road show made a come back!

I have fond memories of the Road Shows our Stake did years and years ago. I was never old enough but my siblings had their share of performances. I can remember being captivated by the costumes, the stage props, the music! Oh how I wanted to be a part of it! But then, it just stopped! Why? I was heart broken. Well, this year our ward made the announcement that we were going to participate in a Road Show!!!! I missed the sign up sheet! Otherwise, I TOTALLY would have been on stage and loving every minute! Luckily Bailey got asked to have a part in it. She has loved it. But to me, that is a no brainer. Bailey should have been in acting at 4. So now I've FINALLY convinced her to take a class. She was made for this stuff. So if I can't be up there, I'll be happy to live through her! She was a "talking animal" on a deserted island of talking animals. Our group did AWESOME!!! It was a very entertaining night with 8 different shows-all very imaginative!

heaven in a jar

That's what I got on my front step from a friend of mine! It was gone within one week but luckily it can be ordered online. What is it? A "spread" from Belgium made from a buttery cookie. It has the texture of peanut butter but has tiny crunchy bits of cookie mixed up in it. It tastes sort of like graham crackers but better! Honestly, I ate most of the jar. The best part is that the nutritional info is in French or Dutch so I have no way of counting anything! I just don't want to know. Those Europeans know what they're doing that is for SURE! While eating this creamy, crunchy concoction, I was thinking how sad that someone would smear this on bread thus losing the flavor by polluting it with wheat! I prefer to eat it with a spoon. But then I got thinking, how would this best be eaten and enjoyed other than my method? A truffle!!!!! Filling in a truffle would be dreamy! Sure enough, on one web site I was looking at there was a truffle that looked amazing! Should I order some? Could be dangerous!

the carrot, {not just for your eyesight}

Mini Carrot cupcakes with dulce de leche buttercream frosting (my first time making dulce de leche and now I'm hooked!)
The best pumpkin cheesecake!!!!! (Recipe said it was "Cheesecake Factory Pumpkin Cheesecake"). Whether it was or not, it came very close! No crust, none needed. The perfect combo, cream cheese and carrot with whipped cream on top!

These are carrot cookies! They are MELT IN YOUR MOUTH good! They have lemon extract in them so they are NOT your typical carrot cake cookie. There is also orange zest in the cream cheese frosting. Seriously, divine!


I went on a carrot baking frenzy around Easter time. Glad I did because I learned a lot. And now I appreciate the carrot cake more than ever! I found some really amazing recipes and just had to share some pictures and thoughts. I go through on again off again baking frenzies where I'll bake 3 things in one day and then go two weeks with nothing. One Sunday (my favorite day to bake) Kelly said that he would clean up behind me if I wanted to bake all 3 cookies I had in mind (can never decide so why not just make them all?) I jumped at the chance to have Kelly there with me, following me around the kitchen, taking bowls for me and washing them so I could use them again! I've told you, I'm a very messy cook! I'll share some other things I plan to make in the next week. They may not be impressive but they are things I haven't made for a LONG time! Oldies but goodies! I'm excited for spring cooking!

so, this is what we're up too

Basketball is over. Noah and Sam both loved it which led to a new basketball stand outside! Hurray! Now we're on to baseball for both boys! It's time to pack up the camp chairs, blankets, umbrellas emergency treats and drinks, etc. and get ready for the long haul! So for 4 days a week, I'll be at a field somewhere in Bountiful! Yee Haw! They are both excited!

Bailey just had piano Federation at the University of UT. She got there, got seated at the piano, and one of the judges said, "where is your other piece of music?" WHAT!? Bailey THOUGHT she have brought both but really had grabbed a practice book that looked similar and her other sheet music for her other piece. You can't be judged without your music!!! I thought she'd cry! But she held it together and played the one piece she had BEAUTIFULLY and then we left. She will have to do a make up this Thursday. She was NOT happy. She was READY that day and it was heartbreaking to see her beat herself up over an easy mistake! She has stared to have an interest in soccer since she and her friends have been playing soccer during recess at school. We'll see... For now she plans on summer tennis, gymnastics, and an acting class. Jenna is my free spirit who is content to live through her sibling's activities. Thank heavens I don't have to worry about her schedule...yet!

Noah won second place in the Scout "Take Flight" build your own airplane out of a cardboard box contest. Of course Grampy built the whole thing!!!!! (Muchas gracias Dad!!!!!) But we glued it and painted it!!!! It was a fun night! Fun to see all the different airplanes (some of which were quite impressive!) Fun to see the boys racing around in them from "airport" to "airport"! I think they learned a thing or two while they were at it!

Noah and I were learning about the planets and space flight in Scouts so we thought it would be cool to do a boys/mom date to the Planetarium and see "Hubble 3D" and eat Milky Way bars. So we did and it was really impressive! I had tears in my eyes a few times. Hartley would understand. Love this stuff! Love having boys to do it with!

dipped in cheese and chocolate

Part of my invite

a March birthday celebration!

Ok, this was my favorite moment of the night. Gabe just leaned over and kissed Mi'Chelle. A REAL kiss! (And a real grope which i didn't see until I downloaded these pictures!) They left soon after.....did I put too much wine in the cheese sauce?

The table.

Party favors. A must at a birthday party!

Strange, but as much as I love food and feel like I've tried most things, I had never tried fondue....until now!!!! You know when you have someone over for dinner and you try a new dish thinking it will turn out fine but you're still a little nervous? I tried a whole party centered around fondue, something I had NO experience with! How do you fondue? What sauces are good? What to dip? Well, it all worked out fine. We dipped steak, shrimp, fingerling potatoes, bratwurst, french bread, sauteed veggies of EVERY kind and then for dessert, chocolate! We dipped marshmallows which were then dipped in chopped pecans (my favorite), cheese cake, pound cake, macaroons, strawberries, pineapple, banana, and mini cream puffs! Oh boy! It was a March birthday party for Kelly and some of our March birthday friends! I'm thinking fondue is pretty great. I now need to sit back at Melting Pot and have someone ELSE make it all!!!! I'm glad fondue made a come back. The 70's had at least one good thing going for it besides Andy Gibb! Haha!

simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. ~Leonardo Da Vinci

The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you. Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life. ~Robert Louis Stevenson

Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials. ~Lin Yutang

You know how I LOVE my quotes! There is great wisdom here. Keep it simple! Get back to the basics. Spring clean! Throw away. Focus on the necessities of life, love, health, your spirit within, and giving. I love the simple life! And I have to remember, even doing laundry, dishes, and cleaning toilets is part of my "duties". There is beauty to be found in all things, as simple as they may be!

beauty secrets....shhhh!

My dear, gorgeous, blogging friends,

I need you! We need each other! Beauty is important to all of us right? I mean who doesn't want to look good? How many women do you know out there that can get away with NO makeup? I need your help because one of my favorite makeup lines went out of business! It was Prescriptives! I used their Site Unseen concealer, their Mineral Powder and their foundation!!! I CAN'T live without this stuff! It is my base, my clean canvas! So please share your favorite products and why so I can save some time out there looking, trying and buying the right products for me!

I'll give you mine:

Eyelash curler, every time! Makes my eyelashes look so much longer! (Grocery store)

My lit tweezers (has a little light inside the base) shows me every hair so I can get a clean pluck every time! (It was a gift, so look online?)

And then there is highlighting. I use MAC iridescent face powder or bronzer to highlight the bridge of my nose, and top of my cheek bones. It gives a luster to the skin that makes my skin look healthy and "glowing."

What are your secrets?

Love ya!

Heather