Craving Cozy

Evan, Griffin and I were at a local thrift store looking for bundt pans and books on Friday evening. No bundt pans, but I scored in the book dept... They also had the PERFECT reading chair-and-a-half! It was missing the back pillow, and it's in desperate need of TLC and reupholstering, but it was only $15!!! I can't get the silly thing off my mind.

I have a corner in my bedroom that's calling out to be reading nook. I have this unused bay window space that needs some attention. I'd recover that chair, make some pillows out of left over fabric from recovering my cedar chest cushion and my bedspread, refurbish a funky lamp, repaint and relocate a small end table from my computer room (doesn't see much guest use anyway) and Oila!

Can't you just see it?! Go ahead. Imagine with me...

eclectic living room design

I know that ottoman would DRIVE ME CRAZY, but there's something about it that I love.



I love this green table!



Now if I could only get the chair in the back of the Yukon and hide it somewhere so that I can get to it after Christmas without Jon pontificating about another undone project...

Thoughts for a Blah Monday

Anyone out there know whether there's a pattern for creating a Wordle cross-stitch?

The recycle company missed picking up my neighbor's recycle can last Thursday. They're out there right now emptying it. Something didn't make it in the truck, and the driver hopped out to pick it up. It's raining and 34 degrees, and he's wearing shorts and a t-shirt! Guess he didn't pay attention to the forecast...

I was completely quilt productive this weekend. I finished 1 quilt (sandwiched, tied, and bound), pieced the top and sandwiched another, pieced a table runner and a square with the last of the fabric from the 2nd quilt and table runner.

My SIL asked me where I find quilt patterns. I told her that I typically wake up with one on my mind. Other times they appear in doodles while I'm on conference calls. Most of the time though, they end up being drawn in the fogged shower glass while I'm just standing under the warm streams of water. Jon's going to love it when he hears that. 

Funny thing is that Griff must pay attention to what the shower stall looks like when he comes to sit in the warm, humidified bathroom once I'm all dried, lotioned, and dressed. I noticed that he's been drawing patterns on the shower glass too. I love that boy.

Evan asked me if I'd take him to the symphony. He said he only gets to go on field trips, and he would like to go another time. I love that boy.

Carson smiled at me from the bottom of the stairs when I walked out into the hall to mumble good bye to him this morning. I wish I'd hugged him. I'll do it as soon as he gets home today. I love that boy.

Jon and I enjoy sleeping under our down comforter with a window open. I didn't love the down comforter when we first go it, but Jon was persistent in asking when we could put it on the bed. Now I'm anxious for nights to get cold enough for it - heck I'll even put it on when it's not cool enough and just cover one leg. Jon wraps up in it with his - wait for it - seven pillows (seriously - 7 - I just went and counted). Guess what - I love that boy.

Happy Rainy, Cold Monday.

Adventure Follow-Up

I called and cancelled my Bromacleans subscription.
Never went to whatever website they were promoting, but I cancelled my acess to that too.
Got my 10-day Bromacleans sample, but am completely afraid of using any of it. I don't know what it's supposed to do or what's in it. Apparently it's a 3 pill a day deal, and I really dislike those.
Never got the $100 Walmart Gift Card.
Got to teach my boys what a scam smells like.

What if...

The last time I posted was September 25, which would have been my dad's 65th birthday; BUT today is October 4, and it's been 34 years since he died. That's a lot of time.

I've been feeling a bit of competition for Jon's time lately because I love to talk to the man, but so do his sons. I love to hear him tell me that I need to chill out. I love to gross out our boys by kissing in the kitchen. I love to joke around with him. I love having inside secrets. I love to watch him stop what he's doing and make sure that whichever niece is in the room knows that she is his most favorite.

I know that my dad loved to spend time with me. I know that he had a sense of humor. I remember one night when he got home from work a little bit late. I remember hanging on his arm while his hand was in his coat pocket and reaching into the pocket to pull out what he said he got for me. It was a piece of paper. Turns out that it was a speeding ticket, and he told me he got it so that I'd know what one looked like.

My dad died the Monday after General Conference, and my mom said that he decided to stay home from church with me & Cory that last Sunday. I guess that they didn't watch conference on TV or listen to it on the radio then. I don't have any idea what we did that day, but I like to think that he went to sleep content following his last day on earth.

