Hello 2014 Thanks for the Fun 2013

2013 is definitely a year to be remembered. 

Outside of getting married which was obviously 

one of the biggest events of my life,

this year has been wonderful to Ty and I. 

I was looking up fun family traditions and one of them was to write a letter

to each year thanking "it" for the memories made. 

I loved the idea so here we go!

Dear 2013, 

You had quite a few fabulous surprises up your sleeve this year. 

Thanks for that.  I am a big fan of surprises. 

 The first surprise was my sweet Mr. B proposing at the top of a beautiful mountain on January 12th . 

The words he said there brought me to tears.

That was very good way to start off the year. 

Then the planning started for the big day!!

We had a short lovely engagement and were married in the 

St. George Temple on a beautiful clear day.

March 16, 2013

will forever be a special day for us. 

Because of school we only were able to make a quick get

away to Vegas for our 1st Honeymoon..

(Yes we had 3)

My wonderful mother bought us a 2 night stay at a little resort place in Vegas

and through all the planning I thought she booked the hotel and she thought I did. 

So.... on the way to Vegas I decided to call the hotel and double check...

Yup.. no one had booked the hotel. 

Thank heavens for Hotwire and cheap deals.

We hurried and booked a couple nights and the classy Riviera.

The trip was definitely one to remember. 

There was no microwave for the food that we brought to eat sooo

we spent most of our meals at the Mcdonalds across the street.

To top off our sweet little vacation I forgot to bring

1- My toothbrush

2- My make-up

3- A hair tie

4- A brush

5- A razor

Needless to say Ty is a keeper and was definitely thrown into reality quick. 

Honeymoon round 2 was much better.  

We were able to use the hotel that my mom had bought for our real honeymoon and

we had a splendid time. 

Finally it was May and our REAL honeymoon was here!

Third time is the charm I guess. 

 We loved our cruise and would go on another one in a heartbeat!

We loved relaxing, eating way too much, and Ty loved competing 

and winning any competition he could ;)

In August we were able to go through the temple with my brother Ethan

for him to go on his mission in Chesapeake Virginia.

It's been so amazing to see him grow through his letters. 

He has such a sweet heart and I know he is blessing many lives on his mission.  

He grew up so fast! 

School started in August for Ty.

Along with classes and homework came the inevitable football intramurals. 

I love watching him play and I'm probably the only wife yelling from the sideline. 

This year their team played so well! 

It was so fun to watch them make it to the top and win the tournament. 

Nothing too exciting happened between October and now but 

this year was definitely full of wonderful memories. 

We had a wonderful Christmas morning Skyping with Ethan and opening 

sweet presents from each other.  

We are excited for a new year together and I am sure it will be full of 

surprises and new opportunities.  

We loved 2013 but feel very blessed to have another great year together. 

Thanks again 2013, we couldn't have asked for a better year. 

Love, Me and Mr. B

Mr. B's Birthday and a Big Blurry Blizzard!

This weekend was full of fun and adventure!

Ty's birthday was on Saturday and he 

decided that he wanted to spend

it at his families cabin. 

We bundled up Friday night and got to the cabin with the temperature reading

12 degrees...yup 12... we were freezing! 

The cabin heated up quickly and after some yummy chili dogs

we had Ty's early birthday cake!

I tried a ice cream sandwich cake recipe I found on Pinterest 

and we are huge fans!

Basically its layers of ice cream sandwiches, whip cream, caramel sauce, and toffee bits!

We would highly recommend it! Super yummy and super easy!

The hard part is trying not to eat the whole thing!

The next morning we woke up to a blizzard!

It was snowing like crazy and we were worried for awhile that we would be stuck.

We stayed inside cuddled up watching TV and playing games until around 3 and then decided that we 

should probably head out before it got dark. 

Our plan was to cut down a Christmas tree while we were up there so even

with the snow storm we were determined to bring one home!

So we headed out in this crazy mess!

(The picture doesn't do the weather justice!)

We drove for a good 15-20 minutes 

looking for a decent tree that was no farther than 50 yards away from the car. 

We weren't in the mood to hike!!

We saw a few runner ups but they didn't quite pass the test. 

Finally I saw a cute little tree and made Ty run and check it out.

It was kind of small but we were getting desperate so Mr. B cut it down. 

Don't mind my outfit... like I said we were desperate but determined. 

We brought it home and it fits perfect in our little apartment! 

I was hoping to find a tree skirt I liked somewhere without

paying a fortune but we ran out of time and so I created this little beauty

I love how it fits underneath our little tree :)

The Christmas season can now officially start! 

