Oh Boy!

We found out Tuesday that we're having a boy! I was thinking for awhile it might be a girl so I was a little surprised. I'm excited though! All my friends tell me their little guys are a lot of fun. This one is kind of naughty though...he was totally flipping us off in the ultrasound! I guess we need to teach him how to use his fingers...or maybe he already knows!

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas. We are spending some time in Wyoming. It's a crazy blizzard outside!! Hopefully we'll be able to get back sometime! Good thing there isn't any hurry. Travel safe if you are on the roads!

2 weeks to vote ya'll!

So it's down to two weeks till we find out if we are having a boy or girl. Get your votes in now (poll on the right)! Stay tuned for the results!

Thanksgiving Fun

We spent Thanksgiving weekend in E-town this year. The whole family was there so it was great....and crowded....but not nearly as much as after Rory spoke in church and my mom had a little gathering of sorts at their place. Little as in over 70 people cramed into a few rooms. We did the traditional stuff like turkey dinner and family photos and such (accompanied by our new moose friend!). Matt and I taught the gang how to play pirates dice and all the gals went out to a movie one night. Our fart machine wasn't nearly as funny this year since everyone already knew about it, but still fun to play some jokes on Rory. Fun times!

It's always fun to play with food!

.....and do a cheesy pose by the finished product!

Grandpa and Parker

The fab fam photo! (couldn't convince Papa and Grandma to join in :( )

Look at the moose! (Yeah Mom was freaking out!)

The newest addition to the family!! haha! Couldn't convince mom to go strike a pose with it!

We sorta match!

The Jackson 5 haha:)

Rory's new ride!

Delightfulness

Here's a few delights (somewhat random) I've been enjoying over the past few weeks....

1. Rory's home! It was so exciting to go meet him at the airport and spend a few days with him and the family.

2. Bodyworlds - While in Salt Lake Mel and I got to go to the bodyworlds exhibit. Absoultly fantastic. It's simply amazing what is under our skin and what you can do with a dead body. I know it sounds yuck, but some of the bodies were strangly beautiful.

3. Fall running - Just in the last two weeks or so most of the leaves here in Boise have come down. I've so enjoyed the last month and a half of delightful colors and leaves crunching under my feet. No this isn't me (i wish!) but running along the greenbelt in all the trees and colors makes me feel like I could go forever....until I'm done and then well...I'm glad to be done!

4. Peanut butter and honey sandwiches - Cold school lunches rediscovered. My friend mentioned them a few weeks ago and I've made several since then. Great snack at work! **Tip from a peanut butter lover....natural peanut butter is the way to go. Once you finish up a jar of that stuff, Jif does NOT taste like peanut butter:) Adams is my favorite (stir it and put it in the fridge and it won't seperate).

5. Ono Hawaiian Cafe - We decided to try this place out with some friends a couple of weeks ago. So yummy! It so made me want to go back to Hawaii! So before we picked a place for dinner, we thought we should make a rule that we couldn't go out to eat at the same place twice until we had tried every place in Boise (which would take FOREVER by the way). Anyhow....after eating here, that rule went right out the window! If ever you can...try it. You'll love it!

6. Thanksgiving time - It's an awesome time to realize how very blessed I am. I wish I were more practiced in the art of gratitude and always realizing that I have everything I need and more. Reflecting on everyting I have is great. Try it sometime...It's a delight!

7. Lauging so hard it hurts! - I can think of a few times over the last few weeks....dinner at Ono's, being with my silly sisters, etc. Hey did you know that splenda has fiber now?!?! Forget crunches and ab workouts. Just have a good laugh!

8. Being crafty - Normally I'm not so much a crafty person...unless I'm with people that are doing crafts (I know, I'f you can't beat em join em!) So I've been making some cool stuff at Friday Madness (aka Super Saturday on friday night). Photo cubes, wire star ornaments, block letters. Sorry no pics. Don't want to spoil any Christmas presents (which might mean that some of them might actually look decent enough to give away!) Oh- and I've made some cool paper box lights....all by myself....which I will probably post some pics at a later time!

and.....

9. Last but certainly not least!!

Yes that's right:) Simply delightful. Oh and the part about not being sick a lick, and the part about seeing pictures of little white blobs that don't look like like little white blobs to me!, and the part about enjoying still enjoying #3 while being #9, and the part about just thinking about what life is going to be like come May....etc.

