Cravings Bistro

 

Cravings Bistro–Ritzy Grilled Cheese Goodness

By Dana Sevy

Cravings Bistro is a combination of rustic barn decor meets hipster, with plenty of space for seating. Located across the street from Ugly’s Closet Thrift shop in downtown Pleasant Grove, their menu has everything from classic grilled cheese to ritzy creations for reasonable prices. 

I was recommended the “sampler” which is actually a “secret” menu item. It’s a finger sandwich of each of their “classics” menu. 

Disclaimer: I’m not a huge grilled cheese fan because it doesn’t fill me up. Short back story: when I was in Europe I wouldn’t try a lot of the food they’re famous for because I thought, “I can make pasta at home, so I don’t want to pay for it.” This left me very hungry in Europe. I felt the same way about paying for an out-to-eat grilled cheese. I’m glad I tried it anyway! 

Here are my favorites from “The Sampler.” The ABC: it stands for Apple, bacon, and cheddar. Sweet and salty combined for a great crunch. I could eat a whole one of those! 

The Gourmet is next. It’s definitely fancy Grilled cheese meets artichoke spinach dip, one of my favorite appetizers. A whole one of these too, please!

The Tomato Pesto is nice and light and full of flavor. I loved the cute little tomato soup that they give you for dipping on the side. It was not your average Campbell’s tomato canned soup. 

I think the combination that surprised me the most was their Swiss Days: ham, pickle, and caramelized onion mayo. It was delish! 

Keep in mind this was just the sampler. They have a plethora of other yummy sounding menu items, but I’m just one gal who’s got to maintain her girlish figure.

Cravings draws people from all over the valley with its cheesy goodness. As I was waiting for my order I got to speak with a few customers. Katera Barlow of Saratoga Springs says,” It’s my favorite place to go. I can’t get enough of the pepperoni melt. You have to be patient because it takes a while, but it’s so worth it.”

Oh, to treat it like the first time...

 I don't remember the first time I went to the temple to do proxy baptisms for the dead. But I do remember showing all the newbies the cool things about the journey in the temple. 

But I'll never forget when I handed my new non-limited use recommend to the guy at the front desk and walked to the other side of the circular desk. It was a whole new world. I am terrible with new situations and I was so nervous I forgot to fully dress in some ways. Nothing visible, but it was remedied either way. I was lead to the chapel where many of my best friends, family, and even some close church leaders that I had invited were waiting for me. I remember going into the my first endowment session. I remember doing a special part with my dad and then later at the veil...getting to walk through...I did it! The Celestial room was so big and sparkly! And it was at night! ( I went another time earlier in the morning to see the rumored rainbow stars reflected on the floor) I was now endowed! I got to wear the holy garment. That was 14 years ago.

I'll be honest. Today my temple attendance looks a little different. Sometimes that's an accurate description. Attendance. Like a concert. But one you go to over and over again. And it has started to loose it's punch. But not through fault of It.

For the last who knows how long..it's become a sort of rut. Not for wanting something different, but just because it's become almost routine. 

I walk through the doors without thinking twice. Though I do notice the beauty..I almost always see someone on their phone beyond the recommend desk. (To be fair, I have no idea what they're looking at on their phone...but still! Just bugs me...takes away from the temple for me.) I walk back to the dressing room, get a locker, get dressed, and then head to one of the ordinances. I like doing the initiatory, sadly to admit, because they can be quick. Don't get me wrong..that can be a blessing...but still. I like to do sealings for in some ways the same reasons. It seems like in both instances sometimes eyes glaze over and mind starts to wonder. I have a hard time now with endowment sessions because I've felt trapped over the years even though I know if I had a real emergency I could leave at any time, no questions asked...just mortal thoughts. Then I hear the same words and I try to pay attention but my mind will wonder. It really used to bug me that I wasn't that person that got to the Celestial room and would sit on one of the couches, and prayerfully sob forever. By the time I was done with the session, I'd been there for an hour plus and had thought of all I needed to. 

The temple in some ways became rote. My troubles didn't 'melt' away. In fact, sometimes, they're all I could think about. I didn't feel overwhelming peace. I didn't feel often like I'd learned anything at all because it's always the same.

I knew that had to change. 

I have close contacts that go to the temple regularly and I always ask them in anticipation, "how was the temple." "Oh, it was fine." Fine? FINE???? The temple is the Lord's house on earth. The most sacred of places....it's not a grocery store. How is the meal afterward more emphasized than the temple????

I decided to read a bit from S. Michael Wilcox's book, House of Glory. Though it's not exactly a "this means this" book, it points out a few things that can elevate the temple from just a place we go to out of habit, to a House of Learning of the Highest form. 

One thought I really liked was if we just go to sit through a session, we're missing the whole idea.

I remember when a close contact of mine went for the first time. I remember the conversations that were had in the Celestial room. They weren't vulgar or anything, but they were mundane and trivial. ??!?!?!? This was supposed to be a special-long awaited, much-anticipated crowning jewel for this individual and the conversations had there didn't belong in that room. (I know I probably sound judgy, but it's how I felt)

I want my experience in the temple to be like when I went with my sister and Aunt Denae, just before or after my mission. I don't remember the session, but I remember the conversation I had with the two of them. We talked about sacred things. It was edifying.

I remember the sessions I went to during my time at the MTC. I always noticed symbols and would excitedly point them out to one of the elders from my district that I'd become good friends with. 

I remember doing sealings with Thomas and his parents when we were dating. We were looking at each other while the sealer performed the proxy ordinance with his parents and it's like we were at our own sealing. They taught me to look each other in the eye because you're standing in for the people that couldn't. 

I learned not to go to the temple tired. Ask me in person for that experience. Needless to say, I don't go when I'm tired.

I remember going to do baptisms after my mission with my Colorado singles ward and one of the guys on the trip wasn't a member yet, but just tagged along. Later, we were dating and I needed to work some things out and I told him I was going to go home for a weekend and go to the temple for some answers. He answered flippantly, whoop-dee-doo...I was shocked...but what could I expect from a guy that wasn't even a member and didn't understand the significance. Turns out when I went to the temple back home that weekend, I ran into a yw camp leader I'd had and she was perfect for helping my understand my situation because she was living it. I had a question, and needed an answer. And I got it! I went with a purpose and the Lord saw that, and obliged. I don't think it needs to be a rare occasion. That's what the temple was created for(apart from the obvious ordinances) but it's a place of revelation if we prepare ourselves for it!

I remember going to the sealing of my mission companion and one of our converts. I remember a cousin that got sealed in the Provo City Center temple and how it was one of the the most profound ceremonies I'd been to, and the lessons were taught about the Atonement, and rebirth, and I knew they were so meaningful for my cousin. There's a whole lot more to that story, but not for here.

The temple is sacred. Dedicated. Not rote- Though the ordinances have to be done perfectly. It's a place of promised blessings. But I'm tried of it sometimes being treated as passe. Temple attendance is not just something you do every week. It's special. The book mentioned earlier says we have to learn how to learn. 

I want to be better at actual worship in the temple. I wish it wasn't just a habitual ritual, like taking a shower, for my close contacts. I want it to be what it was made for. 

I pray for forgiveness of treating it so common in the past(and know He smiles at me and just goes, oh Dana.), and hope it's not common for others. There's unlimited power and knowledge to be gained, if done so with the Spirit, and with thoughtfulness.

So I don't forget...

 February 1st and the days leading up to it were some of the hardest and most anxious of my life. That day I took a blood test that followed more than a dozen pregnancy at-home tests. They all came back the same. Negative.

I don't to this day know why it effected me so badly. I was physically fine. But emotionally, I was flattened. Maybe it was the people I was doing surrogacy for, and how much they were counting on it to work. Maybe it was because I'd felt so good about the choice to become a surrogate, and how I was invested 1000%. Maybe it was because I quit taking IVF injections cold turkey and my brain, which I was told, and I quote, was being controlled mechanically through meds crashed hard core. I felt miserable for 3-5 days. Not physically. Well...I didn't want to eat. Only did out of necessity. But I was heartbroken and the baby wasn't even mine. I blamed the coordinator at the fertility center for not warning me on the phone call about the negative result that I could experience a crash, knowing that when you are prepared to expect something it's not as bad. Guess I should have just assumed it could happen.Then I had got the surprise that the intended parents wanted to try again with me. So we wait until I have a natural cycle, then start the birth control again, then the shots, then another transfer. This time I'll be prepared for both outcomes.

Eventually I bounced back. Although I have to say I had one of the sweetest experiences with Tommy the afternoon I got the test back. I went to pick him up at a friend's house, and when I saw him it dawned on me that I could pick him up again without risking anything physically. I told him I could pick him up again and he lit up and jumped into my arms and just hugged me tight. Both me and my friend teared up.

Fast forward beginning of March. I was on the phone trying get some mortgage numbers worked out all day because I was not aware that your mortgage can fluctuate based on taxes and building costs and blah blah blah. Public Service Announcement...it can. It can also go down though! Things they probably tell you when you buy the house, but there's a gabajillion papers you sign and it's all kind of a blur. But if finances didn't seem tough enough, I got a call from Thomas that he'd been let go. He could either take a job at the same company with less pay(UNderstatement of the century) or the next day would be his last. I was a wreck the next morning. We hardly slept well, then Tommy and he got sick. Called his mom, my mom, and a few other people that we're close to and I began what feels like the biggest test of faith in God I'd ever experienced.

I've only had a crisis of faith once and even then it was more like I had a weird, scary feeling all the sudden about the Gospel, Church, and everything I'd just come off a mission a year before teaching about. My mom got pretty worried when I shared my concerns, which I almost wouldn't validate myself. Turned out I was just a few weeks away from running into Thomas for the first time at school, would begin dating, and shortly thereafter get married. Needless to say, that test in hindsight was one of those moments where something awesome is about to happen and Satan is PAnIcking. So he twisted what he knew I trusted most. 

This time really doesn't make any sense in the grand scheme of things and it's kind of...pathetic is too harsh, but basic, maybe? Thomas losing his job was not something we hadn't gone through. But this time we had a mortgage and a house and neighborhood and ward and city we loved and hadn't been here for more than a year and a half. All the times I'd spent money because we could haunted me and I thought why didn't I save instead so we wouldn't be in this mess? How could I have been so foolish?

Then to make matters even heavier, I asked my boss with blankets if I could take a week off because I was burnt out...(and had been for the last few months, but we "relied" on my job too. She said with regret that she had to let me go. I told her I wasn't surprised, and she was very apologetic because she knows I'm a hard worker, but it was time and we both knew it. 

To make this already long story shorter, bills started piling up. 

But it would be unfair if I didn't mention the tender mercies. We received help from family for food. We got an anonymous letter in the mail that I almost threw away because it looked like a "we want to buy your house for cash" nonsense. But Thomas opened it and it had a single sentence typed. "It's not much, but I hope it helps a little." Inside that was a $100 bill. I cried a little. My mom cried a little. Thomas's mom cried a little. Then we received $100 venmoed from our neighborhood helper that remained anonymous....I vowed to God that if He got us out of this and ever blessed us with prosperity that I would pay it forward 1000 fold. I got to teach my kids the value and blessing of the Bishop's Storehouse. 

The next weeks were the scariest and hardest of my life. I found some odd jobs that have unique stories of their own. It was emotionally draining. Spiritually draining. I prayed harder than I had in my life. And sadly, I never felt more alone, more unheard...sadly...more unbelieving.

Really? I was going to loose my faith over a job loss? It wasn't a serious illness, or death of a loved one, or some identity crisis....though to some extent I have empathy for those in that boat....that's for another story. But I asked some close friends from BYU days why was I flattened so hard with the transfer not taking? Why was this job loss so hard of a blow? Why could I not feel peace and hope that this would work out? Especially when the blessing I received the night Thomas got let go said God was completely aware of our situation. And Thoma's blessing said to be patient twice? Why did my anxiety take over so badly this time? I still don't know. But I read a few days ago about a woman who felt God was silent during one point in her life, and she realized she had turned God into a formulaic God, not a faithful God. He was a spiritual vending machine that if you put in your blessing tokens, you could order the blessings you desired and they'd be delivered with a pretty bow on 2-day free delivery from Amazon. That's not how He operates, no matter how faithful we are. 

I was compared to Peter walking on the water. I wasn't wavering yet, but the storm was raging around me and below me, but I wasn't sinking yet. I was reaching for the Savior. I'd also thought back to Harry Potter and the patronus charm. You cast out the darkest, scariest evil you can face by thinking of your happiest memory and letting it fill you completely...then a cute animal of light(mine would be a red panda) blasts out of your wand and chases the darkness away. Gospel works the same way. Fill your soul, mind, body, with Christ and He casts out fear. I was also like the father with the demonic son who said, Lord I believe. Help thou mine unbelief.

After several interviews, crazy calls from wacko companies, and lots of not interesteds Thomas got a phone interview with a company in Provo for the same line of work he'd been doing and learned he really enjoyed. They called him back a few days later to set up an in-person interview for a few weeks later. ThOSE weeks were the hardest...the anticipation and fear of what happens if this falls through? The interview came the week after General Conference and so many messages were on how to feel peace and comfort...and let go of anger. Thomas went, felt confident and peaceful. And all I could do was wait. 

One night this last week I shared my feelings of shame with Thomas about how I had been on the verge of a faith crisis and couldn't understand why. He pointed out that up until recently I'd been in control and could take care of things. I wasn't anymore and I had to ask myself, had I ever truly relied on God? Silly question, because I knew I had, but this made me re calibrate where my faith really rested. And I had to trust.

April 6th. I was out with the kids on spring break running errands and one was getting sandbags for some neighbors in case of flooding from possible snow melting too fast. I was away from my phone for about 10 minutes. Those 10 minutes Thomas called...then he texted...then he messaged me on facebook telling me to pick up. lol. I got back in the car after loading the bags and he got through to me..."I got the job...!!!!"

I cried, I shouted for joy...I finally told Lucy what had been going on for the last few weeks. I called family and told friends we saw in person. The nightmare was over. 

 I woke up the next morning and didn't feel sick to my stomach. The weather was the first real day with blue skies and sunshine in months. We had been delivered. I was now wiser. I had a witness after the trial of my faith. 

Thomas starts in a week or so allowing his other job to tie up loose ends. The weather is warming up enough I can go to the park and face paint which will also help. Spring break was actually a lot of fun with the kids just staying local.

One of the nicest blessings was since I wasn't breaking my back over blankets, I felt like giving more attention to my kids, and for probably the first time, I felt like being a good mom, and gave my kids more attention.

The other glimpse I caught from this experience was the truth they teach that when we're done with this life, we'll look back and go, oh was that it? That wasn't so bad. I felt that with this experience.

The irony about all this was I'd always wondered why I wasn't one of those people that go to the celestial room in the temple and just weep...well I did that last week...I don't want to be that person anymore. I'd heard that people come closer to God through trials than they do in any other way, and I wondered what that looked like....I don't need to know what that looks like anymore. Be careful what you pray for!

God is aware of our situations. In the end, He's all that I can rely on.

So, I got pregnant yesterday and now I'm a Princess.

 The long awaited day arrived. ****Discretion is advised, a little tmi ahead.****

Kids were at play dates or school, I went and hung out with my grandma Margaret for the hour before meeting up with Thomas and the intended parents for lunch. I was honestly more nervous about that part than the procedure because I wasn't sure what to say to them. But it turned out just fine.

Silly hormones. I saw them in the parking lot and got a little teary-eyed and then like Mei Mei in Turning Red I pulled myself together so when they walked in the door I was fine. Haha although when they did walk through the door I kept my back to them cuz I was silly and nervous...a normal response would have been to greet them...which I did about 30 seconds later. Lunch was fun and we got to talk about a lot of things including kids, history, and possibility of another after this if all goes well.

The center told me pre-op that I needed to have a partially full bladder..how do you measure that? So I drank a full lemonade. When I got there I popped the Valium pill they prescribed me and like Jane in Marry Poppins asked, "Is something supposed to happen?" because I thought it was going to make me high as a hippie. Fortunately, it stuck to it's word and just relaxed me. Good thing too cuz when I was getting the bladder ultrasound, the tech had to push on my stomach and I full fledge Pillsbury dough boy cuz I'm ticklish. She did manage to get a good enough picture to know my bladder wasn't full enough. So I drank 2 mini water bottles and water logged myself. I got to sit and chat with the mom which was nice. Her hubby ran my hubby up to the house to drop off his car so we'd just have mine to drive him after. 

Dr. came in alone with Thomas and the ultrasound tech checked my bladder again and noticed I wasn't ticklish anymore, so the Valium was working. Haha didn't even notice. I was totally conscious but didn't feel the gliding of the wand on my stomach. Everyone should take Valium every once in a while. It's good stuff!

To be honest it's the most public but discreet impregnation there is. I was covered from the view of Thomas and the mom, but the dr and the three nurses could see everything.

The process itself was pretty cool. Since all I saw was an ultrasound picture, they showed a circle with a pencil dot and said," That's the embryo."    .       <----   That's as big as it was yesterday. Maybe it's this big (    ..) today haha.So He used a snake like wand to grab it like a slurp motion, then on the ultrasound screen I saw my uterus which was just a bunch of greyish white. Then there was the skinny tube with the embryo on the end that snakes from the left bottom, up, then took a right turn and Blip. Implantation! Didn't hurt or feel a thing. Again..valium, baby!...well, eventually haha.

Got dressed, drove home, and apart from eating or showering...I'm now on Princess duty.

Princess days last Tuesday(today) and Wednesday. I basically lounge around and chill so that the embryo takes. So here I lay in bed with my crown on, chilling. Wish me sticky thoughts!

Are you pregnant?...not yet! :) ????

 So Thomas and I had this crazy idea come to us that apparently had been formulating for several years. Surrogacy. I have fairly easy pregnancies which is kind of amazing given how I had 3 miscarriages(one with twins) before Lucy. But Lucy and Tommy were pretty easy going in the womb. So Thomas brought of the idea. We looked into egg donation. I'm too old. We looked into donation for him. Logistically didn't make sense. So I applied to about 10 different agencies. Most of them turned me down because of my miscarriage history and because of the anti-anxiety that I'm on though it's super low dosage. So May 11 I get an email from Gestacy Surrogacy agency and they're ready to proceed forward after I had a an initial phone interview.

For those who don't know what gestational surrogacy is, I'm going to carry the child of another mother and father that are able to produce eggs and sperm, but are not physically capable of carrying the child themselves. Many people react 1 of 2 ways....you're doing what??Q??!? or WOA! That's the most amazing thing I've ever heard! The follow up reaction to the first is "how will I give up a baby?" Answer-it's not mine. I'm just the vessel. I weirdly enough have the perfect personality for it. One of the requirements by most agencies if not all is that you have to have carried your own child successfully. That's for obvious reason. It's also very expensive so they want as little risk with the surrogate as possible. There's extensive background checks both physically, mentally, emotionally, and ob wise. Most women go to the ob because they're pregnant. I had to go to make sure I was ok to get pregnant haha.

Why am I doing this? A few reasons. The first was already mentioned. Relatively easy pregnancies. The second was also kind of mentioned. We've gone through the pain of not being able to have kids of our own at first and wanted to help someone receive that blessing when they themselves are incapable. Third, it compensates really well.

My process was almost stopped because I don't believe in abortion. If there's a heart beat I won't terminate, and that didn't sit well with the first intended parents. I was even asked what if the quality of life wouldn't have been good. Well I've heard plenty of stories of babies that were promised an ill fitting life and turned out fine, so you just don't know. 

The funny part is the fertility center that I'm going through is 5 minutes down the road. When the agency asked me where I lived they were in disbelief because most people have to travel and fly for their appointments. Mine is a 5 minute drive. 

I was told when I was accepted for this journey I was going to have to take birth control and hormone shots in the rear. I donate (or use to) plasma twice a week, so needles weren't exactly awful for me, but I still wasn't thrilled about 2 shots twice a day for 14 weeks.

Had my physical and water ultrasound with the fertility center. I asked why they didn't just go off my natural cycle instead of hormones and they said it was totally possible, but I had to come in regularly for ultrasounds, which I said wasn't a problem because of my close proximity. They said I was physically good except for some minor adhesions in my uterus that had to be removed first, so that meant a minor surgery. I also had some skin growths to get checked out. That was one busy week! The surgery went fine.

 

Fast forward to December 30th. Last day of birth control. Hormone shots start on Tuesday along with baby aspirin every day. I take one hormone on Tuesday and Friday evenings until implantation, then I start another hormone in the mornings as well as suppositories in the mornings. I do those for another 10 weeks then I graduate to the OB office. 

The hope is 10 days after implantation I take a blood test to determine if I'm pregnant. The 2 days after implantation are called "Princess Days". I have to keep everything lowwwwww key to make sure implantation takes. This should be an interesting challenge given I have 2 squirely kids. Any takers for sitters that day? haha. 

