Miller Milestones

I Feel Pretty

2011-12-28T18:20:00.002-07:00

Since around the time I turned 15, I've had a fascination with physical beauty, both in magazines, and on movie screens. I have spent thousands of dollars trying to achieve it, and yet, I will never consider myself a great beauty. I am not leading lady material. If a person were to ask me to rate my looks on a 1-10 scale, I would set my "10" standard to Kate Beckensale or Alessandra Ambrosio, then put myself somewhere around 6, with a generous 7 if I was at my glamorous best. My youth and slender physique account for most of my rating, though on some days my acne-riddled face brings my rating down to a 5.

A couple months ago, my little family of four went on a week-long cruise to the Bahamas. No internet access, no TV (not that I watch much, anyway), no magazines displayed in checkout lines. Just me, my family, and whatever books I had loaded onto my Kindle.

When we got home, I realized something fascinating. I felt amazing about my looks. Acne flare-ups, crazy new hair color (black), uber pale skin and all, I was feeling beautiful.

Part of that was probably the very complimentary Bahamians. I can't even count how many times strangers at the ports said they found me beautiful. (Mostly women.) Many complimented my clothes or hairstyle. One even gasped, then exclaimed that I am a beauty. Several minutes later, she said, in a tone of awed incredulity, "I mean it. You are very beautiful." I think I need to move to the Bahamas for a couple years. Though I'd probably return with the biggest head you've ever seen. If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend the Bahamas for your next vacation.

Another factor which I'm sure contributed, was the fact that the cruise ship had very average looking people. Big, small, old, young, smiley, dour, dark, light... normal. Same with the ports we visited. Never on our journey did we come across an Angelina Jolie, Katherine Heigl or Captain America.

If I were to adjust my 1-10 scale to only include the population of our ship, I would be ranked at a solid 8, or possible 9. If I'm not comparing myself to the super-powers of beauty, in all their photoshopped glory, I actually feel fairly confident in my looks.

Let me make one thing clear: I do not feel that the "looks rating" I would assign to myself or anybody else has a single thing to do with their value as an individual. In regards to myself, I feel I have much more to offer this world than an outer package, specifically my intelligence, wit, charm and warmth.

So why allow myself the fascination with looks? Because I do think they're important. I am a busy person, and for the most part, so is everybody else. We're all going through our lives in a sort of self-focused bubble. When we do take the time to "unwrap" a person's outer appearance enough to see her inner self, we will almost always find a lovable person. But with all the people bumping into our bubble, we will never have time to unwrap them all.

In the first fleeting moments of seeing another person, we are faced with the decision of either unwrapping her to see the inner self, or to go about with our day. Some people have personalities which are so effervescent, we can feel them bursting out of their outer package, and we want to know them know them whether they're wrapped in gold or plain brown paper. Other times we base our decision on if the outer package appeals to us, because, at first, that is the only information we are given.

Being a person with a strong drive to be liked, I do my best to boost the odds of being liked by everybody. Family, Friends, Strangers. Looking a certain way won't necessarily make me likable, but it probably gives more chances to show what my inner-self is like. Not to mention extra self-confidence, which makes one more outgoing, courageous and vivacious when meeting new people.

I began this post with the intention of pointing out that perceptions of physical beauty can be warped by over-exposure to the photoshopped, perfectly coiffed and made-up celebrities in the media, but in the end, I felt the need to justify my perspective on looks in general. So, while perhaps not perfectly coherent, you have now been treated to a glimpse of my inner self.

Slacker?

2011-10-12T23:08:00.001-06:00

I will eventually post all about Europe. We'll just say: It was freaking rad.

Since we've been home, I've completed two triathlons, spent a week in Vegas, went camping at Lake Powell, moved our business into an actual office, hired two new employees, developed better web features for wallwritten.com, breathed the same air as Taylor Swift, booked a cruise to the Bahamas, taught a Photoshop class, developed new addictions to Pinterest and Goodreads, hosted a Pinterest party, and read about two bagillion books (or maybe 25).

Yet when people ask, "What have you been up to lately?" my mind totally blanks and I think, uh, I just work all day long, then come home and chillaxe with the kids. "Not much."

But here's the breakdown:

Triathlons: each race I've done I've gotten progressively slower than the previous one. It's because I haven't been training. Every once in a while, if I feel particularly motivated, I'll go to the gym. But not consistently enough to actually improve.

However, I have picked up a great tip: When doing the run, make a little joke to every body you pass (or passes you), and eventually you'll find somebody who you can keep pace with, and chat with. Ice broken, you will now have a running buddy. Use this tip wisely. Some people do not want a chit-chat buddy. Keep this in mind. If your newly acquired buddy seems to be reciprocating your conversational mad-skills, then it's probably a match made in triathlon heaven. If not, just keep running and cracking jokes until you meet your match.

Las Vegas: David and I drove to Las Vegas to attend Photoshop World with my Dad and brother, Joe. I learned so much, not the least of which is where to learn more about Photoshop. I only wish I had known about all these resources when I first started using Photoshop.

While in Vegas we discovered the most fantastic restaurant, called: Off the Strip: Just Real Food, which was seriously amazing. Next time you find yourself in Vegas, it's worth a side trip. The service and food were both outstanding.

Lake Powell: After our most recent triathlon (which was in St. George), we drove through Zions to Lake Powell for a couple nights of camping and lake-water fun. Natalie joined us, and we had a blast with not much more than two tents, a couple of jet skis, and a tube. The kids were covered in sand and happy most of the time. The first night a few drunken idiots kept us awake at all hours of the night, but the second night was better. We took turns riding the jet skis and the tube, and only capsized once, much to Kiera's displeasure.

Due to a shortage of sunscreen, Natalie and I sported matching sunburns on the way home.

David almost drowned our new car. It was scary. But he didn't. So we're all good.

An Actual Office: After a whirlwind courtship we found our new office building and moved in very soon after deciding that we needed to move out of the basement. So far everything is working out perfectly. In fact, it's all been so great that I keep having that feeling that it must be too good to be true. Although, to be honest, I feel that way a lot, and it just seems like my life is full of really fortunate circumstances.

On the other hand, I miss having my work computer at home, because I used to get a lot of really high-quality work done after the kids went to bed. Now I just read and relax instead. It feels lazy and wrong. I'm not sure how long this can last... we'll probably get a home computer soon to remedy the situation.

Hiring New Employees: We posted an ad to find people to work at Wall Written, and had loads of applicants. Sometimes I am surprised that people would apply for a job which lists: "Grammar and Spelling Skills" and "Attention to Detail" as required traits, then misspell words and use crappy grammar in their application. Fools.

However, we did get enough good applicants to conduct 15 interviews. This took forever and was interesting in that some people were fantastic, and others were definitely not impressive. After being the interviewer, I have learned so much about how to be interviewed. Too bad I can't really put that knowledge to good use.

Better Web Features: David and I have been developing a new and improved Custom Design Tool, and were able to release it last month. Plus we've been crazy-busy making newsletters and programing some back-end tools for our employees to process orders more efficiently. Sometimes I wish I could spend all my time designing new stuff, but these are pretty important tasks, too.

Taylor Swift Concert: My one celebrity idol, my Tay-Tay, Taylor Swift, performed in Salt Lake City last month. I went with Natalie, and we had seats in the very back row, the furthest away from the stage you can possibly get. None-the-less, this was absolutely the best concert I have ever been to. The crowd was seriously insane, and it was contagious.

Cruise to the Bahamas: We're counting down the days. This will be the kids' first cruise, first time on a plane, first time to Florida, hell, their first time east of Wyoming. I told James that this was his chance to prove his über-helpfulness, which will, in turn, make going on trips with mom and dad much more likely. We'll see how it goes.

Photoshop Class: I decided to teach a beginners Photoshop Workshop, which consists of four, two-hour classes. So far I've taught one of them. I think it was pretty dry, since I was just covering the very basics, but hopefully the next class will be more interesting. We had eight students, of which I am related to more than half.

Addictions to Pinterest & Goodreads: pinterest.com is a website where you can pin photos from anywhere on the internet, onto 'boards' - which you can categorize however you like. It's one of those things that after discovering for the first time, you know you'll be hooked for life.

goodreads.com is a site I've been told to use lots of times, but wasn't really interested until I expressed to a neighbor that my typical method of book finding (going to the library's romance section and choosing at random) hasn't been yielding satisfying results. She pointed out that I could use goodreads to get suggestions based on my individual reading preferences. I guess I always thought it was a way to see what people you know are reading, and I didn't feel that my tastes are exactly in-line with my friend's. But it's more like the Pandora of reading: Oh, you like this? You'll probably like this. I now have several books on hold and am looking forward to my next trip to the library.

Pinterest Party: Pinterest has a plethora of craft ideas, yummy food, hairstyle and beauty tips, and other fancy stuff that just makes you want to be creative. So I got together with all my sisters and cousins who live nearby, and we made things based on Pins we've been wanting to make. It was fun, and a little experimental, but we'll definitely do it again, and soon. Any takers?

Reading: Have I mentioned I'm a reader? Because I am. I spend most evenings reading, and often continue into the wee hours of some mornings. What do I read? I really couldn't say. Lots of less-than-memorable romance novels. Why do I continue to read romance novels if I don't actually like them? Because every once in a while, I come across a gem of a book that renews my love of romance. Do I need to branch out? Absolutely, yes. I'll let you know how it goes with all my new Goodreads recommendations.

Today I took the kids to the mall and combined retail therapy with spending time with my children. The retail therapy becomes less potent when you do it this way, but I felt like the kids had a fun time hanging out with their mother in her natural habitat. Plus we got their Halloween Costumes (Ariel and Captain America), and a few fun outfits for me and Kiera.

At one point, a young shop manager guy told me that my kids are "awesome." But the best moment for me was when I tried on a cute maxi-dress, and the kids went nuts over it, raving over how beautiful I looked. It's times like these that make me appreciate that being a mom, even a less-than-busy one, can be one of the most fulfilling accomplishments of all.

So am I a slacker? Maybe. and sometimes I look at my neglected blog and think I must be. Then I think back and ask myself: why? what's been keeping you away from the blog? and you know what? I think it was all worth the wait.

Eurotrip Part Two: Portugal

2011-06-13T10:09:00.003-06:00

At the end of day 5 we arrived in Faro, took a taxi to our hotel, and crashed. We got one of those hotels where you share a bathroom with a few other people, but we never noticed, since we only stayed one night.
Faro was a quirky little city. We didn’t have anything planned there, though, so we were just going to take the train to Lisbon right away. Except we missed our train. That’s when I made the rule that we were never to miss a train again. (Which we managed to follow.)
To quell my irritation, David took me to a salon to get a manicure. Smart guy.
When we arrived in Lisbon (it was evening by then) we met our host couple, Ana and Joao. They were so warm and gracious! Ana fed us homemade soup, bread, cheese, and pastries. Then she gave us a map and told us all the places to see in Lisbon, plus how to get around. I swear we got so much out of our single day there, simply because of her guidance.
So that night we washed our laundry, (remember, guys, we were living out of our backpacks), and slept on an air mattress in a guest bedroom.
The next morning we took the tram, then the ferry, into the city center. Breakfast at the famous ‘Pastries of Bethlehem’, followed by a visit to the monastery, and walking around the local monuments.

David dropped one of my luggage locks into this pond. The scoundrel.

After that we had lunch, did a little window shopping, then made our way to the Castle of St George.

The view of the city from the castle was incredible. You can see in the distance Portugal’s own version of the famous Christ the Redeemer Statue.
The entire time we were walking through, a guitarist was busking in the courtyard of the ruins, so we were serenaded the whole tour. Since his music had a lot of Spanish influences, it made the experience really peaceful and lovely.

Our Serenading Guitarist

This sign was around the corner from a little stall built onto the outer wall of the castle. It made me giggle.

After seeing the castle, we took a ride up a kind of elevator in the middle of the city. The line was long and the wait was criminal, but while we were just hanging out, we realized that we would need to get on a train that night to Madrid.

So that night was spent making a mad-dash back home, packing, saying goodbye to our hosts, mad-dashing back into the city, and missing the only train for the night. (We didn’t buy the tickets, though, so I don’t think it counts as missing a train.) Then we had to tuck our tails between our legs and ask our hosts to take us back in for the night. Which they did, and were super kind about, as well.
We took a shower (yes, together, but to get clean, not dirty) which started out great but turned icy cold really soon. I had to get clean, though, because it would be a couple days before we would have access to another shower, so we had to be tough.
The next day we brought our back-packs with us into the city, and put them in a locker at the train station. We then bought tickets for our train to Madrid, pulled ourselves together, and made our hotel arrangements for Spain. Whenever we had internet access, we would be trying to coordinate our couchsurfing requests.

We wandered around the new part of Lisbon for a while, then visited their famed aquarium.

After seeing the aquarium, we wanted to find a restaurant which offered “Bacalhau” which is salted, dried codfish that we had been told was “the” most popular dish in Portugal. While we were fully expecting it to be nasty beyond all reason, we really wanted to try some before we left Portugal.
So we were guided to this restaurant, by a local woman who was über helpful and beyond sweet. The bacalhau was actually really tasty, and we tried “the best chocolate cake of the world” as well. Which was good, but not quite up to its name, if you ask me.

We boarded our train to Madrid in the evening, and David and I were able to sleep in the same room, but in bunk beds. We had a sink in our room, but the toilets were shared by the whole car. It was kinda’ fun to sleep on a train, but I didn’t sleep soundly at all.
The next morning we arrived in Madrid. I’ll write all about the Spain portion of our trip in my next post.

Part One of the Euro Trip: London

2011-05-31T11:23:00.001-06:00

David and I went "Backpacking through Europe” which does not have anything to do with camping, even though it sounds like it. We started the trip in London, then flew to Portugal, next took a train to Spain, then France, then back up to London for a week.

We did something called “Couchsurfing” which is where we were hosted by local volunteers who let us sleep in their homes and see their cities from a different perspective. (It’s free. and really cool.)

We arrived in London tired from staying up all night before traveling for 19 hours, and met our first host, Christopher, a Canadian who’s been living in London for six years, the past four of which he’s lived on a narrowboat. We met him at his boat, sat and talked for an hour or so, then started falling asleep where we sat. So he suggested we call it an early night, and he would see us in the morning, as he’d be going out dancing until late.

We conked out immediately, then woke up several hours later, walked to the nearby Indian take-away and brought home dinner. We went back to sleep and slept like babies for the rest of the night.

The next morning we decided to make our way into Central London (we had been staying on the Grand Union Canal in Northeast London). We wandered through London and visited the National Portrait Gallery.

Buskers performing Pachelbel’s Canon in Covent Garden

We then saw the musical "Love Never Dies" which made me cry. It’s the sequel to “Phantom of the Opera” I can’t say I loved it, but it was extremely well done.

After the show we wandered around some more, found somewhere to eat, then made our way back home.

The next day, (Day 3) was spent boating down the Grand Union Canal, through the locks, and to Regent’s Canal. We were able to cruise through Regent’s Park and see the city from a completely unusual perspective.

Above is a photo of Christopher, our host. He gave us some steering lessons and really allowed us to experience the cruise as participators, instead of spectators. It was incredibly fascinating.

We then had dinner in the city (Italian, but it wasn’t really great), followed by complete exhaustion.

Day 4 in London was spent with Pop, my friend from the first time I came to London. He took David and me to some of the Sunday Markets, which were really very fun and great retail therapy. I bought a couple of great dresses, but because they were so poufy, we had the shop owner hang onto them until we came back through. (No way were we going to lug them all through Europe)

We ate spicy Thai for lunch; quick stop in Camden, then on to La Crêperie de Hampstead (melted chocolate, banana and rum. Yum Yum).

The next day, (Day 5) we took Christopher to breakfast, then hopped on a train to Liverpool, which is in north-west England. We slept most of the way there, and then took a flight from the John Lennon Airport to Faro, Portugal.

I’ll continue the Portugal portion of our trip in my next post.

Whirlwind

2011-05-28T17:56:00.000-06:00

So where do I begin?

We went to Disneyland for a week.

David did a triathlon in Las Vegas on the way back home.

The next week, David and I went backpacking through Europe. For three weeks.

A week after getting home, we both did a triathlon in Saint George.

It's been a week since then, and I still don't feel caught up - in home life and at work.

So while I'd love to catch up on the blog, and write a detailed synopsis of each of these fantastic events, I just can't see it happening until I've done my laundry and organized my house.

So I love you. I'm thinking about you. I'll see you when I can.

Shanghaied

2011-02-28T13:07:00.002-07:00

The flight to Shanghai was really comfortable. I was in what’s called “World Traveler Plus” which is a class between coach and business class. The leg room was great (though I felt guilty David wasn’t able to enjoy it), the seat reclined and had a leg rest, the TV was nice, speakers were provided, and the food was tasty. I was able to catch a short nap, but read most of the flight. (Notice-I did not talk to anybody around me. It is indeed possible for me to be surrounded by people for 10 hours without talking. Proud of me? You should be.)

Dave and Holly Poppell are the parents of my best friend from middle school, Barbara. The Poppell’s are hilarious, warm and outgoing. I used to spend a great deal of time at their house, back when I lived with my father in Shanghai, when I was in eighth grade. They had always been so open and caring, so when we decided to visit Shanghai, they were the first people I thought of seeing. When we mentioned we were coming to town, they offered to let us stay at their place, which tended to have a very open-door policy even 10 years ago.

When I arrived at the airport, Dave Poppell, was there to pick me up and drive me home. He got me settled, and fed me lunch, then let me to take a nap for a couple hours. When I woke up we drove back to the airport to pick up David. We then joined Holly for dinner at a Mexican restaurant near their home. When it was clear David was about to nod off, we came home and went to bed.

We had jet lag, and woke up at 3am first day. (The crazy dog that lives with them didn't help, as she was literally knocking on our door at 3am.) Later in the morning we wandered through CareFour to get a concept of pricing. We got a couple’s massage for $84 at a local spa. I fell asleep during, and we came home right after and slept for 6 hours. Now that's what I call relaxing. At that point I woke up for a quick Shanghai lesson from the Poppell’s and a bowl of cereal, then went back to bed for the night. Jet lag officially kicked, we woke up at 8:30am.

