Jeff and Elise

The Pond... and friends. :)

2010-08-03T13:39:00.001-07:00

Here's our lil snakey that adopted US!!! :)

We have about 25 goldfish

This is my favorite part!!

Summer Camping

2010-07-21T09:38:00.000-07:00

Jerry

2010-07-20T15:45:00.000-07:00

Over memorial day weekend while surfing facebook, I came across Jerry's picture on the Humane Society of Utah's profile. This is the status that caught my eye...

The Humane Society of Utah JERRY's good as gold. This lab is 10 yrs old and knows the ropes. He's housebroken, neutered & micro-chipped. He's also great with kids & gentle on the leash. The old owners gave him to the Humane Society of Utah claiming Jerry's too "vocal." Didn't say a peep on my walk with him. 10 yrs old is too old to be in the shelter. Please consider adopting an older dog. Adoption info is available @ utahhumane.org!

JERRY (A032668)

5 new photos

May 26 at 4:16pm · Comment · · Share

9 people like this.

Robin Skov

older dogs are the best!

May 26 at 4:19pm · · Flag

Kelli Donna

I don't know who someone can be a part of your family for 10 years and then you just dump them off at a shelter?? So sad! I sure hope this guy finds a wonderful home asap!

May 26 at 4:25pm · · Flag

Margaret Ann Gordon

breaks my heart...saddest thing ever for an older dog! ~tear~

May 26 at 4:29pm · · Flag

Elise Ohara Lane

Ok I'm on my way to meet him!

May 26 at 4:37pm · ·

Elaine Seamans

yay elise!!!!!!!!!!!

May 26 at 4:41pm · · Flag

Margaret Ann Gordon

horray elise; please let us know..Jerry looks very handsome! I already have 6....

May 26 at 4:53pm · · Flag

Jamie Clawson

that is too sad, how can you give up a dog after 10 years? Its like giving up a family member :( poor doggy, hope you take him Elise.

May 26 at 5:19pm · · Flag

Mary Norton

My last dog was 6 or so when we got her. We had her for 8 wonderful years. I can't take a dog that big, and hope Elise decided to take him...

May 26 at 5:19pm · · Flag

Amber Lynn Crawford

if I were back home in UT I would take this guy in a heart beat!

May 26 at 5:25pm · · Flag

Mike Draper

I have 2 cats,so I can't take him either, but boy I wish I could. They gave up a beautiful dog like this after 10 years? I don't understand some people, My animals are like my children.

May 26 at 7:26pm · · Flag

Robert W Ladue

What a distinguished gentleman. Reminds me of a Sean Connery type...very distinguished, gentle and polished...

May 26 at 8:16pm · · Flag

Eileen Deaderick

I agree Mike...don't understand it either. I have 2 adopted cats, one adopted pom and a chi mix raised from a pup. I would so love to adopt more but my family would have me committed to a padded room. LOL! And my animals like yours are my kids. Good luck Jerry!

May 27 at 12:11am · · Flag

Elise Ohara Lane

What a sweet sweet soul! I would guess he's been in a dog run his whole life. :( that is so sad! Why?? Augh!
I want to bring him home, husband is resistant. Wish me and Jerry luck! Thanks everybody for your support!

May 27 at 12:28am · ·

Eileen Deaderick

For Elise...you go girl!!! LOL! Bless your heart! Hope it works out. :-)

May 27 at 1:22am · · Flag

The Humane Society of Utah

Elise...Speaking as someone who just adopted a 9 and a half year old dog, it's one of the best decisions I've ever made. Our time together may be brief, but it is very sweet. He's a great dog and I don't regret it. Good luck with your husband. I think if he meets Jerry, you'll seal the deal!

May 27 at 10:41am · · Flag

Elizabeth Douglas

Elise.... He will enrich your lives

May 27 at 5:17pm · · Flag

Robert W Ladue

What a prize Jerry would be for a loving family. He is made of Gold, a heart of Gold!

May 27 at 8:13pm · · Flag

Elise Ohara Lane

I'm goto the husby's approval and am going to get him today!! YAYA!!!

May 28 at 9:43am · ·

Elise Ohara Lane

that was supposed to be... I've got the husby's approval!

May 28 at 9:44am · ·

The Humane Society of Utah

Elise I show that you adopted Jerry yesterday I hope he doing well at your house. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or concerns.

May 29 at 8:38am · · Flag

Leanne Hornbuckle Peters

yay elise and jerry!!!

May 29 at 12:35pm · · Flag

4 Legged Love - Strut Your Mutt 2010

2010-05-26T09:35:00.000-07:00

This event is my Christmas! I love giving to the homeless needy animals and supporting such a great cause of which I am so passionate about.

This year, we registered as a "Dog Pack" and named ourselves, 4 Legged Love. We had a total of 8 adults and 7 dogs.

Here is Lindsay picking up doody.

Rocky strutting his stuff!

Rocky, Bear and Iris sniffing ... Bear and Iris are Lindsay and Arnie's kiddos

The swimming pool was Rocky's favorite!

Teresa and Shaun pose for a pic with Sadie and Gunner

Course D Lure

After Strut, it was off to the park by our house, it had rained so much the days before that it was full of water like a mini lake!

Needless to say, the doggies were pooped!

Such a great day!

Everything BUT the landscaping :)

2010-05-21T17:04:00.001-07:00

I couldn't be happier! Jeff is stoked! Shaun is feeling awesome! We've already had two hummingbirds stop by to say hi! :)

All I have to do now is the landscaping around it and I will be DONE!!

The Pond

2010-05-20T12:58:00.000-07:00

Jeff has been out of town this week for work in Moab. I wanted to surprise him with something that would beautify our yard that he didn't have to do himself. Our backyard used to have a VERY large tree that provided awesome shade in the summer. The tree was actually on the other side of our fence where the canal is. The canal is cool, we get to watch all sorts of birds, feed the ducks and see little baby ducklings every spring.

Without any notice, the Canal Company chopped down the VERY large tree that provided our yard with beauty, birds, privacy and shade among other things. Needless to say, our backyard was looking very blah and hate to say it, UGLY!

I had my good friend from Jr. High, Shaun come over and help me plan for a POND!! We went to the rock place, got some granite pieces and he worked on it all afternoon. Here is our progress so far.

Cinderella Ballet

2010-05-19T08:46:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I took the Emi and Annie to the Cinderella Ballet, the girls got to dress up like princesses and have their picture taken with Cinderella. They got roses and a glitter star stamp on their cheeks. We had a great time. Our good friend Sarah was Cinderella and did an AMAZING job!

Aubrie Lyn May 2010

2010-05-19T08:45:00.000-07:00

Bye Bye SI... HELLO Ridge!!!

2010-05-19T08:42:00.001-07:00

I like to call it... Retail therapy! Hey, I've been under a TON of stress, and this makes me feel better. ;0)

My new truck, never thought I'd own a truck, I've always been the smaller sedan type of gal. The Ridge is SAWEET!! Leather, heated seats, rear window that slides open with the push of a button, which is Rocky's FAVORITE!!

We love the new Ridge!

Bath Time = FUN TIME!!

2010-05-19T08:40:00.000-07:00

Let's Go Fly a Kite

2010-05-19T08:37:00.000-07:00

After the Village, lunch and an attempt at a nap, we headed off to the park to fly the lady bug kite. It was flying pretty good, when a tree jumped out and snatched it up :(

We still had fun playing at the playground.

Gardener Village

2010-05-19T08:31:00.001-07:00

We took the girls to Gardener Village, a little village that has cute shops and a restaurant AND a Petting Zoo. The girls didn't dare to touch the animals, so funny! They even got to ride ponies. Annie was a little hesitant and had to watch Emi take a ride first.

"Skaping"

2010-05-19T08:25:00.000-07:00

While Amanda and Ron were at the hospital with baby Brie, Jeff and I watched the other 3 girls. Kids really keep you on your toes, and it's hard to get some down time.

Emi, Annie and Eden LOVE unlce Jeff's "skape boards" and they are getting pretty good at "skaping". Emily tells me she wants to be a "skaper" when she grows up! So Cute!!

Little Edie giving it a try...

Baby Aubrie Lyn O'Hara

2010-05-19T08:22:00.000-07:00

Aubrie Lyn O'Hara was born on April 5th, 2010.

Welcome to this world, beautiful angel!!

Easter 2010

2010-04-06T13:59:00.000-07:00

Busy busy day!

We started Easter morning out with an easter breakfast with the O'Hara's.

After breakfast, we colored eggs and Uncle Jeff snuck downstairs to hide them all.

The girls had a blast finding them all!

After, everybody left, Lindsay Arnie me and Jeff headed to the park for some frisby golfin'! It was great to get out of the house and do something that was just fun!

Later that evening, Jeff and I spent the evening with the Lane's and had an easter dinner. It's so much fun to get together with the people who matter the most!

A Day At The Races!

