Skyler&Melanie

Really? Really, Olive Garden?

2009-09-30T14:05:00.011-06:00

So, yeah. I wouldn't say I'm the biggest lover of Olive Garden, but ever since the Two Pac, sometimes the bread sticks and soup sound really good to me. And, this extra rainy fall day was no exception.

Anyway, we got there and as soon as we were seated with Wendy the Waitress, I knew we were in for a world of hurt.

"WENDY"
-- MELANIE

"Would anyone like to sample some wine?"
-- No, thanks. Cheap waters all around.

"Are you in a hurry and here on work lunch?"
-- Yeah, Wendy. And I'm really hungry so let's move this along. (SHE WAS SLOW AFTER FINDING OUT WE WERE IN A HURRY, BUT WHATEVER)

-- And I think we're ready to order. (All three of us were getting the never ending Soup Salad Breadstick extravaganza)
"Okay. Let me just put your drink order in and I'll be right back."

-- Really? A drink order? Is that what you call three waters? Tell you what. I'll put the drink order in and you take the real order.

4 breadsticks and the salad bowl later (yeah, 4 for 3 people. awesome), we were at least eating and I was happy about that. Not as happy about the fact that the soup wasn't here yet and I knew they were just holding it on the back burner. It's not like a made-to-order item, is it?

Anyway, she comes back and asks to take our salad plates.

--Um, no. I still want salad. In fact, I'd love another punch bowl of pseudo salad.

-- Could we get some more salad, please?
"Sure. If one of you wants to finish this one, I'll go get you a fresh one."

Really? No, really, Wendy? It's a little bit of onion, crutons, and the drippiest part of the salad dressing. Delectible to most discerning palates, I'm sure, but yeah. I'll scoot all that around and when you get back with the next punch bowl of white-ish lettuce salad, I'll give trade it in for the fresh one... which I'm sure is probably just the ends of 14 other peoples' poor attempts to 'finish' the salad before getting a fresh one. So, 'fresh' is now a loose interpretation of the salad from all angles, in my opinion.

If you've ever gone to the OG, I'm sure you can guess the rest. She held out on breadsticks like she'd made them herself and carted them back from her Italian homestead in war-like conditions and hellish weather. I'm sure they were frozen and almost shot out of her hands a time of two--and we (and by we I mean me) had to ask for them every time, which is the worst when you're all-you-can-eating because you're rethinking it and hating yourself a little for saying it all outload... AGAIN. But you know how you have to hurry and eat them all before she comes back so you can secure another round? That way maybe her waitress instincts will just kick in and you won't have to humiliate yourself and ask yet again for the round of breadsticks that are now simply coming in 3s-- one for each of you, per Wendy.

-- Can we have some more breadsticks?
"We're on hold for breadsticks right now."

Really? What does that even mean? I thought she was using the WE as a collective way of saying, "You've had too too many and now you're on hold."

Now, by this time I've had two bowls of soups, a glass of water, a full bladder, a belly full of babies, and been force-fed the endings of a couple of Punch Bowl Salads in an effort to secure fresh (remember?). Recipe for XL and full. Nevertheless, "on hold" was not a revelation I reveled in-- and, I'm sure I had a horrified look on my face before I simply said back to her, "Oh, okay. I'll just wait."

Yep. I waited. With an already extra full belly, for marginal breadsticks. I waited and I ate them and taught HER a lesson. Oh wait....

that's ME that can't stand up straight and is ordering everyone to say NOTHING funny because I'm just about to round the corner of Burst Street. SO SO full. God bless digestion, because otherwise I'd still want to die.

I hope we all learned a lesson or two here. #1, if Wendy's your waitress, maybe just ask for someone else who will give you 2xs the amount of breadsticks as there are people at your table. Because we all know, that should be the ration.

2 x #ofpeopleinyourparty = correct # of breadsticks to be brought to your table at a time; (see picture, Wendy. yeah, 6 at a time would have helped the cause)

continue in neverending fashion until patron begs you to stop and switches to desires to having multiple mints at a time. Apply Breadstick-To-People ratio.

#2 - know when to say when and don't let "circumstances" spiral down in to a sad version of the pride cycle that ends in you wanting to a.) die or b.) stop having laughs in an effort to not burst.

More sometime,
Melanie

PS - Dad, I know you axed Olive Garden along with Dominos and Holiday Inn from your list of patronable establishments. Oh, how I should have listened. :)

Oh, You Want a Post? I'll Give You a Post

2009-09-21T15:21:00.008-06:00

Hip, hip hooray for Skyler Day!

I think this might be one of the things you're not supposed to post on your blog. Doesn't the list go something like this:
1. SS #
2. Bank account # complete with PIN
3. The list of people you've embezzled $ from
4. *** Letter of admittance stating that you're squandering employer time
5. Birthday wishes

Is that not right?

But I'm breaking all the scared-of-the-internet rules to post for the world that it's THIS guy's special day.

Truthfully, he's not much for birthdays, but it seems like I have managed to indoctrinate him with at least a modicum of the true spirit of the season. He's really taken to the rampant use of phrases like,
"But it's almost my birthday so I don't think we need to clean the house."
"Basically, it's my birthday so we have to go to Cafe Rio today."
"We don't have to go to get up for church today, right? After all, it's the day before my birthday."
"I heard underwear is optional today. Because, it's my special day."

Okay, so I made up the last one, but all the other ones and then some have been used a time or two over this last weekend.

Not so much in the spirit of the season... he thinks it's okay to open your presents before the day of the day. Um, not so much. This Birthday Purist had to keep a few things for the Day of the Day. So, I did. It's for his own birthday good. Otherwise you get to the D of Ds and it's sad that there's nothing to unwrap, debag, etc. Not awesome. So, there you go. The chairs for the deck that I couldn't pick up myself you already know about, but surprise factor still in tact for a handful of other things. Yessssssss! You'll thank me later for MAKING you celebrate on the Day of Your Day :) I'm sure of it.

Happiest of Happy Birthdays to YOU, Skyler!! It is YOUR special day and only a handful of more hours before ***we're done with work and really celebrating.

More soon, maybe,
Melanie

New Post? Okay. I Will.

2009-01-12T11:47:00.003-07:00

So what if it's been like 6 weeks since I've pushed the NEW POST button. I'm doing it today, okay? I doubt (what a weirdly spelled word) that I'll get through all of the memories and corresponding posts from the past month, but I'm going to get started. No resolution about it. I just feel like it today and so I will.

More below,

Melanie

Day of the Day

2008-12-14T15:25:00.000-07:00

So, we celebrated on the 13th, but this is the 14th... the actual wedding day of the day. I guess this ended up looking like a Christmas picture, but were really just took these after church on Our Day.

Skyler got me these amazing flowers, and this is me just saying that it's our first year. Not like, "I'm #1 and you're #2." Sheesh. Anyway, they lasted for more than a week and were stunning. He totally surprised me with them and I just LOVED them.

We opened presents and exchanged cards and I cried a little. So what. Crying just means your really mean it and it's true.

GO SWEATS!!

Skyler's Mom saved the top tier of our cake and we broke out the Martinelli's. And, true to what we all could have guessed: One-year-later-frozen-now-thawed-wedding cake is, in fact super gross.

I mean, it still looked awesome. Ribbon still attached, sparkly crystal sugar things on top, and I even dug out the 'G' topper and presented it on my pretty china.

And I won't be so cliche as to say "Looks can be deceiving," because I feel more like the truth is, "The better it looks, the more disappointing it is when you eat it and it tastes like it might have been injected with some kind of poison or dirty mud." (I'm lobbying to turn that sentence into a cliche. Think it'll stick?) And, yeah, I said it-- dirty mud. The texture wasn't bad, but it did not taste good.

And, I feel like that picture makes it look like a midget cake, and it wasn't. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with midgets or their cakes for that matter. We watch Little People Big World all the time and we love kids. I'm just saying, mine was average sized and oddly photographed.

Anyway, the happy ending is that memories were made and palatable dessert was consumed-- bananas dipped in warm, delicious chocolate. Mmmmmmmm.

Happy 1st Anniversary, SKY!!

More soon,

Melanie

One Year and Counting

2008-12-13T16:10:00.011-07:00

Holy crap, it's been a year since this. This has been one of the fastest years of my entire life. And, to celebrate the lightening fast year we decided to celebrate in true food style-- We went to the Melting Pot.

And I'll be honest, I've only ever been to The Melting Pot for dessert and that was when I was like 16. What I certainly didn't remember about this fondue-filled restaurant is how much you smell liked cooked broth and meat by the time you leave.

Seriously, we laughed so hard in the car after we left because we permeated the car with the meaty smell. It was pretty good, though.
Cheese Fondue

Salad

Fondue Feast

Chocolate Fondue - I love that you can see the chocolate dripping from the marshmallow. Mmmmmmm....

Oh, what. Did I take a lot of pictures? Um, yeah. Skyler got kind of sick of it, but it's about making and capturing the memories. Sheesh! We were there for more than two hours. I told Skyler I feel like this is not a first date kind of place. Plenty of opportunities for awkward silence if you were there with someone you...
a. didn't like
b. didn't know very well
And I kid you not, less than a week later one of my friends told me she was going on a blind date... to Melting Pot! I mean, it's been a decade since I'd even heard anyone talk about the Melting Pot. Seriously, so funny.

Anyway, the wrap up is this-- we had a lovely evening and then it snowed like crazy in true middle of December style.

Oh, you want to see a few more pics? Well, he shouldn't have had to suffer in vain, I guess. Okay. We'll show it to the world :)

Does that look like both my hands? It's not. One of them is Skyler's. Funny.

More soon,
Melanie

Christmas with the Masses: Part 2

2008-12-05T15:28:00.002-07:00

Christmas with the Masses, Part 2 was a whole lot colder than Part 1. A whole lot. Seriously, SO cold. This picture shows the newest addition to the standard Lights on Temple Square. Sure, it's the reflection version, but hopefully you get the idea. It's the nativity. Can you tell? Well, it's the Mary, Joseph, Jesus version of the nativity. Absolutely breathtaking. The pristine white statues on the reflection pool was awe-inspiring.

This trip brought to memory just how much I miss living downtown. I was less than a minute away from Temple Square when I lived downtown and it's just one of those places that I cherish season to season. The tulips in the spring, the lights in the winter, the year-round pan handlers. It just feels right. Plus, we were married here. So, it feels all the more special this year, I guess. Just as freezing and just as beautiful.

Anyway, we hurried and made our rounds to see the lights on the west side, found refuge in the Visitors Center just long enough to get warmed up and then make our way to feast on the lights on the east side of the Temple.
Yeah. My face is freezing. Thanks for asking.

More soon,
Melanie

Christmas with the Masses: Part 1

2008-12-04T14:38:00.002-07:00

Christmas with the Masses started with The Festival of Trees. What they don't tell you is that, in addition to hundreds of trees, each one attempting to outdo their neighboring trees in the name of a good cause (proceeds go to Primary Children's Hospital) and the newly-added gingerbread house exhibit, there will be 1.2 million people-- 3/4 of which are required to bring 2+ kids complete with strollers and screaming-- pushing and shoving to see the next BYU or UofU decorated tree. Options also include standing in an astronomically long line to get the homemade scones, the smell of which is pumped through the air ducts throughout the expo center. And you don't want to wait in said line, but you start feeling desperate for the fried goodness by the end. Not desperate enough to make a run to Sconecutters afterward, but still.

GO CHRISTMAS.

This tree was the most phenomenal of all of the trees exhibited, in my opinion. That's all hand blown glass placed lily pad-ily on top of each other to create this utterly spectacular tree. We went by it once and then I went back to take a picture. It was just that amazing. I mean, it was the only exhibit with its own how-it-was-made video playing beside it. Feel free to have a watch yourself.
Making of a Glass Christmas Tree from Richard Holdman on Vimeo.

This is us by one of the home decor ideas. I don't think the mantle was for sale, but I think all of the other table setting, mantle toppers, etc. were part of the bidding. Who knows, really. There was so much stuff there it was home decor / Christmas decor overload.

Lovely, really, but it seemed a little overwhelming trying to take in all in amidst of the pushing, shoving, and toddler meltdowns. But that pretty much sums up the mayhem of pre-Christmas, doesn't it?

I guess this post makes me sound a little bit like I hate people. I don't, in case you were still wondering. I think I just envisioned that, since we were going on a weekend night, it wouldn't have been that crazy and we could just kind of walk around and take it all in. Not exactly meeting my expectations, but still a Christmas-ey feeling experience, and good for kids in hospitals, which I approve of. See? I don't hate people.

More soon,

Melanie

All Elf-ed Up with No Place to Go

2008-11-30T17:05:00.003-07:00

We're both feeling pretty sore throat-ish and crappy today, but these (The Elf-Yourself that is set to expire on the 15th unless you pay for it... which I won't be) were still funny.

Happy holidays, everyone!

More soon,
Melanie

Like a Christmas Tree Only...

2008-11-27T13:36:00.004-07:00

It's like a Christmas tree only the lights are pre-strung which un-necessitates hours worth of untangling strand after strand of twinkles. Oh, and you have / get to burn the Salt City Christmas Tree candle in an effort to alter your authenticated Christmas memory-ridden sensibilities. The pine scent will overtake your senses and you'll completely forget that the flawless tree in front of you is wholly without sap, water, bugs, or legitimate pine scent. Nailed it.

Our most heartfelt graditude goes once again to Costco for making our dream of having a falsey, pre-lit tree a glowing reality.

We kind of worked on it in stages.

1. Buy the tree and bring it home - a simple task as the Costco is only yards (like, maybe 500) from our house. But we were fools and brought my much smaller car (Accord) rather than Skyler's (Tahoe). Nevertheless, while a sketchy white van waited, we pushed and prodded and moved the front passenger seat so far forward that we almost had Skyler walk home. Instead, he made like a tree and stuffed himself into the front while said tree was stuffed in the back. Ahhhh Christmas. Sure, we could have gone home and picked up the other car. But where are the memories in that? BORING.

2. Haul the tree up three flights of stairs to your house- now, you should know that this was an option for us. Instead, however, we hoisted the 75 lb tree on to the elevator and gave that 3 button a good push and then hauled it the 25 feet to our front door. Whew! We barely made it.

3. Wear each other's clothes and assemble tree per directions - while, I suppose wearing each other's clothes is optional, we did it and I'd recommend it to anyone. Again, it's about tricking your finely tuned sense of what Christmas should be, which generally includes a real tree. Anyway, I did it and then since I was doing it I thought it would be fun for Skyler to wear something of mine... GO KAMIAK oversized basketball sweatshirt complete with name on the back! There's just something extra cozy about too-big clothes, am I right? Stealing Skyler's clothes is generally seasonal- winter brings a chill and a chill brings the thievery. I digress.

4. See for yourself
Make the tree feel welcome by offering to play a game of Twister with it. Of course it will accept. Who wouldn't? Right hand on green.

Check the oil and all pertinent belts for cracks, leaks, etc.

Looking as much like a marshmallow as possible, crown the tree with its tree-topper holder.

Are you getting all of these important steps?

5. Start decorating, but don't bother going four flights down for all of the decoration boxes. You can trouble yourself with that another time. For now, be content with a handful of ornaments / decorations from your wedding last year. Oh, and toss on the scented pinecones you had in a decorative bowl on the table up to this point. Desperate to make it a real tree by all accounts, but we did stop short of watering the metal base.

6. Pose with the first attempt at Christmas tree time

7. Tablecloth for tree skirt - check. (See picture at top)

8. Costume change - okay. so maybe this was taken a day later after we got back from Thanksgiving. They feature the tree and I got a chuckle out of them. So, here they are, too.

More soon, Melanie

What are Things You Eat at Thanksgiving

2008-11-27T12:06:00.001-07:00

But you're supposed to say it like you're on Jeopardy-- like you're answering in question form to Alex Trebec. "What are... things you eat at Thanksgiving, Alex." Like that. And the answer would have been something like this: standard turkey, stuffing with celery, onions, and poultry seasoning (wholly without sausage, cornbread, or anything that could be found in a trail mix), homemade rolls, green beans, sweet potatoes, from-scratch creamy mashed potatoes w/ gravy, all washed down with slivers of pumpkin, coconut, and chocolate silk pie. Mmmmm hmmmmm. I accept.

This year Thanksgiving also included Bingo, which was fun. Skyler was The Twirler-- you know, the person who twirls the basket and dumps out the wooden ball with the call letter / number on it?

For the most part I was the Caller - " B- 16," I'd call.
Both of us still played, which may see like a conflict of interest to you, but I assure you it wasn't. No Thanksgiving Cheating going on here. What? Well, yes, that is a picture of me with my winning BINGO card. Thanks for asking.

But, no conspiracy theories allowed against me here on my very own blog.

I think we'll have to be more organized and play for $washingtons$ next year.

We also played a little football in the yard, in classic Thanksgiving style. (Not that this concerns all of you, exactly, but I just realized there were some pictures taken in my head that I'm not seeing here... I must have taken them on Skyler's Mom's camera. So, I'll have to come back and do some picture fill-ins once I *thieve those from her. * This pre-admit to guilt does not mean we're guilty of rigging BINGO. Thanks for asking).

How cute is this guy? Getting his football-in-the-yard game on. Anyway, Happiest of Happy Thanksgivings to one and all. Love this time of year. The weather was supposed to be horrible, but as you can see, This Guy is in short sleeves, no problem. The sun was shining, the food and company were lovely, and all-in-all a relaxing Thanksgiving. I should use all-in-all more often. It's a little off-putting if you think about how odd it is, but don't and just try working it in to your next conversation and let me know how it goes.

That's about all I got on Thanksgiving for now. Maybe I'll update it once I get some more pics. Because everyone knows that blogs without pics are B O R I N G. No offense to all you pictureless bloggers out there, but help a reader out and get some illustrations :)

More soon,
Melanie

Wow, Wal-Mart.

2008-11-22T22:36:00.002-07:00

Truthfully, I'm not much of a rivalry fan, and calling it a "Holy War" makes it all the more ridiculous to me. Largely, I was able to ignore the rivalry talk this week. But, by Saturday the fever pitch had reached its ear-drum-piercing pinnacle. Costco and Target were peppered with jersey wearing, face-painted fans... which means that these establishments were ready to cater to said fans...

apparently, with little to no market research. Behind Skyler is a merchandising display full of BYU bottle kozies (Zero Ute kozies)-- full because they're mistakenly stocked next to the likes of Heineken, Corona, and Red Stripe. International though the selection may be, rather unlikely to be scooped up in this region of the store by die-hard Cougar fans. Sales are more likely to spike in the IBC or Thomas Kemper area.

Either way, Skyler wanted to punch it, obviously. It was cold outside, but you can still see the red Ute shirt he has on underneath his sweatshirt.

More soon,

Melanie

PS - 48-24

Hip, Hip

2008-11-21T21:53:00.000-07:00

HOORAY! After record high $4 + gas prices, we were ecstatic to see these at the last Costco fill-up. Christmas come early, am I right? What are the prices like where you live?

