Good Weather is Here!

And the good weather calls for:

Homemade soup in delicious bread bowls (left over from the Halloween party--thanks Aubrey!) 

Going "old school" on my morning run--gotta stay warm!

The best birthday present ever!  Brett and I got these from my parents...
they were waiting in our house when we got home from Sedona
and we are loving them!

Since we have our new bikes, Brett has been going to the local parks to shoot hoops.
The other night he let me tag along, and this guy asked Brett to play one-on-one.
Brett beat him 10-0.
It was awesome!
And the guy kept yelling out "This white boy can play!" and "Man, do you live on the court?"
It was a proud moment for me!

Mary Poppins and Bert = Happy Halloween

Do you remember how we went to our ward campout with our friends the Whitings?  Well Aubrey is finshing school studying event planning and they threw an awesome costume party a couple weeks before Halloween!

So we dressed up as Mary Poppins and Bert!  I just thrifted everything, and added a few touches (i.e. daisies to the hat, spray painted the chimney sweep black, made the red bow tie, etc.).  I was so excited that I found a carpet bag, an umbrella, and something close enough to a chimney sweep!

We ended up winning the "Best Couples Costume" Award!  And the decor was super cute.  I went a little early to help Aubrey set up, so right before everyone came I snapped a few pictures. 

the adorable drink station 

super cute table decor

the adorable awards given out 

the food table before the food arrived (the bag is covering all the delicious bread bowls!)

We had some different soups, bread bowls, appetizers, and an assortment of desserts.

Thanks Aubrey and Thomas, we had a blast!

My Birthday Boy

Today is Brett's 25th birthday!  I feel so blessed to be married to such a wonderful man.  He takes such great care of me, he shows me unconditional love, he is a great example to me.  He is my best friend, my sounding board, my voice of reason, my snuggler, my comedian, my love!  Here are just a few fun photos of my sweetheart throughout his life...

What an adorable baby he was!

He always has been an athlete

Best buds with his brothers

Raised by wonderful parents

Was an excellent (and well-loved) missionary

Courtship



And now he's mine for time and all eternity!

I love you Brett!

Birthday Weekend

(source)

Brett and I are going to be staying in this adorable, cozy

cabin-for-two this weekend to celebrate his 25th birthday. 

We can hardly wait to hit the road this afternoon!

Happy Days

A few of the happenings around here lately:

picking the last few flowers off of our rose bush

homemade sweet pork (Costa Vida knock-off) salads

(yes, I did buy the tins to eat them in--I know, I am a nerd!)

carving a pumpkin and making homemade caramel apples

(using the apples from Apple Annies--yum!)

we named him Pier and he looked quite lovely on our front porch...

before he slumped over and died

going to "Movie in the Park" and seeing "Guys and Dolls" with Jacob and Camille

(check out their fun dating blog, here)

complete with a picnic dinner and twinkly lights

obviously we didn't get ideal seating sitting right behind a pole and trash can,

but it was still fantastic and the weather was perfect!

we (or shall I say Brett) planted our garden with winter veggies

(I did make the markers though, ha!)

he also put in a dripline system (pays off to grow up on a farm!)

and just a few other shots of our backyard

I love all the different vegetation and trees (we have citrus and pecan trees)

and of course, our chickens had to make an appearance

and are these not the most adorable Halloween treats? 
one of my sweet Primary kids brought them over to me on Family Night

Weekend in Willcox

Brett and I went to Willcox a few weekends ago.  I love weekends away there.  They are slower paced, full of family togetherness, and wonderful weather. 

Here are just a few highlights from the trip:

fire burning in the fireplace and hot chocolate on chilly evenings

solving the worlds problems during family discussions

watching Brett round up 2 horses for us to ride, but a whole swarm of 10 followed him...he's the horse whisperer (or it possibly could have happened because of the bucket of grain he was carrying :)

a romantic horseback ride up into the mountains with a picnic lunch

(and Brett ripping a nice hole in his trousers)

taking the nieces and nephews on horseback rides and playing with them

homemade apple crisp from the apples in the backyard

being one of several fabulous "Sister Allred"s at church

a Fall feast of chili and cornbread

visiting brother and sister-in-law at their new beautiful home that is only surrounded by mountains and fields (she is just like Pioneer Woman!)

having chewy praline fudge for breakfast

picking out fresh produce at Apple Annie's

long talks and random dance parties in the car while driving

just being with the family

(I sure am going to miss my mother and father-in-law)

I've discovered that a huge part of me is a small-town girl

and I am lucky to have married the best cowboy around!



Anthro-Inspired Necklace

I came across this Anthro Inspired knock-off and knew I had to try it. 

Here is the original Anthropologie necklace:

Here is her knock-off (I like hers even better than the original)



I did mine a little different than her, I just used ribbon instead of using clamps.  I thought it was easier and cheaper--plus it would help the rope not fray as easily.  (Sorry that the lighting was bad in these pictures) 

 For my supplies, I used one flower from a pair of earrings, a flower off of a stretchy ring, and a flower from a brooche I found at a local thrift store.  (Sorry, I can't figure out how to turn the picture)

Then, I simply removed the back of the ring and earring, and hot glued them to the rope

 Wa-la!  The finished product!

I like it quite a bit! 

And I even adjust the length depending on what I'm wearing