just call him the SHREDDER!!

you know those cartoons we used to watch as kids where the beaver tears through a forest shredding every tree in sight? i guess the perfect example is the beaver on lady and the tramp. do you remember? he shreds through the tree in seconds with wood chips flying in every direction....
now you are wondering why in the humf i am talking about this. well, juano is just such a shredder. when it comes to eating and if he is hungry enough- man does he shred! i was blown away by how he could shred. we had one of those massive foot-long subs from the grocery store and i had a 1/4 of it and juano took care of the rest. there were bread remnants all over the table, floor, chair....his hair...the guy across the room. i guess you don't have any control over where the bread crumbs fly when you are concentrating so hard on filling your empty stomache. just thought i would warn you to not get in juano's way when he is hungry!

ENGAGED!!!

yes, that's right! i am engaged to Juan Carlos Gomez!! He got down on one knee and asked me to marry him last night in front of the Laie Temple and I said YES!! i know most of you have never met him so you are just gonna have to take my word for it- he is an incredible person. i can't wait for you all to meet him.
we are planning to get married in the St. George Temple in April 2009. we haven't picked an exact date yet so be patient with us.
it feels so different to actually be engaged- i didn't expect it to feel like this. I love it! today in church i got so excited to share my news in the 'good news minute' my little heart almost jumped out of my chest (maybe that was because there were so many flippin anouncements that she almost forgot to even do good news minute!). most of the people we have told so far have been pretty surprised at the news which surprised me. i guess it is not as obvious as i thought.
i love you, mi amor, and i can't wait to be sealed to you for time and all eternity!!

squat summit

despite the incessant rain and our inclinations to just stay home and be lazy we hit the trails on this lovely aloha friday. we knew that it was going to be super muddy but we went anyway. or i should say, i dragged juano up the slippery trail kicking and complaining. needless to say the mosquitoes and flies were in abundance but i turned to juan after almost slipping on my arse and said positively, 'look at the bright side of things- we'll have the whole trail to ourselves!'
and we did. its a good thing too because i had to take care of some business on the top of the mountain. and i don't mean a little tinkle. i had to full out squat for 15 minutes. oh, how embarrassing. you see- i ate a bad potato for lunch that decided to hit me pretty hard just as soon as we reached the summit. GOOD JOB! so i had to tell juano to wait on the trail for me to go take care of it. I grabbed a handful of leaves and found a good spot to squat.
i will spare you the unnecessary gory details and just show you the picture of the laughter that was the means of my defense mechanism for the embarrassment. ironically this picture looks like i am taking a squat right there in the middle of the trail. to bad you all don't get to see that much of me.

elbow to the face!!

i used to just blog about funny random things that happened to me...i need to get back in the habit...juano and i went to the PCC night show last night and we were just like a normal couple- holding hands and enjoying the entertainment when juano decides to put his arm around me. i guess i was sitting a little too tall at the time and he wound up and clocked me with his elbow right in the face.
good!
i just started laughing but he, feeling idiotic, smacked his fist to his forehead (i love it when he does that- it only happens when he does something stupid....so it happens a lot- tee hee, jokes). he apologized profusely but all i could do was laugh about it...what else can you do?

laugh it up!

it is the international business conference here at BYUH, which is kinda like education week at BYU and mom's gonna be jealous because i just listened to Barbara Barrington Jones talk about laughter. it made me think of all the people in my life that have done me the good service of making me laugh. sarah, thank you for making me giggle when we snuck butter stuff into our bedroom and guiltily ate the revolting stuff (i only ate it with you cuz i wanted you to like me). jordan, thank you for making me laugh when i had water/milk in my mouth causing me to spew it all over my front at the dinner table. marylu, thank you for making me laugh after the seriousness of you chasing sarah around with a knife died down. laura, thank you for making me laugh when you do that tongue clicking thing in the space between your bottom front teeth and lower lip...or do you pull your lower lip over your bottom front teeth and...oh, nevermind! ...annie, thank you for making me laugh everytime i get excited about some crazy idea i have that you take literally and start blowing things out of proportion (remember the phone i wanted that had speakers and the internet and everything else imaginable?). Larry, thank you for making me laugh when you clench your teeth and pull your face in all sorts of hideous shapes, contours, and convulsions. dad, thank you for making me laugh everytime i get on the phone and you say "baby? is that you?"mom, thank you for making me laugh when you get upset and slap me after i beat you at cards.

