it's just us.

it's been far too long

2011-06-13T12:22:00.000-07:00

i know, i suck at blogging.
i did start a new blog about our house/budget- you can read it here:
youmeand1500
not that i update that all that often either.... sorry!

but, i did start couponing a couple of weeks ago (not going to lie- totally inspired by that TLC show) and some people asked me to share what i do so here it is!

some tips:

-buy newspapers**. some people are wanting to buy 100 things of laundry detergent- i don't want to do that. i want to be really reasonable about couponing and not: buy things we won't need/use OR buy things in super bulk. we are living in 1100 SF- there is no way i can have an entire room or a basement to keep my "stock pile" plus- from what i've read, sales are cyclical. don't think: i'll never see this good of a deal ever again. YOU WILL! in about 3-4 months. so, get enough to only last you that long and you'll be fine.
I buy 5 sunday papers a week. when we move i'll get them delivered because it's cheaper then buying them and sometimes there are even extra inserts! this means i'm usually not buying more than 5 of each item- which seems reasonable to me. it costs $7.50 a week for the papers.
**some people prefer to get them for free from neighbors or dig them out of the trash- i think most people that get the paper these days, get it for coupons (because not many people actually get it delivered anymore) so to me, buying them is the least amount of hassle. another option is to buy ONE paper and then if there is a coupon you like, you can find a coupon clipping service online and order coupons through them. i've heard they aren't very expensive, so if you are wanting to buy like 50 of one item, i would get the coupon for it this way.

- clip EVERY manufacturer coupon you see. Ok, i don't clip EVERY coupon (things like cat/dog food, coffee ect) but, i use the philosphy: if this was item was free, would i take it from the store? if i answer yes, i clip it. the value of the coupon might only be .50 but the item MAY end up being very cheap or free- so clip it, no matter what the value on the coupon is. in the paper (at least here in denver) there is a red plum (RP as they call it on couponing websites) and smart source (SS) these are where you'll find manufacturer coupons that you can use at any store. many stores double coupons up to $1. so if it's a .50 coupon they'll double it to $1.

- then, look through the store ads. i start with walgreens and find some AWESOME deals there. Last week i got $10 fish oil vitamins (for my parents) totally free and this week i got $10 razors for $1, free bayer aspirin (normally over $3 each) and an airwick room spray for $1 each. (normally $10) I also look through Safeway, King Soopers and Target. What you are looking for is of course, things you normally buy and als0 things you have manufacturer coupons for. If things are on sale at the store and then you have a man. coupon, that's when you should buy. that is probably the best deal you're going to find- so jump on it.
For example- if laundry detergent is on sale for 4/$8 and then you have 4, $1 off coupons then it will really be 4/$4 making them $1 each. this is called "stacking" when you use a store deal/coupon along with a man. coupon.

- keep all of your manufacturer coupons in a binder or little accordion folder. I got an accordion folder but with only clipping coupons for 2 weeks, it's already getting full and disorganized- even though i have it broken down into 12 categories. so, i am going to get the binder instead and use card pockets (like for baseball/trading cards) and keep coupons in those instead. you'll want this to be super organized because this is what you take to the store with you just in case in you find something on sale or clearance that you weren't expecting to get. if you see an item discounted really low and also have a coupon with it, you can either get it for free or sometimes even make money off the coupon. you won't be using all the coupons you clip that week, because not everything will be on sale- and so you don't want to waste them! most coupons are good for a few months so you can hold on to them (organized in your binder) and then use them once there is an awesome sale. that's really the only way to get stuff for free/close to free.

- after i look through and devour the whole paper (or 5 whole papers) I then go to this website:
Krazy Coupon Lady -- she does a lot of the work for you. (i've looked at a lot of coupon websites and hers in my favorite. it's really easy to navigate and it looks nice- i can't STAND ugly websites) I try to do the match ups (sales/coupons) on my own but there is a lot i miss- so this website is awesome. she breaks it down by store and what coupons to use when. somehow she even knows what deals are going to happen in the future so she'll say: you CAN use this coupon for candy this week at this store, but if you wait till next week you can buy them at this store for even cheaper.

- take advantage of things like register rewards (RR- also called catalinas) at walgreens. these are the coupons that get printed out after you buy something for you to use on your next transaction. for example- that's how i got the razors for $1 each. they were normally $10, onsale for $8.99. $4 off manufacturer coupon and a $4 RR- making it essentially only .99. I had to pay the $4.99 though and then the coupon prints out. I use that coupon on my next transaction, so it's just as good as cash. you cannot get RR for the same item, 2 transactions in a row. So, for example today- i did 10 transactions at walgreens. all of my odd transactions were essentially the same and all my even transactions were essentially the same. so, i still i got all the RR and i spent the RR from trans #1 on #2, #2 on #3 ECT. hopefully that makes sense :)

-this week i did something that was a lot easier then my trip to walgreens last week. I organized each of my 10 transactions and put together the coupons with a paperclip and then a sticky note on top, to tell me what to buy (and quantity) for each transaction. then, i made a "master list" which told me what to buy and the quantity i needed to buy in total. For example i was buying dial body wash for $1 each. so i had that 5 of my transaction sticky notes and then i also had on the master list: 5 dial body washes. this way, you don't have to try to keep your transactions separate in the cart. I tried to do that last week and it was SO hard. i had to drag around 2 carts and still, they were all jumbled by the time i got to the register. so this time it was SO much easier- i just would put up on the counter each item based on the sticky note and then hand her all those coupons i needed for that transaction.

-i clip coupons on sunday afternoon after church. to me, it's a nice, relaxing activity- like taking a sunday nap :) I get up on monday morning and try to be at walgreens just as they open at 8 am.

I really haven't started buying my groceries with coupons yet- I have just gone to walgreens the last 2 monday mornings to buy things like toiletries, laundry and cleaning supplies. i figure if i can get all of this for super cheap (about 80% savings this week) then it's OK to spend a normal amount on groceries. i am going to start looking for more grocery type coupons but to me it seems like its mostly for a lot of.... crap... like prepackaged meals/frozen food ect which we don't really eat a lot of (nor do i want to) so, for now-- mostly household stuff.

So far with coupons i've gotten really nice razors (i now have 28 :), lots of laundry detergent (i currently have enough for 505 loads, and since i only do about 5 loads a week- that is enough to last me for 2 years!!!) dish soap, body wash, shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrushes, medicine and lip balm. For most everything, i didn't pay over $1 each (dish soap- less then $1, laundry detergent about $1.80-$2.50 for 32 load bottle of liquid detergent) so, i am REALLY excited! Last week I spent a little over $70 and saved about $190. This week i spent $32 and saved a little over $235.

if you have questions, let me know! I am in NO WAY an expert like the TLC ladies but, if i can help, i will :)

photos & video!

2011-03-01T09:22:00.000-08:00

pictures of the model! We explain a lot about it in the video too....

the outside! which i love- especially the orange door and all the metal.

entry way/mud room area- here is where the washer/dryer, a coat closet and our 1.5 garage are

the kitchen! don't look at the SS appliances (we'll have black) the nice tile or countertops.. but we'll make it awesome! it's the space i love, it's HUGE!

i guess this is the only picture i took of the family room and it's not even a good one... just watch the video!

door in our family room leading out the balcony

little 1/2 wall with one step up to the 1/2 bath.
i am going to LOVE having 2 baths again.

stairs to the upstairs! (3rd floor) we don't like the brown trim- ours will be all be white and then we're painting the walls a very light gray before we move in
Daph's room

daph's room (i love the big window!)
this is the view from the balcony and it also shows our lot. it's right in front of that pink house which is thankfully 2 stories and ours is 3 so we'll still get some view!

Daph's room

daph's room looking into the hallway and our bedroom (the full bath is that door right before our bedroom on the right)
little desk in the hallway for nic (perfect because he's normally working on the couch)

hall bath (full) on the 3rd floor

i love that there is a door to separate the sink and the tub/toilet

linen closet right across from the bath
our room!
door to our closet
i love that little window- and that we have 2 windows in our room it's so nice and sunny!

view from our bedroom- ours will be built right in front of where julie and sid are standing.

here is the video (it's about 10 min long of me being awkward/excited)

one thing i forgot to mention in the details post which i LOVE about the house is that is there are actually no shared walls- there is a layer of celuous (to prevent noise/fire) then some dead air (also helps with noise reduction) then the neighbor's celulous then their house) so it's not like we'll be living in an apartment which is something i was really worried about looking into a condo. YAY!

the details on the house!

2011-03-01T08:32:00.000-08:00

well everyone! we're buying a house!
we under contract yesterday (we signed lots of papers and payed the earnest money) and ours will be done sometime in June/July/August. (they haven't broken ground yet.. so we're thinking more like August) there is a model though right behind where ours will be so we've been visiting it frequently over the weekend, falling more in love every time we see it! Let me tell you

THE GOOD
--------------------------------

-it's a neighborhood in denver called stapleton, it's an urban development (the site is the old airport which was replaced 15 years ago) so it's still in denver but has a real family/neighborhood feel. it's very safe and residential.
-within the neighborhood there are over 100 retail stores and 25 restaurants. that's in the town center. we will be right across the street from town center 2, which will have lots of the same great things as the OG town center. (yes, this will mean construction for us for a few years- but i'm only talking about the GOOD right now!)
-the house is the perfect size for us. we were planning on always living in under 800 SF and this is actually 1,166 so it's bigger then we planned on but we really love the layout.
-all those stairs will make my butt look great (RIGHT?!)
-there are beautiful views of the mountains and a little downtown view as well which we think will look awesome at night. That's the view from our balcony on the 2nd floor and our bedroom on the 3rd.
-we qualify for income restricted housing meaning we make under $56K a year (for a family of 3) and that means our house market value is $194,000 and we're getting it for $145 (with AC, it was $141 but we added that option)
-but, we're the only ones in our building that are income restricted which is nice.
-we're definitely in like the cheapest place in stapleton- all around us houses are between $300-$500K
-we're going to have a garage!!!!
-we are just a couple of blocks away from a pool (there are 3, almost 4 in stapleton) a rec center, an 80 acre park and a nature preserve that has 35 miles of bike trails and connects with all the cherry creek paths that go through downtown denver) doesn't that sound like a nice place for daphne to grow up?
-stapleton has really cute things like their own farmer's market, community garden, films on the green (they set up a huge projector in the park for movies i think once every few weeks or so in the summer)
-we're still close enough to go to all the stuff we love in denver, it won't be walking distance but if we're in the mood for a long bike ride, we can definitely do it.
-we're going to have carpet which i don't exactly love, but we're the first people in it! so i'm OK with it. (though we are planning on doing something like bamboo all on the 2nd floor- the kitchen/living and .5 bath floor)
-we get to pick paint colors and do home improvement projects together.
-
-it has GREAT schools (one that is very close to us) and all stapleton kids are guaranteed to have first pick (unlike most schools in denver where you're likely to not get into a school in your neighborhood)
-a dishwasher!
- we love the look of the outside, especially the metal balcony and orange door with frosted glass. and we have lot of ideas for the inside (which we love to!) which will make it perfect for us.
-we can own a house for about the same price as it would be to rent, if not less.
- it has solar panels which will save us 35-55% in our energy bills.
- all houses in stapleton are energy star qualified, ours is like 35% over those requirements or something.
-we'll still be living with my parents all summer which will give us lots of time to save MONEY!
- all the row houses in our 6-plex will have lot premiums attached to them (meaning you pay more (like $20 or $30K more) for your house because of where it's located- with mnt views and so close to great amenities) but since it's income restricted... we don't have to!

