Homemade Pizza

Due to a request from my sister-in-law, Sara, I thought I would post the pizza recipe I used to create today's lunch.  This productivity thing is going well so far this year!  I can't believe how motivated I have been to get stuff done this last week.  Anyway, this recipe was given to me as a shower gift from my AMAZING wedding planner Cris.  It is delicious and a hit every time.

Homemade Pizza Dough:

1. Dissolve 1t. sugar in 1 1/3 C warm water.  Then add 2t yeast and let stand for 10 minutes
2. Then add: 4 T oil, 1 t salt, 3 C flour  (you can use 1 C wheat flour is you would like)
3. Mix with a wooden spoon then knead it until it is a nice, non-sticky texture.
1. I mixed this all together with my kitchen add dough hook and it worked beautifully!  (A lot less sticky than mixing it and kneading it by hand!)
4. Let Rise 30 minutes.
5. Roll out--pizza roller (gift from Cris) makes this process super easy!
6. Bake the crust at 425 for 10 minutes untopped
7. Add desired toppings.
8. Bake topped for 10-12 minutes at 425

Note: Pizza stones cook a perfect pizza!

With a stand mixer this is a cinch!  It is not too bad to do by hand either.

Enjoy!

In the Year of 2012

So, we are 1 day into 2012, and I can already tell that it is going to be an excellent year.  On our car ride home from Dallas, Stinson and I were discussing what we would like to accomplish in 2012.  We were in awe of Sara & Kennedy's daily productivity while they hosted all of the Dean's for Christmas. Together, we decided this is something that we would like to be better at.  This year the word that will drive our daily lives is productivity.  Instead of putting off folding the laundry, or loading the dishwasher, we are just going to do it!  A little bit here and there really goes a long way.  I'll keep you posted on how it actually ends up going!

 Today I was off the races putting away the Christmas decorations, doing the laundry from  vacation, cleaning the house, making the bed, and planning out the next two weeks of meals.  We even had time for a movie! I have this app on my phone called out of milk. With this app you can create shopping lists or to-do lists.  I used this handy little app to make a to-do list on it for the next few days. I was able to cross off all of the items on the list for today!!! It was such a good feeling.

I think that there will be some exciting changes in Stinson and I's future this year.  We are seriously considering relocating closer to my job (amazing!!!!).  So, 6 months from now I could be blogging all about a new home, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.

I really think that the word productivity is going to be a great one for us. I had considered several other phrases and words, but I like this one because it is something we're both committed to, and I think that it will bring a lot of fruit from our labors.  God has called us to live and to thrive in Him.  I really feel like productivity will help me do just that!  Until next time, go and be productive!

Blissful Blogger

My sweet sister-in-law, Bailey, tag me for this a few weeks ago and I thought it was about time I posted on it!  It is always nice to receive an award.  I know that I don't blog often enough, but this was a good excuse to get me around to doing it!


The rules of this award are to share 7 facts about yourself and then tag 7 other bloggers.  I will see if I can come up with 7 other bloggers to tag, but at least the ones I know will get to join in the fun with this little award!

Here goes, 7 things I am sure you've been dying to know about me:

1.) Stinson and I are finally getting a chance to enjoyed trued married life.  This may sound a little funny, but for the first two and a half years of our marriage our time together has been different than most traditional marriages.  The most time we got to spend together prior to his new job with Forest was 3-4 hours on Sunday if we were lucky.  With Stinson coaching football, both of us going to grad school, and my first few years of teaching our time together at night was very sporadic and short.  Now we get to enjoy dinner together most nights and all of our weekends!  We are loving doing many more things together, like spending Sundays watching football together.

2.) I LOVE football!  I have since I was little and it may be from all the Husky games my dad and I got to go to when I was little that fueled the love.  I remember when I was in high school and my Uncle Brian called one Saturday while I was home alone.  He was surprised by my response as to what I was doing that fine Saturday afternoon when I responded, "Watching football."  I guess it's a good thing that I married a football coach!  I love going to my students little league football games too!  Lesson planning during all of the Sunday games is one of my favorite things.

3.) I have known since I was in 3rd grade that I would be a teacher.  The past 3 years have been the best years of my life.  Waking up everyday to do something I love is truly a blessing.  I feel like God is using my career as a teacher to not only impact the lives of my students, but also to teach me so much about Himself and his love for me.


