Cousin day

Now, for a happier post: picture overload from cousin day at the Thanksgiving Point tulip festival.

Rolling down the big hill, and running back up (about 100 times)

Feeding the millions of koi



Time to leave the secret garden.

The no good, very bad day

Today started out good. I slept until 7:45 and made blueberry pancakes for breakfast. But it was all downhill from there. The girls were grouchy, which in turn made me grouchy. Somehow though, I still managed to take us to the grocery store. We got home, and as I started putting things away, I realized that there was absolutely no room in the freezer - and I had lots of frozen stuff to put away. So, I started to "purge" - throw things away that we were never going to eat. There was a 1/2 eaten carton of ice cream left over from G's birthday last month, and I tossed it into the kitchen sink a few feet away. Maybe because I was angry, I over threw it. As it went through the air, I could tell it was bad. It was headed for a cute little pot with flowers that G had made me. I was sure it was going to hit the pot and break - and sure enough, as it carton of ice cream landed I heard a shatter. I was sick to think I'd broken the pot - but as I inspected the damage, I realized it was far worse:

Thats right. I BROKE THE WINDOW! Somehow a carton of ice cream broke my window.

I felt like crying, and probably would have if my phone hadn't rung at that exact moment. It was my mom calling from vacation in California. I really needed to talk to an adult, and pretty much just zoned out. I barely noticed Brynlee running around naked - until she had a potty accident on G's carpet.

That is when I did start to cry.

Think I need anger management classes.

10 things

I’ve taken an unintentional blogging hiatus this weekend. I haven’t even thought about blogs, read blogs, etc. So now I’m playing catch up. I seriously have about one million things I want to blog about, so I’m going to try and do a condensed version. Here’s the highlights of my long weekend:

1. The Cure Concert. Friday night, my fellow bloggers Tib and Arianne accompanied me to the Cure Concert. You can read their reviews by clicking on their names. (please don't judge me by how fat I look in that pic either) The concert was great. The Cure was the soundtrack to so much of my teenage life, and I couldn't help but to feel nostalgic most of the night - its funny how so many of their songs "take me back" to old friends, boyfriends, and experiences. And of course the people watching couldn't be beat. There were a lot of middle-aged people like us (normal), and of course there were lots of freaks too. My personal fav was the not-so-skinny (read chubby) girl wearing a skirt so short that it was obvious she was panty-free. Ahhh - good times.

2. Sleeping in! My kids are early risers. Its rare for them to sleep past 7am. But somehow on Monday morning, they both slept until 9am. I haven't slept that long in 4 years. I barely knew what to do with myself. I felt AWESOME all day.

3. Going out to breakfast. Seriously, one of my favorite guilty pleasures in life is going out to breakfast, and letting myself indulge in pancakes, eggs, and hashbrowns. After sleeping until 9am, Ben surprised me by taking us to breakfast. It was so yummy. Thanks hon!

4. Shopping. After breakfast, Ben surprised me again by taking us shopping. I LOVE shopping - love it! The highlight of the trip were the deals I got at TJ Maxx. Bargain shopping is the best. I got a new pair of Michael Kors jeans, a pair of Sevens, and some Keen sandals. Ben also got 2 new pair of designer jeans, and the girls got stuff - and we spent less than we would have on one pair of full-priced Sevens. I'm still smiling.

5. Running. The weather was perfect for running, and I got an over 9 mile run in, and I wasn't even sore the next day.

6. Plane tickets. My mom got tickets for me and the girls to go to Maryland next month. My 86 year old grandfather has been in the hospital most of the month, and is now in a rest home. I'd love for my girls to visit him since I'm assuming he won't be with us much longer. He's never even met Bryn, and I'm so excited to take them for a visit. I hope they get to see fireflies. Thanks mom!

7. Sam's Choice Tropical Trail Mix. I am a big fan of nuts and dried fruit, but I'm allergic to peanuts. And most trail mixes have peanuts. On Friday, I decided to go to the brand new Walmart that just opened in my neighborhood. As a general rule I try to avoid Walmart, but judging by the number of cars in the parking lot, it appeared I was the only person within a 10 mile radius of the store that wasn't there. I was feeling left out, so I decided to check it out. The trip was worth it, because they had fresh sushi and this yummy trail mix (which I apparently should never buy again, after reading this article). Maybe I should extol the virtues of the spring rolls instead?

