San Diego

So, I'm in San Diego to watch my brother's final college football game, and I've come to some conclusions:

1. I'm going to miss watching him play for my beloved Utes. It's really a fun time to go to these games and get to see the team and program on a more personal level. It's been a blast - and hopefully it all ends on a very positive note.

2. San Diego is the perfect city. Seriously - the climate, the cleanliness, the beaches, the food (the best mexican food, great seafood). As most know, I travel very often - mostly internationally. For example, I've been to the Caribbean twice in the past month, and I also travel to Florida regularly. And the only reason I mention that is to emphasize the fact that I'm familiar with various resort locations, and as such, I can safely say that San Diego would be the first place I'd like to live. If it didn't require a 100-year mortgage to buy a house here, I'd move here tomorrow.

As for the bowl game, I think it's going to be a good time. I wish that my lovely wife were with me. As I walked along the Seaport boardwalk as the sun set tonight, I had to call her just to let her know how much I missed her.

Supposedly, there is going to be a full house tomorrow night. They expect a record 47,000 fans - of which, 30,000 will be Navy fans and supporters. Utah will likely have around 12,000. It should be a great atmosphere. Now, I just hope that the game is great. Considering that they run the option, it should be the perfect game for Steve to showcase his talent. He could easily be the bowl MVP, which would be great. I was just watching ESPN, and they were giving a preview of the game, and they said that Steve was their player to watch for - and they said he'd likely be a 5th or 6th round NFL draft pick. Whoa! (for a thorough break-down of the game, and some great featured articles on Steve, go to my Ute blog at trueute.blogspot.com)

Speaking of Steve, he committed to an agent today. His name is David Canter - and he's the agent for big names like Steven Jackson, Stephen Davis, and Eric Weddle. You can see an article that ESPN wrote on him here: http://espn.go.com/page2/s/confessions/agent.html.

Steve was a little unsure as to which agent he should go with, but when David pulled some strings this week to get him into the Hula Bowl, the answer was obvious. Steve's future in football is uncertain, but I think he has the right guy who can open some doors for him. We spoke with Weddle tonight, and he said that he really likes this agent, and he's helped him quite a bit. He got him to be picked in the 2nd round, and Eric became an impact player in his first year, and his jersey is the 2nd highest sold Chargers jersey this year - only behind Tomlinson.

So, I'll enjoy the weather and the football game, knowing that I'll be returning to cold weather and no football. Oh well. At least Christmas is here.

Jelly of the Month Club

So, a funny thing happened tonight, so I had to write about so I could remember it a year from now and get another laugh out of it.

Imagine...

A juicy steak cooked to medium rare perfection encrusted in a savory bleu cheese, bread crumb topping served on a hot sizzling plate. As if this isn’t good enough, accompanying this steak is a dish of whipped sweet potatoes with a pecan crust and hot, yet crisp asparagus with a light hollandaise sauce. No to mention the soft bread so fresh it virtually melts in your mouth. Then to top it all off, a chocolate explosion cake filled with a semi-sweet chocolate ganache (not to bitter, yet not to sweet) that just melts in your mouth. Are you drooling yet? Then I must not have described it so well because it was simply wonderful!

This sums up our meal from Ruth’s Chris Friday night for Dustin’s Birthday. Dustin’s favorite is the Ahi Tuna Stack which is slices of seared Ahi Tuna layered with a hint of garlic, seared just perfectly where the center is still raw, yet warm. However, since he was privileged enough to experience Ruth’s Chris two nights in a row (bachelor party the second night) he opted to have steak with me the first night. The second night he had the Banana Cream Pie with caramelized bananas which he said were amazing. If we had been hungry enough the first night to enjoy two desserts, this would have been the second one. Anyway, I enjoyed Dustin’s birthday immensely! I guess it was Happy Birthday to me too, seeing has how he could have opted for a different restaurant once he found out they were doing the bachelor party dinner at the same place, but he didn't want to disappoint me. Thanks honey!

Dedication

I dedicate this post to my dear life long friend Jennifer, who informed me that my blog was too boring and my posts too lengthy. (This post may be boring, but it’s definitely not lengthy).

And to all of my synchronized swimming friends (the 3 of you that read this)… through all of the years of long hours of practice, various lifts and awkward positions, at least we never had to endure THIS type of pain.

OUCH!!!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Yes.. my mom and my husband have the same birthday (Dustin's post is below). I am sure that Freud would have some things to say about that, but hey, it works for me!

Anyway… Happy Birthday Mom! One of these days I will spend a birthday with you, but at least I get to see you in 5 days… I am so excited!

I truly have the best mom in the entire world. I feel so blessed and so lucky that she is my mom. Just the other day I called her to find out how to approach a certain situation and of course she gave me the advice that I needed. She is my friend (even though she made it perfectly clear as a teenager that she was my mother, not my friend), my moral compass, my personal Dr. Laura, my comforter, and my biggest fan. I can’t wait until I can make her a Grandmother, because she is going to be the best grandma too. (Right now her church calling is in the Nursery (with 18 month to 3 year olds) and she has about 15 or so kids and they all just adore her, of course).

Mom, you have been there for me through everything in my life. If I could go back and change one thing as to how you mothered me; I wouldn’t change a thing. I could not have asked for anything more from you. I love you so much and I hope that you and Ash have a great time at Sweeny Todd tonight!!! I wish that I could be there too. Thank you for all of the wonderful gifts and opportunities that you gave to me and thank you for being my mom. I love you!

Happy Birthday DT!!!

Happy Birthday to the love of my life (as I like to call him)! Today is Dustin’s 31st Birthday, and since he is on his way home from a business trip in St. Lucia and I don’t get to see him until late tonight (actually not until tomorrow), I wanted him to know how much I love him and that I hope that he has a very Happy Birthday… even if it is spent on a plane and in airports. (He is currently enduring a 5 hour layover in San Juan... ouch!)

There are so many things that I love and cherish about Dustin. I look at this past year and all of the things that we have been able to enjoy together, some of things that we have been able to overcome together and some of the things that we are still enduring… together. But through it all, he has been a strength to me. He has given me hope and helped me to look at the positive when it has been hard for me to do so. He also continues to challenge me in ways I don’t always feel like being challenged and I have been known to push back, but I know that he always wants what is best for me.

I love you DT! I know that you were the one that I was supposed to end up with and I am so grateful that I finally “saw the light”. I feel so blessed to be able to share my life with you and I cannot wait until the day we can add to our family of 3 (we can’t exclude Quique). I love you always and forever!

The Fusion of Entertainment and Enlightenment

Sound familiar? Then you too must listen to Glenn Beck. For those of you not familiar with him, he is a radio talk show host (conservative of course). Don’t get me wrong, Rush Limbaugh is the Godfather and Sean Hannity has his moments, but there is something about Glenn Beck’s quirkiness and genuineness that just reel me right in. I can be laughing and crying within minutes. He also has a show on CNN Headline News, but I prefer the radio show. I guess I’m just a talk radio geek. My mom got me listening to Rush and it just spiraled from there.

Last year Glenn Beck brought his Christmas stage show to Salt Lake. Since April is my partner in crime and also adores Glenn, we decided to have a girl’s night out and see his show. It was awesome! The stories that he tells are seriously beyond belief. Beck’s producer on his radio show had the opportunity to meet Beck’s family and tried to find out if in fact these were true stories or if there was some Beck fabrication involved. All of them were true… even his crazy step mother sawing off the arm of the couch to get a better view of the TV. And that is only one of many stories.

