A Two Man Tent

We finally went camping! Brandon and I have been talking about going camping ever since we got married but there always seemed to be some excuse: I am working this weekend, or we are going up to Salt Lake that weekend, or we better do that before we move and this is the weekend to do it. But we finally did it and it was a blast. We went to Twin Harbor State Park along the coast. When we arrived at the park we went straight to the beaches. We walked along the beautiful sand beach for miles and became professional beachcombers. I think we collected over 2 dozen whole sanddollars.

The best part of the trip was our tent. As you can imagine we do not have a lot of camping gear but believe me if Brandon has anything to say about it we will be collecting camping stuff over our entire life. We did have one vital piece of equipment: a two man tent. Brandon bought this tent for a boys only campout he went on with all his guy friends the summer before we got married. They called it Man-richment or Man Games 2007. Now you can only imagine the exciting activities they had planned to prove their manhood: fishing, shooting guns, playing King of the Raft in the freezing cold lake, 4-wheeling, throwing large logs, seeing who could lift the heaviest rock above their head...all of which they did with their shirts off to be more manly. I wish I could have been a fly on the wall during that campout; I think I would understand boys a lot better. The two of us barely fit inside this tent. But it was a cold misty night by the water and we were grateful for our little home away from home.

Whidbey Island

While we were still living the good life of unemployement, Brandon and I took a day trip up to Whidbey Island. I guess Whidbey Island is the largest island in the continental US (50 miles in length). The early explorers thought it was another peninsula in the Sound which is why it is called Deception Pass. The only way to drive onto the island is over one bridge otherwise you take a ferry. We spent the day hiking around Deception Pass State Park and ate lunch along the beach.

We then drove down to Fort Casey to explore and watched the sunset on the beach. It was gorgeous! I have fallen in love with the sunsets here. Brandon always would tell me how Washington sunsets couldn't be beat. I think he might be right.

The Replacement of Little Red

This was a difficult night for me; as evidenced by the frown on my face. The car pictured here was my first car. I purchased "Little Red" after being without wheels for a semester after my mission. I decided that buying a car would help my dating life and just make life a little easier. This hot, little Corolla was quite the chick magnet. Karen couldn't resist the car but shortly after getting married she (we) decided that we should replace Little Red. Karen told me that she wants me driving a safer car to work in Seattle but I really think she just wanted me to drive something a little less flashy.
In moving to Redmond we left Little Red with my cousin Chris in hopes that we would find a good car prior to starting work. Shortly after moving here I received a call from Chris letting me know that Little Red's clutch had gone out. I knew it was going but didn't know how close it was to going out. (Sorry about the dead car Chris.) Karen is very glad now that we decided not to bring Little Red up here. However, we are not sure exactly what to do with the car now. We are trying to sell it at a really good price if anyone is interested in an '89 Corolla.

We found a car! After many days of looking at cars and many test drives we found a car that will work at a decent price. I am currently in the process of naming the car. I will unveil the name sometime in the future. Our new car is a 2002 Acura 3.2 TL-S. Karen felt like this would be the perfect car to provide a safe commute and reduce the chick magnet appeal that Little Red previously provided. We have owned the car for almost two weeks now and we are really enjoying it. Thanks for the new car Karen!

Our New Life

We made it safely to Washington and are finally starting to get settled! Here is what we have been up to since we left Provo:

August 13th was my last day at work in Provo. I was fine all day but when I walked off the floor I started to cry. I am really going to miss all the people I met and experiences I had. It was the perfect job for me right at that point in my life and the best place to work in all Provo. Thanks to all my CPCU friends who have made the last 2 years so much fun! The next several days were spent packing, cleaning, and moving everything. Tuesday morning we started the 2 day/900 mile drive to Redmond Washington; Brandon in a 16 foot Budge truck and me in my little Mazda 3 following behind. Our first stop was Idaho Falls to meet up with Tyler, Chelsie, and Debby. We had lunch and met little Hadley Jane for the first time. Debby was so nice to drive my car up to Spokane while I rode in the truck with Brandon. That night Brandon got really sick with a sore throat but we were able to get up the next morning and drive both the truck and car over to Redmond to check into our apartment and make sure everything was alright. We are so grateful for the help from Jim and Debby, Rich and Debbie, and Tommy in moving all of our stuff up 3 flights of stairs in the pouring rain. THANK YOU--we couldn't have done it without you!!

The next several weeks were full of one of my least favorite activities--shopping. The only furniture we brought with us was the bedroom set we found a great deal on back in Utah. There was no place to sit down in our apartment except two old camp chairs Brandon and I have had since before we started dating. So over the first week we were able furnish our entire apartment. To be honest I was a little worried about finding furniture that both of us would like and agree on but to my surprise we always feel in love with the same things. I am quite impressed/surprised with Brandon's homemaking skills...he has a good eye for home decor and is even talking about finding draperies for our windows (I honestly didn't even think of that). Oh how I love my husband and the new things I learn about him everyday! Jim and Debby were so helpful that first week. I think Debby washed every dish we owned by hand and helped organize the kitchen. Thank you guys!

