The fridge

So today I wanted to marinate some chicken. I looked for Italian dressing in our fridge but all of them were expired. I started looking at all the salad dressings and noticed that most of them were from 2007 and 2006 so I threw them away. I ended up marinating it in spaghetti sauce.

I then got out the eggs to make some cornbread. On a whim, I tested them to see if they were still good. Turns out that all the eggs in both cartons were bad. I started pulling out containers of food and kept finding rotten and moldy food. After thinking about it, I realized that it's been over three months since I cleaned out the fridge. Every week I try to empty the garbage's, vacuum, and clean the upstairs bathroom but I totally forgot about the fridge. Anyway, by the time I was done, I had thrown away a fourth of everything in our fridge. I didn't actually end up making corn bread. (Maybe next weekend.) Here's an example of what I found:

I would encourage everyone to take a look in your fridge and see what's growing. You never know what exciting things you'll find.

Grandma's Enchanted Yard

What do you think? It kind of reminds me of The Secret Garden, halfway through the transformation.

Ready for triplet 2-year-olds? Probably not.

First, I would like to tip my hats to all the parents out there. How people can keep up with two-year-olds is beyond me. I'm tired just thinking about this weekend. On Thursday I left the office early and drove to Salt Lake. I met Mom, Dad, Jen, John, and Lauren at Alfornos. We had an excellent meal with mediocre service. Afterwards, I took Lauren to Mom and Dad's house while the other adults went to Pioneer Theater. Lauren cried a little when she realized that Mommy and Daddy weren't coming home with her, but she soon brightened up when we sang Do Re Mi. We ran around the house and she finally collapsed at 8:30pm. She ended up sleeping late the next morning. Mom brought her down to wake me up and we then went up to wait for Dad to finish making scones. Then Alison, Isaac, Aaron, Britnie, and Wyatt came over. Mom, Jen, Alison, and Britnie canned peaches and tomatoes while Dad and I wrangled the kids in the yard.

After a lot of running and several games of hide and go seek, Dad and I decided that it would be fun to to take the three kids to the fire station. Lauren was a little scared of the trucks up close but eventually warmed up to them. Isaac and Wyatt had a great time sitting in the fire truck. Wyatt made the fireman pretty nervous since he was reaching for all the buttons. The kids had a great time looking and touching the fire trucks. When they discovered that their yells were louder because of the acoustics, we realized it was time to leave. Before we left, one of the firemen gave all the kids stickers. After the fire station, I pulled Isaac, Wyatt, and Lauren to the park in the wagon. We got a quick drink at the Library, then played at the park until Mom called. She reminded me that the kids needed lunch and naps. We went home and fed the kids. After naps for Isaac and Lauren (Wyatt wouldn't even try,) we had hamburgers and milkshakes. Jeremy was able to take a dinner break and join us. All the kids had fun and they probably slept pretty well that night. By 9pm everyone was gone and I was exhausted. I can't believe how tired I was running after Wyatt, Isaac, and Lauren. I was in bed by 10:30pm and slept until 10am on Saturday.

Dad woke me up Saturday morning and we went to take Grandma Johnsen to lunch. We went to Plates and Palates in Bountiful. Afterwards, he mowed the lawn and I watered her pots and walked around the yard. I've always loved the enchanted look of Grandma's yard. I couldn't help but think how the kids would love running around and in the ivy and up the hill to the tool shed. I took some pictures of her yard and will show them in the next blog post. After returning from Grandma's house, I decided I should think about going home. On the way home I took Legacy Parkway. It was a nice detour off I-15. I also stopped by OfficeMax to buy a USB memory stick, the post office, and the grocery store for milk. It was great to see all the kids (minus Tanner) this weekend and I can't wait to see everyone again. Once again, hats off to any parents who run after little children every day.

With my eyes closed

Walking with your eyes closed can be seen in two ways: having faith in being led or being really tired. On Monday morning, I was walking down the hallway when I closed my eyes. I was really tired and I thought that I could easily walk a few steps with my eyes closed. I was incorrect. I stepped off my shoe, tumbled, and fell. I landed on my right knee and and left hand. I went all the way down. I was lucky enough to only have one witness to this sad mishap, an employee of the company that we share the building with. He asked if I was ok. I replied that the only thing that was really hurt was my pride. As I sat up (in a skirt no less,) my co-worker came around the corner. She laughed and asked if I was ok. I replied that I was, but that I really enjoyed the perspective from the floor and would stay there a while. All in all, an interesting experience. My knee was a little skinned and I ended up with a small bruise on my hand and a slightly sore shoulder. I would recommend that everyone walk with their eyes open.

On another note, I have applied to attend Utah Valley University and hope to being accepted and enrolled for the Spring 2009 semester. I will probably only be able to go to one evening class a semester or do two internet classes because of work. We'll see. It is a leap of faith because I know it's what the Lord wants me to do, but I'm unsure of how I'll do. I guess that's where faith comes in.

Yeah for family!

Ok, so it's no secret that I love my family. I especially love my nieces and nephews. So, when I was able to go home for Sunday dinner, I was extremely excited. The fun began with helping my mother cook. Then, the kids started to arrive (with their parents in tow.) It was great. As you can see, we had lots of fun.

Tanner didn't know what to make of me for the first little while. It had obviously been too long since I saw him.I actually read like this too. I'm glad Sid likes to read and sing.

Lauren was really excited to eat her chocolate dessert.

Wyatt liked the cake too.

It was funny to see how Wyatt and Lauren liked the musical birthday cards that I got for Mom and Jeremy. (Oh right; we were celebrating birthdays, not me getting to see everyone.) I can't wait until this coming weekend, when I will get to see my family again. On Thursday night, I will be able to babysit Lauren while her parents and mine go to a play.

Tagged again

Lindsey tagged me with this meme so here goes:

4 places I go over and over
Work
Grocery store
Library
Home

4 places I like to eat
Bombay House
Macaroni Grill
Mimi's Cafe
Shoots

4 places I would like to be right now
In bed-sleeping
In a big comfy chair-reading
In the arms of someone I love
At the library

4 tv shows I like
CSI: NY
Grey's Anatomy
How I Met Your Mother
Life

3 joys
My nieces and nephews
Finishing a long project and know it was done well
Chocolate

3 fears
Snakes
Dying of dehydration
The death of a loved one

3 goals
To go back to school
To get married
To always make sure I think before I speak

3 obsessions
Books
Chocolate
Checking my e-mail and/or blogs once a day

3 surprising facts
I'm self conscience about the ridges on my fingernails
I have tried to figure out what I would do in every possible hostage situation should I be in one
There are 300 species of turtles alive today (none of which I own)

Work barbecue

On Thursday we had a company barbecue at the Corporate office. It was fun, but it is always a lot of work for the HR and Facilities departments. Erin and Ben did most of the prep work and Travis and Bradley did the cooking. Sadly, I was in charge of small talk and clean-up. I actually left after the food was set up and went back to work while people were waiting for their food. As must as I love my co-workers, I couldn't justify making small talk when I had 40 e-mails waiting. I came back a half an hour later and helped clean up. It was interesting to see my boss standing at a grill in a baseball hat (note the picture.) I wish we could have had a bigger grill but such is life. I hope we do more in the future.

TV shows

I was talking to someone about tv today and I realized that most of the stuff on tv isn't worth watching. That being said, there are a couple of shows that I like to watch. Here they are (along with the days they usually are seen on):

• How I met Your Mother (Monday)
• House (Tuesday)
• Fringe (Tuesday...I've only seen only episode but I like it so far)
• Pushing Daisies (Wednesday)
• Private Practice (Wednesday)
• CSI: NY (Wednesday)
• Grey's Anatomy (Thursday)
• The Office (Thursday)
• Life (Friday)
• Numb3rs (Friday)
• Cold Case (Sunday)

While this may seem like a lot of shows, please note that I don't feel that I must see each of these shows every week. I would like to, and at some point I may see the back episodes. What are your favorite tv shows?

Do I need a support group?

As I was cleaning my room yesterday, I noticed something. Let me show you:

Does anyone else see a disturbing pattern? I have four almost full bookcases in my room and still have the urge to buy more. All this, and I still manage to go to the library once or twice a week. Do I need a support group for this problem? On one hand, I haven't resorted to stealing or even debt to support my obsession. On the other hand, I am slowly running out of room to store my books. It is a quandary.

Friends from work

As much as I complain about work, I really have made some really good friends there. One of them left this week. Natasha worked for Prosper for almost two years as the Executive Assistant. She was a wonder-woman; working miracles for the Executive Committee on a daily and weekly basis. On Thursday, Emily, Sherri, and I took Natasha out to lunch to say goodbye. I then took a big card around for members of the company to sign. It was hard to say goodbye on Friday. The two things that make me feel a little better is knowing that she is going to a great new job and that I will be able to contact her via phone and e-mail.
Another friend from work, Lindsey, had her birthday party on Saturday night. It was lot of fun. I met a couple of nice new people, talked with some people from work, and had some great food. The funniest part was when we tried to break open a pinata. It kept falling down from the balcony and then lost it's head. I can't believe how tough it was. Thanks for inviting me Lindsey! (I can't believe I forgot to take my camera to your party.)
My friends at work make my life so much easier. They listen to my problems and I listen to theirs. We share jokes, frustrations, food, and a building for 8-10 hours a day. Thanks guys.

