m + m

"I'm so proud to see you today."

2012-01-10T18:33:00.000-08:00

I have a very funny first grade student who is native Spanish speaker (as are most of the others). But unlike many other students, he loves to (try) to speak English. He has a ridiculous little accent that makes it all the more entertaining. On Monday as we were walking down the hall together, we had this conversation:

Miss Melissa (Me-lee-sah), I am very proud to see you today.

What do you mean?

I am so proud to see you. I haven't seen you for about one week.

You mean...tienes animo? You are excited to see me today?

Yes, I am so proud to see you.

I couldn't really get the point across, but I was happy he felt proud to see me. And mostly I just love little Spanglish speakers.

Christmas break.

2012-01-04T19:28:00.000-08:00

2011 went out with a bang at my elementary school. The kids practiced their little hearts out and had a winter festival showcasing everything they have learned about instruments, singing, drama and Latin dancing. I always love seeing their elaborate costumes and how proud they are of what they've accomplished! As mentioned previously, I went home fairly early for Christmas this year. Mike joined me at my parents' house the evening of the 23rd and then the festivities began!

Before I left, I stocked up on some goodies at Trader Joe's. I found this outside the store on the sidewalk and loved it.

We had a aebelskivers at Curt & Naomi's before Mike took me to the airport. And Naomi made toffee (and sent an entire bag with me on the plane). It was to die for and went perfectly with my diet coke. I travel healthy, I tell ya.

One of the highlights of my visit home was getting together with the girls I grew up with (sans Rachel, unfortunately). I was blessed to grow up in a neighborhood full of girls my age. We went to elementary, middle, and high school together (for the most part). It was so fun to get together with everyone and see where our lives have taken us! We had a dessert night and I shared some Trader Joe's goodness!

My parents, Natalie and I all went to my favorite Indian Restaurant--Bombay House--before attending the Hue & Hum Christmas concert. It was so fun to see Caitlin and Robbie performing together. Their music is unique and beautiful, and I may or may not have cried a few times. I also loved hearing Caitlin's new "loud voice."

Uh...did you know mint M&M's came in a package this big? Me either. That's why I actually bought them without thinking and suddenly found myself walking out of Smith's with them.

I made a Christmas card.

Christmas Eve was delightful, I forgot to take pictures, but it was full of delicious food, family and music. Christmas Eve might be my favorite celebration of the year.

We brought Grandma from the nursing home to watch us open presents. Unfortunately she had no idea who anyone was, but she sure loved the babies! She spent most of her time cuddling with them and counting toes.

Caitlin (Hue) painted this lovely picture for my sister-in-law, Becca, who is new to motherhood and loving it.

Alyse & Talmage. They're about 1 month apart and soooooo cute!

I got to see my latest painting framed. It looks great on the red wall, right?

We hung out at the new Natural History museum, and Mike read every possible detail about dinosaurs. He is such a nerd about some things. It's wonderful, and I love him.

We stayed at Dave & Kristin's part of the time and I spent lots of time with these munchkins! I miss them so much! We also celebrated Dave's birthday on the 27th, even though it's really the on the 28th! He is soooooo old, I can't believe it! Just kidding, Dave.

We celebrated Christmas with Mike's family at his Aunt & Uncle's house on the 28th, then headed to Cedar City on the 29th. I don't have too many pictures from our stay because I was out of commission most of the time we were there. We went on shopping trips to St. George, ate Cafe Rio, watched lots of movies, and relaxed. We were so happy to be with family and I am grateful for great in-laws (and their patience with me)!

We took a trip one day to see a man's hunting collection. Apparently he has an amazing collection of animals. I only say "apparently" there because I don't really understand the whole hunting & showing the dead animals off thing. But, he basically has a small museum full of animals he has hunted all over the world! It was actually very cool.

I love this un-filtered picture of Cedar City at sunset!

Last night (on Mike's birthday), we flew back to San Francisco. Our flight was delayed, but luckily we had lots to keep us busy while we waited. I was so happy to be back here--I love this city so much and I never want to leave!

I packed up Christmas today. Our little tree looked very pathetic when we arrived last night, and the apartment feels a bit empty without it. I love the Christmas season and I always feel a bit sad to see it go, but I'm excited for 2012. I sense some adventure coming...

I painted.

2012-01-01T21:53:00.000-08:00

Most of you know I studied art in college. I graduated in 2010 with a BFA in painting in drawing and to be honest, I have done very little with my degree. For me, making art is a very personal process, and there are a number of reasons why I have taken a hiatus for the past (almost two!) years. My brother recently commissioned me to paint a temple for his wife for Christmas. I have never, ever wanted to paint temples (there are so many reasons for this), but because he wanted an image of the temple Mike and I were married in, and because he is family, and because he gave me artistic liberty on the image, I decided to do it. I am so glad I did. Despite the fact that my entire living room was overtaken by paints, and getting the preliminary work done was painful, it was a very calming process. I am happy with how the image turned out, and the errors and things I would change aren't too glaring when I look at the finished piece. Most importantly, working on this stretched my abilities and lit a new artistic spark. I can't wait to get back to my paints and get to work on some more architectural pieces. The San Francisco skyline is limitless.

My favorite part of the piece is the washes on the facade.

Those windows...

I wanted to leave the blue sky out. The sky is my least favorite part.

Framed.

Can we talk really quickly about how amazing iPhones are? It was so nice to be able to get high quality shots of the work in progress. Here's to a new year and many more paintings to come!

Two years.

2011-12-19T20:21:00.000-08:00

I honestly can't believe that I have been married to the real Mike Wallace for two whole years. This anniversary we are celebrating in separate states as I take care of some medical business in Salt Lake. But despite the distance, and as cliche as it may sound, I feel closer to him than ever. I am so grateful to have met him, married him, and adventured with him since we met at that silly college bonfire over three years ago. Some people can't believe that I put up with his crazy work hours, but a weekend with him always makes up for any amount of time spent apart. I can't wait to see what the next year of our marriage brings. It may even be more exciting than the last! Love you Mike!

PS: Happy anniversary to Hue & Hum, who share our special day!
Another PS: I love having an excuse to peruse my wedding pictures--all taken by the wonderful and talented Anna Page of Anna Page Photography.

It Snowed.

2011-12-10T09:40:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from Sacramento Street!

I love living in California and being able to visit the snow on my own terms. I absolutely do not miss trudging around in the snow, getting my ankles and ends of my pants wet no matter how hard I try to keep them dry. I'm surprised to find that I still feel the magic of Christmas in the air even though there isn't "white stuff," as my dad would say, on the ground.

But, oddly enough...I do miss the snow. I guess you could say that I miss the look of it, and how fun it is to be around when properly bundled, but I do not miss the discomfort it brings at times. I always loved waking up to the first snowfall, and sometimes I left notes for the mailman (in the snow, ironically,) telling him not to walk in the snow to get to our mailbox so that we could use all of it to build forts and snowmen when we got home from school. There is a very peaceful feeling that comes with new snow, and I like it to last as long as possible.

This video is awful, but it echoes some of my very favorite sentiments regarding brand-new snow. I love Meaghan. Have you heard her Christmas album, Wish Upon a Star? And Mindy Smith's album, My Holiday? And of course, Sarah McLachlan's Wintersong? My holiday is not complete without them...

Christmas pressure.

2011-11-09T12:38:00.000-08:00

I was kind of thrown off by the large amount of Christmas decor I saw right after Halloween. I love Christmas time, I love Christmas music, and I love Christmas...period. But I am not ready to welcome it yet.

That being said, I have started thinking a little bit about what I am going to do to decorate our apartment. Growing up, Christmas season officially began the day after Thanksgiving. Lights went up, stockings went up, and a heavenly smelling Christmas tree soon followed. The entire season was full of traditions that revolved around family and Jesus Christ. And while I love my family's traditions, I hope that Mike and I are able to begin our own. But how does that even work? Do you decide to start a tradition one year? Do you do something fun and decide to do it the next year because it was such a hit? And do you actually start your own or just mix and match from what was passed down from past generations?

My friend Wiola recently told me that because I am a Virgo, I am (insert word that I don't remember here), which means in part that I stress over tiny details no one cares about. I thought it was funny because it perfectly describes me, and also because she taught me the word (which didn't stick) even though English is her third language.

But I just love Christmas (and everything peppermint) a lot and hope it can always be as magical as it was when I was little. So I can't help but feel a bit of pressure.

Perspective.

2011-10-31T19:32:00.000-07:00

I am a mentor to a little girl in third grade at the school I work at. I don't know her very well, but we were matched by the school's social worker and have just started spending time together. She is adorable, and we get along famously.

The other day, we attended the "(Insert my elementary school's name here) Buddies" lunch where we chatted over sandwiches, made tissue flowers for Dia de los Muertos, and did a little "ice breaker" activity. One side of the paper had questions for me, and the other side had questions for my little mentee. I started by asking her questions and loving her answers. I also anticipated what my answers to the questions would be as I was taking the whole thing very seriously. Her answers were cute and typical of an eight year old girl, except for her response to this question:

What are three things you wish for?

Her response:

I wish for more money. Because I am poor and want to help my family.
I wish to see my sister. She lives in San Francisco, but I am not allowed to see her.
(Pause)
And I wish that everyone would believe in God.

I didn't know exactly how to respond, especially because I'm 99% sure I'm not allowed to mention God or religion (or politics) in the classroom. So instead of tell her how wise and wonderful she was, and that I wished those things for her and everyone else in the world too, I just smiled and stared at her for a minute before I wrote it all down.

And when she asked me what I wished for, I felt serious pressure to change some of my initial wishes into things that were more meaningful (and not just about me).

~~I wish to someday live in a foreign country for more than a year.~~ I wish for everyone to be happy.
~~I wish to go back to Fiji pronto.~~ I wish that people would all be nice to each other.
~~I wish to not feel sick so often.~~ I wish that no one had to be sick.

Sometimes you just need a little 8 year old to offer some fresh perspective.

Family in Town/Nike Women's Marathon.

2011-10-23T17:19:00.000-07:00

Last week my parents and my sis came in town for Natalie's fall break (and to meet their new grandson/nephew)! It was so great to see them, as always.

Ty & Becca picked me up from the train station and we got pumpkin frozen yogurt. It was pretty delicious! That night we made homemade pizza and I slept over at Mom & Dad's hotel room. My husband has been MIA lately, so, I saw as much of him in Palo Alto as I would have seen in SF.

The next morning Nat & I adventured in San Francisco...

...we made a stop at Sephora and Natalie got compliments on her lovely lip color. You can't tell from this picture, but it was an awesome orange-y pink shade that only her enormous lips can make work!

We found a store named after her.

She ate her first Ghirardelli sundae and loved it.

And while we were exploring we saw this sign announcing part of the city would shut down soon for the Nike Women's Marathon.

And we had to stop by Union Square to see everything so that I could pick up my packet.

Because I ran in it.

All of Union Square was converted into Nike madness. There were haircuts, massages, free samples, and a bike you could ride to blend your own smoothie.

I found my name on the wall at Nike Town, which made the whole thing seem very real and crazy. My parents came into town later, and we went dinner at Mike and my favorite Thai restaurant, My Ivy. We got Swensen's ice cream that night, visited the farmers' market in the morning, ate delicious waffles, wandered around the city, ate more yummy food, and went to Ghirardelli square (the pictures are out of order, we went once, though probably could have enjoyed going more than once). Directly after Ghirardelli, my parents dropped me and Mike off at our apartment and they went back to Palo Alto.

Naomi came over later that night and slept in our living room. She is the one that got me into the whole "race thing," though I am forever grateful to her for the challenge! I'd like to insert a thought/statement here:

I realize that I am the world's largest hypocrite.

Thanks. I really needed to get that off my chest. I have "hated" running for so many years, for a number of reasons. I also thought it was so "trendy," but I have realized over the past few years that it is silly not to like something just because it is trendy. Especially if it is good for your body! So I'm the first to admit that I have jumped on the bandwagon, gotten into the running thing, and I actually really enjoy it.

I ran the half and Naomi ran the full. She tried to convince me that the full was a good idea, but when she talked me into this earlier this year, I had never run an actual race. I am glad I stuck to my guns and decided to conquer 13.1 before ever attempting 26.2. At this point, I feel fine just running half marathons. Maybe I'll change my mind over the next few years.

