Our Story

Bachelor

2012-02-01T10:05:00.002-06:00

Ok, so I'm not typically a "Bachelor" viewer but they were talking about how nasty this "Courtney" girl is on the radio on my drive to work last week and it made me intrigued......how bad could she REALLY be?!?!

So I've watched the past 2 episodes on Hulu (aka another genius website) and now I am hooked. I've heard that he picks Courtney but I think it's just a bunch of PR lies.....or at least hoping anyways.

If you are a fan who do you think Ben will choose?

Blakeley

Casey

Courtney

Elyse

Emily

Kacie

Lindzi

Nicki

Rachel

Quizzes by Quibblo.com | SnapApp Quiz Apps

Super Bowl Snacks

2012-01-30T11:15:00.002-06:00

Either if you have big plans or small ones for the Super Bowl this weekend, it's always a good excuse to eat all of the DELISH food.

Here are some recipes and cute ideas to bring (or to make at your home)!

Edible Football Stadium

(I know this is A LOT of work but I thought it was cute for the die hard Super Bowl planners)

Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites found HERE

Cheddar Bacon Ranch Pulls found HERE

Football Brownies

(use a football cookie cutter and add some icing)

V-Day Inspirations

2012-01-27T10:40:00.001-06:00

Since there are an abundance of brilliant ideas I have came across on the web (mostly started at Pinterest though).....here are more Valentine's ideas that are super cute.

Made with Love Cakepops

Burst my Bubble Balloon found HERE

Topiary to use in a variety of ways....found HERE

V-Day Martini found HERE

And if you want to make "Heart" cupcakes.....just add a marble!

Thirty Three

2012-01-26T07:06:00.000-06:00

Is what this handsome guy is today

Oh how I LOVE celebrating Birthdays.........especially HIS!

Cheers to you babe and many more to come! Love you infinitely!

2012-01-24T15:54:00.001-06:00

I came across this quote and thought it was a GREAT one to live by!

(then I thought I could sneak in a few of my pups along with it)

If we left the door open that is exactly what Tamba would do (pic above)

And this is how Sookie sleeps sometimes

Burlap Valentine's Wreath

2012-01-20T10:26:00.003-06:00

I thought this was a cute idea for a neat (and cheap) V-Day house decor'.

(yes it's ANOTHER wreath.....I'm a sucker!)

I came across this tutorial HERE and fell in love with how appealing it looked and thought it would be a good craft to share.

Supplies

Heart-shaped wreath form (found at a Hobby Lobby/Michaels/JoAnne's)

Burlap (3/4 yard)

Glue gun and glue sticks

Scissors

Cut the burlap into approximate 2.5" x 2.5" squares.....don't have to be precise.

Fold the burlap piece in half and then in half again.

Dab the folded point with the hot glue gun and then stick it on the wreath.

Repeat until the entire heart form is covered.

Then hang with some ribbon or fabric (that you hot glue to the back of the wreath).

Now you have a stunning Valentine's Day wreath to display!

Rolo Brownie Bites

2012-01-18T11:47:00.000-06:00

Since I started back in the grind with school this week, I went ahead and made these "Rolo Brownie Bites" over the weekend so I would have something to snack on while I read away. :~)

On a side note....I LOVE.LOVE.LOVE little bite size snacks and I'm SO glad restaurants and fast food places are changing up their menus to offer snack or small plate options now.

(Houlihans has the BEST menu so far I think, but Dairy Queen has their "mini" blizzards that I love, and I just noticed McDonald's offering smaller meals too now-at least the one by us does)

Most of America's restaurants/fast food have a distorted view of what a "portion size" should be and it's led to this obesity epidemic.

Ok......off my soapbox and on to this excellent recipe!

I originally found the idea on Pinterest but then that took me to THIS website where I found the directions. Word of advice.....DO NOT purchase low fat brownie mix (it didn't work as well for me).

INGREDIENTS
box fudge brownie mix plus necessary eggs, oil & water per package instructions (or your favorite homemade recipe)
24 Rolo candies plus extras for the cook's snack
4 TBS. butter, softened at room temperature
4 oz. cream cheese, softened at room temperature
2 TBS. caramel sauce
1 cup confectioners sugar

Pre-heat oven to 325F then prepare brownies according to package directions. Grease a 24 cup mini muffin tin with cooking spray and fill each cup 3/4 full with batter.
Then bake according to the package directions
(On her website she says 15-20 minutes but bake according to what your package states....another lesson I learned)

While the brownies are cooking, remove all the wrappers and refrigerate the Rolo candies.

Remove from oven and immediately press a Rolo, smaller side down, into the center of each brownie bite until the top of the Rolo is even with the top of the brownie bite.

Cool for a couple of minutes then carefully remove the brownie bites from the pan to a cooking rack. Allow to cool completely.

To make the frosting, whip the butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add the caramel sauce and blend. Add the confectioners sugar and whip until creamy and smooth.

Using a pastry or plastic bag with a piping tip, pipe the frosting onto the top of each brownie bite.

Chill in the refrigerator to set the frosting a bit before serving.

Enjoy.......they are just what I need to satisfy my always sweet tooth!

Friends

2012-01-17T12:25:00.003-06:00

I HEART spending time and catching up with them! Scott and I had a "double date" with this one and her hubby over the weekend and we always have such a fun time we don't know why it takes us so long to get together.......oh yeah......life gets in the way!

A friend recently told me (who is fairly newly married still) that people told her once she got married she wouldn't need her friends as much anymore...........and she is coming to the realization that advice couldn't be anymore wrong and I couldn't agree more. (I was baffled people even said that to her......that is horrible advice)

To me, friends are a piece of my "life" pie that is a MUST to keep my life balanced and fulfilled. Even if I don't get to see them as much as I would like, I make sure to treasure the times that I do!

This quote reminds me of Jaime and I :~)

(the girl in the pic above)

And this one just pretty much sums up how I feel about friendship

V-Day Creations

2012-01-13T10:36:00.003-06:00

I think I'm going to start sharing "Craft Fridays" from here on out........whatcha think??

It's always fun making unique and personalized items and it's a hobby that I thoroughly enjoy (when I find the time to do it).

Ok, since Valentine's Day is right around the corner, I thought I would share some cute ideas that I have recently came across.

Airplane

Smarties, gum, life savers, and some paper and string

Friendship Bracelet

For the crafty girl (like I am and was growing up).......what a fun idea!

Lip and Mustache Lollipops

Lollipops and paper

This one came from THIS website, which has a link to the templates below so you can just trace and cut.

Atlantic-Pacific

2012-01-11T09:35:00.000-06:00

My fashion savvy sister-in-law Jenny introduced me to this Atlantic-Pacific blog and it's one of my fave's now! I'm a clothes ~~whore~~ freak and I LOVE unique items! What is nice about it is she tells you what she is wearing.............accessories and all! Some items are higher end but others are very affordable (such as Forever 21 and JCrew).

Just a great place to grab some inspiration!

Happy 4th Birthday

2012-01-09T09:43:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was our nephew Carter Jack's 4th birthday and we celebrated it over the weekend! He had 2 parties in one day so he celebrated big and had a fun time!

Happy Belated CJ.......we love you!! XOXO

Blowing out his worm ice cream cake

He was excited to get a new pair of cowboy kicks!

Carter has been wanting a KU pillow pet for awhile so I took it upon myself to get him one (Scott wouldn't have ANYTHING to do with it. ha).

Wii light up Lightsabers (that I didn't know they even made....how cool!)

Cutie-pa-tootie Maddy!

The McReynold's family (who we haven't seen in YEARS so I was thrilled they came)!

Neighbors

Carter took these two pics below.....he's becoming quite the little photographer!

Frosted Glass Friday Craft

2012-01-06T09:23:00.000-06:00

I recently came across a blog HERE that showed a "how to make" a frosted glass.

(really it would be neat as a vase too)

I've always liked the "frosted" look because it's so elegant and thought I would share this super easy craft idea!

Purchase a cheap goblet or vase (or use one that you already have) and wrap rubber bands around it.

Next give it 2 coats of frosted spray paint (whatever color of your choice). Paint the glass/vase upside down so it doesn't get "inside".

After it dries take the rubber bands off and voila.............you now have a"frosted" look!!

Mini Omelete To-Go

2012-01-04T10:37:00.003-06:00

I made these "Mini Omelet's To-Go" this AM and they were a hit!

Thanks to Pinterest (aka the BEST website EVER) I was able to make a quick and healthy breakfast for my husband and I. He ate his at home while I put mine in a zip lock baggy and devoured them when I got to work. :~)

Baked in individual muffin cups, they ensure that everyone gets the mix-ins they like.I made ours with bell peppers, onions, and turkey breakfast sausages (that are REALLY good.......purchased at Target). Even my husband didn't seem to mind them (and he's a true meat and potatoes guy) so you can sneak in some healthy ingredients too!

