Johnson & Johnson

She's Here!

2011-04-30T17:28:00.000-07:00

Week 27

Week 28

Here's the post that I have been meaning to write for quite some time now! I am not the best at blogging consistently, but I'll try to be better. When I discovered I was pregnant in June, we were first surprised and then very excited! We both felt early on that it would be a girl, but of course, I didn't want to get my hopes up in case it wasn't. I didn't go in to a doctor till I was about 22-ish weeks, I think--something like that. I had a lot of trouble settling on a doctor and we had some insurance matters to settle, both adding to the delay. Also, I didn't realize quite how far along I was, so the doctor was really shocked when I came in and said it was my first visit! We were able to listen to the heartbeat on our very first appointment. It was pretty amazing--it sounded like a tiny, mini washing machine! I loved it. Our second appointment, which was the same week, was the ultrasound, which was my very most favorite appointment out of all! We found out we were having a girl and I was THRILLED! Olaf was happy, too, of course! We both really enjoyed seeing the ultrasound and thought it was amazing. That's when we were given my due date, set for February 25th.

Week 30

Week 33: New Year's Eve

Week 31: Christmas

Week 37; a few days before delivery!

I had a wonderful pregnancy. Although I had some small bouts of nausea during the first trimester, it was nothing too problematic--I just got dizzy and shaky without frequent food and only wanted to eat certain things, like toast. But that part passed pretty quickly, happily. I did have trouble with my sciatic nerve during my second trimester--I thought it was a bad pulled muscle for awhile until I read about it and asked my doctor about it. The trickiest part was our bed was really high at the time--we had it on cinderblocks and bed risers--and it hurt so much getting in and out of bed! Fortunately, that also went away with occasional flare-ups. I was happy that I felt well enough from my second trimester on to be able to exercise; I think it really helped overall. I only gained 26 pounds during my pregnancy and I was so grateful. The hard part of my pregnancy came in my 8th month--I developed bad carpal tunnel in my hands, especially my right; my legs and feet started to swell after long days, and I was much more uncomfortable walking due to how low (I assume) my baby was positioned at that point. Nonetheless, I was amazed how great I felt for the majority of my pregnancy. It was such a blessing! I was able to work the entire time up to the day before I delivered. Granted, my job is fortunately not a physically taxing one! I had a scare in December with some random bleeding and had to go to the hospital, but everything checked out fine and I was really thankful it was a false alarm. I had been truly scared for the safety of my baby; I'm so glad she was okay.

The day I went into labor was an interesting day. The prior weekend had been a hard one for me physically; Olaf and I had been madly cleaning, packing, and moving into a new apartment. It was rough going for me and I felt bad that I couldn't really lift anything and that I got tired so easily. Also, the apartment we moved into was disappointingly dirty; we had SO much heavy cleaning to do before we felt it was acceptable. I had really felt a toll on my body that weekend and my body was very uncomfortable; definitely the most so in my pregnancy at that point. Friday I experienced more unexpected bleeding and a lot of discomfort, but when I called my doctor's office I was told it was probably just pre-labor signs (my reading had said the same). It didn't necessarily mean anything timing-wise, just that my body was preparing itself. The nurses and doctors all kept saying most first-time mothers deliver late, so that was really firm in my mind and I didn't expect she would arrive any earlier than the 25th. I also had a work baby shower on Friday, so I walked uncomfortably over to the library for it and couldn't believe how hard it was to make the short walk. Looking back, I realize I was experiencing contractions on and off all that weekend but they felt nothing like I'd expected. Monday I had switched shifts with a coworker; I usually would work Tuesday but switched so she could enjoy her birthday. Those four hours were the hardest I've ever worked. I was okay for the most part as long as I was sitting down, but every time I had to get up to help a patron, which was quite often that day, I would hobble over to help them find their book or item and then hobble back to my chair and gratefully lower myself into it. The walk back home that evening was especially difficult and it was even snowing! I remember having to stop every few feet to bend over a bit to combat the discomfort. I kept thinking, "Am I going to be able to make it home?" even though it was so close. Needless to say, I was so happy to be home. I had gotten off work at 6 pm and went into active labor promptly at 6:30 pm according to my contractions. Unfortunately, our landlord came over at about 6:15 pm that night to make some adjustments to our door's weather stripping and I sat in the back room trying to be quiet despite my uncomfortable contractions! I was so happy when he left because Olaf was able to help me at that point. I labored in my back which was a very strange and unexpected sensation. It hurt, as all contractions do, but it made me doubt what they were because of the placement, but as soon as we realized the timing and duration we knew what it had to be. I dealt with it at home until 11 pm, sleeping a little here and there and trying to pack a hospital bag, until Olaf insisted we go to the hospital. As we walked in from the parking garage, a man exiting the building looked at me (I think he was wondering if he should help; I don't think it was immediately noticeable I was pregnant as I was wearing a bigger peacoat) and after passing us by, finally hollered, "Congratulations!" Aww. It took a long time to get to the admittance desk. I had to sit often and have Olaf push my lower back to help with my contractions. After we were admitted and in labor and delivery, we were told all the rooms were full and that we'd have to wait. The nurse asked me if that would be ok and I told her I would feel the same whether I was in a room or the lobby, so we waited. After maybe 20 minutes, we were finally ushered into a room where I got all ready and dressed in my fancy hospital gown (those things really need a little revamping) and checked by a nurse to see how dilated I was; I think I was at a 3.5. The nurse left and after only a short time being in the room, my water broke suddenly--I had been sitting on the edge of the bed and it was not a pleasant sensation but I knew what it was right away. However, when the nurse returned a few minutes later, she was surprised to hear it had broken and had to check to make sure. She told me I was definitely going to be having a baby! I already knew that, of course, because hospital policy declares you have to deliver within 24 hours of your water breakage to prevent infection, etc. Haha! Everything went pretty fast after that. I was SUPER uncomfortable and had a hard time being still during contractions. The nurse was so shocked with how fast I was progressing. The big problem was that my baby's heartbeat kept dipping, causing the doctor and nurses much concern. It got to a point where I had to have internal monitors attached and my doctor even said I might have to have a C-section if I didn't dilate to a 10 soon enough (I was at a 9.5). Thankfully, I progressed to a 10 in time but my doctor decided he needed to both perform an episiotomy and use forceps to ensure the fastest delivery possible to make sure she was okay. I was disappointed a bit but I trusted him to do what was best for my baby and me. I pushed about 4 times and she was born at 2:31 am! She was 2.5 weeks early; I couldn't believe it! Olaf said she opened her eyes as she was being born and looked right at him--her head and left arm had already appeared. He said it was both amazing and strange. I remember my doctor saying, "Looks like you have a little blondie!" and feeling so surprised because I somehow assumed she would be brunette, like me! He held her up to me after she was out and said, "Look at your little girl!" I had been concerned before that she would be too bloody and I wouldn't want to see that part, but she looked so sweet even right away! They whisked her over to the warming station, cleaned her up a bit, and got her to cry--what a sweet, tiny sound it was. Then I got to hold her against my chest for just a very short while. She looked so cute and was so tiny, weighing in at 6 pounds, 10 ounces, and 19 inches. I had been freezing and shivering during my whole labor but finally started to warm up a bit when I got to hold her. It was too short and then they had to wheel me out of the delivery room to another. While I was waiting for Olaf and our little Ava to return, I kept thinking over and over how wonderful the experience had been and how delighted I was she was here! It seemed so miraculous and I couldn't believe what had just happened. It went so fast! It had only been about 3.5 hours from arriving at the hospital to her birth; it was so surreal. I am so thankful for our sweet baby.

Ava Melise, just moments after birth

Ava's first diaper and shirt

Proud Daddy

Family of three!


So happy she's here.


Little blondie all bundled up! She kept her eyes shut for most of our hospital stay. We're amazed how much she resembles Olaf.

We're so happy our little darling baby is here! We love her so much and are so grateful to our Heavenly Father for sending her to us. Thank you, our dear friends and family, for all your prayers and support!

Wedding Headpiece

2010-10-28T22:34:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of making a wedding headpiece for a beautiful girl's wedding, Allison, daughter of a co-worker. She has a very specific idea in mind for it so I tried to get it as close to what she wanted as possible. Everything except for the vintage broach was completely handmade. It was such a joy to make and so fun to see her pictures afterward! She had a lovely wedding and her photographer, Collin Kartchner, is really talented. I think one of my favorite things is to make something for a person and then to see them wear and enjoy it--it's very fulfilling and fun for me! You can see more pictures here, if you'd like!

Bearded Lady

2010-08-15T22:27:00.000-07:00

I had the worst dream the other night...I dreamed I GREW A BEARD!

don't worry, this is just a photoshopped beard!

It was a terrible dream--it sounds ridiculous, and yes, Olaf and I laughed tons about it when I told him--but it was not fun to dream about sprouting a beard! I was horrified, in my dream, to find I had rough hairs bristling all over my lower face and I even tried to shave them off with Olaf's razor but my face was still rough and prickly. You know when guys shave with an electric razor and you can still feel the bristlies? That's what I dealt with. UGH! I was so relieved to realize the next morning that I had my own smooth, hair-free face back and no awful scratchy hairs all over it!

Want S'MRE?

2010-06-26T23:38:00.001-07:00

When Olaf returned from his training last year, he wanted to show me how to make one of his staple meals from training, called an MRE, or "Meal Ready to Eat." They're actually pretty amazing! The taste is a little less than amazing, but not bad--although Olaf reports some are pretty inedible (I think he referenced some kind of egg dish; guess the eggs never cook properly). Olaf showed me how to make a chicken soup dish:

Here is the MRE !

Opening the MRE--look how many items it has!

I love the tiny sauce bottle!

I guess it's a pretty big deal when you get chocolate in your MRE! OH yeah!

Sometimes you score hot cocoa, too! The package even reminds you to drink it. How thoughtful!

Instructions. Make sure you find a "rock or something!" Preferably not anything flammable...

Putting the food pouch in the heating bag

After filling the heat pouch with water, it begins to get so hot that it steams! The average mortal shouldn't hold the MRE while heating, but Olaf, Man of Steel, isn't affected by such inconsequential things as intense heat...

Make husband pose...isn't he handsome...

...and then eat the MRE! Squishy tastiness! Not my favorite meal, but very impressive! Plus, they make great food storage.

Happy Holidays!