2010-04-06T13:41:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, Jeff and I got invited to go to the Miller Motor Sports Park out by Tooele. See, my brother in-law Arnie races his Evo out on the track. They are timed races, so there isn't any passing like Nascar - it was so much fun!

Lindsay, Jeff and I hung out all day together and talked about everything and laughed A LOT! I sure do LOVE my sister and am so glad we are friends again. We have a strong bond like no other.

We even got to ride in their car on the "parade lap" which is the lap before the actual race. It was SO MUCH FUN!!

The PARADE LAP!!

Racers getting ready

Jeff and Lindsay laughing... probably at me ;)

Kaia's bandage is off!!

2010-03-29T13:54:00.001-07:00

Kaia Lane

2010-03-25T11:12:00.000-07:00

Kaia Lane had to undergo surgery for an Aural Hematoma. Jeff and I noticed it on Saturday evening and took her to the vet first thing Monday to have it taken care of.

WARNING - Pics are very sad - please rest assured that she is not in ANY pain and is doing really well!

I have to hand feed her...
So so SAD!

Mom's 60th Birthday Parties

2010-03-25T10:48:00.000-07:00

Yes, that's right, my mother turned 6o years old this past Monday!! We celebrated with two parties, one of which was a surprise!! :) We went to Pier 49 Pizza in American Fork where she was pleasantly surprised with her family, balloons and an AMAZING cake made by our friend Andrea George!

The second party was an immediate family dinner at my house, Jeff made two elk roasts for the occasion that turned out wonderful!

Nothing better, than getting together with loved ones and celebrating the one who created it all. LOVE YOU MOM!!

Goodbye South Korea

2010-03-25T10:41:00.000-07:00

morning before the flight still continued

2010-03-25T10:28:00.000-07:00

Tallest building in Seoul
Cool little park
My FAVORITE picture from Korea!!

Morning before flight continued

2010-03-25T10:06:00.000-07:00

A really cool statue at a palace in the middle of the city

Super cool trees
Look at that AMAZING detail!!

Morning before flight home

2010-03-25T09:47:00.001-07:00

The "Fabric~Stuff" place... LOL :) Look closely, everly floor is called "Fabric-Stuff"

More... Fabric~Stuff
Dead animals in the "Fabric~Stuff" place
Fabric~Stuff
One of the many gates that used to protect the city!

Free Time in Korea - only about 3 hours...

2010-03-25T09:37:00.001-07:00

Just in case you need instructions on how to get through the turny thingy! ;0)

The Subway~actually this is outside of the subway, it's like an underground sidewalk.

FAST FOOD!! All of the calories are listed on the menu- Koreans are genius!
In case of Nuclear attack??

More from Korea... Finally...

2010-03-25T09:24:00.000-07:00

This is a very BAD picture of one of the awesome bridges or the Han River! My camera is crappy, and I need a new one! :)

The second Korean BBQ place we went to. This time the distributors took us out. I got violently ill the next day from eating here. :(
Rice milk...beer? Champagne? YUCK!

BEAUTIFUL Orchids in our hotel entrance~

Korea Feb 12th

2010-02-12T04:28:00.000-08:00

Today has been EXTREMELY long, tense and frustrating!!!

I've had about 3 breakdowns and contemplated quitting my job more than once today. We worked 13 hours straight, and actually some of the group is still working. Most of us worked through the day without a lunch break.

It feels like I imagine a sweat shop to be.

We had to be out of the meeting rooms here in the hotel at 5:00PM, so we continued to work in our rooms, WITH the distributors. Distributors in my room, in my bathroom, POOPING in my toilet-stinking up my room -literally.

One of the distributors started singing "Let's Get Physical" to me... WTF!

Housekeeping should be coming any minute to clean my room before I go to bed.

I think I'm getting sick, my throat is sore and I'm exhausted.

Korea Day3? Day 4? ....

2010-02-11T14:00:00.000-08:00

The days blend together. I dinally was able to sleep for about 7 hours lasst ninght, I woke up refreshed and ready t start the day.

Yesterday was a VERY productive day, I am so proud of our group! We rocked it yesterday!

Worked abouot 12 - 13 hours and then went out for dinner. We all went to this Korean BBQ place. Possibly one of the MOST disgusting, offensive places I've ever gone to eat. It hurt my feelings. So much meat, I don't understand how people can just eat anything and not car what it is, or where it cam from...
Bloody Liver Soup..
Eggs???
Vegetables in blood -it's cold...
Okay, for real??? What is this?
Classic Colt!!

Metal Chopsticks!!
MonaVie Korea Group One! (rockstars)

After dinner, I came back to my room, took a bath, and an atvian and fell asleep.

Today I will take some pics of our group working, so you can see what it's like.
Thanks for reading! :)

Korea - today is Day 4. Thursday AM

2010-02-10T13:26:00.000-08:00

Once again, up at 4 AM! Jeff and I bought web cams before i left, and they arer so cool. I get to see and talk to my animals, they can see and here me. Its really cool! Kaia and Rocky are super receptive to it.

It helps to ease the lonliness too! It's nice to see Jeffy's face. It makes a world of difference.

Well today is going to be a very productive day, i can feel it! I just know it.

The program should be all fixed and formatted correctly so we can start enrolling Korean distributors!!

Jeff is planning on coming out here in 2 days! The Chinese new year is on Sunday and Monday, so it will be a pretty cool celebration with fireworks and parades. :) He will be staying for a whole week. I really hope we can make it work!

I really hope the sun shines today! I need to see the SUN! PlEASE! Sun! Please.

Yes, I am getting more and more delusional the less sleep I get and the less sun I see.

Korea is off the heezy fo sheezy!!

Update to my lost/stolen debit card, I am OUT if money.. OUT!! Jeff is trying to Western Union me some money as we speak.

KOREA day 3

2010-02-10T13:11:00.000-08:00

I can't sleep in this time zone! It is hard to adjust to an 8 hour difference- im living in the future! :)

Day 3 we worked for the first day, well i guess not really worked, because the program wasn't fomratted right and we weren't able to complete ANY work at all!!

Jerica and I had to walk about 3 miles in our business suits (we looked amazing!) through the Coex Mall to get Korean keyboards.

After sitting around all day and scrambling to figure out what we were doing, we called it a day. :)

It's been very foggy and rainy here, today it cleared up a little bit and we were able to see a bit more of the country, its HUGE!!

We all went to a little bar called Billy's68.

Korea Day 2 Feb 9-10

2010-02-09T23:46:00.000-08:00

Hey everybody! We had to move hotels, from the Grand Hyatt to the Park Hyatt. The Park Hyatt is so AMAZING!! I thought the last hotel we were in was the cream of the crop! Oh no... this one is beyond believable!! My room has a heated toilet, with a bidet!! Why don't we have these in America?? Completely necessary and practical!

The shower is a rain room, with a nice deep tub.. it's truly divine! There is a TV in there as well, it's unbelivable. Oh and the floors in the bathroom are HEATED!!

My room has really tall windows that have blinds that are electronic and open with the push of a button!!

Yesterday we hung out at the Coex Mall - it's actually right across the street from our new hotel. This mall is THE hugest mall I've never seen in my whole life!! It's probably at least 2 miles big and has everything you could ever want, including an aquarium, movie theater, museum and casino!

Last night we asked our concierge for a really great sushi place, he referred us to Yamamoto. It was about a 10 minute taxi ride, it was just Jerica, Kyle and myself. We were asked if we wanted sushi or sashimi. I told them sashimi and Jer and Kyle asked for sushi. We were thinking they were going to bring us a menu. Oh no.. they brought us two HUGE plates of fish. Then, about 4 or 5 othere courses. We had to ask them to stop bringing us food. They finally brought the bill and it was.... $400.00!!!!!!!!!! $400.00 freakin dollars!!! I handed them $40.00 because I just could not believe it was really $400.00!!!

Korea -Day 1 Feb 7-9 (one day!)

2010-02-08T12:07:00.000-08:00

KOREA!!

After a 13 hour flight from San Fransico, we are FINALLY here! The flight wasn't too bad, my feet and ankles were swollen from sitting so long, even though I got up a couple times and walked around.

Our group didn't get to sit together internationally - my seat was in the middle row, in the VERY middle! The lady on my left, was very nice, she was the older mom type and went out of her way to make sure I was comfortable and had whatever I needed. The guy on my right... well I'll just say... I'm pretty sure he stole my debit card while i was asleep! We looked all around and weren't able to find it.
He was off the plane before the doors even opened.

We took a bus shuttle to our hotel, the Grand Hyatt Seoul.

It is amazing here! I will post lots of pics of the city soon. Our hotel is so fancy, it even has an Ice Skating Rink on the first floor! Can you believe it??

Right now my computer says its 2/08/10, 1:20 PM... But her in Korea it's already the 9th of Feb, and I think it's 5:22 AM...

