General Conference, How I Love Thee

 This should actually be called conference WEEK because its a update on what we've been up to this past week. First thing's first: my latest projects! Below are Meg's recent orders, a mustard ruffle scarf and an owl hat! This is the hat without the face but you get the picture. :o) She's going to be all suited up for fall.

 Here is a hat I had only been making in baby sizes but decided to make in an adult size. I really like the mustard and navy together and I even used a vintage button from my mom's button collection. Love it.

 My sweetie brought these beautiful roses home to me one night this week. :o)

 Here's another adult sized owl hat I made. This time with the face on. I think they're pretty fun!

 Katie and I looked forward to our craft night all week. Katie came down from West Valley and we went craft shopping and found some awesome deals. We went to California Pizza Kitchen (a favorite of ours) and Coneys (also a favorite). Then we watched Lady Victoria and crafted for hours. We worked on flowers for her choir girls dresses and I made some wreaths like the one above, to sell in my booth at the farmer's market this Saturday.

Saturday morning we watched the first session of General Conference and ate cinnamon roll pancakes. Please try this recipe, seriously. Find it on this blog www.cjaneinthekitchen.blogspot.com its delish!

 Saturday afternoon we headed to Kaysville to spend the rest of the weekend with Jer's family. After the afternoon session we had a little girl time while the guys went to priesthood. We got stuff to make delicious peach pies! I can't take any credit for making the pies though because we ended up watching a movie but Dianna sure made some wonderful dessert for our Sunday night treat!

I worked on a lot of projects while we were watching Conference. It was a great way to stay awake! Here's a scarf I just finished for my friend Alison. She picked this color, isn't it cute? Thanks to my cute sister-in-law Becca for modeling it for me. :o)

Highlights from Conference talks were:
-President Monson's refreshing animation whenever he came to the podium.
-President Eyring's tender closeness to the spirit and inspiring anecdotes about fulfilling our duties as ambassadors of Christ.
-The talk about fathers raising their daughters in righteousness.
-Loved it all!

Falling for Fall

 

So, although I am a California Girl through and through, I can't help but LOVE the fall here in Utah. What's better than that crispness in the air, pumpkin candles, changing colors, wearing boots and scarves and making soup?! I just feel like fall is cozy. That's the best word I can use. I'm slowly starting to get my fall decor out in my house but it is definitely a slow process. NOW for an update on our lives here in the Pendleton household:

Remember that time Jer tore his ACL and MCL 6 months ago and had to have surgery? He was just cleared to play sports this month and guess what?..............................He RE-TORE his ACL!!!!!!!!! All I can say is, FRUSTRATION!!! Here's the most frustrating part, he was doing everything right. The fact that his ACL tore again was completely separate from the fact that it had torn before. He couldn't have avoided the injury and I guess that's what is giving us the small bit of comfort we have at this point. Another good thing is that it wasn't BOTH the ACL and MCL this time so he can wait on surgery instead of getting it right during the semester like last time. As of now we are planning on surgery right before Thanksgiving break. Mostly, I just feel so sad for Jer because he was so good about waiting for his knee to heal to play sports and now he has to wait at least another 6 months. :o(

Last weekend my friend Sally and I had an etsy open house and invited her cousin Holly as well who sells pearl jewelry, cashmere scarves, silk ties, etc. Sally makes skirts, headbands and hair clips. And of course you all know what I sell. This was a super fun opportunity to get our friends and family out to see some of the things we have been working on. We learned a lot from this open house and know what to do better for our next one in December.

Here is my question to you, would you all like it if I did a giveaway on my blog? Or even if I hosted Sally and she did one? I'm also considering posting some tutorials on how to make some of my easier items. Let me know your thoughts on this matter :o)

I'm also excited because I've applied for a booth at the farmer's market in October to sell some of my things. You should really come and see me. :o)

And the following photo is of my latest and favorite project. (Let's be honest, my latest project is always my favorite until I get a new project ;o)) A delicious ruffle scarf! I seriously love this and cannot wait till it gets cold enough to wear it. I love ruffles and I love cream. I'm hoping to make several of these to sell.

The picture next to my scarf is my display table at the open house. These are just a few of the things I have been making over the course of the past 6 months or so. Since last weekend I have found LOTS of new patterns to try. Now, if I can just find some time I will try em!

Jer and I have both applied for graduation and will be graduating in the Spring. Yayyyy! We are excited to graduate and to move on to the next chapter in life!

Save the Date!

Please come to

Girls Night Out

…hosted by…

Christina Pendleton & Sally Duffin

      Flowers n' Frills

Hand-crafted baby apparel: hats, headbands, booties, etc. Great for fall coming up!

Custom orders available.

 

Blossoms by Sally

 Hand-crafted flowers and headbands. 

Custom-made skirts - special orders available.

These make GREAT gifts!!

…also attending…

Holly Reynolds

Beautiful imported pearls for wholesale prices!

Come join in the fun and be entered to win free gifts!

Dessert will be served

Where

Clubhouse at 2595 N 140 E in Provo

When

Friday September 16, 2011

6-9 pm

Summer Lovin'

Wow! It has been a looooong time since I have given an update on our lives! The reason is, we don't have internet at our house for a short time and I broke the charger for my computer so I had no access to my photos or computer for that matter. Jer and I have taken some fun trip this summer with our families. It was so nice for Jer to have a break from his long work days. Our first stop was Newport Beach, CA with the Bartons!

 Here we are on the ferry going over to Balboa island to go crabbing and walk around the island.

 We all gathered on the rocks with fishing line and lunch meat tied to the end to catch the little crabs.

