Cornbelly's 2017

Happy October, everyone! The very best month!

^^^Still image from a video... hence, the blurriness :D

Nicole had a blast at Cornbelly's this year. Her favorite part was going through the corn maze, hands down! We did the shorter version of the full maze and let Nicole (mostly) lead us through it... and she LOVED it. Such a little wanderer. We also did the kid maze, which she found her own way through in less than 10 minutes. Austin just chilled up on Doug's shoulders most of the time. So cute.

Other favorites for Nicole included the giant slide (pictured above) and Cornbelly mountain, which is a big platform with 4 different slides going off it. Basically, she loves slides. She also was surprisingly excited about the ropes course and bravely walked along all the wiggly bridges and thin platforms. She drew the line at walking through The Creature with me, though. The attraction isn't haunted during the day (which means you can walk through it without having to pay the extra $$) but it's still dark and noisy, not to mention it's probably unsettling to see your mom walk into the mouth of a giant, inflated monster. Haha! Someday she'll go through scary attractions with me!

She also couldn't keep her hands off all the pumpkins because, as I've mentioned before, she's obsessed with pumpkins these days. We ended the evening with apple cider & pumpkin spice donuts, and neither of the kids had a past-bedtime meltdown, so I'd call the whole thing a success.

Now pardon me while I go obsess over all the leaves changing colors in our neighborhood. (Yay!!!! I looooove fall!!!!)

S'mores & Stuff

The previous owners of our house cleared out a fire pit area in one corner of the backyard. We kind of let it go (weeds galore) and were planning to tear it out and put down grass, but this past week Doug got it cleaned out and we tested it by having Doug's sister and her family come over for a s'mores night. The kids had so much fun, and I think we are keeping the fire pit now. Hahaha! We just need to clean it up a bit more, and then we can have a few more fall fires before the snow gets here.

Here's a couple pictures I snagged off Snapchat. It's so fun that Nicole has two cousins close in age; Claire is only 7 months older than her! Austin and Alex are both too young to join the frolicking, but just give it a few months.

In other news...

Nicole is taking dance this school year, and she LOVES it. She gets to be introduced to tap, jazz, ballet, and then they do a little creative movement segment at the end of each class. She was hesitant on the first day, but now she goes striding into her class with a loud "BYE, MOM!" and a wave. She mentions dance class throughout the week and tells me she wants to go. It's kind of sad that it's only once a week. She loves her "noise shoes" (tap shoes).

Here she is on her first day with her little bag that she carries her shoes in. Look at that huge smile! Dang, she's growing up. Staaaaaahp.

As for me, I'm just giddy that fall is here. My enthusiasm is rubbing off on Nicole because she is suddenly obsessed with pumpkins. I scored a "10 Little Pumpkins" book from the dollar section at Target and Nicole had me read it at least a dozen times in a row that afternoon. I'm not exaggerating. I look forward to letting her pick out a pumpkin later in the season.

Ah, fall. My kids get to wear long sleeve shirts/sweaters when we go to play in the early mornings now! The all-together playground is probably Nicole's most requested venue, although she enjoys going up in the canyon a lot too (which is even colder!). Austin is game for anything, of course, but especially if it means he gets to go on a swing. The kid loves swinging.

We have lots of fun plans on our radar for the autumn season, from family coming to visit us...to Cornbelly's...to a vacation that has been in the works for months and I think Nicole will be ecstatic about. I'M certainly excited!

Oh, and I made my first pumpkin-flavored dish of the season. Pumpkin & sausage soup with homemade bread. YUM. Perfect to eat on that rainy Friday last week. I'm making a butternut pasta with pumpkin sauce later this week. Cookies are on my list after that. Can't stop, won't stop!

Happy fall, ya'll!

An Evening at Cornbelly's

Going to Cornbelly's was a "must" on my fall bucket list this year, especially since Nicole's old enough to enjoy parts of it. I wanted to make absolutely certain that we got to go before the baby arrives, so we went as early in the season as we could manage... aka, yesterday! The perk of going during this first week: no lines for anything. So nice.

I was bummed to discover that Nicole did not like the corn cob beach AT. ALL. and wanted to climb back out the moment I put her in. I had visions of getting some cute pictures of her rolling around in a giant pit of corn kernels... yeah. Not this year, Ashley.