Happy Birthday to me!!

Surprise!! I feel like such a spoiled girl...
my birthday started saturday and didn't end until monday. i guess that's what you get when your birthday falls on a dreaded monday. it started with a package from mom- she is the greatest!! she sent me my favorite- granola- i need to learn how to make it myself because it is a constant request. i also got cards from jordy and daddy and mommy- thanks guys then, that night the girls (keekee, hayley, kat, and asako) took me out to dinner to haleiwa eats where they serve up the best thai food this side of...
then sunday rolled around and everyone was being so nice to me. i got to talk to the fam via skype and they all met juano! bless his heart- he was so nervous his little hands were sweating and he was hanging on to my elbow for dear life. it was quite the experience. thanks for all the birthday wishes everyone!!
then juano needed a walk so he coaxed me out of the house and we walked toward the temple (the hotspot for sunday strollers). as we were walking we happened upon a blanket with food laid out on it and a balloon. 'what's this?' i asked satirically. everything was covered in tinfoil so i couldn't tell what juano had made for me. i opened it up and you'd never guess but it was a pan of sushi!! and fruit, and apple juice, and chocolate covered mac nuts, and every good thing. he made me sushi and he doesn't even like raw fish or sushi that much. wow- what a guy! look at all that beautiful sushi and juano rolled all of it all by himself (well asako taught him how to do it- but still!). it was an awesome surprise. we had a lovely little picnic near the temple- it was a very memorable birthday.
and it didn't end there...monday-my actual birthday-i got lei'd! asako gave me the most beautiful sweet smelling lei ever. white ginger. it smells like heaven. i wore it all day and just drank it in. then i put it by my bedside and breathed it in all night long the whole week. it was beautiful.
why is everyone so nice to me?

...and he likes to dance.....

we went to the fall ball this past weekend and had a grand old time. yeah, you like the smile on my face- i look like i am about to pop! it was fun to dress up even though i didn't wear the dress that i had initially planned on wearing...juano was too casually dressed for me to wear a prom dress -_-
that's all right i was a lot more comfortable in this little number. it was a good time.

In a word....

An Award!
Here are the rules:
I have to answer the following questions with one word answers and one word only! Then I must pass it on to seven others.
Here are the questions:

1. Where is your cell phone? desk
2. Where is your significant other? library
3. Your hair color? orange
4. Your mother? compassionate
5. Your father? day-dreaming
6. Your favorite thing? pillow
7. Your dream last night? rainbows
8. Your dream/goal? eternity
9. The room you're in? office
10. Your hobby? volleyball
11. Your fear? isolation
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? home
13. Where were you last night? FHE
14. What you're not? humble
15. One of your wish-list items? kitchenaide
16. Where you grew up? roosevelt
17. The last thing you did? assist
18. What are you wearing? jeans
19. Your TV? off
20. Your pet? nonexistant
21. Your computer? viao
22. Your mood? nostalgic
23. Missing someone? kate
24. Your car? bicycle
25. Something you're not wearing? ring
26. Favorite store? honolua
27. Your summer? humid
28. Love someone? heaps
29. Your favorite color? green
30. When is the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? today

Sarah
Brynn
Shelbot
G
Casey
Munkhtur
Shellie

let the fighting begin!

this is a little video of a game Juano and I made up while we were eating pie one night. the rules are Juano gets to stick his arm in my way while we both try to eat the most pie. So every time one of us got some pie on the fork the other would scrap it off before successful entry into the pie hole. As you can see Juano was the victor (he pouts if he doesn't win so I compromise). We ate 3 pieces of pie in this way which means I had one and he had 2. Now you all know why I am so skinny! Ha ha ha!!

what's the point?