Above is a map of the race. It was so incredibly beautiful! And my training paid off! It was a challenge, but I also felt completely prepared. I also loved that I got to train in San Francisco on all the giant hills. I felt kind of like a rock star when I ran past the people who weren't used to them!

Instead of finishers medals, we got necklaces designed by Tiffany's. That is definitely not why I ran the race, but I thought it was pretty cool! It seems a lot smarter than giving out bulky medals no one is going to use. My goals for this race were to finish and be consistent. I did both of those things (though I did drop a minute per mile on the last third of the race). I was extremely happy to have Mike waiting for me at the finish line, and we had a great time with the Cardons for the rest of the day. We got to cheer Naomi on when she crossed the finish line and we all gathered for showers, foot massages from the hubbies, and lime chicken tacos at our apartment in the afternoon. It was a great day and a great weekend with our families!

The Charmer.

2011-10-07T17:06:00.000-07:00

There is a devilishly handsome little boy in one of my first grade classes. He (or his mom, rather), parts his hair to one side every day, but he has really thick hair that sticks straight up, so you can imagine how ridiculously adorable it looks. Often when I walk into his class, The Charmer winks at me--but he is actually good at it (unlike some small children)--which is hilarious and charming. Every day at the end of school, The Charmer jumps to his feet (post-rug time), and collects all of the little girls' backpacks and carefully delivers each one to the ladies in the classroom. Finally, he holds the door open while everyone leaves. The best part about it is that The Charmer is not a teacher's pet. He is actually a bit of a terror at times, and he has to be constantly reminded to hold still and stop playing with the hair of the girl sitting in front of him.

I hope that some day I will have a little gentleman just like him.

Yosemite.

2011-10-01T19:43:00.000-07:00

Oliver, my Godson.

Mike and I were lucky enough to spend the last week in Yosemite National Park with our good friends the Cardons. They happen to be family, too, but we are lucky to count them as both. I had never been to Yosemite before and was absolutely blown away by how beautiful it was. I grew up hiking in Zion National Park and was used to vast spreads of red and orange, but I loved the subtle grays and dramatic rock faces of this beautiful area. We arrived late Sunday night (we left after church) and set up camp, ate hamburgers, hot dogs, and s'mores, and hung out with the Lillians (not sure of the spelling). They are the Cardons' friends from dental school and we were happy to meet them! They're hilarious.

Day 1: The boys hiked Glacier Point and the girls sauntered over to Mirror Lake with the kiddies. We had a great time playing in the water, climbing on rocks, and meeting two out-of-this-world, perfect-looking children named Maximus and Apollo. We had amazing spaghetti for dinner. I don't like typically like pasta but this stuff was delicious. Isn't everything delicious when you are camping? We finished off the night with s'mores, of course (have you tried Kinnikinnick gf "graham style" crackers? Not too shabby)! Oh yeah, I also inhaled a carrot chunk Monday night and nearly went into a full-on choking fit. It was awful. A woman walking by happened to be a nurse, thought I was having a full-blown asthma attack, and tried to come to the rescue. Naomi also happens to be a nurse so I was in good hands. Mike also thought it was time for the Heimlich, but luckily Naomi stopped him because I was still making noise (intense high-pitched wheezing). It was kind of ridiculous.

If you look closely you can see little orange specks...there were literally thousands and thousands of lady bugs flying around this afternoon! I don't know if they had all hatched, or were migrating (do they do that?), or what, but it was pretty incredible to see them all! It was also a relief, because if they had all been flies I would have felt really grossed out.

Day 2: We hiked to Vernal Falls and considered hiking up to Nevada, but due to time constraints and stomachs, we decided against it. There is a gorgeous pool near the falls (and natural water slides!) that are off-limits. After hiking straight up about ten million stairs in the heat, they seemed like a mean joke. But considering that two people fell off the falls earlier this year, we decided to be safe and just look at the pool.

Dinner that night consisted of chicken tacos. And more s'mores, and yes, I'm going to tell you what we ate every night. We also introduced the C&N to Munchkin that night. The game is pretty easy once you get the hang of it, but it takes a while to get the hang of it...so after we all sort of figured it out, we went to bed.

Half Dome. I'd love to hike it someday!

Day 3: Mike & Curt were nice enough to take the kiddies for the day so Naomi & I could hike Glacier Point. It's about 5 miles up with a 3,000 foot elevation gain and provides unparalleled views of Yosemite Valley. It's kind of funny because it is literally uphill the entire way (with tons of switchbacks), but when you finally get to the top, there is a store and tons of tourists that took the bus to get up where you hiked. I'm glad that the view is accessible to everyone, but I think we may have appreciated it more. After hiking back down, we all went to the river to play in the water with the kiddies. Dinner that night consisted of vegetarian chili and...you guessed it. More s'mores. We also played Munchkin late into the night and ate lethal amounts of snack food (kettle corn, Nut Thins, Peanut M&M's, etc).

Rhys is headed over the edge...

We love this family!

Day 4: We had to go home. It was really, really sad. But we did go to this gorgeous view point on our way out of the park. And we stopped by In-N-Out on the way home, which is entirely overrated (especially in comparison to 5 Guys), but still delicious just the same. And please ignore my puffy allergy face. I can't help it that I'm allergic to everything.

Ryland looks like he's on fire!

Tarantulas spotted in the boys bathroom!

Trip Favorites:

- Realizing we don't get sick of the Cardons. You always fear that you'll get sick of each other, and it's always a happy surprise/relief when you don't.

- Little boys peeking under our rain fly and into our tent every morning.

- Watching how much those little rascals love my husband (and how much he loves them).

- Delicious food every night.

- Incredible scenery.

- Monkey bites.

- Not working.

- Running in Yosemite Valley.

- Spending entire days with my love.

- Watching parents that don't stop having adventures when they have children.

We loved Yosemite and definitely want to go back! Thanks to the Cardons for inviting us!

10k/good food/new nephew/good food again.

2011-09-15T15:44:00.000-07:00

"Becca, are you sure you want to do a 5k when you are three days overdue?"

The past few weeks have been pretty busy! Mike and I are both working, and there has been a lot going on otherwise. Last Friday (9/9/11) I ran my first official "race" and was pleasantly surprised. I've been running for quite a while now, and have been running fairly long distances but had never done anything official. I ran the Palo Alto Moonlight 10k with Tyler (Becca did a 5k with her pregnant friends), and I enjoyed the overall experience. I was nervous to run in front of/with so many people, but I just did my thing, chatted with Ty, and enjoyed the fresh oranges at the end (coffee cake isn't really up my gluten-free alley). It was a lot of fun. I used to "hate" to run, but now I can hardly believe that! It really is energizing and refreshing. Especially when it isn't a punishment for dropping a ball or missing a serve. T&B were nice to drive me up to the city after the race, and the whole time we were all hoping Becca would go into labor.

Saturday morning Mike and I enjoyed gluten-free crepes with farmers market fruit and homemade yogurt...so so delicious! During the afternoon we went to the chocolate festival at Ghirardelli Square. We had heard some good things about it but it was utterly disappointing. We didn't even end up buying passes because nothing looked too appetizing or worth the long lines.

Saturday night we went to Spruce, my favorite San Francisco restaurant! We were going to go on my birthday (I'm a quarter of a century old!) but I was sick that day and you just can't go to Spruce unless you are ready to enjoy the goodness. I made Mike cancel our reservations and watch something stupid and girly with me at home that night instead.

It was definitely worth the wait!

All day Saturday I harassed Ty and Becca to make sure I knew exactly when my new nephew would arrive. Luckily their little bundle of joy made it into the world on a very fun birthday--9/10/11--and Mike and I got to meet him Sunday after church.

Let's all hope that we can look half this beautiful the day after giving birth to our first child.

He is quite perfect. And tiny.

I have four nieces and nephews now! I can't believe it! We were so happy to go meet the little guy and see Tyler & Becca at such a special time.

In other news, I made my first legitimate curry this week and it was a huge success. I felt very fancy shopping at the Indian grocery store (I had some serious spices to buy), and I loved stringing cardamom pods to add that extra somethin' somethin' to the dish. My only regret is that my apartment still smells a bit like Indian food even though I have had the fan on for about 30 hours total over the past three days.

I joined Pinterest (addicting) and have seen my husband before 9 pm two nights in a row. Every time he walks through the door that early I feel confused and wonder if he has lost his job. Don't worry, he hasn't.

Loving this weather.

2011-09-07T19:02:00.000-07:00

When we moved to San Francisco (over a year ago), I found myself completely in love with this glorious and beautiful city save one little detail--the weather. I am a sunshine girl and as I had never traveled to the actual city of San Francisco (only to Palo Alto and much farther south), I was silly enough to believe that it would be beautiful and sunny all the time. Luckily Summer weather hits around September and October, so I wasn't too miserable, and as winter crept up on my hometown of Salt Lake City, I felt lucky to be living in mild 50* weather throughout the true winter months. May through August left me pining for aridity and beautifully bronze skin this year, but now the San Francisco "Summer" is here again and I'm loving it. Mornings are gorgeous and misty, but the mist usually submits to the sunshine early on and leaves everyone enjoying its golden rays.

PS: I am completely in love with San Francisco.

Peach Tart.

2011-09-01T17:23:00.000-07:00

Want to know a secret about me? I love to bake. I love it a lot. I like to do it even though I'm gluten intolerant...something about it is just fun for me. Sometime I'll show you a picture of my make-shift masks (don't want to inhale all that flour, you know). Anyway, a few weeks ago I decided to make Mike a pie because I know he loves them and I never make them despite my love for baking. So, I headed to the farmers market with Naomi, Curt, the babes, and Peter, and sought out fresh delicious peaches to make my dream pie. For my husband.

I really wanted to highlight the peaches--I'm not a huge fan of "pies" that are filled with syrup and goop--so I searched the web for a perfect and simple recipe to make my perfect Berkley farmers market peaches shine.

Here's how you make the goodness:

Short Crust Pastry:

1 1/4 cups (175 grams) all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) salt

1 tablespoon (14 grams) granulated white sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) (113 grams) unsalted butter, chilled, and cut into 1 inch (2.54 cm) pieces

1/8 to 1/4 cup (30 - 60 ml) ice water

Peach Filling:

1 1/2 pounds (680 grams) fresh ripe peaches

2-3 tablespoons (30-40 grams) granulated white sugar (I only used 1 tbs)

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Mix flour, salt, and sugar in a mixer until well combined.
Add the butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal (about 15 seconds). Pour 1/8 cup water in a slow, steady stream while mixing and stop with the pastry just holds together when pinched. Do not process more than about 30 seconds total!
Gather your pastry onto your work surface, gather it into a ball, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about one hour.
The recipe I found called for skin to be left on the peaches. I didn't think that would fly with Mike (though I would have liked it), so I changed things up a bit. To strip the skin from the peaches (without losing too much flesh), you need to bring a pot of water to a boil. Place the peaches in the boiling water for about one minute, then transfer them to ice water. Halve the peaches and then strip the flesh by putting your knife underneath a small chunk of skin near the top and peeling back. Then slice your peaches and set them aside in a bowl with 1/8 tsp salt and 1 tbs of sugar.
Preheat your oven to 425*.
Once the pastry has chilled, remove it from the refrigerator and roll it out onto saran wrap. You want it to be about 14" in diameter, so you'll need to overlap two pieces of saran wrap. Always roll from the center out.
When you have a circle that will not (and does not need to) be perfect, you can easily flip it over and into your pie dish. Drop your peaches into the center of the dish, leaving about an inch between where the peaches end and the sides of the dish go up. Then fold over the dough, overlapping and pinching where necessary.
Your tart will look like the picture at the beginning of this post when you get to this point.
Sprinkle sugar over the tart to make it look pretty.
Bake for 35-45 minutes in a 425* oven.
Let your tart cool a bit before serving, but it tastes best warm (or so I've heard)!

I can't wait to make this again with strawberries. And apples with a bit of cinnamon? What do you think would happen to mangoes? Are they good in baked form? Hm....

*I adapted this recipe from this recipe/website. And by adapted I mean that I did almost everything it said to, with very few variations.
*Have you ever wondered what the difference between a pie and a tart is? I think this recipe technically makes a galette.

The Swanson.

