OUR LIFE AS SEVERES

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-30T13:06:00.000-08:00

How wonderful was Christmas this year? It was the first time in 2 years that my entire family was all together, which made it only that much better. We spent it in Deer Valley and it was oh so lovely!

Fuzzy socks, pj's and a warm fire. Perfection.
Our traditional reinactment of Jesus' birth. (Notice Keaton is baby Jesus, Karly has a mustache and Kortni is a star, you have to get creative when 12 kids are involved!)

Another family tradition is building gingerbread houses. Mik and I were a team, the "Severe" was his idea.

The one and only picture I got of Christmas morning. It was a perfect combination of organized chaos.

Miks favorite thing in the world is the combination of peanut butter and chocolate, I found a pack of 2 giant Reeses peanut butter cups at Target. Mik ate them for breakfast. After present wrapping we went to church which at first I was bummed about but it actually ended up being just what I needed to remind me what Christmas is all about.

(not pointing any fingers but SOMEONE forgot their church clothes).

Sistahs!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

It's the Holiday Season

2011-12-22T09:55:00.000-08:00

Oh what a lovely holiday season it has been. I went with my mom and sisters to the Beehive Bazaar to pick up some handmade Christmas gifts. Keely and I were having a little too much fun!

We have been enjoying lots of holiday treats this month! Karson helped me make some chocolate candy cane cookies, his end result were a little more log-like then cookie-like.

But the finished results were delicious!

Sometimes when we all get together we get a little crazy. One Sunday night we decided to practice a little acro yoga. No big deal.

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Date Night

2011-12-20T14:56:00.000-08:00

One of our christmas traditions is Mik and I each pick out a new ornament for our tree. These were our finds this year, a sparkly armadillo for Mik and a sparkly ball for me!

After we ate at the Melting Pot. So yummy and such a fun place to eat.

The many faces of fonduing.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Oh Christmas Tree

2011-12-15T10:52:00.000-08:00

We decided to brave the freezing weather and get our Christmas tree a couple weeks ago. We froze our buns off but found the perfect Charlie Brown tree (our favorite!).

And VOILA the finished product!

And on a side note, I have been obsessed with anything and everything peppermint these days. Peppermint ice cream and peppermint jo jo's have definitely been a staple in our house the month of December!

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Thankful

2011-12-14T09:05:00.000-08:00

Better late then never right?! Thanksgiving was a blast at the Roney/Severe home. My parents were gone picking up Kenzie in Guatamala so we decided to make our own Thanksgiving dinner. It was one of the most fun and memorable Thanksgivings I've ever had. I put each of the kids in charge of a dish (or two) and voila, we had a full feast!

Some of the food crew.

Karly made these cute cups and set the table.

Mik was in charge of the turkey so he took it to Marley's and deep fried it, it was so juicy and delicious!

The dinner party (minus Stehly, he was taking the picture).

Some of our feast.

Kyler was in charge of the pies. He made 4, Stehly brought 2 and Karly made 2. Every single one was so yummy it was deadly!

Poor little buddy had the 24 hour flu the whole night before so he was wiped out all day! I'm so grateful for my family and husband. We had an awesome day together and I wouldn't have changed a thing!

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The rest of November

2011-12-13T14:58:00.000-08:00

Kortni came out with her very own swimuit line Kortni Jeane Swimsuits. Check them out if you're in the market!

Even Kyler loved them!

A little peek at craft night. Love my cute cousins and cousins-in-law!

Got a little creative with Timpview football players.

Tyler came into town for a wedding and hung out all weekend!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Pre-Thanksgiving

2011-12-09T14:26:00.001-08:00

While my parents were picking up Kenzie is Guatamala they left me in charge of the little kidlets. We had a blast and it was fun to get to spend some time with them. We spent one morning at the bean museum checking out the Christmas displays. I don't care what anyone says, the Bean museum creeps me out.
How spoiled were we with the weather in November?! It was warm enough to enjoy some ice cream cones and walk around outside!

Oh I love this little buddy. He makes me laugh daily.

Light it Up!

2011-12-08T07:00:00.000-08:00

The lights at Riverwoods right now are beautiful, make sure it's on your to do list this holiday season. Rumor has it there are 5 million lights at the Riverwoods and only 2 million at Temple Square...just saying. Here are a few pictures from the lights on event they had a couple weeks ago.

There was a balloon man in the Provo Beach Resort and Karson asked him for Buzz Lightyear balloon, we all chuckled but he proceeded to make one, I was actually quite impressed with the results!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

October Mash Up

2011-12-07T09:44:00.000-08:00

October is by far my favorite month of the year. I love everything about it; the smells, Halloween, pumpkin, fall leaves, the colors, you name it. The month seemed to fly by but we definitely took full advantage of the awesome weather we had all month.

Someone told me about these candy corn m&m's, and for those of you that know me know that I'm a sucker for foods that are holiday specific or limited edition, so of course I had to track them down. Unfortunately they were Walmart exclusive so Karson, Karly and I braved the Saturday night crowds to pick up a bag of these babies. They were delicious!

Happy Birthday to me! I turned 25, boy am I getting old!

This is how my family carves pumpkins, it's the only way we can all carve at the same time!

Our traditional Ghosts in the Graveyard dessert. Yum!

Trick or Treat! Yes that's Mik hiding under that sock monkey costume!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

California here we come

2011-12-06T11:02:00.000-08:00

For Christmas last year my parents got Mik and I annual passes to Disneyland (seriously one of the best gifts!). All year we have been trying to take full advantage and use them as much as we can, so for my birthday/Halloween it was no question that we needed to go to Disneyland one last time before they expired (we are both obsessed with Disneyland in October). We flew out for the weekend and stayed with Kortni.
Sunday we decided to rent a car so we could do a little sightseeing and visit Tyler, I think the rental car lady had a little crush on Mik and upgraded us to this orange lovely. Mik was like a kid in a candy store!

We love ourselves some Sprinkles Cupcakes. How cute are these Halloween ones?!

Tyler took us to the Getty, it's a museum on a big hill in LA, normally you can see the whole city but it was super cloudy and night time so it was spooky and felt like we were floating on a cloud!
Monday we went to Disneyland, we had a blast and we loved all the Halloween decorations!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Swimsuit Party!

2011-11-15T15:11:00.000-08:00

My sister Kortni just came out with her own swimsuit line, seriously these suits are DARLING! She's hosting a swimsuit party on Friday November 25 from 7-9 pm at my parents house 2755 n Foothill Drive in Provo. Save some of your Black Friday Monday and come hang out, or if you don't want to buy anything come enjoy some delicious food and good company! If you want to see more pictures of the suits visit her blog here kortnijeaneswimsuits.blogspot.com. Or you can purchase them on etsy: etsy.com/kortnijeane

She has 6 different styles made in 25 different fabrics which means sizes are in short supply so be there first to claim the one you want (or two or three or four)! Swimsuits rang in all sizes (XS-XL) so bring your little sister, your neighbor, your best friend, your mom, and your grandma! See you there!

NYC Bb.U

2011-11-11T11:11:00.000-08:00

The whole point of going to New York was to go to Bumble and bumble University in the Meat Packing District. (Last nyc post I swear!). It was 2 intense days of learning how to razor cut. Here's a few pictures of our adventure (unfortunately they made us split the salon into 2 different courses so I only have pictures of the stylists from the first course). Here is our first day of school photo.

Seriously I hadn't been this nervous since my first day of high school!

Class Time!
Then it was time to try the techniques out for ourselves!

One of my finished results. Oh hello gorgeous model!

It was so nice to get back to the basics of cutting and really hone in on our cutting skills, I haven't learned that much in years! Even more fun was bonding with all the stylists, having sleepovers and staying up until 2am talking. We created a little salon family!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

NYC pt 2

2011-11-09T13:08:00.000-08:00

The second part of our New York trip was just as lovely. We went to Battery Park to see the Statue of Liberty. The lines were so long so we just gazed at it from a distance.

We passed the Temple and stepped inside for a photo op.

Here we are checking out Ground Zero. There wasn't a whole lot to see because it was all fenced off and blocked so we took a picture by a picture of what it's going to look like...

I so smartly suggested we walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, it was a lot longer of a walk then we anticipated but the view was beautiful and it was lovely weather (oh and there was delicious grimaldis pizza calling our name at the end).

