Happy Halloween!

I love Halloween! We met at my parents house for a supper of Bat Wings and cornbread. YUM. Then, after a LONG wait for SOMEBODY who hadn't picked out a costume yet (JOANNA), we took off and went trick or treating at a few houses. Not too many cause Sadie was already tired and past her bedtime.

Aww. the infamous Hershey's Kiss costume! Isn't she sweet?! hehe

My little candy family! Bubble gum and Reeses's sandwich with a kiss center!

A whole menagerie of awesome costumes: L-R:
Sadie: unhappy Hershey's Kiss
Jessica: so-so happy Bubble Gum
Julia: Goldilocks (she even had three bears in her basket!)
Mom: Lampshade. Don't ask. (I didn't)
Joshie: scary Mummy
Jake: skunk. Nuf said.
Janae: future girl! sparkly girl! space girl! Whatever!
Dad: community organizer and Prop 8 supporter (woot!)
Jarom: Michael Phelps and all his gold medals (awesome eh?)
Joanna: 80's prom queen (her costume was thrown together in literally 15 minutes)

FBF: Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween from the Lance kids
(ages ago!)

Justin as a jogger (spiffy!), Jessica as a fairy (notice my awesome aluminum foil wand! Made of a fly swatter. Swanky.), Joanna as a piggy (with a cute piggy nose), and Jarom as Superman (my hero!)

My mom always worked sweatpants/sweatshirts into our costumes. It was a rule. So we wouldn't freeze. Thanks for looking out for us Mom!

I found it

The perfect inspiration for our master bedroom. I love the colors and the headboard and duvet! Now I just need the moola. Sigh.

What do you think?

P.S. I don't remember where I found this pic otherwise I would give credit. Oh well!

My growing girl...

So today was Sadie's two month appointment at the doctor's, although she's really 2 1/2 months. Oh, the politics. She weighs 12 lbs 3 oz now and is 23 and something inches tall! Yay for Sadie! I am so grateful that she is happy and healthy. The sad part of the day was when she had to get her shots. What kind of sick person likes to stab people...nay...BABIES..with needles for a living? Oh well, at least she was pretty quick with her torturous task. Rory was kind enough to hold her...I can handle needles in myself ok, but not my little bebe! She of course cried, although Mommy cried a little longer I think. lol. She's doing better now, after a long Tylenol influenced nap and cuddle with Mommy. And then another nap. Poor thing.

This picture is from yesterday, before she got stuck with the needles. Hence the smile!

The dark side

Dear Readers of This Blog,

Come to the dark side of the force.
We have cookies.

And fabulous shoes.

Sincerely,
Mr. Darth "Potato Head" Vader

Carving pumpkins...woo hoo!

Well, it's that time of year again folks. Pumpkin carving time!

Of course, Sadie had to have a cute pumpkin shirt in order to fully celebrate!

The boys hard at work. Notice Josh's pumpkin has a knife in it's head. Nice.

Smile honey, this one's going on the blog!

L-R: Julia's puppy, Josh's stabbing victim, and Janae's one toothed wonder. (it was supposed to have buck teeth but she cut one of them off or something)

We did a little pumpkin for Sadie and Rory did one with some crazy eyes but we didn't get to light them up, so I'll take some pics tonight!

Happy carving everyone!

Good to be home

Oh boy it is good to be home. I've never been one to relish the end of a vacation, in fact the end usually is downright depressing, but vacations/trips with a baby seem to be of a different caliber. lol. It was super fun and she was really good, but I was glad to get back to normalcy, for Sadie and for me. Her schedule is still a little wonky, but we'll get it worked out soon.

Tonight we're carving up our jack-o-lanterns with my family, and their homestay student from Japan. This is the fourth (fifth?) time they've had them stay at the house, and they love it. She is a sweetheart and gave us all these adorable little kitty cat charms. I should get a pic of mine. We're going to hang them on our Christmas tree!


Sooo....poor Jarom. Stephanie left this morning and he's so sad. Luckily she's coming down again for Thanksgiving so it will only be one month apart this time. Still...we miss you Steph. You keep Jarom happy! So get your cute butt down here already. haha. And now, for some Sadie eye candy:

Dontcha just want to kiss those chubby cheeks all day long? Too bad! They're mine!

My smiley girl!

Disneyland: Day three...