I decided to try taking video clips for this trip instead of pictures... and I discovered that I'm horrible at getting variety (not to mention the evening lighting was horrible for filming without better equipment) BUT the little video I included should give you an idea of what Nicole enjoyed most on this outing: riding in the various tractor-pulled rides (hence why most of the video is so shaky), exploring, going down giant slides with Doug, and climbing on all the play structures. In fact, those things are what we did the whole time, aside from when we watched the pig races. The cow train was her favorite ride, although she liked seeing the jack-o-lanterns lit up all along the grain train trail (we saved that one for the end when it was dark).

This will be a fun place to bring our kids back to every year. The older they get, the more fun they'll have with all the activities! Especially with things like the corn maze and the haunted areas. I wish I could've gone in those, but Nicole would have died and had nightmares for life. Haha!

Yay for fall and Halloween!

Fall Means... Farmers Markets

Fall is officially here! Can somebody give a memo to the weather? Okay, thanks.

Farmers Markets have been in full swing all summer, but fall markets are my cup of tea. Strolling around and looking at the produce and products, perhaps with a thermos of apple cider in hand... I can't help but smile at the thought. There's a market that pops up in the BYU stadium parking lot every Thursday, and we visited it last week (when the weather actually was a little cooler). We want to go back to get ingredients to make homemade salsa. There are so many peppers to chose from!

Also, babies in sweaters/cardigans make my heart happy.

Mmmm, fall. The very best season.

It's September, I Can Do What I Want To

Since it's the first day of September, I'm letting myself get into the "fall groove". Yep, even though it was 90 degrees today and we're still 3 weeks away from the first official day of fall.

Aaaaaand the first step of celebrating the imminent arrival of my very favorite season is eating something with the word "pumpkin" in it, of course. Enter... pumpkin spice yogurt pretzels. Yum. I even let Nicole try one. It got very messy, very quickly. Cute baby. I feel like I say this every year, but I can't waaaaaait for the world to get all crisp and colorful!!!!!!!

Oh, did I ever introduce you to my succulent plant Sebastian? He's pretty cute. I also have a ficus named Nora. She's cute too. Yep, I'm one of those people who name their plants. They're both still alive after about 2 months of having them, so I guess I have a bit more of a green thumb than I thought! The trick is keeping them (more specifically, Nora) alive during the cold months.

Nora, my dear ficus baby, you will survive!

The BEST month ever // October Goals

photo source

In my opinion, October is the greatest. It is the pinnacle month in my favorite season. There are so many things to look forward to. Halloween parties. Football games. Corn mazes and pumpkin patches. Blankets. Warm drinks. Fall decorations. And the weather! The smells! The colors! The tastes! October, you can stay as long as you'd like!

A new month also means a fresh to-do list. Here are my top priority items:

• Spend much more time outdoors (This shouldn't be hard. Fall weather = gorgeous!)
• Try a minimum of 5 new recipes
• Paint the crib (the plan is start sanding it this weekend between Conference sessions!)
• Finish decorating the nursery

It's going to be a wonderful month, I just know it! Happy October, everyone! And as one of my favorite bloggers quoted in her post today: "I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers." (Anne of Green Gables)

I completely agree, Anne. I completely agree.

My obligatory "I'M SO EXCITED FOR FALL" post

Original image sources:

1. Wallpaper Rotation

2. Coppal House Farm

3. Oh, Sweet Joy blog

I know, I know... the first official day of fall was SO last week. Old news, right? But ya know what, I'm going to make a dang "fall hype" post anyways because it's my favorite season and has been since I was a little girl. In fact, I would venture to say that it's been my favorite season for as long as I can remember. In other words, you can't accuse me of jumping on the autumn bandwagon because I've been on it all my life! (Really though, nearly every single blogger seems to be in love with fall.)

So, in the spirit of the new season, here are some things I'm looking forward to this fall:

• Pumpkin everything (Except pie. For some reason I'm not a fan of pumpkin pie.)
• Fall decor
• Lots of apple cider (drinking some now!)
• Crisp air
• Sweaters, boots, scarves... all that good fall fashion stuff
• A weekend drive or two up to the canyon with Doug
• Visiting Park City in about a month for a retreat (it will be our "babymoon" as well)
• Welcoming our little girl!!!!!
• Pumpkin everything. Oh wait, did I mention that already? It deserved a second mention.
• Rainy days
• Feeling leaves crunch under my feet
• Halloween activities
• Painting my nails fall colors and designs. YES.
• Bundling up in blankets with a book
• I admit, it's fun to keep up with my college football team
• Fall TV shows
• Soups
• Fall scented candles
• Pumpkin everything. Hey, it's just the truth. Between the two of us, Doug and I have already downed nearly 2 dozen large pumpkin cookies and 8 of those giant pumpkin muffins from Costco. And I may or may not have had a Pumpkin Smash from Jamba Juice the other day. And a slice of pumpkin bread from Great Harvest Co. No regrets. Next on the list: homemade chocolate chip pumpkin bread and an attempt at pumpkin pancakes.

