A little bit of everything

Yes Yes Yes... I haven't been faithful about blogging again. This week has just been so overwhelming in a lot of ways and I had to take a huge big deep breath. Sometimes life just gets overwhelming I guess. There are just not enough hours in the day to do everything I need to be doing. 

I had a good cry a couple nights ago. 

That always seems to do the trick.

In the midst of overwhelmingness, I forgot to blog about our random adventure Saturday, and I don't even think I have officially blogged about life in awhile, just the happenings of life.. so my posterity have no idea what exactly is going on. 

About a month ago I was called to be the Relief Society President, and Rob, one of two Executive Secretaries. Even though they have split the job, Rob still got a pretty hefty load.

No matter where you are in the church, phone calls and giving out assignments is never an easy thing, and I will just leave it at that. 

As far as my calling goes, its become my life. 

I don't know how else to describe it besides the fact that you are constantly making sure everyone is taken care of, prayer wise, meal wise, emotional wise... you name it, I have got it covered. 

 This could honestly fill an entire second post, so maybe I will have to postpone this topic, but we have an incredible ward. We honestly have just been so blessed in getting to live here with these people, and I thank them from the bottom of my heart for making this job worth it. 

Our Adventure last Saturday started in the car. I got home from a very fun/bonding relief society activity to find Rob, like a little puppy, just so excited to get outside. It wasn't terrible weather, and he just told me to get in the car. 

So we drove. 

And Drove.

and drove...

We even drove through Driggs Idaho, a very special place for Rob's Dad's family.

It was a very small town, but they did have a Broulim's Grocery Store.. One of our favorites.  

There was even snow on the ground, and we drove through a decent storm.. it was sort of depressing. 

Idaho never stops giving. 

We finally ended up at our destination.

Jackson Hole, Wyoming. 

It was a fun little adventure.. although a bit creepy too. Ian and Avery would have shared my pain when all we saw were things like this...

And this..

And this..

And these are all real.. This one scared me the most because it could just feel real. And it was... It really 
really was.. Claws and all...

All in all it was a very fun little get-away, making us look forward to our adventures outside of Rexburg.

Although, I drove home in confusion because Rob convinced me this weird thing was real..

Dumbest animal in the world..

I even looked on google and read things..

Let's just say I punched him when I found out the truth.


I should have known... I mean really? Antlers on a cute bunny?

May

And the May Birthday's continue...

Though I havent seemed to get every Birthday in my every growing family.. I feel I should at least try to get as many as I can.. And though I might be a couple days late in posting this...

A VERY Happy Birthday to this Stud!

Max - you are the best! I hope you are having a great birthday and that you know that we love you and think about you often. This is a big year, and you are just getting so big it kills me.. but Live it Up! Make the most of it, and party party because responsibility sets in sooner than you think. You are so funny and sweet and you will always be the ladies man! Don't ever let anyone take the goof out of you because that is the reason why we love you so much! And with that goofiness you bring nothing but excitment and happiness into each room! People are drawn to you because you make everyone feel important, and dont let that ever change.... It's characteristics like that that will get you to New York.

Dont forget about us up here in the Berg, and We love love love you!

Day #1

Just looking at these wedding pictures seems to be motivation enough.

Yesterday started Day #1 of the P90X challenge.

We have no choice actually, thats really the situation we have put ourselves in.

We want to look hot in bathing suits, so in order to fully enjoy this warm 
weather.. we really have no choice.

We are also giving ourselves 2 weeks to be hardcore.. like majorly hardcore.. because I really think that if we are hardcore and see results then we can save 
money and quit the gym.

I am all about saving money.

So yes, our arms hurt.. today our whole bodies are going to kill.. but I must be 
hot in a bathing suit.

As you can see marriage has really helped me categorize my priorities.

Hamburgers

This is what happens when you try to save time and defrost ground beef in the microwave.. 

Not the most conventional burger.. But when we closed our eyes we couldn't tell the difference. 

Celebration

It's my adorable Grandmother's Birthday Today!

