Christmas Tree and Tree Farm

Last year we were in Oregon over Thanksgiving weekend. We celebrated with my family and we had our second wedding reception. Because we had to get a moving truck to move my things back to Utah, we decided to go to a tree farm in Oregon and cut down our tree. We brought back both our tree and Oliver's parents tree and we had a blast running through the tree farm and finding our perfect first tree.

Oliver had so much fun last year that he decided that we needed to cut down our own tree this year too. So we went to a local tree farm in Alpine Utah - not anything like an Oregon tree farm - but still really fun. Here is Oliver standing in front of several of our choices - there were mostly blue spruce trees and a couple ponderosa pines.
When we found the perfect tree one of the men at the lot came out to cut it down for us and then he loaded it onto the four wheeler and took it back out front. We got to watch and help just a little.

Then Oliver and I loaded it on top of our car. (You want the trunk of the tree in the rear so that the wind doesn't dry out your tree on the way home.) We cut down an 11' tree and then trimmed it to the perfect height when we got home. We learned, from last year's fun, to guess really well the right height to trim the tree the first time because last year we drug the tree in and out and in and out to try to make it short enough. Sure enough - first chop was a charm!
Then we strung the lights - this year the lights are white and we have a themed tree - Oliver's request. We were smart and wore gloves to string the lights because Blue Spruce needles are painful and poky. It we had kids they would not mess with this kind of tree.
After stringing the lights we wound the ribbon around the tree and put up all our ornaments. The ribbon is actually sheer in real life - but I don't know how to work our camera yet and so it looks solid.
But, by all means, come on over and see our tree! I love sitting on our couch with nothing but the tree lights on and enjoying the season and a good book or good company. Come for some hot chocolate or a funny story - we would love to have you!

Digital SLR

Oliver got me a digital SLR for my birthday. It was supposed to be our family Christmas gift this year so that we could take great pictures on our trip in May, but he surprised me early and we are really loving it! If you have a DSLR then check-out this free giveaway: http://scribblesandstitches.blogspot.com/

Plus, I visit teach the woman behind the creation and she is one of the most talented and generous people I know...

Meeting Sarah

Our sister-in-law had a layover in Salt Lake today on her way from Alaska to Colorado for Thanksgiving. We all went to breakfast and spent three or four hours just visiting - it was a wonderful time...

We Own This!

As of today (well the check will technically post on Monday), Oliver and I own this car - a 2003 Ford Focus ZX5! Mind you we own a nice blue one that is missing a side view mirror...but own it we do.

I just love paying off debt it makes me feel so free and it assures me that I am doing what I have been commanded to do!

Kyle's First Bowling

We haven't gotten to spend any time with Holly, Evan and Kyle in these last two weeks. We were really excited to get together for dinner (cooked by the fabulous Holly), dollar ice cream cones and a game of bowling. Our little nephew is now two months old but he still only weighs 8 lbs. I was born heavier than that so I don't know what that was like. He is getting a strong neck and like to stand up. Here is being Superman...

After dinner we headed to a bowling alley to play for awhile. We have the baby, the balls and most importantly, the hand sanitizer.

Amidst passing the baby around we bowled a pretty horrible game. Here is Evan...Oliver...

Heidi...

And Holly...

By the tenth frame Kyle was ready to be fed and go home. Some really bad music, disco balls and white lights came on and he was not the happiest camper.
See, I told you, we all bowled really badly. I am sure next time will be better and then, maybe Kyle will be old enough to roll his own ball.

Have You Been To Rome...?

Oliver and I are trying to finalize the details for our trip next May. The last major detail is our hotel selection while we are in Rome. I have been reading online reviews and searching, but we would love some advice from someone who has been...

I have been quite displeased with the reviews I have read because several people have been complaining about the tv channel selection in their hotel rooms. Who cares! You are in Rome! Why are you concerned that there aren't enough English tv channels to choose from? People also complain about the distance from the city center - 15 minutes on the bus is just too long for some people I guess.