8. Rain. It rained like crazy this weekend - and I LOVE it. I know I've said this before, but gloomy weather makes me all giddy inside. And this storm was no exception. We had thunder, lightening, and everything associated with it.

9. Brynlee going potty. Yesterday while we were shopping, Brynlee told me twice that she needed to go potty - and she went. One time too, it was actually 10 minutes until we found the restroom, and she held it the whole time. Isn't it great that pee makes me so happy.

10. Swimming. We took the girls swimming yesterday to a really fun indoor pool. I loved that we were able to swim, even though it was cold and rainy outside. And the girls had a blast. The best part was that they both fell asleep in the car on the way home. We put them in their beds, and they both slept all night long! Ben and I had the evening to ourselves. Fun, fun, fun.

Why I won't be getting a raise any time soon

The other day, the girls didn't want to go to daycare. G said something to me about feeling like she never saw me anymore, and it made me feel incredibly guilty. So, I took a spontaneous vacation day so that the girls and I could have a day just for ourselves. No cleaning. No appointments. Only fun and frolic, and lots of girl stuff.

We started out by doing mani/pedis. And I let the girls pick the colors and crazy nail decals. We had blue and purple toes with Hello Kitty decals. Even mommy got decals. It was da bomb. (is it just me, or does G's foot look almost as big as mine?)
The next item on the agenda was beading, because, after all, what girl doesn't love new jewelry. We even went to the bead store and let the girls pick out their own beads and charms. G strung hers all by her "big girl" self, and mommy helped Bryn.

I think they turned out gorgeous!
Our next activity was painting. Grandpa had made them new birdhouses (kind of a G'pa tradition) and the girls got to paint them how ever they wanted. This was G's favorite part of the day - she had a blast. Bryn did pretty darn good too!
The finished products: G's house is the one on the left - she very carefully painted each surface a different color. Very regimented. Bryn mixed the paint all together, and had a much more abstract look. Both were beautiful though, and fit each girls' personality.

We finished our busy day with lots of homemade salsa - our favorite treat. As you can tell, the girls simply cannot get enough of the stuff.

It was a great day.

Thankful Thursday

Here's my list for the second week in a row! Yay me. I know I need to make this list, because it has seriously taken me an hour to come up with 5 things I'm grateful for. How sad.

1. The Internet - my Internet at work has been down all day - I'm in serious withdrawal here. I've realized in the past 8 hours just how thankful for the Internet that I am. Its my lifeline. I keep in touch with reality this way.

2. My friends - I have wonderful friends. A great example of this were the responses that I got to yesterday's "woe is me" post. Thanks for making me feel better about myself. I really wasn't fishing for compliments, but it was nice to hear! (and G - I was totally laughing at the "bang the door" comment. Would you believe I heard his name twice yesterday. I feel badly that I've lost contact. Do you think Alison knows how to get ahold of him?)

3. Caffeine - I've been trying hard to kick the habit. But let's face it: I'm addicted. And since I'm always tired and harried, I don't know if I'll ever completely give it up.

4. Nike + - this is a great little device that clips into an iPod. It keeps track of miles run, pace, calories burned, time, etc. And then puts it all into a nice little graph. I love it! Some days I run further/longer/faster than intended, just so my stats will look better. The website also has a feature where you can challenge other Nike + users. Its the best!

5. Glucosamine - I had been struggling with recurring achille's tendonitis for a few weeks. Last month, my brother suggested that I try taking glucosamine. Its a compound that is naturally occurring in healthy cartlidge, but you cannot get it from any natural sources. So, I made a trip to Good Earth, and bought me a bottle. I've been taking it for a month now, and after a few days my tendonitis has completely disappeared. Its a miracle.

