The Gardners

Birthday Casino Night

2010-01-12T08:22:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again. Time for me to get older. Time to be shocked by the number of candles on the cake. At least my husband knows how to throw a party so that I don't mind the aging so much. This year we did a casino night in the unfinished basement. It was a lot of work but a lot of fun.

We found this Craps table on KSL for 100 bucks. It is also a black jack, Texas hold 'em, roulette and pool table. It was the most popular table that night.
Black Jack tables.

Some of the girls.

Sisters Sara and Julie.Thanks Kelly for throwing me such a a great birthday party.

Holiday Happenings

2010-01-04T08:56:00.000-08:00

Well the holiday season is over and the first thing that comes to mind is I will NEVER work retail again over the holidays. It was crazy and I'm exhausted. Other than that we had a great time over the holidays. Katie came to visit and we were able to spend a lot of time with her.

We saw Avatar twice. I highly recommend it.

We also saw Sherlock Holmes on Christmas. Not as good as Avatar but worth seeing because of Robert Downey JR. I love him.

I was lucky enough to spend lots of time with Katie.

And my Handsome Husband.

Hope you all enjoyed the holidays.

Open for Business!

2009-11-18T09:06:00.000-08:00

My license has arrived and my new home business is partially open. Our basement isn't done so I will be using a bedroom upstairs temporarily while awaiting the basement to finish. I have ordered my product and am ready to start working on my clients.

I am doing a promotion right now to get things started.
I will be doing 1 hour facials for only $25 for the entire month of December.

Tell your friends and schedule one for yourself. I am so excited to get started. If you are interested in setting an appointment please give me a call or send me an email with your number and I will give you a call. I can't wait to hear from you.

I also have other services I offer such as lash and brow tinting and most waxing.

Jim and Pam

2009-10-09T19:00:00.000-07:00

In cased you missed the best wedding episode ever for a TV show. Here it is.

I loved it. Too funny!

Off to Arizona!!

2009-09-24T09:05:00.000-07:00

Kelly and I are off to Arizona this weekend to watch the Cardinals play the Colts. We are super excited. However, we will be missing to very important birthdays this weekend. We just wanted Julie and my mom to know that we love them very much and hope they have a wonderful birthday. Even if they do have to celebrate it without us. Let's just say I am usually the life of the party.

Happy Birthday Girls!!!

Chills!

2009-09-16T20:10:00.000-07:00

I saw this on the VMA's and of course had to share in case you hadn't seen it.

Good Things!

2009-09-11T07:53:00.001-07:00

Just bought this and I can't wait to read it. If you haven't read the first one, The Hunger Games, you better get started because you are missing out.

Also, give this show a try. I loved it. Its a keeper.

Visit to see Katie!!

2009-09-06T17:37:00.001-07:00

I don't know why but blogging has become a nuisance to me, Facebook is so much easier. Therefore, this post is late.

Kelly and I were finally able to head to California and visit Katie. She has been there for almost two years and we have been there once...for 24 hours. Now that I finally got Kelly out there I think we will be going a little more often. We had a blast.

The first night there we went to dinner with Ben and Vicki and their family. We love to see them. It doesn't happen very often. Mostly because they refuse to come to Utah to visit us.
After dinner we went to a Karaoke bar. I talked Kelly into singing in front of a bunch of people he doesn't know. He was awesome.

The next day was Katies birthday party. We spent the whole day on the beach and then barbecued at her house later that night. Did I mention her house is also on the beach? It was awesome! Sunday was Katies birthday. We went to breakfast and then to see Inglorious Basterds (a must see if I do say so myself, not as gory as I expected and Brad Pitt was great). That night we made dinner for the family she lives with and then headed off to LA to stay in a dive hotel so we could make our flight at 5 the next morning. All in all we had a great trip.

The Means clan!

View from Katies front yard

Hanging on the beach
haha..notice Kelly flexing. He is such a goof.

Sisters

Random kid holding a shark
Not the best idea. This picture was taken right before the skark tried to take a bite out of the kid.

House
not the house Katie lives in, but a house Kelly and I hope to live in someday.

Katie and her Birthday cake

True Beauty

Bear Lake 09.

2009-08-06T08:24:00.001-07:00

It was that time of year again. The time where we head to Bear Lake and enjoy a weekend with the fam. We love going up and just relaxing for four days. I do love Bear Lake but every time we go it is windy and the lake is cold. I am looking for a new lake to go to next year. One that's not to far away and one that is warm? If you have any suggestions let me know. Enjoy the pics.

Sara and Tyson

Kaycee and Rachel
It was Raspberry Days so we went to the craft fair and found this.

Kaycee and Kelly

Kelly
(as Captain Morgan)

Some of the Romneys

Kelly and The Dax Man
Daxi had the time of his life
as usual

Mom & Dad

Julie and Yours Truly

Update!

2009-07-29T17:32:00.001-07:00

Rumor has it that its time for me to blog again. I have no excuses but laziness because I have done plenty of fun things in the last month. So here is an update of what has been going on.

Kelly and I gave my mom tickets to the Fray for Mothers Day. However, for some reason I didn't get a picture of my mom and dad. I guess I was to busy enjoying the music and Megans sweet dancing.

The Fray

Megs rocking out to Jacks Mannequin.

Kelly and I enjoying the show.Kelly post snow cone...always entertaining.

Next we were able to surprise Aaron and Melissa with a birthday party for the big 30. They both have birthdays in the same week.

Here are the birthday kids.
Bri, me and Melissa. Besties for the resties.
Kelly thought it would be a good idea to play Firework Four Square instead of just normal for square. He was right. It was pretty sweet.
Last but certainly not least, Kelly and I celebrated out 7 year anniversary, that's right I said 7 years, at the Grand America in Salt lake. I could go on about my wonderful husband for hours but I will just say I am so happy I married my best friend. I have the greatest time with him and I couldn't imagine my life without him, Plus, he is supa sexy. I mean look at him.

We lounged by the pool all day Sunday after going to the brunch which I will say has gone down hill a little, but the pool was awesome.
Notice me soaking up the sun. This is what I will be doing for the next four days. We are off to Bear Lake so I should have some more fun pictures coming soon.

Happy Birthday Kelly!

2009-06-30T08:52:00.000-07:00

Sunday was my sweet husbands 29th birthday. We decided to celebrate by taking the festivities to the Sand Dunes. We had a bunch of friends join us and Kelly had a blast. I love when his friends come out with us and bring their toys so Kelly has someone to go riding with. We went down Saturday morning and had a big bon fire that night with all the friends. Sunday morning everyone left except for us. We love having friends there but we also love just hanging out with just the two of us and not having anything to do but relax. I didn't bust out the camera until Sunday so I don't have a whole lot of pics.

I only try the four wheeler when everyone is gone. I'm not very good at it.
Kelly and I in front of the trailer.
Look I even played foot ball with Kelly. Also, not very good at it.
Kelly was pretty proud of the fire he built.
I love you Kelly and I had the best time with you this weekend. I hope you had a wonderful 29th birthday!!!

Our Story. The short version.

2009-06-06T13:57:00.000-07:00

My friend Melissa tagged me and asked me to share the story of how Kelly and I met. Even though she was there for a good portion of it. I guess its a good chance for me to reminisce and write down what I still remember. Here I go.

Kelly and I first met while working at Kenny Rogers Roasters. I was 17 and he was 15. It sounds bad but I'm only a year and half older than him. I was the first one to work there and then all of Kelly's friends started to work there. Apparently I was a looker back then, if you look at pictures you would never know it. Kelly's friends told him that he had to come in and see me. Kelly came in and applied for a job and took a gander. "She's not even cute" he said, of course being typical Kelly and trying to act cool. Really he thought I was a hottie. I thought he was pretty cute and I loved the way he walked. Haha. I was young. After only a few weeks of working there we all became good friends and started hanging out all the time. I would probably say those were some of the funnest times of my life. Oh to be 17 and not have a care in the world. It only took a few weeks of hanging out for Kelly and I to completely fall for each other. He got a hard time from his friends and so did I. I was taking Kelly away from them. Not an easy battle for either of us, but we remained inseparable. That was 13 years ago. We dated for about 3 1/2 years and then broke up for two, it was the hardest time of my life and the best thing we could have done. Its hard finding the person your going to marry at the ages of 15 and 17. We both needed time to grow up a little and figure out what we wanted. Luckily it was each other. I remember the night we ran into each other after our long break up. It was oddly enough at Club Omni, lamest club ever and I never went there. My friends came in and told they were going and invited me to come along. I really didn't want to go and I told them it was specifically because I didn't want to run into Kelly. I went anyways and low and behold Kelly was there. I was definitely scared. He was so sweet and was looking for me everywhere so we could talk and hang out. Lucky for him my friends thought his friends were cute so they called him later that night. They all came over and hung out. That night Kelly and I realized how much we had missed each other. Still a little cautious I kept my distance from him. My friends and I decided we were going to Vegas the following weekend. I told Kelly we were going and if he and his friends wanted to meet us there that would be cool. Apparently none of his friends had money to go but Kelly wanted to go so bad he offered to pay for the trip. Good thing he did. It was a big turning point in our relationship and not even a year later we were engaged to be married.

