Pink Toenails & Scones...

Title scare you a little? Yeah...those two probably should never be in the same sentence again...but I couldn't resist :)

The other morning I went over to my parents' house and made scones. I was unsure of how they would turn out, but I seemed to even surprise myself with these tasty treats! First I found a basic scone recipe from AllRecipes.com (my favorite site for cooking & baking recipes). I found a couple that looked yummy, but couldn't decide on which recipe to follow. Finally I made a decision (woo hoo!..if you know me this was obviously quite a process...the hardest step was actually making a decision on which recipe to use). Anywho-I had 3 different recipe screens open on the computer and once I had picked the winner I started baking away. Come to find out later that I had actually used a completely different recipe than that which I had chosen. HA! That's what I get for being so darn indecisive I guess. However, these turned out great! I added some dried cranberries, orange juice, and orange zest (the orange I forgot to buy at the store that morning so I pulled over and picked one off of our neighbors tree...shhhh...don't tell) (: They came out of the oven and were quickly picked off one by one. Even laney bug liked them! Success!

Here's the recipe for any of you that want to venture and make your own!

3 Cups all-purpose flour
1/2 Cup white sugar
5 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 Cup butter
1 egg, beaten
1 Cup milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet.

1. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter. (or you could pour it all into a food processor)
   
2. Beat the egg, put in measuring cup, then add milk so that the total of both is 1 cup (this is a variation I found that makes the dough not be too wet). Stir into flour mixture until moistened.
3. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead briefly. Roll dough out into a 1/2 inch thick round. Cut into 8 wedges, and place on the prepared baking sheet. (I separated dough into 2 sections then rolled out and cut..makes smaller scones that are easier to eat).
   
4. Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.

Feel free to add in whatever you want! Some variations I found were Cranberry Orange, Lemon Blueberry, Chocolate Chip or anything else you can think of that would be tasty :)

...oh ya...the toenails. Aren't these the cutest little pink toenails you have ever seen?


I painted Delaney's little toes right before they moved (ya, I'll blog about that one later-I'm still in denial about it..) She LOVED them-every time someone new would walk into the house she would lift up her feet so they could see her toes. hehe. :)

Family Beach Trip 2010

My Mom and Dad decided last fall that we should start an annual family trip. What better place to enjoy family and relax than the beach?
We traveled over to Cayucos on a Monday and stayed til Saturday. It was such an amazing trip (aside from the puking and flu symptoms that little Laney gave me), having all my side of the family together-especially since Garrettt, Jill and Laney are moving to Texas soon. The beach was sunny all week...yep, ALL week. Usually Cayucos is hit or miss..some days sunny(after a long morning of fog), some overcast and chilly. But nope, not this week. Mr. Sun decided to come out and shine every day from sunrise to sunset-all week long.
Beautiful!

And of course I took my camera. Here are a few shots from our vacation.
I'm sure more are to come ;)

Jonny and I at the tidepools in Cayucos

Little miss beach princess herself

My sis found these cute little hermit crabs

Delaney Rae LOVED the ocean

Family Beach Trip 2011 here we come :)

Patience is a virtue....

And I wish I had more of it! God is really testing me on this one lately! I have no patience whatsoever! I want to know things NOW, I want things to happen NOW, and I DON'T WANT TO WAIT! NOW, NOW, NOW! I'm beginning to sound like Veruca from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. "But I want it NOW!" And because of this I see how ridiculous I am sometimes with my impatience. This has been something I've struggled with my whole life-but God has taught me some good lessons through learning patience. Some being very difficult to come to terms with, and others becoming bits of knowledge that have helped me along the way. The one thing I tell myself over and over is that "God knows what is best for my life-He will do what is right for me. He knows what will be best in the long run." I know this to be true with all my heart and I constantly pray for God to give me peace about certain situations-but then an hour later my mind is buzzing with all the same confusions, impatience, and trying to figure out answers or solutions! It's not that I don't trust Him with my life, it's that I have a hard time letting go completely....of not knowing what is going to happen. I have learned that when this occurs I need to just take a breath....close my eyes....and lift it all up to God again, and again, and again.... This has been a constant battle with me this past week...but I know God is teaching me the virtue of patience. I pray that I will begin to possess this quality more than I have in the past.

