My Favorite Breakfast

A few months ago Nathan and I flew out to beautiful British Columbia for a wedding reception. We weren't sure where to stay since the bride and grooms place was full of siblings and pretty much ground zero for planning and decorations. This was when I had my first exposure to a real Bed & Breakfast.

Now I'm not talking like Motel 6 or La Quinta Inn with it's little breakfast of cereal and doughnuts. This place was literally a place to sleep and relax with the most amazing breakfasts each morning. We found the place on the Internet and we weren't really sure what we were going to find. It didn't look super glamorous but the reviews were great and the price didn't hurt either!

Well we soon found out that this B&B was run by a nice older couple. The husband was from Scotland and the wife from BC and the reason they had the B&B was because she loved to cook. They had renovated the basement and that's where the guests stayed. The rest of the house upstairs was full on antiques from when the area was settled with plaques describing each item and the time period it came from. The breakfast table overlooked their backyard which was full of trees and plants and flowers. My favorite part was all the fresh herb she grew right there from different kinds of parsley to mint to chives and asparagus. so cool!!! Did you know that asparagus grown right out of the ground in a single stalk??? I loved walking past her asparagus garden everyday! The only way I could describe this place was wonderfully quaint.

Each morning the hostess would prepare the most delicious breakfasts! Two of the days we came upstairs to find fresh scones baked that morning with homemade jam and butter, and that was just the precursor. My favorite breakfast she made was probably her glazed pear crapes with homemade whipped cream and powdered sugar. My mouth waters just thinking of it! Along with my first experience at a B&B it was my first real experience eating yogurt parfaits. Along with those fresh scones we always were served a fresh fruit cup or parfait. I'm pretty sure she made her own granola but it was so yummy! Ever since then, I've made my own fruit parfaits in the morning for breakfast. I buy strawberries, cantaloupe, honey dew, kiwi's and berries. Then I cut them up bite sized and grab some low-fat strawberry yogurt and granola and mix it all together. It really is one of the best parts of my day and it's pretty healthy as well!

Sadly I can't remember the name of the B&B. If I think of it I'll have to post it but I absolutely love my yogurt parfaits each morning!! And I'm determined to start growing all my own herbs! If I thought I could get asparagus to grow here I totally would do that too!!

For the recipe to my parfait, click the link to "Kina's Recipes"

Chix Books

I haven't had a lot of time to update my blog but I absolutely had to tell everyone about a really cool little group that I'm in. It's called "Chix Books" and it's a bookclub. A few ladies in Airdrie or Calgary (mostly Airdrie) read a different book every month and then get together a discuss it. We've only had two meetings so far but they have be AMAZING! The first book we read was "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld and wow, what great conversation this book inspired. so many different ideas about how we think about ourselves and how we treat others. It was my second time reading it and I was ready to go read the rest of the series after that!

The second book we read was "The Thirteenth Tale" by Diane Setterfield. This book was so intense. The writing was amazing and the story, although somewhat disturbing at points, was so engaging. I HAD to know what was going to happen next for this family. The book had kind of a "Jane Eyre" feel to it, definitely a gothic novel and although it was a sad story the author told it in such a way that it was light and had almost a happy overtone. The end was so surprising and the story so involved that our Chix Books discussion was all about the plot and subplots. The funniest thing was seeing how others imagined how the different characters looked in their minds. One lady totally pictured one character to be black when he most obviously wasn't and I pictured the same character to be in his 30's kind of rugged looking with dark hair, which he wasn't! I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes to read!

For this last dicussion we had a themed threat. Since the book took place in England our theme was "Tea & Crumpets" or English treats since who really knows what a crumpet is! We had a table full of things like scones (to take place of crumpets), turkish delight, tea, yorkshire pudding, york mints and little cookies and chocolates. I wish I would have taken a picture and am now resolved to always bring my camera. We discussed dressing up...we'll see how far that goes! haha

To the left I'm hoping to post whichever book we read for the last month and what I thought of it just incase you're looking for something new to read!

Also, we have an amazing group that's called "Flix Chix" and we get together once a month to watch a flick chick sometimes at the movie theater and sometimes at someone's home. We have so much fun with this and hit up Boston Pizza or Applebee's for dessert afterwards and that's when we usually have the most fun!! If you aren't in a group of some kind you should find one to join or start your own! I schedule it out through facebook and email, pick a date, time and place so everyone can mark their calendars. We usually get around 10-15 people showing up each time. So much fun!! Great friends and a great time!

