goodbye 2011

there is something so exciting about a new year. maybe it's waiting for the clock to strike midnight. 

the anticipation of a new years kiss. setting new goals and a clean slate. i am a resolute. 

the hope that new things can happen and change. getting glamoured up to ring in the new year fresh. 

the parties and the people we will see. whatever it may be for you hope you have a happy new year!

2011

rang in the new year on the freedom of the seas cruise

i began final semester at the u of u. 21 credit hours. almost died of insanity

prssa director or chapter developments. new friends/fun events

cut finger open to the bone trying to make a special valentines day dinner for husband. $350 stitches

became doggie parents to lucy

puppy school with lucy. she graduated

hawaii with in laws. celebrated our one year engagement anniversary at kimo's

husband played spring football at the u. moved to safety position

painted the bathroom together

sold the audi

bought first car together. subaru, best decision.

drove a brand new car off the lot. checked off an item from my bucket list

made halloween costumes together. madd hatter and alice in wonderland

set goals for our life together

husband quit football in the spring to focus on school

lake powell a few times

laguna beach

two cousins married to join the club. along with lots of friends

graduated from the u of u bachelor in mass communication. strategic comm

deans list

sun valley

hiked in the beautiful utah mountains

quick trip to st. g for a football game

lots of football pick up games on saturdays

spent second christmas together

husband spoiled me the whole year long

new traditions started

celebrated our one year anniversary

created a "dreams" journal together

first real job at an advertising agency

husband began his dental pre-requisites 

he also played on three inter-mural football teams 

utah state fair year two 

husband takes me back to his mission to meet the people he loved and served for two years 

took me to palmyra 

i took husband to nyc for his first time. fun to see the shock on his face of the crazy place 

lots of flow rider  dates and family nights 

jake got his first gun 

sweet husband became a wonderful chef, maid, and laundromat 

we skied. and watched jake get lots of injuries

ate out and tried new restaurants

spent lots of days on the lake with friends

went camping together for the first time. we were pros

turned twenty two and twenty three 

i made lots of holiday crafts

many failed cooking experiments

some successful dinner attempts 

decorated our second christmas tree together 

bought a new camera 

found out we will be aunt brookie and uncle jake 

played at nickel mania. spent lots of silly money 

melted my hair 

made lots of late night treats together

took a class together during my last semester 

cut the apricot tree down in the backyard 

became primary teachers to three and four year olds 

went to wicked and jersey boys on broadway 

accidentally ordered $100 lobster on our anniversary. oops 

met oprah winfrey 

(summer recap here)

saw taylor swift in concert 

watched our brothers senior year football at ehs. region champs and state finals

golfed and swam at the cc in summertime 

got a mustang convertible. summer rides 

decided to be healthier eaters 

discovered our love for chipotle 

rediscovered our old love nielsens frozen custard 

played sorry!

took lucy to the dog wash and dog park lots

went to denver for a weekend 

rockin bear ranch in bear lake. jake decided he liked horses 

went to many utah games. go utes

park city date night escapes 

spent 48 hours without power

lucy turns one 

made lots of memories. 

learned lots of ourselves. 

loved each other through it all. 

hello 2012!

santa surprises and a new year

(temple square lights 2011) 

(christmas eve 2011)

did you all have yourself a merry little christmas?

santa spoiled us from head to toe.

we both will be burning some extra cals while playing with the kinect. 

husband will be looking handsome as ever in his ski gear and new clothes galore.

and i will be snapping photos left and right of him with our new camera.

can’t even tell you how thrilled we both are, it was a fun surprise for both of us. 

(anxious to learn how to use it, classes in the next few weeks)

anyways, blogging hiatus because of the holidays.

we are having too much fun with a break from both school and work.

much to catch up on from our christmas festivities. it was a busy one this year!

we will be venturing off to sun valley this weekend after ringing in the new year.

2012 can you believe it?

i've got a good feeling about this year. 

what are your new years resolutions?

i’ll share some of mine as well as another recap like last year when i get the time!

enjoy your last friday of 2011. 

be merry

this and that

ladies and gentlemen we've just about hit christmas chaos around our little home. 

our week will be filled with a little bit of this:

last minute christmas gifts to be purchased, wrapped, and placed under the tree.

round two of our little traditions we started last year. 

(our first christmas as mr. and mrs.) 

prepping for parties to be done.

friends around the country coming home for visits. 

family party here, family party there. 

(we really have the best families, they make the holidays all the merrier.)

christmas gift exchanges.

zoo lights. 

temple square lights.

gingerbread houses and the annual grinch viewing.

breakfast with grandy. 

 

when in reality should be doing a little bit of: 

cleaning and organizing my home. 

purchasing my final items for the mr. 

delivering our final christmas cards.

wrapping neighbor gifts. 

and fitting in a little work here and there. 

to better sum it up: that.

but it's the holidays and somehow extra time is found for that.   

oh and i have a little secret to share. 

shhh.

we went on a little visit to a favorite camera store of mine tonight. 

did a little hunting and found a winner. 

hopefully santa is reading this because i would be oh so happy to see that little something under the christmas tree. 

and just in case he's checkin it twice...

i've been awfully nice this year. 

with a wink and a smile. 

happy birthday

to jake.

better late then never.

photos from the celebrations. 

