The Haps

It's been a while since I've written. Life has been busy. In the last little while I have moved to a new house and live with my good friend Sydney in her brother's basement. Just living the dream.
Some things I have liked:
1) The Giants won the world series. It was a great series and loved the characters on that team.
2) Was Brian Wilson for Halloween. He is the pitcher of the above stated team. I look pretty dang good in facial hair.
3) Basketball season started up again, so I am busy doing Jazz and university games.
4) New calling-Ward Fellowshipping Co-Chair. (I welcome people to the ward, or if they live outside the boundaries, I unwelcome them however you look at it.)
5) Joined a book club. So far we have read "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "Hunger Games." It's been fun reading with a purpose. I also enjoyed reading "Where Men Win Glory" and "Mountains Beyond Mountains."
6) I bought skis. After buying 5 pair, I finally decided on one pair and returned the rest. Can't wait to use them this winter.
7) I attended my first ski movie. In order to get a free lift ticket I had to watch it and that's the only reason why. I heard the phrase "shred the gnar" and the word "epic" way too much.
8) I went home for a visit and had a great time with the fam. Stephy, CASH$ and TL were visiting for SD.

Overall it's been a fun autumn and I am actually looking forward to the winter.

The Summer Haps!

It's been a while since I've posted anything, so it's about time. Summer has been great. Lots of friends, family and travels. Now back to school...wait not anymore. Fall is so beautiful around here.

Southern California for a Baby

I was able to go to S.D. to see my little niece get blessed. It was so fun to be around the fam again and the highlight of the trip was the Disneyland excursion. It was Cash$'s first time and we learned that he can enjoy the same level of entertainment as spending lots of money at Disneyland or watching his videos on Nick Jr. We learned that Stephy is an incredible shot in the Toy Story Ride. It was also reaffirmed that Curtis and Philip together = trouble with authorities. Almost got kicked off Splash Mountain, but the picture was amazing.

Finding Nemo's Submarine Ride was a walk in the park


It was "Bring Your Own Pirate Day" for Pirates of the Caribbean. Thank goodness we had Felipe and got in for free.

Space Mountain I have to say somewhat scary and not being able to tell which way you would turn was scarier.

Some roller coaster ride. Note to self: Don't sit in front of Curtis during a ride because he will give you Wet Willy's and all the pics will be of you holding your ears and looking like an idiot.

Cash$'s favorite ride. The one that didn't move, but had a steering wheel. He was a true champ going in the Haunted House, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and on the airplanes.

Felipe, me and Powder in front of the castle.

Helping put in the backyard grass and multitasking with TL.

Felipe and TL hard at work.

I love my family and spending time with them. Big shout out to Powder who was a champ watching kids and telling us how to make the most of Disneyland with Fast Passes and wait times. So glad she's in the family.

What do I do with all this extra time?

I hike in Arches in Moab after getting some work done.

More arches.

There's a lot of arches.

I hike around Mt. Olympus in Salt Lake City.


I make quilts for people who will be getting married next week.

I stain bookshelves that I've had for years and couldn't stand the orange color any more.


I finish quilts for people who have already gotten married and I'm a slacker of a friend.

Spring Events

Spring is finally here in the SLC and I already have plants growing in my garden. I use the term "garden" loosely because I don't own any land, just plants in buckets. I picked up 4 more buckets last week and will be having more tomato plants. Currently, I have: watermelon, peas, tomatos, basil, squash and carrots growing. Can hardly wait to see how they turn out. Last week I had the opportunity to work in the Lord's garden. Well, the garden at the temple grounds. My ward pulled spring flowers and planted summer flowers. I have proof here!

These are the plants that we pulled out.



These are the plants we planted.


Also, I attended my first SLC Real game and they scored 3 goals! Pretty exciting times. Cousin Teagan and Man Cub came with to drive me insane. Can't wait for that free sausage sandwich because they scored 3 goals. Good job team.



I have also had some field trips with work. Work is really getting busy, so many raw milk dairies to check out. I did visit one and learned so much about the dairy industry and raw milk business. I learned that I want to have a Jersey milk cow, more milk fat and more creamer milk. Plus with those doughy big eyes, I couldn't say no! Number 247 just loved me! I won over the cows with my soft touch. All the folks I was with said I would make a fine dairymen's wife as I walked through the manure and took samples. Ahh, so sweet! I can't wait to own a cow.


Good thing I love dark denim. It's so hot at the dairies this time of year!

I love this video! We are so blessed even in hard times.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHDvxPjsm8E

A Day at the Races!!!

