It's a Kitten!

So, my wonderful brother Norm did my 16 week ultrasound yesterday. Mom, Marie, and Sarah were present for this ultrasound. Everyone wanted to be there when the sex of the baby was determined. Mom and Marie were early, like all good people should be and Sarah was a little late, so she wasn't initially present when we discovered the gender of the baby. But, I think she was still happy that she got to see the baby.


The first thing that I noticed when we saw the baby on the screen was that it was a lot bigger than the last time we saw it. The baby didn't have nearly as much room in there as it did before. A month ago, the baby was moving and flipping around inside of me, but this time, it hardly moved at all because it was all squished in there. It was weird how much it had grown. Norm measured it and the baby is still bigger than it should be. It is a week and a half bigger than it should be. Stupid Derington/Kimball genes.


So, the baby was being all shy at first and had it's back to us, but eventually it turned around and Norm was able to get a good shot of the bum and it's a girl! Matt and I are very happy. I'm excited because now I get to buy a bunch of girl stuff. Plus, girl babies are usually a lot cuter than boy babies and I really want my baby to be cute.


This ultrasound was a lot of fun because the baby was bigger and easy to see her features. Mom immediately started talking baby talk to the ultrasound machine and we were forced to make fun of her. Marie was freakin' out the whole time with a high squeaky voice, which only got squeakerier when the baby moved. I think that Matt and I were the most calm during the whole thing. We were just happy that she is healthy and growing strong.

After we were done, Marie had a surprise for us. She gave us a baby book for a girl. It is really cute and it has places where I can write about the pregnancy and put pictures of the baby and stuff. It is really cool.

So, congrats to all the winners who guessed right. Make sure to laugh at all the losers and make them feel bad about themselves.

Boy or Girl?

Well, next week we go to get the ultrasound that will hopefully determine whether we are having a boy or a girl. I say hopefully because, if the baby is shy, we might not be able to tell. But, now is the time to get your guesses in as to whether it will be a boy or a girl.

Matt thinks it is a boy.

I think it is a girl (don't tell Matt; he wants me to think positively).

Those who are correct will get to lord it over the very wrong people.

15 Weeks

Happy Birthday Matt!

Tomorrow is Matt's Birthday and he is turning 30. A fact which he likes to keep hidden and I like to tell to everyone. So, Matt will be 30 years old when his first child is born and I will be 25, we still seem very young to me. But, compared to Norm, who has four kids at the age of thirty, we are very behind.

Matt's parent's were here this weekend, so we had a little celebration for him while they were here. Matt doesn't really like Birthdays or parties or anything like that, so we called the celebration a "Birthday Gathering." It was just all the Kimball's and Baby who were there to celebrate Matt and his growing age.


Matt told me that he wanted a lemonade Oreo ice cream cake for his gathering. When I heard about this "cake" I thought that he had made it up because it sounded really weird. But, Matt insisted that it was a real thing. So, I researched with some local ice cream places that make ice cream cakes, but it seemed that this cake still did not exist. So, I called Momma Kimball, and sure enough, she was the one who had made this cake for Matt. So, Momma Kimball helped me make him his lemonade Oreo ice cream cake. The cake wasn't really something that I would pick to eat because it was both sour and sweet, but Matt loved it.


So, we sang and ate cake and Matt opened his presents and that was about it. I got Matt a painting of Mt. Timpanogos for his Birthday. Every time we go to Towne Centre, Matt likes to look in this painting shop, so I went to that painting shop and bought him a picture for his Birthday. He keeps saying that we need more art in the house and less pictures of us, so this will start us on our way.

If Your Sleepy and You Know It

Matt and I went over to Anthon and Marie's last night for food and XBox fun. We haven't really gotten out of the house much in the first three months of my pregnancy, so now we are attempting to make plans and get out a little more. So, we decided to go to Ree's because they recently modded their XBox and it is awesome.

The trouble with going out in the evenings is that I'm tired because I work and grow a baby all day, so I'm exhausted by the time I get home and all I want to do is sleep. Additionally, we went over at like 6:30pm, which is right when I like to eat dinner and my body was mad at me when I didn't eat when it was used to. So, Marie made me some awesome Three Cheese Mac and Cheese right when we got there to tide me over until the burgers and dogs were done cooking. One point Marie.

We ate, and it was awesome because it made me feel better, then we set ourselves down in front of the XBox. We played some lame games like a snowboarding trick game, which none of us were really good at, and an ATV game, which Marie won every time. But, then we played Shrek, which turns out to be a pretty awesome game. I've gotten so caught up in the more "adult" video games like Final Fantasy and Car Racing, that I forgot how fun the themed and "kid-like" games could be.

We played Shrek for a long time and I was starting to get tired, so I asked Marie the time and she tried to lie to me and tell me that it was earlier than it was, but it was really like past 10pm. I should not stay up that late on a work night. I am just exhausted at work today. I'm almost non-functioning. But, we had a good time and I was glad that we got out of the house for a night.

Our Park City Adventure

Matt's parents came into town this weekend and are staying in Park City. So, Matt and I decided that we would go up to my parent's cabin in Park City so that we could be closer to Mom and Dad Kimball while they were here. But, when I called Bill to find out if we could use the cabin, I found out that Norm and Jake were planning on going up to the cabin this weekend too. Then, Norm decided that it should be a big party and he called all the siblings and invited them all up to the cabin.

Marie Antionette and Me and Matt went up on Friday night. We were the only ones up there on Friday. I was a little concerned about going up to the cabin because I get car sickness, altitude sickness, and I'm pregnant. But, we really wanted to go, so we just went. We snagged Anthon on our way up and drove up to Kimball Junction and Marie met us there. We went to Ruby Tuesdays for dinner and it was really yummy. I've been craving all sorts of beef lately, so I like to eat it whenever I can. Then, we headed up the mountain to the cabin. The roads are really windie and unpaved, so it was a very bumpy ride. I got altitude sickness about half way up and lost all that dinner that I had just eaten. Sometimes it is unfun to be me. We kept going and made it up to the cabin.

I wasn't feeling very well still, so I claimed the master bedroom and took a bath in the ginormous tub. I kinda wish that I had a huge tub at home because it just took all the pressure off my back that pregnancy is putting there. It made me want to steal Marie and Anthon's house because they have a big tub in their huge bathroom. But, the cabin runs off well water, so the water was really gross looking. It was all yellow/brownish. And, we had all forgotten to bring bottled water, so we were very thirsty up there. None of us wanted to actually drink the well water.

I felt a little better after my bath, so I went downstairs to the theater room where Ree, Anthon, and Matt were playing video games on Anthon's new XBox. He got the box all modded so that it has old school games stored inside. We played Shrek, which was a fun game until we got stuck and didn't know what to do. Then, we played Halo, which Matt and I liked, but Marie and Anthon did not because they are not very good at the game. So, we ended up playing this ATV game which Marie rocked at and then she liked playing. I really sucked at that game. I went to bed around midnight, which is the latest that I have stayed up in a very long time because I am usually asleep by 9:30pm every night because I am all exhausted from growing a human being from scratch.

