Picture Time

It has been over a year since me and David have gotten pictures taken that are good quality. This last week, we had a friend from church (Nicholas Tifft) take some pictures so we could update our walls and also so I could update my website with some new head shots. Here are a few of our favorites.

And... I'm back!

I always seem to forget about this blog in the midst of school, life, and blogging for Nicole Marie Photography and Neeko and Adily. I realized the last blog post on this blog is about losing our little kitten, Eeyore. But we have since gotten two kittens who are now cats. Piglet and Eeyore are our little kitties and we love having them around.

Here are a few pictures of them when we first got them.

 

And this is them now. They are sooo big! 

 

 

I hope to keep updating this blog with the happenings of my life regularly, but I cannot promise that as I usually forget about it.

Eeyore

As many of my Facebook friends know, my husband and I recently adopted a kitten (who we named Eeyore) from our local humane society. Sadly, we only were able to enjoy our super cuddly kitty for a short 11 days. But we rejoice in the fun we had with Eeyore and the fact that although death comes here on earth, we are saved from eternal death through Jesus Christ, our Savior.

Me and David decided we wanted to write down a few things we loved about Eeyore and a few things we did not quite appreciate. So here goes...

We love that you trusted us from the start.

We loved how you always wanted to be around us.

We loved how you followed us in the morning because you missed us at night.

We loved how you became a Macbook lover.

We loved how you liked listening to music.

We did not appreciate the times you peed on our bed, floor, and bathroom rugs.

We did not love that you got sick within 5 days of getting you.

We loved how when we talked about locking you in the bathroom on your first night with us because we were worried about you peeing on the carpet you walked in your litter box and went potty.

We loved how you used our guitar as a stepping stool to the table.

We loved how you used a pillow as a ramp to get on the couch.

We love how you always laid out in the sun in the mornings.

We loved how you hardly ever meowed.

We love how you cuddled up with us on the couch and bed.

We love that you taught us that we are going to be good, loving parents.

We love that you were like a rag doll who always let us pick you up.

We love that you let little Jacob carry you around the cabin.

We love that you let us give you baths.

We love how you hated the blow dryer.

We love how you loved our microfiber blankets.

We love how you always could find a way under our bed. Even when we tried to block it off.

We love you and miss you, little Eeyore!

Neeko and Adily

This past month my sister, Emily, and I decided to start selling our crafts. We have not officially opened our Etsy shop, but it is coming soon!

To check out what we will be selling "like" our Facebook page and follow our blog. Or check out our Etsy store here!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NeekoAndAdily
Blog: www.neekoandadily.blogspot.com
Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/NeekoandAdily 

And because a blog post is better with a picture, here is a glimpse at what I will be selling.

Coffee Date

The other day, me and David went out for a coffee date at Starbucks. This date included Blink, Skip Bo, and God's Word. :) I may have won Blink everytime and Skip Bo almost everytime. It was such a fun afternoon of relaxing and fun with the hubby.

Catching Up

I have not blogged in a long time. Life just got crazy! And man, oh man, it's been so fun. Here's a few things I've done...

1. I got married.

Photo by Sarah Rominger Photography

2. Me and David (my studly hubby) moved into our apartment. It is not the nicest place, but it's ours. And I think it's quite adorable.

Our Bedroom with our Prayer Board :)

3. I started school again. Sorry, no picture. Basically, it's just craziness and I love/hate it. Hate the homework, love the knowledge. I particularly am loving management and marketing.

4. Me and David went to Disney World. Let me tell you what, Disney is the most gluten free friendly place ever. The food was amazing and the chefs, waiters, and everyone was so kind, friendly, and knowledgeable about allergies. Basically, I cannot wait to go back. I want to jump on a plane right now.

Us with Chip and Dale!

More about these things and more to come in detail. But, for now... Homework.

Sweet and (mildly) Spicy Chicken Kabobs | Gluten Free/Low-carb

Last night my friend, Alyssa, and I made chicken kabobs. I had a spice packet from a company that I usually love that I wanted to try. Well, that marinade was flavorless and spicy. Spicy is great, but not without flavor. So, I decided to make up a recipe on the fly. I am happy to say that it actually turned out AMAZING. I am so proud of myself. It was a most delicious meal and super easy to make. Here's the recipe for any of you who are looking for a healthier, quick meal.

