Miracle!

Don't worry, as I was typing the previous post Ryan found the camera. Guess I jsut had to announce it was lost for it to be found. Kyle had thrown it away. We had taken the trash out. Then we took the garbage to the end of our driveway (way longer distance than you think I promise). Turns out the g-man didn't come get the trash today because of the holiday. SO yesterday's bag was still there. And there was the camera. Memorial Day Miracle folks. Guess this good ol' thing will keep chuggin'. Here are some weekend pics.

Kyle loves G Taylor's flowers. We went to our nephew's baseball game just in time to see him score! I loved the rainy weather driving through the canyon.

 Kyle had a rough night, but loved our big bed. It ended up just him...with Ryan and I on the floor. We didn't mind if it meant we could all sleep. He also loves eating apples adult style...I think its funny. Kyle thinks Ryan is hilarious. Kyle likes to have as many sippy cups at once as possible. Addict.

 We played lots of games. Ate too many treats. And I balanced on a large ball. Woo!

Please note the tiny summer sno, and that Ky is wearing last year's swim gear...it was MASSIVE last year. I think he fills it out nicely now. Also note that super short hair is hard to make attractive/feminine while swimming.

See? Aren't you all so grateful I found my camera so you didn't miss out? Ha. 

Holiday Weekend

We had a great weekend. We did some shopping in Park City, then went to stay with Ryan's family in Heber while visiting his parents on their mission, and then came back home for a day of 7 Peaks, Summer Sno, and home made pizza. This weekend really had it all. I am SO glad it is Summer Sno season again. They even added their "baby" size just in time for Kyle to be old enough to enjoy it. He was a HUGE fan. I was also glad to see how much he still loved 7 Peaks. I can already tell it is going to be a fantastic summer.

Sad news: I currently have a lost camera. Now, if you have ever seen my camera you might consider it a blessing that it has been lost. But it has all our pictures from the weekend on it, and I can't afford to replace it at the moment even though it really has lived its life and deserves to be retired. Cross your fingers I can find it please! Until then, luckily Jeff got some pictures at Dairy Keen. So at least we have something. Kyle loved trying fry sauce for the first time, and looked awesome in his lil' conductor hat. Really though, give that boy soda and a dipping sauce and he is pretty much in heaven.

Hope you had a great weekend!

Hot Dog!

We had a Taylor Family hot dog roast tonight. It was also the "grand opening" of a section of the barn my dad has been working on. It looks so good! It was really fun to be outside and obviously, to have an excuse to eat a hot dog. 

Father of the Bride...

...is my favorite movie. My sister and I laugh until we cry every single time we watch it...which is a lot. When we heard it was coming to Hale Center Theater we knew we had to go. My parents came too. It was hilarious. I loved it. And it made me miss my sister tremendously.

Dress Up

I want new clothes just about every day. Unfortunately the student budget doesn't allow for that (shocker I know)...so lately I have been attempting to change up things I already have, or find cheap ways of making some new stuff. Pinterest is full of amazing ideas, but most of them seem a bit out of reach for me. I have very little skill in the area of clothes sewing...but a few projects of late I actually really liked. I felt like posting it just to show that really, anyone can do it! I followed other people's tutorials of course. Check it out. I make a super great model, yeah? Awkward.

I really love the colored jeans all around these days. They scream WARM WEATHER to me. I found a few cheap pairs I love, but as always, I wanted MORE. I found this tutorial and couldn't resist. I went to DI and found some white pants. They fit up top but flared at the bottom. With some help from my mom we made them skinny, then I just bought RIT dye from Hobby Lobby (with a coupon) and dyed them in the washing machine. Easiest. Thing. Ever. And now I love them. The pictures are bleh but I didn't want to make Ry keep taking more since it was raining.

 Before. This doesn't show the flare though. 

Taduhhhhh (total cost with tax: $5.46)

Next I decided to give this one and this one a try. I made two versions on the shirt (not done yet...and my mom assisted), and the skirt was so simple (with a little help from Erin). My grandma has a zillion old doilies to choose from, and the skirt ended up costing a little over $5. Not too bad. I didn't plan on wearing them together, but it worked well enough for a picture.