THE BAD
-------------------
(i'm not dwelling on the bad but i am being realistic!)
- with income restricted housing, you can not make a huge profit when selling your house- it can only increase up to 3.5% each year that we live there (so if we live there 10 years we can sell it for around $195,000 after paying $145,000 for it)
- that does it make it more difficult to resell because you have to resell it to someone who is also income restricted- but luckily ours is an FHA approved home which will really help because someone only has to come with 3.5% down not 10%
- we cannot qualify for the loan till nic gets a job (which is a whole other story, but he's in the job hunt again!) my business is doing great this year but it only counts the last 2 tax years and that was before i started JanuaryJones and when the economy took a serious hit. But, if we cannot get our financing in order by the time our house is nearing completion, they will just move our earnest money to the next building being built.
- because it's income restricted we have some pretty-not-awesome finishing choices like linoleum in the entry/kitchen and baths but we'll hopefully have the money to replace them either with bamboo or cork before we even move in.
-we're not in our ideal neighborhood in denver (which is baker/west wash park) which at first, we wouldn't even consider anything outside that area. but, when we really thought about what would be best for Daphne, this was right. we still LOVE that area and plan on going there all the time, good thing we're only 15 min away or so.
-nic was planning on getting a scooter to commute but now that we're further from downtown we're not sure...
- we were planning on moving out in april and now it won't be till august. thankfully, it's going really well living with my parents and so this will give us time to get even more money saved which will be great.

pictures and a video in the next post!

2011-01-24T19:59:00.001-08:00

sometimes you just get lucky...

and it feels pretty damn good!

family pics 2010

2011-01-16T19:50:00.000-08:00

our friends Rebecca & Chad came to visit Rexburg in October and shot our family pictures. We were so happy because they are so talented. Of course I wanted to lose 20 lbs before the pics and that obviously didn't happen- but oh well, i found a dress i love (and had a friend alter) at a thrift store while visiting CO in October so i felt OK. I am so excited to have an APARTMENT of our own to hang these up in.. but for now... we're waiting patiently from my parents basement.

Nic starts his job tomorrow at EBD! I am soooooo excited for him and proud of him! with so much unemployment, he just goes to his very first interview at a place that doesn't even hire junior designers and lands the job! He is awesome.

from the denver.

2010-12-29T22:06:00.000-08:00

we live in colorado now. isn't that weird? I haven't been able to say that in the past 8 years and it feels awesome. it was REALLY sad to leave our family & our few remaining rexburg friends (most have moved on before us) but, we're excited for our new CO adventure. So far I've had the flu twice in 7 days, so that's been fantastic.

i opened up a new esty shop! it's modern LDS art so if you aren't into Greg Olsen paintings, you might like it. i hope you'll check it out.
www.MrsEdie.etsy.com

as usual, prints start @ $12.

$

2010-11-11T11:14:00.000-08:00

i got county assistance!
this means that my over $10,000 bill for my surgery will be reduced to about a 1/3 of that (i don't have the exact numbers yet) and we'll be able to pay $25 a month.
I am so relieved & grateful.

lately.

2010-10-27T21:24:00.001-07:00

a few things i've been working on lately...
just in time for your holiday gift-giving :)

see it all @ January Jones

2010-10-16T19:56:00.000-07:00

oh my gosh, it's been so long since we've chatted.
so, i no longer have a gall bladder and i love it. no more attacks & my surgery pain is all but gone as well. i'm feeling pretty back to normal, i even start work next week.
I made a quick trip alone with Daphne to see our friend Sarah and her new baby Haven. Sarah's water broke @ 31 weeks so initially when i got my ticket it was just to go out to be with her- help with her 18 month old Emmry and help her pass the time in the hospital- but in the mean time Haven was born! she is teeny tiny but doing so well- they hope to have her home next month. It was so fun to surprise Sarah, I cannot wait to live near them when we move (which is coming RIGHT up by the way!)
our best friends Chad & Rebecca are coming to visit from Boston in a couple of weeks! we are beyond excited. We haven't meant their baby Christopher yet which will be awesome as well. (especially because in apx 22 years he'll be our son in law :)
they're even going to take our family pictures. i cannot wait!
in the mean time- here we are last month @ our friends Travis & Bridgette's wedding reception.[pre red hair, obviously] look @ how blond our baby is- so strange :)

red

2010-10-07T10:31:00.000-07:00

i've wanted to go really red for a couple of years now. i've tried small attempts but since my hair was so dark, no red was really what i wanted, it would just look like really dark brown hair with some red in it. So, i finally took the leap and had my friend Camille bleach my whole head (i look HORRIBLE as a blond!) and then after several colors of red, i'm happy! it's still shocking when i look in the mirror, but i think i really like it and nic likes it, so that makes me happy.
and no, this isn't because of joan on mad men.
ok, it's a little bit because of joan on mad men.

everyday daphne - end of sep

2010-09-30T10:58:00.000-07:00

i finally found a pair of skinny jeans for daphne that actually FIT her! she's so skinny that her skinny jeans don't even look slim fitting on her. but, i found these (while working of course) legging jeans @ gap and they were perfect (especially perfect since i get a 50% discount)

shirt- walmart $4.
gray denim- gap $12 (with discount!)
shoes- old navy $7 (with discount!)
binky- FREE TO A GOOD HOME :)

i love how she has started posing for pictures :) i'm SO happy to have daphne home. When she woke up this morning I wasn't TOO thrilled she was back.. I was so dead tired. but, she's napping now and i'm going to also!

fam pic

2010-09-29T11:13:00.001-07:00

new favorite family picture from our friends bridgette & travis's wedding. they gave it to me for my birthday and i LOVE it. we're picking up daphne today from Nic's parents who have had her since the day before my surgery. I'm so grateful they have taken such good care of her, she loves it there. i'm not totally recovered yet but i really don't think i could last another day without her- i'll have to not pick her up too much and hopefully she'll like to sleep as much as i do, but i'm beyond excited to have her home.

state love

2010-09-28T11:00:00.001-07:00

i can't do much but one thing i can do while recovering is design.
i'm lucky to have a job i can do braless (too much info?) and in my pjs without showering.
i've added some new things to our January Jones shop- states!
i just have a few up for now so if you don't see the state you'd like, let me know and i'll design it.
you get to choose your colors (see the options in the last pic) and the placement of the heart (on your favorite city) here are a few examples:

utah- MOAB

idaho- REXBURG

california- LOS ANGELES

idaho- BOISE (in boise state colors :)

*also, I need to get one of these printed so I can photograph it, so if you are the first to contact me at: evapaul.dp@gmail.com saying which map you'd like (currently I only have utah, idaho and california available) you'll get it for 1/2 price! (only $6) so I can get it printed and I'll photograph it in a frame before I mail it to you.

go HERE to buy!

post surgery

2010-09-26T21:42:00.000-07:00

i'm at home.
resting.
drinking naked juice. (not drinking juice, naked- mind you)
interneting when i feel like sitting (rarely)
tv watching.
eating what nic makes me :)
napping.
missing missing missing my daphne.
(who is being watched lovingly by nic's parents and grandma, i'm so grateful)

denver in words

2010-09-21T09:26:00.000-07:00

newest addition to JanuaryJones

17x11 print for $16

if you'd like one for another city, let me know! I just need around 50 words that describe your city and I'll make a custom one for you! (if it's a big city like la, nyc, boston, slc, seattle, portland ect- i won't charge you anything for the design because i'll put it up in our shop to sell, but if it's a little city there will be a $50 design fee.)

do you know about january jones?

2010-09-19T11:27:00.000-07:00

no, i don't mean the actress who plays betty draper on madmen (obviously you know about her)
well, i don't love her character but i am OBSESSED with her name. So, when planning to open a new etsy shop (city prints & general art for your wall) i knew it had to involve miss january.

so here are some prints from our newest shop!

JanuaryJones!

prints range from $12-$16 and I'm adding lots more soon (including a neighborhood print for SLC!!!)

tray lunch

2010-09-18T12:28:00.000-07:00

every once in a while (but then i really wonder why i don't do it more often-probably because i hate the cleanup) i make daphne a tray lunch (or dinner) i fill each compartment of an ice cube tray with part of the meal.

that day's menu:
1/2 slice muenster cheese
1 slice of turkey
1 jar of carrot baby food (don't judge me- this is the easiest way to get daphne to eat vegetables. i'll probably keep feeding her baby food until she refuses it)
about 1/2 cup applesauce

there is something about tray lunch that daphne just loves. she eats it all up.

gall bladder update

2010-09-16T11:46:00.000-07:00

I am going to make 3 blog posts today to celebrate having INTERNET BACK @ HOME! I'm so excited.
We are sharing with our upstairs neighbors. Completely worth $27 a month. We're thrilled.

So, first of all- a gall bladder update.
I got some horrible news on Monday.
I went into to the county office to see if I could add in my $1003 ER bill into my county assistance application. But instead, I got denied all together. The lady who works @ the office is so sweet, I cannot get mad at her. But, I guess this is what happened...
my surgeon had to write a letter to the state doctor explaining why I need the surgery- and apparently in the letter he did not make a compelling enough case that I needed the surgery. He said that is was "recommended" so, the state doctor (which i think it's totally ridiculous that some doctor who has never examined me can be the overruling force in this process) said he didn't think it was necessary. He said I should be tested for acid reflux, which is about the most absurd thing I've ever heard- i obviously have gall stones, i obviously have gall bladder attacks on a REGULAR basis, so saying that it COULD be acid reflux is as ridiculous to me as saying... OR.. it could be an ingrown toenail- i feel like they are just throwing out any possible thing it could be, except admitting what it ACTUALLY IS! (sorry, can you tell i'm frustrated?)

So, now I have to go back to the surgeon (which hopefully doesn't cost me any MORE money) to have him write a more compelling letter saying that i MUST have it removed. I've had now my 5th attack since going to the ER 2.5 weeks ago. Usually people only have to have 1 or 2 attacks before they get their gall bladder removed. My attacks are not "easier" than theirs- I just don't have the $4000 the surgeon is requiring for a 50% deposit. I am so fed up with being in pain and incapacitated all the time. I have to call in to work all the time so I'm losing a lot of money (if i made a lot of money while working :) and not only that, i feel like they will just stop scheduling me because I'm so unreliable. OH! and that's not to mention our Evapaul clients who I'm totally neglecting all the time since I'm too sick.

You'd write a compelling letter for me, right?

OK but there was a sliver of hope in my visit to the county office. I told her that I had not gotten my denial letter from medicaid yet which surprised her. How the process works is that you apply for medicaid and county assistance at the same time- then, they assume you're going to get denied for medicaid and move forward as if you've already been denied to apply for county assistance. So, she moved forward with it as if I was denied and THEN i got denied for county.

But, I haven't been denied yet.. so there is a CHANCE that I could get medicaid instead which would be AMAZING. they pay 100% and also will pay for my $1003 ER bill from a couple of weeks ago. The lady @ the county office said denials usually come pretty quick, within a week or so, so she said it was a good sign that its been almost 3 weeks and i haven't gotten denied yet. So, i am really hoping i just get approved for medicaid- but i need to still go to the surgeon just in case i need to reapply for county assistance.

thanks for reading- i've felt so loved through this whole process. thanks everyone <3

customized prints

2010-09-05T10:28:00.001-07:00

my mom encouraged me to design some customizable children's prints for our shop: evapaul petite. i know she used to be so excited whenever she found something with the name: Kirsten on it when I was little (it was rare and usually just in Solvang, a primarily Scandinavian hamlet in CA) She never could find things with my brother's name, Kjell. I wonder why?

So, I've designed a little boy and a little girl- then you get to pick the colors and I'll put your child's name in the bubble. This way it will be perfect for your baby & will perfectly match their room too.

A 10x10 print is $12 but if you mention this blog post in your "message to seller" in the checkout on etsy, I'll refund you $3, making it just $9 for the print (same as our non-custom ones)

hope you enjoy! and tell your friends!

*and yes, Magnolia will be her name if [IN THE DISTANT FUTURE!- this is in no way an announcement!] we have a girl and Sebastian (Sebi for short) will be the name if it's a boy. So, if you steal these names in the mean time, I'll know where you got them and think you're lame & unoriginal :)

when you're feeling down...

2010-08-26T19:14:00.000-07:00

design a new, happy save the date!

my gall bladder is broken

2010-08-24T11:42:00.001-07:00

so, yesterday was eventful and i felt so loved through phone calls, texts & facebook messages so i thought i'd update you all.
i had yet another gall bladder attack yesterday morning and after taking vicadin and sleeping for a couple of hours i woke up ready to go to the hospital and do whatever we needed to do to get my gall bladder removed. well, it didn't really work that way...

i first went to the ER where they did some blood work (thankfully my other organs have not been affected, which i am so grateful about) and had an ultrasound ( a lot less fun when there isn't a baby to see!) and yes... i have gall stones (shocker) they recommended a few surgeons in rexburg for me to call.