Our couch (Brandon's favorite purchase because now he as a place to sit to watch Sports Center. It is microfiber and super comfy.) and our Coffee table/ottomanChina cabinet (my favorite purchase!)Kitchen table and chairs (It is counter high and has a leaf that will expand the table to a square to sit 8 people)

We bought our couch at Macy's on sale. It was actually one we saw in Utah that we liked but we were unsure whether or not it would fit. So to be on the safe side we waited until we were here to make some measurements. Finding a kitchen table was our biggest challenge. Everywhere we looked tables cost over $2000 and we didn't even like them. One morning we were on our way to take the moving truck back when we got off the freeway and saw one of those dancing billboard people on the side of the road advertising a retirement sale at a furniture store around the corner. We decided it wouldn't hurt to go look around before we took the truck back. We walked into the store, saw the table and chairs, china cabinet, and ottoman and within 10 minutes had paid and were headed to their warehouse to pick everything up. Thank goodness we didn't take the truck back! That afternoon we had all our new furniture in our house. It is so nice to have our own stuff and now I can say that I am grateful for those crazy dancing billboard people on the side of the road.

This is the view from our balcony. We live right next door to the Genie Lift Factory and there are a million semi trucks that go by every day...it gets a little noisy. On really clear days we can see Mt Baker.

With being a little more settled we decided to have fun and see the sites. Our friend Nate was in town for a job interview so we were able to go around to the sites with him. One night we went and saw the Freemont Troll. This is a large statue of an ugly 'thing' under the Freemont Bridge. I guess it is pretty famous...but I have never heard of it before. We then went and saw the downtown Seattle skyline from a park. It really is a beautiful city and I love how it is right on the water.

One morning we went to Pike's market downtown. This was the day before the big BYU vs. U of Washington game so the entire market was swarming with cougar fans. It is amazing how we stand out like a sore thumb wherever we go. We even ran into President Samuleson a couple times. Pike's market is so much fun to walk around. It definitely smells like fish everywhere you turn. We saw the famous fish throwers and I was able to have my first taste of the fresh seafood at a market grill. It was the best clam chowder I have ever tasted. After wandering around the market for some time we then went down to Waterfront park and walked watched the boats in the Sound. Brandon even pointed out his office building. See if you can guess which one it is in this picture.

That evening we went to the Puyallup Fair with Brandon's parents. They were over in Olympia for some business meetings and were planning on going to the BYU game with us the next day. I think I have only been to the Utah State Fair once in my life and it was to look at some art work my sister Suzy had on display. On the long slow drive down to Puyallup I asked Brandon what people do at fairs. He said you walk around the vendor booths, eat food, and look at animals. And that is exactly what we did for the entire evening. After that discription I surprisingly had a lot of fun.
This is the only picture I took that the Fair. We look pretty good huh?

Saturday was the BYU football game. The kickoff was at 12 noon so we left our apartment around 10:30 thinking we would have plenty of time to get to there, park, find our seats and maybe even meet up with a few friends from Provo who were at the game. Boy were we wrong...the 520 turned out to be a parking lot and we didn't park the car until kickoff. After our 2 mile trek from our car, we finally got into the stadium half way through the first quarter. It was a close game but the Cougars came out on top with an amazing play to block the extra point in the final seconds to win the game by 1 point. Walking to our car we got some lip from the Husky fans. I just keep thinking, "We definitely aren't in Utah anymore!" There was so much swearing and drinking and comments about our church being made I was a little surprised.

One night we drove up to see the Snoqualmie Falls. (Sorry no pictures...they just wouldn't turn out in the dark!) They are a 300 foot waterfall just a few miles away from our house. There are a couple hikes around the falls that we will have to go back and try out sometime soon. We then headed off on our most random adventure yet. Whenever we drive to and from Spokane to our apartment we drive the back roads through North Bend, Fall City, and Snoqualmie. Along the road there is a giant log under a pavillion. We have been so curious as to what it is and why it is so important that they built a little enclosing around it. It turns out that it is not important at all. It is just a giant log about 10 feet in diameter that everyone carves their names on. Even though it has no signifiance we took our pictures by it and can now tell all our friends and family that we have been to the giant log in Snoqualmie!
The weather has continued to be absolutely beautiful this week so we went to Safeco Stadium and watched a Mariners game. We bought tickets from some guy off the street for really cheap. Our seats were amazing right behind home plate. Honestly baseball is a little boring for me but I absolutely loved the atmosphere inside the stadium. I can't believe how many people were at the game on a Wednesday afternoon....shouldn't they all be at work somewhere? The Mariners beat the Rangers 8-7. After the game we went for a walk to Pioneer Park.
We have also been able to go the Seattle Temple in Bellevue a couple times. They are doing some construction work on the Angel Moroni which is why there is that beautiful scaffolding all around the spire.

Other big news is that I am official a Washingtonian (Brandon says that is what they call themselves). I now have a Washington state drivers license and Washington plates for my car. Crazy! But I think I will still claim being a Utahn...that's some much easier to say than Washingtonian.
Other big new is that we bought a car yesterday. It is an Acura 3.2 TL-S and Brandon loves it. I told him he will have to make a post about it.