All you need is 4 large eggs, 1/4 cup milk, and some salt. (plus any extra items you want to add.....veggies, cooked meat, cheese, hot sauce, exc.)

Instructions

1. Heat your oven to 350º F and coat a 6-cup muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, and salt in a medium bowl, then evenly distribute the egg mixture among the muffin cups.

3. Add about 2 tablespoons of mix-ins to each cup, then sprinkle on a bit of Parmesan cheese, if you like.

4. Bake the omelet's until they are puffy and the edges are golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes. (If necessary, run a butter knife around the edge of each one to loosen them before removing them from the pan.) Makes 6 mini omelete's.

Enjoy!

It's a NEW year.......2012!

2012-01-02T09:40:00.000-06:00

Welcome to 2012.........I'm excited to see what this year is going to bring!

Instead of making "resolutions", this time around I'm going to "focus" more on the following this year:

1. Family- spend more quality time with my family (including pups) and really appreciate each minute........not take it for granted. Also we hope to "expand" our current family too! :~)

2. Health- includes food and exercising.......focus on putting more healthy items into my body and into my family's. And exercise regularly each week...........I would love to run a 5 or 10K together with Scott (but I'm not so sure he's as excited about that as I am so we shall see).

3.Projects- finish projects that have been "in progress" for awhile or get rid of them. (yesterday I went through my ENTIRE closet and got rid of A TON of clothes. Then color coordinated the ones I have left......made me feel better)

4. Learning- school, work, traveling, cooking, crafting, camera work, photo editing.........continually improve my knowledge.

5. Joy- focus on what brings me joy.........anything from spending time with friends to being as simple as going on a "family" walk. Do things that always make me happy.

6. Faith- I want to continue to grow in my faith and relationship with God.

Here's to wishing all of you a Happy New Year! May this upcoming year be filled with endless possibilities, an abundance of love, and good health!

p.s. Here is a video of my nephew Reid from Christmas that I thought was too cute not to share! He definitely brings me joy!

Happy Anniversary

2011-12-30T09:27:00.001-06:00

To our AMAZING and SUPPORTIVE parents!

Thank you isn't enough for all that you have helped us achieve in our lives! We really wouldn't be where we are today without your love and guidance throughout each of our milestones!

We've created A LOT of memories throughout the years too and there is only more to come!

Have a WONDERFUL day Mom and Dad.........enjoy it! We ALL love you so very very much! Muah!

Our Family's Christmas 2011

2011-12-28T12:06:00.000-06:00

How did your Christmas go?? Everyone I've came across had a great one so I'm assuming it was lovely for all! Hope you received what you wanted!

Ours was very enjoyable........we spent time with both of our family's and I was able to sneak in some time to see some friends while we were back in Marshall too which was nice!

Scott and I usually don't exchange gifts since my b-day is a month prior and his is the month after AND since we spend so much money on gifts for everyone, but he surprised me with a unique present..........which was very sweet of him! He played the "I don't know who that is to/from" role good. Now I'm going to have to up the aunty on his b-day next month!

Another holiday with my parent's trees that I LOVE

The nephews in their matching pj's (next year we'll have a girl to add to the mix!)

The "Elf on the Shelf" note for the boys

The Elf painted their noses RED and here is Carter noticing his! It was SOOO cute!! (and he didn't want to take it off the rest of the day)

Here is a house decor' gift with their last name initial that I made for Keely and Jason. It took me WEEKS to make but it was well worth it! Keely is an MU fan and Jason is a KU fan (still don't know how that even got started?!?!) so I thought it was appropriate!

(Scott made me have MU on the top though.....lol)

Mom and Dad opening up their big gift from all of us......it will be exciting to see once it's complete! (landscaping for the front of the house)

Kids and iphone/ipad games......it's crazy how they can navigate their way around!

Tamba was a really good boy over Christmas.

(For those of you who don't know Tamba can be our "problem" child and I swear it feels like a real kid at times because you can't take your eyes off of him when we're in Marshall. He NEVER relaxes there.........I guess he thinks he'll miss out on something if he doesn't stay alert.)

Kim, Jeff, and Lillie flew in from DC for the holiday!

Lillie liked her Dora Pillow Pet that we gave her (whoever thought of those had a really good year in 2011)

Lillie playing with her new castle

Helping Nana open up her gifts!

Christmas Dinner Round 2

We also went and visited Mom Ma in the nursing home.....she'll be 95 in a few weeks!

Finally.........he's tuckered out!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T12:59:00.000-06:00

Photo Card

View the entire collection of cards.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!!!!

Rudolph the Red Velvet Cupcakes

2011-12-22T09:42:00.000-06:00

Here is another festive holiday treat that I made last night......Rudolph the Red Velvet Cupcakes!

(They turned out so well that I thought I would share the recipe and nutritional content with you below!)

I saw the recipe on Skinnytaste.com and I fell in LOVE with how cute they were so I decided to give it a shot. Some of the "Reindeer" don't look as good as the others but after working on them for over 3 hours.......when 11:00pm hit, my motivation for having them "look good" was quickly wiped!

(ps......please disregard the skull on the tray.....it's the ONLY one that I could find while searching everywhere and it's a Halloween one. LOL Could be a gift idea for me??? (hint hint)

They are super easy, I used a box of red velvet cake mix, fat free Chobani yogurt, egg whites and water. Does it get easier than that? You can use any flavored cake mix... chocolate, butter, devil's food cake, etc. as long as your boxed cake mix is 18.25 oz.

Rudolph the Red Velvet Cupcake

Servings: 24 • Size: 1 cupcake • Old Points: 3 pts • Points+: 5 pts

Calories: 169.3 • Fat: 3.5 g • Carb: 32.5 g • Fiber: 1.4 g • Protein: 2.8 g • Sugar: 22.4 g

Sodium: 309.4 mg

Cupcake and glaze only (no candy, pretzel or cookie): Old Points: 3 pts • Points+: 4 pts

Calories: 132.3 • Fat: 2.4 g • Carb: 26.3 g • Fiber: 1.2 g • Protein: 2.3 g • Sugar: 19.7 g

Sodium: 251 mg

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

18.25 oz Duncan Hines Red Velvet Cake mix

6 oz fat-free Chobani Greek yogurt

1 1/3 cups water

2 large egg whites

For the chocolate glaze:

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

3 tbsp fat-free milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

For the vanilla glaze:

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/8 tsp clear vanilla extract

1 - 2 tsp fat free milk

For the face:

24 low fat small vanilla wafers

72 m&m's, 24 red, 48 brown

12 pretzels, broken in half to create ears

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°. Line cupcake tins with liners.

Combine all the cake ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat until combined. Pour into prepared liners. Bake about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool before frosting.

Make the chocolate glaze: whisk all the ingredients in a medium bowl. Keep the chocolate glaze in the bowl.

Make the vanilla glaze by whisking all the vanilla glaze ingredients in another bowl. Place vanilla glaze in a piping bag.

To assemble the cupcakes, dip the tops of the cupcakes into the chocolate glaze and quickly press the vanilla wafer onto the bottom of each cupcake. The chocolate glaze will dry fast so you want to make a few

at a time. Let the glaze harden at least 5 to 10 minutes.

Using the vanilla glaze, pipe 2 circles for the eyes and press the chocolate m&m's into the glaze. Pipe the vanilla glaze for the nose and press the red m&m onto the nose.

Then insert pretzel pieces for the ears and they are complete.

(I had to use vanilla glaze on the pretzel pieces for them to stick)

Perfect Christmas Cocktail

2011-12-21T12:09:00.000-06:00

I have the perfect holiday drink that I'm going to try out over the holidays while with my family and I wanted to share.

I'm a BIG Skinnygirl fan (and I LOVE Bethenny too) as it's relatively healthy and tastes yummy!

Ingredients

Skinnygirl White Cranberry Cosmo

Champagne (preferably a brut since the cosmo is already sweet)

Frozen cranberries

Orange slices

Directions

Mix 1/2 Skinnygirl white cranberry cosmo with 1/2 champagne in a flute. Squeeze one orange slice into cocktail. Discard squeezed orange slice and use another, fresh slice to garnish cocktail. Accent with frozen cranberries.

Enjoy!

An Exciting Announcement.......

2011-12-19T11:21:00.000-06:00

Well I have some VERY exciting news to share.......Cass and Scott are EXPECTING again!! (Due in early May)

And they found out last week what they were having but weren't revearling until our family reunion (which was this past weekend in St. Louis) with cupcakes with either pink or blue filling.

That is a story.

You see.....I have the WORST patience 1st of all (growing up I used to search all over the house for our "S" Christmas gifts and once I would find them--they were wrapped in red tissue paper--I would take a flashlight to try and see through the paper to see what they were---I know.......I was bad.....but it was exciting for me at the same time) and than you expect me to wait 48 hours to find out if I'm having a niece (which I was REALLY hoping for) or a nephew!

Yeah.......I can't do that!

So after they found out I called every phone number I had for them and not one answer or call back.