Yesterday we headed into the park bright and early to try and make it on the Finding Nemo ride before the lines got too long. Last time we went, last June, it had just opened and at times the lines were 5 hours long! We got spoiled this time, the longest line we waited in was maybe 20 minutes. Gotta love the off season! Anyways, Nemo was pretty cool, although it woke Sadie up from her nap. It was pretty loud! Then we headed over to Fantasy land again for some more carousel fun, and then went over to New Orleans square to see about reservations at the Blue Bayou. That's the restaurant in the Pirate's of the Caribbean ride. Joanna, Jarom, and Stephanie ran all the way from California Adventures to get there in time. We were able to get in for lunch, and had a lot of fun eating our free rolls (hehe) and delicious meals, although it's a BIT overpriced. You definitely pay for the atmosphere! Then we headed back over to California Adventures for a ride on the river raft water ride, and then to the Bug's Land water area again for some more cooling off. It was a warm weekend! We got soaked and played Russian Roulette with the water. Felt so good! Then we split up and walked around some more stores where I found THE cutest Minnie Mouse doll. (Will post pics later.) Also some awesome Mr. Potato head stuff. (Darth Vader mask...hello....AWESOME) We met in Downtown Disney for dinner, which is where it all went downhill. Sadie had had it up to here, and was so tired and stimulated by all the stuff going on around her, that she was just screaming. It was a fun dinner spent in the bathroom trying to feed, change, and console her. Cassy's daughter also had a small meltdown and pull-up situation, so we were kind of tired of the trip by this point. We decided to call it a day and bid Disneyland farewell, until we come again!

Disneyland, Day two:

Busy day...we had fun in A Bug's Land park, where we found a fun water area to cool off in. More on that...We also hit up Fantasyland for some kiddie rides and the carousel. I'd never been on it before...it was anti-climatic. haha. Did a little shopping and got lunch/dinner at Rainforest Cafe as the company get together for the weekend. We also got waffle ice cream cones....YUMMM. Sadie was pretty good the whole time, just napping in spurts, but she was pretty laid back. Those baby care centers are a life saver!

Disneyland! First day...

So, we made it through our Disneyland trip! Three days of fun! Well, most of the time, but we'll get to that. I thought I'd organize it day by day, cause there are too many pictures! haha. So early Thursday morning Rory and I, Sadie, Joanna, David, Jarom and Stephanie all loaded into my parents suburban and took off down Hwy 5. Sadie was soo good in the car, thank goodness! She slept most of the way, and had a bottle so we didn't have to stop to feed her, just ourselves. We got there around 12, and Chris and Cassy got there about 1/2 hour later, along with Rory's parents. We grabbed some lunch and walked to the park. Sadie was wearing her cute Minnie Mouse onesie, she looked adorable! We decided Minnie Mouse was her thing. :-D We went on a few rides, Space Mountain and Indiana Jones of course! After a few hours in the park, we met up with Rory's family for dinner at Mimi's Cafe. Then we crashed. Four hours of sleep does not a happy Jessica make!

Another tag...I am sorry

It's ok though, cause tomorrow we're going to Disneyland! Woot! So excited.

Sadie's so excited she is crying with joy in the other room. (Ok, maybe she's crying cause she doesn't want to go to sleep) We're leaving bright and early tomorrow morning at 5 am SHARP. haha. We'll see about that one too. I hope and pray that Sadie will be a good little baby and sleep most of the trip. Cross your fingers for us! Well, until we blog again, see ya! Oh, and here's my tag from Janae.

TAG You're it!

Janae is my person...

How do you know this person? She's this girl who follows me around sometimes and takes care of my baby.

What do you like most about this person? I like that she takes care of my baby. haha. Also she makes a mean cheesecake.

What is one of your most memorable experiences with this person? Dragging her around shopping with me when I was 9 months pregnant! Also making said mean cheesecake. Also when she wore underwear on her head in the car.

If you were going to die tomorrow what would be your last words to this person? I love you! Oh, and read Harry Potter already!

This is how it works!!

Go to your blog.

pick the third person that is on your list of other blogs!

Answer these questions!

blah-g....

So...not much to blog about the past two days. Monday I....forget what I did. What did I do? Oh yes, scrapbooking in the morning and early afternoon-I actually finished a page this time! Of course, it was half finished from last time, but oh well...Then I watched Chocolat (haven't seen it? You should. Two words. Johnny. Depp.), and played with bebe the rest of the day. Joanna came over for the first time in like, 17 days. We watched Prison Break (or PB as we like to call it) She knows my weakness though...chocolate raisins from Target. Only the Target brand though. She brought me some, and yeah, they're already almost gone. Oh well. Oh, and I got shelves in my crafty room! We went to Home Depot and picked some out, they look good and are so nice for holding all my fabric where I can see it!


