LITTLE THINGS

I tend to get overly excited about the things that make our lives more simple. Today I was making cookies for my Young Womens lesson tomorrow and I decided to double the recipe so that I could take some to a dinner I'm going to tomorrow night, and then to work on Monday. My largest mixing bowl barely contained the amount of dough it had before I even added the flour, and then I remembered the Kitchenaid Professional 600 that I bought last year. Not only was it able to handle the 5 cups of additional flour I added to the mixture, but it also made it look like I actually knew what I was doing. It was a win-win situation. Thanks, Kitchenaid Professional 600!!

PSEUDO-AUNT

The other day I watched my friend's boys while she and her husband went to a show on the strip. Her oldest son, Carlos was almost 3 when I started working with her and I used to go and pick him up and take him home to make treats and then go to the park. He was my little buddy. Now he's at the age where parks are replaced by playstations (I seriously can't stand video games) and cookies are upgraded to fast food. I'm not ready to change the program yet so I'm just going to wait until Mishaun is old enough to take his place. I need a few more years of simple before revamping to modern!

REGRETS AND NON-REGRETS

Some things I have realized I regret:
1. Not keeping up on my exercise routine when I was in really good shape
2. Not having saved more money when I first moved to Vegas
3. Not going to Cambodia and Hong Kong with everyone else when we were on our Asian Christmas Vacation
4. Not responding to my little brother yelling out for help upstairs when I was working on a research paper in Junior High
5. Holding on too tightly to relationships that needed to be let go of
6. Being too quick to give my opinion when it wasn't necessary to give it
7. All of the crap I buy from infommercials on TV late at night
8. Cutting my hair too short
9. Not looking into the Peace Corps more seriously when I was younger
10. Not buying a scooter when I lived in Taiwan

Some things I have realized I don't regret:
1. Trading my Civic in for a CR-V
2. Jack the Dog
3. Spending money on vacations to other states, countries, etc
4. Eating spaghetti for weeks straight in college because I couldn't afford anything else and wanted to prove to myself I could get through on my own
5. Being honest with others, which forced me to be honest with myself
6. Taking time off of college to go on a mission
7. Holding off and not buying a home 2 years ago when I started looking and everyone was telling me I was going to miss out on an investment opportunity
8. Still being single until the right person comes along
9. Coming out of the mall with a diamond ring instead of that swimsuit I was going to buy
10. The choices I have made along the way - they have led to even bigger and better blessings than I could have anticipated for myself

FUTURE SYTYCD CONTESTANT

I LOVE this kid!! I especially like his take on what's "fresh."

THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX

The other day I asked my dad to watch Jack for a minute, so that he wouldn't get away while I finished taking some pictures. When I came around the corner of the house, this is what I found. He insisted that it was the best way to keep him in one place:I'm re-thinking leaving my kids with him in the future...........

K-K-K-KATIE

Last weekend my roommates and I went up to Utah for the wedding of our friend, Katie. I'm not sure why I was as excited about it as I was, but maybe it's because I love watching good things happen to good people, and Katie is a GREAT person. I'm truly grateful for the friends that I have and for the examples that they set. Katie is the kind of person that makes everyone around her happy and want to be a better person. It is a wonderful thing seeing her with someone in her life that makes her so happy. Hooray for love!

JUST JACK

Every once in a while this is the first thing I see in the morning. If Jack wakes up before me and wants to play, he'll put his head directly above mine until I open my eyes. It's so much better than waking up to an alarm clock!

CELEBRATING AMERICA

For the 4th of July this year my friend, Karissa, got free tickets to 'Shear Madness,' a murder mystery show. For the first half of the show you watch the events unfold and then for the second half the audience becomes the witnesses, working with the detectives to solve it. How I love free tickets to shows on the strip!

After the show we drove over to Green Valley Ranch to watch their firework display. Because of budgets the strip didn't have many going off, but Station Casinos went all out. When we got to the exit there was 1/2 a mile of cars waiting to get there so instead we went over by Calvin's offices and walked up to the top of a parking garage right across the freeway. Splendid view and not too many people.

The best part about the parking garage we were on is that there was a camera crew there taking pictures for the Sun Times (or something like that). I jokingly suggested that they interview me for a crowd's perspective of the show and after it was over they came over to get me to do an interview. I never did go back to see if anything was published, but I'm pretty glad they decided to listen to my suggestion. I was apparently very convincing :)

So there was my 4th of July. Celebrating that day always makes me appreciate America, but when you're living in Vegas, watching fireworks outside, it also makes you appreciate cold water, air conditioning, vacations to cooler climates, and the fall finally arriving. There are oh, so many things to be thankful for!!

THE 2nd TIME IS A CHARM (RIGHT?)

Today I put a second offer on a house. My first offer is still "in the running," which means that there is a better offer and they want to hold on to mine in case it falls through. I antipated that happening with a short sale, and I told myself I would wait until July to start looking again. Last night I went out with my realtor and this is the first one she showed me. LOVED IT!!! The backyard is BIG and Jack peed out there twice, which I feel is a good sign. It's like he knows that it's meant to be his! Already my wheels are turning of how I can landscape it with a covered patio, lots of grass and trees, and a possible gazebo in the corner. It has Jack and Jill bedrooms/bathroom upstairs and there is an arch that goes from the living room to the dining room. The counters in the kitchen are granite and all of the rooms have ceiling fans. It's just darling - the perfect starter home. So fingers crossed! I'd really like for this to work out, but I realized that this is even better than the first house I put an offer on, so if this falls through then it can only mean that something even BETTER will come along. Must.... think.... positive!

32 IN 32

The other day at work my Administrator was talking about how great it is to get older. She got her pilot's license at the age of 60 and is a true example of living life to its fullest. Each year should get better and better. It's another year of experiences, another year of wisdom, and another year of learning and growing. Our chat was inspiring and it made me think about how bitter sweet this last year was for me. It had its share of ups and downs, but I'm grateful for those lessons learned and I've come to the conclusion that this year is going to be PHENOMENAL. As part of my positive approach to a better year I've made a list of 32 goals I want to accomplish while I'm 32. If any of you have these same goals let me know and I would be more than happy to check them off with you! Here's to looking forward to something great......

1. Learn 5 new songs on my guitar
2. Participate in a sprint triathlon
3. Purchase a home
4. Finish my mission scrapbook
5. Start my food storage
6. Ride a tandem bike
7. Make a quilt
8. Read scriptures every day - no excuses!!!
9. Learn to cook a new dish and host a dinner every other month
10. Exercise at least 3 times a week
11. Go on a hot air balloon ride
12. Organize, clean out, and replace make-up
13. Buy a nice camera
14. Go golfing on an actual golf course
15. Send a hand written letter to my nieces and nephews every month
16. Get married in the temple
17. Complete all assessments at work before leaving for the weekend
18. Save at least 250 dollars a month
19. Go sea kayaking
20. Get a barbecue grill
21. Go to Disneyland
22. Get my cavities filled
23. Become a volunteer at Child Haven
24. Go snow shoeing
25. Take a cooking class
26. Get back into a size 8
27. Go white water rafting
28. Visit Death Valley
29. Teach Jack the Dog to roll over
30. Go to the temple at least once a month
31. Visit my grandparents, parents, and siblings at least once
32. Go on 32 dates while I'm 32-years-old