Life in the Sass-Lane

Two things to add to your "to-do" list this week.

2010-12-29T12:34:00.000-08:00

Make and eat this:

Steak burritos. In the crock pot. Fool proof. SO DELICIOUS! Click here for recipe from Taste of Home.

Find and listen to this:

Please know I feel like a total DORK recommending an American Idol artist, because let's be honest, that show isn't exactly turning out legitimate stars every year...to say the least.

I have never even watched the show until the season before last, and even when Lee Dewyze won last year I wasn't that impressed. HOWEVER, I am here to state that after listening to his CD, he is without a doubt the best thing American Idol has ever turned out, and I actually feel sorry for him that he now has to be tied to that show forever, because a lot of people won't even give him a chance.

Anyway, the guy can sing, he wrote all the songs on the CD, and the music is good. I would put him up there with John Mayer and Amos Lee -- who in my book, are some of the best, legitimate artists around. Yes, John Mayer is a PIG, but a killer song writer, singer, and guitar player. (And no, I don't just listen to top 40 and hip hop. That's only for working out, you know, to make me run faster and jump higher.)

Go here to sample the songs.

Good day!

2010-12-05T20:18:00.000-08:00

Thanks to everyone (all 6 of you) who commented and told me with whom you would choose to spend time if you could choose any 3 people who have ever lived.

First, for those inquiring minds that are dying to know who I would choose, here's the first three that come to mind.

1. My paternal grandmother, Marilyn. I never had the opportunity to meet her. Unfortunately she was taken from this earth at a very young age and I would love to meet her and get to know her.
2. Clinton and Stacy from What Not to Wear. And when I meet them I want them to be holding that $5k Visa card for me.
3. Jewel. I know it sounds lame. But I've always liked her since I was really young. I'd want her to teach me some things on the guitar and also see if she's really as kind and down-to-earth as I think she is.

So who do America's youth claim they would choose?

Number one answer I get is
George Washington

Impressive? Maybe. I don't know. To be honest with you, I actually get annoyed when students give this answer because I have to wonder, does a 17/18 year old really genuinely want to meet George Washington, or is that just the type of answer they think they should give in their college admission interview? I tend to think it's the latter. I'm almost less annoyed with the girl who doesn't skip a beat and says Lady Gaga, because I know she's being genuine and I'm actually getting to know who she really is.

Another common one I am always surprised by:
Ronald Reagan

Again, not sure I buy it. I always have to hold myself back from responding
"Really? Who are you, Alex P. Keaton?"

But that response would go right over their head seeing as how they were born in 1992.

Black Friday Shopping Tips

2010-11-26T20:54:00.000-08:00

Here's my tip: Send your husband and his brother out at 5:00 a.m. and wait for them to return with your requested items.

Scored this:

and this:

and didn't even have to leave my house. I see this becoming an annual tradition.

Did anyone brave the madness in person? What did you get?

Thankful

2010-11-25T18:07:00.000-08:00

What am I thankful for? This right here says it all. These two boys mean the world to me.

Hope everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving with friends, family, and lots of good food!

Pre-Gaming

2010-11-24T09:46:00.000-08:00

I'm not much of a pre-gamer myself (you know, since I don't really drink and all), but come this time of year I've got my own little version of pre-gaming. In anticipation for the ridiculous amounts of food I plan to have over the holidays, I like to get in the spirit by getting it going a little early before that actual events. So I started it off today with this:

Peanut Butter Popcorn Crunch

Delicious. Recipe here.

Mow

2010-11-22T20:00:00.000-08:00

Woke up to this today:

So it only seems fitting to share with you my
Top 3 Favorite Things to Do When it Snows:

1) Complain incessantly about it.

2) Have an excuse to drink my special recipe hot chocolate. Here's the recipe: a little bit of water and a lot of hot chocolate mix (at least 2 packets).

3) Listen to this little guy look out the window and excitedly say "MOW", which in 20 month-old language is "SNOW!"

What are your favorite things to do when it snows?

Seniors Rule

2010-11-20T22:42:00.000-08:00

This is what my desk looks like right now.

Okay not really. Because now I actually read applications online. But back in the day during this time of the year I would literally come home every night with a stack of files like this. All stuffed with the aspirations of 18 year old kids wanting to get into college.

And then I'd take a big old fat red pen and write DENIED on the front.

Just kidding.

Kind of.

In admission interviews I ask students if they could spend time with any three people living or dead, famous or not famous, who would they choose. You'd be surprised what some of them say.

Who would you choose? Leave me a comment and tell me. I want to know. Then in a few days I'll give you some of my favorite examples of the people 18 year-old college hopefuls claim they want to spend time with.

Quiz for the day: What the heck is this?

2010-11-15T17:17:00.000-08:00

I love a surprise. And what's more fun than getting a basket of fresh fruits and vegetables every Saturday and not knowing WHICH fruits and vegetables will be in the basket until you go to pick it up?!

Well, okay, off the top of my head I can think of at least one thing that's more fun - having your husband surprise you with your very own king sized Kit Kat bar after a long day. That's one that comes to mind.

Have you heard of Bountiful Baskets? Thanks to my amazing friend I have, and I love it! It's a co-op. You pay $15. You go to an appointed pick-up point in your area on Saturday morning and get a basket with 6 fruits and 6 vegetables.

Let me give you an example of what was in this week's basket:

Bananas
6 pears
6 Fuji Apples (MY FAVORITE APPLE!!)
Bag of grapes
6 tangerines
6 persimmons*
1 huge head of green leaf lettuce
Celery
10 ears of corn
5 lb bag of russet potatoes
8 ears of corn
Bag of brussel sprouts

That's a lot for $15 if you ask me. And again, every week is different, so it gives ya something to look forward to. So for a good time, see if Bountiful Baskets is in your neck of the woods. And if it's not, you can start it.

p.s. Not a clue what a persimmon is or what I'm supposed to do with it. So if you do, please let me know A-SAP. And chances are, if you know what to do with a persimmon, you know what to do with brussel sprouts, so help a sister out! Please. :)

This blog is back.

2010-11-15T17:16:00.000-08:00

It's been awhile. I've been busy keeping my eyeball on this little guy.

Life got busy and I started thinking that I really had nothing to say that anyone cares about anyway, so I just let it go for awhile. But I kinda missed it. I think before I felt like I had to have some interesting/funny/important subject or story to blog about. Now, I think I'll just stick to sharing ideas and things that I like. And if you find it interesting, or funny, or important, that's a bonus! :) If not, it's okay, we can still be friends.

Just humor me and play along.

2010-04-28T10:34:00.000-07:00

Don't you just hate it when you're sitting at home at night and you just want something good to eat, but there's nothing good in the house and you don't want to leave the house to get anything? And even if you did dig deep for the energy to go out and get something, anything you want is more than a few minutes drive away? The other day I came up with my own little fun game in my head. It's called What 5 places do I wish were right across the street from me so I could easily go get a snack late at night? (And by "so I could go get a snack", I of course mean SEND PRESTON to go get a snack for me!)

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to my strange world. These are the things I think about. Here's what I came up with:

1. Red Mango (for the original frozen yogurt with strawberries and graham cracker crumbs)
2. Paradise Bakery (for the chocolate chip cookies)
3. Pretzel Time (for the little soft, warm, buttery pretzel bites)
4. Dairy Queen (for the peanut butter Oreo blizzards)
5. Costco (as if I could choose one thing. I mean how awesome would it be to have COSTCO across the street and just walk over there and get a big greasy piece of pizza whenever you wanted?!!! Dude.)

You know you want to play along! What 5 places do you want to have right at your fingertips for a little evening snack?! I want to know.

Random Thoughts

2010-04-11T11:09:00.000-07:00

--Remember that one time Jesse James was an absolute sleezeball? Listen, I feel terrible for Sandra Bullock. But honestly, I don't know what else you expect from a guy who used to be married to a porn star. Call me crazy, but that would have been my first red flag.

--Before I had a kid, on average I swept my kitchen floor once every 2 weeks. That average has been upped significantly to about 2 million times a day since the little man started eating "big boy" food.

--Anyone else in my generation remember playing "Oregon Trail" on the good old Apple computers in elementary school? Let's be honest, that game was awesome. A friend recently was talking about it and so in my spare time (you know, when I was trying to find anything to do other than the work I should have been doing) I found a link where you can play Oregon Trail online. Oh the memories! I was instantly taken back to the good old days when we would walk in to "computer class" and Mrs. Derrickson would be there to greet us, her standard Super Double Big Gulp on her desk, and we would all sit and play Oregon Trail fast and furiously until the bell rang. It was just as I remembered, although back then I don't think I yelled and swore at the computer when one of the members of my wagon party died. Just kidding. But other than that it was pretty much the same. You know you want to... http://www.virtualapple.org/oregontraildisk.html

--Sunshine warms my soul. It really does. I feel like a whole new person when it's warm outside and the sun is shining. I am so excited for spring and summer to finally get here. Sometimes I feel like it is never coming!

--You know what else warms my soul? A peanut butter Oreo blizzard from Dairly Queen. Oh and you know what else is good? Those ice cream bars covered in chocolate and almonds at Costco. And speaking of Costco, I have a proposal for you. We need to start a movement to get Costco to sell their cinnamon rolls at the little snack counter thing. Personally, I think we could easily do without the Churros and the Berry Smoothies to make room for cinnamon rolls. I mean, come on, the Churro is decent, but wouldn't you rather have a nice warm, gooey cinnamon roll from the Costco Bakery?! You might be wondering where this is coming from. It is coming from the fact that I noticed a couple of weeks ago that Costco is finally selling their cinnamon rolls in the bakery again after about a 10 year hiatus and I want to eat one, but I don't want to buy a whole package that I will inevitably consume all by myself in a very short amount of time. So my solution? Sell them individually at the snack bar! Trust me, this is an excellent idea. Costco will soon be thanking me. And I'm actually dead serious about this. So email Costco and tell them that you want them to start selling their cinnamon rolls individually. Click here to tell Costco what we the people want!

--Has anyone else been watching Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution? I know it's a bit ironic that I would follow up my big diatribe about getting sugary, fatty cinnamon rolls at Costco, but I love this show, I really do. I wholeheartedly believe in everything he is trying to do and applaud him for trying to make a change. It's not an easy change and as with anything there are those who are skeptical and think it is too hard to make the changes he is trying to make or think that change is not necessary. But I love that he's tackling this issue and not quitting. One of the main things he is focusing on is changing the food our children are served in schools. You should check it out, if you haven't already. And sign his petition too! And I think even Jamie Oliver would say a cinnamon roll at Costco every once in awhile is okay. He just doesn't want our kids eating chicken parts breaded and fried with a side of french fries every day at school.

--Tiger Woods. Barf.

Kickin' It Old School

2010-04-07T12:38:00.000-07:00

How cute are these? Don't they just take you back to when you were in elementary school? I love them. I don't usual shop Land's End, but I saw some cute things featured on another blog recently and thought I would check it out. To my delight I found these adorable shoes that I think will be great this spring and summer with shorts and casual skirts. And the best part? They are on clearance right now for $9.99. Lots of cute colors and patterns too. Check it out here and here.

2010-02-25T15:19:00.000-08:00

READ THIS:
Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen

Imagine my surprise on Valentine's Day when my husband gives me this book I have never heard of, that from what I can garner from the title, is apparently about running. Gee, thanks hon. This looks...interesting. Aaaaaaaand on to my chocolates.

But after reading the inside panel, I was slightly intrigued. And then I proceeded to read it cover to cover in 6 days, which should tell you something, considering I have not read a book that does not have cardboard pages and farm animals for over a year.

Whether you love to run or hate it like the plague, it doesn't matter. At the end of the day this isn't really a "running book" per se. It's a book that intertwines stories and real-life "characters" that captivate you up until the very last page.

You know what they say, an Oreo (or 20) a day...

2010-01-12T21:35:00.000-08:00

So, I talk a lot about all of the bad food I eat. And let me tell you, I DO have phases where I eat A LOT of bad food. I always have. I recently reconnected with a kid I knew in high school (the kid brother of one of my close friends) and after not talking to each other for 12 years the first thing he says to me is, "Hey, remember when you ate like a whole package of oreos in one night?!!!"

Apparently it left a lasting impression on him.

I was like, uh, that's like a weekly occurrence, but thanks so much for remembering.

Anyway, ironically, I have always been very active and consider myself somewhat of an athlete. So the exercise and working out is not the problem for me. I do try to eat healthy and I really do most of the time. But I never realized how important the food aspect really is until last spring when my awesome sister-in-law (who is a trainer) showed me the power of tracking what you eat. It worked! I lost 15 pounds and felt the best I have ever felt in my life.

I'm not an expert, I'm not a trainer, I'm not a nutritionist, but based on some of the things I've read and some of the advise from my sister-in-law, I put together just a simple daily chart to help me keep track of what I eat. There are some great resources where you can enter what you eat online, but personally I like physically writing it down. I've recommitted to doing this because I know it works and I make better choices when I have to write it down. I also track how much water I drink and my exercise each day.

So, not saying you need to go on a diet. Not saying how many calories you should or shouldn't eat. Just putting this up in case you're working on making some changes and want to track what you eat. This makes my life easier and I like to share things that make life easier. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Just click "download" and then save the file to your computer or print.

Daily Food Journal

*Please note, the serving sizes in the left hand column on this chart were taken from the recommendations on the Biggest Loser Diet. Sometimes I pay attention to them, sometimes I don't. Mostly I just write down what I eat whether it fits in those parameters or not.

Did it.

2010-01-11T09:46:00.000-08:00

Oh man, I love this thing.

2010-01-07T08:34:00.000-08:00

This is so great! I just want people to have birthdays and occasions already so I can use it some more! Trolley Cards is a little gem I came across a few months ago. I probably saw it on another blog, but I have no idea where, so I apologize for not giving props.

You go on the site, select a card for the occasion you need, write (type) a message inside, address it, and then they will send the card for you (complete with a wax seal on the envelope) all for $7. And the best part is, you can even add a gift card! They have everything from Target, iTunes, Amazon, Pottery Barn, Home Depot, Nordstrom, Macy's, Barnes and Noble, etc. Can it get any easier? I don't think so. I love it. And I guess some could say it's not very personal, but I would love to receive something like this. I think their cards are adorable!

I've only used it twice and both were for folks having babies. I used these two cards:

How cute are those?

So, just a little tip in case you really need to get a card and gift for someone and don't have the time to go out and get it and get to the post office. That's my downfall. Getting it to the post office. I will be on top of things and have a card and a gift for someone weeks in advance and then it will sit on my counter for weeks because for reasons I'm not really sure of, it is impossible for me to take that extra step and get to the post office.

Random Thoughts

2010-01-05T17:35:00.000-08:00

Dreams. I wouldn't say I dream a lot. Or even all the time. But I have a couple of recurring dreams that hit me on a regular basis. About once every couple of months it's a version of the same dream.

The first one that I have at least once every month or two is about me going back to high school and playing basketball. It is always before the game, I am nervous, I am coming back after not playing for awhile (try like 12 years)and inevitably in the dream I forget something. Like socks. Or my hairbrush (to pull my hair back in that crazy braid, duh). Or whatever. I am just always super stressed out and anxious about playing again. Don't know why, but I have this dream all.the.time.

The second one I have quite often is about my teeth falling out. It begins like this: one tooth comes out and I will save it and try not to open my mouth because I don't want anyone to see and I'm feverishly trying to get to the dentist so he can fix it. Then before I know it like all of my teeth are coming out and my mouth is full of teeth and I'm like OH SHIZ now what?!!!

So there you have it.

This might sound like a repeat of an earlier random thought from a previous post. But I assure you, it's not. It's a completely new and interesting thought. I can neither confirm nor deny that I watch The Hills. But if I did, every time I watched it I would think to myself afterward, is that Justin Bobby guy for real?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And while we're on the topic of mindless entertainment, I can neither confirm nor deny that I watch Teen Mom. But if I did, I would first assure you that these are the ONLY two shows that I watch on MTV because I otherwise abhor MTV. Although when my parents told me I couldn't watch it growing up, I'm pretty sure I might have turned it on the instant they left the house. But that was the only bad thing I did growing up.

Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, if I did watch Teen Mom, every time I watched it I would be cheering for the two kids who gave their baby up for adoption and the little mom from Chattanooga. Her name is Maci and she weighs about 80 pounds, but I think she is sweet and I think she is the only one on the show who actually realizes that her decisions in life now affect her sweet baby, not just her.

I would be totally stressed out about the other folks on the show and their poor little babies who don't have a fighting chance in life. And I would probably think to myself, there are a million and one other things I should be doing right now, but this is SO ADDICTING!

My favorite holiday treat this year was ANYTHING PEPPERMINT! It's like I'm just now discovering this taste treat. Of course now that I think of it everything that I ate that had peppermint also had chocolate. So that's not so new. That sounds like the good old me. We bought a tub of chocolate peppermint bark from Costco to put in goodie bags for Preston's co-workers. I ate most of the tub and had to go back to get another tub for the goodie bags. We bought Fat Boy's peppermint chocolate ice cream bars and I faintly recall downing about 3 in a row one afternoon and then lapsing into a slight coma.

And while I'm on the subject of eating crap. Does anyone actually only use one packet of hot chocolate mix when they make a cup of hot chocolate? I won't even bother unless I put two packets in. And sometimes I'll add half of a third just for good measure. And when I have chocolate peppermint bark around I toss a piece of that in the bottom for fun too. Gives it a nice peppermint flavor.

For those of you who are moms, my friend started this great new blog called "Motherhood Answered". It's basically an open forum for moms to ask questions and get answers from each other. I love it and think it's a great idea! My first thought when I saw it was, why in the world didn't I think of that?!!

I probably would have if I wasn't muddling my brain with MTV and copious amounts of chocolate and peppermint.

Hours of entertainment, or at least 15 minutes...

2010-01-05T15:13:00.000-08:00

Apparently, I am a sucker for stuff that will waste hours of your time (thank you Facebook). This one kept me going for a good hour the other night. I mean c'mon, what female doesn't want to upload a picture of herself and see what 50 different hairstyles, most of which she would never dare try, look like?!

C'mon, try it, you know you want to.

BEFORE:

A FEW OF MY FAVORITES:

Do it. Do it. Do it. (That's me chanting "do it!")

It's been awhile.

2010-01-01T15:24:00.000-08:00

Pres told me that a good blogger doesn't do a whole bunch of posts at a time and then post nothing for days at a time. I have an answer to that. I'm not a good blogger.

So now that we got that cleared up, here are a few updates.

We really enjoyed the Holidays this year. We spent Christmas Eve, Christmas, and New Years in our new home and just loved being together and having some time off. Miles is the cutest thing ever and I will document that below with a few pictures from his first Christmas. He's only 10 months old, so obviously he doesn't "get it". To be honest, he wasn't even really that interested in ripping the wrapping paper. But it was fun to watch him obliviously sit amongst piles of wrapping paper and about 500 new toys and just be his cute little self interested in a dot on the floor and the shiny gold things on the fireplace. He likes the simple things. And I like him.

We spent Christmas Eve with Garrett, Lori, and Allison, cheering on the Mustangs to their first Bowl game victory in 23 years. Heck, it was their first Bowl game in 23 years, so we were especially thrilled with the win.

So that was good.

Some other highlights of the season included my annual Holiday Cookie Exchange Party, Preston's firm Christmas party, making and delivering Christmas goodies to our neighborhood friends as a family, sleeping in, oh wait there wasn't any of that because Miles likes to get up at 7, bowling, playing boys vs. girls Taboo with Garrett and Lori, watching movies, and me eating everything in sight for about 3 weeks.

And now, a few shots of the festivities:

Family outing to deliver goodie plates
Cheering on the Mustangs Christmas Eve
Miles cheering on the team wearing his lei and chewing on some pom poms
Garrett and Lori cheering on the team
Reindeer Antlers
Ooooh! I don't know what this is, but I like it!
Um, what exactly am I supposed to do with this?
First basketball!
Opening first basketball hoop. Can you guess who it's from?
Look at that face!
Miles getting his game face on
Watching a little bowling action

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday with friends and family. I know 2009 was a tough year for many, but we were extremely blessed and I am just overwhelmed with gratitude for everything we were given. Most of all, my little nugget, Miles. Happy New Year to everyone!

Miles and Armani

2009-11-19T20:49:00.000-08:00

Miles met Allison and Alex's new puppy, Armani, over Halloween weekend (hence the giraffe costume). Miles thought that dog was the greatest thing ever. He squealed and laughed and got super excited everytime he saw him. It was so cute, I couldn't resist posting some pictures (thanks to Kim who actually took the pictures).

Click on the first picture to enlarge to see the look of absolute joy on his face.

So irritated right now.

2009-11-18T14:15:00.000-08:00

Dear Oprah,

Jenna Jameson?! Really?! REALLY?! So disappointed that you would have her on your stage and present her as a self-respecting business woman and try to portray porn as normal and okay to your viewers. I got through 10 minutes of that foolish talk and turned you off. Hopefully after I turned it off you got to the part about how porn destroys families, marriages, and most of all, the human spirit. Unfortunately, I'm guessing you didn't tackle that part of it.

Perspective

2009-11-06T15:30:00.000-08:00

I'm willing to admit that sometimes I'm not as positive or happy as I should be in life. I have a bazillion blessings, all from God above, and yet there are days that I actually have the nerve to get bogged down in wishing that I didn't have so much work to do for SMU, or that the house wasn't so cluttered, or that my skin isn't perfect. I get frustrated because I hate my hair, or I have nothing to wear, or I wish Preston didn't get home from work so late. On and on.

It's ridiculous. And I was reminded how ridiculous it is a few weeks ago when I saw a woman named Stephanie Nielson on Oprah. I think many people are already familiar with Stephanie and her story, but I wasn't. Stephanie and her husband (who have 4 small children) were in a horrible plane crash last year which left them both severely burned. I believe over 80% of Stephanie's body was burned while about 30% of her husband's body was burned. Horrifying. They both survived, but needless to say, their lives have been forever changed, especially Stephanie's since her physical appearance has drastically changed, not to mention the continual immense physical pain from her injuries.

Stephanie has a great blog called the Nie Nie Dialogues and ever since I saw her on Oprah, I check it pretty regularly. Often her posts are lighthearted, but every once in awhile she gives us a glimpse into her heart and mind as she recovers from the accident and tries to move on with her new life. Yesterday she wrote a post that I found heartbreaking, but inspiring at the same time. Give it a read if you have a minute. If you feel like you're having a bad hair day or that things just aren't going the way you'd like, I hope this helps put things in perspective, as it did for me.

http://nieniedialogues.blogspot.com/2009/11/do-you-still-see-me.html

If you're fresh out of ideas like me...

2009-11-06T15:15:00.000-08:00

Guys, I'm not a cook and this is not a cooking blog. But when I find a recipe that is easy and tasty, I might as well share it, right?

I saw Giada make these on Everyday Italian a couple of weeks ago and decided to try them. They are easy and delicious! You don't need an expensive, fancy cut of salmon. I used frozen salmon from Walmart (forgive me Walmart haters)and these turned out great. Also, on the dipping sauce, if you don't have any fresh parsley or chives, skip it. I did and it was still super good.

Parmesan Fish Sticks
From Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients
1 (18-ounce) center-cut salmon fillet, about 9 by 4 inches, skinned
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 egg whites
1 cup grated Parmesan
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
Olive oil, for drizzling

Dipping Sauce
1/3 cup reduced fat mayonnaise
1/3 cup lowfat plain yogurt
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or chives

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Rinse the salmon fillet and pat dry with paper towels. Cut the fish in half to make 2 fillets each about 4 by 4 1/2-inches in size. Starting on the longest edge, slice the fillets into 1/2-inch pieces. Lay the widest pieces, from the center, cut side down, and slice in half lengthways so all the pieces are equally about 1/2 by 1/2 by 4 1/2-inches in size.

Place the flour in a medium bowl and season with the salt and pepper. Place the egg whites in another bowl and beat until frothy, about 30 seconds. Combine the Parmesan and bread crumbs in a third bowl.

Coat the salmon pieces in the seasoned flour and pat to remove any excess flour. Dip the floured salmon in the egg whites and then into the Parmesan mixture, gently pressing the mixture into the fish. Place the breaded salmon pieces on a liberally oiled baking sheet. Drizzle lightly with the olive oil. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.

For the Dipping Sauce:
Mix the mayonnaise, yogurt, Dijon mustard, and parsley (or chives, if using) in a small dipping bowl.

Um, there's a word for girls like this...

2009-11-06T15:00:00.000-08:00

Did you see this?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/thelife/news/story?page=goingviral/110609

Have I mentioned I love being a mom?

2009-10-28T14:16:00.000-07:00

This is why:

Adorable outfit courtesy of Auntie Vicki AKA "Nana"

Just Sayin'

2009-10-20T21:20:00.001-07:00

I have a friend who posts some of her random thoughts on her blog every now and then and I love it. I hope she doesn't mind, but I thought I'd steal her idea (credit to Miss Abi!) since I have so many thoughts, so little time.

>So I have this awesome habit of buying those boxes of "100 Calorie Snack" pouches -- you know, to help me with portion control -- and then usually the day I bring them home from the store I eat the entire box in one sitting. Does anyone else do this?!!! The marketing gods are winning! Preston told me the other day that at least I could easily add up how many calories I was eating -- 6 one hundred calorie packs = 600 calories. No strenuous mental math to deal with. Good point hon, good point.

>Does Jon Gosselin (as in, Jon & Kate Plus 8) get anyone else's blood boiling?! What is wrong with that guy? He's walking around decked out in Ed Hardy gear, smoking a cigarette with his 22 year-old girlfriend acting like he doesn't have a care in the world. I caught 2 minutes of him on Larry King the other night and he was saying how much he loves his girlfriend and how she is the only one who stands by him no matter what. Actually, Jon, she is the only one stupid enough to hang around a middle-aged guy with a pot-belly who smokes and has 8 kids at home. Listen, I get it. Kate isn't exactly what I would call a doting wife, but homegirl carried and bore 6 babies AT ONE TIME. Last time I checked, that warrants an automatic "get out of jail free" card to be a little cranky every once in awhile.

>The best part of my day, every day, is walking into Miles' room in the morning when he wakes up and seeing his adorable face smiling up at me, so excited to see me. They should bottle that up. It is the best feeling in the world! I love it...even when it's at 6:30 in the morning.

>I can neither confirm or deny that I actually watch "The Hills". But if I did happen to catch it every now and then, I would always be asking myself if that Spencer guy can even possibly be for real?!! Anyone, Anyone?

>At church on Sunday the little kids sang a song called "The Family is of God". It took about 2 seconds of the song for me to get all misty-eyed. Such a beautiful song. And sitting next to Preston with our little Miles I've never been more sure of anything in my life -- the family truly is of God.

>Laundry...boooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

>I know everyone loves "Biggest Loser". It's a good show. We're not really die hard fans -- we'll tune in every now and then throughout the season and then we always catch the finale to see all of the amazing transformations. And they really are amazing. But we've watched a little bit of the last few episodes this season and I must say, is it just me, or have the trainers taken it to a whole new level?! They are just so nasty and cruel I can hardly stand to watch it! I fully understand that they've got to be tough and work these people hard, or the results that they get wouldn't be possible. But it seems over the top. Is it just me?

A tasty treat for the season

2009-10-09T18:17:00.000-07:00

First, I will lure you in with a picture of my adorable little skeleton.

Okay, maybe two pictures of my adorable little skeleton.

Then I will share this yummy recipe! I don't have a picture, but trust me, these are good and they turn out great every time. Happy October!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Ingredients:

3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil (or applesauce...healthier and just as good)
2 eggs
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/4 cup water
1 and 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour muffin pan or use paper liners.
2. Mix sugar, oil, eggs. Add pumpkin and water. In separate bowl mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices, and salt. Add wet mixture and stir in chocolate chips.
3. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Sweet potatoes never looked so good...

2009-10-08T18:05:00.002-07:00

If you haven't noticed, there's not a whole lot of "sass" going on lately.

2009-10-08T18:05:00.001-07:00

Nope, not much sass, but quite a few dirty diapers, pony-tail days, chipped nail polish, and sinks full of dirty dishes.

Sometimes I'll stop and remember that I used to just jump in the car any old time and go to the store, or the gym, or to get my hair done, or to get a milkshake. Man, what a self-centered life I led! What have I been doing for the last 29 years of my life?! Honestly I can't remember life before my sweet little Miles. I'm pretty sure I was born to be his momma. And you know, to some of you that may sound silly. I think at one time even I would have thought that was silly. I'll admit, before I had a baby there was this concern in the back of my mind about losing myself and who I was. Losing my career, losing my independence. Oh the horror of going from wearing high heels every day and being "important" to staying home and changing diapers and wearing jeans! The thought did scare me a bit. But the truth is, the idea that I would "lose myself" was absolutely ridiculous, because honestly, I don't think I really knew my true self until I became a mom. It's the greatest joy I could ever know.

Future Blogger

2009-10-08T18:05:00.000-07:00

It's a little dark, but you can see our little guy is already taking after his daddy -- attached to the computer and ignoring mom!!! :)

Highlight of my 10-day work trip to Atlanta:

2009-09-22T17:58:00.000-07:00

Upon meeting me at a college fair, little high school boy says to me: Oh yeah, I remember you from when you came to my school last year. I remember thinking you look like that actress...oh, what's her name? Oh yeah, -- Jennifer Love Hewitt!

Me: One full-tuition scholarship for this young man right here please!

Miggity-Miles, Miles-A-Million, Miles of Style, Little Bug

2009-09-08T16:58:00.000-07:00

...just a few of our favorite terms of endearment for our little man, Miles.

He is growing like crazy. I cannot believe he is 6 months old already! The time has just flown by. I'm already getting sad about him leaving me someday. I'll be watching TV and that Walmart commercial where the mom is dropping her son off at college and helping him decorate his dorm room will come on and I get all teary-eyed. Then Preston snaps me out of it with a real sweet sentiment that goes something like, "Yeah right, like some guy would ever let their mom decorate their room like that. Unless he wants to get beat up."

But I guess I have a good 18 years until Miles leaves me, so I can probably relax a bit. Unless of course he's some kind of child prodigy that goes to college at age 12. He could definitely go Doogie Houser on us. You never know.

It's so funny because in all of his pictures he looks so big and almost like a little toddler, but he is actually pretty small. He had his 6 month checkup today and he is in the 8th percentile for weight. That's 8 -- single digit 8! I couldn't believe it. I promise I'm feeding the kid. He eats like crazy! I think he just has the long and lean genes. The doctor assured me it was nothing to be worried about as long as he's eating, pooping and peeing. Check, check, and check. So, I think it's okay.

I've been blessed to be able to do a lot and see a lot in life so far. But being Miles' mom is by far the very BEST! I love this little guy more than life itself. I know ya'll already told me I would feel this way, but I guess I had to experience it to completely understand. :)

Testing out rice cereal for the first time.

Look at that face! Melt my heart.

That's my happy boy!

Sportin' his Oregon t-shirt from Chris

And just a few more cute shots...

If I see the words "charming bungalow" one more time...

2009-09-03T14:40:00.000-07:00

...there's a good chance I might go over the edge. Whatever that means. So here's the deal. We're on a house hunt. We've been on a house hunt for about 4 months now. The house hunt stinks. Why, you ask? Because housing in Salt Lake City stinks. Why, you ask? That's a question I would pay good money to know the answer to. But instead, I'm going to pay good money, for an old, smelly, crusty, greasy, painted-over, tiny, musty, dark, dingy, "CHARMING BUNGALOW"...that has no air conditioning. Because that's all that exists.

That is, that's all that exists unless I want to move out to the suburbs. And don't get me wrong, there ain't nothin' wrong with the suburbs, except we don't want to live in the suburbs. We want to live where Preston doesn't have a 45 minute drive one way every day to work. A 15-20 minute commute tops. That's our rule.

So a few weeks ago Preston got a press release about some new homes being built in an area south of Salt Lake City called "Daybreak". They are starting a new area of the neighborhood that will have reasonably priced modern homes with solar panels. Hmmm... interesting, we thought. So we decided to go out and look at the two model homes just for fun and so Preston could take some pictures to blog about them. We gave ourselves this big pep talk before we left that went something like this, "So, these homes are probably going to be pretty cool, and there's a good chance we are probably going to really like them. But NO MATTER HOW GREAT THEY ARE, we are not going to get sucked in because the location is way too far away from the city, so it's simply not an option for us. Period."

Gosh we give good pep talks.

And then our world came crashing down. Because guess what? The houses were freaking amazing. When I touched a doorknob, I didn't feel like I was touching every greasy hand that had touched that doorknob for the last 60 years. When I inhaled and exhaled the air didn't have a musty, moldy taste. When I pictured my baby crawling on the floor, I didn't shudder at the thought. When I went to open a closet in the basement I wasn't half expecting a rat to scurry out. And here's the real kicker, they had CENTRAL AIR. What? Central air in a city that is consistently 90+ degrees during the summer?! Unheard of.

Oh, and just to reel us in a little more, there is a Chick-fil-A within a mile of the neighborhood. To some, that's a sign straight from heaven folks.

So here we sit. December 1 is approaching fast, and we're going to get our $8k tax credit, darn it. So we've got to make a decision here pretty soon. Charming bungalow or the burbs. Charming bungalow or the burbs? Charming bungalow or the burbs? Welcome to my every waking thought.

Charming Bungalows

The Burbs

Someday when I'm rich and famous

2009-08-25T22:04:00.000-07:00

or maybe just rich, (because let's face it, fame is not all it's cracked up to be)I want this: http://3602apollo.com/

As Preston would say, this is "Bad Out!" I have no idea what that actually means. But I think it's akin to REALLY cool.

Where the heck was that commercial

2009-08-17T18:32:00.000-07:00

that tells moms that Nutella spread on whole wheat toast is a healthy and nutritious breakfast when I was a kid?!!

Best Dressed In Camp

2009-08-17T16:03:00.000-07:00

Growing up, I wasn't a big fan of the annual summer week of "Girl's Camp", where young women in the LDS church, ranging in ages 12-18 from several congregations would go spend a week camping together. There were a few reasons these little forays into nature didn't really interest me: #1. I hate getting dirty in general. #2. a literal front row seat to see the poopie the person who used the port-a-potty before me left, is not my idea of a good time, and finally, reason #3: there weren't any boys. DUH! But I did go a couple of times and once even garnered the award for "Best Dressed in Camp". I don't remember the details and I highly doubt I was really THE best dressed. Look at any picture of me from the age of 11 to about 16 and you'll know I wasn't really worthy of such an award.

In terms of camping in general, in my defense, I used to go backpacking and camping with my dad a lot growing up. And quite enjoyed it. I think part of the enjoyment came from just spending time with my dad -- one of the most enjoyable people to be around in the world -- and I think there were also probably usually Oreos involved.

Anyway, to the point of this post. Our little family went camping this last weekend at Bear Lake! It was our first time to Bear Lake and we really had a great time. It was my kind of camping too. We had a little one room cabin that had electricity including a light, ceiling fan, and heater. The bathrooms at the campground had running water, flushing toilets, and actually rivaled my own bathroom at home in cleanliness. It was great!

We really don't have any camping gear at all, but when necessary, we are very resourceful. No stick for roasting marshmallows? Not to worry, we just bought a fly swatter at the little convenience store and used the wire from the handle.

Everything was going great and then as luck would have it, we had an experience that almost ended the possibility of any future family camping expeditions. At about 12:25 a.m. I was abruptly jolted out of my peaceful slumber by a loud noise of scratching and clawing against the outside wall of our cabin right behind my head! I, of course, bolted up in my bed in the pitch black darkness and tried to wake up Preston. He woke up at the tail end of the series of noises, which also included a kind of sniffing/snorting noise. My heart was racing and I was thinking to myself, ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Is there a freaking bear outside our cabin?! Just my luck. I verbalized these thoughts to Preston who then whispers back probably the stupidest thing he could have said, which was "or maybe it's a person?" Oh great. So I've either got a bear or the BOOGIEMAN outside our cabin in the middle of the night.

...And then I lay there awake for the next 3.5 hours with my eyes open wide as saucers waiting to hear the next noise. The only time I even moved an inch was when I had to go the bathroom SO BAD that I got up and went to the bathroom in one of Miles' diapers. No, no, there's no need to go back and re-read that sentence. You heard me correctly the first time. I went pee in a baby diaper in the middle of the night. Like I'm going to walk outside to the bathrooms where the bear/boogieman might get me?!!!! So by about 3:30 a.m. I had pretty much decided that we were never going camping again. And in case you were wondering, Preston stayed awake to console me and help me fall back asleep for about, oh, 30 SECONDS before he fell back into a deep sleep for the rest of the night.

So, morning came and the sun was shining, the birds were chirping and the world as a whole looked much brighter. My few hours of sleep had calmed me down enough to where I would at least consider a future camping trip. Then Preston says to me, "look outside, did someone come pull into that cabin next to us last night?" I took a peek out the window. Sure enough, the cabin next to us had been empty when we went to bed, but sometime in the middle of the night someone pulled in and there was a big SUV parked in the little driveway. And I have a sneaking suspicion that perhaps they had a dog that was scratching and sniffing around the back wall of our cabin at around 12:30 in the morning. Awesome.

We loved Bear Lake and had a great weekend. We walked into the little town to look around, went down to the beach, had a campfire, and enjoyed having a little getaway together. Oh, and don't worry -- I got some Oreos out of the deal too.

Newlyweds!

2009-08-09T18:09:00.001-07:00

A BIG congratulations to my dad and Linda! They were married in a beautiful ceremony on August 1 at my Aunt Vicki and Uncle Keith's home. We traveled to Oregon for the festivities and had a great time with all of our friends and family. We were so grateful to be a part of this special day.

Thank you, Utah.

2009-07-26T17:51:00.000-07:00

There may be a few things here and there that bug me about Utah, but it can all pretty much be made up for by the fact that the great state of Utah has an official holiday on July 24 called "Pioneer Day" which gives Preston an extra day off during the summer.

This year we decided to take a mini-vacation as a family. Destination of choice? Park City. Yes, it's a whole 15 minutes away from our house, but we thought it would be fun to go stay over night, walk around, shop, go out to eat, swim, and stay in a hotel. So we did and it was lots of fun.

Highlights of the trip included:

*Eating Pretzel Bites at Pretzel Maker. Love those things.

*Watching Miles "swim" for the first time. He wore his little green swimming shorts and loved bobbing in the water with mom or dad holding him.

*Relaxing in our hotel and watching a movie with Preston while Miles slept.

and the BIGGEST highlight...

*Miles slept through the entire night for the first time! Hooray!

Miles deciding what he wanted for dinner at the restaurant.

Me and Miles at the restaurant

Getting ready to go swimming! Unfortunately didn't get any pictures of him actually in the water, but he loved it!

Me and Miles getting ready to leave.

If this doesn't brighten your day...

2009-07-22T14:15:00.000-07:00

I don't know what will!

Found my toes!

2009-06-25T08:19:00.000-07:00

That's My Boy!

2009-06-24T12:11:00.000-07:00

I don't know if you can see this very well, but my mom sent me this little collage of pictures of me as a baby right next to some pictures of Miles so that I could see that he DOES have some of my features. Hooray! Not that I mind that he is basically the SPITTING IMAGE of his daddy -- I love that. But it is kind of fun to see some of the similarities of our baby pictures.

Barry says...

2009-06-17T21:16:00.001-07:00

"Great bodies are made in the kitchen, not at the gym". And I'm sure that's true, although I wouldn't know because I am eating EVERYTHING IN SIGHT these days. And who the heck is Barry you ask? How soon we forget. Barry's Bootcamp of course. You thought I was joking around in my infomercial post a couple a few weeks ago? Oh no, I ordered that thing pronto and I've done it 6 days a week for the last three weeks. And if I was actually following Barry's advice and not eating approximately THREE THOUSAND CALORIES a day, I would most likely have a perfectly sculpted Hollywood beach body by next Thursday.

And while we're on the topic of food, we bought this black licorice at Costco last week that I'm pretty sure has crack cocaine in it. Why? Because I eat a piece, walk out of the kitchen and into the living room and I kid you not,the minute that piece is down my throat my body goes into instant withdrawal and I have to immediately go eat another piece. It's a vicious, vicious cycle.

Remember this?

2009-06-05T07:56:00.000-07:00

Well, it turned into this...

So fun!

Oh so cute!

2009-05-22T11:04:00.000-07:00

Remember that one time when we were out driving around looking at houses for sale and I walked around the back to peak in the windows of one...

2009-05-22T10:13:00.000-07:00

and someone was sitting there watching TV. Oopsie.

Pretty sure I need it...

2009-05-16T19:44:00.000-07:00

So, when you're up at 6:00 a.m. on Saturday morning feeding a baby and watching TV, your viewing options include infomercials and more infomercials, or "Paid Programming", if you will. And let me tell you, I am such a sucker. They can sell me on just about anything. It's dangerous. I've been known to buy a few things from infomercials in the past. They have usually been disappointments. You'd think I'd learn.

Case in point: about 5 years ago I ordered the "Sheer Cover" makeup. Have ya seen that one? They have several "B-list" celebrities promoting it (i.e. Melissa Gilbert who played Laura Ingalls on Little House in the Prairie back in the day -- which is probably what really got me...I used to LOVE that show. I thought I was Laura Ingalls from about age 4-8) and of course the makeup makes everyone looks so flawless and natural. And who the heck doesn't want to look flawless and natural?! So of course my butt ordered it pronto and eagerly awaited it's arrival. Well, shockingly, it wasn't all it was cracked up to be and I didn't like it. So I did what anyone would do with a product that had a 30-day money back guarantee...I put it up on the shelf in my closet and thought about sending it back until it was too late to send it back. Classic.

So fast-forward 5 years to last Saturday and I find myself sitting through the entire 30 minutes of the Sheer Cover infomercial. And I'll be damned if that crafty Leeza Gibbons didn't almost suck me in again. I was eating it up as if I had never seen the infomercial before, let alone already tried the product. My twisted little mind was thinking, "Maybe it would be different this time. I mean, look how good they look...so flawless and natural...". And I'm not going to lie, I've thought about Sheer Cover on and off all week, but I think I've finally resigned myself that ordering it again is not in my best interest. I'll try to remain strong.

However, I can't say that about the two new products I learned about this morning:

Barry's Bootcamp...NEED IT!

Shark Steam Mop...
NEED IT!

For the record...

2009-05-11T14:26:00.000-07:00

...when I order a "cookies and cream" milkshake, I expect it to have OREOS in it. NOT "chocolate sandwich cookies". There is a difference people. A huge difference. Oreos = pure bliss. "Chocolate Sandwich Cookies" = waste of my time and calories. However, don't think for one minute that it stopped me from devouring the entire thing.

Happy Mother's Day to ME!

2009-05-10T20:57:00.001-07:00

I am so freakin' ignorant sometimes. Before Miles came along I was like "when I have a baby I don't want my blog to turn into a brag blog where I do nothing but talk about my kids and post pictures of them." Which is odd, because I have always loved reading the blogs of my friends who have kids and reading about all of the cute things their kids do and look at all of their pictures. So that attitude really made no sense to begin with. Nevermind the fact that I obviously had no idea at the time that once you have a baby that becomes your WHOLE LIFE and nothing else really matters anyway! So now that I've been enlightened, I'm back and I'm ready to start bragging about my absolutely amazing and adorable baby boy.

My sweet boy is 9 weeks old and just the absolute joy and light of my life. He is growing so fast, so to be sure I don't forget one moment, I take about 95 pictures of him each day. So for those of you who like looking at pictures of cute babies, here is a sampling.

He's Here!

2009-03-09T14:46:00.001-07:00

I'm sorry it's taken so long to update the blog with our latest and greatest news! Our sweet little baby boy was born last week on Tuesday, March 3 -- two days before his due date. We are absolutely in awe and in love with this little guy.

I will update more later, but we are all happy and healthy and enjoying our new life together.

Miles Bunker Koerner
March 3, 2009
8 lbs. 1 oz.
21 inches

More baby stuff...

2009-02-18T13:25:00.000-08:00

My baby may not have a name, but he does have a pretty cute room! We are finally getting closer to finishing it, so I thought I would post a few pictures for those who would like to see. There are still some pictures and shelves etc. to go on the wall, but the main furniture is assembled and if he comes tomorrow he will at least have somewhere to lay his (big) head (see post below). And just for kicks, we'll throw in a couple of the pregnant girl.

And just in case my usual dry sense of humor/sarcasm doesn't let it shine through, we are so excited we can hardly stand it! This pregnancy and the upcoming birth of this baby by far outweighs any other major event, educational or career success, ANYTHING that we have ever even imagined. We feel so blessed and we can't wait to share the news of his arrival with everyone.

Add this to your "glad it's not me" list.

2009-02-18T12:48:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, at 35 weeks pregnant, my doctor ordered an ultrasound for me because she was concerned that my stomach was smaller than it should be at that point and she wanted to make sure the baby was growing correctly.

Here is the short version of the conversation with the ultrasound technician as she measured and checked everything during the ultrasound:

Tech: So...the concern here was perhaps the baby is too small at this point?

Me: I guess so. My doctor said my stomach was measuring smaller than it was 2 weeks ago so she was a little concerned.

Tech: Well, you're at 35 weeks and the baby's head is currently measuring at the size of a 38 week head.

Really? Thanks, Lady. I don't think you should be allowed to tell people crap like that, because now I have that little gem of information to add to all of the other anxieties floating around in my brain and to mull over for the next 4 weeks. Awesome.

Crash Course in Birthing a Baby

2009-01-24T21:37:00.000-08:00

Don't you just love how I refer to it as "birthing a baby"? What's wrong with me? It's better than what I actually usually say, which is "pushing out a baby". Don't think less of me for my bluntness. I'm not trying to be crude or diminish the absolute miracle that it is. I'm just stating the facts of what is going to happen.

So Preston and I had the pleasure of spending 8 hours over the last two Saturdays learning all you could ever want to know about having a baby. Man, talk about too much information. I'm not sure which is worse...showing up to deliver the baby absolutely clueless as to what is about take place or knowing every single solitary detail along with every possible thing that could go awry at any given moment? I'm still pondering the answer to that question.

Last week in the first class, after the second birthing video, I was sitting there thinking, "maybe this wasn't such a good idea..." (meaning the class people, not getting pregnant). And let's just talk about how thrilled Preston was about the whole thing. It was bad enough he had to get up before 9:00 a.m. on two Saturday mornings and go sit in a class for 4 hours, but then he's sitting there getting a front row view (on three large screens) of all of the gory details of some woman pushing out a baby. This is a man who gets queezy at the sight of a paper cut. So, that'll be good...

My personal favorite part of the class today was when we practiced relaxing and breathing through a contraction. To give us some "real pain" to breathe through, the teacher had our birth partner (that would be Preston. I think I'm going to start calling him that from now on...it's kind of catchy) place a clothespin on our earlobe at 30 second intervals. Now I'm not naive enough to think that a clothespin on my ear is anything close to a contraction; however, I'm telling you, my clothespin was seriously cinched up tight and that sucker hurt.

The good news is, next time someone tries to torture me with a clothespin on my ear, I'm going to be able to breathe and relax my way right through it. Bring it on. But breathing and relaxing through labor contractions?...can't make any promises. Nor can I promise that my birth partner will be conscious during any of it. But time will tell. And it will tell soon. Until then, we will do our best to block out most of the information and visuals from our little class and continue to focus on the joy and excitement we feel knowing that our lives are about to change forever.

How great is this?!

2009-01-24T21:24:00.000-08:00

For those who don't know what they are looking at, this is a picture of two girls who started playing together when they were 18 months old and have been the best of friends ever since. Now they are are expecting babies within a month of each other. So fun!

A special thanks...

2009-01-09T09:38:00.000-08:00

...to Bally's Total Fitness for closing their doors with no warning whatsoever and leaving a 7.5-months pregnant lady with nowhere to work out.

December...

2008-12-31T11:10:00.001-08:00

I have been pretty bad about keeping up with sass-lane lately. Some of you claim that you have been eagerly awaiting a new post for over a month now, but I am smart enough to know your lives aren't that lame. However, I do appreciate you making me feel good about the pointless content that makes up my little blog.

December has been such a busy month. It's one of the busiest times of year for work, not to mention it's been a full-time job trying not to get freaked out about the fact that my little bundle of joy will be arriving in just two short months and I'm still as clueless about birthing a baby and then actually taking care of it for the rest of its life as I have ever been. Everyone assures me this is normal. Thanks, but it's not helping. The mental checklist of things to do and the laundry list of things that I imagine could possibly go wrong that is accumulating in my head could possibly explode at any minute. I might need a milkshake.

Anyway, for now, I'll cut the chit-chat and share some pictures of the events over the last month. For those of you who have your own blogs, you know that for reasons known only to the Blogger Gods, the process of actually getting picture captions and the spacing to line up correctly with the pictures is enough to make you want to stick tiny pins in your eyeballs, so I am going to give you the picture captions all at once and the pictures to follow...sorry if it's confusing.

1. Me at the fabulous baby shower my sweet friends Maggie, Kellen, and Jaynell gave me when I was in Dallas at the beginning of the month.
2. Hilary, Jaynell, me, and Lori at the baby shower.
3. Maggie, Kellen, and me.
4. Another shot at the shower -- that is a picture of me when I was little on the counter and for the record, that is the BEST cake I have ever tasted. And I've tasted a lot of cake.
5. Me opening gifts, with the best mother-in-law on this earth by my side.
6. Pres and me before going to his law firm Christmas Party.
7. Pres and me on our date night to Temple Square to look at the lights.
8. Pres and me at Dad's house during Christmas.
9. Side-shot of the pregnant lady - 30 weeks.
10. Me and my little cousin Maximus -- the second most noble dog in the world (second to Colt of course). He gave me a subscription to Parenting magazine for Christmas.
11. Max with his Christmas antlers on...so cute!
12. Linda, Dad, and me at Mt. Bachelor on our snow-shoeing expedition (another story for another day.)
13. Pres and me on the snow-shoeing trip.
14. Me and Dad at Christmas.
15. Keith, Vicki, Linda, Pres, Me, and family friend, Stan at the Tumalo Feed Company Restaurant.
16. Preston with his 3 lb. Hershey Bar from Keith -- a nice little reward since Preston went off of sugar for all of 2008 -- that's right, no sugar for 365 days. I don't know who it's been more difficult for -- him or me?

2008-11-20T18:48:00.000-08:00

I am currently knee-deep in college applications, crushing the dreams of young college hopefuls left and right. But I must interrupt this important work to tell you about something that will CHANGE YOUR LIFE. I cannot take credit for finding this -- my sister-in-law Kim told me about it months ago and blogged about it on one of her blogs (Body by Kim --check it out, it's awesome). But I finally tried it and I don't think I will ever be the same and therefore, I must tell the world.

For my fellow chocolate lovers out there...for those who feel it takes non-human strength to avoid having dessert every night...you are going to love this:

This, my little friends, is No Pudge, Fat Free Brownie Mix. I was skeptical, I'm not going to lie. You take this brownie mix, stir in some non-fat vanilla yogurt and then put it in the microwave and supposedly you get a tasty, fat free brownie. Say what? Skeptical. But despite my doubts I followed the instructions and the result is what I would call UNREAL. So good. Put a little dollop of vanilla frozen yogurt on top and you can hardly believe you are eating something that is A) so easy to make B) so delicious and C) is relatively guilt-free. The real beauty of this whole thing is that you can make a single serving, allowing you to avoid making a whole pan (and then feeling the responsibility to eat the whole pan). To find a store near you that sells No Pudge visit the website.

So, try it, you'll like it. And thank you Kim, thank you No Pudge Brownie Mix. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Now don't go getting all worked up over this, this is not a political statement.

2008-11-17T11:40:00.000-08:00

"He reminds me of George Bush. He says stupid stuff that means nothing."

-Preston Koerner commenting on Dallas Cowboy's quarterback Tony Romo during a pre-game interview. (This coming from someone who loves the Dallas Cowboys and is really pretty politically conservative when it comes right down to it.)

This comment made me chuckle for a good 10 minutes. My babe...he says what he feels.

If the kid looks like this, watch out world...

2008-11-08T15:02:00.001-08:00

Back Home

2008-11-08T14:02:00.000-08:00

Well, I returned home two weeks ago from my last big work trip until December. It was two weeks straight covering Washington D.C., Baltimore, and Richmond. It's one of my favorite trips of the year, but it seemed very long this year...perhaps being 5 months pregnant this time around had something to do with it.
The night after I got home I went to my first ever Witches Night Out with my cute sisters-in-law. Witches Night Out is this crazy event at Gardner Village in Salt Lake where literally hundreds of (mostly) women dress up in their best witch costumes and spend the evening browsing all of the cute boutiques, eating, dancing, etc. etc. Those who know me well know that I'm not really into dressing up, so you'll notice my "costume" is a little lacking compared to others, but I had a witches hat and I wore black...that's as good as it gets kids. We did have a great time and I really have the best sisters-in-law around.

The next week on the actual Halloween day we had even more excitement...Colt finally got the big "Snip-Snip" as we call it...he got neutered. I mean, he's only five years old. Geez. But it took that long to convince Preston that "robbing Colt of his manhood" was really in the best interest of everyone involved. So we spent our Halloween night at home with Colt while he recovered from his rough day. He gets to wear one of those awesome cone collars (I don't know the technical name) for 10 whole days. The poor guy spends half his days walking around running into walls with that thing on. Needless to say, for a dog who is not used to limits, he is not enjoying the limitations it is putting on him!

Colt all drugged up and mopey.

Cone-head

And finally, for those who have inquired whether I am "showing" yet or not...the answer is a definite YES. And I'm glad to be showing. It means that little guy is really growing in there.

20 weeks

23 weeks

IF I were the type to write open letters to people...

2008-11-08T08:52:00.000-08:00

Dear Tyra,

Oh so many questions for you. But I will limit myself to just one. I happened to turn your talk show on twice last week while I ate my lunch. The first day you had hip hop artist T.I. on your show. I like some of T.I.’s music so I watched for a bit while you chatted and flirted with him and asked him the important questions like, “how old were you when you lost your virginity?” When he answered “11” you playfully giggled and acted shocked and said, “oh, so you’re a PLAYA playa?!” (I guess the use of double “playa” with the emphasis on the first “playa” means you are like a super, duper, playa.) I almost threw up in my mouth, but was able to keep it back.

The second episode I happened upon two days later, you had somehow convinced some poor little 15 year old girl who wants to have a baby and marry her 18 year old boyfriend to come on the show. You sat there and grilled with her questions that it was obvious you already knew the answers to. When you asked her how old she was when she lost her virginity and she replied that she was “13” the shock and horror that came across your face was as if you had just been told “America’s Next Top Model” has been cancelled.

So my question is…seeing how I always hear you talking about your self-proclaimed calling in life to help women, especially young girls, with self esteem issues, why in the hell would you glorify and fall all over some guy who has been sleeping around with multiple women since he was 11 and has 6 children by multiple women, none of whom he has married? If you had one of the girls T.I. slept with when he was 11 on your couch would you grill her about her behavior and use her as an example to all of your viewers to show them that you care about young girls and you don’t want them to participate in behavior that can leave them with disease, unwanted pregnancy, and other multiple emotional and physical issues they are not yet ready to deal with? Or would you give her a high five and say “way to go girl – you slept with a PLAYA playa!”

Just wondering.

I have a picture to prove it...

2008-10-13T17:22:00.000-07:00

It's a boy! I finally made it to 20 weeks and got to go have my official ultrasound. The doctor said that he is 100% positive it is a boy and that he couldn't have asked for a clearer picture of the "anatomy"! We are so excited to finally know what to plan for! We haven't come up with any names yet, so you are more than welcome to leave your suggestions in the comments section. I know some of you are dying to share your thoughts on the subject! ;)

Read This

2008-10-09T14:24:00.000-07:00

The Secret Life of Bees
Sue Monk Kidd
If you're looking for something to read on a cold autumn night, pick this up ASAP! This is a great book! I hadn't seen the preview for the movie that is based on this book and is coming out in a couple of weeks, I just saw the book at Costco, read the back, and thought it might be good. Not only was it good, it was excellent! One of the best books I have read in a while -- couldn't put it down. Rarely are the movies as good as the books, but now I am looking forward to seeing how it turns out on screen. I'll let you know!

Random Musings...

2008-09-23T12:14:00.001-07:00

- It's that crazy time of year when you never know where you might find me on any given day. My latest wanderings have included a week in Dallas, a week and a half in Phoenix, a weekend at home in Salt Lake, a week and a half in Atlanta, and now I'm back in Salt Lake until Friday. In other words, I have moved from Central time, to West Coast time, to Mountain time, to Eastern time and back to Mountain time. My body doesn't know what time it is, let alone what day it is.

- After four weeks in rental cars, it occured to me that there is the distinct possibility that the child inside of me is likely to recognize the Garmin GPS female voice more than my own.

- So after being sick and basically detesting the human need to eat food for a good 2 months, my appetite is back, which is kind of nice, but let's be honest, a little scary. And scarier than it might be for most since again, hate to keep mentioning it, but my job has me traveling away from home for weeks at a time. Which means I have a little gray corporate credit card in my hands to get what I want when I need it and when it's time to eat, I don't always exactly have a little baggie of carrots at my disposal. I'd say that I've done pretty well overall. I've done this for 6 years now, so I've pretty well mastered how to eat healthy when away from home for weeks at a time.

But that doesn't mean that a girl doesn't have a few nights here and there when she's sitting in a hotel room alone for the 6th night in a row returning emails and listening to that damn Anderson Cooper on TV drone on about who knows what, like he's the All-Knowing One about any and every subject, and really, it seems that the only thing that will get you through the night and into the next day is to consume large quantities of some sort of fat-laden treat. It happens. As luck would have it, most hotels have moved to only having snack vending machines on certain floors or a snack shop in the lobby. What happened to the good old days when there was a vending machine full of Peanut M&Ms and Snickers available on every floor so that you could just sneak down the hall in your jammies and no shoes with your little hand full of quarters allowing you to avoid the guilt of having someone watch you purchase TWO bags of M&Ms AND a Snickers and causing you to have to come up with some nonchalant line that somehow indicates that all of it isn't for you.

Even after the time I snuck down the hall in pajamas and no shoes and came back to find my key suddenly wouldn't open my door resulting in an embarrassing march of shame down to the front desk to get a new key, I am still not dissuaded from this behavior if it's available to me. So anyway, what's the point? I don't know. The title of this post IS "Random Musings" and it is my blog and I have never claimed there is a point to any of this.

- And while we're on the topic of food...As anyone who has been around me much knows, I love me some ice cream. One of my favorite places, although I don't really go there all that often is Coldstone Creamery. I usually get sweet cream ice cream with Oreos or if I'm feeling really crazy I'll get a little concoction they call "Peanut Butter Perfection" which has chocolate ice cream, Reeses peanut butter cups, fudge, and peanut butter. All the ingredients for a speedy "pants aren't going to fit tomorrow" experience. I've been going to Coldstone on and off for years and every time I look in that little glass freezer case at all of the ice cream choices I see the flavor "cake batter". Now, for reasons known only to the ice cream gods themselves, it wasn't until LAST WEEK that it occured to me that cake batter ice cream freaking tastes like CAKE BATTER. Pretty sure I love cake batter, so probably gonna enjoy CAKE BATTER ICE CREAM!! And guess what? I do enjoy it. In fact, I enjoy it so much that when I got it for the second time last week (after vowing the first time when I got it in the "like it" (small) size that it would be my only ice cream for the week) without even thinking I ordered the "love it" (way too large) size and devoured the whole thing wondering the entire time how I was going to prevent myself from walking through the Coldstone doors again the very next night?!!

- A few clues that I am definitely pregnant:
1. I am wearing flats (as in shoes). I hate flats, I never wear flats. But I am wearing them. And as long as I don't look in the mirror, I am enjoying it.
2. More than once I've gotten a little misty eyed during "e-harmony" (as in, online dating) commercials.
3. Cafe Rio does not sound good to me. Ever. (WHATTTTT??! This better subside after baby is born. I can't just come up with a new favorite restaurant.)
4. Sometimes I am suddenly so tired that my mind cannot comprehend getting up and walking into the next room.
5. I am trying to say "yikes" instead of other less child friendly words.

And lastly, since just my thoughts and words can make for a very boring post, I will finally post pictures from our Huntington Beach vacation we took in July. We had a great time and ever since we got back we've been trying to figure out how to make our millions so we can buy a house on the beach and walk around in our swimming suits all day.

Super-Squint!! :)

Huntington Beach Pier - Ruby's Restaurant at the end

Good-looking vacationer!

Perfect weather!

Beach

Preston and I from the back just enjoying the beach. Ha ha!! :)

Preston's little burned legs. We both burned ourselves the first day. Oops!

Pile of mini-shells. I like piles of mini-things.

About to eat Fish-n-Chips

Eating breakfast at Ruby's on the pier

Go ahead and take a gander to the right sidebar of this blog...

2008-09-08T15:36:00.001-07:00

That's right folks, I have my very own baby counter! Or whatever it's called. I call it a baby counter.

Yes, it's true, Preston and I are expecting our first baby in March! We are very excited! The blog posts have been a little sparse over the last few months because top on my agenda every day has been trying not to barf. But it's getting better by the day and we feel truly blessed.

For those who don't want to do the math based on the the number of days indicated on my baby counter, I am at a little over 3.5 months.

For the most awkward/annoying moments per hour on television

2008-09-08T02:58:00.000-07:00

watch the Tyra Banks show. That's really all I have to say.

And here we are...

2008-08-19T11:14:00.000-07:00

A few months ago I was sitting on a toilet in a public restroom at SMU (stay with me here people, there is a point) and posted in front of me for my reading pleasure on the stall door was a flyer about a study that a department on campus was conducting for females ages 17-22. It seemed like kind of an interesting study and as my little hand reached up to tear off the paper with details on how to get more information it suddenly donned on me...wait a second, I am nowhere bloody near 22 years old. No. Where. Near. I kind of chuckled to myself thinking, "duh, Tali!" But then I really thought about it, and I realized that there is a little part of my brain that thinks I am still 22 and that I am always going to be 22. Let's just say it was quite the "ah-hah" moment for me on the toilet.

Anyway, I may not be 22, but when I was 22 I made what I would put under the category of "The Best Decision of my Life". Quite amazing really, when I look back and realize how young 22 really is. (I know, I know, I'm a whopping 28 now...). Which is really the point of this post, because Saturday, August 16th marked my 6th wedding anniversary. Preston and I were married the afternoon of Friday, August 16, 2002 in the Portland, Oregon LDS Temple. It has been an amazing 6 years, so good, I think we'll shoot for another 6.

How did it all start you might ask? I'll tell you. It technically started right here:

That, my friends, is the BYU Student Employment Office and one summer after being fed up with working mornings at a gas station and sneaking cheeseburgers in the breakroom at my job in the afternoons at a vegan cafe, I ran my finger down a job board in this very office and found a posting for a secretary at the BYU Grounds Office. I got the job and it was there that I met this person:

No, that's not Preston. It's Preston's brother, Garrett. And no, that's not Garrett's real hair. I just laughed for a good 5 minutes before I could even write this sentence.

Back to the story. I worked with Garrett for several months and after watching chuckle-head after chuckle-head come up to the office and ask me out and hearing about one lame-o date after another, Garrett came up with the genius plan to set me up with his brother. There was one slight glitch in this plan: his brother was caught up with some cute little blonde thing and wasn't interested in dating anyone else. So, I went back to weekends filled with free dinners but no sparks, which really was a pretty good deal overall.

Finally after working with Garrett for months and never laying eyes on his brother, Garrett informed me that his brother and the blonde had broken up and maybe we could go on a double date. I was game and next thing I knew the very next day this little head pokes through the office door and asks if "there's a guy named Garrett around?" Wouldn't you know it. The brother decided to make an appearance and make sure that this girl he was being set up with for the upcoming weekend was going to be worth his time. Now, Preston disputes this to this day, claiming that he was just dropping by to finally see where his brother worked and bring him a Big Mac. Right. His brother had worked there for 6 months. We all know why he showed up that day. And who can blame him, really. Apparently I passed the test and our first date was a double date with Garrett to Applebees and to the movie "Meet the Parents".

And that, my friends, is what we call a BYU-blind-date-success-story. We clicked right away and neither of us went on a date with another person again. Almost 2 years later we were married.

I'm rarely serious on this blog, but Preston is the biggest blessing in my life. I couldn't ask for a better best friend and partner to share my life with. For those of you who haven't met Preston, he has the best sense of humor around, he is kind and concerned about others, he is the hardest worker I have ever met, and he is incredibly smart. He is everything to me.

Six years later eating dinner at Brick Oven in Provo...

Pass the Bubbly...

2008-08-05T20:29:00.000-07:00

What: John Mayer and Colbie Caillat Concert
Where: Salt Lake City, Utah. My new home, that's not really new anymore, that I'm starting not to hate. That's a good thing, right? I think "like" comes after "starting not to hate".
When: A couple of weeks ago.
Highlights: Seeing Jennifer Aniston in the crowd. Just kidding. I didn't see her. But you better believe I was on the lookout. Which is odd, because, really I'm on Team Jolie. I digress...
Only Regrets: That I ate before I went and was too full for concession stand nachos.

Picture: Good old self-shot of Preston and I at the concert. We could be at Wal-Mart for all you know, but I'm telling you, this is us in our seats at the concert.
Video #1: A little sample of John's commentary in between songs.
Video #2: A little sample of what I am labeling the best cover ever, which is John singing "Free Fallin".

Enjoy.

Seriously?

2008-07-14T22:29:00.001-07:00

Imagine my surprise when I was driving passed the neighborhood in which I grew up and all of a sudden I was blinded by this:

Now this picture really does not do this situation justice. This is the house that I grew up in. I played basketball at the end of this culdesac for hours on end, went on my first date from that doorstep, and spent many hours with friends and family in this home. And now, to my horror, some ya-hoo has added a ridiculous second garage on the side and painted this cute little house, that was once a nice blue, a horrific, fluorescent sea foam. That's the only way I can describe it. This picture makes it look like it is merely a light yellow. Not so. It's blinding, and ugly and my jaw dropped to the floor when I first saw it. The poor neighbors who have lived next door for the last 15 years have their house up for sale. What also does not show up clearly in this picture are the weird signs on the garage and creepy lawn gnomes in the front yard.

Creepy lawn gnomes in front of my childhood home. So sad.

I'm Baaaaa--aaaack...

2008-07-14T21:55:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, the fans have been longing for a new post for a few weeks now. I have a few excuses -- including, but not limited to: a good old-fashioned complete and utter lack of motivation in general, along with being out of town visiting my dad who is one of the last people on earth who doesn't have the internet at his house. Can you believe it? I mean, today I walked around all day not knowing that I missed the big announcement of what Brad and Angie named the babies!

I'm joking people. Joking.

I spent the last week in my hometown visiting family and friends. A few of the highlights included attending a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert (Skynyrd!!), a birthday barbeque in honor of my 28th birthday (I will say, last week my Sunday School class said that I don't look a day older than 24. Those little angels.), and my 10 year high school reunion (this will need a detailed post of it's own at a later time when I don't have a hangover from the cheeseburger, fries, and 2 scoops of ice cream on a waffle cone I devoured in honor of my birthday tonight. Any excuse will do to consume a few thousand extra calories).

I'm completely lazy when it comes to actually taking pictures of events I would like to remember, so I will post the few I have now and then post the others I plan to mooch off of friends and family who were much better at taking pictures when I get them.

Skynyrd!!!

Birthday Barbeque

Some of my birthday loot (Thanks everyone!!)

Off to re-live the RHS memories

EarthFirst.com’s Top 25 Hottest Guys in Green: 10 We Missed Last Time

2008-06-26T18:25:00.000-07:00

Ladies and gentlemen...click on this little link and see if there is anyone you recognize! (Hint: Scroll down to #7)

http://earthfirst.com/earthfirstcoms-top-25-hottest-guys-in-green-10-we-missed-last-time/

This is what friendship looks like.

2008-06-10T13:17:00.001-07:00

Rachelle, Megan, my cousin (also one of my closest friends), Me, Jill
Circa 1994

Rachelle, Tali, Megan, Jill (with 2 of Rachelle's adorable kids)
June 2008

Very few people in this world are blessed to have the same group of close friends from the time they are toddlers, through grade school, through, junior high, through high school, through college, and into their late 20's. I am one of the few and the gratitude I feel for this blessing is almost indescribable . My dad went to school with Jill's mom and Rachelle's dad; therefore, the three of us have been friends before we could even walk. We were fortunate to meet Megan in junior high and she instantly became one of the group.

Yes, we have all done different things in our lives, lived different places, taken different paths, and made other friends along the way. But, there is not a doubt in my mind that I wouldn't be who I am or where I am today without these girls.

It has been amazing to have us all back in the same state and within an hour of each other this last year. It's been 10 years since we all lived in the same place and when we get together, it's almost as if nothing at all has changed. Sure, we have husbands, Jill and Rachelle have kids, but our friendship is as strong as ever. So when I look at these pictures, one from probably 15 years ago and one from 2 days ago, the only thing that has really changed is our hairstyles and clothes. Otherwise, they are pictures of true-blue friends.

Remember that one time when we moved to Utah and sun and warmth apparently don't make an appearance here until July? That was awesome.

2008-06-06T16:44:00.000-07:00

I'm starting to wonder if summer is ever going to get here. Am I just being impatient? Is this normal here? I mean, Preston and I are still having thermostat wars and it is freaking June?!! However, even Preston has admitted a few times that it is cold enough to have the heat on. So it's not just me. Anyway, it hasn't been all bad. I think it was warm a few weeks ago because I have these pictures on my camera of a day when we took Colt over to play in the soccer field at a school near the house and it looks pretty delightful, so it must have been warm, but I don't really remember. So I'll share the pictures and stop complaining. Because honestly, I don't know which is worse -- having to have the heat on in June or listening to Preston complain about how hot it is all summer and me being freezing because he keeps the house at a comfortable MEAT LOCKER temperature...because I know that's coming.

Isn't Colt the cutest chubby Beagle you've ever seen?

Read This

2008-06-03T18:44:00.000-07:00

The Road
Cormac McCarthy
I'm not going to say a whole lot about this one other than this is an excellent book and I highly recommend it! It's a quick and intriguing read. The writing is phenomenal, the story is extremely moving, and you won't be able to put it down. Let me know what you think if you read it!

Decisions, decisions...

2008-06-03T18:31:00.001-07:00

Well, it wasn't easy but I had to decide who I am going to be cheering for in the 2008 NBA Finals. Decision made: Boston Celtics.

In Memory

2008-05-26T21:31:00.000-07:00

As we returned home this afternoon from enjoying a great weekend with some of our closest friends, I realized that I hadn't really taken the time to remember what Memorial Day is all about. Of course the day is observed to commemorate U.S. men and women who have fought for our country and lost their lives while in military service and I am immensely grateful to all of those who have done so. When I was growing up, each year my family would visit the cemetery in my hometown to place flowers and a flag on the gravesite of my great grandfather who served in the military. We also put flowers on the grave of my dad's mother, Marilyn, who passed away when my dad was 19.

While most of the posts on this blog are pretty frivolous, I want to put it to good use today and honor her. Although I lost the opportunity to meet her in person due to the devastating carelessness of a drunk driver, I am grateful that I did not lose the opportunity to feel her influence in my life through two of the people who are dearest to me, her son and daughter, my dad and my aunt Vicki. I know that much of the goodness, the kindess, and the strength that is in both of them comes from her and I am eternally grateful to her for that because it has blessed my life beyond measure. I believe there is life after our time here on earth and I know it will be a wonderful day when I finally get to meet her.

When I see her picture I see beauty, grace, and love and I want to share that with everyone on this holiday, which is dedicated to remembering those who have made a difference.

Green River is the place to be!

2008-05-26T21:00:00.000-07:00

This weekend Preston and I had a great time going on a road trip with some of our closest friends, Jill and Matt and their adorable son. We all loaded up in the Subaru and cruised down to Green River, Utah to visit our friends Heather and Greg and their new baby daughter. We had such a great time together laughing, talking, eating, watching NBA playoff games, writing down Heather's top secret recipes (girls), golfing (boys), holding that sweet newborn, being entertained by the cutest 2 year old you have ever seen, and exploring some of the beauty of eastern Utah.

Thanks so much to Heather and Greg for letting us bombard them at this busy time in their lives and thanks to Jill and Matt for being the coolest road trip companions ever!

The "Pet Peeves of Car and Air Travel" List

2008-05-15T14:26:00.000-07:00

As most of you know I spend a lot of time on airplanes and in rental cars. Having recently finished a trip, I feel inclined to share with you my top "on the road" pet peeves:

• People who talk on their cell phone while driving. Hate it. I refuse to do it. People, you can’t respond to the road and other drivers around you if you’re focused on a conversation, not to mention using one hand to hold the phone. Plus this is causing a problem for me because you are doubling the amount of cursing I do because of your idiotic driving.

• People who TEXT while driving. I would say that the majority of Americans behind the wheel of an automobile barely have the intelligence and common sense to actually correctly operate the automobile itself in the first place, let alone try to spell words and form sentences on a numeric key pad with one hand, while driving. Period.

• People who are seated in the back of the plane who for some reason feel it is appropriate to exit the plane before the people sitting in front of them on the plane. This one almost puts me over the edge. Unless you are about to miss a connecting flight, passengers exit the plane row by row from front to back. I don’t know why this is a difficult concept. Don’t come from behind me while I’m still sitting in my seat WAITING FOR THE PEOPLE IN FRONT OF ME TO EXIT and stand in the aisle next to me and smile at me like everything is AOK. I might smile back but deep down inside I will want to hit you.

• People who carry everything but the kitchen sink onto the plane. I mean, this is getting ridiculous. I’m starting to get a little irritated waiting for everyone to hoist their over-stuffed 50 pound “carry-on” suitcase into the overhead bin just because they don’t want to check their luggage and then watching the inevitable look of shock and confusion on their face when they find that it won’t fit. Not to mention the shopping bag they have stuffed with who-knows-what, a backpack and/or purse, a pillow, and a bag of Wendy’s (the smell of which we must all enjoy for the proceeding 4 hour flight).

Listen, I get it. Shiz happens and sometimes the airline loses your luggage and it’s a hassle. It’s happened to me numerous times and I'm guessing it will happen again. That said, you’re exponentially increasing the already uncomfortable circumstance of 250 people crammed into a small, uncomfortable space when you try to drag everything you own with you on the plane. Just check it. 9 times out of 10 it will come rumbling around on that baggage claim belt as planned.

• The business man or woman who feels the need to conduct business on their cell phone for all to hear. I too have my Blackberry in my hand almost at all times when I’m traveling and I have calls to return and business to take care of. But how is it that I can usually find a corner of the airport or wait 5 minutes until we’re off of the rental car shuttle to get things done, but you have to make sure you have an audience to loudly conduct your business in front of?! The men are especially obnoxious – I love the ones who will look at you and smile, as if to make sure you’re catching how important they are. Yep, got it. Thanks.

• And finally, what would a “traveling pet peeves” list be without a nod to the ever-eventful airport security line. I really could go on about this one for awhile, but I realize that I have to be patient with those who maybe don’t travel much and don’t understand how it works. So, I’ll pick just one. You know those gray bins in the security line that you put your stuff in and then send through the x-ray machine? You don’t need one of those bins for every single, solitary item. Yes, of course for small loose items like a belt or sunglasses, a coat or sweater that you don’t want to get dirty, your laptop. But shoes? An extra bin just for your shoes? No. An extra bin for your purse. No. An extra bin for your laptop case? No. It’s not going into the Nile River folks, it’s going onto a revolving belt and will be out of your eyesight for about 5 seconds (unless you were naughty and forgot you left a water bottle in your bag – that will hold you, and everyone else behind you, up for a good minute or two, which of course feels more like 20 minutes because everyone is hot, tired, and irritable). So, just throw those shoes, your purse, your laptop case etc. right on up there – trust me, it’s a lot easier than trying to fumble 4 or 5 bins.

p.s. I know I said only one security line pet peeve, but just one extra tidbit...when in doubt, keep that little boarding pass in your hands. Don't be putting it in a secret pocket deep in the black abyss that is your bag and send it through the x-ray machine because then we all have to wait for you to go back and dig it out.

Okay, so that's it folks. I know this makes me sound like an impatient, insensitive grump who has no tolerance for people in general, but please be assured that I put on a smile and help the lady in front of me cram her over-stuffed carry-on into the bin, make pleasant chit-chat with the man sitting next to me who is chowing a big, greasy burger full of onions, and smile and say "it happens to all of us" when someone holds up the security line because they accidentally left their water bottle and a 32 oz bottle of shampoo in their backpack. It does nobody any good to get impatient or upset. It's just the way it is and at least it gives us a good story to tell later.

Read This: The Last Lecture

2008-05-13T15:16:00.001-07:00

The Last Lecture
Randy Pausch

I first heard about this book a couple of months ago when Diane Sawyer did a story on the author, Randy Pausch, on the news program 48 Hours. The story was very powerful and the interview sucked both Preston and I in immediately (that alone says a lot since I usually can't stand Diane Sawyer on my television screen for longer than 5 seconds).

If you want a quick read (I read it in about 2 hours) that is inspiring and that will remind you of what is really important in life, this is definitely worth your time. To get a better sense of what inspired this book, view the clip below:

If you live in the area and would like to borrow our copy, just let me know. Otherwise I recommend picking this up at Costco for $11.99 (versus $21.95 anywhere else). I highly recommend you add this to your summer reading list!

Jam This: Feist

2008-05-13T13:06:00.001-07:00

So this isn't exactly ground breaking news -- I know many of you have already been listening to this for months, just as I have. But for those of you who have not discovered this yet, I thought it was my duty to make sure you are aware of the greatness that is Feist.

At the very least, you have probably heard a couple of her songs that have been used in TV commercials for iPod (1234)and Verizon (My Moon My Man)over the last several months. But there is much, much more to the music of Feist my friends. I've included my favorite songs off of her latest CD titled The Reminder at the top of my playlist, so check it out!

P.S. I Hate It

2008-05-13T12:41:00.000-07:00

There really is no point to this post other than to say that I really hate it when Hollywood takes what could be a great storyline and then executes the idea in such a way that it is completely and utterly unlikeable and unenjoyable. That's the way I personally felt about the movie P.S. I Love You starring Hilary Swank. Has anyone else seen this movie? When I saw the previews for it back when it came out I thought it looked good, but never got around to going to see it at the theater. I finally rented it last week and could barely get through it. First and foremost, as good of an actress as she can be (as is evident in movies like Million Dollar Baby, Freedom Writers, etc) this movie made it clear to me that she should never again take a role as the female lead in a romantic comedy -- she just can't pull it off. Secondly, I didn't feel like they developed the story or any of the characters in a way that made you feel anything for them or what they were going through. Complete waste of 2 hours in my book.

If you saw, it what did you think?! Was I just in the wrong mood when I watched this?

Kringle Hangover

2008-05-06T09:57:00.000-07:00

Folks, when you've consumed a good 2,000 calories before noon, you know it's going to be a tough day.

When I got home on Friday night I had a package waiting for me from one of my high schools in Atlanta. I work with a lot of wonderful high schools who often send gifts at the end of the academic year as a thank you for working with (i.e. admitting) their students to SMU. Anyway, the package had three fresh danish Kringles that were sent refrigerated from a company in Wisconsin. Can't say that I previously knew what a Kringle was, but about 15,000 calories later, I do now! They are a delicious danish pastry that comes in many different flavors. They sent me 1 Cinnamon Roll Kringle, 1 Turtle Kringle and 1 Caramel Apple Kringle. Since Friday evening I have singlehandedly devoured the Turtle Kringle (as in a pastry filled with creamy caramel and topped with chocolate and pecans). I polished off the rest for breakfast this morning, thereby causing my vision to be a bit blurred, even as I type. Keep in mind these things are like a donut (there is a hole in the middle) about the size of a large pizza. Really, I never cease to amaze myself.

Anyway, these actually make great gifts (obviously I'm speaking from personal experience as the gift receiver). I checked out the website and they have some other tasty looking delectables as well.

Check it out at www.ohdanishbakery.com

Good Times

2008-05-02T17:59:00.001-07:00

Well, friends, this week I was in Baltimore, DC, and Richmond. The highlights of the trip included:

1. Slamming my right thumb in the trunk of my rental car Monday night.

2. Realizing I left my laptop charger in a hotel during my last trip a week a half ago...therefore allowing me the pleasure of hauling around my dead and absolutely useless laptop all week and...

3. Having to respond to 9 million emails on my blackberry using only my left hand (see highlight #1).

Don't Go, Rach!

2008-05-02T17:45:00.000-07:00

One of my dearest friends in the whole world, Rachel, just accepted a new job and moved to Florida! So sad that she's moving away, but very happy for her new opportunity. Rachel, Jill, and I all went out for one last "girl's night" before she moved last week. I have been very blessed in my life to have several, close friends. Rachel and Jill are definitely two of them. Love you girls! Thanks for all of the fun...I know there is much more to come!

Jill, Me, and Rachel at Jill's house

Me and Rachel

This is what a Cafe Rio hangover looks like people (referring to myself only)!

Happy Birthday Preston!

2008-04-26T23:00:00.000-07:00

Today was Preston's 29th Birthday! We had a great day together and with Preston's family. Preston's first gift was that I was actually home for his birthday! I have been gone on his birthday for the last 4 years in a row due to work, so it was wonderful to actually be able to spend his special day with him.

We started the day with his presents from me which included some new New Balance shoes, an SMU diploma frame for his law diploma, the new Black Crowes CD, and tickets to see John Mayer and Colbie Caillat in July! I think he liked them all. We went to our favorite place for breakfast, the Original Pancake House. His only regret was that he didn't realize that they served his favorite, biscuits and gravy, until he had already ordered something else and the guy next to us got a plate heaping full of biscuits and gravy delivered to him right under Preston's nose. Sorry babe...we might have to do a make up breakfast so you can get what you really want!!

We spent the rest of the day with Preston's family eating dinner, visiting, and watching the Utah Jazz game. It was a great day and I hope Preston enjoyed it! He better enjoy this entire year because it's his last year in his 20's!!!! ;)

First, some shots of a younger Preston:

I mean, do kids get any cuter than this??!!

I wonder if he snored back then? He. He. Just kidding babe! ;)

Birthday Boy's Presents

Birthday Boy with his trusty sidekick, Colt

Finally together for his birthday! (This was taken later in the day -- apparently he changed his shirt?)

Read This

2008-04-21T12:07:00.000-07:00

Escape
Carolyn Jessop

I will be honest, when I first saw this book in stores a few months ago, I had no desire to read it. I'm embarrassed to admit that I thought it was just one more person selling their sensationalized story to make a buck. I'm here to say I was very wrong and I'm so glad that I finally picked it up and read it.

Carolyn Jessop is a former wife of Merrill Jessop, a high ranking leader in the FLDS community. This is her personal story about her life in the FLDS church and the Colorado City polygamist community, her marriage to a man who was 34 years her senior, and her eventual (and literal) escape from everything she had ever known.

In my opinion, this book shines the light on why more attention needs to be given to the FLDS church and what their leadership is doing. Ironically, I finished reading this book about a week before the raid at the YFZ (Yearning for Zion) ranch in El Dorado, Texas. This was heavy on my mind after I completed the book and then suddenly it was all over the news.

This week I overheard a man on an airplane say he felt the media is sensationalizing this issue and that they should just leave these people alone. I just about flipped my lid. I can't say whether or not the government is handling this situation absolutely correctly or not; I'm not sure. Regardless of whether you agree with the way the government and the media is covering this, I guarantee you will understand why at the very least it is not right to just turn our backs and a blind eye to this if you read Escape. This is not about freedom of religion, this is not about harassing people just because they dress differently. This is about crimes that are being committed against women and children in our country. Just as we are horrified by crimes against women and children in other parts of the world such as the Middle East and Africa, we should be on high alert about what is happening in some of these polygamist communities in the U.S. The book also provides insight into why the women and children are protecting the leadership of their church and saying that nothing bad is happening in their community.

I would have strongly recommended this book a month ago when I finished reading it. Now that this issue has been brought to the forefront and is being covered so heavily by the media, I absolutely recommend it.

As a side note, for those of you who are members of the LDS church (the Mormons) from which the FLDS originally sprouted, I think you will be appalled to learn how some of the basic beliefs of our religion have been taken by the FLDS and completely twisted and altered into complete evil. You will be horrified that the lines between The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (the Mormons) and the FLDS church are often blurred and many believe us to be the same group of people.

If anyone has already read Escape, I would love to hear your thoughts. For those who are in my area, I am happy to loan you my copy so you don't have to go out and buy it.

Read This/Jam This

2008-04-21T12:02:00.000-07:00

Books and music are both a huge part of my life, so I thought it might be fun to start some regular posts about the books I am reading or the music I am listening to right now. "Read This" will be a quick bit of information about the book I just finished reading and whether or not I recommend it, etc. and "Jam This" will be just a friendly little suggestion of an artist or a song to check out! More to come!

A virtual "who's who"

2008-04-15T21:05:00.000-07:00

I'm in DC this week and so is the Pope. Haven't seen him yet, but I'll keep you posted. Last week when I was in Atlanta Jay-Z was there...I'm telling you, I'm always just a split-second away from a celebrity sighting.

I've Been Tagged

2008-04-03T09:22:00.000-07:00

Hooray! I have been “tagged” for the first time. For those unfamiliar with this blog lingo, it means someone has tagged me to do a little questionnaire and post it. So thanks to my sister-in-law, Allison, I have something to blog about – I’ve had a little writer's block for the last couple of weeks. Or maybe I just don't have anything going on that anyone could possibly care about. The biggest thing in my life lately has been that I’ve watched all 6 seasons of Dawson’s Creek on DVD over the last 3 months (on airplanes and late at night while Preston is blogging – I’m not sitting at home eating bon bons and watching Dawson’s Creek all day people). And although I must say I was happy as a lark for a good three days after I finished the series finale because Joey picked Pacey over that lame-o Dawson, I’m not really sure that my readers care about that. I guess I need to have a baby or get a new dog so I have some material! :)
Anyway, here goes…

Four jobs I’ve had:

1. Redmond Cinemas Projectionist Extraordinaire (and I always like to tell people that I didn’t eat one morsel of popcorn in the 2 summers I worked there…I think that is impressive)
2. Radio Station DJ and Program Director
3. Crest Gas Station (good times, good times…)
4. WNBA Intern

Four movies I could watch over and over:

1. Love and Basketball (guilty pleasure, don’t judge)
2. Wild Hearts Cant’ Be Broken (I don’t even like horses, but that horse diving stuff is the shizzz)
3. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
4. Hoop Dreams

Four places I have lived:

1. Redmond, Oregon
2. Rexburg, Idaho
3. Provo, Utah
4. Dallas, Texas

Four T.V. Shows I love:

1. Dawson’s Creek (see above)
2. Biggest Loser
3. Friends
4. Anything on the Food Network and HGTV

Four of my favorite dishes/foods:

1. Cookies and cream ice cream
2. Sunbelt chewy chocolate chip granola bars
3. Bajio stuffed green chile chicken quesadilla (this is a new addition)
4. Corn dogs with mustard

Four sites I visit daily:

1. SMU Admission
2. Yahoo email
3. People.com
4. Facebook (or as my dad calls it, “Facespace”)

Four Places I have vacationed:
What’s a vacation? I’m going to have to really stretch on this one:

1. Disney World (when I was 10)
2. Montreal, Canada (when I was 12)
3. Oregon Coast (it’s probably been a good 10 years since I’ve been)
4. Washington, DC (I have never technically vacationed there, but I work there, and it’s one of my favorite cities, so I’ll count it.)

Four Places I’d rather be right now:

1. Any place tropical and warm
2. Visiting my dad and Aunt Vicki and Uncle Keith in Redmond
3. Dallas
4. Pokey O’s ice cream parlor with a big old ice cream sandwich in my hands

I guess I’m supposed to tag people now. I tag anyone who feels inclined…

P.S. I got a bangs. I'm posting a picture of the new "do", but now that I look at the picture it just looks like my hair is tucked behind my ears!! But I'm telling you, they are bangs!!! It's a very slight change, but for a girl who has basically had the same haircut for oh, 12 years, it was a special moment. ;)

Here Goes...

2008-03-12T23:10:00.000-07:00

Well, part of me can't believe I'm doing this, but with some encouragement from my kind husband who claims people want to see this, I'm posting a video of me playing and singing one of my songs on the guitar! I wrote this song in December. Hope you like it! (Scroll to the bottom to pause the automatic music player)

There You Go Copyright 2008 Tali Koerner

So many stories, so little time...

2008-03-03T15:15:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been a busy couple of months... a week in Dallas and back...another trip to Dallas and back, quick trip to Atlanta and back, and now back in Dallas for the week...meaning Preston has been subsisting on Totino's pizzas for way too long and I've walked barefoot through airport security a few times beyond what could possibly be healthy (people, I don't wear socks with heels, what do you want me to do?).

But somewhere in between all of that I was home for a weekend and got to go to breakfast with three of my closest friends to celebrate our friend Heather's first baby who is due in just under 2 months! We are all so excited for her and had a great time at my personal favorite place for breakfast -- The Original Pancake House (try it, you'll LOVE it!).

I'll be back soon and hopefully I will think of something to write about in the mean time.

P.S. It looks like there were others who wanted to be in our picture. Click on the picture to enlarge and look at the three guys in the booth behind us!

P.S.

2008-02-11T23:34:00.001-08:00

This is not a shameless plea for comments, but I did finally figure out how to make it so you can leave comments if you'd like without signing in and using a password. So for those of you who were having trouble with this, I have cut the bureaucratic red tape of blog commenting for you! :)

You

2008-02-11T22:30:00.000-08:00

I promise this isn't going to become a "poem blog", but I've been thinking a lot lately about the world we live in and how easy it can be to let the media and those who take the stage and talk the loudest shape our perceptions of that world. Especially with all of the recent coverage of the presidential candidate race as well as the ever-increasing spotlight and importance placed on celebrity. I think it's imperative for people to realize the importance of their own voice and their own beliefs as we sort through all of the information that surrounds us daily.

you.

by tali koerner
written february 11,2008

wake the darkness up
it’s light outside
and if you’re anything like me
you’re tired of being made to feel
like you should just stay down and hide

they’re ever-present
telling us what to think and feel
eat and taste
they like to take your "narrow view”
and throw it in your face

but don’t mistake
what they create and perpetuate
this flavorless ploy
it’s lacking nutrients, it’s lacking faith,
it’s lacking anything that bleeds true joy

so wake the darkness up
it’s light outside
it’s time for real people to stand up
raise their voices
and have a little pride

in what’s good, what’s real
and what’s true
so wake the darkness up
it’s light outside
the world could use a little you

Copyright Tali Koerner 2008

Jam This

2008-02-11T22:00:00.000-08:00

Artist: Amos Lee
Song: Keep it Loose, Keep it Tight

Piece of Me

2008-01-23T15:10:00.000-08:00

In a world filled with so much noise, most people have to make a conscientious effort to really seek out quiet moments to think and reflect. I am no exception, and in these moments that seem to become more and more rare, I often use the time to reflect and write. This is an old piece, but I wanted to share it today. Maybe it will get you thinking...

growing up.

there comes a time in life when

everything changes, or maybe you just

realize how it's always been.

and you begin to comprehend that

the world is full of different people, going

different places, doing different things.

and some affect you while others really don't.

you realize you have decisions to make,

while there are decisions that have

already been made for you --

some that you can change,

others you must

tolerate.

you start to take time to look at the

world around you and appreciate its beauty,

fear the known as well as the unknown, and desire

to make a difference.

you realize your parents didn't know everything,

but neither do you, and it should be possible to

come together and learn from each other.

you find that some people will knock you down and won't

look back -- it is at these times you find who your

true friends are--

those who gently pull you to your feet.

you realize this is a gift.

being here in this place, at this time, is a gift.

and while some may waste it away and take it

for granted, others will seize opportunities

and capture the moments that make this life

worth living.

7 years!

2008-01-20T20:00:00.000-08:00

On January 20, 2001 Preston Koerner picked me up for our first date...and look at us now...seven years later and married for five! It was definitely a blind-date success story! Therefore, January 20th is a date we both cherish and remember every year.

So to commemorate the occasion here are a couple of "then and now" pictures.

Tali and Preston circa summer of 2001

Tali and Preston December 2007

So much to be thankful for

2008-01-03T19:40:00.000-08:00

2007 was such a busy year right up to the very end! Unfortunately, we didn't get a Christmas letter out, but I thought I would post a "year in review" since we were blessed with so many opportunities and changes.

It is very possible that Preston accomplished more than anyone I know this year and I am so proud of him! He started the year with his last semester of both law school and MBA school at SMU taking 21 credit hours to finish by graduation in May. He also continued working for Crescent Real Estate Equities in Dallas while he was going to school. It was a glorious day when the last final was completed and he walked in two separate graduation ceremonies to receive his JD and MBA. The relief was short lived however, as he had to start a bar exam prep course 2 days after graduation. The course lasted 6 weeks and he spent a total of 8 weeks this summer studying day and night. The big test day finally came at the end of July and then another 2 months of sweating it out waiting for the results to come in! I knew he would pass, but of course he was worried. Needless to say, I think the real relief came when he received the official results. While waiting for the bar exam results, we received probably the biggest blessing of the year -- 2 job offers for Preston. He started working for a law firm in Salt Lake City at the beginning of October and has really enjoyed it. In his spare time, he works on what I call his second job -- his very successful green building blog, Jetson Green. If you haven't seen this project yet, definitely check it out (there is a link on the sass-lane homepage)! He won't brag about himself, but it is one of my favorite things to do: Only a year old, his blog has been viewed by well over a a half million visitors and has received such praise as "best green building blog on the internet", "top green design blog", "one of Dwell magazine's favorite blogs", etc. It has also been syndicated on some of the top online news websites in the country. Needless to say, I am very proud of him and all of his accomplishments. He is the hardest working, kindest, funniest person I have ever met -- I suppose that's why I married him! :)

Our biggest change this year was our move from Dallas, Texas to Salt Lake City, Utah! The day after our SMU graduations we jumped in a 26' moving truck loaded to the brim and drove to Salt Lake City. Although we miss Dallas and our family and friends there, we are pleased with our decision. We have really enjoyed our new surroundings and being so close to the family and friends we didn't get to see as often when we were in Dallas.

I, too, was extremely blessed in the areas of my career and education this year. We actually attended 3 graduation ceremonies back in May as I graduated with my Masters of Liberal Arts degree. After working for four and half years in undergraduate admission at SMU I was sad at the prospect of having to quit my job with our move to Salt Lake City. Fortunately, I didn't have to! I was so grateful to be offered the opportunity to continue in my position and become a Regional Director of Admission. Translation: I get to do everything I used to do, but when I'm not out traveling or spending time in the Dallas office, I work from home. So I spent a low key summer working from home and then did my usual stint on the east coast for September, October and part of November. I also still enjoy playing the guitar, writing, and running in my spare time and hope to do even more of all three in 2008!

It's been such a wonderful year and we know with all of our hearts that everything we have is because of our Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ, who have blessed us beyond measure. We are grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the direction and peace it brings to our lives. We are also grateful for all of our family and friends and we treasure all of the moments we share with each of you and look forward to many more in 2008!

Happy New Year!
Tali and Preston

A few shots from the holidays

2008-01-03T18:56:00.001-08:00

A Call to Arms...or something like that.

2008-01-03T16:49:00.000-08:00

Ladies and gentlemen...I have a major case of a little something called "post-holiday LAZINESS!!" It's bad. I haven't felt this unmotivated since my only job in life was to eat, sleep, and fill a diaper. You'd think with the new year and the 50 New Year's Resolutions I set a mere 2 days ago, I would be a little more energized. Not so much. For the last 24 hours I've been trying to figure out what in the world is wrong with me and finally it hit me...the donuts. Yes, the donuts. What do I mean, "the donuts", you ask? I'll tell you what I mean. About half way through my holiday vacation, I was called to action. Called to respond to a moral obligation -- one on which I could not possibly turn my back.

You see, once upon a time, about 40 years ago, a family opened a bakery in the little town of Redmond, Oregon (my hometown). Gibbs Bakery. It's the best bakery in the world with the best maple bar donuts you have ever tasted. Growing up my dad used to take me there sometimes on Saturday morning for a maple bar and chocolate milk (gee, I wonder where my sugar addiction came from?). It's still one of my favorite stops when I go home to visit.

Imagine my surprise when I woke up the day after Christmas to the headline "Erickson's Thriftway closing after half century in Redmond"...meaning Gibbs Bakery, which is located in Erickson's Thriftway, was closing too. Apparently that damn Super Walmart (close your ears kids, today's post is PG) had done what it does best and was putting another local business out of business. (For those who know me, please note, I have only been to Super Walmart once since this news hit...I will try to limit my future visits to once a month...okay, maybe once a week?). Anyway, I digress. Bottom line, my beloved Gibbs Bakery had to close with the store and couldn't afford the high rent involved in finding a new location. Complete devastation.

The bakery's last day of business will be January 5th. I received this news on Wednesday, December 26th and was leaving Redmond on Saturday, December 29th. This bakery was a cornerstone of our town, these were family friends, this was a childhood memory being snatched away! I couldn't just sit back and watch this happen...there was obviously only one thing to do...eat 2 maple bars every morning until I left. And don't you worry, that's exactly what I did. And enjoyed every single moment of it too.

So, as I'm thinking about the complete and utter lethargy I have felt over the last few days, I can't help but wonder if maybe I went a little overboard on the donuts. Maybe there is something in donuts that slows a person down (oh, I don't know, large quantities of LARD perhaps?). I might have to begin a little detox program tomorrow.

If it was the donuts, it was worth it. In all seriousness, it will be a sad day when Gibbs Bakery closes this weekend. I suppose it goes to show that this life is all about change. At least I know I went out with a bang and gave my utmost support until the end. Go team.

Music

2007-12-02T19:13:00.000-08:00

Those who know me well, know that my taste in music is pretty eclectic. In the couple of weeks since I've started this blog, I have had several people mention that when they read my profile and saw my music interests, they didn't recognize any of the artists! No problem...it is my pleasure to introduce you to some of them. I added a music player at the bottom of the blog for you to browse through if you're interested. I didn't really include any of my "Top 40" or shall we say,"urban" interests. ;) The artists I've included are those who I feel are some of the best and most unique musicians and artists out there today (granted, a few them are sneaking into the "Top 40" scene lately).

I hope you enjoy! If you don't...you can turn down your volume...I'll never know! ;)

Apple Dumpling Dog Rides Again!

2007-12-02T11:49:00.000-08:00

Wow, it's hard to believe that Thanksgiving 2007 has already come and gone! I feel like the last six months have slipped away so quickly. Preston and I spent Thanksgiving weekend in Dallas with Preston's parents and his brother Garrett and wife Lori. They are all some of my favorite people in the whole world and we had a great time and really enjoyed relaxing and being with family. It was Preston's first trip back to Dallas since we moved in June, so it was fun to be back there together again. We spent part of the weekend truck shopping for Preston and he is now the proud owner of a new, black Chevy Silverado. It was nice because Preston's Dad went with us and he and Preston did most of the "wheeling and dealing" and I got to sit back and flip through magazines and avoid all of the tense bargaining etc. that usually comes with purchasing a car. I think the whole buying a car experience ranks among the top of my least favorite experiences in life, so it was great to leave it to the boys. All I had to do was give the final "go ahead". So now, we have our Salt Lake City, granola Subaru Outback and our big, tough, Texas truck! You've heard the saying "I'm a little bit country, I'm a little bit rock" -- well, we're a little bit granola and a little bit redneck! ;)

It's Admission Committee time for me, which means I have spent the last couple of weeks up to my eyeballs reading applications. Transcripts, essays, recommendation letters, SAT scores, etc. have almost occupied my every waking minute. I stayed in Dallas this week to work and go through Admission Committee, making decisions for at least this round of applications. The next round will start mid-January.

It's been a long fall season, with most of my time spent out on the road for work. I haven't been able to spend more than 3 or 4 days at time here in Salt Lake with Preston since September, so it will be nice not to have to go anywhere on business until January. I have a few weeks here in Salt Lake and then I will head to Redmond to spend Christmas with my dad, sister Molly, Uncle Keith, Aunt Vicki, and the many family friends who still live there. I am really looking forward to it! The weather here is definitely helping me get into the holiday season. I flew into Salt Lake Friday night and woke up Saturday morning to a white blanket of snow covering EVERYTHING and it was still snowing! It snowed all day until about 2:00 p.m. and I'm guessing we got at least 7 or 8 inches of snow. Surprisingly, Colt loves the snow (he's never been in it before) and he was forging little tunnels through the snow in the back yard...and don't you worry...bobbing for his favorite apples under the snow! I got a couple of pictures of him with his head in the snow eating the fallen apples that are, no doubt, like little apple popsicles now! Apple Dumpling Dog rides again!