Post Impressions

A Project

2012-02-12T10:57:00.004-07:00

I had seen this vintage journal/calendar on pinterest.
I thought it was a great way to quickly keep a journal.
All I have to do is write a short sentence about my everyday...
for the next 14 years.

Here is mine.
I was able to start mine at the first of the year.
I have been surprised at how easy it has been to write
about my days.

An Evening Treat

2012-02-12T10:33:00.003-07:00

Joe and I enjoyed making some "homemade" scones.

2012-01-18T18:56:00.027-07:00

Joe and I decided to pack our bags and leave the snowy? weather of Salt Lake
and go to the sunny 70 degree weather of California.
We could not think of any place better to vacation
than our beloved Disneyland.

Disneyland outdid themselves with holiday decorations.
There were lights and wreaths everywhere!
The enormous tree as you entered the park
really set the stage for what was ahead.
Not to mention all of the fabulous Christmas tunes
they had playing throughout the park.

We started out our vacation feeling very overwhelmed
by the crowds of people the park packs in over the holidays.
However, after fueling up with some flat bread pizza
we were ready to become part of the crowds.

This picture documents my first time riding Snow White's Scary Adventure.
Here I am trying to get my hands on the poison apple.

During the holidays not only does Disneyland
deck the halls with their decorations
but they also change several of their rides.
Joe fell in love with Haunted Mansion turned
The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Isn't the castle a beauty? And the couple too right???

Oh and what is this???
A picture of us with one of our favorite stars from Psych!!!! Lassiter!
Tim, as he is now known, was a really great sport
and humored us with a picture as he waited for his churro.

Joe and I made reservations 60 days in advance for the Blue Bayou Restaurant.

The restaurant is inside of The Pirates of the Caribbean ride in the park.
The atmosphere was very romantical.

And the food...
Let's just say I ate 3 rolls
because their buttery goodies was too much to give up.
This is a picture of Joe's dinner.
He was close to licking his plate clean.

The Sleeping Beauty castle at night!

Just the two of us in a sea of strangers.

It's a Small World definitely wins the prize
for the most dramatically changed ride.

Our amazing faces as we plummet from Splash Mountain.
Yes, we are the first two in our log.

This is what we get for being the first two in the log.

We were soaking wet!

But hey,we were still smiling.

Making a magical wish...

Do you think they came true?

Over in Disney's California Adventure we waited 80 minutes
to ride Midway Mania.
We were exhausted and my feet were recovering from blisters,
but the ride was well worth the wait!

Waiting for one of my favorite rides...Space Mountain!

Another of my favorite rides...
The Tower of Terror!

By the end of our days at Disneyland we were both too tired to move.

We saw two amazing shows!
The entertainment was at its finest.

We loved our Disneyland vacation!!

Christmas 2011

2012-01-18T18:26:00.009-07:00

We had a wonderful Christmas this past year.
We were so blessed to spend so much time with our family.
On Christmas morning we got an early but delayed start
to our morning because our alarm did not go off.
We spent the first half of our day with the Posts.

We enjoyed opening many presents,
including a couple of things from Hogwarts.
And I was even able to surprise Joe a time or two...

Joe loved the mini mariokart remote control car we got for Nathan.
I ended up getting one for him too.

After our eventful morning,
we joined my family for more fun gifts to open
and a wonderful fantasy dinner.
We enjoyed lobster tail, beef tenderloin, lettuce wraps,
twice-baked potatoes and much much more.

(I made that football beanie for James.)

We had a dress rehearsal for the nativity the following morning.
Isn't Mae the perfect angel?

At the day after Christmas breakfast
we all had a lot of fun cuddling with all of the new arrivals of the year.

We ended our experience with the nativity story.
The participants from our family were
the perfect angel and the cuddly sheep.

We had an amazing two weeks off together!

Something To Look Forward To...

2011-12-30T22:07:00.005-07:00

Coming soon...
Blog posts on our
Christmas Day!

And Our Trip to Disneyland!

Our Christmas Tree

2011-12-30T21:55:00.002-07:00

Ugly Sweater Christmas Party

2011-12-30T21:49:00.003-07:00

We were able to attend a wonderful Christmas party
with many of our friends.
The only requirement upon attending was wearing an ugly sweater.
A prize would go to the winner of the ugliest sweater.
AND
I was the ugly sweater contest winner!
What a gem of an outfit!

A Favorite Christmas Story

2011-12-30T21:29:00.011-07:00

The story of the Grinch
was told in snippets
down several hallways at my school.

Too bad Christmas decorations can't stay up all year right?

'Tis the Season

2011-12-11T11:17:00.002-07:00

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...
only this year his whiskers are not white.

Merry Christmas from nine-year-old Joe!

Illuminated Manuscript

2011-12-11T11:06:00.003-07:00

For Joe's World Literature class
he had to make his own version of an illuminated manuscript.
He needed to incorporate the various things
they had discussed thus far in the class.

He did a wonderful job!
His teacher had very high expectations for this project.
However, it did not surprise me how well Joe did!

The Natural History Museum of Utah

2011-12-11T10:47:00.009-07:00

Joe and I were able to go through the Natural History Museum of Utah.
This museum holds great setimental value for all among the Post Family.
Our Grandpa, Donald Hague, was the director of the museum when it was located on the University of Utah's campus.
We have always enjoyed going there,
and upon the announcement of a new larger museum we were all thrilled.
We went through the new museum with Grandpa Hague.
It was very neat to hear all of the behind the scenes info on the museum.

Here is the grand entrance to the museum.
The views are all amazing!

They use the space very well
and show so much more than was ever seen in the old museum.

There are so many hands on activities for everyone to enjoy!

Nathan was having a lot of fun and was pulling us from exhibit to exhibit.

Here is our Grandpa Hague and his lovely bride.
This picture was taken by Grandpa's wing of the museum!

We all had a blast!
The museum is something everyone can and did enjoy!

