top five friday

#1. zooey deschanel. she has come a long way since 'elf' if i do say so myself. i've seen her in movies like 'yes man', '(500) days of summer', 'failure to launch', etc., but my all-time fav is her tv show 'new girl'. oh my hilarious! you've got to watch it. i think if i could have any actress' hair, it would definitely be hers. what i wouldn't give to be able to pull off those gorgeous front bangs! anyway, since this weekend is new years', it just so happens that i came across zooey and joseph gordon-leavitt performing a cover of 'what are you doing new years eve?'. i thought it was too cute not to share, so i hope you enjoy it as much as i did:

#2. one of my good friends from high school got hitched today! this is kind of a bittersweet top five. i am so so happy for shandi and her beau, but boy would i give anything to be with them on this special day. they are basically a match made in heaven. they dated throughout high school, he left on an lds mission and they kept in contact and then she left on a mission too and when she came home, they got engaged within weeks. such a cute couple and i'm sure she made a beautiful bride today. congrats shandi. love ya girl!

#3. these boots. they will most definitely be a near-future purchase.

#4. this photo found on ellen degeneres's facebook page:

she posted it and said, "people need to realize that a diamond isn't the only thing that's forever." *laughs* seriously though...who would make something so pointless into a tattoo? if you're going to get one and especially that big, at least make it worth it!

and coming in at #5, {last the best of all the game} was the greatest, most wonderful thing that happened to me this week - being able to celebrate my one year anniversary with my honey!

we went to san fran and oh. my. gosh. it was one of the best vacations i've ever been on. it was like a second honeymoon! there will be more pictures and stories to come soon. i promise.

i hope you all have a wonderful and happy new year and that you get lots of treats from the new year's fairy. over and out.

-the wife

merry christmas.

hope you had a fabulous day!
we sure did.
it was filled with sunshine, good friends, lots of food, and sandy toes.

wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday season from the west coast.

love,
the averetts

top five friday.

i'm going to try something a little different here on the blog.
this is my introduction to "top five friday"; a weekly post where i will share five things that i love.

here are this week's:

#1. zachary and i both didn't have to work today. {and don't have to for two weeks. holla!}

#2. this video from david archuleta:

isn't that just the sweetest thing ever? i may or may not have cried a little with him the first time i saw it.

#3. these super easy christmas tags:

after using up our entire christmas budget, i realized we forgot to buy present tags. what's cheaper AND cuter than some kraft paper already on hand and stamps?

#4. this photo found on pinerest, captioned "this is why you marry your best friend."

pretty much sums it up. i'm so glad i married my best friend that makes me laugh everyday.

#5. new jammies. we do a christmas pj swap every year and i've dubbed these as the ones i want. think this is a big enough hint to the hubs to let him know which ones to get?

{found at target.com}

what are your favorite things this friday?

-the wife

27.

someone had a birthday yesterday.
and i'm not talking just any someone, but a very special someone.
my handsome husband turned a whopping 27!
we've kind of made it a tradition that the birthday boy or girl gets breakfast in bed on their big day.
german pancakes to be exact.
sad story though - i set my alarm to wake up with enough time to make everything and catch him before he got up and in the middle of the night....my phone died. {if only i had a dollar for everytime that happened.}
i guess whether it's breakfast in bed or breakfast at the table, it all tastes the same right?

i gave it my best shot in trying to be creative this year. and by creative, i actually mean snagging an idea from 'the dating divas' and customizing it. his present consisted of a flow of presents all day long in the form of envelopes.



there was one envelope for each hour of the day, that he got to open on that hour.
the envelopes consisted of an iTunes gift card, coupons for a "man night" or dinner date, etc., a "choose a gift" card, and letters from nearly our entire family!
i really couldn't thank both our families enough for helping me.
it meant so much to hear from all of them and will definitely be something he will remember.

since we both had to work all day, it was nice to be able to send him on his way with a few envelopes, so he could still open presents when i wasn't with him!

the moment he got home though, we went to dinner at Yanagi Sushi and Grill.

fun fact about zachary: he love love LOVES sushi.

fun fact about me: i don't.

and yet, it was still incredibly delicious.

