Summer Bike Ride

I have this summer bucket list. Since I have a beach cruise... a bike ride was for sure on the list. I thought it only appropriate that I went with Liz, since we bought our beach cruisers together last summer. So we went.

We rode our bikes to the cemetery down the street. It is a beautiful ride. I just can't get enough of summer. Of course I always love my Liz time too. She is such a good friend and so fun to be around. We always have a great time together.

Thanks Liz for a great time. Let's do it again sometime... and go back to the pool. :)

Flashback Friday 132

This week on facebook, one of my high school choir friends posted this video. Obviously her parents video taped it and the focus is on her... especially the first few minutes. She put it on facebook as proof that she used to sing in choir with Katy Perry (aka Katy Hudson). Katy is in the upper left. She has a couple of little solo/speaking parts.

More importantly... I have a solo... and it is just about half way through the song if you want to skip to that. We were so cute in high school. Oh... and if you want a laugh, read all of Katy Perry's fan comments at the bottom of the video! HA! Why does anyone become that obsessed with anyone?

So flashing back to December 1999, here is the Does Pueblos choir singing "Twas the Night Before Christmas"

Confessions of a Brunette on the Internet 185

I think my curse of bad Monday's are over. I don't think anything bad or disappointing happened this last Monday.... just some shopping with Meg. That was fun. I fit into the smallest size pants.... ever! I was buying size 8! That has always been my goal, but I have never been able to get there. I have only gotten down to a 10... which I am still comfortable at now, but hey! I can fit into an 8. That is big for me. Meg is a blast to shop with.

Speaking of the weight loss... I weighed in this week and I have lost 45 pounds. I'm trucking a long, but I still have 20 more pounds to go. Doesn't seem like that much more compared to where I have come from, but it means I will still be on this diet for another couple of months. Can't wait to be done and to have reached my goal!

I am all caught up with "Breaking Bad". I took a couple of days off of TV Shows and watched some movies... like "The Artist" which I really enjoyed actually. Now I'm on to the new TV show. My mom and sister suggested it to me a while ago when they were watching it. "Switched at Birth". I resisted for a while because it was an ABC Family show and it looked cheesy and dumb. People walk in on me watching it and they think I should be embarrassed to be seen watching, but I'm really not. I'm super into it and I think one of the big reasons why is because I have never really thought of life for deaf people. I love that aspect of the show... the deaf people vs the hearing people and how they live life together and handle it. This show is making me want to learn sign language!

Tuesday I went to the temple. When I drove there and walked in, it was all nice and sunny outside. Hour and a half later, when I came out... I saw a bunch of people standing around outside the door. I wondered why everyone was gathered and I walked outside and realized it was POURING rain. What could I do? I just shrugged and said... oh well and walked to my car at the other end of the parking lot in my dress and heels. Couldn't run because of my heels... during the walk to my car, not only was it pouring, but there was loud thunder and lightening that lit up the whole sky. It was intense and I just laughed. Good thing I planned on taking a shower when I got home anyway. I was drenched by the time I got to my car. I had to let all my stuff dry out when I got home. Just don't know how Utah weather can change on you in an hour!

Since I visited my cousin Trav, I feel a lot closer to him. Now we randomly text each other inside jokes or pictures.... same with Marcus. I get texts from him too. Makes me miss being there. I told Trav about Purple Rain (my Beta Fish) and that song even came on when we were on the boat on the lake. Anyway... he took his son to get a Beta and he text me the pictures. Dallin named him Blue Thunder. I'm sure Purple Rain and Blue Thunder would be BFF if they were not in different states. :) Also.. while I was there, Trav surprised me and bought me a cup to take home. It isn't just any cup. It is his favorite cup from Bed Bath and Beyond. A Tervis cup! They have a lifetime warranty, they stay cold and the glass doesn't sweat. So Travis had me pick one out. I went girly of course. I love it. I told him I would take it on my Southeast Asia trip.

I helped rescue a Muskrat this week.... I think that will get it's own post. It was pretty funny.

We were invited to hang out back with our old stake for a Tri-Ward Bonfire. It was nice. I met a couple of new people. I didn't meet my Eternal Companion there though... sorry. Nice to go to a well attended activity though that is not just our ward. Although it is like I just moved into a new ward because the turnover in our ward was so high. I'm hoping for lots of cool new people. Last year in the singles ward, gotta go out with a bang! :)

On Saturday, Bill and I tried making glow in the dark bubbles. I was so excited about it... and it was kind of a let down. I mean... the bottle glowed like a champ, but the bubbles... not so much. It was worth a try. We had fun trying it out.

