Paul's 28th Birthday Week!

It was more low-key than I'd have liked some days, but here goes anyway.  :)

Saturday (Day 1): A medicine dispenser filled with candy and a little love note to open each day of his birthday week.  The note also included a little clue or note about that day's gift/activity.

Sunday (Day 2): Found these goofy but AWESOME bottle opener sunglasses on sale.  The note said something about how our love was so bright and he was my sunshine, all that jazz.  :) 

Monday (Day 3): Balloon Truth-or-Dare for FHE. 

Tuesday (Day 4): 28 kisses (with 28 reasons I love him on the back of them) in an envelope.  See below for "instructions."

First, pucker up and put on the brightest red lipstick you can find.

Kiss that paper as many times as you desire.  I liked it when I did 2 kisses per lipstick application, because it gave a more varied color.  I got SO INSPIRED as I was doing this for some awesome Valentines art/project ideas!

On the back of each kiss, write something you love about them!

Cut them out.  And, if you are crazy like me, laminate.  Not only are they sturdier BUT they keep the lipstick from smearing everywhere afterwards...which is always good. 

Wednesday (Day 5): Nerf gun fight!  (Note to self, wet shoes on a wet tile floor=NOT a good fighting ground.)

Thursday (Day 6 and actual birthday!): sock bouquet.  Tutorial HERE.  I modified it a little by using army men as vase filler and it was a BIG HIT.  Boys.  :)

My fabulous dinner at Bistro 501.

Paul's duck.

When we came home and I showed him the sock bouquet, he immediately set to building a fort and creating a whole battle scene.  :)

I went to the bathroom, and when I came out this is how I found him.  :)

 (I'll have a separate post just about this...it was SO FUN!)

Of course, then we got out the nerf dart guns and cut down each other's forces.  :)

Our awesome friends and old neighbors made Paul birthday cupcakes, so he didn't go without cake after all.  Thanks, Walkers!  And he ate some late-night ramen, so he got his long noodles in, too.  :)

Day 7 and final: We were going to have our family pics taken at a nearby park.  It rained all day.  Had to postpone.  Which was okay because we still will have them done SOMETIME and we got to go to our ward's chili cookoff and get fed for practically free.  But we ate too much, and we were both so tired and sore that we ended up skipping the other thing we were going to do (local improv comedy hour).  BUT, that's okay, too, because we can catch them after the New Year for a lot cheaper in their new location, and now we have money to hit up a corn maze/pumpkin patch sometime after I come home from Utah.  :)  SO.  Not how I planned it, but still an okay night.  What did we do instead?

Cuddling with puppies...even if they are too big to be lap dogs, they don't notice.  :)

Called up Paul's folks...

...worked on our target practice...

...and went to bed before 10.  Well, *I* did, anyway. :) Pretty good end to another birthday week.  I sure do love you, Paul!  Thanks for being a great husband, and happy 28th!

Curried Pumpkin Apple Soup...aka Autumn in a Bowl!

If you find a recipe you really love, you gotta share it, right? So check out this recipe from Family Fun that is PERFECT for autumn nights that are only slightly chilly...curried pumpkin apple soup! I followed the suggestion of one review and added an extra apple and ginger/cinnamon/nutmeg an it was just PERFECT.

http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/soups-stews/vegetable-fruit-soups/curried-pumpkin-apple-soup-688399/

Adorkable?

I got really stoked midway through the day today when I realized it was 10-11-12. :)

I crack up every time these two kids I help teach at work try to say the word "multiplication." Every. Time.

I like Star Trek and reading and techie stuff and I always did love math and science. I'm not very coordinated or outgoing and I have had to learn to laugh at myself A LOT. But I like me just the way I am. Even the *parts* I don't like--they all come in ONE package, y'know? And learning to love and accept the whole package has been quite the process.

My new glasses make me feel even nerdier than before...but in a good way. I'm still adjusting to them, but I think they'll do. :) This is ME! I feel like I'm finally growing into "my" style--"adorkable!"

Beautiful Bathroom Stands :)

I saw some cute cake stands on Pinterest and I got to thinking...maybe they could solve my messy bathroom counter conundrum!

Headed to Dollar Tree.  Bought 2 plates, 2 margarita glasses, 2 fancy plastic condiment cups, and a silver bead thingy in the Christmas section.

Already had the rose petal soaps (also from Dollar Tree) paint, sealer, and hot glue.

Magic.

From this:

These are the best representation of the actual colors.

 To this!:

SO PRETTY, if I do say so myself.  And these will be the inspiration behind everything else in my bathroom makeover yet to come. Mostly white, but with these sort of minty-silver-several-shades-of-pink touches scattered throughout.  :)   (I want new towels and soap dispenser/toothbrush holder, something decorative for the back of the toilet and the wall, and a new shower curtain and floor mats for sure...that'll probably be it since our bathroom is TINY. :)  I'm loving it so far.  I throw a few makeup essentials on the one on the right side and a few hair clips and ties on the other.  But they are so pretty on their own I almost want to keep it as-is!  'Tis quite the challenge...I probably should've gone for larger plates!

What could I be up to? :)

Creation is so messy in the thick of it...but that's what makes it fun, right? :) I'm super stoked to reveal the final product tomorrow!

General Conference Weekend!

I love Conference weekend.  Tons.  Even if I don't *need* it some years as much as others (oh, you know what I mean), it's always a fun and relaxing weekend.  I am SO GRATEFUL to know that we have modern prophets, seers, and revelators on the earth today who speak in the name of Christ and direct His church.  And I can't wait to study the talks and themes of Conference for the next 6 months.  I love the rededication I feel, the goals I always inevitably set, and the Spirit of peace that attends Conference weekend.

I also love the treats.  :)

I try to make at least one treat (sometimes more) to get us through the strangely-(for-us)-timed breaks between sessions.  And yummy meals to boot.  This weekend I bought pudding (a favorite treat around here that I rarely buy), made pumpkin-carrot-chocolate chip cake with a cream cheese frosting, and for dinners made Italian chicken in the crockpot on Saturday and chicken alfredo spaghetti squash tonight.  I was gonna make crab rangoon, too, but I'm just TOO FULL!  Maybe as a mid-week treat.  :)

Please note the jealous puppy in the background.  ;)

I have to doodle while I listen, too, because it helps me focus.  I've been a doodler since high school chemistry.  :)  So here are some of my "masterpieces" from these sessions:

See?  I take NOTES, too.  :)  I AM listening.

I'm apparently into zentangle allasudden.  :)

I was going for something tribal at first with the elephant head, but it failed miserably and I wound up just doodling a little and then quitting before I ruined it any more.  :)

My favorite.  Notice my awesome lettering skills, NO RULER.  Hahaha.  :)

BUT, obviously, Conference is not about doodles or treats.  It's about inspiration and revelation and building testimony.  Here are the most important take-away thoughts from Conference *for me.*  :)

(1) I am SO EXCITED for all youth, but especially for young women, that the age for missionary service was lowered!  I could do a whole post on this, but I won't.  Let me just say that I think it's gonna be a game changer for a lot of women--not because now they'll all go, because it still may not be right for a zillion reasons and a woman needs to be inspired after much prayer to make that decision no matter what age.  But I think it'll change the timeline of life for a lot of women, and help erase the cultural stigma there sometimes is (however unwarranted) about sister missionaries.  It'll make family and education easier for sisters who also want to serve the Lord.  What incredible youth we have, too, can I just say?!  To be entrusted with such sacred work at 18 or 19 years of age.  While part of me is jealous that it didn't happen when I was younger, I know my life has panned out so far the way the Lord wanted for me.  I'm just excited that this opportunity will open more doors for more women and youth in the Church to serve well.  SUCH AN EXCITING TIME IN OUR HISTORY!  :)

(2) I have felt even more strongly that the children in my ward have special gifts to offer our community and our activities should be more service-oriented, in more authentic ways, taking into consideration our children's unique talents and interests.  Ideas?  I'll have to think on it more.  :)  Along that vein, *I* really need to "first observe, then serve" more.  No excuses or cop-outs or half-tries.

(3) I am so excited to try the FHE blog again.  Fresh start.  That's important, right?  :)  And I have some new ideas to make it better and more applicable for families of all shapes and sizes.  Hold on to your hats.  Good things are a-comin'.  :)

(4) I need to journal--legit journal--more!  Definitely a goal, among two other more personal goals I felt impressed to set during Conference that I won't share here.  But I love being inspired on ways to improve myself, my marriage, and our quality of life during Conference!

