...and I'm gunna win that blue ribbon...

Utah State Fair time.
Ben calls me last monday and says that he has just learned that there is still time to enter some goodies to be judged in the state fair. He has from Monday night to Wednesday at noon. The next couple of nights were a trial and error.... but here are the successes...
A beautiful rising white bread loaf...
Excellent motion capture in the Kitchen Aid ... whipping up the chocolate marshmallows
Finished results.....ready to be entered..
So Ben leaves school a little early to get down to the fair by Noon.

The next 24 hours are brutal.
I wake up Thursday morning at 8am and Ben is laying there on his back.... "someone knows the results".....
He'd been awake the last 2 hours.... like a kid at christmas morning. I drug my feet getting ready "...so don't you think we should swing by the store before we go to the fair?"
Poor Ben. :)

We rush back to the arts and crafts building ....aaaaannnnnddddd.....

4th place with Marshmallows - which was kinda a bummer....but still!
and 2nd place!! Excellent bread :)

He's already practicing what to make for next year.

Correction

I need to clarify a statement made in my previous post.

In reference to the slice-able bread. Ben had been successfully making bread for many years and was a success on his FIRST try at slice-able sandwich bread. Very buttery. Very good.

.... I just want the world to know how awesome he is!

I used to be pretty good at keeping an updated blog. Over the last month I've taken pictures thinking - this is a great thing to 'blog' about.
However, now it's become one whole pile of random stuff I'm going to 'blog' about.

First is the Bear Lake Trip. It was cold for August! I don't mind the cold. Long story short - we had to drive back one car short ... which included stuffing a lot of our gear + one passenger into Jake's top-less four runner. The back seat ride with the wind blowing in your hair wouldn't be a big deal .... if it hadn't been cold and rainy.
Dad took the job and we triple wrapped him in a tarp. What a trooper...
My youngest brother got his mission call last month! He also is currently working at the Temple Grounds down town. The same week he was to get his mission call - he was weeding and look what was smiling up at him. ONLY on temple square are the flowers this happy :)

Got to meet with "Little Sister" Jordan last week. We visited the aquarium in sandy and then went to McGraths fish house. Looked at fish...then ate fish! Here she is petting a sting ray.
*Sigh* Through out history those with brilliance also have a dash of crazy. Ben received one of those cards that you have to call in every night to see whether or not you have to show up for jury duty. Well.... last night BEN FORGOT TO CALL. This morning- I was looking through my purse and found the 'jury card', called in, and sure enough ---- he had been summoned for jury duty. Right on the card it says that if you don't show up you'll spend *up to* 30 days in jail and a $1000 fine.
What.
I had a panic attack and tried to get a hold of ben - but he doesn't have reception in his classes. So I called the college of pharmacy to PULL THAT MAN OUT OF CLASS!!! Kind of a scary moment, but turns out the courts aren't eager to throw you in jail. He showed up almost 4 hours late.... and they said it was okay. No fine. No jail. We just have to do the whole 'call in' thing again next week. So, take your jury duty seriously......
August marked Ben's 3rd year at Pharmacy school! For my birthday, my sister in law, Shelby, gave me this monster cup cake holder. It's crazy. But cool.
All summer we've been trying to grow stuff out of buckets on our front porch. Never really worked out. It MAY have something to do with the fact that I couldn't remember to water them.... but there's no proof.
So, I pretty much let them die - but they are still one the porch.
The other day I was opening the screen door wide for Reg - and noticed this mellon coming off the dead bucket plant!!! NO WAY!!! Look how cute and little it is! Smelled good. Looked good. ... didn't taste so good....
Next year - I'll water 'em.
Clean the carpets with w/the Rug doctor every other month. Dogs hate it. Grounded to the couch with all the other living room junk.
SUCCESS!!! Slice-able homemade sandwich bread! Ben's been working on this for years! The one had a huge bubble... but still was fantastic. Now... we just need to adjust the recipe to include wheat and to be able to go in the bread machine. :)
Finally. My favorite power ranger - the one I had a crush on in Jr high - is now an Ultimate fighter. I can't decide if it's a step up or down.
I love you Tommy.