Love me some less than $50 a barrel oil... means I'm paying less than $50 a tank. Hip, hip, hooray!

More soon,
Melanie

Fat Flake Festival

2008-11-17T23:18:00.000-07:00

We met Collyn and Alex downtown for the Fat Flake Festival put on by Ski Utah. Alex had to work it and we just went to hang out with them for a few. Check out my cool hat :)

Seriously, there were so many hippies and ski bums hanging out and hoping for free lift tickets. Sometimes it was difficult to separate the ski bums from the real bums.

Love that we got this silly picture out of it... and a blow-up Alta snowflake.

More soon,
Melanie

Holy Food Find

2008-11-15T21:03:00.002-07:00

I don't think you're even ready for this. You couldn't be. It's just that good, but it's the season of giving. So, I'm going to dish the dirt on this delectable, delightful, culinary wonder that is PUMPKIN PANCAKES with CINNAMON SYRUP and WHIPPING CREAM

My version of The Pumpkin Cakes
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 c. brown sugar (I like it a little more sweet)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I like a little more cinnamon)
Dash of nutmeg (I just like nutmeg, but it's a little overpowering. So, safety first)
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (ginger is kind of gross, but it does what it needs to do)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups milk (it was a little too thick, so I added a little more milk)
1 Tbls Mexican vanilla (sure you could use regular, but I LOVE me some Mexican vanilla)
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg (I add an extra egg to kick up the fluffiness factor)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons vinegar

DIRECTIONS
1. In a separate bowl, mix together the milk, pumpkin, egg, oil, vanilla, and vinegar. Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, ginger and salt, stir into the pumpkin mixture just enough to combine.

2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Cinnamon Syrup

1 c. sugar
1/2 c. Karo light corn syrup
1/4 c. water
1/2 to 3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 c. evaporated milk

In small saucepan stir together sugar, corn syrup, water and cinnamon. Stir constantly and bring to boil over medium heat. Boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in evaporated milk. Cool. If desired, serve over amazing, pumpkin pancakes :) or ice cream. Store covered in refrigerator. Makes 1 1/3 cups.

- You might want to double it because it's likely you're going to want to drink this concoction and you'll want some leftover for the P Cakes.

I made these at my sister Kristin's house after an afternoon of leaf bagging. Even Skyler, though skeptical at first, admits that these pancakes great. Adding it to our regiment of fall traditions :) You'll have to let me know if you try them... and you should. Family, I think we should plan on having these for Christmas morning breakfast. MMMMMmmmm...

More soon,
Melanie

Get You to Spencers

2008-11-14T22:04:00.001-07:00

Skyler took me to Spencer's for our 11 months anniversary. (Unlikely that we'll be celebrating month-to-month after we hit our year mark, but fun for now, am I right?)

The food was absolutely delicious, the company fantastic, and the conversation surrounding us fascinating (I listened to the couple beside us insisting to their waitress that the reason McDonald's can claim an "all beef patty" is because it's made entirely of beef liver. All beef... beef liver. Get it?" Seriously, he told her so many times all beef... but it's the liver).

Our waiter asked us if we were celebrating a special event. We told him we were there for the anniversary and he said we could pick a complimentary dessert.

Flourless chocolate cake with creme fresh, please. We were so full we decided to take it home with us... and ended up eating two days later. Still SO SO SO good. Did I mention how good it was? SO good. Hooray for celebratory anniversary desserts!

More soon,

Melanie

When I said "More Soon... "

2008-11-08T21:25:00.001-07:00

What I meant was, I'd be back weeks from now and filling it the blanks in a backlog of blogs :) But that, my friends, is the beauty of the back-post.

More soon,

Melanie

To all you blog stalkers out there...

2008-11-05T15:36:00.004-07:00

So, we're taking the blog private next month. We've been blogging for a little over a year now and I've resisted the urge to go private and been careful about content. But, I suppose now is as good a time as any. So, starting in December, we'll push it over to private. Send me or Skyler an email or post to the comments section of this post and we'll make sure you're added.

Now, for those of you who are blog stalkers :) , I want to hear from you. Aunt Janet - that means you ;) and anyone and everyone else who periodically stops by. I'll probably just pull my address book in as well, but be safe and let us know, okay?

More soon,
Melanie

** PS - I have no idea who DHO is... and if you think I have your email address, either email me or post on the comment which address so I know for sure. Like, tell me "add my gmail address to your list :) and I'll do it. Apparently my list of email addresses isn't as comprehensive as it should be and I can't get back to some of you :( Like DHO, for instance. Thanks.

Get Some, Halloween

2008-11-01T22:02:00.009-06:00

What is it about Halloween that brings out the skank in people? The mini skirts, the tube tops, the see-through-ness of it all...

I mean, if this guy wasn't wearing his Sunday socks, he'd be showing a whole lot more than ankles in these festive "Twick or Tweet" (Tweedy Bird, of course) capris. Scandalous, am I right?

Every year, faithfully, my Mom puts together a Halloween package for each of her kids and grand kids. She likes to do it and we love to receive it. This was Skyler's first year of really being a true beneficiary of the goodness that is Halloween goody time. Most of what you see in this picture are from this year or years past. Thanks, Mom! Your past years efforts have basically adorned my little living room with Halloween fun, once again, this year.

Those carpi pants actually came with a shirt and was for me, but I thought it would be more fun to take a pick with Skyler all Halloweened out, am I right? Strut it! And you should know, that he refused to look at the camera during "the shoot" and would only look away. Blue Steel style, of course. Awesome.

And, is this one of the scariest skull-spider shirts you've ever seen? Just as advertised, it does in fact GLOW IN THE DARK. SCARY, I tell you. Not for kids. That's why they make it in adult sizes only, I'm sure :) And once again with the sultry look-away from the camera. It's Halloween, after all, and I'm sure he's just going for extra mysterious. Mission Accomplished, Hun.

On the night of Halloween we went over to Skyler's parent's house to help pass out candy to the trick-or-treaters. It was a riot. Costumes included such classics as princess, nerd with the pulled high pants and an I VOTED sticker, puppy, lion, ghouley-ghosts, homemade costumes that aren't recognizable as anything, witch, vampire, football player, cheerleader, Harry Potter. It was entertaining and it felt a little like a mini surprise party for me every time the doorbell rang-- like my own little Halloween parade happening.

Much to Skyler's dismay and slight disgust, I wore all of this over to his parent's house. Like they care. They don't. And neither did the kids who I answered the door for. So, it worked out. Look how happy those little spiders are on my socks (again, props to my mom for the pjs, socks, and slippers).

And, Larry Bird made an apperance. Actually, he made a couple of apperances. I wore this over there and then Skyler's 16 year old brother borrowed it and wore it with his 12 year old sister's short soccer shorts, high socks, and Converse. Awesome.

Plus, this guy showed up, too...
And, really, if you could see how HUGE this Larry Bird hat is in real life, you'd be way more embarrassed to be carting him around town than me in my Halloween garb-- am I right? Regardless, we basically drove from one garage to another and made no real public appearances outside of family and candy getters who didn't even know that you were wearing clothes (I mean, I'm sure they'd notice if you weren't wearing clothes. I'm just saying, it's unlikely that they could even see past the huge candy bowl holding their winnings long enough to notice that you were wearing anything even moderately embarrassing or otherwise on such a day as this).

So, there you go. The latest on us, Halloween, and love-filled Halloween givings from my parents.

More soon,

Melanie

With Arms Wide Open

2008-10-29T20:55:00.002-06:00

I accept. There' s a new-ish restaurant in downtown SLC that we went to this last week just before opening night of the Jazz season-- Baxter's American Restaurant And I accept most of what it has to offer.

It's hard to describe the place, as it's rather unlike any other that I've ever been to, but I'll attempt to... swankishly accessible to the masses. How was that? One of the reviewers put it this way, “Baxter’s American offers high-class dining for middle-class prices.”

The food was phenomenal and we sat in (rarely seen outside of much more lavish eating establishments) padded chairs (see Skyler staring picture for proof) facing 4th west and watched as families, couples, and jersey clad fans rushed past the window in an effort to be first in line for whatever 10 cent fare they were handing out to the first 20 overly-enthusiastic-game-goers. (See pic above of Skyler watching the parade of fans)

I scanned my brain for anyone and everyone I could tell about this place. And you’re it. So, let’s go. Let’s all go to Baxter’s. Let's go eat the foo-oo-ood. (As sung to Annie's Let's Go to the Movies").

I will treat you to haystack fries and a delectably fresh side salad of things that I don't even know the name of. Nameless greens and pretty, tiny yellow and red tomatoes.

And nothing says, " this was a great meal" like after-ribs-hands-and-face.

We also went to The Jazz game. It was a nail biter. Shouldn't have been, but was. They played the Denver Nuggets and should have won my a lot more than they did, but whatever.

I cannot stand the Jazz Bear. He's by far my least favorite part of the game. What is that guy's problem? He's always messing with people and ruining my life, basically. Dramatic, maybe, but his fuzzy face and over the top antics bother me to no end. No end, I tell you.

Kyle Korver (my sister-in-law's not-so-secret crush) was not pleased about this non-call by the referee. Love this inquisitive shot, blurry though it may be. And how cute is D Will with his non-uniformed self (Right of KK). Get that rolled ankle better and get back in the game D-Ron.

All in all, Baxters + The Jazz = Date Night 4 Ever

Thanks for the date night, Sky. It was a stellar one.

More soon,

Melanie

A Year Ago Today...

2008-10-27T22:54:00.002-06:00

Just in case you were wondering, a year ago today, this happened.

More soon,

Melanie

My 80's are Showing: Part 4

2008-10-26T22:15:00.011-06:00

Holy crap, I have no idea why I thought of these today, but thought I'd remind you of the wonder that was BANANA CLIPS.

Remember having to put it in over and over again to get it just right-- so that wicked C-shaped clasp wouldn't come peaking out the top of your head?
And how you had to scrap the double-sided plastic comb all the way up the back of your neck to insure the maximum amount of hair made it into the clip?

Oh, and how when you finally got it where you wanted it, you'd grab your purple-labeled aerosol choice of the 80s, Aqua Net, for the ultimate in vertical hairdos?

The other 80s hair that was a requirement for my mom to get just right...

I have no idea what it was called, so I'll just describe it and hopefully you'll get where I'm going:

It's the multiple pony tails down the back of your head do-- Pull your hair half way back into a pony tail, then take a little more and pull it back into another pony, again and again until you're down to end of your hair. Alternating colors of scrunchies works best for this hair style, although alternating colors of elastic bands is also acceptable. No nearly as cool, mind you, but still okay.

(Realize that this picture isn't exactly what I'm talking about, but hopefully it helps you remember. I can't think of a picture I have of myself with the described do, but I feel like Whitni probably has one :)

This can best be described from a profile shot, as you looking a lot like a T-Rex with boney-bones come out the back of your head. Seriously, take out the bloody teeth, and this could basically be a picture of me in 1988.

So, there you have it. Sure I could have praddled on about crimmped hair, side ponies, 12" high bangs, or those side-sprayed-dog-ears, but I didn't. I chose two other wonders of our hair-filled childhoods.

More soon,

Melanie

Come to Find Out

2008-10-20T21:42:00.004-06:00

I'd still have a goat. Found this picture today and reminded me of our day at the DCF.

I did find out that if you want one goat you should probably get two because they're herd animals, they're social, and they don't like to be alone. So, I think this little pack of three would be ideal, am I right?

Look at their cute little faces! I mean, don't you just want to squeeze Spray Painted White Ears, Spotted Black On Face and Legs, and Wears a Chain Link Necklace? (I named them like they were characters on Dances With Wolves, basically. So what?)

DISCLAIMER - Now, I know Christmas is coming and the goose is getting fat and what not, but kindly remember that I live in a condo. On the third floor. With barely a balcony and a faux grass rug. This is no place for goat(s). I get it. I'm just saying, to those of you were considering a livestock purchase to brighten my Christmas morn, hold off this year and perhaps save it for another. No surprise herd of goats kicked this way, okay?

More soon,

Melanie

Newsletter Blunder

2008-10-19T21:54:00.001-06:00

So, I nonchalantly picked up a Sunday School newsletter last week from church while I was waiting for the next meeting to start. There’s always a little, “Good News” area usually reserved for weddings, baby birth announcements, and the like.

Did I mention there’s a hefty handful of widows in the congregation? There is. Well, I guess they needed some filler for the column this month.

I’ll leave it to you to find the reason why, I’m sure, the Newsletter Editor will be soon be replaced.

“Elenor Steel had some plumbing done (valve replaced and faucets put in) for $50.00. She paid for the farts that were put in. The cheapest plumbing she’s had done in years!!”

Sophomoric, I know, but the placement could have barely been any better. Good times. She paid for FARTS? I mean, come on. (Sorry, Mom. I know it’s on your hated word list, but I’m just bringing you the ward news. Don’t fault me.)

More soon, but hopefully not from the church newsletter :),

Melanie

Don't Say My Name at Me

2008-10-18T20:56:00.000-06:00

I remember it being this way with roommates past, too, but I don't remember vocalizing the thought often-- for people who tend to be around you rather frequently with little to no reason to call you by your name, I've found that you get used to not hearing them say your name. Know what I mean?

It's this way with Skyler. Sometimes if he wants me to listen or "understand what he's saying", he's say, "Melanie...yada, yada, yada."

And sometimes, without acutally hearing what the "yada, yada, yada" was all about, I say back,
"Don't say my name at me."

He could have been saying, "MELANIE, I have $1,000 bill with your name on it." but my ears stop functioning after he says my name at me. Why is that?

It just sounds foreign to me. Does anyone know what I'm talking about? It's kind of similar to when people who don't really know you decide to shorten your name-- like when work people call me "Mel". It's not like I'm mad about it, but coming from an outsider's lips, it sounds off.

So, there you go. Just a little memory keeper moment. Didn't want to forget the playful exchange of telling Skyler not to say my name at me... and subsequently having him say my whole name at me, which he finds extra amusing.

More soon,
Melanie

Silk Flowers and Marinara

2008-10-15T20:20:00.001-06:00

I wish I would have taken a picture of the clocks in this place... spaghetti and meatballs for one and a pizza for the other. Nothing says "classy Italian food" like kitch-ey wall flare. And nothing say, "your own little romantic area of the restaurant" like a hedge of silk flowers... faded, musty, probably spider filled, silk flowers.

Anyway, we tried a new place to eat last week. Let's call it Robentino's or Roborino's or Stevention's. Really, pick a name any name and just add "ntino's". Melantino's. See, like magic.

I won't say it was amazing because it wasn't, but it was okay. And it afforded us an opportunity to get our picture taken at our own little corner booth next to that lovely mess of a flowerey ball behind us. And doesn't Skyler look a little bit like, if you stuck some gold chains on him and a not-quite-buttoned-up white shirt with flowing chest hair extruding from the top, he could basically be a guido mob man that owns the joint? (see picture above)

And is that a GIANT Coke? It looks as tall as my torso.

Anyway, the red eye fix on this makes it look like we exhanged our eyeballs at the door for marbles, but whatever. It's a memory, right?

Sad bonus of the night: Skyler didn't do a good job of eating his pizza because he'd eaten Cafe Rio for lunch. So, the mom that was serving us noticed and told us she took it off the ticket because it looked like it had been over cooked and she felt bad about it... and then we felt bad about it and left her the difference as a tip.

Always makes me a little sad when 40-ish mom's are bringing me dinner. You?

More soon,
Melanie

A month of scaring?

2008-10-10T22:37:00.001-06:00

Skyler has officially declared it, "Scare Month" at our house. So, periodically he likes to wait around the corner from where I am and jumps out to scare me. Sometimes I even know he's there and I'll shout, "Don't scare me" and then he chuckles and does it anyway and it still scares me. Ridiculous. Picture him standing there with his little paws in front him waiting for me to come around the corner. Seriously.

He scared the crap out of me one day and I got mad enough about it that he said he wouldn't do it again.

And then said this: "No scaring at Halloween and no April Fools? You're taking all the fun away."

So, there you go. One more for the memory books.

More soon,
Melanie

A Night of Jenn

2008-10-09T15:17:00.000-06:00

CONGRATS again to Jenn for finishing her long-time-studied for test!

We had a small dinner party to celebrate the super-accomplishment with soup bowls, broccoli salad (not eaten by Skyler), pumpkin chocolate chip bread, and overly-cloved hot apple cider. Oh, the fall fun continues.

Did I mention the scrumptious, homemade peach jam? Thanks, Courtney's dad!! Awesome contribution to the cause.

We watched The Office and then ate our dessert treat-- on the fan plates my Mom got me. AWESOME. Thanks for the fun, Mom. We loved it.

CONGRATS AGAIN, Jenn... on the test taking, and of course, on making the Ensign. Good times.

More soon,

Melanie

Still falling into fall

2008-09-28T14:53:00.001-06:00

We took a drive after church on Sunday up through Emigration Canyon and all the way around by East Canyon Reservoir and back up through Morgan and the way over to see Skyler's family. Um, yeah, the camera is balanced on the top of my car :)

And I was taking pictures and getting mad that Skyler was going too fast and I couldn't get the shots I really needed. I mean, the leaves were all going by too too fast. Sheesh!

So, I took his picture...

and he took mine...

And then I took some more pictures as the leaves continued to fly by.

It was kind of cloudy for most of the drive, but the rich, saturated, fall colors were still magnificent and totally worth the mild car sickness I endured.

Fall colors, am I right everyone!

Oh, but PS - don't be too sad if you're missing it. It actually snowed today. So, bask in your still-sunny weather, you sunny AZ-ers.

More soon,
Melanie

7-0

2008-09-27T14:42:00.001-06:00

True fan. Look at that cute matching outfit. :) And, yeah, he's working on throwing his gangsters signs. Good times.

You Can Lead a Fish to Water...

2008-09-23T21:06:00.008-06:00

Is that how that quote goes? Is it a fish you lead to water but you can't make it drink? Maybe it's a horse, but for the sake of this post, it's a fish.

Anyway, this weekend Alex and Collyn came up for a visit. We were going to take the boat out on Pineview Reservoir, but the weather wasn't exactly cooperating so we decided to go to up to Silver Lake Reservoir at The Cottonwoods and set out a fishin'.

Supposedly they had just stocked it with trout, but I think the truck had either neglected to make the stop or maybe got stopped by the up and coming storm. I'm just saying, I saw a lot of fish, but not of the trout variety.

The fall colors were out in full force. You can see some of the yellow and orange in this picture of Alex and Collyn, but I'll post another picture that will blow your mind, fall style.

Let me paint a picture of the afternoon for you...the boys laid out the bait and cast the line while Collyn and I sat on the sidelines and snacked on Cheetos and Swedish Fish and stayed out of the rain as much as we could. It was pretty amazing to watch the rain roll in over the water and then disapate and start again. We loved it!