I guess I'm just a bee-otch

I got pulled aside today by a coworker saying that she "needs to talk about a few things." For the past couple of weeks, she's been completely ignoring me, so I knew something was wrong. Apparently, I've said some things to her that have made her feel badly. I've hurt her. I've made her feel inferior. I've blamed her every time something has gone wrong. She had several specific converstations that she cited - some of them going back months. I only even remember one instance that she recalled (and in that instance, she made the mistake but I took credit for it in a public meeting). Never once do I ever remember thinking anything negative about her. I've honestly never intended to be rude or mean - but apparently I have been. I guess I'm just an insensitive bitch.

For some reason, this whole instance reminded me of something that happened about 15 years ago. I had a boyfriend that I was really digging. One day, he pulled my sister aside to confide in her that sometimes I said really mean things to him, and he wanted to know what she thought he should do. Her response to him was that I'm "just like that." Needless to say, that relationship didn't make it much further.

Up until that point, I don't remember ever being mean to him either - I actually really liked him and was crushed when he dumped me. (I'm pretty sure that screaming "get the hell out of my apartment you freakin' jerk" after the break-up was offensive - but before that point I wasn't even sure that the problem was). I know that I've never intended to hurt either one of these peoples' feelings. But now I'm worried that I've spent my life offending just about every single person around me - all without me ever knowing and/or intending it.

What do you think (especially those of you who know me in real life)? Have I ever been rude to you? You can post anonymously if you want, but please let me know.

Pet peeves part 2

I know I’m at risk of being labeled as a complainer. High-maintenance. A diva even. But I don’t care. There are some seriously annoying things going on out there that just have to stop! I’m doing my part: blogging about them of course, in the hopes that the offenders will read my post and change their ways accordingly. So, without further ado, my pet peeve list, part 2:

Cigarette butts – I’ve often wondered what it is about cigarettes that make people think its ok to litter them. Is it the fact that they are on fire or something? I swear that 67% of the actual litter in the world (not weight or volume, but strictly being measured by pieces of trash) are cigarette butts. And yes, I did pull that number from the air, but I think y’all get my point. People! Quit throwing your used cigarettes out of your car windows! I may be wrong, but I think cars still come with ash trays. Use them!

**Edited to add: apparently cars no longer have ash trays in them as stock. I do know that you can get them though, because I've rented cars with them installed. At any rate, that still is no excuse for throwing cigratte butts onto the ground. Its littering peeps!

Fast-talking voicemail messages – Its not uncommon for me to check my voicemail at work and have 10+ messages to return. Nothing bugs me more than having to listen to a message numerous times to try and decipher the phone number, the person’s name, etc. Oh – and you would not believe the number of times people leave a message, but then leave out important information like their name or call-back number. Seriously peeps – speak slowly and repeat name and number if you want a call back.

The price of gas – Ok – I know that the price of oil is over $100 something a barrel – but I still think that gas companies are raping and pillaging the American public. I may be naïve, but it doesn’t seem to me that the price of gas has risen proportionately with the price of oil. Its killing me to spend $60+ every WEEK to fill up my car.

Sinus infections – every spring I get a sinus infection. I blame seasonal allergies caused by global warming (Ok – maybe just the allergies part). But I woke up yesterday morning with a swollen lump of infection in the roof of my mouth. If I apply pressure with my tongue, I feel it in my eye. I’m thinking that I may have to break down and head to the doctor in a day or two if I’m not feeling better.

Grouchy people – Its ok to be in a bad mood – you just don’t need to make everyone else in a bad mood as well. I’m so sick of grouchy rude people who are hell-bent on making everyone else in a bad mood as well. Lighten up people! (of course I don’t fall into this category)

That’s all for now.

First kiss

Brynlee and G came home from daycare yesterday, excited because Brynlee had a very good day. Apparently she has a 3-year-old boyfriend - an older man! In the bath last night, she confessed to me that he had kissed her. I think she blushed a little bit.

Then, G piped in with the "real story":

"She's telling you right mommy. Frank* grabbed Brynlee and kissed her. And then he SNEEZED all over her cheek."

Ah, true love.

*Names have been changed to protected the snot-nosed little kid who thinks he can defile my sweet baby.

