Bentley!!!

Look who joined our family!!

It's Bentley!

He is an adorable little maltipoo with tons of energy :)

Isn't he cute under the Christmas tree?! He has already grown so much since we got him!

What Boredom Does...

Dan has had so much homework lately. I'm really proud of him because he does so well in school but these past couple weeks it has meant that he goes to school before I get up and comes home after I go to bed.

(Of course, I usually am awake for about 13 hours of the day that doesn't give him much time to work with.)

Anyway, I have been trying to fill my time by reading magazines and books, working on my baby blankets, and watching a lot of TV.

When that started to get old I turned to the kitchen.

Now, I have been following this blog, Bakerella, ever since it first got started. She has become well known for her adorable cake pops. And as an avid blog follower I decided it was about time to try them out.

It's actually surprisingly simple. Mine were supposed to look like mini cupcakes. Even though they didn't quite turn out I thought they were pretty cute.

Basically you just take a cake (I used red velvet), crumble it up and mix it with a can of frosting.

Then when it's well mixed you roll it out into little balls and refrigerate them.

Next, I dipped the bottoms in chocolate...

And the tops in melted candy things I got at the craft store.

Then I decorated them and before you know I had my very own cake pops!

It made a lot.

And a lot.

But they were delicious!

I can't wait to try out different designs!

Vegas Baby!

One of my best friends from high school goes to Vegas pretty much every year for spring break. Since it's only a few hours drive Dan and I decided to meet her and her boyfriend, and her mom there for a few days of fun.

We had tons of fun walking around the strip and spending time in the sun by the pool. Sadly I did not get pictures but it was great to see them!

We also went to Vegas to see my aunt and uncle. We have so much fun with them and this time was no exception.

Besides all the delicious food they cooked up we had fun playing games.

Maria and Daryll love the Pirates of the Caribbean Life game and they go all out. So we had to get a game in.

Take a look at the players.

(Notice the tan line. I didn't think I needed sunscreen in St. George because I was cold. Big mistake. Now I have a farmer's tan just on my right arm since I was on the passenger side. Attractive, huh?)

Anyway, that's me. I was the only landlubber but it didn't stay that way for long...

My attractive husband. He was a pirate hence the eye patch and sword.

Maria was another pirate. Notice that giant bag of loot.

Daryll was Captain Jack Sparrow. Pretty incredible costume.

The rules for their version are a little different and so much more fun. And you get to use real coins that look like they belong in the movie. It's great. I highly recommend playing this game with Maria and Daryll.

Anyway, after a few spins (ok, we were halfway done) I stole Captain Jack Sparrow.

I promise that after putting all this gear on you will start to feel pretty powerful.

Maria ended up winning (she sure knows how to hide that loot!) but we let Dan try the Jack Sparrow hat on and I have to say that we might have our Halloween costumes picked out! He looks pretty great :)

Oh, here is a picture of the treasure chest that stores all this amazing gear. Maria and Daryll go all out for Pirates of the Caribbean and it is funnest game ever!

Thank you Maria and Daryll! We had amazing time!

First Eagle

One of the most exciting times of the year (for Dan) is when it finally warms up enough to golf. The weather has not been great here but we went to Las Vegas this week so to see my aunt and uncle and my friend and stopped in St. George.

I love watching Dan golf in St. George. The scenery is amazing.

And this year, in his first golf round of the season Dan did an amazing thing himself...

He got an eagle! It was really quite impressive.

He made a really good putt and was two under par. We played (well, Dan played and I watched from the cart) with some old men who were hilarious.

After such an incredible start to the season, keep your eyes open for Dan on the PGA tour!

Surprise Dates!

After being together for nearly three and a half years we realized that our dates were fairly predictable. Now, I'm not complaining because I love curling up on the couch to watch the latest movie, going to a Jazz game, or going out to dinner with some friends. But we just wanted to switch things up a bit and try some thing we have not done before.

Enter Surprise Dates.

Every month we are going on a surprise date. We are going to take turns planning these dates and hopefully we will be able to try something new together.

February was my turn to plan. I decided that I wanted to do something active. And since it has been too cold to do much outdoors, I needed to come up with an indoor activity.

So we went rock climbing. It was so much fun. I have not gone since I was in high school and I don't think that I have ever belayed before.

There was just one problem. I forgot that I am terrified of heights. The first time I didn't even make it all the way to the top I was so scared! But I got over it and we had a great time. It was definitely an upper body workout and we are both feeling it today!

We had so much fun on this Surprise Date and I can't wait to see what Dan has planned for us next month!

Starting Last Summer...

Last summer Dan was working until really late every night. After a few nights of nothing to do I decided that I needed a new hobby.

So I went to the craft store and bought a book and a few skeins of yarn. Every night I completed a few more rows. And before I knew it, my first baby blanket was completed.

Now, I have to say that this was quite an accomplishment. In high school I tried several times to crochet a blanket and now there is a bin at home that is full of my failed attempts. But this time, I really enjoyed it.

Since then I have completed this purple baby blanket...

And I just finished this adorable pink blanket.

So far, this is most definitely my favorite blanket I have ever worked on. It is so incredibly soft and the hearts are just adorable so I had to post a picture.

The next one I'm working on is by far the most difficult I have ever done. It is labeled as a project for an advanced crocheter (is that a word?). I'm pretty intimidated but I'm hoping it turns out!

If I ever finish it I will for sure post a picture especially since it is a blue baby blanket and I have only done girly blankets.

I'm sure that if I only make girly blankets, I will only have boy babies so I'm switching over to boy baby blankets for a bit.

Also, my grandma and her sisters have made Christmas stockings for all of their kids, in-laws, and grandkids. Grandma taught me how to make them and I made Dan's Christmas stocking this year! And I don't have a picture but I also knitted and crocheted my sisters present which turned out way cute.

Who would have known that an impulse buy last summer could have kept me busy this long?

Our New Car

When Dan was a kid he loved Legos. He says that he built some pretty impressive things but then he got rid of all his Legos.

The first time he came to Minnesota we went to the Mall of America and saw the Lego sculptures. He loved it! I think it was the highlight of the whole trip.

So when I saw a lego kit that made three cars on sale, I had to get it for him. And he has really enjoyed putting all the pieces together several times.

You can even open the hood and the trunk.

Once he was done with it we were going to give it to my cousin but he has enjoyed it so much it might stay displayed on his nightstand forever! Didn't he do an amazing job?