A Cooking Blog

For the past couple of days... or maybe it has been weeks (who really knows during the holiday season?) Jeff has been urging me to start a cooking blog.  Everyone knows I love to cook and especially bake treats, so I'm starting to think, okay--why not?

So, to start off, yesterday I made Rolo Surprise Cookies.  I got all excited to take pictures during the steps to post on my new blog with the recipe... and wouldn't you know, as I was transferring the last batch of cookies from the cookie sheet to the cooling rack, I realized I never got my camera out and didn't document a speck of the action!

In conclusion, the cooking/baking blog will have to start another day with another recipe!

Dessert Party, Anyone?

ATTENTION:

short blog entry ahead.

I want to have a party.  One that consists of many many desserts.  PREFERABLY home-made desserts.  Brownies. Cookies. Cakes. Candies. Candied nuts. And all that good holiday stuff.  Anyone who wants to join me is more than welcome :)

Email me.

These are a few of my favorite things....

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things

In the hype of the Christmas season, I decided to make a list of my favorite things.

*Note: The list above is not compiled of MY favorite things 

1. Sending Emails 

If you know me well, you know I love to send emails.  Formal emails, professional emails, friendly emails, long emails, short emails, sweet emails, news articles via email, pictures via email, website links via email, to-do lists via email... and it goes on and on.  I love to type it up, edit it, and press that little send button.  However, then I have to sit and wait for emails to come back.  Which they very rarely do, but I still love...

2. Receiving emails!

Hello... I love to send them, yes, but I love to get them too.  That little number that pops up that says how many new messages are waiting for me...beautiful. But I must admit, I'm getting sick of all those stores sending me holiday coupons I will never ever use.  Thanks for the offers though.

3. Photography

No, not really taking pictures or anything to do with me and photography, but I've found a love for looking at photographer's blogs.  I would say this started when I found my wedding photographer.  I love to check her blog to see if she's posted new pictures from a shoot.  I love love LOVE it.  I wish I some a little bit of that talent (WHOO! I just got an email).

4. Baking

Yes, baking.  I absolutely love it.  Send me a recipe and I'll make it.  Christmas presents this year?  Food items.  Mint chocolate chip brownies, candied nuts, almond bars, caramel apple dip, crinkle cookies, cookie in a jar mixes.  Love it.  Embrace it.  Eat it! 

5. My bed

What would this list be without my almost favorite thing in the world? I love to lay in my bed with all my blankets and pillows and, of course, Bragley and Kaia.  I love sleeping and just being super comfortable.

6. Sweatpants

Any size, shape, or color. Jeff hates it.  'Nuff said.

7. My LV purse

*Inspired by Sharron F. <3

I bought Louis in Hawaii in October 2007 (I think) and have used it almost every day since.  Hey, I have to get every one of those 600 dollars worth out of it. Although sometimes I do think of all the other things I could have bought with that money, it's the only big splurge I've made in my life.

8. Water

It's all I drink.  Sure, sometimes I'll get real crazy and have a sip of Jeff's coke or have my own, but typically I'm an H2O supporter. 

9. C.lean L.aundry S.mell

CLS is what I like to call it.  I like having clean clothes to replenish my closet, but I hate putting them away.  This number 9 is strictly saying I love the SMELL of clean clothes.  MMmm.

10. My dog

You all know that.  Kaia is my baby.  She is naughty and psycho, but that just adds character to her lovely self.  

11. My Family

They're kinda crazy, and drive me kinda crazy, but I gotta love them.  I don't know what I'd do without them.  When you lose someone, it makes you realize even more how much you have to appreciate everything about your family and friends. 

12. Jeff... of course!

Did I really have to say that?!

I've been missing... Glad you found me.

So... I haven't updated my blog in forever.  Since June to be exact.  Of course a lot of things have happened, but in reality, not much has really happened.  I am trying to move on with life and be that strong person every person always tells you to try to be.  And it's hard.
I miss my brother every day and think about him every... I may even cry a bit about it every day.  But.  I can just hope and pray that he is happy and watching down on me and laughing at all the stupid things I do or say.  Especially when I secretly try to talk to him as if he's there listening.  Don't worry, I still think he is. 

