Girls Weekend

This weekend we went to my grandparents cabin and had a girls weekend!! I was so excited to go, the week just couldn't have gone by fast enough. The partiers included: Myself, Mom, Grandma, Alli, Britney, and Amy. We got to Ashton Friday Morning and then left Saturday afternoon and we sure did party!!

This is what we saw when we pulled into the driveway. Look at all that snow!!


Amy standing on the railing. She could just fall back and land softly in the snow. That's how high it was. Looked like 6 feet!

Had to take a picture of beautiful Fall River. We saw a few deer just hangin' out down by the river bank. Such a beautiful place.

We did A LOT of this.

More snow!! This is the deck in the backyard.

Snow covering the shop...can you see the door? It's to the right of the window :)

Grandma rolling up her sleeves getting ready for some serious partying.

We had lots of yummy treats at the cabin including a veggie tray, which obviously Alli loved ha ha!! I think she got a little too much ranch on that little peapod.

Snacking after dinner. Sorry this picture is dark

Alli brought her amazing white chocolate krispies, and she put Easter M&M's in them. Nothing like Easter candy to make a treat even better! I honestly can't remember the actual name of these treats, but Che' calls them "Heaven."

More treats!

Mom and Alli doing the dishes after yummy a Chicken and Rice Soup dinner.

Ripple!!! My new favorite game. I kind of want to start a Ripple night once a month. I love cards!

Grandma just got a negative 20! (That's a good thing). You want to get the least amount of points possible. Can you see her excitement?!

We had so much fun at the cabin I just want to do it every weekend!! Thanks girls for all the fun!

Oh and did I mention I finally got my blog printed for the last 3 years? I actually deleted quite a few random posts and look how thick it still is! I'm so happy to have it done!

Also...I just want to shout out to my twin sister, Alli, a huge THANK YOU! She nominated me for Retreat Day Spa's Ultimate Makeover Giveaway and I won!! I can't thank her enough and I'm so excited to be pampered! For someone to take the time to write up an email and send it in about someone else is seriously the sweetest and most thoughtful thing ever. Alli, I love you so much! I can't thank you enough. I hope you know how happy this made me!

Happy

I really wanted to do a post on how I've been feeling lately. Mostly for "journal" purposes, since that is mostly what my blog is. This last year was super hard and we had lots of struggles, but I've moved on and tried to stay positive about things. Well it's 2011, and although I've stayed super busy and kind of crazy, I am now finally feeling very happy. I've always been happy, but this is a different kind. Any of my close friends and family members will know what I mean.

• Well work hasn't changed much and honestly, I don't really enjoy either of my jobs that much, but I kind of just block it out when I'm there. Instead, I think about the weekend and all the fun things coming up...and that makes me happy.

• I'm always trying to lose weight. It's seriously my biggest struggle. But, just recently I've lost 15 pounds and it feels great! I have much more to lose, but I think I can do it. I want to lose a lot more, but my goal is to lose 20 more pounds before our honeymoon. 15 pounds is a big number! And that makes me happy!

• Speaking of honeymoon...Che and I finally booked it, as I mentioned in my last post. I think this has helped with my weight loss motivation. I still can't believe we're actually going. I can't wait to spend this time with Che. We've needed a trip like this for soooo long. It makes me so happy to know that in 2 months, we'll be on a Carribbean Cruise soaking up that wonderful sun...and that makes me sooo happy.

• I can't believe I would feel this happy being an Aunt. I love it so much! I have the best nephew ever and another niece or nephew on the way! I secretly am hoping it's a niece :). I feel so blessed to be have Brycen in my life. And I can't wait for the newest addition in 6 months! It makes me so happy!

• I know one day I will have a family of my own and I can't help but wonder all the time... What are my kids going to look like? Will they share the same personalities as their parents? How big will our family be? So many questions and so much excitement. These thoughts are constantly on my mind and continue to make excited for the future. But for now, Che and I love each other more than we did the day we were married and we love our life so much...and that makes me happy.

