Friday, June 11, 2010
olly olly oxen free-what does that mean anyway?
Do you remember the last time you went out with a friend, or a group of friends and did nothing but talk and laugh? The last time you felt...you? Before last night, I couldn't. Angie and I can sneak away to a movie about 2 times a year, and other than that....nothing. Last night, I picked up a friend, and we did nothing. A whole evening without purpose. It was amazing. Ok well the purpose was for her to be able to talk things out about her life right now and for me to be a sounding board. I loved it. 4 hours. We got pizza, walked around a fabric store and other random places just talking, laughing, silence. We sat in my car from 9-11 just doing nothing really. I didn't realize how much I've missed that. Being a mom is great, but sometimes I don't feel like 'me.' I'm glad to see that somewhere, I'm still here. Ash has known me for 20 years (ok let's not talk about how creepy that number is) and she sees how dramatically different I am the last 5. And yet, by the end of the night, I didn't feel so different anymore. Maybe I'm not losing myself after all.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
los fotos of baby blessing day
Simon Heiner
Anjali <3
Max
Elia being so pefectly perfect.
Natalie and her perfect little angel again.
Grandma Marilyn and the Owenator
Sandi and Amanda.
Max and Daddy-Josh. I didn't get any pictures of the smokin' momma-Camille, dang it!
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Max and the Owenator
Last week, I got an email from cousin Josh, that they would be blessing his twins this Sunday in his ward in Orem. So, today, we played hooky from our ward, and drove down to be a part of this awesome ordinance. Their ward building is beautiful, and the view from its parking lot was amazing. Utah valley may have a 'weird' rep, but the mountains really are more amazing down there. Little Max and Owen looked so cute in their white blessing gear. I'm not sure I've ever seen so many priesthood holders gathered for blessing someone so tiny. Both boys were very reverent *yeay for binkies* and received wonderful blessings from their daddy. Camille looked amazing. This woman just gave birth to TWINS--carried farther than most twin mommies I know, and had a totally flat tummy. She made some joke about a girdle, but I didn't see any girdle lines, or that funky fat that squeezes out of the top. Oh I know all about that funky fat displacement--let me tell you. But I digress. Natalie and Dovy were there. I wish we lived closer to them. We need Pam and Steve, and Natalie and Dovy to live in our neighborhood. Seriously. We like eachother, and our kids hold hands. so cute. And--they were all in the same color panel as well. See, I'm not the only person who does this. *I knew there had to be more out there* We wore our Michelle wedding purple gear, and they were all in a really pretty coralish pink. Loved it!
There was a lunch after the blessing at Josh and Cam's new home. Their house is so cute and gorgeous. I heard they had just moved in, but I don't buy it. We've been here for 4 years, and they were far more decorated and put together than we've ever been. Dear Cam, please come decorate my home--whilst juggling new twin boys. :) Ava loved being in a new environment with new people to show off all her tricks to. The combination of heat and cotton from the trees sent me into a funk. I wish I would have been more mentally there. the cotton seriously messes with my ability to function. Benedryl anyone? I need a new allergy med. They served the perfect desert, CREAMIES! We all had purple ones. Simon spilled on his shirt, but it didn't matter, because it MATCHED!
We were going to head to my parents house after, but Ava was having bad allergies and I was too, so Chris drove us home instead. I snored most of the way. So attractive. We got to sneak a peak at Bilary's basement progress. *alliteration* It's looking amazing. So incredible. Then, we took a family walk. I love our family walks. Simon does too. he drags his little backpack that he rides in up to Chris all the time and says "Dad, eh? eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh?" until we give in. I think he likes the new view he gets from being 6' tall instead of 24". He passed out about 10 minutes into the walk. LOVE IT! One kid down...one to go.......*pictures of adorable twins to follow in the near *(but probably not really that near)* future.
There was a lunch after the blessing at Josh and Cam's new home. Their house is so cute and gorgeous. I heard they had just moved in, but I don't buy it. We've been here for 4 years, and they were far more decorated and put together than we've ever been. Dear Cam, please come decorate my home--whilst juggling new twin boys. :) Ava loved being in a new environment with new people to show off all her tricks to. The combination of heat and cotton from the trees sent me into a funk. I wish I would have been more mentally there. the cotton seriously messes with my ability to function. Benedryl anyone? I need a new allergy med. They served the perfect desert, CREAMIES! We all had purple ones. Simon spilled on his shirt, but it didn't matter, because it MATCHED!
