Spring

Spring - The season of the year, occurring between winter and summer, during which the weather becomes warmer and plants revive.

April 30, 2009

I've been holding out on using "spring" until I got a spring day that was worthy of it. Yeah! I went and wandered around outside while Lane was mowing the lawn, appraising the yard situation and thinking about what to plant. I even laid down in the grass for a minute, until Addie thought I was some sort of jumping toy, so I got up quickly.

I think the wind in this town blows constantly in two places - the mouth of the canyon, and the ball park. It had been such a gorgeous day that when we headed down to the ball field, I only grabbed my sweater as a precaution. Sure enough, as soon as we got there it was cold, and the wind was blowing straight out of the north. If the game had lasted much longer than it did, I may have had to go sit in the car. It was a good game, the team seemed to have settled down now that they had one game under their belts, and Jack's team won 7 to 4. So as we were driving home from the ball game, it wasn't quite dark yet, and I noticed that once we got away from the park, the wind was no longer blowing. How crazy is that! Seriously, I think there is some anti-Lari vortex sitting over that park that doesn't want me to be warm - EVER! It's the same place they play football in the fall, and we always freeze then, too.

Baseline

Baseline - the lines a baseball player must follow while running the bases.

April 29, 2009

Opening Day! Ours was the first game of the day, so the field had been prepped and it was perfect and unspoiled. The weather was great for a baseball game, especially considereing the rain, snow, hail, wind, plagues of locusts (ok, just kidding on that one) that we had to sit through last season. Jack walked both of his times at bat, and scored once. His team lost, but it was a pretty good first outing. It is so much fun to watch him and his team play. All the other parents are so nice and everyone talks and laughs together and, thankfully, none of our team's parents take it too seriously. Last year there were a few incidents where parents (not our team) got out of control and had to be invited to leave the park, and some coaches who spent the whole game yelling at the boys. Our boys all seem to enjoy playing and cheer each other on, pat each other on the back for a job well done as well as offer encouraging words when a boy is struggling. The game is so much funner this way, and the boys all come away feeling good about themselves and understand the importance of team work. And that's just how it should be.

And yes, as a matter of fact, I was too lazy to walk around the backstop for a picture from the front, or even a picture without the chain link in it. Maybe next game I'll be more motivated, but don't bet on it.

Toy

Toy - An object designed for the enjoyment of children.

April 28, 2009

It's 10:30 at night, and I'm desperate for a picture. So I go wandering around the house, and I happened upon Addie's toybox and liked the composition of color. It is sentimental too. The doll was given to Addie by my sister Sabrina and her family for Christmas when Addie was 1. Sabrina had a Dressy Bessy when she was a kid, and I had the corresponding Dapper Dan. We litterally loved the stuffing out of those dolls. So when she saw a new and updated Dressy Bessy, Sabrina had to get it for Addie, and Addie has loved it too. The bear is Lolo (I don't know - Addie comes up with the names). She got Lolo from one of her many PCMC trips, and I think it is easily her most treasured hospital treasure. It's amazing Lolo looks this good, considering the amount of time he has spent being dragged around by one foot. The golden bear in the foreground ( I think it's only a leg that's showing) is Doris - again with the names. Doris was another Christmas gift, this time from Calvin's family, and I have had to re-stitch Doris many times. Doris is usually the one in the dolly stroller or the dolly bed. For a long time she wouldn't go to bed with out Doris. The funny thing is Addie refers to Doris as a he, but insists he is a girl.

So tonight for dinner I made chicken enchiladas since I had leftover chicken from yesterday. I tried a new enchilada sauce recipe since I wasn't loving the recipe I had been using, and I really liked how it turned out. But the recipe made at least twice what I needed, so I'll have to remember to half it in the future. I did stick the leftovers in the freezer so I'm all set for next time.

Jack's opening game is tomorrow evening. The big Opening Day ceremony and preseason game had to be cancelled last Saturday because it was pouring. Jack is so excited to play. I hope he does well and doesn't spend as much time chasing butterflies as he did last year.

Mess, Blow, Future +1

Mess - Disordered clutter; a jumble.