I had an appointment with one yesterday and the receptionist said i could have the surgery tomorrow but they require 50% down before the surgery. The total cost would be a minimum of $8000 and we definetely don't have $4,000 on hand (more like $4) so that wasn't going to work. I met with the surgeon and I really liked him. He reminded me a lot of my dad which i'm not sure is comforting when they will be cutting you open (since my dad designs closets) but, oh well, i felt comfortable with him and so that went well. we spoke with the finincial lady at the surgeon office about our options with $. she said we should apply for county assistance and what they do is contract the hospital and surgeon to work for medicaid rates instead (1/3 of the normal cost) and we don't have to pay anything- we pay the county back after the surgery. They take monthly payments and when we talked to the woman @ the county office she said people typically pay $25 a month but some people pay as little as $5. (and i'm not positive on this but i'm pretty sure you only have to pay for 5 years- so it's not like we will be paying this off when we're 80 which is comforting) so, in total the bill will only be $2500-$3000 instead of $8000, which seems so much more doable. We only had to pay $200 when we had Daphne so I guess we're paying for her now. OH! and that reminds me.... I've been following this SUPER strict diet for the past 4 months since my 1st attack but the surgeon said that he's pretty positive my diet has NOTHING to do with having attacks- the stones probably formed due to a hormore during pregnancy and having attacks is due to that, not with what i'm eating. This really makes sense since I would always be confused when i had an attack because i've been 100% faithful only eating 15-20 grams of fat a day. So, i'm a little annoyed that I've been SO good and it doesn't matter. On the plus side, I've lost 15 very needed pounds and I still have about 10 to go to be where I want to be. So, it's not all a loss. But, it does make me want to go to five guys (i still want to eat vegetarian... i just want to have 1 day where i go a little crazy and then i'll go back to it.. which i'm sure would make me totally sick but i'm craving a cheeseburger and chicken strips with fries like nobodies business :)

The problem with going through county is that i won't be able to have the surgery for 10-14 days. I also learned that i won't be able to work for AT LEAST 2 weeks after the surgery and i won't be able to lift (which i do a lot of @ gap) for a month. So, that's not comforting.

In other news, we are desperately trying to sell/get out of our contract and we're moving in with Nic's grandma Jane in Idaho Falls. She lives right across from the mall so I can walk to work and Nic will carpool from IF up to school each day. It's basically the only way we can survive and not get evicted. It will be temporary till we move to Denver in December and we're grateful for Nic's fam (parents included) who were so willing to help us out. Why aren't people buying invites anymore?!?!?! It's annoying :)

So, that's life. Hope you all are well <3

update

2010-08-09T10:39:00.000-07:00

i feel like no one reads this blog anymore and i really don't blame you! we had internet through our apartment complex and they just discontinued the service, so i'm writing from the lounge where i have to work now. we won't be living in rexburg for 6 months so it's been hard to find an internet provider for less than a 6 month contract. arghhhh it's so frustrating.

but, all in all- life is good. we're poor college students (but only for 4 more months- then we'll just be POOR which is kind of depressing) and i just got a job at gap to help things out. nic is off of school and i'm so glad he's at home with daphne. i'm saving all my favors for when i'll be working and he'll be in school (with 21.5 credits) so let me know if you want to watch daphne sometime! :)

she is doing great. she cracks us up. she's started sneaking around (not sneaky at all but she thinks she is) and it's really cute. she learns lots of new words everyday and talks CONSTANTLY at home- not so much when we leave the house, she's a little shy.

I've been suffering with gall bladder attacks and it's really unbearable. even with a very restricted diet i'm still having attacks and it's the worst thing ever (way worse then any part of labor i experienced, plus- no cute baby at the end)

so, that's the update. we're happy. we're healthy (ok, not me) and we're here- just not HERE on the internet. stupid apartments.

yellowstone (yes.. again!)

2010-07-20T13:32:00.000-07:00

Our friends Seth and Maddy have been in Europe for the past 3 months and are now in Rexburg for a bit before they move somewhere for good (so depressing) they wanted to go to yellowstone before they moved away and we were so happy to go with them! We left daphne with Grammy & Grandpa for a whole 2 days. I didn't hesitate to go for 2 days, so I guess I was ready to leave her for an extra day (we've only left her for 1 day previously) but, by the end of it i was going CRAZY to see her and Nic was too.

We camped at Lake Hebgen in Montana. it was GORGEOUS! I've never seen so many stars, seen so many bugs and spiders or camped next to such grumpy campers (we arrived at 10:30 and they wanted us to go straight to bed- not eat dinner and talk VERY quietly to each other-- they yelled at us twice. not cool) it was great and Seth and Maddy were perfect company. On Saturday we went into the park and saw some of our favorite along with some things we didn't get to see last trip. It was awesome. We ate the delicious black bean burger at the Old Faithful Inn (i'd been thinking about it ever since our last trip- it is AMAZING!) and then made tin-foil dinners on Saturday night.

On the way home Sunday our bus broke down 30 min. from Rexburg. It was so sad. I miss it already. We'll be getting it fixed soon (we hope!)

18 month stats

2010-07-16T12:19:00.000-07:00

just as i thought... daphne has lost weight.
i guess we all have been in our family. unfortunately, i'm the only one who needs to be!
she hasn't grown at all either (since her last check up 2 months ago)

29.5 inches tall [below the 5th percentile]
19.8 pounds [below the 5th percentile]

the doctor said there was no need for concern (but he did recommend a gummy vitamin for her with b12 since she doesn't eat a whole lot of meat.- and no, we're not making daph a vegetarian. i don't cook meat [or eat it... obviously] but if we go out to eat daphne still has chicken or at sunday meals with the family and she does eat the same soy meat that we do on occasion too)

he just said we'll watch her growth charts at 2 (her next check up... i'm going to CRY! she's so old) and see how she's doing. He said she's probably just going to be a short, skinny person. Thanks for your good genes Grammy!! I'm glad she's got the Bingham metabolism, not the Pedersen one :)

He was happy with her developemental milestones and said she's doing more of what they expect a 2 year old to do, instead of an 18 month old, so that's good.

Her biggest fit during the appointment? you'd think it was when they pricked her finger for the lead test.... nope. it was stepping on the scale. cried so hard.

fire in idaho

2010-07-13T20:37:00.001-07:00

i guess there was a huge fire in SE idaho today. hopefully it's all taken care of now though i have no idea. but, it resulted in some crazy red/orange skies for us in rexburg.

thanks for voting!

2010-07-12T12:12:00.000-07:00

thanks everyone who weighed in on the poll, i really appreciate it.
I took the feedback and have made some changes!
prints are now $9 (instead of $12) for a 10x10 and shipping is $3 (instead of $6)
so, spread the word! go here :)

18 months!

2010-07-08T15:13:00.001-07:00

i haven't posted too much about daphne lately and i NEED to! this is pretty much the only place i record anything- and there is so much a want to remember about this age. daphne is so awesome. sure, there are days i want to rip my hair out [and more days that she rips her hair out- that's a whole other issue] but for the most part, i love this age & am having so much fun with it.

i cannot grasp the idea that we have an 18 month old. soon she will be 2 and i might crawl up in a ball and die. i just can't believe we have a toddler- it doesn't make sense :)

at 18 months she is:

still short and getting skinny. i think she still weighs about 20 pounds but she's got her 18 month check up next week so i'll see for sure. those cheeks we all loved are all but gone- she's looking like a little girl now, not so much a baby.

talking a ton. [of course she has to take out her binky first, because she's getting even more addicted to it] she repeats stuff when we ask her to and has a few favorite words:
hi [she says it a billion times a day]
mom & dad & also NIC
binky
birdie
puppa (dog)
bike
shoe

she LOVES being outside- her favorite thing is bike rides. she cries every time we have to go in.

she is loving gymnastics though she doesn't really care to do what the coach or class is doing :)

she is SO strong willed and stubborn- she also has quite the little temper. this was magnified by our potty training disaster- i swear she hasn't been the same girl since. it's going to take A LOT of convincing to try to do that ever again. i won't say it ruined her, but she's not the same- and she's angrier- which i don't really love.

she is a scardy cat. afraid of the vacuum, guys outside mowing the lawn, loud trucks, blow dryer, DOGS, ect.

she still dances.

she is really adorable and we could not possibly love her any more. happy 1/2 birthday daph!

we got her this chair at a thrift store yesterday. i love it so so much & so does daph.

help!

2010-07-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

i need your help! i've recently started selling alphabet kids room prints in our little etsy shop: EvapaulPetite. but, i haven't sold anything yet :( I wanted to set up a poll to find out why. If you could take a second to visit the shop then take the poll on the sidebar, i'd REALLY appreciate it! and if you have any questions or comments, please post them here. i promise not to take offense, i'm just SO curious why they aren't selling! :)

each print is 10x10 and comes ready for framing for $12.

gymastics!

2010-06-28T14:46:00.000-07:00

daphne and i started a mom/tot gymnastics class last week. at first she was a little scared and wouldn't leave my arms. But, that only lasted a few minutes (maybe she just didn't want to stretch?) and then she had a lot of fun running around on tramp, jumping into the foam pit (even the big one which was REALLY hard to get her out of) she didn't do everything her coach was wanting the class to do, but she'll get the hang of it. here she is ready for gymnastics! [and she's currently obsessed with having ALL her binkies with her. oh my]

3rd anniversary trip!

2010-06-28T14:44:00.000-07:00

Nic planned a perfect weekend to celebrate our 3rd anniversary. He took me somewhere i've always wanted to go- YELLOWSTONE! It's only 90 minutes away and it's kind of heart breaking we've never been before (together- nic went as a kid, and i've never been) and since this is our last summer here- we'll have to go back at least a couple of times before we move in december!

Nic had planned everything perfectly so we had a great time. He had a field trip on Saturday till 5 pm (and i was hanging out with one of my best friends from CO, Sarah, who was in town with darling emmry who daph loved) so we left saturday night and camped in west yellowstone. at first we were surprised when our campsite didn't have a fire pit but they had bbq's to use and it worked out great- we didn't reek of campfire all weekend! [plus they had the NICEST bathrooms and showers]

on Sunday we went into the park and it was AMAZING! If you've never been, you HAVE to see it at least once in your life, it really is incredible. Thanks for the perfect weekend anniversary trip, Nicholas, I LOVED it!!! now, here are a million pics. enjoy!

daph loves camping because camping= rocks.

paint pots. so amazing.

afro!

a very windy family pic!

old faithful! we timed it just perfect- went to lunch @ the old faithful inn (most delicious black bean burger) then only waited about 5 minutes before it erupted! it was great.

do you see daph's teeny tiny little squirrel friend? so cute!

Norris hot springs

we mostly saw a lot of bison (a couple crossed right in front of our car!) but we also saw a coyote (who was hunting something, so that was cool), a deer, a marmot, a ground squirrel & a snake.

the view from mammoth. kind of pretty, right?

my two loves. cutest humans ever.

such a perfect way to celebrate 3 great years!

a is for apple

2010-06-23T21:07:00.000-07:00

we're working on a new project involving:

apples, zebras, nests, dogs, mustaches and queens
the largest furniture store in colorado
my brother mark
every neighborhood in denver
scanned craft paper
telephone negotiations
canvases
illustrator
gmail

here is a little preview:

plus, here is a cute picture of daph eating an apple. we REALLY need to take more pics of her, i've been majorly slacking on that lately.

3 years.

