LuLu's Little Thoughts

Wild Animal Park

2012-02-19T22:18:00.000-08:00

A little bit before we left to Hawaii Michael and I went to the Wild Animal Park! It was really fun and I've been dying to post pictures but was a little bit busy getting ready for Hawaii. So here are the pics!

This tiger was sleeping. Watch the video below. It may be a little long but totally worth it! Ok, the video is not working. Our internet is going whacky. So ignore the not working link below. It's another tiger pouncing on this sleeping tiger.

We were getting ready for our Safari. People come visit us so you can experience this awesomeness.

This is a giraffe and her new calf. (is it a calf?) They just moved into the zoo and are waiting to join their friends!

This guy can't be with his family until his little bro grows up a bit so his mom doesn't kill him. Isn't that sweet?

Also, we just got back from Hawaii so here's a sneak peek of our trip. Check out Facebook for the rest of the pics.

One of those days...

2012-02-01T17:02:00.001-08:00

When I left Panera Bread in Concord (where I just was living...sort of) there were people there crying that I was leaving. Everyone knew that I was following my husband but hated it. People tried to convince me to stay, some even begged. It was hard to leave. I was part of a great team who needed me and loved me and I needed and loved them.

I'm now at a new cafe. I work with great, hard working people. They have welcomed me and listened to my problems; one even saw me break down today. I'm still struggling though. I really miss my old cafe, just to start. On top of that I feel like the black sheep. I don't feel like I'm needed and sometimes I feel like I'm not even wanted. I just came from a cafe where I was high on the totem pole and I had worked hard, very hard, to get there and now I'm down at the bottom again. The very bottom. I miss loving my job and having that "can't wait" feeling when thinking about going back to work. I miss being needed, truly needed. Today things fell apart and I was getting "graded" for my performance today. Not a good day to not have it together.

It's just been a bad day.

I love little moments.

2012-01-24T20:34:00.000-08:00

Over the past couple of days I have had little moments where I am filled, overwhelmingly, with the spirit and I couldn't help but share.

My most recent one happened about 10 minutes ago:
As all of you faithful bloggers know, I just started working at a new place. With working at a new place (where I work hard and am often exhausted) I have to explain about 1 million times why I can't have coffee; it's a religious thing. A lot of people let it go and don't ask about it again but there is always at least one person who just can't understand why not coffee and tea but my Diet Pepsi is OK. I have to admit that I knew nothing about the subject and have just explained that even though I don't understand I have enough faith to know that the commandment is one to follow. Today, that changed.
Today the woman who asked me told me that she loves to learn about religions. Her goal for learning them is because she likes to find the loophole. If you are a member of the church you probably understand the urge to let her know (in OF COURSE nice and courteous ways) there is no loophole. There is always a reason for everything. She didn't realize but while she was asking me about this and I was telling her I would find information I was praying with all my heart that I would find the information I would need to help her understand the Word of Wisdom better.
I was expecting to find a nice talk given by a General Authority about the blessings of the word of wisdom and the importance of following it. I thought I would have to depend on the spirit to guide her and help her understand while she was reading the article. Even though I knew that the spirit can guide and direct people in ways I will never fully appreciate or understand, I had a feeling that this woman I work with might need a little more. Apparently, Heavenly Father knew that as well. It took me less then 5 minutes to find an article written by a Dr. on LDS.org about coffee and tea and the xanthines that are in it.
What a blessing it is that the Lord always provides a way for us to educate those people who wonder about the commandments we follow and the people we are.
On top of that, what a blessing it is that Joseph Smith knew to give that commandment without knowing anything about xanthines and how harmful they are.

The second thing happened last night:
I've been trying really hard at getting better about prayers. I am not good at praying every morning and night and my night prayers are often the same thing recited over and over again. But I'm working on it. Last night I really concentrated on things in my life that I appreciated, needed to improve on, and needed help or blessings in. It was nice to sit and think about the millions of things I need in my life and know that the Lord will help me in each in every thing. I found myself thanking my Heavenly Father over and over again just for listening to me pray for help in something that seems so small.
After my prayer I was laying in bed thinking about something that I really struggle with. I thought about a way to conquer this and what I needed to do to improve. I imagined myself asking my mother-in-law (best. counselor. ever) of how I can become better and how she got over the same thing. I thought exactly word for word what I would ask her. Within seconds I suddenly felt as if the Lord as if he was right there whispering in my ear the answer to that prayer. There was no having to translate or sit and ponder it was clear and precise on what I needed to do. So clear in fact that I was able to write it word for word in my journal later.
What an amazing blessing it is to have that communication in my life. Without it I can't even, and don't really want to, imagine where I would be. I may of not always followed the teachings of the church but I always had the spirit and I always have used prayer to guide and direct me in times of great need. (as well as not great need) In fact it was through the spirit and prayer that I was able to find my way back to the church. That story later.

A reason to visit us

2012-01-14T18:49:00.000-08:00

Today we went to THE SAN DIEGO ZOO!!!!

It was awesome.

We got the season pass so when you come visit us you get in for cheap. So come.

This is what we saw:

We parked in "E" for Koalas

This was at the Entrance before getting into the park.

This guy was pacing back and forth. Probably because he was pissed that all these people were bugging him.

Elephants were our first real stop. We stopped and watched them for a long time.

Then we stopped ant watched the Lions. There was a worker there giving them treats, beef heart, and she got them to do some tricks.

Like lie down...

...and come. She also got this one to stand. Michael wants me to say that this one is named Nala. It's not though. I can't remember what it's name was. The male was Marty.

The polar bear was hilarious. He would stay only on that rock and dance back and forth.

This one is for Sarah.

I used to ask for a tiger every year for Christmas.

This is a fishing cat. They bark like dogs and LOVE to swim. I didn't get a really good pic but they really just look like big kitties.

This little guy was just hanging out, no pun intended, by the monkey cages.

Don't worry Val, I wouldn't miss the giraffes.

I'm so glad we were finally able to get to the Zoo. I can't wait to go to the Safari Park next. Luckily, we have our season passes so it's paid for.

Now come and visit us so we can take you too.

It's back....

2012-01-11T16:31:00.000-08:00

Have you ever had this....?

I am not responsible for drool on your computer screen.

BEST. POPCORN. EVER.

Unfortunately, Orville Redenbacher hates all people and took it away. You can buy a bag on Ebay for like $200 but that's ~~totally~~ ~~hardly~~ not at all worth it.

I am a believer, though, and think one day it will come back. I stop by the popcorn aisle every time I'm at the grocery store just in case. Today, I was satisfied.

Today I found

Ok, Ok. It's not the same exact thing. But we are heading in the right direction, right? I can't wait to try it. Hopefully it tastes somewhat like the original.

I want to ride my bicycle; I want to ride my bike.

2012-01-06T16:26:00.000-08:00

Things are still going well here in San Diego. I really messed up with the no picture thing last night. My dad lives really close (about 30 minutes) and I had a BBQ with him last night. You may think, "Well if he only lives 30 minutes away then just get a picture later." It's not that easy, though. You see my dad works in Afghanistan at the moment and left this morning to go pack to work until April.

So, good job, Luanne, way to get those pictures.

We did have a really good time and I'm glad I got to see him.

Moving on...

I told you last time that I live really close to work. Really close. So, today Michael and I went to Wal-Mart and got me a bike! I will now be biking to work. I did a trial run today and it only took about 10 minutes to get there. I'm really excited to get my exercise by going to work everyday. Here is how it looks...

Stop looking at my cute kitchen. You will see those pictures when my house is fully unpacked.

I NEVER take pictures anymore

2012-01-03T14:55:00.000-08:00

Just in case you don't stalk me on Facebook or read my blog every single day (rude), I moved to San Diego last Friday! Everyone should be rejoicing right now because it's pretty much the most awesomest thing to ever happen. Ever.

Why you ask?

God loves me.

Also, because Michael got a job at University of San Diego. He was working at UC Berkeley, bleh, making online courses, going no where but now does the same exact thing but gets paid more, has chance for growth, and is at the head of his department.

I'll wait for applause.

So, now we live in Mira Mesa in the most beautiful neighborhood I've ever lived in, in like 70 degree weather.

There is one thing that is the pits about being here right now. Amazing, I know, but not everything can be perfect. We got movers. Sucks, I know. They just HAD to come into our home and pack up all our stuff for us while we watched and told them what to do. Now we don't have any of our stuff (I do miss my bed) and we have to like actually go out and do stuff. You know, with no TV and crappy, ~~stealing~~ ~~from our neighbors~~, internet we have to spend time in the sunshine.

*sigh
Dramatic pause...
You can't have everything.

I really wish I would have thought to take pictures from the beginning because we have seen a lot of cool stuff. So for some of this you will just have to imagine.

The first day we were here we had to find Target so we could exchange our air mattress. (This just keeps getting worse; having to go to Target and spend money...Dang.)Since we now have two bathrooms we also had to buy stuff for our second bathroom. Also, we forgot to bring our swimsuits with us and we now have a pool and hot tub so we had to buy that. While we were out looking for Target we found:

Where I'll be working (still at Panera); not that far away.
The movie theater- Right next to my work.
Old Navy
Marshalls
Ross
(Marielle, you can now officially visit me. I know where to go.)
3 Grocery stores
Cold Stone
and a million other awesome things

Later that day we went to the dog park and wore out the dog. Then we watched Big and Joe vs. the Volcano and slept.

The second day we got up early to go to the dog beach! This is like the best thing for Roxy. She loves the water and the sand and other dogs and playing fetch. So how can you beat playing fetch at the beach into the water with other dogs? You can't.

After the beach we went to USD so Michael could show me the campus. Oh. My. Gosh. It is beautiful! The architecture is amazing and the landscape is phenomenal. Then, on top of that, the view is breath taking. Michael is so lucky to work at a school like this. You can just feel the better atmosphere.

Yesterday we...oh did kind of normal stuff. I went to Costco and Von's and other grocery places. That kind of sucks because we don't really have anything to eat all of our food with but I needed to go before it was too late in the week. We did go to a different dog park and had a great time. There was this German Shepherd there who was obsessed with Roxy. He was following her around everywhere and wouldn't leave her side. She was covered in his slobber because he hovered so much. It was hilarious. We also were able to find a good dog sitter for Roxy for when we go to Hawaii in February.

Today I actually pulled out the camera. We started out our day by going to a veterans memorial to check out the view because...check out the view...

Just to the right of this bush you can see the San Diego Temple. I will be getting closer pictures of that when we go later this week.

This is Michael and the dog getting a better view of the amazing houses that are right around this area.

It was a little bit foggy but just beyond that fog is Mexico. Crazy huh?

This is the actual memorial. It's really neat that San Diego is willing to honor their Vets this way.

After the memorial we hopped, skipped, and jumped back over to the dog beach and I actually got pictures this time.

I had to make this one big so you could see the joy in her face.

Sometimes the ball would go too far and it would scare the dog so Michael often had to go out there and encourage her to go farther.

Now, Michael is out getting new jeans and the dog is sleeping. She is so exhausted because we have been taking her non stop. The cat is hiding from the dog in empty cupboards. She is going to be really disappointed when those are full again.

Our stuff comes tomorrow but that doesn't mean the fun will stop.

Still to come:

Our trip to the temple
The San Diego Zoo (we are getting season passes)
Sea World (season passes as well)

It's nice; we are kind of on vacation because our jobs don't start 'til Monday. Even though our jobs will slow us down from going out every day I still think we will be doing a lot more than we ever did in the Bay Area! San Diego is our town!

Let's be realistic

2011-12-07T22:12:00.000-08:00

I LOVE, L-O-V-E, love sending out Christmas cards. I enjoy the time of thinking back of what I did over the past year. I love getting a yearly picture. I love the thought of old friends getting an update about our lives. So fun. I would love if I could send out Christmas cards to everyone I know but I have to be realistic. So, for those who did not receive our Christmas card...

This year the Hardy family had such a great time

There’s so much that happened, I’ll tell you in rhyme.

To start out the year we traveled on down

To Prescott, AZ where Michael’s sister is found.

We spent a few days having nothing but fun

It was sad to leave when it was all done.

Soon after that we got in a car and

Meet Micheal’s parents down in Disneyland.

It’s always so great to go on the rides.

You can’t not have fun where Mickey abides.

Not long later we packed up our stuff

We moved into a house; man that was tough.

The house is so big with bedrooms galore

It was hard to find out what we would use all that space for.

I hope you don’t fret or worry about that

We got a companion for our fat cat.

She takes up all space, more than one thinks

We got us a puppy who’s so cute and stinks.

I guess it’s time to update on work

Luanne got a raise and that is a perk.

You see she went back where they make all the dough (Panera Bread)

She has a higher position and just loves to go.

Michael took time to see family and friends

He had two whole weeks and three weekends.

Luanne had to stay at home because she couldn’t get time off

But Michael took the dog so it was a good trade-off.

Luanne had a turn to go to Idaho in November

She got to see her mom’s wedding in all of it’s splendor.

It was a short trip and she had to jet

But is was a fun trip that she’ll never forget.

Michael was also offered a job at USD (University of San Diego)

So at the turn of the year we will move there with glee.

After five years of marriage this finally means

We get to move where we have always dreamed.

We hope you enjoy this time of Noel

Until next year, we bid you farewell.

Let's move to San Diego

2011-11-23T20:07:00.000-08:00

I've been wanting to blog about my awesome news of moving to San Diego for a while BUT Michael has been doing a lot of free lance work. When he does that he tends to hog the computer and my iPad doesn't blog very well.

So I might as well just jump into it...

A while ago Michael's old boss (member of the church that we knew personally) got a promotion and moved away to San Diego. (He started a job at University of San Diego-USD) His last day of work Michael made sure to mention to him that we would LOVE to live in San Diego.

Not too long after that Michael got a phone call that a position was opening up at USD and it all sort of spiraled from there.

The job down there is a higher paying position with a lot more opportunity for Michael. He will be in charge of the builder department, meaning he will hire and fire and all that fun stuff, therefore room for growth and raises. None of that at UC Berkeley.

It was hard making that decision to move because it's another big change. It's pretty much like moving to a whole other state. Also, the Paneras down there are franchise, not corporate, so it's not a clean transfer for me. But after a lot of thought and prayer we realized it was really the best decision for us. Right after Michael officially accepted the job I felt a weight lift off my shoulders.

As of right now we are not 100% sure of our moving time or where we are moving too. The movers are packing up our stuff on the 29th and loading the truck on the 30th. It's so great, Michael's work is paying for our move. I'm hiring people to pack all of my belongings and load it into a truck and unload it. Now that's stress free moving. Also, a person is going to be coming into our home to look at our stuff and talk to us about our wants and needs then go and find a place for us to live. It's pretty awesome.

My job seems to be working out well too. My district manager sent this great recommendation to the district manager in San Diego. That got the ball rolling for me and I'm pretty sure there's a spot open for me.

It's going to be hard to leave my job and my friends behind but I'm so excited about the move. My dad's wife currently lives in Carlsbad (very close to where I will be living) and as soon as my dad gets home from Afghanistan he'll join her there. Also, my Oma lives in Hemet, which isn't far away, and I'll be able to see her more. Also, I'll be living in sweet, sunny San Diego. The place where there's the San Diego Zoo, Seaworld, and Lego Land.

*sigh

I can't wait.

I just love Owls

2011-11-09T22:12:00.000-08:00

When I was a little girl I used to love to stare at my Oma's family wall. She always had updated pictures of every single cousin and aunt and uncle I could think of. The wall was quite large and I would have to look way high up in order to see everyone. In the middle of it all was a family tree. It was (I may need Jeigh's help here) a lightesh brown and a very autumn orange. In the middle were two large owls, on a tree of course, with my Oma and Opa's names written on them. From there out three large branches were the three kids my Oma and Opa had. Each big branch had little bitty branches sticking out and little bitty owls on it that had all the grandchildren's names. We even had spouse of grandchildren and their children as well. I used to love to find my name. For some reason I felt so honored to be on that family tree. To me it meant that someone knew who I was and that I was important enough to be permanently painted onto a family tree.

I love that tree. Unfortunately, when my Oma and Opa moved into an assisted living place they got rid of it. If they didn't I would ask for it. I still close my eyes and see it as clear as day.

Because of this great plaque whenever I see an owl all I can do is stare. How lucky am I that owls are current in fashion? I actually saw owl place settings at TJ Maxx. I'm going back to buy them next paycheck.

I don't really know what struck this thought; besides my cute new background. It's just a nice memory that is linked to precious memories that I am so grateful I have. I hope I get to hold on to them forever.

Do you write?

2011-10-23T19:14:00.000-07:00

My AWESOME sister is a writer and has this great blog. (with a great header built by the hottest guy) She is doing a give a way and if you write it's right up your ally! If you don't write you still should check it out.

So go forth! Blog!! http://writerbrained.blogspot.com/2011/10/my-eleventy-first-follower-giveaway.html

A new way of cooking

2011-10-14T15:23:00.001-07:00

First of all:

Do you have a messy desk?
Do you pile everything in the same area because it's there when you walk in the door?
Are you like me and lack creativity on how to organize the space?
Are your cats scratching up your furnitures? (That's only funny if you watch It's Always Sunny)

If so, even if not so, got to Creating Sarah and see how to fix your problems. Make sure while you're there, to go and vote for her so we can see her further create.

