Andersen & Fisher

Holy September, where has the summer gone!

2011-09-02T16:46:00.014-06:00

It feels like the past few months have been dedicated solely to the preparation of Jessie and Taylor's wedding. However, that can't be all we've done this season, so allow me a moment to recap:

I did spend a lot of hours making jam for the event, this included a morning raid on the neighbors apricot tree and other shenanigans, but I'd intended to do this anyway.

There are so many things one can do with an apricot! Jam it, dry it whole or pureed, bottle it a number of ways, or simple enjoy them fresh off the tree. Yum, yum, yummy!

Charlie's second birthday bash was a delight! We had everyone over for a make your own pizza party. It was pizza, pizza, right down to the cake. It's hard to believe my baby is a toddler.

Six days later I severed my thumb, ouch! Even now as I type these memoirs of a lost summer I am donning a bandage waiting for the nail to grow back in and feeling to return. Perhaps I'll cover more on that subject later.

Jessie & Taylor McAllister were married in the Manti Temple, August 19th. Ben and I spent the night before in a little hotel across the street from the temple, while Charlie stayed with Grandma. Other than waking up dazed and confused at three in the morning, he handled the separation well.

The reception was at Grandma and Grandpa Grape's (Elder's) in their backyard. Emotions ran high, namely the over anxious feeling that comes as a result of mixing a 24 month old with multiple water hazards - the river in back, the pool inside, and the newly installed feature in front. Overall the event went smoothly with home-made bread and jam and a variety of lemon aids as refreshment. Although I had come prepared with 57 jars of jam in 11 different flavors, I never had to open more than the first bottle of each kind.

Through it all Benjamin has been working on one home improvement project . .

. . . or another. That's just a sneak peak, the big reveal will come later.

Absolutely Green

2011-07-19T10:11:00.013-06:00

Towards the end of what always seems like a long bleak winter, I get so down on life that I just need to see something green and growing. I got it into my head that I would get my garden started early this year, even though our yard didn't have a predesignated garden plot at the time. I had day dreamed about where it could be and Ben had drawn out plans as to what it could look like. I didn't know when it would all come together, but I didn't want to miss the prime growing season. So I ordered my tomato plants in advance and went to work sowing squash and what have you, inside.

Instead of little clods of dirt sitting about, I wanted something that would double as decoration. Jennifer and Chase, who were living with us, eat a lot of eggs. I put in a request for them to save their shells - which are a great source of calcium to add to your garden soil. Once I had enough eggshell pots I went to work dyeing them and my kitchen counter in the process - no worries it cleaned up nicely with a little soft scrub.

After several failed attempts I came to the conclusion that starting indoors is a lot harder than all those seed packets would have you believe. Nevertheless, come Easter (April 24) I had managed to get enough started to give some away as presents, even if they weren't that pretty. With the warmer days, I could leave the plants outside in the more shady parts of the yard. By the first of May they were weathered enough to stay outside all night, however, like little hermit crabs they were quickly outgrowing their shells. I found some old pots left behind from the previous owners and on mother's day weekend I arranged them: three or four squash plants per pot, artichoke starts centered in two of the planters and the few peppers that made it in the other.

A week and a half later the garden boxes were ready to be planted. Thank you Ben for all your hard work!

Two weeks later I was taking a morning stroll and was surprised to find bright yellow-orange blossoms on my squash babies, just about as big as the plants themselves.

Exactly a month later I picked my first zucchini and have harvested a couple dozen since then. Now if only my tomato plants would get on board.

The Hunt

2011-05-30T21:32:00.005-06:00

Alright, I realize Easter was last month, but on the flip side this video is only a month old unlike the recitation of Animal Orchestra which is much older than it's posted date would have you believe. Plus, it's just too cute not to share it.

Before Charles was even born my father purchased all the plastic easter eggs we would ever need. Most of which were your garden variety colored eggs but a number of them where formed to look like different creatures from, jungle animals to aquatic life and even insects. While the little dude may not have realized each character contained sweet morsels, he certainly enjoyed searching them out and greeting each one as he did.

A few weeks before Easter I found this little wheelbarrow and thought that it would make a great alternative to the traditional basket. After purchasing it I tucked it away so I could surprise Charlie with it when it was time for the big hunt. Then, the Friday before Easter, Ben brought the wheelbarrow in the house and had the little guy playing with it before I could intervene. I complained that I had been saving it for Easter and was met with a confused look. To both our surprise, Ben and I, on separate occasions and locations had purchase the exact same wheelbarrow for our sons enjoyment. What are the odds!

How many trumpets are there?

2011-05-19T22:23:00.003-06:00

After visiting the zoo last summer we purchased this animal orchestra book for Charlie in hopes that it would aid in his learning to count. I guess he missed that point and was more interested the instruments. Watch:

The things we do to our children.

2011-03-20T20:02:00.010-06:00

Snowshoeing has always been an interest of mine so when one of Jennifer's colleagues offered to take us I couldn't refuse. To increase the difficulty Jennifer suggested we take our children along with us and...well, we survived.

Charlie Reeder hated getting into the backpack at first but was fairly content once we were on the move. I also realized his pants were a little too short once he was in the pack. To correct this we pulled off his shoes and strung gloves to his feet/legs to close the gap. He looked like a little monkey on my back.

Valerie Jean slept through most of it.

Charlie fell asleep during the last stretch of the trial.

I had to use my scarf to support his head until we reached the car.

The next activity we subjected our son to was biking! I've been wanting a bike for so long and last Christmas I finally got one. Soon after, Benjamin purchased a used bike from the local classifieds (He's been commuting to work on a single speed for a couple of months now and he is looking so fine.) This weekend we got little Chuck Reed suited up with a seat and helmet and made the trek to Nanny's house.

Once again the little dude fell asleep on the way home.

2011-02-24T07:16:00.000-07:00

Gung Hei Fat Choi and a Happy Chinese New Year!

This years celebration went much smoother than the last, I’ll take that as a good omen for the months ahead.
Allie and I made all the dumpling the night before so we actually got to sit down and enjoy the food this year.

