Love is... a crazy DIY moment

A little before Judes big day I saw a tutorial on Pinterest for an a-frame tent. I knew right then and there that he HAD to have it. Luckily for me, I married this super handy guy who knows all the names of all the things we needed to build this tent. Also really lucky is that he was willing to sit by his phone while I sent him close up pictures of the items I found at Home Depot that were on the tent list. Here's the tutorial if you want to check it out. 

Didn't it turn out AMAZING???!!! We are amazing. And by we, I mean Tyler who made the tent frame and my mom who made the tent fabric and me who made the campfire pillow. 

HOLLA!

The weekend after Conference poor Jude got a super high fever. It was 103 and I was losing my mind. I know how lame that sounds now, but in the moment... I was crazy. Good news is that our friend Emma is a nurse at Primary Childrens and she is kind enough to talk me through these rights of passage with Jude. 

 Also on the weekend after Conference is Canadian Thanksgiving. My mom pulls out all the stops and we feast like kings. 

In honor of fall, I have decided to share with you my favorite recipe. Okay, one of my favorite recipes. Because I am addicted to fall and all things fall like baggy sweaters and pumpkin spiced things and warm drinks... but I digress, on to the recipe!

This is a recipe for Roasted Pumpkin Seeds. 

What you'll need

1 pumpkins seeds

Worcestershire sauce

Lawrys seasoning salt (or whatever brand of seasoning you use)

2T butter

a cookie sheet 

your tastebuds

*First things first, cut a top off the pumpkin and scoop those seeds out! Try your very best to separate the seeds from the pulp

*Next, put the seeds in a strainer and run some warm water over them. This will help you clean off the rest of the pulp. Also, preheat your oven to 400 with the tray in the middle

*Third, boil the seeds in salt water for 10 minutes

*Dry the seeds off completely 

*Melt 2T butter onto the cookie pan. Spread it around to get all the edges

*Add the seeds to the cookie sheet

*Drizzle a couple tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce. Mix it around to coat the seeds evenly. Sprinkle with desired about of seasoning salt.

Put in the oven. Check them every 10 minutes to make sure they aren't burning and to stir them around. 

*They should be completely toasty roasty in 30 minutes. But if yours are done before them, you're a lucky person. 

Please note that the credit of this recipe goes to my cute mom who was kind enough to share it with me. I hope you enjoy these little buddies as much as we do. So far this year we have carved four pumpkins and roasted their seeds.

Love is... a TWO year old

My little son is a two year old. I am now shopping for a toddler instead of an infant and spending more than $10 on shoes. I just love it. Jude is so incredibly smart and precocious. He knows his colors, some numbers and letters, and his shapes. He is walking, running, skipping, hopping, and tip toe-ing all over our small house.
For his birthday we (I) decided to throw a Wild Things party. He likes to read The Wild Things and so do I. It had been a favorite for a long time. I really tried to keep it low key, and truly I think that I did, except for the giant mural I decided to paint. Even still, it was pretty easy and it was fun to do while watching our football games.
My mom sewed the cutest crown for Jude so he could be the king of all the wild things. She also helped me sew a part to one of his presents (more to come). Kris brought the IBC drinks and no party is complete with a beverage that looks like a beer. Emma, who makes the yummiest treats, brought mint brownies. If you haven't ever had her mint brownies, you need to go over to her blog RIGHT NOW and click on the picture of the cupcakes on the right. I took some over to the neighbors and they needed the recipe asap. Natalie came over early and helped me decorate. She also helped me with the cake balls and brought a delicious broccoli cheese soup. I would be so lost without her.

For the birthday day of action, my parents came over and brought him a gift to open and watched him blow out his two candles. My mom made him a quiet book. It has all sorts of "quiet" activities to help him with his church energy and just all around learning. There's a Mr. Potato Head page and he is in love.

 Jude loves the mouse so for his birthday breckie I made Mickey Mouse pankcakes. I got one, Jude got one, and Cougar got one. It was a celebration for all. 

Like I said, I kept it low key except for the mural. It was actually super easy to paint that. I ordered a projector from Amazon and she runs like a dream. I traced the outline onto this cardboard box, painted it, and then Tyler cut the holes in the faces. 

We just had so much fun this day and are so grateful for everyone that attended. 

Love is... Dave Matthews

For my birthday I bought myself two pit tickets to the Dave Matthews Band concert. Tyler absolutely refused to stand for the concert so he would not go with me. That ended being just fine because I went with my bestie Nat and it was SOOOOOO very much fun. We made some new friends and swayed and sang and smelled the marijuana allllllll night long.
Have you ever been to a concert and the band comes out and you can just tell after the first song that they're not just here to perform, they're here to deliver. That is pretty much what happened at this concert. I have been to over 20 live shows in my life and this one is most definitely in the top 3. When they came out and rocked to "Don't Drink the Water", you could feel the electricity in your bones. They also played one of my very favorites, "Grace is Gone" and the harmonica player from the Willie Nelson band came and played along with Dave. They covered "Don't Fear the Reaper" which was also amazing. Truthfully, it was just purely incredible and I am SO grateful that Nat came with me.

