Damn Duckie

September 30, 2012
My sister's comfort item as a baby/kid was a duck rattle lovingly called, "Damn Duckie." He looked an awful lot like this duckie. Only she'd chewed his beak off, his hair (lace on his head) was gone, and I think one of his eyes was missing. She took Duckie to school one day - against my mom's strong advice to never take Duckie to school - and lost him.

I think that's what all her issues now stem from.

Anyway. Duckie went everywhere with us. San Diego, Sea World, Bear Lake, the store, Grandma's house. You name it and Duckie was there. One time Kimmy left Duckie at my Grandma's house. After hours of trantrum throwing late into the night, my Dad finally decided it was better to just drive back to my Grandma's house and get Duckie. When he walked in and everyone wondered why he was back so late, he said two words and two words only. "Damn Duckie."

So when I saw this lost Duckie on the trail to Willard Peak, I laughed hysterically and knew he just had to come home with us. Well, come home with Blu. I'm sure there's some frantic parent driving all over the mountainside looking for their kid's Damn Duckie, but I couldn't help myself. Blu needed a comfort item. And the memory of Duckie was just too much for my heart to ignore.

White-out

September 29, 2012
Coach Anderson called for a white-out for the Homecoming game and that's exactly what he got.

And $140 out of Jeff's wallet to outfit us in all new white Aggie Gear.

Who is that doggie in the mirror?

September 28, 2012
Blu is fascinated with Grandpa's dog.

Who happens to look an awful lot like her.

Fruit pizza

September 27, 2012
One of the girls (I still think I'm 19 'cause I call all women - except the old ones of course - girls) I go visiting teaching to is having a baby in December. She's pretty shy and quiet so my V.T. companion and I sort of half-asked, half-told her we were throwing her a baby shower. I didn't know if she went along with the idea to get us to leave or because she was really excited about it.

But as often happens to me, I can't stay organized enough to save my life. Or time. Or money. So I left work early today, frantically ran to the grocery store with two kids who wanted to go home and watch Wild Kratts on PBS (and then I may or may not have spent $80 on unnecessarily holiday decor when I was only supposed to buy a baby shower gift... dam* dollar section at Target), and whipped up a good ole fruit pizza for dessert.

I know. A fruit pizza.

Seems a little too 80s-esque doesn't it? But my favorite cookbook gals, Our Best Bites, said it was the must have baby/bridal shower food. And they didn't steer me wrong.

Only Oreos

September 26, 2012
I really was in a good mood today. You just wouldn't have known it had you come by tonight for a visit.

After a great lunch with my favorite coworkers "debriefing" and a fairly productive afternoon at work, I came home to find that Blu had eaten Jeff's climbing rose - the very one that's survived several tillers and lots of neglect until he built a fence for it to climb - AND the honeysuckle plant. Why she decided to eat a thorny rose plant and the one honeysuckle that actually flowers I will never know.

Oh, and did I mention I had sprinkled Tabasco sauce all over them to deter her? Apparently Blu likes spice.

Knowing how close Blu came to losing her life a few weeks ago when she'd eaten another plant, this set me off! I was a major grouch, yelling at the dog, snapping at Jeff, banging pots and pans as I made dinner. Then getting all worked up about the house being a mess, the laundry piled to the ceiling, the work I didn't get done, and all the scrambling I seem to do with YW activities, family/homemaking obligations, dog walking, work, and baby shower planning I'd yet to do for tomorrow.

It was bad.

So bad that only a bag of Halloween Oreos could make me feel better. Thank Heavens for Nabisco!

Confetti sticks

September 25, 2012
I broke the picture-a-day rule.

But I couldn't help myself.

These three pictures tell the perfect story of our 20 minutes of fun tonight. Jeff brought home a whole bunch of confetti sticks from work so naturally we made a huge mess with them. At the park. Did you really think Jeff would let the kids throw all that paper on his lawn? Even Blu thought it was fun... she chased the confetti all across the park.

It made a huge red, white, and blue mess!

