It's Official...

I'm trying to sell stuff. Okay, not just stuff, but cards. And there will be more later. But if you want to see the cards I have put up, go here:

http://www.artfire.com/users/kdlpepper

And feel free to buy it if you want it! There will be lots more soon!!

What do you think?

'Cause I think I need a craft room. I had to move the table to the living room so I could watch TV.



At least I have a model to show off my creations.

An Amazing Conversion

My father-in-law is the bishop of the single's ward here. He has a lot of people just going through and not staying very long in his ward. This last Sunday when Drew, Luke, and I went over for dinner, we were told that the missionaries and a girl visiting the single's ward was coming to dinner. The only things Mama Pepper really knew about the girl was her name, that her husband had passed away a year after they had been married, she's a convert to the church, and that she owns her own business.

Well, everyone arrived and we ate dinner. This girl was oh-so-pretty and sweet--just a nice LDS girl. I couldn't believe she was so young and had already lost her husband. During dinner she told us her conversion story. I hope she doesn't mind me retelling it, but I'm not mentioning her name, so hopefully it's fine.

She's from a small Texas town where she grew up Baptist and studied the Bible religiously. Her uncle is a pastor, so her family is really into their religion. She went to University of Texas on scholarship. She was a cheerleader. It was her first semester there and her next door neighbor kept leaving her little things about the church (notes with scriptures on it and the Book of Mormon and such). She said this next door neighbor of hers was really reserved and really only talked to her about the church. Her roommate told her "Oh, don't talk to her. She's a Mormon." But this girl didn't know anything about "the Mormons".

Her next door neighbor finally asked her if she would like to meet with the missionaries. "Will it hurt?" she asked. Obviously not, so the appointment was made and the mysterious and slightly odd next door neighbor ditched the girl with the missionaries. What made her KNOW there was something different about the church was this:

The missionaries asked if she had read the Book of Mormon. She had, but there were some things in there that didn't make sense. She wanted to know about baptism for the dead. "I've been studying the Bible my whole life and I've never heard of this," she told them. They then took HER Bible, the one she grew up with in her church, and looked up 1 Corinthians 15:29, where it talks about baptism for the dead. She knew then that there was something real and true about the Mormon church.

She was baptized 7 weeks later. She told her parents she wanted to transfer to BYU. They were hurt and upset but she went. She met a returned missionary but told him she didn't want to get married for a long time. He agreed. They were married after they graduated. A year later, he passed away.

This girl still has an amazing testimony of the church. She knows that her and her husband have been sealed for time and all eternity, so she takes comfort in the fact that they'll see each other again. She is an inspiration to me and her telling her conversion story to me has strengthened my testimony. She makes wedding dresses by hand and has started a company with a friend. I can only hope to be as strong as this girl someday.

LOVE

THIS

Let's Lose Weight!

Well, I'm going to try at least.

http://specialkathryndiet.blogspot.com/

I have decided to spare my regular blog readers the pain of reading about my latest diet adventures. Soooo...if you want to see if the Special K diet ACTUALLY works, check out my other blog every once in a while for the next two weeks.

STAR TREK

Okay, so here is my review on Star Trek. Just for a little background, I really can't stand science fiction. I know that's really closed-minded of me, but it's just one of those things. Like Drew can't stand Amy Adams after a couple hours of watching her act, ya know? Some things just rub ya the wrong way.

I definitely get rubbed the wrong way with sci-fi. (Which is kind of funny, because at BYU, I volunteered and helped with the science fiction journal there...hmmm.) ANYWAY, you get my point. Drew likes Star Trek. And Magic cards. Sooo, I was a little hesitant to watch the new Star Trek because 1. The whole sci-fi problem, 2. I don't know a LICK about Star Trek, 3. I don't want to feed Drew's nerdiness.

It was an okay movie. I didn't mind watching Chris Pine for 2 hours (although he kinda has a large forehead). And I like Zoe Saldana; she's a good actress. But aliens and stuff...too much like Star Wars--which I really don't enjoy. But the story line was pretty easy for me to follow as a non-Trekkie and there was action and romance, so it held my attention. I think what helped, too, was that we watched an hour and then a couple hours later we finished it up. We had to watch the debate for the Texas governors race.

I give it a B+. No, maybe an A-. Yeah, an A-.

Thursday's Craft

I got this clipboard at Elizabeth Barboza's AMAZING scrapbook sale:

and made it look like this for Luke's room:

Just Stuff

Just some stuff that has happened recently:

I won Sallie's Big Blog Giveaway!! I'm so excited for my cute hair flowers!!

We went to Round Rock (by Austin) for the past couple of days and while I was there the Wendy's employee gave me free fries! He said "Would you like some fries with that shake?" HA! Just kidding. But I for realies got the free fries.

Luke threw up on me TWICE today. Hopefully he starts feeling better, because I only have so many shirts.

