Snowy Adventures

I grew up being alittle bit afraid of the cold. When I met Elliott, I found out that if you spend a lot of money on fancy gear, you don't have to be cold. I am grateful for this and with this knowledge comes a great freedom to spend time in the outdoors.

Here we are on a little adventure last Saturday up Millcreek Canyon (where we got married).
Adrian, TJ, Chris, Elliott, Kimball and I strapped foreign objects to our feet and braved the mountain side.

Unfortunately we were going up on foot, something I am not accustom to.
It turns out that somebody thought this was a bad idea and invented the chair lift. Although I did have a lovely and humorous time, I think I like downhill skiing better.

I will tell you one more thing... I look lousy in snow gear. As if I needed the additional 20 lbs of padding, the red cheeks and the look of terror on my face. Not flattering, not flattering. But, Elliott and the dog still came home with me so I think I am going to be ok.

Cheers!

Here I am blogging (see Jenni, I can do what I am told) but I am just going to post a few photos today since I am still not totally caught up at work. I will need to add narration later
Adrian and Timmy
The Riggs Sisters

Bug and Pots (please notice his tuxedo)
ALL the Riggs Sisters


Dirty

Your mom smells like a pot roast

This is an old post that I never got posted...
It was my mom's birthday last week. She was born on Pearl Harbor Day and my grandma had threatened to name her Pearl, which drove my grandfather crazy.
I was unsure of what to do for her birthday this year. Last year it seemed so clear. You cry a little, miss her, cry a little more, mope around most of the day and pay a visit to the graveyard to drop a little token. It was still a hard day this year, I think it will always be. In fact, I hope I will never be numb to how much I miss her. I had plans of leaving work early to go to Orem and just hang out, take an easy afternoon of reflection but as work tends to do, it ate up my afternoon and evening and I didn't actually leave work until 5:30, five hours after I had intended. This aggravated me to no end. There is nothing sacred any more and it is important days like my mom's birthday that make me resent work and the heavy handed role it plays in my life. I did chose to stay at work so it wasn't as if I was truly trapped but I just didn't feel right leaving.
When I did finally make it to Orem the day wasn't about mom. I was so frustrated. We went to dinner with my Aunt, uncle and cousin who were in town from San Diego for a wedding and didn't even talk about my mom. People are so afraid to talk about the dead. It is a fine balance between dwelling and acknowledging and I don't know that I have found that balance yet.
After dinner we went home where there was some tension because of a "family situation" and in the end, Adrian, dad and I found ourselves standing around mom's grave is the drizzling rain wiping salt tears and cold rain off our cheeks. All 3 of us were so solitary standing there looking at her head stone and if they felt anything like me they were angry that mom hasn't been here to coach us all through the past year. Poor little Adrian standing there 7 months pregnant and more alone than ever.
I wonder when I will stop being angry.
That Sunday I decided I needed a pot roast. Tim had come over once and told me that my house smelled like mom (what he meant was the pot roast) so I feel like that is the ultimate comfort food for me. It didn't bring her back but we did gather and laugh which is as close as we can come.
Happy Birthday, mom.

This is mom in her thesis performance of Katharine in Taming of the Shrew. She looks so grand.

The 2nd worst way to lose 6 lbs

I have done a really good job of losing weight over the past 40 hours with the help of the good ol stomach flu. Despite the having no energy, spending every 30 minutes with my good friend "john" and hearing the same commercials for continuously for 40 hours, I am alive. I did have 106 emails when i turned my computer on this morning and that made me want to quit my job and stay home with my dog and big TV for another week.
My hungry internal beast did finally get the best of me and I decided to eat some macaroni. It tasted so good but I think it was a bad decision. I made the right decision by staying home today but I feel like every minute gets me farther behind at work.
For now, Kimball and I will rotate between the couch and bed reading email and slowly chipping away at the other work that needs to be done. I wish I could just take the time to be sick but another 106 unanswered emails would make me cry.

Give Thanks

I am a bad blogger. Mostly because I only remember to do it during the middle of the day and since I have a mortgage (or two ) to pay, I have work to do. So I am just posting a few pictures from Thanksgiving and I will try to get back to explainations later.

