Life Lately

Happy Friday!

I don't know about you but this weekend will be another great one! One big reason is because we have General Conference for our church! If you are like huh, what church? Go here.

Here is a little bit of what has been going down over here at the Sloan residence!

I received a lovely package from Gentri! I won her giveaway here for Mammoth Ivory Earrings awhile ago and actually have had the earrings for a few weeks but FINALLY Instagram'ed them up if you know what I mean! I love them! Wholly Mammoths are pretty much the same thing as elephants and that is my favorite animal so match made in heaven!

First take a look at the cute packaging! Brown packaging, floral packaging, amazing earrings inside!
And there I am in an awkward self shot. How do you take good pictures of yourself with iPhones? I still don't know, obviously!
And the stationary, darling! Compliments of isavirtue here.

Beware...not for the faint of heart!

I was minding my own business after work walking down the hallway and bam, there is a little mouse hiding in the carpet (below left)! I take about 100 photos, each one a little closer...and then somehow magically scare him/her into the bathroom nearby! I didn't know how to kill it, well I didn't want to think about doing it, so I just trapped it. I told my brother Hunter. He tore off some sticky label for some Lego set he had just bought and slid it under the door sticky side up. Surprisingly you can kill a mouse with Lego packaging! It died...and there was a little bit of blood. Sorry...but mice are not okay in the house!  It was so sad and it was SO cute!

{Next day I found another dead mouse by a poison trap we set...lying just like the one to the right below :( I definitely screamed, a little.}

And here we have some shots from a cold front a week ago...it was rainy so I put Katinka into her ugly/cute teddy bear sweater and took her out...isn't Colorado gorgeous?
 
And here are some random pictures. Awful collage I know!

Top- L to R: CU vs. CSU game in Denver, Colorado (here), solar paneled dancing sumo wrestler in my office! He will not stop dancing ha!

Bottom- L to R: Just a P90X shot before doing Core Synergistics!, fruit salad I made last night which was amazing! Comprised of: strawberries, raspberries, grapes, bananas, yogurt, and coconut!

Anyone have any fun plans for this weekend?

Katinka should be a Baby Gap outfit inspiration...oh wait, she is

 

So to the left is Miss Katinka. To the right is...MISS KATINKA...on a baby onesie from Baby Gap!
in the sale section for...
only
$1.97!
Yep, maybe I'm the only one in the world who would want it but hey, I love little sassy dog outfits especially ones that look like my pup for my unborn children!
Fyi: I was there for a reason...I was picking out baby outfits for my friend Laura's baby shower!
Don't worry I bought it, so don't waste your time driving to the Baby Gap location at Centerra in Loveland, CO to snag this because it is gone!

Moving on...

We have some important matters to get out into the blog world!

+ If you redo furniture or make DIY home decor please email me at sloanbookblog@gmail.com :) I may have a proposition for you!

+ We are looking for sponsors for our Utah blogger meet up (details here.) So far we have had over 40 bloggers RSVP!

And Yogurtland has hopped on as our first sponsor, woot woot!
 
Be sure to visit Yogurtland in Orem, Utah because they have the best frozen yogurt!
And of course they have loads of yummy goodies to put on top to make it the best creation ever!
If you are attending the blogger meet up be sure to enter this giveaway to win some free fro-yo!

We are looking for anyone who is willing to give discount codes, giveaways, anything and everything. Why don't ya email me at sloanbookblog@gmail.com and give me your ideas and we can go from there! And yes we can help advertise whatever it is that you would like as well! Just shoot me an email!

+ Please pray for Victory. Victory is a sweet little boy who fell into a pool and is now in a medically induced coma. You can see more details about this little boy and his sweet family at Missy's Pink Pistachio blog here! Please take a look friends.

+ Vivian from A Dance For 5 is giving away a $40 gift card to Target...I hope I win...details here!

I'm off to workout (P90X), eat din din, & watch Baby Mama with my friends Laura & Heidi!
Happy Thursday!

Me & Hubs, A-Z

Yes this is an old photo from here

Mrs.

Age: 23

Bedsize: King

Chores that you hate: Cleaning ovens, bathrooms, & killing bugs if that counts

Dogs: Katinka Ingabagovinana...na

Essential start to your day: Walking Miss Katinkles & eating breakfast!