There are a lot of things that would have been different for me if he'd been around. I have to wonder

• Would I have been nearly as boy insane (that's right, not just boy crazy) if he'd been here?
• Was I just seeking male attention?
• Would I know more about cars and what makes them hum?
• Would I have shot a gun other than at the birds eating my grandma's raspberries?
• How often would I talk to him on the phone?
• Would I know his LDS conversion story?
• What would he have been like as a grandpa?
• Where would we have lived?
• Would I still have gone to Utah State and met and married Jon?
• Would he have put Jon through the wringer?
• Would I have been better at basketball because he practiced with me?

I am blessed with an incredible father-in-law and stepdad. Both of these men have taught me many things. I'm grateful for the relationship I have with both of them, for the understanding they offer and for the pearls of wisdom even when I think I don't need it. I'm grateful for the experiences they give me. I'm humbled by the times they do little things that only matter to me.

So - I guess tonight I'm meandering between pity party and gratitude. Kind of a somber place to be.

Summer Slump

Do you get into a summer slump? I'm in the middle of one, and the pity party is absolutely raging. I'm even feeling left out that I didn't get to go to girl's camp this year - and I haven't gone to girl's camp since before I was a mom!

Gotta get out of this.

Baby steps.

Set some achievable goals - today that means answer the phone, shower, and make at least one bed. I get to help with Webelos this afternoon, so that will get me out of the house.

Ooo - how about one more goal - post the Hill cousin gift rotation on the family blog. That one I can check off!

I feel much (well maybe just a pinch) better already.

One Sweet Ride

This is a photo of my dad and his two baby girls.

I'm the one with pigtails...

Can you name the make, model, and year of the other one?

There's a sad story about the end of my dad's ownership of that sweet ride.

Apparently one of his baby girls couldn't keep her little digits off the windows of the other.

This drove him

C R A Z Y!!!

When prized son came along, the sweet ride had to go -

didn't quite fit the family man image I suppose.

Well, someone came to give sweet ride a test drive.

AND NEVER CAME BACK!!!

That's it - took the car - and drove off into the sunset.

Can

you

imagine?!

But look what my dad got in exchange...

That's a 2-door, 1976, 3-on-the-tree, Ford Granda folks!

With white walls no less...

It's what I learned to drive.

It's the car I drove into the Taco Bell sign

AND

t-boned into a guy in the University Mall parking lot.

I totalled the guy's brand new truck (he'd bought it that morning),

and the Granada's bumper wasn't even dented.

I wish I could say that I loved that car like I'm sure my dad loved that sweet ride.

So... I WON!!!

I've been watching all these giveaways going on across blogland (especially Thriftyba because she's been incredibly lucky lately), and I decided to enter a couple. What the heck?!

Guess what!!!

I won - both of them! You can see what I won here and here.

Thanks to the give-away hosts. Look for a giveaway right here - SOON!

Perfume Cloud

I was cleaning out my cedar chest this morning, and I found a box of stuff from my senior year of high school. It's got a pom-pom, some poetry books, the senior class panoramic photo, a t-shirt, etc. There was also a bottle of Jess.

My bottle's lid isn't so shiny - it's nicely patinaed. The problem is that the bottle is 3/4 full of a liquid that is several shades darker - honestly looks like urine and it is

r ~ a ~ n ~ c ~ i ~ d. 

I <3 this bottle but I never really did like the scent (hence it being 3/4 full)... So guess what I did...

I turned on the water in my bathroom sink and figured I'd just dump the stuff down the drain. Couldn't get the vaporizer off the top, so in my infinite blonde wisdom I started spraying away.

What?! It should have worked. Paint booths use water falls to capture overspray and control VOC emissions.Why wouldn't that work for 20 year old perfume in the bathroom sink? I don't know - it just didn't. My upstairs now smells like rancid perfume. I'm pretty sure that I can even taste it.

You know how Febreze is supposed to neutralize odors? Would that work for perfume? I really don't want to add another scent to this miasma. I've got windows open (thank goodness it's a beautiful sunny day!). Perhaps all those awful scent particles will dilute with the fresh air. I'm sure my scent glands have shut down by now, so I'm probably not the best judge...

