More Parade Pictures

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July 4th - Grand Parade

American Fork High School - they are an amazing band and so disciplined.

We decided to go watch the parade on Saturday but we sat upstairs where it was air conditioned and away from the crowds. Parents were ignoring their kids who were playing in the street and acting up. Once kid ran in front of one of the trucks in the parade. The parents just ignored him. One of the parade riders on the truck had to step down to make sure nobody else ran in front of the them. These were not small trucks. They also threw candy on the side and of course the kids went nuts fighting over it but that was nothing to the free t-shirts. The kids swarmed them and were just taking them and once again the parents sat on the side doing nothing. We saw a group of kids fighting over one shirt and deciding on rock, paper, scizzors to determine the winner. It was a plain, ugly t-shirt. We were glad to have the peace and quiet of our windowed room.

Movie & Dinner

David wanted to go see Transformers Friday night, which I was not really excited to see. I had heard it was not that great and I can't stand Megan Fox. I think she has a cheap look to her, like Pamela Anderson. So I talked him in to seeing the Proposal instead. Michael and Mutti went with us. Afterwards we walked by Red Robin and were debating on going in. Michael and David had not eaten yet but Grandma and I had. We decided to just go home and went outdoors and Mutti saw the outside fire pit at Red Robin so we turned around and went back. Of course I ate anyway and when I got home was sick all night. It was fun though and worth it. We enjoyed sitting outside.

Getting ready for the Parade

This is Provo. It is 3:05 p.m. and crowds were informed by Provo City they could begin reserving a parade spot at 3:00 p.m. As you can see it goes fast. This is really a case of if you snooze you lose and many will be sleeping out overnight. They anticipate every year crowds of 250,000 to watch the parade. Insane!

Disneyland Fireworks

I stole this from a friends blog - thanks Stephen! Our tickets came the other day for our trip in October. I'm sad Samantha can't come with us because she would love the new fireworks with Tinkerbell. We are staying at the Castle Inn this year and looks like a lot of fun, not that we spend much time at the hotel. We of course have our usual reservation for the character breakfast on Main Street, the Blue Bayou where we always get the Monte Cristo and a mint julip, and Ariel's Grotto. Michael was watching Samantha Brown and her favorite place is the Napa Rose at Grand California.

Food

I purchased some fresh pineapple last week and got a recipe off FoodNetwork, Tyler Florence, for grilling and thought I would grill that and some steak. We also roasted corn in the oven (also Tyler Florence although I didn't make the dressing). I love roasting potatoes and vegetables. So easy especially the corn. I decided to do it on Saturday and invited the family over. It turned out so yummy. Even the steak was great. I think I am turning out to be a good cook. I love my new stove grill although a pain to clean. The sugar, butter and spices of course bubbled up and turned black. Would have made a great sauce so maybe next time I will grill the pineapple and just cook the spices in a pan and pour it on top. One day when I have time - ha,ha - I want to try baking. I can never get anything to come out of the pan, and yes I grease and flour it. That's the first thing everyone says but seriously, I cannot get cakes out of the pan. I think it is an altitude problem. That's my story and I'm sticking with it.

I am trying to eat more fruits and vegetables so am making a salad every day at work. Some days it is not satisfying and I would love a hamburger and fries but I am hoping to have more energy and feel better. Of course losing weight is always a bonus. So I went to the Sunflower market on state street and love it! If you live in Utah County you should give it a try. They have the nicest produce I have seen and some really great deals. I was able to get raspberries for my salad for $.88. They also have a large variety of organic produce if that is something you are interested in. Outside they have a lot of potted herbs. When my mom gets all the garden boxes filled I want to plant an herb garden.

Rural Housing Development Corp

RHDC sent me a couple of newsletters in which they mentioned me. I really believe in their program and the Executive Director does a great job. Everyone I know has a home but if you know of anyone tired of renting or looking for a home please share with them the information. It is a self-help program which requires a minimum of 35 hours of labor per week but they do such a great and they are really nice homes. You can check them out at http://www.rhdchome.com.