Thursday, January 31, 2008

I guess it could be worse...




If you are like me and find yourself complaining about the cold (all you Utahns out there)-or about cleaning snow off the car in the morning (a very hated task), take a look at these...and realize that it could always be worse...

I received these pics in a forwarded email.They were taken in a little town called Versoix, Switzerland. How would you like to scrape this off your car...?? BRRRR...

Is January over yet?


I couldn't be more ready for January to be over. Is this month as much of a letdown to others as it is to me? Maybe if I had a birthday or other special event to celebrate in January I'd feel differently...but I don't.

A few of my gripes with January include:

* an end to the excitement that builds with the celebration of each holiday-starting with Halloween
*taking down all Christmas decorations, particularly the tree
* My momentum and enthusiasm for my New Year's resolutions always seems to wane sometime in the 3rd or 4th week of January
* my car registration is always due ( I know it's no big deal, but it always stresses me out!)

This post may seem like the antithesis of my last post. I don't mean to seem like a downer...just wanted to say farewell to January...here's to February and hopefully to bigger and better things!!

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Happiness



I got this idea from Ashley's blog, and many others I've seen. This is my rendition... I like this idea for posts because it keeps you aware of the great things in life that happen each day...and that are so easily taken for granted.

Here is my list of highlights for this week...and hey the week's not over yet!

*Having Monday off!
* Waking up to 13+ inches of snow!!
* Not being intimidated by skiing in massive amounts of powder for the first time, thanks to these bad boys-too bad they were only rentals.
* Ruby showing signs that the obedience training class is paying off
* Getting Chris' MRI back and finding out he won't need knee surgery
* Having dinner ready when Chris got home from school, for once
* Having a job I quite enjoy...and then forgetting all about work once I get home
* The one kind driver who let me pull in front of her when I was running extremely late
* Getting an email from an old friend

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

So Very Random


I drive by this mailbox, er eyesore en route to the TRAX station every day. Incidentally, I first started taking TRAX to work sometime in October, and my initial thought was "Oh some fun, self-sacrificing parents have allowed their child to deface the mailbox, (yard, house and entire street in my opinion) in the spirit of Halloween"...

...then November 1st rolled around and I expected to drive by seeing a much smaller, less conspicuous mailbox -and lo and behold I spotted the same wing-ed beast from two blocks away. Well November came and went, and so did December and the monster still stands.

Taking a picture of it has been on my to do list for several months running, but what do you know I googled "dragon mailbox" and it is among the first images to pop up. This tiny picture hardly does it justice. Just imagine that it is probably 4 feet tall with a wingspan of 5 feet or so. The actual mailbox itself looks like Lincoln's Log Cabin. I really think it was made of Lincoln Logs...so very random. Also, notice how it's situated right smack in the middle of the sidewalk

I fear the dirty looks these residents get from neighbors. I imagine them to be the cape-wearing, Dungeons-and-Dragons-playing type. I have yet to see anyone enter or leave the house, but my eyes are always peeled as I drive by.

Thursday, January 10, 2008

I'm it!

Guidelines:
1. List 6 facts/habits about yourself that no one knows.
2. Tag 6 other friends and post their names at the bottom.

1. I was born with a backwards sternum, and as a child I appeared to have a large dent in my chest. I went to several specialists and nearly went under the knife until surgery was deemed unnecessary. I have met a handful of people in my life with this same condition...it's called pectus excavatum. (Mine was not nearly as severe as the one in the picture.)

2. My proudest moment to date was finishing the St. George Marathon in 2004. If anyone has ever considered running one-do it! It is an incredible experience. Funny side note-at mile 23 someone was blasting "Chariots of Fire" from a loud speaker and I burst into tears...so emotional...and looking back...so hilarious.

3.I'm a horrible logical thinker. Chris is constantly telling me I make things too hard, like adding unnecessary steps to a process, taking huge driving detours that I think are shortcuts, etc.

4.I spent a few years as a brunette and I actually felt more attractive with dark hair; however, I have this wierd identity crisis thing where I don't think I'm myself with it. I went blonder again shortly before getting married. I couldn't bear to think that one day my kids would look at my wedding album and say, " who is that dark haired lady with Dad?"

5.I have a strange fear of deep water. It's a combination of things: the unknown/the thought of getting pulled under and being far from air/visions of Jaws movies where you see the sillouette of the swimmer on the surface from the murky depths... It downright creeps me out! I would never scuba dive, and during those few minutes when waiting for the boat to come pick me up after water skiing, I can sometimes work myself into a freaky frenzy.

6. I'm a great speller.

For Fun I'll list some randoms about Chris that some may not know...

1. He is a better cook than I am...which isn't saying a whole lot.

2. He is FEARLESS; a total adrenaline junky, whether it's skiing or mountain biking. He recently came home from skiing with a tweaked knee and explained that he just had to show some younger kids what was up. He did a Rodeo 540, which he normally lands no problem, but this time he went a little too BIG and landed in a hole. He recently had an MRI to confirm what the dealio is...we are praying he doesn't need surgery.

3.He is an absolute gear snob, when it comes to skiing. He spends much time chatting with ski guys on forums, and talking with his brothers and with a guy I call "Tech Talk Tyson" on the phone...I've learned more ski terms than I ever knew existed being married to the guy.

4. He is an unbelievably caring and involved older brother. He talks to each of his three younger siblings on an almost daily basis. Once when we were dating he took me to meet his little sister and brother, Mary and Steve and we all went to a movie. My affection for him was greatly confirmed when I saw him interact with them.

5. He is extremely allergic to peanuts and also peas. We are NOT ALLOWED to keep peanut butter in the house. I thought he was just kidding when he first mentioned this...but he said one errant trace of pb left in a jelly jar could mean very bad news. I have made many a dinner...only to eat it alone because I have forgotten and put some form of pea in the mix.

6. He has a better sense of women's style than I do. He often helps me get dressed, shows me what goes together, etc.

You're It!:
Kailee Johnson, Courtney Stutznegger, Bill Park, Lucy Park, Pete Romney, and Marin Christensen...if you're out there