Things that I think about....

HI!  How is your day?  Mine was quite satisfactory!

Sometimes I have all of these thoughts that swirl through my head and I want to share them with people... I guess it is my weird need to chatter endlessly.  But here are some things I have been thinking about.

***This last weekend was SISTERS WEEKEND!  My two older but younger sisters were in town and we partied like it was 1999!  It was so fun!  I love my sisters.  We really did have a blast.  Here are some photos of our adventures:

We had so much fun!  I miss them already.  Time to plan the next one!


***I took the Quantum challenge.

It really works!  Like- so good.  I didn't even put vinegar in my dishwasher!  It was amazing.  I don't know if I will ever use anything else!

***We watched the Broncos/Steelers playoff game last night.  It was fun.  Harrison jumped off the couch and even shed a tear of joy when the Broncos won in the 11th second of overtime.  It was fun to see him so excited.

***I had a really good day at work today.  I met some really fun people and I had a very successful day as far as "numbers" go.  I sure hope that today is a sign of the year ahead!  If so- my professional life will be awesome!

***I gave the quote of the day in our morning meeting at work today.  I liked it:

At any time you have the ability to say, "This is NOT how the story is going to end!"

See- I told you it was a good one.  I really believe that one too.

***I think it is funny that Harrison is downstairs right now watching The Bachelor... by himself.  That show is WAY too awkward for my taste.  H seems really into it though- which is pretty endearing.

***My eyeliner stayed perfect for almost the entire day today.  I was quite impressed.  I don't know what I did different, but I hope that I can replicate it tomorrow :)  YEAH RIGHT

***I ate a red velvet cupcake tonight.  The frosting was quite deceiving though.  It smelled just like cream cheese frosting but after one bit it CLEARLY was not.  It was an almond butter cream type frosting.  I am still on the fence on how I feel about it.  I think anything is made 100 times better with cream cheese... so- I dunno....

***I am giving up Cherry Coke (again).  I have put on a few pounds that I really don't want... and I know a couple of them are from this sinfully delicious soda.  I love it WAY too much.  I have been drinking it nonstop since about Halloween.  NOT GOOD.  My kidneys are starting to hurt and that is never a good sign.  You'd think that I would learn that soda is not OK after having kidney stones.  HA.  But really- I am scared to stop because I get terrible withdrawals and I become quite the Witch with a capital B if you know what I mean.

***My heart jumped for joy this evening when I saw that my all time favorite blogger blogged for the first time in about 6 months.  It was like finding a long lost friend.  It was amazing.  I love her and her BLOG!

***When I got home from work Harrison told me that there was some mail for me on the counter.  AWESOME!  I had two wonderful cards from a couple of my Project Snail Mail friends.  What lovely people they are!  I love being a part of this group.  Join us on Facebook and keep Snail Mail alive!

***I am really digging that new Gym Class Heroes song that features Adam Levine.  It is a body mover.  

I swore to myself that I would never say this out loud... but I am breaking my promise... Adam Levine is HAWT.  I do like him.  OK- I said it... embarrassing.

***I haven't had my hair cut in over a year.  Now THAT is embarrassing.  Maybe I should bump that one up to the top of the To Do List.

Well- there are some things that have been on my mind recently.  I am ready for bed.  5:30 comes quite early in the morning.  Sweet dreams to all my friends and family out there in BlogLand!

Starting 2012 with a BANG!

Well I hope that every body's New Years Eve celebrations were safe and super fun!  Speaking of safe... after Harrison and I watched the fireworks on the Las Vegas Strip we went home, put our PJ's on, and went to bed at about 1am.


At about 1:30am Harrison looked out the bedroom window onto the main road behind our house.  He said, "Did you hear that?"  I said, "Yeah, probably some last minute fireworks."  Harrison shook his head and said, "No!  It was an accident!"  I hopped out of bed and we both peered out the window.  Sure enough- there were a few cars that were slowing way down and stopping in the middle of the road to see what happened and to come to somebodies aide if necessary.  


We put our shoes on and hurried to the edge of the corner of the block to see what happened.  Well, it was quite a sight when we got there.  A VW Beetle had jumped the curb and was half way into the brick wall.  YIKES!


We walked up to the car and I asked the folks that were standing around if everybody was alright.  The really kind of moody lady confirmed that all was OK, and as I looked at the car, the teenage boy that was the driver of the car stepped out of the car.  He looked fine.  A little shaken up, but fine.  He kept muttering things like, "I am so stupid!" and "I am such an idiot!".