Are you awesome? (last question I swear)

If you answered yes then that means you read my blog post, a few back, about how I'm not very good at making dinner. Just in case you don't remember I'll do a refresher post.

I'm really bad at making dinner. I work really hard all day and just don't want to cook when I come home. So, I've tried so many things. I've tried making only really simple food. I've tried making a menu. I've tried using magazines to get new recipes so I'm not eating the same food over and over again.

No matter what I've tried I've ended up reverting back to not cooking and eating out almost every night.

On top of not wanting to cook I now work more. Between the dog park, my commute, and my scheduled 9 hour day at work, I'm usually gone for about 12 hours every day. I usually get home long after dinner is over and I don't want my husband to eat nothing/ eat sandwiches or popcorn or frozen burritos every night. So, I had to come up with a solution.

Because of a few serendipitous events, I found the solution to my problems. I found a recipe book called Once a Month Cooking. I bought it on Amazon for $0.50. It is the best book ever. Ever. In fact from here on out I will only call it The Book of Miracles. It has 2 "Two Week" plans and 2 "Four Week" plans. Since my freezer is small I have to go with the "Two Week" plans. Luckily, the recipes are for bigger families and I just have to feed me and my hottie hubby the meals actually last us a whole month.

I know you are wondering how all of this works. I wish I had pictures.

When you pick your meal plan, you have to start by going grocery shopping. Instead of looking at a bunch of recipes and trying to figure out what you need and what you don't need The Book of Miracles already has your shopping list made. It is even broken down into the different sections of the grocery store. So, you just look at the shopping list and make a pencil mark next to the things you need. For instance, I will need to get Pepper Jack cheese but don't really need butter.

After your big shopping trip you look at The Book of Miracles and it tells you what to do the night before cooking. It sometimes tells you to put something in the Crockpot. It might tell you how to organize your fridge. It will for sure tell you what tools you will need the next day and to relax because the cooking day is a big day.

Then cooking day.

Cooking day is a big day. Hello, you are cooking for your whole family for one month. The Book of Miracles makes it easy though. It tells you exactly what order to do what in. For instance:

In a greased 9x13 pan cook 1 lb of chicken in the oven at 350 for 50 minutes.
While that is cooking:
Cut: 6 stalks of celery, 4 onions....
Dice: 2 large onions, 1 jalepeno pepper,...

This could sound intimidating but it's actually quite easy. A lot of the recipes are, put all ingredients in a 1 Gal freezer bag and store in freezer. A lot. Also, it may seem like that would take a lot of dishes but it really doesn't. Also, it's a good way to get all caught up on General Conference, just in case you had to work and missed it. Also, it really pays off to cook only once a month.

Today I made 14 days worth of meals...28 if you account the fact that each meal serves 4-6 people and we're only 2...I had to stop to wash the jalepeno juice out of my eye (that sucked...real bad), had to make a couple of boom boom breaks for my dog, and it only took me 3 hours. That includes dishes, sweeping, AND mopping the kitchen. Pretty cool if you ask me.

At the end of cooking day you kind of never want to look at your kitchen ever again. But The Book of Miracles has one last instruction:

"Look at your freezer and see all the meals you've cooked."

When you do that, it feels so awesome.

The most amazing part is when you get your husband, who HATES to cook, to make dinner every night because it only involves taking something that has been defrosting and putting in the oven for 30 minutes. It's truly a miracle.

Other wonderful things about The Book of Miracles:

We save a ton of money on eating out.
We save a ton of money on groceries. This is because I go to the grocery store once a month, compared to several times a week.
The meals are good, new, and interesting.
There are a variety of meals.

I love that I found this book.

Sometimes I'm full of good ideas.

2011-10-09T14:20:00.000-07:00

Today was our official first practice for the Primary Program. As a presidency, we decided that we really wanted to get our bishops (it's three wards combined) to help motivate the kids to sing loud.

We first came up with the idea to have the bishops come in with an old tie and according to how loud they sang would decide how much of the tie we would cut off. Good idea. I know.

Unfortunately, one of the bishops didn't feel comfortable with that idea so we came up with a new one. We decided we would have a jar and the bishop would fill up a jar with beans according to how loud the kids sang. Also a good idea. I know.

I didn't want to just put beans in an ugly jar. So I made this...
Isn't it cute? So the bishop decided if they sang as quiet as a mouse. As loud as a lion. Or if they were a monkey in the middle. Love it.

Oh and it worked like a charm!

What have you been up to LuLu?

2011-10-07T23:18:00.000-07:00

I have been so busy lately I barely have time to do anything. So what have I been up to?

As I mentioned a couple of blog posts ago, I changed jobs.

I've been working as an assistant manager and loving it. I work between 45 and 50 hours a week. It gets pretty crazy at times and I'm not quite sure how to get some time to myself but what can you do?

In my few minutes of spare time I've been reading The Hunger Games. I just finished it last night, in fact. SO GOOD. I also read the Chaos Walking series and it too was awesome! I'm now waiting for my 3rd book of the Maze Runner series. I wish it was October 13th. All I can do is wait.

Then with my spare minutes of watching the Arrested Development series, the new season of Survivor, and the new season of Project Runway I've managed to finish my niece's quilt! She is getting baptized next month so I finished it just in time. I'm so proud of it...here it is.

I'm so proud of it! My quilts just keep getting better and better. By the time the youngest child in my family gets baptized I will be a pro.

Now that that's done I have to get started on my next project. I have to make these pieces of fabric...Into a Princess Jasmine costume for yours truly, an Evel Knievel costume for the hottie I'm married to, and a bag to hold Temple ceremonial clothes for my mom.(Don't tell her)

Well I better go now. I have to get started on those costumes. See you soon bloggers!

Oh...also..go to my sister's blog, Creating Sarah, and check out the contest she's in to get some great ideas on Halloween decor. Make sure to vote for her! Also, check out her header, Michael made it. He did such a great job.

And I'm back

2011-09-18T16:45:00.001-07:00

Hello!!

As you can tell from me not commenting on your blogs and the lack of blog posts from me I've been MIA. I just got really caught up with work and housework and watching the 8th season of Project Runway and I joined a gym and I've been doing a lot closes at work (that means I work until about 11:00) and Michael had the computer (my iPad does not do so well with blogger) and other things.

No matter what it was, I'm back.

I'm sorry that I have been avoiding your blogs, I'm sure they have been wonderful. I can't wait to get reading again.

A HUGE update

2011-07-27T09:48:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I've blogged because so much has been going on. Today I have a few minutes and thought I would take the opportunity to give everyone an update.

I don't want to get into any nitty gritty details, frankly it's a long story, but I was finally just laid off from my job with Jason. It was a miscommunication mixed with who knows what. Pretty much it just wasn't meant to be. Luckily, he's paying me 3 months severance pay.

I don't know how much I told earlier but just before all the drama started with Jason my old boss from Panera had contacted me offering me my job back. Well, not the job I left with but a higher position and more pay then I was getting at Jason's. It was perfect timing. So, I start that on August 3rd. I will be working at the store in Concord which is new for me. But I'm really excited to get started again and get my career going again.

Soon after I was let go I made a quick trip to Southern California to go to my best friend's wedding reception. It was so great to get that south and be in the part of California I can't seem to get enough of. It was also nice to spend time with people who are like family. They give some of the best hugs and keep some of the best company. Also, it was a beautiful reception with delicious food so how could you go wrong?

I came back on a Sunday from So. Cal and the following Tuesday Michael and I left in a hurry for an emergency trip to Idaho. There was a funeral we needed to attend and so we went. It was a great trip. I got to meet some family of Michael's that I wouldn't of otherwise met and that's pretty awesome. Also, I got to see his sister's, Erin, family and I was not expecting that. Also, since the family was together and Harry Potter 7 Part 2 was coming out we took the opportunity and went and saw it. It was fun. Pretty much it was a time of laughs, tears, and good family fun.

Since returning I've been enjoying life as a stay at home wife. I started a new book series called Chaos Walking. I highly recommend them. I finished the first book, "The Knife of Never Letting Go." I was glad that I already had book two, "The Ask and the Answer," because book one ended on a cliff hanger. So, go check it out.

We have bought a new car, 2008 Chevy Equinox. We were in need of a bigger car and didn't really think much of our Corolla. Our first car we owned together was an Equinox and we missed it so we are glad to have one back.

I guess that's it for now. Michael is just getting ready for his 2 week vacation to Idaho coming up here soon. I'm still trying to figure out if I'm going to be able to go at all. I'm thinking I'll be able to take a week vacation...maybe. But I'm busy trying to get our February trip to Hawaii under wraps. It's 'spensive to go there and I'm trying to find us the best deal. It'll be worth it once I'm there.

I'll try to keep you updated a little better now that things are back on track!

Feeling a little better

2011-07-06T17:52:00.000-07:00

There has been a lot of drama going on at work for me. In so many words I'm getting let go and my boss refuses to accept that and makes it look like I'm the one quitting. It's been rough.

Today my boss made a phone call to me that pushed me over the edge. He didn't know that on the phone because I kept my cool so well. We just decided we would talk it all over tomorrow.

The thing about my boss is he doesn't ever let you finish your story. He interrupts and often doesn't listen to everything you have to say. In all other situations I just scream inside, smile on the outside, and let it go.

Not this time. I just sent him an email that just UNLOADED on him. I did not say awful, mean things. I just said things that needed to be said so that he could understand my side of the story. I would post it just so that you could see how nice I was being but then it would leave a lot of open ended questions that I'm not prepared to answer right now. Mostly because I don't know the answers to most.

I just wanted to let you know that I feel so much better. Just knowing that he now knows where I'm coming from makes me feel like when we talk tomorrow we are on an even playing field.

Having fun with dinner

2011-07-05T20:37:00.000-07:00

Whenever people ask me if I love to cook, I just smile and say, "No, not really." Michael always chuckles and says, "She's just burnt out."

He knows me so well.

It's true. I love to cook...FOR MY FAMILY...but because of my awful culinary school experience and my not as fun experience as a "personal chef" I often don't make dinner at home because I just don't want to. We were spending a lot of money on eating out. Eating crap that makes you fat. I had to get a handle on things.

At the end of every month I pull out my little calendar and write in what I plan on having for dinner every night for the coming month. This way I can do the proper grocery shopping and I feel compelled to actually make dinner. That worked every once in a while. We still mostly ate out. (I typed made out at first. Hehehe)

Right before I left to my trip to Idaho at the end of May I was buying some magazines to read on my flight and bought a cooking light magazine. In it were tons of recipes that I wanted to try. I had an idea. I would try a new recipe every night right out of that magazine. This way it's fun, it's new, and enjoyable. It works. I have been cooking a lot more at home now. I just buy a new magazine every month. I think I'm just going to subscribe so I don't spend as much.

Since it's a new month there is a new magazine and a whole bunch of new recipes. Tonight was Lemon Vegetable Risotto. I've never been good at making risotto but I was feeling adventuress in my cute little apron and hoped for success. I chopped all the veggies, grated the cheese, and measured exactly. FYI: measuring exactly is a really big thing for me...I don't really like to do it. For those that don't know, risotto is a long process. You add stock a little bit at a time, to the rice that is, until you end up with a really creamy rice. YUM. So I stood in my kitchen next to the hot stove on the hot day with my migraine making risotto. For an hour. It made my whole house smell so good. I had to stop myself from eating the zucchini, squash, peas, asparagus and Romano cheese. I just kept telling myself how good it would be when it was all mixed together.

Finally, I was finished. It looked so good. I grabbed my plate and filled it up FULL with some of the most delicious food I'd ever seen.

It sucked. The grossest thing I have ever put in my mouth. It had too much salt, too much lemon, and the rice was not even close to being finished. There was nothing I could do. It's just bad food sitting on my stove waiting for it's trip to the garbage can.

It's ok, though. There's always tomorrow. What's tomorrow? Grilled Plum Salad with Grilled Chicken. Maybe I'll let you know how it goes.

What a fun weekend.

2011-06-27T10:11:00.001-07:00

Michael and I left two Saturday mornings ago, dogless and all, down to LA. We had tickets for Les Mis and decided to make the best of our two days down there.

We started our trip by going to the LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art). They currently have all of Tim Burton's art up. He is one twisted dude. They had some of his school papers from when he was a kid and they were pretty twisted. It was pretty awesome, though. It was four large rooms, stacked with stinky people, of twisted, well known art. They even had costumes there, including Edward Scissor Hand's and Cat Woman's.

After LACMA we headed down to Huntington Beach to meet up with Michael's Aunt and Uncle. They are always such great company and they definitely did not fail this time. We went to a really great seafood place and ate some really great food. The whole time we were laughing and talking and it was fun.

The next morning we left their house early to go to Griffith Observatory.

Apparently, Michael used to go there all the time and I didn't even know it existed. We got to see a great view of the Hollywood sign and all of LA.

It was amazing. There were all these trails that I wanted to hike on but I was dressed for the play so I knew I would have to come back with not high heels. So if you have never been to Griffith Observatory you need to go in order for you to understand it's awesomeness. It had a lot of really cool stuff about the solar system. So check it out sometime.

Also you get to meet old Albert Einstein. We now know him as Alby.

One last thing, in order to get there you get to go through the tunnel that's in Back to the Future...2?!

After the observatory we went to the "Grand Finale," Les Mis. I have seen Les Mis three times now. Plus, Michael was in it in high school and I've watched that version several times. Each version I've seen has it's strengths and weaknesses and I have to say that this one had way more strengths then weaknesses. Right as those first two notes, you know the ones, hit I was hooked. It was different but jaw dropping. I didn't want it to end. Right when Jean Val Jean came out as a really old man to light those candles in THE candlesticks I was filled with mixed emotions. I was really excited for the final song but sad to see it end. As soon as the curtain dropped I was ready to sit back down and watch it all over again.

Unfortunately, we couldn't stay to watch it again. We had to get back home to our puppy and lives. So here I am back to life. Blah. At least we had a lot of fun!

Bored. Bored. Bored.

2011-06-21T14:09:00.000-07:00

Last week I had jury duty. It was a long week. I did get two books read, though! That's always good.

Because of jury duty I have not been at work for one whole week. It was nice to just read all day instead of work but at the same time I was ready to do something with my day.

So, I came to work all prepared to work work work work work. I sat down with my boss, first thing, and we talked about my day. He left the house around 11:00 and told me he would be back by 12:30. With the work given to me I knew that if I went at a slow pace and ate lunch slowly I would be done about the time he was getting back.

So I did that.

I then did my very very best to try to find work to do.

I then checked my email, applied for some jobs, checked out facebook. I looked to see how much it will be to go to southern Cali for my friend's wedding reception in July. I looked at my budget a little bit. I read some blogs. I read some of my old blog posts. I sat and talked to the other lady who works here. I...sat and and did nothing.

It is now 2:15. I have been at work for 4 hours and have work about 1 1/2 hours of that.

So much for being excited about going back to WORK.

Quilt Swap!

2011-06-18T10:29:00.000-07:00

I follow the blog Creating Sarah. Sarah is a very creative and very crafty person. To help with her creativity she follows the blog The Sassy Crafter. Therefore, I now follow The Sassy Crafter.

The Sassy Crafter set up a quilt swap and I decided to participate. If you wanted to participate you had to comment on her blog, pick out 20 cute fabrics, and cut them into 4 inch squares. I've done that. On Monday, I will put the squares in the mail and wait. What am I waiting for? Twenty new fabrics cut into 4 inch squares! Isn't that awesome! I will then be able to make a quilt out of those fabrics. I'm so excited!!!

Here are my cute cute squares.

Here's a close up.

This one is my favorite. Apparently I liked it so much I ended up coming home with it twice.

I had to buy most of my fabric. don't feel too bad, though. I found some fabric that was $1/ yrd and since I needed so little I was able to buy this fabric...

for only $0.25 each. I had two and the others I bought for only $1.00 a piece.

I'm really excited to get my new fabric back. I'll let you know what it looks like.

Getting Started...Again

2011-06-14T21:26:00.000-07:00

My cute niece....

Isn't she so cute?

...is getting baptized this year. I can't believe it. She has grown up so much and blows me away with how smart she is. I'm lucky to have smart nieces and nephews.

If you remember, I'm crazy. I am making a quilt for all children in my family who are baptized. So, I had some time off on Monday and got started. (Keep in mind she's a major tomboy.)

It's going to be awesome.

So, you may or may not be wondering how I was able to get a lot done with a puppy in the house. Most likely, not wondering. BUT, my neighbor was leaving to run errands and I volunteered to watch his puppy, Rounder, who is 1 month younger than Roxy. They are BFFs and it's so cute to watch them play. He definitely kept her occupied. See...

They played for 6 1/2 hours with only a 1/2 hour nap in between. They both were so wet from chewing on each other. So cute.

My busy Saturday

2011-06-12T09:06:00.000-07:00

Somehow as we go throughout the week our house because a disaster area. Between the dog chewing up everything and...well that's all it is, really. So, when Saturday comes I love to clean. This weekend was especially great because I got to clean up my basement. Ever since we moved in our basement has been a disaster. Yesterday it all changed. I wish I had a before picture. But here is my after!!

