Thursday, February 28, 2008

{Buon Viaggio}

So we are off to Italy! See you all in a couple of weeks. We will try to make a few, super awesome posts during our travels. Hopefully we will have as many crazy (not too crazy, Dad) adventures as our last Europe trip. Thanks Jacob and James for our beautiful Italian map. We are very excited to see the Leaning Tower of Pizza.

Oh, we also found our puppy. We will get him April 1st. More on that when we get back. Yep, good times.

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Lindsey's Moment of Zen

Scott has woefully abandoned any semblance of attempting to participate in this mutual endeavor of blogdom. In his absence I have decided to renew the long defunct tradition of our "Moment of Zen". This following video reminds all of us of the potential joys of parenting.
~Enjoy

Friday, February 22, 2008

{Jacob and James}

Kelli and Rob + boys were visiting last week and it was so much fun to play with my nephews again. James has changed so much in the last 8 months. He is running all over and talking so much. He cracked me up with the things he said. He knows almost all of the animal sounds (he did get stuck when Scott asked him what a Duck-Billed Platypus says) and found every silly thing we did hilarious. It was especially fun reading books to him.
Jacob looked older as well. I guess he is 4 1/2. This must be a kid thing. I never tell anyone I am 29 1/2, I'm holding onto 29 as long as I can. I guess when you are kid being older is super cool. Jacob got to watch a little bit of Star Wars III (accidentally) and had to admit that it was "a little scary" (his arms thrown up for emphasis). He also gave me a Bandaid for my sore arm and told me I should drink more milk. It was fun to take pictures of "the boys" as well. There were good moods all already which is always a huge factor. Here's looking forward to Jackson Hole 2008 and the next family get together.



Wednesday, February 20, 2008

{XOXO Chocolate Panini}

Scott made me a fabulous dinner for Valentine's Day. It was wonderful and I was so impressed. Very romantic.

The {Menu} was,
~Sparkling Cider
~Pear and Walnut and Gorgonzola Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette
~Roasted Garlic and Roasted Tomato Pasta
~Filet Mignon with Melted Gorgonzola Cheese
~Chocolate Panini

It was so, so, so good. The panini was such a fun and easy recipe I thought I'd share the love.

Chocolate Panini {Ingredients}
~Brie Cheese
~Chocolate chips
~ Chopped Basil
~Olive oil
~Sourdough bread (pre-sliced)
All you do is brush olive oil on both sides of the bread and then lightly grill both sides for a couple of minutes in your panini grill, or on a skillet.
You then spread Brie cheese on one slice, sprinkle the chopped basil and top generously with the chocolate chips. After that you just place the 2nd piece of bread on top and grill for a couple of minutes and Presto! The end result is pretty impressive and I suggest you all try it, like right now.

~Enjoy
(I'm not positive, but I think Scott got all of the recipes from the Food Network)

