Christmas Season

Happy Holidays! While some of you may just be setting up your Christmas trees and decorating your houses with lights, Lindsey made sure to have our tree and lights up before Halloween. We are so excited for the Christmas season and can't wait to hang with our families for the holiday festivities. We get two months of Christmas this year because the Andersen Christmas will be postponed until the end of January so Elder Jed can join us (can't believe it's been two years!). I posted a few pics to give an update on our holiday season thus far. Happy Holidays everyone!

We enjoyed an enchanted evening of lights at Temple Square.

Although he may look like a tough little Shih-Tzu, Gino can become a bit cowardly around other dogs. But after a few minutes of sniffing, Fenway and Gino played in the snow until their paws were frozen.

This sight can be seen on any given Sunday at the Andersen home. Cam, Bear, Linds, and Gino warming up to their artificial log of choice, a DURAFLAME!

Anyone who reads our blog may get the assumption that Linds and I are overly obsessed with our little boy Gino. Well, you may be right. One of Gino's favorite winter activities is to run from one end of the yard to the other while dragging his face through the snow. We can't keep him away from the snow. He will literally try to stay outside until he can't stop shaking from the cold. But don't think he stops there; after warming up for a few minutes by the fire, Gino is back at the door ready to go out again.

Meesch, Linds, Kara, and Kerry at Jenna's wedding dinner.

Neck, Nog, and Snog at the BARBER-SMALL residence. Lindsey has never been happier to play a little holiday Bingo. We enjoyed wonderful food, nastalgic turlte necks, and about 3 and a half hours of the most extreme game of signs.

FIRST 10K!

Lindsey ran her first 10K last weekend with her sister Camie and girlfriend Jess! The three of them showed up to the race a little late and ended up sprinting a mile from the parking lot just to make it to the starting line in time, ha ha. After finishing the 6.2 + 1 miles of the race, the girls decided they are ready for their next big challenge, a half marathon. Way to go LINNY!!

Dana Point

We went to the beach last week and it was so fun.

Here is our trip in pictures...

Angelina really knows what will get the cameras flashin

The whole gang in our couple matching hoodies ha

Nick and I being silly

Love our family

Got a little long boarding in...It is in fact what

brought us together in the beginning

Went to Ruby's

For this girl's birthday!

Just in love (It looks like Nick's hair is crazy spiky but it really is

just a palm tree, don't worry)

Put on LOTS of lip gloss

Met Mickey Mouse

Ate anything our little hearts desired

The beach was FREEZING!

Love this couple

Another Feast! (Didn't capture the grilled corn...delicious)

Last but not least! It was Nicholas Jay's birthday!

He got a sick skim board from his family and got

his groove back!

I miss you Nick. Please send me more pics okay!

summer

i am in love with warm weather, Popsicles, beaches, sun-kissed noses,

and everything else that goes along with summer.

i feel weird with a grown up schedule and making grown up

decisions. we were talking the other day, and occurred to me

that if we wanted to, we could just move anywhere or take a

vacation anywhere and there would be no one to stop us. (we

do have jobs, but still). it made me feel so free and grown up.

weird. anyway, off the subject, right now Gino is digging in his toy

bowl and pulling out every bone he owns and scattering them

all over the floor. he is so random ha ha. i love his little brain.

this post is for my Nicholas who is in New York right now and wanted me

to blog while he was gone so he could have something

to read. Hi babes! i miss you already!

here are some photos of our baby and our recent beach trip

Post Grads!!!

We are DONE! (at least for a little bit!) Nick with a

degree in Business Finance from BYU and me a

degree in Culinary Arts from UVU.

It is a little bittersweet. I will really miss seeing all of those

faces I see everyday! I am so grateful for the

relationships I have made in the past 2 years. All the

chefs and my class family! I am so lucky to have learned

from the very best!

BUT... on to the next phase of our lives. I feel that we

are so grown-up. We are starting our careers! Woo!

Now if we can just sell our apartment in Provo, we

can spread our wings a little wider...Grrr

another weekend with the babies

my cutest little munchkins came up a couple weekends ago and we had the best time. my brother-in-law Heinz is kind of a big deal in the ballroom dancing world and he came up to perform in the byu ballroom dance concert. they had 50 years worth of alumni dancing and let me tell you, they still got it! Heinz was front and center with his sister and partner Keisha. they were so spicy and sassy. we loved every minute of it.

we also loved playing with the babes. they get cuter and cuter each time i see them. we feed them lots of candy and let them be crazy with us so i'm sure their parents love when we take them :] what are aunts and uncles for right?

