Merry Christmas from Us Elves

How Bad Do You Really Want Wicked Tickets???

Maybe you've heard of a small musical called Wicked. And say you actually thought you might want to see this little musical performed on stage. And say you heard it was actually coming to your city oh about a year ago...and you watched...and you waited...and you anticipated the day the tickets would finally go on sale. And say you also consider yourself a seasoned Black Friday shopper; you've dealt with crazy crowds before...right??? And then the day comes when tickets go on sale and you find this...




Oh, and if you thought why didn't you just log on to their website? Well, smartie pants, you would have seen this screen after 3 hours of their site not even being available...

Oh, but wait...what about the phone???
"I'm sorry all lines are currently busy." Click.

Perhaps I should have gotten season tickets or something, but although I would love to see this show and there probably isn't any other show I'd rather see on stage, there are definite limits to my quest for tickets. So for now...Sad Face :(
But on the upside, I have a great view from my window at work!

A Mother's Work Is Never Done

My sweet mother-in-law sent me this and it was too cute not to share. For all those hard working moms out there, enjoy!



The Mom Song from Northland Video on Vimeo.

Random Photo Tag Thing

I thought this was fun and doesn't require any thinking of some clever thing to say or write about which is great for me because that's a lot of pressure - entirely self created - from all the cute blogs I follow and stuff. How's that last sentence for quite the run on. Anyway, back to the photo thing. Here is the 4th photo from the 4th folder under the my pictures folder of my work computer. This is from Macayla's trip this summer to Thailand.


The results would be totally different from my home computer, maybe I'll have to do this again from home. Thanks for the fun idea Sarah!

I think I was Tagged by Jill

Here are the rules:
1) Link to the person who tagged you
2) Post the rules on your blog (this is what you are now reading)
3) Write 6 random things about yourself
4) Tag 6 people at the end of your post and link to them (This is only a game)
5) Let each person know they have been tagged and leave a comment on their blog
6) Let the tagger know when your entry is up


Ok, so aside from the 101 things I posted earlier...thinking...thinking...ouch! :D
1. When I was growing up I thought Amy was a good name and if I had a daughter, I would name her Amy. I went with Macayla and Jordan instead.
2. I love a clean house, but am somewhat hindered in my non-love of cleaning.
3. I am a complete chocoholic. If I can work a candy bar into my daily caloric allotment I will. I will even bump fruits and veggies off if I have to.
4. I like big words, even if I don't always use or spell them correctly.
5. I love playing Scrabble - the one and only board game my mom would play with my dad and I growing up and usually soundly squash both of us - but no one else in my house loves it.
6. The laundromat is this magical place where I can take a weeks worth of laundry for my entire family and have it washed and dried and folded in about 3 1/2 hours time. But alas, the gas prices have cut far into this luxury.

Ok, so I'm not going to tag anyone, but this was fun - Thanks Jill.

I am Cinderella

Dignified and hard working. With a gentle and soft-spoken manner you have something many people don't. Patience. Even through the moments of heartbreak you're still able to hold onto all of your hopes and dreams. Bide your time; your dream will come true.

You too can take this fun quiz and find your inner Disney princess.

http://www.greatestjournal.com/quiz.bml?Q=16354&m=-1

Memories

Here are the rules of this fun little reverse tag:

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember! This is a perfect time for all you blog-stalkers or rare-posters to make yourself known. :)


2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you (and if this isn't on there...I'll assume you're a procrastinator like me and will check back later!)

101 Things About Me

I saw this post on a few of my niece's blogs and thought it was so cute. I thought I'd try my hand at it and quickly realized that 101 things about myself is a really long list. Here it is though, hope you enjoy.