You're kidding me, right?

2011-06-10T12:17:00.000-07:00

I'm on craigslist looking for a new job. I just leave the page open all day and refresh periodically so that I can see the newest job posting. I opened up one today for an Office Manager. Here are the job requirements:

Essential Duties & Responsibilities:

• Manage the Receptionist area -- greet visitors, provide accurate information and instructions to clients in person and over the phone
• Distribute mail and serve as FedEx, UPS and USPS receiver
• Provide support for all incoming calls and walk-ins
• Management of all inventory items
• Provides administrative support to other team members
• Assist with sales and marketing activities
• Training on Photoshop
• Maintain vendor relationships
• Run errands
• Serve Coffee, Tea and Refreshments to clients
• Model professional behavior

I could do that! I'm not really that trained in Photoshop but I have a hubby who could teach me and that's besides the point.

Before I actually apply I look for the qualifications. For this one...you need a Bachelor's degree. You're kidding me, right? I don't have one but yet I can do all of these skills.

*sigh

I'll keep searching.

Happy thoughts my way please

2011-06-07T11:32:00.000-07:00

Due to several circumstances that I don't really feel like explaining now, I'm on a hunt for a new job! So, please send your happy thoughts my way. If you happen to live in the Bay Area and now of an opening for an Office Administratorish position let me know.

Ya know, it's weird.

2011-06-02T21:46:00.000-07:00

On October 31st, 1992 I was "forced" to go Trick-Or-Treating with my friend because my mom was in the hospital having a baby girl named Frankie. I remember the first time I saw her. My mom let me "hold" her and I thought she was so cute.

Once she came home I enjoyed spending time with her. I loved watching her sleep in her swing. I enjoyed watching her learn to crawl, walk, and talk. I remember her first day of school. I remember the day she was baptized. I remember a lot. Through many memories I watched her grow into the woman she is today.

She's different than me in almost every way. What she's interested in is stuff that I try to avoid doing. She has dreams to teach English in Japan, make video games, and become a super awesome Halo gamer. If you know me at all you would know that I pretty much don't want to do any of those things...ever.

Yet, she is my sister and I love her.

Today, she graduated from high school. It was so cool to see her in her cap and gown, hear her name being read, and watching her cap thrown into the air. *pictures to come.

Congratulations, Frankie. Welcome to the real world.

I love friends

2011-05-25T13:49:00.000-07:00

I recently was thinking about inside jokes with good friends. I love those moments. It's those times when you laugh out loud and everyone around you thinks you're crazy because you seem to be laughing at nothing. Sometimes, though it doesn't have to be an inside joke. I just love knowing that I don't have to say much of anything and an old friend will instantly know what you are talking about. Love it.

Here is a tribute to those friends who share an inside joke:

I needed to feed my crabs.

There are no trees in Wendy's.

Raider jumping.

Kristie, let's me at OUR Chinese place.

I need to drink Thelma.

Security!!

At first I was afraid, I was petrified.

The "ha ha" game.

Boxing Day + Queen= good money.

Sammy.

Yellow!

Best. Snowball fight. Ever.

Bonnie (we'll see if you remember this)

Honestly, the list could go on and on and on. Especially with two friends particularity. I love friends. I love how over the years I have learned who true friends are and I love catching up with old ones. *sigh Good times.

No one's asking me...

2011-05-12T11:39:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been REALLY excited about something? So excited, in fact, that it's all you can think about? Here's what you do:

You wake up and think about it.

As you go about your day you slightly mention it to people in deep hopes that they will want to elaborate on the topic.

Then when they start talking about something else, because they so rudely did not pick up on your signal to elaborate, you pretend to listen to them but really in the back of your mind your thinking, "How can I make this about my super awesome thing?"

Finally, as you are laying down for bed in your head you smile because you think of how awesome life is because of this super cool thing.

Well, no one picked up on my hint! It's as easy as, "How is Insanity going Luanne?" Rude.

So, I'm taking life into my own hands and I'm telling you how awesome it's going. By then end of this you are going to feel so bad that you didn't ask because you will realize how awesome it is. So there.

Insanity is going great! If you have no idea what I'm talking about then scroll down 'til you hit the blog post about it. I'm on a time limit for writing this post and don't really want to create a link.

Despite what some people may think Michael and I are still waking up at 6:30AM to work out and eating 5 healthy meals a day. I did go sugarless for 3 weeks straight but broke it by eating a small sliver of carrot cake. But I'm still super healthy and feeling great.

Michael and I are almost half way through the program. It is absolutely the hardest workout I've ever done but I love it. I push myself harder than I ever have before and sweat more than any person should. I also really really want a giant cheeseburger with greasy fries. *Small break where I dream of eating these things.* We have had 1 1/2 cheat days and we are about ready to have another one this Saturday. (Michael is shooting a music video and....well...there's just a lot happening that day. Included in that day is a wedding I'm going to and dang it I'm going to eat a smallish piece of cake.) Pretty good right? 2 1/2 cheat days in 30 days of eating like a healthy machine. Keep in mind that I did have choir some of these days. At choir they bring freshly-made-that-morning doughnuts. I sat and stared at one for ten minutes before finally saying no. GO ME!

How are my results you don't ask like a rude bum? They are great! I have lost a pant size. My abs are starting to come in really nice. Also, not only am I actually able to do a real pushup but I can do several in a row and tie in floor sprints (running in the plank position) and other hard moves that I didn't know my body had the capability of doing.

Everything pulled together I would have to say that I feel awesome. I've never had this much energy and it's been a while since I've wanted to slap on a bikini and lay out on the beach. Too bad it's not warm enough yet. It's fun to be working towards something like this. It's fun that I'm doing it with Michael and Irene. There was one week that I really wanted to quit and they were there to help me snap the heck out of that. Also, with the food I'm eating I don't feel like rolling over and falling asleep after a meal. Instead the food energizes me and inspires to eat more meals like it.

So there you go. That is how awesome my life is. I hope you're sorry that you didn't ask me once a week for the last five weeks how my workout is going. Next month is going to be a harder month than this last one but I get to eat more calories. Also, I'm going on vacation at the end of this month and that is going to be a bit challenging. I can do it though because I am that awesome.

The Easter Bunny Came!!

2011-04-24T21:05:00.000-07:00

I love the Easter Bunny. Even though Michael and I are married without kids he still comes to our house! This is what he brought... (or as my primary kids pointed out the possibility of she brought)
As you see, the Easter Bunny knew we are on a diet and was very careful about what he brought us.

This is Michael's basket. He got a veggie medley, pineapple spears, and three flavors of Clif Bar (Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip, Carrot Cake, and White Chocolate Macadamia Nut).
And...this snazzy new CTR ring. It's titanium. The Easter Bunny must of saw that they were 70% off at deseretbook.com. He also obviously new that my kitty dropped his last one down the drain.

This is my basket. He got me watermelon spears and three Clif Bars. (Oatmeeal Raisin Crunch, Peanut Toffee, and Double Fudge Brownie)
And...this CTR ring. Mine broke right after I got engaged. I'm happy to have a new one again!

A good idea

2011-04-21T20:29:00.001-07:00

First off:

I owe a humongous apology to both my sister, Sarah, and to you blog readers. Sarah is really crafty. I like to pretend I'm as crafty as her but I'm not. Luckily, though, she shares her great ideas and how to do them on this awesome blog she created. I'm sorry I've with held this awesome blog from you for so long. I'm also sorry, Sarah, that I did not do this sooner. So, go, visit Sarah's blog and tell all of your friends about it.

WAIT!!!

Don't do that until you are done reading this post. I love Sarah and all but I'm kind of really excited about this post.

I don't really know how to say what I want to say. That's two blogs in a row, if you're counting. I realized a couple of days ago that I'm locked into my job. My boss has made it known that I'm irreplaceable and he needs me like a fly needs...poop. Bad analogy. Also, he pays me so well it's impossible to leave. Ever. So you won't find me running off to find my dream job any time soon. Also, all I really want to do is be a mom. So, just waiting on that.

I realized, after I realized that I'm stuck at my job, (that's a lot of realizing) that I still wanted to do something that I could be really excited about. I wanted to do something for me but I also kind of sort of wanted it to affect other people as well. Mostly just the me thing.

Over the past week, as of today, I've been listening to the October 2005 General Conference in my car. I highly recommend doing this because it's awesome. I did this for many reasons and have benefited highly from it. I've also been praying for help on what to do with my life and what the next step should be. I was driving home just yesterday when I realized something. (see realizing again) I am often writing sacrament talks in my head. On almost a daily basis I'm writing a sacrament talk about an experience I had that day or I'm reminded of a past event. I very very rarely, I think I've done it once, write down these talks and they get lost in my brain. Probably stored next to proper English writing skills. So, instead of letting these talks get lost I'm going to start writing them down. What a good idea. Hey look she used the title of the blog in her blog...how exciting. I also am letting you benefit from it. I have started a new blog! It's called Listen to the Still Small Voice. You will find it at ibeartestimony.blogspot.com.

I realize that some of you blog readers are either not my religion, don't believe in God, or both. I still encourage you to stop by my blog from time to time. I'm not trying to convert you but I really do believe that my ideas are uplifting and can strengthen your life even if you are not of my religion. On the flip side, though, I will not be offended if you are uninterested.

I will post a new idea ever Monday, just in time for FHE! I hope you enjoy it.

Also, I know and realize that it's Thursday. I did put up my first post even though it's not Monday. I WILL be putting up another post on Monday, though. How exciting. I know. Now you may leave to go check out my first post and to check out Creating Sarah.

A crossroads

2011-04-16T16:20:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about this post for a while now and I just don't know how to start or end. So, this may not be clever or witty or even written well but I really want people to know.

I don't want to have a profession in cooking. I've tried different avenues of cooking trying to be successful and have always come up short. Which, by the way, is very unlike me. I can do anything I set my mind to. I just felt pressured by my school debt and my degree to do what I graduated in. I realized, though, that the pressure I was feeling was in my head. So, I decided to let it go.

Ok, it's off my chest. You are now probably thinking what Michael, the very supportive husband (VERY) asked me, "Ok, now what?" The answer is...I don't know. I have some ideas of what I want to do but for the most part I have no idea. So, here I am searching for a new career path. In the meantime I'll keep my current job and see where I end up.

It's Insanity!!

2011-04-13T17:19:00.000-07:00

Have you ever heard of the workout program Insanity? It is the craziest, hardest, cardio..est workout EVER!!!

For those that don't know Insanity is a 60 day workout program complete with diet. The promise is: if you follow the workout schedule and diet plan you will look super awesome at the end of the sixty days. That sounds kind of hard but really easy compared to what it actually is.

We'll start with the diet...
We eat five small meals a day loaded with protein and light on carbs. We aren't to have any candy, chips, popcorn, or soda. Just typing those things make me want to eat them so bad. A good example of a meal is a 3 egg white omelet with cheese and tomatoes paired with a large bowl of fruit. Another example is a spinach salad with walnuts, apples, chicken, cucumbers, and lemon juice. We are also supposed to drink a lot of water. Michael is suffering from sugar loss by fighting off a headache and all I can think about is a big bag of popcorn. *must stay strong. Must stay strong. Must stay strong. Or as Shawn T. says, "Dig Deeper!"

Now for the work out...
A normal workout is usually a good workout with a short span of hard core cardio then back to a good workout. With Insanity it's hard core cardio for 3-6 minutes at a time with 30 second water breaks in between. Usually after the warm-up I feel like I had a good work out and I could call it a day. And that's just the warm-up. Also, I pride myself on the fact that I can push myself to go a little bit further even though my body says, "NO MORE CRAZY LADY." But with Insanity I really can't go anymore. So if that's not hard enough you have to do it 6 days in a row with one day of rest. You then have to start all over again.

So how are we doing...
Michael and I are three days in. We wake up at 6:30 in the morning so we can start our day out right. We. Are. Dying. We are both so sore and have never worked out this hard in our lives. Today Michael's arms were to weak to lift up to put on his deodorant. But we feel good. I love knowing every morning that I started out with the most insane workout I've ever done. Ever. I also took my "before" picture today and that fueled me quite a bit as well. After it's all over I'll post my before and after pictures. I don't want you guys to see my before picture until I have an after. You probably understand.

AHHH, a Burger King commercial just came on. Normally that chicken tender looks gross but not now.

Anyway, so that's what I'm up to. I'll keep you posted on how it goes. Oh and thanks Irene for doing it with us and for introducing us.

It's like staring at little old men.

2011-04-05T20:59:00.001-07:00

I had yesterday off. I really enjoy paid days off. I get the opportunity to do fun things and I'm still getting paid. It's pretty awesome. Knowing that the weather was going to be nice I decided, in advance, that I would plant my flower garden because I'm all ready for spring and stuff.

For those of you not on facebook...I'm sorry I have no pictures for you. But to paint a picture, I had this patch of grass that was just to the right of my front door. It is the perfect size and shape for a flower garden. So, yesterday I made the move.

I went to Home Depot and called my sister, Jeigh. Just to clarify, Jeigh is a professional florist (she knows a lot about flowers. Isn't that so cool?).

I then talked to a lot of flowers to see if we would get a long and if they wanted to come home with me.

I then grabbed the ones that agreed that my house would be the best for them and drove home really anxious.

I then put on some grunge clothes and a hat.

I then got down on my hands and knees and started to pull and tug at all the grass and weeds in this spot. It was NOT easy but I was determined.

I did it. I have a cute little flower garden outside my front door. I planted Compact Purple Osteospermums, Orange Spark Symphony Osteospermums, Marigolds, Pansies, and baby Pansies. I love my little garden.

There is one thing that makes it a bit better...my pansies. I made sure to put my pansies at the very front of my garden. I don't let my other flowers know but the pansies are my favorite. Just look at them...

It's like staring at little old men.

Recipes Passed Down

2011-03-29T19:37:00.000-07:00

Today I made one of my favorite meals for dinner, Hawaiian Chicken. My Oma used to make this for my dad and my dad used to make it for us. I will most likely make it for my children who will make it for theirs. I love that. I love that I have this hand written recipe from my Oma to share with my family. A lot of my kids, if not all, will probably never meet my Oma. She has one foot out the door and the other foot will soon join the first one. I will tell great stories about my Oma. I'll let them know about this awesome family tree she had. It was a burnt orange and brown. Each person was represented by an owl. All the grandkids were smaller owls. I loved it. I will also tell them about my awesome experiences I had at her house. Like how every time we were there my Opa would drive us down to the swimming pool on his electric golf cart to meet my Oma after her water exercising so we could swim. Oh the memories. Anyway, I will tell my kids all of these great things and on top of that I will be able to share with them some of her cooking. It will be almost as if she is there with us enjoying a delicious meal.

All of this got me thinking of how great family is. Each generation of family changes. The time changes, the fads, the music, the way we live life. With that comes stories from the past. I have never personally been to a Sock Hop but it's great to hear about them. I could pretend I was at one and let my imagination run wild. Also, with each generation comes challenges. With these challenges comes opportunity to grow and learn. I learned so much from my mom. She taught me how to fight against peer pressure and how to do what I thought was right instead of what the world thought was right. I learned from her stories and I love that. I feel like the best things in the world we learn from our family. I also think that they are the most important things.

I will never be able to express how grateful I am for families. Not only for their unconditional love and sweet acts of service, but for their stories and recipes. I hope you take the time to scavenge through your families lives so you can make sure to pass the best stuff down to your kids, like my Oma's Hawaiian Chicken.

Hawaiian Chicken

Ingredients:
7-8 Chicken pieces, with or without skin
Flour
Oil
Salt and Pepper
Sauce:
1lb 4oz can Sliced Pineapple
1 C Sugar
2 T Corn Starch
3/4 C Vinegar
1 T Soy Sauce
1/4 tsp. Ground Ginger
1 Chicken Bouillon Cube
1 Green Pepper sliced into rings

Coat chicken with flour and brown in oil. Arrange pieces in shallow roasting pan and season with salt and pepper.
Preheat oven to 350.
Drain pineapple syrup into a 2 cup measure adding water to make 1 1/4 cups.
In a medium sauce pan, combine sugar, cornstarch, pineapple syrup, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, and bouillon cube. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Boil 2 minutes and pour over chicken.
Bake uncovered, 30 minutes. Add pineapple slices and green pepper rings. Bake 30 minutes more. Serve with white rice.

So I was thinking

2011-03-24T17:35:00.000-07:00

If I miss strawberry cupcakes then why not bring them back into my life? So, today I made strawberry cupcakes. This wasn't easy.

I had to...

1-Drive through the pouring rain to get to Target.

2-Run through the pouring rain to get inside.

*At this time I would like to tell you that there is no possible way for me to exaggerate how hard the rain was coming down.

3-Walk through Target with blinders on so I didn't buy everything in the whole store. What is it about Target that makes you want to do that?

4-Forgive myself when I bought something I really didn't need.

5-Take a nap because the dog was sleeping. You know what they say, if they are sleeping then you should be too.

