Taking a Deep Breath...and Here We Go!

Wow, what a crazy last couple of weeks it's been! But crazy in the very best way. Before I really get y'all up to date though, we must have a moment of silence for Rue McClanahan...

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Blanche was my favorite Golden Girl and I just loved her spirit. It's so bizarre watching someone your whole life on TV and then they pass away. It makes me feel old when I'm still so young.

So Jeff's party was great! I was worried when, the day before, the weather called for rain. I knew it was supposed to be a little chilly but I was really, really hoping it didn't rain. Apparently God likes Jeff because it stayed nice through the party and only sprinkled a little at the very end when everyone was leaving. Then it got nice again while we cleaned up. :) Around 40 friends and family came to congratulate Jeff which just goes to show what kind of a person he is. I'm so proud of him and I feel extremely fortunate to be able to have him in my life. I couldn't have a secret party for him, but I got to keep the western theme a secret which was fun. I realized after the fact, though, that I didn't get a lot of close up pictures or a picture of the pinata "pre-bashing". Oh well, it was little hectic. Without further, ado, here are some pictures & a descriptions of the craftiness I
accomplished.

These are the tables I decorated with hay bales, cow print and bandana tableclothes, boot vases, etc.

So right after the party I hurried home to get packed and then it was off to New York!! We had a blast. I'm posting a bunch of pictures to Facebook but I'll put a couple here to give you an inkling of the funness. We saw Avenue Q, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Statue of Liberty, went to the top of the Rockefeller Center, ate at Carnagie Deli, Lombardi's, and Angelo's, and last but certainly not least, went to the Bon Jovi concert at the new Meadowlands stadium. All of that in 4 Days! You can see why I was totally exhausted by the time we left. But it was all worth it.

The Statue of Liberty

The Bon Jovi Concert

The New Meadowlands Stadium

Times Square

The Carnegie Deli Deliciousness

Empire State Building

Central Park

After NYC we headed to Michigan to visit some friends from Jeff's mission. I realize now I never got pictures of the Banners who we stayed with. They were super sweet and have an amazing family. The weather was perfect the whole time we were there too. I guess the end of May is usually a little chillier than it was when we were there so I count myself lucky. Michigan was gorgeous! The Banners have the Flat River in their backyard and there were 40 lakes in that county alone! We got to have a nice lunch by lake Wabasis then we played Frisbee in the park. Jeff impressed me by shooting a video of him throwing it to me and then he caught it when I threw it back, all while recording. Of course my Frisbee throwing skills were less than impressive. A great relaxing birthday all in all. Here are a couple of pictures of Michigan just to give you an idea. If the weather was that nice all year round, I would move in a heartbeat. :)

The Back Deck of the Banners'

The Flat River

The Driveway to the Banners'

Then we flew home and I'm sure glad I took an extra day off of work. I was so worn out that it just felt good to sleep and get back to normal a little. After we were back I got really excited to work on more crafty projects. I'm feeling a little addicted and I really want to hone my crafty side. As I mentioned before I wanted to get a little table to put my new flowers on. So I went to the DI and found the perfect little nightstand. I've gotten paint and new knobs for cheap and I'm ready to get started. Hopefully I can do a little this weekend down at my parents'. I'm not sure how my apartment managers would feel about me spray painting in the parking lot. hee hee... I have all kinds of ideas but I know I need to pace myself and work on it a step at a time even if it doesn't get completely finished in one weekend. I'm pulling inspiration from about 3 different craft blogs and I'll definitely be linking the tutorials along with before and after pictures. Keep your fingers crossed for me that it all works out!!

Good Thing I Like Pumpkin Pie!