Thanks everyone who was able to make it and support this tradition.

Charlie's first Manzanita

2010-08-20T09:20:00.000-06:00

Having grown up vacationing on the coast, I was suprised to find this beach in the middle of all the beaches I've stayed at. It is an awful beach and you probably never want to come here. This is our early morning stroll along this dirty, ugly beach today.

-ben

2010-08-08T19:28:00.013-06:00

C is for Charlie who’s just turned 1 you see!
My baby is growing up. Saturday the families got together for many reasons (Chase’s baptism, Sarah’s endowment) all of them very important. The nearest and dearest to me was Charlie’s birthday. It’s hard to believe that I’ve had him for a year already. The ordeal it took to get him here seems more like a dream than a memory. On the other hand, I have been very mindful of all those who have loved and cared for my little man. Saturday was just as much Ben and my way of showing our appreciation as it was a monster party for Charlie.

A cookie monster party that is and boy! were there cookies. I gave away most of them, but if any of you didn’t get enough I’m offering refills.

Charlie’s cake turned out just the way I had envisioned it. And the cup cakes, although rushed, weren’t half bad either.

Thanks Jennifer for your help with those while Chase Brown did some awesome window art.

Charlie got some great toys and books to make playtime fun again.

I’ll admit I was very pleased with his reaction to the wagon Ben and I got him. We drove all over trying to find the right one. Little does Charlie know I have big plans for that wagon in the fall when the apples are ready for juicing. Sorry Charlie.

Everything we share has become our son.

2010-04-25T18:23:00.003-06:00

Playing in the office this Sunday afternoon

2010-03-28T18:29:00.002-06:00

We took Charlie down to Reams park to see the ducks, I obviously hadn't been there in years because the fence is no longer around the pond and it looks like it's been gone for a while. We visited my grandparents that live just across the river and he crawl-scooted all around their front room and all across my cousin Brighton. Now we're just spending some time wearing the little guy out so he'll sleep hard tonight so we can do the same.

Bubbie's new gait

2010-03-26T20:49:00.003-06:00

If you know the little guy you already know that he's becoming mobile quick, here's the proof, 7 months old and scootin' like a scoundrel.

My son likes apples

2010-02-13T10:41:00.002-07:00

Charlie's 6 months now, we've just started him on fun foods like bananas & applesauce. Here I'm feeding him some red delicious from our little orchard Kristy prepared last fall. My webcam isn't very quality, but it was convenient this morning.

Little Professor Andersen

2009-08-01T09:55:00.005-06:00

We don't enjoy the paparazzi, we're kind of fed up with them trying to sneak into our room and get the "money shot" so we're just going to offer up these pictures here to try and satisfy the masses. There'll be no shrouded-balcony-baby-dangling ever, we promise. We'll just allow little Charlie Reeder to grow up in the public eye, we hope it doesn't go to his head.

Pretty cute and rested for a woman in labor, right?

My mom was there to do the important work.

Yep.

He was on a CPAP, but only for an hour or so.

during his first shampooing

Sights of Kauai

2009-04-01T21:09:00.006-06:00

Here's some stuff we did, birds i lured with fruity pebbles and some awesome ferrell cats. I also invented slicing while we were there, and native.

The Relaxer

2009-02-05T18:13:00.003-07:00

It's very reassuring to see our baby starting out life right. We had another ultrasound today and let just say that this baby is enjoying its beginnings. I have here a little pic from the ultrasound along with an explanatory rendition of my own below. As you can see, he/she definitely has the appearance of a nose.

Fixin the 'rent's

2009-01-25T20:41:00.004-07:00

After many years of updating, a few rooms in my parents house have fallen behind, we decided to take those on this last week. We started with a much needed scraping of the popcorn ceiling (asbestos free) and some updated recessed lighting, also rewiring and relocating electrical outlets along the wall. Then we patched up the holes and re-textured the ceiling. The design geniuses in the family (read: mom and sisters) decided against drywalling to keep the wood paneling. I still want to remove the existing fireplace and change it out for a newer look, I might get vetoed on that one.

I needed to post these for the few family members who won't be able to see it for themselves, but would be equally happy to see the glitter popcorn come down.

More to come...

A 5cm suprise!

2009-01-23T21:40:00.002-07:00

Turns out that Kristy's actually got a little stuffed panda bear in there.

Winter Update

2009-01-20T16:02:00.005-07:00

Andersen Family
Frosty Benz
Rugging

Oven's Bakin'

2008-12-29T07:08:00.002-07:00

Expect something nice from the Andersen's summer 2009, but we can't say exactly what yet, just that it's gonna be awsome!

Filipino Cuisine in Utah

2008-12-21T10:30:00.001-07:00

Word is Bundok's filipino restaraunt in Salt Lake is closed, but luckily there's a new place open: Ally's Asian Grill, and it's great. It's at 2653 w 7800 s in the Salt Lake area. Tagalog is welcomed, the food is good. We tried their bipsteak tagalog and there tapa, both were so sarap! plan on around 6-7 dollars for a dinner entree, a little cheaper for lunch. entrees are served with buttered saffron rice. Also on the menu were sinigang, lumpia, adobo, fried fish, pancit bihon, lechon kawali, bicol express, crispy pata, kare-kare and some other favorites. (the pata's about $13) check out their menu @ allysasiangrill.com

A few pics from Mandy's wedding

2008-12-12T23:51:00.004-07:00

So many aspects of my sister Mandy's wedding were awesome, but it's late and we haven't slept much the last few nights, so here's a few pics for those of you in the family who weren't able to make it. We were so happy to see many of our friends and family in support for Mandy.

I'll post more soon.

Millie Jo Carlson day 1 & 2 pics

2008-11-07T20:15:00.004-07:00

Happy Joyous times at the Andersen's right now, Allie Jo Carlson has had her first child, a little girl named Millie Jo. We were lucky enough to be there soon after she entered this world, and it was fun to be there. The hard part is trying to imagine my little sister Allie as a mom, but that doesn't mean I don't think she will be the greatest because she will. Allie has always had the kindest, sweetest temperament and she will easily use that to bring light in to Millie's life.