So than I decided to try and get "creative" with some text messages (hoping I could get some type of info out). And what did I get......NADA. A text message back stating that they aren't going to tell me and that I have to wait!

After getting no where with them...........I was determined to take matters in my own hands and do a little "investigating" (NOT being nosy) and I FINALLY got somewhere and found out what they were having. (yay for me.....my skills paid off)

So all I had to do was "act" like I was surprised once I ate that cupcake (easy enough right?).

Here comes Saturday and I was thinking I was all hot stuff because I knew something I wasn't supposed to know.......I was such a rebel!! (lol)

Watch the two videos below to see what they are having........

I know I don't seem "that" excited at first because I was confused.........REALLY confused!! Through my "investigating" I was informed it was the OPPOSITE sex so I didn't know which to believe..........my source or the cupcake????

Then it sank in and I realized I just GOT PLAYED!!!

(there goes my awesome skills I thought I had)

But YES YES it's our 1ST and I'm SOOOOOOOO excited!!!

(shopping here I come!)

Congrats to Cass and Scott (and Reid) on their "new" future addition!

Pinterest and Felt Wreath

2011-12-16T11:14:00.001-06:00

If you haven't started your own Pinterest you need to jump on the bandwagon because you are missing out. It's basically an online pin board of EVERYTHING you like (or want to make). It's great for food recipes, craft items for holidays, decorating for the house or parties, bucket list for traveling, fashion ideas, cute pics of all sorts of things, organization ideas, exc.......just a wonderful IDEA website. Click HERE to take you to the pinterest site and request a login.

I'm warning you......it is HIGHLY addictive though (but it's time spent in a "good" way).

Also, I thought I would share another "craft" with you...........a "Felt Wreath" (I know....I shared a wreath idea last week but this one was cute too and I'm a sucker for them).

What you'll need:

•One 12" Styrofoam wreath

•LOTS of pins (I used most of a container that had 500 in it)

•Sharp Scissors

•1 1/3- 1 1/2 yards of felt

•A pattern to use for tracing your circles

1st trace circles with your colored felt

(fyi.....I took this off of a blog but what I have done with my Pom Pom necklaces in the past is FOLD OVER the felt in 1/2-or more- and trace and cut so it won't be so time consuming.....just a thought)

Next, cut the circles out

Take a circle and fold it in half.

And fold it in half again.

Stick a pin through it and then attach it to your foam wreath. Pin your pieces of felt all over the wreath until there isn't any white showing. Do a small area at a time and work your way around.

The back of the wreath when done

The front--Ta Da!!

Birthdays Bonanza

2011-12-13T15:53:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago it was a big birthday celebration weekend!

First up was our friends Breanne and Seth, it was their son Ben's 1st birthday and he had a heck of a time at his party.......especially diving into his cake!

Ben had surgery about a month ago for Craniosynostosis and he is recovering like a rock star! You can read more about his story on their blog HERE. (or on the side under Ben's Story)

Next up was our nephew Tanner's big 6 celebration which was enjoyed by all!

He LOVED his gifts.....especially the R2D2!

Keely's neat chalk board wall

Tanner's eyes hurt from the flash so this is all I could get

Not so baby Reid anymore

The cousins playing with the presents

Tan instructing how to use the R2D2

Jenny (aka my"other" sister) thought she had blue teeth from the icing so she refused to smile. (lol)

We had a dance party at the end of the night and I think Jason won the "best moves" award!!

Friday Craft Day (Fun Day)

2011-12-09T11:24:00.001-06:00

Today I wanted to switch things up and add a great craft project for the holidays to the agenda. I'm NOT crafty but I LOVE crafty (cute) items that also show "how-to" make it.

You can thank my good friend Tori Spelling for this one! :~)

Materials

•Circular Styrofoam wreathe form

•One skein of yarn

•Ribbon

•Paperclips

•Needle nose pliers

•Embellishments (flowers, leaves, etc.)

Instructions

Wrap your yarn around a paper clip so that it is secure.

Push the paper clip into the back of your Styrofoam wreathe near the inner edge of the wreathe.

Start wrapping your yarn around the form, making sure to keep the yarn close together (you don’t want any white from the foam form showing).

Wrap around until you reach the final loop. Then, similar to the beginning, cut the yarn off from the skein, and wrap around a paper clip, this time opening the paper clip up with needle nose pliers.

Push the paper clip into the back of the wreathe to secure.

Wrap your ribbon around a section of the wreathe and tie a bow at the top for hanging.

Adorn your wreathe with any embellishment by sticking the items directly into the form or gluing onto to the yarn.

Hang and be merry!

NYC/DC Part II

2011-12-07T10:30:00.000-06:00

We started and ended our trip in Washington D.C.. My sister in law Kim, her husband, Jeff, and daughter Lillie live here and they were VERY gracious in opening up their home (and cars) to us! Seriously the trip wouldn't have been as smooth if it wasn't for them thinking of EVERYTHING beforehand so it was pretty much stress free for us! I can't thank them enough for making our trip so great and memorable!!

Before our train to NYC we had a White House Tour. It was SO surreal to be in there and to be literally 1 floor down from the President and his family. We did see Bo running around the property which is what I was really hoping to see (being a animal lover AND knowing that it's a far stretch to see the Pres or his family.....I went for the 2nd best).

After arriving back from NYC we did a Capitol Tour, saw a few museums (I chose to see the Holocaust and it was a great exhibit but very heartbreaking to see how Jews were treated and how everything was done. It was interesting to see the ways Hitler convinced the public to believe in his propaganda too, which was another exhibit inside. Reminded me of the media today and the way some stories are spinned. Made you think!), we also went to Mount Vernon to visit Washington's Mansion and plantation (which I'm not a history girl but I thought it was very fascinating. George was a stand up guy and his and Martha's relationship was really endearing. They always wrote love notes to one another and when he died she purposefully burned all but three to keep their relationship private), then we went to a hockey game (well the guys did), saw the Broadway show Jersey Boys, and finally walked and shopped around Old Alexandria (which was a quaint area). Whew.....I'm tired just writing it all!

Here are some pics from DC that I wanted to share.

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T's 6

2011-12-01T12:28:00.001-06:00

Wanted to wish my "6" year old nephew Tanner a happy birthday day!! My very 1st nephew has grown into a big kindergartner now......oh how time flies. Can't wait celebrate it with you and we love you SO much "T"!

1st day of Kindergarten

NYC/DC Part I

2011-11-30T15:47:00.001-06:00

Well we are back from our adventurous and very memorable trip to NYC and DC! We had such a great time and saw SO much! I didn't sleep much (and for those who know me.......you know I like my sleep) but the experience was well worth it so I think I was able to keep truckin' on my adrenaline high the entire time!

I LOVE traveling.....especially to new places. It gets you out of your comfort zone and makes you grow and think in a different way! I think my "love" started when my parents took me to Chicago for my sweet 16 birthday. I realized on that trip how "big" the world actually is and it changed me forever. I'm happy that I got to experience 2 of the best cities with my parents too....1st Chicago and now New York City. We made memories that I will forever cherish!

So since we did so much in both places I'm breaking this up into two parts.

1st up is NYC.

Oh what can I say......there is absolutely NO PLACE LIKE IT! The vibe and energy is just amazing and every direction you look is nothing but tall buildings that never end. We ate A LOT of street vendor hot dogs (hey....it was the easiest and they are at EVERY freakin corner). The cab rides feel like you are in "Grand Theft Auto" and at times I would just shut my eyes since I was freaking out......those cabs sure do have good breaks!

We started NYC off at the hotel bar (ha), then headed to the NBC Studios for a tour. We got to see the Saturday Night Live, Dr. Oz, and some Sunday Sports sets. Jimmy Fallon was taping while we were there so we couldn't go and see his. All of the sets are pretty small compared to what you think.

As our tour ended we were right beside Rockefeller Plaza where Justin Bieber was scheduled for a concert so it was just pure madness......a lot of teenage girls. We didn't stay to see him as we aren't too big of fans. Next we headed to the Radio City Music Hall for the Christmas Rockette's show, which are always fun to see wherever you are. Afterwards we parted ways and Scott and I, along with his brother, walked down to Times Square to spend the evening there. It actually reminded me of Vegas with all of the lights and everything. All of the shops stay open 24 hours so here I was shopping in a 3 story Forever 21 at 1:30 in the morning!! (I would hate to work there)

Thanksgiving AM we woke up early to try to snag a spot to watch the parade......that is a story! We were able to secure a decent place to watch it from and it was really neat to see the actual balloons in person! They were HUGE!! On a side note I think if we were to ever watch the parade again in the future that we will pay the extra $ for a hotel room on the parade route as there was just SO many people trying to cram into every area to see a sight of it.

Here is a glimpse of the parade madness

After the parade we walked down 5th avenue and looked at all of the window displays and shopped a little. Then we took a boat over to see the Statue of Liberty......which was very cool to see in person!

