Fun in the snow!

Riley wants to play with Wilson! (below)

Our little neighbor all bundled up! (below)

A polar plunge at the lake!

Wilson & Max loving their walk!

On Friday Omaha got about 7" of snow! It was even enough for me to get a snow day from work! Tim and I decided to beat the Valentine's Day crowd and go for dinner on Friday night. I am SO glad we did, we definitely beat the rush. We went to one of our favorite little spots... Lo Sole Mio. It's a quaint, family owned Italian restaurant tucked in a residential neighborhood in an older part of town. Dinner was excellent as always and this is the first time we've ever been and haven't had to wait!

In the pictures, you'll see our cute little neighbor boy, Riley! He was out enjoying the snow! Then, Wilson and Max got together again this weekend. We went up to the cabin in Fremont and they played hard. They really enjoy being together!

Cookie Recipe!

On Monday evenings I get together with a bunch of girls and we watch The Bachelor! We always have a great time! This week I brought butterfinger cookies and everyone really liked them. So, I thought I would post the recipe. Be careful, you can't ever just have one!

Butterfinger Cookies
1/2 c. butter, softened
3/4 c. sugar
2/3 c. packed brown sugar
2 egg whites
1 1/4 c. peanut butter (i use creamy)
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1 c. flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
5 butterfinger candy bars, chopped

In large mixing bowl, cream buttter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg whites. Stir in peanut butter and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in candy bars.

Shape into 1 1/2" balls and place on greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Yield: 4 doz.

Exciting Opportunity!

This morning I received a phone call from the desinger I did my internship with at the Interior Design Group in Omaha. She asked me if I would be willing to work with her on the 2009 ASID Designers Showhouse! I was elated!

The team of designers met this afternoon at the beautiful residential home built in 1904 near 38th & Dodge. The owner requested to finish the basement themselves in the future, but the remaining 6000 square feet is ours to work with. Obviously, the residence is HUGE and in definite need of a designers touch! But it's full of amazing casework, and has so much character as many old homes do!

Annette and I will be designing the powder room on the main floor. It's small, just under 600 s.f. which is okay with me as I was a little overwhelmed with this being my first experience doing a showhouse. But, I am SO excited that I was asked to be a part of this, it is an amazing opportunity! And this came at the PERFECT time as I am wanting to take on more residential projects of my own. It will be good exposure. I will post again soon as I plan to take pictures of the home and I will follow up with more information. It will be open in Sept.-Oct. for public viewing.

Ski Trip!

Dad, Jon, Mom & I at the top of the mountain!

My brother Jon & I (below)

Jon getting some air on his snowboard! (below)

Dad and I (below)

Snow sculptures (below)

This year we took a ski trip to Colorado and had a blast! Jon and I skied Breckenridge the first day, and the second and third days we all skied Copper Mountain and Beaver Creek. We ate great food, had good weather and even got some shopping in! This trip made me wish I lived closer to the mountains so I could go more often! I'm already looking forward to going again!

Bathroom Remodel Project!

My Uncle Dave & Aunt Virginia decided it was time to get rid of their pink toilet/tub and replace it with somthing a little more modern! I was so LUCKY to be able to help them and be a part of their remodel process! We had SO much fun re-vamping their main bathroom!!

The tile came from a local vendor, but it had to be imported from Italy so it took awhile to get here, but was well worth the wait! It's beautiful! In the shower we used tile accents of fused glass which Taryn (Dave & Virginia's daughter-in-law) fused herself!! Such a neat personal touch! The raised height knotty alder vanity cabinet with a shaker style door, and dark stain is topped off with a quartz countertop and undermount sinks! The faucets/fixtures we chose were nickel. I had a vision for the mirror and it was amazing to me how Dave captured the vision and built it himself! He also did most of the labor and did an amazing job! He is a craftsman!

I hope there will be many more projects like this down the road! We had a lot of fun!

Packing my bags!

Knowing that my 1 year anniversary with HearthStone was quickly approaching, it was much to my surprise that I still had 6 days of vacation to use before February 4th. Well there was no better time than now for my mom/dad to have a ski trip planned! :) I will be packing my bags and joining them/Jon on the slopes in Colorado! I am very excited!

HS Party Part II!!!!!

It was time again for another party at work!! I was asked to be a part of planning this one too! Of course I was more than willing and totally excited to do some more party planning!!

This celebratory event was a re-grouping/a coming together after some recent changes. All company employees and a guest were invited and this time instead of the function being held at our corporate office, it was at the location where I work (the Choice Studio)!! So this made planning a little easier. :)

We had a great turnout, 120 people attended! Ryan's Bistro catered the food/beverages, it was tasty! The president of the company welcomed everyone and the rest of the evening was spent socializing. I'm sad the night is over and am ready to start planning the next party!!! :)

Happy Travels Tim...

Wilson and I have had a little extra bonding time lately as Tim is in Denver traveling for his job. This is his first experience with business travel so it will be fun to see what he thinks, he was excited to get out and try something new (also, he did mention it is going to be 60 degrees there all week). :)

For those who don't know, he now works for Reference USA (a division of Info USA), and has been with them for probably about 5 months or so. I still don't entirely understand what he does, but in a nutshell he sells software to companies. He is still in training, but seems satisfied for now. Obviously there will be some travel involved, so about once/month he will travel usually about 4 days or so at a time. He enjoys traveling, so hopefully this will be a good fit.