April 27, 2009

I baked today. I think I've said before that our Monday dinner is like everyone else's Sunday dinner. Lane's grandma comes for FHE, so I made a little extra effort. Today I baked bread (of course), this time a garlic and parsley bread, and cupcakes from scratch since I had no mix and refused to go out for just a cake mix. I took this picture before I added the mess from mixing the frosting. Perhaps I should have waited in order to get an accurate representation. Grandma had a conflict, so she didn't come up for FHE, but we enjoyed our good dinner anyway (grilled lemon pepper chicken that I had mariated all afternoon in olive oil, lemon juice and fresh herbs, served with roasted broccoli, rice, and of course the bread with an olive oil/coarse ground pepper dip) and then we went to see a few historic sites in PG that Jack had been learning about in school. We came home and ate our cupcakes, played a game of Sorry and sent the kids off to bed. Ahh, the quiet.

Blow - To expel air; to propel by moving air.

April 26, 2009

First it rained, then it hailed, then it rained again, then it snowed, and then it rained again. Then the sun came out. How this little dandelion survived all that, I'll never know, but more importantly, how has it survived Addie? She loves to blow these, as all kids do, and my front and back lawns are full of dandelions thanks to the little seeds blowing around.

Future - A time or event to come.

April 25, 2009

One of Taylor's value projects for her Personal Progress. She is supposed to make something for her future home, so she is making a rag quilt, baby size. She chose her fabric by herself, and did most of the cutting. I cut a few for demonstration, and then she took over and did the rest. There was 6 yards of flannel plus the batting all that needed to be cut, and then pin the squares together with the batting. It was quite a job, but she did it - and did it cheerfully!




April 27, 2009 - Addie blowing the aforementioned dandelion. Stupid delay on the camera missed all the seeds blowing. This picture was just an afterthought. I didn't yet have a submission for the photo contest, and I never got on in at all last month, so I thought I would submit this one. The theme is "youth," which I have struggled with all month long. I just couldn't think of anything exciting to do, and this is the best I came up with.

Anniversary

Anniversary - The date on which something happened at an earlier time; this event celebrated on this date every year.

April 24, 2009

April 24, 1992 - Oh, my goodness. Who are those people? She resembles someone I used to know, someone I may have devoured in or around 1999. He's still a cutie. Where does the time go? 17 years of wedded bliss - I love you sweetie!

I added this picture to give some other people a "Holy Crap!" moment. Leslie, I think, is 13 and Greg almost 16, and on and on it goes with how we have all changed over the years. Some of the grandparents are deceased now.

Lane had to go to work tonight, and he graciously stayed up this morning to get Addie from school so I wouldn't have to leave work to go get her. We did have a nice lunch together, but after that he had to go to bed, so no dinner out. It all works out the same, really, since the place we had lunch is my favorite brisket place, and that's likely where we would have had dinner, too. But it is much less crowded at lunchtime. So it's all good.

Since we didn't have dinner out, I took the kids with me to do the grocery shopping (NEVER again!) and we each picked out a frozen dinner to eat. They got all excited about this change of routine and it only cost me a fraction of eating out. Then we watched an episodes of Mythbusters - turns out banana peels really are slippery, and double-dipping really isn't more germy - and then a Food Network Challenge Extreme Cakes episode, and then finally topped off the evening with "A League of Their Own." I love that show. There's no crying in baseball! Lane & I say that all the time, so the kids got a kick hearing it in the show and learning where it came from. I had a fun Shauna-flash-back moment during the show, I'll have to remember to email her about that later.

Tomorrow is opening day for Jack's baseball league. It's raining now, so I don't know what that means for tomorrow. Then they have a pre-season game at 7:20, but I also need to get to my neice Kassie's BYU graduation open house sometime. Congratulations to Kassie! I don't know why my college years lasted so much longer than hers! Ok, mine really was longer than hers (5 years for me, 4 for her), but still! A lot of times it seemed like it would never end. Of course, I'm referring to my 3 LONG years at BYU; my Snow College days went by way too fast.

Boy, I'm really rambling tonight! I'll stop now, before I get slap happy and REALLY say something stupid.

Decide

Decide - To settle, determine; to make up one's mind.

