Friday Favorites

I feel like Maria when I say this but, These are a few of my favorite things:

Skype Group Video Calling: We were able to talk to everyone in my family (that has a web cam) on Sunday - it was totally fun! My sister told us to make a silly face as she took a screen shot.
Let me introduce you to the family (from left to right): Brother and Sister-in-law (They live in DC); yours truly, Husband, Daughter (in Nebraska); Dad, Mom (living in Hawaii); and tiny at the bottom -  Sister, Brother-in-law, and Nephew (Utah). So nice to have the technology to "be together" even though we stretch from one side of the country to the other!

Pinterest: I know you have heard it from every other blogger, but it is so nice to organize the things I want to do/make/remember. You may notice, the majority of my pins are food... I must have a problem.

Free Sprint-to-Sprint phone calls: If not, my 4 hours of talking to the family in one day would have used the majority of my minutes!

Making Plans with Mom: My mom and I have been planning her trip out here for the baby. We are planning lots of chatting, relaxing, a zoo visit (really Omaha has an amazing zoo!), making healthy meals, workouts (I need to loose the baby weight fast!). Nothing too big - but Mom time is always the best!

Looking forward to General Conference: A time to relax, hear some great council, and eat cinnamon rolls. If you want to check it out you can watch it on TV, or online!

Happy Valentine's Day

I hope you are all having a lovely Valentine's Day and I hope you get to spend some time with the people you love.

Over 10 years ago I met my husband - he was a friend of my older sister's. He seemed nice, talented, silly. A couple years later, my sister graduated and I started hanging out with him more. He seemed ever nicer, more talented, and sillier. After graduating from high school, we went our separate ways - I went to college and he went to serve a mission for the LDS church. A few years later we went on our first date after his mission (a wedding of a mutual friend). We knew then that we wanted to keep dating. We were so happy.

I lived in Idaho at the time and he lived in Utah. We dated long distance until I graduated from college. I moved to Provo, UT to work and be closer to him. A few months later we were married. We were so happy, so in love.

Two and a half years later we welcomed our baby girl into the world. We were no longer a couple, we were a family. Ariel developed quickly into an amazing father. I was proud to call him my husband. We were so happy, so in love.

Now, we have two more years added to our happy married life. We have gone through hard times and great times - all have made us grow closer and more in love. AC is a great husband, a great father, and my very best friend.  We are so happy, so in love, so excited for the future!

Happy Valentine's Day Ariel - you are the bacon to my eggs!

New Job

The first few months after moving to Nebraska was a little busy and stressful for me, to say the least. I just couldn't face adding training for a new job on top of my already overwhelming list:
- move
- adjust to husband in first semester of law school
- get settled/find friends
- finish up online classes (which were both more time consuming than expected)
- be a good mom

Lucky for me, I was able to interview for a nursing position on an L&D unit in a beautiful new hospital. They hired me, but were willing to let me start after things settled down a bit. AC and I thought after Christmas break things would be better. So, last week, I started at the new Medical Center just outside Omaha. I still have 2 1/2 weeks of training left - just enough time to get adjusted to the charting and how things are run. So far so good! The nurses I have met are all so friendly and in the words of Annie, "I think I'm gonna like it [t]here!"

Between my hour commute each way and my 12 hour shifts I don't get to see my daughter at all on the days that I work. It totally stinks. I cried on my way home Monday realizing that I wouldn't get to see her.  (I blame the tears on pregnancy hormones.)  Once I am off orientation I will work nights (7 pm to 7 am) and only two days a week. Then I will only miss a few hours of her awake time and she will barely know I am gone. I am excited for this new adventure and we will see how it goes! Wish me luck!

12 on the 12th - January 2011

I have followed Miranda's blog for a while and love these posts she does every month. I have only done it once before, but I hope to be a little better about it this year.

