Thursday, September 13, 2012

Lara's Wedding

Back in July (July 20th to be exact) Bryan's only sister, Lara got married in their parents back yard.  It was a small, intimate, non-traditional wedding.  I felt so lucky to be able to celebrate this big day with Bryan and his family.

Bryan is the oldest boy in his family of 5.  his sister lara is the oldest and the only girl.  It's quite a change hanging out with his family from my family of just mom, dad, me, and cedes.



Susan helping Lara get ready for her big day


Lara's Bridal shots.  I love her succulent bouquet.  Her dress was made by a family friend.  Gorgeous. 



The grooms first look at the bride

A family friend preformed the ceremony in front of a small crowd of only 22 people, close friends and immediate family.  

My favorite part... Bear got to be the ring BEAR-er!!!

What can you expect from four brothers whose only sister just got married. PHOTO BOMB! (this pictures defines the brothers perfectly)

Wedding dinner. I helped fold the napkins and set the table.  the succulent centerpieces were surprisingly beautiful!

 

Bry and I got our own little photo shoot thanks to the photographer :) 






The happy couple. and a donkey.  



photos were taken by http://www.rachelclarephoto.com/

Monday, August 6, 2012

2 Years

2 Years ago today we started our journey together.  I love you more everyday! I cant wait for whatever adventures come next :) 













Monday, July 30, 2012

Thinking ahead

Yes, it's true... the Anniversary Sale is getting me so excited for Fall clothes.  layering... jackets... scarves... boots... leather...  everything!  I know it's hard to think about when its 90 degrees outside but....
here is a Fabulous Fall wish list of things I would kill to have hanging in my closest!


Rag and Bone Leather trim tuxedo jacket * Steve Madden Leopard Flats * Essie 'Nothing Else Metals' Nail polish * House of Harlow Tribal Horn necklace * Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Serum * Ray-Ban 'Club-Master' sunnies * Sam Edelman snakeskin pumps * Kate Spade Leopard print iPhone case * Alice & Olivia Peplum Perfection Dress * Rachel Zoe Boots * Rag and Bone wine ombre plush leggins * MAC 'Zen Rose' Lip Stick * Rag and Bone leather sleeve denim jacket 

*Everything can be found at my favorite store... Nordstrom

Summer Vacation

Wow, one of my summer rules was to blog more, and I have done exactly opposite of that.  In my defense, it's because I've been so busy doing so many other things on my list of rules! 
The end of June I was lucky enough to get an entire week off of work.  I went home to SLC for the first three days and got to go to visit with my sweetie. 

We are both poor poor poor so everything we did was on the cheap, but it couldn't have been more fun.  We went to Lagoon (the little 6-flags-owned theme park in utah) for FREE (my favorite) with Bryan's roommate the first day I was there.  It was fun because B had never been to Lagoon before.  I loved it, having grown up going every mothers day since I was 6, it was a blast from the past; I loved showing B all the fun rides and telling him all the stories of when I was little and how big and scary the rides were.  One of my favorite stories from my first trip to Lagoon is about one ride in particular, the roll-o-plane, Cedes really wanted to go on it (because it was green, her favorite color) well needless to say, it was less than fun for me.  I cried the entire time until the ride attendant stopped the ride to let us off.  That ride is no longer there, I wonder why. haha It was a perfect first day activity for us. 

The next day I went to the library with B while he studied for a test (he was in summer school) so I sipped on a delicious Iced Almond Latte and surfed stumbleupon.com for hours while he studied.  While he took his test I napped on Old Main. Just laying there on the grass in the sun brought back so many fun memories of being a college freshman at USU. 

After his test we got Cafe Rio (a must for me when visiting home) then finished the day cliff jumping at Porcupine Damn. Another fun and free activity.  
The next day we got Noodles & co. and had a picnic at first damn followed by Aggie ice cream.  




 After Utah my mom and I headed on our next adventure to Montana for my cousin Alan's wedding.  The wedding was in a teeny tiny little town in Montana where Alan's now wife grew up.  We flew into a small little one room airport in Williston, North Dakota where the people are a little less than friendly. This was the note left on Cedes' driver seat because she left her windows open for Captain who was sitting in the back seat.  
"Go bag to where you belong you worthless Nature Nazi you wont have a car next time its here"
I guess people in Williston dont appreciate a Colorado Subaru Forrester filled to the roof with camping gear and windows open for an adorable mutt napping in the back seat.

This is the teeny airport we flew into.  one gate, one plane in and out at a time and they only fly to Denver and Minneapolis, 

This is where the rehearsal dinner was, it was a restaurant called 'Stagecoach bar and casino'  (In the words of my uncle Don, "everything in Montana is whatever business it is... plus a casino")
Would you like to buy a vowel... 

