else could it be? I went to the Dr. and was diagnosed with PCOS- Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. PCOS is related to an insulin resistance and causes your body to not produce estrogen and over produce testosterone. The insulin resistance is a precursor to diabetes. The Dr. finally explained every symptom I was having- irregular cycles, weight gain, acne, fatigue, just to name a few. At this point I weighed 145 lbs. and was feeling worse than I ever had.

Since May, my husband and I have tried changing our diet to include healthier food as well as good, lean proteins, whole fruit and veggies, and less sugary foods. I also increased my activity level. However, I noticed absolutely no change in my weight, the size of my belly/thighs, my overall feeling of fatigue....It wasn't working.

Last Friday something changed. I finally got so sick of it I couldn't take it anymore. I met with a nutritionist who had previously helped my mom lose weight and get rid of her allergies. I really thought she might be able to help me. She explained how my body is inflamed and is full of "toxins" that need to be flushed out and that I'm definitely a "pre-diabetic". Her first goal for me is to regulate my blood sugar. She gave me a special diet to follow, along with tons of supplements to take. I started this diet yesterday.

My food yesterday:

Breakfast- protein shake (part of my program)

Snack- 1 cup cherries

Lunch- 1 hard boiled egg, 1 peach, 1 cup of broccoli with olive oil and garlic

Snack- 1 cup of green beans

Dinner- 1 egg, scrambled

I didn't meet my calorie goal for the day- I was supposed to eat 1100 calories and was only able to eat about 850. I had a really hard time after lunch not feeling hungry. I also got an incredible headache that put me on the couch for hours and made me nauseous. I had planned to have some veggies with my egg at dinner but was unable to eat any more than that because I was feeling so sick. I talked to my nutritionist today and she said that this is very common when you've been mistreating your body with food. So I was definitely regretting that entire bag of crazy bread I had eaten Monday for "lunch".

Today was my first day of "detox". My detox program is supposed to include 3 protein shakes a day, supplements, and a mixture made with distilled water, pure lemon juice, and pure maple syrup. However, I am having trouble with the protein shakes as I find them completely disgusting. I can't seem to drink them without gagging. So my program was modified to only drink the lemon mixture. So far, I'm feeling pretty good. I actually feel much better today than I did yesterday.

So here's the beginning stats:

Height- 5'6"

Weight- 142.8

Measurements (in inches)

upper arm- 11.5

chest- 34

waist- 34

hips- 41

thigh- 24.5

Some very unflattering "before" pictures:

Front view

Do you like our new china cabinet? :-)

Side view

(no I'm not pregnant, although it might look like it)

Yucky skin that is resistant to all topical and oral treatments

Wish me luck! Right now, all I can think about it how much I wish I was eating a snicker bar and a grilled cheese.

School's out!

2011-06-02T15:39:00.000-06:00

It's is officially summer break for me and I think I'm busier now than I was a week ago! I have so many things on my plate- summer school....cake-making....cooking...cleaning...etc. I am so excited though to have some time away from my students to rejuvenate myself and focus on some other things.

I am booking up fast for weekend weddings this summer. I have 2 cakes I'm making for this weekend (a birthday cake and a wedding shower cake) and then a wedding cake the next 2 weekends. It's really exciting to get more cake jobs and refine my skills even more. Who knows- might not be long before I'm on a Food Network Challenge or something! I really do feel like my decorating gets better with every cake I make. My baking gets a little better too. I'm always trying new tricks and tips.

Speaking of...I'm off to get a cake out of the oven!

She's back!

2011-05-09T11:43:00.000-06:00

Wow!

It's been 4 months since I've written anything on here. And I've been a busy woman, let me tell you!

With school winding down for the year, I feel like it's time to reconnect. So here I am. I'm back- and I'm bloggin'.

You might also see the hubs on here from time to time. I'm trying to convince him to post some of his yummy recipes. We'll see :-)

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

2010-12-19T20:14:00.000-07:00

And I mean it! I am officially off on Christmas vacation and am already having visions of sugar plums (ok, more like starbucks and lunch dates) dancing in my head. I didn't think I would make it this far! I have officially been a bilingual kindergarten teacher for an entire year! If you remember correctly, I started teaching bilingual kindergarten last year right before the Christmas break in the same school district. Yes, my school was shut down last year, but I was relocated to a new school where I'm doing part time kindergarten and part time first grade Spanish literacy. I'm taking the time now after a full year to stop and reflect on how incredibly blessed I've been...and yet I feel even more blessed to be taking a 2 week break from all of it! 25+ five-year-olds can wear a girl out!

So far on my Christmas vacation I have been just enjoying time at home with my husband and friends. On Friday night I helped my mom make some cupcakes and then Heath and I finished up some Christmas shopping. Nothing too exciting, but I didn't have to get up for any reason the next morning! Heath and I slept in until 10am (first for me since we've been married!) and then played video games all morning and enjoyed a homemade zucchini and summer squash quiche- super yum! Saturday night we headed for the mountains. We stopped in Idaho Springs for Beau Joe's pizza and then went to a friend's birthday party in Georgetown. It was really nice to just get to hang out for once and not have any stress about what I was planning at school for Monday!

Now here comes the good part. While I do not have any official plans during the break, I will be taking time to improve upon my domestic capabilities. It's been a running joke in our house about how domestically disabled I am. Surprising, isn't it? I know. I do cook dinner, but our meals are...bland to say the least. I'm not a very experience chef and we're quite lucky if dinner doesn't come out "blackened" (and I don't mean with cajun spices). I have trouble finding time to do laundry. After the long days I spend at work, many times 11 hours, I have little to no energy to clean the house or do any ironing or anything like that. And I certainly haven't had any time to decorate.

My goals for the break are listed below in no particular order:

-get caught up on laundry (ok maybe this one is number one...)
-organize and create a "working closet"- thank you MaKenna for the inspiration
-make curtains for our bedroom- Heath wants tab top ones
-clean every inch of floor in our house and get up all of the paint mess in the "new" room
-get frames for wedding photos and put them up in the house
-paint the bedroom
-iron Heath's dress shirts
-take clothes to the dry cleaners...and remember to pick them up
-make one fantastic meal that is ready when Heath gets home from work and clean up all the dishes
-keep my bathroom clean for more than 5 hours
-take a shower, wear makeup, do my hair, and have my nails done at least one day. I think Heath would appreciate it at least every one in a while- ha!

I'll let you know how it all pans out- I have 14 days :-)

Yay for Christmas cards! Or holiday cards depending on my level of procrastination this year...

2010-12-10T18:52:00.004-07:00

I absolutely love Shutterfly and have used them many many times in the past for many different projects. I have been very impressed with their photo products, and have created photo books for nearly everyone in my family for every big event over the past few years. I have always wanted to make a christmas photo card to send out, but I haven't had any "card-worthy" pictures to put on them until this year! With this being my first year with my new husband, I am so excited to be able to send out our very first christmas photo cards!

I'm looking through our wedding photos and I think I have just the perfect one to go in these Christmas photo cards called "No Mistletoe Necessary".

I also really love the simplicity of this design.

If I don't get the cards out before Christmas, I will be sending something from their holiday cards collection in order to cover for my procrastination. I really love the colors of this one.

I'm also thinking of making Heath one of their photo calendars to put up on his bulletin board at work. I was thinking about putting a picture from each month we were dating up until now since we've been together a whole year now- is that too cheesy? I love that you can personalize the dates in the calendars to add in "our first Arrested Development marathon" and "The day you invited that OTHER girl to the concert". Just kidding :-).

I also can't wait for our birthdays to come around so I can make photo card birthday invitations to our combined (surprise?) birthday party! Wouldn't these be cute?

I better sign off so I can get started on all of these projects! I can't wait!

Christmas card

2010-12-04T12:38:00.001-07:00

Giving Gifts Christmas

Make a statement with custom Christmas cards at Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

The Sweet Potato Feud

2010-11-25T21:09:00.001-07:00

So Heath and I both have traditions in our families about who makes what for Thanksgiving dinner. For the past few years, we have both made the sweet potato dishes for our family dinners. So, this year, we decided to work together and combine our excellent culinary skills to create the most amazing sweet potato dish ever. Well...ok so it took a lot of begging and pleading for Heath to allow me to help him, but it all turned out ok :-)

We decided on a dish that was a little bit sweet and quite a bit spicy. Heath's love for garlic and ginger really shown through the dish. It was interesting to say the least...the combination of flavors...and Heath finally consented at the last minute and allowed me to throw marshmallows all over the top.

So here's the breakdown of ingredients:

4 big sweet potatoes

2 tbsp of butter

2 cloves of garlic

2" fresh peeled and grated ginger

1/2 tbsp of cinnamon

a dash of ground clove

a dash of cumin

1/2 cup of brown sugar

1/2 bag of mini marshmallows

We first boiled the sweet potatoes to soften them to mash. We then transferred them to a pan with butter and ginger to cook. We added the rest of the ingredients a little at a time as we mashed the sweet potatoes in the pan. While adding the brown sugar, we also added a little bit of water to mix it in.

Once all of the ingredients were incorporated, we put the mixture into a casserole dish and (much to Heath's dismay) I added a ton of mini marshmallows to the top and stuck it under the broiler to brown.

It was a wonderful mash-up of our favorite flavors- sweet and spicy- just like us :-)

Ch-ch-ch-changes...

2010-11-22T20:16:00.000-07:00

Hello blog world!

I'm OFFICIALLY back! It's been a while...but now I'm ready. With the hubbub of getting married, starting back to school, and experiencing some fairly serious health issues, I fell far behind on blogging. Now, I'm officially Mrs. March and will be sharing all about my experiences as a newlywed, first-time homeowner, and grad student. So here we go!

*If you're lucky, you might even get a few recipes/guests appearances from Mr. March! :-)

Cake!

2010-08-07T14:23:00.000-06:00

A high school friend of mine got married last month in Texas and had a "home reception" today in Denver. I was commissioned to make the cake.

I wasn't given any direction with the cake. I had looked at pictures of their wedding on facebook and decided on a black/white damask pattern. I ended up doing something slightly different, but I'm really pleased with how it turned out. At the reception, everyone kept asking me if I was going to make my own wedding cake. Thank goodness I'm not! I don't want the pressure of having to worry about something going wrong with it! (I have enough of that kind of stuff to worry about anyway). I did want to share a picture of their cake though.

I got to use my new silver cake base too so I was pretty excited.

Raspberry pancakes

2010-08-03T18:45:00.000-06:00

Ok so....I promised my dear friend Abbie this recipe a while back and I keep forgetting to post it.

Heath just recently bought Bisquick for the first time ever in his 27 years of life and ever since we've been eating a lot more pancakes. It's amazing how easy pancakes are with this wonderful little box...and how willing I am to cook when I'm given a box of Bisquick! :-)

Recipe time:

2 cups Bisquick baking mix

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup applesauce

2 eggs

1/4 cup oatmeal

3 tbsp brown sugar

3 tbsp powdered sugar

12 oz. fresh raspberries- reserve a few for "decoration"

Mix it all up adding the raspberries last. Add a little bit of milk to thin if you wish. Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to pour onto griddle or into pan. Wait until you see bubbles rise to the top and then flip them.

Serve them with fresh raspberries on the side and butter. You can use syrup if you want, but it's really unnecessary.

Enjoy!

project time!

2010-08-02T12:30:00.002-06:00

So here we go...we have about 4 weeks left on the wedding countdown and I still have a few wedding projects to get done. The 2 big ones are favors and programs. I have all of the supplies...but it's tricky with timing these things so that it all gets done.

Everyone keeps asking about my "colors" and my "theme". Here's what I say: my colors are navy, pink, and peach...and my theme is "pretty". :-) Not very specific, but that's all I can come up with. To give you an example, here's what I did with our invites:

They have a sweet, pink bow....and eyelet!

They were modeled after this invitation from Papyrus:

What do you think? pretty good, huh?

It didn't come in the colors I wanted and it was incredibly expensive to buy these, so we had a friend help us make them! :-)

I bought the eyelet punches at Michaels and Hobby Lobby (thank goodness for 40% off coupons!) and want to carry the theme throughout the rest of the wedding stuff. So...here's what I'm thinking.

I'm thinking that my programs will mimic the invitations with the same bow and eyelet punch on the bottom. They'll actually even be close to the same size. I'm using 8.5x11 card stock and will cut it in half to be 5.5x8.5 programs.

Here's my other idea though-

Ok so for favors, since I'm a baker and wanted to do something a little more personal than mints, I've decided to make monogram sugar cookies. I've bought little cellophane bags from Hobby Lobby to put them in. My mom and I were brainstorming how to close the bags- thank you sticker? address label? And then it hit me. What if I made a cute little label using the same eyelet punch out design? I think it might work!

I'm thinking a tag at the top like this...with our names, thank you, the date, some cute little saying...I don't know...

but with our cute little eyelet punch on the bottom!

kind of like that (ignore the green computer case).

This was my practice one with regular computer paper- I think I'll use card stock because my punch was not really working with the regular paper.

What do you think?

Humility...and apologies

2010-08-01T19:28:00.001-06:00

So...apparently this whole blogging thing is not for me. I've hurt a lot of people's feelings, very unintentionally, but I've done some major damage through this blog world. I never meant to give anyone the idea that we didn't for a second want all of our friends and family at the wedding. I, unfortunately, chose to vent about some frustrations I was having at the time about stress surrounding the wedding. For those of you whose feelings were hurt by my "venting" I'm truly sorry- I honestly meant no harm by what I said, nor did I EVER mean that we didn't want our guests to come and share in our special day, but it seems that some frustrations are best kept private and some things are better left unsaid entirely. I know I have offended many of my friends and family. I'm truly sorry and I hope that everyone who was affected by my complete lack of judgment will forgive me. We all do things we regret sometimes in the heat of the moment and that's what happened here. Again, I'm truly sorry to anyone who I hurt or offended. I love all of my friends and family and will try to use better judgment in the future.

Recipe time!

2010-07-13T21:23:00.000-06:00

Ok so...I don't think I've ever posted any recipes on here besides some delectable pop overs and some frosting recipes...but times are changing, friends. I'm about to be a wifey and Heath is letting me practice my skills a few nights a week.