Saturday, Marie and Anthon left early to go to a baptism, but they left their XBox. Then, Norm, Rand and the kids showed up around 10:30am. I love those kids! They are so cute and so smart and fun. Ben is a wild one and kinda hard for me to handle because I lack patience while I am pregnant, but he is still cute and I love him. It was good to just spend time with Norm and Rand. We mostly just ate and played the Wii and hung around. I sent Matt into town to get some drinkable water and some Lil' Smokies, which I was craving. He is such a wonderful husband!

Jake and Jill, Johnny and Krista, and Mom and Bill showed up around 5pm. Despite the fact that the house is 13,000 square feet, it was feeling a little crowded. I love my siblings and my nieces and nephews, but I have a hard time right now with big crowds and loud children. I secluded myself in the Master Bedroom and took a nap or talked with Jill while she fed the baby. Side note: Kiera is so cute! All of Jake and Jill's babies have been cute, but Kiera really is the cutest one. If I could just keep her and skip this whole pregnancy thing, that would be great. Alas, that Jake and Jill are all attached to her.

It was good to have almost everyone together though. I haven't seen Johnny and Krista in a while because they are all newly married and in school and stuff. I wasn't feeling very well, so I just played the Wii with the adults for a little while and then I headed off to bed. Matt stayed up and played games until well into the morning.

Norm and Rand left early on Sunday, then we took off to go and see Matt's parents and we left Johnny and Krista at the cabin to lock things up. Mom and Dad Kimball were a lot later than we expected, so we didn't even get to see them that much in our little weekend away, but it was still fun to get out of the house finally and be almost a normal person.

The Smell of Fall

I was outside yesterday morning and I smelled Fall. I love the smell of Fall. It is so crisp and so clean and it just smells wonderful. Fall is my favorite season. I love it the most because of the smell and because Halloween is in the Fall.

Halloween is my favorite Holiday. I love to decorate the house with fun Halloween decorations and I love to dress up for Halloween. I think it is so much fun to dress up and have an excuse to party. There is just no bad there.

I hope that the cooler weather continues and that the hot days are behind us.

Side note: My Matt Face has decided to begin blogging. You can view his blog at www.wookiefingers.blogspot.com

13 Weeks

I'm at 13 weeks now. I'm officially out of the first trimester. Yay! I can tell already that things are different because I'm a lot more happy now and a lot less miserable. I still get nauseated at night, but it is manageable. I'm still very tired. If I could lay in bed and sleep most of the day away, that would be awesome. Alas that I have to work and stuff. I'm also very uncomfortable a not small amount of the time. All my weight seems to be moving to my belly and it makes the positions that I usually like to be in very uncomfortable. I can no longer lay on my back in bed because it puts pressure on all my insides. It is just another thing that I need to adjust to I guess.

Sometime last week, I tried to put on my pants (my big pants) and they would no longer button. It was very frustrating because they fit fine the day before. So, I gave in and decided that it was time to go shopping for maternity clothes so that I would have clothes that fit and clothes that are comfortable. So, Erin, Jenni and I took a lunch break and went shopping to search for some maternity clothes. I have to say, the places that I have been have slim pickings on cute maternity clothes. I was able to find a pair of work pants and a couple of shirts, so I guess our outing was successful. I've found that even though maternity clothes are very odd looking with the elastic tops on the pants, they are so very much more comfortable than having a button at the top of my pants. Normal pants put so much pressure on my belly when I sat down. Such is not the case with maternity pants. So, I'm glad that I have switched over. I know that I will have many more clothes to buy as I continue to expand, but this will do me fine for now.

It's a Baby, Not a Blobby

Matt, Marie, and I went to the AF Hospital yesterday to have Norm do the 12 week ultrasound. It was pretty cool. The baby actually looked like a baby, not just a fuzzy blobby like it did last time we did the ultrasound.

The baby was all wiggly and movin' around and that totally tripped me out because it is like a thing living inside me. It was very surreal, but cool at the same time. Ree and Matt were very excited about it too. I think it is a little more weird for me because it was all happening inside of me and it was difficult to connect the picture on the screen with the cause for all this sickness I have been feeling.

In the pick that says Mouth, we were able to see the baby opening and closing its mouth, it even sucked its thumb for a bit. In the Profile pic, you can see the little hand up by the baby's face and you can see the foot on the left of the pic. This last pic is really the best profile I think because you can see a nose shape.

The baby seemed to be doing well, we saw the heartbeat and it was moving around, so those are good signs. The baby is measuring a little big. It is about 4 days ahead of the size that it should be. Norm attributed this to how tall Matt and I are. Matt decided that "he" is going to be a basketball player.

It was a fun experience. I'm glad I got connections like a brother who is an ultrasound tech.

12 weeks

I'm at 12 weeks now. That puts me just one week shy of being done with my first trimester. I think that is how it works anyway. I'm starting to feel a little bit better. The nausea is ebbing, but comes back if I wait more than 2 hours to eat. So, I am still eating a lot of little meals during the day. I'm still very exhausted though. I fall asleep at like 9:30pm every night, but I always wake up tired.

Last weekend I slept and stayed in bed most of the day on Saturday and Sunday. I didn't leave the house; I hardly even left my bed. I was just so exhausted. I think my body just needs a rest after working 8 hours a day all week. Or, the baby is slowly trying to suck all the life and energy out of me in some sort of evil, master, baby plot to take over the world. Time will tell.

Yesterday was my first real baby doctor's appointment. Matt and I took a long lunch and drove over to Provo for the doctor's appointment. I got the name of this doctor from my friend Rachel and I was really excited because it is a female OBGYN, which is what I wanted. We got to the office and I had to fill out a bunch of new patient paper work and I knew that I wouldn't be able to remember all of my pregnancy symptoms, so Matt and I wrote down a list before hand. (This goes back to the baby eating my brain.)

The nurse was suppose to take my blood before the doctor came in to see me, but I think that in an effort to take over my body, the baby has made my veins unfindable/impenetrable. First, the nurse couldn't find any of my veins and had to call in a second nurse to help. Then, when they finally decided to try a vein in my wrist (which hurts way more than inside the elbow), they were able to get the needle into the vein, but no blood came out. So, of course, they dug the needle around trying to get blood to come out, but it didn't and they finally gave up on that vein. They then decided that I was dehydrated and needed to drink water before they could take my blood. So, blood taking was post-poned until after I saw the doctor.

The doctor came in and I liked her a lot. She answered all of my questions and she has a focus on the health of the family, not just the baby, because she is a family practitioner as well. That she could answer all my questions about my pregnancy symptoms was really comforting. She used that Doppler device thing and Matt and I were able to hear the heartbeat of the baby. At first, the baby was dodging the device and we couldn't hear the heartbeat because the baby kept moving, but we got to hear it for a little while. It was very surreal. It was cool to hear the heartbeat, but it was weird because there is like another human being living in me and that is a little weird. Human beings are suppose to live in houses or boxes, not other people.

So, after I saw the doctor, they moved me into a new room, with a new nurse and she also could not find my veins, but finally decided to go with the wrist vein on my other arm. It also would not produce blood, so she dug the needle around until it did. I filled one and a half vials until the blood started pooling under my skin. So, she took the needle out and had to stick me again in the inside of my elbow. This also didn't want to give blood, more needle digging, finally blood came and I filled all my vials. I don't understand why this whole process was so difficult. I have had blood taken so very many times as I have been sick so very many times and they always like to take blood and there hasn't been a problem. Hence, I think it is an evil plot of the baby.

Sick and Tired

Well, I got sick this weekend. Shocker, I know!