Kelly and I have completely grown up together. He has been my best friend for 13 years and I love every minute I have with him. Just like every relationship we've gone through our ups and downs but we know there is nothing that we can't get through together.

Enjoy the blast from the past.

I think Kelly is 16 hear and I am 17. Is my shirt tucked in?
One of our nightly outings after work to good ol Burger king. Kelly in one of his finest moments.
Worst prom dress ever. I ran out of time to do my hair so I ended up looking like this.

I will keep this tag going and tag

Annette
Helen
Angela
Megs

In Case You Missed It.

2009-06-01T07:51:00.001-07:00

Last night during the MTV movie awards they aired a trailer for New Moon. It looks better than the first one already. Also, check out Jacobs new ripped body. Holy cow that kid worked hard to keep his job.

Enjoy!

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON trailer in HD

NYC Day 1 & 2!

2009-05-20T20:20:00.000-07:00

We have arrived to the one place I have wanted to visit my entire life. So far I have seen two people urinating in public, I got in a verbal altercation with an old lady because she thought my tank top and a jacket outfit was to revealing, and I have almost been hit by 13 crazy cab drivers. How do I feel about it do you ask? I am LOVING it!! Where else do you get craziness like this?Seriously?!

DAY 1

Yesterday when we arrived we met up with my brother Dave and his wife Jessica. We went to the Empire State building first and then met up with their friend who is a local. He took us to China town for dinner. We then went to a great dessert place. Kind of a short day.

Here are some pics.

Kelly and I getting ready to ride the subway.

The four of us at the top of the Empire State Building.

The cutest picture ever of Dave and Jessica!

DAY 2

We had a lot more going on today. We stopped by St. Patricks Cathedral and then walked down 5th ave. We then walked through the Rockafellar Center Plaza then we went and stood in line for two hours to get in to the taping of the Daily show. We were so excited because we were the last ones in line that they gave tickets too. Then we get inside and they tell us that only 3 of us can go in and we had to make a decision immediately as to who was going to go. Dave and Jess were nice enough to let us Kelly and I go. However, we felt guilty the whole time. After the show we headed to the Yankees game. Busy busy day.

More pics. Sorry its a long post. I'm in New York would you expect anything different?

What's NYC without the Naked Cowboy

Enjoying the Yankees game.

In front of the new Yankees Stadium.

So happy to get our tickets to the Daily Show only to be disappointed that only three of us could get in.

Great seats at the game!!

Philly!!

2009-05-19T21:08:00.000-07:00

We had a great couple of days in PA staying with Kelly's brother Ronald and his family. It was wonderful. Good food, great company and free massages from the girls. What more can you ask for. Pennsylvania was beautiful. The freeways however are crazy!! Kelly and I kept getting lost. Note to all readers, an iphone does not replace your GPS system. I don't think I have ever seen Kelly so mad. Haha. Good times.

Here are some pics from PA.

I told the girls we could go shopping for some sunglasses. We ran out of time so I couldn't take them but Kelly and I stopped on the way home from Philly and picked some out for them. How cute are they!
Posing with Rocky in front of the famous art museum where he runs up the stairs. We all ran up the stairs.

The girls and I in Philly.
Kelly enjoying an actual Philly cheese steak sandwich. He is also making his Philly face. Silly boy.
Thanks Ron and Annette for being such great hosts and letting us stay with you. It was so fun to see you guys and we can't wait until next month when you come and visit us.

Washington DC

2009-05-17T18:16:00.001-07:00

Well we finally made it to DC. It was a bumpy flight. I tried to sleep but instead I used my new neck pillow to breath into. Someone on the plane had a serious case of nervous gas. It was HORRIBLE!!! But we made it anyways and so far we have had a great time. We spent all day Saturday in DC with Kelly's parents and his brother Ron's family. We had a great day.

Jenna, Megan and I at he WWII memorial.

Kelly, Jenna and Mega at the Lincoln Memorial.
Walking down the Vietnam memorial.
Washington Memorial
I love this picture. It was raining so we all had our umbrellas while walking dowtown DC.

That is the Lincoln Memorial behind us.
In front of a building next to the White House. We can't remember what it was. We saw so much that day.
The most beautiful Cathedral I have ever seen....Also the only Cathedral I have seen. Still amazing!

And that was my Saturday. CRAZY. I need a nap. Today we are in Pennsylvania at Ron and Annettes house. Tomorrow we are off to Philadelphia. I'm going to try and keep updating so keep checking back.

Down with the old, in with the new!

2009-05-06T09:14:00.000-07:00

As some of you know we are finishing our basement...still. Its a process. We have decided to put most of our appliances from upstairs, downstairs into the basement kitchen and upgrade our main kitchen. Its so exciting.

Our first replacement was the microwave, followed soon after by a new gas stove top. I cooked with the stove for the first time today and I loved. Doesn't it look pretty. I'm still debating on the microwave. It looks nice and it cooks fine, but I miss the kitchen timer on my other microwave. This one is so quiet I can never hear it go off. Which mean over cooked cookies. My new specialty.

I also had to take some pictures of our trees. I love them in the spring time. So green, mostly, and they have blossoms. Every year they get a little bigger. I can't wait until they get big enough to block the wind.

It was a beautiful day!

Music Spotlight and Concert Event!!!

2009-04-23T18:34:00.001-07:00

My new music spotlight is Safetysuit. I meant to put them up a while ago but I forgot. I went to their concert last night and they were amazing. Mel and Megs you will love them. They remind me a little of Lifehouse. Give them a whirl.

So last night we went to the free Earth Day concert at Gallivan. I was so excited because my new favorite band Carolina Liar was playing, for free. They were good but I was a little disappointed that they only played 4 songs and they were all accoustic. Then Safetysuit came on and I loved them. They were AWESOME!!! It probably helped that the lead singer looked like this.

You see some pretty cool people at free concerts in downtown Salt Lake. Like this guy, he is wearing tye dye over alls with a tye dye shirt. An outfit I have always wanted to try myself but didn't think I could pull off. After seeing this I just might try it now that I know how good it looks.

A couple of fun pics from the show.

Amy and I
Ang and I

Me and Kelly

Music Spotlight!!

2009-04-21T19:05:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't love a little Journey every once in a while?

Britney Spears

2009-04-15T08:40:00.000-07:00

Last night I had the pleasure of bringing out my inner teenager and heading to the Britney Spears concert. I went with my friend Brit and some of the girls from Kelly's work. We had so much fun. We didn't even care that she lip syncs the whole thing. Enjoy the pics and video.

Pussycat Dolls opened. They were just alright.

Pretending to sing on an umbrellaAll the girls that went.

Lost in the parking lot. It took us a good 15 minutes to find our car.

New Family Pic

2009-04-12T20:17:00.000-07:00

This was taken in December when Katie was here. Good times.

Flashback Friday!!

2009-04-03T11:07:00.001-07:00

Remember when I didn't have a job? I know it was only a month ago, but I already miss it.

I had time to play guitar hero.

I had time to be goofy and take fake dancing pictures with my friend.I could go out on the weekends.

But what I miss most of all is my hubby. I barely see him. I miss the days where I could lay around with him in the mornings and be lazy. I miss our dinner outings on the weekends. I miss our Sundays where we could do whatever we wanted. Oh well I'm sure they will be back soon enough.

Now, I don't want to you to think I am complaining. I am really liking my job and yesterday I made an extra 64 buck by signing 12 people up for a rewards card. I was pretty proud of myself. Plus even though I could do all the things listed above I was bored most of the time. I will be very grateful to have the extra spending cash. New wardrobe, here I come.

Flashback Friday!

