top five friday.

#1 - exploring santa maria. every sunday, we like to go for a walk. but since it's been kind of cold this week, we decided to go for a drive instead. we thought we'd check out the little nooks and crannies of our lovely town and take a drive in the hills. we eventually found ourselves on a narrow road that was overgrown with weeds. we reached a gate and didn't see any 'no trespassing' signs, so we continued to proceed. we came upon what i think used to be a part of the base, but isn't in use anymore. all that was left was this:

can't you just picture a couple of zombies clawing their way out of that door? i was kind of expecting that to happen the entire time we were there. i was slightly terrified, but mostly thrilled. glad we made it out alive.

#2 - frozen tv dinners. i've always had it in my mind that only lazy people eat them and that they're a sorry excuse for real cooking. i'm here to say that i was oh so very wrong. i've tried time and time again to shed a couple extra pounds, but it's so stinkin' hard counting calories in homemade meals. after reading about the main keys to losing weight, i realized that frozen dinners are a lot more genius that i give them credit for. they help with portion control, they're super easy to count calories for, most of them have a good balance of protein and veggies, and they're surprisingly delicious. my favorite is the smart ones: chicken enchiladas suiza.

mmm, delicious!

#3 - blanket beds. since we made a goal not to watch tv this past week {mission accomplished}, both zachary and i have taken a serious liking to reading. a couple days ago, it was warming up a bit and we wanted to read outside. so we took every single blanket we had in our house and dumped them on the back patio.

it was a bit colder than i was expecting, so i had to bundle up a little. i ended up falling asleep while waiting for zachary to join me because it was just so dang comfortable. 

#4 - this video:

"shut up. sit down. i love you."

"fix yo' face." "you fix yo' hand and stop poppin' me"

"hair. face. hair. face."

it's just too good not to share. love it all.

#5 - and lastly, after saving every penny this last year {literally}, we can finally cross off something on our bucket list: save enough money in change to buy a ticket to disneyland.

that's $111.75 right there - enough money to buy a ticket and even some to spare. looks like this weekend is going to be spent at the happiest place on earth! maybe we'll catch a glimpse of the modern family cast while we're at it...

have a great weekend ya'll!

-sarah

good-bye abu's.

not very many things can get me out of bed in the morning.
i love sleep.
i don't know how zachary wakes up for work so early day after day.
every morning he comes in to give me the usual good-bye kiss and back tickle, while he's lucky if i even open my eyes as i mumble my 'have a good day' and 'i love you'.
today was different though.
i jumped out of bed in no time because i had to take this picture:

it's flight suit day ya'll!!
and dang is he good lookin' or what?
i'm so proud of this man.
he's got a lot on his plate and is learning so much, but he still makes time to be the wonderful husband that he is.
i couldn't ask for more.

-sarah

oh, how pinteresting: wish list.

we've all been there.

we sit on pinterest for hours, only to leave empty-handed.

i know the feeling well.

here are some things i would own if i could have anything on pinterest.

{besides the lovely houses, adorable children and trips to tropical paradises of course}

'hearts and daggers' by ed hardy.

i am obsessed with this perfume.

i have a hard time justifying buying it when i have enough perfume as it is.

i really just need to suck it up and take the plunge.

found here via angela craig miller

 'lucky us' keychain.

attached are pennies from significant years.

ie. the year you both were born, you met, you married, etc.

i think it's adorable and is a cute reminder of each other.

found here via kayla scott

a silhouette cameo.

i've lusted over die cut machines time and time again.

i don't have any real need for them.

i'm not running a business that requires perfect perfect edges and corners.

i don't even scrapbook.

but someday i'd like to own one and when i do, it'll be one of these babies.

found here via jennifer rahr

 this bed frame.

i've been married over a year now and still don't have a headboard on our bed.

old headboards make me swoon.

i adore them, but i don't know where to find them.

i love this headboard and frame though.

the cool thing about it is it's actually homemade.

zachary and i want to take a weekend sometime and whip out our mad

carpentry skills to make this.

my favorite part are the cubbies underneath.

found here via kylee labrum

this craft room.

yes, i want this exact one.

