Sunday, February 27, 2011

Things we learned we loved this weekend.

We love this.

And this.

And this.

And this... SJ in Andrew's Build-A-Bear Buzz Lightyear suit:






And clean laundry/a full underwear drawer/new, clean, white sheets.

We're pushing through the next 24 hours until Scotty's last final is behind us! We have a big week ahead of us, but it's so nice to know that school will not be a factor for two whole weeks! We're excited to go to the gym again. We're excited to get the next movie in our netflix queue. We're excited to go SKIING this Saturday. We're excited to sit down and have dinner together... at the same table... at the same time... We're excited to take a trip! And we're excited to no longer have days that seem to run into the next and the next and the next... as if one week is all one big, long, day.

Thank goodness for our blow-off-steam night of awesome, active, games, lots of laughing, excellent food, and spending time catching up with good friends at a traditional Zarbock date night. And thank goodness for nephews and nieces, who always make us laugh and forget whatever it is we were stressed about.

And thank goodness for our washer and dryer. The pair and I have been in a co-dependent relationship all weekend. We have full closets and dressers to show for it!

I spent this evening reorganizing my bills/insurance info/virtually everything in the kitchen... it feels good to know I'm starting my week actually semi-prepared for what Monday brings.

One day more! (to the tune of Les Mis.)

Friday, February 18, 2011

Gonna Make This Garden Grow...

Inch by inch, row by row
Gonna make this garden grow
All it takes is a rake and a hoe
And a piece of fertile ground.

Inch by inch, row by row
Someone bless these seeds I sow
Someone warm them from below
'Til the rain comes tumbling down

Pulling weeds and pickin' stones
Man is made from dreams and bones
Feel the need to grow my own
'Cause the time is close at hand




"Inch By Inch" has been my favorite song since I first heard it as a twelve-year-old. I first heard it at the ranch. It will most definitely be my bedtime song for a future baby. For me, it's not just a song about a garden. It's a song about creativity. It's about creating ourselves from scratch. It's about making choices in our lives and then seeing our choices create something bigger. It's about being authentic, working with our hands, and creating something we're proud of... even creating and pruning ourselves. I had no idea it was also a children's book. Do I have any excuses to ask Scott to buy me this book? When is the next holiday?

I know we just had a holiday. It was Valentine's Day, and we had a wonderful night! Scott and I both worked on V Day and came home to each other after long days. I was off a half-hour before Scotty was. I figured that half hour would allow me plenty of time to drive home, clean the house, plan a dinner, run to the store, prepare that dinner, and set the table all ready to go by the time Scott came home. Of course that was ridiculous, and I had only made it home and through half the dishes by the time Scotty called to say he was heading home. Scott, being his wonderful self, took half my load off my hands. He had me text him a list, and he grocery shopped AND brought home dinner. He even made me a lovely movie all about us and how much he loves me. I love when Scott makes me movies! I love that he expresses himself through making videos. I love having them as a record of our relationship. I'd put it on the blog so you could all see how great he is, but I'm keeping it special for me!

We're continuing our celebration by going KITE SKIING tomorrow! Uh huh... I hope I don't blow away!

So I'm a pretty lucky girl with a pretty awesome husband and a pretty fabulous life. I guess I don't need to be making wish lists with children's books on them.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

This Makes Me So Happy!

56 Worst/Best Analogies of High School Students

Apparently the Washington Post held a contest in which high school teachers sent in the “worst” analogies they’d encountered in grading their students’ papers over the years:

1. Her eyes were like two brown circles with big black dots in the center.

2. He was as tall as a 6′3″ tree.

3. Her face was a perfect oval, like a circle that had its two sides gently compressed by a Thigh Master.

4. From the attic came an unearthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie, surreal quality, like when you’re on vacation in another city and Jeopardy comes on at 7:00 p.m. instead of 7:30.

5. John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.

6. She had a deep, throaty, genuine laugh, like that sound a dog makes just before it throws up.

7. The ballerina rose gracefully en pointe and extended one slender leg behind her, like a dog at a fire hydrant.

8. He was as lame as a duck. Not the metaphorical lame duck, either, but a real duck that was actually lame. Maybe from stepping on a land mine or something.

9. Her vocabulary was as bad as, like, whatever.

10. She grew on him like she was a colony of E. coli and he was room-temperature Canadian beef.

11. The revelation that his marriage of 30 years had disintegrated because of his wife’s infidelity came as a rude shock, like a surcharge at a formerly surcharge-free ATM.

12. The lamp just sat there, like an inanimate object.

13. McBride fell 12 stories, hitting the pavement like a Hefty bag filled with vegetable soup.

14. His thoughts tumbled in his head, making and breaking alliances like underpants in a dryer without Cling Free.

15. He spoke with the wisdom that can only come from experience, like a guy who went blind because he looked at asolar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it and now goes around the country speaking at high schools about the dangers of looking at a solar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it.

16. Long separated by cruel fate, the star-crossed lovers raced across the grassy field toward each other like two freight trains, one having left Cleveland at 6:36 p.m. traveling at 55 mph, the other from Topeka at 4:19 p.m. at a speed of 35 mph.