Sunday night, I was feeling nauseated and I was having body aches, but that was not too uncommon in my pregnancy thus far, so I thought it was regular. But, then I was up all night without sleep and visiting the bathroom a lottle. It was the opposite of fun and I knew that I had to be sick because I'm in week 11, I'm suppose to start feeling better around this point. I felt bad because I kept Matt up all night because I was up all night, so neither of us got any sleep. We both stayed home from work on Monday. I went to the doctor and, sure enough, I got the stomach flu. I have the worst luck.

It is absolutely miserable to be sick and pregnant. My mom had pneumonia during one of her pregnancies, I'm not really sure how she got through that. But, I was extra complainy and extra needy as I was very sick for about two days. Matt, being the wonderful husband that he is, just did everything that he could to make me comfortable.

I'm feeling better now, eating and everything. I'm hoping that my immune system realizes that it needs to work a little better for the next 6.5 months. I don't want to get sick again whilst I am pregnant. But, knowing me, that just is too much to hope for. Alas.

11 Weeks

I'm 11 weeks along now and it is not that much different from 10 weeks. I'm feeling a little less nausea, but week 11 comes with all new fun unpleasantries including headaches, dizziness, lots of discomfort, back pain, and forgetfulness.

Matt and I went shopping this weekend and I pulled out my debit card to pay, but I could not remember my pin number when it came time to punch it in. It was very embarrasing! I use that number every time I pay for something, but I just could not remember it. I had a bad memory pre-pregnancy, but I fear how much worse it will get now that the baby is eating my brain.

Babies are a lot like parasites because they suck everything away from their mother, only in a non-symbiotic way. I just don't see how we are both benefiting from this relationship yet. I'm doing all the giving of my energy and my nutrients and my body and I'm getting bubkis back. Maybe this is just in preperation for motherhood. Because mothers give all their time and their attention to the caring and raising of the children and they really don't get much back. It makes me appreciate my mother more than I did before.

Apparently, parenthood is very gratifying, but that might just be a rumour that women are spreading around to make pregnancy seem all worth it. We will just have to wait and see.

I'm still waiting for the "cool" part of pregnancy to happen. I'm starting to think that that there is no cool part, that it is just another one of those myths that are floating around.

My Ego is Prego

So, many of you have noticed my baby tracker. I am indeed pregnant. And, it is pretty much the worst feeling ever. I've been really sick for the last six weeks and pregnancy is not fun. I don't know who spread around that pregnancy is a cool thing, but thus far it is not. The books say that it should only last through the first trimester, so hopefully, I will start feeling better in three weeks.

Mostly, all food is gross to me, especially meat. So, I have just been trying to eat whatever sounds good to me, but food often is only good once, and then I don't want it any more. But, Matt is wonderful about taking care of me. One day, I thought I wanted grilled cheese, and Matt made it for me. Then, when I smelled the sandwich, I no longer wanted it. So, he made me french fries instead. He is a wonderful husband!

Life is kinda chaos right now and it seems to be all about me and being sick and pregnant, but I'm hoping that things will get better soon. Sarah has been a great help in cleaning up my house and running errands for me. I love having a little sister living with me. Except that she just moved and went back to school. Stupid college; I miss her.

Matt and I are very excited for the baby. Norm did our first ultra sound three weeks ago and we are going to have another one soon. I'm still trying to find a doctor because the one I planned on using doesn't deliver at the hospital my insurance covers, but we still have time.

This is all a new adventure for Matt and I and we are excited. The baby is due on March 30th, so we've got some time to prepare.

Dr. Horrible is Amazing

After much persuasion from my friends and coworkers, I finally watched Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog and it was awesome. What is Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog you ask? Well, it is a video web cast blog of the super villian Dr. Horrible. He talks/sings to his blog viewers about the ups and downs of his super villian ways.

This wonderful medley of song and comedy comes from the mind of Joss Whedon. He wrote the script for this three act web based show during the writer's strike and then got all his friends he has in the business to help him put it to action. I think that it was just another way of showing the networks that money can be made off of webisodes (which is what the writers wanted money for during the strike).

Anyway, you can view it for free at drhorrible.com, or hulu.com, or, you can purchase it on iTunes. It is hilarious and epic and sad. I laughed, I cried, it was better than cats. Soon, it will be out on DVD with tons of dvd extras, including a musical commentary.

Oh Joss, what would I do without you?

Sickness Continued

Yeah... I'm still sick. I don't really do much these days. I wake up and feel sick, but force myself to go to work anyway. Then, I'm sick at work and usually go home early. Then, Matt and Baby take care of me and I try to rest up for the next day of sickness.

Not much else to report at this time. When I am not having nauseous feelings, I'll attempt to post more. Stay tuned.

Sick

I'm sick, have been for two point five weeks. Nothing further to report. I will post more when I'm feeling better.

Johnny to be a Bachelor No Longer

Well, I had a busy weekend. Lisa came to visit this week and she graced me with her presence for a few days this weekend. Additionally, Johnny had his bachelor party at my house this weekend, it was this whole thing.

On Friday, Lisa, Rachel and I were suppose to go to Laser Tag. But, we got there and Lisa got bored, so we left and went to Training Table for dinner. It was difficult for me because I like to have a plan and execute the plan and Lisa like acting on whim. Whim is chaotic to me.

Then, we went back to me house and the Allreds came over and we played games a plenty until late in the evening. That is what I love about my college friends. They love board and card games as much as I do and they could just play them all day long.

On Saturday morning, I went over to Rachel's and she and Lisa and I all made breakfast. Then, we played games for like 5 hours. It was awesome even though I lost almost all the games.

Then, I came home and cleaned the house for the bachelor party. Don't know why I bothered because they just came over and made a brand new mess. I stayed out of the festivities and holed up in my bedroom watching Juno. A fantastic movie everytime I see it. It is hilarious!
Krista and Mom came over during the party and hung out upstairs with me. I thought that it was wrong that the bride was there during the groom's bachelor party, but whatever.

Sunday, we had all sorts of people over. Anne and Carlos came over to show off their cute new baby girl. DJ came over to do his laundry. Johnny and Sarah were home. Krista came over for dinner. And, Lisa and Rachel came over for dinner.
It was chaos, so Matt and I cooked chinese food and it turned out pretty good. We attempted potstickers for the first time and they were fairly successful.

Then, of course, I played games for a couple of hours before the girls had to leave. It was a very busy, but good weekend.

Still Potentially Exciting News

Well, I had my meeting with the clothing line this week. I showed them all my designs for sleepwear, and they liked a number of my designs. But, I'm still not sure what will become of it all because they wanted a couple weeks to think about it before they buy any designs from me. So, I am still playing the waiting game.

I hope that they decide to buy the designs that they like, but I guess I won't know for another week or so.

Potentially Exciting News

Well, I have some potentially exciting news. As many of you know, I am an avid doodler. I enjoy drawing and designing clothes. I have done this for many years as a fun way to pass the time when I am extremely bored at work, school, or family events. Well, now it all might pay off.

I have a meeting with one of the 'modest' clothing lines in the area to show them my designs. I pitched them my idea of having modest sleepwear and they liked the idea and want to meet with me. And, if they like them, they will buy my designs from me. And, if I make money off of drawing clothes, that would just be awesome and really easy to do.

