Afton and the puddle!

This day was so much fun! Afton and I went out the back gate for a walk which doesn't ever really result in walking anywhere. Something always seems to catch Afton's attention. Today - a puddle!

Oh so good!

Oh my gosh - this pizza was DELICIOUS!
Brett was shocked I actually made it! :)
Well, I didn't make it make it from scratch or anything...but still

Ingredients:
3 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts (I used half a bag of tenderloins)
1 (6oz) jar marinated artichoke hearts, undrained
1 large clove garlic, minced (I used garlic powder)
1 (10oz) package pre-baked pizza crust (I found a really good thin crust at Walmart in their pizza section) Two in a pack. I can't wait to use the other one!
4 Roma tomatoes, sliced
1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cut chicken into bite size pieces.

Drain artichoke hearts, SAVe THE LIQUID!  Chop artichoke hearts.

Place artichoke liquid in large nonstick skillet and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Cook until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add chicken and garlic to skillet. Cook chicken 3 to 5 minutes or until done. Stir in artichoke hearts. Remove from heat.

Place pizza crust on a baking sheet. Top evenly with tomato slices. Top with chicken mixture, sprinkle with basil. Top with cheese. Bake 12 to 17 minutes or until hot and the cheese is melted.

Enjoy the deliciousness!

A Day with Grandma Watrous

Afton loves hanging out with her grandma!
She gets to ride in the swing!

Paint the rocks!

Dig and play with a dump truck!

And laugh, sing and make funny faces!

Tubes

After multiple visits to the doctor and three rounds of antibiotics (in three months) we decided enough was enough. I took Afton to an ENT on Tuesday and luckily the infection in her ears was gone (thanks to those awful antibiotic shots) but her ears were still full of fluid.

The doctor suggested tubes.

Brett and I decided that was a good decision and spent our morning at the Central Utah Surgical Center.

Afton got her own little bracelet and a name tag!

She was very quiet and thoughtful as we sat in the waiting room.

The nurse had us change Afton into this little tiny hospital gown and little hospital socks. She looks so sad!

This little lion was a gift from the hospital and Afton
held on tight while she waited for the doctor to come
and get her.

I started to pace the hallway and before I even had
time to worry the nurse was coming out to get me.
It was over! Brett and I were so anxious to see
Afton!  It was so sad walking into the recovery room.
Seeing her little tiny body under the blankets, her finger
in a little gadget and a mask over her face made me feel so
helpless and so grateful she is generally so healthy.

We were relieved when she came to and scooped her up
in our arms. She cried and cried all the way home and finally
settled into a nice three hour nap (after a little milk and motrin).
When she woke up she was SO happy.

She is running around, talking more (if possible), eating more,
and just seems lighter! I'm glad we went through with this procedure and hope our days of infection are over for good!

I am so grateful for technology and the doctors who study these techniques. We are so lucky!

Books

I LOVE to read! I have always loved to read.

When I was growing up I had a spiral bound notebook
that contained a list of every book I had read.
Whether it was short or long, good or bad, happy or
sad, it went in my notebook.

I loved keeping track of how many books I'd read.

But... I am sad to say that somewhere along the
journey of my CRAZY life I lost it. :(

I still love to read though and find myself getting drawn toward many different genres! I also love to read more than 1 book at a time.

I LOVE that Brett reads. Afton also LOVES reading.
It is a solid part of all of our bedtime rituals.

Some days I can't wait to climb into bed so I can read! I love it!

Can you guess which pile is mine? Hehe

Our Valentine's Day!

Eight years ago today Brett and I went on our first date! For some reason Brett wanted to wait until AFTER Valentine's Day to take me out! LOL

Karen (Brett's mom) had been trying to set us up for a little while. She and I taught school together and somehow she managed to set up a coincidental meeting! :)  Up until that point Brett and I had both been hesitant!

Once we saw each other we decided to give it a try and spent our first date going to the Olympics with Russ and Krista! Krista was pregnant with Z and had her head hanging out the window for most of our drive! (I get it now)

When we got downtown Krista handed me this huge Olympic jacket to wear. I'm sure I gave her a look that said 'whatever' but I put it on for a picture. Now we laugh because of course I wanted to look cute and felt the jacket was way to big. Although looking back at the picture I think I could have gotten away with it! Oh well!

Those two were great company for a first date. They were fun and talkative and helped ease the nervous tension! LOL!

I also think it's funny how short I am compared to those three! (and the rest of the family, girls included)


Screaming in the bubble!



Ever since that day we have celebrated Valentine's Day on the 15th of February. Tonight, eight years later we saw the movie Valentine's Day and found ourselves sitting in Red Robin watching the Olympics and thinking back to that first night!

Thank goodness for mothers! They really do know best! :)

Oh how I love you!

Love you babe!

 He knows me well!

 

Afton got a visit from the Valentine Man! And...Daddy dressed her today! Hehe

 

 

So cute I might wear one!