Ingredients:
1 lb. chicken breast
2 green peppers
1 onion
1 T. splenda brown sugar (hence low carb)
1/4 c. olive oil
1 T. cooking sherry
1 T. soy sauce
1 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1/2 t. crushed red pepper
Skewers

Soak the sticks (if wood) for about 15 minutes in water).
Cut the chicken, onion, and green peppers into 2 inch sized pieces.
Mix all the ingredients (minus the chicken, onion, and peppers) in a bowl.
Put the chicken, onion, and peppers on skewers. (I usually put a pepper at both ends to keep the chicken and onions from falling off.)
Brush the marinade on the kabobs.
Grill.
Reapply the marinade halfway through grilling.
Eat. Enjoy.

Hope you all love it!

Craft Time! Canvas Style

Today me and my friend Alyssa went for the gold! I have been wanting to try out this little craft for quite some time and we were both feeling crafty. So, we went to Walmart for some spray paint and came back home to begin the crafting. Here's what I made (I forgot to grab a picture of hers before she left. Lame!).

 

These are super cute. And super easy to make. Yes, they are. I promise. 

Here's the how to!

What you need:

Canvas

Freezer Paper

Spray paint

Cut out the design on the freezer paper. Iron the shiny side of the freezer paper to the canvas (it's kinda tricky to not get wrinkles, but I promise with a little patience and some laughter it will work!). 

Spray paint the canvas. Let dry. Remove the freezer paper. Voila! A beautiful homemade (and cheap!) wall hanging. 

All in all, it cost me about $10 to make both of these. And they are big. 12x16, I believe.  My friend, Alyssa made two 8x10's for under $6. Talk about a good deal. Art is not cheap, folks. This is. Make one! You will become addicted.

P.S. If you love mine as much as I do and want the nitty-gritty details on how I made them, let me know! I would more than love to share that with you. :)

P.P.S. I would like to add that even though mine look like they might be "dented" they are not. The "dents" came out. Praise the Lord!

So much has happened...

Life has been crazy lately. Lots and lots going on. Here's some things that I've been up to.

1. Went to Colorado. I was given the privilege of singing on the praise team at the Free Lutheran Youth Convention which is held every other summer in the beautiful Estes Park, Colorado. It was so great to see God moving in people's heart that week. He definitely moved in mine. He gave me a stronger desire for worship (especially music, but in other areas of ministry also).
2. My brother's wedding. My oldest sibling, Tony, got married to the most amazing woman ever this past weekend, Rachel. They had a beautiful ceremony in her home church and had a reception in the blazing heat under a white tent at Rachel's home. It was beautiful. I laughed. I cried. They also gave me the honor of taking their wedding pictures. It was so much fun! I am beginning to think weddings are my favorite to photograph. So. Much. Love. Their pictures turned out beautiful and the whole wedding party was just a hoot! Here's a couple pictures from the day.

 

Both my parents and Rachel's surprised them with the above lanterns to set off at the end of the night. Tony and Rachel both loved the movie Tangled (which, duh! It's an adorable movie, who wouldn't??!?) . And they both loved the surprise.

3. I got my wedding dress. Oh. My. Goodness. It is sooooo beautiful! It makes me look tiny, which is great, and it's even a little big. So! No wedding diet for me. Hehe! (But actually, I would still like to shed a few pounds.) I also have all my jewelry (even for my bridesmaids, well sorta!). The wedding plans are coming along so well. Now all we have to do is get invites and send them along. People always say wedding planning is stressful. I don't see how it can be as stressful as some people make it. Maybe I just have a lovely mom who will take all the stress off of my shoulders, but really. People need to cool it. It's supposed to be fun, not stressful. 

4. Relaxing. In this heat, all I want to do is sit on my computer or watch tv. But today I ventured out to a couple stores with my dear friend, Alyssa. I love her, she's great. We also made gluten free cake balls tonight. Again. Long story short, we made some last week and the cake mix we used tasted like corn bread. Not good. But tonight we made delicious ones with the Betty Crocker gluten free cake mix. It's delicious and actually tasted like cake should. We also made the most amazing frosting I've ever had. Ever. We also dyed it the most beautiful blue ever. Basically, I had to give myself quite a bit more insulin than I would like to say. It was a great night, though. We had tons of fun and laughs. 

