It's goal time.

So both Allen and I have put on a little bit of weight. Okay, maybe not a little, more like a LOT! Part of my excuse was being prego...but I really can't use that as an excuse. After Riley was born I dropeed some weight, and then quickly put a lot on. I am eating no different before yet every time I look in the mirror, I look heavier and heavier. I guess my metabolism has changed. I am not happy with how heavy I am, and I can't look in the mirror. It is too depressing. I hate getting dressed for the day because I seriously have like one shirt that fits. I just hate it. My sister came to town, and she looks good! She has lost so much weight...and while she was here I really realized just HOW heavy I really am. Allen and I sat down and talked and made a plan. We do tybo together every day now and I am working on what we eat. Last night we had a LIGHT dinner compared to what we are used to. I looked up on the internet and read how many ounces of meat we should eat a day, and Allen and I eat at least double that amount, if not triple. Women should eat about 4 ounces a day, and men between 6-8. So I defrosted some chicken and weighed it to be the right size. One 4 oz and one 6 oz. I marinated it in a low calorie marinade and grilled it. I even pounded the chicken thinner so that it didn't look as small...hehehe. So for dinner we had that small amount of meat, and we both ate a cup of grapes. That was it, and when the food was gone, we were done. That is how it's going to be for awhile. It sure is an eye opener when you realize how much you SHOULD be eating. We set a goal of where we want to be weight wise. Allen wants to lose 35 pounds, and I want to lose 45 pounds (yes I really have that much to lose, it's depressing). Our goal date is Christmas. With eating light and exercise daily I think we can do it. Wish us luck!

And the winners are...

Go check it out! Click on the blog design button in the left hand column

6 1/2 hours left

Yup that's right! That is how much time you have left from this point to enter into the drawing for the BLOG GIVE-AWAY! Do not miss out on this GREAT offer. Who doesn't want an amazingly awesome blog? Click on the blog design button in the left column to enter NOW! Hurry up before you miss out on this great offer!

Free Give-away

Another reminder about the new free give-away that I am doing. It has been going for a couple days now and you have until tomorrow by 5 to enter. Click on my blog design button in the left column to go check out the give-away. Don't miss out on this great offer. You wont regret it!

Just keep swimming....

We took Riley swimming today for the first time. He seemed to like it even though the water was a bit cold. We just went to the gym and used their pool. Since daddy is a big pool guy he got to take Riley into the water first. Allen has decided that Riley will be a water polo player just like Dad. It sure was great to see my two boys in the pool together. I loved it! We are going to have to do this a lot! :)



Riley sure is one white baby. Thanks for the swimsuit Carli! He sure looks cute in it.

I love you two so much!

Another FREE give-away

That's right, you heard it. I am having another free give-away for your blogs. Click on my blog design button in the left hand column to go check it out. It is a great give-away! This is not a first come, first serve deal. Go check it out and enter right away.

(The site isn't finished yet...I don't have all the links and stuff working)

Here are some of the previous give-aways that I am still working on:

(Finished! Click to see a LIVE feed of the finished product)


(Finished! Click to see a LIVE feed of the finished product)

(Still in progress. No live feed available.)

One down four to go...

Today has been one BUSY BUSY day. I have been working like crazy on some of the blog give-aways.

I have completely finished one of the blogs and it was installed today. Go ahead and check it out by clicking

HERE

I have been working hard one 2 other ones, but have not finished them yet. Sorry Lauren, I have been really struggling with your for some reason. Hopefully I will have a view for you tomorrow. I sure am enjoying doing these, but they sure are a lot of work. I hope everything likes their blogs! :)

Yummy, delicious...

My friend Lauren hung out with me today and we decided to bake something....CREAM PUFFS! And I cannot stop thinking about how yummy they were. I posted the recipe, so go check it out you guys. YUUUUUMMMMMMM!!!!!!

Pay it forward

In Relief Society today we talked about Charity. It got me thinking about how I personally want to be more charitable. So I have something for you guys. This is called pay it forward. The first 5 people to leave me a comment on this post will get something from me. It will be something hand-made. I don't know what it will be yet, but something different and special for each of you. I can't promise when you will get it but you will within the next 6 months. The rules are, if you leave me a comment, you have to make a post on your blog and do the same for your friends. I know this isn't like bringing food to the sick or helping someone in need...but I thought maybe I could do something nice for my friends. So let's see who the first 5 people are!

So excited!

My sister Ashlee, and her husband and son are coming to visit. They fly in tonight and I am SUPER excited. I haven't seen her husband for a year and a half, and I haven't seen her or her little boy for over a year. It's about time I get to see family. They are going to stay with me over night and leave tomorrow day/evening to drive to see other family a few cities away(okay more like 5 hours away). They will be there for a week and then come back to stay with me for 3 days before going back to the airport. I am excited to see little Peyton and Riley together. They get to meet their cousins for the first time....so fun. I bet Grandma is excited to see pictures of them together. Such cute little boys....

Anyways, I have been working hard on some blog stuff. I am having so much fun. I am excited to start the blog makeovers on Monday. It will be nice to start building a portfolio. I will be having another give-away for back to school that everyone will be able to participate in. This last give-away was a hit, and I bet the next one will be too. YAY!

