Friday, April 25, 2008

where the heck I've been...

Well... there is no doubt that I have not been a regular blogger this past month. We have been busier than we would care to be and I haven't felt creative enough to share about the daily projects of home remodeling, punching the clock & church responsibilities! I figured it's about time to do a little updating...

Most of you (all 4 of you who may be reading my blog) know that we bought a house at the first of the year that we are remodeling with the hopes of being able to live in it at some point in our lives. Needless to say it has been a slow & grueling process. For those of you who watch as many home improvements shows as we do....this is the part of the episode where they show the owners (looking a little stressed), who say...
"We are definately behind schedule and over budget!"
(It sure looks easier on TV when they do it in 30 minutes)

We had hoped to be a little further along then we are right now, seeing how our lease is up next month and we are sick of paying both rent and mortgage payments every month. Alas, it is what it is. We have ended up doing a little more than we originally planned....mostly because of the argument "Well, we already have it torn apart...we might as well update the all of the plumbing and electrical and replace the hardwood floors with the ones we really want and along with new windows, it needs a new furnace and we need to add central air (no thanks, mr. swamp cooler) and how about we add all new recessed lighting and as long as we have it all ripped out, lets replace all the door casings and baseboards and what the heck...we might as well just add a swimming pool and maybe a bowling alley downstairs while we're at it!" (okay, okay... I was just kidding about the swimming pool and bowling alley)

...but, all joking aside, it truly has been a never ending project. It has felt like we take 2 steps forward and 3 steps back! Man, have we learned A LOT. Our families have been such a huge help and Chris is a freaking rockstar! If he doesn't know how to do something...he'll figure it out! He seriously isn't afraid of ANY project, (sometimes it's even a little frustrating...he's taken on a lot to his already busy schedule).
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So...after all that rambling nonsense...we aren't even close to being finished (clearly, you can tell that, right) ...
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Nevertheless... I thought that I'd post a few pictures to document the process.

You'll have to stay tuned for the un-veiling of the final results!
(Something I, too, am excited to finally see!)

Home Sweet Home


The Living Room...

New windows, harwood floors, baseboards, shutters and final paint still to come!


The Dining Room...
New windows, harwood floors, light fixtures, paint & baseboards still to come...

The Kitchen...

Well...pretty much everything still to come! Travertine floors, new cabinets, appliances, countertops and lighting.


The Master Bedroom and Bathroom...


We are changing the layout of the master closet and master bath and we are still in a giant mess. But the finished project is sure to be worth it!
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Well...
That's just a little, teeny, tiny sampling...man, oh man is there more where that came from! I'm so glad that we could see the potential and charm of this great house! We really fell in love with it, almost before we could even think about how much work it would be to get it back in tip-top shape!
Give us a few more weeks (or months) and we'll be ready to have you all over!

In the mean time...I think we need a vacation!

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

My Heart Is Full...


Because I have not been able to stop thinking about how remarkable this is since watching it, I must share it...

http://www.eastvalleyproductions.com/blog.cfm?postID=31


This amazing video will absolutely touch your heart and bring tears to your eyes. It is part of an incredible project that was recently on exhibit at the Mesa Temple Visitor Center. I hope that you will take the time to watch it. It is well worth the 5 minutes and you will likely want to watch it again and again. It is so incredibly beautiful and moving. The images are stunning and the music will take your breath away. A very dear friend of mine, Freddie Ashby is the singer. He has recorded several songs for EFY (among other things over the years) and he has a voice that instantly invites the Spirit. There is a version of this same song that he recorded for EFY that is available on I-tunes and I highly recommend it as your next download.


If you want more information on this project, check out...

http://reflectionsofchrist.org


Chris and I are now less than 3 weeks away from our once in a lifetime trip to the Holy Land and as I watched this video, I could not stop the tears from streaming down my face. The timing was perfect to really touch me. I hope you will take the time to watch and I hope it stregthens and uplifts you as it did me!

(Here is a review and some more info on the exhibit at the Mesa Temple.)

http://mormanity.blogspot.com/2008/01/reflections-on-christ-powerful.html

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Happy Birthday Big Brother Chris!



Those are some pretty BIG muscles you have (and some pretty sweet shorts)!