2011-08-23T18:08:00.000-07:00

Mike's brother was in town recently and while he was here he had a request--that we make "The Swanson." The Swanson is named after the one and only Ron Swanson from Parks and Recreation. Have you seen that show? It's pretty hilarious. Ron is a very stereotypical manly man. He loves steak, bacon, and meat in general. One of the local parks named a bacon-wrapped turkey leg after him and called it "The Swanson." I couldn't find an exact recipe for this many meal, but I was able to consolidate a few recipes and make something pretty good for Mike and Pete. I told Mike he should feel lucky because while I like bacon once in a while, I never cook with it and I honestly don't think he has ever seen me touch it.

Here's how I made "The Swanson."

Marinade:

1 tbs paprika
1 tbs black pepper
1 tbs garlic salt
1 tbs olive oil
juice of 2 lemons

Cover 6 skinless chicken legs (I couldn't find turkey at the grocery store) in the above marinade for 24 hours. After marinading, wrap the chicken breasts in bacon strips without using any type of fastener (you have to tuck the bacon under itself) and stick in a pre-heated 250* oven. Pour 1/2 cup water in the pan with the chicken (to keep it moist) and cover with aluminum foil for 50 minutes.

After baking, take the drumsticks out of the oven and let sit for 50 minutes.

Now comes the grilling. I feel like these little guys would have turned out better if I actually had a barbecue...but I don't, so I tried to cook them on a griddle. Anyway, set the drumsticks on the grill or griddle (medium-medium high on the griddle) and allow 3-5 minutes to cook on each quarter. After they are a nice golden brown, brush on the glaze which consists of...

1/2 cup of brown sugar
the juice of 2 lemons
1 tsp of red pepper flakes

Cook until they are as well-done as you'd like.

In the end they look like this. I took about one bite and I was done, but the boys really liked these. They weren't cooked as well as I like (I need my chicken overdone or I freak out a little), so I think that if and when I make these again I'll cook the drumsticks in the oven (without bacon) for 20 minutes or so before wrapping them.

I served them with biscuits and roasted green beans & brussel sprouts.

I hope you enjoy a very manly barbecue sometime soon!

MUSE.

2011-08-14T16:01:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh you guys, last was seriously one of the most fabulous nights of my life! I wanted to say that it was the very best Saturday of my life, but I remembered that Mike and I got married on a Saturday, so that claim would be a little weird. Nevertheless, last night was one of the most exciting and giddy of my existence. What could be so wonderful you ask? Well, I got to see possibly my favorite band of all time live, in the flesh, in the glorious city of San Francisco. Yesterday was a beautiful and sunny day. The temperature was just right, the night cooled off perfectly, and the heat of the crowd kept me perfectly toasty in a thin fleece jacket. We spent most of the day at the festival, pushed our way toward the front of the crowd and got a great spot to watch Muse rock everyone's socks off. And they did just that. They were fantastic!

One of the reasons I love so Muse so much is because the band is full of incredibly talented musicians. Most of them were trained classically and decided to pursue rock and roll. (Sounds like someone else I know). I love the classical piano and orchestral elements of their music, I love a good run to any one of their albums, and now more than anything I love seeing them live! When Mike and I were first married they came to Salt Lake City. We decided to be responsible and use our money for other things like, you know, rent and school, but he promised me that he would take me someday. When I told him "thanks" last night he gave me a big hug and said, "I promised I would!" It was sweet and wonderful and one of my favorite nights with Mike to date. Peter is also in town for the festival and it was fun to have him there too!

I have never been to a concert quite as dynamic as the one last night. The stage presence of the band was incredibly demanding and interactive, the light show was flashy and in sync, and it was just plain fun. I love being at concerts where everyone can sing along, and aside from screaming and jumping, that was all I did last night. It was fabulous.

What is it about holding a newborn?

2011-08-11T23:20:00.000-07:00

Many of you know that the Johnson family has a very new member--Alyse. I just got back from a fun visit to UT and I was lucky enough to meet the little lady on the very day she was born. The first time I held her, I stared down at her in all her perfection and said, "I want one of these!" Don't worry, the "hunger" for my own baby subsided pretty quickly, but I couldn't get enough of holding that little angel! There is something so sweet and precious about holding something so new to this earth in my arms. I love babies, and the fact that I currently have three (soon to be four!) nieces and nephews to keep me busy for a while!

Congratulations to D & K on the new addition!

Ode to the Facebook profile quotes.

2011-08-10T21:22:00.000-07:00

I heard that all of you were wondering about the quotes on my Facebook profile. Okay, not really, but I realized today that I haven't really changed them in, you know, four years (some of them at least), and wanted to spice things up. But as I looked over the quotes I thought to myself, "I love that no one but me understands half of these."

Well, I have decided to explain the context of these quotes so that you can understand me a little bit better. Trust me, they probably won't seem funny even after explanation. And some of them aren't funny.

I'm solar powered.
Not a quote, just a fact. I am happier, healthier, and more productive when I have access to vitamin-D year-round.

"I see you're wearing your bourret."
My favorite GG quote since "I'm Chuck Bass." XOXO!

"Oh don't worry Missy. I'm sure your little sister sits there sometimes and thinks to herself, 'Man, I'm sick of being famous and talented, I wish I were more average and normal like Missy.'"
I studied abroad in Italy the summer of 2007. One of my roommates, Stephanie Godinez (now Manwaring, writer of the hilarious Bolivian Underground), said this and created an absolute uproar in the apartment. We had just gotten back from grocery shopping at the open-air market, were all getting to know each other, and after I bragged about the awesomeness and ridiculous talent of my little sister, she stood there awkwardly and said what is quoted above. Ginny, Julia, and I just stared and then burst out laughing. We had no idea that Steph was going to be one of the most hilarious parts of our semester abroad. One night we had a group of people over to our apartment and she read excerpts from her journal out loud. We all cried, literally, from laughter.

"Missy, you're just one big bunch of ridiculous."
One of my favorite experiences in college was working at a residential treatment center near Provo. Those girls were struggling with everything from drug addiction to borderline personality disorder, and one of them spat the above quote out one night. I felt that it described me well.

"You're so dense you could be a boy."
Jennifer Kellis, or Jenny Redhead as I liked to call her, was my roommate during my 4th (but definitely not last) year of college. I liked to play this game where I acted like I had no idea a boy liked me if I wasn't interested in him, so one day she told me how dense I was when I acted clueless. Good times.

"There's something Freudian going on in here. I know it. I'm not sure what it is, but it's there."
I took a short story class in college. My professor was very stern and had a hook, which is completely irrelevant, but it gives you an idea of how random the above comment was. The best part about this quote is that the awkward silence inspiring the words followed something completely un-Freudian. It was just too funny not to remember--especially coming from him.

"You left your chi at the Quarry. Go find it."
I'm 90% sure this comment followed a conversation with Tyler where I tried to convince him and myself that I shouldn't date Mike anymore. Because hello, I was falling in love, and that was not part of the plan! Ty knew very well that rock climbing was one of the only things that could really relax me, so he was sending me to the right place.

"The future is as bright as your faith."
Attitude is everything. I loved this simple and relevant quote from the president of my church a few years ago.

"Perfection is a direction, not a destination."
I am a perfectionist. Big time. when I get down on myself, my dad likes to remind me that I can't be perfect now, but can aim to be so in the future. I need to be reminded of this every once in a while.

I like clean stuff.
I do. You might call me a clean freak. Which is tricky in a tiny San Francisco apartment, I can assure you.

I have a crush on Michael Squints Palledorous.
Have you seen the Sandlot? Love that movie.

On caramel.

2011-08-09T21:29:00.000-07:00

San Francisco has been a place of new beginnings for me (I'm not there, by the way). I was thinking recently that I have probably changed a lot since I have been there--growing up in ways that are normal for people who get married and leave their home street. You see, I lived at 1452 on my street until age six, when my family moved across the street to occupy the home located at 1451. So when I talk about home, I am referring to not only the place that my mother so lovingly crafted into a haven away from the stress of the world, but also an actual house and building that I have seen changed and remodeled, but one that actually looks quite similar on the outside to the way it did when I moved there nearly 20 years ago (that sentence made me feel old).

The home tangent was a bit of a strange one, I must admit. (Explanation: I like caramel-->I used to hate caramel except for my mom's homemade goodness-->But I also like peanut butter-->I generally prefer peanut butter-->It seems like peanut butter and caramel are always competing big time for attention and flavor power-->I have always preferred peanut butter-->But sometimes I like caramel now-->When did that start? San Francisco-->Odd that my taste change when I moved away from home). That was a trip through my brain. Are you exhausted?

When Mike and I moved to San Francisco, we had his family with us and did a bunch of touristy things on our first weekend. One of those things was visiting Ghirardelli Square, which always hands out free samples. They happened to be passing out milk chocolate + caramel squares. I was a bit hesitant to try it, because I have always considered myself a "peanut butter person," but I decided it was worth a try. I fell in love instantly. The caramel was so sweet and perfect, I had never tasted any store bought caramel so delicious (you see, my Momma makes insanely delicious caramel for "turtles" at Christmas sometimes and I'm a bit spoiled in the caramel department). Anyway, Ghirardelli chocolate + caramel squares are now one of my favorite treats. And because my life has been opened to the possibility of delicious store-bought caramel, I have found myself trying new caramel things. At Christmas time I tried salted caramel hot chocolate, I recently put a "shot" of caramel in steamed milk (so good), and a few weeks ago I tried salted caramel frozen yogurt at Pinkberry. I'm not ready to call myself a "caramel person," because I still love peanut butter with an apple once in a while, but I'm proud to say that I am nearing neutral territory in the battle of peanut butter versus caramel preference.

Fin.

YouTube.

2011-08-01T17:41:00.000-07:00

So I have a confession. I am not the kind of person that can just sit and watch YouTube videos for hours on end. In fact, every time that starts happening in a group setting, I get very bored very quickly and want to leave (or do leave). I do, however, have a few favorite YouTube videos that friends have showed me over the years. The above is done by a group called Trigger Happy TV. I'm not sure exactly what their show is like, but they are some form of British Comedy TV/prankster group. I was shown this clip before I fell in love with Muse. I am going to see them in a few weeks in concert and I'm ecstatic!

This is ridiculously funny (and sad).

Every time I see this clip I think of Catherine laughing hysterically for five minutes straight.

The last two are just fun and creative. I've only seen them a few times, but I do think they are great. I like the Tetris video better than the Pacman...

Speaking of YouTube, I came across this hilarious blog post a few weeks ago and nearly cried from laughter.

Roasting.

2011-07-26T16:51:00.000-07:00

For the past several months I have been obsessed with roasting vegetables. Last week I bought a big bag of broccoli and I've been roasting it basically every day. Sooo delicious. Here's how you do it (with practically any vegetable):

- Preheat the oven to around 375*
- Cut your veggies up to the size you want
- Rinse them off
- Put on as much olive oil as you want (I don't like the slimy feeling of olive oil, so I put on hardly any. Also, I spray it on with my mister so that it's light and there is as little as possible)
- Bake for anywhere from 15-30 minutes, depending on the vegetables you are using
- Cover with ground salt and pepper
- Enjoy!

The best thing about these is that you can experiment with spices and seasonings. You can use lemon, garlic, onions, seasoning salt, etc. They also make a perfect snack, side dish, or whatever else you can think of. Delish!

Saturday brunch.

2011-07-25T20:47:00.000-07:00

Mike and I went to brunch at the house of one of his bosses on Saturday morning. We celebrated along with all the other people completing their first year at his consulting firm (and their significant others). It was delicious! We had baked french toast with brown sugar glaze and pecans (his boss even made me gf french toast--so nice of her), fresh fruit, cheeses, lox, and sausage. It was quite the meal! Mike is lucky to work with such a fantastic team of professionals.

His boss lives near Twin Peaks, so after brunch we headed with some of his coworkers up to the top of a lookout point nearby. It was absolutely freezing up there! So, so windy and cold. It was San Francisco's infamous micro-climates on steroids.

I love this picture of Mike with his hair going crazy while he's trying to pretend he isn't freezing. I was very glad to have him home after a very long week of work (on his part)! It turned out that those few hours were pretty much the only ones we had together all weekend, so I'm glad they were so much fun!

"I have an app for that."

2011-07-25T16:20:00.000-07:00

I lived with a girl (Emily, the designer) who got an iPhone when they very first came out. They were very popular at that time, but not quite as mainstream as they are now. She used to say "I have an app for that" about pretty much everything. It became quite the joke.

Well...I heard myself say that the other day, and I thought it was hilarious. It really is ridiculous and amazing how many things I can do with my little phone! I love it.

PS: My favorite app is Instagram. What's yours?