Keeley was visiting this weekend so we decided to get crafty
and make some hair clips!

Here are a few of our finished clips.

Keeley was having so much fun that in the middle
of our project she turned to me and said, "This is
so exciting!" Cute!

She is adorable and was even more excited when she
was able to take everything home with her.

I better start over so I can have one to wear!

Afton on the other hand wasn't quite as excited! She did keep it in long enough for a photo though.

 

  

Fun with Michelle!

Michelle and I were perusing the aisles (can you call them that?) at the Wood Connection last week and decided we wanted to make a cute and easy Valentine's Day craft.
We were SO excited when we finished and honestly a little surprised at how cute these turned out!
Yeah for us!

 

  

Here are our kiddos spending quality time together!

 

Sunday morning walk!

Tim was in town for the weekend so I met my dad, Tim, and Keeley at the old Lehi bridge early this morning.
It was FREEZING and a little foggy but we bundled up and took off.

 

  

  

  

  

A Day with Dad

I LOVE hanging out with my dad.

On Saturday we headed out into the west desert with fishing poles, jackets, hats, gloves, and junk food.
We didn't have any luck fishing because the snow kept us from getting close to the water and a lot of the water was still frozen. We did however find something else to do. As we were driving we saw a cave on the hillside and thought it would be the perfect spot to soak up some sun. We hiked up the mountain and made a little fire. It was so nice to breath fresh air (except for when we were inhaling smoke) and be in the middle of nowhere. We sat around the fire, talking and laughing, and just enjoying the day!

We ended being gone for about four hours and in that time we saw 25 wild turkeys, 1 golden eagle, 3 bald eagles, 1 coyote, 15 deer, 2 rabbits, 2 blue herons, and around 12 hawks! I'm sure I'm missing something!

During that time we also managed to drink a lot of soda, eat cheetos, donuts, and top it all off with a nice freezing cold ice cream cone!

It was a great adventure! Thanks Dad!

 

Dad's picture looks like an REI ad!

Mine looks like I am falling over!

More name blocks

I made these for my friend who has the cutest little guy. She is such a sweet mommy and I am so happy for her new family!
I also wanted to accurately show the size of these blocks. A few of you said Afton's name blocks looked really big but they are actually really small. They are the perfect size for little fingers and quick and easy to make!

Welby crew!

Today I was able to meet some of my old first grade gang at Applebee's. The food was yummy and it was great to catch up and spend time together!

 

Free fun at Cabela's!

Tiff and I have been trying to spend one day a week hanging out to let the kiddos play together.
This week we decided to go to Cabela's (free) and walk around. The kids loved cruising around the little aquarium area and feeding the fish in the little stream.
They also enjoyed the various animal exhibits and riding the elevator!

Memory game

I have been wanting to make this FOREVER. It was one of the things on my to do list. Check!
I used wood and scrapbook paper and I love how it turned out!

 

So far Afton loves to play with it, but in her own way!

 

When I found this idea I was so excited and already scheming up another way to make the same game. I want to use pictures and I think I will use all paper instead of wood. Hmmm... we'll see. I'll post pictures whenever it's done!
And Jen... thanks for motivating me to finish! One more project down!

Simplify

Lately I have been feeling a little crowded. I have let January get the best of me and have found myself sulking around a little. I haven't been doing the things I normally do to stay happy. Exercise, photography, writing, fishing, hiking, dates with Brett, etc. All of these have taken a back seat to my somber mood. I feel as drab as the weather. The air is gross, my hair is dull, and I am ready to throw away everything in my house.

For about six weeks someone has been sick, which hasn't helped anything. Afton had RSV and along with that a double ear infection. Along with the ear infection Afton was throwing up and not sleeping well. And as if that wasn't enough poor Afton had her two top teeth come in and her molars are coming in as well. She has been a wreck.
Brett was super sick for a couple of weeks and between those two we spent a good deal of time at the doctor's office.  Luckily I only got hit for a few days after they were both well. I think (hope) we are in the clear and I know we are ready for a vacation. At this point even St. George sounds inviting. 50 degrees and sunshine! I'm there!

6 weeks of sickness and yucky air has left me with a pretty hefty to do list.
I have multiple projects sitting around, photographs, scrapbooking, painting, various activities, sewing. Oh and not to mention my blog which only gets a tiny piece of me. Throughout the day I think of things I want to write and then I get busy and today turns into tomorrow and so on. Oh well, I guess a piece is better than nothing. 

I have been organizing drawers and cupboards though. It feels nice to have some things clean and organized. I have also given away a lot of my clothes and shoes. My closet is happy and my give away pile continues to grow. I want to get rid of everything (like I said above) but I should probably keep something to wear and eat out of.

Well, hopefully I can shake the January junk and get focused again. I have things to write, pictures to take, books to read, drawers to organize, projects to finish, and people to spend time with! Oh, and I am also starting a Way Back When segment for my blog. One more thing to do...

What?