You say it's your birthday...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAVE!! Every year I spend with Dave, we have more fun, make more memories, and I fall deeper in love; this year has been no exception. Dave lights up my life and I can't imagine spending forever with anyone more perfect for me. For those of you that know Dave, you know how tenderhearted, sensitive, thoughtful, and hilarious he is. I don't know how he keeps up his optimism, lightheartedness, and humor every single day- I just know I'm grateful for it. Dave continues to make me a better person and I feel so blessed to be with him. I love you Dave!!

My Belly

Three things that are usually in my belly...

Three things that are in my belly now...

That's right- Dave and I are expecting TRIPLETS next spring! Saying we are thrilled is an understatement, and we can hardly wait to meet our little ones. Our doctor thinks they'll come sometime in May or June; we just hope they come happy and healthy. Our little family of two is soon to blossom into a party of five, and we can only dream of the fun that lies in store.

Cookie Monster

We just celebrated one of my favorite days of the year: the Annual Cookie Bake. This is something we've been doing forever and not only do I cherish the memories, but also every bite of every cookie. The girls of the family get together, everyone brings their assigned cookie dough, and we bake for about 10 hours straight. My mom's oven should be on a commercial for Kenmore- everyone would buy that oven if they could have these delicious cookies coming out of it every 8 to 10 minutes.
We roll, dip, cool, and frost all day long until we leave exhausted, with tins FULL of cookies. This year we made 8 varieties, and ended up with thousands of cookies. We share them with neighbors, friends, loved ones, and keep some for ourselves, of course!
The types of cookies we make are special because we only make them at the Cookie Bake. I look forward to them all year, especially the Thumbprints, with their perfect dollop of green frosting surrounded by toasted chopped pecans... yum!
I was in charge of making all the dough for the chocolate crackle. I had 2 mixing bowls full, and I used over 20 eggs and 10 cups of flour! Their ooey-gooey goodness leaves you only wanting one thing: a tall glass of cold milk. For the next month, there will always be something to eat at my house: milk and cookies. No longer is my freezer full of frozen veggies, chicken breasts, and popsicles- just loads and loads of cookies. Just the way I like it.

Seven Things...

7 Things Tag
7 Things I Can Do...
1. make my eyes vibrate
2. Bake and eat chocolate cake like a champ.
3. shop at Target for hours
4. organize, organize, organize
5. Recite in song the countries of Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the presidents of the US, and the counties of Utah.
6. Quote most of the lines from Vacation, Uncle Buck, and Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
7. Make a burn victim's dressing look like a million bucks! (if you look good, you feel good)

7 Things I Can't Do...
1. see with 20/20 vision unaided
2. drive a stick shift
3. watch ESPN Sports Center
4. ski
5. Pass up on holiday colored m&m's
6. floss in between my glued-in retainer
7. Make royal icing

7 Things I always say...
1. oh jo jo
2. the thing is...
3. love you
4. ("that's" or "you're") crazy!
5. dave? where are you? / where's dave?
6. how would you rate your pain on a scale from 0 to 10?
7. I don't feel good

7 Things I Always Eat...
1. Little Caesar's Pizza and crazy bread
2. Homemade cookies
3. anything made by my mom
4. peanut butter
5. Stacy's Pita Chips
6. chocolate, in pretty much any form
7. Cereal (especially Honey Bunches of Oats or Honey Nut Cheerios)

Now it's your turn! I'm tagging Alana, Lauren, Sarah S., Peg, and any one else that wants to participate!

Poor jo-jo...

Our little Joey started acting very sick yesterday- meowing like crazy, not eating or drinking, and he would barely move. He wouldn't get out of his litter box and even started drooling and throwing up. Poor kitty. So we took him to the vet and found out he had an urethal obstruction, which is a life-threating condition in cats and must be treated right away. They took him to surgery and cleared the blockage, placed a catheter, and started him on IV fluids.

He is now an inpatient at Cottonwood Animal Hospital and will be there until at least Tuesday. So of course we had to go visit him today to help lift his spirits. He'll be on a special diet now in hopes to prevent any future blockage. He's such a good kitty and we're proud of him for being so brave. We can't wait to bring him back home!!

Are these for real??

You've got to check out this website- one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time. Here I am in the middle of the night, laughing out loud, so hard that I'm crying and wanting more. These are real cakes in real bakeries across the country. I don't know how they find them, but they're too good to miss, and their commentaries are equally funny. A few of my favorites:

Front Porch Pumpkins

I don't know who came up with the idea to carve pumpkins, but they were pure genius! This fun and creative tradition is one of my favorites during Halloween, and I look forward to it every year. Dave and I decided to stray away from the traditional jack-o-lantern face this time around, but the question is: can you guess who carved which pumpkin?

Monster Mash 2008

The annual Halloween party at the Sorensen's haunted house always proves to be frighteningly fun. Dressing up is a must for young and old alike. Every year I look forward to the delicious food, fun games, festive prizes, and graveyard cake. But my favorite part is seeing everyone in their costumes, all decked out for this once-a-year occasion.
The Hostess and Host, almost unrecognizable!

Some were all about the politics...

And others were politically incorrect... at least his wife had some saving grace.

This chick will make you think twice before you eat chicken again!

I'm not sure if they're dressed up as vacationers or as Lori and Cody...

The favorite family pets. I guess these are Sarah and Tyler's true pet names for each other!

Tell that gorilla to watch out, Indiana Jones just might rope him in!

Marcie amazingly won the jelly bean guessing contest, despite any professional training or experience with numbers! And the title for Best Costume went to John McCain and Sarah Palin; it must have been a Republican crowd. Hats off to Russ and Rosemary for all the time and effort they put into this each year; they have successfully thrown another great ghoulish gala.