Wall Street. Everything was blocked off, not a whole lot to see. Thanks a lot protesters.

Mik and I (and my sisters) are obsessed with Project Runway, if you have seen it you know they always shop for the fabric at Mood. I'm already obsessed with fabric so seriously this place was HEAVEN! I used major self control when we all we left with were a couple Mood tote bags!

We also went to Dash which is a store owned by the Kardashians. It was actually a huge let down, not very impressive, not a lot of merchandise and the workers were super unfriendly.

During our walking we passed by this amazingly decorated Halloween house (I was so jealous!) and I made Mik take a picture. Thank you random Halloween lovers!

All week I begged Mik to go to a Broadway with me and on the last night he became husband of the year and finally relented (such a good sport!). We decided on Addams Family since it was right before Halloween (and Brooke Shields was Morticia!). It was actually a really fun show and I think Mik even slightly enjoyed it.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

We Heart NYC part 1

2011-10-28T15:25:00.001-07:00

The first 2 days the stylists and I were in class so Mik had to entertain himself. He decided to go to Wall Street and check out the protestors. He wanted to be part of the fun so he went to Kinko's and made his own sign.....no words.

We took advantage of the subway. Here are some of the salon ladies.

We couldn't pass up the m&m factory in Times Square! Mik was too busy getting treats to stop for a picture!

More Times Square

Mik and I love the tv show Rachel Zoe Project. Brad Goreski used to work as her assistant, anyways Mik ran into him and they sat and chatted for awhile. I was so jelly!

We stayed in Trump Tower and one morning we woke up and these statues had appeared right outside of the building!

We spent Sunday morning in Central Park. SO FUN! We rented bikes and enjoyed the scenery. It was perfect fall weather.

one of my to-do's was to see the Alice in Wonderland Statue, it was huge!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

NYC YUM

2011-10-28T15:18:00.001-07:00

Mik and I went to New York a couple weeks ago with all of our salon stylists to go to a Bumble and bumble cutting class. We did a ton of fun things and took a ton of pictures so I've divided our trip into 3 posts. This first post is on the FOOD, yes I dedicate this post to all the delicious food we ate. Our friend Mairin lives in nyc and so she emailed us a huge list of places that were a must to eat at, and eat we did! Our first stop was Cafeteria. Really good comfort food, I got the mac&cheese, it was a fun gourmet atmosphere.

On our honeymoon we discovered Parmesan truffle fries and never looked back. Cafeteria had them and they brought us right back!

Us and some of the salon ladies.

A Salt and Battery: fish and chips to DIE FOR. The owners are all English, they had 4-5 different types of fish to choose from, quick and cheap.

We finished the evening off with cake from Magnolia Bakery. The cakes were pretty good, not my favorite from the trip though.

There was a Shake Shack close to where we were staying so we visited a few times. The crinkle fries were really good and so were their specialty shakes.

Hands down my favorite place was Bubby's. We treated all the stylists so it was fun to have everyone together too. It was gourmet american food, I got the mac and cheese which was phenomenal but make sure you save room for dessert. Their pies are seriously some of the best I have ever had (chocolate peanut butter and the pumpkin were both amazing).

We walked across the Brooklyn Bridge and then ate Grimaldi's pizza on the other side. There was a long line but somehow the receptionist just let us breeze through. Afterwards go around the corner to this cute little ice cream place for the freshest ice cream you will ever have! We enjoyed ours while we rode a ferry back to Manhattan.

Max Brenner. Such a fun place. The food is just so-so but the dessert is yum! Fondue, chocolate cake, chocolate and more chocolate!

Dylan's Candy Bar. Such a cute and yummy candy store. Karly agrees.

One of my favorite places to go in new york is Serendipity. Such a cute little place and the desserts are to die for! We got the chocolate peanut butter frozen hot chocolate and the Humble Pie (what I would do for another piece of the humble pie!). As you can see our bellies were very happy while we were in the big apple!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Crafty Craft

2011-10-28T15:00:00.001-07:00

I am a huge Halloween lover. Seriously I am obsessed! Here's a little taste of our haunted house.

My cousin's and I started a monthly craft night where we all get together and work on a project. This month I hosted, here are a few pictures (I laugh because I didn't get one single picture of the actual event!).

Treat table

Pumpkin cookies (we already know I'm obsessed).

I got this idea from pinterest. Dip pretzel rods in caramel and then white chocolate and use mini chocolate chips to make faces. Super simple and cute! Here is a picture of my finished product from the evening:

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Catching Up

2011-10-21T15:44:00.001-07:00

I feel like I always go in spurts with my blog posting. October is my favorite month of the whole year and it has flown by! Here is a little of what Mik and I have been up to.... Sister Kortni ditched us and moved to California to go to FIDM (jealous!). Before Kortni's big move she cleaned out her closet. Keely and I found some serious gems!

Mik drove to California with Kortni and Keely to help with the big move. They also managed to sneak in a few hours at Disneyland

Poor Kyler hurt his ankle skateboarding. Luckily Stehly was around to sweep him off his feet.
Speaking of Stehly, if you have met him you know he is a big guy (he plays football for BYU). For some reason the boys in my family are obsessed with wrestling. So of course they had to take on Stehly, 2 against 1 and Stehly still wins. It definitely makes for an entertaining evening!

Speaking of BYU football Mik has been enjoying going to the games. I caught this pic on the tv when he and Kyler were watching the game in Texas.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Conference Weekend

2011-10-07T10:30:00.001-07:00

Oh boy did we have a lovely conference weekend! We spent Sunday at the Ranch House with my family. It was perfect weather and the fall colors were so beautiful! It was perfect timing.

Inbetween sessions we spent out time collecting beautiful leaves....

catching fuzzy caterpillars...

walking around and enjoying the lovely weather....

and some crazies jumped in the freezing pond...

and jumped out just as quickly....

biggie had to get in on the action...
Oh it was a lovely weekend!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Bob the Builders

2011-09-29T08:17:00.000-07:00

For the last couple weeks Mik and I have been remodeling the front area of the salon. It definitely was more work then expected, but it was definitely worth it! We started by pulling the old shelves off the wall, boy did it feel good! We were met with this lovely ragrolled paint underneath....

Mik the toolman taylor

We were so happy to see there was (nice and dirty) tile underneath the shelving.

More lovely ragroll is exposed.

So Mik and I thought we were professional wallpaperers. HA! It took us 2+ hours to put up one strip (arguing and swearing may or may not have been involved). So in order to save our marriage I made frantic phone calls to every handy man I could find. Richard Hebert was our night in shining armor! We quickly became best friends and it took him 1 hour to do the entire wall!

And a little before and after action.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Pumpkin Patch

2011-09-23T13:04:00.000-07:00

We are falling back in to shorter days, longer nights and not minding it one bit! Saying that I am obsessed with any and all things pumpkin is an understatement. (If you follow me on instagram you know this!) It all started when we went to the big Borders sale, there were thousands of books (another obsession) for 90% off and all I walked away with were these plastic pumpkins.

there have been quite a few batches of Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies...

pumpkin cookies with caramel frosting. seriously so yum!
I'm a huge breakfast person so this pumpkin french toast combination was to die for!

last but definitely not least this pumpkin ice cream was by far one of my favorites. It was a lot of work but the end result was worth it!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Eight is Great

2011-09-21T14:57:00.001-07:00

Karter turned 8 on September 12. What a great celebration it was! My family loves themselves Tucano's for bday celebrations, this birthday was no exception!

Even Karter got my mom's crafty gene, see the green banner above him? Yep, he made it! (It says "happy bday karter" so cute!) He also did the lovely crepe papering below and even got to write his own name on the cake!

Happy Birthday Karter!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Goodbye Summa

2011-09-16T10:26:00.001-07:00

Is it just me or did summer change to fall overnight? The mornings and nights are cooler and you can feel that cooler crisp in the air. Mik and I have been enjoying the good weather while we can! A Sweet Tooth Fairy opened by the University Mall, I had a peach cobbler cupcake the other night, seriously so delish!

We have the best view of the temple from our house, not to mention there is some great people watching from our front yard. It's the best way to unwind and relax after a long day of work.

