A Lovely Easter

I had such a lovely Easter this weekend. Thanks to a popular LDS video, many of my friends have been posting #BecauseofHim thoughts and pictures in their social media feeds--I had the chance to read the testimonies and the blessings of my friends from all around the world throughout the weekend. It made the holiday seem truly recognized, as we united in our celebration of the Lord's Atonement and His sacrifice for us.

I was also given the wonderful opportunity to sing during sacrament meeting service at church on Easter Sunday. Our ward music director asked me to sing a favorite song of hers, O Divine Redeemer, by Charles Gounod. The lyrics describe a plea to the Savior for redemption, pardon, and help. Preparing this song helped me renew my gratitude for the Lord, and I felt myself grow closer to Him as I studied the message and sang my testimony. Here is the beautiful rendition by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir:

After church, we made dinner for some friends for the ward. Last year at this time, Nick and I weren't quite engaged, yet and we made the same prime rib roast dinner for some church friends on Easter Sunday together. So I guess now it's a tradition! It makes for a very special, fresh dinner--and it is so easy to make! I will have to make a post about that meal....

Happy Easter!

Because of Him

Have you seen this, yet? The powerful music, the beautiful images, and the poignant, simple words combine to deliver the message of the Good News of the Gospel: Because of Jesus Christ we can live again! We can create goodness and love fully now! Because of the Savior, I know that I can be with my wonderful husband forever, and enjoy never-ending happiness. Because of Christ's Atonement, I can overcome my mistakes, learn to be like Him, and grow to understand God's love.
This video has been an inspiring part of my Holy Week. I'm in Ottawa for work, and I have plenty of time between shows to hang out at my hotel. Instead of reading or surfing the web, I've made it a priority to study the Book of Mormon and some of the General Conference messages from the latest session. It has helped me be much more aware of the Spirit and sensitive to promptings to ponder the Savior and His example. I am so grateful to recognize that I was receiving this blessing of the Holy Ghost whispering to my soul and reminding me to think about Jesus. It has increased my awareness of my many other blessings and filled my heart with gratitude. It has made the anticipation of Easter Sunday sweet and meaningful, as I look forward to celebrating the accomplishment of the Lord's Atonement, which makes my life possible, meaningful, and purposeful.
I hope this video brings the Spirit into your week. I hope that you feel the love of the Savior and our Heavenly Father during this special time of the year! All good things are because of Him!

Fall in Love

I love the crispness of the air as the seasons change; my lungs feel invigorated when they breathe in the sharp, cool air that comes in October. Mingled with the smell of fallen leaves and shops that are filled with maple or apple flavors, my mouth and my nose tell me that Autumn has finally come! 

We celebrated by taking a moonlit hayride at Linvilla Orchards, just outside of Philadelphia. We were surprised to find some beautiful countryside so close to the hustle and bustle of the city!

We took a look at a few glowing jack-o-lanterns, picked out some big pumpkins, and stowed them away in the car before the ride began. Then we snuggled down into the warm hay piled in an open flatbed wagon, pulled behind a farm tractor. A brilliant full moon watched over our journey, flooding open fields with light so that we could see wild throngs of colorful flowers dancing in the dark, and then sparkling through the thick foliage of tree branches as we winded up an forested hill. Our wagon deposited us at a big bonfire where we were gifted willow sticks upon which to roast marshmallows, and glasses of fresh apple cider. The night was perfect.

And then! As we walked back to the parking lot, I heard the boom! boom! BOOM! of fireworks in the distance. From our hill, we watched a dazzling fireworks show. All my favorite things, wrapped up into one special date night with my hubby. This is the most wonderful time of year!

Lemon Cake with Raspberry Flair

I made a lemon cake for Easter Sunday dinner. 

Isn't it beautiful? It was also immensely tasty. My mom first tried this recipe when I was in high school. I'm not sure where she found it, so I can't give credit where credit is--seriously--due. But I can share it with you!