We have the snow and we have the tree!

I think this is a Christmas we will always remember.

I am very excited for our first Christmas together!

Oh, and Happy Birthday Ty!

Another Bank Holiday Calls for More Crafts!

On Nov. 11 I was grateful for Veterans and for the chance I had

to catch up on house work and crafts!!

I had lots of big plans set for last Monday, including cleaning our craft/junk closet 

(that seemed to continue to be at the bottom of the list).  

But I did accomplish a few things that I was very excited about!! 

#1 I made Ty and I Christmas stockings!

They were so easy and I am very happy with the final product!

I started out by free handing the sock pattern 

and then I found the font that I wanted for the letters, 

printed it, cut it, and traced it on the fabric.

I was really scared to do the applique on the front but it was so easy! 

Slow and steady wins the race. 

I probably didn't do it the proper way but I just went really slow around the edges and voila!

I love the stitched look around the edges. 

(which can only be seen in real life unfortunately)

Then I measured and cut the cuffs and sewed them to the top.

To finish it all off I hand sewed the trim! 

With a coupon from Joann's these puppies were only about $3.50 each!

(Before I made them, Ty continued to remind me that

 "Did you know that the Dollar Store has stockings??")

He did admit that he likes these better though. 

Now we just need a fireplace!

I'm sure we can convince our landlord! ;)

Project #2 was a mail/coupon/paper organizer.

Our mail just seems to pile up on the corner of our counter so I finally decided to stop the madness!

I found an idea on, yes, pinterest no surprise there.

But it turned out great and fixed our junk problem in a snap!

I just cut two cereal boxes at a angle and taped them together.

I found some scrapbook paper that I loved and cut it 

 and taped it on the outside and partway down the inside

Not rocket science but it cost next to nothing and works perfect to replace the pile of papers. 

Now I just need another holiday to get the non crafting stuff done that I wanted to do!

But lets be real.... that probably won't get done anyway. 

  

Mr. B got a New Bike and I got a New Perspective on Love and Sports

I have learned so much since marrying my sweet Ty. 

Although I have learned a lot about patience, love, and how to have a good relationship,

I have learned more things about sports then I would ever have cared to know. 

I have learned more about 

Football players

Football teams

Football plays

 and "why the heck was that flag thrown?!"

then I think I should.

I have watched more golf tournaments 

(and yes I am talking all 18 holes from start to finish, 

if your husband isn't a golf fan, you can thank him now.)

then I care to admit.

Finally despite my proper lady-like upbringing 

and the fact that having sports on our TV growing up was very rare, 

I am now the girl that yells at the TV every now and then....sorry Dad.  

But, you know what?

 Through learning all of these random sports facts,

I have learned to love and adore my husband in a new way.

Ty has wanted a road bike for a long time but we never found one that was

as nice as he wanted that fit our cheapo budget.

Until I found this bike and received the best wife of the year prize!

Ty was so excited and loves it!

We got a better deal than we ever thought we would and it is exactly what he wanted.

I couldn't care less about road bikes before now, 

but because Ty is into it, I felt like it was Christmas morning when we brought that bike home!

(probably more stoked than he was at first!)

It has been so fun to watch him get excited to go on bike rides 

and surprisingly has made me want to get a bike now too!

I love seeing him smile and watching him be happy,

 even if it means getting super excited over a road bike.

So I guess that learning about sports has taught me a lot about love too :) 

And just to brag about my awesome husband, 

I went and watched him play a baseball game tonight with his friends and ....

that's my hottie running home from one of the only home runs of the night. 

Way to go Ty!

Thank you Mr. Columbus for The. Perfect. Girls. Day. :)

Days off are great, aren't they?

You know what's even better though?

When you and your sister work for the same bank and so you

both get the mostly worthless (sorry Columbus) holiday of 

Columbus Day off to do whatever you please while everyone else is working.

Today was a simple perfect day.  

Thanks to this Gal :) 

Sisters were a pretty darn good invention 

and I was lucky enough to be given a great one. 

Today we

1- Went shopping 

2-Went out to lunch

3- Ate yummy frosty's,

4- Made crafts

5- Watched What Not To Wear like the good old days

AND 

6- Watched Safe Haven. 

What more could two girls ask for!?

This day of fun was far overdue but I am glad we had the chance to catch up. 

Our crafts included.... drum roll please....

We dolled up my front porch with cute pumpkins and a creepy old frame.  

I had some extra paint from another project so

 with some gold thumb tacks and tape.... TaDA!!

The other project you probably can't see very well but I found a bunch

 of cute word art images on pinterest and got them printed off at Staples.