New Beginnings

I've been so excited about this post since it happened and now I finally can spend the time on it. I was kind of terrified of this part of Young Women's when I got called into it, the big activities and programs like New Beginnings. I am so grateful for the Internet because I was able to find an awesome idea for our New Beginnings when the time came to plan. NB is like a kick-off for the Young Women's program to get the girls excited for the new year and Personal Progress so there was a lot of pressure for it to be fantabulous! I jumped onto sugerdoodle.com and found the best idea, an Olympic new beginnings, which worked out amazingly because the 2010 Winter Olympics were being hosted in Vancouver, Canada this year.

The lady on sugardoodle had templates and everything for invitations and scripts. I just cut and pasted and used and discarded what I wanted! It was awesome. The logo that was given was this amazing young women's torch symbol over 8 Olympic rings the colors of the values. I absolutely had to used it. I ended up color printed the logo on this shiny silver paper and then printed the invitation part on translucent vellum paper. They looked amazing especially because he Olympic ring logo was on a tan back ground to see the white (faith) ring. On the silvery paper it came out gold!! Here's a pic of it below. They were so cool I couldn't throw out the extra one so it's still in my scripture case!! haha

I wanted the whole thing to be kind of like an Olympic medals ceremony so we set up a back drop kind of similar to the real thing. I used the same logo to create a giant YW's Olympic symbol out of cardboard and form paper. I printed the flame head on the same silvery paper and attached a black handle. It turned out sweet.


Here's the whole back drop. I had to have twinkle lights cause they basically rock. I wanted to have them every where but that was soooo too much work. We had medals put together for all the girls with this years theme on them. The jar next to the podium was for the torch when it came in (not a real one but a seriously cool one).

Since flags are a huge part of the Olympics I thought it would be fun to have a flag ceremony with each of the the value colors as a flag. I found all this really neat fabric at Walmart already cut into the perfect size with all different kinds of patterns on it. I got two of each color and sewed them into flags. We had the girls come in after all the parents were seated carrying the flags around the tables to the old Calgary Olympic theme. The lights were off and the torch was lit. It looked so real! I wish I got pics of it but I was slacking at that moment. The girls eventually ended up at the front where there was a jar on the table for each flag. Below are the girls with their flags. We had them wear a shirt that corresponded with their flag color.

A huge part of our branches Personal Progress program is focused on getting to the temple so we have certain things that the girls earn once they complete a goal that gives them something special related to the temple. Some of the things are a temple recommend holder, temple clothing bag, special temple book and decorative tiles. Things that will remind them what their goal ultimately is. Below is the display table of all the things.

Sadly I neglected to get a picture of the torch lit up at the actual event so one of the missionaries gladly offered to hold it since he missed when the actual Olympic torch went through Airdrie. I looks real when the lights are off. SO COOL!!! I got the design from the sugardoodle.com lady's blog. It worked superbly!
The rest of the photos are just fun ones of the girls holding their medals or their flags. Overall it was an amazing night! We had each girl go up and pass the torch to each other and give an example of a women in the gospel that exhibited their value. A member of the branch presidency talked, as well as the stake YW's president. We also listened to the song called "Believe" which was the the theme song of the Vancouver Olympics. Such an amazing inspired song! Download if you don't have it!!! I get chills every time I hear it. For dessert we had each girl bring their favorite dessert, so easy and we have a few girls that have special diets for nut allergies, etc. and they were able to bring something they could eat. What started out as a scary event turned into a super spiritual fun night for the leaders, parents and the girls!!

Our YW's president, Michelle with one of the Laurals.

One of our Laurals and Beehives showing off their sweet medals. Made out of wood, gold spray paint and vinyl lettering. They say, "Be strong and of good courage."

One of my most favorite pics of that night! All the girls raising their value color flags to the sky. woot woot! I love the one girl that has hers straight up!! haha Way to go for the Young Women's program the church has put together! I have such a great love for it and the things it teaches our girls and for the things I learn from it myself.

Banana Cake Loaf

This is a Martin Family favorite! I have no idea where my mother-in-law got the recipe but the best part is the topping. The girls in the family always end up fighting with the boys because they pick the topping off and the girls like the cake with topping on! You'll have to decide which is your favorite. This is a super easy recipe to make and pretty fast to whip together. Hope you all enjoy it!

Check it out at www.kinasrecipes.blogspot.com

Couscous Salad with Sauteed Shrimp Scampi

One of mine and Nate's favorite recipes that's light and fresh. It's perfect for when your feeling a little bogged in from the snow and cold weather. It's also one I make and take to potluck activities or parties because it's different and has great flavor and most people love shrimp. Get the recipe and pictures on my recipe blog which I hope to update with my favorite recipe I make for the week. We'll see. :)

http://www.kinasrecipes.blogspot.com/

Welcome back to blog land...