That evening we had a nice Thanksgiving dinner at an Italian restaurant then sadly we had to get back on the train and leave NYC behind. But there's always next time.......

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It's.....MY Birthday!!!

2011-11-21T11:03:00.001-06:00

Well it's "officially" tomorrow (yay) but I celebrate for a week and it got kicked off this past Saturday with some great friends and family! It was a LOVELY time and it was so much fun!! Just a casual night out with a few of my favorite peeps!!

We started at El Patron for dinner (one of our friends Annie bartends there so needless to say our drinks were GOOD!)

Here's Annie (the drink maker)

Here are 2 MU and 1 KU fan......having a nice conversation about their "teams". (lol)

Gotta love sister time!!

Well I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your loved ones!! We are off to visit relatives while seeing some historic sites and a historic parade so it should be a good time. Can't wait to share our experience with you on my new "adult" Nikon camera that I received for my b-day.

(I'm a big girl now.....let's just hope I can learn to use it in 24 hours. That stresses me out.......Eeek!)

Auto Correct (oops)

2011-11-15T16:09:00.001-06:00

I received a hilarious e-mail last week that was showing I-Phone auto correct mishaps and I wanted to share a few (and some more that I found on the website since). Some of them were too X-rated to post and a few of these are walking the line so I apologize in advance! (sorry so long.....I tried to cut the amount but some were too funny not to post)

11/11/11 = 10 YEARS

2011-11-11T08:21:00.000-06:00

Well today I'm going to get all sappy because it's our 10 year (been together) anniversary!!

In honor, I thought I would put together a list of 10 things I HEART about Scott.

1. Your charming personality and your oh so clever and witty remarks that always make me smile.

2. Your love for sports, especially the Chicago Bulls. Even the times when I’m the ONLY person around for you to vent to knowingly it could be going directly in one ear and out the other. (I know you just have to get it out)

3. Your sense of detail and perfection in everything. When I just want to go the quickest and easiest route…….you trump me and will always make it “perfect”.

4. Your “always being up for anything” attitude, even in times when I know you would rather be doing other things……….you always take one for the team!

5. Your thoughtfulness……you always pack my toothbrush along with yours because you know I will consistently forget to grab mine.

6. Your “manliness”…….because of it you will never hold my purse or hold our dogs leash’s while on a walk because of what other people will think when they see you.

7. Your dedication……....you went through 2 ½ years of ~~hell~~ (excuse my language) and passed the hardest financial tests (CFA’s) you have ever taken in your entire life to be able to provide and secure our family’s future…….and with that I can’t thank you enough!!

8. Your love for any food. You know “cooker” isn’t an attribute to describe me (and I’m tryin’ to change that) but you aren’t picky and won’t complain if you’ve had spaghetti 3 nights in a row. But on those occasions when I do switch things up a bit……..you are appreciative and tell me “thank you”, because you know I probably didn’t enjoy making it (or cleaning up after it). :~)

9. Your love for electronics or any high tech gadget. Even if you think we always need another big screen TV (or 3D one), I was put in your life to remind you that we don’t.

10. Your LOVE for Michael Jordan. I don’t know any other individual who has looked up to him as much as you do (in the sports world) and has every pair of Jordan shoes ever made (brand new, in the box, and all the same size, safely tucked away). I only hope one of these days you will be able to get his autograph on a pair……as you were SO close once while in college!

I know in life some days or weeks can get old from being monotonous and it can seem like its “groundhogs day” all-over again but I do have to say that I’m glad to be able to do “the same old routine” with you!! I couldn’t imagine life any other way! Thanks for making these past 10 years so wonderful…….it’s definitely been a fun ride “growing old with you”!! Love you honey....muah!!

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Skinnytaste

2011-11-08T14:47:00.000-06:00

This my fellow blog readers is my "Lightened Up Creme Brulee' French Toast" from my FAVE recipe website Skinnytaste (thx again Keely for recommending it) that I made over the weekend.

One of Scott's long time buddies Geoff (aka Fro) came down from St. Joe to visit us over the weekend and it was a test for me to try and be a good "hostess". I do have to say that Sunday breakfast @ McDonald's did cross my mind (for serious) but then I thought that would be tacky so I got out of my comfort zone and spent more time in the kitchen. (He even took some leftovers to go home with so I was pretty proud) You can find the recipe HERE.

Here are the reasons why I LOVE Skinnytaste:

1. All of the recipes are HEALTHY

2. The website is easy to navigate (not a lot of junk ads)

3. Most of the recipes have few ingredients and the instructions are easy to follow (that's a big plus in my book)

(fyi.....they just won the Shapes Magazine Best Healthy Blog Award too)

All of the dishes I have made from SkinnyTaste have been really good so far. In addition to the French Toast this weekend, I also made a Taco Dip appetizer found HERE that Fro loved (he wanted me to send the recipe to his woman). I think I'm going to add a few more items next time around but it was delish!

Then last week I decided to try a crock pot recipe and came across this "Slow Cooked Sweet Barbacoa Pork" that was awesome too. I actually used the leftovers to take with me to work so it made multiple meals for our house! That recipe is HERE.

Definitely look around the website and I'm sure you'll find some good ones! Enjoy!

Halloween

2011-11-02T10:16:00.004-05:00

Well Scott and I headed to Columbia this past weekend to spend Halloween out on the town with our good friends Jenny and John. You would have thought Jenny was a celebrity with all of the attention she was getting on her costume (below). People were consistently coming up to her and taking her picture.....it was really amusing to the rest of us!

(side note--seeing how YOUNG college students are now makes me feel so OLD)

Ok back to our night. When Scott and I were looking at costumes he REALLY thought the Ostrich one was funny, but it was a little too pricey for one evening (me being cheap). Well Scott starts talking about the Ostrich costume as soon as we get to their house and how much he wanted to purchase it and of COURSE they already have it! (which made his day)

Scott was excited to try it on immediately

Then he figured it would be a heck of a time maneuvering his way around out on the town in it......AND plus I needed my sidekick to make mine "complete" so he nixed the Ostrich and gave in to being "My Bacon" (love you honey).

(I was REALLY surprised I could get him to wear it but since it IS his favorite meal I think that helped)

Here is John dressed up as Keith Stone (KeyStone Beer guy)

Here is where "Parental Discretion" comes in......

Jenny's Magazine Cover!

But Jenny has redeemed herself and has reserved a little "spot in heaven" because of this little guy Puddle.

Animal control found him wondering the streets and was a complete mess with filth. On top of that he had heart worms (which are very expensive to treat and it takes a long time to cure too) so they were going to go ahead and euthanize this cute little guy........but Jenny (being the WONDERFUL person she is) wouldn't let that happen. She paid for all of the medication (out of her own pocket) and has kept him in a separate place of her house (away from her two dogs) for the past two months so he could heal and get 100% again. Well Puddle is up-to-par and now so she is looking for a nice home for him to go to (even though she is attached and wants to keep him herself). She will be picky, but if the right family came along she would love to see him go to a healthy environment. So if you know anybody looking for a nice (he is SO nice AND sweet) dog......this one is a keeper!!

Adopt-A-Family

2011-10-26T11:39:00.000-05:00

The Holidays are going to be here before you know it so why not get into the Holiday spirit today!

It's always a good feeling to help out others who aren't as fortunate so if you live in or around Kansas City, today you can adopt your Christmas family through KMBC.com Here's the breakdown:

All day today volunteers from the Salvation Army will be at KMBC to match our viewers with families and senior citizens who need your help to have a better holiday season.

You can call (816) 760-9314 from 6 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. today and speak with social workers who will take your information down and connect you with a Salvation Army family looking for your help.

Sponsors will be asked to provide gifts for each member of the family they adopt, spending about $20 to $25 per family member. Sponsors will also be asked to provide a holiday meal in the form of a gift card at a food store.

Families range in size, and you will be able to request any sized family you are able to accommodate. All families receiving assistance from the Adopt-A-Family program are screened by the Salvation Army.

Any person or group can be an Adopt-A-Family sponsor, so you may want to team up with your office, church, or school to help out.

All gifts purchased will be delivered a few days before Christmas.

V-Ball

2011-10-25T10:56:00.000-05:00

I had my last night of sand volleyball last week which was definitely bittersweet (but with how COLD it was towards the end I think I’ll get over it quickly-ha). It’s always A LOT of fun and we consistently crack ourselves up. Then there are some teams that are more fun to play than others too so I’ll miss that aspect. We have been going strong every week since March so I have forgotten what to do with my Thursday evenings now! Here's our cheesy pic!

Well I thought I would catch you up on my life and job (which I still LOVE and continue to more and more every day)…….it’s a nice feeling! They asked me if I would mind working from home if they provided me with a laptop just in case the weather is bad and I can’t make it in. (Really……...you didn’t even need to ask me that. I would LOVE to work from home from time to time......my pleasure!!)

Another aspect I LOVE is it's the first time I've felt VALUED at my job. They put me on projects that they know I'm capable of and involved me in an entire interview process (which was actually pretty fun and I learned a lot being on the opposite side of the table).