well...in hawaii there are a lot....of points. laie point, kaena point, spear-fishing point...pointing tourists...a-point-ments... oh, stop.
this past saturday we made a point to go to kaena point. while we were there we had the oppurtunity to point at this... a monk seal!
brynn and nate- this is what i wanted to show you on that death march through the dark when you were asking, "what's the point?" i am sorry you never got to see it. maybe next june....
dats right...i graduate on JUNE 6TH!! come one come all! you are all invited to it!! just let me know if you are coming.
back to my story...these monk seals are pretty fun to watch especially when they get angry at curious humans. one of the kids in my ward who thought it would be fun to share the cool pool with the more territorial seal, got chased off and snorted at. it scared the snot out of him and he scrambled for higher ground. the sadistic side of me wished the seal would have got him. the activitees committee chairperson side of me was glad we avoided a liability. can you see him sunbathing there on the left? not the kid in the ward! the seal! pretty sweet. juano and i on the left...awe.
juano took a video and got the seal sneezing...i should load that... funny... he jumped when it sneezed and shook the camera. look out!

JUANO!...not guano...

so...most of you know already that i am dating someone...yeah, yeah... yada, yada. so here is the story...
we met appropriately on the volleyball court...at turtle bay on the north shore. since we both love volleyball our interest in one another was piqued. we played the little flirt game that young kids these days are playing, but mostly didn't say much to each other on the court- a little hand slap here and a good job there. so after a hot day in the sand and sun we went our separate ways wondering if we might chance a second meeting. he left with his other latina (mind you) friends and i left with my friend, frankie. frankie was hungry so we decided to go to ted's bakery up the road. when we got there i knew in my heart it was providence because HE was there! but i was too nervous to say hi or get his attention. he was sitting at a table eating a burger and chatting. so i just walked in the sandwich shop. i ordered my food at the counter and stepped aside by the table with the condiments. then, lo and behold but who walks in? it was HIM! he walked right up next to me and grabbed a few napkins from the counter and was about to leave when words came out of my mouth- "HEY!...uh....howzit?" he looked up at me with a puzzled look *pause* and then he spoke, "do i know you?"
DAAH!
hard to recover after that but i just played it off with self-deprecating rebuttal, "uh, we played volleyball together once....today." *pause* it clicked for him when i put my sunglasses back on my face but i was still slighted by his negligance. we chatted for a bit and then he said he had to go cuz his ride was waiting... darnit.
luckily i did see him again...the next day (small town). and he got my number and we have been practically inseprable since. so i started calling him guano (pronounced wa-no) but come to find out that means cow crap in spanish. he was too nice to say anything...i guess he was just happy that i was calling him somthing at all. now i call him juano which is pronounced with a breath at the beginning- kinda like how you would say 'who' or 'how'....hwa-no. got it? good.

bathroom humor

TAIWAN HAS TURNED ME INTO A POTTY MOUTH! and i mean literally. this restaurant adds new meaning to the phrase. it is called modern toilet and can only be found in taiwan. it was so ironic, yesterday, i got a random forwarded email from my friend robyn. it just had a bunch of pictures of people eating out of miniature toilets and urinals. i was showing some of the people that i work with and misha, my supervisor told me that she knows where that restaurant is here in tainan. i was like..."you mean it is here?!" yes, of course. i got super excited...to eat out of a toilet...and made her take me there, even tho she was disgusted about the whole idea. i try to load more pictures on this blog and it doesn't work...anyway we had a lot of fun playing around with our food in the urinals and toilets. my dish was served in a tub so i wasn't that grossed out. it was fun. oh, mom, i bought you a toilet magnet for the fridge- i will send it to you...

ONE WEEK LEFT!!

its monday and i only have one week left in taiwan...aaaahh!! i am definitely going to miss it here. for my last week of teaching i am at a very small school called Nanke and i love my students already. mondays are usually total junk for me...i'm sick, i have 24 new pairs of eyes gawking at me and asking me for my msn, did i say i am sick...my throat is killing me! i think it is from the exhaust of the scooters and the constant switch from unbearable heat to cold, cold air conditioners. what am i doing complaining about air conditioning? it is going to be hard to leave after this week because i really love my class. the students are really smart and they work hard. I LOVE TAIWAN!!

things I am still not used to after 3 weeks in Taiwan.