I've slept for about 6 hours, put almost all of my cothes away - need about 30 more hangers... :)

First day of Korea down... 9 more to go.

P.S. Jeff is working to get me a new debit card and phone. i'm available on Yahoo Messengerr all the time, it me up if you'd like.

Much Love! <3>

Welcome 2010

2010-01-20T10:17:00.000-08:00

This is my first post of the year. I've started on posts a couple different times, but have just deleted them.

This year has started off pretty rough. Seems like there is negativity and bad news everywhere.

I had a dream last night that I want to make sure is never forgotten...

I woke up at about 1:45AM and couldn't fall back asleep so I checked my emails, saw an email from Heather, one of my very best friends in this world. She was writing to let me know about work and that she wouldn't be able to make it to the office, but the email was very vague, so I was a little worried.

I was up for another 2 hours, watching TV, petting Bella, and checking emails. I finally turned the TV off at about 3:45AM and fell asleep...

DREAM;

Heather and my mother were talking and they were both upset, my mom was very sad and being very sympathetic towards Heather. I interrupted their conversation and asked them what they were talking about and why they were crying. Heather told me that she couldn't work with me anymore because the location of our building is too close to the Jordan River. Our building is about 20 paces from the river.

She continued to tell me that she loves her family so much and couldn't take the risk anymore. The risk being the prediction that as soon as the "Big One" (earthquake 7.0<) hits, the valley will be split by the Jordan River and the ground around the river will liquefy. http://geology.utah.gov/utahgeo/hazards/liquefy.htm

I tried to reassure her that this has been predicted for more than 20 years, and nothing has happened, and was frustrated that I didn't understand why all of a sudden it was such a huge concern to her.

I woke up at 7:00 AM this morning, checked my phone and read a text from Jeff telling me that ANOTHER earthquake hit in Haiti. I couldn't believe my eyes. I turned on the TV and sure enough, the news was reporting a 6.1 earthquake at 6:03 AM EST. That would have been 4:03AM my time (MST) .

Freaky?? I was dreaming about a big earthquake at the exact time a big earthquake was actually happening. I must have sensed it in my dream. I think this is way more than a coincidence.

SAM I AM :)

2009-12-30T09:04:00.000-08:00

We still have him! He's such a great dog! We took him to get neutered on the 19th, and he's doing really well. He loves to run and play with Rocky and Kaia. He gets along well with our kitties and hasn't had a single accident in the house. I don't even think I've heard him bark. He loves to snuggle and be by your side.

We changed his name from Bo to Sam I Am. Jeff's brother has a black lab pitbull mix that is already named Bo. I thought... just in case we end up keeping him he deserves to have his own name. We are really starting to fall in love with this guy and I think he's awesome!

O'Hara Christmas 2009

2009-12-30T08:47:00.000-08:00

This year we had the O'Hara clan at our house for a Christmas breakfast. I struggle so much at Christmas time with all of the pressure to spend money and buy gifts for people. Gifts, that they don't even need.

Send a card, make a call or even send a simple email to express what you're feeling.

Christmas does NOT = gifts!

Christmas is a time to celebrate Christ and make memories with family and friends. This year, my family decided to not feed into all of the commercialized gift buying for the adults, but instead, made breakfast, ate together, and enjoyed each other's company. It was very relaxing and enjoyable. I am truly lucky to have such amazing family on my side and Jeff's side.

Tink a.k.a goldie a.k.a. tigger and Rustad Oh.. and Jeffy

2009-12-30T08:41:00.000-08:00

I love my family!

Jeff and Emi's birthday!

2009-12-30T08:30:00.000-08:00

Jeff's birthday is Dec 6th and Emi's is Dec 12th. Emi turned 5!! and Jeff turned 34!! :) We had a little O'Hara family party for them a few weeks ago, here are some pics from the FUN event.

We still have Bo-Diggity

2009-12-15T11:46:00.000-08:00

Well, here we are, one week later. Still taking care of the wondering black lab, who we now call Bo, because he reminds us of Jared and Lindsay's lab mix.

I've posted fliers (too many to count), placed online ads, contacted 9 local shelters and the humane society. I'm starting to get the feeling that this sweet dog's original owners don't want to find him, they just don't seem to be looking. :( I don't know what else I can do.

Bo is getting used to our kitties and is a little scared of them. We are still really weary when they come out to smell Bo, I would hate for him to try to attack them. If he did, I would have no choice but to send him to another foster home. The shelter would be my last resort. I think they are so stressful for animals and they most always get sick when they're there.

Bo is an amazing dog, he is trained and is really not any adjustment for us, he watches Rocky and Kaia and kinda follow their lead. At the park, and off leash in the yard, he listens really good to make sure he is where is supposed to be and still following all of the rules. He just wants to please.

So... I guess if we don't end up finding him a home soon, we're going to be too attached to let him go. It's a really good thing we're planning to move to a bigger house, at least we'd be better able to accomodate our little Lane Animal Rescue. :)

Found Black Lab 9000 S. Redwood, Utah

2009-12-11T12:52:00.001-08:00

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&ad=8965775&cat=&lpid=0

Work, work, work

2009-12-11T12:49:00.000-08:00

Here are the most recent pictures of our downstairs bathroom.

We are so close. Jef is soooo Anazing!!

Thanksgiving 2009 - a little late

2009-12-11T12:43:00.000-08:00

This year we spent Thanksgiving with the Lane's. They like us to do an every other year kinda thing. We all pitched in an rented a cabin in Bear Lake, it was soooo cold, but the views were amazing.

Ron and Amanda are married!!

2009-11-25T12:36:00.000-08:00

My brother and Amanda finally tied the knot yesterday! It's about time! Here are some pics from the event.

Eden
Annie a.k.a Beeba
Emily

Mesquite, Nevada

2009-11-24T08:26:00.001-08:00

This past weekend, Jeff had to work at the Eureka Casino in Mesquite, Nevada. He is an audio/video technician, and the best one there is!! He also installs and repairs garage doors on the side, he's amazing at that too! :)

I was able to go with him because I work for the most amazing company and have the most amazing boss!

We stayed at Elena's house with the dogs. Jeff also does audio/video for friends and family, and Elena wanted to surprise Russ with a big 58" Plasma. I helped Jeff hang it on the wall and hook all the wires up. When Russ and Elena got there on Friday it was all ready to go, and Russ was so surprised, he didn't even know what to think. It was super cool to be a part of such a fun thing!!

On Saturday we all hopped in Elena's Euro Van and drove to Mesquite for a little gambling. The highlight of my night was as I was walking to the ladies room, a short old indian guy stopped, looked me up and down and loudly said "DAAAAMN!!"
hahahaha, I guess I still gots it goin on :)

Glitter Toes with the Nieces

2009-11-19T10:45:00.000-08:00

The other day I had the opportunity to hang with two of my nieces, Katie and Sami! Their birthdays are really close to each other, so I decided I would treat them to a fun girls night of glitter toes!

I'm really lovin this new glitter toes thing, this is the second time i've done it. It's like a gel coating over the top of the nail, and it lasts for about 6-8 weeks. :)

The highlight of the night was listening to the fun loving 11 year olds in my backseat singing Party in The USA by Miley Cyrus, word for word! LOL so much fun. I love these girls so much!

Introducing Tink Erbell Lane - our newest sweetie

2009-11-05T07:40:00.000-08:00

Yes, we did it again! On November 3rd we adopted our 5th baby, Tink. She is a patch tabby who's about 4 years old from Tender Heart Techs Pet Alliance. http://www.theyuppiepuppie.com/index.htm

Right now there are so many homeless animals because of the current economical situation. People are losing their homes and being forced to choose between feeding themselves or feeding their pets. It's a tragic situation.

With that being said, Jeff and I are some of the very few people who thankfully haven't had to deal with the hardships so many other people are struggling with. Because of that, we decided that we CAN do more and so we did.

The rescue we adopted Rustad from just recently lowered adoption fees on all adult cats to $10.00 each. They have so many and are continually rescuing more and more. Please spay and nueter your pets. It is so irresponsible to condone breeding. These animals suffer for people's selfishness.

The animals we care for are our family. They share our days with us, they witness us love, stress, relax, laugh and cook. They know our mannerisms better than some of our human friends. They take care of us as much as we take care of them.

We are lucky to have the opportunity to be best friends with our cats and dogs. We are lucky to know how much love and camaraderie an animal can bestow.

So far, Tink is adjusting very well, she is super skinny and has a little bit of a cold, probably from being in the shelter. :( She is VERY friendly and is really good with the rest of the gang. Bella hasn't yet accepted her friendship and is still cranky with her, but it's only day 2.

2009-11-03T08:13:00.001-08:00

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MonaVie Ranks No. 1 in Utah Business Fast 50 Awards

2009-10-29T09:44:00.000-07:00

I am so fortunate to work for this amazing company, with strong business ethics, morals and values! Go MonaVie!!

