My niece's opinion on hunting deer

Yesterday we had all of Casey's family over for a Zaugg SausageFest (yeah, I know how it sounds) which is basically a BBQ of bratwurst, sausages, hotdogs and lots of other DELICIOUS side foods like corn, fruit, corn salsa, potato salad etc. Over dinner we had a funny little conversation with my niece that I thought I would share.

I was complaining about how the deer DEMOLISHED my tomato plants that I had JUST bought AND stepped all over my new box garden.

Now, my Dad is a big hunter so I've grown up loving venison, but I've never been a hunter myself; HOWEVER, this is personal. It is now my main goal to hunt and shoot a deer. Only then will my vengeance be satisfied. So, my NRA brother-in-law, Brady, offered to take me hunting with him. The conversation went something like this:

Me: I'm serious about this!

Brady: I'll take you hunting sometime.

Me: Do you have a gun I can borrow?

Brady: Oh yeah, it shoots a buckshot that will make an absolute mess out of the deer.

Me: If we actually bag a deer I'll go half-sies with you to get it processed.

Brady: Sounds great.

Cassandra (Brady's 6 year old daughter): Don't shoot the deer! That is not very nice!

Me: Well, it wasn't very nice of the deer to eat my plants either.

Cassandra: But the deer were just hungry!

Me: (with a wicked grin) So am I.

Cassandra: (looks down at her lap and mutters) the deer never eat our garden....

Me: That's because you don't live in the mountains AND you have a fence around your whole yard.

Brady: (shaking his head) Dang Bambi's socialist agenda...

Happy Halloween!

I LOVE Halloween! So many fun parties, treats, costumes, lights, haunted houses and trick-or-treaters! Casey and I had three significant events this Halloween season, Casey's Work Party, Ward Chili Cook-Off, and Jasmine's Party.

Casey's Work Party Friday October 29, 3-5 PM

This was the first time I got to go to Casey's office and see where he works! His office really isn't that big so it was a pretty short tour. It also wasn't much of a party- people mostly just stayed in their offices and people took their kids around trick-or-treating to everyone's offices. There was pizza and soda in the break room. I didn't get to really talk with very many people, mostly just a "Hi, I'm so-and-so" introduction.

The adults didn't even dress up! I had our costumes all packed up in the car because I went to a Pumpkin Walk at Utah Central Gardens in Provo and I was going to go straight to Casey's office afterwards. Casey called me in the morning and said, "Nobody's dressed up! Don't come in costume!" Ugh! But I brought Sander in costume anyway.

Sander went as a broker. It was the highlight of the party.

Ward Chili Cook-Off Saturday October 30, 4-6 PM

I did make a chili but it wasn't epic so I'm not going to waste my time blogging about it or your time reading about it. We all dressed up this time and had a pretty good time chatting with the Ward members.

Casey and I went as... Can anyone guess? (Those are big "P"'s on our chest btw)

Sander was a Sumo Wrestler!

I took him in his diaper, white socks, black eye liner at each of his eyes, and I sewed some black yarn on the inside of a head band and put it into a sumo bun!

Everyone loved Sander's costume and no one could guess what Casey and I were. They eventually got it after a couple of hints though. :-)

Jasmine's Party Saturday October 30 7 PM

A friend of mine invited us to a party at her house so we went there around 7:00. We were supposed to bring a dish to share so I made a monster cheese ball.

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped pimento
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped green pepper
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped onion
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 pinch salt
• 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

Directions

Combine the cream cheese and Cheddar cheese in a bowl. Add the pimento, green pepper, onion, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, and salt; mix with hands (wash them first!), and shape into a ball. Spread the pecans onto a cutting board and cover with a dish towel. Pound with a rolling pin until pecans are crushed. Roll the cheese ball in the pecans until evenly coated. Refrigerate overnight before serving. (You don't have to refrigerate overnight. I only refrigerated the cheese ball for a couple of hours and then coated the ball in the pecans and it was still great! Everyone loved it!

I used green peppers for the eyebrows and toenails, green olives for the eyes and toes, sliced baby carrots for the mouth and nose and tortilla chips dyed with red food coloring for the ears. It was such an easy, fun dish to take to a Halloween party!

Valentine's Day

Hello Hello everyone! I hope you had a fabulous Valentine's Day or, as I would say when I was single, Single's Awareness Day! Last night, Casey and I went out to eat at a really great little Italian restaurant called I Fratelli. While we were there I saw 5 young girls all sitting at a booth together, dressed to the 9's and having the time of their lives. That got me thinking about the meaning of Valentine's Day and I think that I have had it all wrong in past years.

Valentine's Day is not just a day for celebrating love between a man and a woman, it is a day to spread love to everyone. I remember when I lived at home and I would wake up for Valentine's Day, come downstairs and there would be a big vase of roses and a can of those Chocolate Pirouette things for me and my mom. My Dad always left us a little Valentine's Day card and I remember feeling so special- even though growing up I never had a significant other to spend the day with. Valentine's Day is about being with people we love in general. It can be spent with all the family, your spouse or with a bunch of girlfriends- it doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is that we take the opportunity to show someone we care.

Well, that's my thought for the day! lol. After I Fratelli's Casey and I came home and I made up a FABULOUS fruit and cheese platter- I think Dad and Papa Zaugg would have been jealous of our spread- I know how much you guys love cheese! We drank Martinelli's from our wedding glasses and picked from a box of chocolates while laying on a bunch of pillows on a blanket on the living room floor. Frank played quietly in the background and we lit a bunch of candles for light. Then we watched "Chocolat"- an awesome movie! And had a really great time. What did you guys do for V-Day?

Going clockwise we had Grapes, Goat Cheese with Cranberries and Cinnamon (awesome!), sliced pears, brie (great melted), apple slices and a new one for us, Halloumi cheese- you can grill it or put it in the pan and it becomes a cross between the rubberiness of Colby-Jack and the crumbliness of Parmaesan. Casey wasn't a big fan but I thought it was good with the fruit. :-) We also had Ritz and Wheat Thins, which were a good complement.

"Stresses in our lives come regardless of our circumstances. We must deal with them the best we can. But we should not let them get in the way of what is most important--and what is most important almost always involves the people around us. Often we assume that they must know how much we love them. But we should never assume; we should let them know...We will never regret the kind words spoken or the affection shown. Rather, our regrets will come if such things are omitted from our relationships with those who mean the most to us. Send that note to the friend you've been neglecting; give your child a hug; give your parents a hug and say "I love you" more; always express your thanks. Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved." ~President Thomas S. Monson