{zachary drinking his miso soup aka tofu and dirt.}

{yes, vegetable sushi is still sushi.}

to top it all off, we had some friends over tonight to eat cake and ice cream. {while watching the biggest loser. oxymoron?}

{can you believe he was able to actually blow all of those out? sheesh.}

after all was said and done, i think my favorite present was the remote control helicopter:

we played with it for hours after opening it. {we're children at heart.}

it wasn't even my birthday and i had a fabulous day.

i am so grateful for my charming man and for the things he does for me everyday.

he really is the best thing that's ever happened to me.

happy birthday, babe.

i can't wait to spend many more together!

-the wife

o christmas tree, o christmas tree...

we've tried super hard to make it feel like christmas here. it feels so different having sunshine and 60 degree weather in december. {i really can't complain} we've tried to decorate and do christmas activites to get us in the mood though and we even got our very first christmas tree! behold:

ain't she a beaut? i got all excited at the beginning of the month thinking it would be cool if i made all of our ornaments. yes, those are homemade, but as you can see, there is a serious lack in the number of them.i got so burned out in making things these last couple weeks that i don't even care how shabby it looks anymore. all that matters is that it is a real tree and nothing less. {i joke, i joke. fake trees are cool too...kind of.} although i am mighty proud of that tree skirt. lots of fabric and multiple hot glue burns later gives you this:

i followed this pattern and thought it didn't turn out half bad. i've seen it in burlap and red too and it's super cute.

i'd be lying if i said the holidays aren't making me a bit homesick. we agreed on going home for thanksgiving and staying here for christmas, since the air force wasn't going to give zachary much time off. so i was sad not to be with our family, but at the same time i was super excited to have our very first {married} christmas together and be able to start our own traditions. now i just want to bag the whole idea and drive to utah tomorrow. good thing zachary is planning us a sa-weet anniversary trip three days later, or i might do just that.

anyway, happy sunday.
i hope it was merry and bright.

-the wife.

i believe...

...people wearing santa hats around town is adorable.

...money creates way too much stress for a person to handle.

...i should never have been introduced to jack in the box. i'm now an addict.

...in kissing hello and goodbye.

...decorating for christmas has exhausted my creativity fund. and my bank account.

...car shopping is a pain in the #$%.

...scentsy is a dream in a warmer dish. i'm obssessed.

...this {almost} one year of marriage has been the best and craziest year of my life.

...ellen degeneres is one of the funniest people i've ever seen. seriously. how does she come up with this stuff?

...a trip to europe is in order next year.

...talking with meg clifford at work makes the day go by much faster.

...back tickling from the hubs in the middle of the night because of a bad dream is like heaven.

...the soundtrack to breaking dawn part one is a much needed future purchase.

...cake and ice cream for dinner is okay.

...shopping for gifts is hard.

...watching movies and snuggling are necessary to maintaining sanity.

...pinterest could possibly be the greatest invention ever.

...everyone has a hard life. be kind.

what do you believe in?

i'm a working girl.

i start my new job today.

wish me luck!

"jetta"

do you remember a few months back when we got a dog? no? oh, that's right. that's because we bought her and sold her before i even had time to blog about her. here's jetta:

cute right? don't be fooled. after chewing on everything i owned and peeing every time she looked at zachary, we just couldn't keep her. she had to have been the most independent dog in the world and could care less that we took care of her. i think we just jumped into things too fast and didn't take time to actually think about the consequences. she has kind of ruined us for the time being for ever wanting a dog. i hope and pray that changes someday!

-sarah

just a mushy love shpeel.

my boy started his first day of school today.
i made sure to buy him some brown paper bags to carry his lunch in along with a baggie full of keebler cookies - one of his favs.
i can't believe how grown up he is! *tear*

but, in all seriousness, i am so stinkin' proud of that man that it really does almost bring me to tears.
i won't turn this into a "my-husband-is-better-than-your-husband" story, but i will say this: he is one hard workin' dude.
he's woken up at the crack of dawn every day this week and still comes home happy.
i'm grateful for everything he provides for us and his unconditional love.
he's definitely got this husband thing down to a t.
that's all.

