Scottsdale

A couple of months ago Al told me that he had to go to Scottsdale for work so of course I had to tag along! I immediately booked my flight and had been counting down the days for 2 months! We finally went a few weeks ago and it was a much needed getaway that consisted of relaxing {me}, working {al}, eating and sleeping.

Al worked during the day so I just went to the pool and read {and slept}. It was perfect weather and soo nice to get away from the freezing UT weather. After Al was done working we would go out for the night to eat and shop!

Straight from the airport our first night there we met our friends Lauren and Eric at Sauce. We loved seeing them for the first time in a year and are glad they could meet up for dinner. Plus, Lauren introduced me to the best mac and cheese in the world!

The next day I went to the pool and then we went to Blanco for dinner and shopping at Fashion Square.

The pool! Ahhhhh it felt so good to be in the sun and have tan lines again!

The next night we went to Kierland Commons and ate at The Green House.

Then we over to Scottsdale Quarter for some H&M.

We woke up the next day and went to breakfast at The Good Egg.

Then we had to check out of our hotel so we went to Last Chance and scored some pretty awesome finds! Kind of a gross place but totally worth it!

Then we walked around Old Town Scottsdale, ate at Sauce again, then headed home.

It was a much needed getaway that was wayyy too short, but so much fun. We loved the good weather, delish food, Last Chance finds, good shopping, Trader Joe's....we are already wanting to plan another trip back!

grateful

Time for some more Mormon Messages! I saw these two the other day and thought they were so fitting for this week. I have so much to be grateful for this year. The main thing that I have learned this year is how grateful I am for such an amazing family and friends. You all have done sooo much for me this year and showed me so much support. I cant thank you all enough for caring about me so much! I have also learned {and am still trying to learn} to take advantage of all the small and simple moments and not worry so much about what I don't have, and to be happy with what I do have.

Happy Thanksgiving!

soup du jour

To say that I'm obsessed with soup lately is an understatement, I could eat it every day... & I pretty much do! It's the perfect, and not to mention, the easiest, Fall meal. I am always looking for new and good soup recipes....these are my favorites as of late, (mostly from my friends and family). Share yours if you have any goodies! :)

Taco Soup...everyone has a Taco Soup recipe but we like this one the best

1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained

28 oz. can crushed tomatoes

1 can corn, undrained

1 can black beans

1 can red kidney beans

1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing

1 packet dry taco seasoning

1 small onion, chopped

Combine all ingredients in crock pot, cover and cook on low 4-6 hours. (Or all day in my case since I work)

Garnish with Fritos, shredded cheese, sour cream, avocado....or toppings of your choice.

Easy Tomato Soup….from Abby

1 jar of Classico tomato basil sauce

1 16oz can diced tomatoes (blend in blender)

4 tsp garlic salt

2 tsp basil

Simmer for an hour and before serving add a pint of half and half, warm and serve!

Creamy Chicken Noodle with Wild Rice Soup…from Brooke

2 cans Cream of Chicken soup

2 cans Chicken Broth

1/2 - 3/4 can water (or until you get the consistency you want)

1 box Rice-a-Roni Long Grain & Wild Rice, cooked

1 packet dry Chicken Noodle Soup mix

Shredded chicken (amount is to your liking - I shredded a rotisserie chicken and 3/4 most of the meat)

Mix in pot and heat.

Mexican Two Bean Chicken Chili…from Kim

2 cups chicken broth

1 (16 oz) jar thick & chunky mild salsa

1 cup tomato sauce

1 medium zucchini, chopped

1 can black beans

1 can pinto beans

1 can whole kernel corn, drained

3 cups shredded chicken

1 garlic clove, pressed

2 tbsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

Toppings: Fritos, shredded cheese, sour cream, avocado, cilantro.

Directions:

Combine in pot. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes. Top with desired toppings and serve.

Just because Im bored at work.....

Ive seen this on a few other blogs lately, and Im sooo bored at work so here it goes.....