So, I'd like to take this time to thank the following people in advance: Jennie Allred who first taught me that I should draw the body and then clothe it, Marie who found me lots of websites to study fashion design, Gilmore Girls for having their characters wear cute things while they sleep which gave me my idea in the first place, and all my professors who didn't say anything while I drew pictures in their class instead of taking notes.

But really, even if nothing comes of this, it is fun to try new things and see how I do. Even if they don't buy my designs, I'm going to find a seamstress who will help me make my clothes because I really want the sleepwear for myself.

Missing My TV Shows

Unfortunately, summer programming has returned to show it's ugly face! I hate the summer because it lacks awesome tv shows! Now, I could see this as a reason to leave the comfort of my living room for the great outdoors. Thereby forcing me into enjoying the supposed summer weather and expanding my social adventures. But, I see it as a route to three months of boredom!

I just don't have enough friends or energy to leave my house every night to supplement my lack of good tv shows to watch. So, this leaves me with watching all of my tv on dvd again, or venturing into the land of movies. Movies are much too short to occupy my time, so it is tv on dvd for me. Unfortunately, Matt does not care for many of my tv shows that I own on dvd. I think he is crazy; Gilmore Girls, Buffy, and Dawson's Creek are totally awesome shows that can be watched again and again.

I would use my extra time to read more, but Matt doesn't read and then he just sits there bored and possible annoyed with my excessive reading habits. So, in lieu of playing out of doors, I think that I will have to get more extravagant in my cooking. I like cooking because it is something that Matt and I can do together that we really enjoy. I have about 10 set recipes that we make again and again, but I really need some more good, inexpensive meals. So, if you have recipe suggestions, they will be taken gladly.

New Look

I am trying something new with the blog. I've had the same blog template for four years and Marie's new desire to have a blog inspired me to make some changes. I haven't decided if this is what I am doing yet, but it is a try-out. Let me know what you think. It might not be enough like me, I haven't decided.

Oh, yeah, and I forgot to post that Johnny is getting married in July. His fiance Krista is very nice and very much a hugger. We love her!

How to Sleep at Your Desk

I wrote this for funsies whilst working hard yesterday. This is a simple tutorial on how to sleep at your desk. This is an art that was thought lost but has recently been revived. Once skilled in the art of sleeping at your desk, you will be able to move on to greater locations like: sleeping at the lunch table, sleeping in meetings, and sleeping while walking.
Use the following guide to successfully sleep at your desk:

The Chair

First, you must have a comfortable chair. Folding chairs are unacceptable. Only the truly sloth can sleep in a metal, folding chair. Once you have obtained a chair, make sure it has the following qualities:

• Recline: The chair must have maximum recline, to the point of almost lying down.
• Cushion: The chair must have cushion. If necessary, mass cushions stolen from the office couch in order to ensure comfort in your chair.
• Back Support: Make sure your chair has proper back support with a high back. This will keep you from falling back and out of your chair once asleep.

Foot Rest

It is important to place your body in a situation that is most similar to lying down, hence the need for a foot rest. The following are examples of acceptable footrests, but get creative in your options

• Computer: You can place your tower under your desk and rest your feet on top. This both warms your feet and provides an ample resting spot.
• Box: Any stray box that you have around the office can serve as a foot rest, but be sure the box is full so that your feet don't break straight through.
• Footstool: You can also use a foot stool if you care to bring one in from home. But, if you are a tall person, you most likely don't own a footstool.
• Midget: You can always hire a midget, dwarf, or elf to be your minion and hold your feet up for you underneath your desk.

Remove Shoes

To obtain true comfort, you must remove your shoes. If you have a foot issue, here are some solutions:

• Wear socks: Warmth and protection.
• Blanket: Drape a blanket over your legs and feet.
• Forcefield: Learn the dark arts and conjure a forcefield around your bare feet to keep them warm and comfy.

Prop Head

There are multiple ways you can go about propping up your head in order to sleep at your desk. If you are truly skilled, you will find that your head won't need anything to prop it up, but will stay up on it's very own. Be careful with this though, many a keyboard face has happened from improper head propage. To prop your head:

• Rest Head on Hand: Must have strong wrists and rings must be removed from fingers first.
• Rest Head on Back of Chair: This only works with high back chairs.
• Shoulder Stick: Fashion a shoulder stick that you can rest your head upon and claim that you have a spinal condition that requires you to wear the shoulder stick.

Look Busy

This is perhaps the most important aspect of sleeping at your desk. You MUST look busy. Here are some ways to do this:

• Keep Hand on Mouse: Keep one hand on the mouse and occasionally flinch in your sleep to keep your screensaver from coming up.
• Hold Pen in Hand: Hold a pen in your hand and have it poised to paper.
• Hold Sheet of Paper in Front of Face: Remember that the paper must have actual work on it for this to be viable.
• Make a Deal with Neighbor: Bribe your neighbor with snacks or money to occasionally talk to you about work stuff when the boss comes by. This makes it seem like you are actively participating.

New Post

Sarah said that I should post a new post, so here I am posting. Not much is going on right now. So, this post will most likely be lame. Blame Sarah, it is her fault.

Last Saturday Matt and DJ mowed and cleaned up the lawn. It is nice to have DJ around to do work for us... I mean... to be around. Then, we washed all of our cars because it was warm outside and all sunny and stuff. But, then I got tired and had to go lay down.

I seem to be tired all the time right now. Which is weird because I sit down at work all day and then I am all exhausted when I get home. I guess sitting around and staring at a computer is hard work.

Matt and I are going to see Indiana Jones tomorrow. I'm hoping that it will be interesting to watch. If it really sucks, I'll be sure to post about it so that the lot of you don't waste your money. Jenni Elyse seems to believe in the movie, but she does get obsessed with these things.

Last week I went to the Stephenie Myer signing at Thanksgiving Point. We waited in line a really long time and then waited even longer in our seats. But, it was fun to be in a room full of Twilight fans and to hear Stephenie answer questions about Twilight and The Host. If you haven't yet ready either of these books, do it, they are totally worth it and totally awesome. Unless you are a guy, not many guys like Twilight, though I think that guys would like the Host because it is a sci fi based book. For a synapsis and review of the book, see jennielyse.com. She writes good reviews and she is a lot more passionate about this topic than I am.

Okay, thus ends my lame post... enjoy.

A Trip to Washington

I finally went to Washington! About a month ago, I bought tickets for Matt and I to go to Washington to see Mom and Dad Kimball. But, then, when it was time to go, I was very sick and was unable to fly (shocker!). So, we had to reschedule the trip to two weeks later. Then, I got sick again and we weren't sure if I would be able to go, but I was well enough to travel. Yay!

We flew into Seattle on Friday and Mom and Dad picked us up at the airport. Not much went on on Friday because I was really tired and went straight to bed. Saturday, it was all rainy and gloomy, so we hung around the house with Anne and Carlitos (who were also there). Carlitos is getting so big and he is very much a little boy. He enjoys wrestling and tackling people and dogs. He had so much energy, I was not able to keep up. The only eventful thing that happened on Saturday was that we went to Walmart and I got gaterade. I like gaterade.

Sunday we went to church with the fam and it was very enjoyable. Carlitos was saying "hola" to everyone there, which is cute and annoying at the same time. Then, I was able to go to Sunday School and Relief Society. I haven't been to those classes in a while since I'm all in the primary and stuff. On Sunday, I learned to play Golf, the card game. I thought that I knew how to play this game, but Mom and Anne showed me a whole new way to play. Their way to play is a lot more fun than the way that I knew how to play.