6-Attempt to make the batter in between the dog ringing her boom boom bell. She was really afraid to go out in the rain but really had to go. So what she would do is ring the bell then sit and stair at the rain after I opened the door, just to decide it wasn't worth it. After closing the door she would realize just how bad she needed to go and we would start all over again.

7-Go online to look at oven knobs. My oven knob had all the numbers worn off so it's just black. I had to look and see, on average, where 350 was.

8-I then had to put them in and hold my breath. They came out perfect.

9-I then had to frost them. I chose to go with buttercream over strawberry frosting.

10-I then had to refrain from eating all 16 cupcakes (17 if you count the batter that I licked out of the bowl.)

They were delicious.

There are some things I really miss...

2011-03-23T18:23:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of things I don't miss. Like...

My noisy upstairs AND downstairs neighbors.
Living off of a student's income.
Living in the snow.
Worrying about dating.
The stress that being a manager at Panera Bread brings.
Waking up at 4:00AM to go to work.
My job at Convergys. Yuck.
Working fast food.
Living paycheck to paycheck.
Having more than one car payment. (I would like a second vehicle though)
Worrying about the way I talk, walk, dress, and look just because of some boy or girl from school.
Being in school. I love that I will never have to write another paper.
Being a server.
Having a real a-hole as a boss.
Living in Vallejo. That was just scary.
And I'm sure there are many more things that I'm just not thinking of right now.

I DO miss a lot of things as well. Like...

Being able to eat whatever I want whenever I want without having to check my blood sugar and take insulin. If someone could hurry up and cure type 1 diabetes, that would be awesome.
Having only 1 pet.
Not saying every fourth sentence, "Need to go boom boom Roxy?"
My friends from high school.
The care free attitude I had in high school.
Being as thin as I was in high school. I still can't believe I ever thought I was fat. I should be shot for that.
My wedding day. I loved that day.
My family.
Snuggle time with my cat. She is a lot more distant now that we have the dog.
My Equinox. Dang you for not being fuel efficient.
Living close to my mom.
Friday nights with all of the Hardy family.
Going to the movies. I really want to go to the movies.
Cupcakes. It's been forever since I've eaten one and I really want one. A strawberry one with strawberry frosting.
My Opa. I know I already said family but when I went to my Oma's 90th birthday party it made me really miss him. I'm glad I believe that I will see him again someday. It brings me comfort.

So, these are all really nice things that I miss. But you know what I really miss? I mean REALLY miss?
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HAVING A DISHWASHER.

When we moved into our new house I knew we would not have a dishwasher and I was semi ok with it. We got these really cool things from Ikea that made hand washing look more appealing but it still sucks. I just want a dishwasher. I'm ok with a portable one. I would just have it sit next to my stove and role it over to the sink when I'm ready for it. I promise to feed it and clean up after it. I will pet it and let it know it's loved. *sigh* Maybe I'll get one for my birthday.

You know you have a good husband when...

2011-03-14T10:04:00.000-07:00

Just in case you weren't sure... You know you have a good husband when:

Your already exhausted husband gets up in the middle of the night to add on two blankets and a hat to you because you can't get warm.

Then, one hour later he gets up again to bring you your gluclometer while you're throwing up.

After a night of having to wake up with not only the dog but you he still wakes up early to make sure the dog will be all worn out so you can sleep that day. He will also give you a priesthood blessing because you can't walk and feel like you're going to die.

He drives to the grocery store BEFORE work to pick you up saltines, chicken noodle soup, applesauce, and a diet 7-up.

He happens to be a "tight hold on the wallet" husband and is willing to pay $10 (several days in a row) in parking so that you don't have to drive him to work.

He comes home after a long day and cleans up after the dog even though you were home all day. he knows that you are too sick to look after her.

After another long night of caring for you and the dog will do whatever he can to make sure you are ok before he leaves.

After another long day at work and walking back upstairs for what he thinks is the final time will go back downstairs one more time to make you some soup. Oh and get you the Nyquil. Oh and wash out the little cup for you.

He gets suddenly woken up by a once moaning you who has passed out on the bathroom floor. He will then wait for you to be done throwing up so he can help you up the stairs.

Even though he has done it two days he still continues to wait on you hand and foot. He also gives you another blessing so you can finally sleep.

He made the decision to do nothing over the weekend but ends up spending the whole time taking you to the doctor, getting your prescription, and buying you soup and Jamba Juices because you are finally hungry. He also cleans the whole house and does the laundry while trying to train the dog.

He spends the whole week that you are sick doing everything he can to make you better.

I must have a good husband.

A New Obsession

2011-02-27T20:23:00.001-08:00

I have a really good friend. The way we became close friends is kind of odd and I think I'll just keep it between us. Let's just say we already knew each other but were not close. I called her one night and needed a big favor quick. Without even a question she agreed to the favor and helped me tremendously.

Since then she has been there to hear me talk and cry. I went through one of my hardest times with her right by my side. She was always there to help me. She has also, on countless occasions, fed my kitty and given her love when we've been out of town. She has fed me a lot as well. What's even cooler about it is she's given me a chance to try food I've never tried. She has also given me candy that I have never thought about about eating; that's pretty cool.

I try so hard but I don't think I will ever be able to give her the friendship she gives me. You see, she is very inspirational. I don't think she realizes she has this quality. How is she inspirational you ask? She can do anything she sets her mind to and she sets her mind to a lot of stuff. She has earned a double major. She has run in several triathlons. She is a wonderful mother, has a successful career AND a successful photography business. *side note: She literally just decided to pick up a camera one day and made something of herself. Amazing, I know. She also is a good quilter, wife, and her house is so cute. On top of all that she still manages to be such a great friend to me.

As you can see she has a lot of good qualities about her. All of those things are great but there is one more thing that makes her even greater..she works at Pixar. Yes, she is a technical designer at Pixar Studios. It is so awesome having a friend who works at Pixar. She has graciously invited us to Pixar many times. We have had the opportunity to eat at the FREE cereal bar countless times and that makes me pretty much famous. We have also been invited to many events including BBQs, Chocolate Day (or whatever it's called), lunch, movie premiers, and The Oscars.

Oh the Oscars.

The first time we were invited to go watch the Oscars at Pixar we only did it because of the good company and free food. We were not disappointed. There were finger sandwiches, soda, candy, and other finger food. We sat in their biggest theater room and watched the Oscars. We could come and go as we please and talk as much as we wanted. I really enjoyed it. The coolest part was when Wall E won and everyone started clapping. It was so cool. So, when she invited us to go to the Oscars again to watch Up win, we were quick to say yes.

This, year, however we did not get watch the Oscars at Pixar. I'm assuming it's because my friend has a baby and it would be bad timing for bed time. Or, maybe, it's because they have other friends they wanted to invite. Whatever the reason, I was not offended or put much thought into it. What I didn't realize was how much I would miss watching the Oscars. As February 27th was arriving I found myself in panic because I needed to find a way to trick Michael into watching The Oscars. Even worse, there was a basketball game on that was really important so how would I get him away from that? My blood pressure has rose just reliving the feeling.

Luck was on my side.

We have this new puppy, Roxy. She is Michael's puppy. Therefore he has been incharge of waking up with her in the middle of the night to take her out to go to the bathroom. (FYI: I'm not a jerk. For the next couple of nights I will be doing this so my poor husband can get some rest) Because of this, on Sunday February 27th Michael took a 4 hour nap. I'm smiling just thinking of it. I was able to watch The Oscar Red Carpet event. I got to see all the stars come down in their new, fancy gowns and get interviewed about stuff that doesn't even matter but yet I care about it.

Michael woke up just in time as The Oscars were starting. What was I to do?

Remember...luck was on my side.

Michael had put in some money for a pool..pole..at work for what/who would win what Oscar. This means that Michael had some interest in watching The Oscars.

I didn't get to watch all of it like I secretly had hoped but I was able to feed my new obsession just a little bit.

Thanks, friend, for giving me so much. At this time I especially thank you for giving me the love of The Oscars.

Also, Congratulations on your win. *She helped in the making of Toy Story 3

This is a true story. I wouldn't lie.

2011-02-24T12:43:00.000-08:00

Does everyone here know that I have an ant problem? If not, I have an ant problem. Two days after moving into our house I found a bunch of gross, crawly, want-to-make-you-die-you-hate-them-so-much ants. Over the past little while I have been finding out new ways that they are getting in. First it was from under the sink. Then, through the window seal. Then a baseboard in my breakfast nook. Then...well you get the idea. I am happy to say that I have not seen an ant (inside, I recently sprayed a bunch outside) in about a week. *knock on wood

Moral of the story: I HATE ants.

My boss has a three year old boy. Boys like bugs. This means that he now has pet bugs. Guess who gets to feed, water, and take care of the pet bugs? You guess right: me. I'm so excited. Can you sense the sarcasm? The ladybugs were easy and I actually didn't even have to touch them. My boss just poured them into their cage thingy and they turned into ladybugs without any hassle. Now, I just have to drop raisins in their cage and droplets of water every once in a while.

Another bug he has is caterpillars, well now butterflies. Oh. My. Gosh. Don't ever get your kid pet butterflies because they are high maintenance little buggers. First you have scoop food into a little cup, place the caterpillar in there, then put on a lid. After about a week the things have made their cocoons and are ready to be safety pinned to the side of the net. (the cocoons are attached to the lids. I don't actually put a safety pin through the cocoon.) Finally, once they have become butterflies you have to feed them with fruit and flowers (mums or carnations to be exact) and give them sugary water. Also you have to tell the three year old about a hundred times "No, don't grab their legs like that it hurts them."

Reality of the situation, ladybugs and butterflies aren't that bad. They are kind of cute and it's kind of cool. Still, I will never get my kid a pet bug. It's icky.

Today, my being ok with the pet bug changed. Today, the ants were delivered. When I knew there was going to be ants I set aside my feelings of wanting to kill every ant I see, inside or not, for a cute three year old boy who could be interested in seeing ants crawl and tunnel. I said to myself that I would not have to see them crawling all over my JUST CLEANED dishes or in my JUST PURCHASED sugar. Still, I was not excited about having to take care of a bunch of ants. I would rather them die.

At this point I would like to throw in a "For the record..."

FOR THE RECORD: I am a nice person. I love animals, probably to a point where it's weird. I never want to see an animal, insect, or arachnid die. I even apologize to spiders before I kill them. Afterwords, I kind of feel bad and hope they don't have any family or that they don't have a big enough brain to know when a family member is missing. But, the ants have crossed a line. If you ever get ants you will understand.

Like I was saying...*clearing of the throat* the ants arrived today. I shuttered as my boss told me that I needed to set them up. I have been dreading this day for about two weeks. Every time I saw the empty ant hill I would sigh because I knew I would have to set it up eventually. I also secretly hoped that the ants would never come.

I realized, though, that it was time and it would be better to get it over with. With any pet, including a pet bug, you need to read how to take care of them. Surprisingly enough ants are really easy to take care of. All you have to do, after pouring in the sand-not so easy, is put in a couple drops of water and a piece of fruit the size of a popcorn kernel into the habitat every three days. EASY. I was kind of relieved as I read that it wouldn't take much effort at all. Hooray, for easy ants. Then I read how to get the ants into the habitat. First thing I see is this...word for word...

"CAUTION! DO NOT TOUCH THESE ANTS. They are for observation only. The harvester ant can inflict a painful sting that normally causes local swelling and itching. IF you are stung apply ice to the area until the pain subsides. If symptoms persist see your physician.

"Put ants in refridgerator for 10 minutes to calm there activity. DO NOT PUT THEM IN THE FREEZER THIS WILL KILL THEM." You can imagine my temptation at this point to put them in the freezer.

"Shake the ants to one side of the tube before pouring into habitat. Pour ants quickly into habitat. Close the lid instantly so they can't get out.

"If they escape, DO NOT TOUCH THEM."

I am so F*@!#$% excited my boss feels the need to have pet ants.

Bring a smile to your face

2011-02-09T22:51:00.001-08:00

Michael and I have been on the hunt for a dog. We thought we found one, he was so cute and so sweet, but unfortunately it just didn't work. That means that Michael spends probably about 50% of his day on craigslist looking for just the right puppy. Every once in a while I get the chance to look too. While scanning over all the ads and looking at all the cute puppies I tend to get distracted. You see, I love kittens. There are very few things in life that are cuter than kittens. Alright, let's put two and two together. I love kittens...I get distracted...Ok I tell you. I look at kitten ads. Every ad is pleasing; I've never been disappointed in the cuteness of them. I often look at them and pretend I'm playing with them or petting them or watching them sleep. Have I reached the point of craziness yet?

There is a point...

One day I saw an ad that said, "The fluffiest kitty I've ever seen." I opened the ad and found this...

I ran into this ad a while ago but still every time I see this picture I giggle. Seriously, how can you look at that kitty and not smile? It's impossible.

Now, if I'm having a rough day or I'm feeling a little down I just look at this picture to help me smile. I hope it can do the same to you.

Moving in

2011-02-03T20:10:00.000-08:00

Welp, I survived. Even though last week I thought I might die from the stress I didn't. I was able to get everything packed away and ready to go. Saturday morning came and I was ready to move. We had so much help it was amazing. We were able to get moved in about 2 1/2 hours. We found out that our doorways are super narrow so that made life interesting. In order to get everything in the house and into the right room we had to take apart and put together a lot of furniture.

After we returned our moving truck we made a trip to IKEA so that we could get a new bookcase and entertainment center. Word of advice: when you are already exhausted from moving and have a lot of unpacking to do, don't go to IKEA you will become so tired you will just want to fall asleep. Even though I wanted to just lie down and fall asleep I knew I had to at least get my kitchen together. I'm really glad I made that decision. After seeing my kitchen all set up and looking cute it made me feel really excited about my new house.

Tomorrow it will be a week that we have lived here. We have all but two boxes unpacked but still stuff is scattered everywhere. Since we had to go back to work it's been hard to come home and work some more. I have tomorrow off, though, so I'm hoping to get our bedroom all pretty as well as the living room finished. I also hope to get a vacuum to my floor because it's disgusting. I'm really ready to be all moved in. It stresses me out when I think of all the piles of stuff all over my house. It makes it really not feel like a home. Also, I really want to get some pictures to my faithful followers and I refuse to do it until I have a clean house.

So there you go. That's how it all went. Keep your eyes peeled for my post of pictures; I'm sure it will be coming soon.

My happy place

2011-01-27T18:21:00.000-08:00

Everything on my mind today:

I need to pack.
How am I going to get all of that donate pile out of my house?
How am I going to make dinner tonight: at this point the tears start. THANKS BRITTA!!
My poor kitty is going to have a rough weekend.
I really don't want to work today.
I need to work today so I can get my mind off of things.
When am I going to sign my lease and get my keys?
What am I going to make my boss for dinner tonight?
I don't have much to do at work today..
I need to call Sarah-I'm glad I did.
My boss repeats himself a lot.
I don't like my boss's dryer.
I shouldn't have to make the nanny's bed.
I'm not going to remember to buy 100% carrot juice.
I hate going to the post office; I'm glad I don't have to go today.
I hate my work car.
What else would be good in my cold sablefish salad?
Is sablefish and Black Cod the same thing?...it is
Can I bake sablefish?
I forgot the carrot juice.
This is an awesome dinner.
Wow, I did such a good job tonight.
I love plating food.
I'm so glad I don't have to make dinner for my family tonight.
I'm sorry you think the salad is only ok, I think it's amazing.
I have no idea how to make tea.
I know I should be packing and not blogging.
I need to start packing.
I will soon be needing to go to my happy place.

What? No pictures?

2011-01-17T18:13:00.001-08:00

I'm not that big of a picture taker. When I was growing up I always kind of depended on my dad to do that; you know because he likes that kind of stuff. Then, I married Michael and he gets his photography bug from his mom so I kind of started depending on that. Then, our camera is old and totally sucks so now we really don't like taking pictures. So, I apologize.

I just got back from my sister-in-laws house in Arizona. I have never been to her "home base" so it was super awesome. I got see where she cooks, where she eats, where she plays the Wii. Where she prays, where she sleeps, where she sits while she reads my blog (Hi Erin!), and where she keeps her food storage. She taught me a lot about food storage and I'm really excited about that. Now that I'm moving into this new place I actually have room and I really feel the need to get started.

The main highlight of the trip was my niece's baptism. It was so super cool to see that. I gave her a quilt for her baptism and she carried it around the whole trip. I was really impressed of how grown up my niece is. She is polite and so smart. She would help her little brothers and dress herself. She is eight so it is expected that she should do these things but it still just blows my mind that she can.

Another highlight of the trip was meeting Mekell (HI!) and Deke Burch. These are Erin's besties and I've heard a lot about them over the past how ever many years. Erin is right, they are pretty dang awesome. We all became instant friends and spent the two days laughing together.

Besides the baptism we played a lot of Speed Uno, some Scum, a little bit of the paper game, had very little sleep, watched a movie, and ate a lot of chicken salad sandwich and cake eating. Probably way too much cake eating. It was so much fun and I really wanted to stay longer. Really bad.

I was lucky enough to see all of Michael's family in the same month. They are so awesome and I'm so lucky to have them in my life. I already miss them all. *sigh*

Now that the trips are over I'm forced to get back to real life. I need to start my work out program back up (all that cake you know) and get prepared to move in three weeks.

