What We Ate Last Week - May 2017 Week 2

So, this was kind of an exciting week on the job hunt front...

Brent was contacted on Monday by someone form DaVita and had a phone interview Monday afternoon.  The rep emailed him a couple things to study and then set up an interview for Thursday morning.  Brent said the second interview went okay.  He doesn't think he rocked it, but he thinks he might still be in the running.  They have other candidates to interview and then they'll (hopefully) get back to him about a third interview.  Fingers crossed.  Even if nothing else comes of it, it was nice to finally get a positive response back after all of the jobs that he's applied for with DaVita.  Also, nice to get a better idea of what the interview process is going to look like so it's not as nerve-wracking the next time.

As far as other leads, Brent is still waiting to hear about the Lacey/Olympia job opening back up, which would be awesome.  He never did hear back about his in-person interview, but we're not too terribly upset or surprised about that one.  Brent's instructors are also working with on a few internship options, so if he doesn't get a job right away he'll still be able to get some good experience (which could lead to a job).

We had plenty of leftovers this week, and we both kind of hit a wall energy-wise over the weekend.  So, we mostly did leftovers or stuff from the freezer for meals.  I did try a new muffin recipe this week though!  These Blueberry Almond Muffins were pretty tasty!  They're not very sweet, so I'd most likely add a little more honey next time I make them.  I liked how filling they were with all the oats, almond butter and almond meal.  I don't think Calvin was a huge fan of them though.  Ah well.

I hope you all had wonderful week and a great Mother's Day.

Keep giggling!
Michelle

What We Ate Last Week - April 2017 Week 4 / And a Little Update! :)

I feel like we've been busy this week, but it was really only Friday and Saturday that were busy.

Brent had a random bonus day off on Friday, so we enjoyed having him home an extra day.  While he was home, he got a call from Fred Hutch in Seattle to come in for an interview!!  We've been kind of playing the waiting game ever since he found out that there's a hiring freeze for the job in the Olympia/Lacey area, so it was nice to get a positive response back after all the applications he's been sending out.  So, he's going in on Tuesday for a job interview in Seattle - any and all prayers/good thoughts/positive vibes/etc. would be much appreciated.  He's only got 5 more weeks of classes left and then it's off to work (hopefully) or an internship.
On Friday we also went down to Auburn to have a family dinner at Rio Blanco to surprise my Aunt Linda for her birthday, which was Thursday.  I love going to Rio Blanco - it's so yummy!  It's my family's favorite restaurant, so it's a fairly common pick for special family dinners.  It's nice to be able to live so close to extended family and be able to celebrate with them!  I'm really hoping that Brent can get a job locally so we can still be around the majority of our family.

On Saturday, we had a family BBQ to celebrate my Grandpa's birthday!  Grandpa is my dad's dad, and he turns 94 today (May 1st)!!  As usual, his birthday "cake" was strawberry shortcake - it's his favorite dessert!  We also brought some A&W root beer.  His mom used to work for A&W, so it's his favorite brand. :)
Saturday was also a special day in our little family!  6 years ago, on April 29, 2011, Brent and I went on our very first date.  It was half blind date since I knew who I was meeting up with, but Brent didn't.  He had suspicions, due to the mutual friend who set us up, but wasn't 100% sure.  Some day I'll have to put our story on here. :)

Here's what we ate this last week, enjoy!

Monday 4/24

Breakfast:  Oatmeal, Fruit, Yogurt

Lunch:  Salad, Fruit, Leftovers

Dinner:  Salad, Garlic Bread, Spaghetti Squash Casserole - This is one of my favorite ways to eat spaghetti squash. I crushed some croutons up and sprinkled those on top with the cheese that's called for and broiled it for a few minutes at the end.  Yummo!

Tuesday 4/25

Breakfast:  Frittata and Fruit

Lunch:  Fruit, Chips, Tuna Sandwiches

Dinner:  Fruit, Salad, Leftovers

Wednesday 4/26

Breakfast:  Avocado Toast and Fruit

Lunch:  Salad and Leftovers

Dinner:  Salad and Hawaiian Hamburger Steaks - These were pretty good, although I'm not sure how I liked the Italian seasoning in there...it makes me feel like I'm eating meatloaf with pineapple, which is a little weird...  Still good though!

Thursday 4/27

Breakfast:  Fruit, Yogurt, Oatmeal

Lunch:  Fruit and Leftovers

Dinner:  Leftovers/Clean the fridge!

Friday 4/28

Breakfast:  Fruit, Yogurt, Oatmeal

Lunch:  Salad, Sandwiches, Chips

Dinner:  Family Dinner at Rio Blanco to celebrate Aunt Linda's birthday!

Saturday 4/29

Breakfast:  Fruit and Pancakes

Lunch:  Birthday BBQ lunch for Grandpa!
Dinner:  Leftovers

Sunday 4/30

Breakfast:  Fruit, Pancakes, Yogurt

Lunch:  Sandwiches and Chips

Dinner:  Migas!!