Speaking of Bill, he just text me and asked me if I wanted to go to a wedding reception tomorrow that he will be DJ at. It's for his close friend. But I wouldn't know anyone there and he would be busy being a DJ... I think. I took this as a good sign... I think? I mean, he wants me to go to his friends wedding and hang out with him as he DJ's. Who knows.... I can't figure out guys. I would stop by except that I am going to be camping. 

Photo of the Week 183

Another sunrise picture from Lake Juno in Michigan. It was another one of those shots that I knew I could capture it just right if I would have had my nice camera... but instead just had my phone.

Like I said, I wish I could have gotten a better shot, but what I loved about this was not just all of the orange in this picture and the fog that hovered right above the water... but I LOVED the silhouette of the fisherman. I think this picture would make a great painting. :)

Feeding the Ducks

Remember that guy I met at church and he got my number? And then we went and watched the fireworks together and it was super cute? Well, this last Sunday he called me up and asked me if I wanted to go feed the ducks. Such a simple activity... but really cute.... I think.

I love being out side. I love summer. I love animals. It was a simple activity where we were able to get to know each other better and just laugh while being outside and feeding the ducks. I loved it. I took a couple of pictures with my phone... but I ended up going back a couple days later on my lunch break and taking some more.

Here is Bill throwing an entire roll at the ducks... it was so funny to watch the whole bunch chase and fight over it and see who won.

Bill "tried" to get a picture of the ducks eating out of my hand.

Yeah, I know I should have gotten a picture of Bill and I together.... just didn't think about it at the time. Well, hopefully there are more cute dates like this to come and I can get a picture next time. Thanks Bill for a good time. I forgot how much I love feeding the ducks.

Updated Photo

One of my callings at church is taking everyone's pictures for the ward directory. It was nicknamed by Melodie (Communications chair) "Glam shots by Tracy" because all the pictures turn out awesome. Seriously. The background is nice, the lighting is perfect... it makes everyone look good.

We had quite the turn over in our ward at the end of the summer. Yesterday I was taking pictures throughout sunday school. I took almost 40 new people's photo's.... and we are not done!

Anyway... while we were waiting for another bunch of people to come out and get their picture taken, I had Melodie re-take my picture. I had my picture taken almost a year ago, so since I have lost 45 lbs since then, I felt like it needed to be updated. So here it is...

Zucchini- Crust Pizza

Turns out when I diet... I always crave pizza. Every time. Can't have it. Well.... I found a way that I can. I saw this Zucchini- Crust on Pinterest and had to give it a try. Plus... people are always telling me they need more ways to use up their zucchini, here you go.

It's a little bit of a process... but it is healthy and pretty tastey. I'm sure the more you made it, the faster you would be at making it. I really liked it and it satisfied my pizza craving.

Crust Ingredients:
4 cups grated then chopped fresh zucchini (one large zucchini about a foot long, or several smaller ones)
1/2 cup finely grated low-fat Mozzarella blend
5 T almond meal
3 T finely grated Parmesan
1 tsp. dried Greek or Turkish oregano
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
pinch of salt
1 egg, beaten

Instructions:

Preheat the grill or oven to 450F/230C.

Grate zucchini, using a food processor or the large side of a hand grater, then chop the grated zucchini.  (I did this with a steel blade in the food processor, but you could chop with a large knife if you don't have a food processor.)  Place the chopped zucchini in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for about 5 minutes.  Then drain the cooked zucchini into a colander that's lined with cheesecloth or a kitchen towel.  Let zucchini drain until it's cool enough to handle.

While the zucchini cools, make the tomato sauce.  First, drain the tomatoes into a colander placed in the sink.  While the tomatoes drain, chop the garlic, heat half the olive oil in a very small frying pan, and saute garlic just until it's fragrant.  Add the drained tomatoes and Italian seasoning and let the sauce simmer on very low heat until the crust is done.  (Just before using the sauce, stir in the rest of the olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper.)

When zucchini is cool, squeeze out as much water as you can and place the zucchini in a bowl.  Add the finely grated Mozzarella, almond meal, Parmesan, dried oregano, garlic powder, salt, and beaten egg and stir until the ingredients are combined.

Spray a baking sheet with olive oil or nonstick spray and divide the crust mixture into two balls.  Use your fingers to press out the crust mixture into two circles, being careful not to make the edges too thin (or they will burn).  Bake crust on a pizza stone (on a covered grill or in the oven) just until the crust is firm and starting to brown (about 12-13 minutes.)  You can also bake this in the oven without a pizza stone, but it will take a little longer to cook.