On Monday, Anne and Carlitos went back to Chili. We were sad to see them go, but Anne missed her husband very much. She had been in the states for a month while he was in Chili. Anne had problems with Alaska airlines when she went to fly out and I felt bad for her because she is seven months pregnant, with a one year old, flying alone and the airlines were less than accommodating. I blame the french because Alaska airlines is named after Alaska, which is close to Canada, and some people in Canada speak french, so they must be distant relatives of THE french. I've decided to make connections back to the french. It gives more credence to my blamings.

Monday was kinda sunny. We saw the sun for a little while anyway, so we took advantage and went to the park to walk Sheena. We hardly ever saw the sun in Washington. I was starting to think that Puyallup was a cursed town that the sun didn't visit, but I was sort of wrong. The sun just rarely visits. Then, we went to dinner at a Mexican restaurant and then went to see Iron Man. It turned out to be a really good movie. I had heard that it had gotten good reviews, and I concur. I put my good review in with all those others. I wouldn't call it a super hero movie, but rather a movie with a man who changes into a hero type person. I'm thinking that Iron Man, the comic book character wasn't ever really a hero, fighting for truth and right. He doesn't have the same moral values as Superman, Batman or Spiderman, but I think that is what makes him a good hero. He is more human than the other heroes. Or, that is how the movie portrayed him. I really enjoyed the movie. I'm going to see it again on Friday with my team at work. So, maybe I will give a better review at that time of the movie.

On Monday, we also went and helped Mom and Dad throw a Cinco de Mayo party for the 30+ single adults in their stake. It is one of their many callings. While we were there, Matt and I became very grateful for our marriage. I am so glad that I am not included in those 30+ single adult bracket because the pickings are slim! Matt thanked me many times for saving him from that fate. The event was not really fun for me as I didn't participate, but the people and their children seemed to enjoy it. The children were somewhat feral and severely hyper active. I really haven't grown to like children yet. I like my nieces and nephews and that is really where it stops. Kids bug me.

Tuesday, we flew home without incident. It was an easy flight, I slept most of the way. It was a good trip! I am glad to be home. I missed my comfy bed and my giant tv in my bedroom. The first thing I did was catch up on my shows that I missed. I hope that Jason Castro gets kicked off of American Idol.

Comic Book Bec

My friend Jenni Elyse got a Mac Book recently. I decided to have a little fun with the camera and make myself into a comic book character.

"Don't mess with my fists of flying fury!"

"Kataahh!"

Missing my Kellikins

Kelli goes into the MTC today. She is called to the Tallahassee, Florida mission. I'm really going to miss her. I went to her house last night to say goodbye to her and I cried like a little girl. I am so proud of her for making this decision, this sacrifice, to go and serve the Lord. And, even though I will miss her very much, I know that the people in her mission need her more than I do.

For all of you Kelli lovers out there, her mom is keeping a blog of Kelli's adventures. You can read about her at http://sisterkelliwilcox.blogspot.com/ . I don't know if she has anything up on the blog yet, but I'm sure that she will.

I'll miss you Kellikins!

A Family Weekend

This weekend was very much a family weekend. Mike came to Utah for his open house, to celebrate his wedding with all of his Utah friends. Even though Mike hates Utah with a firey passion, he still sacrificed and had a party here with his family and friends. He is so good to us.

It was actually a really busy weekend. Matt worked Saturday morning, so I was at home, alone, staining our kitchen cabinets and doing the laundry. We decided that we were going to stain our kitchen cabinets a darker stain and it has turned out to be a lot more work than it was first perceived. We first had to strip the cabinets of their current varnish, which was the hardest and smelliest part. Then, we had to stain the cabinets in three coats to get the dark shade that we want. But, we still have one more coat to do and we still have to stain all of the doors. There is a ways yet to go, but I think that it will be worth it in the end.

Saturday night, we went up to the parents for Mike's open house. The food was great, which is good, otherwise I might not have come. And, there were a ton of people there that I haven't seen in a long while, including: the recently engaged Justin, the Deavers, Grandma Moses (she retold the tale of her pedifile tenant, very funny), and Mike & Lisa. It was good fun to see these old friends and catch up a little/a lottle. A lot of them I haven't seen since my wedding and that was a year ago. But, I talked to them even less at my wedding because I purposefully ignored people at my reception. Lines are evil.

We stayed at the parents for many hours and then we went over to Norm and Rand's for games. We played "Bang," a new card game that I recently bought. There were 9 of us playing and the game lasted until 11pm, but there were many a "bang" joke made during the night. At one point, Anthon said, "I'm going to bang everyone one of you." And we all laughed because we are five years old.

Sunday, Matt and I went to Kellikins's farewell. I know that Kelli isn't technically family, but she has been around long enough to warrant an adoptive title. We went to Kelli's and talked with the highschool friends for a few hours prior to the sacrament meeting. Well, I talked and Matt ate massive amounts of oranges. He really liked the oranges there. Then, we went to the meeting. Kelli's talk was amazing. She is a very good writer and a very good story teller. She will do very well on her mission.

Sunday was the family Easter do-over day. We didn't celebrate Easter with the whole family last week, so we got together this week to do it. Matt and I picked up Krista Bright (Johnny's girl) and we headed up to the parents for the second time in one weekend. Mike and Lisa had already flown back to CA, so we were Mike and Lisa-less. Johnny, Krista Bright, Matt, and I hid the Easter eggs for all of the family. It was fun hiding eggs. It is one of my favorite parts of Easter, hiding the eggs. I don't like finding the eggs as much, because that is a lot more difficult, but hiding the eggs is a good time. Matt helped hide Johnny and Krista Bright's eggs and we hid them really difficult. One egg, we put inside of a fan vent in the ceiling. But, Johnny had no problem finding them all. Curse that Johnny. Johnny hid our eggs and we did have trouble finding them. Our patience would run out after about ten minutes of searching and then we would ask for hints. But, it was fun to run around the house looking for eggs. I hid Marie and Anthon's eggs really easy because they hate to look for eggs, but I hid them a little too easy because the little kids stole the eggs before Ree and Fish could get to them. Got 'em there!

After egg hunting, we all ate... well, everyone else ate and I sat with Tommy Thomerson. I was all full from the snacking I did before dinner. Then, we played a few games. It had been a long time since the family, the "kids" had all played games together. It was weird because we are all couplized now. All the marrieds, Johnny and Krista, and Baby and G-money. It was weird. We played Mafia first. This was a fun game, for a few rounds at least. No one ever trusted Norm, G-money lied a lottle, Krista can't lie worth beans, and Ree got killed a lot. Good times. Then, we played a round of Bang and it went a lot faster than Saturday... thankfully. I tricked everyone into thinking that I was the deputy and Sarah, who was actually the deputy, got really mad about it. I like getting her flustered, it is funny.

After games, we finally all went home and the weekend of family fun was over. It was a good, but very busy weekend.

Side note: Played laser tag with the highschool friends last night. My team lost, but I took first place. Gotcha there former Marine Tim.

