What I Wore Wednesday

Here in Utah we celebrate the 24th of July, otherwise known as Pioneer Day. It's kind of a big deal. We all went to Escalante this year, down in southern Utah. I'm from Escalante but we moved when I was only 3. But we always went back for the 24th. This little town does it BIG! I still have family there and my Grandparents have a gorgeous house and a beautiful (huge!) piece of property. I have taken my husband there many times, but he's never experienced the 24th there. Until this past weekend. And let me tell you it was a BLAST! On Saturday we went to the parade, then to the scout lunch, over to the carnival (of which we had a craft booth) then on to the rodeo that night followed by a massive firework show. So I knew I needed a comfy outfit for the day. We were camping, but I still wanted to look cute since I was going to be seeing tons of family and friends. Here's what I came up with:

Shirt & glasses: H&M, Skirt: Luxe Couture, Shoes: Torrid (old) Necklace: Macy's, Watch: Fossil, Bracelets: Target, Hair: Dirty c/o camping.

The four of us waiting for the parade to start. 

Nichole and I behind out craft booth. Right before a massive downpour. 

Had so much fun with Nichole and Zuileka on this trip! Thanks girls!

*Our camera got a scratch on the lens during the trip, so please excuse the 'ghosts' you may see in the photos. 

I can't wait to post the rest of the pictures from our trip. It was such a great time and I can't wait till next year. I'm pretty sure all three families have agreed to make this trip a new tradition. 

What do you think of my outfit? I personally am obsessed with my new red & white striped skirt. It is super comfy and cute too!

Hello Monday!

Hello home! We got home about 3 hours ago from a 4 day camping trip in Escalante. Hello tents, hiking, dirt, bugs, no showers, no bathrooms, HOT weather, thunder storms, rain downpours and ornery kids. And hello to great friends, amazing family, beautiful scenery, numerous laughs, good food, small town parades and dances, a carnival and making some money at our booth there. Hello to my husbands first Rodeo and seriously the BEST TRIP! I wish I had all my pictures ready to give you a glimpse into our weekend, but I still need to go through them along with get some from the rest of our friends that went with us.

Instead of camping pictures, here's a look at what's been going around these parts up until we left for our trip...

Hello Juice Cleanse! So I didn't last the full 6 days. I lasted 4 full days and then on days 5 & 6 I juiced for every meal and snack except dinner. Still loving the juicer though! Fresh apple juice is my favorite!!!

Hello baking. I made some goodies for a neighbor. I was still doing the juice cleanse and did NOT even have a bite. Go me!

Hello Bee Sting. Poor little Chloe. She was NOT a fan and would start to cry all over again when ever we brought it up for the next 4-5 days.

Hello Bookclub. Hello: Blue Lemon. Delicious food. Great friends. City Creek. Shopping. And Dessert at Gourmandies.

Hello painting with the kiddos. They love painting!

Hello crafting. 

Hello outdoor band competition. We went to see Justin's band and they ended up winning and making it into the finals! Jaxon thought the crowd was for him. 

Hello to the cutest siblings. They sure love each other. Their new love is singing and dancing to 'Ring-Around-The-Rosey' then falling down and proceeding to roll all over each other.

Hello to the Lindon pool, snow cones, cotton candy and friends.

I am one pooped Momma. Hello shower! FINALLY! Hello PJ's and my DVR. Hello tired kiddos that have already been asleep for 2 hours. I plan on sitting in my recliner and catching up on the Bachelorette, RHONJ, Breaking Bad & The Next Food Network Star. 

Here's a sneak peak at our weekend. Many more to come. How was your weekend? Are you a fan of camping? With kids?

Stop Being Fat! Friday.

Yeah, yeah I know it is Saturday. But I wrote this yesterday. Our internet has been acting all weird since Thursday night so this is the first chance I've gotten to post...

Lately I have been a little obsessed with Coconut Oil. I have heard forever how amazing it is, not to mention how good it is for you. I bought some about 6 months ago to finally try it out. And I did. I cooked with it a couple times and I wasn't impressed. I can't remember what exactly I made, some sort of chicken and the coconut hint it added just wasn't doing it for me. So the bottle went back to the cupboard. About a month and a half ago I decided to give it another go. And now we are going through about a bottle every week or two. I am in love with this stuff. I have been using it in all sorts of ways.

Coconut Lemon Bread: I took a recipe I had for pound cake and subbed out the butter for coconut oil. I also subbed out the sugar for Palm (coconut) sugar. I the juice of 2 lemons and their zest.

Coconut Oil Fudge: I saw this recipe on Pinterest and added some Sea Salt. It's super easy. Just blend equal parts of cocoa, coconut oil, and palm sugar and about 2 tsp of sea salt. Press into a pan. Sprinkle more Sea Salt on top and allow to set up in the fridge. 