Well, we're off to a new week friends!  If the weather report holds any truth, we should actually start to feel like spring this week - there's even a chance of hitting the high 70s!  I hope you can get out and enjoy the spring, wherever you are!

Have a great week, and keep giggling!
Michelle

What We Ate Last Week - April 2017 Week 2

Hello friends!

It's been a pretty good week here.  My youngest sister, Sarah, was home for a few days on her spring break from BYU-Idaho, so we did a lot of family dinners at the beginning of the week.  On Monday evening we went over to Caitlin and Kyle's house (my middle sister and her hubby) for a soup and salad dinner with most of local family.  Then, on Tuesday evening, I picked Sarah up and she spent the night and spent all day Wednesday with us.  We went to Trader Joe's, Foley's (a local produce stand) and The Nutty Squirrel for gelato - yumm!  The rest of the day we just spent at our house hanging out.  Then we met most of the same group from Monday night at Rio Blanco down in Auburn.  It's our family's favorite restaurant and we go there for lots of birthday celebrations.  Their Carne Asada is so yummy!  Sarah went back to Caitlin and Kyle's after Rio Blanco and then she headed back to Idaho Thursday morning.  It was nice to have her home for a few days.  I sure do like that kid. 😁

Brent only has 7 more weeks of school left!  Whoop whoop!  He hadn't heard anything back about a job interview so he emailed the recruiter to follow up and she told him that they're actually in a hiring freeze right now.  She said that when it lifts they'll be hiring for two positions and she'll let him know when that happens.  We're still hopeful that it could work out, but kinda bummed that it's fallen through for right now.  So, Brent will keep applying for jobs and internships.  It sounds like he has a pretty good chance of getting an internship at Madigan (the hopsital on base) since he has a specialized biomed tech interest.  We'll see how everything pans out over the next two months!  

So, that's what we've been up to the last week, and here's what we've been eating!

Monday 4/10
Breakfast:  Eggs and Toast
Lunch:  Leftovers and Salad
Dinner:  Family dinner at Caitlin and Kyle's because Sarah is home for a few days between semesters!!! - We brought these fudgy brownies.  They are delicious and a top contender in my quest for the perfect brownie.  Highly recommend!

Tuesday 4/11
Breakfast:  Fruit and Broccoli Cheddar Spinach Frittata - It turns out that all of the flooding in Southern California is negatively impacting the broccoli crops down there and the broccoli has been really low quality.  Ours went bad really quick, so I didn't have any for this.  I just winged it and added orange bell pepper, extra spinach, a few quartered cherry tomatoes and a little bacon bits.  Yummo!
Lunch:  Salad and Leftovers
Dinner:  Fruit and Turkey and Butternut Squash Curry - This was really good!  I upped the curry powder a little and added some garam masala.  It was a little spicy so I'd add less cayenne powder next time.

Wednesday 4/12
Breakfast:  Yogurt and Apple Peanut Butter Toast
Lunch:  PB&J, Fruit, Chips
Dinner:  Rio Blanco with the fam to celebrate Sarah being home!! - Rio Blanco is my family's favorite restaurant.  It's a family owned Mexican place in Auburn and it's delicious.  The house I grew up in is a 10 minute drive/15 minute walk away.  We go there for lots of family celebrations.  If you're ever in Auburn and need some yummy food, check it out in the shopping center at A St and 41st St.

Thursday 4/13
Breakfast:  Fruit, Frittata
Lunch:  Salad and Chicken Spinach Meatball Soup with Rice - I was really looking forward to this, but Thursday was kind of a lazy day and it didn't happen.  I'll probably just make the meatballs this week and then freeze them.  That way it's super easy to pull it out for lunch sometime later this month.
Dinner:  Salad and Cheesy Broccoli Chicken Casserole - Lazy day prevailed again and we had leftover curry for dinner.  We had this on Friday instead since we fed the missionaries and I knew a casserole would be enough food.  We had fruit salad, an Asian salad kit from the store, and ice cream with strawberries and hot fudge for dessert.  I wish I had added the full amount of garlic, but I thought it sounded like a little much.  I think a sharp cheddar would've been nice too.

Friday 4/14
Breakfast:  Apple Peanut Butter Toast
Lunch  Salad and Leftovers
Dinner:  Chips, Guac, and Fish Taco Rice Bowls - We ended up feeding the missionaries on Friday and I didn't have enough fish, so we switched things around and had Cheesy Broccoli Chicken Casserole instead (but we did have this on Saturday).  I improvised a little since I didn't want to pickle onions and I didn't want to buy a jicama for such a small amount.  So, I cooked the fish as directed, made my own guac and made a homemade mango salsa with some spiced frozen mangoes.  We still served it over rice and had purple cabbage, diced tomatoes, and chopped cilantro.  It was pretty dang good!