Isn't it beautiful outside? Holy smokes. Love me a rainy day. Anyways. I don't claim to be super crafty, or stylish...but I like to have some fun. I needed some help with some things, so luckily I am related to talented women. Sure, I would prefer to just buy what I want...but for now it is sort of fun trying to make something for nothing. If I can do this, anyone can. Give it a try!

Our House

I have never really posted too much about where we live. This is sad because I have put a lot of work into it, but kept wanting to be all the way done before taking pics to document it. Well, I have discovered I might never be all the way done. So I will start to post things a little at a time. I have never once taken pics of any of our apartments, and that makes me sad. And since we have already lived here longer than anywhere else, and plan to stay a while longer, I want to remember our space here. I wish I had before pictures of everything, because in my opinion, it has come a long way. Here are a few of the rooms I have spruced up a bit.

It was hard to really capture the rooms because I have a beyond terrible camera and no photography skills. But I did what I could. Here is the ONE before picture.

Our dresser and matching nightstands were my parents when they got married...they deserved a makeover. After some research I discovered a primer that allowed me to paint these laminate particle board nasties without ANY sanding. Lovely.

I thought I took other befores...but I guess not. Bummer man. 

Dining Room and Entry

•  painted walls aqua (pics arent very true to color)
• Painted flower and striped canvas
• Panted plaques and applied paper
• Bought: rug, fat gives things flavor word art, cactus.
• Free: table and chairs, carpe diem printable, plates on wall

Kyle's Room

His room is sort of in transition from nursery to little man room, but until his new quilt is done, we are sticking with the old colors.

•  Painted gray wall
• Painted shelf black
• Made frames and BOY letters
• Sewed quilt and window banner
• Gifted: Stuffed Owl, carriage cross stitch
• Bought: Bed, curtains, and shoot for the moon picture

Our Bedroom

I have never loved our bedroom. I was going to wait to do anything until we moved and actually bought some furniture, but with the news we were staying I knew it had to be fixed.

•  Refinished dresser and nightstands.
• Painted ceiling aqua
• Painted lamps and made ruffle shades.
• Refinished mirror
• Painted some canvas. 
• Sewed all the pillows, and dresser runner
• Free: I love us printable
• Bought: white blanket, rug, curtains, metal flower wall hanging
• Gift: Flower arrangement, piggy bank(has been in my room since jr. high)

Back Bathroom

• Sewed towel overlays
• Bought: lemons, floral wall hangings

Well that's a start! I will keep posting as I finish things. Even the rooms I posted are always a work in progress, they lack little finishing touches and rooms always seem to evolve as you live in them...which is a good thing. But for now we are loving our little house. It feels more like home than anywhere else we have lived. Home Sweet Home.

Reunion

Last week I got to have a little get together with most of my roommates from my freshman year at BYU. It was SO fun to see them and chat. I loved that year of my life, I think it will forever be a really important one to me. I loved these girls too, and it was so fun to hear about the things we had all done since we were last together...at age 19. We missed Meagan and Liz!

Weekend

We had a great one. It was Jeff's birthday AND Mother's Day, so we had plenty to celebrate. I didn't take too many pics, but here are a few.

What we did?

• Ate at Red Robin because anywhere with all you can eat fries gets an A+ from me...especially sweet potato ones. Yum. It should be noted that Kyle quite enjoyed himself....mostly his Sprite.
• Went mini golfing
• Went to the batting cages (so fun!!!)
• Ate way too many treats (Katie made a to die for oreo cake...holy smokes)
• BBQ times two
• Beautiful flowers were given to me
• The men of the house made Mother's Day fabulous. Delicious crepes for breakfast (go Ry!), perfect chicken for dinner, and hot fudge to end the night right. They also took care of all the cleaning and anything else productive that needed to happen so Katie and I could watch Downton Abbey. All day. Even Kyle put on his I Love Mom shirt (which I did not buy him) and got to work. Thanks guys! I am a lucky girl.
• Went on a long run, and got followed by a dog for most of it. 

