A New Member of the Family

So, this is an old post that I wrote awhile ago. I just didn't publish it. I am going to start blogging again, and I have a lot to tell you. (New pups, a new house, beautiful Grandma's passing, an upcoming wedding, and just more family stuff) It will be slow moving, because I have never been so busy in my entire life....but I will do my best!

 Hello, friends. I have been out of the blogosphere for awhile now. I have been avoiding it, because most of my posts will involve a small four legged dog named McGee. We are not allowed to have dogs in our apartment, so I was trying to keep it on the DL. We are trying to find a new place as we speak...but it is harder than it looks.

Anyway,  let me tell you a little story.  Tim has wanted a dog for a very long time. He begged me for months for a dog, and I kept saying no because our apartment said no. Finally, one day, he wore me down. Tim called me and said, "Amanda, I have found the right dog for our family." That is when I finally said yes. Tim had gone to the animal shelter so often that the people that worked/volunteered there knew him by name.Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have a keeper.  After that the rest is history.   McGee joined our family when he was just two months old. Someone had dropped him off at the shelter at four weeks old. Wrong. This. is. simply. wrong.  His original name was Blaze, but we didn't think that it quite fit. McGee is a fun loving and cuddly kid. He loves going on walks, playing with children, fetch, snow (seriously, he will find the highest point of a snow bank and jump in. He is CRAZY!), and cuddling (this may be his favorite past time. He is not as small as he thinks he is, but it is really cute how much he likes getting close.).

                                    This is a picture of McGee at the shelter at two months old.

 

I have started calling McGee, Houdini. It is his new middle name. He seriously can get into things that no other dog would even have a chance at. He can get things off of the middle of my table. He has chewed all but one pair of my shoes. I will be extremely happy when he gets through this whole chewing phase. I even had to replace my very first library book. I thought that I had put it somewhere that he could not get it (the middle of my kitchen table). I came home and it was under the table torn to shreds. He nawed the corner off of a hard back book.....it was an 18 dollar library book that I had to buy. Thank you McGee. The Fall of Six by Pitticus Lore is now on my book shelf.

All in all he is a sweet little boy (who is now 8 months old!).  He is loved by Tim and I, and the rest of our family as well. We brought him home to meet everyone, and he behaved himself very well. I was a proud momma.

The 4th!

Alright ladies and gentlemen, I thought that I would document how the Cotters spent Independence Day. On the Saturday before the 4th, Tim and I went to Driggs, Idaho with some friends. (Sorry, I do not have any pictures from this glorious night.) We had a blast. 25, 000 people came out to the fair in Driggs. The Beach Boys, or what is left of them, put on a great show. They didn't really talk in between songs. There set was stream lined. Tim and I loved it. Then, let me tell you about the fire works. AMAZING. I am not going to lie, they were probably the best fireworks that I have ever seen.  They had everything set up-close and personal. Then during the fire works, Lee Greenwood, the guy who sings God Bless the U.S.A. (I'm Proud to be an American) cam out and sang the song live. It was FANTASTIC! I am incredibly thankful for all the service men and women out there that have or are protecting our freedoms. We all owe them a great deal. 

Then, on the 4th of July, Audrey Eberle (my sister in law), her two roommates (Angela and Heather), and Kiley Murphy came over for some good food and games. Yes, Tim was the lone male amongst five women. He is a trooper. 

We had a great time. We had watermelon, veggies and dip, pasta salad, potato salad, bbq chicken and steak, chips, lemonade, buffalo chicken dip, and chocolate cake and ice cream. The buff chick and chocolate cake were made by the lovely Audrey. She has some pure skills my friends.....SO GOOD.  Anyway, we ate, had some good conversation and laughs, and then we played Sneaky Peeky and Phase 10 Clark style. It was awesome. We were all so tired, we almost didn't make it. The games were fun. Angela won Sneaky, and Tim won Phase 10. You think that I would be a boss at that game by now, but alas, someday I will school people. Anyway, we did not finish the night with fire works (because Driggs was so good and we didn't want to deal with traffic.), but we ended it with some good laughs with family and friends. God bless the U.S.A.

This is the chocolate cake that Audrey made...yes, we ate OVER half of it.

This is the buffalo chick dip that Audrey made. It is finger lickin' good.

I Love Our Dehydrator!

 

I seriously might be in love with our dehydrator! I have only made AWESOME strawberry fruit leather and banana chips, but they are delicious (and healthy!). The next thing on my list is definitely jerky...but seriously, fruit leather is so good. All I did was put three cups of strawberries and three cups of apple sauce into a blender, and then I poured it into my dehydrator and let them be for a good 4 to 6 hours. Then slice away and enjoy! Simple, efficient, and delicious. If anyone has any good beef jerky or chicken jerky recipes...bring them on. I am ready for it.  