Cake:                                                                           

1 1/3 cups sugar                                                          

6 TB butter, softened                                               

1 TB grated lemon rind                                               

3 TB thawed lemonade concentrate                            

2 tsp vanilla extract                                                     

2 large eggs                                                                 

2 large egg whites

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder                                                    

½ tsp salt                                                                    

½ tsp baking soda

1 ¼ cups buttermilk

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Then get started on the cake batter by whipping up your sugar, butter and lemon rind with an electric mixer. When that's well-combined, add the lemonade concentrate and vanilla. Whip it up, whip it up good.

Add your eggs and egg whites, one at a time, beating between each. 

In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Listen. You don't actually have to sift it. I know, I always hate it when recipes tell me to do this. But at least stick it in a different bowl and mix them together with a whisk. 

Then add the flour mixture and the buttermilk alternately, bit by bit, beating with the electric mixture after each addition. (flour-beat-buttermilk-beat-flour-beat-buttermilk-beat, etc.)

Pour the batter into two 9-inch round pans, which you previously greased and floured, of course. Sharply tap each pan once on the counter to remove air bubbles. Bake for about 20-30 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pans on a wire rack for ten minutes or so and then remove from the pans. Allow the cakes to finish cooling completely on the cooling rack. 

Frosting:

2 TB butter, softened

2 tsp grated lemon rind

2 tsp thawed lemonade concentrate

½ tsp vanilla extract

8 ounces cream cheese

3 ½ cups powdered sugar

To prepare frosting, place butter, lemon rind, lemonade concentrate, vanilla and cream cheese in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until fluffy. Add powdered sugar, and beat at low speed just until blended. Chill 1 hour.

Raspberry filling:

1 1/2 C fresh raspberries

1 TB cornstarch

2 TB fresh lemon juice

1/4 C sugar

Throw all of that in a small saucepan and heat it until it simmers, let it cool in the fridge for about an hour. Then assemble your cake!

Easter Sunday Dinner

This Easter, I did something I had never done before: I made prime rib roast for dinner, just like my Nana always does. It was perfect and delicious. PLUS, I made fantastic-tasting gravy from the drippings. SUCCESS.

Lemon cake for dessert, which matched my cute table. 

It was a lovely evening with a few friends. Hope your Easter was delightful!

My Valentine

I was surprised with a real-life candle-lit dinner this Valentine's. 

Nick guided me into the room while I covered my eyes. When I opened them, I found the table laden with candles, flowers, a homemade Valentine card and poem, and a picture frame holding a shot of the two of us. 

Nick made a yummy meat and cheese lasagna, coupled with a spicy Asian salad. 

So fun to be dating a romantic. 

**update: Those heart-shaped Valentine balloons are STILL floating a month and a half later. Proof it's true love. 

Meeting My Family

My Nicholas flew to Utah to spend a week with my family during the Christmas holiday. We had a BLAST.

So much fun, in fact, that I failed to catch a single moment on my camera. Wuh, wuh...

These photos are from just before the holiday, in the car (of course, somehow the only time I remember to take pictures when we're together is when we're driving somewhere).

Nick flew in on the Sunday after Christmas Day. We went to Nana's house for a delicious dinner and apple pie for dessert. Then we wandered around Temple Square and looked at the lights before driving up the mountain to my dad's house in Kamas. 

We went out to eat at some of my favorite spots that week. Dad also made homemade breakfast and/or dinner several times. It was a food fest, for sure. 

We also played cards, went on a snowshoeing hike, visited the Salt Lake Temple, watched Les Miserables at the theater, and hopped around town meeting my friends and family for good conversations--everyone wanted to see the handsome guy I had been writing home about. 