I would consider it a successful weekend.

Mother's Day

I will love him forever and always.

17 Months and a Picnic

Kyle is 17 months today. One month shy of a big half birthday celebration. We had a pretty open day, so I decided we should go on a picnic. We invited Ryan. He is in our cool person club too. It was a lovely picnic. I love those boys...so glad we are related. What's Kyle up to these days? Allow me to share.

• He is talking more each day. I think we are the only ones who understand most of it...but he sure has a lot to say.
• He loves to say yucky and throw things away...and he is usually pretty on about what is indeed yucky. Though we have had to rescue a few items from the trash.
• He likes to feed the fish. A lot.
• He has a secret handshake with his bff Jeff.
• He got his own recliner...and loves to kick back and watch his fave shows.
• He sleeps in a bed rather than a crib.
• He loves dipping his food...especially chicken nuggets and chips.
• He loves melon more than any other food.
• He loves to color...sometimes on walls.
• His favorite song is Baby by the Biebs. 
• He is sometimes shy and clingy now.
• He is obsessed with Jeff and Katie. 
• He says yeah and no and actually means whichever one he says.
• He loves to be outside. Always. 
• He doesn't like being contained...prefers to roam free.
• He likes to make people laugh.
• He LOVES. loves any electronic device he can play with (another reason I need a smart phone right?)
• He loves dogs.
• He has to have his two baseball blankets, bear, turtle, and elephant in order to sleep at night. 
• He learned how to glare at people when he is mad.

He is such a sweet boy. I love how fun his personality is. He is so interactive and loves to play. I think I will keep him forever.

ketchup face:)

Cinco De Mayo

Still is one of Ryan's favorite holidays. We love to celebrate it. Logan hosted a fabulous party this year. The food was yum (tacos and tres leches cake holy smokes) and best of all the company was wonderful. It has been a while since I have just sat and laughed like that. It is also entertaining to watch Kyle and Emmett hang out together. Good, good time.

 Thanks to Kels for letting Kyle dip every one of his chips in her salsa.

BFF

Last week Jeff and Katie were nice enough to play with Kyle for a few hours so we could go to the temple. It was so fun. We usually go alone, so getting to go together was such a treat. Spending some peaceful time together was magical. Ryan is my favorite.

He's a big kid now

Over the weekend Kyle grew up. We decided to pack away the crib to storage and put up a big kid bed. We were scared...but so far so good! He seems to love it...and does a great job with staying in it for the most part. The transition has actually gone unbelievably smooth...so I am sort of waiting for it all to get crazy. But maybe not? Either way I do not miss the crib, and I am loving seeing Kyle enjoy a whole new phase of big kid-ness, although it is a little heartbreaking that he is getting so old. Love him.  

Don't ya love the hot pink water bottle he is attached to?

Kentucky Derby

My dad is a festive man. He likes to throw parties, and make delicious food, and we are very happy to be on his guest list. Over the weekend was the Kentucky Derby! We had a good time celebrating it. My dad made festive derby food, had the authentic Derby playlist playing, and had proper score sheets for everyone. I mostly just like the excuse to wear a big hat, and Ryan won! So we get the "trophy" to put proudly on display. 

'til next year!

(we also celebrated cinco de mayo but more on that later)

GCC {3.Triple Cheese & 7.Grilled Cheese Fingers}

Last week we had another grilled cheese night! We skipped around a bit to make the most of the ingredients we had.

3. Triple Cheese Make Classic Grilled Cheese (No. 1), using 1 slice each cheddar, muenster and Swiss cheese.

Did we love it? Yes. It was really delicious, though I wish there had been a more distinct flavor between the cheeses. The texture was amazing though.


7. Grilled Cheese Fingers Make Classic Grilled Cheese (No. 1). Cut off the crusts and cut the sandwich into strips.

Did we love it? Of course. Even though it was just a classic sandwich, cutting it into strips was fun. Also...I am always in favor of ditching the crust. Kyle liked it too.

6/50