For those of you who are LDS, what were YOUR favorite parts?  Thoughts about the age limit lowering?  Family traditions related to Conference weekend? 

For those of you who are NOT LDS, I invite you to learn more about the INCREDIBLE gift we have of a modern prophet speaking for Christ in His restored Church by visiting mormon.org.  Or, if you're curious what these prophets and apostles and other leaders of our Church have to say that makes us all so passionate about them, check out their biannual messages at gc.lds.org. 

The weekend was TOO SHORT.  Back to the grindstone...  :)

Project 366--October 1-7

Click HERE to get your own BLANK .png version of this page for personal use.

Oct 1--playing with the panoramic option on my phone's camera
Oct 2--sushi for dinner
Oct 3--cuddly pups
Oct 4--I need to lose weight
Oct 5--inquisitive pup
Oct 6&7--general conference! Complete with doodles and cake.

Project 366--Sept 24-30

Click HERE to download a blank .png version of this page for personal use!

Sept 24--music practice
Sept 25--caramel apple cider!
Sept 26--mid-week FHE on 10 Commandments (with hand motions)
Sept 27--haircut!
Sept 28--work with Katherine the Great :)
Sept 29--Sharpie mugs!
Sept 30--Paul and Caida waiting for me after Church

Project 366--Sept 17-23

Click HERE to download a blank .png version of this page for personal use!

Sept 17--just me
Sept 18--cool social skills games
Sept 19--farm-fresh eggs from Dad & Carri
Sept 20--rainbow!
Sept 21--drink more water
Sept 22--FEAST!
Sept 23--Kenndall came over to play after Church

Need ideas please :)

So, we went to our monthly GoodWill date this morning.  I was a little disappointed overall, but I still managed to find some pretty sweet stuff:

How rad is this T-shirt?!

A pair of work capris (for when it gets warmer again!), a cute dress I don't fit into, a sweet little picnic basket that will fit in my bike basket, a black/white shirt, and a long blue flowery skirt.

The problem with that cute dress I don't fit into is that even if I were to make it my "goal dress" and eventually fit into it by summertime, it's still WAY too short to actually wear as a dress, anyway!  But I just had to buy it...I walked past it literally three different times and I kept pulling it out, looking at it, wishing I could make it work for my body.  Now I'm trying to figure out what to make with the fabric.  I often buy dresses or things at these GoodWill dates because I get inspired to make something for Caida (or someone else, but usually her :), but I am selfish and I love this fabric tons and I want to use it for ME and not for another little dress for her.  Here's a close-up of the bottom:

 and the top:

Isn't it gorgeous?  I was kinda thinking maybe an apron?  The kind that just wraps around the waist, with the brown/top fabric as the pockets?  But, first of all, I don't have much use for a waist/hip only apron (the two full-length ones I already have are plenty stained up top!); and, secondly, I want it to be something I could use/see OFTEN because the fabric just makes me happy...but it doesn't work with my kitchen colors anyway.  I was also thinking of maybe just using it as fabric to line a crocheted bag or something...or a baby quilt for any of my many preggo friends.  And part of me says it's just not speaking to me *as* anything yet, and I thought maybe I would ask my talented friends who actually sew and create stuff to inspire me.

What do YOU think I should do with it? 

(P.S. Paul also got a suit pant, two sports jackets, two ties, AND a business shirt.  And we paid $20 total for the whole lot of it.  I LOVE GOODWILL!!!)

Also, my bathroom has turned out just too dark.  Even when it's clean, it feels dirty with all the brown and black in it.  This little origami doll (already hanging up in the bathroom) is my inspiration for a newer, fresher color palette:

Specifically, I would go with a mostly white bathroom with lighter/glittery silver, pink, and mint accents.  I've scoured the internet for inspiration but these colors aren't often together in decorating (and when they are it's very DATED feeling and tacky).  Ideas on DIY projects for a small, apartment bathroom when I can't just remodel and paint everything?  Even Pinterest isn't inspiring me much with this.  I need your help!

Please and thank you!