super soft lemon coconut cookies

This is one of my go-to recipes when I need something delicious and quick. It is a crowd-pleaser and hard not to have seconds, or thirds, or fourths.

Lemon Coconut Cookies

1 box white cake mix

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup oil

2 eggs

2 tsp coconut extract

1 can of store bought lemon frosting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix together dry ingredients. Add oil, eggs, and coconut extract. Roll into 1 inch balls and place on baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Once cool, top with lemon frosting.

**If you are lucky, and can find a coconut cake mix you can use that instead. Make sure to leave out the extract.

ikea hack - lätt table & chairs

                              

Have you seen Ikea's Lätt table and chairs? The thing I love about this set is it's only $25. That's a steal for a new table and chairs! The only problem is it's a little boring. To spice it up I painted the legs and frame of both the table and chairs (before assembling). I wanted to use multiple colors to make it really fun. I then added some foam and upholstered the chairs. I figured this would make them more comfortable, and make them look a little nicer. I used some fabric and foam that I had left over from other projects  and bought the vinyl (it's super cheap at Walmart).

                          

After the paint was dry, I assembled according to the Ikea instructions. I had to get a little creative and use some muscle on the chairs, but it came together perfectly. I love how they turned out!

                                           

savory chicken pot pie

Fall is here! I absolutely love autumn. I crave the changing leaves, perfect weather, and layers of clothing. Fall is also great for delicious comfort food. Today I am sharing one of our family favorites.

This recipe is super delicious. It is the most requested by my husband. It's a great one for fall/winter. You can easily substitute the ingredients for your Thanksgiving leftovers, and have a great, new tasting meal while emptying the contents of your fridge.

                            

Chicken Pot Pie

Crust:

1 1/4 cups cold butter
3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
6-7 tbsp water

Combine, mix, and roll out crust. Lay and press gently 2/3 of the rolled crust on the bottom and sides of a 9x13 glass pan. Save the rest for the top crust.

Filling:

1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup onion
1 cup milk
1/2 cup flour
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 cups chicken broth
10-16 oz frozen veggies (I like to use the bag that has peas, corn, cubed carrots, and green beans)
4-6 chicken breasts (cubed)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter and saute onions in a large frying pan. Shake milk and flour together in a container, then add to  butter and onions. Slowly add in chicken broth to avoid lumps. Add salt, pepper, veggies, and chicken. Bring to a boil then pour filling onto the prepared crust. Lay the top crust onto the filling. Bake for 35-40 minutes until the crust is golden.

elle's toddler room mood board

I am so excited to transform Elle's room from a nursery to a little girl's room! I have my Pinterest mood board and my inspiration. I have found that it is always easier to decorate a room and make it more cohesive if I start with a mood board.

Since I know the direction I want to go with her room, it is really easy to know what I want when I go shopping. Also, I know that if I stick to buying items that fit in the look and feel of my mood board then the room will fit together perfectly when I finally get around to decorating it.

When you are ready to start planning the decor for a room, check out Pinterest for ideas. For example, when I started looking for Elle's room I searched "little girl bedrooms". I started weeding through and saving the pins that I liked. Once I pinned a good amount of pictures I started going through them and deciding what I liked about them. I looked at the colors that seemed the same across the board. I then created a mood board with the pictures I liked, and pointed out the features in the pictures that I liked. This makes shopping a lot easier because you already know exactly what to look for. 

Let's be real though, I am a cheapskate, and a lot of the stuff I pin is really spendy. This is when I start thinking about how I can recreate the look with a smaller price tag. For example, I don't want to buy a brand new dresser for Elle. She will beat it up. I know she will. Instead, I will search thrift stores and yard sales for a solid wood dresser that has a similar shape. I will then sand it, paint it, and reknob (not a word) it. This will get me a similar look and save me buca bucks! I would love your thoughts and ideas on Elle's room. What do you like, what should I ditch?

lds conference journals

For our Young Women's activity this week we made journals to take notes in during our LDS Conference. They were incredibly easy, and the girls had a blast making them.

Here are the materials you'll need:

The first step is to Mod Podge the journal title onto the front of the journal. [I got these journals at the Dollar Store in a three pack. It was definitely the cheapest way to go.] We also used washi tape on our titles to add a little somethin', something'. While you are waiting for the Mod Podge to dry, cut out the pictures of the first presidency and quorum of the twelve. 

Next, glue or tape the pictures onto the edges of the pages. We also had a tab for questions they want answered during conference, and a tab for the other speakers.

