Camping

We've been dying to go camping lately, and now that the weather is getting warmer, we decided that now is the time!! We left last Saturday morning and came back Sunday before church started. It was so nice to get away and spend some time outside as a family.

our campsite

Marlee loved throwing rocks into the creek!

 Doesn't our tent look comfy?? That's what I thought too until I got in :) We need to invest in some nice sleeping pads! Marlee slept like a rock, and Alax and I slept ON rocks. 

Alax made a swing for Marlee, and she LOVED it!

 Marlee and I hung out in the tent while Alax went and got some firewood. We rolled around on the blankets and ate Cheetos :)

Watching something on the phone

So much fun!!!! I love my little family!!

Potty Training

I've been bad at updating!! We've been up to a lot this past month, one big thing we accomplished was potty training!!! Marlee had been interested in going potty for a long time, so I figured I would go for it!!

We went to the store and Marlee picked out some underwear (not panties. I despise that word...). She loved them :)

I put blankets out for when she had accidents. We sat and played and had snacks.

I tried to get her to stay in the one area where the blankets were, but she HATED being confined to one area...by the end of the first day she had about 9 accidents and this was how I was feeling..

By the second day I had decided to let her play as usual and remind her every 15-20 minutes to go in and try to go potty. It worked MUCH better, and she and I were more relaxed and happy.  We even played outside in between potty breaks.

By day 4 she was accident free, and has done really well since! She has accidents every now and again, but I think it's been worth getting rid of the diapers.

One of my favorite things about potty training is that every time I wipe her little bum she kisses me on the top of my head. Best. Payment. Ever :)

Birthday Time

Alax had his 25th birthday on the 21st! This year it landed on a Saturday, so he didn't have to work! Most Saturday's I drag Alax places he doesn't want not go, so on his birthday we just did whatever he wanted to do :) This included going to a wrecking yard in Ogden and Pick and Pull in Salt Lake :) He's been slowly fixing up his Subaru, so we got a new hood and a few other little things to make it look a little better. We then went home and he spent the whole night working on his car. He was excited to work on it, but I kinda felt bad because it was the furthest thing from what I would have decided to do on my birthday. But as long as he had a good time, I'm happy.

I knew we were going to be out and about on his actual birthday, so I made his birthday cake on Friday and had it waiting for him when he got home from work. It was soooooo good!! Seriously. It was pretty much the same cake that I made for Easter, but it had a cream cheese, Oreo filling. Adding cream cheese to anything can only make it better right?

YES!!!! 

Before we cut into it. 

Chocolate Covered Oreo Cake

Original Recipe

1 pkg devil's food cake mix

1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened 

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups thawed Cool Whip whipped topping

12 Oreo cookies, coarsely crushed

Heat oven to 350ºF.

Prepare cake batter and bake in 2 (9-inch) round pans as directed on package. Cool cakes in pans 10 min. Invert onto wire racks; gently remove pans. Cool cakes completely.

Beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl with mixer until blended. Gently stir in COOL WHIP and crushed cookies.

Place 1 cake layer on plate, spread with cream cheese mixture. Top with remaining cake layer. Spread top with chocolate glaze; let stand 10 min. or until firm. Keep refrigerated.

*I used the same Chocolate Ganache recipe that I used for the Chocolate Mousse Crunch Cake to pour over the top of the cake. RECIPE

Free Family Date Night

Alax got a new job recently, and we have been LOVING having him home with us at night!! Last night there were a few free deals at Panda Express and Cinnabon, so we decided to go all out ;)

Free Cinnabon Bites!!

Free Shanghai Beef!!

Free food?? It doesn't get much better than that!! :) Afterwards, Alax took me to this "little" thrift store that I've been wanting to go to. The store was so funny because on the outside it looks like this little tiny store, but once we got inside it kept going, and going and going!! It was massive! All in all though, a very fun night with my little family! Now I'm looking forward to the 26th: Free pretzel at Pretzel Maker. haha

Chocolate Mousse Crunch Cake

Looking for an awesome cake recipe?? Look no further! This Cake is sooo good! With Devils food cake, chocolate mousse, heath bits and chocolate ganache, you really can't go wrong! Here's the recipe! You're welcome :)

CHOCOLATE MOUSSES CRUNCH CAKE

1 package Duncan Hines Devil’s Food Cake

1 recipe (give or take a little) Chocolate Ganache (recipe below)

Crushed Heath bars or a bag of chocolate-covered Heath bits

1 tsp. unflavored gelatin

1 Tbsp. cold water

2 Tbsp. boiling water (just heat it in a small bowl in your microwave)

1/2 c. sugar

1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 c. whipping cream

1 tsp. vanilla

Bake cake according to cake mix instructions in 2 8″ round pans. Allow to cool and set aside. This can be done several days in advance; just freeze the cakes when you’re done.

In a small bowl, combine gelatin and cold water and allow to stand for about 1 minute. While gelatin is softening, bring 2 Tbsp. water to a boil in the microwave. Whisk into the softened gelatin and allow to cool slightly.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine sugar, cocoa powder, whipping cream, and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer until medium-stiff peaks form. Mix in gelatin mixture and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Prepare ganache (if you haven’t already) according to directions.

With a serrated knife, carefully slice the dome-iest part of each cake layer off so the layers are level. Place one layer on the serving plate and spread about 1/2 of the chocolate mousse over the cake. (*I used all of the prepared mousse) Sprinkle with Heath bits.

Place second layer on top of Heath bits.

Spoon ganache over the top layer, allowing it to drip down the sides. Sprinkle with additional Heath bits and refrigerate until ready to serve.

SUPER EASY CHOCOLATE GANACHE

8 oz. semi-sweet or dark chocolate

8 oz. heavy cream

Combine chocolate and heavy cream in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat for 2 minutes and stir. Heat for an additional 1-2 minutes or until chocolate is fully melted and can be whisked and incorporated into the cream. (*Mine melted in just the first 2 minutes) Be sure and scrape the sides and bottom to make sure you don’t find any globby bits of chocolate when you start working with it.

The ganache will thicken as it cools, so if it’s a little too thin for you, hang tight and it will be ready pretty quickly. When it’s completely cool, it will be thick and fudgy and can be used like frosting. Store in an airtight container. You can reheat it to achieve your desired consistency.

original recipe here

Easter!

We had such a fun Easter this year!! We dyed eggs on Saturday and Marlee LOVED putting the eggs in the dye. She kept saying "again?" When she woke up Sunday she looked for all of her eggs and her Easter basket. I was so surprised at how good she was at finding them all. She was so excited every time she found one. In the afternoon, we went to church and right after we met some friends at a park near our house and let them have another egg hunt all over the park. They were all so cute! Then we went home, I finished making a yummy cake for a dinner at my sisters and we headed over for a great dinner! Marlee was soooo exhausted by the end of the day.

coloring the eggs!!

This cake was sooo good!! Recipe to follow!!

I hope everyone had an amazing Easter Sunday!!!

Baby Animal Days

Marlee and I went with my sister and her kids to Baby Animal Days in Logan last week. It was so fun, and luckily we went the first day, because it snowed the next day! There were tons of animals that the kids could pet and hold, tons of games with candy prizes, train rides, pony rides and a candy cannon!! I was sad Alax was working and didn't come with us, but I'm sure he was relieved, because that place was CROWDED! Marlee got nipped by a goat pretty much right off the bat, so she was super wary of all the animals after that. It was super fun though, and Marlee loved hanging out with her cousins! Here are some pictures of our day.

Not so sure about the tractor..

mean goat!!!

having some lunch

riding the train!!