Lady Hue.

2011-07-24T15:34:00.000-07:00

Rob & Cait, (lead guitarist of Fictionist + Lady Hue), were in town for a few hours today on their way to vacay in Southern California. Unfortunately, Mike had to work, so he didn't get to spend time with us. But, I got to give them a little tour of Fisherman's Wharf, film them dancing to some awesome street performer music, and give them a tour of our enormous and spacious apartment. I love seeing Caitlin and Robbie because our visits usually only last a few hours, but it takes zero time to get back to "normal" with them. We always pick up right where we left off, soak up all our together time, and part ways even better friends. And we joke around a lot about things like...

Gob, the magician.

30 Rock. (This is such a hilarious scene. I wish I could find a clip of Kenneth in the elevator with Seinfeld).

And Parks & Recreation.

And lots of other fun things. We have so many good memories and it is always good to see them! I can't wait for the next time that we get to see each other for just a few hours and catch up. And I wouldn't mind seeing them for more than a few hours, either.

Kate.

2011-07-22T13:00:00.000-07:00

I'm absolutely in love with the dress Kate wore to the BAFTA Gala.

Isn't she gorgeous?

(Blake didn't look too bad, either).

Dave in SF.

2011-07-21T11:25:00.000-07:00

Please look at this beautiful bird of paradise that I saw while running in the rain the other day! It wasn't pouring, but I still felt pretty cool and invigorated by the whole experience!

Taking Bart from C&N's.

Flowers on a bush at the park near our church.

One of my favorite apartment buildings.

Dave took a last-minute business trip to San Francisco this week! Mike is in Chicago so it was just me and Dave in the city. Dave told me that he wanted to experience "homemade granola and yogurt goodness," so I made sure to make both of those before he came. I thought I had burned the granola a bit, but Dave still liked it. No matter how many times I make it, I forget how very closely that stuff has to be watched! I didn't get his review on the yogurt, but I think he liked it just fine. It was really nice to have Dave in town--It helped pass some time before Mike comes back! His traveling seems more noticeable lately because school is out and I'm only working one job (not that I'm complaining). I had a lot of fun showing Dave around when he wasn't working.

We took some granola with us down to Palo Alto to see Ty and Becca (Ty is obsessed with granola). The four of us ate at Calafia, the cafe started by Google's first chef. Dave got some form of hamburger, Becca got a lamb burger, Ty got a beef & noodle dish, and I got chicken tacos. I enjoyed my food, but will definitely try something different if I go again. My favorite thing about the restaurant was the casual references to Google everywhere. Only in Palo Alto! After dinner we went back to Ty and Becca's, hung out with Ody, chatted, and ate gelato.

In the morning, Dave had some work related things to attend to. You'd never guess it, but the life of an intellectual property lawyer is actually very exciting. After he took care of his...business...we went downtown.

I took Dave to Working Girls Cafe, one of my favorite little places downtown. It has lots of yummy, fresh salads, paninis, and the like. I got a greek salad, as usual. Dave got a salmon sandwich.

He had to save room in his stomach, because after lunch he wanted to go to Swensen's.

Mike and I happened upon Swensen's our very first time in San Francisco (almost one year ago)! We had no idea that it was a San Francisco classic at the time--but we make sure to take everyone that visits there! We took Dave when he and Kristin came several months ago, and now it's tradition.

Dave got cookies & cream and cookie dough.

I got my usual, toasted almond. I spiced it up with some black raspberry swirl, though. It did not disappoint! So delicious!

Dave was here for a very short visit, but I'm so glad that he came! Hopefully next time he ends up in San Francisco for less than 48 hours, Kristin won't be 9 months pregnant and laying low to make sure she doesn't go into labor while he's gone. Then she can come too!

Homemade granola.

2011-07-18T14:04:00.000-07:00

This is one of my all-time favorite recipes. I love the crunch and flavor of homemade granola, and I love having control of what goes in it. This is not the healthiest of recipes (bad news: if you think granola is healthy, you are wrong), but it's worth it. It's a perfect treat.

And the recipe goes...

8 cups oats
1-1/2 cup wheat germ
1-1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large package (8 oz) shredded coconut (I get the bulk kind at whole foods and add lots, until it looks good)
1-1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla
¾ cup honey
In a large bowl, stir together oats, wheat germ, sugar, coconut, and almonds. Set aside.
In small pan over medium heat, combine oil, honey, and vanilla. Cook, stirring, until bubbly. Pour over oat mixture and mix thoroughly.
Grease two 10x15 (or larger) rimmed baking pans (or use silicon or parchment). Spread mixture evenly in pans. Bake, uncovered, at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes, stirring two or three times, or until coconut is lightly browned.
If you don't want clumps, stir granola in pans several times while cooling. Store in an airtight container.
Yield: 16 cups

Obviously, that is the Mike version of this goodness. The gluten-free version is made like this...

8 cups GF oats

1-1/2 cups Pamela's pancake and baking mix & flax seed--however much of each to equal 1 1/2 C
1-1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large package (8 oz) shredded coconut (I get the bulk kind at whole foods and add lots, until it looks good)
1-1/2 cups slivered almonds
1/2 cups vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla (or 2 vanilla beans, that's what I did last time and it was delicious)
¾ cups honey
In a large bowl, stir together oats, baking mix, flax seed, sugar, coconut, and almonds. Set aside.
In small pan over medium heat, combine oil, honey, and vanilla. Cook, stirring, until bubbly. Pour over oat mixture and mix thoroughly.
Grease two 10x15 (or larger) rimmed baking pans (or use silicon or parchment). Spread mixture evenly in pans. Bake, uncovered, at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes, stirring two or three times, or until coconut is lightly browned.
If you don't want clumps, stir granola in pans several times while cooling. Store in an airtight container.
Yield: 16 cups

Possible variations...
- Add dried fruit (after baking)
- Add cinnamon
- Substitute the vanilla extract with almond extract, or do 1 tsp of each
- Use different kinds of nuts (the original recipe calls for cashews, but I like the crunch of almonds better)
- Use coconut oil
- Replace sugar or oil with apple sauce (I haven't tried this, I heard it makes granola soggy, which is unacceptable in my book)
- The possibilities are obviously limitless!

Enjoy!

Sigona's.

2011-07-15T10:46:00.000-07:00

Since we've returned from the cottage, I haven't had a lot going on. It's kind of nice, but let's be honest--I go crazy when I'm not busy. In the past week, I saw the awesome flowers above. They are fiery and red and I have no idea what they are, but I loved them. They were growing next to the sidewalk near Trader Joe's.

At church I saw Woody in the Lost & Found. My heart almost broke, I'm not even kidding. For some reason, seeing him in the box brought back every emotion I have ever felt while watching Toy Story. I love love love the Toy Story movies and I couldn't believe that someone could lose their Woody doll after seeing them! And I'm assuming the kid saw the movies...why else would you have a Woody doll?

I passed this posh dog shop on the way home from church. People in San Francisco looooove their puppies!

Complimentary colors.

Saw these funky things on the way to Mike's office one night.

He's on a pretty tough case right now, so I haven't seen much of him. When this happens we try to meet during the day for frozen yogurt dates or in the evening for dinner.

I never noticed this building was pink until a few days ago. I'm always amazed at the things I do and do not notice around here.

You can't tell in this picture, but my toes are neon pink. I was trying to send the gray clouds a message: I will celebrate summer even if you refuse to bring it to me!

Eeeeeew, I cannot stand blueberries! But this display made me wish that I liked them just a little bit. Don't the look beautiful?

Spotted: Dumbledore.

Okay so the real purpose of this post? I journeyed down to Palo Alto yesterday to see my sister, Becca. We live fairly close to each other, but we don't see each other nearly enough. I rode the train...it always makes me feel romantic. We got some Indian food and then she took me to the store of amazingness, Sigona's.

I literally went crazy there. It's at the Stanford shopping center and I could not get enough! There was a cute little guy that kept slicing every fruit we looked at open and giving us a taste. We had papaya (oh my goodness so delicious), nectarines, plums...I think there were a few more.

We sampled cheeses.

I bought some perfect cherries, which Mike wouldn't stop eating last night.

They have a section of locally made gelato and ice cream.

Freshly pressed olive oil (I bought some).

Flavored balsalmics. They were out of coconut--I'll get it next time.

Truffles and salted caramels.

Guittard chocolate. You can hate me if you want, but I think that Ghirardelli is overrated.

Becca with some goods.

Nuts of every flavor!

Dried fruit!

I couldn't decide what face to make, so I looked awkward instead.

Mmmm...Pink Berry.

SALTED CARAMEL! It is so, so, so good.

The art work in the hospital is beautiful! These pictures were x-ray images of flowers. I loved the simple black and white images.

We went to the Stanford Hospital to drop something off for Ty. I was surprised at how emotional I felt there! Tyler and I were so close in college, and I remember him working so hard to get into medical school, going to Penn, working his tail off there, and then going to Stanford. I worked near the Grand Canyon when he worked near Zion and he would come to church with me sometimes. We drove across the country together, and we have so many wonderful memories. I had so many friends that told me they wanted to marry Tyler, and I was glad that one of them actually did! I was very proud of my big brother yesterday when I saw him all doctor-like, kissing his sweet wife on the cheek and patting her baby belly. I admire him for all his hard work and am so excited for their little one to come in September!

The hospital is beautiful.

I rode the train back to San Francisco and hung out with my love at the Embarcadero Center for a little while.

Then we went home and had dinner while watching Harry Potter (7:1). And yes I put vanilla beans in my yogurt this week. The beans make it even better, if you can imagine. Can't wait for Harry Potter tonight! And I want a Sigona's in my back yard.

Cottage pics.

2011-07-15T10:05:00.000-07:00

People watching in the airport.

We miss the cottage. We had such a fun week up there and real life just seems to be harder than normal. But that's what you get when you return from a week of water skiing, world-class fudge and basking, right? Did anyone give you the advice to "leave while you are still having fun" on a date or in the presence of someone you like? I think someone told me that once. My point is that if I were dating the cottage, or had a crush on the cottage, the cottage would definitely be thinking about me right now and wanting me to come back. We spent the perfect amount of time there.

If you remember from a few posts back, I was a bit hesitant about the cottage initially. I saw this plane leaving the airport and was definitely tempted to hop on it. Let's be honest, though--who isn't tempted to hop on a plane to London? Even if they are excited about where they are going?

We had a disaster of a plane ride from Denver to Detroit. As we neared the airport, we were told that we couldn't land because of bad weather. We had enough gas that we were able to circle for a while, but it was looking like we would need to go to Grand Rapids to land/fill up and then return when it was safer. Lucky for us, we were told we could land in Detroit. But then, at the very last minute, they told us to go to Grand Rapids. (Sing "Quit Playing Games With My Heart" by the Backstreet boys in your head right now). We landed in Grand Rapids and weren't allowed off the plane. Did I mention it was a miniature jet and that there was only one bathroom? It was pretty awful. I was reminded of the episode of 30 Rock where Liz is on a plane with Carol (Matt Damon), her pilot boyfriend, and there is a delay. It shows everyone sweating, screaming, crying, smelling the horrible bathroom fumes and being told it will be "just a few more minutes." They end up breaking up because Liz wants a straight answer about time and Carol wants her to help him (and the flight team) convince everyone it will only be a few more minutes...

And it ends in this argument, which is hilarious. I couldn't find a clip of everyone miserable on the plane, but I'm sure you get the idea. Mike and I lucked out because we got bumped up to first class (one perk of him traveling all the time). But we felt bad for the family in the back! I didn't mind all the delays because there was a beautiful sunset outside...

And this little old man, who was obviously not completely with it, talked to me non-stop. By the time we left he had told me that he was going on vacation to Michigan, but that he didn't know who was staying with or going to see. All that he knew was that two girls were picking him up. He also told me that he had served in "the war" (which one?) and gotten kicked out of the army. He managed construction sites for 30-something years, currently lived on a farm, had two kids, an ex-wife, and was once a drunk. He had diabetes, recently lost a toe to gangrene...I'm not going to finish the rest. Despite him sharing far too many personal details, I actually thought he was kind of cute and charming. I mean, look at him!

We (finally) landed in Detroit.

The next morning we went to pick up Grandma Lois! I love her. I wish I had a pocket-sized version of her to carry around with me at all times. Mike loved climbing the trees at her house.

On our way to the cottage I was completely blown away by how green everything was! I have been to New England and the East Coast several times, and have seen the green and the fall colors, but I still could not get over how beautiful it was.