One of my biggest problems is that I'm not really a stovetop cook. I am a baker. I can basically make anything that goes in the oven. This means, however, that my recipe repertoire is limited to basically casseroles only. While casseroles can be good (and great for freezing....), I don't think they're always practical. And poor Heath, he's such a good sport when I do bake in a 9x13 casserole dish, but I think we would both appreciate a little more variety in our leftovers rather than eating the same baked french toast all week....

So I've been trying. I've found a few food blogs that are my favorites. I love basically everything Pioneer Woman cooks. I've made tons of her recipes and they always turn out great. However, she feeds a lot more people at her house than I do, so we always have tons of leftovers.

I've also really enjoyed Paula's blog- she's the aunt of my best childhood friend. Click here to check her out. She has this really yummy recipe for sesame chicken that I tried out last week. I think the recipe is supposed to make a much larger serving (meaning more chicken) than I made last week. I've had it before at home where my mom was cooking for quite a few people and it was GREAT! However, when I made it last week, I found that even with using low sodium soy sauce it was still too salty for our tastes. So, tonight was modification night. I used only about 2 tablespoons of soy sauce in the recipe instead of the called-for 1/2 cup and I also added some Sriracha hot sauce (you know the kind....squirt bottle with a green lid and a cute rooster on the front) to spice it up a bit- you could also do red pepper flakes (my mom's favorite). So...here we go. My experimental meal...and it turned out great! I wish I would have taken a picture, but alas....my department is eating, not photography :-)

*The recipe made just enough for Heath and I and he has a little bit left for lunch tomorrow. It could be stretched easily for 4 servings...just add a little more broth and maybe a splash more of soy sauce.

boneless skinless chicken breast/tenderloins (Use your own judgement- I used about 6 tenderloins)
1/2 lb. fresh green beans (yum!)
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil (plus more for marinade)
2 rounded teaspoons cornstarch
1-2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce (plus more for marinade)
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
2 cloves of minced garlic (could do less- Heath likes stinky food though)
2-4 whole cloves of garlic (optional)
2 tablespoons sesame seeds (toasted- I buy them already toasted but you could toast them yourself)

Ok so...first things first. Put your chicken in a tupperware dish with a sealing lid or a ziploc bag. Add a few splashes of soy sauce and a quick splash of sesame oil. Shake it up and set it aside.

Next mix up your stir fry sauce. This could be done ahead of time and put in the fridge. If you're like me and are a last-minute Lucy, this won't happen and that's ok too :-). Add in the chicken broth, sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce, hot sauce, garlic, and cornstarch. Stir it up- you'll need to do this again before you put it in the pan because the sugar and cornstarch will kind of settle.

Heat up your pan and add a little olive oil and the whole cloves of garlic. Toss in the green beans and cook them for a bit until they're almost done. Take them out of the pan and set aside. Put the chicken in the pan and cook it until it's almost done. Toss the beans and garlic back in the pan. Let it cook for a few minutes and then add in the sauce. Heat it up and make sure you're safe from e. coli, sprinkle on some sesame seeds, and you're good to go!

Add your favorite rice and you have a complete meal. Heath and I loved this tonight and he's dubbed it his favorite meal- and this is coming from Mr. gourmet himself!

Try it out- let me know how it turns out!

Oh- and this meal comes in right at 300 calories per serving!

:-)

BUDGET! (part 2)

2010-07-06T16:44:00.003-06:00

I wanted to touch on some other things that can be "budget busters"....

FOOD!

We are doing more of a buffet-style brunch and cake reception. This is the cheapest way to go if you're having food because it's not a full meal, it's not plated, and you can even make stuff yourself! Our venue allows drop-off or self-catering. And it's wonderful.

The most expensive type of reception includes dinner and alcohol. Alcohol is out for us as that's not really our thing (or our guests "thing" for that matter) and so it wouldn't make any sense. Dinner...well...when you have dinner you have to have multiple courses and let's face it...dinner food is just more expensive that breakfast food! Chicken breast will always be more expensive than a muffin. Just sayin'....

CLOTHES!

Ok so...I may have splurged a little on my dress, but I paid for it myself, outside of our wedding budget. I love clothes, and I love nice fabrics and unique designs. My grandmother also used to make wedding dresses for people so I have a sense of what qualities a great dress should have. I also really wanted something that no one else would have. So...ok. I spent more than I could have at another store or boutique but the entire experience was wonderful and I am super happy with my dress choice. I haven't felt one ounce of regret since I first tried it on. I purchased my dress from Felice` Bridal in Cherry Creek. The girls who work there are totally awesome. And...I did get a deal on my dress. I ended up purchasing a sample so I got it for half-off. Which was WONDERFUL! I also purchased my veil and hair accessory there- they are both custom-made.

Here's a picture of my dress (on the hanger...can't let the groom see me in yet!)

I absolutely love it!

One thing I did save big-time on were the bridesmaid dresses and flower girl dress.

I felt like it was really important to me that I choose something that was reasonably priced and re-wearable. I wanted to pick something that I would wear myself. So...I headed off to my favorite store- Anthropologie!

*If you don't have this store at your mall, I feel sorry for you.

I wanted something in grey or navy for the girls. I felt like that would look really classy and would be an easy color to wear again. I also wanted something in cotton (or another easy-to-wear fabric).

I walked in Anthro and immediately found these dresses:

Aren't they cute?

And I totally wanted one for myself.

I found these puppies for only $98 a piece. What a great deal!

(Side note: then I bought this dress for myself- rehearsal dinner?)

*sigh* I LOVE that store!

ok back to the budget....

FLOWERS!

We are having a family friend create the bouquets, boutonnieres, centerpieces, and altar arrangements for us at market cost. With that, I am able to have certain flowers that are important to me (such as peonies and hydrangeas) that will be out of season. You have to pay more for these blooms in September but since we're not shelling out the extra for the actual "arranging", we're able to swing it. Yay!

PHOTOGRAPHY!

Our photographer happened to go to highschool with Heath. I met her at a party on St. Patricks Day and was already interested in her, though just as a friend. She does the coolest photographs. She also gets to work for some awesome photographers in Boulder. She's a great gal and she's really reasonably priced. Check out Gwen Shoemaker. Some of the wedding photographers out there were outrageously expensive (starting at about $2000) and this didn't include anything except wedding day coverage. With Gwen, we're doing engagement pictures, bridal portraits, and wedding day coverage with 2 photographers (her dad is her second shooter) for well under other people's starting points. Pictures last forever so you want good quality, but you also need to save some of your budget to have something to take pictures of!

CAKE!

As you all know I am a cake decorator. And for the millionth time, no, I will not be making our cake. And I couldn't be happier.

My good friend Susan is making our wedding cake and she cut us a great deal. She has a bakery that she operates out of her house and always does an outstanding job. Her cakes are yummy, and she uses the same recipes I do! If you're looking for a cake, I would say not to spend more than $3.50/serving. Susan and I both fall into that price range. Anything more than that and you're just paying for a fancy name on the box. It can be a budget-buster if you're not careful.

Example: I made this cake as a groom's cake for a wedding:

It served about 125 people. Regular charge: $300

I have seen people pay for a similar-sized cake, not as intricately decorated, upwards of $800. Don't do this! It's just silly!

There are lots of ways to cut costs and we're trying all of them! It's really important to both Heath and I (and our families) that we stay within a reasonable budget. And it can be done!

BUDGET!

2010-07-06T16:13:00.000-06:00

Have you ever looked at any of these wedding "venues" online? Let me just start by saying- yowza! They are stinkin' expensive!

For example, in the Denver metro-area where we live, the average price for a Saturday wedding during peak season (April-September) is about $4500.

Now, I don't mind sharing with you all that we are on a budget. Heath and I both believe in living financially responsible lives because our parents have taught us to live that way. We don't see any need for anyone to go into debt over a party (which is what a wedding reception is, after all). We came up with a number after talking with my parents that seemed reasonable, would not put anyone in debt, and would still allow us to include all of the elements that are important to us.

This reasonable budget, however, would NOT accommodate a $4500 venue.

So we started looking at our options.

We both come from rather large families, as well as large "church families" that are all relatively close to the "action" so we knew we would have to accommodate plenty of guests. We decided we could reasonably have about 175 guests and still pull off the kind of reception we were envisioning.

We originally started by looking at our home church. We both currently go to church together in Denver. Our auditorium is pretty and could easily hold that number of people. The gym...well...that's another story. It's big enough, sure, but it was going to need some serious TLC to transform it from a gym to a reception hall.

When considering all the work that would go into it, I started crunching the numbers. Oy vey!

Here's a breakdown:

Centerpieces for roughly 20 tables: $450

Chair covers w/ sashes: $250

Paper pom-poms to hang from ceiling: $130

Printed napkins: $80

Pew decorations: $150

Large altar arrangements: $75

Fabric to cover the walls in the gym: $150

Vases for centerpieces: $100

That's already $1385!

That doesn't include any rental fees we would have to pay either. This is just decor, people.

Then thinking about having to add the catering and drinks on top of that....not to mention all the time involved in making all of these decorations...the set up....the clean up....

Then last week, I found it.

A great deal.

Ok, remember those $4500 venues I was telling you about?

Well if you book your wedding less than 10 weeks out with them they give you steep discounts.

So I called just to check.

Lady: "Thank you for calling Lionsgate Event Center, how can I help you?"

Me: "I was calling to see if by any chance you have any availability on September 4th?"

Lady: "Of this year or next?"

Me: "This year"

Lady: "Wow that's coming up quick!"

Me: *nervous laugh* "Yeah I know..."

Lady: "We do have availability at the Gatehouse for Saturday. It would be a morning event though. Event time from 10-2. Would that work?"

Me: "Yesss!! Where do I sign?"

Ok so basically this place is THE BOMB! It's absolutely beautiful inside and out. So even with having to pay a rental fee, it doesn't need much decoration and all of the linens and centerpieces are included.

So we're still out money for flower arrangements, but all of the linens (napkins, tablecloths, etc.) are included, as are all beverage items.

And set up.

And clean up.

Yes, our families will love us.

Wedding planning- my inspiration

2010-06-30T09:12:00.000-06:00

So when I was thinking about what I wanted our wedding to look like, my first thought was "pretty". We have decided on a morning wedding. I think part of that is wanting to get married as soon as possible....haha...but the other part is that we wanted to be able to share a "meal" of sorts with our closest friends and family. Brunch, as a meal, is fairly affordable and something we could accommodate within our budget. So, 10am it is!

That being said, our wedding doesn't really have a theme. Or even colors- well, not really. Orange is my favorite color, and I started off in search of some orange inspiration in pictures on the knot. I also knew I really wanted pink. I thought a summer wedding would be perfect and pretty, but I didn't want to wait until next summer.

With all that being said, we decided to hold our celebration on Labor Day weekend (September 4) because it's still considered "summer" and we can have a long weekend to celebrate without having to take vacation from work :-)

As I was scouring the internet for visual inspiration, I found a picture of a bride's bouquet. I was immediately in love with it and I've been using it for my inspiration throughout the rest of the wedding and reception decor/planning.

You want to see it?

Are you sure?

If I show you, you have to promise to love it as much as I do!

Ok....I trust you....

isn't it pretty?

I'm in love with everything about it.

I love the blush pink hydrangeas.

I love the orange sherbet roses.

I love the creamy-colored ranunculus.

And I LOVE the feathers.

And so it begins....I'm having a "wedding" blog?

2010-06-25T09:58:00.000-06:00

Well...sort of. I want you guys to be in the know of what's been happening and what I've been dealing with through all of this wedding planning stuff. It's fun. It's stressful. There are tears. There will be more tears. And there's never enough ice cream. Because just when you think you want some/need some....you remember you have a wedding dress to fit into.

So here we go...even though I promised my blog wouldn't turn into a wedding blog. Well, that was before I was getting married. Now that I'm ENGAGED and actually PLANNING A WEDDING....well...you guys can cut me a little slack, right?

We'll see how closely my actual plans line up with all of those dreamt up ones :-)

Super Bummed

2010-05-17T20:09:00.000-06:00

So...there's a reason why I've been AWOL from blogger...well....a few reasons actually. Here, I'll list them.
1) It's the end of the school year. I've been extremely busy/stressed with end of year stuff
2) I've been busy trying to figure out my job situation for next year
3) I got engaged
4) I've been up to my eyeballs in cake lately
5) I totalled my car. Well...I didn't. It was the idiot texting his girlfriend that ran into me.

Anyway...all of that being said, I've been super bummed. There are things that I'm really excited about (like my September wedding!) but then there are things that are thrown into the mix that I feel are trying to steal my joy- like the uncertainty of my job...my car being wrecked...etc.

That's all for now. After tomorrow some of these things will have settled down and/or sorted themselves out.

:-)

Tradition....tradition. Tradition!- Part 1 Weddings

2010-04-08T12:08:00.001-06:00

As is my custom, I was listening to the radio this morning on my way to work. Yesterday on the show there was a discussion sparked about traditions. See....the parents of a soon-to-be bride had written in to the show to have the hosts help settle a dispute. It was this: their 29 year old daughter is getting married and wants/expects her parents to pay for her wedding. Mom says no because they've been saving up for a dream vacation to Australia and it would blow their savings, not to mention, by golly, they're adults with good jobs. Dad says yes, we'll pay- for the sake of tradition.

This sparked a TON of calls from listeners and a pretty good discussion about traditions and which ones should stay and which ones should go. As I never call in, I thought I would weigh in on my blog. Maybe Jane will read it...maybe I'll eventually just pick up the phone.

Who am I kidding?

Anyway....

There are some things that are traditions that I think are good and meaningful and should be practiced. However, there are other traditions that I think are outdated, silly, meaningless, or just plain dumb and I will never partake in.