Anyway, it was so awesome last year that April and I decided we couldn’t pass it up this year, knowing that it was pretty much the same show. And yet again, it was fabulous! He is an animated storyteller so even though I knew the stories, he still had me laughing. He sums up the show with the true meaning of Christmas. He talks about how it’s more than the birth of a baby, but that Christmas is about the life that Jesus Christ served, His death and most importantly, His resurrection. In other words redemption is the true meaning of Christmas.

If that didn’t get me even more in the Christmas spirit, then I don’t know what could. After the show in Salt Lake, he shared the story of his conversion to the LDS church. Initially, when I first started listening to Glenn, I had no idea that he was Mormon, but after a couple of months and a few references to his religion, I put the pieces together. It was a beautiful story, not only about his conversion to the church, but also about friendship, his family and how God does in fact place certain people in our lives. I am a firm believer that certain people have been put in my life for a reason, almost like guardian angels and I am so grateful for each one of them.

Next year Glenn (we’re on a first name basis) will be doing a different kind of show called “The Christmas Sweater”. It sounds like quite a production. A sweater on Christmas day was the last gift that he received from his mom before she committed suicide and so there are a lot of feelings and deep meaning that go along with this sweater. I could go on and on about Glenn Beck. As Dustin puts it, he has College Football and I have Glenn Beck. We all have our quirks right? Thanks to April for sharing a fun evening. We laughed, we cried and we were entertained through it all. We are both counting down until next year!!!

Bear Hugs Christmas

Dustin and I both have the amazing privilege to work with the youth organization within our church. Yesterday morning, we had an opportunity to take the young men and young women in our ward (for the third year in a row) to volunteer with the Bear Hugs Christmas.

This is a very special event set up by the Utah Jazz. Each year the Jazz Bear and his committee (aka Luke) work to raise money. In December, they take that money and they set up this great even that allows some of the under-privileged kids in the area to each have $90 to spend at Wal-Mart for their Christmas. We have to pick up the youth at about 6am in the morning since we have to be there by 6:30 and we have yet to hear one complaint or one groan about it. The youth get so excited to participate every year. Each volunteer then gets matched up with a kid anywhere between 4 and 13 or so. Since the youth in our church range from 12-18, some times they do get matched up with a kid that is similar in age. The kids then enjoy some breakfast along with some type of entertainment. This year some dancers from High School Music came to teach the kids some moves. (Here is Dustin and his buddy breakin' it down). Then the Jazz Bear comes to get the kids excited and we're off to Wal-Mart.

The interesting part is that we load up into buses and then there is a police escort that takes the 7 or 8 buses to Wal-Mart. Leading the way is the Jazz Bear on top of a Fire Truck so that all the kids can see him. Even though this is my third time doing it, I still get choked up watching the kids lighten up and get excited as the 12 or so police cars with sirens on lead us and stop traffic to lead us as we go through red lights. Even if it's for a short time, they feel so special.

When we get to Wal-Mart let's just say that the toy section is a mad house. Kids and carts in every aisle; first bikes being ridden and dolls being admired. The interesting part is that each of these young kids has $90 to spend on themselves and yet they are usually buying things for their mom or a sibling or their dad. Some leave very little, if any money for themselves. The young men and young women are touched by this every year as am I. This beauty of selflessness is almost overwhelming when I think about it. But it is also the sad stories that we hear as we walk and talk with these kids. One told one of our young women that she and her brother sleep in the car sometimes. Another said they didn't need to buy anything for his dad because he was in prison. Another was ducking when the police escort started. When asked why he was ducking, he said "because that's what my mom always does when she sees the police". Then one of our young men got up in church today to talk about his experience. He is 12 so it was his first time doing it this year. He said it was hard at times trying to keep track of his kid and buy certain things and he was a little wild. But at the end he said the bus ride home was really fun and he said he gained "another best friend". Priceless.

It truly is an amazing experience that I am so fortunate to participate in each year. My sweet friend was 5 year old Diego. He was shy and refused to dance, but was so excited about the Jazz Bear and Wal-Mart. Santa was there too, but apparently Santa didn't even begin to compare to the Jazz Bear. Diego knew what he wanted and we were done pretty quick, but as we were going through the aisles making sure he got what he wanted, he kept pointing at things and asking if I wanted to get that for my sister. And then he was asking what I wanted to get. This sweet 5 year old boy who barely knew me, let alone my sister, wanted to make sure that we were taken care of too. He did end up buying two of something so that he and his friend could play with them together.
This was a reminder to me of how blessed I am in my life. I have been given so much and does my selflessness even compare to these sweet children? I don't think it does. But it sure does give me inspiration and motivation each year to be a better person and to try and give back even more for all the amazing blessings that I have received. I think Dustin's little buddy summed it up best for all of us. "Today is my luckiest day!" Thanks to Luke and April for giving us the opportunity to participate in such a wonderful event!

Christmas Tree

Dustin and I shared two different traditions growing up. Dustin's family always had a fake tree and mine always had a real tree. The first year we were married, I gave in to Dustin's frugal plea and we did a fake tree. As long as the next year we did a real tree. The year after that, our friends had a great idea to get a Christmas Tree Tag, that way we could cut down our own tree. This is by far our favorite way to do it! It's the ultimate Charlie Brown tree with it's own special character. And if you think a tree from the tree lot down the street smells good, just wait until you cut down your own. The fresh pine smell fills the whole house! Then last year rolled around and we decided not to do a tree since we had just moved. Yes it was across the street, but the last thing I wanted to do after that was unpack boxes to take out the Christmas decorations. I guess you could say that the Christmas spirit wasn't as alive and well as it we like it to be. Plus with Quique running around chewing up everything, we thought it would be best not to do a tree or too many decorations for that matter (oh wait... she's still running around and chewing up things).

Anyway, since time was pretty slim this year, we just went down the street to the tree lot we had been a few years before. It was great, we were in and out of there in about 15 minutes. I think that I have finally sold Dustin on the real tree because it is so nice to have that fresh smell in your house. A candle can't do it justice. When we were putting up the tree, however, we did recall that our tree stand wasn't that great. I recommend not buying a tree stand where you use the screws to stand it up straight... it doesn't work! So Dustin was on his back holding up and screwing in the tree and Quique was wagging her butt licking his entire face. It was so cute! Anyway, the tree is finally up, the lights are on and about half of the ornaments. I know that I am driving Dustin crazy without having all of the ornaments up, I just can't figure out what to do. Anyway, the Christmas Spirit is alive and well in the Tate Household this year! I love this time of year!!!

August Rush

On Saturday evening after a good dinner at Market Street and strolling downtown, we met up with some friends and saw the movie, August Rush. This was a movie that I have wanted to see from the first time I saw the preview. My mom and sister saw it the first weekend it was out and loved it. I thought that I was going to have to pull some teeth to have Dustin see this one with me, but Mark called and asked Dustin if we wanted to go. Mark proceeded to tell Dustin that his dad and two of his brothers had seen it and it almost brought them to tears. Dustin was sold! Of course, I never have the power to persuade Dustin, but his friends can persuade him in a heart beat. Oh well, whatever works! (I do like the sappy movies, so I will give him the benefit of the doubt on this one).

Without giving away too much, it was a very touching story of 2 musicians, a Julliard Cellist and a Rock Band Singer who fall in love. She (Kerri Russel from Felicity, loved that show) has a baby, but the baby is given up and she is told that he didn't survive. The boy (Peter, from Finding Neverland, great movie) has an amazing sense of music and feels that he can find his parents through music. Robin Williams also does an amazing job. The acting is phenomenal, even by a few of the kids in the movie. The actors have a way of speaking to you through their eyes and it is so powerful! It is touching, inspiring and beautiful! Even Dustin liked it! I was crying before the beginning credits and it pretty much continued through the entire movie. I do have issues in regards to crying in movies, but that was a record for me. I highly recommend it. So Rush... to see August Rush! I promise, you won't regret it.

It's Beginning to Feel A Lot Like Christmas...

So Saturday was an interesting day. With so many things going on in the month of December, I was excited to actually have some of a Saturday to get some things done. I had a schedule of everything I had to accomplish. I woke up at 8am to start my checkoff list and the snow was just coming down. There was already white everywhere and more snow coming down. I couldn't get stuff done in all that! Well, it continued to snow for the next 6 hours... grrreeeaaaat! So there went all of my dreams of getting errands done. Well, once it stopped, it really was beautiful! I am a horrible photographer, but I loved this picture of our apple tree, with some of the fruit still left on the tree with the snow.

Anyway, it ended up being a nice day. We went to dinner with the Tate's to celebrate some birthdays and then walked around Temple Square to look at the lights. It was the first time all year that it really felt like Christmas. It was crowded downtown, the horse-drawn carriages were in full spring, there were Christmas lights everywhere and everything was covered with beautiful white snow. Even though, I grew up in California, it's amazing how much I equate Christmas with snow. Growing up, my family came out to Salt Lake every year for Christmas (except for 2 in the Caribbean), so snow and Christmas go hand in hand. I never realized it until this weekend. All of a sudden, I felt the Christmas spirit. I think that looking at beautiful lights and Nativity Scenes from around the world probably helped too. Anyway, the countdown begins... 21 days 'til Christmas, but only 14 days until my Mom and sister come! I can hardly wait!!!

Snapping out of it

So, I don't contribute much to "our" blog, but I figured I'd make my wife happy by making some contributions.

So, it's Wednesday, and I just now decided to get out of bed, shower, and shave. I went into depression after the Utah game on Saturday, and haven't been able to venture into the world since. Well, at least figuratively speaking. I did make it to church the next morning (wearing the "U" tie and all, as I figured I had to teach the young men about loyalty and dealing with adversity). And at the Utah senior banquet Sunday night, I relived it all. I really did think about calling into sick the next morning, as I work with quite a number of Y fans - and I was pretty darn confident the week before that the Utes would humble the cougs. But then I remembered what a hard time I gave to a co-worker who called in sick in November 2004 when Bush was reelected. I had no choice but to step up. Fortunately, everybody at my work was much more gracious than I expected (or than I probably would have been). Yes, the first day was the toughest - but downloading my frustrations with some fellow Utes gave me some free therapy.

Well, I'm deciding to post today because a friend of mine passed along a blog from Sabrena - somebody I went to high school with. She wrote a great blog post about Utah being like a co-dependent boyfriend (link: http://suitespots.blogspot.com/2007/11/why-utes-are-like-co-dependent.html). It was a great read - and she hit the nail right on the head regarding the biggest problem for the Utes on Saturday. It was also nice to read her own observation that, had the entire team played with the intensity and passion that Steve always brought, the Utes would have been much happier Saturday afternoon. I couldn't agree more.

It was kind of interesting reading through her blog and seeing her links to other blogs. I saw a lot of familiar faces from old friends from high school - whom I haven't seen in a long time. Coincidentally, I just recently ran into a good high school buddy whom I hadn't seen in years while I was in Colorado at a Utah game. It was great to catch up with him, and we've gotten together a few times since to catch up on old times. Zac happens to be an artist - a painter - who has always been amazingly talented, and it sounds like the rest of the world is beginning to appreciate just how good he really is. He's booked practically an entire year out by people and companies to do paintings. Fortunately, he actually really wants to do a painting of Steve - as he's been following his career for a while, and he happens to be a big U football fan. He's hopeful that doing a piece like that could open some new doors for him to more (and wealthier) players (Steve's friends with Eric Weddle, Alex Smith, Kevin Curtis - and each of them have their friends, etc.). I'm really excited that Zac's wanting to do this. It will be a great gift for Steve and his family.
If you get a chance, you'll want to take a look at his website to see some of his work: www.zacharyproctor.com.

So, between the blog I read, my hour-long conversation with Zac, and driving our youth downtown to see the lights (listening to some of their funny stories), I couldn't help but zone out for a while, thinking about high school. I was asking myself questions like: 'how did we get around so well without cell phones??' or 'how did my parents not kill me or themselves?' or 'why didn't we do normal things for fun?'. Ah. The memories, huh?

But, just like the post-game depression, I realized that I was better off just snapping out of it.

Jamie, me, Wynn, and Savanna at the game from hell

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

My name is Jamie and I'm a snow hater! Yes I live in Utah and I hate the snow. Now don't get me wrong, it is beautiful, but I absolutely HATE driving in it. I was supposed to go to a shoe party tonight where there are all sorts of shoes for $20 and under. After all of the shoes my dog has destroyed, I was so excited! But no... it had to snow and I was too afraid to drive so I didn't go. I let snow get in the way of me buying shoes, what is wrong with me? Then, I was on my way home from work, driving 5 miles under the speed limit and there is this truck on my tail for about 5 miles and then he shines his brights at me... what's that about? There are 3 other lanes, buddy, and it's snowing, take a chill pill!

Well.. enough of all that negativity. The one thing that I do absolutely love about the snow, I realized last winter which was my first winter with my sweet puppy. She L-O-V-E-S the snow. In fact when Dustin let her out front to play, she wouldn't even come back in (please excuse the poor photography). Last winter we took her and her brother up Millcreek Canyon for a hike and she was all over the place rolling around in the snow and digging her head and body into the snow, it was the cutest thing I have ever seen. I think she probably walked twice as many miles as I did since she virtually did a zigzag through the trail. I was so sad when the summer was ending and I knew that it would be months and months until I would see her swim again, but watching her roll around in the snow tonight and catch snowballs in her mouth made me realize just how much fun this winter will be with her. This is going to be my 11th winter in Utah... yikes! And I've only caused one accident (I did a 360 on I-15... not pretty), and only slid off the road a couple of times. I can make it through another snow season... right? I'm sure there will be many more Quique snow stories (are you sick of my dog yet?). And I promise that I will try to focus on all of the positive things about the snow (e.g. the skiers (Dustin) are happy, we need the moisture, feels like Christmas... etc.) this winter. Wish me luck!

Update: My friend from work called me this morning and said that she saw about 35 accidents on her way home to Park City last night. It's only about a 30 minute drive from my house (in regular weather conditions). I hope this isn't the beginning of rough driving days ahead. See... I'm already being negative again. I just need to keep telling myself - I love the snow, I love the snow, I love the snow...

My Dad!

Apparently, it takes me writing a blog to my dad and then asking him to read my blog in order to get him to read it. The main reason I started this blog was for my family. My mom is pretty good about keeping up, but my dad needed his birthday tribute for him to read it and my sister still has yet to read my blog.

Anyway, I mentioned in my previous post to my dad that I didn't have a recent picture, so my dad's wife, Cary was kind enough to send one to me. She took the picture and I think she did a great job of capturing him. So here's to my Dad. Love you Dad! I hope that you have a Happy Thanksgiving... I am sure that the food will be amazing!

Happy Birthday Autumn!

Once my dad’s birthday hits, it’s the season of birthdays. One of my dearest friends in the whole world turned 3-0 on Saturday. Autumn and I have a very unique friendship. It’s actually quite an interesting story (for me anyway). I was living in Salt Lake and she moved in with one of my friends that lived in Provo (45 minutes south of SLC). We probably met somewhere around March or April of 99 and she moved back to Arizona in July or August of that same year. It’s so crazy when I think about it. We just hit it off instantly. It was like I already knew her... it was like friends at first sight! Anyway, we’d hang out a bunch and by the time she was about to leave we had become the greatest of friends. Since then, we have never lived near each other and we probably only see each other a week out of a year (if we’re lucky) so for the most part our friendship has been over the phone. Who knows somebody for 3-4 months and then is able to hold onto a friendship… a friendship where you talk on the phone almost every week??? I know it sounds like some weird love story, but any time we tell people about it, they are in awe. So are we.

It feels like we have so many crazy stories and memories and yet we’ve maybe been in the same vicinity of each other for a total of 6 or 7 months of our lives. We haven’t been able to see each other much, but she has been a rock for me and a support system that I will always be grateful for. She wasn’t able to get pregnant her first time for about 3 or 4 years so she has been able to talk me through this process. When I feel like it’s just too hard, she tells me what I need to hear and she gives me the hope I need to keep moving forward. I love her like a sister and I am so thankful for all of the precious memories that we have. She’s now pregnant with number 3 and it was a bit of a miracle baby so her story and journey help to give me faith through mine. Autumn, I love you so much and I am so grateful for our friendship. There have been some trials in my life when I am not sure if I would have been able to survive them without you. Thank you and Happy Birthday! One of these days we’ll have to celebrate it in person!

The second picture is of us with Autumn's oldest (she's now 3) - Breckyn Jamie (yes named after me!)

Happy Birthday Dad!

So today my dad turned the big 6-5! In fact, he was anticipating the event of using his senior citizen BART ticket when he went to the city tonight. Dad, I know that you may be feeling old (hehe) but you don't look like you're 65. Sad to say that I haven't even seen my dad since February and when I was looking for a picture to post, I didn't have any pictures of us on the computer. (With Dustin out of town, I am at a loss trying to use the scanner). I'm a bad daughter! Anyway, here are some wonderful memories that I have of my dad.

• The Gourmet Chef - Both of my parents are great cooks. My mom made the meals that remind me of home and tradition. As for my dad, he has become more of the gourmet all about the presentation kind of chef (although the quality is just as wonderful as the presentation). I don't even know if I can say that he has cooked the same thing twice. He is always inventing new recipes and new ways to present his meals, I wish that I was blessed with his talent.
• Halloween - Hands down every year I would win the Costume Contests. Not only did my dad come up with great ideas (1/2 old lady, 1/2 skeleton), but I would get up hours and hours before school started so that he could paint my face. It was a work of art. One of these days I'll have to post some pictures. Also, weeks before Halloween came around, we would spend the weekends, putting together the glowing cat eyes that we had in our big oak tree in our front yard along with the scary music.
• Speeches - My dad was great with helping me with speeches whether it was for a speech contest or running for office at school. I still remember the slogan he came up with when I ran for VP in 8th Grade - "Why me... Why not?"
• Mr. Fixer - Any time something was broken or it needed to be fixed, I knew that I could always turn to my dad and he would fix it, no matter if it was a tangled necklace or a broken something else.
• The Perfectionist - After our house was remodeled I remember spending what felt like 6-8 weeks of taking long strips of plywood, drawing a straight line down the center, and then drilling holes so many inches apart. What could this be for you ask? Our Christmas lights. My dad wanted to make sure that every light was perfectly straight as these lights outlined the roofline of the house. It was almost disgusting just how far he went to make it look perfect, but it did look perfect.
  
• Playing Catch - My poor dad was never blessed with any boys, only my sister and me. Ashley has and will always be the princess of the family where as I was the tomboy growing up. Whether my dad helped to define it or just saw it in me, I remember many times going out in the front yard and playing catch. He taught me how to throw, how to swing and how to catch. If it wasn't for the demands of swimming and gymnastics, I may have kept with baseball past the age of 8 because I always loved it.

There are more stories and many more memories of my dad, but here are just a few that stick out. Dad, I know that we don't get to see each other as often as we'd like, but I love you and I am grateful that you are my dad. I hope that you had a nice dinner in the city! I love you!

Quique Highlights

Yes I talk about my dog way too much, but I just had to share a few things from Sunday:

• Yesterday morning, Dustin left on a business trip to Barbados. Since it was about 6am and he was letting me slowly get up to take him, he wanted to make sure to get some “quality time” in with Q before he left. She was kissing him and loving him, it was so cute. When we were dropping off Dustin at the airport, Dustin went into the backseat to give Quique one last love before he was off. When he went to give her a love, she turned her head away from him. She showed him! (I guess there have been a few too many trips to the airport).
• Yesterday afternoon, Quique was getting restless and I knew it was time for a walk. The only problem, oh ya, it’s raining. Do you think that stopped us from taking a walk? Think again. I grabbed the umbrella and even though it was pouring, we went for a walk. A few passerbyers (in cars of course) slowed down as they passed us to see just how insane we were, but she’s a lab. What else can I say?

Guaranteed He'll Never Guarantee Again

I haven't talked much about University of Utah Football, which is surprising because it pretty much consumes our lives (main reason that Dustin hasn't contributed much to this blog yet). This year we have attended almost every game home or away which means that we haven't had too many Saturdays to do stuff around the house. This week we played Wyoming. It was interesting because at the beginning of the week, Wyoming's head coach guaranteed a win. You've heard players do that before, (especially the ones from that team down south) but usually not from the coach. In interviews during the week, he also talked down Utah’s talent. This was a bad idea! Utah went into the game and crushed those Cowboys 50-0 (40-0 at halftime)... ouch! The big controversy was that in the third quarter Utah attempted an onside kick. Wouldn't necessarily have been the choice that I would have made seeing as though the score was 43-0, but after watching too many games of prevent defense (you know... the defense that only prevents wins), it was nice to see that 3rd quarter they were still going strong. Joe Glenn, Wyoming's coach responded as he flipped off Coach Whit (I guess he wasn’t too fond of the onside kick). When 4th quarter came around, they took out most of the starters and called off the dogs. Dustin and I decided that we probably won’t be making the trip to Laramie, WY next year for the game (the fans up there aren't too happy with Coach Whit’s decision).

So that was the drama of the game. The highlights were first of all that we won! Other high points were my brother in law, Steve had an interception (3rd game straight) and 2 tackles for loss. Also, the fake punt that should have resulted in a 40 yard touchdown by the Defensive Tackle A’asa, the great chili I made for tailgating (gotta love getting a hold of secret recipes), and of course sitting with my precious nephew, Bo during the game. He was killing me! He's 18 months and so cute. Every time he’s sees a football game or one on TV he always says “dada dada”. Here are some highlights from the game:

• At the beginning of the game pointing out Steve every 2 seconds or shrugging his shoulders and saying “dada” as if he doesn’t know where he went.
• Pointing to the letters on my “Tate it to the house” shirt and being so amused when I would tell him what letter it was.
• Trying to feed me my glasses desperately wanting me to eat them.
• Sitting on my lap and arching back so that I could tickle his stomach. Nothing sweeter than the giggle of a baby or toddler for that matter.

The second half wasn’t quite as entertaining so thank goodness for Bo. Proud Aunt Moment: Savanna said Bo’s favorite thing to do right now is to watch their wedding video. Every time he watches it, when he sees me he says “Jamie” (or something that sounds similar). He doesn’t call out any of his other aunts and uncles (although he says duh for Dustin). I think that makes me pretty special (or at least I think so).

Active Dreamer

So the other night, I woke up in the middle of the night to my entire bed shaking. I looked over at Dustin and he was on his back with his legs kicking in the air and the rest of his body convulsing. At first I thought he may be having a seizure. I was finally able to wake him up and he stopped and then mumbled something as he drifted back to sleep.

The next morning I asked him if he had remembered what had happened the night before and told him out it had scared me. He informed me that all that he could remember from his dream was kicking something. If what his body was doing was anything like what was happening in his dream; that is a sight I would have liked to have seen. It was hysterical! I’ve never seen anybody kick with both legs quite the way Dustin pulled it off. Unfortunately, my description doesn’t do the visual justice.

Dustin talks in his sleep, grinds his teeth in his sleep and twitches in his sleep (one time resulting in me taking a fist in the jaw) but this was the first time his entire body was moving. I’m just waiting for the time when he starts sleep walking. That may really freak me out!

aaaaaahhhhh Freak Out!

I learned something new about myself last night. I am horrible in intense and critical situations. I better improve in this area before motherhood or else I have a long and scary road ahead of me!

Last night Charlie came over to play with Quique for a little while before I was off to Dinner Club. I was making my soup and half the time they play right around my feet. I was on the phone with April when I heard growling and whining. I tried to get the dogs to knock it off, but it got worse. I couldn’t tell what was happening. One of them kept letting out a whine that sounded more like a cry. I couldn’t imagine that one would ever try to hurt the other, but when I tried to break it up, I couldn’t. That’s when I literally freaked out! Dustin was in the front yard raking leaves. I tried to yell “Dustin” or even “Help” but all that came out was a scream. I wouldn’t even call it a scream… more like a shriek or shrill. Luckily it was high pitched enough and Dustin came running in. Although I knew he was panicked, he got right in to figure out what was going on. Quique, in her attempt to take of Charlie’s collar, got her lower jaw stuck in his collar. Her jaw was so jammed in there Dustin grabbed scissors in an attempt to cut off Charlie’s collar. Luckily, Charlie’s collar was a plastic clasp and I was able to take off the collar and the dogs were able to break free of each other. Charlie has a sweet tender heart and was a little uneasy at first, but eventually he was okay so I took him home. I think it almost scared Charlie more than Quique. I am so grateful that Quique was all right too. I am so blessed that she didn’t tweak her neck or break her jaw. I don’t know what I would’ve done.

I knew that I immediately had to call April back to let her know that everything was okay since all she heard was my panicked yelps that turned into piercing screams. She didn’t know what was going on. She heard me screaming and then a man’s voice and she didn’t know that Dustin was home. She was on her way to come “save” me. Once I called her she realized that it probably wasn’t smart to be coming into my house if I was getting attacked, but I was grateful. Another neighbor called to check on me to. She lives about 4 houses down… how embarrassing! Morals of the Story: Take the dogs collars off when they play, screaming probably only made the dogs more scared and didn’t solve anything, lean on Dustin in emergency situations and thank heavens for awesome neighbors!

5 Pairs of Shoes Later...

Quique, Quique, Quique… I know that she’s all I talk about, but she and Dustin are my life and with how crazy schedules have been the past few weeks, it feels like I have barely seen my darling husband.

Anyway, my spoiled dog usually goes over to her friend’s house down the street every day, but they were out of town last week. So… she was stuck at home every day. Big mistake!

Monday, I mistakenly left some shoes in the living room and there went that pair of shoes.

Tuesday, I forgot to close the closet door and there went 2 more pairs of shoes.

Wednesday, my mom got into to town. So I took her with me and no harm there.

Thursday, she played with her brother. Thank you Charlie and Connie!!!

Friday, I KNOW that I closed the closet door, but apparently she got in and there went 2 more pairs of shoes. (Notice how it's always my shoes... never Dustin's.)

My mom of course thinks that I spoil her way too much and that I’m not a “Pack Leader”. Too many Dog Whisperer episodes for her… so on Saturday to save any poor shoes I had left, Quique was treated to Doggy Daycare by her Grandma.

Even though this week probably cost me a couple hundred dollars or so, she is still my little angel. After daycare, she was exhausted! My cousin’s 5 month old baby was sleeping on the sofa, but every so often, Quique would get up, go over to Isaac and just lick his hand. When they were putting Isaac in his car seat, Quique went right up to the car seat and laid right next to it like a protective mama. So my cousin took out Isaac to pet Quique. Quique immediately rolled onto her back all submissive to let Isaac pet her.

It’s precious moments like that when I could care less about 5 pairs of shoes.

Thriller

Last night I had the privilege of going to Odyssey Dance Company’s production of Thriller at Kingsbury Hall. My dear friend April teaches dance with this organization so she was able to get us tickets for a very enjoyable Girls Night Out. (Thanks again April!!!) I have heard about this production for the last two or three years but was not able to experience it until last night. It was excellent! The dancing was great (although dancing was only a part of it), I loved the choreography, the dancers really got into their characters and I was laughing out loud (if you know me, I am not one to laugh out loud, I usually just laugh on the inside). What more could you ask for? Some of my favorites were the River of Blood Dance, Salem’s Mass, Dem Bones, Frankenstein & Frankenstein, Miss Alli’s Nightmare and of course Lorena Bobbitt singing “The Way We Were”. The men didn’t seem to find this piece as entertaining as I did… I wonder why? And of course, how could I forget the Lost Boys piece. Men dancing and leaping around in black leather pants…WOW… how could I forget to include that? Anyway, thanks Ladies for such an enjoyable evening!!! I am so blessed to have such great friends.

The Agony of Defeat

Two nights ago we got the kids together (aka the dogs, Quique and her brother Charlie – they are the kids in my world) for a few hours. The two of them together are a site to be seen. One of these days I will have to upload a video and put it on the blog, but my technical skills have yet to reach that level (so don’t hold your breath). Except for the fact that Charlie has about 10 – 15 lbs. on Quique, they are twins. The looks the same and their mannerisms are identical. The way they beg, the cute little way they cock their head at me when I’m talking to them, the way they wag their bums (not just the tail, the whole rear end)… it’s adorable!

The two of them love to play together. When I talk with Connie (Charlie’s mom) on the phone, I have to refer to Charlie as “Chuck”, We also have to spell things like p-a-r-k and w-a-l-k if our meeting is not going to be immediate when hanging up the phone. Otherwise, I have a dog who is whining at me and following me around everywhere. It’s cute at first, but that wears off quickly. One of these days she is going to understand what I'm spelling- isn't that just like having a child?

Anyway, back to last night. When they play, their favorite game is to play with 1 item together and chase each other. It can be a ball, a stick, rope, anything. (I’m talking plastic bag anything). If it’s a stick or a rope, they usually play tug of war or just run around the yard together while both are holding onto the object. But the favorite game is when they are playing with an object that only one of them can have so that a game of “chase and try to gain possession of the object” can begin. "Chase" is Quique’s absolute favorite game. When we go to the dog park, her goal is always to get the other dog’s to chase her. Surprisingly, she’s actually quite good at it. It doesn’t matter the shape or size of the dog, she’s had Terriers to Great Danes chasing her around the park. So last night, Dustin gave them one Gatorade (plastic) bottle and the entertainment began. It soon became apparent the Charlie's "time of possession" outweighed Quique's. As I just mentioned, Quique likes to be chased, she doesn't like to chase. So Quique pretends like she’s not playing any more and just “sulks” in a corner. Charlie will then drop the bottle and come over to her which is then her chance to steal the bottle and gain control of the game again. I think that Charlie has finally caught on because he doesn’t give in nearly as much as he used to. And the other night was no exception to that. Quique needed a new tactic so now she takes off his collar. Dustin would put his collar back on and when she felt too much time had passed where she didn’t have the bottle, off went his collar again.

I try not to humanize my dog, but it is so hard. Especially at times like these when I see this sweet puppy that is so cute and nice to everybody and every dog work so hard to manipulate her brother and be such a sore loser! I know that competition lies in all aspects of life, even for animals, but it just cracks me up to see my dog so upset when she feels that she is losing. Apparently she needs some help in the sportsmanship category. But whatever the case, she is a true joy in my life. Who thought that a dog could do so much, but I know that both Dustin and I can’t imagine our lives without her. She is and will always be a member of our family. Here are two shots, one in the evening and one in the morning - both times after a nice hard play with Charlie.

Quique with her favorite duck (it used to make duck noises)




(Quique in one of her "normal" sleeping positions)

Acupuncture 101

I have alluded to this in past posts, and since I’m not very private about this topic, I’ll just lay it all out. Dustin and I have been trying to get pregnant for about 18 months now. There doesn’t seem to be anything really wrong with either one of us. It certainly has been frustrating and depressing at times over the past year, but we have wonderful people around us (both friends and family) that provide a lot of love and support. I am always looking for something new to increase my fertility so April sent me an article with 10 ways to increase fertility. A lot of it was the same old stuff, until I cam across acupuncture. That was one I hadn’t heard before. I have never in my life tried acupuncture. Most of what I have heard about acupuncture has to do with pain management. My dad used to do it when he had a lot of back problems. Anyway, I did some research on the internet and found that there were acupuncturists that specialize in fertility. So I thought… why not? So, here is what I learned today.

I did some research and met with Linpin at Acupuncture and Chinese Herbs. Once we got through the hour of Q&A about my body, treatments for fertility, tests, etc, she had me lie on the table and stick out my tongue. Apparently you can tell a lot about what is going on in somebody’s body by the color of the tongue (could be liver related), the texture of the tongue, or if there is a layer of film/coating on the tongue (spleen/digestion related). She mentioned that if you look at a terminally ill patient’s tongue you can tell that they are sick just by looking at their tongue. Who knew that you could tell so much just from looking at somebody’s tongue?

Next, she took my pulse. This wasn’t like getting your pulse taken at the doctor. She held my wrist for a few minutes. Then she did the same with the other. Then she asked me if I ate breakfast, which I thought was random. Anyway, apparently my pulse was somewhat weak. Sometimes that is due to not eating, but other times it can be because of an imbalance in the body or a weak organ. She used three fingers, one for the heart, one for the liver and one for the kidney. Apparently my kidney seemed to be the weakest of the 3.

She then told me about her focus on 3 of the organs. First was the spleen, which signifies digestion. Next she talked about the liver which holds your emotions, such as depression and stress levels. And third was the kidney which holds the essence. In other words for a woman, the female things such as egg quality, ovulation, etc.

Then it was time for the needles. She put one in each ear and one between my eyebrows. The sole purpose of these needles was relaxation. She put two up by my rib cage (I think where my spleen and liver are), one in my lower abdomen and about 6 or so in my legs. If only I could remember what they all meant. My body then felt really heavy and I just relaxed with needles in for the next 20 minutes. I haven’t been that relaxed for a long time. After taking out the needles, she rubbed my legs, head, scalp and neck with some type of essential oil. It was wonderful!

I was so intrigued by all that she taught me about the balance of the body. All I could think about was my sister and how proud she would be of me because she loves this stuff! I am not sure if this will help or not, but I definitely learned a lot about my body. I did find some research that for women going through In Vitro Fertilization, the % of success for those doing acupuncture during this process compared to those that did not was significantly favorable for the women involved in acupuncture. Anything to increase our odds… right! (Well maybe not anything, but you get the point).

Hello Louisville!

So Dustin was going to post about this, but he's so busy and now he's in Jamaica or Cozumel, I don't even remember to be honest. How bad is that? All of his trips just seem to blur together. Anyway, since he is gone until the weekend, I thought that I would take it upon myself to talk about Louisville or shall I say Lew-ul-vul as they say it in KY. This was my first time in Kentucky and it was absolutely beautiful and the people were so nice... we loved it!

On Friday, we went to the St. James Court Art Show in historic Louisville. The scenery was beautiful and their was some great artwork and pieces, we had a blast. We found this photographer that we loved who had photos all over Europe. We wanted to get his card for a future purpose and while talking to him we soon discovered that he has a gallery in Park City. How funny is that? Also, when the food stands consist of corn dogs (the kind that looks like they've dipped them themselves), brats, fennel cakes, fried corn and crabcake sandwiches, that only makes the atmosphere that much better for me!

We then decided to visit the Louisville Slugger Museum, how could a baseball fan pass that up. As you approach the museum/Corporate Headquarters you are greeted by the World's Biggest Baseball Bat. How much does that thing weigh you ask... only 68,000 pounds. It sure is cool!

Of course we had to also make a stop at the all too famous Churchill Downs. No I didn't witness or bet on any horse races, but we did stop for a picture and we checked out the gift shop. What a beautiful building!

Then... after some yummy BBQ at Mark's Feed Store, it was time to head to the game. The stadium was beautiful!!! As we were making our way to the stadium, there were tons of UofL fans saying "Go Utes". At first, we thought that they were being sarcastic, but in fact they were just extremely nice and wishing us luck. Nicest fans ever! Although I must say that the Oregon State fans were pretty nice too. We've been pretty lucky so far this year.

Once we made our way into the stadium, there were tons of military personnel attending the game. Apparently they choose one game per year to attend. They have this whole procedure for marching into the stadium and it was so awesome to watch. Looking at their faces, I couldn't help but notice how young each of them looked. I have such adoration and appreciation for these young men and women who have and continue to put their lives on the line so that I can have the freedoms that I enjoy each and every day. God Bless the USA and the military!
All is well that ends well! After a 44-35 victory, it made for a great night. Although it got a little too close for comfort towards the end, it was great to see the team win on the road. It has been an emotional year for the team and it was great to see these guys enjoy a victory, because they definitely deserved it! And Steve played really well so that always makes it fun too! At the end of the game, the players for Louisville went around the entire stadium giving everyone 5's. They even went by the Utah section doing the same thing. We were all so impressed. Dustin yelled to them how classy they were and how well they played. They said how impressed they were with us for coming out all the way from Utah. How cool is that! What matturity in these 19 and 20 year old men!

The next day we lounged around in the morning and then had some awesome New Orleans food at this little fast food restaurant (can't remember the name). I had some VooDoo Chicken and Bourbon Chicken and it was excellent. (I desperately need to make it to New Orleans one of these days.) It was a great weekend and the Utah win only made it that much sweeter.

If you haven't been to Louisville, it's certainly a charmer. Beautiful streets with trees arched over the middle, great food and some of the nicest people offering their finest southern hospitality!

Happy Birthday Bryson!

So I'm a few days late. Dustin and I were in Louisville this weekend (I'll post about that tomorrow) so although Bryson's Birthday was on Friday, we actually celebrated it a week ago Sunday when the whole family was in town. Bryson Boo as I call him is one of the smiliest kids around. In fact, I babysat him tonight and he would just start laughing at various times for no reason at all. At least no reason that I was aware of. Anyway, we had a nice dinner on Sunday and then in place of birthday cake Brooke made a brownie and put whipped cream on top. I don't know what it is with the Tate side of the family but none of them like cake. To me, I can't imagine a world without cake. Wedding Cake, Birthday Cake, I am always willing to bust out a cake for any celebration. So I have made it perfectly clear to Dustin that our kids will be raised with Birthday Cake. If they decide they don't like it, then they too an live in the sad world without cake.


Anyway, I love my Bryson Boo so very much. He has beautiful big eyes and he will always flash you a smile. I couldn't imagine a happier kid. I still remember a year ago Friday when Brooke was induced. It was the same day as the Utah vs. TCU Football game. As soon as Bryson was born, the family was off to the game, so I stayed with Brooke, Tyler and Tate to see if there was anything that I could do to help out. Any excuse to be able to be around this sweet precious being that had just entered this world. Truly an angel on earth. I am so blessed to have such wonderful nephews. They are a light in my life. I love them so much and I am so excited for the nieces and nephews that are still yet to come. Happy Birthday Bryson Boo!

When in Rome...

I was browsing the internet and I found this quiz. I know... usually the quiz thing is lame, but anyway, I found this quiz that has 6 questions and then it tells you what city you belong in. I just thought that it was so cool that it said I belonged in Rome.

You Belong in Rome

You're a big city soul with a small town heart which is why you are attracted to the romance of Rome. Strolling down picture perfect streets, cappuccino in hand and gorgeous Italian people - could life get any better?

Rome is one of my absolute favorite cities. Dustin and I have so many wonderful memories. We had great food (gelato every day), saw some of the most amazing sites, took in a lot of history and just enjoyed the romance that Italy has to offer. We spent 11 days in Italy (3 days in Rome) and we have already started planning what we would do the next time we go because it's not a matter of if we go, but when we go. Some of our best memories together (the funny and the not so funny) are in Rome.

Enough of my nastalgia... if you'd like to take a 6 question quiz as to what city you belong in... here it is.

Candle Wax Disaster

On Friday night, my darling husband somehow managed to drip a nice long trail of candle wax along the carpet in our room. He is usually the one to freak out about something like that except for the fact that he did it this time, not me. I (of course) remained calm knowing full well in the back of my head that we were going to have to replace the carpet after a disaster like that. Trying to remain calm, I tried working on the wax to see if I could get it out of the carpet, but there was so much wax that it was not looking good. (Please excuse the bad photography).

Before - (Here is just a portion of the beautiful wax trail)

So... I decided to get online and see if there was anything that I could do to salvage my carpet (yeah right). I saw something that mentioned taking a paper bag and putting it over the wax and then using an iron over the paper bag. You want to leave the iron heating up the paper bag and the wax, but you don't want to leave it too long otherwise it may burn the carpet. To me, my carpet was already ruined so why not try it out.

After

I was in absolute shock! My carpet now looks as good as new! Hopefully you won't have the same mishap that we did, but if you ever do, I promise it will work! Thank goodness for the internet and all of it's wisdom. How did people ever survive without the internet?

Happy 5 Year Anniversary To Us!

Yesterday Dustin and I celebrated our 5 year Wedding Anniversary! I honestly cannot believe that it has been 5 years. Yesterday when we were reminiscing, Dustin said "5 years ago today you were crying". It's a little bit of an inside joke, but the night before we got married, we got in an argument. I can't even remember what it was about. Two weeks prior to our wedding, my Grandma who I love and adore died so between that and planning for the wedding, I was exhausted (I have the bloodshot eyes in my wedding pictures to prove it). Anyway, Dustin just left in the middle of our arguement pretty much because he knew he couldn't win and that I was nuts at that point in time. Anyway, when he arrived at the temple (where we got married) I was in tears. I think it freaked him out at first because there was a small part of him asking himself if I was calling off the wedding. Really just one of the ladies was stern with me and in my fragile emotional state I started crying so Dustin and I always get a laugh out of that. Here are just a couple pics from that beautiful day (my Grandma's birthday) when we got married.

So Happy and In Love!

Apparently, I am quite amused by my new husband...

Priceless

Dustin was out of town most of last week for work, so I really just wanted to stay at home so my lovely husband took me out to Sushi (my favorite). We have a tradition of always watching our wedding video on our anniversary so we came home made up some chocolate fondue and watched our wedding video. Even though we watch it every year, it is always so much fun and it always makes me laugh. I still get a kick out of the same parts every year. After that, Dustin surprised me with a slideshow that he put together of our pictures and what we've done over the last 5 years, it was perfect! And then this morning, I made my adorable husband breakfast in bed...

Eggs Benedict, Fruit Salad with Cannoli Cream (from Dinner Club), a glass of OJ and the morning paper!

I am so lucky to be married to Dustin and I love him so much. In honor of our 5 years of marriage, here are just 5 of the many reasons I love my husband.
His Intelligence - My husband is honestly one of the smartest people I know. His mind truly is a steel trap. Supposedly it's the women who always remember everything in the marriage; not ours. He has amazing business sense, he knows more sports trivia and has so many stats and names of players in his head that I can't even begin to keep up. He is so passionate about knowledge and learning and he is able to retain so much and use so much of what he knows. I am in awe of him more and more every day.
We have Fun - Dustin and I spend a lot of time just doing our own thing or hanging out with Quique and we always have so much fun. He is just so much fun to be around. He makes me laugh and no matter what we are doing I enjoy doing it with him. And at the same time we both have started and want to continue to travel the world, we love food, and of course, we love football. Everything that I do is always better and more fun when I do it with Dustin.
He Challenges Me - Yes this has caused some short term stress for me, but he has been so good for me. Since before we were married, he has always made me want to be a better person. Whether it's learning about new things or treating others better, he has always been an inspiration to me and I always want to be better not just for myself, but for him too.
His Body - I don't want anybody to get the wrong idea here, but he really does have an awesome body. He has beautiful biceps, great pecs, a cute butt and the best legs you have ever seen on a guy. Mens legs have been a turn off in the past, but not with Dustin, he has great legs!
His Love for Me - Dustin fell in love with me long before I realized I was in love with him. He fought for me and he loved me so much more than I have ever been loved by a man. We have had our difficulties over the past few years, but our love has only grown stronger. It is so amazing to be loved by someone as wonderful as him.

So here's to you my love!

Dinner Club - Italian Style

A few months back a few of us girls that live in the same neighborhood wanted to start a monthly girls night out. I love food and it's always fun to get together with the girls and meet some new people, so I suggested a Dinner Club. When I told my mom and dad about it, I found out that they had actually been a part of one and they loved it. They also gave me some great ideas in how to organize it and I found all sorts of ideas for themes online. We've been doing it for about 8 months and it has been so much fun! I think that we all look forward to it every month and the food is always so good!