Life is great when you get to laugh. Well, it's late. Goodnight, all!

When do we draw the line?

Yesterday I went to the movie Something Borrowed with my bestie, Nicolette. I haven't seen Nicolette in forever. Nicolette and me have a tradition of watching as many movies as we can when we see each other. We used to sit up in my room and watch movies on my dad's laptop (when I didn't have one) all the time. Idk why, but we've continued that tradition on. And so, when we finally were both in the same town we hit up three, yes THREE, movies (and of course watched another one at home).
We went to Kung Fu Panda 2 and Green Lantern at the drivein in Luverne. Which, if you live in Sioux Falls or surrounding area and are looking for a fun date and/or hang out place. Go there! It's only $5 per person for two new movies. Yes, it is in Luverne and the drive is not short, but it's worth it (just don't go on a weekend, supes busy). And yesterday we went to Something Borrowed. I had heard so many different reviews on it and from the one time I had seen the preview (which was prolly like 5 months ago) I wanted to see it. Well, I actually really liked it. But! I had such a hard time enjoying it. Movies are getting harder and harder to discern. The whole time I was mad because there was cheating going on. But at the same time, all I could do was hope the guy, Rex, would call off the wedding and end up with the girl he was cheating with. They were obviously a better fit. But was that the right thing to hope?
Marriage is so much more than just something to be thought of so carelessly. Marriage is made by God. But nowadays it's just another thing we like to try out for a while. If it works, then hey! Guess we won that one. If not, well I guess we can always try again. But that's not God's desire for us in marriage. God hates divorce (Malachi 2:16).
Although, I honestly think that in the movie the two characters that "fit" the best could have worked out (aka no divorce) and that the other two would most definitely have ended up divorced, can I really know for sure that a couple without God would actually make it? I was thinking about that as the movie ended (and hopefully I didn't give away the ending to any of you who wanted to see it). It breaks my heart to think that there are so many couples out there getting married because of THEIR love. But our love is nothing without God. God is love (1 John 4:7). We are not.
At the end of all my questioning of this movie I realized that I am so glad that I have God to hold my marriage to David together. I know it won't be easy, in fact there will be days it will be impossible on my own. But, I know that Christ will hold us together. And that excites me so much! I am so blessed!

Aren't blogs with pictures so much more fun?!? I think so. So here's a picture of me and my fiance, David.

So, I guess the question here is "When do we draw the line?" Why are we, as Christians, just sitting back and enjoying things opposite to God's Word? And how can we live so that others might see our set-apart life?

I went skiing today! | Rafiki's Rice (gluten free)

Last night we had grilled chicken and as we like to call it, Rafiki's rice. Rafiki's rice is like rice a roni, but without the roni or the gluten. Living gluten free has really challenged our family to become better cooks. This rice is TO DIE FOR! Me and Adam decided I should go to culinary school, get really really good and become a chef for Disney World. I think it's my calling. Haha! Not really... I'll stick with photography.
Oh! I made my photography blog and website prettier recently. Here's the link. www.nmpphotography.com Check it out!

Anywho, today Adam and I went skiing for the first time this summer. It killed me. I am so weak right now. It actually is taking effort to type. Lame, I know. The water is absolutely freezing as it hasn't made it above 80 way up here. So we froze our patooties off. But! It was an absolute thrill. I forgot how much I love skiing. It's a lot, by the way.

I thought I'd share the Rafiki's rice recipe with you all since my family loves it so much.
Here it is:

Rafiki's Rice. Excuse the bad quality of this photo.

Ingredients:
4 T. butter
3/4 c. quinoa
3 c. rice
6 1/2 c. water
6 t. chicken bouillon
1/2 c. onion
2 t. garlic salt
1 1/2 t. minced garlic
1/4 c. parsley

Melt butter. Brown quinoa. Add onion and rice and brown. Add other ingredients, bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes.