Whew!!!!!!!

This weekend was super busy, which equals not seeing my hub quite as much as I want to...sad. However, once you hear how much fun we had when we were together you won't feel bad for me at all!
Friday: Cody headed over to Grandma and Grandpa Warner's to help them out with their new internet. They are in the high-speed club now...not to mention my parents! I love it when people that I love join the current fads! Anyway, he visited with them as well as with Laurel. She has been here for almost a week now and I haven't even seen her! That is how crazy life has been...I know, I am a horrible daughter in law...no worries, we have her on the schedule tomorrow night! After Cody got home, we headed out to Magleby's Fresh...and I couldn't have any chocolate cake! Tear...
I did get some Tomato Pesto soup that was to die for! I even brought some home to enjoy for leftovers, and boy did I enjoy them. After din din, what else did we do...hmm...I think we were really, really productive. What was it? O, YES...We watched an entire disc of THE OFFICE! For our wedding, wonderful PJ, Carrie, and Corrie got us the first season. I love the office, but Cody had watched one here and there and just couldn't catch the humor. We decided, aka I begged, to watch the first season just to see if maybe he would like it if he watched it consistantly. Well, that died hard. It took about 1 year to get him to watch the second season...and that is when the addiction began! There were a few episodes that he was literally dying laughing at. Now, he is the one who begs to watch it! YES! P.S. All of you people who want to ruin it for us...please hold it in. We have had one too many people spill the big surprises to us...maybe there are one or two that will actually take us by surprise...we will see!
Saturday, Saturday. This was a killer busy and killer fun day! I woke up and whipped up some pumpkin bars and began making white chicken chili for our dinner that night. Then, I showered, got ready, ate breakfast, and headed out to replace funace filters in the apartments. It is amazing the things that I have learned being a manager! I love it! I go into these apartments to change their filter and these couples are totally amazed that I can do it! (Which, by the way, it is totally easy and takes no skill whatsoever). It is kind of fun to have boys look at me like I am a tough girl as I am getting dirty in my Seven jeans and pink hoodie! Anyway, the first time I did this in all of the apts it literally took me like 2 hours...these days we can whip it out in 40 minutes!
After that...we headed to the BYU football game! It was THE PERFECT WEATHER! (Okay, so Cody might comment to this post...He told me afterwords that I kept saying, "O my gosh, it is so nice out here! There is practically no wind, and it is just PERFECT!" Anyway, the entire time half of his body was getting beat down by the sun, he is literally burned on half his face, neck, and arm! He didn't even tell me! He just took it like a man...way to go, HUB!)Anyway, It was literally like 67 degrees, a little wind, perfect amount of sun, we had great seats, it was a blast! Not to mention sitting by a very information and analytical husband who can tell me exactly what plays, formation, etc. the team is running. I love it! I am sad because that will probably be the last BYU game we get to see!
Right after the game we came home and I made the frosting for the pumpkin bars and finished making the white chicken chili. We headed up to Amanda's house right away to see them and Grandma and Grandpa Stott. They are headed off on a cruise to the Panama Canal...without us! Hehe! However, they did stay a night in Utah prior to their trip, so I guess that counts for something. We had such a wonderful time talking to them, it was a blast. They told us everything that they are planning on doing, INCLUDING MY 80 YEAR OLD GRANDMA DOING A ZIPLINE! Can you beleive it?! I told her that she HAD to take a picture, but she refused. I am really hoping that Grandpa will pull through and snap a shot of her!
Sunday was filled will practicing for the Primary program, Home teaching, Visiting teaching, Priesthood and Relief Society meetings, making homemade lasangne and breadsticks, peanut butter cookies, and, of course, a couple more episodes of the office!

Pumpkin Patch

These are the pumpkins that we ended up with(the story is below...I just thought that this picture would draw people to read this post so I had to post it first!) Cody's pumpkin was 19 lbs and mine was 8! He looks like the headless horseman or something, that's what you get...I post even the crazy pics!

Woo-hoo for pumpkins! Tanner, Brittany, Cody and I had a BIG plan to go to a pumpkin patch and pick out our pumpkins for Halloween. Well...As you can tell from the picture, the pumpkin patch was CLOSED when we got there...at 7:00! I totally thought that they stayed open way later than that! Whoops! I still had to get a picture to remember our big night...The pumpkin behind was GINORMOUS! We ended up going to Smith's to get our awesome pumpkins!