A Happy Happy Birthday to the cutest Grandma around!

She hasn't been too happy about the acknowledgement of this very special day... but to that I can only echo the famous words in that one primary song.. "One year Older & wiser too!"

I LOVE you Grandma! I hope you have had the most special of birthdays, and just know that you have tons of little grandchildren and children who just think nothing but the world of you! You have taught me so much about life and strength and what it truly means to keep pushing forward. I am so grateful for your influence in my life and for the guidance and support you continually give me. I dont know what I would do without your cute face!

I know Grandma isnt the only birthday recently. It seems like my entire family decided to be born in the spring, and then theres me.. soaking up the fall all to myself! I guess that could explain why I have always been so spoiled!

I didnt mean to not mention any of your birthdays... It has just merely been for the lack of pictures. I guess this whole "shout-out for everyone's birthday" thing is getting to be more difficult than I thought.

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Other than the ever flowing birthday stream, we haven't really been up to anything out of the ordinary.

We recently have made a goal to cover our lives and walls with Christ, our families.. things that make us happy and make us feel more at home.

Here is the latest picture of Christ we got on sale at Deseret.

It spoke to me, thats for sure. It just shows, in the plainest of terms, exactly what this gospel is about. This is actually a major theme right now in Relief Society; remembering the one.

Here Christ is comforting the black sheep, comforting the lost and forgotten.. just as He does with us each day of our lives.

We all have moments of struggle, and moments where we feel we dont matter.. We have moments where it just seems like the world is against us.. But Christ is constantly there. Christ is consistently remembering our needs and our sorrows. He is constantly reaching out for us, making sure that we feel of His love. He is our Light, He is our guide.. He is encouraging us and cheering us on.. helping us to know that we can truly change.

He is constantly seeking out those lost sheep, the black sheep.. and bringing them back into His fold.

Lately that has brought me nothing but peace, and now we have this in our house to be our constant reminder.

My Inner Brantingham

When we started dating, I tried my best to get to know exactly where Rob came from. His family was so welcoming, so inviting, and constantly made me feel right at home. 

If you know anything about Rob's Dad, you would know that he is fascinated by his family history.. something we all should be fascinated with. He knows their history, he knows where they come from, and he tells the stories to where you feel you know them too. 

One thing I learned pretty quickly was that Rob's Grandma had red hair too. Not only did she have red hair, but she was sassy too.. My kind of woman. And not only did she have red hair, was also sassy.. but she baked and was an excellent seamstress... Again, my kind of woman. 

Then there was Rob's Grandfather, who Rob looks just like. He had the dark hair, he had the endless amounts of hair.. Rob is built just like him. 

Sort of funny.. Here we are.. resembling Rob's grandparents pretty closely. It sort of makes me feel close to them, or at least makes me want to know more so that I feel closer to them. 

I guess you could say that I am trying to find my inner Brantingham, and it will have to start first with baking. 

A week or two ago Rob started talking about how amazing his Grandmothers Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies were. Just the way he was describing them made my mouth water. He said that she would have some waiting for them every single time they visited her. 

With me feeling close to this wonderful woman, I decided it would be my mission to try and re-create these mouthwatering beauties so that she would be proud. 

It took a couple batches to really make them taste the same.. Regardless of what the recipe is written like, you know for a fact that with many years of practice she probably had it refined perfectly. 

My oven isn't the best, and they cooked a little more than I would have liked.. but this batch finally got the OK from Rob!

The other batches were just Ok.. a little too much flour to be honest.. But with this batch.. This batch actually reminded him of his Grandmother. 

So, even though I didn't know this woman, I hear nothing but great things about her.. making me wish I had known her. And this baking thing... It just makes me feel like I am walking in good shoes.

I just like getting to know this intriguing woman better.

I just like knowing that I am finding more and more out about this new history I have 
inherited.

Little Miracles

I love small little miracles. 

And in this stage of life, with the money thats coming into the household, we are always in need of small little miracles. 