Alright so I'm a little bit of a cheater, cheater...well you know the drill. Let me explain. As you may have seen in a previous post, for Valentines Day Jeff gave me this beautiful pink gerbera daisy plant with a cute little smart ass comment about the plant representing love and not letting it die. Of course I was thrilled! And of course it promptly died. I was completely crushed and everytime I looked at the dried up plant with the little smart ass card I felt a pang of guilt. (I couldn't bring myself to throw it away) I mean I LET LOVE DIE! I went to Walmart today to grab some markers and Ta Da! Right in front of the store is a whole rack of gerbera daisies including a couple that were the exact peachy-pink color as the one Jeff had given me. I wrestled with my conscience for a minute. Do I buy it since I loved the other one so much? I mean it was such a cute color and I have always loved gerbera daisies. Or do I not buy it because I already screwed up the last one & it's wrong to get a replacement? I did say in my previous post that it wouldn't be the same. I'll let you take a wild guess what happened. Yep, I bought it. I took it home and transplanted it right away. Then I put the smart ass card back in. (insert your face palm/slow head shake here) Does it make me a bad girlfriend? Probably. But before you bang the gavel on my guilt, let me give my justification. #1-A big reason why I loved that plant so much was because it was a gift from Jeff. So when I see it, I think of him. Even though it's not the exact plant he gave me, it's like a reminder of that day. #1-A. The card is a part of that so it seems almost wrong to have the plant without his funnyness nearby. #2-It's a dang cute plant! #3-I screw things up all of the time but I'm willing to put in some effort to fix them. So that can count for love too right?

I can't explain how excited I am for Jeff's party! My mom is making a cake and I will have lots of pictures to show of the crafty stuff I did for it. Y'all will be so proud! My next crafty project, besides crocheting a blanket for my sister's baby, will be to scour through my new fave crafty blogs (see buttons on the left) and find a fun way to decorate the flower pot for my new plant. I figure I'll browse thrift stores and try to find some pot that can be turned cute along with a little stand of some sort to put it on. Then I'll try to follow the Shabby to Chic girls' example and transform them into a great display piece. Of course that won't happen until after vacation, but stay tuned because I'm commited to making sure it happens. If I'm going to go through all the trouble to revive love, I am definitely going to have it on display!

Speaking of vacation, I'm so excited!! Kjcheristy was so nice to say she would camp out at my place while I'm gone. I don't have any more $50 stereos for anyone to take, but I do have a $10 alarm clock that I'm sure someone has their eye on. I lured KJ in with Dr. G and Lifetime Movie Network shows and now she's stuck guarding my "valuables". Ha ha! Off to NYC I go!

One Good Lookin' Heifer!

For the love of RFDTV! I mean it's Rural America's Most Important Network dontcha know? I've discovered that I love watching RFDTV when I go to lunch. That's when they have the cattle auctions. My brain shuts off for an hour and I watch cows run around while the guy goes "huminanuminahumina 500! huminanuminahumnia 5 and a quarter! Got to go folks! huminanuminahuminahumina sold to 900 for 5 and a quarter!" Then it's on to the next one. It caught me off guard a little though when they moved on and the auctioneer blurts out "Whoa, that's one good lookin' heifer!" I mean if I had a nickel for everytime I heard that, I'd be a rich gal!

I've been reading the craft blogs again and I've posted a couple more buttons on the left of the ones I like. There are some really clever people out there that really make me want to do stuff. I'm just hoping I can make all of the stuff for the party look as cute as it is in my mind. A week and a half and that's it!! Have I mentioned how amazing my boyfriend is? I know it gets annoying, but I'm just extra proud.

All those I work with will be happy to hear I just got a reminder from my phone to take home the hamburger dish. It will finally happen folks. How sick is it that I have to put a reminder in my phone to remember the simplest things. And Jeff wonders why I'm glued to my Blackberry so much. I'm looking for the reminders to breathe!

One down, many more to go

My phone is driving me crazy today. It's extra slow right now for some reason. That's completely beside any point I was going to make, but it was on my mind. So there.

Me and Nostacia getting our boogie on

The Michael Jackson concert was way fun. I have to admit there were concerns with how smoothly everything would come together. Tensions were high and although the afternoon show went well, there was still room for improvement. The evening show rocked though! There were imperfections here and there as always, but the message was delivered and I heard nothing but great feedback from audience members. Plus, the second show SOLD OUT! That's the best part. It's so odd to think that I've been spending so much time doing something that's done. It's crazy how that works.