A close friend

2011-01-13T23:17:00.000-08:00

"I'm lonely"

This is a text that started, even though it may not seem like it, a wonderful conversation between friends.

My friend, Chelsey, has been one of my best friends for a long time now. She and I have known each other since a young age and became friends in high school. If I remember correctly, please correct me if I'm wrong, it all started in a math class. We sat next to each other because we knew each other and it blossomed into one of the best friendships ever. I was even so lucky that Chelsey was connected to another friend who I am still good friends with today. Hi Toni, I love you too!

Chelsey and I haven't always gotten along. Just like all friends who are girls we have said mean things about each other when we were mad. We've screamed at each other and have told each other where to go. We have disagreed; we have more often agreed. We have laughed, loved, and cried together a many times. Through all of that she still loves me for me. Even though I have changed tremendously and she has changed some too, we still love to love each other.

Today during our two hour conversation I realized how much Chelsey means to me. We shared the same ideas and thoughts. At some points it was as if she was reading the thoughts right out of my head. It was nice, though, to just hear her say it. She said so much that I needed to hear and I didn't even ask for any advice. It was almost like she knew what I needed to hear with out even knowing she knew. (How's that for confusing?) That's why I realized she means so much to me.

I'm grateful for friends like Chelsey.

Read this to be entertained

2011-01-12T15:57:00.000-08:00

Hello people who can't get enough of me.

Remember when you read my post about how I really went to WV and I really do have family that loves me out there? If not, go there now...I'll wait.

*Singing a song is fun to do. Fun to do, to do ,to do.

Are you back?

Well, welcome back.

In that post I talked about my sister, Jeigh, and how she is writing a novel. She is an awesome writer and I'm always entertained by what she writes. The only thing I hate about her writing is that I'm not very good at explaining things so I could never explain to you why its awesome and there is really no way to describe her writing. You just have to read it for yourself. Today just became my lucky day. Coincidentally, it is now yours too. She started a writing blog. I encourage all of you to go read it and send it to other friends to read it. Yes, yes, yes, this does benefit her so that she gets a following and when her first book is published you will all want to read it. The real thing, though, is that you will be filled with Jeigh's awesomeness on a regular basis and that is a real treat.

SO GO!!

I hope you enjoy as much as I know I will.

We got started out on the right foot

2011-01-09T22:25:00.001-08:00

When Michael got his job at UC Berkeley in August of last year we started to think more seriously about moving into a bigger place. We got really excited at first and started looking looking looking on Craigslist for a new place. There were a few that looked especially exciting so I had to get serious. I looked at our budgets and our "needs" (like going to WV for Christmas and going to AZ for our niece's baptism and basketball tickets and other totally awesome things) and found that maybe moving RIGHT THEN wasn't such a good idea. We decided that we would hold off looking until January.

Well guess what....

IT'S JANUARY!!

That snuck up fast now didn't it?

Since it was a start of a new year and the thought randomly crossed my mind I thought it might be interesting to email some people in our ward who own a whole bunch of locations throughout the bay area and see what they would have available. I didn't think too much of it. *Pssst... I was really hoping they would have something cool and in our price range. To my surprise there was a lot available and they emailed me back almost instantly. So over a few days, I think maybe one, we were introduced to a lot of places all over the bay. Late one night we went to three places that were all good but not quite doing it for us; we knew something was missing. Borg, the awesome gentleman showing us around, asked us what we needed and what we were expecting. After assessing our needs he mentioned one more place that might be more what we are looking for. We thought that it might we worth a shot and drove over to a HOUSE. Yes, a three bedroom HOUSE. We. Were. In. Love.

It has stairs (I'm really excited about that), a breakfast nook, a dining area, a large laundry room, a storage room (Michael's new man cave), a laundry shoot, a working fireplace in a huge living room, a side yard, and we don't have change wards. Best part, it's in our price range.

Long story short...we are moving next month. On our way out this weekend we dropped a thirty day notice off for our apartment. I'm so happy.

If you want to see it go HERE and enter 3526 Meadow St. Oakland, CA (Chances are you are then going to have to move to the left on google maps because it's a little confused. You should be looking at a white house with no tree in front.) ... or come visit.

Proof

2011-01-02T19:37:00.001-08:00

I wanted to prove to everyone that I actually went to WV and I do actually have family there. I'm sure everyone believed me but I thought I would post this just for good measures.

This is my all time favorite picture in the whole bunch. Michael (on the right) and Rex, his brother in law, (on the left) are playing Halo Reach. Notice Rex is wearing a headset because he is so cool. Also, "because they needed them just in case they needed to chop someone's head off" the Samari swords in their shirts. I laughed so hard when I saw this.

This is New Year's Eve night. Jeigh, Michael's sister, and Rex got their kids B-A-N-D H-E-R-O.. BAND HERO for Christmas. Out of all the songs on the game the kids new the Taylor Swift songs the best. So after hearing those about 100 times we made them switch to other songs. It would go between American Pie, YMCA, and Kung Fu Fighting (the "Kung Fu Panda song" as it was called). Anyway, after we sent the kids to bed we decided to have fun on our own. This is Jeigh singing away.

Same night, same story. The difference is this is Sarah, Michael's other sister who lives in WV, on the drums and her husband, Mike, on the guitar. They were both doing a way awesome job.

This is Michael telling me he loves me. I remember the night that Michael and I "hooked up" it was my birthday. My room mate threw me an awesome party (thanks Brooke) and there were a whole bunch of people there, including my mom and sisters. When my mom went to leave she said goodbye in our "tenderly" way by giving me the finger. Michael told me that it's a sign of endearment in his family too. It's one of the reasons I knew we were a good match.

Here's Rex again. He didn't really want to play Band Hero with us. We were hoping we could get him up to start a Dance Revolution with us but no such luck. He loved this chair too much. I don't really blame him, though. Sarah made these awesome deep fried cookies and it was pretty hard to move after eating them.

Here's Sarah and I. I'm super super lucky because I have the best in-laws in the whole world. I feel like I've been a long lost member of their family. Sarah and I got married around the same time so we've struggled with a lot of the same things when it comes to new marriages and what not. We also were friends before I even met Michael. On New Year's Eve we got to hang out, just the two of us, because everyone else was playing basketball. It was so nice to get caught up and share hugs, feelings, thoughts, and other stuff. I really value that time and think of it as one of the main highlights of the trip. I wanted to get a picture of Sarah's cute family but Owyn, her oldest, was feeling sick so it was no such luck. But let me tell you, those girls (Lily is the other one) are so stickin cute and so sweet.

This is Jeigh and Rex's family plus Michael's butt. Their kids call Michael Fatty. Sarah's kids are working on it but they still think that your saying Daddy not Fatty. Don't you just love Jett's (the son) smile?

Here's Jeigh and I. I'm the one on the right. I know it's hard to tell because we look so much alike. We are twins. Jeigh is working on a really awesome novel right now. Even with in the time that I was there her novel has changed and grown. I can't wait for it to get published so all of you can read it, because you will love it just like I have. Just like with Sarah, I had the opportunity to spend some one on one time with Jeigh. She always gets me laughing so it was pretty fun. We too got to share hugs, feelings, thoughts, and other stuff. It was awesome.

This sign sums up Philippi, West Virginia; town of 2800 people. I wasn't able to get a picture of it but apparently there is a Civil War museum and the sign for it used to say Cival War until they scratched out the "a" to make it look like an "i." Also there is a store called Bargan Barn. Pretty awesome I know.

I had a lot of fun on our trip. I really wish we could have stayed longer but our normal lives needed us to come home. If I had it my way though, we would have been out there for another week! Thanks for having us Jeigh, Rex, Sarah, and Mike. Miss us because we miss you.

Ahhh...Christmas morning

2010-12-18T11:45:00.000-08:00

Faithful blog followers...
As you all know I opened my presents early this year so we didn't have to haul them to and from West Virginia.

Here's a good starter. I LOVE the Denver Nuggets. I especially love Chris "Birdman" Andersen.

Here's the front. This shirt was custom designed by Michael. He's so sweet.

I wasn't really in the work out mood this morning, you know between the candy and all, but I did try a little bit of this and it is awesome. I can't wait to get my workout on.

Don't knock it until you've tried it. It's a good arm workout.

Fossil... Need I say more? Oh maybe I should say that the face is a really cute pink color.

Michael won this in his office Christmas party. It works out that it's so freaken cute.

My old crockpot broke. I'm really excited to have this new one.

This is what our living room now looks like. Michael is currently staring at the TV while he plays Call of Duty on his new 360. In the meantime Rump is enjoying all the trash that she can play in. It was a good day.

I'm so close

2010-12-16T18:30:00.000-08:00

Most know that I'm leaving to West Virginia on the 23rd so that I can spend Christmas with two of my sisters. Ok..Ok..they are "really" Michael's sisters but whatever. I'm so excited to go and my next few days are so busy that it makes it seem to come even faster.

To show:

December

17th: Half day at work, Go to grocery store to get ham for a family in need, go to the Nutcracker with friend, Robert.

18th: Open Christmas presents, play with my cool new stuff, Ward Christmas party

19th: Ward Christmas program, tithing settlement, drop off ham with other presents to family in need, Survivor Finale (GO FABIO)

20th: Half day at work because Michael has doctor's appt (unless his bike is ready by then), dinner at Haye's home with missionaries

21st: Busy work day, starting packing list, workout

22nd: Busy work day, double check packing list, start some cleaning, Wondering what I'm going to do without Survivor, workout

23rd: Pack, deep clean the whole house, show friend how to feed my cat, GO TO AIRPORT!!!

See, Jeigh and Sarah, I'm only a few days away from hugging you and holding your babies. I can't wait. I can't wait. I can't wait.

The final product

2010-12-11T19:24:00.000-08:00

My niece, Dylann, is getting baptized in January. Michael and I are both so proud of her and her decision. Because I'm crazy, I've decided to make a quilt for each niece and nephew that gets baptized. I recently finished her quilt and wanted to show it off.

I would like to give a big thanks to Masha for helping me tie it and Chris for entertaining my husband while we tied it. It turned out great.

Thanksgiving is great

2010-11-27T12:47:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from my Thanksgiving break.

Black Friday

2010-11-26T23:21:00.000-08:00

When most people think Black Friday they think of that woman on the Target commercials. You know the one; she works out in her heels in preparation for the big day. She is first in line at Target with her face pressed up against the glass ready for her big shopping day.

I am not that woman.

I like to give a lot at Christmas. I don't really know why, I just do. I think the feel of Christmas in the air makes me want to share my love for others and to express my love through service and giving. This year Michael and I decided to do a little extra giving. This meant spending more money. Even though Michael and I have two incomes and no children we still have a lot of debt so we don't really have that much extra. This meant I had to become a magical wife and make it so all bills were paid, we had extra for fun, and enough for Christmas presents. Answer to my problems...

BLACK FRIDAY

My sister and I looked through a lot of ads and mapped out our route. I had Michael circle the things he wanted and I made a list. We started at 4AM and our day went a little something like this:

4AM: We started at Old Navy. This store opened at midnight so the crowd was gone by the time we got there. I saved the same amount there that I spent.

5AM: We went to Sears. This store opened at 4AM so the crowd was gone by the time we got there.

6AM: We went to Bay Street Mall and started at Victoria's Secret. I wasn't really looking for anything there but my sister was so I just browsing. At 6:30 I went over to Bath and Body Works to get a couple of presents there. We also did a quick trip to Gap

7:30AM: We made our last stop Target. The main crazy person crowd was gone and it was pretty easy shopping.

All day long I only stood in line for a total of 10 minutes. I enjoyed myself. I saved $250-$300. I ended up spending 1/2 of what I was planning on spending on Christmas. I feel so good about today and I'm proud of myself.

Yay! I love Black Friday.

I must like lists

2010-11-17T10:02:00.000-08:00

I'm excited for:

1-Finishing my parent's Christmas presents

2-Going grocery shopping

3-My family coming for Thanksgiving

4-Finishing Dylann's quilt

5-My spontaneous day off today

6-My anniversary...four years baby

7-Black Friday shopping

8-Christmas present wrapping

9-Christmas decorations

10-Going to West Virginia

11-Going to Arizona

12-My friend Rosie and her possibilities (once again, no pressure)

13-My paycheck

14-The idea of getting caught up on some school debt

15-The idea of moving out of our crappy apartment and into a better one

To tell you the truth, I love lists. In fact, this is my fourth list today and I have one more to go. It helps me organize my life. So thanks for helping me organize.

Thanksgiving...

2010-11-10T19:51:00.001-08:00

...is only two weeks away. I didn't realize that and had a little panic attack. I just thought I would warn those who are as awesome as me.

I can be Charlie Brown too

2010-11-04T21:22:00.000-07:00

I don't know if that is the best name for this post or not but I really feel like Charlie Brown right now.

Ever since I was promoted at Panera (in May) I stopped hanging out with everyone. Since I had two jobs and one of them was so demanding I just didn't have a life outside of Michael. The only time I hung out with anyone was when Michael was out of town for a month and the time I usually dedicated to him was dedicated to friends. I also got to know my cat a little bit better (that's a side note).

Ok, point of my post.

I really feel like in all this craziness I have really neglected my friends and in return I have been neglected. Now, I do realize, it was completely impossible to get a hold of me. If it wasn't for the internet on my phone I wouldn't of been able to check my email and my Facebook. Also, I realize that if you don't pay attention to people they eventually get bored and move on because they want to have fun. So now I feel friendless and kind of lonely. I feel so disconnected with people I go to church with. I feel really disconnected with those friends I don't go to church with and now don't even work with. I just feel disconnected.

*imagine open arms asking for a hug here*

Friends, I love you. I'm sorry that I've been on another planet and I've been focusing more on work than the things that are important. Please know that I'm going to make more of an effort to spend time with you and I hope in return you will want to spend time with me. I know most of you have sweet babies and that maybe you feel like you aren't presentable to the public because you all mommyfied (it's a word). Just keep in mind I too don't wear makeup, my clothes are always a wreck, and I wear my hair up 6 out of 7 days out of the week. Also, I don't mind our spending time with each other us sitting at your place while you clean and I entertain your little one. Or whatever you want to do. I'm not fancy and don't expect anything fancy. I don't care I just want friends again.

Please come back.

Isn't that funny?

2010-10-26T23:15:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty much overwhelmed right now. I'm days away from quitting a job that I love and hate all at the same time. I've started on a quilt. I need to make 60 cupcakes by Saturday. I'm having a Halloween party on Saturday. PLUS, I have some other personal things going on. Yes, most of these things I want to do and volunteered myself for them but I'm still overwhelmed.

On my way home from work today I lost it. By lost I mean embarrassing full on weeping and wailing big tears lost it. Most of those tears were from the personal stuff and I got so frustrated with myself and my situation and not knowing how to fix it. I, once again embarrassingly, pleaded to God for help. I needed some guidance that I've been dying for and needing.

So what's so funny? Not long after my sobbing the next song to some on the radio was this. I must warn you I was listening to country. So, listen at your own risk. How's that for an answer?

Even though nothing was solved and I'm still in the same exact position I was an hour ago, I feel better.

Things I love

2010-10-15T23:44:00.000-07:00

Here is a list of 20 things I love in no particular order.

1- My husband

2- My cat, she is so cute.

3- Food

4- The rain

5- Halloween

6- Kids

7- Knowing I made a difference in someone's life

8- Chickens

9- The color orange

10- Fruit

11- Chalkboards

12- Playing the piano

13- Musicals

14- The Book of Mormon

15- Going to a session in the temple

16- Painting my toenails

17- Singing as loud as I can when in the car by myself

18- On the same note I love dancing around like an idiot when no one is home

19- My family

20- Basketball... More specifically, the Denver Nuggets

I now challenge you to make a list as well. It's fun and makes you think happy thoughts.

That reminds me there is a book, can't remember the name of it, that is just a really long list of things that make people smile. I really want that book. I will figure out the name of it and let you know. I encourage each and every one of you to own one. Just reading it makes you smile.

Fun Projects

2010-10-13T13:47:00.000-07:00

Today was an unplanned day off; those are the best. So, I decided to take this opportunity to work on some of my fun new projects.

First:
My cute niece is turning 8 in January. Turning 8 in the LDS world is a very exciting year; it's the year that you get baptized. Because there is a good possibility I might be insane, I have decided to take on the challenge of making each niece and nephew of mine a quilt when they are baptized. With my niece's baptism being just around the corner I needed to get a head start on her quilt. I bought her fabric and I'm super excited to get started. Here is the inspirational fabric:

Second:
I know it's not even Halloween yet, but I have to get started now or I will not finish on time. Today, I started my Christmas cards. I was able to get all the stamps I needed and after several loops around Michael's I figured out what I want to do. I was able to come home and get started right away. It was also a fun time to hang out with my cat. She gets really into bright ribbons and plastic.

Third:
I'm starting a secret project that involves my third greatest passion in life. First being, my religion. Second being, teaching children. As more time goes on maybe I'll let you in on a little bit but you'll have to be patient.