4.) This next one may be a weird fact, but something that most people are surprised about, especially when they don't know my family.  At 5'10" I am the shortest person in my family.  I feel like I am of average height, but being around people outside of my family reminds me that I am not of average height.  I have always wished I was just a little taller, 6' would have been nice, guess I have heels to make up for it!

5.) I love coffee and most mornings it is the highlight of my dive to work.  It helps me start my day out right!  I have made up my new favorite drink at Starbucks.  If you'd like to try here is what you tell your local Barista: tall americano with an inch of steamed breve (half and half) and 2 pumps of pumpkin spice.  Trust me, it's to die for!  Just don't spill it on your shirt because it will leave a nice stain, especially if it's white. ;)

6.) Just like my mom and sister-in-law, I am a Colorado girl.  There is nothing that I love more than the sight of the mountains.  Their majesty always takes my breath away.  Stinson and I would love to move back if that is what the future holds.  Along these lines, I am also super proud to be a Wyoming Cowboy.  I talk up UW all the time and would go back to Laramie in heart beat.  There is something really special about the people and sense of community in Wyoming.

7.) I am super excited to be an Aunt this January.  Sara and Kennedy will be expecting a baby boy then.  I am looking forward to loving on my little nephew and spoiling him rotten.  I've already bought several things (Sara I'll get around to sending them at some point), and know that there will be many more purchases ahead.  Lots of friends are starting to expand their families, so I am hoping that I can get Stinson on board with trying for one of our own this spring/summer.

Well, that's enough for now.  Here are the blogs I am tagging:

Project City

With Gratitude

Wrapped in Delight

WyoMegs

It's that Time of Year

I always know the school year is approaching because I start having back to school nightmares.  Students are showing up when my classroom isn't ready or I have a meeting that keeps me from picking my kids up from specials and they have been unsupervised for the last hour and I walk in to find utter chaos, I am sure you all have these dreams too!  These dreams never fail to wake me up in a panic only to realize that there is still 4 weeks until school starts.

I am excited for the school year to begin and get to know a new awesome bunch of students.  I know that this year is going to hold lots of new and exciting things, and that my students are going to accomplish some great things.  At the start of a new year, and especially this year, I miss my students from the year before.  I miss knowing their interests and the great relationships we have.  I think that this year will be especially hard because I had a special class last year that made a deep impact on me as a person and a teacher.  I will look forward to hearing all about their 5th grade adventures!

I have some big plans in store for this school year and I am hoping that I can make them all come to be.  Sometimes it is hard to figure out where everything is going to fit and what things are going to get tossed, but in the end it usually all gets done.  Yesterday I was at a math workshop, sounds boring I know, but it was one of the best workshops I have been to.  The author who gave the workshop, Greg Tang, was amazing and gave me so many great ideas about how to improve my math instruction.  It got me pumped up to be back at school.

I thought I would end this post with some highlights from my latest trip out to Colorado.  Each time I am out there I am reminded of how much I love it.  I really hope that one day Stinson and I are able to call it home, especially since the heat and humidity are about to kill me.  One of my dearest friends married the love of her life a couple weeks ago.  The wedding and events leading up to it were so beautiful.  It was one of those weddings that was so filled with love that you felt tears in your eyes at just about every moment.  Kristen of course was stunning, and Adam looked great too.  Everything was so perfect and so Kristen.  I know that God is going to pour out lots of blessings on their marriage.  There is no one more deserving of love and happiness than Kristen.

After the wedding I headed up to Cheyenne for my first every Cheyenne Frontier Days.  It was so fun to spend the day with my college roommates relaxing at John & Angie's gorgeous house just outside of Cheyenne.  The concert was also great and rekindled the country girl in me.  Before I headed back home for a little more time with Grandma, I met up with my dear friend Chrissie for a cup of coffee.  I love reconnecting face to face with good friends, I always seem to leave feeling refreshed.

I will leave you with a few of the many pictures from the wedding weekend!

Rachel & her precious baby Em, Court, Kristen & I on the Kristen's last day as a DenBoer

The gorgeous historic church that they got married in.

The bride and I...don't worry I didn't wear this to the wedding!

Some more great friends and I.  Loved reconnecting with Amber and Erin

The Bride and Groom- Can't you tell how in love they are?!