So I am looking for a more balanced viewpoint of people that we love and trust - Does anyone have some suggestions where to stay while in Rome?

Happy Halloween!

Last year we went to the pumpkin patch - but we never carved our pumpkins. So this year - we decided to give it a go! So, the night before Halloween, and on my mom's birthday, we carved our pumpkins.

This is Oliver's pumpkin on our porch...

This is mine...

And this is the Halloween sunrise out our back door! Gorgeous!

We hope to see you tonight with your tick-o-treaters! Have a safe and happy Halloween!

Bar Stool Economics

Bar Stool Economics by David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.

The fifth would pay $1.

The sixth would pay $3.

The seventh would pay $7.

The eighth would pay $12.

The ninth would pay $18.

The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that’s what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. ‘Since you are all such good customers, he said, ‘I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’ They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.

And so:

The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).

The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).

The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).

The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).

The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).

The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.

‘I only got a dollar out of the $20,’declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,’ but he got $10!’

‘Yeah, that’s right,’ exclaimed the fifth man. ‘I only saved a dollar, too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!’

‘That’s true!!’ shouted the seventh man. ‘Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!’

‘Wait a minute,’ yelled the first four men in unison. ‘We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!’

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

For those who understand, no explanation is needed.

For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

Thank you Dr. Thought the folks so excited about a Democratic government might enjoy this piece. Pay special attention to the last paragraph.

Tragic - Going Private

It's official - after some sad things that have happened on our blog lately we have decided to go private. If you would like access to view our blog then send me an email or comment on this post and I will send you an invite.

hs1121 (at) gmail (dot) com

Part One of House Project Complete

We have had several really productive weeks doing house projects. Here is Oliver staining our garden box in our backyard. It has weathered to the perfect color and we want to preserve it before winter hits.
Then - these are the long awaited pictures of our downstairs house painting that has been happening for several weeks.

And, now we are moving to our upstairs... Here is our bedroom just waiting for a good coat of paint.

Pumpkin Patch

Oliver and I went with some friends from work to the pumpkin patch this weekend. We had a blast! This is us on the tractor getting ready to go and find the perfect pumpkin...
This is Oliver getting ready for some serious hunting. We had to go up and down every row and find the best ones.

Oh, what fun it was.

Then, with all the options in a wheelbarrow, we had to pick only four! No, we don't have kids yet, Oliver just loves pumpkins - and I love to barter with sales people so we got a great deal!

And this is our little friend Maggie who went with us (and her parents). She didn't love being in the wheelbarrow but she loved picking her pumpkin and playing in the dirt.

Draper Temple Public Open House

The new Draper Utah Temple will be open for public tours from January 15 to March 14, 2009. All are welcome to attend including children. Tours are FREE, but a reservation is required. Please review the information below:

Reservations: Reservations will be taken beginning December 1, 2008, at 10:00 a.m., at which time you may reserve online (10-ticket limit), call 801-576-4240 in the Salt Lake area, or call toll free 1-866-537-8457.

Dates: Thursday, January 15–Saturday, March 14, 2009 (closed Sundays)Hours:Sunday, Closed; Monday, 8:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.; Tuesday–Saturday, 8:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m.; additional times may be made available depending on demand.

Cost: The open house is FREE, but a reservation is required.

Parking: Parking attendants will direct you to an available parking space when you arrive.

Dress: Church dress is encouraged.

What to Expect: Tours begin in the meetinghouse adjacent to the temple where you will be organized into a tour group and view a short video presentation on the purpose of temples, followed by a guided tour of the temple's interior. At the conclusion of the tour, refreshments will be served in the meetinghouse where representatives will be available for questions.

Free Date Night

I don't know about the rest of you, but Oliver and I can hardly contain our excitement about the snow building up on the mountains. WE LOVE TO SKI and just can't wait! (Well, we only get to ski one day this season unless we get free passes because we are trying to save for our month long vacation. So sad!)

