Philpott Newbee

Yummy Recipes

2012-02-19T20:17:00.000-08:00

Corn and Potato Chowder

1 tablespoon butter
1 cup ham or bacon, diced
1 cup chopped onion
1 chopped red pepper
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons flour
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups diced potato
1 1/2 cups shredded carrot
2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions

Add butter to a pot and melt over medium heat. Add ham, onions, pepper, garlic, and carrots. Add flour, salt, and pepper. Add potatoes. Cover pot and bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10-12 minutes, till potatoes are tender. Add corn and simmer everything for 5-6 minutes.

Stir in the half-and-half. Season with the thyme, cayenne, some more salt, and lots of freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Lemon Raspberry Muffins

	1 lemon
	1 cup sugar
	1 cup nonfat buttermilk
	1/3 cup canola oil
	1 large egg
	1 teaspoon vanilla extract
	1 cup white whole-wheat flour
	1 cup all-purpose flour
	2 teaspoons baking powder
	1 teaspoon baking soda
	1/4 teaspoon salt
	1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen (not thawed) raspberries

Recipe Directions

Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat muffin cups with cooking spray or line with paper liners.
Use a vegetable peeler to remove the zest from the lemon in long strips. Combine the zest and sugar in a food processor; pulse until the zest is very finely chopped into the sugar. Add buttermilk, oil, egg and vanilla and pulse until blended.
Combine whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Add the buttermilk mixture and fold until almost blended. Gently fold in raspberries. Divide the batter among the muffin cups.
Bake the muffins until the edges and tops are golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack. Serve warm. Yeild: 2 dozen

Babushka Dolls

2012-02-18T09:34:00.000-08:00

I found the cutest Babushka Dolls on Amazon the other day. I have been wanting one for a long time so I broke down and bought one. I think that this one is especially adorable. It even has Russian writing on the bottom of it... sweetly-authentic! I put them on the mantel and I love them so much... Nate is still not so sure.

Jazz vs. Washington Wizards

2012-02-17T09:29:00.000-08:00

I gave Nate 2 Jazz tickets for Valentines Day, so we went to watch the game on Friday night. It's always fun to watch sporting events live... even though we were up in the nose-bleeds again.


This was so cool... a group from UVU called, "The Green Man Group." They were wearing green body suits and played in a band and break-danced.

Dinosaurs

2012-02-15T10:46:00.000-08:00

This is hilarious. I have been talking about folk tales with the students and how they are stories that have been told for many years in many different ways. I wanted the kids to try writing one. A kid in my class wrote a story about dinosaurs. He started his story, "In 1984, that was when dinosaurs were alive." I thought it was dang funny.

Love and Stuff

2012-02-14T13:24:00.000-08:00

I woke up to find two cute flower bushes from Nate and a lovely card. I have been so excited (and a little nervous) to take Nate on a surprise date for V-Day. We went to the Rio for dinner, stopped by the Do Do for a fresh slice of heaven (Toll House Pie), and then ended up at Kingsbury Hall for Celtic Nights! I really enjoyed it, and Nate said he did too. It made me feel like we were in Ireland... a place I would love to go! I really think I want to take Irish dancing lessons... how fun would that be!!!

A Primary Valentine

2012-02-12T19:31:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is one of my most favorite holidays... always has been, always will be. I love doing things with kids because they get so excited. I took valentines and magic play-dough to Primary today and they were a big hit. Look how cute my class is.

Bonsai

2012-02-10T18:58:00.000-08:00

We went to Bonsai for my b-day dinner and boy, was it good! Nate and I sat around a huge grill with 5 other people and watched a Japanese chef cook our meat, rice, and veggies right in front of us. I loved all of the flames. I felt like we should've all been oooohhing and ahhhing a little more. It was impressive. Everyone at the table got to try to catch a chunk of shrimp in their mouth as the chef tossed it. I didn't feel that bad when all but one lady couldn't do it. At the end, they brought out a gong and two tambourines (random) and sang the most off pitched "happy birthday" song ever... so fun! They also took our picture and we were able to write on it and put it up on the wall. It was such a great place for a b-day dinner!

V is for Valentines

2012-02-10T18:28:00.000-08:00

This year our school decided to have their Valentine's Day parties on the Friday before Valentine's Day. (It felt a little weird... I didn't like it, it's all about the day!) I loved the cute little pirate valentine's I made for my class and all of the valentines that the kids gave me. I always love to watch the kids on V day. They get so excited to pass out and receive valentines. You can see it in their little faces, like magic.


Emma brought a valentine for Nate!

The Day of Kelly

2012-02-09T18:32:00.000-08:00

Mom and Dad gave me money for some fun make-up!

Nate made me pancakes for breakfast today! Nice, fluffy, puffy ones that I doused in syrup. Then I tore into my presents like a little kid. Do people ever get tired of presents? I don't.

The kids in my class have been counting down the days until my b-day (literally). Several of them brought me presents and cards. Emma brought me a Happy Birthday crown, sash (it said, "Spoil me, It's my birthday!"), and ribbon. I wore the stuff for most of the day and it made the kids laugh.

Virginia Pierce, President Hinckley's daughter, knew that it was going to be my birthday and planned a huge Stake Relief Society Dinner for me tonight. She is so sweet! (Totally kidding!) We had dinner and Sister Pierce gave a wonderful talk about the belief box that every person has. Inside that box, we have three types of beliefs:
1) Big T Truths- Things that really are true (i.e. God is our Father. Jesus is our Savior).
2) Little t truths- Things that we've always been told are true because of the cultures that we live in (i.e. If you say that you are going to do something do it. She said that this is hard when other things come up and we cannot possibly fill our commitments. Don't kill yourself trying to do something, just because you are worried about what people will think of you.
3) Things that we think are true, but they just aren't (i.e. You are only pretty if you are a size 0, Your worth is based upon how much money you, or your husband make, Your worth is based on how smart your kids are or how clean your house is).
It was a wonderful birthday present to hear from Sister Pierce.

So, I was born 34 years ago today. That is crazy to think about. I think I always thought that I would stay the same age forever... weird, huh. You can't help feeling a little reflective on your b-day. I have so much to be thankful for. I have a good life. My husband is cute and supportive of me. He lets me decorate our house and do whatever I want, even if it's a little girly sometimes. He just wants me to be happy. I have the best parents in the world who love to come and visit... and I love to visit them. My mom is my best friend and I rely on her for so much. In a tough economic time, Nate and I both have good jobs. We have a home in a nice, little town. I have met some of the most wonderful people in my life and have great friends. Our bodies are healthy. I have been thinking about so many other people that I know right now, where their bodies are sick. I really need to remember how lucky I am to have a healthy body and not worry if I find a wrinkle, or a split end, or a little chub. Life is good.

Night Skiing

2012-02-04T18:18:00.000-08:00

We met Doug and Jesse at the Park and Ride at the bottom of Big Cottonwood Canyon. This would be the first time that Nate has ever skied!!! We drove up, suited up and spent a couple runs on the bunny hill. Nate was a good sport. He had three people trying to tell him what to do at every turn. Jesse decided after the two bunny hill runs that Nate was ready for an intermediate run... funny. Nate fought a good fight and took some crashes along the way. He finally told us to, "leave him alone" as nicely as he could, so the three of us took a few more runs. After that we found Nate and hit the road. We had a great time! I love to ski through the trees and take the little 5 inch jumps. We drove straight to Smashburger for food and the most delicious milk shake I have ever had. P.S. No big deal, we also saw Enes Kanter from the SLC Jazz basketball team.

The Jamiesons

2012-01-30T15:05:00.000-08:00

I have been so touched by this little family at my school. I have their middle son in my class and they have two other boys. Their oldest boy, Jake, has bone cancer. This is his second time around. He had it in Kindergarten and then had chemo... they thought it was gone forever. Now it is back. On Saturday, they had a head shaving party. This is the part that really tugs at my heart and makes me want to cry... little boys from the school, friends and family members all shaved their heads so that Jake wouldn't have to be the only one. Oh my goodness... what hard times this family is going through. I couldn't imagine. I just wanted to post a couple of the pictures from the party. They are adorable. It is wonderful to see how so many have supported this family in such a difficult time. And what stinkin' cute kids! Look at them! They are going to remember this forever. When Jake and his dad were talking about cancer and how it came back, his dad told him that he was a "warrior" and that his was going to beat it twice. Jake, you are a "warrior" and so is
your family.

There are so many brave little boys in this picture, that I know from school... Clayton, Jonas, Devin, Cole, and of course Jake.

The Jamiesons
"Warriors"

A Close Call

2012-01-23T20:00:00.000-08:00

So I went to get the recipe for one of my FAVORITE soups in the world the other day and couldn't found it. I went into panic mode! How would I ever find the same exact recipe on the internet? Well, you can probably understand my dilemma. Then, low and behold, I found the little hot pink post-it note which contained the hand-written recipe. That was the day that I decided to add it to the blog to keep safe for my posterity. This is some seriously good soup!

Easy Sausage and Tortellini Soup

1/2 pound of Ground Italian Sausage
1 9 oz. pack of fresh 3 Cheese Tortellinis
2 cups of shredded cabbage (about half of a cabbage)
2 cans diced tomatoes with oregano and basil
2 cans condensed french onion soup
4 cups of chicken broth
1 carrot (thinly sliced)
1 zucchini (thinly sliced)

Brown sausage. Put all ingredients (except for tortellinis) in a large pot. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 1 hour. Add the tortellinis for the last 1/2 hour. Garnish with Parmesan Cheese. (If you would like to cook the soup in a crockpot, cook ingredients on high for 3 hours and add tortellinis for the last half hour). 10 Servings

California Coast

2011-12-27T19:54:00.000-08:00

We woke up bright and early and started to drive up the beautiful California Coastline. We stopped in San Luis Obispo and had lunch at the Apple Farm, a place I remember from childhood roadtrips. The weather was GORGEOUS... the sun was shining... the birdies were singing... and man, was I happy to be out of the snow!

