Visit from Nephews

No...... we haven't fallen off the face of the earth.

I know it's been a really long time, but I started a new job, and so haven't had as much time to write as usual. Not a whole lot has happened though, so it's okay. This passed week, we were lucky to have my brother-in-law, wife and four boys visit with us. It was so much fun. We hadn't seen them in over a year, so it was really nice. There was also a new addition that we hadn't met yet, so it was really nice. Here are some pics we took over the week.

New Crochet Hobbie

Last summer, my mother-in-law showed me how to crochet. She is always making baby afghans, which always intrigued me, so I finally asked her to teach me. It wasn't that hard to learn, but I made my first row way longer then it should have been, so it took me forever to finish. About 6 months actually.

When I finally did finish, I was so excited that I couldn't wait 24 hours before starting my second afghan. I went shopping for yarn, and bought a set of my own crochet needles (I borrowed the last ones from my mother-in-law). Unfortunatly, there wasn't much of a selection of baby yarn, but I made do with what I had. I found some super cute pink yarn that I couldn't walk away from. I started the moment I got home, and was done 4 days later. That has to be some kind of record.I thought I should take a little break before starting again. At least a few days anyway! Since my second afghan was pink, I think my next one will be blue, and then I'm gonna do a white one for a baby blessing. I think that should be good for a while. We'll see??

A Day of Pampering!

Every now and then it is important to take time to care for yourself. With everything that we have to do to keep our life, home, family in order, it's nice to do a little something for ourselves someday. So, this past weekend, when I went shopping, I bought an avocado oatmeal facemask. I was pretty excited about it, but didn't want to do it alone. So I dragged my amazing hubby into joining me.

It was a really fun day, and I highly recommend a day of pampering at least once a month. "Because you're worth it!"

10% of nothing is still nothing!

Visiting Teaching Message for February

9thwardcartoons.com

Love is in the Air

When Daniel and I got married, we decided not to do the whole gift thing for valentines and our anniversary. We thought we would just trade off each year, and then take turns planing something. So this year, Daniel was in charge of valentines, and then I will be in charge of our anniversary, and then next year we switch. Make sense?? It saves money for us poor folk, and we don't have to worry about what to get each other. It's really fun this way too.

Daniel planned for us to go ice skating on Saturday. It was so much fun. It was something we did when we were dating, but haven't done since we've been married. It was loads of fun.

They had a limbo pole up at one point. Daniel just had to try it. It was a bunch of kids, and then Daniel. He didn't stand much of a chance of winning, but his goal was to not fall or knock down the pole first. And he didn't. He went under a few rounds before knocking it down, but he was the second to go out. It was really fun to watch.
Later that night, we went to a stake dance. It was a really good day!!! I'm pretty sure I have the greatest husband ever=)

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

For the Strength of Youth

This past weekend, we enjoyed listening to Stake Conference. One of my favorite talks was the youth speaker. She spoke about the 'For the Strength of Youth' pamphlet. It was really nice to hear, because I left Young Women shortly after the new pamphlet came out, and so I didn't really study it much. During her talk, she encouraged everyone, young and old, to read and live by the teachings in the pamphlet. That stayed in my mind, and so when I got home, I looked online and read a few passages from the pamphlet.

I was so filled with the spirit at that time, that I truly believe that those are the words of prophets, and encourage everyone to go back and read through it. Just because you are not in youth, doesn't mean you can't live like one. Gratitude, Friends, Media, Music, Honesty, Physical Health and Service are all things that we can always work on. I know I sure can!!

Hoping and Praying

Daniel and I have been very busy these last few weeks, and so I haven't had much time to write. Since we have moved to Washington, we have been trying to get our adoption home study updated and transferred over.

It brings out such a mixture of emotions. When we first got married almost 4 years ago, we knew we wanted a big family, but after a few months, we realized that we might need a little help. After a few years of tests, treatments, and procedures, it really makes you wonder what the Lord has in store for you.

Every month, for 3 years, you build yourself up, hoping that this will be the month there are 2 lines on the stick instead of 1, only to have your heart fall apart in the end. And then, you have to pull yourself together fast, only to go through it all over again the next month. It has been very exhausting, and has added a lot of stress to our lives.

Last summer, we decided to stop all fertility treatments. I just couldn't bare going through the whirlpool of emotions anymore. So, we sat down, had a long talk, and decided on adoption. It has been a huge weight off our shoulders since we made that decision. The moment we decided, we knew it was the right choice for us. But, now that we are coming up on our 6 months of waiting, the emotions are coming back.

It's hard being surrounded by mothers who have no problem building their family, knowing that we can't. But everyday, we just hope and pray, that we will find that perfect person, who is able to help us build our family.