101. I'm a bit of a pyro.
100. Once on a 4th of July, I lit the bucket of used fireworks on fire and laughed as I sat on the lawn and watched it burn.
99. I once shot a barbie doll with a 12 gauge shotgun. I laughed then too as only the legs were left.
98. I love power tools.
97. I've never been a real girly-girl.
96. But sometimes I have girly moments, like fake nails from time to time.
95. I'm a total fish, I love water and water related things. (interesting contrast to my pyro side)
94. I'm an inherently lazy person.
93. I think that spell check is one of the best inventions ever.
92. I think my husband looks awesome in his suits.
91. I've learned a lot of lessons the hard way.
90. I've learned a lot about myself from friendships and other relationships.
89. It's taken me a long time to get to where I'm happy with being me,
88. but I'm happy with who I am...most of the time
87. I have to be careful when I pick up a book,
86. I really don't like to put a book down until it's done.
85. It wrecks all sorts of havoc on my laundry and house work and dinner prep when I start a book.
84. I'll even half way shove a book under my keyboard at work to keep reading.
83. Even if the book is not all that interesting.
82. Unless it's Hemingway, I can't get interested at all in his work.
81. "For Whom the Bell Tolls" is an extremely boring book and I never finished reading it even though I passed off a book report on it.
80. I can be quite stubborn.
79. I loathe exercise, unless I don't consider it exercise like swimming or scuba diving.
78. My favorite place to dive is Cozumel Mexico.
77. I would move to Cozumel if it were reasonable.
76. I love cereal.
75. When I don't have anyone to cook for but me, I usually eat cereal for dinner.
74. I like baking - cookies, pies, cakes, etc.
73. I don't enjoy routine cooking so much (a.k.a. dinner).
72. Unless it's cooking with my husband who is a great cook.
71. My husband and I love making new dishes up, he has a great sense of what foods/flavors work together.
70. I'm slightly addicted to HGTV.
69. My favorite soda pop is Diet Coke.
68. But I don't like to be addicted to caffeine.
67. I've never colored my hair.
66. I don't think I look my age.
65. I don't thing I act my age either.
64. I don't plan on looking or acting my age for as long as I can get away with it.
63. I sometimes like onions.
62. When I was little, I hated onions and anything with them in it.
61. My favorite type of food is usually Italian or Asian.
60. I love Asian style, clean lines and geometric shapes.
59. The state of the USA worries me.
58. I believe fuel prices are fictitiously high and the stories of low supply are rumors started to raise prices.
57. The first concert I went to was the Eagles.
56. I was about 8 months pregnant with Macayla when I went to the Eagles concert.
55. I took my hunters safety course when I was also 8 months pregnant with Macayla.
54. I flew to Cancun when I was two weeks away from delivering Jordan and Jordan likes to claim that she was almost a Mexican baby.
53. I am color phobic when it comes to walls in my house.
52. That's why most of my house is still painted white.
51. I want to have another baby before I'm 35.
50. I have poly-cystic ovarian syndrome that may make having a baby hard.
49. I've always loved animals.
48. I have a tattoo of two lizards around my right ankle.
47. My 4-yr-old neighbor thinks the tattoo is a stamp.
46. I live in a great neighborhood and love my neighbors.
45. I've been married to Nate for two years.
44. I've never been in a fight or an argument with Nate ever.
43. I don't always agree with Nate but we can talk about it and not fight.
42. I love my job and working in general.
41. I like the adult interaction and some time away from home that work provides as well as the income.
40. I have two totally different but equally wonderful daughters.
39. I love being a mom.
38. I love camping, as long as there is an air-mattress.
37. I love to sing.
36. I sing really loud in the car by myself.
35. I almost always have a song stuck in my head.
34. Acting is kinda fun too.
33. I was recently cast as Sister Margaretta in the Sound of Music (Terrace Plaza Playhouse).
32. I used to have a couple of piercings, but took them out when I became active again at church.
31. I love my current calling as a Sunbeams teacher.
30. I learn a lot from the 3 and 4 year olds in my class.
29. I love to check out what thrift stores have.
28. Thrift stores are a great place to find expensive jeans for picky teens.
27. I went to college for a year at Southern Utah University.
26. I didn't finish my degree as I got married and had a kid.
25. I did go to Advanced Technical Center and learned computer programming.
24. I've been a computer programmer since 1999 ish.
23. I like working with computers, it's fun and challenging, sometimes lame.
22. I don't like my hair short.
21. I had my hair cut really short in 2nd grade and I hated it.
20. I was a very awkward kid and teen.
19. It took me a long time to find my inner cool.
18. Although I'm still a geek at times, I've come to accept and embrace it.
17. I play Dungeons and Dragons with my husband and friends once a month.
16. I enjoy watching American Idol.
15. American Idol is one of the only things I record and watch religiously.
14. I love calla lilies, they are so elegant.
13. I love peas fresh from the garden, other varieties - canned or frozen - not loved.
12. One of my favorite movies of all time is The Princess Bride.
11. I also really like the movie Hook.
10. I think my theme song is the Toys R Us jingle - "I don't wanna grow up..."
9. I love my kids equally, but for very different reasons - aside for the obvious one that they are my offspring.
8. I'm inspired by people who are themselves regardless of what other people think.
7. I didn't cry for about 14 years after my brother died.
6. Sleep is my favorite stress reliever.
5. I don't handle confrontation very well.
4. When in a heated argument or confrontation, I get all stressed out and my brain freezes.
3. Nate is the first guy ever to make me feel safe other than my father
2. and I love him for many reasons, but mostly cause he loves me for who I am always.
1. It's taken me a few weeks off and on to compile this list but now its done - whooo hooo.

