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Wednesday, November 24, 2010

The Eve of Thanksgiving

Got ahead on the Thanksgiving menu, and decided to make my smashed potatoes tonight. I am so excited for Thanksgiving tomorrow and am so grateful to have two of my siblings to spend it with. Wish I could be with the rest of the family though.


5 lbs of red potatoes, 2 1/2 sticks of butter, 1 head of roasted garlic, cajun seasoning (tony sacheres), milk, salt, pepper, and a couple of hours later, you've got yourself a heck of a lot of delicious smashed potatoes.





Other items on the menu:
green bean casserole
honey glazed ham from costco
corn bread stuffing
Judy's rolls
and turtle brownies


I really want to make this pie crust, so we'll see. Probably won't happen...
It's supposed to be the best!




All Butter, Really Flaky Pie Dough

Makes enough dough for one double-, or two single-crust pies.

2 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 ounces, 16 tablespoons or 1 cup) unsalted butter, very cold





Love you all! And Happy Turkey Day!




Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Sumo bots!

Here is a video of my middle schoolers' sumo bot unit.
The kids went gaga over the sumo bots-- they absolutely loved them!





It was my mentor's first time doing sumo bots with his students, but figured he would give it a try since he has me as his student teacher.
We taught them basic circuiting and construction and then we had a tournament for all of the teams.

Some other things I am teaching to my classes:
-Lego Robots
-Hydraulic Arms
-Mass producing toy cars
-Making pens on wood lathes
-Penny hockey boards

and the list goes on and on...
and yes it is quite overwhelming,
but I am learning so much as a teacher every day.

8 more days until I am done with school forever!!!!

Monday, September 27, 2010

Student Teaching

So as many of you may know, I am doing part of my student teaching this semester at Provo High School. I am really loving it and my students. Not gonna lie, I have my good and bad days (mostly good). I am exhausted a lot of the time, but I walk home with a smile on my face because it just feels so rewarding to teach and getting to interact with these crazy kids.

Here are a few of the commercials that my students made in my video class. The main thing I stressed was for them to use different camera angles that I taught, which they all seem to have done a pretty good job. Don't ask me why they put some of the stuff they did into their commercials... haha you'll see...







Now you see what happens when I give them too much autonomy haha, but I am still so proud of them!

Monday, June 21, 2010

Online Portfolio Website!

Here is my website I've been working on for most of spring semester at BYU. I can't believe I am almost done with school!

http://www.jbteaching.com/laura/index.html

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Official Photography Website : )

Hey all! Here is just a blog that I created just for my photography. Feel free to spread the word!

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Cutie Patootie Tang

Today, me and Amy took Eleanor out for a photo shoot for a class we are in together. Every picture was done manually-- which is a huge deal because I am always so scared to shoot manually...It was very freezing and very past Eleanor's bedtime, but she and Sarah were troopers and so adorable. We will miss these two very much! We love you!

Here are some of our favorites.
















Monday, March 22, 2010

Ingrid Michaelson Video Contest

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oM0NOg07yOk



My little Sister, Amy, is entering this video contest so she can perform with Ingrid at her concert. We need as many views as we can so replay it all you want! Spread the love!!!


Thursday, February 4, 2010

Imagine Cup- Votes for Poland!

Here is our film we entered for the Imagine Cup competition. My sister and I were inspired to create this film based on a series of events in our own lives. After Hurricane Katrina hit our home of New Orleans, Louisiana, our family evacuated with only a suitcase and each other. Thus, we chose the title "Duffle Bag"--to represent our experience and how it parallels millions of others' worldwide. We wanted this personalized story to touch the hearts of people everywhere to know that poverty and hunger can happen to anybody. Now, it is up to each one of us to rectify the many problems faced throughout the world.

Click on the following link to vote for our film:


(we need as many votes as we can get, in order for us to get passed the first round and compete in POLAND)

Special thanks goes out to everyone who made this film even possible:
Shane
Katherine
Jack
Sam
Freddie
The Nelson Family and home

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Random Times 2009


Here are top 10 of some of my favorite most random moments since I have gotten back from London in August:

1. My dear friend's Abby's gagstalicious bday party. I met Abby (blonde in front row) and Rubie (girl with yellow and grey stripes) while studying abroad London and we became so close. We were all in the same church group, which was such a miracle because there were about 50 people in the program. They are so crazy. So fun. Love them.