Joscef (Joe) Castor on the Sixty One

2008-10-20T11:12:00.002-06:00

Not too many people actually read our little space here, but if you do, you might know our friend Joe Castor. He is a great writer and sings something awsome, well he's now trying to get noticed on the sixty one so bump his songs if you like. If you don't have an account, it's another free one so you might as well. I've found a whole lot of great, uplifting music as well as some cool ones off this site. If you do get an account, add me as a friend (bunjamins)

35,000 Gallons a minute!

2008-10-18T15:13:00.006-06:00

That's the output of the twin turbine flowrider they just installed in McDermont. We're lucky enough to be family with the designer and head of the whole thing. That's why the we've spent four hours on this thing over the weekend and boy are we sore. We all had plenty of time to learn tons of tricks, including the modified relaxer. The water comes out at 40mph only 3 to 4 inches deep but if you fall or catch an edge it throws you back hard on the grate behind. Chase and I couldn't get enough of the fun, we'll probably go back and do some more tonight.

Here is the Flowrider booting up, one turbine then the other and the employee giving us a demo.

Santo George with the family Andersen

2008-10-18T14:53:00.004-06:00

This post has quite a delay, but the family will want to see the pictures. The Andersens were lucky enough to spend some time together a few weeks ago in St. George. We got everyone there except Tristan and Mandy (Mandy's Jason wasn't quite in the picture at that point) which has become a rare little pleasure. On a side note, my mom has announced that this family home evening, all her children, spouses, and grandkids will be able to get together for carameled apples which is the first time since Christmas. The Peay's have a house down in snow canyon area as well as my parents so there are plenty of rooms for the family to stay. While St. George may not be the ultimate vacation destination, it is quite nice to have somewhere to go where the whole family is together without distraction. Maybe it's time to sell those houses though and get a cabin up in the mountains instead.

Neither house has a pool yet so we go to a little community pool. Chase and Aston braved the waters along with Presley and Kennedy and even enjoyed it after awhile.

And here you can see me in the splash behind Kristy. It's really hard to time your jump on a ten second timer, and after the splash, no one was up for a retry.

Townsend reunion in Wallsburg

2008-08-05T07:08:00.012-06:00

Kristy's mom is a Townsend by birth which makes us the lucky attendants of the grandest Wallsburg reunion around. We conqured the furious, mighty Provo river on meager craft; we Segway'd around town; there was horse riding, hikinig, and spelunking. Kristy's aunt Kristy and uncle Scott were responsible for planning and carrying out the major part of it and we are very grateful to them and to the rest of the family who helped in the massive amounts of cooking, transporting, and organizing that was required to pull it off. I really enjoyed becoming more aquainted with all the cousins and aunts & uncles that make up such a strong family. Grandma & Grandpa's place in Wallsburg is very adequate to support the crowds for the activities and meals. Those of us that weren't able to overnight there in Wallsburg either stayed in the nearby Zermatt in Midway or just made the short trip home. Thanks again to Clarene & Marlon for letting us crash on their suite's hide-a-bed.

On Friday we rafted the Provo river, although very tame as far as rapids and falls, it is not without it's deadly train-bridge pylon's and overhanging branches.

Here we are all loaded up on the bus to head to the top of the river by the dam.

Marlon & Joe tipped their kayak pretty early on while still getting the hang of it and the water was not forgiving at about 52 degrees.
I only look rediculous because I thought I didn't fit in the frame. I'm holding a fishing pole and trolling the river. Got 1 fish which I didn't land and 2 snags which stole both of my lures so I put away the pole.
Hiking up to the Mine after the bumpy ride up.
Olson's & Addison in the Mine.
Look closer, there's a ghost in there!waiting for the rest to emerge...
waiting for the rest to emerge...
Terri & Francisco's Kate, sitting in front of the super-stylin dutch oven chef, check out those boots!Everyone lining up for family pics, we couldn't have been luckier to have such a beautiful sunset and great lighting.

If you liked wall-e...

2008-07-27T08:06:00.002-06:00

A little bit off topic and a little bit of a spoiler, animation blog has an article with Pixar's plans for major movie releases until 2012. I think I'm most excited for Newt. Here's the teaser trailer for next years release "UP":

Christmas in July

2008-07-20T01:24:00.004-06:00

It has recently come to my attention that more people than I realized have a Christmas in July tradition, but it was quite fun. The idea isn't to recreate Christmas completely, but more just a family home evening where everyone gets together to do similar activities, we had some soup, exchanged some gifts and wore our Christmas pajamas. With the family getting bigger, it's naturally more rare to see all the family together for more than a moment so it was a great experience. We missed Tristan who works out of town and Mandy who is in Alaska for the summer, other than that the family was all there.

4th of july fun

2008-07-19T20:59:00.005-06:00

Independence day for me has always been about patriotism and respect for the country as it is today and for that which this country's founders did for our freedom. But mostly independence day for me is about family, BBQ and fun. My family has more than a day's worth of traditions that we look forward to every year. These shorts make it out once a year for the 4th, if you are out tubin' on the Provo early afternoon any year you might be lucky to catch a glimpse. My niece laying on my back in the hammock adds cute factor to the ridiculous shorts.
My sister Jessie in the Provo parade with the Provo High Cheerleaders.
Kennedy, Kristy and Jessie in the background up at the Peay's in Lehi
My two brother-in-laws at my grandparents pool, Shilo killed at our mad game of horse.

