Saturday, November 26, 2011

Thanksgiving Time

First of all, Black Friday was a big success (I'll blog about that later) but I wanted to say what a great Thanksgiving we had. We spent time with Chris' family and had so much fun talking to mine on the phone. We stuffed our faces, watched movies and football, and had a great time.


There is so much to be grateful for.

Our health, our families, a full fridge, roof over our heads, work, a bed, safety, our cars, the gospel, The Book of Mormon, a free country, a great ward, kind neighbors and friends, opportunities to do good, warm coats, etc.

We have so many things, we need to always show appreciation to the Lord and give to others not just during the holiday season but all year round.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Sunday Thoughts: Chris


No matter what, we have been given so much. Sometimes it might be harder to be grateful, but we are so blessed and have so much more than most of the people on Earth. We need to recognize our blessings and always be thankful for what we have. There is always something to be grateful for.


Something I am so grateful for is my wonderful husband. This week has been difficult and he has been so kind and thoughtful to me and has praised me with compliments and kind words as he always does, but this week they were something that I really needed. We had friends come over for FHE and our lesson was on gratitude. Chris told them the things he was grateful for and said that how "God has blessed [him] so much because He gave me Elise". I still am teary-eyed over that one when I think about it. He is such a great example to me, he is always pushing me in the right direction and helping me not to give up, he has helped me have a greater perspective of things and has helped me increase my faith in our Heavenly Father. He does so much for me and others and always has something so kind to say and to pick me up.


When that couple was over last week, my friend said she couldn't think of anything she was good at or any gifts she had. Chris stepped up and complimented her saying how she is such a kind person and how she was the first to become my friend in the ward and welcome me in. Chris is an example to me of how we need to look for the good in others and there are so many good things in everyone and we should let them know.


We have gone to the temple so many times this year and have our goals in different aspects of our life. Our goals help our priorities stay in place and help us grow even closer to eachother and to Heavenly Father. He is such a great man, I love him so much and I am so glad we are sealed together FOREVER!!!!


Make sure this holiday season to tell your loved ones how much you love them

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

10 Days Until....

My Christmas Shopping will be Mostly Completed in 10 Days. You might be asking "what is in ten days"... the answer is Black Friday. Yes, madness does reign this day, but there are way too many great deals to pass up. Here is my gameplan for Black Friday:




  • Know ahead of time what you need/want - going in with a plan of what you are targeting will help save time and money. You might miss some of the deals you were originally targeting because you were distracted by all the other deals.


  • Do Research Before - I have some awesome apps on my phone that I check to see what great deals are going to be that day along with what time the stores open. Compare stores, there are many websites where you can type in the item you are looking for and you can find the cheapest store that carries it.

  • Just because it is a good deal or on sale doesn't mean you need to get it- this is always a general rule. I am all about a good deal but I try not to just buy to buy.


  • Manage your time well - find the top 3-5 items you want to get and make sure those are top priority. Go to those stores first. Many stores will open at different hours so you need to have some kind of timeline of that morning.


  • Online - some stores have the same Black Friday deals online which might save you the hassle of going in, depending on the item


  • Look for doorbusters - if there is a store that you need to go to see if they have some free deals or other deals that you might need.

There are many other tips for Black Friday shopping, but hopefully this helps if you are going out on that crazy day.

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Camping out experience at H&M

This past weekend was the grand opening of the first H&M in Utah!!! I was so excited, I remember the first time I found out about H&M was from my grandparents getting me clothes when I was a little girl and a little bear that had H&M on it. In Michigan we got an H&M right by us so it was fun getting clothes from there when I would go home but NOW... there is one ten minutes away!!! I am so excited.


So, the store opening was 11/11/11 at noon. I decided to camp out for this grand event. There would be gift cards and door prizes for the first 500 people and shopping :) I prepared by getting out my camping chairs, blankets, wearing leggings under my pants, wearing wool socks and boots, wearing a ton of shirts and sweaters and coats, having hats and gloves, snacks and hot cocoa.

I read an article about another H&M opening this past year and the article said people started getting in line at 6am. I thought I would be fine getting in line around 6:30am... but as I pulled into the shopping center the parking lot was already full!!! I ran to the doors and I was the last one that was allowed to be inside (well I was in the first set of doors so it was like an icebox when people walked through). Chris' cousin, Kalie, did my hair the week before and she knew about my camping out plan. She got a hold of me the night before and said she was in and would camp out with me. I had gotten to the line first but the security guy was nice and let her in with me so we could wait in the inside of the building. Everyone else was forced to be outside in the 30 degree temperature.

When we got there the news casters were filming all of us crazy people camping out. Even though we got to the store about 6 hours before the opening, there were over 100 people in front of us! People were in their pjs with blankets, cots, tons of food and games. The line was huge and wrapped in the inside three times. Kalie and I fit in well even though we didn't come earlier.


We waited around in line forever and everyone was told that by 10am everything had to be cleaned up and blankets, chairs etc had to all be put back into our cars. Kalie and I took turns bringing things to our cars. It was crazy because when I went out there, the line outside was HUGE! I couldn't even see the end of it and Kalie said it wrapped around the corner store which was Nordstrom. Starting 10am they packed us in and would get mad if anyone was sitting down (because it took up room where more people could stand). At this point the store started playing music and other stores would bring us free samples of food, coupons, and other goodies. It was great.
As we approached 10:30am, two people came through the line and handed us these cards (like in the picture) which were not gift cards, but gauranteed us gift cards and a spot in line. It was really handy because all of the sudden people would try to sneak in line closer to the opening but H&M employees and the security were there and told all of us if we knew anyone that had snuck into line they would throw them out. They did an awesome job regulating everyone.

