Chad & Chelsea D'Haenens

Chadly Baby

2011-07-24T15:32:00.000-07:00

THE DAY FINALLY CAME.....
CHAD'S 23rd BIRTHDAY!
p.s. this is Chad at age 3. Adorable right?

Ok so I was waaaaaaaay too excited for this day. Probably more so than the hubs. But come on. Birthdays are THE BEST. (Dramatic much?)

I counted down the minutes until The Chad left for his midnight grave shift and then it was game on. I wrapped 23 presents and decorated the crap out of our house. Wish I could have decorated more but I ran out of streamers. Don't you hate it when that happens? Then I went to bed at 3:00 a.m. Yes, I'm that crazy.

At 9:00 a.m. sharp I heard his car door shut and popped off of my pillow t0 spy at the top of the stairs and drink up his reaction to the mayhem and foolishness I had created. Worth. it.

I made him put on his contacts so that he could get the full effect and come to the table where he found his plethora of presents. The plan was to have him open one or two every hour. FAIL. I got so excited that I had him open all but the last few- those were for that night. Grande Finale if you will.

Then hubs went on a run. swoon. While I made a big breakfast, Egg-in-toast a.k.a. One-eyed-Joes as per request. Delish.

Being Chad's birthday and all- we went golfing. together. yes. Ok- so I mostly just caddied/that's all I did. After all he did need someone to help hold the flag and whatnot.
Note: The new fan. (#4 of 23 presents)

Then we got all dolled up and went to Red Robin for dinner with all of the birthday boys' fam. as well as mine. Quite the turnout. He loved his massive Royal Red Robin Burger complete with not one but two patties and an egg! Boy can put it away.

Then we headed home to the casa and had birthday cake(s) and opened Chad's last presents.

Good Birthday? I think yes.

Summer Catch-Up

2011-07-06T10:05:00.000-07:00

So far... my summer has ROCKED!
It started with planting my garden. Thanks to Chad for helping me with the heavy labor.

Then a trip to Vegas with the fam to see Sir Paul McCartney.
It's amazing how his little 69 year old body can still rock out and give us an incredible show. And for that, we thank you.

I painted my little guest/office/future baby room. It is a delightful shad of gray pleasantly named, Silver Lining!

My hostesses sure know how to party! We kicked off the first day of summer with a pool party.

Then there was a Brick Oven party at the park. The hostesses sure showed up during the raffle. We won most of the prizes! I won a $25 gift certificate to Outback and 2 Movie tickets! Thanks B.O.

We went to the Lehi Rodeo with my best friend, Ashton! It was a lot of fun. Chad already wants to go back. He really got in touch with his inner Cowboy. Fine by me.

Oh- and it helped that he caught this shirt. Who doesn't love free stuff?

Sad note- My favorite manager, Paul Morris got the job as the new General Manager at the South Jordan Brick Oven. We will miss him A LOT!

We enjoyed the beautiful weather in Park City with Chad's family. I rekindled my love of Shaved Ice and became great friends with the Pina Colada flavor. What started out as a safety mechanism for my white shirt blossomed into a beautiful friendship that I crave practically every hour of the day.

Renee conquered her fear of heights and braved the ski lift. It was beautiful weather. Worth it!

I heart the Alpine Slide!

Chad, Dad, Lulu, and I kept the tradition alive and went to see the hot air balloons on the 4th of July. Then we went to the pancake breakfast. It's our tribute to Grandpa Rollins. We miss you!
Yes- we did just wake up and roll out of bed.

After a busy day of work, a family party, and model airplane flying, fireworks were a great way to end the
4th of July.
P.S. Don't mind the dumpster right behind us.

My husband turned into a work-out-a-holic this summer. And with that, he also turned into a
running slave driver.
Thanks Chad for getting my fat butt in gear!

My garden is surviving!!!! And producing already! Who would have thought? I came home from running to find these little beauties. Who needs kids when you have vegetables?
I couldn't be more proud.

So that's our summer so far. You are now all caught up to date. There's still a lot of summer left and a lot more fun things planned. No wonder Summer is everyone's favorite time. Boo winter!

Springtime Pleasantries!

2011-05-19T11:23:00.000-07:00

Spring seriously is the best time ever! School is out and I finally get to spend the much appreciated time with the Mr. that I was missing. He has been an A+ husband so far. Someone clued him into The Sweet Tooth Fairy (who is my personal therapist).

Check out this sweet desk he found on KSL for FREE! His office space is coming along quite nicely if I do say so myself.

With springtime, comes haircuts for the woolseys, AKA:Miss Lulubelle

We picked out some chairs for our family room! This is me using my brute strength to bring them inside. Don't let this facade fool you.
THEY WERE HEAVY!

This cute little thang was in previously mentioned box.
All it needs is some serious color. :) My work is cut out for me.

We've also had time to get our CHUCK on, as the
Mr. is a fellow "nerd herder".
*Swoon*

HAPPY SPRINGTIME E'ERBODY!

