Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Book Review


For Christmas this year I received Push by Sapphire from my new mother in law. I had asked for this book because it has been critically acclaimed and was recently made into a movie that is receiving lots of Oscar buzz. I knew going into it that this book would be one that would open your eyes to the world of abuse but also one that shows how you can triumph above such horrible things.

I finished the book last night and WOW. It was way more intense than I had predicted. The story is profane and eye-opening, but it makes it "thoroughly real" as the Washington Post says. Precious, the main character, shows the true definition of resilience. She overcomes having two children by her own father, and the horrible mental and physical abuse of her mother. I cannot fathom what it must be like to go through what she did, but this story shows that even when true evil is shown, there is reason to stay faithful. You can overcome any amount of horror if you stay hopeful, which is exactly what Precious did.

If you don't mind extreme profanity and bluntness, and want to read a book about overcoming immense obstacles then I recommend this book. It is a fast read (obviously, it only took me 5 days), but it leaves you thinking about all the little things you take for granted. Precious will forever be in my mind because she has taught me what it really means to be resilient and hopeful. Thank you Sapphire.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

It's been awhile

It's been awhile since I have posted mainly because of my laziness and this virus I have been trying to kick. Here is an update on the Evans' lives..
  • Conquered two family recipes last week. One, totally from scratch pot roast in my beautiful LeCreuset. Seriously this thing is amazing. It was probably one of the top three roasts I have ever had. Trey even rated it a 9.5 which I was super excited about. I also made a super yummy sour cream chicken enchilada casserole which we ate on for dayyyyyyys. I was extremely proud of myself for making two meals that could feed us for more than one night.
  • We attended Trey's work Christmas party last Friday and it was a lot of fun. We met at his bosses house for drinks and then everyone went downtown to a five star restaurant for dinner. It was a beautiful restaurant in a renovated church. Trey ordered the Japanese kobe steak, and he was extremely impressed!
  • Although we did a lot of our Christmas shopping online, today I had to venture out into the madness of Houston to find some last minute items. Luckily I finished up the majority of it because I do NOT want to go to the mall again for a very long time after fighting the crowds and traffic that I fought today.
  • Trey and I will be off to see our families on Friday for a week, which we are both very excited about. There will be lots of pictures and posts to come after our visits!

Friday, December 4, 2009

Favorite Things Friday

One Word...



SNOW




that is all.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

In Other News

I made some delicious banana bread...And we bought our first Christmas tree...poor thing only has lights and one ornament though.

Trey Evans Day aka Thanksgiving

Last week Trey and I traveled to East Texas to see my Dad's side of the family for the holiday. Thanksgiving just so happened to be Trey's birthday as well, so it was a double celebration.The whole family, all 23 of us, ate outside under the trees on a beautiful Thanksgiving Day. We ate lots of food, watched football, relaxed and just enjoyed each others company.

Since there was an abundance of desserts, we used Trey's new favorite- Black Bottom Pie- as his birthday cake.
Of course his new sister-in-law made sure to put 23 candles in itThe birthday hat that everyone must wear if they are celebrating at Aunt Pam's house.
Trey was a great sport about it!

After the birthday singing was over, it was time to get down to business and cheer on our Aggies. They sure did put up a great fight, and I was definitely proud to be an Aggie even if they did not pull out the win.Even the kids were cheering on their favorite team

While the big football game was on, there was another rivalry being revisited in the kitchen.
For as long as I can remember, my dad and my aunt have had holiday competitions of who can make the best chocolate pie. My great-grandmother's recipe started it all, and both claim that they can make it better than the other. Well, this Thanksgiving my Dad threw down the gauntlet and challenged my Aunt again.It was decided that there would be a blind taste test, with the judges being Poppy, Trey and my cousin Heath.Unfortunately Dad's did not get the greatest review. He claims it was because he was trying to watch the football game at the same time. ;)

Although my Dad always says you need a straw to eat Pam's, this year she was declared the winner with this beautiful pie.
Hope everyone else had a great Thanksgiving!

Friday, November 20, 2009

Favorite Things Friday

I have decided to start a weekly post about the favorite things in my life each week. Some weeks there may only be one or two and others there might be ten. This week have several:

1. So You Think You Can Dance- At the beginning of this season, I wasn't so sure if it was going to meet my expectations, but this week it finally did! I looked everywhere to put clips of some of my favorite dancers(Ashleigh, Jakob, Legacy, Katherine, Elenore and Ryan) but was out of luck. Darn!

2. Hot Cocoa- I LOVE when it starts getting colder and I can justify drinking hot chocolate. Although in Texas that only means in the 60s, I still look forward to it every year. Now that there is Cool Whip in a can, it makes me even happier!3. New Recipes- I absolutely LOVED this one, and it just randomly caught my eye when I was cutting coupons last week. It definitely has that fall feel/taste, and is super yummy!
Sweet Potatoes with Apples and Cranberries
Makes 4 Servings
1. Combine in Medium of Large Ziploc Zip N Steam bag:
  • 2 Medium to large sweet potatoes (about 1-1 1/4 lbs total), peeled and cut into bite size pieces (definitely make sure they are bite size otherwise they won't get done)
  • 1 Medium Granny Smith apple, cored and diced into small pieces (I think you could even use 2 because they were my favorite part)
  • 2 Tbsp. dried cranberries
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp. butter
  • 1 Tbsp. butter
  • 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
  • 3/4 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. cinammon
2. Seal bag and shake gently to combine ingredients. Put ingredients into single layer. Place bag in microwave.
3. Cook on full power for 8 to 9 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are tender. If needed, continue microwaving at 30 second intervals until sweet potatoes are tender.
4. Allow bag to stand for 1 minute before handling. Shake gently to distribute and then carefully open bag and serve.
I love the steam bags, and this was a way to make something that was delicious, kinda healthy and could even be served as a dessert!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

