real apple pie

Quinn and i are currently at my sister and brother in law's house with their two little boys. One morning Hendrix (2 1/2) and i were playing with play dough making the usual pizzas and snakes, when he decided he wanted to make a pumpkin pie- I'm guessing it's because of his love for pumpkins, i decided I'd make an apple pie. I started with the crust and added little balls for apples and topped it off with the top crust with slits and all- looking just like a real apple pie- only about an inch in diameter, and the color of about 5 play dough colors smooshed together. Hendrix completely bored with his half made pie was looking at mine with intensity and suggested it was a real apple pie and that we should eat it. I responded by explaining how a real apple pie was made, with real apples, putting it in the oven to bake and so on. After a moment of deep thought he suggested we make a real apple pie and then we should eat that one. So off to the kitchen we went and made a real apple pie, that we really ate.



i even cut out a little apple out of the dough

amused by warning signs

So i was at work one day (doing one of our temp jobs) at the laundry mat, when i noticed this.... almost gruesome warning sign. i started to notice them everywhere in the shop. i found it amusing and quite frankly hilarious, i just had to photograph them because i knew Quinn would appreciate them, which he did. So time passed and soon we found ourselves in Yellowstone and Quinn showed me a snapshot of a geyser warning sign he took. Yet another sign for us to adore and laugh at. So now we're sharing them with you, we hope they amuse you as they have for us.

Tina, eat the Food!!!

This is my most recent accomplishment in the artistic area. If you don't recognize it i hope it's because you are not familiar with the movie Napoleon dynamite, because frankly i'm quite proud of it, not because it's a spectacular piece, but because through out my drawing/art classes in college (and prior) i've dreaded prismacolors and pastels- mainly because i bite at those mediums. But recently at an art walk i saw some awesome portraits done with various shades of one to two colors used with prismacolors, thus i was inspired, so here's my first attempt since the frustrating fruit bowls a few years back.

i'm done- and life goes on.....

So i am very happy to announce my 200 hour yoga teachers certification, it was ABSOLUTELY one of the best experiences for me yet! It's amazing how much information can be stuffed down your throat....ears....nose.....basically every pore- in a fairly short amount of time. My Instructor Nancy would constantly repeat how we were sponges soaking it all in, and one day we'd realize the information stayed and we'd find ourselves ringing it all out drip by drip to others, and i am fortunate to have had this exact experience last Tuesday (just yesterday) where i taught my very first volunteer yoga class to a group of girls (and quinn of coarse) i was very pleased. Especially afterwards when the girls were all shocked it was my first time teaching (outside of quinn and my fellow yogi classmates), i decided to make it a regular activity for the girls since they were practically begging.....hmmm ok maybe not begging, but you know.

Aside from all the great yoga business, other details of life have kept us quite busy and entertained. There's so much going on in Bozeman we decided to each grab a hand to join in on the ring around the summer fun. We have been to farmers markets-a farmers market like i have not ever before seen- more like a festival with; food, entertainment, and handmade goods to buy.

lunch on the lawn-where there's a groovy band playing on this wooden stage, an ice cream truck, and then little sun soaked kids with their sponge bob pops melted on their faces and cute summer dresses chasing all the dogs, and the big moose character (which i have yet to connect to anything), mingling adults, all just basically "hangen' out" on the lawn eating their packed lunches.

Art walks-where it all starts at the cultural center (my old school) there's all different artist's art work, and food, and pretty summer chilled drinks that you take along with you all through-out main street where you stop into all of those shops and find more and more art work from all the people in bozeman. 

We've been camping with the mosquitoes and fishing with none caught- i always look forward to the roasting of the marshmallows for smores anyways. Swimming- both at the loud, kid trodden pool (where quinn likes to show off all of his misty flips, and double back flips for all the kids- who wouldn't with all of their oohs and awhs- and the glancing back to me making sure i didn't miss it while i'm bathing my bod in the sun. ) and swimming at "bozeman's beach" but really a lake with the lowest grade of "sand" possible- but it serves it's purpose- i sure do love resting a-float the water on our $3.99 fluorescent pink and yellow floaties. 

We've taken advantage of every possible festival, in-fact we  volunteered for the upcoming sweet pea festival doing face painting which was awesome! I especially loved that all the kids i painted wanted hearts and rainbows while all of quinn's kids wanted horses jumping over a sea of mermaids, and batman driving the batmobile....it was great watching quinn's eyes widen and convince that just a rainbow or  just a bat might be even cooler. We've even gone to butte's festival where we happened to pick up two hitch hikers alex and kenny who happened to be in a band who happen to know quinn's best friend who is in a band and who also happen to hang out with quinn's other highschool buddy who is also in a band- separate band. (Yeah i was a little confused at first too.) 

So my point to All of this is that we really are liking bozeman so we are moving here to stay FOREVER!!!! Ha yeah right it's great but let's be realistic here it's us you're talking about, plans ever changing and new ones evolving- but while we've been here we have thoroughly been enjoying ourselves and the lovely Bozeman Montana- who said there wasn't any thing here anyways? 

we're HERE!