Some of my fave TPS chickadees (missed you KJ!!!)

TPS OG's

Jamie made it up to see the show! It was so good to see her and her cuteness. I miss her and Heather and Andrea but THAT'S IT!

Not that anyone cares to see, but I really liked how my nails got done. They coordinated with my disco costume. You can't see them from on stage, but I think they help me sing better anyway. :) (P.S. Don't mind my feet being all red. They were by the space heater)

I don't have time for activity withdrawl though. Next up we've got Jeff's party!! I'm really quite excited for that. I sent out the official invitations today and already there are 9 people who RSVP'd. I know of several more who will definitely be there too so I think there will be a great turn out. I'll for sure put pictures up of that. I can't believe it's in 2 weeks! I'm so proud of my man.
This Saturday we're going to a Real Salt Lake game with my parents. It will be my first of the season and I'm way excited to get to wear some of my kit!

Sidenote: Work can be entertaining. I just listened to a nice heated discussion between two coworkers (we'll call them B & D). I'm not positive entirely what it was about but you can cut the air with a knife right now. I'm just glad it didn't have to do with me...as far as I know. lol

Gettin' Crafty Wit It

I am genuinely starting to worry myself. I have a scarily large amount of crafty projects I've taken on lately which is totally not like me. I've always been the person who tries to scrapbook and ends up making something similiar to a kindergarten project. You know, popsicle sticks, cotton balls, and the like. But here I am borrowing stamps from Denise, scrapbook stuff from Kjcheristy, and whipping out the ol' glue gun. It kills me that I have to keep so much of what I'm doing a secret, but by the end of the month I'll have all kinds of fun pictures. Then all of this crafty talk will start making sense.

What's next on my crafterrific plate you ask? Well, I'm going to work on converting my pleather leggings into some sweet-hot bell bottoms. I have a picture in my mind of how to do it so cross your fingers that it works. If it doesn't, at least we'll all have something to laugh about right? Right! The MJ show is THIS SATURDAY so I've got to get a-creatin'! If the BB's work out the way I have them pictured, I'll have the greatest shiny gold and black disco action going on. Way, way, WAY too exciting. Which reminds me...I need to go to Joann's....ASAP. Can you tell I'm excited?

Have I mentioned I have the best boyfriend? Well I do. Jeff is so patient with all of this show stuff I keep doing. I feel like I've totally ditched out on him to stuff like practice and sleep, but somehow he's understanding. And on top of that, he makes awesome food for me AND makes sure I'm well supplied with Cherry Coke. I'm super spoiled. I don't know how he does it, but I sure appreciate it. Now if I can just get him to stop giving me air horn heart attacks when I come over, I'll be all set!

Speaking of appreciation, I also have the best friends ever. I've been thinking about that over the last week or so. I have my work friends who make me laugh all day even when I'm totally frustrated. (Frustration being just a feeling which is just a thought which can be changed in the mood elevator. I learned that today! And speaking of elevators, I have to say I echo Aerosmith's sentiments about love in them.) Then I have my voice friends who are the funniest, coolest chicks around. They are some of the greatest people I know and I'm just so lucky they've been brought into my life. And of course there are my other friends like KJ. She is the sweetest girl in the world! She's the only person I know who will buy me dinner and clean my house then tell ME thanks for being a good friend. She reminds me to show my appreciation and to smile through the hard times. I love all my friends!!

And last but not least, I love blogs! I finally have the blog sites for more friends and it's so much fun to keep up with what's going on in their lives. Good thing I made mine boring enough not many people want to read it....mwahahahahaaaaa.

Get Outta Town!