Favorite color: Green

Gold or Silver: Both, can't pick :)

Height: 5’7”

Instruments you play(ed): Play(ed) is key...piano, electric guitar, clarinet, tenor saxophone

Job title: Twitter/Collections

Kids: Does a puppy count?

Live: Fort Collins, Colorado

Mother’s Name: NiKol (my middle name!)

Nicknames: Ash, Shley, Hollywood, ET (amazing story behind this one), GTM (Gorm the Morm, Gormley was my maiden name)

Overnight hospital stays: When I was born

Pet peeves: Annoying drivers

Quote from a movie or tv show: 

"Mitchell: Who signed an agreement for a sixteen year health club membership?

Cameron: You have to spend money to save money!" I <3 Modern Family!

Right or Lefty: Right

Siblings: 3 brothers, 1 sister (I'm the oldest)

Time you wake up: Usually 7:30am

Underwear: I wear them

Vegetable you hate: Hmm...not sure?

What makes you run late: Packing lunches, getting ready

X-Rays You’ve Had: Teeth, Wrist, Back, Chest, Pelvis, etc.

Yummy food you make: Waffles w/fruit on it, Cakes, Muffins, Desserts

Zoo Animal: Elephant! Favorite animal!

Mr.

Age: 26

Bedsize: Single

Chores that you hate: Doing the dishes

Dogs: German Shepherd, Alaskan Husky, German Short-Hair

Essential start to your day: ESPN Radio

Favorite color: Royal

Gold or Silver: Gold

Height: 6'2"

Instruments you play: Harmonica & Spoons

Job title: Husband

Kids: Chief & Royal (names)

Live: Fort Collins, Colorado

Mother’s Name: Nature

Nicknames: KSlizzle, KC Masterpiece

Overnight hospital stays: N/A

Pet peeves: Bad windshield wipers

Quote from a movie or tv show: 

"So you're telling me there's a chance! Yeahhh!" -Lloyd Christmas, Dumb & Dumber

Right or Lefty: Right

Siblings: 3 sisters, 1 brother

Time you wake up: 6:30am

Underwear: Not on Fridays

Vegetable you hate: Peas

What makes you run late: Constipation

X-Rays You’ve Had: N/A

Yummy food you make: Caprese Salad, Tiramisu

Zoo Animal: Penguin

Miss Katinka

Age: 2 human years, 14 dog years :'(

Bedsize: XS rectangular dog bed

Chores that you hate: Coming when Ashley says "Come here!"

Dogs: Me

Essential start to your day: Going on a walk with Ashley, sniffing things, chasing squirrels & bunnies

Favorite color: Pink

Gold or Silver: Gold

Height: 1'?

Instruments you play(ed): Vocal chord

Job title: Sleeper/Bone chewer

Kids: I'm spayed so I can't have any :(

Live: Fort Collins, Colorado

Mother’s Name: Ashley is my human mother. My real mom is from Kansas.

Nicknames: Miss Katinka, Tinkles, Tinks, Tinka

Overnight hospital stays: N/A

Pet peeves: Drinking all my water & waiting for someone to fill it up (rarely happens!)

Quote from a movie or tv show:
"I am descended from an ancient line of proud warriors. My ancestors went into battle, alongside Aztec soldiers. Today, we move within the inner circles of the wealthiest and most powerful people on the planet. Who am I? The question is... *What* am I? I'm a Chihuahua!" -Beverly Hills Chihuahua

Right or Lefty: I love to shake my right paw

Siblings: Several

Time you wake up: Whenever I want, I don't have a schedule

Underwear: Commando

Vegetable you hate: I don't eat veggies

What makes you run late: My owner

X-Rays You’ve Had: N/A?

Yummy food you make: Iams dog food, dog treats

Zoo Animal: Birds & Squirrels

Have you done the A-Z questionnaire? 
If so, leave me your link the comments :)

Dancing Videos: Israeli Folk Dance

So I know my posts are really random but hey, it is my style.

If you want to see my dance team at BYU dancing an Israeli Folk Dance watch the video below!

Note: I did not take this video, I was dancing, in fact, none of my family members did, so it zooms in on a random person that you don't know like a couple of times. No biggie. But you know what I look like so maybe you'll see me! I'm usually on the right side and then when they have this one lift, I'm front row, center. Okay, okay, here is an example:

Okay watch!