10. Squatters. i've missed, i've toppled, i've cramped and i've held it until a western toilet can be found.
9. Happy Singing Trucks. these garbage collecting or ice cream selling trucks have just gotta go. they come around right by my window at the most inopportune times.
8. coagulated duck blood. need i say more? (see picture: coagulated duck blood next to tofu)
7. my host dad teaching me how to use a spoon
6. my host dad teaching me how to use an umbrella
5. my host dad teaching me how to say 'thank you' in chinese. (uh... i say it all the time but he still insists on teaching me. i am not as stupid as i look!)
4. my host dad telling me when to take a shower, wake up, and go to the bathroom.
3. walking in the streets when cars and scooters are whizzing by- narrowly taking my feet out from under me.
2. the smell of stinky tofu.
1. no flushing of toilet paper. (every public restroom smells like pee and poo cuz the trash cans are full of crap, literally.)this is my class from this past week. I love these girls!! I teach at Hung Ren High School.

i...em....shingle. YES! YES! i em shingle! ha ha ha!

i met my new host family and don't get me wrong they are fabulous! they treat me like a queen. they won't let me pay for anything. our first evening together they took me to the most expensive restaurant in Chayi. we had the King of fish which my host dad said is the most expensive fish and world famous. he said it was $10US per square inch. pshaw! he had also been drinking...
so this is the set up...9 couples and little old me. my host mom and dad wanted me to meet ALL their friends. little did i know that all of the men were VERY eager to meet me. we all gathered in two adjacent rooms- all the women in one and the men in the other. there was one person there that could speak semi-decent English who sat by me. it was a good thing because she became my translator when all the men got drunk and hit on me. i kid you not. they all came into the womens dining room beer glasses in hand to drink to my health and tell me that they are single. and all of this right in front of their wives. it was such a fun party. i just sat there and smiled while they all took their turns.

i went home a little unimpressed with everything but believe me- it has been a lot better since. their daughter came back from her trip to japan and i can cruise with her now. she speaks really good english and it is so nice. my host dad still insists on teaching me how to use a spoon and treats me like i am 5. he tells me every five minutes what building they live in and that i can take a shower five times a day if i want. love it.

Taiwanese hospitality

Why am I surprised that people in Taiwan are so nice and accommodating. They treat us like we are celebrities. Yesterday we explored the city that we live in, Tainan. It used to be the capital of Taiwan and has a lot of old temples and historical sites. We inevitably lost our way a few times but luckily we have a girl with us that speaks mandarin and very fluently. She went into a pharmacy to ask directions and got talking with the lady there. After a few minutes of talking with them about where we are from and what we are doing she offered to give us a ride to the night market. Her husband ran outside and pulled his car around to the front to pick us up. All five of us squeezed in and he drove us down. Just some random guy who knew us for 5 minutes! It was incredible. Then when we were finished with wandering around night market we tried to figure out how to get back to the train station when a taxi cab driver told us that public transportation didn’t run that late. He offered to give us a ride there even though he could be ticketed for cramming 5 people in his car. So we squished in his cab and jetted to the station only to find out that the bus we wanted to catch didn’t run that late on Sundays. Li, the girl who is fluent in mandarin talked to a different bus driver who told us that his route ran close to our destination and suggested that we take his bus. So we hopped aboard with faint hearts and tired feet, it was 10:30 by then and we had been walking all day. When we got about 2 kilometers from our home base he let us out but told us that he would finish his route and swing by again to pick us up. So we waited there on the street for about twenty minutes thinking he would just bring his bus back around. No, he came back with his car to pick us up. He was so nice! He finished his shift and then on his own time and own gas picked us up to take us safely home. Wow! People here are incredible.