17. Shots rang out, as shots are wont to do.

18. The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn’t.

19. Her hair glistened in the rain like a nose hair after a sneeze.

20. The hailstones leaped from the pavement, just like maggots when you fry them in hot grease.

21. They lived in a typical suburban neighborhood with picket fences that resembled Nancy Kerrigan’s teeth.

22. He fell for her like his heart was a mob informant and she was the East River.

23. Even in his last years, Grand pappy had a mind like a steel trap, only one that had been left out so long, it hadrusted shut.

24. He felt like he was being hunted down like a dog, in a place that hunts dogs, I suppose.

25. She was as easy as the TV Guide crossword.

26. She walked into my office like a centipede with 98 missing legs.

27. The plan was simple, like my brother-in-law Phil. But unlike Phil, this plan just might work.

28. The young fighter had a hungry look, the kind you get from not eating for a while.

30. It hurt the way your tongue hurts after you accidentally staple it to the wall.

31. It was an American tradition, like fathers chasing kids around with power tools.

32. He was deeply in love. When she spoke, he thought he heard bells, as if she were a garbage truck backing up.

33. The politician was gone but unnoticed, like the period after the Dr. on a Dr Pepper can.

34. Her eyes were like limpid pools, only they had forgotten to put in any pH cleanser.

35. Her date was pleasant enough, but she knew that if her life was a movie this guy would be
buried in the credits as something like “Second Tall Man.”

36. The thunder was ominous-sounding, much like the sound of a thin sheet of metal being shaken backstage during the storm scene in a play.

37. The red brick wall was the color of a brick-red Crayola crayon.

38. She caught your eye like one of those pointy hook latches that used to dangle from screen doors and would fly up whenever you banged the door open again.

39. Her pants fit her like a glove, well, maybe more like a mitten, actually.

40. Fishing is like waiting for something that does not happen very often.

41. They were as good friends as the people on “Friends.”

42. Oooo, he smells bad, she thought, as bad as Calvin Klein’s Obsession would smell if it were called Enema and was made from spoiled Spamburgers instead of natural floral fragrances.

43. The knife was as sharp as the tone used by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Tex.) in her first several points of parliamentary procedure made to Rep. Henry Hyde (R-Ill.) in the House Judiciary Committee hearings on the impeachment of President William Jefferson Clinton.

44. He was as bald as one of the Three Stooges, either Curly or Larry, you know, the one who goes woo woo woo.

45. The sardines were packed as tight as the coach section of a 747.

46. Her eyes were shining like two marbles that someone dropped in mucus and then held up to catch the light.

47. The baseball player stepped out of the box and spit like a fountain statue of a Greek god that scratches itself a lot and spits brown, rusty tobacco water and refuses to sign autographs for all the little Greek kids unless they pay him lots of drachmas.

48. I felt a nameless dread. Well, there probably is a long German name for it, like Geschpooklichkeit or something, but I don’t speak German. Anyway, it’s a dread that nobody knows the name for, like those little square plastic gizmos that close your bread bags. I don’t know the name for those either.

49. She was as unhappy as when someone puts your cake out in the rain, and all the sweet green icing flows down and then you lose the recipe, and on top of that you can’t sing worth a damn.

50. Her artistic sense was exquisitely refined, like someone who can tell butter from I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter.

51. It came down the stairs looking very much like something no one had ever seen before.

52. Bob was as perplexed as a hacker who means to access T:flw.quid55328.com\aaakk/ch@ung but gets T:\flw.quidaaakk/ch@ung by mistake.

53. You know how in “Rocky” he prepares for the fight by punching sides of raw beef? Well, yesterday it was as cold as that meat locker he was in.

54. The dandelion swayed in the gentle breeze like an oscillating electric fan set on medium.

55. Her lips were red and full, like tubes of blood drawn by an inattentive phlebotomist.

56. The sunset displayed rich, spectacular hues like a .jpeg file at 10 percent cyan, 10 percent magenta, 60 percent yellow and 10 percent black.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

We Learned A New Song

...and it's a fun one!

If I were a flower growing wild and free
All I'd want is you to be my sweet honey bee.
And if I were a tree growing tall and green
All I'd want is you to shade me and be my leaves

All I want is you, will you be my bride
Take me by the hand and stand by my side
All I want is you, will you stay with me?
Hold me in your arms and sway me like the sea.

If you were a river in the mountains tall,
The rumble of your water would be my call.
If you were the winter, I know I'd be the snow
As long as you were with me, let the cold wind blow

If you were a wink, I'd be a nod
If you were a seed, I'd be a pod.
If you were the floor, I'd wanna be the rug
And if you were a kiss, I know I'd be a hug

If you were the wood, I'd be the fire.
If you were the love, I'd be the desire.
If you were a castle, I'd be your moat,
And if you were an ocean, I'd learn to float.

All I want is you, will you be my bride
Take me by the hand and stand by my side
All I want is you, will you stay with me?
Hold me in your arms and sway me like the sea.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Joan Walsh Anglund

Scotty's right. I blog more about the tiny humans than anything else.