We spent the second day shopping at the Ki Ji Guan (Ker Gee Guan) which used to be hua ting lu – my most favorite place on earth. Now, it just stressed me out, worrying that I was getting “had” and arguing with the crazies. (Did I mention the lady who kept yelling “Woman! Woman!” then marched over and grabbed my arm, and dragged me back to her shop to finish haggling?)

The third day was a chillaxe day. We stayed in until the evening when we took the subway to see the Chinese Acrobats. The show was outstanding, and I was happy to see David being so impressed. We got to try an amazing sweet potato, (sold by a vendor outside the subway station) which made me just want to have one every single day before we got back home. Unfortunately, it turned out to be my one and only street-sweet potato, and I’m still craving more.

On day four, the Poppells were off work, so they took us to the Yu Yuan Gardens to do a little shopping, a lot of sightseeing, and a fair amount of dumpling eating. Then Holly took us around Pudong, to show David the bund; then down to Gubei, so I could show him the house I lived in. I couldn’t get over my shock when we found out it had been demolished… the entire complex we lived in is gone (which is weird, because it was so new and beautiful).

After that, we went to buy some more jewelry (a girl can never have too much, right? Not to mention, the prices were ridiculously cheaper than in the States) followed by dinner at a sort of Pub called the Shanghai Brewery. Funnily, they had a sort of nursery room in the back for little kids to play in, and a kids menu.

After dinner, we all went to the “Bottle Opener Building” where the new Park Hyatt is. It’s currently the tallest building in Shanghai, but I was pretty unimpressed. They built it right next to the Jin Mao Tower, which, I think, is elegant and stately and beautiful. But the Bottle Opener Building is gaudy and garish and, as far as I’m concerned an eyesore. But we went inside where they had some pretty interesting sort of exhibits, and the view was really spectacular.

Day five was a Sunday. Dave Poppell took us down to my old school (which has been completely changed- they added so many buildings), and I was able to show David where I used to go to class and eat lunch during one of the best years of my life. Then we drove out to one of the water villages, and bought some fun souvenirs. We tried KFC there, which wasn’t too bad, except the mashed potatoes tasted ‘off’. Then we dashed home so I could pretty up for a date with David.

We went to Cucina, a restaurant near the top of the Grand Hyatt, where Daddy used to take us for special occasions. I was dying to show David the roasted garlic to spread on the bread, and was not disappointed. The chicken I ordered was delightful, and the pasta David got was not bad, but not heavenly. After we ate, David ordered a banana/mango gelato, and I ordered some hot chocolate.

The sixth day we went out to a Brazilian restaurant, which wasn’t really amazing, but was really expensive. Then we hopped in a taxi towards the Ki Ji Guan so I could do some more shopping, but in route I realized that I’d left my purse at the damned restaurant. *DAH!* So we turned around and were able to get it back safe and sound (even the $200 inside), then did the shopping as planned.

David was able to haggle some on his own, and he bought himself a silk robe, and a ski outfit (snow pants and a jacket). He actually found this enjoyable, which I was glad for, so he could see what I liked so much about bartering. I bought eight silk robes, some more jewelry, a table cloth, and a sweater. Then we took a taxi home.

Day Seven was a Tuesday. We took the high-speed train to Hangzhou, (thankfully, Dave Poppell helped us get to where we needed to go) then took a taxi to meet our business contact there. We discussed vinyl and the possibility of them manufacturing vinyl for us, and when our business was finished, Victor and Ting invited us to lunch. We went to a fairly nice Chinese restaurant, where Victor ordered the food, and David and I were good sports. In all honesty, though, I have to say everything was delicious. Even the fish with its head still attached.

After lunch, Ting took us around Hangzhou, specifically to the “West Lake” which, apparently, is to Hangzhou, what the Statue of Liberty is to New York, or what the Golden Gate Bridge is to San Francisco, or the Great Wall is to Beijing. So even though I’d never heard of it before, I was assured that all the places I went were actually quite famous.

Ting was an adorable little Chinese woman who spoke English fairly well, and was full of compliments. At lunch she told me how cute I am, at the lake she told me how much she likes me, and in the taxi ride back to the train station, she told me she wished I lived in Hangzhou and wouldn’t have to leave, because now we’re such good friends. Then she insisted on two hugs goodbye (both from me) and helped us board the train back to Shanghai.

From the train station in Shanghai, we were able to board the subway, which took us right to the tailor’s to pick up my new coat. It’s beautiful, although a bit too large. The coat is a cream-colored wool-cashmere blend, lined with blue silk. I love the style of it, and it’s incredibly warm. Now if I can only manage to keep it clean!

Our last day was another chillaxe day. We slept in, and read. Then I took a bath and David went out to hunt for some pizza. He brought it home with a big bottle of Sprite, which I hope to avoid for the next ten years of my life, and we ate, and then we napped. That night we ordered Thai food, which we ate with Holly while we all watched the Big Bang Theory, a hilarious TV show about some socially retarded physicists.

We stayed up late packing, and arranged it so I only had to tote a backpack and one suitcase, while David had to check in two suitcases, plus has one big carry on as well as carrying on his backpack. I know that’s completely unfair, but was going to be traveling so much longer than he did, not to mention I had to get myself and my luggage from JFK to La Guardia during my eight hour layover in New York.

To be honest, I spent my flight to London hoping for a freak snowstorm in New York that would keep me in England for at least another two days. But at the same time, I was pretty exhausted, and ready to be home. I missed the kids like crazy, and had lots of work to catch up on. Plus, I missed my wonderful bed.

On the flights to London, and to NYC, I sat next to a lovely woman from California named Nannette. She had, interestingly enough, also been one of the British Airways Face to Face winners. We talked and laughed and told stories about our trips. When we landed in NYC, she offered to let me stay at her hotel for a nap before I had to make it to La Guardia. I gratefully accepted, and was able to take a (much needed) shower and have a quick sleep. Then I took a taxi to the airport, where I ate a very healthy chocolate pastry for breakfast, and boarded my flight to Chicago without incident.

My layover in Chicago was very short, so I ran from the landing gate to the departure gate as quickly as I could, then it turned out that my flight was slightly delayed, and I didn't actually have to do my mad-dash. But I was able to sit next to a nice guy from Logan while we waited for the flight. He was coming home from National Guard training in South Carolina. We chatted a bit until we boarded. I was sitting next to a cute blond girl from Chicago who was coming to Utah to ski. We had a little small talk, and then I read for the rest of the flight.

When I got home I was so happy to see the kids and to hold them. They were adorable, and Kiera's speaking abilities had improved like crazy. We drove home and I still haven't completely unpacked, but I'm making a little progress each day.

Operation: Bucket List - Mission: Go to England

2011-02-19T12:19:00.004-07:00

You may remember the free trip I won to Shanghai, passing through NYC and London. Because I was going to be on my own in London, I was hoping to hook up with a group of other winners of the contest. So didn't make any plans - as I wanted to be flexible. Knowing I didn't want to end up alone, I made a decision early on the first day that I would be very open to meeting people. So I resolved to make eye contact and smile with nearly everybody I passed, and to start conversations with anybody I was sitting next to.

On my flight to NYC I was sitting next to a lovely New Yorker named Matthew. He works in the music industry as a producer/engineer. Very funny and engaging. He’s Jewish, but not a very strict Jew. Originally from San Francisco, and moved to NYC after college (in Michigan). I think he was in his late 20s, and he definitely was a super nice and charismatic guy BUT- I didn’t get a wink of sleep.

We arrived in NYC at 6ish, and I went to the loo to change my clothes, then got my luggage and hiked to the correct terminal and started my breakfast. Unfortunately, the high heels I thought were so comfortable in San Francisco were really painful after walking for ages whilst lugging heavy bags. When I got to the British Airways lounge, I had a tiny breakfast and chatted with a New Yorker named Lev. He’s 27, and owns a cupcake chain in NYC. Cool stuff. (Also, did I mention he is Jewish?) The guy had a razor sharp wit. When I mentioned I was from Utah, he paused, nodded and “ah”ed, then said “So are you a member of any cults or anything?” and the way he asked it you could completely tell he was being facetious – I threw my head back and laughed a very surprised laugh. We talked a few more times through-out the conference, you could almost say he was part of my posse.

After that I met lots and lots of people, but didn’t sit down to have a long chat with anybody until John, one of my seat-mates on the flight. He’s older (65ish), and had spent some time in the 70’s living as an ex-pat in Japan. We had some fun stuff to talk about, but his business was really not related to me (library computer stuff), and I felt my eyes glazing over a couple times from his technical descriptions. Also probably due to exhaustion, as this would typically be the middle of my regular night, at this point. I really liked him, though.

While we were talking, Aron came into our row. He told me I was in the wrong seat, and that we would need to switch (as we were in the middle section, he walked around to the other side through one of the galleys.) When he got to the other side, he realized I wasn’t actually in the wrong seat, he had just read it wrong. Poor guy felt terrible, so I just said not to worry about it, I was fine in my new seat. Once the plane was fully loaded, John decided to move up a row, as there were a few empty seats, and we were able to be more spread out.

Aron and I talked the entire flight. He’s from London, although his parents immigrated there from … the Middle East? I think his dad was Pakistani, but his mom might have been English. I’m not really sure. He’s, by blood, a half Jew, but he doesn’t follow any religion. He’s 45, married with 2 kids (12 and 9), and has spent much of his life traveling.

I felt very kindred to him. He was smart, funny, and full of knowledge; giving me history lessons about Europe, showing me the geography of Great Britain, and cluing me in on some of the local lingo. He seemed very well-read and cultured, and very charismatic as well. When it was brought up that I didn’t know what I would be doing the whole time I was in London, he said “Well, I can entertain you on Friday. My brother’s having some kind of party at Kings College, where he’s a lector.” He then mentioned he wouldn’t be free for the rest of the time, because this visit was a chance for him to spend time with his mum, who has cancer, and just started chemotherapy.

When the plane landed, we separated, and I found my way to the hotel room, with only half-an-hour to change for the evening cocktail party. I really wanted to shower though, so of course, I was a half-hour late. I wore 6 inch heels, a black and white cocktail dress, and had my hair done up in a curled pony-tail. My makeup was fixed up, and I felt great, though I worried I might be over-dressed.

When I came down stairs, I wandered into the crowd and spotted Lev. He complimented my dress, introduced me to sweet, unassuming Philip, (who also complimented the dress) and then a woman came up behind me and let me know I had left the top 3 inches of my zipper down. She helped me with it, and we chatted a bit as well. I really liked her a lot, but I can’t remember her name, now.

Finally I went searching for Aron, and found him near the kitchen, poaching the canapés as they came out the door. He gave me a once-over, followed by a sort of surprised, appreciative “wo-o-ow, you scrub up very well, Emily.” which didn’t come across as eager. More like the way you would say it to a niece or sister. We chatted a bit, when I was interrupted by Christopher. He talked to me for a while, gave one of those “that’s some dress” comments (now, I feel inclined to say that it was a modest dress. No cleavage showing, knee-length, and covering my shoulders). I think I may have been one of very few young, cute women… maybe there were five of us out of 250, so perhaps it just made me a novelty.

Christopher is attractive in his way, and really outgoing. He had made some reference to Star Trek while standing next to me, and I laughed, so I guess made us friends, as he talked to me briefly several times throughout the event. I also think he was one of the presenters at the conference in NYC, which I missed, and that he was giving people business advice as a sort of perk, so maybe he was well-known within the group.

While we’re chatting, we were interrupted by an older guy, name starts with B. I guess Christopher was on his way to meet B when he spotted me and had kept B waiting a bit. Christopher says “I’m so sorry, I got distracted” and gestures to my person, a sort of sweeping motion from feet to face. Wow. Talk about feeling objectified. Then B gives the slimiest once-over I have ever experienced and says “Well I can see why.” and compliments the dress. Christopher abandons the conversation and I’m left with “B”, talking about working in a news room, which was actually pretty funny and interesting, but I just couldn’t get over that first impression, and kept looking for a way to get away from him.

Finally I spotted Aron again and excused myself. When I reached him, he introduced me to a lovely young woman (one of the 5 of us, if you recall) whom he had promised to introduce me to on the flight because “she had wanted to go to Shanghai as well, but in the end she wasn’t able to. AND she’s a girl, so you two should get on nicely. There are two things in common right there.”

Her name was Kristi, she was really beautiful, and the first thing she said to me is how when Aron pointed me out to her, saying he was planning on introducing us, she had said “The pretty one?” and that compliment coming from her felt more powerful than all the men’s combined. I liked her very well, of course, and hope to be able to keep in touch with her in the future. She said that when she does get around to Shanghai, that perhaps I could come as well. Even if it was only a passing comment, the idea does hold its own appeal.

At that time, I was swaying a bit from the high shoes and exhaustion, feeling rather floaty, and dying for a chair. So I sat down and was soon to be surrounded by Philip, Lev, Aron, and eventually Jill, (aka: Pretzels – another one of the 5 young attractive women). I realized then, that all of these people were Jews from NYC, and if you count the first guy I met on the NYC flight, it’s like I was some kind of New Yorker-Jew-Magnet. (Though, if you want to get technical, Aron is from London, he’s just been living in NYC for 14 years). We all stayed up until 1:30 in the morning chatting, and when I mentioned I was tired, three of the men all stood up and agreed it was time for bed.

I was out the moment my head hit the pillow, and didn’t have another thought until the wake up call the next morning. The bed was amazingly comfortable, but that may have been due to the tiredness. The bathroom was elegant and boasted a separate shower and large tub. The outlets were all British, though. I showered; dressed; put on my makeup; and blow dried my hair as well as I could, but since I didn’t have an outlet for my curler or straightener, I just left it down and pushed it behind my shoulders. I wore a professional grey dress, which I had planned to wear with a jacket, but it didn’t work as well with my hair down, so I skipped the jacket.

At breakfast I found a seat by Lev, who was sitting at a table with Pretzels, and three men who were from Salt Lake. So it seems Lev was some kind of Utah-Mormon-Magnet (this is the guy who was joking about cults). The two guys who were sitting at my right owned a company in Utah that makes custom men’s clothing. It was actually really fun to talk to them, and they made some jokes throughout the rest of the conference that I enjoyed.

When the conference was over, I met up with Aron and we agreed to pack up our rooms and meet downstairs to check out. When I got downstairs, he offered to share a cab with me, saying he would stop first at my hotel, wait while I checked in, then stop at his parents’ house to drop off his things and have a short visit, then go into the city. I was thrilled with the plan, as I was feeling more than a little overwhelmed by the process of getting into town on the very unfamiliar tube system, and also by the cost of any mode of transport.

Our taxi driver was a cockney through and through, which just seemed so perfect: the cockney cab-driver. He had been to the USA several times and had some fun stories to tell. Made all the better by his accent.

I ran into my hotel (Aron assisted with my luggage, thank goodness), and then he waited out in the cab. I checked in as fast as possible, had the front desk hang on to my luggage so I wouldn’t need to lug it to the room while the meter was running. Then ran back outside and we drove to meet Aron’s parents, Kate and Peter.

Kate was very kind and solicitous; taking my coat, letting me warm myself by the stove, offering tea and lunch and wouldn’t let me help at all. Peter sat down to chat with Aron and me at the table in the conservatory, which was an amazing glass room. Peter is 80, and works with some software that helps determine if certain metal compositions are suitable for specific jobs. He was charming and witty. I could see how the warm, nurturing mother; and the clever, world-wise father made a son like Aron.

The food was a salad made with romaine, oranges, tuna and avocado; a chicken soup; bread with nuts and berries; and earl grey tea (which was not ‘my cup of tea’, but I drank enough to be polite, I hope). The home was so picturesque and charming. The setting was perfect for my first English tea*. When it was time to go, Kate gave me a hug and kissed me on each cheek in the English style in farewell. They tried to bundle me up and she was all smiles and warmth. I was quite taken by her.
(*see bucket list item: Have a cup of tea in England)

Peter walked with us to the tube station, as he would ride part of the way with us to an appointment he had. When we got to the station, I learned I had left my wallet at the hotel in my mad dash to the cab. Aron promptly bought me a travel pass for the underground and buses, looked up the hotel’s phone number, and let me call the hotel to be sure it was safe. It was. Then he found out from them the best route for me to take to get back to the hotel from London, so I could get back safely later that night. When we got off the tube, Aron and his father gave me a quick lesson for how to get around using the tube, and Peter then took his leave.

When we got out of the tube station and I had my first look at London, I got a little misty-eyed. It felt very surreal to actually be there. I was giddy and excited and thrilled to death.

Aron walked me around the main part of London for maybe an hour or two, showing me some of the places I was planning to visit the next day, and just giving me a feel of the city. I had not dressed well, thinking we would be going straight to the party, so I was wearing ballet flats, which pinched my feet, offered no protection from the cobbled roads, and kept me cold. I was determined not to complain at all, though I knew I’d suffer blisters for it. When he noticed me shivering, he offered his scarf, which I gratefully wrapped around my neck.

After a while we walked to Kings College, where we met Aron’s brother. His name is Mark, and he was a really fun/smart/nice guy as well. Mark let me use his computer to compose a quick email to David, and then we went upstairs to attend a party with the Physics department. At this point I was a bit disappointed, thinking it unlikely to find any socially stimulating company among such a crowd. But when we arrived, Aron was very attentive to me, making sure I was never alone.

The party was some kind of tribute to beer, and one of the professors, a Frenchman (with a very outrageous accent) stood on a chair to give a toast. His toast was all about a particularly amazing brand of ale that he’d gone very far to get, because he felt it was the most wonderful kind and we all needed to try it. He mentioned that it was so good, it must have been made using dark matter (Physicist much?). And that it had 9-point-7-effing-percent alcohol. I have to admit I was laughing pretty hard.

The Frenchman got up two more times, each time progressively more drunk than the last, and gave bawdier toasts which everyone appreciated. Very funny. We talked with Mark and Aron and some eccentric cockney student. I suppose the people in attendance were a few professors and some physics doctoral students.

Then we met Pop. I didn’t really think much of him that night, simply because he was just another face in this group. Apparently he was one of the students, had just gotten back to London from a trip to San Francisco, and was seriously considering moving to California when he finished school. So we talked a bit about America, and he talked to Aron about academia, and I honestly wasn’t paying much attention to him.

When the conversation somehow came to what I was doing tomorrow, Pop said “oh I live quite close to there.” and Aron said “Oh! Maybe you can show Emily around! Do you have any plans tomorrow? No? Then you and Emily could go around London together!” Who is this guy? Taking care of hopeless tourists by conning young, naïve students into becoming impromptu, unpaid tour guides? And we don’t know this kid, not really. What if he’s a total bore, or worse, dangerous? I wanted to kick him under the table, and I would have, if we had one.

Pop looked over to me, gauging my reaction, and said sure, that he was available, and hadn’t seen much of the tourist sites himself, so it would be no trouble. I didn’t want to be rude, so I just agreed that it would be very nice of him, and that he could email me to make arrangements. I figured this way, he probably wouldn’t email me, and it’d be an easy way to let him off the hook. (Plus I didn’t have any phone service, so it was really the only possible way to reach me.)

We left soon after, Mark and Aron taking me to a fish and chips place for dinner. Then they walked me to the closest tube station, told me how to get home (Aron asked me to please take a taxi once I arrived to my ending tube station, which he felt would be safer at this time of night than a bus, even if it was much more expensive). Then he told me he would just loan me some cash, and I could send a check to him once I got back to the states. He then gave me 200 pounds, which is about $350! Then put me on the right tube. (He also kissed me on both cheeks like his mother had.)

Then in the tube, when I was most of the way to the airport I heard some music playing, and I thought how lovely to have music playing from the speakers. Then one of the guys to my left turned it off…since it was his cell phone playing music. The man between us said “thank you” when it was turned off, and I felt I needed to defend the other guy, so I leaned forward and said “oh, I rather liked it.” with a smile. So he put on another song, from Notting Hill, called She, by Elvis Costello.

I found out that the two men actually knew each other, and were pilots for Jordan Air. The one close to me was from Jordan, and since his difficult-to-pronounce name slipped my mind soon after meeting him, we’ll just call him Jordan. The other, music playing guy, was an Italian, who kept pointing out his wedding ring, as though to remind me, all-the-while putting on new songs and saying “this is just for you”. Then eventually singing along to them. We’ll call him Mario.

So Jordan was very dry and polite, but kind as well, and Mario was just cracking me up. They both had a flight the next morning, and their hotel was close to mine. When I mentioned that I was planning to take a taxi, since the bus station might be dangerous, they said, no, the station is not dangerous. I pointed out my small stature and general fragility, and they declared themselves my protectors, saying they would watch my back, and make sure I got to the right place.

Which they did, rather well, especially when we consider that they were almost as lost as I was. By the time I got to my hotel my feet were dying, I was exhausted, and still had to get online to have a quick chat with David and the kids, then went to bed.

The next morning I took a shower, which was heavenly, put on my makeup, packed up my back pack, dressed warmly and with comfortable shoes, and checked my email. Pop had actually written offering to show me around a bit. We planned to meet around noon, but my computer's battery died before we were able to decide the exact place.

I took the bus, then the tube to London, got out and wandered aimlessly a bit (perhaps I was over confident in my navigation abilities after my quick tour the night before) until I happened upon the visitor’s centre. I got on the computer and emailed Pop, who agreed to just pick me up there.

When he arrived, we did that weird double kiss thing (weird to me, normal for him), and asked a few questions at the visitors information desk. Then we took off. Of course we went in the wrong direction for a bit, embarrassing Pop, but we eventually got on track and he took me all over the place. Our first stop was Buckingham Palace, where we took a bunch of pictures, and I found out that Pop is brilliant with a camera and somehow attracts people who want their own pictures taken. He must have taken pictures for eight random strangers while we were together that day.

Me and Pop in front of Buckingham Palace

See Bucket List Item: Take a picture with a guard at Buckingham Palace

Emily outside of Buckingham Palace

For lunch we had Thai food (did I mention he is Thai?), which he ordered in Thai and showed me how to eat properly.

We rode on the top deck of one of those double decker buses, and I got to see London a bit. Next we got to see the Tower Bridge, and the Tower of London. It was closed by the time we arrived, so we took a few pictures outside.

After that, we took the bus over to St. Paul’s Cathedral (which I would have missed, except Pop noticed my interest as we drove past it on the way to Tower Bridge, and suggested we go.) We walked through the cathedral and he let me look around with his glasses on. These were quite an improvement to my regular vision, maybe even a perfect match.

We wanted to record the sound of the bells announcing the hour, so we went into a little Italian restaurant to kill some time. I wasn’t hungry yet, so we just had drinks and talked for ages. Pop turned out to be very intelligent and socially aware. He was courteous and took his job as tour guide very seriously. I tried to be as low-maintenance a tourist as possible.

Then we set out for this Crepe stand down town. The place was pretty incredible, and the crepes were amazing. (melted chocolate and banana crepes? Yum Yum.) The kid in the stall was charming, if shy, and the queue was very short, which Pop said was highly unusual. Then we wandered around London, he showed me some neat places, and eventually took me to the tube station to send me on my way. After another double kiss, I got on the tube and went back to my hotel.

I’d planned to stay up as much as possible this night, so I could work out my jet-lag by sleeping on the plane. So I had some sleep, then I wasn’t ready to go until the last minute, and I took a bus when I should have taken a shuttle, and ended up missing my flight to Shanghai. I was out of clean clothes, had nowhere to stay, carrying a bunch of heavy luggage, pretty exhausted and stressed, so everything kind of hit me at once. I started crying, even though they were able to put me on a flight for the next morning.

I ended up getting online via a pay-per-minute computer station, and spent a fortune trying to tell everybody the situation, and to see if I could find a cheap hotel, and also let Pop know, in case he’d be willing to help me find somewhere and get there (I was really nervous about carrying my heavy suitcases through the tube). He offered to let me stay at his flat, even though he only had “one single bed for a guest” which I interpreted to be, “I have a guest room with a twin bed”.

I gratefully accepted the invitation, and agreed to meet him at a tube station near his place. Getting my luggage to the tube was not too bad, and I was at the very beginning of the line, so I was able to arrange my luggage and have my first choice of seat quite easily. The struggle came when I had to make a change to the next line, and had to carry my suitcases up and down some stairs. But I managed, and Pop was at the station and insisted on carrying both my bags all the way back to his flat.

He put my laundry in his washer, settled my stuff in, and showed me around his flat. (Kitchen here; shower there; bedrooms here, here, and here; and water closet here.) “I only have a single bed for guest” turned out to actually mean: I only have one bed, which you’ll get, since you’re the guest. So he had gotten an air mattress and planned to spend the night on the floor, giving me his bed.

Then he asked if I would like him to cook dinner, or would I prefer to eat out? Did I want to sit around here and watch a film, or would I like to see more of London? I basically said I was game to eat anything, but I didn’t think I was up to more sightseeing. “Seeing a movie actually sounds very relaxing” is how I phrased it. So he suggested going out to eat, then visiting the cinema and watching Black Swan.

We went to a French restaurant where I tried brie with strawberry sauce (delectable), and duck (pretty good). We told stories and laughed – he had an awesome story about a woman (he didn’t know) who he inadvertently groped while trying to hold a door open for her. Her response? “Thank You.” Priceless.

We then saw Black Swan. Pop had an extra pair of glasses for me, and insisted that I do not talk during the movie at all. I mostly didn’t, but he didn’t love the times I did – though I thought I was hilarious.

Then we made it home and I Skyped it up with David and the kids. Pop and David were able to say hi, and Pop said he really liked David. Then I showed off my family pictures on Facebook. Pop found Kiera to be über beautiful, and said David looked “like a Hollywood guy.” (which I interpreted to mean: very handsome). Then we watched a few YouTube videos, changed into our pajamas, talked a bit more, and went to sleep.

In the morning I woke up to find Pop folding my laundry and preparing my breakfast. He'd made a healthy Special K with yogurt and prunes breakfast, which we ate, then quickly dressed and headed for the tube station, where he dropped me off with a final double kiss and well-wishes.

My impression of Pop was that he was basically a wonderful, generous person, who sacrificed the better part of a weekend to help out a complete stranger. How nice is that?

I made it through the tube transfers uneventfully, and read a book during the long ride to the airport. I arrived about four hours early (not taking any chances this time), and read some more at the terminal. I wandered the duty-free section (huge) of the airport for a while, and then boarded my plane. Success!

London was awesome. I decided I absolutely would love to live there for a couple of years. What an interesting and diverse place. And the accents! I used to be able to imitate an English accent pretty well, but after hearing all the different varieties, I've gotten all mixed up. Every person I crossed paths with was kind, if not down right amazing.

A Little Bit of Culture

2011-01-05T15:09:00.000-07:00

So now, ladies and gentlemen, I have a story that will teach you about two things pertaining to two separate countries, in an effort to broaden your horizons and make you worldly and wise.
The first thing is called Gulab Jamun (India).
and the second is called a Brazilian Wax.
Gulab Jamun is an Indian dessert made with milk balls (similar to doughnut-holes) which have been soaked in a warm, rose syrup. I crave it all the time. If you've never tried it before, add that to your bucket list. At the very least, it's an interesting experience, because it's such a unique flavor. (Rose is not something I'm used to in food.) They serve it at Indian restaurants, and it's delectable.

Sometime last year I had a Brazilian wax. I won't explain what that is, but let's just say it's a painful form of hair removal involving a very sensitive area.

When I was finished, the esthetician gave me some rose-scented oil to massage into my poor, poor skin. I told her I thought the rose fragrance reminded me of a certain dessert that I love (see above), and went home.

Later that night, my mother-in-law, Natalie and I went to a Relief Society dinner. Now, because it was cold, and I had shotgun, I was able to experience the soothing comfort that comes by sitting on a heated seat.

A few minutes later, Natalie says, "Do I smell Gulab Jamun?"

Hehe.

If You Could Go Anywhere...?

2010-12-12T22:18:00.000-07:00

So a few weeks ago I found out I won a free plane ticket to anywhere in the world, courtesy of British Airways. (I had entered into a contest a couple months ago.) What happens is I have to go to New York, (on my own dime), then they'll put me up for the night at a nice hotel. Then they'll fly me to London, and put me up for a night there. (They're hosting conferences in NY and London for each day I'm at each place.) At that point I can use my free ticket to go anywhere I want. (Then they'll send me back to NY when I'm done.)
So where did I choose to go?
SHANGHAI, CHINA - BABY!
I'm so excited. David didn't get a free ticket, so he'll be meeting me down there. We just bought the Rosetta Stone software to learn Mandarin. Hopefully I'll learn enough in time to be able to shop like I used to - and haggle like a demon. I can't wait to show David everything I did while I lived there.
DEEDLE!
I'm even excited to go to NYC and London by myself, like a grown up! Hahaha. I swear I am one. :) Although, of course, I'll miss David.
All of the details haven't been finalized, but I'll be going at the beginning of February. Yeay!

On My Own - Pretending He's Beside Me

2010-12-03T23:05:00.000-07:00

So today marks the last day of the first week that David is back at his job.

Here are my observations:
I'm worried my business has now reached it's zenith and will plateau growth-wise. Because the man has absolutely no spare time. He's on a time diet. (We're still tweaking his schedule, so I hope this will improve.)

I feel trapped in my own house. I hardly ever left home during the days when David was home - but now that he's taking our car all day, I suddenly am feeling so stir-crazy. It's funny how you don't notice something until you have to do without it.

I've gotten a lot more productive since he's been gone. To be completely honest, though, this is just me. I go through phases of productivity followed by slackerific readitude. BUT- since he's been going to bed so early, I have been, too. (Oh, not as early as him, no way. Just more early than my usual 4am) This also has helped me to wake up earlier, and then in turn, to get more done during the day.

I miss him. I've gotten used to having him around all the time. Admittedly, we haven't gone through a weekend yet, so maybe it will actually turn out to be bearable. I've been frustrated, because last night he was pretty cranky towards me. So what was only two hours of something negative, has made the last day and a half pretty crappy for me. I just still remember him as being cranky, even though that's not his usual demeanor.

James has learned to take care of himself in the mornings. David and I used to take turns waking up to take care of the kids. Since David now leaves before the kids are up, it falls to me. Since I'm a big slacker, I've rearranged the kitchen so James can now reach the milk, cereal, bowls and spoons. He knows how to pour everything, and he even does it for his sister's breakfast, too. What a sweetheart.

I actually do know how to cook. Here's another example of something we used to take turns doing: making dinner. Now it's always my job, and heating up something frozen just doesn't seem domestic enough all of a sudden. Especially since David's birthday was this week, and I baked a cake and cooked food and everything. (Oh, and it was a really good cake, too.) My mother-in-law took one look at my beautiful cake and said "See, Emily. You really do know how to cook. You just don't like to." Yes. I can cook. But I have yet to discover how to enjoy it.

We've found a financial management system that works. It's called: David does all of the finances. Emily does not look at money of any sort. Emily does not leave the house. Emily is not allowed to shop online. Tell Emily how poor we are constantly, and keep her busy with books and work.

So far, I have to say, I think I'll survive. It's not the end of the world or my marriage, and I'm glad that David seems to be enjoying Moog. If not the commute.

Seven Things Kat Does Better Than Anybody Else I Know

2010-11-14T12:18:00.000-07:00

Kat is one of my favorite people. She and I see each other a couple times a month, and have chatted it up a few times, but I honestly don't know her very well. This list is what I've been able to observe with very little opportunity, so is in no way comprehensive.

She is amazing at putting people at ease, making them feel welcome and loved. I can't even say how many times I've barged into her home at awkward moments, and she just invites me in (while wearing her beautiful bath robe) and talks with me until time runs out.
She is very impressable. No, technically, that isn't a word. But what I mean is: whenever something good happens to me, or something I'm excited about, the first thing I think is, I want to show Kat. She always is enthusiastic and excited when good things happen.
She builds people up. She's always got something kind to say, just the right thing to make your day. Even though she could potentially be very intimidating (super gorgeous, adorable house and clothes, extremely talented and creative, spiritual, well-spoken and intelligent), she uses her powers for good. Always self-depreciating and sweet, she'll make you feel like a million bucks.
She is fearless in her fashion sense. Ahem. Shaving her head? So daring. I love to see all her beautiful clothes, hats, headbands, shoes, decorations, etc. She spreads happiness and light wherever she is, and does it in such a unique way. She doesn't let trends sway her; she stands out from the crowd.
She's nurturing. She takes care of the people around her, even to the point of not meeting her own needs. I know she does it quite a bit within her own family, but more than that: she protects and comforts everyone around her. Even in her choice of profession, it seems she feels the need to protect, include, and serve. My son fell in love with her after the first time they met, and even now gets excited when he's going to see Kat. She's brilliant with kids, and will be a fantastic, playful, empathetic, hard-working mother. I'm jealous of her future children: what would it be like to be raised by such an amazing woman?
She's funny. You know when you're with Kat, you're going to laugh. Probably a lot. Her jokes range from witty to slap-stick, but are never at anybody else's expense.
She's loving. I imagine when people talk about the pure love of Christ, they mean it the way Kat does it: Non-discriminately. Completely. She seems to know the heart of a person, without having to know them well. Gives them the benefit of the doubt, and opens her arms to anyone who needs her.

Kat, I know you think I'm wrong. Of course, nobody can be all of these things, 100% of the time. And nobody expects you to be perfect. But you ARE amazing. A wonderful woman who can't have any idea of the impact you have on the people around you. Because if you knew, there would be less of those helpless, heart-sick moments of self doubt. You are incredible. And I feel fortunate to call you my friend.

Results of the M3 Competition

2010-11-08T22:43:00.003-07:00

Yeah... I lost.

I did really well for the presentation, and I'm really pleased with that, but the judges held the majority of the vote- so what it came down to, more than anything else, were the numbers. One of the judges spoke with us afterward, and said Wall Written was one of the hardest to decide on, but what it came down to, was that we didn't have a defined plan for how we would take our business from where it is now, to the million dollar mark. (She also said that she had been pushing for us, which was sweet of her.) There were so many amazing businesses and tallented women in the competition, that it would be narsisitic of me to think the judgement was unfair. Even if it is disapointing.

I have mixed feelings. Based on my presentation, I thought for sure I had it in the bag. I guess I just had built up a lot more importance in the live, 3 minute pitch, than there actually was. So when they announced the winners, I was really surprised, firstly, by a couple of who they did choose to win, and secondly, that I wasn't one of them.

Then I had to stand up for a photo-op with everybody, feeling like I was just called up there as a pity-favor. (and having to smile when I just kind of wanted to walk off with my tail between my legs and process my feelings.)

After that I had an epiphany: I did awesome! This wasn't a contest on me, personally, but my business- and I did the best I could, and was so proud of how well I did. That this competition would have no impact on my ability to make my business a million dollar company, and that I still have the power to do just that. I walked out of the room feeling like "This is fine. I'll just go home, make a million dollars next year, and be amazing."

We all went into a little "finalist (meaning, "not-winner") orientation" and were told "you're all great, with great businesses, but you didn't win and here's why..." which was pretty interesting and actually uplifting/motivating.

They did a good job turning what could potentially feel like a very painful outcome (a few women did cry), into a sort of empowerment. They said if you do break the million dollar barrier within two years, come tell us. Say: "Hey. Screw you." (Which is funny, in a way, because I think a lot of the women were feeling bitter enough to do just that. But at the same time, the woman who wants us to say that to her, didn't make the decisions at all. She's the founder of the program, and is just rooting for all of us.)

So of course I wish I won. I'm a bit surprised that I didn't, but I'm not in pain or despair over not winning. I'm absolutely happy I was able to participate, to push my comfort zone, to learn a ton (a ton!) about my business and presenting it. I fully intend to take advantage of some of the business resources Count Me In provides, and to make a million dollars in sales, so I can come back and say "Hey. Look what I did. Aren't you proud of me?" I think this whole thing was a positive experience, and I even got to buy an adorable new suit-jacket. So at the end of the day, I can't complain.

Much.

Marie Antoinette and Other Royalty

2010-10-30T12:02:00.000-06:00

Happy Halloween, Everybody. This year Kiera was a princess, and I was a queen. (James was a ninja.)