 If all goes well I should be having another couple's baby in October. Fingers crossed!

So they'll always remember

 As we're studying Moses and the children of Israel this week in Come Follow Me, I'm once again dumb founded and annoyed that the children of Israel saw miracle after miracle and never learned to trust the Lord. They complained because they were slaves, I give that one to them. But they were delivered out of Egypt and spared many of the plagues if they did what Moses told them to. They complained that they'd been led out of Egypt only for Pharoh to come after them and they said it would have been better we were slaves, cuz then we had food and they felt trapped. They had a serious case of the hangries. So God delivered them through the Red Sea on dry ground and drowned the Egpytians. They complained about water. Granted they were thirsty. 

In each case, I get their plight and so did God. But their attitude sucked. Why do we have to go through this? Instead, they should have asked, Lord, please help us. We know you can. One is hopeful, faithful, and grateful. It recognizes trust in God, of which He asks for all the time because we for some reason have a hard time believing we can. 

The last few years have been a real challenge for us. Me with my awesome but in many ways needy kids. My anxiety and insecurities as a mom. Thomas's rough goes with work. Never feeling quite at home where we were. Seemingly unending colds. The obvious ugly quarantine with Covid...I swear I still have ptsd from quarantine. Just always have to be out. But instead of that part I like to think of the current part.

Thomas and I have always been the type of people to say, Lord, we will do what you want, where you want, when you want. But if it's possible, can we go somewhere else? Soon after that prayer, Thomas found a much better job, we found a house close to his work and mine, sold our house in west valley, I took up facepainting and love it! The kids made new friends and it's an overall much better set up.

The Lord put us here. It's a bit strenuous in some ways but we're overall much happier.

Perspective has been a good teacher lately. There's a war going on between Ukraine and Russia. My extended family experienced a death that kicked everyone to the ground and broke everyone's heart because there was no one more pure than her. Closer family of mine hurt their back and is in constant pain, and a friend of theirs is going through some real tough life changing situations. My troubles seem so small.

I don't want to be like the children of Israel and forget who brought me through my hard times, and led me to the good, and can bring me through the coming fights. 

 

I wish I was less intereste

Food blog #1- Gourmandise The Bakery Salt Lake

 Anyone who knows me knows I love food, specifically going out to eat. But I also have a weak spot for fancy food, specifically desserts. That's my escape. Hershey bars are gross. Especially since I've been to Europe and tried real chocolate, but I'll take a Toblerone as a close second. I've decided to share my wonders when I find them.

Gourmandise The Bakery

    I found out about this place through Only in Utah, a subscription that emails you about cool things from restaurants to hikes to ghost towns. I checked out the menu and was instantly intrigued. They have the perfect blend of fancy but familiar. There are 3 locations, one in uptown Salt Lake, Draper, and American Fork. It was off the beaten path but from when we got there to when we left the place was always packed. And for good reason. They have pastries up the ying-yang and they don't leave anything out in the description so you can taste it as you read it and have to try it. They're middle range pricey, so if you're looking for a little bit more reasonable budget, go to Kneaders.

    I got the proscuitto artichoke mozzarella sandwich and the cobb salad without the blue cheese crumbles or dressing, and instead got their house ranch. THAT made a big difference I'm guessing because I'm still thinking about when I can go back and get another. Thomas, my husband, got a beef brisket grilled cheese with vidalia onions, aka sweet onions. For dessert we got a raspberry mousse slice and a chocolate mousse slice. The raspberry was less sweet and could be eaten in one sitting. The chocolate had to be shared and my kids did the best little happy dance.

     The atmosphere of this little place is french cafe with its indoor outdoor seating options, hanging lights, clean, simple interior, and shrubbery enclosing you with little birds chirping all around along with pleasant piano music in the background. I saw a mixture of fancy dressers and casual diners. This place fits everyone, even kids.

     The way they take orders is cool too because they have a little hand held machine that they take notes on and it transfers right to the kitchen so you don't get a mess up in you order.

    The only downside was they didn't have the chocolate hedgehog I read about on the menu because apparently the little dude flies out the door.

     All I can say is I can't wait to go back. It might even been worth having door dash deliver but honestly half the fun is going and being there and watching everyone enjoy themself.