isn't it gorgeous?

i love the color scheme and the layout.

it would be impossible to have a creativity block in here.

found here via kimberly brown

 this crate vignette.

it's so simple and rustic.

all i need is to find some crates that are big enough to fit the bill.

it'd go perfect in my living room.

found here via vanessa murdoch

this sign.

zachary sings this song to me and it makes me happy.

we're going to sing it to our kids for as long as they live.

we most definitely need this in our house.

found here via terri bleam

this monogrammed ring.

it just belongs on my finger.

maybe for our next anniversary.

found here via now what baby

 this laundry rack.

it gets the job done, but isn't sitting annoyingly in your living room.

it's perfect!

found here via michelle averett

 lastly, this swimming suit.

with summer soon approaching and knowing that my old swimming suit

is so used that it's almost see through, i'm in the market to buy a new one.

i'll be honest, i thought this one was kind of weird at a first glance.

then it kind of grew on me and now i'm pretty sure i have to have it.

found here via allison wollenhaupt

there you have it.

my current wish list.

and on another note, my birthday is in 89 days.

wink wink.

-sarah

i believe...

...in singing in the shower.

...in saying "i love you" more often than necessary.

...you haven't really lived until you've been to disneyland.

...in having dinner at the table, not in front of the television.

...in sparkles. sparkly shirt, sparkly shoes, sparkly bag...it's all lovely.

...having your back tickled is the best way to be woken up.

...i feel far more comfortable around someone that talks too much than someone who doesn't talk at all.

...in blanket forts. my kids will learn at an early age, the best ways to make one.

...working full-time inevitably equals a messy house.

...respect is obtained faster when you learn to control your temper.

...this outfit needs to find its way into my closet:

...some people's brains fall out when they get behind the wheel.

...in camping in the backyard. i have fond memories of doing that with my little brother and sister.

...in making fancy dinners for no good reason.

...in being dip-kissed often.

...kettle corn and mozzarella cheese go together wonderfully.

...weekend getaways are good for the soul.

...it's never okay to be rude.

...i need an alaskan malamute someday.

...i'm going to freeze in cheyenne next winter.

...in putting people above objects.

what do you believe in?

-sarah

top five friday.

#1 - i'll just get this one out of the way...dry shampoo. i know, i know. i sound like a broken record after yesterday's post, but it really has changed my life. thank you all so much for your feedback! i'm going to have great hair in no time. my cousin also recommended the conair infiniti wand for curling my hair as well, so i went and bought it last night. it was right before bed, so i wasn't trying real hard to make the curls look nice or anything, but for not trying, it worked pretty dang good. i've been looking up reviews for it all day and everyone that's reviewed it has loved it! you should check it out. oh, and look at this video. she does a pretty good tutorial on it.

#2 - the weather here in sunny california. {i'm pretty sure i've said this on top 5 before, but oh well. get over it} i went to the 'the natural cafe' for lunch yesterday and there was a sign on the door telling people to keep it closed because the air conditioning was on. in february. i don't think i've ever had the air conditioning on in february. by the end of the day, my office warms up enough that i actually start to sweat. {that's really not saying much though because i sweat really easily. tmi? sorry.} my point is that it's sure warmed up here and i am loving it! thank you air force for sending us to such a wonderful place during the winter.

#3 - a few weeks ago, i was having a bit of a crisis in not having a good book to read. i got a lot of recommendations and have actually made a reading list out of them. thanks guys. the one i'm currently reading though is one that was suggested by my sister-in-law: the clockwork angel.

i haven't been able to put it down. i read it at work, i read it before bed, i read it as soon as i wake up. it's ridiculous. you'd think i'd be finished after all that reading. maybe i'm just slow. it's a good one though. i highly recommend it, so far.