Like I said: no regrets.

Happy fall!

September // Goals and Such

I may or may not have put that fall door decor up today...

A new month means a fresh start! And there's nothing like a holiday to start a month off right. Needless to say, today is also the day that I'm allowing myself to put up a couple fall decorations. Nothing Halloween-related yet... but some fall-colored items just to start making a decor transition.

There are a few things I want to make sure I get done this month:

• Get the baby dresser painted
• Obtain/paint a crib the same color as the dresser
• Reduce the amount of clothing in my wardrobe
• Pick an official day for my baby shower and plan as many details in advance as possible
• Try making a schedule for blog posts and see if that works for me
• Go eat some place new
• Read more (my books are collecting too much dust!)
• Spend more time outside - this shouldn't be too difficult with the fall weather on the way!
• Organize my closets and drawers
• Finish my latch hook rug
• Readjust my schedule based around 1) my teaching and 2) the musical I'm working on to ensure I still get plenty of exercise, sleep, and have time to keep the apartment nice and clean and run all the errands I'll need to take care of to prepare for baby and other things

I'll probably add another item or two to the list as I think of them... well, Happy Labor Day!

Piano, Parades, and Such

First of all, Seussical is done with! It was a successful show, and it received a lot of praise. I had tons of fun rocking out on the piano in my little corner of the backstage area. It was a LOT of piano time for me. I even developed a blister on my thumb from all the times I had to glissando.

My next project is being the music director for a production of the musical Little Women. Auditions are coming up at the end of this month, and the show is in February. It very well might be my very last theatre project while I'm at BYU!

Why? Because I'm graduating in April! And I just applied for graduation yesterday. AH! How strange to think about!

Saturday marked the day of the Homecoming Parade in preparation for BYU's Homecoming Game that night. Performing in the parade as part of the BYU Ballroom Dance Company was awesome, even though by the end of it all my energy was gone. It was so fun to have all the little kids on the parade route reaching out their hands to get high fives and to see the adult ballroom fans call out things like "you guys look great" or "you're all so good" or "I love you guys!" Surprisingly, I had plenty of energy the rest of the day and my legs didn't really hurt much. Instead, I was sore in my shoulder area. I think it's because of all the big arm movements I had to do. My legs were prepared but my arms were not, which was not what I was expecting with Triple Swing.

Here's a random picture shot on the parade route. Polka dot dresses, curly ponytails, keds, bobby socks, and all. I'm on the left side of the picture at the very front of that pack of 4 girls. We had to run to catch up to the group before us because when we stopped to do our dance, we would never travel far enough to keep up. So when we weren't dancing, we were running. It was a workout.

On a separate note, I found an opportunity between classes last Wednesday to wander along the BYU South Campus River Trail, and it was lovely. That pathway is always gorgeous, especially in the fall. Many of the trees haven't truly started changing color yet though... shame on them.

^^^^^ I'm always in my Latin skirt and flip flops/sandals on M/W/F because I have to go from class to class, and half of them are ballroom. Yes, even when it's cold, I wear my skirt. I'm sure I will choose warmth over convenience once the snow comes.

I'm so lucky to attend such a beautiful campus.
I'm so thankful I have a body that allows me to move and dance.
I'm so glad I have an appreciation and talent for music and theatre.
I'm just an artsy gal.
And I wouldn't have it any other way.

About those weekly wishes...

I know, I know. I missed the Weekly Wishes link-up this week. I suppose it's high time I take a break from that link-up, just to keep things fresh, but I'll still report on my goals! This is how my 3 goals from the past week turned out:

• I've kept my apartment comparatively tidy (especially because I had a lot of time this weekend to work on it)
• All homework was done in a timely manner
• I bought 3 big, fat cans of pure pumpkin! Bring on the pumpkin cookies! They are #1 on my To-Make list :)

In other news, Doug and I knocked another one of our fall date items off the list this weekend by taking a scenic drive through Provo Canyon. We even brought homemade hot cocoa along in a big thermos and got out of the car to explore the beautiful fall landscape.

The sun was bright. Pictures were few and in between (which is fine because it was so bright and I was in a moving vehicle, which makes for less-than-excellent pictures). The temperature was perfect. And the whole outing was simply lovely.