GO FALL!!! The colors are changing fast and they're super vibrant. So sorry to those of you living in boring-fall-sunnyAZ. You're missing out on these incredible colors. Sure we might want to trade places come ice cold January, but I'll keep the cold so I can keep this deliciously fall day. Mmmmmmmmmmm....

Anyway, on to a picture conglomerate:

More soon,
Melanie

Happy Sky Day

2008-09-21T21:57:00.000-06:00

Davis County Fair

2008-09-15T21:48:00.000-06:00

I know you're all waiting with bated, baited, or bhated breath, but just thought I'd share our Davis County Fair Experience... This actually happened at the beginning of the month but it took me a few to actually put it up on YouTube so you could see it

I mean, how CUTE is this little guy? We've been to two fairs this summer and now I just want a goat. Is that so wrong? They just seem nice and friendly and, obvious by this little clip, they talk back! I love it! Someone should buy me a house and get me this goat. I'm sure it was a blue ribbon winner. I'd name him B-Rib. Obvious.

More soon,
Melanie

Back to Yellowstone

2008-09-14T22:01:00.001-06:00

Basically, it'll take me longer to think of something and actually write it right now. So, these are some Yellowstone pictures... aka installment 2... pictures of places. And maybe I'll upload some animals, too. You don't have to look at them, but I will.

And then there were the animals...

So, there you go. My low battery is popping up.

More soon,
Melanie

My 80s Are Showing : Part 3

2008-09-09T23:01:00.003-06:00

I know that there's been a redone re-release of this since my childhood, but being that I haven't seen it since my childhood, this will still suffice as my 80s throw-back for the week.... Charlotte's Web, The Movie. This is the first movie that I can remember watching and being sad about. The message of hope for me was overridden by the fact that (SPOILER ALERT IF YOU'VE NEVER SEEN OR READ C.W) that Charlotte the spider dies at the end. I hated it. I still do. In my version of the movie, she's still alive.

Shout out to Melanie D. for sending this little gem of a YouTube moment on to me.

Seriously, I love when he eats the center of that watermelon and it deflates. Add to that the whole foods dropping down his gullet into his ever-growing belly, and how can you not want to GLUT, GLUT, GLUT, GLUT right along with him?

It's funny the things you remember from your childhood... I haven't see this for probably two decades, and I can tell you that the farmer's wife washed Wilbur in buttermilk before taking his little pig-runt-self to the fair. He sparkled, I tell you. I'm sure that's what pushed him over the edge to blue ribbon status. Sure of it.

Interestingly enough, we went to the fair yesterday, but it wasn't the veritable schmorgusborg orgusborg... I'm sure because we didn't wait until after the gates were shut.

Truthfully, I don't know that I would even have survived to write this if we would have stayed after the gates had shut. I'm sure we would have inevitably been sucked in to Big-movie life of a carnie... or a carnie extra. Seriously, the fair-goers... it's my recently formed belief that there are some hundreds to thousands of people who must be unloaded with the rickedy, spinning rides at every fair stop along the way. You couldn't make these people up.

Anyway, I haven't uploaded those pictures yet, but the UT State Fair runs through the weekend. Get some cash and go. Entertainment and memories to last longer than grease takes to solidigy in your arteries :)

More soon,
Melanie

Yellowstone 1

2008-09-02T22:50:00.004-06:00

So, I just don't really feel like regaling you you with tales of our Yellowstone trip, but do you really care about knowing anything besides that we were there?

Here's some pics of us in a variety of places at Yellowstone. More of the animals soon, since I know that's what you were waiting really waiting for... tons of Yellowstone Animal Pics. Well, enjoy the pics of the above animals in the mean time.

More soon,
Melanie

My 80s Are Showing : Part 2

2008-08-28T21:11:00.004-06:00

Well, I thought I'd do another edition of My 80s are Showing because my brain came across this earlier this week and I was sure you'd want to hear about it :)

Remember Teddy Ruxpin? Who, until today, was known to me at Teddy RexBin. I don't know. It's not like it makes sense any way around it.

And I didn't want you to miss this conversation:
MELANIE: Who knew it was Teddy Rux Pin? I thought it was RuxBin.
SKYLER: RuxBin? What? Me. I knew it was Teddy RuxPin.
MELANIE: Did you have a Teddy RuxBin?
SKYLER: Yeah!! Didn't you?
MELANIE: No.
SKYLER: (after watching B. Obama speech) What? You're un-American.

Awesome.

Did anyone else have one of these? The neighbor girl had one. And, to tell you the truth, it was a little freaky. You had pop the tape in to his back and then his mouth would click open and shut. Super Showbiz Pizza Animatronics style. He had clickety eyes, too, and would read you the TR story you'd injected into his back. And let me just remind you, this bear was not cuddley. He has a hard wad of metal in the middle with a khaki colored slightly padded overall-type outfit. And it was impossible to sleep if his beedy eyes were on you.

Happy 80s childhood to all of you.

More soon,
Melanie

Guess Who's Going to Yellowstone

2008-08-26T20:36:00.001-06:00

We are! Hooray for Labor Day weekend!!

Shoot me an email and let me know if any of you have gone and you have some recommendations on where to go and what to see.

Skyler's pretty sure we're going to see this guy. It's been suggested that we take a picnic basket for best results in that area. Truthfully, I much prefer Scooby Boo in the Hannah Barbara variety of characters, but we're not going on a mystery tour and so I suppose it's even less likely that we'll be passing the Mystery Machine on our way up, but whatever.

Yogi Bear or not, wishing it were closer to the weekend for sure. Hooray for trips planned and reservations made!!!

More soon,
MKG

Listen To This...

2008-08-22T20:44:00.003-06:00

Alex sent this to us, probably, six months ago or so. It happened on FM 100, one of the easy listening stations here. You just have to hear it. It's only :48 and the payoff is worth it. We still laugh when we hear it, and you should, too.

http://www.dooce.com/audio/fm100.mp3

More soon,
Melanie

My 80s are Showing

2008-08-22T15:46:00.005-06:00

So, I was listening to NPR this week on the way in to work and this little gem popped up... Hadn't ever heard of Beloit College, but come to find out, they put out a Mindset List. Now, if you're not prepared to die a little inside about how young the class of 2008 (slated to graduate college in 2012-- a year that should only be written when accompanied by- "The Year We'll All be Traveling Around in Those Forever-Promise Flying Cars") is, this is not a list I would recommend. If the defibrillator is out of reach, adjust accordingly.

The Mindset List is supposed to show how different this generation of students are from those prior to 1990. Feel free to read through and I'm sure you'll have a similar response to mine.

Here's a little taste for those of you who are against clicking on the links:

-->This group of politically correct kids has never feared the Russians or known great performers like Sammy Davis, Jr., Judy Garland, Jimmy Stewart or Dean Martin.

--> Since they were in diapers, they have been singing along to karaoke machines looking for Carmen Sandiego.

--> Coke and Pepsi have always used recycled plastic bottles.

-->Gas stations haven't fixed flat tires but serve cappuccino.

--> They have all read the book, "All I Ever Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten."

--> IBM has never made typewriters and electronic tax filing has been an option.

--> They never got to use a color called raw umber in the Crayola pack.

--> Jay Leno has always hosted the Tonight Show

--> Caller ID has been available on telephones.

-->Harry Potter could be a classmate, playing on their Quidditch team.

Holy Crap. My 80s childhood is showing. I mean, remember when Caller ID came out and it was basically like you were your own private wire tapping service, allowed to know who was calling way before you picked up the phone. And then you could be like, "Hey Suzie!" And she'd be like, "How did you know it was me?" "Oh, I have my ways," you'd LOL (a nonexistent acronym at the time).

And so, in an effort to remember the good old days, I bring you this
"My 80s are Showing" - Round 1

Remember when D.A.R.E started? McGruff definitely came to Cannon Elementary School and told us about it.

And tons of kids wore this shirt. I don't think I ever had one, but I'm sure I need one now.

D.A.R.E - which, if we're being honest, I couldn't tell you what it stands for without a www search. But it was definitely lands in the same bag as the "Any Questions? Commercial"

I suppose that's all I have for now. Still trying to get over the fact that people born in 1990, are now entering college.

Awesomely getting old-- unbeknownst to me until some people at an obscure Wisconsin college brought it all to light,

Melanie

Girth: I mean, really?

2008-08-21T14:25:00.002-06:00

Just wanted to share with all of you my loathing of the word

GIRTH

Seriously. And I don't like the word

GIRDLE either.

It's like I have something against G words. But, you should know that I don't. I mean,

GRIDDLE

is, ironically enough, a fine word by me. I endorse griddles and the use of griddles as a word. I mean, griddle cakes... HELLO!

Really I just came here to listen to my playlist and think about updating it, but now you know that this is what I was actually thinking about once I got here.

More soon, but hopefully not more girth soon,

Melanie

The Fruits of our Travel

2008-08-11T21:27:00.004-06:00

We're making the most out our raspberry purchases. Last night we had a lemon cake with raspberry/lemon glaze topped with vanilla ice cream and more raspberries. I didn't get a picture of it. Unbelievable, I know, but true.

Of course we've been eating them plain, which is awesome.

We also made a quick batch of raspberry freezer jam. Fingers crossed, it'll be a good batch.
Tonight, raspberry shakes. mmmmmm.

GO RASPBERRIES!

More soon, Melanie

Raspberry Days

2008-08-10T20:13:00.001-06:00

Props to the husband who made it all happen...

Between his trip to scout camp and my trip to CKU, we had already packed our week. But the only request I had for this summer was to go to Raspberry Days in Bear Lake. I've never been and I've always wanted to go. I mean, an entire set of days dedicated to the sweetly delicious raspberry? How could you not want to make that a summertime goal? You must. And, with much love in his heart, Skyler made it happen.

It was just a chill trip. No time to be anywhere. No real schedule. Yep. That feels about right.

I'd never been to Smith and Edwards either. So, we stopped there for a few minutes to wander around that fascinating place.

It's like a culmination of Cabellas, Ace Hardware, and an Army Surplus store... oh, and a candy store... with Moon Pies. Where else can you get empty mortar shells, dutch oven supplies, camouflage baby onesies, and gummy hamburger all in one place (remember how you usually have all of those things on your list)?

Smith and Edwards, The Country Boy Store.

Ask Skyler and he'll sing you the jingle. In fact, if you mention the place, you probably couldn't stop him.

From there, we took the long way to Brigham City down Utah's Fruit Way. Didn't even know this existed, really. The road runs through Perry and Willard past a handful of dilapidated fruit stands that must have been there since The Depression. Some of them are still up and running but most of them seem to have gone the way of the New Deal.

We had dinner at Maddox Ranch House. Fantastic rolls and corn bread to start with raspberry butter. Not a ton of restaurant options in Brigham City, but this place has been around for decades and, according to Skyler, is filled with blue hairs. Old people love comfort food. Obvious.

We stayed the night in Logan and headed up to Bear Lake and Garden City in the morning. It was a beautiful day and the temperatures were much more mild than in the SL valley. So, it was really nice. 70s in August? I'll take it. Raspberry Days is basically a craft fair with a handful of carnival rides and some good booths. Don't worry. There was kettle corn. So, you know it was legit.

Just outside of the gates was a raspberry stand and we bought a 1/2 flat. Look how happy that guy is about it?

We didn't take our swim suits with us, but we did decide to wade through Bear Lake.

As you can see, lots of holding the camera out and setting it up on things. Thank you, camera timer.

Anyway, we bought another 1/2 flat in Logan, finished off our fruit purchases with more vegetables purchased on the Way of Fruit, oddly enough, and drove the rest of the way home. It was just a nice day, you know? Love me some summer days.

More soon,
Melanie

1 Hotel Room, Hold the Astroglide, Please.

2008-08-06T23:41:00.001-06:00

So, this last week I was at CKU-Provo... a scrapbooking retreat, for all you non-scrapbookers. It was held at the Provo Marriott. Lovely place, really. I stayed there one night so I didn't have to drive all the way back to home before making the trek back to be on-hand to help at 7:00am. Anyway, the rest of the story goes like this...

This is exactly what my room looked like. King bed, lots of pillows, view of Lake Utah. Like I said, lovely.

That headboard? Screwed to the wall, ironically enough. That bed? WAY too many pillows. So, I started to take those huge ones off and push all of the extras on to the floor. That, however, left a gap between the headboard-wall and the bed. And as I was leaning over the chasm, I saw something. Now, I didn't want to investigate further, but I couldn't help myself. What was that?

Have you seen that part on How To Lose a Guy In 10 Days when Andy Anderson (Kate Hudson) has put her plan in to action, taken over Ben's (Matthew Mc C) bathroom, and he walks in and finds it all woman-i-fied? And then he has this reaction, "No! No! NO! Oh, man!"
And then he comes out and acts like everything's fine? Um, yeah. That was basically my reaction. I literally said outloud, "No! Oh, man!!"

Yeah. That's a mostly emptied bottle of Astroglide. It's not like I'm confused about what has already happened in every hotel room every where, but really. I didn't need to SEE it or try and live with it... Nor did you need to hear about it, but there was no one there to share in the horror of it all. And so it was that before I could try and sleep without taking a dip in a bath of hand sanitizer, I snapped this little gem of a picture.

Remember when you were a kid and you let your brain wander to monster land and before you knew it you couldn't let any limb hang off the bed for fear it would be ripped off or, worse, the means by which the monster would pull you under the bed and into a never-never land of all-things-monster? Well, the rest of the night was a lot like that for me. Like perhaps there was a chance the AG bottle, which I refused to touch for so many obvious reasons, would launch up and relieve the last of its contents on to my face if it saw any part of my body for more than a millisecond. I just couldn't face that wretched chance.

And so, with that, thanks for reliving the horror with me :)

More soon but hopefully nothing more of the AG variety,

Melanie

Take ME Out to the Ball Game

2008-08-03T23:19:00.002-06:00

You know how when you're a kid, and church is finally over, you rush home to take off your Sunday clothes and slip on your after-church-Sunday clothes? Love that moment. Still. Love kicking off the shoes and slipping in to 1/2 PJs / 1/2 whatever other outfit I wouldn't wear any other day of the week, but seem to find use for it on this day.

Skyler ended up with this little number on. I bought this tiny shirt for $5 the summer I lived in Chicago right outside of Wrigley Field. Now that's $5 well spent. Do you think I could talk this guy in to taking ME out to the ball game? Fingers crossed.

And I didn't actually intend to take this video. So, stop judging the fact that it's turned side-ways. I couldn't flip it, okay?

More soon,
Melanie

Mm Mm Good

2008-08-01T16:37:00.001-06:00

Courtney and I have gone to a summer concert for the part couple of years, and this year, props to Courtney for starting off our night of M&M with tickets to Martina McBride tickets. This year, we expanded on the expedition.

The full on M&Ms looked like this...

Mamma Mia
- an early showing of this girls-night movie. We noted on more than one occasion during the show that this was NOT a show you'd want to drag along a date to. You're welcome, Skyler. You're welcome. But we did have a great time. The music was insatiable and it was just kind of fun to watch... and made me feel like taking a trip back to the college days, for some reason.

Martina McBride
If you don't know anything about country music, you may not think you know Martina, but she sings that My Valentine song that is always played on, well, Valentine's Day. But she has a lot of other songs, too. We watch Mamma Mia long enough that we missed the opening acts that we didn't know any way and landed at Usana minutes before she went on. Awesome. Before that, though, we managed to pack in one more M&M...

Actual M&Ms
Want to ask Courtney how much she paid for a pack of M&Ms and a bottle of water at the concert? Well, in case you don't want to, I'll tell you. $6.50. And we're not talking a Costco-sized M&M bag. Just a regular one sold in a monopoly of an amphitheater. Regardless, it rounded out the night and just felt really right.

It was such a fun night! We laughed, we didn't cry, and we mocked Pierce Brosnan for looking a lot like the guy from The Pirates of the Caribbean guy who has the parrot-- the one with his tongue cut out, you know? Um, yeah. "When you're gone, how can I even try to go on?" - SOS song where he looks especially tongue-cut-off-ish. What's up with that, Remington Steele?

So, there it is. A night of all things M&M. Thanks for the most M&M memories in one night, Court!

Lake Powell

2008-07-31T16:03:00.000-06:00

We celebrated the week of Pioneer Day (July 24th) with Skyler's family, down in Lk. Powell. Here are some of the pictures of us. Notice the number of pictures with Skyler in my sunglasses... what can I say? He LOVES him some women's sunglasses. And it helps that I only pay $10 for mine while he pays, well, a few more $$$s than that for him. At one point, the lake was more than 300 feet deep. So, losing $10 better than losing more than that, right? But I did come back with all of htem. So, no worries.

Did you see the combination hamburger/hotdog. Yeah. Should probably call that a HeartAttack.

Take a look at the views

And a few pics of the fam...

All in all, Lake Powell was beautiful and it was a great set of relaxing days, even if it was all kinds of hot at times.

More soon,
Melanie

Introducing Pistol Pete... The Dog

2008-07-23T21:18:00.000-06:00

Some of you may be familiar with this Pistol Pete

But let me introduce you to this Pistol Pete.

This is the family dog Skyler's family has had since he was in 8th grade.

I love this guy. He always has a smile for you. Seriously. He smiles. Like he has Irish eyes, or something.

Still smiling after Skyler brushed him with a car wash brush.

It's almost like I strategically placed the sun so you didn't have to see his dog parts... Pistol's, not Skyler's.

More soon from Lake Powell and other things and places,

Melanie

Who Doesn't Know What I'm Talking About

2008-07-21T21:13:00.009-06:00

I chuckled a little to myself after talking to Juli about Dirty Dancing. Remember when this HOT movie came out? I can recall being in elementary school and hearing people talk about how upsetting it was that this movie was slated to hit the big screen. DIRTY DANCING (but whisper it with disgust and scary, fingery, jazz hands-- like it's a ghost, you know?).

Anyway, Wiki and Myself have this to say about it:

Dirty Dancing a romance film credited as being one of the most watched films of all time (Thank you USA and Lifetime Networks). Written by Eleanor Bergstein, the film features Jennifer Grey (pre-nose job - seriously, this can't be the same lady), Patrick Swayze (pre-Ghost, his only other movie of moderate worth), Cynthia Rhodes (Penny? No idea. Oh, wait. Maybe this is Baby's mom... in that case, pre-Gilmore Girls), and Jerry Orbach (pre-B&TB Candlestick). The story details the moment of time that a teenaged girl (I never actually thought she was a teenage girl. I mean, only a grown woman can carry a watermelon. Obvious) crosses over into womanhood both physically (which makes it sound like she was just introduced to strap-in-pads... pre-Tampax) and emotionally, through a relationship with a dance instructor (who looks 4x her age, but whatever. He was hot. You know it and I know it. Who didn't love Patrick Swayze((I mean, that black-on-black outfit? Mmmhm.)) in their middle school years) during a family summer vacation..."

