family out evening

back in the days when i lived in the slc, some of my favorite friends and i made a little tradition of a twist on the mormon family home evening. we called it family out evening, and instead of staying home for a lesson and a treat, we would all go out together for, well, mostly treats. but togetherness is what matters, says i.

AWD and i have been trying to get in some good family-oriented routines now that we've got a family on the way, and we made a step in the right direction last night with a family out evening of our own. and even better, it could not have been more mormony: shopping for strollers and cribs at target and dinner at cafe rio.

seriously.

i guess this our life now? 

the twelve dates of christmas: date one

we are bringing back the twelve dates of christmas (hurrah!) and we decided to get an earlier start this year so we aren't going to a million christmas concerts one right after the other. not that the twelve dates of christmas is a quota or anything (and not that there's something wrong with going to a million christmas concerts), but it seemed like it would be nice to not be rushed this time around. because being rushed is not what the twelve dates of christmas is all about.

for our first date of christmas, AWD and i took advantage of being in salt lake at this time of year and went to see the lights on temple square. (i guess technically this was a double date with my mom and my aunt emily. which was just fine with us).

we also wandered over to the back of the joseph smith memorial building, where they had several nativity scenes set up from different parts of the world. i had never seen that display before, and it was really lovely. it made me want to collect nativity scenes of my own. maybe some day. 

the lights had just been turned on the day before, so the place was a total mob scene but i am so glad we took advantage of being there at such a magical time of year. i love the lights on temple square. and i love going on dates with my husband (and my mom). so, win win (win) there.

the family circle

we had a hands-down, down-right wonderful thanksgiving. my only regret is that i didn't take a picture of the assembled loved ones. but sometimes you are just too busy enjoying yourself to think about that. we had grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, parents, in-laws and friends. it was divine. and it took off the last sting of sadness i felt over missing out on seeing everyone this past summer. like i said, hands-down, down-right wonderful.

i am also sorry i didn't take a picture of my two lemon meringue pies, which came out near perfectly despite my forgetting them in the oven. and, i tackled the hellewell family roll recipe with great success as well. turns out it's pretty hard to make something with a whole pound of butter taste bad.

and i might add that all these-- and many other-- successes were managed in a kitchen with two hand mixer bases and six or seven mixing beaters, none of which matched and none of which fit in either of the bases, neither of which worked. just so you get an idea of what we were up against. makes it even more amazing, huh?

a trip to salt lake is always too short, but we squeezed in lots of family time, a trip to temple square to see the lights, a taco from barbacoa and pizza from stoneground and even some patio furniture re-upholstering. i am so so thankful we were able to go, and even more thankful for the time spent with my beloved family. i cherish my time with them more and more.

so, i am calling thanksgiving a big win. up next: christmas cheer! 

idaho, calling me home

it was a lovely funeral and a lovely weekend in idaho where the sunrise looks like this.

selfishly, i was a little glad about the whole thing because it meant that i got to see my aunts and uncles and cousins who i had missed seeing earlier in the summer because we didn't make it to the family reunion.

we took a break from leftover ham and funeral potatoes (my mom as we were driving from the cemetery to the luncheon put on by the relief society: "i hope they haven't changed the menu.") and had an early saturday morning breakfast at local favorite, the buffalo, where even if you eat half of what's on your plate you have a whole lot left.

we went down to the festival at perrine bridge, where there were base jumpers, cotton candy and a police car open for exploring.

and my dad let his doctor brother remove a mole from his face. the rest of us went to watch as moral support/nosy interlopers. (sorry, no pictures.)

there was also lots of time sitting and laughing and talking with family, which is my favorite thing of all. in the end it was rather a wonderful weekend, just the way grandpa would have wanted it, i think.

concrete jungles where dreams are made of

the mama bear was in new york for business last week, so i was in new york hanging out with the mama bear over the weekend.

i love it when my mom comes to new york because a) it means we get to stay in a fancy hotel, which i never get to do in new york and b) it means we get to kick around the city together, which is one of the best ways to see new york. in my opinion at least.

we lived it up this time, same as every time, with the following itinerary:

1. lots of really delicious food, including but not limited to: an amazing french restaurant, artisanal, near our fancy hotel that had the most amazing cheese i have ever tasted; brunch in greenwich village at a little cafe that could have (and should have) been in a nora ephron movie; mexican food with carl and ck and the darling baby girl; and a cupcake from magnolia to wash it all down.

2. wandering around the village, including but not limited to a street market and washington square park.

