Crockpot Apricot Chicken

{Heaven in food form}

 This chicken may not look too glamorous on our fine china BUT it's one of the most delicious things I've eaten in a long time. And did I mention it was also one of the easiest things I've ever made too? 4 ingredients. 

Yup. You read that right. 

FOUR ingredients. 

I cut it in half because Ty and I are not feeding an army so here is the altered recipe 

Apricot Chicken

3/4 cups Apricot Jelly/Jam/Preserves

1/2 cup Russian Dressing (I used Wishbone)

1/2 packet of dry onion soup mix

3 chicken breasts

Throw the chicken in your crockpot. Mix all of the other ingredients in a mixing bowl and pour over the chicken. Cook on high for one hour and then reduce to low for 3-4 hours. 

Serve over rice. 

It was moist. It was.. heavenly. I can only think of divine adjectives right now, not descriptive food adjectives. Ty and I ate in silence because we were busy inhaling our meal. Just make it, then you'll know what I mean. 

I'm telling you. DO IT. 

Original recipe here

My little brother's all grown up and saving China!

..er, Texas? 

This week Zach got his mission call in the mail and he has been called to serve in the McAllen, Texas Mission, Spanish Speaking. 

{Just before he opened his call}

I couldn't be more proud or excited for him. He is more than ready to head out and serve the Lord and the people of Texas. Zach has been preparing for a mission since he was tiny. It was never a question in his mind "If" he would be going, it was always "When." 

{Right after he opened his call. I teared up a little. Our mom wasn't there so that job fell on me.} 

My brother is so kind to everyone he meets, he remembers people's names and he lets people know they are important. When it comes to the important things in life, he has always made the best possible decisions. Even though he is my baby brother, I look up to him in many ways. I'm so proud of him and the decision he made. I know as he serves the Lord and shares His Gospel, he will bring peace and happiness to the people of Texas. 

I love you Zach! You're going to be a great missionary! 

Won't You Be My Neighbor?

Top Three Reasons Why Our Neighbors Probably Hate Us

3. I sing in the shower. And they probably hear me.. because I can hear them.

2. Our washer sounds like we've got a dead body on the spin cycle.

1. Our need to assemble any Ikea product as soon as we get home i.e. midnight.

Husbandisms 5

Ty: I really wish I knew some black kids.
Em: I know some black kids. We had lots in my high school.
Ty: I'm friends with some Mexicans.
Em: They're basically the only minority in Utah.
Ty: Well... I know some red-heads.

One Year

Happy One Year Anniversary to Us!

We hit our year mark in December and we really couldn't have asked for a better year.. except perhaps sans kidney stones. And even then, we learned things about each other.. like how Ty doesn't want to be near me when I'm giving birth. 

But all joking aside, this has been the best year. It felt so fast and so slow all at the same time. Fast in that we enjoyed it and slow in that I can hardly remember my life before Ty. I feel almost like I wasn't really living until I met him. 

It took awhile to know if Ty was the One. You expect that your heart will burst or dance in your chest and that you'll just know that you're supposed to be with this person for the rest of your life. 

That didn't happen. In fact, both us were trying to talk ourselves out of liking the other. 

I was expecting a fairytale.. but what I got was confidence. 

When I was dating Ty, I was more comfortable with myself than I have ever been. I was more willing to share myself with other people and let them see my true colors. I never doubted where I stood with Ty, if he was thinking of me, or worried about what he was doing while we were apart. There were no games. So really, I did get that fairytale.

Glazed Doughnut Muffins

Scroll down for the recipe, stay here for the intro.

Something I've pondered towards the end of last year is adding a little more to the blog.. such as a weekly series etc. And I thought about starting that at the beginning of the year. That means I'm 2/3 of a month behind. So.. revision-I'm starting a "when I have time to cook, craft, and blog" series. I'm calling it "Pinterest Weekly," even though we're going to be forgiving on the weekly part, I'll be highlighting the things we make and do off of Pinterest. 

Pinterest is a great thing. I would like to meet the person who invented what my brain has been trying to do for years. I'm a list person so this website is perfect. If you don't know what Pinterest is, it is a virtual pin board-- an extremely visual way to organize your thoughts/ideas and share them with others. It would have been a lifesaver for planning my wedding. For more information, go here. And if you want an invite just let me know.

I love looking for new things to bake and sew. And Ty loves to find new recipes. {He now has his OWN account because he used mine so much.} And WE love to make things together.

Last night I made Glazed Doughnut Muffins. These are the perfect blend of cupcake and muffin with just a tiny bit of frosting. {I hate frosting. I'm weird. I also don't care much for ice cream *gasp*}

 I worked at the Spudnut Shop all through high school and these were slightly reminiscent of the spuddies {i.e. cake doughnuts} we sold there. Another high point, no random ingredients. I already had everything I needed to go to town on these little guys. The recipe makes twelve and the glaze is easy. Just make sure you put a paper towel under the cooling rack while the glaze is hardening. You won't have to scrub your counters like I did. 

{My pretties}

And we've moved into our new apartment. I'll be adding pictures as the rooms come together. Of course the most important of all the rooms is the kitchen :) And I love it. LOVE it. 

I don't know why I didn't scoot back just a tiny bit but this picture is taken from the living room. There's a bar above the sink which opens up into the living room. I have visions of entertaining guests and still being a part of the conversation. Of course I'm wearing an apron over my evening gown. 

And take special note of the counter space below the window. It's a dream. 

Here is our standard size oven. Now this seems silly but our previous one had roughly the same dimensions of an easy bake oven, no window and no storage underneath. This is what is called an upgrade people! 

Here's our lovely sink but what is most impressive about this picture is the fully functional dishwasher to the left of the sink. I've never loved an appliance so much. There is also more counter space right here. I love it so much I would tap dance on it if my head wouldn't hit the ceiling.. and I knew how to tap. 

And here's the fridge. Yay? I don't know what this picture is for aside from highlighting how short I am and that I have a stool in the kitchen for when Ty's not around. 

So there's out kitchen. LOVE it! 

We're Moving!!

I never knew this before but telling people you're moving feels like you're breaking up with your neighbors... which is why we haven't sung it from the rooftops. Ty and I have been on the waiting list this beautiful apartment complex since we were engaged. We were offered an apartment not long ago and it was just too fantastic to pass up. 

Let me list a few of my favorite commodities:

Washer & Dryer

Dishwasher

New New New

Underground Parking

1000+ Square Feet

I could go on. But I won't. 

We have enjoyed our time at Wymount, including our neighbors and ward. And we will definitely miss those things but we will not miss the church carpet, sneaky spiders, doing dishes by hand, tiny ovens or cinder block walls. Did I miss anything? 

For those interested, here are some pictures of our current apartment. We did pretty well with what we have. Can't wait to get some pictures of our new apartment up here :) 

{Living Room}

{Living Room, kinda Kitchen.. You can see the whole apartment if you stand in the hallway and do a 360]

{Mostly I wanted to highlight our silhouettes on the wall, made by us :)}

There will be more pictures to come, they're just on another camera.