The 12 Pictures of Sundstrom Christmas 2009

The 12 Pictures of Sundstrom Christmas - in no particular order

The first picture one of our two Christmas Trees -

The Second and Third Pictures of Christmas - Steve and I went to dinner at Trolley Square and since there was no Santa there we thought it was the perfect spot for a Christmas picture.

The Fourth Picture of Christmas - is a photo of one of the two Cheesecakes Steve made during the Holiday's - one for a dinner party early in December, and one for Christmas Eve - Yummy!

The Fifth Picture of Christmas - was taken on my surprise Christmas Present/Trip from Steve - Kim also surprised Dave - and we went to Las Vegas the weekend before Christmas, this is us in our cool 3-D glasses prior to the screening of Avatar - As we left the Theater Steve stated that it might be the

"Best Movie Ever"

The sixth picture of Christmas - also comes from our surprise trip to Las Vegas - Chicken and Waffles at Hash House a Go Go - very yummy!

The Seventh picture of Christmas - Old English Pudding - that we served on Christmas Eve! - It had been a goal of Steve's to find a recipe and make it, on December 23rd as we were finishing some last minute shopping at Gardner Village we found some at the Naborhood Bakery and prepared that instead - much easier than finding our own Beef Suiett... not sure that we will add it to the menu every year but it was fun to try.

The Eighth Picture of Christmas, Evan, on Christmas morning with his new guitar... What more could you ask for.

The Ninth Picture of Christmas - Christmas morning before the sheet came down at my parents house. CJ, Mark and Aurora - getting excited to in and see what Santa has brought.

The Tenth Picture of Christmas - Grandpa and Aurora, watching everyone open up their presents, and maybe taking a little nap :)

The Eleventh Picture of Christmas - Uncle Steve and Aurora resting up after so much work opening all the presents.

The Twelfth Picture of Christmas - we finally went to see the Christmas Lights last night ... it was a great way to wrap up a joyous Holiday Season.

We hope that all of you had a very Merry Christmas as Well !

Aurora

I'm so sleepy why are you taking my picture?
MMM... Daddy's Thumb

Christmas is Coming

Check out this ornery look... I got it from my Daddy..

Can't believe that our little niece Aurora is already one month old... so precious!

A few of the many reasons I love Steve

I got home from work on Wednesday and Steve had not only cleaned the house but he had this little Christmas Flower arrangement and some of my favorite cookies waiting for me.

But I love him for a lot more reasons than the fact that he is thoughtful and buys me flowers often. One of the other many reasons I love him is for his talent and love of music.

So, if you didn't know Steve loves music, he likes to write songs, and collaborate on songs. Many years before I met Steve his brother wrote this song, and Steve collaborated in recording it. Take a listen I think it may be one of the greatest holiday songs of all time.



You may want to go to the bottom of the blog and pause the other music playing before clicking on the link.

Thankful for My Family

So today at work I had to sit through a conference call about Childhood Violence, and the effects it has on children. Things like abuse, kidnapping, sibling abuse, dating violence, sexual victimization, exposure to violence at school etc.... not much fun. Then we went on to talk about internet safety for children etc. Also I was talking to my good friend Kathleen about some of the kids she has been seeing in her new ward, and the challenges they are facing.

It is overwhelming to think how many kids have to struggle just to have a "normal" life, some of the horrors that kids see today are just overwhelming, and at work sometimes it is so easy to get caught up in all the bad... and forget the good.

So today, in the spirit of Thanksgiving and all I am grateful for I wanted to take a minute to thank my family. I have so many wonderful people that loved and supported me throughout my life, and I am so grateful to Steve's family and all the love and support that he received, and that we both continue to receive. This love and support has really made him a great husband, uncle etc.

In closing today I am particularly grateful for my little brother and his new family. Aurora is beautiful and truly represents all the hope that there is in this world. Congratulations Mark and Cera - good luck, I know you will be great parents.

Johnson Mill Inn

So when Steve and I got married we waited almost two weeks before heading on our honeymoon. But, we did want to do something right after we got married so we headed up to Midway for a couple of nights at the Johnson Mill Inn. This year we decided it would be fun to go back up for a night to celebrate our anniversary.

They have a paddle boat that guests can use, and while there three years ago, I begged Steve to go out and he said no, this year I prevailed much to his dismay.

In addition to the paddle boat ride we were able to walk around the grounds and see several deer.

And spend a wonderful evening together, followed by a fabuolous homemade breakfast of stuffed french toast.

Pumpkin

One of Steve's favorite things about fall is pumpkin. Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, pumpkin pie shakes, pumpkin bread... and yes even pumpkin pancakes.

So this week Steve and I had Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday off work. Partly to celebrate our third anniversary, and partly because Steve has a lot of time he needs to take off before the end of the year, and it is just fun to have some days off.

Tuesday morning we got up and went to the Original Pancake House in Sugarhouse one of our favorites.... and Steve got his pumpkin pancakes.

On a side note, I noticed that they are serving crepes for the Holiday Season!!! So we will probably be going back soon so I can get one of my favorites.

