Random Photos

This one's for you Shaypay- the angry parrot lives on!

Reesey, using the force. She's a child prodigy.

Camping

I thought I should put up a few of the camping shots we had from about a month ago when we had our ward campout and then hit Salamander Flats with Melese and Kyle.

We had a great time, and Kyle even initiated Reese into the 'Cheeto of the Month' club.

Reese loved the hammock! In fact I think we all did- all except Kyle- I think he was in there a grand total of about 10 seconds with Mese before he started looking a little green.

Just Another Manic Monday

I've been making biscotti this morning, and I just keep thinking about Everybody loves Raymond ("Biscotti, Debra?") - anyone watch that show? I never really thought much of it until a few months after we got married Ryan and started watching it and now I think its hilarious. A completely disfunctional family, yes, but it's crazy how suddenly funny married sitcoms are once you're in the same boat. One of our favorites is Mad About You. Mostly because we feel like, maybe, if we had born New Yorkers, we would actually be Paul and Jamie Buchman. Oh, yes, I'm the 'clenched' one who spends most of the day thinking up stuff to be stressed out about, and Ry isn't completely sure about the bisque (quick suck in of air through your teeth).



While we're talking about TV, is anyone else a fan of Bones? Love it. I'm definitely looking forward to Booth and Bones finally hooking up this season. Oh, and I love the murder-solving aspect too. :) That's all.



Well, I thought I'd put a few more pictures of the bug up. This morning on a totally unresponsible -mother whim I decided to put Reese in the bookshelf with her stuffed animals for a quick picture. Hmm, she used to fit so well. :) I know, its horrible, but she had the same cute smiling face as most of her animals, so she just seemed to fit right in. Also, here is a video of her walking-
she's quickly becoming a seasoned veteran. Only trouble is her huge belly makes her a bit front-heavy so she biffs it like crazy once she tries to get up some speed. She also loves blowing kisses- she's a huge hit at the grocery store!

Romance and Cake Pans

I am a sappy romantic. We watched Shall We Dance last night and I am utterly amazed at the fact that no matter how strong I am feeling at the end where he rides the escalator up with the red rose in hand, I begin weeping. Well, not really weeping, but my throat closes off and my eyes get a little too shiny, and then of course no matter how hard I try I can't keep a pathetic, high-pitched sigh from escaping me. I love it.

Well, I write today with renewed resolve to become. . . not necessarily a quote-unquote blogger, but someone that keeps a record. I've always loved to write, and thinking back today, I was realizing that some of the times I've been the happiest happen to be the same times that I was dedicatedly (word? oh well, Shakespeare made them up all the time) writing. En plus, there are so many amazing things happening in my life write now and I feel completely ungrateful for them and like a complete. . .hmm, somehow 'clod' is the only word I can figure to describe the mental image I'm conjuring up right now, hmm. . .anyway I feel like a complete clod (ha! I like it) by not recording them all for others to read and assuredly laugh at.

I feel I should also mention here that my big sister told me to. :)

This last week has been an on-going refining fire. Not in the sense that people usually use that word, but in the sense that little by little I'm realizing that the job I'm in doesn't bring me happiness. I'm a cook at school up the canyon, and while there are plenty of good aspects of what I do, each day that I've gone to work, I've come home with a strong resolve that I was meant for bigger and better things. Not a cocky thing, but I guess I'm gaining a testimony in a way, that life is meant to stretch and challenge and make us better people. Once we're totally comfortable and have leveled out on the plain the only thing left to do is either find another mountain to climb or head back down.

I love challenge and stretching and being pushed to do things I'm not quite sure I can do. Yes, I do realize that all of this 'passion for problematic living' is being expressed while I'm not actually in the situation. Somehow it feels right, though. I want to grow and feel like I'm doing amazing things with my life and my culinary abilities, so I'm in the process of looking for something else. I'm really into baking right now- gourmet and artisan-type breads and pastries. It's so much fun to play around with. Thanks to my friend Stephanie, I have finally found the most incredible banana bread recipe known to man. No joke, it divine. Now that you're drooling (don't be ashamed, salivating over something delicious is completely natural), here is the recipe:

Cardamom & Almond Banana Bread

mix the following dry ingredients:
1 1/2 c whole wheat flour
2/3 c oats
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 c organic brown sugar cane (you can use light brown sugar)
1/2 c dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cardamom

separately mix the following wet ingredients:
1/4 c butter, softened
4 ripe bananas
1/3 c sour cream

Mix both dry and wet ingredients together. Mix in 1/2 c almonds. Coat loaf pan with cooking spray and pour in the bread batter. Bake at 350 for about 1 hour.

So so good- I promise you won't be disappointed.

It's actually quite weird, but I love the fact that I've know what I love since I was 5 years old and waking up early to watch 'Cooking at the Academy' instead of cartoons on Saturday mornings. You thought I was kidding about the weirdness, but I wasn't. Yeah, I never told the kids in my fourth grade class that I actually got cake pans and pastry bags for Christmas instead of something normal. They just weren't ready for that one. And to be honest, neither was I. I think I rattled off my brothers' gifts when they asked me what I got. :)

Anyway, I'm working on getting Reese as excited about food as I am, and I think all my hard work is paying off. She is becoming quite the little connoisseur. She loves to watch while I mix and bake and get dinner ready, and we shared a great bonding moment the other day while we shared a smoothie together on the kitchen floor.

These pictures are from a few weeks ago when we visited the Museum of Natural History up at University of Utah. Reese was so excited she giggled all the way into the building, and even walked around like the big kids for a few minutes. We had a blast! The museum is free on the first Monday of the month, and we decided that our 30 minutes through was the perfect amount of time with a one-year-old who's attention span is about 30 seconds at a time.

She really liked the teepee. :)

Family Days

It has definitely been the summer of reunions. A few months ago we hit Ryan's Grandma's up in Logan (a lot of people we didn't know at all, talking and asking trivia questions about a lot of deceased family members we knew even less- it was great to see his grandparents though), then a few weeks ago we headed up to Island park for my Mom's side's family reunion- so so much fun. I think I already wrote about that, but I just got some new pictures, so I'll squeeze a few in here anyway.

Then this last week we trekked up to Park City for the Kendall Reunion- Ryan's Mom's side. It turned out great considering the fact that the day we left we discovered that our transmission on Sophie, our little Kia, was shot and would need to be replaced. Cars are an entirely different subject on which I'm horribly tempted to dedicate an entire blog. Oh what adventures we have buying cars (Mr. Snaggletooth man would have to be mentioned several times). And fixing them. And doing it again. . .and again. . .and- well you get the idea. We make ourselves feel better by reminding each other what a killer deal we got on it (no link between that oh-so-low price and the ensuing breakdowns whatsoever, right?)But hopefully we'll have a long stretch of fix-it-free time where we can just enjoy our smooth ride. :) And what a saucy car she is!

Wow- I've gotten way off subject. So, family reunion! I've come to the conclusion that people love you and your company until you have children, then they just love your children. :) We were constantly surrounded throughout the whole reunion by admirers of every height and age, but it wasn't us, it was the chubby little one-year-old that was stealing the show. She went so far as to completely upstage the upcoming bride (Ryan's sister Aubrey) a few times at her own bridal shower. Shameless! Actually, I was just so happy that I got a super social little girl- she loved every minute of the attention and a few times Ry and I felt like newlyweds again since we were hanging out just the two of us most of the time.

This last one is Ryan and I in our matching farmer's tans. Apparantly it got quite the laugh from those sitting on the side of the pool. :)

Be Careful, she bites.

We just went swimming. Reese LOVES the water! Although watching her bend over to lick up pool water doesn't really get me that thrilled. I think the part that she loves the most, though, is all the "friends" everywhere. She keeps looking at all these little kids that are running around like, "you are THE coolest people I've ever met". She had a great time, and came home completely pooped. Ah, good old summer days.

So. . .my baby is a biter. I've been thinking of making her a t-shirt as a warning, "Beware, I bite people"- or maybe something a little snappier- you know, something that just rolls off the tongue and yet at the same time serves as the proper hold-me-at-your-own-risk warning. On Sunday we stopped at Ryan's grandparents to pick his sister, Megan, up. She leaned over to Meg like she was going to plant a wet one, but instead she clamped down with all four of her little chompers (including the nubbins of canines she's got coming through) on her cheek! I have to say I was horrified. Only weeks earlier I'd seen the cover of a parenting magazine that said, "Parents, if you have a biter read this!" I think I laughed at it- so blunt, so funny. . .and now I'm wondering why in the world I passed it up. "Where is it?! I need that secret parenting know-how to stop this problem!" Alas. We'll just have to figure it out without the help of American Baby experts.

We just got back from Island Park from the Derr Family Reunion, which turned out to be a smashing hit, leaving all of us wondering why we've waited so long to do it. I hadn't seen some of my cousins for over six years and it was so fun to talk and catch up and laugh at all the kids (I know I shouldn't laugh, but Annalee running from the dogs about killed me- you would have thought it was a killer snake chasing her!) and enjoy how beautiful Island Park is. Man! Ry and I had a few free hours, so we decided to hike up Mount Sawtelle- I can't believe my parents have lived there for almost three years and I haven't been up- it was breathtakingly beautiful! I seriously felt like we were somewhere in the Swiss Alps (my braids really helped the whole 'Heidi' effect). It was amazing, I could feel the air catching in my chest as we drove to the summit because it just looked like we were on a road to the sky- amazing! Then later we came down a bit and hiked around and found this amazing (I'm not sure I've used that word quite enough yet) field of lupine- tall blue-ish-purple flowers. I lay on the ground, buried in the flowers, and looked up at the sun filtering through the tree above. It was just about the most beautiful moment in my life. Not just the surroundings but the sounds, being there with the man I love, and feeling totally, completely, 100% peaceful. Mmm. It was great.

I recently read Tuesdays with Morrie, and loved it. I'm sure that my experience with Marguerite probably made me love it all the more (man, I miss that woman and her lukewarm ensure and eucalyptus cough drops), but I don't know, do you ever feel like its just the perfect time in your life to read certain books? Like they were written just for you?

The last few years have been an ever-changing whirlwind that have left me feeling more unsure of myself than I can remember feeling in a while. I think I always have issues until I can identify the roles I'm playing, and it's been a crazy adjustment. Missionary to normal girl, engaged and then married, and suddenly I'm pregnant and now a mom. I love everything that has happened- I don't want this to be negative at all, because I love my life, but it feels like I'm just starting to get a handle on who I am. Because you change as life rolls on- I know who I was at this time or that time in my life but its been quite a journey (wow that sounds cliche) to figure out who I am as a wife and mother, and especially not just who I am in those rolls, but who I am as an individual in this time of my life. Anyway, I loved all the questions that arose from it- What's wrong with being number two? (seriously good for me since I have this idea that I have to do EVERYTHING, and not just do it, but that somehow I'm the only one in this world that's expected to be perfect at it) Will the ones you love know it when you're gone?, etc. Things to think about, and definitely work on. It's fantastic, and if you haven't yet, I highly recommend you pick it up.

It's ok, it's just fiber

Anyone seen that Orbit commercial where the girl is mad at her boyfriend so she tears everything he owns to shreds- with her teeth? I saw it last night and remember thinking it was weird, that was until today when Reese went on a rampage and I realized it was terribly parallel to my life. Cupcake wrappers dug out of the drawer, diapers (thank heavens they were the clean ones), a stack of papers, and then, the one that made me laugh- several of those little reply cards you find in magazines, each with a giant soggy hole in the middle. Did I give birth to a goat and just not notice? I do recall thinking her shoulders were a little fuzzy when she was born. :)

A little note here- these pictures are from about a week ago when she decided to sample some tree bark. Doesn't seem to taste too good, but that doesn't stop our girl!