Tis' the Season

I really wanted this December to be stress free-to enjoy it more, that hasn't happened. Even though I got a late start on my decorations and many other things that this month involves-I am really feeling the magic of the Christmas season-it's definitely a busy month, but December brings so many things that none of the other months can!

Why is it....

that misplacing or temporarily losing a cell phone creates an instant panic, a sense of hyperventilating, and an 'oh crap, what am i going to do' feeling? Cell phones really became readily available at the end of my high school career.....I haven't even hit the 10 year anniversary of having a cell phone, and yet it is without a doubt one of the most important things in my life.

It is my connection to the world (obviously the computer rivals it), but my computer does not have all of my numbers stored on it-numbers that I once used to have memorized until I became so dependent on my 'phonebook'. I have an attachment to a cell phone, a very strong attachment. I realize that I can sync my address book to the computer and what not, but I have not gone that far-I occasionally will write all of the numbers down in my phone in case of a loss-but really that takes forever and I have higher priorities on my list.

I know we say this a lot, but what did we do in the days without cell phones. We used to take big long trips and go everywhere without them-but we are so dependent upon them now!! We definitely planned better back in 'the day' or just did without. We fixed our own flat tires, instead of calling someone to come do it for us. But now we have them, love them, and would be lost without them. I do enjoy going on trips where cell phone service doesn't exist and not having to think about it or a couple of days, but then there is that anticipation of getting back into range, turning your phone back on, and seeing what you missed out on. However, knowing my cell phone doesn't get service doesn't make me panic and go through withdrawals like losing it does.

I misplaced my phone today, but don't worry-I found it! (after a slight freak out moment)

For Sale....

I am selling my camera-if you are interested and want more details, you can email me at cathywall12@gmail.com  It is perfect for anyone looking to upgrade to a DSLR-or maybe to ask Santa for, for Christmas!

Good Times....

We played in a golf tournament last night with some family friends!  I had so much fun!  We got paired up with  Justin and Angie which was a blast!  I love when G is around Justin, he just loosens up and is such a goof ball!  I did not have my best game and the guys were well aware of it and didn't hold back on letting me know!  Just kidding, they were nice, just really heavy on the sarcasm!  Apparently when you are prego you do awesome (no I'm not prego)...Angie played incredible and was the key factor in our victory!!  Since my golf game wasn't the best, I broke out the camera and started playin' around....

My thoughts.....my random thoughts....

UEA weekend is wrapping up and I'm quite sad about it, I didn't get half the things done that I would have liked to....but that's just the way life goes.  I had a lot of thoughts over the weekend and feel the need to share...

First of all, life stinks!  It has its ups and downs and the downs really really really stink sometimes.

It got really cold, really fast.  I.hate.the.cold.

There are a lot of worthless things on tv. Sometimes I waste my time watching them.

If you start a project, make sure you have time to finish it.

Editing pictures takes a long time.

Nothing goes the way I plan it-nothing.

I get more done when Garrett is gone, but still don't get enough done.

I really want to go to Disneyland-or on a cruise.

Laundry never ends.

Peach season is coming to an end and I don't feel like I took advantage of it while it was here, bummer!..I said I was going to can peaches, nope, never happened.

Technology is amazing.  Google is one of my favorite inventions of all time.

I have a craft to-do list three miles long, but I must first finish my kitchen table remodel project that I started two months ago.

I have to prepare myself for the hard times-otherwise I will never get through them.

Seeing people I haven't seen in awhile-usually makes me really happy, this weekend it did!

I am very very very hard on myself.

I would spend a lot less time procrastinating if facebook and blogs were never invented....or just the internet it general-(I'm sure I would find other things to occupy my time).

I don't like being sad.  This weekend was full of sadness for me, lets hope it gets better from here.

It's almost that time.....

I have two things that I look forward to every year: the first is Swiss Days, I absolutely love it-crafts, food and hanging out with the girls.  Unfortunately I didn't get to go this year, bummer!  My second favorite thing (equally passioned with the first) is the Scraps of Simplicity Market.....more crafts, fun finds and hanging out with the girls.  If you've never been, it's a must go!  I'm pretty sure that the majority of the decorations for my house came from these two events---I'm so excited that it's less than a month away!