Hearst Castle

2011-12-26T11:16:00.000-08:00

What a beautiful day for a drive up the coast and for a tour of Hearst Castle in San Simeon. This place is amazing! It started with a guided bus tour up a hill to the castle. We went on The Great Rooms Tour and saw the rooms that William Randolph Hearst would use for entertaining his guests; a formal dining room, a sitting room, a game room and a personal movie theater. We also walked around the grounds and saw citrus trees, beautiful rose bushes, an outdoor pool and an indoor pool area.

Decking the Halls in Torrance

2011-12-25T19:28:00.000-08:00

One of my students named, Emma Casey, gave me these pj's for Christmas... awesome, huh.

Oh my yummy-ness... Mom's clam dip in a sourdough bread bowl on Christmas Day.

On Christmas Eve, we drove around and looked at the lights in South Torrance.

They are calling it a "Southern California Christmas," with Christmas Day at 75 degrees in Torrance. I will take it! This is how we spent the day. First, I remembered to wish Nate a Happy Birthday. I really wanted to make his birthday special this year, since last year I left his birthday present at home when we went to Colorado. I adorned myself in my Christmas footie pajamas that a student bought me and had breakfast. Next, Nate opened his presents. I thought I was going to be the best wife ever and get him a remote control helicopter because he said he wanted one... I still am the best wife ever but the helicopter didn't work and now we have to return it... lame. Then we opened our Christmas presents under the tree. Nate got me the Marmot jacket from REI that I LOVED! He's so good to me! This tells you a lot about Nate, he got a paint sprayer... yes, you heard that right... a paint sprayer! We went to church and then ran back home to open our stockings. Oh, what fun. We had a yummy lunch of hors d'oeuvres... Bryant style. We also watched a TON of basketball today... it was insane.

Later on Nate and I took Macy down to Rosie's Dog Beach in Long Beach. It was great to watch Macy playing at the beach. She's a beach girl! She even went into the water. I was so proud... and again the weather was beautiful!

We are all very lucky. I was very lucky to be with Nate, Mom, Dad, and of course, Macy. I just wanted to say that I am grateful for Mary and Joseph for being such good and loving parents and I am grateful for the little baby Jesus who grew up to be such a good example of what I need to be more like in my life. I am grateful that he suffered and died for all of us so that we could return to live with God in our Heavenly Home one day. Life is good... really good. Merry Christmas!

Poor Macy

2011-12-21T10:58:00.000-08:00

Feeling awesome about not having to go to work and being off for two whole weeks, Macy and I decided to suit up and take a long walk in the neighborhood. We ended up going on a little trail behind some beautiful homes. Macy especially loves this walk because I can let her off her leash for a little while and she loves to run through the water in the ditch. On this particular day, we went by the "waterfall area" and as usual, Macy was running around in the water and having a great time. She tried to jump up a concrete wall to get back on the trail, missed it and fell back in the water. I didn't really think anything of it until I saw a trail of blood from her front left paw. I called Nate and he left work to come and pick us up (what a prince!)... only problem was that Macy was bleeding a TON, all over Nate's car... Sorry Nate, that was my bad. We took her to a vet across the street from Highland and he cleaned and bandaged up her paw. He also gave her a shot of antibiotics. It turned out that Dr. Osborne went to vet school at Colorado State, where Nate's Grandpa Ball was a professor of veterinary classes. He had Grandpa Ball for a teacher! What a crazy, small world this is!

Macy is hilarious with her new injury. You would of thought she broke her foot and not just sliced a pad on her paw. She hobbled around on three legs for two whole days because she didn't want to put her injured paw down. You should have seen her climb up and down the basement stairs. It was dang funny. It also got her a ton of sympathy. Poor Mace!

David Archuleta Christmas Concert

2011-12-19T19:12:00.000-08:00

How fun! We saw David's Christmas concert at Abravanel Hall. He walked out onto the stage decked out in black skinny jeans... from where Nate and I were sitting in the nose-bleeds, he looked a little like Peter Pan! His sang his more "poppy" music during the first half and then went on to singing the Christmas tunes during the second half. His rendition of Silent Night was absolutely beautiful. He received a standing ovation for that one! I could listen to him sing his Christmas songs for the whole day. He has such a rich, and clear voice... and what a nice kid. He was raising money for the kids in Africa for crying out loud!

The coolest thing happened at the end of his concert. The audience called him back for an encore and before he sang another song, he announced that he was going to be serving a full time mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (I get goose bumps, just thinking about it again) and as soon as he said, "full time mission," the whole hall rose to their feet in cheers and applause. He started crying on the stage. It was amazing. The thing that I really liked was the reason he gave for going. He said that he wasn't going because anyone told him to, but he was going because the feeling that has been guiding him in his life and helping him to have so many wonderful opportunities is the same feeling that is telling him to go. What a wonderful way to explain how the spirit guides him. It was a wonderful experience to be a part of.

Primary- One Last Dance

2011-12-18T16:58:00.000-08:00

What I want to know is why did no one else look like they were holding back tears today in Primary? Today was the last day with our classes. Then next year, we will have a new class. I couldn't even look at the kids while they were singing, I felt that at any moment I would have bawled. I taught the Christmas lesson today and brought in a sweet little people nativity that I ordered. We also learned about Christmas symbols. After our lesson, we had a "party" with cookies and opening presents.

I have loved teaching these little kids. Lauren, you amaze me with your knowledge of the gospel. Alex, I love how you begin your prayers with "Jesus Christ." Tanner, you drive me crazy but you have the cutest smile in the world. Kelsey, you try so hard to answer every question. Addison, I love the way you get so excited about your clothes. Kristina, I love that you are usually shy, but not around us. I am going to miss you all!

This is not our whole class, we are missing Kristina and Addison... but aren't they cute? Lou Lou, Kelsey-Pie, Tanner Bo Banner, and "The Best Prayer" Alex

Apple Pie in a Can

2011-12-17T16:59:00.000-08:00

Kerrie and I like to try out recipes. This one I found on Pinterest, of course. The only problem was that we usually forget to do a major part of the recipe. This time, we didn't read the whole part about baking it for an hour, and not 30 minutes like we did. Oh well, how cute are these little apple pies-in-a-can!

Ingredients:
(4) 15 Ounce Cans, empty and cleaned with one lid removed

Filling
3 Apples, 1 Fuji & 2 Honeycrisp, 8 Tablespoons Butter, 4 Tablespoons Sweetened Condensed Milk, 1/2 Cup Sugar, 1/4 Cup Flour, 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice, 1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon,1/2 Teaspoon Nutmeg, 1/2 Teaspoon Salt, 1/4 Teaspoon Cloves

Crust
2 Cups Flour, 1 Cup Butter, 1/2 Cup Semolina, 4 Tablespoons Water, 4 Tablespoons Milk, 2 Tablespoons Sugar, 1 Teaspoon Salt

Temple Square Lights

2011-12-16T21:26:00.000-08:00

Tarrin and Tyrell, Kinlee and Tate came over for pizza tonight and then we were off to go downtown. We rode "the train" (Kinlee calls TRAX a train) down to Temple Square and walked around looking at the beautiful lights. I LOVE to see the lights. They look magical as they surround the temple. It is so fun to watch Kinlee and Tate in their coats and winter clothes. They are getting so big!

12 Days of Christmas for a Teacher!

2011-12-16T21:17:00.000-08:00

Two of my student's moms came in to school today to give me a large basket full of goodies. They had a little gift for each of the 12 days of Christmas with such cute little tags. It was so creative and thoughtful!

Here is the little poem that went with the gifts:

For the 1st day of Christmas,something for you to use, I'm giving you this clipboard so your papers you won't lose.
For the 2nd day of Christmas, Your students are busy, little bees, You can correct their papers with these 2 sharpies!
For the 3rd day of Christmas, I give 3 binder clips, I'm sure it could be tempting to use them on my lips!
For the 4th day of Christmas dry-erase markers come in for... as my 1st grade teacher, you really help me soar!
For the 5th day of Christmas, some popcorn for a snack, sorry, that's all the food I could fit in my backpack!
For the 6th day of Christmas, cold hands, face and toes, warm up with these 6 packs of cocoa with marshmallows.
For the 7th day of Christmas, I've brought you chewing gum, It feels like Christmas break is never going to come!
For the 8th day of Christmas, here are 8 paper clips multiplied by 10, Hope you're enjoying this 'cause tomorrow I'll do it again!
For the 9th day of Christmas, 9 canes of red and white, Guess who my favorite teacher is, if you guessed YOU, you're right!
For the 10th day of Christmas, 10 magnets I bring to you, You surprise me every day with all the fun stuff we do!
For the 11th day of Christmas, Some pencils I hope you'll need, McMillan is so lucky to have you indeed!
For the 12th day of Christmas, a gift-card you'll find in here, I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

The Nutcracker

2011-12-15T21:26:00.000-08:00

It is done! Today was our Nutcracker Performance at school. We started practicing with the students as soon as we came back from Thanksgiving break. Every day we would take all of the first graders into the cafeteria and run through the whole program. What a ton of practicing... but it paid off. Boy, were they cute! Something magical happens during the Nutcracker in the first grade. The kids become confident in their own little parts. They own it! The school production was wonderful! The rest of the students cheered so loudly for our little performers. Then at the night performance, the whole place was PACKED with people a half hour before it even started! It was so much fun... a lot of work, but so much fun to see the kids.

Festival of Trees

2011-12-02T20:51:00.000-08:00

My teacher friend at work, sewed this quilt and it sold!

I really look forward to going to the Festival of Trees at the Sandy Expo Center. All of the trees, wreaths, quilts, etc. are donated and then auctioned off. Proceeds go to Primary Children's Hospital. Some of the trees are decorated with pictures of a family member who passed away and it kind of makes you want to cry... but what a cool thing to do to remember someone and help someone else. Here are some of my favs of the night.

This was the Washington D.C. Capitol Building made out of Gingerbread!

An "UP" Christmas Tree, how cute!!!

Mickey D's

2011-12-02T20:45:00.000-08:00

I take kids in my class who have earned 50 reading points to McDonald's for lunch (I call it Mickey D's and they think it is hilarious). Today I went with Katelyn, Lilly and Emma. What a fun group of girls! They are adorable! We had such a lovely time and they wanted to pretend that I was their mom at lunch so I played along... once again, they thought that was pretty funny.

