bountiful basket

today was my first experience with bountiful baskets. karrie told me about it a few months ago, and i finally signed up for pick up this week. here's a nutshell version--they're a co-op who bargains with the suppliers for grocery stores and restaurants. they buy produce in bulk, and then distribute it to various locations in arizona (hello BECKY!), utah, idaho, and washington biweekly. because they can barter lower prices, they give you large amounts of fresh produce for extremely low prices. it's a volunteer organization, so if you sign up you are expected at some point to go do your time. i plan on it.

they acquire produce "locally" meaning arizona, texas, california, and northern mexico. hey, that's better than chile, right? the food is therefore seasonal, which is a wonder to me because california seems to be able to grow anything all year long. i'm grateful for this aspect of the co-op, because one of my goals this year is to cook food in it's season.

here's the catch--you don't get to choose exactly what you get. you show up and there is a basket full of fruit and a basket full of vegetables (everyone's the same). here's my basket this week:



1 large head romaine lettuce
1 bunch broccoli
2 cucumbers
2 zucchinis
10 roma tomatoes
7 red peppers
7 bananas
8 tangerines
5 grapefruit
1 package strawberries
7 braeburn apples
11 bosc pears

total=$15

they also offer fresh bread, granola, and often ethnic baskets. this week they offered a mexican basket. it had:



1 bunch green onions
1 bunch cilantro
4 limes
1 head garlic
1 package homemade flour tortillas (oh.my.gosh. so good.)
10 tomatillos
2 yellow onions
3 avocados
6 green chile peppers
4 jalapeno pepper

total=$6

i haven't tasted everything in the basket yet, obviously. i made some salsa verde today and mae ate half the box of strawberries. i also tried some tangerine and grapefruit. i will say this. the produce is extremely fresh and very tasty...sooooooooooo much better than the produce i've found in springville.

if you're interested, go to bountifulbaskets.org and sign up on their mailing list. you'll get an email next tuesday or wednesday saying the co-op is open. sign up for a basket (you only have until thursday, i think). they go saturday morning to reagan academy and pick up your booty.

then come home and stare at it in amazement and wonder what the heck you're going to cook with all this delicious looking food.


but don't forget a basket. then you'll look silly like i did.

issues.

I had a post all scripted in my head. It was all about whether I should cut my hair or not. I'm a short hair lover. Which you might think strange if you've only come to know me in the last couple months, because my hair is not short.

It's longer than it's been in at least 15 years, perhaps my whole life. It all started a couple years ago when I was going on and on about how much I love short hair, and how I think short hair looks better on me, etc. To which Jayson asked if I ever had long hair. Uh...not really. At least not when I knew anything about doing hair. So we both decided I should try it. For research, you know. I vowed not to cut until I had another child.

I kept good on my promise, but now my hair is driving me crazy and I'm ready to cut. I have all of the reasons ready to list off to you; why it's cheaper, easier, and sassier (I'm all about sassy).

But I have a dilemma. If I cut, I will look like everyone else. I swear everyone I know has short hair. Or maybe it just seems like everyone I know has short hair because I'm always admiring the bobs. Is it so bad to look like everyone else? Doesn't short hair rock? Don't I need it?

So I was searching for photos to show you what I looked like with short hair so you could give me your opinion. And I found my answer. I don't need to cut or not cut, I need to lose 30 pounds so my face is thinner again.

Thanks for solving my dilemma.

But then I found these two pictures and I have a new set of issues.

I miss this kid something fierce. I can't talk about it. I start crying. Work hard Drew, and then hurry your butt home.