....thank you for reading my ramblings....

Paige Ellen

I can't believe I haven't posted about this bundle of joy yet! I feel as if it was just yesterday that Jenna Rae was telling me she was pregnant in my kitchen...time flies!


Isn't she just amazing!? My friend Jenna had her first child, Paige, on June 14, 2010 (only one day past Jonny and I's first anniversary!). Jenna went into labor early Sunday morning, June 13th. Her mom called to inform me that Jenna was having contractions. The first thing I wanted to do was jump in the car and take the 2 1/2 hour car ride over to SLO. But...it being my anniversary and all...I decided not to jump the gun. I remember my sister's birth lasting a while, so I decided to wait until she at least checked into a hospital. I am glad I did this. I got to spend a wonderful day with my hubby-AND it turned out that Jenna's labor was a whopping 42 hours! Yes, you read that correctly..FOURTY TWO hours! Sheesh...

But out of that Jenna Rae now has a BEAUTIFUL baby girl, who could not be more perfect. I am so proud of Jenna and her hubby Matt. They were wonderful during the whole process, and I am so very thankful to have been a part of such a time in there lives.

Jon and I had scheduled a camping trip for the weekend after all this happened (for our anniversary). But guess where we ended up instead? Yep, the coast! I knew Jonny couldn't stay away for long. He had to meet this new arrival! So we zipped on over to the coast and surprised the new mommy and daddy with a visit. I'm so glad we did-we had a wonderful weekend with time to ourselves-and then some time with the Sarr family :) I will never forget watching Jonny hold her for the first time...a huge smile on his face. And when we drove back to where we were staying he looked at me and said...."I love her". :) I knew he would fall in love as soon as he held her, because that is what happened with me.

Congratulations Matt & Jenna on your beautifully and wonderfully made Paige. Jonny and I are so happy for you-and look forward in sharing a lifetime of memories with you two...I guess three now :) I can't wait for our turn to dive into such an adventure, and I know you two will be right there beside us, supporting in every way!

How does your garden grow?

Our garden has turned into a jungle overnight! Yikes! We are beginning to see the "fruits of our labor". Today I went out to water and came back inside with 4 crook neck squash, 10 cherry tomatos, and one giant zucchini. I am so happy that our little garden is doing so well. This is Jonny and I's very first garden on our own. We were wanting it to do well, and it did. Yippee! My Papa will be so proud when he sees it. He is our biggest competition when it comes to gardening. My Grandpa has zucchini, squash, peppers, tomatoes, corn, green beans, potatoes...you name it-he has it. I have always had a love for being outdoors-maybe that is because my Mom absolutely loves gardening, and my Dad is a Landscaper. It was destined to be. Thank you Mom and Dad for giving me such a wonderful love of the outdoors and its simple pleasures.

One dollar!?

Today I went shopping with my mom. She called this morning and we decided on going to Michaels craft store. I wasn't planning on buying anything-but once I stepped inside I couldn't pass this deal up! I laughed when I got home and looked at my "spoils" (as my sister likes to call them). Here is was I got....and each one was only $1! That's how I like to shop! Nothing big was purchased-but I know I will use each one of these items...heck, I've already used two out of the three!

I thought these cupcake papers were very chic-they are Paula Dean :)

I have been wanting some of these thick head bands! I'm wearing one as I speak..I mean type :) and I love it! Maybe they'll help me with my Zumba moves! It always seems like the instructors wear these sorts of things.


Cute little cards just because.

Only one week...

There's only one week left until Jon and I will have been married for 1 year! Crazy....it doesn't seem that long, and yet it feels longer sometimes...(ya I don't make sense all the time...deal with it) (: I have enjoyed every single second with him. I love our little life together, and our families help to nourish our relationship more than I think they know. I have always heard that "the first year is the hardest". I don't know how much I agree with that after going through this first year. We have had our little tiffs here and there, but for the most part we have enjoyed getting to know each other in our husband/wife roles :) I feel so blessed to have found the man of my dreams! He is so sweet to me and I couldn't imagine myself with anyone else. God sure did know what he was doing with us ;)