2009-12-29T21:18:00.000-08:00

*photo taken by Rebecca; papers & elements from Shabby Princess

Handcrafted

2009-03-10T23:30:00.000-07:00

For this past Christmas, I made recipe tins for most of the gals in my family. I used white lunchbox-style tins and covered them with crafting paper, ribbon, and made button magnets for each tin, to be used to attach a recipe to the back of the tin when making a specific dish. The tins are pretty easy to make once you've made a template for yourself. There are some tins that allow you to detach the upper handle, but mine were attached with brads that didn't allow the removal, so I had a little more template-creating work. I don't use a very technical method to make my templates...I measure the height/total width for the body of the tin and cut two pieces to go around (that part's easy; you don't need a template for it because it doesn't matter how tall/short you make your two pieces for the body). If you make a template for the underside and top of the closure snap before, it will make things much easier--then you can simply trace that on the upper body piece.

On the upper lip of the lid, I do the same, again using a template to trace where the top of the closure will go.The top of the lid's tricker because with the type of tin I bought, I had to make two separate pieces to go on either side of the handles. Getting the paper to fit neatly around the handles is the most difficult part...truly, it's a lot of cutting out the template and trimming/re-trimming to get it exactly right.If you look carefully, you can see the seam on the top of the lid where the paper meets.

After I have all the pieces cut, I apply Mod Podge (or simply create your own decopauge with glue & water; it's the same thing) to the underside, allow it to dry (this is important...if you don't, the paper will likely buckle), and then give the whole thing a few topcoats of decopauge. I apply ribbon or paper strips wherever I think it looks good--often on the body paper division--and decorate with buttons or decorated chipboard. By the way, I never buy chipboard...I cut out old cereal boxes or use the backs of paper pads (the back cover) and stick whatever I want over top. It works beautifully.

You can see the button magnet on the inside of the lid, upper left.

I made dividers for the inside of the tin that would be tall enough to tab through easily but short enough to fit in the box nicely. You can make as many of these as you want by just using the same templates over and over; just vary where the tabs sit. I inked the sides of all the dividers with a distressing stamp pad because I didn't have much time; you could do lots of cute things to your dividers, including decorating them with paper that matches your tin. I bought plain recipe cards to go inside--again, you could stamp these, use paper punches, etc. I would keep them fairly simple, however. Pass on bulky. ( ;

If you want to make a button magnet, I would suggest using superglue to construct them--it works really well. Metal and plastic don't really adhere well with normal glues, but superglue lives up to its name. ( ; I do gluegun the buttons together if I plan on layering them, however. I used neodymium magnets, which are super-strength, but you can even recycle the magnets you get stuck to your phone book...just test them first to make sure they'll hold a recipe up.

Isn't she so gorgeous?

For my youngest sister, I made a feather headband--they're so cute but very expensive, if you're trying to buy one instead of make it! I bought a plastic headband and made sure it was a flexible, comfortable one (you can use any type you'd like, but if you want someone to actually wear it, make sure it's a comfy one).

Then I cut a piece of stiff felt in a large teardrop shape for the feather base. You can make your base in any shape you want; just consider how you want the final headband to look. I've seen several different shapes and think many of them are gorgeous!

I bought some natural feathers and layered them over the felt base to get a good feel for what I wanted...that's when you can see what colors and shapes of feathers look best together for your particular headband. I stitched my feathers individually onto the base at the stem of each feather, but you can also glue them down if desired. Gluing would probably be much faster, but as this was my first attempt, I didn't want to deal with the feathers sticking to the glue in the wrong places. With stitching, you have more flexibility if you decide to change placement. I made sure the feathers were going in the same direction so that they would lay nicely against the headband.When I was finished applying feathers, I chose the easy way out and gluegunned the felt to the headband. If I were to make it more professionally, I would likely make a felt sleeve and slip it over the headband and possibly glue or stitch it into place. Then I glued a flat button to the side of the headband where the feathers began. And there you have it!

I love making handcrafted gifts when time allows me to. I find it very fun and rewarding and I love wracking my brain to come up with new ideas every year! I try to choose gifts that I think will be used, if possible. It's even more fun when you see your recipient using/wearing your gift voluntarily, not just when they've first opened it. Hooray for homemade!

My Valentine!

2009-02-10T21:25:00.000-08:00

So, this Valentine's Day, as Olaf is in basic training, I felt very stumped as to what I could send him. Most things that are "Valentine-y," like sweets and treats, are restricted. I was told I could pretty much only send him letters/cards and pictures, which are nice, but not very special-ish. Since February 14th is also the day we got engaged, it's an extra-special day for us. And as this is the first time since being engaged that we haven't been able to spend the day together, I really wanted to do at least something a little nicer than just pictures and letters. I was thinking about it when my sister, Natalie, emailed me three pictures of herself signing "I love you" and asked if I could cut the background out and maybe put in something cute instead (she was planning to make little valentines for her fiancee with them). I thought, "That's something I would be allowed to send Olaf that would be fun and special!" So after I fixed hers up--they looked very cute; such a good idea!--I had my youngest sister take many pictures of me and then did the same thing. I printed them out on a super-gloss cardstock and had them laminated and then superglued magnets to the back of each. I am so pleased with how they turned out and hope it's a nice surprise for my soldier!
If any of you girls would like to do this for someone, let me know and I'd be happy to whip them up for you. They're pretty easy to do. For mine, I used a combination of Photoshop and digital papers/embellishments from Shabby Princess. They are a great site with adorable papers! I hope everyone has a happy Valentine's weekend! I love you all!

New curtains!

2009-02-08T20:33:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of our beautiful new living room curtains. I love them! I think the print is great; I really love fun, graphic, simple designs. I picked the material up from IKEA for a steal of a deal and my mother-in-law sewed them up for me. She's amazing! Thank you so much, Mom J!