He was such a gentleman and charmed both Nana and my mother the instant they met him. Nana grabbed his arm and exclaimed--really, she let out a whoop--"Oh! He's soooo handsome! You are so adorable!" I think I had to pry her fingers off of him. My mom just kept gushing during her long stories, interrupting whatever narrative she was telling with things like, "Oh, you two are so cute. I'm just so happy for you." Plenty of embarrassing references to marriage and "Let me know when you get engaged," from everyone I introduced him to. Alas, that is part of the fun of having the guy you're dating come home for Christmas, right? His visit was the best gift; I loved showing him around my hometown and playing with him in the snow. 

Here's to the New Year!

Give Thanks

Due to a neat twist in the schedule at work, I had a paid flight home for the Thanksgiving holiday, plus ten days to stay and play with my family in Utah.

It was a day of cooking, eating, resting, laughing, singing, talking and rough-housing at Nana's. 

She had eight children. As all of them stayed in the area to raise their own families, we had plenty of cousins to hang out with at family functions. I love going home  and seeing how old everyone is getting (as the oldest grandchild, I always imagine the other kids perpetually young; it surprises me to see them graduating from college and getting married, etc. etc.).

Me with my lovely aunts: Sadie, Michelle, and Melissa. I love these fabulous women. Notice we donned adorable aprons before beginning the mashing of potatoes and whipping of the cream. Nana's kitchen is designed just so we each have enough space to work on all the kitchen tasks simultaneously, as Nana flits around instructing, "Now add a splash of milk and stir it in. Honey, your bread is ready to roll out." 

We had our traditional green jello topped with cheddar cheese, a Montgomery specialty--trust me, it's delicious!

We're a big enough bunch that we had multiple kids' tables scattered throughout the basement.

I spread the yo-yo fever and had several of my younger cousins practicing tricks after dinner. This is Christopher, the most adorable little cowboy. 

Got to see Pixie Rae!!

And my lovely sister, Toad. 

I'm so very grateful for family. These people are my anchors in life; they make me laugh, they pray for me when I'm away, they are a riot of sarcasm and hugs. 

Masquerade

This post is a quickie, just for the sake of recording a special night. 

Elizabeth threw a masquerade ball at her house. I went.

 I did her hair. I didn't get pictures of the brilliant decor for the party, or of all the guests sweet masks. Instead, I took took a picture of her brushing her teeth while she was waiting for the glue on her fake eyelashes to dry.  

It was a typical, fun night, and I didn't think much of it at the time...

...but that was the night I met a certain gentleman who has since become a very important part of my life. His name is Nick. It was October 19th. 

More to come about him, and me =)

Halloween Kid

I just sent this adorable book by Rhode Montijo to my niece,

because Halloween packages are
pretty much the greatest thing. ever.

and because it features two
of my favorite things: Halloween and Cowboys.

I found my copy at a Pottery Barn and was delighted by the rip-roarin' story of the Halloween Kid saving Halloween from goodie gobblin' goblins and a whole host of other shady, Halloween stoppin' bad guys. 
"Yee-ha-Halloween!" the Halloween Kid shouts!

Plus, the author totally rocks. He not only illustrates his own books, he also absolutely, totally loves Halloween and makes all sorts of Halloween art. Including--hello--a vintage-looking Halloween Kid lunch box. I want this =)

I'm a champion of this incredible holiday, and I'm glad to find I've got some help out there.

Top three reasons to get excited about Halloween:

1. COSTUMES--No big surprise the actor girl likes dressing up, I know. But Halloween costumes are more than that, they're a special tradition. Growing up, my mom always made our costumes. As we got older, we began to take a more active part in imagining, designing, and creating the costumes of our dreams. It was, and is, incredibly satisfying to create an entire character, to bring an idea to life and then show your friends what you accomplished whilst gathering candy and visiting with the neighbors. I am so grateful my parents often dressed up with us (and still do). They let us know it was okay to be silly and have fun, that you don't have to grow out of dressing up the way you might grow out of trick-or-treating. It's such a delightful, fun thing to plan and anticipate; my sister and I will talk about costume ideas all year long. Those ready-made, cookie-cutter costumes off the rack at Walmart may be best for some, but I am happy Mom took the time and money to create unique costumes with us.
I wish I had photos of us as kids!
I'm going to put in a call
and ask her to send me some.

