that fall time of the year

Lately I've been seeing all of these wonderful post about fall! It makes me so incredibly jealous. While the rest of the world seems to cooling down and changing colors, we here in Arizona are still in 100 degree weather. I'm talking about shorts and short sleeves, trying to cool off everyday. 

So in the spirit of fall, I hope yall enjoy some of my favorite scarves I will be drooling over this fall season. 

a little butterfly wonderland

While commuting to work every day, I continually drive by this cute little building that was labeled as Butterfly Wonderland . Husband and I had the rare day off together last Friday and we decided that it was the perfect time to check this place out. It was a wonderful experience, that's for sure. 

These creatures are so beautiful and so thrilling. We mistakenly went early in the morning (we tend to be early risers) this turned out to be a good decision on our part. The sunrise made them so active, they were flying every which way. 

Husband didnt have any luck in getting one to land on him, I was able to have two and one that did not want to leave. After we spent time with the butterflies we got to see scorpions, bees and some stingrays. It was a cute little place and a very enjoyable one on one time with my husband. 

one chinchilla two, three chinchillas four

Most of y'all who know us know that we have a little bit of a chinchilla obsession. Over the last 3 and a half years of marriage we seem to be continually collecting these little creatures. 

I quite frequently find my self explaining to every person that I meet, about how on earth I ended up with four chinchillas. 

Pope, Cardinal, Bishop and Archie are our current fluffy butts that we have. On occasion we do pick up a few to hold for a local rescue here in Arizona. But four is our limit. 

Originally we had one. Pope the chinchilla. He had been my husband's family pet for a number of years. When we got hitched, we decided to pack up poor Pope from New Hampshire and fly him alllll the way out to Idaho to live with us.

 After a few months of living with us, I decided that he was lonely. Where he originally had been staying he had people constantly at his cage talking to him. Pope absolutely loves any and all attention.

We then set up a play date with some other local chinchilla owners. One thing led to another and we'll then there was two.

 Originally he was just going to stay the night...

Cardinal is what we call our derpy chin. You will frequently find him wide eyed in strange positions through out the cage. Once out he will clime to the absolute highest point he can possibly get to and stare at you until you chase him down. 

But, If there is one thing that I could say about Cardinal, it's that he absolutely adores Pope. From day one he has just wanted to snuggle and love up on Pope. The best part about it...Pope hates cuddling. I have sat and watched these two on so many occasions, it's absolutely hilarious. 

We have tubes in the cage for them to play and lay on and often we find Cardinal smooshed in with Pope on the same tube. Pope will knack and knack at him, occasionally Cardinal will move but majority of the time Pope will give up and accept it.

Because our first bonding of chinchillas had been so successful we frequently joked about getting another chinchilla for Cardinal to actually be able to snuggle with.

A few days after thanksgiving I made the mistake of walking into a petstore. Bishop the chinchilla was sitting very grumply and lonely in his plastic cage. I immediately knew I wanted him. And after convincing husband that this would be the best Christmas gift we walked out the door with our third chinchilla.

Bishop the chinchilla is a different kind of chinchilla. Chinchillas are animals of prey, scared and frightened little creatures. Bishop is none of these. He is aggressive, angry and has zero fears. 

Unfortunately he was and is unable to bond with other chinchillas. He will live by himself for the rest of his life. 

Over the year of owning him we have seen his temperment change and grow trusting of us. We hope to see him continually grow to become a better well behaved chinchilla. 

Back in  2014 husband was offered an incredible job, so we packed up our house and our Chinchillas and drove down to Arizona. It was quite an adventure to have three chinchillas stuffed in our car on a 14 hour drive. 

Shortly after moving to Arizona I met a wonderful woman here, who runs a rescue for chinchillas in the valley. One night she was unable to pick up a rescue chinchilla, she called me to see if we were able to. The chinchilla that we received had been so badly mauled that he had to receive an emergency amputation on his back leg. 

At this point in time we added our fourth and final chinchilla to our family. 

Archie the chinchilla is our youngest chinchilla of the four, and he is completely heart melting. He is very much a baby and has the sweetest temperament. He loves to be held and he loves to be loved. 

Due to his amputation he is unable to bond with Pope and Cardinal. They enjoy picking on him. 

