flashback friday Guam 2011

Halloween 2011, Guam

I can't believe it's been 3 years since my first trip to Guam. I came out here for work back in October 2011 for the first time. George came on that trip as well. However, we were not dating at that time. We were just friends and coworkers. The trip had 2 rotations, half of us went the first few weeks and then the second half of us came out and finished out the last few weeks. We had one night that overlapped the two rotations. That night happened to be Halloween. Of course, no one had thought about being here for Halloween so no one had brought costumes. Fortunately, our hotel rooms at the Hyatt had robes. And we all went out in robes and slippers that night. 

Best. Night. Ever. 

We went out in downtown Tumon and probably looked like a bunch of idiots in robes. I vaguely remember George and someone else break dancing at one of the bars. Thankfully they had shorts on under their robes. After the bars closed, we snuck into the Hyatt pool and going down the water slide. We were hiding from the strict security guard and trying not to get caught. That night, down by the water fountain near the pool is where George and I shared our first kiss. And now here we are, 3 years later, married and living in Guam! It's crazy how things turn out.

Happy Halloween!

happy birthday dad... and cupcakes

Growing up I always remembered my dad's birthday. It was the day before Halloween, one of my favorite holidays. Why? Because I loooooooooove candy. I have vivid memories of going over to my grandma and grandpa's house (my dad's parents) for dinner on his birthday. My sister and I were also so anxious for Halloween so this day early celebration couldn't get over soon enough. We wanted to get home and get ready for the next day! I remember we would get bored (as kids do) and go back to our grandparents' bedroom and watch TV. 

This year I'm not home to have a birthday dinner with my dad, so I will celebrate from afar with pumpkin spice cupcakes with whipped cream cheese frosting. They are delicious and easy peasy. The "recipe" for the cupcakes can be found in a million places on the internet. I didn't make it up, but you can find it anywhere if you google "2 ingredient pumpkin cupcakes." The cream cheese frosting is something I adapted from this recipe for cream cheese filling.

who doesn't love little baby pumpkins??

for the cupcakes:

1 15 oz can of pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

1 box of spice cake mix

Mix and bake according to the package 

I told you these were easy peasy!

for the frosting:

8 oz of low fat cream cheese

6 Tbsp of butter, softened to room temp

6 Tbsp of hi-ratio shortening

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 cups of powdered sugar

In a stand mixer, cream the cream cheese, butter, shortening and vanilla together. Then slowly add the powdered sugar until it's all incorporated. Then switch to your whisk attachment and whip the frosting until light and fluffy. This takes about 8 minutes. 

perfect little pumpkin cupcake

Use whatever piping tip you prefer (I used #12) and frost those cupcakes. If you're feelin' fancy, top with sprinkles! I used orange and black sprinkles because it's Halloween, or because the SF Giants since they just won the World Series. 

Sorry dad that I am not there to cook you dinner, but maybe you can convince mom to make these cupcakes for your birthday? If not, just look at the pictures of mine and pretend you can eat them. I did make them in honor of your birthday. 

Happy Birthday Dad!!!!

wedding wednesdays - our first guam wedding

Most of the friends we hang out with are already married so we haven't had the chance to go to a wedding since we've moved out here. That all changes this weekend! Our friends are getting married on the beach this Saturday, at sunset of course. How beautiful to get married in paradise, on the beach at sunset?? To prep for the wedding, the bride and I went and got our nails done and went and did a little shopping for the wedding. It's super low key since she'll be doing a large wedding with family back in the states next year. It's still exciting to help her get ready for her big day! Short post tonight, but hopefully I'll have some pictures from the wedding next week!

sissy's engagement pics

I'll admit, this post is going to mostly be a photo dump. I've been working on a project all day and I'm pooped. I'm tired of staring at the computer screen so I don't have the mental strength to edit a bunch of photos for the recipe I planned on sharing today. Instead, I'm going to share with you some of the photos from my sister's engagement shoot I did while in California. 

