There are lots of things you learn to do for yourself when you've been single as long as I have. Things like fixing a toilet, cooking for one, assembling desks, entertainment centers, and other furniture, and changing light fixtures.
Well, the last one was a new one for me. Truthfully, I called the bro-in-law for help. But only because I stuck a fork in a light socket when I was four and had trouble sleeping that night. Dad slept on the floor with me because the parents weren't certain I was really okay. My hair stood up on end and I was kinda buzzed. So, visions of that whole incident ran through my mind as I considered changing the bathroom light fixture by myself.
In the end, the bro-in-law was busy bathing kids and putting them to bed, so (since I'd already ripped the old, broken fixture out of the wall) I had to have light to put my face on for Sunday morning. I could have waited, but, well, patience has never been my strongest virtue. At least not when it's something I can do myself by reading a few instructions. (There are some gospel/life lessons here, I'm sure.)
So, I installed the new fixture - all by myself. I told Mom if she heard a faint buzzing or if the lights in the house flickered or went out to come and check on me. It only took about 15 minutes, but I got the new fixture up and - voila! - it actually worked when I flipped the switch. AND, because it's a four light fixture that replaced a two light fixture, I can totally see in the bathroom now! That's good and bad. Good because I can see my face better, but bad because I can see my face better.
Go me! I am handy woman! Hear me ... meow.
7/31/10
7/29/10
Dreams vs. Nightmares
Last night, I had a dream. It woke me up at exactly 4:00 a.m., at which point I could NOT go back to sleep. (This makes for a not-so-great day. I'm barely coherent with a good amount of sleep, but limit me to four short hours and we have trouble ....)
My dream was this:
A certain cute boy, who shall remain nameless, told me to meet him at Provo High School to go on our first date. Traffic was bad, I was late, and he wasn't there. I ran towards University Avenue to look for him, and sure enough he was running in place on the corner of University and Bulldog with two of his best buddies. He didn't hear me when I hollered his name, so I started running to catch up with them. The light (of course!) turned red so they could run across the street. I picked up the pace to try and reach them, but the boys, having ultra long legs, out-ran me. Somehow, I had a cardboard box around my waist that was keeping me from moving my stubby legs any faster, and no matter how hard I tried to get the blasted box off of me, I couldn't get rid of it! The boys kept running, crossed another street, went up a set of stairs, and then did a 180 to run down a set of stairs. I was standing across the street watching them as they turned and wishing my lungs would fill with air so I didn't pass out. At this point, cute boy waved at me and smiled. Then, I woke up.
This is not all. Oh no. It gets better. The thing I remember most vividly was the color of cute boy's running outfit. He had on light pink sweatpants, hot pink shoes with two wide white stripes, a dark pink hoodie, and a hot pink sweatband on his head that matched his shoes. It was over-the-top in pinkness.
So, tell me psychoanalysts, what the heck all that means?! I can handle the whole running away from me thing (it's really nothing new), but what the heck is up with all the pink? For real, I need answers, because I'm beginning to think this was not a dream - it was a nightmare!
My dream was this:
A certain cute boy, who shall remain nameless, told me to meet him at Provo High School to go on our first date. Traffic was bad, I was late, and he wasn't there. I ran towards University Avenue to look for him, and sure enough he was running in place on the corner of University and Bulldog with two of his best buddies. He didn't hear me when I hollered his name, so I started running to catch up with them. The light (of course!) turned red so they could run across the street. I picked up the pace to try and reach them, but the boys, having ultra long legs, out-ran me. Somehow, I had a cardboard box around my waist that was keeping me from moving my stubby legs any faster, and no matter how hard I tried to get the blasted box off of me, I couldn't get rid of it! The boys kept running, crossed another street, went up a set of stairs, and then did a 180 to run down a set of stairs. I was standing across the street watching them as they turned and wishing my lungs would fill with air so I didn't pass out. At this point, cute boy waved at me and smiled. Then, I woke up.
This is not all. Oh no. It gets better. The thing I remember most vividly was the color of cute boy's running outfit. He had on light pink sweatpants, hot pink shoes with two wide white stripes, a dark pink hoodie, and a hot pink sweatband on his head that matched his shoes. It was over-the-top in pinkness.
