unnatural selection

there's a possibility

Avery and I had a great week in Vegas! Steph and Trevon's wedding was so beautiful and it was so great to see Mallory (for the first time in over a year!!) and my parents and friends. Then we went to St. George, UT for a bit to make Christmas candy with my Grandma Clark and that was awesome, too. Then we went back to Vegas and I got to spend a couple of quiet days with my little brothers and parents. It was just a perfect trip. Of course I didn't take many pictures because I'm an idiot, but here are the best few I've got.

Now that we're home we're just scrambling to finish Christmas preparations and trying to enjoy the endless cold and snow. And this is just the beginning.

for the Robward fans

I saw this preview last night when my mom and I went to see New Moon (viewing #3 for those who are counting) and I cannot wait to see this movie!! It looks deeelicious. Robward fighting and kissing and being all sweet and gross and weird. I love it all.

choo

On Tuesday I purchased this Gingerbread Kit and we had lots of fun making a Christmas train. Avery loves trains. And frosting. And candy. Turns out she's not that crazy about decorating gingerbread, though. Especially if it means that she's not supposed to eat said frosting and candy. She's definitely her mama's girl.


I love this picture. Klayton was blinking on purpose to make me grumble at him. Avery was blinking on accident. Do they have IDENTICAL FACES or what?? haha


I bought Avery some pirate gear at the Dollar Store and she loves to wear it. She makes me put her eye patch on and get out her Hello Kitty boots. Then she asks me to get Rocky's pirate hat out. I give her things like Mac and Cheese boxes from the pantry and tell her that it's treasure. Yarrr.

haters beware

I was reading something tonight and came across this lovely, frolicking picture. Thought I'd share my good fortune. Everyone HATED this little clip in the new Twilight movie and I can't figure out why. I mean, besides its obvious cheesiness. But, come on. It was so fun and cute!! And Rob rocks that vest! You can't deny it.

giving thanks

I am so thankful this year for so many things. I am thankful for my beautiful family, for good friends and neighbors, for all of the things that we have that I take for granted too often, and especially for awful, puke-your-guts-out morning sickness.

Teeny Tiny Tietjen baby #2 due to arrive this June.

Happy Thanksgiving!! xoxo

so you're the vampire girl

Here are some shots from my awesome New Moon-themed 25th birthday party!! I went to the premiere with the Chandlers so they came over beforehand to watch Twilight, revel in my awesome decorations, and just generally be super duper excited/nerdy (whatever you want to call it) with me. I love them all so much! When K got off of work he joined us at the New Moon midnight premiere. It was amazing!! So fun. Can't wait to see it again (well, I went twice on Friday, so... again again.). Friday was also my 5 year wedding anniversary- love you K. Such a good week. Be sure to notice all of the frames in my house were filled with NM quotes that I printed off from this site. Also our red lips and nails- all in honor of Edward, who was quite thirsty in this first pic. That's probably what makes him take his shirt off in the end of NM. That boy can't hold his strawberry soda. Also, my red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and blood splatters were a big hit. And I got to snuggle up under my new Twilight blankie that Mandy, my sister-in-law, gave me while I played Twilight Scene-It (Thanks Ashley!!) with the Chandlers. ...if you don't want to be my friend any more after reading this, I'll understand.

preview

Festival of Trees.
Haircut. (all of it. gone. soon.)
Tietjen Family 25th Birthday Party.
Nap.
Second, TWILIGHT THEMED 25th Birthday Party.
New Moon Tietjler Midnight Premiere.
5 year wedding anniversary.
New Moon again with Mandy.
Nap.
4th Ward Super Saturday.
New Moon again. And again. And again.

These are the things penciled into my planner for this week so far.
Oh yeah. It's gonna be a good week.

thirsty

Just wanted to share a peek at my 25th birthday party invitations. Ooooh yeah.

trick or treat

We went to Boise for Halloween with Klayton's family. Stayed with K's brother, Spencer, and had lots of fun. I let K come up with our Halloween costumes this year and... well... see for yourself. He's a mad scientist. I'm his victim. Pretty yucky but you have to love his imagination and ability to make all of that spending $8 at DI. He also did our pumpkins and he carved me an Edward pumpkin!! Yay!! It's gorgeous. What an awesome hubby I have. Avery had so much fun and still asks about trick or treating and wants to watch "Gawfield Haween!!" I just can't believe that we've officially rounded the corner and now Thanksgiving and Christmas are staring me right in the face! It's craziness. I can't wait.

pajama party

get it right

Dear Brand New Canon Camera,

I've only known you a few hours, but I think I love you. Compared to my ex- an awful deck-of-cards thin silver mockery of a camera- you are like going from a cold shower to a bubble bath with candles and smelly soap with Coldplay playing quietly in the background. Mmmm bubble bath. Anyway, you're amazing. Will you go steady with me?