A Thankful Thanksgiving

2011-12-11T10:37:00.004-07:00

This is my thankful turkey.

Each of my students got to make a thankful turkey.
We made a list of what we might be thankful for
but some of my students got more creative
and started to list things such as a toilet etc.

The writing prompt for the day was...Turkey Advertisements.
My students had to imagine they were a turkey,
and Thanksgiving was coming soon.
They really don' t want to be chosen for the dinner table.
They wrote a paragraph about why I WAS
a better choice for Thanksgiving dinner.

The student had a lot fun doing this.
This is most definitely something I will do in the years to come.

Cleaning Off The Memory Card...

2011-11-19T10:54:00.008-07:00

It was time to clean off the memory card...we have things on it from July!
While I was looking over the 928 photos,
I found these gems!

A Minion Halloween

2011-10-31T19:36:00.000-06:00

What a sensational Halloween it has been!

I enjoyed a fabulous day at work as a minion from Despicable Me.

All of our students loved our costumes!

Here is a picture of the Halloween craft
that some of my students did.
Each pumpkin describes parts of their personalities.

Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-31T19:29:00.003-06:00

A Happy Harry Potter Halloween to All!

Trick or Treat!
From the King Koopa, Bowser!

A Happy Hogwarts Halloween

2011-10-29T10:25:00.004-06:00

Our ward Halloween party was this past weekend.
Joe and I decided to rebel and be the two Hogwarts
houses no one ever remembers,
Ravenclaw and Huffelpuff.
We were not specific characters from the Harry Potter series
we wanted to be as obscure as possible.

As you can see from this fine spread,
we enjoyed cornbread with our various chilis and chowders.

We even ran into some other students from Hogwarts,
our good friends Neville and Luna,
who just happened to have the latest Quibbler with them.

Here is our group shot!
We had a fabulous time at the party
and are now looking forward to the near arrival of Halloween.

A Hunting We Will Go...

2011-10-29T10:13:00.007-06:00

Two weeks ago we ventured into the mountains,
very early in the morning,
to go hunting.
We went with Joe's dad, an excellent guide,
and Joe's little sister, Ashley.

We met half way in Heber and
then continued the drive up the mountains.

We arrived in our desired destination a little after seven in the morning.

In the weeks before our adventure it had snowed quite a bit.
We all had to bundle up in order to stay warm as we looked for grouse.

We did see some nice does.

Joe spotted one grouse but as he quietly approached it, it flew away.
The men quickly took to their feet in search to find it,
while the girls were happy to stay warm in the car.

Although we were unsuccessful,
we all had a great time.
Plus, it was wonderful to be in the mountains and enjoy
the beautiful fall colors.

October 6

2011-10-09T18:16:00.004-06:00

Joe's birthday was this past week!
He was able to enjoy his birthday doing
anything and everything he wanted.
I was busy all day and night with parent teacher conferences.
Once on my way home I was able to stop off for some burgers.

When I arrived home, after my second 13 hour day at school,
Joe discovered I had only brought home one burger.
So, we made due and enjoyed our halves
along with some fries and fried pickles.

We finished the night with presents and watching X-Men First Class.
We had cupcakes and cake for dessert the following night,
along with a complete birthday meal
that allowed for us both to have our own meal.
It was been great to celebrate Joe!

Also this week has been homecoming at BYU.
Joe continues to do great in all of his classes!

A Sprucing Up

2011-10-09T18:10:00.002-06:00

My hair needed a sprucing up
and it got one.
I cut off 8 inches.
My hair takes no time at all to do.
I am loving my new do!

Nothing of Note

2011-10-01T09:30:00.003-06:00

Unfortunately our lives have become the same day in and day out.
I have no interesting news to share...not even a good picture.
Just know we are still here doing our thing.
Joe is busy with school.
And I can't seem to get away from my classroom.
Life is treating us well and we have no complaints.

See, we're fine...right?

My Classroom

2011-09-11T20:07:00.005-06:00

Here is a picture of my classroom back in August.

This is my desk.
This is where all of my grown up work goes on.

This is my management system.
S-Safe
T-On Task
A-Appropriate
R-Respectful
R-Responsible
My students are all STARRs.

My curriculum bulletin boards.

My whole little space.
It feels great to have everything together!

Our First Nephew

2011-09-11T20:03:00.003-06:00

Sweet baby James Michael
joined my brother's family on September 2.
He is so precious,
and we are grateful to be able to enjoy his sweet spirit.

Another Semester Begins

2011-09-11T19:59:00.003-06:00

Joe started a new semester of school.
As you can tell from the picture,
he spends most of his time reading and doing homework.
He is taking 2 English classes, 1 Editing class,
1 Film class and 1 Religion class.
We are both really busy doing the things we love.

Our Romantic Getaway

2011-08-21T15:37:00.022-06:00

Joe and I had an amazing 2nd anniversary!
Last year we started giving
the traditional anniversary gift of the anniversary year you are on.
Last year was paper and this year was cotton.
I was gone at an orientation most of our anniversary day but,
we still had a fabulous time exchanging gifts, going out to dinner and eating chocolate cake.
(This cake reminded us of our wedding cake.)

After yet another day of orientation
we took off and left our little Provo apartment for the woods in Park City.
We stopped on our way to Deer Valley for dinner in Heber.
We enjoyed the usual tasty delights of the Dairy Keen.
After dinner we traveled to find our hotel...which was an experience.

Eventually we made it to the Goldener Hirsch Inn.
We felt out of sorts (we are not used to this type of attention)
as they escorted us to our room and
showed us all of the unique features.

One wonderful feature of our room was our own personal balcony!
It was so relaxing and cool to sit out on the balcony.
And we left our windows open at night to continue to enjoy all of that wonderful air.

Snooping around we found a few things we did not expect.

Here is a picture of our room. We had a fireplace too!!
And the bathroom...it was so wonderful
to be able both get ready at the same time in the morning.
In other words it was huge!