I miss my dad, who I only get out to visit only a few times.  With my busy work and school schedule I feel like I wake up, leave, come home at 7 or 7:30, eat dinner, sneak in some homework, and go to bed.  Do I feel guilty for resting and playing around on the weekends instead of visiting him?  Oh sure, all the time.  But when I do get to see him it makes me feel better.  I love my family.

Yay for the holidays being here, right?  For many of us, that means lots of food, family, and money-spending.  I'm still hoping to wake up every day and find that secret money tree in my back yard.  And no, I won't tell you or share it with you if I ever find it :)
I'm still trying to plan my wedding... which is in June.  Believe me folks, it's even more expensive than those holidays previously mentioned.  

We've: 

picked a date 

booked a venue 

bought my dress.shoes.veil.hairpiece.etc.

found an amazing photographer who is super cute and nice (I literally cannot wait for our engagement session in early May).  

So what's left?  

Lots.

 Like: 

picking a florist and flowers we want

sending out invites (pretty sure we've already picked who's going to do those)

finding a band

getting an officiant

picking out wedding rinds/bands

registering for those fabulous gifts you'll all be buying for us :)

and other things I can't even remember.  

So why, may I ask, do we spend so much time and money and effort for people to come watch us get married and eat and dance?
I don't know, which is why I'm asking you.  To celebrate?  Of course.

We'll see you there!

Eric Clapton/Tears in heaven

I miss you Garrett

Tears In Heaven

by Eric Clapton and Will Jennings

Would you know my name
If I saw you in heaven?
Would it be the same
If I saw you in heaven?

I must be strong
And carry on,
'Cause I know I don't belong
Here in heaven.

Would you hold my hand
If I saw you in heaven?
Would you help me stand
If I saw you in heaven?

I'll find my way
Through night and day,
'Cause I know I just can't stay
Here in heaven.

Time can bring you down,
Time can bend your knees.
Time can break your heart,
Have you begging please, begging please.

Beyond the door,
There's peace I'm sure,
And I know there'll be no more
Tears in heaven.

Would you know my name
If I saw you in heaven?
Would it be the same
If I saw you in heaven?

I must be strong
And carry on,
'Cause I know I don't belong
Here in heaven.

I'm going to be Mrs. Hillier

Yep, it's true.  Jeff and I have now been engaged for a week.  I'm pretty excited about it.  A little nervous about it.  And I would like to share the story.  However, at the current moment, I am tired, hungry, in need of a shower, and planning a wedding via internet information.

We Have a Taker!

So my sister, Erin, and I went to Los Angeles, California this weekend to go to the Talyor Swift Fearless concert. No, we're not crazy addicted fans, but I won the trip from KBULL 93 back in November. So basically we had fabulous seats right in from of the stage. And I came out with some pretty good pictures! I'm pretty amazed. And I am happy to say we got Kelli Pickler's attention and feel as though we made her night. She seemed unhappy and not pleased to be there until we, uh, did something to make her smile. It was great. Anyway, I feel like I should be doing some homework, seeing as to how the semester is basically over and I have a lot of projects and such to do.

T-Swizzle. I'm working?

I really enjoy time off. Like, I mean I LOVE it. Therefore, I am currently having a hard time figuring out why I decided to get a new job. Another job. Now I have two jobs with school shoved in between them. It sounded like a good idea at the time, more money=fabulous. However, now I am stressing out about my current schedule because I have no time to complete things for school... things called practicums. I am supposed to go with my team this morning to an elementary school to observe a child, but I can't go because I have t work until our class starts. And I have school and work and work tomorrow too... and every other day that exists, except for the weekends... but those don't count because I can't go observe then! Anyway, that was a lot of complaining, but I felt like I had to get it out. Fall semester is going to be hard...

On the other hand, something to look forward to and be excited about...
I am headed to LA on Friday to see Taylor Swift in concert! I'm pretty excited about it. But at the same time, it's not that big of a deal... considering I went to this same concert last year. And no, I'm not a psycho stalker... I won tickets off the radio. Pretty sweet. I like winning things. Although it was surprising because I never, I repeat: I NEVER win things.
But anyway, I guess I should get back to working now... maybe go check the mail or something. I'll have an update later next week about the concert. Maybe stars will align and I'll meet T-Swift herself. HAHA. Yeah, right!