Oh and we love ourselves some Yogurtland! With all the fresh, ripe fruit you feel like you are eating something semi-healthy.

haha I couldn't resist making Mik take this picture! Hey it said "photo-op" on the back!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

One Silly Boy

2011-09-13T07:20:00.000-07:00

This boy is so crazy but you can't help but love him. I was going through all my pictures on my iphone and every picture of him made me laugh!

We were roasting marshmallows one night and everyone got in a marshmallow fight. Of course Karson got the worst of it. He was not happy.

"Karissa, I'm a walrus!" Hm, ok.

Another version of the walrus. It's how we entertain ourselves while waiting for our food to come out.

"Karissa, do I look cool with 2 different crocs?" Sure Karson, sure.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

BYU Socka Rocka's

2011-09-10T12:29:00.001-07:00

All my little brothers are playing sports this fall, last week they all had a game on the same night so we had a tour de sports. Karson's soccer game was first, seriously so hilarious! He gets sidetracked quite easily during his play time which makes for an entertaining 30 minutes.

Next up was Karter's flag football game. They won thanks to Dad's coaching skills and Kyler's assistant coaching skills (haha).

Last of the night was Taylor's (tackle!) football game, I forgot to get pictures. The team they were supposed to play didn't show up so they played eachother. Good practice I guess? It was fun to go back to my old stomping grounds but is it just me or are freshman teeny tiny these days?! Boy I'm getting old!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

L-O-V-E

2011-09-07T12:54:00.001-07:00

It has been wedding season for us! We had the pleasure of going to Sammi and Ben Truman's wedding. It was lovely and Sammi looked gorgeous!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Shout Hooray!

2011-09-02T11:03:00.001-07:00

August 22 was Keels-banana-peels birthday. I can't believe she's old enough to be in high school! She's the cutest, most stylish 14 year old I know. We went to Happy Sumo for dinner followed by presents and yummy little tarts from Kneaders. It was a great celebration!

Keely got some bluetooth speakers for her birthday, my dad was eager to try them out. It turned into a game of guess that tune from the songs off my dads iphone. Some of us were definitely on our game, others not so much.

Sunday Hike

2011-08-30T17:14:00.001-07:00

While we were in Park City for our anniversary, the weather was so lovely we decided to go for a hike. Now most of you know I am not a sporty person (hiking included) so I did not bring the right foot wear. I dug around the cabin and my best option was a pair of red rain boots. Perfect hiking shoes! It actually ended up being really fun and we got some good exercise.

Showing off my fab outfit, red rainboots and all.

We found some great treasures.
We brought Apple along and she was not a happy camper. She couldn't believe we were making her walk in such rugged territory.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

August 14, 2008

2011-08-27T14:48:00.001-07:00

On August 14 we celebrated our 3 year anniversary. I can't believe how time has flown by! We spent the weekend relaxing in Park City. We ate good food (if you haven't already noticed we are total foodies!), walked around main street, shopped the outlets and went on a hike (yes I hiked! pictures of proof to come!). The weather was perfect and the company even better.

We went the weekend of the Tour of Utah so Mik showed his support.

Every weekend they have Park Silly (a street fair) and a Farmers Market on Main Street. We got some delicious peaches and did some great people watching.

For our anniversary dinner we went to Chimayo's, it's delicious mexican food with a twist. We highly recommend it. After dinner we were walking to our car and Mik saw this...

Mik is obsessed with Banksy (he's a british grafitti artist) and was so pumped when he eyed this beauty!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sundance

2011-08-25T13:35:00.001-07:00

Phew do I have a lot of blogging to catch up on! A couple weeks ago Mik and I wanted to get out of Provo for dinner. To say Mik loves Sundance is an understatement, it's a great place to go to get some fresh mountain air and eat delicious food, plus it's only 15 minutes away! We enjoyed some yummy sandwiches and bakery delights, we had a lovely little evening!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Cayman

2011-08-23T13:55:00.001-07:00

The first week of August we packed our bags for a week in paradise (aka Cayman). Our Days were filled with swimming, reading, relaxing, paddle surfing and playing with family. It was such a great week!

Some handsome men and closed eyes. Our nights were filled with beautiful sunsets, delicious food, games and fireworks.

We had to go biking every night to work off all that dessert. Mik of course couldn't just go on a normal bike ride, he had to make it interesting...

bike plank?

I'm a model. We left on Sunday but went to church before our flight left. Since we were all dressed up I made Mik take a picture with me, Mik obviously didn't have the same thoughts. That's ok he still looks handsome.

Saying our final goodbye. Kort's a model too. What a lovely trip!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Demolition Derby

2011-08-20T12:12:00.001-07:00

For Mik's birthday, Kyler gave Mik tickets to the Demoltion Derby in Heber. So Mik, Kyler, Karter and I trekked up the canyon to watch cars smash into each other. We had a blast, I think it was the highlight of Karter's summer!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

California Adventure

2011-08-18T08:16:00.001-07:00

In June I got to take a long weekend and meet my family in California (Unfortunately Mik had to stay in Utah because of work). I started the trip off in Anaheim where we went to Disneyland.

This was Karson's face after Toad's Wild Ride. I laughed so hard when I saw this picture!

It was so hot at Disneyland so we all cooled off with a Dole Whip float, my mouth is watering just thinking about it!

Saturday we drove to Huntington Beach and stayed there the rest of the trip. We ate delicious food and relaxed on the beach. It was perfect weather, here we are after church.
Me and my pastey self with my black sistah's

I missed Mik but it was fun to go solo and be able to spend more time with my siblings especially my sisters and build on those relationships. Kortni, Keely, Karly and I stayed in one room together which was really fun. It was quite the adventure! The room was wheel chair accessible, so we were greeted with this doorbell.....it basically describes our room experience.

Keely loungin' on her comfy bed - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

You've had a Birthday Shout Hooray!

2011-08-12T12:45:00.001-07:00

Mik's birthday was July 29th. One of the birthday traditions we carried on from my family is you get to open one present in the morning, I was so excited I had him open two! He got the shirt he's wearing and a new pair of Ray Bans. That night we had a pizza party with our families and opened a bunch of great gifts. His favorite treat right now are the Peanut Butter Chocolate Cupcakes from Sweet Tooth Fairy so his cake was 1 dozen of those and 1 dozen assorted cupcakes. We finished the party with an outdoor movie. Since there are little ones in my family we watched Shrek 3 (or maybe 4?). Thanks everyone for coming and celebrating with us!

Somehow sitting in front of the fireplace with your presents around you became a family tradition.

BFF's/Lovers

Happy Birthday Mik!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

No One is Hotter than Harry Potter

2011-07-21T14:47:00.001-07:00

Last week Mik was convinced we needed to go to the midnight Harry Potter showing. I have a grandma bedtime, I am in bed no later than 11pm every night so staying up until 3 pm was a big change for me! But since it was the LAST Harry Potter movie I thought it would be fun to be there with all the die hard fans.

Saturday night we went to Sundance for the full moon chair lift ride. We ate at the Grill Room before which was delicious! While we were eating Nie Nie walked through the restaraunt and I got giddy, yes giddy. Like big time celebrity giddy. I was too nervous to say hello, maybe next time....The chair lift ride was fun and relaxing, we highly recommend going next full moon!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Baby shower

2011-07-20T12:48:00.001-07:00

Last week I threw my cousin, Shanda, a baby shower. It's her second baby but she's having her first girl so of course we had to celebrate! Not to mention, buying baby girl stuff is just so much fun! Here are a few pictures of the set up.

I got this cute pie-in-a-jar idea from here (I did make homemade crust, it's cheaper and super quick and easy). They were simple to make and they turned out delicious!

I got this vegetable cup idea here. Cut up red, yellow and orange peppers, cucumber, carrots and celery with ranch dressing already in the bottom of the cup. I think they turned out cuter then a veggie tray and it kept the carpets dip-free. Perfection. Oh Heree's an awful picture of Shanda opening up gifts.

I wanted to do something different then playing some games so I came across the idea of everyone decorating their own baby onesie. It turned out to be really fun, everyone got to chat while they created and it was fun to see what everyone came up with.