Editing Books

So, I'm editing this novel for this guy at my work. He is paying me a little money to complete it because I am taking so dang long to finish it. It is one of those books that seems to be in its first stages, so there is a lot of editing to do. Anyway, this is taking up most of my free time lately as I am trying to meet my deadline. But, I was thinking that I could probably start my own little editing business. I am really good at editing and the majority of the time, I like it. So, I was thinking that I could start a side business for a little extra money.

My friends often ask me to edit their stuff creative writing and their school writing for them. I've edited a novel before and I thought that I did good job at leaving comments and such. So, I was thinking that I should start charging. I'm not really sure what a good rate for editing is, so I'm thinking that I'm going to do some research on the internet and come up with something.

Then, I'm thinking that I could start like a webpage or something and advertise myself so that I could get a little work. I know that some of my blog readers know a thing or two about starting their own business and marketing themselves, and so, I am asking for guidance.

I'm Goin' to San Fran!

Off to San Francisco... or Fremont rather, I am going. Mike, my beloved brother is getting married this weekend and the whole family is heading out to see him get hitched. I'm thinking he must be really popular to get the whole family to come out to him. But, I guess since he travelled all the way back to Utah for my wedding, it is the least I can do. He should realize though that my presence is his gift. (Like I could buy him a gift anyway, he didn't even register!)

Hopefully, this San Fran visit will be as good as my last, where I met James Marsters for the first time. But, it is a lot to hope for. I probably won't meet any famous people. Unless Lisa is hording some really famous relative. I guess I will have to be happy with seeing my older brother get married. Sigh. This may be a long trip as my whole family will be there. Matt and I are sharing a room with Anthon and Marie, hopefully they don't snore.

Happy Marriage Mike~!

Iron Chef Food

This is a pic of the iron chef food table. I really should have taken the pic early on in the party becaues most of the food has been eaten in this pic. A lot of the fancier food is gone. The pedistal of oranges is completely void of rolls. Alas! But, you get the idea.

Birthday Cake!

These are pictures of me with my Birthday cake. I made my own cake this year because it was my entry for the Iron Chef competition. You may also notice that the cake is sittng on a sparkly purple platter. Matt and I got that platter for our wedding and we weren't really sure what to do with it, but now it is the birthday cake platter. Hopefully, we will get many years of use out of it.

Birthday Guests

Here is a pic of the parents, Jake and Jill and Darin. The parents brought orange spare ribs, and Jake and Jill brought Asian salad. They were both delicious!
Here are some pics of random... or valued birthday guests. It was a monumental night because after years of inviting Nefi to my parties, he finally came. But, he brought a really yummy dish and it beat my dish in judging, so maybe I shouldn't invite him any more.

Rachel, Tim and Natalie are all a little weird, and that is why they are pictured here. Rachel and Tim brought Nutmeg Orange Rolls and Natalie brought Angel food cake that she made in her car. She was like the second lowest scoring dish, next to Sarah's Crush soda.

My Bros

I don't know why brothers like to make funny faces and extend their pointer fingers, but here it is. I was just glad that both Johnny and DJ were able to come to the party.

Iron Chef!

Here is a couple pictures of the Iron Chef herself!

Erin and Jeff

Erin and Jeff were a lot of fun at the party. Erin brought Orange salsa and Jeffy brought Orange cheesecake. I'm not really sure why they are looking at each other this way in this picture. There was definitely a weird vibe comin' off them at the party. When they were playing games up in the guest bedroom, Erin kept paying Jeff money in exchange for eventual favors. I wonder if those favors will ever come.

Crazy old MattRee

Some very attractive photos from my birthday.

Birthday Results!

The Iron Chef theme was widely popular and the party was awesome. A lot more people came then I thought would and it was a very full house. My little 1400 sq. ft. house could barely accommodate the 30 people who showed up to the party. There was sooo much food at the party and it all included oranges. I think that I could go quite a while without eating oranges again.

So, Matt and spent the day cleaning the house and cooking our own orange dishes. I made Mandarin Orange Cake and Matt made Spicy Orange Pork Tenderloin. People started showing up around 6pm and everyone came with an orange dish. There was so much food and I wanted to try all of it, but I was full in the first 20 minutes. But, people kept coming and they all brought food and I just kept eating. I would have to say that this was the best birthday theme ever!

There was a lot of diversity in the dishes that people brought. There were desserts and main dishes and even salads. The taste of most everything was very good, but the presentation was where the food really shined. Darin and Deanne brought orange rolls on a three tiered platter, Alan and Cynthia brought Orange Chicken Kabobs on a fancily decorated plate, my cake was on a sparkly purple pedistal, and Jeffy decked out his cheesecake with orange slices and curled orange peel. Very fancy presentation.

So, five people judged on each dish and after every dish had been judged, we tallyed the votes. The results were as thus:

1st: Fruit Pizza- Elyse Blaser 94pts

2nd: Asian Orange Chicken - Marie Mecham, Mexican Orange Chicken - Nefi and Rose Ledezma 88pts

3rd: Mandarin Orange Cake - Becky Kimball, Spicy Orange Pork - Matt Kimball, and Orange Chicken Kabob - Cynthia Nelson 86pts

Second and third place was pretty close and there were a lot of ties, but first place was overwhelmingly the fruit pizza. It was so very good and I wish that I had gotten a picture of it, but right when it arrived, it got eaten very quickly. I tried almost every dish and it really was the best there. I would try to describe the dish, but I'll let the chef do that. I'm really going to need the recipe because it was really good!

The party went really well. Everyone ate, lots of people chatted, others played Wii, and others used the upstairs guest bedroom to play "games." It was a lot of fun and it really was a low maintenance party. I loved it and I think it was one of my best parties yet.

To those of you who missed it, you really missed out. But, I will find a way to forgive you if you make it to my next party. Which will probably be Halloween. So, start planning your costume ideas now!

Thanks to all who came and participated in the game! The food really made the party.

Iron Chef!

As many of you know, the theme for my birthday this year is Iron Chef! What is Iron Chef you say? Well, it is a very funny and entertaining Japenese cooking show that involves two chefs who compete in an intense one-hour cooking competition. And, in that one hour, they must create at least five dishes that contain the secret ingredient. I love this show, I'm sad that the original is no longer on the air. Fortunately, the Americans picked it up and we now have Iron Chef America. A chef of reknowned cooking talent comes on the show and challenges one of the Iron Chefs. Well, my birthday is following this pattern... sort of.

For my birthday, everyone is competing to become the Next Iron Chef. And party attendees must bring a dish containing the secret ingredient. The secret ingredient is oranges. Then, people will judge each dish on Taste, Plating, and Originality.

It should be a good fun. I'm all excited to see what people will bring. I'll give a post birthday report of the events after they occur. I'm guessing that we might get people who just bring oranges, or orange juice or orange soda.... we'll see.

Babies, No Babies!

So, I've been hearing a lot about babies recently. There are babies in my family; there are babies that will soon be in my family; my friends are having babies; my friends are trying to have babies, and babies pretty much want to take over the world. I am torn in my ideas about babies.

Being Pregnant: The idea of being pregnant is both fascinating and frightening. It is fascinating because I think that it would be cool to have another person growing inside me and feel it grow into a little person. I also like the idea that it would be mine and I would have made another little person. The idea of a person growing from a little egg into a person totally trips me out in a cool way. But, the idea of being pregnant is also scary/revolting to me. Pregnancy makes you into a crazy person! You get sick and hormonal and fat. These things are just not a good combo. And, I hear that Pregnancy leads to birth.

