We Beat Donkey Kong!!!

So we accomplished what was impossible in both of our childhoods... we beat Donkey Kong Country on Super Nintendo. We stayed up way late tonight at completed it! It was AWESOME!! :) It took a few hours and Lee, Corey's suite-mate, helped us out when we were stuck and I watched for the last part of it, but it was super fun! It was a great stress reliever from school and it made me realize how things I found extremely hard in my childhood can actually be accomplished and those who did it (who were older than I was) were not a super-genius as I had thought. In ways it broke some bubbles.... But we totally accomplished it! haha. Great night :)

Homecoming House Decorating Competition

This year I am the Resident Advisor of the Poulson Honors House in Officer's Circle at the U. My house is WONDERFUL and all of the residents are great! Each year Officer's Circle participates in the Homecoming House Decorating Competition and the Homecoming theme this year was "Fovever Crimson." My house decided to use the concept of time to represent this theme. We made a giant clock out of cardboard with the hands saying "Forever" and "Crimson" and in place of the 12 we wrote "Pack 12." We found this huge Styrofoam painted Ute helmet in the basement and put that up. Then we cut out two hour glasses and had a clothes line of clothes from child to adult size with a sign above saying "Lifetime of Utes." I think we did great, it was a lot of fun to decorate and the judges liked it too. We didn't win because one of the greek houses did, but we had a great time and I'm way glad we participated in it.

Lexi's Volleyball Tournament at Lone Peak

Today Corey and I drove down to Lone Peak to watch Lexi play in a Volleyball tournament. She is on the JV and sometimes plays for Varsity for Lehi High School. Yes, She IS that Awesome. She does really well and plays middle or opposite most of the time. Dad and Cami were there with us recording the game and Lexi played very well and her team won 1st place in the tournament. They dominated everyone they played against. It was really fun to watch her play. Way to go Lexi, we're proud of you! :) 

7th Annual Legacy of Lowell

The Bennion Center (Service Center) at the University of Utah puts on an annual "Legacy of Lowell" where students are invited to come and participate in a variety of service projects for the morning. I went with my RA staff and helped remove an invasive species at "Bend in the River" which is on the Jordan River bike trail. We spent the morning pulling out goat-heads, the nasty weeds that have the seeds that have stickers on them and poke holes in bike tires and get stuck in your shoes. It was pretty fun and lunch was catered by Cafe Rio, which is always a plus :)

M.S. Dinner of Champions

Each year, Martha's boss Phil hosts the Multiple Sclerosis Dinner of Champions for the Utah chapter. This is my second year going with them and I really enjoyed it. This year the dinner was at La Caille which is neat because this was also my first time going there. The gardens are very pretty and there are PEACOCKS walking around the gardens all over, spies as Corey calls them, haha, but I love peacocks so it was really neat seeing them. We were able to see and hold a real Olympic gold medal, which is heavier than you would expect and very very cool :) I think I'm going to have to say another favorite thing of mine about the dinner is dressing up to go to an event. I don't get to wear a fancy dress every day so it's fun to do it on nice occasions like this. The Jazz Bear was there also and was named the Sportsperson of the Year and we were able to get a picture with him :) The dinner was great, and the food was very good, especially the desert sampler :) I really enjoy the M.S. dinners because it brings an appreciation for the ability to move and we honor those who suffer from the disease and all of their strength and also those who fight to find a cure. It's a great cause and has gone a long way in recent years due to support and research. The Dinner of Champions is about honoring athletes of the year, those who put efforts towards helping M.S., along with those who battle the disease. The Silver Hope Award went to Zeke Dumke for his wonderful efforts in starting the M.S. Society Utah Chapter and maintaining it through support and participation and for all the wonderful things he has contributed to Salt Lake City and its universities. He is truly an amazing person. Overall the event was rewarding and I had a great time :)