(lots of them, because we all love pictures)

glitter galore

glitter 101

how to make your house pour glitter from every nook and cranny 

(ok not really, but it kind of happens when you do any glitter craft.) 

i'm absolutely obsessed with how these turned out.

cheap and easy too. 

can't ask for any better then that right? 

you will need: 

all a dollar fruit

glitter (the really fine glitter)

spray glue 

steps:

step 1. spray fruit with glue

(make sure you put newspaper underneath it is so sticky)

step 2. pour glitter evenly over fruit

(repeat if needed)

step 3. lay to dry for 3-4 hours 

ribbon, bows, and puppy tails

that's what our week has been made of.

 while the mr. has been studying his brains out. 

(so proud of him)

i have been running around the valley delivering goodies for work. 

let me tell you, we spoiled them. 

v's chocolates and grandma's caramels galore. 

(it's ok if you are jealous because i sure am)

it was also our crazy puppy lucy's birthday. 

so we took her out to celebrate, petco it was. 

she devoured her bone in one night.

we love her much. 

(even when she is kind of crazy)

we kind of can't believe that it's almost christmas. 

only a few more cards to get sent, 

but lots of christmas shopping to go.

hope your festivities are merry! 

some days

require a little: 

this 

and this

today was one of those days.
(but oh my goodness, if you live in utah you must go to nielsens and promise me you will get the peppermint custard. it is uh.maz.ing.)

stella and lucy letters

remember this cutie? 

well we were able to spend part of our weekend with the little ones.

let me tell you, it was quite the experience.

something kicked in...

must be the holidays

but we were left with lots of laughs. 

the make your stomach hurt after kind. 

 stella decided that nutella looked best when smeared all over your face. 

boy was this fun to get off. 

i blame the mr. for this little nightmare. 

 lucy wanted long hair. 

this was her fix.

she decided to cut her hair to be "luke the boy" a few months ago

and now she says she is drinking extra milk so it will grow 

"pretty and long"

(because duh, milk makes your hair grow not just strong bones right?) 

and this was what i walked into first thing in the morning. 

bright and early. 

(i wish i had the same desire to put make up on at 7 am)

lucy somehow came out with 

vampire fangs and really played into the part all day. 

p.s. stella is the true poster child for 

"all i want for christmas" 

she is missing not 2 front teeth...

but five. 

we love these girls too much. 

fridays favorites:

some of this weeks favorites in pictures. 

because there really is not better way. 

 1. catering for lori tolbert. her amazing christmas salads. 

2. picture from last weekend to remind me again how grateful i am for power.

 3. toll house pie from none other then the dodo. it is simply amazing. 

4. lastly...my first costco card. i am ecstatic. already went twice this week with husband. 

1. dreaming of fallen snow some time in slc. can't wait to see michigan ave with snow like this. 

2. made this yesterday, easy ornament with great meaning. key of each home you lived in for an ornament. 

3. darling quote. quotes are always good. 

4. this hot oil treatment. it did wonders on my hair and you most likely own all the ingredients already. bonus. 

better late then never. pictures from pc date night with the sister club, chas, and husband. 

come stop by:

for the last several years of my life my mom and her friends have held their annual holiday boutique 

"the traveling trunk boutique"

why the traveling trunk you ask?

well because they find homes that are for sale and use them to host their boutiques. 

never having them at the same house twice and traveling around to a different cozy home each year.

(it really has been a brilliant idea, they've sold all the homes they've hosted the show at but one.)

this year's holiday traveling trunk is full of wonderful vendors.

25 plus. 

you can find a gift for everyone, even the men in your life. 

(and let's be honest they really are harder to buy for then they claim.)

so come on by and check it out.

it will not disappoint.

plus, you get to visit my darling mom and her friends who will definitely entertain you! 

i bet they would even give you a personal tour of the home and all the wonderful treasures.

it's a holiday lovers heaven.

some of my personal favorites:

sam's famous fudge

(it seriously is famous, he is known as the "fudge guy")

nettie's nomes

the polished silver

(uh-mazing and well priced, the best gift)

and....

a onsite estethician with incredible prices for waxing and tinting. 

Thurs. Dec 8 noon to 9pm

Friday, Dec 9th  9am to 6pm

Saturday, Dec 10th 9am to 6pm

 1704 E. Herbert Ave   

(1060 S)

hope to see you there! 

memory lane

ten for tuesday

1. yesterday was chinese new year, we didn't really celebrate so we are going to do something extra chinese this weekend to make up. i'm still deciding but we'd love to have guests.

2. if you are like the rest of america and are trying to grow your hair out, i fit under this category right now too, then take a look at this and this. i'm seriously swearing by both of them. you can thank me later and we can have a party whipping our long hair back and forth.