Chocolate Chip Cookies: I used this recipe I found on Pinterest and made a few changes. I again subbed out the sugar for Palm Sugar. and replaced half of the flour with Almond Meal. They were delicious.

Coconut Oil Popcorn: My new favorite snack. Just melt a tbsp of coconut oil and drizzle over a big bowl of  popped popcorn and mix around. I especially like this on kettle corn. 

Lotion: I was unsure about this one. But I now love it. I haven't used it on my face, (scared of putting any type of 'oil' on my face for fear of those evil red bumps) but I love using it on my arms, shoulders, legs and feet. I love the smell and it makes my skin super soft. And a little goes a long way.

Smoothies: I add a spoonful to the blender every time I make a spinach smoothie. 

I mentioned Palm Sugar above and I'm sure some of you are wondering what it is. It's a natural sugar from coconuts. It comes in rock form or in a paste. I have only been able to find the rock form locally (if you know of a place that sells the paste PLEASE let me know!) I buy the rock form at our local Asian Market. To use the rock form you can either grate it or melt it down a little and stir it into a paste. I melted mine down, and for the fudge and the bread it worked great. For the cookies however, it make the batter a little runny and I had to add some extra flour and almond meal to get the right consistency. The second time I made the cookies I grated it and it worked fine. (Just takes a little longer). 

In other news I have been in workout super mode this week. Getting in 1 to 2 hours of exercise EVERY day. Even with all the working out and such I am still feeling a little sluggish and haven't noticed a difference on the scale. (I really need to take my measurements again. Maybe that will make me feel better about things.)

That being said, today I started a juice cleanse. I found a Jack Lalanne Juicer on Ksl for $25! Score! I stock piled our kitchen with a ton of fruits and vegetables and am hoping that this will give me the kick start I need. (Go watch Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead via Netflix and you too will want to start a juice cleanse!) We leave on vacation Friday (and we're going to Blue Lemon for Book Club Thursday night) so the plan is to have only juice until Thursday night. Wish me luck. 

My new juicer and what I'll be having for the next 6 days.

Are as in love with Coconut Oil as I am? What's your favorite way to use it? Or are you yet to be converted?


Do you juice? If so give me some recipes!

WIWW: Who Wear's Short Shorts?

Not me! Honestly I hate wearing shorts. I hate wearing long shorts let alone short shorts! I haven't worn shorts (other than working out) since before I was pregnant with Jaxon. That's over 3 years ago people! I seriously hate my knees. I have fat knees and I feel much more comfortable in pants, dresses, skirts and capri's. But on Monday I decided to cut a pair of my jeans off and try it out again.

Shorts: Dickies (originally pants). Shirt: Old Navy. Stripped tank & Shoes: Target. Necklace: Francesca's. Watch: Michael Kors. Bracelets: Cotton On & Fossil. Earrings: Forever 21

We spent the day at the pool and were meeting some friends for dinner. I was rushing to shower and get ready. It was still over 100 degrees out so the jeans became shorts and the hair was left wet, natural and wavy. (Despite having no time, it was way to hot for blow drying and straightening.)

Still have major issues with my knees and my body overall, but I'm working on it.

What do you think of the outfit? Personally it's all a little too preppy for 'me' but hey I tried something new.

Linking up to some fabulous ladies.

Hello Monday. Escalante Edition

Hello last minute trip to Escalante for the weekend. The kids and I drove down to my grandparents house with my brother Cameron and SIL Hadley.

Hello 4+ hour drive with two toddlers that were stir crazy and wild the entire time. (minus like 30 min)

Hello small town. No stop light. Pump before you pay. Waving at everyone you see. Kids sitting on our laps and 'driving' the car. The easy life.

Hello to surprising my mom. It was great being able to spend a couple days with her.

Hello to kids being crazy and so excited that they didn't want to sleep. Having only 11 hours of sleep over a 3 night period. Being super tired, and the kids having way too much energy.

Hello Calf Creek. You brought back so many memories of summers spent with my grandparents. Walking down the creek and slipping on the moss covered rocks.

Hello Grandpa's swing. Four wheelers. And cook-outs at the bottom land.

Hello to another 4+ hour drive home. Cranky kids. Sitting in the back between them the entire drive.

Hello to a loving husband. Hello to getting in bed before 9:00pm when we got home and Scotty taking the kids off my hands. And getting 11 hours of continuous sleep. It was marvelous.

-We are headed to Escalante again next weekend. I'm super stoked. Scotty is going to be able to come this time along with some of our friends. I can't wait. How was your weekend?

Linking up with Lisa for her Hello Monday linkup.

Stop Being Fat! Friday.