Calls from Kids

I have had two great experiences with the phone in the past two days. On Wednesday, I answered my phone to find myself talking to Wyatt. While I didn't understand all that he said, I did understand my name and that he was a Nana's house. He also told me that his mom and dad were at work and that he liked Isaac. He talked a little more about being at Nana's house and then abruptly hung up. Luckily, Mom warned me about that an abrupt hang up might happen so I didn't call back to make sure that he was ok. My co-workers were looking at me like I was insane. When I told them it was my 2 and 1/2 year old nephew, they nodded understandingly. (They know how much I love my kids.) I couldn't stop smiling.

Today I heard my cell phone vibrate, which is a rare occurance when it is in my purse, which is kept in my desk. I answered it to find my sister and her daughter on the phone. What a treat to hear Lauren talk about riding a "horsey" at the fair and hear her say "chocolate milk." When she said my name and that she loved me, I misted up. I had a stupid grin on my face for the next hour, which was commented on by more than one person at work. It's amazing how the sweet voice of a child that you love can lift your heart. I am one lucky aunt. I can't wait to get together with my family to celebrate September birthdays.

Fried peanut butter sandwich....yum

On Friday night I left work at a reasonable hour and went to Salt Lake to the Utah State Fair with Angie, Alisha, Tiffany, Sarah, Alexandra, and Tiffany's boyfriend (sorry; I can't remember his name.) The fair was a lot of fun but had a touch of tragedy to it. I discovered that the battery for my camera had died and was unable to take any pictures. While it wouldn't be a tragedy for most people; it was for me.
I'm actually surprised that I didn't die from a massive heart attack from all the fried food that I ate. It was excellent. I had heard on the radio that there were deep fried peanut butter and jam sandwiches at the fair. I like deep fried food and I like peanut butter and jam sandwiches. After a brief group search, we finally found the stand. I bought a fried sandwich and a fried Twinkie. The sandwich was amazing. I found a picture of it online but it doesn't really do it justice. I would highly recommend it to anyone. The combination of the warm fried bread and melted peanut butter was amazing. I actually wished that there wasn't any jam in there. Once again; it was awesome. The Twinkie, however, was a huge disappointment. It actually was pretty disgusting. All in all, I had a fried peanut butter and jam sandwich, half of a fried Twinkie, a cup of ice cream, part of Sarah's Navajo taco, and a few bites of a funnel cake. By the end of the night, I was full but happy. We saw a lot of art, which included a very large statue made completely of butter. I bought a cute wrap skirt at one of the boothes and we didn't get home until past 11pm. I hope you all get a chance to go to the fair (it goes until Sept. 14th.)

Monkey Portraits

Last week I read, or rather looked at, an awesome book. It is called Monkey Portraits by Jill Greenberg. Jill, a photographer, decided to take portraits of various primates. Many of the monkey's that are used in her book have also been featured in movies or tv. Other than the foreward, there is very little text in the book. I was struck not only by the clarity and lighting in the pictures but by the humanistic expressions on the monkeys. If you get a chance, I would highly recommend taking a look at this book.

Poll results and a thought

First, I would like to thank everyone for voting. Here are the results:

Book reviews: 8
Stories from work: 3
Memes: 1
Stores from my life: 13
Pictures: 12
Polls: 2

From this I can assume that people are actually interested in my life and that I need to take more pictures. While I am still reading, it didn't really occurr to me to discuss the books and what I like about them. I will endeavour to do as my readers wish (but I can't promise anything.)

On another note, I was thinking about what makes me special recently. (No, it wasn't an exercise in ego-boosting.) Someone posed the question of what would be interesting about a biography about me. I think there are two things that make me interesting: my dreams and my personality. My dreams tend to be vivid and I usually remember one or two a night. Personality wise, I think my blunt honesty and quirky humor is something to be loved (or at least something to smile and shake your head at.) While my personality is fused into my blog entries, my dreams are not. I'm wondering if my readers would be interested in occasionally reading what I'm dreaming about. What do you think?