Welcome to Utah!
For those of you who regularly check on this blog, let me begin by emphasizing that we are nothing if not true to our blog-promise: Scott and me lead mostly ordinary, mostly boring lives - therefore, there is nothing much to report on. Suddenly, Scott and I have had several occasions occur within the span of a few weeks. I suppose that's how life goes - in fits and spurts - and so does our blog! You may have noticed the title of our first blog in many weeks....I wondered if it was even worth my time and effort to post, as both my sister, Katie, and my sister-in-law, Kristi, have already posted pictures of our time together. Oh well....I will attempt to put my own unique spin on the the happenings. Scott and I have not had an opportunity to see my sister, her husband, Eric, and her two kids, Mallory and Elliot, until last week in Utah. We had not seen the kids for several months, and they have certainly grown up a lot. I realized in visiting with Katie's family, that I miss out on so much of her kids' day-to-day growth and learning when I don't get to see them as often as I would like. Mallory, nearly four, is precocious, impulsive, inquisitive, and downright hilarious! She knows what she wants and loves life and people. She burst through the door of our bedroom the first morning that we spent at Katie's home, and shouted, "Wake up Aunt Sara and Uncle Scotty!" and then proceeded to tear through our room investigating our luggage, jewelry, etc. One of my favorite comments: "Oh, Aunt Sara, I like your bracelet...it is soooo beautiful." One morning while I put on my make-up in the basement, Mallory was playing on the ground nearby. She quickly became fascinated with the make-up routine, and moved closer; Mallory and I began to talk and she mentioned that there were both advantages to being a "grown-up" and a "kid". When I asked her whether it was better to be a grown-up or a kid she astutely replied: "It's good to be a grown-up and a kid, but not a giant, because they scare grown-ups and kids." Later, when Scott joined us in the basement and in the conversation, Mallory seemed fine that he was there, but suddenly stated, "Uncle Scotty....stop looking at my face!" Shortly thereafter, she told him that he needed to leave because "this is just a girl talk." Mallory and Scott definitely seemed to have a 'love-hate' relationship. One night after returning from Scott's brother's wedding (the reason for our trip to Utah), Mallory saw Scott and exclaimed, "Uncle Scotty, you look like...(pause)...a chon-chon." (For those of you not familliar with the Fey-family lexicon, a 'chon-chon' is a silly noun, adjective, adverb, etc. meant to describe a 'stinker' or something similar). When called a 'chon-chon' by her uncles, Mallory often declares, "I'm not a chon-chon, I'm a princess!" to which Scott replied, "You're the princess of the chon-chons" - that sure blew her mind!
Elliot, on the other hand, is generally more laid-back than Mallory, but he sure loves to be around people. He immediately took a liking to Scott and would often shout from across the room, "Scotty - football!" In perhaps the greatest irony of our trip, Elliot deemed Scott his 'football buddy' (Dad Hinckley - perhaps your dreams weren't totally misplaced). Elliot had a blow-up football that he would frequently bring to Scott so that they could play with it. Both Scott and I laughed every time we saw Elliot run around the house on tip-toes - I'm not sure if it was the "prissiness" of the movement or the relative speed he used while running "en pointe", but it was a real sight. In the morning, Katie would come down to our room and open the door so that Elliot could come in to say good morning. However, he would never come much closer than the doorframe when he saw us laying in bed - I suppose that it looked somewhat like two disembodied heads laying in the bed. When I would say, "Come here buddy," he would point his finger and us and shout, "No!" He is a sweet little guy.
I really came to admire my sister and her husband - for their love and caring toward their children. I believe my sister inherited my mother's true longing to be a mother - and to devote her whole life to that calling. While I have not chosen to follow that same path in my life, I hope that when Scott and I do eventually become parents, I will find the same joy in parenting that I witnessed this week.
My brother Joel found ways to entertain himself while we toured Wheeler Farms in Salt Lake - nice "robot"!
From the left, all of the family who enjoyed a hayride at Wheeler Farms: Scott, Mallory, Kristi, Daniel, Joel, Eric, Katie, Elliot. What a handsome family!
Elliot sure loved him some chickens - the more frenetic the chickens became the more excited Elliot got.
The fowl at Wheeler Farms eat well - if I were a duck, I wouldn't bother looking over the 'next hill' - these guys probably eat several times a day. Maybe they've become so lazy they can't fly away?
Scott and me discovered this place while watching Food Network - Les Madeleines in Salt Lake makes some of the best pastries I've ever had. Check them out:http://les-madeleines.com/
It was such a beautiful day we had to visit Temple Square in Salt Lake - I'm always awed by the craftmanship of the temple.
Here we are at Temple Square: Kristi, Daniel, Scott, and Joel.
That's right folks - Scott and I got our 'craft' on. I can't really take credit for the idea of the Turkey Cookie cuteness - we actually received some similiar-looking cookies from our home teachers this week and we decided it would be a fun idea as treats to give out to friends and co-workers. Usually Scott works on Saturday nights, but he was 'let go' from his job early this week because there was a shooting at the mall where his salon his located. Is it so wrong that I was just glad he was home early? Scott usually poo-poos his ability to do 'crafty' projects for one reason or another: "my hands are clumsy", "I'm not creative", "I don't have the patience". And while I don't consider myself to be 'in-to' crafts, I do like projects and trying to do something I never have. In an effort to appeal to this interest, Scott once took me to a paint-your-own-pottery store and we chose items and then designed and painted them. Scott's by-product of that evening has earned a special place in our home - one that Scott is convinced comes from a place of mockery. You be the judge of Scott's efforts:
Scott's spoon-holder with orange-tree motif. If we all give him props for his efforts, I may be able to wrangle him in to more craft-oriented projects. Tonight he got off to a self-proclaimed "rocky start":
But soon he was able to master the subtle skills required of the Turkey Cookie:
And loving it.....
S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y-Night!
Mom Hinckley made the beautiful runners for the tables. Missi and I designed the table decorations - I felt inspired by Ballard Designs or Pottery Barn - a mix of sophisticated elements and organic elements (see: Cranberries floating in water). 
The Hinckley-grandmas didn't want to stand and receive guests for 2 hours, so we created a comfy seating area for them to relax in while guests made their way past them to the receiving line. 
Dave and Erin made out like bandits! We borrowed the beautiful linens from my friends in Federal Way - the Duecks.
The cake table - sorry the focus is fuzzy.
The refreshment table looked awesome - more eclectic decorations, but with a common theme: chunky black candlesticks, framed pictures, red flowers, and greenery. The white lights glowing under the gauzy tulle created a nice touch. Plus, Mom Hinckley made all the food - what a champ!
Drinks and Sweets!
The family table was angled after the receiving line so guests could easily recognize and then chat with extended family.
The sign-in table set the tone for the whole reception. 
This backdrop, in front of which the receiving line stood, was borrowed from my old stake in Federal Way - it was been passed around to many families there - but it was new to the families here in Puyallup. It added a nice feeling of being inside someone's home. The screen above the backdrop displayed a "loop" of pictures from the actual wedding/reception in Utah and distracted the guests who had to stand in line for a while.
The receiving line from the left: Brother Taylor, Sister Taylor, Erin, David, Mom Hinckley, and Dad Hinckley.
Strings of white lights helped to lower the effect of the ceiling and it seemed as it their were twinkling stars. 
We would have only given our entire Saturday to produce these "smiling" faces.