So as you all know we made it to good ol' montana and we are very much enjoying it here, despite the CONSTANT rain since the day after we got here, minus the occasional spurts of sunshine for a few hours-that we have really learned to appreciate. But guess what? We got an apartment and it is our 3rd day in this cute tiny semi-studio apt. We decided it to be the better option paying $475.00+utilities a month having a place of our own, that is just a walk away from down town (where quinn works and my school is) verses paying $490.00-$525.00 a month for a camp spot that is well..... a longer walk away from town......a 7-10 mile walk away. 

Since being here at our new pad it has relieved me of hopping from place to place as each one closes finding a spot to stay warm and dry while a place suitable for studying, when quinn is at work. Now when i hear those familiar voices over the intercom informing exactly what i'm trying to ignore,

  "the time is now 5 'till 7-8-9 and we will be closing, please bring your items to check out" 

i don't sink into my skin with the dread of figuring out where i'll be at next, infact now i'm never there to hear it, i'm at home studying, staying nice and dry...and warm. It's been fun to be in our van for a taste of what's to come after these few months in montana, i think we'll be fine- and even better if it doesn't rain everyday:) 

here's our new place, it looks way cooler in person- so i guess if you want to see it, you'll have to come and say hi- we won't even make you stay in Erv- unless you want to of coarse.

CLICK ABOVE TO SEE.

This is my bRittany, nelli!

What is my new name? nelli, nilla, nilli? It has been interesting trying to re-invent myself at 22 considering just about everyone in my life has known me as brittany, although i did get my NEW name inspired from all those old friends who called me vanilla-wafer, vanilla, and even nilla- (originated from my maiden name VILLANUEVA). Poor quinn has had the hardest time with his introductions- this is britt-errr-nellie, nilla, nilli.... one time he was leaving a message inquiring about an apartment and on the message he said, (with-out even realizing) said "please just call me and my brittany nelli back at 801......) it was quite hilarious. I must admit though, even i find troubles introducing myself because of my indecisiveness of sticking with one name. And now i'm afraid i'm in too deep, as people now have already been introduced to me as nelli, nilli, or nilla depending on my mood. This is going to be interesting for the people in Montana being involved in the mix of my identity crisis! However i did finally decide on introducing myself as Nilli, and then people can choose to call me Nilli, Nilla, or Nel that way i kinda get three names, a name that just so happens to NOT be the name of about 1 in every three girls, and a way to keep my maiden name a part of me:)  So hello everyone i am Nilli!

AnderSon fAm.

He's here! we got our new addition Erv, and  the Anderson family (my sister, brother-in-law, and nephew) got theirs baby Avi jude anderson (otherwise known as avi-cado)- and danget i have to admit he's a lot cuter. We were fortunate enough to go to Colorado before arriving  to Montana to see the magic of the old family of three turn into the new family of four. Although going to the all the art shops, shows, delicious food joints, and local stores, was entertaining and so much fun, I'd have to say that the most entertainment we experienced was just being there around family especially if your family is Hendrix. He was always so willing to help with any entertainment he felt we might be lacking, by the show of our "boredom" body language through our, sitting down, laying down, or watching a movie, and i must say he picked up on it rather quickly, so to cure our "boredom" he would do things like:

say "come ere, i wan to sow you sumting" as he grabbed for your hand and lured you either to his room as he shut the door behind you, making sure you didn't leave right away, or as he swung open the child-proof gate (if it happened to be left open) and started heading for the basement sliding on his stomach on the bumpy, hairy slide- the stairs. No matter which place he's lead you to, it's quite possible he really didn't have "something" to show you. Well at least not until he's looked around while repeating that same phrase, perhaps to stall a bit until he's found it, the thing he was going to show you. His cars, play-dough, his plastic food, or perhaps a remote control or blanket. Always leading to hours of delight and laughter. 

another example might be him rolling up and down the living room, stomach down on a long board and then realizing that after saying that all of the three boards lying around beside him were all his, ultimately meant playing alone, he decided that we could and even NEEDED to use one of HIS boards. He got up and took my hand to the board he had prepared for my to lay on, and as i sat he said "no, like this" as he laid on his tummy and rocked to and fro up and down the hardwood floors, i joined in on the rolling and tried to avoid the bumping into the wall and desk that every time drix "accidentally" bumped would look up eyes wide open and eye brows up saying "oh no, hurts da wall."  

These are just two of the many examples Hendrix provided us with while staying in Colorado, we miss him and the fam already! And especially the constant entertainment from drix- and his mommy and daddy (nat and jon -sista and bro-in-law) who we always end up laughing so hard natalia cries or i pee, or natalia does both ha! We are so excited for avi that he has such a great big brother (2 years old) and great mom and dad, and we are especially excited for his own little personality come out even more than all the giggles and smiles and snorting he's already shown us.

click at the top to see the fam.