What talented kitties we have!!! :)
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Dear Phoenix, You Are So Beautiful!
Patrick and I just returned from a much needed vacation to Phoenix, where most of my family lives. It was almost 5 days of beautiful sunny weather and fun times spent with family (and quality do-nothing time).
We flew in on Thursday and did a whole bunch of nothing. We watched movies and spent the day with my mom, Philip, and my dad when he got home from work.
On Friday, we went shopping with my mom and Philip and got the ingredients for the amazing feast that Patrick and I prepared with the help of the fam. We made shrimp summer rolls as an appetizer, and Patrick made a pork dumpling soup that was absolutely delicious. We ate entirely too much that night! :)
Saturday, we went to the open house for the new water treatment plant where Jeremiah is the Superintendent. It's a really nice facility. We went with my dad and my grandparents, Grandpa Jones and Verla. It's so strange to see my grandpa aging. He's 90 years old now, but when I think of Grandpa Jones, I think of an ornery old fart who is a gruff teddy bear, full of life. In my mind, my grandpas will always be around, since they always have been. I've had 7 grandmas, so it really is strange to see my grandpas getting oooolllldddd.
After the open house, we went on a double-date with my brother, Jonathan, and his wife, Ashlee. We went bowling and ate pizza. I was bowling left-handed quite a bit to be nice to my right arm (old injury from July), and still bowled mostly over 100. Not too shabby! Patrick and Jonathan were the star bowlers of the night, and Ashlee consistently kicked my butt, too.
That night, we hung out with Jeremiah and his kids, then stayed up way too late talking with Jeremiah and Christy. They were sweet enough to stay up past their normal bedtime to hang out with us. Unfortunately, their daughter got sick that night, so they didn't get much sleep.
Sunday was more family time. Jonathan's family came over to my parents' house for dinner, and it is always fun to spend time with them. Grandpa Mecham came over, too. I'm glad we got to see him on this trip. My mom's friend, Susan, came over for dinner, too, and she let Patrick take her Harley for a ride. I loved the grin on his face when he came back in the house. I could tell he needed and appreciated that little bit of therapy.
Today, we spent the morning hanging out at my parents' house. We spent some good time sitting on the porch swing soaking in the sun. It felt so amazing to have some warmth, knowing we'd be coming back to nasty freezing temperatures in a matter of hours. We also had sushi for lunch. My dad met us at the restaurant, and we ate again, entirely too much. It was so good!
My friend, Jenny, picked us up and took us to the airport. I try to visit her when we go down to Phoenix, so even though it was a short visit, it was entertaining and quite nice. That girl can talk!
And it was 28˚ when we arrived in Salt Lake City. Yuck.
We're contemplating moving down to Phoenix. Year round motorcycle and softball weather is very appealing.
Thanks for the great visit, my wonderful family!!! I love you all, and I love seeing how much your kids have grown.
We flew in on Thursday and did a whole bunch of nothing. We watched movies and spent the day with my mom, Philip, and my dad when he got home from work.
On Friday, we went shopping with my mom and Philip and got the ingredients for the amazing feast that Patrick and I prepared with the help of the fam. We made shrimp summer rolls as an appetizer, and Patrick made a pork dumpling soup that was absolutely delicious. We ate entirely too much that night! :)
Saturday, we went to the open house for the new water treatment plant where Jeremiah is the Superintendent. It's a really nice facility. We went with my dad and my grandparents, Grandpa Jones and Verla. It's so strange to see my grandpa aging. He's 90 years old now, but when I think of Grandpa Jones, I think of an ornery old fart who is a gruff teddy bear, full of life. In my mind, my grandpas will always be around, since they always have been. I've had 7 grandmas, so it really is strange to see my grandpas getting oooolllldddd.
After the open house, we went on a double-date with my brother, Jonathan, and his wife, Ashlee. We went bowling and ate pizza. I was bowling left-handed quite a bit to be nice to my right arm (old injury from July), and still bowled mostly over 100. Not too shabby! Patrick and Jonathan were the star bowlers of the night, and Ashlee consistently kicked my butt, too.