Boats at the cottage.

Mike took me on canoe rides and told me about his favorite places near the cottage.

In Mackinaw.

He is very cute when he's asleep.

I saw a turtle on one of those lily pads.

We made gluten-free Rice Krispie Treats. So yummy!

We always kept the screen shut to keep out mosquitos.

We sat on the porch for hours on end, chatting, playing games, snacking, and enjoying each others' company. I was also happy to discover that Shauna, Ben's wife is addicted to Dr. Pepper. I am not, but I love my Diet Coke, so I was happy to have another rebel in the family.

We rented movies at the Party Store and were blown away by how cheap everything was! It housed the most random collection of movies and snacks ever.

On the last day I got ridiculously sick. It hit the night before and I was curled up in a ball all morning and the next day. I tried to drive for an hour or so and couldn't handle it, so Mike (of course) was a sweety and drove the rest of the way. I like to drive and it isn't his favorite, so our roles are usually switched. I refused to eat anything and by the time we had dinner Mike had to threaten me so that I would eat.

But you can't blame me, because we ate at a random grilled chicken joint that offered the above food for your special occasion. They had won a "healthy meal choice" award in 1997 or something like that. Let's just say Michigan--at least the parts we were in--did not offer the kind of food I like to eat. But when Mike said, "if you don't eat you can't have any more Diet Coke," I had to oblige. Once I got some veggies down I was able to eat a bit more, but I was definitely an unhappy camper.

Luckily I felt a lot better the next morning for our travels! I was happy to find that Cheeburger (yes, really spelled that way) at the airport offered Rice Chex for breakfast! It made my morning.

Flying into Denver.

Our layover felt really long.

And I was really happy to come back to San Francisco!

Mike and I were both commenting on how we don't miss San Francisco while we are gone, but we are always happy to come home. And it feels like home, which is the most important thing. I love exploring this beautiful city and I feel like I could happily live here for a very long time!

Switched.

2011-07-14T09:20:00.000-07:00

Okay, okay, so I haven't actually had anything to do with "Shoebacca". I just thought it was hilarious and clever. But what did you think when you saw that? That yours truly had switched her favorite website for online shoe purchases? Come on people!

I did make a switch involving shoes, though. You see, I have been running a lot since I moved to San Francisco, and especially over the past few months. It was time for some new shoes. I have been a Mizuno loyalist ever since the volleyball days. Every new pair of workout shoes I have gotten since high school has been made by Mizuno. But because of the inordinate amount of running I've been doing, I decided I best get some true running shoes--you know, the kind where you go into a shop and they figure out which shoes are best for your feet. So I went in, tried Mizuno, Brooks, and some other brand I don't remember...and then I fell in love with some Asics! ASICS! Really? I was quite surprised myself. I have nothing against Asics, I just never guessed that they could sing songs to my feet the way they did! They make me feel like I'm running on aerodynamic pillows! It's incredible!

So there you have it, ladies and gentleman. My switch. Yes, involving shoes. Asics Gel Kayano, to be precise. I got them in purple. It's kind of a big deal.

One year ago.

2011-07-13T13:21:00.000-07:00

One year ago, Mike and I were leaving Vava'u, Tonga to go to Tongatapu (also in Tonga).

In Vava'u, we loved to go on adventures. Sometimes we would hitch-hike to our destination.

We loved our host family, the Lisalas, who spoiled us with delicious Tongan food and leis made from their garden on a regular basis. We were so sad to leave them!

We weren't in Tongatapu very long. Our favorite day there consisted of an adventure out to the coast where we spotted several whales. We chased them for a mile or so and watched them play in the water for hours. We reveled in the time we spent together every day. We never got sick of each other.

Or playing.

Or the beaches.

Or the palm trees. (Or the sunshine).

Or the fresh fruit, which makes incredible milkshakes.

We were sad to leave Tonga. But not too sad, because we headed straight for Fiji (rough life, I know).

We played in paradise and got scuba certified. We were also followed around by this puppy.

Every day we saw a sunset like this.

And wildflowers like this.

And foliage like this.

It's hard for me to believe that this dreamy summer was only a year ago. Both of us have grown so much, done so much, and learned so much since we got back from our delightful and crazy adventure. And I really love San Francisco, but on rainy, murky "summer" days like today, I can't help but hope that M+M will have many tropical summer adventures in the many years ahead.

Here's to hoping for an international business opportunity in Fiji. Preferably one that lasts for, you know, ever. (I know my kids would love it there).

The Cottage (We "heart" Michigan).

2011-07-10T14:32:00.000-07:00

Ever since I have known Mike he has talked about his family's cottage up in Michigan. I have heard lots of stories, but I never saw pictures or really knew what to expect of the place. Well, we spent last week up there and I am happy to say that it was about 10 times more fun than I expected! I know that sounds a little harsh, but the stories made it sound like the cottage was:

tiny
cramped
cold
dirty
home to an outhouse
full of mean people, including Uncle Dan, who I had never met, but was rightfully scared of due to all the stories
home to water football (aaaaaaah!)

Like I said before, it was much better than expected. Mike asked me to give the cottage an overall rating, and I gave it a "B." At first he was surprised/offended, but after further questioning, he decided I am just spoiled because I have been to Fiji and let's face it--nothing really competes. I want to elaborate a little on the cottage, though. I have decided that I will address the above bullet points with what surprised me about the cottage, or how it was different from what I expected.

The cottage was not tiny. It was modest, but had room for eating, lounging, and watching movies snugly. I didn't actually care whether or not it was big or small, but the stories I had heard about the cottage made it sound like there was one room that (literally) 25+ people were trying to live out of. In some cases that could be fun, but considering that Mike's family usually stays there for two weeks, I was a little hesitant.
The cottage was cramped, but it wasn't like I expected. As I typed just seconds ago, the cottage was a bit bigger than expected, and therefore less cramped. There was room for most of the adults inside, and the kids camped outside for the most part (we are "kids"). I loved listening to the booming bullfrogs, crickets, and laughing teenage boys as we went to sleep. I also loved seeing real live fireflies! It as like a week-long party with people you like a lot and don't mind snuggling with once in a while.
Apparently we had incredible weather. I thought we did, and I'm hoping it graces us every time we go! It was 75-80 all week! Delightful! There were a few short rain showers, but for the most part, the skies were perfect. Every day we woke up, had breakfast, played until lunch (boating, water skiing, etc.), ate lunch, played again, ate dinner, played again, watched a movie, and went to bed. There were a few exceptions to that routine. I wouldn't mind living like that forever.
The cottage itself was clean, and I love camping, so I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I was grateful to get home to San Francisco and take a real shower, though, because even though there was one there, we never felt clean. Bathing in bug spray and sunscreen doesn't lend well to cleanliness.
I had heard stories of waiting in line for the bathroom endlessly, and resorting to using the outhouse that is rented while everyone is up there. I strategically planned my use of the bathroom to avoid the outhouse, and had no problems.
Uncle Dan is nice! And funny! Come on people! I told him on the last day that he is not mean, but jolly and physical (and sometimes verbal). Then he walked around telling people just that. I think he liked that description. It was so nice to get to know all of the Wallaces that I haven't met yet! And it was great to spend time with family! (We missed Curt, Naomi and the kiddies a lot, though).
Water football. It is much more fun in a large group! The lake the cottage is on is unique because it is fairly shallow for quite a ways off the shore. Mike's entire family plays tackle football in the (usually knee-deep) water at least once a day (this year the water was apparently very high). We tried to play a few summers ago at Payette Lake, but I didn't really enjoy myself. There were only six of us. But I will continue to play at the cottage, it was a blast!

Overall we had a fantastic time! We did not want to leave and face real life when the time came! Some other things we enjoyed in Michigan were:

Fudge in Mackinaw City - this stuff is unbelievable! I loved the peanut butter flavored! And praline, but my sample satisfied me on that flavor.
Fireworks - what a great show! Uncle Stan has a super snazzy camera and got some great pictures. Mine didn't turn out because fireworks require tripods.
Possibly the best ice cream I have ever eaten at Kilwin's. I got toasted coconut and it was so flavorful and creamy! Not too sweet, and not too much coconut. And some of the coconut flakes were dipped in chocolate. It was the first chocolate I had eaten in over 6 months (me not eating chocolate is its own little story), and it was well worth it! I will get that ice cream every time I go, forever.
Catching turtles (or trying to) in the stream.
Canoe rides.
Playing "Dominion," a game made by the Settlers of Catan people. Very addicting and entertaining.
Being with Mike.
Playing with my new lens.
Painting the cottage.
Fishing in the stream.

Playing the game...

Ahem. I need to clarify that this was possibly the best ice cream I have ever tasted. Swensen's Ice Cream here in San Francisco is tough competition. Have you tried the toasted almond flavor? It is insanely delicious. When you come visit, we'll take you there.

Nothing tastes better than homemade treats (especially caramels)!

Our fudge came with a legitimate certificate of authenticity. Apparently there is fudge on Mackinac Island that claims to be Murdick's recipe but "cannot be guaranteed".

I think they brought Dominion to the marina...

Happy Independence Day!

Ben and Shauna!

Grandma Lois brought props for us to play "Win it in a Minute" or something like that. Apparently it's a TV show? Anyway, we all got very into it, as did she. It was a very fun night!

Brianna learned my name fairly quickly and would say "Missy! Missy!" every time she saw me. At first I responded with her name, but then I realized that she wouldn't actually stop playing the game...so I'd have to just stop or walk away. It was kind of hilarious!

My handsome boy!

Looking out to the lake from the stream where we caught turtles.

I think that my favorite thing about the cottage is its rich history. Mike's grandfather, who I have sadly never met, bought the land many years ago and built the house with his bare hands! He and his sons worked on it together. The entire family is very invested in the place, and it reminded me in many ways of my family's cabin. Cozy, modest, and full of memories. Mike has moved around a lot throughout his life and always tells people he is from Michigan. At one point on our trip he told me that he was glad I liked the cottage so much because it was his home. I felt so grateful to experience the cottage and feel a part of the Wallace family! I understand now why he claims Michigan as his background, because I have never seen him happier than I did while we were there. I love him so very much.

And we love Michigan.

The symphony.

2011-07-01T18:33:00.000-07:00

Lover and I went on a date to the San Francisco Symphony a few nights ago. It was lots of fun--we got to dress up, eat yummy food, and most importantly, enjoy each others' company.

We went to a restaurant called Espetus, one of the only Brazilian Steakhouses in the city! Obviously Mike was really, really excited about it (he loves his manly meat). At one point he had two plates. Just sayin'.

You may notice my plate has lots of veggies and beans on it. There was a pretty stark contrast between our buffet choices.

Look at all that meat! I don't cook a lot of red meat, so we need to fill up when we have the chance, I guess. I did fall in love with one item--parmesan beef. It was insanely delicious. I had two pieces!

My diet coke came in a deliciously cute bottle!

The restaurant had a fun, cozy ambiance.

At the symphony!

The building is gorgeous. I went there earlier this year on a field trip with my kiddies. At that time, they played lots of Star Wars and "popular" music to appeal to the young audience. It was fun to go with Mike and hear some classical music!

It was a delightful night! I love spending time with my husband!

Utah!

2011-06-28T13:16:00.000-07:00

Oh wait. Those mashed potatoes aren't from Utah! I just wanted to show off that I grew my own herbs (and they didn't even die, which surprised everyone), and that I put them in a dish! I didn't really think about which herbs to grow, which was my fault--I'm not familiar with too many recipes for parsley or rosemary--but now I know I can do it and I'll grow things I actually use. I have lots of basil springing up and I'm excited to use that.

Before I left I got to hang out with my cousin Renny who was visiting her grandma in Sacramento! Our timing was a bit off so I got to spend part of a gorgeous afternoon in Union Square Park. I love it when the weather is gorgeous enough for everyone to be sprawled out on the grass or hustling and bustling downtown.

Last time I left Mike alone in SF he ate cereal for a week. So I headed to Trader Joe's to make sure he had lots of snacks/(SIMPLE) meals to make while I was gone. On the way home I saw this bamboo in the middle of Pacific Heights. So random!

I also saw these beauties.

I love this installation in the San Francisco International Airport. I'm not sure if it has air making it wave around slightly, or if it simply reacts to the wind outside. The walls surrounding the escalators going to and from BART are covered in thousands of tiny mirrors that sparkle and shimmer.