Welcome, new follower

Hello friends. I am here today to update my blog; not a usual occurrence. I noticed I have a new follower, so welcome. And thank you for joining us. I can promise you this will be a wonderful and worthwhile journey. Okay, can the promises. I have no idea how you'll like it over here.
Anyway, I am now the proud owner of a new job. Starting April first, I am officially the new office assistant in the Biology Department at the University of Utah. Pretty exciting, I know. I might finally be able to make enough money to take my wonderful boyfriend out for a nice dinner at the local Arby's dollar menu. What a treat!
Something else to be excited for... I leave tomorrow at noon to have a hopefully sun-filled weekend in St. George. I hope for a lot of hiking, biking, and exploring. No lazy days sitting around in a crowded condo. I think I might go crazy. And hopefully no In and Out Burger. Or is it In-"N"-Out? Who knows. But their food is disgusting and all of you Utah folks that claim it is the best thing ever, well, you don't fool me, foolers. You only say that because, until recently, there were no innnnnout's here. So there. Take That.
What other news do I have to share? Oh yes. Oh dear me oh my yes. Today at 3:30, I will be at the U taking my Praxis test. Scary stupid test that is costing me $135... and I have to get a certain score to be able to apply to the College of Education at the U. Oh, I mean the Urban Institute for Teacher Education. I think that is what they changed it to.
Well, wish me luck. I'm off to eat and shower.

Chai Tea on Fridays

I love Fridays.
Waking up naturally to no alarm. No school. Just a morning run, a long and hot shower, and updating my blog while drinking some hot chai. Can life get any better?
Yes, most likely it could. But I'm still enjoying this.
I'm trying to come up with an idea of what I can do with Jonathan today. It's a beautiful looking day outside, although I'm sure it's not as warm as it looks. How deceiving. I wish I could just move away to California or... well. Let's see. Arizona gets too hot. Florida can end up washed away in a Tsunami. Nevada is. Well, it's Nevada. So I guess California it is folks. That's where you'll find me in probably 5 years. Unless they've already earthquaked into the ocean by that point in time.
Well anyway, I really don't have much else to say at the moment. One more week of school until spring break. Ahhh, i can hear the silent alarm clock now. Even though that doesn't make sense.

Blogger's Delight

I was watching one of my favorite T.V. shows, House, last night and the person who was sick and dying was an avid blogger. She shared every aspect of her life with her blog followers. And I mean everything. What she was doing, eating, when she argued with her husband. She even asked her followers about what decision she should make when it came to which heart valve replacement she should choose. So basically, I was thinking, wow. Are people really like that?! I have a hard time even remembering to update my blog... and I usually have nothing worthwhile to share.

Well, today is my cousin Stephanie's 21st birthday. So, Happy Birthday Stephanie Marie!

On another note, my upper back/shoulder muscles hurt super bad. Must be from yoga class yesterday? My body isn't used to that kind of activity! And speaking of activity... I have decided to DO. I have yoga twice a week, I run a mile 3-4 times a week, I eat a lot of fruit, I get at least 8 hours of sleep a night, and all I ever drink is water (unless I am at an event or feeling like I need a chai). New Years resolution you ask? Nah, it's March now. It's my March month welcoming spring resolution. Yay, let's just hope it sticks, right?!

I have attachment problems

Well, first of all I can safely say that I think I love my dog, Kaia, too much. I have separation anxiety sometimes when I leave her. I Like when Jeff, Desi, Michael, and I went to Las Vegas for a couple of days. Yeah... I was basically dying. So sad to leave her behind. And when I have to leave her to go to school or work for 6-8 hours, yeah that is sad too. Erin says that when I leave, Kaia runs as fast as she can to my bedroom and watches me leave through the window. Then, she goes back to the front door and sits and whines for quite a while.
Good to know I'm not the only one with attachment issues...
But. The source if this message originally was my thinking about my xterra. Jeff and I traded cars last night, and although I'm doing fine, I do miss my car a bit. You'd think I'd be happy to be driving a Mercedes that is 5 or 6 years newer than my old shaky xterr, but guess what? I'm not that into it. I mean, sure. It's great. Fast. Beautiful. Most conservative in the gas category. It's just hard to give up my monster. I feel like I'm driving around on a skateboard...
But! It's okay. I will overcome my abnormal car attachment and make it through the... week? Month? Whenever it is she will come back to me...

