Nicole & Garrett Barber

Christmas Pictures

2012-01-29T09:25:00.001-07:00

Christmas in Tallahassee of course involves Chick-fil-a...with GIANT SANTA COWS

The Nativity Puppet Show

Garrett got a sweet jersey and a headset for playing video games with his friends. Dave and Mike got one too! Christmas morning was fun, but I have to say my favorite part was when Patrick got his electric guitar. He was really excited about it and was admiring it when Garrett yelled across the room, "What a nice little BANJO you got there!" But, he didn't say "banjo"...he said "bahnjo". Everyone was stunned for a minute, wondering if Garrett realized that he said it wrong. Finally, he did and was all "Oh, that's not right". It was really funny.

Another favorite moment is when we gave Susan The Three Trees and asked her to read it. I guess none of the Barbers had ever heard of it before, and everyone was bawling their eyes out. If you haven't read it, got get it!

Piano music from Andrea!

Christmas desserts

Disney World Tree!

Busch Gardens

Lots of pregnant people

And we drove home! In the Mirage, which was Garrett's car from high school. And it made it! However, we did not bring CDs, we could not connect our phones to the car, and I guess we drove through all the po-dunk states that don't have the radio. So Garrett and i did a lot of talking :)

Updates

2012-01-17T14:31:00.001-07:00

I don't usually like to blog without pictures, but my laptop broke unexpectedly, so here we are.

1. I love my job! I am learning so much about Family History work and smart builder! I seriously love designing these classes. I like working downtown and I am getting used to the bus.

2. Garrett and I have two friends now! Please ask me about them and I will tell you way more than you want to know :)

3. Christmas break was so so much fun. We went to Tallahassee and then Orlando to stay in a really nice condo. I ran many of the days, which I am glad about because I thought I wouldn't run at all over the break. However, it is actually much easier to run when you have lots of free time and the weather is 70 degrees. It's been much harder to go running since coming back to Utah, where it is FREEZING cold. I guess I just need to suck it up and get a gym pass. But where?

4. We went to the FSU bowl game, Disney World, and Busch Gardens over the break. We also got a Crock Pot and Garrett got an Adobe Suite (he hasn't decided which one he wants). Garrett also gave me an iPad, but I took it back because I didn't know what to do with it! What is wrong with me??

5. Scott gets his flipping mission call today. Eeek!

New Job

2011-12-14T09:26:00.000-07:00

So after about 7 months of looking, interviewing, interviewing, and interviewing, I finally found a real job! Starting January 4th, I am going to be an Instructional Designer for the Family History department at the Church. What makes this a real job, you ask? Well, for starters, I will actually be using the skills I learned (and paid for) in college. I will be designing lessons that teach people how to use the online services of Family Search. I will be organizing the live lessons of Family History Librarians into shorter movie clips. I will be doing lots of other stuff too :) Yay! It seems that going to college was not a waste of time after all :) Garrett and I are so excited about this job, and next semester looks like it is going to be a lot better than this one. (Oh, I wanted to point out that when I say "I found" this job, I really mean my dad found and recommended me for this job--it is with people he used to work with. Thank you Dad!)

Piano

2011-12-13T11:49:00.000-07:00

I have been desperate for a piano since we moved into this new apartment which could actually fit a piano. I got a great keyboard last Christmas which worked perfectly for our little apartment, but I have just been wanted the real thing. So I looked on ksl.com and found a piano for $300, for which I offered $25, and then he decided just to give it to me for free!

I am so lucky to have an awesome husband, not to mention brother-in-law, brother, and dad who all helped bring home this very heavy piano. Thanks guys!

It is in such good condition--it had recently been tuned--and the guy thought it was close to 100 years old! As you can see, there are some scratches and stuff, but to me, it is perfect!

Zippidee Do Dah

2011-11-16T09:53:00.001-07:00

I just think it's so crazy that November is already half way over. I feel like it was just barely Halloween. I'm kind of looking forward to finals time, in a way. It stinks that Garrett still has to take them and that he's studying all the time while I have nothing to do. But it is very nice having zero school pressure. In a way. I am working as a paralegal at a law office right now. I don't think I have mentioned that on the blog yet. Yep, Hadley & Associates. Though the associate quit, so really it's just me and Greg. So I guess that is my big semester update.

Here is something fun--a lot of members of the Bradshaw family are planning on doing a half marathon this summer! Everyone should do it, even if you aren't running a lot right now. Start! It would be so fun to just have a ton of Bradshaws at a race. I finally got a gym pass (they have $10 per month passes at Gold's Gym by my house--with no contract!). I have been running about 4 miles every day. Unfortunately my gym does not offer classes, and I am getting a little worn out of the treadmill. Does anyone have suggestions of other exercises? Can someone teach me how to love the exercise bike? Or the elliptical machine?

Scary Movies

2011-10-28T08:37:00.001-06:00

Well, it's October, and that means scary movies. If you know my mom, you know that there is pretty much a scary movie on constantly during this month. Here are some we've watched this season:

The Walking Dead

This is a very gruesome mini series on AMC about zombies. Not for the faint of heart!

Insidious
\
Ha! My family is going to be freaked out seeing this picture. I think poor Nate is still sleeping on my parents' floor because of this one.

Treehouse of Horror XI

This is my favorite of all the Halloween Simpsons. "At least stop basting yourself!" "She'll be done in about 20 minutes. But the concert's at 8." "You want streaks? Because that's what you'll get!"

Scream (edited)

This movie was kind of scary, but mostly just silly.

We only have a few days left of scary movie season, folks! What are you going to watch?

Pirate Couch

2011-10-26T21:00:00.000-06:00

So! First of all, did you know there are "free" sections on craigslist and ksl.com? People are just giving stuff away. We nearly got a free piano!! (She ended up not wanting to give it away, but I am still hopeful)

Anyway, we found these free leather couches from a guy in Cedar Hills! He was giving them away because his kids had been jumping on the armrests and they kind of popped them open. It was a good thing we came over because he said he was about to set them on fire.

So we were trying to figure out what to do about the arm rests. Garrett suggested I sew those arm rest cover things. I was like, I don't know if you've noticed Garrett, but I have never sewn anything in our marriage! That is not going to happen.

But then I found myself with some black thread and a needle in my hand and I just started sewing the couches themselves.

I think the rough stitches give the couch a rugged look--like a pirate that just got knifed in the face and the ship "doctor" attacked him with thread and needle

Garrett said they looked like something out of a Tim Burton movie. Couchward Stitcharms?

Pretty sweet though huh! They ain't pretty, but ... I don't sew and that's my excuse

Our Apartment

2011-10-22T09:57:00.000-06:00

Entryway:

Kitchen (now with no bed!)

Bookcase (Generously donated by the Pulsiphers)! Keyboard!

Table and Chairs (also from the Pulsiphers)!

"New" couches! (Free from craigslist)

Love that we have room for 2 couches :)

We got this lamp for $8...I also convinced Garrett that this picture arrangement was a good idea. It took a lot of courage for Garrett not to arrange them in a perfect square.

We have stairs AND a washer and dryer.

We have a second bedroom with a big ol' closet. I literally don't know where we put our stuff before.

Garrett of course had to add shelves wherever he could.

And he built us a bedframe.

And we painted the mantle he made.