Reason 1999 why my husband rocks

On Saturday afternoon, Ben got pulled over for speeding. He was coming down from Butterfield Canyon, and was doing 37 in a 30 mph zone. Luckily, he talked himself out of a ticket, and got away with just a warning.

Oh – and he was riding his bike!

**Edited to add: This is not a joke. He seriously got pulled over for speeding on his bicycle. Apparently the whole "Share the Road" bike campaign goes both ways. He was riding down a steep and windy road down a canyon, and the cop said he was worried about his safety. blah. blah. blah. More like a slow afternoon in my (humble) opinion. And apparently he's not the only one who has had this happen. But hey - at least its a good story. Right?

I'm a girl on a mission

I ran 4.16 miles yesterday non-stop. Our whole family was home from work and daycare, sick, recovering from the stomach flu. While the girls and daddy took a nap, I went for a run outside. The weather was sunny and cool – perfect running weather. I didn’t run it fast (it took me 45 minutes), but I felt strong and alive – and I didn’t have to walk once. Not too bad either, considering I’ve got a head cold and was still recovering from stomach flu.

My running hasn’t been going well lately - I’ve felt a bit like I’ve been faltering. After running the SLC half, I was waiting to see if I won the St George lottery before deciding my summer running schedule. I really don’t run well aimlessly – I need a plan and something to train for. Something big too – 5k races, and even 1/2s aren’t much of a challenge anymore. I need a marathon to train for. Well, the lottery results were in last Friday, and I didn’t make it into St George this year. I was so sure that I’d get in again, that I hadn’t even considered what to do instead. And I really wanted to train for a fall marathon. I did have a few options to consider: Park City, Top of Utah, Marine Corps, or Vegas were all on my list. But none of them were jumping out at me.

Park City is at the end of August and just a little too early in the season to be considered a fall marathon – and the route looks a bit difficult (if I’m gonna run a marathon, I want it to be as easy as possible). From the website, the route looks like it goes up a mountain. I’m not that good of a runner yet.

Top of Utah looks like a great route (mostly downhill at a 1-2% grade), running from Hardware Ranch down into Logan City. But, since it’s the week after LOTOJA, I’d have to run it alone – which would be ok, I guess. It’s always more fun to have a friend with me at the start line.

Marine Corps (considering I could even get into that one) would be so awesome – run around the landmarks of DC – and my dad was a Marine. But, that one would be expensive since I’d have to buy plane tickets (I would have somewhere to stay though, as I have family in the DC area).

Vegas looks like a nice flat route, which actually would be kind of boring – is it strange that I actually prefer hills? I like running up and down. But, the elevation of Vegas would give me a boost – I’m sure I’d do well with the lower elevation. The race is in December, which would mean doing some long runs in the cold of November – that doesn’t sound too fun. Vegas also has one big drawback – it’s in VEGAS. And I HATE Vegas – it’s the epitome of everything that is wasteful and sinful in the world, and I don’t enjoy it there.

So, after much “humming and hawing,” I made a decision: I registered for Top of Utah. It feels good to have a plan. I’m starting out with a much higher level of fitness this year, so I have high hopes. I’m hoping to shave an entire hour off of my time from last year.

And, with views like these, how could it not be great:

My favorite Monday

I'm playing along with Tib again today. The My Favorite Monday theme today is: favorite sports team. This is easy for me - my favorite team, hands down is the Utah Jazz. I love me some NBA. My hubby and I DVR pretty much every game - we rarely miss them. Did anyone happen to catch the game yesterday? Game 4 between the Jazz and the Kobes, er, LA Lakers? Well, just in case you missed it, the Jazz beat the Lakers in overtime. It was a fantastic game. I was very proud of "the boys" - my boys. Ha ha ha.

I've loved the Jazz since I was a little girl, and my dad took me too a game. Of course back then, Adrian Dantly was the star - even before Stockton and Malone.
I did love the "Stockton to Malone" era as well. I remember that summer in college when the Jazz almost beat the Bulls in game 7 of the finals.

