Easter in Utah

The last few times I’ve traveled to Utah, I’ve wanted to stay there. Last weekend wasn’t an exception – even though I went there to enjoy the beautiful spring season and it snowed. My luck!

I forgot how much I love the BYU campus and seeing the "Y" on the mountain.


I love Temple Square, the homes, flowers, mountains, shops and quaint streetscapes.


And there are fun, cute boys that live there.

I want to go back again.

Right now.

Teaser Horses

While in Kentucky, we toured several horse breeding farms. Each tour guide said the same thing: “you can’t underestimate the importance of a good teaser horse.”

Simply put – a teaser horse preps the mare for mating. Figure out the details on your own.

During this trip, I finally realized my importance in the world of mating.

I’m a teaser girl.

Every guy I’ve dated “mates” with the girl right after me. And most of them within only a few weeks/months after we stop dating. I have perfect 100-percent odds, which is truly amazing.

I never knew I was such a good tease.

I guess we all have our talents…

Racing Stripes Flop

The first night in our Kentucky hotel room, I put on my zebra-print pajamas and came running out of the bathroom, galloping and yelling, “I’m Racing Strips – Yaaaa! Yaaaa!” My sister just looked at me like I was an idiot. Sometimes I feel like I’m casting my pearls before swine because that was funny and seriously deserved a better response. I’m still disappointed in her reaction. Obviously.

Kentucky

It’s a place I never really thought too much about – until now. The rolling green hills, miles of open space, gorgeous estate homes and white picket fences tempt me to sale my house and head for greener pastures – literally.

Kentucky (for me) is all about homes, history and horses.

The homes. Oh, the homes. The state boasts some of the most impressive estates I’ve ever seen on acres and acres of grass-covered land. Estate names are proudly displayed at the home’s entry, demonstrating hallmarks of heritage. Estate living, miles of open space and a tradition-rich simple culture – add a pool, maid, cook and landscaper and I’ll think it’s heaven.



The history. You all know I’m a total history nerd and fan of Abraham Lincoln. Both President Lincoln and his wife were born in Kentucky.

Here’s President Lincoln’s childhood home.



And here’s Mary Todd Lincoln’s.



Quite the difference.

I also visited several Civil War sites. Kentucky, as a border state, remained neutral. Many citizens sided with the anti-slave states of the north, others sympathized with the southerners. Families were divided and Kentucky became the state where brother fought against brother. Grave markers in battlefields long silenced remind me of the events that transpired decades earlier. I feel an overwhelming reverence and appreciation for all those who fight for liberty and freedom.



The horses. I never thought I would know so much about horses. They are amazing, beautiful animals. In three steps, they’re capable of reaching full speed (50-60 miles per hour) giving me a whole new understanding of the word “horse power.” And, depending on its lineage, stud fees can be upwards of $500,000's. And some studs mate two or three times a day. I should have been a horse breeder. Or a stud horse. Both seem to have quite the life.



My sister coordinated a few tours at horse breeding farms. One included a live session. That was a real treat. After the “session,” my sister had to explain the reproductive process to my almost eight-year-old nephew, Tate. His response, “that’s gross. I am never going to do that.” But then he asked to watch another session and requested we take pictures. He’s such a boy. Tate and I both learned a few things at that breeding farm. Thanks Kim.

I dream of more Kentucky. One week simply wasn’t enough.

Skin Tight and Red Hot

I haven’t been snow skiing in years so I planned a quick weekend trip to Brian Head with some friends. I pulled out my bright red Eddie Bauer one-piece snow suit circa 1995 and packed it up for the big trip. It was freezing in Cedar City, even more freezing in our hotel room and painfully freezing on the slopes. I’ve decided snow skiing is overrated. I hate being cold. And no one wears “skin tight and red hot” one-piece snowsuits anymore. Boring!

My favorite thing about this trip: shopping/eating in St. George and not wearing any make-up. What does that say about me?

Polka dots of joy

If wool fibers were commanded to organize themselves to create happiness, they would create this rug from Pottery Barn.


Doesn’t it just look happy? It’s so bright and cheery. How could you be sad or depressed with your feet dancing around on these polka dots of joy? I’ve only had it for one day and already I find myself leaping from circle to circle like it’s a game. And I’m 34! It kinda reminds me of a giant game of Twister – only in this game everyone wins because the only color you’re playing with is yellow. It’s pure bliss.

Welcome to your new home, my little sunshine rug.

Now, where am I going to put you?

It’s a purse! It’s a camera bag!

It’s both!


And it’s now mine. Just in time for my next trip. Yay!

Thank you JoTotes.

How it should be...

Another singles conference

For the last month, my Mom repeatedly encouraged me to attend the upcoming Las Vegas Valley Regional Singles Conference. On more than one occasion she said: “I have a strong feeling about this conference Karry. I really think you should go.”

So I went. Last weekend.

After the conference concluded on Sunday, I went over to my parent’s house. The conversation went something like this:

Karry: Mom, now I know why you had such a strong feeling about me attending the conference. I actually met two new boys.

Mom stands in the kitchen trying really hard to hold back a big smile. She glances at my dad who starts to blush.