Saturday 4/15
Breakfast:  Fruit and Whole Grain Pancakes
Lunch:  Grilled Chicken and Orange Strawberry Avocado Salad - lazy day again and leftovers in the fridge that needed to be eaten.
Dinner:  Fruit, Salad, and Leftovers

Easter Sunday 4/16
Breakfast:  Fruit and Pancakes
Lunch:  Sandwiches
Dinner:  Barrett Family Easter Dinner

What We Ate Last Week - April 2017 Week 1

Can you believe we're a quarter of the way through the year already?!  Time sure does fly - and the older I get, the faster it's flying...

Brent only has eight more weeks of classes and then it's off to an internship or a job!  He's been applying for jobs as a dialysis biomedical tech, but there's not a whole lot of openings on the West coast unless we want to live in the LA area, which we don't.  So, he's been applying for a lot of jobs back east:  North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Wisconsin, etc.  He hasn't heard anything back besides the automated rejection reply, but we kind of expected that since he still has two months of school left and we're all the way on the other side of the country.  Last week he did hear back from a regional recruiter for one company though who wanted to talk to him about a job here in Washington.  After a day of phone tag, he talked to her for a bit last week and she said she'd pass on his info to a hiring manager out here and that he'll probably have an interview in the next week or two.  We're still waiting to hear back on the interview, but still!  We got a bite and it's exciting - especially since it would mean we could stay in state.  We're definitely willing to move where ever the right job is, but since the majority of both of our families are here it would be really nice to stay in Western Washington.

Also on the (potentially) exciting news front - we bought big boy underwear and a toilet insert for Calvin...he's not super interested yet, but he's starting to show interest and tell us when he needs a diaper change, so I'm pretty sure potty training is coming up soon for us.  Wish us luck!

Here's our menu for last week.  Brent finally kicked his cold and my back is feeling much better, so we actually stuck pretty close to our plan for the week.

Monday 4/3

Breakfast:  Leftover Muffins, Yogurt and Fruit

Lunch:  Grilled Turkey Patties and Salad

Dinner:  Salad and Baked Potato

Tuesday 4/4

Breakfast:  Yogurt and Grapefruit Yogurt Coffee Cake - This was okay.  It's a little underwhelming though.  The grapefruit flavor could be stronger and/or it could be a little sweeter.  I think if you upped the grapefruit it wouldn't need to be sweeter and if you upped the sweetness you wouldn't need to up the citrus because it would taste like cake.  I think I'd prefer more grapefruit.  I wonder if reducing the juice down would help...

Lunch:  Salad and Leftovers

Dinner:  Fruit, Chips, and Pesto Avocado Chicken Salad Sandwiches - These were so good!  I used butter lettuce instead of arugula since it's what we had on hand and arugula isn't my favorite.  It would probably be good on these sandwiches though.  I ate the leftovers the next day in a whole wheat wrap.  These will definitely make an appearance on the menu this summer when it's too hot to cook. :)

Wednesday 4/5
Breakfast:  Fruit and Avocado Toast
Lunch:  Tuna Sandwiches, Chips, and Salad
Dinner:  Salad and Migas - I forgot to get cilantro and jalapeno, which are key components of this recipe.  So sad!  We love these though.  Make them! :)

Thursday 4/6
Breakfast:  Yogurt and Grapefruit Coffee Cake
Lunch:  Grilled Turkey Patties and Salad
Dinner:  Fruit, Salad, and Leftovers

Friday 4/7
Breakfast:  Scrambled Eggs, Fruit, and Grapefruit Coffee Cake
Lunch:  Tuna Wrap, Chips, and Fruit
Dinner:  Salad, Fruit, and Avocado Tuna Cakes - We've had these before and they're tasty!

Saturday 4/8
Breakfast:  Fruit and Whole Grain Pancakes - The usual Saturday morning breakfast, made by Calvin and Brent as usual. :)
Lunch:  Fruit and Broccoli Pizza - We ran out of time for these on Saturday since we needed to go get some interview clothes for Brent.
Dinner:  Salad and Leftovers

Sunday 4/9
Breakfast:  Fruit and Pancakes
Lunch:  Sandwiches
Dinner:  Gunnell Family Dinner

There ya go!  I hope everyone had a great week!

Keep giggling,
Michelle

What We Ate Last Week - March 2017 Week 2

Here's our menu for last week, along with our thoughts or any changes we made! :)

Monday 3/13
Breakfast:  Apple Steel Cut Oatmeal from last week
Lunch:  Orange Strawberry Avocado Salad with Citrus Poppy Seed Dressinig and leftovers
Dinner:  Salad, Fruit, Rice and Slow Cooker Chicken Curry - The chicken thighs ended up being the funny smell in the fridge, so we pushed this back to later in the month and had Migas and fruit instead.  Migas are delicious, so it wasn't a complete disappointment. :)

Tuesday 3/14
Breakfast:  Yogurt and Caramelized Banana Oatmeal - I still had oatmeal leftover from last week so I didn't actually make this...
Lunch:  Salad, Chicken Salad Sandwiches and Chips
Dinner:  Salad, Chicken Pot Pie and Butterscotch Pie - The chicken pot pie was SO GOOD!  I did a separate post to share the recipe since I made some changes and we loved it so much!  The butterscotch pie was also really good!  It's tastes more like a brown sugar caramel than a commercial butterscotch.

