I’ve been trying to keep up this month, but obviously not doing a very good job. September is my favorite month. It’s still warm, but the nights are cool. It’s Zach’s Birthday. Pumpkin spice everything starts to show up. How can you NOT love this month? We’ve been busy, and even as I type this I can’t believe it is the 27th already.
We visited my grandpa recently. Sloan took it upon herself to organize the contents of my grandpa’s fridge – including all the root beer cans which she lined up in various places around the living room. We had lunch and visited for a while until it was time to go home for Sloan’s nap. 
Girlfriend couldn’t hang, though. She fell asleep 5 minutes into the drive home.
I’ve been trying to get more organized around my house. My closet has turned into a BLACK HOLE. I’ve made an effort to clean it out every so often, so I did a little purge – which meant Sloan got to play dress up. At one point she had four of my old wrist watches on…
The morning of the Utah vs BYU game there was a Stake Preparedness Fair. We weren’t planning on attending, but Sloan joined me for a run on the trail and saw the Bouncy Castle from a mile away. I had no choice but to let her bounce her brains out with all the other kids…
That night Zach and I had a date at the BYU game. I managed so sneak in my contraband: a can of Diet Coke and a giant box of RED RAGEOUS Mike & Ikes (I have only found them at Harmon’s…M&I are my favorite candy and I only like the red colored ones…so it was like the heavens were smiling down on me when I spotted them) and I enjoyed the game at Zach’s side. It was a typical rivalry game. A rowdy crowd, hilarious comments, tensions were VERY high. 
I can confidently say it was one of my least favorite games I have ever been to. It was almost unbearable to watch (the Utes played terrible, and dare I say it…didn’t really deserve the win) but we persevered and the Utes barely escaped with a win!
Sunday my cousin blessed her baby boy at their house. Sloan’s reward for not bombarding the circle during the actual blessing was a taste of Tori’s homemade cupcakes.
Sloan’s been really into smoothies lately. Her dad got her hooked on Jamba Juice while I was away in Park City with the Hendo girls. So I decided to amp up our smoothie game with some pre-made pouches. That and the fact that I am terrible with produce. Fresh fruit and veggies die so quickly in my house. So freezing them in baggies made me feel better about them not going to waste!
Sloan can barely wait to get her hands on her smoothie in the morning. 
One Friday night a few weeks ago, I signed Zach and I up for a cooking class. I figured for all the football games I had been to – he owed me this. (Is that a rude thing to say? Maybe.) He wasn’t too thrilled, but later found out the theme of the class was “Japanese Steakhouse” and was suddenly ALL about it. All the way there he told me how he knew the secret to the rice, he knew the technique for the steak. I could barely contain my laughter. He was more excited than I was!
We had a fantastic time. We learned how to make potstickers, shrimp, steak and vegetables, and fried rice. 
Zach was in heaven and even let me go purchase a few of the tools and supplies we needed to make all of it at home. Have you ever cooked with a pair of silicone tongs? Go get some. Game changer!
Sloan’s been a serious daddy’s girl the last week or so. She can barely wait for him to walk through the door come 5:00 pm. It makes me so happy to see her light up when he comes smiling through. She squeezes her little arms (and eyes) so tight when she hugs him.
We got to go out on another date night to celebrate Zach’s birthday. Sushi and a movie – always his choice every time. We saw Sully, and if you haven’t seen it yet – GO! It was fantastic.
With the weather being all over the place, Sloan and I have been experimenting with running trail routes. Usually we go on the same route, which is not very long (over two miles for me is really hard with the jogging stroller). But I pushed hard one morning and found a new route even Sloan is obsessed with. I call it the Tour de Parks. We run as far north on the trail as we can (just over three miles) until we get to a little secluded park just off of the trail. We play until Sloan gets bored and then we run back – stopping at every park on the way. I counted once. If you count the park at the end of my street – Sloan and I pass SIX parks on this route. So usually we stop at three or so on the way back. It’s a win-win: I get some exercise and she gets some serious play time.