Advent of Nate

2011-12-01T22:08:00.000-08:00

I wanted to do something for Nate that he could open every day of December, leading up to Christmas. I decided to make and "Advent of Nate" where he can open up an envelope for each day and find a little note and a candy. I wrote a reason why I love him for each day.

The Nutcracker

2011-12-01T21:45:00.000-08:00

The entire first grade visited the Capitol Theater to watch Ballet West's production of The Nutcracker. The students all dressed up in their "fancy" clothes. They were really cute. I was actually very proud of them at the theater... it was hard for ME to sit still during the ballet, let alone a bunch of 6 year olds! They did great and enjoyed seeing the parts that they would play in our school production.

Macarons Smackarons

2011-11-29T21:55:00.000-08:00

Kerrie and I took a stab at making my macaron cookie mix that I purchased at the Bijou Market. First of all, I will just say that the directions for these cookies were totally CONFUSING! We tried our best and even though I thought the two of us would have a fancy little macaron party with tea and fine china... the cookies failed miserably. I'm not really sure what we did wrong, but on the positive note, we made the cookies purple and we had a fun time! That's why I say... Macarons Smackarons!

Thanksgiving

2011-11-22T21:07:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving time at school was a lot of fun. My favorite art project was the coffee filter water color turkeys and the stories "How to Catch a Turkey." They turned out really cute. On the day before we had our vacation, we made Stone Soup. The kids were are really excited to bring in their items for our soup party, but I'll be honest... most of the kids thought the soup was gross. It must have been the onion. They were still very impressed that there really was a stone that was placed in the crockpot.

Nate and I did a "Gratitude Tree." We wrote the things that we were grateful for on leaves and put them on a tree.

Stone Soup

TOMS

2011-11-21T21:29:00.000-08:00

How ridiculous is it that I am blogging about these shoes... but there is a STORY! I ordered these shoes from Nordstrom and they didn't have my size... so I went on the TOMS website... they didn't have any left. Then I found them on the University of Alabama's student store website! What? Crazy! There's the story of these lovely little shoes.

Fall Festival

2011-11-20T08:26:00.000-08:00

Our ward had a young families get together last night. We had a lovely dinner of chili and salad. Then on to the fun part. Annie, who was in charge, had the doughnut eating game that I remember from when I was a kid in Brownies! It was hilarious to watch... I was to busy stealing babies to hold to play the game! The younger kids were first, then it went up in age from there until the adults went. We have a lot of cool people in our ward. It was fun to visit and catch up.

Bijou Market

2011-11-20T08:22:00.000-08:00

I went down to Provo today for the Bijou Market yesterday. It was a market of 50 handmade or vintage vendors. What a talented bunch of people! There were so many cute things and it gave me a lot of cool crafty ideas. One of my favorite booths had wool baby sweaters with embellishments on them. Some had flowers and some had a whimsical design around the collar. I could totally do that to dress up a little baby sweater! Another fav booth was Mercedes White's Macaroons. I have seen several blog posts about her and her yummy french cookies. She was there at her booth, and was adorable. I loved her bright RED lipstick! I picked up a bag of her vanilla macaroons and plan to add some minty goodness. I guess the Bijou Market takes place in the Fall and Spring. All I have to say is... sign me up for April! It was right up my crafty little alley!

Utah vs. UCLA

2011-11-12T15:51:00.000-08:00

With a lump in my throat, I went to the Utah game wearing all red. You see, I went to school at UCSB where we didn't have a football team. I kind of always thought that UCLA was my adopted football team. Well today it was a good day to be wearing RED! Utah beat the Bruins 31-6. I have a plan for next year if we go to the Utah vs. UCLA game in L.A. I will rock the Utah red and the Bruin Blue! It was an awesome game for the Utes and on top of that, it was snowing! Holy cow, it was so cool! Everyone was bundled up in jackets, ponchos, ski clothes, hats, etc. We waited in the concessions area until right before the game to go to our seats. We rented the red chairs, had a blanket on our lap, a poncho over that, and sat down for the coldest game of the year. Like I said, it was awesome!

A note on sportsmanship... I absolutely love to overhear fans from both teams being friendly with one another. As we were walking, we were next to several Bruin fans. I heard several people from Utah welcome them, and wish them a good game. It's people like that who make our world a better place, people who go out of their way to do something kind.

White Table

2011-11-11T22:59:00.000-08:00

I learned something new today as I read a book to my class about Veteran's Day. It was called, America's White Table and was about a family who set out a little table with a white table cloth on Veteran's Day. I looked it up to see if it was real and it is! It is actually used as a ceremony at banquets or large dinners to honor those who have died. There are certain items placed on the table to symbolize different things throughout the ceremony. Interesting!

The table is round- the everlasting concern for our missing men and women.
The tablecloth is white- purity of their motives when answering the call to duty.
The single red rose- the life of each of the missing
The vase is tied with a ribbon- continued determination to account for the missing.
A slice of lemon- the bitter fate of those captured and missing in a foreign land.
A pinch of salt- tears of family members
The Bible- strength through faith The chairs are empty — they are missing.
A Candle– the light of America

Homemade Hand Soap

2011-11-11T21:24:00.000-08:00

This lady is brilliant. http://familyoffarmers.blogspot.com/2011/11/liquid-hand-soap-diy.html
She figured out to make yummy smelling homemade hand soap that would normally cost a TON! Here's what she did:

What You Need:
Cheese grater (from the dollar store)
2 Tablespoons of Liquid Glycerin (found in the band aid section at any drugstore or grocery store)
1 - 8 oz bar of soap (Meyer's Brand)
1 gallon of water

Step 1: Grate the entire bar of soapStep 2: Fill a pot with 1 gallon of water and add the soap shavings.
Step 3: Add 2 Tablespoons of liquid glycerin and turn the heat to medium/high and stir until the soap dissolves.
Step 4: This is what it looks like once it's dissolved, basically just soapy water.

Step 5:
Leave it alone to cool for at least 10-12 hours. It begins to cloud up after 3-4 hours.

Step 6: After it has cooled completely around 12 hours later it will harden and look like

liquid soap.

Step 7: If the soap is harder than it should be you can take some beaters and blend it while adding just a little bit of water until the consistency is more like liquid soap.

Step 8: There you have it....Liquid Soap!!!

Disney on Ice

2011-11-09T21:05:00.000-08:00

For our anniversary, Nate agreed to go to Disney on Ice (which is huge!). We went tonight and I loved it. It was like watching a parade at Disneyland, only with ice skating... so cool! One thing I kept thinking about all night was, how in the world those people were able to ice skate in such elaborate costumes! That had to take serious practice. There was something else that the both of us kept thinking of the whole night, and that was that we were missing something... oh yeah... KIDS! It was kind of funny to see tons and tons of families with all of their little kids dressed up in Disney costumes. I told Nate that I could be his "kid" for the evening because I was just as excited as they were.

Tender Mercies

2011-11-05T20:52:00.000-07:00

Nate and I went to Sara Hayes' funeral today. She was in our ward before we got married. She was diagnosed about a year and a half ago with bone cancer. Her brother gave the eulogy and shared this sweet story... The morning after Sara had passed away, Sara's four year old nephew went to his mom (Sara's sister) and said that he saw Sara while he was sleeping. He said that she was wearing a colorful dress with a blue bow. Her hair was blonde and she was smiling and happy. He also said that she was hugging Jesus. His mom was surprised at her son's detail in remembering his dream that she asked him what Jesus was wearing. The little boy answered, "A yellow man-dress."
What a tender mercy for this family to have had this experience... to know that Sara is at peace, and to have a little kid humor thrown in. I believe that this little boy really did see Sara. Children are closer to the veil than we think.

Happy Birthday Dad!

2011-11-05T20:41:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad came into town for the weekend and we were so lucky to spend Dad's birthday with him. I wanted us to do something special since he was celebrating the big 6-5, so we ended up going up to the Heber City Cowboy Poetry Festival. On Friday, we spent part of the day trying to find our cowboy duds. Dad bought a fake stetson (p.s. I didn't know what a stetson was until today. I thought it was a type of cowboy, now I know it is a brand of hat!) and I made Mom buy a hideously funny western shirt at the DI. (I'm so sorry Mom!) Looking back at the pictures, I now realize how cruel I was. It was pretty funny, but Momma pulled it off! On Saturday, we made a birthday breakfast for Dad... pumpkin waffles with our new waffle maker. Then we opened presents. Later on that day, we drove up to Heber to join in the cowboy fun. Our dinner show was at the Zermatt Resort, a cute little Swiss resort in Midway. There was a cowboy buffet of fancy fiddles and a cowboy singing group while we ate. There was even an Australian guy performing cowboy poetry. He had a very thick accent, so it was a little hard to understand, but I do remember him telling a story about a surfer who tried bull riding... funny. Happy Birthday Dad!

Halloween

2011-10-31T20:30:00.000-07:00

I stayed home from work today to try and knock this gnarly cold. Nate said that if I was not well enough to go to work, then I shouldn't be able to go out for Halloween. He is going to be such a good dad! :) Well we stopped by the Hansen's Halloweenie Roast and saw some neighborhood kiddies dressed up, which is always fun. Then we hurried home to prepare for our trick-or-treaters. We added candles to the pumpkins on the porch and put bags with lights inside, to line the walkway to our house. You should have seen us... we were in a Halloween decorating frenzy. Then we went inside, sat on the couch with our bowl full of candy and waited. Nate didn't want me to make it sound like we were being desperate for trick-or-treaters... but I am not ashamed. I was excited! Every time we heard someone coming up to the porch, the two of us jumped up and ran around to get the door. Total trick-or-treaters at the Philpott house that night= 3. Maybe we need some of those huge blow-up lawn decorations shaped like ghosts and pumpkins. Better luck next year.