The end results! (sorry not the best picture)

Brad, Shanda's Husband, came at the end so we got him to decorate a onesie. It turned out so darling! It says "i love flowers, candy and Benson". I can't wait to see their new baby girl wearing all her onesies! Thanks everyone for coming, I had a blast!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Keep Calm and Carry a Wand

2011-07-19T09:56:00.001-07:00

Last week we were in the mood for something new for dinner. We got in the car and just started to drive and passed Station 22, we decided to give it a try and were not disappointed! They have delicious sandwiches and fries that come in cute little baskets. We highly recommend it!

Lately I've been obsessed with Pinterest and all things Harry Potter. I found this recipe for Butterbeer Cupcakes. I was a little nervous about some of the ingredients but they were SO delicious!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Red, White and Blue

2011-07-06T13:04:00.001-07:00

The 4th of July is one of our favorite holidays so having it over a 3 day weekend made it even more magical. The party started on Saturday night when we watched the fireworks from my parents yard.

Sunday evening everyone went on the annual scooter ride. Family, friends and even strangers gather on their scooters and motorcycles, drive down University Avenue and throw candy at all the campers.

Following tradition we had out sleepover at the clubhouse. You still get all the excitement and noise from the University campers but get to sleep in a cozy bed. We enjoyed patriotic popcorn and watched Alice in Wonderland. Karson thought it was an adventure of a lifetime; he packed 3 days worth of clothes and kept screaming "woo hoo party with no mom and dad!".

Monday morning we got up bright and early to watch the parade.

After the parade we had all the Roney's over for swimming, games, good company and delicious food.

Mik and his patriotic "sleeve".....

Kyler got creative with his tattooing.

Then it was off to the Smith's for a little rain and an amazing firework show.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Urban Light

2011-07-02T09:35:00.001-07:00

While we were in California, Tyler gave us a mini tour. As we were driving around we passed this light display, it's in one of Mik and I's favorite movies, so we decided when the sun was setting we would go back and get pictures. The light installation is at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, it's a sculpture of 202 restored cast iron antique street lamps and is actually really cool in person. Here's a dump of all our iphone photos.

Oh us just being love birds.

Mik and Ty Ty lovin' eachother

On our way to get a Sprinkles cupcake. There may or may not be drool in the corner of my mouth. Thanks Tyler for the tour we had a blast!
(p.s. i recently discovered instagram and am obviously obsessed!)

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Bumble and bumble LIVE!

2011-06-29T12:22:00.001-07:00

Last weekend we had the opportunity to go to Bumble and bumble LIVE in Beverly Hills. It was fun to get all dressed up and spend time with a group of amazing people in my industry. The event started off with a cocktail reception where we got to mix and mingle with the best of the best. Mik's highlight of the hour was chatting with Peter Lichtenthal the president of Bumble and mine was meeting Amanda the face of Bumble's Thickening campaign (picture below).

Mik's brother, Tyler let us stay with him while we were in California and we had an extra ticket so he joined us! After the reception we spent 3 hours in heaven (haha I don't think Mik would agree with me, but i was LOVING it!). Howard McLaren (Bumble's head stylist) did a big presentation showing us videos he put together, did some live haircuts and left us with some inspiring words. I left feeling motivated, inspired and ready to conquer the salon world!

We were seriously star struck when we met Howard! We were fumbling over our words and makin' a fool of ourselves! But he was a good sport and was extremely nice, I'm sure he deals with salon dorks like us all the time.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sisters and brother

2011-06-27T17:48:00.001-07:00

We attended our cousin Kara's wedding reception last weekend. It was lovely and she looked beautiful! Mik snapped a couple pictures of us sisters......and Kyler.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Stuffed French Toast

2011-06-17T13:48:00.001-07:00

Mik and I are never on the same schedule in the morning, which means we always grab breakfast to-go. So when our ward switched their Sunday meeting time to one o'clock in January we decided to take full advantage of having our mornings together and started a new tradition of making really yummy breakfasts that we normally don't have time to make. We've tried everything from aebleskivers to german pancakes but I was in search for the perfect stuffed french toast recipe. I took a little recipe inspiration from Martha Stewart and Williams Sonoma and came up with my own recipe. Now I'm definitely not one that posts recipes on their blog but after all my trial and error it would be a shame not to share! (excuse the photo I used my phone!)

1 loaf Italian bread (I just bought the "baked fresh daily french bread" from Days Market but you could easily use any bread you like or have)
3 tablespoons apricot jam (anne made makes the yummiest apricot-ginger jam)
1/4 cup (2 ounces) reduced-fat cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1 tsp Fresh Lemon Juice (last Sunday I didn't have any lemons so I used Lemon essential oil, make sure yours is food grade)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk (we use soy)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Oats
Maple syrup, for serving

Directions
Using a knife, cut a horizontal slit in each bread slice to form a pocket. In a bowl, blend jam, vanilla, lemon juice and cream cheese. Spoon some of the mixture into each pocket. In a bowl whisk together eggs, milk, and cinnamon until combined. We have a little indoor grill thing that you plug in so we use that but you could just as easily use a pan, etc. Lay the bread slices in egg mixture, letting them soak 5 seconds on each side. Then dip them in oats or sprinkle the oats on top (I tried adding the oats to the egg mixture but the oats soaked up all the eggs!). Place slices on skillet and cook until golden brown. Repeat with remaining bread. We serve ours with good old Mrs. Butterworths. Bon appetit!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

We all Scream for Ice Cream

2011-05-28T16:49:00.001-07:00

Thursday night Mik and I made our first batch of homemade ice cream for the summer. Maybe if we act like it's summer it will come? We added lavender essential oil to vanilla ice cream (Miks idea) and it was delicious!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Elder Dork

2011-05-25T10:31:00.000-07:00

Kyler gets home in exactly one week! Just thinking about it makes me want to jump up and down slash brings tears to my eyes. Preparing for Kyler to get home has been like getting ready for a new baby. My mom got his room all ready and clean, homecoming plans were made and posters and banners created for the airport reunion (more jumping up and down and tears come to mind). Mik has been counting down the days for weeks now (he just may be more excited then me, he finally gets his BFF back!); 2 scooters have been insured, tuned and cleaned (apparently no easy task, this has taken weeks) and the xbox is being warmed up. But in all this I guess we forgot to ask Elder Roney how he feels. I emailed him pictures from Nancy's bday party and this was his reply:
"thanks for the pics. that reminded me why i want to come home haha. i was thinking otherwise for a bit. see ya later aligata!"
I'm glad I could remind him why it's time for him to come home after 2 long years!

Nifty Fifty

2011-05-24T11:17:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Aunt Nancy turned 50 (I can only hope I look as amazing as she does when I turn 50!) and we celebrated with a fiesta! We all donned sombreros (except miss keely who claimed to be already having a bad enough hair day), ate delicious food, hit a pinata and enjoyed lovely company.

Uh sorry Karson wrong nationality!

There were 50 balloons decorating the party and at the end we let them all go. Karson was pumped!

That look on his face after they were released is priceless!

My mom had the genious idea of gifting Nancy 50 nailpolishes, it was a huge hit! Everyone starting enjoying and using them right away.

Cute little Nora took full advantage of the situation, getting a manicure using 10 different colors!

Happy Birthday Nancy!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Dear You

2011-05-19T10:50:00.000-07:00

I came across this a couple weeks ago and it gave me a good laugh so I had to share! (if you click on it I think it will get bigger)

Girls Night!

2011-05-10T17:30:00.001-07:00

I decided it was high time the girls in my family got together for a girls night. Kortni and I had both read Water for Elephants and were dying to see the movie so we decided to make a night of it. We (mom, Keely, Karly, Kortni and I) started the night off at the Beehive Bazaar. At the last General Conference President Thomas S. Monson suggested putting a picture of an LDS temple in every room of our homes to serve as a reminder. Naturally I scooped up this watercolor of the Salt Lake Temple.

Bought my mom some Strawberry Basil jam for Mother's Day. Delish!

