Wood Fam

Thankful

2011-12-11T20:27:00.018-05:00

This year we had a smaller crowd in Park City for Thanksgiving, and I made my very first Chocolate Puddin’ Pie.

Chocolate Puddin’ Pie was one of my Nana’s specialties, I miss her the most at Thanksgiving. While we were cooking I couldn’t help but think of the sweet memories I have of visiting my Nana and Grandaddy. When we slept over Nana would come in our rooms in the morning and say, “Ya’ll get in here before these biscuits get cold!” with her Mississippi accent.

I seriously didn’t even realize how amazing it was that she made her own biscuit dough from scratch, rolling and cutting them out, and baking them in a greased cast iron skillet. To put on top? Jams made from the fruit of the trees in her backyard. For dinner she made southern fried chicken and the most amazing potato salad. At Thanksgiving she made cornbread dressing and homemade rolls and THE BEST pies. Everything was full fat, extra butter, no shortcuts. That’s the stuff of the Food Network, I didn’t even realize it was awesome at the time.

I forgot my dang camera, so IPhone pics/sister hook ups are where it's at:

The food was perfect, and the company even better.

Oh, and Benson? He ate stuffing. Literally, only stuffing. He has a one food complex. Those divided plates where you can give your kid three different things to eat? Not needed here.

We shopped black Friday (craaazy), played an obscene amount of Pinball and saw the lights at Temple Square. What a perfect way to kick of the Christmas season.

We’ve been decking the halls and Benson helped us pick out the perfect tree!

Brandon and I got crafty and made a cute family memory game for our nieces for Christmas:

Totally Martha, right!?

This season and always, I'm so thankful for my family, my husband and perfect baby boy, for my Savior and my knowledge of the Gospel and for my many, many blessings.

Oh, and just in case you feel like whipping up a Chocolate Puddin' Pie:

One for the Chubs

2011-10-16T02:26:00.022-04:00

I plugged my camera in today to upload some pictures and found some serious gems!

Naked bubble time!

Naked pool time!

Lovin' the beach.

Four wheeling with dada.

Pinball Wizard!

Benson is getting ginormous and it's been an adventure learning the ins and outs of toddlerhood. As of late, his favorite word is dat! As in dat, dat, dat! I want dat! Usually "dat" is a light he wants on, or he wants someone to lift him up to turn the light switches on or off or pull the strings on the ceiling fan. When we get in the car he starts yelling dat until we turn on the inside lights. Yes, we drive around Las Vegas in the dark with all of interior lights on. We have complete control.

He is talking quite a bit but rarely will say anything on queue. I love it when he busts out anana (Banana) or wanna crackah (I want a cracker). Knowing what your kid wants and getting it for them ASAP makes you feel like super mom. It's pathetic. We also get an occasional papa, mama, grammie, all his animal sounds, love you, night night, all done, etc. But mostly, it's dada and dat.

We have a little issue because my mom and I don't really buy Benson "boy" toys. The latest addition is a shopping cart and play food. Benson loves pushing it around the house (and slamming it in to the base boards occasionally). My dad mentioned we may need to pick up a truck for him at some point.

Favorites at 20 months:

Food: Pancakes! I get up every morning and whip them up for him. (Um, don't worry- totally kidding. Yay for Eggo!)

Treat: M&M's

Toys: His shopping cart and schlide (or your kid may call it a slide.)

Show: Yo Gabba Gabba

Movie: Baby Motzart (Still??!! Won't be sad when he grows out of this one.)

Song: I am a Child of God

Big Boy Things: Brushing his teeth, learning to eat with a fork, "walking" (AKA running away from us) instead of riding in the stroller or cart and folding his arms for prayers. This kid has a serious case of the "I do its"!

Excuse the horrible quality pictures, some of his best moments and all we had is a phone to capture them! (Yes, he's holding a giant Diet Coke, is sitting in the Dryer, and has black tire marks all over his face. Don't call CPS.)

Even when he coughs so hard he throws up EVERY day for 10 days straight (hoping we get this little situation figured out this week), I still get excited to see his precious face every morning and just love him so much I could squish him. Little chubs, this one is for you!

Hard Knock Life

2011-09-11T02:43:00.012-04:00

I'm just going to be real here. Law School was fun. Hard, but fun. I miss it. I miss our friends and I am horrible at keeping in touch. I literally think about everyone on a daily basis and can't wait until we all have babysitters and are on an adults only cruise to Hawaii in 20 years or so. This was the first year in my eight years of marriage to Brandon that he didn't start school. We rocked 5 years at UNLV and 3 years at MSU. Perhaps a PhD is in our future? I wish.

This summer will forever be known as the summer of the BAR. It was the worst guys, seriously. Benson was literally traumatized from never seeing Brandon. He starting saying dada like 200 times a day and became obsessed with the garage because he saw Brandon disappear out that door every morning. We've been working with a therapist and he's doing much better. (Please know that I'm joking, but I may have Googled "toddler therapist Las Vegas" in a desperate moment.)

Throughout the studying and adjustments to life at home, we made sure to enjoy life and our families.

We spent lots of time in Park City which has become a place of utter happiness for me. I love the mountains (I mean the view, not the actual mountains), I love the cool breeze, the space for Benson to run and play. Life is simple there.

We celebrated the 4th of July. Watching The Canyons fireworks from our backyard rocked my socks.

Obviously the most epic event of the summer, my oldest sister was married in the Draper Temple and had the reception of my dreams. It was really just an amazing event. My horrible snapshots do not do it justice!

It was seriously beautiful and Holly and Brett are perfect together. We are so happy for them!

After the wedding craziness, we headed to the beach for Brandon's annual family reunion in Carlsbad. Last year Benson was only 6 months and wasn't so much a fan of the sand. This year, he ran, and laughed, and played, and ran and ran some more. Up and down the sand he went. His listening skills have yet to be developed so we chased, and followed and chased told him to come back an turn around and he ignored us and ran some more. You're not really allowed to be in the family if you don't love the beach so I'm really glad he fits in.

Our cousin Missy took these pictures that should be submitted to some sort of contest where we would win lots of money for having the cutest kid, dontcha think?

Up next for the Wood Fam: find B a job, find us a house, find out the BAR results, find Benson the perfect Halloween costume.

We'll keep ya posted.

Things I Learned In Michigan...

2011-05-25T19:15:00.009-04:00

It's okay to let people over when they need to change lanes.

It's okay to merge in advance when there's construction.

Grass is really green, in it's own. No spray paint required.

Things can literally sprout from the ground and live without any human intervention.

Barns are works of art.

Simple is okay.

Everyday is not a fashion show.

The most fun can be free.

Baked goods are meant to be shared, at least once a week.

Being independent helps you grow as a person.

Pot holes and mascara application do not mix.

Pot Holes make me angry.

Snow really isn't that bad.

Snow touching my bare skin makes me angry.

Uggs and leggings are in season October through April, and potentially May.

There are actually 4 distinct seasons in a year.

Don't eat Mexican food in the Midwest.

Living in a college town is fun, best people watching ever.

I don't want to raise my kids far away from family.

I can do hard things.

Go Green! Go white! Enough said.

I could eat Potbelly every single day.

Road kill makes me throw up in my mouth a little bit. Avoid looking at the side of the road at all costs.

I need sunshine (or Tanning Beds).

It's (semi) normal for ducks, squirrels, possums, deer, chipmunks, etc. to live in your backyard.

The feel/smell/energy of college football in a Big 10 stadium on game day is some of the best stuff on Earth.

The Izzone is legit.

Life can throw you a curveball at any moment...be ready.

How to be a mom, by watching some of the best moms I know.

Friends really are forever (I love you girls!).

It's possible to really want to be 2 places at the same time, Las Vegas is my home but a little piece of me will always belong to Michigan.

Things That Happened While I Was Running Around Like a Crazy...

2011-05-20T13:07:00.018-04:00

Packing, moving, studying, finals, working, graduation, garage sale, parties, anniversary, Mothers Day...

This last month or so was a whirlwind. It's all sort of hazy, I'm not really a 4-6 hours of sleep kind of gal. But from what I remember, its been sad, happy, sad, stressful, fun, and a little sad.

Sadly, I only have a pictures of a handful of these events. The garage sale not being one of them. It was my first and last. People rummaging through my stuff trying to "barter" with me is not my cup of tea.

We had one last crazy outing with our friends and went to a Tigers game. I loved it! Comerica Park was so awesome. It's May and we're in coats and boots, welcome to Michigan. We got the kids cotton candy but none of them would eat it so we had to take care of it for them. No worries.

Brandon and I celebrated Eight Years at the beginning of May. I love what we've accomplished and where we are at now. He really is my best friend and the most amazing Daddy. In the middle of the craziness he planned the day and got some friends to watch Benson. It was so fun to be able to just talk and hang out together, I'm a lucky girl.

My mom and little sis flew in on Mother's Day to help manage the craziness. The next few days we packed as fast as we could while still following my "everything in the box must go together and be inventoried on a spread sheet" system. I'm not crazy. I really could not have done it without them and my neighbors. Moving is the worst, avoid it.

Speaking of Mother's Day, shout out to our moms! We have two of the best.

Brandon hooked me up with a new Timi and Leslie diaper bag, I'm obsessed!

Bob graduated too and is now an actual Doctor, wow. You would think I would have taken a picture of him, but no, only of the kids and us girls... look how cute. I miss them! Ugh.

Jamie and I planned a little party for the law school grads. It was kinda white trash but seriously so fun. We wanted to celebrate with the people that were our lifeline for the last three years, it was our last hoorah. Love them. I avoided saying goodbye at all costs, I think I only cried twice.

And the reason we're here in the first place...drum-roll please...GRADUATION!

He (we) did it!!

Something about the bagpipes and all the graduates marching in line made me super emotional. I'm so proud of Brandon. I know it wasn't easy having a wife and new baby but he rocked it. I know he'll do big things and buy me a big house. Kidding. I'm so grateful for his friends. I know they made all difference in this experience. They have been so good to us. I'm so grateful for my friends, this would have been all the more difficult without them.

Moving day! Wow, the logistics that went into this are crazy. Jamie and I nearly lost it towards the end, our stuff literally didn't fit, we were literally packing up until the last second, but in the end we survived.

The crazy part is, they try to trick you by saying, Yay! You graduated! You're done! But the reality is, Brandon drove across the country Friday, got to Las Vegas Sunday, flew to Utah Monday, drove the moving van here, unloaded, and started bar prep on Tuesday. We are most certainly not done. Bring it on.

Weekend Drama, Easter Fun

2011-04-26T00:56:00.005-04:00

This weekend was mostly a disaster and still managed to be fun. My hard drive crashed Thursday night and I cried for 24 hours straight. Hopefully we'll have things back up and running by Tuesday. Most everything backed up, expect for the pictures I JUST uploaded that we took for B's graduation announcements. We spent 80 something bucks buying software and a card reader to get them back and now I seriously hate them all (of me) and don't want to use them. Our basement has a leak, our stuff got wet, oh the drama!

Our fun friends hosted an Easter Brunch- I made cute mini Fruit and Yogurt Parfaits- try to imagine them, I am pictureless due to the hard drive drama! Benson mostly ate the Cadbury Mini Eggs he found all over the ground...and got seriously fried. A few hours after we got home I noticed his bright red head. I felt so bad so I cried about that too. We haven't seen the sun for 6 months so I think we all forgot what to do!

Our other cute friends (we have lots) hosted Easter play group. Complete with lunch for the moms and fun for kids.

Kate was so cute and shared her eggs/let Benson rip them from her hands.

All the kids decorated little bunny cakes...Benson played with this pink cup.

Sunday Benson crawled straight for Easter basket- he's a tad spoiled and knows any new toy is of course for him.

His Easter outfit was ridiculously cute.

Ah-mazing Easter dinner. Even better company.

Busyness

2011-04-17T17:28:00.010-04:00

We have been busy. Like seriously. Busy playing with our friends almost every night of the week, busy with girls nights, busy with church stuff, busy packing, busy working, busy with parties and baby showers and going to school.

Brit, Kari and I made 100 cupcakes for our ward activity- cute huh? I thoroughly enjoy when other people are perfectionists too. Ha ha!

We had a “Feather Her Nest” baby shower for our cute friend Jessica. There were nest cupcakes and sparkly birds and good food. So fun.

Just a handful of my very favorite people on earth...

Benson got dirty. For like, the first time ever. He all the sudden was okay with crawling in the grass, eating the rocks, and crawled straight into the mud puddle in our yard. He topped off his night with eating an entire cupcake by himself. Oh the progress.

For the Sake of the Book...

2011-04-10T01:04:00.013-04:00

I started our blog right when we moved to Michigan. I love that Brandon appreciates my craftiness and reminded me that when we make our blog into a book of our three years here, it won't have all the headers. He's right- the headers need to be in the book! Here they are in no paticular order, for the books sake...

On my mind...

2011-03-27T00:27:00.023-04:00

These:

Have you tried them? Something about them being mini makes them amazing.