Oh yeah - picking my favorite team was a piece of cake. Narrowing down my favorite player isn't quite so simple. I have several favs this season. But of course Deron Williams stands out because he rocks. He's amazing.





And then of course there is their newest player, Kyle Korver who I also expect great things from. And he gets my vote for "Best Hair in the NBA". He's such a cutie!

Thankful thursday

I've never actually done a Thankful Thursday post before. I actually love reading all my blogging friends' posts, but I've never felt compelled to compose one for myself.

But, I'm feeling "blue" today. I came to the realization that my mother's day is gonna SUCK, basically because my husband thinks his own mom is more important than me (but that is a post for another day). And I've got 2 family members who are, as we speak, lying in the hospital critically ill and we're just hoping they both make it through the night. I need to focus on something good. So, without further ado, here are 5 things that I'm grateful for right now.

1. PictSweet Steamers. (I cannot find a picture of these to save my life). These little bags of pure heaven are found in the freezer section - they're a bag of frozen, seasoned veggies that you just pop in the microwave and enjoy. The entire bag is around 150 calories, but it totally fills me up. Great food for weightloss!

2. Spring has sprung. I know that I claim to be a winter-lover - and for the most part I really am - but even I enjoy a warm, sunny day once in a while. Today I was driving around, taking pictures for a presentation I'm making at a public hearing tonight, when I passed by these beautiful pink-blossomed trees. I couldn't help but stop and park right under them. Luckily I had my camera, and I snapped a few shots as I basked in their springy-goodness.

3. The new daycare. I could write a novel about my daycare woes, and someday I do plan to blog about the latest chapter. This is my kids' second week going to my neighbor's house, and I've seen such a difference. No more tears in the morning. No more anxiety. Happy smiles at night. And it costs less.

4. My family. At the risk of sounding trite, My husband and kids are my world. I'm so grateful for them and the happiness they bring. Last night after the girls had their bath, we giggled, laughed, and hugged.

Some days, I just cannot get enough of my sweet girls.

5. My mom (last, but certainly not least). Today is my mom's birthday (and I have to work :( while the rest of my siblings take her to dinner). My mom has always been my best friend. She's the greatest person. She didn't have a very good upbringing. While most people would have used that as an excuse to be an awful person, she drew from that and decided to be the best mother she could. And she really is. She has always been, and still is there for me whenever I need her. Thanks mom!

This goofy pic is of she and I before a 5k we ran last summer. We are both much hotter now - thanks biggest loser contests!

Teaching manners

I’ve been trying to teach (brainwash) my kids to be polite. Its probably pretty annoying to them. I’m constantly reminding them to say “please”, “thank you”, and “excuse me” when the situation arises. I typically prompt them by asking “what do you say?” and then waiting for them to make the appropriate response. But after this weekend, I believe that I may need to rethink my methods.

On Saturday afternoon, I was playing in the living room with Bryn when she very audibly passed gas. She smiled at me, thinking it was funny. I sternly looked back at her and asked, “What do you say?”

“Thank you!” was her sweet, pixie-voiced response, not missing a beat.

My sister and brother-in-law burst into laughter.

Later that evening, as we were finishing up dinner, we retold the incident to daddy. Thinking it was time to again quiz Bryn, my brother-in-law asked her, “what do you say when you toot?”

Bryn’s classic response was “I say ‘pffffffffft’” (as she made the sound of air escaping)

She may not be polite, but at least she’s good for a laugh.

From the mouths of babes

This is another post about G- that's why I’m posting another baby picture of her. I just love this picture. Sometimes I miss my baby girl. But I do love my big girl.

Anyway . . .

The other night, she and I were reading a Cinderella book (not the Disney version). The story said something about how Cinderella was treated like a slave by her step mother and sisters. Being the curious little girl that she is, G wanted to know what a slave is. Here’s how the conversation went.

G: Mommy, what does slave mean?

Me: Well, a slave is a person who does all your work for you. A slave does the cooking, cleaning and other chores around the house.

G: Oh, then are you our slave?

Me: No, I’m the mommy.

G: (looking very confused) But, you do all the work around here and no one ever helps you. Not even Daddy.