EASTER

2011-05-19T11:14:00.000-07:00

So pretty much, it's a really good thing that I have Chad because I could not contain myself this Easter. I was way too excited. While Chad was workin' a graveyard shift, I was busy Easter Bunny-ing it up!
46 candy filled eggs + one stellar Easter basket = AWESOME!

Man I need some kids, or even a classroom full of kids.

One is the Loneliest

2011-04-20T08:19:00.000-07:00

Only one more final today.
Pretty soon I get to take these cute skibbies to Disneyland for their first time ever!
I. Can't. Wait.
But to help, I watched this a bazillion times.
My niece and nephew are cuter than yours. Period.

Playing Catch-Up

2011-04-18T13:01:00.001-07:00

Since it's the middle of Final's week and I'm sick to death of studying, I feel like it's the perfect time to catch you all up on our life. Ready? Hold on to your knickerbockers!

On February 4th, we bought our first house! It's a beautiful little townhouse and we love it!

After some a month or so we finally got internet, grass, and a fence!
My BEAUTIFUL, AMAZING mother had a birthday! We love you Momma!
Chad surprised me on Valentines Day! He said he'd be working a graveyard shift so I wouldn't see him for a good day and a half, but when I got home from work, I found THIS all the way up the stairs and into our room with a big vase of roses! Chad had also fibbed about the graveyard shift! Best husband award!
On February 19th, Chad's brother, Sean and his sweet little bride, Joslyn got married in the Mesa, Arizona Temple! We were lucky enough to be with them for their special day!
It was a very blustery day!Chad enjoyed the wind a little too much!
I threw a hostess party for all of my lovely Brick Oven beauties! Great times were had by all!
I discovered that I love to watercolor paint! That's one good thing that came from one of my bazillion classes!

Another sweet thing that came from a class was the opportunity to visit a Beekeeper! It was awesome and I secretly want to be a beekeeper when I grow up! Shout out to my friend Mark and his website, www.neighborhoodbeekeeping.com
Yes- we are standing in the middle of his bee hives! AAaaah!I met a bunch of amazing girls this semester. It was a lot of fun to have to do all of the many presentations this semester with them! I'm going to miss some of them next semester when we all stay into our cohort assignment groups. P.S. I got the Nebo School District! I'm really excited to get teachin'!
My stud of a husband got into golf fever again and took me golfing with him on one of these past gorgeous days!I have been keeping up with my card group each month, creating a plethora of fun cards like this little diddy!
Chad's brother, Matt and his family flew in from NY for a visit. While they were here, we had a surprise Buzz Lightyear birthday party for Chad's nephew, Dash who turned 3.
The birthday boy eating the amazing Buzz Lightyear cake that his mom, Jen made!

Well- that's all folks. Back to studying for me! See ya in another 3 months! ;)

Insecure

2011-02-07T12:58:00.000-08:00

Interesting day today so far.
It began with me coming to school 1 hour early to work on an assignment because we don't have the internet yet.
It was a VERY confusing assignment and took longer than that 1 hour.
That stunk.
Later, went to math class. Elementary Ed math class.
It totally kicked my butt. Hard.
As I was walking from said math class, someone waved at me.
I didn't know her but I didn't want to be rude, so I waved back.
Then I realized that the person next to me was waving at her.
Insecure.
Come on B.Y.U. when are you going to give me an ego boost?

Remember that one time...

2011-02-04T17:54:00.000-08:00

When we bought our TOWNHOUSE today? Yes. It finally happened. Pictures to come.

Never too early for a Krispy Kreme Run!

2010-11-24T13:14:00.000-08:00

I pretty much didn't have a choice of whether or not I'd like doughnuts.
With grandparents who owned a doughnut shop it was decided. I would be born and raised: a
DOUGHNUT QUEEN!
When Reb and the kids came to P-town early one morning, there was only one thing we could do.
(Well, there were a lot of things, but grandma's house was off limits as she was re-doing her kitchen. But of all the things to do, this was the best.)

Krispy Kreme Run!

Seth, being the goomba that he is, didn't want to get his fingers all sticky from the deliciousness the "hot doughnut sign" brings, so he used his noodle and ate like this.

And Ella, being the genius that she is, decided that the best part was the frosting, and she ate accordingly.

Pretty impressive, if I do say so myself.

Reb's Birthday Bash!

2010-11-24T12:53:00.000-08:00

November is pretty much Birthday Month in our family. It's my sister's, brother-in-law's, mother-in-law's, uncles, cousins, aunts, and my birthday. Whew. Well Rebecca has some outstanding friends who threw her a beautiful Chocolate Spa Night party. Not only does her friend have an AMAZING home, but she's an AMAZING party planner/designer. Wendy and Holly. Really. You're the best.

Here are some pics of the night.

P.S. If you need to have this chalkboard vinyl like I do. Visit Holly's blog and check out her amazing Vinyl Wall Art and Stamp Collection by clicking here.

The foot soaks were a great idea. We brought our own buckets, filled them with water, some essential oils, lemon juice, and a scoop of powdered goat milk. We soaked out feet under the table while we talked, and ate all that chocolate. It's been almost a week and my feet are still silky smooth.