I love projects. I love crafting. I love sewing. I love...to cook. :)

I'm really tired

2010-10-11T21:06:00.000-07:00

I am extremely exhausted and I don't really feel like I have a reason to be so I just wanted to list some things I've been doing over the last two days so it makes me feel ok for being as tired as I am.

Sunday:

Woke up
Got ready for church
Made myself some breakfast
Went to church
Practiced for the Primary Program
Left church
Went home and changed
Went to work
Found out an employee didn't show up for work
This leads to:
Me having to run around to make coffees, stock napkins, sugars, condiments, straws, lids, and silverware.
In the mean time I have bring food to customers, do other managerial things, and make the bakery display look like a million dollars. When I walked in it looked like it was in debt by about one hundred dollars.
Talk with other managers and boss about firing employee that did not come in. This required a lot of research.
I had 3 new employees on that all needed training at the same time
Close the cafe (this requires a lot of work)

Monday: (supposed to be my day off)

Take Michael to work
Make breakfast
Talk to boss, once again, about firing employee who didn't come in
Turns out we are firing her and I need to cover her shift
Go to work
Watch a girl get fired that is living on the streets. This was so hard to watch. But business is business and sometimes that has to come first.
Work a really busy lunch.
Work
Work
Work
At the end of my shift I found out that every minute I work tomorrow is going to be overtime...I'm scheduled for 9 hours. That means a 50 hour week.
I just got over the flu and still recovering and not very well may I add.

That's depressing. Even though I wrote it all down I still feel like it doesn't really give me reason to be as exhausted as I am. Keep in mind that my job is super stressful All. The. Time. Luanne, say good bye to that weight you lost because it's right back with all this stress. Sigh. 17 more days.

Here's the favor

2010-10-07T19:10:00.000-07:00

As most of you know and some may need to know, my husband is very good at what he does. What does he do, you ask? He's a motion graphic designer(MGD). What is a MGD? Pretty much everything you see on TV, especially ads, has been touched by a MGD. So, they do EVERYTHING!!

Michael just finished a project and it looks pretty dang good. I'm not just saying that because I'm his wife, either. I bet you want to know what this project is. I'll tell ya.

Have you ever heard of the band Unwritten Law? They are pretty awesome. They are releasing a new album in 2011 called Swan. They decided to reach out to their fans and have the fans design their new album cover. It's a contest. The album cover currently in the lead sucks. On top of that Michael's is so awesome that he has to win. So please go to this website and vote.

The link that is the word "this" takes you to Michael's album cover. You will need to go to the main (home) page. Once there go to Michael's thumbnail and click on the link under it and give it five (5) whole stars. Please oh please do it. We don't win any money or anything but it's something to add to Michael's resume which is pretty cool.

Things that are going great:

2010-10-05T08:52:00.000-07:00

-We bought tickets to go visit my ever so awesome family for Christmas.
-My paycheck was...let's just say a lot....a lot more than what it normally is.
-With Michael's paycheck we were able to start a savings. A REAL savings. Not just a place where we keep money even though we know that we will have dip into it sooner rather than later.
-Our new health benefits rock. I went to the Pharmacy to get my test strips and they were FREE.
-Halloween is on it's way.
-I have started my Christmas cards.
-I'm going to have O's for breakfast this morning.
-O's were on sale at Target for only $2.00 a box.
-My cat is in a snuggly mood this morning.
-I got to sleep in and will be able to sleep in tomorrow.
-I'm only 24 days away from having only 1 job.
-General Conference weekend was last weekend and it was so amazing. I cried pretty much all 8 hours.
-The Primary Program is only 2 weeks away. I love seeing all my hard work pay off when parents are in the "audience" smiling from ear to ear because their kid looks so cute singing.
-I have enough groceries in my house to last me a month. This include fresh fruits and vegetables.
-I found out that when your back is against the wall and you have no meat defrosted but a friend who just had a baby and needs a nice, warm home cooked meal, canned chicken rocks. Seriously, rocks.

I'm sure there are about a million other things that are going awesome but I now want to go enjoy that bowl of O's. :) Also, I have a doctor's appt. that I have to get to

Tag, you're it!!

2010-09-28T12:02:00.000-07:00

I was tagged!! My sister is a daily blogger. I really love reading her blog and always make it a goal to read it every day. One of her most recent posts she posted this game of tag. The idea is this:

She answered 8 questions that another blogger wrote. She (my sister) then made 8 new questions and tagged 8 new people. It's like a chain. Fun, right?!?

1. What specific thing made you happy today? (I accidentally erased this question but it was something like that...):

I worked out this morning. I've been working out three days a week now for a month. I've also upped, that's a word right!?!, my fruit and water intake. I even lost a little weight. It's been nice to work towards something.

2. Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Can I be both? In reality I am.

3. If you had/have free time, what would you/do you spend that time doing?

Spending time with Michael; whatever that may mean. I have a friend who told me that, not in a bad way, I spend way too much time with Michael. She said that I need to spend more time with my friends and with myself. I just can't help it though. I love being married and I love who I'm married to so why wouldn't I want to spend time with him?

4. What is your favorite breakfast?

Eggs, sausage, fruit, and possibly a pancake or two.

5. You are alone in the house. No one is watching. You are listening to your favorite music. What kind of music is it? Are you singing along? Are you dancing? Remember, no one is watching. =)

Most likely I'm listening to Wicked or something really dancey. I can't help but sing along to anything I'm listening too and of course I'm dancing. Who do you think this is?

6. What have you never tried but really want to?

I have tried it but I really want to do it again; does that count? I want to be on a dance team again. I would love to be a professional dancer (not in a naughty way).

7. Do you have a favorite holiday? If so, what is it and why?

I'm constantly fighting this. I love Thanksgiving because of the food thing. I love to cook and eat. Oh I love to eat. At the same time, though, I love Christmas because who doesn't love Christmas?

8. What is the most recent thing that someone has done for you that made a difference in your day?

Just the other day I was feeling kind of down and my friend, Toni, wrote on my Facebook wall a little comment about how she was thinking of me or something. It really meant a lot to me.

Ok here are my questions and the people I'm tagging:

1. What is your favorite part about you?
2. If you could vacation any where, where would you go?
3. What does the best meal ever involve?
4. Name your favorite sweet.
5. Up to now what is your greatest accomplishment?
6. What would be your best day ever?
7. Favorite season and why?
8. What is the best book you've ever read?

1. Toni, because she always has such a funny blog.
2. Jenny, because I'm sure she could use some time to think about her. I have to explain to everyone that she is a mom, a wife to a student, pregnant, and just got called as the Relief Society President in her ward.
3. Janelle, because I love reading her blog.
4. Aynna, Best. cousin. ever. Ok, I have a lot of really great cousins but she is almost like a twin cousin.
5. Chelsey, because I love her and she needs a reason to blog.
6. Heather, because she hasn't blogged in a while and I love reading it.
7. Britta, she is a daily blogger anyways so I might as well get a little glory from it.
8. Amanda, because I haven't heard from her in a while.

By the way, I would have a link to each of these blogs but my computer is absolutely ridiculous and won't let me do anything like that and Michael has his computer with him.

Now go! I can't wait to read.

This is so odd...

2010-09-20T00:14:00.001-07:00

I was on Panera's website doing some work when I found this story. I just had to share it.

A Panera Wedding Featured News
The last-minute surprise one couple will never forget

Jeff and Natalie Daniels were supposed to be married at 10 a.m. on August 16, 2008, in an outdoor ceremony at Lake Eola in Orlando, Florida. The bride was 45 minutes late but, unfortunately, Tropical Storm Fay arrived right on time with wind-swept rain that quickly soaked guests, drove the bride into her car, and sent the preacher scurrying into a nearby Panera Bread.

“We didn’t have a backup plan,” recalls Jeff. “I was so soaked, the dye from my tuxedo went right through my shirt. But then the reverend called and said it’s nice and dry in Panera, and the manager was willing to let us get married in there. I thought this is going to be one of the strangest weddings ever….”
The Reverend Glynn Ferguson and the Panera staff took charge, handing out towels and moving tables. A cloth was draped over a trashcan, and the couple’s Unity Candle was set on top. Meanwhile, the groom and his party were sequestered in the men’s room while guests formed a canopy of umbrellas so the bride could get from her car to the bakery-cafe.

“Once everyone was in position, I gave the staff the nod, they turned up the classical music, the bride and her father walked down the aisle, and I married them,” says Reverend Ferguson. “Everyone clapped, customers included. It was one of the most unusual weddings I’ve ever done, but it was warm, inviting, classy, and it sure smelled wonderful.”

“Natalie and I plan on going back to that Panera for our anniversary and giving the staff a photo of us taken in front of the store that day,” says Jeff. “Whenever we tell people this story, they can’t believe it. But it was very special, and we’ll never forget it.”

Publish Date: September 8, 2010

See TV can teach us something

2010-09-14T16:23:00.000-07:00

Have you seen the most recent commercial from Nutrigrain Bars? The screen is split in half and it shows a woman who starts her day with a pastry and her day with a Nutrigrain Bar. She goes throughout her day making different nutritional decisions. The idea of the commercial is that if you start your day with a Nutrigrain Bar you will make healthier decisions throughout the rest of your day.

The first few times I saw this commercial I though, "Yeah right." Even if I had a Nutrigrain Bar for breakfast I would still choose the piece of brownie over the piece of apple that they were sampling at the grocery store any day of the week. I thought about it quite a bit and wondered if it was really true. I decided to conduct an experiment.

I made a goal three weeks ago that I would work out every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. So far, so good. On the days that I work out I tend to drink more water, eat more fruit, and eat a little healthier. I usually do spill over with my healthy living on days that I don't work out but still I have my days. Plus, I was working on my experiment. One morning there was 1/2 of an Almond Joy waiting for me to eat sitting on the kitchen counter. I ate it for breakfast. All day long I ate like crap. I didn't do it consciously either. It wasn't until later that day that I realized how bad I had eaten. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I usually open at work. This means that I'm eating breakfast there. If I eat eggs or a breakfast sandwich, a healthy one, I usually end the day well. But if I eat a sweet and high calorie bagel or a pastry I usually end the day feeling like crap because of all the crap I ate.

On top of that at the end of my good days I am more likely to cook dinner, have a different kind of energy (even though I'm still tired) and read my scriptures. I'm friendlier and easier to get along with. Finally, it makes me want to do it all over again so I can always feel that way.

I hope that all of you try to start your day with a healthier option. It really does work!!

Well that's disappointing.

2010-09-10T23:13:00.000-07:00

You know those nights where you are tired after a long day? You worked on dinner as well as house work and you sit down just to realize that you want something sweet. You know the day, right?

The other night this happened to me. I could have gone to the grocery story that is right across the parking lot and got some chocolate chips or a candy bar but I didn't want to put that much energy into it. I decided to go online and get a recipe for cookies that need ingredients that I had lying around the house. I ended up finding this recipe that looked a little fishy because of the amount of ingredients but that was also the appeal. I decided to read the comments to get a better feel. The comments said things like:

"This is one of the best cookies I've ever had."

"I just wanted to make a cookie with the ingredients I had lying around my house. These cookies were just what I needed to fill my sugar need for the night."

"Super easy and the kids loved them."

You get the idea, right? I was so excited to make a cookie that was everything I was looking for. So, I spent the time to make the cookie (it really didn't take much time they really are easy). I was so excited for them to come out of the oven. I even poured myself a large glass of milk so I was ready.

I pulled them out of the oven and they smelled so good. I put three on my plate, grabbed my milk and sat down on the couch. I was so ready to get lost in a warm cookie and finish my day off right. I pulled up the biggest cookie to my mouth, smelled it, then put it in ready for the cookie to melt in my mouth and hit me in the spot that makes me happy that only cookies can reach.

WORSE COOKIE E.V.E.R!!

It was dry and had no flavor whatsoever. It crumbled and cracked. It was exactly the opposite of everything that I was expecting. Moral of the story; don't ever make a washboard cookie.

The next day I had work from 9-5:30. I woke up, worked out, and ate a good breakfast. I had a few minutes before leaving to work so I started the crockpot for some "Tex Mex Tacos." I was so excited about the thought of dinner being ready after a long day at work.

While I was at work I imagined Michael and I getting home about the same time. I would pull out tortillas, jalapenos, cheese, and sour cream. We would load up our tortillas and eat some of the best tacos ever made.

As soon as I got off work I rushed home to indulge in my tacos. I got out all the fixins I needed and opened the crock pot to find...dry meat. The tomatoes had dried to the bottom of the pot so the pork ended up drying out.

Hopefully next week will be a better food week for me. I'm thinking I need to buy some molasses and make myself some ginger snaps. MMmmmm...

Some good news

2010-08-20T18:17:00.000-07:00

I have been working at least two jobs for almost three years now. At one point I was working two jobs and going to school all at the same time. I'm not complaining, just stating. I knew when we moved out here that I would have to work really hard so that Michael could go to school and get good grades. I felt it pay off as he went to school. I could see his work and see how much time and effort he put into it and knowing that he didn't have to juggle work on top of that made me feel really good. Also, when I've seen the several reels that he has put together (mhardydesign.com) I felt so good knowing that he could put all of his energy and effort into it without having to worry about a job. Then, when we went to his graduation and he had the opportunity to give a speech because he was salutatorian I felt good because I knew he earned it and he did it because he didn't have to worry about a job. Finally, he had the opportunity to go and spend time with his parents for just about a month. I knew all three of them needed that time and I felt good knowing that he could do it because he didn't have a job.

I have to be honest though...

I am exhausted. It is really hard to support a family with such a low income and two jobs. I'm constantly tired, I'm always working, and I don't get to spend the time with Michael that I want. Every time I do our budget my stress level rises knowing that we just aren't cutting it. Knowing that we are drowning in our bills and on top on that student loans are coming due is making me crazy. I've seen a million miracles and find it amazing that we have a place to live, food to eat, a car to drive, and gas to put into it. We have managed to eat out, see movies, and have fun. Even when it didn't make sense we have always made the most important bills on time and those not so important bills have not bothered us too much with the late/non payments and it's been a blessing. There was one point where we didn't have an electricity bill for six months for no reason whatsoever. I have tried to be patient with my hard struggles with money. I have tried to count my blessings outside of money and focus on the important things in life. I'm far from perfect, though, and even though money is not important in the eternal perspective it can be kind of/really important in this mortal life. So, I've cried, wished, and prayed for a break. I've always received a break even if it was temporary.

Point of my story...

The biggest break that I will ever receive was given to me today. Michael was offered a job. Yes, Michael is officially employed! He is a online course designer (sort of, I can't really explain because I don't completely understand) at UC Berkeley. He starts Sept. 1st. We will have a good salary, free vision, free dental, and medical benefits. I started to cry when I heard him say, "Ya, of course I'll take it." We have a lot of plans to help us pay off debt so that when we start a family and I'm not working anymore I'll be able to be a mom with out much debt holding us down. Also, in January, I'm going to go down to one job. ONE JOB!!! I won't have to worry about juggling two and working my little buns off.

If you are one of my friends who doesn't believe in God or if believing in miracles is hard for you then read closely. Michael and I were reluctant to go on the Pioneer Trek we went on a couple of months ago. Our bishop told us we should go. After we had decided to go we ended our meeting with a prayer. In the prayer the bishop prayed that going on this trek would help Michael find a job. On the trek we meet the guy that Michael will be working for. Michael has had the Berkeley job offer, got some free lance work, and was offered a job at our local channel 5 station, part time, that he might work for a little while to help with bills. Our state has the highest unemployment rate in the nation and Michael found a job. Michael has only been graduated for a few months in a field where 400 people were recently laid off and he found a job. All the jobs that he was offered(including free lance work), the people sought out him.

All of this is proof to me that the Lord truly knows us. He loves us and works miracles for those that work hard to do good. I will forever be in debt to the Lord for this miracle.

High School

2010-08-05T19:31:00.000-07:00

I was talking about high school today at work. I have mixed emotions about high school. I don't really know if I liked high school or not. I had some fun times, ok I had a lot...A LOT A LOT of fun times but there were some crappy times in there. Anyway, it's funny that I was talking about it because I then came home to find my friend's blog all about her high school boyfriends and I was mentioned because we were BEST FRIENDS in high school so I was involved in some of her stories. These stories made me smile and helped me remember some good times. Also, through her blog I felt inspired to write about some good times from high school.

For starters I hung out with quite a few of different groups in high school. My freshman year I hung out with a whole bunch of punkers. My two best friends were Kayla and Kristie. We spent the majority of our time listening to Blink 182, Green Day, Sum 41, Weezer, and others like that. We got really good at sluffing school, getting in snow ball fights, jumping puddles, eating fries and shakes at McDonalds, sneaking out, liking boys, and a million other things that I can't list because it would take all day and you would get bored. They can always Lean on Me.

My Sophomore year was the year I really got into band. I spent most of my time with Rosie and Rachel. We would sit and play our instruments. We would try to find ways to amuse ourselves with the no money we had. We hung out with boys with cars and money. I listened to Simple Plan, Blink 182, a lot of jazz, and whatever was popular on the radio. *Stacy's Mom has got it going on!* We went to Pasadena and marched in the Rose Bowl Parade AND the Christmas Parade at Disneyland. "You bet your bippy" we had a good time.