I did join my 1st “Group Fitness Club” with employees of surrounding buildings that lasted a couple months during Monday and Friday lunch hours. There were probably about 25 of us and we would run to a nearby park and do a variety of exercises for 45 minutes…….I really enjoyed it so I’m looking forward to it being offered again this Spring. Those are the 2 days that are always the hardest for me to talk myself into going to the gym so it took care of it for me. :~)

I’m still in school and I’m really enjoying one class but not so much the other. It’s a research class as in “how to go about doing a research” and I don’t find that topic interesting AT ALL, but I’m truckin’ through to get it check marked off my list.

Scott’s doing really good…….I’m hoping he’ll have another chapter beginning for him sooner than later but that’s all I can say on that. He mentioned this week that he would be starting to study in a month if he hadn’t passed his test the 1st time around…….…..thank god he did. I don’t think either of us could go through another 6 months of misery again.

Well that is about it, our lives are slowing down on the weekends for awhile which we are looking forward to (and will hopefully use it to be productive).

My Life Quotes

2011-10-21T07:00:00.000-05:00

I thought I would switch things up a bit today and share with you my favorite "quotes" that I've came across (and have at my work desk to look at every day). It's something nice to think about going into the weekend.

1. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.

2. Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.

3. Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.

4. When you say, "I love you" mean it.

5. Believe in love at first sight.

6. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.

7. Great love and great achievements involve great risks.

8. There are always two sides to every story......don't be so quick to judge.
9. Travel, travel, and do more traveling. It is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent.

10. Spend some time alone.

11. Don't compare your life to others; you have no idea what their journey is all about.

12. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

13. What other people think of you is none of your business.

14. Live with the 3 E's....Energy, Enthusiasm, Empathy and the 3 F's....Faith, Family, Friends.

15. An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.

On a side note........when I worked in the grocery broker business one of my lines was Gerber and the Regional Sales manager (for Gerber) sent me a picture of what the model of the "Gerber Baby" looks like today. Her name is Anne Turner Cook......I thought it was interesting!

Birthdays and Thanksgiving

2011-10-18T12:08:00.001-05:00

Well we had another family birthday this past weekend............my Daddy's!! We all made the drive back to Marshall to celebrate it!

In addition to a birthday.......we also had our family Thanksgiving as some of us will be traveling out of town over the holiday.

I think CJ has the "cheesing" down by now don't ya think?

I showed CJ how to work the camera so the rest are compliments of him. (with a few I had to delete because they were pics of an eye or random objects. ha)

Yup........we didn't know where to look

On our drive home the pups were pooped and cuddly (Sookie really dislikes being touched when she's sleeping so we were surprised she would let Tamba do this)

Birthday and Reunion

2011-10-11T12:53:00.001-05:00

Well we had quite an eventful weekend filled with family and friends. It was my father in law John's birthday on Friday so we went to our FAVE restaurant in Sedalia to celebrate............McGraths. Pam is a good family friend and always takes good care of us!!

Then we had my 10 year class reunion which was just crazy to say......time sure does fly!! It was nice to see people I haven't seen in a long time and get a fast forward version of their lives.

Some of us went out to eat beforehand so I thought I would share. :~)

Reid's 2nd Birthday Par-tay

2011-10-06T09:54:00.001-05:00

It was our Nephew Reid's 2nd birthday celebration this past weekend in St. Louis which was enjoyed by all. Cassady said he didn't want to go to school on Monday because of all of the cool items he received and wanted to play with them........who needs school when you got new toys???

I thought I would share some of the highlights!

Here is CJ singing "Happy Birthday" to Reid

Ok disregard the "Thank You" on this Smilebox. His party was "car" themed so I wanted to keep up with the theme.

Another thank you by Smilebox

Happy 2nd Birthday Reid

2011-10-03T09:11:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday little man!! We had a fun time at your birthday party and now have a great day at the zoo!! We LOVE you TONS!!!!

Plaza Art Fair

2011-09-26T09:23:00.003-05:00

The annual Plaza Art Fair was this past weekend and we had a ton of fun! It was PACKED with people but we were able to maneuver ourselves around pretty well. The 80's band The Zeros played on the main stage and they were very entertaining!

LOVE these girlie's!

Making our own "spot" on the curb to eat all of the delish food

John grubbing......I do have to say he is a great multitasker too!

Sookie's 3

2011-09-22T11:21:00.002-05:00

Well our "whittle gurl" turned 3 last Thursday and we ALMOST forgot (AGAIN). Every year we continue to think her b-day is a few days later than it is and I just so happened to look at her adoption papers last Thursday and saw that her birthday was that DAY! (oops) So we rushed out to get her birthday gifts and went on a nice family walk for her birthday that evening. :~)

Here she is posing with her birthday treats

Diving in.....

She LOVES small animal toys that squeak......so she got a pig and a fox to add to her collection!

And her Birthday Cookie

Kauffman Center

2011-09-19T10:06:00.006-05:00

The opening of a major attraction in Kansas City opened up this weekend.....and Scott and I dragged ourselves out in the dreary weather to be a part of it. It is the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. The opening was supposed to draw around 20-25,000 people but it was actually doubled (I heard from a professor this am). We went about an hour before it closed (thinking it wouldn't be as crowded) but the amount of people there was just pure craziness. Lines were going all the way around the building (so Scott and I decided to go in through the Exit and we were able to walk right in......how smart were we!).

It boasts two theatres that are going to be used for the Opera House, Ballet, Symphony and Broadway. They had performers going on throughout the day in both theatres so you could get the full effect of the sound. It is quite a sight to see I must say!

Labor Day Weekend

2011-09-07T10:35:00.012-05:00

Well our Labor Day weekend was relaxing. We had it all planned out then something unexpected happened (details below) which pretty much cancelled out the last part but we made the best of it.

Friday evening we went to our FAVE hangout........La Bodega with some great friends Jaime and John!

Then after we arrived home late we came home to a MESS in the bathroom. Needless to say I was up ALL evening with our "poor whittle guy" Tamba. Let's just say it was coming out BOTH ends all night and than it turned into blood.......which had us both freaking out. So we rushed him to the Vet as soon as they opened Saturday AM. Poor guy was SO dehydrated and just completely out of it. They pumped him up with fluids and antibiotics. Still don't know what caused it or what it was? Maybe pancreatitis or just a GI track bug? By Sunday afternoon though he was pretty much back to normal.......but he's still on antibiotics. We're just glad it wasn't worse.

Since our little boy was sick it threw a wrench in our Branson plans with my family. :~(

So basically I turned into a little Betty Crocker (kinda) while I had the "extra" time. My sister Keely told me about this website called Skinnytaste.com and it has WONDERFUL healthy recipes!

Here is the Southwest Black Bean appetizer that I made

And a BLT Macaroni Salad

And I topped it off with Chicken Rolatini (which I subbed turkey bacon in for the prosciutto but I didn't tell Scott since I figured he wouldn't eat it since it was "healthy".......and he LOVED it!) Shhh........

Saturday evening we had a wedding of one of Scott's college buddies where he saw a few of his friends that he used to hang out with 10+ years ago! Kinda crazy it's been that long!

We topped off our 3 day weekend with a BBQ at another friend Eric's new pad where we played Hillbilly Golf (I LOVE that game) and had a nice evening. This little man Max was SOOO cute and funny!

30th Surprise Par-tay

2011-09-01T14:21:00.006-05:00

We had a REALLY enjoying afternoon this past Saturday celebrating our friend's surprise bash that his lovely wife prepared! He was definitely surprised (I hope) and I think Laura should throw him a surprise bash every year from now on! :~)

Well I started classes back up and I forgot how much reading it is!! But I thoroughly do enjoy learning about my classes so it makes it worth it! And will hopefully pay off down the road too.

Have a great 3 day weekend!!

Reasons Why I LOVE Fridays

2011-08-26T10:51:00.005-05:00

1. Waking up to a job that I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. It makes the next 8 hours not so bad after all. :~)

This is the Mackay building at the Parkville main campus.....isn't it a cool building!

2. Driving into the city.....I LOVE seeing the cityscape. 3. My ritual Friday "I've made it through the week.......treat" for myself. A nice mid-morning walk to Scooter's for a small sugar free vanilla skinny latte!!

(On a side note......Scott HATES when he has to get me coffee anywhere because I have 5 descriptions and he just gets confused. ha)

Happy TGIF and have a wonderful weekend!!

Deanna Rose Farm

2011-08-25T11:30:00.001-05:00

Scott's sister Kim and our niece Lillie are visiting from DC (she picked a great week to be here because of the earthquake this week). Anywho, we made a trip to the Deanna Rose Farm with them on Sunday. Deanna Rose is a children's farmstead and it's a KC hot spot. It's basically an upscale farm with a lot of animals, a lake (where you can fish), pony rides, bottle feed goats, and tons more.