tegan and sara

oh my gosh! i am never going to get over what an amazing night April 6, 2010 was! it was seriously an out of body experience. so nick and i stood in line for about an hour before they let us in, but the company was pretty entertaining if you know what i mean. so we got into the venue and saw all of the merchandise! then camie came and met us and we were serenaded by holly miranda (mentioned below). after holly, was this crazy crazy band i can't even remember what they were called but they were really sweaty and dancy ha. THEN... Teg and Sar. They are better in person i think. they were so witty and charming. they didn't play my favorite song but i didn't really care. tegan was the talkative one and sara was quiet but awesome. we were sandwiched by a bazillion lesbians and nick wanted to beat one up ha. i just know my love for tegan and sara has grown and so has nick's. even though he still doesn't like to listen to them all the time, he appreciates their talent. Muah nick. i love you and that was the best birthday present anyone has EVER given me! (and he bought me a sweater that says tegan and sara on it! Woo!)

john jay scano

there will always be a special spot in my heart for

nick's dad. even though i have never met him, i am

so grateful for him for giving me nick. it was his

birthday on april 4th and we wanted to pay a little

tribute to him.

i can't say too much about him, but i know by the

stories i have heard and the person that nick has

turned out to be, that he is an incredible man. his

family is so amazing. they are the perfect example

of a traditional italian family and the most important

thing to them is family.

i love him and cannot wait to meet him some day

Holly Miranda

My new favorite Musician!!! Holly Miranda! She hasn't left my

car cd player for the past week and it has been a beauty driving

to her. She is so talented and inspiring. I know I am not a

singer and never wanted to be a singer but Holly made me want

to be a singer haha.

She opened for Tegan and Sara a couple weeks ago and speaking

of Tegan and Sara... They get their own post.

But seriously those of you who have my similar music taste...

You can thank me later.

Asian Craze

nick is not a big fan of Asian food to say the least. he has to

prepare himself if we ever decide to go to Chinese or sushi etc...

but lately

that is all we have been eating! i know weird! good for me

though because he rarely lets me indulge my love.

first. The Thai House in Lehi.

loved it!!!

the restaurant is set in someone's old house.

it has a beautiful big fireplace, but the lighting is

horrible. i think there was one guy running the

whole show...hosting, serving, cooking, busing...

funny

the food was delicious! I recommend the

thai fresh spring rolls (appetizer)

steam buns (a little weird.)

musaman curry(entree)

panang curry

pad thai noodles

green curry(really spicy)

thai fried rice

mango sticky rice (dessert)

not as good as Benja's

i recommend this restaurant to thai lovers! i am

becoming a LOVER!

next. Thaifoon Taste of Asia at the Gateway

it is a little more pricey than Thai House, but

the ambiance is a lot better. (Sexy)

lettuce rolls (appetizer)

tuna roll-delicious...i love tempura

evil jungle princess (entree)

the only curry they had but awesome

pad thai noodles

thai house has better

i forgot the last thing we got but it had green beans.

it was amazing!

mango & strawberry rice (dessert)

last. PF Changs

i know everyone has eaten here and knows what is

good and what is not. but we ate here two weeks in

a row so why not.

i love their lettuce rolls and am obsessed with

the crab won tons.

we have been loving the crispy honey chicken

but be careful when eating... i got a few tendons blah!

the sesame chicken is super tasty

kung pao chicken was a little dry and not

much pao!

for dessert the chocolate cake is delicious and also

the banana spring rolls are muah!

to end the asian month with a bang i catered an

engagement party and the bride's favorite food was

thai...

menu consisted of...

thai beef salad

maple soy salmon

bahn mi crustinis

gyoza

chicken satay with peanut sauce

mango sticky rice

can you believe all the asian in one month!

nick is such a good sport. i will have to eat a lot

of italian and mexican from now on to make

it up to him

nights are getting pretty boring without my man

so i work in the mornings and nick works at night. i pretty

much hate this arrangement. i come home from work, say

hi, then bye, and have the whole night to myself. i try to think

of cool stuff to do to keep me busy and productive, but my

house can only be cleaned so much, and i tried running, but

i hate it!!! my toes are always painted now, i am reading a lot!

etc....

i am doing my internship right now which combines work

and school and i was used to having my days chuck full.

we are moving in a month so getting another job would be

pointless. any suggestions on what you stay at home momma's

do? i think i am a workaholic, or i have A.D.D.

i hope hope hope

they play this one at the concert. my most favorite would be

"not tonight"

but this one gives me a feeling. they are super artistic so who

knows the deeper meaning behind this video.

baby alessia

picture from our wedding

It's our little Alessia's birthday today! We love this

little munchkin so so much!

The Kirchhausen's came up this weekend for Dance

Sport and it was so much fun. We made forts, went to

build-a-bear, watched super sassy ballroom dancing,

and went to Nickel-Cade.

We can't wait for them to come back in a couple weeks

cafe love

We are suckers for ambiance and Nordstrom Cafe Bistro has

sexy ambiance.

As much as I love Nordstrom

I had never eaten there until last week.

It was awesome!

We had just eaten a couple of hours before so we shared

an arugula chicken pizza. The Pomme Frites (french fries)

were SO good dipped in their kalamata tapenade.