So we had a pretty adventurous day finding our way around the city wandering on old temple grounds. We had the most delicious shaved ice with mangos, kiwi, guava, bananas….and also a yummy skewer lunch of pork, mushrooms and fishy things. It was super good and so cheap. Night market was the most exciting part of the day. It is like a massive swap meet with crowds and crowds of people pushing and shoving there way around booths that are selling anything from watches to food to t-shirts. I found a sushi booth and got 6 pieces of sushi for $1.80. I can’t even get 2 pieces of sushi for that much in the US!! Everything was so cheap at night markets, we will be going a there a lot. They have them every Saturday, Sunday and Wednesday. So fun!

We had a pretty adventurous day running around orienting ourselves with the city. So far I love Taiwan because it is so much like my second home of Japan only cheaper.

most incredible thing i have ever seen in my life...

...was this! no, i didn't find this video on youtube...I TOOK IT MYSELF!

words cannot be found for how amazing it was.............wow!We actually swam with dolphins!! In the wild!! At one time there were at least 50 around us. They swim really close together and there is rarely one swimming solo and the ones that did were the biggest of the group...maybe the males protecting the group. They are such incredible creatures. There was a little baby hiding under the tail of his mother and occasionally he would swim circles around her to test out his acrobatics. It was so adorable. We saw them jump out of the water from below. They have to get a good running start before they jump-its incredible to watch. One of them was showing off big time and jumping 6 feet out of the watter spinning like a crazy person...er...dophin. He was really good at it. I wish I could have gotten it on video. We are definitely going out again...this is one of my favorite pictures. I can't believe I took it! Pure luck- the picture at least. The whole experience was a definite blessing. But it came with a price...we were exhausted after chasing the dolphins around. It was even pointless to do so because we only saw them when they came to us. They were kind enough to grace us with their presence. Dolphins have got to be the most friendly loving creatures in the world!!Those of you coming to my graduation in June next year can count on doing this...maybe more than once. It has to be the most incredible experience. And it is free!! The best things in life are free...blessings from our Heavenly Father. His existence is more real to me now...how could I doubt...we are gonna go again next week. GOD LIVES!!

talla than ka'ala

This is from the the top of Mount Ka'ala, the highest point on Oahu. This picture really doesn't do it justice though. It was gorgeous up there. We could see the North Shore, West side and all the way to Honolulu from the top. It was pretty amazing.These are the ridges that lead out to Ka'ena point the northwest tip of the island.
Hard to tell in this picture but it is Honolulu in the far distance and Mililani down there in the valley.
It was such a perfect day. This is the view we saw for most of the hike. North Shore. Amazing
Angry Aaron. We had to climb up with the help of ropes for most of the hike. It was pretty intense.
But definitely worth all 11 miles and 2,500 ft elevation gain. I love climbing mountains!

bean blowout beach bbq

don't ask me why i didn't take picture of this bloggable experience. i know i should have...it was unforgettable.
a group of friends and i went on a little excursion to a west side beach. i had made tinfoil dinners for everyone and also grabbed an oversized can-o-beans that had been sitting in my cupboard for far too long. we found the most perfect beach that was far away from lights and city- the stars were incredible. we made a fire and spread the coals out. I threw my tinfoil dinners on the coals and also the can of beans. I forgot about the beans and watched the dinners- there were ten of them and i wanted to make sure they all got the same amount of heat so we could all eat at the same time. a friend, alan, noticed that the foil was bulging on one of the dinners and mentioned something about it popping. i assured him that i didn't wrap them too tight so as to let air escape.
just then, an explosion! what the heck!!!
we all jumped away from the fire- some of us brushing off the ashes, embers, and... something else. it was wet. it burned. it blistered. and as we grappled for sand to douse our burning flesh we all wondered, "what the deuce was that?"
well....it was beans, of course.
to our utter dismay and perturbation, the can had exploded sending spatters of beans and juice all over us. when we assessed the damages we discovered we all were not as hurt as we could have been. we couldn't find the can anywhere. something hit one of the girls, shenley, and we wondered if it was the can and looked all around where she was sitting, but nothing. finally, as we broadened our search one of the guys found the can at least 20 feet away from the fire. we could only assume that it must have shot up and away in the air, narrowly missing all of us gathered closely around the fire. we were definitely protected...despite my stupidity.
my attempt at genocide via bean-bomb was foiled. dah!
we all walked away with small blisters and bean-sized burns in our clothing. alan had about 5 good-sized holes in his board shorts. i counted my blisters today...10. one of them is a pretty little pink heart-shaped bulge on my pinky finger.
next time, we are gonna hide in the bushes, with goggles and cameras rolling to see exactly what happens to a can under intense heat and pressure. we all missed it the first time. that is the only problem with stories such as these. there is hardly ever proof of the fiasco.

we cooked 'im and ate 'im and had the best dinner ever!