I have posted a ton of new recipes the past few days. I will be posting more this weekend also. Go check out the new recipes, they are some good ones.

Offer Unavailable

Congrats to those who emailed me about a full blog makeover. The lucky winners are in order:

1. Amy Oppie
2. Lauren Waldram
3. Marin Knits
4. Salon Sarah Bella
5. Maija-Liisa Downing

I am so excited to do your blogs. For those of you who have not returned my emails, I am just waiting to hear back to get started.

For those who didn't make it to the first 5 people, I am so sorry...but I will be doing some more give aways soon!

What a natural!

Today my niece came over and we had so much fun. It is always a blast with her. She brought over her adorable little apron and we baked some cookies.





She seriously did it all pretty much by herself. Not too shabby for a 3 year old! I seriously love this girl so much. After the cookies we had some snacks and then made some puzzles. We sure had fun. Thanks for a fun day Abby!

IF YOU HAVE NOT READ MY PREVIOUS POST YOU MUST! THERE ARE STILL SOME AVAILABLE SPOTS FOR THE FULL BLOG MAKEOVER.....PLEASE READ!

Freebies

Ok everyone I have something for you all. Are any of you sick of picking out some free backgrounds from various sites and then finding the same background on your friends blog? Do you want your blog a certain way but don't want to pay to have it designed? Well if so, this is your lucky day. I am looking for 5 blogs to do a makeover on, completely FREE! This includes a background, header, 2 or 3 columns, titles, favicon, navagation bar....whatever you want. You wont be stuck with something you don't like....we can make revisions. This is completely free, I am just trying to build a portfolio. You will have a WAY cute blog that nobody else will have! If you are interested in this then do the following:

Think of what you may want it to look like and then email me at SpecialMadeDesigns@gmail.com

The first FIVE people to do this will get a complete blog makeover....and you will not loose your blog lists and stuff in the process. Nothing on you blog will be lost. So here comes the race....

(** first come, first serve. I will work on the blogs in the order of my emails**)

Thank you!

Just out of the blue the past few days I have recieved emails from family and friends just sending some recipes my way. I cannot express enough how much I love when people do that. It is so thoughtful of them to send me some of their best recipes. For those of you who did that, and you obviously know who you are, THANK YOU! It sure makes my day!

If any of you have some great recipes, pass them on. I will try them and you will most likly find them on my site. I am doing a new thing where I am trying a NEW recipe at least once a week. So pass some recipes on.

I want anything! All kinds of food! I am also especially looking for some good recipes for crock pots, casseroles, authentic meals, pies, and SNICKERDOODLE cookies. If there is anything you are willing to share please email me at georgeduhbya@gmail.com

Thanks guys! I look forward to trying your recipes!

I love my boy!

Happy things

1. Riley finally rolled over for the first time tonight. Happy day!

2. I just baked some peanut butter cookies and they turned out so yummy. Thanks to Jaimie...after your batch of chocolate chip cookies I made I finally feel like maybe I can bake. I decided to try this new recipe and it turned out great. Thats twice now for success. GO ME!

I am posting the recipe along with another one right now.

A little bit of nothing

So as you can see I re-designed my blog AGAIN! HAHAHAHA! I still have a ton of "fine tuning" to do....which hopefully I will have done by today.

I love love love my new design, and I especially love our family at the top! :) I love designing... :)

What a success!

We went camping last night and boy was it fun! Ryan, David and Lauren & Bobby and Emily came with us. We roasted hot dogs for dinner and and then had some dessert. We all talked and hung out, and Riley was a trooper. He did sooooo good, I am not surprised. In the morning we had breakfast burritos...boy were they delicious! We went fishing in the morning as well. We had such a blast and can hardly wait to do it again soon! I brought my camera but forgot the memory card for it, so sorry no pics!

It's TRULY a miracle....

I did it! I FINALLY did it. Years of trying to make cookies...and for the very first time I have done it and they turned out GOOD! This is a miracle. I doubted, but I tried anyways. And boy am I glad I did. I, Whitney Bennett made these cookies:

I am so excited. After the first batch came out I seriously started jumping up and down! Nobody can wipe this smile off my face. I will post the recipe immediately. You ALL must try it. Thank you JAIME!

Yay for camping!

We are going camping tonight. I am so so excited. We are going with four of our friends...I hope Riley will be okay. Tonight we are going to have hot dogs for dinner and then have smores and what's called "brown bear". SO YUMMY. Then in the morning we are going to wake up and have breakfast burritos. I am so so excited to go camping for the first time as a family.

Also, if you haven't yet made that orange chicken then shame on you! J/K...but no really, go get my recipe HERE and make it. Everyone must...and let me know what you think. More recipes coming soon, sorry I have been slacking. (If you need the link to my old recipe blog then click HERE) I am still in the process of transferring stuff over.

If you haven't read the previous post then please do...and HELP ME! :) Also, I am looking for a really good snickerdoodle recipe. I tried making some the other day and of course I failed miserably. If you have a good one pass it my way. Thanks guys!

