SOTW

last night, linds and i went to see Savior of the World, a production put on by the church. i saw it last year with my dear friend katie playing Mary. saw it this year with my dear friend katie playing Mary. she does a fantastic job, and i could listen to her sing all day long and never get sick of it. (props to her for just making the mormon tabernacle choir, too. i'm a proud mother, and have to brag about her...)
i found out the night before that these lovelies (pictured above) were going to be there too. christmas miracle. do you know how many times we have tried to plan lunches and the like, only to have the cancelled last minute because they are all to beautiful and too busy to have lunch with the likes of me? we couldn't have planned going to see the show on the same night if we wanted to!! it was great to see jenny...hadn't seen her since her wedding. great to see marissa, aka "newly engaged" and hear all about her love life and see her ring (sweet mercy!!). always great to spend time with cousin lindsey.

sidenote: don't worry about how i am holding my arm in this picture. yes, me and jenny are holding wrists. i wouldn't change it for the world. we like eachother so much, that we like to hold wrists as much as possible. okay, i'm just trying to make it sound like we were doing that on purpose instead of having it just look awkward with no explanation.

and that picture gives you a better glimpse of my not-so-stray-dog highlights. they're growing on me (when i have the right product in my hair)

namaste. (speaking of, LOST starts again in January...and my life will be complete.)

i declare today: "CASUAL FRIDAY"

the only problem is, it's wednesday.

let's be serious. the office is dead. not a soul to be found. (okay, that's a lie. there are a few of us here. even those will clear out by noon) the day before a holiday.

why am i at work? good question.

i'm leaving for las vegas today. tomorrow will be the normal thanksgiving festivities. food. crafting. guilt free christmas music. decorations. and family.

then, it's the weekend. no plans. no obligations. i will sleep when i want. read when i want. eat when i want. watch tv when i want. (get the picture????)

i do have plans to go to the temple with cindy. long awaited. i haven't been to the las vegas temple since i was doing baptisms in high school, so it will be nice to go back.
i'm sure i will be crafting my little brains out this weekend (because that's what i do)
i'm sure we will sleep out on the trampoline at least once. it might be a little cold for las vegas, but there won't be any snow. and sleeping on a trampoline is cool.

i'm excited. ready for a relaxing weekend at home.

ps. my cousin preton (preston) got his mission call!!!! Nicaragua. do i know more details? no. it was an early phone call, and even though i may have asked the right questions, i don't recall the answers. i'm excited to meet up with him next week and talk MISSION!! so proud of my cousins that are entering this phase of life. love them!! so excited for you prest!!

did someone say memphis??

this week is thanksgiving. i get to go home and play with my family. i know it's cliche, but i'm going to make a list of things i'm grateful for....seeing how, as of late, i have quite a list. don't worry, you'll hear all about my trip to memphis if you're patient.

• i am grateful for dear friends. friends that give me cake for breakfast. friends that listen. friends that make my bed every day. friends that tell me to take a personal day from work. friends that are siblings. friends that are honest. friends that ugly sing with me. friends that live far away, but with a simple phone call can make it feel like they are here. friends that tickle my arm. friends that make me laugh. friends that sing celine dion with me. friends that know i don't like milk. friends that give me birthday presents months after my birthday. friends that watch "while you were sleeping" with me several times the month of december. you all know who you are.
• i am grateful for my family. when the going gets tough, i'm always reminded they have my back no matter what. they are a wonderful support system. as i get older i realize how lucky i am to have siblings that have become friends, and parents that continue to encourage me as i figure out life.
• i am grateful for beautiful and calming sunsets. just what i needed.
• i am grateful for alone time (i.e. drives to las vegas) sometimes it's great to get lost in my own thoughts. sing at the top of my lungs.
  
• i am grateful for a job that allows me to leave for a weekend to be able to go to a friends wedding. i realize not everyone has that flexible of a schedule, and i'm grateful that i'm able to still have a life (until tax season starts. then i will be a slave to my job...but then i will be grateful for overtime!!)
• i am grateful that my brother gets home in less than a month from his mission. heaven sakes, he is happy and healthy. he's worked hard. i'm beyond excited that he will be home in time for christmas and that my family will be able to all be together
• i'm grateful for cousins. enough said.
• i'm grateful for the temple. it was great to be able to be in the temple this weekend for megan's wedding. it is a place that i can't help but have a feeling of peace. i need to take advantage of temples close to me, and i'm excited to be able to go with cindy over the thanksgiving break.
• i am grateful for perspective. and a good attitude. they are a killer combination. i wish i could say i always have this happy duo, but that's not the case. right now, i'm extremely grateful they are both around.

ok. sorry to bore you with that, but i felt like i had to get that off my chest. when i sit back and look at my life, i realize that i really am a lucky girl with plenty to be grateful for.

on to memphis. are you ready???
#1. i pick up on accents way to quickly. i now say "mama", "ya'll", "you know what i mean" and talk with a little twang. it's not on purpose. it just happens (ask cindy). i flew in and met megan and the girls at the melting pot for the most expensive and looooonnngest meal of my life.

so fun to be with this girl again.

and to meet these ladies. do we look good or what??

friday we woke up to run errands. we went to get our nails did, and then headed over to pick up her wedding dress. yes, when you get engaged and plan a wedding in FIVE weeks, you pick up your dress the day before the wedding. the dress fit perfectly, even after eating a full feast at the melting pot the night before.
the rest of the day was spent decorating for the reception :)

temple time. megan is a little excited if you can't tell....

married. woman.