Finally, add one more coat of Mod Podge on the front of the journal to make sure the title stays on. If your title bubbles, put some wax paper on top of it and weigh it down with a heavy object.

View LDS Conference this weekend here. God still speaks to his prophets today. He loves his children.

Free Downloads:

of pillow cases, big girl beds, & "luh you"s

I swear it was just yesterday that I spent the entire night waking up to every move my newborn sweetheart 
made. Tonight, that same sweetheart is sleeping in a toddler bed. It melted my heart to see her excited face 
as I handed her a pillow with the Minnie Mouse case my mom made. The same pillow case that was given 
to her for her first Christmas. I laughed inside when we opened it thinking, "We won't need that for a lonnng 
time." My eyes moistened as I pulled it down from her closet.

Don't let me fool you into thinking that we tucked her in, said our goodnights, and never heard from her
again. I lost track of how many times Mister had to go in and put her in bed. I finally had to take over to
save him from losing his mind. Finally, I heard her last "luh you." I hope I never forget the way she says that.

We still have many battles to win. I'm sure there will be a couple tonight during the bewitching hours, but
that's okay. It just reminds me that she really is still little. I need to stop blinking. She'll be grown and moving
out before I know it.

life, death, & tender mercies

Let me tell you a little bit about my brother-in-law, Mitch. Mitch was an amazing man. He was so kind, generous, and smart. He was willing to do anything for anyone. He, on multiple occasions, helped fix our computers, babysit at a moment's notice, and made us laugh. He was such a good uncle. He was one of the first to make Ellie laugh. I remember when he was dating Brittany and he wanted to use our garage to build her a sailboat. Who does that? Mitch does that. Mitch always made me feel like a culinary genius. His favorite meal that I made was my homemade Cafe Rio, and he could never get enough of the cilantro lime rice. He kept Brittany in line, yet couldn't get enough of her. He was the best.

On February 25th, I was in St. George visiting family. I had been there all week and Jeremy was supposed to come down the next day after work to spend the weekend with us and drive Ellie and me home on Sunday. Thursday night I called Jeremy before I went to bed to say goodnight. He was having fun with his brother Jake, so our conversation was short because I didn't want to keep him. At midnight my phone woke me up. It was Jeremy. He was at the hospital. He told me that Mitch and Brittany went to the gym earlier that night and when they got home Mitch was having some pain in his lungs. He started pacing while Brittany found him some pain meds. The next thing she knew he called out for her and collapsed. He never woke again. He was 24. Brittany is 25 years old and a widow.

I couldn't sleep that night. I was sick to my stomach and in shock. I felt so alone. Jeremy couldn't come get me because he was with Brittany (as he should be) and I had no way home. I spent most of Friday sobbing or in denial. I finally found a way home at got back around ten o'clock that night. It felt good to be back with Jeremy. I slept much better that night. Brittany was being brave and spent the night at her house with her mom.

Dealing with the loss of a loved one is bizarre. A small part of you knows they are gone, so you constantly have an empty feeling. The rest of you doesn't want to believe it. You keep thinking that he'll be back to talk more nerd talk that is completely over your head. Every day lasts forever. You keep wanting it to end hoping that the next day will be easier. It does get a little easier, but mainly because you get more caught up in your denial.

I am so very blessed to know of God's plan. I know that I'll see Mitch again. I know he and Brittany will be reunited. I know families are forever through priesthood power. I also know that God loves my family and me. I know this through the tender mercies he has shown us.

Tender Mercy #1: Jake & Jeremy got to spend one last time with him.

Earlier that night, Mitch and Brittany came over to help Jeremy get some stuff at Home Depot with their truck. Jake came also, and they were able to spend just a little bit more time with their brother-in-law before he left them.

Tender Mercy #2: I was in St. George.

Although it was hard being away from Jeremy at a time like this, it left him distraction-free to be there for Brittany.

Tender Mercy #3: Mitch was going to BYU.

Since Mitch was attending BYU, he and Brittany lived close. This gave us the opportunity to spend more time with him. It also gave Ellie a chance to know him. Although she won't remember him when she gets older, we have plenty of videos and pictures of him with her to tell her about him when she gets older.

I am so grateful for my knowledge of God's plan. I am grateful for the sealing power of the priesthood. I am grateful for the atonement and for the opportunity we have to live again. Life is short. Sometimes you have no idea how short it can be. I plan to take advantage of every moment I can and spend it with family.