Wordless Wednesday

Pictures

Tags, tags...to do them or not to do them? Let's just say, if I am bored I will always do the tag! If I am having a busy day...not so much. Anyway, it is 7:40 am and I have a minute, so here we go...

This tag is about pictures. Post the 4th picture in your 4th album on your computer. Then tag 4 other people.

This one is of Cody on his Mission...bowling it up! On a p-day, of course! He is now in a bowling class and becoming quite the stud! So, I guess all of that practicing on the  mission(which was probably just this one time) is paying off!

I tag Ashley, Amanda, Brianne, and Erika.

Cody and Chelsea's weekend of FUN!(aka nieces/nephews!)

Well, our weekend was great! We got to see both Amanda, Kevin, Ian, Megan AND Will, Wendy, Whitney, Halle, and Dane! Woo-hoo for nieces and nephews! 

On Saturday I woke up and went to a Roasting technique class as Williams-Sonoma. I have honestly never roasted any type of meat! Crazy me, I know! I have eaten my momma's roasted food and always loved it, I just never knew quite how to do it, so I always strayed away. Well, now I am all educated, so perhaps I will venture out in the next few weeks and roast me some pork! Or Chicken, Or...anything!

After the class we got to go to our friends' baby blessing. It was so wonderful! I worked with Stef in the salon and then we both left at the same time. Grace is about 3 months old and we blessed her at their house. Mark gave a beautiful blessing, and then we had some yummy BBQ! They even had cheddarwursts...Cheddar brotwursts. YUMM! 

Then, we headed to SLC! We have been wanting to go to Pottery Barn, simply because we know we can't afford anything there and it is fun to want! Ha! We have had this recent obsession with HGTV and we wanted to see some awesome things that we could easily do ourselves for, well, cheaper! Of course, we ended up buying something...

A shadow box! I know this is a horrible picture, but it gives you the idea. We even got it for...50% off! Woo-hoo! Now, the best part about the shadow box are the pictures inside of it. Cody took a few pictures that we had from his mission, our wedding, and our 1 year anniversary and changed the color tones of them all. Yellow, Orange, Red, and Blue is what you have above. He did a few others as well, but these were the ones that made the cut into the shadow box...for now anyway! I think that these may be my new favorite way to display pictures. I was able to put "my family" on a word strip, as well as super-cute tacks to hold the pictures and totally adorable ribbons in it! It is tons of fun, all in one display...I suggest you invest!

After Pottery Barn we headed off to Amanda and Kevin's...who, may I add, had just got a fridge off of KSL for $35 for their garage! Seriously, KSL is my new favorite thing! Anyway, we hung out for a while then went to Johanna's Kitchen for dinner...except we all got breakfast! We all really doubted Kevin when he wanted to go there, but he swore that it was good. It is one of those mom and pop restaurants that can be a little sketch sometimes....anyway, it was great! Not to mention the heaps of food for only $8!

On Sunday I taught my first Sharing Time as a counselor. Whew! I was happy that after hours of planning everything went smooth. It is amazing how much time it can take to plan something to entertain kids for a mere 30 minutes! It is also amazing to see the knowledge that they receive from the lessons and from their parents. I know that I am going to gain a great testimony of the importance of children through this amazing calling.

The best thing about Sunday, however, was that we got to see Will, Wendy and clan! I sure miss that family after seeing them so often this summer. I swear that all three of the kids have grown an inch in the past 2 1/2 months! Not to mention that Dane is WALKING! It was fun to see him waddle around and take a spill here and there. Whitney is getting smarter and smarter, I can't believe the things that she remembers and can tell me all about. Halle was sure talkative once we got her going, and unlike a couple of months ago, I can actually understand her! Yeah!

Well, off to another week, we will see what fun things come up!!!

TRY THIS!

I just wanted to get you all to jet over to my food blog or the family food blog to try this new recipe. Bourbon Chicken. It is Amazing! Cody said it is the best chicken dish I have made in a really long time...check it out by clicking

HERE

Deco Day!

Today was a major decoration day. Cody and I were busy all day not only watching football and studying for tests, but painting, sanding, sawing, and placing crown molding shelves. Actually, we had a ton of fun!