The Purloined Slipper

2008-07-19T20:38:00.003-06:00

We promised to tell more of this story, sadly summer fun has distracted us from posting it until 2 months after the fact. We went to church one morning while we were in Hong Kong via a trip on the subway, while getting on I stepped on Kristy's heel right over the gap. We lost the slipper down the gap, we looked at each other and had no idea what to do. I guess we just supposed there wouldn't be any way to get it and were just wondering what to do to get to church (there was still a lot of walking out on the streets between the station and the church.) The passengers all started pointing out at the station telling us to stop at the information desk. I suppose this must happen too often since everyone seemed to purvey that this happened a lot. The lady at the information desk was more than helpful:

Johnny Austin (Thelin)

2008-06-19T07:11:00.001-06:00

This guy was my older sister's age and in a band that was popular at Provo High while he was there. Looks like the band's broken up and here is the amazing work he's been doing lately. Hey Jen, what do you think?

Philippines Trip

2008-06-10T09:52:00.002-06:00

The other part of a trip was two weeks in the Philippine islands visiting my mission areas. We were able to eat tons of filipino food and a good amount of Mangos (NEVER enough!) We also were able to visit many of the people I taught and worked with, great to hear that most of them are still active. We stayed in lots of crummy hotels and were lucky if we had water to wash our hands and flush and most the hotels didn't have hot water. Overall the trip was a dream, something we never thought would happen but are thankful it did.

Hong Kong continued...

2008-05-23T04:05:00.004-06:00

Just a quick post to show we're still alive, here's a few more pictures of our time in Hong Kong. We'll change this to have a slide show with more pictures when we get home, but for now enjoy this little taste of the places we've been the faces we've seen and the things we've eaten.

Sky tram ride back from Big Buddha on Lantau island
Purloined slipper incident. Video to come.
Aching and I after dim sum.
Muji and I in our hotel lounge in Prince Edward.
Towers of Lucky Buns at the Cheung Chau Bun Festival.
Happy Birthday Buddha!
Gate to eternal happiness and fun.
Ben really wanted a picture in front of the Chungking Mansions, where Wang Kar Wai filmed Chungking Express. (Movie Highly Recommended)
Vegetarian Meal at the Po Ling monastery also on Lantau.
I love Hong Kong and I miss it already!

We Made it

2008-05-08T09:44:00.003-06:00

Once we arrived just a few hours ago we took a train to TST and checked into our hotel then took a walk along the promenade that is right outside our hotel.Had some McDonalds red bean pie
Bruce Lee Hong Kong walk of fame style

California Trip

2008-03-25T11:06:00.005-06:00

Kristy had a week long spring break and so I got work off, we drove with Kristy's dad to Lindsay, CA to stay with Kristy's brother who technically lives in Exeter. We had time to drive from there to the sequoia forest to spend some time with the world's largest tree: The General Sherman.

That's me on the left up by the tree.Lindsay is an orange grove community and they were everywhere!
El Mocajete del restarante El Mocajete. Notice the cactus, I'll let you figure the rest out.
We miss our winchell's in Provo and after tasting some there, Kristy and I agree that the donut quality is above anything Utah Valley has to offer. (read: Glazies, Krispy Kreme, Albertson's, Provo Bakery)
We had the windows tinted just before leaving on our long desert drive, a good move since our air conditioning didn't blow cold the whole trip.

Vegas and the Bodies Exhibit

2008-03-25T10:55:00.003-06:00

Technically we couldn't take photographs in the exhibit, so consider these artistic renderings. I kept them blurry so I wouldn't spoil anything for any of you that want to go. The exhibit is on display at the Tropicana Hotel downtown Vegas.

A human skull carefully seperated into all the seperate bones:
Thin slices of a body encased in acrylic and seperated out in a 20ft long box.
This leg was injected with red colored vinyl/latex, then the human tissue was dissolved away leaving only the coral like network of arteries and veins.
If you do go, make sure you have a few hours to explore the whole exhibit, we were pressed for time and probably missed a lot.

Futbol Proviano

2008-03-25T10:48:00.005-06:00

My buddies and I started a Provo Men's soccer team, and so far haven't lost a game. Technically haven't won either since both games ended in a tie. But check out the sweet uniform-T's that Levi printed up for us. We can play 5 on the field plus goalie, which tired us out quick since we had a complete lack of substitutes.
British Knights Knudsen playing some mean goal keep.
Team shots after I brought out the big bag of sweat bands:

π

2008-03-14T19:53:00.003-06:00

Happy Pi Day! Don't forget to wear green on Monday for Saint Patrick.

Live Webcam of the Peay's House

2008-03-03T16:15:00.002-07:00

I worked it out with Shilo & Jenny's neighbors to setup a live webcam of their house so I could keep tabs, feel free to take a look and see what's going on.

Oh and the Eastley's let me setup a webcam pointing to my parents as well:

If You Haven't Seen This Yet (warning: video spam)

2008-02-23T11:37:00.001-07:00

The car is ours!

2008-02-23T09:20:00.005-07:00

February 5th of last year I was rear ended in my Volvo so Ben and I set out to find a new rig. With in a month we found the vehicle we wanted on line and had it shipped to us from Virgina. The wagon we bought was in pristine condition and I have enjoyed driving it ever since; the news here would be that we own it! The last payment was made at the beginning of this month; we achieved our goal with a month to spare! I received a decent settlement from Bear River - the other guys insurance - which was enough to cover my medical expenses and make it possible to pay the car off in less than a year. Admittedly at first I thought that it was too much car for us and a very small part of me still does, but now that I've been spoiled with it's smooth ride it could be hard to part with.

Provo Airport Dike Birding

2008-02-18T19:07:00.001-07:00

This evening Kristy and I took my parents and my sister Jessie on a short trip around the Provo Airport to do some birding, we saw an American Kestrel, Barn Owl, American Coots, Mallards, Red-Winged Blackbirds, and quite a few raptors we weren't able to identify. We also took a trip out onto the frozzzzen lake to get some pictures, probably about 30 yards out. Although there was a guy with four dogs that went out at least a couple hundred yards out.

Here's the barn owl we saw at dusk check out my map if you want to go see it too.

BenBud rides again

2008-02-18T10:24:00.001-07:00

Kristy and I only have one niece and three nephews. Soon to add another niece, I don't know how many more I'll be able to add.