Football Games: Utah vs. Pittsburgh

Game number 1 of the season! Corey and I have MUSS tickets this year and are super excited to watch the games this year. Corey, Won Ki and I went together to this game. We were all pretty excited about the start of a new season and the game was a lot of fun :) It was a BLAST getting into the school cheers again and doing the "3rd Down Jump" to distract the other team. Utah was by far in the lead for most of the game and then Pittsburgh did a turn around right at the last minute tied Utah at the end. They had to go into overtime and Utah won! :) So it was exciting :) The excitement wasn't as high as a mid-season game but it was a lot of fun :) It's great being able to go to football games again :)

Breakfast at Ruth's Diner

This morning Corey and I both slept through breakfast at the Heritage Center and Corey didn't have class until 11:50 so we decided we wanted to go out for breakfast because we were starving. We finally decided on this cute diner up Emigration Canyon about 10 min away called Ruth's Diner. Neither of us had been there but I had heard that the food was really good, so we decided to try it out :) It is SUPER cute!! The diner is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year. It originally started as a trolley car that Ruth bought and had placed in Emigration Canyon right off the road. It's recently been remodeled and has a really pretty back patio. Corey and I sat in the shade next to these really cute planter boxes. There are heaters outside so that you can eat out there at night and strung lights across the patio with a stage for live performances. It was really REALLY cute! AND on top of that the food was Amazing!! Corey got a breakfast burrito with the most amazing pico de gallo I've EVER tasted! The tomatoes were super fresh and his burrito was awesome. I go the banana walnut french toast which was also really yummy and thick, it wasn't wimpy french toast, this was the real thing :) and there were walnut and banana slices on the top :) The biscuits they gave before ordering were amazing also! They're HUGE and SO SO good! :) They also have a homemade jam at each table for the biscuits :) it was SO yummy! Corey and I both loved it and are planning on going back for dinner sometime to experience the patio at night. 

Control 4 work party at Wheeler Historic Farm

For the Control 4 work party on August 13th, Dad, Cami, Jeremy, Lexi, Ariana, Ayden and I went to the Wheeler Historic Farm for food and fun. They had blow up bounce houses and activities. Dad and Lexi did the running one where you try to place a velcro pad as close to the end of the blow up thing while being strapped into this bungee cord pulling you back to the other side of the thing. It was pretty entertaining to watch actually haha, Lexi was running and totally lost her footing and flew backwards and landed onto her back, it was hilarious and her face was priceless. Dad flew back and fell onto Lexi's side of the thing a couple times. It was really funny.

Jeremy and I did the fighting one where you have these sticks with huge pads on both ends and while you're standing on pedestals you have to try to knock the other person off theirs without falling off your own. I totally won... we actually tied, but I knocked him off 3 times before he knocked me off. It was really fun :) haha. Jeremy was less violent than I was expecting but it was fun. Dad was on the same thing with his coworker before Jeremy and I got there and apparently he fell and then rolled completely off of the blow up base and had this nice grass stain on his shoulder. I laughed :P

Then we all went and looked at the animals. Ayden was really excited and ran up to the fence to see this horse and it totally turned and sneezed right in Ayden's face. You could see the spray all around his body and all of us were like 3 feet away and burst out laughing. We were half expecting Ayden to turn around and start crying but he was just really nonchalant about it and I don't even remember what he said but he was totally fine and didn't acknowledge that it sneezed on him. Which TOTALLY made it FUNNIER! I was laughing so hard that I was in tears (I'm laughing now still thinking about it) and Jeremy and Lexi were about at the same point I was. It was hilarious :)

Dirtbiking with Dad at 5 mile pass :)

Ever since Corey bought his dirtbike, he's been teaching me to ride :) We've gone out a couple times, once with Lynn, once together, and we just went with my Dad :)
Dad has been dirtbiking since he was like 13 and when Corey and I started riding together we've been wanting him to go out with us to the desert to play. Our first attempt was a fail because we had to work on Corey's dirtbike and in the meantime a monsoon of rain decided to hit Lehi and Saratoga Springs right before we left.... So we decided to postpone our trip because no one was in the mood to get super soaked, muddy, and slide all over the place. But Dad was able to do wheelies on Corey's WR450F for like 10 minutes up and down his road, it was totally cool, I was impressed.

