Invitations...Check

Months ago at my monthly wine night my girlfriend's suggested us girls make our wedding invitations. I initially was not on board with them because it just seemed like a lot of work and I am very particular on how I like things and I wanted to make sure they are done right. After some convincing how much fun it will be to have a girl day and make the invitations I got on board. My friend, Kim, gave me an invitation idea from her husband's cousin's wedding and I thought the invitation was great and only needed slight tweaking to make it ours. The next step was to purchase the necessary materials and thanks to my friend, Amber, I was able to get the correct paper at the best price from the website she purchased all her paper from to make her wedding invitations. With all that said, we met yesterday to slice, tape, glue and assemble the wedding invitations at Kim's house. Thankfully I had help from my fabulous friends: Jessica, Amber and Kim because I could never have done this without them. I never even would have thought about making the invitations without them. I am glad I did make them because now I have memories of making my invitations with my girlfriends and that is way better than having the invitations made.

With having a destination wedding we only needed 61 invitations so that doesn't sound bad...right? Well, it took us 7 hours to make the 61 invitations...keep in mind we had four people doing this. I honestly had no idea how long it was going to take, but once we sat down and got started I knew I would be at Kim's house well into the night.

Here is the first photo of the day....we are all smiling because we have no idea we will be at this table for the next 7 hours.

While we were hard at work we were able to munch on my favorite appetizer ever...a pesto and roasted pepper cheese ball with crackers. This went well with the wine we were drinking. Kim made it as she knows that is my absolute favorite and I love when she makes this. It is so yummy!

Here is my workstation. This is where I sat for hours on end slicing paper.

Here is Kim hard at work.

Amber is also hard at work.

The last photo is of the group towards the end of the slave driving.

I am not going to include photos of the invitation that we all worked so hard to make as there has to be some element of surprise when you receive yours in the mail.

I did not take any pictures of Ella and Stella as they were there all day too and they were very good little girls...and adorable little girls, might I add. I am very glad us girls got together and made the wedding invitations as I had such a great time. I also appreciate their help as I could not have made these invitations without them.

Colors, Dresses and Invitations...OH MY!

So, this weekend I wanted to get all my paper needed to create my invitations and to get moving on the bridesmaid dresses. Let's just say I got very little accomplished. I started with the invitations and I listened to my friend Amber when she said we could have a girls day and make them together so all I needed to do was get the supplies. I already have one picked out that I really like and all I had to do was go buy paper and supplies. Mmmmm...I headed to Jo-Ann's to pick out the ribbon needed. While there I didn't find anything that was just quite right. I liked some of the ribbon, but it wasn't perfect...notice my obsession with perfection. Then I headed to Michael's and I found two ribbons but started to stress out just picking the ribbon I liked....Ahhh! Again, another example of my perfectionist self and another reason as to why we are doing a destination wedding. I am trying to avoid as many of these stressful moments that are brought on based on my obsession with everything being perfect.

Then I got home, calmed down and scoured the internet for bridesmaid dresses. I found many dresses that I just love; however, they did not include the colors of our wedding. I swear I must have looked at 1,000 dresses this weekend and it turned out to be a huge bummer for me. This dress searching has me rethinking the colors of the wedding. I might as well pick a color where I can have my girls where a beautiful dress over settling for a dress because it fits within the color scheme. I mean we are still early enough into this planning that we can change the colors. This color issue has put my paper purchasing on hold since I don't want to buy the wrong color. I am in luck as the color of ribbon I bought will fit into the new color scheme if that is the road I choose to travel. When asking Andy his opinion he said he doesn't care about the colors of the wedding as he knows he trusts whatever color I choose to look great.

So, my weekend of wedding accomplishments was pretty unsuccessful as I only made one decision this weekend...the color of the ribbon on the wedding invitations. There is always next weekend!

Pasta Salad and Hummus

Last weekend we went over to the Seifert's house for dinner and chit chat. We offered to bring the side dish to accompany Karen's chili. I also thought it would be nice to bring an appetizer to munch on since we were heading over there at 2pm for the Packer game.

For the appetizer I thought I would make homemade hummus since I love hummus so much and it's good for you. I eat it almost every day for lunch, but I always buy it in the store. This time I thought it would be fun to make it at home. It turned out a little watery, but I know next time not to use as much water as the recipe says. Here is what the recipe called for and besides the runny factor it turned out very tasty!

Ingredients

• 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 3/4 cup water (I used the water from the chickpeas; however, I would advise to add this at the end if needed so yours does not turn out runny.)
  
• 1/2 cup tahini
• Lemon juice from 2 lemons
  
• 1 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 clove garlic
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

In a food processor, combine the chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, salt, and garlic and puree. While the motor is running, pour in the olive oil and process until fully incorporated. Add the water at the end if necessary. Season with pepper, to taste. Store in the refrigerator for 6 hours, for the flavors to come together.

I served the hummus with carrots, cucumbers and two different kinds of pita chips.