2010-06-21T16:22:00.001-07:00

engagement pic 2007

tomorrow is our THREE year anniversary!
what a great way to spend 3 years.

we've lived in 5 apartments.
we've had one baby.
we've started one business (and lots of other little business ventures)
we've earned 1 bachelor degree and are 90% done with another (december!)
we've traveled to california, colorado & utah (unless i'm forgetting something.. that doesn't seem like very many places :)
we've taught primary and been librarians.
we've tried new things.
we've bought 2 cars (and sold one)
we've bought 3 cameras (and sold one) and 4 computers (sold 2)
we've fallen in love with daphne.
we've endured gall bladder attacks, potty training (fail), car repairs, and just a few disagreements :)
we've designed wedding invites for about 400 brides.
we've taken a million pictures.
we've felt rich and felt poor.
we've made big life decisions together.
we've eaten out way too many times.
we've bought art, created it and found new things we're passionate about.
we're still best friends.

nic and i have been together now for 6 years and married for 3.
i couldn't be happier.

wedding day. june 22, 2007 SLC temple.

1st anniversary galleria park hotel, san francisco 2008
[13 weeks pregnant :)]

2nd anniversary (campiversary) lava hot springs, idaho 2009
(i cannot believe we didn't take any pics together- sad!)

we take turns planning valentines day and our anniversary so i have no idea what nic has planned for us this year! how exciting.
i'm one lucky girl.

30 things before i'm 30.

2010-06-19T17:48:00.000-07:00

it's always good to have short term goals but i think i've been neglecting some making some long-term plans. i saw a list by oh happy day about 30 things to do before she turned 30 and i thought i'd give myself around 1,552 days to accomplish these things!

1. have another baby (haha.. not SOON but yes, i'd like another before 30- we'll see if nic agrees :)
2. travel someplace warm & foreign.
3. learn how to letterpress- buy a press if we're able.
4. take classes on crafty things/learn how to really sew & alter clothes (like Melissa- she's my idol)
5. make new friends and denver and make lots of time to see friends new & old there.
6. SAVE!
7. continue our quest to live small & as minimal as possible.
8. run a marathon.
9. read good books (and the scriptures too)
10. do something fun with daphne everyday.
11. keep a cleaner house.
12. see some cities in the US we want to visit: NYC, boston, portland, chicago, austin, and of course go to san francisco as often as possible.
13. get the bus all fixed up (new engine) and beautifully restored.
14. write a popular blog like Gabby.
15. be closer with my siblings.
16. go a vacation just with nic.
17. go camping as often as we can.
18. explore denver- don't just go to the same places we already love.
19. plant a garden
20. eat new food- be adventurous.
21. buy the perfect gifts for people- plan ahead.
22. start or join a joy school or baby sitting co-op
23. don't care that you're renting- decorate the house like it's yours.
24. organize our massive expedit bookshelf.
25. go canoeing & kayaking
26. go on a just nic (and daphne if we need to:) date night at least twice a month. we used to be so good about this EVERY week but we've been getting together with friends many weekends now- so i'd like to get back to it :)
27. be a supportive, caring and nurturing wife & mother.
28. volunteer.
29. yoga. lots of yoga.
30. celebrate my youth :)

has anyone else made a list?

potty training.

2010-06-17T13:42:00.000-07:00

was a horrible (messy) disaster.
everyone was right.

we'll try again when she's 12.

ohhhhh changes.

2010-06-16T12:16:00.000-07:00

this is going to be a wordy, picture-less post. feel free to stop now and come back to the blog another day if you're not interested :)

well, things are changing around here.
2 things in particular.

1. daphne is potty training today.
am i crazy and does my sister keep telling me this? YES.
we did not want to potty train her this early (she's only 17.5 months) but she kept running to the bathroom, standing up to the toilet and unbuttoning her pants and i just couldn't tell her: "no, pee in your diaper" one more time. so far she's 5 hours in and we haven't had an accident. so that's good. the bad? she also hasn't gone in the toilet. she had a bath about 4 hours and i'm pretty sure she peed in the tub. now she's down for a nap and we'll see how that goes.

2. we're vegetarians.
about 3 weeks ago i had a gall bladder attack. it was one of the most painful experiences of my life. it was from 11pm-1am and i just curled up in my bed crying. it was awful. i had another attack from 3-4am. i don't have insurance and i knew what was going on (they saw gall stones in my ultrasound with daphne and warned me this would probably happen and that i should have my gall bladder removed after having her which i didn't and i haven't had any issues up that point) so, i just endured it but i knew i never wanted that to happen again. so, in the morning i looked up what to do to prevent gall bladder attacks. attacks are induced by fatty foods and so to ensure i wouldn't have an attack, i have to limit fat grams to 15-20 per day. that's about 1/4-1/3 of the recommend amount of fat we should have each day. the first couple of days were HORRIBLE! i was SO starving... i couldn't find anything to eat that would really leave me satisfied. but, i got used to it pretty quick and now it really isn't a huge issue. i can't eat out, eat most things that people eat, go to eat at other people's houses really or eat anything that is "quick" to make which is sometimes annoying. But, i am feeling much more healthy and have a better outlook on food (i think i was addicted?)

so, since i've started this new "diet" (i'm also not eating sugar for my headache-prevention diet...) i've been considering going vegetarian because pretty much all meat that i liked, i can't have anymore. hamburgers, ribs, pulled pork, bacon, CHICKEN STRIPS (my absolute favorite food ever) animal fat is the main cause of gall bladder problems so eliminating most of that out of my diet (though i am still eating dairy and eggs- if they can fit in my 15 grams of fat a day :)
seemed like the best way to go for me. nic has talked about going vegetarian before and was so supportive and wanted to do it with me. he is awesome.

so, that's what's up in our house.
i'll be better about blogging, promise :)

quote from julie

2010-06-08T12:30:00.000-07:00

my sister is funny and her kids are freakishly funny.
i think most of my friends read her blogs (konchar family & julie konchar over there on the side) but in case you missed this gem here is a quote from her blog:

Monday evening we took a little family walk to Highland Point. It's about a mile each way, and the views of the Rocky Mountains at the end are breathtaking. I made Jon wear his shoes. He didn't wanna. His shoes, you see, are rather hideous. He's been wearing a certain $10 pair of Wal-Mart sneakers for the past few months and they have officially given up the ghost. A week before school ended, the sole of his right shoe filed for divorce from the upper. Some sweet lady at the office used duct tape to keep the shoe together until he got home. Good enough for me. I told him I'd buy him new shoes in two months. Jon isn't so excited, though, to wear the taped shoes. Did I mention the duct tape is neon pink?

So the shoes are ugly and pink. Jon isn't a fan. Pleading his case (which he lost, btw) he said "Mom. I can't go out in puberty like this! I look ridiculous!" I informed him that the word he was searching for was "public" not "puberty". And then Josie explained in a rather condescending tone, "Yeah Jon. Puberty is when you grow hair on your bladder."

Giving Josie and Jon the talk should bring a bounty of delightful misunderstandings.......all of which I will publish here.

oh my, i love my nieces and nephews (these 2 are 8.5 year old twins)

hansen's shower

2010-06-05T19:38:00.000-07:00

some of our very best friends moved away a week ago. the problem with rexburg is that you make awesome friends and then they move. every time. since we're leaving in december i hope to make lots of great new friends and then leave them sad and lonely with only G's dairy to comfort them. (aren't i sweet? :)

chad and rebecca are wonderful and we miss them already (even though they are wedding photographers and were NEVER home anyway! they were always off to exotic places shooting stylish weddings, oh, the life) Rebecca is due in a couple of months so we combined a going away party with a baby boy (Christopher!) shower and invited their favorite girls (and BOYS!) to share in the event. It was so much fun to put this shower together. Rebecca and I have very similar aesthetics so i was never worried that the shower wouldn't look like her, it totally did. sweet, cute, modern with a bit of whimsy, just what we like :)

i did a crepe bar with lots of different fillings and toppings and so i spent most of the shower behind the griddle in the kitchen- but it really turned out well. nutella, crepes, buttermilk syrup and fruit... no one complained :) i also made homemade quiche, cupcakes, a fruit salad and fizzy limeaid (simply limeaid, pellegrino and sprite).

I had to find some way to incorporate my love for typewriters and the little collection i've begun. so, i had out 3 typewriters at the shower. one with instructions to tell baby Christopher why his mom was awesome, another to say why his dad was awesome and the last one was to share our favorite memories for Chad and Rebecca (not like our favorite childhood memories- but our favorite things we did with them) one of the typewriters quit working part way through the party but we adapted and it was really fun to hear everyone typing, complaining about the lack of spell check and making errors they couldn't delete. [LOTS of pictures of the typewriters... no one of the Hansens or their guests... OOPS!]

i found these large circles at artco for .25 each so i bought 8 and made a $2 modern mobile with some yarn.
I bought all the glassware for the crepe bar at D.I. everything was .50- $1 each, it was awesome. I'm REALLY going to miss D.I. when we move to Denver, nothing compares (especially with cheapness)
I added twine and a little card identifying each topping. i had the printer who prints our wedding invites print all this up for me the day before the shower.

and lastly... daph is awesome. we love her and can't believe she's already 17 months old.

baby june

2010-06-05T15:53:00.001-07:00

this is the best baby picture ever.
don't you want to be friends with design mom?
i sure do.

tuesday wishlist

2010-05-18T09:17:00.000-07:00

saw Liz's list on say yes to hoboken and decided to make my own.
i feel like i haven't had too much to blog about lately- i'm working, daphne is growing (despite my best efforts to stop her) and nic is incredibly busy with school- 20 credits, mostly difficult art classes. i hope we have some time to enjoy the nice weather we've been wanting for months!

so here it is- some things i've been dying over.

i'm redesigning our expedit shelf and these vintage letters would go perfect. from this shop.

oh my, this dress is amazing. from this shop

i asked her and she said she'd make a colorado one for me. i'm planning on it. from this shop

i love this entire outfit and i have the perfect celery sweater to go with the orange dress. planning outfits before you buy something is dangerous. both from Anthropologie

i can never look for myself without looking for daphne too. all from gap

so there it is - now create your own tuesday wishlist please, i'd like to see it :)

farmers market!

2010-05-15T13:37:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited to be selling at the rexburg farmers market this year! i did it for the first time yesterday with only about 24 hours notice (i'm not a full-time seller so i can only do it when someone drops out for a week) so i had an insane time getting ready. thankfully Nic's mom Janell took daphne for the entire day and night (she even watched her till about midnight so we could go out with our friends afterward- it was so nice!) I (well, Nic's dad Dave really) painted the frames, I designed and had all the branding printed/laminated, baked 2 loaves of banana bread & 2 pans of rice krispie treats (all at 3 am for some weird reason) baked 35 indivudal cobblers in mini canning jars & a few other things. I was super stressed and crazy and if wasn't for the Bingham's help (including my Nic :) i never could have done it!

I was really happy with how our booth turned out and hope in the coming weeks we can make it look even more awesome :) it was really fun and though we didn't sell out as i had hoped (we have lots of baked goods if you want to come help us eat them!) it was still a good experience and i'd like to do it again and again. if you live in rexburg- please come next time!

