Happy Halloween!

This has been a very fun year for October. I absolutely love fall! The weather in Vegas is so nice in October and we actually have had a decent amount of rain. And of course there is one of my favorite holidays...Halloween! We put up our decorations on the last day of Sept! haha. We have done fun things all month, but this last week, for Emma and Halloween Week, I have made fun dinners by doing things like Spooky Pizzas, Mummy Dogs, Jack-O-Latern Grilled Cheese, and desserts like Carmel apples, Halloween shaped sugar cookies, and creepy cupcakes. Emma originally wanted to be Kristine from Phantom of the Opera but when we were at Walmart one day she saw an Alice in Wonderland costume. From then on, Kristine who? So Emma was a very cute Alice in Wonderland. Not hard to pull off when she is a little girl and blonde. :) She had a great time and went to two Trunk-R-Treats. More candy than she will ever know what to do with at once! (and more than we will ever let her eat. lol) To go along with Emma's costume I decided our trunk for our ward trunk r treat would be Wonderland. Phil dressed up like the Madd Hatter and I was the Queen of Hearts. I made a little tea party in the trunk and we played the tea party "Unbirthday" song from the Disney version (we werent going for the new stuff). It turned out pretty cute and got alot of compliments. Emma ran around with her other friend Emma from primary. She had a great Trick or Treat. Today is actually Halloween and it is on Sunday, so no door to door, but to keep up the spirit of things we are decorating sugar cookies, watching Monster House, and tonight for fun, we will be having hot chocolate with spooky eyes(marshmellows with Chocolate chips in them.) So to all...Hapy Haunting! On a side note...how quick were the retail stores to dump their halloween stuff and have their Christmas stuff up by Wednesday this week? lol! On to November I guess!

Phil's Birthday!

Tuesday was Phil's 31st Birthday and we hope he had a great day! Last year we were moving and didn't get to do anything for his 30th which was kinda crappy, so this year I decided to make it a bit more entertaining. Emma and I decided it would be fun to take a birthday cake to Daddy at work and suprise him. Yes he was suprised! That was fun. Then when he came home from work we suprised him again by taking him out to dinner at Cheesecake Factory(one of his favs). Afterward we went back home to have cake, sing Happy Birthday, and give him our presents. I KNOW he liked his gifts. Rachel and Jared bought Phil new white Sambas(shoes) that he has been pining away for. I bought him a pair of jeans he really needed and two new shirts. We also got him Iron Man 2. Jared got Phil a PS2 game and Phil's boss gave him a card and $50. I think Phil made off like a bandit this year! We tried to make his day special and spoil him on his day in the spotlight. Hope you had a great day Phil! Happy Birthday!

Last trip for a while...

For our 11 year anniversary we decided we wanted to take Emma to Disneyland and to the beach. It was our last chance since I am pregnant and due in the spring when we would normally go. We had four days in the beautiful sun. The weather was soooo nice! We went to Disneyland with my sister Rachel and her boyfriend Jared. It was a Friday and wasn't busy at all. We walked on almost every ride. I think our longest wait was 30 minutes. Emma got to see Ariel, Princess Tiana, Mickey mouse, Minnie Mouse, Alice in Wonderland and the Queen of hearts, Peter pan and Wendy, and Goofy. We went on every ride she was able to go on. We went on Pirates twice! :) She even rode Thunder Mountain. The only thing we missed out on was The Haunted Mansion since they were getting ready for the Haunted Halloween Disney throws. We ate Churros, and pretzels, and of course had a huge turkey leg before the firework show. Yumo! We all had a great time and Emma was asleep in the car before we were out of the parking lot. The next day we relaxed, went to the beach, ate very yummy grilled cheese and tomato sandwhiches made by Uncle Russ. We watched Nascar and soccer, and Emma played and played and played! Sunday we slept in, ate lunch at Ruby's Diner on the pier and headed home leisurely. We had a really good time and enjoyed our little family. It will be a while before we get to do another fun getaway and we ate the time up! Below are two little slideshows of our trip.

Emma's Dance Class

This Tuesday was Emma's first dance class. She was so cute! Saying she was excited may not quite cover it. She has been trying on her ballet and tap shoes all week and asking if its Tuesday yet. So when the day finally came she was more than enthusiastic to go! :) We got her dressed into her leotard and tights and set off to class. When we arrived, the other class was just finishing so Emma got a sneak peak. It was your standard room with mirrors, ballet bars, and wooden floors. And of course, little girls! From the moment the music began, Emma did just what the teacher did or said. You'd never have known it was her first class and she just danced her heart out! When the hour was up and the class dismissed, Emma wasn't ready to go. She kept telling me there was more and tried to stay through the next class. I had to drag her away. She had such an awesome time! :) I have some pictures I need to upload from the camera and get a few videos loaded, but we are having technical difficulties so I'll get those up asap. The only pics available were from my phone. Sorry for the blur! :)

Chicken or Shrimp, Spinach, and Cheese Tortellini Dinner

This is a yummy and simple pasta dish! Only takes a few minutes to prepare and its healthy!

To Prepare:

Cook tortellini according to package directions. Drain.

In a large saucepan combine the italian dressing, garlic, diced tomatoes, and cheese. Bring to a boil. Add cooked chicken (or shrimp). Simmer. Then add in the spinach and simmer until slightly wilted. Then add tortellini and toss to coat.

Add additional cheese and serve! I served this dish with a salad and garlic bread. Yumo!

Ingredients listed below.