The team - 1RB - Spring Festival of Nations - March of 2009
I'm right of guy (Ed Austin) in red

So yea!
My husband rocks. And he brought me flowers for this performance. Double rocks.

BYU Folk dance was fun! Ah, the good old days!

Anyone know dances from different countries around the world? That'd be Folk Dance!

Dream Kitchens

Lately I've been thinking a lot about interior design. I spent my Sunday afternoon looking at kitchens and thinking about what my dream kitchen may look like and what it may include. You may see some other posts like this one soon :) A common theme with these kitchen pictures are that they all includes browns, whites, and stainless steel appliances. I would love to have a front kitchen sink in my dream kitchen (pictured above and below.) One debate I've been thinking about is which would I prefer? Hardwood floors or tile? Tile is harder on your body and feet but lasts a lot longer than hardwood floors. It is also great for clean up of messes. One downside is that it is cool unless you get floor heating. Hardwood floors are timeless but you have to replace them more often. They are a little better on your feet and body.  Here are some dream kitchen ideas that I am loving right now:

 

 

 All photos found via Pinterest

What are some components you'd like to see in your dream kitchen?

Celestine to Taiwan!

Celestine Yeung & me, freshman year at BYU 2007

One of my really good friends, Celestine Yeung, just went into the Provo Missionary Training Center (MTC) as she was called to serve a 1.5 year mission for our church (more info here). She is headed to the Taiwan Taichang mission! I am so proud of her! She is one of my really good friends from BYU. I met her in the dorms, freshman year (2006-2007), and we've been good friends since! I asked her her name and I remember her saying "Cel, like cellphone" but her name is really Celestine, goes by Cel for short. She is one of my favorite Asian friends (I love Asia!) as she is from Hong Kong and also lived in California for bit while growing up. We both took Econ with the hardest teacher (Kearl), took dance classes in the dance department (the RB), loved eating Hawaiian haystacks in the Canon Center together, loved watching the BYU Men's Volleyball games together, and just hung out a lot!

Here is my Celly Cel...also I'm reminiscing from my years at BYU...
Here we are in my shared bathroom at David John Hall...
we were in the same ward, first floor, but different ends...if you know the dorms you'll get it ha!
Yeah, honestly don't remember the last time I've used an eyelash curler, not my thing lol.

Outside of David John Hall about to head up to Salt Lake City to go 80's dancing!

I remember we were watching some guys from our ward play basketball in the RB here!

So we all went to Walmart and bought big boys footed onesies!!! And then Celestine and I went out to the movie theatre wearing them...that was awkward haha. We were so embarrassed but ran into the theatres at Provo Town Centre and there were guys like "Oh what party are you going to tonight?"..."Um we are not" haha. Of course I am so tall that it barely was long enough...not comfortable I tell ya ;)
Me, Carly, Shayla, Celestine, Alexandra

Here I am at the movie theatres looking like a ghost! I don't remember what movie we saw!

And Cel!

And here we were in the dorms freshman year, in that one room with the TV! :)

So I am very proud of her!
If you have any questions about Mormons or What We Believe, go here!

Also, I am excited for General Conference this weekend!

What are some ways you prepare for General Conference? 

Sponsor Love: Tara from June The Shop

Hey everyone meet Tara, my newest sponsor! 

Hi everyone! My name is Tara and I run a handmade shop called June. The Shop. I'm also a blogger, wife and mother among so many other things! I live in Minnesota just south of the Twin Cities in what I consider to be a pretty small town for the suburbs. 

I love filling my shop with bright and fun fabrics on items that I've used and love! I find inspiration for the shop in so many places it can be the gathering of a dress, or the pop of color on a wall! The support of my family and friends is always an inspiration to me and I am always looking for inspiration in the things that surround me. My go to place is the ever addicting, Pinterest! 

When I'm not singing off key toddler songs or hanging out with The Hubs, I love to craft. I'm a fan of anything DIY and enjoy creating for others! And when the weather is right (I'm one who pretty much hibernates during the winter months) I also love to sight see around Minnesota! 

Please go visit her shop! She has the cutest makeup bags, bags, and iPad covers! You will not be disappointed! Ready go! :)

June The Shop / The Small Town Mom Blog / Facebook / Twitter

Your Questions Answered

Tiffany Rebecca Photography
Website / Facebook

Alright friends here are my answers from the Q&A 'Curious' post here! Thanks SO much to everyone who asked them and I hope these answer them well! If not, let me know and I'll see what I can do for ya!