April 23, 2004

Last fall Lane painted 2 walls of our family room a lovely chocolate brown. It's such a warm, cozy color and the room has a western exposure and gets lots of light so the dark color worked. Then in December we went and bought the best couch EVER!! the microfiber sectional that we intended for the basement but couldn't actually get down there. Anyway, it's the same color as the wall. Then a few months later we went and got a big, flat screen TV (black frame) and a table to put it on (also black). The TV and couch necessitated that we move Lane's recliner from the white wall to the brown wall. Did I mention the recliner is also chocolate brown? So now our beautiful room is scary dark and blah and has to change. I have these paint chips sitting on the fireplace mantle, all terra cotta type colors. Which one, which one . . .

Hit

Hit - To move or set in motion by striking.

April 22, 2009

We play a lot off wiffle ball at our house when the weather is nice. It's something that all of us can do together. Even Addie can hit it most of the time. Sure, there are a bunch of wiffle balls caught in the rain gutters, and maybe we've struck to dog a time or two, but it's all in the name of wholesome family fun and quality time. Wiffle ball was one of the first things Lane & I did together when we started dating. It always brings a gentle, reminescent smile to Lane's face when we talk about it. But no, no . . . Not because it brings back memories of the beginning of our relationship, or how much he has grown to love me. No, he smiles because that was the first time he saw me run. Ask him to demonstrate for you sometime. But the joke is really on him - he married me anyway.

And still more bread . . .

Braid - To interweave three or more strands of something; to plait.

April 21, 2009

My first attempt at a plaited bread. I have always avoided doing this because I can't make good "rope" things to make the braid, but luckily the raising and baking are very forgiving! It turned out so good - really crusty, but soft and light on the inside. It would be a really good bread dipped in olive oil, like what they bring you as an appetizer at Carrabbas. I'll have to try that. My only complaint was that the recipe made a small loaf, and I always like to have a spare to share when I make bread, and this only made 1. I'll have to adjust that next time. It also got browner than I liked, due to the egg wash I am told, but I wasn't happy with that. I will definitely make it again! The recipe called for poppy seeds, but since that isn't the kind of thing I keep around, it was suggested that I try dill and that worked great. I added dill both to the dough and to the egg wash. I now just need to find a bread (not a muffin) that includes my 3 favorite things - bread, of course, cheese and bacon. Oh, and garlic. I guess that makes 4. How can you go wrong with those 4 things! Any recipes are welcome.

Focaccia Recipe

Focaccia by Lari
(called this because it's a mixture of a couple of recipes)


1 T yeast
1/4 t sugar
3/4 c warm water

Combine in a bowl and let it sit 10 minutes or so until it foams.

Add:
1 t salt
3 c flour

Mix until smooth and elastic.

Place dough in a well greased bowl, cover with a towel and place in a warm place to rise until the dough is doubled, about 1.5 hours. Punch dough down and place on an oiled baking sheet (or I use a silpat) forming dough into an oval or a circle. Brush on OLIVE OIL generously (DO NOT USE VEGETABLE OR CANOLA OIL - IT'S NOT THE SAME!). Sprinkle with coarse ground salt and seasoning of your choice. I have used fresh rosemary, parmasean cheese, thinly sliced onion, etc. Let rise for 20-30minutes. Bake in preheated 425 degree oven for 20 minutes or until golden. Serve warm.


This is super easy and fast, and can go with any number of entrees just by changing out the seasoning.

Bloom, Accomplish & Survive

Survive - To continue to exist; to outlast; to outlive.

April 20, 2009

IT'S ALIVE!! This is one of the rosebushes I butchered a while back, showing good signs of life. I didn't kill it after all!

Accomplish - To perform; to carry out; to complete.

April 19, 2009

Taylor's first complete sewing project. She did the dress almost all by herself, I had to do most of the jacket because it was the strangest pattern I have ever seen. Anyway, it turned out pretty cute, except some additional adjusting seems to be in order - it's a little too big and we hate how the sleeves turned out. I think we'll just cut them off for short sleeves.

Bloom - To bear flowers; to flourish; to have a healthy look.

April 18, 2009

My backyard apple tree - almost ready to bloom! This tree bears the best apples! It is so nice to finally have a beautiful spring day!