That night, we hung out with Jeremiah and his kids, then stayed up way too late talking with Jeremiah and Christy. They were sweet enough to stay up past their normal bedtime to hang out with us. Unfortunately, their daughter got sick that night, so they didn't get much sleep.
Sunday was more family time. Jonathan's family came over to my parents' house for dinner, and it is always fun to spend time with them. Grandpa Mecham came over, too. I'm glad we got to see him on this trip. My mom's friend, Susan, came over for dinner, too, and she let Patrick take her Harley for a ride. I loved the grin on his face when he came back in the house. I could tell he needed and appreciated that little bit of therapy.
Today, we spent the morning hanging out at my parents' house. We spent some good time sitting on the porch swing soaking in the sun. It felt so amazing to have some warmth, knowing we'd be coming back to nasty freezing temperatures in a matter of hours. We also had sushi for lunch. My dad met us at the restaurant, and we ate again, entirely too much. It was so good!
My friend, Jenny, picked us up and took us to the airport. I try to visit her when we go down to Phoenix, so even though it was a short visit, it was entertaining and quite nice. That girl can talk!
And it was 28˚ when we arrived in Salt Lake City. Yuck.
We're contemplating moving down to Phoenix. Year round motorcycle and softball weather is very appealing.
Thanks for the great visit, my wonderful family!!! I love you all, and I love seeing how much your kids have grown.
Labels:
cooking/baking at home,
family,
fine dining,
plans,
story
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Back to my roots
Ah, the new year...
Weight to lose, debt to eliminate, trips to go on, money to make, etc., etc. It is a little bit overwhelming to think about all that I would like to do this year. And all that Patrick would like to do. And of course there is also the list of things we want to do together.
So, I will return to my roots and find comfort in food. :) I found some great lists of recipes that are healthy (a lot of them, anyway), and quite affordable.
I really like the idea of getting a meal going in my crock pot before I go to work and voila!, dinner is ready when I get home. And I love the idea of making great recipes, freezing servings, and having meals ready to be heated up and devoured at any given time. Do you know how many unnecessary trips to Taco Bell, McDonalds, the grocery store, and the number of frozen pizzas we eat will be vastly reduced?!?!
This would be a great transition to make in our kitchen at home. It will save us time and money, and help us trim our waistlines too! Apparently one of our Christmas gifts was an extra inch or so in the belly-area. I'm not so happy about that, and would love to exchange it for a better gift...
Weight to lose, debt to eliminate, trips to go on, money to make, etc., etc. It is a little bit overwhelming to think about all that I would like to do this year. And all that Patrick would like to do. And of course there is also the list of things we want to do together.
So, I will return to my roots and find comfort in food. :) I found some great lists of recipes that are healthy (a lot of them, anyway), and quite affordable.
I really like the idea of getting a meal going in my crock pot before I go to work and voila!, dinner is ready when I get home. And I love the idea of making great recipes, freezing servings, and having meals ready to be heated up and devoured at any given time. Do you know how many unnecessary trips to Taco Bell, McDonalds, the grocery store, and the number of frozen pizzas we eat will be vastly reduced?!?!
This would be a great transition to make in our kitchen at home. It will save us time and money, and help us trim our waistlines too! Apparently one of our Christmas gifts was an extra inch or so in the belly-area. I'm not so happy about that, and would love to exchange it for a better gift...
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Happy Anniversary
Today is our 2 year anniversary. In some ways, it has gone so incredibly fast! In other ways, it seems like it's been 5 years. :) We spent the day working at our jobs, doing side jobs, working on Mary Kay, making banana bread, doing laundry, and the night is still young. It hasn't been the most romantic day, yet it has been full of love and gratitude. How I love hearing my hubby tell me how much he loves me and that I make his heart beat kind of funny!
Here is our list of the top 10 things we've experienced, learned, etc. in the past 2 years of marriage:
1. "They" were right...LOVE DOES CONQUER ALL!!!