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705339026/MonaVie-takes-top-honors-for-Utah-growth.html

A South Jordan-based multilevel marketing company that sells juices was Utah's fastest-growing company in 2009 — and Friday it was given the award to prove it.

MonaVie received top honors given by MountainWest Capital Network at the 15th annual Utah 100 Awards Program. The event lauds the 100-fastest growing companies in the state, the top 15 revenue-growth companies and 12 "emerging elite" companies that are young but show great promise.

Gov. Gary R. Herbert heralded all the companies for their outstanding contributions to Utah's economy. His own "first priority" is to "grow the economy, followed by education and energy," he said. It's a list of priorities he emphasized in similar fashion recently during a press conference with the Governor's Office of Economic Development.

But he called Friday's honorees the "backbone" of state competitiveness and said that "their hard work, sacrifice and success represent all Utah businesses." Every day, he added, he hears that "Utah is a state that understands it and gets it right."

For the companies being honored, "success is no accident," said Lex Watterson, MWCN president. He said they are "well-conceived," with strong staffs and excellent leadership.

The 100 fastest-growing companies are selected from thousands of applicants and represent a cross-section of industries. The ranking of the top 100 is determined by the percentage revenue increased from 2004 to 2008.

The top 10 was rounded out by Skullcandy, American Liberty Insurance, VMI Nutrition, Interbank FX, Revinetix, SwarmBuilder Inc., Hyper Interactive Media, Cymphonix Corp. and Wasatch Software Inc.

Top revenue-growth winners had the largest dollar-amount revenue increase in that same five-year period. This year, top-five honors in that category went to Questar, Zions Bancorp., MonaVie, The Layton Cos. and Sportsman's Warehouse.

The 15 "emerging elite" companies had to be at least two years old but to not have been around the full five years to be measured in the other categories, so they were not ranked.

The complete list is online at www.mwcn.org.

Armando moved to Denver!

2009-10-26T09:21:00.000-07:00

Our very favorite Mexican, Armando Varela has moved to Denver, Colorado. He left last Wednesday with his wife for her new job as a furniture sales person.

Armando and I became friends 13 years ago. We went to the same Jr. High. We are closer than friends, I would say we're more like family.

Anyway, Armando is like a brother to me, we are super duper close and would do anything for each other. Although, there was this one time he let me down... not entirely his fault though. He has apologized and I have forgiven. :)

We went out last Tuesday night to bid him farewell and wish him the best of luck in his new endeavors.

We will miss you Armando!

random pics for today

2009-10-09T10:33:00.000-07:00

search tool to the left!

2009-10-09T10:28:00.000-07:00

I found this cool new search tool on the left. You can now search my blog for anything you like. If you want to read everything I've ever posted about Rocky, my wedding, Kaia, Mexico, or anything else that I may have written about, just type the keyword in the little box and it will pull all of my posts related to that word.

Special thanks to all of you who care so much about Jeff and I, we love you more than you know! You complete us! :)

Last Day in Cancun! Friday October 2nd -Isla Mujeras

2009-10-06T15:03:00.000-07:00

(Click on the pics to make them bigger)

My funnest day!! We took a ferry boat over to the Isla Mujeras (Island of the Women) for the day. When we got there we got to see a short dolphin show! I love these guys, they're like labradors! Then from there, we went down town and rented these golf carts. Jerica wasn't with us this day because she partied hardy the night before and was too tired. So we made friends with a 23 year old girl from Switzerland, traveling by herself named Nadine. Very cool chik! She tagged along with us all day! That's her in the green. When we got back we headed to the zip line. It was SOOO much fun. I'd never been on one before and was a little apprehensive, but I'm so glad I cowgirled up and did it. Alas it was time to head back home! Russ and I started a conga line and got the whole boat to join in, it was a blast. He still wanted to dance and so he did.

Xcaret - Thursday Oct 1st

2009-10-06T14:58:00.000-07:00

We had heard so many good things about this place. It was the most pricey tour we went on at $120.00 per person! Sad to say, we all thought it was the most stupid thing we had ever done! We were all bored. It's a very expensive zoo, that's all it is. I didn't take any pictures because we didn't really care.

Anniversary Massages Wednesday, Sep 30

2009-10-06T14:55:00.000-07:00

To celebrate our anniversary, Jeff and I went to the Fiesta Americana resort to get a couples massage. It was so awesome and very romantic. We were in a little hut thing right on the beach and the thunder was rolling a little, it was perfect!

Tuesday, September 29th - Chichen Itza (Mayan Ruins)

2009-10-01T06:05:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary!! It's been two years since we took the plunge and became one.

Today we ventured out to Chichen Itza, it's about two hours from our resort. On the way out it started raining, and most of you know what happens to me when it starts to rain while I'm in a vehicle! If you don't be thankful you haven't had to see it first hand! We made it through the rain (just barely) and then stopped at this run down gift shop. I have never seen such poor living conditions, I'm sure there are worse, but this was truly an eye opener for me. There were starving dogs
everywhere. :(

We learned about the Mayan people and how smart they were. They strategically built all of these temples. There is one that you can clap from the ground and at the top of the temple you hear the clap's echo is a bird, i guess the sacred bird.

There's also a temple that every April 6th, (jesus's birthday) the sun sits in between the two posts and it looks as though the little guy in the middle of the posts is holding the sun.

Here is what Jeff and I looked like only HALF WAY though the tour!!!! It was SCORCHING HOT!! We all had sweat dripping from our bodies.

After the ruins, we headed to our next stop, the "cenote". It's a sink hole in the earth with water in it, the group swam here for a little bit and Russ even jumped from a really really high spot that no one else was allowed to jump from, he payed 50 pesos to do it.

After the "cenote", we made our last stop in Colonial Town. I made friends with these cute kids and met some LDS missionaries.

Deep Sea Fishing in Cancun, 09/28/09

2009-09-30T10:32:00.000-07:00

Jeff and the boys went fishing on Monday and my amazing husby caught 3 fish, a big barracuda, a mahi mahi and a horse eyed amber jack. They caught 5 all together!! That night he brought the barracuda and the mahi mahi home and Luis cooked it up and brought it to us with baked potatos and salad. It was so good. They really just catered to us.

Cancun Sunday September 27th

2009-09-30T08:13:00.000-07:00

We arrived in Cancun yesterday after flying first class on Delta. We've never had that experience before, it was so awesome! I had two pillows, a blankie and watched two movies I've been waiting to see. Russ, Elena's husband works for Delta so we were lucky enough to fly on buddy passes. :)

We got in at about 2:00 P.M. local time and headed straight to our resort, the Coral Mar on the Lagoon side. I was a little skeptical about this place before we got here, based on the reviews from tripadvisor.com and after we had stayed only in 4 star all inclusive resorts every other time we've been to Mexico. I have to say it is SO wonderful! It's off season here, so our group (Russ, Elena, Jerica, Zack, and Jared) and two other guests are the only ones in this whole resort. There is a small pool, a pool table and Luis who cooks for us in the restaurant.

Our condo has one bedroom with a kitchen, living room and a balcony off the bedroom.

Sunday we all went to the hotel zone. Russ and Jared took off to the sports bar at the Marriott to watch the football games (lame!) and Jeff, Jerica, Elena and I went to get some lunch at Carlos and Charlie's. It was an environment kinda like Joe's Crab Shack. The drinks were HUGE and EXPENSIVE!! They cost more than the damn meal!

After lunch we taxi'd down to the Marriott and met up with the other guys, then went down to the beach.

After that, we decided to head to the Walmart to get some groceries for the week. I noticed that unlike American Walmarts, they do not have frozen meals. You have to make everything from scratch. They had their meat and fish out in the open and you were supposed to just pick up what you wanted and throw it in a bag. It wasn't refrigerated and there were flies landing on it. Jeff and I decided to pass on that stuff. We're definitely not here to get sick or contract some kind of parasite.

Salt Lake County Fair

2009-09-24T13:08:00.000-07:00

One of my very favorite events in Salt Lake. We saw all sorts of freaky stuff including a two headed cat and the world's smallest woman, only 29inches tall. Jerica and I felt super bad after paying a dollar to see her, she was real, and on display as a freak show! Sad!

hahahahaha

2009-09-24T13:06:00.000-07:00

Southern Utah - Labor Day 2009

2009-09-17T10:29:00.000-07:00

For Labor Day weekend, we went down to southern Utah with Russ, Elena and Jerica. Russ and Elena have a sweet little vacation home in hurricane with a swimming pool, hot tub, and best of all (in Elena's dog's mind) the fish pond! Her yellow lab, Nala is a fish FREAK!!

Anyway, on one of the days, we all decided to head to the Virgin River to play. Here are some pics of our fun afternoon!

On our way home, Rocky wasn't feeling too well, and puked 4 times, once every hour. We took him straight to the Vet and paid about $300.00. They don't know what was wrong with him, he got to eat chicken and rice for a week, and Kaia got to reap the benefits too!