#4 - zachary and i are trying something out this week. we had stake conference at church on sunday and our stake president gave an incredible talk. i was surprised with how forward he was with uncomfortable topics! it was awesome. anyway, he encouraged us to take the 'nothing' out of our lives and put in more of the things that really matter. ie. reading your scriptures, spending time together as a family, doing service for others, etc. zachary and i thought about what kind of 'nothings' take up a lot of our time and we determined that we sit in front of the t.v. way more than is necessary. we're both at work all day, so when we come home, all we want to do is plop ourselves down on the couch and unwind. it's not all bad really. it gives us some good cuddling time and we get some really good laughs from 'new girl' and 'modern family'. we decided to do an experiment though and try to go an entire week without watching an ounce of television. we started on tuesday and so far it hasn't been too bad. is it hard knowing there are new episodes of 'how i met your mother', 'the biggest loser', and 'suburgatory' sitting in my dvr? yes. but i can't begin to tell you how crazy it is to see how much more time i have to get things done. {in other words, the house is somewhat clean for once} i've been impressed by the results and if things keep going the way they are, this could be the beginning to an end of cable t.v. in the averett household. {ok, that was a lie. probably just a major cutback}

#5 - chicken tikka masala and naan.

guys...oh. my. heck. this is hands down, my favorite meal of all time. just talking about it makes me salivate. our friends introduced us to it a couple months ago and they so kindly gave us their favorite recipe last weekend. and because i love you all so much, i'm going to share it with you too!

the original recipe can be found at allrecipes.com. it was super heavy on the salt and we didn't use a barbecue, so i've kind of tailored this recipe to what we did:

ingredients:

• 1 cup yogurt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup heavy cream

directions:

1. in a large bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and 4 teaspoons salt. stir in chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. heat a large frying pan on medium heat.
3. pour the marinated chicken {marinade and all} in the frying pan and cook the chicken until no longer pink inside.
4. transfer chicken to a strainer and drain all marinade; set aside.
5. melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. saute garlic and jalapeno for 1 minute. season with 2 teaspoons cumin, paprika, and 3 teaspoons salt.
6. stir in tomato sauce and cream. simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes.
7. add grilled chicken, and simmer for 10 minutes.

now for the naan. naan is an indian flatbread and goes perfectly with chicken tikka masala. the recipe we used is from allrecipes.com as well. again, we didn't use a grill, so i've changed it to what we did:

ingredients:

• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 1/2 cups bread flour
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)
• 1/4 cup butter, melted

directions:

1. in a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.
2. punch down dough, and knead in garlic. pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. roll into balls, and place on a tray {i usually get 12-14 balls out of it}. cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
3. during the second rising, preheat griddle to medium high heat.
4. roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. lightly grease griddle. place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.

you have got to try it. it's incredible. it takes some time though. not a lot of work, just time. so since tomorrow is saturday and you have the day off {unlike some of us. boo}, make this for dinner because i promise you will not regret it. welcome to heaven my friends.

what are you loving this week?

-sarah

hair.

confession: i don't know crap about how to do hair. seriously. i was the girl in high school that put her hair in a ponytail every single day. partly because of the fact that i looked like a drowned rat with it down {no volume, whatsoever} and partly because i just plain didn't know how to do it. then i discovered the concept of 'teasing' your hair. that works well, although zachary thinks i look like his second grade teacher every time i do it. but at least it's not flat and hideous! {i hope} the only down side to teasing is that anytime there is wind, my hair turns into one hopeless mess. kinda like this:

becky and i. sure miss that girl!

but usually much worse. what i wouldn't give for a head of nice, thick, beautiful hair that will style any way i want it to. or to be able to get out of the shower and let my hair dry on its own, only to have some rockin' beachy waves, hours later.

the good news is, that i recently discovered dry shampoo. a friend shared a blog about it {which you should read even if you don't care about dry shampoo. it's entertaining} a few months ago, but i didn't try it until last week. it's incredible. my hair is super fine and thin, so blow drying and straightening it every day takes a hard toll on it. now i've started showering the night before work, letting my hair dry while i sleep, then just using the dry shampoo to freshen it up. that way i don't have to worry about waking up early enough to shower, blow dry my hair, etc. i feel like my hair actually works better when i do it this way instead of styling it right off the blow dryer. after seeing success in this, it then got me wondering...are there any other tricks that i'm completely unaware of that you ladies use out there? what do you use to give your hair a little extra volume? any tips on getting perfect curls to stay in all day long? what kind of styling tools do you use and love? do you use a curling iron or a straightener to curl your hair? what kind of product do you use to protect your hair from the heat? and if you do use dry shampoo, what's your favorite brand? i'm not looking for something incredible that i've never heard of before. i'm just wondering what you do and hope to possibly get help on learning how to turn my hair into something worth looking at.

