Happy New Year!

As I was sitting here on New Years Eve contemplating 2008, trying to remember all of the important events that occurred, I noticed that I had been tagged. Now, this is not just any tag...it is a list of "Things to do before you die". And if any of you know me, I LOVE making lists of things to do before I die. So, imagine how thrilling it is when someone else makes a list for me! Below is the list, and the idea is to mark the ones you have already done. I am marking them as follows:

The ones I have done are in BLUE.
The ones I want to do are in RED.
The ones I plan to do in 2009 (or every year following until I am successful) are in GREEN.
The ones I don't want to do or will likely never do are in PURPLE.
Let the fun begin:

Started your own blog
Slept under the stars
Played in a band
Visited Hawaii
Watched a meteor shower (the day my grandpa died)
Given more than you can afford to charity (and I call that charity the LDS church...)
Been to Disneyland
Climbed a mountain
Held a praying mantis
Sang a solo (two weeks ago in Primary...)
Bungee jumped
Visited Paris
Watched a lightning storm at sea
Taught yourself an art from scratch
Adopted a child
Had food poisoning
Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
Grown your own vegetables
Slept on an overnight train (Fun Train!)
Had a pillow fight
Hitch hiked
Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
Held a lamb
Gone skinny dipping
Run a Marathon (not likely!)
Seen a total eclipse
Watched a sunrise or sunset
Hit a home run
Been on a cruise
Seen Niagara Falls in person
Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (I hope the German airport counts!)
Seen an Amish community
Fired a rifle, shotgun or pistol (and practically burned my hand off. Here's a tip...don't hold the barrel when you fire a pistol!)
Michelangelo’s David
Sung karaoke
Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
Bought a stranger a meal
Visited Africa
Walked on a beach by moonlight
Been transported in an ambulance (hopefully I will never have to experience this...)
Had your portrait painted
Gone deep sea fishing
Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
Gone scuba diving or snorkeling (and I could add "Learned how to swim")
Kissed in the rain
Played in the mud
Gone to a drive-in theater
Visited the Great Wall of China
Started a business (making people's scrapbooks...I'll start with you, AJ!)
Taken a martial arts class
Visited Russia
Served at a soup kitchen
Sold Girl Scout Cookies
Gone whale watching
Got flowers for no reason
Donated blood, platelets or plasma-- NEVER going to happen...unless they drug me first!
Gone sky diving
Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
Bounced a check
Flown in a helicopter
Saved a favorite childhood toy
Visited the Lincoln Memorial
Eaten Caviar
Pieced a quilt
Stood in Times Square
Been fired from a job
Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
Been on a speeding motorcycle
Seen the Grand Canyon in person
Published something (several articles in my HS newspaper)
Bought a brand new car
Walked in Jerusalem
Visited the White House
Had chickenpox
Sat on a jury
Met someone famous
Joined a book club
Lost a loved one
Had a baby
Seen the Alamo in person
Swam in the Ocean
Owned a cell phone
Been stung by a bee
Seen Mount Rushmore in person
Learned to play an instrument
Held a tarantula
Touched an iceberg
Changed a baby’s diaper
Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
Had a food fight
Had a snowball fight
Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
Ridden a roller coaster
Visited all 50 states--So far, I've only been to 16, and I only count them if I have urinated in the state!
Taken a road-trip
Milked a cow
Been in a movie (an MTC movie...)
Crashed a party ("Crashed" would mean I was not invited, right? Well, I'm ALWAYS invited!)
Made cookies from scratch
Gotten a tattoo
Rafted the Snake River (maybe when I learn how to swim...)
Performed on stage
Been to Las Vegas
Eaten shark
Bought a house
Been in a combat zone (of a Civil War re-enactment in Rhode Island...YES, of a real one, no)
Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
Touched a stingray
Broken a bone
Ridden a horse
Eaten sushi
Had your picture in the newspaper
Gone back to school
Eaten fried green tomatoes
Killed and prepared an animal for eating (I am totally counting fish)
Dyed your hair
Caused a car accident (um...with a church...)
Saved someone’s life (technically, I save my own life regularly but I don't think that counts).

I figured this would be the easiest way to share my New Years Resolutions for 2009, since they are both on this list (and since they have been on my list ever since I got married, and will be probably FOREVER!) I tag anyone who is interested in this sort of thing, but I am very interested in what Shoshi, Jen, and Tia have to say.

I love tags!

I love tags, because it helps me think of things to write on the blog when nothing big and exciting is going on in my life. Dan hates them...but I'm going to do them anyway!

1.Where is your cell phone? couch
2. Where is your significant other? work
3. Your hair color? brownish
4. Your mother? JoAnn's
5. Your father? celebrating
6. Your favorite thing? Friday
7. Your dream last night? stealing
8. Your dream/goal? baby
9. The room you're in? messy
10. Your hobby? crafty
11. Your fear? infertility
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? home
13. Where were you last night? snuggling
14. What you're not? perfect
15. One of your wish-list items? house
16. Where you grew up? Seattle
17. The last thing you did? showered
18. What are you wearing? PJ's
19. Your TV? huge
20. Your pet(s)? fat
21. Your computer? overloaded
22. Your mood? anxious
23. Missing someone? family
24. Your car? cold
25. Something you're not wearing? ring
26. Favorite store? Costco
27. Last thing you read? uplifting
28. The last thing you ate? cookie
29. Last time you cried? tender
30. What you are looking forward to? vacation

I tag...Tia, Shoshi, and anyone else who wants to play this game.

