One Man's Junk…

Today’s word of the day is idiomatic expression… okay, technically that’s two words, but they’ve been going through my mind all weekend. Especially that one that goes “One man's junk is going to make me a lot of money.” That may not be exactly the way the saying goes, but you gotta love a garage sale!

Mom had some boxes of mine from college and of things that I didn't take with me when I moved a couple of years ago. It was oddly emotional going through my things that I had collected thinking they would prepare me for life. Funny how different life changes. Not worse, just different. There were lots of things that I was able to purge although it did cost a tear or two. I donated clothes that were too small and most of my Christmas decorations and a few items left over from my Pampered Chef days. And, I probably didn’t need any of my old stuffed animals anymore, but I did keep just one. It’s a teddy bear angel in pretty white dress... how do you say goodbye to something at cute as that?!

The random things that people put out to sell never cease to amaze me. In the case of this weekend, that junk is all mine, and Tricia’s, and Chris’s, and Mom’s, and even a little of Dad’s.

It was after working the second day I was reminded to be careful, and “Don't count your chickens before they hatch.” And for patience during the lulls, that “All good things come to those who wait.” But, especially helpful to a garage salesman is that “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” And my all time favorite, “One man's junk made me a lot of money!” Well, I’m pretty sure there’s still something ‘off’ about that last one, but it also has a certain ring of truth to it!

"I'm goin' to Boise!!"

My long weekend in Boise highlights: shopping, "Twelfth Night", Payette Scenic Byway, Cascade Reservoir, Cheesecake Factory, "My Life In Ruins", "Post Grad" and a toffee crunch apple at the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory.

For our Boise trip we got this GREAT hotel near the freeway on Priceline.com for only $38. I love deals! We had a very pretty suite. When you walk in, there’s a sitting room with a couch and flat screen TV and then you pass through into the bedroom with the comfy-est beds! First thing Friday after checking into our hotel we went shopping. Friday was a pleasant but pricey day :)

Later we attended the Idaho Shakespeare Festival. I know. I know. "Idaho" and "Shakespeare" together is just begging to be mocked, but they've been going for over 35 years and I thought they did a great job of "Twelfth Night." I especially enjoyed the leading lady who played Olivia. At the play we took the first of our many self portraits. It turned into a joke for us since we had to take so MANY of them to get both of our faces at the SAME time :)

Saturday we took a little road trip on the Payette River Scenic Byway that passes through Horseshoe Bend (population 700), Banks (population 10-ish... it's just where you put in for rafting trips... get it? Banks.), Cascade Reservoir and McCall (population 2,000). It was quite a pretty drive with the Payette River and reservoirs and lakes and mountains and meadows and the evergreens. I wish you could see how narrow the road was and how tall the pine trees stood. It was awesome!

We stopped at Cascade Reservoir for a picnic lunch and really loved the sandy beaches and the boats on the water were beautiful.

McCall must have some crazy property tax because the lake and grounds and boardwalk are gorgeous! SUCH a pretty town! We took A LOT of self-portraits trying to get a rockin’ picture for our rockin’ Christmas card. I guess you’ll just have to wait and see which trip we use a picture from, but this trip sure had a lot of goofy pictures to pick from :).

It's our tradition to find a Cheesecake Factory on our vacations. We like to split an entree so we can get our own slice of cheesecake :). Chris is trying out the Chocolate Raspberry Truffle with layers of Chocolate Cake, Chocolate-Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake, Chocolate Mousse and Chocolate Ganache. Yummmmm! Chocolate-y! And I tried Stefanie's Ultimate Red Velvet Cheesecake with layers of Red Velvet Cake and Cheesecake covered with special Cheesecake Factory cream cheese frosting. Soooooo Tasty! After our long drive through the country side we stopped in at the Cheesecake Factory and ordered "My Life in Ruins" at our hotel. This weekend we also got to see "Post Grad" at Edwards Cinema 21.

Our vacation felt more like a week than three days because we managed to squeeze in so much. You know that feeling when you think, "Oh my goodness, I can't believe this morning I was at work!!" after you just drove to the city, went shopping and watched a play in an outdoor theater. It was an awesome way to end the summer :).

Fair Week memoirs: an ode to fair food

Whew! Fair week is crazy! Wednesday especially: we had the Cassia County parade and it passes right in front of the office. The realtors moved out every office chair in the building to mark our spot in front of the building so that way fifteen minutes before the parade we could turn on the answering machine and go watch the parade. It's nice because our families join us and it's like a big company picnic where people bring us candy :). And boy!, they had a lot of candy this year. One guy I knew in the parade came up to me and dropped a handful of candy right into my hands, and I didn't have to get up and race the little kids for it either!

Then later Henry (one of the realtors) brought me back a maple bar from the Fair. I love fair food! It's like that song from Charlotte's Web that Templeton the rat sings, "A Veritable Smorgasbord" about all the kinds of things you can find to eat at a fair! But, my favorite is the maple bars when they're still warm. Yum! After I got done with work, I went to the Fair to work at the Fair Booth. Our stake has a booth that sells food and the proceeds go to the youth groups and help pay for girls’ camp and scout camp. This year Mom and Dad were asked to arrange the volunteers for the day our ward serves food. They didn't quite get all the volunteers they thought they needed, so I told them I could come just for two hours. I figured if they could work from 9 am to 11 pm then I could help out for a few hours. I really gave my new ankle a work out and it didn't let me down although my old foot was stiff the next day. Still, on the way home I stopped for some cotton candy and that's my second most favorite part of the fair, so I managed to do all my favorites in one day: Parade, candy, maple bars, and cotton candy!