3 products i love:

2010-04-28T13:46:00.000-07:00

i am REALLY not a good homemaker.
i'd rather blog than clean.
i'd rather go out to eat than make/clean up after dinner.
the list goes on...
so if i can find products that may not be thrifty, but at least allow me to enjoy the process/make the process a little easier, i am all for it.

first of all: purex 3 in 1.

i love just throwing a sheet in instead of moving the huge laundry detergent down (which i would buy to try to save money) and then repeat with fabric softener. these things are SO easy. and if you go to: http://www.purex.com/ they will send you 2 sheets for free. i just got some in the mail yesterday though i was already an avid user. 2 free loads of laundry.... yes please!

along the same lines, i love these little gel packs for the dishwasher.
besides selling pest control over the summers, this is our first house with a dishwasher.
it used to be SO exciting to fill it and unload it, the charm has worn off a bit- i don't LOVE doing the dishes anymore, but i definately don't hate it like i used to. And just to clear the slate- i no longer have hidden dishes waiting for me on top of the dryer like i did at our old house. these gel packs do such a great job and never leave anything to try to scrape off the next morning (GROSS) so i love them.

and finally... if you know me well at all you'll know i have super oily skin and hair. i hate it but my mom said she had oily skin and now she doesn't and she doesn't have many wrinkles so maybe one day i'll be grateful. (when i'm in my 60's apparently)
so i have to wash my hair everyday and i'm jealous of the girls who are like: oh, i wash mine like once every few days. no can do with my hair, i've tried.
until i saw this commercial for tresemme's new fresh start line.
i bought the dry shampoo and i'm currently loving my unwashed hair today! i didn't really believe that adding MORE product could help, but it does and i love it. so, there's your endorsement, go buy it.

sorry if i sound like a commercial but i always find it helpful to read real-life reviews from friends (so post them, friends) so there's my list of 3 must haves to make your life a little easier!

everyday daphne #9

2010-04-27T11:10:00.000-07:00

i wonder if anyone even likes these posts-
but, i guess i do so that's why i keep doing them :)

today is the last nice day of the week. the rest of the week will require busting back out our long sleeve shirts, jackets and pants. oh no.

even though today isn't going to be super warm- it will be just warm enough (also it's laundry day)
daph is wearing:

checked black and white shirt, old navy
army green shorts, thrifted $1.
white cardigan, thrifted $3
red gap shoes, thrifted $2
headband by Kendra $2.50 (i think.. :)

OFF TOPIC: We need some parenting advice. we think it's time for daphne to give up her binky obsession. she's nearly 16 months and she's starting to talk more and more everyday (not usually understandable, but she's trying) we've tried just leaving her binks in the crib for sleeping but she just whines and cries until we get them. we were thinking about going cold turkey last week but she had immunizations, got 2 molars and both nic and i had food poisoning so she spent the night with Grammy.

but, is there EVER a good time or should we just do it? for those of you who have been through this... please leave us your advice!

colorado spring break

2010-04-24T14:26:00.000-07:00

we spent the week in colorado between semesters.
my parents came for my graduation and then we drove back with them and then our friends courtney, talmage, jarom and chase drove our volvo to CO and met us wednesday night.
we went to the zoo, had lunch with friends, ate cupcakes at the shoppe, made sack lunches, toured apartments and neighborhoods, went shopping, hung out with my parents and siblings, went to paris on the platte, visited our favorite so. broadway shops, went to belmar, talked to several bums (this was not my favorite part of the trip) went to a yummy dinner and an awesome park in stapleton, went to garden of the gods and manitou springs, found a new neighborhood we love (alamo placita) and basically made our friends fall in love with denver. (well, we hope so :)
my parents were so nice to let us all invade their house and my mom watched daphne pretty much every day- it was so nice. we can't wait to move there in december! here are some shots of daphne and her new favorite toy- the cars in my parent's backyard & her at the zoo with friend emmry.

(this was daphne most of the time at the zoo- completely unamused. but, when she was face to face with animals (a peacock that just walks around the zoo and a crane that was behind glass) she was terrified and tried to climb up our legs)
this was the one time she was excited- at the aquarium. she loves fish.

bountiful baskets

2010-04-24T12:52:00.000-07:00

this week was my first week doing bountiful baskets- a produce co-op and i'm OBSESSED! I'm about to go make myself a yummy lunch using my goods right now! if you live in utah, idaho,wyoming or az you should definitely do it! (by the way- i think that this the FIRST TIME i've ever spelled definitely right, i CANNOT spell that word. wow. little victory) for $15 we got:
1 stalk of celery
10 bananas
7 tomatoes
18 red potatoes (this IS idaho- and reds are my favorite)
a head of romaine a head of spinach
13 apples
1 pineapple
6 oz of blackberries
1 bag of mini carrots
1 head of swiss chard (any suggestions for this? I've never used it before and don't even know how to cook it or if you cook it :)
and finally, 1 cantaloupe

it filled up an entire laundry basket and i'll need to buy just a few items of produce at the store this week. plus, it was REALLY fun- i love community things like this. i am going to volunteer next week and i'm really excited. PS- if you live in the area they said they are in dire need of site directors. I thought about volunteering for that, but we'll be camping in the bus a lot very soon so i'm sure i'll be gone on some saturdays... but i wish i could do it, it looks so fun/rewarding. if you don't live locally look up a food co-op! i'm sure if SE idaho has it, pretty much everywhere does :)

*thanks to stephanie for telling me about this! i'm hooked :)

love letters

2010-04-21T17:42:00.000-07:00

our friend Seth Lucas did his BFA project on objects that show our love and asked if he could include us and all the letters we wrote to each other as missionaries. we were apart for 30 months and wrote a letter to each other every day (but mailed them every week so we would get like 12 page letters from each other every week) we actually threw our mission letters away after these pics were taken... we didn't have room in our new place for 2 huge garbage bags and the letters were really.... personal :) we didn't really want anyone to find them and read them! but, these pictures by Maddy Lucas are the PERFECT way to keep the letters alive :)

(this one is my favorite)

update!

i know everyone cannot believe we threw the letters away! it is kind of sad but i'm totally OK with it and hope i always will be. :) We had a few reasons:
- we wrote some really personal stuff in our letters and we wouldn't want just anyone (i mean... we wouldn't want ANYONE) reading them :)
- we moved from a 3 bedroom house to a 1 bedroom + den (daph's room) apartment and literally had NO room for them. Our storage room on our porch is filled to the brim with furniture that can't fit in this place and baby stuff that we don't want to have to buy again when we have another baby.
- we always want to live in a small place. no more than 1000 SF, probably more like 600-800. we have lots of reasons for this too but because of this, we have to edit everything! we got rid of a lot of things we didn't absolutely LOVE from our old house when we moved here. things that just took up space or preformed a function but that we didn't love. i think its awesome to be surrounded by only stuff you love- not just STUFF that fills up your house. that means your house is too big :) after downsizing by a few hundred feet i'm ready to go even smaller. i love living small.

it is finished.

2010-04-10T00:22:00.001-07:00

yay.
today, i was proud.
it felt good.

Evapaul Petite

2010-03-31T21:07:00.001-07:00

Nic and I have opened up a new esty shop!
we'll now be making customizable modern birth announcements-
buy them here

yay!

2010-03-31T14:00:00.000-07:00

I sent Gabrielle Blair [aka design mom.. kind of my idol] my letter to daphne before she was born and was thrilled when she emailed me this morning saying she published it! Gabrielle is pregnant with #6 and posts stories of growing families every wednesday. if you're currently pregnant, i would guess you won't be able to get through ANY of the posts, they are so emotional. I'm not nearly as hormonal but it's still hard for me :)
Go check out Daphne here!

Baby Evie we love you already!!!

2010-03-30T23:42:00.000-07:00

After years [literally YEAAAAARRRRSSS] of desperately trying to conceive/wanting a baby so bad it hurt- my brother Christian and sister-in-law Errin are pregnant at last and found out tonight that their baby is a lady. I couldn't be happier for them (though i would have been just as happy if he was baby Espen instead of baby Evie) to quote sweet Errin:

As much as pregnancy is a struggle (and Lordy, how we know it is a struggle), I love it. I love every minute of it. The heartburn, the crazies, the constant peeing, the sore beebees, the round ligament pain, the nausea, the hunger, all of these are reminders that I am taking part in a miracle.

I'm so happy for your miracle!

[this is Errin practicing her baby skills with little Dotter]

can't wait for daph and evie to be crazy cousins together!!!

Errin & Christian are coming up for my graduation (walking at graduation) next weekend and I'm so happy. I'm planning on giving them all the hand-me-down clothes they can handle.
Oh, and another thing I think is super cute- Daph's middle name is Ryn, after my grandma Kathryn. And Evie's middle name is Kate! Both after Nana (I'm assuming :) and I think that is super adorable. We all love grandma Pedersen too- I guess Edith is just harder to pull off.

ravioli lasagna

2010-03-29T14:37:00.000-07:00

real simple is one of the greatest magazines ever. i love it so much.
they gave me the idea for this fabulously easy dinner.
it was so simple and so delicious.
i think you'll love it.

i used a weird size pan (because it's super old and teal and awesome) but I'm sure you could use pretty much any size casserole pan.

put 1/3 of the sauce (i used a whole jar of spaghetti sauce, you may need more if you use a 9x13 pan) on the bottom of the pan,
put down a layer of defrosted cheese ravioli then more sauce (i added italian sausage to the sauce because i had some left over from another recipe that i needed to use up) then a layer of mozerella cheese, then more ravioli and finish with more sauce and more moz cheese.

bake at 425 for 20 minutes.
I finished it off with 3 minutes under the broiler because i like the cheese to be a little crusty.

seriously SOOOO easy (and much cheaper than buying lasagna noodles and riotta cheese) and nic and i both loved it.

are you going to make it?

everyday daphne #8

2010-03-29T14:13:00.000-07:00

shirt target $4. i love girly shirts that aren't tooooo girly. (no need for the word "cutie", "daddy's little princess" ect) i like the little puff sleeves and scalloped collar.
skirt old navy $4 [50% off clearance is the best]
leggings $5 target
chucks.

i know i say this every time but she's looking so grown up!

RANDOMEST pics from my iphone

2010-03-29T11:16:00.000-07:00

i finally plugged my phone into the computer last night and just had to share some random shots from the past 8 months or so. enjoy :)

we're the librarians at church. this is what we do.

saw this bus matchbox car at daph's friends b-day party. wanted to steal it. didn't.

not a very personal personalized licensed plate?

showing daddy daph's new hat on a windy rexburg day.

took this pic for my old dorm roommate emily, our dorm was the one next door but i parked in front of this one. i don't think i ever sent it to you em. here it is.

i remember i was shocked by her naughtiness at this point. HAH! it's gotten a lot more crazy around here. also, i miss those pj's.

i cannot believe how much daph loves animals. they got right up to her and she loved it.

we got a lot of old clothes from nic's grandma to sell in our etsy shop. i though this was a skirt but NOOOO. just giant, supppper wide 70's pants.

trying to show ashley my new (at the time) hair cut/color.

yum. lobster.

really exciting thing to get in the mail.

wow broulims. thanks for the general discount.

daph's first kids meal. i didn't feel like sharing my meal with her that night.

wow. what an ambitious photographer- $130 to shoot a wedding. bet she's good.
new sunglasses.

los pockets!!!!

more pockets. showing aunt ashley the cute dresses she bought her.

daph loves dora so we got her the map/backpack. she even says backpack backpack
(always twice)

everyday daphne #7

2010-03-27T17:28:00.000-07:00

we wish it was spring (for real..)

shirt old navy $8 [bought this is 3-6 months and loved is so much we had to go back while they still had it and buy it in 6-12 months. now i'm wishing we had 12-18 but it's way too late]

shorts $3 target. [nic calls them her dora shorts]
leggings .50 from DI
chucks.

not related, this was the other day but just a couple super cute pics of daph :)

copeland

2010-03-24T16:33:00.000-07:00

this weekend our friends courtney and talmage invited us to go to SLC with them to see copeland's farewell show. we said no on friday but then changed our minds to YES on saturday at 12:30 and we left at 1:15 and drove straight to the venue for 6:30 doors. Janell and Dave were so kind to watch daphne for about 28 hours so we could go kid-free. we're go glad we went.

we don't listen to copeland much anymore.. but, we fell in love to copeland.
we had been dating on and off for a few weeks when we went to see them in boise in july 2004. we've been together ever since. we listened to copeland a lot while we were dating and it always reminds me of that sweet, sappy, carefree and hopelessly romantic time in our lives.

there was 3 bands before them... they were all pretty OK.
but copeland was incredible.
they played all the good ones and even though our backs and feet and EARS were aching, it was completely perfect.

we were lingering at the merch table after, hoping to catch a minute with aaron (vocals/guitar/piano) and we were so happy that we got to. nic told him that we were married because of him and now we had a baby so basically, he started our family. (it was really cute, i wanted to cry basically all night, but especially then) we told him how we saw them 6 years earlier in boise and we've been together ever since.

we took a picture with him and i'm glad we got to capture (through a crappy iphone picture) that happy memory.

to some people, this story might seem really stupid. but, we're really emotionally attached to copeland. we needed to go to that show to have some closure- again... i realize that if music isn't important to you- i'm sounding like a crazy person right now. we finished the weekend with the cheesecake factory and a stay in the ramada inn murray (classy!) and it was just the best.
here is brightest for your enjoyment.

everyday daphne #6

2010-03-23T15:40:00.000-07:00

daph looks really grown up and cute today- the pictures do not do it justice. i'm just too lazy to try and take more- and she is the opposite of lazy- running all around instead of posing for my pictures. we're not cooperating with each other.
I looked at my inbox this morning and only had maybe 7 emails to respond to. I quickly did my work and declared today: Daphne FUN day! we really haven't done anything TOO exciting but I've worked less, played more, took a trip to the library (where she threw a HUGE fit when it was time to go. sorry library patrons... that was not her inside voice) bought fantastic mr. fox (which she only watched a few minutes before getting restless so we put her down for a nap so she didn't ruin it for nic and i :) and now she's playing with one of my bras while I blog and I'm not taking it away from her... see... FUN DAY!