Drew and I are trying to do something very grown-up, but we're having some trouble. More on this later.

My brother had a baby! Anthony Francisco Salas III is here!! And my brother Nick and his wife are due next month. That'll be three new babies in three months. Shuh-woo!

Drew's a hottie. But that's not really new.

My mom is coming next month for Luke's birthday! Woohoo!!!

Okay, that's about it. Oh, and I'm thinking about doing the Special K diet to see if it really works. I'll let you know about that.

Schmulie & Schmulia

So, the other day I thought I could be a good husband and make a BIG sacrifice. Instead of Redboxing a movie that would be middle ground, such as The Invention of Lying or Up, which is our common practice, I chose Julie & Julia because Kathryn had wanted to see it for awhile. Since we are too poor to pay $20 to see a new movie when it comes out, we wait and Redbox it for $1 and save a little money.

So, needless to say, Kathryn wanted to see it, so I got it. Big mistake.

Not only did I not like it, but I'm in the middle of Kathryn's favorite TV shows, American Idol and The Bachelor. And we have no cable, which means no ESPN.

The bigger problem is this movie debacle is smack dab in the middle of Gwyneth Paltrow's Emma, which was last weekend, and the new Emma from PBS starting tonight at 8 p.m. Not only can I not get away from Jane Austen (not to mention that all her book movies are exactly the same: some British people, some are rich, some are poor, some secretly fall in love with others and then have random outbursts of declared loved, and then some are ignored, and then we all feel bad, and then the lady decides she truly does love him, but maybe she is betrothed to someone or maybe shes not but she loves someone outside her socioeconomic status, but then something happens to where they can be together, and it all happens in like the 1800s - or at least every Emma, Sense & Sensibility, Pride & Prejudice or movie like that), but I wasted my time watching Schmulie & Schmulia.

Now, am I the only one that is starting to think Amy Adams is more like an annoying rash that just won't go away? Don't get me wrong, Enchanted was a great movie and Adams did very well. But since then, I have seen Doubt, Night at the Museum 2, and Julie & Julia and she is starting to bug me. Overexposure? Underacting? Overacting? I can't put my finger on it, but it's not enjoyable. On the flip side, Meryl Streep did really well.

I suppose this estrogen fest will end soon because the Winter Olympics are coming, but all this Lifetime-type of programming on top of Conan being kicked off is a little too much for me. If anyone wants a movie review of Julie & Julia, here it is: Two Poops down!

11 MONTHS!

My baby is 11 months old today! That means that next month...he'll be ONE. Holy cow.

I tried to let him feed himself today for his month-iversary. It turned out to messy, sticky, and just nasty. But he was having a blast.



































And then he needed this...
















11 MONTHS!!! Woohoo!

My Best Friend's Wedding

My friend Stephanie is getting married. We became best friends in high school when we were on the golf team and we had some CRAZY times. She is seriously one of the sweetest people I know. It was such a blessing to have her as a friend because she had a lot of the same standards I had, even though she's not Mormon. There were a lot of kids in high school that called themselves "Christian" but then went and drank on the weekends and got high and did all sorts of things that didn't seem very "Christian" to me or Stephanie. We actually called Merced High "Sodom and Gomorrah". Stephanie is a true Christian...she loves Christ and shows it through the way she lives. Too bad some of the people at Merced High didn't take a page out of her book.

ANYWAY...

I'm a bridesmaid for her wedding! This will be the first time I'll be a bridesmaid in a non-Mormon wedding...I'm kind of excited! Non-Mormon weddings are way more intricate and crazy and I think it's going to be loads of fun. It may cost me an arm and a leg, but Steph is worth it. This is the dress I'll be wearing (I'll have a little jacket that goes with it):



















It's from Alfred Angelo. Congrats, Steph!

Homemade Boots

Want to recycle an old sweater and some shoes you don't wear anymore? Do what I did and make a pair of BOOTS out of them!

I turned these:















into these:



















































Just go HERE. Have fun!

Snuggies and Ziplocs

Drew had to organize his work stuff the other day so we got out some Ziplocs and continued working, not thinking much about the mongo box of Ziplocs we put on the floor. Well, then this happened:















Yup, he pulled them ALL out.

Also, Luke is a baby. I know, shocker, right? Well, babies don't really know to keep blankets on themselves at night and Drew and I were getting worried about Luke because we don't want him to get super cold at night. One day I said, "I should invent a baby Snuggie." Well, Drew took that idea and never forgot it, because he came home one day with some fleece blankets and asked, "Can you make Luke a Snuggie out of these?"

Oh yeah, sure.

Well, lookie at what I did. I made a baby Snuggie. Pretty awesome, huh? However, when Luke woke up this morning, he was sans blankets. Blast.

Tunnel Vision

Luke and I played tunnel/fort today.

