We are friends and we are laughing

i am extremely patriotic and will always love America because i know this land has been preserved for a special purpose. i am so thankful for all the people who have given their life to keep this country safe. please take a moment this weekend to give thanks for those who have sacrificed so much and say a prayer for the family they've left behind.

this morning i emailed aaron asking him what he would like for his birthday breakfast.

me: what do you want for breakfast? i'm assuming bacon. anything else? eggs? pancakes?

him: bacon and french toast, both crispy, and chocolate milk. that's my dream.

at least the man knows what he wants. if only i could outsource cooking the bacon, but it's his birthday so i will not make a peep.

does anyone else feel like it's major baby fever time? it's kitten season and as one person in animal services at work said, "we have kittens hanging from the rafters". i'm surrounded by talk of feedings and neo-natal stats all day long. today i found out two of my friends are having (human) babies, another just had one a few days ago, and about a bajillion women in my ward are pregnant. maybe not a bajillion (mostly because i don't know how many that represents), but a lot! crazy time!

i wish a warm plate of these delights were in front of me right now. i think i would eat 3. maybe 4. i propose a worker's compensation chocolate chip cookie fund. when the job gets to be too much someone should crank up an oven and serve these. i regret not making a batch of cookies over the weekend. i appropriately realized i didn't have the time, but now i wish i had found the time. (who am i kidding? you can't just find the time to bake cookies. if that were the case i'd bake them every day.)

oh, like 25 years or so since i've seen your face. i come with mixed emotions. i'm NOT a fan of strollers and crowds and crazy kids. i am a fan of days off, time with aaron, and seeing shelrod and crew. i'm a big fan of that. tomorrow will be a test run to see if i visit in another 25 years or if i make it a regular event. put your best foot forward, disney.
side note: i was thinking about buying some mickey ears, but where can i get these shirts? you've got to be kidding me...

Friday was our annual ward kick off summer BBQ. I invited these two friends:

and made these beans. I only tasted about a tablespoon of them because they went quick. I love the fact that they are so colorful and not the same ol bean recipe. Instead of the full amount of ketchup I used half ketchup/half BBQ sauce. Delicious! I'll be making them again. A success!

for aaron. we're bringing baked beans to our ward kickball party tonight, so i was up before 6am to begin the recipe. much to my dismay it involved frying bacon. aaron's dream come true is waking up to the smell of frying bacon. a dream that rarely happens in our house, but it happened today. he quickly sadled up to me in the kitchen and begged for a strip. if only i had my wits about me and could have captured his face while eating the bacon. a dream like state, i tell you. don't lose it, aaron, you'll have the rest at the end of the month for your birthday.
my house still smells like bacon. yuck.

note: i am aware of the complete lack of pictures on our blog. we'll bring our camera tonight and post the memorable event.

today is the one year anniversary of aaron receiving his conditional permanent residency. in 8 months we get to start the process of gathering the monthly photographs (20 in all) showing our wedded bliss, copying our joint tax return and financial documents, requesting letters from friends who can vouch for our marriage, filing grand amounts of paperwork, paying sizeable fees, and all that fun stuff to request the conditional status be removed so he can stay! and then a few years after that we can do it all over again to establish citizenship. what fun.

i've thought of dressing up as andie macdowell and gerard depardieu a la the movie green card for halloween. somehow i don't think sending the uscis pictures of that would be smiled upon. best not to use humor in those situations.

last night i tried a martha stewart recipe for one bowl chocolate cupcakes to use up the buttermilk in my fridge before it expired. they were very easy and delicious! just as easy as using a mix, but much tastier. i paired it with a batch of homemade chocolate frosting and was delighted with the results. highly recommended for a quick and easy recipe.

i got back to my desk and realized i dropped my debit card somewhere outside.
i frantically ran my route to try and find it.
a homeless gentleman saw me looking and asked if i was looking for a credit card.
he turned it in to the donut shop near where i had dropped it.
i almost cried.
he said the Lord takes care of those who ask for His help and asked me to pray for him.
he even waited until i emerged from the donut shop to make sure it worked out.
at times i am amazed at the kindness of strangers.
and those who could use what i was looking for so much more than me.