And this........this...........this................. I can't talk about it. Then I might voluntarily offer limbs for someone to get me back to that island. And I kind of like my legs, especially my ankles.

resolutions

today i woke up before my girls and read my scriptures (goal #1).

then i loaded them up and went to the marriott center and walked/ran for 45 minutes while pushing my girls in my $40 double jogger i found on ksl.com classifieds (goal #2).

my meals today have been clean, healthy, made from scratch, made with what i had around, and perfectly balanced.

i just got back from walking to the library. i got my book club book, the odyssey (goal #5) and three books about cooking foods in season and grown at your local farmers market (goal #7). oh, and several books for mae. don't i usually buy books? maybe frugality should be a goal because i'm doing it so well.

later, i'm going to learn how to oil paint, do yoga, and sing kumbaya.

hello new years. good to see you. it will be sweet while it lasts.

i'm going to tri...

joy, deb, katy, me, and teresa after the running with angels 5k

once upon a time, i was training for the moab half marathon. it was a goal of mine to run a half marathon, and i was so excited to complete it. however, i met jayson a couple months before the race and suddenly my training program tanked. when race day arrived, i didn't feel as prepared as i'd hoped and i chickened out and only ran the 5 mile race. it's been hard to live that down and i really feel like i disappointed myself.

however, i also felt during that race that 5 miles was the most i'd ever like to run at one time. maybe it was because i was so ill-prepared, maybe its a.d.d., or maybe i don't love running like i thought. maybe i don't believe in myself enough. whatever it is, i decided that maybe i'd like to try something different.

a triathlon.

it sounded challenging enough, and diverse enough to do. i've been looking for a race for awhile, but between kids, no bike, and total inexperience in the field, i wasn't sure where to begin. i don't think i've known anyone around here who has participated in a race i could enter. the only race i knew anything about was the spudman, and that seemed out of the question.

so a couple weeks ago i was feeling especially out of shape and fat and resolved that it couldn't continue. a triathlon was the answer. i had to do it. i found a triathlon in american fork in may. it is a women only triathlon and a sprint distance (the shortest). 300 meter swim, 12.4 mile bike, 3.1 mile run. i could do that. it'd take some real training because i haven't lifted a finger in 9 months, but i believe i can accomplish something like it.

last week i bought a bike.

today i registered for the race.

i'm committed.

i have two friends doing it with me so far--elisa (my bff from high school) and stephanie (my bff from my mission). my sister-in-law is almost on board too, she just needs to believe she can do it.

and now, i'm inviting all of you to join me may 22nd. my goal is to finish and lose some of this muffin top i've aquired. that's it. if you join me, i promise i'll ride my bike with you, run with you, or swim with you a couple times before the race.

if you want to enter, go to triutah.com. registration opened today at noon, and last year they sold out within two days. so if you are interested, i'd hurry on over.

i'm so excited. and so nervous.

get-r-done!

michigan

i loved college. i really really loved it, and i could list lots of reasons why. but the number one reason is the people i met there. they are my best friends (for life) and no matter how long it's been since we've seen each other, we pick up right where we left off.

so when kimberly called me and told me she was getting married, i told her i'd be there. and then i found out that three other of my roommates were going to be there too, without husbands. uhhh...party, anyone?

we kicked off the festivities with a bachelorette party for kimmie. here she is...doesn't she look fantastic?

we had manicures and pedicures. here are the five of us that lived together at one point or another--kim, becky, ruth, me, harmony.


me, ruth, harmony, and becky. i love these girls.

after we were pampered and feeling relaxed, we went to dinner and gave kim some "gifts."


then we had a few days to relax, shop, eat, shop, stay up way too late, etc before the wedding. i didn't get too many pictures, because i was way too busy enjoying myself. thankfully, becky did!

here we are before the sealing (without the bride).


after the sealing...

since i really love these girls (becky, kim, and harmony are all from the same hometown), i went out to visit them in michigan in 2001. i stayed with kimberly's family, and fell in love with them. they're fantastic. i also stayed with the jensens for a day after jayson and i went to toronto two years ago. here i am with kim's sister, becca.

and her brother michael. i had to take this picture because a couple weeks ago we catered michael's wedding lunch. while i was busy cooking, mae was outside playing. she came running inside and said "mom, uncle drew is here!" i was pretty confused, until i saw michael. turns out he does look like my handsome brother, drew.


here are the girls again. me, becky, ruth, and harmony.


this time with kimmie.

and fine, i guess ben can be in the picture too.


harms and me.

and the sexy roommates again.


i had such a good time in michigan. congratulations kimberly and ben! have fun in mexico, and don't get sick.