I made the mask with makeup, rhinestones, and eyelash glue, as well as that one peacock feather. If I had time, I would have lined the eye-holes with smaller rhinestones, similar to how the outer rim looks. But that would have added an extra half-hour, and David wanted to be on time. :)

Touched My Heart

2010-10-21T20:02:00.000-06:00

This evening I was watching Piglet's Big Movie with my kids. For those of you who haven't seen it, the movie is about Piglet, who decides that he's not good enough, or useful enough, or cared about, and he goes on a walk (or runs away, I wasn't paying close attention). When his friends realize he's missing, they go to his house to search for clues. They find his memory book and discover all the amazing things Piglet has done, which they had never even noticed.
At the end of the movie, they find Piglet, and throw a party in his honor, complete with new pictures for his memory book, which are showing how amazing and wonderful he is.
During this last scene, when they show all of these pictures Piglet's friends had drawn, portraying Piglet as quite the hero, James turns to me and, incredulous, says "I'm starting to cry!" When I asked why, he said in a voice full of awe, "Because it's just so cool." And with a smile on his face, he turns back to the TV while dashing the tears from his eyes.
I couldn't resist going over to his couch and putting my arm around him for the rest of the movie. Afterward, we told David about it. I think James was concerned that he'd be in trouble for crying, but you could tell David was touched. He said to James "Did it touch your heart?" to which James agreed.

Just now he climbed into my lap. I told him I was just working, so it wouldn't be very exciting. Then he said "It's exciting to see what you're doing."

I have such a sweet and amazing little person in my home. I'm so lucky that I get to be the one who is his mother.

I love you, James.

Holy Toledo, Batman!

2010-10-19T16:05:00.000-06:00

I am very excited to announce that I was chosen as a finalist for the Make Mine a Million Dollar Business Competition, taking place on October 7th, 8th, and 9th, in San Fransisco, California!

I am thrilled and so, so, SO excited. There are 20 finalists like me. We will be competing in San Fransisco to be one of the 10 winners at the event. The competition involves giving a three minute "elevator pitch" presentation in front of the judges and an audience. Yikes! Eh. 3 minutes is nothing. They should try giving a 10 minute talk in Sacrament meeting.

The woman who was reviewing my application sent an email a few days ago (before I had been officially chosen) saying:

"I am so taken with your product. The examples on your web site are lovely and thank you for the samples."

Deedle! Also- I had to have a few customers be my business references. These ladies were so kind and helpful to me, allowing these people to call them up and ask a whole bunch of questions. The first one, Holly Jackson, sent a note saying:

"GLOWING REPORT... CHECK! ;D ♥ Good luck! Let me know how it goes! "

My other reference, Mary Kay, sent this email after she was contacted:

"I just got the call. I'm so excited for you!! The lady was super nice. She seems very impressed with your business. We chatted for a about 10 mins. She wanted to know about my orders & how I found you. I told nothing but great things. I told her you were a very dedicated business owner with a determination to succeed & lots of creative plans. She said there are lots of applicants but she really likes you a lot. Please let me know how you end up doing. I myself have been a female business owner & these organizations are a wonderful help. Good Luck to you!"

Isn't that just about the nicest thing somebody could say?

I definately feel honored to have this opportunty.
And now the pressure is on.

Booyah.

Makin' Movies

2010-10-17T02:14:00.000-06:00

For the business competition I entered in last week, I needed to make an application video describing my company. So I set up my tripod, enlisted the help of my husband, and, a couple hours, tantrums and outtakes later, we have a 3 minute video.

And here are the outtakes. In the one where I was yelling at David, he had been making the hand-cutting-off-the-head "Cut" signal for a couple of seconds, and then started exaggerating it while I was trying to figure out how to wrap up. I got a little flustered, and had one of those previously mentioned tantrums. (and you thought I was talking about my kids? No. All me, baby.)

So what do the 10 winners of this contest get? Business Coaching. If I am chosen as one of the 20 finalists, I will need to give a presentation about my business in front of an audience and panel of judges, and also be subjected to the same 'coaches' that the women in the following video had to brave:

It's a little intimidating. :) But I'm excited to have had the chance to enter at all.

It's 1 am. And I Am Going Crazy

2010-10-10T01:32:00.002-06:00

Ever feel intensely overwhelmed? I sure do.

David's boss from Moog Aircraft (the company in SLC where David wrote code for flight control systems in jets) called last week to offer David's old job back. With a raise. And he wouldn't have to start for a couple of weeks.

This is good news and bad news. Good: because we've been struggling with finances, specifically relating to the business. We had to hire new employees to replace the ones who are leaving, but during this overlap period the money is tight. And the orders are slowing down. And we're going to owe a ton of taxes this year that we don't have enough money to pay. So the extra money would keep us alive and even help finance the business so it can grow faster.

So what is bad? I need David. He quit in the first place so he would be able to spend time making awesome stuff for our website and business in general. We're just now getting into the meat and potatoes of what he quit to do, and he will barely be able to finish the first big task I need of him. And there are dozens more where that came from.

With this big deadline looming, we've been frantically working on our new website, spending most of our waking hours glued to our computers and living off of frozen casseroles and slim-fast shakes. (Don't worry, we have a nanny who feeds our children.) I'm starting to feel brain-dead, and David is starting to stare, glassy-eyed, at his screen - not getting anything done.

Also- I'm applying for this business competition for woman-owned companies. The application deadline is on October 15th. That's just 5 days. A lot of the questions in the application form are daunting. (Describe the size & trends in your market... Describe your professional background and your role in your company) That last question wouldn't be so bad, except that my "professional background" consists of dropping out of high school, taking the GED, working in telemarketing, participating in a bunch of MLMs, and being a teenage mother. Sweet. Wanna hear my answer?

"When I started this company at the age of 21, I had very little professional experience. I knew that my most powerful decision would be hiring the right people, especially managers, to make up for the experience that I lack."

Booyah.

I'll let you know how it goes. I'll find out if I'm a finalist within a month. (So what do the winners get? Business Coaching, PR, possible financing, and being part of a network of fellow women entrepreneurs. All in the hopes of making the winner's company a million dollars in annual revenue. Which would be nice.)

The New Family Picture

2010-10-05T00:45:00.001-06:00

So we had our family pictures updated a few weeks ago, and my wonderful cousin (and amazing photographer), Angela Liddle, was the genius behind this photo. I seriously crack up every time I look at James' face, and I love the laughter from everybody else. What an awesome moment. A big "Thank You" goes out to Natalie, who was helping stuff my children full of skittles, keeping Kiera's hair nice, and touching up my makeup, among many things. I can't wait to get all these pictures on my photo wall!

The Music of the Night

2010-09-23T14:44:00.000-06:00

I am a night person. My days are spent twiddling my thumbs, but evening is when my brain kicks in and I really start creating. I stay up until 2 in the morning on a regular basis, because I've just gotten into my groove at 10pm, and am finally accomplishing something. Then I can't sleep, because I can't turn my brain off at night. So I read a chapter or two, or maybe watch a movie, to get out of 'work mode', and I'm fine. Unless my book starts getting extremely exciting. Then I have to stay up all night to finish it. So reading is sometimes not the safest option for relaxation.
So I finally fall asleep in the wee hours of the morning, and then wake up when my kids do, sometime between 8 and 9:30 am.
Then I spend the morning trying to stay awake and getting busywork done. And thus begins the cycle.

Beauty for Beginners

2010-09-15T23:00:00.000-06:00

So these are my two angel children. We had our family pictures taken yesterday (Thank You, Angela!) and I'm very excited to see how they turn out. To prepare, I've been spending the week experimenting with Kiera's hair.

The one thing that makes me sad about this next picture, is that I never took an "after" shot showing her curls. She actually slept a whole night with these curlers in, and she looked fabulous the next morning.

Here we're trying out mascara. I put on waterproof stuff so she wouldn't mess it up if she cried. Guess what, though? Eyeliner is not waterproof. Nor is it smudge proof. Makeup is not for little girls who throw tantrums.

This is me putting on her makeup. Uber blonde.

Kiera's new nanny is a cosmetologist, and gave Kiera her first hair cut.

And this is what she looks like now. So cute with that new hair style.

Today Kiera had her first dance class. She was such a good listener (at least she listens to somebody!).

A Pound of Flesh

2010-09-13T15:53:00.002-06:00

I gained 8 pounds! I am not pregnant, my diet hasn't changed much, and I've still been working out a couple times a week. The only major change is the frequency of my workouts, since before my triathlon I was at the gym 4 times a week. I don't weigh myself very often, so I don't know how much time has passed since I started gaining weight.

It's not really the 8 pounds that I mind. Because, let's face it: 125 pounds on a 5'4" woman is still pretty slender. It's the realization that from this point on, my weight will not stay close to 110 lbs no matter how lazy or hungry I get. That I will need to put in more than a bi-weekly appearance at the gym. Every time I take a bite of candy, I think, Eight pounds. Eight pounds. Eight pounds.

So. I'm putting this out there for the whole world as my witness: I will hit the gym 5 times this week. And I'm gonna' like it.

James' First Day Of School

2010-08-31T23:56:00.002-06:00

Today is James' first day of school! Holy cow. In some ways it feels like I just blinked as a 16 year old high school student, and opened my eyes to find that I am a mother of two with the first going into kindergarten. In other ways, it feels like I've been a mother forever, and this is the only life I've ever known.

His little sister is going to miss him so much!
But he is so ready to go. I asked if he's nervous at all, and he says "Nope. Just excited!" Here he is blowing me a kiss. I'm going to miss him, but I'm excited for him, as well.

Holy Life Transitions, Batman!

2010-08-30T00:10:00.002-06:00

So the past couple of weeks have been ridiculously crazy. Natalie and Joe are moving in a couple of months, and another one of my employees just put in her mission papers. Also- James and Kiera aren't going to daycare anymore, and James is starting kindergarten this coming Wednesday. So we've been doing some hiring: a designer, a customer service rep, and a nanny.

The Process of Hiring a Nanny:

We went to this cool website called sittercity.com, where we were able to browse through several hundred nannies in the Provo area. I narrowed it down to 20 of my favorites, sent them all emails, and arranged to have interviews with about 6 of them. The first interview was with Jacinda, a 21 year old with a bachelors in child development, who we really liked. I thought, Crap. If all of them are this amazing, we are not going to be able to chose. The next interview was with a girl in DC over Skype. Having her "on tv" really endeared her to James, and we thought she was really great, too. After 4 more interviews, each one slightly less amazing than the one before it, we ended up choosing Jacinda. Her first day is tomorrow.

James' first day of kindergarten is on Wednesday. I've already given him a haircut and bought a bunch of cool new clothes, plus he's got an awesome Transformers backpack. Yeah. I think he's ready.

Also on Wednesday will be the designer's first day. Her name is Melissa, and Susan actually found her while shopping at Roberts. She has an Associates Degree in Graphic Design, and we're pretty excited to have her. (My favorite quote of the designs she submitted for her application: "When life gives you lemons... throw them back and demand chocolate")

So right now I feel like we've been insanely busy; and yet, at the same time, it feels like we're kind of stuck in limbo for a lot of things, business, personal and parental.

Ahh. So many possibilities... so little time.

Operation: Bucket List - Mission: Learn to Wake Board - Epic Fail

2010-08-17T08:32:00.003-06:00

So last week our awesome neighbors, Kat and Travis Cook, invited us out to Utah Lake for some boating and wakeboarding action.

I got a chance to show off my new swimming suit.
Kat got to show off her glorious tan and perfect wake boarding form.

David got to show off his wake boarding mad skills.

...and I got a chance to try and try and try again. About 10 times. Never got up. BUT- the bucket list does say Learn to wake board, so I figure this counts as part of the process. :) I'm definitely not quiting. Aside from some major back pain the next day, it was awesome.

(So this is a video of my best attempt. So close! Maybe next time.)

I love Kat and Travis. It has been so fun having them next door.

Operation: Bucket List - Mission: Kiss in the Rain

2010-08-07T13:53:00.005-06:00

Earlier this week we had some beautiful summer rainstorms. So even though I had just finished blow-drying my hair, as soon as I heard the rain kick up, I suggested to David that we get "Kiss in the Rain" checked off my Bucket List.
While we were out there, he even added "Dance in the Rain" to the "done" list. I love my husband. When I was finished making my list, I asked him if he wanted to make a Bucket List as well. He said no - that he just wanted to be with me while I finish my list.

Why So Koi?

2010-08-07T12:13:00.002-06:00

The first thing we did upon arriving in San Luis Obispo was visit a shop full of pond lilies, koi fish and turtles. The kids got to feed the fish (which is neat, because you keep the food in your fist, then the fish all come to eat it right out of your hand, sucking on your skin or, rather, "giving you kisses.")
Next Up: The Rehearsal Dinner
Where James met a great beauty named 'Elle'. The girl had the good sense to play hard-to-get, and managed to keep his attention for the rest of the trip. I did find out that he manged to get a few kisses in the end.
Day 2: The Wedding
My younger brother, Erik, and his beautiful bride, Melissa, were married in a garden ceremony in her parent's back yard. The Bishop who officiated did an awesome job, I laughed and cried and felt that he was sensitive to the differing religious views of the group. David looked very handsome as the '2nd Best Man' - and I got to dance with the 4 best looking guys there. (You know: my hubby, dad and brothers). Day 3: A Pool With A View
Dad decided to heat up his amazing swimming pool so all his grand kids and most of his kids could swim with him. We had a blast, and wiped ourselves out completely.
In the evening we finished reading 'The Hunger Games', which was a very interesting book which I recommend.
Day 4: Sweet Home Provobama
Our last day was spent packing, catching a mouse, getting locked out of dad's house, and finding his koi pond overflowing. (Which reminds me of the story of my fish, Romeo - I'll post it sometime)
Then we made the trip home all in one shot. We got back in the middle of the night, so didn't bother unpacking. Of course, it has now been nearly a month and we still haven't unpacked. Bunch of lazy bums, I know.

Operation: Bucket List - Mission: Professional Massage

2010-08-07T11:55:00.003-06:00

So on May 25, 2010, I had my first "Professional Massage".

How do I still remember the date, almost 3 months later?

Because it was on my 6 year wedding anniversary, and I was able to have a "couples massage" with my husband.

What a completely wonderful way to celebrate your anniversary. I would way rather have a massage than a bouquet of flowers, any day.

It was pretty neat. They have you go into a sort of locker room to undress, where you put on a robe and some slippers. When you come out, they sit you down and wash your feet. Then they take you to a room for the massage, and have you smell some oils to pick your favorite. They leave for a minute so you can strip nekkid and hide yourself under the sheets before they come back.

An hour and a half later, as David and I were leaving, we both announced that we are now addicted to massages. Completely.

CSI: Las Vegas

2010-07-01T09:05:00.004-06:00

So I cheated the system. Does that make you feel more comfortable sharing the roads with me, or what? When I was in High School, I missed so much school. In fact, I still get nightmares about showing up to a class where I have no idea what's going on. And it wasn't just the classes I didn't like - I was an equal opportunity ditcher. Which may or may not explain why I failed Driver's Ed. Twice. The problem with that class is that the grade you get is based on attendance. It doesn't matter how well you do on the tests, or how cute you look in a car. You have to show up to pass. And Utah has this silly law requiring new drivers to take (and pass) a Driver's Ed course. When you're enrolled in such a course, you are given a temporary permit that allows you to drive with an adult. It may be a rule that the adult is supposed to be your parent, but I'm not sure, and that didn't stop me from taking advantage of having an adult boyfriend who let me drive his car.
Some time around my 18th birthday we went on a covert mission south of the border, in Arizona. I spent the drive reading the Arizona Driver's Manual. We arrived in Flagstaff, where I took a driving test, a written test, and a picture. I was handed an Arizona Driver's License, and drove back home. Myself. (Mission Accomplished.) The beauty of this plan, is that while Arizona doesn't require you to take a Driver's Ed Course, Utah will allow you to get a Utah License with nothing but a few tests and another state's license. Thus we were able to bypass the course requirement and I have been driving whenever I feel the urge since.
Interestingly enough, whenever I am with my husband, he does all the driving. So my experience is somewhat limited. Which is why, when we go on a road trip, and said hubby asks me to take over the drive so he can catch some Z's, I specify: "as long as you take over before Las Vegas." The problem with sleeping husbands, is that when you reach Las Vegas and assume this must be some other large Nevada city on the way to Vegas, they wake up and say "Holy smokes! We're here! You need to take this exit!" (That you're already passing). Then you have to navigate the crazy traffic, narrow lanes, and total unfamiliarity while trying not to die from a stress induced heart attack. Also. Both of your children want chocolate. Now. They don't care that it's mostly melted. Or that mommy's hyperventalating, and they'll be sure to yell loud enough ensure they won't be forgotten.
After several stoplights overlook inscessant begging for a Chinese Firedrill so said hubby will take over driving, he insits that this is "good for you", and you somehow arrive at your hotel in one peice.
We spent a fun night in Vegas complete with swimming, a poopy swim diaper, baths, showers, sleeping and losing the kids for a little while (which was actually a nice little break, especially since I didn't realize they were lost until they were found).
This morning we continued our drive to San Luis Obispo, begining the day by forgetting to get gas. Which we realized when we had 3 bars left (out of 20) on our gas gauge and were in the middle of a highway between cities. With 47 miles to the next town, we start feeling nervous. David keeps asking "what will we do if we run out of gas?" And I respond with upbeat things like "it sounds like an adventure!" and "we're both triathletes. One of us could just book it to the closest city." and "at least we have lots of water!" Luckily for us there was an exit at the half-way point with one gas station.
And the adventure continues.

Operation: Bucket List - Mission: Hike the Y

2010-06-23T20:25:00.006-06:00

For a date night a couple weeks ago, David had the brilliant idea of a sunset hike to the Y. Joe took the kids for a few hours so we could rush up the mountain in time to catch the sunset. It took us 30 minutes to get to the Y, and when we did, we sat near the guy serenading his date with his guitar. (Imagine hiking the whole way with a guitar. Very romantic.)It was really sweet to listen to the guitar and singing whilst watching the sunset. I think I'd like to do it again. Plus the way my bum was hurting the next day, it must have been a great work out.

If all couples had dates like this every day, nobody would ever get divorced.

Hike the Y: Check.