After a 5+ month hiatus I had a thought that I felt like sharing. So here it is. I was reading my friend Rachel's status today and it said something about posting your fav line from a movie or maybe it was a line from your fav movie in your status, whichever it was I honestly couldn't think of a single line from a movie. That always happens to me!! I'm put on the spot and my mind goes blank!! Or maybe it's that I've watched too many movies and I can't zero in on a fav one...or not. Nate, my hubby, can seriously remember any line from any movie and then quote it perfectly! it's a great party trick because everyone thinks your so cool cause you can quote some random movie and make everyone laugh. not me, I'm left struggling to remember what movie that even came from. At least since we're married I get to ride on the coattails of his coolness.

I did however remember a few lines from my favorite TV series!! I've seen this series like 6 or 7 times since Nate gave it to me for my birthday 3 years ago. I know that's craziness because it's 3 seasons long, but it's oh so good!!!! I've lent it out to many friends who have joined me on what I now call the "V-Mars train." That's right, “V-Mars" stands for Veronica Mars. This show has it all! Super cute, gets-ya-right-in-the-heart main character (Kristen Bell), espionage, witty humor, cute boys, star-crossed lovers and lines I can actually remember and want to remember!! Oh, and it's one my hubby actually watch completely with me. If a boy likes it, it's gotta be worth it!

So here are two scenes that are some of my most favorite from this show....

Logan: I thought our story was epic you know, you and me.
Veronica: Epic, how?
Logan: Spanning years, continents, lives ruined, bloodshed, epic.
Veronica: Come on! Ruined lives, bloodshed? Do you really think a relationship should be that hard?
Logan: No one writes songs about the ones that come easy.

Not sure if this will actually post a video or just the link but check it out! I mean if you want...or not.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrDx-7FHnGE


This next clip is way to long to write out but there are some priceless gems in this one that Nate and I still quote to each other on a regular basis. Here's a little preview.....

Veronica: Hey, how's it going?
Logan: oh, this is gonna be good.
Veronica: What?
Logan: You have that "I would rather be making out with a broken bottle" look which if history serves, you're about to say something awkward.
Veronica: This? (points to her face) This is my "I'd rather be spelunking face." It's like you don't know me at all.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toX2zaqJSBc
Tehehe marshmellows and promises.

Just A Little Randomness

big surprise, I haven't posted in a while, but I have a friend who has declared every thursday "random thought thursday" so I said to myself, what the hey! Warning: these are probs more then thoughts cause I am a women of a lot of words.

Since purple is my fav color, random thought uno, I love YW's! I was driving around at the activity tuesday night on a photo scavenger hunt with a car full of 12 yr old girls, a good song came on the radio, we pumped it and sang at the top of our lungs! It's sweet to feel young again and that totally makes one of my top 5 moments in YW's so far!

I've started this digestive cleanser called Dr-Ho's Ab-Trimmer. you have to take these weird pills in the morning that taste like garlic and then this powder you can mix with water or juice. the first day I decided to try it with water, got all of it down but one last swig. took a deep breath, tipped the glass back, felt the mixture hit my hangy thing in the back on my mouth, gagged and spit it all out of the floor. immediately busted up laughing, oh this was at work too. no one was around but it was still a priceless moment, one moment gross mixture going down my throat, now gross mixture on the floor for me to clean up.

I'm so busy I don't have time to clean my house. It's almost to the point of ridiculous. Not only my house but my life. part of me loves it cause I feel like I'm always getting somethang done but somewhere in my subconscious I know it's only a matter of time before I crack. oh, and nate just got called into the elders quorum pres.

do you remember how old you were when you started noticing boys? I guess it was sometime in elementry school when my best friend glenda told this boy clint that i liked him and I was too afraid to talk to him so i avoided the whole situation until he showed up at my house. it was a little "say anything" now that I think about it but sweet. so driving randomly with these yw girls, need to take a pic of someone doing a pop-a-wheely on a bike, see two teenage boys, stop and ask them to do it. one girls out takin the pic the other two are inside talking about the kids muscles and randomly say "I bet he has a six pack." i busted up laughing and asked them how they knew about six packs. One of the girls named Ryanne said, "um, we're getting to the age where we notice those kinds of things." yikes! okay then. but seriously, aren't they too young to be noticing those kinds of things??? I suddenly feel really old

New fav show, "How I Met your Mother." hi-larious!!!! plus there's a character in the show named Robin who's from Canada (bonus) and she does every stereotypical canadian thing imagined! I find it immensely entertaining.

the whole "Twilight" craze-fest that seems to have taken over everyone in world is driving me NUTSO!! today on the radio I heard that they're (I don't know who specifically)starting these interactive twilight parties where you can go and dress up and have some kind of "twilight experience." now I love books, ya'll out there know I LOVE books and fiction, but come on! what is the point? so you go this party and meet weird guys dressed as edward and vampires and bring to life this book then after partying it up, you have to return to real life, your own house, your own job. why try to bring something to life that is never gonna be?!?!?! just seems so unhealthy. man, what a downer am I...

