Here is the obligatory blogger Christmas picture post
If I don't sound so chummy on this post today, it is because my husband and I have some sort of food poisoning. It all started with my over eagerness to make a Christmas feast for 5 and my intentions to make dinner special since it was our first Christmas away from family. Green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, dinner rolls, turkey and.....and...spinach artichoke dip...i can't even type that without gagging.
I'll spare the details, but we believe the spinach artichoke dip has had us all yuckified.
Other than THAT Christmas was wonderful. I had my first White Christmas. Tears of joy streamed down my face when I saw the snow falling on Christmas Eve. It was beautiful.
{Who cares that my scarf doesn't match IT'S SNOWING!}
these pictures were taken on my phone and they aren't the best because the snow flakes were making my phone all wet.
Our first Christmas in Utah was so beautiful. We are so grateful for all of the miracles we have been able to experience. We wish you a Merry Christmas filled with the joy and love that comes with the birth of Jesus Christ, the light of the world.
Swallowing tears we said goodbye to our friends and family in Florida. I grew up there. The Sunshine state (which should be totally re-coined as the rainy friggin humid state). I was approached by waves of sadness. My parents and in-laws remain there. But it was time. Hubs was offered an amazing opportunity. So we loaded up the Budget truck and drove 35 hours to our new home in Salt Lake City, Utah (after that long haul I believe I can survive any type of road trip). I proudly embraced my title as co-Pilot and we pulled out late Sunday afternoon and drooooooove. First I must say that it was scary, for my hubs mainly as he couragesly volunteered to drive the 20 ft truck. We climbed into the uncozy like rear-view mirror-less truck and prayed for safety.
We had a theme song. We played this song everytime we entered a new state. It was kinda perfect:
We kept checking the side-mirrors to make sure our vehicle was still in tow and not on the side of the road somewhere. We drove to Adairsville, GA that day and crashed at the Holiday Inn Express for about 4 hours.
Our bodies thanked us for that power rest. We woke up and left the hotel at about 6am and drove. And drove. And drove. And drove. Tennessee. Kentucky. Illinois. Missouri. Iowa. Nebraska.
Our drive through Nebraska was rough. It was pitch black, no lights on the freeway, if that's what it was, we couldn't really see, but we were so determined to drive for as long as our bodies and eyes allowed us to. That night as our headlights cut harshly through the dark and then our beams became fixed on a large, like LARGE object about 20 feet ahead of us and positioned dead center of our lane. As our 65mph truck approached we realized that this was no object. IT WAS A COW. A poor humongous mama of a cow with black and white spots stared back at us fear stricken, frozen in the night. The wide eyed cow opened its mouth as to yell out. Hubs swerved to miss the cow and a large semi barely clipped the cows head on the left lane. That was scary. For all parties involved. Except probably the semi, who probably was listening to smooth Jazz and stuffing his mouth with Cheetos, the driver, not the semi. I don't think he even saw. The worst kinda funny part was that hubs had just picked up a hamburger at the rest stop and refused to eat it after we almost hit the cow.
We drove for 24 hours that day. We stopped right when we entered Wyoming. After driving through all those states our eyes begged for mercy. The Hampton Inn greeted us with open arms at 3am. Sleep was our best friend for 4 hours. We actually stayed and had continental breakfast. So good. Thank God for biscuits and to-go cereal.
Wyoming. Oh Wyoming was probably the most treacherous state to drive through. Its mean curves and rolling hills had the Budget truck begging to slow down. But when you roll with us, the power team and me as your co-pilot, scream no more Budget truck we musta get on home to good ol' Utah. You see, it was already tuesday, we wanted to be home in time for Thanksgiving on thurs. So we had a goal in mind.
In Wyoming a semi truck hit a deer and the deer leg hit the grill of our truck and became road kill. Sorry Katniss.
When we entered Utah, I felt peace, we had made it. That night we arrived at 1am at my brother-in-laws, where we rested before we faced unloading the truck the next day.
Pulling up to our new neighborhood was a dream. Our neighbors trickled out one by one, children too, teenagers, and helped us unload the truck. Blessing right? Amazing.
We did it. We loaded up a uhaul and hauled it 36 hours cross country where we reside now in Salt Lake City, Utah. That is my excuse for not blogging. In the midst of trying to make our new place our own, I am trying to adjust to many different things. I feel totally discombobulated. I have so much to share about our road trip, like almost crashing into a cow. A COW! And the many creepy creepertons at the gas stations along the way. Hang tight, I should have my computer and office set up here soon. Can't wait to share the deets. Have a fabulous week.
1. What is your favorite book? My favorite book is a book I read every year for Christmas (don't laugh) it's called The Christmas Tree that ate my mother by Dean Marney
2. What is one thing you totally regret? I regret being a mean older sister growing up, my sister is 2 years younger and today we are the best of friends however, I look back and wish I was a better example to her in my early teens.
