In the Details

A few days ago, Cam and I were in a bit of an argument. Of course about something silly that I already can't remember. I was being sensitive and lame, and he was being slightly stubborn. 

Why do we do that?

That morning we were talking it out in the car on the way to run an errand. I was drinking my smoothie while he was talking. Out of no where, he had to hit the brakes fast to avoid hitting the car in front of us. When he turned to make sure I was okay, below is the sight he found. Smoothie mustache perfectly on my face, that of which to find on Mario from Nintendo 64. 

We couldn’t stop laughing and instantly recognized it as a tender mercy from our Heavenly Father who was definitely aware of the situation and knew exactly what we needed to make light of the matter and remember how much we love each other and how dumb we were being. It worked of course.

This week my testimony of our Heavenly Father being involved in the details has really surfaced. I know that when we invite Him to be involved, He is all in. I know he loves us on a level we will never comprehend in this life. My faith in that simple principle helps me to rely on him and put more in my Savior's hands. I'm definitely not a pro at turning things over to Him as quickly as I should, but I'm learning it more and more. 

I'm also grateful for his sense of humor. 

-Not my most beautiful moment-

I found this great news article of an interview with President Thomas S. Monson that added to my testimony of God being in the details. Enjoy it HERE. 

April Showers

Before we left for Texas, I was scrambling to celebrate my different friends and their upcoming weddings, babies, etc. That is one of the bitter parts of this sweet job we have. One of the greatest friends I have been blessed with, McKenzie Palmer, is pregnant with a baby girl. SO EXCITING! She is going to be such a hot mom. So naturally we had to celebrate and spoil the little babe before the summer separated us.

Kenz and I met as random roommates halfway through my sophomore year of college. Funny thing about that... Before she moved in, we were pretty content with the current roommates that year at Belmont in Provo. When we caught word that we would be gaining a new roomie, we were not thrilled. We plotted a number of terrible things to sabotage this stranger's experience and make it "her choice" to choose an alternative living space...

Then Kenz walked through the door. You can't help but adore her within 10 seconds of knowing her and all plans were aborted without further discussion. From summer adventures, setting her up with her husband via Skype, Belmont living at its finest along side our boyfriends who turned into fiancés, and bridesmaids at each other's weddings...I'd say McKenzie has turned into one my best friends.

{so excited for you to start your cute family girlfriend, love you dearly}

With the help of Shelby Tracy (her blog is awesome, check it out HERE), we put on a fun shower to pamper baby Palmer. 

We had a baby food testing game, not everyone's favorite, but I thought it was a hoot! Shelby brought the most darling memory matching game filled with baby words and a corresponding candy price for each match. Definitely a crowd fav! 

Once again, the invitation was made on Pixingo. I don't know how I would do these things without it. I create my card/invite online, they print, they address, they send it. Saves me so much time. I'm a big fan! 

- C E L E B R A T E -

BNO - Bride's Night Out

Luckily for me, my freshman year of college blessed me with the greatest friends I could ever dream of. It all started in apartment F316, but it didn't end there.

If you are looking for:

-Laughs

-Honesty

-Support

-Loyalty

-Generosity

-Respect

-Fun

-Forgiveness

-Love

...these girls are it. More about our sisterhood and fun memories on my girl Stefani's blog here.

Out of the 6 of us, 3 are married and that is soon to be 4! We were able to celebrate the soon to be Mrs. Taelor Mangleson up at Deer Valley Club in Park City a few weeks ago before I headed off to Texas. Here are some pictures of the night!

We enjoyed delicious treats provided by Whitney & Lyndsi. Whitney makes the best white chocolate M&M popcorn ever and its a must have at every GNO (or BNO). I don't have her secret recipe but I found a similar one HERE. 

Lyndsi brought the best Italian Soda and Dirty Diet Coke equipment that we sipped on all night long. Don't know if I could have made it to 4am without it.

These girls sure know how to party. Love them with my whole heart. 

Someone wise once said, "Best friends don't let you do stupid things...alone."

#soblessed

DIY or DIE

Great news, I joined a craft group! My sweet friend from high school, Kate Gallacher put together a monthly craft possy to help us meet new friends and finally execute our forever pins of cute crafts on Pinterest. I've been so excited for this to start and this month was my turn!

To explain how this is all going down, just in case you would like to start your own, here are the deets:

-Our group consists of 12 girls (1 girl per month)

-Every 2nd Wednesday of the month we meet up at 7pm to craft it up

-Each month a different girl will host the craft

(hosting consists of having everyone over, picking the project, getting the supplies, and of course providing snacks)

- Every girl pays $15/month to participate. 

-We have a craft bin holding all the extra supplies from past crafts (so they can be recycled in a different project) that gets passed from host to host at each activity. 

I created this little calendar and sent it out to everyone in the mail via Pixingo (which makes it easy) trying to prove my domesticity.  (ignore the red squiggles, those didn't get printed)

My efforts in proving my domestic self were to no avail. I couldn't hide my lack of crafty talent for long. I saw this darling idea on Pinterest that seems simple enough. All you need is a plain white mug and a sharpie, what could go wrong? The girls would soon see right through me! I had high hopes that craftiness would just spring out of me when I needed it most and DIY would become a suffix to my name.

Lets just say I'm learning it takes practice and patience. Although my DIY skills are in the making, I do love to throw a P A R T Y. Here's how it turned out!

Disregard the limited space in our condo, presentation was a little smushed. 

Everyone else's mugs turned out DARLING. I wish so bad I would've taken pictures of all of them. All you need is a blank mug and a gold sharpie. Design as you wish and bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. *Let the mugs cool COMPLETELY. (or learn the hard way)

DISCLAIMER: I had someone message me who tried the mugs... guess you shouldn't put them in the dishwasher! I hand-washed mine, so they have stayed decorated. Some dishwashers may erase all your hard work.

The drink in the giant mason jar was a hit:

Simply Limeade 

Diet 7Up

Mint Leaves

Lime

Love

Food served was different, easy, and great for parties:

Sliced apples from Costco on lollypop sticks

Caramel and Chocolate fondue 

+ toppings 

(heath bar bits, oreo bits, coconut, & peanuts)

We also munched on a yummy salad and rolls. It was a delicious and domestic evening. 

Let me know how yours turns out! 

DIY or DIE

My Heart Will Go On

For Christmas, Cameron scored serious points by making all my hopes and dreams come true. When I opened up the Celine Dion tickets he surprised me with, I may have shed a few happy tears, gave plenty of heart felt smooches, and instantly started counting down the days. February 22nd couldn't come soon enough!

You could say we "Drove All Night" and "The Power of Love" carried us through until we reached Caesar's Palace on Saturday night. I felt so "Alive" as we ("All by Myself") sang her songs for hours straight before the show. I about died of excitement on our way to the Colosseum and Cameron "Loved Me Back to Life." "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" as I write about that blessed night. Celine's wardrobe, orchestra, stage, and most of all her incredible voice and music was seriously amazing, "That's the Way It Is". The overall performance was, as my Mother-in-law warned me... almost as holy as General Conference.

I might be going overboard, thankfully Cameron was such a good sport and let me be as excited as I needed to be. I loved every minute of the show. Cameron definitely won husband of the year. "A New Day has Come" but "My Heart Will Go On".

-Sappy I know, but I thought it was creative-

In the excitement of getting to the theater, I left the good camera in the car... so bare with the iphone photos and the fact that I begged Cam to take a picture in front of every poster. 

(That Holy)

"I Got Nothin' Left"...