My grandma gave me three darling little books she's had forever. They're illustrated beautifully, edges worn wonderfully, and fit perfectly in the wicker-arched bookshelf that originally sat in my grandpa's basement.

So instead of blogging about the tiny humans, I'll share some Joan Walsh Anglund that I've recently loved.

"Reason is the sentinel of the mind...but the doorway to the heart is unguarded."

"Be as the stars, unchanging in the firmament, guiding others through the darkness by your steadfast light."

"The greatest pain is the estrangement from one's true self."

"The unveiling of one's soul is the reason for existence."

"Fill your heart with Beauty, and Beauty will come to you. Fill your thoughts with Love, and Love surrounds you. Seek always Truth and it shall be yours. For as you believe are all things made manifest unto you."

I'm not sure we've ever played light sabers.

Fact: There's nothing cooler than nephews and nieces. For example: I get a phone call today from my sister. It is VIP week at school and Andrew needs to make a poster about himself for his classroom. Kirsten decided she'd make one for Ben and Sarajane while they're at it. She was asking them questions about their favorite food, favorite story, favorite game... etc. She asked Andrew, "What is your favorite holiday?" Like a normal kid, he said, "Christmas!" She asked Benjamin, "What is your favorite holiday?" Ben answers, carefully calculated and wide-eyed, "My favorite holiday is when Lindsey comes over to play light sabers with me!"

Who else considers hanging out with me to be on equal par with a holiday? Only this guy.

These are pictures from the weekend we spent up at Kirsten and Nick's cabin with the kids. We went sledding, caught up on some sleep, ate delicious food, and built our first snowman of the season. It was a blast!



We went up to Kirsten and Nicks last night for a Thanksgiving dinner in January. It was delicious, and so fun to hang with the kids and watch them in action at FHE. Sarajane was singing along to the piano, and Ben went nuts during Duck Duck Goose, running all around the main floor. Andrew loved FHE, and it was so fun to watch him get so excited about it, "I just love these times!" Such funny little people. I especially loved how Ben would try to run through our legs every five or ten minutes.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

She's Obsessed with Boy's Undies.



This is my darling little niece.

She's obsessed with boy's undies. We don't know why. She'll rummage through the laundry for multiple pairs, and then she'll guard them with a death grip if you try to take them away. One night I just let her fall asleep with the undies, and then I stole them away a half hour later.

What a weirdo!

I love the little weirdo!

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Bennion

Learn to like what doesn't cost much. Learn to like reading, conversation, music. Learn to like plain food, plain service, plain cooking. Learn to like fields, trees, brooks, hiking, rowing, climbing hills. Learn to like people, even though some of them may be different... Different from you. Learn to like to work and enjoy the satisfaction of doing your job as well as it can be done. Learn to like the songs of birds, the companionship of dogs. Learn to like gardening, puttering around the house, and fixing things. Learn to like the sunrise and sunset, the beating of rain on the roof and windows, and the gentle fall of snow on a winter day. Learn to keep your wants simple and refuse to be controlled by the likes and dislikes of others.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Uncovering the MS DOS

Today I spent the afternoon helping my mom clean out my old bedroom so they can remodel it this week. It was so fun to go through some old things. I have a lot more work to do, but I came across a treasure!

My dad had this super old lap top that Kirsten, Doug, and I used at different times when we wanted to do homework in our bedroom or when the main computer was being used. It is old... as in it only takes floppy discs! It had Kirsten's bio vocab dated 1999, Doug's English Papers dated 2000, and my stories from middle school!

I found at least nine stories that I forgot I ever wrote! I remember writing them now, but I thought they were lost or hidden somewhere! I found letters belonging to the long lost London Game, and I thought long and hard about compiling those letters to tell an intricate story. I could write a book! I really could... it's practically done! I was so excited to revisit these stories, to become reacquainted with all my wonderful characters, to be smack dab in the middle of the conflicts and twists that I wrote. It was one of the most joyful journeys I could take! I can't wait to go through some of the boxes and see what more I find!

It was funny as I read these things I thought, have a lost that ability? Have I lost that mindset where anything is possible? Have I become too much of my own critic to really let loose with pen as I used to? Have I matured too much to accept that things in my imaginary world could actually translate to the one I'm in now? I remember when I used to be those characters... literally. Kids would write notes to each other in middle school, and my friends and I were writing to each others' alter-ego: characters in my London Game.

What if I wrote more? I wonder what's coming out these days.

Chug chug chugging along...

I remember when I used to blog! It went something like this...

I never got around to taking pictures of our Christmasy home. But you know... I've got years of Christmasy homes to come... so I'm sure I'll get a chance at some point in my lifetime. This Christmas season, thinking of it now, was a bit of a blur. It came and went a lot quicker than I remember in past years. But it was such a great one. We got to celebrate in snow and sun! We spent Christmas this year in Santa Barbara. We had to get on the road earlier than planned because the freeways were closing early, so we had to scramble to get out the door... meaning that we forgot a lot of things (number 1 being the camera!) We got a few shots on Scott's cell phone, so I'll need him to help me download those when we have some downtime. Santa Barbara was a blast. We saw movies, spent time with friends and family, walked on the beach, napped on the beach, surfed, hiked, went to some of our favorite restaurants, beaded, and stocked up on Trader Joe's goods that are already almost devoured! We had a great time staying with the Hannays, and they were so generous the whole time we were there.