1. Yikes. My poor husband had to walk to his first day of school in that!
2. Breakfast - broiled grapefruit (recipe to come)
3. Went to see what she was up to - "just weeding"
4. Spent part of Lou's nap ironing shirts for my husband (this is about half of what I did)
5. After she woke up, and while I finished the last couple shirts - she drank three of these spray bottles full of water.
6. My daughter likes a lot of "boy things" -- she was very excited to see the tractor shoveling our apt complex's parking lot (post nap hair is so awesome)
7. Dinner - my version of Vanessa's Spanish Tortilla - (recipe to come)
8. Hit my 24 week mark!
9. My treat when the husband went back to school to study
10. How I found my shoes that night when I was tidying up.
11. My intended way to spend the evening -- only I got distracted by my new work schedule and trying to find babysitters
12. It was a long day, I got a lot done around the house... but I was exhausted and pregnant = emotional. I needed a couple of these.

It's taken our home by storm...

... the flu that is. That terrible bug has taken quite a toll on our family - all of us, even the extended family. Little Lou, I think, scared us the most. After a few days of fighting, she seemed to be turning the corner and feeling much better. Only to scare her dad, grandma and me with a seizure. We were taken to the ER and then had an EEG done the next day. I am very grateful for the training I received in nursing school, it helped me feel a bit more calm.
Lou is doing great now - we are recovering well. Lou has made a full recovery. We are thinking the seizure was just due to her fever - thank goodness. We will hear the full results from the EEG soon. We are not too worried though now - she is acting normal, playing normal, eating normal, and even went to a movie this morning.
But please be patient with me as I try to get my family over this bug (and myself for that matter) and recuperate from the big events of last week ... not to mention Christmas!

It's a boy!

Yesterday, thanks to some old friends at the hospital I used to work at, we were able to take a quick peak at our little baby. After a bit of searching, we finally got a for-sure shot: We are having a little boy! We are so excited. My husband especially. I am excited to buy cute boy things, like that hat. I have a thing with little boys and dinosaurs - so he will probably have a few items with dinos on them. We will have to start doing some research on names and shopping for boy stuff. Luckily, I bought boy bedding last pregnancy - so we are set there.

Hope you all are having a Merry Christmas. As most people this week, I will be spending it with family and relaxing. I won't spend too much time in the kitchen since we are staying with the in-laws. The posts may be a bit sparse through the holidays - but I am sure you will be busy with your families and adventures. Happy Holidays!

Happy Thanksgiving

I love that Thanksgiving is the first official holiday of the "Holidays." Isn't it appropriate that we are first grateful? Last year my grandma had us go around the table and say what we were thankful for. I know this is a tradition for most people, but it was new for me. It was an emotional moment. I hope to make it a tradition in our home.
Today I am thankful for:
Good food!
Family
New Friends that made the transition to Nebraska so easy
My religion
Being a Mom
And them:

AC and Lou having a picnic lunch on her favorite blankie. It was a lazy day - so we are still in our PJ's.

What are you thankful for?

Aloha!

image via

Well, we made it! After 11+ hours in the plane, Lou and I arrived in Hawaii yesterday. Her calm, sweet personality suffered a little due to the lack of sleep, but really she did wonderfully! (But hey, I wasn't the most pleasant at the end of the day either)
For those who don't know, my parents live here (yes, I know, they think it is rough too). We are here to relax, hit the beach, visit the temple open house, and eat delicious foods. It's funny, my sister, brother, and I were talking about our "must-do's" in Hawaii. All of us mentioned restaurants. Nothing more. I will let you in on some of my adventures here. Plus, my mom and I like to cook together in the kitchen so you won't be without a recipe or two. Just so you can enjoy my surroundings with me: It is 78 degrees, 75% humidity, there is a great breeze; I can hear the kids playing at the school next door, and if you listen - the ocean off in the distance. This place truly is paradise!

The Anniversary Gift

So last week I mentioned I had a great gift for my husband. Well, it has to do with the song I sang him for our wedding, "I Will" by the Beatles.
My friend Alma is an amazing graphic designer (not like the graphic designer where someone designs a blog and then calls themselves an graphic designer - she is a true artist!). She had this print I immediately knew I had to give to AC. It has the words from the song I sang to AC at our wedding luncheon. See how great it turned out! It is appropriately hanging above our loveseat. (I took a picture of it before I let AC see it - hence being on the floor). I have to say it was a huge hit - he loved it. In return I got an amazing gift. AC wrote and recorded a song for me. It is the best!

Check out Alma's website and her husband's to see what amazing artists they are!