"...the finale has been described as "the most goosebump-inducing dance scene in movie history".(Um, the extras snapping down the middle of the aisles, I don't think so. Maybe up to this point, but, ironically enough, I think it was the Candlestick in Beauty and the Beast who puts together a pretty knock-out, history-making dance performance of pent-up household items, including and bottles of bubbly and sudsy scantily-clad spoons)."

'

You be the judge.

Oh, and um, NO to Dirty Dancing Havana Nights. Not an option and should have never been an option for anyone. Nobody puts Baby in a communist country. You're welcome.

And if you're really in the mood for a chuckle, Be Our Guest in Japanese with subtitles... priceless. "...if you're in doubt, listen to the plates." aka "you don't believe me, ask the dishes."

Off to Lake Powell, but coming back soon,
Melanie

Odds Are

2008-07-18T15:11:00.000-06:00

So, we took a little road trip out to Kamas, had dinner, and then headed out to Evanston, WY. We stayed at what was, quite possibly, one of the grossest "newly remodeled" places called the High Country Inn.

My family will appreciate that this was part of the stunning art work on the walls. And in case you're confused, that's a scary horsey face, but not a whole horsey face-- just a part of one. Enjoy, family.

Here's a few pics from the mayhem.

What I didn't get was a picture of the bottle of Jack Daniels and the cube of Budweiser on the maid's cart. The should call it High Class Inn. Whew!

The Wyoming Downs runs during some number of weeks during the summer. I've never been to horse races of any sort. But before we went, we stopped at the cowboy store... which happened to be connected to the liquor store. Alcoholic patterns rein on the WY trip, apparently.

I won't tell you that the whole thing ended happily. It didn't. The very last race we watched before leaving, the lead horse fell, knocked the jockey lifeless and unconscious on to the track, and subsequently broke his leg. I cried. It was horrible.

Let this be a lesson to each of you-- it may be entertaining to go to the races, but if the odds are that a horse is going to get put down before the end of the day... well, at least the road trip memorable, right? And, Skyler got a pair of boots out of it. So, we're good.

More soon,
Melanie

What Happened To June?

2008-07-13T22:49:00.001-06:00

Excellent question. The majority of June and part of July was consumed with the Northern Wasatch Parade of Homes. Picture this : 90-100 degree temp days spent in a huge tent passing out information, pens, bags to Parade Fixed Site visitors... and then pushing them to visit another two Parade Homes up at The Cottonwoods. (Remember when I told you about Mt. Green? It's there)

I thought toward the end of the Parade that it would be good to remember the heat and the mayhem of those weeks of our life. Let's just say we weren't as friendly the last days as we were the first (note the change in pen configuration). But we were there for 8-12 hours a day for June 27-July 12 minus Sundays. For real. And, on the 4th of July.

I took a day off each week to do my other job for a full day. Skyler was there everyday from start to close, basically. Totally trooper.

Needless to say, we're glad to be done. Our house still hasn't recovered from the in-and-out of it all, but whatever. Glad it's over.

More soon,
Melanie

Regardless - Rainbows All Around

2008-07-13T22:11:00.003-06:00

Sum, Sum, Summer Time...
Sum, Sum, Summer Time...

Is that part of a song? Because all I can think of to end it is,
Pow, Pow, Power Makes It Go.

Regardless. It's summertime. You know it, and I know it.

Can you see inside Skyler's cup? It's not just the green light behind him that's making it green. It's actually green inside there. Lime green, to be exact. Just a 1/2 mile away from our house is a neighborhood burger/treat joint called Pace's Good and Plenty. No wait, that's what I always want to call it. It's Pace's Dairy Anne. Regardless. They should have asked me before they named it.

Anyway, this special treat is called a RAINBOW. You pick your Icee flavor, thy dump it in a cup and then squirt soft serve vanilla ice cream into the middle of it. Or, maybe they did it backwards from that. Regardless. Icee + SS Vanilla = Rainbow.

I look like I got run over by a hot, summer train truck in this picture and it wasn't even worth it. Know that I'm holding a dipped cone in this picture. That was my treat.

Anyway, back to rainbows.
This would be the Rainbow Snow... I'd say shack, but it's more of a circle. Can a circle really be considered a shack? Regardless, it's tiny inside and has no bathroom, kitchen, or sleeping area.

Shack, it is.

Can you see me in the picture? Holy crap. Remember that RAINBOW character from She Ra -Princess of Power that you were supposed to find hidden somewhere in the cartoon episode? I could have sworn it was in She-Ra . Maybe it was Rainbow Bright? Anyone?

Regardless. Good times looking through the Wiki definition.

SO, did you see me in the picture? Skyler is in the blue shirt on the left. That's me as a shadow on the right. I had to hold it up to take the picture without having the "Quickbooks Lessons" vinyl sign below. Wouldn't want to have to crop it out later, you know.

And, that's Skyler eating the loved-by-tons-of-kids-flavor, Tiger's Blood. I bet She-Ra wouldn't have Tiger's Blood if she were still with us.
Regardless. I got a kick out of the sign that showed the flavors that said this:
Cherry
Apple
French
Vanilla
Coconut
Lime
Berry

Um, yeah. French? The flavor I would associate with the French would be subway Euro BO. Regardless, even if the flavor was meant to be French Vanilla, the answer to me is still NO. I'm just not a fan of snow cones. Rainbow or otherwise.

I'll back log to 4th of July later,

Melanie

Happy Courtney Day

2008-07-11T23:11:00.000-06:00

Celebrated Courtney breakfast style. SO great to see her and SUCH great good at the Original Pancake House in SLC. We love us some chocolate chips coconut pancakes, and we shared around an omelet and a fresh fruit crepe. Of course there was too much to eat between the two of us, but it all tasted good, and that's what counts. Happiest of Birthdays to you, Court!!

More soon,
Melanie

Big Balls

2008-07-08T22:53:00.002-06:00

Seriously, I wish with all my heart that I wouldn't have left me purse at work... which has my camera in it... which meant that I couldn't record Skyler laughing his guts out watching Wipeout tonight. I thought I was going to have to lay newspaper for a potential couch wetting.

Now, you have to let a 25 second commercial run at the beginning of this, but the payoff is well worth it. Check out the complete wipeouts here.

For the first time this week, Alaskan Ariel made a historic run of the balls and made it across all four without getting wiping out. As you could see on that video, no one else did. Ever. Never ever. Not even close. Whew! Good times.

Anyway, not that you needed another endorsement of this summer-fun show, but there you go. Still funny. One of these days I'll get a video of the laugh track.

More soon,
Melanie

Park City - Back Log

2008-07-03T21:17:00.002-06:00

How did I miss posting about this? The Parade of Homes work has totally wacked out my posting. Sheesh!

To celebrate our six month anniversary, we took a trip up to Park City. We ate at a place that I can't remember the name of, but it's on Main Street and offers these crazy good nachos topped with Tri-tip steak. Yeah. It's good. Click on it to see the full meat zoom.

Next on the docket... a trip to something named something like Park City Mountain. Holy crap. This is why you write things when they happen instead of waiting this many weeks. I can't remember any of where we were. Regardless, you should know we bought the two pack tickets to do the Alpine Slide and Alpine Coaster. And, I'll give this a double Holy Crap, I laughed my guts out. OUT, I tell you. Out.

Pics and then there's the video. It's basically like you were on the ride with us... without feeling the G-force.

Before it got crazy...

And in the end...

we made it :) Did I mention that I had no seat belt or restraint situation. Just a handle of sorts and Skyler behind me. He had some kind of restraint, but not me, and he was in charge of the brake. Seriously, I still laugh hearing myself laugh. It was just that funny. Listen to the 1st video again, if you're confused about how funny it really was. Whew! Funny.

We went shopping at the outlets for a little while and then headed home. Such a fun weekend.

Six months and we're still roller coaster-ing along.

More soon,
Melanie

Meri Day

2008-06-30T20:38:00.003-06:00

So, my niece, Merideth, won tickets for a concert from KBUL93. Featuring Josh Grasi, Colin Ray, and Joe Nichols. Now, I couldn't have told you anything JG sings, and I haven't heard anything from CR since I was in middle school, but whatever. We went. It was outside in the heat at, what is now, UVU.
Can we talk about this for a second? Who else remembers this progression...
Utah Valley Community College
Utah Valley State College
and now
Utah Valley University

Well, come to find out, it actually started as Central Utah Vocational School then Utah Trade Technical Institute and finallyUtah Technical College at Provo before being all those. And I thought my ONE same change was bad. That's a hell of a lot of letterhead changes.

Whatever you want to call it, it'll always be a "left overs" school to me-- no offense. But let's be honest-- home to tons of scantily-clad-can't-get-into-BYU co-eds, it's also the Mecca for slutty dances filled to the brim with BYU co-eds sans honor code dress standards. Oh, the irony...

Anyway, props to Meri for finishing the Tim McGraw songs that won her the tickets. And check out those shades, dangle-ey earrings and tank top. Remember getting gussied up for concerts? This kid was SO pumped to be there, and I'm sure she had this outfit planned for days. The fact that we didn't know any of the songs, it was 1000 degrees, and she's 10 and couldn't see over the crowd in front of us were no deterrents to fun. It was still entertaining for both of us.

And remember the tween age of 10? Wanting to be older, but not quite big enough to be considered a "big kid". She's a mature little 10 year old, but still picked out Dibs in true kid-style.

All in all, a lovely evening with a great little lady.

More soon, maybe...

Melanie

Wipeout

2008-06-24T21:25:00.002-06:00

"This might be the best show on TV right now." Skyler

Oh, it's funny. Did you watch it? Wipeout. I wish I would have had a video on how hard Skyler was laughing at this ridiculous show. It's a little bit Most Extreme Elimination-esqe. Nothing guarantees a laugh like watching people trip, slip and fall. :) That's what USA Today said, and Skyler agrees.

Thanks, ABC, for a Tuesday night laugh.

More sometime,
Melanie

Oh, Canada

2008-06-23T20:50:00.002-06:00

Happy Summer Day, my Kraft Food and Family Magazine arrived today. Have you seen this? I'm just saying, you sign up for this and every week they email you and then, I think, every quarter they send you out a live magazine. Now, even if you're not a lover of all things Kraft, this thing has the most amazing food pictures in the world.

Okay. I'll show you a few :)

Anyway, this post wasn't even supposed to be about this. It was supposed to be about the fact that I learned something very special in this issue of KFF Mag. Canada, has apparently, known this for years. Why? Why haven't they told us? I don't know why. But it's not cool. Cool Whip In A Can. That's what they've been holding out. Cool Whip In A Can. I'll show you.

It's not like I even love Cool Whip that much, but that doesn't mean I didn't want to know it was an option. But, apparently, the Northern Test Market that is Canada passed this baby on to its southern friends. That's right, coming to a grocery store near you, Cool Whip in a Can.

"It's refrigerated, not frozen, so you can enjoy the same rich and creamy taste of Cool Whip whenever you want."

Happy Summer, Everyone. Cool Whip in a Can.

More soon,
Melanie

Hot Rocks? Okay. I'll Have One.

2008-06-15T22:03:00.014-06:00

Yet another food entry... If you hate it food, this probably isn't the blog for you to frequent. And, while I'm sure I have other things to say... I can't think of them. So, you get food. So what.

Okay. I'm not from Kentucky and I'd never heard of these. You? (And when I couldn't remember the word to look up the recipe, I settled in on calling them Hot Rocks until I could remember its given name). What am I talking about? Maybe you could tell us, Tammy. I mean, I thought we were better friends that that. Withholding new food options? Not cool, Kentucky Lady. After all these years of Weight Watchers High Point Saturdays, somehow someone neglected to tell me about the most legendary of all Kentucky cuisine-- THE HOT BROWN. I had to find out Bobby Flay-- Throwdown style.

(( In case you were wondering what this picture is about... it's a picture of Tammy holding a list of her favorite song lists. Bali Hai leads the rankings. Because, who doesn't love South Pacific? :) )

Now, I don't blame anyone for not wanting to say "Hot Brown". It does inflict a tinge of embarrassment upon recitation. I don't know why-- perhaps the fact that it sounds like something a tipsy sailor would shout to his friends across a crowded bar to let them know he was headed to the bathroom, magazine in hand, and he wouldn't be back for a while. "Hey, I'm dropping a Hot Brown and when I get back, you owe me a beer." So, the fact that I've already become accustomed to calling them Hot Rocks... well, I don't feel bad about it.... anyway, I digress...

So, basically what it boils down to is this-- bottom to top--(I botched the order the first time I made it, but below is the proper order)

-->Toasted bread
-->Slices or real, roasted turkey breast -- like the kind left over from Thanksgiving. Not the deli meat kind.
--> Juicy slices of tomatoes (non- salmonella variety)
--> Crisp bacon
-->Mornay sauce - basically a white sauce with cheese in it. So, a cheese sauce. :)

Shove it in an oven, broil it to a bubbly brown and VOILA.
Hot Rock... Brown. Whatever.

Peas on the side. Complete meal, complete.

It's super easy, has lots of flavor and I'd serve it to you if you came to visit. We'd have this for lunch and then fajitas for dinner. Mmmmm.

I don't think he meant to have his eyes closed, but I think it's a silly picture. Maybe he wanted to be surprised?

All I'm saying is, it's quick, it's easy, it's delicious. Thanks, Kentucky. Thanks.

More soon,

Melanie

After All These Years

2008-06-02T15:34:00.019-06:00

I can barely believe it's true, but it is. I love me some carbs and I've made countless numbers (I mean, don't even try counting. Don't.) of batches of rolls over the years. It's astounding to me that I didn't think of this as an option before. But, after years of pining away for fat, fresh, fluffy, straight from the Senorita tortillas, this Senorita decided it was time to try making her own. Really. It never occurred to me that this was an option. Embarrassing but true.

This was the first recipe I came to and it just felt so right, the quest stopped here. She touts herself as being an expat Texan. So, I took her at her word and forged ahead with this...

Texas Flour Tortillas
(adapted from The Border Cookbook by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison)

Ingredients:
Two cups of all-purpose flour (can make them whole wheat by substituting one cup of whole-wheat flour for white flour)
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of vegetable oil
3/4 cups of warm milk

Method:
Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and oil.
Slowly add the warm milk.
Stir until a loose, sticky ball is formed.
Knead for two minutes on a floured surface. Dough should be firm and soft.
Place dough in a bowl and cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap for 20 minutes.

After the dough has rested, break off eight sections, roll them into balls in your hands, place on a plate (make sure they aren’t touching) and then cover balls with damp cloth or plastic wrap for 10 minutes. (It’s very important to let the dough rest, otherwise it will be like elastic and won’t roll out to a proper thickness and shape.)

After dough has rested, one at a time place a dough ball on a floured surface, pat it out into a four-inch circle, and then roll with a rolling pin from the center until it’s thin and about eight inches in diameter. (If you roll out pie crusts you’ll have no problem with this.) Don’t over work the dough, or it’ll be stiff. Keep rolled-out tortillas covered until ready to cook.

In a dry iron skillet or comal heated on medium high, cook the tortilla about thirty seconds on each side. It should start to puff a bit when it’s done.

Keep cooked tortillas covered wrapped in a napkin until ready to eat.
Can be reheated in a dry iron skillet, over your gas-burner flame or in the oven wrapped in foil.

While I was busy masquerading as Tortilla Tina, Skyler took to the grill. Hip Hip Hooray for Fajita Sunday!

Plus, sometimes we get the Chips and Queso from Cafe Rio (highly recommend it, BTW)... and that comes with pico and fresh salsa. So, I usually bring those home with us on such occasions. No regrets as an addition to this Dinner of Wonderment.

Mmmmmmmmm....

I might have had two of these and four extra tortillas or something. So what. SO WHAT! That's a professional grade tortilla and it was just as puffy and luscious as she said it was. Thank you, fellow Texan. And thank you to thousands of years of tortilla makers. Hell of a job.

And so it is that after all these years, I'm basically a tortilla making professional. :) Not really, but if you're coming to town, we'll definitely make it happen. SO SO SO good.

More soon,
Melanie

LARRY LEGEND

2008-06-01T18:57:00.008-06:00

It's that time of year again. The NBA finals are back to their former glory, Celts vs. LA. And yesterday in the spirit of the Finals, I pulled out the Larry Legend DVD's and we watched some of the all time classic battles, and Bird highlights. I have a DVD with highlights and three full length games from the 80's. (Don't tell Melanie but family night tomorrow will be 1988 eastern conference semi-finals vs. Atlanta, yes you all remember Birds 20 point fourth quarter)

Anyways, back to my post. As we were watching the highlights yesterday Melanie was really having a tough time with the short shorts that were everywhere. And how certain "things" seemed to defy gravity within those short shorts (if you know what I mean) She kept saying "Oh wow if he's not carefully there might be three balls on the court."

Okay so I started searching for a picture of the short shorts and ended up watching a good 1/2 hour of Bird highlights on You Tube. There are thousands of them. Remember those old McDonald's commercials with Bird and Jordan playing H-O-R-S-E? Needless to say I am back now. But only to sign off. I'm going to watch some more highlights.

BEAT L.A.

It's the Freakin' Weekend, Baby, I'm About to Have Me Some Fun...

2008-05-24T21:27:00.001-06:00

Remember that song? Whew. Thanks, R. Kelly.

So, the story goes, we took the four wheelers up to Farmington Canyon. It's right around the corner from Skyler's parent's house and where he grew up. The weather around here continues to be bizarre-o. It was like 90 degrees last week and then down to the 50s on Saturday and overcast.

B O R I N G... I just realized how boring this was getting. So, I'm just going to show you a slide show of pictures and you can see that it went from a little overcast to snowing by the time we got the top of the mountain... and then beautiful and sunny by the time we got back down.

So, there it is. Many thanks to Skyler for bringing it all together and making it happen. I love this guy! And he always looked back to make sure I hadn't run off the cliff or had any troubles. It was such an amazing day surrounded by the beauties of soring-verging-on-summer...on to winter and then back to spring/summer. :)

More soon,
Melanie

Aptly Named

2008-05-23T21:30:00.000-06:00

So, Skyler and I were in Mountain Green on Friday doing some work for the Parade of Homes and such, and I just have to say... Mountain Green was amazing and completely living up to its very verde llamo. Check it out.

View from Rollins Ranch (The development hosting the fixed site for The Parade)

View from just outside The Cottonwoods at Mountain Green.

It had just rained and was getting ready to rain again. Stunning day, to be sure. A little cold, but still amazing.

It's here, in case you were wondering. I know I did.

View Larger Map

More soon, Melanie

I See Sky

2008-05-22T10:59:00.003-06:00

"There are two types of people in this world:
Those who like Neil Diamond, and those who don't.
My ex-wife loves him."
--Bob in What About Bob

While I don't necessarily consider myself a Neil Diamond lover, I will say I love "Sweet Caroline." We got engaged at a Red Socks game and we danced to it for our first dance at our wedding. Plus, how can you not love this song. Well, if you come to the site on a semi-regular basis and your computer has speakers, you may be done hearing Sweet Caroline for a while. Fear not. We've made some musical updates... one of which you should especially take note of. I got a kick out of it.

