P.S.

I forgot to mention...

Little Drummer Boy is not on my list of favorite Christmas carols- in fact, when it comes on the radio I usually change the channel to prevent the "pa rum pum pum pum" from getting stuck in my head- however, if you want to hear the coolest version of Little Drummer boy in the history of the song, visit the Ryan Shupe and the Rubber Band website at www.shupe.net and pull up their jukebox in the tabs on the top of the page. It's under the album "The Gift" and if you don't absolutely love it, YOU'RE CRAZY!!!! (If you want some easy listening, check out the whole album. They're all pretty stinkin' good arrangements!)

Christmas Culture

" And all the Angels in Heav'n did sing,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
And all the Angels in Heav'n did sing,
On Christmas Day in the morning.
Then let us all rejoice again,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
Then let us all rejoice again,
On Christmas Day in the morning!"

It's definitely Christmas! This last couple of weeks Gordon and I have had the opportunity to go to a few Christmas concerts and I must say, there's nothin' like Christmas Carols to get you in the Christmas spirit! We went to the Kurt Bestor concert with Gordon's family, the Ryan Shupe/Peter Breinholt concert with my work, and the BYU Christmas Celebration concert with Nancy and John. You'd think we'd be singing Christmas carols non-stop after that- and we pretty much are... It's been so fun to sit and enjoy a high-class concert as apposed to watching something far less edifying on television. I'd forgotten how much I really do love that kind of thing and have come to the conclusion that it could be a tradition in the making! Gordon has actually enjoyed most of the concerts we've been to as well. (Although he did think the Kurt Bestor concert was a little on the boring side because it was almost all instrumental. I, on the other hand, missed having a piano in the house more than ever after that!) It's also been really fun to see all of the talent that is here in Happy Valley. I was really impressed with the BYU choirs and orchestra. Talk about serious talent! It was also fun to see Mrs. Hall and Ms. Appoloni in action. (For those of you who don't know, both of them taught at Waterford and are now teaching at BYU.) I think I really take for granted how much high-quality, uplifting arts are here in Utah. (I'll just have to keep working on trying to get Gordon to an art museum with me...) So anyway, if any of you out there have the chance to head to a Christmas concert this holiday season, jump on it! You'll be in the Christmas spirit in no time with a little Christmas culture in the mix too!

Thanksgiving in Washington

This Thanksgiving, Gordon and I headed up to Washington to spend the holiday with his dad and step-mom. It was a great trip. We left at the crack dawn- if not before- Wednesday morning and were able to spend 4 days with them. It was a pretty low-key holiday. We chatted and cooked, played games and went shopping, ate lots of food and then ate some more food. (This is no exageration! Gordon weighed himself before we ate Thanksgiving day and then again at the end of the day and he had gained about 9 pounds! He weighed himself again the next day and was back to normal but that gives you an idea of how much we ate!) The weather was actually beautiful in Seattle this time around. I know none of you will believe that, but it really did look like the picture above- sunny and blue skies! I actually missed the rain! I was kind of looking forward to a good Seattle rain storm but we had to settle for just a drizzle the day we left... The highlight of the trip was really seeing all of our family again. It's been awhile since we've been able to make a trip up there and it was fun getting together with everyone and seeing how everyone has changed. We spent a lot of time with Gordon's niece Sarah who is 10 going on 25. We don't get a chance to see her that often and she was hilarious to be around. Our last day there, it was just us girls and Gordon and we were trying to convince him to go shopping. Her argument to get him to come was "Come on Gordon! How often do you get to go shopping with me!?!?!" Funny stuff. One of the other things that was nice was they actually have snow on the mountains up there! Who would have guessed that at the end of November we still wouldn't really have snow on the mountains in Utah!!

I actually have to mention, not that anyone will really appreciate this but Annette, but, I was actually really tempted to make a trip out to Forks, WA just to say I had been there. (This next part is sad to admit, but what the heck!) I even looked it up on the map to see how far away Forks is from Tacoma and was disappointed to find that it is a 3 1/2 hour drive. :( It would have been fun to head to La Push and stand on the beach! Maybe next time... and I found I wasn't alone in my Twilight obsession up there. Gordon's step-sister Tracy absolutely loves the books too! I guess we have another fan in our fan club Annette! :)

We hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and missed seeing all of our UT and CA family but hope to make up for that over Christmas! We love you all!

