adoption

I have a best friend, and she is the best.
She has a husband, and he is pretty swell, too.
They are starting the adoption process, and it has been quite the ordeal. It shouldn't be so difficult--- sweet little babies need sweet big people to take care of them and love them.

You can read their story here.

I am sure we all know someone who knows someone who knows someone that is making the difficult choice of placing their child with another family. Pray for them to make the best decision for themselves, and for their sweet little babe. These two will make incredible parents. I mean, if my parents weren't so rad, I'd put myself up for adoption just so Jen and Dylan could snag me right up.

Keep these two in mind. I promise you will be happy you did.

hims birthday

Clay bay bay turned the big 2-6 on July 30. Good thing he is doing it so well, it makes it less daunting that I'll be that old in 3 weeks. Bahh. 

Basically it was the one day out of the whole year that I will get out of bed before him. I said I had to use the restroom, but really started making birthday waffles. Man, I am so sneaky. I threw a whole bottle of sprinkles into the batter... Maybe a little overkill, but let's be honest- a birthday isn't a birthday without a sugar crash at 9am.

After work (I still am not sure why birthday's don't classify as holiday's... No one should ever have to work on their birthday, or their siblings birthday, or their spouses birthday, or their neighbors birthday, or their I met you one time at the grocery store acquaintances birthday... it's just mean and not very respectful). What was I saying? After work, gross, Clay opened presents!!! There is a solid chance I love birthdays ten times more than he does- but he was a trooper and put up with me photographing him and singing to him whenever possible. 

This boy is pretty simple. He has been been wanting to watch the Count of Monte Cristo for months, but alas, no one has it. So for part of his present, I got him that movie... We got a Little C's for dinner and watched a movie together and did a little bit of 26 year old snuggling. 

Mostly I couldn't snuggle because I was too excited about DESSERT!! Clay mentioned wanting an ice cream sandwich cake--- so, naturally, I took it up a few notches. Magic in the mouth. That's what this should be called.

 


















It was a great day. I am so grateful that Clay was borned. I love that even though he is getting older, he is still goofy, he still says ridiculously funny things, and he still pushes himself to be better and accomplish more. The things he has lined up for his 26th year are incredible. I am exceptionally proud of him for never stopping, and always striving to be better. He sets an incredible example and keeps the bar high. It could have to do with the fact that he is 6'6" and if the bar was low, he would hit his head... But, regardless, the bar is high, and I can't wait to see him do more and more with his life. 

Here's to many more birthdays with this hunk. (clink)

apricot bbq wings

Guys, I've had some success with this wife thing.

It's simple, really.

Find really easy dinner recipes, act like you slaved in the kitchen ALL day, maybe mess your hair up a little bit so you really look like you put your all into it (when really you were just finishing season 1 of Gossip Girl), and then his happy belly will give you endless compliments. Booya. And because you worked SO hard on dinner, you will probably get dessert served to you while you sit on the couch and watch TV (which you haven't done all day) and a back rub, you know, because standing over the stove all day really messed with your muscles.

Hint: Buy a crockpot. It's a miracle worker. And it let's me watch at least 3 episodes of trash in the amount of time I would have been cooking. Double hint: Make sure you put it away before he gets home. Can't have him knowing our secrets.

Apricot BBQ wings, yum.

What you need:
3 lbs chicken wings
1 cup BBQ sauce
1- 18oz jar apricot preserves
1 tsp dry mustard powder
1 TBSP tabasco sauce

The how- to:
Spread wings on a cookie sheet and bake for 10 mins at 400 degrees. This helps the wings not be disgustingly slimy. (Well, there are my real thoughts, I guess!) Once baked, put them in your crock pot and then mix all your other ingredients in a medium bowl. Or small, or large. (Depending on your mixing skills. I find that a medium bowl allows me some wiggle room for the times my strength gets the best of me and the mixture tries to fly up the side of the bowl.) Pour this concoction to the crock pot evenly over the wings. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours.
(exact recipe found here. She's a genius.)

 


















Based on his messy face, and my recently massaged back, you better believe this recipe went directly to the favorites list. I wish I would have been a better cook before we got married, but I am learning. And although it is hard to believe, I need help. So, I am sharing mine if you'll share yours. Deal? Great. I just held my hand out to shake hands with the computer screen. Clearly I am taking this seriously.

honeymoonin

I'm a major sucker for the beach and all things water. Give me a bathing suit, a towel, and some sun glasses, and I will lay there all day. But if we are being minimalists in this economy, just give me the sun glasses.

Clay is a major sucker for all things mountain. He wants to move his body and go on adventures. 

So we compromised. (We are totally already acing this marriage thing.)