3. What is one thing you never want to forget? I never want to forget gazing into my husbands eyes on our wedding day...it was Magic!
4. Where would you be right now if you could? I am!!!! I am currently vacationing in Utah, it is beautiful here!! (Instagram: pinkbambina)
5. What is your happy place? Physically? Anywhere around mountains surrounded by green grass with my hubby, or wildly dancing around in the living room when I am home alone...seriously.
6. Have you ever cried over spilt milk? Or anything else that you later thought was silly? Yes. Hubby can probably tell you a zillion scenarios but I cannot think of any.
7. Favorite blog and why? Cheri at I am Momma Hear Me Roar. I read this blog daily because she is so sweet, down to earth, so creative and has a series called Wake up Wednesday, a challenge to motivate you to do something kind for others
8. What would you eat for your last meal? A typical Colombian dish: white rice with beans, sweet plantains, avocado , chicken and empanadas
9. Your stranded on an island. You can bring one celeb, one food item, one song to listen to,
And one other random item...go. Oh and why? Um....Martha Stewart, apples, Muse-Starlight and can my other random item be an airplane so we're not stranded anymore? Martha because she can make ANYTHING, apples because they can be sweet and filling.
10. How long did it take you to answer that last question? Like a minute... (Just in case I ever have to pick for real lol)
11. What movie are you most excited about seeing before the year is over ? Twilight Breaking Dawn part 2. I am soo serious.
Hope you enjoyed reading Oh and if you want to learn more abut me you can read here: 10 Random facts about Me
I know. I am horrible. I have been a horrible blogger this month. Honestly, I have been occupying my free time with eating clean, working out, and enjoying things in the moment. I absolutely love to blog...but sometimes I feel like I spend too much time on the Internet. I have been up to really awesome and exciting things...like...
Linking up to my gal Kaylee'sblog for a book swap. This was awesome. I was matched up with Aubrey Kinch from The Kinch Life and she sent me a great classic "The Scarlett Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne. This fictional historic love story takes place in Salem, Massachusetts in the 1600's. The protagonist in the book is Hester who has an adulterous love affair and conceives a daughter. I really loved reading this book again, it is very interesting. It is full of suspense filled with vengeance, pride, and sin.
I sat quietly typing away in the computer lab at the University of Central Florida. I was a sophomore in college. The room was filled with students carrying books, papers, backpacks and many of them waiting for an open computer seat. Just like a typical Tuesday morning with students sorting into the room carrying their morning fix of coffee, while organizing their homework and meeting with study partners. The chatter in the room was at a polite level with muffled voices and loud laughs now and then (yes, even that early in the morning, which at times I would glare at the direction of the laughs to give them a hint). You could here the clicking of all the computers being used with the keyboard keys creating a synchronized sound, click, click, space, click, space, ever realized that the space bar sounds different than the other keys? Anyways, there I was wearing an oversized burgundy American Eagle hoodie with slouchy khaki cargo pants and sat cross-legged on the stiff cold chair thinking about what I should have for breakfast (because I always think of food). I craved Chic Fil-A biscuits with scrambled eggs with a side of orange juice. My mouth watered just thinking about the taste the flaky buttered biscuit when all the sudden all my thoughts were shattered and interrupted by a young man who had burst into the doorway. His backpack was half way unzipped with folders and papers falling out of it, he obviously quickly grabbed his stuff from wherever he was. His face was red and twisted and little beads of sweat were forming at the top part of his forehead. Panting and out of breath in a panick he started to shout those words I will never ever forget.
WE HAVE BEEN ATTACKED BY TERRORISTS.
Perplexed I continued typing and turned an ear to hear what he was saying. My typing slowed and as curious as everyone else was to hear what he was saying, simultaneously students began to gather their stuff. He shouted again: WE HAVE BEEN ATTACKED BY TERRORISTS THE NEWS IS ON IN THE STUDENT UNION.Faster now students packed their belongings and quickly followed the pack to the student union. Groups of students, faculty trickled in through different doors, hallways, entrances to see the news. The crowd grew larger and larger in the round shaped building. Gathered in the center with the news projecting above us, we stood still. As one.
It sunk in. I stared as I witnessed the horrific tragedy un-fold before me and thought "this isn't happening", "not my New York, not innocent people,".
School was dismissed for the rest of the day. For the remainder of the day and week I would find myself mesmerized by the same video loop and listened to many heroic stories surface in the midst of such tragedy. Weeks later many would say America grew together from this tragedy.
I say we bring back the Pledge of Allegiance (but that's another post)
May God Bless America.
(thoughts and prayers are with families of those who have suffered loss from this tragedy)
This is my mantra this week. Enjoy the moment. Be still. Don't stress about tomorrow. Be here Now. Be present. Make new friends. Take risks. Do something out of your comfort zone.
