Hot Diggity Dog

I love hot dogs. Maybe too much. My friends tease about it. Whatever. Hot dogs get a bad rep as being cheap and gross. With the right toppings, an ordinary hot dog can go from white trashy to super classy.

My top favorite hot dog is the Sonoran Dog. It is basically a hot dog wrapped in bacon covered with taco filling. My first exposure was at El Guero Canelo down in Tucson. On a scale from garbage to awesome, it was a party in my mouth. Since that time I've sampled other locations and tried to recreate one myself.

I made this one.

My other top favorite is the Chicago Dog. Picture all the best hamburger fixings on a hot dog. I first tried it at Chompies. Just about every time I have gone back to that delicatessen, which is alot, I have order their Chicago Dog. Sonic and Freddy's offer decent ones. This one is easy to recreate, and I have on many occasions.

From the Chompie's in Tempe

I have a dream to have a gourmet hot dog party. Or start a club, kind of like the Finer Things Club, to talk about and taste different topping combos. There is even a pin board I've dedicated to other hot dogs to try.

Who else loves hot dogs? Would you come to a hot dog party? Or join a gourmet hot dog club?

Make It Work

Remember how my sister and I went to tried to visit Mood in NYC and they were closed? Well that sister of mine recently return to that beautiful city and made a visit to Mood during business hours.

pictures courtesy of sister

Am I jealous? You bet. Fortunately I have the best sister ever and she got some souvenirs for me. To honor the fashionista within, the rest of this post will be presented in fashion blogger fashion. Here is my "haul."

bag, 2 types of wide elastic for skirts, fudge, and shirt

And here is a "what I wore" photo complete with awkward pose. So trendy it hurts. I could totally be a fashion blogger.

shirt: American Apparel via NYC Mood, shorts: cut-off Levis, shoes: Vans

P.S. I may or may not want to live the rest of this week wearing this shirt. American Apparel knows how to make a shirt. It is a shame the owner is a dirt bag.

Awesome Thank You Mail

This week the Boy and I went to check the mail and found a letter from our favorite family in PA. Inside were some puzzle pieces.


We sat on our porch and put the pieces together to find a pretty picture drawn just for us. Can you tell which one is the Boy?


Then we flipped it over and found a message thanking us for the trip to the Children's Museum. The Boy "read" it, pointing out all his favorite letters. Best mail ever.

Love it. Lots.

Making Stuff

After months of wanting to do it, I completed a skirt tutorial. I could not have done it without the help of my mom. She sewed on the elastic after I failed miserably.


True story: I finished sewing the elastic waist the first time and it ended up twice the size I started with.

Moral of the story: Don't buy old warn out elastic from SAS Fabric. If the price is too good to be true, it is. Buck up and just buy the quality stuff from JoAnn's first. And don't tell the ladies at JoAnn's the sob story because they will just laugh at you.

After all that embarrassment I found redemption in sewing the hem by hand. Don't believe me?


It was maybe my finest sewing moment of all time (which isn't saying much). I will never hem by sewing machine again.

Only the Ladies, Come on.

A few weeks ago, the Boy and I went to see an old friend of mine. She and her family have quite a few animals on their property. When we saw all the animals I remembered how much I love a good group of hens. They make great models. Goats are good, too. But really, are these chickens just beautiful?!







The Boy even braved it and went into the chicken pen to check out all the fun.

Validation

My favorite movie when I was little was the Labyrinth. Over the years I have received mixed messages from friends when I share this fact. A month ago I found validation in my childhood favorite via Design*Sponge. The post has been kept unread in my Reader ever since. It makes me happy.



P.S. During Doppleganger week on facebook, a celebrity generator program said I looked 58% like David Bowie. I guess my love for the Labyrinth can be seen in my countenance and I'm okay with that.

Best Choice Ever

I've been working on a class called Intro to Family Processes a lot this week. I've also been chatting with a single friend about her current dating endeavor. Through both of these activities the importance of choices related to family life was the theme. All I can say is marrying Husband was really the best choice ever. And I feel incredibly blessed with the family I have.

I love this boy!

Dirty face and all. He played nicely with cars for about 4 hours straight this evening while we babysat for some friends. Despite his occasional overly dramatic tantrums, he is my favorite little boy in the entire world.

I have been blessed with a very happy, healthy, and strong baby. A few days ago I jinxed his excellent healthy streak (only sick once before) by telling a friend that Baby was indestructible. The next day Baby woke up all congested and drooling like crazy. We got a humidifier, and that has helped him sleep, but boy is he ULTRA clingy and irritable. It breaks my heart to see my little boy sick. Hopefully real soon he will be back to his old self, because there is nothing I like more than seeing my happy boy running around playing.

I love my calling!

I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Some people know it as the Mormon church. Anyway, I love so many things about it. One thing in particular is that the members are issued specific callings (asked to volunteer) to help the ward (congregation) run smoothly. I am currently a youth leader over the 12 and 13 year old girls in my ward. This group of girls is the best! And they amaze me every week with their awesomeness. On Valentines day I came home to this:


I thought that some women in my ward did it, since this was left on my porch from them:


Turns out 2 groups of visitors came by because my girls were responsible for the "heart attack." It basically made my day. I have the best calling ever. And I couldn't be more pleased with the area where we are currently living because I love the people in our ward.

