Completed Construction

Yes- it's here.

Finally.
My parents renovations.
Although those people most anxious to see it have most likely already seen it.....
So if you are the select few that haven't seen it...... What in the world are you thinking????? COME SEE US!!!!!! ;)
Until then, here's some pics. (If you want the total effect- here is the before/during post

http://trbrockmann.blogspot.com/2011/06/bonkers-current-state-of-affairs.html )

I think my third favorite thing added would be the kitchen sink.... super deep, trendy, has a hot water dispenser (yay for no more microwaved hot water), and has a super cool water sprayer that I have yet to have a water fight with..... April fools anyone??? (*insert evil laugh here*)Taking down the railing really opened up this whole area... even with a couch sitting there.Not much was done to this room but I shared it to be consistent... basically just painted and rearranged.Probably my favorite thing put in...turns on when Naomi or Nikki says "on". It's true. Now that's true magic..... (ssshhhhhhh) Sadly enough this is probably my second favorite thing... i don't know.... it's just kinda a nice relaxing place to do laundry and I love the big high shelf for folding (and it's on hinges for easy access to the back of the washer and dryer)My fourth favorite would be that sink and counter..... it's more modern than I would have thought my parents would go (hehe- watch me get in trouble for that one...) and I love it. The counter is sparkly. The sink is pretty deep with divots and let just face it- photogenic. And the counter height seems to be taller than what we had before.So there you have it. Now you know why the kitchen makes me feel like baking all the time. And yeah- the whole kitchen is probably the grand prize winner for my favorite item. It feels like there is so much space and room to move.
Hhhmmmm speaking of baking........ I think it's time to visit my mother..........

Feeling another baking post coming on,

Ti-Ti

Commencement to Cooking in 2012

Okay so I decided- it's a new year- it's time for a new letter. Perhaps you haven't noticed, but every one of my post titles has started with "B". I've decided to go alphabetically on to "C". Yes, yes, I know I forgot the "A"... but...well.... oh, well. ;)
So to start the new year right- I give you another baking post.

Pumpkin Cream Trifle So- this is a bit of a late post... I did it around Thanksgiving, but pumpkin is for all seasons of life.
I made this for a potluck at church so I did everything before hand for easy assemblage (cool word, right?) for Sunday morning. You can't make a Trifle too early- the cake gets mushy.

These are both needed things- Starbucks White Mocha and a recipe.
We start with the spice cake.
While you do use box spice cake mix you don't really follow the box directions.
Add one package of Cheesecake pudding mix. The recipe actually calls for Vanilla pudding mix but all I had was Cheesecake flavored.
Add 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 vegetable oil.
and 3 eggs
and 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
Add one cup pumpkin puree (You could make your own but well.... it's easier to just used the canned version)
Pour this into a lightly grease pan and cook in a 350* oven for 45 to 50 minutes.
And that's really the only cooking that this takes. Next we mix together the cream stuff. And yes, I tend to not wash out my dishes if I can get away with it. In this case, I can because it will only give the cream a bit of color and variety..... and well.... I can.
This is super easy-
cheesecake pudding mix 2 cups cold milk
and 2 cups whipped topping(or, you know... a couple big spoonfuls) Then you just keep this in a container until you're ready to put it together.

Assemblage (yep- it was so cool I had to use it twice)
Cut the cake into about 1 in squares.
Layer the cake on the bottom level.
Then smooth a layer of the cream on top of this.
Add butterscotch chips
and Heath pieces. (I was going to put nuts in this but... kinda forgot and then... well... didn't feel like getting them.)
Keep layering until dish is full. Add butterscotch chips and Heath pieces on top for decorations. I also added carmel whipped topping (the kind in a can) but this melts off pretty quickly, so only add it right at the end.
And there you have it.
Here's the full recipe in case you want to make this yourself:

1 (18.25 oz.) spice cake mix
1 (3.4 oz.) vanilla (or cheesecake) flavored pudding mix
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup water
1/2 vegetable oil
3 eggs
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
Mix ingredients together and pour into lightly grease 9x13 pan. Cook in a 350* oven for 45 to 50 minutes.

2 cups cold milk
1 (3.4 oz.) cheesecake flavored pudding mix
2 cups whipped topping
Mix together until smooth. Keep refridgerated

Butterscotch chips
Heath pieces
Layer these with cream mix and cake.

Trying to catching up with posts,

Ti-Ti

Bucket List

Did you know that a bucket list will tell you a whole heap of things about a person? It's kinda like reading the secret journal of a dreamer.