Love,

Mandy

What do you think of my first subjects? Avery is sleeping or I would have made her my guinea pig. ...Okay, so I'm SO not a pro. Oh well.

wolf parade

Okay, I'm not (completely) insane, but this video is awesome. I can't wait for this movie!!
PS Check Edward's super cute jealous face when Jake is giving Bella her birthday present! Eeee

ma coeur s'ouvre a toi

Happy 27th Birthday Klayton! Je t'aime plus que ma propre vie.

bibbity bobbity boo

traveled half the world to say

Despite an icky cold and feeling a wee bit ridiculous (Who am I kidding? We're nerds and we're proud.), I went down to Syracuse, Utah with Ashley and Nathan early Saturday morning and we traversed the Edward and Jacob face corn maze. It was pretty amazing. Once we started using the map it was incredible how they really did carve every single detail of their faces into two gigantic corn fields! It's nice to know that someone out there loves Twilight in all of its silly glory as much as we do. Either that or they know that they can get people like us to travel three hours at 7am on a Saturday and pay $8 to come and see Edward in corn. It was so fun and afterward we made ourselves sick eating yummy fries and shakes at Iceberg in Bountiful. The drive to and from UT went by so quickly. It turns out that great friends and a silly road trip makes for a great Saturday.

undisclosed desires

In a few days I'm driving down to Syracuse, Utah with her (and a few other Tietjlers) to do thisbecause we're just that nerdy/awesome/willing to pay for anything Twilight-related. Oooh yeah.

PS Like my basement laundry room (see first pic)? I recently updated it to include a poster I got from this book. I love him. Not like Darcy and Edward... but close. Of course HE

eclipses them all. Like his new glasses?? Me too.

wicked and divine

My mom flew in from Vegas for the weekend and we had such a great time!! Starting when she unpacked her luggage (I think she brought a pair of socks and a toothbrush for herself- the rest of her bag was filled to the brim with presents for Avery!! It must be nice to be the only grandchild.) on Thursday night. It was so good having her around.

I made Cranberry Orange Scones on Friday morning, then we went mad shopping (my dad was at home in Vegas with a bag of frozen chicken fingers and no Wingers sauce!! He was all out! Can you imagine?? Don't worry- mom brought him home a suitcase full.) until Klayton got off of work at 3:30. All day Friday the weather would be sunny but cold then we'd come out of a store and it'd be raining cats and dogs then we'd come out of the mall to snow... Idaho was not showing off very well for my poor mom who kept repeating over and over "WHYYY do you live here!?!?!" I didn't have an answer for her on such a junky day, either. Anyway, Friday night we drove down to Lava Hot Springs just south of Pocatello for a little swimming/soaking. It was awesome! Avery got to swim and show off her mad skills to Grandma and we all had a great time. Afterward we found a cozy little diner way too late for dinner but we ate it anyway and it was perfect.

Saturday Klayton ditched work and we hit the Harvest Fest with Mandy and Troy and the kiddos! We were there for hours! It was so fun (sorry- no pics). Then after Avery's nap we drove around to a couple of pumpkin patch/barn/places in town and went crazy with Fall cuteness overload. Avery had a blast picking out pumpkins and running around with Rocky. We had dinner at the Snake Bite, one of my favorite local restaurants, and came home to watch some cheesy LDS movies (think CTR version of the pink Pride and Prejudice among others).

Sunday I taught the Gospel Doctrine lesson and we came home from church to an amazing flank steak (my mom is a super amazing cook) and some sweet squash for dinner (and some BBC Sense and Sensibility for entertainment) before we ran to the airport and said goodbye. I had the most amazing weekend with my mama (Avery balled when she left and has asked for Grandma just shy of a bazillion times since last night) and I love her so very much. Thanks for a great time, mom!!

heart warming

SOUP! I have been obsessed with it since the weather turned bleak a couple of weeks ago!! I make pots and pots of it and still can't get enough. I am seeking professional help (Klayton gave me an ultimatum- Find other recipes [you know, for those lame, SOLID foods] or he was going to take away my ladle! *GASP* I know- harsh.) Anyway, I have tried the good, bad and ugly, so I thought I'd share my favorite recipes so far.

Ina Garten's Cheddar Corn Chowder. Oh. My. Goodness. Rich and creamy and hearty and delicious- this soup hits the spot on wintery days for sure. I rendered a couple of pounds of bacon when I made this and keep it in a tupperware in the fridge- Klayton loves to sprinkle his with lots of crispy bacon pieces. Who wouldn't?