We got a new mattress! Anyone who wants a really good and cheap mattress--go to Mattress Dealzz.

Yellow! We are really enjoying the tall ceilings in our place..quite a change from the 6 1/2 foot ceilings of yesteryear.

:D I love our comforter and pillows.

I also love our second sink upstairs.

And here is a picture of the upstairs bathroom.

We finally got this curved shower rod that Garrett has always wanted. It's actually way cooler than I thought.

Thank you our friends Miken and Eddy for introducing us to this place!

The Dirty Dash

2011-10-08T09:44:00.002-06:00

This year Alex, Garrett, and I ran the Dirty Dash! It's a 5 or 10 K that is totally muddy.

Throughout the course there were obstacles that you had to go through, like mudslides and mud tunnels, a mud swing, etc.

We got very, very, very dirty!

Garrett did the whole race with a pulled hamstring!

Anna wanted to get in the mud so bad. So we helped her in :) She also did the Piglet run, which did not turn out to be a run with actual pigs (very disappointing for Anna). The whole race was so fun, but the showers at the end....shudder.

Cute Kids

2011-09-27T23:34:00.000-06:00

Cute Anistyn on her bike

Cute Scott in his dorm at Heritage. We love having him in Provo and I have a feeling he loves being in Provo as well.

Cute Anna doing her back hand springs. She is a cheerleader now, and she is getting so good!

Ten Years Ago

2011-09-12T20:46:00.000-06:00

10 years (and one day) ago, September 11 happened. I was in 8th grade and it was really, really scary. I was afraid it meant my brothers would have to go to war.

Since then, I have graduated high school.
And graduated college.
I've had my first date, first kiss, and I got married.
I have lived in 8 different apartments/houses and 4 different cities and 3 different states
I have had 8 different jobs
I grew 0 inches
I got my first cell phone and first laptop
I have made lots of friends
I have changed a lot

But I have never forgotten what happened that day. It was the worst, worst thing. I wonder where we will be in 2021?

Wakeboarding

2011-08-31T22:56:00.000-06:00

We went wakeboarding with Zach and company a few times during our summer weeks in Utah when we got back from San Francisco. We had so much fun! One time we went with my whole family, and another time we went with Dave and Erinn. Both times were really fun. I am actually getting better at wakeboarding.

Here is a video of Garrett jumping the wake.

Last San Francisco Favorites

2011-08-14T23:05:00.000-06:00

Ok, this is the last post about San Francisco. I forgot some of our favorite places though!

Chinatown. This is actually my mom's favorite place in the whole world! We found the bakery that we all loved when we went 10 years ago. They have these crazy cheese rolls.

Off The Grid! This was the coolest place! Our friends from the ward introduced us to this place. (The ward in San Francisco--the Golden Gate Ward anyway--was so amazing. It was small and everyone was really friendly. I have never enjoyed being in a ward so much since my home ward!) Anyway, it is a bunch of food trucks that gather together by the old fort on Friday nights and sell their food. There are a ton of different cultures of food and music. Garrett loved the curry burrito and I loved the kettle corn. They always had cool flavors of kettle corn like dulce de leche and horchata.

We saw some giant redwoods as well. We didn't see the really fat ones, but we saw the REALLY tall ones.

They were pretty fat though.

I loved them.

One of the last places I went was the Ferry Building. It is such a cool place! It functions almost like a farmer's market with a bunch of unusual shops. I really liked the olive oil shop. Who knew there were different kinds of olive oil?

Ok, that's enough of San Francisco! We had fun there--so, so much fun--but we are happy to be back in Utah with our family! I feel pretty cool being able to say I've lived in such an iconic city.

Barbers x2 in San Francisco

2011-08-10T11:30:00.003-06:00

We were so lucky to have more visitors! Zach and Andrea and babies came, although I really can no longer call Anistyn a baby because she is so big!

We went to Ghirardelli's Ice Cream Shop (we actually went here twice--ha!)

Walking up the hills in San Francisco is tough--but pushing strollers uphill? Fugheddaboutit.

Luckily they are so cute! We drove over the Golden Gate Bridge and got clam chowder at Fisherman's Warf.

We fed Cambrie candy while Andrea wasn't looking :)

The girls got their portrait done by a guy on the street! It was amazingly realistic--you couldn't tell the picture apart from the girls! Or maybe it was that you couldn't tell the girls apart from each other in the picture...I can't really remember.

We went to Dottie's True Blue Cafe for breakfast after the Barber's got their window fixed.

I hope they had a good time! It was so so nice to have people over, especially since they were here for a couple days while Garrett was in Houston on an important business trip. Thanks Barbers!

Conservatory of Flowers

2011-08-09T11:16:00.000-06:00

At the Golden Gate Park it was free day at the Conservatory of Flowers. So I went (by myself, which was sad, but that is my life!)

This plant smelled like Waffle Crisp! I want to plant it all over my house!

Walking the Golden Gate Bridge

2011-08-08T11:34:00.000-06:00

We decided to walk over the Golden Gate Bridge with my family.

It was really neat!

It was pretty exhausting...Nate fell right asleep when we got home :)

Fun Days with Family

2011-08-05T11:50:00.000-06:00

Garrett went to a Giants game for work

We played hackey-sack while we waited to go on the bay cruise. Garrett did a backflip and tossed it with his feet!

Cruisn' on the bay

Underneath the bridge

The Rock

Yeah...I didn't buy this

We went to Zachary's Pizza in Oakland. My dad remembered it being Awesome. And it was!

We ordered too much :) SO GOOD.

California Academy of Sciences and the Exploratorium

2011-08-03T12:15:00.000-06:00

This was an indoor rainforest! It was pretty humid--Nate and Anna couldn't handle it. It just reminded me of a cool day in Tallahassee :)

There were lots of animals in here, including butterflies. There was a sign that said, "Before you exit, check for butterflies and gently brush them off"

It was the "summer of slither"

I love aquariums

2011-08-01T22:47:00.001-06:00

This is why we're here.

We all got City Passes when my family came. It was a little book of tickets that got us into the aquarium and some museums and on a cruise around the bay, as well as unlimited use of the bus and trolleys!

We went to the Fisherman's Warf to go to the Aquarium on the Bay

We saw lots of wild jellies.

This is the nasty underside of a skate, which is like a ray but its head is on the underside. And I just really think this face is so gross! It has such big lips...it just...I hate it.

But I love love LOVE rays! This was a little pond where you could pet the rays and even some sharks. Rays are so smooth and they flap their wings and they have little happy faces :D I love them.

We had a rather long wait for the trolley, so we played a lot of thumb wars.

Trolleys are so fun! Ask Garrett about them, he really loves explaining how they work.

San Francisco Treats

2011-08-01T21:29:00.000-06:00

One of the best things about living in San Francisco was the fantastic food! I would like to highlight some of our favorite places. In no particular order:

Bi-Rite Creamery. This place has crazy flavors (Olive Oil, Lavender) and amazing flavors (salted caramel, snickerdoodle!)

Dottie's True Blue Cafe. This is a breakfast place and it had a huge line, for a good reason! Garrett got a pulled pork omelet (heavens!) and I got a blueberry pancake which was so good! Another really good thing here was the toast--they make their own bread. Yum Yum Yum.

Specialty's. We went here more than any other place since it was so close to Garrett's office. Also because it had the BEST sandwiches and cookies! We always split the Big BLT and the Turkey Cranberry. Please come to Utah, Specialty's.