Birthing: Yuck and ouch, no good can come from this.

Babies: The idea of babies is good if you have a very positive attitude. If my babies could be perfect, that would be great. A perfect baby would always be clean, would only need a diaper change twice a day, would never cry, would love to cuddle, would not bite, would sleep through the night, and would have lots of hair on it's head so that it would be cute. Unfortunately, I can't be guaranteed such a baby. But, such a baby is very appealing to me. I think that babies are purposely made really cute so that we don't hate them. But, the idea of having a little person, who is mine, to love sounds really nice. Plus, babies turn into kids and kids are even worse than babies!

Kids: Kids are a consequential result of babies. I think that we should make some sort of hybrid human that are always cute babies. Like those miniature dogs and cats. Only, the hybrid baby would be able to feed itself and be independent and stuff. Kids always seem to be sticky. Their faces always have some sort of food or glue stuck to it and they are always dirty. I often don't want to touch children because I don't know where they have been and they have foriegn substances on their face. Kids are so completely co-dependent and they are need you for stuff. Plus, they are really expensive. Kids also take up a lot of valuable time. That is time that I could be spending with Matt, who I like better than kids. Oh yeah, kids are loud! I don't know why they feel the need to scream all the time, but scream they do. I find it very annoying. I find it even more annoying when parents think it is completely okay to let their children run around wild while screaming. Kids do have their good sides, in that, they are sometimes cute and sometimes sweet. Plus, if you get smart or talented kids, you can be all proud of them. I'm just not sold on the benefits of the kid.

Once you have kids, you can't give them back like I did that puppy that got annoying. I hear that you have to keep kids forever! That is quite the commitment. Sometimes, when I'm thinking that I want children, I just remember that my life will no longer be mine once I have children. Any aspirations that I have for Matt or myself will most likely be put on hold if children are in existence. I do want children, and I do get a little jealous when I see other pregnant women, but I'm thinking that kids are just not the right thing right now.

Holiday Update

Christmas vacation was awesome! Matt and I went to Washington (with DJ) to see his parents. We pretty much sat around the whole time and played lots of games. It was a perfect Christmas. The best part was that when I put Matt in charge of packing the toiletries, he packed not only our stuff, but Sarah's. Sarah had stayed at our house the night before we were to leave for Washington and Matt packed her stuff with ours. We did not realize the mistake until we got a frantic/angry call from Sarah while we were at the airport that morning. I blame Matt entirely for this mistake. It just goes to show that I should have packed the bag myself. I thought that I was safe because I set out everything that was to be packed on the counter, but Sarah foolishly placed her bag of stuff right by the stuff to be packed. Good times.

After Christmas, Matt and I hit Walmart for those stellar "after Christmas" sales. We got a Christmas tree complete with decorations, skirt, lights, and garland for about $100. It was all 50% off. So, next year we will be decorating for Christmas. I am very excited. It will be my first Christmas with my very own tree and stuff. Apart from that construction paper tree that Annah and I had or the Harry Potter shrine of Lisa and Rachel's.

On New Year's Eve, we had a party at Kelli's parent's house. Matt and I were throwing the party, but we held it at Kelli's because of the superior entertainment oportunities. Matt and I's house is not yet decked out to be a party house. I've not yet even had a party at our house. I guess that will have to be what my Birthday is for. The New Year's Eve party went great! We had a good turn out with probably 20 people. There was Guitar Hero, the Wii, Pit, Air Hockey, Darts, Michael Jackson music videos, and lots of food. I think it was one of my best parties yet, and it didn't even have a theme! I guess themes aren't everything.

Hopefully, January will be slow for me. I think that I've had enough fun and entertainment for a while. I can now start to plot... or plan my Birthday party. All the cool people will be invited.

Christmas Tag

Okay, I've never done one of these "tag" things before because I usually have more intelligent/irrelevant things to talk about. But, it is Christmas and I'm the worst at keeping my blog up to date, so I'll try it.

Small disclaimer, here's the thing about Christmas for me, I have my traditions from my family and Matt has his traditions from his family, so we haven't really started our own family traditions. This year we are going to Washington to spend Christmas with his parents, so I will get to learn all of his family's Christmas traditions. But, we won't develop our own meshed traditions until we have a Christmas on our own. Who knows when that will be. So, my answers will be referring to my family traditions... minus Matt.

Wrapping paper or gift bag? I like to wrap the presents I give aways because then I can make them all pretty and festive with ribbons and sparkly bows. I thought I was a fairly decorative wrapper, but then I got a gift from Erin this year and she totally showed me up. I've decided that next year I need to buy much cuter wrapping supplies. I want everyone to marvel at my wrapping skills to the point that they don't want to open the gift because it is just too pretty. I'm not sure why I feel the need to be the best at everything.

Real tree or artificial? Artificial all the way! Real trees, though they smell good, are way too much of a hassle. You have to clean the needles off of your carpet and water it all the time and hope that it doesn't die before Christmas and they are really expensive and lame. Pass. This year, we actually have no tree because we are going to be away for Christmas and we didn't want to go and buy a tree.

When do you put up your tree? In my family, we put up the tree the day after Thanksgiving. Mostly because we have the day off work and therefore have time to do it. My parent's have a 12 foot tree, so it is quite the ordeal to put it up.

When do you take down your tree? Well, I usually help put up the tree and then opt out of helping to take it down. It is the perk of not actually having a tree at my own place. Gotcha there Mom.

Do you like egg nog? Egg nog is yummy if it is the low fat kind. The other kinds are much to thick and sweet for drinking.

Favorite gift received as a child? Bill got all of us girls pearl necklaces one year.

Do you have a nativity scene? I have exactly one Christmas decoration to my name and that is the Christmas ornaments that my Grandma Chipman gave to me. Unfortunately, I don't have a tree to put them on. So, they live in my extra closet.

Hardest person to buy for? Bill, because he buys everything he wants and claims to not want anything. So, we usually try to buy him things he needs or things that Mom won't let him buy himself.

Easiest person to buy for? Sarah because you can get her anything and she will love it! All I have to do is think about the things that I want and buy them for Sarah and I've gotten her the things that she wants. I wish that I picked Sarah's name every year.

Worst Christmas gift you’ve ever received? One year, when I lived in Hawaii, my boyfriend told me that he was waiting for my gift to come in the mail so he didn't have it for me before I went home from Christmas. I was a kind and patient girlfriend and said it was okay, expecting to get this unknown gift upon my return to Hawaii. Then, when I came back to Hawaii, he was odd and weird with me and kept avoiding me and a week later he broke up with me. I never got my supposed Christmas gift. I'm thinking that he never got me anything and never planned to. It was the worst because I put a lot of thought and effort into getting his gift for him. What a waste.

U.S. Mail or e-mail Christmas cards? I like receiving real mail, but I like giving email.

Favorite Christmas movie? How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the original cartoon version. Classic!

When do you start shopping for Christmas? The day after Thanksgiving.

Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Sure! If I get a stupid gift from a person a barely care about, then I save it for the next year and give away that stupid gift to another person that I barely care about. Eventually, I just stop giving gifts to people that I don't see often.

Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Dar dar dar... it's a real food!

White or colored lights? Those white/blue ones, not the ugly white/yellow ones.