Halloween in St. George - October 31st, 2009

The past couple of years, Jill has gone down to St. George to help with a 5k Run/Walk that benefits the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah office in St. George, which helps match almost 200 at risk children with a volunteer Big Brother or Big Sister, someone to be a mentor to them.



This year, Jill persuaded me into joining her for the trip and we both decided that we'd participate in running and/or walking the 5k. For me, it really was much more walking than running, but it was a lot of fun and took place in a beautiful setting, with the rising sun coming up against the red rocks of the landscape.

We had a lot of fun spending a couple of days in St. George and are looking forward to returning there next year to do the 5k again.

Train

So, about a year ago, Pat Monahan came in concert to The Depot - Steve and I went and I must say it was probably one of the best concerts I have ever been to. For those of you who don't know Pat is the lead singer of Train, most people in Salt Lake didn't know that either, so there were very few people there that first night.

Last Thursday, Train came back to The Depot, and so of course Steve and I went back. The show was great, one of the best things about it was the interaction that Pat had with the crowd, and the fact that he played for a full 2 1/2 hours in spite of being under the weather.


What a great night!

And don't tell Steve, but wow that Pat Monahan is so cute...no Steve... but nonetheless I have a bit of a crush.

Field Trip

So, today I had the treat of joining my "little sister" on her after-school program field trip to the Pumpkin Patch.

It was pretty fun, we got to do a hay maze, a corn maze, learn about pumpkins and then pick out a small pumpkin.







I must say though I don't remember the school buses being so small - my knees were scrunched up into my chest, nor do I remember kids being so noisy - I have a new respect for those after school leaders.

But, all in all it was a great way to spend the afternoon.

What a Beautiful Night & Catching Up

So, over the last few months I have been visiting Summit and Wasatch Counties almost weekly for work. And, every fall when I get the opportunity to go up there I think wow how beautiful is the state that we live in? So finally I took a few pictures on my phone as I was driving down the past couple of times.



I am so grateful for moments like the one above in life, that make you stop... even when your mind is going a million miles per minute, and realize how lucky you are.

Steve and I have been so busy with work lately it feels like we haven't even had a chance to tell each other about the fun things going on much less any people that might read this blog so I thought I would give a quick update.

My mom and I hosted a baby shower for CJ at the beginning of the month. Baby girl Aurora is due in about two weeks - getting excited to meet her.


My cute little (okay adult) cousin Jenni had her baby boy Alex... isn't he precious (first great grandchild, which I can tell you from experience is a great thing to be)


Steve and I went to see the English Beat in Concert


I went to Midway with my book club - picture of the Homestead Scarecrow Festival


And yesterday my Dad turned 55 - Happy Birthday Dad, sorry I forgot to take any pictures.

Besides being busy though you can see that life has been pretty good!

Found this today and wanted to share it! (scroll down to the bottom of the page and pause the audio on the playlist before playing this...otherwise you'll hear the audio from two different songs going at once)


"And these children that you spit on
As they try to change their worlds
Are immune to your consultations
They're quite aware of what they're going through..."

Yellow Jackets Part Two

So, Steve and his brother cut our drywall out on Thursday to remove the yellow jacket nest. The following is what they found, including more live yellow jackets.






Seriously, I can't believe that was living in the wall of my kitchen, I am so grateful that I was at work the day they pulled it all out. You just never know what owning a home will bring I guess.

Thank you to both Dave and Steve for just getting it taken care of!

Fun with the Wasps!!!

Last year, one of our neighbors had a situation where a hive of wasps had built a nest behind the vinyl siding on the outside of their kitchen bay window over the kitchen sink. Those pesky wasps had eventuall burrowed through the dry wall and started moving into the kitchen one by one. My dad and I ran over to help them, and threw a quick patch of dry wall putty over the hole to keep the wasps out until they could call an exterminator to come try to kill the nest.

Well, this year Jill and I have been having similar issues. These wasps could be seen flying in and out of a few tiny spaces in the vinyl siding, and we knew there had to be a nest in there somewhere, but the real challenge was how to kill the nest. About two weeks ago, we called an exterminator company called Beeline Pest Control to see if they could come find a way to kill the nest. The guy came, sprayed the area, and then told us to wait 5 to 7 days to see if he had been successfull. A week went by and the dang wasps were still extremely active flying in and out of the nest. So, we called and arranged for them to come out again and try to kill the nest. Afterall, they "guarantee" that they will keep coming back until they get the nest. The guy came over this morning and sprayed in the hole again for about 20 minutes straight. Jill waited around while the exterminator completed the job and then had to leave for work. When we came home tonight, we heard a lot of buzzing noises and found a few wasps in the INSIDE of the kitchen window. Where were they coming from? All of a sudden Jill realized where the wasps were. They were INSIDE of the light fixture above our kitchen sink. Here's a picture of what it looks like:

So, the wasps have found a way into the kitchen through light fixture. We've decided to leave the light on all night until the exterminator can come back tomorrow and try to kill the wasps from the inside of the house. I was impressed with their service, as when I called them at around 9pm tonight, they were there to answer the call. Hopefully, there won't be a Part 2 to this story.