By the look on Robb & I's face that water must have been pretty dang cold!


***

I hope your day is great and the year ahead is your best yet!!!
Love you!






(I know it's been forever since I posted, and I promise a better update soon!)

Monday, March 17, 2008

Hooray...


Saturday, March 8, 2008

THEY WON'T REALLY STAY THAT WAY...

I was going through a bunch of pictures on my computer yesterday and came across so many pictures of me and my niece Tasha taking "self portraits" of ourselves making funny faces...most of them cross eyed. This girl is one of the true lights and joys of my life and has kept me laughing during even some of the most difficult times in my life. We have so dang much fun together! As you can see, occasionally we have gotten others to join in the antics, but usually it's just us laughing, making funny faces and taking pictures of ourselves! I couldn't help smiling as I was going through all these pictures! I LOVE MY NIECES AND NEPHEWS!!!!
~
It looks like Mom's good old warning...

"Don't cross your eyes or they'll get stuck that way"

is nothing more than urban legend!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Thanks for a fun night honey! I love you!

Monday, March 3, 2008

Doing My Part...

WHAT USED TO LOOK LIKE THIS....




NOW LOOKS LIKE THIS...


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After some inspiration from friends like Sari, Rachel & others as well as features on the Today Show and other news programs, I have been trying to do my part in the "Go GREEN" movement. I purchased these great bags about 2 months ago for $1.99 each at Pier One (you can find them all over in various sizes and for various price points, some even fold up teeny tiny and fit in your purse!) They are awesome! I keep them in my car and use them each time I go to the store (any store...grocery store, Target, Ross, Deseret Book). It is so great to politely decline a plastic bag for the use of one of my much cuter, bigger, more efficient re-usable bags! Each bag will fit about 2 1/2 times more than a regular plastic bag, they can be washed in the washing machine and most grocery stores now offer a 5 cent discount per reusable bag! That adds up fast and pretty soon... your bags are paid for! (see the facts, below)
Okay...you all know that I am by no means a crazy tree hugging environmentalist, however, as socially responsible adults...we could all do our part, right?
Here are some interesting facts that I found about plastic bags...
Consumption
  • Each year, an estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide. That comes out to over one million per minute. Billions (yes, billions)end up as litter each year.
  • It only takes 4 grocery trips for an average family to accumulate 60 plastic shopping bags.
  • According to the EPA, over 380 billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps are consumed in the U.S. each year.
  • According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually, most of which eventually end up in landfills. (Estimated cost to retailers is $4 billion)

Impact

  • Plastic bags suffocate, disable and kill thousands of marine mammals and sea birds worldwide each year. When the animal dies and decays, the plastic bag is free again to repeat the deadly cycle.
  • Plastic bags don’t biodegrade, they photodegrade—breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic bits contaminating soil and waterways and entering the food web when animals accidentally ingest.
  • As part of Clean Up Australia Day, in one day nearly 500,000 plastic bags were collected.
    Windblown plastic bags are so prevalent in Africa that a cottage industry has sprung up harvesting bags and using them to weave hats, and even bags. According to the BBC, one group harvests 30,000 per month.
  • According to David Barnes, a marine scientist with the British Antarctic Survey, plastic bags have gone "from being rare in the late 80s and early 90s to being almost everywhere from Spitsbergen 78° North [latitude] to Falklands 51° South [latitude].
  • Plastic bags are among the 12 items of debris most often found in coastal cleanups, according to the nonprofit Center for Marine Conservation.

Each high quality reusable shopping bag used has the potential to eliminate hundreds, if not thousands, of plastic bags over its lifetime.

Renew...Reuse...Recycle!

Synchronized Swimming for Talent Show

Maybe we'll take our show on the road! :)

Friday, February 29, 2008

Shameless "Talent" AND a Gold Medal Winning Pie...


I have to share and document...

Last night was our Ward's Annual Pie Contest and Talent/No Talent Show. The Young Women were asked to have a pie to enter as well as a "talent" or performance of some kind for the show portion of the evening.

Oh my did we have fun with this one!!!

Gina had the fantastic idea of doing a syncronized swimming routine with all of the girls. We gathered together on Wednesday night to make a pie and choreograph our routine. I am not sure if we could have laughed harder or had more fun...