The suckers who joined me for the Cold Turkey run. Jared, Timmy, Amy, Adrian and Buddy
This is our action shot.
Starting a race is exciting. It can be stressful too but if you know you aren't going to win and the only thing you are racing for is the entertainment, it is really fun.
Adrian and Amy with their Thanksgiving culinary delights. (How cute is that baby belly?)

The Clan: Dad, Heather, Me, Elliott, Adrian (and Bilbo), Timmy, Amy and Jared

Will this tag ever end?

Oranges or Apples?
I really like a good Granny Smith, a little tart and really crispy. But, if someone will peel my orange for me, I will take that.

Phobias or Fears?
In the interest of time, I would like to refer you to the earlier Halloween post about fears. To that I will add: being crushed by a Semi on I-80 in the construction zone.

Quotes:
"I for one am happy there are no people like show people. Show people creep me out"

Reasons to smile:
waking up in the morning in a beautiful house next to my charming husman (who is cuddling with the dog, not me). Showering with hot, clean water and going out to the porch for milk from the milk fairy to have lucky charms before I drive my Mini Cooper to school. Spending the morning learning and getting on the freeway, with the pink mountains glowing on the East and West to drive to work where I will find my very cozy office, my dog and my husman. I work the day with good people saving the exhibit industry from sure demise and go home to my house to start all over again.

Puppies, babies and special brownies make me smile too.

Season?
Didn't we already answer this one? Fall. Crisp air, the excitement of a new beginning, school shopping (even if you aren't going to school) and the leaves, what can I say about the leaves?

Tag 3 others:
Heather. ( I think everyone else who I know has a blog has been tagged)

The tag continues...

January or July?
Does anyone really like January? I think for some this might be a time to nest and recover from the mess that is the holiday season but for those of us who work in the convention industry this is our busiest season. Between walking 10 miles a day on the concrete floors of the convention hall in full Eskimo regalia and the stress level of never feeling caught up I am fundamentally opposed to January. But wait, July is the 2nd busies month for us and then I am missing time on the river. I guess January wins because at least it has oranges going for it. I love nothing more than a box of fresh oranges cool from sitting in the garage. My mom and I could go through a box in a week. YUM!

Kids?
Nope. I could put another picture of Kimball here but I don't want to lessen the commitment my friends and family make to raising little humans who have opposable thumbs, who need real protection and nurturing or who grow up to become wicked teenagers. Good work, friends. I admire your commitment and sacrifice.

Life is incomplete without...

Warning: please duck, flying cheeseball coming your way!
I am going to have to go with family. My family includes all 30 people who lived in (or around) our house growing up. My grandmother taught my mother that hospitality is a key ingredient to a happy life. I have more "aunts" and "uncles" than I can count and the Riggs kids were truly raised by a village. A village of strange and fascinating misfits who carried carpet bags full of the crazies. But they are good, entertaining people. My life is incomplete without all of them. I should also acknowledge my blood relatives (please see siblings section below) and Elliott's amazing aunts who have taken such gentle care with the Riggs, especially since momma went home to Jesus. Good people, the whole lot of them.

You can't see them very well but these are members of the "extended" family gathered in the front yard of the yellow house the night of mom's funeral watching a movie and doing weird things with my camera
More family performing at mom's Sundance memorial



Marriage Date
2/18/2006
We chose February because it was the only month in the year following our engagement that all of our family would be in the country at the same time. Even with that, I didn't have my sisters at my bridal showers because they were traveling. We tried to avoid the date being associated with Valentine's Day but last minute caved to the availability of red and President's Day weekend. We also wanted to be sure that all of our grandparents would be around so we were in a bit of a rush for that. Utah did us well and gave us3 days of snow before the festivities, a beautiful sunny morning and a gorgeous afternoon-evening snow storm.



Number of siblings?
3 3/4. It may be against her will but Amy Holt counts as3/4's of a sibling, she cannot escape this. I also have two brothers-in-law. TJ and Aaron and One sister-in-law, Emily.
I know I am going to hurt someones feelings in my descriptions but I am going to write this anyway, no offense intended.