Sky - Joshua Radin and Ingrid Michaelson
"I wake to you,
And you never left me.
All that I dreamed had been untrue,
Open my eyes
I SEE SKY."

It's silly and I got a kick out of it. Deal with it.

Anyway, hope you enjoy the musical switch up. For some reason I'm having troubles getting the playlist player to fit entirely on to the screen. You can move down the list, but then you have to reset the entire page to get to the top again. If anyone knows the remedy, I'll take it.

More soon,
Melanie

All Jazzed Out

2008-05-20T13:47:00.001-06:00

I'm not going to lie to you. I hate watching teams I root for lose as much as you or anyone else. And the Jazz have given me too much to hate this Playoff season. But Skyler and I went to the game this last Friday night. So, despite their super-sad loss, I thought I'd share some pics.

And, no, I didn't get a picture of Kyle Corver. Find a 13 year old who was there. I'm sure she has one.

And, yes, the Jazz did get my hopes up at the end. It's part of what I'm so bitter about. They offer this gleaming moment of hope and then completely botch the would-be happy ending.

Alex / The Nightside Teams were broadcasting from outside of the KSL Broadcast House before the game started and we stopped by to see him. He had Skyler put on the mic and headset and here's a little bit of the on air dialog you most likely missed:

Alex: (knowing full well he's a season ticket holder) How did you score these tickets?
Skyler: I won them in a contest.
Alex: (chuckling) Really? What kind of a contest?
Skyler: An arm wrestling contest with my little sister.

And then Skyler went on to talk about how Gasol was the ugliest player on the Laker team and a few other things. All in all, an entertaining exchange while Skyler was trying to squirm away-- we were seven minutes to tip off. So, he was anxious to get moving.

He probably wouldn't have been as anxious if he would have known the outcome of the game, but whatever. Playoff games are an experience-- especially in the extra loud Energy Solutions Arena. Plus, how great is it to watch Koby Bryant scream an F bomb or two LIVE into a crowd full of Jazz fans. Classy guy. Classy.

Well, at least I can say I'm completely Jazzed out for this season. I don't want to watch the replays or buy a now-on-sale shirt. Nothing. I need some time to forget the ridiculousness. So, I blogged it ;) Palette cleansed.

More soon,
Melanie

Well, I Hated It

2008-05-16T11:56:00.004-06:00

So, for both of you who probably saw the blog when it was super stretched, you'll know that it just wasn't that great. We're back to the usual. Hatred or not, that's where it is.

On a milk note, I bought milk at Costco again this week, and the expiration date is JULY 2nd. Can you even believe it? The Magical Milk rides again and we are the happy recipients of said ride.

Stream of consciousness #3 takes me to this story from over a week ago. But it's still ridiculous, and if you're still reading you obviously want to hear it. So, here it goes:

Have you tried these Archer Farms / Target brand of Italian Sodas? Courtney and I found the Blood Orange variety back in the roommate days and would occasionally splurge and get it for Sunday Dinners. And neither of us are really soda drinkers, and I don't think I've ever even had a regular, live blood orange, but this stuff is really great.

So, I'm at Target last week and it's on sale 2 for $5. I'm in. I'll take 4, in fact. Skyler really likes it, too, and it's sweetened with fruit juice as opposed to high fructose Coke syrup. And so I buy.

Now, these glass bottles are actually kind of heavy. I didn't want to squash the already-in-the-cart items. So, like any normal Blood Orange buyer, I decided to put them in the baby seat at the front of the cart. Close enough so I could keep an eye on them, you know? The problem with the baby seat when you're shopping sans baby, is that there are holes in the front of said seat to accommodate said sans baby legs, when used for such frivolous purposes. I just needed it to hold glass bottles of soda. Which, on this particular day, was apparently too much to ask.

Picture yourself back in the produce department because you totally blanked on picking up lettuce when you were there 30 minutes earlier... before you mosied up and and down countless other aisles just walking around looking around like you had no place else to be-- because, true confession, I didn't. Are you seeing yourself there? Flowers on the south end, pre-cut produce to the north? Yeah, well just as I passed the flower region, a bottle of Blood Orange KABOOM-ED right out of the baby leg hole and on to the Target tile floor. Now, you'll recall, carbonation = super charged. So, between the height it fell from and the supercharged-ness of it all, the explosion of glass and sticky juice extended all the way up the north side of the produce area to the lettuce I was intended to pick up in the second place.

I just stood there for a minute. I mean, it sounded like I'd dropped a bomb. And, really, I had. I was basically the Unibomber of Target that day. Now picture the nicest 30-40something year old cashier named Wendy that you possibly can. Red shirt, tan pants, dark hair. Are you seeing her? Well, she came to the rescue and radioed three times for clean-up with no response while acting like a glass blockade for other customers, until she finally said, "Clean-up needed for broken glass" and then Robert was on it.

Wendy's blockade was a success and no one glassed themselves, and I stood there with Blood Orange drink puddling in my shoe and splattered all up my pants. Are you still seeing this? Luckily, I wasn't wearing short-@$$ running shorts or something. Could have been worse, right? Oh, we're getting there.

So after 2 large bags of kitty-litter-like-soaker-upper gets poured across the produce department, I squished around and tried to help pick up the HUGE pieces of scattered glass. Wendy told me that they'd take care of it and that she didn't want me to get cut, and I'm thinking, "Oh, but let's cut Nice Wendy and Reluctant Robert." Awesome.

I did finally leave them to finish it off, grabbed my lettuce, and made my way back to the Blood Orange aisle. I did want 4, after all.

I checked out, went home and loaded my bags on to a microwave cart (see picture at left but picture it with groceries and not a microwave or spoons) that helps get groceries up and down our elevator. While getting in to the elevator, one of the Blood Orange bottles leaped out on to the floor. Luckily it was on the bottom level of the cart and there were no explosions. But, I wasn't going to take any more chances and I held the bag of two bottles for the duration of the ride.

Now, 2 minus 2 means there's still 2 on the cart. I rolled out of the elevator and on to the third floor where yet another bottle of Blood Orange met with the concrete but -covered-with-a thin-carpet-layer floor. Strike three. The top blows off and sprays the floor and all over the wall of the 3rd floor. I propped up the bottle, pushed the cart over to the door and into the condo and then returned to clean up Blood Orange disaster #2 for the day.

I wish I could say I had pictures of this ridiculousness, but unfortunately, it was the one day I'd left my camera at home to charge. So, neither of these moments were caught on digital. But it was your job to picture it all, anyway.

Well, there it is. Hope you enjoyed a day in the life of Melanie at Target. I know I did.

More soon, but hopefully not to do with explosions,
Melanie

Hatred on a Scale of 1-10

2008-05-15T14:23:00.002-06:00

It was bugging me that the text from posts were bumping up against the right column info. So, I tried a new template. Thoughts? It's a lot of white space, I know. And I guess I'm just asking... on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the greatest amount of hatred, how much do you hate the change?

More soon,

Melanie

And Counting

2008-05-14T14:09:00.002-06:00

5 Months and counting...

Gifts accepted :)

More soon,
MKG

Wii Time and Then Some...

2008-05-13T15:55:00.002-06:00

From Thursday to Sunday, we had my nieces Lilly and Meri staying with us while me sister-in-law and brother looked for a new house in central Washington. It was a weekend of silly words, Wii, park visits, swimming, crafting, cooking, and basically anything and everything you could think of to keep a 6 and 10 year old busy. They were actually obedient and pretty good about everything. Of course, the first morning when they were up at 5:30, I certainly wasn't impressed. But, nothing a little Wii time can't fix. When they got there we had 4 Miis made. By the time they left, we had 45. Thanks, Ladies.

Here's a few pics of these crazy ladies...

More soon,
Melanie

Dearer Than Any Other

2008-05-11T15:45:00.000-06:00

I know a name, a glorious name, dearer than any other.
Listen, I'll whisper the name to you:
It is the name of MOTHER!

We are SO lucky to have such amazing mothers in our lives. This picture was taken at our wedding dinner. I love it (thanks, Whit!). These women have had more of an impact on mine and Skyler's lives than any one. I can barely believe how blessed I am to have the mother that I have and to have added such an amazing mother-in-law is astounding.

Their undying patience, thoughtfulness, kindness, generosity, faith have truly been examples to us and we love them beyond measure. Thank you for all that you have done and continue to do to shape and mold our lives and souls for the better.

Happy Mother's Day to you both!! We love you!!!

Melanie and Skyler

Take a Trip to Happy Town

2008-05-09T14:24:00.001-06:00

Have you seen the Geico commercial where the Pips sings, "Take a trip to Happy Town. WOO! WOO!" Whew. Good times.

For Christmas this past year, Skyler's parent's bought us some great grill peripheral items... to go with the grill they would be buying us once it was grill season... which takes us to now. Grill Season. Well, depending on the day, really, since it hail/snowed on us yesterday. But it's May and traditionally Grill Season. Now that we're through that...

A couple of weeks ago we saw this great grill at Costco. We hadn't really looked around or delved in to any grill options or recommendations at all. So, we thought we'd keep on looking. We went to Lowe's and Home Depot and didn't find anything comparable to the pretty little lady at Costco. Of course. How could I have doubted for a moment that this would be the case? My deepest apologies to the Warehouse of Wonders.

Anyway, I went back a day later and it was gone. I called all up and down the Wasatch Front and they were all gone and no one thought they were getting them back in. Which brings me to Thursday afternoon. I'm back at Costco for this and that and low and behold, the grill is back. Well, it looks like there's only ONE left, so now I'm on a mission to make this grill happen. And there was a grandparent-ey couple fondling the floor model right as I was about to make a break for the front, as I would have none of that. So, I ran to the front, told them I was ready to buy and asked them what I should do. It was like Supermarket Sweep, but way more intense, obviously. Needless to say, I was the WINNER.

So, I bought it and had them hold it until we could come pick it up once Skyler was done with work. It was a lot of the way put together, but not completely. He took a trip to Happy Town putting it together.

A couple of features:

-- Ceramic infrared rotisserie burner and rotisserie kit - I could basically start my own Costco :)
-- Built-in side burner - simultaneous cooking and corn boiling!
-- Ceramic infrared main searing burner - it's AWESOME
-- Push and turn continuous electronic ignition system
AND MY TRIP TO HAPPY TOWN...
-- Insulated Polyurethane cover (included) Love me a clean grill body.

And then here's a couple of pictures from the virgin grill run.

More soon,
Melanie

FREE! FREE! FREE!

2008-05-08T11:07:00.003-06:00

FREE _______! Fill in the blank. It doesn't matter what it is. If it's free and in Utah, people will line up for it. These are basically magical words. Say them and people literally materialize on the spot. It could be someone generously giving away FREE atomic wedgies. And all they hear is FREE.
In this particular case, the KSL Nightside Project crew was doing a week long "Nightside Airdrop" wherein they gave away some sort of staple food item every night at locations across the Wasatch Front. Rice, pinto beans, flour, and this night they were giving away ingredients to make rice crispy treats. (Because nothing says 72 hour kit survivor food like rice crispy treats, am I right?)

All you had to do was text in the words "rice crispy" to KSL and it would return a message that could be redeemed for the bag of ingredients.

I had my nieces, Lily and Meri with me. So, we went by to see Uncle Alex, who happened to be right across the street from where we live in Bountiful. It was really a lot of fun to see Alex in action and the girls got a kick out of seeing him talk and listening to it on the radio in the car on a slight delay.

Did I mention the people who wanted to line up for a bag of rice crispies and a bag of marshmallows? One guy showed up with his pinto beans from earlier in the week and asked if he could swap for the rice crispy bag tonight. Alex told him no.

Some people told sob stories about how they didn't know how to text but still wanted the free stuff. Others asked for more than one bag. And still others had stories about how "it's almost Mother's Day and I have 5 kids. Can I have one even though I didn't text?" There were a handful of people who just stopped because there were people lined up and it looked like something was being given away. And they just wanted to be a part of it. Didn't care what they were giving away. Just wanted in on the action.

All in all it was an entertaining 15 minutes of give-aways. And another testimony to me of the love of lines and freebies. Still going strong.

More soon,
Melanie

Last Minute Trip to Zions

2008-05-05T09:32:00.000-06:00

So, we decided on Thursday that it might be fun to leave on Friday and head South to warmer weather. We tried Moab, along with 100,000 other people and everything was booked. So we tried for Zion's and found a cheap hotel in Hurricane for a couple of nights.

None of us had ever been to Zions before, and were were kind of guessing our way through where the best places would be to go. After reading this, we decided to start with Angels Landing:

Angels Landing, one of the 6,000 feet peaks of Zion Canyon National Park, ascends 1,500 feet over a distance of 2.5 miles to the summit, which is ringed on three sides by the river below and has amazing views in both directions along the canyon.

Awesome. Sounds great. Sign me up. The part that I didn't know was this: The paved path climbs steadily up the side of the main canyon with many sharp switchbacks and then turns away along Refrigerator Canyon, a cool sheltered side valley with dark sandstone walls.

Okay... okay... still sounding pretty good.

An even steeper series of switchbacks ('Walter's Wiggles') <I wish this picture could even do it justice. You can see Skyler and the people above him, but those switchbacks were totally wack and I think there were like 12 of them or something. Seriously.> leads up the canyon wall to a narrow ridge, where the surfaced trail ends, although the paved West Rim Trail continues westwards.

The last half mile of the Angels Landing Trail ascends along the ridge to the summit, and is marked only by rock cairns, occasional steps carved in the rock and chains which have been fixed for safety at some particularly steep places.

At some points, the ridge is only a few meters wide, with sheer drop-offs at either side, so great caution is advisable.

Caution is advisable? I'm surprised there isn't a FALLING DEATHS TO DATE count posted. Consider the burn in your thighs and calves. Now multiply it by 10 and you'll get a glimpse of the mayhem that was this hike.

When we started walking up the trail, Skyler said to me, "That's where we're going." Now, Skyler loves to tell stories. So, I thought maybe he was making it up. He was pointing at this super steep and treacherous looking cliff.

He wasn't kidding. That is where we went to. Once we got to the rocks and ridges, it was a lot more fun to me. The view from the point really was amazing and there were only a couple dozen Europeans with pungent body odor to walk past while heaving in big gulps of air. No big deal.

Really, though, the views and rock formations surrounded us on all sides. The green contrast against the red rock and blue sky were tremendous. But it was still a pretty hellish hike. I mean, we look happy in these pics, but I think it was out of sheer delirium as opposed to indescribable bliss. Looking back you can't really feel the pain, though, and the pics look pretty good.
NOTE TO SELF - Keep your sunglasses on or find some makeup so you don't look 1/2 dead. I mean, YIKES.

We took a break for lunch and headed back up the canyon to where the trail to The Narrows started. The Narrows were closed that day because the waters were too high, but we did go out to the point and see where you could have walked through if you could have walked through.

The trail was pleasant and meandered along the river for about a mile.

DAY 2:
Emerald Pools Day.
I know the pools don't look that emerald-ey, but they did have a beautiful green tint. The surroundings were incredible. There were so many different kinds of luscious trees I decided to start collecting leaves from the bottom of the trail to the Upper Pool. So, that's the little leaf collection you'll see on the rocks in the slide show below. I missed a couple, and there were some pine trees mixed in as well. But it's pretty astonishing to see such lush vegetation in the middle of the desert.

So, there it is. Lots of pics from two days at Zions.

More soon... not from Zions, but from other things :)

MKG

Backlog

2008-05-02T20:25:00.001-06:00

Okay. So, I totally have a back log of posts to make happen. Try to stop judging me, okay? I'm starting now and that's what counts. I mean, you'll still be filled in on the latest... just in a delayed- reaction-all-at-once sort of way. So kick back and enjoy the backlog catch-up.

MKG

F-U-N

2008-05-02T15:18:00.011-06:00

Have you thought to yourself lately, "Some thing's missing in my life. What could it be?"

It could very well be that you've gone far too long without owning a deep fryer. Sure, we all have. Now, don't give me your "health reasons" for staying away from fried foods. Live a little for once. And, I'm telling you, if you knew about this deep fryer, you just might be inclined to rethink your "no-thanks to fried-food" ways.

Introducing, the Emeril Deepfryer by T-Fal . We got this as a wedding present and it really does some amazing things, as far as fryers go.
-->It has its own oil filtration system and even tells you when it's time to change the oil.
-->There's a storage box at the bottom that holds your oil until you're ready to use it again.
-->All but the major electrical parts are dishwasher safe.

All in all, this makes the most amazing mini corn dogs ever as well as scrumptious scones and anything else you can think of. Mozzerella fries, onion rings... whatever you want fried. And I will say it is tempting to find out just that "whatever" is. I feel like every time we have it out there's some kind of experimental fry-time*** see below for details***

So, Greg, Tammy, Rob, and Courtney (plus little LJ and Emma) were coming over for breakfast and we thought there was no better way to celebrate such an event than with a virgin run of Funnel Cakes in the Fryer.

Found the recipe on the WWW and added Mexican vanilla (not racist. it really is from mexico) and cinnamon and TADA. I'd say this was the prize funnel cake of the batch. Because, I'm going to be honest with you, making these out on the freezing cold porch to avoid the ever-after Denny's smell in our vaulted ceiling house, made the funnel cakes go a little wack by the end. Still good, but not sticking together in a neat little pile.

SHE, obviously, was stunned at how great they were. (try not to hate me Tammy. I'm just trying to make a case for fried food in the midst of WW fans and South Beachers, okay? And I think this picture pretty well says it all.)

Plus, Tammy won the award for best funnel cake topping with sliced strawberries, homemade hot fudge sauce and a dollop of whipping cream. I followed suit and attest to the fact that the StrawChocWhip Funnel Cake is delectable.

Am I right, Courtney? "I'll say!!! Those funnel cakes were some kind of something. Better than what you can get at the Eastern Idaho State Fair, if you ask me."

So, there you have it. Funnel cakes, friendship, (hopefully still in tact post pictures on blog), and we should have just called it FUN-el Cake Breakfast because it was. FUN and FUNNY and FUNNEL.
Oh, and this guy dipped a strawberry in the FUNel batter and fried it up... subsequently burned his mouth on strawberry juice and then told us all that it tasted like warm strawberry jam. So, wonder no longer about fried strawberries.

More soon,
Melanie

Tabernacle Time

2008-04-30T09:54:00.008-06:00

Part of the business and pleasure of last week were the Joseph Smith the Prophet performances on Friday and Saturday at the newly renovated Tabernacle in Salt Lake. It was a really amazing opportunity to sit in the choir seats in this historic building and look out on the extra-hard bench seats knowing that it looked like General Conference behind me complete with golden pipes and blue-colored lights shining.

