A Photogenic Building

Less than two blocks away from my home stands a beautiful building. I drive past it a dozen times a day and smile at its magnificence each time. I have been meaning to take some pictures of it for months and finally had such an opportunity last night while John was in class. The temple has been closed for two weeks for maintenance while the Easter Pageant commenced on its grounds. In honor of the reopening of the temple today, here are some shots of the first temple built in Arizona, which was announced back in 1919. Ground was broken two years later, and in 1927 the temple was finally completed and dedicated for work. It was closed in the mid-1970s for some renovations and rededicated in 1975. Inside these walls? Beautiful. It is one of the most amazing buildings I have had the privilege to visit, and certainly one of my favorite temples. I married my husband there almost eighteen months ago. Can you believe we have been married that long? And just over three years ago, I went through for myself just two days prior to watching my baby brother get married there. My sister, brother, and I were all sealed to our eternal companions in the same room over a two-year period. So I have some rather partial attachments to this building and love it greatly. I was rather happy it cooperated in having some pictures taken.

Easter Means Lovin'

We had such a nice Easter. It happened to coincide with General Conference this year, so we had a nice, lazy weekend at home listening to prophetic council on how to better our lives. I love Conference. We have been anticipating it for the past month and have been so excited. I love how so many of the talks focused on Jesus Christ as our center. If we rely on Him, everything else seems to fall in place. It was a good reminder of how wonderful life can be because of Him.

In addition, my sister and her family joined us for Easter Dinner! Since we usually head to another home for such a festive occasion, I got to experience cooking my first Easter ham. It was a success, but Tyler Florence recipes usually are. It was accompanied by my Mom's recipe for Funeral Potatoes, but I substituted real scalloped potatoes instead of frozen hash browns. T'liese still won't talk to me because of it! She brought salad (Jeffy Jell-O...yum!) and drinks of berry lemonade and ginger ale, which are good alone but a knockout when combined! It's about as rowdy as a Mormon Easter Party can get, I tell you! Dinner was concluded with the Barefoot Contessa's Lemon Cake, which was incredible (she is by far my favorite chef). I got a little scared when adding one-third of a cup of lemon zest, but the cake was so light and delicious and refreshing! It was a hit, and mostly everyone went back for seconds.

On Saturday night, John arrived home after the Priesthood Session of General Conference with an Easter bouquet of flowers in hand. He is always so thoughtful and generous. These may be the most beautiful flowers I have ever seen! After being gone later that evening (helping put away hundreds of chairs at the conclusion of the Easter Pageant at the Mesa Temple, just a few blocks from our home), he came home to an Easter Bunny attack! Several of his favorite treats, Snickers, had been left in Easter grass nests all over the house. This was something my Mom would always do for us as kids, and I loved it! Some traditions die hard, and with any luck, this one never will. Overall, Easter treated us pretty well!

Now I'm off to finish the last few dishes. It may be the only downfall to a big holiday dinner, but my husband kept me caught up in the kitchen sink all day! He is a lifesaver in so many ways, and I am rather partial to him. Also in so many ways.

Easter Egg Oreo Truffles

John works with a bunch of ladies who love sweet things, so we have a lot in common. When Friday rolls around and they still haven't received some sort of goodies from my kitchen, they start to make requests with my husband. Before that could happen this week, I decided to surprise them with some Easter Egg Oreo Truffles.

If you look at them from a distance, they are really cute. Obviously I need to find a better way of decorating next time, since the toothpick and too-large paintbrushes created more of a disaster zone than anything remotely edible-looking. I risked keeping my eyes open during my Official Taste Test, and I have to admit that they were still incredibly yummy despite being rather unattractive and frumpy. They kind of remind me of a bad sweater from 1983! But not in a good way. I have a feeling the ladies at the bank won't even notice the pastel attempts at decoration and will simply dig in. Once inside the mouth, these slightly minty wonders melt and ooze away. Of course, the only way to eat them is when they are almost freezing cold, so the almond bark shell crunches when you sink your teeth into it. I am just guessing on all of this, mind you, since I would never try a few myself to make sure all venues of enjoying an Easter Egg Oreo Truffle are met. Quality Assurance can be a tough job, but luckily there is always someone in my kitchen who is up for the challenge. And she is usually wearing my apron.