Scene 1: Weddings

Wearing white- good tradition, worth keeping...although maybe not for a second wedding later in life? Something to consider.... Everyone I know who hasn't worn a white dress the first time around says it's their biggest regret.
Not seeing each other beforehand- terrible, TERRIBLE tradition, one I will not partake it. Do you know how annoying it is to stand around after a wedding ceremony and wait for the couple to be done taking a million and a half pictures with every person they've ever met in every silly pose imaginable? If you did this at your wedding, just know that I was secretly hating you and not enjoying the "mingling" that goes on during the "non-cocktail" hour at church weddings.
Asking the girls parents- good idea. Keeps everyone happy and on the same page.
Cake in the face- bad idea. Probably one of the few days in the rest of your married life that a girl will spend money on her hair and makeup and wear a very expensive dress that probably can't even be dry cleaned. Just don't do it. But if you're the groom, prepare to be annihilated. see? not cute...
Garter toss- trashy. Everyone knows how anxious you are to....well...you know.... We don't need to see your head up your wife's dress.
Numerous attendants- this is one that I'm personally leaving. It gets too complicated to pick just 3 people..or just 4 people...and because you don't want anyone's feelings to be hurt it quickly turns into your 20 closest friends. Agh. 1 person from each side to be witnesses on the marriage license is plenty for me, thank you.
Decorated getaway car- I've been on the giving side of this one too often to even have any room for complaint. Go ahead. Bring it on. Just no oreos.
Breaking the glass- Now, I know I'm not Jewish, but I really like this tradition and wish I was Jewish. I like the symbolism behind it and I think it's worth keeping- and including in other non-Jewish ceremonies.
Unity candle, sand, painting, etc- It's awkward and there's no talking during this part, usually just some cheesy music. And let's face it....everyone's anxious in anticipation for number 10...
"You may kiss the bride!"- Good one. Keep it. Just don't make out in front of your grandparents.
Wild Bachelor(ette) parties- please people, remember why you're marrying this person. You love them. Don't be stupid. They're not going to be too happy with you if you're not with it enough the next day to say your vows.
The disappearing act- many couples have chosen this route with their exit from their reception. They leave the party early, leave all of their close family and friends, and whisk off to the airport never to be seen or heard from again until the honeymoon is over...say...a month or 2 later. My take: I think if your family and friends make arrangements to support you on your "big day" it's the least you can do to spend some time with them either the day before or the day after the wedding. Let them know they're appreciated. It makes them feel like you just want presents otherwise.
Parents footing the bill- back to the original thought that sparked all of this, should the bride's parents foot the bill? I say yes and no. I think it's reasonable to set a budget that both the couple and their parents agree to. If the bride's parents want to pay for the wedding, let them! But as a couple, be gracious. As the "in-laws", be gracious. Whoever pays is the host and gets to set some of the ground rules. I don't think it would be rude of me to ask my parents to pay for my wedding, but I also don't think I would ask. I think that if the couple wants to get married, they should be prepared to pay for it and if their families want to pitch in to bear part of the burden, then be gracious! And modest please. No one really likes those huge fancy affairs. They talk about you behind your back.

More coming soon on tradition- part 2 Holidays

I need modeling classes

2010-03-31T07:18:00.001-06:00

Ok so as I was posting my pictures from NYC to facebook this morning, I noticed something about one of them. It really started bugging me. I found this really cute picture I took of myself under the Brooklyn Bridge.

It has a great background....my face is smiling not too cheesily...my red jacket looks good....and then I get to the bottom of the picture and I see this.

Look at that stupid foot!

Agh!

I'm so mad at myself for ruining the bottom of this picture.

So after I loaded all of my new photos, I got bored and started looking through every picture of me on facebook. Guess what I found....

So this is me outside of the Stanley Hotel last summer when my friend Jared came to visit.

Look closer though:

Here I am with my stupid foot again!

Agh!

Can someone please give me lessons on how to pose properly for pictures so that my feet don't do this?

Guessing game

2010-03-29T19:20:00.000-06:00

I can hardly contain my excitement. And I want you to be in on it. So...the first person to correctly guess what is in this picture gets a prize. I'm not sure what it will be yet, but it will be good, I promise. I'll give you until Friday evening to submit your guesses and then I'll post the full picture. Get creative!

Can't wait to hear your guesses!

Grey skies are gonna clear up....put on a happy face

2010-03-29T17:23:00.001-06:00

Today has been an exciting day! Right now I’m sitting in a deli across the street from the Ed Sullivan Theatre waiting to go into the taping of the Late Show with David Letterman. It’s pouring down rain and the deli is packed, but I’m loving every second of today.

I started off the morning waiting outside at Rockfeller Plaza to watch the Today Show. I was so excited about it and really enjoyed myself even though it was drizzly and cold outside. I was giddy about getting to see Matt Lauer and Ann Curry through the glass- and then they came outside!! I got my picture taken with Matt. Secret spoiler- he wears a TON of makeup! Yes, he looks amazing for being 50, but boy does he load on the concealer! I felt almost naked next to him! Luckily I was wearing some makeup though…because I got my very own close up! That’s right, yours truly was on TV this morning. At approximately 7:30 am when they came back from a commercial break, I could be viewed in the crowd on the plaza. I may have been a little too excited about it…I dunno.

Matt and Ann outside in the plaza

Ok so after the Today Show I headed down 5^th Ave to the Apple Store to get my phone replaced. Yes, it’s true. Yesterday, while up on the top of the Empire State building I accidentally dropped my phone onto the marble floor, face down. The screen completely shattered. It was terrible. Apple told me that they could fix it or replace it for $200 since it was broken due to my own clumsiness. I had agreed to this and decided to come back today. So I get there and the guy is checking it out and says to me “wait a second, what is this crack?” I said “I don’t know. What do you think?” He said “I think it’s separating from itself. The enclosure is cracked. And that’s totally covered by the warranty. I bet the screen was fragile because of it.” And then Rich, the Apple store angel, replaced my iPhone with a brand new one for FREE. That’s right- free. I was a happy girl.

Happy girls like toys. Since FAO Schwarz was right next door I had to go in. I had to go back after my visit on Friday to check something out…and it ended up being well worth it. I’ll blog about it after I get home next week. It’s super top secret J But here's a picture from the super cool Harry Potter section of the toy store! I was sorted...and I'm sure he said Gryffindor!

After FAO Schwarz I went in Tiffany’s. I headed straight for the 4^th floor where all of the silver jewelry is housed. And I did it. I bought myself an early birthday present.

Here’s my happy face with my blue box….

Here’s my happy face with my blue bag….

You'll have to wait for a picture of what I actually bought. I'm not ready to untie the box yet.

Then I went for a short stroll in Central Park. By this time it was pouring down rain, so much so that my umbrella was soaked all the way through and was leaking on my head!

I'll finish tonight with more stories and more pictures! Time to get back in line for Letterman!

My trip so far

2010-03-28T09:10:00.000-06:00

Friday

Times Square
Lunch in the upper east side (it was argentinian and very good)
Tiffanys
FAO Schwarz
Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum
Chinatown for dinner

Saturday

Lunch in Times Square
Attempt at the Empire State building...attempt #2 on Sunday
Phantom of the Opera at the Majestic theatre
Levi's store- ok so, there's these jeans I want...are they too skinny for a girl like me who has hips?

Grand Central station
Pizza in TriBeCa
Karaoke at Totos in Korea town - this was cool. Not a bar...you rent a karaoke room for you and your friends. So much fun! I wish we had something like this in Denver.

Sunday

Brunch in Brooklyn
Brooklyn bridge
Battery park/ Statue of Liberty

That's what we've done thus far. I'll keep updating as I add to it!

Breakfast at Tiffanys....or maybe it was lunch...well...I had a bag of candy at least

2010-03-28T08:57:00.000-06:00

I was soooo happy this day.

The only way it could have been topped is if I had walked away with a blue box.

Preferably containing something from the 2nd floor...

Yes, this store has 6 floors.

And yes, I visited all of them.

Itinerary

2010-03-26T07:36:00.001-06:00

I am exhausted. But here goes for a rough itinerary.

Friday, March 26, 2010

Drag myself out of bed
Get clean (because I didn't shower yesterday...oops!)
Head to Times Square
Visit Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum
Dangle off of the Empire State Building
Head to Grand Central Station
Take a picture in front of Tiffanys, the best place on earth
Eat a hot dog? maybe? I know...I don't eat a lot of things but I eat hot dogs. Weird, right?
Buy tickets for a Broadway show
Chinatown for dinner
Crash

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Central Park
Strawberry Fields Memorial
Pizza on the Brooklyn Bridge
Museum of Modern Art
Statue of Liberty
Broadway Show

Sunday, March 28, 2010

Monday, March 29, 2010

Today Show
David Letterman Taping
TBD

Give me your tired, your poor....

2010-03-25T22:44:00.000-06:00

Today was filled with so many feelings: sleepiness, anxiety, anticipation, longing, sadness….

And most of these fillings are fairly typical for me when taking a trip.

I am notorious for being a “last minute Lucy”. I will always wait until the absolute last minute to get ready for something. I never intend to, it’s just how it happens.

Quick story- I was 18 years old. It was August. The time when most of my friends were heading off to college for the first time. I had barely decided that I was even going to college. And that was only after a serious threat from my well-intentioned mother. When the time came for me to move down to Oklahoma for assumabley 3-5 years, I had not packed a darned thing. It was the night before we were to make the treck at about 10pm that I finally decided to throw a few things into some boxes. Needless to say, I was the only girl in my dorm room with only a couple of towels and a TV. It was poor planning and stubbornness on my part, and I would like to say that I learned my lesson…

But I digress…

I waited until roughly 9:30 last night to even begin thinking about packing. Then I decided that there were other more important things to do….and my packing was delayed even further. At about 2:30am I found myself chatting away on my computer and anticipating a phone call. I thought to myself, I can pack in the morning. I’ll just get up early, shower, and get it done. No big deal.

Those of you who know me well are laughing hysterically right now.

I went to bed. Didn’t even bother to move my suitcase or piles of clothes and accessories out of the way. And I woke up. Late. Called my mom…I’ll drive myself, thank you. And then I did what I do every other morning. I rolled over and went back to sleep. Except I couldn’t. I shouldn’t. But I did. And I woke up with only 10 minutes to pack and get ready for work.

So….I was sleepy. And frazzled. And very much in need of a bath.

I spent my day at work only half there. Part of me had a nervous anxiety about my trip. The other part excitement. And because I didn’t specify halves….the other part of me was wrestling with the fact that I was leaving my heart in Denver.

Work ended. The dad came to pick me up at school. I felt so hurried that I just grabbed everything that I had haphazardly thrown in my extremely messy car that morning. I shoved it into the family bus and off we went, barreling down the highway.

7.5 minutes away from my school building, I realize that I left my camera in my car. Of all things…my camera?! Why couldn’t I have forgotten a toothbrush? Or a blow dryer? Or even shampoo? I managed to grab my Glamour magazine and 4 pairs of shoes but no camera?! Agh, But it was too late to go back. If we went back, we would inevitably run into traffic and then I would be late and miss my flight.

I’m no stranger to running late and missing flights. Actually, I tend to not miss flights…but I’m always running late. Literally running most times. Running through security. Running to catch the train. Running to the gate. Running onto the plane.

I arrived at the airport at 3:07. My flight wasn’t scheduled to leave until 4:24. Plenty of time. In fact, I was early. I wouldn’t have to sweet talk the guy at the counter into letting me have a boarding pass.

But this was my first mistake.

See…I’m late because it works for me. I’ve only once missed a flight and it really had nothing to do with me at all. I’ll save that story for another time though. Being on time….or EARLY is a recipe for disaster. Or if nothing else a somewhat bad omen. If you believe in that sort of thing…

I get to the terminal. I get my Jamba Juice. I get my stack of magazines and Snicker bar. I settle down at the gate and charge my phone.

“Attention Ladies and Gentleman- flight 406 service to Laguardia- we’re sorry for the delay but we will be pushing back our boarding time. We are working on resolving an issue with the plane. Thank you for your patience.”

Ok, no big deal. Probably just came in late and needs to fuel up still.

20 minutes later…

“Attention Ladies and Gentlemen- we are still having problems with the plane and it’s in need of repairs. There is a plane waiting at gate B45 that is ready to board. Please note the gate change and head down there immediately.”

Ugh. Ok. At least there’s a plane.

Arrive at gate B45

“I’m sorry but we will have to stop boarding at this time. There is an issue with the plane. Please stand by.”

This went on for…. ever it felt like.

Needless to say, I eventually got on a plane. I fell asleep. I woke up to “Please stow all laptops and turn off all electronic devices at this time.” At first I was confused. I was thrilled really. I thought I had slept through the entire flight. But then I realized that we should have landed in NYC around 11pm EDT and I was seeing sunshine. We had not even taken off yet. Back to that whole tired thing….

So here I am. AWAKE. ON AN AIRPLANE. (Yes mom, it can happen). And I’m still feeling all of those things. I’m excited to land in New York. I’m angry with myself for forgetting the single most important thing for my trip (yes, even above clean underwear). I’m sleepy- and honestly, probably a little on the cranky side but I don’t have anyone to unleash it on. Lucky you! J And I’m longing and a little sad because I miss home. But I’m anticipating a fun week with friends and family! I’m super excited to see New York for the first time, and even if all I come home with is iPhone pictures, I’ll have some awesome memories and an experience that can’t compare to anyone else’s lame spring break plans! J

We’re scheduled to land in about 40 minutes. I think I’m going to try to sneak in a nap while the lights are all turned out.

Things to look forward to from me this week:

Itinerary
Top 10 list
Scavenger hunt results
Jumpy pictures
Asian tourists
Food

When Harry Met Sally

2010-03-23T11:40:00.000-06:00

I love that you get cold when it's 71 degrees out.

I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich.

I love that you get a little crinkle above your nose when you're looking at me like I'm nuts.

I love that after I spend the day with you, I can still smell your perfume on my clothes.

And I love that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep at night.

And it's not because I'm lonely, and it's not because it's New Year's Eve.

I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.

I like this movie. You should watch it. It's on TV all the time :-)

Luck 'O the Irish

2010-03-17T16:42:00.001-06:00

First things first: I'm not Irish. At least I don't think so. As far as I know my family tree consists of Germans, Cherokee Indians, and Mexicans...with probably a few more generic Europeans thrown in.

Second: I do not believe in luck. There. I said it. I think it's a bunch of malarky. Is that even a real word? Well, you know what I mean.

The Irish say they have all this luck...all I see is foolishness. I was reading a story to my kindergarteners today about an Irishman named Michael O'Connor who got tricked out of all of his ill-gotten gold by a leprechaun. That doesn't exactly sound like luck my friends... It sounds like Karma to me...you reap what you sow?

Ok back to this luck thing. I don't believe in it at all.

I also don't believe in fate.

I believe in blessings and divine intervention.

That may sound scary to some of you, but hear me out.

I believe with all of my heart that even before the creation of the world, God had a plan for each and every one of our lives. Maybe it was a generic plan like "be saved and love others". Maybe it was specific like "become a missionary in Chemintz, Germany". I'm not so clear on the details. But I do believe there was a plan in place for each of us. I think some people mistake this plan coming to fruition as "fate". The same way many mistake blessings for "luck".