That's what I want to do...get outta town. I'm fairly freaked out after discovering my stereo missing from apartment last night with very little evidence to suggest what happened. The creepiest part is just knowing someone was in my apartment. I mean that should be a place I can feel safe. Having cars broken into is crazy enough, but then to have the place where you eat, sleep, and bathe violated is a whole new level of crazy. Can I just mention how much I hate people who want something for nothing. Who go through the trouble of hurting other people just to get a little tiny something for themselves? It makes me appreciate that I'm too broke to buy nice things. At least most of what I have is replaceable. I'm also thankful to have had Kjcheristy over to help me feel a little safer. If I had been alone I'm sure I would have had a major breakdown. I only had a little one though.

Moving on, the MJ show is a week away! HOLY MOSES! I don't feel even close to as prepared as I would like right now. I know it'll all come together though. I can't wait to disco down with my bad self!

Ohhh Tough Love Couples. Man I love it. I noticed some not so great reviews in the newspapers today. The writers seemed to believe it was all very contrived and that the point of the show is to humiliate. I can't help but think that they have either been fortunate enough not to encounter these toxic types of couples (highly unlikely) or they have had their own experiences that they don't want to face head on. What I like about the show is that there is no sugar coating. Steve Ward isn't unecessarily cruel either though. He says it like it is which far too few people do these days. When people say they are "real" what they usually mean is that they are dramatic and negative. It's lame. These couples get called on all of that BS and are forced to take a good hard look at themselves. As it is, I think the majority of the couples are not compatible as lifetime companions. Why put yourself in a position where you are stressed, exhausted, and on-edge for the rest of your life? It makes no sense to me. Take, for example, the two that he "broke up" this last week. Neither one has any respect for the other. They've both cheated on each other repeatedly and completely resent each other. It's a recipe for a disaster and I don't see how what they've done to their relationship can possibly be mended. More accurately, I don't see a desire in either one to stop thinking about themselves long enough to give it an honest attempt. Yet they cling to the comfort of having someone there even if that person makes them miserable. Just like the single girls cling to their familiar habits and lifestyles despite their unhappiness. I look forward every week to seeing some sense get knocked into some of these people. I'm not a huge fan of contrived drama, but I am a huge fan of watching selfish, rude people get knocked down a peg or two. So go Tough Love Couples...I am a supporter for life!

Word to your mother...peace out.

No...I do NOT want to restart my computer now!

I can only click "Restart Later" so many times before it makes me want to scream. I would just restart to get it over with, but it takes literally 20 minutes to restart on a good day. After an update...fuggedaboutit!

Ok so many things on my brain to cover and so little time. lol

First thing is a new radio station that has filled my day with happiness. It used to be 101.9 The End, but I noticed today that the format has changed. The new tag line is "Music for Generation X". So they were playing super awesome music from the 80's and 90's. I only heard one song from 2000 or older. Such goodness like Paula Abdul, Milli Vanilli, Michael Jackson, Hootie and the Blowfish, Extreme, etc. etc. I wished I had a radio at work to keep listening all day!

Next is a new"ish" show I'm totally addicted to. Everyone knows I loved Tough Love on VH1, but now there's Tough Love Couples and it's just as good! It's amazing how typical the arguments are. And he is just as blunt with the couples as he is with the little girlies. I missed the premier, but I was hooked after the second episode. Yay for DVR!! I can't wait for next week!

Moving on...I am so thankful that I am surrounded with kick ass people. I've had the opportunity lately to spend a bunch of time with my extra good friend Kjcheristy and she's the greatest. She's working with my on my MJ song, helping me with some crafty-type stuff, and she even cleaned my apartment today! By cleaning I mean some hardcore cleaning. I thought I'd ruined my kitchen sink, but she somehow got looking amazingly white! And she brought over the extra heavy duty hospital grade cleaner so I can be confident there are no more germy guys. Hooray!

And last, but certainly not least, I am just the luckiest girl to have such a great guy for a boyfriend. Little things remind me of that all day. Like when I eat his tasty cupcakes. :) Just hearing his voice makes me smile. He's the most honest, down to earth, genuine guy I know. So yep, lucky me, yous guys can't have him. :D