Spent one night in San Jose. I think that was the happiest drive of my life. We couldn't stop talking about how spoiled we were that day. Is it considered reminiscing if you do it 3 minutes after it happened? Because we did it, and I am not even mad. We checked into our hotel and realized we were starved-- so naturally we headed to In n Out. Happy honeymoon to us. My boo treats me right.

Tahoe. That place. Sheesh. We stayed in a sweet little condo. Had cereal for breakfast and made PB & J for lunch. Spoiled ourselves and went out to dinner. I miss those days. You know, the days where you eat whatever you want, whenever you want, just because you can. We hiked our hearts out. Clay got is nature fix, and I got my water fix. And we were happy. Favorite parts of Tahoe (in no particular order): Blue Dog Pizza and Angora Lakes. (That is the exact order, actually. Food is necessary to enjoy the sites, people.)

Yosemite. I'm not even going to ask you to go, I am yelling it at the top of my lungs. Go, go, go. 

    

Basically it was the best week ever. People kept asking if I loved Clay more the second we got married, and I didn't know how to answer them. What I do know for sure is that I love going on adventures with my best friend. (cheese factor is sitting at an 8 at leeeeast!) I love that it is safe, and comfortable, and that we acknowledge that the commitment we made to each other is the most important thing in our lives. He makes me happy every single day, and I am grateful for that like wo.

South Lake, Tahoe and Yosemite National Park, June 16th- 22nd, 2013

a marriage preview

The wedding thing happened. And it was the best day of my entire life. I am not even just saying it.

I had been sleeping on the floor in my parents room because the house was so packed. Many a night was spent on a couch in that very room when I needed my mama to hold my hair back when I ran to the bathroom barfing in the middle of the night. As I woke up the morning of the wedding, I laid in my little futon-mattress-topper-turned-bed while my Dad was still snuggled up in his bed. I couldn't see him, but I could hear him. We chatted all about the day that lay ahead of us. (Later he would come knocking on the bathroom door telling me to hurry and that "we all need to shower!" Doesn't he know this is the most important leg shaving session of my entire life? Mom quickly shewed him away... She just gets me.) But while we laid there, I couldn't help but feel a phase of my life ending. You get married and all of a sudden you don't get put on the floor in your parents room anymore. Weird how that works. It was one of my favorite moments of the day. The calm before the storm... You know, the 72 degree, sun- shining, slight breeze kind of storm.

We were sealed in the afternoon, and partied in the evening. And it was flawless. We were surrounded by the people we love, and the people who love us (or are at least really good at pretending.) I can't express how overwhelmed we felt. I broke down crying on Friday night when I had a few minutes too long to myself in the car ride home from a bachelor party turned "knock out" basketball session. When I came in the door with red eyes and a sniffly nose, my mom jumped up real fast. I think there might have been a moment of "don't tell me I made that beautiful white dress for nothing" running through her mind. So when she very worriedly asked me what was wrong, saying "I'm just really grateful" seemed like an awfully silly reason to be sobbing uncontrollably like my first cat just died. But looking back on it, it was the perfect reason. 

Simply put... Marriage: I recommend it. I love love. And the day was packed full of it. The gushiest, lovey dovey ist, heart boxes full of chocolatest, stuffed teddy bears that creepily whisper personalized messages when you squeeze them ist, deep down warm feelingest love. Wedding day, I give you a 10. 

Oakland, California LDS Temple, June 15, 2013

jensens do yellowstone

(originally posted July 11, 2013)

It's been a few years too many since we all took a fam vacay together. Like, I'm thinking circa 2008 when we headed to the East Coast for a church history/ national monument trip. You know, the one where Mama J had us storming up and down the national mall in order to see everything... ev er y thang... in approximately 6 hours. You know, the one where my sister wore uncomfortable shoes, so Mama J gave Ashley her shoes, and proceeded to explore barefoot. You know, the one where we got the best deep dish pizza in Chicago and ate it on top of our big, comfy hotel beds. Ya, that's the one.

We decided we needed a fun, low key, outdoorsie trip. Yellowstone was the place. The place is incredible. Not once in my mind did I doubt, even for a second, that Heavenly Father created this world perfectly. He knew exactly what He was doing.

Can't believe we hadn't gotten there sooner. Can't wait to get back.
The most beautiful place. The most relaxing days. And the best kinds of people.

Yellowstone National Park, May 18th- 25th, 2013

pretending

(originally posted June 7, 2013)

I'm just gonna throw this out there...
I like to pretend I can model. Tyra would be so proud of my runway walk.
But Clay? Clay can REAL model. It's like he just dug down deep and pulled out his inner Derek Zoolander.
And that is a dynamic of which I am absolutely on board.

It's a shame we have no fun together. Ugh. Bore city.

all credit to the one and only http://www.tavisjohnson.blogspot.com/