Life is Full

Life has been so crazy lately! When I think back on the past few months I wonder what in the world I did cause I have a horrible memory but it's slowly coming back. The biggest thing in my life right now is my new callling in church. About two months ago I got called as a Laurel advisor for the girls in my church from 16-18 years old. It came as a total surprise cause I felt like I'd finally just got a hang of my old calling, teaching the 14-15 sunday school class which just happened to be all boys and I loved it!! I looked forward to sunday school every week and I hoped that I was able to spark the same kind of desire in my class. I had all these ideas ready to go for the next couple of months and then WHAM out of nowhere I got released! On one hand I was super excited to be working in Young Women's but on the other hand I was super freaked out to be working with young women! I just felt like I was so not cool enough to be teaching them or relating to them.

The first month was not so bad cause we had stake conference and general conference so I only really had to teach them twice. Then one day at an activity I get pulled into the bishops office and extended the calling of 1st counselor in the YW's presidency. The funny thing was that I wasn't too surprised about that for some reason so I accepted. I was totally stressed out about it and I happened to be hanging out with our new YW Pres and I asked her why me. She said she knew there was a definite reason I was called into that position, I was the only person and spot she knew right away once being called herself, but that she wasn't going to tell me because she felt like it was something I needed to find out for myself.

Since then I've had huge growing experiences with the gospel. A few months ago before I was called into YW's I'd been feeling a little low and I was struggling with the "why" of my own life. Although I wasn't unhappy where I was I couldn't help feeling a little unfulfilled with what I was doing. I'm a little ashamed to say I even put off praying for understanding and humility for fear of how the Lord might teach me. I started gradually trying to change my attitude and attend more activities organized to help in spiritual growth (my fav? Ensign night) and listening to more uplifting music. One thing that helped so much was listening to a book on CD called "The Holy Secret." I think the most beneficial thing I got out of that book was how to study the scriptures better. It really renewed my desire to search and ponder. I realized that I didn't know all the lessons and reasons for things in the scriptures and that nothing was put in them by coincidence. The icing on the cake was having to teach the presidency message for all the young women on faith. I really prayed and searched for a better understanding of this principle and was surprised not only by what I learned but also by how much I already knew. The trick was teaching not what I wanted but what the Lord wanted but also at one point acknowledging that what I prepared was fine with what the Lord wanted.

I've been so busy organizing and trying to be someone who the girls will want to look up to and can. I think I've grown a lot in loving myself and where I'm at because I realized that the girls in YW's won't be comfortable with someone who is not comfortable with herself first. I know I still have a lot to work on but I'm so grateful to be having this experience! Our wards in the little suburb we live in are getting reorganized and branch is being made so I might only be in this calling for another 3 weeks but I'm so grateful for the learning I've been able to do and for the Lord knowing me well enough to know that I would take this experience and try to do the best I can! I'm amazed all the time by how well the Lord knows us and how much trust He has in us. He gives us callings and trials that we don't ever think we ourselves could ever handle, but he knows what we're capable of. Yes my life is full, I might not understand exactly why I am where I am but I can appreciate that I am where I'm supposed to be and that I'm on the Lord's path.

Complete Fiction...or Not???

Time for my monthly post...usually I would tell of some super fun experience I had in the past month and there have been a lot of them, my fav? My "Twilight Release Party" that took place this last Saturday! So fun! There's nothing like a bunch of good friends hanging together eatin' tasty food and discussing one of the best books ever (maybe even in the series). Not to mention waiting in line at Walmart with all the crazy teenagers shouting stuff at the passing cars and showing off for each other. Alas, that's not what I'm going to write about but it does bring me around to something that has been on my mind for a while.

Whenever I read a book and I get super into it, as anyone who's ever lived with me can attest to. I cry, I laugh out loud, and get angry right along with the characters in each book and as I do I always want to talk to someone about what I'm feeling. That person usually ends up being my hubby since he's around all the time. He supportingly (word??) waits for me to finish explaining what is so crazy about this particular part in this particular book. Then when I'm finished he gives me that little 'Your crazy' smile and says, "It's not real..."

"It's not real..." Three little words that crushed whatever fairyland I'm in that day and bring my literary world to a screaming halt. Sadly those have been the words I usually hear from anyone I've ever dated along with why not read something that's about some one's real life, something that's worth something. That got me thinking about why are books important...and I couldn't really say why they are. I know that reading with kids in one of the most important things ever but as for a 'why', as in a tangible result, something to show for it, I couldn't put my finger on anything. I just knew in my little heart that all the books I've read since I was in elementary (that's when I remember reading on my own) have somehow shaped my life and made me who I am today.