With some black frames from the Dollar Store 

they are hanging very happily over our television. 

Overall it was a fabulous day full of all of my favorite things.

Thanks Rach!!

XOXO

Pick yourself up, Brush yourself off

“Never forget that once upon a time, in an unguarded moment, you recognized yourself as a friend.” 
― Elizabeth Gilbert

Life is a funny little thing.

I'm not sure if it's just me or maybe

just silly girls like me that over think their lives too much, 

but it's been one of those weeks where I wish I could do more, and be more.

There has been a lot of firsts this year and there are somedays where 

I feel like I just can't get a handle on everything. 

I started a new job, obviously became a wife, I applied to do online school in January

and I'm not quite sure where and how I'm supposed to fit into all of these new roles. 

Am I supposed to be a super couponer that saves enough money 

to buy a home with my husband before I'm  22?

Do I need to be the super cute crafty wife that has an apartment

 that looks like a Martha Stewart catalog?

Should I be super woman that works full time and goes to school full time 

and doesn't break a sweat?

Am I supposed to be the toned and glamorous woman that can

work yoga pants like Julianne Hough?

I will admit there are days where I feel like I have to answer YES

to all of the above questions.  

Not because my husband cares,

(He loves and supports me dearly and will probably roll his eyes if he ever reads this)

Not because my family cares, 

Not because my friends care. 

I think I feel this way (and hopefully other women) feel this way

because we have this image in our head of what our lives could be like.

Somehow if we got our lives to fit this picture perfect world then we could finally feel 

like we could relax and be satisfied. 

Like I said this week has been "one of those weeks", so today I decided to change the image in my head of who I am and what I want to accomplish and who I want to become. 

I am all about looking for good deals but I am checking extreme couponing off the list.

I enjoy doing crafts but I am going to stop drooling 

over all the beautiful homes I see on pinterest.

I am going to be brave and try to go to school and work full time but I am only going 

part time and I may cry and sweat a little while doing it. 

Finally, I am going to push myself to be more active, but I'm am going to enjoy my

life and my body and maybe even wear yoga pants to the grocery store
and fake it until I make it like Julianne Hough. 

I am going to start reminding myself that I am unique and there are things about

me that I can feel happy and proud about. 

 Like I said, life is a funny little thing and we go through cycles where we feel 

on top of the world and other times where we feel 

like we wish we could hit the restart button.

But when I comes to those down times I'm going to remind myself

to pick myself up, brush myself off, and tell myself that I am enough. 

Early Christmas.... Don't hate me :)

This fall weather is getting me so excited for all of the upcoming holidays!

I have seen so many cute ideas for 

word art for the holidays and decided

 I wanted to make my own.

My vision is to hang three pictures from a rod

like so....

(example from http://countrygirlhome.blogspot.com/)

I want to leave them up all year and switch them out

 with different holiday word art.  

When I get that far I will post a picture :) 

So far I have only made two different word art images 

but I'm wanting to do more because they were just too darn fun. 

Feel free to print them yourself if you so please.

Click here for "Jolly" and 

click here for "Little Christmas"

These have been so fun for me to create!

They aren't professional by any means but it's always fun to have

things in your home that you created yourself.  

(especially if they involve Christmas)

Happy (early) Holiday Season!!

PS my husband is going crazy over this whole Christmas in September thing......

I just can't help myself. 

First Fall Craft

Like I said in my last post, I am so excited for colder weather!

I love everything about fall, especially here in St. George where we kind of cheat

the colder weather months ;)

I also love decorating for all of the fall holidays!

So when Ty took a guys night out hunting doves,

I headed to the dollar store to see what creation I could make!

I had remembered seeing a picture on pinterest

 (all this pinterest stuff is starting to get embarrassing)

anyway, this is the picture but the link just lead to the same picture...

 without a tutorial or anything. 

I decided I was going to try and replicate it and this is my journey.

This is what I bought..

The Dollar Store had these fake styrofoam fake fruit which was perfect!

I didn't have a plate I wanted to use so I just picked one up. 

Then I traced the top of the apple using the candle and cut about a 1/4 of an inch down

Then I ripped off the top part of the apple and dug out the styrofoam.

Classy right? haha I just went for it.. I probably could of done it

nicer buuuuut live and learn right? 

Then I shoved the candles into the spots,

lit the candles,

and then as the wax melted, slowly poured it over on every side.

I accidentally didn't watch very carefully and the "apple peel" caught on fire

needless to say I'll be doing that one again...I told you it was a journey. 

Overall I think they turned out alright. 