Riding the air train to my terminal. I love airports. They are so clean, minimalistic, and full of gorgeous and simple shapes. I have been thinking I might do some watercolor studies of them.

I had the greatest layover of all time in Phoenix. I bought my ticket really late and ended up doing a way out of the way stop. Oh well!

My friend Julia picked me up at the airport. Krista and Robyn happened to be in town as well. It was fate! All four of us studied abroad (and caused lots of trouble) in Italy in 2007. It was so fun to see these girls! It has been years since we all got together. It's amazing to see how much our lives have changed. Three of us are married, one of us is almost done with grad work, one has served a mission, one is pregnant! We could not stop talking. It was so much fun that I almost missed my connecting flight!

Flying over the Grand Canyon. It looks small from the air!

Right when I got home, I was happy to see mom's peonies in full bloom! They only stay happy on the bush for a short amount of time, so I was happy I got to see them. They are without a doubt one of my favorite flowers. I love how gorgeous the gardens at my home always are. My mom has a serious green thumb.

The night I arrived we obviously got Cafe Rio. We all ate at Dave and Kristin's new house. The whole Time I was walking through that thing I kept thinking about how big it was compared to our tiny San Francisco apartment. I also laughed because I honestly have no clue when Mike and I will have a house. So far, our life has seemed to be constantly up in the air. I'm glad that we have each other and the gospel to keep ourselves anchored. It helps us make the most of this crazy time of life!

The next morning I went running around SLC. When I drove from the airport with my mom the night before I kept asking what was different about Salt Lake. I couldn't figure it out! Well, on my run I realized that the city was amazingly green! I don't remember seeing it like that before! The trees, flowers, grass, and birds were all singing. It was breathtaking.

After my run we all clogged our arteries together at the cabin! I know it sounds disgusting, but it's true. Our "cabin breakfast" is a tradition that started before people were heart and health-conscious. I've noticed that it keeps getting smaller and a little more healthy (does a little fresh fruit count as healthy?), but we still have our staples: bacon, sausage, eggs, hash browns, and juice. As everyone has learned a little bit more about how healthy this breakfast is, I've noticed that our portions have gotten significantly smaller. But we still eat it. And I don't think we'll ever stop.

I have never seen the water as high as it was this year! The stream was bubbling and singing so loud that we could hardly hear each other talk! We made sure to keep a close eye on the little boys--they love throwing rocks in the stream and watching the water dance down the mountain.

I played ping pong with Kimball. I was so glad I got to go to the cabin. It is literally one of my favorite places on earth.

After the cabin, we made a run to Whole Foods. I wanted to check out the new one in Trolley Square/stock up on some GF snacks since St. George doesn't have a lot of health food stores. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the Harmons in St. George has a great selection of GF goods, even though it is a smaller store. There is also a health food store I need to check out. I took a picture of this mushroom growing out of the box because Ty, Becca, Nat and I thought it was pretty hilarious.

There was a petting zoo in Scipio. Are you kidding? Nat was there a few months ago and said that there was a zebra. Unfortunately the zebra was gone, but there were llamas, rabbits, and goats to look at.

Too funny.

Aaaaaah, St. George. We got there late Wednesday night, did a little visit to the pool in the morning, and saw a movie Thursday afternoon. We dined at The Pizza Factory as per tradition, which I was pleasantly surprised to find now offers GF crust! It was the best gluten-free pizza I have had in a restaurant!

Friday morning my dad, Ty, Dave, Nat, and I started out to hike the West Rim in Zion. It is a gorgeous backcountry hike that ends at Scout Overlook near Angel's Landing. We got a bit of a late start and decided not to do Angel's, but we had enough energy to have done it if we wanted to!

West Rim starts looking kind of drab and boring, as do many hikes in Zion.

Natalie thought she was pretty cool with her new haircut, neon clothes, and doing her first major hike with her brothers! It was actually neat because this was the first time all four siblings have hiked with my dad. He claims he didn't make it a goal when he was younger, but that he felt really happy realizing we were all able to hike together!

Zion, just like SLC, was incredibly green. It was amazing to see some of the rocks that are normally dry as sandpaper spotted with bushes and trees.

The wildflowers were in full bloom all over the place. I have done a lot of hikes over the years, and I have only seen a Sego Lily once or twice. We saw full bouquets growing ten inches in the air. They spread out in blankets on either side of the trail! It was absolutely gorgeous.

Cactus flowers.

The beautiful tree thing.

We stopped for lunch a little over halfway and found a bench waiting for us!

This looked like a (wild)flower arrangement. So beautiful.

One of my favorite things about Zion is that you walk for miles looking at very average mountain scenery, come around a bend, and look out over something like this:

The Great White Throne.

Ty snapping a photo on Walter's Wiggles.

"Walter's Wiggles" is the name of the switchbacks coming down from Scout Overlook and Angel's Landing. My dad may or not be a Utah history, geography, and everything else nerd, so we have learned quite a bit of random information over the years.

Natalie and I ran ahead of the group on the way down...

My arm looks strangely muscular in this picture.

There was a very strong and cool wind on the last leg of the hike. It was so refreshing after having the hot sun beat down on us all day! I can't complain about the weather though. I think it was in the 90's all day, which is so much better than 100+.

We took a shuttle to the visitors center to pick up our car. Great story:

(My dad sits down)

Middle Aged Guy: You look like you could use some water.

Dad: Yeah, probably.

Me: It's been a long day.

MAG: Really? What hike did you do?

Dad: West Rim.

MAG: Haven't heard of it. How far is that?

Dad: It's a little over 14 miles.

(MAG's eyes get really big)

MAG: I'm sorry, but do you mind if I ask how old you are?

Dad: I'm 55.

MAG: What? Oh man! (Bla, bla, bla, do you use steroids, etc)

As we left, MAG told my dad that he better still be hiking when he's 80. Needless to say, my dad felt pretty cool, and any knee pain felt during the hike became totally worth it. He also made sure I told everyone that story. He is adorable. And a trooper of a 55 year old who has had reconstructive knee surgery! He carried a pack most of the way and didn't complain once! He doesn't want us to compliment him on this, but he deserves it. He said that his knees got their best use in a year.

Ty is a cute little sleeper.

We had to go pick up the car after the hike (after getting some cold drinks, of course). Ty, Nat and I got attacked by mosquitos while we waited for Dad and Dave.

The night of the hike I had a sleepover with Patten. I guess his idea of a sleepover is having someone in the room with him while he falls asleep. Oh, how I love him.

Saturday consisted of basking, which is what I do best. I also met up with my mother and father-in-law for lunch. They were so nice to drive down to St. George to see me! It's always great to see them.

I fed Kimball strawberries nonstop because he looks so adorable eating them. Sunday we went to church and headed home. I love St. George!

Sunday night I went to see Grandma LeNila. Unfortunately she had no idea who I was, but it still makes me feel good to walk around the nursing home with her on my arm, listening to her talk about nothing in particular. She was such a poised, proper, and classy woman before she got sick. I can't help but laugh when I see her dressed up in silly costumes for the events at the nursing home. Ten years ago she would have rather died than wear a clown suit.

I also got to see a bunch of friends that night. It was so good to see Katie, Caitlin, and the Kane family. I love them all so much!

As I mentioned before, the peonies don't last long.

Monday morning I went to breakfast with Nat and my parents before heading to the airport.

Then I left on a plane back to San Francisco. I was so happy to see my Mike. He made sure the apartment was spotless when I got home. He takes such great care of me! Now it's raining outside, and Mike is at work. I feel like I never left.

Waffle date.

2011-06-16T11:52:00.000-07:00

Peonies at Trader Joes! I love Peonies! And TJ's!

Mike and I were planning to go on another grand adventure Saturday, but due to some schtuff on his end, we stayed home. By "we stayed home," I actually mean that Mike slept in because he worked late and needed to catch up on sleep. While he was sleeping, I went to the farmers market and grocery store, came home, made yogurt, and went to a baby shower for my friend Danielle (who, by the way, is going to be the world's cutest momma/is one of the cutest pregnant people ever). After the baby shower, Mike and I did things around the house (and by "Mike and I did things around the house" I mean that I picked up while he worked on some projects). To take a break, we watched the newish Chronicles of Narnia movie, which was absolutely terrible. We also had a waffle date! Oh my goodness. I love waffle dates! Okay, I love dates in general. And I love breakfast food. It's my fave. And it's my comfort food. For this waffle date we...

Had a delicious selection of fresh organic berries from the farmers market.

The strawberries were huge, sweet, and perfect.

I couldn't decide between yellows and reds...but luckily the seller likes me and gave me a handful of yellow to go with my reds, as well as a bunch of extra strawberries!

The blackberries were the best I've ever eaten. That was a bold statement (get it? hahaha)! Really though. They were so sweet and flavorful! And they looked so beautiful next to my seafoam green bowl.

Homemade vanilla yogurt (it was a good day--Mike and I agreed it was my best batch of yogurt yet)!

GF waffles!

The leftover made this cute baby waffle. Why are little things so cute? Our waffle date was a huge success! As always. And it made the terrible movie more tolerable! I feel bad saying the movie was so bad, because I really liked the first movie, and enjoyed the second for the most part. But this movie was so awkward and disjointed, it was just hard to watch (especially without laughing/making jokes the whole time). Oh well! It was a good break!

This week Mike and I met up by his office for a delightful frozen yogurt date.

And last night I got off work after eleven, which was lame. There was a cable car leaving at the same time as me, and since monthly passes work on the little guys, I took one to the bus line that goes by our house. I felt pretty cool working the system to beat Hyde Street's hills...I felt like a local. Which I am. But every once in a while I do something that reminds me of this.

A one-man band playing near the same cable car stop this morning!

And...the disappearing bus stop! The city is getting new, solar-powered/superawesomegreenhightech bus stops. Earlier this week, this stop was just gone. No warning. No goodbye. It just left. I was at this exact spot less than 12 hours before taking this picture, and this morning the stop was back. As I got very little sleep last night/had a weird morning, I was most confused and would have believed anything I was told about the bus stop, spirits that might be possessing it, etc.

I love my adventures in this city.

Carmel/Pebble Beach

2011-06-08T12:10:00.000-07:00

Mike's family came out over Memorial Day weekend to spend some time with us. We had a blast! We went down south a ways and adventured for three days straight. I snagged some pictures with my phone. Carmel is a devastatingly charming place. I'm making Mike take me back.

Mike's parents arrived on Thursday night and we got dinner at our favorite local Thai restaurant, My Ivy. It's literally two and a half blocks from our house, and it replaced a Thai restaurant that was not very good, so we are happy to have it! The curries are particularly delicious.

After dinner we went to Swensen's ice cream. This place is ridiculously good. I'm generally not an ice cream fan, but I have consumed the leftovers. Toasted almond is my favorite flavor--it's bursting with crushed nuts and delicious nutty flavor.

Friday morning we woke up and headed down to Carmel! But on the way we stopped near Monterey and went kayaking in a wildlife reserve! We got to see seals, sea lions, and my personal favorite--tons of otters! I think they are adorable! They just play and eat all day. Life is obviously pretty great for them!

Then we went to Point Lobos, a gorgeous short walk that leads you out along the coast to look at this:

It was rainy, but beautiful.

Did I mention the Cardons came? Here's little Ryland.

Spooky trees!

I don't remember what kind of trees these are (spruce?), but they are only found along this coastline and in South America. I love the way they reach over the cliffs and are determined to survive!

After dinner we ended up at a sketchy restaurant. The only reason I call it sketchy is because I feel like any restaurant that claims to offer the best of several types of food in town is sketchy. For example, there is a restaurant in the Mission in SF that claims to have the best Chinese food in the city. As well as the best doughnuts. I don't know about you, but I will personally search for the best Chinese food in China town. And as for doughnuts--probably at a bakery. I have been pleasantly surprised by some hole-in-the-wall restaurants, and I believe that I can find great food in unexpected places. But the idea of this particular restaurant offering the best hamburgers, Mediterranean, and seafood (especially with the classy decorations above) made me a little uncomfortable.

Turns out the food was pretty good. So, I was surprised. Though I still stand by the fact that the best sea food is probably found on the waterfront and costs twice as much.

PS - After dinner Ryland and I entertained ourselves by me "fake spraying" the colored glass counter base above and he wiped it down with a business card. It was pretty creative of him, and he loved it. I bet he is a great helper at home!