I've been eyeing this painting from Colett Yarro for some time now and decided to finally take the plunge. No buyers remorse here!
We ate a quick dinner then zipped straight to the movie. My mom had to drop Karly off at home (unfortunately she's not quite old enough for a PG13's yet!) so we bought tickets, treats and saved seats. Boredom took over and we decided to snap some pictures. It was a tricky business trying to get a picture with all 3 of us in it!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Supercross

2011-05-10T17:09:00.001-07:00

Mik went with his friend Riley to the Supercross in Salt Lake a couple weeks ago. Mik loved it! So much so that he and Riley got together for a BBQ last weekend to watch the finals in Vegas on tv!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Heaven on Earth

2011-05-10T17:04:00.001-07:00

The best word to describe our week in Cayman? Heaven! I LOVE that there's no cell service, no shoes, no jeans and no flat irons. I love that I can hear the ocean from my bed, walking on sand daily, reading in a hammock and getting to spend this blissful week with my husby and family. No interruptions, no work, just fun.
I took zero pictures! When I asked Mik for his he sent me 2. They're of us in the plane on the way home. Quality. Check out my mom and Kortni's blogs for pictures of the actual trip!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Bookworm

2011-04-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

The Amazon Kindle is one of the best things to ever happen to me. You may think I'm exaggerating. I'm not. Mik will confirm it's my second love. I love that if I finish a book at midnight I can quickly download another one, I love when I go on vacation I only have to bring my teeny Kindle instead of taking up precious suitcase space with 5 books, I love that it has a E ink screen so it's exactly the same as a book instead of a computer (like the ipad) and I LOVE that the books are cheaper! I always have a hard time choosing what to read so I usually go by recommendations, here are a few I would suggest. Sundays at Tiffany's: Such a cute book! An adult-fairytale love story.

Water for Elephants: Everyone has been reading this because the movie is coming out. I LOVED the story line but there were quite a few sexy scenes so it was kind of a bummer. I can handle a little sexy but some of it was graphic enough to make me blush! Can they start making clean flicks books please?

Firefly Lane: I really liked this book, a good story about friendship. It's a tearjerker so have the tissues handy!

Madame Tussaud: Suprisingly my Favorite out of the 4! It's based on the true story of Madame Tussaud (the wax model sculptor). I'm usually not a fan of historic books but this was enjoyable and refreshing! I will warn you this takes place during the French Revolution and there are a few war/violent scenes. All in all i LOVED this book!

What are some of your new favorite reads?

Being a Grown Up

2011-03-26T08:27:00.000-07:00

I've realized being an adult isn't as great as you think it to be when you're growing up. Why didn't I take advantage of being 16!? Over a year ago my dad sent me an email of a speech Bill Gates gave and I've kept it all this time because it's so true! Enjoy!

Love him or hate him , he sure hits the nail on the head with this! Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.

Rule 1 : Life is not fair - get used to it!
Rule 2 : The world doesn't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.
Rule 3 : You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.
Rule 4 : If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss
Rule 5 : Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.
Rule 6 : If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault , so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule 7 : Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.
Rule 8 : Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
Rule 9 : Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.
Rule 10 : Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Rule 11 : Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

What a week!

2011-03-19T14:47:00.001-07:00

It's been an interesting week, that's the only way I know how to describe it. It all started a couple months ago when I knew my body wasn't functioning right. After doing some research and hearing rave reviews I went to the Utah Valley Wellness Center to see the lovely Catherine Kipp. 6 vials of blood later I finally got my results from her last week. Let's just say I'm not very happy with my body or Doctors or Birth Control right now.

Now the fun stuff begins! I'm sadly low on Vitamin D (suprise suprise right?), I'm also anemic at the moment and don't even get me started with my hormones (these are just a few of my many problems). So now I take around 25 supplements a day, I've been banned from all foods with high amounts of hormones (red meat, chicken, milk, eggs, etc) and take Progesterone Troches. Um have you ever had a Progesterone Troche? Basically it's a yuck/mint flavored square piece of wax that you have to suck on until its gone. I had my first one last night and couldn't stop gagging sooo I solved the problem by putting a mini cadburry egg next to it.

Anyways the point of my little sob story isn't to get sympathy it's a cry for help. I'm supposed to be eating super healthy (the cadburrys definitely don't count, give a girl a break!), mostly fruits and vegetables, which is hard for this meat-loving girl. If I could eat cereal every meal, every day, all day I totally would (milk substitute ideas are gladly welcome). Any recipes, suggestions, tips, advice, food substitutes, etc etc etc are welcome. No. NEEDED! Also, I highly recommend Catherine Kipp (she's a nurse practitioner), she really takes her time and really cares about you and your health.

Jazz Time

2011-03-18T16:28:00.001-07:00

Last night Mik and I got invited to join my family to the Jazz signing. It was fun to see the players up close and personal and to see a little bit of their personalities come out. Mik got a humongous hand to get signed, you can see he's quite proud of it.

The players thought it was so funny that Karson was "giving them the finger", they kept calling him Finger Man! I think that hand is about the same size as he is.

What, you didn't know Mik got recruited to be on the Jazz?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

FORT

2011-03-04T16:07:00.001-08:00

While my parents were gone Kortni built an AMAZING fort with the children. Karson and Karter or course had to show it off to us the second we got to the house. Well I turn around for two seconds and it's not Karter and Karson enjoying the fort...it's MIK!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

BOWLING

2011-02-26T14:14:00.001-08:00

Mik and I went bowling over the weekend. We haven't gone in a really long time and boy I was not so good! Of course Mik was rocking it so I finally had Mik put the bumpers up on my turn so my ball could actually hit the pins!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

DELICIOUS

2011-02-25T09:09:00.000-08:00

Mik and I discovered the Sweet Tooth Fairy a couple weeks ago. So delicious! These are hands down the best cupcakes we have ever had in Utah (still doesn't beat Sprinkles, but they're on a whole different level). It's located in South Provo in the cutest little shop, my favorite so far has been the Peanut Butter Chocolate cupcake but I also LOVE the little cakebites. If you haven't been you need to go check it out, you won't regret it!

Love Day

2011-02-15T13:08:00.001-08:00

We had a lovely little Valentine's Day. Can I just tell you how glad I am that I married Mik? Who else could deal with all my craziness! We both agreed a delicious dinner at Sundance was enough celebration (reason #1: he loves food as much as I do). No gifts. No cards. Just us. We did splurge on a box of See's Candies (reason #2: he loves treats, especially if it includes chocolate and peanut butter). We finished the night by renting a movie (reason #3: he enjoys a good movie, chick flicks included). Ok I could go on and on but I'll spare you.

Apparently the Tree Room was the place to be last night. We bumped in to my parents, aunt and uncle and of course this gorgeous lady!

I hope you all got to spend the day with someone you love!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

ICE CASTLES

2011-02-07T20:54:00.001-08:00

Saturday night I surprised Mik and took him to the Ice Castles in Midway. It was FREEZING but well worth it! I was amazed that the entire thing was created by hand, that's some dedication! I would definitely recommend going, especially at night because they have it all lit up, just make sure you bundle up!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

My Love

2011-02-02T21:33:00.001-08:00

Mik keeps my life exciting and fun, never a dull moment! The other day he was at the Salon and got a phone call so he stepped outside. The next thing I knew I look outside and he's climbing the huge snow pile across the street! Must have been a boring phone call?
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

January Update

2011-01-29T10:37:00.001-08:00

For some reason January was a crazy month at the Severe household! Hence, the lack of blogging! Here's a little update of January. We spent New Years Eve with my family. We stuffed our faces with delicious finger foods and those of us who made it to midnight counted down with Dick Clark.

A couple girls from the Salon and I got to attend a Bumble and bumble event in Salt Lake. It was extremely inspiring!

Since December is such a crazy hectic month for everyone we decided to have the Salon party in January. We enjoyed great company and delicious food from La Jolla Groves. We have been so blessed to finally find an amazing group of stylists!

I had my first experience with this place. Worst experience of my life. We won. Enough said.

This crazy kid turned 4! LOVE little kid birthdays!

Went to Sara's Gossip Girl inspired birthday party. A fun night with a bunch of great ladies (not such a great photo).

I can't believe it's already February! Let's hope this month slows down a little bit!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Provo Beach Resort

2011-01-29T10:17:00.001-08:00

A couple days before the Provo Beach Resort opened we got to go as a family and check the place out. Such a fun place! Mik catching a wave

We also had a friendly little competition of miniature croquet.
Karson having the time of his life on the carousel.If you haven't gone yet you need to check it out! Try the oreo beignets they're delish!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Happy New Year!