As we got around 11:15am, we were given our real gift cards (as we turned in the first cards we had received) which we scratched to find the amount we received. The cards varied, most everyone got $10 it wasn't dependent on where you were in line. We were hoping that was the case but it was not. There was a girl like 30 people in front of us who got a $500 gift card and she and her friends were allowed to go ahead of the line. It was sad, her friend got a $10 gift card. Oh well. Around 11:40am employees came through the lines to give us a goodie bag. It had this really cute H&M Utah shirt (ugh I look horrible, long day) and a H&M bag, pen, catalog etc.


The last ten minutes before the opening took forever. Kalie and I had our plans when getting in the store. The employees all danced around and got us excited and there was a grand countdown. I think what they did is that they let in a certain amount of people and then would let 20 people go in every few minutes. I don't know for sure. Even though we were about the hundreth people, we got in within 10 minutes. We divided and conquered and boy there was a ton of people in there. My strategy was anything I liked I wouldn't think twice and just grab it in my size if I liked it. I was in there for a few minutes and I realized the signs that were "Opening deals". I targeted those signs (there wasn't that many) and from that I got their pencil skirts for $10 (which was great because mine don't fit anymore). So many people had gotten there before me, but in the far back they had peacoats that originally were $60 but they were $20. I have been looking for a black peacoat so I got that one and a 'salt and pepper' colored one as well :) There were other deals scattered but not that many. The store itself has great deals anyway.


The upstairs has cute baby clothes, maternity, and some other things. The men's section was big as well. My sister in laws came a little later, and when we visited them in line around 1:30 ish, I was surprised that all the 500 gift cards had already been given away. I didn't try on my skirts and dress that I got until I got home. The lines for the dressing room were HUGE so I decided to buy everything and exchange it later. I went home and changed and ate and Kalie told me the line for H&M had shrunk so I was weak and I met her back there so we could go in again. I wanted to see if one of the coats I got was another size and the pencil skirts I found, I bought them in two different sizes so I was going to return one back. When we went there again (we probably got in again around 3) so many things were gone. I didn't see a lot of the pencil skirts, and there wasn't many of the coats left as well.

Wow, what a crazy day. It was so much fun, even though originally camped out for a gift card I was surprised that getting in the store early had it's benefits. I ended up finding the coat in my size the next day (one left from a return I assume) and I LOVE it!!!! It was worth camping out, I had a great time.

DIY Boot Socks/ Leg Warmers


I was about to get rid of this shirt because it was too small and it was getting holes in the shoulders. I wanted to try to make some boot socks and they turned out really cute.

First I cut the shirt in half till the neckline. I decided that I could make socks or just leg warmers.
I decided to make leg warmers so I cut off the shirt where the neckline started.

I sewed up the side and used the bottom of the shirt as the part that would go over my knee. You can sew the bottom of the legging as well but I recommend doing that first before sewing up the side.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Oh, good idea

If you don't have Pinterest, you need to get it. I am so inspired by the great ideas people have and feel like I'm kept up to date. Kind of a random post, but here are some cool ideas I've stumbled across one from each of my categories.


Here is a cool cake stand you can make from planter pots. I have never thought about this. Ok I've seen these the last few weeks but I'm excited ballet flat TOMS are going to be coming out and I love the leopard-ish ones!
I find different sayings that are funny, make me feel better, or are just good to hear. From: asdfghjkllove.tumblr.com
I love this idea for kids. It is a great way to have books, toys, or snacks for the kids in the car. From: themayfly.com

For my holiday section I found this awesome no sew tree skirt. I don't know if I will make it, but it is so pretty. From: mycrazylife-lauren.blogspot.com
I thought this was neat as well, making your own cookbook online and uploading your pictures of your family. I definitely want to do this when I have kids and have built up my favorite recipes. From memoriesoncloverlane.com
I love all of the cool birthday party ideas. I thought this was awesome for a pool party. From: watermelon.org
This is so up my alley, a diy craft island. Basically they bought four shelving units and put them together and put a sewing mat board on top. This is so cool. From: georgiapeachez.typepad.com.


Sunday, November 6, 2011

Sunday Thoughts: Plan A?

At college graduation a lot was going on... graduating, job searching, Chris meeting my fam for the first time, touring with my grandparents etc... so I only remember a few things about the talks that were given for commencement. The main thing I liked was from Brother Magleby was his talk about "Plan A."

He told us life isn't about the Plan A but Plan B. Things rarely go 100% the way we want or expect them to. You have to have a backup plan and keep pressing forward, great things can and will happen even if Plan A doesn't work.

I loved his talk because it is true things haven't gone exactly as I would have liked thousands of times. When something fell through or things turned out differently then I hoped, it was important to keep a positive attitude and not give up. No matter our hardships or disappointment from things not working out, having faith in the Lord is key because He knows our plan and what is best for us even though we don't see it.

Don't worry, everything turns out for the best, if something doesn't work... keep going. We have a lot of life still on the earth and we can't be let down by things out of our control. Be happy, figure out what you need to do next, rely on the Lord, and move on.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Fall Time!

Here are the beautiful trees by Chris' work. I'll go visit him and we'll hang out during his break

I made yummy Halloween treats


I've been going to the temple right by us.


Hanging out with Chris