To add to the already-awe-inspiring-experience, we were honored to have President Thomas S. Monson and his wife as well as President Dieter F. Uchtdorf and his wife attended on Friday evening. It was pretty amazing to hear the hush fall over the crowd as he walked in and everyone in the building quietly stood and then sang We Thank Thee O God For a Prophet. It's difficult to describe the feelings of respect and adoration for someone who you know is working so hard to make a difference in the Church and in the world every day. Know that it was amazing, okay?

Extra fun for me was sitting next to my cute cousin, Siska. We were roommates in school and great friends ever since. She's just one of the most happy people I know, and never in an annoying way... which is almost impossible to do. But, she does it. And I just love her. (and who doesn't love a good picture-taken-from-below to really accentuate the triplicate chins. But is was the only way to work in the pipes from where we were sitting, really. And so we sacrificed for the good of the memory :)

And then on Saturday Elder Russel M. Nelson and his wife attended.

Besides those linkable individuals, I had a lot of people I totally love who worked it out to come
- Skyler (both nights like a super-husband)
- My parents
- Skyler's parents, brother, and sister
- My brother Clint and his two kids
- My brother Alex and his wife
- Cute Shanna and her entourage
- And the usuals... Rob, Court, Tammy, Greg, Little L.J. , Court's parents and fam, and Rob's parents (that's me and Court with our program from the event. she was the superstar narrator)

All in all, the music was moving and it was an opportunity of a lifetime to sing with my friends and family in the Tabernacle. I just have to say how grateful I am that Rob is still out doing what he does best... making it all happen and providing amazing experiences for literally hundreds of thousands of people with little and mostly no monetary compensation. I'm always in support of the Spire mission and all that he does to move it forward. Hip, hip, hooray for another awesome day, Buddy!

More soon... and next time about Funnel Cakes. Hooray!

Melanie

The Winner

2008-04-29T15:19:00.024-06:00

Well, well, well, if it hasn't been like 10 days since my last post. Don't get angry. There's just been a lot going on.

This last week my parents were here to celebrate Alex's wife Collyn's BYU graduation. In addition to the 2nd half of the hutch that goes in my kitchen, my parents also brought five boxes of keepsakes, papers, cheerleading paraphernalia, and a myriad of other things. And according to these, I'm basically the winning-est person you know.

I mean, who remembers that you used to get trophies for just about anything. Soccer, cheerleading (obvious), basketball, and even ensemble choir. And these are real trophies. All but one of these babies actually has my name and the team / organization I was a part of engraved right on the front.

And check out this little lady. I'd say that's a pretty great mullet-yet-pony tail. This trophy, if you must know, was given to me while I was on an all boys soccer team.... which means that Melanie's Mullet Girl had to be special order. Don't worry about it. Special trophies for special players, obviously.

Oh, wait. Everyone got one. Remember?

Except for this one. I was the only one who got this one.

Girls Basketball Most Inspirational

What does that even mean? To me, it's essentially the "Special Spirit" award of sports. Inspiring? Come on. This lady's not buying it. Doesn't that basically mean I was the one yelling the loudest at the referees... from the bench. I'm sure that's the what the ballot looks like:
a. This person bitched the most while riding the pine (fill in name here) For 1997 (an eternity ago), that write-in vote was Melanie Kirry.

But the award does come with a flaming basketball , and how can you not love that? You can't. You must love the flaming basketball.

More soon. You deserve it if you went all the way through this trophy post.

Oh, and Skyler wants to know what I plan to do with all of these trophies. Bask in the glory of them, obviously. Big winner!!!!

And, after relishing the plastic pom poms on four years worth of pee wee trophies, I have no idea.

Melanie

Dairy Endorsement #2: Magical Milk

2008-04-17T10:48:00.003-06:00

Are you familiar with the traumas of buying and cooking for two? Even for one or three... you can relate. You cook too much and have leftovers sitting in the fridge until you need that particular Pyrex again for the next too-large meal. There are vegetables in the vege drawer that don't even resemble vegetables anymore. You've dumped more food in the trash than you've eaten. And buying dairy products, especially of the milk variety, is a joke.

We're not really recreational milk drinkers. I use it on cereal almost every morning and Skyler will reluctantly sink to the level of drinking white milk if the chocolate variety is not on hand. But generally speaking, we're not blazing through a gallon of milk by the time the expiration date rolls around. I'm usually rushing to dump it down the drain before the sides start to bulge, you know?

And then came brought-to-me-by-Costco Kirkland Organic Low Fat Milk. (Insert heavenly music) I never even considered it because you have to buy three 1/2 gallons at a time and that spelled destine-for-the-drain, if you'd asked me. But NO. I bought this three pack mid-March and the expiration date isn't until almost two weeks from now!! Can you believe it?!? I couldn't. We're on 1/2 gallon #3 and I've been out of town twice without coming back to a gallon of separated milk fats in parfait form. Miracle I tell you.

You should know that I'm by no means fully organic. I mean, I have a bra on right now, we own a Tahoe, and we don't smoke out on the weekends. I'm not against organic. I take issue with higher prices on occasion and have yet to feel the full effect of pesticides running through my system. So, I still buy regular Jif, non-organic baby carrots, and the Sesame Street endorsed strawberries from Costco.

But with this new-found dairy dream, I'd say you'd be hard pressed to find a more convincing Faux-rganic. GO ORGANIC MILK!!!

More soon,
Melanie

PS - These bags have done wonders for lasting some of my fruits and vegetables. Lettuce, not so much. But berries, carrots, asparagus, tomatoes, cucumbers... awesome.

UPDATE: Raid

2008-04-15T21:10:00.009-06:00

So, here's the thing.
I totally did it. I didn't really know I was doing it, but I did. Remember how I couldn't find the ant stream? Well, I decided to just spray on this area by the door along the bottom door jam.

Can you see the carnage (see picture above right)? Click on it and you'll see all the little dots that used to be ants that are now dissolved into tiny, black piles. I'm not saying I'm not glad that they're gone. I am. I'm really glad they're gone (I know they're blurry, but you get the idea, right).

But isn't it sad that it had to turn out like this? I mean, I totally massacred an entire family of these:

Butchered, I tell you. Look at those happy eyes. They're completely dissolved now. I didn't even know the ants were hanging out in there, really. I just sprayed because I didn't want them to come in anymore.

The only good news in this; haven't seen any ants today... dead or alive. All ants are dead or not coming in. Love that and I didn't even have to put out ant bait, but still a little sad that I had to... put them to sleep. Can you say that about ants? I just did.

Anyway, more soon and hopefully not about any ants of any sort.

Melanie

RAID!

2008-04-14T12:35:00.005-06:00

So, over the past few days we've noticed an influx of little sugar ants in our house. They're primarily in the living room, and they don't really bite, but that doesn't mean I feel like welcoming them in. Last night, Skyler and I both left a little something out to foster our own little Antville: Skyler left the ice cream he didn't want to finish, and I left the milk I animately refuse to drink at the bottom of my cereal bowl. I'm not saying it was a complete infestation this morning... probably only like 20 ants, but seriously, I'm done with them.

The problem is, I really can't figure out how they're getting in. Usually ants are tidy and truly march one by one in a line to and from their home. But it's almost like these ants are dropping in parachute style. No rhyme, reason, or marching line. Like a sneak attack, basically.

Nevertheless, I broke out the Raid Ant and Roach Killer-- Fragrance Free (and trust me when I say I couldn't be happier it's an influx of the former and not the later). Which, let's be honest, isn't really fragrance free, but whatever.

So, after spraying in places that I thought they could possibly be coming from and inhaling my fair share of fragrance free wonder, I decided to see what the Raid site had to say about it all: "A few sparse ants around your house could indicate there are thousands of additional ants hidden somewhere in a nest..." Oh, great!!! Well, where is the nest!?! I can't find the ant stream! What am I supposed to do with thousands of additional hidden ants? I don't think this single bottle of killer juice is big enough for thousands of ants.

Should I leave another homemade milk trap out and see if I could trick them in to showing me where they're coming from? The Raid people want me to buy ant bait? But I don't really want to bait them. I just don't want them to come in any more.

I mean, I live on the 3rd floor. Who wants to tell the ants to nix the extra effort and just lazy it up and infest the downstairs neighbors. Plus, I just watched Bugs Life. I don't want to kill the Flick and his entire nest of cuddly, family oriented ant friends. I just want them to stop the visits.

Well, Happy Monday, everyone.

More soon,
Melanie

Hey, Michelle...

2008-04-11T16:31:00.002-06:00

These are my real eyes... and yours. Click to enjoy those lashes full throttle :) Hooray for good mascara days.

More soon,
Melanie

Deep in the Heart

2008-04-11T12:19:00.004-06:00

Hooray for spending a few days deep in the heart of Texas!!!

After the wedding, I took a short flight to DFW to meet up with my old roommate, Whitni. She agreed to work on color correcting, cropping, and generally fixing some issues with the raw digital images I got back from my wedding. It took A LOT of hours, but all of things that I had wished we could fix are finally fixed. SO pumped about it.

This is one of my favorites. It came A LONG way for sure and Whitni worked her magic on it, to say the least. Did I mention to LOT of hours that it took to make all of these happen? A LOT, okay? I'll send you Whit's email address if you feel like doing a good deed and sending her a THANK YOU for all of her hard work these past couple of days.

What else... OH, I definitely had some Blue Bell Cookies and Cream Ice Cream as well as the Homemade Vanilla. If you're planning on making your way to the south, you won't regret working it in to your eating schedule. I've never had a better C&C in my life nor have I ever found one to contain so many JACKPOTS--you know when you did through and find a vein of cookie gold in your ice cream tub-- that's a jackpot. And they might as well rename it to be Cookie Jackpot Ice Cream. HUGE chunks of Oreo. Huge. Like, so huge you have to go back and add a little more ice cream to the cookie, huge.

PLUS, the Bluebonnets (and an Indian Paintbrush to grow on) came out late this year and they shooting up in clusters all over the Metroplex.

I just can't get enough of all of the things that are still around in TX the same way they were a decade+ ago when I was growing up there. Ebby Halliday Realtors, Braums (GO swirl cones), old school Taco Buenos, El Chico, really good brisket, Baylor Medical Center, oak trees and acorns and even the pollen, Grapevine, those worm lefto-overs on the sidewalks that show up after it rains because they were forced up on to the sidewalks and then fried there in the sun, 121, Business 114, spring thunderstorms complete with nickle-sized hail, and tons of other things that I just fill my heart with memories of being in TX.

I'm not saying Don't Mess With It... I'm just saying, it's really great in the spring time and there will always be a special place shining big and bright deep in my heart for Texas...

WHIT--Thanks again for the southern hospitality, the laughs, and the load of work you got done while I was there. Just for the jeans, the friendship, and for the fun for sure!!! I still can't believe how trampley you got with the bluebonnets, but you got so many good shots, I'm basically over it. :)

More soon,
Melanie

Where the Wind Comes Sweeping Down the Plains

2008-04-10T10:42:00.000-06:00

Just got back from OooooooooooKlahoma City and DFW, but I'll work through one state at a time.

My friend that I've known since my middle school days got married over the weekend and I went out to participate in the celebration. SUCH a beautiful wedding and definitely a weekend of great laughs all around. You'll see in the pics below the only little debacle of sorts. Banana Republic left the security tag on her wedding rehearsal dinner dress. So, 15 minutes before it started, we booked it over to the mall and had them remove it. We were a little late, but it worked out in the end.

All in all, the weather held and it was SO fun to see a handful of the high school crew. Loved it!

More soon,

Melanie

Please enjoy the music...

2008-04-09T11:12:00.002-06:00

I love the, "Please enjoy the music while your party is being reached" moment that happens when I call people's phones. Kelly has Pachelbel Canon that plays while I wait for her voicemail to come on... she's hard to reach. But for hours after that I have that song in my head. I mean, it could be worse.

Worse options:
-- I'll be there for you, cause you're there for me tooooooo - Friends Theme (thanks for taking that one off, Kel!)
-- The ants go marching _ by _ Hoorah, Hoorah
-- This land is your land, this land is my land
-- Sisters, sisters, there were never such devoted sisters
-- You're a grand old flag, you're a high flying flag

While I, personally, thoroughly enjoy "Sisters" it's a head-sticker-inner for sure!

Anyway, all of this is to simply say, please enjoy the music Skyler added to our blog. Or don't. Mute your computer when you know you're coming here to visit. These are your options.

More soon,
Melanie

Udderly Lickable...

2008-04-01T11:59:00.006-06:00

Look, I'm not usually one for puns but that one just felt so right, I couldn't bring myself to backspace. I mean, udderly? Whew! Good one.

At a recent *meandering trip to the grocery store, I stumbled upon this: Dreyer's Slow Churned Rich & Creamy (and they're not kidding) Yogurt Blends Chocolate Fudge Brownie. Quite a name aptly conjured for quite a concoction.

You should know these things:
1. Generally speaking I prefer a white ice cream with some other delectable dessert attached and it's really about the accompanying dessert. But Skyler's a chocolate lover and I though we should give it a try considering my own most sincere love of brownies.

2. I guess if you're un-American and hate frozen yogurt than you might not like this, but be a patriot and try it for once. Don't favor chocolate? You're weird, but you have other options.
I personally endorse the Strawberry and the Vanilla. Now, I'm not usually a straight-up white ice cream eater, but slap a scoop of this on to a hot, fudgey brownie or homemade apple pie and you might just die from food heaven inhalation.

3. I don't really have any idea about counting calories, fat grams, sugars, etc and what it all really means. (I do know it seems wrong to see that 30 minutes on the elliptical can't burn a 1000 calories off your thunder-ey thighs. I mean, you're working hard and sweating away to an episode of Friends you've seen three times and you step down with like 300 calories burned. What's that about? Sheesh. Anyway, I digress.) But I know what numbers are greater than other numbers. And I can tell you that there are these numbers , these numbers and then there's these numbers. You do the math. Or let the Calculighter do the math for you. I love a good marketing moment... especially when it gets you to think twice about buying another one of their alternative own products. Well done, Dreyers.

4. Paired with JOY (that would be this sugar cone, and contrary to the box pic, they're not twice the size of a toddler. So, don't be looking for a 3 foot box of sugar cones on your next *meandering) it's an amazing post-elliptical put-back-on-calorie moment.

5. 40 minutes later... post complete about the fruits of my latest grocery store *meandering. Enjoy with my compliments.

More soon, I'm sure,

Melanie

*True confession-- sometimes when I go to the grocery store, even though I have my list and I know what I'm supposed to be getting, I just like to wander around the store and see if there's anything new or exciting I need to try. Generally there isn't, but sometimes these unpredictable, joyful jaunts can yield unchartered grocery goldmines. See story above.

No Thank You, April Fools Day

2008-04-01T10:53:00.003-06:00

So, March got the better of me and the blog suffered for it. I know it seems completely impossible that I could run out of things to say, but there are times (the month of March being one of them) that I had completely run out of interesting things to say. And so it was that you didn't hear much from me other than an entirely too long post about counter tops. April will, undoubtedly, bring more adventures and excitement which I will be all too willing to share here. Fingers crossed.

April Fools Day. Second only to... no... there are no other holidays I despise. This one's it. I cannot stand practical jokes or scaring people or playing on people's hopes and/or fears even for a day that celebrates these things. The past two years I've asked Skyler to commit that there will be no practical joking or April Fools Day elaborate events of any kind. Kill joy? Perhaps, but it's for the good of the relationship, I assure you.

Sense of humor I have. Laughter for balls to the crotch or "I'm Pregnant (wink) and getting a grandmothers hopes up" falsehoods... well, I guess my sense of humor does maintain an out of bounds territory. Also, jokes about how huge my @ss is... also out of bounds. Thanks for asking. But good use of time at Google the past few weeks, I'm sure.

Anyway, I guess I'm done clowning on my least favorite holiday-- poor sport that I am. And just to show that I still have much love for those of you who adore this day, (as long as you keep it away from me) here's a list of the top 100 AFD jokes of all time.

More soon,
Melanie

PS - Juli... that wasn't an early April Fools Day posting. You just got what you asked for. You're welcome. And for the record, I love the kissy pic and you can use it on a new facebook or myspace account if you want. Permission granted :)

My Dearest Juli!

2008-03-31T18:26:00.005-06:00

My Dearest Juli. This blogs for you!

This evening on the telephone Juli made mention that I have never posted anything to the infamous skylanie blog. Let it be know from this point forward that I am not just sitting on the couch sipping a coke as my wife slaves away at the computer retelling the story of our lives. Not that you (Juli) were implying that I am a lazy sloth.

I hear that you have a myspace and a facebook profile (see attached myspace self kiss the camera pic as evidence) but riddle me this where o' where could your blog be located? LOL am I right or what. Please email me the link to your blog page so I can be as popular as the "I have thousands of Blogging Buddies" Tammy Adams. I mean go easy on the links, Popular.

More fun to happen on my next post, stay tuned.

Skyler Bird Gardner

Solid!

2008-03-20T09:54:00.010-06:00

Summary before the story:
We got new kitchen countertops today--solid surface wonderment. Hooray. The rest of this text is just gravy on top of that one sentence. :)

Some of you may know about the Counter top Fiasco of 2007. For those of you who don't and for the sake of all-things-journal-esque, here it is...

Picture in your head, if you will, a newly married couple preparing to move in to their new abode. They're brimming with anticipation and anxious to be settled in. The unseen hours of unpacking, organization, decision making, building / rebuilding, etc. have yet to encroach or mar the initial impression on their overly-eager psyches.

We look to the new wife who has turned her attention to the kitchen. Sufficient to say, they live in a condo with a condo-sized kitchen complete with condo-sized counter space-- the perfect space for a two pack of people. She steps to the largest counter and encounters a butcher block roughly the size of Manhattan. Not to be deterred from the task of move-in, she's prepared to heft and haul the wooden germville to the dumpster and hurl it to the depths of the dump.

She tries to pick it up only to find that this monstrosity of sad-making timber had been glued to the counter. Subsequently, she realizes that this germ-fest overtakes a good 1/3 of the main counter.

"I might die. This disease-ridden surface is overtaking the perfect two-pack of counter space. What to do?" distraught new wife asks.

"We'll just soak it in bleach," offers the still-confident new husband.

This initial solution does not sit well with the new wife. She just wants it gone. Is that so wrong? She wants her counter top back and to be rid of sickness-city.

"It's not just about the diseases, it wrecks the space, basically."

With a reluctant but willing sigh, the husband offers to cut the adhesive and pry it off. HER HERO!!

Now this is a tale of a chore that I won't regale you with, but know that it was more than difficult to discharge the dirty-deed-doer from his epoxy-bound domicile. But the new husband prevailed and was able to get the entirety of the butcher block removed from the counter and their sight forever. Unfortunately, the last chuck to be pried up took with it a sample of it's former dwelling in the form of our laminate counter top. SO CLOSE to perfection.

"How about new counters?"

"Done and done," she said happily.