Wednesday 3/15
Breakfast:  Fruit, Yogurt, and Spiced Orange Carrot Whole Wheat Muffins - These were pretty good!  I might up the spice and rub the orange zest in with the sugar next time, but they're good and I'll make them again!
Lunch:  Salad, Fruit, and Avocado Tuna Cakes - I've made these before and they're quite good on a salad or plain.  I bet they'd be good on a bun with some mayo, lettuce and tomato!
Dinner:  Salad, Bread, and Slow Cooker Chicken Corn Chowder - This stuff is delicious!  It makes a ton - my 6 quart slow cooker is full almost the top!

Thursday 3/16
Breakfast:  Oatmeal, Fruit, and Yogurt
Lunch:  Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Fruit, and Veggies
Dinner:  Salad, Fruit, and Leftovers

Friday 3/17
Breakfast:  LUCKY CHARMS!! or Muffins, Fruit, and Yogurt
Lunch:  Salad, Fruit, and leftovers
Dinner:  Fiesta Friday!  Tostadas, Chips, and Guac

Saturday 3/18
Breakfast:  Fruit and Whole Grain Oatmeal Pancakes
Lunch:  Salad, Fruit, and Leftovers
Dinner:  Salad and Leftovers

Sunday 3/19
Breakfast:  Pancakes or Muffins or Oatmeal
Lunch:  Sandwiches or Leftovers
Dinner:  Family Dinner at Dad's - I made these Key Lime Pie Bars and they were sooo good!  Make them!

Let us know if you try any of the recipes - we hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Keep giggling!
Michelle

What We Ate Last Week - March 2017 Week 1

After my last post,I decided to post our menu weekly instead of monthly, and to post them at the end of the week.  That way it will be 4-5 smaller posts instead of 1 long post.  Plus, I won't have to keep updating the same post all month long.  And hey...maybe, since I'll (in theory) be posting weekly, I'll actually do real, here's-what's-going-on-in-our-lives posts more often.  Maybe...let's not make any crazy promises...

Anyway, here's our menu for this week, March 6-12th (I'm one of those weirdos who plans the week out Monday through Sunday...I think I picked that up while serving my LDS mission...).

Monday 3/6
Breakfast:  Crepes, Yogurt, Fruit
Lunch:  Sandwiches, Fruit
Dinner:  Leftover Banh Mi Rice Bowls

Tuesday 3/7
Breakfast:  Cereal
Lunch:  Leftover Spaghetti/Lasagna
Dinner:  Out for Tracy's Birthday!! Calvin was sick so we stayed home

Wednesday 3/8
Breakfast:  Avocado Toast, Fruit, Yogurt
Lunch:  Leftover Spaghetti/Lasagna
Dinner:  Sandwiches or Cereal

Thursday 3/9
Breakfast:  Peanut Butter Toast with Skillet Cinnamon Apples - I love this toast!
Lunch:  Sandwiches, Chips, Fruit
Dinner:  Fruit, Roasted Broccoli, Brown Rice, Apricot Chicken - this was so yummy!  I have a cranberry chicken recipe that is very similar and one of our favorites!  I love that this is made in the slow cooker and will definitely remember that next time I make cranberry chicken - it should work just the same!

Friday 3/10
Breakfast:  Apple Steel Cut Oats, Yogurt - These oats are so good!  I do add a few spices when I toast the oats (cinnamon, cardamom, allspice and cloves) and I use 3:1 water to milk ratio instead of all water.
Lunch:  Fruit, Salad, Sandwiches, Chips
Dinner:  Salad, Chips, Greek Turkey Burgers - These burgers are soooo delicious!  We don't have a grill so we cook them on our George Foreman and they stay so moist and yummy!

Saturday 3/11
Breakfast:  Fruit, Whole Grain Oatmeal Pancakes - This is our go-to scratch pancake recipe - so good and pretty darn healthy, as far as pancakes go.  Brent and Calvin make these for our breakfast every Saturday morning. :)
Lunch:  Salad, Leftovers
Dinner:  Salad, Fruit, BBQ Chicken Pizza

Sunday 3/12
Breakfast:  Fruit, Pancakes
Lunch:  Sandwiches OR Leftovers
Dinner:  Mac & Cheese night at Caitlin and Kyle's, we brought Avocado Mac & Cheese, which is delicious!

If you try anything, I hope you'll like it as much as we did!

Keep giggling!
Michelle

In Which We Discover the Gunnells Are Still Alive...