Sunday we went to church in Prunesdale or something like that. The ward was surprisingly large and very welcoming!

After church we went on a hike to Pfeiffer Falls in Big Sur. It was such a beautiful area!

The roots of a tree near the falls.

Fuzzy of Mike and Ryland. Ryland loves Mike and I love watching them play together.

I snagged this photo at just the right moment. Go ahead. Try to tell me it's not adorable and perfect.

After hiking we had a picnic. On the way home we explored the coastal drive in Big Sur.

There is a viewpoint where you can see a waterfall drop right onto the beach. I love the colors of the water in the ocean. So gorgeous!

We stopped along the beach on the way to dinner and found this baby seal beached! So sad! We called a number of people and finally found someone from the Marine Somethingorother Volunteers to come get it. He was surprisingly curious and came right up to our feet. He looked so sad! And I don't even know if he was a he...

We were going to eat seafood but everywhere we went had a huge wait! We should have made reservations, but we were just too busy having fun to think about it. We ended up eating at this very American diner on the waterfront. I got chicken tacos with grilled veggies--it was surprisingly hearty and delicious! Ha. And a diet coke of course.

The next morning we wandered around Carmel! Like I said, this place is absolutely ridiculously picturesque. I must go back.

Jane Austen at home. I didn't got in, but I'm sure it's good.

So adorable.

We made Father Wallace go taste Cheese...he was in there for about an hour and came out with lots of goods for an unnecessary morning snack.

I have never seen so many cowboy boots!

The vanilla had bean specks in it, and the cookie dough was bursting with...cookie dough bites. Obviously I didn't have any, but I made sure to eat it vicariously through Mike.

The famous Cottage of Sweets.

After wandering around Carmel we rode horses along the coast of Pebble Beach. The horse ride was alright (I feel okay saying that because we all agreed it was just 'okay'), but the views were spectacular.

My horse, Katie.

After our horse ride we went to the beach to have another picnic before we headed home. I snagged a picture of this beautiful house near the beach to remind myself where to look for houses when the time comes. Just kidding. I do love it though.

We had a fantastic time with the Wallaces. Thanks again for a great trip!

And since we've been back, we've just hopped back in to real life. This is what the city looked like the next morning as I headed to work...

This was my laundry date one night while Mike was still at work...

This is the gluten free French toast I made myself with my new favorite bread...

And that is pretty much what we have been up to!

Thanks again to the Wallaces! Love you guys!

Nat the Scat.

2011-06-07T18:34:00.000-07:00

See yesterday's post for why I'm posting these pictures. The first one is the ultra funny one. I had to do a double-take when I saw it because I thought it was so funny. I honestly couldn't believe that it was her! I just had to post it in honor of her awesomeness and graduation.

Hiking with our beloved Chacos in the summertime.

My maid of honor!

Working with the kids in Mexico.

With her fave.

Hiking in Zion.

At Disneyland...not sure what she's doing.

Please look at her face!

Loving Woody. We are obsessed with Disney & especially Pixar.

I love this picture of her. Taken by the famous and talented Lady Hue.

Heh. Cute.

After Cait took these pictures (which I didn't know she was doing), she sent me an email with the subject "Vogue shot." I wasn't sure what she was talking about until I opened it. Um...hello! My sister is gorgeous! What are you supposed to do when your little sister is more talented, beautiful, and cool than you? I'll let you know when I figure it out!

Love you Nat!

Heard you stole the show last night (duh)!

Congrats again!

And now she's all grown up.

2011-06-06T19:31:00.000-07:00

As usual, Blogger is having some serious issues. It won't let me upload any photos.

As I was shuffling through photos today I found some of my little sister, when she was in the awkward teenager phase (get ready--one in particular is so great). And I was thinking about how she is all grown up now. She and my mom called me this afternoon as they were running around SLC getting ready for the madrigals "Specials" concert. I had a blast when I was madrigals, as did Dave, and Ty. Ty was madrigals president, and Natalie is, too. Sadly for her, the wonderful director my brothers and I sang under is no longer at good old East High, so things are a bit different for her than they were for us.

However, she gets to continue the tradition of singing Desperado tonight (as president). And I know she will be awesome. Because my sister can sing. Not just choral ("just" does not mean to lessen choral singing in this sentence). Natalie can sing pretty much any type of music, including contemporary, mixing, belting, soprano, and so on.

I wish I could be there to hear her steal the show tonight, because I know she will.

Love you Nat! I am so proud of you!

Our honeymoon.

2011-06-06T15:58:00.000-07:00

So I'm going through some of our files and backup and whatnot and came across pictures from our wedding and honeymoon. I also realized I never actually blogged about our wedding, so I'll do that sometime, too. I'm sure you are all dying to see those pictures after a year and a half (just kidding).

So...December 19, 2009! Best day of my life! I got sealed to my husband forever in the Manti LDS temple! Do you hear me? He can't get rid of me. Ever. I'm so glad for that, because I can be kind of crazy sometimes. As I mentioned previously, I will go into detail about our perfect wedding some other time. It was such a wonderful, happy, and most importantly, a very sacred day. It all happened very quickly, so I'm glad I have lots of pictures to look through.

I'm also glad I found these pictures from our honeymoon the other day, because I was wondering about them just a few days ago...

Pretty sure Nick drew this elephant on our car. He calls Mike "Elephant Mike" because he never forgets anything. He once made a really funny collage of a picture of Mike's face and a picture of an elephant...

And pretty sure Peter wrote this one. He often says it in a really weird voice...

And this is the gorgeous, wonderful, cozy, picturesque cabin we stayed in near Cedar City. It actually belongs to the family of my wonderful sister-in-law, Becca. Mike and I didn't want to miss spending Christmas with our families as we knew that we'd be moving after graduation and whatnot, so going to the Warthen's cabin was the perfect solution! We had such a great time watching movies, reading, eating the food his parents stocked the cupboards with, and cozying up by the fire. It was perfect. It was soooooo snowy, too. It was gorgeous.

This pictures doesn't do the depth of the snow justice!

The porch!

So gorgeous. I loved the sun coming through the trees.

My handsome hub in his dorky Michigan State hat (sorry Mike).

My coat is sooooooooo warm I love it.

Just before heading home for Christmas.

On the way home.

A staple snack in our household...hummus and crunchy things (veggies, crackers, chips, you name it).

As I said, we had a fantastic time on our honeymoon! It was the perfect getaway! We loved it. And it was a perfect wintry memory for both of us. Thanks again to the Warthens for letting us borrow their cabin! Here's to many more winters with my love!

Keen on design (and Emily).

2011-05-24T08:55:00.000-07:00

A few years ago I fell in love. Not with Mike, but with Emily Tingey (I was already in love with Mike). This chic, savvy lady who I had a girl-crush on from a distance had an open spot in her room, let me take it, and the rest is history.

Well, she is a designer (which gives a hint as to why we loved each other so quickly), and she has recently started a blog to track her random thoughts, ideas, etc. You should check it out because she is fresh out of design school and has some great things going for her. A few seconds checking her blog out will inspire you for quite a while.

Etymologie.

2011-05-23T10:58:00.000-07:00

This makes me happy. I'm sure that you have experienced a day inside my brain, where one thought leads to another at such a rapid pace that in the end you have no idea where you started. The truth is, even if you look back and trace the steps from point a to b, b to c, etc, it is still hard to make connections...

Anyway, Anthropologie has made a blog that I feel is dedicated to touring my brain visually. Just kidding, that's a bit arrogant. But I love their new site, Etymologie, which takes one word and explores it visually and conceptually until it is nearly exhausted.

What d'ya think?

And life goes on.

2011-05-19T17:52:00.000-07:00

Are you ever amazed by the fact that life just keeps going? Sometimes, when things are really good, I just want to stop everything, including time, and revel in the beauty. Other times, when things are hard, I close my eyes and use all my will power to lunge myself through one of those transformations that happen in films when you someone lose fifty pounds in 20 seconds, or watch them live ten years of their life in one minute. You know what I'm talking about, right? There is usually some cheesy music in the background, everyone starts crying, a little girl may be dancing in a meadow in slow motion and then the dandelions blow in the wind and suddenly she's 23 and getting married? I'm going to stop explaining. If you don't know what I'm referring to, it's okay. Just imagine me trying to do something impossible--jump ten years ahead of right now to make sure whatever I am going through was worth it.

That's not to say that I'm going through one of "those times," or that I'm not. Life just keeps going. And it's fast. I'm grateful for the ride and all of the refining experiences that come with it. For whatever reason, I've been thinking a lot about life lately. Life, life, life. Isn't it wonderful?

This week is the second to last week of school! I pass this building every time I take the 27/22/1 home from work. I love the clean lines, the colors, and the randomness of it.

And this is San Francisco at night. This picture turned out rather nice, don't you think?

You can't find Palm Trees everywhere in San Francisco, but they are fairly frequent near my work in the Mission. We've had lots of beautiful days over the past few weeks (with a patch of miserable rain), and I've loved playing outside with the kiddies/getting a little golden on my runs. Yeah, my runs. It's amazing what being at sea level can do for your lungs!

Last week Mike and I BARTed (San Francisco's version of the Tube or Subway, but not nearly as efficient or worth the hassle) to Oakland to hang out with Curt, Naomi, and the boys.

We were planning to do a session in the Oakland LDS temple but the door closed literally 1 minute before we were ready to go in, so we ended up doing some other work instead. It was wonderful to escape the craziness of life for a few hours inside such a holy place.

After the temple, we watched the boys while Curt & Naomi did a session. We are hoping to make "temple swap" days a more frequent tradition. Mike is the best and entertained Ryland while Rhys and I napped. He'll be a great dad! Someday.

Ryland found out we were going to get frozen yogurt and was very excited! But before we partook of the never-fails-treat, we went to The Counter for some delicious burgers and fries.

The kid didn't last very long...

...but did perk up at and after dinner. Yogurtland had key lime something-or-other tart as well as pineapple guava tart. Both sounded better than they actually were. If we could just combine Yoppi's tart flavors and Yogurtland's regular flavors, Mike and I would have a perfect yogurt stop. Oh wait. Pink Berry is just that. Too bad they don't have one in the city...

This bush is absolutely bursting with gorgeous, hot pink flowers. I liked this picture better in muted tones, though. I love the plants in this glorious city!

I don't love rain. And we had some last week.

Crazy hair, crazy day, crazy life.

Mike got me some sunflowers after I had some bla doctors appointments. I love him.

The pavement on Powell near Union Square. I love the light dancing on the bricks!

A Rice-a-Roni Golden Gate Bridge at Anthropologie! I love that store! And their displays!

I like trying to get peels off in one piece. Today I succeeded with a mineola. And I liked the picture, so you get to see it.

And...that's all for now! Here's to life and the fact that it won't stop!

Eliminated--not defeated.

2011-05-19T09:05:00.000-07:00

Hey there -

The picture above is a little depressing, right? I hadn't been to my blog in a few days, and when I ventured over this way I found that "The Fictionists" were still lucky enough to have a blog gadget with "ELIMINATED" written on it, even though their part in the Rolling Stone contest is over. I don't know why there couldn't be a "this page could not be found," button, or something a little less glaring, but there you have it.

At first I was very depressed to hear that my friends didn't move to the final round of the contest. But then I realized that I was the only one wallowing (at least for an extended amount of time). I wish I had a link to Stu's Facebook, because it is absolutely hilarious. But below you can get a taste of how classy these rock n' rollers handled the news:

And you can get a taste of how many (funny) fans and friends they have made in their recent musical journey:

Most importantly, however, you can see that these guys are still smiling. Like I have said before, that is one thing I love about them. They love each other, they love their fans, and they love making music.

Thanks for the ride, guys!

Onward!

The real deal (FICTIONIST).

2011-05-11T15:41:00.000-07:00

I know that I tweet, talk, brag, and blog about these guys all the time, but I do it with good reason. They are inspiring, motivated, and honest-to-goodness great guys. I have celebrated birthdays with them, hugged them after concerts, been mesmerized by their outstanding musical skill, etc.

They are the best.

And I want everyone to know they are the best. Not only because my opinion matters that much (just kidding), but mostly because I love sharing things that are important, inspiring, and beautiful to me with everyone I can.

Fictionist is important.

