OUR March Madness with a side of the Tyson adventures

March started with a trip to Vegas! Heather and Gavin stowed away and came back home with me! (Top picture: My baby sis Carla and Heather the coolest Bottom picture: Tyson enjoying the tools with Gavin and Heather)




March was also filled with glimpses of spring and showers! That is a bridal shower for Erica (Jason's sister, to be wed April 26)


Tyson enjoyed many fun days at home with Mom while she anticipated the end of the ice age!

We celebrated Heathers birthday! And what a birthday bowling game! You can see Jason, Heather, and I got a strike on our first frame. Sorry Dustin!

Not another trip to Vegas! This time for Easter! What a relief for the Utah weather! You can see I am happily enjoying shorts! Tyson enjoyed his first Easter! He also got to visit Aunt Dee, Evie, and Uncle Terry!


Jason always has great days off! This time we went up to Salt Lake to have lunch with some of my old chums from UNLV! We also had the chance to stop at an awesome park in Salt Lake!


The trips never end! We stopped on our way back from Vegas at Cove Fort! That monument is awesome! Alexa and Andrew were great driving buddies! thanks for the company!

My last trip (ffffFFeeeEeWWWww!)was this last weekend to Mesa Arizona where Jason's cousin Elizabeth was married! The Mesa temple was surrounded by springtime flowers and the chatter of relatives! What a beautiful wedding and the warmth was once again a reassurance that warmth does exist! Kimberly, Erica, and I enjoyed our bonding time during the 20 hour round trip drive! Some memorable lines- "Feels like a sleepover!" "What happens in the car stays in the car" "Do you need to throw up again?" "I didn't think that was the "I-15" we needed..." &"Bluffalo!"

And with that said Tyson and I are tripped out and ready to be a vegetable for a day or too! Onto the vegging we go...

How old is our baby?

It is astounding how quickly time flies. Tyson is getting so big already. He sits, rolls, and plays on his own. Next step: crawling.

Spring Forward with new decor

Springtime decor tips

"It's fun to feel cozy in the winter with warm colors and soft, fluffy fabrics. In the summmer, a cool, airy look is appealing. Read here to get some simple ideas for transforming the look of your home with the seasons.

Here's How:

1. When the cold weather arrives, have a collection of cozy, fluffy throws to place on your furniture for snuggling. Remove them or replace with soft cotton or silk throws for warmer months.

2. Remove the toasty down-filled duvet from your bed in the spring and substitute a light cotton matalasse bed cover or a simple cotton blanket.

3. Floral arrangements of pine and holiday colors can be changed for light, colorful ones for the spring and summer. Put away dark brass or pottery containers and bring out clear glass or crystal vases.

4. Change dark-patterned decorative pillows by covering them with fresh, floral prints or plaids for warmer weather. Either change out the pillows with a second set or alternate the decorative covers.

5. If you have a collection of plates on display, put classic holiday designs away for the winter and replace with pretty floral china from grandma.

6. Have your draperies made so they are reversible allowing you to easily turn them from lively to neutral with the seasonal changes.

7. Be sure to put garden magazines and flower books out on the coffee table in the spring and summer. That will help bring the outside in and add color to your interior.


Tips:
1. Keep spring and summer colors and accessories light, both in feel and color.

2. Changing with the seasons gives you an opportunity to get out some long-lost pieces and make them the center of attention for a while.

3. The change of decor can come all at one time, like spring house cleaning, or over a period of several days or weeks. You'll be surprised what a difference just a small change can make.

4. If winter seems especially long, forget the calendar and get your spring things out even if there's snow on the ground. You may still need the warm blankets, but the look can be light and uplifting."

(These helpful tips are from http://interiordec.about.com/cs/seasonaldecor/ht/ht_changeseason.htm?once=true& by Coral Nafie)

Here are some helpful and cute rooms http://www.pier1.com/TopMenu/GetInspired/tabid/137/Default.aspx

Easter Crafts: Part 2

These are some ideas from Martha Stewart's Easter Workshop ( http://www.marthastewart.com/easter-workshop?xsc=eml_eas_2008_03_13 ) and Easter crafts. I've made some Spring crafts I'd like to share. Enjoy!

What I used:

1. Fallen branch

2. Spring flowers

3. Birds

* I hot glued the flowers to the branch and the birds I purchased at Dollar Tree came with wires. I twisted the wires around the branch. Using white thread (also can use fishing line or jewelry making thread) I hung the branch.

______________________________________

What I used:

1. Orange knitting yarn

2. Elmer's glue

3. Green felt

4. 3 Straight pins (per carrot)

5. Styrofoam star (Roberts crafts or any local craft store, shown below)

* I took the Styrofoam star and cut it into five pieces as shown in the first picture. Then I took a straight pin and wrapped some yarn around the top. At this time I also applied some Elmer's glue around the top where I wrapped the yarn. I continued to wrap down the carrot as shown in the third picture. As I worked down the carrot i applied glue to the bare Styrofoam.

* Once I worked down the carrot I secured the bottom with another straight pin and applied glue. To make the stem I cut two small pieces of felt and folded them like in the above picture. I then took a straight pin and placed them through the top. you can also use this method to make eggs with egg shaped Styrofoam as shown in second picture. I placed these carrots around my home or you could use them on an Easter tree. Thanks Martha!

Most of these instructions are also found on the Martha Stewart website or from my link on Easter Crafts: Part 1. Here are also some other fun crafts I will be doing this week!

Easter egg wreath

http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.3a0656639de62ad593598e10d373a0a0/?vgnextoid=1bcbd52add62f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&vgnextfmt=default

Egg Garland


http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.0e0eb51a2e6b5ad593598e10d373a0a0/?vgnextoid=0705d0f19132f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&vgnextfmt=default


Bunny Garland


http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.0e0eb51a2e6b5ad593598e10d373a0a0/?vgnextoid=d461ba1fa9751110VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&vgnextfmt=default

Cucumber and cream cheese snacks

This snack was served at a recent enrichment activity I went to. I have been craving them since! Mine do not have dill weed but I would recommend it! Enjoy!




Ingredients
1 (8 ounce)package cream cheese , softened
1 package good seasonings Italian salad dressing mix
1 dash Tabasco sauce
1 package rye cocktail bread
1 seedless European cucumber , unpeeled
dried dill or fresh dill (to garnish)

Directions
1 I wash and score the cucumber with a fork along the entire length of the cucumber, all the way around, to make a design Slice thinly and set aside.
2 Combine cream cheese, Good Seasonings Italian mix and Tabasco sauce.
3 Spread cream cheese mixture, generously on each slice of cocktail bread, place slice of cucumber and sprinkle the top with dill.

The Tyson Adventures - Febuary

Grandma McLean came to visit us in Utah. She was here for Jason's birthday and aunt Erikas. She is very good at giving me baths! Grandma McLean also brought me a new friends, a dog! He is a "TY" just like TYson! She also made the most delisous german chocolate cake for Daddy's birthday. "Yum!"

I went to me first BYU game. And it was againts Mom's school UNLV. Boy was it fun. Nick and Tricia was there! I got to meet Cosmo the Cougar and in the end BYU won! Sorry Mom.

I was at the Sievers (Thanks for watching me!) while Mom and Dad went snowboarding at Brighton! They went with Heather, Dustin, and Blake.

Heather, Mom, and Dad feed the ducks while Gavin and I took a nice nap. My last encounter with ducks was not so fun so I'm glad to have sat this one out.

Jaydens baptism was a blast! I got to pull on Jacobs tie and Mom played her violin.