Here's a couple shots from our hike in the Tangerine Falls arena (I say "arena" because we didn't make it to the actual falls...)




We drove home from Santa Barbara on Dec. 31st, stopped for a quick dinner in St. George, and found ourselves celebrating 2011 at a gas station just outside Provo. We could see fireworks out the back window, we blasted "New Year's Day" by U2, and tried to do our own countdown, that ended up going something like this, "25...24...23...22...uh....1! Wahoo!" We talked about our goals and resolutions the whole way up, and we have started the month of January on an up that's staying up!

We got home in time to see Doug for a day and take a ski day at Snowbird. We skied on New Year's Day, which was amazingly not-crowded and just perfect! Apparently they were black-out days for our passes but when we found that out when we got there, we just had to buy day passes. There was no way we'd turn around and drive home. It was a perfect day with some fantastic snow.

The next day I went up to Kaysville to be a mommy for a week. It was so great to hang with my three favorite tiny people. My mom and I had another one of those great bonding experiences that we end up laughing about later. We have a lot of respect for Kirsten's day to day life... little kids have busy schedules! We had a blast with the kids, and I love them so much. But it was nice to return to home and work at the end of the week. I was excited to have life back to normal.

You know you're in luck when you miss your job when you're gone. I was so happy to be back! I love my job! It was great to see my friends and get right back into the swing of things... staying late and going early. Scott and I hit the gym three times our first week back. I'm loving Zumba and we're both loving Yoga. If our daughters want to be dancers, though, they're going to have to depend on their dad for some genes cause I don't have 'em!

We're back to the routine and loving it! We went up to Kirsten and Nick's cabin on Saturday and spent the day in the snow building snowmen and sledding down this narrow shoot. It was nice and relaxing, and fun to be with family (We hadn't seen Kirsten and Nick in weeks... since before Christmas). We had a nice and relaxing Sunday together, and then went up to Alta on Monday. It was so fun to see Scott on skis! He's a natural. I wish I could go back and forth between the two like he can!

Oh... guess who got a massage today! I went to redeem my Christmas present this morning, and I loved it! Scott may be in trouble... I may be hooked!

Congrats to Andy and Jen! We're so excited for the tiny person joining their ranks in July! We're so excited to be spending time together in Cabo before all the grown-up lives are being lived!

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Boy Wisdom

Scott and I took a vacation! And I can't wait to tell you all about it.

But right now I'm still on a (sort of) vacation... up in Kaysville to watch the three sobrinos while Kirsten and Nick take a much needed vacation.

Some things that I'm learning about boys:

Anytime of the day is the perfect time for a battle. Especially 7am. Sometimes we like dragons, and sometimes we fight them. The preference changes by the minute.

Boys of ANY AGE can find hair ANYWHERE. The pool... the shower.... the tub. Each time I give Ben a bath, he manages to find the one single hair floating along at the surface. He's supremely grossed by the hair and squeals until I remove it.

"No, I'm NOT called sweetie! I'm a boy named Ben!"

Little sisters are not exempt from being attacked by the bad guys. Even if they are only 1-year old.

Well there's some wisdom for a Tuesday morning.
I'm off to gain more.

Monday, December 20, 2010

Le Little Dude

Blogging's on the list!

But for now... guess who's snoozing in our spare room?



We have had quite the day! The three tiny humans came to see me at work today where they got to meet the big guy Santa. After work, I picked Andrew up at Grandma's house. We had noodles for dinner, took the slow tour through Christmas street, and rounded off the evening with some "How to Train Your Dragon." Our special 6-year old sleepover is going over quite well (we decided to have him over for a special night since we'll miss Christmas and his birthday while in Santa Barbara). We sure love having this guy around! Maybe his mom will let us kidnap him more often...

Take a second look at that picture. I think his mom will DEFINITELY let us kidnap him more often.

Tomorrow, I have a feeling we will have a loud, wonderful, dragon-filled morning.

Aren't nephews (and nieces) the best? Well... this one can speak French! Doesn't get much cooler than that!

Downloading.

What if I could plug my brain into the computer, hook it up through a USB, open the right application... and walah! Downloaded.

Things on my mind/future posts to spur:

I LOVE our Christmasy home and decor. I LOVE our apartment. It's so cozy and festive. I should take pictures before the season is over.

I can't believe I got through last week. It was a busy one! But this week is not-so-bad and ends in Christmas in California.

We're loving the gym passes. I've hit some Zumba, Scott's hit the pool, and we both love Yoga and the machines. Scott was in charge of getting my stuff together last Tuesday since he got off work before I did. He did a great job and was super thoughtful... except I ended up doing Zumba barefoot! I think it's just more of a work-out.

I'm so grateful for the Pre-Christmas Sunday dinner Sue and Thayer hosted this weekend. That tradition (being the only one I get to keep this year) meant the world to me. My favorite part is when we light our candles and express our gratitude and well-wishing.