Thanks Brooke!

Tag...Buon Natale!

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? I LOVE both, but I have to pick hot chocolate, because it always hits the spot after you've been out in the freezing cold snow (and, if you use milk, it helps fight osteoporosis...)

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? He always wraps! Like Santa has time to put together all the toys! That's what we have parents (and husbands) for!

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White on tree, either on house. I had Winnie the Pooh lights growing up, and I would put them on the tree now if I had them...

4. Do you hang mistletoe? When I was single...yes. It is not really necessary now...

5. When do you put up your decorations? This year, never...but I want to put them up right after Thanksgiving.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? No bake fruit cake (or as my friends call it, butter cake).

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? One year it snowed really hard one night, so my mom and dad debated for hours about whether or not they should go out and get the four of us M-O-O-N B-O-O-T-S (yes, they spelled them out, but I was smart enough to figure out what they were saying). My dad ran off to the store and bought us each a pair, and as soon as he got home we went out to play in the snow. When we woke up the next morning, the snow was gone...and it didn't come back for the rest of that year. By the time it snowed again, we had all outgrown our moon boots. I could use some moon boots right now...

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? "Truth"? What "truth"? What are you talking about?

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Not growing up, but we do now. We buy a gift for each other specifically for Christmas Eve.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? With ornaments, silly.

11. Can you ice skate? No. I can put on ice skates and hold onto the wall of the rink really well.

12. Do you remember your favorite gift? I have received too many wonderful gifts to have a favorite. However, when I was younger I collected nick knacks, and one year my dad built me a special shelf for all my little animals and things...I still have the shelf, and am putting little reminders on it of the fun trips Danny and I go on.

13. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Spending time with family...but that is always bitter-sweet for me because I never get to see mine during the Holiday season.

14. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Pumpkin anything (pie, bars, cake, pudding, custard, whatever...I love pumpkin!)

15. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Growing up, I loved going to Grandma and Grandpa's house on Christmas Eve and playing with my cousins. But I am excited about the new tradition we are going to start with the pickle ornament (thanks mom!)

16. What tops your tree? A star since we've been married, but I've been looking for a nice angel...

17. Which do you prefer: giving or receiving? I've always loved giving...specifically trying to find something that I know someone else would really enjoy.

18. What is your favorite Christmas Song? Baby, it's cold outside...I don't know if that is what it's really called, but I love that song. At church, my favorite is Far, Far Away on Judea's Plains.

19. Do you feel Christmas is too commercialized? YES!!! The strength of friendships and family relationships should not be determined by the gift that is given or received at Christmas.

I Tag...AJ, Tatia, Jen, and Anne.

Goodbye Sandy...

My office mate and dear friend has decided that she would rather go and live in Hawaii with her hubby than continue to work back to back with me...and I'm a little traumatized by the situation. Who is going to try to distract me while I'm working now? Who else can possibly understand my "chocolate" addiction? Who will I go to the gym with every morning (or every other morning...or once a week...oh, who am I kidding? I don't go to the gym!)? Who am I going to play guitar hero with on our days off, and have a "bitter" college rivalry with? Who is going to leave little "chocolates" all over her desk for me to "sample"? Well, old chum...I hope you have fun in the sun...and that you come back to visit sometime. Actually, I hope that you will have a change of heart and decide to stay right where you are...but I don't think that is going to happen, so I'm trying to be a realist so I can get over my grief and loss sooner. Adio Sandy...it's been fun.

We talk about the book, I swear!

Four years ago, my dear friend Becca had the bright idea of forming a sassy book club with a group of our friends. Since that time, we have read dozens of books, rotated through dozens of members, and enjoyed pounds upon pounds of delicious food. Our current group consists of the lovely ladies below:

Natalie, Heather, me, Lucy

Emily and Shoshi

Some members wish to remain faceless...Marie

Some might say we have one of the most "diverse" book clubs in the Valley. We usually spend about an hour discussing the current book selection (most recently The Book Thief by Markus Zusak), then two to three hours catching up on world (and personal) events. Book Club is one of the highlights of my month...I love having an excuse to read a good book, and to spend time with good friends. It is sad that so many of our members have "passed on" and are no longer able to attend (we miss you girls!). Thank you Becca for bringing the book club into my life!

Golf Season Recap

As the golf season is getting ready to come to a close, I thought I would comment a little bit on the past season in one post, rather than bore everyone by blogging after every time I golf. So here goes (Score in parenthesis):

Favorite New Course I Tried: Talon's Cove (95) and Soldier Hollow (96 Gold, 102 Silver). Talon's Cove was a real fun, yet challenging course with a lot of blind shots. Soldier Hollow is another great course up Provo Canyon with a lot of challenging shots up and down the mountain.

Least Favorite New Course I Tried: Jordan River Par 3 (39)...we went here for Jorden's birthday, but as is the case with most par 3 courses they get a bit run down.

Other New Courses I Tried: Wingpointe, Riverbend

Best Scores: Sleepy Ridge (42), Wingpointe, (91), Eastbay (93)

Worst Scores: Riverbend (117), Homestead (116)

First Round: February 29th, Sleepy Ridge (47)

Last Round: Today, Sleepy Ridge (47), unless the weather stays nice and I get out again...does it mean I'm not improving if my score is exactly the same after 9 months of golfing?

