Happy Halloween!! I celebrated yesterday, so I have to keep reminding myself that today is the real holiday. The theme this year at work was classic Halloween and I was a witch. Another smashing sewing job from my mom! I got a lot of compliments on my costume and passed them straight on to her. It's just too bad the outfit didn't come with real magic powers! Have a spooky day!
This is Halloween of last year. The theme was Old West. Most of my workmates wore cowboy stuff that they already had or bought new to wear in the future, but I’m pretty lacking in that department. What’s the practical alternative to purchasing a western shirt? Saloon girl, of course! ;) This was a lot of fun. I think more clothes should have bustles! The boots, however, were my least favorite. I think the feeling came back into my toes about four days later. 
Here is Halloween 2007. Our theme was the movie Hairspray. I was the character Amber. I’ve always wanted a dress with a full skirt and slip like those of that era, so I was crazy about this costume. The most fun was searching the internet for retro patterns. (Fun fact: the style with the full skirt that I love so much is called “rockabilly.”) I could seriously get hooked on shopping for vintage patterns from various decades! I found this early Sixties pattern for a bridesmaid dress that had never been used. I just wish I could have gotten my hair bigger and flippier that day. My dress may have been authentic, but my hair, unfortunately, fell a little flat.
Halloween 2006 was my lucky year. Not only did I get to be Dorothy, the star of the show, but we also won the annual contest between all the departments and $25 each! This is probably my favorite costume, if I absolutely had to choose. People who couldn’t see my feet would ask if I was wearing the ruby slippers. Of course I was! They were very impressed to learn that my mom had made those, too. We took sparkly, red sequined fabric and laid it over plain black dress shoes. The result was perfect! Thanks, Mom, for all the great costumes! :)
The unofficial start to Fall for me is the Utah State Fair. If you've seen one state fair, you've seen them all, but I would still be disappointed to miss it. This year, my dad, my brother Damon, and I went on opening day. I think my favorite part is the home arts building where they display all of the quilts, sewing and stitching projects, etc. I can only imagine the satisfaction of creating a gorgeous quilt, let alone being awarded a big ribbon for it! I always enjoy the art and photography displays, too, and the 4-H building is one I hate to miss. It reminds me of my good old 4-H days! We also spent about twenty minutes at "Kachunga & the Alligator Show," which was actually pretty entertaining. Of course, we walked through all of the animal buildings, too! 
Every once in a while my job has perks. Because we are a sponsor of Miller Motorsports Park, the marketing department had a few free tickets for the Nascar Camping World Series race last Saturday. I entered the drawing for the tickets and won a pair! My dad and I used them and had a really fun time even though we aren't big race fans. The part we enjoyed most was the fact that we had business club tickets which kind of made us VIPs for the day. We were given lanyards to hold our tickets around our necks and had access to the clubhouse and everywhere else. My dad bought us lunch in the clubhouse restaurant, we took a tour around the facility, and watched some of the action from a nice, grassy spot close to the track. Those cars certainly are fast--and loud!
The 24th of July is one of my favorite holidays! It marks the anniversary of the pioneers arriving in the Salt Lake valley in 1847. What a trek! No wonder they began celebrating this date just two years after their arrival! I'll bet I had ancestors participating in some of those early celebrations. My immediate family's history with the annual parade goes back decades. It has been a tradition since long before I was born. We were determined to watch this year even though our usual viewing spot is no longer along the parade route due to road construction. Luck was on our side! We found a fantastic spot. Not only was it close enough to have a good view, there was a nearby tree keeping us out of the sun for the whole thing! It was a great parade, too. It's so neat the way so many people volunteer their time and creativity to put on a grand celebration of heritage and diversity. 
A fairly new tradition in our personal Pioneer Day celebration is to enjoy lunch immediately after the parade at the Lion House Pantry. It's so delicious! We ate outside in the garden this year which was pretty and peaceful. (It also brought back nice memories since it was the location of my wedding reception!)