Spread each small pizza with desired toppings.  Put pizzas back into the oven or on the grill and cook just until the cheese is nicely melted, about 3-5 minutes more.  

Shannon & Cameron's Engagement's

Shannon, (a girl in my ward) asked me if I would take her engagement pictures. So.... we went to the park and took some pictures.

Cameron has 3 kids, so we took some family photo's....

Then the rest of just the couple. Here are some of my favorites.

Flashback Friday 131

Since I went fishing with Trav in Indiana, it reminded me of when I went fishing with Monica in Minnesota back in June 2005.  As you can tell... I'm always surprised and REALLY excited to catch something. :)

Confessions of a Brunette on the Internet 184

Since most of my week was spent in Indiana/ Michigan with my cousin Trav, and I have blogged about that whole trip already, I think this will be short. It was a great vacation though and it made me not only want to go back, but wishing that I lived closer to my cousin Trav... because I would go hang out with him and his family all the time. They are awesome.

While I was there, Trav got my into drinking Diet Mountain Dew that has a little bit of Guava Mango juice in it. YUM! I usually don't like soda's, but he had me try that little drink he mixed up and I was hooked. I only had 3 I think... but considering I never drink soda anymore... kind of a big deal. I may try to find some guava mango juice soon... if you know what I mean...

Travis loves to cook. He grilled up some pretty tasty things for me while I was there. He is also the master of the dutch oven... he may have gotten me to break my diet to try his chocolate dutch oven cake. Man was that stuff good!

Ya, so you can see why I didn't weigh in this week... I also was tired from coming back from my trip and had to be up early the next morning to get to the dentist to get my little cavity filled. I will weigh in next week... and hopefully it will be good news. I'm still feeling good. I'm getting so close to the end! I can't wait.

We had a major rain tonight with a pretty awesome thunder and lightening storm. I love it. I just wanted to sit and watch it forever. Although... I still want the rest of my summer... so hopefully it doesn't cool things down TOO much. I have heard the leaves are already changing colors up the canyon. I love fall, but this depresses me. I'm not ready to let go of summer yet.

So I brought something back from my trip. All of these lovely bites from mosquito's that makes me look like I have the chicken pox! They were itchy while I was there.... they are STILL itchy. Ugh! I just must have very sweet blood. Or maybe that is what I tell myself to feel better.

I took a 6 day break from "Breaking Bad" while I was on vacation. Since I have been back, I am now on season 5 and am almost caught up to where they are at with showing it on TV. Every once in a while something super gross happens.... but the story is good!

My co-worker, Tyler, introduced me to this song that I can't get enough of. I don't know what it is about it, but I love it. I'm wondering if they would have it at karaoke at "Wing Nuts" so that I could sing it. It's called Rulers by Lorde. This girl is only 16!

I took engagement pictures this week for a girl in my ward. I will post them here and you will have to let me know how they turned out. I was also asked by two different people to do weddings recently... but I said NO WAY JOSE! Too much pressure. I'm not good enough for that. Maybe one day? Maybe not.

I hate worrying about guys. If they are going to text or call. If I should contact them or wait until they contact me.... If one is worth waiting around for or not, what he is thinking about me... I hate wanting to hear from a guy and then I don't. I just can't wait for when I don't have to worry about any of this stuff anymore... because let's be honest. I don't like worrying.

It is always kind of hard to come back from vacation... going back to real life which is not quite as exciting. Feeling like you need a vacation from you vacation so that you can catch up on sleep or what not. I always love coming back to my bed though... and Purple Rain (my beta fish). Anyway... I am missing hugs everyday from cute little Jocelyn. We also sang together and just hung out. I loved it. She is the best. I'm secretly glad she got my number from me so that I can get cute texts from her here and there. She overloaded me with pictures at first... but now it's cool. She is a sweety and told me I should come and visit more... like every other week. I WISH! Made me feel like a million bucks though.

Photo of the Week 182

Saturday morning I awoke to the most beautiful sunrise. The room I was sleeping in faced the lake and didn't have curtains yet... so although I was tired from staying up until 3am chatting with Marcas, it woke me up. I didn't mind at all though, it was beautiful. I was mad I didn't have my nice camera... just the iphone, but I still got some good shots. Then I went back to bed. When I woke up for the second time a few house later, I joined Travis and Marcas sitting on the deck.

Travis: "Oh hey Tracy, we weren't sure if you were alive in there"

Me: " Yeah, guess who watched the sunrise this morning?"