I am thankful for Wilson and a security system while Tim is on the road! These two things make it a little easier to sleep at night!

Max's Omaha Visit!

This weekend Max (my mom/dad's chocolate lab) paid Wilson a little visit! They had a blast together! They spent every minute playing hard, and really wore eachother out. Needless to say, Wilson got a really good night of sleep! (thanks Max)! :)

A celebration-filled weekend!

Below: Happy 1st birthday Joslyn! (my cousin Chrissy's daughter)

Below: Huston enjoying his cupcake! (nephew, Tim's side)

Below: Jaxon a little unsure of the pink! (nephew, Tim's side)

It was a weekend full of celebrating as I was home in Laurel to attend a baby shower for a friend of mine since childhood, Betsy. Then it was back to Omaha for Joslyn's 1st birthday! How exciting! Good luck Bets and happy birthday Joslyn!

It didn't "hit home" until now...

The downturn in the economy really hadn't had a direct effect on me until just recently. Of course I heard all of the talk on the news, noticed the headlines, and the slow in the housing market. However, it wasn't until the last couple of days that it had a direct effect on my life.

Unfortunately the housing economy has been hit hard, which can mean that working in this kind of business can be even harder. The past couple of days at work have been challenging as the company I work for was forced to lay-off some employees. Thankfully, I am so fortunate to still have the job I love so much, but at the same time I am still faced with the fact that this could change in the blink of an eye. While this is all hard to take in, I do feel encouraged that we will as a company make it through this hard time.

My heart, thoughts and prayers go out to those who are now faced with the uncertainty of what is ahead for themselves and their families. I hope you will be thinking and praying for them too...

Wilson is 1!

Today was Wilson's birthday! We celebrated with a bone-shaped cake made special for Wilson! He loved it! Happy Birthday Wilson!

The most amazing vacuum!

NEVER until today did I ever think I would be so excited about a vacuum, but let me tell ya... this thing is AMAZING! We were overdue for a new vaccuum so we got a Dyson. We ended up getting the asthma & allergen model, because supposedly the salesperson told us it will pick up the same amount of Wilson's hair as the "pet" model does. We brought it home, tried it out and it seemed too good to be true! It was entertainment for both Tim and I as we were in awe of what this thing could suck up. Vacuuming has never been so fun! :) Check back with me in a few months, but so far I highly recommend this vacuum to everyone (especially if you have a pet).

Happy New Year!

I hope 2009 brings everyone peace, joy and prosperity! I wanted to share an awesome recipe with you. It is one of Tim's favorites! This creamy chicken chili hits the spot on those cold, wintry days...
White Chicken Chili
Onion mixture, mix and saute:
1 white onion
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. oregano
2 tsp. cumin
1 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. oil
Combine the onion mixture with:
a deboned roasted chicken (I used a rotisserie chicken)
3 - 14 oz. cans chicken broth
3 - 15.5 oz. cans great northern beans (I used 2 cans)
1 - 10 oz can Rotel (diced tomatoes and green chilis) I used 2 cans of the mild rotel
Cook for one hour in a large pot or crock pot
Add 3 cups shredded monterey jack cheese and cook 1/2 hour more.
Add 16 oz. sour cream and enjoy! :) This recipe makes a lot of soup.

Cutest dog!

It was Christmas with my family this weekend! Mark and Brenda brought their dog Berkley (a yorkshire terrier)! Isn't he the cutest?!?!

Silly, Sleepy Santas!

Merry Christmas! I hope everyone is having a great holiday. I wanted to post a couple of pictures from Christmas! Jaxon in his santa suit, and Tristan in his santa hat! So cute...

Tis the Season...

For break-ins. On October 1st my car was broken into while I was running Lake Zorinsky, my purse was stolen. Little did I know what was in store for me. More than 2 months have passed and I am still working with Omaha Police Department and dealing with banks and creditors trying to resolve the problem. Today I also found out I have been a victim of identity theft. While I was talking to the detective assigned to my case earlier today she said the best thing I can do is to simply put this out there for everyone to know. This is the prime season for purse snatchings, stealing and break-ins, so PLEASE be aware of your surroundings to help prevent yourself from being a victim.

Happy Holidays HearthStone!

Hopefully everyone left the company meeting this morning feeling a little more festive! Myself along with a colleague of mine were asked to plan the annual holiday meeting. We had Jo-On-The-Go espresso and lattes, The Pancake Man, and Valentino's cater. Everything was very tasty and I think everyone had a good time!

Tree Time

Finally the tree and decorations are up! What a good feeling, and there isn't a better way to make it seem more like Christmas then with snow, and it sounds like its on the way!

Yummy Apple Cider Recipe

Red Hot Cider
1 gallon apple juice
1 gallon cranberry juice
Dry Ingredients:
1 whole orange sliced
1 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. allspice
4 cinnamon sticks
½ cup cinnamon red hots

Pour juice into a 30 cup coffee pot. Put all dry ingredients into the filter basket of the coffee pot. Let it perk through all the spices! Serve with red hots and a cinnamon stick. This can be made up and stored in the refrigerator and heated up one cup at a time. Enjoy!