Both of these shelves are from Pottery Barn, they just needed a little love... The larger one needed some paint touch ups, and the small one needed LOTS of help! A side of the molding on top was missing (the edge that you can see), and the paint was chipped up everywhere.

Cody worked diligently for HOURS to make a homemade edge with crappy tools. (Someday we will have good ones for you hunny! I promise!) 

He did great at replicating the molding on the rest of the shelf, and then he gave it an antiqued look when he painted it. It looks amazing! The pictures don't do it justice...

Meanwhile, I painted the larger one plain black. 

It was more time consuming than I thought it would be trying to get the paint perfectly smooth, but it ended up great, too! Here are both of their finished projects:

Now, my favorite part about ALL OF THIS is what we put on top of our beautiful shelf! I worked long and hard (okay, so it is actually really easy if you can cut and paste...) on these letters, and they turned out SOOOO adorable!

We feel so accomplished and like we learned a lot today. We had so much fun working on something together to make our house just a little cuter! I am excited for our next project...whatever that may be!!!

Cookies, O.G.T's, and Halloween

Never a normal pic with us...someday, Chelsea, SOMEDAY.

This is going to be a RANDOM post... Don't feel bad if you don't read it!

#1-I went to another cooking class this morning...this one was at Williams-Sonoma. (Ps-I love that store, I am pretty sure I could spend every penny of every one of my paychecks there! I don't...not worries...I just cry at night instead.:) Anyway, it was a great class and I am going to keep going to them on Saturday mornings at 9:00. We are already up for the Laundry Mat, so, Why not, right? I learned how to do royal icing on sugar cookies that you think only pros can do! Also, I learned lots of basic tips that make cookie making easier: 

Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature

only roll out your dough 2 times or it gets too tough

stamp your cookie cutters from the OUTSIDE in...you get more cookies from your dough

spray pam in cookie cutters prior to cutting, the dough will slip out easier

I know these are all pretty basic, but they will help me make yummier cookies, for sure! I can't wait to show you the beautiful ones that I make! (Okay, they might be LESS than beautiful, since they will be my first ones!)

#2 O.G.T's...right now I am reading the book "Recovering Charles". It is a pretty sad story, but there are flashbacks to happier times. One of the traditions of this family was to have O.G.T moments...One Good Thing. Family members could say O.G.T at any time during the day, and everyone had to tell One Good Thing that had happened to them that day. So, we have started doing this...and I love it! 

#3 Halloween! 

I am so excited for Halloween. Probably the main reason that I am excited is because my nephew Ian is at the perfect age, 3 1/2. He is being VERY creative with what he would like to be for this special day. These are his ideas thus far:

A light bulb

A marshmallow

An Airplane

My favorite is....a SOCK puppet!

I can't wait to see what my sister ends up having him be! The other reason that I am excited is because I am going to go to/host a party with a friend of mine! We are going to whip up yummy treats, have a pumpkin carving contest, and dress up! Lots of our good friends are coming and I just can't wait! The invites ended up so cute...

Shopping with Amanda! Yeah!

Amanda and I had such a successful shopping day on Thrusday! (Okay, well the success was due to Cody...who found an awesome deal on POTTERY BARN stuff on ksl!)

We got all of these things, which are all pottery barn brand:

Bathroom Cabinet(above)

2 crown molding 3 ft and 4 ft shelves

3 lamp shades

Charging station

accent sconce

Towel rack

ALL FOR $100! It was the best day of my life...okay...my week!

We also went to Tai Wan, an interior design store in Sandy. I got my beautiful wreath there and it makes me so happy. I love fall! Amanda got a plate rack, a little red wreath, and some Halloween decor! It was great!

The best part of it all is that I got to go with Amanda. I am so thankful that I have a sister who is my best friend, too. What a blessing. I am absolutely dreading the day we leave Utah for good, we have had such a great opportunity to grow close these last few years.

My first Cooking Class!

My first cooking class...And it was amazing! Okay, so I will start from the beginning...

Basically, I have an amazing husband. I always have these incredibly high aspirations for hobbies in my life. I want to learn to cook, learn to be great at scrapbooking,  learn... well, everything! However, I never take the time to sign up for classes to learn how to be great at these things. So, Cody has recently done some research for me into cooking classes! He knows how bad I want to do them, but at the same time I just don't want to suck it up and spend the money to get what I want. Anyway, he gave me a list of classes at Thanksgiving point in Lehi. I looked it over, thought about signing up, and just didn't do it. (Figures, right?)

