Bag Lady

My friend ("Sister") came over today and brought me some bags. Bags of clothes! I've mentioned before that I have no sisters (no sisters = no hand-me-downs). There are some great clothes in there that I will use in the upcoming seasons! I'm even going to wear something new today! THANK YOU, Sister!!

Favorite New England tradition

Today was apple picking! It was a gorgeous day; sunny and seventy! There was a big crowd from the ward and everybody had a great time. Confession: I didn't pick any apples but bought a 1/2 peck of honey crisp apples which are delicious for eating.

In memory

Today is the 9th anniversary of my brother Robes' death. In his memory I had French bread, cheese, and strawberries for dinner and then went to see "Ratatouille". (He was a missionary in France--loved French bread and cheese--and was a gourmet-ish cook. I'm sure he would have enjoyed the movie.) I miss him every day.

Brother/boyfriend

My brother Robes and I were in college together for 2 1/2 years and for most of that time we lived in the same apartment complex (Roman Gardens). Two of our cousins lived in the complex also (the beginning of "Cousins Club"). I remember looking back on that time and realizing that we saw each other every day except one! I never would have predicted that! We ate lunch together on campus, we took turns cooking dinner for each other, we studied together, we would go together to visit our grandparents in Salt Lake City and we were in the same ward. Robes gave me a key to his VW bug and would let me borrow it. His gas gauge didn't work and sometimes I would borrow his car during the day to run errands (without asking...) and then he would run out of gas. Anyway, a girl in the complex once asked me if Robes was my boyfriend. I was shocked that anyone would think that and said to her, "look at us; we look so much alike." We weren't boyfriend and girlfriend even though we are holding hands in the first picture! The second picture was taken in February of 1997 when he was on a business trip to Boston.

Schwinn bikes

We were big fans of Schwinn bikes. I had a "blue breeze", Robert had a red bike (I'm not sure what it was called), and John had a "lemon peeler".

Robert and I rode our bikes to elementary school and they were the same size and had black seats. One day when school was over we went to the bike racks to get our bikes and ride home and both of our seats had been stolen! I remember standing there, paralyzed, not knowing what to do. (I probably started crying.) I think I asked Robert to go to the office with me so we could call our mom to pick us up. I remember him saying no way, hopping on his bike, and riding away -- standing up! My mom came to pick me up, we put my bike in the car and I got a ride home. We went to the Schwinn shop and bought two new seats for our bikes. We never had any trouble after that.

This picture is of me and John with our bikes (pre-lemon peeler) in our front yard.

VW buses

We had an orange VW bus (I guess that's pretty obvious from this picture). My brothers and I learned to drive in that car. The clutch in the bus wasn't easy to use and so when my older brother Robes learned to drive, the car lurched back and forth and back and forth while he was trying to ease the clutch out and go to the next gear. It was hilarious (not for him, I'm sure, but it was for his younger siblings). I remember being in the back seat laughing and laughing and laughing while he was trying to learn how to drive on the streets in our neighborhood. I laughed so hard that...well...I laughed so hard.













I saw this fabric a few months ago and thought it was really cool and decided to make my nephew some pajama pants for his birthday (which was a few weeks ago...). I started them last night and I finished them tonight. I thought Jamel would like something that reminded him of his dad.

















I sure hope they fit!

Happy Birthday, Janae!

Happy Birthday to one of my best friends ever! I met her a little over 5 years ago when they moved to Boston for grad school. I have so many great memories and even though she lives far away now she's only a phone call away. She's an amazing friend and I hope she's having a great birthday today!

6 month photo shoot

Cora is 6 months old! I got some fun photos of her today.

12-hour day

I left my house at 11:00am this morning and just got back at 11:00pm. The event went really well and my room of displays (1999-present) looked good. My favorite parts of the day were meeting some new people, the dinner, and hearing Claudia Bushman and Chase Peterson speak about their years living in Cambridge. Claudia's talk was especially good; I'd love to give a copy to every woman that moves to Boston! I'm exhausted and relieved that this event is over. And, I'm glad I don't have church until 3:30pm tomorrow!

This is what I wanted

On the way back from lunch today I decided to get an ice cream bar. I stood in front of the machine holding my dollar bill. Ice cream sandwich? Strawberry shortcake bar? Fudgesicle? I stared at all the options for at least two minutes and finally settled on a drumstick. I dug around my purse for a quarter (some were $1.00 and some were $1.25) and then put my money in the vending machine. I pushed the buttons for A-3 and then watched the ice cream bar fall. I ended up with some cookies and cream bar with crushed cookies covering it.

After all that, I must have pushed the wrong buttons.

Feliz Cumpleanos!

Today is my nephew's birthday! This picture was taken the first time we met when I went to Florida for Christmas in 1987 and he was 3 months old. He's 20 now, 6' 3", and is a missionary in Argentina having lots of great experiences and adventures.