Karry: The first one’s name is Sam (name changed). He had a black eye. He said he’s from Jupiter and was sent to earth by his mom to learn why men have one mouth and two ears.

Mom looks confused. As did I when I was talking to Sam, who by the way has a son my age.

Karry: The second guy was named Marc (again, name changed). He was talking to me while chewing on a sandwich with his mouth open. A piece of bread flew out of his mouth mid-sentence and landed on my shoe.

Dad: That’s enough. I don’t wanna hear anymore.

To clarify, it’s not just weird men at the conference. There is an equal assortment of weird women there too. They really seem to shine at the dance. One woman was wearing see-through pants – ewww! And another woman jumped in our dance circle to do the splits. She wasn’t the smallest woman there and I’m not sure she was sufficiently stretched for the big move. She had a little trouble getting up. But whatever. It’s the singles conference. Almost anything goes.

The whole experience just makes me laugh. I was mortified the first time I went to a singles conference because I wasn’t sure what to expect. Now that I know, I really enjoy them. The secret is to go hear the fabulous speakers and gain insight and perspective. If you go for any other reason, you’ll likely be disappointed, discouraged and maybe even a little grossed out.

Valentine's Day musings with my parents

Karry: Do you want some of my See’s Candies?

Dad: How do you know what’s in them?

Karry: You don’t. It’s a surprise.

Mom: Too bad Kim’s not here. She takes a bite out of all of them and puts them back in the box. Then you can see what’s in them.

Karry: She only puts the other half back if she doesn’t like them. She eats all the good ones.

Mom: Oh yeah, that’s right. What a toad.

Happy Valentine's Day

See my five favorite Valentine's Day ideas here.

Cheetah print Snuggie

Last night I made dinner for my parents. After dinner, my Dad was cold so I got out my new prized birthday present – a cheetah print Snuggie. My Dad looked at it and said, “what is that?” My response, “It’s a blanket with sleeves.” I then put it on and waved my arms around so he could see how fancy Snuggie’s are. He just looked at me and said, “get that outta here.” I guess he’s not a fan of the Snuggie. Or maybe it was the cheetah print. Who knows.

Director

That’s my new title, if you’re a young woman going to camp in my ward this year. I don’t know why I’m still in shock. Me. A camp director. Really? Isn’t that a calling for an adult?

All my single friends have been called to serve as camp directors so I don’t know why I’m so surprised. The sad thing is that I teased all of them about their calling and now I have the same calling. Ugh! I am going to start teasing all my married friends to see if that produces the same result.

Honestly, I loved girl’s camp when I went 20 years ago. But there are almost 40 girls in my ward planning to attend girl’s camp this year and I don’t know any of them. Any advice?

Remembering

On January 2, my Dad called and asked me if I remembered calling him last year. I thought it was a new year’s joke so my immediate response was “Dad, I call you all the time.” He reminded me that it was a year ago on that day that I called to tell him that his mother passed away.

On January 13, Dad and I were driving down the road and he reminded me that his father passed away suddenly on this day in 1967. He had just finished cleaning the church and came home to change clothes in the wash room before heading out to do his chores on the farm when he suffered a fatal heart attack. Grandma found him.

In both instances, I was busy and occupied with the demands of the day and failed to remember the significance of these days. I’ve learned many admirable things from my Dad, but recently my favorite thing is the importance of remembering.

The photo above is of my Dad’s parents on their wedding anniversary.

34

I’m 34. Yes 34. Isn’t that crazy? I still feel, and sometimes act, like a teenager. But I have noticed several changes that confirm I truly am aging, such as my new love and need for sleep, new and frankly wider curves and new little wrinkles around my eyes. I’ve also noticed that I love being home – this coming from a girl my parents couldn’t get to come home 20 years ago.

It’s also interesting to note that the words of my mother have been fulfilled:

Your sister does become your best friend.
You really don’t keep in touch with everyone from high school and that’s OK.
It’s better to be trusted than liked.
People do remember how you make them feel.
It is important to remember who you are.

As I reflect over the last 34 years of my life, I can’t help but look back and smile at all the wonderful memories I have: making mud pies at the mountains with my sister, running around in my Wonder Woman underroos with Robyn, hundreds of family trips to Disneyland where we all stayed in one hotel room to save money, Aunt DelRae teaching me how to water ski while my Dad patiently circled around me in the boat, watching my Mom accidently do a wheelie on Dad’s motorcycle, Pat teaching me how to roller skate, going go-carting with Tate in race suits, eating toast for breakfast at Melissa’s parents house every morning after seminary, moving to college, going on a mission, graduating from college, getting a job, meeting new friends (affectionately dubbed the Power Squad), traveling to Europe and everywhere else I could afford – the list goes on and on. My life is full of wonderful memories created by a loving family and dear friends who have eternally influenced my life.

In so many ways, my life has exceeded my expectations even though it’s not the life I thought I would have at 34. There is an undeniable simplicity and quiet confidence to this phase of my life that I truly cherish. I love it.

