Cake Decorating while Corey works Grave Shifts

Corey and I love watching the Food Network together, especially the show called "Challenge" which is about famous cake designers competing against each other to make the best cake. It's really fun to watch, we definitely both enjoy it. Corey has started working a few grave shifts and each time he goes I get bored and don't sleep very well because I stay up texting him until like 2 AM. So I decided to be productive while he's at work and bake cakes. haha. So I put the cake mix in the oven about 11 or so and then I attempt to layer 2 cakes. The first time was HORRIBLE because the cake just split in half and the frosting wouldn't hold, so I just threw it away. But I've gotten better :) I bought actual cake pans that are meant for layering cakes, I now use beaters instead of mixing the cake batter by hand (because it makes it more spongy when it cooks), and have bought more icing because it takes more than you would think to put some between the cakes and on the outside.

This last cake was German chocolate with pecan and coconut frosting. I used chocolate icing and almonds to decorate. I loved how it turned out :) I was proud of myself and Corey, Martha, and my family all thought it looked good :) haha so now countless hours have paid off! and Corey gets to be entertained in the middle of the night at work because I stay up haha. The only problem with making cakes is getting people to eat them (because I pretty much only want one piece and then I'm done), but fortunately for me, Cami's parents Tom and Stacey and brother Erron were in town and the cake was eaten by the next day :)

Corey's New Motorcycle :)

So after I bought my car, Corey became inspired to buy a new toy for himself. We found this amazing Yamaha V-star 1100 custom from a guy in Stansbury Park. Once we got there, we fell in love with the bike. After Corey rode the bike for the first time, his face lit up and you could just tell that he would be buying it :) He left the guy a deposit saying we would be back in the next day or two.
Two days later we went back and gave the guy his money and prepared for a journey home :) We decided to go through Stockton and around the south side of the mountain instead of taking 201 because we didn't have a license plate and figured it would be better to drive slowly through Stockton than to risk finding highway patrol by Magna. The ride was great! :) I followed behind Corey in his Mazda and was super protective when any car got close :) (Crack-heads on the road as Corey says). We made it back successfully a little before dark.

A week or so later I got the first ride :) It was SO much fun!! We just went around the block but the bike was perfect for both of us and didn't make it any more difficult for Corey to drive with me on the back. It was great :)

Baby Chicks!!

There are 6 chickens and 1 rooster at Martha's house.. and two of the chickens decided that they needed to be mommies and hatch some eggs :) The red hen and Doug's old hen found a dark and warm spot in the hay and sat on at least 15 eggs... it was pretty ridiculous. haha. BUT now we have 2 baby chicks!! :) They are Super cute and the mother red hen is really protective of them, she was herding them away from me and puffed up because I got too close when I was trying to take pictures. We are going to wait a while to name them in fear that we will become attached and then something will happen to them, so I will give further updates :) But they are REALLY cute, one is really yellow and the other is more of a yellow-gray. :)

MY NEW CAR!!!!!

I bought a new car!! It's a 2007 Mazda 3 i sedan. It is the best car EVER!! :) I absolutely LOVE it :D

My old car decided that it needed to have an oil leak from the main gasket, a coolant leak somewhere unknown and then over heat and blow the head gasket so antifreeze came out of the exhaust.  And on top of that it went though having fits about starting in the morning so I had to buy new spark plugs.. totally unreliable. SO my solution was to buy a new car :)

Corey and I went to a Mazda dealership on Thursday the 15th and test drove a few cars. I wasn't a fan of the new Mazda 6 because it had velvet zebra print seats.. I mean really?... then the car I really wanted online, a Red Mazda 3 smelled like someone had smoked in it.. definitely not for me. Then we finally drove this really cute silver Mazda 3 that I liked a LOT. but we tried to work out pricing and it was just too much. So we left pretty empty handed, but I knew then that I wanted a Mazda 3.

So that night I looked on KSL and found the PERFECT Mazda 3 in Lehi of all places :D So I called the guy the next day and went and saw it that afternoon. I fell in love with it from the first moment I saw/drove it. It has alloy wheels, the silver paint has been kept perfect, the car had never had food or children in it so it was spotless. The steering wheel wasn't sticky like the ones at the dealership. The car had brand new tires with a warranty, the guy was going to change the oil and rotate the tires for me. The seats were comfortable and the drive was SO SO smooth! It has an optional automatic stick, and the stereo has lights go off when you turn it on and change the volume. It was PERFECT :D So we drove it around and then Corey and I went to the bank and bought the car :D :D And because Dad co-signed I was able to get an AMAZING rate on my loan :)

I still can't believe that I am able to afford to have this nice of a car. It puts that stupid grin that won't go away onto my face every time I talk/think about it and makes me just giggle inside :) It is the BEST purchase I've ever made and it will last a while :)

Family Pictures

Family Pictures!! haha. So my Dad, Cami, Jeremy, Lexi, Ariana, Ayden and I all went to get pictures together, it's an annual tradition :) This time was fun because when it wasn't our turn to get pictures taken there was this huge single arm chair we would fight over and pile on. Dad usually won, but when he was getting pictures done it was a free-for-all against JB, Lexi and me. So here are some of my favorites :)

