ROCKBAND

Santa brought our family a WII for Christmas - and naturally, he HAD to bring ROCKBAND to go along with it... :)

My family has had so much fun playing the WII (for hours and hours) everyday and last night we finally 'unlocked' all of the music tracks on our Rockband game.

Our band's name is Stat!c Confession Band mates: Dad - Lead Singer, Ashley - guitarist extraordinaire, Allen - heaven sent drummer.

We have so much fun - so if anyone wants to come on over and rock out with us - call me!

お帰りなさい (Welcome Home)

One of my best friends, Ben Cook, gets home from serving his mission in just a few short days! I cannot believe how fast time has flown by (2 years...where did it go?!)
Anyway, I just wanted to share a little bit about this guy, he is the sweetest and kindest person you will ever meet! He has always been such a good example to me! We went to Jr. High and High School together and have been friends for many years!

Ben is very dedicated to the gospel of Jesus Christ and is one of the most caring people I know! For anyone who knows Ben, you can honestly say that he has made an impact upon your life. He is a great person! :)

I am so proud of him and am grateful to have him in my life! Ai Shiteiro Yo! WELCOME HOME BEN!!!! お帰りなさい!!

Temple Square at Christmas Time

Temple Square at Christmas time is absolutely GORGEOUS and it is a definite MUST to go and see. This year was a little bit different, instead of going up as a group of chicas, we decided to just invite whoever could make it!
Sam, Dave, Bryan, Ashley and myself all headed up on TRAX to go see the lights.

Riding Trax up was an adventure in and of itself...we met this guy who was totally incoherent (drunk and drugged...? I think...) ha anyway, the boys had fun talking to him - and the man kept telling us the funniest things, such as "Lay it down man", "capture the Canadians", "Can you give me the whole earth", "Far out man".
Needless to say, our trip was a blast! haha

We got up to temple square and enjoyed walking around for awhile, it was not crowded at all (thanks to the storm earlier in the day)! We took plenty-o-pictures and even ended the night with a midnight Denny's run! Woot! :) Gotta love late night adventures!



Waiting for Sage (Dave's mission comp) to get to the station...BRRRRR!!!

Dave and I have a very special place in our hearts for JAPAN!!

The girls on the infamous pedestal!

The whole crew at temple square - kinda blurry, but you get the idea! It was a gorgeous night!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

All of us gal pals decided to start a new tradition...Gingerbread Date Night!
It was such a fun night - everyone came over to my house! We had pizza/salad for dinner, and then we got to work! Each couple had a house to decorate - and it was quite the adventure. Some couples work really well together as a team, others like to do their own thing...it made an interesting night!! :) But everyone's houses turned out great!
After the gingerbread making was over with, everyone gathered round and watched The Holiday (not the best movie to watch with guys I decided...) and then everyone went on home. It was such a fun night, and is a tradition that I would like to keep going each December!

Workout Blues?

I tend to get bored easily with the same old workout routine...

It's especially hard to keep up with workouts during the winter, due to all the hazardous ice that can hinder outdoor running...bah humbug!

I say it's time to get reacquainted with the gym or your at home fitness equipment!

I cannot take credit for the following (thanks active.com): I loved this idea for a new workout, and I am going to try it during my workout today!

Run to the Rhythm
Prepare a CD or tape or iPod playlist of your favorite workout songs first. You can adjust the suggested length by adding or removing music; the key is to pick songs with varied tempos. Then, while running on the treadmill, punch up or slow down the speed to match the song tempos you've recorded.

Kick off the mix with 10 minutes of easy listening, then insert a five minute interval at a medium pace. An optimal stride rate that minimizes stress and injury risk is one of about 180 footfalls per minute; use this as your guide for medium tempo.

Next, put five minutes of music at a fast tempo, followed by eight minutes at a medium tempo. Go fast again for eight minutes worth of music, and finish off the mix with 10 minutes of slower songs to cool down. You'll find the up-tempo numbers can help you sustain the faster programmed speeds. Total running time: 46:00.

It should make for an interesting workout - or just take songs on your iPod and run to their tempos, you tend to burn more calories when you switch up your runinng pace, as opposed to running for a half hour at 6.5 mph (my fave).

Ring in the New Year...by running into it??

I was looking on active.com (a neat website) because I am looking for 5ks, 10ks, even half marathons that I could tackle in the near future!
I came across the SLCTC Beat the New Year 5K.
This is such a fun idea - ring in the New Year, while running. The race starts at 11:30 PM on January 31, 2008.

What better way to kick off your New Year's health resolutions, eh?

Heck, give this run a shot and try to run the 3.2 miles in less than a half hour (hence the title, "Beat the New Year")!

It sounds like fun, maybe I will incorporate this into my New Years Eve festivities. :)

6 Quirks

Six Quirks...

#1 - At work I am the total germaphobe! I've become a joke around the office. Everyday before I go home, I have to use Cavi wipes (these bad boys kill just about EVERY germ/disease you could imagine...strep/hiv/tuberculosis/etc) I LOVE them! And I also have to go around and Lysol everything - all the door handles in the office, my chair, the light switches, the lobby door, kids table, the children's reading books, chairs, etc. The gals I work with have grown accustom to my habitual cleaning rituals that sometimes occur more than once daily...

