GO GREEN, DANGIT...

I bought a box of medicine this week, and inside the box was a significantly smaller bottle of pills.

It's the same feeling as opening a bag of chips, and the bag is only half full.

You purchase a product, and you think you're buying a certain amount (because that's what they make you think). It's not the visual, false advertisement that I'm mad about. These companies are being wasteful. Just put the pills in a smaller box. Make smaller bags for the same amount of chips.

Everyone needs to go green, so that this beautiful world can stay beautiful.

Sidenote: I'm feeling much better. The small bottle of pills in the box that is twice as big... still works.

Loving Nature Year Round...

I love Colorado because you have all 4 seasons, and they are all beautiful. This winter has been especially fun with all the snow storms and the days with below zero temperatures!

Nate and I love to go on nature hikes (even in the winter!), and today we decided to go exploring. We went to one of our favorite spots down in the reservoir.

Last August, we biked down into the reservoir and had a picnic. Then we laid under the stars until 2 in the morning and watched a meteor shower! It was one of my favorite nights...


Today we drove down, and walked out onto the frozen solid reservoir (only about 2 feet out because I can't imagine a worse way to die). The snow seeped through our shoes and our socks were wet. We didn't have a picnic, and there wasn't a meteor shower to watch, but we stayed for a while to enjoy the beauty of our surroundings.


Life can be crazy, but it's these moments with Nate that remind me to slow down and enjoy the journey :)

Idaho Roots...

Mom and Dad are moving into their new house. A benefit of living in Colorado is having first dibs on some of the stuff they are giving away. Maxene and I were at the house today, and found some "towels" that my Aunt Jan made. I put them in quotes because they aren't just towels, they're better! Mom said we could have them, so we brought them to lunch to determine who would take which ones! When we got to Little Rickies, we laid them out...

Maxi and I both wanted the same ones, so we devised a plan. A mini tournament of "Paper Rock Scissors" was the only fair way. After a fierce game, accompanied with sweat and tears, Maxi pulled through with the win. She had first choice.

Maxi made her first choice, I made mine. Maxi made her second choice, I made mine. We were laughing the whole time because we were nervous about the other person taking the towels we wanted! When there were 3 left, another big decision was made. We each have two; maybe we should save one for Brook and Macy? After careful consideration, we decided it was the right thing to do. But what would we do with the extra one? Another mini tournament was scheduled!

All the people in the restaurant gathered around our table as the excitement for who would get the third towel thickened. Actually, no one cared, but Maxene and I had tournament #2 and I WON!!! I received the third towel.

Final count...

Maxi: 2 towels (bear and bunny)

Kelly: 3 towels (donkey, cat, and elephant)

Macy: 1 towel (dog)

Brook: 1 towel (lamb)

Lauren Brea: 0 towels (just happy to be apart of the excitement)

We all walked away winners today. It's not about how many of Aunt Jan's home crafted, made with love "towels" you walked away with, it's about having a piece of Idaho in your kitchen, it's about holding strong to your Idaho roots...

I think it'll just be a little bit easier for me since I have three towels :)

Always on my mind...

I miss these little ones horribly...

No different from little girls here in America. They pretend to be mommies... she's holding a bear in her sarong, just like her mommy holds a baby.


Blessing and Abby, watching the bus pull away.

Alice, hanging out by herself. SHEEMA!!!!


A few preschoolers... they were my favorite age group!

The first grade classroom.

Abby and Joseph, best-buds.

I'll go back someday... someday soon.

Blog Purposes...

Annie's Eats is a blog with great recipes. Bakerella is a blog about delicious treats. Singing with Birds is a blog where you will find recipes AND cute, fun crafts. All blogs have a purpose! I used to say that someday, people will come to my blog to get ideas for food, crafts, and daily activities. But that dream is come and gone. I've decided the purpose of my blog.

The purpose of my blog is to steal other blog's ideas, and claim them as my own. Then at the very end, I'll tell the truth. Here goes!


I was experimenting in the kitchen this week, and created a really great recipe! I think I'll call it Honey Garlic Grilled Chicken. It was super easy, and delicious :) Here's what you need...

2 T. vegetable oil

1 T. honey

2 large cloves garlic, minced

1/2 t. pepper

2 T. chopped fresh cilantro or parsley

1 T. lime juice

1 t. salt

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)

In shallow baking dish combine all ingredients but breasts. Add chicken breasts, turning to coat. Cover; let stand at room temp. no longer than 30 min., turning once. Grill or broil 6" from heat 10 minutes or until cooked through. Makes 4 servings.

Truth: This recipe came from A Dash of Thyme. One of my new favorite blogs to get recipes!

Okay, it's not as much fun to steal other people's ideas and make them sound like my own. I think I'll stick to the original purpose for my blog... complete randomness and occasional importance, all done with love and a guaranteed smile.

A proud moment...

Today a student brought me one of these...

... and I said NO!

(Well, I took it to be nice, but then put it in the teacher's lounge.)

One small step for man... one giant step for mankind.

I won...

"Go to the four 'Safety Stations' to learn some things about safety, and then come back here with this card. Then I'll give you a ticket to put into a raffle drawing!" said the nice lady. So off we went... to all 4 stations.
Did you know that you should point the fire extinguisher at the bottom of a fire? Have you ever heard that you should always hike and ski with a whistle, in case you get lost? Did you know that if you get caught in an avalanche, you really only have a 30 minute window of survival?

After learning the essentials, we each got a raffle ticket, and returned to the center of Copper Mountain at 1:00 pm promptly for the drawing! Nate and I were getting restless as other people were winning all the prizes. Time kept passing, and we weren't even close! Then the GRAND PRIZE was up... a two night stay at the Copper Mountain Resort.


The announcer guy slowly announced, "3... 2... 8." Not me. "Ugh." I thought to myself, "I never win anything!" He came on the microphone again, "328? 328, are you here? Going once, going twice, must be present to win!"

The anticipation in the crowd was as thick as home-churned butter! The announcer gently drew another number... "7... 2... 5..." ME! THAT'S MY NUMBER! I WON!!! I was beyond excited, and still don't fully believe it!