Delfinas. This place was recommended by the awesome lady I babysat for in the city. I had duck here for the first time! It tasted like dark meat from a turkey. It was very fancy, but not my super favorite for the price ($$$$). However, I did go to Delfina's Pizza, which was much cheaper and some of the best pizza I've ever had.

The Sentinel. If you know me, you know I love reuben sandwiches. These were some massive and massively delicious sandwiches.

Jake's Steaks. Blech! No, I did not like this place! But Garrett was obsessed with going here, so one night we finally stopped in.

Ghirardelli's Ice Cream Shop. Really good ice cream with REALLY good hot fudge. They have a chocolate making machine in the shop! And they have free samples which you can go back a couple times for :)

Frances. We saved this place for last because it was so expensive. In my opinion, it was the best food we had. I called my mom after going here and went through each and everything we ate and described it to her because I wanted to relive it again! And now I will relive it again. We had bacon beignets with creme fraiche and chives. They are like savory donut balls that you dipped in really fancy sour cream. SO GOOD.

We also had cheese toast with roasted figs. I'd never had figs before and I loved them!

Chicken and peaches and other stuff. Garrett was moaning (if you've ever seen Garrett eat, you've probably heard him moan...but this was serious)

And I had corn soup. It was so cool how they brought it out. In the bowl was just corn and seasonings and then the waitress poured the liquid part over the ingredients and mixed it around right at the table :)

So yeah. We went a little crazy in San Francisco, but how could we help ourselves!

Pacific Heights

2011-07-31T22:59:00.005-06:00

We live in Pacific Heights. Amazing views are for free.

Very steep hills just make the awesome houses look even more awesome and the studly men even more awesome.

Union Square LOVE. When you hug this heart, it hearts you back.

And then, after all this awesomeness, we see Harry Potter 7.2 which is AWESOME and we eat Butterbeer Cupcakes! See how to make them here on my cake website, ...and everything nice

Visitors!

2011-07-27T11:47:00.000-06:00

My family came to visit us in San Francisco. It was so awesome! We spent Saturday at Pier 39 and Fisherman's Warf. Anna got a portrait done.

And of course we had to get the ginormous ice cream sundae at Ghirardelli's again. This time we were able to control ourselves and we took "before" pictures.

Garrett just wanted a shake though

Vacation at Home

2011-07-06T19:14:00.000-06:00

While Garrett went to a conference in Arizona for his internship, I went home to visit Utah.

Beautiful beautiful Utah

We did so many fun things while I visited my family at home. We hiked to a waterfall.

4th of July

2011-07-04T11:39:00.013-06:00

We had a really good 4th of July day. We went to a festival in Oakland where they had a petting zoo. This sheep was amazing.

Garrett said we could get a sheep if it was like this.

Then we went to a 1911s themed party. We had to dress up like we lived in 1911. We were pretty limited in our costume options.

The party was a fundraiser for the preservation of this old house.

There was lots of good food there, and a guy playing ragtime on the piano and a lady singing old timey songs. We ate lunch with two nice ladies.

There was a cakewalk and I won a big cupcake.

We played croquet. I kind of felt like Alice in Wonderland...without the Wonderland part.

After that we met some ward members in a park by the Golden Gate Bridge. We literally met them there--we hadn't met any of them before. We played soccer and talked and ate.

Then we went to Pier 39 and watched the fireworks.

We Went to Monterey! Ole!

2011-07-02T12:11:00.003-06:00

Garrett had Friday and Monday off for 4th of July. So we decided to bike along the 17 Mile Drive in Monterey, which is about 2 hours south of San Fran.

We biked a total of 18 miles!

In the bushes there lived so many tiny bunnies! They would dart out into the road and they were very very cute.

We stopped and looked at some tidepools, and then I spotted this!

We were in so much pain after biking so long. But it was so fun!

A Stroll Through Pier 39 and Chinatown

2011-07-01T21:17:00.000-06:00

We had to get Clam Chowder in a sourdough bread bowl at Pier 39 of course. So we went to Chowders and had some really excellent chowder. Chowder Chowder Chowder. Chowder takes a long time to say, even in your head.

The Rock.

We went walking around Chinatown while our car was in the shop getting a new battery. I was determined to find these certain kind of rolls that I remember from my last visit here when I was 13. Scott and my dad remember these rolls too, so I can't be making them up! They are cheesy and have some kind of cream cheese filling in them...or something. All the bakers in Chinatown acted like they'd never even HEARD of such a thing. It's a conspiracy! We did find a fortune cookie factory (3 ladies folding fortune cookies). It was pretty legit. We bought a bag of misfit fortune cookies--they are just flat rounds. I made them into ice cream sandwiches :)

This guy in Chinatown wasn't even looking at me, but I like to pretend he is modeling for my picture. "Just put your hand on your face like that, darling, great! We got it! Beautiful picture." Yeah, I could be Nigel Barker. And if you understand what that means, then give me a call, because clearly I have a lot of time on my hands :)

This is Garrett's "new" smile, he said. He is going for a more relaxed look.

A famous triangle building! And the relaxed smile again. I told him he should stop that.

I <3 these <3s.

Scenes From Life Here

2011-06-30T09:31:00.002-06:00

This is our apartment:

This is the outside of our apartment:

Here is the view from our street:

There are many very steep streets

And many awesome looking houses

This is my favorite house

We found bread made out of alligators...wait!! Wait!! I said that wrong!

Alcatraz...dun dun DUN. It looks SO much closer in real life. You can see all the details on the jail.

There were sea lions on these platforms. Garrett was very nervous about them.

OPTIMUS PRIME.

Ok, but what I really do all day is watch a lot of America's Next Top Model, apply for jobs online, look at a lot of facebook, and walk around the kitchen hoping something new will appear.

Cool Pool Party...La la la la

2011-06-26T13:50:00.000-06:00

Before we left for San Fran, we were able to go play in Paula's pool with the fam. We had lots of fun...and then things started getting crazy.

Anna is really enjoying the experience.

And then this happened! We found my mom with a can of Vanilla Coke in her hands!! Everyone make a comment to my mom about this event. We are deeply shaken.

Oakland Temple and Gay Pride

2011-06-25T14:14:00.000-06:00

Last Saturday we were invited to go to the Oakland Temple with a friend of Garrett's from work. His name is Fred. This temple is huge and so pretty! It is on a hill that overlooks the whole valley, and you can see San Francisco from it.

The next day was Sunday, and we gave talks in church. This was the first time I had been asked to give a talk since I was 11 years old--that's 12 years people! I was never asked to talk in church for my whole BYU experience.

This is our building. It's on a very steep street. There are also these calla lilies growing everywhere around it naturally. Amazing!

Sunday was also the date of the Gay Pride parade. We were slightly tempted to go and see the spectacle, but it was scheduled right during church. I guess that makes sense in a way.

Gay pride is all over San Fran, obviously. I was kind of surprised to see how many stores had rainbow displays. This is a Gap!

We are in San Francisco

2011-06-24T10:01:00.000-06:00

Don't believe me? Well, then look at this picture:

See? The Golden Gate Bridge is in the background. Now who is going to come visit us?!