So, tell me psychoanalysts, what the heck all that means?! I can handle the whole running away from me thing (it's really nothing new), but what the heck is up with all the pink? For real, I need answers, because I'm beginning to think this was not a dream - it was a nightmare!
7/28/10
One of my dreams has come true!!!
August 28th can't come soon enough! Michael Buble is in concert at the MGM Grand in Vegas and I WILL BE THERE!!! I can't believe it. Honestly, I keep pinching myself to make sure this isn't some cruel dream I will shortly wake from and plummet back into reality.
IT'S NOT A DREAM!!! I'm really going to see him in concert! One month from today!
If only I could promise not to throw myself on the concert floor and ask him to marry me ... he's engaged, but he's not married. Still fair game, right?
This face could sing to me ANY time, ALL the time:
IT'S NOT A DREAM!!! I'm really going to see him in concert! One month from today!
If only I could promise not to throw myself on the concert floor and ask him to marry me ... he's engaged, but he's not married. Still fair game, right?
This face could sing to me ANY time, ALL the time:
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| Give me some of this any time! |
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| I need a key to his room!!! |
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| A gorgeous face |
7/27/10
July 24th Festivities
Every year our family celebrates July 24th. We've done it so long that I don't remember NOT doing it. Spanish Fork (where I grew up until we moved when I was 13) celebrates their "Fiesta Days" and they have a carnival come to town, a big parade, and a rodeo. We've never really been into the carnival or rodeo, but we usually have a family BBQ, eat tons of yummy food, light fireworks, and generally just have a last summer shebang before school starts.
This year was no exception! We grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, had a delicious broccoli salad, Mom's World Famous potato salad, chips, scrumptious shrimp dip, cream cheese and salsa dip, and a fruit salad with Oreos in it. Plus, Dave (the dutch oven guru) made a cherry cobbler and pineapple upside-down cake - served with REAL whipped cream. Delish! Oh yeah, we can't forget these bad boys:
These things are HUGE! One marshmallow doesn't even fit in your hand. And I have big hands - like man-hand size! Boy are they yummy. And gluten free (which is a plus at our house). I think I ate two. And later wished I had not met the dang things!
After we ate, we hung out in the front yard. We have two giant willow trees there and, since our house faces east, it makes for a very shady spot in the evenings. Mom bought bubbles for the younger kids, and I bought pop-its and sparklers. The sparklers weren't such a hit, but the whole box (40 small boxes total) of pop-its got used. The kiddies basically dumped them on the ground and stomped on them to their heart's content. Great fun!
Once it got a little dark, we lit a few sparklers and then went for the main event - the "light your driveway on fire" fireworks! We had some really good ones this year (thank you, Sam's Club). Alex lit them all off (which is my least favorite job of the night) and we saved a couple of really good ones for last - the grand finale! Overall, one of the best 24th's we've ever had.
On top of that, one of my best friends, Ashley, and her family came down to stay with me. Her husband, Paul, and their two little girls, Aubrey and Hailey, came as well. We got up early the next morning and went to the parade where we all got a little tan. Before they left to go home, I torched some steaks, made a really yummy green salad, and grilled some corn on the cob. Ashley made brownies for dessert (I had another marshmallow ...) and it was a wonderful meal with my favorite people.
As much as I have disliked summer in the past, I find myself loving it now. Not only am I happy to not be freezing to death (which I do quite often now), but it's a fun time of the year to hang with the family and be active while we laugh and joke and poke fun at each other. There are fond memories made, and I really like that the most.
Here are some pics of the events:
It's fun to make memories with my favorite people. Thanks, Lisa, for taking pictures so we could have visual reminders of July 24th.
This year was no exception! We grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, had a delicious broccoli salad, Mom's World Famous potato salad, chips, scrumptious shrimp dip, cream cheese and salsa dip, and a fruit salad with Oreos in it. Plus, Dave (the dutch oven guru) made a cherry cobbler and pineapple upside-down cake - served with REAL whipped cream. Delish! Oh yeah, we can't forget these bad boys:
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| This picture doesn't even do these justice. Go to Walmart and buy some. You won't be disappointed. |
These things are HUGE! One marshmallow doesn't even fit in your hand. And I have big hands - like man-hand size! Boy are they yummy. And gluten free (which is a plus at our house). I think I ate two. And later wished I had not met the dang things!