I believe that God blesses us every day, even in very small ways. I don't think he necessarily gives us the front parking spot at the mall....but maybe he does? Maybe I don't even know what I'm saying!

Here's what I do know: I know that in all things, God works for the good of those that love him.

This goes back to the "reap what you sow" thing. If you are sowing good seed- loving others, living a moral life, living out your faith in God- you are going to naturally experience the blessings that come along with that. If you are sowing a path of destruction, you will at some point experience the heartache and trouble that comes along with that. As I write this though, I am reminded of a hymn that I loved to sing when I was in grade school.

"Tempted and tried we're oft made to wonder,

Why it should be thus all the day long,

While there are others living about us,

Never molested though in the wrong..."

Sometimes it just doesn't make sense. Sometimes people who do good things get bad things. Sometimes people who do bad things get good things. The only thing I can say about this is that their "reward" isn't lasting. I have hope that by trusting God and following his will for my life, I will not only experience some blessings here on earth, but eternal blessings in heaven someday.

Ok so now that I've veered off track...

I don't believe in luck. I believe in purpose in our lives and I believe God and the Holy Spirit intervene on a regular basis to help us work out our salvation. I believe that every good and perfect gift comes from God and he blesses us with what we need and even the deep desires of our hearts. It really has nothing to do with luck. It has everything to do with love.

And I think that might be all I have to say on this. Our love for God and his love for us is what allows us see and accept those blessings in our lives. I do believe that even the "unrighteous" (if that's what you'd like to call them) are blessed because I believe that Jesus died for their sins too and forgave those as well. But that's an entirely different post....

Now that I've rambled...

Leave me a comment and give me your thoughts on luck! I'm anxious to hear how others may view things! :-)

Top 2 Tuesday

2010-03-16T11:34:00.000-06:00

Top 2 Favorite Celebrity Styles

This week I found the Undomestic Momma and decided to link up! I think part of me wanted to do it because I'm quite annoyed by some of the celebrity style icons. The other part of me is a silly girl and I love fashion and want to be like some of these gals...I'm just not.

Ok so... #1

Zoe Deschanel

She's as cute as a button. And a little bit funky.

I bet she shops at Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters.

Here's another pic I like:

cute ruffled blouse

cute skirt

cute hair

And have you seen the cotton commercial she does?

I envy every outfit she has.

Ok now for #2

My all time favorite...she's such a classy lady...

Audrey Hepburn

(and some inspired outfits)

Here's another

*sigh*

Just between you and me...I think Zoe has been inspired by Audrey as well.

Breakfast at Tiffanys and 500 days of Summer are both in my top 5.

Ok I'm done.

Tax refund= being able to dress like this

right?

Love is in the air

2010-03-15T15:03:00.000-06:00

OK it's official-

Spring is here.

And it's brought sickening puppy love with it.

All of my friends are getting married.

My much much younger friends...

cupid must have hit them hard

There's something about flowers blooming that makes you want to pick them...

and give them to your sweetheart (I suppose).

And then the flowers lead to candy...

candies lead to diamonds...

or something like that.

Or maybe it's the desire to have a summer wedding without a year-long engagement.

Maybe both?

Either way, I find it interesting.

When did you fall in love?

When did you realize it was real love and not just sick to your stomach infatuation?

When did you say I love you for the first time?

When did you finally mean it?

Leave your comments- I wanna know ;-)

Wishful Wednesday- gown

2010-03-10T08:52:00.002-07:00

Today's Wishful Wednesday post from Kelsey at Seattle Smith's was just too much fun to pass up. You all know how much I love all things wedding....so....

'I wish' .... I could wear/could have worn _a lace_ dress on my wedding day!

Check out Kelsey's page here to see everyone else's choices!

She asked...if we were getting married tomorrow, what dress would we choose?

Well if I were getting married tomorrow I don't think I would bother picking out a wedding dress. It would be my Easter dress that I already own.

But....if I had to pick tomorrow....

I just absolutely love it. I love the lace- and I never thought I was a lace girl. I love that it is fairly slim and body-hugging- and I always thought I wanted a ballgown. And I love the bow. It's perfect for accentuating a small waist, or creating one if you don't have one. I think this dress is also appealing because of the staging of the picture. I happen to be absolutely in love with the flowers as well. The whole thing feels very romantic. I guess I'm a sucker for romance.

Another reason why I like it is because it would go quite nicely with the bridesmaid dresses I picked out here. Oh dear...good thing I'm not getting married tomorrow! This could quickly get out of control. Weddings are too much work!

Ah...eloping sounds much more enticing everyday!

These streets will make you feel brand new, the lights will inspire you,

2010-03-09T11:59:00.000-07:00

I'm going here in 2 weeks and 2 days.

I've never been before.

Any suggestions on what to do/see?

My list so far:

Niagra Falls

Statue of Liberty

Empire State building

Tiffanys

Pizza

Broadway

Sprinkles

Grand Central Station

Central Park

More pizza

Metropolitan Museum of Art

Madame Tussauds

Times Square

Chinatown

What should be eliminated? What am I missing?

The date that will live in infamy...

2010-03-09T11:21:00.000-07:00

For me, that is February 16, 2010.

My life was changed.

For good.

I'll write more on this later.

I just realized it today so I needed to document it.

Last night was also noteworthy, but that's a different story entirely :-)

Mediocrity vs. Excellence

2010-03-08T12:28:00.000-07:00

I've been doing a lot of reflecting lately. Reflecting on decisions...reflecting on my emotions...reflecting on my actions...and all of this reflection makes me want to break a mirror! While it's been worthwhile and enlightening, it has made me more aware of the things I don't like about myself and the things that need changing. I've realized I've been living a life a mediocrity, and not of excellence that I'm called to. In some areas, it's just been plain bad, not even mediocre. Agh! Break those mirrors already!

I have been very encouraged though. With the start of the Lentin season and my rearranging of my priorities, I have had more time to spend in prayer and Bible study. I decided last week to bust out my old NIV Study Bible. I've had this Bible for 10+ years and there are all sorts of treasures in it. Some of the things I found put a huge smile on my face. Others brought me to tears. Two things in particular are notes I had made in Bible class about what I want to be known for and my desires for myself and my life. Here are my desires (circa April 5, 2006):

John 15:7 "Ask whatever you desire and it will be given to you."

to be a Godly woman, worthy of respect
to be a positive influence on others
to be strong enough in my faith that it is reflected to those around me
to be able to identify my spiritual gifts and use them to glorify God
to have wisdom and discernment and make good choices in my life
to know God intimately
to be involved with the body
to be a wife who loves and honors my husband fully
to be a mother who teaches my children how to love others

Now, there are a few exceptions here that I have not had the opportunity to be yet...but even so, I don't really feel like my desires for myself are who I've become. I've asked God for these things. I've asked Him to purify me and test me and give me a heart to be these things. And yet, here I am, living a life of mediocrity. Just getting by. However, there's this weird struggle. While I say I'm just getting by and not really doing anything excellent, things seem to be going well. I think that's the trap.

I definitely believe in God. I equally believe in Satan- the accuser. I believe he stands by, ready to condemn, ready to confuse, and uses opportunities when we're at our weakest points. When we're "just getting by". I think that's how we fall away. I don't think it's as simple as a 180 turn. No one really does that. No one wakes up one morning and says "I think I'm going to be a meth addict" or "I think I'm going to start lying". It just doesn't work like that. It's a gradual process that takes you slowly away. And it's usually when you think things are just fine. That's what I'm worried about...

Things have been better than fine. Things have been good. There is a lot of good happening in my life. I've been tempted to ignore God's hand in this though. I think "well of course things are going well. I'm making better decisions. I'm working hard. I'm sticking to my guns." And it's just when I feel like I have it all under control that it's about to all get ripped away from me.

That's what I'm afraid of.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart.

I can't trust in myself. I can't do it by myself. I mean, seriously...that's why I'm not Jewish. If I could attain all of this on my own, what would be the point of the cross? Christ would have died in vain.

Lean not on your own understanding.

My understanding is so shallow. When I lean on myself, I find myself constantly disappointed. I trust myself to know what's best and make good decisions. Sometimes it works...sometimes it doesn't. I've experienced more heartache leaning on my own understanding. When I think I've got it figured out, I realize I know nothing at all.

In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.

So now that I've acknowledged that I don't know a thing...and I can only be mediocre at best on my own...is he just going to lead me in a life of excellence? Is it really that simple?

He has shown you, O man, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly,
To love mercy,
And walk humbly with your God.

Yes, I suppose it really is that simple.

act justly, love mercy, walk humbly with my God.

THAT I can do.

This goes right along with the other note I found in my Bible (circa December 2004).

What do you want to be known for?

love
humility
joy
encouragement
patience
modesty
purity
kindness
perseverance in trial
faithfulness
gentleness
self-control
diligence
honesty
seeking God in all I do

I could add "mercy" and "justice" to the list. But I think everything is pretty much covered.

These are the things I still want to be known for. I want to allow God to work through me to show these things to the people I come in contact with every day. I know that some people I meet may not ever open a Bible. I know that some people may never darken the doorway of a church. But if I can live out all of these things and be known for these things, surely they will know Christ. That's the point of the body, right?

Ok so...to sum up this post...I want to be excellent and I want each and every one of you to hold me accountable to that.

A sweet little blessing...

2010-03-05T16:26:00.000-07:00

So today at 12:25pm MST on Friday, March 5, 2010 a miracle occurred.

It's true- you can't even argue with me about it. God is good.

He helped make this:

This is Caslin Aidia. She is the most darling thing I've ever seen.

I am so in love with her. I have been for about 9 months now. It's a wonderful thing to finally meet this sweet little one. She's absolutely perfect.

She is 20.5 inches long and weighs a whopping 8lbs 9.5oz! They had to check her blood sugar every hour to make sure she's eating enough and keeping her blood sugar up because at one week early, she's huge for her gestational age!

Anyway, she's doing great! She's a perfect little angel and has not been put down yet! All of her friends and family are so happy to meet her and hold her sweet, chubby little self!

Not Me! Monday

2010-02-22T10:18:00.003-07:00

What have you not been up to lately? Let MckMama and all her friends know here!

I did NOT stay out til 4am Saturday night just to enjoy a few more moments with a friend before he moves. I'm much more responsible than that. Especially on church night...

I also did NOT sleep through 3 alarms Sunday morning...not me! I always make it on time to class! Promise!

I did NOT eat breakfast for dinner last night....and then eat it again this morning :-) Leftover vanilla pancakes...yum!

And I did NOT sneak in one episode of what I gave up for Lent...I can't help my desire to Keep up with the Kardashians :-)

Link up to MckMama! We all want to know what you haven't been doing!

Sacrifices....oh how they hurt

2010-02-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

**disclaimer- I feel that even for people who are not Christians, giving up something for Lent could be beneficial for self-reflection and self-affirmation. So, if you find yourself falling into a different category, just hear me out and give it a try :-). You might surprise yourself!

One thing that my friends were really buzzing about last week was Lent and what they were giving up. It's not something that I usually practice as I'm not Catholic, but I do really appreciate the idea behind it. I got into some really good discussions with some friends over Lent and the meaning of it and the possible benefits of giving something up for Lent.

Many of my friends decided to give up things that had become a crutch in their lives, or things they were "addicted" to. I see great value in that- freeing yourself from addictions. However, I also see great value in giving up other things that come between you and your time with God. I think both "paths" (if that's what you'd like to call them) are beneficial and can strengthen your relationship with God. For me personally though, my "addictions"- the things that consume me- are the very things that take up my time that I could be spending getting closer to God.

Some background about Lent: Lent lasts for 40 days. It starts on Ash Wednesday and goes until Easter (roughly). It's common for people to not eat meat. It's typically categorized as a "fast" and some people take that to mean food. Others fast from other things in order to spend more time in prayer and reading the Scriptures. Either way, it's 40 days of reflection in preparation for Easter.

So after much discussion with my friends and hearing all about what they're "giving up", I decided it would be a good choice for me as well. I took some time to really evaluate my life and decide what is keeping me from spending more time with God. Now guys, try not to laugh. For Lent this year, I have decided to give up my iPhone apps and E! television. These are the 2 things that I spend the most time with that I don't think are that great for me, and at times they can consume me. I've found myself in situations where I don't focus on what's going on because I'm more interested in playing games on my phone or being on facebook (yuck). Now, I couldn't just get rid of my iPhone, so I deleted the apps. Well...all of the ones that could be deleted. So yes, I still have email and texting, but in just a few days I've already found myself looking for other ways to occupy my time. Now, for the E! television....it's just trashy and I don't think I should continue to fill my head with all of that junk. Enough with the True Hollywood Stories. I need to "cleanse" :-).

Like I mentioned, I've already been reaping the benefits of this sacrifice. I've been spending so much less time consumed by these things that I've been forced to fill it with something else. I've been spending more time in deep discussions, Bible studies, prayer, and focusing on bettering myself (like doing things around the house or practicing my cooking skills). This "emptiness" has given me a real sense of fullness. I've had a lot of time to think about myself and reflect on some big issues that have been hanging over my head. It's been good.

The one thing I'm worried about is the fact that Lent is a fast. Fasting implies that you will eventually break the fast. I know that when Easter comes around, Lent will be over and I will probably not be as motivated to keep up my sacrifices (especially the apps- I mean, come on people- I pay big bucks for an iPhone! haha). However, I have heard that it takes 14 days to create a habit. I'm hoping that this will become a habit for me and I won't fall back into it so quickly and again be consumed by it. We'll see how it goes. After all, I'm only human... :-)

So, now for the fun stuff. A top-10 list of what my friends and I have given up for Lent.

10. Potato chips
9. Anything "diet"
8. Group work
7. Saying "yes"
6. Driving a car
5. iPhones (and their apps)
4. Blogging
3. Chewing ice
2. Pedicures
1. Kissing :-) <-----this one's my favorite! ha!

What did you give up?

Italian, huh? Who knew...

2010-02-06T15:50:00.000-07:00

Have any of you ever looked at the website Stuff White People Like? I stumbled across it very recently. I've seen many of my friends link up to it on their facebook in the past, but I've never clicked on the link. It never really piqued my interest. Until today. For some reason...I was tempted by some stupid facebook sidebar ad....and I clicked. And then I laughed. Uncontrollably. For about 10 minutes.

