spOtted: I've Got an A.C.E. in the Hole.

One of my resolutions this year was to lose weight. At the salon I work at, a lot of the girls are on a diet pill called A.C.E. I have heard tons &tons of diet pills claim to be the best out there; all the ad's seem to be the same-- "blocks carbs" "tons of energy" "drop 10 pounds in 2 days" etc. Random things like that. Always to good to be true. I never had anyone say to me, "I'm on HoodiaP57, and it really works!"

So to me, I was a T O T A L skeptic. But then, I looked at real pictures. Of people I knew. &'listened to their stories. My boss? 40 pounds lighter. Her husband? 25. What about another girl at the salon? Almost 50 pounds, &'she recently had a baby. So of course, my curiosity got the better of me. I started asking about it, gathering more information. "What's in it? Is it safe? What are the side effects?" I got the same answer from every girl I asked. Everyone's information matched up. I still had my doubts. So I got a sample, &'took a risk.

Now, I won't lie to you-- I was a bit disappointed. Everyone had told me it would give me energy, but I was EXHAUSTED. I decided to shake it off-- eh, another lie. Whatever. When I told the girls how it had effected me, they were all flabbergasted. They said it was so weird that it made me tired; none of them had that feeling.  After a bit more delving into my issue, we chalked it up to my ADHD. [often energizing drinks/pills/etc. have the reverse effect on people with ADHD] I was sad, but there really is nothing I could do. I discussed it with my boss, &'she pointed out that I had been sick-- maybe it was just an off day for me.

After a few days of being disgruntled about it, I decided to give it another try. I purchased a bottle, with the thought in mind that maybe my body just needed to get used to it. If it still didn't work, at least I had people I could give my remaining bottle too. I took my pill, and without realizing I had cleaned a huge part of the salon &'done a ton of organizing. When Kaleb came to pick me up, I was feeling really hyper. DING DING DING! Hello, there was my energy! So the next day, I woke up &'took my A.C.E. I was pretty mellow for a while- I even took a cat nap. When I woke up from my nap, I took another pill, &'then I had the whole house clean. Christmas decorations, down. Cupboards, organized. Furniture, rearranged. HOLY CRUMBS, IT'S WORKING!

It is working so far for me, &'I love it. I'm excited to see if I start losing weight. I know I have to watch how I eat, &'definitely drink more water, &'start exercising as well-- it won't just make me drop weight. &'that's okay with me. I plan on posting about my weight loss journey &'being honest through it all. Right now, I weigh 168. That's right. That is so NOT okay with me. But it's okay-- cause I'm on my way to losing weight the right way.

If anyone reading this is curious, here is the link for the A.C.E. website ---->Love My Ace Also, don't be afraid to comment &'ask or give advice to help me! I would L O V E it.

I hope 2012 is going amazing for everyone!

                                                                    xo-evie

spOtted: new year, new me.

I know it's been a good while since I posted last, but hey-- better late than never, right?

I decided to write my resolution post[including why I want this to happen, etc.]-- then fill you in on the events of the past.. month-ish.

My resolutions for this year are as follows--
   
             LOSE WEIGHT - [I know I'll never be a size zero, but I do know I can love my body more. My goal is to get back to a size 6, in however long it takes me, but lose 20 pounds by May. VERY POSSIBLE. I'll be posting about the weight loss as it goes '&such.]

           READ MORE - [If that means the girls at the salon start a book club, so be it. I want to read as many books as I can this year. Starting with 'Sense '& Sensibility'.]

          STOP SWEARING - [it's really not a cute habit.]

         GO BACK TO CHURCH - [finding a Christian church out here would be a g r e a t place to start.]

          START A BUCKET LIST&' CHECKING THINGS OFF - [I want a month by month bucket list. I'll be posting those lists here as well, and letting you all know as they are passed off.

         do NOT cut my hair - [aside from trims, layers &'bangs. I miss my long hair.]

          GO ON MORE DATES WITH KALEB - [I love falling in love all over again with him, &'our schedules have gotten so hectic lately, we don't really have time for each other.

          JOURNAL MORE FREQUENTLY - [seriously-- I want to have certain things written down forever.]

          TAKE MORE PICTURES - [see above post. it's all about the memories.]

           LIVE EACH DAY LIKE IT'S MY LAST - [why not start at the end of the world?]

