it must be really hard having to do two things at once. I feel really bad for you.

Yesterday I came home from work and was bombarded for requests to help with Valentine's boxes from the circus.  Tayler had brought a note home from her teacher saying she needed one so we put our heads together and came up with this:

I only helped her with the hot glue gun and the card hole.  She did everything else all on her own.  I think it turned out great.

Sean came home from his time with his mom and informed us that he still needed his box.  They, of course, were due at school today.  Everyone else got put on the back burner since they only wanted one, not needed one.

So last night we pulled out paper and boxes and the hot glue gun and set to work, while I cooked dinner.  We had a small time crunch with Sean having Cub Scouts and me needing to get to Young Women's.

Sean watches me move back and forth from helping him cut and glue paper, to watching the taco meat cooking on the stove and says, "Man.  It must be really hard having to do two things at once.  I really feel bad for you."

His box turned out like this:

we even cut the bottom off the top box, and a big hole in the bottom box so his cards will fall all the way through and have more room to fit. 

This weekend I get to paint the kitchen.  I think The Man is a lot like me.  He just needs time to get used to an idea.  To warm up to it.  I have a green light on both of my color schemes, well, using the compromise of not doing whole rooms but accent walls, and I'm definitely okay with that.  It's going to look amazing, I can't wait.

The circus must have been hungry last night because they ate all of the taco meat before I was able to get any.  The Man offered to make more while I was at Young Women's and I could just eat when I got home.  How would I survive without him?

So off I headed (with Sean in tow for Scouts) to make these awesome puppies with the Laurels.

{original idea came from here}

I thnk the pink and white ones are my very favorite.  They look so... dainty. 

And they celebrated my birthday with me.

I keep fighting the fact that I know I should probably eat healthier, but I just don't want to. 

Confession: I don't drink water.  Except maybe at night I'll drink a glass before bed.  And it's not that I don't like it.  I do.  I just don't reach for it.

So I bought this:

I need to drink three of these bad boys a day.  The lid even helps me keep track of how many I've had.

I'm sitting here thinking of how much water that really is... 

That didn't last long...

My boss and the Chief Investigator gave me $15 in a gift card to McD's for my birthday.  It would be rude for me to not use it.  Especially when the card said it was for my cokes.  (Do they have me figured out already or what?)

No Super Bowl, Chocolate Fondue, and Mr. Popper's Penguins

Happy 33 to me.
Today's February photo project was "10 am".  I was at church with my circus.  This picture was actually taken a little after noon when church was over, but really, I wasn't going to pull out my camera and snap a picture in the middle of a Sacrament Meeting.  So we took one after church in the Young Women's room, which also doubles as the Middle School's Seminary, hence the desks.
Thanks for snapping the pic Ballison.  Love me some Laurels.

The Young Women's President gave me two papers to fill out for the new Beehives coming in.  New Beginings is next week and they want to spotlight the cute new Beehives.  They were for my daughters.  Can you believe that we have not just one girl turning 12 this year, but two?  It's like I always say... once one hits a a milestone in life, the rest are not far behind.  We don't do anything small around here.  Not even if we wanted to...

After church we headed home only to be greeted by this when we rounded the corner:

My dad and step mom drove 45 minutes to surprise me with this when I got home from church.  Apparently my step mom was being sneaky sneaky with The Man and was messaging with him over facebook about when we'd be gone.  When we rounded the corner we all gasped.  Cool Mom!  That Stephanie Rd. sign? Going on my desk at work.

The Man bought me a sewing machine.  I've never owned a sewing machine before and am super excited.  Especially since I've recently drawn up my first quilt pattern with the encouragement and email guidance of my aunt.  Who is a pro.  Really.  She owns her own quilt shop.  And the circus made me paper flowers with Granny Suzann.

We're pushing forward with the remodel.  Tomorrow a sheetrocker is coming to mud and tape the second laundry room we've created out of a large closet upstairs and the kitchen ceilling.  We've picked out the tile and West even said that while he was working on his project (the laying of the said tile) that I needed a project and could paint the second laundry room and kitchen any color I want. 
You are all my witnesses.  Any color I want. 

I'm thinking I should have gotten that in writing...