I would love to know how Katinka got her name! -Emma Frances

I kind of answered this in a guest post for Gentri Lee here but here is the full version!

Kevin and I got Katinka, our 2 year old long-haired chihuahua. We were trying to think of fun names for her and wasn't sure where to go. We wanted to name her something funky and weird but cool at the same time because you can't name your kids weird names! I started looking into European names and just names from other countries in general. We were looking at Russian names for the fun of it and I said Babushka as a joke and then we were thinking of our favorite movies and of course Zoolander was brought up... and Katinka was born! Do you remember Katinka Ingabagovinana...na from Zoolander? She is the short dark-haired lady? Well we named our dog after her! Lol. At first I was embarrassed to tell people her name. I took her to the vet and they asked her name and I said I wasn't sure yet... but then finally I started just saying it...and she was kind of a sassy little thing so it worked out perfect! Katinka is a perfect name for her haha. I call her Tinka or Tinks for short sometime! Ah, I love her! So that is how we named her Katinka!!!

How do you stay so thin?! Do you keep up a certain diet or are you naturally built on the lean side? -Alexis Laughs

No, I am not on any diet but maybe I should be. I honestly eat horrible! I eat what I want, when I want and I eat when I am not even hungry.  This is something that I would like to change, but it is easier said than done. I wish I knew more about nutrition, health, and exercise but I slept through the GE Introduction to Health and Fitness class at BYU. It was at 8am and I was not waking up for that lol. Growing up I was always tall and on the lean side however ever since I got to BYU and got married I think I gained a little of weight, probably 10-ish lbs.  Freshman year, a lot of girls in the dorms were talking about calories and not eating food past 9pm and I was like huh? What? I don't do that? What is a calorie? Anyways, I've learned more since then haha. But I really do need to eat healthier and eat all the different types of foods in the food pyramid daily.

As far as working out goes I am off and on. I am really good for awhile and then really bad. I love to workout but sometimes it is just hard to make it happen! I do much better when I have a gym membership so we will see about that! I just started doing P90X mixed in with tennis, running, and weights, so that is what I have been attempting these days.  It just all went downhill since I moved to Colorado because I had a gym pass in Utah and Gold's Gym wouldn't transfer it to the closest location here. So shame on Gold's Gym! So that is the latest since I've graduated. I really miss TurboKick (kickboxing) and Zumba!!!

Do you miss watching your husband play baseball? -Chase and Destiny

Absolutely! For those of you who don't know, my husband played collegiate baseball at BYU. He played all 4 years and played 3rd base and pitcher. His last year as a pitcher he dominated! He had the best win-loss record on his team and an insanely great ERA. He was 2nd team All Mountain West Conference. I wasn't working for most of the time he played college baseball so I was able to attend most of his games! I would sit with all of the Baseball wives - there were around 10 of us - and we would go on road trips to watch them and hung out while they were on away games, which was pretty much every week and weekend! Those days were so fun and I miss them and the wives as well! It was just so fun to watch the team, get all into it, learn a lot about baseball, and get stressed out in close games when my husband would come in as a relief pitcher haha. More on BYU Baseball here!

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why? -Nadiine-x

Honestly, I love Fort Collins, Colorado! I grew up in Fort Collins and just moved back there from Provo, Utah where I attended BYU! I would love it 100x more if BYU was here and my friends I met from there were here :) That is the only downside but I guess you have to graduate and move away from college sometime! I love living in a dry climate and dislike humidity. I love living by the mountains! One of my favorite things to do is snowboard and enjoy the mountains in the summer as well! BUT...I think it would be amazing to live in Italy or Germany for a year or so. I took four years of German in high school and visited Germany twice. My grandma, Omi, is 100% German and she makes the best German food. I love the food and it is gorgeous out there - the castles and the Black Forest and everything! I think it would be fun to live in Italy as well since Kevin served his mission there and is fluent in Italian! The food is amazing and it is such a gorgeous romantic country! I think Europe would be fun temporary.

What's the craziest item in your wardrobe? And include a photo! It can be anything- shoes, a crazy shirt or jewellery.  -Laura Elizabeth

I actually have the perfect one piece jump suit in mind, however, it is packed in our garage right now! We are currently living at my parents so once we move, I will unpack, find it, and get a picture for you! :) It is a Bebe jumpsuit that I got at a Bebe outlet store in Hawaii for $15 to wear to a random party! It is kind of a Veronica Corningstone outfit from Anchorman to give you a visual haha!