The Devolution of Confidence

2010-06-01T21:01:00.001-06:00

I've recently been feeling the sting of being a very social person who has very limited social interaction. The worst is when I have my one real conversation of the week (to somebody outside of my household), I then have an entire week to think about it. What seemed to be just fine while it was happening, takes on several facets of embarrassment by the end of the week. Oh crap. I can't believe I actually said that. I bet I looked so stupid. Why did I have to start singing along to Taylor Swift on the radio loud enough for the entire doctor's office to mention it when I came out of the room?
Suddenly I feel like perhaps saying less will lead to less self-criticism and mortification. I've caught myself in recent conversations just saying the bland, 'this is what she expects me to say' response, instead of exercising my wicked-funny wit.
And I think I'm getting stupider.
More Stupid?
Stupefied?
Stupeficated?
I think I may have devolved back to my high-school aged confidence levels. Which I was happy to shed at the first possible moment, at one time thinking myself to be the essence of self-assured delight. (So what I'm making up phrases? They're catchy.)

As an experiment to prove my self-reliance and ability-to-be-happy-by-myself-ness, I went to Zupas, during the crowded lunch hour, by myself, and ate alone.
As a mother, any time you get to eat without worrying about little kids scaling the walls takes on it's own level of relaxation. And even though I didn't worry about what anybody else was thinking about me being alone, the way I would have in high school, I did feel lonely. I ate slowly, trying my best to savor the solitude (and the sandwich), but I couldn't even stay to finish my salad. I just had to leave. Being somewhere that heightened my feelings of isolation was a terrible idea. So I took lunch home to David and sat with him while he ate, all the while talking his ears off.

Moral of the story? I need to get out more.

My Gift To You

2010-05-23T23:36:00.004-06:00

Today for dinner I made soup. It's one of my favorite recipes, and I even love the leftovers. Well, we were all gathered around the table, and had been eating for a few minutes when James said to me, "This soup is really delicious, mom. You have a gift." David and I just looked at each other and cracked up. What a funny kid. Then I told my mom about it later on the phone, and she said "I want that recipe!" :) So here is my gift to you, the recipe for Mulligatawny Soup.

Missed the Filter

2010-05-22T11:09:00.002-06:00

David and I had an interesting discussion the other day. It started when I did something in public he found embarrassing, and I didn't think there was anything to be embarrassed about.

(We had been waiting at the bank, a tiny little Deseret First Credit Union branch in Provo, for about an hour. The banker left us at his desk for a while so he could print out some documents we needed to sign for our savings account. I was bored, so I pulled out my cell phone and started the book on MP3 David and I were in the middle of. We didn't have earplugs, so I just let it play on my phone's speaker. It was barely loud enough for me to hear clearly, and the bank itself had a lot of ambient noises, so I didn't think anything of it. But after letting in play for 15 seconds, David just couldn't take it anymore, and made me turn it off. I think there were probably 3 other people in the bank, including people who were working there.)

When we got into the car a few minutes later, we started talking about how he probably had an overly-sensitive "filter", and mine is probably under-developed, so we're always driving each other crazy. :) In public, anyway. At home, we almost never argue - but we are very different about how we need to be perceived. David is just super conservative, kinda shy, and wouldn't want to attract any negative thoughts. I feel like, eh. Nobody's paying attention to us. And if they are? Well, I don't know any of these people, so who cares what they think.

So David always feels embarrassed by his crazy wife, and I always feel stifled by my overbearing husband. It's a good thing that we're crazy about each other. :) We were laughing about the silliness of it for the rest of the car ride.

PS. David wants me to point out that this story from my point of view sounds just fine, and even he would take my side after reading it, but if we were reading his point of view, you all would think I was a crazy person at the bank.

Triathlon Photos

2010-05-21T14:57:00.002-06:00

This picture was taken right after I got out of the water, taking out my earplugs. I can't believe I'm smiling!
This was right after I reached the peak of the huge hill I had to walk most of the way up. Showing the camera some love.

Here's David at the same spot. He was probably there about an hour before I was.

Check him out. Running like a demon.

This was a photo of David's swim group. Mass chaos.

These were all taken by some photography company posted along the trail. Pretty spiffy. Natalie and Joe caught a couple more I'll post later.

Operation: Bucket List - Mission: Triathlon

2010-05-18T22:42:00.003-06:00

So David and I participated in the St. George Triathlon last Saturday. David was in the top 25%, and I placed somewhere like 75%. It's wicked late, and I don't want to bother looking up our exact scores or downloading the photos tonight, so you'll just have to take what you get.

David's mom watched our kids for 3 days while we were gone, and Nat and Joe were in St. George as well, so they were able to come see us finish the race. We loaded up on carbs the night before the race by eating at a Mongolian Barbecue place. (Noodles have carbs, right?) Then we slept in on the morning of and skipped breakfast.

When we got to the race, we had to set up our bikes and gear in the "Transition Area". This is where we split up, because you have to put your bike on a rack chosen by your number. I was #900, and David was #620. We laid out our stuff, then started putting our wetsuits on. We met back up long enough for me to help David into his suit before he had to line up at the start.

(They send everybody out in 'waves'. The "Elite" athletes go first, then all the men 39 and under, followed by the men 40 and over and young men over 200 lbs. The next wave is women under 40, and the last wave is women over 40 or over 150 lbs. Each wave is sent 10 minutes after the previous group.)

After David started the race, I headed out to the water. About 10 minutes before my group is going to start, a woman leans over and asks me if I'm sure I want to wear my sunglasses. DAH! No! So I ran back to my bike, looped my glasses under the seat, and ran back to the water. My wetsuit was only half on, up to my waist, when they told us to get into the water. I quickly pull it on the rest of the way, and asked a woman behind me to zip me up. I then put on my goggles and swim cap, put in my ear plugs and jump in the FREEZING cold water.

They like to have you sit it in for a couple of minutes while everybody is getting in, and then a couple minutes longer to torture and freak you out. Fortunately, by the time you need to start, your wetsuit is starting to do it's job, and your body has gotten warmed up. Your feet and hands have gotten numb, so all's good there, too.

When they start the whistle, dozens of women start swimming out to the first buoy. I start to swim and then feel the cold water like a punch to the face. I also can't see worth crap where I'm going, and start veering way to the right, away from the main pack. At this point I'm also starting to feel the effects of a hastily donned wetsuit: my shoulders are totally confined, and I can't get the power I need for efficient strokes. And breathing isn't going well, either. Either I'd take a breath and swallow a mouth full of ice water, or I did manage to get air, but my lungs are so constricted by the suit that I can't get a full breath, and eventually breathing at all is hurting because of the cold in my airway. So I resorted to breast stroke, which lets you see where you need to go, keep your head mostly out of the water, and rest your shoulders. But that ticked me off, because I'd been working so hard on the other, more efficient stroke, so I kept trying to do the forward crawl (sometimes called 'Freestyle') stroke. Constantly hearing in my mind "swimming is a finesse sport." Trying to glide through the water, but feeling more like doggie paddling.

I came out of the lake in the middle, but nearing the back, of the pack. I learned later that what felt like 45 minutes or so in the water, was actually just over 19 minutes. Not as fast as I can do it at the gym, but much better than I thought I did. And faster than David. :) For me, the swim turned out to be much more challenging than I expected, and was easily the most shocking event for me. (I knew how hard biking and running would be. :)

So after that I ran to transition, slipped off my wetsuit, towel dried quickly, put on my socks, bike shoes, helmet, sunglasses, and watch, then ate a couple cubes of electrolytes. I walked my bike out of the transition area, and tried to "mount" my bike. And swayed to the right. The volunteer next to me smiled encouragingly, and I asked if I could hold her shoulder to steady myself while I tried again. She braced for impact and let me use her for support. "You're freezing!" she told me. "Oh-I don't feel cold at all."

Then I was off. The bike portion of the race felt fine and doable, except that it was excessively long. (I took almost an hour to finish it.) The worst part was for about a mile, you have a very aggressive hill. I was already on my lowest gear, and I was starting to feel that if I pedalled any slower (matching the cadence of several cyclists in front of me) that I might lose my balance and tip over. So I unclipped my shoes and walked my bike for quite some distance, almost to the crest of the hill. After mounting up, I blew a kiss to a photographer stationed at the top of the hill, and went on my merry way. On the way back, my bottom was starting to hate my bike saddle, my shoulders, neck and upper back were screaming, and I was definitely tired, but the rest of the biking was fairly uneventful.

The second transition involved a shoe change, popping a few more electrolyte cubes and taking off my helmet, followed by asking a fellow athlete where to start the run. Then I ran. Then walked. Then ran. Then walked. Then ran, grabbed 2 cups of water from a relief station volunteer, dumping one on my head, and drinking the other. I was able to run most of the last half without walking, right up until the final stretch.

Oh I was tired. I knew I wasn't going to be able to keep it up. Started thinking about vomiting, and decided I didn't want to push it. I slowed to a walk when I heard a shriek: "EMILY!!!" Natalie had seen me slow down, and had been waiting for me at just about that point. She then ran alongside me (in the area where all the spectators were watching, not on the actual track), taking pictures and shouting encouragement all the way. She totally saved me. I kept running, even though just moments before I didn't think it was going to happen. I told her I may throw up. When we got to the finish (which, of course, was at the crest of another hill) I was able to sprint for a couple yards and pass 3 or 4 people.

After walking over the finish line, you have to pass through a sort of pavilion with volunteers stationed to put a medal on you, give you a water bottle and some food and goodies. A volunteer lifted the medal to put around my neck, and I had to hold his shoulders to brace myself, or else I might have just fallen into him.

From here on out was a blur of hugs, pictures, free food and t-shirts, and a long walk back to the car to make sure you're extra crispy. David and I are still nursing our sunburns, and my shoulders and neck still ache, but other than that, we're in pretty good shape. I finished in 1 hour, 55 minutes. David did it in 1 hour and 32 minutes. We both felt like there was definitely loads of room for improvement in every event, so we're going to keep on training and do at least one more race at the end of the summer.

Since the sport is so addicting, I find it likely that we've just found a life-long hobby. I hope you'll be racing with us next time. :)

Pimp My Ride and Bake Some Bread

2010-05-13T12:07:00.003-06:00

So this is my new bike. It's beautiful, isn't it? I put the pink decals and handlebar tape on myself. It says my name on the top bar, and then the bike's name on the lower bar. (Warrior Princess.) and on the back is my phone number, in case it gets lost or something. I don't know if that's going to stay, though. We'll see. You can't really tell in the photos, but the vinyl I used is sparkley.

Also, David recently got a bread machine. He makes wonderful bread which is very exciting. Especially given our 16 huge tubs of wheat in the garage.

And that is the news of the day. Thank you very much!

(We're leaving for the Triathlon tomorrow. Eeddle!)

Blonde or Brunette? Outrageousness. Triathlon.

2010-05-11T09:58:00.006-06:00

So last week I posted a poll on my facebook page asking if I should stay blonde or go brunette. The overall consensus was Brunette. I went to the hair salon and told my stylist I wanted to do it, and she asked me "Didn't we just get you blonde?" And I thought about it. We've been taking it blonder and blonder for me for the last 6 months. Now that I've finally reached my goal, I wanted to change it. So I decided to keep it blonde for another couple of months before I make the big change.

Me after my hair appointment.

Modeling my new shirt from Forever XXI. And my new outrageous headband/hat.
I love it. So far haven't worked up the courage to wear it in public. Maybe for Halloween.

My wrist brace. And sweet fishy necklace. I really hope I'm fully healed by triathlon day. (THIS SATURDAY!!! WAHOO!)

This is one of the brunette pictures I posted for the poll. It makes me want summer and a tan.

So the triathlon is Saturday. David has decided to do it with me, and training together has been really fun. I'm starting to be really nervous but very excited. We can do the swim, no sweat. But I'm pretty worried about the bike. See, the only bike training I've done is at the gym on a stationary bike. We bought a couple of road bikes last week, but the weather hasn't been cooperating, and I've only been able to ride twice. Unless you count the times around my block, which I don't. So amazingly, I've managed to fall off my bike (well, fall over- since the pedals are the kind that clip together with your shoes) 4 times! Which is how I hurt my wrist in the first place.

Honestly, though- I'm pretty sure I'll be able to finish the race. My goals? Be able to swim the entire distance (1/2 mile) using the forward crawl stroke (sometimes called Freestyle), be able to bike the whole way (12.4 miles) without falling or stopping to walk the bike, and run/jog the whole run portion (3.1 miles) without needing to stop to walk. And I'd like to not throw up. My guess for total time is somewhere around 2 hours. We'll see, people, we'll see.

Butter Face

2010-05-02T15:48:00.004-06:00

When I was in high school, one of my close friends (Hi, Matt!) told me I had a "Butter Face". For those of you who are behind on the lingo, this is short for "everything BUT HER FACE". Meaning, she has a great body, but not a pretty face. The kid was chronically sarcastic and may have thought he was being especially clever, but it's stuck with me ever since. So, keeping the focus on accentuating my assets, I've always dressed in clothes that either a) Show off my body in a pleasing way, or, b) are distracting enough (bright, ridiculous) to keep the attention off my face. Usually A.
Also- shopping for clothes is a kind of therapy for me. Since David quit his job I've become more self-aware (needing to tell somebody whenever you leave the house where you're going and why really teaches you about your habits). I have told him, "I need to go to the mall." He'll ask me what I plan to buy, and I don't really have anything specific in mind. I just feel the need to go there. Spending $150 on myself feels good. Spending $300 feels even better.

What???!?!! You spend $300 at the mall on yourself???!!

I know, I'm in big trouble.

But since this most recent trip included a big portion of that $300 in the form of a gift card to spend at the spa, (thanks, Joanie!) I didn't get grounded or fired. I did get a pedicure, hair cut and highlights, and 4 new shirts. Plus a lot of cute hair accessories for Kiera and myself. And a fledging addiction to Forever XXI.

But anyway- back to my Butter Face story.

A couple months ago I was shopping at Macy's with Dave and the kids, picking up some essentials. We split up to get the last few items, and I grabbed a basket for my things, while David took the cart with the sweet truck built on the front with the kids. I needed to find the applesauce, so I asked a couple of Macy's employees who were standing around having a chat where I could find it. They looked at each other and must have used some kind of telepathy or covert hand signals, then one of them looked at me, gestured to his right, (using his left arm and crossing it in front of his body, palm up, with a slight bow - very "butlerish") and said "I'll show you." Then he led me in the proper direction, turned around and said "So. Do you come here often?"

I kid you not. I burst out laughing. Who actually says that?

I told him that I do, and he acted shocked. "Really? Because I'm pretty good with faces, and I'm sure I'd remember your face." I felt extremely flattered. I just smiled and laughed politely, and didn't bother to point out my wedding ring or marital status. Was he cute? Not especially. Could I, today, pick him out of a crowd? I don't think so. But for a little while, I didn't feel like a Butter Face at all.

P.S. David tells me I'm beautiful all the time. He's a good husband, don't worry. BUT- his opinion could be swayed by a) the fact that he gets the entire package, including everything but 'her' face, and b) he just loves me and his love causes him to see beauty instead of butter.

Whistle While You Work

2010-03-29T22:09:00.002-06:00

A while ago I listed some reasons I had stopped blogging, and one of them was that often, when I sat down to write a post, I wanted to say something about my business, or share a new design I was excited about - but I felt that this wasn't the right forum for that side of my self-expression. I didn't want to come off as though I was just trying to promote my company, but just to share my enthusiasm for something I spend a lot of time on.
BUT...
...today I'm going to do some shameless promoting.
I created a blog just for my business- where I can send my customers and friends alike, and talk about designs and decorating and all kinds of creative, artistic wonderfulness. I'm planning to post a link to this new blog on my website, but I felt that it looked a little lonely. See- in the blog's sidebar is a little widget that says "Followers: There are no followers yet." Ouch.
But I know that all you people out there who know and love me (or at least read this blog), wouldn't be put off by my unpopularity, and might even be willing to be the first followers of the Wall Written Blog. And while you're at it, you could become a fan of my facebook page.
And maybe, just maybe, if you're extra proud of me and want to help me out (hint hint) you could blog about me, my website, or my blog (being sure to include links, and to mention my amazing talents and eye for design, of course).
And I have an announcement to make: David quit his job! He's working for me, and my company is now our only source of income. :) So along with all the exciting opportunities we're facing, it's also a little intimidating. And any extra shameless promotion helps. :)

Wedding + Kitchen = Emily

2010-03-27T00:21:00.000-06:00

I've had all of my wedding decorations in storage. Loved them- but haven't really been able to think of what in the heck to do with them. Enter: the kitchen. I have high, vaulted ceilings, attractive custom cabinates, and a gaping blank wall between the two - staring at me everytime I walk through my house. The last owners left a very resiliant plant that we've somehow managed not to kill - but aside from that, the whole thing was pretty bare.
So one day, when I was supposed to be cleaning my house, I had an epiphany. Like lightning struck my brain. I started with one parasol in the corner. After my mad counter climbing skills had finally been put to good use, I ended up with 8 parasols, 3 strings of paper lanterns, and a still messy house. (Dangit).
A couple weeks later my cousin, Brittney, came to the house and saw my kitchen: "It's so you." I liked that. Yes. My wedding decorations really are "so me."

Ain't No Party Like My Nonni's Tea Par-tay

2010-03-26T23:49:00.002-06:00

The Kasperson's (my sister, her husband and their 2 kids) came into town a couple of weeks ago, and my mom decided to host her first "Annual Tea Party". Everybody was required to wear hats. It was actually pretty fun, and the food was awesome. I'm excited for next year! :)

I got the title for this post from a very funny song making fun of rap. I've included the video below- but be warned- they cuss a couple (2 exactly- I counted) of times. (It is really funny though).

Refiners Fire

2010-03-14T23:03:00.004-06:00

I've been receiving a lot of advice lately. The two things I've been told that I just can't get out of my head:

and:

Also- I wrote my last post on a Saturday night. I ended it with "Even if it breaks my heart.". The next morning in Relief Society somebody mentioned offering Christ a broken heart and contrite spirit. I've always thought of it as a broken heart for all of our sins, as in, remorse. But when I heard it this time, I made the connection- that 1) We need to feel that something needs to change, that what we're doing isn't working, and the broken heart makes us look for a different path. and 2) that we realize that turning to Christ can heal our broken hearts.