Our Key was also huge!
We lugged this little beauty all around the town.

The Inn was very cozy and had lovely touches everywhere!

The following day we spent time at the Utah Olympic Park!
We had never been there before and it was a great experience.
We started out the day with a tour of the park.
We were able to see ski jumpers and freestyle skiers practicing.
From there we went up to the bobsled, skeleton and luge track.

It was so neat to be able to see what equipment each sport required.
We even got to see the bobsled team practicing!

Then we headed up to the top of the highest ski jump.
This is a picture of what the athletes see as they come down the hill.

After the tour ended we walked around the museum areas.
I was able to ski a little...

And here is my husband, the Olympic torch runner.

...and curling fan!

It was amazing to see all of the historical memorabilia.
We saw all kinds things from Olympic medals
to costumes worn in the opening and closing ceremonies.

After we toured on our own for a while
we headed out to the ultimate extreme zipline.
It was fun to ride the chair lift up to the top of the K120 ski jump.
We got suited up and then were off for a 50 MPH journey.
We had a great time soaring down to the base.

These are pictures from after our extreme journey.

The very last part of the day was spent at the aerial show.
Part of the U.S. Olympic team of aerial and freestyle skiing performed!

It was an AMAZING experience to say the least!!

Here are our wristbands...and now subsequent tan lines.
After spending a day out in the sun we were ready for a nap and some dinner!
We had dinner at our hotel.
The food was amazing.
We both started with the french onion soup...WOW!
There were so many wonderful favors!
For our entrees I got an elk flank steak with black truffle tater tots
and Joe got the wiener schnitzel and spatzel.
For dessert we shared an apple strudel and cherry bread pudding.
We were full!!!
After dinner we drove around town and saw all of the beautiful lights.

We enjoyed our vacation and had a fabulous anniversary!

Happy Anniversary - August 18th

2011-08-18T07:00:00.001-06:00

Happy Anniversary Love!!
x2

My Last Day of Summer

2011-08-16T14:23:00.002-06:00

Yesterday was my last day of summer.
No, school has not started yet (it starts one week from today)
but for the remainder of my vacation
I have been and will be attending orientations
and filling contracted days of work.

Anyway, for my last day of summer,
Joe and I filled the day with all sorts of my favorite things.
We stayed up late the night before
watching movies and having some friends over
so we made sure we scheduled in some time to sleep in.
Then we went to see the movie, The Help.
We shared a giant popcorn and some skittles too.
We both really enjoyed it and I am looking forward to reading the book.
From here we ran some errands...
back to school stuff etc.
I found a new pair of jeans
and Joe's new tennis shoes were delivered to our house.

The day ended with Chinese food
and the King's Speech on our T.V.
All in all it was a great day
and a great way to end my summer.

Good Evening Moon

2011-08-04T21:43:00.002-06:00

Joe snapped this picture the other night.
The moon was showing its bright face during the sunset.
(It is in the top left corner)
Goodnight day,
evening is here to stay.

Wounded

2011-08-04T21:27:00.002-06:00

Yes, this sad picture is of my leg.

Yesterday I took a tumble down the stairs outside our apartment.
I was taking a large load of classroom material out to the car,
and my flip flop was ahead of me,
and I landed on the concrete stairs with both of my legs under me.
All of the materials landed on me
and made it impossible for me to move.
Lucky for me, Joe was also taking a load
and he was able to lift everything off me so I could extend my legs.
Then we detoured into the house to clean up my leg
and make sure nothing felt broken.

What an unexpected turn in our day.
But, we still made it to my classroom,
with me wobbling all the way.
And I got a chocolate milkshake with dinner!
You can't beat that!

Today my leg is improving.
I am still moving slowly and both of my legs are very sore.
I guess I will have another crazy scar story
to share with the world from this experience.

Bridal Veil Falls

2011-08-04T21:18:00.003-06:00

Joe and I had planned to go up to Mt. Timpanogos Cave with some friends.
Unfortunately the cave tours were booked for the day.
So we detoured our plans and headed to
Bridal Veil Falls.

The waterfalls were beautiful.
It was a short hike up to one of the falls.
We enjoyed the cooler summer temperatures and the mist.
Hiking the falls was a great way to spend a Saturday.

Searching For Wildfowers

2011-07-27T19:47:00.006-06:00

In an attempt to get away from the heat this past weekend,
Joe and I along with my mother went up to Alta
to hike and enjoy the wildflowers.

Unfortunately the fields that were usually filled with wildflowers
were still under snow.
So we found another hike and hoped to find some flowers along the way.

It was a steep hike,
but there were a lot of views of the mountains and the city of Alta.

We did see some flowers along the way as well.

Near the top of the hike we saw this waterfall
that had broken its way through some snow.

We enjoyed the day
and we hope to find the time to do more hiking soon.

Stormy Weather

2011-07-27T19:41:00.004-06:00

The rain and thunder storms have continued this week.
We can not remember a summer with this much rain.

The lawns are flooded with water!
On days like today it is hard to believe we live in a desert.

A Reason To Celebrate

2011-07-26T19:59:00.003-06:00

Joe has been studying for a two part exam for the past few weeks.
This was no ordinary exam.
This test required Joe to memorize 37
different usage (what the rest of us call grammar) items.
For each one he had to memorize half a page's worth of information.
Each part of the exam would consist of 5 items,
totaling 10 items out of the original 37.
On test day the items would be picked out of a hat,
to ensure a non biased selection by the professor.
The first part was this past Friday.
Joe studied very hard to have each item memorized.
After taking the first part of the test,
Joe felt good about how he did but was sure he missed some points
of the many he had to remember.
Throughout the weekend Joe has continued to study.
His professor had emailed his class that 9 students got 50 out of 50.
Joe was hopeful one would be him.
Today we went to pick up the first part of the test.
I waited in the car while Joe ran in.
As he came back to the car I tried to read his face.
As he got in the car he told me he did not get 50.
I was surprised and shocked.
Then he told me he got 55 out of 50!!
110%
Did I mention this exam is 35% of his total grade???
He worked so hard and he received a great reward!
The second part of the test is tomorrow,
but he is not studying tonight.
His professor said if anyone got 50 out of 50
they did not have to take the second part of the exam.
Instead of being in class bright and early he will be sleeping in
and enjoying the morning with me!
Way to go Joe!!

