The rest of Oct (& a little Nov too)

The last half of October & the first half of November got a little busy. I'll break it down a little for you. We were busy pretending it was actually FALL, and tried to enjoy the weather when it decided to be cool for a few days.

Apple cider donuts-- super easy and oh so deliciously fall-like

Here are the boys carving pumpkins-- so creative!


The finished product. left to right: Alma's werewolf, Ronnie's fire-demon, Dave's "sloth", Amber's mummy.



We are soon expecting a niece Lily, here are some of the onesies I made for her.


And here Alma & I are at the beginning of our Fossil Springs hike. You can tell it was the beginning b/c we are smiling. It was pretty, but it kicked our butts.


Here is Samara & I on Halloween. I was kind of Goth, and she was a stick figure witch. I know Goth Girls aren't supposed to smile, but I was having fun.


I know this is hard to see, but here is the whole stick-figure family. They looked great.


Here is a project completed that I have been dreaming up for a while. I finally found the vintage wood framed windows to make my headboard. It turned out exactly like I wanted. Alma liked it too= total success.


Here are the Yamamotos & the Seatons. This is a picture we took in the middle of the weirdest/coolest day. Alma's parents from up north had visited and stayed
the night leaving at 9A. Jim & Lindsaey were visiting from Chicago and came to see us at 10A. (we had lots of fun, eating and catching up) After the Seatons left, we went to see the Rays that just moved back from Portland. We haven't seen them in almost 4 years. Had more fun
eating and catching up. A super fun day that we knew would never be repeated.

And then the next day followed a super UN-fun day. Alma left for Chicago. Boo externships that are not in AZ. Now it is just me and Yellow House, working on cooking and shopping for 1.
But I get to go see the Lasura's for Thanksgiving and Alma gets to come home for 2 weeks for Christmas. So chin up, suck it up, and carry on-- this is my new (temporary) mantra.

october...so far

I cannot believe it is mid-October. I am thankful for the cooler weather (not that it is here this weekend) and for the holiday seasons that are approaching, but Fall also means Alma goes back to Chicago.
We have been trying to do fun things when our schedules will allow. The first weekend in October we went up to Prescott to hang with the fam. We made crafts, ate snacks, went hiking (I am ridiculously out of shape), went on a double date, watched conference, cooked, and went to a pumpkin patch. We ALWAYS have fun in Prescott.

Here we are on a hayride. It was a little lame, but a hayride all the same.

Here are those pv motos. Love 'em.

And here is a picture of our new dining room table. We love it. And it
came just in time for Canadian Thanksgiving, which we celebrate so
our Canadian roommates don't feel so far away from home, and
because Alma won't be home for Thanksgiving, and because
who doesn't want 2 Thanksgivings. I don't have pictures of the
food or guests, I know- lame, but after all the hard work of getting
the food hot and ready we just wanted to eat.

So that is October so far. We still have half the month left to live up, and I hope we do just that!

Magic Eraser

There are commercials that I hate and I pretend that I don't use those products based on principal (like SafeAuto), and there are commercials that are hilarious and I love but still don't buy those products based on principal (sadly most of the good commercials are beer ads). There are ridiculously long commercials of products I would love to buy (The Toby steamer) but cannot afford.
Occasionally I allow advertising to work its magic. I recently saw a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser commercial. I had seen previous commercials showing the eraser's usefulness at removing scuffs and marks on walls. But the current commercial showed its effectiveness on removing built up soap scum. So I thought I would try it.
The Magic Eraser is Amazing!! or rather the generic Target brand magic eraser is amazing. I don't know what it is made out of or if it contains chemicals, but it took care of business. It is my second favorite thing in my cleaning caddy (nothing can ever replace you, Clorox Cleanup with Bleach).
So thank you advertisers for creating the commercial. Thank you Mr. Clean for your genius invention. And thank you Target for making a cheaper generic version that I wasn't afraid to spring for.
Now if they could make one that worked on love-handles, hips and thighs.....

Sedona

In our attempts to show our Canadian friends Arizona-y type things we took a little day trip up to Sedona.

(this is Ronnie and Dave, the Canadians I was telling you about)

Let's face it, the red rocks of Sedona are beautiful. Only problem was nature seemed to be "full" that weekend. It was difficult to find a decent parking place to get out and hike, but we made the most of it.

We had Krispy Kreme donuts in the car on the way up, listened to music, played Mad Libs, laughed, hiked, ate our picnic lunch, spotted lots of lizards, watched a rainstorm blow through the town, and had Dairy Queen on the way home. All in all a very successful day trip.

Here is the picture that Alma took before dropping the camera on the rocks. It still turns on, but the funtion is questionable at best. We have been meaning to get a new one as it is. Good part is he was being noble trying to keep me from falling in the freezing water when I stood up on that slippery looking rock.

When we aren't "day-tripping", this is what the boys do. That's right, they are wearing matching school shirts and playing video games. I am chalking it up as good practice if I should ever have teenage sons.