• Yesterday was Fast Sunday and I bore my testimony for the first time in Sacrament Meeting in probably 7 years. I know, it sounds absolutely awful. I have done it in Relief Society, Young Women's, and other places but it's been so long since I've shared it in Sacrament Meeting. It was such an amazing feeling. As I listened to the other testimonies I started to become so emotional. All of the sudden I had the urge to share. I felt like I was physically lifted up out of my chair and Che didn't even touch me. I knew I needed to go up there and I did. I cried the whole time. I am so happy that I was given the callings that I have. Even though, I can become so overwhelmed at times with everything else going on, I wouldn't ask for anything different. I can't really describe how I felt up there any other way. It was kind of a "Ah ha" moment. The spirit was with me so strong that day...and oh did it make me happy.

• After booking our trip, I felt like I needed a little change...physically. I've been working on the weight loss part, but I felt like I wanted to change my hair. So I went in to Great Clips where my sister Amy works, and she cut away at my hair. She cut a couple inches off, layered it more, and I even got bangs. I really like it! And you know what else?

I'm Happy

A Weekend of Bliss

It's weekends like these that really make me thankful I'm alive. Everything that we did this weekend was pure bliss. Nothing could have ruined it. I know I'm sounding cheesy, and when you read what we did you'll probably be like, "Oh that's it?" Well, it's those little things that really shape a person and bring them the most happiness...and that's exactly what this weekend did for me.

FRIDAY

Che and I both had the day off from work (this rarely happens), so we set off on our little Friday adventure. First stop: Lunch date at Carinos. Delicious as always and 50% off. Can't go wrong with that! Next, Che and I did quite a bit of grocery shopping considering we had nothing in our cupboards or fridge. It was so nice to be able to spend the day with Che. When you're not used to spending a week day together, it means so much more. Almost like you're being a little rebellious ha ha. After shopping, we of course, snagged up some Orange Leaf, took it home, and put it in the freezer for our date night later. After putting away our groceries, we went to the gym together and worked out. That's right, date night at the gym. The day seemed to go by super fast, but it was awesome. Later that night, we watched a movie and ate our heavenly Orange Leaf. When you get Orange Leaf it's always a perfect day!

SATURDAY

I was so happy that Che and I got to spend the day together Friday, because the next day, Che was going to Utah with his dad. But bright and early, I needed to be at the temple because my extended family was having a Family Temple Day. This was the first time I had ever done a family temple day with my extended family. And I got to say, it was one of the best experiences of my life. My Aunt Trina did some family research on the names that we would do. We were split up to do baptisms, sealings, etc and it was the neatest experience. I got to watch my cousins baptize each other, I was able to be confirmed by my Uncles, and doing this together was just a wonderful experience. My extended family also has FHE once a month together...that's a lot of people. I feel so lucky that we are so close and have such a great love for each other. I can't wait to be able to do another Family Temple Day in the future.

This isn't even all of my family. It's the latest picture we have all together and we're missing quite a bunch. I love them so much and can't believe how lucky we are to have each other.

Doing temple work that day really was amazing. I always feel guilty when I don't get to the temple enough. And every time I go, I don't want to leave. The spirit I feel is unbelieveable and my heart is so full. My day is better and life is just better. What an amazing sight to look at, don't you think? I feel so blessed to be able to go here with family.

After the temple, Alli, my mom, and I grabbed a bite at Bajio. The reason being, Bajio is going to close in a few days! So sad. :( We are getting Costa Vida however, but I will surely miss the Shrimp Salad and Shrimp Tacos there.

Guess what else made this weekend amazing? Yeah that's right...we are finally taking our honeymoon!! Saturday we got our cruise booked! We are going on a 7 day Caribbean Cruise in a few months and we're so excited! Che and I are sooo ready to spend some time together. Now I just wish it would get here faster!