Jury Duty

So I haven't posted in a little while and figured I'd better post something so you all don't think I've fallen off the face of the earth. Last week was just so busy I haven't had a chance to do much of anything! For those of you who didn't know, I was summoned and chosen for jury duty. I'm not sure how many of you have ever had jury duty but it's pretty interesting to see our tax dollars and bill of rights at work. The trial was scheduled to last three days (jury selection included). So I appeared on the first day hoping I would not be chosen so I wouldn't have to worry about what to do about work. That was not the case. When I found out that I was juror #1, I knew I would be chosen. Out of pool of about 30 people, 8 of us were the lucky winners- lucky female winners that is. It just happen to be a jury of all women. Because the attorneys are not allowed to make a decision based on gender, and each was given 4 veto's in the selection process, the first 8 of us left after that just happen to be all women! After the jury was selected, the attorneys for both sides made their opening statements and we were sent home for the day. We found out that the defendant was being charged with 10 counts of unlawful sexual activity with a minor... let's just say I was less than thrilled with what I was sure we would be hearing about our second day on jury duty.

The second day we were asked to appear at the court house at 8:45am. Because you are not allowed to exchange any conversation with any of the witnesses or attorneys (not even to ask about the weather or time of day we were instructed), we were asked to wait on an entirely different floor as to avoid any contact. (Although I couldn't help but wonder if one of the people I was standing in the elevator with happen to be involved in the case- turns out I didn't recognize anyone so it was alright.) We finally filed into the court room for a long day of testimony. I'll spare you all of the details since I like to keep this a G-rated blog and just say that I definitely got an education on a lot of things... Anyway, the short g-rated version: a 20-year-old started dating a 15-year-old. Everything they supposedly did was consensual but in Utah you are considered a minor until your 16th birthday. The hardest part about the trial was that the girl involved had the worst memory of anyone I have ever listened to. Because of that, we were only able to convict him on 2 of the 10 counts- only after nearly having a hung jury, we finally made it home at 7:30pm.

It was really an interesting process and I definitely learned a lot about our court system. Even though it's extremely stressful trying to make an objective decision that will ultimately affect someones life so drastically, it does make you grateful for the freedoms that we enjoy here in this country. I'm just glad I won't have to sit through another graphic trial like that for at least another 2 years when my name will be put back into the pool of potential jurors.

Rewarding Yourself- Changing Your Thinking

So here's the weight loss thing I hinted about on Annette's blog:

The last time I got my hair done, I read an article in a magazine about how to lose weight and be happy at the same time that really just hit home for me. It talked about changing your thinking about what is rewarding yourself and what is not in terms of the things you eat. A lot of times when I eat unhealthy, I justify it by thinking that I'm rewarding myself for having worked out earlier that day (twisted thinking I know...) or that I need some extra chocolate love because it's been a crappy day or because it's the weekend and I deserve to splurge a little bit...the list goes on and on. Anyway, I'm sure you've all noticed where that thinking has gotten me- 35-40 pounds heavier than I was when we got married! But the article talked about how you should change the way you think about rewarding yourself and what you consider "rewards." The unhealthy stuff I was telling myself was a reward really just made me feel crappy, fat, sick, and guilty an hour later. Some "reward" huh? (Not to mention all of the other fun health side affects that have come along with those extra 35 pounds...) Instead of that way of thinking, we should be telling ourselves and our bodies that the things that are going to make us feel good (now and in the long term) are the things that are rewards. So, I've been trying to implement that thinking and I think I've noticed a difference. Instead of taking chips and cookies to work with me, I take trail mix with a few m&m's mixed in (mostly because all women need a little chocolate fix right?). Instead of binging, I carry something in my purse to keep me from getting to the point where I feel like I would eat anything I'm so hungry and reward myself with something healthy. Instead of eating Cocoa Puffs for breakfast, I eat my favorite flavor of yoplait yogurt. Instead of bringing pizza to work for lunch, I've been trying different flavors of the Lean Cuisine meals to find the best ones. (Don't believe they're good and good for you? Try their Sesame Chicken!!) Instead of grabbing those oreos in the cupboard, I've been trying to grab an apple from the fridge and you would be amazed at how good a really good apple can taste and just how well it can fill the void of junk food... Well, I guess that's the long explanation. In short, I've been trying to think of healthy things to reward myself with instead of reaching for the bag of cookies. I still haven't been completely converted, I did buy a plain bag of m&m's over the weekend and almost down the whole thing, but I don't feel guilty anymore because I'm treating myself better. So, let me know what you think and if you have any ideas for true rewards! The more ideas, the better! This thinking might not make sense to anyone else, but it's helped me. I just wish I had written down where it came from so I could read it again.