In Full Swing.....

Oh yes, we are officially in full swing of hunting season. I ran some errands the other night while G was studying for his final......anyone who really knows him, knows how dedicated of a student he is. Naturally I was slightly puzzled when I couldn't find him when I got back home. I looked for him everywhere. Finally, I found him coming up the stairs wearing this........

I laughed really really really hard when I saw him (he was pretty much playing dress up)!

To Realize....

To realize
The value of a sister/brother
Ask someone
Who doesn't have one.

To realize
The value of ten years:
Ask a newly
Divorced couple.

To realize
The value of four years:
Ask a graduate.

To realize
The value of one year:
Ask a student who
Has failed a final exam.


To realize
The value of nine months:
Ask a mother who gave birth to a stillborn.

To realize
The value of one month:
Ask a mother
Who has give n birth to
A premature baby....

To realize
The value of one week:
Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize
The value of one minute:
Ask a person
Who has missed the train, bus or plane.

To realize
The value of one-second:
Ask a person
Who has survived an accident.

Time waits for no one.

Treasure every moment you have!!!

yayyyyyyy!!

Hooray, w00-hoo, yippee, happy day......................I ran out of descriptive words to express my excitement for this wonderful occasion (no the occasion is not that I am finally updating my blog).  We finally got a computer!!!!!!!!!!!!!  (I should say an updated computer that is not 10 years old).  I will be able to work on pictures from home now, and won't have to go to my parents every time!!!  Oh I am so happy!  

Waffle Cookie......Recipe

Due to the overwhelming response that my mother in law has gotten from my post about the waffle cookie, we decided to post the recipe-so you all may have the opportunity to enjoy this delightful treat! However, let this be the warning.....she does not follow the recipe exactly and they turn out different every time. (I made them for my family reunion this past weekend-and I did everything she said and they seemed to be lacking something-like, her special touch) Do not let this discourage you from trying them, because they are, oh so wonderful!

Because the recipe doesn't make a ton-our suggestion would be to double it.....
**(this is the original recipe-without doubling)**
1/2 c. butter
3/4 c. sugar
2 eggs
6 Tbsp. cocoa (she lightens up on the cocoa-maybe about 4 Tbsp.)
1 c. flour
1 tsp. vanilla

** soften the butter (but do not melt it) and then beat together the with the sugar
add eggs, beat
add cocoa, beat
add flour, beat
add vanilla, beat

The mix should be cookie dough like (kind of thick, but not too thick) don't add all of the flour at once, add the first cup and check the consistency, then add a little more until you get the desired consistency (those are her instructions-which she finds suitable, however this is where I think I messed up because it stresses me out to just put things in without knowing what the desired result is, therefore if you have any questions, call her!!!)

Heat up the waffle iron (she uses the regular square waffle iron, I only had a belgian waffle maker, and they seemed to work okay in that)

There is no perfect size for these things, you will have to probably make a few and figure out what size you want them. I used a 1/4 c. to scoop the batter into the waffle iron (not filling it completely full--the end result should probably range 2-3 inches in diameter). The recipe says to cook them for 50-70 seconds.....I just did them until they looked done, and if I tried to pick them up and dough came out, obviously keep them in for a little bit longer.

Don't forget to spray the iron with pam-it helps a lot!!

The frosting is just the powdered sugar frosting, with cocoa in it-make it pretty thick and don't forget the most important part.....the SPRINKLES!!!

They soften up very nicely when stored in a tupperware container

(sorry if this is a lot, or really confusing--but this is how it was explained to me)

Reassuring.....or NOT!

So we just had a guy come spray for bugs/spiders/wasps etc. etc. I for one sleep better knowing there aren't spiders crawling on me at night and through my stuff during the day-so it's well worth the money to me. I informed him that we have a lot of the huge brown spiders and so do many of my neighbors. He told me that they are probably the wolf spider, that often gets confused with the hobo. Sweet, I can handle that. Then he comes back in from spraying my garage and says, oh ya, you have hobos out there-JOY, that's so reassuring, just what I wanted to hear. And we'll make it better by adding black widows to the mix! Double joy!! (However he did say, that hobos were worse-which I think I thought the opposite). So I do feel better knowing that they are all currently starting to die wherever they may be. I don't like the fact though, that my school stuff has been stored in my garage for the last couple of months and now that I have moved it to my classroom, the spiders are crawling out of the boxes and taking over the school-I can't even think about it.