I know many of you will find the name of the website itself offensive in some way. Take it for what it's worth. It's funny. And "white people" need to see how they're stereotyped. Did I mention it's funny?

Ok so...first order of business.

Ray-Ban Wayfarers. They are highlighted on this website as #130 "stuff white people like". And you can't deny it. You see them everywhere. Every single white person either has a pair of these or wants one (or denies that they want them, but secretly, they still do). They're popular right now because they're "vintage". Old is new. And they're everywhere. Indie-hippies....emo kids....Weezer....high schoolers....celebrities....You can't escape the Ray-Bans.

This was the first posting I read on this website. I started to examine myself. Am I white? Check. Do I own a pair/want a pair/deny wanting a pair of Ray-Bans? Check. Do I know other white people in the same situation? Check.

It's quite silly when you think about it. But also quite true.

Ok so while we're on the subject of what's trendy, I'll share with you what I read a few posts down.

#126 Vespa Scooters

I have been lusting after a Vespa Scooter since I saw Roman Holiday for the first time at age 14. And then when I went to Europe, both times I was tempted to buy one and have it shipped home. More recently, I know a friend who builds bikes and scooters here in Denver and he sent me a pic of one the other day he had for sale for $1200. It was beautiful. And it even had a cute little basket on it. I. want. one.

Here's what "Stuff White People Like" has to say about my obsession with Vespa Scooters:

They are Italian, feature vintage design, low emissions, make the rider look more sophisticated, and they carry a little bit of risk. In fact, were it to have a liberal arts degree and a steady income, a Vespa scooter would possesses every important quality that a white person looks for in a spouse.

Maybe I want a Vespa Scooter because it has everything I'm looking for in a spouse? Who knows...but either way I found it completely humorous. Can a Vespa get a liberal arts degree? Because then I could stop looking for a guy. :-)

Check out the website. I haven't totally proofread everything on there, so don't hate me if you find something foul. The things I read were quite funny. White people should laugh at their lemur-like activities.

Happiness is....

2010-02-03T07:14:00.000-07:00

Every morning for the past several years, I have listened to a radio program here in Denver on the Mix radio station. The hosts, Dom and Jane, are incredibly smart and most times very witty. I enjoy their humor. I also enjoy the fact that it’s a fairly clean radio program. They never claim to be a family program, but they are family-friendly so I don’t ever have any hesitation recommending others to listen.

Their show is entitled “The Entertaining Differences Between Men and Women”. This topic makes for a lot of good discussions between the panel and listeners. The topic last Wednesday didn’t really have anything to do with the differences between men and women, but I found it incredibly interesting and thought provoking. Here was the question posed by the panel:

What in life makes you truly happy?

I think this is something we all think about from time to time. It’s certainly something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. What does make me happy? What do I really enjoy? When I’m left by myself and can make my own choices, what is it that I choose? What puts a smile on my face?

Now there were the cheesy answers that you’ll always get because it’s what people think other people want to hear. “The smile on my child’s face.” “Making a difference.” “World peace.” You get the jist.

One thing that really hit me though was the response from the panel. When Jane was becoming frustrated with the callers answers, she tried to clarify what "happiness" means. A caller had said that happiness for him came from all the little things in his life. Then Jane clarified it as something really long-term that continues. This is what really stood out to me. In my entire life, I've always wondered why I'm not always "happy". There are just days when things are crummy and not all sunshine and rainbows. HOWEVER, I fully believe that it is possible to be joyful and content no matter the situation, and happiness will come and go in waves.

I think that's the key. And I think there's a clue in the etymology of the word. "Happy"- hap- haphazard- luck- chance.

It's really quite simple: Happiness happens.

Happiness is mostly luck or chance (if you believe in that stuff). Happiness can be that Starbucks coffee in the middle of the day. It can be the flowers your sweetie sends you on your birthday. It can be hearing "I love you Mommy" from your little one. It can even be having a clean room. But happiness happens. It's not something that you can make permanent in your life. It's fleeting. Because the very next moment you could spill your coffee. Flowers die. Your kids get mad at you when you discipline them. And rooms get messy from time to time. It happens.

I do feel that I have found true JOY in my life. JOY is not fleeting. It has lasting power. It can take you through life's valleys and bring you out on the other side in one piece. It can help you laugh off the bad things. It can help you stay focused on a goal when others try to bring you down. No, you may not be happy every moment of your life, but you can have joy and peace about all of it and learn to love even the not so happy moments.

If you want to be "happy" I'm afraid you'll always continue searching, you'll never be satisfied, and you'll be perpetually disappointed. Happiness happens by chance. Having joy is a decision you make.

:-)

I know, I know...

2010-02-02T11:12:00.000-07:00

If the name "slacker" comes to mind when you think of me, then, well, OK. I admit it. I've been slacking. I've been writing posts, I promise! But I haven't been posting them because I've been without internet. And I have a good reason! I promise! Be checking back soon. You will have plenty of new reading material by Friday....and it's good. Trust me.

Thoughts to ponder:
1) What is happiness? What does that even mean?
2) Boy drama- can't live with them, can't live without them. Or can we?
3) Have you seen the MTV show "My life as Liz"? It might just be about me...

the last half of my life

2010-01-10T21:33:00.000-07:00

The past decade has basically encompassed the last half of my life. I remember 1999...the old millennium passing and Y2K...and nothing happening. I remember that year my mother went to Mexico "just in case the world ended". Gee thanks mom. Overall though, this past decade has been a blast and one for the books. I've done a lot of things and met a lot of folks. Here are just a few highlights:

2000- quit 7th grade. Junior high girls are just hard to get along with. Had a big crush on a boy. Made up with my best friend. Came back to school. Visited Harding for the first time ever.

2001- 1st boyfriend. Brandon Fletcher. Went on my first double date. Started SYD. Got in trouble for hanging out with the senior boys at school. Started high school. Got baptized.

2002- Took drivers ed. Dyed my hair dark brown. Got an incredible sunburn that made me sick. First kiss. First car. Lettered in sports. Learned Spanish.

2003- Decorated my first cake. Made Sweet Harmony in SYD. Was dubbed the "3 Musketeers" with my two best friends- started dating one of them. Stepped foot on the OC campus for the first time. Enrolled in college. Took the ACT.

2004- Took the ACT AGAIN. Earned college credit. Got my heart broken. Got a new boyfriend. Was in a rock band. Got kicked out of the rock band because I reminded them of "Yoko". Wrote my first song. Hosted a talent show.

2005- Turned 18. Graduated high school (valedictorian). Went to Greece and Italy. Started college. Decided on a major. Sang live in front of 500+ people. Lived on my own for the first time. Got a ring from a boy to wear on my left hand. Held a newborn baby only a few hours old.

2006- Had my first Valentine's Day date. Vice President of Spanish club (ha!). Had my first surgery. Got my first "B". Gave said ring back to boy. Shot a gun. Killed an animal. Got my first "job" working retail. Joined a sorority.

2007- Was a bridesmaid for the first time. Named in Alpha Chi Honor Society. Offered a teaching job. Had a stalker. Almost won Spring Sing :-). Completed 30 credit hours in one semester. Tasted alcohol (gross). Roommate moved to Oregon.

2008- Went snowboarding for the first time. Had knee surgery (because of the snowboarding). Taught on crutches. Turned 21. Graduated college. Acted in a play. Took a cruise through the Mediterranean. Got a new car. Got my first teaching job. Rented my first apartment. First Christmas tree. Bought furniture. Wow! This year was a lot of firsts!

2009- Went to NUMEROUS concerts. Met my best friend. Was a bridesmaid again. Wrote some more songs. Acted in another play. Bought a vinyl record. Became friends with rockstars. Wrecked my brand new car. Went to a church my parents didn't go to. Got laid off from my first job. Moved home with my parents. Got a wii. Started substitute teaching. Enjoyed life for the first time.

There's a snapshot of the past decade in my life. What did you do?

Not ME! Monday

2010-01-04T20:59:00.000-07:00

Ahh....first "Not me!" post of 2010! And I've already not been up to quite a bit!

Head over here to see what MckMama and all her friends have not been up to!

I did not leave the TV on all night watching True Hollywood Stories. I'm not even into that. And I certainly haven't seen the one on Angelina Jolie more than once.

I also did not go into Crate and Barrel twice in the past 2 days and lust after everything in the store. I also did not ask them if they have a "moving out of the house" registry since I have no hopes of creating a wedding registry any time soon.

I did not stay up waaay past my bedtime every night since new year's trying to keep my mind occupied. I'm totally stress free and I sleep just fine.

I am not currently obsessed with the show Arrested Development. And I certainly wouldn't have invited myself over to a friend's house to watch half of season 2. And anxiously anticipate more....

I did not do anything at all for my cake business either. I certainly wouldn't have finally set up a quick books account and gotten my website up and going....not me! I'm not that ambitious :-)
What have you not done this year? Link up here!

Butter....and cream....yum!

2009-12-23T10:15:00.000-07:00

I was about to make cookies myself and I had a friend catch me on facebook. She's making sugar cookies with her kids and wanted a buttercream frosting recipe. Now, traditionally I only use buttercream on cakes, but it's good on cookies too. I personally like to use royal icing on my cookies because I prefer the shiny look to the yum factor buttercream brings. But for those of you looking for a yummy frosting to try, I give you my very own buttercream recipe. Now bear with me, I don't really measure so it make take some testing on your end to get it just right :-)

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter/margarine
shortening (I use crisco)- about the same amount as the butter, sometimes a little more, but please don't measure it. That's entirely too messy.
Powdered sugar- it either comes in a 1lb. box or a 2lb. bag. If you get the box, use it all. If you get the bag, you get to guess and use about half (usually a little more for me)
vanilla extract (clear)- use a splash. Yes a splash. And use the clear stuff because if you want white icing and you use brown vanilla, you will have ivory or tan icing. Trust me.
almond extract- a little less of a splash. Almond is very potent in my opinion and you don't want too much or someone may suspect you of lacing their cookie with cyanide. :-) hee hee hee
Milk- you add this last so this also cannot be measure but usually about 1-4 tablespoons

Ok so...here we go. Let the butter soften. Please please please do this! If you don't, you'll have little chunks of butter in your frosting. So let it soften and then in your mixing bowl add the crisco and extracts. Cream it all together until it's nice and smooth. Then, ever so slowly, add in the powdered sugar. Make sure you either have the mixer on low or off as you add the sugar. Otherwise it will make a huge mess. One method I've used on occasion when I'm feeling lazy is I dump all of the sugar in my stand mixer and then cover it with a damp tea towel and go to town. This works, but I don't recommend it all the time. Just add it a little at a time. After you've incorporated all of the sugar, add the milk, a splash at a time until you get a good consistency on your frosting. You want the frosting to be spreadable but not runny. Be careful. I've had to siphon milk out of a bowl with a straw before after going a little overboard. It's not fun.

Enjoy making all of your holiday treats. I hope this recipe helps some of you! As I mentioned, this is also the recipe I use for cake frosting, so it's really versatile. In true Paula Deen style....

Seasons Eatings, Y'all!

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

2009-12-23T08:55:00.002-07:00

I have an outrageous obsession with all things Christmas. I tend to go a little overboard and my friends and family just roll their eyes. But truly, I love it. I love buying gifts, making gifts, decorating, and wrapping. It gives me butterflies in my stomach. It's really quite sick.

So I thought I'd share a few of my goodies with you. My immediate family seems to be getting bigger every year so with the expense of buying gifts for mom, dad, stepmom, stepdad, sister, nephew, grandparents, Phillip....I decided to make gifts for the other special people in my life. It's less expensive and quite possibly a better gift. And I can do it like an assembly line so it saves me time as well!

My gift idea this year came from Bakerella. I just love that gal! She's always coming up with something good. I took her recipe for cowgirl cookies she featured a while back and made some jar mixes for my friends! Her original cowgirl recipe used pink M&Ms. Since it's Christmas, I used the very festive red and green ones. Bakerella provided the template for the "cowboy cookies" label. I also tied off my jars with a ribbon bow and a custom Sweethart Cakes label on the top. Here's the finished product:

Cute right?

I must say that they are also delicious! I did however have a trying time fitting everything in there. Each jar I packed....I would get to the last part where you add the pecans and I was smooshing them to the point where I had nut oil all over my hands just to fit like....1/8 of a cup in there. *sigh* oh well. Nuts are not the most important part. Chocolate is!

I've already delivered a few of these to my friends and the response was great. Who doesn't love cookies? And who doesn't love them in a jar with a cute little label? :-)

I've just finished wrapping all of my gifts though and I've placed them under the tree. Gift wrapping is truly an art. I love it. I love double sided tape. I love ribbon and handmade bows. I love beautiful thick paper.

So I went to this store and purchased the most beautiful wrapping paper ever. Green with red and silver print. Ahhh.... :-) I also purchased some ribbon. I will say up front that I was sorely disappointed with the ribbon. $5.95 and it only went around 2 gifts- how annoying! So I ended up going to Hobby Lobby and buying some velvet ribbon for half price and using that on most of my gifts. Anyway....here is the finished product:

!Que bonita!

Wishing you much happiness this Christmastime and hoping that your gifts are all wrapped up (with a bow) and your spirits high. To you and yours- Merry Christmas!

Finals!

2009-12-17T13:52:00.000-07:00

It's finals week here in the Centennial State. Only having one class I thought finals would be a piece of cake. Well....they would have been had my semester not looked like this:

September- no job

October- no job

November- no job

December- finally got hired but not working full time

Ok so....what does that have to do with anything?

I know what you're saying right now. If she didn't have a job she should have been working hard all semester....meeting those deadlines....getting things done early. Am I close?

Truth is, my grad school program should not have kept me enrolled this year but they made an exception. See, in order to be in my program you have to be a full time teacher. The reasoning is because there are so many field projects that you do throughout the semester, you need to have a consistent class to study and make plans for. Well....I didn't have such a class. I was subbing. Subbing A LOT, but subbing which is inconsistent. So my final project had to wait until I had a classroom. A room full of shining faces. A plethora of unsatisfied parents. Administration breathing down your neck.

Or something like that.