I'd be surprised if anyone actually checks this anymore since it's been almost 3 years since I've updated...  I'll try and do a HUGE life update here soon, but we all know how well that's worked out in the past.  I have an idea though and I wanted to get it down in here before I get distracted by life again. :)

Since Brent has been in school and money has gotten a little tight around here, I've been trying really hard to be on top of menu planning.  I started out with just doing a week at a time, but decided to bump it up to two weeks at a time to cut down on grocery store trips and hopefully stretch our grocery budget a little farther.  We've done really well at that for the last few months, so this month I decided it was time to plan a month of meals out.  I know a lot of people do this for their dinners, my sister included, so I knew it was doable.  After planning two weeks for so long, it's actually been a pretty easy switch for me.  The hardest part is planning a month's worth of lunches since Cal and I are home all day.  Breakfast and dinner = easy peasy.  Lunch = what do we eat??!

Anyways, in an effort to help myself out in the future, I thought I'd post our monthly menu on the blog (maybe by weeks though?).  I have a Food I've Actually Made board on Pinterest where I keep track of recipes I've made and make notes on changes, but you're only allowed so many characters and some times my changes or ideas are a little more extensive than they allow.  Plus, that's just full of recipe links, not actual meal plans.  I also have a spreadsheet on Google Sheets that I make our meal plans in, and it is fairly organized, but in order to keep the spreadsheet neat and pretty I don't detail a lot of changes in there (I'm realizing this all makes me sound a little obsessive about menu planning, lol).  I figured by posting my menu on here, I'd have easy access to our menu plans AND I'd have unlimited space to detail changes/gripes/ideas for next time.

So...COMING SOON...our monthly menu plan and (hopefully) a little update about our lives!

Until then, keep giggling!

Michelle

In Which We Show Gratitude for 2016

Here's our Gratitude/Blessing Jar entries for 2016:

~ Calvin is two!! (June)
~ October Temple Date:  Sealings on our anniversary with our original sealer! ♡
~ I worked at Coach Outlet for the Holidays (November - December)
~ Calvin's speech & signing are really taking off! (mid. April)
~ Dad & Tracy were sealed/married! 3-12-16
~ March temple date (Dad & Tracy's sealing)
~ I worked at the Puyallup Fair (September)
~ We had a Christmas Elf send us money. - Around Christmas, we received an anonymous card in the mail with some money to help us have a merry Christmas while Brent was in school.
~ My dining room chairs went on super-duper clearance at Fred Meyer!!! :D
~ Brent's last day at ACE Parking! 3-11-16
~ January temple date! :D
~ Calvin had fun in nursery at church with nursery leaders Sisters King and Strauss!
~ Play dates with Heather and Logan!
~ Mom & Jonathan moved to Yelm - now they're only an hour away! (April)
~ We're approved for basic food assistance and WIC checks while Brent is in school.
~ We've had Nessie for a year! (December)
~ 5 years of marriage!!! 10-22-16
~ Brent (miraculously) started the Bio Med Tech program at Bates! (March)

In Which We Show Gratitude for 2015

A few years ago, we started a Blessings Jar.  It sits on a table, in our front hall, next to a basket with note cards and markers waiting for us to fill it.  In theory, we write down blessings or things we're grateful for as they happen and then put them in the jar.  Then, on New Year's Eve, we open the jar and look back over all of the good things that happened to us over the last year.  In reality, we rack our brains at the end of the year to remember all of the blessings we've seen, write them down and then stuff them in zippy bag labeled with the year.  I also had the idea to put them in a blog post so they'd be easier to find if we ever wanted to look at them again.  

Since I've been MIA on the blog for the last couple years, I've got some blessings to catch-up on...  So, in no particular order, here's our Blessing Jar notes from 2015:

~ Pantry Shelves! (August)  - Dad and Kyle built us some shelves in our pantry!

~ Nessie came to live with us! (December) - Sarah left for school and we took her cat in. :)

~ Dad and Tracy got engaged! (December)

~ Brent's last Holiday Season at ACE Parking!!!!

~ Mom watched Cal so we could go to tea for Valentine's!

~ Girl Scout Cookies!

~ Church at 1pm!! :D

~ We bought the CR-V! (September)

~ Brent took a stay-cation the beginning of February.

~ Calvin got a highchair!

~ Calvin turned one!!! (June)

~ All of the Gunnell siblings in town in July & August!

~ Gunnell family sealing team at the Seattle Temple!

~ A new battery made "Joe" reliable again! - Joe is Brent's '97 Civic

~ "Thanks for hosting us!  We love you! <3 Andrew & MB" - Andrew and Mary Beth stayed with us when everyone was in town.

~ Walking Baby!!  Eeek... (August)

I'm positive there were more things we could've included, but those are the things we remembered.

Getting Up to Date!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again - I'm not very good at this blogging thing...and I'm willing to bet that my blogging frequency is not going to drastically improve anytime soon.