If anyone is interested in having their house sprayed-let me know, I'll hook you up with his number. He guarantees his work, comes as often as you like, and it is very reasonably priced-I think it is going to be well worth it! I dare say I'll sleep better tonight!

A camping we will go....

I love the annual trip to Bridger Lake-even though I am still fairly new to this adventure, I dare say it is one of my favorites! I love fishing, sitting around the camp fire and I love the Waffle Cookies that only get made for this trip!

I had no idea what a Waffle Cookie was until last years trip-but I quickly fell in love!! G's mom makes them-they are a little slice of heaven! All I know is that they are made in a waffle iron, chocolate is a main ingredient, and they have frosting and sprinkles on top.....oh yes, and they usually don't last very far into the trip!

We got to Bridger on Thursday and it was cold, quite cold (in fact it had snowed there that morning). We hung out around the campfire all day.

Friday was much nicer-then sun came out and that was our cue to go fishing. We went over to State Line Dam....it's so pretty there.

The boys were impatient because they didn't catch anything on their first two casts (that may be a slight exaggeration) so we headed up the stream....the girls walked up one side, while the boys on the other. Well at one point, they had to cross over to our side-oh to see that was a treat in itself.

This was the river they had to cross-it was actually moving very fast (in G's defense)

he was taking itty-bitty baby steps-until he got a Charlie Horse/nerves, oh I wish I would have had a video camera with me...

these pics are cracking me up!

He resorted to crawling across it....and got mad at us for taking pictures of him. I think this is by far my favorite pic-he looks scared to death!!!!

Cord had no trouble at all....and of course made fun of G!

I caught one fish up the river.....That's one fish more than I caught last year!

G struggled with catching a fish-and while we hiked back to the 4-wheelers, he went back to the inlet to tell the others we were leaving. He ended up catching a ride on the boat with them.....they all kept casting out the side of the boat on their journey back, everyone was catching fish but him. One of my nephews got a fish on the line (for the umpteenth time and was very aware that G wasn't catching any), he kept insisting to G that he be the one that reel it in........it was hilarious-even a 7 year old was trying to take pity on him!!

My brother in law had a cabin tent that he wanted to try out...it has a stove inside, with a chimey coming out the top, I was all for it, until I found out that there was no bottom to the tent-so one of the nephews stayed in there with G instead. He put the lantern in it---it was pretty cool how it illuminated the whole tent.

Even though it was much cooler this year, I still had a blast!

10 years in the making....

So after 10 years of G putting in for a hunt, he Finally drew out for Bull Elk! Yay! He is so excited and now all I hear about is hunting....there are videos on, calls being practiced and lets not forget-his new obsession with practicing his shot, whenever he gets a chance. We headed up to the valley for a wedding reception Friday night, and stopped at the shooting range after. Luckily, I had my camera to keep me entertained-because lets face it, I can't shoot a muzzle-loader! I did help set up the target and was there for moral support. I decided I wanted to get a shot of the bullet coming out of the barrel. He kept telling me it was never going to happen, which made me more determined to try. I told him he had to count so that I knew when to take the pic.....he only followed along for about three times of that and then told me I was messing him up. So, no pic of the bullet coming out, but I did get some of the 'sparks', which I will be satisfied with for now!! Anyway, this new chapter of our lives will continue through September. I truly am excited for this opportunity for him-he has been waiting a long time! I just hope he doesn't get too excited and miss!!

Bittersweet....

School's Out For the Summer (cue Alice Cooper song). Wow, I can't believe that I made it through my first year of teaching-it flew by. Friday was actually a really hard day for me-I cried a lot. The kids in my class cried, a lot (even the boys). I think it would have been different if I was staying at the school and would see them next year, but nope, being shipped off to another school means that I will never see most of those kids ever again, that is what made it so hard. It's amazing how attached to the kids I got....but on a happier note, summer is here and I can do as I please-I've never had this kind of freedom before. We'll see what I make of it... (I think I'll start by getting caught up on my house and try to organize the 3rd grade classroom that is consuming my garage and front room!!!)