-the wife

cali baby.

after weeks of no internet, we are finally back in business! and boy, does it feel good. there is so much to share, i don't even know where to begin. first off, can i just say that i have never been so happy to see this sight in my entire life:



yes my friends, that would be del rio, texas floating away in our rear view mirror. i honestly miss our friends so much, but i am oh so glad that i will never have to set foot in that town again...hopefully.

it took us three long days to get to vandenberg afb. in which time, there was lots of laughing, way {and i mean way} too much junk food eating, and tons of stress. the dingbats at home depot failed to reserve our truck that we asked for, so we were stuck with the only one they had left. which happened to also be the largest one available.

{look at the size of that thing!}

take that and add on a trailer and we figured that we were pulling around 55 feet of truck. phoenix and los angeles were pretty scary to go through. i had to make myself look away several times because i was sure we were going to wreck. not to mention the anxiety attack we got everytime we had to fill the dang thing up. luckily, i have an incredible husband that can handle anything. he really did such an amazing job of weaving through traffic and taking care of things in this whale of a vehicle. i'm glad i married such a manly man. we learned a valuable lesson though and that is that we will never do a full-dity move again. ever.

anyway, moving right along. it took us a while to find an apartment and get settled in, but the wait was well worth it. i absolutely love our new place. it's nothing extravagant, but it definitely has a homey feeling to it. i'll have to post pictures once we get it cleaned up.

santa maria is like living in a vacation world, no joke. so many people have told us it's quite the "sleepy" town, but we have come to find that there is so much to do and see here that we are wondering how we're going to fit it all in. i think what i love most is how much variety there is. vandenberg itself is nestled back in the mountains about twenty minutes from town. in the couple days we were driving around, we saw 5 or 6 coyotes, so that gives you a good idea at how tucked away it really is.

then as you are driving into town, you come across acres and acres of vineyards and strawberry fields and you are just sucked into that country, hometown feel. it makes you want to sit on a front porch and do nothing but drink lemonade and play the guitar. then ten minutes later, you are in the middle of the hustle and bustle of santa maria. which, by the way, happens to have a joanns, michaels, target, and a frozen yogurt store. i could live here my whole life if possible! on top of that, you drive another half an hour or so, and you find yourself right on the beach. pismo beach to be exact. that's where we visited this last weekend.

we were only there for a couple hours, but the whole time, i kept thinking to myself that i can't believe this is the life we are actually living. it felt like something from a movie. even down to the fact that we saw dolphins from the pier:

it was incredible! we also happened to be visiting at 11:11 on 11/11/11, so we had someone snap a photo for us at just the right moment.

i feel so happy and blessed to be here. we have a great ward and have already met some incredible people including this couple. seriously? they. are. awesome. i'm so grateful for their open arms in welcoming us here. they've definitely made us feel a little more at home. i'm very excited for this new chapter in our life and can't wait to see what it has to offer!

-the wife

p.s. remind me next time to introduce you to the newest member of our family. ;)

happy pinning!

i believe that a celebration is in order.

i recently pinned my one-THOUSANDTH pin on pinterest.

yay! {don't mind the fact that this just proves how terribly i manage my time.}

in honor of this joyous occasion, i thought i'd share some of the projects i've

completed from this lovely site.

i've found that it's a lot easier to pin items than it is to make them, but here is my little start:

#1. Red Christmas Wreath

i am in LOVE with wreaths and this one was so easy, it's ridiculous. 
all you need is a foam wreath, a couple yards of felt, and pins.

lots and lots of pins.

it's simple, yet elegant and i absolutely love it!

#2. Homemade Twix Cookie Bars

these are a favorite in our house!

if i'm not careful i could probably eat the whole pan by myself.

the recipe tells you how to make them actually look like twix bars and everything, but i found that it was easier and less messy just to make them into cookie bars.

they taste the same {delicious} regardless of what shape they're in, so whatev.