With an upcoming Hendo family trip around the corner (where I will be in a bathing suit for 7 days) I have been trying to eat healthier. I’ve got a great arsenal of meals down for meal prep and can make 16+ meals in about an hour!
I am obsessed with this ground turkey + jasmine rice + marinara recipe (which sounds awful, but is actually my favorite) that I could eat every day if I had the choice! We’ll see if I am even close to beach ready in a few weeks.
I did have a major cheat meal, however, when Sloan and I stopped to get some fresh local peaches a few weeks ago. For Sunday dinner we made forbidden rice, tri tip, roasted rainbow carrots, and crock pot peach cobbler. It was off the hook, very easy, and even Sloan loved it! Well, mostly the peach cobbler topped with ice cream, but still. It was Halo Top ice cream, though. So it was healthIER?
With winter approaching fast, I am trying to get some creative ideas to help Sloan stay entertained once we have to be cooped up inside. She is so used to going to the park every day, she might go stir crazy when it gets too cold. So I’ve been playing around with some artistic activities and painting has been a hit for her!
At least we will have ONE thing to do once the snow is here. I have to carry her kicking and whining away from the watercolors when it’s time to be done.
This last weekend Zach and I had our regular date night and enjoyed fish tacos at Lone Star and did some shopping for snowboarding gear.
We got geared up for the season and Zach’s already itching to take Sloan up as soon as the slopes are open. He’s going to put his birthday present to good use this year!
Sloan is obsessed with church. Every time we pass a church on a drive around our neighborhood she will point and shout “CHU CH” at the top of her lungs. She is so wild in sacrament meeting that we cringe every time we have to take her to nursery. We usually last anywhere from 7 minutes to 25 minutes these days in sacrament before we are roaming the halls or coloring in a room near by to keep her contained.
But then while in nursery, I get photos like this from the singing time leader…
My child NEVER sits still, let alone on a chair by herself. She must really love nursery if she’s willing to behave that well. I really don’t get it. She is crazy town for Zach and I…but an angel as soon as she walks through the door of the nursery room.
It’ been fun to watch Sloan get so excited about our house being decorated for Halloween (oh yes – I put decorations up a few weeks go). She is obsessed with pumpkins and points to each and every one she spots. I bought her this teeny tiny guy at the grocery store late one night and surprised her the next morning with it. It made her whole day!
She is going to LOVE all the activities coming up for the actual holiday. Her little mind is going to explode when she sees all the pumpkins at the pumpkin patch!
Of all the activities – Sloan loved the tractor the best. The sweetest employee at the ranch even gave her a private ride on the big red tractor. It was the highlight of our visit.
I was finding corn kernels all over the car and our house for DAYS afterwards. 
Sloan also got her first hair cut. Some would argue it was unnecessary…but it needed to be trimmed up and evened out. She did so great. She literally barely moved a muscle. I can’t decide if she was nervous or if she was holding me to my promise of an ice cream cone if she behaved. Either way, I was so proud of her. 
Saturday came and we had zero plans during the day other than watching conference. So that’s what we did. While I was prepping Sloan some snacks for our long haul – I turned around and noticed she had grabbed a blanket and was already curled up on the couch watching. Let it be known that she lasted ALL FOUR SESSIONS of conference. If she wasn’t watching, she was playing quietly nearby.
We have a serious influx of crayons at our house. Sloan goes through a box of crayons faster than a box of goldfish crackers. They are either broken or unwrapped and THEN broken or lost within days of buying a new box. So instead of feeding this bad crayon habit we have – I decided to melt down all the broken pieces in the microwave and make some gem crayons. Sloan loves them (especially the fact that they change colors often) and they are even easier for her to hold because of the size.
I also tried a new taco recipe [mostly because I was getting so amped to go to Mexico] and love how they turned out. Mahi mahi grilled tacos with cabbage and mango and avocado salsa. 