Ina's Lentil Sausage Soup. If you think that this doesn't sound like your family's cup of tea (Or soup, rather.), then, I'm sorry, but you don't know yourselves very well. This is the best soup I've ever made/had by far!! Yummy, fall apart in your mouth lentils with carrots, celery and scrumptious sausage (I guess we're red-meat lovers. No offense, Chicken.). SO good I'm going to make it again really soon (This one didn't count in the whole "Stop making soup or else" thing.).

And just in case you've never made your own chicken stock before, DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!!! It's easy to do- just throw a few things into a big pot and let her simmer on down. But the flavor is unparalleled and you don't have to worry about sodium levels and junk from canned stock. I roast whole chickens for Klayton pretty often, and when I'm done carving them up I freezer-bag up the bones and save them for stock! Here's my stock recipe:

2 or 3 (depending on how big your pot is) raw or cooked chicken carcasses, coarse chopped with wings and neck

4 carrots, peeled and coarse chopped

2-3 ribs celery, coarse chopped

2 med. yellow onions, quartered

1 large bay leaf

3-5 sprigs thyme

Cold water to cover chicken bones by 2 inches

Put it all together in an uncovered pot, bring to boil, reduce to low and simmer 1 and a half to 2 hours. Cool slightly, strain stock and chill. Remove chilled fat from top of stock. Refrigerate, freeze or use at will.

A few more soup tips: If you are making soup for a crowd/party, go ahead and make it the day before. The longer most soups sit, the better they taste! Also... ummm... be sure to blow on your soup if it's hot, therefore minimizing tongue burns. Err... yeah.

Okay, so I'm not an expert, I'm just hoping that by sharing this someone will catch soup-making fever and tell me that I'm not alone in this world. Then I won't be embarrased to admit that I have many more soups to make- including a whole line of squash soups like this one and this one. And you can tell me about your soup conquests. Then we can all join hands and stand up together. And we will be not ashamed.

I went too far, didn't I? Oh well. Happy Soup Season!!

nerd alert

Guess what I'm going as this Halloween?
Yes, that's right. Me- in high school.

I saw this Muse shirt in a store window this weekend and had to have it. I know, I'm an idiot, but I love them so... Yeah. This was the result. Yesterday when I got dressed in the morning I looked in the mirror and laughed. This is pretty much how I dressed (substitute Muse for Dashboard Confessional or Saves the Day or Ben Kweller- I'm so cool and Emo) every day of high school. So... I'm a masochist I guess and thought I'd take a picture to show the world. What a nerd.

about to fall

I have been meaning to make a Will and Trust for my family ever since Avery was born, and I never had the time/money (okay, I really just never thought about it unless I was on a plane with turbulence or something). But on athriftymom.com today (I love this blog!) there was a deal for a free Will and Trust kit from suzeorman.com. I've been on this website for the last hour filling out forms and choosing executors and all of that junk, but feeling a teensy bit more prepared for the unthinkable is a good thing. The deal goes until October 3rd so I thought I'd share! Check it out here.

no chance for fate

Here are some pics from last weekend. I had the best time throwing an outdoor birthday party for Nathan Chandler. He is the coolest and I had to throw him a little shin dig for turning 18. The fact that he survived that long in the Chandler house is a miracle. hahajkdc.:) We watched X-Men Beginnings: Wovlverine and, afterward, Twilight on the big screen (aka my garage) while eating 12 layer cake and popcorn and ice cream. I think that everyone who stayed to watch Twilight with Ashley, Stacy, Nathan and I regretted it later, but we had a great time so I'm not really worried about it.

Then on Sunday night we helped to throw a party for one of Klayton's best friends, Glen. He turned 27 and we had a bash for him in Rexburg. I made the chocolate trifle!! Check it out. We are so lucky to have such good friends and a very busy but nice weekend.