Here's a few pictures of the girls brainstorming choreography ideas...
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Jorie's (one of our girls) mom was actually a synchronized swimmer (seriously?), so she had some really great moves for us. She was so hysterical and poised in every move she made. She kept us all laughing and was a great dance leader!


We found these great swimsuit dresses for the girls to wear over their clothes and we all wore these ridiculous goggles (as well as any other random "water things" we could find around our houses)...




(if anyone needs props for a ridiculous skit...Ta Da! Let me know! I have several matching swimsuits, goggles, orange life vests, etc.)
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I wish that I had better pictures of our actual routine... I am trying to get some video and better pictures (bless Chris' heart, but the pictures he took suck! Although it's probably more my camera than his skills)

Here's just a little taste...



SO FUN!

And the best news of the night...


Our Pie (Sour Cream Apple with Cinnamon Struesel Topping) won the... GOLD MEDAL!

...just before we put the pie in the oven...

...hot out of the oven...


...and with our GOLD MEDAL!

yes...it is a real medal, engraved and all! WAHOO!


2008

1st place

Pie Bake

Contest


Any ideas about what we should do with our medal?

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Tagged!

Okay, so I have been tagged a few times now, each time a different tag requesting different info. I figured that I would just combine them and give you a whole variety of useless info about me!

Enjoy!


5 things on my to do list today:

1. Call my Mom
2. Unload the dishwasher
3. Reply to email
4. Take a bath
5. Make a grocery list

5 Snacks I enjoy:
1. Chocolate covered cinnamon bears
2. Salt & Vinegar Pringles
3. Sugar Snap Peas
4. Diet Coke (does that count as a snack)
5. Reeses Pieces (or almost anything peanut butter/chocolate flavored

5 Places I have lived: Okay...could I be any more boring...
1. Orem, UT
2. Provo, UT
3. Layton, UT
4. Lehi, UT
5. SLC, UT
(I really like Utah, okay!)

What would I do if I were suddenly made a Billionaire:
Too stressful to think about. Not sure it would be a good thing!

5 jobs I have had:
1. Classic Skating Rink Snack Bar (yep...I made churros!)
2. Leisure Zone
3. Brackman Bros. Bagels
4. Rumbi Island Grill
5. Babinski's

Five Favorite TV Shows....
Hooray for an end to the writers strike!
1. The Office
2. 30 Rock
3. Today Show
4. 24
5. Flip this House

Five things to do before I die:
1. Be a Mom
2. Travel
3. Travel some more
4. Travel even more...
5. Go on a mission with my husband

5 Things you didn't know about me:
This is where I am supposed to tell you all the wierd & crazy things about me...where to begin! :)
1. I am a clean freak. My house is almost always in order, but my closet looks like a bomb went off. I totally relate to that epsiode of Friends where Monica has the secret closet.
2. I get a lot of speeding tickets. I'm not a crazy driver, just unlucky...Chris drives way faster than me and has none!
3. I HATE Styrofoam. The sound of it makes my skin crawl!! (along with cotton balls, snow crunching and a whole list of other things)
4. I am alerygic to morphine. What a sad discovery.
5. I watch the Today Show every morning, as well as the news every night.

Husbands Full name: Christopher Michael Johnson

How long have you been married: 1 year and 21 days :)

How long did we date: It seems like it was about a minute and a half...

Who said I love you first: Him...I was scared out of my mind

Who is taller: Chris 6' versus my 5'4"

Who sings better: We both suck!

Who's smarter: Probably Chris. However, I think I have more street smarts and I always seem to be right! Hmmm

Who does the laundry: Me, but he'll help fold if I ask him

Who pays the bills: Him...

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed: Depends on which was you are looking at the bed?

Who mows the lawn: What lawn?

Who cooks dinner: Me, but Chris usually does the dishes!

Who drives: Chris

Who's more stubborn: Me, without question! Poor Chris

Who kissed who first: Chris...second date

Who asked who out first:
He did

Who proposed: Chris

Who has more siblings: I do. I'm the youngest of 8, Chris is the youngest of 5 with a twin
sister.

Who wears the pants on the family: Not sure...I'm definately bossier! Chris just goes with the flow and puts up with me.


Wow...that was exhausting!