Snapshot #201: Graham Canyon Ice Cream

December 31, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  This post is for you Ashley...Thanks to the BYU Creamery on Ninth.

Snapshot #200: Snowville

December 30, 2010.  Snowville, Utah.  We drove back to Utah today in the middle of a snow storm.  When the storm cleared, I caught these pictures of the sun set.

Snapshot #199: King Cabinets & Woodworks

December 29, 2010.  Wendell, Idaho.  Working on putting together a website/blog for Dad's business.

Snapshot #198: Super Mario

December 28, 2010.  Wendell, Idaho.  My sister got a Wii for Christmas.  Her siblings have gotten more play time than she has so far...when they play in groups we hear them laughing for hours on end.

Snapshot #197: Difficult Puzzle

December 27, 2010.  Wendell, Idaho.  Dave is brilliant, excels at practically everything he tries.  This puzzle was no different.  We finished it in approximately 10 hours; had Dave not been there it would have been triple that.

Snapshot #196: Away In A Manger

December 26, 2010.  Wendell, Idaho.  The King Family sang Away In A Manger in Sacrament Meeting today.  There were 8 of us who sang today...including JiYeong, the foreign exchange student from South Korea.

Snapshot #195: Christmas Day 2010

December 25, 2010.  Wendell, Idaho.  We spent the morning as a family, next to a warm fire,  unwrapping gifts.  There were clothes, games, and even the gift of manual labor for Shelli and her new home.  We missed you Sherm and Jana! 

Snapshot #194: Bird Hunt

December 24, 2010.  Hagerman, Idaho.  Dave joined my dad and my brothers today for a little bird hunt.

Snapshot #193: Perrine Bridge

  
December 23, 2010.  Twin Falls, Idaho.  The Magic Valley Shopping Mall is directly opposite the Perrine Bridge spanning the Snake River Canyon in Twin Falls.  I spent way too much time today doing last-minute shopping at the mall with my mom and my sister.  Being Santa's Elf is a whole lot of work!    

Recipe Diaries: Snapshot #192: Christmas Granola

December 22, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  Since we've been married, Dave has been requesting Christmas Granola...we finally did it.

Snapshot #191: The Cabinet Gallery

December 21, 2010.  Draper, Utah.  I interviewed today at The Cabinet Gallery in Draper.  I am seriously considering becoming a serious Kitchen Designer.

Snapshot #190: Christmas Card 2010

December 20, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  Working on getting a few Christmas Cards out this year. 

Snapshot #189: Qwirkle

December 19, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  We invited some nice people over for dinner tonight.  Had a great time and they introduced us to the game Qwirkle.  Yippee!

Snapshot #188: Cracked Wheat Cereal

December 18, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  Cracked Wheat Cereal.  Not only delicious, it also helps deplete our stores of wheat before we have to move it again. 

Snapshot #187: Grand America Buffet

December 17, 2010.  Salt Lake City, Utah.  A new Christmas tradition for the Woods, Dave and I joined his parents for the Lunch Buffet at the Garden Cafe of the Grand America Hotel in downtown Salt Lake.  I also captured some fun pictures of the fabulous window display competition.  Poor GingerMan.

Snapshot #186: University Mall

December 16, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  I finished my Christmas shopping today.  Woo-Hoo! 

Recipe Diaries: Snapshot #185: Homemade Noodles

December 15, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  I have fond memories of Mother's Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup, so I thought I would try some of my own for dinner tonight.  Thanks for the recipe Mom!

Snapshot #184: Recruiting for Jordan

December 14, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  Today I went with Dave to his final class in Third World Development.  His group did a presentation on their project for Jordan.  We are now looking for recruits.  Any one interested in journeying to Jordan in the Spring and be a part of the creation of a Non-Governmental Organization that will truly make a difference?  NGOs are defined by the World Bank as "private organizations that pursue activities to relieve suffering, promote the interests of the poor, protect the environment, provide basic social services, or undertake community development". Yes...very cool.

Snapshot #183: King Builders

December 13, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  I have been attempting to work with my brother and his company on a local project...but it looks like the funding for the project won't be coming through until April.  In the meantime...you should check out his website at www.kingbuilders.blogspot.com.  He's the best in the business if you're looking for someone to either build you a new home or do work, paint, finish carpentry on an existing home.

Snapshot #182: A Christmas Serenade

December 12, 2010.  South Jordan, Utah.  This evening we enjoyed a Christmas exchange with Dave's father and his wife and also with Grandma Mari Lou.  The evening could not have been more perfect.  A fabulous dinner, homemade raspberry cheesecake for dessert, a little Christmas caroling, and of course the exchange of gifts.  The highlight of the night, however, was when Dave's father pulled out his guitar and serenaded us all.  Acoustical guitar just might be my most favorite sound in all the world.

Snapshot #181: Meat Pie Tradition

December 11, 2010.  South Jordan, Utah.  One of the benefits of living in Utah is the Wood Family Christmas Meat Pie Tradition; a savory recipe handed down from Dave's grandmother's mother.  The pie is made from pork, potatoes, onion, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves.  It will be served for breakfast on Christmas morning with fresh cranberries.  I am excited to pass the tradition on down the Wood Family line.  

Snapshot #180: Dinner Rolls

December 10, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  It takes me several days to make these whole wheat rolls using the delayed fermentation method.  Still trying to decide if it's worth it!?  These are for Sunday dinner.