All Delightful!

Happy Black November!

Black November

A Turkey's Lament

When I was a young turkey, new to the coop, My big brother Mike took me out on the stoop,

Then he sat me down, and he spoke real slow, And he told me there was something that I had to know;

His look and his tone I will always remember, When he told me of the horrors of ..... Black November;

"Come about August, now listen to me, Each day you'll be thick, where once you were thin, And you'll grow a big rubbery thing under your chin.

"And then one morning, when you're warm in your bed, In'll burst the farmer's wife, and hack off your head;

"Then she'll pluck out all your feathers so you're bald'n pink, And scoop out all your insides and leave ya lyin' in the sink,

"And then comes the worst part" he said not bluffing, "She'll spread your cheeks and pack your rear with stuffing".

Well, the rest of his words were too grim to repeat, I sat on the stoop like a winged piece of meat,

And decided on the spot that to avoid being cooked, I'd have to lay low and remain overlooked;

I began a new diet of nuts and granola, High-roughage salads, juice and diet cola,

And as they ate pastries, chocolates and crepes, I stayed in my room doing Jane Fonda tapes,

I maintained my weight of two pounds and a half, And tried not to notice when the bigger birds laughed;

But 'twas I who was laughing, under my breath, As they chomped and they chewed, ever closer to death;

And sure enough when Black November rolled around, I was the last turkey left in the entire compound;

So now I'm a pet in the farmer's wife's lap; I haven't a worry, so I eat and I nap,

She held me today, while sewing and humming, And smiled at me and said "Christmas is coming........"

Funny Haha - some of my halloween faves:)

Meet Hoo:)

I finally got this picture from Matt's phone. When we went to Wyoming a couple of weeks ago, we spent the night at my parent's. They were so privledged to be the babysitters of this cute little thing. (It was good my Dad wasn't home or Hoo wouldn't have had a home! He LOVES cats! haha!) My grandparents were leaving to go out of town for the weekend and brought Hoo over. She (???) was abandoned by her mom and my Grandpa is such a softy and couldn't not feed her. I guess she is quite large in this picture compared to what she was but she was the smallest thing ever! And quite a wild little thing. She would meow like crazy when we but her in her "house" (cardboard box)....which had to be replaced with a larger deeper one because she figured out how to "magic out" of the box! Thus how she got the name Hoo.....short for Houdini:) Since I have not seen her for several weeks now, I'm sure she's a regular sized cat by now! Which is sad because I'm not so into cats...but kittens - ah how cute! Maybe Caitlyn should let us know how she's doing and how big she is by now....hint hint!!

I love brown!

And yellow...and orange....and red....and pretty fall colors.....and pretty quilts in these colors too!! And you do to:) Maybe you just don't know it yet. Go check it out. And no Carolyn...you aren't going to get it because I am - haha :P

Usually autumn follows summer...right?

What a wintery weekend! We got snow here in Boise...Crazy! Yeah - i'm sure most of you have already seen it (Labor Day in Wyoming!!) but it really doesn't snow here this early. A new record I believe. The weather guy said that it was going to freeze the other day, so I got busy pulling everything out of the garden. I'm a little overwhelmed with what to do with it all...and how many very large cucumbers I found out there! I'm not sure what to do with them all (suggestions???). I did try my hand at some jalapeno jelly today....but that only uses up so many....and as I picked over 50 of them off of two plants...!! It was my first try at canning ANYTHING (lame I know) so I hope the jars seal sometime:) So here's to hoping that it warms up again....I love fall! For now I guess I'll go turn my heat up!

"Mr. Howe tear down this wall!"

It's been as Melanie likes to call it "Extreme Yard Makeover"! We decided to replace the railroad tie retaining wall with brick/stone. I think it turned out well. It was a much more involved project than we both expected, from tearing out the old railroad ties, hauling them to the dump, digging out the yard to fit the bricks, leveling the first row, and desiging corners. I was a little sorry we decided to start it once there was no returing. I'm glad we persisted though because it looks sooo much better. Matt finished it up for the most part yesterday. What a CHAMP!! I ran a race and had some clients to see and he worked in the rain all day yesterday (For which I am forever greatful)! I wish I had some pictures of the rain yesterday because it way crazy how much came down.

Here's some before, during, and after shots!

Before

The point of no return!

The almost end result!