We've finally opened the bottle!! Gordon and I have had a bottle of this sitting in our fridge for almost a month now and haven't had the courage to open it up and try it. For those of you not familiar with akaRISE, it's very similar to Xango, Tahitian Noni, and any other variety of health-promising super beverage. Gordon's brother works for this company now and brought us over a bottle to try claiming it was "the best of the best". I guess it's worked wonders for him and his wife. The problem for us, however, is that we've tried those other health-promising super beverages and would rather drink (insert any number of disgusting liquids here) than drink them. But, our guilty conscience at having taken the bottle, promising to try it, and then leaving it on the shelf finally won over my gag refluxes' protests to breaking the seal of the bottle. So, we've been drinking it since Monday and I'm happy to report it's a hundred times better tasting than Xango or Tahitian Noni (which both taste like you're drinking your own vomit). I haven't lost 40 pounds yet, or had the feeling that I could run a marathon without breaking a sweat, but I do feel more energetic which is always a plus for only having to drink 1 ounce every morning and night. I guess we'll see what happens as we persevere in our attempt to actually finish the bottle! I'll keep you posted! (Maybe if it doesn't work wonders, we'll finally have to break down and crack open the 3 bottles of Xango we've had in the closet for about a year...then again maybe not...)

Wedding Anniversary

Let's hope all of our husbands are smarter than this...


Dave was in trouble.

It was Thursday and he forgot his wedding anniversary. His wife was really angry. She told him, "Tomorrow morning, I expect to find a gift in the driveway that goes from 0 to 200 in less then 6 seconds, AND IT BETTER BE THERE!!"
The next morning Dave got up early and left for work. When his wife woke up, she looked out the window and sure enough, there was a wrapped gift box in the middle of the driveway.

Confused, Dave's wife put on her robe, went out to the driveway and retrieved the package. She opened it,and found a brand new........bathroom scale.Dave has been missing since Friday.

We Miss Them Already!

It's true! We miss those Gardners already! It was so fun having them all here for at least a little while and everytime they leave we realize how much we miss having them close by. I've decided we all need to join forces to get them back up here for good I think! Until then... I guess we'll just have to settle for wishing and hoping... (sniff, sniff)

Car Butts

So I'm driving home from work today in pretty heavy traffic thinking about how much I hate being squished between wall-to-wall car butts. I hate it! It doesn't matter what kind! Chevy, Ford, Lexus, Mercedes... makes no difference to me! I especially hate seeing those car butts upclose. I hate seeing the tail lights come on as the cars break and having to slam on mine and I especially hate seeing those big ol' semi truck butts! And just as I was about to ram one of them, I saw it. Could it be? It is!! Finally! A car butt I don't mind being stuck behind! The Green Machine, The Pickle, The Manning Mobile!!! It was a most welcome sight! And sure enough, as I pulled alongside, I saw dad snackin' on a bag of chips on his way home from work. It instantaneously made me happy! Who would have thought? So, next time you're stuck behind a bunch of car butts, look for a familiar one. It may make the drive that much more pleasant! (And inspite of my best efforts to catch his attention, he was pretty focused in on the truck butt in front of him. So if you're reading this Dad, I waived at you today! Hope you had a pleasant drive and I hope the chips were good!)

Back to the Grinder

So, I was thinking about being back at work and I came across this comic. It'll make you feel better about whatever job you're working at. Can't think of anything more humiliating or monotonous than what you do? Think a little harder... :)

Good Eats

One of my favorite things to do is to try new restaurants. Because this can be detrimental to the pocket book and diet, it's good to only try it once in a while. But, in case you have a hankerin' for something new and you happen to have one of these near by, I thought I'd post a list of our favorite eats.

#1 Costa Vida: We can't wait to get back in a state where they have these. I really think we've been going through withdrawals all summer. But if you're not near one like we've been, we've got some killer recipes that are pretty darn close to the original and they may satisfy your craving for a little while.