Okay, so this is going to seem really dorkey, or maybe it's not and I'm just a little insecure, but I was watching my new favorite show (yes not a book, but still falls into the category of fiction so I'm counting it), "Castle." Let me give you a quick synopsis, it's about a fiction novelist (Castle) who gets called into help the NYPD solve a copy-cat murder based on his novels. This puts him in contact with the young attractive detective on the case whom he ends up deciding to make the main character in his next series. It's funny and full of romantic tension. Anywho, so the point? Well, in last weeks episode, Castle and the detective are trying to solve a case involving rich HS kids that seem like their on the straight and narrow when all along their doing and dealing drugs and in the end, killing. Castle has this amazing daughter who is ever parents dream kid, early to bed, early to rise, always finishes homework on time, cleans the house, responsible...the list goes on and on. So, during the midst of this investigation Castle begins to wonder if he's daughter is as good as he thinks she is so he asks her straight up if she's ever done drugs. She assures him that she hasn't and that she doesn't have those kinds of friends and he makes sure that she knows she can tell him anything, honesty is the best policy. In the meantime she's been bugging him to let her go on this Washington DC trip and he keeps saying no because he's not going, but eventually decided to let her. Then one morning she wakes up her dad crying saying that she has something to tell him (and I'm like 'oh no!! she is doing drugs! no kid is safe it seems!!'). She ends up admitting that she wasn't completely honest with him and tells him about a horrible night when she was rushing to catch the subway and didn't have money to get on the train so she hopped the turn mill and caught her train anyway. The next day she payed for two rides on the train and didn't ride and Castle realizes what a good kid he has. So onto the end, Castle ends up solving the case and going on his kids trip to DC and I had a huge epiphany.

That's how you keep them safe. I'm not a parent yet so I'm sure I don't completely understand the fear a parent feels about that kid making the right choices away from home. But with the dream of parenthood in the future I worry that maybe I won't teach them the right things and that they'll be just like me having to do everything the hard way. So when watching this show and the interaction between this dad and his daughter I realized that that's how you keep them safe. You chaperon the field trips and dances and whatever else there is. You get to know their friends and make your house the place everyone wants to be and make it possible for your kids to have that open and honest relationship with you no matter what it is. I'm sure it won't be that cut and dry but it's was a huge lesson learned for me and realization smacking me right in the face. I'm so grateful that I work were I do and that Nate is so set on having our own business where we can set our own hours. That we have the control of our time not some boss guy sitting in an sky-rise somewhere who has no idea that I even exist only that the job is getting done. And I'm grateful that I belong to a church that teaches the importance of family. The funny thing is that I got all of this from a silly fictional show on TV of all places and I know that I've learned so many other important lessons from reading the books that I have. It's nice to finally have an example of that.

Now for a real life book that is awesome! Everyone should read if they are at all concerned about their retirement. It's called "Simple Wealth, Inevitable Wealth" by Nick Murray. Nick Murray is known as the financial advisor to financial advisors, so he's been around the block a time or two. He lays out with boldness and wit and humor the only way to have enough money to one day retire with money to live off of and leave to our kids and their kids. We all know that social security (or CPP in Canada) won't be around when were old and tired of working (hopefully that will be on our time table and not ages) so really our retirement nest-egg is up to us to acquire. This book is the perfect tool to get you started on your way! Read it, ponder it and then do it and if you have any questions, please just ask, I mean, can you really afford to not ask? Happy reading!!

The Perfect Valentine's Day

For most, Valentine's Day or for all terms and purposes "V-Day" seems to be expensive dinners and expensive gifts. Nate and I are totally not that kind of couple, not that they're bad, but we would really just rather save our money or put it towards our house or retirement. Sometimes though we get so caught up in the "saving money factor" that we end up doing nothing for specials days and it can be kind of a let down.

So this year for Valentine's Day I decided to try to do something nice. My first thing was remembering that it was coming, which I did, yay for me. I got together with some ladies in my ward and put together what they called "The 14 Days of Love." Each lady brought something that their hubby liked and then we combined them all and each lady went home with a special daily gift to give there hubby's up to V-Day. It was a fun idea and there was tons of cool stuff like heart shaped hand cuffs, and chocolate body paint, massage rocks, candy and cookies (I wish I would have taken a pic, it was a pretty sweet idea!). In the end though, it was a lot more work then I thought it would be. When V-day finally came, the bag was still full of the inedible stuff.

One would probably think that we spent V-day vigorously working our way through all the fun "toys" but I don't want to scare anyone away from my blog by going X-rated so instead we did this...

1. Slept in until 11 which is huge for us! We never get to sleep in even on weekends. It was wonderful to stay up late and wake up late for once!

2. Caught a flight to Berlin, New York, LA...we had a couple of gigs we had to rock out on Guitar Hero World Tour. We played some serious face-melting solos!!