Lillie is SOOO cute and is such a little girly girl! She LOVES the color pink and was obsessed with my hair and wanted to brush it a lot (which I didn't mind at all!). She said I looked like a "witch" but Kim informed me that it's a compliment in Lillie's world........lol!

Kim is always a joy to see too. She is the most THOUGHTFUL person I know and is definitely the go to person when it comes to any questions about travel (as she's been EVERYWHERE).

We had another nice day out with the fam!!

Schoolhouse

Baby calf

Tanner's Day Out

2011-08-21T09:05:00.022-05:00

For part of our nephew Tanner's birthday gift was a "Tanner's Day Out" with Scott and I. (ok so his birthday was in December but with Scott studying EVERY weekend this is the 1st time we could schedule a time)

Tanner has been looking forward to it for SO long. Keely would tell me he would count down the # of "sleeps" he had until the day, which was cute. As soon as we showed up to pick him up he goes "ok I'm ready, let's go guys" as soon as he saw us. (Giving us no time to chit chat-lol)

All excited for his day out

1st Stop.......T-Rex Restaurant

Playing Games

Playing Tic Tac Toe Final Stop.......Power Play!! Power Play is HUGE complex consisting of bumper cars, go karts, bowling, laser tag, tilt a world, bouncy house, and TONS of arcade games. It was our life saver as we could spend A LOT of time there!
HUGE claw machine
Ski-ball........and he's REALLY good at it too!

Cars

His HUGE win (see video below) He has his Aunt Cassady's luck!!

No joke........this is JUST the tickets from his BIG win......1050 of them!!

(can you tell he's proud)

All pooped out......
I think we succeeded......

All in all we had a really fun day and it was really sweet for me to see how great of a Dad Scott will be too. He was so hands on and involved............it was cute!!

Smiling.....

2011-08-16T11:27:00.010-05:00

Is what I can't stop doing right now because............Scott is DONE with the CFA Tests!!! He PASSED!!!

(And he didn't want me to make that BIG of a deal about it too but I can't help it.....I'm SOOO proud of him!! What a huge accomplishment!!)

After he took this 3rd test in June he really didn't think he passed. On the first half it was all essay and he ran out of time and couldn't finish a lot of them. Then the 2nd half he said he did really well but he didn't think it was "enough" to make up for the 1st part. He really had me thinking he didn't pass either because he recently has been talking about studying again and he never did that in the previous tests before.

Actually I forgot that he was getting the test results back today (which I realize now why Scott was acting a little different to me this AM before he headed out the door) and my Mom texted me asking if he's heard. I figured if he would have heard he would have e-mailed/called me immediately so I kind of had a knot in my stomach. So I called him and asked if he found out the results yet and he goes "yes"......then nothing else. I go "well???? what is it". He responds with "I passed........and damnit I wanted to surprise you tonight because I thought you had forgot about it" (which I did). So Mom you ruined my surprise (ha)!

Looks like I'm not cooking Hamburger Helper tonight!!! :~)

Friends and Family

2011-08-14T13:06:00.015-05:00

The original "5" of the Criswells went to the Doobie Brothers concert at the MO State Fair this past weekend! It was also a family affair with aunts, uncles, and cousins too! We had a really fun time together and I LOVE oldies Rock N' Roll bands!!! (I actually knew more songs than what I thought I did)

I told my Aunt Mary Kay to "act like you like him" (referring to her husband) for a pic and then she starts clapping for the band. HAHA (Not the band silly......your hubby!)

Sistas!!

I heart my brother in law. Is it bad that we asked the corn dog stand lady to take our pic???

It was also a weekend of catching up with a lot of friends too.

A few of them are my gals Lezli and Jenny. Lezli is visiting from Pennsylvania for a week so Jenny and I went to see her. I heart both of them too!!! Lezli gives the BEST advice and is truly a one of a kind friend!! And EVERYBODY needs a Jenny in their life. She just constantly cracks me up.........you can always count on her to lighten up any room! LOVE. LOVE. LOVE them!!

HaPpY BiRtHdAy

2011-08-09T13:14:00.006-05:00

To a beautiful person inside and out

Who always puts family first And who is a great sister as well!!
Happy Birthday Keely! Can't wait to celebrate with you Friday night!!! Love you bunches......muah!!!

Obsession

2011-08-05T11:23:00.005-05:00

No joke.......I just purchased these CUTE shoes for $17 ($15 + $2 shipping).....I chose the "natural" color.

Ok so my NEW obsession the past 2 weeks has been NO MORE RACK and whoever told me about it (I can't remember......maybe Kara Heinzler???)........I'm upset with you because I've already purchased underwear, shoes, jewelry, and now MORE shoes!!

Each day they change deals at Noon (Eastern time) and you only have 24 hours to purchase. Or some items sell out quickly so you have to check out the website early. But the pricing is ridiculous......that's why I'm so obsessed with it!!

Ok these shoes go for $25 and EVERY product you purchase is ONLY $2 shipping. I think since I signed up (or maybe purchased my 1st item) I received a $10 credit so that's where the $17 comes from. If you want to check it out feel free.........but I'm WARNING you it's addictive!!

Family Day

2011-08-02T19:14:00.023-05:00

We had our 1st "Family Day" this past weekend and it was definitely a success!!

Around the holidays we have an annual "Pitch Tourney" that was started about 5 years ago with a group of our friends. Well it's only for "adults" and we thought it would be fun to do a summer event WITH the kids in tow........introducing "Family Day"!

We didn't really know how it was going to go and were kind of playing it by ear. I know I had a lot of fun and I think others did too so I think it's going to be another annual event which I'm stoked about!!!
The cooks.........thanks Todd and John!!

Ummmm........this bouncy house is DEFINITELY a keeper. Anything that can entertain kids NON STOP for 6 hours we're renting again!!

Volleyball is what we bonded over throughout the years........ahh.....brought me back to the good ole' days!!
This guy makes the BEST food AND drinks........seriously!! You can never go wrong when Luke is around! Josh waiting to sub back in the game.....

And the "Spaghetti" Necklace Giveaway Goes To.........

2011-08-01T19:14:00.003-05:00

WHITNEY THOMPSON

(courtesy of random.org)

Whitney message me your address and I'll ship out the turquoise necklace to you this week!

Thanks everyone who participated!!! I'll be having more "giveaways" down the road so keep an eye out!

FYI.......the "Spaghetti" necklaces are available for ONLY $20 and I'll have them up on my website soon (or if you want one now e-mail me and we can work it out too).

Spaghetti Necklace Giveaway

2011-07-26T07:00:00.003-05:00

It's time for ANOTHER Uniquely Chic Designs Giveaway for the fun "Spaghetti" necklace!!

Dress it up with a blazer or dress it down with just a plain old t-shirt!

To enter all you have to do is "Like" the Uniquely Chic Designs Facebook page HERE and then e-mail me at alysensimmons@gmail.com what your FAVORITE color is. (if you already "Like" the Facebook page then you are 1/2 way done)

Hurry.......contest ends Monday August 1st! Good Luck!

1 week down.....

2011-07-22T23:14:00.007-05:00

Well I SURVIVED my 1st week at my new gig and I can FINALLY say that I LOVE my job!! (whew........it took me awhile to get here)

I always heard of people saying how much they enjoyed their job and in the back of my mind I was a tad bit little jealous as I wanted to be in that position too. Really my career has been the only aspect in my life that I felt was missing and it's nice to have the puzzle pieces coming together now........it's a wonderful feeling!

OK so back to my gig.......I do have to say that I like the downtown atmosphere a lot more than what I thought I would. I've ALWAYS worked in the Overland Park area and the Downtown region kind of scared me. I didn't know how traffic was going to be getting there and I thought it would be all hustle and bustle. Truthfully...........it freaked me out a little. But I couldn't be more wrong........the traffic is a breeze (it's a flat 30 minutes door to door) and once I arrive downtown it's pretty mild as far as people/cars go. My building interweaves with other buildings so I can walk a long way without having to touch foot outside. There are restaurants/bars, coffee shops, hair salons, shoe tailors, dentist offices, cosmetic facilities, exc. all in these buildings and I had NO idea!

I have TONS of perks too which I've been yearning for:

1. Flexibility--oh how nice it is to come and go as I please. If I want to walk to the coffee shop in the AM or have an afternoon pick me up I can just GO......without having to tell anybody!

2. My BIRTHDAY is considered a HOLIDAY (finally there is a employer that thinks the same way I do!)

3. My OWN office with a really cool view!

4. Have the privilege to work for and learn from 3 great (and brilliant) professors.

5. The STUDENTS--they are mostly Military and Cops/Firemen and they are SO nice to work with. Really polite and completely on their game. No slacking.......you tell them what you need and they're on it!

6. A great boss (she actually reminds me of my Sister-in-Law Kim!)!!

Oh and one of the professors informed me that they had over 100 applications for my position and it just made me that much more appreciative that I was the lucky one that was chosen........I am truly blessed!! And grateful that all of my hard work has paid off! I was only granted an interview because I'm currently pursuing my Masters in Academic Advising so it shows that I made the right decision to go back to school........and I'm glad I did!

