Christmas In A Nutshell

Merry Christmas to Everyone! We had such a good holiday and hope you did too. We spent Christmas Eve with both of our families. My mom and the sibs stopped by our house on their way to Idaho.

Later that evening we went up to Brett's parents and exchanged presents with his side of the family.

Christmas day was just our little family. We had planned to drive up to Idaho, but after checking on the weather (which was horrible-especially by Malad) we opted to just stay home. I thought Macy would get a kick out of opening presents because of her minor paper obsession, but she didn't really want anything to do with it. She found one of those tree air fresheners for the car that I put in Brett's stocking and ended up playing with that all morning.

Wii Wish You A Merry Christmas

My in-laws got a Wii for Christmas this year...talk about entertainment! Here is Shannon (my mother-in-law) trying her hand at tennis.

Grandma Barb's Bean Dip

Oh fabulous bean dip, why do you exist?

Every year, I eat at least five times more than my share of you, and it is never enough.

You are fantastically delicious and dangerously addictive.

Love,

Amanda

Here is the recipe. Make at your own risk.

1 pound hamburger, browned

Put hamburger into crock pot with:

2 pounds Velveeta

3 cans pinto beans, drained

1 can (14.5 oz) stewed tomatoes

2 small cans green chilis

1/2 tsp. chili powder

Cook on high for two hours. Serve with tortilla chips or Ritz crackers.

Tale of the Missing Christmas Cards

Question: Why haven't I recieved my Christmas card from the Carters this year?

Short Answer: Because we're not sending them.

Long Answer: I really did plan on sending Christmas cards this year. It's been on my to-do list since early November. However, for various reasons (ie: school, work and a very energetic 11 month old) I never got around to making them, or even buying them for that matter. I know I don't really have an excuse, especially because I know there are a lot of people out there with lots more on their plate who manage to send cards every year. (These are usually the same people who make the cute, super crafty neighbor gifts every year. This year my neighbors got a roll of wrapping paper...I think I am officially the deadbeat neighbor on the block.) Anyways, that's why you won't be recieving a card from us this year.

Despite my slacking ways, we do want to wish all of our friends and family and very Merry Christmas. We hope your holiday is the best one yet!

Decking Those Halls

Since Christmas is pretty much the only holiday I have decorations for, I tend to get a little excited when I finally get everything put up. Here, for your viewing enjoyment, are a couple pictures of our festive home.

Every year we get the tree out, Brett gets so mad that we have a fake one. He is definitely a fan of the real ones, but I won the real tree vs. fake tree battle by explaining to him how much money we could save by having a fake tree. (Plus, I can't stand the smell of the real ones.)

We had to find a new place to hang our stockings this year since little Miss Macy is around. The only place we had that was out of her reach was on this little shelf in our kitchen. Macy's stocking is still in progress, so I will post some pictures of it when it is done (and maybe some instructions on how to make your own...they are seriously easy.)

These are my favorite decorations. For the past three Christmases, Brett has bought me a piece or two to add to the set. I love Willow Tree figurines. They are so simple, which I think is what makes them so unique.

21

Happy 21st Birthday to my sister Sarah. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful sister, who doubles as one of my dearest friends. Although we are pretty much polar opposites, we still have a great time when we are together. She is a gorgeous, talented, giving person and I am so grateful that she's my sis. Love you Sarah!

Just Another Reason...

...Why I Love My In-Laws

(Video side note: I was trying to get footage of all the Carter siblings celebrating during the Utah vs. BYU game, but what I ended up catching was ten times better.)