          DON'T LET A DAY GO BY WITHOUT TELLING SOMEONE THAT I LOVE THEM - [out loud. pets count. even if I look in the mirror &'tell myself it. It HAS to happen.

        IF I CAN'T FIND SOMETHING DECENT ON T.V. -- TURN IT OFF [do I really need to explain this one?]

      You know how there is always that one song that can cheer you up &'make you smile no matter what? &'you crank it up &'dance around to it &'sing it at the top of your lungs? yeah-- I'm gonna have one of  'those days' more often.

     NO MORE DRUNK TEXTING OF EXES - [along with no drunk tweeting, Facebook updating, etc.]

      WRITE DOWN 5 REASONS ON WHY I WOULD MARRY ME - I have to find them somehow..

 Okay-- I'm sleepy. I'll try and post tomorrow, but no promises. Love ya'll.

xo-- evie<3

     

spOtted: C o P y c A t[recipes]

'tis the season for hearty, comfort foods. But no one really wants to go out in the cold for it, do they? We all want to snuggle up indoors with the ones we love '&enjoy a nice holiday movie. So here are two yummy recipes that are quick and so so easy, I've practically made them for you!

enjoy;

salted[CARAMEL]hot chocolate

3 tbsp. caramel syrup[warmed '&melty]

Hot Chocolate [you can use the powdered kind, I prefer Stephen's Hot Cocoa mix]
whipped cream[canned if you prefer, or you can make your own.]

1 tsp. medium coarse sea salt

Coat the inside of a coffee mug with roughly a tablespoon '&a half of the heated caramel.

 Add your hot chocolate '&mix well. 

Top with whipped cream, drizzle with caramel '&a sprinkle of salt.

so easy;so yummy;so festive.

Noodles&Co. Mac'&Cheese

Pretty much the only thing I order at Noodles&Co. is their mac'&cheese. So-- why not figure out a way to make it?! 

1 lb. macaroni
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
3 cups 2% milk
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
shredded cheddar cheese

Cook macaroni according to directions on package. Set aside.
In saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour until well combined. Slowly stir in milk, and whisk until thickened. Add salt and remove from heat.

 Add monterey jack cheese and stir until melted.

[The sauce will look very, very thin-- don't worry, it's supposed to. It's not supposed to get too thick.] 

Spoon sauce into the bottom of a bowl[the amount of sauce is up to you, but it is a very heavy sauce, so beware.] 

Top with noodles, '&garnish with shredded cheese. Mix it all together '&enjoy!

spOtted: Tis The Season.

Oh, my. I can't believe December is here! Well-- it's here tomorrow. hahah! But still, it's pretty much here. I have been so Christmas-y, poor Kaleb is practically ripping his hair out; from making him listen to Christmas music, to watching silly Hallmark Christmas specials[like-- right now, as I'm typing this] he's been such a good sport[he has a Grinchy mentality].

[left to right; me,Diana,Brooke]

[short hair!]

But before I start discussing Christmas, I should talk about Thanksgiving. I spent it in Logan with Cubby's family, like promised. It was, to say the least, eventful. From the whole house filling with smoke, thanks to the turkey[don't worry, it turned out fine], to cookie trains '& yummy eggnog, to cute aprons '& making pumpkin pie, it was a great day. I'm so glad I got to spend it with the future in laws. On top of that-- I chopped all my hair off. Go. Me. Hahah!

[Kasen saying the blessing.]

Since Thanksgiving has come '&gone I am now officially allowed to begin my FULL Christmas enjoyment[see aforementioned music '&movies]. In a few short days, I will heading back to my favorite place in the whole world with my favorite man in the whole world trilling carols all the way there. Upon my arrival, the tree will be put up, '&decorated. Cookies will be made. Presents will be wrapped. 

fa la la la fabulous! 

[simply,simple love]

barbie train

police train

gramma train

stay merry '&bright!

spOtted: A Winter Wonderland

 Ah.. Winter is among us! Yesterday, it was snowing-- ALL DAY! And for once, I am LOVING it. It is perfect sweater,scarf,soup&'snuggle[it's S season!] weather.