Heather: the oldest and smartest. She has a photographic memory, the kindest face and mom's hands. She is a humanitarian and her life's work is caring for those who cannot do it for themselves.
She has saved countless lives and makes a personal investment in all of her patients. Recently the only teacher in her ward whose class applauds her, she seems to have found renewal of purpose serving as the camp counselor and best friend to two of her girls with absentee parents. Heather is clever, funny and knows EVERYTHING. She puts Martha Stewart to shame and is not afraid of anything. Her thick strawberry blond hair, welcoming green eyes (the blue is fake) and fair skin are so beautiful.

She is also "unnaturally strong" as my father puts it. She knows not her mighty strength

Adrian: middle child to the core. Independent, aloof, driven, defiant and dependable. We like to tease Adrian that we never knew she was smart but I think that was because the rest of us were so busy being loud that we didn't notice. Adrian wanted to be a hairdresser but was called to the arts instead. A sad day for Dallas Roberts. Adrian is the pretty, skinny and rich one. Every family has to have one but we are lucky that she is generous and good spirited. She is a hard worker and is good at anything she does. I mentioned driven, let me say that again so you understand the full weight of it. She who had never exercised a day in her life decided to become a runner. So off she goes and starts running. At 7 months preggers she still does 6 miles a day.
Adrian has been absent for much of our adult lives and as she prepares to bring the first Riggs grandchild into the world we are getting to know her again. Funny, charming and genuine she is good people and although she may doubt it at times I have always thought her true calling was as a caretaker. Lucky little Bilbo. She is also a Riggs. There have been days where that is debatable but the more we get to know her as a sister rather than a co-worker or acquaintance the clearer it becomes

. Welcome home, lady.

Timmy: The youngest, poor guy. Picked on, judged, tortured and the most loved. I sure hated him when he was born, he really cramped my style. I wouldn't hold or touch him and I felt this way until about 2 years ago. I moved away and became too self-important to notice what he had become. He is hilarious, creepy smart, gifted and one sexy bitch. Chicks dig Tim. I have guilt about not giving him due respect during his teen years because I really missed out. Tim has become a very impressive person whose interests now align much more with mine (sex,drugs, rock&roll). Released from himself Tim has blossomed, for lack of a better description. On full scholarship at Weber State he is kicking some serious academic ass and is making all of us very proud. His shrewd sense of humor and genetic disposition to cynicism make him good and entertaining company. His taste is sophisticated and he uses his vast knowledge of random facts to continueall shock and impress me.



Samy: Amy is the oldest but by far the most youthful. Wise and intelligent she is an instigator of all things. She is the cool one and she does her best to keep the Riggs in line. How one person is best friends with 4 siblings I don't know and I don't envy it either. A listening ear, a kind touch, a good cook, a peacemaker and a contagious laugh she is our angel. Don't look into her eyes if you don't want to be taken in by her, there is some kind of magic that she holds in that blue pool that pulls you in. Amy is fun and our lives without her would be... well lets not talk about that, she is getting older and I don't want to jinx it.
Amy recently graduated from BYU with a degree in International Relations and will be graduating from UVSU in April with another degree in secondary Ed. We are so proud she passed Econ 110! The children of the future will be greatly blessed and a little rowdy having had her for a teacher.
Everyone should have an Amy.

Tag (continued...)

Before I resume my earlier post, I have to say that I just got self-conscious. It turns out the girls down the check my blog every day. Who else is out there reading this and doesn't leave comments? Tell me who you are so I know who I can face and who I can't.

Indulgences:
I have been trying to think of a clever yet accurate answer to this one over the last few days (which I know is cheating) and I am sad to say it has brought me to a day of reckoning. I am over-indulgent. I know all of you reading this already know that but to come to that personal realization is a strange place to find ones self. I am going to cut down, the time has come. So rather than saying what my indulgences are, this list is what I am going to give up.
-Bikini Waxes, manicures, daily tea misto, pens (i am a pen hoarder and I mean BAD), electronics (I had 4 ipods at one time, now I just have 2 but one it the 1st generation and it doesn't work. I have only bought one new and it was $200 off, just as my justifiers)

to be continued...

