Super Bowl 2014

I grew up in a basketball family...my entire family has played and I'm now a basketball referee for Parks & Rec {makin' my dad proud!} Then I married Ryan...who is all football all the time. He played his entire life, and is now a walking football encyclopedia. Super Bowl sunday is where we come together as one...party planner extraordinaire and football fan maniac ;) 

We love being social and having a reason to rally up some of our favorite people to come over, which is why this is our second year hosting a Super Bowl party. I love hosting parties, so I had a complete blast putting the food and table together!

I made some Cafe Rio pork in the crockpot and had rolls {or "Bronco Bread", so corny right?}, cheese, and sauces for everyone to make their own little sliders. Throw in some southwestern dippers, themed cupcakes, cheesy potato skins, and 7-up punch and we're in business! Everyone brought over their own appetizers to contribute which included: cream cheese filled croissants from the Provo Bakery, amazing avocado salsa with chips, homemade girl scout cookies, and delicious artichoke dip. Can you tell that we all love food?!

I also printed up some Super Bowl commercial bingo cards which was actually super fun! We all got pretty competitive to see how could hit bingo first ;) I don't know if it's a sad or happy thing...but I had such a fun time the whole night that I didn't even pick up my camera to take pictures of who was there. BLOGGER FAIL! Even more of a fail? The Denver Broncos...ouch!

The Bear aka Satan's Sandwich

Last weekend one of our good friends, Cody Holmes, was in town to meet up with his GF and we ended up hanging out all day Saturday! Cody wanted to hit up this place Lucky 13 in SLC to compete in their food challenge. Two sandwiches. 58 minutes. $200 on the line. 

Ryan ended up getting "The Bear", one of the 2 sandwiches that Cody would have to eat in his competition. "The Bear" was 2 grilled cheese sandwiches, with a 14oz meat patty in the middle. The meat had been mixed with habaneros, there were habaneros on the sandwich, AND a habanero hot sauce. Keep in mind that both Ryan and Cody served LDS missions in Honduras and aren't new to spicy/hot food. 

Ryan got his food and started narfing it down...then his eyes starting welling up. Then his eyes were bloodshot. Then he downed everyones water at the table. He barely got through half of the sandwich before calling it quits and dubbing it "Satan's Sandwich." He said it was the hottest thing he had ever tasted in his life. Hearing this made Cody pretty nervous for his challenge...

He ate the burger on the left in less than 15 minutes, and was setting a good pace for himself. He got to "The Bear" and only ate about 1/8th of it before his eyes got insanely bloodshot and he was running for the restroom. Cody and Ryan for the rest of the night kept on yelling "What did we do to ourselves?!?!" We came back to the house and they laid in the fetal position on the floor for a good hour before having the strength to get up. Even the day after Ryan was just puttering around because he could still feel the fiery burn of habaneros in his stomach! 

Scary to say the least?! It's amazing what food can do to you!! I just ate this BBQ bacon cheeseburger and some of these fries and still couldn't even get through all of it haha! No more food challenges or Satan Sandwiches for these boys...

Midway Ice Castles

Back in December I snagged a Groupon for the Midway Ice Castles knowing that it would be a perfect budget friendly date! Especially since it's hard to get myself to go out on dates during the wintertime...cause all I want to do is cozy up in blankets, eat pizza, and watch Netflix. We finally went this last Friday and it was absolutely breathtaking.

Even driving up to Midway was beautiful, I snapped this picture and just enjoyed looking at all the snow capped trees. Sometimes I forget how pretty Utah really is, so it's nice to have these reminders every once in a while!

Ryan was being a rebel and punching some of the icicles...that dork. It was cool to see these manmade ice castles and walk through all the different mazes and crevices they had to offer. At nighttime they have LED lights inside the castles light up to make it even more magical, how cool is that??

We even saw Queen Elsa and Princess Anna from Frozen come to take some pictures, and it just made me wish I was a Disney princess! Although, I do think that I have the whole Sleeping Beauty thing down ;) This is something that I would definitely want to do next winter, it's a good excuse to get out of the house and make the best of the freezing temps here :)

Weekend Update: Parks & Rec + Awful Waffle + Church

This past weekend was a crazy one! I'll start from the top...so for my American Heritage class {yuck, still irked I have to take that class}, I have to do 10 hours of community service as a part of my grade. I emailed my old boss at Provo Parks & Recreation asking if he could use me for any volunteer work? I went in to the new Recreation Center {which was recently built & is insanely gorgeous}, and he said I would be directing traffic at the front desk for Junior Jazz {city basketball program for 1st-8th}. 