This is how my life is going.....

I came home from work the other day, to find that these were the socks that I had worn the whole day, hopefully nobody noticed-but this is a perfect example of how crazy my life is right now! More posts to come soon (I hope)

Loved it.......

I have been wanting tickets to Wicked ever since I heard it was coming to Utah. Being that I was not a season ticket holder-my chances were slim. However, a dear friend at work told me that she had two extra tickets and offered them to me! Oh Happy Day! So my friend Angie and I headed to Salt Lake last night to see the show! I loved it! The people in it are so incredibly talented and the atmosphere is amazing. We had fabulous seats, which made it even better. I do have to say that I liked the first half better than the second, I think because of the humor in the first half-but it was all still great! My sister got on KSL yesterday and bought some tickets for a decent price, so if you have any desire at all to go---DO IT! You won't regret it!

Venting my Frustration....

I am trying to keep my cool while posting this comment (as well as keep the tears back). I just returned from getting my hair done. The girl I have gone to for quite some time, recently left on a mission. I was forced to find someone new. I stuck with the same salon, and took advice from the receptionist on who to go to. AHHHHH! The girl took it upon herself to to add some things to the color I picked, because she thought it would look good. Well, my hair is now more blackish than brownish (kind of an ashy hue) and it's so bluntley cut on the bottom that I feel like I am in 4th grade again (with the awful haircuts I used to get back in the day). There are hardly any layers in it at all, infact I've spent the last ten minutes giving myself layers, just to liven' it up a little bit. Need I go on?! I don't know what to do-besides cry. I can't pay to go have it done again and I don't want to go back to her, to have her fix it. So if there is any one out there that knows what they are doing when it comes to hair, and wants to take pity on me....let me know. oh ya, and she cost $20 more than my other girl, the tension keeps mounting. I am so bummed out right now.

Cure for the Winter Blue's

There is nothing better to help you get over the cold weather............than Ice Cream!!! Some may think that it is a little crazy to eat such a cold treat, when it is 40 degrees outside. However, when my Arizona cousins come to town, no matter what the weather may be, we take several trips to Farr's Ice Cream!! Nothing compares to Farr's!!

**Okay, it's really not quite as enjoyable in the cold, but we toughed it out to get some pics for Jenna who could not be here and was sad she missed out on Farr's.

One of my students discovered Farr's recently and this is the conversation that took place....

Student: "Teacher, have you ever been to Farr Better Ice Cream?"

Me: "Yes, Farr's is actually one of my favorite places to go."

Student: "Is Farr's the same place as Farr Better Ice Cream"

Me: (laughing) "Yes it is-I'm going there this week, what kind should I get?"

Student: "Oh you've got to get Lime Rickey, with chocolate chip cookie dough-but you have to get it in the waffle cone-It's huge"

I just thought it was funny because he called it Farr Better Ice Cream (I've never heard anyone call it that before.....or mix those two flavors together)

Jenna, (who could not be with us) requested that we buy playdough ice cream in her honor-So we did!

Nobody else wanted Playdough Ice Cream (except me)......but Kyle seemed to have no problem eating it, when I was taking a few pics of Staci. Thanks Kyle-it solved my problem of how I was going to hold it while driving!!

If Only......

If only, it would just stay warm. I have a love/hate relationship with this time of the year. I am always excited for Spring to come. I am NOT a cold weather person and I get so giddy at even the slightest signs of Spring. However, living where I do-the seasons like to toy with my emotions. Last week it was 74 degrees on Saturday (however wind was a major issue). I worked out in the yard for many hours. I even bought some BEAUTIFUL flowers that are ready to be planted now-despite our weather's inability to make up it's mind. And then.......it snowed, and the next day it rained, and the next day it was windy, and then it snowed AGAIN!!! I can't stand it. For now, I will just continue to water my flowers that are sitting in my garage, waiting for

Spring weather that will be sufficient. I get so excited for Tulips to come up-they are such a happy flower.....but Tulips with snow around......NOT so happy!!!