#2 Chili's: One of the most popular chains anywhere I think, but a regular on our list of good eats. (And one other tip: order the bottomless chips and salsa but ask for some of their avacado ranch dressing as well. It tastes so good on their tortilla chips!)

#3 Panera Bread: Yummy, yummy, yummy! This is one we discovered this summer and are very upset that they haven't opened one back home yet. (I hear they have one in CA though!) ;)

#4 O Charlie's: Also a discovery this summer, they have possibly the best rolls ever and their ribs are a close second! If you're thinking about going, you absolutely must try the loaded potato soup. It's to die for!

#5 Panda Express: Fast, easy, yummy. We already have two meals planned for the first week we get back: Costa Vida first and Panda Express second. Their Orange Chicken is one of my favorite things to eat of all time.

#6 Red Robin: Their Crispy Chicken Salad is awesome and I know the Cobb Salad is on Nancy's list of favorites. If you're wanting a burger though, you really can't get much better!

#7 Famous Dave's: I've only tried their catering and they're already on my list of faves! If you can't make it to the restaurant, try picking up a bottle of their bbq sauce at the grocery store. I followed Nancy's recommendation to try it and I'm hooked!

Well, I'm getting hungry already! And if you have any on your lists of good eats that I haven't included, let us know! We love to try new things and look forward to maybe trying a few new ones with you guys back home! We miss you all!

We're Comin' Home!

I've been singing a certain song lately...



"I'm sitting in the railway station.
Got a ticket for my destination.
On a tour of one-night stands my suitcase and guitar in hand.
And ev'ry stop is neatly planned for a poet and a one-man band.
Homeward bound,
I wish I was,
Homeward bound,
Home where my thought's escaping,
Home where my music's playing,
Home where my love lies waiting
Silently for me.
Ev'ry day's an endless stream
Of cigarettes and magazines.
And each town looks the same to me, the movies and the factories
And ev'ry stranger's face I see reminds me that I long to be,
Homeward bound,
I wish I was,
Homeward bound,
Home where my thought's escaping,
Home where my music's playing,
Home where my love lies waiting
Silently for me.
Tonight I'll sing my songs again,
I'll play the game and pretend.
But all my words come back to me in shades of mediocrity
Like emptiness in harmony I need someone to comfort me.
Homeward bound,
I wish I was,
Homeward bound,
Home where my thought's escaping,
Home where my music's playing,
Home where my love lies waiting
Silently for me.
Silently for me."



ANNOUNCING OUR RETURN HOME!!! WE WILL OFFICIALLY BE LEAVING ON SATURDAY, AUGUST 25!!! WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU ALL!!!

Mammoth Caves

So we finally made it to Mammoth Cave! On Saturday Nancy, Katie, Adria and I headed out to visit the longest known cave in the world. We learned that they have discovered 350 miles of the cave so far! It was pretty amazing being that far below ground and it was interesting noticing the differences between this cave and Timpanogas Cave. You'll see in the pictures above that while there were some stallagmites and stallagtites (I have no idea how to spell that...) the cave was generally just interesting rock formations. It was amazing to see the incredibly flat rock that made up the ceiling. We had a blast taking the tour and learning about the history of the cave and checking out all of the amazing sights. It was also crazy that when you first enter the cave you have to walk down 300 steps right off the bat to get down to where the cave is level. (Luckily we didn't have to walk up 300 steps at the end to make it back out!) We had a great visit and can now check off one more thing from our list of "Kentucky To Do's". The only drawback to our visit was that the boys couldn't come too. Maybe next time!

Movie Review: Hairspray

For any of you who are contemplating going to see this remake of the old broadway and movie, stop contemplating and GO SEE IT!!! I loved this movie. Hairspray is one of the musicals that I wasn't too familiar with and was definitely pleasantly surprised. John Travolta (on the left in the picture above-if you couldn't guess) was an absolute hoot! And his dancing did live up to his performance in Grease (just add a fat suit and gender change...) I was also very pleasantly surprised by the performances from Amanda Bynes (She's the Man), Zac Efron (Highschool Musical), James Marsden (X-Men), and Christopher Walken (a bunch of movies I can't remember right now...). They all proved that they had both the pipes and moves to hold their own in a musical. For those of you who don't know the story- like me- the movie is set in the 60's and is about a big girl with big hair and a big heart whose ultimate dream is to dance on the Corny Collins show. The only problem is that she's just a little bit different than the poster girls they are looking for. Set in a time of segregation, she proves that being different is good, no matter the size you are or the color of your skin. My only two problems with this movie were the slightly suggestive dances (not to the extent of Grease mind you) and the "kissing" that became more like making out. All-in-all I thought this movie had a great message and is full of classic broadway dancing and singing, all the things we die-hard broadway fans love. I give this movie a B+ boarding on an A-.