New Front Door!

2009-09-16T13:52:00.001-07:00

Do you like it? It seriously changes the whole look and feel of our house. We got this put up about a week ago, but still need to have our painter friend stain it. :)

BTW - the ugly a** screen door thingy from the seventies is gone now too!

Random Lovies from the Lanes

2009-09-16T13:39:00.000-07:00

old sliding door out, new sliding door in!

2009-09-15T15:35:00.000-07:00

I found a semi used sliding glass door on craigslist for FREEEEEE!! It's a white vinyl one. The sliding door that came with the house, was most likely the original from 1974, so needless to say, it was in BAD shape. Jeffrey Lane is so handy! He tore the old door out and put the new one it! It looks amazing!

My poor sad broken SI :(

2009-08-20T10:13:00.000-07:00

Some of you may already know my luck with cars and being hit or getting in an accident. (my wedding day)

For the ones who don't, let me give you a little background...

I've been driving (legally) for about 11 years now and have been in 30 or more accidents, I'm NOT exaggerating even a little bit!

I bought my first brand spankin new car in March 2007, my Honda Civic SI :)

Two weeks after purchasing my baby, I was rear-ended - I didn't even have my license plates yet. Since I've owned this car, I've been in 8 accidents, 1 on my wedding day, all of the other 7 in my SI.

Let me just add another piece of information I feel is VERY important... NONE of these 30 or so accidents have ever been my fault... EVER!!

I am writing this post today to vent about the unfortunate circumstaces that have happened in past 3 weeks. I'll start with July 30, 2009.

Incident #1 Jeff and I were in Hurrricane at our friend's house for the weekend, we needed to make a quick run to the Maverick. Jeff was driving, and pulled into an open parking spot, as we were pulling in, the car next to us started to pull out and had cranked the his steering wheel so hard that he was going to hit us if he kept reversing, so Jeff honked the horn and the driver stopped his car and pulled forward, hitting the side of my car anyway on the way back into the spot!!

Incident #2 Last week sometime, I was in the parking lot at the gym waiting for a KILLA parking spot, when this girl comes be-boppin out of the gym, walks right in front of my car, gets in her car, which happens to be parked right next to the spot I'm waiitng for, puts her car in reverse and backs right into me! The damage is almost in the same spot as the damage from incident #1!!

Incident #3 Tuesday evening driving home from work on I-15, I had to stop in my lane because of heavy traffic, the guy behind me, DIDN'T stop and drove right into the back of my car! He ROCKED my car, and now the stupid trunk doesn't even close!

I am so mad at what has happened! My very first brand new car is now just a wrecked POS! :(

Now I am having three different insurance companies pay to fix my car at the same time! Who pays for the damn rental car?? The first, second or third insurance company??

Augh, I don't know what I'm going to do, I'll probably sell the SI after it's fixed and buy something else - it's just not the same to me anymore, and I'm really sad.

2009-08-13T09:03:00.000-07:00

Handle every stressful situation like a dog. If you can't eat it or play with it,

Just pee on it and walk away.

Mineral Fork

2009-08-11T09:12:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I went for a 4 wheeler ride up Big Cottonwood Canyon. It was quite chilly for August, but so beautiful as always.

I love Jeffrey Lane so much, he is my rock and my very best friend!

"you gotta be tough to live out west"

2009-08-06T08:12:00.000-07:00

Waitress: Alright, here is your salmon salad

Me: Uh... A fly just landed on it.

Waitress: No it didn't.

Me: Yes, it did, I just saw it!

The waitress proceeds with putting the salad in front of me...

Waitress: You gotta be tough to live out west!

Me: I guess I'll just eat it :(

the day I baked the cookies

2009-08-04T09:45:00.001-07:00

Me: Jeffy, where's the cookie sheet?

Jeff: Uh.. just use the cooling rack

Me: Perfect!

Me: OMG! Somethings wrong! The oven is smoking.. JEFF, help!

Jeff: What are you doing?!

Me: you told me to use the cooling rack!

Jeff: I didn't know you were going to bake cookies on it!

Me: What else would I need a cookie sheet for?!

The cookie sheet was outside by the BBQ - ruined by the rain - that's why he told me to use the cooling rack!

Blue Lake 2009

2009-07-28T15:17:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I spent this past weekend 10,000 feet above sea level in Ephraim Canyon with the Lanes, my bro and his family, Lindsay Lane's family and of course Jeff's childhood neighbors.

This is a yearly tradition for the Lanes and I'm so greatful to be a part of it. I have the coolest in-laws in this whole world and am so lucky!

Snoop D-O-double G 2009

2009-07-28T15:15:00.000-07:00

We had a blast! Our friends, Ty & Heather, their friend Jesse and our favorite mexican, Armando joined us for an evening full of hip hop with the one and only Snopp Dizzle!

Sheetrock is up and carpet is torn out!!

2009-07-28T14:43:00.000-07:00

Yes! We are moving right along, slowly but surely. We have been working in our basement lately.

Jeff has managed to hang all of the sheetrock in the bathroom and we tore out all of the nasty old carpet in the downstairs living room! I am so glad it's gone!

Independance Day 09

2009-07-06T08:37:00.000-07:00

What a fabulous weekend! Jeff and I went camping in the Uinta National Forest with some of our really good friends! We had an awesome time, the food was GREAT, the dogs had a blast chasing squirrels and eating rawhides... I learned how to use our dutch oven and cooked my award winning chili.

It was so good to meet a few new friends and hang out with no pressure, no responsibilities, and no drama. It was the most perfect way to spend the holiday.

Sunday morning, we packed up our camp and headed to the Provo River for some rafting/tubing with the dogs. Russ and Elena have two big yellow labs, Nala and Aspen, and of course we have Rocky and Kaia, all 4 weigh right around 100 lbs give or take. :) I purchased life jakets for my two - even though they probably didn't need them, they were good for peace of mind though.

We got to the rental place and that's when the hilarious chaos began. Imagine 4 big dogs, super excited to be out of the car, two without leashes, the other two with make shift rope leashes... the van is leaving, hurry up, get your life jackets, the dog's life jackets, some cold beverages and HURRY into the van! HURRY! I was pretty stressed and started to nag, okay, yell at Jeff because he was diddly dallying in the trailer doing gosh knows what (we all really know, right??) We finally made it into the van, 4 dogs and 6 people. We were all thinking - what the hell did we get ourselves into, this is pure madness!

We get to the launch spot up the road and exit the van, remember 2 dogs don't have leashes and they are very large and strong - all they want is to get in the river, which is moving at a good speed - not as calm and lazy as we had imagined, so they are pulling us all over the place. It's finally our turn to get in the raft and launch away. We lifted all of the dogs in, and away we went.

Nobody mentioned to me that I would have to row, I don't know how to row, and I had no idea that was part of the deal. Needless to say, husbands were freaking out, dogs were trying to jump out of the raft, we were crashing into all sorts of branches and rocks. Augh! Admidst all of the chaos we couldn't help but laugh our butts off! It was such a great time! If someone could have recorded the fiasco, we would have won the big money on America's Funniest Home Videos for sure. I haven't had that much fun in a VERY long time. I can't wait to do it all again! Provo River here we come! :)

Kristin's Graduation - Seattle 2009

2009-06-18T11:51:00.000-07:00

Woo hoo! Krisi is 18! Can you believe it? She graduated on Saturday June 13, from Auburn Mountainview High School in Auburn, Washington. Jeff and I are so proud of her accomplishments. She graduated with a "Cum Laude" award for a high GPA. This girl has done it all on her own, she hasn't had anybody naggin her to wake up and get to school, she did it on her own! She is a very smart 18 year old with ambitions and dreams. We love her so much! :) Congrats Krisi, we love you and are so proud of you, never stop dreaming and always reach for the stars.

That evening we took Kristin to the Space Needle for dinner - the appetizer we ordered was one of the best things we had ever eaten! Then Jeff and I requested the special orbitor desert for her. All in all it was a great night!

The next day my father and his fun neighbor, Aaron took us out on the boat in the Puget Sound. We saw star fish, jelly fish, and even seals! It was a great experience. Aaron drove us to the largest bridge north of the Golden Gate, I can't remember what it's called, even though I was told twice!! Thanks Ranae for the chocolate cake shots! (1 part Frangelica, 1 part Vodka, finish with a lemon slice!) It really tastes like chocolate cake - our new favorite!

We docked the boat and walked up to this nice restaurant for cocktails and appetizers and took a fun group picture outside of the restaurant. We had a great time!

Before we knew it, it was time to say goodbye! It's always so sad and a hard thing to do.

1st Annual "Fire on the Mountain" Chili Cookoff

2009-06-08T08:12:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, we were invited up to Brandon's cabin for the 1st Annual Chili Cookoff. It was a blast, good food, friends, and dogs all equal fun!