Since I didn't get a photo of my hard working guy out in the rain - here's some from the race (St. Lukes Women's Fitness Celebration 5K)...we looked a bit like drowned rats by the end!

Good Eats!

Thought I'd share a new recipe I've tried and an old favorite!

First the new....

Big overgrown zucchini (you know the ones all your neighbors try to give you) are great for this!

Zucchini Crisp

4 C. Zucchini peeled, seeded, and chopped
1/3 C fresh lemon juice
1/2 C. + 2 T. white sugar
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1 C. Flour
1 C. Oatmeal
1/2 C. Brown Sugar
6 T. Butter
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375. Coat 9x9 baking dish with cooking spray.
Place zucchini and lemon juice in a medium saucepan. Cook, covered over med. low heat, stirring occasionally, for about 15 min. or until tender. Stir in white sugar, 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, and nutmeg. Simmer one min. longer. Remove from heat and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl combine flour, oatmeal, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Cut in the butter until mixture resembles course crumbs.
Place zucchini in prepared dish and sprinkle crumbs on top.
Bake in pre-heated oven for 30-40 min or until golden and bubbly.

Enjoy! Tastes great with ice cream, or whipped cream with carmel and cinnamon sprinkled on top. Don't forget that it isn't really apples! (I had Matt try it before I told him what it was and he totally thought it apples...very surprised to learn it was zucchini!)


Here's a link to the old favorite!

Baja Fish Tacos

Guess what's for dinner tonight??

Carpenter Family Reunion

We spent last weekend in Robertson, Wyoming for a family reunion (points to anyone who knows where that is let alone has ever heard of it!) It was in the middle of a cow pasture (don't worry, besides the cow patties everwhere, it doesn't look much like a cow pasture). The weather was great until Sunday night when it rained all night and we even ran into some snow going home the next day. It was pretty fun to see everyone. As this is an annual event, it's like Christmas in that you realize that a whole year has gone by...CRAZY!

We had a bit of bad luck going to and from. We were stuck in stop and go traffic on the interstate for a brush fire on the way down and some crazy accident (some girl thought it would be a good idea to get onto the wrong side of the interstate...unfortunatly the semis didn't think it was such a great idea) on the way back. Both times we were within like 30 miles of Boise. Not fun!

A few pix from the weekend...

No reunion is complete without Papa's homemade root beer. The wasps and bees particularly like it too!

Traditional "Saw dust dig". You never know what you'll find in the sawdust. Money and candy are among the most popular. When I was a kid, I used to think I made SO much money diging in the dust. I'm sure it was less than a buck or two. Usually you get about as much sawdust in your bag and shoes as you do anything else...of course this year I got a handfull down my pants. Thanks Dad! (That stuff itches like no other....and you can't just shake it out!) If ever you participate in such an event...watch your back!

These little cousins sure take a liking to Matt everytime that we are there. It's fun to see them each year and yet kind of sad to see them all grow up!

My family is in charge next year....we'll have to see what fun we can come up with:)

Spokane to Sandpoint

Idaho Spuddy Buddies!

Last weekend was the Spokane to Sandpoint relay. We finally got a team of 12. Well...there were 12.....then 11....then 10....then 11.....then 10...... I think if came together like two days before. The weather was super hot! Upper 90s for running is not really my thing so I'm amazed that we all survived it! It took our team 29 and a half hours to complete the 185 mile course. The scenery was stunning in places. Quite enjoyable. We were able to get a house on the lake in Coeur d'Alene and it was so nice to have a place to relax for a few hours during the race....not that I was able to sleep any. I think I was a little more sleep deprived for this race than for RenoTaho. I was in van 2 for this race and it seems that van 2 never gets as much sleep. We tried to nab a few hours on an elementary school gym floor but that SO didn't work. There was probably a hundred people spread out over the floor, 15 people snoring, and cell phone and watch beepers going off like crazy! It was nice to get some sleep Saturday night after it was all over.

Between legs 24 and 25, our team got to ride the tremors rollercoaster at Silverwood as part of the course at about 1:00 in the morning. It was fast and freaky. It's a woody so it felt like we were going to fly off the tracks at any moment. CRAZY! (if any of you have ever been on it you'd probably have to agree!) THE coolest wood rollercoaster I have EVER been on! Hopefully I'll get to go again sometime:)

This is the last relay for us this summer. OK we only did two...but it is quite a big deal to coordinate 12 people. They are definitely an adventure and a great way to see new country for sure!