Ah What?

2011-07-20T19:57:00.008-06:00

*Gross Photo Alert*

Tonight Joe met our upstairs neighbor.
This giant spider made a nice home on the roof above our patio.
Joe sprayed it with some wasp spray we had on hand
and the spider jumped from its home and
began dangling from its webbing.

After thinking it was dead,
Joe grabbed some cardboard to move it.

It was still showing signs of rigor mortis.
(For those of us who are not Joe-
rigor mortis is when an insect, or any animal, moves after death.)
Moments after we took this picture,
the spider jumped up and tried to get away.
Joe immediately took charge and the spider was dead
before I blinked my eyes.
(Those pictures are too gross to post)

I still can't believe I was out there during all of this.
Let's hope we did not contract some kind of spider disease.

Parking Lot Remodel

2011-07-18T13:44:00.008-06:00

For the past three weeks our parking lot
has been torn up and fixed up.

It all began with a crew removing chunks of the lot.
Then these chunks were refilled
and the lot was left alone for another week.

A week later tar was placed over the cracks.

Finally we have a new parking lot.
Our numbers were sprayed on just today.

This same thing happened to us last year
at our old apartment.
Let's hope we don't have to do it all again next year.

Keeping Cool

2011-07-18T13:28:00.004-06:00

Living on the third and top floor of our apartment complex
keeps things pretty hot.
Summer has made our little apartment too hot to stand.
Luckily, we have now received an air conditioning unit.
This is a picture of our make shift structure
to keep the unit from falling down.

This is our cardboard and duct tape tube
that funnels the condensation from the unit into the bucket.
Pretty resourceful huh?

We are keeping cool now
and enjoying the summer weather from inside
our little ice box.

A Late Night Treat

2011-07-15T09:28:00.002-06:00

Delicious Buttercream Frosting

3 sticks butter, softened
6 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Milk as needed

This recipe makes a ton of frosting.
I made half of this recipe and it covered all of my cupcakes!

I got this recipe from a family friend's blog.

Visitors From Across The Pond

2011-07-08T09:37:00.017-06:00

Alisa, Euan and Eleanor traveled from Scotland to visit us.
Here we are at the airport greeting them.

Meeting baby Eleanor for the first time!!

Here is the rest of the Post family running with excitement
to greet our far away family.

Some bonding time for me and Eleanor.

Little Eleanor loves her Uncle Joe.

Everything goes into this darling mouth.

...even Uncle Joe's nose.

Sleeping away.

The Whole Family.

Eleanor is passing all kinds of wisdom to me here.

No explanation needed.
I love this picture.

Big beautiful cheeks and eyes.

Eleanor is loving life and enjoying some cool ice chips.

Spending some time with Uncle Joe.

Me and Miss Eleanor.

Eleanor loved to eat at my hair.

We all had an amazing month as our wee visitors and family were here.
We made lots of great memories
and we got to meet the newest member of our family.

Until next time...
see you soon.

The Rainbow Out My Window

2011-07-05T21:42:00.001-06:00

This was the view from our apartment tonight.
It was a beautiful beginning to another storm.

Happy Independence Day!

2011-07-05T15:43:00.007-06:00

Joe and I had a great 4th of July!
The day began with the traditional Family Breakfast.
We get together at a local park and eat amazing food
and catch up with the extended family.

We had a parade after breakfast
where all of the grandchildren and great-grandchildren
followed behind grandpa as he led us along the track.

We followed up the parade by taking turns pitching and batting.
We couldn't have have asked for a better weather day.
I loved not feeling the overwhelming heat beat down on me.

That night we went to Liberty park for the fireworks show.

We had an amazing seat for the show!
We felt very blessed to be able to celebrate this day
with our family and with our county.

A New Favorite

2011-07-01T18:46:00.004-06:00

I got this recipe from a ward activity.
It is wonderfully smooth and fresh.
It is a great drink to have over this 4th of July weekend!

Brazilian Lemonade

2 limes
1/2 or 3/4 cup sugar (Depends on how tart you want your drink)
3 Tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
2 1/2 cups water
8-10 cubes of ice

Wash limes thoroughly.
Cut off the ends and slice into eight wedges.
Place limes in a blender with the sugar,
sweetened condensed milk, water and ice.
Blend ingredients together pulsing 5-10 times.
Strain through a fine mesh strainer to remove rinds.
Serve over ice.
This recipe is perfect for two large servings
or four small servings.

A Break From The Storm

2011-07-01T11:22:00.003-06:00

The sun was trying to peek through the clouds
as the wind was blowing and thunder was clapping.

We love stormy days.

Rodeo Roundup

2011-07-01T10:40:00.006-06:00

Joe and I went to the Lehi Roundup Rodeo with some friends.
We had a blast!
We loved seeing the roping, racing and of course the bull riding.

Can you see the excitement beaming from our faces?

We were right up front.
We could see all of the action.

There was even an amazing motor cross show before the end of the night.
The riders were flipping and doing handstands in the air.

We had a great time at the rodeo!!

Night Lights

2011-06-25T09:45:00.006-06:00

We love to spend time out on our patio.
We have amazing camp chairs that are wonderfully comfortable
and outside is often more cool then our apartment.
(You have to love having no air flow - other than fans)

We recently added these lights to our patio.
We love them!

They add a little extra sparkle to the nights.

After I took the light pictures above we slowed down the speed
of the shutter on our camera and we got these gems.
Can you see the "J" for Joe?

I made circles.

I wanted to see how much the camera would catch...
the answer to that is a lot.