Well I've had a week. One week with these little snot-nosed munchkins. And now I'm frantically trying to do my project. Kind of hard since I was supposed to be implementing a plan/idea all semester. Oh well. So....I work backwards (sometimes it helps) and I've completed my PowerPoint presentation, the conclusion and end notes, the introduction.....now all I have to write is roughly 8 pages on what I was doing this semester to implement my plan. Hmm....I'd rather write 8 pages on the American Revolution (is that what it's called?) or someone's theory of quantum something or even the properties of afterbirth. Really....I would rather write about anything other than something that didn't happen. What do I do- write 8 pages of "I'm bilingual! I don't know why they didn't hire me!"? Or risk it and copy and paste 8 pages of my last paper (hey, it's in the same subject area!). Argh!

This makes me muy enojada when professors expect that life is just peachy and you have all of your necessary resources available.

Oh- and did I mention that this could have been a group project? Yeah...it could. But no one wanted me in their group since I wasn't at their school, and, wow, I wasn't even teaching.

Back to the grindstone. See you in 5 hours.

I don't belong here!

2009-12-08T23:30:00.003-07:00

Tonight I was told during our dress rehearsal that I didn't belong in this decade. My friend was referring to my costume and how absolutely PERFECT it is for me :-)

Truth be told, I would love to dress like this every day if it were socially acceptable.

What did my costume look like you ask? Well here's one of the dresses:

Keep in mind that I had already removed most of the rest of my costume

And I took my hair undone

Why do I never think to take pictures until I'm practically unzipped?!

Either way, this costume rocks. As does my other one that I am wearing in the first scene of the play. And my shoes....oh my shoes.....

I bought some shoes last year on New Year's Eve to wear to a party that evening. I was wearing a black knit dress with a lace top from this evil store. I do love their party dresses. But I don't own any heels. At all. Ever.

Ok I owned one pair in 9th grade when I went to banquet with Brian Thomas and he was waaaaay too tall for me. One pair. That's been worn maybe once....a few.....a handful of times.

But now I own this beautiful shoe:

Well, I own the left one as well.

Since this is the only pair of heels I own, it's nice that they go perfectly with both of my costumes. Well, really, they go perfectly with just about everything. Except maybe jeans. But I could totally wear them with my jeans I think....as long as I wear pearls. Maybe?

In my spare time time in between craziness this week, I will be practicing walking in these as much as possible.

Falling is embarrassing. Falling in front of someone- even more so. Falling on stage in front of an audience and not having a way to work it into the script- please, just throw a bucket of water on me and melt me because I will never live that down.

It's like the time in the yearbook when there was a typo and my name was spelled "Sara Hary". People still laugh. I still don't think it's funny. And I now freak out about having a mustache*.

*I have never had, at any time, any form of a mustache. Nor have I ever attempted to bleach, wax, pluck, or shave my upper lip.

I wish I could burn every copy of that year book.

Come to the play Friday night and see me fall glide across the stage gracefully playing the part of Gwen. The organist. No, not that kind.... do I really have to explain it again?

*They don't know yet how much I charge for advertising on my blog!

time for a change of pace

2009-12-08T18:17:00.000-07:00

To avoid this blog turning into a wedding blog (and I'm not even getting hitched!), I felt like I needed a drastic change- and quick. Yes, lovely dresses and rings and proposals are all great....but I WILL NOT be that girl.

So, here's the change.

This weekend I will performing in an original stage production called "Signing Off". It was written by this guy and his dad. This guy also happens to by my high school English teacher. Yes, I was taught by a genius. Did I mention his dad was my teacher at summer camp?

And I digress.

Anyway....In this production, I will be playing the part of Gwen. Gwen is an organist. No, not the kind who harvests peoples kidneys in the bathtub. More like that kind that plays an organ. An organ is the emo sister to the piano. I will be playing the part of the girl who plays the emo sister to the piano. Or something like that.

Either way, it's a good show. If you are in the Denver Metro area on Friday or Saturday night you should come out and support! All proceeds go to Hyland Christian School. Easy fundraiser for them, hard work for me (many many hours of grueling hard work [who am I kidding, I learned my lines yesterday]), fun for you and your whole family!

Tickets are $8 for adults, $5 for students. Kids under 3 are free.

If you come, you'll get to see me look something like this:

*sigh* I wish I was this high-fashion.

If you had to guess what the play was about/the setting/etc.....what would you guess based on that picture and the title? Abbie, you are ineligible to play since you already know.

are you kidding me?!

2009-12-07T17:20:00.000-07:00

So when my roommate and bff Tiffany was getting married our sophomore year of college, I signed up for this website to get info about wedding planning stuff and bridesmaid dresses. Well....now I use it as a resource for cake ideas and stuff. So, I still get emails from them. Anyway, today in my inbox was this email:

Worst proposals of the year? I'm intrigued.

So I click the link. And read through the stories. Most of them are very sweet proposals but something happened to interfere, but then everything turned out ok. This one, however, caught my eye:

yadisha7
two months before my fiance propose to me, we went on a getaway weekend vacation in the poconos. He took me to a jewelry store to pick out my engagement ring. The reason why he took me to pick my engagement ring was because he wanted to make sure that I pick the ring that I like. I honestly didnt like the fact that he did it that way because getting engaged was not going to be a surprise. So, I picked it anyways because I saw how frustrated he was. When he brought the ring he told me he will propose in a couple of months and I told him to propose in the fall season because I love fall and most of all not to propose on Halloween day because I hate Halloween. Sadly, he did exactly what I told him not to do. On Halloween day we went to Foxwoods Resort and my fiance proposed to me specially when I was in bed with a stomach ache. I was so depress and disapointed because that is not how I imagine my engament was going to be. Then the next day I told him how I was feeling that he felt so bad. Then he made it up for me by taking me to a nice romantic dinner boat in NYC and re-propose to me out side the boat looking at the city in the night time. I believe that when a man propose to a woman should be only once and speacial. If not, then it will be ruin. I dont like the idea that my fiance propose to me twice but I luv him and people sometimes make mistakes. But, im atleast thankful that he made it up for me and also made it speacial.

This "woman" (beast), whoever she is, not only has poor grammar and cannot spell to save her soul.....she should not be allowed to get married! If I were this poor guy, I would have told her to have fun being alone the rest of her life. "People sometimes make mistakes"?! Are you kidding me?!

*sigh*

If anyone ever proposes, I promise not to make them do it again.

I hear wedding bells! And cries of little babies. But mostly, I just see beauty.

2009-12-03T15:14:00.000-07:00

Those of my close friends who read this (all 2 of you) know how much I like weddings and babies and things that go with them. Well...yesterday Phillip and I went to Cherry Creek mall. It was a bad idea for many many reasons but one of them being that in that mall is the greatest place on earth. No, not Disney Land.

In this store you find many of these:

Oh how I wish I had one of these under the tree this year!

Yes friends....he let me go in here:

Ahh....heaven :-)

You see, when I go into Tiffanys I get this warm fuzzy feeling all over. I start thinking of flowers and dresses and yes- cake! But mostly, I think of diamonds and how much I would appreciate having one like this one my finger:

Beauty.

Gentlemen, take notes.

Then, Phil made mistake #2- he took me in JCrew to look at clothes. I have decided that I want to be classy and funky all at the same time, and this store has that kind of look. I think.

That's beside the point, however.

Because I found this:

This is what my bridesmaids (Abbie!) will be wearing. I don't care if you don't look good in pale pink silk. You will do it for me. Because the pleats are just precious and I really just want one for myself but I can't justify a time to wear it.

Maybe if I had a courthouse wedding this is what I would wear.

*sigh*

Not Me! Monday

2009-11-23T19:06:00.000-07:00

Today's "Not Me!" Monday post is a little delayed because there are a lot of things I have NOT been doing all day long!

On Saturday, I did not break down into tears over play practice. Or packing. Or lunch. Or laundry. Not me!

I also did not forget about the swiss army knife connected to my key chain and accidentally carry it through security at the airport. And they did not let me through security with it. And I did not immediately feel embarrassed and try to bury my keys in my carry-on bag.

On the plane, I was not annoyed by the 30-something full-of-himself passenger sitting next to me on the plane so much that I pretended to only speak Spanish for the entire flight so he wouldn't try to talk to me.

I did not leave my phone on and text on the plane either. That would be against the rules.

On Sunday at church, I did not hug my former future husband in front of his girlfriend. That would be just plain rude and obnoxious. I would never do anything like that. Not me!

And today, I did not almost throw a temper tantrum over not being able to make chocolate chip cookies. How immature. I would never do anything like that.

What have you not been doing? This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

An opportunity for you to PRAY!

2009-11-18T23:06:00.000-07:00

Ok guys....I've already asked everyone else I know so I decided to reach out to my bloggie friends too! :-)

I had a job interview today. If you've been following me for a while, you know that this is pretty much the best thing ever since I have been unemployed this school year. After a summer of rejections, I finally got in a small school district as a substitute.

I've been subbing there since the beginning of September. One day, about 6 weeks ago, I had a principal approach me and tell me about a position she had coming open after the Christmas break. It was for kindergarten. Bilingual. Perfect for me.

Ok so I waited and waited for this job to be posted online. It finally was and I was so excited! I spoke with the principal on the phone several times and we set up an interview for November 18-today.

Went to the interview today and guess what? I got a second interview! I go back tomorrow at 2:45.

So here's where you come in.

I'm asking that you please pray for me tomorrow from 2pm-4pm. This is going to be a really important time and I would appreciate some extra prayers going up on my behalf. I usually starting getting the pukey nervous feeling about 30 minutes ahead of time....so pray for my nerves to be calm. I sometimes get so nervous during an interview that I forget that I'm bilingual. This would not be good. Please pray for clarity and that I will remember all of my Spanish! And pray that God's will be done and that if this is the job for me, He will make it happen!

I really appreciate all of you and are praying for you for the many different things you have going on in YOUR lives right now and would appreciate you adding me to your list. Love you all!

The recipe- sorry I forgot!

2009-11-14T10:55:00.001-07:00

Ok folks...so I was in the middle of scarfing down my little beauties last night while I was writing that last post and I completely spaced out sharing the recipe! So here it is- and it's pretty much the simplest recipe I follow.

*makes 6 popovers

Ingredients:

1 cup whole milk (you can use low fat or skim, but they will cook faster so watch them!)
2 eggs
1 cup of flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt

1. Ok. So...first you need to measure out your one cup of milk and get the 2 eggs out of the fridge. It's important that these come to room temperature first. Just trust me on this...it works much better.

*If you're impatient like me, you can use the warming element on your stove. Just DO NOT put them in the microwave. You will have scorched milk and scrambled eggs :-)

2. Preheat your oven to 450. And make sure it's COMPLETELY preheated before you put the popovers in.

3. This is the gross/fun part. Grab some butter, and with your fingers, thoroughly grease the inside of the custard cups/popover pans/muffin tins. You should not even be able to see the metal of the pan. Just butter.

4. Once the milk and eggs are about room temperature, mix together the ingredients, starting with the liquids. Add in the cup of flour and the salt until it's just smooth. A little lumpy is ok. I think of it like pancake batter.

5. Fill each cup about half full.

6. Stick them in the HOT oven and set a timer for 20 minutes. Walk away. Do not even look at them until the timer goes off. If you do, you will be tempted to open the door. And if you open the door, your popovers...well...they will be "cave-ins". It's true.

7. When the timer goes off after 20 minutes, turn the temperature down to 350. Set the timer AGAIN for 20 minutes.

8. Take them out of the oven and immediately remove them from the pan. Pop them open and eat them while they're still hot!

*Additional tips/tricks*

I do not cook mine for 20 min each time. I have a convection oven and that tends to make them cook a bit faster so I only do it for 15 on each temp.

If you are using skim milk instead of whole milk, you might also want to only do 15 minutes each.

The recipe can be altered to suit your tastes. If you like cheese, you might try a cheesy popover where you add shredded cheese into the mix when you add in the flour. You can also try adding a splash of vanilla and some cinnamon to the batter. Just do whatever you like! The classic recipe is very good though and well suited for any toppings/fillings.

Enjoy!
*And let me know how your popovers turned out!

Just call me Paula...

2009-11-13T20:51:00.001-07:00

No, not this Paula.

This one:

I have been baking tonight, but not the typical baking you would find me doing. Well...some of it. :-)

I had cake decorating class this afternoon with the Javellana and Farber family. I go over to Mollie's house twice a month and teach 4 of her 5 children some cake decorating skills. It's a blast, but it's also quite messy. When I get some pics from Mollie, I'll post them on here. It's quite insane.

But back to me and Paula. After my cake decorating lessons this afternoon, I headed home to a very cold, quiet, empty house. I stood in the kitchen for a few minutes looking longingly out the window at the new snowfall. And then it hit me. The baking bug.

This was not just any baking bug that could be satisfied by cooking up some cookies I have waiting in the freezer. Or even by some box brownies. No. This one was craving these bad boys:

Popovers

All 105 calories of them.

(except when I eat them, it's 630 calories because I eat ALL of them...)

I have a weakness for these little pillows of airy buttery goodness. I like them plain. I like them with cheese mixed in. I like them made with vanilla and sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. I like them hollowed out with butter and jelly. I LOVE them with Nutella.

I just flat-out love them. And I love making them. It makes me feel like Paula Deen.

Why? you ask. Because of this:

Butter fingers

I grabbed a stick of butter and demolished it with my bare hands. It was amazing. There's about 1/2 a stick used to grease the popover pans. The recipe I use says (no joke): "You should not even be able to see the metal of the pans. Just butter."

Simply amazing.

And of course I used Smart Balance olive oil butter substitute. Because my "biscuit" can't handle any more "butter".

Just look at these beauties:

Perfectly popped-over and hollowed out.

A great hideaway for a heaping spoonful of Nutella.

or "butter"

Absolute perfection. All 6 of them :-)

Life lessons: "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown"

2009-10-28T22:26:00.000-06:00

Ah....childhood favorites. Charlie Brown's Christmas and the Great Pumpkin are classics. I hope that they're still showing them on TV when I *finally* have children someday. The thing I appreciate most about Charlie Brown specifically is the life lessons it presents.

Life lesson #1- tact.
Charlie Brown:"It's the first time I've ever been invited to a party."
Lucy:"Charlie Brown, if you got an invitation, it must have been a mistake"

Learn when to keep your mouth shut for goodness sake! Didn't your mother ever teach you that if you can't say something nice then keep your mouth shut?! Charlie Brown is already practically suicidal and just when he sees a glimmer of hope in his life, the filterless Lucy has to dash all of his dreams. Good job Lucy. I hope you get rocks for your birthday.