Not only because they are in the 3rd of 4 rounds of an enormous competition that few musicians can even dream of being a part of, but also because they are unique, stalwart examples of my faith. I personally appreciate their ability to live a "Mormon" lifestyle without letting it define them and their music. I do not think artists of any kind are bad or wrong by creating work based on their religious beliefs (Mormon or not), but I find it refreshing to see a great example of outstanding talent and musicianship in a group that just so happens to be made up of LDS members.

I am inspired by these guys.

They are unbelievably dedicated to their music, families, and faith. They rock harder (and better) than many groups that have already "made it big." I also have to mention that I am inspired by Robbie (the curly one). I promised myself that I would never get married until I felt like I had the kind of love that he and Caitlin share. I love how much he loves and takes care of one of my dearest friends. I also find myself jealous of his afro on a constant basis.

They're beautiful.

Hello. Have you seen them? Their hair? Have you heard their music? Do you love that it isn't made up of three chords and talking about the same girl in every song? I do. I also find beauty in people who are living their dreams and passionate about doing what they love. So to me, Fictionist is beautiful. I realize that sounds cheesy.

And I love this picture, because it shows how much fun they have making music. Anyone that happy deserves to be on the cover of Rolling Stone. Don't you think?

Please take a minute to vote for my friends!

*Pictures taken from the Rolling Stone website.

Playin' Hookie.

2011-05-10T11:40:00.000-07:00

So most of you know this, but my husband works fairly ridiculous hours. Last week, he worked 40 hours before Tuesday was over. Luckily his company recognizes that this shouldn't be happening (too much), and he gets a comp day every time his hours cross the line between ridiculous and another word I'm unable to grasp at the moment. So Wednesday of last week, he was off. I talked him into letting me miss work, too, so we spent the whole day enjoying each others' company in San Francisco. Mike recently told me that he changed the name of our travel fund to "adventure fund" in our budget. That's one of many reasons why I like him.

The day started out with gf pancakes for me and french toast for Mike. Then we headed to the Presidio and rented some bicycles (mine needs a little fixin' and Mike's got stolen).

I know it's hard to believe, but there wasn't a cloud in the sky all day! Part of the reason why I wanted work off is because I couldn't imagine spending a 79* day INDOORS! There was hardly any wind. It was perfect.

Random dog-walker (I hope they didn't all belong to her) on our way to the bridge.

We live here! And love it!

GGB Visitors Center

Looking out over The Bay.

We got some strangers to take our picture.

Our lovely city. (Yes, ours).

He's cute.

I loved the colors of the water and bridge next to each other.

We rode to Sausalito, where the weather was even more beautiful, and grabbed some Thai food at this little hole-in-the-wall restaurant I found with my friend Emily when she visited. You may wonder why anyone would get Thai food in Sausalito, especially on a warm day, but my options are limited there. And it's delicious.

We were going to ride back to San Francisco, but we had a little too much fun wandering around and had more plans for the afternoon (which we still ended up missing), so we ended up taking the ferry back.

This picture is for Katie Jane. This store is near our house. Also, the rest of the pictures are out of order as they were not taken with my camera.

In the Presidio before we rented our bikes.

We hopped this fence to get to our destination.

After returning from Sausalito, we rode from the ferry building up to Pier 39 and got Mike a smoothie. We also visited the seals and I ate one of these delicious plums. They are HUGE!

Mmmmm...

Pier 39.

Sea Lions' 30th anniversary!

After the adventure, we were going to eat Ethiopian food, but we had too much fun riding around the Marina and Presidio on our bicycles! So we are saving the grub for another adventure. We hurried home, showered, and went to a movie in SOMA. It was a perfect and delightful day. I wish I could hang out with Mike all day, every day, always.

In other news...

I'm attempting to grow some herbs. So far, they are not dead.

My new salad addiction: Working Girl's Cafe Greek Salad with Chicken. It's delicious!

In church on Sunday (May 8th), the men gave the women daisies! Mine was a tad limp and sad when I received it, but I put it by the window and look how excited it got! Solar powered, just like me.

Less than three weeks left working in the Mission (for now). I'm still not sure if I'm going back next year...

This picture is funnier is you know the random background information. It's safe to assume we love each other, though.

PS - Please excuse typos and gramattical errors. I'm spread thin as of late. As in, 50+ hours of work per week, thin. Sigh.

Padres/most unnecessary hospital visit.

2011-05-01T16:54:00.000-07:00

The wall says "BB" on it...dad really wanted a picture!

My parents came in town last weekend and left Easter morning. It was such a treat to see them! It always is! In fact, I had a dream about them last night. In my dream, it was the day after my parents had left. I was standing in line at the corner store to get a diet coke, and my parents and brother Dave walked in the room! My parents couldn't stay away, and Dave came unannounced. I started crying...and that's really all I remember. That was a very anti-climactic story.

After work on Friday, I headed to Palo Alto to meet up with my parents and Becca! They had spent the day in Half Moon Bay and fell in love with it. We were all so tired after (I love that I was exhausted even though I didn't actually go with them), that we sat around with Ody and eventually took power naps. Then we ate delicious zucchini boats and went to hear the Valparaiso Singers' Easter program! Becca sings with them! They were wonderful! And we got Pink Berry after, of course. I got mango and lychee...the lychee was wonderful, slightly tart, and citrusy. I want it again this very minute! After Pink Berry, Ty drove me and my parents back to the city. They slept in the living room on our air mattress that barely fits. I offered them the tree house (our bed that will get its own post sometime), but they refused.

Saturday morning dad and I headed to the emergency room bright and early! I'm sure that is exactly how he wanted to spend his vacation with me! Why? Well, I'll tell you. A few weeks ago (4/19), I was punched in the face by a student! This is not a joke! Smack in the jaw joint! And it hurt, and was swollen, and it bruised quite nicely! Please don't tell me to quit--I won't (at least not because of this). Please don't tell me to take self-defense/physical restraint classes--I have attended training for this! You see, when it all "went down," it was a complete shock! Here is the story...

"Anonymous Student," hereby known as "AS," was having a very rough day! He has some anger management issues/mental and physical problems that make his life quite difficult at times. Well, because he was having a hard day, I said, "Hey, AS, we should go play soccer so we can get all of our negative energy out...remember when we did that last week? We felt so wonderful after!" AS looked at me, and he said, "Okay." But then at recess, AS did not want to play with me. I was quite sad! Instead of kicking his energy out, he tried to get me to chase him all over the school (he does this on a daily basis. He hides behind corners and spies to see if I am following and then runs away if I come in his direction. It is a bad game that I generally don't respond to, but he hasn't caught on to that yet). Although his antics were tempting, I played soccer with the other kids! I love recess! We had a great time, and we screamed "gooooooooooool!" as loud as possible whenever anyone scored (Hispanic kids=gol instead of goal). AS was eventually forced outside by another teacher, and he sat sulking on one of the benches as we played. After recess was over, I went and sat by him and said, "Hey AS, I really wish you would have played soccer with us!" He turned to me and screamed, "Shut the @#$% up!" The punch came just like that! He socked me! Full fist! It was a complete shock! He ran away after and I just watched him because I was so confused! Another teacher had seen it happen and looked at me and said, "Uh, what just happened!?" I told her I had no idea! And when she asked if I was going to do anything about it, I snapped back to reality and said yes! So things were taken care of, as much as SFUSD can take care of anything (which means he got sent home for the afternoon with no further punishment. Please don't get me started on San Francisco public schools).

Well...After AS hit me, my face got a little swollen! And then it got very swollen! The left side of my face looked like it belonged to someone fifty pounds heavier! Hilarious and quite sad! However, I didn't have time to go to the clinic for the next few days, so when I finally had the chance to go to the doctor, it was Saturday, and the normal clinic (that the district pays for injured employees to go to) was closed, so I had to go to the ER! I felt quite stupid in there with people sobbing and moaning (the guy in the bed next to me was hearing voices that were telling him to hurt himself and others), and the whole experience just seemed a bit silly! I also felt ridiculous after the nurses and doctors asked me what happened, and then responded to the story with, "Oh, so he must have been a big kid, huh!?" He's not very big--I can assure you. Oh well. I had a specific time window in which to get medical attention and did what had to be done. Oh, and my jaw is doing fine now. Just a little leftover bruising. Thanks.

After our hospital visit, dad and I went to the Embarcadero Farmer's Market! One thing I love about San Francisco is the wonderful variety and quality of local produce! The Embarcadero has everything from mushrooms to homemade yogurt to smoked salmon to oranges! It is simply delightful! And full of free samples and funny people. In SLC my dad used to wake me up early on Saturday mornings to go to the farmer's market, so taking him to mine was a special treat. We even got to see stark naked men on bicycles protesting oil prices. Disgusting. It made me long for bicycle rides dedicated to a love of tweed.

Yum!

The Tongan word for mosquito is "namu." I had to snag a picture of this booth because it brought back so many memories of long days and nights without hydrocortisone cream!

Mariposa GLUTEN-FREE Bakery! It has baguettes that taste like bread! They are soft, fluffy, squishy, and delightful! I ate way to much because I was so excited!

A statue man who I didn't pay. Whoops.

Mike and my mom met us after a little while and we did some wandering. My mom and I drooled in Sur La Table while Mike and my dad pretended to enjoy it with us, and then waited outside to talk about sports.

I love orchids!

And these beautiful wooden bowls!

And any store that has a gluten-free zone! This store had quinoa granola that I wanted to try, but it was $13 per small bag and I just didn't think it was worth it. Maybe I'll try it sometime, though.

Mmmm...Indian food!

More orchids!

So beautiful!

I love the colors of fresh fruits and veggies!

I work in the Mission district of San Francisco (well, that is where my school is). While it has recently become home to a somewhat diverse population, it is well-known for being primarily Hispanic. The best Mexican, Salvadorian, and you-name-it-an food can be found in this neighborhood. My parents wanted to see the school I work at, so we adventured in that direction after our visit to the farmer's market.

Mission Street is full of old buildings and abandoned theaters. It has a very different feel than other parts of the city!

I love the Mission, especially Mission Street. When I walk around there I feel like I am in another country. After school, men come with little carts selling fresh-sliced fruit, popsicles, churros, and Mexican pastries to all the kiddies and their parents. The area is so alive and full of culture--it is a must-see if you ever visit SF!

Kitty-corner to my school is one of the top-ranked taquerias in SF! El Metate! The only thing on their menu with gluten is a flour tortilla! Everything is fresh and delicious. We had to go to there for lunch!

They make their own everything, including tortilla chips. Which I love. They have become a very bad habit of mine--I find myself buying a little bag of them and eating it outside the restaurant on my lunch fairly often. It's nice to be away from the stress of the kiddies, but it's also fun to watch them play and have fun from a distance.

I love these trees.

And the flowers for sale on the corner of Bryant & 24th street every day!

My phone started throwing a fit later in the day, so I don't have any more pictures! But, after visiting my school, we wandered around Noe Valley! It is a short ways down 24th street and is full of boutiques and cafes! Mom got a new bag, and we all shared yogurt-covered peanut clusters from my favorite "corner store," Shufat Deli. We finished up the day with dinner at La Meditteranee (oh my gosh, the food is so wonderful and flavorful and delicious there), wandered along Fillmore Street, and indulged at Yoppi. My parents left right before church on Easter morning--it was a wonderful weekend! I miss them already.

London via iPhone.

2011-04-26T17:47:00.000-07:00

Maybe I should have called this post "London Anthropologie via iPhone," cause there are a ton of pics of that beautiful store in this post. Things have been crazy busy since we got back (including a visit from my parents,) so I haven't had a chance to share these pictures. This post won't be nearly as entertaining as the last one, but here are the pics:

Double-decker bus for the first time (for me)!

Front row seat!

Picadilly Circus after Phantom.

It was very cold.

Wandering the streets, looking for food...

Crumpets and hot crossed buns, side by side. Love it.

Waiting in line for tickets!

We tried to go to Platform 9 3/4, but it didn't work out.

Mike was laughing at this guy, but not for long.

There is a private school by out apartment that has one of these walls on the outside. It was in the newspaper that the one in SF is one of 3 or 4 in the world...which makes the fact that I found one in Anthro kind of ridiculous.

I'm getting a little embarrassed, but how cool are those stairs?

Reminds me of Aurora Robson's art...

Someday I am going to make a chest of drawers like this to store all my art supplies in...

Front row!

How lucky were we to find award winning gelato on our first try?

Looking out our (tiny) window...

We ate at Eat.

On our way home... :(

Woohoo for London! I told you this post would be mostly pictures and not much text...but you can read more about the adventure and fill in the missing pieces here.