First Snow...

Well the first snow of the year fell yesterday. It was kind of exciting. I love the look of fresh fallen snow. :) This cold weather that accompanies it is not my favorite, however. Makes me miss this...

My Christmas tree is up. My first Christmas tree in my first home. :) It's so pretty. One thing I know is that Christmas decorations are expensive when you have to start from scratch. I am very thankful for my $8 tree from last years Black Friday sales.

Speaking of Christmas.... I LOVE Christmas music! Thanksgiving night as I drove to work I popped in a Christmas cd and listened to my Christmas song of the year and it automatically put me in a better mood. I spent Thanksgiving night with the babies and played Christmas music all night long. The babies really enjoyed it. :)

Speaking of Christmas music... Have you heard the new song by Matthew West? It's called 'One Last Christmas'. It's a song written about and for Dax Locke and his family. Talk about bringing out the ugly cry. I had to turn the radio down tonight when it came on. Not because I don't like it, but because I don't think it's socially acceptable to be sobbing in the Starbucks drive thru. Take a listen... at your own risk. Oh, and the video makes it 10x worse!


There is a Harry Potter marathon on ABC Family. I so enjoy these movies. The books are better (as are most books that are made into movies), but I still enjoy the movies. I still haven't seen Part 1 of the last movie. I don't know what I'm waiting for. I think part of me knows that if I see the first one now it will drive me nuts to not see the rest. I also want to see the Disney movie Tangled. I've heard its really cute, so I might have to go see that soon.

I'm off for six days from work and my goal is to finish my Christmas shopping so I can stop spending money. I think my next credit card bill is going to give me an aneurysm! I'm trying to keep my focus on what this season is really about. It's a little difficult because I'm reminded that I could be potentially be working both Christmas Eve and Christmas. :( I'm on call Christmas Eve and work Christmas Day. I'm so sad that I won't get to spend that time with my family, but I see this time of year as a time for serving, and if by serving that means taking care of the babies both nights then that is what I will do.

Keep Warm!

Until....

Indian Summer (alternately 10-10-10)

I was feeling like I was the only one that hadn't done a post titled "10-10-10" today, so I thought I'd get it out of the way....

I have not been able to stop humming Brooks and Dunn's song 'Indian Summer'. I can just hear Ronnie Dunn singing that chorus in my head. I love Fall and this Indian Summer is kind of cramping my style here. How am I supposed to be cuddled underneath a blanket with my fuzzy socks on if it's 80+ degrees outside??? However, as much as I love Fall weather I am trying to enjoy this weather because I know it will be fleeting and in a months time I will be craving warmer weather when it's only 40 degrees out. Although, you know what, it'll probably be longer than a month because in a months time I will be sailing the ocean blue on my cruise. :) Hopefully the weather will be like it is right now. Eighty plus degrees and sunny.
I should probably start making my list of things to take now. As long as I have my complete list I can put off packing until the day before I leave. :) Nothing like being a well thought out procrastinator.

I've picked up a new hobby recently. Crocheting. I kept seeing all of these cute hats and thought that I should just try it. I've tried knitting in the past and it just did not go well. There were too many things my hand had to control and I wasn't any good at it. Crocheting however is much easier to me. I watched an online video tutorial and just started doing it. I'm halfway done and it's looking quite funny right now. According to the video it looks wavy for a little bit, so I'm hoping that it straightens out soon otherwise I'm going to have a pretty interesting looking hat on my hands. :)

Today at church the sermon was on Esther and how obedient and courageous she was to stand up for her people and her faith. She is truly someone from the Bible I admire. I've always loved her story and haven't been able to stop thinking about it all day.

Well that is all for now I guess...

Until...

KFC Double Down

"Double Meat.

Double Cheese.

Double Bacon."

Double Bypass???

These Are the Times I'm Glad I'm Not a Parent...