Thursday I went back for lunch with Henry (a realtor… who’s about 70 years old so don't get any ideas) and I had a West Stake Special (the specialty burger at our booth with fried onions and ham) and corn on the cob at the Lions club (they actually DIP it in a vat of butter!). Then on Friday I went back for dinner with Tricia to go through the 4H Arts and Crafts building and the Art building. Really, where else will you find prized sugar beets?!

Then we had dinner. The key to eating Fair food is having someone that will split it with you. So we split a funnel cake, a snow cone, a fresh lemonade, hand dipped corn dogs (we EACH had one of those), a gyro, AND a scone with honey butter. We were going to try for a maple bar too but after thirty minutes in a line and only moving ten feet, we decided we were “full” :).

You gotta love the Cassia County Fair!

My Saturday Indulgences

Don't you just love pampering yourself?! Maybe you read a good book with a tasty snack at hand. Maybe you go on adventures with awesome nephews and nieces. Maybe you sleep snuggled in bed 'til noon on your day off. Okay, so I do all of those things too, but I recently indulged in a fabulous haircut by Tricia. There's something about the relaxing massage when she washes my hair and the feeling of lightness after I've got all that length trimmed off that just makes me feel like a new woman. Thanks Trish!!!

Daniel and Loriel's Visit

Last week my nephew and niece, Daniel and Loriel, came to visit. I still had to go to work, but every evening I joined them for something fun. Monday night we went out to Oakley for the play Paint Your Wagon. It was different than the movie, which was nice. But, it had all the same music, which was cool. Our favorite line was when a young girl was trying to convince her dad she wasn't a kid anymore. She told him, "I'm feeling more adulterous everyday." Pretty sure that word doesn't mean what she thinks it does :).

Tuesday we went to the ward summer social where we had sloppy joes and the activity committee rented a bouncy ball castle and a HUGE blow up water slide and sumo wrestling suits. Daniel and Loriel each took a turn trying to pound some of the other kids. As Daniel would say, "Ikimashou!" (ee key ma show), which means Start! in Japanese. Daniel held his own but Loriel would fall over like a feather. She just couldn't get her center of balance. So, so, so fun!


Wednesday night they came over to my house to roast marshmallows and Starbursts. Have you ever had a Starburst roasted over hot coals? They crystallize on the outside and are soft and gooey on the inside. Tasty! Daniel built the fire and Loriel took lots of great pictures with her new camera. My favorite moment was when I heard her pull her latest marshmallow out of the fire, "My first puffy one!" as opposed to her previously 'well-done' ones :).


Thursday Daniel and Loriel caught me on facebook at work (oops!) while they were on Grandma's account looking at Mackley reunion pictures. The funny thing was that I didn't KNOW it was them and not Grandma until the third time Loriel referred to herself as the "most coolest awesomest nicest person." Grandma may think that's true, but she wouldn't have quite... phrased... it in that way :). We made plans to meet up at Gossner for ice-cream cones and dinner at the Upper Crust. I tried a new sandwich, the Turkey Avocado, and yes it was as good as it sounds!

Friday night we celebrated Daniel's birthday Burley-style. We all got together for dinner and Grandma made an oatmeal cake with chocolate chips (don't knock it 'til you try it!) that she used to make for his Dad.

Later Grandma wanted to update her pictures of Daniel and Loriel (they have their own collage frame), so we went to a park in downtown near city hall and the courthouse building for a little photo shoot. I visited my friend Michelle's photography website for ideas and even though they're not as good as a professional (duh!), I still feel pretty happy about them.It was tricky finding shade though. There was one time we were trying to position Daniel so the sun would be on his face and it turned into a game of Mother May I. "Daniel, take one baby step forward. Good; almost there. Now take one baby step to your left. No, YOUR left." Thank goodness they're such good sports! They even each gave me a hug afterward :).


Saturday morning was the highlight of the week as we supported Tricia as she participated in the Spudman (a mile long swim, 25 mile run, and 6 mile run!!!). Originally, she didn't want to make a big deal of it and we were just going to meet her as she came out of the water and transitioned to the bike. However, it was a FAST swim because of the current in that stretch of the river. She could swim it faster than we could walk to the transition :). Needless to say, most of the family missed her coming out of the water because she thought it would take 40 minutes and it only took 25. The kids were disappointed, so Grandma took them out on the bike route and they waited for Tricia to pass and got to cheer her on. I was waiting for her at the next transition and she told me she was feeling great (she was ignoring the fact that she couldn't feel her legs) and she was going to go ahead and finish with the run. The kids had such a great time cheering on Tricia, and we heard several of the athletes thanking them because it was nice to have someone cheering them on enroute. All in all, a fabulous week :)