A Trip to the Museum

2011-06-25T09:30:00.005-06:00

Joe and I went to the Museum of Art at BYU.
We wanted to see one of the exhibits downstairs.
(All landscapes)
And enjoying the air conditioning on a hot day was just another perk.

This is a giant block of books.

This is in the exhibit upstairs.
It is an exhibit all about words.

Isn't this block cool?
It is full of donated books of all different sizes.

There were some sections where you could really see the movement
of the books.

Little did we know we were not supposed to be taking these pictures.
We had a security guard come over to us and tell us to stop.
And then for the duration of our visit at the museum, there was a guard on our tails.
I promise I stopped taking photos once I was asked to stop.
And, by the way, how can they blame me for trying to take a few pictures
of cool stuff when there are NO signs telling me otherwise.

A Vacation Inbetween Semesters

2011-06-20T10:41:00.012-06:00

Joe took his final and turned in his paper on Wednesday
and on Thursday we were off for a vacation in Midway.

We had a great time with family eating fabulous food and relaxing.

We also took advantage of all the great places to fish!

Here we are enjoying the wonderful surroundings.

This is the river we go to a couple times a year.
The fish USUALLY bite here.

This is what we were hiking through to get to the river.
Not only was the river high but so were the weeds!

We enjoyed our vacation
and were grateful for the break from our day to day life.

Joe is back in school today for the beginning of summer semester.

My Birthday Celebration

2011-06-20T10:16:00.011-06:00

This year for my birthday we were vacationing
up at a cabin in Midway Utah with Joe's family.
I was spoiled on my birthday!
We started the day with breakfast at Chick's.
The breakfasts there can never be beat.
The scone I got even had a candle on it!!!

Joe gave me a fishing pole for my birthday
so we thought we would put it to use and go fishing!
I did not catch a birthday fish but it was fun just to try.

Joe's dad creates amazing "camp spuds."
I wanted these for my birthday.
These were one of the best presents I received!

It is tradition in Joe's family to have eclair cake on your birthday.
AND when it is your birthday you are in charge of the cake.
Everyone gets one free piece of cake
but if you want another piece you have to ask and or bribe the birthday person.

23 years young.

YUM!!!
We have the leftovers in our fridge
and have been enjoying them for breakfast lunch and dinner.

A Summer Treat

2011-06-05T17:23:00.002-06:00

Apricot Bars!!!
These are a delicious light summer treat!

Ingredients

1-½ cup Flour
1-½ cup Oats
1 cup Packed Brown Sugar
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
½ teaspoons Salt
1-¾ stick Salted Butter, Cut Into Pieces
1 jar (10-12 Ounce) Apricot Preserves

Preparation Instructions

Mix together all ingredients except apricot preserves. Press one half of the mixture into a buttered 8” square (or small rectangular) pan.

Bake for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Then spread with a 10-12 ounce jar of apricot preserves. Sprinkle second half of mixture over the top and pat lightly.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until light brown. Let cool completely, then cut into squares.

Recipe Adapted from The Pioneer Woman

The Ward BBQ

2011-06-05T17:16:00.003-06:00

Joe's calling in our ward has been the elder's quorum activities co-chair.
(He was released today and is now the ward choir director.)
He has been planning away to make this BBQ a success.
Joe was in charge of cooking the burgers and the hot dogs.
They were delicious!
(He has found a craving for BBQ cooking.)
There was so much food!
We had so much fun eating and talking with our neighbors.
There were even two little boys that found a mud puddle
and came out covered in mud!

It was a really great event!

My New Job

2011-06-02T10:15:00.002-06:00

I have a job!!
What a blessing it is to say that.
I will be working at Eagle Valley Elementary in the Fall.
I will the be 5th and 6th grade resource teacher.

I am so excited to be moving into an elementary school!
I love this school already.
The people I will be working with are really great.
I have even met some of the students I will be teaching next year.
I am so excited for this next year!

Can you guess what I will be doing all summer??
...anticipating my new job and the challenges that I will face
AND
looking for new resources for MY classroom!!

Girls Weekend in Springcity

2011-05-30T18:19:00.013-06:00

Every memorial weekend brings a girls weekend in Springcity.
This year we stayed over for two nights.
It was so great to spend so much time with just the girls.

We saw so many animals.
Sheep and lambs, deer, cows and horses etc.

Mae loved to see the animals.
And she loved to run around outside.

We always go on the historic home tour.

We took a carriage ride as well.

Me and Mae

All the beautiful country surrounding us.

Darling mom and daughter.

The historic church.

This is where we get our pottery.

Each year we have more and more fun.
We always make new memories.
And this year was no exception.

Faces of Mae

2011-05-30T18:12:00.010-06:00

So many wonderful faces!
It was WAY to much fun spending so much time with her.

Springcity Loot

2011-05-30T18:01:00.007-06:00

Antique cake stand

Handheld bowls

Weaved dish towel

Large Utensil Holder

Antique Brooch

I love these new/old treasures!

A Walk Around The Neighborhood

2011-05-25T17:21:00.006-06:00

A Robin enjoying this beautiful day.

Panoramic photo
Provo/Orem

An amazing park with stream!!!

Panoramic Photo
Park

Resting after the hike up the hill.

The Camera Zoom In Action

2011-05-25T17:15:00.005-06:00

This is where we were standing.

Do you see all of that detail??
(Click to enlarge the images)

Our New Toy

2011-05-25T17:12:00.001-06:00

We have a new camera!!!
We have had so much fun playing around
with all of the wonderful features.
The zoom is crazy!!
36X
And all of this fits in a package
of less than one pound.

Soaked!

2011-05-19T10:03:00.002-06:00

Joe and I were both out in the rain yesterday.
Joe's coat was soaked when we got home!

We had to warm up with some hot chocolate.

Out Driving

2011-05-11T12:39:00.003-06:00

While driving up to Salt Lake this past weekend,
Joe and I saw this temporary license plate.
05-05-31
Huh???
How temporary is this plate??
Either it is good until 2031 or it expired in 2005.