My junior year was the year that I would go back to over all others. That is if it was either going back to high school or something crappy because I don't really want to ever go back even if it was good times. *Please don't be offended if you are not mentioned.* My junior year I was friends with Toni and Chelsey. I was working at Dairy Queen and attempting to graduate early. I hung out with a lot of red necks with big trucks, sexy trucks, and listened to a lot of country music and for a short amount of time we got into Gloria Gaynor. Let's just say I will survive. I could write about a million sentences and I'm pretty sure I would make Chelsey and Toni laugh so hard that they would pee their pants. "Be a tree. There are no trees in Wendy's." "Find Toni, I need Toni. She is wear green pants and a red shirt." Possibly the other way around. We did a lot of extremely crazy things. Most of which I choose not to talk about. I want to make it clear that it's not because I am ashamed of my past or that I don't want to remember it. It's not because I don't want to "blow a cover" or act like I'm something I'm not. It's because I have simply moved on. Most of my good memories come from my junior year. I still smile when I hear most country songs and I'm taken back to some really good times.

My senior year was a blur. I lost myself in a whirlwind of awfulness. I don't really feel like publicly posting all the things that were drama in my life so let's just say I was going through some hard times. I hung out with Emily, Kristen, Ashley, and Kristie. (a different one from my freshman year) We were absolutely nuts. I really think that we actually thought we were invincible. But through my senior year I learned more about myself than I ever will.

Even though I would never go back to high school I'm glad I went through it. I'm glad I learned what I did and I'm glad it has made me me. I'm a pretty cool person.

I challenge you

2010-07-26T18:53:00.000-07:00

I want your best slow cooker recipe! Whether it be soup, roast, chicken, or whatever you want!

Wow, what a good idea

2010-07-24T23:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I stayed the night at some friend's house. Right before we got to bed we started into a deep discussion about this and that. The conversation led to talking about qualities we don't really like in people. One of my friends said something about how we can't really criticize other's qualities until we fix those qualities ourselves.

I got to thinking about it and decided I'm going to fix:

Spending money I don't have
Reading my scriptures
Writing in my journal
Cleaning as I go...cleaner house= a happy LuLu
Communicating exactly what I want instead of waiting for other people to guess

I love when friends have good ideas.

Learning to be patient

2010-07-22T19:17:00.001-07:00

Over the past two years Heavenly Father has been trying to teach me patience. I felt I was doing an ok job but realized today that I'm far from.
*I realize this whole blog may sound completely random. I'm sorry about that.
I know that every single trial in our life only makes us stronger. I believe that the trial I am facing now is here specifically to help me become patient. The hard part about everything is that even when I learn patience and learn to wait that doesn't mean that it's going to be the ending I expect. It could be complete opposite of what I want. In that case does being patient really help? I'm worried that if I'm patient and wait all I'm doing is waiting for something crappy to happen. Will I then continue to be patient? Or will I still think that patience brings me nothing?
Thoughts...

What a hottie

2010-07-20T21:09:00.000-07:00

I was just scrolling through m blog to get to the comments when I whizzed by all the pictures of my husband.

I just wanted to let everyone know that I think he is such a hottie. Sometimes, especially lately, his long hair drives me crazy (sometimes it crazy) but with long hair, short hair, blond hair, and even when he gets to no hair he will always be the sexiest man I've ever seen.

That is all.

Trip and Graduation

2010-07-19T20:06:00.000-07:00

As you all know Michael and I have been very busy with the Pioneer trek, visiting his mission, and graduation. I just thought you would like to see some pictures.

Pioneer Trek:

All those kids that you see were are daughters and sons. Ok, not every single kid you see but all the ones you see carrying a handcart with a sand color flag.

Graduation (pictures in reverse):

After graduation...sorry I look like a stoner.

This was right after they were official graduates.

These are all of Michael receiving his certificate and giving his speech as a salutatorian.

This is in Michael's mission. He has a picture of him at this sign with his companion and a ward mission leader. The sign has changed but it still was in the middle of no where.

This is at the Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo. We stayed at my childhood best friend's place. It was so great to get to know her fiance and I'm so glad Michael got to finally meet her. Anyway, so this picture is right outside the bathrooms.

There's Brittani. I'm sorry the picture isn't better.

This is the woman's restroom. In the men's they pee into a waterfall. I have a picture but it just looks like rocks.

In Oxnard. This was a part of Michael's mission he wasn't allowed to step foot on.

We had a lot of fun and we lost a lot of sleep. Now he is gone living with his parents for about a month. I'm excited to have the time away but I miss him already.
I'm exhausted right now from vacation and working hard. So I really need to get off the computer now.

I'm back

2010-07-14T23:27:00.000-07:00

Hello!
It has been one crazy week and now I'm just tired, stressed out, and I have a headache. But I am back from one fun week.
I'm too tired tonight to give great details but I will tell you:
The trek was one of the most amazing and spiritual experiences I've had in a long time. It was physically hard and taught me a lot about my pioneer ancestors. I now have a better love and understanding for them and I know I would of not been able to gain that understanding with out that wonderful experience.
Michael's mission was great. I kind of felt like a celebrity when we would talk to people. It was so wonderful to meet all the people that Michael had talked so much about. It was also great to be reminded of how great of a missionary Michael was.
Now Mom and Dad Hardy are here playing Beatles Rock Band. (You Hardys should see Mom rock out as she plays the bass.) Tomorrow we will go to Michael's graduation. FYI, Michael is Salutatorian and will being giving a speech at graduation. I'm so proud. :) I'm trying not to be grumpy (not working very well because I'm so tired) and soak in every last moment because Michael leaves on Saturday for one whole month. There is a possibility that he will come back for an interview...more about that later. I like to keep you in a little suspense.

Where did I go?

2010-07-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

Hello there people who love me so much that you can't stand to not read every word I have to write. I have been totally absent and I will continue to be.
I'm going on the Pioneer trek on Thursday. We get back from the trek on Saturday. We will then go home, take a shower, grab our already packed bags and head down to Southern California to visit Michael's mission.
Whew....I'm tired just talking about it. Be looking for pictures.

We did it!

2010-06-21T19:27:00.000-07:00

Well, it came sooner than I thought it would.
It was hard work.
It was a lot of late nights and early mornings.
It was a lot of no sleep.
It was a lot of penny pinching.
It was a lot of miracles.
It was a lot of stress.
It was unbelievably crazy.
It was some tense moments.
It was "I need a break before I go insane."
It was "Man I miss my husband. I haven't seen him in about a week."
It was some weeks without anything in the fridge to eat.
It was date night=us eating whatever was laying around+what's on TV because we don't really have the energy to watch a movie.
It was me working a lot. A whole heck of a lot.
It was some skimpy Christmases.
It was a lot of prayer.
It was a lot guidance.
It was exactly what we needed to go through in order to learn what we have learned.
It was an experience I'm already excited to tell my kids about it.
It was the hardest thing I have ever done.
BUT WE ARE DONE!!!
We are no longer college students.
*SIGH
Michael and I are quite the team. Between me working my buns off at work and him working his buns off at school we managed to be the busiest couple of all time. Plus, we managed to stay a couple.
I'm really proud of Michael and what he has accomplished. He has produced some really good work and he worked really hard to get it. I know this is only the beginning of a whole new stage in our lives but I'm excited to close one book and open a new one. How exciting it is to move through life together. To get over these challenges together and look back and be proud of what we have accomplished.

S.E.V.E.N days away

2010-06-16T23:02:00.000-07:00

Hello there everyone. I just thought I would take these few moments to brag about the fact that there is only seven days, well six now that the day is almost over, until Michael is done with school. It's scary because he doesn't have a job yet at the same time so exciting to start this new chapter in our lives. I have never not been a student before and the only time Michael has not been a student he was protected by a special bubble because he was on a mission. We now will have to start being grown ups by having REAL jobs, which I'm already working really hard for that, and we "get the opportunity" to start paying back student loans. I will have you know that you don't think about those loans while you are in school because you don't really realize that the end of school actually comes. But I'm not focusing on the bad, I'm focusing on the fact that we are ALMOST there. Everyone hold there breath because you probably will be able to make it until midnight next Wednesday. *do not actually hold your breath. You will die. Michael and Luanne will not be held responsible for any blue, purple, or red faces (including death).

Just so busy

2010-06-07T21:48:00.001-07:00

Hello blog followers. Lately I've been SOOOO busy.
As most know I'm working 2-4 jobs; depending on how you look at it. So I just thought you might be interested in what I've been up too! Go check out my other blog:

http://luannedinnerfortwo.blogspot.com/

I'm so proud

2010-06-01T22:33:00.000-07:00

My mom is a proud owner of a Temple Recommend!

Getting Ready

2010-06-01T15:42:00.001-07:00

Today is Tuesday; making tomorrow Wednesday. On Wednesday I leave to Pocatello! Now for all of you faithful readers who live in Poky/IF don't get too excited.

One of my best friends from High School is getting married (Go Chels). I will be making her wedding cake. I have just a little over 24 hours to make her cake. I then will go to the wedding...then go home. So, I won't be there for that long. While I am still here in Cali I have to make sure to cross my T's and dot my I's because when I get back I have to dive right into a 150 person memorial service that I am catering. Oh and somewhere between all that I am going to WICKED!! (The word wicked is so much more exciting to read if you pause right before it and imagine the first few chords of Wicked in your head.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fplGR59YHHs&feature=PlayList&p=12F42A58A33708DB&playnext_from=PL&index=0&playnext=1

That is all. I hope you have a great day and be waiting for pictures.

What a GREAT day

2010-05-28T17:09:00.000-07:00

Today was a great day. It started out by deciding that I needed to take a day off at my personal assistant job. I realized that my house was a complete disaster and I needed to clean it. Knowing that I wouldn't have a dirty house anymore started me off in the right direction.

Work at Panera was pretty easy. I just worked my little buns off, even through my break, so that I could get off early. I ended up getting off only a half hour early but it was worth it.

After work Michael and I headed to Target to get a new vacuum. We have been married for 3 1/2 years and in that time we have owned 3 vacuums: the same one twice. We have always gone cheap and we have paid the price. So, while we were at Target we took the time to look at the vacuums and weigh them out for what was best. We decided on a Bissel something something. IT IS AWESOME!! I just vacuumed with it and it picked up all the cat hair, even on the couches. It has this attachment that acts as a little hand held, powerful vacuum. SO AWESOME!!! Also, while we were at Target we got the 5th season of The Office. We don't own 1-4 but some friends of ours let us borrow them and I really wanted to start season 5. It was on sale too. Double awesome.

After Michael left for school I cleaned the whole house. It feel so nice to be in a clean, vacuumed (our other vacuum has been broken for longer than I want to admit I've gone with out vacuuming) home.

During my cleaning I was called by a gentleman that I am catering a party for. (This is my most exciting news) I've been in contact with this lady from my ward over the last couple of days talking about a memorial service for this man who was a "patron of the arts." The party is going to be about 150 people. I made up a mock menu and sent a quote last night. Today the conversation was about vamping up the menu to meet more of this guys style. I think that everyone here pretty much knows my passion and love for food. I truly believe that food brings people together better than anything else. So between my passion for food and the coordinator's stories of this gentleman we were able to create a wonderful menu. I'm excited for this event. I can't wait to get started.

I am now going to end this awesome day by taking a shower and relaxing while watching Season 5 of The Office. I love good days.

A letter to laundry day

2010-05-24T20:16:00.000-07:00

Dear Laundry Day,

I just have some things that I've been thinking about lately and I feel it's time to get them off my chest.

I don't like you. You always sneak up on me, I never have time for you, and I am pretty sure you make clothes appear out of thin air because there is no way Michael and I wear that many clothes. You always take at least one full day but usually manage to make it two. You make me separate stinky clothes into piles all over my house and refuse to wash and dry them at a quicker speed. On top off all of this you mock me by making me fold the clothes and put them away. What is your deal? Why must you hate me?

Like I said, I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I have come up with a compromise. Would you be willing to fold the clothes and put them away? I think it would make you a little less annoying. Just let me know.

Thanks,
Luanne

Because 3 is just simply not enough

2010-05-19T16:43:00.000-07:00

I am crazy. I think something snapped and I started to realize that Michael's school loans are not only going to stop "paying" us but we also have to start paying them back. Because of this, I am now working three jobs:
1-Panera
2-Personal Chef for Jason
3-Piano Lessons

Obviously, though, this was not enough because I just decided to take on a whole new load. There is a woman in my ward who is working for a family a little bit like I am, except she doesn't cook. The mom in the family has just decided to start the raw veggie diet. If you are wondering what that is...well it's just what it sounds like. Anyway, so the mom needs someone to chop up veggies for her twice a week. So, I have "volunteered" my time in exchange for some extra cash. Looks like I will be able to save up for that Disney Cruise after all.

Almost there

2010-05-18T17:25:00.000-07:00

I just thought I would brag and let everyone know that Michael has only 5, count it F.I.V.E, weeks left of school. We will then be going on the trek mentioned in my last blog, then down to visit his mission.

Oh, and I finally got that promotion at Panera. I am officially a shift supervisor. Well, in a few weeks. :)

Just call me Ma

2010-05-14T19:04:00.000-07:00

I have some exciting news...
Have you ever heard of the Pioneer Trek? I hadn't... youth, ages 14-18 have the opportunity to spend the weekend in the forest pulling a hand cart and doing other pioneery stuff to have a better appreciation for the pioneers. The youth are split up into groups and make "families." And as we know every family needs a Ma and Pa, right? Well Michael and I are going to be a Ma and Pa. We are in charge of making sure the kids work hard and get the spiritual stuff. It is going to be such a great opportunity. I'm so excited.

Heather Isom

2010-05-10T18:57:00.000-07:00

I have this pretty awesome friend, Heather Isom. She and her husband have recently become really good friends of ours and I like to think that we both compliment each other very well. One GREAT thing Heather and I have in common is our love to cook and bake. The slight difference is Heather is a little bit more out going about it. Good for you, Heather. Anyway, she bakes and cooks a lot and then she posts the recipes and pictures of her yummy treats on her blog. So, you should all take advantage of this blog to get great recipes.

WARNING: You might drool on your keyboard.

I love to see the temple

2010-05-06T22:25:00.000-07:00

It has been almost 8 months since I have been to the temple. I understand that for most people it's perfectly normal to not make it to the temple that often. Most people have kids or live far away from a temple and it makes it really hard to get there. But I have no excuse. I live really close to the temple and have no kids. So, pretty much, my excuse is...nothing.

Every first Thursday of the month is my ward's temple night. Last Sunday a member from the bishopric announced ward temple night and I made a decision that I would go, no matter what. Don't be so proud of me, though. Tonight is Thursday. All day all I thought about was how I "had" to go to the temple. I was thinking of how tired I was and how I just wanted to sit at home and watch The Office. I even made a whole bunch of reasons of why I "can't" go because I was so busy. I even started to think, "I shouldn't go to the temple if I don't want to."

I started to think some more about the whole situation and realized that there is nothing that I had planned for tonight that is more important than the temple. I also realized that I would be able to stay awake no matter how tired I was and that Friday would be better if I just went. So, I hopped into the shower and left.

Oh man, I'm glad I did.

I was a little stressed because I left late and there was bad traffic. I arrived in barely enough time to get in there. The sweet temple worker slowly took my recommend and slowly scanned it. I was thinking, "Go FASTER!! I'm late." But right as he said, "Welcome to the the temple Sister Hardy" my world came to a screeching halt. I made one step into the temple and the spirit spilled over me and I was overwhelmed. To make it even better the sister that was welcoming people at the front door asked me if I would do one of her family names.

My session was awesome. I didn't realize how much stuff I needed to work out in my head and how much I needed to hear. I was able to stay wide awake and I learned so much.

I'm so glad I went.

P.S. Don't wear a watch while in the temple. You'll just keep looking at it and all it is, is a distraction.

People keep asking...

2010-05-03T12:01:00.000-07:00

..."So how's the new job."

Things are going well. It's nothing too exciting, yet. The first two days I had to help him finish this huge filing project he was doing. It was nice because we got a chance to sit and talk and get to know each other better. On Friday I was able to do menu planning for this coming week and grocery shopping for the weekend. I'm at that point when you start a new job and you think, "I will never be able to get all this." So I have to remind myself that I will be able to get it all and it will be fine.

Tonight I cook my actual first meal. I'm making quinoa with a roasted red pepper sauce and salmon. I haven't cooked salmon in a long time so I'm a little nervous about that but I know it will all come back to me.

Talk to you again soon bloggers.

And it begins

2010-04-25T20:52:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow I start my new job. With this job and my job at Panera I will be working about 60 hrs/ week. I'm a little worried; not because of the 60/hrs but because of my house cleaning. Already I have a hard time keeping up with house work. It's really hard to have a full time job plus cleaning the house. I want to let you know, at this point, that Michael does house work as well. I don't even have to ask him, he just does it; but one person can't do it all.

As I was thinking about my worries today I decided the best option would be to make a schedule of what days I will be doing what. I started out by writing down everything that needed to get done and how many times a week that needed to get done. I then mapped out my days so I know exactly when to do what things. I feel better.