I about leaped through the ceiling when Espen surprised me at work last Friday! Talk about making my day! It made me realize how much I miss my family when they are away from me. I'm bummed I won't see Doug this Christmas (we barely miss him with our travel dates), and I'm DYING to get Johnny back. I hope I can conference in on the family call on Christmas.

I enjoyed my opportunity to play my violin on Christmas Sunday. I'm thinking of trying out for the Orchestra at Temple Square. It would be a lot of work to prepare... but I miss playing and performing way too much.

I also taught in Relief Society for the first time in our new ward. I think it was a great way for me to get to know some people and for them to get to know me.
The Sacrament... what a perfect topic for this time of year. I'm so glad I had the words of my buddy Lowell Bennion to make it all hum together.

Scott is still working unbelievable hours... but without school, he still feels like he is on Christmas vacation. Our real vacation awaits... but it's been SO GREAT to hang together in the evenings. I love my husband.

Everyone I know is having babies. Are you?

Scott and I had a wonderful Christmas together this last Saturday. It was cozy and loving, and exactly what Christmas should be... just a few days early!

He hit a home-run by slyly and pretty miraculously getting me a copy of this. How did I get so lucky??

Scott is helping Andrew move. We're grateful to have good friends, and I'm grateful to know that Scott is also a good friend back. Andrew's back in the avenues. It'll be fun to have him more close-by again.

We got to sit in the gorgeous Conference Center as David Archuleta sang his heart out. I loved it. (Having never watched American Idol, I didn't know what to expect. I was impressed).

I've had many occasions to be creative lately and work with my hand. Nothing feels better than that.

I am someone who just HAS to eat breakfast. Last week I didn't and it just doesn't work for me.

Scott and I got to SKI on Saturday! Oh my gosh! What a gorgeous powder day! My teeth froze because I skied with a full smile from open till close. I am having a hard time believing that I agreed to leave Utah for Sunny California smack dab in the middle of ski season with snow storms galore. But I guess surf is to Scott and ski is to Lindsey. Compromises. Compromises. Compromises...

All jokes aside, I am excited to head to the west (the west-er). I look forward to time with family and good friends (I'm so excited to see Rob and Kelley!), for a lovely break, good beach runs, a happy husband, mastering surfing (do I say this every year?), and my new neoprene booties to keep my feet toasty and warm in the ocean.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Quick Word.

6am has turned into my blogging time.

Here's the quick word:

Today Scott got me out of bed quicker than ever when he told me Utah has been "Flocked!" He was making fun of me the other day because I learned a new word each day at work last week. Flocked was the word for Tuesday.

I can't wait to ski this weekend!!!!! It's the busiest week I've had in a while, but ski we shall!

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Books, she thought, grew of themselves.

A couple nights ago I had a dream about "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever." I think it was inspired by our trip to Smiths a day or two before when we walked down the DVD aisle and saw titles we haven't previously seen. I saw a DVD of Beverly Cleary's "Ramona and Beezus" on the shelf. I used to LOVE the Ramona books (although mine didn't have such a fancy, colorful, cover). These DVD's got me thinking about all the books I used to love as a kid. I have always been a reader. When my siblings and I were little, my parents had a pretty genius system. They would send us to bed early, and we were welcome to stay up for an hour if we wanted, as long as we were in our beds reading. So we spent pretty much every night reading to ourselves or each other for an hour or so. I used to love "The Littles," the "Mirette on the High Wire," a little chapter book about a troll that lived in a little girl's closet, "The Little Prince," Strega Nona's Magic Lessons," "All Tutu's Should be Pink," "The Trouble with Trolls," "Sylvester and the Magic Pebble," "Harold and the Purple Crayon," "Amelia Bedelia," the "Junie B. Jones" series, "Miss Piggle Wiggle," and "Seven Blind Mice."

I had Miss A. for second grade. She was everyone's favorite teacher. She would have been mine but she thought I was adopted for the first four months of school (Doug may or may not have convinced her of that fact when he had her two years earlier). I remember second grade as the year I really got into writing. Everything was about writing. I used to draw pictures of myself as an author. I'd write reports about being a writer. I kept a notebook where I'd write songs, stories, and poem (I still have it!!!), and I'd illustrate my notebook with stickers and things that I found wherever. My first story ever was "The Mouse in the Music Room" about a mouse that snuck into the music room and hid in a tuba. I would derive a moral for my stories and state it at the end of the story. Miss A would let me read my stuff out loud during reading time. One day I wrote a poem called, "The Queen Lives Next Door." It was all about the chores the Queen would make me do for her. I remember one line was, "The Queen lives next door, she even makes me clean her floors!" A girl in my class named Angela Mckenzie came to class the next day and asked Miss A. if she could read her new poem out loud to the class: "The Princess lives down the street." Recalling this memory, I'm realizing that there's no way I can name a child Angela... or McKenzie.