3. Four hours later grabbed some lunch at one of our favorite places to eat...Edo Japan. We can eat there and have left overs for 20 bucks! "Two Bento Boxes please!"

4. Off to a total chic movie, "He's Just Not That Into You" (we had free passes). I know, totally cliche V-day activity, dragging the hubby or boy friend to a torturous girlie movie. I'm my defense, it kinda looked like a couple movie, funny for the guys and romantic for the girls...no such luck. Way too much dialogue and character development to be a guys movie. Nate was a good sport though and struggled...ahem, slept...through it. I did promise him a dose of guy stuff after the movie though--and no, it's not what you're thinking.

5. NBA Skill's Competition - This is where I yawn...excuse me. Hours of testosterone charged giant men slamming balls through hoops while doing crazy tricks! Dream come true...well, not completely but I do like sports and it was nice that Nate got to do something he really liked on our special day.

Although it seems like things were all planned out, nothing was. We flew by the seat of our pants embracing adventure when it came. haha It was so nice to have one day to not do anything productive but build our relationship. It felt like we were dating again. So fun!! Best Valentine's Day ever!

25 Random Things...

I thought this was kind of a fun idea. There's a tag going around facebook called "25 Random Things about me..." I decided to do and it was fun. I learned a lot about some of my good friends and I think they learned some interesting things about me. So, for all of you that aren't on facebook (shame, shame, seriously though, you should check it out) I brought it to my blog. So, without much ado, here is 25 random things about me...

1. Growing up I always wanted to live in another country someday...never thought it would be Canada, I'm not even sure I knew it existed.
2. I was adopted three days after I was born.
3. I've been tagged multiple times in "25 random things..." for the past week but until today I couldn't figure out how to make a note.
4. I've cruised through the Caribbean three times and LOVED it!
5. I have two bad habits that I can't seem to permanently break, biting my nails and picking my lips when they're chapped (gross, I know).
6. I love animals but never want to have one.
7. If I believed in reincarnation, I would come back as a professional athlete.
8. When I read a book it plays out in my head like a movie.
9. I have a hard time distinguishing between fact and fiction mostly because I read too many fiction books and watch too many movies.
10. I want to write and publish a novel of my very own and I actually have a few I'm working on right now.
11. I didn't vote for Obama but am happy he won.
12. I hardly ever play video games despite that my brother makes them for a living.
13. The biggest regret I have in my life is not going on a mission.
14. I hate tap water, I only drink bottled water which makes for sacks and sacks of empty bottles which totally makes my hubby crazy!
15. I could sit and just watch people for hours and hours. My fav memory of this is leaning on the back of the couch with my old roomies at BYU-Idaho and watching all the people go by.
16. I am super-duper afraid of sharks. I tried to conquer my fear once by researching all the different things I needed to know about sharks and I think I actually made it worse. It hasn't made me stop going in the ocean but I'm very cautious about when I do and what the conditions are.
17. I guess that brings me to another fear, deep open water and scary weird sea creatures. People keep urging me to get my scuba certification but I'm not sure if I would have enough courage to use it.
18. I absolutely love LOVE food but I can be a little picky about it sometimes.
19. When I was kid I thought I was giving a roly poly or potato bug a home when I stuck it up my nose. I ended having to go to the emergency and get it flushed out because I'd pushed it up so far.
20. My dream car is a Volkswagen Touareg.
21. I love names, like people's names. I think it really says a lot about who that person is or will be.
22. I love going to the dentist or doctors. I just don't find it super scary like most people seem to do. I would rather just figure out what's wrong so I can fix it.
23. I love eyes. I always notice whenever I meet someone new what color their eyes are.
24. I desperately want to have a kid with red hair. I love red hair esp my husband's color. I think subconsciously I knew I was supposed to marry someone with red hair because the only serious relationships I ever had have been with guys who had red hair.
25. I'm kinda an all or nothing type of person. I jump into things with both feet and hang on for the ride. Unfortunately that means I learn most of life's lessons the hard way...

Extra after thoughts:
26. I totally stole this idea from my friend Jaime.
27. Chuck Taylor's are my ultimate favorite shoe and my goal is to one day have them in all colors!
28. I heart short hair and want to cut mine off again.
29. I forget EVERYTHING! esp if it's something important that I need to use that day. There is a direct correlation between an objects importance and the likelihood of my forgetting it i.e. the more important it is the higher the chance I have for forgetting it at home. Tested and tried!
30. I have so many thoughts running through my head all the time that I often think I've said something out loud and didn't actually.

Bonus 31. I love my husband. He puts up with all my long-winded narratives and my crazy whimsical notions I get from reading too many fiction books. He is my bestest friend! Luv you!