2009-03-27T17:36:00.000-07:00

This pic wasn't very long ago but it is one of my favorite pictures of me, Mel and Bri. I thought I would post one of the three of us because I am so excited to have us all back together again here in Utah very soon. Can't wait ladies!!

Tickets are Booked!!!

2009-03-26T14:45:00.001-07:00

I am going on my first ever trip to New York. Kelly has been but that silly boy went without me. I have wanted to go there all of my life. I have been to so many amazing places but this has always been at the top of my list. Needless to say I am excited. We leave May 15th.

Annette we should be at your place on the 17th. We are going to hit DC first. YAY!!!!! I'm so excited!!!

If you have been there tell me the places or things to do that I just can't miss. I need to know!! Don't worry. Wicked is on the agenda.

Flashback Friday!

2009-03-20T08:51:00.001-07:00

Ahhh..high school dance pictures. Always entertaining, never embarrassing. I am not quite sure what dance this is from but I love it because I went with my cute hubby and it has a lot of my current friends in the picture.

New Job!!

2009-03-19T18:00:00.000-07:00

I did it. I finally got a job. I am still having issues getting my license so I found myself something to do in the mean time. I have never worked retail before so this will be quite the experience. I can tell you right now that I am not used to waking up early and I come home with a sore back every night. Opening a new store is hard work. Our opening date is April 2nd, hope to see you all there.

Fladback Friday!

2009-03-13T09:01:00.000-07:00

I need to get a life. I feel like all my posts lately have been flash back Fridays, oh well.

My sisters and I always talk about how cute my brother Dave was when he was little. Don't get me wrong he is still adorable now but he is so stinking cute in this picture. His cute little face that he would always pull. This pic is of me, Dave and Katie. Good ole times.

Music Spotlight!

2009-03-10T08:47:00.000-07:00

My music spotlight won't always be a new band, mostly because there aren't a lot of great new bands. This time my music spotlight is a band that I have always loved. I am really enjoying there album right now and thought I would share. I really don't have a favorite song on there album. I love them all.

Off with the Winter Coat.

2009-03-07T13:45:00.000-08:00

Before: We were going for the adorable, warm, old man look.

After: Showing off his girlish figure that was hiding behind all that hair. Now people will stop saying he looks like he's put on some weight.
Some one explain to me why my dog gets roots. His hair shaft is three different colors.

Daxi will be 6 tomorrow or 42. Which ever, he is getting up there.

Flashback Friday

2009-03-05T16:55:00.000-08:00

This is one of my favorite pictures. This is the last picture I have with my sweet great grand mother. She hated being called grandma so we called her Nanny or Nan. She was one of the kindest people I had ever met.

This picture was taken on her 90th birthday party. She was so funny. Her husband had passed away the year or so before she turned 90. While at her party she was telling my sisters and I how we should all go to the mall and pick up on guys. She was so cute and fun. I love this pic.

Flashback Friday!!

2009-02-28T09:35:00.000-08:00

I can tell already I'm going to be really good at this. Seeing as how its already Saturday and I forgot to post my flashback.

This is Bri, Kim Melissa and I. we were really bored one night and decided to take crazy pictures. This one is probably my favorite.

Good news. Bri is moving back!!!!!!! YAAAAYYYYYY!!! Can't wait.

My First Time Skiing!!

2009-02-24T08:48:00.000-08:00

This past weekend Kelly and I went up to Wolf Creek with some friends. Last year I gave snow boarding a try and I was awful at it. This year I thought I would see if I could handle skiing. I was so proud of my self. I did so much better. I only fell twice and I made it down the mountain 9 times. It was the bunny hill but hey, I don't care I did it.

I love Kelly's self portrait with me trying to ski in the background.
Heading down the bunny hill. Maybe if I get good at it I will get my self some decent attire so I don't look so ridiculous.

Me and Ang on our lunch break. I have hat hair and head.
Kelly and I on our way up.

Flashback Friday!!

2009-02-20T07:33:00.000-08:00

Since I stole this idea from my good friend Melissa I though it would be fitting to start with a picture of the two of us.

This pic is from a trip the two of us took to Vegas with some friends. This Vegas trip was a pivotal trip in both of our lives because it was on this trip that we both decided we wanted to be with our future husbands. Brian was out there with a group of friends and Mel hung out with him a little bit and decided she really liked him. Kelly also came out with a group of his friends and I knew I wanted to marry him.

I'm So Nervous!!!!

2009-02-17T09:21:00.000-08:00

Whats going to happen. Why is it a closed set for after the rose? Why is it so sensitive. I don't know how I am going to feel about this whole Deanna thing. Seriously. I don't think I can wait two weeks. AHHH! However. There will be a big Bachelor finale party at my place if anyone wants to come. It's not the same unless we can all watch it together.

GO TEAM MELISSA!!!!

Music Spotlight!

2009-02-15T07:56:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, I really love my music. I love all kinds of music. It makes me feel good, it can change my mood, it reminds me of special moments, or it can feel exactly what I am feeling. Because of this I have decided to start doing a music spotlight. I will post the band name here and post some of their songs in my Music player to the right.

This week I am loving Carolina Liar. Some of you may have heard of them but I hadn't until earlier this week. I downloaded the CD and love the whole thing. Check them out.

Mel and Megs I especially think you will love them.

Elk?

2009-02-13T16:29:00.001-08:00

As I was driving home this morning I noticed about 4 cop cars near the entrance of my neighborhood, all of them with their lights on. Then when I turned into my neighborhood there were about 10cars puller over on the side of the road and everyone was out of theirs cars and taking pictures. I had to get out of the car and see what was going on.

I believe these are elk. There were about 50 of them just wondering through a grassy area at the entrance of Traverse Mounatin. I thought it was pretty cool so I will share these pics with all of you.

The Rest of Puerto Rico!

2009-02-11T07:50:00.000-08:00

Friday we had the awards ceremony. This is where everyone gets their award for making Presidents Club. That means that Kelly's store sold enough for him to win the trip. The first few hours of the awards ceremony are fun but then five hours later you are wondering if you will ever be able to leave. We can't really complain though. Surf and Turf for dinner and a free trip. We will sit there for five hours.

I loved the table settings.

Heading out to the gala.Cocktail Party before the ceremony.

Some of the others from Kelly's office that hit PC.
The beautiful and delicious dessert

The following day we split a rental car with some of the people there and headed to San Juan. It was beautiful.

This is on the grounds of a huge fort in San Juan.
As you get closer to the beach you see that there is this amazing cemetery.
I had never seen anything like it. It was amazing.

Some pics of the fort.

That night we headed to the Bio Bay(click here to read more about it). It was the coolest thing I have done. We kayaked in the dark through a beautiful channel that led us into the bay. I don't know the lady below I just found the picture online. There is something in the water that makes it glow when you move it around. It was really cool. I highly recommend it.The next day we did a snorkeling cruise.
The last day we just hung out at the pool while waiting to leave for the airport. Here's an action shot of Kelly playing Volleyball.
If you get offended by a little skin then don't go any further. I just had to post my mystery bruise. What ever I did it didn't hurt at the time but it sure left a mark. I think I may have done it body surfing but I am going to say that Kelly kneed me in his sleep.

Puerto Rico Day 1 and 2!!

2009-02-10T07:32:00.000-08:00

I was going to try to put all of my trip into one post, but I am certain that would be the worlds longest post and I'm not really interested in doing that. So we will start with Day 1.

Our flight left at 12:50 am on Wednesday morning. The good ole red eye. I have never been able to sleep on a plane, but thanks to my doctor and a prescription of Xanax I didn't do to bad.

We arrived at the resort at about 2:00 pm on Wednesday. It was beautiful. We didn't do much that day but walk the grounds, take a nap, go to dinner and lose in the casino.

Pics from day 1

Kelly on the beach right outside the resort

Checking out the beach.
View from the room
Heading out to dinner
Relaxing on the balcony enjoying the view after a really long day.

On day two we took the time to enjoy the resort and our surroundings. The beach was beautiful and the weather was perfect. Kelly went golfing and I headed to the spa. What a wonderful day.

The morning started out with the annual group picture.
Kelly and I relaxing on the beach.
At night they did the dine around. This is where they place everyone into categories alphabetically and send you in to town to try different restaurants. We went to a place called Marmalade in downtown San Juan. The food wasn't great but we met up with some cool people that we had met on last years trip and ended up hanging out with them the rest of the trip.

Downtown San Juan
I loved the streets. Especially this one with the yellow buildings.Posing on the stairs
Day 3 coming soon.