I had mentioned that I kinda missed being a referee to the little kids and that I would probably put in my application again...he told me no need and handed over the paperwork to have my job back, gave me a raise, and a shift for this upcoming Saturday. Ummm, can I say pumped much? I had worked there up until basketball season ended a couple years ago, then I started my Francesca's job soon after. So it's been a while since I've reffed, and I'm a tad nervous...but mostly excited. It's always nice to know that your hard work is appreciated and that old employers will take you back in a heartbeat! 

After I volunteered Saturday morning, I made my way to Sodalicious {man, was I craving that dirty dr. pepper/sugar cookie} then ended up at Awful Waffle for Deidre's going away party. She is moving to be with her baseball-player husband in Arizona, and we are so jealous she is moving to warmer weather! She has been such an awesome friend, so of course I'm sad to see her go, but I'm so excited for her new adventure :)

Then on Sunday we were invited by our neighbors to hit up a young married ward in the area, which I was a little hesitant about. I've always heard horrible things about married student wards, specifically that they are: cliquish, drama-filled, and awkward. Yikes! Although, we haven't felt very "at home" in our current family ward, so I was up for trying something new.

In all my years of living in Utah {about 5 years}, I've NEVER had anyone approach me and ask if I was new to the ward. Just because there are so many people moving in and out all the time, the ward members just don't know how to sort out who's new or already a part of the ward. I was honestly stunned when I had a few different people ask me who I was, and was genuinely interested in getting to know me. Everyone was so dang friendly! Luckily we are zoned to be in this ward, so we will be hopping over there soon and I'm stoked to meet other couples who are in the same phase of life as us :)

WHEW! That was a major weekend update if I do say so myself. This weekend is chock-full of more exciting stuff: 2 exams, Superbowl party, and my first shift back as a referee! 

Weekend Update: Steve Madden + Football + Texas de Brazil

I drove up with my best friend Alexa, and blogger friend Rachel up near Salt Lake to the Fashion Place Mall to wait in line and meet the amazing STEVE MADDEN. I am a huge fan of his purses & shoes...ok, I'm obsessed. Although, being the bargain diva that I am, I only purchase his merchandise on sale at Ross or on eBay. I'll let you in on a little secret...Ross almost ALWAYS has Steve Madden purses for $30-$40 when they usually sell for over $100. Crazy!

We waited in line with fellow blogger friends Gentri, Jody, and Jessi for over 2 hours because Steve was just chillin' in his green room, getting ready I suppose? The line was a total party with food, shoes on a platter, a DJ dance party, shoe raffle, and taking pictures with the emcee to post on the Nordstrom Facebook page. So the line wasn't too brutal with the par-tay going on!

When Steve finally came out, he passed right in front of our group and he shook my hand! I was fangirlin' hardcore. I got my purse signed by Steve, we all got a picture with him, and we got a free swag bag. It was pretty dang cool! Definitely worth the drive up & time in line :)

{That's me grabbing Steve's hand!! Thanks Jody for the video!}

On Sunday Ryan & I made our way to Kyla's place to watch the Seahawks/49ers game {because Kyla is from Nor-Cal & her husband from Washington} and ate some delish dinner while having a blast cheering for the Seahawks {woot woot}! Then on Monday we drove up to Salt Lake with Benexa to visit our favorite Brazilian Steakhouse, Texas de Brazil, because they are doing 50%  off of dinner prices for the month of January. Oh my gosh, it was soooo worth every bite & penny :) Suffice it to say, it was a super fun & filling weekend!

Weekend Update: Cornbelly's

Growing up I absolutely LOVED Halloween, probably because my parents would go all out for decorations and costumes. I still relish the Hallowen decorating, wearing fun costumes, watching Nightmare Before Christmas, making Halloween treats, and handing out candy. My dad & I even bought a remote rat one year for Halloween! We hid in the window, watching the front door for trick-or-treaters and would then race the fake rat up and scare little kids with it. Cheap entertainment! Ryan on the other hand is a little freaked out by Halloween, mostly because he grew up thinking there was a cucuy living in his closet...so I gotta make sure my decor is "cute-sy" enough so it doesn't scare him. 