M.I.A.

I've been m.i.a. for a long time on this blog. My apologies to those who were left wondering where I was. I got overwhelmed by a bunch of things all at once, or at least in quick succession. The first and by far largest was Macayla got invited to tag along to Thailand with Nate's dad and his family as they went for a visit. Nate's dad married a lady from Thailand and her daughter Chulee is friends with Macayla. So to prepare for this unique opportunity, we had visits to her doctor for immunization updates, a visit to the Health Department International Travel Center for a typhoid shot and other information, packing and spraying all her clothes with mosquito repellent, a trip to Las Vegas with the family to drop her off at Grampa Shelby's, having to leave her there while me, Nate and Jo go back to Utah, leave Jo at Gram Gram's (Nate's mom) house in St. George to go camping in Moab and then coming home to just Nate and me for the better part of three weeks. No kids. Quiet and kind of creepy. You'd think with all the "extra time" I would be able to get all kinds of things done, but I didn't. I had all the right intentions and none of the drive or ambition. We did learn how to dutch oven a bit and as activity chair-people for our ward, we helped plan a multi-ward dutch oven cook off. Other than that, it was pretty boring. Then over the weekend of the 4th we went back to Las Vegas and picked up Jo on our way down and got Macayla back. She has safely returned from half way around the world with many great experiences, lots of new clothes, and a slightly expanded vision of the world. There are adjustments to be made as the girls are figuring out how to get along after being apart for three weeks, but it's wonderful to have them home and safe...I think.

Big Day

Yesterday, May 21st was my dad's 82nd birthday, my sister-in-law Becky's (Nate's sister - who funny enough is also married to a John) birthday, my other sister-in-law Jeanette's and her husband Paul's wedding anniversary and the day my brother-in-law Todd and his wife Victoria took off for vacation in Paris. It was also the finale of a little show I like to watch on T.V. called American Idol. So.....happy birthday, happy birtday, congratulations, bon voyage and way to go Dave Cook!

Summer Time

Summer has arrived! Yay, I love summer. It's so hard to concentrate at work (especially today with the A.C. out) when the thing I want most to do is kick off my shoes, feel the grass between my toes and find a quiet place in the shade and just soak in the day. Maybe I'd bring along a book and a tall glass of Diet Coke (not a lemonade fan), or just lay on my back and wonder at how blue the sky is. Or perhaps, head to a beach and relax in the water and sand... Anything but boring old work...But alas, there are still bills to pay, so it's time to get my head out of the clouds and get back to the grind.

Allergic to....People!?

There's this guy I work with who's got a miniature doxen. His wife and him treat this dog like their own child - in fact for a while before they decided to have their daughter, their dog was going to be their only "child" (I can identify with the love a pet can engender as I too refer to my cat and dog as my furry children). From very early on in their experience with this puppy, they've had terrible luck. It honestly seems like they got the "lemon" puppy. First she had parvo, which is a pretty serious virus that affects mostly puppies. She got treated for and seemed to recover from that and then a few months later she had to be xrayed for some gastrointestinal issues (caused by their 2 year old daughter feeding the dog Q-tips). Their latest issue with this animal is something I've never considered. Apparently their dog is allergic to people. It's quite common in the reverse, but for a dog to be allergic to people? Crazy. I thought my kids were expensive, but add up the cost of this animal and it's maintenance and sheesh! I'm glad I have a loveable and completely healthy mutt, Annie!

