The Joy Of This Weekend!

1. Spending Saturday and Sunday listening to General Conference. You don't have to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) to watch or listen.  Any and all are welcome to watch, in fact I encourage it!
For times and listings of the conference; go here. To watch here. To listen here. To learn more about General Conference, go here.2. An organized desk! 
3. Girls night while the men attend the Priesthood session of conference)!! 
4. Dinner with AS and LS!  
5. Saturday morning crepes!  
6. Resting! 
7. Postseason baseball begins!  

I Heart My Little Ladies

I suspect that many of you turn green with envy when you see yet another adorable shot of these two Berry girls on my blog.  Go easy on yourself, it is a common reaction.  I am bias obviously, yet this is my blog so my bias is truth. Averina and Brown Eyes are adorable and hilarious (mandatory traits for all Berry girls)!  These little ladies make me smile more than watching the Yankees win (that's love)...I'll gladly take one or two more of these cuties.  

September Cook Club

Butter chicken, Naan, roasted carrots, a classic salad. Delicious!  I love cook club!  Best club since the No Boy Allowed Club Lindy and I created as kids.  HB did an excellent job on the main dish!   

Don't worry, the night got better...we had these babies baked by HN...followed by the Red Soxs losing to Baltimore, hence losing the wildcard race when the Yankees graciously let Tampa Bay win (this is one loss I'm willing to wear proudly)!  Thank you Baltimore!  Go Yankees and hello postseason baseball!    

Jess Berry Quote of The Day!

Happiness is like a butterfly: the more you chase it, the more it will elude you. 

But if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder.

Thoreau

A Must Read Author

CP* is the author of The Complete Guide To Everything.  A blog that will teach you anything, everything, and how to laugh.  If you don't find it hilarious then you are probably boring (there has to be a boring person or two in the world so if it you don't feel too badly).  

I give CP this shout-out for three reasons.

1. This is my way of persuading him to be a guest blogger soon (aka this week CP)!

2. I hope to reap some of the benefits when he's famous, after all I'm his unofficial PR rep. 

3. He's cool and I like cool people.    

*As of last week CP no longer wears glasses, read about it here. 

MP Turns A Quarter Today!

MP doesn't really make a big deal out of her birthday (sad I know), but MP is a big deal so I would like her to know that turning 25 is a big deal and that she is loved and will be celebrated for many years to come!  HAPPY 25TH MP!  You are my hero!  

Best Dinner Entertainment

P&J are in Hawaii (lucky!) so JLS and I get to hang with these cool dudes!  I'll admit, J&L wore me out today.  Yet I still think they are adorable and complete charmers, they had the whole room laughing with them at dinner tonight.  

The nose scrunch is a common look I receive from both these guys and a look I gladly give in return.  :)

Reasons To Love The Weekend

1. Sleep 
2. No conference calls 
3. Sleep 
4. Relaxing with J&L while P&J relax in Hawaii 
5. Church

Mama Berry Wants A New Profile Picture Again...

Mama Berry is never satisfied...kidding, she's not requested a new profile picture in over a year.  Find her last request here.   She is still my number 1 reader so I must appease her whenever possible.  I have since learned I have a few extra faithful readers (thanks guys!), and not all of them are related to me.  

Your job: Vote by commenting which one you'd prefer. (Maybe this will get some of you blog creepers to actually comment). Please vote by Monday. If you don't care, that's fine...you're vote doesn't matter anyways. ;)

Option 1: Black and White Beauty

Option 2: Green Beauty

 Option 3: Mud Beauty

 Option 4: Blind Beauty

Option 5: Big Mouth Beauty 

(personally think this fits my blog personality best)

Spreading Love

Remember that time when some cool people decided to enter a video contest for Mormon Messages?  Well see that couple dressed up in the white dress and white shirt and tie?  Those two kids were two of the four masterminds behind the camera of the successful project.  They also have fallen in love.  AC decided he wanted to propose to NB.  He asked the rest of us in this photo to help pull off his elaborate proposal.  To read about their proposal read here.  It was my privilege to watch from a distance while hiding in a field as these two agreed to sign up for eternity.  We sure love them!  Congratulations!   

My Favorite Food Anytime Of The Day

I Took The "Pot"

The metaphorical pot that is, as we don't bet money or anything else for that matter.  We just use the same grocery bag full of candy as "bits" to play every month.  Look at that hand!    

How Does Your Heart Measure?

When the Lord measures an individual, He does not take a tape measure around the person’s head to determine his mental capacity, nor his chest to determine his manliness, but He measures the heart as an indicator of the person’s capacity and potential to bless others.

Elder Marvin J. Ashton

Jess Berry Quote of The Day!

Great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones surround us every day.       


Sally Koch 

The Hammers Spoil Me...

Sunday the celebrations continued!  The Hammers hosted a little dinner in my honor.  As per usual, the food was amazing!  HN could make cardboard taste good I've decided.  It was a lovely evening, one that I really appreciated, not just because HN made red velvet cake to die for but also the great conversation, entertainment (JBH), and teasing (a real sign that people like you). ;)    

I've been craving that red velvet cake since JP's bday 2010!  