I made a vegetarian chili and WON 2nd place! Woo Hoo! I was thinking it was going to take the back seat because it didn't have any meat in it. I was wrong and completely shocked when they announced me as 1st runner up! I jumped out of my seat and started cheering and clapping - it was a GREAT feeling.

Kaia found a boyfriend - his name is Jesse, he's a 2.5 year old yellow lab. She likes 'em young I guess! They couldn't leave each other alone and were VERY attracted to each other. We got this super cute pic of them nosing and then a not so clean (X rated) pic. :)

All in all, it was a very fun weekend... and I WON!! :)

Strut your Mutt

2009-05-30T09:48:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful event! There were so many people and so many more dogs! The morning included, bands, booths, and a dog swimming pool. Rocky and Kaia played in the pond, and Rocky decided it was a perfect place for a poop! Ha! At least we didn't have to pick it up! :) Teresa and her mom brought Sadie and Gunner, Sadie swam all the way across the pond to the other side, that bitch can swim! :)

Check this out! How cool is this? I found this car in the parking lot after the walk, and couldn't believe my eyes! Just in case you don't know, my car is the black SI :)

14th Annual Strut your Mutt - Tomorrow!!

2009-05-29T08:33:00.000-07:00

If you are unable to strutt with us, please donate! Even $1.00 will help. Thank you very much for your support and love!

http://www.firstgiving.com/eliselane

The Event: A Fun Dog Walk And Festival To Raise Life-Saving Funds For No More Homeless Pets In Utah

Who: Pet lovers who want to raise money for Utah's homeless pets and have a great time with their dogs in the park.

What: Leisurely 1.5 mile group dog walk plus booths, contests, demonstrations, entertainment, refreshments and more. Buster's Backyard (for those who raise over $350) flyball, agility, frisbee and coursing performances. Contests include Best Trick and Pet/Owner look-a-like.

Where: Sugar House Park - 2100 South 1300 East, Salt Lake City.

When: Saturday, May 30th. Registration begins at 8 AM (walk begins at 9:15).

Why: To raise money for No More Homeless Pets in Utah, a non-profit 501c3 organization working to end the euthanasia of homeless dogs and cats statewide and promote humane alternatives for feral cats.

If you are unable to strutt with us, please donate! Even $1.00 will help. Thank you very much for your support and love!

http://www.firstgiving.com/eliselane

Here's just a sample of what your donations can do:

$25 = one cat spay/neuter surgery, resulting in hundreds of fewer births and that means thousands of lives saved.

$30 = Helps provide food and shelter for one feral cat.

$50 = One dog spay/neuter surgery, resulting in hundreds of fewer births and thousands of lives saved

$100 = A dog or cat rescued and placed in a loving permanent home.

2009-05-28T10:41:00.000-07:00

FOUR THINGS YOU CANNOT RECOVER

The stone... after the throw

The word... after its said

The occasion... after the loss

The time... after its gone

Did Anyone Ever Tell You
Just How Special You Are.
The Light that You Emit
Might even Light a Star

Did Anyone Ever Tell You
How Important You Make Others Feel..

Somebody out here is Smiling,
Because of something you said or something you did!

Did Anyone Ever Tell You that Many Times When They were Sad You made Them Smile.
In Fact, It made Them Glad.

Did Anyone Ever Tell You
Just How Much They Like You.
Well, My Dearest Friend Today I am Telling You.
I believe that without a friend you are missing out on a lot!!!

MAKE IT GREAT!!!

100th post! - Bingham Copper Mine (Kennecott)

2009-05-25T12:18:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Jeff and I decided to take a trip to the Copper Mine. We can't believe we've never done this trip, it's only about 15 minutes from our house and is very inexpensive at only $5.00 per car. I have to admit that it made us realize that we are destroying our planet just because we can. Sure, everything they pull from those mountains makes our lives simpler, for example, building supplies for our home, including roofing, counter tops, mirrors, insulation, electrical wires, fixtures. Also, personal hygiene items are made with the many minerals including, deodorant, and all kinds of makeup and shampoo. I have mixed emotions about what they are doing up there. I love all of the conveniences in my life that would be impossible without mining, but on the other hand, it's just horrible to see them destroy our beautiful planet. We did get to see some deer, even one buck who was just starting to grow his antlers. :) Take a look at our geeky pics. Enjoy. :)

Cool old letters...

Saturday, May 9th

2009-05-13T09:57:00.000-07:00

Ferguson Canyon

My cousin, Becca

2009-05-07T15:40:00.000-07:00

This is my beautiful cousin Becca. Isn't her smile gorgeous?! I come from a small extended family since I don't know my father's side, except for my sis, Krisi. Becca is 1 of 5 cousins. She is Meggie's baby sister. Becca passed away last Wednesday morning. I sure will miss her, and the family get together's just won't be the same without her fun loving personality. I know she is happy an no longer struggling, she is now one of my guardian angels.

Becca Michelle Finlayson, 39, passed away at her home on Wednesday, April 29, 2009, after a long battle with depression. She was born April 10, 1970, in Provo, to Merrill P. Finlayson and Joanne Elizabeth Lawson.

Becca attended schools in Orem and American Fork. She met and married Matt Brandes. They were later divorced.

Becca then went on to work as an Office Manager for Charter Canyon Hospital. She loved working as a waitress part time, and loved the people she served. Becca also worked in Salt Lake City for the State of Utah as an Administrative Assistant.

Becca B. loved her family and was close to her parents, sister, and niece, Jenna. She also loved her cats and they loved her. She had an impeccable sense of style and taste which she demonstrated in every aspect of her life. She was creative and innovative. She will be greatly missed by all.

Becca was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and loved the Savior.

She is survived by her mother, Joanne (Craig) Backus, Orem; father, Merrill (Jill) Finlayson, Pleasant Grove; sister Meg Allen, Highland; Jenna Winger, niece; Jordan and Jace Winger, nephews, and an aunt, Maxine Priest, Orem. She is also survived by step-siblings Denise (Brant) Roberts, Springville; Bryant (Angie) Herman, Orem; Kimberli Backus, Sandy; K.C. (Jill) Backus, Orem; and Klint Backus, Orem and many aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews.

Services will be held Saturday, May 2, 2009, at 2:00 p.m. at the Sundberg-Olpin Mortuary, 495 S. State Street, Orem. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the services on Saturday. Interment will be in the Orem City Cemetery.

Rocky Lane

2009-04-20T11:04:00.000-07:00

We started this blog last April when Rocky was paralyzed. Here we are one year later. Rocky has had an amazing recovery. His attitude is always positive, he's a fighter who loves life! He's back to running and romping with his best friend, Kaia. He loves to roll on his back in the grass and feel the warmth of the sun, loves to fetch, and LOVES to play keep away! He's really great at it.

I took Rocky to the Vet a couple weeks ago for a sore he had in between his toes on his front paw, the doctor, prescribed some ointment and bandaged his foot up. Rocky also has a fairly large bump on his back right on top of his hip. He's had it for a few years now, and at one time, it actually burst. We took him in for that when it happened and were told that the bump was a "sebaceous gland". We were told that it was pretty normal for it to rupture and drain itself. I know, that's really gross and probably TMI.

Since we were alreaddy at the Vet's office, I decided to have the bump checked because it looks like it has been getting bigger. The doctor stuck a needle in it and pulled some stuff out, put it on a little glass slide and took it to the microscope. After waiting about 20 minutes, he finally came back in and told me that the bump was a "Mast Cell Tumor" which needed to be operated on ASAP. Then that was that, he escorted me to the front counter so I could pay for the services rendered and told me he would email me some information on Mast Cell Tumors. The front counter guy, scheduled Rocky's surgery for three days later.

On my way home from the Vet, I continued processing all of the information. I called my friend Elena. Her dog had cancer late last year, and I wanted to see if her dog's cancer was the same as a Mast Cell Tumor. She confirmed that her dog, Aspen was diagnosed with the same types of tumors.

Jeff was on his way home from southern Utah. He had left the day before to go on an annual "guys only" 4 wheeler/motor bike ride. I waited until that evening when he was home to tell him. We both decided we needed to have a second opinion before we proceeded with surgery. We were able to get an appointment the next day at another animal clinic. The doctor tested the same area three different times, and was unable to find any cancer cells. They just weren't there. So, needless to say we were pretty upset that we had been given bad information. Jeff called and spoke to the owner of the first clinic, Dr. Law. He's the one who fixed Rocky's paralysis. He stood behind his doctor and insisted we bring him back in so he could take a look himself. After talking it over with Dr. Law, we decided to have the lump removed, just in case. We'd rather be safe than sorry. The lab results just came back on Thursday, and it is cancer. :( They are pretty sure they cut all of the cancer out. We're watching him closely, and sending positive energy his way for a fast recovery.

Kitchen - Before and finally AFTER!!