March Madness:

Soaking up as much time as I can with these people. Love them.

Benson: He now sighs every time I sigh. It's both hilarious and disturbing how much I do it. I sigh when I'm stressed and I'm kind of a stress case these days.

The Bottle: This little (bpa free) plastic thing has been emotional roller coaster in our house. I wanted nothing to do with it at first. I so badly wanted to breastfeed, but it wasn’t meant to be. So at one week old, pumped milk from a bottle it was. And 6-8 times a day at that. I grew to love the bottle. It meant freedom! Well maybe not exactly freedom, but it meant dinner and movie knowing Benson was well fed back at home. I can’t say I ever grew to love the pump, but I’m so grateful for the technology that allowed me to still feed him in an unconventional way. I’m fairly certain his sleeping through the night at 10 weeks was due in part to the bottle. What’s not to love? As 12 months old approached, Dr. Hart reiterated the importance of the sippy cup, in which Benson was completely uninterested. He has had his bottle since birth, and he’s attached. We slowly got rid of the mid day bottles and now it’s only morning and night. Apparently 15 months is the “cut-off” so on this morning of his 14 month “birthday” we went bottleless. It was straight to the high chair for breakfast instead of our normal morning routine of bottle and snuggling and playing in his room. He seemed confused all morning, we are creatures of habit. (I was not a fan either Benson!) True to his stubborn ways, even after 13 hours of sleep he didn’t want the milk badly enough to drink it from a sippy. He was sad, which made me sad, and I just want to give in. I find myself perplexed. What’s more important? That he’s weaned from the bottle or that he gets milk? Being a mom is hard.

Disturbing: No thanks to Gymboree, entire families will be matching this Easter.

Progress

2011-03-15T23:10:00.005-04:00

I packed, drum roll please….. ONE box over spring break (which brings my grand total to one)! Maybe progress isn’t exactly the right word?

Benson is fully recovered from surgery (and fully in the midst of a horrific cold).

The snow is so dang near melted, I can’t wait for my last amazing Michigan spring.

More like lack of progress, Benson is still refusing to walk (but he did figure out how to bend over and look though his legs upside down, which he finds hilarious).

Benson’s new word is “yeah”. Whenever he coughs I say, Oh Goodness! Are you okay? He says “yeah” (in his cute little Benson voice). I love it!

Less than 2 months until graduation! The bar app is officially submitted! Whoop whoop!

This is officially my 100th post, I so wish I had something 100th post worthy to share! I so love looking back at the last 99, and I love the progress our little family made in the past 3 years.

Just Life

2011-02-25T21:48:00.006-05:00

Feeling like blogging about life, ya know? Nothing major, just what’s up in my busy head. Had a near death experience on an icy Michigan freeway and it’s got me thinking...JK…I’m not getting that deep, but for reals a car went spinning and ended up facing us head on in our lane, when Brandon swerved I was SURE we were going to go rolling down the bank of snow, but alas, we are alive and well. He’s got skills. We were on that icy Michigan freeway to see an ENT for Benson’s situation he has going on. Like 7 ear infections in 6 months and one ornery kid. I’m SO glad my mom was here for the appointment, it was majorly traumatic for Benson and she is a huge help. He loves his Grammie! We got to have her for a whole week and loved every second of it. I’m so irked that I didn’t take one picture to prove it, but it was fun- documented or not! We lunched, and hung out, and watched my shows and played with Benson. Brandon had a conference for JRC in Dallas so it was nice to have someone to help me hold down Benson for his daily dose of antibiotics!

He ended up getting tubes in and adenoids out on Thursday. We were an hour late due to the afore mentioned drivers and seriously went 10 miles an hour the entire way. I was a total disaster! When he woke up from the anesthesia he was a crying mess. I’ve done lots of complaining about the situation but failed to mention how incredibly grateful I am that things went smoothly, that weren’t any complications, and how amazing the staff was at the hospital. Every single person we dealt with was so incredibly kind to Benson and to us. Such a great team of doctors, nurses and anesthesiologists. One of the nurses told us in broken English “you such cute mom and dad, you need more kids!" Ha ha.

What else is on my mind? Packing. Which seems weird because I swear we just moved here. So far I’ve contemplated getting a box from the basement. Progress, right? Less than three months until Brandon graduates and we move away from this most amazing place. Tears just thinking about it. Will it be SO nice to have our families around the corner? Yes! But… I know things will be do different from here on out. A real job, real money, real bills, the NV Bar and the list goes on. Time to grow up if we haven’t already! I will miss the people here so, so, so, much. More tears. I’ll save their tribute for a later post.

Ya know what I totally missed blogging about? Brandon’s 30TH BIRTHDAY! He let me invite like 5 people over and was adamant that it remain small and calm. I had a ginormous party planned in my head but I complied and it was actually nice to keep it low key. I’m super-duper glad he was born. His mom was here to celebrate with us and let us sleep in THREE days in a row! Glorious. Again, no pictures.

In other Benson news, he has started a fun little tantrum stage. Tantrums when we take something away that he can’t play with, when he wants a book read immediately, when his toy doesn’t do what he wants, when he doesn’t like what he’s being fed, doesn’t want to eat and we’re trying to get him eat, or when the food he’s eating is gone and he likes it. Food and eating have been our challenge from day one and I don’t think it’s going to end anytime soon. It’s not even that he won’t eat, just that he’s so extremely particular about what, when, and how he does it. Even when he’s having a tantrum he makes us laugh and I love his squishy cute little self. Oh, no walking yet. I think we still have a good month or two before he’ll do it. Since there isn’t really anywhere to walk in our teeny little house I’m okay with it!

Currently my 30 year old husband is having “Bond Night” with his friends, Benson is sleeping, I am Blogging, I love it.

I Could Just Eat This Cute Baby...

2011-02-05T23:48:00.006-05:00

Benson Is One!

2011-02-05T22:56:00.013-05:00

I wanted to do the cutest, most creative 1 year old post ever (maybe an interview like my cute Cousin Bekah does), but blogging/writing/creativity are not exactly my talents so I’m left with this…

Benson is one!

This has been the fastest year of my life- hands down.

I love him more than I ever thought it was possible to love anything.

Benson is quirky and crazy and fun. Some of my favorite things about him…

Every time we’re in public we get endless comments on his cuteness, I feel a little bit proud that he’s mine.

He loves food, but won’t pick up anything wet, sticky or slimy (exhibit A below). He would be content with us feeding him all his meals and snacks while he sits there with clean hands. Brandon calls him King Bugsimo and calls us his faithful subjects.

Benson would give his right arm to be able to play with the universal remote.

He started holding his bottle two weeks ago, I’m a new women! What should I do with all my free time?

He won’t wave, but gives awesome high-fives and “bonks”

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star is his jam (the Jewel version please).

Yo Gabba Gabba “Party in my Tummy” is the weirdest thing ever and his favorite thing ever!

His favorite book is “What Does Baby Say”- he would let us read it to him over, and over, and over… and we do until we want to throw it in the fire, so we eventually hide it and he screams until we read him “Where is Baby’s Belly Button” or “Where is Baby’s Mommy” (dang you Karen Katz!)

His fastest crawling is reserved for when the bathroom door opens, if he could just get in there to play with the trash can.

75% of his day is spent throwing and chasing. Sometimes I wish he would understand that we can’t throw EVERYTHING, like his 5 pound piano for example. Benson, you have challenged me, pushed me to my limits, made me laugh every single day and helped me to look at life in a whole new way. I love you cute boy!

Here's a little photo year in review:

And just to make sure this is the longest post of all time, Benson had a cute owl themed birthday party (in Las Vegas and again in Lansing)!

I was feeling a little crafty and whipped up this banner with my Cricut.

I thought these little Whoopie Pies turned out so cute!

Benson checking out his awesome new toys!

Thank "Whoo" for Coming!

And for the grand 1st birthday finale, a big boy carseat!

One for the Books...

2011-01-18T23:33:00.006-05:00

I'm feeling a tad behind. We had such a fabulous 2010 I feel like it deserves some sort of tribute. So many great things happened so I can't just bypass the "New Years" post.

Obviously first and foremost, the love of our lives, our crazy, precious, little angel baby was born! Benson rocked our world last year. 2010 had a little less sleep, a little more stress, a lot more love thanks to this little guy.

Brandon started his THIRD and FINAL year of law school. Today he informed me he has 115 days left. That is crazy.

We traveled, and played, and cheered, saw and did. It was a good year.

And the year came to end with Benson's very first Christmas. He was mostly oblivious, slightly amused and loved his new toys once someone opened them for him.

Bring on 2011!

Merry Christmas! Love, Us

2010-12-25T02:34:00.004-05:00

Fa, la, la, la, la!

2010-12-13T00:29:00.005-05:00

CHRISTMAS! I’m so pumped; it’s so much fun with a little person around. Benson saw Santa for the first time a couple weekends ago and was such a fan. I LOVE how much he loves attention.

Our attempt at a group shot, lol!

I realize he won’t exactly get it yet, but Brandon and I thoroughly enjoyed figuring out what to get him and ordering everything online to get sent to Grammies house where we’ll be for Christmas. Last night we went to Target and picked out Barbies to help provide Christmas for some less fortunate little girls. Brandon helped me find some that were semi modest (for reals, Barbie is a little scandalous) and we hooked them up with outfit options. I wrapped them super cute and it felt like Christmas, even in my treeless house. We didn’t end up doing a tree because we are leaving Thursday to go HOME (and let’s face it, Benson would demolish it, see exhibit A below) but we are rocking our mantel!

I've been contemplating, is there a point to sending Christmas cards anymore? On one hand, I can’t see the point because Face Book and blogs keep us up to date on every little detail…like seriously, we know what you ate for dinner, how much you love your husband and where you celebrated your mom’s birthday, but…I love getting them and making them so I may do one even though ya’ll already know what’s up with us. Oh, it’s the 12th? Maybe I should get working on that!

Tasks for the coming week, get Benson well so our flight isn’t as nightmarish as the Thanksgiving one was, presents for the rest of the fam (it isn’t all about Benson?), pack, pack and more packing, clean, work, stress. Yay!

I'm Ten Months!

2010-12-03T00:31:00.005-05:00

Benson is 10 months old! As of late, he is obsessed with standing. For reals, he cannot be trusted. He attempts to stand in his stroller (while it's moving), in his highchair (while he's eating), holding onto my legs while I'm cooking, doing dishes, etc. He loves playing with his soccer ball, jabbering the day away, and his all time favorite activity is reading books. He will find a book and crawl around with it whining until someone reads it to him.

We just got back to MI after a little trip home for Thanksgiving. Benson loved all the attention and I'm pretty sure my entire house is the size of my parents entryway so he had space to crawl to his hearts content. I've contemplated skipping over the Thanksgiving post all together because it was a disaster of epic proportions. We had Thanksgiving in Mesquite with Brandon's family, left the diaper bag in Las Vegas that had ya know, food, diapers, wipes, (basically everything we needed to function for the day). It was no bueno. Aside from that little mishap, it was so great to see everyone, and we are so thankful for our little wild bundle of joy, our family, our faith, and each other.

Happy 10 Months, Happy Thanksgiving!

Just Call Us Gramps and Grams

2010-11-14T23:14:00.008-05:00

Brandon and I had the once in a lifetime chance to sit in the Izzone (the most awesomest student section in all of college basketball) this weekend. We should have been cleaning up after our ward talent show, but our amazing friends covered for us, took our baby home and put him to bed so we could go have fun. Have I mentioned we have THE most amazing friends? The moral of this story is that we are officially old. These Izzone kids literally jump up and down and yell OOOOOHHH every single time the other team has possession of the ball. THE ENTIRE TIME. We kept looking at each and cracking up while our calves were burning and we were dying. At the beginning of the game the kid next to me looked super concerned because we didn’t have our white paper bags. He found us some. What the heck? Just follow along. Everyone is blowing them up. Michigan State scores, everyone pops their bag. We pop ours with a 2 seconds delay. The whole game was full of chants and rituals and us laughing and trying to follow along. Fun date.

Benson is a maniac and is all over the place. He learned to pull up on things, then learned to walk along the furniture holding on, he crawled up the stairs for the first time yesterday, and is getting more and more daring every day. He’s starting to feel less and less like a baby and more and more like a little boy. Tear.

We leave for Thanksgiving break on Thursday and I am beyond excited. It feels like forever since we’ve been home and I can’t wait for everyone to see Benson and all his new tricks. How do you fly with a baby that insists on constantly standing up and can’t sit still for more than a minute? I’ll have to let you know.

A 9 month old Monster...

2010-11-02T00:14:00.012-04:00

Benson is 9 months old!

In the past 9 months I've sang Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star 857 times, lost 643 hours of sleep, watched "Party in my Tummy" on You Tube 166 times, and read "What Does Baby Say" 124 times. (Not really.)

So what's Benson up to these days? Oh my heck, the kid is all over the place. One early morning I heard his typical "ay"! (Sounds like hey! Repeat until someone gets him out of his crib.) I walked into his room and there he was, standing up with his big grin. He was so dang proud of himself. Now he's obsessed and attempts to pull himself up on anything and everything. Which is why his forehead looks like this:

He finally gave up the weird army crawl for his hands and knees, and he has 2 whole teeth!