(I should say that I didn't like how it looked with the burnt candles,

 so after I melted the wax, I replaced it with new candles)

I got a little brave and drew some leaves on the corners of the plates

with a skinny sharpie.

Voila!

Happy Fall!

A Fro Yo date for Me and Mr. B

Ty is always so good at spoiling me and making sure I am happy.

Unfortunately sometimes its harder than others but there are two words

that can make me happy in no time. 

Frozen. Yogurt.

I have a weakness for the stuff.  

I especially LOVE mixing every fruit flavor, with fruit and granola on top...

Mmmmm, mmmmmm, mmmmm.

Well my sweetheart and I went on yet another fro yo date 

and decided to eat it while watching the city from the old airport. 

(Poor guy had a headache and was sick of pictures but he let me take "just one more, I promise!" ;)

It was the first time we had actually felt cold outside in a loooong time! 

We are ready for cold rainy weather!

(Junky phone picture but you get the idea)

This may seem like a silly post but I just want give a shout out

for the little things in life.  

They make me happier than the big things most of the time 

and remind me of the great blessings in my life both big and small,

like a cute patient husband, cold rainy weather, and frozen yogurt. 

Articles of Faith Ice Cream Cone Matching Game

I've only been teaching primary for a little over a month but I am already 

needing new ideas to keep those little bodies reverent!

I have had a lot of help from my mom and my mother in law who have been

around the block a few times when it comes to primary!

They have given me many ideas similar to this game which I have used and am grateful for but I decided

 I wanted to make my own just for fun.

I saw a similar idea on pinterest.... yeah I know... :)

Anyway, her idea was a matching game where you matched the lowercase letter the cone, (or in my case the # of the article of faith)

to the upper case letter (the summarized version of the article of faith).

 I thought it was super cute and adjusted it to fit primary. 

I teach the 7 and 8 year olds in primary and felt that they are at the perfect

age to start familiarizing themselves with the Articles of Faith. 

Although one day they would fully memorize all of the Articles of Faith,

for now I just wanted them to take away the basics of what we believe and why 

these 13 beliefs are so important to what makes our church true. 

With the help of Ty and my mom we came up with these summaries of each Article of Faith.  

This is just one example and the rest are pretty similar. 

I probably should have found a way to type the article of faith on the ice cream scoop 

but my handwriting will have to do.

If you would like to make your own,  click HERE to view the PDF I made.  I just printed it off, cut it out, and used it as a stencil on my scrapbook paper that I wanted to use. 

I had fun making it and maybe one day, when I have been around the primary block a few times, I can give it to my daughter or daughter in law to use :) 

Something Old Something New, Something Striped, Something Blue.

I have had a lot more time on my hands now that Ty's work schedule and I am left at home alone.  I've already had enough of the couch and the TV so I turned to 

to my closet to see what unfinished projects I left when I used to have time.

I found an old men's striped button up shirt that I got at DI several months ago hoping to eventually turn it into something.  Nothing ever happened to it until this week! :)

I regret that I did not take a before picture so this picture I found off of the internet will have to do...

I have seen tutorials for DIY clothing refashions where you make big shirts smaller, but I was always too afraid! 

It seemed too complicated but out of desperation I 

decided to make some simple marks (with a sharpie I might add... yeah I'll remember NOT to do that for next time, I wasn't thinking clearly obviously)

 for where I wanted the new sleeves and waist to be and took the scissors and sewing machine to it! 

Well the stars magically aligned and I came out with this!

I was pleasantly surprised! 

Hopefully there will be more diamonds in the rough in my closet! 

Our attempt at ice cream...

Thanks to my love of Pinterest and my optimistic view that EVERYTHING posted

on that beloved website must work... right?

 we attempted yet another Pinterest recipe.

Ty has come to hate the words 

"I found this new recipe on pinterest!" 

But because of the great man that he is he decided to try it :)

The first time we tried the exact recipe from this website

http://www.justmarriedwithcoupons.com/2013/08/3-can-peach-ice-cream-recipe-cansgetyoucooking.html

It turned out great, it was a little too sweet but I really enjoyed it! 

We then decided to try banana, adding a chopped up banana instead of a can of peaches,

thinking that it would taste like a banana creamy perhaps??

This is how the final product turned out!

Although this was not my favorite flavor so far I am excited to try maybe strawberry... 

haha there will never cease to be homemade treats in our home as long as Pinterest is around.

Newlyweds

Me (Ashley Brooks) and Mr. B (Tyler Brooks)

We are new to marriage and new to the blogging world. 
We are excited 

to share the simple moments in our lives that make it our happily ever after!