If anyone reading this, knows of a special someone who is considering adoption for their child, we would be thrilled if you could tell them about us.

"Adoption means, you grew in your mommy's heart instead of her tummy."

Solving Winter Blues

Winter always has my emotions in a jumble. There are so many good things about winter time, but I'm sure there are just as equally enough bad things to say about winter. Some people can say without any doubt that they either love it or hate it. But for me, I'm stuck in the middle.

PROS:
Snow makes everything look better
Snowmen
Ice-Skating
Snow Angles
Snuggling up for a good movie

(my sister-in-law's car, the week before Christmas)

CONS:
Slushy and icy roads
It's so cold
I can't or at least I don't want to go running outside
It takes longer to get to work
Praying that you wont get stuck every time you stop at a red light
Cleaning off the pile of snow on your car every morning.

Well, you can see my problem.

So I came up with a solution, so that no matter how you look at it, it makes everything better. A nice steaming cup of Hot Cocoa. That's my answer. We got a Cocomotion Hot Chocolate Maker for Christmas, and it is one of the best inventions out there. It also comes with a book of fun recipes. A must have for any home. I highly recommend it.

So on days that you are feeling a little down, a little blue, a little weary, grab yourself a cup of your favorite hot chocolate, snuggle under a cozy blanket, and put on your favorite movie. It will make everything around you seem just a little bit better.

New York-Style Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake

My favorite dessert of all time, is cheesecake. For my birthday, I would much rather have cheesecake over any other type of cake. I have made it severel times, but I always like to find new recipes to try. I found this recipe by Kraft, and it is amazing!!

1 cup Graham Cracker Crumbs

3 Tbsp. sugar

3 Tbsp. butter, melted
5 pkg. (8 oz. each) Cream Cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

3 Tbsp. flour

1 Tbsp. vanilla

1 cup Sour Cream

4 eggs

1/3 cup seedless strawberry jam

HEAT oven to 325°F. Line 13x9-inch pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides. Mix cracker crumbs, 3 Tbsp. sugar and butter; press onto bottom of pan. Bake 10 min.

BEAT cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, flour and vanilla in large bowl with mixer until well blended. Add sour cream; mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each just until blended. Pour over crust. Gently drop small spoonfuls of jam over batter; swirl with knife.

BAKE 40 min, or until center is almost set. Cool completely. Refrigerate 4 hours. Lift cheesecake from pan with foil handles before cutting to serve.
YUM!!!

Moving to Washington

Now that Daniel has finished school, he has taken up a job in Washington until he starts Optometry School in August. He is working as an Optician at his dad's practice. This was our first major move, and so there was a lot of question on what size truck to get, and how we were planning on moving. We had reserved a 16' truck. When we went to pick it up, they didn't have any 16' trucks. That's when the panicking started. Apparently, just because you reserve a truck, it doesn't mean you are going to get it. They said they only had a 24' truck available. There was no way we were going to drive something that big, nor did we need one that big. After an hour, the guy said he might be able to find us a 10' truck. That was better then a 24', but now the question was, is it all going to fit. Two hours later, we had the truck, and with the help of family, started to pack. We were extremely thankful that everything made it in.

We are now settling in our new home in Washington.

Daniel's Graduation

The day finally came. I never thought it was ever going to come. Some of Daniel's family came down for his graduation. I was so excited. We didn't get very good seats because we were kinda late, but that's okay. Once the music started, so did the tears. Ever since we have been married, Daniel has been telling me that he had only a year and a half left of school. A year later, he still had a year and a half left of school. So you can imagine my frustration. Once we hit this last semester, I wasn't going to hold my breath. But he made it, and I couldn't be more proud. He has been working so hard, and studying late every night. I am so glad this phase of our life is over. In August he will be starting Optometry School, and 4 more years. YAY:(

Thanksgiving

Today was really a great day. It was our first Thanksgiving with just the two of us. I was a little nervous that it might be one big flop. Daniel's family always goes all out on Thanksgiving that I really had a lot to live up to. I actually started yesterday with the cooking. I made the pies (toll house and coconut cream) and corn bread (for the stuffing) on Wednesday. Today, we woke up early to get started on the rest of the food. It was definitely an interesting experience preparing the turkey. I didn't want to touch the raw turkey at first, but then I got the hang of it and had my hands in between the skin and meat. It was kinda fun actually. After 3 hours in the oven, we started on all the other fixings. Stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls, corn and broccoli. YUM!!

Daniel was really excited about being able to carve his first turkey. He did a pretty amazing job. One thing that was a little disappointing, was that it took 2 days to make all the food, and 10 minutes to eat. It was kinda sad. We hardly made a dent though, and will have left overs for the next 2 weeks.

