Thanksgiving with the Allens

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year with Brett, Erica, Paige, Buck and Bev. It was small in numbers but large in food and happiness. 

Erica was so on the ball, most of the food was started the day before so with out too much stress (or so it seamed to me) the Thanksgiving feast was ready in no time.
 

I got to make my mom's famous 'Frog Eye Salad' for the first time ever and was quite happy with it. That was the first time I have ever been invited into the Thanksgiving prep to make a dish. I am no stranger to stirring or mixing, but one dish start to finish...this was a first. Does that make me an official adult?

We had three pies including a homemade pumpkin pie thanks to Paige.  I believe it was her first pie attempt and it was amazing! So no matter how stuffed we were, we all had to try at least two of them. I really think Thanksgiving has the the best food ever.

After dinner and pie we played the 'Singing Bee' game. It is a game where it gives you part of a song and you have to sing the next line. If you get it right we high five. It was a lot of fun. 

Black Friday shopping. Wonderful. Need I say more? Okay, we left for Missoula a little before 5:00 in the AM and with snow and scared drivers (not us used-to-the-snow folk) we made it to the mall around 8:00.  Sales were still going and sleepy shoppers were gone, so it was relaxing and perfect. We didn't have to deal with the crazies and we all still made out like bandits.

Christmas shopping...check.

After hitting up the mall, Ross and TJ Maxx we headed downtown for MacKenzie River Pizza. Since it was just us girls (no men to yell for more meat) we went crazy and got the Veggie pizza. It was so, so delicious. 86% Cocoa on the other hand is not. We do not recommend it regardless of all those antioxidants.

While we were busy driving, eating and shopping Zach and Brett stayed home to chop down a tree and brave the intense Fairfield winds. They not only cut down the tree but raked the yard, moved the wood, did some laundry and still had time for a movie. I sure love these manly men of ours.  

Saturday was a good day for relaxing and recouping a little. I was able to read, shower and slowly get ready for the day after a delicious Swedish pancake breakfast.

Saturday night we got to spend time with some of our favorite people, Asher and Michelle. After a wonderful soup and chili dinner, Erica got busy and made baked donuts. As we visited we indulged in those cinnamon and butter covered delights. 

Sunday we sadly headed back to face the last 3 weeks of school. Thankfully we had clear roads and no deer crossing the roads, so we were able to make good time. Wish us luck on the last stretch of the semester! And good luck to everyone getting everything in order for the holidays!

Happy Holidays!

Anniversary #2

I have been telling people all semester that we have been married for two years. Only today is that officially true. Today finishes up our second year of marriage. It has gone by so fast, I can hardly believe it. Yet, we really have had so many wonderful memories. So two years it is.

Thanksgiving update coming soon...

Gratitude

 ... for so many things.

I am so grateful for all of the wonderful memories we have been able to make and share this past year. 

I am thankful for a wonderful family and for incredible in-laws. I really could not have been luckier in finding a family I feel so comfortable with. 

I am thankful for a loving husband and for the two (almost) years we have had to grow closer as a couple. 

I am grateful for more things than I have fingers to count.

 

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Pre Thanksgiving Rundown

Thursday night Zach's singles ward had a fun game night. We rotated playing fun games, relay-racing and making ice-cream. I got recruited to help at the ice-cream making station. I did not complain, and yes, I helped myself to some deliciousness.

Ice Cream in a bag directions HERE. 

Afterwards Zach hung around to shoot some hoops with a few of the guys. 

Saturday night we sat down to enjoy mind numbing shows on Hulu (as well as thought provoking ones) with nice, warm cups of cocoa. Next to a warm shower nothing warms me up faster. Love it.  

Today I finally made pumpkin pull apart bread. I have been wanting to make this all week and so I finally allowed myself the time to do it. Let me just say, it was well worth it. 

Recipe HERE

Hope you all had a great and relaxing weekend! 

P.S. Zach and I got a little crafty but we can't show you anything until after Christmas. Hope you're as excited for the holidays as we are!

Finished PIllows

Ta-Da! Here its is. My pillow projects stuffed and finished.  The requirement was to do one pillow with finished seams and a true closure. I ended up with 6 pillows, 3 with true closures and 2 with finished seams. So I turned in 2, one button and one hidden zipper closure.