Biggest Regret: Not taking my clubs to Washington and playing at Chamber's Bay. Luckily I'll be taking more trips up there and I won't miss the chance.

Change in Handicap: 28.0 in February to 25.8 currently

Anyways, I hope I can get out again this year, if not I'll have to sneak out early next year. Thanks to everyone who went along on my many golf outings.

Three years ago today...

Three wonderful years down, an eternity to go...

You're a pain in my A...ankle that is

I have been waiting for days to post pictures of my grotesquely sprained ankle...but, unfortunately, it has never really looked grotesque. Last week, I was leaving a visit to a client with one of my coworkers when I completely missed the bottom step of the staircase, twisting my ankle and falling on my A. Almost immediately I could feel the ankle starting to swell in my shoe, but I did the right thing and waited to take off the shoe until I got home that night, when I could put it up with some bags of frozen corn and let it heal itself. Someone in my household may or may not have stated at one point over this past weekend that I was "milking" this ankle thing for all that it is worth, so I've been waiting and waiting for it to bruise up so that I can prove how much it hurts. I have also been accused in the past of being a little bit of a hypochondriac. Despite the lack of bruising, I decided to go to the doctor today (due to the continued and consistent swelling), and I was given a large ankle brace...if that doesn't prove it hurts, I don't know what will. Poor me...I need your pity.

Happy Halloween!

In case you have not heard...I was released from my calling as Primary President last Sunday. We had put an offer in on a house, so we told our ward that we would be moving by the end of October...but then we did not end up getting the house, but the Bishop had already started the process of releasing me. I have very mixed feelings about the entire situation...but in the end, I am really going to miss these children that I have devoted the last 3 years of my life to. Anyway, as my last act as President...we are in charge of four booths tonight for the children. I have spent the entire day preparing for the party...baking cupcakes, making ping-pong balls into eyeballs, shopping for yarn and candy and prizes. It's a good thing I don't have to work on Fridays anymore! As I have been thinking about Halloween all day, I've been remember some of my favorite costumes from my younger years. I don't have any digital pictures to post, so I thought I would just make a list of my favorites:
1) Pippi Longstocking (2nd or 3rd grade, I think...my mom even put wire in my braids to make them stick out...and I hit people all day at school).
2) She-Ra (Princess of Power! 1st grade I think...that was when I wanted to be She-Ra when I grew up).
3) Raggedy Anne and Andy (freshman year of High School with my BFF...and if I recall correctly, I was Andy...that's a little embarrassing!)
4) Sumo Wrestler (last year...I borrowed one of my coworkers blow up costumes...the kids in the ward were a little freaked out, and I was pretty impressed that they allowed me to stay in the costume considering I was not only cross-dressing, but I was half-naked...)

That's all I can remember...but I would love to hear about some of your favorite costumes!

I.Love.Free.Vacations.

You know how radio stations often have competitions where, if you are caller #whatever you can win a cool prize? Well, my father-in-law wins those prizes all the time! A few weeks ago he won a two night stay at the Mariott in Park City, and he gave it to us! We went to Park City this past weekend to redeem our free stay, and it was a fun weekend, despite my being sick and the walls of the hotel being paper thin. I had never been to Main Street in Park City before (I usually only go there to shop at the outlet mall) and it was pretty dead (being the off season and all) so I can only imagine what it would be like during the big events such as the Sundance Film Festival. We ate at a Sports Bar on Main Street on Thursday night so we could watch the BYU/TCU game (please, don't bring it up...the results of that game are a very sore subject for Dan). One thing I will say about Park City is that it is one expensive city! All the restaurants that we could find were posh and pricey (so much for our "free" weekend!). Luckily, for lunch on Friday we found a place that was not too expensive, and pretty delicious...the Loco Lizard!

Sho loves the Loco Lizard, and eats there every time she goes to Park City. In fact, she often goes to Park City just so she can eat there. As is now customary, Dan continued his search for the best fish tacos in the nation at the Loco Lizard. We were pleasantly surprised with the tacos, but they pale in comparison to those eaten at Dukes. However, these were the best we have found in the Beehive State, so way to go Loco! In addition to our eating experiences, we also took in a couple of shows, including W and Eagle Eye. I have a lot to say about W, and will hopefully share my opinion some day on my movie blog (no promises! We watch too many movies, it's too hard to keep up!) Overall it was a fun and relaxing weekend...thanks Daddy Czech!

Oh Mother's, where art thou?

As many of you know, our nation is currently in an economic crisis. Every day more and more businesses are closing, leaving us all concerned about our personal financial situation. The pressure of trying to plan our future in the midst of all of this turmoil is giving me an ulcer. And today, Dan read me an article that is literally the "straw that broke the camel's back". One company that is very dear to my heart (and my taste buds) has gone bankrupt. Let us all take a moment of silence for...

Apparently, the company went bankrupt on 09 October 2008. This is a tragedy to the cookie industry... and what's next? Girl Scouts? Oreo's? Chips Ahoy? What is the point of living without these luxuries? Three of my favorite cookies in the world are manufactured by Mother's.