He thoroughly enjoyed his first Halloween (because I let him lick a sucker) but I'm pretty sure he slept through every halloween event we attended. I think his monster costume was a tad warm!

Good times!

FOMO

2010-10-21T14:13:00.016-04:00

I have FOMO (Fear of Missing Out Disorder). It’s a self diagnosed (and self created) disorder which results in me having to attend any and all social events that I’m invited to (or invite myself to…JK…sorta). It also makes me pretty much neglect anything that doesn't fall into the "fun" category (ya know, cleaning, laundry, my job).

So basically thats an explanation of why I have 5000 pictures to blog, why I haven't blogged, why Benson is playing on the dirty kitchen floor and why I have yet to get dressed today. It's fine.

Homecoming 2010 was the best by far. We started 7 and 0 for the first time since '66 and were ranked 7th by the BCS on Sunday, highest ever ranking for MSU. A little 5 Guys, a little parade and a few friends. Love.

Benson's favorite activity of all time? Swinging. Luckily for him we head to the park with our neighbors several times a week.

We had a little Halloween FHE that was seriously so fun. We did a little cupcake frosting, pumpkin carving, and made the kids pile up on the chair for a picture. Brandon carved our Spartan pumpkin and finished it off with a green glowstick. Go State!

A game day par-tay! Benson is representing!

The Cider Mill, one of our Michigan faves. Best Honeycrisp Apples. Ever. Period.

A little girls night out. I love these girls, for reals.

Benson has a few girlfriends in the neighborhood that he chills with for time to time. They're pretty cute, huh?

What do you do when you don't have Cafe Rio? Make it yourself! It was Skyler's Birthday so it was a great excuse to have yet another party!

We threw a little shower for our friend Elisa and I made these cupcakes. I wanted them to be cute, but seriously, WAY too much frosting.

And in Benson news, he has teeth! 2 little bottom ones came in this month. Oh, and he learned to army crawl... straight out the back door, nose first, onto the concrete at that.

Summer!

2010-09-13T00:56:00.025-04:00

Our summer is officially over and we're back in MI after 2 months in Las Vegas. It was our last summer vacation as students...I kinda wish it wasn't! I love our summers home, seeing our families, and getting a little break from the day-to-day. It's amazing how much a baby can change in two months. Here's a little summer review:

Benson learned to sit up! He'd totally rather stand or scoot around on the floor, but he can do it!

My cute friend Bre gave Benson his first haircut! The mohawk was totally out of control. He's kind of important so she made a house call for him, but you should go see her at Tonic Salon, she's legit.

Benson went to the zoo for the first time. I thought he might be a little young but this kid looovvees animals. It's unfortunate for him since I do not, but I'm cool with the zoo since they're all in cages and what not. He got so excited when they moved and especially when this little monkey came right up to him to say hi.

We spent a weekend at my Aunt Becky's cabin for our family reunion. Benson just kicked it in this swing as much as possible. He even took a nap in it, odd because it is almost impossible to get him to sleep anywhere besides his bed, with his sound machine, in the dark, with a binki. I'm totally having one installed in my living room.

Park City! My parent bought a beautiful house there recently and we love it! Brandon took a couple days off school and came for a week over labor day. I have visions of Benson playing outside all summer and learning to ski in the winter...I can't wait. And it doesn't hurt that most of the people that I love so much in law school live in Utah!

I turned 27! Seriously, almost 30. Enough said.

We started Benson on food which he is thrilled about. He looovves peas, they're his fave. He's been through all the Gerber purees and there really isn't anything he won't eat, chubby little guy.

He's officially tall, 95% tall! Obviously he doesn't get it from me!

My little sister is such a talented photographer. I pretty much love that she takes the most amazing pictures of Benson. These are my favorites from his 7 month shoot:

Benson loves music! Loves it. Nothing makes him happier. Kenz put on a personal concert from time to time and he could not have been happier!

It's officially fall, my favorite season and I can't wait for Benson's first Halloween. I can't help but constantly think about how it's our last here in MI. I plan on living it up and remembering all the amazing details.

It's Been Way Too Long...

2010-08-14T00:10:00.020-04:00

Remember when I used to blog about things other then Benson (and vacations)? There were occasional posts about some of my favorite things...good food, deals, groceries, TV. It's been way too long. Possibly the most exciting thing I've come across is this...

Yes, Macaroni and Cheese. Quite possibly my favorite food. I don't discriminate- I even love the stuff in the box and now Kraft has taken it to another level. You bake it with a bread crumb topping...yeah, try it!

I made The City Bakery Macaroni and Cheese with Gruyere, white cheddar and Grana Padano (the most delicious form of Parmesan cheese ever) which was totally good but totally a lot of work, so you could just buy the Kraft kind.

American Eagle makes baby clothes (77 Kids)...the cutest baby clothes ever created! Seriously, look...

Benson needs them all, oh wait, this isn't about him!

Most importantly, please tell me you've tried Pretzel M&M's! Salty, Sweet. Best combination ever.

One more week and Brandon goes to back to school for his LAST YEAR. What!? We've been in Las Vegas all summer and I haven't posted a thing. Perhaps a Benson/Vacation/What We've Been Up To post is on the way!

Michigan the Beeeeyoootiful

2010-07-03T00:43:00.021-04:00

Michigan is so beautiful. Seriously. If I could fix all the auto industry economy crap and tone the winter down a notch this place would be perfect. My parents and 3 sisters came for a little vaycay last week. We had the best time. I loved showing my sisters around EL and staying up late with them. It's no Vegas here, but I've grown to appreciate quirks and charm of our little college town.

We spent a few days on Mackinaw Island which was pretty much amazing. We ate a ridiculous amount of fudge. For some reason fudge is the "thing" there. The island smells like fudge, there are fudge samples everywhere you go, and a fudge shop was attached to our hotel (we may or may not have stopped in ever time we walked by).

We headed to Cedar Point on Thursday and rode some crazy roller coasters. I'm pretty sure the cast of 16 and pregnant and trick my trailer were there- welcome to Ohio! It's no Disney World, but if like your body to be tossed around at 120 miles an hour it's totally for you! Benson even got to ride the train and the classic cars. He totally loved it- and all of the attention. After they left every time I set him down he kept looking around for his fan club.

Benson turned 5 months on June 30th. He newest tricks include shrieking when he's really happy (preferably in quiet restaurants), grabbing his toes and trying to eat them, eating anything he can get his hands on, rolling over, taking out his bink and trying to put it back in but failing, so he wants us to put it in (repeat 500 times). He getting so big, so fun, and we're so happy.

I just had my first Fourth of July ever without my family. Of course our friends here made it so fun and so memorable. We had a little backyard barbecue complete with kiddie pools, tie dying, and fireworks on Saturday and a pretty incredible fireworks show at the Ingham County Fairgrounds on Sunday. I was worried about Benson getting scared, but who am I kidding? This kid thrives on loud, chaos, and staying up late! He sat and Brandon's lap and stared at the sky.

We leave on Friday to go home for the rest of the summer. I'm dreading the heat, but excited for a little break, the beach, and spending time with our families.

Benson, Brandon and the Beach

2010-06-22T01:34:00.013-04:00

The past few weeks have been all about summer school, beautiful Michigan summer days and nights, BBQ's, hanging with our friends and watching Benson grow up and change every single day.

We've been waiting for the day when Benson could do this little trick! The first pic is Brandon and his Grandpa 29 years ago and the second is Brandon and Benson today. Aren't they little clones of each other?

Benson would stand up all day long if he could...

Sometimes he plays so hard he passes out on his little mat...

On Saturday we took a little day trip to Grand Haven. Lake Michigan is ridiculous! So gorgeous, we loved it. It feels like California minus the salt in the air. The humidity is not missing, hence the hair plastered to my head! At least Benson looks cute!

Our little family...

The little town and lighthouse were so much fun. It was one of those perfect days...

I love this picture so much. These boys are the loves of my life. We celebrated Brandon's first Father's Day on Sunday. He rocks at being a Dad. It comes so natural to him and I wouldn't want to raise this little guy with anyone else. Benson gets so excited when he gets home from school. They play and laugh, Brandon makes up the best songs and games, and I know they are going to be best buds.

A Picture a Day...

2010-05-29T21:44:00.005-04:00

I took an impromptu trip home last week to see the fam. It was wonderful, just what I needed to gear up for summer semester. My flight out was pretty much a nightmare. I got stuck in Chicago overnight (apparently due to lighting in Baltimore) and may or may not have been seen having a total melt down and bawling about how I was going to feed my baby and what I was going to do overnight without my luggage, diapers, etc. One friendly Southwest employee told me, "we's moms, we's figure it out!" (Should someone tell her we is already plural?) An actual friendly Southwest employee removed me from the counter (I think I was scaring the other passengers) and hooked me up with a hotel room (for the remaining 4 hours of the night). While it was horrible, no less than 30 people helped over the course of my travels. From carrying things to helping me with my stroller, holding doors, one guy even offered to give me his credit card so I could get a hotel room and told me to just bring it back to him in the morning. SO nice.

Benson went swimming for the first time which he loved, and got so much attention he didn't know what to do when he was left alone for approximately 2 minutes. Brandon missed us like crazy so I sent him a picture a day while I was gone so he wouldn't forget how dang cute our little guy is.

Benson will be 4 months old tomorrow. It's been an exhausting/amazing/rewarding 4 months. A few recent favorites...

I really had no idea how much I could love him.

As of Late...

2010-05-09T15:31:00.016-04:00

Brandon and I celebrated our 7th anniversary on May 2nd. When I say celebrated I mean we studied for finals, kept on writing that 7000 word paper, worked and played with our little bundle.

I feel like it's such an accomplishment. I was 19 when I married him, seriously, how did my teenager self make such a perfect decision? We are seriously besties and are so lucky we found each other.

I love how this picture looks ancient! (Ya know kids, digital cameras weren't around back then.)

7 cars, 6 moves, 4 years at UNLV, 2 years at MSU Law, and 1 little bug- what a ride it's been!

I know I complain just a little about work, work, work and no play... but there is definitely some playing going on. We went and saw Carrie Underwood at the Breslin Center for my "giving birth" present (yes, I made up a new gift giving occasion) and it was amazing...

Great seats!

And as soon as the snow melted there have been plenty of neighborhood barbecues. One night we decided to try to grab a group picture. Brandon set the timer on the camera we grabbed all the kids and took one shot...ironic that it's the best picture we've ever taken of all of us and that all the kids are actually looking at the camera! I included it in a little scrapbook I put together for our friends that graduated...

Miss them so much!

And just for fun- a cute new picture of Benson (ignore the camera phone quality)...

3 Whole Months

2010-04-26T19:56:00.007-04:00

Our little bug is 3 months! On one hand I can't believe how fast it's gone by, on the other I feel like he's been in our family forever. Here's a little update on Benson:

We never call him by his name- ever! It's usually buggy, bug, bagaboo, little guy, chubalub...

He holds his head up like a pro

He would rather lay on his play mat or the couch and kick his feet than be held- he does it for hours!

He hates being on his tummy

Sleeps for 10-12 hours at night (I love life)

Has a meltdown when I put shirts over his head

His favorite activities include taking baths, getting his diaper changed, being naked, and standing on our laps

His hair is growing in dark and looks like a buzz cut

His eyes are brown when we're inside and look green in the sunlight

He's weighing in at around 11 pounds and is finally wearing his 0-3 clothes

Benson at one day

Benson at 3 months

Ignore my unmade bed...check out the cute baby chucks

I never understood what people meant when they said it's hard being a parent but amazing at the same time- now I totally do.

Spring Has Sprung

2010-04-09T00:13:00.008-04:00

Benson celebrated his first Easter this year (when I say celebrated I mean he slept and laid on the couch and kicked his little legs, his two favorite activities). I made mini monkey bread for our little neighborhood Easter brunch, they were totally good. You should make them.

Spring is a crazy time around these parts. Finals are coming and Brandon has a 7,000 word paper to write. It's intense. I really can't believe he's almost done with his second year and that some of our favorite people are moving. That is the super hard part about living here- people come and go all the time.

I kind of think we're getting the hang of the baby thing (kind of). He's starting to have a schedule and I'm figuring out how to take care of him, and work, and pump 24 oz. a day, and take care of the house, and make dinner, etc. At first I didn't think we'd make it- I kinda wanted to give him back (don't judge me, it's true). Now he has a cute personality, he wakes up so happy in the morning and I can't imagine life without him.

Finally a Nursery!

2010-04-04T23:24:00.008-04:00

Benson's nursery is finally (almost) done! He threw us for a loop when he came early so all projects came to a hault, and now 9 weeks later we're finally getting there. Seriously, there is always one more thing to do but it's so stinkin' cute I couldn't wait to share!

Wish we could paint, wish I didn't have to share his room with my office, etc, etc, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out considering what we're working with here in our little two bedroom...