 What?! No one has asked you about babies yet? I wanna know... how soon will be see little Ashley's?? Haha, I'm only kind of kidding. -Not A Couple's Blog

I'm surprised no one else asked too, ha! So I would say...probably within a year? That's about all I am going to say ha. And in case you are wondering, nope I am not pregnant right now!

I like to know what people are eating and reading. -Feeding Five

So I kind of just wrote a post on what I am reading this month so take a look at it here. 

What I am eating? Hmm...for breakfast I always eat cereal. I am going to try and mix it up soon and see if I can get some good breakfast smoothies with protein going on, oatmeal, and eggs. Any recommendations? I pack a lunch everyday for the hubby and I to have at work. I usually make different types of sandwiches and try to have some sort of fruit. For some reason string cheese is really popular for us right now ha. Dinner so random...we love pasta and rice and I love chicken! I used to never eat red meat while at BYU and I was anemic because of it so I try to eat that more often now and same with leafy greens...so hopefully this is sufficient :)

And we had some dancing requests...to see my clogging skills!

I posted 2 videos here for your viewing pleasure!

And the last request...for hair tutorial/tips! There were some on how to make your hair curly and also wavy! So I will have to work on something to answer this question for you :)

Hopefully this was fun for you to read and let me know if you have any other questions or requests! Thanks!

How to be happy + a game!

Tiffany Rebecca Photography
Website / Facebook

Friends, I am honored to be guest posting on Sara's blog, my life, my fight, my illness, Struggling Happiness. I enjoy her blog because she is always real, open, and honest in her posts. Sara has been diagnosed with depression but her label does not define her. She continues to battle strong on a quest to happiness. I highly recommend you check out her blog and to read my guest post on *How To Be Happy* here!  

Second of all I got tagged in a blog game here from Anna of My Aiken Heart and here from Carlie from Life...Full of Stories! I've never heard of a blog game but basically I say 7 random facts and tag up to 15 other bloggers to keep the game moving! Here are some random facts for ya!

1. I don't drink soda, like barely ever. Like once a month! I stick to water, milk, and anything but soda!
2. I am addicted to reality TV. Examples include: The Bachelor/ette/Pad, So You Think You Can Dance, Modern Family, The Office, Gossip Girl, Secret Millionaire, Shark Tank.
3. I tweet a lot. Like more than texting. I often forget to text back so twitter is sometimes a better way to get ahold of me. Kind of sad haha. (PS. My twitter is @Ashley_Katinka ! Lets be friends!)
4. I am just starting to do P90X, however I don't do it everyday. So I have done P5X, get it?
5. The first thing I do in the morning is eat! I like to be alone and eat and then I am good to go haha.
6. I am really talented at popping gum loud. Like it can be really loud!
7. a) In high school some of the tennis pros at the club where I played called me Hollywood. I was just reminded of this the other day.  I would come in talking on a cell phone and don't ask me why they called me that! Oh and my tennis outfits always had to match.
7. b) Okay this is great. My high school Sports & Entertainment Marketing teacher basically called me Hollywood/said I was like Paris Hilton. He had this long story/connection thing where he said: something then... the eiffel tower... which is in Paris... which is Paris Hilton's first name... which is how you talk like...
Okay totally had to be there. But yeah, I guess you can call me a valley girl.

That was random and probably weird lol.

And the bloggers I am tagging are...

Drinking from Jars
Stephanie & Such
Thimbles + Things
Hudson's Happenings
{Race&Emma}
Alexis Laughs
Amy Day to Day
Love Always
Sweet Serendipity Designs
Mrs. T Naturally
Mr. Taylor & His Lady 
All Things Ashley 
Derek & Becca Smith 
Ocean Dreams
From Here to Eternity

Lastly, be SURREEE to check out the Blog Par-Tay we are throwing! Details here! RSVP and come friends!!! It will be *so* much funnnnn!!!

Utah Blogger Meet Up!

Today Gentri Lee, Kelsey, and I are excited to all announce a blogger meet up in Utah!

Here are the details!

Exciting right?

 We will be having a pot luck dinner so please bring a dish to share! You can also bring a dessert if you'd like! The more the merrier! All I can say is that we are pretty awesome girls, haha, so you should probably want to attend. But we will be having dinner/desserts and just hanging out. You know, having fun!