Mmmm, Mmmm Good!

Hey y'all! Since nothing too exciting has been happening lately, I thought I'd post a new recipe I just tried. It's super easy and super yummy so I hope anyone who tries it likes it! Thanks Kraft Foods!

Saucy Stir-FriedPork

2 cups instant white rice, uncooked
1/4 cup KRAFT Zesty Italian Dressing
1 lb. pork tenderloin, cut into thin strips
1 cup thin red pepper strips (about 1 medium)
2 cups fresh sugar snap peas or snow pea pods (about 6 oz.)
3/4 cup diagonally sliced green onions (about 3 medium)
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. ground ginger

COOK rice as directed on package.

MEANWHILE, heat dressing in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add meat; cook and stir 2 min. Add peppers and peas; cook 3 min., stirring frequently. Add onions; cook and stir 1 min.

MIX soy sauce, cornstarch and ginger until well blended. Add to meat mixture in skillet; cook 1 min. or until sauce thickens, stirring frequently. Serve over the rice.

The Audubon Museum & Park

This week Nancy and I are spending a few days with the boys in Indiana. Yesterday the other two wives that are here and I went to the Audubon Musuem in Henderson, KY. It is located in the Audubon state park, a very green and beautiful park not too far outside Evansville. The museum is dedicated to the artist and naturalist John James Audubon who illustrated and published one of the largest ornithologies. The museum has a lot of original prints and oil paintings that were pretty interesting to see. It was also interesting to learn that in order to get the most accurate drawings Audubon would shoot the birds and try to draw them as soon as possible after killing them in order to get the most correct coloring in his drawings. (Not the most nature-friendly way I suppose but they did say that inspite of that, he did do a lot to conserve nature and endangered species.) My favorite part of he museum was the observatory, a round room with a bunch of windows with bird feeders hanging outside. Next to all the windows were binoculars and pictures of the birds so you could identify them. It was really fun to watch all of them feeding. I saw some really pretty red-winged black birds and gold finches. We also found out that they have two man-made lakes where you can rent paddle boats and canoes and a lot of nature trails throughout the park. I'm hoping we'll get the chance to go do some of those fun things as well before we leave. If you ever get the chance to go to Henderson, KY, you'll have to squeeze in a camping trip in Audubon park. It's definitely worth a visit.

A Few Internet Gems...

I'm not sure if any of these have been doctored but I found them pretty funny. Enjoy!

Movie Review: Transformers

The results are in! Award for one of the best movies this year goes to: TRANSFORMERS! If you haven't seen this movie yet, head to the theater! It's a great one! The animation on the robots was incredible, the action was non-stop, and the comic relief was perfect. It is definitely a check your brain at the door and sit back and enjoy kind of movie. You don't have to think too hard to follow the plot and the action keeps you riveted to the screen. If you like the movie iRobot this movie is right up your ally. The only objection I had was the unnecessary amount of language (as Nancy said) from both people and robots and the monologue by Megatron was on the verge of being stupid. However, I might even be tempted to say that it tied- maybe even surpassed- Pirates of the Carribean: At Worlds End for best movie of the summer. I give this movie an A -.

P.S. I'm sorry if you're all getting sick of my doing movie reviews. I'm still trying to be creative in thinking of things to post. Hopefully it helps all of you who haven't seen the movies yet and doesn't get terribly boring to read... I'm still working on figuring out how to hook my camera up to the computer here but haven't had much success yet.