The birthday girl and her two stellar party planners!

Happy Birthday Gail!

2010-11-24T12:42:00.000-08:00

Chad's Mom had a birthday last week! The day was filled with family, yummy food, presents, fun and don't forget carrot cake!

We really love and appreciate Chad's mom! She is a wonderful person and a great example of a hard worker. She also is a teacher so I really look up to her. I'm so glad that I get to be part of your family Gail. Happy Birthday!

For the past couple months I've been planning what I want to make for her. So I copied this little beauty. With lots of trial and error, banning of Mod Podge, sticky stuff, facebook for the pictures, and strong magnets it turned out great!

Here's a close-up!

Grumpy McGrumperson

2010-11-18T13:32:00.001-08:00

Today I'm grumpy. It all started when I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Got to work on time though. Only to find that I was not scheduled from 10:15- 2:30 like I have been for the past 1 1/2 months. No. That would be too easy. I'm scheduled to close from 4-midnight. I went home and canceled the appointment to pick out all of our new flooring with Chad and his mom. And also had to cancel our one date night of the week. Yeah! Awesome!

Well I'm going to go buy myself some spicy chicken nuggets from Wendy's and get ready for work. Just in time for Chad to come home from work and kiss me goodbye.

Today could have been an AWESOME day. But instead it decided to bird poop on all my plans.

P.S. Next post won't be so negative. I promise.

Goodbye!

2010-11-08T13:37:00.000-08:00

November is a month of Goodbyes.

Goodbye to our front door. #102 and the door that sometimes wouldn't lock right and would make me late for work.

Goodbye to our cozy little family room. There were a lot of movies watched here as well as countless hours of Buzz, and don't forget the Super Bowl Party. Good times!

Goodbye to our great kitchen. I learned to be inventive here as well as really learned how to cook.

Goodbye to our Junk Room/Guest Room/Study/Turtle Room.
There have been a lot of visitors here. This room also helped me through finals. Thank heavens for this room or we would not have Violet the turtle. :)

Goodbye to my scrunched closet. I'm pretty sure I won't miss you. I wish you had been big enough for all of my shoes not to mention, any of Chad's clothes.

Goodbye Washer/Dryer set. You clunked along for a whole 2 hours to get our things washed and dried. For that, I thank you.

Goodbye stairs to where Lulu does her business. Pretty sure she won't miss you, but I will.

Goodbye Bedroom window looking out to where Lulu does her business. It was very convenient for when it was snowing or raining.

Goodbye hot tubs that NEVER once worked the whole time we were here. I wish we could have been friends.

Goodbye Bell Court Condo #102, we will miss you.

HELLO (again) to my mom and dad's house! We will be living there from the end of November to the middle of January while we wait for our townhouse to be built!

Halloween!

2010-11-08T13:28:00.000-08:00

Halloween this year was a lot of fun. Brick Oven requires that if you are scheduled to work on Halloween, you have to wear a costume.
Well. Of course. I was scheduled.
So here's some pics of the night at Brick Oven.

Oh and Pee Ess: Lulu was Toothless from How To Train Your Dragon!

Accepted!

2010-10-23T16:02:00.000-07:00

I GOT ACCEPTED TO MY PROGRAM AT B.Y.U!!!!
It's not easy to be an Elementary Ed AND and Early Childhood Ed major but there is an end in sight now. Look out Kindergarteners... here I come! Finally, all my hard work is starting to pay off and it feels pretty dang good!
Hooray!

James

2010-10-12T21:41:00.001-07:00

I was raised on James Taylor music. I LOVE HIM. He just makes me feel like I'm seven again sitting in the family room while my dad sings along at the top of his lungs. (My dad has a rockin' voice. It sounds just like James Taylor.) Here's one of my very favorite songs. It's called Mean Old Man. I feel like everyone has one or two people who have changed them from a "Mean Old Man" to a "Golden Retriever Puppy Dog". I'm grateful for those people today.

Anyways, Here are the lyrics. Did I mention, James Taylor is also an amazing poet! Enjoy.

On my own
How could I have known?
Imagine my surprise
Just a fool
From a tree full of fools
Who can't believe his eyes
Imagine my surprise

I was a mean old man
I was an ornery cuss
I was a dismal dan
I made an awful fuss
Ever since my life began
Man, it was ever thus
I was a nasty tyke who was hard to like

I had to misbehave
I did things in reverse
Refused to wash or shave
I was horrid to my nurse
I got back what I gave
Which only made me worse
I had to have my way
Which was bleak and gray, oh dear

Living in here
One hundred years of rain
Such a drag
This riches to rags
With just myself to blame
A dirty low-down shame

Silly me
Silly old me
Somewhere outside my mind
Clever you
Walking me through
Willing to lead the blind
Just in the nick of time

Who gets a second chance?
Who gets to have some fun?
Who gets to learn to dance
Before his race is run?
Who gets to she'd his skin?
Who comes up born again?
Who was a mean old man
'til you turned him into a golden retriever
Puppy dog
Who's a good boy?