I also made a very light pasta salad for a side. It was my first time making pasta salad because I normally don't care for pasta salad as the dressing is usually too heavy for me. I don't care for the creamy dressing and a lot of times the clear dressing ends up being drenched on the salad that I really don't like it. I came across this recipe for the dressing in the Taste of Home Cookbook and thought it sounded light so I gave it a shot and it turned out amazing. If you are looking for a light pasta salad for a gathering I would highly suggest this one.

Ingredients

4 cups cooked spiral pasta
2 medium carrots, julienned
1 container of the tiny tomatoes
2 cups broccoli florets
Cubed cheese (as much as you prefer)
Chop a bundle of green chives

Dressing Ingredients

2/3 Cup vegetable oil
1/3 Cup red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons minced fresh basil (I actually used fresh parsley)
1/4 teaspoon salt
Garlic powder to taste

Once you have mixed all the dressing ingredients together toss it in with the dry ingredients. Chill for an hour and then serve. This was so light and tasty that I could eat this almost every day.

A Rosey New Years

So, as everybody knows the Badgers made it to the Rose Bowl this year and we of course had to go. As soon as it was announced that the Badgers were going Andy said he would be seriously disappointed if we did not go. Neither of us have been to a Rose Bowl game and we are only a five hour drive away, so it would have really bummed Andy out if we did not go. We got back to Arizona from Christmas in Wisconsin on Thursday, December 30th and then got back in the car with our friends, Mike and AJ, on the morning of Friday, December 31st to head to California.

We stayed at a nice hotel in Newport Beach, which was only a 35 minute drive from Pasadena. Staying in Newport Beach saved us a lot of money on the hotel. Here is a view from our deck.


We spent New Year's Eve out in Newport beach at a few of the local bars. This made it impossible to make it to the Rose Bowl parade. We never really planned to go to the parade since it started at 8am and by the news it looked kind of crazy at the parade area the night before. The news showed people sleeping on the sidewalk the night before...which by my terms is insane. It's a parade! Anyway, we made it to the stadium area about 11am to start tailgating before the game started at 2pm. Here is a picture of Andy and I from the tailgating area.


The introduction before the big game begins!





Well, as everybody knows the Badgers did not win the Rose Bowl. Even so, it was an accomplishment to make it to the Rose Bowl and it was an experience to be able to attend the Bowl game and support our Badgers. It was exciting to see all the Badger fans there fill the stadium. I would say the stadium was 75% red and 25% purple...what a beautiful sight. We had a great time and are looking forward to doing again...hopefully next year. Go Badgers!

It's A Doggie Dog Christmas

Hi blog followers, it's me, Izzy! Well, this past Christmas mom and dad took Madison and I on another journey to Wisconsin to celebrate with family. I am not going to lie it was a long car ride, but mom was a trooper and did her half of the driving both ways. I even started to get crabby once we hit Iowa as I did snap at my sister. Madison took it pretty well though. Once we got there we dropped Madison off at grandma Laura's house and I headed over to grandma Vicki and grandpa Jeff's house. I must say I really like their house as it gives me plenty of room to run like the crazy dog that I am. Once I arrived I was ready to play and let loose, especially after I was stuck in a car forever, but mom wanted to get some sleep. After much effort of convincing me to go to bed I finally gave in and laid down, but I was up bright and early to great everyone in the house.

Mom says I was a much better behaved dog this year. The only mess I made was when I turned grandma's white carpet pink, but that was not my fault. You see, mom gave me a pink bone to keep me occupied and she did not know it would bleed pink onto the carpet. Grandpa had to get his famous Bissel out and clean up the pink mess that I had unknowingly made. Hey, that is the only mess I made while visiting WI this year, which is pretty good considering last year.

Madison had a relaxing time at grandma Laura's house and dad likes to say that she enjoyed her time away from my hyperness...I beg to differ though. Here is Madison at grandma Laura's house. This is her favorite spot in the house to lounge. She likes to claim the ottoman as hers.


The next night mom went out to meet an old friend of hers while I stayed in to rough house and then snuggle with the grandparents and their dog Shadow. Mom says she met up with an old friend that she hasn't seen in five years, but it was just like old times as if five years never past. Now that is true friendship. Here is a picture of mom with her good friend Mindy.


I must say this year in Wisconsin it was not as cold as the past two years. I must give a big thanks though to mom and dad for buying me a sweater this year in preparation for the cold weather. The sweater was so mom could take me for walks to wear off some of my boxer energy while not freezing my butt off. Here I am prior to one of our walks and then mom and I after we got back from our walk.



One great thing about WI is all the kids I got to play with while I was there. I got to play with my cousins Kyle and Tayler quite a bit. Here is me with Kyle.