My First Meringue

Happy 4th of July everyone! We hope you all had a great independence day! As Nancy said on her blog, we were able to celebrate a little bit with the boys this year. We started our day by going to the ward celebration where we were treated to pancakes and sausage and a clogging group. (I decided I appreciate clogging much more in a parade...) All in all it was a fun morning and we were able to meet a few more people in the ward. We then decided we wanted to make pies for when the boys came home. I unwisely attempted to make one I had never made before. I opted for the Key Lime Meringue. I got the recipe from Nancy and enthusiastically started my attempt. All was going well until I put the key lime filling and the crust in the oven to bake. I will say that I tried to follow the recipe exactly but never having made key lime pie (and having made too many pudding pies), I had no idea what consistency the filling should be when it was done baking. And this was the fatal flaw... inspite of a beautiful meringue on top, the filling was unfortunately the consistency (brace yourself for this) of snot. GROSS! Because I have a loving husband, when I went to serve my pie after the movie and said that I thought it looked disgusting, his reply was, "I love everything you make." And somehow he was able to force down a whole piece. Needless to say, he may not love everything I make and we fed the rest to the garbage can. Oh well! I guess we live and learn!

Movie Review: Oceans 13

Hello everyone! Sorry it's taken me so long to post... This week our bordom lead us to the movie theater where Nancy and I saw the latest installment in the Oceans # movies and I must say, this movie does not disappoint like it's predecessor Oceans 12. I thought this movie was much better than the second one which left me utterly confused until the very end. Oceans 13 depicts yet another of Danny Ocean's latest heists as he takes on another casino mogul. It had a satisfying amount of commedy and cleverness, lots of money and out-witting, and very nice closure at the end. Just grab yourself some popcorn and sit back and enjoy the ride. I would highly recommend this flick and if memory serves me right there is a little bit of language and a scene with a "cougar"- no nudity involved however. (I'll leave it to you to figure out what that terms means.) I give this movie a B+. (Stay tuned for reviews on the highly anticipated and soon to be released Transformers and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix that both come out here in the next two weeks! I can't wait!!!)

Top 10 Grocery Store Finds

I was feeling a little left out on all the top ten lists every one is doing so I decided to follow suit. If you've ever watched the Ellen show, on Wednesdays (?) she does what's called "Look What I Found at the Drug Store". I am obviously not as funny as she is, but I have found a few gems at the grocery store lately. So here goes...

#1 The Plastic Water Bottle: Nancy and I have both decided we will drink more water this summer and I'm beginning to realize that all that pressure in my head also dissipates when I am well hidrated. (Three huge cheers for that!!) I think I have officially become a water junky! So everyone head out and grab yourselves a durable water bottle that is comfortable to drink from and tote around and start carrying it with you everywhere (actually drinking from it is key). Just be sure you're near a bathroom for the first week or two. :)

#2 The Travel-size Umbrella: This was inspiried by the rain storm we had Tuesday. I've learned it's a must-have for living in Kentucky. It's only about 4 inches long when folded up! Perfect purse size for easy access on those fast dashes to and from the car!

#3 Coconut Chocolate Chip Chips Deluxe Cookies: (A mouthful I know!) Ok, so I have to give credit to Nancy for this one, but they are seriously some amazing cookies! You should all give them a try! I think they will become a staple in my "diet."

#4 All Small-and-Mighty Laundry Detergent: This is one of my favorite house keeping items now- right up there with the swiffer if you can imagine! It's great for clearing out a cluttered laundry room and a small bottle will do 32 loads at a fraction of the cost of Tide. Yipee!!!

#5 Pop-up and fold-up Basic Laundry Hampers: This has also worked wonders in the laundry department. This summer I purchased three of them. One for towels, one for darks, and one for lights. No more sorting laundry!! It's also very handy for carrying the load from the bedroom to the washing machine without dropping those pesky socks. The trick is finding a place to put them so you sort the clothes as you take them off. They're only $3.97-or so- at WalMart and it's well worth it!

#6 Flat Bed Sheets: I think Nancy may be the only one to truly appreciate this one. I'll have to post a picture of what they look like. (Ok, so in Gordon's words they look "ghetto" but oh well). Let's just say they are currently taking the place of curtains...

#7 The Microfoam Pillow: Also a WalMart find, this has worked wonders on my head! It's contoured to ease pressure from the neck, spine and head. I'm pretty impressed so far!

#8 The Swiffer: I know you were all expecting that one to be there somewhere!

#9 Fresco Mexican Crumbling Cheese: I believe this is the white cheese they use on the Costa Vida salad... Nuf said? Please, correct me if I'm wrong! You can also find it at WalMart.

