I'm Free!

Attention: As of yesterday, those horrible braces are off!

You'll be able to see pictures when the Holiday post goes up in a few weeks.

Merry Christmas to Us

So, this year Kevin and I hunted down a deal for a new television. After reviewing countless ads and bouncing back and forth options, we decided on one from Sam's Club. We thought they'd sell quick and decided to look online Thanksgiving evening to see if we could make the purchase online. This was the smartest thing to do! Not only did we avoid waiting in line outside in the cold and missing sleep, but it was cheaper than purchasing it in the store at the sale cost and we got free shipping! Can that get any better? Maybe if the TV was free, but I was pretty satisfied. The 4 day wait however, drove us absolutely NUTS.

And so much for covered parking...

eating grass and takin' names

During the Alabama game, the camera caught LSU coach, Les Miles, munching on a blade of grass. When questioned about this odd ritual he responded,

"I have a little tradition that humbles me as a man, that lets me know that I'm a part of the field and part of the game," Miles said Saturday, as only he could, when asked about being caught on camera ingesting a blade of grass during the Alabama game. "You should have seen some games before this. I can tell you one thing: The grass in Tiger Stadium tastes best."

When it comes to football, I find myself a bit superstitious. I'll wear the same shirt, jewelry, shoes, etc. This past week the Ole Miss vs LSU game was a bit too tense and close for my liking. In the fourth quarter I decided to join Les Miles and munch down on some turf. Call me crazy for doing it but hey, we won!
Later, Kevin tells me that he has Sanford Stadium grass in his backyard. Before his mission, they patched their backyard grass with the sod from the stadium. And not just any grass, but the grass from the "G", the center of the field. "How could we be together this long and you never share this with me!?" I exclaimed, "Do you have any idea the people who have walked on the grass? Pros! Amazing coaches! IT'S FOOTBALL!" My dad and I think that they could have made serious money off of that sod. If it was Death Valley grass, I would have fenced that off, built a little shrine, and placed a sign stating,
"No Dawgs allowed".

** Disclaimer: Some of you may think this is ridiculous. But this gives you an idea of just how important football is in our lives. Obsessive you may call it but this is a way of life and how we were raised. Can't change that so eat it :)

our wish list

We are pretty pleased with most of what we have. We're pretty practical this year.
For those who are needing a little guidance...
Christmas Wish List

Waiting is the hardest part...

I kept asking Kevin when could we put the Christmas decor up. "Later." was his response. I was talking with my friends Jayme and Lindsey. We agreed we would put them up the following weekend (2 weeks before Thanksgiving). I thought that was fair since I had mine up last year the first week of November. Later that evening Lindsey announced on her facebook status that she caved and put everything up. The next day it snowed... a lot. That made it even more tempting! As Kevin is outside he noticed the neighbors also put their tree up. For me, 2 homes justified my wants and I could not handle it any longer. So, at 9pm I made Kevin take the tree out. Perhaps I did succumb to peer pressure. So what? Yay for the Holidays!

Perhaps I am fascinated and excited by silly and simple things but I thought this was pretty cool. I attended a baby shower today for my friend Markie. There were several games with yummy prizes if you win. The first was to guess how many M&Ms are in the baby bottle. I guessed 123.. there was a total of 128. I was very impressed with my estimate! The second game we each took yarn and guessed the current circumference of her tummy with Baby Ellie inside. I was an inch and a quarter off! WOW!! That never happens. So, I was pretty excited about my winnings.
Thanks Ashleigh and Nicole for the Godiva chocolates! :)Perhaps I should have tried the lottery today? Nah.

Collin Raye in Rexburg?

Kevin and I went to see Colin Raye last night on campus. It was pretty fun evening. With Kevin and I's crazy work schedules this semester, we usually stay at home, cook a meal and watch a movie or play a game. It was nice to do something different for a change. Who would have thought anyone would come here besides David Archuleta?

There are a few other performances between now and Christmas we'd like to attend so we'll keep you posted on what we do the next few weeks.

Leaves are falling all around

Fall is almost gone and I am just realizing that I haven't blogged much about it so here are a few things we've been up to the past few weeks. Sorry I'm such a slacker!

Right before school began we went on a hike with some friends to the wind caves. They are right around where we camp for the Annual Bradley family reunion but this past reunion we didn't get there early enough in the day to go, which I think is completely fine now that I know what the hike is like. Call me lazy and completely out of shape but it was a continuous incline for like an hour! Then I felt even more like a sissy cause there are little kids hiking it and I'm feeling like I'm gonna die. Here is a picture of us at the top, where it was freezing. Would I do it again? I don't know. Ask me next year and we shall see.

A few weeks later we had opportunity to go to General Conference. Thanks so much Father-in-law!We stayed at Grandma's and Grandpa's along with some family and had a blast. We cooked lots of jambalya and etouffee, watched LSU have their crazy win over Tennessee, and sang Beatles songs :) It was a great weekend!