2009-04-19T12:42:00.000-07:00

BEFORE..

Well - kinda, the kitchen is not 100% complete. We still have to finish the crown molding on the cabinets and the base boards. Take a look! Cheers! :))

AFTER..

"to each their own"

2009-04-17T09:18:00.000-07:00

To each their own - to me, this means people are different and don't have to conform to one way of thinking, feeling, doing or being etc... Sure, I understand that some people are more close minded than others, but recently I've been super bugged by some people's close minded attitudes about other people and how they live there lives. I feel it makes the judgmental person look horrible. Nobody should judge!

If you have opinions that are not very nice, keep them to yourself. Not everybody needs to feel or think YOUR way. If you are bitter about something and that is the reason for the judgmental comments, cry a river, build and bridge and get over it! Keep your negativity to your self, please. Thank you.

Committed to a better way of life.

My sweet, sweet husby

2009-04-16T15:24:00.000-07:00

Thank you for the lovely flowers, they made me cry. You are so thoughtful, and so sweet. I am so so lucky to have you in my life. Thanks for being my biggest fan and bestest friend in this whole wide world. I love you!

Update re: 5k for Diabetes

2009-04-16T10:37:00.000-07:00

Jeffrey was so amazing in this race. I forgot to mention that in my post below. I am amazed by his everlasting strength and strive to keep up with him. He is definately what kept me going that morning, I probably would have cut a corner or just given up if he wasn't there pushing me to keep going. Thanks for being my support and motivation, babe. I love you.

Our first 5k - for Diabetes

2009-04-13T15:17:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I walked/jogged our first 5k on Saturday for Diabetes. Brandon invited us and we took him up on it. It was a lot harder than I thought. I work out vigorously 3-4 times a week, I've been building my endurance for a year now. I cannot believe how hard it was and how much I struggled. It took us about 45 minutes. :(

The race was above the U by The Point, so there were some brutal hills. Jeff did awesome and kept up with me the entire time, he claims he could have left me in the dust, but he didn't so... claim shmame! :0) The next 5k Jeff and I are going to do is on May 9th, The Race for The Cure. If anybody wants to come joins us, leave a comment or send me an email. It's for a great cause and also great for your heart.

Our wedding day - Elise's story

2009-04-09T07:29:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to post this for a while now, although the event was a year and a half ago, I have vivid memories every time I have to drive on the freeway in rain or snow. Like this morning. I drove on the freeway for the 2nd time in wet conditions since that day, which was filled with just about every emotion I can think of.

It all started September 29th, 2007. The day I'd dreamed about for 25 years, and planned for a full year! It was finally here, I was marrying my prince in shining armor, without the shiny armor stuff. :) What an awesome morning - Jeff headed out early that morning to go golfing with his brother/best man, Jared. My younger sister, Lindsay was in town for our big day and was fulfilling her duties as my maid of honor like she had done it a million times before, although it was her first opportunity. She started my day off with a yummy coffee from Beans & Brews. Then she helped me load the back of her little Ford Ranger pick up truck with all of my pictures and decorations, including the amazingly cool sparklers she made - well, decorated to match my wedding colors and style perfectly!
It was so nice to have an extra brain to help me that morning. Who knows what I would have forgotten... It was about 11:00 am and we stopped to get gas at the Sev. As she was standing in the pouring rain pumping the gas, I watched the windshield wipers go back and forth wondering what that day would bring, "would the rain deter people from coming to our wedding? Wow... I'm getting married today." She got back in the truck and we were off to the nail salon for a final manicure. I remember trying to rush the oriental lady, telling her, "I don't have all day, I'm getting married, could you please hurry? please??" Lindsay decided we weren't going to have time to stop for lunch, so being the wonderful maid of honor she was, she went to Subway and got some sandwiches that we could eat on the way up to The Point. The Point Reception Center is on the top floor at the Huntsman Cancer Institute above the U of U Hospital. Anyway, my nails were finally done, I carefully left the salon, Lindsay held the door for me and then opened her truck door for me as well. I didn't have time to wait for my nails to dry, we needed to head! I carefully sat down in the passenger side of her little truck, she got in the driver's side. She looked at me and said, "what about your seat belt?" I looked down, then over my shoulder at the seat belt and then down at my nails and decided I wasn't going to risk messing my freshly manicured nails up. She kinda gave me a crazy look, reached over and grabbed the seat belt and clicked it in. I was thinking, yeah, she's probably right, I should put my seat belt on. She sure is nice.
We then drove out of the parking lot and were getting on the 215 freeway. I'm not sure what it was, maybe intuition, maybe an angel, but I remember right before we approached the freeway entrance, I had a strange feeling, a nervous feeling. I dismissed it and talked myself into believing it was just an unnecessary paranoid feeling. As we were driving east, Lindsay and I were talking about how glad we were that we had made amends and were friends again, and how much we loved each other. Then, all of a sudden, we switched lanes from an inner lane to the fast lane. We hit a puddle of standing water, I felt the truck kinda float and then, I remember Lindsay yelling, OH S**T!!, S**T!!, S**T!!!! We slammed into the middle concrete divider wall, I remember seeing the cars going the opposite way and thinking we were going to fly right over the wall and crash into other people. After smashing head on into the wall at about 70 MPH, everything was in slow motion, I watched the airbags come out after we hit. Then the truck flipped on it's side, my side, we slammed onto the ground and then skidded for about 10 seconds or so. I remember being held in my seat. I was held so tightly, that the airbags, didn't touch me. When we slammed down on my side, my head didn't hit the window. After we stopped skidding, Lindsay looked over at me and asked me if I was ok, I said "yes! are you ok?" She said yes! What do we do!? I said, "we just wait, we need help, we need help." I told her to roll down her window because of all of the smoke from the airbags, it was raining so hard, but the cold and fresh air was so comforting. I was worried that the engine would start on fire and we wouldn't be able to get out because the truck was on it's side. Finally, a Hispanic man yelled into the truck, "are you ok?" we both said yes and he helped Lindsay out first, then jumped in the truck, standing on the window, and lifted me out. I immediately, hugged the man and thanked him, I told him, "today is my wedding day, I'm on my way to my wedding!" He said, "you're very lucky" and ran across the freeway, in between all of the stopped cars and was gone.

I've told this story a hundred times it seems, but this is the first time I've ever re-lived it in writing. It's super emotional for me.

Lindsay and I hugged on the side of the freeway in the pouring rain for what seemed like 10 minutes, we were so happy that we were ok. I remember the horn would not shut up, it was blaring, and Kelly Clarkson was still singing her heart out in the CD player.
I called Jeff, and told him not to worry, "we're ok." "We just got in a really bad wreck, we hydroplaned and flipped the truck, but we're ok." "I'm still on my way to The Point." He asked me, "are you at 20th east?" I said, "yes, how do you know?" He said, "that area always has standing water." "I'm so glad you're ok, I love you!" I then called my mom and explained to her what had happened and told her I needed her to come get us. She did, we loaded all of my pictures and decorations from the back of Lindsay's totaled truck, which miraculously were all still in one piece. The sparklers were a little bent but that was the worst of the damage. Nothing was broken! The paramedics, told me, "these types of accidents usually end with fatalities, we don't see many people walk away from these." "You're very lucky".

We made it up to The Point and that's all I could think and talk about, the horrible wreck I was in. Before I knew it, it was time to get married. I was starting to get sore and stiffer by the minute. I was not in the mood for pictures, which took way too long! But they turned out better than I could have hoped for.

I am so thankful for all of the friends and family that helped make that day THE best day of my life! I am so very fortunate to have such a wonderful husband who is so committed to me and our marriage. I try never to take what I have for granted and truly appreciate my many blessings and the very blessed life I live. I was spared that day for a reason, my mission here has not been completed. I hope that I can continue to make others smile and help in any way I can.

And they lived happily ever after...

minor setback...

2009-04-07T13:44:00.000-07:00

Time for counter-tops! All of the cabinets have been installed and now we just need countertops. Saturday, we went to The Home Depot to buy the precut slabs and realized that we can't use the precut slabs due to our corner cabinet not being a 90 degree angle. So.. now we have to have them custom made and wait until they're done, which will at least be another week. Ugh.. I am struggling without a kitchen. I really just want a sink, I can do without countertops for now...

work in progress...

2009-04-06T11:01:00.000-07:00

No More Homeless Pets in Utah.

2009-04-03T14:17:00.000-07:00

Please care enough...

If you want to know the answer to pet overpopulation just A.S.K.

A= Adopt from a shelter or a rescue group (petfinder.com) do not buy from a breeder or pet store,

S=Spay your pet (every animal unspayed animals contributes to this tragedy, even if you find homes for the babies...it is the concept called supply and demand), and

K= Keep your pet for its lifetime (pets are living creatures and will likely pose some challenges along the way...and like children, with a little effort and love most challenges can be overcome).