Asta La Vista

2009-02-03T14:37:00.000-08:00

Kelly and I are off to Puerto Rico for approximately one week. Just wanted to post the hotel we are staying in because I think it looks beautiful. We will have the lap top out there so I am hoping to post while on the trip. I am so excited to get out off this dreary winter and the dreaded inversion. See you soon.

New Recipe

2009-01-26T19:18:00.001-08:00

So I have been on a little bit of a health kick lately. Not only because I want to feel better about myself but because we are heading to Puerto Rico next week and I want to look semi decent in my bathing suit. We all know how our winter bodies can be.
My mom invited us over for dinner on Sunday and was nice enough to cook a healthy dinner per my request. I didn't think healthy food could taste this good. Its my new favorite recipe so I will share it all with you. It only has 127 calories and 3 grams of fat per serving. Hello! Thats awesome!!

Give it a try and let me know what you all think.

Honey Ginger Crusted Chicken

4 small skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (12 ounces total)
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Dash ground red pepper (optional)
3/4 cup cornflakes, crushed (about 1/3 cup)
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
Steamed green beans and/or lemon wedges
Directions

Spray a shallow baking pan with nonstick spray. Place chicken breasts in baking pan. In a small bowl combine honey, orange juice, ginger, black pepper, and red pepper (if desired). Brush honey mixture over chicken. Combine cornflakes and parsley flakes. Sprinkle cornflake mixture over chicken to coat.

Bake, uncovered, in a 350° oven for 18 to 20 minutes or until chicken is tender and no longer pink (170°). If desired, serve with steamed green beans and/or lemon wedges.

Happenings!

2009-01-19T15:38:00.000-08:00

So I was playing with my camera today and noticed I had some pictures that I meant to blog about but didn't They are a little old but I am sure we will all deal with it just fine.

So Kelly got me this shirt for my birthday. Kelly usually does pretty good when he buys me clothes but this one shirt was just funny. I told him that I didn't know one person that would look good in it. He decided to try and prove me wrong. I think he proved me right.

Let me introduce you to Daxi's worse enemy. I don't know why but he is terrified of this little dog. Of course Kelly and I think it hilarious and we torture him every now and then. Check out the video below.

More Sledding!!

2009-01-17T13:53:00.000-08:00

Today we had the Gardner clan come over for some sledding. We all had so much fun. Here some pics of all the cute kids and all the fun. I'm hoping to have the wipe out video soon. There were a lot.

Darrin and Helen Ready to go.
Apparently Kevin said something really funny.
I think Kiya was having more fun eating the snow.

Alesha and Kiya ready to go down.

Even the Grandparents got in on it.
Kaden was the only one I could get to ride with me.
Daniel and Garret on their way to the top.

Christina and Breanne.

Kelly jumping over his brother in law Andy.

Cute little Kira.
The little twins got so much air on the jump. They loved it.
One of the many collisions.
Thanks everyone for coming. We had so much fun with all of you.

Sledding!

2009-01-07T20:12:00.000-08:00

I haven't been sledding for years. I completely forgot how fun/tiring it is. We found a great hill right by our house that even has a jump. Kelly was doing spread eagles off of it. What a show off. We bought two sleds this year and have only gone once so if anyone is interested give us a call. We had a ton of fun.
Cousin Jenn me and Katie
Waiting for their turn or catching their breath.

Birthday Party!!

2009-01-04T12:40:00.000-08:00

Let me just start by saying I have a wonderful husband. He made sure all of my friends were invited and accommodated everyone. I am so grateful for him and had so much fun last night. The night started with dinner at Squatters. We had about 20 people show up for dinner. It was a lot of fun. Then a limo came and picked us up from Squatters and took us to The Hotel, a club downtown. I had never been there before. It was really fun. Kelly got us VIP services so we had our own reserved tables and section to do our own thing. We had a great time and I am so grateful to all our friends for coming. Especially Brad and Britt for driving here from Vegas just for me. Here are some pics to enjoy. We missed those of you that couldn't make it.

My bestie Britt
The girls.
Me and sis Sara

My friend Isaac
Ang and I

Thanks babe for all your hard work. I had a blast and I love you to pieces.

It's almost here!

2009-01-03T11:54:00.000-08:00

I seriously can't believe I will be 30 tomorrow. When did I get this old. I need to have a serious conversation with Father Time. I swear I am only 23, tops.

I figure if I continue to act like a 12 year old I can stay young forever. Even when I look like this.

More pics to come. My hubby has something up his sleeve for tonight.

Family Pics

2008-12-28T09:17:00.000-08:00

Kelly and I haven't had pictures taken together since we have been married. We figured it was about time. Plus, Kellys mom has a wall full of pictures from every family except ours. After two years of an empty frame we decided we would get her one. Here are a few of our favorites. Thanks to Kelly's sis Alesha for taking them for us. She did a great job.

4th Times a Charm!!!

2008-12-15T10:06:00.001-08:00

I PASSED MY TEST!!!!!!!!

As some of you know I have had a really hard time passing my written test in order to become a licensed Esthetician. They have recently changed the test and are now testing out of 7 different books. I learned from one. This morning was my 4th time taking my dreaded test. I didn't even study again. I have been so frustrated. I know the answer to over 1200 questions and I could not pass this stupid 110 question test. A lot of the questions were quite irrelevant. So this morning I rolled out of bed, threw on a hat and headed out to FAIL my test again. When you get there to take the test they take your picture to print on your pass or fail score. As I am sitting there getting my picture taken (without my hat) I was thinking "Watch me pass my test today" Knowing I looked absolutely amazing for my picture. I don't even care how I looked I finally passed my test!!! I can't even tell you what a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. Here is a copy of my score and my amazing look this morning;)

Best News EVER!!!

2008-12-08T07:09:00.001-08:00

Click here to find out.

Its finally done!!!

2008-12-07T09:12:00.000-08:00

Today is one of the greatest days of my life.(Thats probably an exaggeration, but its still a good day) I woke up this lovely Sunday morning and didn't have to put on my grungy clothes and head to the dreaded townhouse for 7 hours. Thats right 7 hours is how long we would spend there. I get a little nauseous just thinking about it. Anyways, all the hard work payed off. For those of you that don't know Kelly and I lived in this house when we first got married. After building the house we live in now we decided to keep the town house as a rental. It was a pretty nice place, but two tenants and 8 dogs later it was a dive and disgusting. So we have been gutting it for the last 87 years.....ok, it was only two in a half months. Here are some pics of the final product. If anyone knows any one interested in a rental let me know. It is 1600 sq feet, 3 bed 2 bath and a 2 car garage. We are asking 1150. It is located in Salt Lake.

Dining room before

Dining room after
Living room before

Living room after
Stairs before
Stairs after
Loft before
Loft after
The entry, kitchen and living room.

Tree Time!

2008-12-02T11:06:00.000-08:00

Every year around this time I start nagging Kelly to help me put up the Christmas tree. With the whole townhouse fiasco it took me three days to get him to do it. It usually only takes three hours. This year I was especially excited to put up my tree because I decided to change it and get new ornaments. I am so happy with how it turned out.

Here some pics of my favorite Christmas decorations.

Of course my tree That I love this year. Not the greatest picture but it's really cute in person.
I love filling my vases up with Christmas balls.

Then of course there is this guy. No explanation necessary he is just cute.

Merry Madness!!!!

2008-11-30T18:00:00.000-08:00

Today, November 30th, I was at the grocery store at 5:30 pm. I found myself noticing what people were wearing. Shorts, T-shirts, Tanks. Am I in California or am I really this lucky? After last years Snow Debacle (me stuck in my car for 7 hours trying to get from downtown to my house)I am so happy to see the weather outside. It has been absolutely beautiful. Maybe still a little cold to wear a tank, but I will take the absence snow, a little longer.

As for December and all the madness that comes with it, all I can say is bring it on. I am ready for you. I am excited for all the family parties, my sis to come into town, me to go out of town, my tree, Christmas music, Christmas decor, my Christmas oils, Love Actually, Christmas Vacation, Just Friends...oh and maybe presents. Prepare yourself everyone December is among us.

Coming soon. Townhouse pics. Dare I say, we might finish tomorrow. I am jumping for joy inside and I might even be shedding a tear.

Midnight Movie!!