The days have been so nice here. Perfect fall weather! We were told there was a chance of snow this week so we thought we should enjoy fall while it was still here. What better way to do that than carve pumpkins? And what is the best part of fall? Football, duh!Later that evening there was a stake Harvest Ball, where they happened to have a pumpkin carving contest. We brought ours but they didn't place, which I think that is crazy. People here don't understand us Southern folk.

so close

So, I was terribly excited for today because I was scheduled to get my braces off. Hallelujah! But as the appointment got closer, I was beginning to think that my orthodontist would notice something and make some suggestions or want to tweak this and that. Because really they aren't perfect but really, will my teeth every be PERFECT? Probably more than likely not. And I am okay with that.
We arrived at the appointment and he looks all over, "Open. Now close. Open. Well, I could make a few minor detail adjustments. If that is okay with you."
I have come so far. Really, I am so done wearing them. I was done like 12 months ago! So of course, I said, "Okay." I know if I had him take them off I would kick my bum all the time for not leaving them on a month more. I'm scheduled to take them off beginning of November, but that could change again if there is any more recommended "tweaking". I'll cross my fingers!

Pizza Pizza!

So, lately pizza has been a popular dish at our house. Mostly because it is easy, pretty quick, and super good. My mom wanted a few of the recipes so here they are for all to enjoy.

Easy Pizza Dough
(from my wonderful friend, Emily Blodgett)
1 pkg. (or 2 1/4 tsp) of active yeast
1 cup warm (not hot) water
1 tbl sugar
3/4 tsp. salt
2 tbl oil
2 1/2-1/3 cup flour (try 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 1/2-2 cup all purpose flour)

Directions: Mix yeast in warm water. Add sugar and let sit 5 minutes. Add salt and oil; mix. Gradually add flour to form a stiff dough. Allow dough to rest and rise with a towel over it for 20-30 minutes. Roll out into a pizza pan and poke all over with a fork. Bake at 425 for 3-4 minutes. Remove from over. Add toppings and return to oven 10-12 minutes.

We have recently attempted this recipe I got off allrecipes.com

BBQ Chicken Pizza
Mix- 1 cup of hickory BBQ Sauce, 1 tbl of honey, 1 tsp molasses, 1/3 c. of brown sugar, 1/2 bunch cilantro, and 2-3 cups of shredded chicken - over medium heat.
Once mixed spread over pizza. Add 1 c. Gouda cheese (I used mozerella) and 1 cup of sliced red onions. Bake at 425 for 15-20 minutes.

There is another recipe I really want to try that sounds wonderful...
Gourmet Chicken Pizza
Bake Pizza crust as instructed above. Toppings: 1/2 cup of ranch, 2lbs of shredded chicken, 1 cup of mozerella, 1 cup of cheddar, 1 cup of chopped tomatoes, 1/4 cup of green onions.
Bake at 425 for 10-12 minutes.

Summer Days

We've had an exciting summer and have kept busy. I've blogged about a few things, our anniversary, Casey's wedding, and the Bradley Family reunion. But there are a few activities I haven't blogged about so here are some pictures of what we have been up to.

We got together with some friends from the ward and went to the sand dunes for a bonfire and smores.

We celebrated our 1 year anniversary!

We were so excited to eat our cake topper cause our wedding cake was amazing. We talked about how excited we were to eat it about a dozen or so times throughout the year.

Our first visitors are some of my favorite people. My family! We had so much fun going to BearWorld, the spray park, museums, and park city. The weather was so nice we had picnics in our front yard for dinners. We took the kids one evening to a camp ground and built a fire and roasted smores. We loved having them here!

I turned another year older... Yikes! Since Grandma and Grandpa just moved into their new home, we didn't have candles. So my dad lit some toothpicks and had me blow those out.

We have a drive in theater close to where we live. They usually show two movies each night so we watched Toy Story 3 and Eclipse. We went a little early to get a good spot. We played uno until the movie began.We brought pillows and blankets and munched on sour gummy worms and skittles. It gets cool so we turned the car off, rolled the windows down and listened to it on our radio. About 5 minutes left for Toy Story... the car died. Ooooh No! We had a couple next to us jump Marley and we let the car run for Eclipse. The guy who was so helpful said that it had happened to him the first time he had went to the drive in. Now he doesn't risk it and just leaves his car running. We for sure learned our lesson!I have had a bit more time on my hands so we have been trying different recipes lately. It is nice to not eat the same things all the time. Recently, I attempted a homemade pizza and it was pretty yummy.

I thought Mom Bradley would be excited to know that the pizza dough rose and did everything that it was supposed to! I've struggled with using yeast, making pastries, rolls, etc. I was almost sure that this would not work but thought I would give it a try. After all, the recipe was for "Easy Pizza dough". I thought surely it should work and .... tah dah!

Bradley Family Reunion

For the past 50 years the Bradleys have a family reunion where they camp, play games, and eat yummy food for a few days. This year was my first Bradley reunion experience and I loved it. I am super lucky to be part of such a wonderful family. I feel like I have new wonderful friends and I am excited for next year!
This is our camp spot when we first got there. We munched on some beef jerky and played phase 10 to pass some time before dinner.

