~Blogging in Style~

It's here! It's here!

My new laptop came yesterday. Isn't it pretty. . .

So, from now on I'll be blogging in style. I can actually see my pictures instead of guessing what they will look like while squinting at my old, dumpy monitor that darkens all my pictures.

I'll have to get used to Windows Vista. It's a bit different. Did I mention I am SOOOOO excited I have a new, super-cool laptop? 'Cause I am!

(Look at Eleanor's hand in the picture, just itching to start pushing buttons!)

~Shmeary~

Grant and I have added a new word to our vocabulary. . .

"Shmeary"

I'm not sure about it's exact definition, but it means, roughly: not looking superb, a bit on the shabby side. The term seems to mostly be applied to landscaping and general upkeep of one's yard, but it could most likely be generalized to other areas of life such as housekeeping, hygiene, etc. I will refrain from mentioning the origin of the word because, as I mentioned in a previous post, I am trying to watch my tongue.

It recently came to our attention that our yard was looking a bit shmeary, so for family night last Monday, we worked on improving it a bit.

Let me just pause here to mention that I am NOT a gardener. Somehow, that instinctive draw to gardening that I am supposed to have automatically just because I am a woman is inexplicably M.I.A. Some might say that makes me a bad person, but I don't say they are bad people when they refuse to take up/enjoy my favorite hobbies. Moving on. . .
hands unless I find some sharp object to excavate it out of there. It could be that I actually have to have the knowledge of which plants are weeds, which aren't, which like shade, which like to sink my hands into dirt, getting it under my fingernails so it won't wash out when I wash myI have tried to form some sort of explanation for my lack of enthusiasm. It could be that I have water-- they all look green to me, how am I supposed to tell them apart? Or maybe it could be the sneezing, itching, and burning all the plants cause whenever I get up close and personal with them. . . after all they put me through, there's no way I'm singing to them! Or maybe it's the part about crawling around on hands and knees, while in the meantime holding relatively still so the sun can scorch my porcelain skin. . .

I don't know. It could be any one of those things or none of them. Every time I think I've put my finger on the reason I don't like gardening, I think that reason doesn't sound all that disagreeable as long as it doesn't involve gardening. Anyways, I didn't mean to rant. I just feel the need to apologize because I haven't been able to convince myself to be a gardener. I'm working on it. I know I will never quite be a bonified woman until I become a gardener, but right now, I'm just willing to accept that.

But, getting back to the subject, we all worked hard on Monday and it was really fun. Eleanor loves being outside and is eager to help with anything we do. She loved looking at rocks while Grant weeded and I trimmed the shrubs, and she loved helping clean up at the end.

Eleanor helping Grant gather branches to put in the debris can.

Such a hard worker!

Proof that I helped.

Trying to reach a branch into the bin by herself.

And now she's going to close it. . .

VERY determined to get that branch in the can.

Our unhappy participant. He was howling and howling in the back yard because he knew we were in the front, so I brought him out and tied him to the tree. This made him upset because we weren't going on a walk, and usually when we do yard work in the front, we let him run free and watch him so he stays in the yard. I didn't want us to have to watch him AND try to watch Eleanor to keep her out of the road, so he got the short end of the stick. He didn't even appreciate the branches I tossed him to entertain him; he just looked at me like, "What do you expect me to do with that? You know you dropped something over here?"

Eleanor saw Grant climb into the debris can to stomp everything down to make more room, so she had to take a turn on top. At first, she wasn't too sure about it.

Then, she decided it was the perfect throne for a princess.

Helping sweep the sidewalk. These pictures are not posed! We don't ask her to hold the broom so I can get a picture. She sees Grant sweeping and comes up to him and grabs at the broom. Like I have said before, she is the world's most dedicated self-appointed helper.

"Hey, I'm pretty good at this!"

All in a day's work.

Happy Birthday, Kari!

This Sunday is Kari's birthday, but our weekends can get pretty hectic. So, I wanted to make sure I was able to wish her a happy birthday, even if this is a little early.

Kari has been a good friend to me for several years now. I think Heavenly Father must have inspired her to befriend me because there were circumstances that made it rather unlikely that we would become friends. She reached out to me when I needed most, and I don't know if she even knew it.

Since that time, she has been a friend I know I can trust, talk to, share interests with, and call for no reason at all. Our lives have followed similar patterns, so we have been able to remain relatively close in location. Even when we have lost touch a bit (mostly because babies have entered our lives), I have known our friendship was just as strong as it ever was. I knew we could pick up right where we left off.

Kari has many outstanding qualities; it would be difficult to list them all. She is funny, pretty, kind, a good listener. She always seems to have it all together, no matter how chaotic her life is, how little sleep she's had, or how much she has to deal with at any given point in life. She manages to make friends everywhere she goes, and she actually maintains all those friendships! I am horrible at keeping in touch with friends and even family. She is an example to me in this and in so many other things. One of the ways she has been a wonderful example to me is through her strong testimony and the ways she serves the Lord by serving others.

I realize I'm gushing, and I'm getting rather personal, but good friends should be honored. I am grateful to be able to call Kari my friend.

We've gone on many hikes and little trips together as couples. It has been great to have such good friends to call spur-of-the-moment on Saturday and go hiking. This is Kari and her husband, Nate (oh, and our dog).

Mandi, Kari, and me. Two of us are pregnant- just in case you were thinking we went through a really fat phase.

Kari and Audrey.

I love this picture of Kari and her sweet daughter!

Happy birthday, Kari. Thanks for being a friend.

Topping off a Really Great Saturday

We had a really good day on Saturday. We started out by watching conference and having biscuits and gravy and sausage for breakfast. We saw you, Aunt Kathleen! All the talks were really good, as usual, but I loved Elder Jeffrey R. Holland's talk. I made a goal to watch my tongue!

Then, it was nap time, so we turned off conference. After Eleanor got up from her nap, we ate lunch and caught a little bit of the afternoon session of conference before we headed out to run some errands.

First, we went to a store to pick up a gift for a friend who has a birthday this week. I wonder who that could be. . .

Then, we went to another store to check out a sale on granite counter tops. We thought the sale might actually make them cheaper than our plan to put on tile, but with the price of labor to have it installed, it is more expensive. So, we're sticking with our plan to do tile.

Then, we went to Portland to the Lloyd Center so we could go to a Dell kiosk and check out their laptops. We've been looking into laptops for a while, and had it pretty much narrowed down, but we wanted to see the Dell monitors in person before we made a decision. When we saw them, the decision was made; we bought one! I am so excited to get my new laptop and get rid of this old, HUGE desktop in my kitchen! We were going to order it online, but the guy at the kiosk found a way to save us money by ordering through him, so we did. Picture this, we're in the middle of a crowded mall, I start out holding Eleanor until she gets fidgety and wants down. So, I walk around with her holding onto my finger and leading me where she wants to go, all the while trying to keep her in a somewhat close vicinity to the kiosk and trying to convince her we need to wait for Daddy before we ride the escalator. Grant works with the salesman and every now and then calls out to me to get me to make my way back to him to answer some question. Sometimes we take turns with Eleanor and Grant wanders off with her while I remain looking at the laptops. I can't imagine how chaotic it must have seemed to the salesperson! Anyway, we made it through and ordered me a new lappy! I can't wait for it to come!

After that, we did a little window shopping and then headed back south only to stop at Fry's to look at gadgets to go with my new laptop. We bought a printer. Yay! I'll be able to print things! We also bought me a number pad that can hook up to the laptop because that is my #1 pet peeve about laptops is having to type in numbers at the top of the keyboard. Yes, I'm a creature of habit, and I mustn't be disturbed.

After such an eventful day, we were HUNGRY and it was getting late, so we decided to eat at a nearby Burger King. Below are some pictures of Eleanor in hog's heaven, sucking down my chocolate shake. I don't think she knows the meaning of the words, "brain freeze", nor does she care.

This is Grant, asking if it's his turn to have some. Do you think she gave him any?

She'll give him a kiss, but he's not getting any of that milkshake!

Somehow, I managed to get a turn. Those first few swallows are kind of warm and mushy. . . ah, the joys of motherhood. It's amazing the things you do that you swore in the past you never would.
Time's up, Mommy!

All in all, we had a really good Saturday!

--Finished Project #3--

I finished another blanket. I made this one for a sister in our ward, Arin Lathen. She's due to have a little girl at the end of this month. Their first child, Jameson, awaits his little sister's arrival.