I'm rambling (as I am wont to do at 6:00am). It feels good to ramble. This post is about reading, not writing. We used to have Read-A-Thons in Miss A.'s class. I LOVED this concept. (I even hosted the occasional Read-A-Thon in college to bring back this genius concept. As a babysitter, the Read-A-Thon was one of my favorite activities.) We would come to school wearing pajamas, curl up in a quilt, and read the book or books of our choosing. I remember one time in 2nd grade I came to our Read-A-Thon with a stack a foot high of books to read. I zoomed through those books. I was really into "Nancy Drew" (my mom's old hardback version), "Sara Plain and Tall," the "Pee Wee Scouts" (they all have these new fancy covers!), "The Saddle Club," the "Giver," anything by Madeline L'Engle (especially "A Wrinkle in Time" and "Troubling a Star"), "The Witches," "Boy," "Happy Little Family," and so many others.

I remember in 4th grade I had a teacher named Mrs. Larsen. We had the same birthday, and she was my favorite teacher in elementary school. She wouldn't just give me an A. She would give me an A+++++++++++ Maybe she was giving me a false sense of security and confidence as a ten year old, but she also motivated me that no matter how many pluses I had after my A, I could always get more!

Anyway, my favorite time was reading time. On my report card home, I would have all kinds of positive feedback with one "complaint." That complaint: that I laugh during reading time. We'd get together for reading time, and I would just bust out in laughter every other paragraph. She would like of laugh through her teeth as she'd try to scold me for disrupting everybody's reading experience. I know that she mostly thought it was funny that I just couldn't control my giggles (ever since I was a kid I've been a good giggler). My big obsession of this time in my life: "Wayside School is Falling Down" and "Sideways Stories from Wayside School." I thought it was hilarious. I found this book at my mom's house the other day, brought it home, and read a chapter to Scott for fun. We read the chapter about Sammy, the new kid who came to school wearing a hundred smelly overcoats. The teacher made him take off each coat after coat after coat but each coat smelled worse than the first. By the end of the coat-strip, there was nothing left of Sammy but a dead rat.
"Dead rats were always trying to sneak into Miss Jewel's classroom." That was the 3rd one they caught that week, or something. I loved silly, unreasonable books. I loved the Lemony Snicket series. I thought it was so clever (I kind of wish I came up with it). "He was so tired, he found himself reading the same sentence over and over. He found himself reading the same sentence over and over. He found himself reading the same sentence over and over." Totally threw me for a loop.

As I prepared for my mission, packing up my old bedroom, one of the most emotional experiences was packing my old books into boxes. They're still there... in boxes... along with thirty-something journals filled with all the thoughts and experiences that I'd probably be embarrassed to remember! Part of the fun in starting a family will be sharing these books with my kids. I was at my mom's house a few nights ago, looking through her collection of beautiful old books. I loved seeing the old books. There's nothing quite like old books. I have a few from my Grandma Pete and my Grandma Joan: "Little Women," "Jo's Boys," "Silas Marner," "Tom Sawyer."

There are a few books I read in elementary school that have scarred me along the way, and there are a few books that didn't exactly make my favorites list. But I love books. And I'm so glad I had a dream about "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever." I used to read that every year at Christmas time. I love to think back to the books I used to love. I can't wait to open that box of books someday. It'll be like a time capsule of all the best memories.

Friday, December 10, 2010

The One Downside.

The one downside (why did I need to retype "downside" eight times?) to a Utah winter is the nasty smog. It's starting to clear up a bit... but when the valley air is this gross, we should all get work off and head for the hills. Fresh air awaits us!

Today We Opened 10!!

So far our advent calendar has brought us...

1. "21 Day's Closer to Christ" Book (we have read and discussed a chapter each night)
2. A Christmas Rubber Ducky
3. Chocolate Truffles
4. Santa Magnet
5. A Snowman Smore's Kit
6. Chocolate Snowmen
7. (I can't remember)
8. Dove Chocolates
9.James Taylor Christmas CD
10. A BEAUTIFUL Scarf

I love my parents! They are so sweet to do this advent calendar for us. The scarf I opened this morning is GORGEOUS! It is green with red flowers on it. I love it! I'm wearing it right now... at 6:00am... in my apartment...

By the way, Scott is taking one of his finals tonight! Send him a text and wish him luck!

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Complete with Orphans and Fortune Tellers!!

The sights and sounds of 19th Century London come alive at the Dickens' Christmas Festival. This Festival is not just another craft show, but a unique and unusual entertainment and shopping experience. Olde English shops, hundreds of period costumes, fortune tellers, orphans, royalty, and the "real" Father Christmas all combine to offer our guests a Christmas experience like no other!

Today I was able to put some of my charming little English phrases to good use. All strung in a row, they didn't make much sense, but it sure got me in the mood for the Charles Dickens Festival at the SLC fairgrounds today. I was so so so excited to hear that Salt Lake was hosting the festival this year, and it was fun to get together with Kirsten, Mom, and these two little goobers (the third goober was at kindergarten). I miss hanging with Andrew now that he's becoming such a big and busy boy, but it was so much fun to hang with the little two and spend some time where Ben was the one who got a little more attention than the rest.