2. PUMPKINS--pumpkin cookies, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin-scented candles, pumpkin-picking farms and hayrides, pumpkin-carving, seeing tiny pumpkins in the grocery store, driving past a wagon full of harvested pumpkins on the side of a country road (is the word pumpkin starting to look a little strange to you, too?). Actually, it's more than just pumpkins. It's the atmosphere of Halloween stuff. It's seeing goofy Halloween decor in the aisle at the store. It's attempting to realistically spread spider webs down the railing in your house to make your staircase look spooky. It's that Halloween card in the mail from Great Grandma "V" with $5 (this one is weird to Elizabeth--she never got Halloween cards, but we ALWAYS did. In fact, I've already mailed cards to all my siblings and my mother). It's the fact that we didn't just decorate our house--we transformed our house into a magical place. The neighbor who has a million Christmas lights blinking and flashing, an inflatable snowman in the yard and a glowing sleigh with a full set of reindeer on the roof through the month of December (you know this guy, right?)
--we are the equivolent during October.
Graves dug in the front yard,
a coffin with real bones peeking out
just inside the door,
and goulish pictures hanging on the walls.

3. GOOD, CLEAN FUN--this is the time when people host jack-o-lantern festivals, make apple cider, and tell classic spooky stories while frosting ghost-shaped sugar cookies. I have amazing memories of classic skating in costume, awkward middle school Halloween dances, hanging on to my friends while making our way through haunted houses, even being attacked by a candy-giving pirate on a Halloween cruise one year! In my family, we bust out the greatest movies at this time of year: Hocus Pocus, Lady in White, Wait Until Dark, High Spirits (randomly featuring Peter O'Toole, Liam Neeson, and Daryl Hannah). Nothing horrifying or evil, I don't dabble in that stuff--just the crazy, fun things like throwing a dinner party and making all the food
 resemble creepy ingredients from a witch's spellbook.

last night in Kamas

Cell phone photos: I missed half of Kammra's face.

Then I chopped off Dad's sweet cowboy hat.

Finally, he took the phone and got us all in the frame.

There's no place I'd rather be than Kamas, Utah on the Fourth of July. Ironically, I spent Independence Day this year in Great Britain. And I'm missing out on another wonderful patriotic weekend: Pioneer Day and the Kamas Fiesta Days events that always come at the end of the month. I'll be on an airplane flying Down Under while everyone at home is watching our little town's world-famous demolition derby. In fact, I was asked to sing the National Anthem for the Bull Wars and this event, but I had to cancel. Turns out it takes several days to fly to our Southern cousin continent: AUSTRALIA.

So last night, as a farewell, we went to the Kamas Rodeo so I could catch a bit of my favorite time of year. Bull riding, cowboys, country music, grilled burgers and fireworks--it's my favorite kind of night. I loved watching my neice Rachel cheer for the events. Every time they announced a bull's name, she would repeat it with an incredulously raised eyebrow and then giggle.

 "So-and-so on a bull called Scene-of-the-Crime."

"Scene of the crime???? Bahahahaaa."

She's funny.

It was also great to hear Kam talk about the days when she was a rodeo queen, barrelling and making lots of money, training horses and beatin' all the boys' scores at the rodeos. We came home and looked at some of her photos and trophies--that girl was a cowgirl, through and through, and she kicked some serious butt--she was great at what she did!

I may be a classy lady who wears high heels and spends half her time at the airport, but in my heart I'm still a small town girl who loves hoopin' and hollerin' at the cowhands.

p.s. I have more stories about my trip from the UK coming....plus I'll have some new adventures from my trip to Australia. I've got to run and catch the flight now! Have a good day, mates, be back in two weeks!