We were going to head to my parents house after, but Ava was having bad allergies and I was too, so Chris drove us home instead. I snored most of the way. So attractive. We got to sneak a peak at Bilary's basement progress. *alliteration* It's looking amazing. So incredible. Then, we took a family walk. I love our family walks. Simon does too. he drags his little backpack that he rides in up to Chris all the time and says "Dad, eh? eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh?" until we give in. I think he likes the new view he gets from being 6' tall instead of 24". He passed out about 10 minutes into the walk. LOVE IT! One kid down...one to go.......*pictures of adorable twins to follow in the near *(but probably not really that near)* future.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
caution: Littered with Dave Ramsey Lingo
For the past few months, Chris has been taking a lunch into work. This saves us tons of moolah, and has helped him to drop almost 40 pounds. About a month ago, we began shopping at winco, and noticed that their prices were significantly cheaper than most grocery stores, especially for the lactose free milk that our kids and I need. We are also just $2,000 away from paying off the car. We've had a 'murphy' moment pop up every week or so, which has been melting our debt snowball, but so far we've been able to pay for all issues in cash. I've become a little insanely OCD though, in an attempt to control life and keep murphy at a safe distance.
Examples?
Grocery shopping is only once a week. I don't go into a grocery store unless it is grocery day. I used to run up to winegars if we ran out of something, but not anymore. I just have to make something else, and get really creative. We set Thursday as grocery day...the last 2 weeks, Thursdays haven't worked well, and my Fridays are a total mess, and I'm really irritable, because my routine has been thrown off.
One of my favorite winco things, is that I get to bag my own groceries. So when I'm unloading them out of the cart, I do so with the process of how they will be grouped at home. First I do produce, then dairy, then frozen, then pantry items. I can then bag them and make sure they end up in that same way. See, no matter how many times I have placed items together on the belt in Walmart, they ALWAYS MIX MY STUFF UP. And then putting groceries away takes AGES. Now, I can get home and put the fridge and freezer stuff away all at once, and have no fear of stuff melting or getting warm that is supposed to stay cool. Also, I can leave out the things on the counter that need to be bagged up for lunches. Ah yes, here comes my favorite part.
Once the groceries are put away. I get out my cutting board and knife, and ziplocks. I wash and slice up the celery, and bag it. Then, I measure out the fruits, bag it. measure out the snacks (cheez-its and chips and/or cookies) by serving suggestion for 100-150 calories and bag those. This has got to be my new favorite routine. Why? Because, I'm not a morning person. So, when Chris is gearing up to head out the door at 7:45am, and I'm fumbling in my morning stupor, minimal thought and coordination is required. I only need to unzip the lunchbox and then start grabbing various Ziplocs and whole fruits. Apple--check. Celery baggie-Check. Carrot baggie--check. snack baggie--check. The hardest part of the morning is shoving salad or a sandwich into a bag and zipping the lunch box back up. LOVE! <3 It's the best way to ensure that Chris gets a healthy lunch that will keep his mind going. It's also nice for me and Ava during the day. If she wants a snack, I have the snack bags sized out for her. This ensures she eats something (because all 3 years like it better out of a baggie) and keeps the mess situation minimal if it gets dumped. It keeps me from consuming an entire package of chips or cookies or what have you. Chris has lost another 5 pounds since I started this new routine. AWESOME! I want to start adding almonds, but have no idea what a good deal for those are. Anyone?
I then--and here's where it enters crazy town--enter my receipt into a spreadsheet. Item, quantity, price. I do this for a few reasons. 1. I want to make sure that I'm paying attn to how much we're spending on things. 2. I want to make sure I'm still getting great deals week to week, since we are driving to Ogden to shop there. 3. The grocery list is FAR EASIER to do now. Instead of sitting with a pen in hand, and being roadblocked every 3 items as to what we need, I simply pull up the spreadsheet of groceries from the past trips, and write down what we had purchased, and the price of where it needs to be around to buy again. This has saved me from buying things that sit in the pantry for years (stuffing mix, etc) and getting things I know we all do love and eat. It's the craziest and yet smartest part of the whole deal. It also helps for me to really know why last 2 weeks were only $75 on groceries, but this week was $90. No guessing. I really can see and understand where I'm overspending.
So, last night, after a terrible,horrible, no good, very bad day full of Simon crying every moment he was awake....I really didn't want to go anywhere but a dark dark hole of silence. We did a family walk, and Chris put him to bed about 6:55. About 7:15, Ava and I decided we'd have some adventure time and we went to the store. It was fun. She really knows when I'm stressed and how to make me laugh. She probably already is too keenly aware that her mommy is crazy. She fell asleep on the way home, and Chris put her to bed. We then unpacked the car, and I took a whole 3 minutes putting things away. I then got to my OCD routine of washing, cut, bag. When I finished that, I felt so in charge of the night, that I cleaned the kitchen, living room, and finally boxed up the old clothes that have been on that 'to do' list the past 6 weeks. This morning, when Simon woke up at 5:45, it was nice to come down the stairs to a living room not cluttered with laundry and toys, walk onto my non-sticky kitchen floor, and open my fridge and know exactly where everything is. Too bad my OCD only strikes once a week.
Examples?
Grocery shopping is only once a week. I don't go into a grocery store unless it is grocery day. I used to run up to winegars if we ran out of something, but not anymore. I just have to make something else, and get really creative. We set Thursday as grocery day...the last 2 weeks, Thursdays haven't worked well, and my Fridays are a total mess, and I'm really irritable, because my routine has been thrown off.