Travis: " Not you!"

*Marcas laughs*

Me: "Guess again"

Then I pull out my phone to show the proof.

Marcas: "Those pictures are sweet. Can you send them to me?"

People learn that I am not a morning person pretty quickly. I see lots of sunsets, but it is NOT very often that I say I saw the sunrise. Glad I saw this one. Made me glad to be alive relaxing in Michigan. Life is good.

Indiana Fishing

One thing I wanted to do this summer was go fishing. I knew that my cousin Travis would take me when I came to visit him because he loves to fish. As you saw in the Lake House post, we tried fishing on the lake. Trav and Marcas both only caught one each. Me... none. So when Trav took me to fish at the river by his house... I didn't have high hopes.

This was the last thing Trav and I did (besides me teaching him how to make chicken cordon bleu and chocolate haupia pie) before he took me back to the airport yesterday. Travis's daughter Jocelyn and I had bonded and she loved me... but I was still trying to win approval over his son Dallin.

Dallin has an exclusive club. It's the Bass Slayers Club. In order to get into the club, you have to catch a Bass on the Dirty E (that's what they call the river by their house) with an ugly stick (fishing pole) and it has to be at least 12 inches. All I wanted on this last little fishing excursion was to get into the club. There were not very many members and NO GIRLS in the club. I was determined. It took me a while to catch anything, so I started to get discouraged, but then I did... and even though it was a small little guy, it build up my confidence and got me more excited.

Trav is the best person to go fishing with. He is so positive and never gave up on believing that not only I would catch something, but that I would make it into the Bass Slayers Club. When I wasn't catching anything he let me real in one of his big fish. I would give me pointers along the way, tell me when I was doing a great cast or casting in the right spots. Stayed calm when I would get my line caught in the trees or almost casting into a hornets nest (although I could tell that one made me real nervous). When I caught my big one, he was just as excited as I was and told me that was the fish to get me in the club and then got excited to take my picture and taught me the secret hand shake you learn once you are in the club. I was SO happy. Plus, it was beautiful to float down this river that felt like you were in the woods in the middle of nowhere. Perfect way to end my trip. Great bonding time with my cousin Travis. He's the best. Seriously.

Guess who the first and only (so far) girl in the Bass Slayer's club is? Oh yeah, that would be me. This got me a big hug from Dallin before I left.  :)

The Lake House

I had perfect timing when going to visit my cousin Travis. Why? Because the week before I arrived, they had just bought a Lake House in Michigan, about 10 or 15 minutes away. Sooo.... that is where we spent a lot of the time I was there. I didn't mind that one single bit.

Friday afternoon we head over. Met up with Travis's friend, Marcas (15 years younger than Trav) at the  lake to help with the boat. The rest of Trav's family was supposed to meet us there that night, but they all bailed... so it was just me, Trav and Marcas. Travis and Marcas took turns wake boarding, while I sat back and relaxed and enjoyed being out on a lake. It was also my job to take pictures. :) Sadly I forgot my nice camera on this trip, so all pictures were taken from my iphone... but I still got some good shots.

Trav also taught me how to drive the boat... so I went around the lake a couple of times. They have a ton of swans at this lake... it kind of reminded me of "The Notebook" which both guys told me they loved that movie.

We also watched the sunset and went fishing. No luck for me.

We stayed up late talking on the deck. Real late. It was so perfect. I loved every minute of it. I can't say this very often in my life, but I even woke up to the sunrise... and it was beautiful. They both didn't believe me because I'm not a morning person and I went back to bed after watching it.... but I showed them proof.

I successfully layed out in the sun and got some color without getting burned. MIRACLE! Eventually the rest of the family showed up to join our fun. I talked with the kids and watched them play.

I took a little paddle boat ride around the lake with Marcas... where he convinced me to go under this bridge and I thought I was going to die... ok... that is probably a little bit of an exaggeration, however, I was super nervous. Marcas took care of me though. Don't worry.

Travis Grilled and it was OH so good. Had some Indiana corn... seriously the best corn I have ever had in my life. No joke.

Along with everything I just mentioned... I sat back and relaxed a lot of the time I was there. Enjoyed just sitting there, taking in the scenery. Enjoyed that I wasn't at work. Enjoyed getting away from my life for a while. It was refreshing. I sat a lot in this chair. It was my favorite... I think I need to get me one. They are from Pier 1 Imports. Anyway, the Lake House was PERFECT! Perfect way to spend the summer before it leaves (which I don't like to talk about).