changes are coming!

clearly it's been a while since i last posted (that always seems to be the case). 

since i last posted in october, a lot has changed!

back in january, i met an amazing guy named aaron. my neighbor, tyler, had been hanging out with him a lot and they had been hanging out at my house with my brother. i'd met him a few times when he'd been over, but never remembered him. funny story though, he actually went up to my brother and said "i'm going to marry your sister." at the time he was joking, but he wanted to be set up with me. anyone who knows my brother shouldn't be shocked to hear his reaction.. "whatever." the first night i actually remembered meeting aaron, we were playing just dance and i guess he just loved my moves cause that got him hooked! we went down to st. george together (with a big group of friends) and that's when things initiated. we started dating and have been inseparable ever since that trip! things got really serious, really fast and i love him dearly! which leads to my next event.....

...I GOT ENGAGED!! aaron proposed on april 6 up on a mountain with the prettiest view of the twinkling city lights. it was so simple and thoughtful - exactly what i wanted. funny story... the night before, he wanted to drive to st. george in the middle of the night and propose at sunrise. typical kenzie move, i wouldn't wake up. i ruined my own engagement (oops, sorry aaron), so he had to come up with a new plan.. the next day was sunday and he said he wanted to go for a drive later. caroline came in while we were watching tv and asked kinnley when he was leaving. in my head i thought "leaving for what?" but she gets confused easily so i figured it was just another normal day. i was in workout shorts and around 8:30 he told me to go change into something warmer. i complained because i didn't want to get up (almost blew it twice...), but finally i got up and changed into sweats. we were about to walk out and he looked at me and said "umm.. maybe jeans." he knows me. he knew i wouldn't want to be proposed to in sweats. naturally, i got a little suspicious at this point. i panicked and started searching for a cute outfit but gave up and decided i was going crazy and that nothing was going to happen, but that even if something did that i didn't care what i looked like. i actually almost texted some friends and said "i think i'm about to get engaged" but i just thought i was overthinking things. we had talked about it and i didn't think it was going to happen until after graduation and this was a whole month before! but anyway, we drove up by the h rock and started walking, when i saw balloons in the distance and knew what was going on. i was actually getting engaged! we kept walking and my mom and sisters had set up the prettiest path of candles and lanterns and made a few banners. my brother was playing the guitar in the background and it was perfect. i honestly don't really remember what he said, but that's okay because neither does he. all i remember is him asking "will you marry me?" of course i said yes! i was so excited i didn't even look at the ring until we were walking back to the car and i realized i hadn't seen it yet. i'm still obsessed with it and constantly catch myself staring at it. we are getting married on september 19, which puts us just under 4 months until the wedding!!

last big thing that happened, i graduated from the university of utah! i got a bachelor of science degree in strategic communication, which is advertising, marketing, and public relations. i'm so happy to finally be done with school, but i plan on going back to get an mba sometime in the future.

that is pretty much what's been going on the past few months! just a very brief post to get caught up, but i'll post more about our plans as it gets closer to the wedding! we are taking our engagement pictures on friday, so be looking for that! :)

xoxo -k

a little dose of europe

seeing as how it has been a year since i left for study abroad, i was getting really "homesick" for my european home.

thank goodness for spontaneous friends like christian who think going on trips on a whim are fun :)

our 4 day journey started in london where we, of course, did all the typical touristy things like big ben, london bridge, and buckingham palace. we were lucky enough to go see les miserables (thanks mom) and let me tell you, it was incredible. we also went on the harry potter studio tour where we got to see the actual set where all the movies were filmed. it was so much fun to see it all in person!

next came munich. we went to neuschwanstein, the castle that walt disney based sleeping beauty's castle off of in disneyland. i've never seen something so beautiful! we also went to dachau, which was a very humbling experience. you learn about the holocaust in school, but seeing where it actually took place was...well if i'm being honest, really cool. it's sad to think of what happened there, but to see it all in person was life-changing. to top off the whole trip, we went to the real oktoberfest! not many people can say they've done that and it was a million a billion times better than i ever could've imagined. there were rides everywhere and tons of yummy food. it was a dream come true!

i wish we had time to go to italy, but i guess i'll save that for another trip :) (hint hint dad)

until my next trip....in four days

xoxo -k

my guardian angel

there are a few days of the year that always seem to be particularly hard on me:

august 4 and december 19.

the day my best friend was born and the day he died.

ever since i was born, i shared a very special bond with my grandpa tom.

i can't even explain it. i was his best friend and he was mine.

i loved doing everything with him. 

anytime he was working on the boat or pool, i'd be sitting out there with him.

every day while he was at work, i would beg my mom to take me to see him.

sometimes, i'd even fake sick so my mom would take me to the doctor's office just so i could run to his office and sit on his lap and share a symphony bar with him.

for whatever reason, this birthday has been especially hard. 

i don't know what it is.

maybe it's because this december will mark ten years since he died.

maybe it's the realization that he's almost been gone longer than he was here.

or maybe it's just that i'm weirdly, overly sensitive right now.

