When you get a clam. . .

. . . make clam chowder!

When our plans to go to the San Juan islands and do a zipline fell through at the last minute we headed for the coast. We hadn't been there since before we were engaged so we had to laugh at how different this trip was from what we remember that one being like.  Our last trip was actually going to a singles conference. 

This trip:

for cheese, of course, and icecream-
blueberry cheesecake icecream, I'm still thinking of you. . .

the most expensive hotel we have ever stayed in (or ever hope to stay in).  I guess that's what happens when you chance getting a room on Labor Day weekend.  Even the rape motels were full! 

And clam digging! 

We had never done it, but when we went to the beach everyone else was doing it, so we thought, why not. 

At first we just started picking up the clams the seagulls hadn't gotten to yet.  That resulted in 5-10 clams.



Then we realize we could just reach around in the holes others had dug and we usually got 3-4 per hole.



Then we dug our own holes with our hands and found our own clams about 8-10 inches down.  When we decided to count we had 100 clams in such a short time!  We actually had to throw back 28 clams so we didn't go over our limit. 



We had so much fun and cannot wait to do it again!

Well, I couldn't wait to do it again until I ate them.  I love seafood of all types.  I even like clams, but there is just something about having your food alive one minute and literally 3 minutes later be dead and eating it.  I tried one, but couldn't get the second down.  I think I like my food really cooked and really dead.  Mark, on the other hand, ate quite a few.  He cannot wait to do it again so he can "get it right".  I think that means cooking them longer so they are not so 'squishy'.  We are making chowder tomorrow night-wanna come try it?  (I'd appreciate it if you joined us for dinner, I'm afraid I might not be able to eat it and if you came there would be less for me :)). 

I found a keeper! (but I already knew that!)

When Mark and I were dating Mom needed to go to Mt. Vernon and I needed to drive her over and drop her off.  This plan came about at the last minute so I texted Mark, who was at work, asking him if he wanted to go to Seattle with me so I didn't have to drive home alone.  He got off work in Walla Walla at 3 and we were leaving from Othello at 6, and he somehow made it!  (He must have liked me even back then! :)) 

That trip was the first of many trips to Seattle for us.  I just remember not caring what we did.  I only wanted to be with Mark.  We just walked around holding hands, going in random shops, (stealing kisses in the art gallery), and eating a chocolate dipped carmel apple as we watched a wedding party board a dinner boat.  We went to one of my favorite restaurants, The Crab Pot. 

 As we wondered, one of our options of things to do was to go to the aquarium-which I quickly shot down.  I have been to the aquarium many times.  It is fine, but in the end it is just fish tank after fish tank of mostly the same stuff. . .FISH.  So I didn't realize until it was too late to go that Mark had never been to an aquarium in his life.  Ohh, then I felt bad, but I guess not too bad.  We've been to Seattle so many times since then.  We almost always eat a carmel apple and eat at the Crab Pot, but we just  barely made it to the aquarium on this last trip.        
   

Okay, so I will admit, for a short minute or two, that the aquarium was a little cooler than I had remembered-after all they had that giant octopus that we got to watch eat.  That was cool.  And the sea enemities that you got to touch.  But you do have to admit, they have a lot of. . . well, FISH. 

Towards the end I started getting sea sick.  I was watching the water, feeling like I was going to throw up.  What in the world-I didn't even get sea sick on our cruise.  It was so early in the day and I didn't want to ruin our trip, but I finally had to tell Mark I needed to sit down for a few minutes.  Somehow I faked my way through it and was so relieved to be heading back home a little early. 

"Um, Mark, I'm not feeling very good." I said as I layed the seat down and curled up in a blanket.  "Charity, if you don't want to drive you could just say, you don't have to pretend to be sick."  I love him.  He makes me laugh.  He knows me too well.  I probably would pretend to be sick to get out of driving in Seattle!

After a l......o........n.......g drive home we made it home.  I went running in.  I had to go to the bathroom.  Oh no, I felt like I had to throw up.  I sat down on the toilet and yelled to Mark to get me a bowl, but that was too late.  I threw up all over the bathroom-it got on my clothes, shoes, hair.  I tried to catch it but failed miserably.  He brought me the bowl and I procedeed to throw up several more times.  Yuck!  

So, get this.  I tried to clean up a bit, but really needed to get a shower.  Mark cleaned it up for me.  Ahh, one of the many reasons I love him.  He didn't say anything, he just took care of me.  He is a good guy-and Mark-I really was sick, not just trying to get out of driving :)

I learned several lessons in all of this, but the one I want to share with you is this:  if you have to go to the bathroom and throw up and the same time, use the toilet to throw up in.  It would be easier to clean up wet pants than throw up all over the bathroom!  Just in case you need to know that! 

Tomato, tomatoe, who wants some sauce?

Last year we had beautiful tomatoes. This year we have beautiful plants and a nice trellis for them to grow on. The weather has been so crazy and then we thought we planted Roma's and big tomatoes, but we got cherry tomatoes instead. (Do you know how many tomatoes it takes to make a salsa. . . A LOT!)

Luckily a friend told me about a couple who had some extra tomatoes they weren't going to be able to pick and said we'd actually be doing them a favor to pick them. 150 pounds of tomatoes later Cedelia and I both went home with plenty of tomatoes. We've been enjoying salsa once again, and I have been making freezer tomato sauce like crazy. So far I have 9 3-4 cup bags with another one or two bags worth on the stove. Yumm! I love homemade tomato sauce!  Still looking for more tomatoes though.  Next year I'm planting more!

Casting Call

 With determinion

a few shakes in our voices

and first time solo performances for both of us

Mark and I auditioned for our stake's Savior of the World production happening in December.  Our fingers are still crossed we get in, but we haven't heard yet. . . If we are in, you have to come see the performance (actually it might be better if you came to watch the production if we don't get in ;)).