Life and Death

Sometimes, well most of the time, when I'm at Jeff's house his mom is watching Ghost Whisperer. However, tonight I am at home watching it with Kaia Bear. The first couple of times I saw it I thought it was a pretty dumb show. It's pretty interesting to me now though! Which brings me to uhm..."blogging" about it. Sometimes, it almost makes me cry. There are some touching moments in there I would say. But sometimes, it really freaks me out! Is this crazy stuff true?! Like those people that claim to be psychic?? I think I would literally pee myself if a ghost came whispering to me! Which brings me to my freaky used to be haunted house. Every time when I get up in the middle of the night and go in the bathroom, I get really scared and I stare out into the hall (Yes, I leave the door open and the light off). It's especially scary because I have SUPER bad eye sight so all the shadows really freak me out. I almost run back to bed every time.
Well, I should get back to my homework. I just needed a break to talk about Ghost Whisperer :)

Driving Under The Influence

A couple of nights ago, I was driving home from something that was probably super fabulous. And I didn't realize it for the longest time, but I was driving under the influence...
of Gaga. Lady Gaga, that is. I was so into creating an amazing dance in my head that went along to the song, "Poker Face," that I didn't realize I was driving 10 miles an hour UNDER the speed limit. (Yes, agreed. I should have been the video choreographer for that particular video. Especially since I obviously work over-time.) Now, let me remind you, I really hate driving and all the crazies that drive like, well, crazies...and that night, I was being one. If you would categorize annoying people that don't even drive the speed limit as crazies. So, lesson learned. When listening to Lady Gaga in the car, keep your mind on the drivin', keeps your hands on the wheel, keep your filthy eyes o nthe road ahead... and mind the speed limits in order to be considerate of others.

As of right now, I am Jeff's house while he does a minor modification to my car. His mom made SUCH amazing cinnamon rolls... I could probably eat a whole pan. Man-oh-man. Dee-lish-us. That is why I had to share. I shall leave you now to go get another.

Chocolate or Soap?

So I'm sitting here with my dear best 4 year old friend, Jon, at 8 o'clock on Friday night. We're watching Thomas the Engine movies and eating dee.lish.us ice cream. As I took in the creamy taste of my chocolaty ice cream (with little chocolate chunks included), I started thinking about how miraculous it tasted. I had no idea. Dove made ice cream. Then I started to get worried. Dove. Made. My. Ice. Cream. ?? Doesn't Dove make body soap, deodorant, and shampoo? So now I am a bit nervous that my delightfully smooth and fabulous tasting chocolate ice cream may have more than one item in it described as "silky."

What else has happened? Not much. OH. Yes, I took part in a research study thing at the U today. It was titled as a tutoring something. Well, turns out, I went to this room to do geometry for one and a half hours. Geometry. That's math, my dear friends. At first, I was pretty upset about it and had no idea what I was doing (which was even more upsetting because I just passed a geometry class with an A at the U this fall). Then, after I got a hang of it, I blew through those questions like a windy day in March. I will confess this to only those 2 or 3 people who take time out of their day to catch up with my blog... so SSHHHH. I kind of really enjoy mathematics when I understand what I'm doing. That's right, I do enjoy the math.

