4th Of July Activity

I got this cute idea from the Family Fun Magazine. All you need is some fresh strawberries, whipped cream cheese frosting, and some blue spinkles. They are so yummy too!!!!

Cute Cuff Bracelets

Lately I’ve really been into the cuff bracelets. They are just so darn cute, and in my opinion, way more comfortable since they stay in one place.

Here are some of my recent finds. Unfortunately the lady I bought them from does not have a website. I do know that a lot of boutiques are selling them now, one of them being The Sweetest Thingz. Don’t know if they are AS cute as the ones I found, but they come close :)

I actually going started making some of my own and maybe even some baby ones for my little baby on the way. You can find them HERE. It’s not official that I’m having a girl, but I just THINK I am :) I should be finding out within the next few weeks, so I’ll keep you posted. I will also be sure to post some pics of the cuff bracelets I come up with using my crafty skills.

Check these out!

Everyone's Gotta Have One!

One thing I’ve learned over the years of being a mom is, there’s no shame in hiring a little help…

It’s possible on any budget really. Think about it. So many of us spend money on random useless things all the time. It’s all a matter of budgeting right, perhaps trading in something thats not benefiting you in any way. For example, new jewelry or clothes, eating out, your daily diet coke or Star Bucks, ect.  If you spend just $2 a day on one of these addictive drinks, that’s $60 a month, which is more than enough money to hire someone to clean your toilets, organize the toy room or even do your laundry.

The way I see it is, how is my time best spent. Would I rather spend two hours a week doing laundry, or would it be better spent doing something I enjoy? Like developing a talent, pursuing a hobby, or simply playing with my kids. Spending countless hours on house work is not my idea of living a full life.

So I’ve budgeted a certain amount of money each week for an “Andrea”…

My “Andrea” helps me with the laundry…

does dishes…

and even helps with the organizing.

It’s all about priorities folks…

and cleaning is not one of mine.

Just so you know, my “Andrea” has an open schedule for the summer, so if you’re looking for someone awesome to help secure your sanity, then getting yourself an “Andrea” is the best thing for you :)

She only charges $11 an hour.

Email me if you’d like her phone number.

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and a fantastic Father’s Day!!!

What We've Been Up To!

I’m 15 weeks now and loving life. For a minute there I thought I was going to die because of all the morning sickness. Thank goodness for the second trimester providing a bit of relief before the huge and uncomfortable stage comes.

Sean’s getting a little jealous of all the attention I’ve been getting, so I let him join in the photo shoot.


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This weekend we had a nice family BBQ where I served some AMAZING FOOD, if I must say so myself :)

Well I can’t really take credit for it since I simply followed the recipe from my new cookbook, Dadgum That’s Good!

Here’s a picture of the delicious Maple BBQ Turkey Burgers I made. The recipe really calls for pork sausage, but I used turkey sausage to make it healthier and boy was it yummy!!!!

These are actually pretty simple. Just chop up a green bell pepper, mix it into the turkey sausage and form into 4 (1/2-inch thick) patties, cover and refrigerate while you make the sauce.

For the sauce, combine 1 1/3 cups BBQ sauce, 3 T. maple syrup, and 3 T. apple cider vinegar.

Then grill the patties about 5 minutes on each side. Baste one side with sauce and grill for 5 min. then flip and baste other side, grilling for 5 min. more. Then serve on some toasted Hawaiian rolls, top with some coleslaw and wahlah!!!!

Here is my beautiful sister Robyn, modeling for me :)

The Talent Show

It was my eighth grade year. My best friend Brenda and I were hanging around her house one quiet afternoon. Suddenly we had an idea? We were going to find something for me to do in the talent show. I had no intension of actually trying out.  I couldn't sing.  I couldn't dance.  I wasn't even sure if I HAD a talent.

Brenda joked that I should do something funny.  I thought, okay what exactly would that be? We began throwing out ridiculous ideas, like making up a dance or busting out a rap song.  The idea was to get up in front of the whole school and make a complete fool of myself.
It started as a joke but I decided I was REALLY going to do it! I would act as a nervous ventriloquist, trying too hard to be funny and being way too obvious with the lip movements. It was BRILLIANT! Brenda had this puppet she got from the local amusement park, a monkey we called JoJo. Since I don’t have an actual photo of the little guy I searched for one similar to it, to add a visual for you all.