Last nights theme was Italian. We had Lasagna, Olive Garden Salad, Homemade Meatballs, Baked Tortellini, Fresh Fruit Salad with Cannoli Cream and to top it off, Tiramisu! In fact, talking about it right now really makes me want
to go eat it all again! I made the Fruit Salad with Cannoli Cream. After I heard that we were having Lasagna, Tortellini and Meatballs, I decided to lighten it up a little. Dustin and I went to Italy last year and we took a cooking class while we were in Panzano (Tuscany). We learned how to make fresh pasta, tiramisu and pesto... it was awesome! Unfortunately due to my time restrictions this week, I had to make something with limited time. Here is my recipe for the Fruit Salad with Cannoli Cream. This would work great as a dessert, side dish or even for a brunch or breakfast.

Fresh Fruit Salad with Cannoli Cream
Recipe from Giada de Laurentiis (Everyday Italian)

1/3 C Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese 1/2 Dry Pint Fresh Raspberries (2 ½ C)
2 T plus 1/3 C Whipping Cream 1 T Sugar
3 T Powdered Sugar 1 T Fresh Lemon Juice
Pinch Ground Cinnamon 2 Kiwis, peeled cut into ½ in pieces12 oz. Fresh Strawberries, hulled, quartered (2 ½ C) 3 T Almonds, sliced and toasted

Stir the ricotta and 2 T of cream in a medium bowl to blend. Using an electric mixer, beat the remaining 1/3 C of cream, powdered sugar and cinnamon in a large bowl until semi-firm peaks form. Fold the ricotta into the whipped cream. Place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to stiffen a yield a creamier filling (very important, I didn't let it sit long enough). (Can be prepared 4 hours ahead of time. Cover and refrigerate).

Toss the strawberries, raspberries, sugar and lemon juice in a medium bowl to combine. Let stand until juices form, tossing occasionally, about 15 minutes. Add the kiwi.

Spoon the fruit mixture into 4 dessert bowls. Dollop the ricotta cream atop the fruit. Sprinkle with the almonds and serve. Can serve in serving or water glasses.

Yield: 4 servings

My Quique Girl

I mentioned in an earlier post that I was going to talk about my sweet angel Quique (pronounced key-kay). I could probably talk about her all day, but I will try my very hardest to not bore you with ALL of the details. Dustin and I decided that once he was done getting his MBA, we wanted to get a dog. He was leaning toward a Jack Russell Terrier, but I wanted a more child friendly dog like a Lab. We looked and looked and looked some more. We thought about all different types of dogs. Once we got back from Italy (our celebratory trip for Dustin getting his MBA) it was time for a dog. Dustin did a lot of the searching and he saw this cute little lab online and there was one female left (I was insistent on a female) so he went to see her since I had another appointment that night. Can we say love at first sight? I told Dustin if he liked her to get her so he immediately put down a deposit and we picked her up two days later. She was almost 7 weeks when we got her so she was so small. She was so shy, almost scared of us, but she loved to roll on her back and have her tummy rubbed. (Little did we know that she would spend most of her time on her back – she’s incredibly submissive to other dogs). She cried all the way home (which was about 30 minutes) and it made me so sad. When we got home, we took some pictures of her:

Isn't she so tiny?

Sleeping Arrangements
We decided on the name Quique. We wanted something different. Dustin served his LDS mission in Chile and spent many months in a town called Iquique which holds some of his fondest memories, it was perfect! Her first night was a tough one. We wanted to crate train her to help with the potty training. The first night we had the crate out in the living room and we put her in just before we went to bed. Within minutes of climbing into bed, the whining started. I looked at Dustin.
Me: “Can we please bring the crate in here?”
Dustin: “Let’s wait 30 minutes and if she’s still crying we’ll bring the crate in here.”
3 Minutes Later…
Dustin: “Okay, this is too hard, just bring her in here”.
I spent the next few nights sleeping on the floor next to the crate with my fingers through the crate touching Quique as we slept. Lucky for me, Dustin went out of town for about a week. When the cat is gone the mice will play… so Quique spent those nights sleeping on the bed with me. Dustin came home for a few days before he had to leave on another trip so those days were again spent on the floor with Quique in her crate. When he was gone again, she was back on the bed. By the time he got back, she was used to the bed. I begged Dustin to please let her sleep with me until he came to bed and then he could put her back in her crate. Of course, he couldn’t so she’s been sleeping with us ever since!

Leaving Quique
We picked Quique up on a Saturday and we spent the whole day together. The next morning, I was teaching a class in church. Dustin had to leave early that morning for a meeting. When I showed up at church, my eyes were virtually swollen shut and my face was wet. Dustin asked me what was wrong and I told him the dog and then continued to cry. He thought something had happened to the dog. My response while crying was “I didn’t want to leave her, she can’t be home all by herself”. Dustin laughed and laughed. I didn’t find it funny. The next few days, I drove myself to work, crying. Each morning I had to call my mom and have her help to calm me down. I can’t even imagine what it will be like with a baby. I spent the next 3-4 months coming home every day at lunch to let Quique out of her crate.

Big Brother
A couple of months after having Quique, I was on our usual evening walk. There was somebody behind me that was yelling “Charlie”. I didn’t know a Charlie so I kept walking. Then I heard the same person yelling “Connie” over and over again. I finally turned around because there didn’t seem to be anybody else around. The couple and their dogs caught up to me and said “Oh we thought that you were Connie and that your dog was Charlie”. We continued to talk and they were asking me how old Quique was and where we got her. The couple suddenly turned towards each other and then said to me “I think that her brother lives just up the street from here. The puppy is the same age, looks identical to Quique and they got him at the same place”. Little did I know that this was only the beginning of a beautiful friendship! When I finally made it to Connie’s house, it was like Quique and Charlie remembered each other. You may say that’s impossible, but I won’t believe you. There is something special about the two of them when they’re together. They act the same, they play so well, they truly act like brother and sister. Connie and I are always comparing stories and they always seem to be doing the same things and have the same mannerisms. Connie and Jon have become dear friends to us. We usually make sure the puppies see each other at least once a week or they go through withdrawl and Quique has stayed with them when we are out of town. And yes, Quique and Charlie sleep on the bed with them too. In fact, Connie and Jon got Charlie before we got Quique and Jon had his eyes set on Quique. Luckily, Connie wanted Charlie so thanks to Connie, Quique became a part of our life.

Charlie and Quique - the only time that she has had a collar other than red. (about 1 yr old)
Charlie and Quique - they have spent a lot of time running around sharing a stick or a toy.

Life with Quique
Quique is a riot! I think that her favorite things in order are 1)Dogs 2)Treats 3)Water(lake, sprinklers or hose) 4)Charlie 5)Dustin. I have so many stories to tell about her and her personality but I have gone on long enough. Not being able to conceive a baby in the last year and a half has been a struggle in our lives, but Quique has filled a void that we didn’t know we had. She has brought so much joy and laughter into our lives. Dustin may be her favorite (it must be a male/female thing) but she knows who her mama is. There is nothing better than having her snuggle with me in the mornings. She has pure love and complete loyalty. I love to come home and have Quique run to me wagging her butt (she wags more than her tail) and give me tons and tons of kisses. She is so submissive to other dogs, but can defend herself if she needs to and she loves everybody. I have also seen a different side of Dustin. He is so cute with her and loves her so much. Remember how I mentioned he wasn't quite wanting a lab, he has made it perfectly clear that we will only have labs from now on. We could not have asked for a better dog and we are so glad to have her as part of our family.