Pumpkin Carving With Crew

2011-10-30T20:21:00.000-07:00

Natey and I went over to Kerrie and Crew's house tonight for a little dinner and pumpkin carving. I brought white chicken chili... so yummy. Kerrie made delish pumpkin cholcolate chip cookies. After dinner, we dug into our pumpkins. I've really been into owls lately ( I guess you can tell that from my costume) so I printed off an owl stencil for my pumpkin. I'm not going to lie, it took me forever to carve the owl, but it turned out great. Nate had to leave after dinner, so Kerrie and I sat on her floor and carved our pumpkins like little kids. We had pumpkin guts everywhere. Crew entertained us by walking around and naming things. Crew, you are so smart! He knows his letters and he is only 2! He is going to be the cutest little alphabet for Halloween! One thing I love about little Crew is his beautiful hair. I also love the way he loves his Momma. It was a fun time at the Goodells!

Halloween Festivities at School

2011-10-29T09:06:00.000-07:00

Our school decided to do all of our Halloween Festivities on the Thursday before Halloween because the kids didn't come to school on Friday. We had our school parade at 9am. Then the first graders went Trick-or-Treating at TOSH at 10am. Then at 11am our class had their Halloween centers. Oh boy, was it a crazy day. The best part of the whole day? My costume went over like gangbusters! I was the most awesome owl EVER!!! I loved my costume, why? Because blood, sweat and tears went into that costume... literally... I pricked my finger on a needle while sewing and on the night before I had to wear it to school, I was so stressed to get it done that I cried a little bit to Nate. But it was finished and it was awesome!

Cornbelly's Corn Maze

2011-10-29T07:57:00.000-07:00

Last night, Nate and I went to the Cornbelly's Corn Maze down at Thanksgiving Point. They really know how to put on a good one! There was a ton of things to do and a lot for kids and families. We started with their main corn maze. It had two "phases." We went on the phase that was a little longer (about 30-40 minutes). It was fun to walk through the cornstalks and especially right as the sun was setting.

I was surprised that we actually found the end! There were several "emergency exits" that you could use if you wanted to cheat and walk out of it, but we made it through all 10 little stops. I was so proud of us! It was while I was walking around the corn maze that I realized that I was freezing cold. I'm not sure what I was doing, wearing little flats with no socks in a corn maze on a night that must have been 30 below! (or maybe 45 degrees) After the corn maze, we went to go buy some hot chocolate and popcorn at the food stand and warm ourselves by one of their huge campfire rings. What a great idea! Once we thought we were warm enough to leave the fire, we headed over to "Insanity Point." It was a series of scary mazes with actors who scare you. I know that they are actors but every time I go into one of these things, they really do scare me. Nate said I was pulling on him and pushing on him the whole night. I'll be honest. They freak me out, but it a fun way. We went into the Beast maze, which was a huge blow up beast. It was supposed to contain all of the innards of the beast and lots of monsters. Why did I love this one? It was warm inside! I could have stayed there all night if they let me. Next we went to the haunted corn maze... totally freaky and fun. Because it was dark, sometimes you didn't know the difference between the monsters and the normal people going through the maze! Next we went through the Cage Maze. It was a series of see through fences that you had to get through, and even though you could totally see the monsters at all times, I thought this one was the scariest. There was a little man with a chain saw machine at the exit and that sound always scares the bejeebers out of me! Last, we went to a circus maze. When we went in this one, there were a lot of people and we were all screaming and trying to "feel" our way out with all of the fake walls. It was so much fun.

The whole night I was eyeing this enormous rocking chair that I wanted to take a picture in, but it was right at the entrance and tough to get on before anyone else. Finally at the end of the night we did, and oh was it awesome!

Schmidt's Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-24T11:19:00.000-07:00

Nate knows the Schmidt family from when he was at Snow College. We went and visited their huge pumpkin patch, and we even brought our little Macy. It was funny to see all of the parents eagering shooting pictures of their little kids on the hay bales and with the pumpkins. Who did we take pictures of on the hay bales and with the pumpkins?... Macy! We left with two big pumpkins for carving, apples, peaches, and a little bucket of raspberries. It was fun to feel like a kid again at the pumpkin patch!

Diet Rite and Eggplant

2011-10-23T19:14:00.001-07:00

My grandpa, Robert Cunard Westbrook, passed away last night in a care center. He has been struggling with his health and with Alzheimer's disease for some time now.

Grandpa Westbrook was born on May 15th, 1923 in Greenwich, Ohio to Cline E. Westbrook and Cleo Blanche Dennis. He was one of 11 children.

I am so lucky to be old enough to remember the wonderful times I had with Grandpa. I remember being at he and Grandma's house in Canoga Park. When I was really little, I would sit up on top of the kitchen table and Grandpa and I would play like we were driving in a car. He always wanted Diet Rite and eggplant (just to make me laugh). Grandpa liked to joke around with his grand kids. He would grab our noses and make funny noses. He would poke us and try and get us to retaliate. We would throw our arms around him and hang all over him. We loved it.

I know that Grandpa is in a much better place now. He has finished his Earthly life to return home. I'm sure he is up there with a Diet Rite in one hand and a yummy cheeseburger in the other, just waiting for his Eileen to come and be with him.

A Winkel Yellowstone Trip

2011-10-22T08:48:00.000-07:00

Kristen called me the day we got out of school for the UEA vacation and asked if I wanted to go meet her parents up in Yellowstone. SWEET! Holy spontaneity! We drove up and didn't get to their hotel until 1:30am. The next day we ate breakfast, walked around Mammoth and saw lots of animals. The elk just like to "chill" in the town of Mammoth. We also saw lots of bison.

The next night, we stayed in a little cabin that was near Old Faithful. The next morning we woke up and went to see a huge geyser, the size of a football field. It felt good to be there because the outside air was so cold, but the geysers made it a lot warmer (but smellier too!). We stopped for HO-CHO almost every day to keep warm. On the last day we ran into Jackie's boss and he let us look through his telescope lens to see two wolves! Cool! I have never seen real, wild wolves before! Later on we also were able to see a momma bear with two cubs. That was super cool! It's always lucky to see bears on your trip to yellowstone. We had tons of fun and I love to be around Kristen and her parents. They are so fun!

Baby Schmidt

2011-10-20T14:20:00.000-07:00

Amy and Brent had a sweet little baby girl named Lindsay Ann Schmidt, born on October 20th, 2011 in Boise, Idaho.

How cute is she?

Halloween Decorations

2011-10-16T19:15:00.001-07:00

How cute are these decs? I made the garland from cool orange and houndstooth fabric and wound orange and black string around styrafoam balls. I bought the frames on sale at Home Goods and printed out Halloween Subway art to go in the frames. The pumpkins and squash are glitter-fied! This is one of my favorite things to do in the Fall... glitterfy things!

HaPpY hAlLoWeEn!!!

Sunday Drives

2011-10-16T09:53:00.000-07:00

We found this little canyon on one of our Sunday drives. The leaves were absolutely beautiful. Macy loved to be out and running around. We even found a rope swing with a plank of wood for a seat that was fun to swing on. I love our Sunday drives.

Witches Night Out

2011-10-14T19:08:00.000-07:00

Jen, Megan, Kristen, Marianne, and I went to Witches Night Out at Gardiner's Village. I don't know why I love it so much... maybe it is because I love the music, or the cute shops, or the people watching. Most EVERYONE is dressed up as witches. I love it! I also loved hanging out with these fun girls. I don't want to say that Kristen made me do a solo karaoke number, but she did. I don't want to say that I love watching Jenny dance, but I do! It was a great night!

Cheesecake Factory Luck!

2011-10-10T18:47:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad gave Nate and I a gift card to the Cheesecake Factory (my favorite) for our first anniversary. That was so thoughtful of them! We went tonight and I ordered the usual... Chicken Madeira, Nate ordered Steak and Shrimp. Right as Nate was about to eat his food, he touched his knee to the underside of the table and got a piece of juicy, red, cinnamon gum stuck to his jeans! Eeeeeeewwww, gross! We told the waitress what happened just so no one else would get "gummed." She brought out her manager who apologized. Apparently we were so cool about everything, that he comped Nate's whole meal! We only used half of our gift card on our whole meal! Moral of the story? ... It pays to be cool when gross stuff happens.

Anniversary Weekend- The Big 1!

2011-10-09T20:59:00.000-07:00

So random... but I loved this chair!

On Friday, Nate and I drove up to Park City as soon as we got off work. Nate had made reservations at a little place near the Canyons Ski Resort. It was beautiful up in the mountains. We ate dinner at Squatters in town and walked around the downtown area. It snowed very lightly as we walked and there were not very many people out... it was a quiet, peaceful first snow. We had hot chocolate and were bundled up like it was 20 below zero! Back at the hotel that night, we went for a dip in the rooftop jacuzzi, while the snow lightly fell. It was a wonderful way to celebrate our first year together.

On Sunday, our actual anniversary day, we took a drive up Millcreek Canyon. The trees are absolutely beautiful this time of year. There was even snow at the very top. I saw a cute tradition on Pinterest, where a couple took a picture with a picture of them the year before. Nate made an 8X10 copy of one of our wedding pictures and that is what we took with us wherever we went this weekend.

I would just like to say how lucky I am to have Nate for my husband. He is such a good person. He is always willing to help someone out and will drop whatever he is doing for a friend in need. He is the most hard working person I know and is so very talented at so many things. I love it when he plays with my hair and he has the cutest ears in the world. Yep... I am so very lucky.

Paper

2011-10-09T08:34:00.000-07:00

Traditional thought has it that you should give PAPER for your one year anniversary gift. Since I am a lover of old traditions, we tried it out. It was fun. I gave Nate a book of hikes to do in Utah (that we probably won't be using until summer) and a diy handyman magazine. Nate gave me a Martha Stewart magazine and a paper that was good for two tickets to Disney on Ice! Nate also bought me some beautiful flowers on Friday when we left for Park City and red roses on our actual anniversary. He said that he was just trying , "cover all of his bases." Cute.

Exerpt from About.com:
"No one is certain just when the traditional anniversary gift list came into existence, but it probably evolved over time. Calling years twenty-five and fifty 'Silver' and 'Gold' may have originated in medieval Europe, where wives were given a silver wreath to celebrate their twenty-fifth year of marriage and a gold wreath for their fiftieth wedding anniversary."

Caysen Philpott

2011-10-03T08:30:00.000-07:00

We were happy to hear that Devin and Rachel were in town from Colorado. And of course they brought with them their cute kiddies, Reagan and Caysen. Caysen was born in late May and was still a wee little babe. I got a picture with the newest nephew.