I also threw into the collage a couple of pictures of Avery playing with Rocky and waiting for swim lessons to start. She is such a fish!! She asks me about 8 times per day "We going swimming tonight?" I wish it was every night and so does she. I just love how excitedly she screams and kicks when we pull into the Aquatic Center parking lot. Speaking of... we better be off! Swim lessons start in 10!

they're overdue

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
by Mary Ann Shaffer

My rating: 5 of 5 starsOne of the few books that I didn't hesistate a moment to give it all 5 stars. Truly wonderful from start to finish. Comprised completely of letters, telegraphs and journal entries, this book follows a writer in London just coming out of WWII. Juliet recieves a letter from a man living on the small island of Guernsey, which had been occupied by German soldiers during the war. From an inquiry he poses to her about an author they form an aquaintance and then a friendship as she learns about the book club that formed from dire circumstances and kept its members sane in wartime.
Charming, interesting, and so real I felt like I was reading real letters from real people. I couldn't put this book down. The main character, Juliet, is witty and sweet and cutting, especially when it comes to her own faults, and the people on the island of Guernsey are so lovable and palpable that I want to go there and visit them. This book is filled with places and people that I want to return to again and again.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/788935-mandy">View all my reviews >>

i'm just trying to change the color on your mood ring

Today I am obsessing over...Homemade Chicken Stew with Biscuits. Mmmm Thanks for this recipe, Barefoot Contessa. I'm so excited for Fall! Soup and sweaters and scarves and sssstuff. Sorry- had an S theme going. Muse. Their new album, The Resistance. Their hair. Their voices. Their Britishness. Their morning-breath (okay, haven't experienced this one, just trying to paint a picture here). Pretty much everything about them. Whether I have officially switched sides for New Moon. The way they styled Rob with his blazers and his lame hair coupled with the fact that Rob himself is acting super douchey lately makes me wonder... Okay, the fact that this Taylor kid is super sweet and cute and pretty much half-naked the entire movie MAAAAAAY have something to do with it, too. I'll never stop loving MY Edward (you know, the one that only exists in books/my head who is the perfect, headboard breaking man of every girl's dreams), but movie Edward is not doing so hot in the polls (you know, the poll that consists entirely of my opinion) right now. These two. Aren't they the cutest? Klayton calls Avery his little Joey Ramone when her hair is all in her face like this.Whether or not to murder our new puppy. Okay, sorry- that's a little harsh. But seriously, if he poops on the floor one more time after he was JUST outside I think he's going to go "live on a farm", if you know what I'm saying.

...I mentioned Muse already, didn't I? Shoot. Sorry bout that.

This book. I picked it up at the library last weekend and Avery is crazy for it! She calls it "Wocket in Pocket" because There's a Wocket in my Pocket is the only Dr. Seuss book we own and she loves it, too. She has had me read this to her about 3 times per day every day for the last week, though and I don't mind a bit. It's fun to read and I love how mesmerised she is by it, though I doubt she has picked up on the deeper meaning (if there is one. I love how people give this book as a graduation gift and things- truly about 99% of it is nonsense. Brilliant nonsense, but nonsense none the less.) and I'm quite surprised she's not weirded out by the odd, acid trip quality of the pictures in the book. Hmm. Oh well.

Tomorrow night I'm throwing a birthday party for a friend of mine in our backyard and we are going to project a movie onto the side of our garage. Yes, we tried doing this on the 4th of July and got my father-in-law's projector stolen while we were watching fireworks. No, we will not be letting the projector out of our sight this time. But I'm super excited! I love doing stuff outside on beautiful Summer nights (just because I'm excited for Fall doesn't mean it's here yet. I made that chicken stew in 90 degree heat yesterday) and I hope Nathan is excited for his 18th Birthday bash!

another promise, another scene

I love our small little town! There's always fun stuff going on. Last week was "Babes in the Zoo" week. No, the Hawaiian Tropic swimsuit model bus wasn't in town- if you brought a kid in a stroller to the zoo (they're free) then you got an adult admission free! Yay for free stuff! So I took Avery on Friday morning and we had a great time! She loves animals. At every cage she went through the same thought process. First she would get excited: "PEGUINS!!!!" Then she would think about it for a second and say, "I want to touch it." or "I want to get in." I would laugh (she's so cute!!) and say, "No, we can't get in. We're just here to say hi." or (at the lion enclosure) "No way, Jose. That lion is a nice guy, but he would eat you up if we went in there. Let's just say HI! from here, okay?" Then she would shout "HI LION!!!" or whatever. If an animal was sleeping she'd whisper, "He's sleeping, mommy!" and if something looked odd to her (camels, red panda bear, flamingos, etc.) she'd see them and say, again, after a moment of thought, "FLAMINGO! (repeating after me)... He's nice, mommy." haha.

