wife balance.

So over Christmas Break we got creative. 

Jan and Judson have this game they play in Cedar City with Judson's siblings called Wife Balance. 

This is what it looks like.

Here are our opponents, my sister Jan and her husband Judson.

In mine and Rich's case, it would more appropriately be called "Girlfriend Balance" but for ease of typing, we will stick to the appointed name they picked out in Cedar. 

Anyway, they showed us some pictures and Rich and I felt confident we could compete.

We all had to look up yoga poses on the internet for inspiration, but I think we all came up with some good ones. Here are some of our successes.

 My personal favorite, I think it looks the most impressive.

And here are some of our failures... 

If you will recall, this is the same pose that Jan and Judson successfully completed in the above picture. We definitely struggled with this one. I was supposed to be airborne but Rich didn't know quite where to put his hands... the only option for a good balance, we realized, was on my butt and I think my parents intimidated him :)

I think it's clear what happened here. Don't worry, no one was harmed during Wife Balance.

 If you think these poses are easy, think again.

We kept telling Mom and Dad they should try and they kept refusing. But then about 30 minutes later we caught them in their room trying out poses and laughing hysterically.

If you're bored on a Friday night, keep Wife Balance in mind. 

There is also Wife Toss (fun too, although harder to judge) and coming soon,

Wife Relays.

doink!

I did not realize how long it has been since I've written a new blog post! 

I was thinking I'd done one in December, but no no. My mom keeps bugging me to post, which partly makes me happy people care to read anything I've written (even if it is my mom, because she has to care). But I've kind of missed it I am realizing as I sit here writing. 

Much to catch up on. I will just do a nice recap for you of the past few months...

Finished Jekyll and Hyde and Scrooge 

(which ended up really being fun.. I miss the thespian life every now and then... a little..) 

Went to The Forgotten Carols with Rich... he just loved holding hands with the large man next to him during, "We will be together forever someday" 

Had a great Thanksgiving-- ate with my family first, then went horseback riding, then went and ate with Rich's family.

Worked a LOT in November and December since everyones benefits would run out before January.

Had a fantastic Christmas--the whole family was in Pocatello.

Visited the Museum of Clean which I would recommend to all, it is neat.

Had family pictures taken.. hasn't been done in like 7 years

Made Rich a book for Christmas, which I am quite proud of.

He gave me a BB Gun, a hilarious surprise and I have loved it. 

Been 4 wheeling and cooking hot dogs over the fire a number of times since it's been SO warm! 

Played Monopoly Deal over and over with friends, we love it. Great game.
Knocked down a light pole, not me..can't claim that feat but one of the friends did, see the pictures below :)
Rang in the New Year with a trip to IF to eat at Olive Garden, then visiting friends and getting our groove on at the dance for a little bit.
Basically just having a ton of fun. I am sad the holidays are over.. now it's back to school, work, and a blah January with no snow yet! I am dying to go skiing.. hopefully January won't disappoint me completely.

Yikes. We were all ready to go 4 wheeling in American Falls, a certain friend just needed to back his truck up to the trailer and get it hooked up, and we'd be on the road. Unfortunately, somewhere between "Reverse" and "safely hooking up the trailer," he hit a light pole! Knocked it clean over, all 30 feet of it. We heard it from inside the house, and about died laughing when we saw what had happened. Poor guy though... about 2 hours and a looming $1000 dollars later, it was all taken care of. They want to charge him 800 bones for a rotted light pole. This guy has fought a lot of tickets in his life and won though, so I'll keep you posted on if he ends up having to pay that.

take a look

at these beauties...

It's about time for some new skis. 

Maybe this year, maybe not. But hopefully this year :)

Tomorrow is Warren Miller. The official kick off to ski season. Sadly, this year I have the play going on and I can't go. But snow is in the forecast this weekend and I am actually excited!!

words to live by

do you ever just feel...

discouraged?

I do.

Most the time I feel great, but every once in awhile I take a look at my life and wonder what I'm doing with it. Am I making a difference anywhere? Am I doing anything truly important? Am I making time for the things that really are important? Truthfully... not always. 

November seems like a good month to make some changes. Be grateful for what I have, instead of wishing for more. Focus on others, instead of myself. Look for people who need a friend. 

President Monson gave a devotional at BYU on Tuesday. He said,

"If you choose Christ, you choose to be changed."

So that's what I'm working on this month. I choose Him, and hopefully I'll change for the better in a few small ways at least.

2 ingredients

I don't know about you, but I find a recipe for pumpkin cookies with only 2 ingredients and I am all about that...

Sadly, these were not my actual cookies, but they were almost as pretty. I wasn't quite as stylish with my frosting, but that's besides the point. The point is, they were DELISH! Here's what you need:

1 small can pumpkin
1 box Spice Cake Mix

Mix them together with spoon, and bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.
If you are like me, pumpkin is not as good without chocolate chips, so I turned my cookies into 3 ingredient cookies. And they were all the better for it, and still just as easy. They turn out like little cake drops. Not very cookie-ish in consistency, but quite tasty.  Then I just topped them with a little cream cheese frosting, which don't be tempted to forego, because it is the absolute best part.

I love fall, the colors, and the tastes. Mmm mmmm. Fridays have turned into my little baking days because I don't have work, so I've been experimenting. So if you have any good things to try, send the idea my way!

Time to fess up

I think everyone has a pretty decent idea....

But for the record.

I am in a play. Currently. It goes by the name of Jekyll and Hyde. And it's pretty good I think.

AND, for most of you who do not know...

I am in another play. It goes by the name of Scrooge. Not exactly what I wanted to do with my November and December, but I am not very good at saying no. Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure. 

 

 This last one is the stars of the play. Our friend Mitch on the left, Rich's sister Jenna in the middle, and her boyfriend Kyle on the right.

It's been more time, and more fun than I expected really. Rich makes it fun, or more like funny. We have a hard time keeping straight faces onstage. 

2 weeks left of Jekyll and Hyde. Better come check it out!!

Very Vermont

Can I just say, I am a very happy camper. I've had my eye on this coat for weeks and it's been out of stock. Well, just looked last night online and it's IN STOCK! Oh happppy day!! It's my birthday gift to myself. Which, by the way, my birthday was good. Thanks to everyone for making it a gem. But back on topic here, I have a thing for coats and jackets. When I walk into a store, it's either a coat or a pair of shoes that catches my eye first. All the other stuff is just a nuisance. Jeans are annoying to try on, you have to pull shirts over your hair and it messes it all up... but coats and shoes are a breeze and therefore I love them. And I love coats to have hoods on them and still be cute, because you never know when it's going to snow or rain here in Idaho, and I for one look rather hideous when my hair gets wet and then dries. Conclusion: This is a piece of clothing that of course I love and had to get. Can't wait til it comes!!