There were even plenty of more kids for Madison and I to play with up at dad's side of the family in Wautoma, WI. While Madison was planning her attack on the food in the kitchen I was running with the kids and figuring out how to get their little white fluff ball of a dog to play with me. Their dog does not like other dogs, but what dog wouldn't want to play with me? Also, while I was there I learned how to jump REALLY high as I jumped from behind the living room couch and landed on the top of the back side of the couch where I could see everyone. I don't know why everyone laughed and then mom yelled at me to get down, but before I knew it mom pulled me off the couch and told me "no." Mmmm...I am still unsure of what I did wrong. That was quite the day of playing as I didn't get one nap in that day, so once I got back to grandma and grandpa's house I was out cold. Mom thought this was great!


Before Madison and I knew it mom and dad had us back in the car to head back to Arizona for another 26 hour car drive. We were pretty lucky that dad is addicted to his iPhone so that he was aware of the bad weather northern Arizona was getting. We learned they had to close down major highways due to the bad snow storms, so mom and dad were able to go from Albuquerque, NM down south to Tucson and then up to Phoenix. It added on another two hours to our drive; however, we were just glad we made it home safe and did not get stuck in the mountains like so many other people did. I hope everyone had a great Christmas as I know Madison, mom, dad and myself did in Wisconsin!

Fo Fo Fondue...Happy Holidays!

Last night we went over to our good friends house for their annual holiday fondue party. Just like last year they had two cheese pots for the appetizers, two pots for the meat and then a chocolate fountain for all the yummy desserts. I offered to be the designated driver since our friends live so far away that they are practically in Mexico. That allowed Andy, Mike and AJ to have fun without worrying how they were going to get home. Hey, I took one for the team.

Andy and I of course got our friends little girls presents for Christmas because isn't Christmas more about the kids anyway? So, I have this knack for getting good presents for kids rather it's birthday or Christmas...see this post for an example. This holiday was no exception...besides one minor glitch. While in Kohl's I came across Dr. Seuss books and matching stuffed animals. I thought this was super cute and would be a great Christmas gift for a 1 year old and 18 month old, especially since one of the books was The Grinch that Stole Christmas and had a matching Grinch stuffed animal. It was oh so cute. I wish I had pictures to show you, but I am not very good at being on top of taking pictures. Not only were they so cute, but the money received from the sale went to a Children's foundation...but I just can't remember which one. So, each girls got the grinch book and matching grinch stuffed animal along with the Wocket book and a stuffed animal character from that book. Stella, being one years old, wasn't as interested in the present as she was interested in the wrapping paper. Ella also wasn't as interested in the books with matching dolls because she was more interested in Stella's birthday present. So, it was also Stella's birthday and Andy and I decided she had to get one gift for Christmas and a separate gift for her birthday wrapped in birthday paper to make sure they are separate gifts and not combined. I know she doesn't understand at one years old, but it was important to us to make sure she had two separate gifts. Andy and I both think it would suck to have a birthday so close to Christmas. So, for Stella's birthday gift we got her a Tickle Me Elmo doll that rolled around as it laughed. It was super cute that Ella was more interested in Stella's Elmo than her own gift. Then once her daddy got Elmo out of the box Elmo started rolling around, which caused everyone to laugh and Ella to cry. She was crying so hard that she had giant tears rolling down her face. While this was going on Stella continued to play with the wrapping paper. Oh, how fun it is to be one years old again...to find wrapping paper more fun than the actual gift itself! So, unfortunately this time my gift made a little girl scream and cry because she was afraid of it...oops!! It was just a minor glitch in my gift giving.

Well, Saturday was a lot of fun with friends and fondue. It was even more fun to see the little girls play together like they were born to be BFF's...ok, maybe their mothers secretly got pregnant around the same time so their kids could be BFF's. Mmmmm! Anyway, it was a great weekend and happy holidays everyone!

Passport...Check

Well, I can now say I got another wedding thing checked off my to-do list. I got a passport this past Saturday so I can travel to Mexico for the wedding. I made my appointment for 10am this past Saturday at the post office thinking people won't be getting passports right before Christmas so the line at the post office should be non-existent or fairly short. I don't know why I thought like that because not everybody goes to the post office for passports only. I mean two weeks before Christmas they are shipping many packages, picking up packages, etc. etc. etc. I talked Andy into going to the post office with me just in case there was a line he could help keep me company. He initially said this past weekend probably was not a good weekend to get a passport due to the hoards of people who do not use FedEx to ship packages. I thought he was crazy...until we arrived at the post office and saw the very long line. Ok, so maybe Andy was right...this time! Even though I made a 10am appointment the guy on the phone instructed me to stand in line if there was one. Now what is the point of making an appointment...mmmmm? So, we stood in line for about 15 minutes when a lady asked if there was somebody in line for a 10am passport...oh, oh, me, me! I eagerly got out of line and headed straight to the counter. Within seconds I was in a back room to get my horrible passport photo taken. I didn't care how bad it was I was just happy that it only took 5 shots to get my eyes at least partially open. So, I look a little stoned in my passport photo with half open eyes I was just happy to have it done and over with. Now I don't have to worry about that for the wedding. Passport is taken care of and should be arriving in 4 weeks.