I invited some friends over and we cooked up the octopus (finally). When I boiled it i was surprised how much it curled up as you can see in the above photo. And it changed color from gray to purple- the water also turned purple. It looked like kool-aid and i had to restrain myself from drinking it.
Here is the Japanese way of making Octopus. It is called takoyaki. It is basically an egg, flour, and water batter with green onion, octopus, and pickled ginger. We add cheese to it for the American palate.
This is the Samoan way of preparing octopus- with coconut milk, onion and octopus just heated on the stove and put over rice. YUM! It was divine! I am hooked!

killa!!

...dat's what I am. a bona fide killer. we went spearfishing and i killed an octopus...*gasp*

I feel no personal shame or guilt about this. But I must keep it a
secret or I will lose my job on security grounds.
...thank you...
my friends kawika, christy, and hayley were my accomplices.
kawika provided the get-away car as well as the weapons. he was
the one who turned him inside out and kild 'im too. he, also, was
the one who speared him. in fact he did everything. so i didn't
kill nothin, nohow. it was great fun, not to say that i take pleasure
in the brutal demise of innocent creatures but....

you go ahead and make your own judgments. my girl, hayleyfighting back. his grip on the spear actually helped kawika catch him.

christy's initial reaction. shock. it was a big'un.

don't be fooled by the innocent look. this is a face of a killer!

redefining sushi.

tall'n ballin

this is me before the winter ball. we went to town (honolulu) and had dinner at a sushi restaurant and then boarded the star of honolulu yacht.yeah- i know i am tall and i should not be allowed to wear 3 inch heals but hey- i was still shorter than my date...
who is 6'2" and ended up being my cane by the end of the night because look what i discovered...
I got taken by the lady that sold me these shoes...she had me believe that my right foot is significantly bigger than my left when really it was the shoes that were the problem. The left was a rightful 9 and the right was an 81/2. i can't take them back because i wore them and the label was ripped off. here's hoping that my right foot shrinks...
in the mean time...i am a monster around my japanese friends and most people for that matter. but i still like the shoes.

genki sushi

We went to this sushi restaurant in Honolulu and it is just like the ones in Japan! I loved it! they put the sushi on little color coated plates that are different prices and send them down the conveyor belt for you to grab. well we got the bright idea to send my digital camera down the belt and passed all the other customers. it was pretty hilarious.

you caught me!!

going places...

I am moving to TAIWAN for the summer!! call me crazy- well i am! i applied for this summer english teaching program called world passport on a whim. it was super easy to apply and before i knew it i had an interview and today i found out that they want me to come over and teach with them. they are going to pay for my plane ticket and give me a weekly stipend for food and i will stay with a host family who will feed me and take care of me (*cross my fingers*)- i am sure i will be well taken care of. it will be quite an adventure. i am scared to death!!

engaged!!

please allow me to introduce you to my fiance. his name is Munkhtur Enkhbold. here we are in a couple of pictures- i will post more later. he is from mongolia and i met him through my good friend mana. he is living in utah now so all of the fam can meet him before the wedding. mom- i will call you later with his phone number. anyway...i am so happy!! he is the sweetest guy!

one...two...three...JUMP!

the cost of putting yourself out there is....

rejection.

yeah, i tried it.