So I've been saying, "that's on my bucket list" a lot lately and got to thinking.... do I actually know everything that's on my bucket list? Hence the reason why I've decided to write a blog with most of my bucket list on it. Perhaps it's something like new years resolutions of sorts. Or maybe it's just because I like to dream. Or maybe it's just me being the little old weirdo me. I'm sure it's not complete and will most likely change or grow in the next 2 hours, but at least I have most of it written down now. And by the way, they aren't in order of doing them.....

TI-TI'S BUCKET LIST:

1- Go skydiving at least once.
2- Bungee jump from a bridge.
3- Visit Ireland or Scotland with a "model" and my camera.
4- Visit Australia for the accent.
5- Go inside Big Ben.
6- Get something(s) from Tiffany and Co.
7- Eat a pastry at a small outdoor cafe in France while wearing a french scarf and boots.
8- Fly (or co-pilot) a plane.
9- Ride in a private jet with the ginormous seats.
10- Drive a Z3 or Z4.
11- Drive over 100 mph for more than 5 minutes.
12- Learn to ski.
13- Learn a "Jane-Austinish" dance.
14- Stay in an English cottage for a week.
15- Go to a concert (such as a Buble', Groban, Steven Sharp Nelson, etc.)
16- A secret one. (Hey- everybody has to have at least 3 secret bucket list items that they don't share with everyone.)
17- Have my own photography business. (like with an actual studio and building)
18- Learn the cello.
19- Drive/ride on a fire truck.
20- Ride an elephant.
21- Go hand gliding.
22- Visit an orphanage in Africa.
23- Climb to the top of the fire ladder.
24- Learn sign language.
25- Film a (mock) music video in a field of wild flowers.
26- Another secret one.
27- Jump on a moving train.
28- Go on a cruise.
29- Name a star after me.
30- Do a newborn photography shoot.
31- Be in the delivery room when my future niece or nephew is being born.
32- Go on a missionary trip out of the United States.
33- Teach a photography class.34- Spend the day with a trained chimpanzee as my companion.
35- Win a photography contest.
36- Go to a Beth Moore Seminar.
37- Go to a Broadway show.
38- Have a photo shoot with an old row boat. (rather Anne of Green Gable-ish)
39- Another one of those secret ones. (like I said- 3 or so per bucket list)
40- Adopt from another country.
41- Ring the bells in an old church.
42- Develop film in a dark room.
43- Go to the moon (or outer space- far enough to see the earth and then turn off the gravity thing and float ;)).
44- Highlight my hair with an outrageous color.
45- Have a plaque put on the pole I knocked down.
46- Meet someone famous. (like my cello hero- Steven Sharp Nelson)
47- Buy a house.
48- Have a closet just for shoes.
49- Write a complete novel or devotional.
50- Listen to Chuck Swindoll preach in person.
51- Have a song dedicated to me.
52- Learn to drive stick.
53- Shoot a gun.
54- Meet Nick Vujicic. (If you haven't heard of him- you should look him up.)
55- Ride on the back of a motorcycle.
56- Visit an island with a private beach just for me.
57- Get in a cab and yell "follow that car!"
58- Ride in a hot air balloon
59- Be in a flash mob.
60- Have these words written on my headstone: "Beloved daughter, compassionate sister, adoring aunt, and devoted friend. Who loved her God first with all her heart, lived her life with the excitement of a puppy, and saw the world through a camera lens."
TI-TI'S COMPLETED BUCKET LIST ITEMS:

61- GET A PUPPY- yeah, the one with the goofy grin. No, the other goofy grin. (who is currently alternating between trying to help me type things out and licking my face-probably because I just had a candy cane- and snoring and twitching in her sleep)
62- Try "exotic" food such as calamari or sushi.
63-Read through the Bible in a year.
64- Go to Disney Land and World.
65- Have a nickname.
66- Dance in the rain/splash through puddles. (this one's been done a ton.)
67- Ride a horse.
68- Wear super tall/very barbie-ish shoes.
69- Start a traffic jam by looking and pointing at nothing on the side of the road going up into the mountains.
70- Go to Washington, D.C.
71- Be in a play, bigger than a little skit.
72- Learn an instrument other than the piano.
73- Put my feet in the Atlantic and Pacific.
74- Plead guilty in court. (I just had to add that one.)
75- Have my own office/largish cubical.
76- Put someone in my trunk and drive away.
77- Sing in Handel's Messiah.
78- Get Italian shoes.
79- Start a fire.
80- Be snowed in significantly.
81- Be in a silent movie.
82- Ice skate outdoors.
83- Stay in a beach house.
84- Go trick-or-treating.
85- Have an article of clothing from another country. (Irish scarf)
86- Stay up all night.
87- Do an engagement shoot.
88- Become an aunt.
89- Be a maid of honor at least once.
90- Fly by myself. (you know- not pilot, but ride. Hey- this is a big thing, people.)
91- Start a blog.
92- Learn CPR. (But I was like 10 so I probably need a refresher course.)
93- Prank call someone and have them believe me for a good long while.
94- Go to camp at least once.
95- Release a bunch of balloons into the air.
96- Get on the President's list in college.
97- Ride in a convertible.
98- Get paid for my photography.
99- Direct a play.
100- Get my own car.
101- Have texting like a normal person.
102- Wear a hoop skirt.
103- Read a book a week for a year.
104- Hehe- a secret one. ;)
105- Become a one-time-volunteer sidewalk performer in Disney World.
106- Ride in an old car.
107- Sing a song in a different language.
108- Have a photo shoot in a coffee shop.
109- Dance at a wedding.
110- Ride in the back of a police car.
So there you have it. My list of things-to-do-before-I-kick-the-bucket and my completed list. It took me 2 weeks to complete this blog because I kept thinking of things to put in. Like I said- it will most likely change in the very near future. I way too adventurous and ADD to have this stay the same. But all that being said- I'm kinda weird, ey?