After an unfortunate week battling spiders, JBH thought it would be hilarious if my dessert was served in this...he was right!  

Thanks Hammers!  

National Holiday Gathering

On the actual day of my birthday, The Berry National Holiday, I woke up and had a massage first thing.  My old body needed that badly.  I left my massage to the most awesome voicemail from Dadio, singing the Berry birthday song.  He's got real potential to be as good as Jed Fred and I.  Followed by those delicious crepes and the raspberry jam that I consider worth more than precious gold.  Once I was fully satisfied I took a little rest.  Later that afternoon, HN and I did a little birthday pampering...manicures and pedicures.  HN, Miss America, did patriotic red on her fingers and toes...predictable. :)  I went with my motto for life: Go BRIGHT or stay home.  The massage chairs were amazing and I believe we have now found the only place I'll go for pedicures and manicures. We had stake conference that night (it was good) and then CW, HB, and JLS threw a little gathering to celebrate my birth.  Very enjoyable and I felt very loved.   

KW and I...we always take good pictures together! 

JLS made this spectacular golf cake in my honor!  She was also so kind to pick hole #5 from the course we play at weekly for her inspiration, placing the golf balls in the spots we each consistently hit to on that hole.  Yes, my golf ball is in the bunker. Very funny JLS, very funny! 

BT and I

CW and I

Team J with the awesome cake!!  Sure do love golfing with these ladies every week! 

HB made me my oatmeal cake!  (The annual birthday cake).  It turned out great, so amazing.  They thought they were hilarious by putting in trick candles...clearly I'm not as full of hot air as most think, I was very winded after this.  

Two of my favs, CH and BC.  

The fruits of our pampering earlier that day.  

Best Present EVER

Mama Berry mailed me her famous homemade raspberry jam.  I decided I better make myself crepes for my birthday so I had something to spread my jam on instead of just eating it by the spoonfuls (like I had done for two straight days).  

I heart Mama Berry! 

National Holiday Kickoff With The Giants

Friday night was spent watching America's favorite pass time, BASEBALL! It was a great way to kickoff the birthday celebrations!  The Giants lost to the Dodgers but we were fed well that night and MP brought a cake, matches, candles, and her singing voice to celebrate.  Only MP could pull that off!  Thanks for making me feel special!

Cool view as we were leaving the Stadium that evening. 

After 4.5 Years...

I finally took a Stanford tour on Monday morning.  I know, this is something you do when you are a tourist or a perspective freshmen...I suppose I decided it was time to take the tour   when I learned they had cute tour guides. ;)  

  

In all seriousness or at least as serious as I am on my blog, LE gave an excellent tour.  I learned new things about Stanford, now know exactly where Ike's is on campus, spent a lovely hour walking around campus, watched an elderly Asian man approve noddingly that LE will graduate in four years from Stanford, and found myself wishing I had gone to Stanford yet again (if only for the personal chefs in houses).  :)  

 See a beautiful day!  The places where the sun shines 360 days of the year.

Up close view of Memorial Church.  

Israel Follow Up

Remember that amazing Arabic meal I mentioned?  See pictures below of the deliciousness. 

While we were in Tel Aviv we had an interesting homeless man come and join us on a park bench...not cool.   He kept trying to shake our hands and kiss them...yikes.  Each of my friends let him shake their hands...I was the only one smart enough to just say no. :)  

 As you can see, I am not impressed...

 A good shot of the wall that Israel continues to build around the West Bank...on their land no less.  

The Fountain of Youth-THE DEAD SEA

We went to the Dead Sea TWICE! We did two mud baths with the magic mud of the Dead Sea each time.  After the first trip I looked like I was 12 years old...following the second trip I now look like I'm 6 yrs old.  It possibly has been my favorite experience in Israel.  It was so therapeutic!  I can totally see why women pay outrageous amounts of money to go to spas and have mud baths.  I haven't enjoyed playing in the mud so much since that time as a kid when Lindy and I made mud pies and it took Mom hours to wash Lindy's mop of hair.  I think that all the Erickson and Berry women should take a trip to the Dead Sea for next year's girl outing...I'd definitely attend this outing!  Folks always comment on how young my Grandma and Mom look and I'm here to tell you the Dead Sea could keep those comments coming at least another 30 yrs (at least).  When I washed off the first layer of mud it felt like my legs had been freshly shaved (clearly I'm on vacation and so I hadn't shaved my legs all week), after washing off the second layer of mud it felt like my whole body had been lasered.  Pure bliss is the only real explanation of the Dead Sea that can begin to do it justice.  After the magic mud, we had ice cream for lunch (oh yes and I had a snickers ice cream bar for breakfast each morning...the perks of vacation).  Send me back!!! 

 The three Inca warrior women...you could have shot an arrow at me and it would have bounced off with the  layering job I did.  

 Who else agrees that I should submit this photo to the National Geographic?  I imagine if I lived in the time of Inca warriors I'd be one and this is how I'd prepare for battle.   

 We were so happy to bring LS on Dead Sea Day 2!  She may not love it as much as BE and I but we made sure she looked great!!  

Mama Berry thinks it is time for a new profile picture on the blog.  Maybe this should be in the running?  

 See we look like teenagers again, at least!