4th of July weekend :)

So this weekend was fun for Corey and me :) On Friday we went with Paul and Bonnie out to dinner at Blue Fish.. which has Amazing food :) their spring rolls are SO good :) After that we went and saw Toy Story 3, which was WAY awesome. I've always loved Toy Story and this one had a great plot and was really cute.
Corey worked a grave shift Friday night and I worked a 12 hr shift Saturday (9 to 9) which was exhausting for us both.
On Saturday, Corey went riding with Lynn again. They went on a very difficult and technical ride with lots of rocks and streams to cross. On the way down Corey bailed off his bike and the bike hit a rock and put a hole in the case so he had to push it the whole way back. I can only imagine how that would suck, but he said the rest of the ride was great and he had a lot of fun and Absolutely Loves his bike :) So last night he fixed a bunch of things on his bike like the exhaust and cutting some gray wire that allows him to have a little more power while riding, which we all know is the best :P :)
Sunday I went out to Yuba lake with my Dad, Cami, Jeremy, Lexi and Ariana and Ayden. It was super fun! I had Ariana on the watercraft with me for a while until she got cold and then Jeremy, Lexi and I jet skied around together seeing who could go fastest. haha. It was fun :) Dad and I had to go and rescue one of the watercraft that we had to tow to shore because we didn't have enough riders in the beginning because Dad needed to move the truck to a camp site. So Dad and I were on one together and we harassed Jeremy because he had a hard time standing up on the new jetski Dad has. Then all of a sudden Dad and I both leaned wrong and we fell off the watercraft while it was hardly moving. I whacked my leg on the side of it and have a big bruise today. (why do I bruise so easy?... it's ridiculous) Then I tried the stand-up jetski and after a while was actually able to stand and ride it for a little bit, after falling and getting up a bunch of times. It was really fun but I was exhausted after it :) Then we all went back to camp and had dinner and roasted marshmallows :) Ariana had a big stick and was drawing in the sand and drew this Huge bumble bee, it was pretty impressive. Jeremy and I left Sunday night but the rest of my family stayed and camped for the night.
Monday was our lazy day, Corey did work stuff and I didn't do much :) But this weekend was pretty fun for both of us.

Taffy found a skunk!!

 Haha, the title says it all :) a couple weeks ago we let Taffy outside because she was letting out the "I saw a cat" bark and she likes to chase them away and then come back in... HOWEVER this time it wasn't a cat, it was a skunk! So it sprayed before it ran off and Taffy ran through the mist. I have never smelled skunk spray that close up, it made my eyes water. haha so the house smelled horrible and we drenched Taffy in tomato sauce to get the smell out. She HATED it, she was in the sink trying to get out, poor little dog. haha Martha, Corey and I were laughing the entire time.

Dirtbiking at 5 mile pass

This ride was SO much fun and definitely needed! Corey just recently sold his Chevy truck and bought a new Yamaha WR450F bike :) This was his first ride on it and he LOVED it, he definitely enjoys his new bike. The day before the ride we bought him a bunch of new gear: boots, helmet, goggles and his jersey and pants are getting here today. His best friend Morgan's dad Lynn took Corey and I out on Saturday (6/26/10) to 5 mile pass in Tooele. I haven't been on a dirt bike in forever so I borrowed Heather's CRF230, which was a toy compared to Corey and Lynn's bikes, but definitely perfect for me and my purposes :) We went on a bunch of different trails and I actually opened it up to 3rd gear in the end and was able to be comfortable standing while going over bumps. Corey and I rode side by side for a little while and that was Super fun! :) I had SUCH a great time and so did he and Lynn :) We only rode about 12 miles, but it was perfect for my first ride because I wasn't too tired by the time we finished. It was perfect :). Lynn lead the whole time on his KX500 because he knows the trails way better than we do, and I was in the middle so Corey could keep an eye on me :) We had So much fun! They both rode in 1st and 2nd gear, so I was really glad they were patient with my slowness :P But I was definitely more comfortable at the end than the beginning. Corey got to play around with the throttle on his bike and shot in front of me a couple times, and then slow down so I could catch up and then I let the throttle go fast when I caught up so that I would shoot a little in front of him, it was really fun :)

We went up and down 2 different little canyons and the first one, I believe it was called rattlesnake canyon, had a lot of slick rock in the middle of it so we turned around because it was a little too hard for me. On the way down I went over a bump and lost control and the back tire slid out from underneath me on the slick rock and I crashed. My right leg ended up between the rock and my 200lb bike, so I now have a beautiful bruise and my arm slid on the rock and got all scraped up, but luckily I had on a long-sleeved jersey so that it protected my arm from the gravel and dirt mostly. It didn't rip and so the scrape is really superficial, but it definitley stung. However, it sounds worse than it felt. I got back up quickly and checked the wound, decided I didn't need stitches and kept going for another hour to hour and a half :) It was really fun. The crash almost calmed some of my nerves though because in the beginning I was so afraid of crashing and then when I did I realized it wasn't as bad as I was thinking it would be so I brushed it off and kept going :) We had a great time, I can't wait till our next ride :)

