3 Times Now...

And counting. Am I out of my Vulcan mind?

It Wasn't Me

The dogs must have gotten REALLY bored today because when I came home the the hall rug was rumpled up with dirt clods all around it. For some reason I don't think the dog pictured here is the dog responsible...

Chop Chop

7 whole inches. Gone, just gone...

Get Your Spock On

My Grandma, Mom, Sister,and I went and saw Star Trek for the second time. Yeah, you read that right. The Star Trek that came out last weekend, the most awesome movie I've seen in a long time (including X-Files), we've all seen it twice. And loved it.

And can I just say, I LOVED the casting. I had some doubts, but it was really fantastic. May the new franchise live long and prosper.

My Boring Life

Here are the rules: Bold the things you’ve done and post on your blog!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Redwoods
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Got a tattoo
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Now, go forth and prove your life is more exciting than mine...

Photo Op

While happily blogging about elk (or deer) in the quiet of my new family room (see below, don't I look happy though slightly wind blown?) I realized it was a little too quiet. So I spun around in my chair and, just outside the family room in the hallway, found this: 3 little doggies lined up in a row. I couldn't have PLANNED that if I'd tried. And how lucky is it that I had my camera sitting right there?

Bunch of Turkeys

Last week Collin went on the turkey hunt. He didn't get anything but he did bring back a picture on the camera. Only is isn't a picture of turkeys. It is a picture of elk.. or deer. I'm really not sure. I can never keep them straight. Gather round the kids and see if you can count how many elk/deer/possibly mountain goats are in this picture. I lost interest, er um, I mean count at 6.

Update: I have just received confirmation from a reliable source (Collin) that the animals pictured above are indeed elk. Phew. Now we know.

Twilight and Chicken Fit for a King

Last night one of my BFFs Emilie came over. She brought her Twilight movie with her. Not being a huge fan of it the first time I saw it (in the theaters) I decided to give it a second chance. It wasn't as funny as the first time I saw it (seriously, I remember laughing a WHOLE lot more). And it didn't seem quite as cheesy watching it on a smaller screen (you can't see the bad makeup as well). So it was a better experience this time. And it was fun hanging out with ya Em!

Emilie, posing a few weeks ago in front of a crepe she didn't buy but really wanted to.And for you recipe lovers out there, she brought a recipe for some really yummy chicken that you HAVE to try. You will love how simple it is.

4 to 5 chicken pieces (we used breasts)

1/4 cup minced onion

1 cup BBQ sauce

1 can cranberry sauce (whole berry)

Mix the onion, BBQ sauce, and cranberry sauce together and spread over the chicken. Bake for 45 minutes at 475 degrees. Beautiful.

Now for the "king" portion I alluded to in the title of this post:

A few weeks ago Collin and I gave in and bought a king sized bed (which I LOVE) to accommodate all 5 of us (me + Collin + Marley + Lucy + Oso = 5, nothing fishy). Even on a bed that big with plenty of room for all Lucy has managed to fall off twice. Silly dog... I'll bet if Marley and Oso could they would roll their eyes at her.

Alex Vs. The Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Oh yeah, Alex won. I love my nephew.

Dogs on the Loose!

When I came home from work today two of my neighbors informed me that we have some backyard escape artists. Namely Marley and Lucy. Lindsey was kind enough to brave the weeds in my backyard and return them to their rightful place (THANKS LINDS!). So Collin and I spent some time reinforcing the fence to keep these little stinkers in. If, despite our fence improvement efforts, you happen to see them wandering the hood PLEASE call me! If you aren't scared of dogs (they don't bite and LOVE people) would you be so kind as to return them to my backyard? We are working on getting our fence up to maximum security standards (electric fence anyone?).

Thanks!

Rumbi's

A few of my friends and I got together for some Rumbi's Grill.

Me and Em. Joy and Jill.Group photo (minus Janeen).Out side, practicing for an album cover photo shoot.Me and Em, standing in the wind. Why does her hair look perfect? The wind was out to get me.

Picture of Innocence

Yeah right.

And this gate keeping her out of the living room is just for looks...

Also, you'll notice that the floors are CLEAN! I love my family room.

Sorry I haven't blogged lately. We just find it very hard to leave our awesome new family room.

Birthday Boy and a Finished Basement

Happy 29th Birthday Collin (last saturday)!

And here they are. Finished family room pictures.

I LOVE it!

Things That Happened Last Week

I took this picture of myself. Collin thinks it's funny that I take pictures of myself. Does anyone else like to take pictures of themselves?My floors got dirty... again. Stupid Operation Basement. I was asked to tree-sit. Oso lost TWO WHOLE POUNDS!!! Way to go, buddy! Lucy doubled in size and became sort of friends with Marley and Oso.

And we got a whole lot of stuff done in the family room:

Once it's done I am going to sit down on the couch, turn the TV on, and fall asleep.

Operation Family Room

Most of the stuff that has been done in the family room Collin has either done himself or had his dad come help.(Thanks Gerrit!) This weekend, however, I actually proved to be quite useful. For instance, I tiled this: And held up the crown while he used the nail gun to nail it up.
I also helped put down some of the glue for the wood. Due to all the sanding our whole house was blanketed under a thick layer of dust. This is a picture of the kitchen table. No, that isn't a wood colored place mat. Check it out! You can see the little decorative cutouts! The floors were so bad that it took me hours to clean it all up. I attacked it in sections. You can see a line straight down the kitchen floor. The left side is what it is supposed to look like. I can't wait until this stinkin' family room is complete!

Before and After: My "Tina Fey" Glasses Edtion

Before

AfterThey are different, I promise. And in honor of National Grammar Day I leave you with a picture of what Collin lovingly calls my "Librarian Look." He gets it a lot...

According to SPOGG.org

Check it out at http://www.spogg.org/

UPDATE

To celebrate this most proper of holidays I found this website. I wish I could carry it around in my pocket. It lists common errors. For example: When to use accept vs. except.

http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/errors.html#errors

PS And yes, April, correct grammar ALL DAY LONG. Especially your kid's grammar. They'll love it.

PPS Did you know "PS" stands for "post script?" So this is a "post post script."

PPPS For those of you who think you've "caught me" using "and" at the beginning of a sentence it's not really a grammatical error. See this article:

http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/Features/Columns/Default.aspx?article=ErrorsThatArent

Check back for more fun grammar stuff throughout the day! I'm off to make some dangling earrings that say "participle" on them.

Don't you just LOVE National Grammar Day?

More Before and After Pictures

While flipping through the October issue of Better Homes and Gardens I landed on this page (#177) and thought "My books need a home. I want that!" I immediately ripped the picture out and put it on the fridge (hence the wrinkles). Collin looked at it, said "We'll see" and that was that.

5 months later he got to a point where he could start building. This is a picture from Friday night.

And here is a pic from yesterday. It actually took more time to caulk them than it did to build them. I love them. My books are just ITCHING to move in (after we evict those power tools and diet cokes).

When he paints the rest of the basement woodwork he is going to paint this white as well. I am so excited to have my own little library! He did a great job.