Every year the "toy gurus" publish a long list of must have toys that parents are pretty much supposed to break their necks to purchase at Christmas time. It never ceases to amaze me the utterly creepy toys that are "must haves".
Take for example:

Sing-A-M-Jigs-- "There’s more to these tiny, plush critters than meets the eye. Press their bellies and you’ll reveal a tiny singing mouth, press their hands and you’ll hear a range of singing options. Sing-A-Ma-Jigs can sing tunes, chatter away or even sing in harmony with each other." They seem cute, but something is just "off" about them, and I'm not sure what.

Bigfoot the Monster-- "Okay, this might be a little much to pay for what basically amounts to a plastic toddler, but with the ability to talk, walk, chew, burp and throw a ball, this remote control beast could be an instant hit with your kid." This is $109! Why would anyone pay that much for a toy that is modeled after something people fear? I think not. Plus, he's two days short of a unibrow and someone should really get him some giant plastic tweezers.

Monster High Cleo DeNile and Deuce Gorgon-- "C’mon, what’s not cool about high school monsters with freaky pets? Cleo DeNile is the daughter of the Mummy and Deuce is the son of Medusa. A rat and a snake keep them company at Monster High." Absolutely NOT! No kid of mine would ever be playing with a toy named "Deuce".

Lalaloopsy Doll-- "While they look like regular rag dolls, every Lalaloopsy character comes with its own special history, including the day it was sewn, what it was sewn from (painter’s smock, clown costume, baker’s apron), and how that history has infused the doll with a special personality—artist, goofball, sugar-lover, you get the idea." This one seems cute, but it raises too many questions. For instance, did they wash the clothes they got from said painter, clown, and baker? Can the history really be "infused" into the doll? Is the doll all of a sudden going to come to life and start painting like Jackson Pollack or chopping onions like Rachel Ray? And because you have the chance of getting one with clothes made from a clown that is creepy enough in itself. Clowns are creepy people.

And amazingly parents read these articles and buy these scary toys for their kids and their kids love them! Zhu Zhu pets anyone?! *shudder*

I'm so glad I don't have kids to make me feel obligated to buy these toys. Hopefully my kids will want to play with regular old tonka trucks or baby dolls...

Until....

Rained out...Boo!

Well the weather was looking pretty ominous this morning and after about 20 minutes the P-fest parade was canceled because of thunder and lightening. On the way back to the car a steady rain turned into a down pour! What a bummer! It rained for about 25 minutes and then it stopped and hasn't done more than sprinkle a little since. Too bad they couldn't have just delayed the parade or started an hour early. :/

I went with Robin's family to Qdoba for lunch (because apparently I am the "aunt" now according to Ava) and then I came home. I had some plans to maybe run to Target and Barnes and Noble, but as I sit here I am getting more and more tired. Maybe a power nap is in order first.

Until....

Pumpkin Festival!

I LOVE the Pumpkin Festival! I'm a huge pumpkin fan and this festival is an excuse to gorge myself on all things pumpkin and I enjoy every second of it! Of course if you throw in a juicy pork chop sandwich I'm in heaven. :)

I've gone with Robin and her family the last two nights and it has been super fun. Hayden and I are best buds. :) Although I can only do so much for my buddy. I rode the Tilt a Whirl with him on Thursday night and I thought I was going to hurl, so no more rides for me to his disappointment. I don't think we'd be buds anymore if I barfed all over him. Ha!

Tomorrow is the parade and crafts and of course MORE FOOD!!!! Ah, I love Fall!

Until.....

Work

Work is so hard right now. Pray for all the families that have tough decisions to make and sadness to endure. Also, pray for the staff that is there to care for and comfort all the precious babies and their families.

Summer Once Again....

I know. I'm a big loser for not having posted sooner. I don't even know where the time went. Oh, yes I do. It went into buying a house, fixing up a house, moving in to said house, going on vacation, working like crazy.... And just like that we're in July.