ABC's of me:

Animals: Not an animal person

Bed size: King, I don’t know how we slept in a Queen for so long. Kings are the best!

Chores that you hate: Cleaning showers/tubs, unloading the dishwasher, ironing

Daring: Not so much...Im a fraidy-cat

Essential to start your day: Laying in bed for 10-15 minutes letting myself wake up while looking at my email, facebook, blogs, etc.

Favorite color: Don’t have one

Gold or silver: Both…lately its gold.

Hate: Peanut butter, blue cheese, crude movies, insects, when I can’t fall asleep

Instruments you play: None

Job title: Executive Assistant

Kids: Would love to eventually have 4, but at this point I’ll be happy if I get 1 J

Loves: Alan, family, friends, my 3 adorable nephews, Church, food, TV, shopping

Movies: Lately I watch Just Go With It and The Proposal all the time, but I also love The Holiday, Ferris Bueller and The Count of Monte Cristo

Nicknames: Sar, Heart Sars, Janey, Sar Bear

Overnight hospital stays: None

Pet peeves: Rude drivers, when girls don’t wear their G’s on vacation-I will never understand why people think that’s ok, having to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, having to put gas in my car, people who only talk about themselves and never ask about the other person.

Quote from a movie or TV show: "We're adults. When did that happen? And how do we make it stop."-Grey's Anatomy, and pretty much every quote from Just Go With It

Right or lefty: Right

Siblings: 5

Time you wake up: I TRY to get up at 6:45, it rarely happens.

Uniqueness: Webbed toes

Vacation Dreams: Europe, Tahiti

What makes you run late: Everything!…Im a dilly-dallier and it drives Al nuts!

X-rays you've had: Um…..? Teeth I guess.

Yummy food you make: Anything sweet…I love to bake!

Zoo animal: Monkey

There you have it! Sarah in a nut-shell!

October

I cant believe it's seriously November! My last post was about summer and now its basically winter?? Not cool. Fall has been wayyyy too short as usual. I havent blogged in so long - Im trying to decide if I want to keep blogging, or maybe just go private. But until I decide here is a little recap of our October:

We love being able to go to General Conference downtown with my mom and dad. This past conference was so so good and I needed it so much. And it was a gorgeous fall day when we downtown which made it even better!

A few weeks ago before Sunday dinner at my parents we drove up the canyon to see the leaves. Fall in Utah is seriously the best!

We had a shower for Eliza at my cousin Abby's house. The food was soo good, you can't beat soup in Anthro bowls! :) Lize got some cute stuff and I am so excited for "T3" to arrive any day!

To celebrate the October birthday's in my fam (Chad, Katie and Brooke) and my parents anniversary, we had a family night at Gardner Village. We ate at Archibald's and walked around to see the witches.

The entire Bagley fam!

I looove Halloween. I love Halloween decorations and the smell of a pumpkin candle on a Fall night!

Alan's parents grew a ton of pumpkins in their garden this year and gave us about million of them so my sisters and Jon came over to carve them one night.

Mimicking our pumpkins

Al, Katie, Jon, Sar, Meg

Al playing in the leaves with Sawyer...such cute buds.

Jack-o-Lanturn pizza from Papa Murphy's!

Halloween!

Normally we have a few different dress-up parties but we didn't have any this year. This is the extent of Al's dressing up...a wig for 2 minutes.

I had to dress up for work so I recycled my Tinkerbell costume from a few years back.

I met up with some family for lunch to celebrate Brooke's Halloween birthday and to see cute Josh.

We ended the night with our awesome neighbors, Matt and Suzy's, Halloween BBQ. Their house is THE HOUSE to go trick-or-treating too. Hot dogs, hamburgers, hot chocolate, donuts, awesome decor, etc. Thanks for letting us stop by Matt and Suz! Then we went home and handed out candy to the cute neighborhood kids.

The end of October. Hopefully I'll do a better job blogging in November!