#10 The Playground Ball: This one is for Gordon. One of his favorite games (as Ryan well knowns from city league) is Wall Ball and now he has an "official" ball to play with. The crazy thing is, when he opened it up on Father's Day, we realized that it was made in Federal Way, WA. The very city where Gordon went to elementary school! Crazy, eh?!

Well, sorry for being a little long winded. Hopefully you're next trip to the grocery store with sprout some amazing finds too! We love and miss you all so much!

Attack of the Bears: A New Phobia.

It's official. I think I'm going crazy! It seems like over the past three days I have been surrounded by horrific tales of bear attacks. Let me start by saying that this is a new phenomenon. I have never had an encounter with a bear, nor do I ever hope to. However, there have been three distinct experiences over the last couple of days that have vastly increased my fear of our furry forest "friends".

As Nancy mentioned in her blog, the bishop of our ward here decided that they needed to challenge the young men in our ward. They planned a 50 mile hike to be completed over the course of three days. I am happy to report that it appeared on Sunday that they had all survived. However, during dinner that night, Gordon relayed a story the bishop had told during Priesthood meeting. He said that one night, this group found themselves at 9:00pm in an area not suitable for making camp. The area that they had anticipated camping at was still a good 3-4 hours away. They decided to keep going until they reached it. As they were hiking they started to notice sounds that indicated they were being followed. You guessed it! They were being followed by a bear. DUN Dun dun!! They decided to all get as close together as possible and start screaming. Apparently this tactic worked and they finished their hike without incident...

Later that night, I awoke to find myself in a cold sweat just having had a nightmare about a bear attacking our whole family while we hiked together in the Uintas. Inspite of a brave attempt from Sydney to ward off our unwanted furry friend, my nightmare went from bad to worse as our family was scattered tying to outrun the grizzly. (I guess Mom's wildlife training doesn't kick in in nightmares.) Thankfully I awoke just as I saw the bear heading for Kara and Lianne... Phewf! That was a close one!

Fast forward to Tuesday, the most 'grizzly' scene of all- pun intended. :) Mom told me that she had heard that a family was camped up American Fork Canyon and bear tore through their tent and dragged their 11-year-old son out. His parents said they awoke to his screaming as he was dragged out and later found his body 400 feet from the tent. I was shocked! How horrible is that! It was horrible enough to even make the 11:00pm news here in Louisville where the only things reported are shootings and horse races.

So, I think, because of recent events, bears have climbed to the top my "animals I never wish to encounter" list right behind the brown recluse spider (of which I saw the effects of a bite for the first time last week in a pharmacy window). Please, if any of you suffer from the same paranoia, I'm having t-shirts made. Maybe they'll at least keep the nightmares away.

Hmmm...

Well, as you can see, nothing too exciting is happening here in Louisville. Nancy and I are trying to keep busy working on our cook books and so far they are turning out pretty good. It's always crazy how you end up wishing you had what you don't. (For example, I wish I had Nancy's hand writing and someone else's curly hair...) But, we're chugging right along with those. I am currently reading The Good Earth (thanks for the recommendation Mom! It's great so far!) and the sixth Harry Potter. I have also made a discovery this summer that I thought I would let you all know about. When I flew back for Kara's wedding Nancy and I went to the distribution center to get a few things and I decided to pick up the teacher's manual for the Book of Mormon. I have been using it in my scripture study ever since and have gained a lot from studying with it. (I think it's because I have a short attention span and it keeps me focused.) but I've found that events make much more sense, certain verses are much better explained, and I really look forward to reading now. So any of you who have a hard time making it through a few verses without your mind wandering like I do should definitely check out this new study habit. If any of you know any other good study guides, I'd love to hear about them! I still can't quite make it through Isaiah...

Need a laugh?