Life lesson #2- healthy self image.
Lucy: "A person should always choose a costume that is direct contrast to her own personality"

Lucy is pulling on her witch's costume as she's saying this. We all know that Lucy truly is a witchy woman. Just look above at what she said to Charlie Brown. She's evil. She's in love with Schroder, but that's the only person she's even remotely nice to. However, she displays a great self-image in this scene. Some call it narcissism. I call it delusional. Come on people- be real with yourself.

Life lesson #3- people are imperfect.
Linus:"I thought little girls always believed everything that was told to them. I thought little girls were innocent and trusting."
Sally:"Welcome to the 20th century."

Although I'm loving the ideal Linus has in his mind of little girls, it's true that no one, including little girls (as much as I hate to admit it), is perfect. When we create unrealistic expectations for people, we are bound to be disappointed.
That being said, I think that it's said that Sally points out that it's the "20th century" that has caused her to no loner be innocent and trusting. The media has a lot to do with this, as do "chick flicks" but I won't rant about that right now. However, I will recommend you check out the book Amusing Ourselves to Death.

Life lesson #4- faith.
Sally: "Linus knows what he's talking about. Linus knows what he's doing."
Linus:"Just think Sally, when the Great Pumpkin rises out of the pumpkin patch, we'll be here to see it!"

Two lessons in faith here: faith in others and faith in what you believe in. I think showing faith in others is very important, especially since we are called to love and help one another. I firmly believe in sticking up for my friends and giving them the benefit of the doubt until they prove to me to think otherwise.
The other side of faith....well....
No matter what you believe in, whether I agree or not, please be passionate about it. I cannot stand people who are only half-on about their faith. If you want to talk to me about what you believe, show me you believe it yourself by how you live your life. Otherwise, it means nothing to me. I feel that you're just being argumentative.

Life lesson #5- never, NEVER get between a woman and her chocolate
Charlie Brown: "You've heard about fury of a woman scorned haven't you?"
Linus: "Yes, I have."
Charlie Brown: "Well that's nothing compared to the fury of a woman cheated out of a trick or treat."

'Nuff said :-).

Jack Frost paid us a visit...a season too soon

2009-10-28T17:28:00.000-06:00

Many of you who follow are friends with me on facebook have been seeing my daily updates about the wonderful snow we've been having here in Denver. I am in love with snow and all things winter. When given the choice between summer and winter, I always choose summer. Because, you know, you can always put on more layers in the cold, but you can only strip down so far in the heat! :-)

This is what I woke up to this morning:

Normally, I would have been thrilled. A snow day. No school. No reason to get out and drive anywhere. The opportunity to just sit at home wrapped up in a quilt with some coffee. Sounds perfect, right?

Me, in my Halloween shirt, because this is October people, not December!

I got out there. I tried to love it. I took a "happy" picture next to our tree. Then the tree decided to dump snow all over my head. Argh. Not to worry. I'm just going to step over here, out onto the driveway for safety. Well...this is a really wet snow. I took 2 steps and....plop! I fell and slid down the driveway. Here's the damage:

Hence, I am now mad at winter and wish for it to go away for another month or so and let us have fall in peace.

No more snow for me.

In light of this, I think I'm going to plan a trip on a cruise or to somewhere tropical. It really appeals to me right now. Maybe a Thanksgiving getaway to an island. Think about it, relaxing on the beach somewhere....getting my tan on....wearing that new bathing suit I haven't gotten to wear yet.... Or what about this lovely hillside getaway along the Amulfi coast in Italy?

Any idea for getting rid of the snow day blues?

Wishful Wednesday

2009-10-28T15:48:00.002-06:00

This week I decided to participate in the Seattle Smith's Wishful Wednesday. The topic for the week is:

I wish...I was six years old and going trick or treating, and my costume would be Max from Where the Wild Things Are.

In fact, I might dress up as him anyway. And I'm certainly not 6 years old.

"Not Me!" Monday

2009-10-26T12:39:00.002-06:00

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week. :-)

For "not me" Monday, I would like to tell you that I have not been eating all of the leftover Halloween cookies and candy from our church's trunk-or-treat last night. Not me!

And I most certainly did not stay in bed until 11am and not shower before going to babysit. Not me!

I would like you also to know that when I was making the lovely Halloween cookies I did not squeeze frosting onto my fingers just so I could eat it. Nor did I eat raw cookie dough when I was rolling them out. Not me!

And I will not be wearing the same outfit 3 nights in a row just because I loved Wicked so much and am smitten with the cute t-shirt and jacket I got after the show. Not me!

Write your own "not me" Monday post and share with the rest of us. I would love to know what you're not doing! :-)

And the winner is....

2009-10-22T18:25:00.000-06:00

Abbie at Growing up Griffith!!! Congrats Abbie! I'm sure that little "wild thing" of yours will love these cookies!

PS- To all my readers, I'm very sorry about my lack of posts lately. It seems that sleep and pumpkin pie have gotten the best of me. I promise to return soon! :-)

Home again, home again, jiggity-jig

2009-10-18T17:12:00.000-06:00

Well....I didn't buy a fat pig at the market, but after 10 long hours in the car, I'm home from my adventures in Oklahoma. More on that later. Right now I'm off to see the film rendition of the popular children's book "where the wild things are". It's one of my personal childhood favorites. Be looking for a movie review sometime tomorrow.

Yet another giveaway!

2009-10-17T22:33:00.000-06:00

Just found out about this giveaway from Danielle! Check it out here.
These aprons she is giving away are just precious! I love the blue and brown myself ;-)

Don't you just have to have one?!

Wicked, Halloween, and cookies! And a giveaway!

2009-10-16T22:44:00.000-06:00

So I've recently developed an obsession with cookies! You all know that I love to decorate with sugar, but sometimes the cakes just seem to be too much, and I can't share them with as many people. I've decided to take on a cookie project for the month of October. This works out well since Halloween is one of my favorite holidays (I love playing dress up!) and I will also be going to see Wicked right before Halloween. October could not be better! So...I'm starting with some celebratory cookies for my mothers and my night out next weekend to see Wicked. These cookies will include witch's boots, hats (pictured above), and brooms. Maybe I'll throw in a few nods to Galinda...I haven't decided yet :-). Check out Elisa Strauss's Confetti Cakes book for the templates for these cookies and to help you create your own. I'll post pictures when mine are all completed.

Here are some other cute cookies that I want to make, but can't find a good excuse. If only Jo lived closer, I would make these for her to celebrate her little bun in the oven. Totally reminded me of her nursery theme!

I also love these Halloween cookies from Good Housekeeping and will be making them for the adult Halloween party our church is having at the end of the month. How cute are they?!

Here's the treat for you- you can receive one dozen of these cute spidey cookies from me for your Halloween celebration! All you have to do is this:

1) Become a follower of my blog if you're not already

2) Leave a comment about your favorite Halloween costume idea

3) Link to my blog in your own post

That's it! And you get a free treat to take with you to your Halloween celebration! I'll announce the winner on Thursday, October 22.

Ok, I'm off to bed with hopes of sweet, sugary, royal icing dreams :-) Happy blogging!

Wordless Wednesday- the man with the angelic voice- Legacy member

2009-10-14T16:00:00.003-06:00

Flash Fiction Challenge- Update!

2009-10-09T23:45:00.004-06:00

Here are the rules I'm following:

1) less than 100 words

2) set in Denver

3) scary :-)

4) story concept built around random word from the dictionary

I'll be sharing my creation in approximately 24 hours when I get back from Oklahoma on Monday :-)

*Feel free to email me at sara dot e dot hart (little sign above the number 2) gmail dot com. Let the writing begin!

The calm after the storm

2009-10-09T21:25:00.005-06:00

*sigh*. I'm in love with the calm-after-the-storm feeling I have right now. The past 72 hours have been very hectic and I was feeling like my brakes went out! It's now over, so I have time to rest and reflect :-)

I've been substitute teaching for about a month now, and I've decided it's pretty much the best job ever (minus the pay). You only work when you want to. You get to choose which grade/school you want to work at. You don't have to grade any papers. And if you don't like it, you only have to do it for a day. However, even with all of these positives, subbing can have it's downsides.

Tuesday morning I walked into a kindergarten classroom with absolutely NO lesson plans, no class list, no schedule, NOTHING! I sat at the teacher's desk frantically searching for something that might help me when in walk 30-count them-30 five-year-olds. Oh. My. Word. I was afraid for my life. We did a lot of singing, a lot of story time, a LOT of Dr. Jean's movement songs...and eventually made it through the day. Whew!

The next couple days brought better teaching environments (thankfully) but everything else was busy busy busy! I stayed home Wednesday to gear up for a night of floorsets at Bath and Body Works. I worked literally all night (and into the morning) and then got up to get ready for teaching.

My dear friend Abbie was feeling a little under the weather on Thursday so I stopped by her house with some lattes (soy chai for her, pumpkin spice for me!) for a quick fix before whisking away to my master's class. Thursday night was presentation night so we went from 4-7:30. Long night! The second I got home, I started working on cakes.

Cake #1 for this weekend was a Scooby Doo cake for one of my favorite 4 year olds. She gave me the challenge of creating a two-tier cake with scooby doo and the mystery machine on the sides. This was the end result:

She was absolutely thrilled! I love seeing little ones faces light up :-)

The second round of cakes consists of no less than 8 teapot cakes similar to the one I posted here. These will be for a ladies day tea happening at church Sunday afternoon. I'll post pictures when/if I finish!

Lastly, I'd like to take a moment to let you all know about a great giveaway going on. The Seattle Smiths are giving away the most adorable key holder from Tanner Glass Etsy shop. Go here to check out the post and find out how to enter.

Don't you just love it? :-)

Ok that's all. I'm going to enjoy a cup of tea and an episode of "Say Yes to the Dress". Ahh...

Giveaway!

2009-09-30T16:35:00.002-06:00

How cute is this? Go here to see how to enter!

Monday, Monday...

2009-09-28T11:03:00.003-06:00

Today is just now about to get started for me. I fell asleep last night waiting for someone to call me back. In my jeans. I woke up at about 3am to my TV still blaring and me feeling very uncomfortable...and hot. I had fallen asleep in my clothes with my computer on my lap. Laptops get very hot if you leave them running on top of something such as a lap. They don't have anywhere to vent the hot air to because the vent on the bottom of the computer is blocked. So...with my lap on FIRE I got up and put jammies on and tried to go back to sleep. It felt like I had just drifted off and my phone rang. 5am phone call to see if I could sub today. This would have been great, but I had already agreed to babysit for some friends. So I had to decline the job. Then 5:30 rolls around....another call about another sub job. Decline. Roll over. Back to sleep. I repeated this process until 9am with calls every 30 minutes. Stink! I decided it was about time to get up but just then my phone rang AGAIN with a call from another school district saying my application was incomplete because I didn't have the correct phone number for one of the teachers I did a practicum with when I was in school. So, I busted out the computer and for about an hour and a half attempted to search for a current phone number for this person. Ugh! Talk about tedious and time consuming... Anyway, now I'm up and fed and clothed and ready to go babysit. I'm hoping he played really hard this morning so we can both take naps this afternoon! Tonight is SYD. This will be my second night in attendance. I'm hoping that most everything has been smoothed over with that and that things go well tonight. I'm looking forward to seeing all the kids and having a great night of practice and fellowship. Oh, and- in case you didn't hear- the Broncos beat the Raiders yesterday. Not that it was hard or anything...but I'm excited for our boys this year! We can do it without you cry baby Cutler.

"Would you like a little more tea?" "Well, I haven't had any yet, so I can't very well take more."

2009-09-26T23:30:00.001-06:00

This is an experimental teapot cake I made today as practice for one I'm making later in October. Let me know what you think.

Wordless Wednesday- Don't look back! A storm's a-brewin'!

2009-09-23T15:20:00.001-06:00

Tada! the finished product

2009-09-18T18:46:00.002-06:00

So this cake is for a wedding happening tomorrow in Sedalia, CO. The bride showed me a couple of pictures and said she wanted "fall flowers...all over! And some twigs and stuff". So here's what we ended up with:

Wordless Wednesday- fall wedding cake (the pieces)

2009-09-16T23:25:00.003-06:00

AGH! Are you serious?!

2009-08-18T18:19:00.001-06:00

So, the teacher whose long-term sub I was going to be decided to come back. Now I don't have a job. This STINKS! Keep praying...

details details details!

2009-08-18T16:25:00.000-06:00

So sorry for the short post yesterday...I was just so excited!

I was called last night around 9:30 by the Human Resources director for Denver Public Schools. There was a job I had interviewed for about 2-3 weeks ago (4th grade) that I didn't get, but the principal had said I was an awesome candidate and if he had anything else come up, he would love to have me. Well...something came up- and it's way better than I could have ever imagined. It's a 1st grade class (yay! my favorite!) at this awesome school over by Northfield Stapleton. The position right now is a long-term subbing position, but it could go permanent and/or lead to something else. So...this is definitely the answer to my prayers! I'm so excited. I'm waiting for them to call right now to give me details about tomorrow since school starts for DPS students tomorrow. Anyway, thank you all for your continued prayers about this situation. God is so good!

PS- My grandpa also came home from the hospital yesterday after 13 days. He is doing much much better and we're very optimistic about his prognosis. Praise God!

I GOT A JOB!!!

2009-08-17T22:16:00.001-06:00

Looks like the teacher clothes paid off! :-)

"Can you rephrase the question please?"

2009-08-14T10:41:00.001-06:00

Over the past month, I have had more interviews than I've had in my life combined. Granted, I've only had like...3 jobs ever...but still. It's a weird feeling to have to continue interviewing. My experience thus far in my life has been apply, get a call for an interview, go to the interview, get offered a job at the end. I have been extremely blessed in this area. However, this has changed. Lately it's been more like this: apply for roughly 300 jobs in the Denver metro area; wait 2-3 months for a phone call; get an interview; get rejected; rinse and repeat. I will say that I did get offered a job last week- it just wasn't one I could afford to accept. Today I feel a renewed sense of energy, like I've just gotten a burst of adrenaline. I received a phone call late last night informing me of a position that had just opened up at a school. This position is still not even posted yet as of today, but I was able to make contact with the principal there and get her my resume. Hopefully that being the first thing that came across her desk this morning will be a good thing. This position is for a second grade class (which would be awesome!) at the school right around the corner from my parents' house. It is also a school where one of my great friends from church teaches. It would be awesome to be able to work there and I feel fairly optimistic about it, but I'm not getting my hopes up too high just yet.