3. magazines are uh.dict.ing. end of story right there-but i must say a little more. my job (remember that really great job i have) well they let me order some great magazines so i'm all caught up in my star drama. kim and kris i've got it covered, russel and katy yes them too, ben the bachelor you betcha. but it's really making me feel like a junkie of some sorts, the excitement that comes from the mailman coming is a little silly.

4. speaking of ben-really? ben i think you are a goon. a big goon. i'm going to say something pretty bold: i don't think you have a good sense of style and you were kinda mean last night on the show. flip flops are a no go in utah when it's snowing and courtney is sneaky and you fall for her so to me you are goon. not saying i don't have hope for you but you need to start to impress me because so far i'm still not a fan of yours. s

5. husband and i are trying to get in tip top shape before we go cruisin in a short 47 days (i'm not counting down the days or anything). husband gets in shape while he sleeps it's ok if you are envious, i am too, while i on the other hand have to bend over backwards, literally sometimes, to just lose a pound or two. none the less we are going to look smokin hot, don't say i didn't warn you.

6. love day is coming up. i love love day. last years love day was a day to remember. this year i'm going for no sliced fingers and stitches and a bill to hand husband for his love day gift. i've gotten so excited that i've began my decorations. just for your creative minds here are some simple yet darling ideas for your home. 1. 2. 3.

7. babies. i loveeee babies right now. no, we are not expecting nor will we be for a while but i love me some babies. possibly because everyone and their neighbor is preggers. husband is sick of me being googley eyed for them but secretly he loves babies too. we are just going to have to be the best aunt and uncle on the block come june.

8. in t minus 24 hours miss kylee dell snelgrove will be home in slc. this is the second longest amount of time we've spent not seeing each other. you see normally yeah that's not the biggest deal, and we've been champs at attempting to chat. i say attempt because sometimes we try but it just doesn't work out. i still have Skype issues, my internet struggles, FaceTime is awkward, and let's be honest i hate texting-get me on the phone and i'm great to go for hours. but see it's a big deal because we've known each other since the age of five. so to say i'm excited to see her his an understatement. wow that was lengthy so sorry. btw kylee is in one of the old school photos.  

9. if you could live off of one clothing store for the rest of your life what would it be? i've been thinking of this question lately. i'm all over the map so to be honest i think it would be hard for me to decide but i'm loving jcrew like always but i swore after going to nordstrom rack last week-that i would never shop anywhere else. deals, deals, deals galore.

10. i'm really enjoying blogging lately. it's become therapeutic for my thoughts and it's taken stress off of my journaling because i've made these posts much more personal (lengthier). sorry for you, but if you got to the end of these ten things then you have to either be very bored or love me very much.

tis the season

once thanksgiving and jake's birthday pass, we officially begin holiday festivities. 

we had a lovely weekend. 

(more on that later)

i love the holidays. 

we've decked the halls here.

tree is up. 

garlands hung. 

crafts completed. 

glitter galore. 

candy jars filled. 

wreaths hung. 

santa's displayed. 

nutcrackers presented.

it's feeling so cozy. 

i don't know what we will ever do when we have to take them down. 

if you are still looking for ideas try:

these they turned out beautiful. these, so cost friendly. 

or this, still in the process. 

anxiously anticipating:

time with family and loved ones.

get togethers with friends.

advents. 

giving. 

spending time with husband, 

with no school. 

snow. 

skiing. 

sledding. 

the list is endless. 

traditions started from last year to continue: 

gingerbread decorating. 

first presidency devotional. 

(it was so wonderful, find here)

attending the nutcracker. 

a new nutcracker for our collection. 

christmas eve skiing. 

christmas street. 

temple square lights. 

and more to add! 

for last years holidays check out this, and this. 

what do you love?

what are you anxiously anticipating? 

and what traditions do you have? 

wind storms and birthday boy

we've had an exciting past 36 hours around our home. 

to start off we woke up at 3:45 am because of the loud wind and took a look outside.

our convo went something like this: 

jake: is that bad?

me: i think so. what is that? 
(i was really tired and i think i mean where did that come from)

jake: its a tree 

so we woke up that morning to see this: 

lovely. 

and around the neighborhood this:

later that afternoon they clipped, yes clipped the power line...and walked away. 

apparently it can't be fixed until today. great. 

no power. 

when i started to complain, this was jake's response

"it will be fun, you can blog about it" haha 

so here i am making the most of our exciting night 

with no power.

but to the important news...

it's husbands birthday today!

23. 

this was really why i was frustrated with out power. 

i needed to wrap presents, i couldn't make any food (no breakfast in bed), and we were sleeping on the floor, and our house was cold, cold like 54 degrees cold. 

but it was a fun adventure. 

we lit all our candles, laughed as we stumbled to find things in the dark, and munched on anything that didn't need prep or came from a fridge. 

happy birthday jake! 

i love you so much. i'm so so lucky to have you as my husband. 

not much of a breakfast in bed...i did my best. 

opening presents by the fire, the only warmth we had.