Back across the pond

September 24, 2012
We said goodbye to Jeff's sister, Vickie, today.

She's off back across the pond to England.

Pearl was sad to see her go. She's had a great time with Aunt Vickie... shopping, getting presents, lunches, and lots of spoiling.

Little did she (and we) know, Aunt Vickie's flight back across the pond wouldn't go quite as planned. After an eight-hour delay because some part on the plane was broken, her flight was canceled all together at 11 p.m. After we'd taken her back to the airport TWICE. And with an international flight, that means she will now have to fly to another state-side airport, wait four hours, fly to Amsterdam (Germany people), wait for five hours, then to England instead of a direct flight to Paris and then London.

I'm glad we didn't take Vickie up on her offer to take Pearl home with her. That would have made her flight(s) the LONGEST ever.

Someone remind me next spring

September 23, 2012
Someone remind me what these flowers are called.

And then remind me to plant some next spring.

Fall colors

September 22, 2012
I am slightly obsessed with the fall colors.

Mother Nature is sure putting on a spectacular show this year. I can't remember the leaves being this vibrant and bright before. Ever. I could take thousands of pictures but they still wouldn't capture the beauty and magic of autumn.

(And yes, this is an actual picture I took, then filtered on Instagram. I love the painting look it has.)

Eee gads! I finally found one!

September 21, 2012
Eeeeee!!! I never in my wildest dreams ever thought I'd be excited, thrilled, freaking jumping up and down for joy, over a cookbook.

A cookbook people!

But not just any cookbook. The next cookbook by the Our Best Bites girls. The kind of cookbook that has a big, bright, beautiful picture on every single page. With real people food and ingredients you can actually find. And I'll remind you that one of the authors was my BFF in 2nd grade. I feel like I know a celebrity.

I was so bummed because I missed the opening book launch party due to meetings at work... first missed chance to get my hands on this savory, sweet book. So I found some lame excuse to run to Walmart late one night, just in time to plan a week's worth of meals and go grocery shopping for my starving family. But ahhhh!!! They were sold out and had stocked an imposter cookbook in it's place. I went back twice to find the same thing. And with Deseret Book closing before my kids go to bed and not having time to run to Costco and deal with the crowds, I had to wait weeks - WEEKS - to get a copy.

Thank heavens my Mom's birthday was today and I had the day off to go birthday present shopping. I mean, what better gift to give than the one you want yourself. Right?

Red day

September 20, 2012
Can you guess what the theme for show and tell was today?

It's not baseball.

It's not watering your flowers.

It's not fake a smile for your mom as she squaks at you to look at the camera. With your eyes.

It's RED day!

Mustache tickle

September 19, 2012
Aunt Vickie came down to Salt Lake for a day of shoe shopping, eating, and visiting. We pulled the kids out of daycare and went to the Red Iguana for lunch. I couldn't believe my in-laws had never been there before. It's a Salt Lake City landmark.

Then we drove all over town looking for these very specific sandals Vickie wanted. I laughed to myself because the shoe obsessed gene really does run in Jeff's family! Jeff, his sister, his mom, and I hear his grandma all had it. Vickie was appalled that I really detest shoe shopping. I don't totally hate it. It's just not the way I want to spend five hours of my day. Too bad too because she would have bought me any pair I wanted.

After a few hours of recovering from all the shoe excitement - and watching Jeff and his Dad put the trim on the shed - we went to Nielsen's for custard.

And mustache tickles. Every time my kids see Jeff's Dad, they tickle his mustache. Jeff still tortures his Dad with a mustache tickle too. The funniest part about it though, besides seeing Cole giggle with delight, is that my kids think my Dad will laugh when they do this to him. He doesn't.

Glad I finally caught this sweet moment on camera.

Viva Market deal

September 18, 2012
I love the Hispanic market by my office building. I'm the only white, non-Spanish speaking person in the entire store. There is happy, make-you-want-to-dance salsa music blasting through the overhead speakers. Pinatas hang from the ceiling. You can get a home cooked meal, take out a loan, use a computer, recharge your phone, or find any kind of pepper you could imagine. And meat. Calf head (complete with tongue and teeth) anyone?