And put electronics and social media away by 8pm, to be here now with your loved ones.
(don't know why my arm looks freakishly small in this pic)
Awkward: Went to slug someone in my dream (I am dreaming here) only to find myself waking up abruptly while I am in mid- motion right hook directly into my hubby's face. Yep.That woke him up.
Awkward: Walking up the steps inside the dim lit movie theatre looking for a good seat and missing a step and face planting next to the row of lights on the sides that are supposed to help you not face plant. Too bad hubs was buying nachos and couldn't save me.
Awkward: Getting hooked on the TLC show Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. Why?
{that is me dancing. Really. I dance like this.}
Awesome: Teaching my first relief society class last sunday. I think I did okay.
Awesome: Getting a calling in the young women's presidency. WOOOOOT.
Awesome: planning a vacation to Utah in October
{its definitely more of an awkward week.}
Side Note:
So yesterday apparently my blog albums some how synched to picasa that then synched to my phone. Mrs. Smarty pants {me} thought hmmm, strange to find my blog photos on my phone, let me delete them. I deleted them. Later to find that this caused the pictures to be deleted from my blog. WHY??? So now, I am going back and uploading the original photo to each individual post. So exciting. BARF.
I am so upset. I was looking through my picture gallery on my phone and noticed that alllll my pictures from my blog were on there. I thought this was strange so I deleted them. Only to find out that it deleted alllll my pictures from this blog here. I don't know what to do. Start again I guess.
I have enjoyed watching the Olympics so much. I will miss staring at the abdominals of those track stars. Especially when NBC re-plays the footage of the athlete running across the finish line in sloooow motion and watching those wash board abs flex into perfect little squares forming a 6 pack twisting to the left and then to the right as their face moves against the wind and their cheeks bounce toward the finish line...
Here is the recipe to make this decadent rich yummy pie:
Ingredients:
1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell I picked one up by Pillsbury, its the rolled doe in a rectangular box
2 cups of pecan halves
3 large eggs
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 of dark corn syrup
1 cup of sugar
3 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate chips (sometimes I leave this out)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425
Cover the bottom of pie crust with pecans
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and melted butter. Add corn syrup, sugar, chocolate. Stir until all ingredients are combined. Pour mixture into the pie shell over the pecans and place pie dish on a heavy-duty cookie sheet
Bake for 10 minutes on 425 then lower the temperature to 350 and continue to back for an additional 30 minutes or until pie is set. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.
*I wait for the top part of the pie to brown before I take it out
I love to pair a slice of pecan pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
This is where I am partying this weekend, linky party style:
Hey Peeps, I am going to do a series called Awkward & Awesome Thursdays. I got this idea from Sydney at The Daybook blog. It is so fun to read everyone's A&A: so here it goes
AWKWARD: Getting out of my car at the parking lot and adjusting my bra strap in the reflection of the car window parked next to me, only to find a passenger in that car glaring back at me.
AWKWARD: Getting dust in my eye walking into Target and smearing my eye makeup (that I forgot I had on) up on my eyelids and down the side of my face, later catching a glimpse at my face in the school supply aisle while looking at locker mirrors. Wondering how many people saw me look like this. Did I mention it was black eyeliner? And I def. don't need a locker mirror.
AWKWARD: Telling my mom that I am excited my sister is coming down for 10 days after a perplexed look on her face and an awkward silence, I realized then she had no idea and my dad is standing behind her giving me the IT-WAS-A-SURPRISElookand my oscar winning attempt to save myself out of the hole by saying, "Haaa JUST JOKING MOM" I'm a horrible liar
AWESOME: Celebrating 3 years of being married to this amazing man who I couldn't get to smile in this picture because he was sick.
AWESOME: Getting our meal comped at this fancy shmancy restaurant because there was a piece of glass in our bread. Hubs chomped on it and was okay. A Piece of GLASS.
AWESOME: Getting a thank you and a kiss from my hubs after making dinner the other night and THAT never happens...the making dinner part.
Pinkbambina has a new look. Thanks to the lovely and talented Erika from The Fairy Blog Mother. She has transformed my blog just how I envisioned it, she is creative, quick, and affordable. Thank you Erika for making my blog dreams come true. Your the bomb diggity.
Here is a quick spanish potato recipe. You can pair it with rice, quinoa, meat, veggies etc.
It's called Papa Chorreada
You will need potatoes, you can do as many as you like. I did 10 red potatoes. Peel them and boil them with a pinch of salt until tender, about 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, slice half a large white onion, and four tomatoes
Then you take about 1/4 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and put it in the pan about medium heat saute the tomatoes and onions until they are really tender
Pop in the potato, mix it all in, put in a teaspoon of cumin and 1 envelope of Sazon Goya con Azafran ( you can locate this seasoning in the ethnic food aisle), mix it all together
That is it.
