Alice Taiz Martinsen

We got a call about 4pm last Friday to say that Travis' sister Jennifer had been induced and was going to have her baby that night! She wasn't actually due until December 3, but Jen had developed toxemia and the doctors wanted her to have the baby before it got any worse. So Trav and I decided that since we would miss out on all the Thanksgiving fun, to pack up and drive down to St. George where our new niece, Alice Taiz, beat us only by an hour or so. She was 8 lbs. 2oz and 21 inches and perfectly healthy and so dang cute. She was such a little thing, we were so happy to find out that everything was okay. Welcome to your crazy family Taiz!

Pie and Sushi (not together though)

A couple of fun food nights

Apple Pie night a la Britton

Those cute girls, Katie and Amber, brought over a yummy apple pie made from scratch (look at that lattice!) on which we proceeded to stuff ourselves silly while listening to Miss Katie read Junie B. Jones Smells Something Fishy. Katie talks just like you'd imagine our hero Junie B. would, so it was especially hilarious! Don't judge us because we like little girl books, try one out -- they're pure comedy.

Sushi Ya!

Okay, so we didn't make REAL sushi... just an Americanized & preggo-safe version. One of the ironies of being pregnant is that I crave sushi all the time! I think it is all the fresh ingredients, but it really is one of the (few) things that always sounds good. So on Saturday, Trav and I decided to try our hand at making those addicting little rolls. We trekked over to Chao's Chinese market and got all the supplies and info from the little old lady there on how to make it. Here's an action shot and Trav with some of the finished product. All-in-all the rolls turned out pretty good, with nary a leftover. Our recipe still needs a little tweaking (anyone know a good one for spicy crab?) but I'd give it a 4 out of 5 on the sushi goodness scale. Yummy!

All Dressed Up

Another Halloween has come and gone and with it a chance to wear a wig! Trav and I had a ton of fun dressing up this year. Our ward was having a Trunk-or-Treat/Chili cook-off and we had a great time.

Trav went as the Intergalactic Space Traveler, Arthur Dent, from the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and I went as Rapunzel. Trav's costume was one that you either got right away or just thought he was some guy in a bathrobe. Don't feel bad if you are in the bathrobe category, we figured only a couple of people in the ward would get it and boy, we were dead on. Only 4 people knew right away who he was - we had previously listed them as the type who would know. But they're all pretty geeky, I mean smart, just like my Travy.

My Rapunzel costume was really fun to wear to the library. Since I don't work the desks much any more (I'm usually stuck in my office), I went out and helped with storytime and it was so cute to see all the kids dressed up. The wig was the best part of the outfit. Trav and I found some long sections of hair at the beauty supply store which we braided together and then attached to my ponytail underneath the hat. Viola! Instant princess -- a definite success.

Silly side note: Can I just say that every time I look at this picture, I feel really good about myself?! I'm 7 months pregnant here people!! Granted, the dress is pretty loose...but at this point I'll take whatever I can get.

My Favorite Travy

I love this picture of Travis. He and Alan Young went fishing up at Jordanelle awhile ago and Trav just looks so happy here (I think he was pretty pleased with their catch). They caught a ton of fish and we had a yummy fish fry for dinner that night!


This is another classic Trav photo. We were having a game nite with the Skinners and the Droges (and their cute new baby, Sammy) and Trav got on the subject that (supposedly) one in seven males is supposed to be able to lactate..I know, this is something only Travis would know, right?! But this is him explaining this complex, scientific situation. I guess we'll see if he is one of lucky ones in a couple of months.