Have a merry New Year!

Dreaming big,

Ti-Ti

Brushed Aside

Sometimes I think that the month of November is rushed through. People start listening to Christmas music (don't even get me started on that one. I kinda, sorta have a little tiny bit of a firm rule about that. But don't worry. If I happen to get in your car while you are listening to a silly radio station that is commercializing the Christmas season and hoping to make an extra buck by playing Christmas songs an entire month early, I won't hurt you..... too bad..... if you run fast), rushing to get all their shopping in, counting the days (or sometimes even shopping days) until Christmas, planning all the parties for December, start baking or planning what they will bake, and on it goes. It seems they not only forget that there is such a thing as November but they also forget what November is all about.So there's something that I randomly did in the month of October (very randomly) and have decided to do every day in the month of November. In a happy notebook (covered with snoopy, a rainbow, and a flower with the words "dream big" on it), I've started recording what I like to call "Smiles from God."

You know, those sometimes little things in life that we often think, "Aww, that's cool. It makes me smile." Those sometimes bigger things in life that we often think, "Wow, I've never seen that happen." Or even those sometimes middle things in life we often think, "That was neat. Don't see that too much."

Did you ever think that these things are God's way of cheering you up, letting you know that He was in control, or simply telling you to stop being so stubborn and negative and start to be thankful for the little things?

And so for the month of November, I'm going to be writing something everyday that I am, or should be, thankful for.

Here's my completely random list from October to help me illustrate my point (hopefully now that I'm going at this hard core, I'll be more organized about it..... doubtful)

10-11-11~ Free coffee at 3 Coffee & Roastery. [Thanks Ben.]

10-19-11~ Lovely lady telling me I always look put together on a day that, well, let's just say I don't feel "put together." [sometimes that feels like everyday.]
10-22-11~ Dollar found next to my lost phone at the park. [no, not my dollar. That'll teach me to complain about loosing my phone again.] 10-28-11 ~ That awesome moment with a friend when you shout the same thing with the same tone and then burst out laughing and realize how neat it is that you both geek out about the same things. [like finding a store in a big city after looking for it in the wrong spot for 15 minutes and then deciding to move on to the next store only to find the one you were looking for is right next door.]

10-26-11~ A snow day with my mom, just chilling by the fire. [I love my mommy and doing nothing with her.] 10-27-11~ Finally bringing my car into the shop for an oil change -nervous about the cost- and with coupons and bringing my own oil- end up paying only $9.00. [less than half of what I thought it would cost]


Told you it was random. I'll probably post another blog about this maybe at the end of November, beginning of December. I'm sure my "smiles" will be so random as to be amusing.

And you know it's kinda funny. Mike mentioned something a few Sundays ago about how we see God's "Mercies Anew" and how that played out practically in our lives. I guess this is my answer to that question... and I even thought of it before he talked about it.

You should join me.


Thankful,


Ti-Ti

Beloved: We are Gathered Together Today....

So here it is. One of the long awaited posts.
No, not Jenni and Lance's wedding. Not quite, although that one is nearing completion.
Nor is it the second most longly awaited blog about house renovations, although decorations are nearing their completion as well.
This is Stephanie and John's wedding blog- hence the weddingish title (don't you like the word hence.... it's right up there with mayhaps and skaplooshing).
div>I have a few more pictures that I'm going to put up on facebook after I send the CD to the Aardsma family.... so yet another thing for you to wait impatiently for. (P.S. Aardsma's it should be in the mail by Monday or so)

At first I had only filled this blog with pictures.... and then I got to thinking about how that doesn't really tell the whole story of the wedding. And then I got to thinking about what the whole story of the wedding was exactly. And so I decided to kinda break down every day I was in South Carolina for you. Don't worry, there are still pictures mixed in and more at the end.

