It's not like you get a car or a lifetime supply of Rice a Roni.

So last night I went the the DI, and I found this beauty. ^  I couldn't resist the buy when it was only $25.  I took it home, and immediately started to strip it of its parts.  I made Jeremy go buy spray paint with me, and this morning I tackled the project.  I started at 8:00 this morning, and finished up around 2:00 in the afternoon.

This is how it turned out.  I'm quite proud of my work.  After the spray paint purchases the bike totaled out to a whopping $40!  If I wanted to ride it I would need to buy new tires, but the plan is just to get a basket for flowers and use it for decoration.

When I do my double jump kick off the amp with slashing windmills, I'm gonna need more room

This month I've had a lot of time to hang out with my family, which has been nice.  I went down to St. George for a week, and then they came up here for my cousin's wedding, and next week Jeremy and I are going down again to hang out at the cabin with them.  Here are some pictures of our good times.

I loved hanging out with cute little Brey.

He loved playing with his "vroom, vroom" that Papa bought him.

Of course in the St. George heat we had to go swimming.

Brey loves getting kisses from his Aunt Cole.

When my family came up for Missy's wedding Spencer, Whit, Brey, Jeremy, and I went to the zoo.  It was so much fun seeing all the animals.

Spencer was so excited to see the crocodiles.

This bird tried to take out Spencer and Brey.  It has a frightening beak that makes it look the birds on Alice in Wonderland.
I loved spending time with my family, and I'm excited to see them again this weekend.  I'm trying to be better at taking pictures, so I'll make sure I take more to post later.

Olive Garden's Lasagna Rollata Al Forno

I just found this recipe online, and you better bet that I'm making it tonight!

Ingredients:

Five Cheese Marinara Sauce

• 2 cups marinara sauce
• 2 cups alfredo sauce
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 cup italian blend shredded cheese
• 1/4 cup red wine (I'm going to use beef stock and some basalmic vinegar instead)

Filling

• 1 egg
• 15 ounces whole milk ricotta cheese
• 1 (8 ounce) mozzarella cheese, grated
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 1/2 cup asiago cheese, grated
• 1/2 cup romano cheese, grated
• 1 tablespoon italian seasoning, blend
• salt and pepper, to taste

Noodles

• 1 lb lasagna noodle
• 1/2 cup Italian breadcrumbs

Directions:

1. Blend first two marinara ingredients together in a large saucepan. Add remaining ingredients and heat on medium, stirring frequently. The cheese will melt and the sauce will become creamy. Keep warm.
2. Set aside 1/4 of mozzarella cheese. Beat egg into a large mixing bowl and add all remaining ingredients, blending well. Keep refrigerated until you are ready to use.
3. Cook lasagna exactly according to package directions. Drain and rinse immediately with cold water so they are cool enough to handle.
4. When ready to make, spread about 1/4 cup of marinara sauce in a large 9x13 baking dish. Based upon the number of noodles in your 1 lb of noodles, divide the filling accordingly. Lay one lasagna noodle in baking dish and spread with filling along noodle. Loosely roll the noodle up, jelly-roll style. Decide if this looks about right to you. If so, keep rolling the rest of the noodles. Otherwise use more filling per noodle and discard the extra noodles.
5. Continue with each lasagna noodle until all noodles are rolled and arranged in baking dish. Cover each roll with remaining sauce, the remaining mozzarella cheese and top with Italian breadcrumbs.
6. Bake in preheated oven at 350 degree for about 35 minutes.

He calls me his girlfriend now with no visible shaking

I just wanted to take a second and brag about my boyfriend.  Yesterday he showed up with these beautiful roses and these. v

I know what you guys are thinking, "Nicole, what kind of guy brings you razors?"  The answer is: an incredibly sweet one.  I bought a super cool huge razor awhile back thinking it would be miraculous.  Well, it wasn't.  Jeremy was with me when I bought it, and has heard my complaints about it, and decided to help me out a bit.  How sweet is that?  I just wanted you all to know that however cool you girls think your boyfriends are, well, mine is better.

Avocado Eggs

I made these for breakfast today.  Super easy, and super delicious.  I love eggs, and I love avocados, so when I saw this on Pinterest I practically ran to the kitchen.

Basically what you do is you cut an avocado length-wise.  You then take out the seed, and cut out a little extra avocado to make room for the egg.  Get out a non-stick skillet and put your avocado on it.  Crack open a medium-sized egg and place it in the middle of your avocado.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place a lid over the skillet and cook the eggs to your liking.  Bon appetit!

Three Cheese Chicken Alfredo

This Three Cheese Chicken Alfredo is one of the easiest meals you could make, and it's super delicious.  This is a family and roommate favorite.  I found it on Pinterest.  You should try it one of these days.  You won't be disappointed.

Three Cheese Chicken Alfredo

1 (16-ounce) package penne or elbow macaroni
2 (10-ounce) containers refrigerated Alfredo sauce
1 (8-ounce) container sour cream
1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
2 garlic clove, minced
3 cups cooked chicken, chopped
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 cups mozzarella cheese

Prepare pasta according to package directions; drain and return to pot.  Stir together all ingredients except mozzarella cheese.  Spread mixture into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch baking dish.  Sprinkle evenly with mozzarella cheese.  Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until bubbly.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

So I found this recipe for Chicken Cordon Bleu on Pinterest, and it was DELIGHTFUL!  I thought I'd share it with you.

Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu 
Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Ingredients:

For the Cordon Bleu:
3 large, thick boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half length-wise (to make two thinner chicken breast cutlets; you will have 6 total thin chicken breasts)
12 slices good quality deli ham
1 cup bread crumbs (preferably fresh)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 pound (8 ounces) thinly sliced Swiss cheese

For the Parmesan-Dijon Cream Sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules (or 1 bouillon cube, crushed)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

*Note: Mel saves the heels of her bread and stores them in the freezer until she needs them then grinds them up quickly in a blender or food processor.

Instructions:
Lightly grease a 9X13-inch baking dish with cooking spray and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, combine the bread crumbs and melted butter. Set aside.

Lay the cut chicken breasts in a single layer in the 9X13-inch dish. Layer each chicken breast with two slices of ham and top with slices of Swiss cheese, layering across the chicken breast to make sure the entire chicken breast is covered with ham and cheese. Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the top of the chicken. 

Bake the chicken for 30-35 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through completely, the cheese is bubbling and the bread crumbs are golden.

When the chicken is almost done, in a medium saucepan, melt the 2 tablespoons butter. Stir in the flour, whisking constantly. Cook the flour/butter mixture for 1-2 minutes. Slowly pour in the milk while whisking quickly. Stir in the chicken bouillon granules and salt. Whisk mixture constantly over medium heat until the mixture begins to simmer and thicken, about 3-5 minutes. 

Once the sauce has bubbled and thickened, remove from heat and stir in the mustard, Worcestershire sauce and Parmesan cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted. Keep the sauce warm until the chicken is finished baking. If your sauce is too thick, whisk in some more milk. If it's too thin, simmer longer.

Serve each chicken cordon bleu portion with warm sauce. Makes 6 servings.

Well, as soon as I catch you in a pair of tights, I’ll get worried.

By the way, I'm dating this guy. ^  His name is Jeremy.

I also bought a new car. It is a Mitsubishi Outlander GT.  I love it.

School is also officially out.  Hooray for summer vacation!