And...I have to give a shout out to my cuz Rachel Busby for designing the MOST AMAZING birth announcements for me! Check out her blog... http://www.pinkpearldesigns.blogspot.com/.

7 Weeks and We're Still Alive...

2010-03-22T00:35:00.012-04:00

It's been 7 weeks and our world has been rocked. No one can prepare you for a new baby, no matter how much they try! In the past 7 weeks Benson has changed so much. He went from a skinny 5 pounder to 8.5 pounds with some chub. He smiles and coos and LOVES to lay on his back and kick his little legs like it's his job.

Here are a few things that used to make him cry:

Getting a bath
Getting his diaper changed
Being naked
Laying by himself (awake)
Yawning

Our big boy can now handle all of the above without having a tantrum! He actually oddly enjoys his diaper changes- it kills me!

We took a trip to Las Vegas for Brandon's spring break. Here Benson is all ready to go:

I had so much anxiety about the flight but he was a little angel face!

Benson was blessed in my parents ward on March 7th. Almost all of our family was there and a few close friends. Brandon gave a beautiful blessing and we had an awesome lunch after. It was a day to remember. I spent the week before trying to find some sort of outfit that wasn't pajamas or completely cheesy that would fit our tiny baby. I think I went to every baby store that exists. He ended up looking so cute...

Brandon had to go back to MI for school and I stayed a week longer. What a blessing my family is! My mom let me sleep in (which I miss dearly) and Benson got held and loved on all day. He had RSV last week and I seriously could not have handled it without them. Between all the appointments, breathing treatments, not to mention the fact that I'm still pumping and he's eating like a champ- it's beyond a full time job to take care of this little guy!

Me and Kenzie did a little photo shoot and the pictures are so, so, cute I can't handle it. Kenz is so talented, I love how she captured his personality...

Love his little face!

Sneak Peek

2010-02-25T17:03:00.005-05:00

Benson had his pictures taken a couple of weeks ago. We had so much fun and I loved the gal that came and took them, check her out if you're in the Lansing area and ever need a photographer- http://www.studiobree.com/. I don't want to give them all away since we haven't sent his super cute announcements yet, so here are a few that we loved but didn't end up using:

I've had a long post in the works about what we've been up to, our take on being new parents, etc, etc, but this little guy prefers to be held 18 hours a day! One day it will get posted, but this is it for now.

Happy Birthday Brandon!

2010-02-11T21:48:00.003-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

to the love of my life!

Thanks for being an amazing husband and the best daddy!

Benson and I are so lucky...we love you!

Benson Loves Grammie

2010-02-10T18:45:00.007-05:00

My mom was here for 9 days, and those 9 days were total bliss. We LOVED having her here. She took such great care of us! She made us a super bowl feast, left our house sparkling clean and made sure we got plenty of sleep. She is the only reason Benson isn't naked or in clothes 3 sizes to big, his preemie wardrobe was furnished by Grammie. For some reason when he peed all over the couch at 4:00am it was hilarious when she was here, now...not so much. It was pretty hard to let her leave, but I think my dad is thrilled to have her back. I didn't realize it would be so hard to be so far from our families. I don't want them to miss Benson growing up- but being at MSU is a great opportunity for Brandon and our friends have definitely made it easier. We are just counting down the days until we go home in March for spring break.

In love...

2010-02-03T17:28:00.011-05:00

Benson Christensen Wood

January 30, 2010

7:24 pm

5 pounds 7 oz 19 inches

Love at first sight

Our Family

SO stinkin' cute!

Just a little guy!

Jamie and Benson

Emily and Benson

The smallest outfit we had...not quite small enough!

Benson and Grammy

First sponge bath

First pediatrician appointment

Benson surprised us and arrived 2 weeks early! Yay!

Ready for the birth story? Here it is... Friday night we went to dinner with some our besties to Red Robin. I was having some pretty painful contractions in my back, but totally thought it was more Braxton Hicks. I had gone to the doctor on Wednesday and was told I wasn't dilated at all. We got home and the contractions kept on coming. They were 20 minutes apart, then 15, and when we finally went to bed at 1:00. I was pretty much up all night, labor is pretty painful stuff! In the morning they were 5 minutes apart. I was SO worried about going to the hospital and being sent home. When I would have a contraction and would be in so much pain; I was ready to go to the hospital right then. When it was over I would change my mind. Finally around noon we decided to go. When we got to the hospital around 12:30 I was dilated to a 4. Within a couple hours they finished my blood work, hooked up an IV and gave me the best thing that ever happened...an epidural. Love me some epidural. I watched a little TV, hung out with Brandon, took a nap, facebooked. I have to give a shout out to Dr. Maser- love him. He hung out all day, he doesn't force pitocin, doesn't try to make you push before your ready, and is super patient. I was ready to push around 7:00 pm and everyone got set up, I pushed for about 10 minutes and our little angel face was born! He is perfect!

So far things have been mostly amazing. My mom came on Sunday and has been incredible. I really would not have survived these first few days without her. Brandon is the BEST daddy, I knew he would be a natural, but seriously. He has taken such good care of me and Benson. We've been visited, fed dinner and treats, came home to flowers and balloons, given preemie clothes for our little munchkin...I'm telling you, the works. Our friends are a blessing, we love them, ya'll know who you are.

The not amazing part is that Benson does not want to breastfeed, I'm determined to breastfeed. He is so, so tiny so the problems we're having are normal, but completely frustrating. So say a little prayer for us about that. I've never seen a tinier baby. We are so happy, he is absolutely precious.

Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and Everything In Between!

2010-01-03T18:26:00.013-05:00

If I had done a Christmas card it would have said what a busy/awesome/exciting year we've had! We feel so incredibly blessed to be in Michigan in law school, to have the friends we have, and especially for our families. We've hit the half way mark of school and I'm a little bit sad, we're really enjoying this stage of life.

The highlight of the year was obviously Benson, we can't wait for him to join our family (we got a sneak peek at our 4D ultrasound we got for Christmas)...

I've spent most of the winter in Las Vegas for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years and have loved every second of it, which is possibly why I abandoned my blog for so long!

Thanksgiving was just how I like it, traditional, good food, and the whole family together...

At Christmas time this year we had our semi-annual soup party and made 8 different kinds of soups and treats, threw a big family Christmas party, shopped and shopped, spent Christmas Eve with Brandon's family and went to a late dinner at Lawry's with my family, opened presents (Benson even scored a few), and spent some quality time with our families...

A few days after Christmas my aunt threw me a dang cute shower and lets just say, Benson is going to be decked out. I can't get over the quilt my aunt made- it's amazing, Brandon's mom put together the cutest diaper cake, and we pretty much got spoiled!

We rang in the new year with Katee's 20th Birthday and a big party...

We're definitely looking forward to 2010 and what the new year will bring!

To Do

2009-11-16T23:26:00.004-05:00

Time seems to fly by these days. I'm in my third trimester now if you ask one book, and will be on Friday if you ask another. I'm starting to feel like I have so much to and not enough time to do it. Nesting is not good when your Type A!

We leave Friday to head to Vegas and I can't wait. I'm feeling a little homesick and I can't wait for sunshine 7 days a week. Finals are coming up already and I think Brandon is feeling the pressure.

Want to hear my "To Do" list? It will make me feel better so here we go:

Clean my house, I refuse to leave town with a dirty house
Put my fall decorations away
Doctor's appointment tomorrow (glucose test- ugh!)
Make some yumminess for my friends shower on Wednesday
Do all the laundry so we can pack
Pack
WORK! I'm so behind.
Deliver our guest bedroom bed to family that doesn't have one (to make room for a crib)
Buy a crib and changing table and get Brandon to put them together
Build shelves in Benson's closet
See New Moon
Plan the ward Christmas Party (yay for my new calling!)
Find the perfect birthday present for my niece that's turning 4
Find curtains, a rug and mobile that match Benson's bedding

What? Who does that? I do feel a little better though :)

Good Stuff

2009-11-06T21:20:00.009-05:00

It's been far too long since I've blogged about good stuff I found at the grocery store, but food is a funny thing when you're pregnant. Lately it's been slightly more appealing and I've found a few things that must be tried. First, these...

The lemon ones are SO delicious- and only 100 calories! And these...

Equally as good, but not exactly 100 calories. And my mom sent this in our Halloween package...

I cannot get enough! Try it all!

Last weekend we headed to Ikea in Detroit to get some inspiration for Benson's room. We remembered some outlets on the way and took a detour. It's funny, the kid isn't even here yet and I already gave up on shopping for myself. I never understood how moms did that, but I found myself going from Baby GAP, to Gymboree to Children's Place. There was a massive sale at Children's Place with the CUTEST clothes on racks there were .99, $1.99 and $2.99. We had arm fulls, then a lady in line handed us a coupon so we ended up spending $25.00 on about 25 things. We were pretty dang proud of ourselves! A few of my favorites...

Blocks, Benson and a Bird

2009-10-28T16:30:00.005-04:00

Martha Stewart talked me into making these blocks. Aren't hers cute?

My crafts never quite turn out the same as hers, but here they are...

You'll notice there is a name on these blocks- finally!

Isn't this bird random?

I saw him at Meijer (think Super Walmart if you're not from MI) and thought he would look cute on a shelf in my nursery, but now I'm thinking it might be a little creepy!

Go, Go, Go

2009-10-24T00:36:00.009-04:00

We have been go, go, going lately. I hear the baby might slow us down a little and I have a fear of missing out on anything fun so we've been cramming it in.

A few gals and I threw a "Lil Pumpkin" baby shower for our friend Riley that turned out darling! I was in charge of the cheeseball and I really wanted it to look like a pumpkin, after calling my mom 85 times and consulting my friend Emily, I ended up rolling it in crunched up gold fish crackers to make it orange. Crafty right?

We hit up the homecoming parade with a few friends...

And seriously- one of the funnest things we've done in a long time- midnight madness! The NCAA says when teams can start practice for the season and MSU throws a huge party to kick off the season.

The players were introduced and walked right by my seat. It was so awesome to give them all a high-five!

Raising our final four banner...

Last but not least, we could not be more thrilled to have scored a signed basketball by Coach Izzo. Brandon has been wanting one of these babies, and he can't wait to display it in his office one day. We were pumped!

Love This

2009-10-15T17:11:00.006-04:00

There are about a million things I could spend my free time on, one thing I choose to make time for is to catch up on my blog reading, I LOVE to know what everyone is up to all the time. I mostly read people I know, stalk a few acquaintances, and I read C Jane. I loved one of her recent posts so much that I have to share. She seriously speaks to me. Makes me think. You can read the whole thing here, or my favorite part...

“…My season is not about house decoration. It is not about glass vases on low centered tables (as lovely as it looks, and it looked lovely). I need a simple house without toddler traps. Good organization and lots of cues from nature.

A clean house.

My season is not about fashion. It is about picking a few items, showing off the best part of my body. Easy laundered shirts for the inevitable snot trails that end up on my shoulder area. Look nice, but not encumbered.

Clean clothes.

My season is not about cooking elegant meals. I do not have the heart to treat food the way it should be treated. It is okay to eat peaches, apples and toast. Pirate Booty and Lorna Doones.

Just eat something.

My season is for babies. For sleeping when my baby naps and early morning bottle swapping. For belly and breast expansion and retraction. Music in the nursery and afternoons in the backyard. A season for schedules and predictability. A quiet time, a time to be at home, a time to focus on growing and gathering.

Love this season.

(I don't want to ask my energy to do more than this, though some women can.)

Then, then, then! I will start to dream again. I will dream of the season of glass vases and vacuum lines in my carpet. The time to cultivate a more sophisticated wardrobe and mornings to stay in bed until noon. I will earn my way to a kitchen full of spices and surprises. Parties, gatherings, social outings.

First this. Then the gold living room.”

I love it. Sometimes I think I can have it all, and I can, just not all at once.

Sell-Outs

2009-10-08T20:54:00.006-04:00

We are officially sell-outs. I hate to even admit it, but we sold our tickets and made some serious cash instead of going to the biggest game of the season against our biggest rival.

So we went to Babies-R-Us to start our registry (which I did not enjoy by the way) and I was coveting this chenille glider and ottoman when the manager said she had one in the back that had just been returned because it didn't fit in someones house. We got to buy it for half of what it originally cost and exactly what we sold out tickets for. So happy.

Can I Just Complain For a Sec?

2009-09-30T21:51:00.019-04:00

My trustee MSN weather ticker says there is a freeze warning for tonight…can’t we at least wait until October for that nonsense? It also says it’s going to rain starting Friday, for 7 days straight! Luckily the one thing I’ve learned to trust about my trustee weather ticker is that it’s usually wrong.

