September 27, 2011

Oh so thankful Tuesdays...9/27


Hello all! I have to admit, I know its only been one week but I think I've gotten the hang of this "lets-go-back-to-normal-blogging-again-thing"....took long enough, right?? 

1. Apologies and forgiveness. I'm stubborn...& yea, I admit it. I have the hardest time saying "I'm sorry," even when I know I am wrong. I am so thankful for my husband, who willingly apologizes even though he may not be at fault in the situation. I've realized though, that when I do sincerely apologize, things are so much better. 

2. Water. I've been a thirsty little fishy lately. I LOVE water and drink it all day long. In another life I think I should of been a fish, then I could live in it. I guess its a good thing...I'm probably not even close to the 8 glasses required per day limit.

3. Being a nice person. I'm definitely not perfect...but I know that I am a nice person. I hate seeing people cry and I love seeing people smile. 

4. Online banking. It makes life so much easier. I love not having to keep track in my checkbook. & the fact that I have an app for my phone helps too!

5. Autumn. Leaves changing, light jackets, and great weather. Only downside...it means a Rexburg winter is close to follow.


September 22, 2011

The A to Z's of ME


I've seen this throughout blog-land and thought I'd give it a shot. :)

A. Age: 21...FINALLY.

B. Bed Size:  Queen. 

C. Chore you hate: Folding laundry. I'm great at doing it...I just don't like folding it & putting it away.

D.  Dogs: None yet. Hopefully one day.

E.  Essential start to your day:  Showering. I can't wake up if I don't.

F.  Favorite Color: I love all colors. Pink especially.

G.  Gold or Silver: I'm for sure a silver girl.

H.  Height: I'd say about 5'3.

I.  Instruments you play: Used to play the flute. Not anymore. I have no musical abilities.

J.  Job Title: Wife. Blogger. & Babysitter.

K.  Kids: One day

L.  Live: Rexburg, Idaho. Where after?? No clue.

M.  Mother's Name: Julene

N.  Nicknames: lyss, lyssa...hubs calls be babe...& a lot of other weird things.

O.  Overnight hospital stays: When I was little...

P.  Pet Peeves: biting my nails...yea, it bugs me...but I still do it. 

Q.  Quote from a Movie:  "They're mean people...they stab chicken nuggets with sharpies!!!"-Date Night

R.  Right handed or Left handed:  Right handed for sure.

S.  Siblings: Three younger sisters.

T.  Time to wake up: Depends on the day.

U.  Underwear: Sure thing. 

V.  Vegetables you hate: Can't I just tell you the things I like? haha...that's a smaller list.

W.  What makes you run late: Waking up late. Taking extra time in the shower.

X.  X-rays you have: I've had one for my neck, teeth....ehhh, I think that's it. 

Y.  Yummy food that you make: Ask the hubs :)

Z.  Zoo animals: I love the zebras & monkeys.

September 21, 2011

Whats Cookin' Wednesdays; Hamburger Casserole


Hamburger Casserole
* I don't have a picture because its a recipe from my mom's kitchen :)


Ingredients:
-1 lb hamburger
-3 cups curly noodles
-2 cans cream of chicken soup
-1 cup sour cream
-1/4 tsp. nutmeg
-1 tsp Worcestershire sauce


1) Cook meat & noodles as directed on packages.
2) Combine sour cream, soup, nutmeg & Worcestershire sauce in a pot and heat up.
3) Add noodles and meat to sauce.
4) Pour into any pan that can go in the oven, cook for 20 minutes on 350.

September 20, 2011

Oh so thankful Tuesdays...9/20


It's Tuesday and I'm baaaaaaaack. Its been forever since I've done one of these. 

1. Blogging. Its a great way to express feelings, jot down ideas & communicate. We finally hit 10,000 views last week. We love it!!

2. My health. I've never been one to have horrible health, but lately I've been super thankful for my ability to stay healthy.