In preperation for the nasty dusty sheetrock mess we've emptied the kitchen, even putting the fridge into the dining room, and hung plastic.

When our house is finished, we're inviting you all over for a Hallelujah party.  See that pink counter?  It's next on my hit list.  Nasty thing.
All I wanted for my birthday is no Superbowl, chocolate fondue, and Mr. Popper's Penguins.

Check, check, and check.

And now that I think about it, this would go good with our kitchen remodel, don't you think?

February Photo Project Day 4: Strangers. (And Brawling Over Clearance).

My day was full of strangers.  Did I take pictures of any of them? Well, not until the end.  I don't know, I think it would have been kind of creepy taking a picture of the people in line with me for the Plato's Closet grab sale... or the woman who was a head taller than me, working with the man who was a head shorter than me at the grocery store.  I think if someone were to take a picture of me I would have all sorts of issues with it.  Plus, I'm too awkward to be sneaky.  Truly.
But I have a really good story about my day with strangers, and then I did manage to get a picture, but it's at the end of this post.  And is part of a different story than the one I'm going to tell first.

Is Plato's Closet just a Utah thing? I love that place.  I mean, I love that place.  On the first Saturday of February they do a grab sale.  They give you a grocery type sack on your way in and you can go to specifically labeled racks and whatever you can shove into your sack is $10.  Total.  $10 for the sack of clothes.  Can you see the appeal to this? Last year we drove a few minutes after the store opened and saw how insanely busy it was.  I passed.  But this year, this year I decided to give it a real try.  So I headed down an hour before opening to get in line. 
And it wasn't too bad.  I people watched (without taking pictues of them) and it wasn't even that cold.  Finally the doors opened and we all politely entered in single file to receive our bags at the door... and then all hell broke loose.

The aisles in this store are tight enough as it is.  They had one side of  one aisle marked off for the grab bag sale.  At least a hundred people were jammed into one tiny aisle and I was very literally being shoved.  Blantantly.
It was insane. 
Lesson learned? Be one of the first five (I was only 20 back) or it's not even worth it.  Once people get in that aisle, they don't move, can't move and with frantic black Friday mentality, women get down right catty and rude.  Shoving? What are we, in the first grade?  I've never even had that problem in an acutal black Friday sale.
But, that being said, even when push came to shove, I have pretty good balance, and some awesome pride issues and I was immovable.  I'm stronger than I look, and I will move when I feel like it thank you very much, wait your turn, obviously, since you can't even get to the rack because you're back there waiting for us to get out of your way.
And I walked away with my bag full.
I regret not taking a picture after all of that.

West and I have been trying to select our tile for the bathroom remodel and have spent the last two days going from store to store to store.  I think we finally have it selected.  Progress is being made to finish it!
We met up with West's mom Suzann at The Old Spaghetti Factory for my birthday dinner.  I plan on being absolutely lazy tomorrow and have big plans which may or may not include chocolate fondue and Mr. Popper's Penguins (The Muppets is currently no where to be found).  So West, who spoils me more than I deserve, took me out for dinner tonight. 
Enter picture of strangers.

The atmosphere is pretty cool there and I was with my favorite people in the world.  My man and my circus.
Though everyone around us was kind enough to join in the singing of "Happy Birthday."
Tomorrow I wake up 33 years old.
I'm okay with that.  I have new clothes to wear for it.

Cali Turns 7

Cali.

Favorite color: Blue
Favorite food: Spaghetti
Best Friend: Anistyn
Favorite thing to do in school: Learn
Favorite thing to do: Play with my sisters.
Favorite movie: Mr. Popper's Penguins
What's something you want to learn how to do this year? Read better.
I made a master list of birthday activities for the circus to choose from for their parties.  All ranging with in the same budget, but bigger, or more expensive activities involved less friends, or family only, while cheaper or smaller activities where able to involve more friends.
Cali chose to go to Airborne, a trampoline arena.  She was able to invite 2 friends.
And in true Circus style, we took a lot of pictures, a few videos, and created quite the chaos which ended up being the time of our lives.  We jumped off the floor, the walls, played dodge ball, jumped off cliffs, tried our best to make it across the rope ladder (West failed, I conquered!), and did a lot of flipping in the air.  Even me :).