The next attempt to go to 5 mile pass on August 6th was very successful :) We got all of the bikes loaded and played for a couple hours in the dirt :) In my opinion this ride was Awesome! I was able to get used to standing up in the whoops and handling the bike. We went all over the place, to the ant hills, along various paths with little and big hills, and around farmer brown's field (which was way bumpier than expected). I was able to be confident in going down hills for the first time! :) yay for back breaks and encouraging riding buddies :) I normally follow Corey up and down hills in about the same path he takes because I know he knows what he's doing and picks the best path. I really really enjoy riding, it's something I've always wanted to do since I was a little kid watching Dad and I'm glad that I have the opportunity to go out an play on the dirt with Corey. Dad and Corey both had fun too and were able to go fast and wait a little for me, but they were patient and I kept up fairly well so we all had fun :) Corey let me ride his bike for a while and I couldn't believe how much more stable a bike with power is and I couldn't hardly tell the weight difference. It was really fun and overall a great ride :)

Pug Sitting

The last couple of days I was asked to Pug-sit for one of my co-workers. Corey came to visit me and we had a lot of fun with the 3 Pugs: Booger, Dusty, and Dude. Booger and Dude LOVE to play tug of war, they are vicious :P Corey grabbed the rope and they went crazy. Booger and Dude get into it hard core, haha, they growl and bite ferociously, as ferocious as a Pug goes, but you have to watch your fingers or you'll get snapped by their little mouths. haha. They're hillarious, they get winded really fast because they can't breathe well, so the tug of war doesn't last very long but it's definitely fun :)

Cake Decorating while Corey works Grave Shifts

Corey and I love watching the Food Network together, especially the show called "Challenge" which is about famous cake designers competing against each other to make the best cake. It's really fun to watch, we definitely both enjoy it. Corey has started working a few grave shifts and each time he goes I get bored and don't sleep very well because I stay up texting him until like 2 AM. So I decided to be productive while he's at work and bake cakes. haha. So I put the cake mix in the oven about 11 or so and then I attempt to layer 2 cakes. The first time was HORRIBLE because the cake just split in half and the frosting wouldn't hold, so I just threw it away. But I've gotten better :) I bought actual cake pans that are meant for layering cakes, I now use beaters instead of mixing the cake batter by hand (because it makes it more spongy when it cooks), and have bought more icing because it takes more than you would think to put some between the cakes and on the outside.

This last cake was German chocolate with pecan and coconut frosting. I used chocolate icing and almonds to decorate. I loved how it turned out :) I was proud of myself and Corey, Martha, and my family all thought it looked good :) haha so now countless hours have paid off! and Corey gets to be entertained in the middle of the night at work because I stay up haha. The only problem with making cakes is getting people to eat them (because I pretty much only want one piece and then I'm done), but fortunately for me, Cami's parents Tom and Stacey and brother Erron were in town and the cake was eaten by the next day :)

Corey's New Motorcycle :)

So after I bought my car, Corey became inspired to buy a new toy for himself. We found this amazing Yamaha V-star 1100 custom from a guy in Stansbury Park. Once we got there, we fell in love with the bike. After Corey rode the bike for the first time, his face lit up and you could just tell that he would be buying it :) He left the guy a deposit saying we would be back in the next day or two.
Two days later we went back and gave the guy his money and prepared for a journey home :) We decided to go through Stockton and around the south side of the mountain instead of taking 201 because we didn't have a license plate and figured it would be better to drive slowly through Stockton than to risk finding highway patrol by Magna. The ride was great! :) I followed behind Corey in his Mazda and was super protective when any car got close :) (Crack-heads on the road as Corey says). We made it back successfully a little before dark.

A week or so later I got the first ride :) It was SO much fun!! We just went around the block but the bike was perfect for both of us and didn't make it any more difficult for Corey to drive with me on the back. It was great :)

Baby Chicks!!