After we ate, we hung out in the front yard. We have two giant willow trees there and, since our house faces east, it makes for a very shady spot in the evenings. Mom bought bubbles for the younger kids, and I bought pop-its and sparklers. The sparklers weren't such a hit, but the whole box (40 small boxes total) of pop-its got used. The kiddies basically dumped them on the ground and stomped on them to their heart's content. Great fun!
Once it got a little dark, we lit a few sparklers and then went for the main event - the "light your driveway on fire" fireworks! We had some really good ones this year (thank you, Sam's Club). Alex lit them all off (which is my least favorite job of the night) and we saved a couple of really good ones for last - the grand finale! Overall, one of the best 24th's we've ever had.
On top of that, one of my best friends, Ashley, and her family came down to stay with me. Her husband, Paul, and their two little girls, Aubrey and Hailey, came as well. We got up early the next morning and went to the parade where we all got a little tan. Before they left to go home, I torched some steaks, made a really yummy green salad, and grilled some corn on the cob. Ashley made brownies for dessert (I had another marshmallow ...) and it was a wonderful meal with my favorite people.
As much as I have disliked summer in the past, I find myself loving it now. Not only am I happy to not be freezing to death (which I do quite often now), but it's a fun time of the year to hang with the family and be active while we laugh and joke and poke fun at each other. There are fond memories made, and I really like that the most.
Here are some pics of the events:
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| Aubrey doing Pop-Its |
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| Hailey deciding what to do next |
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| Paul keeps the little ones entertained with bubbles |
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| Paul and Ashley laughing at the family (it was well-deserved) |
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| My favorite adopted family |
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| Um, yeah, not sure what I'm doing, but Pop-Its are being opened |
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| They said to do a sexy pose. Notice how I'm the only one doing that? My sexy is scary! |
Mmmmm, cookies!
We got a new Primary presidency in our ward, so I decided to make M&M cookies and welcome the new ladies to Primary. As I was engulfed in the sound of the mixer, I thought, 'There has got to be a way to make a healthy cookie I can eat.' Lo and behold, I think I've done it! Well, it might not be "healthy" (I mean, really, what cookie is healthy?), but at least it's a cookie I can eat that's not too sweet and doesn't have a whole lot of calories. The recipe (and pictures) are below. Give it a try and tell me what you think. Mom says they taste like homemade Pecan Sandies. I just know they're yummy (especially dunked in a little Almond Milk).
Katie's Healthy Walnut Cookie Thingamajigs
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup Splenda (or other artificial sweetener)
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (but I usually add more)
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup finely chopped walnuts (other nuts - like pecans - would work well, too)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In large bowl cream butter, sweetener, and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add soda, salt, and flour. Blend into creamed mixture. Stir in nuts.
Drop by heaping tablespoon about 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake 10-13 minutes or until outer edges are lightly browned and centers are still soft. Do not overbake. Cool one minute on cookie sheet, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Store in a tightly covered container. Cookies can also be frozen.
Makes about three dozen cookies.
Pictures of the final product:
Katie's Healthy Walnut Cookie Thingamajigs
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup Splenda (or other artificial sweetener)
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (but I usually add more)
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup finely chopped walnuts (other nuts - like pecans - would work well, too)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In large bowl cream butter, sweetener, and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add soda, salt, and flour. Blend into creamed mixture. Stir in nuts.
Drop by heaping tablespoon about 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake 10-13 minutes or until outer edges are lightly browned and centers are still soft. Do not overbake. Cool one minute on cookie sheet, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Store in a tightly covered container. Cookies can also be frozen.
Makes about three dozen cookies.
Pictures of the final product:
7/26/10
Free Time
It's not very often that I have free time (between work and school, there's VERY little of it), but when I do have free time, I absolutely LOVE to read.
Recently, I stopped at Sam's Club (one of my favorite book joints) to see what paperbacks were for sale. (So hate me - I'm a cheap skate.) They had all of the Percy Jackson series in paperback, except book five, for $4.98 each. Book five only came in hardback for $10.98.