SUNDAY

Sunday, we celebrated my Mother-In-Law, Nari's birthday. Her birthday was actually in December, but it's tradition that we do it in January or February. The meal that we have is a lot of work, so they move it until after the holidays. We have a big seafood dinner with crab, lobster, shrimp scampi, cajun shrimp, pasta, garlic bread, salad, and of course dessert. It's AMAZING.

I'm starting to get better at cracking these things open, but man it hurts my hands!

My Father-In-Law, Reed demonstrating that crab legs are good for other things too! ha ha

Check out the pincers on this guy. Creepy! Looks like human teeth!

Tink

Max and Jag. Che's parents have 3 dogs who are just big, cute, and cuddly.

For Nari's birthday, we got her a music stand for her music. Reed got her a harp for her birthday. She's always wanted to play the harp, and it's so pretty!

I loved this quote. It's so Nari and so true!

Us

After dinner, we played the Wii game, "Just Dance 2." I've never played the first one, so I tried it and it was a workout! It was actually kind of hard, but I had a blast playing it. You had to copy what the dance on the screen was doing for points. Che quit pretty fast. He said,"No way! I'm not doing that move!" ha ha

Jerron and Nari playing

After the game, we had dessert. Now this looks like the original BTS cake, but it's not. It's a different version and I swear it's BETTER. Instead of german chocolate cake, do white cake. Be sure it's butterscotch or a maple caramel inside, and the topping is a streusel (little butter, brown sugar, and nuts). Not even kidding, it's better than the other one.

It was such a great weekend full of lots of family and fun. And guess what else I accomplished? I ordered my blog book! 3 years worth! It feels so good to have that done. Thanks to everyone who made my weekend one of the best I've ever had. I can't wait to hit the beach with the love of my life!

February

February has been so busy, I haven't really gotten the chance to post much. I had a lot of YW's stuff go on and then work on top of it...ugh. But now, I feel like I can actually take a breath! Here's just a little of my February...

For Valentine's Day, Che and I just went to dinner to celebrate. We weren't supposed to get each other anything but of course, he had to get me my favorite flowers. Thanks valentine, I love you!

I actually had 2 valentine's this year :) Love you buddy! (Picture by Alli)

My dad's birthday was on February 2nd and we had a party at their house. It was so much fun! It's also a tradition to find the funniest card possible for my dad. He LOVES funny cards as you can tell, and every year we try super hard to find the best card for him.

Alli made these cute little bundt cakes for dessert. They were so tasty!
Make a wish!

Brit and Brycen

Dad, you are so amazing and feel so blessed to have such a great example for a Father. I don't know how I would ever get through life without you. Your family loves you so much and think you are just the absolute best. Thanks for everything Dadio. I love you! Happy Birthday!


New Beginnings was also a great success this month. Tons of work, but it turned out great. We've got a great group of girls. Now onto Camp Clinics!


I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day and enjoyed the month of February. Only two days left until March!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Ok, so I was doing a count"down" and I kind of counted"up," whoops. Pretend that I counted down and today is the #1 day ha ha, thanks.

Happy Valentine's Day to the #1 thing that I Love...

Che'

Hello my valentine, I love you more than anything in this whole world. I can't think of anyone better to spend the rest of my life with. I can't wait for all the more wonderful memories to come. Thank you for being the person that you are and always believing in me. You are my everything! I love you so much, Che. Happy Valentine's Day

Love, Amber

Feeling Crafty

I really wanted to do a fun craft for Valentine's Day but I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. I found this off of my friend Holly's blog and I fell in love. It's super super easy and actually really fun. The most time consuming part was cutting out the felt circles and I just did that watching T.V in my P.J's. I loved it! Anyway, thanks Holly for posting!

Heart Felt Wreath

http://www.theidearoom.net/2010/01/felt-heart-wreath.html

New Year Word

2010 was probably one of the hardest years I've ever had. Now, it's time to start the year over and only one word comes immediately to my mind. My new year word for the year 2011 is, PATIENCE