Birthdays and Lingerie

Sounds exciting, right?!?! Ethan’s fiancé Sarah was celebrating a birthday and having her first shower- a lingerie shower. Since Jeremy and I didn’t want to miss the fun, we drove to Abilene to help celebrate!

The shower was on Saturday, so I headed to that while Ethan and Jeremy went mountain biking. The shower was great- lots of girlie things and girlie talk. Even some girlie food, including petit fours and iced sugar cookies. They looked delicious!

Sarah opened lots of gifts- I’m not sure that one person could wear all the lingerie in a lifetime! But it was really fun.





On Sunday, we celebrated Sarah’s birthday with a delicious lunch. Ivy and Winnie had fun, too. It was Win's first time to meet the whole family. I think she liked everyone! She had a great time meeting the horses and seeing lots of cats.

Goodbye, My Sugar

I can't even believe that this was my idea or that I'm actually on board with it. But . . . Jeremy and I are giving up sugar for lent. That's right- for the next 40 days, we are not going to have any sugar! Yikes!

I don't think I fully understand what I am getting myself into. We are going to still have things that are natural sugars or small amounts-fruit, bread, salad dressings, etc. But no cake, cookies, ice cream, peppermints, candy bars- not even a lick of icing!

We are committing to pray about our marriage and our future for the next 40 days. It's definitely not easy, but I think it will definitely be worth it!

It's going to be tough. I love sweets. Goodbye, sugar. See you in April!

Better Together

Sic 'Em Bears!

My Aunt Lisa came to visit us! We had tickets to the Lady Bears Basketball game at OU. Everyone knows my very strong dislike for OU, so it was a little difficult to go to their campus. But it was worth it to see my favorite team play basketball. And since my Aunt Lisa is also a Baylor alum, she was just as excited as me!

Jeremy wasn't that excited, but he was a trooper. Unfortunately, their performance wasn't quite up to par this weekend!

I'll let the scoreboard tell the real story . . .

YAY!

Still YAY!

Aww, yikes!

Aww, no!

At least, we got out of the 49 point rut!

Come on, girls! You can still come back!

Not going well!

And that's the game!

Maybe next time we will get 'em! It was tough losing to OU and on their, home court. But I think if BU would have won, Jeremy, Lisa, and I might have feared for our lives. For the few minutes that Baylor was up, it was a little scary. Those are some serious fans!

Sic 'em Bears!

Our Newest Family Member

We are pleased to introduce to you, our newest family member, Little Miss Winnie Walker! She was born on December 29, 2008, and came to our house on February 20, 2009.

She's a handful! But really ,what puppy isn't!?!? We try our very best not to compare, but we just can't help it. Winnie is nothing like Ivy. She is cuddly and loves to curl up in our laps for a nap. Ivy was rambunctious and wild. She didn't want to sit still for a minute. I have almost no pictures of Ivy sleeping- I have tons of Winnie. She loves for us to hold her!

Winnie is so vocal- she whines, growls, barks all the time, at anything. It was months before we ever even heard Ivy's bark. Winnie will whine for no reason- it's like she just wants to make noise.

Ivy is not impressed and not a fan. She wants nothing to do with Winnie- it's almost as if Ivy knows that Winnie is here to stay and she's not okay with that. For the most part, she tries to avoid her. Winnie definitely likes Ivy and wants to play with her.

Ivy maintains her distance

Ivy checks Winnie out while she's sleeping

Nice attempt at a family pic

Two very tired, little puppies

From the very start . . .

You stole my heart! So the card from Jeremy read. Overall, I prefer a pretty low key Valentine’s Day. I don’t expect expensive jewelry or other nice things- I really think it’s more about spending time with the person you love.

Time is what I wanted- time is what Jeremy gave me. We planned to make a special Valentine’s dinner. It might not seem like much, but that’s a pretty big sacrifice for Jeremy. He doesn’t really like to cook that much, but he knows much I absolutely love it!



Jeremy picked all of our recipes for our V-day feast. On the menu: cumin tomato, avocado salad, shrimp linguine, butternut squash macaroni, asparagus and strawberry mascarpone mini-cupcakes.

Avocado Salad with Tomatoes, Lime, and Toasted Cumin Vinaigrette

Ingredients:
4 large ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks, or 20 cherry tomatoes, halved
2 ripe large Hass avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
Toasted Cumin Vinaigrette, recipe follows
2 cups arugula leaves
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup freshly chopped cilantro leaves

Directions:
Gently mix the tomatoes, avocados, onions, arugula, and half of the vinaigrette in a large bowl. Check for seasoning and add more vinaigrette, if needed. Sprinkle the cumin and cilantro over the top and serve immediately.

Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon cumin seeds, lightly toasted
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup canola oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Whisk together the lime juice, vinegar, honey, cumin, and cilantro in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk in the oils until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Do not use a blender to make this vinaigrette.

Mascarpone Mini Cupcakes with Strawberry Glaze

8 ounces mascarpone cheese (about 1 cup), softened

2 egg whites

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 box white cake mix

1 cup water

1/3 cup frozen strawberries, thawed and drained

2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Special equipment: 4 mini muffin tins and 48 mini muffin paper cupcake liners

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the mini tins with paper liners.

In a large bowl combine the mascarpone cheese, egg whites and vegetable oil. Using a hand mixer, beat the ingredients until combined and creamy. Add the cake mix and water and mix until smooth, about 3 minutes. Fill the mini cups to just below the rim and bake until puffed and golden, about 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool slightly in the tin then transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack.

Meanwhile, puree the strawberries in a blender or small food processor. Place the powdered sugar in a medium bowl. Pour in the strawberry puree and whisk until smooth. Top the cooled cupcakes with the strawberry glaze. Let the cupcakes sit for a few minutes for the glaze to firm up, then serve.

Jeremy also got me this singing bear-"I'm Yours"

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!

Girlie Weekend

Jeremy was stuck at work all weekend, so Ivy and I thought it would be the perfect time to visit her Dallas BFF. We left Friday afternoon and were hanging out with Melissa and Bella by 8:30pm.

It was an all out girls weekend! We had pizza for dinner and caught up on what’s been happening the past month or so (Melissa and I that is). Bella chased Ivy and they both wore themselves out. The next morning we got up and couldn’t go anywhere other than . . . the Galleria! Melissa and I are really good shopping buddies! By that I mean, we easily talk each other into purchases. For some reason, I don’t think that Jeremy appreciates that about our friendship!

Mexican food was a must for dinner! Ivy and I had a relaxing and fun weekend with Melissa and Bella. They took really good care of us!

We can’t wait to do it again some time soon!