I told a guy that i like him and...

he said he wishes he were back on his mission.

i guess that is what i get for going for the young guns.

but what can i do? there are only young fish in the BYUH sea.

maybe i should just snorkel these waters and fish later-look but don't touch.

grandma shimmy with her latest toter

you can call me grandma but don't call me pregnant...

today started off good for me which is a rarity. i usually wallow in self-pity and lament the fact that the morning has once again arrived and i must drag my sorry butt out of bed and scurry off to class. but we are not talking about every other day of the week- we are talking about today....
can i just say- someone got their beauty sleep- and it was me. i looked good and i knew it...and my roommates knew it....and mark chiba in the library noticed it....but the guy at the grocery store...didn't.
i was standing in line to buy my temaki sushi roll and hint-of-lime tostitos when a familiar voice behind me starts busting up. it was gideon, a "good friend" of mine (yeah, right).
"Ho, sis, i taut you was a grandma standin' dea wit dat white sweata an da kine."
yeah, that's right. from behind i look like some grandma!
i blame the latest fashion trends. it seems that long flowy shirts that are comfortable and modest (unsexy or pregnant-looking in male vernacular) kindle comments such as these.
i called him a jerk and walked out of the store all the while laughing at the whole ridiculous scene. why should i take offense to an affront given by someone who's wardrobe consists of "dressy" board shorts, casual board shorts, surfing board shorts, t-shirts and slippers.
oh, and i kid you not about the 'dressy' board shorts. most hawaiians think you are going to the opera or something if you are wearing a nice pair of jeans.

happy happy day!!

today is the 4th day of spring...or so my daddy would say. i talked to him on Sunday and he told me that he went for a walk in the winter wonderland that continues to pervade Utah. He said he saw a few blades of grass- EVIDENCE! -that spring is here just in time for his birthday. green is such a blessed gift after so much white. for your birthday gift i will pray for more green to come your way or for you to come its way (rumor has it, there are plans of mom and dad spending their 40th wedding anniversary here, in Hawaii, with me!!).

Here is a birthday hug for you, daddy! i miss you so much!! I hope you have a wonderful birthday eating turkey, stuffing, and pie!! I can't wait to see you in the fall! i wuv you!

love, baby

pavement pebble pizza

this is how terrible i am...
I rode my bike up to the bike rack strategically located in front of the pizza hut and locked it and made my way to the post office at the end of Laie shopping center. i dropped my letters into the slot and walked back to my bike. A young lady carrying 6 boxes of pizza walked out from the restaurant and as she walked passed me the redolent smell wafted to my olfactory nerves and struck an undeniable craving. I.... NEED....PIZZA!-my little heart screamed. I impulsively walked into the pizza hut and ordered the biggest pizza they had to offer. The lady told me it would be a 15 minute wait- just enough time to go to foodland and get.....more.....food. My 5 minute trip to drop off outgoing mail was now turning into a full out shopping trip.
And that it did. never - ever go shopping on an empty stomach. in 15 minutes i found myself returning to the pizza hut with 4 bulging plastic bags worth of who knows what- don't ask it was on sale!
the lady brought me my pizza with a smile and asked if their was anything she could get. I asked if she could put the over-sized pizza box in a plastic sack. she pointed to the sacks that they had and said, "oh, we do- but they are not big enough for the new yorker pizza box, sorry."
Oh thats okay, i will just put it on my handle bars with all my other groceries- no problem....yeah.
as i was trying to juggle the groceries and the pizza on my bike the box slipped and i barely caught it with a few fingers. but my grip was on the end opposite from the opening. so a bunch of slices of pizza fell out on the pavement. crap! i looked around to see if any one saw and then quickly put them back in the box and rode off.
as i was riding home i rode past the boys house just across the street from our house and i had a fabulous idea. maybe they would like some pizza. so i invited them over for some. i situated the pizza slices that had fallen on the ground closest to them- but they took other unscathed pieces. dangit.
Alas, another one of the boys came over and he graciously took a piece that had fallen on the ground. i am so glad i didn't have to waste any food. i know i can always count on my male counterparts to eat food that has been tainted. Jessie's mom was right, they are like dogs in so many ways.

beach baby

who needs to see a real turtle when you can create him in the sand! I guess if you need a girl you could resort to this method as well.
it was a good presidents day....