100 Things I'm Thankful For

Brett*Macy*Family*Friends*Love*Disposable Diapers*Freedom*The Men and Women Who Fought (and are still fighting) for that Freedom*Digital Cameras*Holidays*Health*The Gospel*Memories*Diet Dr. Pepper*Books*Happiness*$1.75/gallon of gas*Forgiveness*Music*Will Smith*Redbox*Brett's Ability to Fix Stuff*Cell Phones*Easy Recipes*LA Looks Gel*Laughter*Education*Idaho*Libraries*Cars*Our House*Toe Nail Polish*My Mom and Sister Living Close*Our Jobs*Insurance*Temples*The Office*Eye Makeup Remover*Sunshine*Roberts Weekly 40% off Coupon*Flight of the Conchords*Flip Flops*Guitars*Pillows*Chapstick*Washers*Dryers*

Tissues*Anti-Bacterial Wipes*Thomas S. Monson*The Learning Channel (TLC)*Freeways*Showers*My Eyes*Lost*E-mail*Wood Floors*Jeans*Wal-Mart Prices*Color*Electricity*Patience*Laws*Texas Roadhouse Rolls*Cheerleading*Missionaries*Smiles*The Chance to be a Mom*The Pioneers*Grass*The Utah Jazz*Baby Lotion*Microwaves*Half.com*The Ability to Not Take Myself (or Others) Too Seriously*Inspirational Quotes*My Neighborhood*Brett's Sense of Humor*Brandon Carr Stories*The Chance to Live in New York for a Year*Something Corporate*Sewing Machines*Straws*Seminary*Toe Rings*Refrigerators*Faith*Scentsy*The Chance to Try Again (and Again and Again)*DVR*Cereal*Sunglasses*Fine Point Pens*Baseball*The Goo Goo Dolls*Deseret Industries*Macy's Bunny, "Baby"*Hawaii*Catch Phrase*My Life*

Pie, Anyone?

Since my poor blog desperately needs a post longer than 2 sentences, I thought I would share with you one of my most memorable Thanksgiving moments (which at the time, also qualified as a most embarrassing moment, although now I just think it's hilarious)
So, it was my first Thanksgiving with the Carters. Brett and I had only been married a few months, so I was still a little nervous around the in-laws. Everyone was in the kitchen/dining area helping get everything ready for dinner when Shannon (Brett's mom) asked me to pull the pies out of the oven. Easy, right?
So I get a pot holder and reach in to take out one of the pies. I grab the edge of one of the pies, slide it to the front of the rack and start to lift it out of the oven. I get about halfway between the oven and the counter and the pie plate (which just happens to be one of the those disposable tin-foil ones) basically folds in half (since I'm only holding onto one side of it) and the ENTIRE apple pie falls out of the tin and onto the oven and surrounding area. Awesome. And yes, everyone saw it.
So there I am, standing there with this bent in half pie tin, trying to figure out what I can possibly do to make this disaster go away...no ideas. Once Shannon stopped laughing, she grabbed the pie tin from me, bent it back into a semi-normal shape and scooped everything that didn't fall on the floor back in the tin (and later made everyone eat it...probably so I wouldn't feel bad.)
Like I said before, at the time it was the most mortifying thing that could have happened, now I just get a good laugh out of it. But you might not want me handling the pies anytime soon.

Go Utes!

Yesterday, the University of Utah beat BYU 48-24.

It was a happy day in the Carter home.

It's About Time

Macy has finally started crawling. Our lives will never be the same...

10-0 Baby!

If you didn't get to see tonight's game (at least the 4th quarter), I feel sorry for you. It was AWESOME! Go Utes!

Halloween

For Halloween we decided to dress Macy up like Max from the book "Where the Wild Things Are." Apparently the book isn't as well known as I thought it was...nobody knew who she was. The conversations with people who saw her in her costume went something like this:

Them: Oh cute! What is she? A horse? (or donkey, bunny, etc.)

Me: You know the book "Where the Wild Things Are"?

Them: Um...not really

Me: Oh, well...it's this book about a boy who has these wolf pajammas...blah blah blah...

I guess that's what I get for not dressing up my little girl like a fairy or princess or something else ultra girly. I still think she was pretty cute. Thanks to my talented mom for again making something I dreamed up a reality. I'll learn how to sew someday, I promise!

Brett and I got invited to a costume party on Halloween night. We had originally planned to dress up as the actual Wild Things from the same book that we got Macy's costume idea from, but had to change our plans when we found out Macy/Max wasn't invited. We ended up channeling our inner SNL characters and went as Mary Katherine Galligher and Matt Foley.

One Reason I Love Fall...

