kelly and her boys

i made a last-minute trip to utah to see nick. delta offered me a great deal and i took it. i left saturday from orange county and flew into salt lake. i rented a car, drove to nick’s apartment and went right to dinner with nick, his friend joel, and joel’s girlfriend tarah. we had a great time and a lovely dinner at the olive garden. afterwards, we went bak to nick’s apartment, he changed and got ready for his concert, and joel and tarah went on to the second half of their date.

when nick was ready, we walked to campus together to the harris fine arts center. he gave me a mini tour of campus along the way. then i had the amazing opportunity to see nick perform again with the byu men’s chorus. the women’s chorus went first, then the men’s chorus. it was the best! i loved every minute of it, especially watching my son perform and use his talent. the songs were inspiring, moving, funny, and fun. they received a standing ovation and it was very well deserved!

after the totally amazing concert, we viewed our friend kati ellis’ photography exhibit. it was beautiful, and very fun to know the people in all of the pictures. then we took  the long way home and i got another mini tour of another part of campus. we went into the eyring science building to see the giant pendulum. what is it about those things that makes you want to watch them for so long? we had a nice chat and i left nick at his apartment so he could go to work at 11:00. (poor guy) i drove on to denise’s in orem and it was fun to see her and chat for a bit before heading off to bed. i was exhausted.

sunday morning i met a wonderful girl. corrin is the girl that has stolen kenneth’s heart. she’s a great girl and i was so impressed at the wonderful young lady kenneth has chosen to spend his life with. she even loves him, too! we only had about an hour to visit, but i knew in that short time that she was the right girl for kenneth. i’m excited to get to know her better.

after that was church with denise and bruce. it was a great meeting. when we got home from church, denise and i (mostly denise) worked on getting dinner ready while bruce worked on moving his photos to the new iphoto, and kept the lovely church music going. then, i went to pick up nick for dinner. kelly (my nephew) came to dinner, too and he barbecued the ham steaks while i was out getting nick. we has a lovely dinner (as always at denise’s house-she’s a great cook).

we spent some time with the family talking and such, then nick and i took off to the basement and had a nice long chat together. that was the best. i just love that one-on-one time. i took him home around 11:30, and of course got weepy when he had to leave. our weekend together was over. it was the best, though.

more later…

now it’s wednesday the 18th. i’ll finish my post;

monday morning i got to sleep in a bit, but my body is so used to getting up early that i really didn’t sleep, just rested. denise had a meeting to go to at 9, so she was off pretty early. i didn’t have to leave fro the airport till 11:30 so i called colby to see if i could stop by and say hi. i missed him on saturday because he had a date. so, lucky for me he was free. so, i packed up, said goodbye to bruce and went over to colby’s apartment.

when i arrived i soon discovered that bryce (his brother) was there, too. so i got to visit with both of them for about and hour. what fun! they kept me laughing! it was great to see them. then i was off to the airport. i was a bit nervous about returning my car and getting to my plane on time. but, it all went very well and i arrived in plenty of time. (you can tell i’m not a frequent flyer or car renter.)

while on my flight i was thinking about how amazing airplanes are and i was so grateful for all the past scientists and “smart people” that made it possible for me to spend two days so far away, and not have to spend so much time traveling there. airplanes are truly a modern miracle. i was even thinking about how they try to seat you comfortably, bring you food and drinks, play movies or tv shows to entertain you, and there’s even a little light above your head and air to blow on you if you’re warm. i am very grateful. i wish i could afford to do it more often!

and, no, i didn’t take any pictures. i took two cameras but never used them. i so wish i had!

i have been undergoing a “lifestyle” change for the past year and a half. so many people don’t understand my choices, so here is my opportunity to explain.

in may of 2007 i took a nutrition class at saddleback. at the time, the sole purpose of taking the class was to fill a requirement for my degree. it was an 8 week class, condensed from the normal semester-long course. (i like the shorter, speedier way of going to school.) well, this class changed my life. i learned so much about diet , nutrition, and health that it sent me searching for more. once i understood how foods react in our bodies, i took a closer look at what i was eating and why i was eating it.

then, around the beginning of 2008 i talked with a friend who has been living a (mostly) vegetarian lifestyle for some time. i asked her what made her choose that and she told me about her husband’s struggle with high blood pressure and how he didn’t want to take medication to fix it. they found a couple of books that they shared with me to show me what they had learned.

