Rumba is making herself at home

After some touch and go moments early on, Rumba and Ani are getting along like gangbusters . . .


sometimes too well.



When Rod was out of town two weekends ago, Rumba came back to Idaho with me. I took her to work with me that day so that I wouldn't have to go all the way home before heading to Idaho. Everyone loved her! Most people didn't even realize she was there because she is so quiet and well-behaved.




We walk her twice every day, but we have only had time to go on a couple of longer hikes. One of them is a trail we just discovered a couple of blocks behind our house. It is not the most picturesque, but it is convenient and better than walking around the block.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

During the wedding planning process, our lives were so busy. Even though I only live three hours away from Idaho Falls (my hometown), I did not go home for seven months. I felt awful for neglecting my grandparents and little brother and told them both I would come visit during the third weekend in August (the only weekend in August that I didn't have a wedding to go to). I told my grandparents I wanted to go on a long drive through Annis and LaBelle, where they grew up. Just before that weekend, though, my Grandma was hospitalized. Instead of spending the weekend spending quality time with my grandparents. I spent most of the weekend in the hospital.

Although my Grandma has been in the hospital before and had problems with her legs for awhile, this was the first time I was truly scared that she might die. My Aunt told me that she had been diagnosed with TTP, which affects the platelet and red and white blood cell counts. As soon as I started to research, I realized that this is a terrible disease that has an extremely high mortality rate (80%) and can lead to sudden death. I barely left my Grandma's side. I put on a happy face for Grandma, but I was heartbroken and inconsolable as soon as I left. It seemed so unfair that when I finally have a chance to spend time with my Grandma, I lose her. I was so angry at myself for not making more of an effort during the wedding process.

When her doctor got back on Monday, I talked to him to ask some questions about her treatment. After a few minutes, it became very clear that we were talking about two different diseases. It turns out she has I-TP, not T-TP. ITP also affects the platelets, but it has a low mortality rate. Within a week, she was out of the hospital and running around the house cleaning and giving Grandpa "honey-dos".

We re-scheduled our trip down memory lane to the first weekend in September. Grandma and Grandpa showed my where they grew up, where they went to school, where they met (rollerskating), and told me all about their courtship. Most of the buildings were either gone or abandoned. The ones that were still standing had not weathered well. It was so fun to see these places that I had heard so much about. I am so grateful that we had this opportunity and that it was not really too late. We ended our trip with a visit to the Annis cemetery to visit their parents' graves. After spending the morning talking about how they grew up, it brought things full circle to hear them talk about where they would be buried. Life is too short!

I suck!

I suck (sorry Lisa Dawn)! I'm sorry I haven't posted for awhile. This week has been really crazy and my camera card has been acting up. Now things have slowed down (fingers crossed), I'm going to post as often as possible so hopefully (still crossed) you will keep reading next time I get too busy to post.

Also, because a few people (you know who you are) have asked, I'm going to post more about some of the wedding details and planning process. I'm sure this is a subject that is not interesting to most of you, so I will try to only do it once a week, Wednesday. If you don't care, don't read that day.

Be back soon.

All the Cool Kids at the Back of the Bus

G Love was great! It was probably the most fun I've had at the Red Butte concerts all year. It started out with a little dancing in the rain and a double rainbow. The opening acts--Tristan Prettyman and the John Butler Trio--were both good, especially the John Butler Trio. The whole sold out crowd was on their feet for most of the night.

Another great season

Sunday night, Rod and I sat out under the stars, drinking porter, and listening to Joan Osborne and John Hiatt. Rod packed a picnic of grilled cheese and pepper jelly panini, tomato salad, and peaches drizzled in balsamic vinegar. It has been a really incredible summer for the Red Butte Gardens concert series. Rod and I missed some of the best ones (Emmylou Harris) because we were doing wedding/honeymoon things, but we tried to make up for it when we got back.

Although the music is always wonderful, my favorite part of the shows are spending time with friends. The setting is really unbeatable too.

I didn't take any pictures of the John Hiatt/Joan Osborne concert. Here are some pictures of Emmett, Mike and Kim's son, at the Wilco concert. He is too cute for words!





If anyone is interested in catching the last show of the season (G Love and the Special Sauce) Thursday night, let us know. Rod always packs an amazing spread!

