It's a jolly holiday with Erika & Jack!

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree!

Just a little update because we've been working SOOO MUCH!

1. We put up our Christmas tree and decorations right after Thanksgiving, but I'm finally putting up a picture. I think I'm going to get my first White Christmas because everything is currently covered in snow :] and check out the HUGE icicle at the bottom...it's one of many!



2. Jack got ordained an Elder today after church and we finished our temple prep class. It has been a very good day for us and I'm counting the months till we can get sealed.



3. We're going to Utah on Friday for the weekend for our family Christmas party. I'm so excited to meet everyone I haven't met yet and spend time at the cabin! Also......... I GET TO EAT AT CHICK FILA! Merry Christmas to me!! I haven't had it since August and they have one in Utah!



Anyways, here's the pictures! Hope everyone's having a Jolly Holiday!!!

Idaho Reception <3

I have a lot of pictures I will try to post soon, but this one I really liked!

The Rexburg Temple at Night

I took the picture from my car, so it's not too clear. But I still think it's beautiful!

OCTOBER 23RD (Sorry - I'm a week late!)

I just wanted to post some pictures from the past week. I've been working a lot, but these are from my birthday. Jack surprised me with gifts in the morning. (I don't know when he had time to sneak and get them..) Schmoopie is an inside joke from Seinfeld :] Olive Garden was delicious and seeing Jenny and her mom was definitely the icing on the cake!! Hope everyone is having a great week!!

The best birthday present of all!

I get to spend it with my husband!

Jack was supposed to go to Illinois for

work next week, but at last minute gets

to stay in Idaho! I am so happy!

Hope everyone has a GREAT weekend!

New Job & "Pretend Olive Garden!"

I've been so busy looking for jobs I haven't had time to update. So here's a few things going on with me:

1. I got a few job offers, but I accepted one at Big 5 Sports, a new store opening in Rexburg. They pay better than anyone around town and will work around my school schedule starting in January. But the best thing is that it's in Rexburg, so I won't have to commute in the snow!! Us Southerners don't really know much about that, huh..

2. I got a new email: erika.maxfield@gmail.com -- so update or add me, I love hearing from everyone and getting forwards. In other news: my mom got a blog, so check it out: valenciadinkins.blogspot.com . I am so excited that everyone is internet savvy, so when we're all busy I can still see how everyone's doing. (But honestly.. I call my mom every day.. so I still know everyone's secrets! Ha!)

3. My birthday is in a week in a half -- the BIG 2-1! And although Jack will be gone, my cousin Jenny will be here and I'm really excited for that!

4. This Sunday, Jack and I start our Temple Preparation class. It seems like time is flying and before we know it we will be able to get sealed. How exciting :] !

5. Jack and I found a great alfredo recipe -- it tastes exactly like Olive Garden, so we had seafood alfredo tonight and it was AMAZING! So.. I'm posting the recipe at the bottom, I swear by it -- delicious!

Well, I better hit the sack.. we have a lot going on this weekend! I'll try to update Sunday with some new pictures and how I like my job. I love everyone -- Have a great weekend!

Alfredo Sauce Recipe:


Ingredients:
1 pint heavy cream
1 stick butter
2 tablespoons cream cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese - (to 3/4)
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Cooking Directions:

In a saucepan combine butter, heavy cream, and cream cheese. Simmer thisuntil all is melted, and mixed well. Add the Parmesan cheese and Garlicpowder. Simmer this for 15 to 20 minutes on low. You may wish to seasonwith a little salt and pepper. It has been made with half-and-half, butheavy cream is preferred.

Ok, well.. the "dogs" outta the bag...

So.. Jack & I got a puppy about three weeks ago to try out, and we didn't want to tell anyone until we were sure we were going to keep him. (Especially my mom... she wasn't too fond of the idea) but we've grown pretty attached to him. However, my mom heard him barking while we were on the phone!! Ha! His name is KING LOUIE (like the Jungle Book -- we're really into Disney) and he is a cockapoo mix. Anyway, I had to post this picture because we bought him this really cute bed and this is where he ends up every night.

I have the best husband :)

I've been feeling a little under the weather, so Jack has cooked for me two days in a row. He's so sweet to me!

Yesterday we had corned beef and cabbage. I'd never had it, but I was very impressed!

And tonight was grilled marianated chicken and flavored rice. We're trying to get some good use out of our grill before the snow takes over for the winter. I'm a really lucky girl.

Old friends and Taboo

Last night I got to introduce Jack to my friends from my first semester. We all met up at a friend's apartment and played Taboo, it was so much fun! Then they came over and saw our house. The guys had been on their missions, so it'd been a really long time. I had such a great time!!

Let it snow -- but maybe in a month or so!!

It snowed today for the first time this winter. I tried taking some pictures, but the snow wasn't sticking, so they didn't really turn out. It is SO COLD!!! It's hard to believe that it's no where as cold as it will be. I better get some warmer coats.

This week was a little rough. The tire blew out on the Honda while Jack was on the way back from a meeting in Twin Falls. I am just so grateful he didn't get hurt. I don't have a cell phone yet, so there was no way to tell me why he was so late -- I was really worried. We got two new tires, but as y'all know.. the cash doesn't really flow when you're 20 and married so we had to miss my friend Jessica's wedding down in Utah yesterday.