...great photo ops

Another Boise Trip

We had the chance this weekend to take another trip up to Boise to visit my dad's side of the family. Not only did we get to see my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins that live in the Boise area, we also got to see my Auntie Nancy (who lives in California) and my Uncle Kevin and his kids (who live in Washington.) And, to add to the reunion, my dad was there. (Whoa, I know! I had no idea he was coming.) It was great to see everyone. Some of them were seeing Macy for the first time, so she got showered with lots of attention. We tried to go watch my cousin Morgen play soccer (her school team was in the state playoffs) but Macy started freaking out the first time people started cheering and clapping. The Trubes have never been known for being quiet...especially at sporting events! So, we didn't get to see any games, but we still had the best time. I wish we all still lived in the same area like we did when I was growing up, but I will definetely take all the visits I can get.

Here is Macy with my Auntie Nancy.

Macy with my Aunt Heidi and cousin Branson. She doesn't look too thrilled that Branny is trying to join in.

The lighting on this picture sucks, but my camera is having issues. It's either don't use the flash and have dark pictures like this, or use the flash and have everyone look like they're possessed. I need to get photoshop on my computer. Anyways, this is my grandparents and all five of their children. The last time the entire family has been together was in 1992, so it's been awhile!

9 Months

Can you believe our little cutie is already 9 months old? I feel like she is hardly a baby anymore. As you can see, she now has one little tooth, with another one on the way. She isn't crawling yet...she gets on her hands and knees and can't figure out what to do next. It's hilarious to watch, but I think it is really starting to frustrate her. She has also recently become really aware of noises that airplanes, helicopters and trains make. We have a train that runs past our house and every time she hears it, she looks toward the window that you can see it out of. When we're outside and she hears an airplane or helicopter she'll look up until she finds it, then reaches her little hand out to try and grab it. She has also decided that she is too big to be spoon fed and wants to do everything herself. That would be nice, except she doesn't gum her food enough before swallowing, so we always have a couple choking scares during meal time. Her 9 month appointment is on Friday, so we'll find out how much she's grown since last time!

Everybody Clap Your Hands...

Macy has just recently learned how to clap. I adore it...and her. :)

Family Pics

We FINALLY got family pictures taken! My sister Sarah took them for us (thanks Sissy!) last Saturday and did an amazing job, especially considering she only had our wussy little digital camera to work with.













I really wish I knew how to edit pictures. I love this one and REALLY wish that Macy's eyes would have been open. I don't know how people with big families ever get a picture with everyone looking at the camera. We had a hard enough time with the three of us!

Macy's Room

I have been meaning to post pictures of Macy's room forever, but just have never gotten around to taking pictures of it until now. It was fun to see what I could come up with on a limited budget...and I have to say I love how it turned out! It's a pretty small room, but hopefully you'll get a good idea of what the whole thing looks like from these pictures.

My mom made this quilt, which was kind of my "inspiration" for the whole room. I can't even begin to tell you how long it took for us to pick out the fabric...we must have wandered around the store for at least an hour, picking 4 or 5 bolts of fabric, then seeing something we liked better. We had so much fun doing it though. Thank goodness my mom can sew and quilt so well. Macy will definitely have to go to her if she ever wants anything made. I can barely sew a straight line.

The sign didn't photograph very well, but it is a verse in Psalms that says "For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways." (Thanks to my good friend Cassie for the idea...she has the same verse in her daughter's room. I'm an idea stealer!) The butterflies are made from a die-cut that I got when I worked at the junior high. We couldn't find a mobile that would fit on the edge of her crib, so I cut a bunch of those butterflies out and hung them from the ceiling with fishing line.

My friend Kelley made Macy's name sign. She actually got the pattern for the sign from the same book that my mom used to make the quilt. I had no idea she was making it, so I was thrilled when I opened her gift at the baby shower that everyone at the junior high threw for me. The rabbit is actually mine from when I was younger. I was surprised at how well it went with everything else, and decided to go ahead and put it in the room.

This one is taken from the doorway, so you can kind of see how everything is set up. The pink and white blanket is another gift from one of my junior high co-workers. Mark is one of the school's shop teachers and when he heard I was having a girl, he commissioned his wife to crochet a blanket. I thought that was so sweet!