Writers Block

It's been a while since I've written anything. Blame it on writers block or a deadline at work or a kinda boring spell in life. But I'm back. Ok, since I last wrote, I went to see the Iron Man movie - highly recommended. I enjoyed Robert Downey Jr's dry sense of humor. Mother's Day was fun. My husband was so sweet, he made me breakfast and dinner - yum! He's hands-down a better cook than I. I much prefer baking to cooking, although it's fun to cook together with Nate. Even when we were dating, we would come up with some pretty good recipes. Occasionally there are some experiments that are definite no-repeats, but he has a really good sense of what foods go well with each other. Macayla has figured out how to use the video capabilities of her new digital camera. Here she is lip syncing her favorite song from Secondhand Serenade - Fall For You.
She makes me laugh.

Macayla Turns 13

Wow, I'm the mom of an official teenager....SCARY!!!! I really don't feel old enough to have a teen. I tried unsuccessfully to convince her to stay 12, but she just laughed at me. This weekend she got to go surfing at a place called FlowRider in Ogden. Technically it was more falling than surfing, but it was a blast to watch. Then she had a sleepover and then cake and ice cream on Saturday. It was a busy weekend. This transition from adolescence to teen has been occurring slowly since the middle of 6th grade. Disney Channel favorites were out and Fall Out Boy, iPods and cell phones were in. She's got the teen 'tude down just fine. One moment she'll be happy and the next she'll be surly and ornery. Hugs are rare and embarrassing, but on occasion, you can still guilt trip her into one or two - as long as there's no one but family allowed to witness. There's such a fine line between what's cool and what's not and the list changes sometimes hourly. It's always fairly easy to get her to smile - but she'll hide it behind her hair or something. I'm pretty good and getting the elusive teen smile to appear though as a by-product of me being such a goof ball. It's fun and nerve-wracking to watch her grow and change. I just hope we make it to her adulthood together in one piece! Love you Macayla!

The Cool Suit Guy

This is my awesome husband Nate. He is known as the "Cool Suit Guy" in church. He gets his suits from a contact his dad has with a tailor in Las Vegas. His dad is very strategic in his business deals and seeks out small businesses that are willing to trade services. His dad does their taxes in exchange for deals on goods or services he's interested in. The tailor shop is this little place stuck between an adult store and a tattoo parlor. From the outside, you'd never know it was as cool as it is, but they do great work. Nate kinda looks like an old school gangster when he's all dressed up in his double breasted suit. I think he looks great.

I Have Been Tagged

I got tagged, so here you go.

How To Play This Game of Tag: Post these rules on your blog. List: 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 goals, 3 current obsessions/collections, 3 random surprising facts about yourself. Tag 5 people at the end of your post by leaving their names. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog!

~3 Joys~

1. My family of course, my kids, husband and even my furry children bring me great joy

2. Diet Coke, it just tastes so good

3. My garden - at least right now - just something satisfying about tending it and watching the little plants grow

~3 Fears~

1. Being a bad mom.

2. The economy - I'm not as prepared for a downfall as I'd like to be

3. Having my feet look like my Dad's when I get older -- SCARY!!!

~3 Goals~

1. Get into better physical shape

2. Actually do my visiting teaching

3. Get my basement finished (after getting the tile and carpet done on the main floor)

~3 Obsessions/Current Collections~

1. Blogging and Digital scrap booking have become my current obsessions - thanks Jill

2. Reading - I have to be careful when I start a book, cause I won't put it down till I've finished it

3. Receipts - I'm quite anal about my receipts and my check book registry

~3 Random Facts~

1. I love all things soft - blankets, socks, car seat covers, whatever

2. I sometimes sing very loud to the radio or a CD when I'm alone in my car, I usually always have some song stuck in my head

3. Being on stage and singing doesn't terrify me, but giving a talk in church does - go figure

Yay me! Okay, so I don't have 5 people on my list who blog - my circle of friends is just starting. And Jillyn has already tagged people I know, so I will tag Glenna. Then I will tag Macayla, Sharon, Nate and Sabrina via email :).

The Joys of Grooming

Are all females of the human species instinctively programmed to groom? Hair out of place, an un-popped zit, a smudge here or there must be corrected. I find myself scanning my kids or my husband for something to pick or adjust. It's an irrepressible urge. Most women I've talked to also have this strange inclination. Nate is so used to it (he grew up with 4 sisters, not to mention his mother) that he willingly submits to the grooming with amusement at my fascination. I rarely pass a mirror in the restroom without scanning for some "new development". I have to admit, that when the grooming is done, there is a certain satisfaction at having addressed the source of the problem. I'm pretty sure guys don't have this urge. It would be strange for a guy to pick a hair off another guy's suit. This may be due in part to guy's personal bubbles being a bit larger than women's. Also, I don't think guys care so much or notice such irrelevant details. So what is this instinctive urge that we women feel to pick and groom and adjust one another and those we love?

