tRiBuTe To 2011

you know that saying "life is like a box of chocolates...you never know what you are going to get!" ...it has to be my favorite right now. every new year i go into it not knowing what is going to happen. what i will be blessed with, what kind of trials i will be given. this year was especially a good one. this year i fell in love with the man of my dreams & he became my husband, my eternal companion, my best friend. my whole life has changed, & changed for the better. 2011 has also blessed me with a bigger, much bigger family & i love every one of them. i am excited to finally get settled into our home here in utah. i am learning to be a homemaker & become a pretty decent cook. as much as i loved 2011, i know there are more good things to come in this next year! i hope you all are looking forward to the new year & making new year goals for you & your families.

from this

to this...

HaPPy NeW yEaR!

life is sweet

if you have yet to be on PINTEREST you should be very ashamed of yourself. i seriously would not be the wife that i am without it. ((that made me laugh out loud)) Ok, Ok, i am just kidding...but it has helped me learn some pretty cool things & make some amazing foods. for some reason baking makes me relax & lately i feel like i have been so uptight...i did just move my whole life miles & miles from where i am from & now live in a place where you have to run to your car before you freeze to death ((exaggeration)) i dont have a job yet..................................................StReSs much?! ya. so as you can see i need to bake. today i baked the most delicious lil pumpkin muffins. it took only 2 ingredients! probably the easiest thing i have ever done in my life. so you all need to try these!

step 1: combine yellow cake mix & 15oz can of pumpkin

step 2: put into muffin pan & bake at 350 degrees for 20-25min

now...lets see if this will get him off the couch from playing his dumb game

ChRiStMaS

hello family/friends...i hope you all had a fabulous christmas & that santa was good to you! he was sure good to me this year. i must have been a very good girl! jake & i spent christmas with his family in a HUGE cabin. i am not kidding when i say "HUGE" either...it had slides all throughout the house & a full blown kids paradise gym! -oh & i forgot to add it had a full on movie theater room. it was quite the christmas holiday for all the kids ((& adults too)) i have bruises to show for my "rough housing" this week.

jake got me the sweetest gift a girl like me would die for! A SPIN BIKE! -he knew how happy it would make me to get that & so he totally surprised me on christmas morning with a picture of my bike sitting at home! coming home today i was sooo anxious to see it. i am looking forward to using it tomorrow morning. THANK YOU HUBS!

here are some sweet pictures from our sweet vacation! happy holidays to your family, from OURS!



WhiTe ChOcOLaTe PoPcOrN

wanna know a secret?!? this white chocolate popcorn is the worlds best invention to food. i have been inhaling, chowing down, eating it by the handfuls, eating it like a lady & i just think it is doing wonders for my figure but HEY, that is why there are GYMS right?! so i know you all are dying for this recipe. here ya go:

WhiTe ChOcOLaTe PoPcOrN

2 bags of popcorn

1 package of white chocolate (almond bark)

3 tbs of creamy peanut butter

3 cups rice crispy

2 cups honey roasted peanuts

step 1: pop the popcorn!

step 2: put popped popcorn in a large mixing bowl making sure there are no kernels

step 3: melt white chocolate & peanut butter in microwave

step 4: add in rice crispy, honey roasted peanuts, & white chocolate melted mix in your large mixing bowl of popcorn

step 5: freeze for about 10 minutes

step 6: CHOW!

aLL tHiS tiMe We WeRe WaiTiNg FoR EaChOtHeR

happily ever after, forever

SoOoOo...UtAh

well...we made it to good ol' utah ((i say that as i am bundled up on the couch next to my hubs, with 2 blankets & i am still cold)) what a crazy few days it has been, saying goodbye to my family was really hard, getting up at 3:30am on sunday morning & driving 10 hours to my new home then continuing to stay up & unpack everything & start decorating my kitchen. i was soooo beyond exhausted & today i am still exhausted. i ran around all day trying to get things done; finish unpacking...meet up with my friend morgan & her beautiful new lil baby ava ((which is probably the best behaved baby i have ever met in my life)) & my old roomie karli from college. it was so fun to catch up with girl friends & talk...so much has changed in our lives since college. morgan is now a mommy, karli is a soon to be mommy, & me i am newly married ((wanting to be a mommy)) now we are all in utah & happy as can be!

tonight is the first night jake & i will be able to sleep in a REAL bed...trailer beds are not REAL beds. they are terrible & by terrible i mean i have never been in so much pain before in my life! my back is full of knots & every morning i wake up aching. i will be forever grateful for good beds & the support they give to me in my sleeps. speaking of sleeps i am thinking i am going to need some of that pretty soon so i am making this a short post ((even after being MIA for the last 2 months)) posting will get better ((promise!)) WE HAVE INTERNET NOW! hallelujah! good night bloggers