Utah Beauty

Growing up in Florida, I never get tired of going out on my deck and seeing this...

How can you see that and not believe that God exists?  Absolutely beautiful!

Dave Matthews Band Concert over a year in the making

Ahh, the concert I have been waiting over a year to attend finally happened.  It all started with me telling Jeff that if Dave Matthews ever came to a city we lived in, that we would be getting tickets.  I love Dave Matthews and have always wanted to see him in concert.  Well, guess who decided to perform a gig in Salt Lake City?...Dave Matthews!  I was so super excited when I landed some tickets for the concert; I thought that it would make a great birthday present for me last year (September 2009).  Well, as the day approached and I got all excited, we found out that the show had been canceled due to some throat issues Dave was having.  Talk about a bummer!  I was devastated.  But, like most things, the disappointment didn't last too long.

Since this was the second consecutive concert Dave had canceled in Salt Lake City, he decided to rebook the concert and play it for free!  I was so excited, especially since we got our original seats for only a $ 5 handling fee.

The concert finally happened last Tuesday and boy, was it everything I thought it would be.  Simply amazing.  Dave Matthews even came out before the opening act started and apologized for canceling (twice) and promised to make it up to the city with this performance.  What a nice and humble (and sexy) guy!

Here are some pictures we got of the concert...these are not great, as they were taken with Jeff's camera phone, but I was afraid to bring our digital camera into the amphitheater, though I shouldn't have been since everyone was taking pictures.  Still, you know me...never wanting to break the rules.

It was an awesome show.  He played for just under three hours (not bad for a free concert).  I am hooked and will see him again in concert.  It was a night filled with dancing and singing and having a great time that I soon won't forget...especially since I paid for the lack of sleep the remainder of the week.  But, the sleep deprivation was so worth it...I got to see Dave Matthews Band in concert (up close and personal).  Yummy!

Why is it so Difficult?....

...to get two dogs to look at the camera at the same time?  I swear, everytime Kira and Koda are sitting together looking cute and innocent, we think, "Here is an awesome photo opportunity"!  Only, everytime we run and get the camera, one dog will behave and one dog won't.  No matter what we say or do to get them to look at the camera, we are only lucky enough to get one dog looking directly into the camera.  Take for instance, the impromptu photo shoot below...

One day, I am determined to get a good picture of both dogs (with me and Jeff, although I totally recognize that I am tempting fate)...ahh, life with dogs!

Mark O'Connor and the Utah Symphony Orchestra

Last Friday night, we had tickets to the next to the last night of the Deer Valley Music Festival, featuring Mark O' Connor (an incredible violinist) and the Utah Orchestra.  It was such a nice night to be in the mountains; the weather was cool (almost cold after the sun went down), the festival was not packed full of people (which made traffic in and out of Deer Valley much more tolerable) and the music was awesome.  It really is one of the best places for music in the area.  There is not a bad seat in the house and the surrounding area is so beautiful.  This time, we grabbed sandwiches at Subway and made our way up to the hill.

We ate, drank wine and enjoyed the music...is there a better way to spend a Friday night?  Certainly not.  And it was even cold enough that we got to use the heated seats in the car on the way home...in August!  Looks like fall may not be that far away after all.  Anyway, we can't wait to see what the Deer Valley Music Festival has to offer next year.

Busted!

We have never seen Kira on our new couch...we just figured she didn't want to hoist herself up on it (or maybe even that she didn't like our choice in furniture).  Seriously, what were we thinking?...last week we came home and found Kira like this....

Looks like someone likes the couch just fine...just when we are not around!

Bravo Broadway Divas

Last Saturday night Jeff and I had tickets for the Deer Valley Music Festival Bravo Broadway Divas concert.  We had been to the festival in 2008 but somehow missed last year and were dying to go back.  Luckily, I won two sets of tickets for the festival from the silent auction at Canine Casino Night.  We decided to use one on Saturday.  We brought a blanket and some chairs and stopped by Kentucky Fried Chicken to get food to take up to the concert.  Unfortunately, the sky was threatening with dark clouds and fierce winds in the valley, so I was not hopeful that we would stay dry at the concert.  Still, there was always the thought that maybe the storm wouldn't pass over the Wasatch Mountains and we would be spared from a deluge.

We headed up to Deer Valley and got settled in for the concert.

As you can see, the storm clouds seemed to follow us over and were hanging low in the sky.  We even saw a couple of bolts of lightning...thank goodness they were off in the distance.  We started eating (and even managed to polish off a bottle and a half of red wine) as we waited for the concert to start.

When the concert started, it was amazing.  They showcased three women singers, all who had been on long running broadway shows in New York.  They sang a variety of songs from well known broadway shows like Les Miserables, Sweet Charity and My Fair Lady.  They sounded so great accompanied by the Utah Symphony and only strengthened my desire to see a broadway show while we are in New York in November.  Best of all, I got to share it with my best friend in the world!  Better still is that the rain held off and we didn't even get wet!

As the sun was setting, the sky had the most surreal color...it was totally gorgeous!

Here I am just sitting back and enjoying the music...I may have been a little giddy at this point in the night!

Over all, it was the best night and definittely a highlight of the weekend.  We have tickets to another concert on August 13 at Deer Valley...we can't wait to go!

Blowing Off Steam at a Bees Game

On last Friday morning (yes, it has taken me a whole week to get these pictures posted), our friends Tina and Mike asked us if we wanted to join them for a Bees game that night, since Tina had tickets from her work.  As it had been a pretty crappy week at our house from work catastrophes, we figured what better way to regroup than to hang out with friends for the night?  And it worked like a charm...before long, we were all laughing and having a great time (like always).

We had really awesome seats along the first base line and the sun was hiding behind some clouds, so it wasn't too terribly hot outside.  Anyway, we hooted it up and had a great time!

As the game progressed, the Bees had a commanding lead, so we all just sat back an enjoyed each other's company.  However, we must have been having too good of a time, because the next time we looked, the Bees lead had evaporated and we were losing (which ended up being the final score).  We never even heard them score...must have been really having a great time laughing and catching up!

I also shared a beer with Jeff, which has only happened a handful of times in the 12 and a half years we have been together.  I generally don't like the aftertaste of it, but I must have been more hot than I realized since I helped him polish one off.  Here's the proof...

It was a great night with awesome friends.  We love hanging out with Mike and Tina and always swear that we need to get together more often.  Anyway, here are some more pictures from our night at the ball park!

                                                      

                                                    

                                                    

                                                    

We dig Bees games...especially when you have great friends to go to them with!