I'm a winner!

I will be getting a package in the mail! Read about it here.

Mirror, mirror on the wall...

...you know you are the fairest of them all (pasty white) when your dermatologist tells you that you are "fair as ever". I had an appointment on Friday to get my skin checked. The doctor sprayed my face 7 times with liquid nitrogen (ouch--it stings!). I never wear sunscreen but today decided that I'd buy some that will fit in my purse (my co-worker recommended Aveeno) and I'll start using it. Baby steps...

N-O spells NO

I volunteered to help with a BIG church event this coming weekend. I'm responsible for a display of the church in this area from 1999-present which basically means the Boston Temple era. I dug out some pictures I took the day the steeple and Angel Moroni were put on (almost a year after the dedication). I can't find all the negatives (no surprise -- "organize photos/negatives" is on one of my lists of projects) so I scanned some pictures in. They don't look as good but they'll do. I'm going to put a notebook together of newspaper articles about the temple and an album of photos. I'm hoping to find some good quotes and I have a few other ideas. My friend is helping me with the project--hooray!

It's a busy time of year. I've got lots of projects on my plate(s) and I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by this assignment.

One of these days I'll learn to say NO.

Cafeteria style

When we were kids and visited our Long Beach grandparents we often ate at the Queen Cafeteria. There was a girl that worked there who always asked (loudly, I might add), "Would you like a roll, muffeeeeem, or bread?" We'd tell her what we wanted, put it on our tray and slide on to the dessert.

Today I wanted a muffeeeeem (muffin). Blueberry and corn meal. I googled "blueberry cornmeal muffins" and this is what I found. I made them today and they were everything I wanted and more! I've enjoyed 3 so far and plan to deliver a few tonight to a friend who is under the weather and the remainder...well, we'll see how long they last and who ends up with them (my next door neighbor is a frequent recipient of my baking).

And, speaking of rolls. I made my own lobster roll last night for the first time ever! I just added some miracle whip and had some crazy New England hot doll rolls on hand and the lobster roll was delicious!

Clambake '07

Surprise -- you're 40!

Tonight was a surprise 40th birthday party for my friend Jana. Her husband went all out. Great food, great games, great fun. Some family and friends shared stories about Jana and they were funny. If I had had a chance I would have told this story:

One night when I was visiting Jana she asked if I wanted to go to Wal*Mart with her. I don't live close to a Wal*Mart so jumped at the chance to go. We started out in the women's clothes section and I heard Jana say, "I see our future" and I looked over to see two old ladies shopping together. I hope we are still going shopping together in thirty years!

I met Jana nearly 17 years ago when they moved here for her husband to attend graduate school. Fortunately they have stayed in the area (except for a two year stint in England) and we still see other on a regular basis. It's been fun to watch her 5 kids grow up (she has 2 redheads!). Jana is one of my dearest friends and I am so happy that our paths crossed many years ago and for all the great memories we have!

What is photographed in Vegas...

My brother Chuck recently took this picture in Las Vegas (for me? BIG E?). I haven't been to Vegas in 20 years (since before it became family- and convention-friendly...). We always drove through Vegas on the way to visiting relatives in Utah. We'd stop for gas and try to get back on the highway without going down the Strip and it was impossible! They tricked you into going down the Strip and then you'd want to gamble or have lunch (Vegas is the land of the cheap buffet). The Greyhound bus always made a pit stop in Sin City. Vegas is not my favorite place but I like this picture!

Handing out the Handbook

I helped one of my neighbors put together a Handbook for our condo association and tonight we went door-to-door and delivered all of them (70 to be exact). The Handbook includes information about trash/recycling, building maintenance, fire alarms, snow removal, noise and odors, pets, roof access, voting, water and much much more! It will be a good resource for me and my condo comrades.

My dinner

Bruschetta with fresh tomatoes and basil. Tonight was the 3rd time I've eaten it in 4 days! Easy...yummy...photo worthy.

Missing ingredient(s)

We had a Community Picnic today at work. What a great idea! Lots of people, walking around outside, enjoying a free lunch (sandwiches, drinks, fruit, chips and dessert). Hmmm. The "dessert". I picked up a rice krispy treat. Or what I thought was a rice krispy treat. It was cardboard disguised as a rice krispy treat. Clearly the butter and marshmallow had been left out (how did they get them to stick together?). I couldn't finish it which is good because I wanted to photograph it for my blog before I recycled it.

Happy Fall?

It was chilly today; very Fall-ish. My friend gave me this squash from her garden. Until I figure out what to do with it, it makes for a nice Fall centerpiece!

Happy Birthday, Jamel!

Here are 17 pictures because you are 17. Love you, Aunt ellen