Snapshot #179: Utah Style

December 9, 2010.  Salt Lake City, UT.  I met today for the first time with a representative of the Utah Style & Design Magazine, working to get Lela's home published.  

Snapshot #178: Provo Temple Nativity

December 8, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  I visited the Provo temple today and on my way out was captured by this thoughtful nativity.

Snapshot #177: 32 Years on Earth

 December 7, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  In commemoration of completing my 32nd year on planet earth, my mother and I pampered ourselves with manicures.  Woo-Hoo!  Can you believe that it was her first?!

Snapshot #176: Christmas with Utah Chamber Artists

December 6, 2010.  Salt Lake City, Utah.  Tonight Dave and I accompanied his parents to a Christmas Concert with the Utah Chamber Artists in the Libby Gardner Concert Hall.  The performance, directed by Barlow Bradford, was divine.

Snapshot #175: Russell Stover

December 5, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  That my friends is a semi-truck full of Russell Stover Chocolates.  Ahhh...the holidays have arrived.

Snapshot #174: Christmas Star

December 4, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  Dave and I had fun today running all around town finding gifts for everyone on our list.  And...we bought a tree! 

Snapshot #173: Hair On Hide

December 3, 2010.  Salt Lake City, Utah.  I suppose it's acceptable if you don't get as excited as I did about finding this fabulous "Hair On Hide" leather at a great price.  Can't wait to turn it into two extraordinary upholstered benches. 

Snapshot #172: Planning for Jordan

December 2, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  Dave is planning a trip to Jordan in the spring.  No, not South Jordan, not to see Michael Jordan...but to visit Jordan, the country in the Middle East bordering Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Israel & Syria.  It will be part of an international business effort aimed at Third World Development.  Yes, very cool.  And there just may be a chance that I can go too.  

Snapshot #171: Dave and Dave

December 1, 2010.  South Jordan, Utah.  Organizing the new computer...filing photos, etc.  Found this great one from a month or so back.  I love this picture of Dave and his dad.  

Snapshot #170: Home Sweet Apartment

November 30, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  Nice to return home, out of the cold, after a long day running around Salt Lake lining up contractors for Lela's house.

Snapshot #169: Snow Paws

November 29, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  It did end up snowing in Orem while we were gone.  I let the cat out on the patio to play, while I spent the day on the computer job hunting.  I'm realizing that job hunting is a full-time job.

Snapshot #168: Road Closure

November 28, 2010.  Idaho-Utah.  I-84 and Sweetzer Pass was closed today so we couldn't take the normal route from Idaho back to Utah.  Instead we took the long way around, through Pocatello.   As you can see from the picture above, we couldn't exactly see the interstate; the roads were quite treacherous.  Thankfully we made it home safely after more than 6 hours on the road.

Snapshot #167: Around the Hearth

November 27, 2010.  Wendell, Idaho.  Mom was feeling sufficiently well last night to come home from the hospital.  It's always agreeable to spend a day at Home, surrounded by Family, next to the Hearth.  I made an uncharacteristically fabulous dinner of Brined Turkey, Mashed Potatoes, and Stuffing.

Snapshot #166: Pre-Ops

November 26, 2010.  Twin Falls, Idaho.  Dismal day for Mom.  This morning she underwent a scheduled surgery...hopefully the last in this series of her fight against cancer.  It's a day at the hospital for us.  We Love You Mom!!  

Snapshot #165: Thanksgiving Day Drive

November 25, 2010.  Utah-Idaho.  Drove for many hours today...to and from destinations.  The recent snow fall made for a slightly tense, yet beautiful drive.   

Snapshot #164: The Blizzard that Wasn't

November 24, 2010.  Orem, Utah.  All day yesterday was spent in anticipation for the blizzard...announced to be the biggest storm of the decade.   It had already slammed Seattle, Boise, Wendell.  We got all the errands run before 3:00, made some delicious hot chocolate, opened the curtains, and waited.  3:00 then 5:00 then 7:00 then 9:00.  Nothing more than some wind.  At 9:00 we turned on the News to see eleven inches of snow in Salt Lake...the pictures were gorgeous.  But in Orem, we still have green grass; some how the storm skipped us.

Snapshot #163: myMac is an iMac

November 23, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  After 6 months without a computer, I finally collected enough pay checks to justify a new computer for my business.  I should be able to blog more consistently now :)  Oh yeah, and keep up with my clients.

Snapshot #162: My Brother's Keeper

November 22, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  Dave is taking a Third-World Development class that is inciting all kinds of ingenious ideas and dialogues for our lives.  I am working on reconciling many of these ideas with the principles expressed in the above quote by Abraham Lincoln.  There must be a way to provide equal opportunity for all...without enslaving a population...and embracing the reality that the diversity of the results will not reflect identical circumstances for all.

Snapshot #161: Celebrate Mari Lou

November 21, 2010.  Holladay, Utah.  Dave's Aunt hosted a dinner party tonight for his grandmother, Mari Lou.  Eight + Nine Candles = 89.  An incredible woman who greatly blesses our lives!  We Love You Mari Lou!!

Snapshot #160: Cold Cougars

November 20, 2010.  Provo, Utah.  Dave says he wasn't cold.  But it took me an hour before I could feel my toes again.  All to demonstrate our screaming support at the last home game for the BYU Cougar Football Team.