Last week Truth and I ran the SLC Half Marathon. It was so much fun, really the most fun I've had in a race. It was probably due to the following facts:

1) Perfect weather. Not too hot or too cold.
2) Race start with Philly Boy. The kid ran it with no ipod, not a whole lot of preparation and finished with a smile on his face in 3:35.
3) Saw some friends along the way. Special shout out to the Davis family and kudos to Alex for running the whole thing.
4) Well prepared. I actually prepared this time, so I had a lot of energy and trained hard.
5) Well rested. I slept like a baby the night before. That's probably because I put Truth on the pull out and Philly on the air mattress. I wasn't playing around.
6) Yummy treats. I am a huge fan of the Shot Blocks for all my nutritional needs during a race. Tastes so great.
7) Great music. I now remember why the marathons were so long and hard, they didn't allow ipods or headphones during the race. No wonder it was so brutal. My last 30 minutes of music were AMAZING!
8) Downhill course. Most of the course was downhill, which was a huge help. But there was one part near the end up State Street that was horrible. I wish I could wash that memory from my mind.
9) Great After Meal. Had a friend with a hook up to the VIP breakfast above the finish line at the SkyBox. Ate bacon and eggs while we watched marathons finish and then fall over. Great time.
10) Truth visit. These are always fun and I'll as many races as it takes to keep her coming out.

I want to volunteer at a race and be one of the people who catches marathoners after they finish and put medals around their necks. I think I would be very good at that.

Somethings that make me laugh

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9q30Ce2vwE

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/e712072e5e/academy-award-winning-movie-trailer

What do I do for the Sports Broadcasting Companies?

I get this question asked frequently, so I thought I'd break it down for ya'll. I even have a picture to show what my world is like. I've worked 2 Jazz games and the BYU at Utah this last week and it has been fun. The job at times is stressful, but I get paid to watch sports, seriously???? I try not to be flippant about it, but it does rock my world. It's really not that glamorous though. I sit in a trailer with 6 screens and watch the scoreboard from inside the arena, make sure ours is correct, throw in some promos and team stats. That's really where all the fun is.

I have a stat person/computer that I can ask things and if I notice something is interesting I can try to sell it to the director to have me throw it on screen. Not everything I deem notable is viewed, there's a lot more that goes on behind the screen. Some crews have set programs and some just fly by the seat of their pants, you never know how it's going to be. Also, it can be very stressful and lots of people yelling at the same time, so I really have to pay attention.

But I must say that I do enjoy roaming around arenas and bumping into the players and watching them get ready for the game. I love sports and love to be around athletes. Brings back the good old days. I just love how a team really has to be unified for it to win or play well. It never works if just one person is the star. Here is a pic of my little view of the games.

Yes I took a really quick photo while no one is in there. Life is pretty sweet in the SLC!

Quilting My Heart!

My project for the last month and half has been making quilts. I signed my family up for Disney's Give A Day and Get a Day program. Basically for every quilt made, someone would get a Disney ticket. I made 8 quilts for Karing for Kids a Utah organization that works with 3 different kids programs. Kudos to Disney for getting people out there and serving. They will be giving away 1 million tickets and they are almost out of tickets.

It has been a busy time for me, but I was glad to have something to do. I will send each family member on their birthday with a picture of the quilt that was donated in their honor. Doesn't that sound like a great gift?
It did feel a little like the Seinfeld Episode where George gets a Christmas gift of a donation to a children's fun. Then he creates the Human Fund to get back at that gift giver. Only this organization in Utah really does exist. http://www.utahkids.org/

I finished this week and wanted to thank all of those who have helped by donating fabric, tying knots(some struggled with this) and especially the Roomie who put up with the constant mess and sewing machine noises. Here are some pics:







Big Thanks to the Ward for helping me tie the quilts.



I'll still continue to make quilts, but it's time for a break for the next few months.

NYC BABY!!!!

I just got home from the trip of the year! I finally took Lisa D. from high school up on an open ended offer to stay with her on the Upper West Side of NYC. I flew in Wednesday night and had a great time. Here is some evidence of said great time.

Catching up with Cousin Mary and her husband Ram after a great concert of Dan Torres and Martin Rivas at Joe's Pub.

Dinner with the girls after the concert at the wonderful Cafe Orlin.

The Castle in Central Park. Why yes! It was cold and windy!

Walking the Brooklyn Bridge getting crazy like the tourist I am!.

A painting by my favorite artist Caravaggio. I spent almost all day at the Met taking 5 tours. Yes, I am a museum nerd.

Photo op with Lisa D in Central Park.

Grimaldi's Pizza in Brooklyn! The pizza was amazing and the cannoli was even better! I love food!

Times Square Hershey's Store. I had to take a pic with all the NYC classics. I left out the Olive Garden, Chevy's and Sbarro Pizza! Only in New York!

The ceiling of the Ellis Island Building. I loved the pattern! I spent hours just roaming around and appreciating all the history of that place. I love America!

More Times Square loving.

Statue of Liberty.

Ferry to Statue of Liberty. Met my girl from Gabriela and we became professional photographers by the end of that tour.

Knicks game! I love Bball and the arena was everything I had hoped for and more.

View from the MOMA of the city.

I loved just walking around the town, using the subway, people watching and hitting up all the museum. The only bad thing was that I had bad food until Saturday at Grimaldi's Pizza. But it totally made up for the crappy food. Thanks to Lisa D. for a great trip, so much fun. I love friends. Now the question is who should I stay with next time I have to take a furlough day?