Happy November... oh wait

It has been almost a month since I blogged. Seriously? Seriously?!

Okay so I have been a little bit busy. And by a little I mean a lot. Lots of work, and lots of puppy nuttiness has been going on.

Rueger has gained FOUR FIVE lbs in 2 weeks. That boy is growing like a weed. We are very proud. But there is a little bit of hope that for the next few weeks he will continue to look like this...






Portland has been decidedly cold! All of a sudden it has become freezing! Which means moronic drivers come out of hibernation but also...

...big warm fires in our fireplace!



Considering it rains all of the time, this was a little different!



Thanksgiving came and went, and at work there were some serious pie efforts going on. Hyrum and I celebrated Thanksgiving together, of course, and it was pretty mellow and fun!

We got out some of my grandmother's china



We only made a few of our favorite dishes, unlike last year when we had way too many leftovers.



I made these pies at work so that I didn't have to make any at home! (At that point I was all pied out!)



* Marion berry Rosewater
* Apple

Lily had a minor meltdown while she was getting used to the puppy and trashed the entire house. But since then they have been inseparable.



Lily doesn't love it so much when he wants to snuggle. She can usually stand it for about a minute and then has to move.

Ahh but what a beautiful minute...



If you are looking for a great location to spend Christmas, may I highly suggest Portland? It sure is beautiful this time of year, with lights up and down every street.

This is downtown Portland at Pioneer Square where they lit the giant Christmas tree, so pretty,



Hyrum put up some of the Christmas lights on Sunday while I made pumpkin rolls (his favorite). It was good fun!






23 days till Christmas = 21 Days until my 4 day Christmas vacation! I have a lot of shopping to do!

Mr. Johnson

Ladies and Gentlemen I have the great pleasure of introducing to you...


Mr. Rueger Johnson





He is our 6 1/2 week old half Pit Bull and half Boxer! We rescued him from crackheads in the Calama woods and not a minute too soon! He was covered with fleas and sores, and 3 short days later he is perfectly healthy!




He is perfect, and entirely beautiful with bright green eyes!

We aren't getting very much sleep (one tends to gloss over the not sleeping part), but it is totally worth it. He just melts me. Its kind of ridiculous.

Lily has been an entirely snotty girl, but when no one is looking...



...yeah she is kind of a softy. Don't tell anyone though.

Have a great week!

Crap shoots, diamonds, and cake.

Today is the 1st day of November, and it couldn't have come soon enough! For my family, October has been a

CRAP SHOOT.




Oh yes. You heard me right. The beginning of the month started with the loss of the littlest Dupass



and ended with the death of my 11 1/2 year old Boxer Annie.




That sucks.


Knowing that Annie is buried next to Titan makes me feel a little bit better though.



I have been taking a sort of sabbatical from most things besides Hyrum and work. Both have been extremely great healers.

* Hyrum is wonderful. He has always been wonderful. But this last month when I needed him the most, he has been everything I needed him to be. When he heard about Annie on Saturday night, he brought me home some flowers.

And they are lovely.





Anyway lets move on to what we have been up to lately.

Yesterday was Halloween. Which means lots of candy (and of course glow bracelets)




and even better... goodies (just a snippet of all the things we did at work!)







and I got to wear my Halloween T-shirt.





We got a few pumpkins, which in the next few days will turn into an endless supply of baked goods.




Speaking of pumpkin related baked goods,this is a cheesecake I did the other day. Its a pumpkin New Yorker. Drool.





Here are a few cakes I have done over the last little while...











And a fun package cake I did,





Here is a not so great picture of the 2 of us...





And finally... on October 13th, we celebrated getting engaged 4 years ago. And on the 14th we celebrated being married for 3.5 years. Hy spoiled me rotten with a new wedding ring set. It is so beautiful and I am very thankful for this guy.





Here is hoping that November isn't nearly as much of a crap shoot as October was.

Life Today

Normally on my blog I post about light and fluffy things; cake, my handsome husband, and all of the fun stuff that we do together.

But today, that is not what is in my heart. Today I want to talk about my family.

On October 6th, my oldest brother Josh and his wife Jess lost their baby boy Jrayden Max Dupass.

The service was heartbreaking and so beautiful. Being able to be there was very important to Hyrum and I. We are so proud of Josh and Jess for their strength and courage with this really difficult time. Seeing the people you love in that much pain is never easy, and our hearts mourn for them. As you can imagine, our families are having a hard time with this and could use all of the positive thoughts and prayers they could get.

I don't want to say too much, but what I do want to say is this:

I love my family for who they have made me. And even more, I love my husband for who he is helping me become.

I just want to finish by sharing one of my favorite poems that has always been special to my own little family.


Let there be a season when no one rakes,
when all that has ever fallen can drift
with ordinary wings. I hear you
out in the open, humming our favorite tune
through a leaf and a comb.

Lead us as if we were righteous
into the blue light of heaven
where no one will forgive anyone
just in case it’s condescending,
and we will love each other
to the withered toes.

Life is Good!

Life has been good! I am loving this 3 day weekend and this time with Hy. We have been spending time doing nothing too important... like grocery shopping!

Haha, doesnt he look thrilled.



V8... gross.

We spent today shopping for something a little more special (and expensive!) for our anniversary on the 13th of this month! It is getting more work and we wont have it back until the 12th officially, so I will show you a picture then!

Last week my girlfriend Rachel and I went and had a girls night! It was so much fun! We started out by eating at Soluna. It was so amazing.








We shared 4 plates together and we waddled out. We had things all over the board like:

-NorthWest Crab Cakes with a gorgeous aoili
-Apple Butternut Bisque
-Potato Gnocchi and Chicken
-Smoked Maple Pork Belly Salad




We then went and watched



It was pretty funny and I kind of wish that Hy was there to watch it, even though it was a TOTAL chick flick!

Anyway, Hy goes back out of town on Wednesday (LAME!) and I go back to work on Tuesday. I am excited for fall and Halloween!



I haven't put too many decorations up yet, so for now this is all I have put up!



Have a great week!!