Think about that. Our bodies (think fitness), our relationships (with our husbands, our friends, our Savior), our testimonies. Many people think (or at least act as though) once you have something, it's yours forever. But how many people reach their goal weight, only to gain everything back? Or get married, and stop courting their spouse? And that's what I did. I got a testimony, and then I just thought "oh, I have one." and stopped nurturing it. Stopped reading scriptures, praying, going to church regularly, going to the Temple. I just figured I was being lazy, but I still believed in the gospel. But when I was faced with something that could either 'destroy' my testimony, or make it 'stronger', it was too weak to support the strain.
In the time of great need for me, a friend texted me a link to this video. I think of it often, and it's been really helpful:

A Little Monthly

2010-02-27T22:02:00.003-07:00

The last few weeks have seen some pretty fun days (Princess Tea Party, Jumpin' Jacks Field Trip) and some hard but eventful days (2 kids with a "Stomach Bug" - which I have to say is a very cute name for something that is not cute at all - while David was in Seattle for a business trip- leaving me to clean up vomitty sheets several times a night for 4 nights in a row. Alone.)
All in all, lots of things to blog about. Things that make me excited to plan out in my thoughts how I'm going to describe "Sleeping Beauty" pinning a tail on a donkey, or James' new kung fu move. But the only thing in the last couple of days that I have been able to think about is how I'm just feeling a little "monthly". (Another cute name for something not so cute). I keep mentally writing what I'm feeling, what I wish I could say, but then feeling like I might gross somebody out or offend. BUT considering the fact that we've established this blog is for me, and only me - I'm going to get this post written so I can start thinking about other things to blog about.

(Typical attire for days like this)You know the expression: "If mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy?" There really is truth to that. David keeps telling me that he's on his period (as if that will win him any sympathy.) I know the effect I have on the overall atmosphere has been unpleasant. It's about this time every month that I begin to feel extremely inadequate as a mother, wife, homemaker, business owner... in basically every facet of my life. I started ranting to David last night that I'm starting to feel stressed out: That my website isn't perfect, that I need to get the new promotion going, that our house is a mess, that I'm going to drown during our triathlon because my swimming isn't even close to what I need it to be, that I'm an idiot for trying to do a triathlon in the first place, that my kids aren't getting enough of my attention, that I ate a WHOLE bag of Cadbury Mini Eggs by myself in one day (and it was a big bag, too). At that point I started crying (the candy was the last straw) and David asked me if there was anything he could do.

Just listening helps. It really does.

And I think writing about it is cathartic - which is why I just kept feeling like this was high on my blog priority list. Because this blog is my journal. My one outlet to express myself.

I'm beginning to feel trapped in my life. That events have put me in shoes that are too big to fill. I recently alluded to problems with my marriage- these have been going on for over a year- and had started a year before that without my knowing. About the same time my marriage has started cracking- my testimony took a huge hit. Disappeared. We stopped going to church- stopped trying. Started ignoring everything that was wrong and pretending that our lives were everything we'd wanted.

It was around this time that my "monthly-ness" became severe, for the first time in my life it was bringing unbearable anger, anguish, sorrow. (I had suffered mild irritation before, but never anything so extreme.) So, I'd have a week of intense heartache-and then continue as usual- happy, chilled out, and content.

This continued until David dropped a bombshell that I thought would crush our marriage. It brought everything to the fore- all the things we'd been ignoring- pretending weren't important. I started reading my scriptures. Trying to nurture a testimony into existence. Praying. Angry. Pleading.

I'm still trying. I feel as though I have a testimony of some aspects of the Gospel, but not others. I'm just holding on to what I have, and trying to build on the rest. I'm not sure what life is going to dish out in the long run- but I have noticed that this time every month I feel renewed pressure to try harder. Work harder. And at the end of the week, I want to be better. So maybe this is God's way of forcing out all the feelings I've tried to smother- especially those that would help me grow.

Even if they break my heart.

James-isms

2010-02-14T23:09:00.002-07:00

James has been cracking me up a lot lately. Here are some of the highlights from this week:
(James had mentioned something about Popeye randomly)
Emily: "What does Popeye have?"
James: "Spinach"
Emily: "And what does he do with spinach?"
James: "He makes it funny so the kids will eat it."

(I had just asked James to fetch and carry the bottle of vitamins, and when he did, I asked him to throw away my paper plate, and after that, to start picking up his toys)
James: "But Mom~ I have things to do!"
Emily: *stunned silence*
James: "I'm not your servant... I'm your son."

(I had scratched something off my ear, and when I pulled my hand away, there was blood on my finger.)
I said something to David like: "I wonder why my ear is bleeding."
James: "Let me see ... It's bleeding because you keep picking it. You need to stop, mom."

James: "Now I'm really strong. so I'm not going to eat any more sugar because sugar will make me weak sauce. I don't want to be weak sauce, mom, so don't buy candy ever again. Okay?"

She Needs Mascara

2010-02-11T22:46:00.005-07:00

So a couple of days ago, David and I were driving in the car with Natalie, when we brought up a woman we had recently met. David irritatedly said: "She needs mascara." Like he was peeved about it. Natalie and I think on it for a minute, and I said, "What an odd thing to say." Then Natalie points out: "It's because he's so used to you with your fake eyelashes."What can I say. I love fake eyelashes. Actually, I just like the way they look. I've gotten pretty skilled at applying them, since I wear them almost every time I bother to put on makeup - but they aren't the most happy part of my day or anything.
The interesting thing about what David said is that my eyelashes, when I'm not wearing makeup, are nearly invisible. One of my favorite stories is from when my younger brother (Timmy, now 11) was 4. He looked up at me and gasped. "Your eyelashes are golden!" I think that's a great way to put a positive spin on something that isn't my favorite feature. Now whenever I think of it, I'm reminded of a fairytale character, like Rapunzel or anybody else with flowing, golden locks (and probably eyelashes, too).
Don't worry, all my fellow pale lashed women out there. David won't be looking at your fluttering lids with judgment. I've never heard him say anything about it before- which is part of why I found it so strange- he generally doesn't notice makeup at all.
He's really a nice guy. Really, he is. And handsome, too. And he makes the best spinach.

Welcome to the Hotel California

2010-02-11T11:40:00.006-07:00

For Joe's 30th birthday, we had my dad (Joe Sr.) plan a business trip for the whole week of his birthday. Then everybody acted sad and disappointed that we'd be missing it, (especially Natalie- who is a very talented actress)- while in reality, she had arranged to be on the same flight as he was, but planned to go incognito- complete with a wig and big sunglasses. And we were going to start driving to California the day before, so we'd be able to greet him when he arrived.
Everything worked out great (maybe Natalie will post a more detailed version of the airport surprise on her blog... hint hint) and we spent the week chillin' at my dad's house. It is seriously amazing. Like going to a resort. All of my siblings were able to be there- and also my Grandparents on my Dad's side. It was pretty special.
In this picture, we went to Pismo Beach to see this Monarch Butterfly migration. It was kinda' not my cup of tea. Mostly because it was cold and wet, and James kept jumping into puddles. And I didn't really see any butterflies. But it was fun to be with family!
I love this next picture. I think Kiera looks cute in it, but I think James is definitely the best part of the picture. This is what he does every time you point a camera at him (makes mean faces and assumes aggressive positions).
Here's my handsome hubby.

So either you're holding the camera, or your holding Kiera. So that's why we have lots of pictures of people holding her. Plus she's cute.
Here, Natalie is laughing because James got too close to the water and a wave came in and chased him away. I think he was freaked out and running really fast.
Natalie had just put some lip gloss on Kiera in this next picture. She taught her how to pucker her lips. I actually think that is the first time she's ever done it.
Isn't she just a cute model? So photogenic.
So all in all, a fun trip. But we were glad to come home. Sleeping on a real bed should not be taken for granted.

The Bucket List

2010-02-08T12:18:00.008-07:00

There's a movie called "The Bucket List" with Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson. It's a very good movie. And I've thought about it a lot lately. A Bucket List is a list of things to do before you "kick the bucket". So I've decided to have my very own bucket list. This is something I'm actually going to strive to complete as soon as possible.

Ride in a Helicopter
Learn to Tango
Ride a Train somewhere
Meet Taylor Swift
Find a treasure
Learn how to Belly Dance
Keep a true friend
Teach a class
Go to Brazil
See the fall colors along the East Coast
Stay at a villa in Tuscany
Venice gondola ride
Have a giant medieval style party and feast
See the Northern Lights
Go dog sledding
Ride a mechanical bull
Leave someone a $100 tip
Fill a time capsule and bury it
Have my own adventure book
sailboat cruise to Greece
See the Louvre
Go backpacking through Europe
Milk a cow
Leave for a trip on a whim
Prepare a seven course meal for 10 friends
Move overseas for a while
Start a tradition
Learn how to sew
Learn to drive a stick shift
Dance in the rain
Paint a painting
Visit Washington DC
New Zealand
Australia
Get a professional massage *CHECK*
fly in a hot air balloon
See Dubai
Visit Thailand
Go to the Eiffel Tower
Go Paint balling
Go Four wheeling
Skinny dip
Go deep sea scuba diving
Get a private pilots license
Kiss in the rain
Build a home with everything to my taste (secret passageways) :)
Learn to cook Indian Food (in India?)
Pay off a house
Save a life
Take Dance lessons with David
Go to England
Go horseback riding on a beach
Go whitewater rafting
Learn how to surf
Hike Mt. Timpanogos at night
Hike the Y *CHECK*
Renew our vows
Live 1 year in Hawaii
Swim with dolphins
Treat our family to a cruise
Learn to water ski
Do a truly anonymous act of kindness
Own a horse
Go on a backpacking trip
Do a triathlon *CHECK*
Rock Climb outdoors
Go to Italy
Run a 10k
Graduate College
Have a girls spa weekend- all weekend
Ballroom Dancing
Stand on the Great Wall
Write a book
Learn to snowboard
Learn Italian
Go to Disney World
See Africa
Grow my own garden
Visit Montana
Learn to play the Cello
Visit the Taj Mahal
Go to Paris
Go Para sailing

Now some of the stuff is out of my current price range. But I'm starting the things I can do right now. Like training for the triathlon. I just got my new camera to help make my Adventure Book. We're going to go backpacking in Arizona this summer, and we'll be buying my Snowboarding gear when everything starts going on sale at the end of the season, so next year we'll get season passes for me to learn to snowboard. :) I've started using some Italian Learning software (like Rosetta Stone), but I still have my Cello in my closet (I do plan to dust it off and learn to play).
I've had a rocky time this year. Every time I start to get discouraged, I pull out my bucket list and try to work on accomplishing something on it. It makes me feel like I'm getting what I want, and that makes me happy. I plan to add some things to the list. Soon I'll be able to call it: 100 Things to do before I die. But 83 is a good start. :) I'll let you know whenever I can cross something off. :)

*Edit*

I thought of five things to add to my list:

Attend a Masquerade Ball
Get a Six Pack
Drive in a country where one drives on the left side of the road
Be a "yes man" (woman) for a day
Read 20 Classic literature books

*Edit* (added 5/23/2010):

Run in a human-sized hamster ball
Ride an Elephant
Take a pole-dancing class
Slow Dance in the Rain
Visit the seven wonders of the world
Train a horse
Learn Chinese
Have a cup of tea in England
Quiet for a whole day (vow of silence)
Shoot in a Gun Range
Go Kayaking
Run away for a day
Catch Fireflies
Run a half-marathon
Hold some type of monkey
Raft down the Colorado River
Ride a tandem bicycle
Stay on a house boat
Take a photo a day for an entire year
Make Pottery
Design a dress
Take a picture with a guard at Buckingham Palace
Sleep in a castle
Help someone complete something on their list
Zip line
Start a book club
Complete 1,000 Random Acts of Kindness

Dropped off the face of the earth!

2010-02-08T10:05:00.002-07:00

I just got busted for not blogging anymore. :) So here are the reasons:

A) I've been using Facebook to post updates.
B) I felt like most of my posts were about my business (photos of new designs and such) and was worried that people would be annoyed at the promotion of my business. It just is really what takes most of my time. :)
C) I am so busy! Motherhood, Buisness Ownership and Triathlon training are really taking a lot of time- and energy.
D) I started going though some Testimony/Personal/Marriage challenges and felt that I couldn't honsestly write about my feelings and my life without being judged. I also feel like I'm supposed to put on a good show of perfection- of having the perfect life- and every time I sat down to write something, I either felt like I was lying, or that I was going to get in trouble for writing something honest.

Here are some reasons I feel like I'm going to start up again:

A) We just got a sweet new camera
B) I loved seeing my kids milestones looking back on my blogging career, like a journal
C) I have felt extremely cut off from human contact for the past few months, and realized how much I was really getting from the blog. Even if it would just be my need to be heard and understood, that would be better than being completely secluded.
D) I decided that I'll be doing this for me. Not for anybody else. If you don't agree with the way I feel or the way I'm dealing with what I'm going through - don't read my blog. Simple as that. I'm tired of worrying about my thoughts being offensive. If you're offended, if you're judging me, then you're too busy to love me.

Halloween Madness

2009-10-29T22:47:00.004-06:00

Today we went to my next-door-neighbor's house for a wicked-cool Halloween party. I went as this: (Whatever that is.)I won the award for best costume! Which is crazy, cuz there were some really good costumes there. I think my personal favorite was a couple where the wife was dressed like a man with a suit, fedora and painted-on beard, and the husband was dressed like a kabuki doll/woman. It was amazing. He had a flower in his hair, a bra, even TIGHTS - plus his face was painted. It seriously made me laugh every time he spoke, because he had the manliest voice. Priceless.

David won the award for Scariest Costume. It was a pretty creepy one. He pretty much looked like the grim reaper.

In other news: I'm training for a Triathlon! It's kicking my butt, but I've been going to the gym nearly every day for the past 2 weeks. (1-2 hours each time). I've been swimming, biking, running - and I'm seriously so sore (especially my lats!) But I'm already really proud of myself. I'm excited. The triathlon is in St. George in May. I think I'll be going for the smallest size, which is called a Sprint Distance Tri.

AND... WE BOUGHT OUR HOUSE! DEEDLE! My mom was our Realtor, (THANKS, MOM - You did great!) and we just barely closed on it last week. Now to decorate! :)

Big News (and small news)

2009-09-29T17:27:00.004-06:00

First off: the small news- David had to go to Seattle for a business trip a few weeks ago. He was gone for a whole week and it was so lonely. When he got home, David and I went to a Brad Paisley concert for a date. It was way fun, and Brad Paisley sounds so good live, but we left a little early. We're just not concert people, I guess. It was fun to just stroll out to the car and hear him singing when we left, just the two of us alone in the middle of the huge parking lot. Pretty romantic.
ALSO- we decided we wanted to buy a house. So we started house hunting and it was wicked miserable. It's like every other house is for sale around here, and it's hard to see so many and we just kept looking at each other thinking, we don't have time to move. So we talked to the Horlachers (the family that we rent our house from) to see if they would sell this house to us and low-and-behold! WE'RE UNDER CONTRACT! So assuming everything goes well, we should be buying our house. :) I just painted Kiera's room in celebration (don't worry, I was allowed to paint even when we were just renting). I'll post a picture when I get it all decorated with Wall Written Statements. :) I'm so excited.
Lastly, James and I are super sick. He threw up about 7 times yesterday. It was awful. Although, by the end of the day we did work out the "you must spew in the toilet - NOT the carpet". I'll tell you, cleaning spew out of the carpet in 4 different places in the house is no fun. And especially when you're sick. I felt so bad for him though. In the middle of the night he came in to tell me that his "throat doesn't work". I felt the same way. Ugh. So today David stayed home from work to take care of us. I got some work done this morning, then I went back to bed. He took care of the kids all morning, and at 2 he woke me up with some lunch in bed. He made chicken noodle soup and a ham sandwich and apple juice. Isn't he just a sweetheart? Right now he's upstairs making diner. I think I'm going to go up there and keep him company now.
Ta ta for now!

Guilty Posting

2009-09-03T01:07:00.004-06:00

Okay, I feel guilt. I haven't blogged in ages. So I'll try to play a little catch up.

This summer has been pretty crazy. I had some problems with my vinyl machine and had to send it to California (twice) to be repaired. After sending it the second time, I ended up buying a new machine (thanks Erik), and since then I think we've been going non-stop. In fact, it's been so busy, that I've had Natalie working for me, and just recently my Mother-in-Law has started working with us as well. BUT - I'll try to think of some non-work related things to post about, which will be a little hard, since I spend most of my time working. :) So here you go:
Kiera has quite an attitude. She just learned how to climb out of her crib. Crazy monkey. She loves to wear jewelry (pretty), and she is starting to say some new words:
Daddy, Joe, Mama, Nat, Pretty, Shoes, Water, All Done, I love you, Hand, Yeah, uh huh (as in "yes"), No, OK, Hi, Hello, Bye, Taco, Noni, Grandma, Grandpa, (bumma and bumpa), ooo, Bite.

She also blows kisses, waves, and loves to walk up to you, take your hand, and lead you places. She's been climbing onto everything. She has even gotten up on David's desk a couple of times and drawn on his brand-spankin'-new monitor. DAH!

A few weeks ago James fell out of his bed in the middle of the night. He cried a lot (which is unusual for him) and was complaining about his hand hurting the next day. He wouldn't even hold his spoon with his right (sore) hand while he ate his cereal that morning. (He's not quite as coordinated with his left). Then the day after (so 2 days later), I noticed that his sore hand was EXTREMELY swollen and badly bruised. We ended up taking him to an insta-care to get ex rays. Nothing was broken, but they did have him wear a splint for a couple days. He was very good while getting his xrays, and he kept telling people that he wants to be a doctor when he grows up. "Like Dr. House."

Later, We went to an Orthopedic Specialist up at Primary Children's Hospital to check out James' foot. (He was born with the right foot much smaller than the left) The doctor pretty much just told us that the right one is developing more slowly than the left (you think?) and they don't really know what causes that. Pretty much nothing to do at this point but wait it out. While we were seeing the Doctor (who came in the room with a resident and an intern), James climbed on my lap and whispered in my ear that the intern looked like Annikin (Skywalker). It made me giggle.

Joe and I may have caused a stir in our ward. During Sunday school we were out in the foyer listening to the lesson on a couch. I guess I was sitting really close to him (our legs were touching), and as people walked by they would seriously stare at us like we were being very inappropriate. They know David is my hubby and Natalie is his wife, but do they know we're brother and sister? Apparently not everybody.