Won't Jon be surprised when he gets home from work? Maybe I can blame it on Carson and Evan and say that they rotated the clothing piles on their floor - thus disturbing some boy funk.

Really though. I still have 3/4 bottle minus 17 or so sprays. How do I get that stuff out of there and keep the bottle intact?!

Grandpa's Ford

Tonight I read this blog post about Annie's grandpa's truck and was reminded of my own grandpa's white 1967 Ford.

The bench seat had more springs than - well - this and had been reupholstered with something very scratchy (although I'm sure it was the most durable stuff available).

It took FOREVER to roll down the windows. I'm sure I rode in the truck during colder weather, but in my mind the windows are open and those seats are scratching the back of my bare legs.

The sound of the engine as it revved toward the next gear still has a soothing effect. The clutch was tight, so gear grinding was a fairly standard event. But even that sound doesn't startle me out of pacificity.

At the bottom of the gear shift column was something that resembled a stack of pancakes. Similar to this - except all the pancakes were the same size.

My OCD tendencies were in full force even then. I would stick each finger into a fold of that shift boot. Never mind that my fingers could get pinched during gear changes and that Grandpa would get upset that my hand was where he had no reason to expect it.

You know how Bella loves her 53 Chevy? Well I'd be the same way if I had Grandpa's 67 Ford.

What did your grandpa drive?

Frustrated with Frances

A friend of mine (OK - more of an acquaintance. She married a guy who was once a very good friend, so I adopted her - I don't know that she knows that... I got to sit next to her at my 20 year high school reunion, but she texted her next door neighbor most of the night... Doesn't bode well for our friendship, eh?) posted her March 2010 books today. One of them was A Bargain for Frances.

Can I just tell you that Frances is one of the most frustrating characters to make my acquaintance?!

When I was in 1st grade - can you see me? How about the kid to my left - that's Bart Cloward. I don't remember why, but I did not like Bart. I think you can tell that from my body language - see how I'm trying to lean away from him? Wouldn't you be so mad if your kid was the one turned around in the front row?! - we had a reading contest. We had caterpillars that were pinned to the cork strip at the top-of-the-chalk-board level all the way around the room. We got to lick & stick a star for each book that we read. Mrs. Brady said that whoever read the most books would win a prize.

Did you hear that?! A P-R-I-Z-E!!!!

At this point you know (if you know me very well at all - or did at the time this story happened) that there was never a doubt in my mind who was going to read the most books in my class. I'm fairly certain that I had a 4-5 caterpillar chain just to hold all of my lick & sticks.

So the day came when the winner was announced. Of course it was me, but this is where my story went horribly wrong.

When Mrs. Brady said there would be a prize, I knew that I would be the lucky recipient of an Easy Bake Oven. (Don't ask, that's just how my mind worked.)  I eventually went to the front of the room after I'm sure I harassed poor Mrs. Brady until she could stand it no longer. I was anticipating the weight of that box being placed in my arms. I remember walking over to the reading area with her - upset that more of the class wasn't paying attention. She flipped a flimsy paper back into my hands.

That's right folks

Certainly not an Easy Bake. And certainly not a book that I have ever read.

February Frump...

It's Friday.
It's snowing.
There's no sunshine.
I'd really like to see blue sky.
The ground is moist.
My friend, Chalyce, doesn't like that word.
M-O-I-S-T.
The grass is dormant.
And ugly.

Griff slept 11 hours last night!
He was a baby polar bear this morning.
He only gave up-the-side-of-your-face-licking-kisses.
Yuck.

My friend, April, unleashed a stipple monster.
I want to quilt.
I've got one stacked.
And two waiting for starch.
My browns don't match.
On the back.
I need new thread.

Jon said I should try to go one whole day without spending any $.
I think I can pay for the thread with coins in my purse and car.
But then I'd see all that fabric.

And there's a Holiday on the corner.
With Diet Coke with Lime on tap.
That'd take more coins.

My modem doesn't work.
Because I confused it.
Only one phone in the house works.
Because of the confused modem.
It's not a wireless phone.

I want a new bedspread.
That I would sew.
With on-sale fabric.
Just 6 yards.
Of a designer tapestry weave.
That's too much $ per yard.
Even on sale.

