I love my church!  I love it for many reasons, but one is that they are the only church I have ever been to that has an art  gallery that allows anyone in the church (an even those not in the church) to enter!  The gallery runs quarterly and has always been a highlight for me, as I browse  the many forms of art and enjoy each one of them!  A drawing from a 5 year old, or a painting from a professional, or a impressive sculpture, the VineArts gallery has it all!

This quarters theme is “Abundant Joy” and I finally decided to enter!  I have two photos hanging up there, Ill show you one, but you will have to go visit to see the other!  : )

the gallery is open during the church business hours Tuesday through Friday 9-5 and Sundays 9-12:30.  Please stop by and enjoy many forms of great art and see what “Abundant Joy” looks like to others!  you will not be disappointed!

DId you all see it?!?  The season six premiere of LOST kicked off this Tuesday, and I was not let down. Seth and I have been BIG LOST FANS for awhile now.  We did not watch the first season on tv, but rented it one day from Hollywood Video.  I was instantly hooked!  I dont know if it was the mystery, the easiness to relate to the characters , or just he great writing that hooked me, but I defiantly became what some may call addicted!  :)  I have sense exposed many people to LOST!  We have turned LOST into our date night, and have even rearrange our work schedules so we could watch it.  Honestly I like it all, even season 2…if you watch LOST as faithfully as we do, you will know that is serious LOST loving right there!  ;)

Season Six marks the final season of LOST and I could not be much happier.  I am happy it is ending, that we will finally get some answers to this love hate mystery that has had my mind boggled for 6 years!  Yet I am sad that it is coming to an end, and am not sure what my family will get me for Christmas anymore if they can no longer buy us the LOST season of the year on DVD!  :)   Love ya mom and Sis!  ;)

Well with something as epic as the premiere of the end, we had to have a party to share the excitement with some of your other LOSt fan friends!  : )  I wont give away any secrets of LOST incase you did not watch it yet, but let me just say WOW!  I was not disappointed!  :) I will share you some of the yummy food we made, and give you the recipe too…I know another event is coming this sunday that everyone watches on TV, so it might come in useful!  ;)

This is my vegetarian (not vegan, but could easily be made so) 7 layer bean dip!  This would be perfect for a super-bowl party!   in fact if you made this, you would be a hero!  :)

the recipe:

2 cans of beans ( i used one can of refried beans and one can of black beans, but any kind would work)

1 package (1lb) of morning star veggie crumbles, or any other form of “ground meat” (you certainly could use real meat, but I promise you no one will know the difference, and it will save you some cholesterol if you dont!)

1 Tbs of cilli powder

2 Tbs of Cumin ground

3 cloves of garlic

salsa

guacamole (I made my own, but you can buy store bought stuff if you want)

sour cream

shredded cheese

olives (sliced)

tomatoes (diced)

green onions (chopped)

cilantro (chopped)

1. Blend the beans until smooth, layer into the bottom of your casserole dish

2. brown the “meat” and add the chilli powder, cumin, and garlic, minced.  Fry until the garlic is golden brown. (this is mile, add red pepper flakes, or more cilli powder to kick the heat up)  Add to your casserole dish.

3. Add a layer of salsa

4. Add a layer of guacamole

5. Add a layer of sourcream

6. Add a layer of shredded cheese

7. Add a layer of the fresh ingredients ie olives, tomatoes, onions and cilantro

8. Serve!

You can change the taste of this dish my making one layer thicker and one layer thiner.  and example of this is, my husband does not like sour cream, so I make that layer thin, but make the salsa thicker!    it is delish!  ;)

Enjoy!

Thanks to everyone who came to our LOST party!  we are happy to share LOST with you all, but you are all welcome at our house anytime, you dont have to wait for LOST!!!  :)

Last Saturday, I went downtown, and found this…

Ok, ok, Ill be honest…I knew it was going to happen and I went down to take a few pictures.  how did I know?  Well because I am part of the Boise Flash Mob of facebook. So what was this all about.  Well the Boise Flash mob, will periodically pop up and do something out of the ordinary.  From Pillow fights to slow moving, to anti-protests, they are there to brighten your day with the unexpected, and have fun while doing it!  ;)  What’s the point?  there really isnt one.  Just have fun and give onlookers a good story to tell!  But as a participant it is fun!