Where is this shindig at? All I can say is that we are pretty sure it will be either in Provo or Orem :) We will not announce the exact location on any of our blogs but you can find out more when you RSVP to Gentri Lee. Her email address is gentrileeblog@gmail.com !

SO! Who all wants to come? You really should :)

Here is a super sweet button I made for you to put on your blog to help spread the word and to tell your friends that you are attending! Yaaaay! I'm excited!

<br><a border="0" href="http://www.sloanbook.com/2011/09/utah-blogger-meet-up.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1139.photobucket.com/albums/n549/ashleysloan7/BlogInvite-1.jpg"/></a><br>

Kevin's Birthday Weekend

So I was very excited for this weekend because of many reasons listed here.

Saturday - September 17, 2011

We started off the day by heading to the Sports Authority Field at Mile High (old Invesco field) to watch the Colorado Buffaloes (CU) play the Colorado State Rams (CSU). Now if you don't know anything about these teams, they HATE each other. Growing up in Fort Collins - where CSU is located - I was always hearing crap about what friends liked who and the smack talk that would go down before games. CU - which is located in Boulder - is only 45 minutes away from Fort Collins. Many friends from high school went to CSU and CU. So pretty much this is a huge game for my old high school friends.

Now my oldest brother Patrick is attending CU. I never had picked a favorite team growing up - just didn't care - but I decided to root for the CU this time to support the bro. The game was mid-day and man was it sure different from BYU football games! It was kind of shocking haha. When we got there everyone was tailgating and drunk. We were trying to find parking and literally drunk people were in the way in the parking lots and would get so pissed if we tried to drive through. We passed a big party scene with tons of people drinking, dancing, and all wearing minimal clothing. It seems like the cool thing to do for girls is to make t-shirts and dresses out of random t-shirts but of course to barely cover anything! Does that make sense? It was just shocking haha. Beer cans everywhere and we even saw drunk people puking! So I kind of had to watch where I stepped...Moving on! Ha.
{Side note: I have nothing against people who drink! It is just a different environment that I usually try to avoid. Just in case you are wondering! }

We had the best seats! Look how close we were to the field! That is CU there...

The CU cheer leaders were right in front of us and were pretty entertaining.
This was a pretty cool stunt ha! Do you see the mascot on top of the girls?

I think this picture is sweet! It is a sea of gold!
Here is CU celebrating after a touchdown!

It started to get cooler so luckily I brought my (er my mom's) CU Buffs green sweatshirt!
AND...yes I was totally one of those people who pulled out a poncho when it rained haha! I've never brought a poncho to a game before but it was supposed to rain and we had one sitting our dresser from when we went camping this summer. I felt so cool! Only the old people and families had ponchos lol.

My dad & Hunter!

And good so far, CU won!

Not so good, BYU lost miserably to Utah, our rivals. That was very depressing and we are still mourning about it!

Sunday - September 18, 2011

It was Kevin's birthday today and he turned 26 years old! We got him a TON of yummy food! A month ago I asked him what he wanted for his birthday and he didn't know, and on his birthday he still didn't know...ha. SO...I didn't get him anything (well a freaking awesome card) but whenever he decides I will pitch in!

For lunch we had steak and Bearnaise sauce, squash, broccoli, and rice which was very filling. We had made tiramisu and brownies the night before. We were going to make waffles with strawberries, bananas, blackberries, and cool whip for dinner but were so full so we didn't! We made fruit smoothies which were amazing.

Since Kevin didn't have a cake he blew out a candle in tiramisu!

And here is the birthday boy himself!

Yes he is wearing a Kansas City Chiefs shirt...unfortunately they lost horribly...but we won't go there haha. Not a good weekend for sports other than CU...but BYU is probably the most important!

And that is about it!

*If you are from Utah be sure to check out my blog tomorrow for some rad news!*

Football Marathon & Awesome Weekend!

All I can say is that I AM EXCITED...

1) for the CU vs. CSU game as we are going to it today in Denver! My brother Patrick goes to CU and lets just say I know a TON of people who go to CSU because:

          a) I grew up in Fort Collins, Colorado

       b) CSU is in Fort Collins, Colorado

     c) Lots of people from high school ended up there...and CSU is going  down! Have to support my brother's school! And I'm excited because I get to act like a college student again...just wish I had a Colorado anything to wear...