I need kidney beans in food storage.
The canned kind that I don't have to soak.
But I can soak beans in the mean time.
In the crock pot.

I'm stuck in my house.
Waiting for the cable guy.
I could go for a walk.
But what if he's early.
Yep-that's my excuse.

I need an attitude adjustment.
Maybe I should just adjust a presser foot.
And make a pillow.
For every room.
With the ruffler....
And fabric scaps.
A Project!

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuup!

That's your baby polar bear kiss.
Thank me for sharing.

I really need a shot of Vit D.

Dupe or Delight - Prank or Pleasure - Halloween Thesaurus

1:29 pm Halloween afternoon.

Made waffles for breakfast. Cleaned the kitchen. Grandma Norris dropped off sugar cookies, frozen berries, and jam. Spent an hour talking to one of my most favorite women (I love you Mom). Pumpkins are carved. Cleaned the kitchen. Boys are playing Battleship because I can't handle any more TV noise. Grandma's cookies are all gone. Cleaned the kitchen. The boys discovered the glazed doughnut stash. They're all gone. Cleaned the kitchen. See how my day has gone?

Jon's going to the U game tonight with his brother, nephew, and neighbor. I'm staying home to enjoy all of the ghouls and goblins that will knock on our door. I've got about 900 pieces of candy. I really hope I don't have a whole lot left over, but I can't imagine that many kids requesting treats.

I typically make some sort of festive dinner (tonight I'm planning hashbrown headstones, link sausage appendages, and scrambled body parts laced with ketchup streaks. Should be easy - right?)

Things to do pre-haul. Shower. Walgreens - face paint, pumpkin candles, and reading glasses. Candy in bucket. Figure out who is supervising each boy during candy gathering. Thread cross stitch needle. Feed boys. Anxiously wait for door bell ringing to begin. Whew!

Sit down. Start next row of cross stitch (I'm using linen that is much smaller than I thought - hence the reading glasses). Open door. Try to name each treater and remember their costume so that I can talk to them about it later. Close the door. Sit back down. Do few more stitches. Open the door....Then the evening will wind down and I'll start getting upset that so many older kids are out without even dressing up (had a bunch last year that showed up wearing backwards hoodies - using their hoods to hold candy. They got mad because I wouldn't let them in to have a drink of water. Not looking forward to that part. But until then...

I LOVE HALLOWEEN!!!

Skiwampusly Using My Think Juice

Evan was quietly standing behind me this afternoon while I was watching a video feed online. I had just set my Diet Coke with Lime on the desk and was typing a new web address into my browser.

He loudly asked, "Is that your think juice?" Made me stop and consider how many cans and bottles have been placed in the receptacle at my side. I discovered that

Yes, Evan, DC w/ Lime is my Think Juice!

And my dear boy - here is what I'm thinking about:

• Griff brought me a handful of M&Ms that had seen better days. He informed me that he'd picked them out of the Mountain Trailmix bag. Love it when that happens. He then showed me a blue one and said "Mom - how did this get so skiwampus?" I want to know how he came up with that particular vocabulary word...
• It's supposed to be in the mid 50's today, but I'm looking at a thermostat right now, and it says 47 degrees.
• Why is it so annoying and time consuming to apply for life insurance?
• If I Google Tongan and Samoan funereal customs, will I find out how long my street will be clogged with visiting mourners?
• Should I feel worse than I do about telling my boys the Xbox has to be turned off until tomorrow night - even though they are out of school for a couple of days and it results in one of them throwing anger tantrums in the basement? What's so bad about going to a friend's house (to probably play video games) anyway?
• Will the neighbors hire my anger tantrum thrower as a professional wailer?
• Why am I craving no-bake cookies?
• Why does my scanner keep putzing out on me - especially when I really need it?
• How do I let the day get away from me?

Gotta go do damage control and make the house a little cleaner than it was when Jon walked out the door this morning. I haven't done a thing, and I'm pretty sure I don't smell all that great. Thank me for sharing...

Nomenclature (or - I Like the Way That Rolls Off the Tongue)

Hey! Guys! This is it!

100th POST!!!

My cousin, Miranda, is contemplating a blog title change. I was typing a response to her post and decided that the topic of blog names would be perfect for numbero hundredo. So - let's talk evolution of blog names.