My birthday was great. It started with a midnight breakfast at Denny’s, followed with a homemade breakfast and shopping at charming Town Square with Kristen, then dinner at PF Changs with the Power Squad girls. Subsequent birthday celebrations included dinner at Olives at Bellagio (right on the water – the view is better than the food in my opinion), another dinner at Serendipity 3 and the last dinner at Fleming’s Steakhouse. All delicious and fun. I love being spoiled.

Happy birthday to me!

White Christmas

Once again, we traveled to snowy Wisconsin for Christmas. This year’s activities included the traditional making of gingerbread houses, looking out the window for Rudolph’s red nose, listening for Santa’s bells, decorating sugar cookies, coloring snowmen and reading Twas the Night before Christmas – just to name a few. I love Christmas with children!

A few other highlights:

Kim and I went shopping to high-fashion Wisconsin retailers, Costco and TJ Maxx. I bought a new coat from Costco. I’ve decided one should buy coats where people actually need them. My closet is full of cute light weight trench coats, which doesn’t cut it in Wisconsin. I’ve added a brown down coat with a fur-trimmed hood to my collection for serious weather needs. Merry Christmas to me!

Tye and I played football in the snow. I wore his snow boots. Yes, this nine-year-old boy has the same size feet as I do. Crazy.

The whole family went to see The Blind Side. I think that’s my favorite movie from 2009. Dad stayed awake through the whole movie - that’s sayin’ something.

Tye, Tate, Taylor and I raced down the water slides at the Tundra Lodge, a resort with an indoor water park. I proudly won every race. Tate begged me to tell him my secrets to achieving such impressive speeds. Did I? No. I like to be mysterious. Kim floated around the lazy river and sat in the hot tub with Mom.

Overall it was a fabulous holiday. I have an amazing family. We laugh, cry and eat way too much together. It’s wonderful.

I hope you all had a great Christmas.

Christmas with the Dillard's

Since we wouldn’t be home for Christmas this year, we decided to celebrate with a pre-Christmas breakfast for dinner at the Dillard’s house. After eating waffles topped with strawberries, blueberries and whip cream, we all gathered in the living room for a lively white elephant gift exchange. Token gifts included Grandma Dillard’s red poncho, The Newlywed Game, X-Files VHS tapes, a bathroom kit and dozens of other prized possessions.

I went home with the 14-inch Caddyshack gopher that sings and dances. All the cousins were very jealous of my gift, which makes the prize even more valuable in my opinion. I love when people are jealous of me.

Sweet delivery

Oh my goodness! Look what was just delivered to my office.





Thank you Amanda. You’re the best!

I'm gonna need some stretchy pants.

My mom, Christmas cards and doughnuts

I love getting Christmas cards, which means I should send them out, right? Not this year. Sorry friends.

Today I got a Christmas card from my parents. Every year my mom insists on having Christmas cards that underscore the true meaning of Christmas. This year isn’t an exception. On the cover is Mary holding the baby Jesus and the inside reads: May the miracle of Christmas fill your heart with peace and happiness.

For those of you who don’t know, my mom had a surgery earlier this year that affected her ability to write. Significant time and concentration is required to perform this once simple task. But despite that, in blue squiggly writing at the bottom of my card, my mom took the time to tell me how much she loves and needs me. I tried to remember the last time I told my mom that I loved and needed her. Just this morning, I got mad at her because she ate my doughnut. In my defense, it was my favorite kind of doughnut (a sprinkled cake doughnut from Winchells) and she already ate her favorite kind of doughnut (a cake doughnut with chocolate frosting and nuts).

Put some blonde hair on Homer and this image would perfectly demonstrate how I felt all day long. Notice Homer is dreaming of a sprinkled doughnut too.



Anyway, my mom has endured much in her life but she has always been an amazing example to me. I hope she knows how much I love and need her. Even though she ate my doughnut.

Happy birthday Wes

Today is my brother-in-law’s birthday. What can I tell you about Wes? He’s a cowboy who calls my sister by her middle name when he’s trying to make a point and he likes frozen Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Underneath his camel-colored Carhartt vest and cowboy persona, is a gentle man who loves his family.

Nearly three years ago, Wes was anxiously waiting for Christmas morning to debut the new Denali he bought Kim. After the big debut, Kim experienced temporary hesitation about the purchase given the cost and her exclusion in the negotiating process. She was expressing her feelings to our dad and he said: “He would have bought you an elephant if that’s what you wanted. That’s just Wes.”

I’ve never forgot this comment. Maybe it was the elephant reference. Or maybe it was the realization my dad was right. That is Wes.

Throughout the last decade, I’ve watched this “tough cowboy” stand in line for hours to take his daughter to see the princesses at Disneyland, I’ve heard him cheer for his sons as they play sports and I’ve seen him flirt with my sister and make her laugh. He loves his family. This is my favorite thing about Wes.

Happy birthday!

P.S. Kim does not want an elephant for Christmas.

Happy December!

I woke up early this morning, turned on Christmas music, made some peppermint hot chocolate with whip cream and sprinkles and stared at my Christmas tree. Then I started crying. Do you ever have those moments when life seems so amazingly good that you start crying? I truly love this time of year and feel so overwhelmingly blessed.

The countdown to Christmas, my birthday and the end of another great year has officially started.