The Ups and the Downs

2011-05-02T19:05:00.005-06:00

As a substitute teacher I never know what to expect
when I walk into a classroom.
I really do NOT enjoy these unexpected challenges that await me.
The first of many includes having to locate the lesson plans for the day.
Why are they always hidden away in the smallest corner of the classroom?
After rummaging through the hieroglyphics of
math and reading programs the bell has rung.
Next I have to answer a million questions about
where their teacher is while also addressing the fact that
I will do things differently for just ONE day.
Then I have to stumble through the role
calling out names that look like just a pile of letters.
This is always where I lose the kids to the giggles.
I have lost them
and from here on out struggle to be "the teacher" and be in charge.
The kids know I am there for just one day and they know I have no real power.
Boy I wish this was just a big adult secret.
I strain my voice talking over them and
by lunch time I am stuck cleaning up the mess they have created
with their unfinished worksheets.
I am so grateful I only do this part time.
After lunch we all have more energy and
the kids have begun to realize how cool I am.
We always share some good stories and maybe even read a story or two.
As the school day comes to a close
I always get a few hugs, drawings and one or two "You're Pretty"s.
These short gestures make me believe
I can make it through another day or two subbing.

Pictured above is a drawing I received from one of my subbing students.
Just in case you can't decode the darling 2nd grade handwriting
it reads...
To: Mrs Post
Love, Becka
1st place champions of sub
1st 1st 1st 1st
Your the best sub teacher EVER!!!

Dinner Tonight

2011-05-01T19:32:00.002-06:00

Homemade chicken noodle soup...
minus the chicken.
Oh so yummy!!

AND
Chewy chocolate chuck oatmeal cookies.
These are perfection.

May Day

2011-05-01T19:26:00.002-06:00

Who would have thought we would wake up to snow on the last day of April?
I guess we should be used to Utah's strange weather.

This week we are looking forward to a day in the 70s.

Brand New Flooring

2011-04-26T18:31:00.003-06:00

Our old flooring in our apartment was this lovely neutral shade
(brown and peach)
that matched our kitchen counter perfectly.
We had a nice 70's feel to this part of the house.
We were surprised when housing told us we would be receiving new floors
in our kitchen/pantry and in our storage closet.

Here is our new flooring.
It is so new and nice I don't even want to step on it.
We were quite please with their choice of tile/linoleum.
It is a wonderful thing to know you are the only people
to have cooked, washed dishes, danced and stored things on the floor of your home.

Thin Mints

2011-04-26T18:17:00.005-06:00

These thin mints are close to OR better than the girl scout cookies.
They are crispy, minty and the chocolate coating melts on your fingers
and all throughout your mouth.

You can easily see they were greatly appreciated and enjoyed.

Homemade Thin Mints

1 ½ cups flour

¾ cup unsweetened cocoa

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking soda

1 ¾ sticks butter

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons milk

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 ½ teaspoon mint extract

Mix together flour, cocoa, salt and baking soda. In a separate bowl, cream butter until smooth. Add sugar and beat for one minute. Add milk, vanilla and mint extract and mix for another minute. Slowly add the dry ingredients. Once the mixture resembles small pebbles stop mixing and use your hands to form a ball. Roll the dough into a log and wrap in wax paper. Chill for 2 hours. Slice into thin rounds and place on parchment paper. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes.

While cookies are baking make the topping by combining 1 cup of chocolate chips with 1 teaspoon mint extract. Melt chocolate in a bowl and stir in mint extract.

Once cookies have cooled and become crisp coat their tops with in chocolate.

Let the completed cookies set overnight.

(Recipe from ming makes cupcakes)

4 Dozen Eggs

2011-04-25T19:07:00.003-06:00

Easter weekend was wonderful!

Uncle Joe

2011-04-25T19:01:00.002-06:00

Mae loves her uncle joe.
She is always screaming his name!
Joe! Joe! Joe!
They love to play trains and bubbles together.

Mae and I love our Joe.

Monthly Cooking Club

2011-04-25T18:54:00.002-06:00

Each month I get together with my mom and sister in law Starr
to try out a new cooking creation.
Last month was delicious pretzel bites.
This month was deviled eggs
and sugar cookies.
(The cookies did not last long enough to get photoed)
It is so fun to get together and talk and cook.

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice

2011-04-20T14:41:00.003-06:00

2 nieces and a nephew on the way.
We are indeed the luckiest.

Pretty good genes huh???

My Head Is A Little Lighter

2011-04-20T14:19:00.003-06:00

Six inches gone...
and feeling good.

I love getting my haircut.
I love the head rubs I am given as they shampoo my hair.
I love not having to blow dry my own hair.
I love getting free product in my hair.

All in all...
it was a morning well spent.

Drip Drip Drop Little April Showers

2011-04-18T14:32:00.003-06:00

When it rains it pours.
Joe and I have been enjoying this wonderfully rainy day.

Joe had two finals today and with me being on spring break from work
I have been able to shuttle him around campus.

Is there anything better than the smell of rain?

Dinner Last Night

2011-04-13T10:03:00.002-06:00

Lasagna Spinach Rolls!!!
Oh these are a treasure on your taste buds.

I adapted this recipe from the the blog, The Girl Who Ate Everything.
Try these out!

12 lasagna noodles, cooked
Spinach, fresh or frozen 10 oz. completely drained and dry
15 oz. container of ricotta cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Italian dried seasoning
salt and pepper to taste
1 jar of your favorite pasta sauce
mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees .
Combine spinach, ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, egg, garlic, Italian seasoning and salt and pepper in a bowl. Pour about 1 cup of sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 pan.
Place wax paper on the table and lay out lasagna noodles. Make sure the noodles are dry by patting them with a towel. Spread cheese mixture over evenly over noodles. Roll up carefully and place in pan seam side down.
Ladle sauce over lasagna rolls in the baking dish. Top each roll with shredded mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 30-40 minutes.