My office after I've put the "Aly" touches on it!

My city view!

Last week of summer vacation

2011-07-17T17:21:00.010-05:00

The Bryan Twins

Well my 6 weeks of summer vacation has officially came to an end. :~(

I start my new job tomorrow so it will be the beginning of a new career chapter for me. I'm kind of nervous but I'm sure once the 1st day is over I'll feel a lot better. I've really taken advantage of my time off and have definitely made the most out of it.......especially this past week.

On Wednesday I went to Oceans of Fun with my sister Keely and my nephew Carter

Then I headed to Marshall for a few days to have a garage sale, which was surprisingly really good for how HOT the weather was. Thanks to everyone who came and got some GREAT bargains (maybe a little too great of bargains......I learned I need to price a few items a tad higher). We already set a date for our next one which will be October 8th and will be great for the fall/winter items. I also did a "girls night" with some friends while I was there and we had a lot of fun. (I should have taken a pic!)

Then this weekend Scott and I went to a pro tennis match (which was my very 1st time) to watch the Bryan brothers who are the #1 Doubles Team in the WORLD! We had a lot of fun and they were phenomenal. I felt sorry for the opposing team as they didn't even have a chance..........I think they only scored 3 points out of the 5 games they played.

They had a "mini" court for kids to play on before the matches started (now Scott wants one). It's like a bigger version of a ping pong table (ha).

Here is the KC Team

Door to Door Organics

2011-07-13T10:31:00.004-05:00

A former co-worker introduced me to "Door to Door Organics" last year and I've been hooked ever since. I've been receiving fruits/veggies for about a year now and I am completely impressed with this company. They deliver fresh and organic fruits and vegetables right to your door that are grown by local farmers and I like that it's supporting the locals too!! Right now I purchase the smallest size (The Bitty) and it arrives on my door step every other Wednesday. What I LOVE is that you can completely customize what you want. They email you what is in your "box" the week prior and I always go online and delete some items and sub other ones in. Door to Door is offered in KC, Colorado, Michigan, some states in the East Coast, and they just recently expanded to Chicago too. I'm sure they will be nationwide before we know it though. Check them out HERE if you live in any of these areas........the pricing is really reasonable too for what you get.

Lake Fun

2011-07-12T07:00:00.001-05:00

We headed to the Lake of the Ozarks for some fun in the sun this past weekend. We have very dear friends who are ALWAYS so gracious and accommodating of their lake house and we LOVE spending time there. The weather couldn't have been any more perfect for our day out on the water either!

The Blalock Clan

How cute is Vivi!!!

It's nice not having anything to do for the day.......

Captain Neil

Look at this view!!!

My nephew Tanner would like this......we saw a Pirate Ship!

Of course we could not pass up the huge water slides

Scott and Neil heading up

We decided to nix getting in the adult pool after seeing this sign (ha)

And the Pom Pom Necklace Giveaway Winner Is........

2011-07-11T09:10:00.002-05:00

KARA POINTER HEINZLER

(courtesy of Random.org)

Kara e-mail me your address and I'll send it out to you soon. :~)

Thanks everyone who participated........I'll be having another type of necklace giveaway in the near future!

Pom Pom Giveaway

2011-07-07T07:00:00.007-05:00

Well I think it's about time that I have a giveaway for the new "Pom Pom" necklaces. I only have 4 shown but I'm working on more colors. If you want to enter the "Pom Pom Giveaway" all you need to do is leave me a comment on this post OR just shoot me an e-mail at alysensimmons@gmail.com. Tell me what your favorite Pom Pom color is or would be (so if you win I can make that specific one for you).

The random winner will be drawn Monday. Good luck!!

Aqua/Turquoise

KC Chiefs

Charcoal Gray

4th of July

2011-07-06T10:46:00.011-05:00

I hope everybody had a fun 4th of July weekend. We laid low at our house for the 1st half than headed to Marshall for the rest. It was very low key and relaxing!

My 1st fruit pizza (well Mom made the crust-but I decorated it)

It was also Tamba's 5th birthday (can't believe we've had him for that long) so we also celebrated his big 5!

Diving into his gifts
We watched my Dad play in the municipal band

He had a duet performance!
Then of course......what's the 4th without fireworks!

New Direction

2011-06-30T11:40:00.003-05:00

Well I have GREAT news to yell out......I got a job at Park University!!! (yay) I'm officially a "Pirate" now! The mother campus is in Parkville, MO but I'll be working out of their downtown office. I'll be the Undergraduate Programs Assistant to 3 professors (who I liked a lot in the interview) for their "portfolio program" which is a total different setup than normal college settings. In this program, each adult student meets one-on-one for an hour each week with their professor and that is their class. What I'll be doing is help with recruiting the students, assisting them with admissions, help with financial aide, and advise them too. What I loved about it is I'll be getting experience in all areas and not just be stuck doing the same role each day. Plus, they will pay for me to finish my MBA that I started (and my husband too if he ever wanted to pursue it down the road). I'm just so thrilled that I got a great foot in the door position with a reputable school. Whew.....I feel SO relieved now!!!

My previous job was just not my type of environment and I figured that out early on. They had really high employee turnover and it was not a stable industry so I did a lot of soul searching (I guess you could say) and figured out what would make me the most happy and it's in the higher eduction field. I'm currently obtaining my Masters in Academic Advising (as that is what I would like to be down the road) and it's been tough trying to find a job in a field with NO experience. (I've been looking since last October!)

So now I have until July 18th to enjoy my time off......it feels nice!

STL Wedding Weekend

2011-06-28T11:07:00.011-05:00

We had our FINAL June wedding this past weekend in downtown St. Louis for one of Scott's long time buddies John Best and his new wife Beth. We were in a rush to leave from the hotel to the wedding so I forgot the camera (oops). The wedding and reception were at a quaint church with a cool outside courtyard where we had some cocktails while the room was getting a makeover. We had a fun and long night out on the town!

This is on top of the Four Seasons Hotel. It was so neat!

Our friend Billy and his daughter Kolby went with us

Paw Prints Project

2011-06-23T12:07:00.003-05:00

My sister in law Cindy does these really cool prints of animals. She is an animal lover (like myself) and volunteers at their local animal shelter in Arizona. She takes photographs of the adoptable dogs/cats to be used on the shelter's website. She ALSO has an Etsy site HERE where 10% of her sales go back to the local animal shelter. I think it's a cool idea for any beloved pets that have touched your life and would like to have a picture to remember him/her by.

(The 1st picture is a gift she gave us taken on our wedding day. We receive SO many compliments about how neat it is and I have to agree. It's one of my favorite pics!)

Wedding and Father's Day

2011-06-20T12:23:00.016-05:00

Our good friends Jess and Shay were married this past weekend at the Lake of the Ozarks. We had a great time with some great people so it couldn't have been any better. Shay looked GORGEOUS and Jess was just SO happy.........they make such a cute couple!

Wedding #2 down for June and 1 more to go this weekend in STL. (whew.....all of this traveling is getting tiring)

The girls got the front seats and the guys weren't too thrilled.......except for Todd. (ha)

Then on Father's Day we stopped at the Ivory Grill in Sedalia for a dual Father's Day/Birthday celebration for Scott's brother Johnny. It was delicious!

Father's Day

2011-06-17T07:00:00.002-05:00

Happy early Father's Day to my #1 man!!! I love you "Papa"!!

Eureka Springs

2011-06-12T17:37:00.053-05:00

Well we are back from our little weekend away. We had an amazing time and the town itself was so quaint and cute. The tree house was AWESOME and they even provided us with really good cheesecake upon our arrival (Scott was VERY happy since that's his fave). We slept in, ate at a few great restaurants, moseyed our way downtown to peak at the tons of shops they have, took a private tour of the Promised Land Zoo (which was WAY fun.....a lot of videos posted below), and went to the Turpentine Tiger Sanctuary.

Our Home

Here I am bottle feeding a camel at the Zoo

Feeding goats

And a horse (which was full grown)

This was a HUGE turtle

These monkeys were SOOO cute. The little one could get out of the cage and he was smart to eat his banana outside where the bigger ones couldn't snatch it away from him.

These Emu's were SCARY!!!!

Look how massive these Buffalo were

Cute deer

I LOVE Zebra's

These 2 camels were just recently rescued and you can tell that one of them is a little more hesitant around us at first.

Here are a few Turpentine tiger sanctuary pics. There are over 100 cats and each of them has their own story. Most of them are rescues from people that purchased them as pets and some of the stories were really sad because of the conditions that people had them in prior.

View of the mountainous Eureka

Downtown

At the top of the Crescent Hotel (it's haunted) overlooking Eureka

Getaway.....