Movie Review: Shrek the Third

So last week we took the opportunity to go and check out Shrek the Third and I must say it definitely gets two thumbs up from me. I will admit that I headed to the theater a little suspicious of how good the third addition to the Shrek series would be as the more sequels they make to a movie the worse they tend to get (with the exception of Rocky IV I suppose). But I found that the third movie was quite entertaining. With a few excellent one liners and some memorable scenes I would highly recommend this movie to any adult. That's right, I said adult. (Not in an R-rated or XXX sense mind you.) The one thing that surprised me most about this animated flick was that I don't think I would have gotten any of the jokes at any age younger than maybe 12. (I don't know, maybe I was/am just a little slow at any age.) It did have some hilarious jokes that parents will definitely appreciate and I suppose some animation and fun characters that kids can get into as well. You'll all have to let me know what you thought about it though... For now, I definitely think it lives up to its predecessors and gets my vote as a great date night movie.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Well, yesterday I finally finished the fifth book in the Harry Potter series. I must say it was pretty darn exciting there for the last couple of chapters but overall, I found it slightly on the boring side. Nancy has informed me that the sixth book is much better and the fifth is more of a set up for the sixth. So, I guess I'll have to start the sixth one after we see the movie. (Which I am greatly anticipating.) I was also very happy to finally get a better explanation in regards to the lighting bolt scar. Don't worry, I'm not going to spoil it for those of you haven't read the book. I'll just say that it does set up the series for a pretty dramatic ending. My recommendation: any who haven't read the books should definitely jump on the band wagon. It makes for a fast and entertaining read.

Still Kickin!

Hello everyone! I know I promised I would post last week but the truth of the matter is Kentucky is pretty darn boring these days! I will say that I have been waiting for the past week for my ink to come and once that happens Nancy and I will have a project to work on. Until then, we pass the time by reading Harry Potter, walking the dog, and anticipating the next So You Think You Can Dance. Exciting isn't it?!? I guess I'll have to work on my creative blogs so we can somewhat keep up with the Gardners. As for now, my deep thought for the day is: ".................................................................."

Greetings from Kentucky! I'm sorry it's taken me so long to post again. I thought I would give you all a taste of life here in Louisville.

Because we currently only receive one station, our television viewing of late has been quite limited and I say that so you can truly appreciate why this event was so entertaining. Because it is "Derby Week" here, it seems that everything revolves around the big race this weekend. Little did I know that there are also a lot of races held here in the weeks and days leading up to the Race for the Roses. The photo I have included is of the annual bed races that take place during the Kentucky Derby Festival. In order to participate in the bed races, you have to essentially turn a mattress into a racing car. They have two divisions, competitive and fun. If you are in the competitive division, you build your bed for speed and take advantage of a low-riding bed for the "aerodynamic advantage". If you are in the fun division, as far as I can tell, you can do whatever you want as long as it involves there being a mattress attached. The Ashley furniture company's bed was named "Bed Knobs and Broomsticks" and was decorated to match and another company's driver was dressed in a dinosaur costume with the pushers dressed accordingly as well. As I'm sure you're all dying to know, the Ford Truck Company's bed won the competitive division. Needless to say, if you're ever here during Derby Week, forget about the horses, the real action is in bed racing...

Movie Review: Open Season

This animated movie tells the story of a bear raised in captivity who suddenly finds himself alone and stranded in the wild as a result of some wild and crazy behavior with a one-antler reject deer. Determined to make it back to the "comforts of home" (i.e. a toilet, comfy bed in the garage, and fish biscuits) he manages to alienate himself and his trusty companion from all of the other forest animals. In the end, redemption comes from saving the forest from the hunters during open season- hense the title of the movie- in a truly histerical battle where roles are reversed from hunter to hunted. (And yes, the bear is armed with a toilet plunger in the picture above.) In addition to great animation, celebrity voices, and memorable characters, this movie also sports some fantastic one-liners. If you like crazy, random humor and squirrels with "So I Married An Ax Murderer"-esque scottish accents, this is definitely the movie for you. So if you're in the mood for Monty Python type humor, Open Season is a great choice- just make sure you're in the mood...

Movie Review: Bridge to Terabithia

If you're thinking about going to see this adaptation of the children's book of the same name, there are a few things to be aware of. First, bring tissue. If you've read the book you know that the last couple of chapters are definite tear jerkers and the movie certainly doesn't disappoint. Second, if you've read the book, don't be worried about it being one of those movies where they change things around and alter key moments. It follows the book pretty darn closely. (Good news I guess if you liked the book.) Third, if you haven't read the book, it's not the movie you would expect to see from the preview. The two comments Gordon made as we left the theater were "Wow, that was a short movie (note: it's only an hour and a half)- and- I wish there had been more magic." But, if you'd have read the book, you'd know that it's a story about true friendship more than anything else. All in all, I thought this was a pretty good movie. It definitely doesn't hold a candle to the Chronicles of Narnia but it's a great one to take any kid to who loves playing make believe. My recommendation: read the book and you'll appreciate the movie a hundred times more.