Pioneer Day

One thing I am known for is my love of pioneer stories. Ok, that's not even a little bit true. I am actually known as the girl who visibly cringes anytime someone starts to talk about the Martin & Willie handcart company. Am I a bad person? Probably. But that's not really the point of this post.

In Utah, we celebrate the 24th of July as the day that the Mormon Pioneers first entered the Salt Lake Valley in 1847. The fact that I do not love, love pioneer stories does not stop me from celebrating Pioneer Day. This year, I went to the Bountiful Parade. (It helped that my apartment is along the parade route and all I had to do was walk outside my front door.) I also went to see the final Harry Potter movie. I may have even made the comparison that Harry Potter, like each of us, is a pioneer in his own right. And that, my friends, is how Pioneer Day is done.

Before and After

It's Almost Like I Died and Went to Heaven (almost)
Several weeks ago, the air conditioner in my office went out. I was "temporarily" moved to an empty office across the hall while the air conditioner was being replaced.

Unfortunately for my boss, I fell in love with my "temporary" office. It's big. It has a nice layout. It's not pink. And it has a HUGE table that people can actually sit down at if they want to talk to me about a project (which happens, oh let's say, 50 times a day). And did I mention... it's empty? I was told that I had to move back into my office after the a/c was fixed. But since no one ever came to carry my big, heavy computer back across the hall... and since I couldn't possibly move my computer back myself... I quietly began to move my things into my new office. I finished up last Friday. I even got brave and hung things on the walls.

Here is a before shot of how the "empty office now known as Traci's office" was decorated before I moved in. What is that a picture of anyway? Birds maybe?


And here is an after photo. Cute, functional and exceptionally well organized. I think I'm going to like it here. Until I get kicked out (or fired) anyway!

A Strange Coincidence

Number of light bulbs I have changed this week: 3.

Number of times this week I wished I had a roommate: also 3.

Coincidence? Probably not.

And, yes, I am wearing a pink tiara in this picture. It seemed appropriate.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas

Is there's one thing I love to do, it's celebrate made-up holidays with trips to the dollar store. This year, the Cutest Sisters Club decided to celebrate Christmas in July! We made sugar cookies and drank frozen hot chocolate. We opened presents under the tree. And of course we listened to Christmas music and did some caroling. They don't call us the Cutest Sisters Club for no reason... Ok, so maybe we call ourselves that. But the title is well-deserved.

Cassi & Liz trying to contain their excitement while rolling out sugar cookie dough.

Tricia's really mad that she blinked in this shot. I think maybe she was afraid that Cassi was about to smack her with a rolling pin. I don't know why she would think that!

I am clearly thrilled with this fishing pole. Little did I know that also in this bag was a Criminal Profiling Kit. I cannot wait to witness a crime and provide the police with a first-rate sketch of the perpetrator.

Cassi's new apron went great with her slippers. If Home Depot ever decides to hire Christmas Elves, I don't think anyone would be more qualified.

Tricia with her new kites and water bottle! Score!

And what Christmas in July celebration would be complete without an inflatable pink flamingo? Thanks, girls, for a fantastic holiday!

For Anyone Keeping Track...

I have now attended sessions in all the operating temples in Utah, Idaho and Missouri.

My total temple count = 21. Temples currently in operation = 134.

Meet Me In St. Louis

I spent this weekend in Missouri with my cousin Kristi and my Uncle Garf. Talk about a fun-filled couple of days.

We went to the temple in St. Louis in Friday night, followed by burgers at Steak and Shake. On Saturday, we went to the local farmers market, then got ready for the day. We saw the Winston Churchill Memorial in Fulton and the State Capital Building in Jefferson City. We also shared a banana split at Central Dairy, home of the LARGEST banana splits in Jeff City... or anywhere else in the world. Seriously, we had chocolate, spumoni and mint chocolate chip ice cream topped with hot fudge, strawberry sauce and walnuts. I wasn't sure we were going to be able to eat it all, but you should never doubt the Thomas Family when ice cream is involved. Go Team!

After we had recovered from the ice cream, we drove to Herman and toured two wineries. The nice thing about wineries in the midwest on hot, humid days is that wine cellars are deliciously cool! The gift shops also have fun tee shirts with sayings like "I wine constantly." I got a kick out of that. We had dinner in Herman on the Missouri River.

Sunday we went to church and Kristi and Garf showed me around Mexico, Missouri. I got beat soundly in a game of gin rummy. And Kristi taught me to make frozen hot chocolate, which is now a new favorite. It was a FANTASTIC weekend. Thanks for a fun trip!