Craft groupies

Some of my friends here in Texas started a craft group. Yesterday was our first one and it was so much fun! We made christmas tree's out of old books and jar snow globes. It was a much needed girls night full of funny stories and delicious Christmas treats.  Can't wait until the next one girls! Bring on refurbishing baby Amelia's crib!

Cowboys game

And yet another weekend in Dallas!!!

 Heath received field passes to a Dallas Cowboys game and invited Tyler - he couldn't pass up the offer! Aaron, Alex, Heath, Tyler, and Pete all met us there too! Such a short but fun trip to Dallas.

Halloween

Our road trip to Dallas

[10.31.11]

The weekend started off with an intense Spider man and Hulk fight,

And it somehow turned in to an underwear battle.

We went for a bike ride,

went to the park,

baked delicious punkin' cupcakes,

ate some pre-halloween candy out of mom and dad's candy bucket,

And made sure the house looked good for all the trick-or-treater's!

We loved our trip and can't wait until Thanksgiving to see these boys again!

Wall Collage

I finally finished our wall collage. It was my very first one and it took me forever. I just couldn't make up my mind. I kept moving and adding things. I'm sure we'll have to pay for all the holes in the wall. But hey, at least our apartment feels like home :)

[L]ummy!

Dinner for 2: Pear and Kale Smoothie

Tyler and I have been on a green smoothie kick. Once we find one we like we stick to it for weeks or even months. Recently I found some new recipes and thought we'd try it for dinner. This one is our new favorite! (Probably because it's a little on the mild side)

1 banana

1 pear 

1 orange

1 big heaping handful of Kale

1/2 cup water

Ice to desired thickness 

Love him even though he is a hairy mammoth!

Our favorite drink

Tyler and I have a new obsession over La Croix sparking water. It is such a great replacement for high caloric drinks/soda. It's sodium free and contains zero sugar and NO CALORIES! yeah! It comes it a variety of flavors but our favorite is either lemon or grapefruit. The lemon tastes like Sprite and the grapefruit tastes like Fresca. It's delish! It's the perfect treat at the end of a meal. 

Halloween teaser

Project: Family room

Have you ever gone shopping and wanted something so badly? I always give myself a rule. If it's been weeks since you saw it and it's still on your mind, BUY IT! Most of the time I've forgotten it by the time I make it home but it wasn't the case with this mirror. I saw it at Pottery Barn almost 2 months ago and haven't gone a day without thinking about it. Back then it was $280. My price...$70! I waited and waited forever for the store to mark it down. So happy I waited!

 Tyler using his construction skills - youtube trained. He learned how to use toggle bolts to hang heavy pieces. They hold up to 100 lbs and were so easy to use. 

I hung the sconces to finish the look. 

And the final product...

What's his is mine...

So whenever Tyler goes to Italy for work I find projects to do to keep me busy. Recently I have been obsessed with wreaths. Any type of wreath. Earlier this year I made a hydrangea door wreath with some hydrangeas I had lying around the house. I wanted to make more wreaths to hang above our bedside tables in our bedroom. I didn't have flowers left so I decided to make it out of an old book. I rummaged through all of Tyler's old book and found one that looked old enough - assuming he wouldn't mind me tearing it apart. So I went for it.  A few hours later (plus a lot of hot glue!) I finished 2 book wreaths. One for each side of the bed. I ended up adding an empty frame I found at Michaels to finish the look. The next day I called and asked Tyler about the particular book I used and later found out he just bought that book!! Oops! I guess I need to realize that just because we got married, what's his is NOT mine ;)

The best husband ever!

 I couldn't  have asked for a better husband. Tyler is up for doing anything whether it's walking around the mall, getting pedicures, grocery shopping, or getting a homemade facial.  You name it, he'll do it. He will always take time away from his busy work schedule to spend some quality time with me. Thanks Tyler for being my best friend and the best husband ever!!!

Return Activity from Italy

Upon touching down on Houston soil Amanda awaited my return with an great surprise activity that works wonders for a married couple and their feet...a pedicure.  Yep, I am who I am, my feet are strong-er and spending time with my wife was the best cure for a lonely two week work trip.

My other half

I think this picture would look a lot better if I was standing on the other side of the leaning tower of Pisa. Recently Tyler has been traveling to Italy for work. Sounds glamorous, right? I could say this was probably true the first time he went over but he has spent so much time over there within the last 6 months that Italy has now become a swear word in our relationship! He is such a hard worker and I admire his hard work and dedication. Way to go Ty! 

  

Project:Apartment

In my attempt to make our apartment a home, I decided to start with the front door. I happened to have a few bunches of hydrangeas (my favorite flower!) lying around and didn't want to do the usual by stuffing them in a vase for a centerpiece. Instead I made a wreath and love how it turned out. I hung it with burlap to add some texture. 

Next was the bedroom. I wanted something fresh, soft and relaxing. Thanks to my new part-time job at Pottery Barn, I was able to furnish our bedroom (thank you discount!). 

Next stop: OFFICE! So excited I can hardly wait. I ordered an office desk set from Pottery Barn and it should be delivered within the next week. It's about time I have a room just for teaching! 

Honeymoon

So I lied...I thought we didn't take any pictures on our honeymoon but found a few! 

We went to Ruth's Chris for our first time and I must say, it was delicious! 

Kory and Ashley were kind enough to give us their season passes to the San Diego Safari Park. It was a nice relaxing day in the beautiful weather of California. We would LOVE to move there some day. Anything to get out of this southern sauna!

This rhino was huge - definitely bigger than it looks! As you can see, Tyler was very graceful in his attempt to sit on top. 

For some reason I have an obsession with cotton candy.  If I see it I HAVE to buy it. This indulgence must go!

With me trying to eat gluten free, finding a restaurant with a gluten free menu is so hard. So I decided to google gluten free restaurants in San Diego and found the Trails Neighborhood Eatery. We decided to go there for breakfast (my absolute favorite meal!) and give it a try.  I ordered a delicious omelet while Tyler splurged and got the cinnamon roll pancakes, packed full of gluten. Thanks a lot Tyler! Of course I had to try some and break my gluten free streak. SO GOOD! Definitely made my top 10 list of the best foods ever tasted. 

Wish I had more pictures! Don't worry, I'm learning my lesson. New Year (or mid-year) resolution: TAKE MORE PICTURES!

Our Wedding - Temple

August 6th finally came!! Tyler and I were married early (and I mean REALLY early) Saturday, August 6th, 2011 in the Salt Lake City LDS Temple. I woke up at 4:30 a.m. to be to the temple by 7:30. And believe it or not I was late! I didn't show up until 8:15. Tyler was sweating bullets. There were no cold feet, I was just having too much fun getting dressed up like a princess (as my nieces called it). We had a beautiful sealing and were surrounded by 45 of our closest friends and family. It was such an amazing feeling walking in to the sealing room seeing everyone who came to support us. Our sealer was Derrill Richards,who just happened to be somewhat family! (ok, saying he was family is a little bit of a stretch but he is my cousin Kimra's grandfather-in-law). Regardless, small world!

My two precious nieces were one of the first to give Tyler a great big hug! They love him already!

The whole crew!

Chamberlain siblings

The Kofoed Family

Grandpa and Betty Chamberlain. No clue what Tyler was doing!

Best picture of the day. Colin and Aiden, who usually are the most well behaved kids, thought all these pictures were torture! Their faces are priceless and says it all. On the contrary, the 3 girls thought this was the best day ever and could have posed for the camera all day! 

Can you tell we're related? Like mother like daughter :)

The girls!

The Boys - Of course we couldn't get all of them to cooperate