Before Meets After

2010-10-02T13:42:00.000-07:00

One of my summer goals was to re-do my bedroom lamps! Well. I'm finally posting pictures!
Ta Da!
What do you think?

BEFORE

AFTER

Sorry that I don't have a before picture of the lamps in my room. I'll just say that they looked like a hot mess in there.

Deer Valley Getaway!

2010-10-01T10:06:00.000-07:00

After my eventful Thursday night at the Lion King, Chad and I met up with the family at my Uncle's Cabin in Deer Valley for the weekend. It was a much needed retreat and so nice to be up in the beautiful mountains with my family. The leaves were all changing colors and it was breath-taking. Not to mention, the Bocci Ball tourney was amazing. :)

My mom is the best cook in the world. We had chicken peanut sautee, Roast, sandwiches and and plethora of other deliciousness.

Reb got to catch up on her reading and finished the final Hunger Games book, Mockingjay.

Seth got to take it easy in the hot tub. Lock up your daughters!

Ella strikes a pose after her fresh mani/pedi.

I gave myself a pedicure after a long day of outlet shopping with my Mom. One of my favorite hobbies. Mom and I are discount divas and brought home a lot of cute things for a fraction of the cost. Go team!
Please ignore my horrible hair, my hair appointment was the next week.

Chad got a lot of catch-up sleep as well as a trip to the driving range with my dad.
On Sunday Chad and I took a nature walk. It was a gorgeous day and we were very happy to be up there. Can I just say? What a Hottie McHotterson.

It was such a great weekend. THANKS SO MUCH to Mom and Dad for making it possible, keeping us fed with delicious food, and going out of their way for us to have a fun time! We love you!

The Lion Sleeps Tonight...

2010-10-01T09:46:00.000-07:00

A couple Wednesday nights ago I got home from work, excited about the fun weekend ahead and noticed that my mom had called and invited me to go see The Lion King in SLC the next night. They had an extra ticket! Boy did I luck out!

First we were treated to Olive Garden courtesy Kyle Rollins! Thanks Dad, it was delicious.

Ella was very excited to see the play. So excited in fact, that she couldn't eat her food. When our waitress told her that she had to eat now because all the lions would have eaten all the food at the play Ella just looked away and laughed saying, "Doesn't she know? My mom ALWAYS has fruit snacks."

The whole crew: Grandma, Reb, Dad, Mom, Me and last but not least, Ella! She was very excited to go to this "big girl" event.

One excited little skibby!

The play was FANTASTIC! I recommend it to anyone who can get tickets. It was beautiful and the costumes were seriously magical. I have to admit, I did shed a tear or two. They did a wonderful job. Ella did her "chirping" giggle the whole time and was happy to be there the whole time, despite getting out a couple hours past her bedtime! :)
THANKS MOM, DAD, AND GRANDMA for the fantastic night.

A Perfect Day

2010-09-12T10:19:00.000-07:00

I knew it was going to be a great day but I had no idea it would turn out to be as fantastic as it did. My mom came to pick my up at the apartment to go to Scrapbook Expo USA. I was super excited but she blew my mind with a surprise she got me from her latest trip to Ohio. Those that know me, know that I have a thing for Circus Peanuts. I adore them. Well., her surprise was a bag of MULTICOLORED Circus Peanuts. That's when I knew the day would be epic.

The best part of all is they are slightly different flavors. Ie: Pink is bubblegum. White is vanilla.

We loved the Scrapbook Expo. It was our first time going and we were blown away by how many women were there with all of their scrap supply strewn out on all the tables. Wow.

We also picked up on a few techniques for next year, such as: Don't freak out and buy a bunch of stuff at the first booth because of their sweet awesome deals. (Every booth has sweet awesome deals, some better than others.)
Next year, we'll shop around first.

It was such a fun time! I'm so glad that my mom is so much like me, or visa versa. We appreciated all the same stuff. And we also got giddy at the same stuff too. :)

As if the Expo wasn't enough, we went out to eat at a place called, Pei Wei. I had never been but my mom said it was a more affordable version of P.F. Changs so I was in.

We got lettuce wraps and honey chicken. Mmmmm! Also. They have orange and lemon slices to put in your water. Orange slices? We were intrigued. We came. We tried. We LOVED! It put just lemon water to shame. Poor lemon.

Afterwards, I met up with Chad, Sean, and Jeff to mini-golf it up. It was really pleasant weather and also a lot of fun. Not to toot my own horn, but I got a hole it one. Sorry, toot.

Chad and I ended the night with a movie with my parents.
Perfect Day!

The only thing to make it better is if I win that contest I signed up for to win free bundt cake for a year! Fingers crossed.

Seth-A-Boy Turned Two!

2010-09-04T08:30:00.000-07:00

We were really excited when Seth was born into our family, being a heavily girl populated one. We were even more excited when Seth turned 2! Can't believe he is this big already. Last night we went over to Reb and Rob's to celebrate. Seth is obsessed with Buzz Lightyear, or "Buuuh Ligh-year" as he says it. It was only fitting that we celebrated with "Buuuh" in mind. It was really fantastic.