So I was right. My cold did progress into a sinus infection, with a little bronchitis thrown in for good measure. I was able to get in to see the Dr. today, and I got an antibiotic, so I should be on the mend. The beautiful day today did a lot to make me feel better! After dinner I went out with Jack and threw the baseball around with him for a minute, and then watched him throw the ball against the pitchback. Lane got the lawn mowed and edged. It's supposed to be nice all week long, until Saturday when it gets colder but the forecast changed and is no longer snowy/rainy. I'll take that! Jack's Little League opening day is on Saturday, so it will be much nicer to not freeze, like we did last year, but we'll see. Addie fell down today on her way to school and scratched up her forehead and nose and got a bloody nose. I guess she was on the school grounds so her teacher cleaned her up and I didn't know anything about it until school was out. She doesn't know why she fell . . . I'm guessing she was skipping along, as little girls do, and tripped over something or other since she wasn't likely paying attention to anything around her. Then she told me that Jack wouldn't help her up, his friend Derek helped her up and got her some help. Of course you can imagine that Jack's version is a little different.

Sick

Sick - Suffering from or affected with a physical illness; ailing.

April 17, 2009

My bedside table. I hate being sick. But despite this lingering cold, I went with a good friend to the temple today. It's been too long since the last time and it was good to go. After I got home, Lane took me to dinner (mmm . . . ribs!) and then we stopped at the grocery store for more medication, and then came home where he treated me to a foot rub. Lane doesn't do feet, so this really was a special treat for me - maybe worth being sick! No, never mind, that's not true. I hate being sick. But I did love the foot rub - thanks sweetie! I think I am closing in on the end of the worst part of this cold. When I get a cold, I get it in phases and it drags on and on and on . . . But I am almost past the sore throat, and headed into the congested phase. The sore, dry, scratchy throat part is the toughest on me because I can't sleep, so once that's over at least I'll be able to sleep better! So next up, like I said, is the congestion, followed by the cough, and then I'll be done. During the congestion/cough phase I will get a weird-voice thing that will sound bad, but that's all. It is usually when things are finally starting to look up that I sound the worst. I think everyone else in the family has had this fun little bug, so hopefully it ends with me.

Unseasonable & Protest

We woke up to 10 inches of fresh, wet, heavy snow today. Lane had to shovel before he could get the car up the driveway. What a miserable spring this has been so far. We get 1 warm day at a time amongst all the cold/rain/snow. Is it any wonder I'm battling a cold?

Our schools are out all week for spring break. Where is the spring weather?

Baseball games are set to begin on the 25th, and Lane's/Jack's team has only been able to have a few practices because it has rained every practice day, and then today (another scheduled practice day) we get THIS. At least the other teams probably haven't practiced either.

Unseasonable - Not suitable to or appropriate for the season.

April 16, 2009

Ok, so snow in April in Utah is not weird, but THIS MUCH snow in April IS weird. I'm not sure how much there was, but it had to be shoveled and last time I looked out it wasn't all melted off. The sun is shining but it is cold. I'm interested to see if it was some sort of record, because it was a TON of snow! Spring - please, please come soon!

Protest - A declaration or display of disapproval.

April 15, 2009

I supported, but did not participate in, the Tax Day Tea Party. It is estimated 750,000 people participated in the demonstrations to voice their displeasure with out of control government spending and excessive bailouts and unmanagable deficits.



I had hoped to go to the tea party in Provo, but between a cold (which I'm pretty sure is developing into a lovely sinus infection) and THE cold/rain/snow, I didn't make it. I'm not sure about the turn out in Provo, but the SLC one is reported to have had a good crowd.

I laid around almost all day yesterday with this darn cold I have. Luckily, Lane stepped in and took care of everything so I could and not feel guilty. I'm not feeling much better today, but I did have a better sleep last night than I did the night before, but I still plan to lay around all evening. I did manage to tidy up the kitchen and vacuum at least.

Easter, Dye & Moron

Moron - An adult exhibiting intelligence equal to that of a seven to twelve year old child.

April 11, 2009

I guess some people just can't help themselves.

Easter - A Christian festival which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

April 12, 2009

Pretty new Easter outfits for everyone, courtesy of Grandpa and Grandma Funk. The rain/snow even took a break for Easter, and today as well. It's supposed to start up again tomorrow and go through Friday night.

Dye - to stain with liquid coloring.

April 13, 2009

We colored our Easter Eggs for FHE tonight, since the weekend got away from us and we never got it done. The white/pink one behind the 2 blue-ish ones is Addie's first one. I wish the cracks showed up. She dropped it in the mug of dye, took it out, dropped it on the table, then while picking it up dropped it on the floor, and while bending over to pick it up she kicked it, and then finally stepped on it. It's truly amazing that it's not in worse shape than it is! She wanted to color the other half of it since she had only done the one half pink, but I told her no way was it going back into the dye after all that! That was the only one she had trouble with. It was kind of an "I Love Lucy" moment.

Milestone

Chocolate AND caramel fountains!

Why is Jack's hair always such a mess, no matter what we do?

Calvin and I had this collage put together as a gift for my parents.

Milestone - a significant event in a life or history.

April 10, 2009

Tonight was the open house to celebrate my parents 50th anniversary. Their anniversary was actually on December 19, 2008 but since December is such a hard month for everyone, we held off until spring to have the celebration. We had an excellent turnout and my parents were so happy to see so many people who they have known and loved throughout the years. Special thanks to Kristin Williams Anderson for the beautiful cake!

Velvet

Velvet - smooth and soft to sight or hearing or touch or taste.

April 9, 2009

I got the urge to make a red velvet cake a few days ago, and finally got to it today. I hardly ever make cake from scratch but I did this one. I don't know how well the color will come across, but it turned out exactly as I had hoped - a beautiful, deep red color. I frosted it with a homemade buttercreme. I have no plating skills, and definitely no "drizzling" skills, so just know that the cake is gorgeous and tastes great!

Red Velvet Cake

1/2 cup shortening

1 1/2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

2 T cocoa

4 T red food coloring

1 t salt

1 t vanilla extract

1 cup buttermilk

2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 1/2 t baking soda

1 T distilled white vinegar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream shortening and sugar WELL. Add eggs and beat well. Make a paste of cocoa and red food coloring. Add to creamed mixture. Mix salt, vanilla, and buttermilk together. Add alternately the flour with the milk mixture to the creamed mixture. Mix soda and vinegar and FOLD INTO THE CAKE BATTER. DO NOT BEAT OR STIR NOW. Bake for 30 minutes.

I am very pleased with how this turned out. It is so pretty and would be a perfect cake for Valentines Day or Christmas. The color is gorgeous! It took a lot of food coloring, almost 2 of the 1 oz bottles. I just got the walmart brand so it was cheaper. The walmart brand only cost 88 cents a bottle instead of almost $3 a bottle for the name brand. I would have liked to make a layered round cake for this recipe, but I don't have round cake pans. I guess I'll have to get some. I think that's how red velvet cake is supposed to be! Either that or in the shape of an armadillo!

History

History - Past events, especially those involving human affairs; an account or record of past events that is written in chronological order, especially those concerning a particular nation, people, activity or knowledge; the study of the past and its significance.

April 8, 2009

See what happens when I wait until 10:30 p.m. to look for something to photograph? Be grateful, the original plan was even more boring that this. The Lincoln book was my graduation gift from Lane. The book was brand new that year (1993) and its release was a huge deal. The book cost about $50, and as newlyweds we had no money. Lane knew that I wanted the book and he found a way to get it for me for graduation, which makes it even more special. I do love my Civil War History. I think it is still the nicest book I own. There is nothing better than a true gift from the heart. You know, the perfect gift . . . expensive or not . . . that perfectly suits the receiver; the gift that says it all without the giver having to say a anything at all. I have another such gift from Lane, a music box. It no longer plays music consistently, and the lid is no longer attached but rather just resting on top. But I'll keep it forever because of the sentiment behind it. It plays - when it does play - Younger than Springtime (I think that's the title . . . I can hear the tune in my head!) I hope that during the course of my life I have given a few such gifts. There is a gift I found on Ebay for my brother a few years ago that I was terribly proud of having found. It was an old battered copy of a child's book called "Calvin & The Cub Scouts." If you know Calvin, you know I just had to get it for him. It was his 40th birthday, so even better. I think it only cost me about $6 including shipping, but it was so much fun to give.

Emerge

Emerge - to come forth; to come into view; to form or evolve.

April 7, 2009

I found a few signs of spring today when I went out for my walk. What a beautiful day - too bad it won't last.

It was such a beautiful day today! Taylor, Jack and I went out for a walk tonight. We went 2.5 miles in about 50 minutes. Now I have a blister on each foot. Then we did our nightly Wii Fit. I got in 30 minutes of that, so I think I'm done for the day! Then I cancelled it all out by having a Fat Boy ice cream bar. I'm so weak.