Fall is Here

2011-10-03T07:58:00.000-07:00

We have been taking a lot of drives through the canyons on Sundays to enjoy Fall at it's finest. It truly is breathtaking to see all of the different colors. We have also been having some beautiful, warm weather for hikes with Macy. Yesterday was no exception. It was wonderful to get out of the house after conference and go for a drive and then a hike.

General Conference

2011-10-02T20:33:00.000-07:00

I always love General Conference weekend. It always seems to come at just the right time for a spiritual pick-me-up. There were so many great talks. One in particular really spoke to me... President Uchtdorf's talk on Saturday Morning. Here are a few of my favorite quotes from his talk.

"...You could pile up the accumulated currency of the entire world and it could not buy a loaf of bread in the economy of heaven. Those who will “inherit the kingdom of God” are those who become “as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love.”

The Lord doesn’t care at all if we spend our days working in marble halls or stable stalls. He knows where we are, no matter how humble our circumstances. He will use—in His own way and for His holy purposes—those who incline their hearts to Him.

God sees you not only as a mortal being on a small planet who lives for a brief season—He sees you as His child. He sees you as the being you are capable and designed to become. He wants you to know that you matter to Him."
I also really loved the talk by Elaine S. Dalton. She spoke about the importance of Fatherhood and being a righteous priesthood holder. She began her talk, sharing that she had three sons who all had new baby girls. They were wondering, "How do I raise a girl?" I think her answer is beautiful.

"You are your daughter’s guardian in more than the legal sense. Be present in your daughter’s life. Let her know your standards, your expectations, your hopes and dreams for her success and happiness. Interview her, get to know her friends and, when the time comes, her boyfriends. Help her understand the importance of education. Help her understand that the principle of modesty is a protection. Help her choose music and media that invite the Spirit and are consistent with her divine identity. Be an active part of her life. And if in her teenage years she should not come home from a date on time, go get her. She will resist and tell you that you have ruined her social life, but she will inwardly know that you love her and that you care enough to be her guardian.

So how do you raise a girl? Love her mother. Lead your family to the temple, be guardians of virtue, and magnify your priesthood. Fathers, you have been entrusted with our Heavenly Father’s royal daughters. They are virtuous and elect. It is my prayer that you will watch over them, strengthen them, model virtuous behavior, and teach them to follow in the Savior’s every footstep—for He lives!"

-Sister Elaine S. Dalton

Conference was wonderful! It was just what I needed!

Utah vs. Washington

2011-10-01T08:23:00.000-07:00

Let's think of this year of Utes football as a growing year, shall we? The mighty Utes were defeated but on the bright side- it was beautiful, warm weather for the game!

What Can't He Do?

2011-10-01T08:12:00.000-07:00

Nate came home one day and said, "I think I'm going to put in a window, downstairs in Robert's bedroom." And that's what he did. He paid our neighbor with a tractor thingy to come dig a huge hole on the side of the house. Then he got a man to come cut the window opening out. Then Nate just put a window in. It was quite an extensive process. He has never done this before and it turned out beautifully! Is there anything he can't do?

Crew's 2nd Birthday

2011-10-01T07:18:00.000-07:00

Kerrie had a birthday party for Crew with a sweet bounce house, a pinata, and a green dinosaur cake that she made herself. Kerrie is such a good momma and you can just tell how she cherishes little Crew. It was fun to see Jacelyn with Ella and Emily. It was also fun to see the Goodell fam... they are always so nice. Happy Birthday Crew!

Utah vs. BYU Drama

2011-09-27T11:28:00.000-07:00

The funniest thing EVER happened today... I had my kids journal about their favorite team (we've been talking about teamwork) and we talked about different teams that they knew about; Real Salt Lake, the Jazz, Utah and BYU. Most of my class wanted to write about the Utah Utes. Little Eli started balling and said, "I'm the only one in the class who likes BYU. I just want to go home and get into my bed." It was pretty stinking funny.

Good Bye Levi

2011-09-25T09:23:00.000-07:00

Today was Levi's last day at our ward. The family is moving to a new home. We wanted to throw him a good bye party and also reward the kids for doing such a good job in their primary program today. They really were great! They didn't even seem to wiggle... except for whenever the primary chorister got up to lead the songs, Levi wanted to lead the songs too. Oh, I am going to miss that kid! He is a really good reader and has a sensitive soul. He loved to cuddle up to Nate or I, while we were sitting during sharing and singing time. Isn't our Primary class the cutest!

We told the kids that we got the worms from our backyard. They thought that was really funny.

School Stuff

2011-09-25T08:38:00.000-07:00

This year I went and looked at several different teacher blogs for ideas in the classroom. I found a bunch of great ideas. Here are a few!


The "Handwriting Fairy" comes to our classroom every Friday to surprise students who have been doing nice handwriting. The kids LOVE it!


This idea is all the rage right now. Such a great way to teach kids to respect others. The book is great. Students are able to leave "bucket-filling" notes for their classmates (and work on writing and reading at the same time!).


Power Pellets! All I have to say is that I'm looking for someone in the "power position" and the kids all sit perfect. I'll usually call one or two kids to get a power pellet. They sit nicely for one lousy skittle! It's amazing!


I put these on the student's desks at Back to School Night. "I'm so Lucky to Have You in My Class!"


I got this idea from my team teacher, Morgan. You use a clip for every student and they move their clip to a different paper plate, depending on what stage they are in, in the writing process.

These are AWESOME! These little animals all stand for a different reading strategy. It is a great way to refer to skills during guided reading or even whole class instruction.

Winner of $100!

2011-09-22T07:45:00.000-07:00

Representatives from the Sam's Club and Walmart Corporation came to our school for a 7:30am faculty meeting to tell us that they were adopting our school. They gave us a check for $1,000! Then they drew the names of ten teachers who would be the lucky recipients of a $100 gift card to either Sam's Club or Walmart. I WON!!! I am sooooo excited! We get to use the money on things for our class. How fun!

Mad Science!

2011-09-16T16:57:00.000-07:00

My teacher friend, Morgan and I have been teaching our students about community in Social Studies. To wrap up our unit, we had the students come to school dressed as someone they would like to be when they grow up. It was so hilarious! Some of the kid's outfits were; an astronaut, dentist, pro baseball player, pro football player, cook, waitress, mom, karate guy, teacher, scientist, and fireman. There was a ton of stuff going on today. It also happened to be our school's "Crazy Hair Day" and we decided to kick off our Science unit by making ice cream with the kids. Oh my busy-ness! Morgan and I thought it would be awesome to dress up as Mad Scientists with really crazy hair. It was so fun to get our outfits together. I called Murray High and talked to a Science teacher who GAVE me an old lab coat... sweet! We looked awesome and the kids had a great time making their ice cream. Before we started, we asked them to predict what we were making with the ingredients. They were very surprised and excited to find out that they could make their own ice cream. It was a fun and crazy day!

Recipe for Shake & Make Ice Cream:

What You Need:
2 T sugar
1 c milk or half & half
1/2 t vanilla
6 T rock salt
1 pint-sized plastic zip bag
1 gallon-sized plastic zip bag

What You Do:
1. Fill the gallon-sized bag half full with ice. Add rock salt and seal.
2. Pour sugar, milk, and vanilla into pint-sized plastic bag and seal.
3. Place the small bag into the large bag and seal.
4. Shake the bag for 5-7 minutes.
5. Open the small bag and enjoy!

Flavor Ideas:
Make peppermint ice cream by adding 1/2 t peppermint extract or 3 T of crushed peppermint stick.

Utah State Fair

2011-09-15T16:36:00.000-07:00

We met T & T at the fair. It was fun to walk around with the babies and see the animals and exhibits. I always love to check out the sewing projects and the huge statue made of butter. All six of us even rode "The Big Yellow Slide" ride. It was so fun. We rode the Ferris Wheel and had yummy Moochies philly cheesesteak sandwiches for dinner. It was a great time at the fair.

9-11 Ten Year Anniversary

2011-09-11T16:55:00.000-07:00

I will never forget where I was when I heard about what happened at the World Trade Center. I was in Ecuador and the two Ecuadorian people who were living in our big house in Cuenca, came and gathered all of us girls together and told us that something had happened in America. We listened to an English radio program to hear that two planes crashed into each of the twin towers in NY. We then spent the rest of the day on the internet watching the news programs. It was horrible and it was scary to be out of the country and not with our families. We were not able to leave our house for a few days because some Equadorians were happy that this happened in America because of something to do with the value of their money losing value due to the American dollar. I even remember a couple girls who had to leave Equador and go home at the request of their families, when the airports were up and running again. When I came home from Ecuador, I remember spending a lot of time watching old news tapings and documentaries about what happened. It was weird to not have been around to watch the news every day, and I finally felt like I experienced the magnitude of what really happened.

This is the 9-11 Memorial that is at Ground Zero in New York City. The area around the two pools contain the names of each and every person who died during the attack on 9-11. I was touched this morning as we watched the news. The families of those who had died were able to visit the memorial first. Many of them took turns reading the names of the fallen. It was a very touching memorial.

Utah vs. USC Weekend!

2011-09-11T11:48:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a weekend! We crammed a bunch of stuff into a very small amount of time. Friday night, Mom and Dad picked us up at the airport. Then Nate and I went to hang out with Jesse and his dad at 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica. We ate a late dinner at Barney's Beanery. There just so happened to be a band playing music in the street right in front of our restaurant... so cool. It was a great night to walk around and take in everything that was going on!

Saturday was GAME DAY! We donned ourselves in our UTAH gear and went to Phillipe's for lunch, a place that reminded me of my childhood, going with Grandma Rose. The food was as delicious as I remember. I even took a picture of the bright, purple pickled eggs (pickled in beet juice... hence the purple color). We even saw some other Utah fans!

Holy awesome day at the Colosseum! We parked and walked around the many people who were tailgating. Everyone we ran into was very nice and welcoming. One USC fan even invited us back for lunch! We ended up going to the Natural History Museum and seeing the sweet Dinosaur, Gems and Minerals, and Animal exhibits. It was a beautiful building.