P.S. I just got my new No More Homeless Pets license plates, I was going to post a pic, but then I'd be subject to trouble and I don't like trouble. If this was an honest world, I would tell you all about them - I wish I could. I hope you get to see them. I really love them... and they love me! :) Happy Friday

A happy wife is a happy life :)

2009-03-28T14:47:00.001-07:00

:)

2009-03-28T14:43:00.001-07:00

Busy, busy!

2009-03-27T08:59:00.001-07:00

This past week has been full of busy-ness. I've been wanting a bike for a few years now, I finally found one I like and one that fits me. It's a Specialized Myka 19 inch.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, I went on a road trip with Jeff out I-80 to Wendover then down to Lund and then to our final destination, Mesquite, NV. For his new job he is a Service Tech for cctv, security and electronic stuff. He loves his new job and is like a new man! I'm so glad he is so happy! :)

Yesterday, Jeff started taking out the cabinets and appliances in the kitchen so we can have the flooring installed today and the NEW CABINETS tomorrow!! Woo Woo!! I'm so excited, I've been waiting 2.5 years for this day. I can not wait any longer. Right now our refrigerator, stove and kitchen table are in the living room. But it's surprisingly organized. Last year when we cut the squares in the wall dividing the kitchen and living room, and re-did all of the texture on the ceiling it was a complete mess. There was crap everywhere. augh! So glad that part is over. I'll post pics of the kitchen before and after as soon as it's done. I'm hoping Sunday evening.

spring is here!!

2009-03-20T09:21:00.000-07:00

Lunch with Heather and Dre!!

2009-03-20T09:09:00.000-07:00

Friday Fun

2009-03-20T08:53:00.000-07:00

10 Choices
1. Love or lust:- - Love
2. liquor or beer - - beer
3. Cats or Dogs - both
4. A few best friends or lots of close friends?-- I love friends, the real ones ;)
5. PC or Laptop -- both, what would i ever do without one?
6. Friends or Family -- Love
7. Wild night out or romantic night in -- in, in in.
8. Money or Happiness -- both please, is that possible? Sure it is!
10. IM or phone -- IM

10 Have You Evers?
1. Been caught sneaking out -- Are you kidding, almost on a nightly basis! (when I was a teen)
2. Purposely hurt someone -- I'm sure.
3. Done something you regret -- lots
4. Bungee jumped -- never, and never will
5. Been so embarrassed that you actually cried -- yes, 5th grade - I worked my butt off on coloring this contry map. My teacher held it up in front of everybody and said "this is what I DON'T want to see!" I ran all the way home in tears. The school called my mom about 3 hours later to tell her I was missing. She told them to jump off a cliff. Thanks, mom, Love you!
6. Skinny Dipped -- nope
7. Gotten stuck in an elevator -- yes, at the SL airport when I was 5 or so. It's glass and people were so mad! I just watched them yelling at me. I'd hit the stop button or something. oops!
8. Wanted an ex bf/gf back -- yes, what was I thinking! Obviuosly I wasn't!
9. Cried because you lost a pet -- Yes, yes yes! I cry when I hear of other people losing pets
10. Wanted to disappear -- Yes.

10 Preferences In A Partner
1. Smile or eyes-- I prefer they have both
2. Light or dark hair -- Red
3. Hugs or kisses -- BOTH!!!!
4. Shorter or taller -- I wont date anyone shorter than me. Its a deal breaker.
5. Intelligence or attraction -- intelligence is attractive
6. Romantic or spontaneous -- A Romantic Spontaneous guy! haha
7. Funny or serious -- laid back, easy goin
8. Older or Younger -- mine is older
9. Outgoing or quiet -- Outgoing, knows when to be quiet
10. Sweet or Bad -- sweet

10 Lasts
1. Last person you were on the phone with -- Husby
2. Last time you went out to lunch -- Yesterday, with one of my bestests!!
3. Last person you hung out with -- Heather yesterday, husby last night
4. Last time you worked -- at work - 15 min ago or so
5. Last person you tackled -- hmmm. not sure that's ever happened.
6. Last person you IM'd -- Admin
7. Last person you texted? -- Husby
8. Last person(s) you went to the movies with - Husby
9. Last person you shared a bed with -- Husby, do kitties count?
10. Last person you were in a car with -- Heather

10 Are You's?
1. Missing someone right now? -- yep
2. Happy? - Yes!
3. Talking to anyone right now? -- Nope
4. Bored? - - no
5. German? - - no
6. Swedish? - - Norwegian
7. French? - - No
8. Italian? - - nope
9.Your parents still married? - - not for a long time - for the better
10. In love with someone right now? -- Of course!

10 Minutes
1. Thinking about? -- lots of things
2. Are you eating? -- just got done with a bananna
3. What are you listening to? -- slackers goofing around
4. What were you doing an hour ago? answering emails
5. What are you wearing? -- cute stuff today! :)
6. Are you cold? - - nope, heater under my desk is turned up to 74
7. Are you excited? -- yes
8. Are you upset? -- kinda
9. What is your current mood?-- meh
10. Is anyone going to reply? -- I'm no psychic

My hard working husby

2009-03-14T09:59:00.001-07:00

Framing in the bathroom downstairs! Yesterday, Jeff's bro came over and plumbed the whole bathroom for us! I am getting so excited!

This is our new front door - unfinished, of course. Jeff's best friend, Jason gave him this for adio video tradework! We are going to clear coat the inside to match our new cabinets and then the outside will be a black glaze!

2 posts today! Whoo hoo!

2009-03-11T15:33:00.001-07:00

Found this on Yahoo! today and thought it was very blog worthy!

Utah was found to be the happiest state!

Utah, Hawaii, Wyoming top 'happiness' poll
ABC News WASHINGTON – Looking for happiness — it's family-friendly communities for some, tropical paradise or the rugged West for others. A survey of Americans' well-being, conducted by Gallup in partnership with Healthways and America's Health Insurance Plans, gives high marks to Utah, which boasts lots of outdoor recreation for its youthful population.

Speaking of outdoor recreation, the islands of Hawaii took second place and Wyoming was third in the poll that rated such variables as mental, physical and economic health.

But fun outdoors obviously wasn't the only criteria — "wild, wonderful" West Virginia was ranked last among the states.

And the bluegrass state of Kentucky was 49th, with Mississippi 48th on the list.

In general, highest well-being scores came from states in the West while the lowest were concentrated in the South. The happiest congressional districts were some of the wealthiest, while the lowest scores came in some of the poorest.

Jim Harter, a researcher at Gallup, said he was reluctant to explain regional differences without more study, but he suspected that some of the variations are explained by income. For example, when people were asked to examine their status in life now and five years from now, wealthier people tended to score higher.

The survey attempts to measure people's well-being. It examines their eating and exercise habits, work environment and access to basic necessities, just to name some of the criteria.

"It's not just about physical health," said Eric Nielsen, a spokesman for Gallup. "It's about their ability to contribute at work and be more productive, and it's about feeling engaged in a community and wanting to improve that community."

The massive survey involved more than 350,000 interviews. Examples of the questions include: Did you smile or laugh a lot yesterday? Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with your job or the work you do? Did you eat healthy all day yesterday? Do you feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area where you live?

The survey, which takes about 15 minutes, involved 42 core questions. Those taking the survey could get a score of up to 100. The actual difference between states wasn't great: The average score for the highest-ranking state, Utah, was 69.2 points, while the average for the lowest-ranking state, West Virginia, was 61.2 points.

But Harter said that he believed geographic divides could be overstated and even the states with the highest scores had significant work to do to improve certain aspects of their residents' health and happiness.

Researchers hope the findings will help employers better understand what they can do to create more productive workers. Eventually, the data could even be used to compare health and happiness by ZIP code. The survey is going to be generated for 25 years, according to current plans.

To that end, the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index also ranked congressional districts. Residents in California Rep. Anna Eshoo's coastal district south of San Francisco generated the top well-being score, followed closely behind by residents of Georgia Rep. Tom Price's district, on the northern edge of Atlanta. Both districts rank in the top 10 in median household income.

On the opposite end, Rep. Harold Rogers' district in eastern Kentucky's coal country and New York Rep. Jose Serrano's district, which includes the distressed neighborhood of the South Bronx, had the lowest well-being scores.

___

cabinets are ordered!

2009-03-11T10:58:00.000-07:00

I ordered the kitchen cabinets yesterday, finally! They should be ready to install by April 4th. I can't wait! We are going to be busy, busy putting in the new floor. We are also ordering the new windows really soon. Jeff is at Lowe's right now buying all of the wood to frame in the bathroom downstairs.

The current Jeff and Elise plan is to have, the kitchen completely remodeled, the new windows installed, the exterior of the house painted, and the bathroom downstairs built by the end of May 2009. That's the goal and the plan. Cross your fingers for us. I'll upload some pics of our new front door, and the new stuff as we get it done.