Our typical weeknights are usually filled with watching TV or movies. I realize that this is probably not the most rewarding or responsible use of our time, but it makes us happy. Last Monday, we had the opportunity to see what it’s like to go without our favorite pastime. The power went out just after 5 p.m. and didn’t return until almost 10:30 that night. Rusty hates when we are without power; I usually get a kick out of the power being out but this was almost too long of a stretch! We played a game (Chutes and Ladders is a classic—I don’t care how old you are!), chatted a bit, and I read the entire issue of my newest Entertainment Weekly. Rusty was smart enough to remind me to get ready for bed before I was doing it in the dark. By the time the sun went down the novelty had definitely worn off. Without air conditioning or fans the temperature rose. I was amazed (but not surprised) to discover how limited we really are without electricity. I couldn’t run the dishwasher or throw in a batch of laundry while trying to fill the time. I also tried to keep the fridge-opening to a minimum. We finally gave in and began watching Simpsons DVDs on my portable DVD player. After two episodes the power was back on and we could go back to our normal lives, fully dependant on electricity. I am thankful to live in an age of technology and comfort. Considering the entire history of the world that we could have lived in, it’s really a privilege. I am also kind of humbled by the fact that nature still has a way of besting man’s efforts—our five-hour power outage was caused by a flock of birds. ;)
Happy 4th of July! I began the day early so I could celebrate the way I have for most of my life. Rusty is not much of a morning person, so he happily exercised his freedom to sleep in. I enjoyed a nice breakfast with my family, then we went to watch the Tooele parade. I used to be embarassed by how cheesy and small-town it is, now I appreciate the fact that this is what America is all about! People all over the country were celebrating the very same way. I like to see kids waving flags and families participating in traditions. I watched with my brothers, parents, and grandma. This was the first time I ever remember being chilly on the fourth of July. It was cloudy and breezy, but it never rained on our parade! (Oh, and by the way, you know it's a hokey Tooele parade when the grand finale is a Wal-Mart truck!) Now that I've had an afternoon nap and watched "A Capitol Fourth" it's time to go out to the backyard and see if Rusty and I can catch some fireworks--yay! Happy 233rd birthday, America!
Rusty and I spent two nights in Park City to celebrate our anniversary. It was a really fun getaway! We stayed at The Yarrow hotel, which was very nice. We began our anniversary with a delicious breakfast at the restaurant in the hotel then visited Utah Olympic Park where we enjoyed exhibits and displays from the 2002 Olympics.
We also tried to walk down historic Main Street and play some miniature golf, but sudden rainstorms derailed both of those plans. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t as warm or predictable as we would have liked.
Luckily we found a movie theater where we saw My Life in Ruins. It hasn't done too well with the critics, but we laughed at all the jokes and liked it anyway. It was fun exploring Park City and enjoying the mountains, but the best part of the trip was just getting away and spending some time together.
Rusty and I will be celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary this week. When we were first married, looking ahead to five years seemed so far away, but here we are! Not quite as thin, but just as happy. ;) We've learned a lot about each other and been through a lot together. We're looking forward to many more years to come!
June 9th is Donald Duck's 75th birthday! The date is the anniversary of the release of his first appearance in "The Wise Little Hen" from 1934. It wasn't a large role, but a star was born! Donald quickly surpassed even Mickey Mouse in popularity during the years of the Depression. His quick temper and tantrums were somewhat theraputic viewing to audiences with a lot to frustrate them in their own lives. Decades later, our favorite duck continues to entertain. I grew up watching all of the old Donald Duck cartoons and I'm happy to report that they can still make me laugh out loud today. I have a nice collection of Donald shorts and specials on DVD, but for those not so lucky you can (and should) catch a few online. It's classic stuff!
Rusty grew up in Cairo, Georgia which is located in the southwest part of the state, just 30 miles above Tallahassee, Florida. It is a small town with just over 9,000 people and the county seat of Grady County.
Rusty’s parents’ home is actually outside of town, a twenty or so minute drive from downtown Cairo. A red clay road leads up to the woods secluding their house. Their closest neighbors are the variety of birds and animals that live among the beautiful trees. Rusty and I love visiting his parents in Georgia. Their home is always filled with that famous southern hospitality!