I also want to give a shout out to GAP for making me a little more excited about the baby boy clothes situation. Seriously? Look how cute their new stuff is…

Speaking of GAP, my mom (also known as Grandma in the near future), purchased the little guy’s very first outfit while we were in Chicago last weekend…

Speaking of Chicago, we got to join my mom, dad, and little sis Kenzie for their first trip to Chicago. They came to East Lansing first and we showed them the sights. Obviously MI is about as different from Las Vegas as you can get so we loved showing them the nature, Lake Lansing, Hawk Island, campus, the law school, all that good stuff. We went to the Cider Mill and rode on the tractor and ate buttermilk doughnuts and drank cider. The weather was beautiful; it was a perfect couple of days. Kenize's pictures are amazing...

Then we crammed as much of Chicago as we could into Saturday and Sunday. Chicago will always be one of my favorite places…

Thanks for the fun times fam!

It's Officially...

2009-09-24T23:32:00.003-04:00

a boy!

The doctor said everything looks perfect. We're happy, especially Brandon.

I feel like we can finally get started on things, but we honestly don't really agree on names. I love Benson, Brandon isn't a fan. He likes Caden, I'm on the fence. Then the issue of spelling, I think K's are masculine, he think's they're femine and that C's are more masculine. We have issues!

My parents and little sister are in town and they got to see the little guy going crazy, he would NOT stay still. It was awesome.

Pics...

I am...

2009-09-18T01:24:00.002-04:00

Feeling pretty dang good about our move- it’s been such a blessing to be surrounded by the best neighbors anyone could ask for.

Loving the weather! My front porch is cover is orange leaves, I think fall is here early.

Ready to know the gender of our baby- I can’t wait until the 24th!

So annoyed about the Michigan State game on Saturday! Worst. Game. Ever.

Happy to be in Las Vegas visiting my family, even though it’s not for a happy reason.

Missing Brandon and wishing he were here with me.

So sad that my granddaddy died, I miss him already.

So grateful for eternal families!

This Week and Other Randomness

2009-08-30T21:14:00.004-04:00

Things are really starting to come together in our house; just don’t look in the basement. I think the lesson learned this week is: don’t freak out until you know there’s something to freak out about. I picked the suits up from the dry cleaners and they are as good as new, all the stains are out of the clothes, and with a few new parts the dryer is working great.

School is going to be intense this year, Brandon is taking lots of credits but he’s really liking it so far. I'm so ready to be done with being sick, no such luck yet. I'm at the stage where I'm looking extra chubby instead of pregnant, cute!

I go to the doctor tomorrow and am really hoping they’ll tell us for sure if there’s a baby boy or a baby girl on the way. Since it’s “likely” a boy I’ve been trying to get in boy mode which has been difficult. I’ve been looking at nursery bedding and decided that dump trucks, baby animals, and characters of any kind are just not me. I found a website that you can pick your fabrics and they’ll custom make your bedding. Here’s what we’re looking at for a potential boy room:

The big news this week is that the kick-off to Spartan football 09 is only 1 week away! We can't wait!

MICH. AGAIN.

2009-08-23T17:47:00.003-04:00

I saw this on a billboard on the way out here and thought it would be an appropriate title.

We had grand intentions of leaving Las Vegas early afternoon on Monday. Our new place doesn’t come with a washer or dryer so we had to figure out how to get ours to MI. We ended up buying a trailer and when all was said and done it was 9:00 at night.

We left anyway and drove to Colorado and got a hotel room around 6:00 am. I was pretty much a mess on the drive. I think it was a combination of being pregnant and tired, sad about leaving family, and sitting in the car for so many hours. I’m just glad Brandon didn’t leave me on the side of the road- he’s so patient.

It poured rain like I’d never seen it rain before on the way here. When we finally got here everything on our trailer was soaked. When we opened the suitcases the colors in our clothes had bled onto each other. Brandon’s suits were soaked and his white dress shirts were spotted navy blue. Aahhhh!

We definitely got off to a rough start. I was able to fix all of his clothes, and I’m still working on mine. I think we’re about 75% unpacked. Our good friends fed us dinner and whenever I need to escape I can go over there and hang with them. It’s been a blessing.

Next week Brandon has his first full week of school, I need to get caught up on my work, finish the house, get groceries, and a much needed prenatal massage. Wish us luck!

The Deets

2009-08-15T16:30:00.003-04:00

I’m officially done with the first trimester. If the next two go by as fast I have no idea how I’ll get everything done. I have been sick- thanks to the miracle of Zofran the throwing up has been significantly reduced.

We found out I was pregnant during our first few weeks in Las Vegas this summer. So basically, we lived with my parents through my whole first trimester. My mom was pretty much amazing. Can you imagine not having to cook dinner or clean for 3 months? She made things I felt like eating, fed my husband, made me lunch for work, and get this...even cleaned up my throw up. I'm so grateful.

I was completely convinced we were having a girl- completely. We had a girl name, girl nursery, and I’ve been mentally prepared for a girl. Our awesome ultrasound tech told us at thirteen weeks that it’s likely a boy, no guarantees until 18 weeks but it opened up a while new world of possibilities for me.

I love my doctor in Las Vegas, I haven’t met my MI one yet but he doesn’t seem promising. Both said they’ll just work together since I’ll be back and forth. My Las Vegas doctor said we can fly out on a weekend and be induced or we can deliver in MI. Hard decisions!

The one thing I have decided on is a stroller. After much research, review reading and pushing, the UPPAbaby is the winner.

Now we only have about 5000 more decisions to make, like a name!

We're Having a Baby!

2009-08-09T16:38:00.002-04:00

Finally right? It was not an easy road to get here. First and foremost I have to say my thoughts, prayers, and hope go to those that are struggling to have children or can’t for whatever reason.

We are so excited and we feel so incredibly blessed.

February 12th can't come soon enough!

Moved In

2009-07-29T16:47:00.001-04:00

Apparently we’re all moved in to our new place. I only had slight anxiety at relinquishing control and letting Brandon and his Dad handle the move. When we moved from Las Vegas to Lansing I spend three months bubble wrapping, organizing, and bossing. They managed to move us in 4 days (without me there bossing)! Brandon said my desk is in the kitchen so I’m a little nervous about what I’ll find when I show up there for the first time in a few weeks. I am SO grateful that they flew to Detroit, took the Flyer, worked their butts off, and for everyone that helped. So grateful.

I’m really going to miss our loft; it’s one of my favorite places we ever lived. I won’t miss the neighborhood, management, or rent. I think the new place is going to be good. We’re on an awesome bus route that drops off in front of the law school (no more earlier morning driving through blizzards), we’ll live by lots of people that can entertain me during the day, and we’ll be saving a bundle.

Summer is dang near over for us. I have one and a half more weeks of work, we go to the beach for week, and then it’s back to school!

Family Pic

2009-07-23T17:11:00.002-04:00

I love these guys...

Now I'm on the hunt for an old window frame, I saw someone turn one into a picture frame and I'm obsessed with it's cuteness, and with finding one!

Beach Bums

2009-07-16T19:46:00.009-04:00

Even though the humidity gives me a fro, I could totally live at the beach. We went to Oceanside for a whole week and it was relaxing, amazing, just warm enough, just cool enough, and just plain fun. My schedule consisted of sleeping until whenever, lying on the beach, eating, and lying on the beach some more. I have to give a shout out to my dad for funding the excursion.

Our beach house was sooo cute! Love the red front door.

Brandon chillin' on the front porch.

We had dinner in our "backyard" on the sand.

The pier.

The view of Oceanside from the pier.

Sunset.

Have you read Seriously So Blessed? This is my sisters version of a frown smile, so funny.

My little sister that just graduated from high school took some family pics of us which turned out really cute. Family pictures are always DRAMA with my family. With 4 girls (5 including my mom) it's inevitable that someone will hate their hair or their outfit or in the case Kenzie is a perfectionist photographer and hated the lighting. Luckily she is an amazing editor so I can't wait to post them as soon as she is done.

Catching Up

2009-07-13T13:22:00.011-04:00

I hate that I'm so behind. Life moves so much faster here than in East Lansing! I refuse to skip blog worthy events, so here we have this post.

Work is absolutely crazy. It's what I do pretty much all day everyday and for some reason I unconsciously don't blog about it- probably because it's my Dad's company. But seriously, we have all of the characters from The Office, plus a few. I have to say I'm grateful to have a job and maybe one day I'll share some of the stories (like how Brandon put a fake camera in a lady's office and rumor spread that management was "watching" and how the cops came and arrested one of my co-workers for an EBay scam.) One day.

Today is my parents anniversary. I feel so blessed to have grown up in a home with parents that love each other.

Happy Anniversary!

Last week we celebrated my mom's 50th at Carrabba's. It was pretty low key since we just got back from a week at the beach, which obviously deserves it's own post. She does not even look close to 50, right? It's cause we keep her young, ha ha.

She really deserves her own post- cause I don't know what I would do without her. Unfortunately this will have to do.

It's crazy to think we've been here for 2 months and we're going back to MI in August. Brandon is flying back in two weeks to move us into our new house. We're leaving our pimp loft that I love SO much to save $600.00 a month in rent. It's bitter sweet. But we're getting some pretty awesome new neighbors and I'm sure they'll help me forget I ever had heated underground parking.

Now it's back to work!

Welcome Home!

2009-07-09T01:38:00.008-04:00

Brandon's little bro served a 2 year mission in Tallahassee, FL and came home last week. It’s been so good to see him. I was in charge of the banner and I don’t mess around with banner making. I KNEW that my cheerleading skills would come in handy one day (it even sparkled with silver glitter!).

His mom was a tad on the excited side so the whole fam ended up holding the ginormous banner for 1.5 hours in the middle of McCarran.

It was worth it though…

Yay! Welcome home Colton!

Oh, ya know I love to show off, I made these for his little homecoming party…

Oreo Truffles, delish!

No More Homework, No More Books...

2009-06-24T17:12:00.006-04:00

My baby sister graduated! So weird that we're all big kids now. It doesn't feel like it! I made her senior ad for her yearbook, and I don't want to brag (but I will anyway), hers blew them all away...

My Aunt Becky took some amazing pictures of her that we used for her graduation announcements...

And I took a few shots of her in her cap and gown...

The highlight was the party and these amazingly festive tissue balls we made. I'm pretty much obsessed with how cute they turned out...

Congratulations Mac!

We made it!

2009-06-15T19:41:00.008-04:00

I have no idea why I abandoned my blog, but we did make it to Las Vegas! It only took 28 hours and I was an angel. Only because Brandon said I could get a pedicure when we got here if I was good. We only stopped 15 or so times, good right? The trip was actually pretty fun; Omaha was awesome believe it or not. A few pics…

I pre-judged Omaha to be a small town with some corn fields, sorry Omaha, I heart you now.

Denver was probably one of the biggest cities I’ve ever been in, seriously huge. Oh, I have a story! We had no plan for this trip, we just drove. I decided it would be fun to stop in Denver so while we were driving I got on the internet looking for a hotel. I decided to try Priceline and ended up with King Room at the Hyatt Grand Regency for $60.00- so pimp.

Finally some good Mexican food! We waited the entire school year for this!

The Rockies and Colorado River were breath taking. These pics don’t even kind of do justice, just go there!

But mostly we saw this…

Brandon’s internship is going great, luckily he loves it- so I’m the only one in pain over the fact that he’s working for free. I just have to remind myself that working for a federal judge will be great resume builder so it doesn’t hurt as bad. He has to wear a suit everyday which is a huge ironing and laundry commitment, not to mention $. I sorta miss the shorts, tees and flip flops that he wore to school.

We seem to be a lot busier here. There are so many family members to fill our time- it’s been fun. My baby sister graduated (weird) and we had a big party. I was in charge of the décor and it turned out so cute! Tons of pics coming next post!

Kay, I’m back for reals!

1 Year Down

2009-05-13T19:50:00.012-04:00

This is the face of a boy that just finished his first year of law school. Yay!

My thoughts on the matter:

It went by fast, way, way fast.

It was easier and harder then I expected. Harder: $, we STILL have not sold our house. Ugh. Easier: adjusting to life in MI, making friends, being so far from home.

I thought I would never see Brandon, but because I’m working from home we get to spend a lot of time to together, that was a pleasant surprise.

Those guys in the picture up there? They are awesome. I’m so grateful for the friends Brandon has made. He has an amazing support system.

It feels like a big accomplishment. All you law wives know, everyone says the second year is so much easier. I can’t believe it’s just around the corner.

What’s next? A summer internship, maybe some classes (we’re still undecided), some good quality time with our family and Vegas friends, a move into a new apartment (that deserves it's own bitter post) and this LONG drive home:

Ever wondered what a trip accross the midwest looks like? Stay tuned!

Happy Birthday Sis

2009-05-12T02:21:00.005-04:00

This is so late, today was crazy, but here we go...

I don’t even know where to start- my sister is such a great friend. We can talk about anything, laugh about anything, cry and yell at each other, and the love will never ever die. I feel closer to her than ever before in our lives, and I think the older we get, the closer we will get. I’m honored she trusts me with so much of her life.

Holly you are so talented, so passionate, so hilarious, so beautiful, so smart, such a blessing in my life. I love you!!

I hope you get everything you wish for and all that you deserve this year...

My Mom

2009-05-10T18:24:00.005-04:00

If there was ever a day to blog it’s today. I have to tell my mom how much I love her. When we were little she read us stories almost every night, always did our hair perfectly and never dressed in character shoes or outfits. She would put our towels in the dryer so they would be warm when we got out of the bath. This is the woman that was willing to wake up at 5:00 a.m., maybe earlier, to whip out a treat to take to seminary. She drove me back and forth to school sometimes 4 or 6 times a day when I was cheerleader. She makes homemade dinner almost every single night. Now that I’m a wife (and I only have two people to cook for) I know what a task that is. She has signature recipes that remind me of home. She can decorate, fold laundry perfectly, keep a house like only wish I could. She’s smart and opinionated, but she usually chooses to keep peace. She always knows what to do- I can call her with any problem and when I’m done talking to her I know everything is going to be okay. She is spiritual and an amazing example. She is responsible for who I’ve become, for me teaching me about the temple and eternal families and I know that I have my own eternal family because of what she taught me. I talk to her at least once a day, usually more often, and she is always doing something for someone else; driving someone somewhere, making someone something to eat, helping with a school project. She puts her family before herself and she has made me want to be a mother- I honestly don’t know if I’ll be able to do what she has done, but I’ll try my hardest. I don’t know what I would do without you. Happy Mothers Day!

Par-tay!

2009-05-09T00:40:00.008-04:00

Besides being a food photographer, one of my other far fetched dreams is to be an event planner. Maybe more of an event designer, I don’t really care to be in charge of the details, I just want to make it look amazing. So If I get a chance to throw a party, I take it! A few friends and I threw a double shower for Emily and Jamie. It turned out super cute, the food was great, and the company was even better. I only took a hundred pictures…

The welcoming committee

Cute preggo girls

Delish!

Every baby needs accessories!

Thanks girls- it was fun!

Happy Anniversary to US!

2009-05-04T00:04:00.005-04:00

So it’s been 6 whole years! This is us when it all started…

And when we sealed the deal on May 2nd, 6 years ago…

It’s right in the middle of finals but Brandon still took me on a fun date to Troppo (the one niceish restaurant in Lansing) and to see Ghosts of Girlfriends Past…

Chocolate Cream Pie with Burnt Sugar Bananas- so good!

I gave us this little quiz to evaluate:

My first impression of you was...
He said: I’ve got to meet her...April, who’s your friend?
She Said: This kid is cute...…clearly fresh off the mission...…we’ll see

I knew I loved you...
He Said: Before we broke up, after we got back together and now
She Said: Before I met you. Kidding, one day when we at my parents house hanging out I just knew

Our first kiss was...
He Said: Unexpected...but great!
She Said: Connected. I don’t know else to describe it…you’re my person

I have the most fun with you when we’re...
He Said: Doing anything and everything together... except cleaning!
She Said: Being crazy and laughing.

The thing I love most about you is...
He Said: Your compassion, commitment, patience, and that you love me.
She Said: I don’t think I can pick one thing. I love that you protect me and are always on my side, that you‘re funny, that you have so much compassion for people in need, and that you’re a hard worker

The past 6 years have been...
He Said: Too fast!
She Said: Amazing

5 years from now we will...
He Said: Be poorer than now but still happy because we have each other
She Said: Have a baby, be done with law school, and be even more in love

I want you to know...
He Said: That I love you and you’re my everything
She Said: I love you!! I’m so proud of you, you’re my best friend

Show and Tell

2009-04-29T16:32:00.002-04:00

My friend Jade asked me to make a blog header for her and I was thrilled- I love digital scrapping, it’s such a creative outlet for me. So I started, then I thought maybe I should give her choices, so I made three. I thought they turned out pretty cute so I wanted to share…

(Isn’t her baby ridiculously cute!?)

Rain, Rain, Go Away

2009-04-27T00:15:00.005-04:00

Last weekend the weather was amazing so we headed to Hawk Island with some friends. Michigan has the most amazing parks, lakes, rivers, trees…it’s beautiful. I took some great pictures (mostly of our friends’ cute kids) and we brought lunch and soaked up the sun. I was telling my mom it was like the scene from Twilight where it’s sunny for a day and everyone is laying out like they had never seen the sun before. Saturday Brandon and I walked around Old Town, down to the dock by the river and checked out the fish ladder. For all the complaining about winter, I have to say that spring and summer make up for it tenfold. This weekend it rained non stop just to give us a reality check!

I’m trying to get a huge dose of Brandon to gear up for finals. It’s not my favorite time of year, but I know it’s necessary and luckily I’m not the only one going through it. His first final is Friday- good luck babe!

I can’t believe April is almost over. Time feels like it literally flies. We’ll be out of here in like, 2 ½ weeks. I’ve been busy making lists, trying to figure out what we can vs. can’t live without for 3 months, what will survive in the freezer, what all we can unplug to pay for as little electricity as possible. It’s kinda sad to leave all the people that have made this place so much fun. Some are graduating and never coming back, some are staying through the summer, most are going home or somewhere for an internship. We’ll miss you guys! We haven’t seen our families since Christmas and just as sad as we are to leave, we’re SO excited to go home to the desert sun.

I’m feeling pretty grateful for the people we love right now.

Just a Little Bit Proud

2009-04-22T10:09:00.005-04:00

of Miss California. I think it was pretty brave to say what she really believed (and to wear that tiny white bikini on stage).

A great article on CNN says what I would say if I were as eloquent...

(CNN) -- A lot of folks are always saying they like to keep it real, that they want authenticity and straight talk. Yet when someone actually does it, there is hell to pay. Welcome to the world of Miss California, Carrie Prejean, who, since she answered a question regarding same-sex marriage in Sunday's Miss USA pageant, has been savagely attacked by those who oppose what she had to say.

Leading the burn-her-at-the-stake parade is media opportunist Perez Hilton, the self-described gossip queen, and the individual who kick-started this controversy by asking the initial question as to whether the issue of same-sex marriage should be left up to the states.

It seems that Hilton, who is gay, was none too pleased that Prejean chose to actually give her personal opinion on the issue, and ripped her on his blog after the show, using crude obscenities as he continued to attack her at every turn on his media blitz.

Hey, Hilton, from a real journalist to a wanna-be who traffics in gossip: Never ask a question if you're unprepared for the answer!

Frankly, this whole story is pretty stupid. Isn't the whole point of asking a question to get someone's true feelings, rather than the plastic and superficial answers we are all used to receiving?

Sure, Prejean could have gone the safe route and given one of those answers that reveal nothing and is hard to decipher -- you know, the ones politicians give all the time -- but no! She actually gave her real opinion, and is now being torn to shreds for it.

She opposes same-sex marriage. OK, fine. So what if she had said, "Hey, I'm in full support of same-sex marriage." Would she now be celebrated on gay-focused blogs, magazines and Web sites? Would her detractors actually be saying how open she is and that she's a great person?

Same-sex marriage is undoubtedly a hot button issue. And being from California, the site of Proposition 8, the ballot initiative that voters approved outlawing same-sex marriage, Prejean has surely had to hear the debate go back and forth. But her remark isn't outside the mainstream. A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll shows that 55 percent of Americans are against same-sex marriage, and Proposition 8 did pass in her state 52-48 percent.

What's interesting about this is that many of the same folks who are slamming her for her remark voted for President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, who both have the same belief: that marriage should be between a man and a woman.

Even Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made it clear that she has the same view, and it was her husband, President Bill Clinton, who signed the In Defense of Marriage Act, the federal law that forbids states from having to recognize gay marriage in other states.

In other words, four of the biggest liberals in the country have the same belief as Prejean, but a beauty pageant winner is being torn to shreds. Hello, hypocrisy!

Those who criticize Prejean have the same right as she does to express their viewpoints. But enough with all the political correctness, where someone says she should have danced around the issue, smiled and move on.

At the end of the day, we all have to be true to ourselves. Whether it's a gay gossip writer who favors same-sex marriage or a heterosexual women who is against same-sex marriage. The day we condemn folks for speaking honestly is the day we become a bland society.

Maybe we're already there.

Yo Girl...

2009-04-17T10:19:00.003-04:00

Blogger was on the fritz last night so this is a day late, but…

Do you get it Kenz? (I think I’m hilarious.)

Happy 18th Birthday McKenzie!

I can’t believe my little baby sister is 18. Holy Cow. I love you so much and I’m so sad I can be there. It’s the first of 18 birthdays I’ve ever had to miss. You are so talented, spunky and beautiful. I hope you have the best birthday.

Good Times

2009-04-13T23:15:00.006-04:00

I hate to admit, I don’t actually fully understand Good Friday, but I got the day off work so I was lovin’ it. Friday night we went a saw the Lansing Lugnuts with some friends. It was way fun, but seriously freezing. I think it was in the high 30’s. We stuck it out until the 5th inning; we are hard core cold weather people by now!

Our families rock at celebrating holidays. There is always something going on back home so it’s hard for me when holiday’s come around. They always think to send us something- we seriously feel so loved. Brandon’s mom sent us a gift card for groceries and my mom put together the cutest Easter basket for us. A few pics…

My mom always bought us Easter dresses and I continued the tradition for myself up until this year. I was trying to be good, since as law school costs an arm and a leg, ya know? So instead I bought a headband and when I asked Brandon if liked it, he said he wasn’t really into headbands. I wore it anyway :)

We attempted our own Easter dinner with some friends; I didn't love how everything I made turned out- but all in all, I was pretty proud of us, it was our first attempt.

(I secretly want to be a food photographer, wouldn't that be so much fun!?)

How Do You Title Something So Random?

2009-04-08T16:51:00.010-04:00

So since I posted last, Michigan State took down another number 1 seed (UConn) and made it to the National Championships. You’d have to be living under a rock to not know how that turned out, but we seriously could not be prouder of this team. They were completely underrated and it was so exciting to be at a school playing for the National Championship. Go State!

(I love that someone put a jersey on Sparty, we had to get a picture of it.)

The most exciting news of the year, Brandon finished RWA! In case you’re wondering, it’s the most time consuming class that 1L’s have to take. It’s basically the sole reason the first year is so difficult. But he’s done with it forever, so yay! Now we get to look forward to finals.

Since everyone probably has a bundle of hard boiled eggs, I thought I would post this simple, but excellent recipe I found on a new favorite food blog I found called Pinch My Salt. It’s so good!

Easy Egg Salad

4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
1/4 - 1/2 C. mayonnaise
1 - 2 t. Coleman’s mustard powder
salt and freshly ground pepper, to
taste

1. Place whole eggs in a bowl and, using a pastry blender, mash eggs until they are finely chopped.
2. Add 1/4 C. mayo and 1 t. mustard powder then stir to blend. Taste and then adjust amounts of mayo and mustard powder to suit your own taste.
3. Season well with salt and pepper.
4. Serve on your choice of bread.

The pastry blender idea? Genius!

Guess What? It's April, and this is what I saw out my window Monday and Tuesday...

I've come to terms with the fact that Spring is simply a date on the calender, not something I should look forward to any time soon (or until we're home in sunny Las Vegas of course).

One thing I love about Lansing is that I never have to deal with traffic or road construction, or so I thought. The other day I drove out of my parking lot and I saw this...

It's blocking the only acceptable route to everywhere I go (school, groceries, mall, church). Brandon told me another way I can go but I seriously think I might get shot, or least my chances increase significantly each time I drive through this neighborhood.

I really hope they fill up the ginormous hole and move their sign quickly, in the mean time I'll just aviod eye contact and duck as needed.

Things That Made Me Happy Last Week

2009-03-30T15:31:00.009-04:00

It snowed last night. Big crazy snowflakes when it’s supposed to be spring. That’s not the happy part…the happy part is that when I woke up this morning the sun was shining, not a cloud in the sky and all of the snow was gone. We can just pretend like it never happened!

I scrubbed my bedroom and bathroom, like spring cleaning style, even cleaned the drawers out. Today, almost one week later they’re still clean!

I watched Twilight will some gals on Friday night and we chatted until 2 a.m. We caught the last few minutes of the MSU game and they made it to the Elite 8. That's a double dose.

Brandon had a ginormous assignment due today so last week was crazy. Saturday he and Eric were at the library ALL DAY. I hung out with Jamie and Cohen when the boredom became too much- they definitely made me happy last week.

I made Cream Cheese brownies. They were so dang good!

I realized that Brandon will be done with his first year of law school in 44 days. What the? It went by so fast! I am so happy for him, he rocked it.

On Sunday Michigan State played for a chance at the Final 4 in Detroit. They beat the number 1 overall seed, nobody though they could do it. Honestly, such historic and amazing events deserve their own post, coming soon.Yay for Happiness.

The Most Cliché Blog Post Ever

2009-03-25T22:49:00.003-04:00

I can’t help myself; I have to publicly show some crazy lurve to Matt Giraud. He's got flava with an "a", not an "or". He’s from Kalamazoo, just a hop, skip and jump from Lansing. If he makes it to the final three I will be there in Kalamazoo when he comes home to hundreds of crazy Idol fans, a little parade, and gets a key to the city (don't quite understand that).