I bought the whole series. And I also bought the first book in his new series (The Red Pyramid).
And then I had a few minutes of free time. Big mistake. HUGE! I picked up The Lightning Thief and now have to finish the series as soon as I can. The thing is, I'm always behind the times when it comes to books like this. With Harry Potter, I didn't read the first book until after the third book came out, and I refused to buy any of them in hardback because I didn't know whether or not I'd like it. Then, I fell in love with the series, and replaced the first three books I had in paperback with hardbacks. I have the whole series in hardback now. And I'm afraid I may have to do the same thing with the Percy Jackson series.
Great. More money spent. On a freakin' paper fettish. That I inherited from my mother. Who has one of the largest libraries I've seen. And who has read nearly every book in that library. It's a sickness, I tell you. A disease. Of huge proportions. In fact, I used to dream as a little girl about two things (and no, it wasn't who I'd marry and what kind of wedding I'd have - that's just plain silly stupid!):
1) Having a room in my house devoted to music, complete with a grand piano
2) Having a library room with hundreds and hundreds of books and a moving ladder to reach them
This means that free time is really evil. Heh. I knew it all along. Too bad I don't care and will be looking for every opportunity to fill that free time with words and paper and binding that smells divine. Yes, I just admitted to loving the smell of books. Do you think they could put that in an air freshener for my car? Hm. Maybe I'll also have to invent that in my free time. I'd buy it.
7/22/10
Regrets
I have to admit that I don't have many regrets in life.
Choices have consequences, and things happen for a reason and purpose.
One thing I do regret:
Loving certain people
Sounds silly, I know. The reason? Because the more you love people, the more they know how to hurt you. Sometimes it would be easier to go through life not loving anyone because then you'd never be hurt.
Too bad that would also be a very lonely existence ....
Choices have consequences, and things happen for a reason and purpose.
One thing I do regret:
Loving certain people
Sounds silly, I know. The reason? Because the more you love people, the more they know how to hurt you. Sometimes it would be easier to go through life not loving anyone because then you'd never be hurt.
Too bad that would also be a very lonely existence ....
7/21/10
Ahhhh, perfection
There are very few things in this life that are perfect.
I don't know any people who are perfect.
I don't know of any perfect clothing line.
Or perfect hairdo.
There's no such thing as a perfect car.
Or house.
So what, pray tell, do I think is perfection?
This cherry I just ate:
NOT kidding! It was beautiful. A lovely sight. With the little green leaf and all.
Sometimes God sends things our way in simple forms so that we have to stop and recognize Him. Well, it worked for me today! All in the form of a dark, red, delicious cherry. It's the closest thing to perfection I've seen in a long time.
I don't know any people who are perfect.
I don't know of any perfect clothing line.
Or perfect hairdo.
There's no such thing as a perfect car.
Or house.
So what, pray tell, do I think is perfection?
This cherry I just ate:
NOT kidding! It was beautiful. A lovely sight. With the little green leaf and all.
Sometimes God sends things our way in simple forms so that we have to stop and recognize Him. Well, it worked for me today! All in the form of a dark, red, delicious cherry. It's the closest thing to perfection I've seen in a long time.
7/16/10
Gimme!
If anyone is feeling generous, this is what I would like to have:
And I will also need this in order to pull the ATV:
Only make the truck silver, please.
Having this to ride along wouldn't be so bad either:
If only there were a rich uncle who loved me more than anyone else ...
Maybe PCH could just drop off a $10 million check at my house instead. That oughta cover it.
And I will also need this in order to pull the ATV:
Only make the truck silver, please.
Having this to ride along wouldn't be so bad either:
If only there were a rich uncle who loved me more than anyone else ...
Maybe PCH could just drop off a $10 million check at my house instead. That oughta cover it.
7/9/10
It's the simple things
Last Friday, I spent the day with a very dear friend. She and her family just returned from three years out of state while her husband attended law school (which he graduated from - 1st in his class!). Anyway, my friend and her two little girls had never been to the movie theater, so I treated them to "Toy Story 3." We bought popcorn, waters, and M&M's. Good times, right?
YES! Absolutely good times!