These are my two button closures. I was so excited to learn how to make button holes. Now I can make amazing button closure pillows in 2 hours or less, all under 2 dollars. I'm not proud of that or anything. 

The other square pillow was finished off sewing in a hidden zipper. The zipper was easier to sew than I anticipated. I gave myself a pat on the back for completing that one too.

I love my round pillow. I made my own stripes and because it was smaller than anticipated I added a ruched panel. To make it nautical I tied the rope in sailors knots.  And of course I monogrammed everything.

Here its is:
- Two navy blue pillow shams with back flaps 

- Two button closure square pillows
- One hidden zipper square pillow

- One cylinder nautical stripped pillow

 

Happy Saturday Everyone!

Get-together + Snow

As I write this it is currently 13 degrees. Clear winter sky's make me grateful for cloudy days. Clouds make winter so much warmer.  There was a fairly large snow storm that blew in Saturday morning. It was so lovely watching from the inside of a warm office and then a warm apartment. 

I wish I could have just cuddled up with a blanket on the couch all day but there was work to be done. Zach got sucked into helping me work on a pretty big project. I had to make 5 copies of a laminated file folder game. Thanks to him my days of cutting turned into a couple of hours. It turned out pretty awesome if I do say so myself.

Midterms are over but now comes the last stretch to finals. So with many projects to be done, shopping and other things to be set in order before the holidays. I'm afraid I might be down to one post a week. So sorry.

Sunday night we had a little get together with some of our freshman friends. My cousin Maryann and two of her roommates came as well as David, a family friend and two of his roommates. We enjoyed talking and sipping hot chocolate. We really did have a good time with all of them.

A couple of years ago, we went sledding with our friends McKay and Ashley. Since I had no fun pictures to share today, I thought you might enjoy these recently found photos.

Happy snow days!

Books, Projects and Registration, Check.

I finally finished the Hunger Game series this week. I loved them. I heard that a lot of people didn't like the last book because of the ending so maybe I enjoyed it more expecting it to be really bad. I personally loved the ending and who finally won over Katniss Everdeen. I also liked that although she was a super stud she was portrayed as more human than not. So, I give it a thumbs up. What did you think of the series?

I finished my pillow project this week as well. It is due on Tuesday so once I get it back I will post pictures of the final project stuffed with actual pillows.

On another exciting note, Zach and I registered for our last semester of classes. That means we both walk in April. Zach might even get his diploma because of an internship with a well known blogger. We are so excited to be moving on to the next stage of our lives and at the possibilities of living back east for a couple of years. Wish us luck on all going according to plan. 

Happy 11-11-11 everyone!

Braided Rugs and Snow

I have a ton of scraps I have collected over the past two years. Some from thrifted shirts I turned into bow ties or flowers. Some from turning pants into shorts and more from old clothes we cut up and recycled. In an attempt to shrink that pile I found this wonderful rag rug tutorial.

It is really easy, you don't even need a sewing machine or sewing skills. It did however, take me a few hours to cut and piece and braid. It's still unfinished, but its close and I love it! I put it under the sink in hopes of saving my back while doing dishes. So far its serving it's purpose wonderfully and it keeps my feet warm!

Friday night was our second snowfall of the season. It snowed all night and into Saturday. I am just so happy we were able to enjoy fall and Halloween, snow free until now. I think I am officially excited for the coziness of it all. Plus, it really makes everything look so much prettier.

On another exciting note, Zach and I registered for our last semester of classes today. I officially have 120 credits, which is the credit limit. You can tell I had a little bit of fun along the way since I will be graduating with almost 140 credits. Guess it's almost time to face the real world.

Happy Monday everyone. Bundle up and stay warm!

Conquered

This is what caramel is supposed to look like! It was the perfect consistency, color and smell. The taste however, I will need to work on a bit. It had a bitter after taste, though I was sure I didn't burn it. Anyway, there is still a lot of practice I need to put in, but boy-oh-boy was I happy to see this third batch turn out!

A great how-to HERE.

It is currently snowing here in Rexburg. I am actually pretty happy about it. I feel like we had a nice long fall and I just feel so cozy here watching the snow fall from our warm apartment. I guess winter is just around the corner. Happy weekend everyone!