Winter Eagles

2008-02-13T17:47:00.008-07:00

Kristy and I signed up to go to Utah Bald Eagle day at Farmington bay, it was a trip sponsored through BYU's Bean Museum and led by Professor G. Merrill Webb. There were around 15-20 people, including three of my high school class of '99: Gil Bradshaw, Marin (Turley) Bradshaw, and Vhari (Stewart) MacBeth. The ride was pleasant with Katy Knight at the wheel of the big BYU van.

Every year farmington bay has to be cleared of it's growing carp population and the eagles show up to take advantage of the fresh easy catches. The poison they use affects the oxygen uptake of water animals, so it doesn't harm the eagles who only get smaller doses through ingestion.

I don't have camera equipment that is any where near adequate for this sort of photography so if you want to see some great pics of the eagles check out Dan Ransom's site, a friend of a friend who was up there this last week taking pictures of the eagles, his work is amazing.

Here's a list of the birds we saw this trip:
Canada Goose, Tundra Swan, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Canvasback, Bald Eagle, Northern Harrier, Swainson's Hawk, Red-Tailed Hawk, Rough-Legged Hawk, American Kestrel, Red-Winged Blackbird

Here's some bad pictures:

Webb scopin' with GilBald Eagles hanging out in the trees like vultures.

A mutant Canada Goose, walking behind his gaggle,

and his gaggle

Trying to take a picture of a Rough Legged Hawk through Mr Webb's scope, someday I'll own some nice equipment to make pretty pics. Until then these point and shoot snaps are just barely proof.

Hobnobing it with the govena'.

The Eagle waits to steal fish from the hungry gulls, let them do the work.

Funny to see so many eagles just hanging out with the gulls as if they were.

The best I could do with my 10X zoom on my KonicaMinolta A200

a couple of Swainson's Hawks dining.

We planned with Mr Webb to go down to Delta for the arrival of the snow geese. Every year on the same day tens of thousands of geese stop on the fields and waters between Clear Lake Wildlife Management Area and Delta for a rest during their northern migration. We'll leave the morning of Saturday March 1st, then a couple hour drive and we're there. Let me know if you're interested in coming.

The Science of Shopping

2008-02-07T21:51:00.000-07:00

Everything electronics or computer related I buy, I buy online. I have been an avid online deal-shopper for years now and am often consulted by my family and close friends for ways to get good deals online. A lot of mobile phone companies offer phones for free with contract and a Mail-In-Rebate. In this quest there is one thing you run across that almost always promises the best price possible; yet in such an ugly way, the Mail-In-Rebate (MIR). Most have dealt with them, most hate them too. Usually this sprouts from the six month period that a MIR forces you to wait for the rebate money. Sometimes the manufacturer offers the rebate, sometimes it's the retailer, no matter who offers it, you can guarantee not to get your complete discount for a long time.

Companies offer them for lots of reasons, most of which the wikipedea article on MIRs outlines very well. The dirty secret of MIRs is they make money off procrastinators. Most people who buy with intent to redeem, never do. I remember my first experience with the MIR was a computer microphone that was advertised as FREE after rebate; $10 before. I did redeem, but I have been a rebate procrastinator.

It's only Martenelli's, we swear.

2008-02-05T21:25:00.000-07:00

Thanks Jake & Megan for the frostably frosty mugs, we didn't break them in with floats though, instead chilled off some warm Martenelli's when we both had a stong crave for some juice. Thanks Joseph for the awsome T.

oh yeah, and guess where we sipped it ↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓ thanks again grams and gramps

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa

2008-02-02T23:12:00.000-07:00

Check out the newest of the Andersen's hand-me-down sofa's, now the nicest piece of furniture in our home. What a beaut. I especially love the Nautical color scheme, quite snapper.

Provo Art Stroll

2008-02-02T21:17:00.000-07:00

A bunch of my friends were involved in setting up an Art stroll last night in downtown Provo. Art was displayed. I think all the art will be displayed for the whole month of February, our favorite of which were done by our friend Byron Stout. Except Joe dancing like a tiger is someone else's painting.

International Delete Your MySpace Day

2008-01-30T15:30:00.000-07:00

Someone officially (unofficially) declared that January 30th 2008 should be international delete your MySpace day. Kristy and I both decided to opt in, now we have consolidated our social networking sites to one less.

Facebook, on the other hand is still OK but it may lose me too if the application spam requests don't stop sometime, why does everything have to be MLM!

Update, Wired also has an article on this Jan 30th MySpace killing phenom.

Our First Foie Gras

2008-01-29T10:11:00.000-07:00

Ethan Kawasaki lays it all out once a year for the past few years, all the friends come and enjoy the chumradery. We pay Ethan for the ingredients and he uses all his culinary knowledge and skill to produce this:

The table at the Kawasaki's, soon to be filled with friends.

Delightsome little morsel of crab and avocado on a small crisp.

Foie Gras on top of pidgeon and julienne pear.

A chilled pasta salad, the vegetables were perfect.

The water was at least served in fancy bottles.

Freshly made pomegranate sorbet.

These ribs on risotto were the most tender-delicious beef I have ever eaten.

The pumpkin ice cream inside these puffs was delicious.

Hanging with Mos at Peery's Egyptian

2008-01-25T11:04:00.000-07:00

Last night we went to Peery's Egyptian Theater in Ogden with the Farlands to see Michel Gondry's new movie Be Kind Rewind. The movie is family friendly and quite good despite a few slow spots, overall it felt like a mix of School of Rock and Peter Sellers Pink Panther movies in sillyness. Fun to see the low budget/ghetto style recreations of a bunch of movies and how clever the use of props is. I recommend seeing it.

But every bit as fun as the movie itself was the theater. Peery's Egyptian Theater was built within a year of Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre ( Hollywood, 1922). It is huge (seats 1200) and very finely stylized with huge egyptian murals and they keep the theme throughout.