For those who don't know (which should be nobody since anyone who reads this is probably also on facebook or is family), I'm pregnant!!  Brent and I are expecting our first child in June!  Calvin Barrett Gunnell should be joining our family sometime around Father's Day - my due date is Friday, June 13th.  I just hit the 34 week mark on today, so only about 6 more weeks until we get to  meet our little boy!  We are so excited - and slightly overwhelmed!  There is so much we still need to get done to prepare for his arrival...it makes my head spin sometimes, or maybe that's just a symptom caused by all these extra pregnancy hormones?  So many random things are explained away by hormones...stuffy nose, carpal tunnel, forgetfulness, the list goes on.  It's all worth it in the end though, right? :)  Here's a few of the pictures that I have so far (I didn't take very many at the beginning since I was so sick...nobody wants to see how pathetic I looked anyways, I promise...).

We announced our pregnancy to my extended family (and then Facebook) with delicious cupcakes!  Who doesn't get excited about cupcakes AND babies?! :)

We've had the name "Calvin" picked out for a long time, so when we went in for our gender ultrasound we brought Hobbes with us, just in case!  Good thing we did, he certainly was happy to help us announce the exciting news! :D

This is my most recent bump picture.  April 11, 2014 - 31 weeks!!

Other than growing a human being, I haven't really been up to much the last 7 months or so.  Brent, on the other hand, has been working super hard in school and at his job!  He's pretty much amazing. :)  He's been at his job since March 1st of last year and he's worked his way up a little on the totem pole.  He is now the night shift supervisor/team captain.  He still does valet, but now  he mostly is the cashier and directs things on the drive at the hotel.  This position came with a little bit of a raise and is full time!  Full time = insurance = we can have a baby! :)  He also just had his annual performance review and pretty much rocked it!  He got a small raise and was told that if he's interested in moving up into management in the next year or so to just let his bosses know!  Way to go, Brent! :)  He works so hard for us and we are so blessed to be able to get by on his income alone!  Heavenly Father has really been taking care of us and helping us to start expanding our little family. :)

I'm almost to the Dr's appointment every week phase of pregnancy, so we do lots of trips up to South Hill for that.  We started our Childbirth Preparation Classes (or as we like to call them, Baby Poppin' Classes) 3 and a half weeks ago.  We meet every Tuesday evening at Valley Medical Center with about 14 other couples.  It's a seven week course with a reunion after all the babies are born - probably sometime in late July or early August.  I know a lot of people say that the classes aren't worth the time or money - the baby is coming out whether you're prepared or not - but, I'm really glad we've been able to work Brent's schedule around this so we can take them together.  It's nice to be able to at least pretend that we'll have any idea what's happening when we head to the hospital, lol.  So, that's where things stand for us right now.  We're just making sure we're registered for all the things we think we need, I'm getting ready for my baby showers next week and we're just working on getting things ready for Calvin's arrival!

Keep giggling!
Michelle

Once Upon a Time, I Blogged...

Like I've said before, I'm not very good at this whole blogging thing....but you can't say I didn't warn you! :D

So, what have we been up to, you ask?  Well, let me tell you!

Last time I blogged I shared a delicious recipe with you - did anyone make that ice cream?  It was seriously to die for!  The best ice cream of my life!  I can't wait until next Easter so I can buy more of those mini creme eggs and make it again! :)

Before that post though, there was a recap post leaving you hanging with what happened to our lives after our trip to Utah in October and our adventures in Seattle to see Wicked!  A lot has happened since October, and I'm not very good at blogging so nobody knows!  Okay, so chances are that if you read our blog you are family or we know you in real life and we're probably Facebook friends so you really are privy to what's going on in our lives (I really just wanted to use the word "privy"...).  And our lives are so exciting...let me tell you...*cue crickets chirping*...Okay, so yeah...we're actually kind of boring.  Anyways, enough of this rambling paragraph.  Here's what we've been up to since October (yikes!  That was forever ago...)

So, the holiday season was lovely.  We did Thanksgiving out in Port Townsend with family on my mom's side.  Delicious food and good times were had by all. :)  Christmas we stayed pretty local.  Brent's family, except for his oldest sister and her family, came over for a few days leading up to Christmas and a day or two after.  We had a full house!  People were sleeping in every room, including the laundry room/pantry!  It was crazy and fun and wonderful!  We did Christmas Eve and morning here and then we all went to go see Les Mis - which was amazing!  After Les Mis, Brent and I made the rounds to go see my family and finally came home and passed out - it was a busy day!  New Year's Eve was just a quiet night at home, watching the Space Needle Fireworks on Komo and toasting with Martinelli's Sparkling Cider. :)

I continued to work at Eddie Bauer through the holiday season and into the new year.  I quit at the beginning of February after 2.5 years back from school and almost a year before going to school.  I originally put in my 2 weeks because I thought I had another job lined up, but that fell through.  I probably could have stayed on at EB, but you know how it is when you've already mentally said goodbye to a place - I was done and a little burnt out on retail.  Since then, I haven't really been looking for a new job.  We only have one car and live almost 3 miles from the nearest bus stop, so I've just been staying home and trying to be all Suzy home-maker. ;)