This week has been pretty good. Another week of the couch to 5K behind me and still feeling great. I'm heading down to Escalante in a couple hours with Cameron and Hadley. My Mom is already there and doesn't know that I am coming down with the kids. I'm so excited to see her and surprise her! That being said I don't have alot of time to post today, but I wanted to post this simple recipe for Pumpkin Muffins. I'm sure you've seen this floating around pinterest.

Source: sweet-verbena.blogspot.com via Amanda on Pinterest

 It's all over and just calls for one box of yellow cake mix and one can of pumpkin. Well I made them but I used a Spice cake instead and they are delicious. I know you may think it's not 'time' for pumpkin yet. But I can't wait until September/October. I love pumpkin all year round!

These are perfect for breakfast or as a snack. I made a second batch and added chocolate chips. Without Chocolate chips they are only 65 calories each. And with chocolate chips they are 95. You can make them as cookies too with the same recipe. Super easy and super good. Perfect.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Family, Friends, Food, Fun & Fireworks!

We had such a marvelous 4th of July this year. Unfortunately Scott had to work most of the day. But he had the morning off, so we went over to the church for their pancake breakfast. We chatted with friends while the kids ran around with the other kids and wore themselves out.

Scotty headed to work and I put the kids down for a nap. When they woke up we headed to Utah Lake. My sister in law Hadley's family is amazing and we had a great time boating, swimming by the shore, watching the kids run around and enjoying the beautiful weather. Thanks guys for having us! We all had a blast!

That night we headed over to a friends house for a BBQ & fireworks. The day was jam packed and I loved every second of it.

I'm so grateful for such great friends and family. And also so grateful for this country and all of the freedoms that I enjoy everyday. I am free to come and go as I please. I am free to worship how I want. Free to spend my money how I want to. Free to celebrate how I want, say what I want...and so many other things. I truly love America. 


I hope you all had a wonderful 4th as well. What was your favorite part of your day? How do you celebrate it?

WIWW: Girls Night Out Edition

Top: Cotton On. Jeans: Old Navy. Shoes: Target. Necklace: Forever 21. Watch: Michael Kors. Bracelets: Cotton On & Fossil.

Friday night a few of my girlfriends and I went out. It was a marvelous night consisting of: CPK. Chanda's hilarious stories over dinner. Never being able to look at 'cash' the same way. Our waiter sucking at taking our order. 3/4 of our orders wrong. $0.00 bill for myself. Magic Mike. An entire theater of anxious girls and gays. Cheering, clapping and some crazy lady next to us with a ridiculous amount of LOUD comments. The guy in front of us standing up to address the theater and telling everyone to clap if they thought that the crazy lady should shut up. The theater erupting in cheers and said lady finally shutting her trap. And dancing with my ladies (and gays) after the movie. It was a wonderful night! 

Dari, Me & Meagan. Ready to get our dance on!

My long lost friend Chris and I

Dari and I

In the theater with Allison waiting for the movie to start.

So Cotton On may or may not be my new favorite store. Have you been there? Have you seen Magic Mike?

Linking up to The Pleated Poppy for WIWW and here and here.

Hello Monday....or Wednesday!

It's been a busy week so I'm cutting myself some slack on this Hello Monday post. (And by slack I mean 2 days). 

 Hello Mingle @ Soel. Last week my friend Nichole and I went to this and we had a blast. It was a great place for networking and getting to meet the face behind so many blogs that I love. Not to mention they had awesome food and treats and swag.  


Hello yummy Italian sodas and free meals from Cafe Rio. 


Hello People Water. And hello gift card to Soel! I was so excited to win and can't wait to go shopping!

Hello photo booth pictures complete with confetti. And Hello Jef from the bachelorette. He was at the Mingle with his company People Water and the girls (including myself) all loved it!

 Pictures via Ashley Thalman. 


Hello to my sweet husband. He is pretty amazing and I don't tell him enough. So I've been leaving treats and notes around for him to find. 

Hello to Pretty Little Liars. I just started watching it via Netflix and I may or may not be half way into the 2nd season already. I've been crafting at night again and it's been keeping me company. And Hello to finally getting around to making Chloe some more hair clips (that I've been meaning to get around to for over a month.)

Hello to being a stay at home mom. Amid the tantrums, messes, diapers, late nights and early mornings, my kids remind me every day how awesome my job is. 

Hello to Daddy/Son/Grandpa nights out. Scotty took his Dad and Jaxon fishing and they had a blast. Jaxon got a new pole and is obsessed and wants to go every day. He is actually pretty good at dropping the line and reeling it back in. (And no night out is complete without treats)

Hello to Girls Night Out! Friday my girlfriends and I met up and had dinner at CPK (and although they messed up 3/4 of our orders it was still yummy). We then met up with some other friends and saw Magic Mike and then went dancing. It was a fabulous time. Thank you ladies!

How was your week?