Keep gettin’ on Matt!

So Sweet

2009-03-22T19:53:00.003-04:00

Sweet 16, that is. How fun to be at MSU during the reign of the legendary coach Tom Izzo. Obviously they won because of Brandon’s lucky hat…

His parents hooked him up with that beauty during their visit a few weeks ago.

Go State!

Negative Nelly

2009-03-19T16:12:00.004-04:00

This week I’m being Negative Nelly. I’m over law school, cold weather, working alone all day and I’m really missing home. I try super hard to be positive and supportive, and it usually doesn’t take a whole lot of effort, but I just need a break from that, ya know? I got a huge dose of Brandon last week because it was spring break. He put things together, hung up pictures, took me out to eat, it was so great. This week I’ve seen him for a total of a few hours and I need attention! I know, I’m a 4 year old. I am so thrilled and grateful that Brandon landed an internship with a federal judge in Las Vegas and will be a visiting student at UNLV so he can get a few extra credits this summer. It will be great for his resume, and it means I know for sure I’ll get to spend some much needed time with my family and will get to go to the office and interact with actual human beings. That was positive, right?

So random and unrelated…Mandy Moore has a new album coming out and it’s called Amanda Leigh. That’s totally my name, Amanda Leigh Wood (obviously hers is Amanda Leigh Moore). I got SO excited when I saw that, again, I think I'm 4.

Fabulash

2009-03-17T00:32:00.005-04:00

Ya know the game where you have to pick one beauty item you would want if you were stranded on a desert island? I’m pretty sure mine would be mascara. Folks are gettin’ crazy with the wands, have you seen the vibrating ones? I haven’t gone there yet. I’ve definitely tried my fair share though, and a good friend would share her findings. So...a few of my faves (and not so faves):

Benefit
Bad Gal Lash

Creates super fat, long lashes. I was stuck on this stuff for quite awhile. It has a tendency to get dry and leave little black flakes under your eyes, if it weren’t for that, it would probably still be my number one.

Too Faced
Lash Injection

When I decided to quit Bad Gal, I went for this stuff because of the similar brush. Ugh! So chunky, not cute, don’t buy.

Sephora
Atomic Volume

The super helpful sales lady at Sephora talked me into this purchase. I was convinced I needed a fat brush to create fat lashes, not the case. This stuff rocks and much cheaper then anything else I’ve tried. So what’s the problem? No Sephora in MI. Sad!

Dior
DiorShow Iconic
I went to Macy’s in search of a Sephora replacement. I heard rumors about a great new Dior mascara and when I went to check it out, I was thrilled that it had a very similar brush to my Sephora goodness. It’s definitely a winner.

Now that I've found it, the only thing left to do is bat my lashes and convince my husband it's worth every cent!

Sweetie-licious

2009-03-12T01:58:00.005-04:00

Holy Cow! If you are even remotely in the realm of Mid-Michigan, check this place out. It is a bundle of cute, retro, goodness! From their website…”Set in a vintage brick building in historic DeWitt, the entire business is based on nostalgia through the business’ mission, comfort foods and pies, atmosphere, music and merchandise. All of our beautiful employees wear vintage aprons and pearls and serve every customer with a smile.” Seriously, the gals were wearing pink and white checkered aprons. And the pie? Shmazing! (FYI- that’s amazing to a higher power.)

By Request....

2009-03-05T18:54:00.003-05:00

These pictures are um, special. The best I could do myself with my ginormous camera! So short, right? Definitely NOT just a trim.

A Short Story

2009-03-05T00:41:00.004-05:00

I finally got brave and got my hair cut in Lansing. I had a genius idea to ask someone with cute hair where they got it cut and then go to that person. I told the hairdresser, not too short, just trim it up. What about "not too short" requires clippers? I'm not sure either.

Yay!

2009-03-05T00:39:00.002-05:00

We are are the champions- my friends...

Fire at Motor Wheel Lofts

2009-03-01T20:18:00.007-05:00

I’m home pretty much all day since I work from home. We’ve lived here for about 6 months and in that time, the fire alarm has gone off three times during the day, all false alarms. So tonight while I was washing my hair the fire alarm goes off. I’m seriously in the middle of it, shampoo and everything so I decide I’m going to ignore it, it’s like the Boy Who Cried Wolf. Brandon goes out in the hallway and one of our neighbors tells him it’s a real fire. I had one armpit shaved, no conditioner in my hair but I jump out throw something on and head out the door still soaking wet. There was definitely a fire, the smoke hit us as soon as we stepped into the hallway. We headed down the stairwell just as 2 firemen came running up the stairs in full gear with their axes in their hands. When we got downstairs there we 8 firetrucks, at least 20 fireman, and all of our neighbors. Come to find out the treadmill in the gym caught on fire, and then the rest of the gym, and who knows what else. We were outside in the 17 degree coldness for about an hour and half, I’m pretty sure my wet hair had ice crystals. Okay, so I learned my lesson and will happily evacuate each and end every time the fire alarm goes off. Luckily we were able to snap a few pictures with Brandon's cell phone...

Delish!

2009-02-26T00:38:00.003-05:00

I have tried some awesome recipes lately and I HAVE to share them. I get most of them from recipe blogs linked to my side bar. I try to cook things that are pretty easy with ingredients you can find at the normal store and are generally healthy. I’m always looking for new culinary delights; hopefully you try them like them as much as we did!

Oven Baked Coconut Shrimp
• 3 cups shredded sweetened coconut
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup panko* (Japanese-style bread crumbs)
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
• Kosher salt, to taste
• 4 large egg whites
• 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails intact
• Nonstick cooking spray

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Spread the coconut evenly on an ungreased sheet pan and toast in the oven, stirring occasionally, until golden, 8 to 10 minutes.

Increase oven temperature to 400°F.

To prepare the shrimp, line a sheet pan with parchment paper. In a shallow dish, whisk together the flour, bread crumbs, cayenne pepper, and salt. Place the toasted coconut in another dish. Place the egg whites in a medium bowl and whisk until frothy. Pat the shrimp dry and dip first in the egg whites, then the flour, back in the egg whites, then roll in the coconut.

Arrange the shrimp on the prepared pan and spray lightly with cooking spray. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until cooked through and golden.

I served them with a sauce I made with Apricot preserves and Dijon Mustard.

IHOP French Toast
2 eggs
½ c. milk
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
3 T. flour
6 slices of thick sliced French bread

First beat eggs, then add remaining ingredients with electric mixer. Dip both sides of bread and place in hot buttered pan. Flip over when browned. Serve with Coconut Syrup.

Coconut Syrup
7-8 T. butter
¾ c. buttermilk
1 c. sugar
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp coconut extract

Place butter, buttermilk and sugar in a pot. Then turn stove on medium and stir until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil and boil one minute. Remove from heat and add soda and flavoring. It will bubble up; just continue to stir and give it a few minutes for the 'fizz' to reduce before serving.

Just a note on this, it is AMAZING. I don’t think it falls into the generally healthy category, but is SO good.

Cafe Rio Pork Salad
3 lb pork roast
1 c brown sugar
1 c Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp powdered ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
2 Tb dried minced onions

Cook all ingredients in a crock pot on low all day (about 8 hours). One hour before serving, remove roast and shred it. Dump out all cooking juices and place shredded pork back into crockpot and add...

1 c brown sugar
1 c red enchilada sauce

Cilantro Lime Rice
3 c water
3 c Minute rice
4 cubes chicken bouillon
4 tsp garlic, minced
1 Tb canola oil
2 Tb fresh lime juice
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1/2 onion
1 can green chilies

Blend cilantro, onion, and chilies in food processor. Bring water to boil and add all ingredients, simmer covered for 30 minutes or until rice is cooked. *I hate Minute Rice and never buy it - you can substitute regular rice, just adjust the water to rice ratio accordingly.

Garlic Black Beans
1 can black beans
1/3 c tomato juice
2 cloves garlic, minced (1 tsp)
1 tsp cumin
2 Tb canola oil
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tb chopped cilantro

Heat oil then add cumin and garlic until garlic begins to pop. Add rest of ingredients and serve warm.

Creamy Tomatillo Dressing
3 tomatillos, peeled and quartered
juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 c buttermilk
1/2 c mayonnaise
1/2 c sour cream
1 pkg dry buttermilk ranch dressing
1 c fresh chopped cilantro
6 green onions with ends, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced (1 tsp)
3 tsp sugar
1 jalapeno, sliced thin - add to taste

Place all ingredients in food processor or blender and mix well. Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.

Assembling your salad:
Toast a large tortilla sprinkled with cheese under the broiler until slightly crisp. Then layer chopped romaine, rice and beans, shredded pork, pico de gallo, guacamole, and crispy tortilla strips. Drizzle on dressing, sprinkle with cotija cheese and garnish with a lime wedge.

This was obviously a pain to make, so I skipped the rice and beans. The pork and salad dressing are dead ringers for Café Rio.

Enjoy!

Visitors!

2009-02-22T22:42:00.011-05:00

This week was a little crazy, hence the lack of posts. Brandon’s parents came for a visit so we drove to Detroit to pick them up. On the way we made a stop at the Somerset Mall because I was in serious need of a Sephora and MAC. I think if I could pick one thing that I miss to transport to Lansing it would be a Sephora or an Ulta. We had dinner at an old fave, California Pizza Kitchen. I cannot get enough of the Barbecue Chopped Chicken Salad. On Saturday we took them around campus and showed them the Law School. I was thrilled that there was huge snow storm on Saturday, I wanted them to see what it is really like here and they definitely did. A few pics of our tour…

The Lobby of the Law School...

Where Brandon spends most of his time...

A plaque from the original Detroit College of Law...

The MSU Dairy Store...

Ice Cream in the snow...

Dinner at Clara's...

Thanks for a fun visit!

Don't Try This at Home

2009-02-14T02:08:00.004-05:00

I watch Top Chef, which is basically like going to culinary school, right? After 5 seasons I feel like if I were asked to break down an entire pig/chicken/fish and use my classic French cooking techniques and a camp stove to whip up something delish in 30 minutes I could do it. My knife skills however, leave something to be desired. One time on Top Chef, this guy cut an avocado in half and then he held the half with the pit in his hand. Then you basically flick your knife at the pit, twist and it comes out all clean and awesome. I’ve done it before, its not complicated. Last night when I was doing the flick part, I sort of missed the pit and the knife when through the avocado and into my hand. I’m pretty sure after that Padma would have told me to pack my bloody knives and go.

28!?

2009-02-11T08:00:00.003-05:00

I can’t believe you’re 28! I met you after you got home from your mission, when you were 21...time flies. I’m so proud of you and what you’ve accomplished in the last 7 years and I’m so glad your mine. I realize this is very “Seriously, So Blessed” of me, but I can’t resist…

28 Things I Love About You

I love that you always make up your own words to whatever song is on the radio
I love how when you get home from school and I’m cooking dinner, you come in and start stirring and end up completely taking over
I love that you’re on my side
I love that you make up names for me, jeebs and cash are my favorites
I love that you work hard
I love that you get good grades
I love that you always want to come with me, even to the mall and the grocery store
I love that you let me pick out your clothes
I love how you watch my shows with me, even The Bachelor
I love that you lace up my Uggs
I love that you dream big
I love that you love to play games
I love that you honor your priesthood
I love how you always make me feel safe
I love how you’ll see any movie I want to see, even though I don’t return the favor
I love that you served an honorable mission
I love that you want to be a dad
I love how much family means to you
I love how you are so great with kids
I love that you want me to be happy and will do anything to make sure I am
I love that I can ask you to get things down from high places and put them back up like 20 times a day, and you never seem to get annoyed with me
I love that you play with my sisters
I love that you remind me of my dad
I love that you are such a GUY
I love how insanely competitive you are (most of the time)
I love that you are so handy and can pretty much fix, hang, rewire anything
I love that I can count on you
I love that you love me

Happy Birthday!

No News Is Good News

2009-02-09T00:25:00.003-05:00

SO LAME to blog about weather, I know, but… It was 50 degrees yesterday and the sun was out ALL DAY. I was in heaven! Apparently this has been one of the worst winters in Michigan in 30 years. I know it’s not over since it’s supposed to snow on Thursday, but progress is good. I love that a warm day has become blog worthy!

In even more lame news, we have no news. Brandon reads, reads, reads all day and night and tries to keep up on all his assignments. He has a huge assignment due on Thursday, the day after his birthday, so he told me to just pretend his birthday is on Friday since he won’t have time to celebrate on Wednesday. Sad! Luckily he squeezes in a little time for Mob Wars…do you know what that is? If not, stay far away, apparently it sucks you in. My days are filled with work, laundry, making dinner, telling Brandon to stop playing Mob Wars and luckily a few friends and some girls’ nights to break up the monotony.

But honestly, we feel really blessed to be here, for Brandon to continue his education, for my job, and for the great friends we have made here. I guess no news is good news!

What's For Dinner?

