My Roots

My co-worker refered me to this article, he said it gave him a laugh. Does this make me want to stop telling people I'm from Merced, CA? Never!!

World Series Baby!!

The Giants are going to the World Series!! This makes me smile (and cheer). Go Giros!

Summer Recap

I can't believe it is September 5th!! Where is time going? Honestly, I feel like 2010 has gone by so fast. Here are some summer highlights I haven't blogged about:
NYC with Doug and Heather
Duck Beach 2010Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer run with Kim (I miss her...)Moving into a new house in Arlington World Cup Action (somehow I found myself watching the USA vs. Ghana game in a bar by myself in Salt Lake...funny story)
House projects - painted a dresser and bookshelf
Outdoor concerts with my amazing co-workersBridal showers
Weddings (Ceclie and Alyssa Meik's....I love those girls so much)Visit back to P-town
BBQs
4th of July in DC...might possibly be the best place to spend this holiday
3 trips to Shannon's lake house...fell in love with wake boardingLots of tennis
Lots of soccer
Summer SoireeA week at the cabinDemolition DerbyKayaking on the Potomac
Julie's mission call/going through the temple for the first time
Road bikingDan's visit
Glen Beck rallyKennedy party at JFK and Jackie's former house in Georgetown (SO awesome)Redskins game in box seatsBring on the fall - beautiful leaves, visit from M&J, lots of work travels. I am really blessed!

Peach Goodness

One of my favorite things about Virginia is picking fresh fruit by the bag! Last Saturday, Laney and I went peach picking and got some super delicious peaches.
We also thought taking jumping pictures while picking fruit was kinda funny.
Anyways, Laney's Grandma Hall has a fresh fruit pie recipe that knocks your socks off! We made them with orchard fresh peaches, and I'm proud to report that I've had 3 pieces today. Thought I'd share the goodness:

Step 1: Bake Pie Crust (you can make your own, or just buy the Pilsbury pie crust and then bake it)

Step 2: Jello Mixture
2 cups sugar
2 cups water
5 TBL corn starch
Bring to boil and cook on stove top until thick
Add 6 TBL peach jello (1 pkg)
1 tsp vanilla
2 TBL butter
Let this mixture cool

Step 3: Cream Cheese Filling
Mix 8 oz. softened package of cream cheese 1 cup of cool whip
1 cup of powdered sugar
Smooth in bottom of pie crust

Step 4: peel and slice 10-12 peaches

Line pie crust with cream cheese filling, sliced peaches, and top with jello mixture and chill.

Pincheroo

Friends, I don't know what has happened to me! Down at Duck Beach a mixture of lots of sun, no sleep, LOTS of sugar, and being around some of my favorite people in the world got me starting to do this to boys!Let me explain...I'm not actually pinching their bum, I'm just pseudo pinching it and a few of my friends and I think this is the funniest thing in the world. And now, 5 weeks later we keep taking pictures

after pictures

after pictures of us mysteriously pretending to pinch their bum! Sometimes they knowand sometimes they don't.

Oh my gosh, I am laughing writing this right now. I know this seems really weird but trust me, do it and you won't be able to stop laughing. Lauren and I have worked on techniques...forehand pinch, backhand, the squeeze, the tap, the double squeeze. Ha, maybe I need a bf!?!? If my mother saw this she would probably kill me :)

Memories :)

Last weekend I went back to Utah for my friend Cecilie's wedding and I had SO much fun!! I loved hanging out with JuJu Bear, going back on the BYU campus, eating some delicious Utah favorites (Cafe Rio, Maglebys Fresh, BYU mint brownies), and everything else. Highlights include:

Hanging out with one of my best friends Ceci and meeting her adorable little boy Jacob

Seeing mission friends - the Houstons, Nanette Hoxsie, and chatting with President Watson

Seeing college friends - Shawna, Torrey, and others

And maybe one of the best parts was going to the new cannon center with my cousin Dan for breakfast! I realized that I am SO grateful for every chapter of my life!
This is my "you're getting married tomorrow" face!

Backstreets Back!

Last week I racked up a personal first...my first Backstreet Boys concert! I've done N Sync, done 98 degrees, but never the Backstreet Boys so I was pretty excited. My friend MJ wanted to welcome her 26th year of life with a blast from the past (at the concert she may have informed us that this was her 6th BSB concert!) But let me tell you - going to a boy band concert a decade after they were really cool was a hilarious experience. Here are my thoughts on the evening.

My first clue that going to the concert of a "has been" just wasn't what it used to be was when Brian's 6 year old son introduced them. Hm...kinda weird. The next funny thing was their dancing, it was TERRIBLE! Very cheesy, and actually kind of gross. I guess they feel the need to dance really seductively to still make a buck?? Their outfits were timeless...jeans, wife beater, and gray hoodies with their initials in red sequence. But don't worry, they are still making music (I didn't know this. I thought the concert was going to be all the old classics, like Shape of my Heart, Larger than Life, I want it That Way, Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely, etc.). My personal fav's from their new album are the songs entitled: "PDA" and "I still wanna be single"...are you kidding me? And of course, we all felt really special when they said they would be nothing without their fans these past SEVENTEEN years!! I was 10 when they started! So funny. Nonetheless, we had a really fun time and the outdoor amphitheater was really cool. Funny to think that we lived during the whole "Boy Band" phenomena! We can someday tell our kids how cool they were.