Sometime last week we sat down and tried to re-arrange our budget. We always know where the money is going, but we have been really scared about pulling from savings lately. Just the thought that one day it wouldn't be there when we needed isn't a thought we like to cater toward. 

We pay our tithing faithfully though. In fact, we are pretty certain that paying tithing creates those little miracles. 

While arranging our budget we changed a couple things, taking the "eating out" category completely out of the equation. 

Once we figured a few things out we realized we could potentially be $20 in the hole instead of $50. 

It's funny how you can be excited for the lesser negative numbers. 

We had a rather large grocery run this month, as well as my health insurance, and a change in our car insurance.. so things weren't looking good this week. Our electric bill is due friday, and with the anticipation for my health insurance check to clear, we will have $8 left over. 

We do not want to be pulling from savings, but wow does that $8 hurt. 

I was just barely wondering what we would do, how we could make it work while pretending we don't have funds elsewhere, when Rob texted me that his parents had sent us a nice card for Easter. 

They are always so sweet about sending nice notes, but they are even sweeter when those lovely cards include $20. 

It was a tiny miracle, one in which will pay for that electric bill... And one that helps us keep that goal of keeping our sticky hands out of that savings account.

Not only did my In-Laws participate in the tiny miracle.. but Rob went to go give blood today, remembering that he still had the $20 dollars from last time, getting $30 this time, and then with them announcing that on Friday he will be receiving another $30 instead of $20. 

I honestly don't know why they would give him an extra $10 dollars, but they said it was because he is a returning customer.... Although, that has never been their policy before.

So here we were.. $8 leftover, and now come Friday, we have $100 to put into the bank. 

$100 has never looked so good. 

The Brantinghams are Back

I never thought people would miss me, but it has come to my attention that both my In-Laws, my Sister-in-Law, my Grandma, my Mom... They all miss my blogging rants!

 I have to say that I feel honored.

I really never thought there was anything important I had to say, but I at least hope it is entertaining. 

Why the lack of blogs?

It mainly has to do with the fact that I could not get pictures to upload on here, and what is so great about a blog without pictures? Then I guess it also has to do with the craziness of our lives lately. It seems like there is always something, and we don't even have kids yet.. so that should be interesting. 

What you have missed... 

Rob is back in school.. On with a new semester.. One down and many more to go!

That means many hours of this. That also means Elyse has to stop talking so much because its so distracting. 

But its good that he is back in school. I know he was twiddling his thumbs on that week off. He is headed into the new semester with more units than the last, more researching to do, but I know he is surprising himself with how good of a student he is. I, however, have always known.

For some reason I have found a love in baking. It calms me, I like seeing the creations come to life, and its just nice to try new things. This is a cake I made, the first one I have ever made. The frosting was too thin... I was just acting like I was making cupcakes, but for cakes it needs to be much more firm.. so you can see it falling down the sides a bit.. But it tasted really good, so I guess thats all that matters. 

But just because I have a new love in baking, doesn't mean I have gained 500 pounds.. though I likely should be with the amount of baked goods that go through this house. Its just not about the eating, its just the creating and the enjoyment people get from my food... I don't know why, but thats a boost I have gotten addicted to. 

And plus - This is where Steven comes in handy. I bake, we try a bite, and then we send it his way.

And we have a new addition to our family.. Meet my new best friend..


I was recently in California for a brief trip, and my mom let me take this baby home! And we got that desk at the DI, with the intention of painting it of course. 

I have so many ideas in mind, so many projects I want to start... I just am so excited to finally have a sewing machine. I honestly never thought I would miss it, but when you have two short people.. pants to hem.. clothes to mend.. buttons to sew on.. You really learn that a sewing machine is a part of the family. I honestly could never live without it. 

You'll have to stay tune for my projects.. because of course, amidst all the other billions of things life is throwing at me, I WILL find time for some sewing. Life is all about developing new talents and perfecting old ones, and I guess I am also just refining my multi-tasking skills. 

So life has been busy, but busy is what I love best. It keeps us moving, it keeps us focused, and it keeps us on our toes.


Till Next Time...