Macy is making a little cameo in this one. She absolutely loves that jumperoo thing. Her dresser is actually my great grandma's that my grandparents refinished and gave to me when I was young. Brett and I stripped the old paint, repainted it to match the room and got new knobs for it.

While I am nowhere near being considered an interior decorator, I sure had a lot of fun decorating her room. I didn't want to do too much to the walls in case we decide to move Macy later on and use the room for something else. I'm just grateful I have so many talented friends and family members. Their gifts and ideas are really what made the room turn out as well as it did.

September 11th

I know it is kind of cliche' to say that I will never forget where I was when I heard about the planes hitting the Twin Towers on September 11th, but it's true. I didn't hear about it until I got to school that day, and I remember not truly understanding what was happening. All the news seemed to show was the same footage of one of the planes hitting one of the towers over and over again. It wasn't until days later, when I started seeing people on the news with missing posters, searching for family members, that feelings of sadness and anger really hit me. Later, those feelings were replaced by pride as I saw businesses and homes putting flags up and hanging signs in their windows saying things like "God Bless America" and "United We Stand." Two years later, when I went to New York to work as a nanny, I reached a new level of understanding of what happened that day. I got to know people who lost friends and family members that day. I even met a few people who were at Ground Zero. I guess all I am trying to say is that I hope I will never forget September 11, 2001. I hope I will always feel sad for the people who lost their lives that day, feel pride for the people who were willing to sacrifice their own lives to save others, and feel gratitude that I live in the most amazing country in the world.
I've never really liked the stories and poems that people write as if God were writing them, but I got this e-mail from a good friend today and felt like it was worth sharing.

You say you will never forget where you were when you heard the news On September 11, 2001 . Neither will I. I was on the 110th floor in a smoke filled room with a man who called his wife to say 'Good-Bye.' I held his fingers steady as he dialed. I gave him the peace to say, 'Honey, I am not going to make it, but it is OK..I am ready to go.'

I was with his wife when he called as she fed breakfast to their children. I held her up as she tried to understand his words and as she realized he wasn't coming home that night.

I was in the stairwell of the 23rd floor when a woman cried out to Me for help. 'I have been knocking on the door of your heart for 50 years!' I said. 'Of course I will show you the way home - only believe in Me now'

I was at the base of the building with the Priest ministering to the injured and devastated souls. I took him home to tend to his Flock in Heaven. He heard my voice and answered.

I was on all four of those planes, in every seat, with every prayer. I was with the crew as they were overtaken. I was in the very hearts of the believers there, comforting and assuring them that their faith has saved them.

I was in Texas , Virginia , California , Michigan , Afghanistan I was standing next to you when you heard the terrible news. Did you sense Me?

I want you to know that I saw every face. I knew every name - though not all know Me. Some met Me for the first time on the 86th floor. Some sought Me with their last breath. Some couldn't hear Me calling to them through the smoke and flames; 'Come to Me.. this way... take my hand.' Some chose, for the final time, to ignore Me. But, I was there.

I did not place You in the Tower that day. You may not know why, but I do. However, if you were there in that explosive moment in time, would you have reached for Me?

Sept. 11, 2001 , was not the end of the journey for you. But someday your journey will end. And I will be there for you as well. Seek Me now while I may be found. Then, at any moment, you know you are 'ready to go.' I will be in the stairwell of your final moments.

-God

White Trash Bizash

Yesterday we held our 3rd annual White Trash Bash. This is definitely one of my favorite traditions that Brett and I have started with our friends. Every year the outfits and decor get more outrageous...I love seeing what people come up with. I wish I had a clearer picture of our group, but we didn't get around to taking a group shot until it was pretty dark.

We were going to do awards this year, but since it was WTB, we spent our money on Koozies (those foam things that keep cans cold) and pork rinds instead (just kidding!). Here are the prize-less winners anyways.

BEST DRESSED FEMALE

Goes to Sarah, a.k.a "who's my babies' daddy" single mom.