My Temple

This is one of my happy places. It is my favorite temple, because I got married there, and I think that it is the perfect analogy. Right outside the temple is chaos, cars, honking, people, and craziness. When you go inside the temple, you cannot hear any of it. The temple is quiet and holy. You are literally leaving "the world" behind, even when it is right outside the doors. I think that this temple should be more appreciated. I want a beautiful framed picture of this temple. However, whenever I look in ANY of the church stores, they have every temple EXCEPT for the one that I want! Anyway, the gospel is true. Happy Sabbath!

 

 

 

Crock Pot Salsa Chicken

Alright friends. I have decided that Pintrest is my new best friend when it comes to finding recipes. I found this little gem on there and it is delicious. Tim liked it, and that is saying something. Also, let's face it, nothing is easier than a crock pot recipe. Just throw stuff in a pot and let it cook. Beautiful. I hope that you like it. Happy Sunday!

 

 Crock Pot Salsa Chicken 

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (frozen is fine)
1 cup salsa
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 packet taco seasoning
1/2 cup sour cream

Place chicken in the bottom of your crock pot. Sprinkle taco seasoning on chicken. In a bowl, combine soup and salsa. Pour over chicken. Cook on high for 4 hours. Shred chicken with two forks and stir in sour cream. Then enjoy! It goes well in tortillas or over rice.

Diary of a MAJOR Clutz....

Alright readers, I have to tell you some short stories that will make you laugh. Seriously, these things could only happen to me.

 

(This picture is strictly for your enjoyment)

1. I was with one of my clients at the St. Anthony Art Lab sitting on one of their benches with an isle on it. The benches are old with wooden cut outs in them for the isle. Well, I was sitting backwards on the bench (not how you are supposed to sit on it) writing a letter to my soon to be sister in law. Then, all of the sudden I am on the floor. I straight up broke their bench/isle. I said that I was so sorry, and they told me it could have happened to anyone....especially when you are sitting on the cutouts. I broke furniture in public! HA.

2. One day I was walking down my clients stairs (outside of course), and BOOM my foot was through their stair. I went back into the house and told them what happened, and they said, "I am glad you are not hurt. That stair has been wobbly for a long time. We have been meaning to fix it." Of course I WOULD BE THE ONE to put my foot in the wrong place! I laughed a lot...not while I was there of course. I felt bad that I broke their stair.

3. My wedding band has a slight brake in the back of it. I was putting a bag of rice on the floor and lifted my hand up quickly. BAD idea. My wedding ring caught on a five gallon bucket that was next to the rice...and the two sides of the band separated and went INTO my finger. I couldn't get the ring out or off of my finger; so, Tim got some pliers and got the different ends out of my finger. He bent the band back into shape after he got it off...but it is going to need to be reshaped. Again, it could only happen to me.

4. I know that it is an unhealthy snack, but last night Tim and I were starving while we were waiting for our crock-pot dinner to be done. So, we had chips and dip. I woke up this morning and realized that I left the chips and dip next to our bed. So, of course, the dip went bad. When I was walking down the stairs to throw it away...I dropped the dip. It splattered EVERYWHERE. I was covered, the floor was covered, our CARPET stairs were covered. I thought that I had cleaned everything up...and then I looked at up. OH NAY, NAY there was even dip on the fish tank. Yup, that is how I roll.

5. It is very windy in Rexburg. Some days I wonder if I will see a house flying my way with the wicked witch of the west underneath it. Anyway, I should have learned my lesson and only worn long dresses to church, but no. I didn't learn my lesson. Not just once but TWICE my skirt has flown up to my face. I hope that everyone enjoyed the view....cause you know it's a good one.

So, ladies and gentlemen, I have skills. Serious skills. Someday I will be graceful and elegant....or maybe someday I will still be awesome and not know how to walk in a straight line without tripping on something. It is the little things in life that really matter! Have a good one!

Another Reason that I Love My Husband....

So, I feel like I should start another blog about all the reasons that I love Tim....seriously, you never know what this kid is going to do. I think I love him more because he always surprises me. Right now his favorite songs are "Redneck" by Blake Shelton and the sound track from the film "Les Miserables"! Timothy loves Les Miserables. He loves the movie. He loves the music. He is always asking if we can buy it yet.  I know, shocking right. He also loves Fiddler on the Roof and will listen to that sound track on repeat as well. Going from "Redneck" to "Who am I" throws me off sometimes. Timothy is the best of both worlds. He is a guys guy and loves to fix things and fish, but he is also the guy that will sing "Tradition" on the top of his lungs and hold you when you are sad.  I have the best husband ever!