Good Times With The Girls

I love hanging out with all of my best girlfriends! The other night I was able to to get together with a few of them for dinner at Texas Roadhouse. It was the first time I have ever been there. I have heard a lot of things about their rolls, but a roll is a roll right? Nope! Not at Texas Roadhouse! They were DELICIOUS!! I could have eaten nothing but rolls all night long!
I cant wait to get together with these girls again!! All of them are pretty busy with husbands and kids and work so it's hard to find a time that works for everyone! But I love catching up with all of them!!

And a few weeks ago I got to hang out with one of my greatest friends, my cousin Kandi! We had a delicious lunch and then went to the Falling Waters Day Spa for a pedicure and glitter toes!! She got this really pretty blue color {I wish I would have picked that color} and I got dark purple! Hers have lasted really really well.... mine.... started peeling withing a week! I was pretty bummed about it!! But I would definitely go there again for the pedicure and foot soak!

The Wisdom Of Proverbs

We hear them all the time:
"Money does not grow on trees" "One good turn deserves another" "There's no place like home"

And I'm not going to lie, there are some that just confuse me!
"You cant have your cake and eat it too" Well, if you have the cake sitting in front of you, can't you eat it? Why would you have nice big cake in front of you and not dig in?

"A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush" Does that mean it better to have a least one bird than no birds? I just don't get it.....

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth" WHAT?!?!


On to the real reason for this post....

This week I have heard some really good explanations of some famous proverbs and it has got me thinking.

The first one was in church on Sunday. The speaker said something like "We always hear the grass is always greener on the other side right?"

He then went on to say that the grass is never greener on the other side, it's just a different kind of grass with it's own weeds and it's own challenges in growing. It may look better from where we stand, but we can't see all the things going on underneath the grass that may be making it hard for the grass to grow.

I had never really thought about it that way before!! I admit that I have a tendency to compare grass a lot and I never take into consideration that maybe the owner of that grass has gone out in the middle of the night with a can of green spray paint to hide the brown spots. I need to be much better about reminding myself of all the reasons why my grass is great instead of spending some much time focusing on the brown spots and weeds!!

The other proverb I heard was last night while I was at my parents house. Their home teachers came over and gave a really awesome message about "Don't cry over spilled milk".

He read a story about a kid who went to his first day of geometry class and there was a glass on milk sitting on the counter. Once everyone was seated the teacher made a sweeping motion with is hand and knocked the glass into a sink, shattering the glass and spilling the milk. The teacher went on the tell the class that the milk was gone, it had run down the drain and there was no way to get it back, so why worry about it. Yes, if the teacher had been a little more careful the milk may not have spilled, but at this point, the milk was gone and there was nothing any of them could do about it.

The kid went on to say that he doesn't remember much of the geometry he learned that year, but he always remembered that demonstration.

This is something else I am terrible at. When something doesn't work out I let myself feel guilty for a long time. Many times there is nothing I can do about the situation, no way to fix it, and I just beat myself up over it. But why? It's done, it's over with.
I need to be better about letting go of things I cant change and moving on from them.

 I think I need to post these somewhere in my room so that I am think about it and making a conscious effort to change the way I think! Why? Because "if at first you don't succeed, try try again!"

Quote Wall Monday

I am SO ready for Spring!! It's almost March.... but today we are expecting snow. SNOW!!!

I'm done with winter! I'm tired of the snow and cold! I want to take my snow tires off and

trade out my heavy coat for a light jacket!!!

Come on Mother Nature, send some sunshine my way!!

My QRS's

I'm a follower... what can I say!! And a blog stalker.... and a blog copycat..... it's true!!
I saw this on my friend Nicole's blog and though "ehhh, it's been awhile since I've done one of these, so what the heck!"

So here are my current QRS's {I decided not to go with ABC's.... those letters get used all the time. I thought I give some middle letters some recognition today}!

A. Age: 25, a whole quarter of a century!!

B. Bed Size: Twin. Yes... I know I am adult and should probably own a queen size bed by now.. but I LOVE my bed and I haven't even considered getting a new one!

C. Chore You Dislike: Hanging and folding laundry!! It's the worst! I don't mind sorting it, or putting it in the machine, but having to hang it and iron it and put it back in my closest sucks!