[still sleepy from nap time- she stretched forever when she got up today- it was so cute]

purple bubble tank target $3
sweater- thrifted.
jeans- old navy $10
converse- ebay.
headband- free because i'm lucky :) but buy them here: http://www.daisydoodaisydoo.blogspot.com/

i can't believe how toddler-ish she looks. no one told me how heartbreaking this would be.

house for sale.

2010-03-17T16:19:00.000-07:00

we're sad to see nic's cousin rebecca, husband lonnie and their two cute boys move to nevada- but perhaps our loss is your gain! they are selling their seriously adorable townhouse in Pocatell0- if this was in denver, i'd want it for ourselves :)

check out all the details at her house blog:

http://www.pheasantridgetownhouse4sale.blogspot.com/

i LOVE their master bedroom. I've always admired and loved rebecca's style- she looked like anthropologie before it even existed (in the west :) i love the far nightstand- a trunk and their bed and pillows. but, i guess is about the house not the furniture.. don't mind me.. just coveting.

the OTHER chocolate chip cookies.

2010-03-16T11:22:00.001-07:00

after the initial chocolate chip cookie throw down- i preformed a few other taste tests throughout the week (same dough, i'm not THAT crazy to make batches and batches in one week) and though cookie A won hands down the first night, cookie B (which was actually cookie C the first night, confusing, i know) was the favorite of many later in the week.
So, i'm sharing this recipe as well! It IS super yummy and the cookies turn out rather perfect looking- the way I always want my chocolate chip cookies to look but they never do.
my problem? I don't stock vanilla instant pudding (though maybe i should)
but i do always have the other ingredients on hand... so I still side with cookie A, i love the nutty taste of the browned butter and in a pinch, i always have sugar, butter and chocolate.

Jami's chocolate chip cookies
-------------------------------------------
preheat oven to 375

Cream together:

1 cup softened butter
1/4 c. white sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 large box vanilla instant pudding (not made up :)

Add in:
2 1/4 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
chocolate chips- your favorite variety and as much as little as you'd like.

[yesterday i made 1/2 reeses chips 1/2 chocolate chips. YUM]

bake for 7-10 min.

everyday daph # ... we had a busy week last week.

2010-03-14T11:15:00.000-07:00

daphne and i barely got dressed last week... it was a crazy, busy week and I'm kind of relieved it's over. Though, maybe this week will be even busier - who knows :)

Yesterday I went to a second hand baby store and scored a couple of items for daphne. it was kind of arduous going through all the racks- but when i found these 2 things the trip was worth it.

dress $2.50
cardigan (which i love love love) $1.50
*i think navy is her color. those eyes are insane when she's wearing navy.

just had to throw this one in.... daph... you're eyelashes are out of control.

we're so happy that ben, melissa and cove moved to UT from texas, we'll be able to see them much more often now. they came and stayed with us this weekend and it was so fun. cove and daph played SO cute together. she gave him lots of kisses and he didn't seem to mind :)

best cocolate chip cookies (seriously)

2010-03-10T08:44:00.000-08:00

last night we had a bake-off after lost. it was a bake-off between me and... me. (nic made fun of me for having a bake-off against myself. perhaps i have some control issues? :) I read on say yes to hoboken about 2 great chocolate chip cookie recipes and decided LOST night at the bingham house was the perfect setting for a chocolate chip cookie throw down. (i wish bobby flay would have showed up) the winner was clear... and wow.. these cookies were awesome. i have some more in the oven right now. breakfast anyone?

america's test kitchen ultimate chocolate chip cookies ---------------------------------------
preheat oven to 375

combine 1 3/4 c. flour with 1/2 t. baking soda

in a saute pan melt 10 T. butter (unsalted) stir for 3-4 minutes until the butter is light brown- not burned. then, stir in an additional 4 T. to the hot butter.

cream together: butter (let it cool for a bit so it doesn't scramble the eggs)
1/2 c. white sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 t. salt
2 t. vanilla
1 egg
1 egg yolk then, combine with flour mixture.
lastly, stir in 1 1/4 c. chocolate chips (we prefer milk chocolate in this house)

line cookie sheet with parchment paper bake cookies 10-14 minutes
[the steps in the original recipe are a bit more complicated than this... i'm just kind of a lazy baker, but- it worked- and this is not turning into a cooking blog, i promise. though i love a good cooking blog]

my day.

2010-03-09T17:18:00.001-08:00

2 trips to the post office.
1 paper cut.
1 four minute shower.
1 crazy 14 month old who destroyed the house ALL day
2 recipes of chocolate chip cookies to make for the LOST bake-off tonight
1 new photographer's branding contract
3 new wedding invite clients.
14 emails sent
2 invites and rsvp's designed
4 conversations responded to
2 episodes of dora watched
1 trip to our old house to pick up a package that i accidentally got sent there. (it wasn't there.. yet)
7 tantrums (not me.... daph)
1 load of dishes in the dishwasher
3 client packages wrapped up
1 pizza ordered
1/3 of said pizza eaten
1 trip to walmart
1 snickers bar devoured
37 times i've had to stop daph from unplugging my computer.
4 the number of times i wished i had cadberry mini eggs in the house
3 times i've checked the weather- wishing i was enjoying 50 degree + weather in denver this week
2 times i've listened to the AA bondy album today
3 times i've put away all the clothes that daph has taken out of her "bottoms" drawer
2 blog posts
1 friend request on facebook
7 twitter updates
2 customs formed filled out while chasing a toddler at the post office.
2 pieces of french toast cooked for my husband this morning.

ok.. make that 8 tantrums by daph today.

curry!

2010-03-09T09:20:00.000-08:00

my little thai princess missionary companion taught me to make thai curry just like her mom does.

are you scared of curry? some people really are... but just trust me... it's awesome.

while pregnant with daphne, i had to take a break from thai food and pad thai still makes me queezy though I'll make it for nic on occasion- but, i've just gotten back into making curry. As to not be wasteful of the open jar of curry- i've made it 4 times in the past 10 days. woahhh that's a lot of curry. Good thing we love it.

Here is my [adapted from sister joysakoo] thai red curry recipe:

[makes 5 bowl-full servings]

-------ingredients--------
2 T. vegetable oil
3 t. red curry paste [see pic]
2 cans coconut milk [i prefer light and can't taste a difference]
1/2 can bamboo shoots [fancy!.. they say that on the can. it's awesome] cut into matchsticks
1 red pepper sliced thin
1/4 C. brown sugar [plus maybe a little more to taste]
ground chili paste to taste [we add maybe 2 t. but warning.. it's HOT]
you don't have to add a protein but we like 2 chicken breasts
salt to taste

above- red curry paste. below- ground chili paste. sometimes it doesn't have the gold label, this must be the wonka edition.

I like recipes with lots of pictures- so nic documented the process as i made it yesterday.

first, do all your prep.
cut the peppers, bamboo shoots and open your cans.
put about 2 cups of jasmine rice in a rice cooker. YUM
for the chicken- i like to cut it into VERY thin slices- this way you don't have big chunks of chicken that don't have much flavor. I defrost my chicken about 1/2 as long as i normally would so it's still pretty frozen. Then, you can basically make little shaved pieces of chicken.. this way it cooks almost instantly and soaks up all the curry flavor.

in a large pot heat oil on med heat and add curry paste. my companion's instructions were: "cook till smells good" i thought that sounded funny- but it's true- just wait till you smell it, it's divine!

add both cans of coconut milk and stir till combined

add chicken and bamboo shoots.

stir often
add red peppers in the last 5 minutes of cooking.

let it simmer till vegetables are al dente and chicken is cooked through.
(i usually let it simmer for about 20 minutes or so)

then, stir in brown sugar and start tasting! if you would like it hotter, add ground chili paste.
if you think it needs a little extra sweetness, add a little more brown sugar. then add about 1/2 t. salt or just enough to make it awesome!

[daph helping me in the kitchen]

serve a bowl of curry and a bowl of rice. some people dump all their rice into their curry, i prefer to do the combining 1 bite at a time. you'll find you're rhythm.

make it! then tell me about it!

kate spade store + tape

2010-03-05T09:33:00.001-08:00

found this on say yes to hoboken today- what an adorable idea!

check it out HERE
i think on a MUCH smaller (and less complicated scale) this would be a great idea for a kids room while you're renting and cannot do anything permanent.
I found some sold in this: etsy shop

felt food

2010-03-04T09:37:00.000-08:00

i love all the adorable felt food sold on etsy.
it seems like a great (and more eco friendly alternative! think of all that plastic food in land fills... kind of sad) alternative to plastic food.
It is so fun now that daphne is getting a little older toys are getting more interesting and awesome. (at least to me, she mostly likes to climb up and down on the couch, all day long- interrupted only by falling onto the coffee table)
i am going to make my own (ya know.. when i find some time)

royalrugrats has so many awesome options!
peeps!
i love this pb&j

and this has got to be one of my ultimate favorites and the hello kitty makes me think of one of my besties denise. fairyfox is amazing. i can't get over all the attention to detail.

cute sushi from: Sypria

sugarbee's is back!

2010-03-03T11:33:00.000-08:00

we've taken quite the hiatus from our vintage clothes etsy shop- it's just so hard to take beautiful pictures when it doesn't look so beautiful outside. nic actually took these pictures last fall for a graphic design project- i guess it's just taken us awhile to post them :) and there is more to come!
so come shopping @ sugar bee's

everyday daphne #5

2010-03-02T12:51:00.000-08:00

little flower shirt w/ buttons- free [daycare hand-me-down from my mom] skinny jeans $25 gap. daph splurged with her birthday money from her great-grandmas. but what can i say? this girl knows what she wants. converse

living room/dining room.

2010-02-26T14:37:00.000-08:00

we don't have a house.
but, today i'm wanting to decorate one...
so if we did have a house (and def. more expendable cash than normal!) this is what i'd do:
(wow... this turned into a reallyyyyy long post. sorry!)

eames replica madeira dining chairs- in walnut [4] @ $280 each. to around danish dining table.

rectangle hanging capiz pendent for over the dining room table $295 west elm

side table. $130 urban outfitters topped with a lamp like this

side table perfect for a record player like this one.

modern sectional (i'm dying for a chaise) $3100 paired with a red & pillow from etsy shoP: alexandraferguson

a beautiful mid century arm chair. and mustard would be so nice.

wooden coffee table like this handmade one for $349 from etsy seller: michaelarras

danish sideboard. perfect for storage of all the not-so-pretty things you need to have in a living room. and a perfect resting spot for a TV.

one wall of exposed brick

a low and long fireplace, surrounded by glass tile. (like what was used here for a kitchen backsplash)

a yellow gaudy chandelier for the living room

an original andy warhol.

an ero saarinen womb chair in red (i like to wear red shoes.. this is kind of like a living room's way of wearing red shoes)

a chevron patterned area rug (but i'd rather have it gray and light gray.. less contrast then this one)
zebra wood floors (droooool)
wall color:
ralph lauren's weathered stone
ohhhhh i want a house to call our own right now. soon, let's hope!

everyday daphne #4

2010-02-25T10:08:00.000-08:00

some days you just feel like dressing up a bit. other days, you don't feel like it all but all your jeans are wet in the washer- so too bad.
(daph's is the latter) [nic's artistic direction to daph: say hi mom. so she did :) ]

dyed gerber onsie (shocker) golden yellow (but a very short dye time... hence the light color) hoodie- old navy $4. (i love when old navy's baby clearance is 50% off. nic's friend works there and tells us when we should come in. i think most of the time nic doesn't mention it to me)
skirt- gift from the Long girls. (thanks! I love it)
cable knit tights: old navy $5
converse

totally rad family trees.

