A season of surprises (part two)

Christmas was so great this year. We got together with my family the weekend before Christmas and had a great time. There was plenty of good food, good fun, and of course good company. Christmas eve Joe and I had dinner with his parents, and then came home and opened up our Christmas eve presents. I got Joe Denver Broncos, and 49ers ping pong paddles so our teams can battle each other each time we play. He got me the WHOLE set of Saturday's Warrior piano music, and probably regretted it the second I opened my present and began serenading him with each song I turned to. Saturday's Warrior is a BIG hit with me (and Stacy) and I was super excited about it. We visited for awhile and then I got our stockings taken care of while he "set up" my main present in our front room. He covered it with a blanket so I wouldn't be able to see it while I was setting his gift up. I was good, and didn't snoop. I set his present up, took care of our stockings and then it was off to bed. Joe got up to go potty at about 5:00 a.m. which woke me up. The longer we tried to go back to sleep the more excited we became about sharing our presents with each other. Finally at about 5:40 a.m. we got up and opened our presents. I had Joe look at his present first. It's a neat little Denver Broncos Mini-fridge that can also heat up food. It's meant for tailgating parties so you can even plug it into your car. I was very excited for him to see it and completely forgot about my covered up present behind me. Joe told me it was my turn to open my present so I pulled the blanket off of the gift and found two empty shoe boxes with a note telling me Santa had left my present downstairs in the big guest bedroom. I walked downstairs and couldn't believe my eyes.

There she is in all of her glory, my new Yahama P-155 digital piano!!!! DIGITAL PIANO!!! Even today it brings tears to my eyes. For years I have searched for, and priced digital and acoustic pianos. I never could justify the chunk of cash I'd have to pay for something I had no place to put. When I saw my piano all set up Christmas morning I was shocked. I just stared at it and cried, and then of course sat down and played the gorgeous thing. What an amazing husband I have to get such a special present for me. Afer a few songs we made our way upstairs and finished opening our presents and then headed back to bed. We eventually got back out of bed, and spent the rest of the day calling and visiting friends and family. We had a great day and were very happy to be able to have our first Christmas together as our own little family. (Although Peter wasn't very interested in opening presents, he mostly slept through the excitement until I gave him one of the dog treats my mom got him for Christmas.)

A season of surprises (part one)

December was a great month for me. I started off with a great birthday. The day before my birthday we were able to get together with my Blanding friends and do our little "Holiday" party at Texas Roadhouse. Someone tipped the waiter off that it was my birthday and I had to sit on the "birthday saddle" while I got a birthday "yee haw" from the workers. I'd like to say there are no pictures, but I think Stacy and Joe both got some. My actual birthday was full of pleasant surprises. All I knew about my birthday plans was that I was supposed to leave work at 3:45 p.m. and that I needed to dress warm. I got home to presents (wrapped in already used wrapping paper) and flowers from my sweet husband. I opened the presents and found a pair of snow boots that I really needed (taking the dog out early in the morning gets very cold) and the newly remastered version of Snow White. I was already excited about my presents and would have been happy just staying home but Joe had other plans. I changed into warmer clothes, including my new boots and we were on our way. About half way through Parley's Canyon I guessed that we were going to the Heber Creeper Polar Express. THE POLAR EXPRESS!!! I've been wanting to do this ride for years.

It was so much fun. We were the only adults in our car that didn't have kids. I didn't care at all; I loved every second of the whole ride. They give you your cookies and hot chocolate from Mrs. Claus, read the story, Santa comes to visit, and you sing Christmas carols. I'm like a little kid so of course I loved the whole thing.

Next it was off to dinner at the restaurant Zoom in Park City. It was DELICIOUS! We had this amazing jalapeno crab dip appetizer and then I ordered a burger with a side of shrimp. (Don't judge me, it was my birthday.) I can say for sure it was the best shrimp I've ever had. Joe got delicious seared tuna, and then we topped the whole thing off with an apple and walnut pot pie. Wow. I was stuffed to the brim, but I couldn't have been happier about my day.

Hot Springs, Turkey, and the Jazz.

Joe and I had the chance to go Lava Hot Springs for Thanksgiving. It was such a fun trip. All we did was eat, play monolopy, soak in the hot pools, and watch tons of t.v. We started our vacation the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and went to the Jazz game. We have season tickets, and it's always fun to watch the TINY little players from our seats up high.

We headed up to Lava on Wednesday, got to the cute house we rented, and started the relaxation. Thursday we slept in, ate some breakfast and started to prepare our Thanksgiving dinner. I must say that while I missed my mom's delicious rolls and stuffing I was very pleased with our own mini feast.



We even bought a special meal for Peter, I think he was pleased as well.



Sunday we made the trip in to Soda Springs so I could show Joe where my dad grew up, and the fun things he used to take us to see. We stopped to see the man made geyser Soda has. It was an incredibly ghetto set up, but the geyser was super neat. It goes off every hour on the hour.



I took Joe past my grandpa's house and showed him the train tracks we always smashed pennies on. Then I took him to Hooper Springs and made him try the weird "soda" water that we always drank when we were little. We would always take a gallon of it back home to Blanding and make grape kool aid for show and tell. What AWFUL tasting water. I had such a good day being able to show Joe the fun things my dad showed us each time we went to see my grandparents. Monday we had to come back to the real world, but had such a great time and were super grateful for the break. Oh, and just for the record: I am the Monopoly champ at my house. (And yes, I have the granny Lila gene and cheated once. I felt guilty and told Joe after.)

Feelings...