This was one of the least blurry/pixelated shots that I got. Wouldn't this lane be great to drive down in the early evening just before dusk? It would be perfect, in my opinion. And I probably would have made Doug take me in the evening if we hadn't been expecting a visit from my grandparents and uncle :) It was great to visit with them.

This week marks the end of Seussical the Musical and a good 1 month break from any theater production projects. It is also Homecoming Week here at BYU, and I will be doing my very first Ballroom Team performance this Saturday at the Homecoming Parade. Yes, I've mentioned this a million times, but I'm excited, okay?! Today I went and (finally) bought some fishnet tights, along with fake eyelashes, dangling rhinestone earrings, and keds/bobby socks for the parade this weekend, since we'll be dancing on the road and we don't want to tear up our latin heels. Besides, swing dancing looks good with keds.

Looking at all I have right now and all the opportunities I'm blessed with, I can't help but feel so happy. I'm at a really great place in life. It makes me giddy to know that things will only get better! Sure, trials will come, but I am willing to face whatever life throws at me if it means that I can keep living through gorgeous autumn weather each year, cuddle with my handsome ginger husband, and eat ice cream far too often. Yeah. Life is good.

Fall Farmers Market

Doug and I checked off an item on our fall date list today and walked over to a little farmers market that takes place each fall in the parking lot of the BYU football stadium. It's not a big farmers market, but it has all the things that farmers markets should have: apples and other fall fruits, homemade bread, pumpkins, kettle corn, samples of fresh honey, homemade products such as jewelry and pillowcases, and street singers.

We did not stay long, but I did sample some pretty tasty salsa.

Someday I'll find it in my heart to use my camera more. Or to use a camera period. Right now, my phone is seeing more action than my little point-and-shoot is.

Our walk consisted of windy weather, Wendy's (I'm addicted to Frostys, okay?!), admiring the mountains that have turned into colorful towers of orange and red foliage, and walking home with each of us carrying a gallon of freezing cold Creamery milk in our hands. We go through milk faster than you can say "moo" and hey, it was around 50 degrees outside! Our hands didn't appreciate the cold milk like we do in the summer when it's sweltering hot.

My Halloween decorations are out and there is already snow on the highest mountain peaks. Don't you dare snow yet, Utah! Fall just started! Doug and I are looking forward to a scenic Provo Canyon drive this weekend, especially now that the fall leaves are finally in full color.

On my "to-buy" list for this weekend: canned pumpkin and eggs so I can get some pumpkin cookies rollin' out of my oven and into my belly. Mmmmmm, I can taste them already!

And - as one final, random thought for the night - I ran into a friend of mine yesterday who was getting ready to enter the Missionary Training Center... and this is what she was wearing. It made my heart happy. Tardis blue and everything! Hooray for nerds! (And it has pockets. POCKETS!)

Fall decor, please and thank you

I've finally been cracking down on cleaning. Because my apartment is (finally) back to "company-ready" status, I've allowed myself to put up a framed autumn word print, some handmade yarn-ball acorns, a "happy fall" pennant banner, and even an extremely cute thick wicker pumpkin, in addition to my autumn floral arrangement I put out last weekend. I will withhold my actual Halloween decorations until October is actually here. It's taking some restraint though, people, let me tell ya. Now I just need to go buy a bunch of those cute, mini pumpkins and I'll be good to go!

A cleaner apartment and fall decorations, combined with going to lunch with my Grandparents today before they head off to Winter Quarters, Nebraska for a 1.5 year mission for my church, made a good Saturday. And I didn't touch my homework. The only assignment I think I have is reading Antigone... that's not too complicated.

Fall is here to stay. It's about time! Happy Fall, everyone!

20 Fall Dates

The weather was cold enough yesterday that I had to turn on the heater, and there was even a light dusting of snow on the highest mountaintops. I take this as a sign that fall is officially here! Now the trees need to hurry up and turn colors. Some of them have started, but not enough of them!

While I'm waiting for the leaves to start lookin' like fall leaves should, here are a list of things my hubby and I want to do together this season as the days get crisper and the season swings into full motion.

We hope to be able to get to most of these before the snow sets in (which hopefully won't be until November).