2011-06-09T07:00:00.009-05:00

Scott took his final CFA test last Saturday (can I get a "yay"). So to reward him for all of his hard work--poor guy has lost 12 lbs from the stress of it all--I thought I would take him on a weekend getaway to Eureka Springs tomorrow since we have never been there before. I thought a nice weekend away to take his mind off everything and get a little "us" time would be just what the Dr. ordered. I told him we were staying in a tree house with no electricity and no water.......we were going to "rough it" and he's still really confused about it all (lol).

(I told my family that too and my bro-in-law Jason goes "Alysen, I would believe you until I asked myself...........would Alysen stay in a place like that?!?!")
HA HA......they know me too well. I'm not that kind of "roughing it" girl.

Scott agreed with his statement.

Here are a few sneak peaks of our tree house......

Diana and Joplin

2011-06-06T10:27:00.006-05:00

Over Memorial Day Weekend both of the Mom's came up to go with me to the Princess Diana Exhibit that has been at Union Station since March. I've heard it was really good and was dying to go and see it before it leaves to go back to London. I'm REALLY intrigued by her and the whole family really. (did I mention I teared up while at the gym watching Kate and William get married??? I know.....I'm pathetic)

It was a good exhibit........just really packed since it was Memorial Day weekend. They had a lot of her outfits and I must say she was a tiny thing!

Here was her wedding cake that they replicated

This past weekend we went to Springfield for a wedding and my Dad had to drop off some equipment in Joplin so we were able to see a lot of the devastation. I forgot my camera so I only had my phone and this is the only picture I took. All I can say is pictures DO NOT do it justice. It looks like a war zone with only bare trees left. The guy that my Dad does business with was telling us his story and how it looks tons better than what it did even a week ago. He said the tornado was in and out in about 2 minutes and debris was all over the roads. The only thing you could do to get to people was to climb over things. Then he said they just started driving over houses/cars/live wires to get to where you needed to go. He lived there his whole life and couldn't even tell you what street he was on after it was all said and done.

He did say the amount of outpouring support has just blew their minds. People from all over the WORLD have been donating. Four schools were taken out as well and he said that they don't know what they are going to do for the next school year yet but they know they want the kids to stay together and not have to be outsourced to other locations. He said they have already been through enough.

There were cases of bottled water at every corner and insurance tents set up everywhere. We even saw people walking in fields looking for items that could have been tossed miles away. It was so sad and really put everything in perspective.

Branson Girls Getaway

2011-05-23T18:22:00.029-05:00

This past weekend we did a MUCH NEEDED girls trip to good ole' Branson, MO!! We had SOOO MUCH fun and realized once we were there that it wasn't quite long enough for us. We definitely needed another day to get in all that we wanted to do but there's always another time right??

We signed up to do a haunted ghost tour on Friday evening but it was rained out. On Saturday we went to Silver Dollar City, than some of us shopped while others laid out by the nice zero entry pool we had! That evening we ate at a great Mexican restaurant at The Landing. Then finished our night out at Ernie Biggs piano bar. We tried to get in as much as we could but you can only do so much with one full day.

On our way to Silver Dollar!

Ready for our night out on the town......

Real Housewives Freak

2011-05-18T19:35:00.005-05:00

I have to say that I am HOOKED to the RH shows (except for Atlanta). I have my favorite(s) but I thought it would be interesting to see what casts are yours (if you watch it). Did anybody see the Jersey premiere a few nights back? O.M.G.!!! Just pure craziness!

(Oh and I read the blogs too which shows how really pathetic I am.....but you find out more back story info so it's interesting....)

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Well I'm off for a fun filled Girls Weekend in Branson so I'm sure I'll have tons of pics to post next week. Have a great weekend everyone!

This and That

2011-05-15T19:27:00.012-05:00

On Saturday my Mom came up to help me plant flowers because we desperately needed it and I have NO IDEA what I'm doing. I did learn something which I'm probably going to regret saying but oh well........I'm an entry level beginner. I always thought you could put all flowers/plants in either the ground OR pots. I only look at the pictures on the tags..........that's ALL I've ever cared about.

I had a fern in my basket for one of my pots and Mom looks at it and goes....

"isn't that a perennial?"

Me-"no it's called some Japanese fern thing"

Mom-"No but I think it's a perennial"

Me-"What?? Where do you see that at?"

Mom-"on the description, so you don't want to put it in a pot"

Me-"Why not??"

Mom-"Because it's a perennial"

Me-"what's a perennial.....I thought that was the name of a flower or plant?"

Mom-"you usually put perennials in the ground. You need to look for an annual because they are all year round and you bring them inside in September"

Me (with a light bulb over my head)-"so that is why the roses I purchased last summer would never bloom in my pot........"

on a side note-----Mom asked if I wanted Rose's when we first walked in and I said NO immediately because of my experience last summer. Oh and it had thorns too and that was really annoying to me when I would try to water my non-blooming plant!!

Then she started talking about bi-annuals and I got really confused so I'm sticking with my perennials and annuals! :~)

Like I said.........I'm an entry level beginner!!

Here is one plant that I got. Don't ask me what it is.......I just go by looks remember.

This is my "Mother's Day" gift from my Mom. I thought it was kind of weird at first too but it's growing on me. We put lavender in it so it will smell really good! (my 1st "herb")

A few weeks ago while at v-ball I saw my FIRST Double Rainbow and was blown away at how vivid it was. I was bummed I didn't have my camera but the nice hubby that I have knew that I would like a picture of it (he didn't see the double one) so he took one for me.........isn't that so sweet!!!! I was ecstatic when he told me he was able to snap a couple!

Mom's 60th SURPRISE Birthday Par-tay

2011-05-04T21:00:00.011-05:00

My sisters, Dad, and I threw our Mom a SURPRISE 60th Birthday bash this past weekend. Everyone had an absolute BLAST too!!! My Dad's band played so that just made it even that more special!

We think she was surprised. She knew we were planning something though as she kept on giving us the 3rd degree and questioning us a lot the previous weeks. She told us multiple times "you guys keep on blowing me off" when she would try to make plans with us.

We were GLAD to get the party over with so we wouldn't have to watch what we said anymore. :~)

My sisters and I decided to surprise her as they were pulling up to the club

I missed the "surprise" part but here she is walking in

Turn up your volume if you can for the "full" effect!

Digital slideshow personalized with Smilebox

Easter 2011

2011-04-26T21:43:00.010-05:00

Easter was pretty low key for us. We went to Marshall on Saturday afternoon and the kids had their Easter Egg hunt outside. Had a nice dinner with family. Played a weird (and I mean weird) board game that evening. (If anybody ever asks you to play Quelfs......run away, it's the most embarrassing game ever made) Went to church on Sunday than spent the rest of the day writing a paper. Uneventful.........but good!

Showing off their findings

As you can see Betty is WALKING!!! Yay!

Papa and Reid

Crash

2011-04-25T15:49:00.003-05:00

Well I realized my blog is great for something.........backup!!!

Long story short. One of our computer's crashed last Monday. I lost my paper (that was due that evening), all my previous paper's I have wrote this semester (that I have to re-do and put together for my final portfolio), and I lost the last 6 months in pictures!! The hard drive wiped out everything (per Geeksquad).

With everything that blew up on a Monday AM........I do have to say that I handled myself REALLY well. Like so well I would have thought I would have been on Valium!

Hope everyone had a great Easter. I spent all of my afternoon writing a paper. :~(

Jaime and John

2011-04-18T07:00:00.004-05:00

This past weekend we had our good friends Jaime and John's wedding reception. They were married in Mexico a few weeks ago and came back to KC to have their celebration. They had a photo booth (which was a big hit) and we had a really fun time. Jaime looked GORGEOUS and they just looked SO in LOVE. We're so happy for them to be "official" now!! It's about time!

Free picture slideshow made with Smilebox

Brew to Brew

2011-04-09T16:19:00.013-05:00

Last Sunday I participated in my 1st Brew to Brew run. It's a 44 mile run (don't be scared......I only ran 3.9 miles of it) from the Boulevard Brewing Company in KC to another Brewing company in Lawrence. When it comes down to it.........it's an all day drinking and running event!! Our team had 10 members and we each ran a leg of it. There were TONS (and I mean TONS) of people and we had so much fun. It was a great event to experience with lots of camaraderie and it only pumped you up more. We took two cars and dropped off and picked up each runner at certain stations (or followed them to give them water). People had buses and rv's too (that's the way to go). I had the first leg (thank heavens I was able to get it over with) so the rest of the time I was the driver. :~)

The weather couldn't have been any better (except for the wind....yeah try running against that!). I actually got my first suntan (well burn....I'm peeling).

Boulevard provided free beer at the beginning, then you stack up your car with booze and food............and off you go!!

There were some interesting costumes

There's Beth!

Keely excited to start...

Some of our team

There's Alexis (in the yellow) with our team cheering her on. :~)

Ann crossing the finish line

Here's Keely finishing up her leg!

Happy Birthday Cass!!!

2011-04-06T07:00:00.004-05:00

Have a great day with your little man and your big man!!!

Love you!! xoxo