Rebecca made the Alien cupcakes which turned out so adorable. And me, being my mother's daughter, volunteered to make Seth's cake. I found a cake recipe that I had been needing to find an excuse to make for about 2 months now.

Isn't he such a charmer boy?

Surprise! After four hours of cake intensive labor, this beauty was born. I'm pretty happy with it. The cake I got the idea from had seven smaller layers, all different colors, making it a true rainbow cake.

Almost every present was somehow Toy Story associated. Each time Seth opened a present he would yell in an extremely excited almost squealy voice, "BUUH LIGH- YEAR!" It never got old. Each present was just as exciting as the last. Of course he ended up with a Buzz Lightyear of his own that his mom and dad gave him.

He also got this sweet space ranger shooter. He doesn't quite know how to hold it yet. Thank goodness he's not a cop. But he does know how to "get bad guys".

It's not a party until Chad pulls a face in a picture.

I have no idea what happened to this picture so that's all I'll say about that.
Reb threw a great party. It was perfect and "out of this world".
Sorry, it had to be said.

Missing

2010-09-01T09:30:00.000-07:00

I miss these people.

My sister, Rachel.
My diva, Cristina.

Time for a quickie?

2010-08-31T17:54:00.000-07:00

Is this not the cutest thing you've ever seen? I especially love the adult hands holding the baby. Also note the cutout behind the baby for said adult's body. Thank you Martha Stewart.

Pee Ess: More posts to come once I a.) unload all of my pictures off my camera, b.) take a couple pictures of some things that I'm feeling bloggerish about, and c.) once freakin' JoAnne's Fabric gets this ribbon I need to finish up a crafting project. Be patient. I know I'm trying to be.

Until then, I hope Owl Boy tides you over.

Miss Lulubelle

2010-08-15T10:39:00.000-07:00

I have THE worlds best/cutest/sweetest/most amazing dog in the entire world.
I got Lulu for my birthday when I was in seventh grade. It was the best present I have ever gotten. Being the youngest of three girls I always wanted a younger sibling. Lulu is just that. She pretty much thinks that she's a person. To prove it, I have to keep a second water cup next to my bed because Lulu will wake up during the night and scrape on the bed for a glass of water. She only drinks out of her dog dish when she's A. Exhausted from playing with her ball, or B. When she's eating.Even though Lu is a 10 year old dog (that's 70 in dog years) she is definitely not an 'old fogey'. She enjoys going jogging with me, going to the park and running clear across a field for a good hour in the hot sun playing with her ball, and watching movies with Chad.

Chad is sooooo whipped.

One day while Chad and I were at work we accidentally kept our bedroom door closed and Lulu (thinking we were in there) tried to dig through and took out a chunk of carpet. We tried to be mad at her, but she had carpet in her teeth and it was adorable. Luckily, Chad is a handyman extraordinaire and patched that bad boy up so quick you couldn't even tell.

Here's proof that you CAN teach an old dog new tricks. When Chad and I got married and Lulu moved in with us, Chad though it would be cool in addition to her dancing, high five/ten, begging, speaking and catching her ball mid-air, if he taught her a new trick. Above is Lu balancing one of her fav. foods: Banana. She'll hold it there for a LONG time and then catch it when we tell her to.

I Dream of Capri

2010-07-18T09:32:00.000-07:00

In 2008 my Uncle and Aunt invited my sister and I on their family trip to Europe. One of the places we stopped at was an island off the coast of Naples called, Capri. (They pronounce it Cap-ri with the emphasis on 'cap') This is hands down THE most beautiful place I have ever seen. Ever since that trip I dream of Capri almost every night. One day I'll return, but until then, I'll just dream.
Here's a little tour of my trip to Capri. If any of you get the chance, GO TO CAPRI.

There is a chairlift that can take you to the highest point of Capri. You can look down on the cities, (there are two: Capri, and Anicapri.) the port, and the Faraglioni (pronounced fra-lioni) which are these massive rocks you see in the picture.
P.S. That's my sister.

Here is a view from the chairlift.

Another REALLY cool thing about Capri is its Grottos. Capri is home to the famous Blue and Green Grottos. Our boat driver told us that the only way to experience these Grottos is not to wait in the huge tour line and go through with little row boats but to swim. I guess it's a local thing. Above is a picture of us swimming through the Green Grotto. We later found out that my uncle was stung by a jelly fish through here.

P.S. As seen below, it's strictly forbidden to swim. So of course we did.

I didn't take the picture below because well, we were swimming. But no joke, this is exactly what it looks like. Minus the row boat. There is a tiny opening that if you go by boat, you have to lay flat on your back to go through. There are no lights inside the Grotto. I have no idea how it gets that blue, but it does. This picture has not been tampered with. It's also REALLY deep and goes REALLY far in. I'm not gonna lie, it was also REALLY scary. But totally worth it.

As if you guys thought Capri couldn't get any cooler, it does. There is an AMAZING restaurant that only really the locals know about. It is called Da Paolino Lemon Tree Restaurant. Capri is known for their massive lemons which they turn into an alcoholic drink called Limoncello. Here is a picture of the restaurant. MY picture totally didn't do it justice, however Da Paolino's website does. Click here to be blown away. Also. Some of those lemons are the size of large grapefruits.