D. Dogs: I used to have the cutest puppy names Mika! Loved her! And now my brother has a dang cute lab named Bandit!! He has gotten to the point where he can almost knock me off my feet when he jumps up!

E. Essential Start To Your Day: A shower! I cant shower at night!!

F. Favorite Color: This changes ALL the time and seriously depends on the object! Right now I am currently loving yellow!

G. Gold or Silver: Silver for sure!! Gold is kind of starting to grow on my though. The gold that looks vintage/aged, almost brass colored...

H. Height: I think I'm 5' 6"

I. Instruments You Play{ed}: The piano, though not very well! And I really really wish I played the cello!

J. Job Title: Indirect Lending Loan Officer. I sit in a basement all by myself looking at loan applications from dealerships either approving or denying the them.

K. Kids: They are cute... they say funny things... they can be super loud... they make lots of messes... and I have none of my own. One day maybe!

L. Live: Utah. Really not that bad of a place!!

M. Mom's Name: Marilyn. I had trouble spelling this for the longest time!!

N. Nicknames: Mandi, Manda, Mandi-Roo, Sister

O. Obsessions: Twilight, lip gloss, movies, and chocolate

P. Pet Peeves: I have this weird thing with windshield wipers. I don't even really know how to explain it, but it drives me crazy when the wind shield wipers are going faster than the water is coming down. Gosh I'm weird.. I know! And "fishing" drives me crazy! You know... when someone says something like "Ohhhhhh, I just don't know what to do" followed by a big sigh, because they want you to ask them what is up? Drive me NUTS!!

Q. Quote From A Movie: "I would have to tell you: you have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love... I love... I love you. And I never wish to be parted from you from this day on" -Mr. Darcy from the 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice!
"...We must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy" -Dumbledore HP movie 4

R. Righty or Lefty: The right! Most definitely the right!

S. Siblings: 2 brothers, 1 sister, and 1 sister in law

T. Time You Wake Up: Most days it is 6:40 a.m. But if I have a meeting at work its between 6 and 6:20 a.m. And on the weekend I usually try to be up by 9 a.m.

U: Underwear: Is a definite MUST!!

V. Vegetable You Don't Like: Oh man... where to begin.... you name it and I probably don't like it!! Peas, squash, peppers, mushrooms, swiss chard, zucchini... I'm awful, I know!

W. What Makes You Run Late: Hitting the snooze button, indecision about what to wear, out of control hair, trying to grab something for breakfast....

X. X-Rays You've Had: Arm, ankle, teeth, and chest

Y. Yummy Food You Make: I'm admit that I am pretty dang good at making most any kind of dessert!! But I'm also good at crock pot chicken and rice!! And homemade pizza!!

Z. Zoo Animal: The monkeys!! And the elephants!!


If you are bored, feel free to be a follower too!! Happy Friday!

Book #5

I finished Briar Rose by Jane Yolen today! I first heard about this book a few years ago in my Children's Lit class; the professor didn't put it on our reading list but he did recommend we read it sometime.
I saw The Sleeping Beauty ballet a few weeks ago and it reminded me of this book and I finally got around to putting it on hold at the library.

It was a really interesting take on the story of my favorite Disney princess and incorporates the Holocaust. There were a couple of part that made me think "Man... I wouldn't want my elementary schooler reading this book!!" But it's a good reminder of the things people suffered during that time period!!

"Ever since she was a child, Rebecca has been enchanted by her grandmother Gemma's stories about Briar Rose. But a promise

Rebecca makes to her dying grandmother will lead her on a remarkable journey to uncover the truth of Gemma's astonishing claim: I am Briar Rose. A journey that will lead her to unspeakable brutality and horror. But also to redemption and hope."

Tree Love

I know I just got back from a vacation.... but I REALLY wish I was going out of town this weekend instead, and to the opposite coast.

Why? Because this weekend is the start of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C.

 They talked about it on the Today Show this morning and it reminded me of how badly I want to visit one spring to see the beautiful trees covered in hundreds of delicate pink flowers!

Did you know that the trees were originally a gift from Japan back in 1912?