2. Seeing New Moon opening night. Abby brought a whole bag of vampire fangs and we went up to the front of the audience and yelled, "who wants edward fangs!" and no joke, every little girl started screaming-- it was hilarious! Right after, my brother, Freddie started chants in the theater for team jacob and team edward fans. he almost got everyone to sit on a certain side of the room depending on whose team they were on-- jacob or edward. ohhh freddie.


3. Being the photographer for Hogwarts for Halloween. It was such a magical night-- my friend Abby's family transforms their house into hogwarts for halloween every year. Words or even pictures cannot even give the whole thing justice. I have to admit that I was was not a harry potter fan until after this night. So amazing.



4. A $30 mask that has brought us endless entertainment. It is the freakiest thing in the world and I still get the shivers when I look at it. We do all sorts of stuff with it. We crash parties. We freak out other drivers when we are driving. We walk down the street with a walker and a few D.I. dresses to choose from. Priceless.


watch this if you haven't already...


5. Scooter rides.


6. Thanksgiving at the Wellings in SLC. You can look at pictures from a later post on my blog. It was so nice to feel like we had a home haha Also the Gruwells, my adopted family from New Orleans, were in town as well. We went to temple square to see the lights and got hot chocolate. so great.



7. Let's not forget Christmas! I spent one week in New Orleans and one week in Ohio to see two of my sisters who live there. I have a later post as well showing pictures. New Orleans was amazing as always. The weather could not have been more perfect and the locals couldn't have been more pumped because of the whole Saints being undefeated thing. Memorable moments include me and Amy cruizing the streets of the French quarter in our mom's mini van with the windows down, shouting things such as "Who DAT!"
The locals in New Orleans are so crazy. I miss that. Provo is very boring compared to dat. Also, eating at Cafe Du Monde in the french quarter the night before the big game was histerical. People were chanting saints songs. Me and amy captured some videos on our phones.

Christmas Eve, we spent the night at my Aunt Anita's house, who was alone for christmas since her son, Shane, is in Korea. I cannot even begin to describe how kind and loving and charitable my aunt anita is. She got me, amy, jacob, and my mom all presents (which was kind of a big deal because we don't really do presents in our family any more.) Any way, it was so fun chillin with her. We watched some wierd mexican family dynamics christmas movie, ordered some pizza, skyped with cousin shane, had maw maw and paw paw over, and had the best night's sleep in my whole life, since Anita let me and Amy sleep in her bed. The room was so dark, that at one point of the night Amy opened her eyes and thought she had gone blind. haha Love my Aunt Neet.



8. Driving all day Christmas day to Cincinatti (12 hours) because we could not wait to see my sister and her family! So many good moments that I cannot remember. Almost every night we would play phase 10. I loved playing with the kids, especially playing dressup, having photoshoots with my nieces, and reading them all books before they go to bed in funny voices haha They are hilarious kids. Ethan, my nephew, is funny. I like when he gets mad. One time, he was digging in the fridge and a fruit cup fell out. Sounds like no big deal right? haha well, this is his reply, "Who put the fruit cups in the fridge! Why would any one put fruit cups in the fridge?!" I loved his reaction because he is a very orderly kid. If something is not in order or in routine he freaks out. I think he is the funniest kid I know.


Here is a funny video that me, amy and freddie made on the last day we were in Cincinatti:


Parkour!

9. Me, amy and freddie, and the three kids went on an adventure to akron, about a four hour drive from cininatti. It was oh so exhausting but oh so fun! Here we are at sarah's cute house in Akron! It was so good to see Sarah. She is so sweet and such a good mom-- it's ridiculous : )


10. And Finally... my favorite moment of christmas vacation was-- my little brother Jacob swallowing a cough drop thinking it was medicine.



hahahahahahahaha


I love Jacob. He is probably my most favorite person in the world.




Monday, January 4, 2010

Meet My Family

Meet Eleanor







Meet Sophie










Meet Grace











Meet Ethan






Love them all SO much!