Oh man, can you say HEARTBREAK HOTEL? What a great game. The Utes fought a good fight and they really hung in there. It was by no means a blow-out game. At the end of the game with about 10 seconds left, the score was 14-17 USC... Utah was kicking a field goal to try and tie the game and USC blocked it, and some dang Trojan picked it up and ran it down the field for a touch down. Oh Stink!

Dad would be a really good rapper.

Did I mention that there was lots of drama going on in the stands where we were sitting. Can I just say that drunk guys are annoying and drunk women barf all over the place. It was an incredible game, even though we lost.

This picture of the torch is pretty cool. It looks like it was raining, but it wasn't.

Felted Flowers

2011-09-10T08:32:00.000-07:00

Cutie cute!

I did it!

2011-09-06T11:24:00.000-07:00

I have been working on a little book this summer. The idea happened when Nate and I got called to Primary. As we taught our little class, I kept thinking... wow, it would be so much easier to teach the kiddies about gospel principles if they were in a story picture book. I thought I would give it a try to write a children's book about prayer. I sent it off today to see if a little company called Deseret Book would publish it. Here's the thing... I'm not sure what will happen and if they will even give me the time of day but I thought, I would give it a try!

Swiss Days

2011-09-03T19:18:00.000-07:00

Nate and I randomly headed up to Swiss Days in Midway during Labor Day weekend. I wish that we had made it there hours earlier than we did. There was so much to see and so many booths to look at. We got there, raced to get food, and raced through the booths before it was time to catch the shuttle back to the parking lot. Next year, we will spend the whole day there! I did buy some sweet Utah Utes earrings and a hanging bird thingy. The bird was made by the same people who make the stars for Nie Nie's Family... the ones they give their kids at their back to school feast. I LOVE my bird! It's so cute.

Cool Tradition

2011-08-30T07:14:00.000-07:00

Nie Nie and her family have a back to school feast the night before their kids go back to school at the beginning of the year. She makes each one of them a crown and gives each one a star with their name and grade on it. She decorates the table with cute "kiddy" things and place cards. Their family chooses a theme for that year. It is usually tied to a scripture and they talk about what it means at their feast. I'm sure it is a wonderful way to ease the nerves that children may have as they go back for a new school year and start of the year right with a family theme!

Cute tradition!

Magic Playdough

2011-08-29T20:10:00.001-07:00

I found this great idea on a teacher's blog to do Magic Playdough with your students on the first day of school. Here is the recipe:

* 1 cup flour
* 1 cup warm water
* 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
* 1 teaspoon oil
* 1/4 cup salt
* food coloring
Mix all ingredients, adding food coloring last.
Cook over medium heat until smooth. Continue cooking after the mixture thickens, and continue to cook until the dough comes together in the pan to form a ball. Remove from pan and knead until blended smooth. Place in plastic bag or airtight container when completely cool. Store in a cool place and avoid allowing condensation to form in the storage container.

*Note- If you want to make MAGIC PLAY-DOUGH... you poke a hole in the top of the white ball of dough and drop in 3-4 drops of food coloring. Then cover up the hole. The kids squish it in the baggie (so they don't get food coloring on their hands. Then they can take it out of the bag. They absolutely LOVE it!!!

"Magic Playdough, oh so white, I make this wish with all my might. If another color does appear. We're sure to have a GREAT school year."

Pesto

2011-08-29T20:10:00.000-07:00

Our two basil plants that we planted in the Spring time are starting to grow flowers and are going to seed. You have to catch the basil leaves before they start to have a bitter taste. I clipped all of the leaves that I could (which only came out to about two packed cups!) and decided to make Pesto. This is the recipe that I used:

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano or Romano cheese
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts
3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 Combine the basil in with the pine nuts, pulse a few times in a food processor. (If you are using walnuts instead of pine nuts and they are not already chopped, pulse them a few times first, before adding the basil.) Add the garlic, pulse a few times more.
2 Slowly add the olive oil in a constant stream while the food processor is on. Stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula. Add the grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Newport Beach

2011-08-13T20:13:00.000-07:00

Nate has been talking about getting a Balboa Bar in Newport, the entire summer! He actually ended up having two while he was there. On Monday, we took a bike ride to Balboa and rode the ferry over to the island. We walked around the cute neighborhoods and shops. It just feels like tradition. That's what we do when we go to Newport!

It was cute Mom's birthday while we were there. We made sure that she was good and ready for our Utah football game in September. Go Utes! Happy Birthday Momma!

Chronic Tacos is located in the little shop area by Circle K across the street from 46th Street, where we were staying at Uncle Ken's beach house. They have yummy Mexican food! I had tacos Al Pastor. Delish.

Pam and I rode our bikes up to The Froghouse to rent an 8" soft top surfboard. It was so hilarious because Pam carried the thing the whole way back to our house, just holding on to it on her bike. The guy who helped us at the shop even came out to watch us leave. I don't think he believed she could do it. Oh, she proved him wrong! I was surprised at how long we actually stayed in the water. It felt freezing at first, but when we got in and surfed the white wash, I didn't feel very cold. We had so much fun. However, the life guard girl told us to stay inside the sets because, "even the guys who come out every day are having a hard time in the rip tide." WHAT? Was she suggesting that we didn't look like we went out there every day??? Boy, did she have that right! I just would like one day to be mistaken for a professional surfer. Is that so much to ask?

After everyone else had left, Mom, Dad and I went down to Balboa one last time and went on the Harbor Cruise. This is another tradition. I love being on any boat on pretty much any body of water... but this cruise is special. We get to see all of the pretty homes, lookouts and the sea lions laying on the buoy.

Bethany Hamilton~ My HERO

2011-08-12T22:15:00.000-07:00

I know that this happened a while ago, but Bethany Hamilton is my hero! Mom, Dad and I rented the movie, "Soul Surfer." It's based on a true story of a girl in Kauai who grew up in a surfing family. She was on the road to being a pro surfer and was out in the water one day and got bit by a shark. The shark took her entire left arm. She loved to surf so much that she soon started to train for competitions and currently is ranked pro. What an inspiration to us all! I also loved how spiritual and mature the girl is. She was so strong and had so much faith in God. She says that she was able to "do all
things" because of Jesus Christ.

The following is an exerpt from Wikipedia:
On October 31, 2003, Hamilton went for a morning surf along Tunnels Beach, Kauai with one of her friends. Alana Blanchard, and Blanchard's father and brother. Around 7:30 a.m., with numerous turtles in the area, she was lying on her surfboard with her left arm dangling in the water, when a 14 ft tiger shark attacked her, ripping her left arm off just below the shoulder. Her friends helped paddle her back to shore, and Alana's father fashioned a tourniquet out of a surfboard leash around the short
piece left of her arm, before rushing her to Wilcox Memorial Hospital. Her father was supposed to have knee surgery that morning, but she took his place in the operating room. She then spent seven more days in recovery at the hospital.
Despite the trauma of the incident, Hamilton was determined to return to surfing. Less than one month after the incident, she returned to her board and went surfing again. Initially, she adopted a custom-made board that was longer and slightly thicker, making it easier to paddle. She has observed that she has to kick a lot more to make up for the loss of her left arm. After teaching herself to surf with one arm, she again began surfing competitively. She is now back to using competitive performance short-boards.

Fab First Grade Finds

2011-08-02T11:05:00.000-07:00

This super girl (I think I'll name her Fern) is flying into our classroom this week to teach r-controlled vowels! She is going to be one of the choices at word work station--the kids will use the magnetic words to label her with super words. I also made an identical workpage (just much, much smaller!) for the kids to practice spelling the words on the labels!

Work to TWEET about! Cute way to display kid's work!

Noun Town

Debbie Diller's Math Work Stations

I usually begin my math block with 15-20 minutes of whole group instruction--beginning with a number talk, daily review of basic skills (addition facts, counting by 2s, 5s, 10s, coin values, math journaling, etc.), then moving into an explicit lesson on the math skill of the day. After whole group instruction, the kids are given time to independently practice the skill--sometimes this is a game, other times it is a work page, or a math craft-tivity/activity. Following independent practice, it is finally time for Math Work Stations! {Woot!} My students can't wait to do math stations! I try to put a few games and activities inside each tub that will relate to the math topic of the week, and the other tubs are mainly review activities. Like Debbie Diller suggested, I found that keeping math work station groups to 2 or 3 kids really kept my students more engaged in learning and resulted in less conflict! Each tub is numbered, and the kids are assigned to 2 tubs each day, but sometimes we only have time for 1 tub.

WORD WORK ACTIVITES

Other ideas:
*Mini chalkboards/whiteboards
*Magnet letters
*Fun fonts: cut out letters from magazines to build words.
*Letter stamps
*Sand box: put sand in the lid of a shoebox, and draw words in the sand
*Rainbow spelling: use different colored markers to spell words
*Wikki Stix
*Bottle cap spelling: put letters on the tops of bottle caps

Boating With Randa

2011-07-30T10:32:00.000-07:00

Randa was so nice to invite us to go boating with her. She has had her family's boat with her in Salt Lake the whole summer. It was SO MUCH FUN! Darnell and Jenny also came which was awesome to hang out with them. We went wakeboarding and even got dragged behind the boat, which was surprisingly fun. Pam and I held onto one handle, and Randa and Jen held onto the other. Oh my did we have fun. Randa kept trying to ride us like dolphins and get us to let go of the handle. I have never laughed so hard on a boat before. Randa is also a great wakeboarding teacher and helped Pam to get up for the first time. It was a beautiful, hot day at Utah Lake.

Baby's Birthday

2011-07-29T10:24:00.000-07:00

For Pam's birthday, I wanted it to be extra special so I had a little gift for her to open at every hour throughout the day. I tried to make most of the little gifts and it turned out to be fun. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY FAV SISTER, PAM-CAKES!!!

Bear Lake

2011-07-29T09:15:00.000-07:00

Pam came to Salt Lake so that we could go to Bear Lake for her birthday. Bear Lake is so awesome. We drove up on Thursday morning and went straight to the Minnetonka Cave. It felt good to be in the constant 40 degree weather for a little bit, especially for Pam since she has been experiencing record days of 100 degrees in Austin.