Archie has been such a wonderful connection in our family and we are so grateful to have him brought into our lives.

late night walks in arizona

Late night strolls are always my favorite. In Idaho husband and I would frequently find our selves out and about wondering the streets of Rexburg at all hours of the night. Since the move to Arizona our walks have mostly been limited to early morning before the heat gets overwhelming. Last night husband and I decided late night stroll around his place of employment. What I thought would be a relaxing, enjoyable stroll turned into a terrifying attack...by cockroaches. Yes, the giant, little, aggressive, gross, disgusting bugs. Husband and I did not see just two, we saw ATLEAST 20, these things were everywhere. And the worst part about it was, they wouldn't let you walk by, no no they ran right for you. Husband would try to shoo them away so I wouldn't cringe but instead of going away they would turn and run straight at me! Needless to say husband was dying of laughter the entire time. I could not go two seconds with out being chased. 

Besides the war on bugs I was waging, the stroll was quite lovely. I really have been wanting to get out and take some images of the incredible night time sky. Its one of my personal goals before the year is over. I just find it hard because outside of Idaho, I do not feel comfortable wandering around at night by my self. One day though. 

Mormon Trail Hike

A year and a half later we are just discovering the true beauty of Arizona. Growing up I always imagined the desert as being this sandy, dry miserable place.  BUT there are beautiful landscapes everywhere I turn, and sand dunes really arent a thing, just dirt (lots and lots of dirt) and the sun rises & sets are completely breath taking. Every moment I set foot outside I am constantly amazed at the colors that are painted before me. 

Today, the husband & I hiked the Mormon trail to hidden valley. And to sum it up, as my wheezing, spazing body was trying to push its self further up the mountain all the while I was soaking up the incredible views. Once you reach the summit of the trail and turn around, you can see the ENTIRE valley. Phoenix, Tempe, Chandler,  and Scottsdale and so much more. It was such an incredible experience to stand next to husband and look out onto the valley that we live in. 

Grand Canyon

So, I have a million pictures that I want to share with yall. But its late, my parents are leaving AZ tomorrow and I really should get to sleep....so that I can sadly drive them to the airport. 

But I wanted to chance to share at least one image that I have been working on right now. Maybe a few words. 

This Thanksgiving week as been so incredible. The opportunities and the memories that I have made will stay with me forever.

 Being able to be with my family, standing at the edge of one of the worlds seven wonders has been uplifting and so inspirational. The fact that its only three hours away from me is even more thrilling. I can honestly tell you, you MUST go see it for your self. Pictures, no matter how many I took, do not do this wonder any sort of justice. When I walked up to Mather point and saw this view, my breath was gone. My mind blown. I couldn't believe that something like this existed. My husbands description of it was and I quote "a giant hole in the ground" haha. But there is something moving about this giant hole in the ground. 

I am such a lucky person to have the opportunities to have lived in Idaho (near Yellowstone) for several years and to now move to Arizona and have the Grand Canyon in my backyard. 

I hope yall enjoy the image and I look forward to sharing the rest as I finish them up. 

Chicken Cajun Pasta.

Hello All,

I am back again with another yummy blog post. This time its about my husbands all time favorite meal......Chicken Cajun Pasta. And can we take a moment and talk about how obsessed he is.....he asks me to make it at least four or five times  a week. He cannot get enough of it.

I originally got this recipe from the Pioneer Woman, but I adapted it for my own liking so.....enjoy!!!!

So we start off with some yummy veggies. I keep peppers frozen around here (get em when they are cheap!!!) and then we slice and dice them. I used five roma tomatoes, one onion and a handful of peppers (use as much as you want....we love peppers over here so we always have quite a bit)

Then we take some yummy chicken breast and chop that up into little bite size pieces. 

At this point we are ready for some cooking. Take a skillet and heat it up, put a little olive oil and butter in it. Once they are nice and hot throw in the chicken breast and sprinkle a little Cajun sauce on them. (if you are making a lot or use a lot of chicken, cook in batches so that there is no over lapping). Now after you throw the chicken in the pan.....just wait and sprinkle more Cajun sauce. Let them get nice and brown, then flip and wait on the the other side. After they are cooked completely, with a slotted spoon pull them out and set them to the side. 

Next, add a little more butter and oil and throw those veggies in there sans the tomatoes. Add a spoonful of garlic and some more Cajun sauce. After they are fragrant pull them out with a slotted spoon and set to the side (be sure to keep all the yummy juices in the pan)

At this point I would get your fettuccine cooking!!!! 

Now with all those yummy juices add a can of chicken stalk (if you make your own i add about four ice cubes) and let that simmer for about 5 minutes or until it starts to brown. 

Next add two cups of heavy cream. and whisk it all in. Let simmer and thicken for about 3 or 4 more minutes. You want this to become saucy!!! I also add more Cajun sauce here until I like the flavoring. 

After the sauce has thickened up throw everything back in there and add some tomatoes. Let cook on medium heat for about 6 more minutes. 

Next drain those noodles and get them into that pasta. Cook until everything is heated. 

Then add some parsley and voila....serve!!!!