Eleven

Sorry that this blog has turned into a wedding blog lately. There must be something in the water. I have a elevent weddings, including my own, to attend this summer. All of them were fabulous and, surprisingly different. It is crazy how you can take the same basic formula (white dress + flowers + wedding cake) and get such unique events.

Anyway, here are some pics from some of the weddings I haven't blogged about already.

Bryan and Elyse. It was the first wedding I've ever been to at La Caille. It was such a beautiful setting, complete with wild peacocks, busty waitresses, and a driving range. Elyse was such a beautiful, fashionable bride. For dessert, they had bananas foster. I love flaming desserts. Also, Bryan is a vegan, so the grooms cake was a vegan cake in the shape of a t-bone steak with a cow grazing on top. Too funny! Rod and I sat with Mike and Kim and had so much fun dancing.









Kelli and Dave. We almost didn't make it to Kelli and Dave's wedding because we were prisoners in our own home. Our garage door decided to malfunction on Friday evening, trapping our vehicles for the whole weekend. Luckily, Robyn and Jonathan were happy to bum us a ride.

Kelli and Dave tied the knot in Memory Grove. Kelli looked stunning (as always). She could not stop smiling. It was contagious. Chief Justice Durham performed the ceremony that was so uniquely Kelli and Dave. For me, the highlight of the evening would be a tie between the toast relating Kelli and Dave's NYE streaking story or watching Kelli and Dave shake it on the dance floor. Those two have such great energy! Instead of a traditional wedding cake, they had cheesecake! My fave! It was so great to catch up with friends that we hadn't seen for awhile. Rod and I helped Kelli and Dave close down the party.












Brent and Ashlee. My cousin, Brent got married in a ward house in Idaho Falls. They had a very colorful decor and unexpected guest in the receiving line. It was great to see my family and catch up with my cousins.

A Perfect End to a Perfect Summer

It is hard to believe it is over already. My weekend started with a doggy date, playing in the park, and ended in snow.

On Saturday, Rod, Rumba, and I met Dave, Inga, Gabe, JoJo, and Gypsy at the park for Rumba's first play date. Rumba was a little aloof. She just wanted to do her own thing. I guess aloof is better than aggressive.






After working up an appetite, we checked out the new Dodo restaurant in Sugarhouse. It was surprisingly good. I had eaten at the one at the Gateway before. It was just . . . eh. Apparently it is under new ownership. I had the Cioppino. It was excellent! They made it over pasta which gave it a really interesting texture. Rod had the pulled pork quesadilla, which was also quite good. They pull the pork in house. It is nice to have a new restaurant so close to home.

The next morning, we packed up the car and headed to Oakley. Jess and Sarah were kind enough to invite us and two other couples to stay at their cabin for the weekend. Our friends, Susan and Kevin, were getting married at Rendezvous Ranch, four miles from the cabin. Beautiful weekend at the cabin with good food and good company and no driving after a night of partying up at a wedding . . . yes, please!

It was so fun. Sarah had the margaritas waiting when we got there. We hung out on the deck catching some sun . . . until it started raining.

The rain paused just long enough to get the cermony started, but the minute Susan walked down the aisle, the rain started to pour. We all grabbed our chairs and headed for the barn. Susan took it all in stride. It didn't slow the wedding down at all. The ceremony was very memorable. And if rain is really a sign of good luck, Susan and Kevin had more than their fair share. It was such a fun night. After the shuttle left, there were really only our group of friends left. We had the whole dance floor to ourselves. Sarah showed off her worm skills, among other things. :) Towards the end, Rod and I were the only ones dancing.





The next morning at 7:30, Rumba was coughing up a storm. She has apparently contracted a case of kennel cough. It sounds like she has had a 2-pack a day habit for the last 40 years. Sometimes the hacking is so pronounced you can almost taste the flem in your own throat. Gross! I didn't want her to wake up the whole cabin so we decided to go for a walk. It was a beautiful, brisk morning. We followed the road to the top of the mountain to get a good view of the valley. On the was, we chased some deer and got chased by a moose. There was snow on the mountaintops and dew all over the grass.




After we got all packed up and ready go, the rain started pouring again. We decided to settle back in with spiked hot cocoa and a lopsided game of cranium. By the time we finished, the rain had turned to snow. Summer is officially over.