Bumbos

So the other day Dustin thought it would be a good idea to put Charlotte in her Bumbo. She isn't nearly big enough for it and she can't control her head, but we gave it a try anyways. I couldn't stop laughing at how funny she was. She was all slumped over, but she was a good sport and didn't cry. She is a sweet baby.

The 12 Days of Christmas

On the First day of Christmas my true love gave to me, one beautiful baby girl.

On the Second day of Christmas I really needed a nap, but that just hasn't happened yet.

On the Third day of Christmas my baby girl smiled at me, probably because she was gassy.

On the Fourth day of Christmas we went broke buying diapers.

On the Fifth day of Christmas I got thrown up on and was too tired to shower.

On the Sixth day of Christmas I spent the night rocking a fussy pants.

On the Seventh day of Christmas I had sympathy for the dairy cows.

On the eighth day of Christmas I realized I had picked a good daddy for my baby.

By the ninth day of Christmas the laundry all smelled like sour milk.

On the tenth day of Christmas I received one hefty hospital bill, anyone want to go halfsies?

On the eleventh day of Christmas I am no longer afraid of a little poop on my hands.

On the twelfth day of Christmas I realize what a tiny miracle I hold in my undeserving hands and I thank the Lord everyday for sending her to me.

Christmas Candy in all its glory

There is something about candy that is in a Christmas bag that makes me need to buy it. The marketing companies are very cleaver in making me feel like it's ok to splurge on candy that is for a holiday, even when I start buying it in October. This week my nemesis has been the Kisses with Almonds. They are the most tricky chocolate candy out there. I would never sit down and eat two candy bars. The thought of that is pretty gross and the latter part of me would balloon into an unrecognizable shape very quickly. However, I can sit down and eat a whole pile of kisses with almonds. The equivalent of several candy bars in fact. That is gross, I know. But they look so small and innocent. My advice, don't let them trick you, just leave them at the store.

Home Sweet Home

When the plane lands in Utah, I think I breathe a little easier. Why is that I wonder? Dustin and I got to spend the week in Utah with my family. I like Arizona don't get me wrong, but there is just nothing like home. We spent all of the time at the cabin in Fairview. I have the prettiest neices and the smartest nephew in the world. I wish Taylin could come wake me up every morning :) Now were back, it's suppose to be 114 on Saturday. Let the sweating continue.

It's officially offical

Our baby will officially be wearing this: Dustin was sort of in disbelief because he was quite "sure" it was a boy. If it's a boy, it's missing something very important. Let the pink shopping begin!

Advertures at Petsmart

So last night Dustin and I decide that the dogs need a new bed. Their's is getting a little wornout. We decide to head over to Petsmart. Scratch has been a little bored at home lately so we decided to take him with us. He loves to go to the store and smell everything and see the other dogs. Just as we enter the store, Dustin reminds me not to let him get too close to any merchandise. (he is a male dog and loves to mark everything outside!) For some reason I figured that because we were in a store he wouldn't do that. He doesn't do it in the house, just outside and on walks. (note to self: Scratch doesn't know the difference between Petsmart and a walk) Anyway, we're cruising down the aisle and Scratch is smelling a nice pink princess shirt, which he apparently liked and decided to claim as his own. Oh the horror. I pulled him away, but a little too late. Long story short, we have a new pink princess shirt at our house that I made him wear as punishment. I have got this parent thing down....You pee on it, you wear it.

Nothing to do but cook

Well, we haven't posted for a while again because I never take any pictures to post, but oh well, here it is and I'll attach a random photo that has nothing to do with the post :) We haven't been doing much because it's too stinking hot outside! We like to get up really early on Saturday morning and take the dogs for a walk and enjoy the cool (75 degree) air. It only lasts until about 9:00 then it's time to hide in the house for the rest of the day. I have been cooking a lot more lately and I discovered my cousin Anna's blog today and it had many delicious sounding recipes on it that I intend to try. She uses Shirley J products. I've never used them before but I went to the website today and placed a pretty good order. If they turn out to be as good as they look, I will let everyone know so they can try em' out. The website for anyone interested is shirleyj.com. (spelling now corrected) Other then that we are just hanging out at home. We had a three week break from school, but we're starting back up this Monday. Summer classes are usually relaxed, so this should be a good semester. We may just get in the pool today, but that depends if Dustin can wake up from his nap :0)