the first book is called “original fast foods” and the second one is “the china study” (there’s more to the title, but a search will bring up the right book title for you.) i read the first one and was impressed by this man’s story and realized that there was some truth there. it also talked about many things i had been thinking about since my nutrition class. then i read the china study and was equally impressed. it was like that doctor was in my head. the actual research aside, his findings and personal views seemed to hit home to me.

then, i not only became interested in a vegetarian diet, but i started moving toward a vegan diet. i lost 30 lbs almost without trying. i have never lost that much weight at once, ever! i also noticed how my face has cleared up and how i don’t seem to get sick anymore, even when my family is sick. i feel better, i sleep better, and i love finding new fun recipes that are absolutely delicious!

my family hasn’t made the change with me. they, along with most of my friends, think i’m crazy. one friend even said, “i don’t understand why you’re making yourself miserable.” i, however, am not miserable and i feel so much better than i have in a long time!

i did give up junk food-sweets, fast food, etc. i don’t miss it. seriously. when i think about how completely useless, and mostly harmful it is to me, i don’t even want it! try looking up the nutrition facts for your favorite fast foods. you will be shocked at how very incredibly unhealthy it is! for example, an in-n-out vanilla shake is 900 calories. that’s half the day’s calories in one drink! and, what benefit do you get? nothing. maybe a bit of calcium, but is it worth all the fat and calories?

i don’t consider myself a true vegan or vegetarian. i’m somewhat of a mix of the two. i do, however, have meat on occasion. i try to make it a healthier choice like salmon or chicken. but i will admit, an occasional burger is good, too. it is a very rare occasion now, though.

i have recently discovered the most amazing thing. non-hydrogentaed butter and shortening. yippee! it is rather pricey, but so much better for you. no trans fat! the world could definitely do without trans fat. whoever came up with that horrible stuff definitely did us all a great injustice. the non-hydrogenated stuff works exactly like it’s unhealthy counterpart. you will not notice a difference. it is so amazing! ok, it is still butter and shortening, both fats, but anything in moderation is ok, right? to me, moderation is too liberal a word, the word should be “sparingly.” i don’t use much shortening, but since my family still eats the old way, i do have to try and add some healthier alternatives. hence the non-hydrogenated butter.

i have enjoyed finding vegan substitues for my “regular” family meals. i purchased a fun cookbook called “vegan with a vengeance”. i love her corn chowder! chowder that is milk-free and cheese-free is soooo amazing! and you thought it couldn’t be done. you’d be surprised at how much better the vegan stuff tastes. and, you will be doing yourself a huge, healthy favor.

i also look for recipes that are naturally meat and dairy-free. i made pasta last night and replaced the meat with bell peppers. yum!!! i used red, green, and yellow, sliced them up and sauteed them in a bit of olive oil until they were crisp-tender, tossed the pasta sauce on top and ladled it over some penne pasta (whole wheat pasta, of course). it was so good! i found the recipe online. i also found other equally amazing recipes online. i have a tortilla soup recipe (vegan, of course) that is the best tortilla soup i have ever had. and, yes, i’ve tried a lot of them.

well, i guess that’s enough for now. i hope this helps you understand my new choices a little better. i am totally happy with my new “lifestyle”. it has made all the difference to me.

yippee! now i’m back in business. where was it? it was in my purse. i forgot i had put it in there when we went to utah. i was asking doug and clayton if they knew where it was and it suddenly came to me that i had taken it with me on our trip. i didn’t use it while we were there, so i forgot about it. i’m glad i didn’t have to buy a new one.

here are the pictures i left out of my last post:

this is hunter running the video for air guitar and below is clayton at the lighting board.

now for the group shot. i should’ve taken my better camera, but you get the idea. note the amazing lights and the truss. the students did it all themselves.

clayton is five from the left, standing in the very back. hunter is far left on the floor. sorry, i know it’s bad. lesson learned. take the good camera for stuff like this.

here is the awesome picture of my boys at nick’s men’s chorus concert.

this is just outside the provo tabernacle. it was so cold in utah that night. well, really cold to our southern california blood, anyway. i just really loved that night. i’m so glad we took the time to be there.

now we’re back up to date!

i wanted to add some pictures but i can’t find my sd card reader. my somewhat ancient computer can’t read the new cards. so, until i find mine, or buy a new one, a “text only” post will have to do.

tonight clayton and hunter are working the “air guitar” show at school. clayton is running the lighting board and hunter is on video. they are part of the lighting and sound crew. this is their big show of the year. they have been working getting everything ready for the past 2 weeks. we get to see the show tomorrow night.