Ben is a crack up! While Kirsten was driving them down from Farmington, she told Ben that they were going to go to the festival with Grandma Teri and Aunt Lindsey. Ben said, "Lindsey and Scott? Lindsey is my best friend!" That about made my day. I didn't even need the singing orphans to come. I love that Ben always asks about Scott. I am not just Lindsey, I am "Lindsey: from Lindsey and Scott." I loved the day with Ben, though. He had me laughing all day. Especially while eating lunch when he was asking me to tickle him and then stop, and then tickle him some more. What a funny little dude.

I forgot to rotate the picture, but this is just to remember the day Ben got his first bow and arrow since I'm sure this is going to be a monumental day in his life. Ben is so expressive. He makes the greatest faces. When Kirsten handed him his new bow and arrow, his smile was wide and he just giggled. He ran around the festival "hunting Lamanites" (thank you little BOM stories). He also loved the slippery floor inside the Oliver Twist room, and spent the entire time pretending like he was ice skating on it. He is the most pleasant and adventurous kid. Scott and I have both said we'd have kids right now if we could guarantee we'd get one just like Ben.
Sarajane is little doll, and this post is not all about Ben! Sarajane is such a pleasant little gal. Kirsten, Mom and I are really loving having a little girl to spoil. We had way too much fun trying beanies on her round little head, getting her a magic wand, getting her a polka-dot purse, getting her some cute snow boots for next year. We are way too excited about having a girl in the family. I mean, look at all the pink on that girl! We love her so much, and we can't wait for Uncle Johnny to come home, meet her, and see how much these little people have changed! Ben wasn't even talking when Johnny left for his mission. Now he doesn't ever stop talking! And he's just so cool! Andrew is in kindergarten! He is so artistic and creative! He is also so smart! He's learning French at school, and he's a self-taught expert on science and dinosaurs. Sarajane is so smiley. There's nothing worse than trying to get a baby to smile who just won't do it. Sarajane has always got a smile in her, busting out.

Altogether, we had a great time. There's no better way to spend the afternoon than with the family, especially when the family consists of such awesome little people. I love my mom and my sister. I am lucky to have them as my best friends. We always have such a great time doing the dorkiest little things. I love the spirit of Christmas, and I love Charles Dickens. This is my favorite time of the year to re-read Hard Times. Thank you Mom and Kirsten for the fun afternoon! It's been such a fun time of the year. Work has been a blast. Scott and I are doing better than ever. Every second we're together has me laughing. We've been busy, but loving the holiday season. If I can keep my house clean for two days together, maybe I'll take some pictures of our wonderful Christmasy decor!

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Itching.

Scott and I are using our insurance reimbursement this year for gym memberships at 24-Hour fitness. We've decided that the two-year anniversary is the gym membership anniversary. What's different about us though, is that we've joined the gym to gain weight instead of lose it. In the stress of life, we've lost all that muscle we had when we got married. Remember how we started dating on a river?

We went on Saturday and again last night. It's a lot of fun. I went to my first Zumba class and had a blast dancing for an hour to the familiar soothing sounds of Tunak Tunak Tun. I'm extremely uncoordinated, it seems, because I was about a half-step behind everybody else the entire time and for crying out loud, how does one shimmy??? I have never figured that one out. I doubt I ever will. I end up doing some jagged-bony-shoulder-swivel. I'll definitely go back though. It really was fun, and I'm glad we can stay active through the winter... especially with the nasty SL inversion. I liked it... but as I sat on the stationary bike last night, I couldn't help but think about how much I have been lately lacking in my experience with the outdoors.

Outside: The world existing beyond where one is physically confined or obliged to be (Oxford English Dictionary).


As we looked at the gym from the top level, all the people on the treadmills looked like little ants, all moving and moving and moving... but not getting anywhere! While knowing I was about to join them, it made me think for a minute about how grateful I am to have grown up in Utah. I infinitely prefer rowing a boat on the great Colorado to the stationary rowing weight-machine at 24-Hour (except I am loving the chance to simulate the experience). I am so grateful to have been able to be raised on a mountain. Exercise isn't quite the same without breeze and oxygen. What is beautiful about nature is the culmination of everything that centers me. I love being in nature and helping my mind come back to me as my body feels refreshed and my heart knows the true meaning and details of my existence.

The thoughts of the earth are my thoughts.
The voice of the earth is my voice.
All that belongs to the earth belongs to me.
All that surrounds the earth surrounds me.
It is lovely indeed, it is lovely indeed.

Navajo Song


It is fun to go to the gym, especially with Scott. We're going to have a great time together. But I still can't get that itch out of my system... I need to head to the hills! Which would you choose? Climb the same three steps on a stair-climber over and over again, or rise to the top of a mountain?

We've got some ski passes practically jumping out of the drawer wanting us to use them! Scott has finals this week and next. We'll seize every second of this much-needed break.

Thursday, December 2, 2010

The Poet and the Murderer

"For most of his life Lombardo had felt like an outsider. As a young man he used to say to his friends that all he really wanted to do was have time to read and hike. He wasn't completely serious. There were plenty of other things he liked doing, but there was some truth in his claim. Books were his passports to the world, a place where his imagination could roam free. Hiking was his way of staying connected to the earth. Walking along a back-country path, surrounded by trees, and water, and light, and animals, he felt both humbled and enlarged. Humbled, because in comparison with the vastness of the universe he felt like the tiniest atom. Enlarged, because he knew he was part of the great continuum of life" (Simon Worrall).