Before our session, my sister was admittedly nervous. She had never had professional pictures taken and didn't really know what to expect/how to act/etc. Luckily, she had me taking her pictures which held some sort of comfort for her. I told her to just pose naturally, be herself and have fun with it. Some of the best pictures I've taken have been complete candids while my clients are just messing around or whatnot. Afterwards, my sister said she had fun and it wasn't anything to be nervous over. We also got a bunch of great shots. Here are a few of my favorite!

sissy and scott, sittin' in a tree...

so delightfully cheesy!

love the candid moments

having fun with some poses

channeling american gothic

california visit p.1 - the tooth fairy

During my visit to California, one of my favorite things was getting to spend so much time with my stepdaughter, Kiera. I had her a good portion of my time there. Living so far away from the girls, we miss out on a lot of milestones and firsts. Sure, we can FaceTime and they can tell us about them, but its not the same as being there when they experience something for themselves. I was lucky enough to have Kiera the night she lost her first tooth!

"send my dad a picture of my loose tooth!"

The night started out with her showing me her loose tooth. It was been loose a while, but of course, I took a picture so we could show her dad. She was so excited about it, she kept saying it's looser than before! After dinner Kiera, my sister, her friend and I went for a walk. Kiera asked to chew gum and kept saying how the gum was making her tooth hurt. 

no more tooth!

When we got back home Kiera asked to see my handheld mirror and went and stationed herself at the kitchen table. She starting looking at the tooth in the mirror and kept making these little screaming noises every time it moved. I didn't know what she was doing at that point, it looked like she was just examining the tooth in the mirror. About 10 minutes later Kiera starts yelling for me to come here, her mouth all bloody. I started to put my hand to her mouth to look, and she spits a tooth out! Sure as shit, that kid wiggled that tooth until she could pull it out! Who does that at 5 years old? Crazy kid!! 

The rest of the night we were all squealing and giddy about this huge event that just took place. I had no idea how exciting losing a tooth could be! Kiera kept asking if I was proud of her, and of course I told her I was super proud (which I was!). She also kept saying "I'm so full of joy and happiness right now!!" This kid, I swear! 

from the tooth fairy

Of course with a lost tooth comes the tooth fairy. It had to be super special because it was her first lost tooth. The next morning Kiera woke me up with a whisper at 6:30 am and begged me to read the certificate the tooth fairy left her. 

First Lost Tooth

This is to certify that Miss Kiera Engleheart

has lost her first tooth on Saturday, August 30, 2014

I am so very proud to add your tooth

to my collection. Congratulations!

//signed// The Tooth Fairy

Not only did the tooth fairy leave her a certificate, but she also left her $5! Back in my day, I usually got $1 in dimes and nickels. I guess the tooth fairy has adjusted her payment schedule! It was so exciting to get to experience this first with Kiera. Out of all the things I did during my visit, it was one of my favorites!

gettin' my cook on

Obviously I like to cook and bake. So many of my posts are recipes that either I've created or have tried and loved. I've been wanting a stand mixer and a food processor foooooooreevvvveeeerrr. For our first wedding anniversary, George bought me them! Of course I've been baking and cooking up a storm since then. All of those recipes I've pinned that I haven't made because they required either a stand mixer or food processor are finally getting made. I've also created a few recipes of my own. 

In the next few weeks I'll be sharing all these recipes, with yummy pictures of course. Things like pumpkin spice cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, chipotle sour cream, several different flavors of hummus, mushroom soup.... mmmmm... now I'm hungry. All recipes of course have been husband approved!

Here's some pics of my new favorite toys.

mr. food processor

isn't she pretty??

california trip

back where I come from...

I just got back home from a trip to California to visit friends and family. It was my first trip back to the mainland since moving to Guam. After moving out here there were quite a few things I missed and was excited to see again on my visit. It's funny though, because the whole time I was in California, I was missing Guam! 

The one thing that was weird to me was the air. You would think I would be used to the dry climate, but I wasn't. Everything was so dry and dusty, I had a hard time breathing! Believe it or not, I missed the humidity! The shopping was great though. I went to Target my first day there, and I forgot how much variety there was!! At the grocery store too. So many options for cheeses, lunch meats, crackers, yogurts, snack foods, fresh fruits and veggies... it was awesome! And things had expiration dates well into the future! It's the little things you appreciate after living on an island. 

I stocked up on a few things while I was there. The clothes shopping wasn't as spectacular as I remembered though, so that bummed me out a little. I was able to bring back a bunch of sauce mixes and seasoning packets that I can't find in Guam. And of course, several boxes of Walmart brand fruit snacks, which are my favorite. Ask Casey, she bought them for Cole when we lived together and I would always eat them. Woopsies. 