First I did Go Tell It On the Hills that didn't work because my blog is about my Hills - not THE Hills. It sounded like I was going to be posting gossipy insights about every single Hill. There are a lot of those, and I'm not paparazzi. I decided I wanted something more personal and less hymnish. And I can hear all of your snickers about my hills. I know what you're thinking...

So - Random Deliberate Cogitation. Thesaurus anyone? Still one of my favorite titles, but it now graces the cover of my journal with a Volume 1 in smaller text below (just in case there are a volume 2 & 3). If they don't open the cover my progeny are going to think that I was one pompous diva. If they do open the cover, I think they'll lose the pompous perception, but the diva will pounce like a tiger sprung from a cage.

For now I am completely thrilled with Consider My Monkeys although I keep spelling monkies when I type it out or write it down for someone. Not so good. I love the title because in my mind and sometimes outloud my boys are referred to as apes, oragutans, and gorillas depending on what they're climbing on, how loud they are, how large of a mess their room is, whether they're flinging monkey poo, or if their mother has gone APE SHIT crazy... Sorry - got away from myself there.
 
Anyway - thanks for putting up with me through 100 posts, and please stay tuned for at least 100 more.

Oh - and I'm sure I could figure out some kind of give away if any of you can tell me how to fix the post header so that it doesn't cut off words...)

Farkle!

So - have you played Farkle on Facebook yet? No? Well you should at least give it a try so that I can have more Farkle friends and get more Farkle chips.

Is there a strategy to this game? I don't think so... It's just a matter of rolling some electronic dice, which has me a little suspicious because how random can the dice be if they're programmed? I know it's probably using some random number generator, but I still don't trust that it's as random as rolling dice by hand. Right?

Anyway - here's my Farkle methodology. Please note that this doesn't necessarily work for me. I can't get a max score over 8,350, and I repeatedly Farkle away rounds where I've got over 2,000. This morning I got greedy and rolled away a round that was over 5,000. Had to walk away from the computer after that one. Anyway...

I roll the dice and keep rolling until there's only 1 die left. I know there's still a 1/3 chance that I'll be able to use the number, but the odds in that just aren't good enough for me.

If there are 3 or less dice to roll and one of them is a 5, I will reroll the 5. I think that this increases my chances of not getting a Farkle. Probably doesn't, but it makes sense to me.

I bank my score if it's over 1000 and there are less than 3 dice to roll.

I also bank my score as soon as I get 300 if I've already had 2 Farkles.

Honestly? I think I'm spending too much time Farkling.

Oh - and by the way... My nephew Jeff started chemo yesterday. Keep him in your prayers, all right?

Also, my friend Lori was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma this week. She's got 4 kids - one of them a new born (less than a month old). Pray for her too. OK?

Have a safe and enjoyable 4th!

Have a Swig of That

So I'm driving toward home this morning (I'd been to a work meeting in American Fork) and I drove past this guy sitting on the side of the road chugging away on a GALLON of sky blue liquid. I know that there are all sorts of colored sugar-water out there, but this sickeningly resembled windshield-washer fluid.

I have to wonder what it was that caught my eye:

• the gallon size container
• the man himself just sitting there on the curb
• the blue liquid

Problem is that I just kept driving while I wondered, and I don't really want to go see if he's now a dead guy laying on the side of the road with an empty gallon size container.

2:00 Friday

When I woke up this morning I really did plan on getting a lot done today.

I was going to

rotate laundry loads, put one away, and start a new one from the boy's hamper

take Griff with me to get my blood drawn - checking my very low vitamin D levels and my very high cholesterol - has to be done after fasting for at least 12 hours

take Griff out for breakfast because I'd convinced myself I would be starving by then

Do a conference call for work from the car while I watched G swing/slide/run

swing through Costco

Return home to rotate laundry

Deliver Scentsy orders

Feed G & me lunch

Finish the permit schedule and quality checklist for one of my work projects

Rotate laundry

Begin placing rocks that Jon's dug/raked/sworn out of the back yard in strategic places in my flower beds

I had figured that about the time I was starting to get the rocks placed my older two boys would be home from school, and they would happily help me finish this chore.

W E L L
Carson and Evan will be walking through the front door in about 13 minutes, and I've yet to rotate a single load of wash.