On another good note, they had strawberries at the dollar store last time I went so Michael and I just ate a really good Luanne specialty for dessert. Mmmmm...

There has been a slight change

2010-04-20T17:55:00.001-07:00

Fellow blog stockers...hello.
So, remember that post that I just posted about my awesome new second job, well it's not going to work. Don't worry there is even better news coming. It turns out I was almost involved in this huge craigslist scam. These people send you a fake check for $3000. They then tell you to send $2300 of it to a company that they always use so that you can buy your computer. The check than bounces in your account and you are out $2300 and the scammers come out big. Long story short, the $3000 is still in my bank and I'm not sending anyone anything. I know that in about a week that $3000 check I deposited will show up as no good and will taken out of my account. So, I'm not spending it, it will just sit there and wait to be taken out. The guy who is scamming me has been turned in and I'm left feeling like an idiot. But, in my defense, it sounded totally ligit.
On the so awesome side, I got a job as a personal chef!! Michael works for this really nice/rich family every once in a while. The wife is the bread...I mean major bread...winner and he is a stay at home dad. They have a nanny and a house cleaner. So, for 20 hrs. a week I'm going to do grocery shopping, some reading to his son, some laundry, light cleaning, and...THE BEST PART...I will cook dinner for them every night. If after three months I can commit to a year than I will become full time. So, I'm going to work a little less at Panera so I can do this job as well (something I really really want to do) and I will be making so much extra money. Enough that we will be able to pay rent and have money for groceries, and for going to the movies, and other fun things.
Even though I thought that I had a second job on Sunday I still decided to fast for some help. I have also been praying every night, with all my heart, and I am so blessed to know that Heavenly Father has heard my prayers. He not only gave me this job for the extra money but he gave it to me because he knows it is something I enjoy. I consider that the icing on the cake. I'm so grateful that my Heavenly Father knows the bigger plan.

Job #2

2010-04-19T17:27:00.000-07:00

Well it's official, I was able to get a second job. I will be working for SF Supply Co. as a data entry...person. I get to work from home and choose my own hours. :) I can work as often as I want or as little as I want. I plan on working two hours before Panera and two hours after; that way I can get in four hours a day (20/week.) With that I will be able to make enough money a month to pay rent!! So now we don't have to use student loans to pay rent AND if Michael doesn't find a job right away, chances are small, than it's ok! Hopefully this works out the way I plan on it. Please keep us in your prayers and be excited.

P.S I'm sorry that I have been absent. It's just that Michael is home during the evenings now so I tend to spend more time with him than with the computer. Also, things are starting to look up *knock on wood* so I don't need to vent as much. But no need to fear I will continue to run into hard times and continue to have revalations. So stay tuned.

Oh to be a cat

2010-04-08T21:19:00.000-07:00

Today I was over at a friends house and while I was there I was observing her cat.

My friend had to hop in the shower and during that time the cat and I started to have some fun. She decided she wanted to play a game of fetch with her mouse. She would drop the mouse in front of me and wait "patiently" for me to throw it. She would then do some awesome flip or dramatic somersault to get the mouse and would bring it back to do it all over again. We played for a long time together and even though it was funny I had other things to take care of so I nicely told her that I couldn't play anymore. After a minute she understood that I wasn't going to throw the mouse so she took it on herself to play some fetch. She would take the mouse and throw it way up in the air. She was doing the same somersaults and flips and was just as content playing by herself. I would watch her and I realized she loved to play with that mouse whether I was there or not. Even though she liked that I was playing with her she didn't need me there to enjoy herself.

It made me start to look at my life and how I entertain myself. The majority of the time I am not very good at entertaining myself. I sit bored staring at the computer or TV. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy/need that time to let my brain turn to mush but after a while I get pretty bored. I don't have any motivation to get up and do anything and I don't really want to. The majority of the time I just sit there throwing a pity party that I'm by myself.

Today, though, I realized that I just need to learn how to play fetch with myself. Even though it is fun to play fetch with others you can do it by yourself and have just as much fun. It's amazing what you can learn from a cat.

The A's Game

2010-04-08T21:14:00.000-07:00

I won some A's tickets at work. I did have to go with my boss and some other co workers but I got to bring my husband and it was a lot of fun.

To start off it was dollar day at A's stadium. So you could buy up to 10 hotdogs for only $1 each. Awesome. We were able to get sodas, hotdogs, some cotton candy, some ice cream, and give a bum some cash! It was really exciting. The excitement reached a new level when a foul ball came flying our way and Michael caught it! He got to join the foul ball club for a chance to win tickets. He gave the ball to a little girl sitting in front of us. It was her first A's game and she was really excited to be there. Then, to top our sundae off with a cherry the A's ACTUALLY won in the bottom of the 9th. So it was really intensely awesome when they made that final run. It was so. much. fun.

Easter Day

2010-04-06T17:42:00.000-07:00

I know I'm a little late but better late than never, right?

Easter was good for us. Since it was General Conference (they should do that every year) we woke up later than usual, ate some Easter candy, and then went to our friend's, Chris and Masha's (from here on out I will be calling them Crasha; it's what Michael and I call them. It's shorter) house. They just bought a new home and moved in a week ago but they were still gracious enough to have people over. Every 6 months Crasha pulls out their deep fryer and make freshly made doughnuts and the best. chips. ever. All just so we can sit in front of their TV and watch conference. This time 'round was no different than any other time. We also had these awesome, three ingredients peanut butter cookies. The cookies were brought by the other couple there, Yoko and Levi. We have not thought of a quicker way to say their name yet.

Since Crasha has a Tivo we slowly settled in and watched the first session of conference. During the first session Crasha was preparing a ham dinner. So, between sessions we ate it and it was awesome! We even got to partake in Masha's special Easter bread. She is from Ukraine so we get to have the benefits of learning about her cultural and traditions. One of these traditions is this awesome Easter bread. It's a sweet bread with raisins usually topped with a glaze; so good.

After ham we all mosied our way back into the living room to watch the second session. I did fall asleep for part of it but woke up just in time to hear my favorite talk of the session. I also got to cuddle with Crasha's cat, Coco; that was nice.

After the second session we spent about four and a half hours talking and laughing. It was great fun. But everyone, but Michael, had work the next day so we had to eventually scrape ourselves off the couch and go home.

At home I dove into my Easter candy and then fell into a candy coma. It was fantastic. Below are pictures of what the Easter bunny brought.

*Just in case you were wondering: the thing about Easter Sunday that helped me move forward was watching conference.

Memories

2010-04-03T19:22:00.002-07:00

Today I was driving home from work when I started to think about my dad. I've been thinking about him a lot lately; I really miss him. I was remembering when he used to take me out on daddy/daughter dates. He also used to take me hiking, fishing, and camping. He always tried so hard to let me know that he loved me.

It's cool that when I think about my dad those are the memories that come to mind. I don't think about the times I was in trouble. I don't remember all the fights we got in or any time he embarrassed me. I just remember him loving me and teaching me. Even when he didn't realize he was teaching me he was. I want him to know that.

*For those that aren't sure, my dad is not dead or anything. We just don't see much of each other anymore.

It's Miley!

2010-04-01T15:58:00.000-07:00

I was watching TV the other day when I saw the ad for the new make-me-want-to-throw-up chick flicks. It has Miley Cyrus in it with some guy. The movie is about a girl who is forced to move to her dad's house for the summer. He, of course, lives on the beach and she, of course, meets a dude. The ad shows their love exploding on the screen and if you watch it too much you might actually throw up.

While I was watching this ad I was reminded of the beginning of Michael and I's relationship. We were never too throw upee but it still wasn't pretty. We would hold hands, snuggle, kiss, look into each other's eyes, and all that jazz. We were slowly trying to get to know each other and learn the best things about each other so we could fall in love and get married. Well, it worked. We managed to show our best qualities to each other and "trick" one another into locking the other one in for eternity.

Now that we have been with each other for a while we no longer hold hands, snuggle, look into each other's eyes, and I can honestly say I can't remember the last time we actually kissed. **We do these things at proper times but it's not all the time. It's very very rarely We do stuff that is so much better.

Instead, we can look at each other and know exactly what the other one is thinking. When we really want to piss off the other person we know exactly what button to push. Then, when it's gone too far we know exactly how to bring it back to home base. We also know how to avoid those fights all together. We make each other laugh just by making silly faces. We giggle about nothing all day. I know that Michael is showing me affection by putting his stinky feet all over me. He also shows this kind of special affection when he knows my day has been awful. We can tell each other our deepest, "darkest" secrets in confidence. We can sit in the same room all day and not say a word to each other but it doesn't matter. Even though we were in love back in the day, I know that we are more in love now than we have ever been. It's crazy to think that we will be even more in love one day because that seems simply impossible.

Ugh...school

2010-03-30T20:19:00.000-07:00

I hate student loans. Correction, I hate Sallie Mae. When I went to culinary school I got all of my loans through Sallie Mae. Some of them were federal loans and most of them were private loans. My federal loans are currently all bundled together under a blanket with my loans from ISU patiently waiting for next September when repayment starts. My private loans, on the other hand, are making me crazy.

Today I accidentally left my phone at home. Usually, I take my phone with me to work and turn it off when I am working. But today it was at home. When I got home I had seven, S.E.V.E.N, missed calls all from Sallie Mae. They have been harassing me over the past month because my private loans are $1800 past due. I know you are thinking, "Wow Luanne that is so many months of not paying your loans." No, no, only two. You see Sallie Mae thinks that I can afford $700/month payments. They won't work with me on refinancing and won't budge on anything. I have tried forbearing my loans in the past but can't do it now. Pretty much I'm screwed. Today I dealt with Sallie Mae for a while and was so upset by the end. I decided to take a shower to help cool me off.

In my shower I thought about a lot of stuff. I want to share.

The original plan:
When Michael and I got married in Dec. '06 we decided we would have Michael go to one more year of schooling at ISU and start having babies! We would then move to Cali in Aug..ish '08 so he could start school for his MGD.

What actually happened:
We came to Emeryville to check out Michael's school in July '07. We decided, since we were in the neighborhood, we would check out my school. They recommended me to start school Oct. of that same year. After much thought and prayer we decided to put off the baby thing until Michael got a job after school, we packed up all our possessions, and moved away from our families and the only place we've ever really known to expensive California. I started school right away and Michael soon followed.

Moving to California when we did was the best thing that has ever happened to us. Living in Idaho for another year would have been a waste of time and money at ISU. We needed to move away from family. We needed to get to know each other better and learn to trust each other before we start a family. We needed to meet the people we have met. We needed to get to know people that have given Michael so much advice about applying in the industry. And the biggest thing is I NEEDED to finish school. I can't emphasize enough how much I needed to finish school. I know it was important, no matter what I went to school for, and I wouldn't of done it if we had a baby.

So you see. Us going to Cali when we did and me going to school were essential in our lives. So, in my mind, it's only logical that going to the CCA was a good step in my path. I know that it wasn't accident that we decided to visit my school while we were down here visiting.

Drawing these two points together:
I know Heavenly Father creates good times and trials in our lives. I know that through trials we grow and become better. But why did I go to a school that I can't and never will be able to afford? I'm 22 and Michael is 25 and we are inches away from screwing up our credit. I know that in 10 years from know I will remember this blog and my shower today and laugh because this trial I am going through right now will make a lot of sense. But it's hard right now.

I do want to end by saying that because I went to school I will be blessed for the rest of my life. Heavenly Father knows what he is doing and will take care of me and my family because Michael and I listened to the spirit. I can't deny that.

I forget what number I'm on.

2010-03-28T20:31:00.000-07:00

Today was Easter Sunday in our ward. I'm really disappointed because I was so distracted with other things that I couldn't even concentrate on anything. But the one thing I was able to concentrate on was Primary. This month in Primary we are learning the song Follow the Prophet. We have learned Adam, Daniel, and a made up verse of Joseph Smith.

Joseph Smith, the prophet, he's a man we love.
With of faith undaunted, prayed to God above.
When the heavens opened God showed him the way.
To restore the gospel in the latter day.

Today we learned the made up verse of President Monson.

Thomas Spencer Monson
Prophet of our day.
We must always listen
to what he has to say.
He warns us of evil
Tells us what is right.
Tells us to serve others.
Serve with all your might.

My idea in learning the verse was as follows:
I had 12 ties. Each tie represented an apostle. So if the kids sang the other songs well they became an apostle. On the back of each tie was a line of the verse. Each apostle taught us that line and we learned the verse.

I love ideas like this. The kids are involved and loving it. That's all I ask for.

#17 Jury Duty

2010-03-26T07:49:00.000-07:00

If anyone has talked to me or heard from me in the last month you would know that I was a member of a jury. You could probably take it one step further and say that I love it. I just wanted to share my experience; mostly because it's really weighing on my mind.

I reacted how anyone does when I opened the mail box and saw an envelope marked "jury summons." I did what every good American should do, though, and I went Wednesday March 3rd. I had to report to the courthouse in Hayward. For those who are not Bay Area savvy, Hayward is about 20 minutes from where I live. I reported to a very large room with several hundred other bay areaens. After the courthouse workers got settled they started by showing us a really cheesy movie about how awesome serving on a jury was. I rolled my eyes and went back to my crosswords.

Not too long after the movie the workers called their first group of 90 people; I was part of that group. We were to go downstairs and report to Dept. 511. In Dept. 511 the judge prepped us on what the case was about and we were instructed to fill out a questionnaire and meet back on Monday, the 11th.

Monday, the 11th was a long day. They questioned almost all 90 people, the same questions bare in mind, before the jury was actually selected. Needless to say we were all caught off gaurd when the clerk swore in the new jury.

The case was about the killing, beating to death, of a three year old little girl. Through testimony we heard the injuries she had and the possible ways they could have happened. We learned about bruising, broken bones, pain, CPR, medical response, and old injuries compared to new. We saw pictures both "good" and bad. We heard a neighbor who couldn't speak English and kept contradicting herself. We heard from a 9 year old witness who was only 4 when it happened. Through all this we heard the DA give her case and we heard the defense plant reasonable doubt in our minds. This was all good and we pulled the majority of our decision from the above witnesses. The hardest part was when the mother of this little girl and the boyfriend/defendant gave their testimonies. Their testimonies of what happened the week she died were different. Two totally different stories. We spent the majority of our time in deliberation deciding what part of their testimonies was true and what part was a lie. We had to go back and listen to several testimonies. We debated, debated, debated. I sat open minded and to tell you the truth I was almost one of the last ones to agree with the majority.

Yesterday was so hard. I think it's when I realized that someone wasn't going to come in and say, "Good job guys. This was just a test. This whole situation was made up." It's when I realized that a little girl really did get beat to death. It's when I realized the sad little life she was living and understood why Heavenly Father felt she was better off with him. It's also when I realized that my decision might or might not put a man in jail for the rest of his life. No matter what, though, I had to make that decision. We decided on guilty. It was undeniable and we all sat in silence for a good minute after we made that decision.

When we went back into the courtroom to read the verdict my emotions were high. There are three very distinct things that will be etched into my mind forever.
1-Walking in and seeing the mother with here parents on either side. Her head was down and she looked like she was praying.
2-The defendant looked as if he was holding his breath.
3-When the clerk was reading the verdict; the defendant dropped his head and his attorney started to comfort him.
We then had to each state that we agreed with the verdict. I remember at one point the sweet prosecuting attorney saw my tears. She looked at me with understanding and I could tell she was saying it would all be ok. I feel good about the decision.

I'm so glad I met the people I did. I'm really sad that I'm not going to be spending any more time with a group of people that I became so close to.

#16 And the verdict is...

2010-03-23T22:12:00.001-07:00

Coming! We started deliberation today and it is so exciting! I FINALLY get to talk about this case that has been driving me crazy. The twelve of us are able to sit down and have a good discussion about things that seem minimal but are really super important to the case. I highly recommend people electing themselves to be on a jury if they are ever called for selection because it is an awesome experience.
I can't wait to tell you more about the case....sort of.

#15: I'm not lying

2010-03-22T20:19:00.000-07:00

A while ago, around Christmas, Michael and I were looking for dollar stocking stuffers. We felt the best place to start would be Target. They have those AWESOME dollar bins and we figured we would be able to find a lot. I believe, though, Heavenly Father really needed us to give us a much needed blessing so Target ended up not being everything we wanted. While we were leaving I remembered seeing a 99 cent store kind of close to Target so I directed us that way. We figured that we would be able to find some funky stuff and it would be silly, we had no idea what we would really find. I can't exaggerate enough how awesome this 99 cent store is. There is a produce area, a freezer aisle. It has every cleaning supply you could ever need. Michael has bought several ties there as well. Long story short, it is now our new grocery store. There are only two things I can't buy there; milk and cereal.
Today we went grocery shopping and I decided I would "prove" to you how awesome this place actually is.
Notice my new cute belt. That is an 8 pack of eggs, perfect amount, and name brand air freshener.
Here you will find a bag of Kiwis and name brand brownies. Also in this picture is a bag of P.Nuttles. These are butter toffee peanuts and they are so awesome.
Here is all of our groceries, minus some duplicates. A grocery list that would of ended up being about $75 was only $40!
I do have to say, today was a good day.