You Know You Want One, Too

2009-02-03T22:52:00.000-08:00

Look what we found in our parking lot when we returned home from Christmas break!

Maybe it would make a good fire escape!

No, Olaf, don't do it!

Oh, gross!...okay, so maybe I was the one who told him to do that...don't worry, his tongue didn't get stuck!

...and I'm proud to be an American

2008-11-23T14:56:00.000-08:00

For those who don't already know, Olaf in now officially in the National Guard. He joined in late October and had his first drill/training session last weekend. He will be shipping out for extensive training (basic, AIT, & jump) in January and won't be back till September. I'm proud of him for his desire to help our country, because I love the United States and am grateful to live here and to have the privileges and freedom we are granted; however, I am definitely not looking forward to the 7-8 months alone...that will be very strange. One of my sisters will be living with me for about one of those months, which will be good, but in the meantime, things will be quite different. Did you know I've never lived alone? I've always had either family, roommates, or a husband. But I plan on keeping busy and learning and teaching myself some new skills and brushing up on old ones as well. Hopefully Olaf will have a great time and will be safe from harm (I'm worried about the plane jumping) and the time will go by quickly for us both! He's really looking forward to learning "army skillz" and to beefing up his muscles, although to be quite frank, I think he is already very muscle-y! He has been very diligent about his pre-training and is working hard. I know he'll do a great job and I hope he likes it. Doesn't he look so handsome? ( :

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-02T18:15:00.000-08:00

Whoo hoo! So we had a very eventful week with the Halloween weekend filled with 2 parties and a caricature gig I landed. Thursday evening, I came home from work and we quickly tossed together some rather lame outfits--I was a ladybug and Olaf was a scientist. Later, we realized we should have said he was an entomologist and given him a magnifying glass so our costumes could go together....DOH! Maybe another year. Here are our outfits:

I had little ladybug wings on my back and there are curly antennae on my headband! Doesn't Olaf look sharp?

We had a fun time at our ward party. Our bishop dressed as Mario and looked great. Some other favorite costumes were our friends, the Q's, who were an Ipod commercial--they both wore all black and had their faces painted and hair sprayed with black and had the white earbuds in, connected to their Ipods! Brilliant! Another couple went as marionettes and looked great, too. It made me wish even more that we had time to come up with something clever to go as...maybe next year!

The week before, we carved pumpkins with our friends, Dominique and Tyler. They made an amazing Cinderella's pumpkin coach and we made a ninja baby, complete with ninja mask, compliments of Olaf's inside-out-black-tshirt tying skills. Sadly, our pumpkin rotted into a moldy puddle within about 2 days of being carved. Sad! But we had a great time carving, nonetheless.

Whee for pumpkin guts!

On Halloween day, I got to go to BYU campus and draw caricatures of students. It was so much fun and the pay was marvelous! I was so pleased to make money doing something so delightful, a combination of 2 of my favorite things--spending time with people and drawing! I drew for 2 hours, each piece taking about 2-3 minutes. I had some fun people, including a girl dressed up as "Edward's Fantasy" (referring to the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer)--she had quite realistic plastic fangs and decided to growl at me so I could draw her face in that expression:

Look who found me on campus!

There was also a sweet girl who was very friendly and asked for a hug when I was done drawing her. Awww! I thought that was great. Another fun one was a couple that told me they'd waited the whole time so I could draw them, as opposed to having one of the other artists do their portrait (there were 4 artists, including myself), because they had checked out all our work and liked mine the best! What a nice compliment! It was just so much fun and the weather was perfect--warm and overcast, so I didn't get any sun glare in my eyes. We were all kept busy with drawing the whole two hours--I even set up early and ended late, so I really was drawing about 2.5 hrs. Rebecca, Natalie, and Olaf all said hi at different times; that was fun, too! Natalie and her roommate told me they were going to stand in line for me to draw when they realized they could have me draw them any old time without waiting in line. Good thought! I actually already have drawn them both as they posed for me when I was practicing caricatures (I had to interview for this gig and wanted to bring some caricatures to show).

I ran tons of errands after doing the caricatures until evening arrived. My sisters came over so I could do their makeup and hair. During this time, to my delight, we got about 6 sets of trick o' treaters, which was wonderful! I gave them some of our old candy (hee hee, it's all we had) and was so glad I was home to answer the door! Then Olaf and I went to another Halloween party, played some games, and then went to our friends' house to watch a scary movie and have pizza. It was fun and we had a great time. Happy whirlwind Halloween!

Tagged!

2008-10-04T23:53:00.000-07:00

My friend, Carol, tagged me, so here's my list:

8 TV shows I like to watch:

What Not to Wear
America's Next Top Model
X-Files
Mythbusters
Medium
King of Queens
Joan of Arcadia
Design on a Dime

8 favorite restaurants:

Applebee's
Harvest
Olive Garden
PF Chang
Tucanos
Bombay House
Pita Pit
Shoots

8 things that happened today:

I worked at one of my jobs
I had a "Girl's Night Out" with some friends
I played Wii Karaoke and Guitar Hero for my first time
Olaf and I got to spend time with some friends
I saw a police man pull someone over for speeding
I talked to Olaf's parents for awhile
A friend emailed me about editing some of his writing
I wore some new shoes

8 things I'm looking forward to:

Illustration work or getting any job art-related
Spending time with family, hopefully at Christmas
Going to see a musical!
Olaf's graduation
Children
A house
A day off work (besides Sunday)
One job instead of two, or simply freelancing

8 things on my wish list:

Learning Corel Painter
More time to spend with Olaf
Living closer to family
Being able to travel and/or visit distant friends & family
Be in another musical
Benefits for me
Being a dancer (that will never happen)
The ability to worry less

8 People I am Tagging:

Katie
Diana
Lisa
Leila
Melanie
Dominique
Shannon
Trachelle

Freudian Slip?