Love and Marriage

I've realized lately that. Oh wait. I started to realize two years ago that everyone from high school is getting married. Probably every two months I hear of a new person getting engaged. YAYYY for them, right?
Well... I guess so. However, I will mention that my friend that got married at 19 is currently living in her father's basement...
Maybe one of the two people that read my blog are thinking, why are you blabbing on about this? Well, I'll tell you. It is annoying me. Because I'm jealous? Maybe. I'm not sure I'm ready to be paying all those bills that come along with that situation, but I wouldn't mind having my own special day and excitement leading up to it. Along with a niiiice tropical honeymoon. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention a nice diamond on my finger ;) I think I might call the Cake Boss from TLC to do my cake... thoughts? Wonderfully amazing, I know.
Anyway, I am in a technology class right now and am doing everything but paying attention to the teacher. It's hard when you have a computer to check you email, your facebook, your web ct, and of course update your blog! How do they really expect us to learn anything!?
Oh, something else I should mention, I need to do a detox. I spent that past couple of days eating soo many donuts. And chocolate dipped foods. And chips. So, from today on...it's fruits, vegetables, and chicken. I wonder how many days that will last? One half probably.

Waking up is sometimes a waste.

So, today I had an appointment to meet a friend at East High to observe a student in a classroom. We were told by the special education teacher that his class was at 7:45 Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. So I drag myself out of bed at 7 in the morning, which is very early for me lately, and go to East. Well, turns out because of East's block schedule, she had told us the wrong days and that class wasn't even in session. So, I drive home and get a bit of sleep before waking up to go to my own class at the U. What happens there? We are given time to work on our lesson plans. That I can do at home. In bed. On my laptop. But by the time the teacher stops jacking her jaw and laughing at Simon's Cat, I realize it would be pointless for me to leave because I have painting here at 4. I am a little upset about it, even though I was productive in my lesson plan. But now I'm sitting here absolutely alone in the back row because all of my friends left. And I'm wondering why I even woke up today...

Life Lessons... (or at least this week's lessons)

We all learn new things almost every day in our lives. I have learned a few things this week...

1. College means a lot of things. One thing I've come to realize this semester so far is that it means reading. A lot. My life has turned into a novel itself, but mostly one about me reading a million chapters and articles each week for each class. Mind you, I've always been assigned reading textbook chapters every semester, but never before have I actually READ any of said chapters. Seeing as to how I HAVE to now to get credit, I am getting very annoyed with one of my teachers. Why? This week alone, she required us to read and respond to: one 13 page article, one 8 page article, and one huge chapter in the textbook. I almost wrote her an email to inform her I have other things to do with my life, like read for other classes and lay in bed.

2. When you go to get your hair done, you must be really specific as to what you are talking about, even if you've known your hair dresser for over a year. Today I went in for the almost usual: Color touch up and trim. For some reason, I came out with a full set of bangs. Bangs which I haven't had since I was in second grade. Now don't get me wrong, bangs are great. But I usually (for the past 4 years) go for the angled side bangs. For some reason I honestly didn't notice this had happened until after I had paid and was driving away in my car...

3. There are always going to be people who make you angry. My angry spot: driving. My driving = road rage. I hate people who cut me off. And tail me for miles. And start coming into my lane without a blinker and before noticing my huge white SUV. And run red lights almost crashing into me when I need to turn left. I will tell you now, I yell at these people. Even though I know they can't hear me. But don't worry, some of them see the anguish on my face.

Nan is stylin' I am stressin'

When you feel the world is
crashing all around your feet come
running headlong into my arms breathless...

School is 3 weeks in now. It's not stressing me out yet, it actually feels as though it could be an easy semester. So... why am I feeling completely lost and out of my mind stressed out?
That's a good question, and I'm glad someone is asking, even if it's just myself.

I have to take Kaia to the vet tomorrow. That's the second time this month. I'm going to have to open her own credit card soon. She's pretty much torn all the skin off one of her back feet. And I'm pretty done with coming home to a bed soaked in blood down to the mattress. However, her dad has been keeping her wounds covered and I put a striped baby sock on her this even. She is stylin'! She's my baby and her problems are stressing me out a bit.

Fast forward or rewind to me driving around town in my fabulous xterra... oh, you can hear me coming from 2 blocks away. That squealing you heard today, yeah, that was me. Glad you noticed, stared, and pointed. So I should probably get that fixed before my brakes go out and I go crashing into an innocent little old lady pushing her walker and pulling her miniature poodle across the street. Add that to my stress list.

