House Renovations Days #2-3

Day #2

The HVAC man returned to hook up my air conditioner. A whole day without it (and near 100 degree temperatures) made me appreciate it more. Fortunately I was able to sleep in the basement.

I started painting the bathroom in preparation for the new tile. The new color has a green tint to it and looks really pretty. I have wanted to change this 1970 vintage gold colored honeycomb floor since I moved in 8 years ago. My brother put in the tile while I took Ms. C on a tour of campus.


Day #3

The excavation team returned because they miscalculated and made the hole 12" too small on the north side. More deep divots in the lawn. No more worries about the lawn looking good this summer. It's history.

Footings were poured.

My brother returned to grout the tile. Love it! We had take-out from Wallabys Smokehouse for dinner. Yum!


Life is Good.

Ms. C and Mr. Old Spice

Today Ms. C and I went on a tour of BYU campus. Secretly, I've always wanted to ride around campus in one of those golf carts. Ms. C really wants to attend BYU next year. So I left my brother to tile the bathroom (more on that later) and we headed to campus.



After a tour with Emily, a student from England who talked non-stop and made me want to be a BYU student, we headed to the Bookstore to buy a t-shirt and some fudge. As we walked in the door of the Wilk, Ms. C hands me her phone and asks me to take a picture of her. We were standing in front of the HumorU table. I was a little confused. Then I realize, oh, she wants a photo with this handsome young man who is the star of Old-Spice commercial spoof . If you haven't seen it, watch it here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ArIj236UHs

I think that this photo is the highlight of her day...the tour a distant second.

Life Is Good!

House Renovations Day #1

House renovations started today. To be honest, I think I've been dreaming about doing this since the day I bought the house. It will be nice to have more dining area. I will miss the tree outside my kitchen window.

As you can see, I live on a rock bed. Good for a potential earthquake. Bad for growing lawns and gardens.

Perspective

This weekend I attended the wedding reception of my friend's son. I met Wendi during a trip to Europe. Her husband died of pancreatic cancer about nine years ago.

Friends, Jodi and Wendi

When Wendi came to drop Benjamin off for his mission, I thought of how hard that would be as a single parent. I know Wendi has had hard days, and that was probably just one of them. But I also know that she has a testimony of the power of the atonement and resurrection. Wendi loves life and is so positive.

Two of Wendi's sons are getting married this summer. As I thought of Benjamin's wedding, the thought came to me that his dad was there in the temple with them. I have no doubt about that. And as I had that impression, just for a moment I had a glimpse of the shortness of this mortal experience. Yes, as a young widow Wendi had years ahead of her as she raised five children. But in perspective, this life experience, her experience, is so short. Wendi will have eternity with her husband.

I think I can make it. I can do it. As Elder Wirthlin said, "Come what may, and love it." Eternity is worth it.

Life is Good.

The Test

While at work today I got a text message from Ms. K.

The conversation went like this:

K: Hi Rosie

Me: Hi. What are you doing?

K: Nothing. Testing u. I have red hair. What am I? (this is similar to a game we play in the car when traveling)

Me: You are the cutest girl in the whole world.

K: YES

Whew. Glad I passed her test.

Life is Good!

Friends & Summer Fun

This is the first year I'm not taking a major summer vacation. Nothing really panned out, so I'm doing "stay-cations." I try to do at least one thing a week that is enjoyable.

My first week I spent time with my sister and her family. Loved it!

The second week I hosted a party when Mike and Katelyn were in town. I also spent an afternoon window shopping at Gardner Village where I bought a new bedspread.

The third week I took my nephew to Denver for a MLB game.

The fourth week I spent an afternoon with my brother and his family who were camping at Smith and Morehouse. On Friday I went with my parents to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir pioneer day concert in Salt Lake City. We ate (along with about 200 other people) at the Nauvoo Cafe prior to the concert. We opted for hot carved sandwiches. Yum.

And here it is week five. This week my selected activity was going to lunch with my friend Becky in Salt Lake. I had read about a Greek restaurant called Aristos. The restaurant got good reviews in the Salt Lake Magazine. But I have to say, the company was a lot better than the menu. I think Mazza has better tasting Mediterranean food. Thanks for great afternoon Becky!

After lunch I stopped in Sugarhouse and window shopped. I used to live in Sugarhouse; I miss it. I love the tree lined streets, houses with character, and the shops, especially Barnes and Noble. I indulged in ice cream at Maggie Moos. It was tasty Raspberry Chocolate with raspberries mixed in. Yum.

Today was a bonus activity. Today is my friend Stephanie's birthday. We met for a early morning session at the Mt. Timpanogos temple (my favorite place on earth). Afterward we had breakfast at the Flour Girls and Dough Boys in American Fork. At the suggestion of the worker there we had the Maple Sausage Melt. This was sunflower, honey bread with maple butter, provolone cheese, and a sausage patty. We were a little hesitant to try it, but it was so tasty. Just enough maple to make it sweet and the sausage was not too fatty and seasoned just right. Before leaving, we bought a birthday cupcake for Stephanie and a cookie for me. I will definitely be going back here again.