TAG, I'm it.....

I was tagged by Coley J. here are the rules
1. Go to your picture file
2. Go to your 6th picture folder
3. Go to your 6th picture
4. Blog about it
5. Tag 6 people

AHHH! The nightmare returns! This picture is from my trip to Arizona last May. I went down for my cousin's wedding and made a little vacation out of it. On Mother's Day, I was showering and noticed that one of the shower doors was off track. I was very careful not to bump it, and even left it open a little. I was able to reach for my towel through the open door, but come time to get out, I slid it slightly so I could fit through the said opening. CRASH!!! It slid off the edge of the tub, inward, to where I was standing. I think I tried to catch it or something, because my main cuts were on my hands. The crash was heard throughout the house-my cousins ran to my rescue. My cousin Mark was the lucky one that got to rescue from the glass-luckily I had already grabbed the towel!!! It took a little while to get all of the minature pieces of glass off of me, then my dear sweet cousins had to help dress me. We'll just say that we all got a lot closer that trip!!! We went to the insta care, and they sent me to the ER, because they thought my tendon had been cut. 6 HOURS later, we headed home with some stitches in both of my hands and a couple bandaids on my legs. We had to dig deep to come up with things to entertain us for that long, we did manage though! I think we even got in a little trouble =) When I got checked into the actual room, the lady gave me a shot in my hand, to ease the pain and to prepare for stitches, well it took her so long to come back, that it had worn off and they had to give me another shot, plus one in the other hand too. Not my favorite day on record! Who has a shower door shatter on them anyway?!!

I tag: Karah, Katie H., Katie B., Melanie, Tara D., Tara M, Aimee, Amy, Shauna, Ticey, McCall, Jenna, Megan, Amber, Emily & Lyndsey -anyone else that I may have forgot, or would just like to participate!!!

March

I was going to wait and post an anniversary tribute page closer to the actual day, but decided to do it now and have it up for a little longer! March 14, marks our 3 year anniversary! I can't believe all that has happened in that time-life truly goes too fast. We're in our second house, I've had three jobs in that time, we both finished school and now G is doing his masters, we've made many new friends and have definitely learned a lot along the way. And I've come to the realization that I have never printed all of our wedding pictures and done anything with them....whoopsy! That will be my goal this summer. I don't even want to think about how my life would be different without G in it-we've had our fair share of struggles, but I LOVE that he is the one that I am with!!!

Lovin' It.....

I just got done with my second dose of parent teacher conferences. I can honestly say that I was more prepared this time around: I had only been teaching a week before the last one!! I cannot even begin to explain how much I LOVE teaching! I tell Garrett all of the time, that it just doesn't feel like a job at all-I don't feel like I'm going to work everyday. 'I get to go to school'-and I love it! Simple as that. I adore the students in my class and love being around their cute personalities....they make me laugh and they laugh at my jokes (most of the time). And yes, there is some learning in there too! Garrett is so sweet and listens to my endless stories about them. He's to the point now where he asks how certain kids did that day or what they said. There is one boy in the class that reminds me sooo much of Garrett-and surprisingly enough, he's the one that makes me laugh the hardest! I'm actually kind of sad that this year is going by so fast-I think I will have a hard time when it is over and they aren't 'my kids' anymore. But until then I will just continue to enjoy every minute of it!

Winter Storm

I had A LOT of frustrations with the latest storm we had last Tuesday. But before I post those pictures, I would like to focus on the moment of pure beauty that came after the storm.....

Alive and Kickin....

Wow! Time flies when you're having fun huh?! We recently signed up for the internet at our house, however excitement short lived(sigh): our computer is sooooooooooo slow! I can't even tell you how long it took for me to put a new backround and title on. We'll just say more time than it ever should have. And I had to dig deep on this dinosaur (as I pat the ancient tower that makes this bad boy run, so that I don't hurt its feelings and it decides to go even slower) to find a picture of me and G. I believe that one is at least three years old, (longer sigh). Oh well! I guess there are worse things going on in the world and I should be greatful for what I do have. More to come.... (from a different computer of course).