For salsa making, this place is the jackpot. I usually struggle to find enough chili peppers in one store by our house to do a batch, let alone two batches. But today I picked up a dozen beautiful Anaheim peppers, 11 jalapenos (I can't count apparently), and six onions all for $2.93! Seriously! $2.93... what a screaming deal. We're going to make money on our green salsa.

Blu

September 17, 2012
Blu weighed in at a whooping 24, almost 25 lbs. today. At 12 weeks.

Heaven help me, she's going to be big. That 100 lb. prediction the vet gave me at her first visit is looking more and more like it's going to come true.

The next visit to the vet is going to be an expensive one... spaying, microchip, shots, and license. But if we don't do it next month, she's going to pass the weight limit for her already pricey spaying and hit the next price range. I'm predicting $350. Ouch.

She tries hard to be a good girl. It's hard to remember that she's just a puppy when she eats the rose bushes, flowers, and climbing honeysuckles. Or bites and jumps and tugs on the leash. But man can Blu be sweet. And she is such a good looking dog. Just like our kids, that's her saving grace some days!

Quiet evening

September 16, 2012
Either I've never noticed the sky before or Mother Nature has been putting on quite a show lately.

I swear I have a cloud/sky picture on my phone or camera almost daily. Tonight was no exception. I glanced up and saw rays of sunshine streaming through fluffly, white clouds minutes before tuurning shades of pink and orange as the sun set behind the horizon.

Shortly after snapping this picture, Pearl came over and said, "Mom. Do you like the quiet evenings? Like tonight on our walk?"

Yes, Pearl. Yes, I do. More than you will ever know.

The Macaroni & Cheese song

September 15, 2012
When Pearl was little, Jeff made up the "Mac & Cheese" song. It goes something like this:

"Macaroni and cheese.

Cheese and macaroni.

It's a yummy meal.

For Pearl- and Fern-a-roni"

It's catchy. And five years later, we're still singing it. Every single time. Sometimes we even bust out a few dance moves.

One can hope

September 14, 2012
I should gotten a haircut weeks ago.

Like before we had a news release go out for work and subsequent T.V. interviews on Utah's #1 watched news station.

I just keep hoping that if I grow my hair out, that I'll magically turn into a young, slender, hottie with luscious Victoria's Secret Angel's hair.

It hasn't happened yet.

It never gets old

September 13, 2012
Ahhh... kids pressing their faces against a window never gets old.

So that's why...

September 12, 2012
So that's why the ride home was so quiet.

And Pearl doesn't think going to bed late affects her.

From across the pond

September 11, 2012
Jeff's sister flew in to Salt Lake today from "across the pond" (aka England). We only see Vickie and her family every five years or so... basically when someone dies or gets married.

Since Jeff is the baby in his family by quite a few years, neither of us know Vickie very well. This was also the first time she's met Pearl and Cole. After letting them play on her Ipad though, they have decided, in Pearl's words, "Vickie is more different than I thought she would be. I like her." I like her too. Especially because when she comes to visit she always brings gifts. Like this really beautiful necklace made out of an old dish.

Someday I will convince Jeff to take a "holiday" and visit them in Europe.

Breathtaking

September 10, 2012
Look at this absolutely breathtaking sunset. I was completely mesmerized by all the thick, billowing clouds with their pinks, purples, oranges, and yellows from the setting sun.

It's moments like these that make you pause and remember that heaven really isn't that far away.

Homemade salsa

September 9, 2012
What do you get when you cross a husband with a whole bunch of tomatoes, peppers, onions, and some spices?

18 pints of homemade salsa.

Canning recipe taken from Pacific Northwest Extension.

Tomato Salsa (using slicing tomatoes)
4 cups peeled, cored, chopped tomatoes
2 cups seeded, chopped long green chiles
½ cup seeded, chopped jalapeño peppers
¾ cup chopped onions
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 cups vinegar
1 teaspoon ground cumin*
1 tablespoon oregano leaves*
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro*
1½ teaspoons salt

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Ladle hot into pint jars, leaving ½ inch headspace. Adjust lids and process in a boiling water canner 15 minutes at 0–1,000 feet altitude; 20 minutes at 1,001–6,000 feet; 25 minutes above 6,000 feet.

