Kangaroo Zoo

Back on August 11, 2008 I promised Jamison I would take him to Kangaroo Zoo. Now more than four months later, I have finally made good on that promise.

Yesterday we had 2 1/2 fun-filled hours with Colette and Jamison at Kangaroo Zoo in North Salt Lake. They played on all the huge inflatable toys, I took advantage of the free wi-fi on my laptop. We were each well-entertained.





(As Glover would say during his end-of-the-year, never-ending slide show..."The subjects in the photos are blurry because I kept the camera shutter open for 1.5 seconds but it creates the desired sense of action.")

Quirky Tag

Megan didn't think she was quirky. I know I am. Or maybe it is better stated obsessive. Regardless, here are my quirks.

1. I have to have a clean and tidy house. Everything has a place and everything in its place. My bed is always made. My clothes are hung and organized in the closet by type then by color. I vacuum at least twice a week and more if it is needed. I sweep at least three times a week. The chairs are pushed in and evenly spaced around the dining table. The couches are exactly parallel to the wall. I don't really have what you would call a 'junk drawer.' Living this way helps me keep my universe in order.

2. The dishes have to be rinsed off before they go in the dishwasher. Silverware goes handle-down in the rack. And there is a long list of dishes and utensils that must be hand washed. (I thank my mother for this quirk.)

3. I can only fall asleep if I am toasty warm in my bed. So, from October to April I typically wear a t-shirt, long-sleeve hoodie, flannel pajama pants, thick socks and sleep under 2 quilts, an afghan, and a comforter. Even during the summer I wear long pajamas and use 2 blankets.

4. We have security cameras everywhere you look at my work. I usually can’t walk past them without making a funny face – it is never big or grotesque, just a little smirk or raised eyebrows, often accompanied by an abnormal walk.

5. It is against the rules of my kitchen to follow a recipe exactly. Whether I substitute ingredients or add something completely different than what is called for, I never limit myself to the words on the page.

6. This quirk is courtesy of the woman herself, Megan D. I absolutely cannot leave the house without earrings. The outfit just isn’t complete without that piece of metal in my ears.

So there you have it. I am full of quirks. Now let’s see what quirks my fellow blogsters have. Tag Charisse, Annie, and Heidi!

Christmas Break

After working 22 1/2 days out of 24 this month, I finally get a break! Starting today at 12:00 noon I will have 5 lovely days in a row completely free of event coordinating (except the inevitable coordinating for myself, Dave, and my mother)! Life is good!



photo credits

Sleepover

Colette & Jamison want to say...

"We had lots of fun at Aunt Chelsea's sleepover last night. We played games, watched a movie, ate lots of junk food, and stayed up late! Let's have another sleepover next week!"




Here's a photo of the movie we watched. Any guesses what it was? Here's a hint: it is a classic musical from the 1980s.

Seventeen Days

I have worked 17 straight days in a row, that includes weekends. Ouch!


Because of work and other interruptions I haven't seen my finacé for two days.


I'm taking tomorrow off!


I get to see my finacé tomorrow!


I have to go back to work on Friday.

Pictures of Us

Dave and Chelsea

The True Tale of the Ring

Want to know, truthfully, how I nabbed such a wonderful guy? It all has to do with a simple magic recipe for apple crisp. Here's the story behind it, courtesy of Joy the Baker.


Sit and Stay Awhile Apple Crisp
Some recipes are good enough to serve at the church picnic. Some recipes are fine enough to take to the family barbecue. Other recipes you know will satisfy your office coworkers. Those savages will eat just about anything.

Then there’s the recipe that you pull out of your back pocket when you’re looking for love.

This beautifully simple Apple Crisp recipe is that “get a man (or woman!) and hold on to him (or her!) recipe”. If you already have that man, consider this your “it’s time for a ring” recipe, or your “sorry I scratched the bumper of our new car” recipe, maybe even the “thanks for working so hard today honey… I made the house smell like warm apples with this apple crisp just for you” recipe. See, I’m looking out for you.

This recipe is the perfect balance of warm memories and good love. The warm apples tossed with sugar and cinnamon beautifully collide with the toasted, crunchy topping.