Vacation close to home

Last week my mom and sister came to Arizona to visit me. We stayed at a resort in Phoenix about an hour from my house. Sometimes you don't have to go far to feel like your on vacation. It was unusually cold for a day or two, but the sun came out before they left. We did more shopping then I will ever do again in my life and sat out by the pool the rest of the time. Correction, they sat out by the pool and I laid in bed a lot. I did play in the lazy river the last day and it was pretty nice. These pictures are not great, but there are no good shots of me. Oh well.

St. Patricks and other Random thoughts

It's been a while since I blogged, so here is the quick update. Nothing much has changed. We've taken up bowling as our new hobby and Dustin tries relentlessly to beat me. We continue to watch in horror as the government wastes our tax dollars and digs our country deeper and deeper into debt. Oh a happier note, Survivor is really good this season and for all of you out there that watch it, let's form a club to get Coach voted out. He is the single most ridiculous player I have ever watched! Happy St. Patricks Day. I hope everyone remembers to wear green.

Crawling Across the Freeway=One Sad Mess

Ok, I have to comment today on the tragic accident on US-60. (I will re-cap for everyone not living in Arizona) At 5:00 AM there was a un-suspecting person driving westbound on the 60, when to their surprise they spotted a person crawling across the HOV lane. I'm sorry, what was that? Yeah, that's what I said. The 60 is one of the largest highways in Arizona, four to six lanes in both directions. The HOV lane is the furthest one to the left. How in the world did a women manage to get onto the freeway and crawl all the way over there? I can't wrap my mind around this. Sadly, she was run over by not one, but a few vehicles. Luckily Dustin saw this on the news before we came upon it on our way to work. We took alternate routes. Can anyone even speculate about what this women was doing? I am stumped. As a warning to the rest of you, please remember that freeway crawling is not only frowned upon by the highway patrol, but also very hazardous to your health.

Tag--

TAG...
try and use one word!

1. Where is your phone? I never know
2. Where is your significant other? work
3 .Your hair color? brown
4. Your Mother? far far away
5. Your Father? smart
6. Your favorite thing? the sun
7. Your dream last night? haunted house with Jacob from Lost
8. Your dream/goal? finish school
9. The room you're in? bedroom
10. Your hobby? running
11. Your fear? running out of time before I accomplish all my goals
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Utah
13. Where were you last night? school
14. What you're not? loud
15. One of your wish-list items? William Sonoma, the whole store!
16. Love Someone? many people in fact
17. The last thing you ate? goldfish crackers
18. What are you wearing? shorts
19. Your TV? over used
20. Your pet? happiness
21. Your computer? what about it?
22. Your mood? upbeat
23. Missing someone? Always
24. Your car? white
25. Something you're not wearing? hat
26. Favorite store? Super Target
27. Your Summer? hot
28. Where did you grow up? Lindon
29. Your favorite color? Pink
30. When was the last time you laughed? today at work
31. Last time you cried? unknown
32. Something you crave? doughnuts
33. pet peeve? personal space violators
I tag Amanda and mom. Good luck mom!

You are officially old!

Happy Birthday Dustin! I still love you, even though you're an old man now.

Yummy in my Tummy

OK, I know my last post was a recipe, but I have to post this one too. I was in Costco a few months ago and they were giving out recipe books so I took one (In the Kitchen, the Costco Way). I figured I would look thru it, but my expectations weren't high. This is one of the best cookbooks I have ever owned. I have made about 13 recipes from it and they have all turned out amazing. Also, it has pictures and I really love that. So...here is a Baked Ziti recipe that will made your mouth water (trust me).