Monday, February 18, 2008

{100 + Facts About Me}

1-My favorite books are To Kill a Mockingbird, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and Pride and Prejudice. I catch myself smiling when I read Pride and Prejudice.
2-I'm a perfectionist.
3-I took 8 years of swimming classes, but I'm terrified of diving.
4-I lived in Hanover Park, Illinois for 5 years, from 13-18.
5-I'm the oldest of 6 children and I'm 17 years older than my youngest brother. People always thought he was my illegitimate child.
6-I started babysitting when I was 11. I think that is so crazy. There is no way I would ever let an 11 year old babysit one of my kids.
7-Once I started working at 16 I pretty much paid for all of my stuff...car, gas, insurance, contacts etc. I paid for all of my college, books etc as well. I'm pretty independent.
8-When I graduated from high school I had $7,000 saved. This was earned working part-time at the Sears Jewelry counter. I used to know all of the birthstones for each month.
9-I got a perfect score on the Reading Comprehension section of the ACT.
10-I'm really sensitive and get my feelings hurt easily.
11-I'm also really opinionated.
12-I always over analyze things I say to people. I'm super worried about hurting people's feelings.
13-I have a huge guilt complex. I feel guilty about everything.
14-I love hiking...until I start hiking and realize I need to get in shape.
15-I'm on the suspicious persons list in Orem. I was photographing Geneva Steel at night for a project. The cop warned me about the "appearance of evil" before writing me up. What does that mean? Besides that's in the scriptures silly. I'm pretty sure that isn't part of police training...only in Orem.
15-Scott is the first I have ever kissed. I was a late bloomer. I didn't realize at the time he would be the last person I would ever kiss.
16-I have only fallen in love once and I married him.
17-I'm terrified of being eaten by a wild animal.
18-In Jr. High I wore colored paper clips in my ears. I thought I was awesome. One ear would maybe have red, yellow, pink and green clips strung together. The would have orange, white, purple and blue.
19-I will pretty much tell everyone anything about myself. I sometimes wish I kept my mouth shut more. I guess this exercise isn't helping that issue.
20-I don't parallel park.
21-I couldn't be sexy if I tried.
22-I have never been able to pull off red lipstick.
23-I love, love, love traveling. If I had the money I'd go everywhere.
24-My favorite hymn is Amazing Grace.
25-I love, love, loved it when Scott spoke Italian in Italy. To quote my favorite celebrity, "That was hot."
26-I love foreign films. Jean de Florette is my favorite. I finally convinced Scott to watch it with me with a bribe of crepes afterwards.
27-I love old movies with Audrey Heburn, Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, Natalie Wood...I'm all for character driven films.
28-I love to read. I get this from my grandma. When I lived with my grandma and grandpa I went through their whole library.
29-I love homemade ice cream. I get this from my grandpa.
30-I have a really sarcastic sense of humor, but I'm only like this with the people I'm closest to; aren't they lucky?
31-I have never had a pet.
32-I always wanted to be a dancer. I had dreams of being on Star Search.
33-Since 4th grade I told people I was going to be an artist. I would practice drawing in my room, listening to Flash Dance and dreaming big dreams.
34-I can't sew.
35-I'm super obsessed with my skin. I'm very critical about it and love trying new products. I can tell you the benefits of glycolic, salycilic acid and why Vitamin C or A would be good. I have yet to find the miracle product, but I keep trying.
36-My favorite features about myself are my eyes and smile.
37-I'm no good at math. Story problems are my particular nemesis.
38-I love playing card games. Hearts and Poker are my favorite. If I could find a group of people to have a poker night with I'd be heaven.
39-I've said this before but I adored college. I cried when I graduated.
40-I miss my sister more than I can say. It is not the same not having her live near by.
41-I'm a huge fan of going out to breakfast. My two favorites are the waffles at Finn's and the Yogurt and Granola at the Avenue's bakery. Yum!
42-I'm so proud that Scott and I love our jobs. We have made lots and lots of sacrifices to follow our dreams. Scott is a teacher and I'm a photographer.
43-I wish I knew more about classical music, or more about music in general. I can't read music and have to resort to being a copycat singer; listening to the person next to me to follow along.
44-I have never been stung by a bee, wasp, hornet, etc.
45-I have never broken a bone.
46-I have never had stitches.
47-The only ticket I have ever gotten is when Scott convinced me, against my better judgment, to do an illegal U-turn in Centerville.
48-When I was little I convinced my sister to separate 2 fighting cats. There was a really pretty kitty getting wailed on and I wanted to save it. I got in big trouble for that one.
49-I love Halloween. Next year our house is going to be the sweetest house on the block.
50-My favorite restaurant is Cucina Toscana. Their gnocchi is fabulous.
51-My favorite pizza is a Margherita. The best places to get it here are Settebello and Stoneground.
52-I hate working out. It is a necessary evil.
53-I always want everyone to like me. I'm working on getting over this.
54-I wish I dressed more fashionably. I tend to dress safe, but in my heart I'm a fashionista.
55-I have taken more vacations in the 7 years since I have been married than the whole 22 years I was single.
56-I have a really good memory and can remember the most random facts.
57-I double majored in college in Cultural Communications and Photography. I took school pretty seriously the 2nd time around and I got all A's and one A-. The A- really bugged me.
58-Most people didn't even know I was dating anyone when I announced I was engaged.