There are 6 chickens and 1 rooster at Martha's house.. and two of the chickens decided that they needed to be mommies and hatch some eggs :) The red hen and Doug's old hen found a dark and warm spot in the hay and sat on at least 15 eggs... it was pretty ridiculous. haha. BUT now we have 2 baby chicks!! :) They are Super cute and the mother red hen is really protective of them, she was herding them away from me and puffed up because I got too close when I was trying to take pictures. We are going to wait a while to name them in fear that we will become attached and then something will happen to them, so I will give further updates :) But they are REALLY cute, one is really yellow and the other is more of a yellow-gray. :)

MY NEW CAR!!!!!

I bought a new car!! It's a 2007 Mazda 3 i sedan. It is the best car EVER!! :) I absolutely LOVE it :D

My old car decided that it needed to have an oil leak from the main gasket, a coolant leak somewhere unknown and then over heat and blow the head gasket so antifreeze came out of the exhaust.  And on top of that it went though having fits about starting in the morning so I had to buy new spark plugs.. totally unreliable. SO my solution was to buy a new car :)

Corey and I went to a Mazda dealership on Thursday the 15th and test drove a few cars. I wasn't a fan of the new Mazda 6 because it had velvet zebra print seats.. I mean really?... then the car I really wanted online, a Red Mazda 3 smelled like someone had smoked in it.. definitely not for me. Then we finally drove this really cute silver Mazda 3 that I liked a LOT. but we tried to work out pricing and it was just too much. So we left pretty empty handed, but I knew then that I wanted a Mazda 3.

So that night I looked on KSL and found the PERFECT Mazda 3 in Lehi of all places :D So I called the guy the next day and went and saw it that afternoon. I fell in love with it from the first moment I saw/drove it. It has alloy wheels, the silver paint has been kept perfect, the car had never had food or children in it so it was spotless. The steering wheel wasn't sticky like the ones at the dealership. The car had brand new tires with a warranty, the guy was going to change the oil and rotate the tires for me. The seats were comfortable and the drive was SO SO smooth! It has an optional automatic stick, and the stereo has lights go off when you turn it on and change the volume. It was PERFECT :D So we drove it around and then Corey and I went to the bank and bought the car :D :D And because Dad co-signed I was able to get an AMAZING rate on my loan :)

I still can't believe that I am able to afford to have this nice of a car. It puts that stupid grin that won't go away onto my face every time I talk/think about it and makes me just giggle inside :) It is the BEST purchase I've ever made and it will last a while :)

Family Pictures

Family Pictures!! haha. So my Dad, Cami, Jeremy, Lexi, Ariana, Ayden and I all went to get pictures together, it's an annual tradition :) This time was fun because when it wasn't our turn to get pictures taken there was this huge single arm chair we would fight over and pile on. Dad usually won, but when he was getting pictures done it was a free-for-all against JB, Lexi and me. So here are some of my favorites :)

4th of July weekend :)

So this weekend was fun for Corey and me :) On Friday we went with Paul and Bonnie out to dinner at Blue Fish.. which has Amazing food :) their spring rolls are SO good :) After that we went and saw Toy Story 3, which was WAY awesome. I've always loved Toy Story and this one had a great plot and was really cute.
Corey worked a grave shift Friday night and I worked a 12 hr shift Saturday (9 to 9) which was exhausting for us both.
On Saturday, Corey went riding with Lynn again. They went on a very difficult and technical ride with lots of rocks and streams to cross. On the way down Corey bailed off his bike and the bike hit a rock and put a hole in the case so he had to push it the whole way back. I can only imagine how that would suck, but he said the rest of the ride was great and he had a lot of fun and Absolutely Loves his bike :) So last night he fixed a bunch of things on his bike like the exhaust and cutting some gray wire that allows him to have a little more power while riding, which we all know is the best :P :)
Sunday I went out to Yuba lake with my Dad, Cami, Jeremy, Lexi and Ariana and Ayden. It was super fun! I had Ariana on the watercraft with me for a while until she got cold and then Jeremy, Lexi and I jet skied around together seeing who could go fastest. haha. It was fun :) Dad and I had to go and rescue one of the watercraft that we had to tow to shore because we didn't have enough riders in the beginning because Dad needed to move the truck to a camp site. So Dad and I were on one together and we harassed Jeremy because he had a hard time standing up on the new jetski Dad has. Then all of a sudden Dad and I both leaned wrong and we fell off the watercraft while it was hardly moving. I whacked my leg on the side of it and have a big bruise today. (why do I bruise so easy?... it's ridiculous) Then I tried the stand-up jetski and after a while was actually able to stand and ride it for a little bit, after falling and getting up a bunch of times. It was really fun but I was exhausted after it :) Then we all went back to camp and had dinner and roasted marshmallows :) Ariana had a big stick and was drawing in the sand and drew this Huge bumble bee, it was pretty impressive. Jeremy and I left Sunday night but the rest of my family stayed and camped for the night.
Monday was our lazy day, Corey did work stuff and I didn't do much :) But this weekend was pretty fun for both of us.