Yes, I bought a house and it is lovely. It's really needed mostly cosmetic work and my dad has been WONDERFUL in helping me fix things up. My sisters have been two peaches as well for helping me paint and helping dad when I've been sleeping. Every room got painted, the kitchen got a complete face lift, and just recently the outside was painted. I think it's safe to say that there is no remnant of the 1970's in this house anymore. Yay! Next project will be new window installation in my bedroom and office. Then some minor paint changes to the upstairs and I will be calling it quits on the money spending. I'm starting to get anxiety when I check my bank account. :/

Our vacation to Disney was wonderful! We had so much fun I'm still thinking about the rides. Oh what I wouldn't give to be riding Tower of Terror in the morning. Just the thought of that stale musty air in the "hotel" makes me stomach jump a little. Clearly I have a longing for giggling hysterically, because that is exactly what I would do when we rode any ride that was a little scary. Holli was cracking up at me, but I don't care!! :)

Work is going... We are so busy right now. They are calling in extra people all the time. It is insane! It's a good thing I love my job so much! And for that matter, the people I work with. If I didn't like either it would be pretty miserable right now.

Mom is on vacation this week so we are going to head to the zoo tomorrow to see the new changes that were made this past year. I haven't been to the zoo in I don't know how long. Hopefully we don't melt from the extreme heat.

Off to bed. Sleeping is my favorite thing as of late. I don't know what is wrong with me. I'm going to start taking vitamins again in hopes that will perk me up a bit.

Until.............

Look Who's Back!

I have returned. For how long? Only time will tell.

I can't believe that 2 months passed between posting in December and yesterday. I've been busy to say the least, but mostly time has just gotten away from me. This whole month of February so far I have been working every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. It is no treat, but because of other things going on in my schedule it worked out that way. Next weekend will be my first weekend off this month and I can't wait! I plan on hanging out with my sisters who I have only seen glimpses of this past month.

Let's hit some quick highlights of what has been going on my life so far in this year 2010.

1. I have started house hunting...sort of. It's a slow and painful process. Right now there is not much on the market that I find appealing (or in my price range). I made myself a promise in college that I would only live at home a year after I graduated. Well, that "deadline" has come and gone and here I am still at home. It's not the worst thing by far, but it would be nice to have my own space that consisted of more than a 12x11 room. I even got tons of household items for Christmas. They are currently sitting on the floor in my room taking up space. I'm going to have to do something about that if I won't be moving out fairly soon.

2. Work has been going well. We have had periods when we are super low in census and people are being called off to stay home, then we go through spurts of having lots of kiddos, some super sick, and people are getting called in. Right now we are learning a new computer program for charting and let me tell you, it is not fun! I'm over it already and we haven't even implemented it yet. We are also getting ready for changes that will be coming when we move to the new unit that is still under construction.

3. We have been getting a lot of snow. I know that is nothing surprising since the whole country seems to be getting dumped on. I am so over this white stuff though and would appreciate some warmer weather, and soon!

4. Vacation plans have been made for 2010! Yes, we have planned yet another big vacation this year. Actually, we've planned two! The first will be in May. The three of us sisters are going to Disney! It will be my first time and I say, "It's about time!". The second was a very quick plan to go on a cruise that we heard about through out local christian radio station. It is sure to be a good time and we are taking one of my friends with us, so there will be an even number for this trip which will be nice.

5. The Bachelor started again. I was less than thrilled about this season because Jake (who was on Jillian's season) was slated to be the bachelor this time around. I thought he was too much of a "nice guy" to be the Bachelor, but he has been surprisingly good. I've been impressed with some of the choices he's made and also annoyed by some of his others [Hello! Get rid of Vienna! She's toxic and psychotic!]. Also, very sad that Ali left. I'm sure its not the last we've heard of her though.

6. American Idol is back and Ellen is the new judge!! Good riddens Paula! You can take your awkward clapping and weird critiques somewhere else, because we have Ellen now! She's very good at being straightforward about her opinion, not to mention she's funny. It will be refreshing to have someone capable of forming complete sentences and not spending time she should be critiquing performances by bickering with Simon. Can't wait to get past this Hollywood week stuff and get to the top 24!

Well, I guess that's about all for now. I need to get some sleep since I have MOPS in the morning plus I work the next 4 nights in a row. Yuk!

Until...

Temporary Home...

Those words couldn't be more true. This is my temporary home.

Until.....