59-I was the only LDS person in my high school. I was daily asked how many moms I had.
60-I wasn't invited to any high school dances. No prom or homecoming for me. This sucked at the time. I like to think it was because I didn't put out, but maybe I just wasn't cool enough.
61-I have really strong fingernails and they can grow really long if I let them. My friend Marianne calls my pinkie nail my coke nail.
62-When I was little I was terrified of being kidnapped from my bedroom and I had several escape routes and hiding places mapped out.
63-Until about 18 I was irrationally afraid of trolls under my bed. I never once slept with my legs or arms outside of the bed and I kept my blankets tightly around me.
64-My best friend from high school is the only person I keep in touch with in Chicago.
65-I didn't ever swear until I got married. Thanks Scott. I'm now especially vocal in the car. I'm working on it.
66-I don't like being emotional in front of people, but I often am.
67-I hate people telling me what to do. There is a famous story of me telling some poor kid from my singles ward that he can ask me to bring a pillow. Scott can elaborate.
68-I proposed to Scott.
69-I was dressed as Velma from Scooby Doo when we got engaged and I didn't realize I was proposing.
70-I have expensive tastes. It doesn't matter what it is or where we go I usually pick out the most expensive item in the store.
71-I love the darkroom but don't use it anymore. I love the process and seeing the image develop in the tray.
72-When I'm really, really mad at Scott I have been known to do silly things like hide all of the lead to his mechanical pencils or do all of the laundry but his. I'm mad when I do this, but it usually make us laugh and thus end the fight.
73-I'm so proud that all of Scott's students love him. I know he is going to be an awesome dad.
74-In high school I sat in the library whenever there was an R rated movie shown in class. I was so embarrassed and I hated sticking out but I was trying really hard to do the right thing.
75-I love plucking my eyebrows. I get huge feeling of satisfaction every time I snag a little one.
76-I love getting massages. I get this from my dad. He would make us massage his stinky feet for a nickel. Now I make Scott massage me. It is the best for me, not so much for him.
77-My favorite flower is a peony.
78-I hate losing things or having stains on my clothes. I spend hours looking for things and trying to save my clothes. I'm slightly obsessive over lots of things.
79-I spent more time on getting ready when I was 12 than I do now. I had the coolest bangs. They had a perfect arch that lifted 4 inches off of my head. Thank you Aqua Net.
80-I didn't learn to tie my shoe laces properly until 5th grade.
81-I can't whistle or snap my fingers.
82-I love going to art museums.
83-Speaking of art museums I once put a piece of gum on an installation piece at the Tate Modern Museum in London. You'll have to ask me sometime.
84-I accidentally flashed Scott my undies when were dating. I had been really sick and I was trying to show him how skinny I got and how big my pants were. I pulled my pants out too far and he could see to the ground.
85-Whenever Sweet Caroline comes on I have to dance. I can't help it.
86-I was a very, very picky eater as a child. If I had a hamburger I only wanted the meat and the bun. A sandwich was just peanut butter and bread. I wouldn't eat tacos or pizza. For those of you who think I'm picky now I have come a long way.
87-My 2 favorite lines from a movie are, "This may sound like gibberish to you but I'm pretty sure I'm in a tragedy" and "What we have here is failure to communicate".
88-I'm in love with Paul Newman, Steve McQueen and Brad Pitt...oh and now Daniel Craig.
89-My sisters and I used to have dance parties in our rooms. We made up some pretty sweet moves. My favorite cassettes were Top Gun, Girls Just Want to Have Fun and Flash Dance.
90-My favorite Christmas movie is "It's a Wonderful Life." I know it is sappy but I cry every time I watch it.
91-I love going to the drive-inn. It is so fun. It is also the place of my first kiss; cheesy but true. Scott and I haven't made out at the drive-inn since then, but I still like to go.
92-I have always wanted curly hair and freckles.
93-A perfect meal for me would include fruit tarts, homemade limeade and something with mozzarella and tomatoes.
94-I heart Jackson Hole. Thank you Stewart family for introducing me to Eden on earth.
95-I love festivals, carnivals, markets and fairs...art festivals, food festivals, cultural festivals etc. The State Fair is the the best and the Farmer's market in the summer is an almost weekly excursion. I would love to travel the country visiting all the local fairs and festivals.
96-I am an incessant worrier. Scott calms me down a lot, but not all the way.
97-I'm a workaholic to a fault.
98-I worry about forgetting my past. I love remembering my childhood, what it felt like, who I was. I'm afraid I'll wake up one day and not remember what it was like to be a kid.
99-I have never been skiing. I would probably like winter more if I did.
100-I'm so grateful for everything in my life but I'm most grateful for Scott.
101-I used to "hate" peanut butter cups until I actually tried them for the first time 2 years ago. Now, they are like, totally my favorite. This harks back to my picky days of not trying new things.
102-When I was little I would make my mom redo my ponytail over and over again until there were "No More Bumps!" I was so uptight about having bumps in my hair that I would also wear a headband to make extra sure. My head hurt when I took my ponytail out at night.
103-I have traveled outside of the country to England, Italy and Canada. I'm really intrigued by Eastern Europe and would love to go to Slovenia, Hungary, Romania and Chezkoslavakia. Outside of Europe I would like to go to New Zealand, Thailand and Argentina.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