• Go to a pumpkin patch. I haven't been to one of these in ages, and it's always fun to pick out your own pumpkin!
• Carve pumpkins. We still haven't carved pumpkins together. What a shame.
• Make bucket-loads of pumpkin foods. We're talking bread, cookies, soups, donuts... yes, donuts! Keep those foods coming, baby! Okay now, no more pumpkin dates on this list, 3 is enough.
• Make a leaf pile and play in it. We had a spontaneous leaf war last autumn and it was so fun. Playing in leaves brings out my inner child and makes me feel super young again.
• Go on a scenic drive. There's nothing like a winding road, fall foliage, and some fun tunes playing in the background.
• Do a nearby hike or for a walk through a pretty part of town. We live right by a canyon that has some simple hiking trails, and if we drive North about 15 minutes there are some even better ones (Stewart Falls!)
• Visit an apple orchard. I don't know if there are any good apple orchards in the Provo area, but it's something I would love to do.
• Go on a "thermos picnic". For this one, all you need is several thermoses, your favorite soup, some nice, hot apple cider, and some warm blankets. Go sit in a scenic area and enjoy the fall weather.
• Go through a corn maze. The thing about me and corn mazes is that I cannot go through one without a flashlight in hand so I can sit there going "lumos" and "nox" as I pretend I'm in the 3rd task of the Triwizard Tournament at Hogwarts. Nerdy much? Ever since Katie Church and I did this years ago, it's been my go-to corn maze attitude.
• Make a graham cracker haunted house. You can make graham cracker gingerbread houses, so why not haunted houses? I think it's a super cute idea.
• Have a bonfire... or at least a miniature bonfire. In other words, a campfire. The great thing about living next to mountains is that there are plenty of little fire pits to go find. We'll make a party out of it. S'mores, anyone? And more hot apple cider, of course!
• "Boo" a family. Have you guys heard of this Halloween tradition? You print out an outline of a ghost and drop it off on someone's doorstep along with some treats. They have to put the ghost on their door so that others know that they've been "boo'd" and then they have to go "boo" a family... and it goes on and on until you see ghosts on doors all over the place. How fun!
• Go to a farmers market.  We have one right down the street from us, it would take less than 10 minutes to walk there. They have some great stuff over there, from what I hear.
• Have a fall photo shoot. We're still up in the air about how to go about doing this one. I want legit "professional" pictures because we haven't had a photo shoot since we got married, but Doug doesn't want to pay for it. Does anyone in the Provo area know of a good photographer with very reasonable pricing???
• Watch a sunset. This could go hand-in-hand with the thermos picnic date.
• Go stargazing. Last year, we drove up into Provo Canyon and cuddled up in a bunch of blankets out on a big open stretch of grass and gazed up at the stars. We did that the year before too... only we weren't dating yet, there were other people with us, and we weren't exactly cuddling, just lying side-by-side. Third time's a charm! Tradition!
• Have a spa night. Complete with massages, face masks, etc. It's gonna be good.
• Make a blanket fort and watch a movie. This could be particularly fun once it gets close to Halloween - you can put on your favorite scary movie (Haunting in Connecticut, anyone?) or a Halloween classic like Ghostbusters or Hocus Pocus! Turn the lights off, start feeling claustrophobic in your little blanket fort, and let yourself get scared!
• Go dancing. Sure, this is not exactly an "autumn-themed date" but it's something we want to do this fall. I'm really involved with ballroom and Doug is not, and so I've taught him some basics. We want to keep going!
• Visit a Haunted House. Classic, you guys. Classic. They just tend to be rather pricey... but I want to go to the Haunted Forrest in American Fork. I went there a couple years ago and enjoyed it, but we'll see if we actually end up doing this. As long as we go to that corn maze, then I'm okay with missing the haunted house!

Well, that's what we've got so far. There's more where that came from I'm sure, but 20 is enough for now and it will keep us busy for the next month!

Rainy days are here to stay. I get to wear my boots and sweaters. Next week my favorite month will start and I will finally feel justified in putting up my Halloween decorations. I am so very happy! I love you, autumn!

Brace Yourselves

Autumn is coming

The first leaves have fallen.
Capri pants will soon be a thing of the past.
My flip-flops are going to retire soon and be replaced by boots and other warmer shoes.
And I am so thoroughly excited about it.

The small changes in the weather and the environment are almost making me giddy. My fall decorations are going up soon! You guys, I'm dying here! It's the best time of the year, in my opinion! So very very excited :)

And I had my very last First Day of School today. In case anyone was wondering. Aww, how precious. And it was a little anti-climactic because I only had one class, and it didn't meet until the afternoon. Oh, the perks of being a college senior. I'll be up bright and early tomorrow for my ballroom class auditions though! Fingers crossed!