2008-09-21T15:31:00.001-07:00

The other day, Olaf and I were talking and I mentioned something about how I hope I never get in a car accident, partly because I don't want to do anything to ruin our car (besides other things, of course). Olaf said, "Don't let that worry you! I would much rather have it than you..." I turned to look at him and started laughing, hard. He said, "You know I didn't mean that! I was trying to say I would rather have you than all the cars in the world." Whew! Glad to know he wouldn't prefer a car over me...! ( :

Mister, you made my day!

2008-09-16T20:48:00.001-07:00

The other day at one of my jobs, I was helping an old gentleman with his boots. He had come in to the store to pick up some boots he'd ordered and I noticed him sitting with the box. When I asked him if he needed help, he said, "Does it look like I need help?" in a joking fashion. He was wearing one of those tall-crowned baseball type caps with pins stuck all over the front with "Veteran" on it. He was having a lot of trouble putting on his new boots so I began helping him by first loosening the laces, helping him get his feet in, and then zipping the side-zips and lacing the boots. He told me he used to have zip-up boots which were really helpful when he was in the service and had to wake up at 4 a.m. and put his shoes on in the dark! When I was helping with the laces, he told me it was a lot harder to put boots on nowadays while he pointed to his tummy. He said to me, "Please, don't ever get fat--and don't get old. Die young!" HA HA! Anyway, he was pretty much wonderful and very funny and nice. I love customers like that!

experiments

2008-06-24T01:42:00.000-07:00

Experiment #1: The Mysterious Giving Seeds

A couple of months ago, some lovely, creative, and generous person taped tiny little packets of seeds in different areas of our city to form the word GROW. One of those places happened to be right across the street from my house. I was really curious to find out what it was (all I could see at first was the packets spelling out the giant word, GROW), so on my way to work, I read the little sign next to it. Basically, the project originator wanted people to take a packet of seeds and write on the post-it beneath the packet what their plans were for the little wildflower seeds. I thought it was an excellent idea! I took a packet and at first thought I would sprinkle them in the yard and see if they grew. However, I decided against that and instead planted them in a huge empty pot I had on the porch. I was worried the soil was too old and dry (I inherited the pot + dirt), but it is my pleasure to announce they are growing! Hooray! They are still very small, as you can see, but I am encouraged that anything sprouted at all. I sure hope to see flowers sometime this summer! I'm really excited to see what kinds they'll be.

Experiment #2: Grow your seeds and eat them, too

I have been wanting to grow fresh herbs for a long time. We don't really have many good places in our small apartment to station plants (I already have three inside), but I thought herbs would be great as they could be both decorative and useful. I chose three types: sweet basil, chives, and Italian parsley. They all have the same growing conditions and are herbs I use often for cooking. I was concerned that I didn't give them enough dirt to grow in but I hope they will do all right despite the shallow pot. Look what I found today! Tiny sprouts! I only planted them recently so I am really tickled to see something growing already (it's the basil). I hope the other two emerge soon and that they all grow well. We'll see what happens!

The Amazing Adventures of Lobster Girl & Lobster Boy

2008-06-19T02:28:00.000-07:00

Olaf & I decided to take a weekend trip to Moab to celebrate his birthday. He lived there for several months and wanted to show me the beautiful land formations and we also both wanted to tour Arches National Park as neither of us had ever been there before. We packed some things and drove to the city. I loved seeing the red sandstone along the way; it amazed me! One of the funny parts was when we finally got to town (it was dark), we both gagged and Olaf said something about skunk roadkill. I mentioned that I found it strange that so often I smelled that smell but never saw any roadkill. The next morning as we drove that same section (and again smelled the lovely aroma), what did I see?

...yes...but not so cute.

We slept the night in the car, which was an interesting experience that reminded me I am getting older. Not old, but older. I used to sleep on the floor in high school and college all the time and wake up without many cramps, but oh, the car! It was difficult to get comfortable as I'm used to sleeping on my side, and our chairs don't lay completely flat. I think the hard part was the heat. It was very stuffy in the car because we didn't want to open the windows and give bugs and/or strange people access to us or the car. Anyway, we both finally fell asleep--Olaf gave me a great tip of putting my pillow in the crack between the chair and car door--and woke up feeling relatively refreshed. We got ready, had some breakfast, and went to Arches!

Olaf and I had a great time, despite the heat. It reached 95 degrees Fahrenheit during our tour. I'm so glad Olaf got me a little camel pack; I can't imagine doing the hike without one! Olaf had his, but he drinks a lot more water typically than I do so he wanted to make sure we had plenty. I've never used a camel pack before and I thought it was very handy. I did put on sunscreen (twice) but Olaf was too manly and went without. We both came home very red, although I did fare better than Olaf, probably thanks to the sunscreen! We met some very nice people on Olaf's birthday--one was a very nice, sweet, elderly couple who were admiring our Alaska license plates. It turned out they have been on cruises and trips to Alaska which, of course, provided an instant bond. We also hiked up to the Delicate Arch and met/talked to a very nice gentleman and his son at the top--I can't remember but it seemed like he had also visited AK. The flies were extremely obnoxious; they kept going for our faces! When the breeze was noticeable, they weren't so bothersome, but the minute the air stilled, they were back. UGH. Here are some of the amazing things we saw on our tour of the park:

Here's the handsome birthday boy!