One of my favorite winco things, is that I get to bag my own groceries. So when I'm unloading them out of the cart, I do so with the process of how they will be grouped at home. First I do produce, then dairy, then frozen, then pantry items. I can then bag them and make sure they end up in that same way. See, no matter how many times I have placed items together on the belt in Walmart, they ALWAYS MIX MY STUFF UP. And then putting groceries away takes AGES. Now, I can get home and put the fridge and freezer stuff away all at once, and have no fear of stuff melting or getting warm that is supposed to stay cool. Also, I can leave out the things on the counter that need to be bagged up for lunches. Ah yes, here comes my favorite part.
Once the groceries are put away. I get out my cutting board and knife, and ziplocks. I wash and slice up the celery, and bag it. Then, I measure out the fruits, bag it. measure out the snacks (cheez-its and chips and/or cookies) by serving suggestion for 100-150 calories and bag those. This has got to be my new favorite routine. Why? Because, I'm not a morning person. So, when Chris is gearing up to head out the door at 7:45am, and I'm fumbling in my morning stupor, minimal thought and coordination is required. I only need to unzip the lunchbox and then start grabbing various Ziplocs and whole fruits. Apple--check. Celery baggie-Check. Carrot baggie--check. snack baggie--check. The hardest part of the morning is shoving salad or a sandwich into a bag and zipping the lunch box back up. LOVE! <3 It's the best way to ensure that Chris gets a healthy lunch that will keep his mind going. It's also nice for me and Ava during the day. If she wants a snack, I have the snack bags sized out for her. This ensures she eats something (because all 3 years like it better out of a baggie) and keeps the mess situation minimal if it gets dumped. It keeps me from consuming an entire package of chips or cookies or what have you. Chris has lost another 5 pounds since I started this new routine. AWESOME! I want to start adding almonds, but have no idea what a good deal for those are. Anyone?
I then--and here's where it enters crazy town--enter my receipt into a spreadsheet. Item, quantity, price. I do this for a few reasons. 1. I want to make sure that I'm paying attn to how much we're spending on things. 2. I want to make sure I'm still getting great deals week to week, since we are driving to Ogden to shop there. 3. The grocery list is FAR EASIER to do now. Instead of sitting with a pen in hand, and being roadblocked every 3 items as to what we need, I simply pull up the spreadsheet of groceries from the past trips, and write down what we had purchased, and the price of where it needs to be around to buy again. This has saved me from buying things that sit in the pantry for years (stuffing mix, etc) and getting things I know we all do love and eat. It's the craziest and yet smartest part of the whole deal. It also helps for me to really know why last 2 weeks were only $75 on groceries, but this week was $90. No guessing. I really can see and understand where I'm overspending.
So, last night, after a terrible,horrible, no good, very bad day full of Simon crying every moment he was awake....I really didn't want to go anywhere but a dark dark hole of silence. We did a family walk, and Chris put him to bed about 6:55. About 7:15, Ava and I decided we'd have some adventure time and we went to the store. It was fun. She really knows when I'm stressed and how to make me laugh. She probably already is too keenly aware that her mommy is crazy. She fell asleep on the way home, and Chris put her to bed. We then unpacked the car, and I took a whole 3 minutes putting things away. I then got to my OCD routine of washing, cut, bag. When I finished that, I felt so in charge of the night, that I cleaned the kitchen, living room, and finally boxed up the old clothes that have been on that 'to do' list the past 6 weeks. This morning, when Simon woke up at 5:45, it was nice to come down the stairs to a living room not cluttered with laundry and toys, walk onto my non-sticky kitchen floor, and open my fridge and know exactly where everything is. Too bad my OCD only strikes once a week.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Rezzen Photography
So, as you may have noticed, I love to pretend that I'm a photographer. And about a year ago, I was given the opportunity to shoot some engagements for my brother and then for my friend Ash. I had SO much fun with them! I wish I knew then what I do now, because the last year has been so educational. About 2 months ago, I was approached by a friend of mine to shoot a wedding this fall. And 2 weeks ago, that wedding turned into engagements, bridal and wedding. Chris and I are so excited. We've been studying everything about lighting, equipment, editing, software, framing, and on and on. My brain is in overdrive. Last night, as he was talking with his dad about our adventures of venturing to the wedding world of photography, his dad opened up about how excited he is for us. He truly has faith in us that we will do well at this. He's going to lend us his pro equipment and train us on his software programs as well. He's lending us a monitor that's properly color balanced. Do you know the crazy difference that will make when it comes to editing photos?! blowing my mind! It's just really comforting that people have faith in us and are willing it give us these opportunities to grow in an area that we have so much passion. It's fun to share something I love with my hubby too. Sometimes it's hard, because we have totally different ways of seeing how a project or photo should come out, but when our ideas combine, we usually get something pretty awesome. so go Rezzen Photography.
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