2011-01-05T16:26:00.000-08:00

Better late then never right? 2010 was good to Mik and I and we can't wait to see what 2011 brings! I hate New Year's Resolutions, mostly i just hate the whole cliche that comes along with them. If you want to do something, do it, don't wait until January 1st! I will say Mik and I discussed ours last night and set some goals. Miks was to save money so I decided mine would be to spend money (haha now you see how much I hate them).

In all honesty I just want to work at being a better me. I was inspired by my friend Weslie to be more open and honest, she shares all the good AND bad on her blog. After reading her last post I realized we all have THOSE days and it's ok.

Here's to a great 2011!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2010-12-30T12:02:00.001-08:00

I want to say I took a ton of pictures of Christmas and all the fun we had but this year I decided to take a REAL break. NO work. NO e-mail. NO makeup. and apparantally that means NO pictures! Instead I decided to.......
We spent the week with my family in Park City skiing, eating, drinking hot cocoa, talking to missionaries, eating, watching all the kids eyes light up as they opened gifts, playing games and sitting by a fire. It was perfect. Maybe Mik took some pictures....
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Lego store

2010-12-24T10:48:00.001-08:00

While we were in California we stopped at the Lego store. Karter was in heaven! They had some really cool huge statues made entirely out of legos!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Happiest Place on Earth!

2010-12-16T11:53:00.001-08:00

Last week my parents treated the whole family to a trip to Disneyland! It was exactly what we all needed; a vacation, magic and time together.

All 13 of us shared a 3 bedroom suite, it was so fun! Karson was in heaven getting to have a SLEEPOVER with all of us. We had a perfect view of the park and Disney store.

Mik had to sit in "santa's chair", of course all the children had to join!

Taylor needed help on the carousel apparantally...Karson and I rode on the Ariel carousel over and over while everyone else went on the screamin california rollercoaster. He was in heaven!

Mik and Karly on Screaming california. Karly's yawning.

They had a new Tangled meet-and-greet set up. They had a huge ponytail of hair wrapping around the buildings behind the castle (its that blonde mass above us).

You can never have too many churros!

Miks favorite place/restaraunt in the world, The Blue Bayou. Their monte cristo sandwiches are to die for!

more churros.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

FOR SALE

2010-12-02T09:59:00.000-08:00

I am selling some salon furniture and MIRRORS MIRRORS MIRRORS! Click HERE for more info

bringinthemonoutthatJAZZ!

2010-11-30T15:46:00.001-08:00

Last Friday night was the Jazz vs. Lakers game. It was an amazing game! It was a pretty tight game the whole night but the Jazz pulled ahead at the end and won!

Sweet sweet victory!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

HALLOWEEN

2010-11-09T20:19:00.001-08:00

For Halloween Mik was a matador and I was the Cheshire cat. We spent Friday night at mik's brothers party. Saturday we spent with my family at trunk or treat, trick or treating at riverwoods and eating lots of candy!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Ghosts in the Graveyard!

2010-11-02T20:37:00.001-07:00

More Halloween.....I made my familys traditional ghosts in the graveyard dessert. Yum!

Mik and I went to the pumpkin patch to pick out our pumpkins but they were closed! Lucky for us the nice old man at the front desk let us take some from the front for free!

Carving pumpkins...

The finished products!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Gardners village

2010-11-01T14:18:00.001-07:00

October is my favorite month of the year. I love everything about it; the smells, the fall colors, Halloween, pumpkin flavors (pie, cream cheese, bagels, yum!) I could go on and on! Every year we love to go to Gardners Village to see the witches, eat good food and pick out a Halloween decoration.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

MARLEY'S WEEKEND!

2010-10-29T16:34:00.001-07:00

Last weekend Marley's opened its second location in the Riverwoods mall. It was a fun and crazy weekend! There was great entertainment, delicious food and a ton of fun people! (I was having too much fun to take a lot of pictures so I stole a bunch from my sister, the crappy pictures are courtesy of my no-flash-iphone)

The sasquatch attacked Karter while Karson clung on to me and screamed until well after he was gone.

During the music performances Karter and Karson found a great dirt pile to play, jump, dance and roll in. Hey whatever can keep them happy and distracted is fine by me!

Karson was my personal entertainment for the night. If you haven't seen this kid dance, you are missing out! He's the best hip shaker I've ever seen, not to mention he mouthed the words to every song (whether he really knew the words or not). Puts a smile on my face just thinking about it!

Notice his sweatshirt is now off. Dancing makes you hot.

I have to admit I had never heard of Megan Joy before last week nor had I ever heard her music. She is extremely talented. LOVE her and that voice of hers!

Here are a couple pictures of the crazy line and crowd!

If you haven't had the chance to eat at Marley's you need to take advantage! It's a cool place, fun atmosphere and delicious food!

Not to mention they have REALLY YUMMY custard! Just ask Karson.....
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

CONFERENCE WEEKEND

2010-10-07T14:47:00.001-07:00

We had a great conference weekend! It was nice to be able to hear from President Monson and all the other amazing messages! We spent the weekend with my family up the canyon, it was so beautiful! I LOVE fall and this time of year, the changing leaves were beautiful! Mik went on his very first "real" horse ride with Kody. He loved it!

Yeehaw cowboy!

Aren't the leaves beautiful?! The perfect setting for conference!

Karson couldn't get enough of the four wheelers! He made everyone take him millions of times, he never got bored!

Keaton bravely took a dip in the freezing pond!

Apple kept herself busy with a gigantic frisbee she found.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

CAN YOU FEEL THE LOVE TONIGHT?

2010-09-09T13:07:00.001-07:00

Last week we got to go with my family to see The Lion King in Salt Lake. It was SO GOOD! The music was great and the costumes were AMAZING! One day I hope to play the giraffe, stilts and all. We got some pretty quality pictures.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

CONNECTION NIGHT

2010-09-07T16:32:00.000-07:00

Mik came up with the grand idea of having a "connection night" once a week (aka date night with a fancy name). We look for things that are cheap or free and the goal is to do something different then the same old shmame old dinner and a movie. A couple weeks ago we went to the BYU Art Museum and LOVED it! They have 3 different exhibits going on right now; Suburbia, Life of Christ (very cool) and the museums personal collection (our favorite).

Can you tell which ones were our favorite? We wanted to take more but little did we know it's against the rules to take pictures....Last week we went to Amano Chocolate. Run don't walk! Who knew there was a world renowned chocolate place in Provo?! You get free samples of all the different chocolates they make, brownies and peanut brittle. Delish!

After the taste testing we each took home a bar of our favorite and some yummy truffles.

The Madagascar bar for Mik and the milk chocolate Ocumere bar for me!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Anniversary

2010-09-04T11:51:00.001-07:00

For our 2 year anniversary we spent the weekend in Salt Lake. We heard good things about Hotel Monaco so we decided to give it a try! It's a cute, funky, boutique hotel.

We spent the day shopping and walking around the gateway. We were so pumped because we got this rare parking spot in front of Anthropologie. So of course we had to document it!

We ate a yummy dinner at Happy Sumo.

Then it was back to the hotel. Naturally we had to put on the complimentary leopard robes.

Mik had a little too much fun.

It was a lovely little weekend!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

2 YEARS

2010-08-26T14:21:00.000-07:00

Can you believe we have been married for two years?! It has gone by in the blink of an eye! I am so grateful for my husby, our marriage and for all the fun we have had!

This is one of my favorite wedding photos, it pretty much sums up my wedding day. Notice the background; My crazy sisters having the time of their lives, dancing the night away. My good friend Kellie on the other side getting hit on by some creep. Oh and me and Mik completely oblivious to it all, totally in love!

23

2010-07-31T08:46:00.001-07:00

Thursday, July 29 was Mik's 23rd Bday. I'm such a lucky lady to have this guy as my husby!

The night before I took the kids to get balloons, this humongous one wouldn't even fit in the mini van door! Karly offered to hold onto it while it hung out the window but luckily after putting the backseat down it fit in the back....barely!

All Mik wanted to do for his birthday was use his new grill, so we invited family over for a BBQ. Mik grilled the hot dogs.

Some of the guests...

Bubbles were Blown...

The decor

Opening some great gifts!

His chocolate peanut butter bars birthday cake.

Blowing out the candles.