The Bestest Dog Ever

This is my dog, Annie. She is the best dog ever -my kids and the neighbor kids all agree. She is the epitome of unconditional love and loyalty. Going for car rides, going on walks, chasing the laser, treats, naps under my bed, playing ball, playing keep-away, licking all those she loves are her ideas for the perfect puppy life. We sometimes call her bounce, because she can jump pretty high. She will listen to whatever you have to say and sometimes she'll even cock her head to the side as if she's trying to understand you. She knows how to sit, stay, lay down, rollover and shake - with both paws. Nate even taught her how to drool for her treats (the joy of Pavlov). She hates her front paws touched, when you are mad at her and baths. One of our favorite games we play is the "mine" game. We take one of her toys and put it between our feet and say Mine and she barks. It's quite an amusing game. When she gets her toy back she'll do a few "victory laps" and play her version of keep away. I've never considered myself a dog person, but there's something about the unquestioning love, loyalty, acceptance and devotion that just make it impossible to not love this dog.

The Adventures of Danger Kitty

This is my cat. His name is Izzy which is short for Isiadore (sounds like Is*He*A*Door, to which we add a K at the end so he becomes Is*He*A*Dork - to which the answer is always a resounding YES). He started out in our family as a girl (named Isabelle), or so we thought. He knew he was a boy, it just took us humans a bit longer to figure it out. He has other names like psycho minion, little beastie and my favorite - Danger Kitty. He seems to get a special delight from flinging bits of poo from his litter box, running around like a possessed freak for short bursts, spontaneous grooming and alternating between biting and licking the hand that feeds him. He's been dubbed by my brother-in-law Paul as the alpaca kitty because he is uncommonly soft and fluffy. My husband was against the whole getting a cat, but he was shanghaied into it by the women in his life. So on Labor Day of last year I looked up an ad on KSL classifieds and found Izzy. He was so small when we brought him home only 5 weeks old. My girls were thinking he would be this cute little play thing that would just submit to hours and hours of petting and lovingly adore them. They've never had a cat before. We humans are deemed inferior by cats and must grovel for their affection. You never know if the one you picked is completely mental until it lives with you for a bit. So far, Izzy is just slightly mental.

Fat Fingered Financial Fiasco

So, my husband and I have separate accounts and this works out pretty well for us. We made my account the primary one and it's the one that most our bills get paid from cause I like to do most every thing online (except for when they charge outrageous "convenience fees" - but that right there is a whole topic unto itself). We have been happily transferring funds back and forth for some time now without incident. Then comes what I have dubbed "the fat fingered financial fiasco." I messed up to the tune of $600. I meant only to transfer $212 to cover a bill and ended up transferring $812. Wow, was I high or something. I really have no excuse and didn't even realize what had happened until Nate (my awesome husband) went into check his balance and found it in the negative. Oh boy...I have made stupid mistakes before and undoubtedly will make many more before I'm through on this earth, but 5 overdraft fees later, I hope my future mistakes are far less costly.

Wow, I actually started a blog..

OK, so Jillyn kinda pushed me over the edge on this whole blog thing. I've been thinking about it since I've been reading what Jill and Sarah write. I love the hilarious stuff they write about their kids. So those two are super duper digital scrapbook geniuses and their blogs are super cute so I was a bit intimidated, but I decided - with a little push from Jill - to go for it. The hardest part about starting this thing was coming up with a name. I got to the spot you select one and totally froze up. I considered Melissa's Mayhem, but did you know if you look up mayhem in the dictionary it has all kinds of violent connotations, not what I'm going for. So then there was the Cox's Conundrums, yeah right, say that one five times fast. I thought of Melissa's Menagerie because it does feel like a bit of a zoo around my house at times, alas the name was taken. So I decided on The Frabbish Chronicles. It kind of had a ring to it. If you are wondering about a frabbish, well that's me...sort of. See you get the fish from the Pisces side and the rabbit from the Chinese astrology side, shove 'em together and you get frabbish. Not that I subscribe to the whole astrology thing, it's just fun to say frabbish. Go on......try it out....you know you wanna.....F*R*A*B*B*I*S*H. Fun huh? Yeah, well give it a bit, it might grow on you.