We are going to this event this Friday night and wondering if anyone else is interested in a FREE date night. For all those interested in skiing and snowboarding there is going to be a free to attend rail jam (think man made ski slope with jumps and rails) Friday, October 17th 1185 N 1200 W in Orem at 8:00 PM. This is a state of the art facility and will be a fun event to watch.

We've never been - we don't know what it is exactly - but we love free and we love new stuff. Let us know if you want to come and catch dinner beforehand or just meet us there! It's kind of late but we don't care if you have kids and want to bring them - just let us know!

Ignored...

So last night Oliver and I were having a conversation and he completely ignored a comment I made and moved right on... Then he said a few moments later, "I think this is the first time since we have been married that I ignored you".

We laughed pretty hard at the irony because I don't think I would agree that this is the first time I have been ignored :) But it was nice to be acknowledged nonetheless. I wonder if getting ignored gets more frequent the longer you have been married - thoughts?

Inappropriate

I have had quite a bit of time to blog lately and I have been checking out all the cute things that are on people's blogs. One of my friends has a tracker on her blog which shows how long they have been married (cute). I also have friends that have a baby tracker which show when their baby should be born (cute). I have a friend whose blog has a track which shows how long until she ties the knot (cute). Then, there is a blog, which shows a conception tracker. It shows where she is at in her cycle so that they can try to get pregnant (NOT CUTE!). I personally think that is way to much information to be posting on the Internet for all to see - please leave that kind of information for your bathroom mirror or your bedside table!

The First Nephew - Kyle Dillon Young

Oliver and I welcomed our very first nephew into the world on September 12th! Kyle Dillon Young was born at about noon and he is the first grandbaby on both sides of his family. Needless to say - you know what we have all been doing for the past two weeks - holding, loving, feeding, kissing, cuddling and enjoying our new little addition!


Proud auntie and uncle -
Great looking mom -
Fun-loving and adoring dad -
And the Nana that came all the way from Oregon!

Utah State Fair

We had the privilege of taking our neighbors' children to the State Fair. It was so fun! Kaitlyn and Brandon came with us and we are now convinced that the State Fair is far more exciting with kid minds, kid comments, and kid fun. Oliver and I were amazed at the comments that came from the kids and the way they processed thoughts. It was a ball! If you want a break from your kids for a night so that you can date or just get some stuff at home done then give us a call because we love all the kids in our lives!


Kaitlyn is just mimicking Brandon, but he was really disturbed by the smell in the animal barns. We started at the cows and he walked around with his nose plugged for the entire barn length and back. But, by the time we made it to the other barns, he had adjusted okay and we loved the animals.

Kaitlyn loved to pet the animals. This is a baby cow and she would pet anything that would stand still long enough. Bunnies, cows, horses, goats, pigs, etc. Brandon wasn't quite as brave, but he did get some courage to pet a couple of the sleeping animals and he loved the bunnies!

Brandon loved the pretend farm. They both got to go through and plant and harvest, drive a tractor, milk a cow, buy a treat from the store with their profit from the harvest, etc.

We had a great time and, seriously, the invitation is open to anyone who is ready for a break.

One Year and Still Blissful...

It has been a little while since I have posted to our blog and I have some great stories and photos coming. But today is memorable; we have been married one full year! Like tradition requires, we saved our top layer of cake until today. I have always heard that it is disgusting and freezer burned and just absolutely gross. I have friends that only waited a month or even just a week, but I am obedient and so we defrosted the cake today.

So here we are getting ready to unwrap the frozen layer and cut right in... (Since my sister just had her baby, my mom is visiting and it was her weekend to stay with us so she joined us in the festivities.)

Surprisingly, it was phenomenal cake! It tastes great! You are welcome to come over and have a slice and I think that my mother-in-law still has some in the freezer too. When we ordered our cake the maker suggested that we get the top layer made with lemon poppyseed because she said it freezes the best. Well, she knew what she was talking about and even after a full year it was really good. Must be sign, one year married and still blissful. May we have many, many more just like it or better!