2. When God is involved, life is so much easier, and love is so much better.
3. Having 3 kitties really is like having 2 kids. Sometimes 1...sometimes 4. Depends on the day.
4. Sometimes the littlest things make the biggest difference.
5. Patrick makes the BEST biscuits and gravy. Ever.
6. If you need something fixed, something heavy picked up, or a wise-crack, just call Patrick.
7. Alison can communicate with ducks via fart. And she gets Patrick. Both very rare skills.
8. We love Redbox.
9. Dreams keep you moving. We both have big dreams, and truly support each other in reaching those dreams.
10. Two years is just the beginning. We're looking forward to the rest of our lives and eternity together.
We want to thank our family and friends for their support over the last almost 3 years of knowing each other. Through thick and thin, your support has helped us to grow, and for that we are grateful!
Here is our list of the top 10 things we've experienced, learned, etc. in the past 2 years of marriage:
1. "They" were right...LOVE DOES CONQUER ALL!!!
2. When God is involved, life is so much easier, and love is so much better.
3. Having 3 kitties really is like having 2 kids. Sometimes 1...sometimes 4. Depends on the day.
4. Sometimes the littlest things make the biggest difference.
5. Patrick makes the BEST biscuits and gravy. Ever.
6. If you need something fixed, something heavy picked up, or a wise-crack, just call Patrick.
7. Alison can communicate with ducks via fart. And she gets Patrick. Both very rare skills.
8. We love Redbox.
9. Dreams keep you moving. We both have big dreams, and truly support each other in reaching those dreams.
10. Two years is just the beginning. We're looking forward to the rest of our lives and eternity together.
We want to thank our family and friends for their support over the last almost 3 years of knowing each other. Through thick and thin, your support has helped us to grow, and for that we are grateful!
Saturday, December 12, 2009
The Spirit of CHRISTmas
We've had some great in-depth conversations about Christmas in our home lately.
Patrick has fond memories of Christmas as a young child, when the simplest things captured his imagination.
I have fond memories of delivering boxes of little presents, a turkey, other fun food items including baked goods my mom helped us make, leaving them on the doorstep of a family that needed a little extra something, knocking on their door on Christmas Eve, and running away before we could be discovered.
Christmas has its own unique memories and feelings for every individual, and quite often, as adults, the commercial gift-giving aspect of Christmas can taint what this holiday is all about. It begins with all of the stores setting up their Christmas displays in the middle of November, if not earlier, and continues on through Christmas Day with the frustrating traffic and business at stores, the impatience of other shoppers, the list of presents to give that cost more than the allotted budget, thousands of commercials telling us to buy-buy-buy, etc. Christmas can easily become a huge list of wants presented to Santa accompanied by the expectations of society, the media, our social network, and our family. The simple need of feeling and expressing pure love to everyone we encounter is often overlooked, or overshadowed by the superficial flurry.
As a young couple planning on starting a family very soon, we have discussed what we would like Christmas to be all about in our home. Our hope is to make sure that the Spirit of Christ is greater than the Spirit of Christmas. Simplicity and Service will be our focus.
I've heard some great ideas over the last month from other families and my own in how to refocus Christmas.
My parents have expressed that they would like their children and grandchildren to come up with some act of service and love to do for someone this season and to write them a letter expressing what we did and how we feel about the experience. I love this idea, although it can be a challenge to choose what we want to do. :)
An older couple from church shared that this year they aren't giving gifts to their children or grandchildren, and aren't accepting gifts from them either. As a family, they are going to pick names from and Angel Tree, find gifts for those individuals who are in need, and give as a family to someone else.
A guy who eats at the restaurant where I work has 2 little boys, and he and his wife have taught their boys that Santa isn't a person; Santa is the Spirit of Giving. So, the boys can make a list of 3 things that they want, and they broke it down into categories that I can't remember. I think it was something along the lines of a necessity, something bigger that they really want, and something educational. They also make sure they participate in volunteering at a homeless shelter, donating food to the food banks, and anything else like that. He did say that in theory it sounds simple and easy, but in practice, it can be a challenge. Especially when the grandparents want to spoil the kids rotten. :)
Patrick and I talked about limiting the number of gifts that our kids can ask for as well. I think of the first Harry Potter movie where on Dudley's birthday, he gets upset that he has one less gift than the huge number of gifts he received the previous birthday, so his parents tell him they'll get him 2 more gifts that day. Frivolity. At its worst. And I'm pretty sure we all laughed and thought, "what a spoiled little shit!" Yet, for just about everyone, it's easy to have that same attitude without even realizing it. You can say, "Nuh-uhhh!" but chances are, you probably enable that attitude in someone else, too. :)
My ex-husband was alllll about getting a lot of gifts. I'd end up buying a lot of little gifts for him so he would feel good about unwrapping a lot of presents. Why did I enable that attitude??