2008-11-21T08:48:00.000-08:00

I can't think of anything more annoying than going to a midnight movie with 700 teenage girls. So what did I do. I went to a midnight movie with 700 annoying, hormonal, giddy, screaming teenage girls. I went to the movie expecting to be disappointed. However, I didn't think it was all that bad. Pretty cheesy but that's how the book is. The acting wasn't great. I loved Bella. Edward started to grow on me. Loved Charly and Jasper reminded me of Edward Scissorhands. I found myself pretty entertained and laughing a lot, though I don't think that is what the director intended. I would say go see it with low expectations and you won't be disappointed.

I did it!!!

2008-11-17T17:21:00.001-08:00

Every year I try to convince Kelly that we should put Christmas lights on the outside of the house and every year he is to busy to do it. So I took it into my own hands this year. I know what your thinking. "What? Rachel put up Christmas lights? But she falls UP stairs." I was pretty nervous knowing my track record with just walking in general. So I called my sister to come and observe just in case I did fall off the roof, someone would be there to call 911. For the most part it went over pretty well. All the ladders are at the town house (yes the townhouse is still going on). So I had to get on the roof by climbing out the window. No big deal. There was just one part of the upper roof that I couldn't reach to put in a clip for the lights. So I decided to have Julie act as a step stool for me so I climb onto the higher part of the roof. I was almost there but then I freaked my self out and jumped off of her leg very clumsily. Then I got even more freaked out that I was going to fall so I did what any normal person would do and grabbed on to anything to keep my self from falling. It just happened to be Julie's hair. It worked though. I only twisted my ankle. At least I didn't fall all the way down. Julie and I sat on the roof and laughed uncontrollably for about 5 minutes. I still haven't fixed the one part of the roof.

Here are some pics of the final product.

After my big accomplishment I thought it would be great to get a picture of me jumping for joy. Its a lot harder than it seems.

Attempt 1. Hmmm. Not quite.

Attempt 2. Crap still not right.
Attempt 3. Well thats not right.
Attempt 37 That looks horrible but with the incident on the roof and then me jumping up and down my front lawn I figured my neighbors had seen enough for one day.

My mornings

2008-11-06T20:46:00.000-08:00

Only on rare occasions does Kelly wake up before me. Once I get up Dax gets up and thinks its time to play. Most the time I am okay to play with but this morning he just wasn't having it. He wanted Kelly to wake up and play with him. I thought it was cute so I took a picture.

Dax strategically places his ball on Kellys neck to try and get his attention. He then just sits there and waits. Usually he just stares at the ball but he saw me taking a pictures so he looked at me.
Then he came over and got right in front of the camera. Curious little dog who loves to get his picture taken.

It's heeeerrrrrre!

2008-11-05T07:55:00.000-08:00

My title is supposed to sound like the girl from Poltergeist. Did you get it? Anyways, here is what I woke up to this morning. Not quite sure if I am ready for it.

My camera was out in my car which is parked on the street because it is broken again. So you will have to deal with pics from my phone. HAPPY WINTER.

Daxi always gets little snowballs in his leg hair after going outside.

History in the Making

2008-11-04T21:39:00.000-08:00

This election was my first time voting and what an election to vote in. Kelly had a lot of things to do today and voting was not on his list. I put my foot down and told him that we were going to vote. We got up early this morning and headed off to vote. After 45 minutes of waiting in line I finally got my sticker and was on my way.

Although this election made for some very funny SNL's and Daily Shows, I am happy it is over. There are only so many Palin jokes.

Call me crazy, but I am pretty excited about this next President. I have been a fan of his since the Primary's. I don't consider myself affiliated with any party but I thought, in this election, Obama was the man for the job. I won't give my reasons, everyone is allowed their opinions.

I found his speech so inspirational tonight, I loved watching all of the people that were looking at him with pride and hope. What a historical moment to watch. It was very touching. I also thought McCains speech was very good. He was very gracious and what an incredible person to run against.

Here's hoping for a great four years. I am excited to see what we all can do with this wonderful country of ours.

I'm a little sad.,

2008-11-03T18:42:00.001-08:00

Click here to find out why.

Photographer Needed!!

2008-10-26T14:29:00.001-07:00

We need to get family pictures taken. I am looking for any suggestions of local photographers. I want something artsy, outdoors and really good for a decent price. Let me know if any of you know of any good photogs.

Family Halloween Party!

2008-10-25T08:40:00.000-07:00

Every year Kellys parents have a Halloween party. For some reason every year we are out of town when they have there party. So this was our first Gardner Costume party. It was a lot of fun to see everybody all dressed up. Here are a few pics I was able to get.

Chase was really excited to wear my glasses.
Kelsey and Brianne
Kayden was a cute little pirate.
Helen was the pregnant witch.
Dax couldn't miss out. He was Darth Vader. He was also being beat up on by some Jedi knights who wouldn't let me take there picture. They were just doing there job.
Two huge geeks
Walter and Michelle
The Noot family
My sexy nerd

Nothing Else to Talk About!

2008-10-21T20:18:00.001-07:00

I really haven't had anything exciting in my life going on. Or at least nothing blog worthy. So I am just going to continue posting videos that I think are funny. This was hilarious.

Tagged!

2008-10-20T08:56:00.000-07:00

I was tagged by my good friend Mel. It's a list of 8's.

8 TV shows that I love to watch...

1. Heroes
2.Greys Anatomy
3.Lost
4.One Tree Hill
5.Gossip Girl
6.Desperate Housewives
7.Brothers and Sisters
8.Greek
9. The Office
10. Ugly Betty
11.Real World/Road Rules Challenge
12. Oh...was I supposed to stop at 8 because I could go on forever.

8 Favorite Restaurants
1.Flemings
2.Cheesecake Factory
3.Outback
4.Chik Fil A
5.My House
6.My Mom's House
7.Olive Garden
8.The Yard House

8 Things that happened yesterday
1. Woke Up
2. Complained about heading to the townhouse(we are gutting it and it SUCKS!)
3.Got in trouble by Kelly for complaining
4. Went to the Stupid Townhouse
5.Sanded stupid base boards
6.Finished the never ending Masking project around the townhouse.
7. Watched Kelly paint the base boards and doors
8. Went home and fell asleep at 10:00
Ya yesterday was lame.

8 Things I am looking forward to
1 Finishing the townhouse
2.Halloween
3.Christmas
4.Anaheim
5.Thanksgiving
6.Melissa's Baby
7.Giving snowboarding another shot
8.Finishing the townhouse

8 things I love about the fall
1.The changing leaves
2.The smell
3.Sweaters
4.Scarves
5.Boots
6.The return of my favorite T.V. shows
7.Anticipation for the holidays
8.Pumpkin Spiced Everything

8 things on my wish list
1. I wish my fairy godmother would wave her magic wand and our town house would be done.
2. I wish that my sis would move back from Cali
3. I wish most of my friends didn't live out of state
4. I wish my written test wasn't so hard
5. I wish I had 80 billion dollars
6. I wish I could think of a cute Halloween costume for Kelly and I.
7. I wish Kelly would stop going out of town
8. I wish Saturday Night Live would stay this funny forever.

8 people I tag
1. Angela
2.Britt
3.Jen
4.Amy
5.Annette
6.Helen
7.Megs
8.Mom

Marley and Me!

2008-10-17T16:21:00.001-07:00

I love Jennifer Aniston. I am so excited that she finally has a new movie coming out. This looks so funny. I heard the book was amazing. I can't wait to see it.

Laughable

2008-10-16T08:58:00.000-07:00

Am I the only one that is having a hard time telling the difference between Presidential Debates and Saturday Night live? I find my self laughing at both of them.

Oh Sisters.

2008-10-11T11:44:00.000-07:00

Every year around this time my siblings and I start going to the variety of haunted houses that Utah has to offer. This weekend Kelly has been out of town. My sisters, Julie, Sara and I decided to go it alone for one night. We thought it might be fun to try a new haunted house so we headed down to Provo and went to the Scream Asylum. We were a little nervous when we got there because it was a Friday night and there was no line, but we went for it anyways. We walked through the haunted house with our arms interlocked at all times, you know, to protect each other. Or so I thought. At the end of the haunted house we walk to what we think is outside of the building, but it wasn't. Instead we here a loud chain saw heading for us. So what do my sisters do? The both let go of my arms (I was in the middle) push off of me and run screaming in opposite directions . Leaving me alone with this guy.
Can you believe that. So I just stood there screaming with my hands over my ears. I think Sara even tried to get into a crawl space at one point. It was pretty funny.

Maybe this year I will learn my lesson since they seem to abandon me with the chainsaw guy every year.

