stop what you're doing right this second

Seriously. I've found the perfect summer fudgesicle for you to make. And you should probably make it right now. 

I'm sure you've seen this fudge pop  recipe floating around various blogs lately. I think I have 2 or 3 versions pinned to my 'sweets' board in Pinterest. On a whim, we picked up those little pop makers that you see everywhere at Ikea the other day and this little treat looked like the perfect way to test them out. 

I used THIS recipe to make them and it couldn't have been easier (side note, the blog is fantastic and has, are you ready for this? Healthy desserts and only healthy desserts! Win!) 

The ingredients?

3 frozen bananas

1 tablespoon cocoa powder (I had the unsweetned kind on hand)

1/2 c of Nutella (she also has a link for homemade Nutella on the blog if you want to get really fancy) 

a splash of vanilla

a pinch of salt

Throw everything in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour them into molds (they fit perfectly into my 6 Ikea pop molds) and toss them in the freezer! done and done. 

They are so delicious and I can promise you I will be living off of these this summer. I may have already eaten 5 today. 

{insta}pendence day

Happy 4th of July weekend. 

Yesterday Todd and I enjoyed the day off by being thouroughly lazy. We slept in, went out and bought a fire pit, and then roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. 

We discovered that Wally is so not a fan of fireworks. Poor pup :(

We're having a repeat bonfire tonight with more mallows! 

Final day of the trip!

The second day in SF we learned our lesson. Since we were staying in South San Francisco, we took the BART system into the city (and were informed by one of the cops that we looked like tourists and were confused. Thanks dude. haha) and took one of those touristy double decker bus tours around the city. Totally worth it. 

San Francisco

We got to spend a few extra days in San Francisco at the end of the trip. I'd been to SF before with my sister and mom but we didn't get to spend much time the city. Before we went into SF we stopped by the Oakland LDS Temple which was stunning. The temple is on the top of a hill and you can see all of Oakland and across to San Francisco and it's really stunning. 

We ventured down to Fisherman's Wharf after (pro tip: DO NOT EVER drive down there during rush hour when there's a baseball game. Trust me. Just don't.) 

Surprise!

Earlier this month my dad hit a major milestone: he retired! He was with the Police Department for 32 years. THIRTY TWO YEARS. That's a long time people. 

Last month I got a call from his wife saying that she wanted to throw him a surprise party and wanted my sister and I there. She suggested that we fly in and not tell him just to surprise him that night. With Kelly in Boston this summer and me here in Utah, we were both thrilled to fly in and surprise him. 

He knew something was up when he saw the sign but he still didn't know we were there! Kelly and I hung in the back of the hall for a little bit while everyone surprised him and then we snuck up to the front. It took a few minutes to be noticed because of all the people but when we finally did get his attention, the look on his face was priceless. He asked us 'how did you get here?!' (uh, a plane dad...) and had no idea that we were even close to being in town. The surprise was a success. 

Some of my dad's best friends were there, including his work partner of 14 years, the former Chief of Police that had hired him way back when, the Mayor, and a lot of family that I hadn't seen in a really long time. It was fantastic. 

Donuts hanging from the door. I saw them and died laughing. There were also mini donuts on each table. 

So congratulations dad! We're all so proud of you and hope you enjoy cruising in your classic car instead of the patrol car from now on. Just please, if someone sees my father in suspenders, socks and sandals, tell him to knock it off. Just because you're retired doesn't mean you can forget all of the fashion rules Kelly and I have worked so hard to teach you! ;)

Day 2 in the Redwoods

We took a short drive one of the days so we could spend more time in the Redwoods. We took "Avenue of the Giant's" in California. It was an extra 30 miles but so worth it. So very worth it. 

 Just to give you a frame of reference, Todd is 6'3 and he is majorly dwarfed by this tree. Inside it was all burnt up but it was still living. 

 Redwood trees do this weird thing when they fall. They're so bent on survival they will grow new trees from the fallen trunk. That's 6 new trees growing from one fallen trunk. 

Redwood Forests

Seriously speechless at these trees. This was my favorite part of the trip. 

 We took a tram ride up to the top of this mountain (after a hike of a mile. in flip flops. NOT what I intended to do!) and could see for miles. 

 Don't I have a cute husband? ;)