Paint, Construct, Seasoning

Paint - A mixture of colors or pigmentsa which are spread on a surface as protection or as a decorative coating.

April 4, 2009

I painted my entry way on a whim, then noticed how dingy the fresh paint made the kitchen look, so I painted that too. I still need to paint the pantry doors in the kitchen so that picture will have to be another day. This is called Acapulco Sand.

Construct- To form by assembling or combining parts; build.

April 5, 2009

Jack "watching" conference. He just loves Legos and Knex and is always building something. I seriously think he'll be some sort of engineer someday.

Seasoning - Something, such as a spice or herb, used to flavor food

April 6, 2009

Today's fresh baked bread, one loaf for dinner and a spare to share. This has become one of our staples - it is a simple round loaf. I usually like to use sharp cheddar in/on it, but didn't have any today, so I substitute parmesean cheese with garlic, melted butter and parsley. My rosemary isn't coming out of dormancy or I would have used that too. Yummy! I love to make bread! (And my yeast foamed on the FIRST try!)



We had a lovely day today. Unfortunately, I didn't make time to get outside. I am hoping to do better tomorrow, because I think we have more storms rolling in on Wednesday. Here we go on the roller coaster that is springtime in Utah. Jack's baseball practice has begun and the games start next month. I'm just hoping we don't freeze like we did last year! I think it was warm on every day that our team didn't play, and rain/snow/wind on every day that our team did play. I don't know how that worked out, just lucky I guess.

Music

Music - The art of arranging sounds in time so as to produce a continuous, unified, and evocative composition, as through melody, harmony, rhythm, and timbre.

April 3, 2009

I recently had some computer memory trouble, so I transferred all my photos to CD and deleted all my music that I had an original CD for in order to free up some space. I have since acquired an external hard drive, so I now have plenty of memory space, so I spent the afternoon downloading again all that music I had deleted. 'Tis good to have my tunes again!

Woke up again to fresh snow, not much, but snow nonetheless. Still cold! I went to the grocery store today and the flag at Maceys was standing straight out in the wind and you could hear it blowing (the flag) from some distance away. The temperature reading in my car said it was 37, but I'm not sure it was even that warm when you account for the wind.

Jack is now feeling icky. He's got a cough and just doesn't feel great overall. It hasn't affected his appetite, however. Lane was sleeping this evening since he stayed up to get Addie from school today, so the kids and I just snuggled in and watched some of our recorded shows and enjoyed a quiet, snuggly night at home. We didn't have any "Mythbusters" to watch (the new season starts Wednesday!!), but we did have a bunch of "Destroyed in Seconds." We do enjoy watching things explode. I got my checkbook balanced today, and a few bills paid. I got the tithing checks written out before I remebered that there's no church on Sunday, but I guess it all works out the same. Jack's backpack has finally bitten the dust, so I'll have to find him something to use for the last 2 months of school. I just don't want to pay full price for a backpack when I can get one cheap at the back to school sales. Taylor has an old pink book bag she's no longer using- do you think I could get him to use that?

Toothless

Toothless - lacking teeth
April 2, 2009

Addie lost another tooth today, bringing her total to 4, all on the bottom. It bled a little bit and made her cry. After some quick rinsing, she was all smiles about being so big that she is losing so many teeth!

The sun decided to shine a little bit today, but it was still cold-ish, although better than yesterday. I got a little cleaning done today. The downstairs family room is cleaned up and presentable again. I so need to get some new curtains made. There are 3 windows down here, small windows, but still 3! The curtains that are here are my parents' leftovers and not my taste (Shhh!). I'm not sure what I want to do - the whole room needs painted, but other rooms need painted too and this room is WAY down the list. And I don't want to make curtains only to have to re-make curtains later. I guess I could always do blinds . . . I am not a huge fan of blinds, but maybe down here they would make sense. Hmmm . . . that's something to think about. I finally got all the invitations to my parents 50th Anniversary party delivered. It's on the 10th, so I was really slow about getting it done. I've been using the cold for my excuse. Luckily I have kids to run them up to houses while I sit in the car. I'm looking forward to the weekend and Conference. I always enjoy Conference, especially the laying around in my pajamas part!