Family

Family

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Fat Tuesday

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent. Most of you know that I try to give up chocolate/sweets each year for Lent and this year is no exception. I hope to actually succeed this year and make it through the next 40 days without sweets. But that is tomorrow….today is Fat Tuesday so let the indulgence begin.




Friday, February 17, 2012

professional pictures

They have arrived. There are so many beautiful pictures that capture the magic of our wedding day. It is hard to pick my favorites because I love them all. Here are just a few for your viewing pleasure!

The dress
The hair
My beautiful ladies
Brother and sister shot
What handsome men
The women
Luke and the ladies
The wedding party
Sibling love




My handsome man




Maybe my favorite picture of all. Group shot!

Monday, February 13, 2012

back to my roots

About once a year (typically during the winter) I grow tired of my highlights and opt for a dark look instead. This past Friday when I went in to get my hair did, I was SOOO done with my highlights! So, we went dark.

Before
After

I'm sure I'll grow tired of the dark in a few months and slowly start adding back highlights, but for now I'm loving my dark do.


Tuesday, February 7, 2012

my latest addiction

I recently joined Pinterest and now understand what all the hype is about. This website is amazing. Maybe too amazing, I just might need a pintervention real soon.

Some confessions:
  • So glad I didn’t know about this site when I was planning a wedding. To think of the time I would have spent searching for ideas and inspiration is just scary.
  • Pinterest makes me want to have children just so I can dress them up and do all the cute crafty things I see on there. Probably not the best reason to have a child…
  • I am not a crafty person at all, but this site makes me want to run to Michael’s and a scrap yard and start DIY-ing all day long!
  • No matter what mood I’m in or what sort of day I’m having, Pinterest makes me feel so happy.
  • I get really excited when I see someone repinned my pin.
  • I’m often torn between the fitness inspiration and delicious looking high cal food/desserts. I’ll pin “get fit in 30 days” and then immediately pin a recipe I have to try like “homemade peanut butter chocolate balls” or “oreo covered chocolate chip cookies.”
  • I’m pretty sure Pinterest is making me a more interesting and stylish person.

Do you pinterest?

    Thursday, February 2, 2012

    trees

    This past weekend we had someone come out to the house and cut down two trees on the property. Both of these trees were leaning a bit too close to the rental units and Luke decided it was probably best to just cut them down before they did any serious damage to someone or something. It was quite a show watching the tree guy do his thing. He was like a squirrel the way he maneuvered around the trees, dropping limbs one by one as he made his way to the top and then cut down the trunk of the trees in pieces. Luke’s parents came over and we all pitched in making fast work of cleaning up the brush and organizing the wood. We even put Luke’s new toy, I mean tool, to work!



    Luke and Greg watching the show
    Tree man hard at work
    Down she comes


    Firewood anyone?


    Saturday, January 21, 2012

    MLK and MJ


    We spent the holiday weekend up in Arnold. It was so strange being up there mid January without a speck of snow anywhere. On Saturday we took the dog on a nice long hike behind the cabin and then decided to pop into the local brewery and catch the last quarter of the 49er game. Neither of us are huge football fans, in fact, this was the first game we watched all season. What a game! It was fun cheering on the niners and drinking some beer with the entire bar – which was packed full of red jerseys. The game got pretty stressful towards the end and I really didn’t think the niners would pull it off, but they did! Hopefully they can do it again this weekend and go to the super bowl.

    Our friends also happened to be up at their cabin in Arnold so we met up with them to watch the game. They told us about some ice skating up top near Bear Valley ski resort that they were going to check out on Sunday so we decided to join them. What a treat! This is about the only positive thing to come out of this dry winter we’ve been having. Because there is no snow, we were able to skate on Mosquito Lakes which was frozen (but usually covered in snow). It was so much fun and we got a real taste on how it is on the east coast.    



      

    I’ve been wanting to try this dr. pepper pulled pork recipe I’d seen and we gave it a try at the cabin. Talk about easy and so tasty! We threw everything in the dutch oven after breakfast on Saturday, went out and enjoyed our day, came back 6 hours later and dinner was ready. We ate pork for the rest of the weekend. 

    Ingredients:
    1 whole large onion (cut into wedges)
    1 whole pork shoulder 5-7 pounds (ours was 4 pounds and worked out just fine)
    Salt and freshly ground black pepper
    1 can (11 ounce) chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (we used a 7 ounce can and that was spicy enough!)
    2 can Dr. Pepper
    2 tablespoons brown sugar

    Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
    Generously salt and pepper roast.
    Put onions in the bottom of a dutch oven, lay roast on top of onions.
    Pour in chipotle peppers and sauce, dr. pepper, and brown sugar.
    Put lid on dutch oven and place in oven for 6 hours, turning roast 2 or 3 times in cooking process.

    Head over to Pioneer Woman to check out step by step process.
    http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/03/spicy-dr-pepper-shredded-pork/


    Wonderful weekend at the cabin, we didn’t want to leave! Then on Tuesday evening, my mom treated me to the Cirque du Soleil Michael Jackson Immortal tour down in Oakland. We got down there with enough time to do a little tailgating before the show. My mom made us a picnic dinner and I brought a bottle of wine. The show was amazing. It was two hours of nonstop MJ music and music videos showing in the background, with dancers, body contortionists, lights, fire, and excitement. It made me a little sad that Michael’s life was cut so short. He was so talented and had such a profound impact on the music and entertainment industry. Thanks for a great show, Mom!

    Tuesday, January 3, 2012

    2012 hello and welcome

    Happy new year!

    We rang in the new year camping by Lake Oroville. We hiked, biked, sat by the fire, sipped on wine and coors light, read books, and played cards. Camping on new year’s might just become a new tradition.



    2012 Resolutions:
    Practice more yoga – strive for healthier body and mind
    Bring your lunch to work (at least 3x a week)
    Be more appreciative of your job
    Visit Grand Canyon and hike Havasu Falls
    Floss floss floss, like every day or almost every day
    Try new recipes in the kitchen – don’t be scared

    I could keep going, but I think this is a good start. Here is to a happy, healthy, and unforgettable 2012!