2009-01-29T17:33:00.007-05:00

My mom is an amazing cook. I seriously grew up on the best food. We had dinner almost every single night as a family. At Christmas people wait by their doors for her treats and people are always asking her for her recipes. So my goal is to make dinner most nights, with sides and everything. That's what I grew up with, and that's what I want to do for my husband and our future kids. But seriously, sometimes I want nothing more than to just skip the grocery store and mess of cooking and just go out.

For Christmas we got a fabulous idea from my aunt to give out our family recipes on cards I designed and put them in a cute tin. Now that I have them, I’ve made a few of my favorite things from growing up and haven’t dreaded it quite as much. So if you don’t know what to make for dinner, here are a few of my favorites for you to try…

(click to enlarge the image)

Enjoy!

A Weekend In...

2009-01-26T13:56:00.005-05:00

Who goes to Chicago during the coldest month of the year? Only crazy people I’m sure, and I’m glad we have a few friends crazy enough to go with us.

I’m convinced you’ve never been cold until you’ve felt the wind blow off of Lake Michigan. Even in the frigid cold, Chicago still has that thing that makes it so amazing, I love the energy there.

We rode the subway to get around, shopped, ate, went to the aquarium, played games and talked until the wee hours of the morning. It was great to get away.

So it’s January 26th, I’m almost though the coldest month and I totally survived. It only gets warmer from here!

Good News

2009-01-14T19:51:00.009-05:00

Well, I'm not sure if this technically counts as news... but you may have previously read about my love of 100 Calorie Packs. The new Oreo Cakesters are divine! Brandon prefers Vanilla, I like Chocolate, try them both!

Do not confuse them with new Oreo Snack Cakes, not nearly as good...

In other “news” Kelly Clarkson has a new single out called "My Life Would Suck Without You". How romantic. I love an American Idol, but I’m not sure how I feel about it yet. It’s definitely back to her roots before she got all defiant and decided she could make whatever kind of music she wanted. I think she realized she preferred selling records and making money as opposed to not and went a little more mainstream this time. The new album is out March 17th.

If you watch Biggest Loser be sure to root for Dane on the Black team. He was Brandon’s companion on his mission and is a great guy.

And if you watch The Bachelor be sure to root for Melissa. I don’t know the girl but I‘ve been a fan since she was on Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team. Imagine my surprise when I recognized her on The Bachelor. It was then that I realized I have a serious problem and should probably lay off the reality TV.

Last, but certainly not least…

Happy Birthday to the smartest, funniest, most generous guy I know (beside Brandon) ... My dad!

Back to School

2009-01-12T16:03:00.003-05:00

The vacay is officially over. Our flight home was seriously crazy. At one point we were sitting on the dirty floor of O'Hare with 4 cheeseburgers, 20 chicken nuggets, and 2 large fries. How did we get there? They held us in the air on our flight from Las Vegas to Chicago because of weather, no flights could land or take off. By the time we landed it was time for our connection to Lansing to leave. We got off the plane looked at the monitors and it said on-time, we totally missed it. We walked over to the tram that took us to our gate (passing all possible food options on the way). When we got there, we found out we were delayed, the monitor just didn't say so. So we had about an hour to get food. We had two options, a sports bar or McDonald's. Since they couldn't confirm a time when our flight was leaving we thought McDonald's was the safest bet. So we got in line, and waited and waited and watched people in the other three lines come and go. 40 minutes later, finally our turn. Yay! We just wanted to share a meal, we paid and looked at our receipt...not what we ordered. Seriously? The incompetent employee made us run our card for a "refund" several times since we paid too much. We ask for the manager. Imagine our joy when the lady says she is the manager. What!?! Finally we were like...we'll pay whatever, we don't care. Just give us some food! So we ended up with 4 cheeseburgers, 20 chicken nuggets, and 2 large fries. There was no where to sit, all the chairs were filled with angry people. Finally our flight left, we were home free. But of course, when we arrived in Lansing, some of our bags didn't. Yes, the vacay is definitely over!

Seriously So Blessed

2009-01-05T02:07:00.002-05:00

I’ve seen this gem of a blog linked up to others, heard it discussed and seen it referenced here and there but never actually read it. So I was blog hopping tonight and decided to take a look. I have to admit at first I thought it was legit, and I was honestly intrigued. I actually enjoy people with overly high self esteem. As I read and went back to beginning I realized the blog was a way over the top spoof on the “typical Mormon mom blog”. It’s highly entertaining and I think I might want to be friends with a slightly toned down real life version of Tiffany/Amber/Megan/Nicole. Check it out.

Christmas!

2008-12-29T19:05:00.009-05:00

It has been a never ending party since we arrived to SNOW in Las Vegas. It’s ironic that it hasn’t snowed like this in Las Vegas in my life time, until I moved to one of the coldest places in the US!

My mom hosted our extended family Christmas Party this year. Her house is so festive you can’t help but feel the Christmas spirit. Katee and I were in charge of the tables, they turned out fabulous if I do say so myself!

Brandon and my dad grilled up an amazing meal, and we had a fire pit with a “s’mores bar”.

We had an early Christmas dinner and did presents with Chris and Kara and our nieces Taylor and Lauren since they were going out of town.

My dad took us to Lawry’s for Christmas Eve. The decorations, Christmas carolers and food were fabulous.

At least half of Brandon’s gifts had to do with Michigan State…

And we have stayed up all night playing Wii and Rock Band every night since Christmas….

I Need to Focus

2008-12-17T13:47:00.004-05:00

We’re leaving in a few days to go for home for Christmas for 3 whole weeks! This means I need to scrub my house (I refuse to come home to a messy house when we go on vacation), do all of our laundry, pack for three weeks, and get caught up on my work all why Brandon is taking his finals. So what do I do last night? Something listed above you would think. No, I made a Christmas card I had absolutely no intention of sending to anyone. Luckily for me, my time wasn’t completely wasted; I have this handy blog to post it on!

Merry Christmas!

(click-to-enlarge)

It's a Small World

2008-12-11T03:03:00.005-05:00

Last Friday in the men’s shoe department at Nordstrom in the Fashion Show Mall, a guy named Michael was helping my dad try on overpriced Italian leather loafers. I asked him if he had any shoes for MI, because when we were at the Silver Bells parade Brandon said the only part of him that was cold were his feet. He asked me where we lived in MI, and when I told him Lansing he said, are you a Brian Hoyer hater?

What!? How does random Michael with a purple pocket square at Nordstrom in Las Vegas know I wrote a letter to Brain Hoyer politely suggesting he find another career path?

So he explains that he had some customers a few weeks back from Lansing that hated Hoyer, and apparently it’s pretty common. Random Michael went to High School with Hoyer AND played football with him. He said he’d be sure to tell Hoyer he met another hater next time he talked to him. I told him to please wish him well in his future endeavors; he is a 5th year senior after all. What a small world!

Well Hoyer, lucky for you, you have one last chance to impress us all. Michigan State is going to the Capital One Bowl in Orlando, FL on New Years Day! Good luck guys!

Thanksgiving and Other Good Stuff

2008-12-02T21:24:00.017-05:00

We are so grateful for my parent’s generosity so that we could come home for Thanksgiving! My sister came home from BYU as well and it was crazy and busy and loud with all 7 of us at my parent’s house, just how I like it. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. Focusing on gratitude and food...what's not to love? We spent the day with Brandon’s side of the family in Mesquite and for some reason I only took one picture, it was raining so my hair is weird and flat, and basically it's not getting posted.

In other exciting news, no one will ever guess who we saw while shopping at The District last week. Drum roll please…Stephanie Pratt! She had the same blank stare on her face that she has 90% of the time. If you don’t know who Stephanie Pratt is, you seriously need to devote some time to watching one of MTV’s finest, and one of my favorite “reality” shows, The Hills. I’m also eagerly anticipating the arrival of another fine MTV creation, The City starring one of my favorite Hills gals Whitney Port. Following The City we have the pleasure of watching Brody Jenner in his new series Bromance. Yay!

This week we spent most of our time decorating for Christmas. I love decorating and I couldn’t take all of my Christmas stuff to MI so I’ve been living vicariously though my mom’s decorations. My little sis Kenzie and I have done the “fancy tree” for past few years and we did it again this year. It’s hilarious because we’re both completely indecisive and 5 feet tall. We ask each other where we should hang things, move them around a bunch and almost die standing on the very top of the ladder and on the edge of the window sill. Here’s the final result…

On Sunday we had our “all girl” McPherson Family Christmas party with all of my aunts and cousins on my mom’s side of the family. This year it was in St. George at my Granddaddy’s house. Every one brought an appetizer and dessert. We do a gift exchange and eat and chat, so fun!

This is getting long, but I discovered a few great things I have to share. Starbucks has a delicious new beverage, Salted Caramel Signature Hot Chocolate. This sweet and salty combination brings together rich, indulgent Signature Hot Chocolate and the flavors of buttery caramel and smoked sea salt. It is topped with whipped cream, a swirl of caramel and a sprinkle of our sea salt topping - a combination of artisan sea salt and Turbinado sugar from Hawaii. (Don’t worry; I didn’t write that description myself, I stole it from the website.)

And last but certainly not least, my new favorite product is The Present by Philosophy. It’s a clear makeup skin perfector for day and night. Look like you have perfect skin, even if you don't. You should try it, great stuff.

A Shout Out to Blogging Moms...

2008-12-02T20:28:00.005-05:00

My sister is getting her masters at BYU and is part of a team researching young mothers and blogging behavior. I think it's fascinating how blogs affect people, their self esteem and how they view others vs. themselves. So, I need your help! The email she sent me along with the link is below. I'll try to post her findings once the study is complete.

This survey is part of a study being conducted by Brigham Young University. We are studying young mothers and blogging behavior. This study has been approved be the university. All you have to do is click on this link: https://byu.qualtrics.com/SE?SID=SV_9yi8C8VkcG7rgNu&SVID=Prod take the survey and at the end, enter your email address if you would like to be entered in a drawing for one of five $100 Target gift cards just in time for Christmas shopping. We appreciate your participation and support of our research.

Thanks,
Communications Research Team

While I Was Out...

2008-11-19T00:33:00.004-05:00

I’m finally back in Lansing after my “business trip” to Las Vegas.

While I was gone it snowed for the first time this winter! I can’t really say I’m sad I missed it. Sunday and almost every day since then I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing it first-hand. This is the view from our window…

I missed our last home game which I was super sad about. I feel like the games have given us something to look forward to and have helped keep us sane during this first semester. MSU played Purdue, and won! I watched it with my dad and couldn’t help but notice it looked absolutely freezing. It was the last time the seniors we have grown to know and love would play in Spartan stadium. Ringer went out with a bang scoring two touchdowns and had 121 yards on 32 carries to lead Michigan State, final score 21-7.

It's only been 3 months since we moved from Las Vegas but I definitely noticed that the mountains didn’t blend into the background quite as much, I can actually appreciate the desert as more than a wasteland, and no one should EVER take for granted roads without pot holes. If you live in Lansing you know what I’m talking about!

When I wasn’t working I got to hang out with mom and sisters, and I got to go to all my favorite restaurants…Pei Wei, Chevy’s, Carrabba’s, and Port-of-Subs (thanks Dad!). It was so good to see my in-laws and my cute nieces. Since I was mostly there for work, I didn’t get to see everyone I wanted to so I’m glad I’m going back on Saturday for Thanksgiving and that Brandon gets to come with me this time!

Mister Sister

2008-11-11T14:40:00.008-05:00

If your all burned out on tags, feel free to skip this one (but my title will never make sense unless you keep reading).

I’ve been “husband” tagged, which is super appropriate since I haven’t seen my husband in forever! (Well, 10 days really.) When we were first married he had to travel a lot for work but made sure he was never gone longer than 10 days. When I scheduled my work trip for 14 days he made sure to remind me of that.

What is your husband's name? Brandon

How long have you guys been married? 5 1/2 years

How long did you date? We dated for about 6 months and we were engaged for about 6 months (with a break-up in the middle)

How old is he? 27

Who is taller? He definitely is

Who can sing the best? He can, he was even in choir for a year in high school (feel free to make fun)

Who is smarter? He’s really book smart and generally knows something about everything, I love it when I know something he doesn’t (it rarely happens)

Who pays the bills? Me, but he helps

Who does the laundry? I usually do it since I’m home during the day, but he occasionally throws a load in, I do all of the folding and hanging

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? He does

Who mows the lawn? If we had one it would be him, it's not up for discussion, our house in Las Vegas is desert landscaping

Who cooks dinner? Brandon has a few signature dishes, but that’s usually me too

Who is the first to admit when they're wrong? I’m never wrong, so…

Who kissed who first? Depends on who you ask, since I’m being asked, he kissed me

Does he have any nicknames? Oh yes, I call him everything but his name- one of my favorites is Mister Sister, I also enjoy Yo B- as in, what's up Yo B?
(Now he calls me the counterpart to Mister Sister, Misses Brother)

Who wears the pants? What does that even mean? I like to think that we both contribute to making our life together productive and happy

A few pics I enjoy...

Miss ya!!