Me Dancing it up--there is a much more embarrassing one that I spare you

Chrissie and I enjoying the nice Laramie Summer Day!

Bit by Bit

The past few weekends have been dedicated to making the yard look nice. All of our sweat is starting to pay off. Our progress is not lightening fast, but it's coming along. The front of the house is the first finished project. It now has curb appeal! Next spring we'll do some planting to fill it in, but that'll be cake.
Here are some pictures of the front.


Before:

Here are some of the after photos

We did some work in the back yard, but I will post pictures of a more finished look.  Stinson has turned into quite the fan of doing yard work, this weekend was too hot for me to get into it.  Oh well, there's always next time!

Jenna is Married & Other Dean Family Happenings

Hi- it's been a while, in fact it's been so long that it would take forever to fill you in on everything, so let's just talk about what is happening right now!

First piece of exciting news is Stinson has a new job.  He is now a pharmaceutical sales rep for Forest. He officially started talking with doctors this week, and today is his first day out on his own.  He had a about 5 weeks of training, 2 at home and 3 in New York, and he is loving every minute of his new job.  It has been such a blessing.  It is wonderful to see him walk through the door with a huge smile on his face and hear all about his day.  Plus, he looks so handsome all dressed up in his suits!

This last Sunday my baby sister Jenna got married.  The wedding was so beautiful and so Jenna.  She has loved everything orange since she was a little girl and she fell in love with a pair of orange sunglasses.  It was no surprise to any of us when she chose orange as one of her wedding colors. She paired it perfectly with bright pink, and it was a wedding as bright as Jenna's bubbly personality.

The whole day was a beautiful tribute to Jenna and Brady's relationship, as well as to the love that God has given to us.  Everything was so Christ centered, and I know that He was glorified through their day. Their ceremony was perfect, as was there reception.  It was so fun to be with all of the people who know and love Jenna and Brady, as well as to hear their funny stories.

Jenna and Brady chose to get married on my parent's anniversary.  So while Jenna & Brady were celebrating the beginning of their marriage, my parents were celebrating their 29th wedding anniversary. I feel so blessed to have such wonderful parents.  Their marriage has been the best example for all of us kids of what a strong, Christ-centered marriage looks like.  It is so fun to see my parents still so in love and enjoying each other's company.

Enough with all the talking....let's get to some pictures.  Some of these were stolen from facebook because after the first part of the morning I was so busy enjoying the day with my sister that I didn't take too many pictures. I will share some from the rehearsal dinner too!

Here is the whole  Foster family all together at the rehearsal dinner- taken from the perspective of a 6 year old, so excuse the awkward angle

Here is Stinson and I with Grandma & Grandpa Foster

Dressed and ready to see her groom--one gorgeous bride!

Here is the bride and groom after their first look, off to take some pictures

Their rings on Jenna's gorgeous bouquet! 

The adorable flower girl, Mari, who stunned the wedding goers with her perfect step-together down the isle!

Getting some chocolate sponged out of her dress, no big deal!

Beautiful and delicious wedding cake

Close up of the dress--pre-wedding picture trying out the whole look

Trying to decide if they'll be nice, or smash the cake into each other's face

Smashing won...cleaning up

Ryan and I

My sweet sister-in-law and fellow bride's maid

One of my best friends Courtney and I 

While in Colorado I got to attend Kristen's shower... her wedding will be here in 19 days, I can't wait!

To Paint or Not to Paint

Stinson and I have been trying to decide what colors to pain the house.  We have talked about lots of different options for our house, but I am not quite sure what to do.  Things always seem like a great idea in my head, and then once I act on them they never quite turn out like I hoped.  So, I am going to ask some advice and opinions of those who wish to give them.

My initial thoughts on painting our house were to do the base color of the house a light shade of grey, pain the scallops that are under the eves of the house white, and paint the front trim black because we have a black iron fence on the porch and our screen door  frame is black too. We would top it all off with a red front door.

I think the black trim is a little risky, but I thought it might frame the house nicely.  Another thought for the trim is to do a darker shade of grey so the contrast isn't quite so drastic.  Here is a mock up of what it could end up looking like.  I think it would give you a better feel if the garage door were closed (which is white).  The garage is nearly identical to what the house would be.  We plan to do a test run on half of the garage before we fully commit ourselves!

This is a rough sketch of what it will look like from the Sherman Williams Site