HELP!!!!

I like to cook...I LOVE it! But for some reason I cannot bake for the life of me. I try so hard and nothing I bake ever turns out. And I mean NEVER! I do good with baking bread but dessert is another story...I cannot bake cake, pies, and I ESPECIALLY cannot bake cookies. Why is this so hard for me. I don't know if I just can't bake or if I just have sucky recipes. If any of you have some cookie or pies recipes that you have tried and have turned out great, please pass them on...I need major help! Does anyone have any suggestions?

I try decreasing the temperature and baking everything at a lower time than suggested...I just can't figure it out!

OH MY HEAVENS!

I just made the yummiest dinner... I have tried a couple Orange Chicken recipes before but they were NASTY, TANGY....you just spit it out....but now I have finally found one.

I am obsessed with Panda Express Orange Chicken....but who needs it when you can make it at home! He is what it looked like...

I posted the recipe on my blog. Go snag it...you wont regret!

(click on my button on the top of the left hand column)

My 3 month baby!

Riley is now 3 months old. He is growing so so so quick. He brings so much joy and light into our life. He adores Allen, they will be best friends one day! I love that Riley talks to us all the time. He gibber gabbers and looks at me like he is carrying a full conversation. He never cries and is the happiest little boy ever. He sleeps 12 hours a night (and has since he was 6 weeks old). He is so alert. He knows who is parents are, and he loves the simple things in life. We sure love him.

Thanks for making me the happiest mom! I love you!

Fourth of July

I know this is really late but oh well! I have been a major failure at blogging lately....this is not like me....

We woke up and went to the parade in Provo. I had so much fun. I made some monkey bread to snack on while we waited. It was a nice treat. This was Riley's first parade. I think he really enjoyed watching all the colors pass by. He didn't cry once!

Nice drool bud!

After the parade we came back home and relaxed while we prepared food for dinner. We went to my in laws house and had a BBQ. There was so much food...it was all so delicious. We had hamburgers, chips and salsa, fruits and veggies, corn on the cob, I made potatoes and a bean casserole, and Allen made the ribs Maria bought. It all turned out so yummy. Maria made yummy homemade chocolate almond ice cream...YUM! Riley sat outside with all of us as we ate.



He sure was really happy. I am so blessed that I get to look at that face everyday! :)

After dinner we met up with some friends and watched the Stadium of Fire fireworks. We were outside the stadium...and so close. Riley loved watching the fireworks! He just stared...I think it was a lot of fun for him!

Bobby and Emily

David and Lauren

PRETTY FIREWORKS!

frustrated....

So like I posted before, our Jeep is broken down with transmission problems...and now our Honda is parked as well. I am so frustrated. Last night we were driving the Honda and it started feeling really bumpy and it was loud...it felt as if we had a bad flat tire. It jept getting worse and worse and now when you let go of the steering wheel the car swirves to the right. I am so frustrated I cant even think straight. Now both our cars are broken down and Allen works two jobs. His night job is far away and there aren't buses that take him there...so he may need to quit...but we can't pay our bills if he quits. I don't know what to do...

We really need both of these cars gone and just get ONE reliable car....AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

WHAT A DAY!

I used to make fun of those women at the grocery stores with all their coupons. I would roll my eyes and think, "They are so cheap, why can't you just pay the full price...it's not like you are really saving that much!"

Well I have turned into one of those annoying "coupon moms". I was so wrong. You really save so much money. It takes a little bit more time and effort in planning your shopping trips but it is totally worth it. Today was my grocery day. I planned what stuff would be the cheapest at what stores, and gathered my list and coupons. With all my coupons and the in-store sales I bought $300 dollars worth of groceries for a grand total of

$176

That saved me $124, saving me

42%

of my entire bill.

AMAZING....

Hello...

I am talking you YOU! Yes, YOU!

Do you have some good casserole recipes? I know you do. Do not ignore this! Please send them my way. Leave me a comment with the recipe. THANKS!

I love new recipes...

What a day!

Today has been very crazy.

My morning started like this:

*Allen drove to Provo to sell some of his old school books and locked his keys in the car. I drove to get him. We could not find our spare clicker to open the Honda. Wonderful....
I dropped him off at work.

*Got ready for the day and picked Allen up from work to go meet a guy to open the car.
Got the car open.

*Allen drove with Riley in the Honda to go get gas and I drove the Jeep to Costco to get flowers for our niece.

*Allen got to the gas station and then the Honda wouldn't work.

*I left Costco and the Jeep started breaking. It wouldn't shift gears. The car sounded like it was about to blow. I pulled over. Called Allen and found out we were both broken down. GREAT!

*Allen finally got the Honda to start and I drove slowly back home and thought I wouldn't make it.

*Our Jeep is now parked at our house and will not be driven. Something is wrong with our transmission.

*We drove in the Honda down to Salt Lake to see Abby after her surgery. She is by far the cutest thing ever. She was still a little out of it from the drugs. The surgery seems to have gone well. She is staying at the hospital tonight.

*We are now left with a broken car and an unreliable car that wont start half the time. WONDERFUL!

This is not good...

Good luck Abby, we love you!