I've been sitting here looking up ways to do my newly chopped tresses. Wednesday afternoon I had my favorite hair dresser cut off just over 3 inches. I've never had hair long enough to cut off 3 inches and still have hair left. I knew I was tired of the hair on my neck, and it was definitely time for a change. BUT HELLO?! Chopping off my hair (it's still in a short bob) made me discover how insecure I've become. I'm pretty sure that none of the clothes in my closet go with short hair. Yesterday I had to wear a collared shirt to cover up some of my neck. I'm sure I'll get used to it, but wow.

BTW - today I found out that if left to his own devices long enough, Griff will grow weary of telling his mother he's hungry. He'll look through the fridge, smear some stuff on a tortilla, cover it with cheese, microwave it for 1:50, and roll it all up when it beeps. Makes for a crunchy tortilla, and I don't really want to know what he found to smear. I think mine had banana, apple sauce, and bacon. He added some blue cheese cause he knew it was my favorite. Honestly? It wasn't that bad.

And I still haven't showered...

Changing My Template - AGAIN

I loved that Notepad Chaos template, but the photobucket sponsor reached it's maximum bandwidth, and I didn't want to mess with trying to contact the template designer.

So - it's spring - and now we get a new template. Change is good. Right?

2008 Closing Random Thoughts

It's 1:32 pm - just over 10 hours left of 2008, and what am I doing? NOTHING!

First of all can you believe that we're 10 years past 99? I mean - Prince said he'd party like it's 1999 - what was partying like then anyway? I had a 2 year old, and I'm pretty sure that any partying going on at my place was much different to the stuff that Prince was singing about.

Anyway - I have places to be, parties to attend, a new year to celebrate, and I'm sitting here in my office watching my next door neighbors, who have never experienced snow - apparently there really are still people like this, shovel and reshovel piles. They're not creating sledding hills, making snowmen, or clearing a path out of the garage. Just randomly shoveling. Huh.

Jon's working today (always a good thing), and the other 3 boys are downstairs watching Ratatoulli, jumping on the couches, and playing Heroscape. I cleaned the kitchen this morning, but now it's a mess (the boys found where I hid the Candy Cane Almond Roca and Lindor Truffles, and there are wrappers EVERYWHERE). The cushions are all off the couches in the family room, and Carson's got the floor of the living room completely covered with figures, tiles, cards, etc so that he can plot his strategy for tonight's game.

I really don't want to go down there anyway - it'll just mean that I have to do something or look at my partially put away Christmas decor. There's just not time to finish putting it away, get ready for tonight's party, and put together the yummies that I'm taking. Oh well.

The family room tree has been bagged - it'll go back to Jon's parent's house tonight. The one in the kitchen has all of the ornaments removed and boxed up at its foot and it just needs to be carried to the basement. The living room tree is still standing on the end table with all of its adornments also boxed beneath it. Is there anything more lonely or post-holiday representationist than an undecorated tree? Don't think so.

I did finish beading a necklace and bracelet this morning. They go with the earrings that my SIL, Chris, gave me for Christmas. I'd post a photo, but the camera has gone incognito for a few days - that's why I haven't posted photos of Christmas morning. I've been wearing all 3 jewelry items with my jammies and pony-tailed hair thus far today. Griff said I look beautiful. Who am I to argue?

Yesterday I found a zipped, angora hoody at Smith's Marketplace. I really do love the thing, but I'm going to work on want/need spending in 2009. That black hoody really isn't a need. I have other black sweaters, and that hoody has pockets right about hip level that create little bulges where they aren't necessarily needed. Besides - if I bought the hoody I'd want to but a new cami to go underneath it, and I don't need more of those either. BUT - it's on a 60% off sale. Oh the dilemma.

I hear my latest chick lit calling me. I may have to read a chapter or 4 before I get in the shower. As long as we're ready to rock & roll when Jon gets here, it's all good, right?

Have an enjoyable, safe evening. I'd like you to all be around to check out my thoughts during '09.

I Really Think You Ought to Do This...

I'm listing a few things on KSL Classifieds today, and I found this included on the KSL site.

I know I shouldn't laugh at domestic disputes, but WOWSER! How did the reporters and police officer keep a straight face?!