Taffy found a skunk!!

 Haha, the title says it all :) a couple weeks ago we let Taffy outside because she was letting out the "I saw a cat" bark and she likes to chase them away and then come back in... HOWEVER this time it wasn't a cat, it was a skunk! So it sprayed before it ran off and Taffy ran through the mist. I have never smelled skunk spray that close up, it made my eyes water. haha so the house smelled horrible and we drenched Taffy in tomato sauce to get the smell out. She HATED it, she was in the sink trying to get out, poor little dog. haha Martha, Corey and I were laughing the entire time.

Dirtbiking at 5 mile pass

This ride was SO much fun and definitely needed! Corey just recently sold his Chevy truck and bought a new Yamaha WR450F bike :) This was his first ride on it and he LOVED it, he definitely enjoys his new bike. The day before the ride we bought him a bunch of new gear: boots, helmet, goggles and his jersey and pants are getting here today. His best friend Morgan's dad Lynn took Corey and I out on Saturday (6/26/10) to 5 mile pass in Tooele. I haven't been on a dirt bike in forever so I borrowed Heather's CRF230, which was a toy compared to Corey and Lynn's bikes, but definitely perfect for me and my purposes :) We went on a bunch of different trails and I actually opened it up to 3rd gear in the end and was able to be comfortable standing while going over bumps. Corey and I rode side by side for a little while and that was Super fun! :) I had SUCH a great time and so did he and Lynn :) We only rode about 12 miles, but it was perfect for my first ride because I wasn't too tired by the time we finished. It was perfect :). Lynn lead the whole time on his KX500 because he knows the trails way better than we do, and I was in the middle so Corey could keep an eye on me :) We had So much fun! They both rode in 1st and 2nd gear, so I was really glad they were patient with my slowness :P But I was definitely more comfortable at the end than the beginning. Corey got to play around with the throttle on his bike and shot in front of me a couple times, and then slow down so I could catch up and then I let the throttle go fast when I caught up so that I would shoot a little in front of him, it was really fun :)

We went up and down 2 different little canyons and the first one, I believe it was called rattlesnake canyon, had a lot of slick rock in the middle of it so we turned around because it was a little too hard for me. On the way down I went over a bump and lost control and the back tire slid out from underneath me on the slick rock and I crashed. My right leg ended up between the rock and my 200lb bike, so I now have a beautiful bruise and my arm slid on the rock and got all scraped up, but luckily I had on a long-sleeved jersey so that it protected my arm from the gravel and dirt mostly. It didn't rip and so the scrape is really superficial, but it definitley stung. However, it sounds worse than it felt. I got back up quickly and checked the wound, decided I didn't need stitches and kept going for another hour to hour and a half :) It was really fun. The crash almost calmed some of my nerves though because in the beginning I was so afraid of crashing and then when I did I realized it wasn't as bad as I was thinking it would be so I brushed it off and kept going :) We had a great time, I can't wait till our next ride :)