I love the Taffy cookies so much that I bought a lotion that makes me smell like them (and recently ate an entire bag without allowing Dan to have any of them...). The Circus Animals change color for every holiday, and remind me of my childhood...and of deliciousness. And the Iced Raisin remind me of my mom...she always loved them and only shared them with us on special occasions. If you try to order any Mother's cookies online today, you will find that most of them are already out of stock...which means you better start stocking up now before they are gone forever! In fact, Christmas is coming, so if you haven't got me a present yet, I would not say no to a delicious bag of cookies. I know, this will not help my weight loss goals, but in this time of crisis, who can think about their weight?

Tag...thanks Teri!

10 years ago I:
1. was just staring my freshman year at the Y
2. wanted to be a lawyer/teacher/supreme court justice
3. had the hots for 5 or 6 different guys
4. enjoyed napping on Shoshie's bed without her consent
5. was not a registered voter

5 things on today's "to do" list:
1. watch conference
2. scrapbook during conference
3. 3 loads of laundry...who knew 2 people wore so many clothes !
4. finish Mad Men season 1
5. apply for a promotion

5 snacks I enjoy: (I'm changing this to "5 snacks I enjoy but never eat because they are too many points"...most of you know the only thing I really snack on is carrots)
1. Chili cheese dip
2. cheese and crackers
3. cheesecake (in a perfect world, this would be a snack)
4. Mother's taffy cookies (I even bought a lotion that makes me smell like these cookies so that I will not be tempted to eat them...however, I recently ate an entire package that D purchased for a trip and he didn't get a single one)
5. Easter candy (Cadbury mini eggs, normal Cadbury eggs, Reeses eggs, snickers eggs, jelly beans, etc, etc)

5 things I would do if I were a millionaire:
1. buy a house
2. buy a baby (or two or three...preferably brown ones...)
3. allow D to go golfing as much as he wants
4. quit my job
5. save most of it (boring, I know...but I can't help it)

5 places I have lived:
1. on the Puget Sound
2. in a valley
3. in a forest
4. on an island
5. in a desert

Five jobs I have had:
1. phone researcher
2. forklift driver
3. movie theater ticket taker
4. test giver
5. Christmas tree seller

I tag...Shoshie, Anne, Stacie, Tia, Sean

Rules: Each player answers the question themselves. At the end of the post the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blog and leaves them a comment letting them know that they've been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person that tagged you know when you've answered the questions on your blog.

Get a room!

Shoshie and I went to the zoo the other day. Now, I would not consider myself a connoisseur of zoos...I've been to several in my day, but not enough to be considered a specialist. But I am not a fan of the layout of our zoo, nor am I a fan of the assortment of animals. No polar bears, no hippos, and only one species of pig! However, one thing that I have not seen at any other zoo is the Aldabra Tortoise...it is huge. Prior to finding the tortoise cage, we heard a very loud groan. We had no idea what it was, and Sho jokingly wondered if the animals were "making babies". Then, we walked past this sign:

That explains everything! I guess there will be some tortoise babies running around soon. Other highlights of the zoo visit are as follows:

1) The Ghost of the Bayou. There are currently only 10 living white alligators in the world, and we have one at our zoo (for a limited time) so that should be reason in and of itself to go to the zoo.

2) Finding out that Sho is the same height as a gorilla. If you look close enough, you can see the lovely jewelry that she is wearing (courtesy of my mother).

3) Watching this gorilla eat. The zookeeper threw a burlap bag full of food over the fence, and this gorilla ate everything in the bag. I especially liked watching her eat the corn on the cob...she pealed it as if she was a human, picking off each part of the husk...it was incredible.

I loved it so much, I had to go again!

I couldn't help it...when Shoshie invited me back to the State Fair, I had to say yes! And imagine my excitement when I found out that there was an Elvis impersonator competition that night! I was even able to convince Dan to come along. Unfortunately, the Elvis show was a little less exciting than I had anticipated. I was expecting dozens of Elvi (that would be the plural for Elvis, right?) singing one song each and giving us a hell of a show. As it turned out, there were only three impersonators, they each sang 6 or so songs, and they were not very good. I am very disappointed that there are not more people in this state that think they can be Elvis.

State Fair

My girlies and I have a tradition of going to the State Fair every year...we love to take a day off work to spend the entire day enjoying the events of the fair. This year I could only go for a few hours (stupid work). The first place I always want to go is to check out the pigs...because I LOVE PIGS! This year the pigs were more friendly than normal...this one wanted to eat my hand!
When you are at the fair, you HAVE to eat fair food...hence this huge funnel cake.
Another tradition we have while at the fair is to go to the button making booth and get our picture put on a button to give to our boss who never comes to the fair with us. This "boss" is no longer our boss, but we still like to keep this tradition going. However, this year they raised the price of these buttons to an absolutely unreasonable price, so we decided to just take our own picture and maybe make our own button some day...that job will only get done if I give it to my friend T.
We always round out the night with a performance of some sort, and for the last two years we have watched the hypnotist show with the amazing Tyzen. It is always hilarious...in fact, my mouth was sore from smiling after the show. Tyzen is the second one from the right. I hope to see you all at the fair next year!