Hum...sounds like this post makes it sound like this is the summer of eating.

Life Is Good.

Thrift Store Treasure

Today I hit the jackpot at the thrift store. I eyed this desk and didn't let it out of my sight or touch until the store worker came and put a "sold" sign on it. She kept asking me if I wanted it, and I replied "I am deciding." I am not an impulsive buyer. She said that if I didn't want it there were others who did-- like the two young women standing next to me talking about what they would do with it (paint it a bright color) if I didn't buy it. I was just waiting for my parents to wander to this part of the store so I could get their opinion. My dad fell in love with it too (we have similar tastes and preferences).



There were a few ink marks where children had used magic markers to write on it, but some restorer stain took it right off. I'll keep working on polishing it. I also have to find a key plate for the base.

I am so excited with this find. The oak color matches so well with my kitchen and fireplace wood. I love the little drawers that open. They will be good for holding stamps, paperclips, sticky notes, and other correspondence necessities.

Life Is Good!

Camping at Smith and Morehouse

My brother and his family were camping at Smith and Morehouse this week. They invited me to come up for the day. That is my favorite kind of camping-- enjoy the outdoors and then come home, shower, and sleep in your own bed. Love it! We went exploring, cooked dinner, played games, talked, and generally had a great time.

We went for a short hike and Ms. E found the water. After the 4th trip scooting across the log and walking on rocks her shoes were filled with water. She didn't want to wear flip flops, so went stocking footed and then bare footed around camp. Then she decided that she needed to wash her feet.

We made smores. Yum. Nothing better than smores over the campfire

Favorite aunt with Mr. P

Ms. E with her heart captivating smile.

We also made campfire popcorn. It was actually pretty tasty! I thought the foil would burst and there would be popcorn all over camp.

Life is Good.

Go Cardinals!

When I lived in ATL I went to my first major league baseball game. A sport that I had previously found very boring and slow (and rarely watched except for my older brother's little league games) suddenly had a whole new appeal. I was hooked. Since that time I have been to three other stadiums (not including a peak through the gates in Cincinnati). Fenway Park was my favorite venue; it has so much atmosphere. The place was packed and the fans were die-hard--- rarely moving from their seat during the game.

This week I took my nephew Mr. P to see the St. Louis Cardinals (his favorite team) play the Colorado Rockies.





I admit that I had second thoughts a time or two about driving 8 hours with a young child just to see a game. But as it turned out we had a fabulous time. He was a perfect traveling companion. Because he knows so much about baseball he was able to fill me in on the whys and whats about the game that I didn't understand.





When we arrived in Denver the skies were black and it was heavily raining. So much for a warm summer evening at a baseball game. I was a bit discouraged and hoped that the weather would change before the 6:40 start. By the time we reached the stadium the rain had stopped, but it would start again before the game got underway. About the 2nd inning it started to rain again, so I pulled out my blue plastic ponchos and put them on. We left them on for most of the game, mostly to keep warm. They also helped my brother and his friend spot us on the FSN which was televising the game. Our seats were ten rows behind the Cardinal's dugout. Great view of the game!





The next day before we left for home, we made a stop at Dinosaur Ridge. It was very interesting and worth the $3 fee for a 40 minute tour by a very enthusiastic college student.



Life Is Good!

I love Ice Cream!

When I was at Magical Moon last week I discovered this mug. It had my name written all over it. However, I couldn't bring myself to buy it. Yesterday my sister brought me a present.
"A Present for ME?" (A Ms. C phrase), I said.
"Yes, a present for you" my sister said.
LOVE IT. It will be perfect for those Ben and Jerry's, Chubby Hubby Days.








Life Is Good

101 Uses for a Magic Whisk

The other night I had out my favorite kitchen tool, the King Arthur Flour dough whisk (I've written about it before). I was mixing pulled pork and barbecue sauce. Christie saw it and exclaimed, "oh you have a "magic whisk." Yes! I love it. And I think "magic whisk" is the new name. My niece, Ms. L, says I could come up with 101 ways to use the whisk... and I think she is right. I just discovered a new one today. Here is a start of my list.
1. Mixing yeast bread dough
2. Mixing muffin or scones batter
3. Mixing blueberries into muffin batter
4. Mixing chocolate chips into cookie dough
5. Mixing ground beef for meatloaf
6. Mixing ground beef for hamburgers
7. Mixing macaroni salad

Love the magic whisk. Life is Good!

If you want to get one of your own, click here: dough whisk. Or if you live in SLC, you can get one (sans the King Arthur logo, at Orson Gygi).