2 T. Olive Oil

1 1/2cupes diced brown mushrooms

1 T. crushed garlic

1/4 cup white wine

1 T. finely chopped shallot

1/4 cup chicken broth

3/4 pound sausage (I like the Jimmy Dean's 1/2 fat sausage)

2 T. chopped fresh basil (my favorite herb!)

1/2 tsp salt

4-ounce part skim-ricotta cheese

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

3/4 cup shredded provolone cheese

1 1/2 cups crushed tomatos

8 ounce ziti or penne pasta (cooked)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan

1/2 cup smoked provolone cheese

Preheat oven to 350. In a preheated nonstick skillet over medium heat, saute olive oil, garlic, shallots and sausage for 2-3 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add salt, pepper, eggplant and mushrooms; saute for another 1-2 minutes. Turn heat up to high, add wine and stir until evaporated. Add chicken broth and cook until slightly reduced. Return heat to medium and simmer for 1-2 more minutes. Gently fold in basil, ricotta, mild provolone and tomatoes. Simmer for 1-2 minutes. Fold in cooked pasta and Parmesan cheese. Transfer to casserole and top with smoked provolone. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until heated though. Makes 5 or 6 servings.

On another note, things are going well here in Mesa. School has started, so we are pretty busy most nights. Dustin is having his tonsils and adnoids out tomorrow and his sister is suppose to have her baby, so it will be an eventful day. More to come on that.....

A large rodent in the fridge... Lo siento, madre

Who can one call to deal with such a problem? I'm just kidding. Ms. Sheera is no rodent (even though she is definitely part rattus). Sara is sound asleep, so I thought I could post a blurb for the first time. She probably won't like seeing this since she already thinks I annoy the dogs too much. We saw "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" tonight and it was pretty funny. Sara was a trooper for going since she is sick, but I just pouted for a bit and she decided to go. It works every time! Marriage is funny. Before I got married I couldn't imagine being with someone 24/7. Now I can't stand to be away from her for more than a couple of hours. She has no idea how lucky I am to have her in my life.

Saturday Morning Breakfast

On Saturday morning, it has become tradition for Dustin and I to make a big breakfast together. I never know what he's going to want before hand, he waits until he wakes up to decide. This usually results in an early morning trip to the grocery store in our pajamas. There is one breakfast that we both particulary love, buttermilk coffee cake. So, this morning I thought I would post a picture and a recipe for the two people that read my blog. I always love when people give me tried and true recipes to use....so here you go.

1 cup butter (softened)

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup sugar

1/4 tsp salt

2 eggs (beaten)

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups flour

1 cup buttermilk

1 tsp baking soda

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs; stir in alternately the combined dry ingredients; add vanilla and buttermilk. Put half the batter in the bottom of a 9 x 12 inch pan (I use a slightly smaller one so my cake is puffier) then half the topping. Add the remaining batter and the remaining topping. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes. Topping: 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, 4 tbsp white sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon. Yum!

The recipe actually says to bake for 45 to 50 minutes, but that always cooks it too much for me, I like it soft and moist.

New Year, New Room, New York Cheesecake

It's been a while since I've blogged because Christmas season was so crazy! It's finally wrapping up and it's been fun. Dustin woke me up this morning at the unattractive hour of 5:30. We went outside to watch a meteor shower. It was a little chilly, but kind of neat to be witnessing something while everyone else was warm in their beds. Today, we have been crazy busy changing rooms and organizing everything. Who knew two people could have so much crap? New Years Eve was pretty laid back this year. We went to Olive Garden with Dustin's parents then came home and watched some tv. Jaime and Ryan plus families came over and we almost made it to midnight, but not quite. We got in bed about quarter til and we stayed up long enough to watch the ball drop, have a New Years kiss and I was out cold about ten seconds later. I'm not a night person. The day after Christmas I flew home to Utah without my honey :( because he had to work. It was really good to see my family. Everyone was home, which hasn't happened in 2 or 3 years. My neices and nephews are so adorable. Vance and Judy came down and stayed for two weeks. It's always nice to have people in the house, because sometimes it feels really big and empty. They left today and I guess the holidays are officially over. I might post some pictures later, but I don't think we took many this last month.