Cinnamon Life

I had never tasted Cinnamon Life cereal until I married Josh. He was a big fan and it didn't take long to convert me. I think I'm addicted! I snack on it all day -- just little handfuls about every ten minutes! Yum.

It's been such a great weekend with Jess and Jen in town. So wonderful to spend time with both of them! Beautiful Vela Amelia was sealed to Becky and Hema on Friday. It was such a neat experience to be a part of. Wow. Josh and I also enjoyed the big luau on Saturday and Vela's blessing this morning.

P.S. The art blog has been updated

Lots of New Recipes

So...this semester I was so much better at spreading out my work load and not putting it all off until the week of finals. My finals week really wasn't too bad. What did I do with my extra time? Go on a baking spree and try out several new recipes. The first was honey wheat rolls....soo good! My mom told me they would take 2.5 hours from start to finish. I'm definitely an amatuer because it took me 4 hours! Next time I think I can do it in 3, now that I've figured them out.

The next new recipe was cinnamon french toast from the Better Homes cook book. Yum! Josh and I used wheat bread instead of white and cut out the orange liqeur. It was delicious....we ate all the slices before any pictures could be taken. I also did a turkey that evening, which was equally as good! We had Jordan and Andrew (a friend in our ward who was wife-less for the weekend) over for dinner. (Note: the "turkey" was not a full size Thanksgiving turkey. It was just the little Jennie-O smaller kind. I'm not that good).

Sorry, just two more: Turkey Pot Pie! This was probably the best new recipe of the lot! I used my mom's simple pie crust and it was so so good! The picture does not do this justice. It had yummy turkey and vegetables inside. I'm making this recipe again probably next week. We couldn't get enough of it!

And the grand finale....Josh and I both finished our finals late Tuesday night around 11:00 pm. We were so glad to be done that we figured we needed to celebrate! I tried out a family recipe of Ginger Snap Cookies and they were so good! I ate 5 or 6 of them (at 11:30 pm) then hopped right into bed. Who starts a batch of cookies at 11:00 pm!? I wouldn't recommend this to anyone, but under the circumstances it was unavoidable! Who can resist homemade cookies, fresh out of the oven? Not me -- even at 11:30 pm!

The downside to doing this much cooking? DISHES. I'm so much better at making the mess, then cleaning it all up!

Art update

Ever since we got a blog I've been trying to convince Josh to do a post all about me -- you know, highlighting my best attributes and achievements. Anyone who knows me well knows that I just love to be in the spotlight and be bragged about. (Ha). If you saw the past before this one you'll have seen that he finally came through. (But in all seriousness, I've got a pretty sweet husband. When he asked for our password I knew he was making a post, but I was sure it would be about the Spurs!)

Sooo....When my "Studio Space" consisted of our tiny kitchen, I mostly did smaller paintings on paper. Now that I can work on campus, I've been able to do some fun larger paintings. If you want to take a peek, click here: http://hawkinsart.blogspot.com. (And hopefully it will work. I've never added a link before).

Super Laura

I know this blog is mainly frequented by females and the occasional weird stranger. With that audience in mind, I proceed.

Okay, so I know you all know this, but my wife is the best. Sorry, she just is. She cooks the best meals (please see previous posts for examples), she is an artist (she's doing several still-lifes of me right now), and she put up with me. She's at her studio on campus painting right now. That's right, she has her own studio, but then again, why wouldn't she... I mean, have you seen her stuff? And no doubt she's being a little perfectionist and getting every little detail right, but that's just one of the many things I absolutely love about her. She woke up this morning and immediately put together an hour by hour schedule of her day. She didn't have it done last night -- I must be wearing off on her -- and it was item #1 this morning. Anyway, I just wanted to give a shout-out to my amazing wife. I love you Lar!!!
Love, Josh
PS: I don't even know what this photo is from, but she looks dang good!

It's finals week and I probably should have my nose in a book, but I've been studying all day and need to take a little break....and update the blog! Last Sunday we had such a fun evening with the Tuellers. It was a special night to talk about missions, in honor of Jordan and Cade who will become full-time missionaries very shortly. What a treat to hear from Grandpa and Grandma and all the returned missionaries in the room. It was a really neat night. Cade and Jord will both be amazing

A Little Update

Josh and I had such a wonderful conference weekend. We were able to attend the Saturday pm session, and run into Josh's mission president while we were there. President Clarke and his wife are such an awesome couple! What a treat to talk with them. We also loved hanging out with my family on Saturday, the Hawkins on Sunday, and the Clarke extended family Sunday night. We feel soo blessed to be this close to our families! It probable won't last forever, so we've got to soak it all in while we're still close by.

One little note to my last post: Josh will, unfortunately, be going to California alone this summer (It's actually just 10 weeks). I'll be here in Provo -- going to school, working tons of hours for Devin Durrant, preparing for my final art show in the fall, and missing my husband terribly! I know what you're thinking: we couldn't even make it a year. It's complicated why we won't both be going, but let me just say it's definitely not because we need some time apart :)