Basement Parties

Baby and I went to the Tempe Public Library yesterday. In the kids play area, he went straight for the puzzles. I am so proud, but probably not as proud as my sister will be.

dress up

Sunday evening, while at my parents' house, I realized I forgot Baby's jacket. Husband wanted to go for a walk. Lucky for Baby, his cousin left a coat behind. Unfortunately, his cousin is a girl.

baby makes a cute little girl

Baby insisted on wearing Husband's beanie last night. He looked like a thug.

holla!

polaroid collection

Here is my entire Polaroid collection right now. Its probably time to calm down collecting more for awhile. I'll turn my attention to tracking down film.

Model 104 (1965-1967), Model 450 (1971-1974), Model 230 (1967-1969)

ProPack (199?-2003)

Model 95B (1957-1961)

Model 20/Swinger Sentinel (1965-1970), Square Shooter 2 (1972-1975)

Sun 660 (1981), Spirit 600 (198?), OneStep Express (1997-2002)

SX-70 OneStep (1977), Spectra 2 (?)

Mio (2001), I-zone (1999)

35mm AutoProcessor

Seriously folks, it is like a illness. If anyone would like to make a contribution to a cure, then please send me film. It is never a bad thing to have a collection of pictures, right?

nothing i like more friday - christmas activites

the bio test is taken, so i treated myself to a little celebration of all 4 oc chrismakkah episodes and a fun little holiday project. behold my diy christmas decorations:

finger knitted garland and embroidered polaroid film

you have no idea how nice it was for me to create something again. next on the list of activities is going to see the christmas lights at the mesa temple with the fam.

nothing i like more friday - bountiful baskets

yesterday i mentioned a produce co-op. bountiful baskets is the name of the co-op. i think it is a great way to get quality produce for an excellent price. we have purchased 2 "baskets" from the co-op and have been very pleased with every aspect of them. the volunteers that distribute the baskets are very nice and very helpful. i love the large variety of food provided. my favorite part of the baskets is how it cuts down on the need to grocery shop. typically i go weekly for enough food for a week's worth of meals, but i have only had to make a small trip to the store this evening for chicken and tortillas. there are no plans for a major grocery store trip until next week. fantastic, right? wouldn't you love to know exactly what i got both times?

basket 1 ($15+$3 starter fee)
*1 lb strawberries
*6 large peaches
*6 apples
*2 large tomatoes
*7 bananas
*1 bunch of asparagus
*1 cantaloupe
*1 bag of grapes
*1 large head of cabbage
*1 head of cauliflower
*1 bunch of celery
*1 acorn squash

basket 2 ($15+$7.50 for mexican ingredient pack)
*2 small seedless watermelon
*9 pears
*3 oranges
*7 tangelos
*11 apples
*5 cucumbers
*6 roma tomatoes
*4 green bell peppers
*2 stalks broccoli
*1 lb strawberries
*2 crookneck squash
*1 head of romain lettuce
*7 bananas
*1 bunch of cilantro
*1 bunch of green onions
*5 avocados
*4 limes
*11 tomatillos
*3 jalapenos
*5 green chiles
*1 garlic bulb
*2 large onions
*10 soft taco tortillas

bountiful baskets operate in arizona, utah, idaho, and washington state. if you are in these states, you should check out the website to see if there is a pick-up site near you. you can order a basket anytime between tuesday morning and wednesday at 10pm. pick-up is on saturday at various times mostly between 7 and 8am.

nothing i like more friday - new lens

i ordered a 50mm portrait lens and it arrived on wednesday. you have no idea how excited i am. these are the first pictures i took with it:


i know baby has a terribly dirty face, but he was the cutest thing around when i switch lenses.

nothing i like more friday - i am thankful

in the spirit of the thanksgiving, i'd like to take a moment to express gratitude for blessings in my life.

i am thankful for:
*a husband who loves me and does the dishes
*a happy and healthy baby who says "don tho"
*being near family who will play with baby while i do homework
*family far away that make an effort to keep in touch and provide nice vacation spots
*living in a place where i can wear shorts the week of thanksgiving because it is 75 degrees outside
*the opportunity to finish out my degree online
*a computer that works and a powercord connection that is baby proof
*friends that don't miss a beat after being away for a long time
*my camera collection, the creative outlet it provides, and memories it helps me capture
*modern medicine and all the options available because of it
*the ability to cook food that people want to eat
*the baby bike seat so my family can go on a bike ride all together
*having the gospel in my life and a testimony of it's truths
*those who read my blog and especially those who comment (hint, hint)

i hope everyone enjoyed their holiday and found lots to be thankful for.

nothing i like more friday - purple

the other day while getting dressed i decided to teach baby the name of some colors. i started by pulling out a t-shirt and telling him it was purple. he apparently liked the sound of it and repeated "pur-poe" for a good while. that was the end of our lesson on colors because i couldn't think of another color that was more exciting to hear him say. we continued our day with random acts of "pur-poe" thrown in for good measure. whether or not he can recognize the color doesn't really matter because he mastered that word like a pro.

nothing i like more friday - new addition to camera collection

i have a polaroid camera collection. most cameras are ones that take film that is readily available. this week i received a new addition to my collection that may become the most used one. introducing the mio:

it uses fuji instax mini film. since fuji is currently producing a camera that uses this film, it is very available. i have yet to locate it in a local store, but it is everywhere online. the photos come out the top and are the size of a credit card. one thing i absolutely love about fuji film is their true-ness to color. have i mentioned how excited i am to have this camera? because i really am. ever since i discovered it's existance and compatiblity to instax mini film, i have been scouring all the thrift stores in my area hoping to find it. no luck in that plan of action. i tracked it down on ebay and was amazed when i won the auction for such a low price (comparative to all the other auctions). hooray for instant film!