I did get to see a lot of my friends and family. I spent quite a bit of time with some close friends and a few visits with others. I also made a trip to see my grandma while I was there. I packed in a lot of fun on my visit. I did yoga with my mom, cycling with my parents, Oktoberfest in Chico, a concert, lot of lunches and dinners with friends, lots of visits with my step-daughter Kiera and a camping trip. 

It was nice to spend time with everyone, but I am so happy to be back in Guam. I feel more at home here than I did in California. The island life suits me well, and my husband is here. Plus, not being able to see the ocean every day was hard. The ocean is such a calming view for me! We'll be back to California to visit again soon, but for right now, we're loving our little island life!

Here's a few photos from my trip...

I got in several trips to Mikuni for sushi

lots of time with my little Kiera

my mom and Kiera picking figs

I got to see Mr. Cole!

crashed my bike... broke my fall with my knee

our view camping

me on our camping trip, rocking a hafa adai shirt, drinking CL smooth

Jason Aldean concert!

and of course... lots of beer dates with my wife

wedding wednesdays - sissy's getting' hitched!!

A few months ago I got a call from my sister saying that she's engaged!! I'm so excited for her! My only wish is that I could be there to help her plan. I loooooove weddings and wedding planning! I was fortunate enough on my trip to California in that I was able to be there as she picked out her wedding dress! She also let me take her engagement photos and design her Save the Date. I can't wait to share her pictures! I am waiting for her to send out the Save the Dates before sharing the pictures. 

Oh, and another thing? I'm the maid of honor! I'll have to rely a lot on the other bridesmaids considering I'm 6,000 miles away, but it's still an honor! I will be back in California for her wedding next year and I couldn't be more excited. So, while I can't share pictures from her wedding dress shopping, or any from her engagement session... here's some pictures of us as little kids!

christmas 1990 or 91

one of my favorites... Tahoe 1989ish

fall is here!

fall is here

The changing from summer to fall is one of my favorite season changes. I've always loved fall back on the mainland. During my recent visit home, I got to experience the very early stages of the shift to fall. Now that I'm back on the island, I'm also seeing the season change.

the orchids begin to bloom again

 It's funny that on an island with no true seasons, fall is all around us. The stores are starting to carry pumpkin spice everything, the coffee shops are advertising warm caramel and pumpkin spice coffee drinks and in true mainland fashion... the Christmas decor is already making its way into the stores. And in island fashion, the orchids are starting to bloom again! But there's also a subtle change in the climate. The winds are changing their direction, the air has that slightly (and I mean slightly) cooler feel to it and the air seems clearer. 

a fall day in Guam

Yesterday we came home from our mini stay-cation and the day had a distinct fall feeling to it. It's hard to explain, but it reminded me of those warm fall afternoons right before Halloween when the winds picked up, but there was still a warmness to the air. 

fall at casa de engleheart

Since I know we won't get the cooler temperatures as we move into "fall" here, I decided to decorate the house a little to make it feel like fall. I made a centerpiece using a fall leaf table runner, mini pumpkins, a candle and some indian corn. I also changed out all our Scentsy warmers to the smells of the season: Apple Press, Autumn Sunset and Pumpkin Roll. As all of you on the mainland slip into the crisp mornings of fall, I'll be here making our little condo smell and look like the season. With a pumpkin spice coffee of course!

where does the time go?

Wasn't it just yesterday when I posted last? Oh wait, it was July? And now it's the end of October? Holy crap. These past few months have been a whirlwind to say the least. We had both the girls out for the summer, which, as a stay-at-home step-mom, kept me on my toes for sure. After that, I flew them back to California and stayed for a couple months while my husband went away for work. I'll write more about my first visit back to the mainland later. 

my first sunrise back on the mainland

We also just had our first wedding anniversary. Crazy, right?! So much has happened in the past year and our lives are completely different than they were a year ago. At the same time though, it feels like we just got married. We did a staycation to celebrate our anniversary, which I'll write more about later. We were actually 6,000 miles apart for our actual anniversary, so we had to celebrate a few weeks late. 

All in all, I'm so happy to be back home and back to living the island life. It truly is something we've come to love and enjoy. It's hard to explain too, unless you've lived on an island, it's hard to understand. 

my first sunset back on Guam