Home and Garden Show

We went to the Home and Garden show a week and a half ago.  I know, I'm a little slow.  I just haven't taken pictures off the camera in a few weeks.  Here are some pictures of things we want for our dream home.

A rock wall for the kids.  It also has a slide!  Probably the coolest playground ever!

Super comfy theater seats for our future theater room.

A putting green, because someone is a little obsessed.  :)

Fancy lighted patio stairs.

Now we just need lots more money!

February Fun

We haven't used our camera much lately.  I guess we're going through a no camera phase.  It's still been exciting though!

We went to a Superbowl party at Lance's dad's house.  Lance's stepmom, Laura throws a big party every year, with pizza and tons of delicious snacks.  We brought rice crispy treats.

Lance had a birthday two weeks ago.  He's turning into an old man.  Ha ha!  Just kidding.  We celebrated his birthday the Friday after.  We went to Golden Corral.  He loves buffets.  He went to town, especially on the desserts.  Don't you just hate it when your husband can eat all he wants and not gain a pound?  I mostly stocked up on mashed potatoes, fries, and salad.

Then, we celebrated with his family on Saturday.  We had Hawaiian Haystacks, Jello salad, and pumpkin pie (his all time favorite.)  We celebrated with my family the Wednesday before by going to McDonald's.

 

Happy birthday Lance!  (Picture from the summer)

We love celebrating our birthdays so many times.  It makes it extra special.

Valentine's Day was super fun and exciting.  Well, we're kind of boring people.  We thought about going on a hot date to dinner or something, but my dad called and invited us over for pizza.  We're pretty frugal, so we decided on pizza with my family to save a few bucks.  And, we had a lot of fun seeing my parents and my brothers with their families.  Our nieces and nephews are a ton more entertaining than waiting 30+ minutes for a table.  Besides, who could get a better Valentine than a Katie-bug-hug?  She gives the best hugs in the entire world!  It really was a fun evening.

 

 Katie, who gives the best hugs.

Lance's mom also had a birthday, and we celebrated this past Sunday.  Her menu was beans and rice, breadsticks, Jello fluff salad, and chocolate cake and ice cream.

Happy birthday Marlene!  (Picture from the summer)

For President's Day, we celebrated by going to my parents' house, because my sister came up from West Jordan.  Lance and my dad worked on our Geo.  It needed some transmission fluid.  They did a great job.  I noticed a big difference on the drive home.

Oh!  By the way, I finished the Hunger Games series!  I loved it!  Well, I guess the storyline is not ideal, but it was written very well.  I liked how everything turned out in the end.  I wish I was smart enough to come up with something that complex.  Maybe one day I will...

Well, that's what's been going on around here.  Gotta love February.

Big News!!!

Hello everyone!  Lance and I have some exciting news!  We're approved for adoption!!!!!!!!!!  Our profile is online at https://itsaboutlove.org/ial/profiles/27293481/ourMessage.jsf

We've been in the process since the end of October.  You'd be surprised how much you have to prepare just to get approved!

Now, we're waiting to be chosen by a birth mother.  If you know of anyone looking to place their baby, please send them our way.  We also have an adoption specific blog that doesn't give out any identifying information, last name, location, etc.  It's lancemichelleadopt.blogspot.com

Wish us luck!  We can't wait to be parents! 

Also, don't feel awkward about asking us questions.  We're excited about adopting and enjoy talking about it.

I know, my posts haven't been all that exciting lately.  Soon, I hope to have some.  There are some great projects coming up.  I just need to summon up the courage to do them.  I'm afraid they'll turn out bad.  Don't worry, I'll get over myself soon.

So, what have I been doing?  Well, I can't tell you everything.  That might take all day, and spoil some surprises.  But I do have a book recommendation.  It's The Hunger Games.  Oh my!  I'm only on the second one, but wow!  They're soooooooo good!  They're not even really fantasy . . . well, maybe a little bit, because it's futuristic, but they're not the normal fantasy I usually go for (that's a first for me).  I'm so beyond excited for the movie to come out!  I've been doing all my research on it, the actors and such.


I'm not going to spoil anything, but my description of them would be a cross between the book, "The Lottery," and the TV show from last year, "Persons Unknown."  But it's not exactly like either of them.


I'm excited to finish the books, but also a little sad.  I feel like the characters are my friends, and I will be sad to see them go.  I know, I'm a nerd.  I'm so bad that I have dreams about them.  The second night reading the first one, I had a dream I was in the Hunger Games with Peeta.  He's my favorite character.

Well, that's somewhat what I've been up to.  If you haven't read "Hunger Games," I highly recommend it!

I Looked Out the Window....

And what did I see?

Snow balls frozen on the snowball tree!

It was so cold that the snow froze to the branches!  This was yesterday, by the way.  I think they've melted now.  But pretty amazing, huh?

An Eternal Family

On Saturday, Lance and I were privileged to go to the Bountiful temple to see our adorable nephew, Jacob, get sealed to his family!  We're so happy that Jake is our nephew!  We love him so much, and he fits into the family perfectly.

 

 Jacob

 Jake with his brother, Jordan, and sister, Savannah

Jake's eternal family.  Congratulations you guys!

It was a great experience, and made me even more excited to take my own kids there to be sealed in the future, an experience that we'll be very lucky to have.

2011 Top Ten List

Well, it's that time when we all do sappy stories about the past year.  So yeah, I'll jump on that train too.

2011 was a very . . . interesting year, to say the least.  I learned a lot, created a lot, and experienced more emotions than I thought I would ever be capable of.  Here are the top ten highlights of my year, in no particular order.

1- Went to Texas for the first time ever with Lance.  He worked out of the Austin TIGTA office for a few months, and in January, I tagged along.

 

2- Had a record number of DIY projects.  Some turned out amazing, and others were definitely a first time learning experience.

 

3- Hosted Thanksgiving for the first time ever.

4- Went on my first real golf excursion.  I didn't golf, personally, but I tagged along with Lance and his brother, Scott.

 

5- Made the second most important (and most emotional) decision of my life.

6- Discovered that I really can do anything with the right motivation, even get over my irrational fear of needles.

7- Joined Pinterest.  Very addictive, but helpful to a homemaker.  P.S. Many more DIY projects are coming soon!

8- Realized that I really do need to get regular check-ups.  Three cavities at once are not fun, especially when they're filled at the same time.  The entire lower portion of my face was numb!

 

9- Refinished my gorgeous hardwood floors!  (FINALLY!!!)

 

10- Learned how to be happy in times of trial, and that it's okay to have a bad day every once in a while.

What a year!  How was yours?