More Weekend Pics

A couple of pics from the weekend that weren't taken with a cell phone! Enjoy!

Weekend Adventure

Sometimes I wish my nephews were cuter and more fun to be around.

Kidding, kidding. How could that even be possible?

Tricia and I "ran away" to Idaho this weekend. We did lots of fun things, like packing for a pretend trip to Disneyland. We called people "stinker pot" and giggled. And we had hamburgers and milkshakes.

Add that to the fact that I got to see my best friends from high school (who are still my best friends!) and it was a very refreshing weekend.

This Would Only Happen to Me

This morning a co-worker mentioned they wished they had a screwdriver to hang some new shelves. As fate would have it, I have a screwdriver in the trunk of my car so I went to get it. Somehow during the complicated process of removing the screwdriver from my tool kit, I gashed my thumb. Really bad. It bled for about 30 minutes and I had to make a run to Smiths for first aid supplies.

I don't think I'll be texting for awhile. And I know I won't be foolish enough to lend someone a screwdriver ever, ever again! These are the kinds of things that only happen to me.

Neil Diamond Day

January 24, 2012 was another great Neil Diamond Day! Happy 71st birthday to an icon. We celebrated at my Dad's house with cheese fondue, a chocolate fountain, donuts and a viewing of the final scene of The Jazz Singer. Long Live Neil Diamond.

Possible Josh Groban Sighting

I'm sitting in my office this afternoon, minding my own business, when a guy walks by outside my window. I am 99.9% sure it was Josh Groban. But what was he doing on 4th East in Salt Lake City? And why didn't he come into say hello?

I Enjoy Being a Girl

This post is probably not for the faint of heart. Yesterday was not my best day. On the orneriness scale of 1 to 10, I was definitely not at a 1.

Some examples. I got the hospital bill for the pelvic exam that was done when I went to the ER with kidney stones back in December. ER doctors should not give pelvic exams. Ever. And now I have to pay the hospital money for inflicting this barbaric form of torture on me? That's just not right.

Also, after a LONG day at work, I sat in stop-and-go traffic on the freeway for what seemed like years. I went to Panda Express to grab takeout as my reward for surviving the day. But by the time I got home (keep in mind that Panda is less than a mile from my house) I couldn't stand the thought of eating chow mien or orange chicken. I didn't even want it in my house but, since I am most certainly not pregnant, I couldn't justify throwing out the Chinese food I had just bought myself five minutes ago. So then I was mad at my dinner, which is completely understandable and reasonable, right? RIGHT???

I was glad I went to Panda Express though because I saw my third grade teacher. She has not aged a bit in 25 years. It kind of freaked me out. I wanted to show her how much my handwriting has improved since I was in third grade... which probably would have freaked her out. All in all, it was a strange day. I'm not sorry that it's over.

The Joys of Being a Homeowner

Tyler and Bryce have taken their responsibilities pretty seriously since their parents bought them a nice house. They get the mail, help mow the lawn and (apparently) clear the snow out of the rain gutters. I love this picture.

Bryce recently confessed to me that sometimes when he's in bed and his Mom and Dad think he's asleep, his eyes are open and he's awake. (In fact, he even took the phone and went in his bedroom and closed the door before he told me this.) His revelation came as a complete shock to me. I know Ty and Jess have been wondering who eats all their string cheese and unwraps Christmas presents in the middle of the night.

A Call For Help

So the next Relief Society activity I am in charge of is the birthday party in March. We are going to do the "purse-suit of happiness" activity* that I know a lot of wards have done where all the sisters bring their purses. If you have been to one of these activities, I would love to hear about what you did and what you liked or didn't like. Thanks!

*Disclaimer: I didn't come up with the title of this activity. But I'm willing to run with it. Plus... I have a ton of purses/bags/backpacks... so our decorating budget will be next to nothing and we can spend more on treats!

Directionally Challenged

Freeways I needed to be on to make it to a meeting today:
I-15 Southbound
I-215 Eastbound

Freeways I was actually on today:
I-15 Southbound
I-80 Eastbound
I-215 Westbound
I-15 Northbound

The moral of the story is that I-215 and I-80 are not the same. Not even a little bit. And I should never leave my house!

We Bought a Zoo

I watched a really great movie last night. Tricia and I went to see "We Bought a Zoo" primarily because Matt Damon was in it and it was PG. No plot? No problem if I get to look at Matt for a couple of hours.

But it did have a plot. And I really enjoyed the movie. I am going to recommend it to anyone who has lost their Mom to cancer - or if you know someone who has. The movie made a lot of sense to me.

I also really liked one of the themes of the movie, which was that sometimes all it takes is 20 seconds of courage to make something really great happen. Twenty seconds of courage... I can (maybe) do that.

Little Miss Lauren

Last night I kicked Tay and Heather out of their house so Lauren and I could have some play time. One of our favorite games involved me holding the rolling pin that Lauren handed me while she danced to the music from one of her toys. (Hey, holding the rolling pin is a very important job.) At one point, I set down the rolling pin and started dancing with Lauren. At the end of the song, she walked over to the rolling pin and handed it back to me with a look that clearly said, "You're really better at holding this."

The truth hurts sometimes.

One More Thing

I forgot to mention one of my most important accomplishments of 2011 - I was not ticketed for jaywalking. See, I live across the street from the police station and I'm always dashing across to pay my utility bill, drop a book at the library, do my visiting teaching etc. I live in constant fear that some bored cop will decide to be a smart alec and write me up for jaywalking. I'm probably tempting fate by posting this online. Hmmm.

You're also probably wondering if I've done anymore of the exercise DVD's I checked out from the library. I have! This morning I popped in the Zumba DVD. I quickly learned I'd made two mistakes in the selection process.

Mistake #1: I got the "advanced" tape intended for people who had already learned the steps in the "introduction to zumba" tape that I apparently missed.

Mistake #2: The DVD was in Spanish.

In spite of these two errors, I loved the tape. I picked the steps up pretty quickly and, besides, I think you burn twice as many calories when you're always double-stepping to get back on the right (as in correct) foot. I can't wait to try it again sometime soon. And believe it or not... I mean that!