Here is a close-up of the Faraglioni. Our boat driver drove us right through the whole you see behind. It's tradition for the couple on board to kiss while going through. So sweet. Haha!

The water is so gorgeous that the water is constantly filled with boats. It makes for picture perfect scenery.

I haven't even touched a pinprick of how awesome Capri is. You'll have to experience that for yourselves. But, maybe I've even given some of you some great images to dream about too. While leaving Capri, I jokingly told my family that USA is my homeland, Capri is my home. :) I think there may be some truth to that.

What's Been Happening Lately!

2010-07-13T18:07:00.001-07:00

My girlfriends and I went to the Backstreet Boys concert. It was AMAZING!

I went to Lagoon with my mom, my sister, and my niece and nephew, Ella and Seth.
This picture was on the mini swinging ship for youngins. Seth was not sure if he liked it or not.

The carousel was money. Everyone loved it.
All in all, it was a fantastic day.

Chad and I set our friend up on a blind double date. We went to a driving range, played mini golf, got subway, watched Real Salt Lake fireworks on a blanket, and ended the night with a movie at our place.

AND... Things worked out really well for our friend. Great match! :) Call me Chelsea the match maker.

Chad and I have been spending a lot of time swimming at my grandma's house. What a hot pool boy eh? I think so.

Chad and I babysat 3 little ANGELS! Our friends Miss and Jeff throw different races in Provo County and I get to babysit their children (minus the new baby boy) when the races go down! This picture was taken after an exciting day of running through sprinklers.

Chad is such a big help. We watched Ratatouille while Chad modeled my headbands. Don't forget the popcorn.

And THAT, my friends, is what's been happening lately.

OUR TURTLE!

2010-05-30T09:52:00.000-07:00

Chad's brother, Sean got a turtle last week. Chad instantly wanted one of his own. However, I did not want a huge tank in the middle of our house so I politely turned him down. When we heard of little turtles, I warmed up to the idea. When I came home from work the next day, I was welcomed by a little turtle and a very happy Chad. We decided on the name Violet but the next day Chad wanted to change her name to, Shelly. We have yet to come to an agreement so... We will let you decide. Let us know what you think.

P.S. Here she is.

Summer To Do List!

2010-05-15T12:11:00.000-07:00

I was once told that a goal is not a goal unless you write it down. So here's me writing it down. Now you guys (if anyone really reads this) can all hold me to it when summer is done. These are in no particular order.

1. Go camping. At least once. I've never been a big camper, being the youngest of 3 girls. Chad on the other hand is. I'm getting new mind set of what camping is and honestly I'm getting pretty excited. I even want to fish. That is a big step for me.

2. Go to Arches and Mesa Verde with Chad and my parents. My dad has wanted to go there forever and I've never been. Chad couldn't believe it.

3. Sew! I have a lot of projects planned including, a quilt, skirt, and several backpacks and purses, and some great throw pillows.

4. Read at least 3 books a month. On my list is a book called, Princess Academy, (my El. Ed. classmates told me I need to read it.) The Life of Pi, and The Help. I'm always open to new suggestions.

5. Get running shoes and consistently run. I have a love/hate relationship with running. I love the way it makes me feel after running, and I love the way it makes my legs look. But I HATE the feeling when I'm running.

6. Refinish my dresser and my lamps. I've been waiting til summer to finally get our bedroom to match.

7. Get my cards for card group finished earlier than the day before card group. For those of you who don't know, I'm in a card group. My mom is too. Each month we make 12 of the same cards and then exchange them and take home 12 different cards. :) It's crazy fun, especially with my mom. However, we always seem to be working like mad to finish our cards the night before they are due. At least for the summer, I will be early. Hey- I already have the next two cards brainstormed. :)
8. Use a new recipe once a week. For our wedding, Chad and I got some great cook books. I set this goal the first month we were married and have been pretty flaky with keeping it. SO, here it goes! If anyone has any quick and easy recipes that'd be greatly appreciated. :)

9. Finally- I want to keep a regular journal. Regular meaning at least once a week. I made a cute journal a few months back and I've used it a bunch, but I want to really keep track of what and how I'm doing.

I think these 9 goals will be more than enough to keep me busy. Ready, set, GO!

Status: Reading

2010-05-06T12:31:00.001-07:00

Ok, So remember that one time I was all, "I'm going to be so good at blogging regularly."..? Well, then finals came and thwarted my plan, as well as a trip to California. And also, a new love got in the way..... reading.
I took a Children's Literature class last semester and honestly, It was the best class I have ever taken. Not only did it help me with my future career of teaching, but also it really did wonders for me now. It has sparked a love of reading. I've always been weird about reading. My mom is a total book worm and literally has a library in her house. I knew reading was supposed to be fun but with the approach of my teachers and the idea of reading to be only be tested on a book dragged that interest to it's grave.
One of the ideas my teacher gave to inspire reading was to introduce new book titles every day to spark interest. So, it may not be everyday, but here's a couple to get you interested....