#6 amendment: maybe a horse, like if I ever lived on a ranch or something...
#12 amendment: ahh, okay so I love guitar hero and rock band! best games ever!!!
#22 amendment: so I sound like I have Munchausen Syndrome which I don't. I never go to the doctor and hardly ever feel sick. Just wanted to clarify that point...

Since This is The Only Thing in Our Life Right Now...

More pictures of our ever progressing basement. We offically moved in January 5th and boy that was a very long day. We spent the whole day moving stuff into the basement and cleaning the upstairs to get it ready for the new renters. Okay, so it wasn't completely finished when we moved in...we still had the baseboards, the doors and trim, and finally the countertop in the kitchen.

One week, three days in basement: All doors almost completely hung, only the closet door left. No baseboards yet or a kitchen countertop. Might I mention that without a countertop it's really really hard to cook. We've been eating frozen pizzas and scamming off the parental units (thank you so much). We have someone coming over tomorrow to measure for a top from the Home Depot and apparently it takes four weeks to order the countertop in, so if anyone has any good ideas on easy, dishless dinners let me know! Oh, btw, did I mention that Nate washed our dishes in bathtub...totally gross and seemingly unsanitary! I couldn't even go in the bathroom while he was doing it, but no countertop means no kitchen sink...ick. Well, here are some pictures of our kitchen so far. I think it looks nice and it will look even better with a top on it!!!Our niece Rylee. She is such a good little helper! She was right there with me while I put together the cabinets and once we finished a few she said, "It's fits Rylee!" She got in and then told me to get the camera! I guess she knew it would be a cute picture!

Going back to the college days. We haven't bought a couch yet so for the first week all we had to sit on was our camping chairs. Nate's dad told us we had to take a picture of it to show our kids one day otherwise they wouldn't believe it! Now we have a futon in there until we find a couch we like and want to buy.

My Word

Your Word is "Fearless"

You see life as your one chance to experience everything, and you just go for it! You believe the biggest risk is being afraid and missing out on something amazing. Sometimes your fearlessness means you're daring. You enjoy risky activities. And sometimes your fearlessness means you're courageous. You're brave enough to do the right thing, even when it's scary.

What's Your Word?

The End is Near!!

Well, the road to a finished basement has been a long one, but I'm proud to announce that the end is in sight! In fact, the finished date has to be by the end of the month because the top has been rented out for January to a seemingly nice family from the UK.

We just finished grouting the tile in the kitchen and the bathroom yesterday. The paint has gone onto the walls and carpet is being laid Monday. I can hardly believe that it's almost the end! What the heck am I gonna do with all the free time I will have next year?!?! Get ready for a lot of new book reviews and an updated recipe blog! Here are a few pics of our progress thus far...

Framing done by Nate and our good buddy Trevor! Thanks!

Drywall stage...so hard and heavy! The only part we didn't do was the mudding and taping.

To be the kitchen area...all tiled up. Time for cabinets!

The front door during the framing stage...

...the front door with drywall, paint, and a tile floor!! Yeah baby! We did that!

Bathroom before tile and drywall...

...the bathroom after tile and drywall! It's all coming together!

The coolest thing about this whole project is that Nate and I did like 95% of the work. Some of the tougher stuff we hired out but as for the rest...somehow we figured it out!! Carpet Monday!! Yipee!!

What Does It Mean?

The past two weeks, Nate has been singing the same lines of this crazy song and for the life of me, I could not figure out what it was. Finally he sat down for a few minutes at the computer and found the 30 sec snippet on itunes...it was "Human" by The Killers. I'm not quite sure what the song is about but I love the killers so automatically I loved this song. But my question is what the heck is this song about? Well, I think I could make up what I think it's about but listening to the lyrics...it's confusing. Here's the chorus:

Are we human or are we dancer
My sign is vital, my hands are cold

And I'm on my knees

Looking for the answer
Are we human or are we dancer

Hum....? Personally I think we are all "dancer."

Here's another song I love but not quite sure about the lyrics. I always picture some kind of midevil scene, although from the album cover it looks like some kind of civil war.

I used to rule the world

Seas would rise when I gave the word

Now in the morning I sleep alone

Sweep the streets I used to own

I used to roll the dice

Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes

Listen as the crowd would sing

"Now the old king is dead! Long live the king!"

One minute I held the key

Next the walls were closed on me

And I discovered that my castles stand

Upon pillars of salt and pillars of sand

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing

Roman Catholic choirs are singing

Be my mirror, my sword and shield

My missionaries in a foreign field

That would be Coldplay's "Viva la Vida," which translates into "long live life." To me the title and the lyrics of the song could mean live a good life, you don't want to look back in years to come and find you just left distruction and unhappiness. The chorus could be the person in the song waking up and hearing the blossoming of a new day...maybe. Is it wrong to inspired by a song you don't completely understand?