3. Husband. He is THE BEST. I know that I definitely married the right person. He works so hard for us.

4. Family. Since August we've been able to visit/see both sides of our families. It was wonderful!

5. Oh so thankful Tuesdays. They help me realize that I'm lucky and have SO much to be grateful for.


Lets hear it...

September 16, 2011

Nauvoo Day Two

Ok let me just put this out there, I AM A SLACKER. Blogging has been LAST on my to do list, but since its a rainy Friday morning and Chris is doing homework....I have time to catch up. These are the events of our second day in Nauvoo...

We started our day off with a carriage ride pulled by these beauties...

& We even got to pet them. The one behind Chris was camera shy.

Then we went on a Wagon ride to "Salt Lake City" pulled by these two guys. They were feisty. Chris took em by the horns & rattled them a little...showed em who's boss.


Then we took a 30 min drive to Carthage and let me tell you, it was well worth it. This was probably my favorite place.. This was the room in the jail where Joseph Smith was martyred. That was the window he fell out of.

This is the original door, & those are the original bullet holes.

We went back to Nauvoo and were taught how they made candles.

and horseshoes...

We visited the old school house. These are the chalkboards they used to use. Chris thinks its the new generation ipad.

I LOVED being able to go to Nauvoo, it was one of the best experiences.

September 2, 2011

Iowa & Nauvoo Day One

Ok, so first off...I apologize for taking so long to post this. We got back a little under a week ago & I have just been wanting to relax! These posts may be a little long, but I'll do my best to get to the point. 

For those of you who don't know, Chris is from South Africa. His grandparents were in America for the first time ever this past month. He hadn't seen them in 10 years, so we decided to take a trip to Iowa to see them. The drive is about 18 hrs. We tried to do it in one day, but we couldn't. To see our overnight experience, visit  this post

We went to Jester Park & saw these....I think they're Elk?

At the mall they had these statues....this ones Ronald Regan.


As Chris was showing me around his old stomping grounds, this one of of his stops. He used to play rugby here.

Chris' parents we're so nice & threw us an "open house" so all the people Chris grew up with could see him & meet me. It was a ton of fun. We had hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, chips, and yummy cake. It was great to meet everyone and see people that taught Chris as he was growing up. 

So I'm sure you recognize this...but only a few of you will know what its actually called. "Gothic America" is the name. One of the houses had this in front of it.

And.... coincidentally, on our way to Nauvoo we saw a sign that said "Gothic America House 1 mile." We had to stop. Before going to Iowa I knew nothing about this famous painting, but I remember seeing it every where. We went to the Gothic America visitors center, learned some new stuff (Did you know that the two people in the painting are not husband and wife, they are not father and daughter, and in fact they aren't even related? That's right...the painter had his sister and his dentist pose for this) and got to take a picture in front of the actual house where the painting was based off of.

Original Painting:


Hubs & I in front of the house: (yea, we match... we're cool)

About an hour later, we passed this...Making Illinois the 10th state I've been to. (5 of those are from since I've been married ha)

For those who don't know, Nauvoo is a very historical city for the LDS church. It's one of the main places where the saints who traveled across the plains stayed on their journey west. It's filled with historical houses and buildings where prophets and apostles actually lived and spent there time. One of the main ones being Joseph Smith.

Here are some pics from our first day in Nauvoo.

SUPER small hotel room. We're used to sharing a queen size bed...this one was a full.


First machine gun invented.

This flower was huge. Chris compared it to his hand.

Young men used to carry these with gallons of water on their shoulders up the hill to the temple workers.

Handmade brick.

This is the kind of curling irons the women used to use.

Their bathrooms. They had buckets in the bottom of their chairs.

A small baby cradle.

REALLY steep stairs. They were scary.

We got mint-chocolate fudge from here. It was delicious!

The beautiful Nauvoo Temple at night.

Our first day was amazing and we learned so much. Stay tuned for day 2 of Nauvoo!!