Out here in Cache Valley[the boondocks!] it was snowing from early in the a.m. until about 9 p.m.;I'm sure it continued later into the night, I just know it wasn't snowing while the fam was in the hot tub![hot tub&'snow=bliss] We got maybe nine or ten inches;all I know is that it's beautiful!

And of course, snow means so many things! Cute fashion,hot chocolate,roaring fires,candy canes,sparkles[I'm hoping to get a sparkly addition this holiday season]family parties,Christmas movies-- the list of bliss goes on.

Stay safe&' I'll post again soon!

xo-evie

spOtted: A Whole New World?

(So I typed up this blog once already, only to have the internet decide to freak out, &' just not work. hahah! So this is my second attempt. Hopefully it works! If not-- this little bit of commentary is pointless. If it does work-- all of my readers can laugh at me.)

So after not blogging for quite some time, I have a good amount to catch up on. So lets start from the beginning...

Halloween has come &' gone, sadly. We went up to Logan for a family party &' I had such a fun time. I got to meet some of the extended family. They are all such fun, lovely people. I can't promise I remember everyones names (there was a good amount of people there! I met so many people.) but I can remember what a fun time it was.

Shortly after that, Kaleb got a new job at a place called AlliedBarton-- a security company that works all over the Salt Lake Valley. Well, he got hired on full time, &' had incredible hours (incredible as in he had weekends off, &' a set schedule.) Well basically, right after getting hired, he was diagnosed with strep. When he let his boss know, his boss told him to NOT come in, not until the antibiotics had been in his system for the correct amount of time, &' such. So Kaleb went along with that, &' was fine. Well, after that, he got a call letting him know that his boss said he was "giving away" his shifts. AFTER MISSING ONE DAY, THAT HE WAS TOLD NOT TO COME IN FOR. So right off the bat, I'm thinking, something is just not right here. So that gets sorted out, and Kaleb carries on working-- &' next thing we know is, his schedule changes-- BIG TIME. His boss decides to change him to a "flex" schedule, &' now Kaleb is working Friday, Saturday and Sunday, completely ridiculous hours. So it's just issue after issue. Well, Kaleb called in yesterday, being sick still. Well, his boss calls him this morning, &' fires him. So not okay with me. Apparently, things just "aren't working out" for them. Right, cause the guy had it out for him to begin with. I guess that's how things go. This guy can cause issues when he decides he doesn't like a person. That makes perfect sense. It sounds like a great company to work for, don't you think? So I guess it's a blessing, in a way that Kaleb doesn't work there anymore. Oh well, c'est la vie.

Well, with that being said, Kaleb &' I have been discussing some big things-- like... REALLY big things. He's talking about maybe moving out to Logan-- &' he wants me to go with him. So, if everything works out the way we want it too, that will for sure be happening.

This relationship is-- simply put-- the easiest relationship I've ever been in. I'm comfortable. I can be myself. I haven't laughed so much as I have lately. Being around him is as easy breathing. I feel so good about myself when he's around, &' he's so funny. I can't wait to experience the future with him.

Well-- That's all for now.

I'm sure I'll have more to talk about later.

xo-- evie

spOtted: A Better Heart..

Its finally, finally over. After months &' months of tears, &' heartache &' fighting-- its over.

As most of you know (I don't know who actually reads this) I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy, Kaden. Well, when Kaden was about five months old, I made the hard decision of giving him up for adoption. I realized that I was in no place to give him the life I wanted too.

Well, I had an issue.. Kaden's father, wasn't particulary in the picture. So I needed him to sign his rights over, in order for my sister, Shannon (Kaden's best choice) to adopt him. Well.. There was A LOT of drama. Much to much to go into. But long story short, a lot of people got hurt, and there was a lot of confusion and frustration, but it came down to a simple truth: we need to do what's best for Kaden.

I just barely, maybe 45 minutes ago, was told that Kaden's father was ready to sign over his rights.

So now, as much as my heart is breaking, a new chapter of life is about to begin, and with that being said, I would like to say thank you to Kaden's dad, for being strong and brave. I also want to thank Shannon, and her family for taking Kaden in and giving him everything I wished for him. I love my son very much, and om so grateful to ths experience for making me stronger.

That's all for now..

xo-- evie

"When faced with a tough decision, your heart &' your head are going to tell you two different things. So sit &' think for awhile. Then decide if you have a better head, or a better heart." --unknown