On Valentine's Day, Brent interviewed for a new job in downtown Bellevue and then we headed down to Sumner for a Valentine's tea at The Secret Garden Tea Room.  I've been there several times with family and friends, but this was Brent's first time there - and I'm so glad he enjoyed it! :)  It's an old Victorian mansion turned into a tea room and gift shop and it's just lovely!  They serve full English High Tea  services, along with light teas and a lunch menu.  I highly recommend checking it out! : )

My husband is kind of a ham...and I love him, a lot. :)

About a week after Valentine's Day, we took a weekend trip down to our honeymoon spot in Gig Harbor.  It was so nice to just get away and celebrate us for a few days!  We stayed at the same place that we went to on our honeymoon, The Waterfront Inn and in the same room even (they only have a few rooms).  It's a cute little place, right on the water and down the street from Anthony's.  The only bummer was that since our honeymoon they've stopped serving breakfast. :(  We are so glad that we chose to go somewhere close and affordable on our honeymoon - it's so nice to be able to go back and not break the bank doing so!

This is the view from the door of our room - isn't it wonderful!

Night time view of the harbor.  Gig Harbor is such a cute place!

This is the back of the inn.  Our room is the bottom left of the picture.

They have kayaks available for the use of the guests, so Brent took one out for a bit.  I stayed firmly on solid ground, although he did manage to coax me out on the scary, unstable floating dock to help him get the kayak in and out of the water.

He went pretty far out into the harbor.  He had a good time out there. :)

I promise he wore a life jacket - you can see it on the dock in the lower right corner of the picture!  He took it off to make it easier to get out of the kayak.

Brent got the job that he interviewed for and started work as a valet for the Hyatt at the beginning of March.  So far, he's doing great there!  His good work ethic and responsible nature are being recognized and he may end up with a promotion soon, but nothing is for certain yet.  It's not the easiest job and the environment is definitely not as wholesome as his last job (which was working in the cafeteria at the LDS temple in Bellevue), but we have definitely felt like he was lead to this job for a reason!  What a blessing to be able to rely on the Lord to help us in all aspects of our lives! :)

Brent is still doing school through Brigham Young University Idaho's online program.  Things are going well there and and he is working so hard!  I'm so proud (in a righteous way! ;) ) of him and all his hard work as he balances almost full time work with online classes!  He's such a wonderful example to me! <3

Since about March I have been helping out Brent's older brother and his wife by watching their little girl, Edie.  I watched her for a few weeks when they were between nannies, but now I just look forward to spending most of my Fridays with our adorable niece.  She is almost 18 months and when she says "Aunt Chelle!" my heart kind of melts. :)

How adorable is she?! :)

On March 26th, Brent's sister, Julie, had a lovely baby girl!  A few weeks later their son Henry, who is 4.5, came to stay at Grandma and Grandpa's house for his spring break!!  It was so fun to have him here with us and to get to play with him.  Grandma was able to be home from work Monday, Wednesday and Friday, but I got some one-on-one Henry time on Tuesday and Thursday. :)  We watched Star Wars III and went and saw The Croods.  We ate at McDonald's and played in the Play Place and we bought sidewalk chalk and played Hopscotch!  Edie joined us on Friday and we all had so much fun playing together!  I just love all of our nieces and nephews so much - I'm so glad that I became an aunt when I married Brent - it is so much fun!  It kind of blows my mind though when I think about how I can love our nieces and nephews SO much....I have no idea how my heart is going to avoid exploding when we have our first child...the amount of love parents have for their children is beyond me!

My sweet Henry!  This was our Star Wars night, complete with popcorn and ice cream! :)

"Letterscotch!  I love letterscotch!" 

He told me to draw Snow White's castle.  I think it looks more like Rapunzel's castle, but it was acceptable. :)

We went and saw The Croods, which was actually a pretty good movie!  Henry had lots of fun eating popcorn and playing the race car game in the lobby. :)

On Friday, Grandma made a small fort for Henry and Edie to play in - they had so much playing together and later Henry got to eat his pizza in the fort! :)