Our friends got the Cuban sandwich (my favorite sandwich!)

and the turkey club. Their turkey club has green beans in it!

Crazy! But Cool!

Definitely going to shop at the Fashion Place Nordstrom so

I can visit the Cafe Bistro a little more often.

CAN'T WAIT!!!!

So for my B-day my lover boy surprised me with Tegan & Sara

tickets!!!

I love love him!

It gives me tinglies just thinking of the moment I will see them

live! I am obsessed!

Gino Baby

Gino and Larry (may he rest)! Poor Lar was so tormented by Gino. All my babe wants is a best friend but he couldn't seem to convince Lar.

MY FAMILY

I cannot say enough about how much I love love my family.

They are by far the #1 most important thing in my life

and that is how it will be forever. We went up there again this

weekend so I could teach a cooking class and to celebrate my birthday.

I will post pics from the class soon. It was so much fun!

My mom made my favorite meal and the mango sticky

rice from Benja's. It was to die for. Thanks mom!

So we have this tradition that is getting more and more

embarrassing the older I get. We go around the

room and say what we love about the birthday person.

Everyone said the nicest things about me and so now

I think I want to write one thing about each person in my

family that I love the most! Of course there is a million

reasons why I love each one of them but I will try

and narrow it down.

Dad:

I love how full of energy you are. I love that every

person you develop a relationship with, wishes

you were their dad. So many people tell me how lucky I

am to have you as my dad and I could not agree more.

My dad is friends with all of my friends and it makes us

all a big happy family.

Mom:

I don't even know where to start. I am so blessed to have

my mother in my life. I call her everyday and she is really

my best friend. She knows how to handle any situation

and helps me through some traumatic ones.

(I am a pretty dramatic girl). She gives me a sense of comfort

that no else can give me. I love you mom.

Camie:

My best girlfriend! I don't think I go a day without

talking to her. Seriously I am not much of a phone talker but

I can't go a day without venting to her and hearing what

is going on in her life. We laugh and cry together.

When she is sad, I am sad. When her heart is broken,

my heart is broken. She drives to my house about

twice a week even if we have nothing to do.

As long as we are together, we feel happy.

Jeddy (Elder Sexy Prince):

Jed used to pin me down and wouldn't let

me up until I called him a "Sexy Prince" ha ha ha.

He is on his mission in Alabama right now. I love

him so much. He is the best example of who I want to be.

He is so Christlike. He sees the good in everyone.

I think everyone thinks Jed is their best friend because of

how he makes you feel when you are with him. He can

make me laugh like no one else can. All the sisters

just adore him. He has been a perfect brother.

Erin (The Baby):

Oh my favorite rasta hippie chick! I don't know where

she got her chillness because the rest of us are pretty intense.

I love Er bear because she is such a sweet person inside

and out. She has the best heart. She has the most gorgeous

long blonde hair. She drives the boys crazy! She laughs

at everything I say and makes me feel really funny.

She has the most adorable laugh. She is the perfect "baby"

for our family.

Gino:

I love Gino because he is my baby. He loves me

unconditionally. He makes me smile by just looking at him.

I love him because he can't bark, cry or jump. (He is special)

Nicholas Jay:

I saved the best for last. My baby Nicky!

I really believe that Heavenly Father has a plan for

us and makes sure we follow our plan. I was going

to go to Utah State after my first year at Dixie

to attend their culinary program. That year they

had decided to discontinue their program

so I stayed at Dixie another year. After I graduated,

I decided to stay in St. George for the summer for some reason.

I met Nick in May. CRAZY! I am so grateful I

followed my plan and was there to meet the love of my life!

I love our life together and who we are together.

I love our goals and how he makes me feel. He is so handsome.

I am seriously the luckiest girl ever! I could go

on forever but I will save it for another day.

I am in love with Nicholas Jay Scano!

I Love My Family!

cakes.

I have been involuntarily thrown into the cake business.

Not that it is my business or anything

It was not a goal of mine to start making wedding cakes,

but when I started school at Dixie, I promised my

roommate that I would make her wedding cake.

So about 3 years later, I got a call from that roommate

ready to collect on her cake. I was super nervous because

I hadn't been through the advanced pastries class yet.

But nevertheless, I was going to make it. It kept me up

at night, and I would have nightmares of what crazy things

could go wrong.

I did it and it was really not as bad as I thought it would be.

Once you've done one cake, people think you are an expert.

I was volunteered to do a few more cakes but I am grateful

for this because it has given me great experience.

I will have a few more to add to my collection in the

next few months. Wish me luck!

Micah & Rachel Christensen

(Most recent)

Matt & Katie Anderson

(Bro & Sis-in-laws)

Nick's Cousins

(made with Angie)

Alisa & Daxton Lasm

(My very first cake made with help from Jesse)

Hopefully I will get better with every cake I make.

It has been a fun little hobby.