Happy Birthday Mik!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

BOYS

2010-07-21T21:32:00.001-07:00

Going through my pictures as of late I've realized boys like to stack on top of each other...
Whether it's a mega stack in the pool

A shoulder ride from the brother in law

Or even pretending that you're a abnormally tall man...?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

WEDDING

2010-07-20T11:22:00.001-07:00

One of the Stylists from our salon, Rachel, got married. She looked great and the wedding was beautiful.

Mik eating chicken on a stick

Yummy cupcakes from the Sweet Tooth Fairy

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

4TH WEEKEND

2010-07-12T16:11:00.001-07:00

It was so lovely to have the 4th fall on a Sunday this year, it meant we got a 3 day weekend here in Utah! We had a lazy Saturday swimming, laying out and eating slurpies.

Saturday night was the Stadium of Fire so we watched the fireworks from my parents backyard. While waiting for the fireworks we swam, ate delicious food and roasted huge marshmallows.

YUM!

Sunday we BBQ'd with friends.

A newer tradition we have started is taking the kids to "the clubhouse" the night before the parade and have a sleepover. Karson was so 'cited this year because he finally got to come!

Mik met up with a bunch of family and friends on scooters and motorcycles to "candy bomb" all the people on University Avenue.

Mom and Dad ready to go!

My birds eye view of the scooter gang.

After watching a movie we went to the Shred Shack for a late night snack.

We woke up bright and early for the parade the next morning. Some of us a little more tuckered out then others.

Parade Time!

The Harley Davidson mascot (a sasquatch) pulled Brooke out of the bleachers and made him ride in the parade!

OUCH! Burned his leg on the hot pipe:

Love these summer days!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

BBQ TIME!

2010-07-08T16:27:00.001-07:00

Last night Mik used his grill for the very first time:

It was also his first time ever grilling a real dinner (apparantally hot dogs don't count). Halibut and asparagus were on the menu, I stood back and watched the magic. He learned things like when you put a ceder board in the grill dont turn it on high or the board will catch on fire. Needless to day the meal was delicious! What a lovely evening!

LAZY DAYS

2010-06-30T13:58:00.001-07:00

What do you do with two bored boys on a Tuesday night? Have a water balloon fight of course!

Unfortunately it's takes a lot longer to make water balloons then it does to pop them!

Love these warm summer nights!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

NITRO CIRCUS

2010-06-28T13:58:00.001-07:00

A couple Saturdays ago Mik got to enjoy an afternoon watching stunts by nitro circus.

I think the highlight of his day was getting to meet Travis Pastrana. They did some crazy ice blocking, slid down the hill on a toilet ice sculpture and got pulled by a four wheeler on a sled. Crazies!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

FATHERS DAY

2010-06-23T14:01:00.001-07:00

This Fathers Day was a good one! Ours started on Saturday night when I suprised Mik with a BBQ. No I'm not pregnant, Mik has been talking nonstop about getting one and I just happened to be at Target and they just happened to have one for $99 and it just happened to be around fathers day. Needless to say he was very excited!

Sunday we decided to set it up. Who knew a BBQ started from so many little pieces!? I felt like we were setting up a piece of furniture from Ikea.

2 hours later....

A beautiful BBQ!

Mik is such a great husband I know one day he will make an amazing dad!

Later that afternoon we celebrated with my family.

I have been blessed with an amazing dad! Anyone that knows him knows what i'm talking about when I say that he is hilarious, makes friends with everyone and is the smartest guy I know.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Goodbye Hermana Roney

2010-06-19T13:26:00.001-07:00

Well it's official Kenzie has set sail on her missionary journey. This last week has been a roller coaster of emotions but I know this is what Kenzie should be doing. Monday night we celebrated her last FHE with Marley's and surfing.

Tuesday night Kenzie was set apart as a missionary.

Wednesday we went and took pictures in front of the famous MTC sign and said our goodbyes.

Lookout Guatamala here she comes!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

SUNDANCE

2010-06-12T16:48:00.001-07:00

One of our favorite things to do is go up to Sundance, probably because it always involves eating! Last night we decided to "get away" for a few hours. We dined on a yummy BBQ chicken sandwich and some garden vegetable soup from the deli, our tummies were very happy!

For the grand finale we had a raspberry cream cheese pastry and this beauty
What is the chunk of goodness you ask? A smore bar, I'm salivating just thinking about it! Golden grahams, chocolate and marshmallows, Run don't walk!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

ON A HOT DAY

2010-06-12T14:48:00.001-07:00

When the pool cover is broken and you need to cool down after a long bike ride you resort to Plan B:

And when someone sees you having way to much fun without them they can't help but strip down and join you!

We are loving these hot summer days!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

2010-06-02T14:26:00.001-07:00

We had a lovely long memorial day weekend! Saturday I closed the salon early and headed to the Harley Davidson ReGrand Opening. Mik worked in Marleys all day, I don't think the line ever died down! I of course had to put on a Harley shirt, then we came across these amazing gloves...

Safety first!

Monday we took full advantage of our day off! We lounged around the pool until the clouds and cool breeze drove us away. We threw rocks in the pond

Played outside...

And of course had a BBQ! Courtesy of Reagan Roney

It was so great to be able to have the day off and do whatever we wanted. I hope you had a great memorial day as well!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Salon K BIRTHDAY!

2010-05-27T14:19:00.001-07:00

May 15 we threw a one year birthday party for this place:

As you saw in my earlier post a lot of preparation was made, including making cute Salon K pins...

Flowers were arranged (by the lovely Natalie Newman, the BEST of the BEST! Let me know if you need her for any upcoming event!)

More flowers were arranged...

Hairspray was set out

Cupcakes were arranged and eaten

Goody bags were given (you missed out if you didn't get one!)

Hairs were blow dried

Cute birthday cards were made (by the lovely Bryn Bateman who I also highly recommend!) thank you to Mik the photographer!

Thank you to everyone who came and supported us! Thanks for all of your support over the last year and here's to many years to come!

-Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

OUT WITH THE OLD IN WITH THE NEW!

2010-05-24T13:56:00.001-07:00

We did a little "spring cleaning" in our garage and decided it was high time Mik got a new car. His subarus plates were expiring and it was going to cost an arm and a leg (again) to fix (again) and we figured we might as well be making car payments on a new car instead of dumping a ton of money into a junker.

Goodbye white Soobee. Thanks for being so good to us. Thanks for all the good times and adventures. You were definitely worth all $500.
Love,
Mik and Karissa

He traded old soobee in and got a black Kia. It's the love of his life. If you ever can't fine Mik these days you will most likely find him in the garage cleaning his new love.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

PREPARATION!

2010-05-16T13:16:00.001-07:00

Who knew getting ready for the salon bday party would be such a huge ordeal? Friday I headed to zurchers to get balloons. I wanted to get a bunch of those huge oversized ones until I saw they were $16 each. Hm regular balloons it is! I shoved them in my car and was going to run a few more errands until I realized I couldn't see out my rearview mirror!

Butterflies were cut out and new awnings were put up in the knick of time!

Beautiful!

Then I thought I would be so smart and save a ton of money by making cupcakes myself. I always take on huge projects like this thinking it will take a couple hours and I'll be done. Well I started around 630pm and 3 million cupcakes later I was done after midnight....so much for quick.

It was a lot of preparation but it was a fun successful day and was definitely worth it! I have lots of cupcakes left over anyone interested?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

NICE DAY FOR A WHITE WEDDING

2010-05-10T17:25:00.001-07:00

Over the weekend my cousin Brienne got married. It was a weekend filled with dinner, the temple and a reception. Saturday night Kenzie and I took Karly, Karter and Karson to the reception while the rest of the family went to cheer on the Jazz. This is what happens when you ask Karter to take a picture.....

Thanks Karter!

Kenzie enjoying a rock candy

Little buddy havin a grouchy-I-don't-want-my-picture-taken moment...

He was loving the 'zert aka dessert aka yummy crepes, he also devoured around 10 rock candy suckers....

Brienne was a beautiful bride, I can't wait for her to start her new adventure!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Happy Birthday to US!

2010-04-30T11:36:00.000-07:00

Hope you can make it! First come first served. I can't believe it's been one whole year! My oh my how my baby has grown!

COME BACK SPRING!