It’s a dream come true.

So the Bake a Warm Apple Crisp and Get a Man experiment hasn’t yet worked for me. That’s mostly because I haven’t tried it yet.

But Ann, the generous lady at Fidget who was kind enough to share this recipe with me, has had oodles of success. She wooed her husband with this very recipe and still has requests for the apple crisp from Mr. Fidget six years later. It works!

Sit and Stay Awhile Apple Crisp recipe from Ann of Fidget

bake in an 8×8 baking dish or double the recipe and bake in a 9×13 dish

Filling:
5 to 6 medium-size apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch slices. (About 7.5 cups)
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1.5 tsp cinnamon

Topping:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/3 cups lightly packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter, well-softened
2/3 cup finely chopped pecans (optional)
1/3 cup quick oats

Preheat the oven to 350. Generously grease an 8×8 baking pan with butter.

Place a layer of apple slices in the bottom of the pan and dust with sugar/cinnamon mixture. Continue layering apples and dusting with cinnamon/sugar until done. Toss the apple mixture until evenly coated in cinnamon sugar. The apples should be just about to the top of the pan (they will cook down).

For the topping, place the flour, brown sugar, nuts, cinnamon and oats in a large bowl and stir well with a wooden spoon. Work the butter into the mixture with your fingertips until evenly distributed. Take one full handful of the topping and toss it into the sugared apple mixture. Spread the rest of the topping evenly over the apples. (I usually end up with a dough-like topping that I just lay on top of the apples).

Bake the crisp in the dish on a baking sheet on the center oven rack until the topping is crunchy and the apples are bubbling, 55-60 minutes.

Serve hot; it’s excellent with vanilla ice cream.


Honestly, I made this recipe on a Saturday (adding pears and pomegrantes with the apples--because I never could follow directions exactly). Dave loved it so much he downed three big servings. On Monday he took me ring shopping and bought the ring! It was that simple!




And so the old adage proves true once again:
The way to a man's heart is through his stomach.

The Story of Dave & Chelsea

This is Dave.


This is where we met.


This is where we had our first date and our first kiss (not on the same day) -- all captured on the security cameras.


This is where he took me last night.


This is what he asked me.


This is what I said.


This is what he gave me.


I am the luckiest girl in the whole wide world!!!

How Do You...

Explain that you live within the ward boundaries but you go to the singles ward but you missed your meetings this morning and thought it would be fun to try out the local ward but you'll start coming to this ward in the Spring but you won't have the same last name at that time and this is your boyfriend but when you come again he will be your husband and no, you are not engaged yet?

You don't. You simply blend in with all the others and try not to look suspicious when they ask who is new or visiting. Some things are just too complicated to explain.

Elder Joseph Bitner Wirthlin

Elder Joseph Bitner Wirthlin passed away on Monday night of causes incident to age. How we will miss this wonderful servant of the Lord.

I believe it was Elder Nelson said today in the funeral services that as Elder Wirthlin was set apart to the apostleship he was promised that his humility would endear him to the members of the Church. We have seen that prophesy fulfilled as the entire Church mourns the passing of this quiet, remarkable man. We are all better people for knowing him and thank him for his great service these many years.

Trimming the Tree

Putting up the Christmas Tree went so fast this year! MUCHAS GRACIAS to Colette & Jamison for helping install the branches and to Dave for helping with the lights and decorations. Many hands made light work!

O Tannenbaum

Passed the Test

Want to know how much time Dave and I spent together with our families this past Thanksgiving weekend?

>> Thursday: 13 hours and Thanksgiving with the whole extended Huffaker clan.
>> Friday: 6 hours and a Huffaker family birthday dinner.
>> Saturday: 11 hours and the extended Hinckley family party and ping-pong tournament.
>> Sunday: 14 hours and church at both of our parents’ home wards (because we wanted to turn heads;).

Total: 44 hours, or nearly two full days of togetherness in one short weekend.

And guess what? We still like each other.

It must be love!

I am proud to say that Dave won the 3rd Annual Ping-Pong Tournament! Look at his shiny trophy!