I couldn't help but giggle.  What a way to start the New Year!  To wreck your sister's car into a brick wall (I like to think that it was his sister's car... since I don't know many boys, let alone teenage boys, that drive "cute" Beetles around).  There was simply NO coming back from this situation!  


We didn't take any pictures of the accident at that moment (which we regret) but here is a picture of the hole in the wall that was left over from the ordeal.  There is a pretty big hole in the wall and see the boulder that is in the planter?  That boulder was more in the middle of the small rock garden before it was dragged into the higher planter!  SHEESH!

I'd have to say, I did feel kind of bad for the kid.  What a seriously stupid mistake.  We didn't determine if the kid was drunk or not.  He seemed pretty lucid and aware when he was stepping out of the car, but we only saw him for seriously 15 seconds.  He was going WAY too fast whether he was drunk or not.


So that was our big excitement of the week so far!  I told the girls at church to listen at school for the story of the kid that wrecked his car on New Years Eve and then report back!  HA... kind of evil- I know.

2012- Welcome!

Well- we said goodbye to 2011 and we are now welcoming in 2012.  What a wonderful time to be alive.  Its also time for me to choose my resolution word for 2012.  I was down to the wire with my choice.  I had a few words in mind and just as I did last year, I went to my good friend the Thesaurus and plugged in my words to find a common word.  I had words like, improve, lift,  and polish.  Well, none of those seemed to be just quite what I wanted.  But I found a perfect word that had all of these elements in them.  My new mantra for 2012 will be:

Yes, JOURNEY is my new word for 2012.  Journey is a very interesting word.  Journey can mean a trip or vacation... it can also mean a path or a way to something.  It is hard for me to put into exact words what I want Journey to mean in my life for the next year.  But I know that I feel inside what I want it to mean.


A couple of things have been circling in my mind as I have been thinking about this new word to live by.


First:

I want to find joy in my journey this next year.  Whether it be a journey to more intelligence, a journey to a new place, a journey to a new look, or a journey to new surroundings... I want there to be joy along the way.  Harrison and I have been talking about "ENJOYING NOW".  Sometimes we as humans (especially in this age of instant satisfaction and gratification) get caught up with just wanting the end result to happen and bring us joy.  We want the new house NOW... we want the new car NOW... or when I get the new carpet- then I will be happy... or when I get a better job- then I will be happy.  We loose sight of being happy in the moment.  So, this is part of how I want to have joy in my journey.  Finding happiness in getting to the goals.


Second:

OK- so I know that this is an album cover for the band Journey, but hear me out!  I do love the band Journey... a lot!  But- the song Don't Stop Believing is actually a very good song.  But I thought about it and it is actually a great metaphor for my mantra this year.  Don't Stop Believing in the Journey and in the goals.  It sounds kind of silly but I think it is kind of awesome!  Do you have the song in your head now??  If not- let me help you out!




Thanks Steve Perry for helping me out with that.  


Well- I am excited to see where my journeys take me and what I will learn along the way.


Have a great 2012 everybody!

TRIUMPH

So it is the end of 2011.  I would have to say that the year has gone by pretty dang fast.  There have been a lot that has happened in the last year.  My post today is to follow up on my year long goal and resolution.  If you have no idea what I am talking about, you can click HERE and read about what my New Years goal was.

So instead of making a New Years resolution (which lets be honest, nobody ever keeps) I made a goal to incorporate one word into my entire year to make myself better.  This year's word was TRIUMPH.

How did I triumph this year??  Let's explore this together... I think the biggest triumph I have made this year is my feelings towards somebody in my life.  I have had downright hateful feelings towards this person and it was really affecting my daily life.  Through prayer, service, venting, and some change of attitude... I have triumphed over those feelings.  This person isn't my best friend by any means, but I no longer think about pushing them into traffic every time I see them.  I do believe I even have some sort of love for this "enemy".  I really feel like this is a huge triumph for me.

I also triumphed in my workplace this year.  I was able to get a promotion and take on some new responsibilities (which isn't an easy feat in a small business working environment).  I am really happy about this triumph.  I was able to prove to my boss that I was capable and strong enough to take on the responsibilities.  GO ME!

This next triumph probably shouldn't count but I am going to talk about it anyway.  I triumphed over extra weight this last spring.  I was down to my goal weight and was eating healthy and was into some skinny jeans.  Sadly, I am back to the hefty jeans and the weight is back.  Something I need to constantly work on I suppose... but for a little while- the triumph had been made!

I triumphed in relationships this year.  Especially with my younger sisters.  We are all adults now and I feel like this last year has really been a turning point with each other.  Instead of seeing them as little annoying sisters, I see them as equals (well most of the time... I am still working on not being such a bossy older sister).  I see them as adults with value and worth.  They have made awesome decisions in their lives and some of those decisions are real examples to me! 