There is another position I also recently applied for in the same school district at a middle school teaching English. Now I know what you're thinking. "Sara, what in the world makes you think you're qualified to teach middle school? Aren't you a preschool teacher?" The answer to these questions is "yes". I'm qualified for middle school and high school English in Oklahoma and Colorado because as an education major in Oklahoma, I was required to take at least 12 hours of English beyond the gen ed requirements. As a foreign language minor, I was required to take 18 hours of language arts classes. Therefor, I have the necessary 24 hours of English/language arts required to be considered "highly qualified" in both states and I have passed the competency exams. So...while I have no actual experience teaching middle school English, I'm perfectly qualified. It would be the same situation as me trying to get a job last year with no experience at all, except that now I at least know how schools and school districts work. *phew!*

Part of my "get a job" plan included buying some new clothes. I figure if I start looking and acting like a teacher, surely I will become one. What's the saying- dress for the job you want? Yes, I think so. So...I got this cute new sweater and jeans (that you can't see)...

And this outfit....it looks cuter in person, I promise...

...all on sale at Banana Republic! yay! These will be dubbed my "dropping off resume" clothes. They can also double as "teacher clothes", "substitute teacher clothes", "date clothes", as well as "church clothes" and the jeans can be "hang-out clothes". So, I feel that I really got my money's worth :-)

I also wanted to remind all of you that I am still available to do cakes...any time really. Making and decorating cakes is something I love to do and I try to do it well. If you need a cake for any occasion, just give me a call and I'd be happy to go over the details with you. I'm hoping to have a website up and running by the end of the month that would include details such as flavors and pricing, as well as a way to submit orders online. Be looking for a link soon!

...And we're back!

2009-08-11T02:42:00.000-06:00

I know you've all been missing me. I've been AWOL for the past month or so. I wish I had some amazing excuse, but what it boils down to is that I'm lazy. I've been reading all of your blogs, but I just haven't had the patience or energy until now to sit down and write. So...I'll update you quickly on what's been going on in my life!

June- At the end of June I headed down south to Emory, TX to watch my sweet sweet roommate Leah marry the love of her life. It was so much fun to be there with her and her family. I had an awesome time and even made some new friends! Here's a pic from the wedding day:

July- The 4th of July was spent with some good friends at their house. We played games all afternoon and then drove to parking lot at a school and watched fireworks in the freezing cold! It was so much fun.

My oldest cousin Jana also got married in July. It was such a beautiful wedding- she was gorgeous! I loved being able to be a part of her special day. Here are a few pictures of that. I made the groom's cake for her wedding. Her now-husband, Derek, loves Super Mario.

Right after this I headed up to Kamp Koinonia to be a counselor for the first time. It was such an amazing experience. We had a blast! I got to reconnect with old friends and make some new friends too. The day the first session ended, I went with the Carter/Oehlert family and a few other friends for a traditional after-camp lunch at Red Lobster. Caleb and Guy were having a little too much fun with the crab legs!

On this day, I also saw my first ever Harry Potter movie. I have been a huge fan of the books for years, but up until now have boycotted the movies. This one was actually ok :-). In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I have since gone back and watched all of the other ones- and they're ok too.

I came home from camp that night, had my mom do my laundry (I know, I'm spoiled), and I headed back up the next day for an unexpected second round of Kamp Koinonia. I took on a different role the second week as Julie's right-hand gal, meaning I was the nurse, as well as did everything else that needed to be done. It was such a blessing to be able to be at camp and be a part of all of those kids' lives.

August- So far August will include a movie review and a music review. There is a new indie film playing at the Mayan theatre in Denver called 500 Days of Summer. It's a story of boy meets girl, but is by no means a love story. I felt like the message was powerful and something that people can relate to. Many times, we, especially women, get caught up with the fantasy we see on the movie screen. This movie allows you to get into the story without unrealistic expectations for real life. The movie stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt (3rd Rock from the Sun, 10 Things I Hate About You) and Zooey Deschanel (Elf, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy). You can see the trailer here.

Along with the movie, the soundtrack is amazing! It includes songs by the leading lady, as well as artists such as Feist, Regina Spektor, Doves, Hall and Oats, and The Smiths, among other equally great, not-so-well-known artists. Download it on itunes- you get 3 bonus tracks!

That's all I have for now. I promised Abbie an update, so here it is. Oh- and be looking for a new music track from me soon. I'm trying to set up some studio time with Mark.

Peace and Love~

Me vs. Baby Boomer

2009-06-17T10:55:00.000-06:00

Today I received rejection #2 of 2 interviews total. First off, it's quite frustrating that I've only had 2 interviews. Second, I'm a little bit baffled at their reasoning for not hiring me. Well...sort of. I understand that this is lowest performing school in the district so they want someone who knows what they're doing to bring it up. However, the way the principal worded his rejection just frustrates me. "We want someone with more experience. I'm afraid that's what you'll find all over the place right now." Ok, fine. Good. Whatever. But how in the world am I supposed to get that experience if no one plans on hiring someone with so little experience? Someone has got to take a chance somewhere, right? So....anyone wanna take a chance on me? :-)

"You and me are like a real tornado..."

2009-05-17T21:59:00.000-06:00

So many things have happened in the past few weeks- it feels like my life is in overdrive. School is finally winding down- only two days left with kids!! yay! It feels like the last 9 months have been an eternity. I really thought this school year would never end. The end of year stuff is really getting to me- having to pack up my classroom and say goodbye to my students and friends. It's definitely taking it's toll on my emotions. Not to mention several other exciting things that have been going on in my life that I will refrain from posting on the internet simply because they are extremely personal, and hey- you never know who might be reading your blog, right? If you want to know about it, just ask! I will say though that I didn't think I was going to make it through these last two weeks and I did. Just barely...but I did. And now I have 4 more days that I have to show up at work...and I will make it there too. Keep me in your prayers as I finish out this school year and move on to a new phase in my life. Much love to all!

J-E-L-L-O!

2009-04-16T13:04:00.000-06:00

Although today is Thursday (which usually feels like a Friday), today is definitely a Monday.

I went to an awesome show last night- Meese and The Airborne Toxic Event. It was well worth the money and the late night. However, it made it nearly impossible to get up this morning. My alarm went off at 6:30. I must have turned it off, however, I don't remember doing so. I woke up a few times between 6:30 and 7, but didn't actually get out of bed until 7. Not the best choice. I went straight to work to get a few things set up and then had to go to Target for some jello. I know what you're thinking- why in the world did she need jello? Well, we were supposed to use it for a super cool art project today in class. I returned from Target right as my kids were coming into class. That's stressful enough in itself. "Ms. Sara, where were you? Why are you late? We were already here waiting for you!" Ugh. Just be quiet!

***CENSORED***
***EDIT***

Afternoon project went much better and turned out how I wanted and I am no longer in a foul Monday mood. Just a Thursday-I'm-disappointed-it's-not-Friday-yet mood.

Just doin' my duty

2009-04-13T11:26:00.000-06:00

Many of you have experienced this before- you open the mailbox, shuffle through the junk, the bills, and more bills, and you see- what is this? A jury summons. Oh joy! You are so ecstatic you can hardly contain yourself! Finally, you get to be a good citizen and do your civic duty and serve on a jury for one of your peers.

Yeah right.

Don't get me wrong, I don't mind "doing my duty". I vote. I call my congressmen. And I show up for jury duty. It's just inconvenient.

I had already put in for a sub for the whole day because there's no telling how long jury duty may last. I got up early and got moving. I even found a book to take with me (because we've all heard the stories about sitting around all day waiting for your number to be called). I was so excited to finally read twilight too. *sigh*. I called on my way over just to make sure where to report. There are two separate parts of the civic building in Broomfield and I really wanted to be on time. As I'm listening to the recording waiting for the directions part, I realize that they're listing jurors who were excused for the day. Now, I had checked the posting on both Friday and Saturday and it said "All jurors report". Well...now as I'm listening, I hear that my number was excused for the day! There are two sides to this coin. 1) Yay! I don't have jury duty and I have the day off. 2) If I don't serve, will I still get paid by my school (remember- I had to call a sub for the whole day). So, I immediately want to start panicking but decide to just show up and see what they'll do for me. Who knows- maybe another juror didn't show up and they'll need me. Or maybe they have a form you can fill out if you're a retard and show up for jury duty after you've been excused.

I get up to the counter and explain my situation to the lady. She had me fill out a mountain of paperwork and told me to wait. I thought, oh no, I'll be waiting here until noon just for her to process everyone else's paperwork. Not 2 minutes later she calls me up, excuses me, and hands me a slip to give to work. Hallelujah! Now, not only do I not have to sit around all day at the courthouse, I have a legitimate day off! Which means I can still take off next Tuesday for my birthday :-)

Boondocks anyone?

Another day, another cake

2009-04-08T22:09:00.000-06:00

Ok so, this is now the third cake my friend Melissa has commissioned me to make for her family members. At first, I was feeling a little uneasy, mostly because I had to do it completely free-handed. I also had no idea how I was going to make drum sticks. Well, it turned out much better than I had anticipated and I'm probably more proud of those dang drum sticks that I have been of anything else I've created. Oh- and to make it just that much better, Melissa's niece loves it and sent picture texts to her friends. Hey- I'll take free advertisement however I can get it! Please, if you want to place an order, try to give me at least a week's notice. It's now spring time and I'll be busy with baby showers, wedding showers, and weddings. :-)

The Mondays

2009-04-06T10:18:00.000-06:00

I have a bad case of "the Mondays" today. First mistake- I stayed up entirely too late last night. I think I finally got in bed around 1:30....not very smart. Second mistake- I woke up entirely too late this morning. On Mondays, I try to get up a little earlier so that I have time to get ready and I'm not so cranky when I get to school. Today, I woke up when I should have already been driving down the road and had to search frantically for something clean to wear and run out the door. I HATE days that start like that! Now that I'm at school, all I want to do is go home! My kids are crazy (they always are), my principal has been giving me the stink eye (also typical), and I just want to go back to sleep! Hopefully the day gets better when my afternoon group gets here. You can't ever tell though- maybe they'll have a case of the Mondays too!
The only silver lining I see today is that I can relax when I get home. Well...for a while until it's time to go work out with Kara :-(. I'm also really looking forward to tomorrow night. Churchill, a band that Joe and his friends play in, is playing a show in Arvada tomorrow night. I went to their rehearsal on Friday and they were awesome! I'm really excited for them and I think it's going to be a really good show. A late night, but a good show. Hey- it's worth the sacrifice.

2009-04-02T21:48:00.000-06:00

I finished the cake for the baby shower. Chocolate cake, raspberry filling, vanilla buttercream frosting with chocolate buttercream and pink fondant polka dots. I think it's cute for what it is. The giant bow is my favorite part. Unfortunately those things take forever to dry unless you mix gumpaste with the fondant (which I did not...). Hopefully my mother and the mommy it's for will be pleased.

Baby Shower

2009-03-31T14:48:00.000-06:00

So my mother has once again commissioned me to make a cake. Usually, I know the person (or have at least met them). This time, it's someone I don't know at all and the only direction I was given is that it's for a baby girl shower and her nursery colors are brown and pink. My mom gave me complete freedom to create whatever I want. I'm really excited about it. I did a pink and brown cake last year for my friend Sandra and it is probably one of my favorites. It was cherry chip cake with chocolate frosting and pick fondant accents. Sandra and her family loved it, so I'm ready to try again. I'm thinking this time though I'll do something a little more fun. Maybe polka dots and a bow. That's cute and girly, right? Maybe even a few little flowers or something. Baby cakes are my favorite so this should be fun!

Cake I made for my friend Sandra's sister

New blog

2009-03-28T13:35:00.000-06:00

I have been considering blogging for a long time, but since I am incredibly indecisive, it's taken me a while to take the leap. Follow me. Find out what I'm doing, what I'm thinking. Or don't. Have a laugh at my craziness. Just enjoy.

The March Share

we're expanding by 2 feet!

I'm in the home stretch

Successes!

Diet- week 1

Goodbye Cellulite....

School's out!

She's back!

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

Yay for Christmas cards! Or holiday cards depending on my level of procrastination this year...

Christmas card

The Sweet Potato Feud

Ch-ch-ch-changes...

Cake!

Raspberry pancakes

project time!

Humility...and apologies

Recipe time!

BUDGET! (part 2)

BUDGET!

Wedding planning- my inspiration

And so it begins....I'm having a "wedding" blog?

Super Bummed

Tradition....tradition. Tradition!- Part 1 Weddings

I need modeling classes

Guessing game

Grey skies are gonna clear up....put on a happy face

My trip so far

Breakfast at Tiffanys....or maybe it was lunch...well...I had a bag of candy at least

Itinerary

Give me your tired, your poor....

When Harry Met Sally

Luck 'O the Irish

Top 2 Tuesday

Love is in the air

Wishful Wednesday- gown

These streets will make you feel brand new, the lights will inspire you,

The date that will live in infamy...

Mediocrity vs. Excellence

A sweet little blessing...

Not Me! Monday

Sacrifices....oh how they hurt

Italian, huh? Who knew...

Happiness is....

I know, I know...

the last *half* of my life

Not ME! Monday

Butter....and cream....yum!

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Finals!

I don't belong here!

time for a change of pace

are you kidding me?!

I hear wedding bells! And cries of little babies. But mostly, I just see beauty.

Not Me! Monday

An opportunity for you to PRAY!

The recipe- sorry I forgot!

Just call me Paula...

Life lessons: "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown"

Jack Frost paid us a visit...a season too soon

Wishful Wednesday

"Not Me!" Monday

And the winner is....

Home again, home again, jiggity-jig

Yet another giveaway!

Wicked, Halloween, and cookies! And a giveaway!

Wordless Wednesday- the man with the angelic voice- Legacy member

Flash Fiction Challenge- Update!

The calm after the storm

Giveaway!

Monday, Monday...

"Would you like a little more tea?" "Well, I haven't had any yet, so I can't very well take more."

Wordless Wednesday- Don't look back! A storm's a-brewin'!

Tada! the finished product

Wordless Wednesday- fall wedding cake (the pieces)

AGH! Are you serious?!

details details details!

I GOT A JOB!!!

"Can you rephrase the question please?"

...And we're back!

the last half of my life