Flowers at Martha's

This summer Martha and I decided we should put a bunch of pretty flowers in her flowerbeds, so that's exactly what we did :) We had SO much fun picking out flowers at Home Depot, we had to get flowers in threes so that they would look good together in the beds. Colors were my favorite part! We found so many Bright colored flowers, that include (but are not limited to): lilies, daisies, geraniums, petunias, snap dragons, Johny Jump-Ups, marigolds, columbines, African daisies, and Many Many More!! It was SUCH a BLAST!! We were there for a couple of hours, filled 3 carts full of flowers and bought a Lot of dirt! :) :) That first night we planted the entire front bed by the tree, it was SO much fun! We didn't come in till about 11 or 11:30 so we were kneeling outside with a light attached to the tree because we had to make sure the bed looked perfect! :) (that night was weirder than you would have thought though, many Many cars drove by and then at like 10:30 about 30 teenagers just walked down the street laughing and being.. well, teenagers.... very strange). The bed by the climbing rose was a lot bigger, but we had SO much fun deciding where things would go and what colors would look together, we ended up putting the velvet looking purple petunias in the holes between the larger flowers because they added a beautiful contrast! :) I've honestly never planted a flowerbed before this and I was so grateful that Martha let me play such a big role in planting her flower beds :) I took A Lot of pictures, so I will post my favorites! :)

Brown hair!

So, the background on the color change decision.. I had just finished spring semester and wanted to do something out of the ordinary and fun, so I colored my hair :) I've had it dark brown before and really liked it, so I decided on dark brown. It's definitely fun, it took 2 times going into the salon to get it dyed because the first didn't turn out well so they fixed it, but I LOVE it :) I will most likely be keeping it brown for a while, but knowing me.. who knows :P Funny thing is, people took double takes at me at work because they didn't recognize me at first, and then I had patients ask me if I colored my eyebrows to match.... which I didn't. haha. Anyway, lots of fun :)

Attacked by the doggies :)

Corey and I went to go see his Dad and Bonnie the other day and they had recently gotten a new schipperke named Pika :) She's super cute but bounces everywhere, it will blow you away at the heights she can reach with those front paws. Anyway, we were chillin and I decided to play with the other schipperke Gauge because he needs to be tortured :P haha he's fun to play with. Then all of a sudden all of the other doggies, Gooey the pure bread Labrador (senior national retrieving contest winner), Panzer the German Shorthaired Pointer, and Pika came over and attacked! haha Paul and Corey both got into the fun and I was run over by Panzer's innate ability to lean on people until they fall over. Then Gooey just likes to be pet so she goes wherever people are so they can rub her ears. Pika and Gauge have insane amounts of energy and were jumping all over. Side note: you should see Gauge harass Panzer, he just comes up next to him and bites on his ear or his leg to get him to play and Panzer just sits there until he's fed up and then plays with Gauge, it's funny. OR when they're getting fed, they're pretty funny to watch :) While we were being attacked by the swarm of doggies, Bonnie got a picture of all of us :)

Fish Springs

Corey, Paul and I went out to fish springs today, it was a long drive, but definitely an adventure :) We had a lot of fun anticipating shooting and seeing fish springs. It was a pretty cool place because one second you're in the middle of a barren desert with wild horses and then next, there is this little oasis-type area with ducks, birds and coyotes. It was really neat to see :) The adventure came with me and the camera.. I couldn't get a good picture to save my life.. so here's what you get to see from my adventure:

After fish springs we turned around and went shooting clay pigeons, it was way fun! I had my glasses on that day (due to a contact malfunction.. much anger and frustration = contact thrown out of the vehicle) So it was a lot harder to aim because they would slip down my face a little so I would see the frame and couldn't see the clay pigeon, so my day shooting wasn't the greatest. But Paul and Corey shot great! It is really cool watching them both shatter the pigeons :)

I was also able to shoot Corey's 22-250 and the 22, the 22-250 is louder than any other gun I've shot before and it does a pretty good amount of damage with not too much recoil. I was impressed, but I definitely prefer the 22 :) It's way fun to sit on the tailgate of the truck and look through the scope and pick off targets :)

Corey also shot the Glock 20 for the first time, it was INSANELY loud and did a LOT of damage! Paul placed a range of clay pigeons in the trees and bushes for Corey and I to shoot at and he practically blew down the tree! haha. You can see the damage from the picture:

Blue monster cookie makes my tummy better :)

Corey and I went to dinner with Paul and Bonnie the other day and I had MAJOR cramps, like worse that I have ever had...EVER. So we're chillin there and I can't even hardly talk and then one of them asked me if I was okay and I totally started crying because I felt horrible... :( So Corey and I left and bought some medicine and I chilled for a little bit before going back to the restaurant. The server had gotten me a brand new soup to go because I couldn't eat anything and we left kinda early to go back to their house. I had an icepack on my stomach for like 20 min and Corey and Paul left to grab some ice cream for dessert. When they came back they had bought me the funniest little blue cookie monster to help me feel better :) It was super cute and I loved it :) It definitely made me feel better, they are super amazing :)