Easy Peasy, Super delicious and the aroma in your kitchen is mouth-watering
Enjoy!
I want to move so bad out of Florida. I want to live in a place with Four Seasons, snow during Christmas, mountains and valleys, nature all around, outdoor recreation, craft conferences, minus humidity, no traffic, close to big lakes, city slash suburbs....this sounds kinda like
We visited last year and I fell in love with this place. Hubs was born in SLC and has only been in FL for 10 years...so...maybe he'll want to move back? I think I can convince him.
1. My eyelids are a light shade of brown. It didn't used to bother me until one time when I used to be a makeup artist for Clinique in college, a customer asked me what color eyeshadow I was wearing, I told her I wasn't wearing any, she gave me the "I think-your-lying-face". Ever since people think I am wearing eyeshadow. So I am sure people think I am that girl at the gym with eyeshadow on. Oh Well.
2. I was a bully in kindergarten. I bullied boys. I was that loud mouthed girl, who pushed boys off of swings, jumped off see-saws, tugged on boys legs on the monkey bars and pulled the chair from underneath them. That was me. I probably traumatized a bunch of boys. I was only a bully for 1 year. Is that bad? I think it was because my dad told me that girls can do things better than boys my first day of kindergarten.
3. I have a spider-phobia. I have gotten alittle better but they scare the ________ out of me. One day I will have the courage to hold a tarantula. One. Day. NOT.
4. I will watch my favorite movies over and over again. I will never get sick of watching Michael J. Fox in all the Back to the Future movies: I still get excited. "ONE POINT TWENTY ONE GIGAWATTS"
5. I am a goof ball. I will mimick accents. Do funky dances and make faces. I mainly do 'man-voice' and secretly wish to be on Saturday Night Live {dream}. Only around those who know me though, because I am and introvert.
6. In fifth grade I made friendship bracelets and scrunchies and sold them for $5 each during recess. I made loot until I was busted with my shoebox full of goods and money. Business Closed.
7. I am a loyal and honest friend. And so is my hubby. Which is one reason why I love him so much.
8. If someone cries around me, I cry too.
9. I love talks about Faith. I love to serve others. I also love the mountains and nature.
10. I have a younger sister, whom I love so much. She lives in NYC and is a makeup artist. We call each other "Boo", after a song by Ghost Town DJ's called Call Boo. We can have an entire phone conversation by making funny noises at eachother, speaking in accents and telling jokes and laughing without really saying anything. The. Best. Ever.
I hope you learned alittle bit about me and random little things...
(I have a little secret....you cannot laugh at me...)
Okay...here goes....I caught the fever. The Bieber Fever.
And this is how it all began....hubs was out late doing church stuff and there was NOTHING on television. So I logged onto Netflix and stumbled upon the Justin Bieber: Never Say Never movie. And the fever rose. High Temps.
Then I saw the Believe: World Tour Special on NBC. The Biebs is so nice. And talented too.
Just found out he is coming to Orlando in January. Who wants to come with?!?
I had a little tantrum the other day. Hubs would say it was big. I hyperventilated and bit the inside of my cheek to keep from crying. I have a little trait of mine that I am working on that sometimes can be bad...I plan everything out. Even days that I have off, I am up by 7am. If I am up a minute later I feel like I wasted my whole day (I am working on this).
On our romantic afternoon out last weekend, my husband said I looked so sad. I started to share with him everything that I felt was not going according to my plan. Sobbing I said to him that I think God stopped listening to me.....
My husband oh so connected and inspired reminded me of many beautiful things that are going according to plan and that we are living the Lords plan, not mine. To trust the Lord with all my heart, be still and know, that he is listening to me...
The next day, the Lord dropped me a little drop of Sunshine, a little reminder that he is listening. Interesting the way he moves in our life...and for that I am grateful.
Here's the deal. Several years ago hubs grandma gave him a little monkey key chain that upon pressing a little button on its head, it lights its environment with a piercing blue light. When hubs was a child he liked monkeys and his grandma to this day still gives him monkey stuff...hubs no longer likes monkeys.
Anyway, one night when I was sleeping hubs thought it would be hilarious to press the little blue lighted monkey onto my closed eyelids. I woke up startled and told him how much I hated the thing.
This only sparked a little game. Hubs began hiding the monkey in random places that I would normally use when I would find it, I would hide it back into a place so he would find it. The stupid monkey has shown up in my luggage, binders, work bag, lunches, shower, shoes etc. I also have hidden the little stinker in great places...but this time Hubs won.
Well....for about 8 months, I hadn't seen the darn thing, and hubs mentioned the other night "It looks at you every night". I found it in a stack of books I keep at my bedside, books I've finished reading.
Now it's my turn to hide the mischievous little stinker. Where should it go?