Yum!!

A Weekend With Ashley

2011-04-12T19:48:00.017-06:00

Joe's little sister Ashley came to stay with us in Provo,
and we had to show her a good time.

We had so much fun experimenting at the Dinosaur Museum.

Cool Huh?

These two were studying every detail of the fossils.

Our tall bodies look like ants next to these dinosaurs.

Ahhhhhhhh!

We were all surrounded by deadly predators.

Sad to say...but this is the only picture I have of all three of us.

Dinner at Pirate Island.

Fun at the Arrrrrrrcade.

Joe got every shot.
Earning us many tickets!

Can't you see Ashley's enthusiasm to drive?

I Won!!

Ashley's prize after we tallied up our 252 tickets.

Chocolate chip pancakes with our Saturday morning cartoons.

We surprised Ashley with tickets to see Hairspray!!!!

We all had such a great weekend together!
Ashley is already looking forward to coming to see us again.

Proof That I Now Knitt

2011-04-12T19:39:00.004-06:00

Joe in his new winter hat!

These are the first 3 hats I made.
They progressively got better.

Oh so tiny hats!
I am making these baby hats for a local hospital.

All of the hats so far.

Knifty Knitting

2011-03-29T09:57:00.003-06:00

I have knitted 3 hats in that last 2 days.
(I will post pictures soon)

I was introduced to this craft by one of my students.
He taught me the basics and then I was able to try it out on my own.
It is so much fun!

Joe and I are going to have hats to match EVERY outfit!
(To bad we are now going into summer)

I want to get the long loom set soon so I can make scarfs and other items.

3 point 1 4

2011-03-14T09:30:00.004-06:00

Happy Pi Day!!

Yum!!!
It is so wonderful to be at school eating pie!
And it is even better that it is educational pie.

My Obsession

2011-03-11T08:38:00.005-07:00

I Love Stationary.
I love the way it looks
and I love the way it feels.

I love getting snail mail.
I love sending snail mail.

Opening a letter and seeing a bright colorful pattern is just grand.

I Love personalized stationary.
I love color!

I love seeing a pattern.
Isn't stationary fun!?!

Things I Want To Craft

2011-03-11T08:11:00.003-07:00

I think this cake is beautiful.
The roses (so they say) are easy to make!
and the frosting is my favorite...
cream cheese!

This wreath is perfect.
You can make it whatever shape you want!
Glue on some coffee filters
and you have a beautiful way to welcome people
into your home.

A Challenge

2011-03-11T07:41:00.003-07:00

Everyday I have a 45 minute ride to work.
And I have a 45 minute ride home.
During this time I listen to the radio.

Growing up I listened to the Backstreet Boys nearly everyday.
I loved their catchy songs and I thought they were pretty cute.

While driving I must hear a Backstreet Boys song once a week.
It has been at least 10 years
since I have put their CD into my CD player.
And yet...
I still know every word to each of their songs.
It amazes me that somewhere deep inside me
I have stored away their songs.

Challenge:
This week listen to a song from your Junior High years
and see how many of the words you can remember.

And the Oscar Goes to...

2011-02-27T19:55:00.003-07:00

The Oscars!
One week out of every year Joe and I study the many nominees
and we re-watch our favorite moments of many of the nominated movies.

Today is The Oscars!
We enjoy the red carpet and
the final moments leading up to the announcement of best picture.

This year we also enjoyed golden Oscar chicken nuggets
with an amazing honey mustard sauce
as well as enough popcorn that we each needed our own bowl.

What a great night at home.

Our Valentines Day

2011-02-16T09:10:00.006-07:00

We had a great Valentine's Day together!
We enjoyed treats, watched movies, and ate dinner by candlelight.

Joe showered me with treats such as this great cinnamon roll.
Doesn't that make your mouth water?

But what Joe did not know was
that while he was at school I was making cinnamon rolls for him!

We definitely know what we like...
CINNAMON ROLLS.

Does he know me or what??

Simplicity?

2011-02-16T09:02:00.003-07:00

For two days away we need WAY to much!
Bags and bags of clothes and laundry, homework, church clothes,
treats or grocery's that will go bad before we get home
and we can't travel without our own pillows.
(Seriously, we have left them once and traveled
all of those extra minutes to get them!)

Moving closer to our family I thought our load would get smaller
but I am afraid the opposite has happened.

It Has Been COLD!

2011-02-16T08:58:00.002-07:00

A couple weeks ago Joe and I woke up to ice
on the inside of our window.
Two inches of ice!!

I bet you wish you had ice on the inside of your windows.
Well...maybe not.

When Mom's Away The Kids Will Play

2011-02-11T21:37:00.003-07:00

Joe's mom Karen traveled across the ocean to meet the
newest member of the family
(Baby Eleanor your Aunt Annie and Uncle Joe love you!)
and left the rest of us to play.
The rest of us Post family gathered to eat dinner and share some stories.
However, dinner soon turned into a game of
"bounce the water bottle cap into your cup."
It was all very exciting.
Soon the challenge of the cap was no more and
we moved to stacking cups
and then finally throwing cups into other cups.

Then another element was added.
Ping pong balls.
We had two full hours of playing with cups and ping pong balls.

We all had a great night together.

Woot! I Got A Job!

2011-01-21T09:41:00.002-07:00

Miracles do happen!

I will be working part time at Crescent View Middle School as a resource teacher.
It is a surprise to me that I would take a middle school position.
I am elementary all the way.
However, it seems like a really great fit.

I will be working with 9th graders
helping with reading and language arts.

Happy 100th Blog Post

2011-01-04T20:21:00.002-07:00

Off to school he goes!
My very excited husband started school today.
(Yes, he got another new backpack-this one fits his laptop)

He had a great day!
Joe has some great teachers
who have set the standards for their classes very high.
I know he will exceed their expectations.

