GETTIN' BUSY

Yes, I have sucked at blogging this summer.

We bought a house.

We bought a car.

And we took family photos.

After a lot of bribery by me, for Phil.

Then he started to get a little grabby... 

 K-I-S-S-I-N-G...

 And then comes...

VERY anatomically incorrect... 

But you probably get the idea...

BABY LEUE DUE MARCH 8, 2014!

We're so excited!

 And scared?

 And that was about all the pictures Phil could handle.

He did such a good job though!

WEDDING DATE

Our good friend Adam finally married his gorgeous bride Jennie!

Phil usually "struggles" with weddings,

Meaning I struggle to get him to come and be a good sport.

So... It helps when we know other people there.

This just kills me.

Congrats Adam and Jennie!

And thanks Drew and Aly for sharing your little monkey with us to keep Phil entertained!

PIN-WORTHY FISH TACOS!!!

This is what happens when your husband goes out of town on a business trip to California for a few days and you watch Food Network all day.

Behold, the most incredible fish tacos ever.

Choose your fish. I used tilapia filets.

Cut the fish into thin strips, dip in egg wash and roll in Panko breadcrumbs.

Heat a pan with a thin layer of oil,

Then fry the fish tip they're golden.

Heat a small tortilla in a clean pan so it gets just a little crispy. It will get puffy with steam pockets.

Flip it over, and spread a little goat cheese and chipotle mayo on the tortilla.

This is mandatory.

Take the tortilla off the pan, top with fish, sprinkle with a little lime juice.

Then your apple slaw. This includes: finely grated carrots, finely chopped broccoli, grated green apple, chopped cilantro, red pepper flakes and a tiny bit of olive oil.

This is mandatory.

Then your mango salsa. This includes: chopped mango, strawberry, red onion, red bell pepper, cilantro, lime juice and a little sugar. Yes, I realize this is the second time we have included cilantro. And lime juice.

PAY ATTENTION. 

This is mandatory.

Finally, your guacamole. I usually go all out with my guac, but there are a lot of flavors going on here, so this time I kept it simple.

Mashed avocado, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

I contemplated cilantro and lime juice. 

Feel free.

Heap it on.

I am telling you.

Make these. 

Today.

Or tomorrow.

Or every day until you die.

COUSIN GAMES

About once a month, 

The Utah cousins get together on a Sunday night to have some fun.

Sometimes we play board games.

Sometimes we get a little more physical.

Most recently, we rocked out some hilarious charades.

Phil was Snookie.

Loralee was a sumo wrestler.

I can't remember the others, but they were hilarious.

CALIFORNIA

Every time we go to California, I wonder why we don't live there.

Okay, I know why we don't live there,

but we do tend to spend the next few weeks talking about our plan to get there.

Okay, Phil listens to me ramble and whine.

We arrived just in time to feed a couple dozen missionaries lunch in between Saturday conference sessions.

Oh, the memories from my childhood/teenage years.

We enjoyed conference weekend.

Every morning (except one) I woke up and went running on the beach.

Why did I never do that when I lived there?

Cuz I suck, that's why.

This trip, we tried some new things.

Hash House A-Go-Go: BBBLT and bacon-in-a-waffle. Delish.

Kite-fishing on Coronado Island.

It was really windy and worked great!

Phil had never done it before, but this really is the only acceptable way to fly a kite.

Bonfire/foil dinners/ladder golf on the beach.

We soaked up some sun with Annie and her kids for a few hours earlier that day too! Cuz we can.

As always, any day with the Mitchell family is a good day. Terri and Ashley really were some of my best friends in high school, and it always makes me so happy to see them!

And did I mention our foil dinners were garlic butter shrimp and ranch potatoes?!? What?!?

We spent a day up in Irvine/Fullerton, visited the Arboretum(sp?), and then had some pizza with Steve and Stephanie.

Why we didn't take a picture, I'll never know.

But Phil LOVED the ducks.

Per usual.

Mostly I just loved seeing my family!

Especially all the short people.

They make me happy. And baby hungry.

PS that middle picture is Adam's back.

We had some kind of duel throwing something, I can't remember what.

Maybe a bean bag?

Anyways, I kinda nailed him right on his back.

Sorry, kid.

Til next time, California!

WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU LEMONS...

One of the many highlights of our Carlsbad trip:
Juicing mom's lemons.
Made two quarts.
Sorry Annie, but your talking about it MADE me do it!

CRAFTY WITH JEWELRY

I've been looking FOREVER for a cute way to display/organize my jewelry. I was struggling to find a way that would be convenient and work for all types of earrings (studs, loops, dangling).
Finally, I found a way to do it!
I bought a gold frame from Walmart, removed the glass, and spray painted the cardboard backing gold (only because it had words on it). Then I glued a piece of lace tightly around the frame where the glass was (so there would be a gap between the lace and the cardboard backing), then three strips of layered lace on that (I only glued along the top portion, so the lace would be loose). Now I can hang the dangling earrings right through the lace, and pin the others on the strips that flare out. I love it!!
I still need to come up with something for my bracelets and necklaces, but it's a good start!