all i know is that i need my grandpa here.

i miss him so much it physically hurts.

i still replay the last memories we had together over and over in my head.

our last trip to disneyland where we took our last picture together.

my weekly visits to see you at the nursing home, even though you didn't remember who i was.

the thing that absolutely kills me is that i almost didn't leave the birthday party that night.

the night my mom asked if i wanted to go see you one last time.

i didn't think you would actually leave me that night grandpa. 

what if i hadn't been there for that horrible night?

i still remember it all so vividly.

i hated seeing you like that.

i could tell you were in so much pain.

but there was nothing i could do for you.

my heart dropped when you died for that split second.

i wasn't ready for you to go yet.

i thought there was hope when you came back to life.

but when you came back and remembered my name, i knew it was the end.

i knew heavenly father had given you a few more minutes to say goodbye to me.

i will never forget the feeling when you said "i love you mckenzie."

because i remember holding you and crying and feeling no fear for the first time in so long.

i knew you were going to be at peace finally.

so even though it absolutely killed me to have to say goodbye,

i knew you were always going to be with me.

you weren't going to be sick anymore.

you finally wouldn't be in any pain.

i was going to have a guardian angel.

those first few seconds after you took your last breath felt like an eternity.

the world moved so slow.

i couldn't believe you were gone.

i still can't believe you are gone.

i honestly didn't know how i was going to make it without you.

i still remember "i know that my redeemer lives" playing at your funeral.

that song still makes me cry to this day.

but it reminds me of you, grandpa.

i feel so dumb still getting so upset over something that happened nearly a decade ago.

shouldn't it have stopped hurting by now?

it feels like someone came and ripped my heart out.

and i don't feel like it's getting any better. 

i used to be able to see pictures of you and smile, thinking of the memories we shared.

but now i burst into tears every time i see your face.

will it ever get easier, knowing you are gone?

i know i gained a guardian angel that snowy december day.

i felt your warmth and strength around me as i healed.

i know you were there with us the day of the accident and kept us safe.

i know you were there with me when i went away to camp that next summer and got homesick.

i know you have been there through all of my trials, pushing me to get back up on my feet.

i feel you in everything i do.

i want you to know that everything i do is for you.

all i ever wanted to do is make you proud.

you were my biggest cheerleader and my role model.

i will always look up to the example you set for me.

so while i cannot explain the bond we shared, i know it was real.

you will always be my best friend.

i find peace in knowing i will see you again someday.

but until then, i want to thank you for continually watching over me.

i love you and miss you more and more with every passing day.

happy 81st birthday grandpa.

i hope the party in heaven was beautiful.

crack pie

for my writing class, i had to take pictures of something that may be difficult to describe in words. a picture is worth a thousand words anyway, right? i thought for a while and couldn't really decide what to do so i decided i would show how to make a pie! this is a recipe my poppy brought to utah with him when he moved here from the south. my dad grew up eating it all the time so he decided to teach me how to make it a few years ago! 

warning: it is highly addictive, hence the name crack pie

since i had to post the pictures somewhere for my teacher to have access to them, i figured i may as well share the recipe with all of you so you could enjoy it too!

 

here are all the ingredients you will need.

Oat Cookie Crust
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
9 tablespoons (1 stick plus 1 tablespoon) unsalted butter, room temperature, divided
5 1/2 tablespoons (packed) golden brown sugar, divided
2 tablespoons sugar
1 large egg
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon (generous) salt
 
Filling
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1 tablespoon nonfat dry milk powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, cooled slightly
6 1/2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
4 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Powdered sugar (for dusting)

 

first, you'll preheat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.

then, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and spray it with pam or a similar cooking spray. 

 

now the fun starts :)

combine 6 tbsp butter, 4 tbsp brown sugar, and 2 tbsp sugar in a medium sized bowl.

 

beat until it is light and fluffy.

 

add the egg.

 

now beat again until it is pale and fluffy.

 

add the oats, flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.

 

beat until well blended.

 

spread the oat mixture out onto the cookie sheet and spread it out evenly so it is about 1/4 inch thick.

 

bake for 17-18 minutes or until the top is golden brown and cool the cookie completely.

 

break the cookie into smaller pieces and put it in a blender to grind it into a "crumby" texture.

add 3 tbsp butter and 1.5 tbsp brown sugar. mix with your fingers until the mixture is moist enough to stick together.

 

press the mixture into the bottom of a glass baking dish and then up onto the sides.

 

now for the filling.

add both sugars, milk powder, and salt to a medium sized bowl.

 

whisk until combined.

 

add butter.

 

whisk until combined.

 

add cream, egg yolks, and vanilla.

 

whisk until combined.

 

pour the filling into the crust.

 

place on a cookie sheet and onto the middle rack of the 350 degree oven.

 

after 30 minutes, turn the temperature down to 325 degrees.

 

cook another 20 minutes or until there are brown spots on top and the middle still moves slightly when the dish is gently shaken.

 

refrigerate overnight and dust powdered sugar on top.

cut into slices and serve cold!