Mueller Park

One of the things that Steve and I love to do together is to take short walks or hikes. This morning we got up and headed up to one of our regular walks in Mueller Park. We love Mueller Park because it is beautiful, with a variety of different walks to choose from and it is close. Today that was especially important so that we could get home and do some chores, before we settled in to a day of College Football.

Steve remembers hiking in Mueller Park with his dad and brother up to Rudy Flats, and camping out there to watch the deer.

We saw this deer earlier this summer as we drove out of Mueller Park, heading home.

This morning we just did the walk straight up through the park, we had just started the walk and turned to take the trail through the park when we were approached by the Park Hosts and one stated that if we were going to walk off the road at all we needed to pay $3 per person for walking in. While I am all for paying to use the park systems in our communities if you are camping, hosting a party or a BBQ etc. so that you can help pay for the upkeep, $6 to take a 40 minute walk through the park with your spouse seems a little ridiculous. Especially when you can pay $6 to get an entire car of people in the park for the entire day. Luckily, most of the walks that we like to do in the park can be done on the main road, or from a trailhead that is not in the park. So, for now we will probably continue to stick to the road, and our free hikes and walks, and then support the park with money for picnics etc.

Our trip to Texas

Jill and I have a goal to visit every state together. This past holiday weekend, we hit four of them. Late last year, when rumors started floating up that BYU may be invited to play Oklahoma in the first ever Cowboys Classic college football game, my wife suggested it might be fun to go down and see the Cougars play. This was to be the first college football game ever played in the brand new Dallas Cowboys football stadium.

I've been a BYU football fan since I was a young child, when my dad would buy season tickets for him, my brother, and myself. I can't recall my father ever going on the road to see the Cougars play an away game other than the occassional game against the Utes in Salt Lake City at Rice Eccles Stadium, so we decided to invite my folks along for the trip.

We flew out of SLC on Thursday, 9/3/09, early in the morning. Our flight to Dallas, TX was a bit weird, as we first had a layover in Minneapolis, MN and then continued on south towards TX. That night we grabbed a bite to eat to eat at Pappas BBQ, a recommendation of the hotel front desk clerk.

The next day we grabbed a quick breakfast from Sonic and then headed out on the first of the two road trips we had planned. We were going to start by heading east to Texarkana. Jill had used the very scientif "thumb on the map" method to calculate the distance, and figured that it was about 70 miles or so. It actually turned out to be about 140 miles, but it was a fun drive. Texarkana is a pretty cool little town. The Texas/Arkansas border goes right down the middle of town, and the town's Courthouse is split evenly down the middle as well. The 2nd level of the Courthouse is evenly divided, one side is all Texas offices and the other side is all Arkansas office.

After our stop in Texarkana, we drove south and crossed over into Louisiana, and stopped for a walk around Shreveport. Shreveport, LA, from what I could tell, is basically a town of casinos. It really wasn't my favorite stop, but it was cool to see at least once.

The next day was the day of the "big game". The primary reason for the whole trip in the first place. We got up and grabbed breakfast at my favorite Scottish restaurant, McDonalds, and then drove into downtown Dallas to visit the JFK Memorial and museum. Visiting the museum, as well as being able to take a tour of the warehouse that Lee Harvey Oswald shot JFK from was haunting. After this tour, we drove a couple of miles away to a place Jill had read about called the Thanksgiving Gardens.

X marks the spot on this picture, of where the car was when shots were fired.
JFK Memorial

As we walked around town, you could see the many sports fans walking around the sites. The Oklahoma faithful were all clad in their crimson red, while the Cougar fans were wearing blue.

A few hours later, we dropped my mom back off at the hotel and then headed on our way to find the stadium to see the game. Oklahoma was favored to win by 22 points. The stadium was packed. Attendance was over 75,000. Most of those attending were wearing Oklahoma red. OU fans outnumbered BYU fans by at least 4 to 1. That didn't stop us from shouting and making ourselves heard. Even Jill, a proud and stubborn U of U fan, couldn't help but cheer as the Cougars fought, teeth and nails, to earn a 14 to 13 victory over OU. What a game!!!

Sunday morning we got up, grabbed breakfast at Denny's and then drove northward. Our first stop was in Dennison, TX to see the birthplace of Dwight D. Eisenhower. Then we drove around looking for Pottsboro, TX to see where my dad had first served as an enlisted military man at the no-longer existing Perrin Air Force Base. After stopping and asking around, we found an elderly gentleman at a gas station that knew where it was and pointed us in the wrong direction. Well, that almost got us there, but not quite. So it was up to Jill and her iPhone to save the day and find the directions. That's why I will always request her to be the navigator on our little trips. She's much better at directions than I am. After driving around Perrin, we headed further north up to visit Oklahoma.

It was fun to be able to say that we visited four states in just a few short days. I didn't really travel too much before meeting Jill, but now that we're married, she's passed the contagious "travel bug" my way and I have really started enjoying the trips we take. I can't wait for our next adventure together.