Let's see if I can even remember this....

Wednesday-
You pretty much heard all about my Wednesday with my previous post about flying. Yep, that's pretty much all I did Wednesday. One thing that wasn't mentioned was that I flew out with the Senn's, but neither of us were properly introduced at that point so we hadn't the foggiest we were traveling together. We could have had lunch together at Atlanta. We also went out to eat with family, after touring Brittany and Kenny's new house, and of course, goofing off with masks.Thursday-
Today was spent decorating the church, playing with flame throwers- I mean lighters, cutting ribbon, tying string, and me bruising myself up royally... you know. General, clumsy things like running myself over with a cart, falling through a chair, almost falling off ladders, and sticking my finger with push pins. The church isn't finished yet, but is very close.Friday-
Woken up by Anj and pretty soon the whole family is in the room on the bed, just chatting. Then it's back to the church we go. More decorating to be done. Katie and I head off to the clubhouse to check on decorating in there. We set up all the tables and chairs and find out the table cloths we have don't work at all... they are a strange combination of too short and too long. We head back to the church and then pretty much directly back out to Walmart to get plastic table cloths. After a needful stop at Chick-fil-a we head in, only to find they don't have enough of the gold design ones so we combine it with the silver. And then it's back to the clubhouse to put them on...... and guess what? The gold design is only on the side of the cloth, barely visible.... that's not very nice. Then it's off to get our nails painted and some down time with the bride (who is looking a bit stressed). Then it's off to change for the rehearsal. The bride is looking less stressed now. A few bridesmaids decided to bring their shoes to practice with......... we all decided that we will throw our shoes at the preacher if he goes over 10 minutes. And now we head off the the rehearsal dinner, hoping not to get lost in the dark. And then home to bed.....

Saturday-
Strangely I don't think the dogs were the ones to wake any of us up this morning. Steph gets ready for her hairdresser to come at 9ish. I attempt to get ready while also playing photographer for Steph. We all head to the church to finish getting ready while I again try to combine curling my hair with photography...... (does it smell like burnt hair in here to you??) And then I take pictures of Steph getting in her dress with her mom and sisters. How many Aardsma's does it take to put on a wedding dress? Then we send the bride off for a first look. Now I can concentrate on getting ready......(this church is sadly lacking in plug ins). And then we head off to join the couple in a park for pictures. Just a hint for you all: don't try to rock climb with 5 inch heels. Doesn't work so hot... neither does walking in mud. But I'm a Colorado girl who normally rock climbs barefoot anywho. Then it's back to the church to wait...... and then the dreadful, awful, terrible, horrible moment comes. We must all put our shoes back on and walk down an aisle and stand for 45 minutes. Oh, and it's time for the wedding. After a few tears from the bridesmaids (from the shoes, of course), Stephanie is now a married woman. Then some more pictures with family and the reception. But the day isn't over yet. After we send the couple off (with Mr. A hiding in the back seat....lol) we all head to meet the couple at the clubhouse. And more pictures of family, then good food and another goodbye to the couple. This one's for real. Some of us head back to the church to get some things that were left there. We of course had forgotten the church key and so we stalked around banging on windows and doors, shivering in thin dresses. What about clean up? you ask. This was the most awesome wedding I've been too. Stephanie had a couple families in the church volunteer clean up for us. It was amazing. And then it's home to change into sweats and then to the video store to drown our sorrows in an action/adventure movie, in which we all promptly fall asleep.

Sunday-
Well- the important part of my story is over and so after sleeping in, finishing our movie, and a lovely, filling dinner, I head to the airport and home. In which travel, I lose a most valuable piece of jewelry. No, this isn't Barbie speaking. This is sentimental and teary eyed Ti-Ti, the one you don't see too much. Between the Greenville airport and getting on the plane in Atlanta I seem to have lost my graduation bracelet. This is the one that everyone in my family had given me a charm for and present to me at my highschool graduation..... and yes, I'm very teary eyed about it, even now- 25 days later. And so on the plane to Denver I drew a picture of what was on it. Maybe some day for my birthday or some other event I will rebuild it..... And if you are ever in Greenville or Atlanta and come across something shinny that happens to look very similar... well, you know where to send it.
And that's my trip. Now you get more pictures....

I took a couple of ring pics of which I'm rather proud of.....Stephanie getting into her wedding dress..... You know, standing on chairs and crouching on the ground is my kind of thing. ;)
awww....
The loverly couple...The most beautiful Aardsma girls- except now they are the Lavertu, Senn, and Aardsma girls...
Looking for photography assistant jobs,

Ti-Ti