Those are the big triumphs that I can think of for the last year.  I have learned a lot and even better, learned from some mistakes.  I am thankful for all my blessings and all that I have in my life.

May 2012 bring just as much accomplishment and joy.  I am still thinking about my word for 2012.  I haven't nailed one down quite yet but I have a few days.  I will definitely be posting about my new word.  Take some time and reflect on your life and how your year has been.  I bet you will count more wins than losses, more love than hate.  May the next year be even better for you too!

Merry Christmas 2011

I hope your day has been filled with joy, love, good food, friends, family, and PRESENTS!  But seriously- don't forget what the true meaning of Christmas is all about.

Thankful Thursday Part 2

I was so distraught last night that I thought it was Thursday... and it was only Wednesday.  Well today was a better day.  I will seriously post for real later.


OK- bye

Thankful Thrusday

I am thankful today is over and I can go to bed.  I will post for real another day.

Thankful Saturday

This happens time and time again... I get into these funks where I don't think that anything fun or exciting or noteworthy happens to us.  Lame- I know.  I should stop thinking like that!  Well, here are some things that I have been thankful for this week (in no particular order):


My boss and co workers
I really do have a great boss.  He is pretty awesome.  He is so generous and kind.  He really does care about his employees and he is a pretty funny guy actually.  We had our little company Christmas party this last week and it was super fun.  We went to a teppanyaki steak house for lunch.  It was the first time I had ever been to one.  It was seriously awesome to watch. (and that's my awesome boss and his awesome wife in the background)

We had a ton of fun.  I work with all women (except for our boss- the doctor) and sometimes it can be a real challenge... but it seems the last little while has been great!  We have all been getting along and been working as a great team!

Eryn, Gynene, and myself at lunch

My brother Westley
I don't know if I have ever written a Thankful Thursday post about my brother Westley.  He is almost 9 years old and he is the youngest of my biological siblings.  He is awesome.  He is seriously one of the funniest people I know.  He has awesome comedic timing and he is so full of energy.  My sister sent me the following picture of Wes.  He has been wearing this funny Santa hat and beard off and on the last couple of weeks and one night he fell asleep in it while trying to technically stay "in his room" at bed time and still listen to the conversations and the movie going on in my mom's living room.

We decided to call him Hobo Santa

The cats
Its kind of a creepy cat lady thing to do to brag about the felines in one's life... but I don't care.  I am going to do it anyway.  I love my cats.  Even though we had about a year when they were a pain in the butt and I was seriously contemplating sending them to another family to live.  Well they both grew out of their teenage years (well months in human time but years I guess in cat time) and they are once again awesome.  They love to be outside but they have been spoiled and they now sleep inside at night (especially since it has been near freezing temps here in Vegas over night).  I do love them... even if I do have to take a Benadryl before we go to bed since I am technically allergic to them and they make my throat itch- even when they sleep at the bottom of the bed.
One draw back to having inside/outside cats... They still wake me up at about 5:15am no matter what day it is to be let back out into the wild outdoors.  ARG

Christmas music
I love it.  But only AFTER Thanksgiving.  I have enjoyed listening to Christmas music in the car, at work, in stores, and everywhere else my life may take me.  It is pretty hard for me to get into the Christmas spirit most of the time... but Christmas carols definitely help.  Confession- Christmas is only 8 days away and I have not put a single Christmas decoration up.  Yeah- pretty sad!


My church calling
I am so thankful for the opportunity I have to work with the Young Women (teenage girls ages 12-18) in my ward at church.  It has been such a blessing.  I have been pleasantly surprised that the girls don't think I am too old to be cool yet.  PHEW.  It was seriously a fear of mine.  Actually- I had one of the girls (almost 16 years old) tell me that she wishes that I could come and hang out with her at school.  I took it as a compliment.  But seriously- I am developing such a deep love for these girls.  They are teaching me so much (like how to "shuffle"... which is the Running Man dance from the 80's but just named something else now).  I know that it was no coincidence that I was called to serve these girls.  I prayed for experiences to strengthen my testimony in our Savior, Jesus Christ and also to gain a stronger testimony of the core principles of the gospel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  I was given this job not very long after my prayers had started.


Vegas weather
So sometimes the summers can have brutal days of 110 degrees... but I will take those days for the payoff in the "winter" time.  It has been near 60 degrees and it has been FABULOUS! Since I have Seasonal Affective Disorder, the warmer Vegas weather in the winter does wonders for my moods and my well being.  I love only having to invest in a light jacket and sweaters in the winter months.  I do NOT miss the snow of Colorado and Utah ONE SINGLE BIT!  I love that the palm trees and grass (for the most part) stay perky and green for Christmas time!  