Favorite Christmas songs? Oh Rest Ye Merry Gentlement by the Bare Naked Ladies.

Travel for Christmas or stay home? Travel! This year at least.

Angel or star on top of tree? Star? I don't know, I don't own ornaments yet.

Open presents Christmas Eve or morning? In my family, we open one present on Christmas Eve and then open the rest on Christmas morning. I usually liked to open my stocking on Christmas Eve.

Most annoying thing about this time of year? The traffic.

What I love most about Christmas? Spending time with my family.

So, now I'm suppose to tag this to people or something, but no one I know would actually do this but me because I'm kinda lame. So, I'm going to have to say Jasmine because she is the only one I know who consistently updates her blog. Other than that, I say feel free to answer any of the above questions that you feel like answering in the comments section.

Merry Christmas!

Is it Christmas Yet?

I am excited for Christmas. This is mostly because I am taking a vacation for Christmas. Matt and I are going to Washington to see his parents for Christmas. I really like the idea of not working for 6 days and not cooking or doing house work for 6 days. That is just going to be a good time.

The best part of Christmas is the food and the not working. Sadly, I only get Christmas Day off as a holiday and I have to use my PTO for the other days that I have off. Suprisingly, I actually have days off. I haven't been sick in one whole month *knocks on wood.*

Matt is currently sick which is tragic for him and for me because I don't like seeing him sick. I wish that we both could be in good health all of the time. That would be nice.

This will be my first Christmas away from home and although I am excited to spend the time with the Kimball's, I will really miss my family. I like my family traditions and I like things to not change, but I am attempting to embrace differences. Eventually, Matt and I will have to create our own Christmas traditions that we will teach to our own offspring someday, but I am content to use our parent's traditions for a little while.

I didn't even decorate for Christmas at all this year. I figured that since we would be gone for Christmas, and since our only Christmas decorations are a set of ornaments that my Grandma Chipman gave me, that we would just not decorate this year. We have big plans to go and buy decorations at the after Christmas decoration sales. That way, we can get decorations for cheap.

I want to become one of those women who has decorations for every holiday and my house looks very festive every month (Natalie's Mom), but I'm just not sure if I have the patience for it. I want my house to look cool without any work from me. That would be great.

I've already finished all of my Christmas shopping. Yay! I went last weekend with Erin and I got it all done in a four hour shopping trip. It was quite fun. I like shopping for other people because it is like guilt free shopping. Matt still has a little shopping to do, but that is for gifts for me, so I'm not allowed to go with him. I know how much he hates shopping, so I am not surprised that he has put this off as long as possible.

Christmas is the best.

Whoopsi Doodle

I love/hate the snow.

I love the snow because it is all cold and frozen and pretty and fun to play in. But, I hate the snow because it makes driving a pain and it is all cold and frozen and wet. Plus, snow creates ice. Ice, is mean/evil, unless it is cooling my drink.

And, don't even get me started on how ice means ice picks. There will be no ice picks. (Trotski anyone?)

So, today, as I was walking into work, my foot happened to fall on a patch of ice and it slipped. At first, I thought I was going to fall, but I happened to get my other foot under me and temporarily steady myself. Unfortunately, that other foot also stepped down on the same patch of ice and quickly slipped as well. I still had hope of keeping my feet as a did a Goofy on ice foot slide maneuver, but, in the end, the ice got the better of me and I fell on my butt. Now, normally, this would not be so bad because I didn't fall too hard and I caught myself on my hand. (Gravel Hand!) But, the smokers who smoke in the Gazeebo at work caught the whole thing. They were all concerned and "Oh, are you okay," which I guess is better than laughing, but it was still embarrassing. It is one thing to slip on the ice while you are alone and have no one see it and it is another to have people see your not so graceful fall. If my fall had been graceful, I think I would have been more okay with it, but it was all slidy and awkward with limbs flailing everywhere. Needless to say, I hate snow.

Black Friday

So, I didn't intend to go shopping on Black Friday, but the prospect of good deals teased me into joining the crowds. I haven't done any real shopping (unless you count Walmart) in a very long while. I enjoy shopping and I enjoy getting great deals on stuff even more. So, Matt and I ventured over to Towne Centre on black Friday.

Matt has been wanting me to have "real" tennis shoes for a while now, so we purchased some Pumas for me when we hit Famous Footwear. Apparently, ballet shoe Sketchers aren't "real" shoes. Matt says that Sketchers really aren't good for any physical activity. So, I was banned from choosing them as my tennis shoe even though they were a lot more cute than any of the other shoes that I saw there. I admit that I needed some good exercise shoes so that I have adequate footwear on those rare occasions that I actually decide to be active. Unfortunately, Marie and Anthon saw my new shoes as an opportunity to try to get me to play raquet ball with them. I don't have anything against raquet ball in that you have to move around and exercise, it is more the being hit with the ball that turns me off from the sport.

Whilst shopping, I was able to pick up some of the Christmas gifts on my list of people to buy for. Even though Christmas is still a month away, it is nice to have some of my shopping done. I think that the hardest Christmas shopping will be buying for Matt. I have ideas on what to get him, but I have to find time away from him to actually go and buy gifts and then I have to find a way to hide them in the house so that he doesn't discover them early. This being married and living in the same house with someone while hiding gifts is all new to me. Secrets to hiding gifts are welcome.

Matt and I went to Best Buy because they usually have pretty good deals on TV on DVD on black Friday, but we didn't get there until 2pm. By 2pm, all of the good stuff is gone or the time sensitive sales are over. Alas! Next year I will have to shop earlier. Earlier means more crowds, but it is worth it to get all the seasons of Smallville on DVD for $20 a piece.

Shopping on Black Friday was a success, but I still have much Christmas shopping left to do. Now all I have to do is actually have the money to go shopping. Curse a mortgage payment and financial responsibility!

Thanksgiving Already

I'm apparently the worst blogger ever. It has almost been a month since I last blogged. I'm the worst. It is almost Thanksgiving and November is almost over. It is trippin' me out.

I would report on my life goings ons, but nothing has really been going on. I go to work, I come home, Matt and I cook dinner and then we watch TV. It is all very thrilling.

I have taken up a new hobby. My friend Elyse, from work, is teaching me to crochet. I was tired of the same two scarves that I wear most everyday and I wanted to make myself a new one. So, I bought some yarn and a hook and Elyse taught me how to crochet. I've crocheted four scarves now and I'm always looking for a new stitch to learn. It is nice to have something to do with my hands when I have to sit and be quiet in places. I get a lot of crocheting done during church because I can crochet and listen at the same time. It is a pleasant new hobby that I have taken up. Plus, I get pretty new scarves and things when I finish with a project.

For Thanksgiving this year we are going to the parent's cabin in Park City. We are spending the night on Wednesday and eating Thursday afternoon. All of the brothers and sisters as well as many of the nieces and nephews will be there so it will either be really fun or really annoying. We are driving ourselves so that we can leave at any time.

I'm excited for the time off work for Thanksgiving. Not that work is difficult or time consuming, but sometimes it can be really annoying. Like this meeting that wouldn't end yesterday. It was beyond annoying and the speaker spoke so very slow and by the end I was about ready to scream. I don't like working late to accommodate for a meeting.

Hopefully, life will get more interesting in good ways. If not, I hope that it stays blissfully boring.