On a much girlier side note, I got this awesome argyle pedicure courtesy of a birthday present from my sis-in-law Maren. Awesome. Best paint job ever! If I hadn't driven there with the idea of a pink and red argyle design, who knows what I would have come out with. So many designs. I already know what I am getting at Christmas time.

A couple of weeks ago I hit a milestone. Thirty.
Some may gasp, some laugh, others run and hide, or lie and cling to 29 for another year.
Not me- I have been looking forward to 30. I think it will be great.
Alma will graduate while I am 30 thus propelling us into another phase of life. {hopefully propelling us all the way to Hawaii for at least a week} We will no longer have to live life by the quarter. And although a good deal of our money will continue to funnel itself toward school (loans) Alma will also have money coming in. Yep- 30 is going to be great.
I should say is already great and was so from the very day it came to be. 2 very good friends went to great lengths to ensure it was so. Marcy and Mary-Grace planned a fantastic day full of fun things I love to do. First stop--- Pedicures. (mine are the light blue ones)

Second stop-- Shopping. Great jeans from the Buckle. Third stop-- Food. Anyone who knows me knows I love food. Fourth stop-- a little gathering in central Phoenix called First Friday. Could also be called "freak show" or some of the best people watching I have done since leaving Chicago. Sadly I have no photos, it was almost too much to take in. Bizarre artwork for example: an entire wall covered with the top half of 2-liter bottles painted to look like breasts. The artist was informing an admirer (male, of course) that the piece was titled Nurse, which is both a noun and a verb. Thanks for the anatomy and language lesson. Bizarre acts for example: a guy walking on glass whilst explaining he needed money to pay his bills. Bizarre people: hair of all colors, piercings in all places, tarantula hair barretts, a guy skateboarding using the power of wind because he had equipped his board with a sail, and so much more. I will definitely go again better mentally prepared to take photos. Fifth stop-- Presents and dessert. Who doesn't love those 2.

These two lovely ladies put together some of my favorite things. I love randomness in gifts. A bunch of tiny little things that remind you of a hundered funny or special times. Some of the things included chocolate, Martinellis, gingersnaps, fresh flowers, oranges, Advil liquigels, and scrapbooking supplies. How great is that?! It is so fun to see how well people know you. And MG made a delicous strawberry trifle with extra whipped cream, and I got the beater. YUM!

Then a couple of days after my birthday I got one of my favorites presents. This guy came home!

In this picture we are headed to a cooking class in Scottsdale that Alma planned. Told you I liked food. Sam and Maren were awesome and drove all the way down to join us. We were busy cooking and eating so there aren't a lot of pictures, but we had blast.

I knew I was going to like 30.

Life in the Fast Lane

Some may call me an impatient driver, but I prefer to think of myself as nostalgic.
Where has the fast lane gone? Remember the days of moving over when someone behind you wanted to drive faster than you did, and remember when others did the same for you?
Why has this practice gone by the wayside? Is it because everyone has become 2 shades more self-absorbed? Is it because they are completely inattentive; distracted by phone calls, portable dvds, make-up applications, and texting. Are they not teaching it in Driver's Ed anymore?

If I can't get the proper division between lanes back, I will settle for people going simply the speed limit. You know when it says 65, drive at least 65. Even through the little areas with cameras. Why are people who are already going 7 miles under the speed limit slamming on their brakes for the cameras? And why are the people who seem uncomfortable behind the wheel at all choosing to practice their driving skills during morning rush hour?

I suppose these are just questions that I am posing to the universe. But seriously, if you see a little silver Honda Civic who is missing her front emblem because some hoodlum is wearing it on a chain around his neck (or I suppose might have gifted it to his baby momma) heading up the I-10 ---speed up to 65 and move to the right. Thanks.

learning experience

If all goes well with the 31 hour drive from Daytona Beach, Florida to Gilbert, Arizona then my husband should be home in 1 week! (His rotation ends Friday the 7th)
Can I confess that I am actually so excited I am nervous? I literally have a nervous tummy. You know- like first day of school tummy.
This is by far the longest we have been apart. And even though we will have to do this again this winter, I think the worst is over. I have survived because of my cell phone, my wonderful friends, a few {healthy} emotional outbursts, and a 6-day visit to FL.

What have I learned from this experience?
- We have a good marriage, I truly love my husband more than anything
- I cannot put the trash bag in the can like Alma can, no matter how hard I try
- I can kill a spider all by myself
- I don't like sleeping alone, even if it means I have the whole bed to myself
- I will still cook full meals even if no one else eats them but me
- I watch less tv by myself, and read more books
- I go to bed earlier, maybe for a lack of anything else to do
- I wait too long to put gas in the car
- I cannot pick out ice cream without his advice, he always picks better
- I am not as independent as I would have given myself credit for

I am sure that I learned more, but do you really want to hear it? Like that I really do need to be kissed daily to be truly happy. That church just is not as fun without my husband. That loneliness really doesn't suit me for beauty or personality (meaning they both decrease greatly). Well, all that is behind me now as my husband is coming home. What a wonderful Birthday Present it will be.