Young Frankenstein!

Matt and I were able to get tickets to the sold out show of Young Frankenstein here in Seattle last night. It is the world premiere, so we are the first city to see it! IT WAS AMAZING! Such a different show from the many that I have seen. The props and sets were amazing, and the lighting was so cool. The music was fun and catchy and it used a lot of the best quotes from the movie. "He's gonna be very popular." Speaking of the movie, it happens to be one of my favorites, and so you can imagine how excited I was that Mel Brooks added music and some more scenes. The cast of the musical was great, however there is NO way to compare them to the original movie cast. The only character that came close was Andrea (from My Big Fat Greek Wedding) who played "Frau Blucher" and I think that the only reason she did so good was because she had a much bigger role than in the movie. The guy who played "Igor" was also really good, but I just don't think there is a better person for the part than Marty Feldman. The same goes for Gene Wilder and Peter Boyle! You just cant even come close to the greatness of these character renditions!But, I do have to give the actors credit. Their voices were all great, and the dancing was crazy! We were excited to be able to see Megan Mullaly (Karen from Will and Grace) live. She surprised me with her singing voice and she was the perfect person for the part. Matt was very disappointed in the actress who played "Inga." Its true that she didn't have good comedic timing, but I think he was just praying that she was going to be more like Teri Garr. :) With all criticism aside, I highly recommend seeing the show! It was "ELECTRIFYING!"

Back to Work

And just in time for the sun! What is that about!! I wouldn't have minded working while it was raining for a week, but now that I have a job, its beautiful. Oh well, I really needed a job, and I was blessed with a great one. I passed my resume onto Doug Dillon who works at a recruiting office called Volt. He then gave it to a few internal recruiters who then found me a job! I am now an Administrative Assistant at Volt in Redmond. I work with a really great lady, and I think we are going to work really well together. I am so busy already, and I needed a busy job so that the day goes by fast, and I can feel accomplished. So far the people that I work with are really fun, and I love having my own office area. I am really excited to get comfortable with my job. Right now I am still training, so its a little stressful, but I can tell its going to be the perfect fit for me.We had a company picnic last night at Juanita Bay Park, and it was really good for me to get to meet a few people out of the office. They had great food and fun games. Laurel and I got these really awesome "Glitter Tattoos". If these things were around when I was a girl, I would have been covered in them at all times. They are so cool! Matt and I got to jump around on the bouncy stage and we walked around the beautiful beach. Because Doug also works for Volt, the Dillon kids were at the party! It will be another excuse for me to see them, so thats another plus to the job.

Princess's Charm

When Matt and I were buying all the cats name tags, we accidentally put Armani's name on a pink heart. Knowing he would never be ok with this, we decided that it really didn't matter what name was on the tags, just that it had our home number so that we could get the cats back if they were to get lose. So, we gave Princess the pink tag, and made another one (gold) for Armani to wear. Now that Armani is gone, and Princess is missing him, its so cute to see his name on her necklace. Its almost like she is wearing his name to remember him by. It makes me smile.

2 Years

I got breakfast in bed yesterday before church for our "2 year dating reunion." I know that seems like a funny thing to celebrate, but why not! I got yummy eggs and toast!
I have realized that we fit a lot into two years. Trips to Hawaii, the Caribbean, Arizona, New York and so many other places. We have planed a wedding, and been sealed in the Temple, we have bought a new car and decorated a beautiful home. We are so blessed that we have been able to accomplish so much. Its amazing to think of where we could be in 2 more years. :)

August Rain

The band played at a private party this weekend, and right after all the band equipment was set up OUTSIDE, it started to rain. So we took everything down and set it back up again in the garage. There wasn't a lot of room, and it took forever to get all the stuff dried off before plugging it in, but supposedly we played really good. The hosts were really upset about the rain, and had to cover everything up with tarps. Also, just before the last song, we blew the circuit, and blew all the power. They couldn't figure out how to turn it back on, so we had to pack up in the dark. It was quite an interesting show!

Sleepy Matthew

Matt fell asleep in the car on the way to Entiat, and I thought that there was quite a resemblance to a baby picture that we have of him. I thought it was so cute!

Simpson Aprecios

Here we are as Simpson characters! Go to www.simpsonsmovie.com if you want to turn your family into a cartoon. I had way more fun doing this than I should have :)

Dillon Pics

Last night I hung out with the Dillon kids and took them to dinner at Applebees. We had a great time. I got a few weird looks being 23 and with 4 kids, but whatever. Then we went home and watched the "High school Musical Countdown" which Laurel is so excited for. Here are some great pictures that I took of the kids (not last night) one summer day. They are so much fun to photograph, even though they are close to impossible to pose.

Entiat

This weekend I had a gig near Lake Chelan so Matt and I camped there overnight. The show was at an orchard in Entiat, and we were able to stay on the hosts property near the river. We brought Briz along for her first time camping, and she had the best time. I was really surprised at how good she did. She loved playing in the river with Matt, and sleeping in the tent was a treat. The drive to and from Chelan is so beautiful! It was a long drive, but actually entertaining. There are beautiful waterfalls on the side of the freeway and rocky mountains. Of course I couldn't get pictures of either of these since I was at the wheel. I saw a few places that I would like to hike, so hopefully that will be my next trip! :)

The dawg

Matt and I were giving loves to Brisbane the other night and I had to get a picture.