{Ice Capades}

I have always been known to be a careful person in relationship to avoiding bodily harm. I have never broken a bone, never needed stitches, never even been stung by a bee. Cautious is my middle name. My mom has a story of me as a baby crawling on their bed. I would go right to the edge, look down and then crawl back to the safety of the middle. She thought all babies were like that.
I thought my time had come though on Sunday. I was heading to an early morning church meeting (I know) and was so busy looking for the persons condo number that I failed to watch the ground. As soon as I stepped on the black ice I knew I was in trouble. I had one moment where I tried to brace myself and then I was flat on my back. I have had minor stumbles before but nothing has ever hurt like this. I looked around, completely embarrassed, but no one was there to see or catch me in my graceless collapse. I landed on my arm and when I shakily regained my footing I couldn't move it at all.
I knocked on the leaders door and with tears in my eyes said I needed to sit down. I stayed for the whole meeting (I know), secretly testing out if I could move my throbbing arm. An hour and a half later I arrived home and couldn't wait to tell Scott my sad, sad story. With tears streaming down my face I cried that my arm "really, really hurt."
Alas, all of the drama but no broken bones to show for it. We went to the doctor and it all checked out. However, I have been operating with one arm the last few days. Needless to say it has been interesting. I never realized how much you use both arms. As long as I keep my left arm at at 90 degree angle against my body I am fine. Scott has learned several important skills that ladies master preteen. He has straightened my hair with my flat iron, put my hair in a ponytail and put on my earrings (on me, not on him). It was pretty funny seeing him try to figure out the ponytail thing. My hair stayed in it so I wasn't going to complain, but it wasn't pretty.
The bruises have just started showing up 2 days later and so I think I'm on the road to recovery. I was able to take a shower which shows marked signs of improvement and I've also gained an extra 10 degrees of mobility; enabling me to type my tale. The morale of the story was most eloquently summarized by Bruce, my father-in-law. When hearing of my sorry state he asked, "Did that hurt?"
"Yes", I said.
"Then don't do it again."

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

{Puppy Love}

We're getting a puppy!!! We still need to find him and can't get him anyway until we get back from Europe, but yay! Scott has now sworn eternal love and devotion to me (as opposed to previously just liking me a lot). We will be getting a Golden Retriever! For those of you who know Scott this wont be a surprise. I was told long ago that the only dogs Scott would consider to have as a pet would be a Lab, Retriever or German Shepherd and it had to be a male, oh and a pure bred. Yes, I am married to a dog snob, but it is his present after all. This will be a brand new adventure for me since I have never, ever had a pet.

Also, for those of you who don't know we are going to Italy this month!! Exciting times. Our travel plans include Florence, Venice, Sienna and Cinque Terre. We are eating copious amounts of pasta to prepare and I'm practicing my 3 Italian phrases,

I don't care about you
I'll make you bleed
Don't touch me

I can only say them, not spell them. If I was to attempt to spell them it would look something like "non mene freggete". I like to string them together for dramatic effect. Scott gets the credit for choosing these 3, very helpful sentences.

P.S. Excuse the multiple exclamation points. This was a very exciting post and I couldn't help myself.