2010-02-24T23:06:00.000-08:00

ahhhhhh
you have to check this out!
go HERE

i'm obsessed.

the bright side.

2010-02-24T19:55:00.000-08:00

i love the site:
bright side project

daily give-aways of super cute things.
things like evapaul wedding invitations later on this week!

we got to pick a "thought provoking question" for the readers to comment about.
what's really cool is that nic and i get to read every comment and pick our favorite! so it's not just some random person- it will be whoever has the most awesome comment.. our question is:
if you had a $100 of free money today (not to be spent on bills or something you need) how would you spend it?
I'm hopping people will link to rad clothes that i can steal and buy!

they give something away everyday, so add it to your blog roll and comment daily!

everyday daphne day 3

2010-02-23T23:33:00.000-08:00

aunt ashley missed daphne.

i love daphne in leggings. her chubby little thighs just look so adorable in leggings. so, she has 4 pairs and wears them often. these ones are circo from target. i love circo stuff. $5 for long-lasting cuteness. she has these in brown (what she's wearing) and also black.

shirt is thrifted. def one of our all-time favorite pieces for daphne. i love all the detail. a sweet little pattern and trim on the neck. so dainty. shoes are gap and i wish i could find them in the next size up because i'll cry when they don't fit. red shoes are so cute on toddlers and adults alike. i dress pretty plain so i like to wear a red shoe. i got these at a used baby store. does that seem gross/weird to you? get over it! :) those stores are goldmines. think about it- how often does a baby wear clothes and shoes? some of daph's stuff only got worn a couple of times before she grew out of it or it somehow got lost at the back of her dresser drawer. so, i find it even less weird than buying adult clothes (which i also have absolutely no problem with) these shoes were $2. what a steal!

entire outfit- shoes included for under $10. pretty, pretty good.
(don't mind our baby "cleaning the floor" by eating cereal off it. as soon as she gets down from her high chair (where she acts like she is completely done eating) and before i can go get the mini broom to clean up, she's stuffing her hands and face. it's so funny- she doesn't want them while she's in the high chair... but off the floor- they are so much more yummy)

ohhhhhh it is dangerous to look!

2010-02-23T15:41:00.000-08:00

i got my $60 registration deposit back from BYUI today. my first thought: this is FREE money (i'm sure my parents paid that deposit 8 years ago when i started at byui) so... what can i buy with it? i think this maybe it....

but, i'm also REALLY into saddle shoes right now. here are some of my favs.

decisions are the worst.

what is your score?

2010-02-20T22:33:00.000-08:00

something that is important to nic and i as we search for apartments in our future home (denver- we're coming to you dec/jan!!!) is their walk score.
www.walkscore.com is SO awesome!

you type in your address and it lets you know everything that is nearby and exactly how far away it is. Then, it gives your address a score out of 100 of how walkable it is. Can you walk to the grocery store? to take your kids to the park? to mass transit? to the library? out to eat?

My parent's house in the suburbs scored a 42 which makes it car dependent.

but... we found our IDEAL apartment (and can't wait to check it out when we go in April!) and it scored an 88! it's totally walkable, and we love that.

(so why do we own 3 cars?)
by the way... selling our VERSA! want it?

almonds

2010-02-18T13:48:00.000-08:00

are so freaking good.
i like the lightly salted kind... but i LOVE these.

surprisingly the same amount of calories as the other ones. such a delicious treat. try them.

everyday daphne day #2

2010-02-18T10:50:00.000-08:00

gerber t-shirt (3 for $9) dyed with seafoam RIT dye.
watermelon skinny jeans target $10 (loved them so much that we got them in mustard too but in the next size up)
cream and pink converse all-stars. $11 ebay. summersaults yesterday- today, backbends?

byui graduation

2010-02-17T19:05:00.001-08:00

i recently got this letter in the mail.

and this is how i feel about it.

everyday daphne day #1

2010-02-17T15:03:00.000-08:00

I got the idea from Nic's cousin Missy who documented her son's outfits for a week. So, I'm going to photograph daphne [probably not] everyday so i can have a record of my favorite outfits on her. In our house, getting dressed is a huge ordeal. Daphne doesn't have a closet anymore but when she did, I would hold her up to her clothes everyday and ask her to pick out her outfit. Most of the time she would pick a dress (usually her brown easter dress) and then I would explain that it wasn't sunday and she could wear a dress a different day (though she often wears dresses on the weekdays too :) I think she could understand the word outfit at about 7 months. You make think I'm crazy, but seriously, she just loves clothes. Now, when you say she looks cute, she'll often start pulling on each part of her outfit. Then, when you say to her "yeah, cute shirt" then she moves on to show you her headband, or pants, or shoes. when I say "new outfit" then she really freaks out! she's lucky to have grandparents, great grandparents and of course us to keep her obsession alive.

But, we don't spend a lot on her clothes (but her grandparents probably do- thank you!)
so, i wanted to show how to thrifty- yet adorable :)
today is a lazy day. daphne and i both have an awful head cold. she probably doesn't know this- but i would be shocked if we get out of the house today :) daph is dressed accordingly. (i on the other hand am unshowered, still wearing my bath robe and slippers :)
gerber t-shirt (3 pack for $9) dyed with RIT dye (RIT is awesome. i use it all the time. It is so cheap (less than $2) and if you get together with some other moms, you can all dye shirts together (the washing machine method is the ONLY way to go!) and then you won't have 7 shirts for your one child in the same color) this shirt is a mix between royal and navy blue dyes with a little black mixed in gray-down the blue a bit.

her leggings were thrifted. fifty cents.

and her chuck taylors are my new favorite wardrobe item of hers.
i got them off ebay for $16. $16 still sounds like a lot- since they were used... but chucks really hold their value i've found! they sell new for more than $25 so it's hard to find them any cheaper. They were very gently worn and completely adorable. I bought them in a size 3 though she is barely in size 2 shoes so they will last for a long time. If she wears the right kind of socks with them (thick and with grippy feet) they stay on all day.
i had to include this picture. this was daphne when a pet smart commercial came on. she FREAKS out (in a good way!) when she says puppies. She asks me multiple times a day to hold her up to see a picture we have of our friend's 2 dogs. So, Blake and Ali- this is also daph's reaction when she looks at Mia and Nacho. It's so funny.

colorado

2010-02-16T09:40:00.001-08:00

some days i long to be in colorado so bad it hurts.
there are so many people i want to hang out with on a more permanent basis.
but, today- i'm missing julie especially.

it's hard when you only have one sister and they live a 10-hour drive away.
no one can pluck my gray hairs, commiserate about kid's colds or eat Panera salad with me quite like Julie can. I miss you.

i love the olympics

2010-02-14T20:26:00.000-08:00

and while watching them today i designed this new save the date.
i hope you're enjoying and feeling all kinds of national pride (no matter what your nation)

daphne @ 13 months

2010-02-10T22:17:00.000-08:00

she has started to give us kisses (though more often she kisses her stuffed animals instead) and we love love love it.

gotta love that cute bum and chunky legs

this is right before she ripped her headband (ok, my headband..) off again and again... like i didn't think that would happen.
i love the look on her face. you know she is thinking she is awesome for standing up on the chair.

weighing in at an itty-bitty (well, just more itty than she was at her one-year appointment) 19.05 pounds and she's just going to be short- that's all- she's 28 inches.

daphne is so incredibly awesome.
she is loving dancing. (she entertained everyone at the post office today)
she is obsessed with clothes and shoes.
she says boo when playing with us.
she runs to the door when we put her coat on.
she is still sleeping 12-14 hours everynight... just like we like it.
she loves the shape sorter (but especially likes the orange circle)
she has 8 lovely teeth and LARGE gap in her 2 front teeth (runs in the fam- sorry daph)
she still loves her binky and a nightly bottle (this won't be fun to change)
she had her first quesadilla and jam sandwich (those are 2 things, not one.. gross) and loved them.
she loves to open drawers and destroy the house. every day.
she is a really good baby and we couldn't ask for more.

we're lucky parents.

now she'll be able to go to shows with us

2010-02-10T22:14:00.001-08:00

and let me tell you, she's thrilled.
i think she would wear them all day if we let her.
i hope she keeps them on when there is music on... we'll see next week.

my diet struggles all out in the open.

2010-02-04T13:44:00.001-08:00

after nine months of packing on the pounds (and growing a human- little daphne) i gained 28 pounds. while tall girls can gain 28 pounds during pregnancy and look great a couple months later. short girls, cannot. Ok maybe some can... THIS SHORT GIRL CANNOT.
It took me another 9 months to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. But, my weight-loss journey is far from done.
So far through my struggles to loose weight, I've pretty much found things that don't work for me.
my latest.. a 53 hour juice cleanse. i did loose a few pounds (3) but i was kind of thinking the scale would be a bit more kind to me, taking into account all the sacrifices I've made in the past 53 hours!

But, there is a cooking blog i love. ROOKIE COOKIE
though there is isn't a WHOLE lot that is low fat/calories... everything i've tried is SUPER yummy. Plus, I love Rookie. She is such a good writer and she uses a few very mild swears which this girl finds amusing (maybe it's rexburg living?)
A few weeks ago she shared Alton Brown's (from the food network. I LOVE the food network, cannot stand Alton) "diet"
What I like about it, it's not a real diet, just some rules to live by.

Daily
-fruits
-whole grains
-leafy greens
-nuts
-carrots
-green tea

3 times a week
-oily fish
-yogurt
-broccoli
-sweet potato
-avocado

Once a week
-red meat
-pasta
-dessert
-alcohol

Never
-fast food
-soda
-processed meals/frozen dinners
-canned soup
-"diet" anything

Eat breakfast everyday, no matter what.

There are somethings I won't do.. green tea, alcohol, avocados & fish (just don't like the last 2) but the rest of the list I feel like is really doable. I'm going to print the list for my fridge. I feel like if i eat what is on the list then I will have a really good healthy base for the day! (and it doesn't sound awful, i like those things)

Also... (and this is exciting!)
I'm training for a 1/2 marathon! Well, I start my running schedule on Monday. We bought a running stroller yesterday (though I know Rexburg is still icy right now) we have a treadmill in our apt. lounge gym for when i need it. I was inspired by my old roommate. She is doing it also (but the full marathon.. I'm so impressed!!!) and I've ALWAYS wanted to run a 1/2 marathon. Well, I want to do a whole too- maybe this fall. I ran a lot in high school. cross country for 2 years and I loved it. I had many days where I ran 12+ miles. even 15 once or twice... not that that does me much good now. I'm starting with a whopping ONE MILE! But, baby steps. lots and lots and lots of steps. And i'm not walking these steps people, I'm running them!

daph's back

2010-01-28T09:27:00.000-08:00

i'm sorry. it seems like our business has really taken over the blog as of late. i even have a blog dedicated to our business but i get too excited about stuff and want to post it here too.

but, today... daph's back.

life has been a bit crazy and hectic since i graduated. we did some massive re-branding and have changed our prices and started advertising. So, i've been BUUUSSSYYY with orders. I am NOT complaining. I'm thrilled our business is back to normal after an almost 1/2 year lull. Really thrilled. I'm lucky I get to stay home, do what I love and that nic is able to concentrate on school right now for the next 11 months (till HE graduates! yay) I'm also lucky we have an independent little lady running around the house. i'm at the computer a lot... i've totally turned into a workaholic. but, daph is so good to run around my legs, destroy the house (which i try to hurry and clean up before nic gets home) and her new thing is emptying all the kitchen drawers. awesome.

here she is eating breakfast this morning. it may look like she had chocolate pudding for breakfast (she wishes..) but it's prunes and ritz crackers instead.

and this was about a week ago (on one of her less attractive mornings i must say :) i looked up and there she was... just relaxing.

lovely design

2010-01-25T08:59:00.001-08:00

i find it especially inspiring when people can make really, really beautiful things out of something that already exists, and isn't at all beautiful on it's on. what a talent! my mom clipped an article from better homes and gardens for me (isn't she cute... clipping and mailing me an article? I love her and miss her) she said it reminded her of me: 1 toddler girl, 2 artists, a home-based business all living in around 1,000 square feet of modern (mid century... not like... ikea) perfection.

and oh was she right! i loved this house. very inspiring.

i looked up the women's blog and online store. quite delightful (i knew it would be when i saw how she decorated... color but just in the right way, graphic art and type on the walls, eames chairs, a vintage highchair... just really beautiful all the way around. she makes paper goods out of found paper. things like library card catalogs and old maps. i think i really, really need her address file. there is something so impersonal about keeping people's info stored in my phone. i need something pretty. your telephone numbers and addresses deserve that, no?