2010-04-30T08:57:00.001-07:00

Well it was feeling like spring around here for a little bit and we were enjoying every minute of it! Spring cleaning was done, blossoms sprung, winter clothes were put away and out came the flip flops and t-shirts! We also tried to spend as much time outside as possible. Mik joined the Harley Davidson softball team and is loving it! They're actually pretty good but it is funny to see those Harley guys run! Usually at least one guy gets kicked out of the game for launguage problems! Mik plays outfield and has made some good catches and even got a double play! Buy me some peanuts and cracker jacks...

Mik also got the scooter out. Karson loves riding on "Miks big bike" and refused to get off!

Salute!

Thumbs up dude! Now come back sun and let us enjoy you!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

OBSESSED!

2010-04-27T16:47:00.000-07:00

You may or may not be familiar with the fabric designer Heather Ross, if you aren't...get familiar! She is coming out with a new line next month and i'm officially obsessed! (Holly its time to start our fabrics anonymous group). I will be stashing some for my future girlie and luckily a certain friend just found out shes having a girl! I definitely got this obsession from my mother...

go to heatherross.squarespace.com

run dont walk!

PARADISE!

2010-04-25T21:22:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago we went to the Cayman Islands with my family it was one week of pure bliss! One afternoon Mik decided to break open a coconut the kids picked from a tree. It took multiple knives, a screwdriver, hammer and throwing it on the ground to open it but it was definitely worth the wait!

Fresh coconut is soooo delicious, even ask Karson...

He carried that piece around until it was completely gone, then asked for more! We had a wonderful time and it was definitely hard to come back to snowy Utah. Until next time Cayman...
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Must See!

2010-04-18T08:47:00.001-07:00

Last night Mik and I decided to go to the movies. We haven't been in forever and wanted to make sure it was a good one (who wouldn't when you're spending $20 on tickets, $5 on a small bag of popcorn and $5 on a bottled water!). We went and saw this movie:

This movie was hilarious! We laughed out loud the entire time and both agreed we haven't seen a movie this good in a long time. I love Tina Fey and Steve Carell so for me it was a match made in heaven. I will warn you there was a short raunchy part at the end (they always have to throw one of those in for some reason). But I would definitely recommend it if you're looking for a laugh

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

WE HEART NEW YORK!

2010-03-13T19:58:00.001-08:00

Mik and I got invited to go to Bumble and bumble University in New York and of course we jumped at the chance! We left Saturday night and took the red eye so the first thing we did when we got there (at 6 am) was take a little nap! We got to stay in a friend's place it was AMAZING!

After our nap we hit the streets! We walked all over the place! This is the cool mac building...

Mik was reluctant about going to a toy store but I convinced him he HAD to go to F.A.O. Schwartz. Of course he LOVED it! They had the coolest Harry Potter section...

A soldier built entirely of jelly beans!

Next stop was Dylan's Candy Bar. It's a huge yummy candy store.

Later that night we were starving! We needed some good old fashioned NYC pizza and found the yummiest little place:

The next day was the beginning of Bb.U. It was a 3 day course for owners of salons, basically we learned how to have a better salon all around. We definitely learned a ton! There was a lot of sitting in class rooms...

Peter is the ceo of Bumble. Since we are exclusive with Bumble we got to have lunch with him later that week, it was awesome! But we were so bummed because he had to run to a meeting and we didn't get a picture with him! so this is as good as it gets.

Bumble has 2 different salons in NYC one Uptown and one Downtown. All the classes were held in the downtown building (they own the entire building). We took a tour and were blown away! I didn't get a ton of pictures, but trust me this place was HUGE! The entire top floor is the reception area...

There is also the cutest little Bumble cafe in the waiting area where clients can get tea, drinks and yummy food either while they're waiting or even while they're getting their hair done!

Downstairs was an entire floor of cutting, the floor below that was an entire floor just for coloring! This sign definitely describes Mik and his hair!

The 3rd floor is BbU. Every day we took a ton of classes and they fed us yummy breakfast and lunch!

Mik's so happy because we are DONE and GRADUATED!

Don't know when this picture was taken but you just can't pass a beautiful work of art like this without taking a picture!

My parents met us in NYC a couple days later. The first night we went to a yummy Italian restaurant. My mom and I couldn't resist taking pictures of their fancy bathroom! These pictures don't do it justice but the lighting was dim, very romantic!

Notice all the candles, rose petals and water fountains.

After dinner we saw Chicago. It was quite sexy!

Then finished off the night with a game of pool!

The next night we went to dinner at a yummy mexican restaurant. They had all these sexy diving men all over on the wall!

We got to see another show South Pacific, "i'm gonna wash that man right outta my hair!"

The next day we walked around the city with my parents. We went to Toys R Us. Mik almost got killed by a T Rex!

Yes that is a GIANT Barbie house! Any girls dream!

Candy Land King...

Times Square
It was just a little windy

We said farewell to my parents (they had to catch their flight) and Mik and I walked around some more. We went to Canal Street, if you haven't experienced you need to! Then were just walking around town and saw these building poles and LOVED them! So I had to take a picture. You don't see cute stuff like this on buildings every day!

We went to Bumble and bumble salon Uptown. It was also amazing!

We also went to go to Bloomingdale's to see the Bumble Bar (are we bumbled out yet? no way!). We also HAD to do a little shopping.

We finished the night off with a delicious dinner at Serendipity and of course YUMMY YUMMY dessert!

Can't go wrong with chocolate cake!

or a hot fudge sundae!

Good Bye New York! Until next time....

New York

2010-03-02T16:16:00.000-08:00

Next week we are going to New York for a Bumble and bumble class. Hoorah! Any suggestions on what to eat, where to go, favorite places, etc etc etc?

ROAD TRIP!

2010-01-25T13:44:00.000-08:00

Way back in November one of my friends was getting married in California and I really wanted to go but Mik couldn't get work off so Kenzie and Kortni volunteered to road trip there with me! It was quite the adventure! There was lots of driving...

and more driving...

We decided to cut all that driving in half so we stopped in Las Vegas. A family member has a house there but is trying to sell it so unfortunately he moved all the furniture out, but since it was free we decided it was better then nothing! These were our comfy sleeping arrangements.

We woke up bright and early the next morning due to a bad nights sleep, stiff necks and backs from our sleeping arrangements. Good morning!

This is what happens when you have no chair, ladder or any type of useful furniture...

Since we were up so early we decided to hang out in Vegas for a little bit and do some shopping. We found the best outlet mall!

And you can't pass through Las Vegas without stopping at IN N OUT!

We managed to make it safely to California and were lucky enough to stay with the California Roneys! Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures but they kept us very entertained! Never a dull moment with all those little girlies! The next day we decided to shop it up some more. We stopped at Nordstrom for some delicious lunch.

We also made it a priority to get cupcakes from Sprinkles! Yes that is my arm and thumb. And yes we brought some home to share! (unfortunately Kenzie's had a little accident and didn't make it. Such a shame!)

Between all that shopping and eating we made it to the wedding. Ashley was a gorgeous bride (i'm in LOVE with her dress!) and she had a perfect wedding!

Kortni getting on her groove on the dance floor.

On the way home from the wedding we saw this in the distance and couldn't figure out what it was...

We got closer and realized it was a car completely on fire. It was definitely one of the highlights of our trip! Unfortunately we got so distracted we missed our exit!

On the way home one night we happened to drive right by the temple! So we of course had to stop and get a picture (we definitely get that from our mom). Some old man took it for us and unfortunately it turned out a bit blurry!

It was quite the adventure and we made it home safely! The End.

CRAZY LIFE!

2010-01-20T16:57:00.000-08:00

So it has been over a month since my last post, there has been no time our life is so crazy! Here is a quick update on what we have been doing over the last month.

As you all know my day consists of hanging out here all day...

I love that we own our own business and that I am my own boss! I put over 50 hours a week into this baby but it's been so worth it! It's so nice to be able to do what I love! We have been blessed with some amazing employees and clients! Now if only we could get it to be busy 24/7!

And where is Mik during all of this? Working of course! Hopefully not with her...

But he did get a job at the Harley Davidson dealership in Lindon.

He is loving it and making a lot of new interesting friends! Have you eaten at Marley's? It is SO DELICIOUS! Here's a little taste...

He also still works Saturday nights at Sundance in the Foundry Grill.

He spends his evenings coaching for Keaton's

As you can see our lives are highly insane right now (says Mik)!