Videos of the Party

2011-06-22T12:33:00.000-06:00

Mom and Dad dancing. We all slowly left the backyard, so by the end of the song they were alone. One thing I loved about doing this party was how much my siblings and I were on the same page. Everyone wanted the evening to go well. I couldn't believe how willing everyone was to help!

Nate's crazy dancing:

Mom and Dad's 25th Anniversary

2011-06-20T12:38:00.003-06:00

My parent's marriage turns 25 this year. So I planned them a little party! We first sent them off to a movie. Then we got to work making dinner and setting up a chocolate fountain outside on our round table. When they got back from the movie, Nate met them outside in a suit with a towel over his arm like a maitre'de. They were very excited to see the set up. Scott had strung lights over the table. Anna took their order (they had one choice--salad and chicken cordon bleu). I also made them a cake!

My mom started crying when she saw it :)

I also made them a slideshow of the last 25 years of their marriage. I scanned all their wedding pictures and a bunch of old family pictures. Again, crying :)

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

Post-Graduation Pre-Unemployment Trip

2011-06-08T18:59:00.000-06:00

Maui, Hawaii

Provo Canyon 10K

2011-05-26T13:24:00.001-06:00

So, I've been training for a couple months to run 10 K (not an official 10 K race). I started out running one mile every day for a week, then I'd move up 1/2 mile each following week. I did really well until I got very sick the week after graduation. I thought I would never catch up with my schedule, but Alex has been a good motivator. We have been running to the temple and back--about 5 miles--but when the day of the 10K (6.2 miles) came, I was still nervous about it. Especially since we would be running with Katie, who did a marathon last year!

We started in Provo Canyon, ran past Riverwoods, and ended up at the new Intramural fields. We didn't stop running the whole time! We finished in 1 hour and 4 minutes. And then Garrett informed us that our route was actually 6.7 miles! We we ran extra long :) I feel very accomplished.

Cambrie's 2nd Birthday

2011-05-25T14:37:00.001-06:00

I was asked to make the cake for Cambrie's birthday this year, and it was so fun! Andrea wanted a bird cake. Anna was even invited to the party! To see the making of the cake, click on my cake blog here.

The girls couldn't help but eat the frosting off the bottom of the cake. Then they started sticking their fingers in it.

Then Cambrie took one of the legs off the bird and stuck it in the top to make an extra candle! I thought that was really cute.

Cambrie loved blowing out the candles over and over again. And Garrett really wanted her to wait until the end of the song to blow out the candles. And Zach really wanted to blow bubbles on the cake while we sang, which made the cake a little soapy, but the fondant on the outside isn't that good to eat anyway :)

She likes it!

Puffiness at the Brimley House

2011-05-17T14:09:00.000-06:00

Scott got his wisdom teeth out. I've never seen a fatter face.

And then my eye randomly got puffy...it got better.

Siiiiiiiiiiiiick

Yay, I'm a LOST number now! :)

2011-05-10T14:03:00.000-06:00

Rolo was thrilled about my birthday.

I turned 23! Yippee! Yay for me!

BYU Graduation

2011-04-22T16:03:00.001-06:00

I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Education, so I walked with the College of Humanities in the Marriott Center. My whole family was so nice to come--even Grandma and Grandpa and Garrett's parents and Jill and Logan! I feel bad; the speaker was trying to sound very intelligent in his speech, but mostly it was just really boring. Luckily, I bought a book! Ha!

These are all my fellow student teachers. We survived! But not without deep emotional scars.

We all went to California Pizza Kitchen afterwards.

Then we all went to our little apartment--our last big gathering there. Garrett had a big surprise waiting for me! A big old chocolate cake from Costco and a HUGE bunch of flowers, and a GIANT stuffed animal sheep! I couldn't believe it! I love Sheepy so much.

Oh, and I love Vallen too :)

The Hobbit Blog! Squeee!

2011-04-19T11:33:00.000-06:00

Spring Break!

2011-04-19T11:11:00.000-06:00

Since student teaching ended on the 8th, and since Garrett went to Florida, I got to go to St. George with my family for spring break! Yes!

Nate got this awesome V-neck shirt. He really thinks V-necks are the bees knees. He told me that the coolest thing would be if everyone in the world one day all wore V-neck. "I should call the mayor and send out an email to everyone to wear V-necks." I told him that no one would notice if everyone wore V-necks. He said, "Yes they would, because they would all get the email."

We went to Texas Roadhouse one night, and I said, "Mom, you don't like peanuts?" And Nate said, "Who doesn't like V-necks?!"

Anna drove us safely to our hotel.

When we got there, we ran into the Davidsons at In-N-Out. Crazazy!

We played Uno. We also saw Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2. And we went swimming.

We went to Zion's National Park--and it was Free National Park Week! Woot.

Mom's action shot.

Nate liked to climb all the tall rocks. He also liked to touch the cactus.

Everyone got mad at Alex for a minute.

But then they made up.

We drove around in a nice shuttle.

The next day we visited the St. George temple and went to church.

And, oh yeah, it was Anna's birthday! She turned 10.

The whole trip was so fun! We watched Tangled on the way home. We also watched Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, which is so funny.

Craftiness

2011-04-19T09:59:00.000-06:00

I made a cake stand!

Or really, it's a whatever you want to put on it stand.

Happy Birthday Garrett

2011-04-19T09:56:00.002-06:00

Garrett turned 25 this year! That's just ridiculous.

We three sisters all have the same FSU shirt, and we all wore it in honor of Garrett. Also, Garrett wanted a Key Lime Pie instead of a cake for his birthday.

I bought Garrett 2 fancy ties. They are shiny and I was afraid Garrett wouldn't like them, but he loved them both so much. He said he felt like Riley Wilson :)

Big Surprise--my parents got us Guitar Hero! With all the instruments and everything. Neither of us were expecting it at all! But we are glad we got it, because we just found out that they are not making Rock Band or Guitar Hero anymore.

Empire Earth. Garrett's parents gave us a card with money to spend on something fun in Hawaii! Probably we will go snorkeling.

Fatty Fat Rolo. Katie says that it's not Rolo's fault that she's so fat--she is just trying to live up to her name.

See! The tie (and pocket square) look nice.

GRRR

2011-04-12T23:43:00.001-06:00

GRR!

Dang styles these days! I want to find a dress for graduation, but there is literally nothing longer than thigh-high out there. Except for super long dresses, which are always about 6 inches too long for me.

So, grr.

But, on a better note, Garrett finally let me get some fish!

<<

They are right there. They are fake fish. Siiiiiiiiiiiiigh.

How do you "Win" a "Biggest Loser" contest?

2011-04-06T22:39:00.000-06:00

I don't know how, but I did! Garrett, Alex, and my parents and I are doing a Biggest Loser contest, although it isn't about losing weight at all. We get points for exercising and points for eating fruits and veggies. And I won this month! I am still waiting for my monetary prize. But I'm sure it will come. Eh? Mom? I know you read this, even if you never comment! (Just click on the comments and then write one, and put in the verification code).

Also, guess what, I'm all done with student teaching on Friday! Teaching 8th grade at Mt. Nebo Junior High has been a joy. If you want to know all about it, come ask me in person :) Also, if you have a job for me, please tell me!!!