When I arrived at the Boise City Hall I could feel the energy in the air!  People, strangers really, all gathered together to have a good time, and say “Everything is Fine.”  Even though many of us had never met in person, there was something that made the City Hall feel alive with excitement and friendship.  As I stood across the street, I started hearing “Black Lab” being chanted over and over, I couldn’t believe it, they were cheering for Edgar!  why?  because that is what they do!  It sure put a smile on my face.  other cheers consisted of “Cross the Street,” “Blue Hat,” and “Ride your Bike!”  Pretty much anything that passed by, was cheered for….but our main cheer…”What do we want?…NOTHING…When do we want it?…WHENEVER!”

My favorite sign…

So from this I hope you all, “LOL” and know that “Everything is OK.”  Bust most of all I hope you

Relax, have fun and “dont panic.”  Life happens, but overall its not that bad!  Have a Great day everyone, and be on the look out for Boise Flash Mob to strike again!  ;)  If you want to be a part of it, go be a fan of the Boise flash mob on facebook…and while you are there become my fan too!  ; )

One Sunday I went to church at the Vineyard Boise, and took a friend.  She wanted to go see our other mutual friend.  We all three (plus E-man) ended up going to lunch, where we found out that the capital was having a grand reopening, showing off the new wings they spent millions of tax payer money on to make, and that our friend and his sister were playing the fiddle and guitar there as part of the opening!  We decided we had to go!  So a quick call to my husband, sopping by the house for the camera, and off we went!

The Idaho state Capital is located in Downtown Boise.  It was originally made in 1905.   It was made to look like the white house from the outside.  On the inside, it is covered in beautiful white marble!  I had never been in the building before the restoration, so I dont have anything to compare it to, but it is very impressive!  To find out more about the building you can go here.

Once we got inside I was on “hold the cranky, nap skipping, two year old so he does not break anything” patrol, so I did not get to take many photos.  Seth my husband took a few though!  Eman could not stop staring at the ceiling, which was painted with stars to look like the sky!  He loves stars…I’m not sure why, but they are defiantly his favorite shape.

We also got some pictures of our friends playing!  They are very talented and it sounded great!  

if you have not had a chance to go check out the capital…do it!  It is pretty stinkin cool!

I hope you all have a great Christmas Day!  To all you future brides out there getting engaged today, congratulations!  To all the babies out there having your first Christmas, I hope you enjoy it (and play with more than just the wrapping paper) to all the families, either young or old…make memories and cherish each other!

As for my family…I think it will be a while before I can get my son to leave his new CAR! He also got a ride on dump truck, so he takes turns, but has not even looked at something with out wheels!  :)

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.  My husband and I love cooking, but it is not just the food that makes this holiday my favorite.   Its the idea of reflecting on your life and giving thanks.  I dont know what all your lives are like, but mine is VERY busy, and sometimes a little to fast paced.  It is nice to have a day to relax and reflect, and the fact that it is normally done with friends and family makes it even better!  This thanksgiving I;m going to visit Seth’s side of the family.  His sister and brother in law are coming form CA, as well as their little boy, my first nephew that I have never met.  Seth’s Brother is also coming, and he is really cool!  Im excited to relax and enjoy the family!  If you need to get ahold of me this week, please leave a message.  I’ll be returning calls and emails on Monday!

I made a list of 15 things I am thankful for this year that I wanted to share with you.  Many of the photos are taken by other family members and are snapshots of my daily life!

What are you thankful for?  Leave a comment saying what you are thankful for, so we can share in thankfulness!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!  :)

I just want to let everyone know that I will be away from the computer for a week.  I will be back The 25th.  If you need to get n touch with me, you can call me and I will return your call.  WE ARE GOING CAMPING!  It is going to be a blast.  We are also going to visit some great friends and see family!  Im excited.

Also I just wanted to remind you all that the Holiday season is right around the corner, so BOOK NOW, for your family photos!  We are running an awesome special where you get 25 holiday cards free for booking with us!