One Month

Yesterday was November 18th, one month since Trey and I got married.
The past month has flown by but it has definitely been the best month of my life.
I cannot wait to see what our future months hold in store for us!*These are the beautiful flowers my sweet husband gave to me. I do believe he is the best husband ever.*





"The best thing about me is you."
-Shannon Crown


Sunday, November 15, 2009

Fun-Day Sunday Update!

I figured it was a time to update everyone on the exciting lives of the Evans Family so here is what we have been up to lately.
  • Trey has been awesome (but a little crazy) and getting up at 5:30 every morning to go work out. Way to go babe!
  • Thursday- I was able to go try out the gym with Erin, and I really like it. It's definitely the nicest gym I've ever been to.
  • Friday- Trey and I went over to the Helm's for dinner, and after Trey and Doug went to the Woodlands to play poker. I stayed behind and hung out with Erin and the kiddos. We got to watch So You Think You Can Dance which is definitely one of my favorite things to do of all time. Trey ended up winning BIG and won the entire tournament which was awesome! My sister came to town late that night as well, and it was her first trip to see us and our new apartment.
  • Saturday- Caitlin, Trey and I went to the mall. There were some great sales, especially Bath and Body Works who has the antibacterial soaps 4 for $10! After the mall, we took Caitlin out to lunch at Pappadeaux because that crazy girl had never been there! We definitely spoiled the college kid, but we remember what it was like to be broke so it was worth it. Caitlin helped us pick out new curtains for our bedroom as well as some awesome chargers. I was sad to see Caitlin leave but hopefully we will see her soon!
  • Today- Trey and I decided to try out the church that is literally across the street from our apartment. We both really liked it and it might be the one that we continue to go to. Both of us have agreed that we want to try several before we decide on our church home for sure. Also, today Trey and I joined the gym! That's right people we are getting healthy and in shape! I am super excited and my goal for the next few months is to get in good enough shape to run a 10k and not die. Today was great and I am really feeling like we are settling into Houston!
Just to make you smile here are some pictures of our puppies!

OscarOscar is the reindeer costume Caitlin brought for him (I will try to get a better picture of it Mom)Bella..so ugly she is cute!
Bella in her new winter attire (I couldn't resist it was in the dollar section at Target!)Doesn't she look happy about wearing it?!

Hope everyone has a marvelous week!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Marriage

"How's married life?"

"What's it like to be married?"

These are questions I seem to be getting a lot lately. "Married life" is great, but honestly it does not feel very different than before. Trey and I have talked about this, but it just feels the same except now we live together and have the titles of "husband and wife." I am experiencing life every day with my best friend, which I guess is what it feels like to be married. Still, whenever someone asks those questions, I pause to think about it, what is married life "supposed" to feel like?

Of course there are times when I notice a change in myself because I get excited about our new vacuum or my new Silpat. I don't know if I would have been this excited over these things a year ago. Maybe it's the domestic wife coming out in me. I even started cutting coupons. But do things like this really make a marriage? No, of course not.

Being with the person you love most in the world is what a marriage is. Standing beside them and saying I will be there with you no matter what, that is marriage. And although we are not feeling very different than before, I am loving every minute of being married.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Wedding

I am so anxious to see our professional wedding pictures and I know that everyone else is as well. BUT unfortunately it will be probably be a couple more weeks. I mean can you imagine editing hundreds and hundreds of pictures...it would take me months I'm afraid.
While I'm waiting though, I get such joy out of looking at all the amazing moments that so many of our family and friends were able to capture. Thank ya'll so much! Especially Erin, you did an amazing job at capturing moments I would never have seen at the rehearsal dinner.
I thought I would put a few of my favorites here to share with everyone so enjoy!
Pomander

My girls at rehearsal

Practicing with Alivia

The guys practicing their dance moves at the rehearsal

My best friends

Trey and Paw-Paw before the ceremony

Mom cheering on the flower girls

First Dance

The Bridesmaids minus Whitney

Part of our amazing wedding party

The Evans'

Gold TOMS

Thank you again to everyone that took pictures that day! I cannot say it enough!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Zooooooo

Yesterday I was lucky enough to go to the Houston Zoo with my newly acquired big sister, Erin, and my adorable niece and nephew. I had such a great time and the weather was gorgeous. I absolutely loooove the zoo because it brings back so many happy memories of my childhood here in Houston. The animals were all pretty active and we got to see many of them up close. Erin took some great pictures and you can see them on Erin's Blog.
I can't wait to make another trip downtown to see some more animals! Thanks Erin for taking me along on such a fun trip, I hope to do it again soon!

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Here Goes Nothing

I have decided to start blogging so that I can keep all our friends and family updated on our lives. We are just getting settled into our apartment, and Trey is finally beating the flu. I am loving married life and am feeling so blessed each and every day to have such an amazing husband.
This post is short and sweet because I just wanted to see how the site works, but I promise there will be more exciting posts in the future!