 Here they are!

 The whole group. We let them go when we were done of course. :o)

 Our main activity in Newport was of course, the beach! We enjoyed relaxing on the beach for several hours each day. One of Jer's favorite activities was playing hearts with Grandpa, Tag, and others who wanted to join.

 Playing rummy.

A beautiful shell mosaic made by Becca.

 We had fun doing lots of fun things with the Barton family, we had a marshmallow gun fight, went to dinner, took family pictures, watched a movie, went to lunch with Grandma and played games.

Next stop, Lake Tahoe with the Houstons!!

This trip was particularly exciting because Jer and I were meeting our sweet niece Ella for the very first time!

 My first meeting with Smella in her new hat I made! Its still a bit big but I know she'll grow into it soon! I love kissing those little cheekies!

 Family BBQ at the park.

 Chowing down on some good food thanks to Dad.

 S'mores over the grill thanks to the master s'mores maker, Jer.

 Hot summer nights car show just down the road from the Marriott Timber Lodge we were staying at. So fun to see all the old cars and listen to the live music.

 Just doin a little swing dancing.

 Boat outing, aunties with Ella.

 The whole group before we ventured out to water ski. Sorry my giant hat covered you mom!

 Our boat group minus dad.

 Jer all suited up ready to get in the water.

 Jer Skiing his heart out!

 Waiting for my turn. Very nervous to be honest, this was my first time!

 Anna, concentrated as ever and doing great! She's a first-timer too!

 Pretty sure this is me but sometimes Anna and I are identical so I'm not positive.

 After skiing, feelin good and sore!

 Dad rockin the one ski! I was very impressed by my dad's skills after all these years!

 Outlook at Emerald Bay.

 My night to cook dinner. Chicken and spinach stromboli, caesar salad, corn on the cobb, peanut butter bars!

 The group, minus Katie.

 Bathtime with little miss Ella.

 A little out of order, but our boat group after surviving water skiing.

 Ella with uncle Jer. She loves him.

 The beautiful scenery of South Lake Tahoe. The guy in it isn't too bad either. ;o)

 Auntie Tina with little bug-a-boo. I made the headband she is wearing.

 Only the best breakfast place ever. Red Hut Cafe in Lake Tahoe. Go there.

 Bike ride around town on cruisers. Ella even came!

 She's all helmet! I love how she snuggles up.

 Family photos. We were fighting against time and were losing our light quickly. I think we still came up with some good ones. This is just a little preview.

 One year of marriage and going strong! We have had such a fun summer, school snuck up on us too soon. :o(

A few Summer Obsessions and Recent Happenings

I feel as though this summer was one of accomplishment for me. Not necessarily because I did a lot of things I NEEDED to do, but I have been able to do so many things I've always wanted to do! Here are a few.

I finally went in for a LASIK consult. I have been struggling with my contacts for quite some time and on the 4th of July it became unbearable. I came to find out that my eyes have rejected contacts and after 10 years of wearing them I will no longer be able to wear contacts. Now, here comes the tricky part, because of the condition my eyes had developed from my contacts, they weren't able to get a good read on my eyes and therefore I wasn't a LASIK candidate, YET! I'm crossing my fingers that when I go back in a month, the news will be good, or that at least I will have some different options. For now, I'm dancing with an awesome dorky strap on my glasses. Sweet.

Couponing! I went to a free Savvy Shopper couponing class with my friend Courtney at the beginning of the summer and got really excited about it, I even got a binder and everything. I have actually gotten a lot of free stuff and saved much more money than I was before. Even if I'm not getting 150$ worth of groceries for 10 cents, I feel like I'm contributing to our income by saving! It has become more like a hobby to me and I love it!

Crafting, crocheting, and etsy! I have an Etsy site now where I post all of my new crochet projects. My skills have slowly improved over the summer as I have tried out new patterns and ideas. I make lots of different baby items like shoes, hats, headbands. And I've recently been taking some special orders! I made a feather wreath for a baby shower gift that my friend Mollie wanted. It has been SO fun to craft and once again, even though I haven't been able to get a steady job this summer, I have been able to contribute a little bit by selling my items online and by word of mouth.

I have such wonderful friends. Below, is the logo my friend Kristi made for me completely out of the goodness of her heart! And then, my friend Lyndsey designed a darling business card for me and I ordered 500! I'm really excited for this to take off! I'm working on getting an inventory of things to take to a boutique in Bountiful.

 Babysitting and babies, babies, babies! Above are the munchies aka Grant and Paige who I have had the opportunity to babysit a couple times this summer and below is my dear friend Courtney's baby Harper. I go over every Monday night and watch Bachelorette and hold Harper. I love it. We have also been visiting Bryan, Sally and little Bennett too. We love all our little babies! I'm counting down the days until I get to meet my own little Ella. FINALLY when we go to Tahoe with the family in a couple weeks.

My sister is a member at 24 hour fitness and has been taking some of the classes there and invited me to come. I found a free 7 day pass and jumped in. I love it! My favorite is hip-hop hustle and I am actually scheduled to get certified to teach this class in mid-september if all goes well scheduling wise. I never thought I would get a gym membership while in college but it might have to happen until I get certified and can teach the classes instead.

And finally, DANCING. I'm of course dancing this summer. Caleb and I are still competing together and have been practicing most every day. I am teaching dance three times a week as well. Caleb and I have the opportunity to get several lessons from professionals who have come in to Utah for the ballroom camp at BYU. It has been awesome! I may have missed some things but that is pretty much it in a nutshell!