 I had to take a picture of our hippie feet. We were feeling the vibes. 

Please excuse my wonky face... I look like such a piece next to Nat. She's such a hottie. 

Love is... Happy Birthday

to MEEEEEEEE.

I turned 25. There. I said it. I am closer to 50 than I am to zero. Or, if you want to look at it Jeff style it's "Congratulations. You are a quarter of a century". Thanks brah.

Tyler planned many surprises along with my other friends and fam and allow me to just say this, turning 25 could not have been more swell.

Ty took me to the Newpark Hotel and...

Surprise! We stayed in a suite. As big as our house. Which either says a lot about the hotel, or a lot about our house. 

Straight up though yo... check this out. 

We went to the Eating Establishment and they have veggie sausage. It was like they were saying "Happy Birthday Kat. We made this for you" so obviously I ate it. 

 My bestie best Nat gave me Tiffany's. TIFFANY'S. Holy smokes. Inside that beautiful blue box that I didn't want to unwrap was a pair of earrings. Ugh... they're amaze balls. 

She also got me maple bars from Harmons. I love maple. The thing with Harmons is that they make theirs out of maple buttercream. It's... well, its to die for. 

 Here is the grand finale of gifts. A first edition Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone. I straight almost cried tears of joy onto the cover. This is just the best present EVER.

This guy makes me very happy. He knows how to do a birthday. I've been endlessly spoiled and I just don't think I'll ever have a happier day.

Also, not pictured is the collection of yoga gear from my parents and brother that hurts SOOO good. Mike and Kris bought me a snow cone machine and it is just too good for words. I love me some snow cones. I actually think they planned it out with my parents. Eat a snow cone, do some yoga, repeat.

Love is... A Westwood birthday and a recipe

For the past three years we have had the blessed opportunity to go to the Westwood cabin for Ike's birthday. It is so much amazing fun, I cannot even begin to describe it. We always see the cutest animals and relax with books and eat the most delicious treats. Tinfoil dinners and s'mores are the recipes of summer.

Tyler and Isaac brought up their guns and went target shooting. They brought us back and attempted to teach us. Emma did great. 

Emma always plans the best little getaways. I am so lucky to have her as a friend.

Also on the home front, if you know me at all you know that I am OBSESSED with smells. I think I have spent hundreds on Glade plugins and candles to make my home smell good (and don't get me started on my collection of perfumes and body sprays). My poor, poor husband. Anyway, I found this recipe on Pinterest for DIY home scents. They were a breeze to make and your whole house smells divine. 

I started out with two basic scents that followed the recipe but came up with my own later on that I will list. You take basic mason jars. Totally empty, no extra treatment. Clean... obviously. 

 Slice your fruit (citrus works the best). 

Put the fruit in first and then add the spices. Fill your jar with water halfway to the top. You want to leave room at the top for the water to expand in the freezer.

 Put them in your freezer for a later date OR put them in a small pot and simmer for hours of sensory bliss. 

Recipes to try:

Lemon, rosemary, vanilla (pictured) (don't add vanilla until you're ready to boil)

Orange, cinnamon stick, cloves (pictured)

Evergreen

Lavender and vanilla (extract or bean)

Lime and Basil

Eucalyptus and mint

Orange and ginger

Here's the link for more exploring and better ideas 

http://www.theyummylife.com/Natural_Room_Scents

Love is... one year older

Tyler turned 26! And let me just say this... the man ages well. We had a wonderful celebration with Emma and Ike and Jude and a supermassive snowstorm. It was all Tyler could have hoped for, I think?

We went to Gourmandise. It has never let us down pastry wise or breakfast wise. Even though it was Tylers birthday, he still let me pick out a bunch of goodies to take home.

 We then went to a shooting range. Tyler recently made a major purchase. I'm not happy about it and have nothing positive to say. However, despite my feelings of disgust and disdain towards any sort of firearm, I did go with him to the gun range. Emma and Ike came with us and I probably would have died without Emma's presence. She's probably aching to murder me for posting this pic but her face perfectly describes how we felt. Or at least me.

 After the guns it was off to The Copper Onion. Another non-disappoint. I'm itching to go again. And again. And again.

I am so grateful that this guy has been around for 26 years. He better plan for at least a million more years because I just can't live without him. He's a hard working, tender hearted, patient son of a gun. He's also pretty cute. And good in the sack, so really it's just an all around win!