If you have not hear of The Hunger Games, you are in for a serious treat. This book really sucked me in. Not only did I read the 300 and something pages in no time flat but I read the sequel (Catching Fire) which I thought was possibly better than the first. For all of you who have read it, surprise! a third one is on its way in August. I wont tell you much about it because it's better to go into this book with no background knowledge.
If this post doesn't persuade you, listen to this. I told my friend, Ashton, my mom and my sister about it and they've already finished it. And recommended to others who have now read it. So hopefully that will help.

Another I recently read that was really really interesting was called, The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams. It's about a 13 year old girl who lives in a polygamist commune who is directed by the prophet to marry her 60 year old uncle. This book is definitely not fluff reading but it is very intense and a great read. I also learned a lot about the polygamist culture. I was almost late for work last week because I HAD to finish the ending. Extremely intense. Anyways...

HAPPY READING!

What a Night!

2010-03-11T10:58:00.000-08:00

Last night, Chad's family went to Pirate Island to celebrate his nephews, Connor and Aidan's birthdays. It was so much fun. It was Chad's family's first time there and they all loved it. It was like Disneyland away from California. We ordered the "cracken" a ginormous pizza that is about 2 feet across! Needless to say, it fed all 11 of us. :) After dinner we all had fun playing at the "arrrr-cade". I played deal or no deal and my case was worth a wopping 8 tickets! Remind me to NEVER be on that show.

Aren't these the cutest pirates you've ever seen?

Aidan really got into the arcade games.

After the party, Chad and I went to Petsmart with Chad's sister to pick up her puppy who was getting a haircut. We picked up a couple things for Lulu and hurried home to our sweet little pup. HOWEVER.... when we walked in the door, we were welcomed by a tattered garbage bag and garbage everywhere. We forgot to take the garbage bag out to the dump on our way out. There was grape jelly all over the carpets, and all over our dog who was hiding in the corner. We couldn't do much but clean up the garbage and spray the carpets before running out the door to Chad's basketball game. When we got home we couldn't help but laugh at what had happened.

It looks like she's wet. You'd be wrong though: It's grape jelly.

She got a bath and a good brushing shortly after this picture.
p.s. She totally has Chad wrapped around her paw. :)

Also, Look what we got her! I think I'm more excited than she is. What? They smell like pink lemonade!

Check, check, check it out!

2010-03-08T22:41:00.000-08:00

Hello, my name is Chelsea and I'm a craft-a-holic. For those of you who didn't know this, it's true. I can't help myself.This last week I needed something crafty to do. I also need a good journal. I've decided to stop sugar coating my life and really get into journaling. Not for my posterity, for me. So, I zipped to Walmart at 11:00 at night and bought a compositional notebook for $1, and grabbed some of my craft paper and with the help of some Mod-Podge created this little beauty.

Ta Da...

What do you think? I'm pretty proud of it. Not too shabby for a late night craft craving. Mission: Accomplished.

p.s. Look, it hasn't even been a week and I've already posted again!!!! See, I told you I'd get better!

Wow...

2010-03-03T10:33:00.000-08:00

Ok, so it's official. Me + blogging = no good. I promise I will get better! I don't really have anything exciting to report on YET, and for some reason or another, my camera has taken up permanent residence on my bed table. (A spot that has zero convenience for any fun activity picture taking.) As soon as I am through with this post, I am redirecting it straight to my purse for quick access.

I do however have some fantastic, yet semi-unimportant news concerning my sister's house. Last week, Rachel and took a little trip to So. Jo. where we did some sprucing and organizing that consisted of assembling not one, but TWO Ikea bookshelves, followed by the hanging of FIVE pictures. Be proud! On the drive home, Rach and I bathed in our "business women" splendor by listening to who else but Miss B. (Beyonce) or shall we say Mrs. Z (As in Jay-Z)

Ok, so since I'm getting all involved and such (again) in blogging.... I need some tips. Does anyone know how to change your fonts all cute and stylish? I have a bunch of extremely aesthetic-overload fonts. How do I use them on here? No offense Arial, Georgia, Lucinda Grande, Courier, etc.

I'll be better at posting, I promise.Something interesting has to happen soon right? I'm due for a little excitement.

P.S. Check out the music below... After a couple of trial and errors, I finally got it up and rollin'. I'm totally into new music right now. Feel free to give me a couple shout outs for some sweet tunes.

Thanksgiving!

2010-01-19T13:39:00.000-08:00

Let's start out with Thanksgiving! This year was different than my regular Thanksgiving. My parents and my sister flew out to lounge by the beach in Florida with the rest of my family while Chad and I got to spend Thanksgiving in Utah with his family. It was so much fun! That morning my friend, Alexa gave me a new look by cutting many inches off of my hair. It was a lot of fun to start new traditions with a new do. We had an AMAZING lunch/dinner at about 3! We were stuffed.

Here's Aunt Renee with Connor, Aidan, and Hazel puppy!

