Start of Summer Fun

Hey everybody! We haven't posted for a while, so we are just going to go over all of June really quickly. Earlier in the month we went to Taste of the Gaslamp. We went last year too. It is a chance to go and try samples from over 20 different fancy downtown San Diego restaurants. It was really fun and delicious. Then on Father's Day, Yogurl made me a delicious banana cream pie. My favorite! Just look at how delicious that is!
Later in the month we went to a free Jazz concert here in Carlsbad. They have free concerts here every Friday throughout the summer time. People show up and set up their little picnic areas and just relax and enjoy the music. There is also a dancing area up near the band. We went with some of Yogurl's coworkers. They all brought yummy foods, so we had quite the feast.
Other than that, nothing is really that different. I took the GRE yesterday and I wish I had studied more for it, but oh well. That test was clearly made for people who are college students, and hang out with people that use big words. All my coworkers have a vocabulary restricted to four letter words. Anyway, it went alright, and the military is going to foot the bill, so I can't complain.

Random Things

Well, we are back in the grind of everyday life after returning from our exciting vacation. I went to work Tuesday and when I came back Manburger had shaved his head. It took a few days to get used to, but it definitely saves on haircuts and is cooler for the summer.

Just before we left on vacation I purchased my first original painting done by a guy in our ward who paints as a hobby. I was hanging out with his wife (who is my visiting teaching companion) and saw this piece he was working on and had to have it. So this painting is now hanging over our fireplace. Hooray for supporting artistic endeavors.

After eating some amazing Italian food in Boston with Luke and Amanda, I got a major craving for something Italian on Friday and made this dish. It's whole wheat penne pasta with sauteed mushrooms, onion, garlic, both fresh and canned diced tomatoes, a splash of balsamic vinegar, and some fresh basil. It was delicious, but needed some cannoli to finish of the meal. Alas, those are not to be found anywhere near our house.

Another fun thing I did this week while Manburger had duty was pick blueberries with my friend Lisa and her little girls. I haven't picked fresh blueberries in years, so I really enjoyed it. You can tell I learned from blueberry-picking-pros, i.e. Jenn's family, b/c I picked four pints in a short amount of time. I love blueberries! Now if I could only find a roadside stand that sells ripe peaches.