I love to eat...

No really I LOVE to eat. Maybe that's why the only pictures I have from Christmas are from the times we went out to eat. But regardless I figured I'd share a few more pics from spokane.

For our girls activity we decided on lunch a cafe rio imitation (cafe chulo???) and using the parifin waxer we got as a group gift for Christmas. (In case you were wondering the bottom of those wax warmers are hot and if you place your whole palm on it, it WILL burn you. And you might jerk your hand out and spray hot wax all over the kitchen.. and your mother in-law. Not that I know from personal experience or anything.:)) Anyways the food was actually pretty good. But for me nothing matches a cafe rio sweet pork salad with extra meat shared with Brad. For some reason when we share it just tastes better. We managed to get some cute pictures with all the girls minus Celeste. This is proof of the wrath I experienced during Christmas.:) Who knew it would come from a source so stinkin cute. At the beginning of the week Jaycie wanted nothing to do with me and even pushed me away when I rested my head on Brad's shoulder while he held her. I'm not talking mild dislike, I'm talking two hands to the eyes pushing me away as hard as possible. She's quite possesive of uncle Brad. She warmed up a little after I fed her treats everytime I picked her up. By the end of the trip I was far from her #1 pick but she decided it was fun to tease me and at very least I was good for getting her candy. Baby steps.. babysteps....Jaycie and Aunt Emily

Thanks for the "birthday" lunch Pam we had a great time:)

So a picture says a thousand words....so how many words do a thousand pictures say?

Marrekesh!

One of our favorite presents from Brad's parents was dinner at the Marrekesh. If you've never been blessed to experience the Marrekesh I'll fill you in. The Marrekesh is the family's favorite Moroccan resturaunt staffed and owned by a very friendly Egyptian fellow. He remembers all the kids and details from previous visits even though ventures are only annually. If you ever go spulrge and get the feast- a delicious five course meal served family style. The food is great but it's all about the experience. Eating with your hands, fighting over the bastilla, making truces to let the food cool before anyone digs in an effort to get your fair share, and listening to stories about Mondo and his life. Not sure why but I love this picture of Zach
Justin and Stephanie

Matt and Emily

Ben and CelesteAnd...
Ang and Cameron didn't end up with a picture of the two of them but we did manage to capture a classic Angela face:)

The whole fam-damily

Our table.. Brad's such a tough guy!

Our table again.. that's more like it

The other table

To your healthUs and Mondo the owner, server, and kitchen help.. "true story"

P.S.

I had to share this video of Brad when we went iceskating.

Not much has changed. He sure does keep me laughing!

New Years Eve

It's been forever since I've posted. I've been enjoying all of YOUR blogs and decided I'd stop being just a consumer:)

We spent Christmas and New Years in Spokane and had a great time. These catch up posts will be out of order but yall can figure it out.

To start out the evening we went to Flaming Joes to watch the Gonzaga- Utah basketball game. I was pretty bummed(I"ll admit I wasn't too charming) to be watching sports but the boysenberrry boneless buffalo wings put me in a good mood. If you're ever in Spokane stop by... seriously I'm still craving them! After Flaming Joes we went to Riverfront Park with Justin and Stephanie for some ice skating.

Justin and Steph showed off their sweet skills. They're pretty much profesh :)

The hot chocolate we broughtwas aweseome! It totally hit the spot and we all guzzled it down.

Spokane's First Night celebrations were going on so skate rental was free which was a fabulous suprise. About an hour after we started skating they had everyone clear the ice and it turned out a guy had fallen down and got sliced in the head with a skate..ouch! Needless to say as we sat on the bleachers and waited we had PLENTY of time for pictures.

I LOVE my new sister in-law Stephanie and really enjoyed spending some time with her. This is a personal blog so I'll gush :) Steph is super down to earth, very mature, has a great sense of humor, tons of fun, patient, loving, and just plain beautiful! It's hard for me not to to compare myself to these awesome Wagner women and get down, but I sure am glad for their example and truly appreciate their patience with me!

We figured an hour of skating was just perfect and head to Justin and Steph's to ring in the year with a rousing game of ticket to ride:)

I'm learning that life is never perfect and it doesn't have to be to be wonderful.

Ode to the Rogers

This wednesday our friends Kent and Brinn moved back to Montana. Due to a flood in their apartment and a few other unexpected circumstances they decided to move Tuesday at 3 pm and were gone by 1 PM wednesday We were able to help them pack and get in a little quality time:) I had forgotten how good it feels to focus on others needs instead of my own. I am amazed we were able to get everything packed in less than 24 hours! We will miss them but we know they're doing what's best for their family. In honor of their "passing" I wanted to post these cute pictures of their daughter Emma at our house right before we went to Spokane for Christams. She is such a doll and Brad and I have had a great time playing with her and holding her new baby sister Camilla.

I'm grateful for all the friends I have made here in Provo who have come and moved away. But I sure am excited for the day when we no longer live in a college town and people stick around longer!