I decided that I should probably do the right thing, and make a list of things that I am truly grateful for in an attempt to make up for being a bitter Betty in my last post.
1. My mom and dad. They have taken care of me for (almost) 28 years and I imagine they'll continue to do so for the rest of our lives. Nobody makes lasagna as good as my mom does (not everyone has to agree with me on this point) and nobody dances quite like my dad (the jury is still out on whether that's a good or bad thing.) They're just such good people it's amazing. I love them VERY VERY much.
2. Good siblings. We always have a good time when we're together. I can think of SO MANY awful things they did to me growing up (like my brothers telling me that hair turns into spiders 3 days after it's cut or falls out) but I love them (and their families) all the same.
3. Good friends. I hate to name names because I have so many great friends that have done so much for me, but I feel like 3 people specifically need to make the cut: Stacy, Tyrel, and Erin. These 3 girls have seen me at my best and my worst and are still my friends to talk about it. It's sort of a miracle.
4. My job. I love my boss, and truly enjoy my work. How many people can really say that?
5. My dog. I have officially become a dog person. I always liked my dogs growing up, but our dog Peter has totally won me over. I'm not happy to admit it, but I've become the proud mama that always tells stories about things he's done. (Erin and Stacy can tell you all about it.)
6. My cute husband. What, you thought I wasn't going to mention him? Please. I feel very lucky to have married my sweet Joseph John. He's a very lovable nerd, with a heart 8 times bigger than mine. I can't say much more without getting too "Today I marry my best friend" on this, so I'll just say that I love Joe, and feel like I won the lottery the day I finally convinced him to marry me.
I'm sure I could go on and on but I'll just say that I'm not oblvious to my blessings, and here's my post to prove it mom. :)

An Unthankful, Ungiving Thanksgiving.

I know-I'm an awful person. I've read plenty of great posts about all of the things that people are so thankful for, and while my list of things to be grateful for is very long and continually growing I can't help but feel the need to write down a few things that don't make feel thankful even the tiniest little bit.
1. People. People on a whole REALLY bug me. I realize that it takes most people the majority of their lives to get to a point where they'd rather stay in than deal with the crowds but I think I reached that point at age 17. On a regular basis I find myself fighting the urge to shake someone and yell "USE YOUR WORDS FOOL!" Maybe it's hereditary. My dad has the same problem, an uncle on my mom's side suffers from the disease as well, so perhaps I was just destined to be this way. Whatever the reason, people drive me nuts.
2. Traffic. Seriously? The fact that there's an 8-10 foot space in between me, and the car in front of me makes you feel like you NEED to come over into my lane? Or just because you're chatting your life away on your cell phone makes you think it's ok to be driving 55 mph in the fast lane? No no my friend-think again! I am very lucky to live 3 blocks from my place of employment or I think I would have already gone "Towanda" on somebody. You know what I'm talking about: Fried Green Tomatoes, a store parking lot-very classic.
3. Gossiping. Don't get me wrong, nobody loves a juicy bit of info more than I do. I love hearing "don't tell anyone yet" baby news, or secret proposal stories with the rest of the world. I even enjoy hearing scandalous "she did what?" or "he's dating who?" stories. It doesn't stop there however; people turn mean and nasty so quickly. For the record, once you start telling me awful or vindictive things about people that I either a)care about and enjoy b)don't care about or enjoy or c) have never even heard of, I kind of just want to punch you in the face. I'm shocked at how comfortable people are sharing horrific things that they'd never want said about themselves. Suddenly I'm reminded of number one on my list.
4. Judgers. Now, for those of you that know me, know that I'm a self-admitted judger. I judge every person I deal with on a daily basis. I judge co-workers, friends, family, myself-you name em, I've judged em. I make quick judgments too, which usually always end up completely wrong. So who am I to hate the judgers you ask? Someone who judges, but doesn't discriminate. I'll judge your hair, your shirt, your shoes, your face-but it won't change the way I treat you. (Unless of course, I judged you to be awful and you proved me right.)What I really hate are people that judge, and act accordingly. I might judge the world, but I will at least TRY to keep my judgments to myself, or a few select inidividuals. :)
So there we have it. This is my unthankful, ungiving list for Thanksgiving. Like I said before, I know-I'm awful.

Lots of kids=lots of fun.

A few weekends back we had the chance to go to Blanding for my niece Caitlyn's baptism. All but one of my nieces and nephews live in Blanding (on the Bennett side) so Joe and I (meaning I decided, and Joe supported)decided to rent a hotel room big enough for the two of us, and 6 kids. We found a killer deal, and made it happen! So, Saturday night around 6:00 we started rounding up kids and headed to dinner at The Homestead. Let me just tell you, my six darlings were on their best behavior. Apparently the threatening talks of being sent home due to bad bevahior paid off because our table of 8 was no louder than any other table in the restaurant. Next we moved on to our hotel room where we were prepared with glow sticks for the crowds. Who would have guessed that those things would bring hours of enjoyment. We were constantly changing from necklaces to bracelets, or counting to make sure that each kid still had their 9 glow sticks they started out with. Bed time also went better than anticipated. Of course we had to make a few minor adjustments as to who was sleeping where. Even I had to switch "hides" of the bed with Uncle Joe so I could sleep closer to Trace, but everyone eventually dozed off, and slept through the night. I had so much fun staying with the kids, and Joe was a good sport through it all too. I love my little munchkins and can't wait for the next giant slumber party.

Mothers Day Miracle!

As my friend Erin said, it's a true Sunday miracle. I've finally started a blog. I'm guessing it will be boring to those of you who aren't my mom, but-here's too posting my life for the world to see! (and by world, I mean the 6 family members and friends that will read this.)