Think I could pick it up?

So suave.

A nice eccentric couple traded us photos...asked us to take theirs and then they took one of us. Sadly, the top of Balanced Rock got chopped off...sigh.

Unbalanced Chantelle?

Can you see the faces in the rocks?

My handsome hiker!

Another nice man took our picture in front of the famous Delicate Arch.

Olaf and the Arch.
The Arch and me.

Profile of a Hot Man

These next two pictures need some explanation, but just a brief one. Has it ever struck you that the famous Delicate Arch of Arches National Park have a strange form?

They've always reminded me of lumpy, stumpy legs. We have rock hard leg muscles!

Happy 2 Years!

2008-06-02T00:40:00.000-07:00

Olaf and I celebrated our 2-year anniversary a few weeks ago! Hooray! We went out to eat at a fabulous fondue restaurant--it was an amazing food experience. We had a cheese spinach-and-artichoke-heart fondue with fruits, vegetables, and bread; delicious salads, various bits of meat we cooked ourselves in a boiling broth; and best of ALL...delicious "turtle" chocolate fondue with fresh fruits, cheesecake, brownie bits, and rice crispies! It was so marvelous. It was a lovely evening and I'm so grateful for such a fun experience and for my dear husband. Happy 2 years, Olaf! I love you!

Mmm...doesn't it make your mouth water?

A Few of My Favorite Things

2008-04-23T22:11:00.000-07:00

I have to say that I usually don't care for commercials. I prefer to mute them and read or get up and do something else until the show I'm watching returns. However, there are a few that are either funny, touching, or interesting. Here are a few I enjoy that I thought I'd share with you.

I love this song. I already liked the band "Coldplay" before I heard this song ("Blue" is definitely a Coldplay spoof in song and video), but I do love the fruit guys singing about blue underwear! Heh heh heh! The apple is my favorite...I wouldn't mind having a cap like his.

This one's just darn funny. I laughed and laughed the first time I saw it and still think it's great. It certainly doesn't hurt that I grew up when they were very popular, even though I never owned one!

I love this commercial for so many reasons. First of all, the original song is very close to my heart as my mom would always sing it to my siblings and me, especially while camping or going on a long drive. Secondly, I do like the Discovery channel as it's something my husband and I both enjoy watching together (and I recognize some of the singers in the commercial). And last of all--it warms my heart. I LOVE THE WORLD! It IS such a brilliant place, isn't it?

...let's try this again...

2008-04-15T00:49:00.000-07:00

Well, the cover I posted previously was revamped. I like this color option much better and was glad to have the chance to change certain things. It was a lot of extra work but it was worth it to me. So--here it is!

Fairy Tea Party!

2008-03-21T23:14:00.000-07:00

My work has a lovely tradition of an annual Fairy Tea Party for girls from 3yrs and up (usually to about 8yrs). It's a really neat event and as well as incredibly elaborate. This was my second one. Things went beautifully and everyone seemed to have a great time! I got to make the "fairy newspaper" this year, which was also very fun. The articles and such are very silly, but I thought I'd post the back and front of the newspaper here for you to see.

The party is always very popular! We usually have a ballet group perform in their traditional tutus and the girls just love them. We also have a chance for the little girls dresses as fairies to walk down a little runway and show off their pretty costumes. Of course, we have a little feast for them and small gifts for each child in attendance. It's a great idea! All of our staff attending is also asked to dress up, and since I didn't have much time, I went as a ladybug--it was quick and easy. I already had a red dress and black cropped jacket and I attached wire attenae to a headband. I also added black dots to the edges of my eyes and a few on my neck. I made myself a small pair of ladybug wings with red glitter felt on which I drew black dots. Nice, quick, and easy!

Me with my wonderful co-worker, the Sunshine Fairy!

Sisters' Night Out!

2008-03-15T00:28:00.000-07:00

Well, I admit I have been slacking when it comes to this poor neglected little blog....*sigh.* I look at it every so often and cringe as the looming Hello Kitty head silently berates me for not adding another post so it may rest its little (or big) head. Also, one of my brothers just told me he is so sick of seeing Hello Kitty every time he checks my blog to see if I've posted something new. HEE HEE! Ok. Something new it is.

So, last weekend was quite eventful. On Friday, my sister invited me to a college dance/party which I was delighted to attend. Olaf had to work that evening so it was nice to have some company. We made sure we were there early as Natalie said it was advertised to have "lots of food" but in order to get any apparently it is necessary to get there early (for the best pickings). When we arrived, we were given a raffle ticket and a stamped "passport." Nothing came of our raffle tickets but we each picked out lovely prizes with the passports! Natalie chose an exquisite plastic lei and I chose a pair of elegant blue maracas. Such music they provide! Ah...it is a true wonder. I was ecstatic to find myself an instant maraca expert. I was also glad we arrived so early because we spotted a caricature artist and hopped right in line while the line was still pretty short. Although we both look like hideous witches in the final drawing, it was still lots of fun. Do you think it's a good resemblance?

I find it quite glorious, myself.