Thanks to my parents we've have this lovely large green tent. We camped by mom and Dad Bradley and Kevin's siblings. Thank goodness we had Lesa and Brian around. They seem to have everything that you happen to leave at home - extra stakes, water filters, a broom, tables, collapsible closets, etc.Bradley enjoyed his camping experience inside the tent, while Daniel enjoyed some dirt. He would have ate some more if Lesa wouldn't have stopped him.

This was a game that they played with Oreos. Rule was that you have to get the Oreo from your forehead to you mouth without using your hands. Basically everyone was in line making the most ridiculous faces and trying to get their face muscles to move the cookie.

Mom and Dad Bradley with some of their cute grandkids watching everyone play games.

Our campfire. Everyone would sit around it and eat meals together. This evening we had hotdogs and smores.

Mr. Adorable munchin on his dinner.

Recently....

We attended a sealing for a friend of mine from back home in Louisiana.
Congratulations Casey and Jillian! We are so happy for you two and wish you the best of luck as you begin this wonderful journey together! We look forward to seeing you guys next time we're in Utah.

We also recently celebrated our 1 year anniversary! Kevin is such a great husband- a huge help and support for me with work, home, family, and church. It has been a wonderful year and we look forward to the years to come.

Since we were in Utah for Casey's wedding, we decided to go to P.F. Changs, a favorite of ours and we had gone to on our honeymoon in Florida. Here is me in front of the restaurant reenacting the picture taken a year ago.

We don't have kids and we can't have Lola. I thought about getting fish but then I remembered you have to clean the fish bowl often (let's just clarify, I would rather bath and blow dry Lola every week than clean a fish bowl). I need to nurture something!
Mitch and Carrie, our old neighbors whom we miss terribly might I add, left us this guy. He has actually grown alot and we recently upgraded his pot. I don't have the heart to put him outside for fear he gets too cold or the wind blows too hard. You can water him and give him plenty of sun but he is always droopy, hence his name, Eeyore. The first day after moving him to his new location I was thrilled (am I lame or what?). Kevin saw one in the Taylor building that was over 4 feet. I am excited to see what happens to this little guy!

home sweet home

I recently was able to go home for a few big events going on: my sister's graduation, my brother's baptism, and crawfish season. Kevin wasn't able to tag along this one due to school and midterms so he was left to fend for himself a few days. He did quite well thanks to Scott and Ali, some ward members, and previously frozen meals. Everything was still in one piece when I returned and the house was clean.
Being home was so great and I ate so much food. In 4 days I had been to Copeland's 3 times, Tsunami's once, had my crawfish and fried shrimp, and plenty of other wonderful goodness. *oink oink*

oh sweet goodness! THE best sushi you will ever eat!
The family with the graduate. Congratulations Sistah!
My adorable fluff ball, Lola.
We sure do miss her and wish she could be here with us!
My little bug who kept saying "I can't believe you're here! I can't tell you how excited I am!"
Crawfish. The best.

So I have been a flake and never updated you on how our Mother's day cookout went. It was so yummy and our eyes were way bigger than our stomaches. We had hamburgers, grilled pinnapple, baked beans, fries, and monster sundaes (thanks to Jon and Julia) to top it all off.

I thought for Mother's Day it would be yummy to have hamburgers however we do not have a grill. With summer coming (hopefully!), we thought it would be fun to get one to cook outside and enjoy the warm weather (and most importantly, cook the hamburgers). We didn't want to spend a ton, so I went to walmart and got us little propane grill and this is what it looked like.

There were pieces EVERYWHERE! It came in what seemed a million pieces with screws, washer things, etc. An hour later this was our end result...

We'll let you know how the hamburgers turn out!

sweetart gummy bunnies are yummy!

This past weekend we were able to spend time with grandma and grandpa in their new home in the Wasatch Valley. It is so great to have more family close by and more opportunity to visit Dairy Keen for a Train Burger! Yum!

We thought that we would have opportunity to thaw out some from the winter weather however we woke up to snow Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Grandpa and Kevin were great with shoveling the sidewalk and scraping the cars off every morning.

Here is the Heber Valley view at sunrise.
Kevin and I dyed eggs (VERY carefully). We did not hide them Sunday morning because we were rushing to leave on time for conference, however, they were helpful to have for the potato salad for Easter dinner the following day.
Saturday evening while the men attended conference, the ladies went to Zuppa's in Salt Lake City. It is an amazingly yummy soup, sandwich, and salad place! It is now one of my new loves. According to grandma, they have the best soup spoons and you cannot find them anywhere else. I beg to differ.
Easter morning the family was able to attending the Sunday morning session of conference. I loved conference and Music and the Spoken Word. They were both AMAZING! Jan and her family were there as well but I think by the time we snapped the picture they were lost.
Sunday dinner was at the grandparents and we had gumbo and potato salad.
All in all it was a GREAT weekend!