Next week is Spring Break (I don't know if I'll do anything). Garrett is frantically trying to get all his computer developing done by the end of the term. And then The Barbers come to visit! And then I graduate from college! And then Alli gets married! And then it's Easter! Plus we have 3 birthdays to celebrate. And then we move from our little apartment! Then we go to Hawaii! Then we move to San Francisco! Then who knows what! Phew!

On a totally unrelated note, I miss Derek! I can't wait until he calls on Mother's Day.

The Goal

2011-03-31T17:13:00.000-06:00

Alright, here is my goal. I am going to run a 10K before June with my friend Katie (who can already run a 10K easily.)

Are you with me?!

Allison's Bridal Shower Cake

2011-03-19T13:13:00.001-06:00

To see more pictures, go to my cake blog!

Delicious Soup--And FULL of Veggies!

2011-03-14T21:32:00.003-06:00

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/01/cauliflower-soup/
...and also full of cream and stuff. But veggies. Booyah!

Did You Notice None Say "Listening to Teacher"...yeah, so did I

2011-03-14T18:55:00.002-06:00

Happy Faculty Meeting!

2011-03-02T18:06:00.002-07:00

I was in charge of treats for faculty meeting. So I made this cake! And my first gumpaste flower!

Plov! and Kompote! And a couple of Russians

2011-02-27T18:08:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Flowers

2011-02-27T18:04:00.000-07:00

I Heart My Family

2011-02-14T15:17:00.001-07:00

My dad always writes us amazing poems for Valentine's Day. Here is what he wrote for me and Garrett this year:

Garrett
Garrett is studying like a ravenous dog
Soaking up knowledge that puts his head in a fog
With visions of employment and a hefty salary to boast
But it will probably take him to live on the coast

Wherever he goes, whether by plane or by car
You can rest assured that his phone and computer will never be far
So he can check every detail and never be ashamed
Of the last 10 years of the Florida State games

Nicole
Nicole teaches English and can throw down the phrases
But will be waiting forever to hear "Thank you teacher" praises.
She is almost done with her BYU time
And is ready to stop hearing the bell tower's chime

What adventures lay ahead for a pretty English teacher?
Could it be teaching or writing stories about adventurous creatures?
Her future is bright, we just can't wait to see
But until then she'll dream of lying on the beaches of Hawaii

We had a lovely V-day dinner last night, and my mom even made a from scratch chocolate cake that was really good :) And we got Valentine's treat bags and everything. And Garrett's parents sent us a V-day card with a gift card to DQ, which reminds me of Derek (awww). We are just so loved! And we love our families.

Valentine's Date 2011

2011-02-13T09:47:00.002-07:00

Saturday I was still feeling sick, but good enough to do Valentine's Day.
So! I was in charge of the Valentine's Date this year. And let me just say, I hate being in charge! Garrett always does some fun surprise, but I really hate giving surprises. Bad, I know, but I just get worried that the recipient of the surprise isn't going to like it, so I end up giving all these hints about what I'm doing to make sure it's ok, and then they just figure it out. Garrett said it was ok though. So, this year I wanted to make him some sort of beef, since I've never really cooked with beef. I also wanted to make little chocolate melting cakes just like on Carnival cruises, since Garrett doesn't like desserts but he love cruises :)

This was the only surprise: flowers and a poem and hearts on the door.

I went to Pioneer Woman Cooks, which has SO many delicious recipes, and copied this one: Drip Beef Sandwich

It had to be in the oven for 6 hours, and we were hungry, so we ate dessert first!

Chocolate curls....fancy

But we ended up eating. I used the pretty plates my grandma gave me for my wedding

MMMMMMMMMMM, it was good!

And I know you don't read this blog, but I love you Garrett :)

My Precious, Precious Weekends

2011-02-13T09:37:00.000-07:00

So, student teaching has been super fun and all, but I have never needed my weekends more in my life! I seriously appreciate every extra minute of sleep I get and every moment of fun I have. I am constantly sitting back and thinking "ahhhhhhhhhh......not at school...........". I can literally feel my cup of energy and optimism re-filling over the weekend. You get the idea? :) Anyway, an awful thing happened! At school on Friday I woke up and felt like there was a huge rock in my throat. I wasn't too worried about it, after all, my throat often hurts because of the cold air in my apartment (don't worry Alli! We have since turned the heat up and it is better). But, as I got to school, I felt myself getting sicker and sicker. By the end of the day I could hardly talk to the students because my head hurt so bad and my body ached and all the other symptoms of a nasty cold set it. BOO! So then I was SICK all of Friday! I had to cancel my Valentine's date with Garrett. I wasted the whole day! Where am I going to make up that day? :(

Iron Chef: Peppers

2011-02-06T17:20:00.001-07:00

We have such awesome friends and we are going to miss them TERRIBLY when they all leave us, which is happening soon! Here is what we do with our supah cool friends:

IRON CHEF

I'm already mourning the loss of them.

Crunchy Thai Salad Recipe

2011-02-02T15:36:00.001-07:00

My aunt Kerry gave me this recipe, and we made it last night using our new food processor! It was very very good.

Crunchy Thai Salad – my favorite!

I made this recipe up because I love fresh Thai spring rolls in peanut
dipping sauce & spicy Thai chili sauce. The salad is much quicker to
make than are the spring rolls.

Salad:

Grate, slice thinly, or chop finely lots of the following veggies:

Cabbage, Lettuce, Carrots, Cucumbers, Cilantro, Green onions, Red, yellow, &
orange bell peppers, Broccoli .Optional – bean thread noodles (I couldn't find these)

Dressing: drizzle on both Thai peanut sauce & sweet red chili sauce.

Top with chopped peanuts or candied peanuts & cashews.

Bottled Thai Kitchen Sweet Red Chili dipping

Thai Peanut Sauce

6 TBS Peanut Butter
2 TBS chopped garlic
4 tsp. hot chili oil
4 TBS honey or maple syrup
4 TBS soy sauce
2 TBS rice vinegar
4 TBS water

Mix all together in blender or food processor until smooth

Pajama Party!

2011-01-23T19:52:00.000-07:00

So, Garrett got to go to CES in Las Vegas, which is only the biggest tech show in the world! He left the first weekend of school and was gone for 3 days. He was like "when I'm gone, have a sleepover. You know, pillow fights, pajama party....you know, girl stuff." So that's EXACTLY what I did.

Anna got an awesome game for the Wii: Disney Sing it! It's a Karaoke game with all these Disney channel songs. Let's just say I scared one of Anna's friends because I sang "too loud". Whatever :)

Christmas Sledding

2011-01-23T18:23:00.000-07:00

I love living by family so much! Over the break we went to Mutual Dell of course, to sled. Many cousins were there and, as Paul said,"I've sledded these hills my whole life." Yes, Mutual Dell is surely over-sledded, but that's ok! We got to go to the Groesbeck's after and eat chili! Yum yum yum

Chick-Fil-A Bowl!

2011-01-19T17:16:00.000-07:00

Jill will explain: http://thetalbotfam.blogspot.com/2011/01/best-surprise-ever.html

Serafine Photo Shoot

2011-01-17T16:44:00.000-07:00

Cute baby Anna

I love the Serafines so much! My dad took some family pictures for them, so I tagged along and took some of my own. Here they are:

Christmas Eve

2011-01-15T12:58:00.001-07:00

This year we had Christmas Eve at Grandma and Grandpa Bradshaw's house. So many people came!