So that is pretty much what we have been up to since we left Utah. Brandon doesn't start his job until October 1st and I don't go back until Sept 22nd. I'm sure we will have lots more adventures to report on before we settle down and get back to our normal boring working lives.

Fry Sauce

For people in Utah, fry sauce is a normal part of life. If you go to any restaurant you can have fry sauce with your fries rather than just the regular old ketchup. I think fry sauce was one of Karen's favorite things about Utah.

Most of you know that Karen and I moved to the Seattle area about a week and a half ago. More posts will come to tell you all about the move but I want to relate just this one story which happened the second day we were in Washington.

Thursday was a long (partially succesful) day of furniture shopping. Since we rented a furnished apartment in Provo we did not have any furniture for our dining room or living room. We needed to find a couch and a dining room table so we could have a place to sit in our front room and a place to eat. (We did find a couch this day but I will leave it to Karen to write about the furniture). It was about nine at night when we finally decided to get some dinner (it was a long day of furniture shopping). My parents decided to take us out to dinner to celbrate my passing of another section of the CPA exam. There was a Red Robin close by so we went there. Red Robin is one of Karen's favorite places to eat. (There fry sauce is her favorite - it is a little different than everyone else's).

After completing our orders the waitress kindly asked if we would like anything else. Karen's face lit up as she asked for some fry sauce. The waitress got a somewhat confused look and I immediatley knew what I had done. Not only had I brought Karen all the way to Washington 900 miles from her family but also from her beloved fry sauce. The waitress informed us that she was not sure what fry sauce was and my heart sank. I knew that Karen was crying although there was no evidence of this on her cheeks.

One week later...

We are in Spokane with my family for the blessing of Hadley (my little brother's daughter). For a celebratory dinner Tyler's inlaws took us all out to eat at Red Robin. As the waiter was taking our orders he asked each of us if we would like any sauces (included in the list of sauces was fry sauce). We were skeptical at first but hopeful. Karen ordered some fry sauce. Our food was brought out along with the fry sauce. It looked exactly like the fry sauce at Red Robin from Utah (which is Karen's favorite). Karen anxiously dipped a fry and took a bite. It was a little piece of Utah right here in Washington.

I have no longer separated my wife from two of her loves (her family and her fry sauce). She is now just separated from her family but close enough that we can visit everyonce in a while. I am grateful for the sacrifices which Karen has made in moving with me to Seattle. It has not been easy for her but she is adapting very well. We are enjoying the area and Karen will make a post soon about the entire move.

For all the Utahns out there removed from their home state - you can find fry sauce at any Red Robin restaurant. (It is disguised as onion ring sauce.)

The 'Utah Date'

Today Brandon and I were able to go on what I call a 'Utah Date.' We started the day off with a 3.5 mile run. We are wanting to run a marathon next year so we are slowly starting to train. Brandon is doing great considering he had knee surgery in February and only started running a few weeks ago. We then headed up to the SLC temple to see our friends Jana and Scott on their wedding day. They look so happy. After taking pictures on the temple grounds, Brandon and I were planning on doing a session but as we were walking into the dressing rooms we were asked to do proxy sealings. It was a really cool experience because we were able to do the sealings in the same room my Grandma and Grandpa Cannon were sealed in 51 years ago. After the temple we headed down the street to the Lion House for lunch.

We then went and test drove cars. We have been trying to sell Brandon's car before the big move and then get a new one when we get up to Seattle. If any of you have any suggestions on what kind of car to buy or know any great deals we would love some input. To finish off the 'Utah Date' we went to Jana and Scott's reception. It was an garden reception at Thanksgiving Point and turned out beautifully. It was fun to see lots of our Provo friends one more time before leaving. Marcy and Me

Marcy, Jana, and me

I'm so happy we were able to do this 'Utah Date.' I'm sad to think that we are moving away from all of this in less than two weeks. But we are both really excited for the chance to go to Seattle.

Fun at the Cabin

Wednesday afternoon Brandon took off early from work and we headed up to Brighton to spend some time at our cabin. Right when we got there we took off on a hike up to Twin Lake. All of Clint and Lisa's kids, Grandpa, Brandon and I made the trek (Isaac walked the entire way by himself...we are so proud of him). The lake was beautiful.


Somewhere along the hike I got bit by a mosquito or some other bug and developed a golf ball size lump on my forehead. No pictures were taken to document this mysterious aliment but it was pretty ridiculous. I took some Benadryl that night and it went down quickly...and I slept really well that night. (This is Brandon's face when he saw my bite. just kidding.)


No trip to the cabin would be complete without an intense game of Settlers of Catan. I had no where to build cities and was pretty much stuck in a corner the whole game. Clint finally came out victorious.

The next morning we walked around Silver Lake and watched Grandpa and the boys fish. They didn't catch any fish...I guess they just weren't hungry.


Throughout the day we watched movies, went to Solitude, and had an awesome Foosball tournament. Brandon ruthlessly dethrowned Brigham as the champion. You can see on their faces how intense the games got.