I know there are many friends and family members that read this blog.  Leave me a comment with some of the things you are thankful for.  

Thankful Thursday

Wow- I didn't realize that it had been so long since I posted!  My life seems to be getting busier and busier!  OK- let's recap the last little while with a Thankful Thursday!


Dates with my Husband
Yeah yeah- I know that I have posted about this and just worded the title different about a hundred times... but its true!  I am seriously thankful for the time I get to spend with my husband.  My work and his school schedule can get pretty crazy at times and some nights we get to see each other for about 45 minutes before we head off to bed.  So- the days and evenings when we can spend a CHUNK of time together are amazing to me!

Community Events
I have really been feeling a sense of community lately.  It might be because I was given some responsibilities at work which include getting our company "out" in the community more.  So community events have been a little more important to me.  But that aside- it is really awesome to see folks rally around each other for a common goal or cause. 
We recently went to the annual Santa Run 5K here in Las Vegas.  We went to watch this time, but I definitely think that we will actually participate next year.  There were over 4,000 Santas who ran for charity.  I think we broke a world record of most Santas in a single place too.  That's awesome.  It was fun to see all the human and K9 Santas that chilly morning (well chilly for Las Vegas.  It was a cool 40 degrees with a slight wind... bbrr).

Humor
I could be wrong, but I think I am kind of funny.  I mean- I know I am not the funniest person on the planet... but I think I am pretty dang close to it.  KIDDING... sort of.  But anyway- I can appreciate funny things.  I love to laugh.  There were a couple of funny things that happened to me the last little while.

First- a text.  I was texting back and forth with Harrison about some stuff and I was mentioning my sister, who's name is Charnae.  My phone auto corrected her name to GARBAGE!  I about died with laughter.  I had tears running down my face because I was laughing so hard.  I promise I don't think my sister is garbage... just my phone.

I have a co worker who wears wigs to work.  It is a good idea when you really think about it.  You just pop it on and you have a whole new look and if you don't like it... just take it off and you are back to normal.  Well I took a turn with the wig.  I thought it was hilarious!  I am not a "bangs" kind of girl.  When I get them... I end up regretting it about 4 hours later.  What do you think?  Hilarious or not?

Harrison thought I looked like Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction.  A couple of the girls at work also thought that.  I can see it.  But I don't know if I am ready to make the humorous move to bangs quite yet.

New Jewelry
Harrison asked me the other day if I ever wanted new jewelry.  We had just viewed about the million-th commercial for diamonds and jewelry on tv during the program we were watching.  I told him what I thought.  He took my advice and I got a beautiful new ring last night after our breakfast for dinner at IHop.  He is a good egg.

I know this is kind of an obscure Thankful Thursday.  It is more of an update rather than a thankful post... but- I have to multi-task on this one.

I hope you are all well. 

Craft Night and other thoughts

I decided I would get some housework done this evening.  It got as far as getting the living room cleaned up.  I have had some company though... 
Garth Brooks, John Michael Montgomery, Randy Travis, Sammy Kershaw, and Tim McGraw have kept me company on my Garth Brooks Pandora station this evening.  I really like the station!  I think I found the trick to Pandora.  As long as you don't hit "like" or "don't like" the station will play stuff that actually pertains to your station and actual likes.  If you start fine-tuning the station- it starts adding crap into it.
Also, the kitties have been keeping me company.  They are quite happy that we are home I think.  They are both laying next to me and purring away.  They didn't come home for a while last night and today and we thought that they might be in the pound or dead... but they showed their little faces finally.  


So I didn't post about this... but I am now.  On Saturday night we had CRAFT NIGHT!  Girls Only!  It was super fun.  My sisters, mother, and I pulled out the glitter, scissors, paper, and glue and got our creative juices flowing.

It was seriously so much fun.  I think my mom will be vacuuming up glitter for the next month!  It was EVERYWHERE!!!  I am so thankful for family who likes to craft (or doesn't like to craft but does it anyway).


OH- this is a funny video!  My baby sister, Audrey finally recognizes Harrison and I.  She has been pretty afraid of us up until this last trip.  I think it finally clicked in her 2 1/2 year old brain that we were family and not just a couple of weirdos who came to mom's house every now and then.  ANYWAY- one of the nights we were there she was playing and laughing with Harrison.  She decided that Harrison was HER Harrison!

She is a silly girl!  She is growing up with a funny personality.