Check out some of the pics from the race here!

or go to http://www.flickr.com/pixbyleslie


After the relay we headed over to Moses Lake for some fun family time. My Grandpa J lives there and it was really great to see him and aunts, uncles, and cousins! My gramps is the funniest 91 year old EVER! I love that guy...even if he can't remember my name Ha ha! (all he needs to know is Sally...right dear cousins and sisters??)

L: Grandpa and Parker (Mel's little boy)...he LOVED him! R: A whole bunch of Sallys!!

We are headed to a family reunion next weekend and I'm excited to see all my sisters and fam again! I wish Rory was going to be there. I can't believe that he only has 2 months left in Canada! I'm sooo excited to see him!

It could happen to you!

Watch out where you go running...or walking....or biking....or....

Runner Needed!!!

We are looking for another runner for the Spokane to Sandpoint relay this weekend (yeah short notice but stuff happens). It's going to be fun...so if you or anyone you know is interested let me know. The entry fee is paid and it would be only $65 for lodging for 3 nights.

The website is www.spokanetosandpoint.com. Check it out!

pictograms or pictoglyphs??

In primary today, I had my kids make a big pictoglyph (or is it pictogram?)of the Nephi/Lehi in prison story...(Helaman 5) I've always heard pictoglyphs and Matt is thinking pictogram...google image search comes up with more relevant info for pictoglyphs than pictogram. So which is it?

Anyways...I didn't think it would turn out so well but the kids did a great job.

Here's their work of art!

The Payette part 2

Saturday found us back on the Payette...this time for some white water rafting. We did the South Fork (with rapids Bronco Billy, Staircase, Giant Slalom (my favorite) ,etc.). Matt and I went with a co-worker and a friend of his (who had never made it down that section of the river without the raft dumping them all in the river...like 4 times). So we were all wondering if it would be our fate to fall in the rapids! Well the boat stayed upright but the trip wasn't without falling in! We did the trip with Idaho Whitewater Unlimited this time (we have gone with Cascade before) and the guides were great. They were pretty funny and let us do all kinds of fun things in the river that we didn't get to do before (I guess once you sign your life away on the waiver...). About the falling in part. I was playing a game of "trust" with one of the girls we went with. This is where you lock the "T" grip of your paddles together while standing on the sides of the raft and leaning back as far as you can. This is kind of ow you play...



I'm not sure if you can get away with it without someone falling in! Anyways she fell in the first time and we both fell in the second. Matt played it first with the guide and he fell in...which pretty much made me not want to play because I hate being cold but I was talked into it! I was surprised at how it didn't seem so cold....until I got back in the raft and started shivering a few minutes later...pretty much for the rest of the trip...which is apparently a good thing because it's bad news if you stop shivering;)

Matt and his buddy also got to jump off a cliff and "ride the bull" through some rapids. It was pretty fun to watch!

Here we are in all our glory:)

Starlight Mountain Theatre

I've received a few recommendations over the past few weeks to go see a show at the Starlight Mountain Theatre. So, a little spur of the moment, I got a couple of tickets for Matt and I to go watch Oklahoma. It was great! OK - maybe not Idaho Shakesphere Festival caliber - but really good nonetheless. The theatre is about an hour from Boise up in Garden Valley. It is an open air theatre and is pretty amazing how quickly that Mountain air can cool down. So...if anyone is looking for something to do one evening...I would recommend it. Nice drive...nice fresh air....fun actors...what's not to like. (Oh - the popcorn was good too!)



After the show we set out looking for a campsite. Yeah right!...Friday night at 11:00...like you're going to find one! But after a couple of tries we did! And it was the only one left! We were thinking we were all lucky (which we were) and as we were setting up our tent, a whiff from the privy let up know WHY it was the only spot left! We stayed anyway. It wasn't really THAT bad (until the sun hit it in the morning!). Ahh the results of poor planning! We were able to ride our bikes up to silver creek lookout the next day. Lots of climbing and the smoke (from California) kind of ruined the view...but it's always fun to get to the top of something! And the soak in the cool Payette was quite refreshing afterword!