A Guilty Pleasure

One of my favorite fashion trends that's popped up in the past year is the dark, black/red, "goth" colored nails. It's so awesome because it adds a little bit of edge to your personality and it looks really good with any outfit. The picture is of Lauren Conrad from "The Hills" which I'm a little embarassed to admit I'm addicted to! haha But she always looks great! Plus I love all the different ways she does her hair with braids. It's a nice way to play up long hair with a little something extra.

Delizioso!!!

I have a new hobby. Most of you are gonna be super shocked! I love to cook! It's been a dormant talent I didn't even know I had mostly because I used to burn so many things! It didn't matter if it was cooking rice or baking a cake. It burnt and usually burnt badly! The occasional mess still happens but I'm doing so much better.

How did it all come about you ask??? Well, I've been doing a little dabbling in cooking ever since I got married, you know trying to domesticate myself a little bit (is that a word?). It hit full force when Nate and I moved in with his parents and to pull my share around the house I started cooking dinner 2 times a week plus every other Sunday. At that time two of Nates brother's were still living at home so I had to learn to cook for 6+ people. They were all so kind to me cause sometimes I cooked some gross stuff! Anyways, so I developed this fondness for cooking.

I get recipes from everywhere! My family, friends, and yes, cooking shows! I love Rachel Ray although her recipes are hit and miss, but when I get a hit, it's huge! Also, Everyday Italian with "the boobie chief," Giada (if you've seen her show you'll understand the nickname). So this is the deal, I've decided to start a recipe blog where I will share some of the recipes I'm giving a whirl. It will have everything on it from dinner to breakfast to dessert and maybe a few things about the kitchen. Feel free to visit, try, and share!

To get it all started, you might not know this about me, but I HEART pesto! Especially the Pesto Cavatappi from Noodles and Company!! I've looked all over the place for the recipe so I could make it at home. Alas, I have found none...it's a well guarded secret. So I've used some recipes I've found online to piece together my own: Chx & Mushroom Pesto over Wheat Linguine. It's a little timely at first but worth it! Check it out at http://www.kinasrecipes.blogspot.com/

Busy Busy Busy

Nate and I have been working non-stop on our basement hoping to get it finished by the end of October. We're in the drywall stage and it's been lots of long days with lots of dust and installation floating in the air. Last night we had fun putting up a 14 ft. piece of drywall on the ceiling with Nate's dad...yikes! sooo heavy! anyway, so I haven't had a lot of time to do anything else much less my blog, but I changed the background for Autumn and Halloween cause I LOVE it! The colder weather, peacoats, hoodies, scarves, and tooks! Anyway, happy autumn to all and hopefully if the stress of home renovation doesn't kill me, I'll post some pics of the place! :)

From Canada to New Mexico, and a little in between

We spent two busy but super fun weeks down in the states. It all started kinda bitter-sweet at the MTC....we dropped Nate's little bro off to serve his mission in Mendoza, Argentina. It was such a wonderful experience and we are so pumped for him!! While we in UT we spent a night hangin out with my great college buddy, Terra! We haven't seen each other in a few years but we were able to pick up right where left off, like we never lost a beat. It was great to see her new little family! I should have taken a picutre!! Dang! I'm always forgetting that thing!!

It was A few days later we caught a plane to ABQ, New Mexico to visit the fam and check out my 10 year HS reunion...YIKES!! Suprisingly it was a lot of fun! I got to visit with a lot of great people I haven't talked to in 10 yrs. The food kinda sucked but the company was good enough to make up for it!

Two of my very best friends from high school, Michelle and Lynn. Good times!

We also spent some quality time with my awesome family! Nate and I logged many hours on the wii playing wii sports, in fact, I think I might have gotten wii tennis elbow, haha, it was all worth it though. Since we were having sooo much fun we decided to break it up with an eduacational experience at the Museum of Natural History.

For all that are wondering, that's the brantesaurous, well it has a "technical" name but I can't remember what it was. This one's easier! It looks like it's a little scary too...:)

My little bro, phil. He's a cutie!

It was a short trip in NM, but way fun! We spent a couple days back in UT before heading back. Thanks to all our great friends in UT for meeting up with us last minute to hang out! It really meant a lot! You are all the best!! We are so blessed to have so many great friends!

We had a beautiful trip home to Canada. We drove up through Logan Pass in Montana, near Kalispell and it was amazing. We hit the pass around sunset and it was a great time to drive through because the sun cast a beautiful misty light through the trees. I took a lot of pictures of the scenery just because it was so breathtaking. It really struck a spiritual note in me, just the majesty of the earth. I wonder sometimes how people can think the creation of the earth was an accident or that God doesn't exist when they look at something so beautiful. It seems like you would just know that there is a purpose or someone behind it.