-sarah

oh how pinteresting: dessert.

i don't know what my problem is today, but all i want is a tall glass of milk and something that will leave me with a sugar hangover. here are a few things i've been dying to try, while wishing junk food friday would come sooner.

 coconut cream pie.

this is exactly the kind of pie that should be served at every thanksgiving.

no more of the nasty fruit ones.

just coconut cream, pecan, and pumpkin.

found here via deborah hunter

lemon crumb squares.

o. m. g. these are to die for.

i've made them a handful of times and i'm still working them

off because i ate so many.

delicious!

found here via amy reeves

oreo cheesecake bites.

i am a cheesecake die-hard.

for the last few years, my mom has made me a cheesecake for my

birthday instead of a traditional cake because i love it so much.

these look fabulous.

i have a feeling i'll be giving them a go here in the near future.

found here via virginia lewis. 

homemade samoas.

if you have never heard of a samoa, there is something seriously wrong with you.

i just bought a box from a cute little girl scout.

when they're eaten within the first hour of receiving them, i'll

be sure to keep this recipe in mind.

found here via nikki barton.

one-pan skillet cookie.

zachary and i received a cookie skillet as a white elephant gift

at his squadron christmas party.

i'm not sure what it is about being able to spoon a cookie out of

a skillet rather than just holding it in your hand, but it's delightful!

i recommend you get one asap.

found here via cindy hampton.

homemade twix candy bars.

i'm not a chocolate lover, but if i had to pick a favorite candy bar,

it'd definitely be a twix.

i've actually made these bad boys a time or two.

i find it's easier to make them into bars rather than what you see in the picture.

either way though, they're like heaven in your mouth.

found here via lori brenizer.

last but not least, dulce de leche cheesecake bars.

i am craving these right now.

like hard core.

my friend made them a few weeks ago when she came over for

dinner and i have wanted more ever since.

i think i'll have to stop by the store on my way home.

found here via chantel mckenzie.

what are you pinning this week?

-sarah

top five friday.

#1 - we sold our motorcycle! after 2 and a half months of wishing, hoping, and praying we finally cleaned our hands of the dang thing. i'd only ridden it once - for a much needed ice cream run.

maybe that's why i felt such vehemence towards it, because i didn't experience it enough to actually appreciate it. whether i liked it or not though, that's a $3500 debt that is cleared from our name! all day long i've been logging on to our bank account, just so i can see the big fat zero next to the motorcycle loan tab. paying off debt is so satisfying.

#2 - waking up to this on valentine' day:

i finished up getting ready for the day and stepped out of the bathroom only to be welcomed by a trail of rose petals. i had to bend down and touch them to see if they were real, because they were so pretty! they were. they led me down the stairs and through the living room and when i turned the corner, this is what i found. i married such a sweet man. i thank God for him every single day.

#3 - staying in and eating pizza on the most lovey-dovey day of the year.

i honestly wouldn't mind making this a tradition. it was easy, cheap, and oddly romantic. plus, what says 'love' more than a heart-shaped pizza?

#4 - skype. zachary and i had a skype date with arika a few days ago and then i had one with kaitlyn yesterday as well and it made me miss them so stinking much! what is it about being able to see a person's face while talking to them that makes it so much more enjoyable? i want and need to do it more often.

#5 - this phone case:

i am obsessed. i've almost saved up enough of my fun money to go ahead and buy it. i can't wait!

what are you loving this week?

-sarah

oh, how pinteresting: words



apparently, i need to be a professional pinner.

and facebook addict.

oh, and blog stalker.
found here via michelle johnson

zachary and i must be real lovers.

i'd be embarrassed if someone saw how silly we really are.

we can sure make each other laugh though!

found here via mykel beorchia

 my 11th grade english teacher used to say that dresses are like english papers.