Don't let the tiny line fool you. This haunted house was pretty good.

New Twilight!

2008-10-09T18:25:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my friend Angela I already have my ticket. Do you?

Charity Bike Ride

2008-09-29T18:24:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we had the opportunity to participate in the charity bike ride for Capt. Terry. He was the officer who was shot in the head a few months ago in Lehi during a routine traffic stop. I had seen big bike rides before but it was really amazing to be in one. There were approximately 500 riders. We had a police escort every where we went. It was quite a site. We went with our friends Chris and Jen, and Mr. Dahlberg :). We started in Orem and headed up to Nephi we then went through Nebo canyon and came out in Payson. It was a beautiful ride and so much fun to be a part of something like that.

In front of Timpanogus Harley
Lots of bikes
Jen and Chris
Dahlberg
Kelly and I riding through the canyon

Kelly and cute little Chase

Best wishes to Captain Terry and his family.
Those who want to help with Lehi Police Capt. Harold Terry's medical bills can make a donation to any Central Bank in his name.

Annual Gardner BBQ!

2008-09-28T08:34:00.000-07:00

Last year we started a new tradition in the Gardner family to have an adult only BBQ at our house at the end of the summer. We had a great time this year. Kelly bought Rockband 2 and set it up in the backyard. We have found that Rockband is perfect for every get together. Everyone had a lot of fun rockin' out. We missed Kurt and Angela and Ron and Annette. All night everyone was saying they needed Ron there to show off his moves. We had a lot of fun and were so glad that everyone made it.

Darlene, Terry and Jeff

Brad, Andy, Alesha and Darrin
Singing Happy Birthday to Kevin.

Dick and Darlene even got into it.
Cute little Spencer. Brad and Becky's little guy. One of two exceptions to the adult only rule. Kira was upstairs asleep.

The End of an Era...Sort Of!

2008-09-25T16:52:00.001-07:00

I am one of those people who is lucky enough to be 29 years old and say that I have had a friend for 24 years. I have been friends with Bri since I was 5 years old. Just a month ago Bri and her husband announced that they were moving to Seaside, Oregon and by Saturday they will be gone. Needless to say I was shocked and a little distraught. This girl has seriously been with me through everything. I know, I know, its not the end of our friendship I just wanted to put up a little tribute to us. Beware, its a long one.

This is what I looked like when I first met my friend Bri. I also think this is about what I looked like when we got in a fight over who was going to marry Michael Jackson. It lasted a week and then finally her mom made her come apologize. I wish I had more pictures of us when we were young because we did some ridiculously embarrassing things together.

Bri and I at our friend Kimmee's house. We are probably about 18 here.
Going to a school dance. I think this was Morp. Can you find us?
Who knows what we were doing here.
Just chilling at my apartment. I have know idea who that guy is but I love that Angela is in this picture as well.

Thats right. We got these boys to let us put make up on them.

Showing our muscles with Kimmee and Melissa.

Good times with Melissa and Kimme at either Fridays or Applebees. That is usually where we spent our nights.

This is one of my favorites. Bri and I would always have contests to see who could get the most food on there face while eating. I love that her date is looking on so proudly.

Me, Bri and Mel at Bri's wedding.

This is what we do when the boys make us watch football. We look good.

Most recently Bri and I have been spending our time together at the gym. This is our trainer Nick. It just won't be the same with out her.

I wish her the best of luck in Oregon.

Thanksgiving Movie Goers

2008-09-24T19:59:00.000-07:00

To those of you that usually go to a movie with me the day after Thanksgiving. Tell me what you think about this one. I am really excited to see it.

Lash Extensions!

2008-09-23T13:26:00.000-07:00

I finally had the time to learn lash extensions. Give me a call if you want to know more about them.

Weekend at the Dunes!! Again.

2008-09-02T15:29:00.000-07:00

What a weekend for the dunes. We headed out there Saturday morning. The weather was nice and miserably hot. We got some good riding in that day. Someone managed to tip over a Rhino and another person lost their four wheeler. That was all in the first ride. Sunday things cooled down a bit via huge gusts of wind. I seriously thought some of the trailers were going to tip over. Not a whole lot of riding was done that day. That night we had the most amazing lightning storm I have ever seen. However an amazing lightning storm leads to a lot of mud. It wasn't bad though because it cleared most people out and left us great riding the next day. Because of the rain we were able to get the razor to the top of Sand Mountain.

To some this might just look like a picture of my brothers behind but because of the rain storm we went to our friends trailer and played games. This was how we decided to get back to our trailer. It was really slippery and really funny.

A couple of the guys we went with decided they should light a fire in the rain. Well because everything was wet the poured gasoline on the fire. As you can see here the gasoline quickly caught on fire even up to the top of the gas tank. Don't play with fire kids. No one was hurt during this incident.
Martin and Steve at the top of Sand Mountain in the Rhino. For those of you that don't know Rhinos don't usually make it up the face of the mountain.

And here I am, my first time at the top of Sand Mountain. It was a pretty cold and a really fun ride. Yes I am still wearing bags around my feet. It was really muddy.

Baby Shower

2008-08-21T09:38:00.001-07:00

This last weekend one of my good friends was in town for her baby shower. We had a lot of fun. Its always good to see her. We can't wait until the little guy gets here. Enjoy the pics.

They definitely will dig him.

Cute pregnant Melissa
Good friends.

In completely unrelated news.

Bachelorette’s Reject Becomes New Bachelor">Bachelorette’s Reject Becomes New Bachelor

The new season of The Bachelor hasn’t even begun filming yet, but its star already has plenty of experience with rose ceremonies.

ABC has announced that Jason Mesnick — who proposed to DeAnna Pappas on last season’s Bachelorette, only to be rejected — will become the new Bachelor.

This time, the divorced estate planner, 32, will be the one calling the shots in his quest for love.

The single dad (son Ty is 3) already has plenty of admirers. “I’ve gotten thousands of comments from fans,” Mesnick recently told PEOPLE, adding that he’s set up an e-mail account for his female fan mail. “The generosity and the kindness is unbelievable. Every one is so sweet and nice. All the comments are pure love.”

Pappas, for her part, is engaged to Bachelorette winner Jesse Csincsak — and the two are happily planning a May wedding. – Kate Stroup

Cupcakes Galore!!

2008-08-15T10:01:00.001-07:00

Last night was Mel's baby shower. I had a few requests for the recipes for the cupcakes that were made so I thought I would post them here because I couldn't find everyones email address. To those of you that didn't make it give these recipes a try they were delish. We even had a contest at the end of the night to see who could get a whole cupcake in their mouth first. I am sure pictures of that event will me showing up on blogs any day now.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Cupcakes

Ingredients:

1 package (3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon milk
BATTER:
2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup baking cocoa
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
1 cup water
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
FROSTING:
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 cups confectioners' sugar
6 tablespoons baking cocoa
3 to 4 tablespoons milk

Directions:

In a small mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, peanut butter, sugar and milk until smooth; set aside.
In a large bowl, combine sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt and baking soda. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, water, milk, oil and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened (batter will be thin).
Fill paper-lined jumbo muffin cups half full with batter. Drop scant tablespoonfuls of peanut butter mixture into center of each; cover with remaining batter.
Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.
In a large bowl, combine frosting ingredients until smooth; frost cupcakes. Store in the refrigerator. Yield: 1 dozen jumbo cupcakes.

Raspberry Peach Cupcakes

Ingredients:

1 cup vanilla or white chips
6 tablespoons butter, cubed
1 package (18-1/4 ounces) white cake mix
1 cup milk
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup fresh raspberries
1/2 cup chopped peeled fresh peaches or frozen unsweetened peach slices, thawed and chopped
LEMON FROSTING:
1/2 cup butter, softened
3 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Fresh raspberries and peach pieces, optional

Directions:

In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the chips and butter. Microwave at 70% power until melted; stir until smooth. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, milk, eggs, vanilla and melted chips; beat on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium for 2 minutes. Fold in raspberries and peaches.
Fill paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
For frosting, in a small mixing bowl, beat the butter, confectioners' sugar and lemon juice until smooth. Frost cupcakes. Top with fruit if desired. Yield: 2 dozen. Editor's Note: This recipe was tested with Betty Crocker cake mix.

And their off

2008-08-06T17:37:00.001-07:00

Today was the beginning of the annual motorcycle trip Kelly goes on with his friends. They all get so excited for this trip. I think its better than Christmas for them. Here are just a few pics of Kelly and Chris ready to head out. I mostly love Chris's new do.