...and look who i found. old bff and now old-married-man-grown-up. we had a great time chatting and catching up.
megan looked beautiful. she was beyond happy...which means i was beyond happy. thank you thank you to the ennis family for picking me up from the airport, welcoming me into your home, feeding me, toting me around to run errands with you, and sharing megan with me.
thank you tinker family for a night out on the town (we went to see "blindside"after the reception. see. that. movie. it is so so so so good) thank you lauren for driving me to the airport at the crack of dawn.

the south treated me well.
bbq.
walmart.
cheese biscuits.
good friends.
accents galore.

congrats meg. thanks for letting me be a part of your special day. i'm beyond thrilled for you and joseph. you deserve the best, and you've got it! love you girl.

just because i can...

I'm blogging from the airplane. True story: I ran into a dear friend in the LA airport. What are the chances?? Tender mercy. "please turn off all electronic devices". Over and out.

my achin' bones

Yesterday when I got home from work, I did it. Finally, I raked (again) and bagged leaves in our front yard. I didn’t get them all bagged, because it got dark. But it was cold. The leaves were wet. Feel sorry for me yet?
I’m feelin’ it today. My back feels like it’s 80 years old. Bad day to wear heels, but too late now. And the best part? I get to do the other half when I get home tonight…because I know it won’t get done otherwise. Plus, it’s supposed to snow while I’m gone.
What?? Gone you say?? Yes. I’m leaving Wednesday night on a little adventure of a weekend. My dear friend Megan Ennis is getting married this weekend in Memphis, and I’m going. A weekend with Megan and Lauren and Memphis bbq?? Sold.
Don’t worry. I’ll be back on Sunday with a camera full of pictures and a belly full of bbq.

bravissimo.

We went to the Symphony. Not just any Symphony performance though…Bravo Broadway. I’m afraid the secret’s out, and after advertising on the radio….there was a full house. I can’t complain…I’m thrilled that people are taking interest – but I missed my balcony seats.
We loved it. It was the perfect way for me to spend my Saturday night (and brush up on my conducting skills) We missed Keith (lockhart) but enjoyed Jerry, the new conductor. Did you know that I have a secret dream of being a High School Orchestra Instructor? Well, not so secret anymore.
Going to the Symphony makes me miss playing. Did you know I play the violin? True story. And truth be told, I’m not half bad. I’ve been playing more lately, and I like it. Who knows where that will lead (meaning, I don’t have plans to audition for a community orchestra any time soon…) but I’ve decided I can’t let my violin get dusty.
I love traditions. I love this tradition of going to see Bravo Broadway with my cousins. Can’t wait for Broadway Rocks next summer. Yee haw.

the accident.

*Note: I will be silently weeping whilst I type this post.*
Let me give you a little bit of background:
We live in an old house.
We go without a lot of things that other people ask “how do you do that?!?!”. We don’t have cable. We don’t have internet. No dishwasher. Frankly, when you don’t have those things, you do other things with your time, and you get over hand washing dishes because that is your life.

I ran downstairs on Saturday late afternoon to throw something in the dryer for a minute. Nothing was out of the ordinary, except I left wet footprints on the dry floor of the laundry room. Long story short, it had flooded. Wet carpet is no good, so I ran upstairs and grabbed a few towels. While I was standing there soaking up water, I saw a pile of electronics on the floor of the laundry room…mostly chords, but there was a brand new router and some other stuff that I was praying didn’t get wet. Luckily, they had been sitting on top of some cardboard boxes that had soaked up the water. I went to pick them up and set them elsewhere….and that’s when I saw it. My laptop, under a pile of chords.
What was my laptop doing there? That’s a good question. Without the internet in my house, I haven’t been using my computer. I had set it safely in a chair that we had stored away over a month ago. I’m loving that it was taken from that soft chair and placed on a hard concrete floor of a room that had previously flooded.
So without thinking, I took it upstairs and unscrewed the back panel and took out the battery. Soaked. Water everywhere.
Last time I had a problem with water and electronics mixing (i.e. the time I dropped my phone in the toilet) I was told to put it in the freezer. Surprise, surprise….it fixed my phone.
Since I was getting ready to leave for the night, and since there was really nothing else for me to do, I put that laptop in the freezer for the night.
Sunday morning I pulled that bad boy out. (right now if you’re thinking I’m going to tell you it turned on and worked like a dream, sorry to burst your bubble, but not all stories have happy endings) I let it sit for 30 minutes. I plugged it in, and pushed the power button. I started to smell something….like burning plastic, and then smoke started to come out of the bottom of my computer.
Great. Now I’ve fried it. Is there any chance to save the computer? I think I’ve given up hope. What I’m concerned about now is getting files off of that baby. Who knows if there’s even a chance.
The saddest part : I was going to give my laptop to my brother for Christmas. Yes, he gets home from his mission in a month, and was going to need a computer for school. Since I wasn’t using mine, I was very excited to be able to give it to him. And now, because of something stupid and careless, I can’t.
I’m beyond frustrated. I’m beyond sad. It’s worse than bummed.

When all is said and done, I know it’s just a “thing”. It’s only money, right? But for me, it was a lot of money. And not just a thing, but it was going to be a gift for someone else.

Dang. Dang. Dang.