#3. Crocheted Place Mat

i actually felt like this project completely tanked.

you can't really tell in this picture how bulky, bunchy, and overall ugly it us, BUT i want you to see what the original looked like on her website because it is so cute!

if you are a crocheting beginner, this is a great project for you.

there are only two or three different stitches throughout the entire project, so once you get those down, it's not too bad.

my only sugesstion is to be sure to use some thin yarn or it will turn out to be a disaster, case in point.

#4. Felt Flower Wreath 

remember when i said i was going to make this wreath?

i feel so proud that i actually did it!

it turned out more yellowish than i hoped, but that's okay.

i love it so much that it is hanging on my door right now.

it was really easy and super cheap; probably the best combo ever.

#5. Homemade Butterfingers

these seriously taste like the real thing.

it only calls for three ingredients too!

yum.

#6. Crocheted Bobble Baby Blanket

or as Zachary likes to call it: The Outtie Belly Button Blanket.

this has by far been my favorite project.

i made this blanket here for my sister-in-law nikki's new baby, jace, and i made a brown one just like it for my friend amber's new baby, wesson.

it takes a lot of time, but turns out really cute in my opinion!

these were just a few projects that i was actually able to get pictures of.

they have sure helped me pass the time from day to day.

for those of you that haven't discovered pinterest yet, GET ON IT.

and when you do, be sure to follow me!

it really is the most incredible thing ever invented.

-sarah

columbus day weekend.

dear mr. columbus,

i want to thank you for coming to america so many years ago. because of you, i was able to go on one of the best three-day vacations ever with my husband. we took a five hour drive to big bend national park and boy oh boy, was it delightful. can you feel our joy?

we had a rocky start at first. this sight definitely made my stomach turn:

i thought we were in for a couple of cold, wet days. it's hard to believe, that ten minutes later, it looked like this:

we set up camp, ate smores, and played games on our first night:

the next day, we hiked a couple miles to "the window":

it was so nice to be around mountains. it gave us that safe, enclosed, utah feel. i lurved it. thank goodness, we didn't have any encounters with wild animals like everyone else around us. between the couple bears and mountain lions that were spotted, we got lucky and only had to deal with the numerous amount of skunks.

seriously though.

i felt like our camp was being overtaken every night. we actually had one skunk almost rip a hole in our tent, trying to get in. it woke both of us up and i shined my flashlight in its direction and i could see its little nose poking through our zipper. i didn't want it to spray us, but i didn't want it in bed with us either, so i grabbed zachary's shoe and smacked it in the face. it pulled back and stuck its tail up in the air immediately! we held our breath, hoping it wouldn't spray and luckily it just walked away. that was one of many during our two night stay.

we spent the rest of our time doing things that all people on vacation should do.

eating ourselves sick with junk food:

{i added the pumpkins to give it a falltime feel. little things like that make me happy.} 

sleeping in:

 {nighttime/sleeping is probably my favorite part of camping}

eating delectable breakfasts and dinners: 

{cinnamon roll pancakes and tin foil dinners, mmm!}

and napping:

{isn't he so cute?}

so, basically we just slept and ate the whole time. it was a much needed getaway and we are very appreciative of your long journey to discover this land, so we can enjoy it. thanks again!

                 

love,

sarah

adios tejas.

lo and behold, there is an end in sight!

as much as i have loved *clears throat* being a texan for these last 6 months, it's time to move on.

in just shy of two months {dec. 2nd}, zachary will be reporting to vandenberg afb, ca for

5 months of training.

can i get a HOLLA for christmas in cali?!

and disneyland!

his graduation date will be may 2nd.

we haven't heard yet whether or not we will be going to our permanent base before or after training, but we have heard where it will be...

....drum roll please....

f.e. warren afb in cheyenne, wyoming!!

it's funny, in the past year or so, we've driven through cheyenne twice; once in the

summer and once in the winter.

both times, i remember saying out loud, "gosh, i'm so glad we don't live here."

goes to show how ironic life can be, i guess, but, i am still so very excited!

this puts us approximately 7 hours from north salt lake {zachary's hometown} and about 8 and 1/2 hours from ephraim {my hometown}.

we could do that on a weekend, easy!

that alone, makes me love it already.

life is good and finally moving forward.

i couldn't ask for more.

except, maybe, for one of these:

-the wife