dana hills has one of the best lighing and sound opportunities in a high school setting. the equipment they use is high tech and some is rented from the company that does the grammys. they use a whole hog lighting board and the students are instructed in its use. the experience has paid off for nick, he was on the crew when he was in high school and now he has a job at byu that allows him to use those skills. he even got a slightly-higher-than-starting pay rate because he didn’t need training.

i’m excited for clayon and hunter and can’t wait to see the show. yes, it is just like it sounds. “air guitar” is lip synching and dancing to music. some of the acts are quite amazing. this year there’s a pokemon act and a bohemian rhapsody act. so, it can be anything, and it usually is. this is the 22nd year of dana hills’ air guitar. i’m glad my boys get to be a part of it. maybe i’ll have found my card reader by the time i want to post air guitar photos.

byu men’s chorus

we went to utah january 29-31 to see nick performing with the men’s chorus. i have a great picture of my boys with nick in his men’s chorus blazer, but alas, my card reader is missing. we had such a great time in utah. we stayed with bruce and denise at the “hotel redd”. seriously, staying at their house is better than any five star hotel. hunter played in the snow but it was a bit too hard to make a snowman or to throw snowballs. however, he managed to make a very awesome snow angel. (i wish i had taken a picture.)

clayton used his amazing computer skills and helped denise with her computer. she learned all kinds of great things and is much more computer savvy now. he helped work out some bugs they were having with their computers and got them all up to speed. i don’t even know all the things he did, but he was busy and they are happy. he sure is a handy guy to have around.

friday night was nick’s concert. it was in the provo tabernacle. the men’s chorus, women’s chorus, concert choir, and byu singers all performed. it was so fabulous! it was worth the 10-11 hour drive there! saturday doug and i took nick shopping and got him all stocked up on food and also got him some new jeans. he was so happy. food is a great thing to a poor college student.

we drove home saturday afternoon and made it home in 8 1/2 hours. i thought we were driving, but apparently we were flying. doug drove the whole way. it’s a miracle that we didn’t get a ticket! it was a quick trip, but so worth it. i didn’t want to leave nick there, but i did, of course. he has a great apartment and he’s so close to school and shopping that i didn’t feel so bad about sending him to school without a car. he’s doing very well and i’m excited for him to be moving closer to his degree and his goal of becoming a math professor. we might go back in april to see another concert.

clayton had his eagle scout board of review last night and he passed! woo hoo! he is pictured here with rich wheatfill, who was in charge of the board and who also happens to be our family dentist. what luck!

it was an honor to sit in front of the board and talk about my amazing son. i am so proud of his accomplishment. it was also great to hear the letters that were written to the board about him. it was a humbling experience to hear how his leaders, friends, and teachers perceive him. i am so grateful for the amazing people in his life who have encouraged, taught, and helped shape who he is. i’m thankful to all of you who love him and appreciate him. this was a great day!

congratulations clayton! you are amazing!

on december 19th, we had our family photo shoot with kip. he is such an amazing photographer. i’m so lucky! here are a few of my favorites:

of couse, the one i’m sending in my new year’s card isn’t here. gotta keep that one a surprise.
this was a fun photo shoot. we were a bit chilly, but i don’t think it shows in the pictures. thanks, kip, for another amazing year of pictures!

we’ve had wet and “cold” (for california) weather lately and i’m loving it! right now it is raining and 47 degrees. my only christmas wish since i moved to california 30 years ago is to have cold weather. i just might get my wish this year! last year was pretty close, but this year looks much more promising. for all my friends who get to experience 4 seasons, maybe you’ll understand that this tennessee girl has never been able to get used to the warm so. cal winter weather. maybe you wish you could have a warm christmas? but, for me, just as the song says, “a tender tennessee christmas is the only christmas for me”. maybe i’ll get to have my “tennessee christmas” in california! we’ll have to wait and see…

monday night we had fun decorating our tree together. doug did his one job of bringing the tree in. clayton and nick put the lights on. hunter was trying to finish homework so he joined us after the lights were on.

then doug watched as the boys and i put the ornaments on. of course, i was taking the pictures. so, you only see the boys here.

when we were done i asked the boys to stand by the tree for a picture. this is what i got…

what a bunch of goofs!

now we have a lovely tree and our house smells like christmas. yay!

(hey, i seem to be getting the hang of this picture thing!)

as you can see in my previous post i added a picture. well, it was more difficult to do than i expected. i still have some bugs to work out. but, i’m one step closer than before. i’ll get it eventually.