Anyway, there was quite a lot of fun things to eat. We had taquitos, bread + nutella, fresh fruit, smoothies, mini pizzas, and my favorite: gelato! Yum! That was lots of fun. We also found the Balloon Man (who also happens to frequent the Children's Dept. of the library often with his adorable child) and waited excitedly in line for balloons. I asked for a turtle for my husband, although I wished afterwards I had asked for a Ninja Turtle because the Balloon Man made really cool ones; and Natalie asked for a penguin. It was really adorable and very rotund and Tweety-bird like.

Olaf named his balloon turtle Max (since he used to own a real turtle by that name). Sadly, Balloon Max is pretty shriveled and wilted now...alas, such a sort life...but how he was loved!

After the joyful balloon encounter, Natalie and I danced our little hearts out. It was great fun! It's been awhile since I've been to a dance and I really enjoyed myself. Natalie did a lot of hopping, jumping, screaming, and other such carrying-on, and it was just great. I am usually more of a reserved dancer myself unless in a certain mood or with very brave friends. It was fun to just have a blast on a girl's night out! Thank you, Natalie!

Hello Kitty!

2008-01-18T02:29:00.000-08:00

I just can't resist this face!

Don't you wish you had these, too?

My small H.K. stash

Since I was first introduced to the icon of Hello Kitty, I have been hooked by her nonexistent little claws. There's something so adorable about the color and style of Hello Kitty...I can't really explain why she's just so charming to me. I used to receive things here and there that had Hello Kitty on them and I'd keep them. Some of those things I still have today! And yet, others I have just recently received. For example, for my birthday this January, my cousin and sister got me a lovely, matching Hello Kitty bathrobe and slippers! AWW! I love them. Not only are they the last word in comfort but I can look down and see lots of friendly Hello Kitty faces looking up at me. It's lovely! Olaf knows of my penchant for this mouthless cat and bought me a Hello Kitty piggybank at D.I. (it was a quarter...hard to resist).

Despite my liking, I am not obsessed enough for a H.K. car or a H.K. cat costume--very disturbing. I also don't collect H.K. items--I think that would get really out of hand with my packrat tendencies--but I can't resist stopping for a second to look if I happen to pass them in the store (this also usually involves some pointing, "oooh-ing," and then tearing myself away). I think it's probably because I liked H.K. so much growing up and it reminds me of then. Also, I must say I think it's quite a crisp little cat design. What's not to like? I do have to say when I heard they are planning to market Hello Kitty t-shirt designs to boys and young men I scoffed. Hello Kitty wears a BOW!..and not around her neck, mind you. On her ear.

Also, here is a great link for your viewing enjoyment. If you would like to see an artist's rendition of what he imagines Hello Kitty's skeletal system to look like, click here. Just click the "next" button at the bottom right of the page (and you can continue on if you would like to see more cartoon character's skeletons). I got a great laugh from these!

Elf Myself!

2007-12-25T00:04:00.000-08:00

I just like to smile...smiling's my favorite!

Why am I dressed as an elf? Well, every December the Provo City Library participates in the city Christmas parade and I was once again asked to join the crew as an elf. I was asked last year, too, due to my height. I guess there's some good being 5'0", right? Anyway, this year I borrowed a costume one of my friends, Dena, made. She's very talented. As it snowed during the parade, I was very happy to have all the layers (it even had a hand-made petticoat! Excellent!) which definitely helped keep me warm. I got a lot of compliments on the outfit. We handed out books to all the families and then went to Village Inn afterwards where I ate blueberry stuffed french toast. Yum! All in all, it's good being an elf. Merry Christmas!

I'm heeeere.....and I'm singing.....!

"...no more turtle joke!"

2007-12-16T22:33:00.000-08:00

Come on. You can't fool me--I know you're jealous.

Ready to launch...

Whee! My, Natalie really got some air!

My grace astounds even me.

Think she expected that?

Ok, ok, this one is so Nick will get off my back...just kidding; I know I'm way overdue for a posting! Sorry! I've been busy with a painting and every time I consider blogging I think, "That's time I should be spending on the painting." But I'll give myself a few minutes to make at least one post.

You may wonder at the pictures that go with this posting. That's great; I hope you do! But really, don't you get the urge to jump in the air when you wear matching, fire-engine red earmuffs? We sure did. Wheeee!

Photo shoot

2007-11-24T00:30:00.000-08:00

I've been meaning to do a fall photo shoot with my sister, Natalie, for some time yet. The leaves were really gorgeous a few weeks ago but sadly are now rather--well, dead. I thought it would be fun to set up my tripod and get some shots around town. Does this sound tricky to you? It probably would have been. Luckily, as I was skimming through Craigslist awhile ago (have I mentioned how much I love Craigslist?), I came across a posting for a bartered photography session. I checked out the photographer's photos and, although she's only been photographing for a year, I really liked her work. I set up a session for Natalie, my cousin Katie, and myself. It was really fun and the lady, Brooke Snow, did a great job. She's also a BYU student, currently working on her Master's in music composition. I was very pleased with her pictures! Of course there were some awkward ones, but mostly I thought we had a lot of fun shots. Yay for pictures and thank you, Brooke!

Blackout!