When I was a kid, I remember asking Santa for a pink bike with a white basket and ribbons hanging off the handle bars. I was actually pissed that the bike I did get was purple, and I can't even remember if it had a basket or ribbons. So silly.
I heard a story years ago about a family that would open their presents Christmas morning, and each of the children would choose one of their brand new presents to give to a family in need. They would wrap them back up and deliver a box full of presents to a family with kids that wouldn't otherwise get much. I love that idea!
So, this year, we may or may not get a tree, and we probably won't exchange presents as a couple. We'll focus on giving to others, especially giving our love, time, service, and anything else that we can give.
Recently Patrick and I read in The Book of Mormon, Mosiah chapter 4, which talks about giving. Verse 26 always stands out to me:
Mosiah - Chapter 4
26 And now, for the sake of these things which I have spoken unto you—that is, for the sake of retaining a remission of your sins from day to day, that ye may walk guiltless before God—I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants.
What a beautiful reminder. :)
I am so grateful for the comfortable life that Patrick and I are able to live. We have most of our needs met, and we try to be aware of our many blessings and that the origin of our blessings is unquestionably our Heavenly Father. Without Him, we would have nothing; be nothing. Fortunately, He is a loving god, and everything about us is evidence of that.
I hope you all have a special Christmas and that you feel the Spirit of Christ, not just this month, but hopefully daily. Life is beautiful, and there's plenty of wonder and goodness to go all around!
xoxo
Patrick has fond memories of Christmas as a young child, when the simplest things captured his imagination.
I have fond memories of delivering boxes of little presents, a turkey, other fun food items including baked goods my mom helped us make, leaving them on the doorstep of a family that needed a little extra something, knocking on their door on Christmas Eve, and running away before we could be discovered.
Christmas has its own unique memories and feelings for every individual, and quite often, as adults, the commercial gift-giving aspect of Christmas can taint what this holiday is all about. It begins with all of the stores setting up their Christmas displays in the middle of November, if not earlier, and continues on through Christmas Day with the frustrating traffic and business at stores, the impatience of other shoppers, the list of presents to give that cost more than the allotted budget, thousands of commercials telling us to buy-buy-buy, etc. Christmas can easily become a huge list of wants presented to Santa accompanied by the expectations of society, the media, our social network, and our family. The simple need of feeling and expressing pure love to everyone we encounter is often overlooked, or overshadowed by the superficial flurry.
As a young couple planning on starting a family very soon, we have discussed what we would like Christmas to be all about in our home. Our hope is to make sure that the Spirit of Christ is greater than the Spirit of Christmas. Simplicity and Service will be our focus.
I've heard some great ideas over the last month from other families and my own in how to refocus Christmas.
My parents have expressed that they would like their children and grandchildren to come up with some act of service and love to do for someone this season and to write them a letter expressing what we did and how we feel about the experience. I love this idea, although it can be a challenge to choose what we want to do. :)
An older couple from church shared that this year they aren't giving gifts to their children or grandchildren, and aren't accepting gifts from them either. As a family, they are going to pick names from and Angel Tree, find gifts for those individuals who are in need, and give as a family to someone else.
A guy who eats at the restaurant where I work has 2 little boys, and he and his wife have taught their boys that Santa isn't a person; Santa is the Spirit of Giving. So, the boys can make a list of 3 things that they want, and they broke it down into categories that I can't remember. I think it was something along the lines of a necessity, something bigger that they really want, and something educational. They also make sure they participate in volunteering at a homeless shelter, donating food to the food banks, and anything else like that. He did say that in theory it sounds simple and easy, but in practice, it can be a challenge. Especially when the grandparents want to spoil the kids rotten. :)
Patrick and I talked about limiting the number of gifts that our kids can ask for as well. I think of the first Harry Potter movie where on Dudley's birthday, he gets upset that he has one less gift than the huge number of gifts he received the previous birthday, so his parents tell him they'll get him 2 more gifts that day. Frivolity. At its worst. And I'm pretty sure we all laughed and thought, "what a spoiled little shit!" Yet, for just about everyone, it's easy to have that same attitude without even realizing it. You can say, "Nuh-uhhh!" but chances are, you probably enable that attitude in someone else, too. :)
My ex-husband was alllll about getting a lot of gifts. I'd end up buying a lot of little gifts for him so he would feel good about unwrapping a lot of presents. Why did I enable that attitude??
