Easter Weekend

Easter was great this year. We went down to Castle Dale to be with Chris' family. On Sunday, Stuart blessed their little boy in Chris' parents ward, so the whole family was there over the weekend. I felt crappy all weekend with the WORST headache (I admit, I am a total wimp when it comes to headaches) and I thought it was allergies when I got back to Salt Lake, but when the doctor looked up my nose this morning, I apparently have a sinus infection. So, I am glad I played it safe all weekend and didn't hold the baby, sorry to the fam that I was so out of it!

Anyway, we had a lot of fun, Chris' dad recently got 4 more throwing knives to add to the 2 he had, so we had a lot of fun competing in throwing knives. I suck except when it comes to sticking them in the shed and NOT the target. And as usual, Daniel and Christella's little girl was the center of attention. The baby being too young, to command much at this point. She is so adorable, it is just fun to hear what might come out of her mouth, I am always impressed by her vocabulary at age 2. As usual, everything is beautiful and we are all teaching her to tell her mom and dad she wants a pet. I heard her tell them she wanted a pet lamb on saturday (next door neighbors have one) and a pet fly. She is old enough that it was so fun to see her when the easter bunny came and during the easter egg hunt. You can definitely tell she is an only child. I got a total kick out of watching her frequently get into everyone else's easter basket, esp Aunt Leslee's. Because, why can't she have any candy that might be laying around? I know this stressed her parents out way more than any of the rest of us! Below are some pics from the weekend. I should have taken more...

With her "glass slippers" on

Blessing Day! He's not too happy about being in his carseat...

Resisting Change

So, last week I got a wild hair and completely rearranged our living/dining room area. Chris and I like it a lot better. Sally has not been thrilled. I moved her food bowl and bed and here is the worried look on her face as I did it:And, that evening I watched her pick up her food bowl (full, without spilling) and move it back to where it had been, then she laid in the spot where her bed had been for like two days until we just moved her bed back...

Lake Family First!

My mom gave me some dog toys that their dog Chloe didn't like. For the first time both dogs were able to have a toy. Sally usually doesn't let Scotty have any until she has torn it apart. Here they are with their toys:

Stuart and Kristen's baby!

Earlier in the blog I told you pics of our new nephew would be up at least from the blessing. A few weeks ago Chris and I took dinner to their house and got to see the little guy. Here he is snuggling with me and napping:

Hanging out in his chair:

Not happy with Uncle Chris:

April Showers bring May Flowers

Well, March certainly did not go out like a lamb, so hopefully this month will be better. Below is a picture of Scotty looking pathetic because it was too rainy/snowy to be outside, I am ready for spring!:

And, what do you do on saturdays with bad weather? Below are couple pics of what went on at our house. :)

Happy St. Patty's Day!

So, I know this is a day late, but I'm also a dollar short, so it all works out... I've always preferred St. Patrick to St. Valentine. Few reasons, 1. If we need commercialism to remind us to show our love to each other, Chris and I need to have a long chat. Just bring home a bouquet of tulips any other day, not when Hallmark tells you to and they've tripled the price of roses which aren't even my favorite flower. 2. Thanks to my dad, I have Scotch/Irish roots (I know, like you couldn't ever guess with my blonde hair, blue eyes and extremely pale skin.) and 3. St. Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland, that is a hero in my book! (I know, I know, total myth, but let's pretend.)

This year though, I have another reason to prefer St. Patrick over St. Valentine. I kept it quiet to almost everyone, but on Valentine's Day I failed the written Utah Master Esthetics exam. Yep. I received a 74% and 75% is passing. I then proceeded to drive home from Sunset in a crazy snow storm and then sat on my couch and cried. I studied so hard, it didn't even cross my mind that I would fail. I still chalk it up to test anxiety. Anyway, I apparently have a thing for holidays because I rebooked the test on St. Patty's Day. I didn't sleep the night before and I was shaking so hard through the whole thing I had to keep my hand glued to the computer mouse, terrified I would accidentally mark an answer wrong due to shaking. And I Passed! The luck of the Irish was with me and this time I scored in the 80s. Well above passing. So, now I am officially a Master Esthetician. My huge goal for over a year and a half. My next goal is to become a licensed instructor.

Another fun thing was dinner last night. I've never talked about my cooking because I geneally hate to cook. I have never made anything in tribute to St. Patrick's Day, but as many of you know, I have a lot of extra time on my hands. (ironic that I am laid off from an esthetics school days before I receive my license- I have my license, but I'm not in the industry) I was watching Rachel Ray and usually I switch the channel because her voice makes me want to shoot myself and I want to rip out chunks of my hair everytime she says "YUMM-O!" but the dinner she opened with caught my attention. Reuben Stuffed Potatoes. Basically taking all the fantastic elements of a reuben sandwich and making a twice baked potato with it. I love a good reuben, especially the sauerkraut. So, I tried it and they are fantastic. Not only did we really like them, Chris took one for lunch today. The ultimate test! He almost NEVER eats leftovers. So, below are pictures of my great dinner:

Babies!

So the Best/Lake family was blessed to receive two babies in 7 days. On the Lake side Stuart and Kristen had their little boy and on the Best (my sister's last name now is Abbott) side Anna and Tom had their little girl . They are both so cute. I can honestly say that Dylan is the cutest newborn I have ever seen. I keep forgetting my camera when I see Dylan, I promise to get pictures at least at the blessing! Below are pictures of the Abbott family: