Baseball Season is upon us.
Actually we've had baseball practice since before Christmas. I hate it when the sports seasons overlap. Which is always. Basket ball runs into baseball and baseball runs into football and footall runs into basketball. It's a vicious circle. But I digress.

Our first big tournament this year was "March Madness" in St George. So last Wednesday we packed up and headed out.
KJ usually does all of the driving on our roadtrips. I think if he had to sit in the passenger seat he would have a nervous breakdown. As it is, I sit in the passenger seat and every time I look at the speedometer I have a nervous breakdown. I'd like to see if maybe we can have our speedometer replaced with a slowometer. Maybe?
Probably not.
We take a few big roadtrips and several small roadtrips each year for baseball. This makes me grateful that we have a rather large vehicle with plenty of seats and nearly enough cargo space for all of our junk. I almost had to leave the kitchen sink at home. It was a tight squeeze, but KJ can pack a trunk (or the back of a suburban) like nobody's business!
I'm also very grateful for good kids. And ceiling mounted DVD players.
And classic #2 pencils and paper for this girl. She's constantly drawing and creating.
We were also equipped with plenty of snacks, drinks for all and good conversation.
Are we there yet?


Since these next few posts revolve around our trip, and our trip revolves around baseball I bring you The Baseball Quote of the Day:

"Baseball is a game where a curve is an optical illusion, a screwball can be a pitch or a person, stealing is legal and you can spit anywhere you like except in the umpire's eye or on the ball. ~Jim Murray"

It's a NEED not a want. Really!

My kids play sports. A LOT of sports. I attend a lot of games. I like to blog. I like to scrapbook. It's nigh unto impossible to scrapbook or blog something that looks like this:


So I really NEED one of these:


But every time I ask, I get one of these: (Translation: I'm trying really hard to pretend that I don't hear you.)

I was just about to rent a billboard to get my point across when lo-and-behold, he took me to the camera store on our way out of town last week! We bought the exact camera that I had researched, studied and begged for wanted.

Where before, I couldn't take an action shot at a 4th grade basketball game....
Now I can take this:
and this: out the window of the car going 85mph on I-15! Yipeeeeeee!

(Not that these last two photos are anything special...I just wanted to see if they would come out clear and they did!)

On the road again

I've had a few people ask me where I've been.

We took a little family vacation. So, if you aren't into reading someone else's travel journal and seeing their family photos then you might want to stay away from here for the next little while.

Special Delivery

Last Wednesday I got to personally deliver a prize to Ashley who was the winner of my 100th Post giveaway. I'm so glad I got to see her. It's been way too long! She's gracious and lovely and she's one of those cute pregnant women we love to hate awesome!
Congratulations again to Ashley! I'm pretty sure that her next "special delivery" will be a sweet little girl sometime next month!

WINNER!

Time to announce the winner of my 100th Post Give Away!

I want to assure you all that this was a VERY technical process. Since this is my first giveaway, I did a little research on how to select the winner. I looked into Random.org and Random Number Generator and finally settled on Random Fit Thrower (remember him?).


While I waited for the Random Fit Thrower to load wake up and get dressed I wrote down the names of all the commentors and put them in a bowl. Very technical, I know. And since my instructions were clear as mud, I decided to accept comments from all three posts where I talked about the contest.
I'm glad I picked Random Fit Thrower to choose the winner because he was my scape goat really excited!

Once we had consulted with the auditors to make sure that everything was on the "up and up" this was our WINNER!
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CONGRATULATIONS to Ashley from "The Olsen's: A small glimpse into our little world" Ashley is just a few short weeks from having baby #2! Stop by her blog and give her some suggestions on what to name her baby girl!

Last Chance to Enter!

Today is the last day to enter my 100th Post giveaway! Click here or here and leave a comment. The winner will be announced tomorrow.

Scum, Glare, Evil Eye...call it what you will.

I call it ATTITUDE!

I'm bringing this one to you slowly....frame by frame....



So....do you think he's unhappy with me?

Here's the PRIZE!

Oh yah! You KNOW you want to win this!

Do you need a better shot of that cute wooden basket?

And how about those file folders. There are 12 in all. Three of each clever saying.

Here's a list of the loot and why I love it:
A cute container - I am a container-aholic.
Lovely Striped Dish Cloth - just because.
Turtle Chex Mix - It's got that "sweet/salty" thing going on.
Dr. Pepper - Nectar of the Gods.
Look Ma, New Hands (from Bath & Body works) - makes my hands feel SO good!
Cashew Cranberry Almond Blend (from Archer Farms) - it makes me feel a teeny bit healthy.
Dentyne Ice - Love the crunchy shell and minty *burst* inside!
Breath Savers 3hour Mints - they are so good I could eat them like candy.
Milky Way - Just the right blend of chocolate and caramel with a little nougat thrown in for good measure.
...and last but certainly NOT least...
Post-it notes & AWESOME file folders - I have an office supply fettish. Seriously, if Mr. KJ is in trouble, he knows that the road to forgiveness is paved with office supplies. (Makes my heart go pitter-pat!)


Don't forget that you can enter EVERY DAY until 11:59pm on the 16th!

You are going to win. I just KNOW it!

My 100th Post Giveaway!

Yikes! It's my 100th Post! Yes there will be a giveaway, and no it won't be cash. But I got your attention didn't I? Sorry. (We are in a recession here, people!) Before we get into all of the details, such a glorious occasion deserves a well-written speech. I had my speech writers over at Academy Awards Acceptance Speech Generator throw a little sumpin' sumpin' together. Since they didn't have anything remotely associated with 100 Posts in blogland, I had to go with this:


Acceptance Speech for the Outstanding Achievement in Gaffing Oscar:

Thank you! Oh! Thank you! I can hardly believe this! I feel so lucky! And this statue - it's so shiny! Oh, thank you again! I just want everyone to bow down before me and accept that even in my wildest hallucinations, I never could have imagined how this would validate my mediocrity. And to the other second-rate nominees, I want each of you to know how totally saddened your lackluster applause makes me feel right now!

You know when they first told me I wasn't pretty enough, I just had to take a Xanax and obsess about how generous my thighs have been. I guess it all just makes me feel kinda numb

You know, there are so many obsequious little people to thank! First off though, I want to pay off the esteemed people of the Academy, who looked deep within their lint-encrusted navels before giving me this fantastic award! Also, I want to thank Charleton Heston, for being such a powerful force in my kitchen. And to the People Under the Stairs, who taught me to take life by the horns. And finally, to all the personal assistants I fired - I couldn't have done it without you!

Thank you America, and good night!
(cue orchestra music)

So......for those of you who are still here. You too can write your own Academy Awards Acceptance speech (it's a little like playing Mad Libs), or you could just bag that and enter my giveaway.
Since I am at a loss for what to offer you for your devotion to me and my ramblings, I will go with the generic "My Favorite Things Basket". (I will post a photo tomorrow.) Trust me, it's gonna be exciting!

To Enter:
Leave a comment on this post. You can enter as many times as you'd like, but only once per day. Entries will be accepted until 11:59pm March 16th. The LUCKY winner will be announced on St. Patricks Day.

The Answer Is....

I have a slightly fuzzy recollection of sitting at a Girls Camp Planning (or maybe it was certification) meeting. I was probably 13 or 14 yrs old. While we were waiting for the meeting to start one of the Stake Priesthood Leaders (a big burly mountainman sort of guy) went to the chalkboard and wrote this:

MR BARS
MR NOT BARS
OSMR
CM CLAWS
NDEDBD IS
OICM
MR BARS

He challenged us to figure it out. I couldn't. But I've never forgotten it. You see, my brain is pretty much full of useless information. Yes, that's me, a font of useless information. ...where were we? Oh, yah, so although this riddle may not have anything at all to do with actually attending girls camp I've always associated it with girls camp in my cluttered brain.

What's the answer you say?
Well you have to say it in your best mountain man voice:

MR BARS = Them are bears ("bars")
MR NOT BARS = Them are not bars.
OSMR = Oh, yes them are!
CM CLAWS = See them claws?
NDEDBD IS = And the itty bitty eyes?
OICM = Oh, I see 'em!
MR BARS = Them are bars!

Okay, so for those of you who spent a lot of time on this one, I'm sorry. Pretty corny, huh? But those are the sort of things that stick in my head. It's a curse.

MR BARS

Can you read this?

MR BARS.
MR NOT BARS.
OSMR.
CM CLAWS?
NDEDBD IS?
OICM!
MR BARS!

If you ever went to girls camp, chances are you can!

Your personal tour of the Utah State Capitol Building

The Capitol Building which originally opened in 1916 was closed in 2004 for a 4 year renovation. The original cost of the building was $2.7 million. This most recent renovation cost somethwere in the neighborhood of $310 million. That's a LOT of granite and marble! On Feb 27 I went down to the State Capitol for PTA Day at the Legislature. I am on the PTA Board at our Elementary, but I am the Secretary (not the Legislative person) so really I went for my own curiosity. (The last time I was there was 17 years ago and well before the renovation.) I'm so glad I went and lucky for you I took along my camera!

This is the Governer's Office.

He was out that day because of Larry H. Miller's funeral.


This is the state Reception Room. It is better known as the "Gold Room" (Gee, I wonder why?) This is where they have important state functions and meetings.

It is decorated with Scottish, French, Russian and English turn-of-the-century period pieces and many of the moldings are covered in gold leaf.


This is the House of Representatives. There are 75 Representatives in the House. (This is the only picture I didn't take. I had to go search and I found it on About.com.)

You'll notice that there are seats way up top for all of us common-folk. This is called the Gallery.

Now we move on to the Senate. This desk is for the President of the Senate.

The Senate also has a Gallery.

There are 29 Senators in the Utah State Senate.

That's my Senator in the back on the left talking to some lady. Pay attention, Mr. Senator!

After our tour and some meetings, the PTA provided lunch for us. The tables were set up in the Rotunda (right below the big round dome). The seating assignments were such that we were able to sit with our local Senators and Representatives. It was nice to meet them face to face.
FYI: This is also where my graduating class held our Senior Cotillion. I sang the theme song at that dance (many moons ago). The acoustics in that building are COOL! But I digress.

This really is a beautiful building full of history and fascinating stories. I'd love to go back and have a more extensive tour. You should too!

Tooth Fairy

The resident Princess lost her first tooth. Actually it's not lost. We went to the dentist and he pulled it out. She fell off the cart at Walmart a while back and her tooth has never been the same since. So the dentist decided it should come out. She was excited! Really. She counted down the days and talked about it constantly.

The pressure was really on the tooth fairy with this one. Apparently one of her friends told her that not only does the tooth fairy leave money, but if you leave her a note, she won't take your tooth. AND (this one's the kicker) if you leave a glass of water out on your dresser the tooth fairy will magically turn the water the same color as her dress. Wah?

I'm SO glad she clued me in when I went in to say prayers with her that night, or I'm afraid the toothfairy would have failed. Miserably. As it was, everyone was happy. And the tooth fairy? She had on an orange dress.

Blogger Lunch! (Yah, I know. You've already heard about it.)

(Tiburon, Me, Sher)

A few weekends ago I had the chance to go to lunch with some of the people I stalk my friends. Kudos to Kristina over at Pulsipher Predilections who planned the whole thing! I was so excited to go, but a little scared to go alone. So I put on my Unibomber sunglasses and my hooded sweatshirt and I sent an email to Sher. In the email I did my best to convince her that although we'd never met, we should definately carpool together. Lucky for me, she trusted me enough to let me come to her house the next day and pick her up. We instantly hit it off and the drive to Draper just flew by.

(Kristina, Amber, Arianne, Melissa)

We arrived at the resturaunt along with 38 other blogging women. Everyone I met was so....normal! I especially loved sitting by Vanessa, Tiburon, Melissa, Arianne & of course the lovely Sher! These women are beautiful, talented, hilarious and sarcastic! (Pretty much everything I look for in a friend.) And Vanessa and I decided that we are pretty much soul mates and the universe was just waiting for a chance to get us together.

(Vanessa, Me, Sher)

(Melissa, Martha, Sheila, Tiburon, Vanessa)

Before we left for home, Sher and I took advantage of Kristina & her Snuggie for a photo op. Thanks Kristina for a lovely Meet & Greet!

Happy Birthday

Last Friday my oldest had a birthday. If I was on the ball I would have posted about it the day before, or at least the day of. But I'm not. So I didn't.


He's 14. He's taller than me. I'm not sure how I feel about that.

Seriously though, he's a great kid. He's a FANTASTIC athlete, a pretty good student and.......he just texted me and asked me to come and pick him up from school because he is going to throw up. Gotta go!

P.S. If he pukes in my car I'm going to take back all the nice things I said about him.

Thankful Thursday

I know that I am on a blogging hiatus, but I can't pass up the opportunity to show some gratitude. Because, in the wise words of someone named Melodie Beattie:

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity.... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.

This week I am thankful for:

1. Kids who are AWESOME at the dentist. Once they are in that chair with headphones and a movie, they don't make a peep! Even my 4 year old. I usually just sit in the waiting room and read a book while they are getting teeth cleaned and cavities filled.

2. Birthday Parties. They give me an excuse to get together with family.

3. Piccolo Brothers Pizza. Nuff said.

4. Blemish Control Toner & Acne Treatment Gel. TMI?

5. Being able to work from home.

6. Blogging friends who (even though I am a slacker this week) still let me read and comment on their blogs.

7. Creative people like Tib who let me steal the Thankful Thursday logo.


What are you Thankful for?