This is Matt and Stacy's baby Graham. He is just TOO cute.

Grandpa read the Christmas story while the little kids acted it out. Grandma is holding Graham: Gram and Graham!

Laurel arranged a great Christmas program! Our family's thing was "Holly" so Scott, Garrett, and I sang The Holly and the Ivy and then our family sand Deck the Halls.

Christmas Break: Before Christmas

2011-01-14T17:10:00.000-07:00

So, Garrett's friend Sister Lufa moved to Provo from Russia this year! She is way kruta and she even brought me this matroshka from Russia! I have been dying for one for a long time, and this is the best and prettiest one I've ever seen. And there are a ridiculous amount of dolls in it! The tiniest one is smaller than a pea! I love it so much!

For the first couple days of Christmas Break, my family went to Mesa to attend my Grandma Brimley's funeral. I am so glad I got to visit her during Thanksgiving Break! Then they drove back all day on Saturday, getting up really early so they could come to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert. None of the other kids wanted to go, so Garrett and I got to come! We were so excited! When we got there, there was a huge line, but we were like "suckers, we have tickets!" The attendant then informed us that we were too late to use our tickets and we had to go to the back of the line! It was 7:02 people, and the show wasn't until 7! they had already let stand-by people in! We were very discouraged standing in that cold, long line. It was hard to even smile for a picture:

But we still had hope that we would get in.

Finally, with only hundreds and hundreds of people in front of us, they informed us that there were no more seats available. The concert had started, and they said we could watch a video feed in the Tabernacle. We were so disappointed! We just kind of hung around the Conference Center feeling sad, when we noticed a small line in a side door to the Conference Center. There were like 20 people waiting and begging to go in. We joined the line and called ourselves the denial group. A guy came out and said they found 5 seats, and 5 people got in. There were still many people in front of us. Then another guy came out and said there were 15 seats left! So we totally got in! And David Archuleta was BEYOND amazing!!!!!!!

Christmas Eve Eve we decorated sugar cookies. Here are mine:

Like the color scheme of my Christmas tree, I went with pink and blue and white :)

Married to a college football fan? I feel your pain

2010-12-28T11:30:00.000-07:00

Married to a college football fan? I feel your pain

By Margaret Anderson

For the Deseret News

Published: Sunday, Dec. 26, 2010

I guess you would call it a bait-and-switch
My husband and I met on a six-month study abroad program where we had no access to television.
Years later, we dated, married and honeymooned all in the football offseason. So you can imagine my surprise when I woke up that first crisp fall morning of our new married life together and was introduced to "College GameDay."
Oh, OK.
So he likes college football, isn't that nice? It's wonderful he likes to cheer on and root for our alma mater. Go Cougs!
I had no idea how deep the obsession ran.
My first error was to utter the words, "It's just a game," after an excruciating loss for the home team.
Rookie mistake.
To a true fan, those four words are the harshest in the English language. I was young and foolish and had the audacity to expand on the idea.
"You didn't lose anything. You didn't sweat and bleed on that field. You didn't blow out your knee taking one for the team. You didn't drop the ball," I said. "They lost, not you. You are taking this way too hard. Let's have a little perspective, huh?"
"You're not a true fan," he whispered after the defeat took all the bravado out of his voice.
I can't help but think, if the reverse were true — if I had some intoxicating, time-consuming, behavior-altering hobby for four months of the year — my husband wouldn't stand for it. Not for one face-painting second.
I've been racking my brain trying to come up with a good comparison, but even at my most obsessed season of "American Idol" watching, the episodes were only an hour long, and I never once texted the word "vote."
So for argument's sake, let's say there's a reality TV show all my girlfriends and I are crazy about. It's a four-hour program, and it's on every Saturday August through January.
The excitement and hype couldn't possibly be contained in only one episode each week, so there's a pre-show show that same day, featuring packages on the various participants, stats and ex-contestants' in-depth analysis on what they think will happen on the show.
Then, of course, a post-game show, where fans would call in, we would all relive our favorite moments in slow motion, and the crazies would rant on and on about how horrible the producers are. You get my point?
Now let's pretend that during this six-plus hour affair, I was not to be disturbed. All my duties as wife and mother were to be suspended until the pre-show show, show and post-shows were all over. Not only that, but all other conversations and concerns would have to stay on hold until I could rehash the pre-show, show and post-shows with my mother and sister over the phone.
This could take several more hours because I have free night and weekend minutes.
Now let's pretend that depending on the outcome of the show (who got voted off), my entire mood and outlook on life would be altered. If the person I was vying for (a complete stranger in real life, mind you) was booted off the show, I would become ornery and depressed over the next 24 hours — at the very least.
Such penitence and contrition would be an outward reflection of my true devotion to the show. If my favorite contestant stayed on, my joy and elation would be at a decibel so loud and jubilant, it would frighten my own children.
Websites dedicated to the mania would give me my weekday fix. I would spend countless hours Monday through Friday educating myself on what the weekend held in store. These websites would also make me feel better about my own addiction because some of the women who post are even more zealous than I am.
I haven't even gotten to the money part yet.
What if I needed to own several fan club T-shirts, hats and sweatshirts? Now consider the cost of tickets, snacks and gas while traveling to the different locations where the show was being taped. My hobby would need to be allotted its own piece on our budget's pie chart.
I ask you, would my husband, my wonderful, pragmatic, productive, hard-working husband, stand for such a crazy hobby, one that left the family out in the cold?
Or I could tell him he could watch it with me, but then, who would take care of crying children, change the diapers, do the laundry and the dishes?
Get my point?
No. My no-nonsense, straight-arrow husband would not stand for such a silly hobby. He would refuse to compete with it. The TV would be gone. The cable would be cut and the credit card rescinded. No "show" would take his wife away from him.
But there is no six-plus hour reality TV show for women that's on every week, season after season and year after year.
Instead, there's just one multibillion-dollar Saturday-sucking conglomerate out there, and it wears pads, helmets and very tight pants.
How do they do it? What makes the allure so powerful? Maybe I'm missing something. Maybe these husbands are seeing something I'm not.
After all, 10 million "true fans" can't be wrong.

I asked Garrett to read this article--it really spoke to me!--and he just said, "I feel bad for women. They'll never understand"

Hair Cut

2010-12-23T14:36:00.000-07:00

My inspiration:

So Many Cookies!

2010-12-20T16:35:00.000-07:00

If you want to see all the Christmas baking I've been doing, the post (and recipes) are here on my baking blog Everything Nice!

Last Times....

2010-12-16T12:27:00.000-07:00

I am at work for the last time studying for the last final I will ever take at BYU (don't worry...my boss said it was ok to study at work).

Wow!

I have really enjoyed this job at University Communications, reading the newspapers everyday. I've worked with a lot of fun people and had great (and interesting) supervisors.

And as for this last final: GOOD RIDDANCE!!

Scott at Madrigal Dinner

2010-12-11T15:14:00.001-07:00

We got such great seats at Madrigal Dinner. Scott was literally sitting at our feet! My mom and I came late (because Scott said it was at 7, but it was at 6:30! GRRRR). Latecomers have to do something silly in front of the whole audience, so my mom had to act like a fish and I had to act like a monkey!

I kept giving Scott scraps of my food. He would eat it off the floor, yuk!

Anna was brave and went up to get salt two times! To get salt you have to kiss the Master of the Salt.