When I was a kid, I remember asking Santa for a pink bike with a white basket and ribbons hanging off the handle bars. I was actually pissed that the bike I did get was purple, and I can't even remember if it had a basket or ribbons. So silly.
I heard a story years ago about a family that would open their presents Christmas morning, and each of the children would choose one of their brand new presents to give to a family in need. They would wrap them back up and deliver a box full of presents to a family with kids that wouldn't otherwise get much. I love that idea!
So, this year, we may or may not get a tree, and we probably won't exchange presents as a couple. We'll focus on giving to others, especially giving our love, time, service, and anything else that we can give.
Recently Patrick and I read in The Book of Mormon, Mosiah chapter 4, which talks about giving. Verse 26 always stands out to me:
Mosiah - Chapter 4
26 And now, for the sake of these things which I have spoken unto you—that is, for the sake of retaining a remission of your sins from day to day, that ye may walk guiltless before God—I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants.
What a beautiful reminder. :)
I am so grateful for the comfortable life that Patrick and I are able to live. We have most of our needs met, and we try to be aware of our many blessings and that the origin of our blessings is unquestionably our Heavenly Father. Without Him, we would have nothing; be nothing. Fortunately, He is a loving god, and everything about us is evidence of that.
I hope you all have a special Christmas and that you feel the Spirit of Christ, not just this month, but hopefully daily. Life is beautiful, and there's plenty of wonder and goodness to go all around!
xoxo
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Review of Food Storage Analyzer
I was raised in a family where food storage was important, and not only did we have food storage, we used it in preparing our meals for a large family of seven. As an adult, I haven't been the greatest about building up my own supply of food storage. It's been on my to-do list...a very neglected to-do list.
I played around with Emergency Essentials Food Storage Analyzer, selecting items that I think Patrick and I would actually eat, and it was a lot of fun! It really wouldn't cost toooo much money to have a 30-day supply of food, but the plan is to buy something every week and transition into having a decent food storage supply on hand.
If food storage is something you are interested in, or are already doing, you should check out the analyzer and see the exact content and nutritional value, as well as how long it will feed you. Pretty stinkin' awesome! Have fun!!

I played around with Emergency Essentials Food Storage Analyzer, selecting items that I think Patrick and I would actually eat, and it was a lot of fun! It really wouldn't cost toooo much money to have a 30-day supply of food, but the plan is to buy something every week and transition into having a decent food storage supply on hand.
If food storage is something you are interested in, or are already doing, you should check out the analyzer and see the exact content and nutritional value, as well as how long it will feed you. Pretty stinkin' awesome! Have fun!!
Monday, September 28, 2009
$10 Gift Card Giveaway for Emergency Essentials
Just add one of their buttons to you blog/website and they'll send you a $10 gift card. Easy.
The deadline is Sept. 30th, this Wednesday, so don't delay!!!
Here's the LINK.
The deadline is Sept. 30th, this Wednesday, so don't delay!!!
Here's the LINK.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Our recent adventures
Patrick and I have been spending a lot more quality time together. Sure, we still sit in front of the boob tube WAAAAY too much, but at least we're getting outdoors more often and going on actual dates where we try to look hot for each other. It's been great. Here are a few of our "outings" lately:
BOWLING
My fractured elbow is still pretty sensitive, so I had to bowl left handed. Well, it turned out surprisingly well. I bowled 98 the first game!!! And kicked Patrick's butt! (I made him bowl the first game left handed, too.)
Don't mind my big bootie - the picture is of my terrible form bowling left handed.
Patrick was challenging himself to beat his speed. I can't remember if he hit 24 mph or 27 mph, but it was funny how sore he was the next day!