The Last of the Harvest

With warm weather extending well into October this year, we've been able to enjoy our garden for longer than expected. My favorite vegetable we grew would have to be tomatoes (not to mention it's one of the only ones that really thrived.) Sacks full of tomatoes have been taking up most of the refrigerator space, motivating me to make multiple batches of salsa and bruschetta. I love the combined flavors of the yellow and red tomatoes, and I've basically been putting them in everything. This past week, we savored some of the last fruits as we topped some ravioli with the colorful concoction. It actually turned out be be a few ravioli alongside our tomatoes rather than the other way around. But if you ask me, that's how I prefer it. It makes me sad to think I'll be forced to buy tomatoes at the store in just a few short weeks. Until then, bon appetit!

i heart target

While happily shopping at Target today, I realized that my love for the store deserves a public declaration. So I am now announcing that I officially love Target, especially Super Target. Now I know it's not good to love worldly things and material goods, but this goes way beyond that. I love more than their amazing finds in the dollar section and fashionably cute yet affordable clothing. It's the feeling I get when I enter the automatic doors, pick up my red shopping cart, and take in the bright lights and aroma of freshly popped popcorn. At this moment, I feel right at home.

So Target, how do I love you? Let me count the ways...
1. Target brand anything is just as good (if not better) than the "brand name" item. And I don't know if an "Archer Farms" really exists, but I do know that I enjoy every mouthful of food that comes from said Farms.
2. Target commercials have got to be the best ones out there, even better than mac/apple commercials. I wish I could set my DVR to record every single one. I get excited just for the ads, and even more excited to actually visit the store!
3. Target is the true one-stop spot. I think I could shop at Target and only Target for an extended number of years and be perfectly happy. The only thing you really can't get there (yet) is a car or a house.
4. Look no further for excellent athletic clothing. From sports bras to gym socks, they've got you covered. Sometimes a new gym tank is just the motivation I need.
5. Target really gets into the spirit of things. For any holiday from Valentines to Halloween and of course Christmas, Target will not only provide you with the gifts you need for your loved ones, but the decorations, appropriate colored m&m's, and greeting cards for the occasion.

I could go on and on, but I better stop now before I get too carried away. I love Target so much, I'll even forgive them for their horrible return policy. A small price to pay for such a gold mine of a retailer. If you don't already share my love for this place, give it another shot. You just might develop a crush.

Utah State Fair

I entered two items into the State Fair this year and was awarded two ribbons! This is the first time I have ever received a "prize" for any of my baked goods, and I'm pretty excited about the $3 I won. Although I didn't bring home the blue ribbon, this gives me room to grow and encouragement for next year's entries. Any suggestions?

Does it get any more home-town, American, and fair-like than this? A good, old-fashioned square dancing competition. Add this to your list of reasons to make the fair a must-see yearly event.

While the goat was taking a strong liking to Dave, I was becoming infatuated with the tiny piglets. They reminded me of Wilbur and Babe, two of my favorite pigs. I just like to think they'll be rewarded for their debut at the fair with something besides a slaughter house, even if it's just a "that'll do, pig."

LOgan TO JAckson

Last week Dave and his dad rode over 200 miles on their bikes from Logan, Utah to Jackson, Wyoming- quite the feat! Peg and I acted as the "support team" supplying peanut butter sandwiches, gatorade, Snickers bars, and a whole lot of moral support. Despite a few falls, emergency bathroom breaks, and unplanned detours off the beaten path (and that's not just the racers!), everyone safely finished the race with loads of daylight to spare.

After over 13 hours on a bicycle, Dave and Bob were eager to rest. But the next morning, us girls had plans of our own, with lots of sightseeing and shopping to accomplish in a short amount of time. Since this was my first time to Jackson, I wanted to take it all in. But one of my favorite sights of all was seeing Dave and Bob cross the finish line in Teton Village. A big CONGRATS goes out to them both- I'm so proud of you!

The Best 2 Years

True, I've never been on a mission, but I can't imagine any two years being better than the last two for Dave and I. We recently celebrated our 2 year anniversary by going up to Snowbird and enjoying the beautiful view, clean air, and various activities (thanks Sloane!). Our favorites were the zip-line, rock climbing wall, and tram ride, but the delicious dinner at Cucina Toscana topped the list. I feel very blessed to be married to Dave, who is so loving, thoughtful, sensitive, caring, funny, unselfish, and talented. He brings me joy every day and always brings optimism and laughter to our lives. There is nothing that brings me more happiness than being his wife. I love you Dave!

Another addition to the tool belt

I recently got the chance to use my new offset spatula for the first time, and I couldn't help but smile as I did so. If you like to frost anything, this is the tool for you! My chocolate zucchini cake turned into a deep brown ice rink as my spatula evened out any ridges or bumps and let the true essence of the buttercream shine through. A big Thank You goes out to the girl who knows me best and would understand just how much joy this tool continues to bring me. Next on the list? A rotating cake stand; every layer cake I make begs for one.

Our Dream House

One of the homes featured in this year's Parade of Homes has become Dave and I's dream house. Everything about it is perfect: the location, the layout, the decorating, and every little detail inside. You must check it out here.
Some of my favorite parts include the kitchen with it's backsplash and tall countertops, the craft room downstairs, the warm paint colors, and the built-in bookshelves. If anyone has an extra 2.5 million dollars laying around, feel free to donate to the Watkins' Dream Home Fund.

July, July

July has to be my favorite month of the entire year. The entire month should be considered a holiday. I wish it lasted 90 days. I can't think of anything I don't like about it! Some highlights of the month for me include Independence Day, fireworks, cold watermelon, waterslides, homemade ice cream, birthday parties, boating, growing a garden, hiking, Pioneer Day, gelato, the sound of sprinklers, air-conditioned movie theaters, farmers market, and much, much more.