waiting for the weekend

Do you have a bad case of the Friday afternoons? I do. I just want to go home and play with my little niece Norah who came to town today. Here’s some fun things to get you by until the weekend officially begins.

This game is tricky and highly addicting. It's called Escapa! (which reminded me of Finding Nemo). My highest score is 21 seconds but a girl in our customer service department got 32 seconds, so I hear. Play it here.

Those who know me well know how much I enjoy Art History. I took this quiz that I found on How about Orange to test my skills. I was pleased with the results.

a second chance

I’ve been fighting this for way too long and I don’t think I want to anymore. You see I never fully understood those country music lovers; never got why someone would be so excited about a Rascal Flatts or Keith Urban concert. Because it’s true that those that like country, love it. I’m just not one of those people. It would be unfair for me to say I never liked country music at all. There were always those days of idolizing the Dixie Chicks and who could pass up a Garth Brooks tune now and then? That I could handle—heck, I choreographed a dance to Alison Kraus in high school. It’s those ultra twangy songs that you listen to and wonder “who the heck sings about juice boxes?” that I have a hard time with.

Lately though I've decided to give country music a second chance. I don’t want to hate it. I mean people must love country music for a reason, right? So I’m not fighting it anymore, in fact I’m embracing it. I compare it to a time long ago when I trained myself to like V8 juice. I forced myself to drink glass after glass until I could tolerate it and eventually enjoy it. I’ve taken that same approach this time, forcing myself to listen to country music stations for my entire 40 minute commute to and from work. I guess you could say I’m swimming in it, soaking it all up. We’ll see how long it lasts before my fingers get all pruney and I can’t take it anymore.

I blame that Taylor Swift and her catchy ballads.

seattle

Bret and I spent our last week of March up in beautiful Seattle. He had a couple of interviews up there that week but his sister also lives in nearby Kirkland and we worked it out so that the rest of his siblings and their spouses could meet up with us for a few days, too. It turned into a great little trip. I feel bad that I didn't take many pictures of us with Bret's family while we there. I guess I just didn't feel like being that annoying person who needs to take pictures incessantly for the blog (I'm usually this person you see).

At the Seattle (Woodland Park) Zoo.



Kirkland. It's magical. Please notice the girl captured in mid-air and the couple looking into each others eyes.Some punk teens laughed at me for this. I was offended at the time but now that I see it myself I confess I would have done the same.While Bret was interviewing in downtown Seattle one day, I seized the opportunity to really explore the city. I walked all over town, visiting the typical sites like Pike's Market (where I tried some chocolate pasta-very good), the funky-looking glass library, the wharf and some of the best antique stores around. I also spent a good hour in the famous local bookstore, Elliott Bay Book Company.

I'm a fan of that show Cities of the Underworld on the history channel, so I indulged in my history-loving/Indiana Jones-wannabe side and went on an underground tour of Seattle.

I got to learn neat things from this guy like about the ghost who guards the old bank vault and why toilets are called crappers (I'd be happy to let you know if you're curious).

While walking around town I saw a tough looking guy wearing a kilt, I thought that was weird but then I saw this a couple blocks away. Apparently that's in?

We had a great trip, especially all the time we got to spend with Bret's family. A special thanks to Lynette for letting us stay with her! The more I saw of Seattle and particularly the surrounding cities, the more I grew to love it. I guess we'll see, huh?

celebrating bret's birth

For the past four years Bret has had a birthday prom celebration. Traditionally on this night we dress up in prom clothes from one generation or another (my first year was 80s) and eat at the Skybox. Although we stuck to the venue location we didn't require any dressing up this year (Bret and I did anyway). We did, however, take the customary prom pictures of the attendees...

Thanks to everyone who came, it was one of the best proms in history.
(get ready for a lot of pictures)

the exchanging of gifts

The Christensens
The Cramers. Great "do" Scott.
The Wilsons
Matt wanted me to take this picture quickly for some reason.

Caitlin and Meriel
Miss Molly. This girl has the funniest blog I know.

The ScottsUs. We were going for a twenties look. whatever.The Longs
BJ and Julia
The Vittoris
The boys ended the night with a few games of ball

An all-a-round great picture.

birthday boy

Today is my husband's 25th birthday. I've chosen to honor him by showing the world these videos of him dancing "with" our birds (I took them last fall while moving out of our apartment). I'm sorry that they're sideways but it's worth tilting your head slightly. I love you B, happy birthday.

the curious case of laura miller

Let me just give you a little insight into my life. Over the last couple weekends I have been asked questions concerning my age that are typical and yet somewhat distressing. The first occasion was at Deer Valley Ski Resort where I was asked if I was over 18 yet so that I could sign a form. “I’m 23” I quickly retorted. Like most people, the lady apologized with a “well you just look so young”. The second occasion was at an African dance class I took last Saturday where I was asked by some random lady if I was from Butler Middle School. Yes, middle school! Meaning a good ten years younger than I really am; must I remind you of this? To her I gave only a grimace and a contemptuous “No”.

Do I feel bad about the way I react to these comments? Yes. Should people probably be a little more tactful? Yes. Maybe I shouldn't get so offended, but I am sick of this being the story of my life. It’s true that I could do more to help the situation like wearing heels and more makeup and maybe act my age, but honestly, I doubt it will make much of a difference. Can anyone think of some advantages to this problem so I could feel better about it? If so, please post and explain.

And please, none of these responses: “When you're older you’ll be glad you look so young”. To that I say this: hogwash. The last thing I want is to be walking around looking like a Juno when I’m pregnant or a babysitter when I pick my kids up from school. Besides, just because I look young now doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll age well. So you’ll have to do better than that. How can I make the most of this situation now? (creativity and humor is encouraged)

ps. This is not some weird way for me to announce that I'm pregnant. I'm not.

snow canyon

Bret and I went down to St. George over President's Day weekend to visit his parents who are living there this winter. Although we didn't get the high temperatures we were hoping for, we still had a great visit. One of my favorite parts was a fun hike through nearby Snow Canyon in which I took a camera along. I'm definitely not the best at landscape photos but Bret's dad is really good and he gave me some pointers. Here are my attempts, such as they are.

Bret looks totally posed in this picture.


I thought these ripples were pretty cool. I'm always amazed to see what water can do to rock over time.

We also met up with my sister's family who were down there too that weekend at the St. George Temple. They're a funny bunch. By the way, my sister is very creative and has a really cute quilting/other crafts blog. You should check it out.

we thought this was fun

Oren Lavie - Her Morning Elegance
Uploaded by IgnitionVM