Pics from the theater:

And the cool guy playing the giant wurlitzer organ for more than an hour before the movie started:

Trailer for Be Kind Rewind:

Collection Status

2008-01-17T07:39:00.000-07:00

I've been able to add over 20 games to the collection over the past week, here are the games stacked, not including boxed games. Feel free to borrow or come play your favorites.

Friends of Camren

2008-01-13T18:20:00.000-07:00

Camren Larson is heading to the MTC this week, here he is at his house after the farewell. He is a friend of mine from high school.

Dinner on a Plank

2008-01-13T18:14:00.000-07:00

Kristy and I went to Alpine tonight to eat dinner with her family, salmon was the menu and Kristy and I wanted to try something, so we got a cut piece of cedar fence (untreated) and soaked it for about an hour:

Then we threw another plank, of salmon on top of the other plank and Q'd it for 20.

It was D-lish.

Starbury Suprise

2008-01-12T20:08:00.000-07:00

Jake and I rolled big city Salt Lake today for a chance at some of the famed Starburys. A line of shoes claimed to be in quality with any Nike shoe, and sold for $14.95, any shoe any style. When we found the place, Steve & Barry's just past 1300 E on 5600 S in Murray, we were pleased to find that it was winter liquidation day. The signs on the front window said everything in the store was 8.98 no exceptions. The shoes were all out of the style I wanted, The Danger, but I found three other pair of shoes all for about $28.00 The downside was the line, which reached around the front and side of the Kmart-sized store.

Here's the style I got three of in green, blue, and red/black:

Birthday Pics

2008-01-10T11:01:00.000-07:00

A few days late, since my birthday was on the 8th.

Fudruckers, my favorite burgers, this is all the family we could round up. Shilo, my brother-in-law shares the same birthday as does Elvis Presley. As you can see one of the two was present at my birthday dinner.

Kristy cooked me a home-made Boston-Cream Pie. All from scratch including the custard filling. It was delicious. Notice I'm wearing my PJ's in both, since I had been in bed for the previous three days straight.

The Niece

2008-01-09T13:54:00.001-07:00

There are many great Kennedys; this one, and possibly the greatest, is my niece Kennedy Peay.

This is here latest face which even more recent than this picture has become an attempt to tear holes directly through her face with her index fingers.

Jenny has her kids trained so well to hate getting dirty that they feel guilty digging into their own cake, lucky her. Don't worry, after coaxing from her Uncle Rice (Ben) she was tearing that cake up.

Chase's Grooms Cake

2008-01-08T22:30:00.000-07:00

If you came to my wedding you saw the shoes of mine that Kristy's friend was able to reproduce with amazing detail. I figured enough people would be interested enough to see Chases Xbox360 cake in it's own post. His cousin's wife made this one. The cake was real, but the controller was based on the rice-crispy platform.

Sick Days

2008-01-08T08:36:00.000-07:00

Every week my friends and I play indoor soccer for a few hours on Thursday night, a couple weeks ago I tweaked my lower back enough to bother me for the past two and a half weeks. The real problem was standing all weekend for various parts of Jennifer's wedding, by Saturday night my back was very painful.

I should mention that this whole thing has happened to me before, about a year ago I went through a few weeks of pain until I started flipping myself upside down on one of those 1970's, strap your ankles in and invert yourself backboards. Mine was given to me by my father's friend. It's called the Gravitron.

Anyways Saturday night about 11 or so Kristy and I decide to crash at her parents house in Alpine rather than make the late drive in snowy conditions home to Orem. Kristy, knowing that I was in pain suggested that I have her dad try and adjust my back. --everyone who just read that with any sense knows the folly of having anyone mess with your back or neck that isn't properly qualified and insured. So do I. Kristy has had chronic neck problems ever since an car accident she was in in her teens. Her father also has had neck problems and they both have been numerous times to chiropractors and Garth has often adjusted Kristy's neck with much success. Well I laid on the floor and he showed me how to position my arms and legs before he started then he gently gave me a little twist and then on the other side. I felt good and went to bed.

The next morning I woke up unable to sit myself up in bed. It was just sore and I took some ibuprofen and went home to take a hot bath. During the bath I must have made the injury worse, because I was unable to move, and started having real difficulty breathing. I just wanted to rule out a broken rib that might cause more internal damage so I went to the Utah Valley Regional Emergency Room, they x-rayed me but ended up getting the wrong x-rays, not wanting to wait another 2-3 hours I just had the doc look at the existing x-rays and rule out a complete break of my rib, from what he could see of my right shoulder x-ray, My ribs looked good, no obvious breaks. Doctor Hooker then prescribed me Oxycodone and told me to rest it for a while. So now in 6 years of working corporate jobs, I have my first chance to use the sick days, which would usually suck, but being drugged up with narcotics has made the time quite enjoyable. I have spent 70 of the last 74 hours in bed, and I also get to spend my birthday (today) home in bed instead of going to work. Blessing in disguise.

Christmas 2007 or Andersen's Second Tree

2008-01-05T18:16:00.000-07:00

I remember the fun of going Christmas Tree shopping with my parents as a kid, and I didn't think that I could ever enjoy it more than I did then. Boy was I surprised, It is such a treat to go crawl through the tree lots looking for the sickly little tree that will fit in our apt. Last year we searched and searched but finally ended up at Baums house (Ted & Liz's neighbors) where we found the greatlest little sapling, this year we headed straight there. What a cutie! and the tree too.

The Rest of the Wedding Day.

2008-01-05T17:02:00.000-07:00

Wow, it was cold.

Jennifer & Chase's Reception

2008-01-05T10:12:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics I snapped during the wedding reception of Kristy's sister Jennifer. I didn't use any flash on purpose so I wouldn't mess up any of the pro photographer's stuff, as a result there is quite a bit of blur because of the dimly lit room. I kind of like the effect on a few of them. Great to welcome a new brother to the family, Chase and I get along great!

Quit the Silver!!

2007-12-20T15:36:00.001-07:00

I have known a few people who are lovers of this homeopathic remedy, and if you want to be a smurf then keep on drinking. The few people I know that use colloidal silver regularly aren't completely blue yet but they may be a little less towards the red tinted spectrum.