If we had only known

I found this on Ken Jenning's blog when we got back from vacation. If he'd only told me we could have sat together. http://ken-jennings.com/blog/?p=990

Vacation Day 8: Saturday

On our last day of vacation we woke up and finished packing before saying goodbye to Jorden's family and heading out to the BYU-UW football game. We had planned out an hour to get to Husky Stadium from Jorden's house, but ended up spending an hour to get across the floating bridge and we missed half of the first quarter. The game was fun to watch, even though it was at time painful. It was our first time going to a road game that wasn't on a neutral site and the UW fans were pretty rowdy. With 2 seconds left in the game Jake Locker scored a rushing touchdown and tossed the football about 30 feet in the air before celebration with his teammates, leaving the officials no choice but to call the excessive celebration penalty. This backed their extra point try up 15 yards which BYU ended up blocking, giving them the 28-27 victory. This game was much discussed on a local and national stage as being a big controversy, but sitting right where he scored the touchdown, I can't understand the controversy. We did get heckled as we walked across the UW campus back to our car.
We left straight from the game to start our drive home. We got all the way to Baker City, Oregon before calling it a night and finishing our drive home Sunday. When we got home that night we were unpacking and looked out the front window to check to weather to notice this:
That's right, our culdesac had about 10 cop cars and they were searching someone's car. What a great neighborhood.

Vacation Day 7: Friday

On Friday we took my parents and brother to dinner at The Crab Pot on Pier 57 in downtown Seattle. We were interested in this restaurant because we recently watched an episode of Dinner Impossible on the Food Network where Michael Symon did a clam bake...and it looked delicious! So when we found out that this restaurant serves clam bakes, we had to try it (especially when we were so close to fresh seafood after being surrounded by land). Mom, Dad, and Erik were not super interested in the clam bake, so they got shrimp and crab. But Dan and I ordered the Pacific Clambake which consisted of clams, oysters, mussels, Dungeness and snow crab, shrimp, halibut, salmon, Andouille sausage, corn on the cob, and potatoes...yum! They brought it out in a bowl and dumped it out on the table in front of us. This is what it looked like:


They also gave us bibs and mallets and let us go at it! I look like a crazed maniac here, but that's kind of how I felt

After dinner we went to the Mariners vs Yankees game (smelling like fish). I was excited to have my entire family together because I don't think we have ever been completely together since we have gotten some new additions to the family. However, my brother and his wife (Thor and Betty) were not able to make it at the last minute, so we will probably go another three years or so without having a chance like this again. But it was fun to be together with everyone else (Mom, Dad, Erik, Jen, Ty, Ty's son Christian, Dan and Jorden). And it gave us a little more room to stretch out during the game. Speaking of the game, it was great! The Mariners have not been doing very well this season, so we were expecting the Yankees to blow them out. In addition, the Mariners were starting a pitcher (Brandon Morrow) who was making his starting debut in the major leagues...so we thought the M's didn't have a chance. So imagine our surprise when Morrow almost pitched a no hitter! He was incredible and only had one hit off him in the 8th inning...which is pretty incredible for a debut! Heck, it would have been incredible for a veteran. Another highlight of the game was when Dan left to get ice cream and came back with chocolate covered strawberries! Boy, they sure are high class now at Safeco Field! The strawberries were fantastic...and the Mariners beating the Yankees 3-1 wasn't half bad either!

Vacation Day 6: Thursday

We spent Thursday afternoon and evening with my sister and her boyfriend (Jen and Ty). Dan and I had previously decided that, every time we went out to eat during this trip, we would have to go to a restaurant that can not be found where we live. So, when Ty recommended a little mom and pop place that sold alligator, we were sold! We think it is called Eat More Gator (Jen, correct me if I'm wrong) and it served authentic southern food...which means everything was fried. Dan had the barbecue ribs and coleslaw (the only two non-fried items) with fried pickles, and I had the fried alligator, fried okra, and sweet potato fries...and we shared fried bignets for dessert. That's right, goodbye WW! I felt a little nauseous after all this fried food, but it was actually pretty good. The alligator had a taste that I can't really describe...some people say it tastes like chicken, but I beg to differ. I have eaten a lot of chicken in my day and that is NOT what it tastes like...but the white meat had a similar consistency to chicken.

After we ate, we headed to Snoqualmie Falls, one of the most popular scenic attractions in Washington and is well known for it's appearance in Twin Peaks. Anyway, I had only been to the falls one time before, when my sister and some friends of ours were babysitting dozens of kids at a wedding when I was in high school. We took the kids down to the bottom of the falls, and I remember that the hike back to the top was not very pleasant. Jen remembered that as well, but we made the climb down anyway. It was actually not terrible coming back up, and it was nice that very few people were there so we almost had the place to ourselves. It was nice to spend some time with Jen and get to know Ty a little better.

Vacation Day 5: Wednesday

One thing I forgot to mention about Tuesday night at Crystal's was that I broke my favorite pair of flip flops. I purchased this pair right before my mission and took them with me everywhere, so they lasted me approximately 5 years...and that's pretty impressive, considering that I wore them pretty much every day for about 5 months straight every year. As you can imagine this was a pretty traumatic event for me. And, as a result, we had to go on a trip to find a replacement pair on Wednesday. I decided I didn't need a great pair to get me through the trip, a cheap pair would do. So we drove down into Covington to check out the Walmart (who were out of flip flops), then we went to Payless (who only had sparkly flip flops, which just would not do). We could have tried the Fred Meyer, but by then we had lost our patience and decided to head back down to the Supermall. And, after finding a very comfortable pair of Nike flip flops at the Famous Footwear, we headed back over to the food court for another Cinnabon. I don't know if that has to be capitalized, but I will always capitalize it, out of respect.