My shoulder is so out of place that sometimes, it's hard to sleep. And the lump thing in my neck...getter bigger I do believe. Maybe the doctor will take a free visit from me to her house since we're friends? HA...probably not. Number what now? Stressor 3.

Girl problem alert. It's that time again... Yes, it's time to get my hair redone. I'm starting to feel like a dirtbag and need to pay Keelee a visit and pay her $80 to fix it. Stress list? Check.

Last thing I may be crashing into a dark hole about? I am sitting here complaining when there are people a million x3 worse off then me. Yeah... I'll tell ya. I am a selfish person.

But I'm working on it.

I'm going to live in/on/whatever Avatar

We went to see the over-hyped up movie Avatar last night in 3D. I could say it was pretty good, but definitely not the best movie ever, as everyone else in the world has said. Pretty much it got good at the end when everything was being blown up. Before that, boring. But I'm okay with it, I got some pretty sweet looking 3D glasses that I'm going to start wearing on a daily basis. Anyway, I have decided I would like to live with the humongous blue people and their glowing world. Pretty sweet. I would like to have my own flying... thing... as well.
Our pre-movie plans were to go to dinner, but Jeffrey took too long doing whatever he does. we ended up at the local taco bell in sandy. At 9:30. Now don't get me wrong, I love a nice crunchwrap even so often... or rather more often than not, but I was looking forward to trying the new food at the Mayan while watching people jump into water to entertain me. (By the way, they close at 8 on Sundays?! Stupidest thing ever. Thanks Mormons. I figure, if people are going on Sunday, they're going, so stay open normal times!)
Let's see what else has happened since my last post...
Oh yes, Kaia has her own facebook now and has 9 friends already. That is one popular dee-oh-gee. So feel free to add her www.facebook.com/kaia.banaia
Two of our Chihuahua puppies opened their eyes yesterday, the cute chubby girl and the white boy. I was feeling pretty awesome for witnessing it. Anyone want a puppy? We have 3 boys and one girl. All super cute.
Well, I think that's all the super [not] exciting news. It's MLK day today, so no school. I guess that's pretty fab. However, my day is being wasted away thanks to my mom making me wait for the furnace people. Greattt.

Hello there, officers.

I love to sleep. Yes, I do. However, for some reason whenever I go to bed late (late for me is like 1 or 2 in the morning) Kaia keeps me up being weird and licking herself. All night. Then, someone somehow wakes me up prematurely. Two days ago, the bird. Yesterday, my mom's beeping car. Today, two sheriffs banging on the door and ringing my doorbell. Multiple times. Wait, what? Yeah. Thanks. My alarm still had 2 hours left on it. And although, this sounds like it could be an interesting story, sorry... not that interesting to share. P.S. it's personal ;)

BUT:I'm thinking about doing one of two things before I go to work today... play guitar and work on writing a song (HEH! Yeah, right.) or... I could do some homework. If I put a poll on here which I should do, it would remain untouched due to the lack of even one person reading my blog. Faaabulous life. So I guess the next option is to "eenie, meenie, miny, moe" it. How do you spell any of those anyway??

You Missed the Slot of Sunshine...

Depending on what time you walked outside today and yesterday in SLC, you would think Spring was on the rise. I, however, know better. One minute you will be met with blue skies and sunshine, the next minute...the sky is overcast and you're wondering where your snow boots might be.
Spring semester started on Monday at the U, and I thought my schedule was great. Fabulous. And also secure. Hold up.
W R O N G.
Turns out, some online class teachers are crazy and I have to drop that class. And find another. Before I annoy the financial office with all my tuition changes…
Anyway, I’m at work right now, nannying Jon, a 4 year old. We’re watching the movie Over the Hedge, and I’m assuming it’s almost over. Unfortunately, Jon gets scared of simple things and just decided he didn’t want to watch it anymore because it’s getting scary…Weird, I know. Then again, I’m 21 and he’s 4. Different things are going to be scary to us I guess.
Anyway, I guess I’ll get back over the hedge....(not to...straight up over). Or I guess just out of the computer.
Ciao.