Next year will be the centennial celebration! The official website says it is a once in a lifetime celebration!! Maybe if I start saving my pennies now I can be there for next years festival!!

I wonder if one of these gorgeous tress would grow here in Utah?? Do you think it gets to cold in the winter? I would love to look out my window in the morning and see the amazing pink blossoms! And then when the pink fades away and they turn to white I would walk around singing "Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree"

I'd plant my cherry blossom tree right next to one of these: 

                   

That's right!! I want a palm tree in my yard too!! I am almost positive that it gets to cold here..... but that wont stop me from trying!! If I have to wrap it in plastic and blankets and go out with a blow dryer to keep it warm, I will do it!!

My yard it going to be awesome!!

Quote Wall Tuesday

I know, I know......
This should have been posted yesterday!! It was a crazy day, okay! I didn't get a chance to find a fun quote or cool green wall!
But it was worth the wait.... I think today's all is pretty fantastic!!  

Only one more green wall to go this month! And I promise it will be on time next week!

This Weekend....

                    I'm getting out of the rain and heading here.....

To see this.....

{Wicked the musical}

And to go here for the first time......

{Santa Monica Pier}

Oh yeah, and hang out with these two.....

Only 20 more minutes until the road trip begins!!

Book #4

I finished this book last night, and I loved it!! It took me awhile to get through it but only because I havent had very much time to read for the past 3 weeks!!
Just in case you had any doubt, it is a Romeo & Juliet story! But not the story that you might think!! It goes back and forth between two time periods and is told from a few different persepctives!!
The only think I didnt like..... the author throws in some swearing.

Quote Wall Monday

I thought this wall was perfect for this week!! Don't forget your green on Thursday!

Feelin The Burn

Last night I went to kickboxing at Gold's Gym! I LOVE that kickboxing class! The teacher is awesome and the energy in the room is great and keeps me motivated!

Our teacher does a lot of interval stuff which is really good for your heart and for burning calories. We usually start off with a warm up which gets your heart rate going and then we stretch and let our heart rates lower. Then we get into the punching, kicking and jumping!!

Half way through the class she does some kind of strength training stuff. One of things she does the most is walking lunges. These things were pretty tough when I first started doing them and my form was pretty awful! But after weeks of doing them every Tuesday I got pretty dang good!

Well, it's been awhile since be did walking lunges. We have been doing stuff with the step, or with free weights or with partners. So last night when we did walking lunges, I was dying before we were even half way through! To make it worse, we were RUNNING in between. We'd have to do walking lunges across the floor and then run across the floor 3 times. I HATE to run.... HATE it! It seriously kills me! After three sets of walking lunges and running in between our teacher told us we were going to run for 1 minute! My thought was shoot me know!!

Writing this out it totally makes me sound like the biggest wimp!! But walking lunges are hard people!! Plus I was carrying 8 pound weights and during bicep curls at the same time!! The running was no fun... especially when the cute little 9 year old girl was racing my teacher and they were sprinting from one side of the room to the other!! It was all I could do to keep my legs moving!! Oh the have the energy of a 9 year old!

After the cardio workout we do abs for a couple minutes. Last night we did them on the ball. I like the ball.... I think! I just have a hard time staying ON it! After abs she had us all sit on the floor and hold the ball in between our knees/thighs. We had to squeeze the ball as hard as we could for 1 minute. HOLY COW, it was hard!! My legs were shaking, but luckily I wasn't the only one!!
So between those two workouts I am feeling it today!! Which really is a good thing!!
I have been so awful lately about going to the gym regularly and I have not been eating very good either!! I haven't stepped on a scale in awhile because I am scared of what it will tell me!! I worked SO hard last year to lose a bunch of weight and now I am worried I have gained most of it back.
No good!
I keep telling myself that I will start next week, or next month. And then it doesn't happen. I hate it.... but for some reason I just kind find the motivation to get back to the gym every night and to put away the Oreos!!
But spring and summer are coming and I want to break out the cute shirt, skirts, and capris so I better get on it quick!!

P.S. ALLISON!!! I think it would be SO awesome to go to masque ball somewhere or to host one of our own!! I would totally do it with you!!!!