Office Space

2007-12-06T09:19:00.000-07:00

Here's where I work and what I work on although it seems I am switching OS's on a regular basis anymore.

Jennifer's Announcement

2007-12-02T14:16:00.001-07:00

Kristy's sister is getting married and so I offered to do the announcements, I did all the photos and layout. The layout is simple but that is kind of what jennifer wanted. Kristy and I both love Jennifer's fiance Chase who she has dated since high school.

The final after a couple hours of work:

This rough draft took about 20 minutes to throw together and post so Jennifer could say what she thought.

I have done three announcements now: Mine, my sister Allie, and now Jennifer. This is my first time doing photography as well. The printing is the best part and most professional since Kristy works at the Printing Resource so we have gotten it all for free. They usually only do high volume (5000+) but they love kristy so much they ran them with their Christmas cards.

Quick Pic.

2007-11-04T17:31:00.000-07:00

Kristy's sister Jennifer asked me to take some engagement photos with her fiance Chase. A great opportunity to sneak a quick pic with my hunns.

Halloween (DRAFT)

2007-11-01T18:16:00.001-06:00

Park City Weekend

2007-09-17T21:58:00.000-06:00

The whole family was a little wound up from preperations for Allie's wedding this last week, and with conditions we we're not able to go on a extended vacation this year with the whole family. Luckily Kristy's mom has a timeshare at the Miner's Club in Park City and she was kind enough to let us use it and helpful in setting it up for us.

We left last thursday and just spent three nights as a family, with the exception of Tristan who had to work and Jessie who could only make one night since she had soccer and cheerleading responsibilities. The room was 3800 square feet and setup perfectly for every family to have a large bedroom and luxurious bathroom all with huge showers and jetted tubs.

The guys were able to keep the shopping time to a minimum, so we were able to play and relax lots. We played the new second edition Disney Scene It game and Kristy led the game with years of daycare experience at her moms.

If you haven't tried Park City's new alpine coaster I think we'd all highly recommend it, my dad called it his favorite ride of all time! It is still somewhat tame as a rollercoaster, but you are on your own cart riding downhill over a mile through some decent turns and drops. The scenery on a late autumn evening was great too.

Since Mandy wasn't feeling too well, she didn't play on the rides but she did get some pictures of the action:

Allie's Wedding

2007-09-12T09:43:00.001-06:00

My sister Allie and her guy Jason were married yesterday in the Salt Lake Temple, I took a few pics:

Some pictures of Kennedy, my niece (and possibly the cutest child alive.) There are also just a few pictures of setting up for the event and some of the picture taking afterwards, I didn't get many since I wasn't one of the hired photographers and I had to be in a lot of the photos.

Jason is a great guy and we are all really excited to have him in the family.

Bob Dylan Movie

2007-09-10T15:46:00.000-06:00

There is a new bob dylan movie in the works in hollywood, which excites me to no end, in comemmeration I would like to share this little clip I saw eariler this year.

I imagine this clip was made by a guy like Joe Harmon in reply to ultimatums made by friends or cousins like Timm Tippets, "tontinos."

Wishlist

2007-09-07T13:49:00.001-06:00

Kristy is always telling me I can be hard to shop for, so I thought I might start posting a few things you could get me for my birthday or Christmas that I'll love.

To start:

24th @ the Peay's

2007-08-21T08:35:00.000-06:00

Old news, and stolen photo. Kristy and I were lucky enough to be driving by Shilo and Jenny's when they started doing fireworks.

Mesa Temple Pageant

2007-08-14T05:44:00.002-06:00

Warning: this is old news! We just were looking through these pictures of Easter Weekend earlier this year, and though these were still good enough to share. We went down to Mesa to stay with my friend Curtis. I know Curtis from my three years in the Latter Day Celebration choir, he now works as a highway patrolman in Mesa.
We planned it Easter weekend specifically so we would be able to see the Mesa pageant, which was much bigger than I would have expected. The highlight of the pageant wasn't the pageant itself as we were way too far to have really enjoyed what was going on onstage. Instead, the street protesters who were yelling out into the crowd right up until the beginning up the show. As you can see from the pics, there were two people (I assume father and son) standing as bookends to the group of protesters. Both dressed up like cartoon devils and holding signs referring to the street preachers as their servants. I don't in any way condone what they did, I don't believe it was very dignified given the situation. It was, however, good at making light of the mocking words of the street protesters.

If you've got time, check out a few more pics I took of these guys:

Missions near the planet SR388

2007-08-13T21:52:00.000-06:00

I know it's not big news, but I have been a fan of the series since my early childhood, Kristy and I have been Wii fans ever since our three day camp-out while waiting in line for a Wii at wal-mart last November for its release. The news is that I purchased the next chapter in the Metroid series: Prime 3 Corruption, through pre-order. Come August 28th you can plan on little social contact with me as I explore Nintendo's latest piece of work.

Our own home makeover response.

2007-07-29T10:33:00.000-06:00

Last weekend Kristy and I were all set to tube the Provo River and just needed to fill up our sofa-raft. So we drove to my parents to use their compressor. When we got there we were a little suprised to learn that since my father had just left to China for a few weeks, my mom was planning on replacing our ugly green carpet. Well we decided to postpone our trip until later that afternoon so that we could help prep the upstairs for the carpet installer who would come later that day. Throughout that week everyone got involved and we had a bunch of people there at any time fixing up the house. Then later the next week we learned that my dads trip had been cut short to only a week so we had to hurry and finish. Most the credit goes to Connie's husband Dave for putting in long hours installing the carpet. Jenny and Liz also put in tons of effort while I just did a few odd jobs and everyone else helped however they could.

Anyway I recorded my dad's reaction to the whole thing, the angles are choppy because I was trying to get natural reaction from my dad and not make him think his reactions had to be canned for posterity.