He was a beggar, just like me!

I MADE this!!

2010-12-08T22:34:00.000-07:00

So, last month we were at Zach and Andrea's house watching an FSU game when my dear friend Katie called and asked if I wanted to do a Christmas craft with her. Though I was super "sad" to leave the game, I was so excited to do something so girly! With a girl! I feel like I rarely hang out with just girls anymore. And Garrett is just not that in to Christmas crafts, though he is very supportive. So! we went to DI and found these small wreaths for very cheap. Then we went to Joanns and got some fabric and ribbon on these tiny ornaments. We made these flowers out of the fabric! And then we hot glued the whole thing together. I'm so proud of us!

Our Christmas Tree, Our Christmas Tree

2010-12-05T13:50:00.000-07:00

This year we decided to add some color to our tree! Pink, lime green, blue, and red. Love it! Love the big ornaments so much! The pictures just don't capture how pretty the colors are.

Thanksgiving with Grandma Brimley

2010-11-30T21:33:00.001-07:00

We went to Mesa for Thanksgiving. Garrett drove all the way down! To thank him, my parents bought him the Glenn Beck book "Broke" which he loves! We spent a lot of good time with the Brimleys: we had dinner with Kent and Margaret the first night, Thanksgiving at Susan's the next day, we stayed in a condo next door to Grandma (with whom Matt and Susan and their two cute kids were staying). We play Gator Ball with Ella and Aiden (our little cousins) and we saw Tangled, which we loved! I made Yam Souflee for Thanksgiving, and everyone really liked it. We had a very VERY authentic mexican food experience, which was called "Backyardigans". Some mexcian-arizonians just have this restaurant thing in their backyard. We also went to Rosas (YUM) and Dunkin Donuts, and Yodipity, and lots of other good places. We got to watch the FSU game (we won, yay!) Most of all, we got to see Grandma Brimley and spend lots of time with her. We put on a little concert for her, Susan, and Bart. What a great time!

One Day I WILL have a Sheep

2010-11-13T14:48:00.001-07:00

Dear Family and Friends,

Is it so wrong that I want a big fluffy sheep? Or 3?

Garrett Leaving on a Jet Plane

2010-11-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

So, last weekend and this weekend, Garrett went/is going to Northern California for interviews for internships with the "Big 4". It's pretty weird having him gone for so long :( Unfortunately, when I get lonely I bake! These brownies were so delicious...but didn't quite replace Garrett. Luckily, this weekend my soccer team, SIZZLER, has our first tournament game! We haven't won a game yet, so I have high hopes for Thursday night!

Trick-or-Treaking with a fairy princess and a duck

2010-11-03T08:50:00.000-06:00

Pumpkins

2010-11-02T19:16:00.000-06:00

Lori's Amazing Halloween Partay

2010-11-01T08:51:00.001-06:00

We got invited to Lori's grown-up Halloween party this year, which was very thrilling. The theme was cowboys and indians. Of course, Garrett wanted to dress up like a Seminole, even though we knew this would make some people uncomfortable. Then we thought, how can we make my family even MORE uncomfortable?

So we dressed him up in naught but a loincloth and a headband. Garrett has been growing his hair out all year for this party!

A fierce warrior!

Wilford...I mean my Dad!

An indian princess.

When my mom first saw him, she screamed and said, "I don't know where to look!" That was pretty much the reaction we got at the party :) We were pretty worried about how everyone would like the costume, but after the initial shock, I think everyone thought it was funny. He even won best costume!

Thanks for letting us come Lori!

Dead Men DO Tell Tales

2010-10-29T09:36:00.002-06:00

We had a Murder Mystery this year with our friends Katie, Mike, Gary, Carly, Jodi, and Tyler! It was pirate themed. We had it at my house in Cedar Hills. My parents helped decorate sooo well! And they made the White Chicken Chili which was sooo good. We had lots of bread so no one could use utensils...just like real pirates. Garrett made lots of yummy shish kabobs with chicken and pineapple and veggies. So, yeah, we were very full.

Garrett was Lt. Lee Shore, I was Sukey "Sugar" Sayles (NOT pronounced "sucky", Dave was the orphan boy Even Keel, and Erinn was the bar wench Bertha Bilgewater

We also had lots of fingers to eat and a pirate cake covered in BLOOD

Tyler was the Governor Hiram Cheape and Jodi was the voodoo witch (who we later found out was black) Habaka Da'bora.

Katie was the straightlaced Governess Ima O'Pare and Mike was the eSpanishe pirate Diego Doubloon

Gary was the French Pirate Eaux Yues (how do you say it??) and Carly was the owner of the Three Horseshoes, Mrs. Hornswoggle

Everyone was so funny! Gary had an outrageous French Accent, and who knew Jodi spoke Swahili? Tyler had such a funny mustache!

Mike did a great Spanish accent (I wonder where he got it) and Katie just sat and read her book the whole time...until she revealed that her Father was Captain Jack Ketch, the guy who was murdered!!

I ended up being the murderer....

And isn't Garrett's costume awesome!!

So my cake was chocolate with chocolate and chocolate covered in raspberry sauce. The sauce was the best part, not just because it looked like blood. But also because it tasted good.
Happy Halloween!!

Fat Fingers

2010-10-25T17:34:00.000-06:00

Brimley Family Wordle

2010-10-18T11:12:00.001-06:00

5 Little Pumpkins

2010-10-18T09:14:00.003-06:00

Rolo and Garrett are finally bonding!

2010-10-13T08:50:00.002-06:00

Well, Rolo and Garrett's shoe anyway

Meyer Cousins!

2010-10-12T20:03:00.002-06:00

Happy Birthday Andrea/ The Coolest Cake Ever!

2010-10-09T20:03:00.000-06:00

We wanted to make a topsy turvey cake for Andrea's 30th birthday. Garrett spent so much time helping me! He carved them all!

See where I put the candle? Through the flower! So cute

More Baking. All My Posts Are About Food

2010-10-09T19:56:00.001-06:00

Mediterranean Stuffed Chicken and Brussel Sprouts http://www.recipe.com/mediterranean-stuffed-chicken-breasts/

Tiny Banana Bread

Borscht!!!!! http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Ukrainian-Red-Borscht-Soup/Detail.aspx I didn't put the sausage in. It was so good! We ate it for like 4 days. It got better each day!

Dolphins

2010-10-06T08:25:00.001-06:00

see more funny videos

Healthy Meals

2010-10-01T19:18:00.000-06:00

This is Lemon-Thyme Roasted Chicken with Roasted Potatoes. And salad. So healthy! http://www.recipe.com/lemon-thyme-roasted-chicken-with-fingerlings/

Tortellinni Soup! With spinach and tomatoes and carrots. Wow! The health! http://www.recipe.com/tortellini-soup-1/

Happy October!

2010-10-01T11:23:00.002-06:00

I love October. Today, to celebrate, I bought a small pumpkin. Awww

I also got the teeniest cutest Halloween little bread pans! For only $1!

So cute it hurts!! I can't wait to put little breads in them

Aang is My Hero

2010-09-28T20:07:00.000-06:00

Oh man! We just finished the most AWESOME cartoon series ever!! EVER!!

Yup. Avatar: The Last Airbender. A Nickelodeon cartoon. So cool! Not anime, by the way. More like...Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter. Except with Eastern flair. I just..can't..even....just go watch it! It's on Netflix :) Water! Earth! Fire! Air!