2) and PUMPED, beyond stoked, ecstatic, to watch the BYU vs. Utah Football game tonight! That is my alma mater! GO COUGARS!!! I hate UTAH! It is the Holy Wars! I kind of want to paint my face...

3) that Sunday is Kevin's birthday! We will be making lots of yummy food and having fun! Happy Birthday honey!!!

4) big news droppin the blog on TUESDAY! You cannot miss it if you happen to live in Utah...nope, I'm not pregnant (always have to get that out there)...but come back on Tuesday!

Dancing Videos: Clogging

So the first question I received on my 'Curious?' post (here) was this:

'I would love for you to do a clogging vlog!! Seriously!' -Gentri Lee

At this point I am not going to make a vlog because 1) My computer doesn't have a camera (yes, yes my husbands does!) and 2) I don't have any cool choreography or steps to show but in reality I'm sure any step would be cool. BUT...I will sometime, but not now :) But don't be disappointed because I got two great videos from my Advanced Clogging class at BYU :) I took that class for my World Dance minor. Here ya go!

Michael Jackson "Black or White" -Choreography by Kaycie Foster & me

This was our final and don't laugh because sometimes we do funny things and I forget to pick up my hat at the end of the routine ;) We were acting famous and touching every one's hands like celebs do haha :) Oh, and I'm starting on the left. {You may recognize this video from a previous post here}

And here is another. I'm on the far right. This dance is kind of a marathon one haha.

Rihanna "Please Don't Stop the Music" -Choreography by instructors Greg & Maria Tucker

I started clogging when I was 8 years old and clogged for a long time until some time in junior high when I quit after I won Nationals. So yep my team and I are National Champions! :) We won in Orlando! Any who, I do miss it and maybe I'll get into it again, sometime. It is very fun and such a good workout, pure cardio! Maybe?!

What do you think about Clogging? Ever heard of it before?

Feature at The Small Town Mom & Thursday Update

So I lied to you all! I didn't post my clogging videos like I said I would here! Those will be up tomorrow on the blog so sorry about that! I know the anticipation is intense, haha! (Sarcastic) I had to reschedule it because I just found out the Express post (this one) needed to be up today! 

AND...

I wanted to tell you all that I am featured over at The Small Town Mom here! So check it out! You will learn about what inspires me to create and some tips for getting into blogging! On a side note, Tara from The Small Town Mom has a cute Etsy shop (here) and makes darling makeup bags, so you should probably check that out as well. :)

But wait there's more! I have no clue why I decided one day that I was only going to do 5 ad swaps per month but I changed my mind.  I've already received more than 5 requests for the ad swap...so um, if you didn't email me and you kind of wanted to...you can still email me (sloanbookblog@gmail.com) or comment below if you'd like to do an ad swap! Because I will do more than 5 haha.  I just need the ads in any of these sizes: 200x200, 200x150, and 200x100. So um sorry for my indecisiveness lol. I was kind of not thinking that day when I wrote that.

Nothing Like a Perfect Pair of Jeans

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Express for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

 As you already know I am so excited for fall and winter and the fashion that comes along with it!  One of my favorite things to shop for and buy are jeans. I've always loved jeans and feel that you can never have enough. They are a great staple for your closet! There's just nothing like a perfect fitting pair!

Have any of you been to Express recently and checked out their Express jeans?

They have some great women's jeans right now! I am loving the jean leggings and skinny jeans. Jean leggings and skinny jeans are perfect for tucking into boots. That is a style I seriously wear everyday when the weather is cold. I wish I could wear them year round :) You all know I love Fall and Winter more than the summer. I know, I am crazy ha.

In addition, a big trend right now is colorful skinny jeans! I usually stick to black and dark washed denim but there are some fun brighter colors that are tempting. My sister literally has every color (no joke!) and she can totally pull them off! I am thinking I may need to purchase some! If you are thinking about purchasing a colorful fun pair of skinny jeans I would recommend looking in your closest to see what tops and shirts you have so you get a color of jeans that you can wear often! Aren't these red jeans fun?

 Express jeans is currently having a Express giveaway ! They are giving away 50 free pairs of jeans! You don't want to miss out on entering this! (Click Express Giveaway above :))

I hope I can win a pair! Good luck girls!
 

Which types of jeans do you love and why?