Some things to remember

Matt and I were talking about all the funny/cute things Armani did when he was still here. I don't want to forget these, so here is a list that we made.

* If something was on the floor such as shoes, a book, a towel, a pillow, he was on it. For whatever reason, his front feet made their way onto the object before you realized it was even on the ground.

* He had a mating call that was so loud and forward. When he wanted a girl cat (or the girl dog) he would let everyone know. "Meow, meow!"

* He cleaned the dogs eyes everyday.

* He would lay on my lap at every opportunity he had. If I was watching a movie or taking a nap on the couch, he was curled up between my legs.

* He loved to hang out under blankets if they were hanging off of the couch or bed. You wouldn't know he was there until you went to fold the blanket, and he would be weighing it down.

* It was imperative that he lay down in any boxes or bags that were left out. This also included the cat carrier and any other small space that he could barely fit into.

* If he could smell food, he would find it. He could pull whole chicken breasts off the counter (raw and/or cooked) and if something smelled good in the pantry, he would reach his paws under the door and try to figure out a way to get to it.

* He came to his name right away.

* Armani could open a closed door by running into it at full speed with his head. It worked every time.

* We were greeted at the door by him whenever we came home.

* He was the most amazing alto in the "Feed us Cat Choir".

* This cat could get outside when he wanted even open for a 1/2 of a second.

*He would chew his way into cat/dog food bags.

* Armani slept in a different position every time.

* If he was sick of walking, he would just plop down. No matter where he was.

Heartbreak

Sunday night, after eating with Matts parents, we came home to find Armani sick. He came up onto the bed and tried to pee right in front of us, with no luck. I took him into the bathroom with me and made him a clean litter box and realized that he was blocked again. He had had this problem before, so it was obvious to me that thats what was happening. I sat with him for a little bit, pet him and tried to get him to relax, but he was having such a hard time, and in so much pain that he passed out, and started to pant. I picked him up, got dressed and took him into the Emergency clinic. There they flushed his bladder out, put him on some pain medication and concluded that he was indeed blocked and that I needed to take him into his regular vet in the morning. That morning he tried to go potty again and again but to no avail. I took him into the Dr as soon as they opened and they got him under anesthetic so that they could exam him. (He is not the easiest cat to control with his size and attitude.) They did a few tests on him, and found that he had struvite crystals embedded in his urethra. The Dr talked to me about a surgery that would entail removing his penis and building a new system so that he could pee a little easier. However, it would not be without complications, and a lot of money. After talking to Matt about our options, we decided that Armani should be put to sleep. It was a hard decision to make, but I still feel that it was the best one. The Dr informed us that this was all very painful, and that Armani may never be able to urinate without pain again. I didn't think that was fair to him. He was only 4 years old but the Dr thinks that Armani just had a hard time passing crystals that would usually not be a problem.
Matt, Shauna and I were all with Armani when he passed away. I regret not saying goodbye to him while he was awake, but I did get to spend all night and day with him. He was my little buddy, and loved me a lot.I will miss him sleeping on my feet at night, I will miss his loud meow that he did whenever he wanted something, and I will miss laughing at the way he slept and played. He was by far the coolest cat I have ever met, and I will not even attempt to find another like him. Not only was he such a great character, but he was the most handsome kitty. This picture was taken days before he died. I though it was so funny. Yes, he is fast asleep like that.We buried him at my parents house and I hoping to plant some black and white roses above his grave. I know that to some people it might seem silly to do all this for a cat, but he was also a good friend.Although I know we made the right decision, I am still having a hard time being home without him. Matts parents sent me beautiful flowers this morning, and it was hard being able to leave them out now that Armani is not around to eat them. I know that every day will get better, but he will never be forgotten.

Sea Fair 2007!

For Sea Fair we wanted to head over to Shannon and Tylers house since they were having a little get together, and live on the lake. We got there too late to see the Blue Angels, but we did get to see some of the other air shows. Shannons birthday was a day or two before the get together, so Matt and I made her a cake. Matt baked the cake part and I decorated it. I had the best time too! I made it look like the river that Shannon and I had floated down the week before complete with dangerous rocks and mean log jams. It was a big hit, and really tasty too! Tyler let me take a fishing rod down to the end of the lake and I got to practice casting...a lot. I never reeled anything in that wasn't lake weeds, but I had a good time none the less. I hope to get some fishing done this summer where I actually catch a fish!

Ward Campout

Friday night we headed up to Ensign Ranch for the annual ward camp out. When we arrived, there were only a few families there, so we took a spot next to the river. It is a beautiful camp ground, and I look forward to camping there every year. Last year Matt and I were on the activities committee, so we were in charge of the breakfast and details of camp out. So this year we were excited to just sit back and relax. However, only 5 or so family showed up, with no committee! So we helped out in every way possible. Matt built the fire (a really hot one!) for roasting marshmallows, and I played primary songs on the guitar. It was a good time, and I hope that we will get to go camping again soon.

Pool Fun

On Thursday, the Dillon kids came over to play in the pool with us. We had such a fun time! Matt enjoyed throwing Malcolm and Laurel around, and I had a great time swimming with baby Dana. Aubrey just had fun sitting around in the hot tub, and jumping into the deep end. When we were all finally tired out from spending hours in the water, we headed home, got dried off and into our pajamas. Then we ate hot dogs and pizza and sat down to a few movies.