As the time for tryouts got closer, the anticipation grew.  I was nervous, I was scared, and I was incredibly excited. The day finally came. I walked into that tryout room only to see 100 other students, waiting to share their REAL talents. The intimidation was immense.  I began shaking, palms sweaty, and quietly walked over to find a seat.

The tryouts began. I listened to some amazing singers. I watched some incredible dancers. Then it was my turn. Was I really going to do this? What are people going to think of me?

I was the new girl in school. At least that's what it felt like. That's the way I always felt growing up.  We moved about every 6 months.  I was forced to leave my 6th grade class right before the school year ended. Then put into a new school with barely any time to make friends before graduating to the dreaded junior high.  It was awful! I went from being somewhat popular and having friends, to feeling like the biggest nerd on earth. Seventh grade was pure torture. Eighth grade got a little better. I made some friends, climbed out of my shell a bit and now had plans to perform a comedy skit in front of the entire school.

I walked onto the stage in front of all those students.  I got up there, positioned my puppet on my hand, and began my skit.  I started out a little shaky. It worked out in the end since my character was meant to be nervous.  Picture me as Molly Shannon on SNL playing the nerdy catholic girl trying to talk to one of the basketball players at school.

Before I knew it, I had the whole room laughing. They thought I was funny!!! Their laughter gave me confidence. I began to loosen up and finished my skit feeling grateful I went though with it.

The next day people stopped me in the hall to tell me how much they loved my skit.  One of them happened to be my competition.  His name was Matt. We were both competing for a spot in the comedy segment of the show.  He was really good which made me question my performance.

I couldn't believe the attention I was getting!!! People were actually calling me by name. I was somebody!!! At that point I pretty much thought I had the talent show in the bag.

A week went by.  I was sitting in my 6th period class day dreaming about my debut in the talent show, when I was interrupted by the loud obnoxious beep from the intercom.

This was it!!! They were about to announce the students selected to be in the show.  My heart was pounding. The anticipation was killing me!

I waited...

Then waited some more...

Then it was over. My name was not called.  I sat there for a minute in shock thinking there must be some mistake.

Then reality set in.

I was heart broken. I wanted to cry. I DID cry. I even asked the judges why not! They all loved me, so I thought. They simply said they only had enough time for one comedy act and they chose to go with Matt.

It took me a while to get over it. I felt like I had finally found something that would make me stand out. I wanted to be noticed. I wanted to be liked. I wanted to be popular.

Life went on and I did get over it. Now I look back at that experience with so much gratitude in my heart. I was proud of myself for taking a risk. Conquering my fear and going for it.  That experience has given me much more than I realized at the time.  Now it means I CAN conquer fear!

I failed.  But did I really?  I learned a great lesson.  I proved that fear cannot hold me back. I have the evidence.

Fear lost its power over me, and what matters is that I tried. We will fail more than we succeed, but each failure leads to an even greater triumph.  A triumph we may not even recognize until years later.

What would you do if fear didn't exist?

St. George Part One

I've been having a blast doing all the shopping for the new home. Check out the video I put together. I was sure to share where I got everything for those of you who may be looking for furniture or home decor. We got a really good deal on all our furniture, if you are in the market for new couches, tables, bedroom sets ect. I know just the guy to get it from. His name is Bob Harris out of Logan. He sells Ashley Furniture for incredible discounted prices. The only catch is you have to pick it up in Logan. Here is his email address if anyone is interested, ashleyfurniturelogan@gmail.com. Just tell him I sent you.

Anyway, here are a few pictures.

I got my swimsuit from DownEast. They have some way cute suits right now.

Lily's found a new hobby... catching frogs and lizards.

Here's mama humming bird keeping her little eggs warm. Can't wait to see the little things hatch, hopefully we'll be down here when the time comes.

12 Weeks And Counting

Hello my long lost friends!!!
I know I’ve been pretty much non existent these days, but I intend on getting back on the saddle. I just hit the 12 week mark (in my pregnancy) and have been feeling MUCH better. I seriously spent a good 6 weeks on my couch. So sick, so tired, and no motivation to do anything. I apologize for not responding to emails too. I plan on cleaning out my inbox today.

This past week I’ve been in St. George, furnishing and decorating our new house. I’m going to video tape it all today and give you a little peak at the progress we’ve made so far. Still lots more to do, but it’s coming along.

Here is a fun picture Sean took of a little humming birds next in our front courtyard. We even have a little dove family in our backyard. We are sure enjoying it here and I’m absolutely LOVING the weather. It’s been 80 degrees almost every day.