Today David told James not to lie. He listed several reasons (losing trust, etc) and toward the end of the list he added "and if you lie, people think you're an idiot." (I was in bed thinking: Great, Dave.)

So later today I was excitedly telling James what was for lunch. He wanted me to wait and pretend that it was a surprise. Then he started guessing. When he guessed right (a salad), I started to say he was right, but then he wanted me to pretend it was a surprise!!! "You have to lie." So I said "Okay. It's not a salad." after a couple back and forths, James looks very concerned and says: "Don't lie anymore, Mom. You look like an idiot." As I sit and type this, I'm seriously laughing so hard I can't see the screen through my tears, but when he said it I (very stoically) explained to him that idiot is not a nice word, and we aren't going to say that because it hurts people's feelings. Still. It was a pretty priceless thing to say.

Another thing he said that cracked me up, was on a day when Natalie had been explaining to him why we work (to make money, which lets us buy food, the house, clothes, etc), and that he needed to be good so we could work. Well, Kiera starts getting underfoot, and Natalie off-handedly says "Do I need to teach you about money, too, Kiera?" Then James pipes in: "Teach her a lesson!" We just laughed and laughed.

A few weeks ago Ashley and Kieth came in town and we all went to the Bean Museum. (Bunch of dead, stuffed animals.) Here is James showing the bears who's boss.In this one he's actually sitting to a kid he met about 2 minutes earlier. He's very out going. They were so funny together. Here's James snuggling his sister. Sometimes he can be very sweet to her.

Here she is running away. And this is after she snatched my purse. She's very girly.

Anyway, I'll plan to post some more pictures later. Hope you feel caught up!

TTFN!

Weddings and Romance

2009-07-20T22:13:00.005-06:00

So last month I had some problems with my machine, and had to "close shop" for a couple weeks while it was in California to be fixed. I made use of my free time by making some new designs. The theme was Weddings, especially for gifts to Newlyweds, but also to be displayed at a wedding as a focal point.
I also mangaged to design 35 designs for kids and babies. I'm still wrapping up that collection, and it should be up on the website soon.

Baby Butterfly

2009-07-08T16:27:00.006-06:00

I've been wanting to do something with the newborn photos that Angela took (a year and a half ago), so I finally sat down to do some photoshopping. (Which is almost as good as shopping, only cheaper.) These are the wings from a real butterfly - the "Blue Morpho" to be exact. I thought it was pretty fun. :) So here's my little Butterfly Baby! Ta da!~

I'm Makin' Movies!

2009-06-30T14:42:00.003-06:00

Last month when Erik came into town, he brought my dad's awesome video camera and equipment. Natalie played videographer for a day, and we pulled together these videos. I've never edited videos before, so I know they're rough. But I think they turned out just fine. You can see how they're incorporated into my website by clicking here. Or you can watch them below. (They'll load a bit faster here, because they're larger on my website.)

Video 1: Before You Begin

Video 2: Prepare and Position Your Statement

Video 3: Hinge Method OR...

... Video 3: Direct Method

Video 4: Removing the Transfer Tape

Video 5: Applying a Second Layer

Wet Method Step-by-Step Instructions

So what do you think? I know they seem like a lot of the same as before, but I really felt like I needed to make it more to the point. So that's why I've made several short videos. Plus there's a lot more information here than in the previous versions, even though we're not making more length overall. *Ahhh* I really feel like my website is coming together. It's so exciting! :)

Days of our Lives

2009-06-20T11:52:00.002-06:00

I've been keeping super busy with work. Between making new orders and just doing regular start-up stuff, I feel like I have no time to spare. There's a young girl (11) in my ward who comes over everyday for 3 hours and just plays with my kids. It's been really awesome. Unfortunately she's going to camp next week, so I'm going to miss her. :)
This week both my kids got sick. Of course now I am also sick. David thinks he's getting it too. I think we must get sick more often than most families. Unfair.
I've been reading a great book series since I got sick. It's called the Zion Covenant Series, and it's really amazing. It takes place during Pre World War II, and it's written by a christian couple (Bodie and Brock Thoene - pronounced Tay-nee). Some of the content is a little adult (violence mostly, lots of hatred is shown, also a couple instances of bad language), but it's told in a very christian perspective and I think it's important that they didn't try to take out the evil that was happening just to make it PG rated.
I had already read the series a couple years ago, but I could never get it out of my mind. Now after reading it again, I can see why I liked it so much. The characters feel like real people.
Anyway- here are some pictures we've taken the past few weeks. Erik (my brother) came into town and took some fun pictures. He's getting to be quite the photographer. :)

So Erik took this picture of Kiera. She looks like a little angel. :) David is looking down at one of our kids. Probably James.

We had a BBQ at my mom's house. Keira fell on the driveway and munched her lip and nose. It got so swollen. Poor girl. Erik took this picture of James. I think he kind of looks like a vampire. :)

Natalie dressed up Keira and did her hair all cute. I love how she's talking on the phone. So silly.

What Police Do

2009-06-04T20:11:00.002-06:00

James just was telling David that World of Warcraft is a bad game, because you just fight. Then he continues the sentence with "and if I throw things out of the car window, then the police will give daddy a ticket and then he will spank your bum. And it will bleed. Huh, daddy, huh?"

Keep Ourselves Busy

2009-06-04T15:53:00.006-06:00

When I posted a link to my new website (http://www.wallwritten.com/), I mentioned that I still had a lot of work to do. One of the things that's on my list (which I'm procrastinating at this very moment), is to make instruction pamphlets for each kind of application (hinge method, direct method, wet method, and 2 layers). Well- yesterday I spent the whole day with Nat, my hand model, taking the photos to put in these instruction pamphlets.Here is a demonstration of her mad skills in action:

We also designed and put together a bunch of monograms for me to put in my newest newsletter. (These make awesome wedding gifts, which is the theme for this month's newsletter.) All of these are etched glass vinyl, and they're shown here on Mirrors, a Trifle Bowl, and Shadow Box Frames, (which are cool because you use scrapbook paper for the background, which you can change out for different seasons or decor).

Here's a close up of one of the mirrors with our Fairy Tale Monogram. I adore it. I'm definitely going to make one of these for myself. :) I love the etched glass vinyl, too. There's so much you can do with it, and it is really strong, so you could have it on a dish and it's washable (by hand), or have it outside. It's pretty hard to remove, though. Just ask Nat. :)

Well, I'm still working on the newsletter, which will have these and a few other Wedding Gift ideas, and I'll be posting it sometime this weekend. So anybody who wants to get the newsletter (and future newsletters from Wall Written) should click here to sign up.

We Have Lift Off!

2009-05-31T00:24:00.002-06:00

So after months of ridiculous effort, I now present to you my new website for Wall Written.
David and I have been working on various parts of it for ages. I'm very excited about it- and even though it is now presentable, there's still so much work to do.
By the way- as you're browsing through, if you see any broken links or typos or other glitchy things, let me know- cuz I can fix 'em if I know about 'em!
I'd been working on it off and on since January, but getting this going has taken most of my time every day for the last 2 months or so. I have had no life outside of my work and kids (does reading count?), and so any kind of compliments about my website will make me feel awesome. :)
So check it out! (My Darling David is the one who created the Design Tools that help you choose different colors for everything. He's amazing!)
I definately need to thank Natalie, because she really was the one who kept me alive during the last couple of weeks.
Huzzah!

Looks Like We Made It - 5 Years

2009-05-26T09:24:00.004-06:00

David and I just celebrated our 5 Year Anniversary yesterday. (May 25)

We still love each other! In fact, I think there have been a lot of ways that we've grown to love each other even more than we did on our wedding day. It's been a wonderful ride :).

My Babies are still Cutie Patooties!

2009-05-26T09:10:00.004-06:00

This was taken about a month ago. Keira's hair is a bit too long to do this now-a-days. But I think she looks charming as always.

Here is James' eye next to his Grandma Susan's. I was struck by how close they looked in color, so I ran to get my camera.

Here's Kiera wearing a dress that Joanie got for her when she was super little. (Thank you, Joanie!) She just looks so summery in it! (This was taken last week.)

This was a few weeks ago. My babies were both wearing white and they just looked so pure and summery. So I gathered them together for an impromptu photo shoot. I just love them all to crazy.

Mother's Day Madness

2009-05-10T01:05:00.002-06:00

So tonight David took me out for a special Mother's Day Dinner. I got to pick the place, and he didn't even give me dirty looks when I ordered a drink besides water. (It was a smoothie, by the way, and it was heavenly). I chose Outback Steakhouse. It's one of my favorites, but everything we love there is so unhealthy that we pretty much feel like we're clogging our arteries one bite at a time.
My kids were well behaved and I got to eat everything I wanted (Alice Springs Chicken, Ribs, Crab-stuffed-shrimp, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Steamed Vegetables, Bleu Cheese Chopped Pecan Salad, Coconut-Strawberry Smoothie, and Alice Springs Chicken Quesadillas. Yummy).
All in all, a success.
Then David took me to Barnes and Noble and let me pick out my gift. So I roamed the store in search of the perfect book, and David stayed with the kids at the Childrens Book Section. It was so nice to have a chance to browse without nagging. I ended up picking something that we're going to return, because we found it for half the price at Amazon.com when we got home. But it's the thought that counts.
So David started telling me about what happened with the kids, and I (almost) wished I could have been there.
A little girl (she was 6) started talking to James and offered to read him a book because "I can read, you know. Not that small of letters, but pretty small." So after she had read to him they started talking. She was telling him that she was taller than him, she was SIX, so she was smarter than him, and she could read, unlike him. So obviously she knew more about life than him, and so she was right and he was wrong, etc, etc. This got on David's nerves. So he said "James, she isn't being very nice, let's go read over there." and they walked away from said little girl. Then David told him that it's not okay to be rude like she was, and he didn't want to see James act like that, or else he wouldn't have any friends. Then James says: "But she was so pretty." :)
When David was telling me about it later in the car, James very sadly said "I loved her. But she didn't love me." LOL. Then David said: "That breaks my heart." and James said: "It breaks my heart, too." Then I explained that she probably did really like him, and sometimes girls just want to be with you, but they don't really know what to say, so they might be mean. And maybe she just wanted him to think she was great so he would like her. So I think I convinced him that she was madly in love with him, and he'd be better off waiting for 15 years before he worries about girls.
I love being a mom. Today before dinner I was sitting on the couch, waiting for David to get off the phone. James took a good look at me and said "You look so pretty, Mama." Then he smiled and gave me the best hug. *Sigh* Those are the moments that make motherhood so incandescently wonderful.

Laundry Today or Naked Tomorrow

2009-04-29T15:38:00.005-06:00

Here are my newest designs. Laundry and Bathroom were the focus of the month. So here we are:

The redesigned Delights

2009-04-03T13:17:00.002-06:00

eve

This Kitchen is Seasoned with Love (Newest Designs)

2009-04-02T17:30:00.005-06:00

I've spent the last 3 or 4 days designing some statements to put in the kitchen. I made 12 new designs, and I'm pretty proud of them. So here you go:

Gourmet: n. a connoiseur in fine food & drink and the discriminating enjoyment of them. (syn: bon vivant, epicure, foodie)

Buon Appetito - this is "enjoy your meal" in Italian. The company makes the feast

La Dolce Vita. This is "the sweet life" in Italian

I kiss better than I cook

Good Food - Good Friends

Kitchen - the heart of the home

Today's menu has two choices: Take it or Leave it

Country Kitchen

Pantry

Wine is sunlight held together by water. -Galileo

This Kitchen is Seasoned with Love

Pay it Forward

2009-03-30T11:15:00.003-06:00

This to me, sounds really fun. Here is how it works-the 1st five people to leave a comment on this post will receive a gift from me (that I'll make myself) sometime in the next year. What the gift will be and when it will arrive is a total surprise! If you don't live by me, leave me your e-mail address in a comment.
The catch is that you must participate as well. Before you leave your comment here write up a pay it forward post on your blog to keep the fun going. Then come back and let me know you are going to play, and sit back and anticipate the arrival of your gift. Remember only the 1st five will qualify. Good Luck!!!

* * *Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!* * *

Garbage Day

2009-03-30T01:32:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow is garbage day. So I had to take it all to the curb tonight, since our garbage man comes when it is still dark out, so no chance of beating him if you wait until morning. So- I am reminded of a funny tale from 2 weeks ago.
It all started on a Monday, when I got a huge shipment from my shipping supplies supplier, (say that 6 times fast) and with it, an exorbitant amount of garbage. You should know, we only have one black container for garbage, one recycling container (blue), that gets taken only once every OTHER week, and a green container for, uh, grass? and plants. Or something. It's been full of leaves since October. We used to take it to the curb every week just in case, but it was never picked up. Lazy Green Container Collector man. We also have 2 households and one business running in this home- so we all have to share only one garbage container. It gets crowded.
Anyway:
The black garbage container is full and overflowing by Wednesday, and garbage day isn't until Monday. Oh well, I figure, we can just keep the extra garbage bags in the garage or something until then.
Wrong.
David and I somehow managed to forget to take the garbage to the curb. So we are stuck for two whole weeks with no where to put all our garbage. Depressing.
By the following week, David and I are hanging out together on Sunday night, when about a million alarms (cell phone, email, instant messenger, ipod, etc) start buzzing and reminding us to take out the garbage. (We learned our lesson. After swimming in garbage bags every time we needed to get in the car - we will never forget garbage day again.)
So we take our garbage container (our lonely, solitary and full-beyond-capacity black container) to the curb. And our garage is still full of garbage. D'oh. What to do.
It's midnight.
Time for "Operation: Garbage Distribution."
So we (very sneakily) take our garbage bags around to the trash containers of our neighbors, that are already on the curb. Turns out, our neighbors don't need their containers, as the majority of them are only half full. HALF, PEOPLE! It was amazing. We were laughing and pretending to be Kronk from "the Emperor's New Groove" when he's getting rid of Kuzco's body. Priceless. We even had our own theme music. We ended up delivering an additional 11 bags of garbage, as well as a really big box. And we didn't even have to go farther than our street. We love our neighbors. And we thank them. Thank you, neighbors. If you ever need to use our containers, we'd be happy to share.

Ear Infections All Around

2009-03-30T00:57:00.002-06:00

Yeah- James had a bad fever on Monday. 103. So I call the doctor, who has no openings that day. James sits on my lap quietly and snuggley the entire day, and doesn't eat much of anything. I love the snuggliness that comes with sickness. I could do without the worry and residual contamination. I always get sick when one of my kids get sick- and sometimes they get each other sick. David is usually okay. How is this fair?
So we eventually (Wednesday) get to the doctor's office by David's request (or demand- whatever). James' fever has gone away, he isn't acting sick, and Kiera just had a tooth break through, which could explain some of her symptoms. So - I'm sitting there feeling like an idiot as I'm telling the nurse the symptoms (there really aren't any - except there were 3 days ago), but come to find out, we all have an ear infection. Nice. So Dave was right (dang it!), and now we're all on antibiotics. We also feel like the Amish, because we are being shunned by our family (Nat and Joe won't have anything to do with us or our contaminated part of the house). So I guess we'd be former Amish, in this case, and our family is Amish.
As a side note, David and I have started watching every episode of "The Office" on netflix. Oh my heck it is so funny. And at the same time, oddly depressing. (well, at least if you watch it for 3 days straight, as we did this weekend. I feel so worthless... ) It's basically a "Mock-umentary" taking place in an office for a paper company in Pennsylvania. I love it. I'd seen a couple episodes before, but had never really found it funny. But after seeing it with David, I swear, we were laughing so hard. "Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica." Priceless.

James is Four!

2009-03-30T00:27:00.003-06:00

James' 4th birthday was on March 21st! We had family over for cake and icecream. He was so handsome in his new clothes (Courtesy of Joanie and Grandpa Joe)- loved all of his gifts (a ball from his Uncle Jordan, a swimming pool, ball game, and squirt guns from his Grandpa Mike and Grandma Melanie, a very cuddly blanket/superhero cape, and an aligator golf set from Grandma and Grandpa "Fun", a great book about the Book of Mormon from Nonni and Poppi, new clothes from Aunt Nat and Uncle Joe, a Book of Mormon puzzle-book from Grandma "BB", a card in the "real mailbox" from Great-Grandma and Grandpa Johnson, as well as one from Joanie and Joe), and he even got a new haircut.
David and I woke him up early (he usually does the waking), to a happy birthday seranade, and some cool new toys (legos, a bionicle and clothes.) I have to say, if it weren't for Dave, James birthday wouldn't have been nearly so cool. What a good daddy he is. I wish we took more pictures. These were the only ones from the whole night. Oh well.

The Newest Designs

2009-03-29T23:51:00.010-06:00

This is a fun new design I made that says "I love you to the moon and back again, to infinity and beyond, forever and ever!" This is in gold and black, and I think it's so romantic.
This is a basic monogram I designed with a pretty classic font and double border. Nice.This is one of my favorite quotes, and I've been wanting to design it for a while. "Life itself is the most wonderful fairy tale. - Hans Christian Anderson" Love.This is a neat one with a different take on the panelled look. Great for headboards. This is actually one of my favorites. My amazing cousin, Angela, took these photos a few months ago, and the words are actually on a mirror in the middle of the frame. I love this. David says it might be my Mother's Day present this year.

This is one I love- Love and cook with wild abandon.

This is a little bit hard to read, but it says "I love you to the moon ... and back again" One of my favorites.

This is actually inspired by my dad- it is a phrase he uses in his mission statement for his company "Really Right Stuff". So, is that imitation? There's another expression that goes "imitation is the best form of flattery" - so I think my dad should be flattered. Plus this is designed as a gift for him (he can put it up at his office, I hope he likes it). "Innovation beats imitation - and it's more satisfying." Wish upon a star. Have you noticed the fairy tale theme- I like it a lot, what can I say.

Life is a journey and only you hold the map. Great for a Grad gift.

Miracles happen every day for those who pay attention.

Every cloud has a silver lining. Very nice.

John 3:16. Need I say more?

Cute for twins, as shown here, but also very cute on a picture wall with family photos. "count your many blessings name them one by one."

"Bon Appetit" Which is French. I'd also like to make a few more in French designs, as well as some in Italian.

Here is one that's just a design, and I think it's really cute.

This one is customized, you just choose whichever name you need and viola! Super cuteness.

Joshua 24:15 - one of the classics.