Dax takes any chance he can get to be in a picture. Of course he is smiling.

...And I'm done.

2008-08-01T07:53:00.000-07:00

I am now officially done with school. I have reached my 1500 hour goal. I am so excited. I still have to take my test and it is already an annoying process. Eventually I will have a spa in the basement. However, I think it takes about 6 years to finish a basement so for now I will be offering a limited amount of services from my home. Mostly just facial waxing and tinting. Contact me if you want to get anything done.

Happy Anniversary!!

2008-07-27T14:36:00.000-07:00

This weekend was our Sixth anniversary. I can't believe how time flies. I just wanted to give a little shout out to my hubby on here and tell him how wonderful I think he is. I can't imagine my life with out him. He's a funny, gorgeous, intelligent, hardworking, loving individual and I am so lucky to have him as my best friend and husband. Here are just a few pics of our six year Journey.

Of course the big day. 7/26/2002Carving pumpkins with Brian and Melissa soon after being married.
This one was embarrassing to post. Remember when I had braces. Ugh that was horrible. Some of our best friends and our official Vacation buddies Brad and Britt in Cabo 2004.
Riding the Dunes in Cabo with Brad and Britt.

Back in Cabo again 2005.
In the Bahamas 2006Our sweet little Dax. We have had him most of our marriage.
In Hawaii 2006.

Our house that Kelly put so much time and hard work into. Concert going with good friends 07
Kelly and I going out for our Anniversary.

Days of Fun

2008-07-24T11:56:00.000-07:00

This past week we had a lot going on and had a lot of fun doing it. Friday night we went to see the new Batman movie. We all loved it. I want to see it again. Sunday we were able to go boating with some our friends. Kelly is really itching for a boat. Then Monday we finished off the weekend by going to Kelly's company BBQ, where he had to be in the dunk tank, and then headed off to John Mayer. Here are some pics from all the events.

Me and Ashley on the boat.
Getting ready to try wake boarding for the first time.

As you can see. I am really good at wake boarding.
Kelly outside of the wake.
Kelly awaiting the next dunk.
Kelly and I at John Mayer.
Angela and Tyler.
Some of the girls at John Mayer

Bear Lake '08

2008-07-14T11:12:00.000-07:00

Last week we left on our yearly trip to Bear Lake. This year was quite a bit different. We had a trailer to stay in, Ben had a boat and half of the Romney clan couldn't make it. Overall it was a really fun trip. We missed all of you that couldn't make it.

Kaycee and her favorite cousins, Caleb and Connor
Carson post Spaghetti

After having this kite for three years we were finally able to get it up in the air. Thats how windy it was.

Darrin keeping his newly shaved head safe from the sun in style.

Some really good action shots of Ben and Kelly.

Phil and Kelly tubing. You need to click on this one and get a good look at Kelly's face. We lost the pad that went in his seat.

Kaycee me and Kelly on our last night there.

Tate hanging out in the vroom vroom, as he called it.Kennedy and Tia awaiting there turn in the boat.
Phil and Carson heading out to the lake.
Sara, Jess and Mom soaking up the rays.

Happy Birthday Kelly!!!

2008-06-29T22:14:00.000-07:00

This weekend was Kelly's 28th birthday. I had to go to Vegas for a skin convention so we decided to take his birthday down there. I had been planning it for about a month and luckily everything went off with out a hitch. We want to thank all of our friends who came out with us and helped us get everything together. We had so much fun and have really great friends.

Kelly and I at Blush
Brad and Britt at P.F. Changs for dinner. We requested the Chefs table which is actually in the kitchen so you get a different restaraunt experience and get to see everything that is going on.

Kelly enjoying his dinner. You can see behind him how we are in the kitchen.Tyson Kelly and Brad in the limo on our way to Moon.
Moon is a club at the top of the Palms. This is the view from the balcony. Thanks to Britt and her friend we had VIP access into the clubs.
Kelly, me, Angela and Tyler. I love Angela's little face.
Angela and me at Blush.
Kelly opening up his Birthday presents. All he asked for were clothes. Shocker.
Kelly and I in the limo

Ode to T.V.

2008-06-24T07:26:00.000-07:00

First of all I am so bored. There is nothing on most of the time. I only watch the Bachelorette and So You Think You Can Dance. I am however excited for this show. This lady cracks me up.

Note to Graham. You are super hot and I really enjoyed looking at you. However, you are an idiot. Maybe next time you are on a T.V. show with a really pretty girl that really really likes you you should tell her you like her back and not pick a fight with her every time you get a chance to be with her. She made the right decision. I am really liking Jason, how adorable is he.

Also did you see this commercial last night? If you are a Hills fan you will thinks its pretty funny.

GoJane.com

2008-06-20T21:50:00.000-07:00

So my friend told me about this website that had really cute shoes for really cheap. I checked it out and sure enough there they were. Really cute shoes for really cheap. I got three pairs for around 55.00 bucks total (well, plus $8 shipping). I love them and they are actually quite comfortable. I thought I would share this fun website with you all. GoJane.com.

These are two of the pairs I got.

Yep. I got a pair of yellow heals.

Happy Fathers Day!!

2008-06-16T09:15:00.000-07:00

We were able to head down to my parents yesterday for fathers day. Kaycee had just flown in the day before and we are all really excited to have her here for the summer. Here's a few pics of the festivities.

Me and Julie waiting for the presents to be opened.
I think Kaycee might have a little crush on Kelly. Look how happy she is to be sitting by him. She was hanging on him through the whole thing. It was really cute.

She finally had enough of Kelly and went to help her grandpa open his presents.
Kelly doing what every man does on Fathers Day.
Me and Kaycee.
Just had to put this on here so you could see that Dax isn't alway photogenic. He creeps me out in this picture.

Weekend at the Dunes!!

2008-05-28T09:18:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we were able to go to the dunes with some friends. Luckily no big accidents this time just a few rolls and people going over their handle bars. Kelly had so much fun getting some good riding in. Here are some pics.

The gang at th top of Sand Mountain. Me, Kelly Angela, Tyler, Keith and Robert being camera shy in the helmet.Me and Angela sporting some really really good looking goggles.
Taylor, Kelly and Robert with the Razor at the top of Sand Mountain.

Weekend Extravaganza!!!

2008-05-12T09:38:00.000-07:00

This weekend we thought it would be really fun to fly Katie in to surprise my mom for Mothers Day. After lots of lies and secrets we were able to pull off the big surprise with no problem. We had a lot of fun and we were all so excited to have Katie here for a weekend.

Just after picking Katie up at the airport.
Me and Sara at dinner.
All the girls at the aquarium.
For some reason my Dad thought the fake Octopus was sad.
Who knew this was literally in my back yard. On Saturday we went to the Aquarium and the Tulip festival.
Huge Waterfall at Thanksgiving Point

All the sisters at Thanksgiving Point.The fam minus Dave.
Kelly made me do it.
This is what Kelly thought of the Tulip Festival but he was a good sport anyways.
We ended the weekend with an outing to the Jazz game on Sunday. what a great game to be at. We had so much fun.

An Actual Preview

2008-05-05T21:33:00.001-07:00

I know, I know. I am just so excited for the movie to come out.

Hooray for Twilight the Movie!!!!

2008-04-24T19:51:00.000-07:00

Sorry Nicole I had to steal this video from you. I know that a lot of people that are going to be excited about this.

Free Micro!!!

2008-04-19T16:35:00.000-07:00

I am finally learning Microdermabrasion (click on the word if you want to know more about it). I am so excited about this not only because it is great for your skin but also because I get to do it for free until I am finished with school. Clients usually pay anywhere from $80 to $150 per session. This will be great for people who know and love micro and are looking to save some cash and a really good opportunity for those of you that have never had it done before and would like to try it out. If you want to schedule an appointment with me send me an email at Rachelgardner@broadweave.net, include your phone number and I will get back to you to set up an appointment. I hope to hear from you soon.

Atlantis Adventure!!

2008-04-01T19:07:00.000-07:00

This last week Kelly and I were able to travel to the Bahamas and stay at the Atlantis. Kelly won this trip through work so most of it was paid for by his company. I am so proud of him and all the hard work he does. We had a great time. It was a just a really nice relaxing trip. The Atlantis was amazing. We had been there before but never got to stay there. The resort itself is gorgeous. A lot has changed since the last time we were there, mostly the water park (our favorite part). Last time we went they had four big slides, two of which went into a pool full of sharks. They were really fun. This time around they have four more slide and a lazy river, or so we thought. The lazy river was about a mile long and not so lazy. Every once in a while you would run into some rapids that were throwing people off of their tubes. It was so much fun. We had a great time but are happy to be home. Next year we are hoping to make it to Costa Rica!! Here come a lot of pictures.