Four Years Ago

Almost four years ago I married the man of my dreams who started as a friend from high school. It was one of the happiest days of my life. We love each other more and we have had more fun than we could have ever thought.

Ariel starts law school on Monday so we are celebrating our Anniversary this weekend (even though it is next Tuesday). I am making a fancy breakfast and he is planning the activity. I am also going to make him a delicious decadent dessert. I have sworn off desserts but give myself one treat once a week - I thought that was reasonable. I have gone two weeks with nothing, saving up for a tasty treat tomorrow.
I have a fun gift in mind for my husband. It has something to do with this (I will tell you later, but sometimes he reads my blog):

This was the scariest gift I ever gave - I sang to my performer husband at our luncheon with all his pitch-perfect family members there. He sure was surprised (the second solo in my life - the first was a school assignment).
He then sang a song to me at our reception.

12 on 12 July

I was inspired by Miranda to do this 12 on 12 project. I have wanted to do it in the past, I just didn't take the time to do it. July was my month - I was going to do it. Unfortunately, my 12th was pretty mundane. But it's fun to see what people's "everyday"s are like.

1. Prepare to get some cleaning done: give her two graham crackers and maybe I will have enough time to do some dishes.
2. Nope. She wanted to help unload the dishwasher.
3. Didn't get much done during Lou's awake time, but during her nap I was quite productive. I made some cards using some new stamps I got with my sister.
4. Finally! I clean sink. (I am embarrassed to say it had been a couple days.)
5. My simple lunch - "baked" (nuked) potato with fat-free sour cream and steamed broccoli.
6. Lou woke up, time for some errands. I have a secret love for office supply stores.
7. Deliver said cards and others to the post office - don't you love getting real mail? By the way, that's my husband's hairy arm.
8. Lou was so great to run so many errands with me. Yes, she is a finger sucker.
9. Meet Mr. Recipes. We picked him up from work. He always makes us laugh.
10. Dinner - a variation on this pasta
11. She does this every bath, lines up all the different ducks (Papa knows what his granddaughter loves)
12. Apple Crisp and a movie to finish  up the day.

One of Those Days

I am having one-of-those-days. I am sorry for my lack of real posts. I was going to do a real post earlier today. I really was. Sorry 'bout that. We are moving in less than a month and we don't have a place yet. I worked from 9-5 at a doctor's office then came home and had to work a night shift from 10 pm to 6 am. I was going to nap but my baby has been awake for 2 hours crying with teething. She's sad. I can't sleep. I should have done some homework if I was going to be awake. But no. I just layed awake in bed wishing I wasn't.

image via

I was asked to submit a recipe and picture to a magazine. Wow! That's so nice. Then I was invited to go to evo'10. I am hoping to find someone to babysit, but the last minute notice is killing me. I am a little overwhelmed. I will try to get everything back in order. I promise to have a real post soon.

Thanks for reading -- love you!

PS - my sister took a picture of me, so I finally have one on the blog!

We're Moving!

It's official. The plans have been in the works for a while, but nothing was certain. Just to prove my point - we were sure we were headed to Ohio for my husband's law schooling, but when he visited Ohio and Nebraska he really felt that Nebraska (University of Nebraska at Lincoln) was a better fit for our family. We are excited for a change, but are sad to leave all of our family (the majority of both of our families are in Utah, but no one is close to Nebraska). University of Nebraska College of Law - here we come!

We leave in about a month and a half. So as I cram in my finals, last days of work, clinicals, packing, finding a place to live, etc - I hope that you will be patient with me as my posts may be their usual.

Does anyone live in or near Lincoln that wants to start a cooking club? I am so sad to leave mine! Or any other Nebraska/Mid-West/Lincoln/Law school advice? I am all ears.
PS - We are pretty excited about UNL football! Go Cornhuskers!

Berry Berry Kix

Sorry for my lack of posting. I have started doing some clinical hours for my class and had 16 hours of that plus work plus homework plus life so... sorry.

Almost every week before I go grocery shopping I ask my husband if there is anything he wants me to get at the grocery store. The answer is always, "Berry Berry Kix!" (He's such a kid!) Do you guys remember that cereal? I could never find it. No grocery store I ever went to had it. So I did a little research and found it at Target. So if you ever want to buy them, that's where they are. Thank you Target, my husband was a very happy man!