The Baker's Edge

2007-07-07T13:03:00.000-06:00

Kristy and I saw this pan online a couple of months ago and finally got it after a long back-order. For dinner last Sunday Kristy made vegetable lasagna, quite a treat to have all crispy cheese edges, the all-edge style brownies are great too.

Escalante

2007-06-11T16:21:00.000-06:00

This last week I went hiking with some guys. Kristy wasn't invited due to an all-male rule laid out by those with wives less inclined to backpacking/camping. It was fun, sunny and tiring.

My friend Jared hitting a golf ball or cactus from above Jacob Hamblin arch near Escalante UT.

NES games

2007-06-01T08:56:00.000-06:00

Apart from scooters and Laserdiscs, I also collect Nintendo games, the old 1980's 8bit ones. I have multiple systems, a nintendo robot, the power glove, and about every other periphrial that was ever mad for the NES, unliscensed or liscensed. I don't have a list yet of all the extras, but I do have a list of the games.

Weekend at the ranch

2007-05-08T10:36:00.000-06:00

This last weekend we left work early to go recreate with my family at Shilo's grandparent's ranch in Vernal. The Peay's have a warehouse full of ATVs, a truckload of gasoline, and miles and miles of trails which made for a whole lotta fun. If you look real hard, you can see Liz & Ted.

Birdwatching in Utah Valley

2007-05-02T10:20:00.000-06:00

I was looking through a few of last seasons photos while organizing my computer backup, I think some of these aren't too bad. Kristy and I really enjoy birdwatching and plan on some outings happening soon. Your invited.

Here is a Great Blue Heron catching a fish, we were on scooters with some friends out by the lake when we saw this guy. He got a little spooked by our audience, but after regaining his confidence we watched him snail on up to a fish over five minutes then finally make the quick stab.

Killdeer on the shore of Utah Lake protecting her rocks(disguised eggs). The mother sat quietly for a few minutes while we were watching some other birds, but the moment one of us inched too far, she went berserk and showed the red feathers in aggresive defense.

You may have to click this one to see it, but I failed as a photographer on this one. It's a cormorant, we saw him sitting out on some floating matter, drying his wings. He only flew close enough a couple of times and this is the best I could do. I think I may invest in a better telephoto lens this year.

Here are a couple of UVSC's famous cliff swallow population. A federally protected species that UVSC seems to flip-flop on whether to embrace the population or obliterate it. Daily Herald story last year about trying to enamel the swallows out of nesting grounds, while just last year UVSC publically mad a decision to let the swallows stay.

Check back for more as the season develops.

New Rig

2007-02-27T16:13:00.000-07:00

Kristy and I got a new car after her volvo got rear-ended. Kristy's doing fine.

Out with the old, in with the new!

2006-11-03T16:15:00.000-07:00

That's right, after almost 4 years of work at the Utah Valley Hospital, I quit my job to move on to greeneer pastures:

I was offered a job at LexisNexis, a technology company that specializes in background checks and investigations. I now support their network and computers the best I can. The great thing about the job, other than it pays alot more, is that I con be full time now and part time while finishing school, so it will make it a whole lot easier on Kristy and I for me to finish.

The blessings are many and Kristy and I are very happy. Please call us or stop by some time and say Hi, unless you are our enemy and please stay away.

día del trabajador

2006-09-07T13:17:00.000-06:00

Labor Day was again a camping trip for the terrible sixsome, although this time broken up by the newestly weds: Ethan and Sara. Ethan's super-spicy chili and a couple rounds of scum were the highlights of the evening. Since we got there so late there wasn't much else to do.

Sran Fan Sisco

2006-08-28T14:07:00.000-06:00

Kristy and I had a chance to break off from the rest of the family this last vacation and flee down south a bit. We just visited our own San Francisco tourist spots, including the cantonese shops in chinatown and the philipino section of Daly City. Siya ang aking bebot kasi.

Thousands have died in this city. Literally. Now Kristy and I can visit and be a part of it all. Thanks San Fran. Thanks China Town. Thanks Warf.

We'd also like to congratulate the golden gate on this, it's anniversary year.

Oregon Coast

2006-08-24T06:10:00.000-06:00

The Little Man and the Sea

Newlywed Pose

Jessie's hands full of baby dungeness crabs

Kristy and I were able to drive up and join our family for the last part of their Oregon/Washington vacation the last couple weeks in July. We met them in Tilamook and drove out to the coast, we crabbed, played, shopped, and ate. With us were Jenny and Shilo and their two children: Presley and Kennedy, and my parents along with my sisters Allie and Jessie.

Car Camp Trip #1

2006-08-21T16:18:00.000-06:00

Just to keep you updated on all the fun we're having all the time. Pioneer day weekend, Kristy&I went camping in Spanish Fork canyon with Jared&Erin Malan and Jacob&Megan Knudsen. It was enjoyable, we played scum, moved trees and Jared found a rock hammer. Way to go Jared.

Santo Jorge trip

2006-08-21T16:04:00.000-06:00

Here are some pics of my parents new home from Kristy and I's last visit to the Saint George. We were down there with Kristy's family and had time to check out the new place and squirt off the sidewalk...Looks great mom!

Over the Weekend

2006-08-21T14:23:00.000-06:00

This last weekend, charming I,and ultra-charming Kristy desired to conquer a beast. The name was Timpanokee. We outfitted our party with what little we could come up with, a few litres of water and some atkins bars, and a camera. Then we set out Saturday Morning 5:30 to meet up with a couple of Kristy's work collueges, wait, then drive to the trail head. We finally got started around 7 and hiked in great tempratures all the way up.

Towards the top Kristy started to fatigue, probably due to the fact that we had only eaten what turned out to be Atkins bars all morning (low carbs and low sugar). But a little rest, a suprise blessing, and a hikers cookie later and we made it swiftly to the top.

It was great fun and we were done by about 3:30, Kristy's first time to the top and my sixth, although it was my first time to hike the timpanokee trail (the other times were all on the Stewart Falls trail.

John, Greg, Kristy and I

Greg, John, Kristy and I

in the lighting shack on top

we saw a moose.