Kelly on the bus to the Atlantis.
Kelly and I at Nobu. A sushi restaraunt in the Atlantis. It had really yummy food.
All the people from Kelly's office it that made it to Presidents Club. (The trip)
Kelly and I at the awards ceremony.
Kelly modeling his pinky ring. One of the gifts for hitting Presidents Club.

The view from our room.The beach right outside of the Atlantis.

A GIANT Manta Ray. From fin to fin it was longer that me. This thing was huge.The Atlantis. The bridge type thing connecting the two buildings is actually 2 suites. They are 25,000 a night with a 5 night minimum. Can you believe that?

This was one of the dinners they had for us. It was called the Junkanoo. Its a big celebration that they do every year for new years. We got to experience a little of it. This is Kelly at the entrance.
Me wearing my Junkanoo mask.The Junkanoo band.

Kelly and I on our last night there. It was really windy.

Our Home Away From Home

2008-03-24T10:32:00.000-07:00

Kelly and I have wanted to get a trailer of our own for about a year now. Last month we finally did it. Its a trailer/toy hauler. Its perfect for us. This weekend we went out to the dunes to test it out for the first time. All in all it worked out pretty well. We took my brother and his wife with us and Sara and Tyson met us up there Saturday night.

The new Trailer
At the Vendors getting Snow Cones

Martin Kelly and Dave at the top of Sand Mountain

The Chaos that is Easter Weekend at the Dunes
The boys having fun on the Razor.

Matt Nathanson and Lifehouse

2008-03-04T07:49:00.000-08:00

Last night I was able to go to Matt Nathanson and Lifehouse with my friends Megs and Jenne. We had a blast. The show started out with a really lame group named HoneyHoney. Not really even worth mentioning. Then came Matt Nathanson. He was amazing and so funny. If he wasn't singing we were laughing. After that he said he would be signing autographs off to the side. So we all bought his CD and had him sign them. We also got a picture with him. He was so fun. After that Lifehouse came on. If you like Lifehouse you would love them in concert. They were perfect live. I have loved their music for years. Anyways all in all we had a blast.

Megan me and Jenne before the show

Matt Nathanson
Megan, Me, Matt Nathanson and Jenne. He was soo cool.
Aww Lifehouse
Jason from Lifehouse. I love the cell phone capturing a picture in the picture.

I always think Megs is really funny at concerts. Notice she is pumping her fists.Jenne Megan and I at the show.

For My Fellow Hills Fans

2008-02-22T21:44:00.000-08:00

Get excited. Its going to be DRAMA, DRAMA, DRAMA. You know you love it.

Halfway Done!!

2008-02-21T20:52:00.001-08:00

Can you believe I am already halfway done with school?? I am so excited. I am still loving it and learning lots of new things. Now that I am halfway done I get to start my training to become a Master Esthetician. This is great news to all of you because I need models and models get treatments done for free. I can only do one free client per treatment. However, because I am a student my prices are very reasonable, so even if I can't use you as a model come up and see me anyways.

Here is a list of what I need models for. If you are interested please let me know.

Chemical Peels
Hot Stone Massage
Microdermabrasion
Body Wraps

I will be doing all of these treatments in the next few weeks so I will contact those interested when needed.

Thanks for your help guys.

My First Time Snowboarding

2008-02-14T12:25:00.001-08:00

This last weekend we got a condo up in Wolf Creek to go skiing/snowboarding. I have never done either so I thought I would try snowboarding with my sis. Lets just say I was HORRIBLE. I couldn't even stand up by myself. It took me an hour and fifteen minutes to get down the bunny hill. Towards the bottom I started doing a little better. Even though I was horrible I had a lot of fun.

There were some crazy big icicles up there.

Sara and I before heading out.

Kelly and Dave ready to go
How I spent most of my day. Do you like my Marshmallow outfit?

Tyson, Sara, Dave and Jess after the big day.
So as you can imagine there isn't a lot to do up in Ogden Canyon. Luckily we brought Rock Band, However we made the mistake of choosing to do a 58 song set. It took us two days and was totally not worth it. I think we unlocked a T-Shirt.

New Favorite Song!

2008-02-04T19:51:00.000-08:00

So, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, music. I heard this new song on the radio the other day and absolutely loved it, so much that I turn it on and dance around the house when Kelly isn't home. (I know, so high school, I can't help myself) . Anyways, I just thought I would share it with you all. I think its a great song. Now I need a glass of water. I'm out of breath from all the dancing.

data="http://www.myplaylist.org/mc/mp3player-othersite.swf?config=http://www.myplaylist.org/mc/config/config_black_noautostart.xml&mywidth=435&myheight=270&playlist_url=http://www.myplaylist.org/loadplaylist.php?playlist=27761648">

value="http://www.myplaylist.org/mc/mp3player-othersite.swf?config=http://www.myplaylist.org/mc/config/config_black_noautostart.xml&mywidth=435&myheight=270&playlist_url=http://www.myplaylist.org/loadplaylist.php?playlist=27761648">

Static

2008-01-27T07:45:00.000-08:00

I probably post to many pictures of my dog, but I think he's pretty funny. Yesterday Kelly and I were sitting in the family room listening to music and playing with Dax. Usually after awhile of playing and running in between the couch and the ottoman Dax becomes a walking , furry, current because of all the static our couch produces. Well now we have a blanket that creates even more and makes Daxi's hair pretty funny. So here are some cute pics of our electric dog.

Yes he is smiling. What can I say he's a happy dog.

Old, but totally blog worthy!

2008-01-26T09:08:00.001-08:00

So on Kelly's time off we decided it was time to clean out the basement. It has been a disaster down there since we moved in three in a half years ago. Like always, when going through things you haven't seen in years, you find all kinds of hidden treasures. Here is my favorite hidden treasure ever. This is a picture Kelly gave me when he was 16. He's pretty much the cutest thing ever. He, however, was not very excited about this lost treasure. I had it up on our table in the entry room only to find it a few days later hidden in the laundry room. Then I put it in the office in front of the monitor so that I could enjoy it. I have no idea where it is now, but don't you worry, I will find it again and put it on display for all to see. Until then I will post it on our blog. Enjoy.

Not only did he give me the picture but he bought the frame for me at the dollar store as well. Seriously, young love is so cute.

Snow? Again?

2008-01-21T09:52:00.000-08:00

How many more snow storms can we possibly have? This one is the worst I have seen yet. Anyone else ready for Spring?

You can't tell in this picture but the snow walls are taller than him.
How do I get out of here?
Kelly all bundled up for the snow blowing. I love that he is wearing his ski goggles. It makes the outfit.

What!? 29 Years Old Already!

2008-01-13T20:51:00.001-08:00

Well last week was my birthday. Can you believe how old I am? I don't, unless I look real close at the fine lines on my forehead and the cellulite everywhere. Other that that I still feel at least 23. Oh well I guess thats life. Over all it was a great birthday. We had friends over all weekend and went to brunch and a movie, two of my favorite activities. Here are a few pics from one of the nights we had people over.

Me, Angela and Jenne.

Kyle, Dave and Kelly Rockin out and me just wanting to be a part of it.
Me and Dave.

Am I an IDOT?

2008-01-08T18:48:00.000-08:00

So my friend Amy forwarded me the instructions on how to get new backgrounds for my blog. I don't know what my problem is but it is not working out for me. I tried it about six times. I used photobucket. I put the url's in the right spots and still nothing so now I have this boring background. If anyone knows how to do it and wants to walk me through it that would be great.
Sincerely,
Very Frustrated Idiot.

Hooray!!! It's over!

2007-12-26T10:22:00.001-08:00

I am hoping I am not the only one that is excited Christmas is finally over. Some how I manage to get sick EVERY Christmas. Well at least the last four years. Don't get me wrong I had a great time and I love this time of year, but I have never been so excited to have it be over. Unfortunately I forgot my camera every where we went on Christmas day so I have no pictures to post. I can tell you that my husband spoiled me rotten with tons of cute clothes, a facial/massage table and diamond earings. We had a great time and I hope you all did as well. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!