2007-10-22T13:42:00.000-07:00

On Saturday night, as Olaf and I were doing various things, the electricity suddenly went off. And then it came right back on. On. Off. On. Off. Then it finally made up its mind and everything went dark and quiet. Since Olaf and I were in different rooms, he grabbed his flashlight and valiantly came to my rescue. Luckily, we have 5 display candles that burn long and well, so we lit all of those as well as a few tea candles. It was a party! Olaf decided to read me part of the first volume of Joseph Fielding Smith's "Answers to Gospel Questions." He actually has quite an extensive collection of gospel literature. I don't know how we managed to fit it in our tiny apartment, but somehow we have. Anyway, the book was interesting but I was already sleepy so I didn't last too long. This was the first lengthy blackout we've had here...we've had a few that have lasted a few minutes but none that have made it any further. I was a little worried about the food in the fridge, but I think everything's fine. The power came back on perhaps at 8 or 9am...I'm not too sure. Anyway, I enjoyed the adventure, especially since it wasn't really an inconvenience! Hooray!

Weighty Matters

2007-10-09T16:33:00.000-07:00

Today when I hopped on the scale, this is what it read:

"WHOA!" I thought in excitement. "Those workouts have really been paying off!" Then I realized that type of weight for me would mean I was probably dead, so I stopped being excited and concluded it is time for a new scale.
By the way, I got off and on the scale several different times and this is the weight it stubbornly gave me each time. How bizarre!

Craigslist--the never ending garage sale you can access at home

2007-10-08T22:41:00.000-07:00

I believe I first heard of Craigslist through my brother, Jason, but it may have been Melanie, my sister, who first told me. Whoever it was, thank you! THANK you! I can't believe how handy it has been, especially since we've moved into a smaller apartment and needed to downsize. We don't have an actual yard or garage to do a "garage sale," but Craigslist is even better. You can look for specific items as well as sell things you no longer want. It's a wonderful system! I've even found jobs through the site. Yippee for great ideas.

I Heart IKEA, Too

2007-10-05T14:34:00.001-07:00

Ok--so many of my friends have raved about IKEA and how awesome it is. I never really quite understood the hype...I mean, it's a furniture store, right? How exciting can it be? However, last night, Olaf and I visited the store in Draper. As soon as we were in the parking lot and stepped out of the car, I saw Chinese lanterns lit and hanging over a display inside. Olaf says that's when I fell in love. I have to admit, it's a really great store! It's sort of like Home Depot meets Martha Stewart, or something to that degree. I think my favorite part is the way they display "rooms." For those of you who haven't been there, the furniture is set up in different sections in their Showrooms like "bedroom,""work space," and "kitchen," just to name a few. They don't just set up the furniture, however; they actually decorate it as if it was a real room. The furniture they sell is really modern and sleek (in my opinion), particularly for the prices. I also like the material patterns they use. A very exciting discovery while we were there was a small restaurant inside the store! Wow! Olaf was very hungry as he had not eaten anything (I had some leftover curry right before we took off) so we decided to try it out. Not only was the food very good but it was an excellent price! I just shared a little off his plate. ( : Yum! And yes, Olaf was pretty much laughing at me the whole time we were at IKEA. Apparently I was talking very much, most of it being things like, "Oooh, look at that, Olaf!" and "Isn't that so cute? Don't you like that?" Haha.

Midnight movie

2007-09-21T17:22:00.000-07:00

Last night as Olaf and I were returning home from Walmart, we saw some strange lights and commotion down the lower portion of our street. There was also a cop car parked across the street. Being curious, we decided to take a casual little walk down the street to see what was going on. It was dark out and there was a huge old looking camper that kept repeatedly revving its engine, something that looked like a big moving van, and at the very end of the street, several dark shapes that we couldn't quite make out. We turned around and decided to ask the policeman what was going on. I had said, "I bet someone's making a movie," and Olaf thought possibly a big moving party was occurring. Well, sure enough, the policeman confirmed that I was right--yeeesss! Anyway, if I ever find out what movie was being made on my street, I'll let you know. They were going all night, even until 6am! How do I know that, you ask? Don't ask.

The better to see you with, my dear

2007-09-20T01:34:00.000-07:00

What big font you have!

Well, I decided to change the first template to this as my dad complained he couldn't read the text in the original setup. So...here's to you, Dad! Bigger, darker font against a light background for more improved readability. ( : Hope this helps.

Olaf and I also took a hike last week around Bridal Veil Falls. It was gorgeous! We both climbed up the falls a ways to pose for pictures. I always feel a little nervous climbing near water or very sharp rocks, both being present; but Olaf seems to have no fear. However, he feels hesitant with rollercoasters and I love them...where is the sense in this? I have some photos and will be adding them soon. Olaf also helped me gather pebbles for a project. Hee, hee, hee...what a kind husband. He and my other relatives as well as some close friends have endured much in the spirit of helping me with my artwork. Thanks to you all!

2007-08-23T03:09:00.000-07:00

It's time for me to begin blogging! I've been interested in setting one up for awhile now, but I've been so busy I didn't feel justified spending the time to do so. However, now that I have a bit of a break, I've decided to jump in!

For those of you who didn't know, I just completed all my work for the first children's book I've illustrated, called "Josephine's Dream." It's SO great to be done! It was a long process and a lot of hard work. However, I'm definitely glad to have had the experience and hopefully it will be helpful in the future. WHEW!

As for any more recent news, Olaf and I moved into a new apartment just recently. We really like it, especially in comparison with our first apartment--it's so clean, feels new and nice, is furnished, has air conditioning, and best of all---NO BOX ELDER BEETLES! Yippee! The attic was infested with them. Totally gross.

I'll be posting more soon! Cheerio!