She's Crafty!

I woke up this morning feelin' crafty. I really wanted to make something. So...I started looking at fabric I have and I noticed a quilt top made of ties. Ooooh. So then I googled how to make a skirt out of neckties and raided Bryces ties - with his permission of course. And this is what I got:
Front View:Back View:Me trying on the finished product just after running:

And this is how it hangs. So cute, fun, random, and CRAFTY!

Special thanks to Lantz, (Elder) Blake Thomas, and of course, my Bryce. Without you, none of this would have been possible :)

Videos ;)

So, apparently when they updated the new blogger editor, they left off the video icon button. Oops. I had to switch back to the "old" version to upload videos.

So here is Isobel being the Big Bad Wolf in her play...AND raving about grinding wheat. (Sorry about filming sideways...and my camera is dying so the color has issues.)

I AM THE Mormon Mom

I'm feeling super domestic. 

On Thursday, Isobel and I went shopping to buy fabric so I could make her a dress for her baptism next month.  She picked one of the dress patterns I had, she picked the perfect fabric, and helped me take out pins.  I finished the dress Friday.  (She wants it to be a suprise so I can't post a picture of it until after her baptism.  Be patient.)

I made strawberry Jell-o (with peaches in it) to go with dinner last night.

Tonight we had Family Home Evening (which we haven't had for a while) and I was in charge of the activity.  I told the girls it was a suprise.  When it was time I said, "we're gonna grind wheat!"  They looked at me in disbelief.  "It's gonna be fun!" I said.  So I got out the new grinder I got for Christmas in 2008 (that was still unopened) and cut open a bag of wheat.  Once we started grinding, the girls were having so much fun!  Bryce asked how much flour we needed for bread or something.  I had just seen a recipe in The Friend for simple cookies with cranberries in them (which I happened to have) and so we made those.  Isobel RAVED about the grinding "activity" - she had to do an infomercial on camera.  (Which, by the way, if anyone knows how to upload videos, PLEASE tell me.  There used to be a button here on blogger but now there isn't.  I need help.  I've got  great video of Isobel in her play, too.)

The cookies were a bit gritty because the wheat wasn't really fine, but they taste good and they have WHOLE WHEAT in them :) ...that and a cube of butter. ;)

February - where did it go?

Bryce turned 35, Isobel performed as the Big Bad Wolf in her class play of Little Red Riding Hood, and we celebrated 10 years of marriage.  Whew!  Busy month.

New Glasses

I know - I post about my glasses breaking in November and hardly anything since.  So it's obviously a big deal that I finally got new glasses.  I took some pics of myself today just for you, Colette :)

And the side view...

They are brown this time around - but really dark brown.  And yes, the sides do have a little round hole with a little bling in it.  The sides also have cut out circles.  Isobel said, "Oh, Mom! They are perfect for you!" 

"Why, Isobel?"

"Because you love circles!"

"How do you know?"

"Because you like to pick paper with circles on it."

"It's true.  I do love circles.  Thanks, Isobel!"

I love Utah in the Wintertime

The third week of January is quite the vacation for us.  Bryce HAS to go to the Outdoor Retailer show in Salt Lake every year.  Therefore, we have to take a week off and go play with him :)

What a fun, busy time we had.  Friday night/Saturday morning we arrived at Lara's at 2am to find beds made and mints on our pillows :).  Saturday I spent with Lara, Sharece, and Lisa while Bryce went backcountry skiing with Vince and cousins.  Saturday night we made it to Ma and Pa's in Idaho.  Sunday we ate super good food at Ma and Pa's with Shonda and Craig - thanks for bringing your games!  Monday we went to the infamous Arctic Circle, Ma and I went shopping a little, and then we headed to Hyrum to see some more Petersens.  Tuesday we went for a hike in the snow and Polly and I did a bit of shopping.  Wednesday I went snowboarding in TONS of powder with Michelle at Powder Mountain.  I must admit, Utah truely has THE GREATEST SNOW ON EARTH!  It was heavenly!  (Bryce was across the canyon at Snow Basin trying out new gear.)  Thursday Ken, Bryce, and I went to the OR show all day.  Boy did I get the hook up on loot.  I think I'm getting better at this.  Oh, and for added fun, I bought a Go Girl.  (If you are embarassed by feminine products, don't click on the link. But don't worry, it's not graphic.)  I am totally excited to try it out.  Thursday night I went to play with Share, Irene, and friends.  (See Share's blog for details.)  I stayed with Share Thursday night and Friday and Bryce went back to be with the girls and his family.  On Friday, we shopped, ate at In-N-Out, and just had as much fun as we always do together.  Oh, and she made me go to Boot Camp class with her - it was so hard.  I was so proud of myself for being able to do as much as I did.  Did I mention that I still couldn't walk from snowboarding?  The squats were killing me!  Saturday Share and I had the girls while Bryce went Skiing with Vince again.  We went to Chick-fil-a and I ran into Brandy and Kathy - so random and fun.  We went to see Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and got to see Lisa for dinner and Sub Zero.  (Share has a post on this too.)  We got up early Sunday and stopped by Lara's on the way out (thanks for the sandwiches!) and stopped at a church in Price.  We made it home by 10 pm - a sight better than 2 am :)

Random good news - my kids only missed 2 days of school the whole week.  Monday was a holiday, Tuesday ended up being a snow day, and Friday was a teacher inservice.  Sweet!

So - between working like crazy to be able to take 2 weeks off for Christmas, then having just two weeks after to catch up on work that was 2 months behind, THEN being off again for a week - I'm finally getting into some kind of groove.  AND the good news is that I FINALLY got some new glasses this week :D

Christmas Past

Christmas morning Isobel woke up at like 1:30am to go to the bathroom and came running in - "Santa's been here!"  "Too bad, it's too early to be up for the day - go back to bed."

This is what our house looked like Christmas morning.  I woke up at like 6 for some reason and had to wait for the girls to wake up.  I sat in my office waiting to see movement in the girls' room ;)  Ya, Bryce teased me for being a little girl who is too excited to sleep.  (At first he thought I woke up because I heard the girls.)

The girls were happy to be awake and opening presents.

And now I know you are dying to know what I got in that huge box by the couch.  Bryce did another BIG surprise (like my birthday bike last year).  Here's the beauty:

I just had to try it out - and it worked - cranberry white chocolate oatmeal cookies - yum!

Just a few days after Christmas, Mom and Dad came for a visit for their anniversary and some killer burgers at Bobcat Bite :)  See how happy my kids are to see them!

We had fun with G, KT, Hannah, and Will on Christmas evening/night.  They came back up for New Year's and we played games and went sledding.  Overall, it was a lovely holiday and I don't want to admit it's so far gone.  Maybe that's why my tree is still up...