Today I went for a walk with Kim and Payton, and then went to lunch at Erik's Deli with my mom. YUmm. Then we hit up Target and scored some deals! I got this awesome lamp, originally $60, for $15! I know the shade is ugly, but it was on sale for $3. I'll probably cover it with fabric or paint it, whichever is easier. Does anyone have any tips?


Rory's not sure he likes it, but guess what? I'm the one who decorates. muwahaha. jk hun. Go shopping with me more. I've mainly been looking forward to Disneyland! It will be so fun to see Jarom's fiance Stephanie again and for Sadie and Ezra (her cousin) to meet! It's strange packing for another person (besides Rory), and I hope I don't forget anything important. :-D




This video is a cute one of Rory and Sadie. The other male voice you hear is Uncle Jarom. She is so cute!

Happy Birthday Rayne!

Saturday was Rayne's second birthday party, but today is her actual birthday, sooo Cassy tell her from Caca and Rory and Sadie-

Happy Birthday Rayne!

The theme was Princesses, and Cassy made a super cute pink crown cake (which yours truly frosted) and fun food that you can see on her blog. The spinach dip was YUM. I think I ate half of it! lol. Rory enjoyed the candy and held Sadie most of the time while I helped Cassy with the food. What a good daddy! Rayne got a lot of fun stuff! We got her a fairy dress up outfit complete with wings... it was soo cute! Her favorite was a pair of pink plastic heels-what a girly girl!

Sadie was very excited. She got her very own crown!

Pink fairy wings?! What more could a little girl want?

Warning: picture-heavy long post ahead.

You've been warned! So, today after we got home from church, Rory and Sadie took a nap out on the couch for like, almost 3 hours! wow! I almost didn't know what to do with myself. hehe, I said ALMOST. I sewed up this cute trick or treat bag for Sadie, and then looked around for something else to do.


I have been organizing and decorating my craft room, so I decided to work on that a bit more. It's not done yet, but here are some pictures of my awesome craft room!

The view from the door, yes that's Sadie by my desk after she woke up. I loove having a sliding door, it lets in great light and a nice breeze when it's warm!

Corner of my desk. Love this calendar, it has great quotes from famous women each month!

the sewing corner! I want to put shelves for my fabric on the wall next to my cabinet. This week, Rory says....

Another view of the corner...

bits for baby central! I keep all my shipping supplies, etc here. This is my cool $20 dresser from Goodwill, and a $4 bulletin board gussied up with some lime green spray paint. I loove changing the look of things with just a coat of paint! (and here are some of my J's!)

Some more of my J's...I love them!

a pull back view of my desk

my computer and some art and pics on the wall.

It was too quiet out there after I finished taking the pictures, so I investigated. This is what I found! How cute! Like father, like daughter. Their arms are even stretched out the same way! Awwww...

So that's what we did on this beautiful Sunday afternoon. What did you do?

Front yards, herbs, and ironing boards.

How quaint is that title? I feel like little Miss Homemaker. haha. Rory is out in the front yard pulling out ugly plants as we speak. Sadie is napping away, although making little sounds. She may wake up soon. Better hurry!

My little herbies! The cilantro is growing like a weed, and the others...not so much. Slow and steady....

Last night I made this ironing board cover. Way cuter than my boring blue one...a little wonky cause I made up the pattern, but it works!

Piggyback rides and blogaversaries

Aww, her first piggyback ride. (as Mommy hovered nearby slightly nervous and Daddy made fun of her being overprotective) So sweet! She looks like she's having fun!

She's got that half-smile down pat!

Aww lil' pudgy cheeks!

In blogging news, today is my blogaversary! So, in celebration of doing this for one whole year, give me a shout out! Whether you're a lurker, or a good pal, let me know you read my blog, and I'll read yours! (if I don't already of course) If you're too shy, that's ok. You can still read my blog. I'll letcha. Some people do giveaways on their anniversaries, but I don't know if I have anything giveaway worthy. Anyways....Thanks for reading about my life. I love writing about it! XOXO

FB Friday: Our old apartment

When we lived in Utah, two of the three years were spent in this cozy little basement apartment. And when I mean cozy I mean tiny. lol. It was perfect for us and we loved the location, it was right near UVSC, and all the craft stores in Orem were within a few miles. (Score!) We had a lot of good memories in this apartment! A lot of good times with friends, and a few times when family made it there too!