Here's Chad and Sean scouting out the best ads for BLACK FRIDAY! My family members aren't really die hard shoppers. I had never been to a Black Friday sale. Chad's family however goes every year! They initiated me into the family by waking up at 3 and meeting at Old Navy. Then, we went to Target and waited in line for an hour and a half for the doors to open at 5! After Target, we went to a couple other stores and was back in time for me to get a good hour of sleep in before waking up to get ready for work. It was such a blast!!! Thanks Gail, Renee, and Jenn for taking me with you! :)

My birthday is November 30. My family was still going to be out of town so Chad's mom threw me a little birthday party at her house the day before! :) I got some awesome stuff. My favorite was the amazing flirty apron that Chad's mom MADE me! So cute!

Chad and I decided to start a new tradition on my birthday! We decided it'd be awesome to set up the Christmas tree! So we went out and bought a tree and lots of swag for it! It took some time setting it up but it was great fun thanks to Chad! :)

Chad took me out to one of my favorite places: Olive Garden for dinner! It was delicious and I loved it! Thanks Chadly for being so wonderful to me. You are the butter to my bread! :)

Coming Soon!!!

2010-01-04T23:02:00.001-08:00

I promise that something is coming soon... and it's going to be epic. Ok, maybe not but entertaining: definately. I'll catch you up to speed in the life of Chelsea once my life maybe slows down a bit. :) I promise something is coming though.

The 3 Skibbies!

2009-11-03T11:05:00.000-08:00

My sisters are the greatest things since sliced bread! Being the youngest of three girls has been fabulous. I'm 5 and 6 years younger than my sisters but we have always been pretty close. Now that we're older we get along great. Recently I haven't seen much of them with the business of life. However in the past week I've gotten to spend a lot of time with them. It just made me realize how much I love their guts!

Rebecca is the oldest of us 3 skibbies. She married her husband Rob and have two beautiful children. Ella is 3 and Seth-a-boy is 1. They are the sweetest things in the entire world. Reb has always been the leader of us. She was the "boss" when we played office growing up and was in charge of who was who when playing playmobile. It's a good thing she was around or else we wouldn't have known what to do. :) She is a fantastic mom. Ella and Seth are not easy to keep up with but she does a great job. They go to the library and various museums on a regular basis. That is why her kids are crazy smart!

Rachel is the middle child. She is a genius. She always finds out the latest and greatest songs and artists before anyone else. She is extremely talented and can play just about any instrument you put in her hands. Rachel was the brains behind all of the ideas and activities growing up. Rach has been my companion through many adventures.

Basically, my sisters rock!

Go Team!

2009-10-15T14:28:00.000-07:00

Whilst driving around today I was lucky enough to catch a brief glimpse at what might have been THE most dysfunctional game of doubles tennis I have ever seen! It was hillarious and completely made my day! Go team! Speaking of dysfunctional sports, check out this little gem of a video I found.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtUQdHSH6_g

P.S. If you need a tennis lesson or two, I'm only a phone call away! :)

Pizza Night!

2009-10-10T14:05:00.000-07:00

Last night our friends Kenz and Tanner came over for dinner. We each made our own pizza! It was so much fun and we hadn't ever made pizza before which seems crazy as all three of us work at Brick Oven. We have no excuse. Instead of buying the oh so delicious BBQ chicken pizza, we made it! We were all very pleased as to the result. YUM-O!

After dinner we watched the edited version of Tropic Thunder! It was so funny. I was in silent laugh mode for half of the movie. :) Then, Kenz and I made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies with cream cheese icing. It is October after all. Another Brick Oven friend, Janae came over with her husband, Matt and we played my favorite card game, It Came To Pass, followed by a healthy dose of Beatles Rock Band. The girls rocked it up on the sweet solos while the boys got their guitar, bass, and drums on! :) All in all it was a fantastic friday night!

Lions, Tigers, and Bears....Oh My!

2009-09-21T08:35:00.000-07:00

Chad and I got in touch with our inner kid again by taking a trip to the Hogle Zoo with my sister, niece, nephew, and mom! I have been wanting to go all summer. I think it should be a yearly thing. It's so much fun! Call me crazy. There were tons of baby animals. Baby elephant, giraffe, tigers, and leopards. We ate a total of three big bags of cotton candy, my ultimate favorite thing. We also went to the bird show (highly recommended). It was amazing how close those birds got to us. They warn you not to stand up because you will get hit by a bird! It was such a great day! Thanks Mom and Reb for inviting us! :)

Surprise Luau for Grandma!

2009-09-05T11:55:00.000-07:00

For the past month, my mom has been planning this awesome surprise luau for my grandma's birthday. She has been saving party supplies for this for the past 6 years or so. The party turned out so fun and everyone had a blast. We had hawaiian haystacks, pina coladas, pinapple upside-down cake, banana cake, beach volleyball, and hula hoop contests! It was such a success! THANKS MOM FOR THROWING AN AWESOME LUAU!

A Whole New World!

2009-09-01T22:28:00.000-07:00

I decided to cave into my friends requests and enter the blogging world. I'm just figuring things out so if anyone has any advise on how to make this cute, and fun, let me know! :) Hooray for blogging!