Not even 10 minutes into the movie, little 3-year-old Aubrey accidentally tipped her M&M's bag upside down and they spilled every which way on the floor. As I'm trying to keep her from crying and promising to buy more (which her mother was opposed to - whatever, mom!), I knocked over the bucket of popcorn and added to the mess. Oops!
Aubrey and I went out and purchased more M&M's. Never have I seen such a smile on a little girl's face. SO cute! We returned to the theater for a (mostly) uneventful rest of the movie. Toward the end, Aubrey had to go potty (too much sugar and too much water for a 3-year-old's bladder to handle, I guess), so I took her to the restroom.
--Let me just insert here that I've always had a problem taking other people's children to the bathroom. What if they start yelling, "Stranger!" or something and I get hauled in for kidnapping or abuse?! It just freaks me out, but the girl had to go.--
Aubrey's doing great, until she says, "I need help." Uh oh. Now what?! I opened the stall to see her looking up at me with a huge grin and pointing at the toilet paper. Thank heavens Mommy taught her to "take care of business" by herself! Phew! We got over that obstacle, and as we're drying our hands, Aubrey says, "Paper towel." I look down, and on the floor someone has left a paper towel. I said, "Yep. Somebody made a mess, didn't they?" Aubrey says. "Yep ... you pick it up?" Ha, ha, ha! Oh, man. Mommy has got to stop teaching those girls about cleanliness!
Anyway, we went back to the theater and finished the movie. As it was ending, this thought crossed my mind: In the past, I would have been upset over the spilled M&M's, annoyed about the potty break, bothered about having to pick up the paper towel, and resentful that I missed part of the movie. Reality: it's the simple things that really matter. I was actually happier replacing spilled M&M's, taking a 3-year-old for a potty break, picking up a paper towel to make said 3-year-old happy, and having no clue what I missed during the movie than I've been in a VERY long time.
In other words, mothers have the best job in the entire world. And I think those who get to be mothers should feel very blessed that they can serve the "little people" they love so much. There's no amount of money in the world that could make another job quite as satisfying as being a mom. After all, mothers are best at doing the simple things.
YES! Absolutely good times!
Not even 10 minutes into the movie, little 3-year-old Aubrey accidentally tipped her M&M's bag upside down and they spilled every which way on the floor. As I'm trying to keep her from crying and promising to buy more (which her mother was opposed to - whatever, mom!), I knocked over the bucket of popcorn and added to the mess. Oops!
Aubrey and I went out and purchased more M&M's. Never have I seen such a smile on a little girl's face. SO cute! We returned to the theater for a (mostly) uneventful rest of the movie. Toward the end, Aubrey had to go potty (too much sugar and too much water for a 3-year-old's bladder to handle, I guess), so I took her to the restroom.
--Let me just insert here that I've always had a problem taking other people's children to the bathroom. What if they start yelling, "Stranger!" or something and I get hauled in for kidnapping or abuse?! It just freaks me out, but the girl had to go.--
Aubrey's doing great, until she says, "I need help." Uh oh. Now what?! I opened the stall to see her looking up at me with a huge grin and pointing at the toilet paper. Thank heavens Mommy taught her to "take care of business" by herself! Phew! We got over that obstacle, and as we're drying our hands, Aubrey says, "Paper towel." I look down, and on the floor someone has left a paper towel. I said, "Yep. Somebody made a mess, didn't they?" Aubrey says. "Yep ... you pick it up?" Ha, ha, ha! Oh, man. Mommy has got to stop teaching those girls about cleanliness!
Anyway, we went back to the theater and finished the movie. As it was ending, this thought crossed my mind: In the past, I would have been upset over the spilled M&M's, annoyed about the potty break, bothered about having to pick up the paper towel, and resentful that I missed part of the movie. Reality: it's the simple things that really matter. I was actually happier replacing spilled M&M's, taking a 3-year-old for a potty break, picking up a paper towel to make said 3-year-old happy, and having no clue what I missed during the movie than I've been in a VERY long time.
In other words, mothers have the best job in the entire world. And I think those who get to be mothers should feel very blessed that they can serve the "little people" they love so much. There's no amount of money in the world that could make another job quite as satisfying as being a mom. After all, mothers are best at doing the simple things.
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