Sharilyn's blog now lives on my side bar -----------> (lovely designs)

2010-01-24T22:39:00.000-08:00

i about died when i saw this playhouse on say yes to hoboken. isn't it awesome? it only makes sense to have your kids play in a bitchin modern house. i'm excited to raise little minimalists :) OH... and what else will you see when you visit say YES to hoboken? You'll see us- right there on the left. yayyyyyy.

ad up!

2010-01-22T12:44:00.000-08:00

we've got an ad up!
we're really excited to see our business grow... and have just started advertising with the amazing
and super stylish twigs&honey!

go check it out! HERE

evapaul blog

2010-01-19T16:48:00.000-08:00

a new blog for wedding planning &
invite making.
go!

evapauldesign

for rebecca, if you read this.

2010-01-19T08:29:00.000-08:00

nic has some really great cousins and i'm glad that because i married nic- i now have some really great cousins also.

rebecca is one of those great cousins but sadly she is moving (she already lived farrrrr away in pocatello) to the reno area.

well, rebecca (seeing as how we don't really call, or email each other) i thought i'd tell you about a little gem i just found.

remarks from sparks

her biting humor and whit is something i'm sure you would appreciate... and a friend like this might be hard to come by in sparks (or maybe not? i have no idea, really) so, go.... enjoy reno and make real-life friends with this girl. (then tell me about it, please) --oh and we'll miss you in idaho.

evapaul

2010-01-14T16:34:00.000-08:00

things are cha cha cha changing @

evapaul design

we have created a new identity- added new designs and have changed our prices. go check it out and please please tell your friends!

2010-01-12T15:57:00.001-08:00

daph, you're pretty freaking cute today. love, mom.

little bows on little shoes.

blake is BACK!

2010-01-08T23:29:00.000-08:00

finally daphne got to meet her uncle blake. perhaps the sweetest guy ever- we love our brother/brother in law/uncle blake! welcome home!!! (and he now lives in rexburg- so we get to see him often!)

1st bday party #2

2010-01-08T23:25:00.000-08:00

daphne celebrated her first birthday once again (i'm afraid she is going to think that every weekend we party, eat cake and get lots of presents) she didn't nap all day. i think she knew something exciting was happening in the afternoon, and she didn't want to miss it. thankfully she loves crowds and was very well behaved.

do i post too many pictures? i sifted through over 100 pictures- but i'm still not good at narrowing.

daphne loved her presents

she really loved her presents!
i love the chad and rebecca's faces in this pic. hahaha. you're so awesome.
grabbing a drink. i cooked for 2 days straight- 4 layer chocolate and mouse cake (i'll post the recipe soon) caramel/chocolate pretzels, caramel cream cheese fruit dip, chicken wings, homemade salsa, pumpkin bread, vanilla cupcakes and Janell brought yummy wontons.
i just love being a hostess!

yeah.. maybe a cropped daph out of this picture, we were smiling. she was.... NOT.

maddy and i. we didn't mean to match. we did mean not to smile.

thanks so much to our fabulous friends and family for making daph's bday party so special! you guys are the best!

daph's stats

2010-01-08T22:16:00.000-08:00

at a year old daphne is:

19.8 pounds [25th percentile]

27.5 inches [5th percentile- no big surprise there!]

17.5 in head [25th percentile]

more to come on her Idaho bday party (today) and the return of her new favorite uncle (or so he thinks... haha- well, she really likes him anyway!) from his 2-year mission in northern new england.

an entire year.

2010-01-02T22:32:00.000-08:00

scroll down to read/see more about her first birthday party. i'm crazy for making 2 posts back to back.. i should be in BED! :)

O•N•E

2010-01-02T21:58:00.000-08:00

[Here's another LONG, PICTURE filled post]
Our darling Miss Daphne turned ONE today! I can't believe that a year ago at this time I was laying in a hospital bed with a teeny, tiny baby on my chest that I had no idea what to do with. Everything has changed... though most times I still don't have the slightest clue what to do with her :)

Today was her actual birthday and we didn't do much (sorry daph) 2 weeks ago she had a party in Colorado and this Friday she has a party in Rexburg so today wasn't too exciting. Right before bed I baked cookies and gave her one, that's about it (besides mentioning all day that it was her birthday to which she would respond with a smile and clapping)

The Colorado birthday party was so fun and I'm so happy to have seen so many of our close friends there. Thanks for loving us and our baby- you guys are the best! Emmry!

my dear friend Sarah. so much has changed since we were roommates over 5 years ago- I'm so happy she lives in denver and we'll be able to hang out with her and her husband Austin and baby Emmry often. we love them.
[i LOVE this book, and all dwell studio books. thanks blake&ali!]

I should have gotten a picture with me & ashley. oh well- here she is with the back of Neal (can i make your wedding invites yet? please?) Ashley and I have been best friends since 4th grade. I am forever grateful for that Neal lives in Colorado so she recently moved back from a few years in Seattle. Ashley, you're the best.
julie, you're gorgeous. stop stealing all of daph's thunder.

This picture wasn't @ her party- just a day in colorado sometime. i LOVE it... i LOVE her!

It was a fabulous party- a huge thanks to my mom who helped me with the food/cleaning ALL day. you're the best.

I don't want to get all sappy and reflective- but seriously... daphne is ONE. when people ask how old she is i have to say: one. that makes my stomach hurt. But, i am so enjoying her phase right now. she is learning so much and can understand so much of what we tell her. she is so happy and expressive. she is a joy to be around. i'm so happy she's ours. (even though she's kind of old)

Christmas 2009 + some other stuff

2010-01-01T09:09:00.000-08:00

I was so excited to go home to Colorado for Christmas this year. I haven't been home for Christmas in 5 years and have missed it. We didn't pack as much into our trip as we normally do so we had lots of down time hanging out with my parents which was nice. I hate not living in the same state as them.

Before I get into Christmas though-

@ BYU-I you have to apply to get into the Bachelor of Fine Arts program (BFA) for graphic design (or any other medium) and so Nic applied this semester.... and HE GOT IN! Congrats my Nic! He scored way above average (they only expect "average" for those applying- you work up to being awesome while in the program) on nearly every category. I'm proud. He is going year round till he graduates a year from now- so just 3 more semesters and we'll both be done!

By the way... I GRADUATED!! I got a B.S. in Communication (emphasis in advertising) with clusters in Graphic Design and Home and Family living. I'm pretty excited but it doesn't feel real yet- perhaps next week when Nic goes to school and I don't. I'm waiting to walk till April so my parents could be there... so cap and gown pictures in a few months.
I'll post more about daphne tomorrow ON HER BIRTHDAY! I can't believe our baby is ONE.... Crazy!

for now, here is a really sad picture of her trying to get into the kitchen while I'm making dinner.

Ok- So Christmas! Nic, Daphne and I got spoiled- thanks to our parents, grandparents, siblings and friends for making Daph's first Christmas (and her first of 2 birthday parties- more on that later too) so awesome. Thanks everyone! Here are a few (ok.. maybe like a hundred. sorry.) of my favorite pics from Christmas morning.

It seems here like she really knows what she is doing- she did in fact pick up a few presents with her name on it- can this baby read?

What is it?......

A sock monkey!

Ok- i can't believe I am posting this awful picture of me. This is me literally the second I discovered what it was that Nic got me- a glockenspiel. (an awesome instrument that I have some hope of learning!) you play it kind of like the xylophone so here I am making that gesture. Nic also got me a dress, some chevron tights i've been wanting way bad and this awesome gray skirt. Thanks love! I didn't get any pictures of him opening his gifts but I got a dread tam, a david sedaris book, best in show and a holga.
I've been slap chopping non-stop! thanks blake and ali!! :)

Daph's most awesome facial expression!

Playing with her cousin Jon and something that glows

Daph looks pretty weird without those big, kissable cheeks!

This was yesterday. we were eating dinner while daphne played alone in her room. She started crying and so we went in to find her like this. apparently she wanted to change but just couldn't get it done. We laughed and laughed. Oh how we love this baby!
Happy new year everyone!

caution... it's a poop story.

2009-12-29T21:34:00.000-08:00

read at your own risk :)

today nic and i experienced perhaps our worst/funniest moment in parenting.
we were galavanting around gateway in SLC when we noticed daph smelled not-so-fresh. we could only find a 1 person (locking) bathroom and of course, not a changing table in sight. So, nic came in with me and we decided to change daphne in her stroller.

we are awesome.

so, worst diaper ever. like 3x worse than any nasty diaper thus far.
halfway through changing her, i lift her up to wipe some more and drop the diaper (FACE down) first on the stroller (thankfully the plastic part) then on the ground (changed rotations in the air thank goodness so we didn't have to haz-mat the floor.

well, we did have to clean up inches of poop off of our stroller.
it was horrible. but, it was also hillarious.
nic and i were laughing sooooo hard.

i think at times like that you can only laugh.
or else you'd cry.
then puke.
then cry somemore.

which one?

2009-12-12T13:23:00.000-08:00

Nic's Grandma Jane is super sweet. She watches daphne weekly so we can go to school. She drives all the way up to Rexburg- rain, shine or snow and last week she even brought us soup for lunch too! She really wants us to enter Daphne into the local newspaper's cute baby contest (they choose the cutest baby born each month during 2009) Nic's cousin Missy entered her baby Jacoby last year and he won! She even filled out the entry form for us, paid the entry fee and addressed the self-addressed envelopes we needed to send in with it. We just don't know which picture to enter! Please vote on your favorite on the sidebar ----------------> We're leaving for UT on Friday morning (then to denver on Saturday!!!) so the voting ends thursday night. Please vote! :)

#1 headband model

#2 sideways tongue

#3 little bear

#4 little smirk

Old Nana.

2009-12-08T13:22:00.000-08:00

I have a Nana. She is a wonderful lady and I love her. Daphne is named after her. Her name is Kathryn and so Daphne Ryn is a tribute to my sweet Nana. My mom is Nana to her grandkids, so when my oldest nephew Sid was little and met our Nana he started calling her Old Nana. It may seem like a mean term but it's not and she loves it :)

Nana gave Daphne this little bathrobe and so I thought I would share some pictures with her. I think it's so cute that she (at 81) frequents our blog. Oh, and daph is pretty cute too!

here she is literally RUNNING away from me. arghh :)

we've been seeing this face a lot in the past 2 days. Daphne started Sunday with 2 teeth and now has FIVE! she's actually dealing with it pretty well thankfully.

Sugar Bites

2009-12-07T15:38:00.000-08:00

My mother-in-law Janell defies your better judgment to never trust a skinny chef. She is both a great cook and super tiny :) Nic and I encouraged her after her latest round of delicious homemade candy to open her own Etsy shop. And she did! So here it is... now introducing yet another pedersen/bingham family run etsy shop (we're taking the place over)

sugarbites

walnut caramels, rocky road fudge, black licorice caramels, peppermint kiss fudge, fleur de sel caramels (my FAVORITE!)

all come in lovely packaging, ready to be sent as gifts or just to make yourself feel good when you open the package (not that the fudge won't make you feel good, because it will)

so go ahead... support your local etsy shop!
*nic took all the lovely photos for her shop.

i want one!

2009-12-06T17:24:00.001-08:00

so if you're looking for a christmas gift for nic.kirsten.daphne... here you go!
:)

I-house