BEST DRESSED MALE

Chase (far right) won this one with a combination of his outfit and acting skills. He can hold a cigarette pretty well for someone who has never smoked.

MOST WHITE TRASH MEAL

Corn Nuts, Mac & Cheese with Hot Dogs, Deviled Eggs and Jello Salad...classic!

MOST WHITE TRASH FAMILY

Maybe it's tacky to give yourself an award, but with Brett channeling his inner K-Fed and Macy sporting only a diaper, I think we had it in the bag.

MOST WHITE TRASH HAIR ACCESSORY

I have no idea where Maggi found this...but it was hands down the greatest WT accessory I've seen in a long time.

MOST LIKELY TO HAVE A SHOT-GUN WEDDING

Okay, so that's not true at all, but Annette and Brad did just get engaged, so congratulations to them!

BEST WHITE TRASH PHOTO

Nice pose Johnsons....you guys rock!

MOST WHITE TRASH COUPLE

Maggi and Phillip won this one thanks to Phil's awesome boots and flame bandanna.

CUTEST WHITE TRASH KIDS

Can cute and white trash be in the same sentence? They can if you're Will, Lee and Kate!

As you can see, we totally had a blast. Thanks to everyone for coming and making this the best Bash so far!

Labor Day Weekend

We spent our Labor Day weekend in Bear Lake and had a fantastic time. Brett's grandpa built a cabin up there in the 1970's, but over the years it has kind of fallen into disrepair because of the lack of use. So, Brett's uncle got a bunch of the extended family together to do some much needed repairs.

The guys spent all day Saturday working on the cabin. Here they are before hitting the showers.

Brett's legs are tan...but not that tan.

Macy and I, (along with Brett's mom Shannon and our sister-in-law Breanne) spent the day at the lake. I felt a little guilty for having such a relaxing day when Brett was working so hard...but what could I do? :)

Sunday was a little more relaxed. Brett and I took a ride on the 4-wheeler, (despite what it looks like in the picture, Macy did not come along.) played some games with the fam, then headed home. Thanks to the Carters for letting us tag along on another vacation. We would never go anywhere if it wasn't for you guys!

Party Like A Rock Star

The Many Onesies of Macy

Has anyone else noticed that the onesie has become the baby version of a graphic tee? I love it! Since Macy has been born, more than a few of my family members have unleashed their creative juices and have come up with some pretty original designs.

Sarah debated between this "My Aunt Rocks" saying and "Baby...the other, other white meat." My mom refused to hand over the Sharpie until Sarah promised to do this one.

Not to be outdone, my Grandma Barb modified this onesie from it's original "my heart belongs to grandma" message to read "my heart belongs to great grandma Barb". She said she didn't want my mom getting all the credit. Sorry about the blurry photo. Macy gets so excited when she sees the camera and can't keep still.

I made this "I Love My Jazz"one because Brett has a shirt with the same saying on it. I actually ended up making two, because the first one was a 3-6 month onesie and Brett didn't want to wait for her to grow into it. So we tracked down a 0-3 month onesie and made a second one.

I've seen a bunch of other onesies with funny sayings. Macy has one that says "Peas, Love and Happiness" and another one that says "You Can't Spell Princess Without ESPN." (I wonder who bought her that one?) One of my favorites is the onesie that a few of my friends have that says "Tax Deduction". Fun stuff!

An Accidental Experiment in Cake Preservation

I've never really understood the tradition of saving the top of your wedding cake, freezing it, then eating it on your first anniversary. However, since it WAS tradition, after our reception, Brett and I froze ours and hid it away in my mom's freezer. Apparently, we hid it so well that we forgot about it on our first anniversary...and our second anniversary...and our third anniversary. So imagine our surprise when my mom shows up at our house on Sunday with the top of our wedding cake...complete with the (then fresh) flowers. SICK.

(To be fair to my mom, she didn't completely surprise us. She had asked us a few times to come and get our cake top out of her freezer, but we kept forgetting.)
Neither Brett nor myself are actually brave enough to try a piece of it, but I can't quite bring myself to throw it away yet. It stayed in my mom's freezer for over three years...maybe we'll see how long it will last in our fridge.