So, that pretty much brings us up to speed!  I do have a few recipes I want to share with you, but that will have to wait until another post, because this one is getting pretty long For now, we're just hanging out at home (well, that's mostly me) and working and schooling (and that's all Brent). We do have some fun things coming up in the next couple of weeks.  My Grandma's birthday tea party that my sisters and I are putting together is this coming weekend.  Brent's oldest sister and her family fly in from Boston in about a week and a  half and they'll be here for a few weeks.  Brent finishes another semester of school at the end of this month and then we'll be moving!  Not very many people know about that though, so...SURPRISE!!! :D  We're going to try not to make a habit out of moving ever summer, but so far we're 2 for 2.  This next move should last us a while though.  Brent's parents have bought a second house about a mile away as an investment property - and they want us to be their first renters!  It has been absolutely wonderful living here with them (we all get along great!), but it will be so nice to have our own space again!  We plan on being there for the next 3-5 years and it definitely gives us some room to expand our family (this is NOT an announcement, just so you know!) since it has 4 bedrooms.  It also gives some extra rooms for when all of Brent's family comes for sleepovers - yeah!!  Party at Uncle Brent and Aunt Chelle's house!!!  Haha!  We'll post more pictures once we get the keys, which should be in a few weeks!! :)  Until then, here's a picture of the front of the house. :)

Soon to be Home Sweet Home! :)

Well, my dears, I think that's about all for this post!  I'll try and blog again soon!  Until then...

Keep giggling!

 <3 Michelle

A Recap...In Parts...Part II

This is another photo heavy post...consider yourself warned. :)

Back in October we decided to take a combined birthdays/anniversary trip down to Utah for General Conference weekend.  We stayed Friday and Saturday night at the The Plaza in downtown Salt Lake - we were right across from temple square which was fantastic!

We met up with my Aunt Linda and a friend of hers for soup at Kneader's on Friday night.  It was great to see her!  After that the four of us wandered over to Deseret Book where I bought a new Conference Journal and a copy of Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson, which is an adorable book!  It's a proper romance of the Jane Austen type.  If Jane Austen type books are your thing you should definitely check it out!

Saturday morning we were actually able to attend Conference in the Conference Center!  That's right, we were at the session where President Monson announced the change in the missionary age!  It was so exciting to be there in person, especially since Brent and I are both returned missionaries! :)  After he made the announcement and the choir started singing they actually had to dim the lights to remind us all that we needed to be quiet - everyone was just so excited by this news!  After the session was over we hung back a little so we didn't have to be part of the crush of people trying to leave at the same time.  It was so fun to hear all the people around us talking about missions.  We overheard this pretty awesome conversation where this girl was saying that she could leave in a year or so for her mission and her mom asked if she was thinking about going.  The girl replied that she wasn't before, but now she really was!  It was so neat! :)

Saturday afternoon and evening we spent down in Provo with Brent's brother and his wife.  We watched the afternoon session at their apartment while Brent and Daniel assembled Ikea furniture.  Then we went and grabbed some Cafe Rio before the boys headed out to Priesthood Session.  While they were gone, Sarah introduced me to Downton Abbey - which I love!  It was fun to spend time with them and share in their tradition of Conference Ice Cream Cake.  :)

Sunday morning we listened to Conference on Temple Square before we headed north to Pleasant View to visit my Aunt and Uncle.  We watched the afternoon session with them and spent the night there in my old bedroom (I lived with them for about a year before my mission.).  It's always so much fun to visit my Utah family and to get to spend time with them!

Before we headed out to the airport on Monday, we stopped at Brent's great aunt and uncle's house so that Brent could meet them!  They live just a few blocks away from my family in Pleasant View and used to be in the same ward as them.  It turns out I had actually met them before my mission, when they had just gotten home from theirs!  Small world!

It was a wonderful trip!  A great way to celebrate our birthdays and our one year anniversary! :)

Also as an anniversary/birthday celebration, we went with my Aunt Sue to go see Wicked at the Paramount in Seattle!  This was my second time seeing it (and it was just as amazing!!), but Brent had never seen it!  We went to the matinee and then went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner where we consumed a whole day's worth of calories in one glorious meal...it was a wonderful day! :D

While we were waiting to check into our hotel we ate lunch at Cafe Zupas!  It's a delicious soup, salad and sandwich place that a former mission companion introduced me to.  They have the best Summer Strawberry Salad!  You also get a chocolate covered strawberry with every meal - yummm!  Unfortunately, the nearest one is in Riverdale, UT... :(  If you're ever in Utah, check it out - you won't be sorry! :) http://www.cafezupas.com/

Waiting in line for the Saturday morning session of Conference!

Look how cute we are waiting for Conference to start! :)

Up in the nosebleeds, but hey!  There's really not a bad seat at the Conference Center. :)

That opening in the crowd towards the center of the photo is where all the sister missionaries are waiting to talk to people after Conference. :)

This is the view from the window at the end of our hallway.  I love Temple Square!

This is the view from our window.

Same view, night time.

Brent is helping Daniel (his brother) conquer the Ikea furniture.

Sunday morning session on the Square.

Let's try that w/o the shades.

I think this is probably one of THE BEST pictures I have EVER taken. :)

The Conference Center as seen from Temple Square.

The Salt Lake Temple is so pretty!

Assembly Hall

I could take pictures of the temple all day...

Thank you, kind stranger, for taking this picture for us!

More us in front of the temple. :)

The stage for Wicked!!!!

Brent and Me in front of the poster!

My Aunt Sue and I! Love her!!! :)