Puppies!

Banner was born 2 weeks ago! We have visited the puppies a couple of times but we are not allowed to hold them until they are 3 weeks old. It's hard to visit them and not be able to take one home. I have been trying to convince Kyle that we should get two puppies (a boy and a girl) but he's not going for it. The puppies are just starting to open their eyes and they have already gotten so big. We get to pick out our puppy in 3 more weeks!

This picture was taken a few hours after they were born!


One week old

Two weeks old

Spring Break

A couple of weeks ago I had Spring Break and I was so looking forward to a break from work. Of course I didn't get everything that I wanted done but I did have lots of fun cooking and baking, going to Disneyland and getting some crafts done.


My Mom and I went to Disneyland because it has become our new favorite place to go. There is a restaurant there called Cafe Orleans that has most amazing Monte Cristo sandwiches. If you like Monte Cristo's you must try them at this restaurant! Disneyland was nice and mostly calm that day because it wasn't super crowded. This was the only picture I took while at Disneyland because my camera died.





Lately I have "lost that loving feelin'" with cooking dinner. Cooking dinner has become a chore because usually I come home tired and I just don't feel like cooking a huge meal. I have tons of cookbooks that I like to look at, but never cook from, because it always seems like there are too many items to buy or the recipe takes too long. So this week I decided to try some new recipes because I had the time. I made Chicken Parmesan Bundles and for a dessert/snack I made five-layer bars.The Chicken Parmesan Bundles are a LOT of work but are super yummy. Kyle helped me by pounding down the chicken because I don't like to touch raw meat. I made this with a big salad and it was enough for a good dinner. The five layer bars were easy to make and tasted good but very sweet. These bars require a big glass of milk to drink while eating them. Here are links to the recipe if you would like to try to make them: http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/chicken-parmesan-bundles-107338.aspx and http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/five-layer-bars-recipe/index.html




There is a piece of chicken under all of the yummy sauce!







The five layer bars before they went into the oven.





















The bars after coming out of the oven. Notice the little bit missing in the corner- I just couldn't wait to eat them!







Last Sunday I went to a card making class and made lots of cute spring cards. I love going to these classes because I learn new techniques and it really is such a stress reliever. Here are some of the cards that I have made in the past month.

10 years and a BIG announcement!

Today is our 10 year (dating) anniversary! It's so amazing to me that it has been ten years because it seems like we just met yesterday, but it also feels like we have been together forever (and ever and ever... haha). Since we have been together for so long (even though we have only been married 11 months) we always get asked about when we are going to have a baby. I think most people have given up, but we would like to announce to everyone that we are expecting!! It's a boy and he is a Golden Retriever PUPPY! HAHA! GOT YA! We are so excited! We lost our golden retriever, Logan, last November and we were so close to him that we were devastated. We really miss him. So after a few months of thinking and talking, we decided to get a puppy. I contacted the same breeder that we got Logan from and she has puppies available to go home in June, which is perfect because I want to be home to potty train and puppy sit. We are thinking of naming him Banner. Kyle loves comic books so we named Logan after Wolverine and now he came up with the name Banner after Bruce Banner (The Hulk). So that's our big announcement! I'm thinking that I should have a puppy shower because after all a puppy is a baby dog and they do need lots of stuff like babies do! :)

Dear Jillian Micheals- I'm not a fan!

So when I was younger (teens) I was a swimmer and had a great swimmer body and I didn't have to worry about watching what I ate. Now that I'm in my 30's (AHHHHH!) my body is catching up to my crazy appetite of sweets and snacks. I keep telling myself "OK this is the year I'm going to get fit" but in actuality I HATE working out! I HATE exercising because it's boring and painful! In the past I have had a personal trainer and I actually whined the whole time I worked out with her because I just hate it. So again this year I decided I'm going to get fit and back into a bikini body by summer. I started working out two weeks ago and I have lost two pounds! YAY! Except, I want better results and an easier way to get those results- like sleeping and losing weight at the same time :). I have been working out to Jillian Michaels 30 day shred DVD's and they kick my butt! It's a crazy, continuous workout and she doesn't stop to take a little breather the entire time! She pretends to be nice on the DVD but the whole time I'm working out I just want to yell at her! But I hope by doing this I will see faster results because if I stay on this one pound a week pace I won't reach my goal until August 2nd and that is not soon enough!

Fun at the Park

A couple of weeks ago, I had the week off of work. I know, I know, teachers have too much time off! To be honest, I have not clue why we had the week off, other than it was President's Day and they gave us the week off. Anyway, it was Valentines Day that week and Kyle and I decided to go to the Wild Animal Park in San Diego. Ever since Kyle and I have started dating, (almost 10 years ago!) we have planned trips to the zoo or wild animal park because we love being there. We went to the park last year and it was extremely packed and I spent most of the day whining. This year we went the day after Valentine's Day and it was so quiet and enjoyable. It felt like we had the whole park to ourselves. I loved seeing the baby elephants and we actually got to see young giraffes play fighting with each other. We also hiked near the back of the park to see some beautiful cacti and succulents. We had a great day together and I didn't whine at all (well maybe a little when we had to wait in line for the tram). :)