Because I love a giveaway as much as the next person. Also, Tacos.

So I recently stumbled across this darling human's instagram account. I about died when I was looking through her pictures. We could be twinsies (except she would be the cool one). She runs marathons, her husband is going to med school in the carribean, she went to college, and did I mention she's a kick-ass florist? (I've always wanted to go into floral design....cough....) Anyway. I saw she had posted a link to her blog. So I read. And read. And read. And now I feel like I know her personally....(I don't. Blogs are deceiving.) Well, this wonderful person is doing a giveaway, and I waaaaaaant to wiiiiiiiiiin. Mostly cause I never ever win anything. But also because I could MEET HER. (I'm not a creep.)

She's giving away simple pleasures such as:
Brownies (that aren't GF, but Dave likes brownies. Everyone wins.)
Necklace and earrings (That are so stinking cute.)
Ivy hair clips
A delightful candle
Cocoa butter lotion

I want all of the things!

Dave and I were starving and about to see How To Train Your Dragon 2. So we looked around the little restaurants by the university cinemark. We stumbled across this little mexican place called Taco Burrito. I've seen it a few times, but I always rolled my eyes. There's this cheesy smiling taco and burrito next to the name, and I guess I judged the food by the stupid pictures. Hahaha. Anyway. Its a lot of food. It's delicious food, gluten free friendly, and pretty cheap! We were pleasantly surprised. You can build your own burrito or tacos with anything you can think of to put on them. All for about 8 bucks a person!

Yumyumyumyumyum.


All my love,

Alex

XOXO

Gluten-Free Chick Recipe: Spaghetti Squash with Red Sauce (And Chicken)

Dave and I had a wonderful afternoon. We had some time to play with our cute nephew, and ran a few errands. I was STARVING when we got home, and I'm pretty sick of eating out, getting take out, or getting fast food. We had a spaghetti squash sitting on the counter, and I thought to myself "Why not?" 

This recipe is gluten free, and if you make it without chicken, it can be vegetarian or vegan. (And it's only 344 calories a serving!) It was super easy to prepare (which I love) but had a long baking time (boo!). Overall, I was very content with dinner. And it was delicious. 

Here is the recipe, enjoy!!

SPAGHETTI SQUASH WITH RED SAUCE (AND CHICKEN)

1 spaghetti squash 

2 TBSP Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

1 jar of red sauce of your choosing (I used Classico Creamy Spinach and Parmesan)

2 diced chicken breasts (or shredded rotisserie chicken)

-Preheat oven to 375 degrees.Wash the squash, and cut off the stem. Cut the squash in half, and scoop out the seeds. (Don't overscoop, as you will be digging into the fruit of the squash at that point.) Coat each side of the squash in 1 TBSP of olive oil. Salt and pepper each side of the squash. (I probably used about a TSP of salt and pepper on each side of the squash. Throw the squash in the oven for 45 minutes. 

-Simmer the red sauce until warm. Add chicken to red sauce (if desired).

-Scrape the squash. Use a fork and scrape the sides. It will flake away in long strands. It should look a lot like spaghetti. 

-Put the squash in the sauce and mix together.

-Serve warm. ENJOY!

All my love,

Alex

XOXO

Brett Dennen: Ain't No Reason

I know I'm probably the last person to hear this song. But I love it.

Enjoy!

All my love,

Alex

XOXO

Adventure of the Day: Topaz Mountain

So Dave decided this week that he wanted to go to this place called Topaz Mountain. He had learned about it in Elementary School, and had always wanted to go. I love dirt, rocks, and crystals, so I was all in!

Friday we bought all the of the supplies we would need. We purchased some chisels, and rock hammers (that weren't actually rock hammers, but we found the next closest thing!) and some floppy hats. That morning we filled our Camelbaks and grabbed a few granola bars, and were on our way!!!

The drive was awesome! I am always so amazed at how beautiful Utah is! It took about 2 1/2 hours to get there. The last 3 miles were all dirt roads with HUGE rocks and dips in them. It was an off roading adventure! That's for sure.

When we arrived to the place we wanted to dig for topaz, there were several people up on the mountainside. We had literally no idea what we were doing, and asked a lady there for some tips and tricks. She directed us to a gentleman a little further up the mountain.

It turns out this guy she directed us to owns The Rock Shop in Provo! SCORE! He only comes down twice a year, and we just so happened to be there on one of the two days he was there a year! How cool is that? He gave us some tips, and sent us on our merry way.

Digging was SO FUN! We had a blast busting open rocks and finding topaz, amethyst, and quartz. And brushing the ground to check for loose topaz, and watching the little lizards run around the rocks! It was seriously such a cool experience. After we had been digging for 2 hours (we lost track of time, because we were having so much fun...) One of the women in the big group invited us to join them as the Rock Guy showed us where to find agate and jasper. After we had collected all the jasper and agate our hearts desired, the Rock Guy gave us some directions to find some garnets. After a half hour of off roading, and not feeling totally certain of where we were supposed to go, we decided to head home.

We walked away with some seriously cool rocks. I am totally planning on going back. I would recommend it for anyone who wants to dress up like a geologist for a day, or for anyone looking for a quick and easy adventure.

All my love,

Alex

XOXO

Things as of late.

Dave makes my life a wonderful place to be. He's seriously my best bud. I want to do everything with him. I love that he is always up for anything. Recently I've had hearts where my eyes should be. I'm totally smitten. 

Speaking of Dave...Dave took me down to this wonderful little place called Treasures in Springville last week. If you haven't been there, and you love antiques, it is heaven on earth. We found so many wonderful things. However, the highlight of the trip was when I found. Not 1. But 2 dress vintage dress patterns. In my size. With ALL of their pattern pieces and instructions. For 3 bucks! I don't know if many of you sew with patterns, but let me tell ya! Patterns are almost as expensive as buying the material to make the item in the pattern! So it's safe to say I was ecstatic!

Sara is MARRIED! Oh my gosh! My sister had the most amazing wedding! The food was wonderful, the flowers were wonderful (I did all of the flowers and flower arrangements for her wedding, so I'm a little bit biased....but still!) the atmosphere was so romantic, and the dancing was totally killer! Her husband is Syrian, and he had several of his middle-eastern friends at the wedding! They kept the party going! It was such a wonderful celebration for Sara and Ahmad. The Borazans! I couldn't be happier for my sister as she starts this crazy awesome journey of her new life!!! 

Sami and Josh are married! Sami is Dave's best friend from high school. We drove out to Arizona for their wedding in Sedona. It was BEAUTIFUL! There were so many personal touches to the wedding, and in the ceremony that made it so special. The food was delicious, and I could eat most of it, despite being gluten-free. The dancing was so fun, and they are truly such an amazing couple. I loved hearing all of their family's toasts! They are a wonderful couple, and we were so happy to be there for their special day!

I was talking with my dad about how emotional I was at Sara's wedding. And honestly, even Sami and Josh's wedding. I found myself on the verge of big fat tears, and really had to fight to keep them in. And he told me something that I found quite profound-the reason I was so emotional, and why married couples in general become so emotional at weddings, is because you know the journey they are about to embark on. You know the highs, you know the lows, you remember what your wedding day felt like, you truly know what they are committing to. And that's truly something so wonderful, and so beautiful, it brings tears to your eyes.- And Daddy, you are so right. But there's something else. It's the way the groom looks at his bride. She is the most beautiful person that has ever walked into his life. And the way the bride looks at the groom. He has made her world a wonderful place to live. AAAAAAH. I just love weddings.

Dave has one more shift, until he is mine for a week. I can not wait. 

All my love,

Alex

XOXO

Sami and Josh are MARRIED!!!

Dave was one of the cool kids in high school. (Granted he went to UCAS, but still...) He had a big group of friends and they were all fairly close. As he got older he fell out of touch with a lot of these friends. Everyone went their separate ways, made their own decisions, and some moved away. Sami was one of the friends that moved away. Dave and Sami were still in high school when Sami moved across the country to Virginia. They stayed close friends. Talking often, and even going to Paris together when they were 18. (I know better than anyone how hard it is to stay in touch when your bestie moves cross country. Looking at you Suz!!)

Dave and Sami in Paris

I first met Sami the summer that I graduated high school. Dave had given me Cirque de Soleil tickets to their traveling show that was going to Arizona! We flew down, and stayed with Aunt Raquel. We went to the AMAZING show, and Dave wanted to introduce me to Sami, who was living in Chandler (I think?)  at the time. We pulled up to her place, and she came out to greet us. I was immediately taken with her. She was a tiny brunette in a batman shirt and shorts. She was so wonderful! And she introduced us to her boyfriend Josh. He was hilarious. I think we talked that night for 3 hours. As we left, I knew exactly why Dave had loved her for so long. She was amazing.

They came for our wedding that December. Which was amazing because A) It had been a super long time since we had seen them and B) They flew up from Arizona! How nice is that!!

Fast forward a lot of months. (Like 11). Sami and Josh get engaged! Dave and I took a spontaneous trip down to Arizona in November 2013 to visit my brother PJ who is in Arizona going to law school, and we took the opportunity to visit with Sami and Josh as well.  Again, we just were able to talk for a long time. Sami and Josh were so wonderful together, and we knew how happy they were. It was infectious.

So it made sense that we would attend their wedding in May.


Their wedding was the second to last weekend of May. May in Arizona is BEAUTIFUL! They had their wedding in Sedona, AZ, at the Poco Diablo Resort. It was a sunny golf course surrounded by incredible red mountains. (Part of the forest up there was on fire. You could see a little smoke, but it was surprisingly not smelly!)

Dave and I loved their ceremony. It was simple and sweet, and really spoke to the love that Sami and Josh share. They even did a little sand blending ceremony with their wedding colors. It was really romantic. It was a moderately small wedding. Maybe 80 people. But everyone was family and friends, and really loved Sami and Josh.

 

The sand ceremony was really cool!!

They had a delicious dinner for everyone. (The chicken was my favorite part.) Dave and I ended up being seated at the grandparent table, which was amusing, but really fun! They had cupcakes for everyone with perfect frosting, and toasts were made to them. You could tell how much everyone loved them, the toasts were the perfect mix of sincere and hilarious!! There was lots of dancing, which was so much fun.

The tables were beautiful!! Sami made all her centerpieces!!

The delicious cupcakes. I was GF at the time. I ate ALL THE FROSTING.

We were so happy to be a part of Sami and Josh's special day, and are even happier to have them as close friends. We love you guys!