BOWLING
My fractured elbow is still pretty sensitive, so I had to bowl left handed. Well, it turned out surprisingly well. I bowled 98 the first game!!! And kicked Patrick's butt! (I made him bowl the first game left handed, too.)
Don't mind my big bootie - the picture is of my terrible form bowling left handed.
Patrick was challenging himself to beat his speed. I can't remember if he hit 24 mph or 27 mph, but it was funny how sore he was the next day!TEMPLE QUARRY
We spent a few hours hiking around. There's usually a river there, but it was all dry. We hiked downstream a bit and found WATER! It was freezing cold, but we got in up to our knees anyway. It was a fun day hopping around from rock to rock.
Isn't he handsome??!
We spent a few hours hiking around. There's usually a river there, but it was all dry. We hiked downstream a bit and found WATER! It was freezing cold, but we got in up to our knees anyway. It was a fun day hopping around from rock to rock.
Isn't he handsome??!THE RESERVOIR UP PARLEY'S CANYON
We rode Patrick's Triumph up Parley's Canyon, which was fun all by itself! Then we went to the reservoir and hiked around. We had a contest throwing rocks at a big log in the water. Patrick won. :) We had a boat race with pieces of bark, tried to catch a trout, and had a lot of laughs. It was a lot of fun.

ANTELOPE ISLAND
We drove up to Antelope Island on a drizzly day. I had never been there before. We drove around the north part of the island, then took the east coast road down to the ranch that is still there. We both enjoy walking around historical sites and checking out all of the old stuff. Patrick got devoured by some bugs. Either I'm not as sweet as he is, or wearing pants and shoes rather than shorts and sandals was a smart move. :) We drove back up to the north part of the island and walked out to the water, skipped rocks, and caught brine shrimp. Other than the wind, rain, and my allergies, it was a great time. Carl's Jr. afterward was pretty great, too.

We rode Patrick's Triumph up Parley's Canyon, which was fun all by itself! Then we went to the reservoir and hiked around. We had a contest throwing rocks at a big log in the water. Patrick won. :) We had a boat race with pieces of bark, tried to catch a trout, and had a lot of laughs. It was a lot of fun.

ANTELOPE ISLAND
We drove up to Antelope Island on a drizzly day. I had never been there before. We drove around the north part of the island, then took the east coast road down to the ranch that is still there. We both enjoy walking around historical sites and checking out all of the old stuff. Patrick got devoured by some bugs. Either I'm not as sweet as he is, or wearing pants and shoes rather than shorts and sandals was a smart move. :) We drove back up to the north part of the island and walked out to the water, skipped rocks, and caught brine shrimp. Other than the wind, rain, and my allergies, it was a great time. Carl's Jr. afterward was pretty great, too.

Patrick looking for more rocks to skip.
I've been taking pictures with my phone, since I can't find the battery charger for my camera. They're not the greatest pictures, but they'll do. And since I'm the one taking the pictures, they're all of Patrick. :)
But here's one of me before a date where we ate at an amazing Mexican restaurant in Murray then wandered around a bit.

Going on dates and spending active quality time together has been such a blessing for us in strengthening our relationship. I highly recommend it! :)
I've been taking pictures with my phone, since I can't find the battery charger for my camera. They're not the greatest pictures, but they'll do. And since I'm the one taking the pictures, they're all of Patrick. :)
But here's one of me before a date where we ate at an amazing Mexican restaurant in Murray then wandered around a bit.

Going on dates and spending active quality time together has been such a blessing for us in strengthening our relationship. I highly recommend it! :)
Presents
The cats keep putting their toys in their food dishes. It's pretty strange, yet incredibly adorable and funny.




I'd like to think it's their way of saying, "Thank you for feeding us. You are the best parents of 3 kitties ever!!!"
***I forgot I had already posted about this, but I did have 2 new pictures...they keep doing it!!! So, repeat posting with some updated photos. Sorry. :)***




I'd like to think it's their way of saying, "Thank you for feeding us. You are the best parents of 3 kitties ever!!!"
***I forgot I had already posted about this, but I did have 2 new pictures...they keep doing it!!! So, repeat posting with some updated photos. Sorry. :)***
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Thank you for the yummy food!
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