About a week later, Cody says to me in a friendly, yet accusing tone, "Why haven't you signed up for classes yet?" I couldn't think of an excuse for the life of me. Even if I thought that I came up with a good one, Cody would somehow counter-defend his angle, and I would be left thinking, "I want to do this, HE wants me to do this, why am I NOT DOING IT?!" 

Later that night, I signed up for my number one choice of classes, 

Kelsey's Kitchen: 5 under 5

Kelsey is LDS and was in the final four on food network's "The Next Food Network Star"! She was every bit as pleasant and likeable as she was on the show. She is completely full of personality and is incredibly entertaining. I loved to hear her stories of how she got to where she is....and now, where she is headed! 

Here was the menu:

Caprese Skewers

Tortellini with Fresh Sage Butter 

Mediterranean Salmon Bake

Roasted Asparagus

Lemon Curd with Fresh Berries

It was all delicious! Not to mention, all of the recipes were under 5 ingredients. I am looking forward to making them myself, although this gluten free thing sure ruins the tortellini. I will look for some other rice pasta that can fit in the recipe I guess. Her two top tips were:

"Always use kosher salt"

"If you can get it fresh, use it fresh!"

I learned a ton of little things as well as how to make the above recipes. It sounds silly, but watching someone else cook really helps you see things that you could do differently. I am so excited to cut an onion! To mince some garlic! To bake some sage!? Yeah, she warms it in the microwave...crazy, but beautiful.

Wordless Wednesday

Busy, Uplifting, Fun weekend!

It was the best weekend EVER! Okay, maybe not ever, but it was really great.

On Friday Cody and I both got done with work/school at 12:00, so then we partied! Okay, so I took a nap while he did a little homework, but it was relaxing none the less. Then, we went to Eagle Eye with Tanner and Brittany. 

We love our buddies!

Anyway, it was sooo good! It was action the entire time, so I literally felt like I needed a massage when I left to get me to de-stress. It is a great date-night movie...and a really fun one to watch on the big screen!

After the movie, we played a little blockus, and yes, for the second time, Cody got EVERY SINGLE one of his pieces laid down! Can you tell what color he was?

For those of you who have played, blockus, you know that is IMPOSSIBLE! For those of you who haven't, it is so much fun...you are missing out!

Then, of course, our conference weekend began. It was so amazing...every minute of the 8 hours! I only cried 3 times, which is a record for me. I felt the Spirit constantly during the meetings. I was especially grateful for Elder Uchtdorf's talk on Hope, and Elder Cook's talk on trials.

I got to work on finishing Cody's mission scrapbook the entire weekend, which was amazing! Laurel started it, (and by STARTING it I mean she did THREE full binders) and I am just doing the last 10 pages or so. I am so excited for it to be finished, I am sure that Laurel is too. She spent countless hours on his scrapbooks and we will never forget her time! They are beautiful pages, every one of them.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Brittany and I went to Nights in Rodanthe on Saturday while the boys were at Priesthood session of conference. It was a tear jerker! I have read the book, but it has honestly been like 3 years. I had completely forgotten what had happened...and it surprised me! I know, crazy that I could forget...! Anyway, it was a great movie to go with only the girls to, unless you like to sniff and drip tears on your husbands shoulder as he is rolling his eyes and sleeping at the same time!

Halloween Decoration

This is my first halloween decoration! Isn't it so cute? Becky, the mom of the family that I nanny for got it for me. I love it! You can basically see it from every room in our apartment because our house is so small, so that makes it even better! The "LL"s are my favorite...witches legs! hehe! Thanks Becky!

Book Review: The Choice

The Choice by Nicholas Sparks

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
I liked it...as my three stars suggest. I love Nicholas Sparks...even though all of his books are the same! I think that was my issue with the beginning of this one. I have read SO many of his love stories in the past...that I knew what was going to happen. Or I THOUGHT that I did! It really did surprise me with about 50 pages left!
Despite the predictability, I loved the love story in the beginning. He somehow makes everyone seem so perfect, all love stories to be like heaven! Don't we wish all of our lives were like this?! Hehe!
I would recommend it for a mindless read!

View all my reviews.

Wordless Wedensday