Later that day we went to a ward activity with my parents...the Milk Carton Derby. Basically, each auxillary in their ward spends the year building a boat out of wood and milk cartons, then they race them in a lake with members of the auxillary on top with paddles. It was one of the funniest things I have seen in a long time, and I didn't even know any of the people on the boats. The winning boat was built by the Relief Society, but powered by the Elder's Quorum (because their boat sunk before the race even began...shoddy workmanship). The young men and young women had about eight people on each of their boats...the young men's boat was by far the best, but they had WAY too many people on it to make it move quickly through the water...they would have won if they had only two or three people on the boat from the beginning. I was concerned about the High Priests...they looked like they were about to have heart attacks. Because this was such a funny experience, I have decided to introduce this tradition to whichever ward we end up settling in.

Vacation Day 4: Tuesday

Tuesday was a very busy day for us. We woke up early and drove into Seattle to go to the Experience Music Project (EMP) and Sci-Fi Museum/Hall of Fame at the Seattle Center. I am still a little confused about EMP...wiki says it is a museum of music history, but to me it appeared to be a history of Jimi Hendrix. There were other aspects of the museum as well (like a history of the guitar and musicians from the greater Seattle area), and my favorite part was the hands on music area where we learned to play the guitar, drums, and piano (all instruments that I have always wanted to play). Apparently they also have different exhibits that come in and out of the facility. We also went to the Science Fiction Museum/Hall of Fame which was very interesting. The most exciting part of the "experience" was when we were watching a film of a Jimi Hendrix concert and the fire alarm went off. We ended up having to go outside and wait for the firemen to come and give us the OK to go back into the building. I was not happy to have to wait outside in the cold for so long. Overall, it was a good experience, but a little over priced (but for any of you who are planning to be in Seattle, almost all of the museums in Seattle are free on the first Thursday of every month).

After EMP, we took a trip of a lifetime...to the top of the Space Needle. My dad and I had never been up to the top of the Space Needle, and that is a little embarrassing since we are both from Seattle. My parents treated us to a meal in the revolving restaurant...a very expensive meal. I was interested in several of the items on the menu, but the server had told us about an Ahi Tuna special that sounded interesting. Little did I know that it was a seared Ahi Tuna that was completely raw. This was my first experience with raw fish and I was a little scared, but my parents had paid good money for this meal so I pushed through and ate the entire meal. Although I did not love the consistency of the raw fish, it was pretty good...and I LOVED the wasabi mashed potatoes. Dan enjoyed a Jidori chicken which was stuffed with deliciousness. After the meal we walked up to the viewing deck and took some pictures...and it was not as cold as I was expecting it to be.

As soon as we got home from our long day in Seattle, we left again to go and meet my friends Crystal and Villiami. We decided to go out to Alki Beach to eat at a chowder house that they had been wanting to try. Crystal and I had spent many a summer day at this beach, and one of my favorite memories is when we slept out on the beach to save spots for the Fourth of July fireworks...we met the weirdest people that day (including a man with a python in a cooler and a group of people who brought couches and a mini fridge to the beach). Anyway, we ate at Duke's Chowderhouse and I ate the chowder sampler which consisted of 5 different delicious chowders (but the award winning clam chowder was by far the best). As is tradition at this point, Dan ordered the Mahi fish tacos...and they were the best fish tacos in the world! I had a little zero point sample, and I can still taste the wonderful flavors. If any of you are planning to visit Seattle and enjoy fish tacos, this is the place to go. We also got to spend a little time with Crystal's adorable children (Naomi and Elias)...Polynesian kids are the cutest kids in the world. This was by far our longest day of the trip!

Vacation Day 3: Monday

On Labor Day, Dan and I decided to check out the sales at the Super Mall (my favorite outlet mall). Dan was less than thrilled to spend a day at the mall, but he got new shoes and a Cinnabon out of it, so he can't complain. Speaking of Cinnabon, I don't know how many of you have enjoyed a Cinnabon in your day, but I LOVE them. My adoration of Cinnabon began in my early teens when I would go to the mall with my friends and we would share a Cinnabon and Orange Julius. So, imagine my dismay when I moved to one of the few states in the nation that did not have a Cinnabon franchise. I have been missing Cinnabon for years, so every time I see one I HAVE to have one. Luckily, most airports (including ours now) have a Cinnabon, so whenever we travel I get to enjoy the deliciousness of cinnamon, icing, and dough. This was actually Dan's first experience with an actual Cinnabon (we had purchased minibons on our last trip, but they are just not the same...), and I am happy to announce that he has become a Cinnabon supporter.

Later that night, we went out to dinner with my parents...aren't they cute?

They had been wanting to try a new Mexican restaurant near their house (Puerta Vallarta), so we agreed to help them determine if it was worth their business in the future. When they brought out the chips and salsa, the waitress also brought out another dish with questionable ingredients. My dad turned to the waitress and asked "What's in that?"...and the waitress smiled, nodded, and said "Yes". She then brought out some bean dip. Interesting. At least we knew then that the food was probably authentic. Dan has been on a search for the ultimate fish tacos (make a note of this, and please refer to tomorrow's post), but he was also interested in several other items on the menu, so I agreed to order the fish tacos. Big mistake. They were NOT good...I couldn't even find the fish, and they were incredibly spicy. Dan got a huge meal (which included steak and chile rellenos), so we shared our meals with each other. The food was ok, but I don't think my parents will be returning.