As if that wasn't depressing, we found out Jack has to go to a school for work in Illinois October 22-27. My birthday is October 23rd. At least Jenny will be up here to have Olive Garden with me. (Thank goodness!!) It's sort of becoming a joke because Jack and I never get to spend my birthday together! This is three in a row!!

Anyway -- enough with the bad news! Being married is so much fun! I'm so glad to get to spend all my time with my best friend! We've been pretty lazy this week now that things have calmed down a little. I absolutely love cooking for Jack! Our favorites so far are: spaghetti(with Dr. Pepper in the sauce), grilling steak and chicken, roast, asparagus, cupcakes (I make when he has a bad day), and those little pigs in a blanket. Haha! Cooking together is really fun -- tonight we're making potato soup for the cold day. Random: Grey's Anatomy premiered this week (everyone knows I'm addicted).

I wanted to put up a few wedding pictures since I hadn't yet. Thank you, Cindy for the sweet comment on my last post!!

We got the internet!

So, after a the long wait and the CableOne guy never showing up the beginning of the week, we finally have the internet! Jack said we'll probably never talk again - haha - so I'm trying not to spend too much time on the computer. Today he's gone to Twin Falls for work and I think I'm going to look around for a job.

I got into the Eastern Idaho Technical College LPN program. I had applied back in April before we got engaged, then I decided to put it off until after the wedding. I start in January and it will take about 2 years, then I have to work for 1,000 hours to apply to the RN program. It's going to be a long road, but I'm ready to buckle down and finish school.

Yesterday we finished moving all of Jack's stuff from his house. The rod on Jack's side of the closet was slanted a little and after he finished putting all of his clothes in, the left side collapsed and clothes were all over the floor. I wish I would've taken a picture!! It was so sad, Jack came in and said he was upset because his suits were too heavy -- I had NO IDEA what was going on. So he replaced the rod and we finished moving in. But it's really cute when he fixes stuff, he acts so proud. (He also installed the washer and dryer, replacing all the leaky pipes!)

Last night we went on a triple-date and I experienced my first Madison High School football game. We go to all the home basketball games, I love high school football so that was a blast. Jack's friends are hilarious, we all hung out at our house for a few hours and they told funny stories from high school.

I guess, that's about it. I have a lot to do today, but hopefully I'll have some good news tomorrow. And we're going to a new ward tomorrow, but it starts at 9AM -- hopefully we'll be on time!

A night in Boise to start a Blog!

Tonight Jack and I are in Boise so I decided to start a blog while he's in his meeting, so I can keep in touch with everyone in South Carolina a little better while I'm in Idaho. I'm so excited to be back out here, but I miss everyone already. I still haven't gotten a new cell phone number, I just share with Jack (hopefully not for too much longer). Thanks to everyone who made it to the wedding, I was so happy to see everyone there! Everything went so well, I loved it!

Disney World was a lot of fun!! I liked MGM Studios the best, my favorites were Rockin' Rollercoaster (the Aerosmith ride) and the Tower of Terror. Expedition Everest in Animal Kingdom was also really cool. I really want to go back when it's not SO HOT outside. That was the only downside. I was glad we got to go back to SC and see the family some more. Jack says he knows we'll end up there (at least he's catching on, ha!).

The ride back was SO LONG! I got carsick some, but mostly I just never want to drive through Nebraska and Wyoming again. There is absolutely no scenery, it's terribly boring. Jack let me control the cd's, so at least I was occupied. Next time I'll fly and let someone else bring the car!

Mom, Grandmother, and Grandaddy came up for the reception here. It was disney themed, and turned out SO CUTE!!! Jack's mom did a great job! My mom's friend she hadn't seen in 15 years surprised her and came up for the reception. It was so cool because I found out her daughter (who was my first friend in Hawaii) was going to BYU-I. We e-mailed and I sent them an invitation, so it was amazing to see our moms acting like they were 20 again, I swear it's like they had never been apart! Jenny Collins' mom and grandma made it up to the reception too. I thought it was really cool that they came and we planned Olive Garden in Idaho Falls while Jenny's in Idaho in October (the week of my birthday!) I am sooooo excited.. since Ms. Mraz and I made the plans, Jack can't say no! (so Jenny -- the plans are set! YAY! You'll be out here in about a month!)

Me and Jack took my mom and grandparents to Yellowstone. It was really cool, my grandaddy loves nature and anything from National Geographic and I've wanted to take him since I went with Jack in May. I love them so much and it was so cool to share with them the places out here that are really special to me. We took them to Jackson Hole where Jack proposed. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience to have this trip with them!

Our house is turning out really cute. I'll post pictures as soon as I can clean and take some. It is really cozy, a great starter. I feel so blessed to have as much as we do to start out with. Jack's parents gave us a washer and dryer as a wedding gift and I'm so happy to not have to go to the laundromat!!!

Anyways, this first post might be the longest I ever do. Just wanted to tell everyone about my new married life! We get the internet on Tuesday, so hopefully I'll be on a couple times a week or something. I love everyone back home, hope y'all doing well!