After the cave, we went up to the Lake Bloomington Trail. It took about a half hour to drive on the dirt road up to the trailhead. The hike was absolutely gorgeous, so lush and green. There is a rope swing at Bloomington and even though Pam and I didn't have our swimsuits on, we thought it would be fun to at least swing out on the rope over the water. Pam went first. She was awesome and was able to swing out really far and then go back to the starting point. I was a whole different story. I swung out on my first try, missed the step on the way back and landed in the water on rocks. I even cut up my hand a little. Did I give up there? NO! I tried again... and did the same exact thing... I fell again. What is the deal? Anyways, Bloomington was awesome.

We were late getting to our little campsite because it was way on the southern part of the lake. Whoops. In the morning, we got up and had breakfast at the lake. So pretty. Then we set off for the day, swimming in the lake, renting a double seated bike and eating at LaBeau's.

We finished up our trip with an amazing time at the Pickleville Playhouse. We had the yummy dinner before and then watched "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Coat." It was such a great show. We both loved it.

Cute Dad

2011-07-27T11:48:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad went up to Washington in July to visit everyone. One night, everyone was watching "So You Think You Can Dance" and Abby was playing with Dad's hair. This is what Pam and I would do to Dad when we were young. It seemed like he would sit and let us "do" his hair for hours. What a good sport he is!

Bottle Cap Magnets

2011-07-26T13:23:00.000-07:00

I have been holding on to some IBC rootbeer bottlecaps for a while now, thinking that I could turn them into something magical. Well, I found just what to do with them! For one of Pam's b-day surprises, I am going to make bottle cap magnets! Here is what you do!

You Need:

• Clean bottle caps, one for each magnet
• Mod Podge Matte and a brush for applying it
• Mod Podge Dimensional Magic
• Small, strong magnet:
• Hot glue gun
• 1” diameter hole punch or scissors
• Pin or toothpick (for piercing the little air bubbles)
pictures or designed paper

1. Cut out your photos or paper with either scissors or your hole punch. You can use a quarter to trace around paper or pictures.

2. Using a brush, apply a light coat of Mod Podge into the bottom of the bottle cap, place your picture, pressing lightly, and then cover it with another coat to “seal” it. Start at the edges, dabbing the glue into the gaps at the ridges, and then fill in the center with a thin but full coat of the glue.

3. When the Mod Podge has dried (at least a few hours), carefully pour in the Dimensional Magic. Hold the bottle at an angle, and make sure your bottle cap is resting on a flat surface, somewhere it will not be disturbed by children or pets for the next 24 hours. Fill the cap up to about where the crinkly bits begin. Try to pop little bubbles as they come up, although your magnet may have some bubbles at the end.

4. When the Dimensional Magic is completely set (at least 24 hours), turn the caps over and attach the magnet.

VOILA!

Veggie Chips

2011-07-26T13:10:00.000-07:00

I bought a pack of veggie chips to go in Pam's b-day surprises and they were so delicious (but expensive) that I wanted to find some recipes online to make my own. I had know idea that people made them out of so many different vegetables! I found these recipes here:
http://www.chow.com/food-news/80400/make-your-own-veggie-chips/

CARROT CHIPS

INSTRUCTIONS

2 large carrots (at least 1 inch in diameter), peeled
1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 plus 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Basic Ranch Dressing, for dipping (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange the racks to divide the oven into thirds.
Holding the stem end, shave the carrots lengthwise into thin strips using a Y-shaped vegetable peeler. Place the carrot strips in a medium bowl, add the oil, salt, and pepper to taste and toss with your hands until thoroughly coated.
Place the strips in a single layer on 2 baking sheets—the strips can be touching but should not overlap. (Discard or save any remaining carrot slices for another use.)
Bake for 6 minutes, then rotate the pans between the racks. Bake until the edges of the chips are just starting to turn golden brown, about 6 to 8 minutes more. Place the baking sheets on wire racks and let the chips cool until crisp, about 3 minutes. Using your hands, carefully transfer the chips to a serving dish and serve with ranch dressing, if desired. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

TARO CHIPS

INGREDIENTS

Olive oil
8 ounces taro root (from about 1/2 medium taro)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
White Bean and Edamame Hummus, for serving (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat the oven to 400°F and arrange the racks to divide the oven into thirds. Using a pastry brush, coat 2 baking sheets with a thin layer of olive oil; set aside.
Peel the taro root and slice it into very thin rounds (1/16 inch thick). Place the slices in a single layer on the prepared baking sheets—the slices can be touching but should not overlap. Brush the top of each round with a very thin layer of oil and season with salt and pepper.
Bake for 12 minutes. Rotate the pans between racks and bake until the edges of the taro chips curl up slightly and are just starting to turn golden brown, about 3 minutes more. Place the baking sheets on wire racks, immediately season the chips with salt, and let the chips cool until crisp, about 3 minutes. Using your hands, carefully transfer the chips to a serving dish and serve with White Bean and Edamame Hummus, if using. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

SWEET POTATO CHIPS

INGREDIENTS

1 medium sweet potato (about 8 ounces), scrubbed
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Jalapeño-Cilantro Yogurt Spread, for dipping (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat the oven to 375°F and arrange a rack in the middle.
Slice the sweet potato into very thin rounds (1/16 inch thick; use a mandoline if you have one) and place in a large bowl. Add the oil, paprika, and salt and toss with your hands until thoroughly coated.
Place the slices in a single layer on 2 baking sheets—the rounds can be touching but should not overlap.
Bake one sheet at a time until the edges of the chips curl up, the centers are just golden brown, and the tops are dry to the touch, about 12 minutes. Place the baking sheet on a wire rack and let the chips cool until crisp, about 3 minutes. Using your hands, carefully transfer the chips to a serving dish. Repeat with the second sheet. Serve immediately with Jalapeño-Cilantro Yogurt Spread, if using.

Here are some more veggie chip recipes:

Parmesan and Black Pepper Potato Chips: Instead of salt, sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese and cracked black pepper on one side of the potatoes. Proceed with baking.
Seasoned Salt Potato Chips: Sprinkle with seasoning salt and proceed with baking; the seasoning salt imparts a barbecue-like flavor.
Baked Sweet Potato Chips: Substitute one medium-size peeled sweet potato. Proceed with recipe above, altering the baking time to 22 to 27 minutes.
Cinnamon Sweet Potato Chips: Substitute one medium-size peeled sweet potato. Sprinkle with cinnamon and salt for a warm and spicy flavor. Bake 22 to 27 minutes.
Baked Beet Chips: Slice two medium-size beets 1/8-inch thick, place on baking sheet and lightly brush with oil. Bake at 325 degrees F for about 40 minutes.
Baked Carrot Chips: Thinly slice two large carrots; place in bowl and toss with olive oil and salt. Lay slices on baking sheet and bake at 275 degrees F for about 30-35 minutes, checking often to make sure they don't burn.

Backpacking in the Uintahs

2011-07-24T20:12:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh, I am surprised I lived to tell the tale of our hardcore backpacking trip to the Uintahs. Nate, Doug, Jesse and I left on Friday afternoon in high spirits for the Amethyst Lake Trailhead. Little did we know that we would go on one of the hardest hikes of our lives! We made it to the parking lot on Friday night at about 7:00pm. Then we donned our packs and hiked twenty minutes in before we decided to set up camp before it got dark. We had a lovely spot right by a river. It was surrounded by tall green plants and fallen aspen trees. Little Macy was loving her life and she loved being able to sleep in the tent with us at night, where it was nice and warm. When I say "sleep," she and Nate were the only ones who did the sleeping that night. Between Macy's noises and moving around, the noises from outside, bear anxiety and Nate's night terrors, I wasn't really in the right frame of mind for sleep.

They love each other. Nice Do-Rag Doug!

The next morning we had breakfast and broke up camp. Then we started out on the hardest hike I have ever been on! It took us six hours to get the the lake that was five miles away! You may be asking why? It was a trail that practically went straight up the side of a mountain and was filled with streams of water to cross and rocks to climb over. Have I mentioned the mosquitoes and killer flies? They were everywhere. I'm not even joking. It was tough. Have I said that enough? We did take many rest and picture breaks on the way up. My favorite picture break was when we stopped at the river bank where the water was moving so hard and so fast, that it was misting everywhere. The roaring sound was powerful and loud. It was amazing. So seriously, six hours from the time we left camp that morning, we arrived at the lake called BR 24 or something like that. I have never been so happy to STOP hiking! Did I mention that I have the best husband in the whole world? I will tell you why... because a mile before we stopped, I kind of hit a wall in my hiking-and-carrying-my-pack-at-the-same-time ability and he swung my pack on his back, along with his. I kept thinking- I've got a good one.

You can do it Mace!

We rested for a while after setting up camp. I think I actually slept for two hours! Then we hiked up to Lake Ostler and then to Amethyst Lake. The fish were pretty much jumping out of the water and into our laps at Amethyst. I even caught four and that was my first time fly-fishing. We had a blast and the boys were running around like it was Christmas morn with all of the fish biting. Did I mention that Macy can now run across logs in water? I am so proud of my little girl. She was so cute on our trip and it was fun to be tent buddies. We kept her in between us and our sleeping bags hoping that she would be warm and in turn, keep us warm! Holy cow, it was a great trip! We woke up the next morning and noticed that the lake right outside our tent had frozen over! Yikes! Holy cold! After breaking camp, it only took us two and a half hours to get down, what a difference from the hike up the mountain! It was such a beautiful trip.

Best husband of the year nominee... Nate Philpott

Macy was so cute. She curled up on our packs and took a little nap.

This is me with my very own fish that I caught by myself!

Amethyst Lake... gorgeousness!

Nate is so hot.

Neice and Neph Visit

2011-07-22T11:14:00.000-07:00

Kinnies and Tate came over to play today for a couple hours and I was so pumped to try some homemade sidewalk paint. It turned out be awesome and actually captured their attention for a whole twenty minutes (much longer than I expected). Here is a recipe that I found that was so easy and worked great! I would totally use it again.

1/4 cornstarch
1/4 cup water
assorted food colors

We also played with tupperware in the creek in the backyard and made cookies. We packed a bunch into a small amount of time!