Vacation Day 2: Sunday

Because we were expecting to take forever to get to Seattle in the labor day traffic, we did not plan to go to church on Sunday (meaning we didn't even have clothes to wear to church...). So, we were excited to sleep in and enjoy a relaxing vacation Sunday. We were staying in my parents new camping trailer (which is pretty posh, if you ask me) so we would not be woken up by the family getting ready for church. The only downfall of the trailer was that it was perched on a very precarious post and I was terrified that we were going to break something and send the trailer careening down the driveway in the middle of the night. Luckily, that did not happen. However, as a punishment for skipping church, we were woken up at 8:00am by the most annoying sound in the world. It was this loud screeching noise that would not stop! Dan jumped out of bed to go and investigate, and I saw a flashing light on what looked like a smoke detector which led me to believe that the trailer was burning down. Remember, we were woken up out of a deep sleep and I was a little incoherent. As I got closer to the "smoke detector" I could read that it was actually a carbon monoxide detector...great! Even better! We were about to consumed by the silent killer! Now, some people (Dan) might say that I am a hypochondriac, and others may think I am a little paranoid...but I really thought we were on the verge of dying when suddenly the sound stopped. Lo and behold it was...an alarm clock. Blaring through six speakers in the trailer. For the purpose of waking us up. Funny. When we asked my parents about the alarm, they said "Oh yeah. That goes off every morning and we can't figure out how to turn it off." After another morning of this, Dan figured out that if you mute the volume on the flat screen TV in the trailer (that's right, the trailer has a TV...I'm considering purchasing one to be our home...) then the alarm turns off. I'm sure some of you are joking that we are complaining about being woken up at 8:00am...that is still a major "sleep in" for me, but driving all day can really take a lot out of a girl! So, to make up for our lack of sleep, we relaxed around the house, watching movies and playing games.

Vacation Day 1: Saturday

Our first day of vacation to Seattle involved a whole lot of what you would expect... a whole lot of driving. We made really good time. It only took us 11 hours to get from Ogden (where we stayed Friday night) to Covington (where Jorden's family lives). The only major event from our trip happened when we got into Oregon. We had planned to stop in Ontario, Oregon which is just across the border, but Jorden was taking a nap and I didn't want to wake her so I kept driving. Doing a little math I figured we may barely make Baker City but I would rather not risk getting caught without gas in those mountains so we saw a truck stop to the side of the road and got off to fill up. When we pulled into the gas station we realized that all of the pumps were covered with trash bags. Jorden went in to do some investigating and found out that they had run out of gas the day before. They suggested we drive 5 miles out of the way to this little town called Huntington to fill up. The only gas station in Huntington turned out to be a 2 pump, mom and pop store where they had to use a calculator to figure out how much we owed. At least they had gas. We had planned on there being a lot of traffic since it was Labor Day weekend, but apparently the economy discouraged a lot of traffic.

I LOVE BIRTHDAY WEEKENDS!

Several years ago, I realized that, when my birthday falls on a Wednesday, I am authorized to celebrate said birthday the weekend prior to and following the actual birthday. In addition, it makes sense that I would then be able to celebrate my birthday for an entire weekend (plus some) if it falls at any other time during the week. This year, my birthday was on a Saturday...last Saturday to be exact. I guess any normal person would have celebrated their birthday on Saturday...but as you may know, I am not a normal person. My b-day began on Friday, when Dan decided to take the day off work so we could spend it together. We have a tradition (which we can now call a tradition because this is the second year IN A ROW that we have done this) that we go golfing on my b-day. Some of you might be thinking "Sure...Dan takes you golfing on your birthday because he loves golfing". Well, actually, it was my idea to go golfing. I never share this activity with Dan, so I think it is a good time for us to go and do something he loves so much together. Plus, we end up going in the middle of the day when no one else is out (so I don't feel pressure to hurry up) and we always go to an executive course (so that I don't take all day to get to the green). Dan says I have pretty good form and that I have improved from last year...he's so nice to lie to me for my birthday!

After golf, we spent the whole day together at the Gateway, enjoying a meal at Biaggi's, taking in a movie or two, and topping off the evening with a visit to our pseudo-parents, Mark and Lisa. But don't worry...the birthday did not stop there! Saturday was my actual birthday, and my BFF surprised me with a "mini" homemade cheesecake (which was actually the perfect size and absolutely delicious!). On Sunday, my new secretary brought me a birthday bag with all sorts of goodies in it. Sho, Dan and I went to Red Lobster for dinner on Monday (FYI, Red Lobster does not give you a delicious dessert for your birthday...however, if you bring your own or buy one of theirs, they will sing to you...). My favorite thing to eat at Red Lobster is the coconut shrimp because of the fabulous dipping sauce. It is a cup full of pina colada deliciousness...that I can eat with a spoon as if it were pudding. I may or may not have requested several cups of the dipping sauce (and filled up on sauce so I had a loan shrimp leftover...poor little guy!).

Dan enjoyed the crab, and got a bright idea from Sho to pull apart his crab and put it all in the butter at the same time...it looked absolutely disgusting. This is one fine artery clogging meal!

To finish off my birthday extravaganza, my coworkers (and some former coworkers...but current friends) took me to lunch at Red Robin...and on Wednesday I enjoyed pie with the RS presidency. This was truly the birthday that kept on giving. Do I really have to wait another year to celebrate again? Thank's everyone for making my birthday great!

My Olympic Claim to Fame...