I designed this one for my neighbor. She's just about the sweetest person ever.

This is one you've seen before. I redesigned it based on feedback I got from my tall relatives. It used to reach 5 feet, but my 3 year-old cousin will outgrow that by her next birthday, I'm told.

Here are some ideas for keeping track of the kids as they grow. Darling.

I redesigned this one to look a little more elegant, although I've heard some feedback that the more whimiscal version was also well liked. I don't know. I love the fonts for this, so eh. I win. "Let him sleep ... for when he wakes, he will move mountains. -Napoleon"

"God be with you 'till we meet again". Great for an entry way. I've also had a customer put it on her car.

I haven't managed to get any of these up on my website yet, but let's hope they'll be ready to go this week!

So Photogenic

2009-03-14T17:18:00.004-06:00

So lately Kiera's been opening her mouth really wide whenever I start taking pictures of her. I wonder why... but anyway, here are a few examples:

Dream of California Vacation

2009-02-27T16:24:00.004-07:00

We all went to California on Valentine's Day weekend to see my youngest sister, Anna, get baptized. We had a blast, and Dave and I have decided we want to move there some day. (A girl can dream!) This is a picture taken from my dad's kitchen window. Crazy, huh?

This is a picture of my dad's driveway and the view beyond. It was so surreal there. I didn't want to come home!

Here I am with Erik. I love how he's such a big guy now. Crazy.This is Joanie and Kiera on the day of Anna's baptism. This is Kiera's new photo face. She always opens her mouth really wide as soon as I bring out the camera. I'll have to show some more examples in another post.

Here is my little sweetie! Everybody kept saying how sweet and mellow she is... I even had a few people try to take her home with them... I think I'll keep her, for now. :)

Here are all my brothers. How cool. Joe's 29, Erik's 20, and Timmy's 10. So I guess 10 year gaps between the guys are the way to go. I wonder if there will be another one soon :)Kiera was so hungry she tried to eat her plate. She loves food!

Here are some feet. Of course the pretty feet are Joanie's... I feel left out that I don't have some grey-toed socks, though.

Here we are on dishes duty. Our parents kept getting after us because we were taking so long. All work and no play makes Joe a little safer. :)I asked James who all the people in this picture are, and he said "that's Daddy! And Joe! And Uncle Erik! ... Those are my favorite uncles! and that's my favorite Dad!"

I love the expression on Joe's face. It says "Look at me! Love~ me!"

By Popular Demand:

2009-01-25T17:19:00.003-07:00

I had a couple requests to see this close up. So here you go. As you can see, the vinyl takes on the texture of the wall that it's on. This is all one huge sheet of black vinyl, with 4 silver panels on top of it. The silver have the bamboo cut into them, so when you hang it on the black, the bamboo looks black. You could also just have the panels straight on the wall, and the bamboo would be the same color as the wall, get it? Here you can see how much detail there is in the bamboo. There's a really distressed look to it that I love, but it took a ton of time to get it that way.

We added a little vinyl "Chop" to the bottom - which is basically the artist's signature which you'd find on all Chinese artwork. (Except in this case, I don't know who's signature it is). Anyway, I think it totally makes the vinylism. ("a little saffron would MAKE this!") Plus, Natalie had originally wanted the panels to be red, but when she saw how good the silver and black was, she knew that's what it had to be. She was a little sad, though, because she had wanted a little "pop" of red. So I suggested putting this in the corner, and I'm so glad we did!

So thanks to Nat and Joe for helping me design this. It's hot.

Funny Hubby

2009-01-24T23:52:00.005-07:00

There's just something hot about a guy wearing a white button-down shirt, slacks and an apron. Especially if he's cooking your dinner. I just looked at him and said "you are so hot. I'm taking a picture." So I coaxed out his inner model and he gave me some fun shots."I am strong and healthy. I bring home the bacon, I fry it up in a pan, and, and I never ever [forget that I'm] a man!" (This is actually a quote from that 70's show that I think of whenever I see David cooking - it makes me laugh.)

So here's a funny that David made a couple weeks ago:

We were talking to a guy, Stan, about marriage and Stan suggested that we "go to Barnes and Noble and look in the book section for books about marriage." I kind of laughed at him and said "The book section, huh?" Then David says "As apposed to the Coffee Shop." LOL. Yeah. You won't find any marriage books in there. :) He's a pretty funny guy.

(BTW, This Stan was not my uncle).

Kiera's First Birthday

2009-01-24T23:23:00.006-07:00

For Kiera's first birthday I made cupcakes (brownies frosted with cream cheese, marshmallow creme and whipped cream, and topped with white chocolate "one"s. Yummy).
Got the chance to practice my cursive skills. James got to eat lots of "mistakes" lol.

One candle... and that's raspberry sauce, people. We're not trying to make her into a Renesme. (vampire)

So here Kiera just reached up to touch the candle. Oops. So David shot his hand out and grabbed her hand to keep her from burning herself. In the picture below she's trying to decide what she thinks about that.

She decided she didn't care for it.

She looks so cute crying I couldn't resist! Look at that tear. Adorable.
So in the video she's still not sure if she's allowed to touch the cake.

So after we cut it into quarters she started tucking in. She loved it.

And she loved decorating my kitchen with it.

James says "That is de-LECtable!" (delectable). It was pretty tasty.

This picture was actually a couple days earlier, but she just looks so cute climbing in the cupboards I just had to post it!

The boys

2009-01-24T23:08:00.002-07:00

I have the cutest boys ever. The other day I noticed when David and James were walking out of the room that they were totally matching! So I had them stop and take a couple pictures. It was probably last Saturday, because we're just lounging about- but it was a cool moment!

Here I had just gotten James ready for preschool, and I was struck by how cute he looks in his new Christmas clothes (thanks Dad and Joanie). So I told him we needed to take some pictures to send to Grandpa Joe and Joanie. He did lots of great poses. :)

Here's a couple days later wearing more of his new clothes. I had in mind that I would take pictures of him in all of them, but there are seriously tons, so we'll see how long this lasts. :)

Kiera is walking!

2009-01-23T23:49:00.003-07:00

Kiera started walking this week! She just had her first birthday on the 16th, and she's sort of been experimenting with it for the last couple of weeks, but the last few days she's really been walking more than crawling, I think. In these pictures she is wearing a blanket that her aunt Stephanie made for her before she was born. For some reason she likes to drape it over her head, and stick her fingers through the little holes and walk around. I got a headband to help keep it on longer. How quirky.

Inspired by Natalie

2009-01-23T23:38:00.003-07:00

So here is my newest creation. I LOVE it. For Christmas this year I did home-made gifts. I gave my brother Baklava, because it's his favorite treat, and I told his wife, Natalie, I would design a vinylism for her to put above her bed. (she's been talking about getting one for a while). So after she sort of explained the look she was going for, I set to work. Obviously, Christmas was a month ago, but better late than never! Plus I think it was worth the wait. We put it on the wall today (it took 3 people and over 2 hours) and it looks amazing. Natalie keeps going into her room to stare at it. I did a couple times, too- so I just decided to take a picture so I wouldn't have to bug them so much... lol. David and I are making a lot of updates to my website. It's taking forever and a lot of our concentration right now, so sorry about the lack of blog posts. Thankfully Natalie is working for vinylisms now as the new Office Manager, so she is a ton of help! Now we both have the benefits of working from home! (we'll just have to get David a job at home and we'll have a full house! -Joe also works from home for Really Right Stuff as a Mechanical Engineer.)

Happy New Year 2009!

2009-01-02T12:29:00.002-07:00

So for New Years, Natalie, Joe, David and I stayed up late, ate chips and dip, drank fake champagne, and played Dance Off Ping Pong. Or something. It was pretty fun! I had my (sorta girly) play list going while we played Ping Pong, and we started dancing and goofing off, which was dang fun. When a Taylor Swift song came on, the guys started lip syncing, and it was so funny, I had to tape it. Neither of them really knew the words, and Joe had never even heard it before, but they look like rock stars to me!

Christmas!

2009-01-02T12:15:00.003-07:00

This is one of our 3 family Chistmas parties (lots of Grandparents to visit!) In this picture we have David's Dad, his wife, Melanie, all of David's brothers and sister, their sweethearts and children, and David's family. Funny Faces time.

Flyin' Wyatt, crazy Natalie and more happy people.

James got a new bike for Christmas, but I think he would have been just as happy with the knee pads, elbow pads and helmet he got... they have spiderman on them!

This was the morning of Christmas, and David is showing all the work that "Santa" did. It's funny, because there isn't a fireplace downstairs, so Joe got a movie of a fire on the TV. We could even hear the wood crackling and everything. Awesome.

And here is all the swag that James scored. Lucky kid!

Ravaged Baklava

2009-01-02T12:08:00.003-07:00

So after spending about 3 hours making baklava (for Joe's Christmas present), James must have thought it looked a little too pretty... or maybe he was looking for something buried inside it. Either way, he totally desecrated my baklava. You would all be proud to know, that I did not commence to beat his tiny butt with a wooden spoon- I just put him in timeout. Luckily I was able to salvage most of it. (and the rest, I got to eat. Not a bad situation when you take a couple of days to calm down!) But Natalie and Joe were pretty concerned when they heard my blood curdling scream!

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas

2009-01-02T11:58:00.007-07:00

The week of Christmas it was snowing like crazy. Natalie wanted to shovel the driveway - but it was over a foot deep! And even though it looks like night in the pictures, I think it was around 2 in the afternoon. But it was so dark! Then James wanted to watch. So Joe and Natalie helped him get in the snow action:

And here is the little Marshmallow man now:

When he finally came in he was shivering and his teeth were chattering, so I made him some nice hot cocoa and bundled him up to watch some Christmas themed cartoons. Looks like heaven to me!

After he had warmed up, he and Kiera started climbing on me. They light up my life!

Women do it better

2009-01-02T11:37:00.003-07:00

A couple weeks ago I went out with my mom to see a play. I asked David to take the laundry out of the dryer when it was finished, and just lay out all of the clothes that need to be hung up so they wouldn't get wrinkled. Usually I just stack everything in a pile, then carry it to the closet to hang it all up. (I like to line up the shoulders and necklines of all the shirts, you know, so you can just stick the hangers in really fast). Anyway, when I got home, David had done what I asked him, but in kind of an Amelia Badelia way... he had laid out all the clothes all over the house! He said it took him over a half an hour. Eventually he was thinking, this is silly, I could hang these up faster than this... No kidding! :)

Can you just imagine him taking one shirt over to the couch, laying it out, then going all the way back to the dryer over and over? Crazy. And funny as heck.

When I came in the door he said to me, "Do you like it? It took me over a half hour to decorate your house." :) This is why I always do the laundry myself.

Shut the heck up, Santa!

2008-12-19T12:34:00.003-07:00

Last week my awesome neighbor threw a Christmas party for the 3 year-olds in our neighborhood... Santa was coming and everything.
So after James had has his turn sitting on Santa's knee, he had gone to play with the other kids in the adjoining living room, where a Santa cartoon was playing on the TV. Then he came back and put his hand on Santa's knee to get his attention. Santa looked at him and asked him what he wanted.
James: "I want to watch the movie." (Pointing at the TV)
Santa: "Okay, you can watch the movie."
James: "But I need you to be quiet, please, so I can hear it."
Then Santa (and all the moms in hearing distance) just started cracking up.
Santa: (looking around) "He just wants me to shut up!"
Another mom said to me: "At least he's being polite about it..." :)

Jingle Bell Mad Skills

2008-12-16T10:36:00.005-07:00

My cousin, Angela, is making a video for our Grandma who's on a mission. Angela asked for a Christmas Talent to put on the video. So here are our mad skills.

For all you Twilight Fans

2008-12-13T13:14:00.002-07:00

I was reading reviews on Twilight on Amazon.com. I found a particularly funny one that I can totally relate to:

I could not put the book down (finished it in under 24 hours), but I do not like Bella..she is so needy and annoying. "please don't leave me!" ugh, gag. And Edward...."I want to kill you...but I love you...but oh, you smell so good...get away from me..." Shut up already and drink her blood dry!

James' First Testimony

2008-12-11T23:14:00.003-07:00

This Sunday, James wanted to bare his testimony. So we reverently walked up to the podium, and I helped a little, but he came up with a lot of it on his own:

"My name is James Cameron Miller. I hope they call me on a mission. I love my uncles." (We had just been fasting for Erik, and explained that we hoped he would go on a mission.)

"I'm thankful for my mommy and daddy. I know the church is true. I say these things in the name ... of Jesus Christ ... AMEN!"

Then he reverently (and with a big grin), walked back to his seat.

I now present: Emily Miller, Cello Virtuoso!

2008-12-11T23:04:00.002-07:00

For the first time ever, LIVE from her living room, I'm honored to announce the famed Cello virtuoso, Emily Miller, will now be performing a moving rendition of the classic, "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star":

Thank you very much! Please please, a standing ovation isn't necessary.

California is so Fresh

2008-12-11T22:48:00.002-07:00

Today James was asking about his Uncle Timmy. (My youngest brother, see below:)I told him Uncle Timmy Lives in California with Grandpa Joe.
"He lives in Cal-i-FORN-i-a? ...With the new Grandpa Joe and Joanie?"
"Yep, that's right."
"Why do they live in Cal-i-FORN-i-a? ...is it because it's so fresh?"
LOL
"Yes James. It's so fresh."
"Let's go to Cal-i-FORN-i-a."
"Okay, we'll go in February for Anna's Baptism."
"No. Let's go right now."
This picture was taken when we went to Disneyland this summer.

You can't catch me, I'm the Ginger Bread Man!

2008-12-11T22:42:00.004-07:00

So for Family Home Evening this week we built a gingerbread house. I did most of the building, while David and James did most of the decorating. Backwards, ay? James loved it, and as soon as we took the pictures, he picked off all the candy and ate it. What funny kid. David wasn't much better. The whole time we were decorating it, James would catch David eating the candy, and he finally scolded him very thoroughly. "That's for the CAKE, Daddy!"

We've had a birthday, shout Hooray!

2008-12-07T17:13:00.004-07:00

David's 30th Birthday was on the 1st of December. We went to dinner with our parents and Nat and Joe, to a place called Texas Roadhouse in Sandy. Yum! Then we all came home for cake. (Long story about my crazy day getting ready for all this- I'll tell it later)

David got an ice cake from Cold Stone, and it had 30 candles.

He managed to get them all out in one breath.

I surprised David by getting him a Ping Pong table. He was so excited about it! Nat, Joe, Dave and I have been playing almost every night since we got it, and it's been way fun.

My 23rd birthday was on the 6th of December. David and James woke me up with my presents: a couple of beginner cello music books- and a trip to the music store so we could rent a cello! I've never played one before, but I've been wanting to learn since before I got married. I found some awesome lessons on YouTube (you can check one out at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eySmCWYBlnU) So far I've practiced for a few hours, and all I've managed is to move the bow well or play a scale on the finger board. (not simultaneously, yet :)

This is the music book that James picked out for me. I'm very excited to be able to play some songs!

My favorite Cello song is Bach's 1st Prelude for Solo Cello. (you can hear it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rrys0E5Yesk&feature=PlayList&p=18E327B3EAF5ACF5&index=0) We'll see how long it takes before I learn that! :)

Live in Thanksgiving Daily

2008-12-07T14:24:00.007-07:00

So on the week of Thanksgiving I was tagged to do a blog showing what I am thankful for. I was also asked to give a talk in sacrament meeting that week, so the blog had to wait it's turn.
My talk was suppost to be about gratitude and/or Thanksgiving- and I based much of it on a talk given by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin at a BYU devotional 8 years ago, titled "Live in Thanksgiving Daily".

The main theme of the talk is that being grateful will make you happy. I totally agree with that. Think about it. The times when you're the most happy are when you're aware and grateful for all you have. - and also when you serve others.
Anyway- so here are a few of the things I am thankful for:

#1: The Atonement of Jesus Christ. Through his mercy I can be the failure that I am, and still have a chance at perfection.#3: My Hubby. He saved me. He's good and wonderful and kind and gentle. He's everything I need. #4: My kids. Before they came around I was kind of going through life without a purpose. They helped me settle down and decide to be somebody worth knowing.

#5: My Business. I'm so lucky to be able to work from my home on a part time basis so I can be around my kids, but not go crazy from frustration. It gives me an artistic outlet, a chance to talk to humans (no offense, kids), a way to make some extra money for my family, and a lot of self satisfaction. I'm also lucky to have a husband who's so supportive. #6: Books. I love to read. I probably spend way more time reading than I should. I love fiction especially. I love connecting with characters and escaping into adventures. I love mysteries and fantasies; I love romantic stories and quests for good. One of my favorite things to do is read.

#7: Food - especially Dessert. I love to bake and cook desserts, I love to eat yummy meals and delectable treats. I love chocolate and fruits, and brownies and creamy custards. I like candy and cake, hot chocolate and gelato.

I've been so blessed to have such an abundance of food, comfort and friends. I love the holiday season and the extra focus on Family, Giving and Gratitude. If only we could live in thanksgiving daily, and spend more time thinking about all that we have- we'd all be that much happier, more content and selfless.

#2: My Family. I love my family so much. Not just my little family, but also my brothers and sisters, my parents, and my extended family.

Rub-a-dub-dub

2008-12-07T14:10:00.004-07:00

James is a pretty social kid- but I haven't let him take baths with Kiera because she was too little. Poor guy. I think she doesn't care one way or the other- but the other day, while she was taking her bath, James wanted to know if he could join. I figured, hey, why not.

So then James started sticking these rubber letters and numbers on Kiera. They would just stay on her forever- until he decided to take them off to move them. So he tried a number of different places.

As you can see, he was quite pleased with his discovery. And she was pretty easy - going about it, too. She didn't even seem to notice.

So now that they've done bathtime together once, they feel like it's only right to have it together all the time now. I love that they're buddies. And as long as sticking letters on her his the worst thing he does- I think they'll be alright. :)

I Capture the Castle

2008-12-07T14:06:00.004-07:00

Well- it's a little late, but this is a post to celebrate Autumn. Last week David raked our yard, and James decided to claim the leaf pile. First he got that branch with a couple leaves on it, and told us to put our hands on our hearts, because this was our nation's flag. And then he asked us to say the pledge of allegiance. Pretty funny. I guess he remembers it from Cub Scouts. :)