"they should be long enough to cover the topic,

but short enough to make it interesting."
found here via lisa marquardson

 someday, i hope to really live.
found here via laurin wilson

 i need to take this to heart.

i loathe the wind.
guess i need to embrace and enjoy it from now on.
found here via kim coelho

 how true is this?

nobody is perfect, but we are all capable of becoming such.
found here via brittany mason

i saw a sign like this at jimmy john's when i was passing

through cheyenne, wyoming last year.

it'll give you something to think about the next time you're on a date.

found here via peter sydloski-tesch.

zachary has needed to tell me this a few times recently.
i get so wrapped up in things that are so trivial.
let it be and let the real things matter.
found here via kim coelho

what are you pinning this week?

-sarah

top five friday: utah edition

#1 - seeing family and friends. arika and kaitlyn picked me up from the airport last friday and we had our very own 'airport moment':

holy hannah, i've missed these girls. we had so much fun together!

i don't care what you say, i have the cutest nieces in the entire world.

so fun being with the familia!

i also got to grab some lunch with my buddy vince and see my soccer coach from high school. sure do miss those guys, but it was good to catch up!

#2 - my nephew's baptism. this is our first nephew to be baptized on zachary's side and i am so glad i was able to go! triston is such a sweetheart. seriously. like one of the sweetest, most respectful kids i know. i'm so proud to call him my nephew and i'm so happy he made the wonderful decision to be baptized!

#3 - every sunday, zachary and i write notes to each other in church. don't worry, we still pay attention, but i honestly look forward to the note writing a lot. so much so, that zachary actually bought me a little red notebook for our anniversary and it is our official 'notes writing' journal. one of our traditions when we do this is to draw a few pictures of the things that are on our mind at the time. then the other person has to guess what they are. some of them actually end up to be pretty funny. since we weren't together this sunday though, i decided to draw what i was thinking on my phone and send it to him. here's what i came up with:

now, i know i'm no artist, but does #4 look anything like a cookie to you? if so, may i ask who in the world cuts a cookie in to 8 slices?? come on.

#4 - sending my baby brother off on his mission. this was kind of bittersweet. i'm so excited for him and for all of the things he is going to learn, but it's sure sad to see him go. tampa, fl has some very lucky peeps.

#5 - excuse me while i get serious here for a minute, but i had an epiphany on my trip. i realized that there are some really good people out there. i feel like i see the world as a black hole of lust, money, and selfishness sometimes, so it did my heart good to see some little acts of kindness. the first time this hit me was when i was on the bus on my way to the airport here in cali. i didn't realize they don't give you change when you pay your fare, so after frantically searching for a dollar bill, i decided i'd just have to suck it up and give them my five. i didn't care so much about the money, i think i was more frazzled by the fact that i was traveling alone in a place that i'd never been to before. there was a lady and her son sitting across from me and she must have seen how distraught i was when she tapped me and held out three ones and some quarters to trade for my five. she didn't speak a lick of english, so hopefully my repeated "gracias" let her know how much i appreciated it. it doesn't sound like a big deal, but trust me - at the time, it was a very big deal. the second time i noticed how great some people are was on my flight back to california. before i even boarded, the pilot announced a handful of times that it was going to be a pretty bumpy ride. my stomach sank to my toes. when i got on the plane, i saw that in my row there was an old-ish lady in the aisle seat and a young{er} man in the window seat. my seat was the window seat. i asked him if he was in the right spot and when he realized he wasn't, he moved to the middle. i was afraid that he would secretly hate me the entire time though, so i told him that i normally wouldn't even care about which seat i was in, except that i am terrified of flying and i like having the window to look out of...that way if we plummeted to the ground, i would have at least some kind of warning. both the lady and the man must have taken this as a cry for help {not my intention} and said that they were going to talk to me for the entire ride to keep my mind off of things. and they did. that's two hours of talking to a couple of people that i had never even met. surprisingly, it did a fantastic job in distracting me and was actually really fun to get to know them. usually i sit quietly by myself and stress about every little bump, so it made me grateful for their good souls. these were only a couple of the things that i saw, but it really did strenghten my faith in mankind.

what are you loving this week?

-the wife