Yield: 4 pints

(Note: Do not thicken salsa until after canning it! You can add cornstarch or tomato paste to the salsa after opening it.)

It's finally our turn!

September 8, 2012
For the last eight years, our Ute-loving neighbors have brought us "victory" cupcakes after the USU vs. Utah football game.

Well, this year it was our turn. Only our neighbors beat us to it. They'd made the cupcakes before the game, thinking it would be the same outcome as in past years. So before bringing them over, they had to modify them a little.

Oh, yes, we are going to relish in this victory all week!

Load of Aggie laundry

September 7, 2012
You know you're a fan when there's an entire load of laundry dedicated just to Aggie tee-shirts. The surprising thing is, most of them were mine.

No more black feet

September 6, 2012
There's at least one thing I'm looking forward to with summer coming to an end... no more gross, black pipsqueak-sized feet. And subsequent bath tub.

Healthier lunch choice

September 5, 2012
Apparently the guilt of yesterday's lunch choice got to me.

Research shows

September 4, 2012
Research shows that poor neighborhoods have fewer healthy food options.

So you see, I shouldn't feel guilty that I had to go to Apollo Burger for lunch.

It's science.

Peace

September 3, 2012
I never want to go home.

Moon rising

September 2, 2012
The moon rising over the mountains was gorgeous tonight.

I keep nagging Jeff to, "Look at the moon! Oh, it's so pretty! Can you see the bright orange color? Oh, look at it's reflection on the lake. Jeff, look at it!"

He got a little irritated at me.

So I gave up on waiting for him to become as fascinate with the moon as I was and started goofing off with my camera settings. I've felt a little guilty that I haven't used my nice camera in forever... Instagram is like instant blogging for me.

I thought it would be cool to move the camera around with the reflection of the moon on the lake and see what happened. I tried to spell my name too, it comes out upside down and backwards in pictures. I found it fascinating, even if Jeff looked at me like I was nuts.

Family trail ride

September 1, 2012
You know, when Jeff talked me into a 4 wheeler a few years back I honestly thought it would be one of those things I sort of half-faked a smile for to keep my man happy.

Flash forward until now and I'm the one (and the kids) who is hooked. Oh sure, Jeff loves them too but between me and the kids, I'm surprised we haven't upgraded our ATVs to bigger, faster, and cooler ones. The kids especially love them! They are constantly begging and praying to go 4 wheeling again. We took our first family ride on a real trail today. Ironically, the same trail (Hodges Canyon) that I swore I was going to die on a few years ago. In my defense, they have fixed the really hairy parts of the trail and it's been so dry this year, there wasn't a small river rushing down it. It was a lot of fun and I can't wait to go again.

Hint of fall

August 31, 2012
Jeff and I were able to sneak away today for a quick 4 wheeler ride before the storms rolled in. I surprised to see a glimpse of fall in the leaves in the high mountains. I'm not sure if I'm happy about the cooler, crisp air or sad to see the long days of summer fading.

Football season has begun

August 30, 2012
Jeff has been counting down the days until the start of the 2012 USU football season for MONTHS! Months! Last night he squealed with delight, "Kay, it's just like Christmas Eve!"

That, my friends, is a dedicated fan.

My cousin Bryan went to school and then worked for Southern Utah University (SUU) - even though his first year of college was spent at glorious USU and he's just bitter because he froze his butt off that first cold winter as a warm-blooded NV kid but that's another story - so all during the game we were smack-texting back and forth with each other. I may or may not have rubbed it in his face when we won.

Go Aggies!

Back-to-school bowling

August 29, 2012
The YW went "back-to-school" bowling tonight. It was a lot of fun, even though I got my hinnie kicked by a bunch of giggly teenagers.

And for the record, this was NOT my gutter ball.