Baby Headbands

2011-07-20T10:41:00.001-07:00

Elastic Sizes for Headbands:

Newborn – 13 3/4″
3-6 Months – 15″
6-12 Months – 16 1/4″
12m – Tween – 17 1/4″
Adult- 18 1/4"

Millcreek Canyon- Dog Lake Hike

2011-07-18T22:22:00.000-07:00

Today was beautiful! Macy is such a champ hiker. I am so proud of her. We hiked 3 miles up to Dog Lake from the very top of Millcreek Canyon. We stopped and took a break at the lake and then hiked down 2 miles on a different trail. It was amazing! I would have thought that I was in Oregon because the trees and bushes were so lush and green. It was also great to have a river running along side of the trail. Macy LOVES rivers. She likes to dig up sticks and carry them around. It was a perfect hike!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

2011-07-15T09:43:00.000-07:00

I know that I am a Harry Potter nerd but I can't help it. I love, love, LOVED the last movie. It was sooo good! It really is kind of like an end to an era. I have enjoyed every minute of reading all of the books and watching the movies. I can't help feeling a little sad that is is over. But the good thing is that these books and movies will live forever, as well as the magical stories that many enjoy.

I love these three and kind of wish they were my friends and we could play quidditch together on the weekends.

This was a license plate Pam and I saw in Bear Lake. Awesome.

Strawberry Freezer Jam and Button Earrings

2011-07-14T12:28:00.001-07:00

Kristen and I were domestic divas today. Not only did we whip up some delish Strawberry Freezer Jam, but we also made some totally awesome button earrings. We are amazing! Here's the recipe:

What you need:

3-1/4 cups prepared fruit (buy about 2 qt. fully ripe strawberries)

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 box MCP Pectin

1 cup corn syrup

4-1/2 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl

RINSE clean plastic containers and lids with boiling water. Dry thoroughly.
CRUSH strawberries thoroughly, one layer at a time. Measure exactly 3-1/4 cups crushed strawberries into large bowl. Stir in lemon juice. Stir in pectin; let stand 30 min., stirring every 5 min. Stir in corn syrup. Gradually add sugar, stirring until well blended. Stir an additional 3 min. or until sugar is completely dissolved and no longer grainy. (A few sugar crystals may remain.)
FILL all containers immediately to within 1/2 inch of tops. Wipe off top edges of containers; immediately cover with lids. Let stand at room temperature 24 hours. Jam is now ready to use. Store in refrigerator up to 3 weeks or freeze extra containers up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator before using.

The button earrings were sooooo easy! All you need are:
button forms
earring studs and backs
scraps of fabric
glue gun

You just follow the directions on the back of the button form package to cover with fabric. Then you attach the studs with a glue gun. Voila!

We are so domestic!

Yummy Eats With Mom and Pops

2011-07-08T22:22:00.000-07:00

If there is one thing that Bryants do well (it's just one of the many things we do well), we love to find yummy restaurants. There is kind of a standing order for Red Iguana whenever Mom and Dad come to Salt Lake. I am always up for delish Mexican and it was perfect because we just picked up a chipper little Pammy that night at the airport (family joke- Pam usually stays up for like 24 hours before she flies anywhere because of her work schedule. That's why she is not always in such a perky mood when we pick her up from the airport). One of Mom's favs is the cinnamon french toast at Kneaders. Yum. Now she calls ahead to the place and makes sure that they are serving the french toast when she is in town. Don't mess with her french toast! Later on in the week, the girls made a cupcake run for a sweet tooth.

Kayaking at East Canyon Reservoir

2011-07-08T12:41:00.000-07:00

We all went up to East Canyon Reservoir to take the kayaks out. I thought it would be a great time to take Macy for a little ride. Bad idea... Pam tossed her into the kayak with me and she got so nervous, she peed... right on my lap. Sick. She kept jumped around and going out onto the front of the kayak. Then she would jump out into the water. She didn't look like she knew how to swim yet, so I had to keep pulling her in. She was sopping wet in the kayak and it all turned into one big hot mess! Soon after that, I took Macy to shore. Brittani and Chase came and met us at the lake with an extra reservoir so we could all kayak. It was fun.

I'm pretty sure this was a picture of Macy peeing on my lap.

Brighton

2011-07-07T19:49:00.000-07:00

Millcreek Canyon

2011-07-06T22:08:00.000-07:00

While Pamcakes was here, we took Macy up on a hike to Millcreek Canyon every day! This is how much I love my sister... she woke me up one morning at 6:30am and wanted to go exercise... and I didn't even get mad!!! I do have to admit that it was a beautiful morning. It was so fun to be with her in the mountains.

Independence Day

2011-07-04T22:21:00.000-07:00

I would just like to say how grateful I am to be an American! We truly live in the best country in the world. I am so grateful for the freedoms that we have here, I learn more and more about them as I grow older. I am grateful that we have a democracy in our country where we are able to vote for the people who lead us. I do appreciate the men and women who leave their own families and fight everyday for our country. They give such meaning to the words in our national anthem when it describes, "the home of the brave."

We had a great 4th of July! Nate fired up the bar-bie and we cooked steaks. We also had roasted potatoes, corn on the cob, and watermelon. The best part was that we got to spend it with mom and dad as we ate outside on a warm summer night. Later on we mad smores in the fire pit. I sure do love those little devils. Mom suggested we put york peppermint patties in the smores... AMAZING! We had kind of a crazy weekend, so we hung out around the house today, played some games and enjoyed each other's company.

Foxpaws Shoes

2011-07-04T14:53:00.000-07:00

I absolutely LOVE this brand of kid's shoes. They are so adorable.

Canyons Fireworks

2011-07-03T08:44:00.000-07:00

We drove up to Park City and arrived at Canyons Ski Resort. It was CRAZY busy. We rode a gondola up to the lodge area where there were about 1 or 2 million people! We moved a bunch of times, said hello to our friends, and then decided that it was probably better for us to go down the gondola to the parking lot and watch the fireworks from there. So... we ended up watching the fireworks from the lot. It actually turned out to be AWESOME because as soon as the fireworks were over, we were able to get right out of the parking lot. We made it home in about 20 minutes. Yay.

STADIUM OF FIRE!

2011-07-02T11:49:00.000-07:00

A Trip to Heber

2011-06-28T17:35:00.000-07:00

I went with Kristen and Madden to go to lunch at the Dairy Keen up in Heber. It was fun to watch the train go around the ceiling. On the way home we stopped at the Park City Outlets.

Night Terrors

2011-06-27T22:25:00.000-07:00

The funniest (and scariest) thing happened last night. Nate talks a TON when he sleeps and lately I've been noticing that he is shouting a lot. Well last night's episode takes the cake. He started screaming and shaking his fists, arms and legs really fast. He kept kicking and chopping the air with his hands. It was pretty crazy. The next morning, he told me that he dreamt he was killing a python. He told me that he basically saved my life. He's funny.

Art Festival

2011-06-25T12:32:00.000-07:00

We went to the Arts Festival tonight and it is always a lot of fun. We went straight to the foodie area, got some dinner and walked around Library Square. One of the reasons I like to go is to people watch!

Bow Pillow Awesomeness

2011-06-23T16:45:00.000-07:00

I did it again. I totally copied someone else's tutorial. It's right here and she is amazing. http://e-tells-tales.blogspot.com/2011/03/tutorial-bow-pillow-cover-win-pillow.html

What you'll need:
18" pillow form
1.5 yards of fabric
hand sewing needle
straight pins
sewing machine
coordinating thread
ruler or measuring tape

First cut a square for your front.

You'll need one 18.5" x 18.5" square.

Then, cut your rectangles.

You'll need two that are 12" x 18.5" for the envelope back
Four that are 22" x 6"
And two that are 2.75" x 5.5"

Sew on your machine using a .25" seam allowance.

Sew down either long side of two of your 22" x 6" rectangles, right sides together. Turn this piece inside out and press. This will become your bow ends.

Turn inside out and press. Then sew all the way around the edges of your other two 22" x 6" rectangles, right sides together, leaving a 2" open space on one 6" side. Flip this sandwiched rectangle inside out through that open hole, making sure all your corners have been snipped first. Press.

Now sew around the edges of your 2.75" x 5.5" rectangles, right sides together, leaving a 1" open space on one 2.75" side. Flip this sandwiched rectangle inside out through that open hole, making sure all your corners have been snipped first. Press.

Take these last two inside-out rectangles and sew them into loops by sewing the two 6" ends together for the large rectangle and the two 2.75" ends together for the small rectangle.

Thread the larger loop through the smaller loop. Now you have a bow!

Now thread your bow end piece through the back of your bow.

Press your 18.5" square in half to find where you'll pin your bow.

Pin your bow along the press line, pinning the ends to the edges of your pillow cover and each of the four corners of the bow. Make sure everything looks even to you.

Flip the pillow cover over and hand sew the corners of the bow to your pillow, making sure to just barely nip the back of the bow...you don't want any stitches showing from the front. I also tack down the center piece of the bow for stability. Sew along the edges of your pillow cover where your bow overlaps and trim off the excess.

Now take your two 12" x 18.5" rectangles and hem one 18.5" side on both pieces. You do this by pressing .25" over once and then another .25" while your fabric is right side down.

Set out your pillow cover, right side up. Pin each back piece right side down onto the pillow cover front. The hemmed envelope ends will overlap each other in the middle of the pillow.

Sew around the edges of the pillow cover. I serge my edges too to finish them. Flip your pillow cover inside out, and you're done!

I can't wait to make a bright yellow bow pillow!And here it is!!! Macy likes it too!

Cute Crocheted T-Shirt Rugs

2011-06-22T22:06:00.000-07:00

What you need:
- a gang of t-shirts
- a size 15 crochet hook
- rotary cutter
- scissors

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-19T19:09:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to wish my dad a happy father's day! My dad is so cool! He loves the beach and he loves to teach people things and have fun. One of my favorite times that I get to spend with my dad is when we bump the volleyball around. I think we have done it at least a hundred times. My dad has a huge heart and loves to talk to people. He is the friendliest person I know and likes to learn interesting things from others. Another thing that I love about my dad is that he tells me he loves me every time we talk.