Dental School Preview

Blaine wants to be a dentist! And he has been working so hard. We both got 4.0s last semester and are both taking spring and summer semester classes. While I still work and go to class, the spring and summer terms have been really easy for me - I've even had time to try new recipes and make dinners at a normal time. But Blaine studies all day and night. He is doing really well in his organic chemistry class and I'm really proud of him. I feel bad as I relax and watch my tv shoes online, but he's been a good sport about it. He even gave me a quick study-break massage last night. It sometimes gets difficult, though, since we don't have a desk. We've been quite innovative though in our creations. We put a box over my keyboard stand and then took off 2 legs from our coffee table to make a mock high chair for Blaine to study on.

Anyways! Blaine got a chance to go to a dental simulation course at UNLV over Memorial Day weekend. We searched the internet for the best deal on the most decent hotel we could afford in the city of sin and made the 5 1/2 hour drive. Unfortunately we ran into some unforeseen expenses on our car, but... what can ya do? : /

So it was a 2-day, 8-5 course at UNLV's dental school. I stayed at the hotel and enjoyed the luxury of television, mostly watching House and Criminal Minds marathons. We did swim and go carefully explore the strip one night, but it was definitely a business trip. Blaine really liked his experience and learned a lot. Plus he looked really cute in his blue scrubs.

Dancing waters at the Bellagio

Serendipity - I love that movie!! and that word. We didn't stop in for a frozen hot chocolate, though. I'm holding out for the real thing in New York...

Again, didn't make a wish in the fountain... holding out for the real thing in... Greece? Italy? Oh well, I want to go to both. Soon :)

Food Pictures

As mentioned last month, we love food. And i love to make food.... especially desserts, or as my dad so warmly refers to them "treats" or "goodies." :) Although, as it is summer time and we are trying to get our beach bods, I haven't made any in a while. Here are some dinners that I have enjoyed though. We had a spinach and red pepper egg strata thing last night, which was good, and then hamburgers and sweet potato fries tonight... mmmmm

 spinach, tomato, chicken, cheese penne = delicious (secret ingredient: 2 oz fat free cream cheese mixed into the spaghetti sauce)

 s'mores bars... or as mom pronounces it: "sumores" - delicious, but didn't reach their full potential because i was holding back a little. I should've gone all out. I ate most of the pan anyways...

 This is what i like to call the flexible chicken fruit dip. It's my grandma's recipe that i found in my bridal shower recipe compilation. We ate it one night in a lettuce wrap (while we watched the Justin Beiber movie) and then the next day with tortilla chips.

 As an alternative to pizza one friday night, i made pizza rolls! Mmmm.... easy and yummy... i love pizza. 

 cute picture of somewhat healthy, mini-cinnamon rolls... kind of a let down, but they looked cute - especially on the cute B plate my mom gave me for my birthday :)

spinach and cream cheese stuffed chicken... i know they don't look like much, but they were yummy as well

FOOD!

I don't know about you, but you would definitely have mine and Blaine's attention after a title like that.
I love to bake. This is why I feel the need to make Baker jokes since I married Blaine Baker, and one day hope to open my own bakery, that will no doubt be called something witty and original like "Mrs. Baker's Bakery."

Anyways, in the past year or so I have become obsessed with recipe blogs, usually by LDS moms. Blaine affectionately refers to them all as "fatmom.com." I have a TON of them bookmarked on my computer and check my top 12 daily. Last summer, I even got to the point where I couldn't sleep as recipes ran through my mind, or I would dream about food.

This summer, we are staying home in Provo and I have actually had time to try some new recipes for dinner and most have been quite successful. Blaine thinks all of them are delicious though. I should have been taking pictures of them the whole time to compile the successes into my own cookbook, but I only started taking pictures today (which I'll put up later.)

Bonus! I also got to try 2 new cookie recipes this weekend. I made peanut butter chocolate chip cookies for my neighbor who had a baby, and I made ooey gooey chocolate cookies for my 2 cousins' farewell/homecoming party. I got these two off of the same recipe blog and they were both a success! (By the way, I don't throw that word out lightly. If I build up food in my mind and then am let down, it bothers me for longer than it does normal people)

Day Date

Very rarely do we go on dates during the day. On Saturdays we usually sleep late, wander around eating, doing homework, and running errands - then we go out in the evening. But last Saturday was different. With my impressive history connections, we went to a special viewing of The Conspirator - a movie about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln at Jordan Commons. It was interesting and we liked it. We even got a picture with President Lincoln.

Then because we were already there, we went to lunch at the Mayan - the ancient Mexican themed restaurant that looks like a giant tree house in the jungle with real divers diving into a pool. We went into it knowing the food was nasty, but we went for the decorations and fun experience.

Hopefully one day we can visit the real Mayan ruins. Because I love history, I justify the need for such exotic trips by calling them cultural and educational... which they are.

by the way - did anyone notice how dark my hair is?!? i guess that's what my new natural is...

Welcome!

So we are experimenting with the world of blogs, if I can ever figure out how to work it and format everything right... But I figured it could serve as an online journal to keep our memories (if I figure out a way to print out each story). It could also serve as a grown up alternative to facebook. It is also possible to become a one time thing that never gets looked at again... But here goes! :)

We've been married for a year and a half -- sorry, but all you many readers have already missed out on some good stories. But there are much more in store, so enjoy some cheesy laughs with us.