Which brings me to today... and, come to find out, tomorrow. Our new solid surface, Corian-esque counter tops are being installed right at this very moment. While they should have been finished today, the installers have to come back tomorrow to finish the backsplash because they measured incorrectly. Oops. But other than that, Aspen Pepper is completely installed... almost.

I'll take pictures later and update the post, but if you're bored and want to call, I'm here hanging out while my (aka. new wife) NEW COUNTER TOPS are being installed. HOORAY!!! Hooray for counter top installation, installers, and installs.

More soon,
Melanie

UPDATED still sans backsplash:

Officially W/Out Jazz Blanket

2008-03-10T11:38:00.008-06:00

Now, we do have blinds, so don't think we're total and complete white trash. I mean, we thought about foiling the windows from the outside, but thought better of it and went with this option.

On with the story. You must know that when it's bright outside and you want to sleep sans sun, the beaming streaming light bouncing off the white, wooden blinds in our room and are completely insufficient to block the problematic sunshine.

Solution: For the last 2.5 months, we've had a Jazz blanket hung up in our room to block said sun in the mornings.

However, as of last week and much to Skyler's dismay, our bedroom has been officially converted from Pin-up Jazz Blanket to Hanging Drapes. (try not to love how great we look here too much. we just got back from the rec center pool. I do take showers, in case you were wondering)

But, being the trooper that he is, he even put the new silvery rod up for me. I backed the curtains with blackout material so it would even be a little more dark (thanks, Melissa, for the tips!).

And so I leave you today with a few more pictures of our "new" room complete with curtains, pillows, and the once-a-week requisite bed made moment. :)

More soon,

Melanie
PS- It's taking forever to post pictures today. Thanks, Blogger.

Happy Abby Day

2008-03-07T11:06:00.029-07:00

!!HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ABBY!!

Pillow fight!!!

Guess who's turning 4 today?

"I AM!!!" says our little Abby-Gail.

I can barely believe she's gotten this old this fast! Never the less, in honor of her special day, I thought I'd pay a tribute to this special fireball of a little lady.

"Abby is, as you know, the girliest of girls. Loves makeup, jewelry, dressing up," said her Aunt Juli.

Juli and Abby share a love of all-things readable. She has always had a great love for books and enjoys a good reading time with whoever is willing to read to her.

She loves her dance class and excels at listening to and following directions... plus she looks super cute in her dance outfit :) In combination of these last two loves, one of her favorite books is Angelina Ballerina.

Abby is headstrong and even a little boss-er-iffic. She likes to have things just so.

Abby has always been great with the puppies, Bandit and Chip. She'll get right down next to their faces, pet them gently, and say, "Hello, Chipper," or "Hi, Bandit," in the sweetest little voice, and I just think it's precious.

Her great love extends to her brothers and she is constantly chatting with William and making him smile. This would be a Dr. Suess reading from when William was just a little guy. I'm sure it gets boring hanging out in your bassinet by yourself, and he is obviously appreciating the care and attention of his great big sister!!

Abby also loves to play with Matthew. They play on the computer together and share a common bond in arts and crafts of all kinds. From play dough and painting to coloring, she's quite the crafter. PLUS, she does it all as a lefty. ;)

Abby also has a great love for the beach house and all of her grandparents. Abby and my dad have always been especially cute together. They laugh and play and he generally spoils her.

Abby loves the colors pink and purple.

Abby loves Disney Princesses. A couple of months ago she even got to go on a date with her Dad to see the Princesses on ice. She is also looking forward to going back to Disneyland with her family in a couple of months! And she can't wait to see the Princesses-- especially Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella.

Abby does not love spider or cob webs... because that means there might have been a spider there once. But she's always very brave and will even try things her big brother might shy away from.

I love this picture of Abby with her uncle Skyler when we visited downtown Edmonds last Fall. Look at that CUTE hair... and I love that she used his ears as handles to hold on. Silly lady!

Abby, as a true member of our family, loves all kinds of food. One of my favorite memories of Abby was when she was less than a year old. You could stick her in her high chair and show her the food you were going to give her and she'd get the biggest grin on her face and do this full body shake to show her excitement. SO funny.

I have always called Abby "LadyBug". I don't know why. I just have. She's a cute little bug for sure! And we still play the, "No, you're a Ladybug" game. She's just a fun, spunky, loud-talking, little lady.

Here's a little slideshow of some pictures of Abby from years past.

Love you, Ladybug! We're so lucky to have you as part of our family.

Happiest of Happy Birthdays to you! And enjoy your Hello Kitty Cake.
Love,
Aunt Melanie & Uncle Skyler

Honeymoon !!!!! - The conclusion

2008-03-04T09:33:00.021-07:00

Friday
And so it is that we made it to the next-to-the-last day of Honeymoon 2007. This day, we decided to make a trip to LaJolla. (Oh, and are you reading that "La JoLa"... because it's not. It's SO “lah-HOY-yah”. Wouldn't want you to miss out on the international sophistication of that pronunciation).

Anyway, Skyler found this really cool trail online that goes down the cliff side by the Torrey Pines Gliderport just North of the city of La Jolla. So, at the top of the bluff you can see out over the ocean in front of you and watch crazy people on gliders battle the cliff-blowing winds to your right.

The walk down was super steep and this picture (left) was actually taken as we started our descent. Obviously, another well-positioned 10-second timer shot :)

The pic to the right, a couple hundred feet before you hit the beach. I just really liked the picturesque V-shaped view to the sea.

It was still a little chilly with the wind coming off the water... this little detail will come in to play shortly... but a very exhilarating and breathtaking jaunt down to the waterfront.

There weren't very many people down on the beach at all, which I'm going to attribute to the following:
--> It was December
--> In the middle of a work day
--> With the not-quite-as-warm-as-usual CA weather

In fact, I think we saw less than 20 people the entire time we were there. So, it was nice to kind of feel like we had the Pacific to ourselves for a couple of hours.

We did manage to stumble upon Blacks Beach, which was a trip. ("Black's Beach is a de facto clothing optional beach in La Jolla, California. It is perhaps the largest nude beach in the United States and is popular with many Southern Californian nudists and naturists.")

And this leads me to one of the highlights of the trip to La Jolla. Now, remember that it was a little cold and there weren't that people on the beach, and there's really less than a mile of beach that's designated for The Nudies, but we did see two fellows, one of whom I got the biggest kick out of.

This one was my favorite. Now, it was difficult to get this shot and he's super far away, but that helps me maintain my G rating :) Um, yeah, that would be a guy with no pants... and a sweatshirt on. Because nothing says, "It's only a little chilly out here" like no pants and a hoodie.

And, truth be told, I didn't actually think he had no pants on until I saw the crack in his flesh-colored bathing suit... oh, wait.... That's just a plain, old, CRACK ATTACK. Enjoy with my compliments.

Other than taking exhibitionist pics, we took off our shoes and walked in the freezing cold water, wrote our names in the sand, buried a green and oh-so-appropriate M&M (Melanie) and a Skittle (Skyler) which I'm sure is being snacked on by a crab as this is written, and even saw the MetLife blimp.

Skyler's holding it, and I'm just in charge of pointing out that it's there. I know it gets confusing because of the boy shorts I'm wearing, but hopefully that helped.

After that, we drove around the town of La Jolla for a while and went to another beach that I don't actually know the name of, but it's just up the road from La Jolla Cove in a neighborhood.

Anyway, I really wanted a few pics with our last sunset in California before coming back to extra cold SLC. But, as I'm sure you can see, it was extra cold there as the wind was blowing and the sun was going down anyway. Just a little taste of what we were heading home to, I'm sure, but totally worth it. A stunning moment, and then my camera battery ran out. Too many tries at taking pictures of The Nudies, maybe. :)

We left from there and headed to the downtown, extra tourist-y area of La Jolla where I pulled my own nudey moment and changed into some warmer pants. Then we walked around for a while, and settled on eating at a local Mexican food place... we had high hopes that being this close to the border we'd be sure to have an exquisite eating experience. Much to my dismay, it was a bit of a disappointment, and even more of a disappointment when the check came and we realized refills were not free. ESL never told us. Awesome.

All in all, it was a really memory-filled day, and huge props to Skyler for making it happen and for enduring the most pictures taken in a day during our entire trip. Love that patient man.

More soon,

Melanie

Honeymoon !!!!

2008-02-19T10:50:00.010-07:00

Wednesday
I'm not going to lie to you, I only have a few pictures taken from Wednesday, and my memory is refusing to serve me from that day. I remember Tuesday and I remember Wednesday, but it's like Wednesday never happened.

Skyler had to do a little bit of work that morning and was oh-so-pleased to have his picture taken while he was doing it.

Bless his heart, he really tried hard to not have to do any work while we were gone, but a week's a long time when people are itching to buy lots. He sold two while we were there, but I thought it was so sweet that he would hurry and try and finish all of his business while I was getting ready for the day. Love that guy.

I got ready and then commenced a little in-bed-news-watching time while he was finishing up, obvious from the picture.

But I seriously have no idea what happened the rest of this day. So, enjoy these two pictures knowing that Wednesday was a chill day, apparently, without very many photo opps to help prompt me to remember what actually happened that day.

Oh, I just remembered something... we went shopping for Christmas presents this day. We went to the border and planned on going in to Tijuana, but the lines getting back in were CRAZY and we decided to hit the San Diego outlets, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Target instead... like we don't have those here. We went to Chiles for dinner-- gift certificate style. Ask Skyler if he ate too much of an Awesome Blossom to eat his actual meal. We also watched that Will Smith movie where he's one of the only people left on the planet. So, there you go. An official Wednesday run-down.

Thursday
Today we did a little more beach walking and shopping and then early in the evening we headed off to the Poinsettia Bowl featuring the Utah Running Utes (which I still think is a weird name) and the Navy Midshipmen (which is an even more weird name) at QualComm Stadium. I've been to this stadium before one other time-- to see Dale's last college football game-- and I remember the oddness of the field. There's a lot of space between where the field ends and the bleachers start. Our tickets were on about the 45 yrd line and we were 10 rows up... which put us peaking right over the heads of the Utes to see the game. Its wasn't horrible or anything-- just a different way to watch the game for sure.

It misted off and on the whole time we were there and, subsequently, we were a little more cool than usual, but this was my first trip to a bowl game. (That's my new Nike sweatshirt straight from the outlets especially for this game. SO glad I had it, hoodie and all.) It was a great, competitive game and we sat in the midst of a mix of Navy and Utah fans.

In fact, we basically have the entire game narrated by the 12 year old Navy fan behind us. He told us every call that was going to be made and the plays that were going to be fun and was basically an all around expert... just ask him. He was a lot more quiet when it looked like they were going to lose, and then they came back and he piped up again... and then he lost. Needless to say he gave us a lot of material to chuckle at for the bulk of the game because, seriously, he was relentless.

Afterwards we made our way to the Cheesecake Factory for appetizers and a slice of Brownie Fudge Sundae cheesecake. No regrets on that for sure! And what's another post without mention of what we ate this day, am I right?!?

More soon,
Melanie

PS- The Utes won. Forgot to mention that. :)

Honeymoon Part !!!

2008-02-18T16:53:00.015-07:00

Aren't the installments an easier read? On to the next day.

Monday
This was the day we decided to explore Coronado Island a little bit collected shells and walked through the freezing cold more. Despite the fact that 60ish degrees is a little cold for me, we slapped on our bathing suits and headed out to "our beach" for a couple of hours. We water. We played Frisbee and threw the football around.

And, of course, I set up a few more balancing-act shots. Oh, this one was masterful. 10 seconds was barely enough for me to hurl myself across this mass of sharp rocks over to Skyler in time to snag this shot of us, the rocks, and the Pacific. Job well done, right? I mean, my arm looks huge because I jumped up and clung to Skyler for the pic, but whatever. It's a memory.

This picture of Skyler cracks me up. I was trying to set up the shot and he was messing around and got this on the zoom. Entertaining, no?

We also made a few attempts at having our picture taken with our oh-so-historic hotel.
We went back to the pool for a while and just hung out and relaxed. One of the nice things about this time of year in San Diego is that there aren't 1.2 million people milling around. We had the pool area entirely to ourselves at times and, again, it was just nice to chill for a while and not have to be anywhere.

The Coronado main street is home to a variety of shops and restaurants and you could wander in and out of said shops for hours just browsing at gifts, books, etc. And we did.

Tuesday
Winner, winner...
Can you see that it says "Chicken Dinner" on that sign? This is the front of Knotts Berry Farm. We were making the trip up to LA to see Wicked this night and thought it might be fun to stop on our way up and ride a few roller coasters at the KB Farm. We both had heard great things about it and thought it would be fun.

Can I just make one complaint before I start in to a few other complaints? Where's the jam at Knotts Berry Farm and why isn't it a focal point. I mean, what else are Knotts and their Berries known for? Snoopy, apparently. You could find Snoopy and friends all over the place, but if you wanted to take your picture with a life size container of jam or even jelly, you're going to be sorely disappointed. I was. Basically, there was a kiosk OUTSIDE the park where they sold a small selection... taste test not included.

It was relatively overcast and a little more cold than the past few days had been. Bonus for us... there was almost no one in the park. Now, that could have been because of pending rain and it could have been that the park around the holidays is a little lame complete with a bizarre-o world craft fair in the Frontier Land. But whatever.

Obviously I'm not upset about this festive pic that's basically going to be used for our Gardner Holiday Pic for 2008, I'm sure. Check out the snow and the Peanuts... not to be confused with the jam. There is none in this picture, in case you were looking for it. I was.

First stop after the Peanuts pic... The Silver Bullet. This is one of those dangling feet rides that completely scares the crap out of you and essentially you think you're going to die.

I'd already written the headline for the tragedy, "Honeymooners Die in Tragic Knotts Berry Accident-- No Jam Involved."

Now, I haven't been on a roller coaster in a couple of years, but even though it was pee-your-pants-fun to ride it, this bullet ride provides the rider with an almost instantaneous headache. Worth it, but wow. I don't remember that from when I was a kid. Maybe kid bodies are immune to insta-coaster headaches, but this kids body wasn't. (PS- Trashcan setup #2 for the day, but the one other person in the park offered to take it for us. Didn't turn that down.)

Next stop...the ride that's akin to the Flashback at Six Flags... ride it once forward and then once backwards... Now, this one was actually really fun, and I didn't feel like I was going to die afterwards. Bonus, obviously.

The one from this picture I can't remember the name of either, but it was the funniest ride we went on. It totally shook us up, went a lot faster than we anticipated, and sucked the spit right out of my mouth. How can a ride like that not be funny, I ask you?
It was fun and funny. Should have gone on that one twice.

On our way out of the park we went on a mad hunt for the jam. Ultimately, we found that kiosk and then found another eclectic shop outside the Knotts Berry gates that was selling jam. But it was just like you can find in the grocery store... only a lot further away. I'm just saying, if you're going for the jam, rethink and head to Albertsons. Same thing, less Silver Bullet effect.

I'll just start with the ending on this... We made it to the historic Pantages Theater on Hollywood Blvd in Hollywood and loved an evening of Wicked. It was a great idea by Skyler and made for a memorable evening. Go. If you're thinking about it and in LA or NYC or Chicago, make it happen. It's a fun one.

The way there, we had a few more problems. We thought we'd have plenty of time to make it to dinner on the way... but we did not anticipate LA traffic or the fact that the weather was going to compound the already infamous traffic hell so drastically. Flooded freeways, stalled cars, commuter traffic, now add a Lakers game AND another event downtown that I can't remember. 2.75 hours later, we made it... to the wrong address. The tickets said one address and the confirmation information said another.

Needless to say, we were hungry, off course, and the flooded freeways had been deadlocked for hours and had tried my already thin and ever-goingly-more-transparent patience. Luckily the addresses were only 15 minutes apart and 3 hours later we made it just in time to change in the car, run through the rain, grab a sandwich from a neighboring coffee shop and scarf it down before heading in to the theater.

(That's a picture of Sky after we came out of the show. Still raining, but not nearly as much. Taken from our parking lot, you can kind of make out the Wicked signage in the background. That was the point of the pic, okay?)

But we did get to see Nat King Cole. So, that helps :) I saw it on our rush in to the theater and took a picture of it as we were rushing out with the crowd after our time at the theater.

I couldn't believe it turned out. A little skewed, but totally legible.

More soon, Melanie

And we're back... Honeymoon Part !!

2008-02-18T10:57:00.019-07:00

I'm back with Honeymoon Installment #2... More on the latest in life later.

Sunday:
Brunch at The Del is, apparently, a long running tradition for many a Sunday Brunch goer, and I'm SO glad Skyler thought to call and make reservations the night before... otherwise would would have had to wait for the Village Pizzeria to open again :)

Reservation for Gardner party of two at 11:30, please.

We strolled in to one of the most lavish brunch spreads I've ever seen in my life. I'm sure we could have extra gotten our $$$ worth if we would have focused on the alcohol and seafood options, but there were so many other delectable items to choose from that the seafood-drunk idea was quickly slashed by other savory sweets and treats.

Brunch was luxuriously laid out in the historic Crown Room (any guess as to why they'd call it that?) and we were seated at the very front of the restaurant with a splendid view of the hotel grounds, beautiful blue sky, and a tall glass of fresh squeeze orange juice... plus chocolate milk for Skyler.

After trips to one of the best on-the-spot omelet makers, French toast, pineapple, oatmeal, yogurt, waffles with coconut and chocolate sauce, crispy bacon, sausage, ham, etc. etc. etc., I made my way to the dessert area for a tasters-choice moment. So what if they only put the small plates out for the dessert bar. I'm going to need a full-sized mother load of a plate to accommodate the sampling that needs to happen and I know just where to get one.

And the winner of the MKG Sampler's Choice Award for best dessert is... THE BEST bread pudding. It was by far the most delightful I've ever had in my life with a vanilla sauce on the side that could have enticed me to lick the ladle clean before waddling back to my seat to consume The Spread. I'm not really a bread pudding fan. I'd much prefer a chocolate option. But I tried it anyway because it was part of my no-dessert-left-behind initiative. And it was a miracle dessert moment in my life. More custard that bread and a smattering of nutmeg that made me think of the custard my dad makes that I LOVE.

(This would be a picture of me trying to recover from The Great Gorge of 2007. I'm utilizing the tried and true the lean-over method of buffet-keep-eating. Simply lean over and make your stomach think there's still room for those bites you really want to taste again. Because the minute you sit up, it's all over. And, I'm SO full here. Why would you want to take a picture of that? Skyler's Choice Award for Best Over-Eater, I'm sure).

Sunday Afternoon
I have to say, the Google Maps on Skyler's phone really made the in-state travel not only bearable, but enjoyable. I played navigator while he drove us all around. I'd never been to the San Diego Temple grounds, so he surprised me and took me up to see it.

I wish I would have brought my tiny tripod with us. I can't tell you how many shots I set up by balancing on a light post, rock, etc. Anyway, I know are heads are totally cut on if this one, but I really love it for some peculiar reason. Partly because it's a great picture of Sky, and partly because if just reminds me of a blissful day in Southern California when we had no where we really needed to be but with each other.

Mid 60s, blue blue skies, and a bright white temple made for a few great photo opps and an incredibly peaceful walk.

The grounds were set up for Christmas and we noticed lights in the palm trees. Apparently they have a Temple Lights San Diego style as well as a Nativity and special singing groups that perform nightly during the month of December.

We met the cutest missionary grandpa when we were there. He was tall and thin with sharp facial features and wore, what appeared to be, a Fedora of sorts. He quizzed us on the usual "Do you know anything about where you are right now" questions.

After speaking with him for a time and finding out a little more about this particular temple (it features a beautiful atrium in the middle of the structure and between the two largest spires), I started to notice his hat again. This further inspection provided me with a good chuckle as, not only was it a dapper looking hat, but it was a trendy Quicksilver hat.

Only in Southern California.

We left there and drove out to Mission Beach for no particular reason. Just figured we'd wander around there for a little while since we weren't too far away at the time. Lots of interesting people watching for sure. We also watched these kids on an outdoor, stationary surfing apparatus. I don't know how else to explain it, okay, and I didn't take any pictures. But know that it was kind of cool to watch them ride the wave, wipe out, and get back in line to do it all again.

Obviously, this in another stellar shot set up on a trash can or something so I could set the camera to 10 seconds and then jump in before it went off. Luckily Skyler's patient with my picture taking escapades. Not a great one, but it's the only one of us at Mission Beach. So, enjoy. We did.

More soon,
Melanie

Honeymoon Part !

2008-02-08T14:57:00.001-07:00

I’m not going to be here for my usual Sunday post. SO, I thought I’d do a little something now while I should be packing for Anaheim (CHA – the show in California that I’ve gone to every year for the past six. That’s the one). More for the sake of journaling than for entertainment, I decided I’d traipse back through some pictures and stories from our honeymoon.

My cousin, Siska, asked me this week, “How was the honeymoon?” And I’m thinking, there’s never a good answer to this question and the topic is sometimes a little awkward... especially for Siska..., but whatever. I usually ended up, as on this occasion, saying something like, “It was really good. We had something planned just about ever day, but not too much planned to feel overwhelmed and had time to just relax and chill.” That became my standard answer. It had been a while since someone asked me and I realized that I was forgetting details.

As a forewarning, you should know I’m going to attempt to remember something that happened every day. Enjoy, or don’t. Like I said, this is more for my remembering that for anything else so it'll inevitably be wordy, even more so than it already is.

Saturday: We had an uneventful and quick flight to San Diego, snagged a rental car after dealing with the fact that they didn’t have the one I booked online… always a pleasure… and made our way to Coronado Island. It was only about 15 minutes from the airport, but it was dark by the time we got there. Coming over on the bridge, you could see all the way to our hotel, the Del Coronado, which was totally lit up with Christmas lights.

Apparently they do this every year and I'm pretty sure 1.2 million people in the area have made a tradition of going out to visit. Now, this light display may pale in comparison to the lights at Temple Square, but where else can you take a stroll past Christmas lights and continue your walk onto white, sandy beaches. I’m sure there are places, but this one is exceptional. Being that we arrived on a Saturday night, people had come out in droves and we thought we were going to have problems checking in, but the helpful parking guard that was turning the usual-goers away from actually parking at The Del, noted our oh-so-worthy Chevy Malibu and let us, the paying customers, through.

The Del has a really amazing history and supposedly it's haunted. We didn't see anything, but you can check it out for yourself. Truly, the hotel is magnificent and stepping in to the lobby it feels like you could be stepping back in to a turn-of-the-century hotel... except for all of the up-to-date outfits and new fangled electronic devices ;) Apparently I didn't take any pictures of the lobby, but here's a shot from the day we were leaving. Check out those stunningly blue California skies! It hovered between 55 and 65 the whole time we were there.

The view from our room was right over the pool and beyond that we could see the ocean. It was less than a two minute walk from our room to feet-on-the-beach. Totally awesome. Room 2245, if memory serves, and it probably doesn't in this case because it's a # and I'm horrible at remembering #s. I digress...

We ate that night at a pizza place we saw on the main street on our way in. It was called the Village Pizzeria. Crazy good food. We ate there two more times before we left. Unadventurous of us, I know, but if you'd had a taste of the Mediterranian Salad (Cucumber, tomato, kalamata olives, Sicilian olives, feta cheese, fresh Mozzarella cheese, olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette), you'd have gone back, too. The pizza was delicious as well and we also managed to devour some fried zucchini, but the MS sans olives was awesome. Go. I'm telling you, go. But the two of us could not even come close to finishing a family size, FYI. So, take some friends and gorge yourself like we did. Totally worth the swolen belly, I tell you. And besides, it's full of cucumbers, tomatoes, and motz. Nothing wrong with any of that.

Okay. It's getting late and I have things to pack. I'll be back to finish this, probably sometime after I get back next week. Maybe next Sunday. Fingers crossed.

More soon,
Melanie

Over the Tip Top Tizzle

2008-02-06T09:18:00.000-07:00

I'm telling you, it might just be the death of me. I just don’t do well with incessant noises and repetition. I mean, I love rap music as much as the next white girl, but there are only so many times I can hear, “I’m down with OPP, yeah you know me.” ((oh, and if you want a good chuckle, try singing that one in complete English {Yes, you know me} like a choir member. Good times)) Are there even any other words to the OPP song? I think that’s pretty much it. All I’m saying is, even with the heater running and door open to the laundry room where the washer and the dryer and going, I can barely get past the chronic chirp of the smoke detector.

“Why don’t you just quit your whining and change the battery, lazy.”

Well, what if the answer to that is that I have an extreme case of vertigo and have fallen at least a dozen times climbing up on to chairs—and what if one time I even had to get stitches after one of the more harrowing falls? None of that’s true, but what if it was?

The truth is this: imagine, if you will, the highest point of your most vaulted of ceilings. Are you seeing it? Now add three feet. That’s how high this smoke detector is and even on the tip toppiest point of the ladder we have, it’s impossible to reach it. Impossible, I tell you.

If we can’t find a Ladder Rentals by tonight, my second consideration is a shot-gun, BANG, what’s up with that thang.” I mean, as long as we’re talking rap, I’ll toss in a pinch of Salt N’ Peppa. POW!

Okay. I’ve successfully derailed at least three times throughout this post. So, I suppose it’s time to close. Hold up, waiiiiiit, all you {people} who be thinkin’ we soft… Thanks, Dr. Dre feat. Snoop. Good times.

No, that really is it.

More soon, Melanie

MORE NOW... UPDATE: I left to run a couple of errands and when I came back the chipping had ceased. And secretly I hoped it would come back because I had already called Skyler at work and regaled him with stories of chirping horror, and cautioned that he wasn’t going to be able to take it either…

And by the time be walked in the door it had decided to cease and desist. Perhaps it heard the threats of a shot-gun wielding crazy. Who knows, but know that it happened. It chirped. For an annoying amount of time yesterday. And now the light is back to go-ahead green, but it was red yesterday. Red, I tell you.

“Word to your mother.” (V. Ice)

A Note To Sweet Face

2008-02-03T21:44:00.000-07:00

So, I found out this week that my cutest of cute nephews reads this blog. And so it is that I decided to give a shout-out to that little guy. I mean, it was his 5 1/2 month birthday this week. So, Happy 5 and 6 month Birthday, Sweet Face.

A few things about Matthew:
--I was the first person to know that HE was a HE. That's right, first eyes on the ultra sound that said, "Girls don't have them." So, I feel like I had an early connection to him. Add to that-- I lived at his house in sunny AZ from the time he was 2-4 months and just loved to lug this tank of a baby around. (over 9 lbs when he was born and just kept getting bigger. He's still super solid but not so many chubby rolls :).

-- He has HUGE hands and feet, always has... especially considering how old he is, and I firmly he basically has super human strength that comes from said man hands.

-- He's always been a thinker. Even has a thinker face that he puts on where he kind of sticks his tongue out like an thought extension antenna. I think it helps his work stuff out faster and better. Just have to get that tongue moving, you know?

-- He loves crafts: Play dough, glue, crayons, scissors, pencils... assemble these supplies and this guy is so in. I don't even know how we could be related.

(This is a deceiving picture of the hands, but you can see the work face and the impromptu craft... which brings me to my next tidbit about this QT. He's a busy body. Always likes to have something to do and needs to be involved. This is a picture of him with the straight pins my mom was using for a wedding sewing project. She found him one of Courtney's pillows and let him to to town on creating little pin patterns in the pillows. Thanks Court!)

--Sometimes he can be tentative about new things. But, lots of times he finds out that he actually really likes those new things. I'll tell you what he never got used to, though. The Frosty the Snowman that sang a song and danced if you pushed the button. I think I got it for their family one Christmas when he was maybe 3. Hated it. Absolutely hated it and wouldn't even go in the garage where it was housed at non-holiday times, he couldn't stand it so much. Lots of days he can be extra brave, but he did not live to be brave about the snowman. Don't worry. I'm pretty sure it no longer haunts the garage. Pretty sure that one melted one winter.

-- This guy LOVES his grandma. Has for years. LOVES. Oh, it's much reciprocated, for sure. They cook and sing and play until they're wiped out. He basically runs her raged and she loves it.

--He likes to touch the inside of his mom's arm (or grandma's arm) when he's calling asleep... or really any time you'll let him.
I think he just finds it comforting, but he's just done it since he was really little and still does it even though he's getting bigger.

-- He's kind and sensitive and is a helpful big brother. He loves to laugh and play and read. He can write his own name and lots of other words. He loves to learn and go on play dates and generally likes to be busy doing anything and everything you'll allow him to.

-- He loves his time on the computer. Loves Spiderman. Used to love Thomas Train, but has recently traded the TT for legos... and now LOVES legos. Loves.

All in all, I just LOVE this guy. Have for years. He has SUCH a cute face and a great laugh and I'm so glad to have this little man in my life. Wish I could see him more than I do! Keep being great, Sweet Face! And thanks for reading the blog.

More soon,
Aunt Melanie

What the...

2008-02-01T11:03:00.001-07:00

What the FEBRUARY!!!

When They Say Premium

2008-02-01T10:27:00.000-07:00

** I actually started this blog a while ago, but didn't get around to finishing it until today. So, here we go.

True Confession - I ate an entire stay-fresh pack of super salty, deliciously crisp, Premium Saltine Crackers today.

I tell you this not only because I can barely believe I just kept cranking right though the sleeve until the once-filled white plastic rectangle was completely depleted and deflated, but simply to tell you this new-found truth:

I sincerely believe that Saltines are one of the only products in the entire world that you could chew up, spit out, re-salt, re-bake, and then re-eat again as basically the same tasting consumable. May make you feel a little dry heavish, but I'm almost tempted to make a batch of re-do Saltines just to prove my point. I really think it would work. If only I had a cracker form.

And if the thought of regurgitated and re-baked goodies has you thinking, "Hey, it's been too long since my last crackery cracker attack, remember this: Accept no substitutions for the Original Premuim Saltine Cracker (shown above).

You want the blue box. Not the Western Family brand, Low Sodium, Fat Free, Multigrain, or the package you get off of the soup counter. Go for the full sleeve of blue box Premium. I peppered the saltine fest with carrots and some water. Mmmmmmm. Sure to keep you all snacked up... and scurvy free. Because every good sailor knows that crackers alone makes for falling out teeth and fingers falling off. I think we all learned something today.

More soon,
Melanie

Living These Words

2008-01-28T09:09:00.000-07:00

President Gordon B. Hinckley 1910-2008

"Be Grateful. Be Smart. Be Clean. Be True. Be Humble. Be Prayerful."

“This is the great day of decision for each of us. For many it is the time of beginning something that will go on for as long as you live. I plead with you: don’t be a scrub! Rise to the high ground of spiritual, mental, and physical excellence. You can do it. You may not be a genius. You may be lacking in some skills. But so many of us can do better than we are now doing…We are people with a present and with a future. Don’t muff your opportunities. Be excellent.

You will find your greatest example in the Son of God. I hope that each of you will make Him your friend. I hope you will strive to walk in His paths, extending mercy, blessing those who struggle, living with less selfishness, reaching out to others.

Let us all try to stand a little taller, rise a little higher, be a little better. Make the extra effort. You will be happier. You will know a new satisfaction, a new gladness in your heart.

May the Lord bless each of us as we walk the path to perfection that the Lord has asked us to walk—with hope, with faith, and with that charity which “is the pure love of Christ” (Moro. 7:47).”

-->Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Quest for Excellence,” Ensign, Sep 1999

The legacy of his own personal quest for excellence, his words, his testimony have moved my soul and brought peace and comfort to thousands around the world. I am grateful to the Lord for building up this righteous example; his tireless work ethic, thirst for knowledge, and love and respect of all people, that if I could only partially emulate, my life would be very well lived. Goodness radiated in all that he did and I am grateful for the many years we had to live and learn under his great tutelage.

If he only left with us his emphasis on temple worship, attendance, and building, it would be a life well-lived. I can remember keenly the excitement of every conference after the first small temples were announced, wondering with anticipation where the next temples would be built. Unique temple buildings like the Hong Kong, Manhattan, and the rebuilding of the Nauvoo Temples specifically stand out in my mind. I always thought of the celebrations that must have taken place in the congregations throughout the globe, then finding out that there was a temple set to be built and more easily accessible to them. Truly a marvelous effort to move the work of this Church forward.

After the Spring conference of 1998 I remember reading the talk he gave at the April priesthood session, "Living Worthy of the Girl You Will Someday Marry." I've always remembered the words of this talk and marveled at his ability to be so spot-on in his checklist and so driven in marking the paths to happiness:

"She will wish to be married to someone who loves her, who trusts her, who walks beside her, who is her very best friend and companion. She will wish to be married to someone who encourages her in her Church activity and in community activities which will help her to develop her talents and make a greater contribution to society. She will want to be married to someone who has a sense of service to others, who is disposed to contribute to the Church and to other good causes. She will wish to be married to someone who loves the Lord and seeks to do His will...

Make yourself worthy of the loveliest girl in all the world. Keep yourself worthy through all the days of your life. Be good and true and kind one to another. There is so much of bitterness in the world. There is so much of pain and sorrow that come of angry words. There is so much of tears that follow disloyalty. But there can be so much of happiness if there is an effort to please and an overwhelming desire to make comfortable and happy one’s companion...

The truest mark of your success in life will be the quality of your marriage...

I could wish for you nothing more wonderful than the love, the absolute total love, of a companion of whom you are proud and worthy in every respect. This choice will be the most important of all the choices you make in your life. I pray that heaven may smile upon you in the choice you make, that you may be guided, that you may live without regret."

I found great comfort in these words when I went back and read them shortly before Skyler and I got engaged... especially because I agonized so much about making the "right" decision. The thought of a prophetic prayer being offered in that choice felt comforting to me and I appreciated the opportunity to go back and revisit these words again today.

Lastly, I am grateful for the testimony of living prophets that I gained during his presidency. I attended a devotional one Tuesday morning my sophomore year at BYU. I can remember that I wanted to go, but I had a lot going on and could have filled that hour with a myriad of tasks to accomplish. But for some reason I felt compelled to go. So, I packed up my bags and headed across campus with the droves of other students, to hear the words of President Hinckley. Without looking at my journal, I can't recall the topic he spoke on that day, but I do remember this experience:

While sitting high in the rafters of the Marriott Center, after settling in, I pulled out a book and was using the wait time to study. I was looking down and didn't see him come in. But at once a calm fell over the crowd and everyone stood up as he slowly made his way across the vast, concrete floor to the awaiting stage and podium. Somewhere in the silence of this great congregation, truth was witnessed to my soul-- we have a living prophet today who represents and speaks on behalf of the Lord. Overwhelmed, tears filled my eyes as this truth brought swellings of great gratitude. I knew that President Hinckely was a prophet. I forever look back on that day as a definitive moment in, again, solidifying my testimony of this Gospel by witnessing truthfulness of the doctrines and principles taught-- this time of the validity and strength of the Priesthood and the reality of living prophets.

My thoughts and prayers are with the many who mourn the loss of this great man, this prophet of God, who did so much to move the Church forward without embarrassment or apology and amidst great personal sacrifice.

More soon,
Melanie

Full official statement on his passing.

One Return Deserves Another...

2008-01-27T21:30:00.000-07:00

I'm sure there were more interesting things that happened this week. I'm just sure of it, but unfortunately, my this-weeks-memories are being blocked by the glow of our latest purchase. After a trip to Trolley Square and a few minor returns to Williams Sonoma, we found out we could take our Merch Return $$$ from said return and use it at Pottery Barn. We had a gift certificate there, too, and decided to go take a look.

Now, can I just start by saying that I'm horrible at Pottery Barn. I just don't know how to work it. I mean, I know someone does. There's a monumental amount of people roaming the aisle-less, high priced, home comfort retailer. But seriously, take this tree bowl with apple piece for instance; I feel like a Keebler Elf and his wife, perhaps the sister of Johnny Appleseed, might be able to make this work.

"Because, what you're going to want to do is find a tree ring. You hollow it out and add a handful of green apples and...some over -sized marbles. That's it. That's your recipe for decoration success. It's so obvious. Basically everyone can see it but you."
--Karen Appleseed-Elf (with a slightly judgmental tone, obviously)

I'm just saying, unless I'm design lifting straight out of a magazine or someone else is doing it for me, I consistently fail to see the possibility of home decor objects such as these (oh, and BTW - the "bowl" sans apples is $79. I'll take two).

Anyway, back to the real life story, we bought a mirror. Did I say that already? We did. The Eagan mirror... with 6 panels... not to be confused with the Eagan Multipanle Mirror with 25 panels, but that one is 6 times the price. So, it all evens out, doesn't it?

The digressions continue, but I'm back again. The Winter Sale is on at Pottery Barn, and we eye-spied this awesome mirror. Luckily, and surprisingly, they had one in stock-- minus the box, but we'll take what we can get, so we took it and got it.

There's a gap between the cabinets in the kitchen above the sink and said-gap was screaming to be filled. If the kitchen could have been built on an exterior wall, I think it would have had an actual window. But, since it didn't, we decided an extra reflective window would be sufficient for our needs.

Eventually I'm hoping to add a little window ledge below to hold my rings just in case I decide to eventually get to doing those dishes.

Oh, and in case you were wondering what your next home-decorating purchase should be? It's the Hercules Hooks. These things have made hanging heavy pictures and, oh-so-apparent, metal mirrors a cinch... "Holds, hangs and secures them all! No hammers, nails or drills!" And, that is so true. Skyler happened upon these when we were executing some other returns at Bed, Bath, and Beyond, but I'm sure these as-seen-on-TV wonders can be found all over the place. Super solid find and you can even see the demo online. Oh, the goodness of the web.

Enjoy and more soon,

Melanie & Skyler