Joe is taking the following classes this semester:
Intro to English Language
Fundamental Literary Interpretation
Physical Science
Book of Mormon
Spanish 3

Look out BYU!!!

Bringing in the New Year

2011-01-04T20:09:00.002-07:00

Welcome 2011!!
Please enjoy this fireworks presentation.

May this year be a great one!

A Snowy Surprise

2010-12-30T11:02:00.002-07:00

While hanging pictures around our new apartment, Joe looked out the window and saw some deer! According to him there were some really nice bucks out there with some doe. He ran outside in his pajamas to get a better look.

There were eight in total!
They were all huge!
I watched from our windows as they traveled
from place to place and eventually traveled
across the street and up into the mountains.

Christmas Day Is Here

2010-12-30T10:53:00.006-07:00

The Post Family Christmas Tree!

...and Santa stopped by.

After reading the Christmas story, we began to open up our presents.

Joe and I gave Nathan a Star Wars apron!

And of course the traditional Post family Nerf gun fight!

Joe's favorite gift was his backpack!
He is all ready for school!

Christmas Eve Night

2010-12-30T10:46:00.004-07:00

New pajamas all around!
Ashley and Nathan are all ready for Santa to come.

Nathan made sure we provided Santa with cookies and milk.

Christmas stories in bed is the best plan for a magical night's sleep.

Will Santa stop by??

We Moved!

2010-12-30T10:39:00.006-07:00

We were very prepared for our move!
Everything was out and ready to be loaded up.

...some of our packing material.

The morning of the move we could hardly move around our little house.

Last minute things were all packed up.

Pictures to come soon of our new place!!

The End of My Student Teaching

2010-12-30T10:27:00.004-07:00

This was the last classroom I was placed in as a student teacher.

I had a lot of fun with all of my first graders.

I learned so much about how a classroom should run and I enjoyed the silly moments as well.

Here are the 4 first grade classes. My class is the back row.
They have reindeer antlers on!

My Favorite Christmas Present

2010-12-13T16:04:00.001-07:00

Merry Christmas from Utah State University!
I HAVE GRADUATED!!!

Tis the Season

2010-12-03T17:57:00.002-07:00

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!

December is here and so are the holidays.
Joe and I are so excited for all of exciting events of the season.

Our Blizzard

2010-12-03T17:51:00.007-07:00

About a week ago we were hit with a blizzard.
Joe and I were blessed to both be home by the time it began.
We had a lot fun looking out our window,
looking out at how far we could see.

These are some photos we took after the snow began to slow.

The wind was so strong every inch of the outside was covered.
You can see the build up of snow at our door step.

Snow even made it in and around the stairwell.

And two days after the blizzard we got a foot of snow!
It was up over my boots!!

The Before

2010-12-03T17:43:00.006-07:00

We are moving in a week to our new apartment.
Take a look:
Our kitchen has a wonderful pantry and a disposal!
Also it has a built in hot plate next the stove.
(Our stove currently does not have any numbers
on the knobs too)

We are spoiled with storage in our new place!
Here is one of the built ins we will enjoy.

Our beautiful blue bathroom.

This is a whole room for storage!
It will never be this empty again.

Finally I would like to mention the closet doors.
There was a time I thought we would have to go without them.
It was a very wonderful surprise!

Happy Eating!

2010-11-20T21:10:00.003-07:00

After this busy time of year
(graduation, moving, job hunting, holidays etc)
I will be starting a NEW blog!
ALL ABOUT RECIPES

I will posting our favorite recipes
and any good ones I find online or from friends.

More details to come...

Big News!!

2010-11-20T21:08:00.003-07:00

We are moving!!

I graduate from Utah State in four short weeks!
We are moving from one end of the valley to the other.
Provo here we come!

We will be living in the married student housing.
Joe is so excited to be starting school
and I am so excited to be finished!

Baked NOT Fried

2010-11-03T21:37:00.002-06:00

I made homemade onion rings tonight!
They were great!
SO crunchy!
And the best part...
my kitchen in not covered in grease!
These favorites of mine were oven baked instead of fried.
This is a recipe I will be holding on to.

All Hallows Eve

2010-10-31T13:28:00.003-06:00

Joe and I love Halloween!
It comes during our favorite time of year.
We love to eat treats, dress up, carve pumpkins and be with our family.

Last year we were able to spend Halloween with our family.
We carved pumpkins, ate pizza and chocolate and went trick or treating.

This year however, we could not make it home.

I was still required to dress up though.
I dressed up as my Evil Twin. (Black hair and all)
(I think Halloween is the hardest day to get through as a teacher.)

Today we spend Halloween together.
Throughout the week we watched
Hocus Pocus,Corpse Bride and Young Frankenstein.
Our dinner consists of the Post Family Tradition of Chili and garlic bones.
Next year we will be closer to home
and we are ready with plenty of costume ideas.

First Day of School Questions

2010-10-26T17:56:00.001-06:00

Do you have a dog?
Do you have any kids?
Do you have a backyard?
Do you have any babies?
Do you have a fence?
Do you have a cat?
Do you have a trampoline?

I love the way a 1st graders mind works.

The First Signs Of Snow

2010-10-26T17:41:00.004-06:00

We have snow! (However minor it my be)

Why is it that the week of Halloween it always snows?
Growing up my costumes would always have to be big enough
so I could wear my coat underneath.

The first signs of snow each year always makes me think
of the song from White Christmas.
Snow Snow Snow Snow Snow
sung by the great Wallace and Davis with the Haynes Sisters!!

I love this time of year!
It is time to put the snow tires on
and grease up the saucer sled.

If only my husband would let me listen or watch Christmas movies.
Nope!
Not until after Thanksgiving!

Side note: I got my pumpkin roll! Thanks Joe!!!

To My Mother

2010-10-24T16:56:00.003-06:00

Looks good huh?!?
It smells and tastes even better.
Mom, I would love to enjoy some of your pumpkin roll.
Hint Hint