What I'm Doing:

I am at the Casual Blogger Conference with my sister. We are meeting lots of new friends and reconnecting with old friends. I am learning a lot and will share some with you. I hope you have a great weekend!

Hannah and me, having a blast!

Happy 1st Anniversary

Well, it was one year ago that I started this blog. I started it after some coaxing from my sister. I loved making different foods, and loved beautiful food. (Honestly, I go somewhere fun and the only pictures I would come back with is the food!)
It has been really fun to see the changes over the past year. I have gone from pretty pitiful pictures to pictures I am proud of. I have found, somewhat, my voice. I have grown as a cook and have experimented more than ever before.

Here are some of my favorite moments:
My first post ever - Caramel Cheesecake Flan
Having a pretty nasty Anonymous comment and learning to overcome it with humor. I also learned that women rally together. Thanks for your support. I have learned to not let it bug me.
Showing off one of the dishes I am known for - Dinner rolls and learning a new shape.
Posting about what's in season monthly
My first recipe made completely on my own, no altering or googling of other recipes.


And here are some of my favorite, tastiest recipes:
Coleslaw
Zucchini Bolognese
Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Chicken Posole I am actually making this tonight
Mint Chocolate Swirl Cookies
Minestrone Soup
Surf and Turf Steak
Chocolate Souffle
Sweet Shrimp Tacos with Mango Salsa

Thanks for reading, supporting, commenting, and trying the recipes! I hope you have liked this blog as much as I have.

Spring Cleaning

I don't know what it is about this time of year - but everyone seems to be cleaning up, cleaning out, and organizing. Must be the fact that we don't have to be a recluse in our home and can get out and about.
I have read a few blogs and have talked to some friends and it seems we are all doing some spring cleaning - in our homes and in our heads. I see a lot of people setting worthy goals and trying to spend more time with their families. Go you!

This past month has been really fun. I loved exploring new recipes, ideas, products, and restaurants. I also loved seeing some of my loyal reader and new readers win some of those great things.
If you didn't know, my blog is kind of new - coming up on its first birthday. So this past month was a first of its kind. It was not only great to try something new, but I learned a little bit about myself as a blogger. I feel like you and I lost who I was. I felt like I wasn't showing enough of me or my food. I hope you don't mind if once and a while I let you in on a little bit about me, rather than just my food.

Here is the first of that expose:

I had a big change a couple weeks ago. I have always wanted to donate my hair to those who are suffering from hair loss due to chemotherapy. I am the perfect candidate - I have lots of hair (thickness wise I mean), my hair grows really fast, and I don't care about chopping my hair. I think it is such a great cause and have personally seen family members benefit from these types of places. If you follow me on twitter then you already know - but on April 20th, I cut my hair off. Well, about 10 inches off. It was a bit of a shock for me - but it is a fun, more hip 'do now. I hope someone else gets a fabulous new style because of the hair I donated.
Here are a couple of the pictures I took of the before and during... I still haven't taken an after shot. But I will. (Is the suspense killing you?!)

...coming soon: after shots!

Bake Sale

Hate that kids go hungry? Me too. Love baked goods? Me too.

Currently my kitchenaid is kneading some dough for my Rosette Dinner Rolls.

Want some? Come on over to Shirley J's tomorrow at the Bake Sale. Or head over to Dan's if you live in Salt Lake. (My rolls won't be there, but the good cause will.

For more information, check out the post here.

Traditions

Before I start all the fresh and new items Monday, I wanted to share something that is important to me.

I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, LDS church, or Mormons. Twice a year we are able to watch through television, the beauty of the internet, or through the church's monthly magazine, hear the words of our church leaders. I love it.

Since I was little my mom made cinnamon rolls every 6 months when conference would start. We looked forward to it every April and October. Now that we are all grown, all the kids make them every year for our families. (And we will all argue that we make them the best.)

Check out the full recipes for the Cinnamon Rolls here.

To Prove I'm Not Doing Anything Fun Without You

And I didn't even clean my apartment for you. Sorry about that...