3. a tour of radio city music hall with a surprise chance to meet a rockette! in case you were interested to know, they did a massive renovation of radio city music hall in 1999 to restore it to its original glory. the building cost $8 million to build in 1932, and cost more than $70 million to restore. it was $70 million well-spent, in our opinion. we were so enchanted with the building, in fact, that we bought tickets to see the cirque du soleil performance that was playing there.

4. a trip to the top of the empire state building, which neither of us had done in ages. there was a lot of waiting in line involved, but it was worth it for the view from the 86th floor.

i can't quite put my finger on it, but there is something about waking up in new york that is sort of magical and different from anything else. for a long time i assumed that some day i would end up living there some day. i don't actually think that's the case anymore, and i feel good about that, but i am still always a little sad when a trip to new york comes to an end. especially when it is a trip with the mama bear. but such is the way with all good things.

until next time, nyc.

the one where we saw what there was to see, some of which was under renovation and some of which was on fire

if there was something to see in austin, i am pretty sure we saw it.

though we did run into a few snags.

the johnson presidential library, for example, was under "extensive renovation." but, the replica of the oval office was still open. not to mention that the library itself is free. so, that was good enough for us.

and the lady bird johnson wildflower center was on fire! sort of. when we pulled up there was a sign blocking the entrance that said the center was closed for a "private event." but really it was closed because there had been a prairie fire an hour or so earlier. luckily, a nice man on a golf cart named damon told us we could go inside, as long as we stayed on the paved path. the flowers were lovely.

we also shopped along south congress.

toured the state capitol and marveled and it's many, many lone stars.

saw a guttenberg bible (so. cool.) and an exhibit of cowboy art at the university of texas austin.

ate a piece of chocolate at the first ever whole foods.

soaked (and shivered) in barton springs.

and climbed mount bonnell, the highest point in austin, which clocks in at a whopping 775 feet. when you "climb mount bonnell," you actually climb a staircase. but, the view is lovely nonetheless. and the plaque at the base of the "mount" mentions mormoms. win!

thanks texas (and madelyn and cody!) for a grand ol' time. see y'all soon.

the one where we go to austin and have a wonderful time and i only leave one thing behind

here are two pieces of bad travel luck i have been having a lot lately.

1. delayed flights causing problems with connecting flights and/or extremely late arrivals and/or misplaced luggage.
2. leaving things behind on the plane, most recently a half-read book i was actually quite enjoying, and my iPod.

good news about our trip to austin.

only one of our four flights was delayed, and it was our last leg home so the only fall-out was a later than expected arrival. this is definitely the least harmful of all possible outcomes, plus it gave me an excuse to drink some diet coke today. (i needed it.)

and, i only left one thing behind, namely my swimming suit, which my cousin/our hostess has kindly agreed to ship back to me.

so, crises averted!

and, did i mention we had an oh-so-lovely time?

we did!

mostly thanks to the aforementioned cousin/hostess, plus her husband and adorable baby girl, who housed us, taught us all the locals' secrets and in general showed us a texas-sized good time.

i feel like i always give these trip recaps short shrift so i am going to really do it up right this time, with installments and all. congratulations on finishing installment one, and keep your eyes peeled for all the really juicy details soon. like, are texas drivers really friendly, as their state line signs suggest?

(spoiler alert: yes!)

more soon, ya'll.

the look of lifelong love

my grandparents celebrated their sixtieth wedding anniversary last month.

we missed the party, but luckily my mom hired our much beloved wedding photographer, kirstin, to capture the big event. seeing pictures of all my family gathered in the kitchen and spread out on couches and laughing and hugging and celebrating just makes me so happy and fuzzy and warm.

i feel so blessed to have such a wonderful family.

and i feel so blessed, in particular, to have such wonderful grandparents. they are graceful and kind, tolerant and forgiving, universally loved and admired, funny, insightful and inspired. they have supported all of us as we've gone to college, served missions, gotten married, had babies, rejoiced in triumph and struggled hard against trials.

they love good food, good music and, most of all, the good company of family. i am so glad to be a part of their family, and i only hope i am so lucky, sixty years from now, to be surrounded by half as wonderful a legacy as they have created.

hey AWD, are you in? (hope you're up for living into our mid-90s!)

this is the only picture of easter i took.

back in the day, my mom used to make us these little easter treats: a melt-in-your-mouth meringue nest that acts as a sugary home to a sweet peep chick nestled in coconut grass guarding malted robin's eggs. it was one of my favorite easter traditions, partly because i have a wicked sweet tooth and partly because it felt so nice and familiar.

AWD and i hosted some of our favorite family and friends for easter dinner this year and i went all nostalgic/domestic and started the tradition anew in our home by sending each of our guests away with a nest of their own.

plus one for me and one for my lovebird.

and it was just as nice and familiar as always.

happy easter, my babies.