So there you have it...the weekend in a nutshell:)

A week out of the heat:)

Here's a few highlights in pictures from our Cruise in the inside passage of Alaska. We left from Seattle and visited Juneau, Skagway, Tracy Arm Fjord, Ketchikan, and Victoria B.C. It was a great time and highly recommend to those who want to see great mountain/ocean scenery and wildlife (although I didn't spot a bear which I'm kind of bummed about) Oh - and the night shows and food (of course!) were all really great too!

Also - here is a video of our "wave pool" on one of the more interesting days on the cruise. The ocean was just a little choppy - let's just say the sanitization crew was out in full force on that day. I'm not one to get car sick or sea sick so it was actually kind of fun trying to get around.

So there you have it...a great way to get out of the heat! Luckily we have a cold front moving in. It should cool it down to all of 90 degrees haha!

Happy Birthday Caitlyn....yesterday!

My baby sis is now a teenager! Yikes! At least my parents have been there done that before! Right?

So some things I love about Caitlyn....

She ALWAYS answers the phone (even after one ring)....no phone screening there!

She is fun to tease...don't know if she enjoyes it so much but still fun.

She has the cutest freckles on her cheeks EVER! Look out when her sweet 16th rolls around boys!

She runs in track....what's not to love about THAT?

She has a sweet spirit and strives to do right when everyone else around her isn't (Never change girlie!)

I'm greatful to have Caitlyn as my little sis. I wish I got to see her more often! Love Ya!

I wonder why they call it Fanny Bridge??

What you see when you drive across....

What you see when you show YOUR fanny!

The bridge was right outside of Taho City. The trout were huge. There were little "candy machines" with fish food so we fed them. It was so funny to see them jump out of the water to get the food. Wish I had a fishing pole..... :)

So the race was a good time. Yeah..... 178 miles a good time?? But it really was a fun experience. Especially running in the dark as I don't make a habit of doing that often. We all did pretty well for our individual projected times. Not too competitive as a team but it's the fun and challange of it that counts. Now some of us are planning on doing Spokane to Sandpoint relay. I'm not sure if it is a first time event. I can't seem to find out any information on last years event. So who knows...maybe we'll be making history!

At the finish! Go CMARS!

Viva Reno?

OK so it's not Las Vegas, but we are going to Reno in early june to do this race!

http://www.renotahoeodyssey.com/

I'm pretty excited. A run/walk group that I do massage therapy for needed some more team members so Matt and I are going to run with them. We have a team of 12 and each run 3 legs for a total of 168ish miles. I have legs 5, 17, and 29. I'm pretty sure leg 17 is going to be in the dark...um nightblindness......think good thoughts for me ;) I've never been to Reno/Taho so it will be pretty fun. I think we may take a few extra days and go check out San Fran, the redwoods, or yosemite. Should be a good time.

Mostly Better

So most of my "injuries" seem to be quite better. The one that still is getting me is the one inside my head. I've only been out on a short little ride once and on the rollers twice since my accident. I'm like totally scared to get back to riding. Especially by myself! The weather throughout most of March didn't help any, but still. Accidents kind of mess you up I think! So I took my bike into a nice little bike shop down in Eagle (Reeds) today for a tune up and some re-taping of my handle bars (they felt the burn from the road too!). So with any luck, it will motivate me to get out of this rut. The weather sounds like it might be decent this weekend. Time will tell:)
Till Later-

A Little Tumble -

So I don't even know how it happend or what took me down. I remember thinking "I'm going down! I don't think I can stop this!" Then I was flipping and tumbling while still "attatched" to my bike. All I have to say is that helmets work! So wear one! I think I may have hit one of those lovely patches of sand that plague the shoulders of the road this time of year. We had a lot of "sanding" during the winter. It snowed and got icy quite often. Anyways I lived to tell the tell...bumps, bruises, raspberries (which looks quite nice on my chin, i must say) and all. I think if you are going to crash, winter/early spring is a good time to do it. At least it was a little cold so I had some extra gear on for protection. I would really have been a mess! Till later:)

Winter Camping! *brrr*

A few weekends ago we went winter camping up by Garden Valley. It was my first trip so I didn't really know what to expect. What does one do when camping in the winter?? Well most of the time was consumed trying to stay warm! Fun, I know! Actually we made some tasty gumbo with cornbread and the next morning our friends made some eggs in plastic baggies (they boiled them in water). We did some XC skiing the next morning at Whoop em up (between Lowman and Idaho City). All in all - a fun time and I didn't get too awful cold!