I found a Groupon to hit up Cornbelly's in Lehi, a corn maze/pumpkin fest, and snatched it right up. It was our first time going {and doing really anything Halloween-related} and it was super fun! We took the hay ride, walked through the little kid corn maze, played beanbag games, looked at all the fun Halloween decor, watched a pig race, and picked out mini pumpkins. Nothing too scary ;) Then we ended our date with Cafe Rio pork salads & burritos, what better way to cap off the night?!

What's your favorite part about Halloween? 

Are you a scared-y cat?

Weekend Update: Uber Late Date Night

Right after Ryan got off work on Friday night {around 9:30pm} I hustled his bum out the door cause we had a movie to catch at 10:30. I spent all this time getting dolled up for our uber late night date and gosh darn it we were gonna see Despicable Me 2! Usually I would not even be alive at 10:30 at night, but you gotta do whatcha gotta do when the husband isn't home 'till what feels like the middle of the night. At a company picnic a few weeks ago Ryan wrestled the holy tar out of some other sales guys and won us free movie tickets. Ohhh the perks of having a super buff husband...that other guys are scared to wrestle. Mwhahaha! Our date night consisted of hilarious minions, homemade quesadillas, and a super late bedtime {that we could barely handle....we are so old!}. How was your weekend?

Weekend Update: Lucilles BBQ+Scandia

As a team bonding activity for Ryan's summer sales team, the whole team {plus wives} hit up Lucilles BBQ in Rancho Cucamonga then partied it up at Scandia afterwards. Ryan & I split this tri-tip/chicken/St Louis ribs/coleslaw/mac&cheese do-dad and ohhhhh gosh. It was AMAZING. Cooked to perfection BBQ meat deliciousness. We both snagged strawberry lemonades {in mason jars no less, all you bloggers would be so proud} and it just topped off the whole experience. I ate way too much and wondered how I was even going to walk out of Lucilles nevertheless ride rollercoasters at Scandia. Even the thought of it made me want to gag...

Soooo we started off on the baby trains first so we didn't all regurgitate our amazing BBQ dinner. Then I got coerced into riding this whiplash-inducing coaster followed by the "Cliff Jumper" where it just drops you a bazillion feet. Even Ryan who is a complete scared-y cat when it comes to heights rode the "Cliff Jumper"...peer pressure I tell ya!

The team then did bumper boats {I opted out of being soaked in jeans, nooo thank you!}, then we all suffocated via go-kart fumes while trying to bump each other off the track. Seriously such a blast! Even as a wife {and not "officially" part of the team...debatable!}, I loved all the team bonding from this night out together and can't wait for another night of food & games :)

Weekend Update: BBQ+Longboards+S'mores

This past weekend was party central! Which totally explains why I've been a complete vegetable today...

 On Saturday there was a company BBQ in Orange where there was lots of amazing carne asada which made for deeeliiishhhh burritos. Still thinking about those...

My fellow sales wife Amelia works on a gourmet ice cream truck during the summer {how cool is that?!} and she convinced her boss to bring the ice cream truck to the BBQ! I got "The Big O" {don't let your dirty mind run rampant!}, it's a vanilla ice cream bar dipped in milk chocolate and topped with oreos! Follow Longboards on Twitter to find where in SoCal they will be next!

{Me & Amelia getting photo bombed by her boss!}

{Shane, Amelia's husband, was a BAMF with his double ice cream bar creation}

After scarfing carne asada burritos and ice cream, the team made their way to Corona where we all went to the movies! Amelia & I are scared-y cats and didn't want to watch World War Z, so we saw Monster's University. Soooo cute!

{And of course Ryan, trying to ruin any and all pictures of us}

Then on Sunday night we went over to my parents for dinner {pizza yummm}, and since it was such nice weather outside we fired up the fire-pit and made s'mores! It was so quiet and beautiful outside, and it was nice to sit around the fire with my favoritest people in the entire world {minus one, Evan is in Mexico!} and just talk about everything. My dad hopped up when it started getting darker and turned on the lights for ambiance. The twinkle lights are from my wedding reception 2 years ago, but my parents like them so much they were left up and get turned on from time to time :)