Not only did I burn a few calories but I'm pretty sure I also potentially ruined my jeans.

And my big butt made the blanket come down. Oh well, he was done with it by then anyway.

Luke's a celebrity!!

Well, not really. But he is on YouTube. Does that make him a semi-celebrity?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xujBSDwQQ08

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kt7kiwezfvQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSxVPqgQXmM



Yeah, our kid is cute.

Snow Buddies and other random things

(Corresponding photos below)

1. I got my wisdom teeth out. I tried to stay awake and tell the doctor that I really shouldn't have an IV because when I had Luke the nurses had to try, like, 5 times to get it right and by the time they were done I was traumatized. Yeah, I didn't stay awake long enough. I saw the doctor for maybe 2 seconds. I need that laughing gas stuff for nighttime. Anyway, I'm fine now; there was no bruising or swelling.

2. Christmas! This was Luke's first Christmas and even though he didn't really understand what was going on, I think he had a blast. We were at the Peppers for this Christmas and Luke got lots of great toys from his grandparents and great-grandparents.

3. Drew and I celebrated our 3 year anniversary on the 29th. Craziness. We went and saw Avatar and ate at Cici's Pizza (that was Drew's idea--feel free to mock him to your heart's content) on Monday and then on Tuesday we tried to go to the temple but Drew forgot his recommend so we ended up going and seeing New Moon and eating at the food court. Not the fanciest anniversary we've done, but I GUESS that's not the point.

4. It snowed here on our anniversary! It snowed and it stuck! And then the next day it was about 60 degrees. Texas weather is the craziest thing of my life.

5. Drew has been home for the past week and a half! It has been AMAZING! We've been hanging out and doing basically nothing. We've also been having a slumber party out in the living room, just because it's more fun. I wish he could work from home. Now that would be bombdiggety.

1. Me with my wisdom teeth bandages in my mouth. I was trying to see if my cheeks looked as big as Luke's. I lost.

2. Santa came (AKA Dad Pepper) but I don't think Luke realized who it was. He had a worried look on his face the whole time.

3. I don't have a picture of us celebrating our anniversary so this one will have to do.


4. Snow Buddies! Isn't his face priceless? It's still pretty new and it makes Drew and I crack up every time.


5. This is just to show that our bed is in fact in the living room. Drew loves throwing Luke on the bed and then he wriggles around trying to get out (Luke, not Drew).

Advent Loveliness

I made this advent calendar with the help of my friend, Melissa. I switched it up a little bit, but I'm pretty pleased with the results! It's actually super easy, so if you want to do it, you CAN!

Materials needed:

1 mini cupcake pan (must have 24 slots)
Magnetic sheets - I found them at Wal-Mart in the craft section. I needed two of their packages (super cheap)
Fun Christmas scrapbook paper
Glue
Numeral stickers or you can just write the numbers on it yourself

Directions:

Melissa and I used a magnet as the tracing object for the squares. Cut squares out of the magnetic sheets and then out of the paper. The magnetic paper I found was sticky on one side, so I was able to just attach the paper right to it. Cut out circles and glue them onto your squares and then number each square! And the more creative the better!

Christmas is just around the corner

I love Christmas time. I was feeling a little sad because in Utah you know it's Christmas time when the snow comes, but to my surprise, we got snow here in Texas! Not a lot, but enough to actually see! Now I know Christmas is officially almost here. I'm so excited for Luke's first Christmas! He's going to be so fun.















Can you see the snow falling? Oh yeah, that's our tree! It's fake, which makes me sad because it doesn't smell as nice, but it is convenient (no needles and no throwing the whole tree away later).

















At the Nativity our stake does every year. We love to dress up for the pictures! We're Mary, Joseph, and a little shepherd.

Spotlight: Fred Grazzini

While I was attending BYU, I was blessed with the AMAZING opportunity to work at Cougar Creations. Cougar Creations is the main copy center at BYU and is located at the social hub: The Wilk. I made some friends that I will never forget (quick shout out: Renae, Kyle, Kristin, Kara, Nathan, Glenn, and more). However, I could never forget our awesome supervisor/boss: Fred Grazzini. He has been the best person to work with ever. That's saying something; I've had a lot of jobs. Anyway, he is nice and funny and super sarcastic, so of course we got along great. Come to find out, Fred's a songbird! Like, a legit singer/songwriter! Who knew? We sure didn't! So, he shared with the Facebook community that he made his first CD ever and it's a Christmas CD, so it's just in time for the holidays. If you're looking for a great present that everyone can enjoy, shoot on over to this website and grab yourself a CD! And don't forget to read the bio and reviews!!

The Bachelor!

I just learned that Jake from the last Bachelorette will be the Bachelor next season. And that season starts Jan 4!! He claimed he was the "nice guy that always finished last." We'll see if he can score himself a good girl like himself...or maybe he's not as good as he proclaims.