Tagged (and enjoying it)

I am doing this in two installments because I have a lot of work to do today so here it is the 1st installment...

Katie, Katharine or KT?
(Allison,is that part of the tag?) My soul is a Katharine. Regal and over-complicated with a little attitude to keep the small people away. Beautiful, heavy dresses and an army of people who surround me to entertain, protect and above all, listen to me.
I tried to be cool and go by KT for a while and someone (Alee Ralph) started calling me K (dramatic pause) T. And that is what I was called by everyone on tour. It was another life and time so I am happy to retire nickname with the
wild oats that were sewn in another place and time.
So against my will I am a Katie. Juvenile, short and not nearly as fancy as I would like to be but much more my reality than anything else I have been called. My dad calls me Kate sometimes and I love it but it has never caught on with anyone else.
My parents fought about what to name me. Dad wanted Katie, mom wanted Katharine after Shakespeare's Katharine in Taming of the Shrew, my mother's master's thesis. Mom won but not until 30 days after I was born and if I recall the soty correctly she went and filled out the paperwork without my dad and thereby winning the name game.

Attached or Single?
Attached. Very attached. and I am attached because Elliott is the perfect thing to be attached to.

















We have a great time together and he will do ANYTHING.
(he is seen here singing with his Best friend's mom at a rehearsal dinner. If you knew how much he hated singing or being in front of people you would give him a pat on the back for this).


He is nice to his mom. Girls, you know what that means .



And above all, he loves me a lot.

Best Friend



These are my boys. Between the two of them, I am rarely without male protection and comfort. I can't get enough. Ok, some days I get enough.

We then come to a long list of people that I adore and would give my last twinkie to but it is so hard to put them in line of favorites because I haven't received the bribe money yet.

Cake or Pie?
I don't like either. What went wrong? I don't like pie because by cooking fruit you destroy it's essence. Leave the fruit alone, don't kill it and make it shrivel into nothing by baking it. Put some pudding in that shell and leave it alone.
I have started baking cheesecake because Elliott informed me one year ago that he doesn't want ice cream cake for his birthday anymore, he wants cheesecake. I did love cheesecake at one time but now I am indifferent because the mystery is gone. Don't try to feed me regular cake though because it is just too dry. Red Velvet cake from Dough Boys is the exception and the only one I want. Really, if it has sugar and doesn't run away I will eat it.

Day of choice?
Sunday. Elliott has the alarm play Banana Pancakes and it just wakes us up so we can watch CBS Sunday Morning, my favorite show on TV.
While lounging with the dog and husman we usually have puffy pancakes and then chip away at the week's chores. Dinner is usually at my Dad's or at the Farmington Aunt's house. I love Sunday because it is always muted. Everything (except the drum circle in the park) is serene.




Essential Item?
Dog, beverage and 6 bags. I can't take less no matter how I try. So if I had to pick one item it would be: a list to remind me to go and get my other items.

Favorite Color?
Black. And if you try to tell me it isn't a legitimate choice I will punch you. I try to wear other colors but they just sit in my closet lonely and unworn. I want to live on the edge of the color wheel but it just isn't my destiny. If I had to choose a close 2nd it would be red but I don't know that I would be happy about it.

Gummi Bears or Worms?
That is pronounced "goooomie". I know that because of my Deutsch heritage. I only eat the red and white ones and prefer if they are a little stale.

Hometown:
Family City USA, Orem Utah. I never understood what the suburbs were until I moved to the city and found out that it is truly a different life where I came from. I love where I grew up and feel very fortunate to have been safe and surrounded by a community that cares for one another. Our current neighborhood lacks that and although I adore living downtown I don't know that when we have kids (or 6 more dogs) that I will want to stay where we are and I have guilt about that.
I would also like to say how much I love coming home. For the 6 years that I traveled a lot for work (It was really more like being homeless) there was nothing as soothing as the mountains when you land in Salt Lake. It still makes me tear up a little every time I fly in. I have been all over the world and lived in some great places but this is where I choose to plant myself. Utah, you are fancy!