The only breakfast restaurant in town... Wild West Diner.  It was pretty good, just don't try to order fruit... or non-fat milk.  They don't have any.  

 Our wedding motel accommodations... the King's in.  Everyone attending the wedding stayed at this little motel.  They were ready for the Fouth of July with the flag bus selling fireworks in the parking lot. 


It was really good to get to see most of my Hoffmann family members whom I hadnt seen in  a long time.  Here are my aunts and cedes, the 'almost bridesmaids' helping assemble the actual bridesmaids bouquets.  

and I got to check something off my list of summer rules, 'take a trip to somewhere I've never been before', North Dakota AND Froid, MT.  

Monday, May 14, 2012

Rules of Summer

At my last job, the last 13 months of my life, I had to close nearly every friday and saturday night (work until 10 pm then drive the 30 min through hollywood to get home) and nearly every sunday 10-7.  In a nutshell, I had (slash, have) no social life.  I have a new job with a new manager who actually gives me one Sunday off a month (like I was supposed to get in my old job but didn't) and I even have a few fridays off here and there (if not off at least not closing, and the store closes at 8pm on saturday instead of 10).  Therefore... I am determined to have more of a social life this summer and actually enjoy the summer! So I am making a list of 10 fun things I would like to accomplish by Labor Day.



1. Make time for 'Sunday FUNday' brunch with my girlfriends here

2. Go wine tasting

3. Attend an outdoor concert

4. Have a beach bonfire and roast S'mores and starburst (if you havent tried a roasted starburst, its a must to put on your Rules for Summer List)

5. Go to an amusement park

6. Learn to cook something new

7. Blog more often

8. Take a weekend vacation to somewhere I have never been before

9. Go to Vegas

10. Take Bear on hikes or to a dog park at least once a week

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Rachel Ray is my friend

So... if you know me, you know that i am not much of a chef.  Now, there are many reasons why i choose not to cook.  the main one being, im just not very good at it.  the whole multi tasking in the kitchen thing is just not my friend.  boiling this, timing that, stirring that, not burning this, all while trying to flip that and have the right portions and having it all ready at the same time. phew that stresses me out just thinking about it.
one of two things usually happens when i attempt to cook...
1. i make a HUGE mess or
2. i mess up the recipe somehow *example adding 1\4 CUP of cinnamon instead of 1\4 TEASPOON of cinnamon (yes, i have actually done this)
therefore, i usually stick to my specialty.... mac and cheese.  one pot. little mess. and its not very hard to mess up boiling water and pouring noodles in.  My favorite is Trader Joes organic white cheddar shells.  and if im feeling ambitious i might add peas. sometimes if im feeling SUPER ambitious, ill add chicken.

well lately i have started to attempt to cook more things.  cooking for one is never very motivational or inspiring *hence the go-to mac and cheese meal.

The other night i made a delicious Beef Ragu that my sister showed me how to make a while back and turns out to actually be pretty simple.  a little more complex than boiling water, but not too bad for a beginner chef like myself.  I wanted to share it with the rest of you non-cooks so you can learn a new easy and delicious meal to make for one or even a family (i like to make extras then bring left overs to work for lunch)

It's Rachel Rays Lamb Ragu.

for the recipe you will need...

Extra virgin olive oil
ground lamb (I couldnt find lamb at my local trader joes so i used lean beef (96% lean 4% fat) )
onion
cloves
cinnamon stick
bay leaves (*i didnt have but mine still turned out delicious)
salt and pepper
a lemon *need both the zest and the juice
green olives (I dont like green olives so i just skipped 'em)
tomato paste
white wine
chicken stick
fettuccine (i used linguine)
mint
parsley
pecorino cheese (i used parmesan)


then your gonna slice and dice...

pat, cook, crumble, and simmer...

chop, and top...

and enjoy!

(click on the rachel ray link for more exact directions, but this is pretty much what i did) 








Friday, April 27, 2012

So long denim, Hello designer

Starting on the May 1 I will be the new assistant manager for Designer at Westside pavilion.  I am so excited for the challenge and for something new.  I am, however, sad that i will no longer be able to wear jeans.... I am being promoted from a job that has given me dozens of free jeans and not only allowed but encouraged me to wear them everyday, to a department where I can no longer wear denim.  I guess this will just force me to be more creative with my wardrobe.  Nordstrom Rack and Crossroads Trading, here i come, digging for deals to revamp my closet.

I can't even wear a denim jacket :(

on my wish list:                        7 for all mankind bleached denim jacket