Our comfy huge couch. You do NOT want to know how we got it in there. haha

Our one and only closet. We had a sweet TV though, so don't pity us too much.

Our bathroom, pretty big actually. Our landlady let us paint before we moved in.

Rory's corner of the cave.

Our kitchen. Now, if anyone else has had a kitchen more awkward or smaller, let me know. Cause I think this one wins smallest kitchen.

And, our bedroom. Yes, we had a rock wall. We are just THAT cool. Also, barely enough room across for a bed, but somehow we fit a bed, dresser, side table, desk, and chair. It was a bit cramped. hehe

When it rains...it pours

I got tagged two more times! How fun. I feel insanely cool now. So here goes:

7 Quirks Tag

1. I absolutely hate cotton balls. Just thinking about them gives me shivers. It's just the texture. Jarom is the only one who knows how I feel about this.

2. I'm going to copy Heather on the slight OCD thing. I too, organize the magnets on my fridge. Is there a support group for people like us? I also fought the impulse to close my laundry door before going to bed yesterday, I like it to be closed. My OCD tendencies stretch into other realms as well, such as game pieces being centered, pictures being straight, washing my hands constantly, etc.

3. I have a weird tic where I sometimes repeat the words I just said but without any sound, I just move my lips. I think I told you about it, Jenni, right?

4. I don't know if this is that abnormal, but I own like 17 chapsticks.

5. The initials PB do not mean peanut butter to me. (Joanna knows)

6. I get sooo grumpy after taking naps that Rory hates when I do. I do too, for that matter.

7. When I'm eating, I have to have an even number of bites of all the food on my plate left, so I can finish them all at the same time. None of this, eat your veggies and then potatoes, and then meat business. Are you crazy?


So, now that you know how crazy I am, I tag: Cassy, Courtenay, Aimee, and Miekka


Next tag:

Your real name: Jessica

Gangsta name (first three or four letters of your first name, plus izzle, favorite ice cream, favorite type of shoe): Jesizzle Rocky Road FLipflop. (YO)

Native American name (favorite color, favorite animal): Teal Cat

NASCAR name (first names of grandfathers): Henry Lynn

Soap opera name (middle name, street you live on): Rachel Santa Theresa Dr. (oh not the DRive part?)

Star Wars name (first three letters of last name, first two letters of first name): Chrje (hmm)

TV weather/anchor name (first grade teacher's last name, major city that starts with same letter): A-something Annapolis

Spy name (favorite season, favorite flower): Autumn Tulip

Cartoon name (favorite fruit, article of clothing you are wearing now): Strawberry Shirt

Hippie name (what you ate for breakfast, favorite tree): Toast Fir (hahahaha)

Super hero name (second favorite color, favorite drink): Pink lemonade (wow I sound intimidating)

Goth name (black, name of one of your pets): Black Ally

Movie star name (first pet's name, first street name): Aslan Dowdy

Iraqi name (second letter of first name, third letter of mom's maiden name, third letter of dad's name, first letter of a sibling's name, last letter of mom's first name): Ernjn

Rockstar name (first pet, current car): Kitty Hyundai


Well there you have it. I tag: Joanna, Janae, Lindsey, and Kim.

Bread, cinnamon rolls, and crescent rolls, oh my!

MMMmmmm. I love bread. Who doesn't? I wanted to learn how to make a mean loaf, so I turned to the bread expert 'round these parts-my Grandma Lance. She had a new recipe for bread that's ready in about an hour! Some kind of kryptonite enhanced yeast or something. haha. Anyways, Sadie and I meandered over there today...(what am I saying, we sped. I love bread!)...and learned how to make this recipe. Sure enough, it was done pretty quick, and I learned how to make Rory happier. (if he could live on bread, he would. He did when he was little apparently) These pictures are designed to make your mouths water and taste buds perk up. Cause, believe you me, it was YUMM. Thanks Grandma!

Crescent rolls, nice and golden brown crust!

Cinnamon rolls...even better with some icing later on!

The beautiful loaves. MMMmm.

Grandma taking a minute to play with the Sadester. She loved their ceiling fan too. What is it with babies and fans?

P.S. I know you all want the recipe, but (oopS) we forgot to copy it while I was there so as soon as I get it, I will post it!