Later that night, we went to watch Twilight. It was pretty good. I had heard some bad reviews, and so I didn't have high expectations. But of course, just like any other movie, the books are so much better.

The Forgotten Carols

Daniel and I went to watch the Forgotten Carols in Idaho Falls on Monday. I had never seen it before, and I had only heard the story the year before, so I was really excitedto see this. I was really surprised to see Michael McLean there. I had no idea that he was actually in the play, playing the character John. He was really good, and perfect for the part. It was such an amazing night. I felt all fuzzy inside, and wished that Christmas was here already. But we still have Thanksgiving to go through. If you haven't read the story of the Forgottan Carols, I would seriously recommend reading it around Christmas time. It's amazing!!

Chocolate Milk Recipe

Last night I was really in the mood for some chocolate milk, but we didn't have any. So I decided to make some from scratch. It was the best chocolate milk I had ever taste, and it is a lot cheaper then buying Nesquik. I would recommend trying this out.

Mix:

1 Tbsp cocoa powder

4 Tbsp white sugar

4 Tbsp water

Microwave it for 30 seconds, so that it all dissolves together.

Add:

22oz of cold milk (will measure out to be 3 cups in total, 24oz)
Put it in the fridge so that it can get really cold, and then enjoy ;) YUM!!

Surprises!!

On Thursday, I was having a really awful day at work. So I called Daniel just to say hi and see how he was doing. He has been staying at school so late these few weeks, that I don't really get to see much of him. Later, during my lunch hour, Daniel showed up to surprise me. I thought he was just taking me to lunch, but then we headed towards the highway. He told me that he had called my boss, and asked if I could have the rest of the day off. He had also called his boss and told him he wasn't coming in to work after school. I was so happy I started crying. I was so happy to have a whole day with him to myself. We went to Idaho Falls and had lunch at Olive Garden. It went from being an awful day to being one of the best days. Daniel isn't usually spontaneous, so this really surprised me.

He also took me to the mall, which is also amazing, because I love looking at everything, and Daniel is a typical guy who does not. So it was a lot of fun for me. We just looked around in many stores that I had never gone in before, and managed to by a pair of pants in the process. It was one of the best days ever :)

African Children's Choir

Daniel surprised me last night by taking me to the African Children's Choir performance here at BYU-I. It was so amazing. The children shared some of there stories with us, as well as their hopes for the future. The choir started back in 1984 in Uganda, but has since included other African countries. All of the children have lost one or both parents and so don't have anything when they come to the academy that the choir has built. The children live at the academy as well as get an education. Many of the children who are no longer in the choir, have stayed at the academy to get a college education. I thought that was very cool.

They children did dances representing the country that they were from. They did a dance from South Africa, which made me very home sick. They then ended the night by singing the South African anthem, and that is when the tears came. It was such an amazing night. I'm so happy Daniel took me.

Pumpkin Carving

Today we had a great time carving pumpkins. The pumpkins were really big, which made it a little difficult at parts, but we had a tone of fun doing it. It was my first time carving a pumpkin, and I thought I would challenge myself and do something a little difficult. Not a good idea for your first time. It was exciting though!!

Daniel's pumpkin

Belinda's pumpkin

Snow?

There was the rumor of snow in the forcast, but we just hoped that it wasn't true. On a Saturday morning we woke up to this sight. Can you believe it? It was really pretty, but a little depressing.

Getting Wisdom Teeth Taken Out

Today Belinda had her wisdom teeth taken out!

We've been sick with anticipation the whole week and now it is finally over. She just has to tough out the next few days by eating jell-o, yogurt and vitamin water. So lucky! I (Daniel) decided to write this one, so that Belinda can take it easy. She just woke up from about an hour and a half nap (which was much needed). After the nap she took some more pain meds, and is icing down her face.

I took a bunch of photos and shot some film of the procedure with our camera, view at your own discretion.

Changes

So we found this blog thanks to the Birds, http://www.taaz.com/. You can upload a picture, and then change it up. We had so much fun, and waisted many hours playing with pictures from our own family. It was great!! Here are some favs...





The only problem is, once you start, you can't stop!

Frosty Mornings

It's way to early for mornings like this!!

Cinnamon Rolls

So, I decided so make some cinnamon rolls this weekend. I enjoy making them, and it's not very hard to do, but I always seem to kill the yeast. I can make rolls and bread sticks just fine, but when it comes to cinnamon rolls, I just ruin it. This was the first time they turned out just the way I wanted, and so i had to capture the moment. Yummm!!!