She's been doing that so often lately- she assigns everything (especially inanimate objects) emotions and types. The other day we were at the park playing on those plastic animals on springs that you can rock back and forth on. You know what I'm talking about? Anyway, she was riding the dolphin (saying, "Giddyup, Dolphin!!"), she climbed off and went right up to its little face, looked at it and said, "She's sad, mommy." Then she gave it a hug and a kiss and said, "AWWW SHE'S HAPPY MOMMY!!" Or she'll see the alligator at the zoo and say, "DRAGON!!He's scary." with a little shudder. I'll say, "Yeah, he looks a little like a dragon, but that's an alligator and he's nice." Then she'll say, "Oh. Alligator. He's nice." haha. It's amazing to watch her mind work. She's so smart and sweet. Lately she's taken to hugging (and even kissing) everyone before we leave somewhere, whether it's her cousins or our neighbors. We were at the Chandlers on Sunday evening for a few minutes and she went in a circle around the living room hugging everyone and saying, "Bye! See ya!"

Then on Saturday evening the Idaho Falls Symphony held a free(!!) concert on the river in Freeman Park. It was a really nice, perfect evening. We brought a picnic dinner of things that Avery and I purchased at the Farmer's Market that morning; Artisan bread, Gruyere cheese, ham, blackberries and fudge (Amish Sour Cream- sounds weird but it was SUPER yummy). Mandy and Troy and their kiddos joined us and we all had a great time laying around on blankets, listening to the music and chatting and eating. Avery is just obsessed with her cousins, especially Milo. Those two become 10 times more mischevious when they are together, and they love to play and giggle. It's so fun to watch. Rocky came with us as well, and he was so excited and hyper and crazy that when we got home around 7:30pm he passed right out for the night!

rainy day photos

It was raining yesterday (yay! I love Fall!) and Avery begged me to put on her boots and raincoat so she could play. I decided (since she looked so darn cute in all of her gear) to make an ANTM moment out of it. Even Rocky joined in!

blergh.

Having such a bad day. I don't even think chocolate chip cookies, a visit from my mommy and a sneak peek at New Moon could make this day better. Sorry to whine, but ugh! It's silly to worry about my own problems when I have been so blessed, but it's almost (note that I said ALMOST) funny to me the way the grass always looks greener in someone else's yard.

I look at all of these mothers who have no problem getting pregnant, no problem with delivery, and have done it over and over again. It's hard to wonder what that would be like and not be jealous. And I go from feeling sorry for myself to ENRAGED when I hear about people who irresponsibly reproduce and the messed up lives they create for their children. Or worse yet, speaking to anyone who believes that people should have the right to choose to abort their babies. That's like saying that I have the right, consequence free, to murder someone! If you think that a little fetus doesn't count as a person then I hope that you never have to suffer a miscarriage (that'll change your mind). Either that or I hope you enjoy your luxury suite in hell (am I being harsh? NO!... Okay, maybe a little.). Anyway, I believe that you are free to choose- but your freedom stops at this decision: To have sex or not? After that, you need to own up. There is birth control and abstinence and a whole host of other ways NOT to get pregnant (playing tennis, riding a bike, keeping your legs together, etc.)- Abortion is wrong. And not only do we have a President in office who has condoned partial-birth abortion (see here- the sixth paragraph down will make you want to vomit), but this Health-Care bill would FUND abortions (see here)!! It's INSANITY! I swear I'm constantly on the edge of my seat just waiting for the fire and brimstone to rain down.

Anyway, all of that political stuff doesn't have much to do with my glum day. Just feels good to rant every once in a while. But I should be struck by lightning just for whining. I have Avery. She is so perfect and wonderful and I love her so much, and I am so lucky 1) to have her- so many good people who would be great parents aren't able to have kids and 2) that she is alive and healthy and just so so so perfect- with the way she started out in life things could have wound up so different for her. So... I am going to think of how lucky I am to have her, my wonderful hubby, and about what a busy week we have lined up (swim lessons start this week! Plus I have signed up for a class at a local college and I'm super excited!) and forget about my despair that I don't always get everything I want.

you knew it was coming

But did you expect it to be THIS good!? Me neither. Ah-ma-zing. I think I switched to Team Jacob and back to Edward again about 8 times during this preview. Klayton asks me, "Wait, is there still a Team Jacob? He lost."
Just watch this preview and you tell me. I say Team Jacob is alive and well! But maybe that's just because I'm sick of seeing Edward in that sport coat and seeing real life Robward being such a grungy tool with his plaid shirts and chain smoking. Still love him, though! Love it all!

I will never forget

I will never forget 8 years ago today, when our country was attacked, when our nation was shaken and we all stood up together. Since then sometimes I think that everything has gone to hell, and that we've all forgotten the way we came together on this day. I know that is cheesy or cliched or whatever. I don't care. I really believe that we are still a great nation, and I love our country so much. Whatever our differences, I like to think that we still have this strength in us, the strength and unity that we showed on September 11, 2001. God bless America. -