I LOVE the Summer Olympics! There are so many fun events to watch...I always think the Winter Olympics got robbed! Volleyball, diving, swimming, basketball, baseball, gymnastics...the event list goes on and on! I personally think that there are several summer events that should be made winter events, so as to allow the Winter Olympics to be some-what exciting. For example, gymnastics...it's an inside sport. Why, oh why does it need to be clustered in with all the other phenomenal events? It could be the star of the winter games! There are dozens of other sports that could be performed just fine during the winter (like swimming, wrestling, boxing, table tennis, basketball...all of which are inside events). I'm going to step off my soapbox now, as I wipe a tear from my eye for the poor little Winter Olympics...they may take the gold for funny event names (Slalom, Luge, Moguls, Skeleton), but they will never have my heart...or my attention.

Now, let's get down to business. My sister called me the other day and informed me that one of our old Sunday School teachers is competing in the Olympics this year. Jen has been keeping tabs on her because she was a pretty extraordinary lady when we knew her, so she was up to speed on her changed name and everything. When I knew her she was Melanie Pritchard, and she was quite possibly the funnest teacher I ever had. She is now known as Melanie Roach, the Olympic Weight Lifter. We always laughed at her because she wanted to be a weight lifter, but, she is this incredibly petite woman (5'1" and 119 lbs of pure muscle). I remember going to watch her compete in Canada, and she was able to lift me! Incredible! She has already competed this year a placed 6th...in the world. Way to go Melanie!

I need to get back onto my soapbox for a minute to discuss what technology has done to our Olympic events. I have been watching the judges play and replay the tapes of the gymnasts looking for absolute perfection...I am currently watching the men's synchronized diving events, and by replaying the event over and over again, and having the judges point out all of the mistakes, I'm starting to think these athletes aren't as great as they appear to be. Honestly, if I could just watch the event, I would love it and think that they are all incredible for being able to do what they do...so I don't think I like these technological advancements very much. I guess it helps inspire the athletes to be their very best, but do any of these athletes become depressed when they do not live up to last weeks performance? If suicide attempts are made, I will blame technology.

And now, for all you nay-sayers who told me that "trampoline is not an Olympic event", the trampoline competition starts at 11:00am on Saturday (happy birthday to me), and the men's and women's finals are Monday and Tuesday at 8:25pm...enjoy!

Tepanyaki

My parents took us to Tepanyaki in Layton for our birthdays this past weekend. It is fun to watch them do their little tricks and light things on fire. I was able to catch some shrimp in my mouth and listen to some lame jokes by the chef (for example he spun the egg he would later use in the fried rice and said "eggroll"). We drove up on Thursday night to surprise them and ended up sitting there for 3 hours without dinner because we didn't know they had other commitments that night so our plan backfired. We saw Dark Knight for the second time this weekend since my parents hadn't seen it. Saturday after our dentist appointments we stopped by Tony Caputo's Deli in Salt Lake City and got some great italian sandwiches.

My Birthday

It has been a while since we've been able to post, we've been really busy and our life seems uneventful at times even though we're super busy. I'm sure nobody wants to hear about what happens during the 3 days a week when my free time is spent at the church. August 3rd was my 25th birthday, which also happened to be Dave and Brooke's going away party. The Friday before we went to our annual birthday dinner at Ruby River to get a nice juicy steak. Sunday we headed up to Mark and Lisa's house for the going away party. It was hard to see another great friend leave. For my birthday Jorden got me the newest copy of my favorite game: NCAA Football '09. Jorden's birthday is this Saturday...what do you think we should do?

What I LOVE about Mary...

As much as I LOVE Anne and Mark (who are two of the funniest people I know by far)...I am IN LOVE with their little Mary (in a non-creepy kind of way). Mary has my heart for several reasons, many of which I was able to document on film. So here are 5 reasons why I LOVE Mary!

1) I love Mary because she loves Koala's...especially her stuffed Koala. Mary informed me as soon as I arrived in the house that her Koala's name was Jean...however, I think she was confused by the question I was asking her due to the fact that she then proceeded to call me Jean for a third of the visit...

2) I love Mary because she loves to have her picture taken. She often says "Cheese" and scrunches up her face real cute like this...even when she is drinking a milkshake. I believe she was so engrossed in this shake that she did not want to take her lips off the straw for fear of having the drink taken from her. That is one cute scrunchy face!

3) I love Mary because she has perfect skin, as can be seen in this photo. This shot also demonstrates that Mary has a deep, serious side (which is often overshadowed by her sassy-ness). We are kindred spirits...

4) I love Mary because she LOVES mountain goats (which has been a running rivalry between Sho and Anne since our road trip to Becca's wedding...which is cuter, a baby mountain goat or a baby koala?). Luckily, Mary loves both mountain goats and koalas (as demonstrated in these pictures).
5) I love Mary because she is sassy enough to create nicknames for the people she loves, as shown in this short video clip. If you need a translation (because you can't understand Anne's voice in the background), she is saying "Hi Shosie, hi Jordie, Cheese!"...you know, for the picture. Adorable. I. Love. Mary.

The Trip Home

The trip home was far from uneventful...we drove straight through a monsoon (or so it seemed). It was raining like crazy, and the lightning was incredible! But the best thing about the trip home was the toilet I used in one of those little Utah cities (Panguitch?). I do recall it was a Conocco station...and it had a self-service toilet. I promptly got a tetanus shot upon returning home.