#2 - Whenever I take a shower, I have to make sure the door to the bathroom is locked. I cannot shower without the door being locked. Even when I am in the shower, I will peek out of the curtain to ensure that the door is tightly locked. I guess I watch too many scary movies - I have a fear of being stabbed in the shower (like in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho).

#3 - When I workout or go running, I ALWAYS have to be chewing gum. It drives me crazy and I freak out and will not workout unless I am chewing gum. It drives my friends nuts too - Brooke and I went to the gym the other night and I had to run outside to my car and get a stick of gum. She rolled her eyes at me and laughed! :)

#4 - When I get into bed at night, I have to wrap my feet up in my blanket - almost cocoon like, then pull my covers up to my face to make sure I am snuggled up. But not too tightly or else I feel a wee bit claustrophobic. I also have to fall asleep on my left side with my left arm up...I am weird, OK? No need to tell me!

#5 - I have have have to make sure my closet door is shut all the way. I cannot go to bed with it slightly cracked open. It has to be shut all the way!

#6 - Without fail, every single night I have to wash my feet. Not just a quick wash in the tub, I mean literally scald my feet with hot hot water - to the point where my feet turn bright red. It helps calm me down and helps me get to sleep quicker. It's always something I look forward to! he he

Alrighty, there you go, now you know more about me - are you sure you want to still be my friend???

TAG: Jan Balls, Teresa Warner, Dani Talbot, Denisha Oldroyd, Amanda Brown, Caitlyn Andrus, Makenzie Carter, Missy Lires, Shayla Egan, Amelia Gray, Carissa Rasmussen. Get to it ladies!

Joseph B. Wirthlin

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin passed away on Dec. 1, 2008.
He was such an influential man and such a great example. I love him! :) He will be missed, but he is in a much better place with loved ones and Heavenly Father.

This is an excerpt from his last talk in the October 2008 General Conference "Come What May, and Love It"

"The first thing we can do is learn to laugh. Have you ever seen an angry driver who, when someone else makes a mistake, reacts as though that person has insulted his honor, his family, his dog, and his ancestors all the way back to Adam? Or have you had an encounter with an overhanging cupboard door left open at the wrong place and the wrong time which has been cursed, condemned, and avenged by a sore-headed victim?

There is an antidote for times such as these: learn to laugh....

...I remember when one of our daughters went on a blind date. She was all dressed up and waiting for her date to arrive when the doorbell rang. In walked a man who seemed a little old, but she tried to be polite. She introduced him to me and my wife and the other children; then she put on her coat and went out the door. We watched as she got into the car, but the car didn’t move. Eventually our daughter got out of the car and, red faced, ran back into the house. The man that she thought was her blind date had actually come to pick up another of our daughters who had agreed to be a babysitter for him and his wife.

We all had a good laugh over that. In fact, we couldn’t stop laughing. Later, when our daughter’s real blind date showed up, I couldn’t come out to meet him because I was still in the kitchen laughing. Now, I realize that our daughter could have felt humiliated and embarrassed. But she laughed with us, and as a result, we still laugh about it today.

The next time you’re tempted to groan, you might try to laugh instead. It will extend your life and make the lives of all those around you more enjoyable."

What a great example he is and was. :) Come what may, and LOVE IT!! Terrific advice to live by.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

It's CHRISTMAS TIME!! I love this time of year!!
There are so many favorite things for me this time of year:
when the snow starts to fall outside, when I get a chance to snuggle up by the fire, drink hot chocolate and read a good book, decorate my house up and down with Christmas garlands and lights, shopping for the perfect gift for friends and family members, making gingerbread houses, christmas kiss cookies, sledding, making snow angels, staring at the christmas tree, temple square trips to see the lights, acting out the nativity scene on Christmas eve with cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents, egg nog, Williams-Sonoma peppermint bark, apple cider, Christmas music, watching my favorite Christmas movies, cinnamon pinecones, listening to 'Last Christmas' by Wham over and over again, christmas light cookies, driving around town to look at everyone's lights, and spending time with loved ones.

I love this time of year - everyone seems to be so happy and in good spirits. It's also a reminder to all the world of a special birth - the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

"Born in a stable, cradled in a manger, He came forth from heaven to live on earth as mortal man and to establish the kingdom of God. During His earthly ministry, He taught men the higher law. His glorious gospel reshaped the thinking of the world. He blessed the sick. He caused the lame to walk, the blind to see, the deaf to hear. He even raised the dead to life. To us He has said, 'Come, follow me.'

As we seek Christ, as we find Him, as we follow Him, we shall have the Christmas spirit, not for one fleeting day each year, but as a companion always. We shall learn to forget ourselves. We shall turn our thoughts to the greater benefit of others" (Thomas S. Monson, "In Search of the Christmas Spirit," Ensign, Dec 1987, 3).

I really do love this time of year - and hope that everyone has a very Merry Christmas!!