Satirical Blog for Engl 423--prolly not even what I would reely be writing about (being like Seriously So Blessed)

2010-09-22T14:12:00.003-06:00

OMG!!! Garrett is TOTALLY applying for like reel life jobs now and I get to come with to all his fancy interview dinner things. ARM CANDY ;) I meen, its like kinda of scary to even think about moving away from every single memeber of my fam and from Zion and BYU wear all the saints live to cali--{not even southern cali--northern cali which is cold and doest even have Disney}...but whatevs, i sacrifice so my husband can work and we can get rich and move back to Zion and live in a huge mcmansion in Alpine!!!! Rite by my 2 sisters and 3 brothers and 78 cuzins!! *sigh* i am such a good/hot wife!

seriouslysoblessed.blogspot.com

Last Summer Thoughts

2010-09-18T09:30:00.000-06:00

We had such a good summer! I just wanted to post a few more pictures. This is from when we visited the Ol' Plantation House in Tallahassee. SUCH beautiful oak trees! There were beautiful huge oaks everywhere in the city, everywhere in the South really.

I forgot to post about it, but I got in a little rollerblading accident this summer. I scraped up my leg pretty bad, and I still have a big old ugly scar to prove it. Dang uneven sidewalks!!!! Dang them to heck!!

We got to go to the beach sooOOOoo much this summer. More than I ever thought we would. And Garrett found...a shell...

We also played a little soccer this summer. It was usually way too hot. We also got to play with Ayden!!! For 6 weeks!! At first she was afraid of the ball, but then she loved it and then she learned how to say Ball! What a transformation.

Ayden also learned how to brush her teeth. We loved hanging out with Logan and Ayden and Garrett's parents so much. We hope we can see everyone again soon!

From Tallahasssee to Utah: St. Louis and Kansas and Home!!

2010-09-13T21:45:00.000-06:00

So we were driving from Ohio to Kansas and we totally saw this!!

We weren't even expecting it!

It was right off the freeway!

It's the St. Louis Arch, in case you were wondering. "The Gateway to the West". Wow! Did it remind me of The Lightening Thief a little bit? Yes.

We got to Brad and Mandy's house and it was so weird! We felt like we had just been there! Mandy made a dee-licious dinner with homemade tortillas (If you read this blog, Mandy, you promised me the recipes!!!). Brad was very funny, but I'm afraid Garrett and I were not as energetic as our earlier trip to Kansas, since we had a 16 hour drive that day. We left the next morning and had ANOTHER 16 hour drive, but we got home!!! :D I love home.

From Tallahassee to Utah: Visiting Logan in Ohio

2010-09-13T20:15:00.000-06:00

Sorry, Logan, this was the only picture we took of you! We loved visiting the Reilly's in Ohio on our way back to Utah. We even got to visit the super huge Air Force museum. Twice!!

Garrett just LOVED it! He could have stayed forever. I kind of feel like we DID stay forever! Lucky me :)

Practicing for the future:

The casual President and First Lady with their super cute baby. Awwww.

Logan's new place was great and Ohio seems really nice! I hope Patrick gets assigned to Utah next! Or, I guess I hope he gets assigned to wherever Garrett and I are living at the time. Which is hopefully Utah.

From Tallahassee to Utah: Visiting Jill

2010-09-12T20:37:00.000-06:00

After dropping off Scott and Alex at the Orlando Airport, and going through $29 worth of Toll Booths, we made it to Davie to visit Jill and Richard! It was super fun. We went to the beach twice. This is the Fort Lauderdale Beach:

We went at night and saw the moon!

Then we went to a Miami Beach. It was so lovely and warm and clear. I think it was just as good as the Gulf Water.

Another important milestone at this trip is we tried Thai food! Which I found out is so good! Now I need to try a bunch of Thai restaurants here in Utah County and find the best one! Speaking of awesome restaurants, Sadaf's Greek Soulvaki is gone!!! :( I was hoping it would at least last the summer....oh well. No good greek food for me. Perhaps it's for the best.

Derek's in Ukraine

2010-09-08T19:05:00.000-06:00

Alex and Scott's Visit to Tally

2010-09-08T18:55:00.000-06:00

The rest of our trip with Scott and Alex can be described in one word:

We planned a full week for my siblings. We went to Wakulla Springs, which is famous for its clear, cold water

And also for the...

GATORS!!

Our guide on the tour was awesome! He was a super southern black man with an outrageous accent. He said funny phrases like "Biggity big, smallity small, we got em all" and "I puh-romise I won't disappoint ya". Ok, it doesn't really seem that awesome written down, but it was great out loud.

We took the kids to St George Island, our favorite beach. We got Publix subs as well! Can you tell which is me and which is Alex?

Of course we took them to the Stadium (FSU stadium)

We got them FSU shirts

We loved our time at the Barber's house as well. Especially when we got yummy Shrimp Boil and (oh!) Jason Barber's famous steak! Yum yum yum! We also went to the Thomasville Farmer's Market restaurant. Aahhhh, the best food ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Needless to say, Scott gained 10 pounds. It was all so fun!

It's Just Like Magic!

2010-09-01T18:28:00.000-06:00

Our first day with Scott and Alex we went to Islands of Adventure, featuring The Wizarding World of Harry Potter! We just love the Barbers so much and I was glad Scott and Alex got to spend some time with them at the park, because they are so fun at parks!

Here we are at the entrance to Hogsmeade. I mean, seriously, it felt like we were leaving the park and going to a place where Harry Potter had been. I felt like I was going to faint, I was so excited!

The Hogwarts castle!!!

We found lots of neat stuff inside Honeydukes. Jill and I are dueling with Chocolate Wands. I am so glad Jill was there--she may be as big a Harry Potter fan as me!

Alex, enjoying the feeling of her tongue dissolving while licking this Acid Pop

I was tempted to buy this. Who doesn't want a Ton Tongue?

I think Sugar Quills do help you think better.

The amazingly crooked rooftops of Hogsmeade. How do they stay up? Oh, duh! Magic!

These two pictures are in line for the "Dragon Challenge" ride (formerly Dueling Dragons). Such a cool line, all themed like the Triwizard Tournament.

I cannot say enough about the deliciousness of Butterbeer. It was delicious! It was foamy and butterscotchy and so wonderful! Garrett's dad even bought me, Scott, and Alex so souvenir mugs!

Cheers! In the Hog's Head

This was in line for a ride in the Hogwart's castle. It's Professor Sprout's Greenhouses! You can't see it, but Scott is carrying his wand that he got at Olivander's. This line was so amazing! You went all through the castle, saw Dumbledore's office (and Dumbledore!), went through the Defense Against Dark Arts classroom and spoke to Harry, Ron, and Hermione projections, saw moving/talking portraits (which looked really, really real. Like paintings, not screens or anything. Magic!). The ride was cool. It started out like Haunted Mansion, in a little bench bean thing, and then flew away! I dunno, I can't describe it, you'll have to go!

We ate dinner at the Three Broomsticks, of course. Then we spent a lot of time at the shops, but my camera died before then! ALEX, I NEED THOSE PICTURES! It was such a great day, with great weather and fantastic people!

So fun!

2010-08-28T20:23:00.002-06:00