Why I didn't say anything to Ty Burrell

covertly taken by Kristina

On Saturday evening, for our SassyScoops review, we decided to try out a hip, new restaurant in downtown Salt Lake City called Pallet. As we sat waiting for our table and talking with the owner, my eyes were drawn to the people approaching the glass door.

"Ohmygosh! You guys!"

My friends looked over at me. "What?"

"Look! It's Ty Burrell! Oh my gosh. I can't believe this!"

Emily asked, "Do you know him?"

"Uh, of course I do!"

Maybe you haven't met Emily. She's perhaps the perfect blend of kind and professional, always acting appropriately in any situation. This means, of course, that as he opened the door and walked inside, Emily turned to Ty Burrell and helpfully said, "I think she knows you," gesturing to me.

He looked at me.

I looked at him.

I quickly and firmly said, "No, nope. No. Hi. Nope."

My friends, confused as Mr. and Mrs. Burrell walked directly to their table, looked at me, again. "I thought you said you know him."

"Yeah, but not because I know him! Because I watch him on television every Wednesday. He's on Modern Family."

I then may have launched into some pathetic attempt at explaining just how much television means to me, which is not a lie, but might be, under the right circumstances, embarrassing.

I also may have needed to step outside to get some fresh air. Maybe I did this five times or so.

During dinner, just feet away from Ty Burrell, I sent the appropriate text messages (response from La Yen: "DO NOT FREEZE! This is our dream!!") and updated facebook, but despite encouragement from my SassyFriends, I couldn't approach him for a photo. I asked one of the owners if Ty Burrell was a frequent guest at Pallet, to which the answer was: "This is his first time, but he says he loves it." My hope was that I could ask the owner to discreetly approach their table and say something along the lines of, "There is someone here who would appreciate getting a photo with you; would you mind?" so as not to make a scene, but I didn't feel it was right to ask for that favor.

It took me just a little while, but I finally realized why I was okay with not saying anything (other than NO) to Ty Burrell, and here it is:

He was on a date with his wife. They were out, just the two of them, without their daughter. I didn't want to approach him because he was with his wife. This is not to say that I was intimidated by her (she's cute!), but that I didn't want to taint their evening in any way ("Can't we just have one night without someone asking for a picture?!") (I'm not saying she'd say that -- in fact, I'm imagining them both being very gracious -- but even if she didn't say it, I wonder if she'd think it.). I, a very, very little bit (on maybe a scale of a billion times smaller), might know what she feels like; because, though my husband is not famous, I know what it's like to feel like you have to share your husband with a million other people. And, not that you mind (there are worse things), but it's still nice to have that night out.









P.S. - Go to Pallet.
P.P.S. - Don't get a parking ticket.

Neon Trees for Autism

Emilie Campbell, who is a friend-in-law of mine, asked me to tell you about a benefit concert for Autism coming up in April. April 7th, to be specific. Concert by Neon Trees, to be more specific.

The concert will raise funds for Giant Steps Autism Preschool, for which funding is very low. The goal is to raise enough (and more!) to ensure that the classroom aides (who, along with the teachers there, are known to be superheroes) can stick around for at least another year and continue to help students make significant strides in their development.

(Word around town is that tickets are moving very quickly, so get yours today!)

Neon Trees
Saturday, April 7th - 5:pm
Mountain View High School Auditorium
665 West Center Street, Orem
$20
Tickets available through the following venues:
24tix.com
Velour Live Music Gallery in Provo
All Salt Lake Graywhale locations

From my 10-year-old Daughter to You

The following is from my ten-year-old daughter, in her own words. She was very inspired by what she learned about the American Heart Association, and the benefits of this fundraiser (which only runs until the end of this week), and asked me to tell as many people as I can, including people who read my blog. I remember doing Jump Rope For Heart as a kid, and it warms my heart that she's excited about it.

Dear People Who Read My Mom's Blog,

I am helping Jump Rope for Heart. The way I am helping is by donating money for people with bad hearts. If you can, you could help donate and help me reach my goal. My goal is $1,000.00. My money has to be turned in before this Friday [March 16th]. You can donate online, it's super easy. Even $1 will help.

Thank you, if you can help.

Sincerely,
Emma

Here's the link to her donation page. Thanks, in advance, for your consideration and donation.

Eight is Great

It turns out I wrote about this one's birthday when she turned two. At that time in her life, she never stopped talking, and what came out of her mouth was such nonsense we joked that she was speaking Chinese. Here we are, six years later; she still never stops talking and she will, when excited, speak Mandarin.

When we go to her parent/teacher conferences, the first thing her teachers say is, "Well, she's very popular." This annoys me ("Oh, she is! Great! That's why we send her to school, so our work here is done!"), but it doesn't surprise me. She's always been very social. Even when she entered this world, we were having a party in the delivery room: Darin, the doctor & nurses, plus James & Monica, and La Yen. I still laugh at the jokes (inappropriate as they were) being told that day while I was laboring.

Superstar is just that -- a superstar. She tackles whatever is in front of her, and she excels with a smile and a, 'No sweat!' kind of grace. She's in that in-between stage of growing up and still being a little kid (even the sound of her voice reminds me of when she was leeeetle). Her hair is getting thicker, her Big Girl teeth are taking their place, and her hands . . . I study her hands when she's writing or playing piano, and like a puppy whose paws indicate their future size, I can see her growth the most in her strong hands. (Did I just compare her to a dog? I guess, but to be clear, I like her much more than I like dogs.)

Happy birthday, Superstar! Only one more day until you begin planning next year's party!

Blogging Your Faith - Story @ Home

Guess what.



That's what!

I've been asked to be a presenter at the Story @ Home Conference, which is this weekend in Salt Lake City. I'm co-presenting with Ken Craig, and the topic we've been assigned is Blogging Your Faith. I feel really lucky to be presenting with Ken. I've been a fan of him and his wife Katie for a long time, and recently got to meet Katie. We have quite a few friends in common, and luckily Ken and I think very similarly on the topic of Blogging One's Faith.

I'm eager to find out what we say.

Are you?

You can still register, and it's only $79 for the entire conference! Will I see you there?