Fat Tuesday

Mardi Gras, for some reason, always makes me think of masquerade balls!! Maybe because that is the way the French and Italians celebrate it! I think it sounds like a much better way to celebrate the day... as opposed to getting drunk and flashing strangers for cheap beads!   Ever since middle school I have wanted to attend as masquerade ball, or at least dress that way on Halloween!! It even says so in one of my year books!! Have I ever done it though? Nope!

There is just something so mysterious about the whole thing! Everyone is brightly colored masks, the women in beautiful dresses, the dancing!! I would love the get dressed up like that for a night!! It reminds me of Phantom of the Opera or Romeo and Juliet!! Very romantic!
Maybe someday......

I kick myself all the time for not bringing home one of these treasures from Italy!! What and idiot I was!! I bought one for a friend for her birthday and carefully packed it away so it would make it home safe! It wasn't until I was giving her the gift that I realized how dumb I was for not buying one for myself!! I guess that means I just need to get back over there so I can fix my mistake!

Quote Wall Monday

I decided that all of this months walls need to be green since we celebate St Patrick's Day in March!! So here is the first green wall!!

I thought this was a really great quote!! I need to be MUCH better about this!!

Hidden Cities

I have this really cool 1000 Things To See Before You Die desk calendar that I got back in January. It's probably pretty nerdy to say that tearing off the previous day and looking at the next page is the highlight of my morning! And Monday's are particularly exciting because I get to rip of TWO pages!! Yes, that is how exciting my mornings are!
There have been some pretty awesome pictures so far; I am keeping them and plan to make some kind of cool wall collage at the end of the year! It took 53 days for something to show up on my calendar that I have actually seen, that means I have so much more to see!! I need to get started!

Today's picture is this:

               {Stupid question here.... is this place in an Indiana Jones movie??}

It's Petra, Jordan and I think it is absolutely amazing the way the whole temple is carved into the side a the mountains!! My calendar says that it was discovered by a Swiss explorer in 1812. Very cool!!

It also lists some of the worlds other "hidden cities" all of which were built hundreds of years ago but for a time were lost until discovered accidentally by others!
I have always thought these two places looked awesome!! I need to take a South America vacation!!

Machu Picchu in Peru

I don't know if I could have ever lived here..... I am pretty nervous of heights!! This place actually wasn't found by accident! According to my calendar is was shown to an American by a local boy in 1911!!

Tikal in Guatemala.

I have never been to any of the Mayan, Aztec or Inca ruins but I have always found them fascinating! These structures are HUGE and it's amazing to me that ancient people were able to create these lasting structures with no modern construction equipment!!

This last hidden city is very high up on my "Travel Wish List".

Angkor Wat in Cambodia!

Every single picture I have ever seen of this place is beautiful!! I have a friend who got to visit this place a few years ago and I was so jealous!! It kind of reminds me of the movie The Jungle Book.... you know what Mogli goes to King Louie.... right?!?!

Someday...... someday when I have limitless time and an endless supply of cash, I will visit the worlds wonderfully beautiful hidden cities!!



One Long Night

I feel like this today....

Like I can barley keep my eyes open!! Laying my head down on a shelf and sleeping sounds pretty dang fantastic!! I have also considered curling up underneath my desk. I wonder how long it would take for anyone to notice??

I was up way too late last night putting in a stupid Scentsy order!! I think I finally crawled into bed around 1 a.m. It was a long night....

Do you ever have nights where you are laying there, trying your hardest to fall asleep, and the next thing you know your alarm is going off? You don't feel like you even went to sleep at all? That you just spent 5 hours laying there trying to relax every muscle in your body and were never out?

But you know you had to have been asleep as some point because you remember bits and pieces of weird dreams?

That was my night.....

And to top it off, I sat bolt upright at 6 a.m. positive that my alarm hadn't gone off and I was now late for work! I was relieved that I wasn't late and that I actually could sleep for about another hour! So I laid back down and tried to fall back to sleep!

 I would be almost asleep, and then I'd think "Ahh, I'm late! The alarm didn't go off". EVERY 10 MINUTES I did that! I just couldn't fall asleep!!

Long, long night! I am just ready to crawl into bed! To get a good nights sleep and to not wake up until my alarm actually does go off!!