Good Morning Thursday. Good Morning December 2nd! Good Morning a day off from work (sort of)! Good Morning Weekend (you're so close I can almost feel the sleep deprivation dissolving).

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

December 1st.

Did you know that today is December 1st? That means a lot of things for us here at the Hannay home.

1. We get to start our countdown!!! My mom and dad are so great. I love that we'll never have to grow up because they always make the holidays just as fun for us as they were when we were children. My mom and dad bought my sister, brothers, and I the most gorgeous wooden advent calendars. Each day corresponds to a lovely gift that my mom has carefully prepared and wrapped. I can't wait for Scott to get home so we can open our first advent gift! I love December! I love it!

2. The end of No Shave November. Scott is pretty scruffy these days. The funny thing is that I don't even notice anymore. I'm so used to seeing him with scruff that a beard doesn't even seem that foreign or strange. But... it is the end of November; thus, he has the freedom to shave should he choose. I don't know if he should choose. I kind of wonder if he should try out some of these new beard-do's. What do you think? I think it's pretty unfair that men never get to accessorize. They basically wear the same thing every day. And they basically have the same hair style every single day. I say, "Have fun with your beard, Men." Eh. Scotty will probably shave tomorrow.

3. I can't wait for more December storms. We've had some gorgeous ones the past few weeks. There's nothing better than snow so powdery that you can't even build a snowman. I barely broke a sweat while digging my car out on Monday. Having parked on a curb/in a ditch, the snow was halfway up the driver's door. But the snow was so perfect, it just blew right off. I love love love the snow. Bring on December! Bring on the snow!

Well this was an informative and productive post, eh? I have much more to say sometime.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

While Scotty's Snoozing

Last night I smiled as the weatherman told me to expect cold, windy snow storms for the next few days.

As I drove to work today, I saw a ton of people out in their yards raking leaves and mowing the lawn. It made me so happy to think, "They're all preparing their yards to be covered in snow!"

It's been stormy all day. I'm tempted to throw my nephews out the window and see how far they could fly in the wind. We're babysitting tonight. For being outnumbered, I think we did pretty well tonight. There's nothing cooler than nephews... except maybe nieces... or maybe it's a tie.

Friday, November 19, 2010

Characters Daily

"People have always seemed funny and strange to me, and touching in unexpected ways. I can't shake off a sort of mist of irony that hangs over whatever I see. Probably that's what I'm trying to put across when I write; I may believe that I'm the one person who holds this view of things. And I'm always hurt when a reader says that I choose only bizarre or eccentric people to write about. It's not a matter of choice; it just seems to me that even the most ordinary person, in real life, will turn out to have something unusual at his center. I like to think that I might meet up with one of my past characters at the very next street corner."

-Anne Tyler

The Balloon lady in Vancouver. The French woman who comes daily into the store.
The man from Laos with homemade bike by the library. My brother Doug. I love encountering people every day who are the characters of my stories.

Dear My Immediate World:

I'm writing in my journal again.

Sincerely,
Lindsey

November 18th is a day I've always remembered as one that draws attention to itself. Not only is it Mickey Mouse's birthday, having made his debut in "Steamboat Willie" at the Colony Theatre in New York City on November 18, 1928 (I don't know how I know this), but it is also (ironically) the day that I got my braces off...

...the first time.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Consciousness: knowing what you are thinking.

"Life will always give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness" (Unknown).

The further and further we endure, the more self-awareness we find and carry with us. When we come home to ourselves, we see where we literally were yesterday, and we try to explain to ourselves how we got where we are today. We may have walked circles so long that we're walking on the stubs of our ankles, but we evolve through our awareness, stop walking circles, and we find new paths to take with infinitely grander views.

Karin Paul told me when I was 13 that "life will never be more complicated than the moment you're living it."


Monday, November 15, 2010

Continuities

Thank you, Whitman, for the inspiring Monday thoughts...

Nothing is ever really lost, or can be lost,
No birth, identity, form—no object of the world.
Nor life, nor force, nor any visible thing;
Appearance must not foil, nor shifted sphere confuse thy brain.
Ample are time and space—ample the fields of Nature.
The body, sluggish, aged, cold—the embers left from earlier fires,
The light in the eye grown dim, shall duly flame again;
The sun now low in the west rises for mornings and for noons continual;
To frozen clods ever the spring's invisible law returns,
With grass and flowers and summer fruits and corn.

(And thank you to my boss, who sent me home today so I wouldn't have 20 hours of overtime this week... only 12)

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Miles and Bella

Moving on through October...

For Halloween this year, we were so happy that our friends joined us for a Murder Mystery dinner! Since Annie and John left town, we were lucky that Loral's sister Rachel and Manti were able to round out the group!

I had to work until right about the time the party started, so I set everything up before work and was surprised to come home and see the costume Scott put together for himself. I loved his paper mustache!


Behold the braces! This was my second day with braces! What was I thinking getting them the day before Halloween?! I couldn't even eat any of the dinner I made! (Loral... when you guys are all situated, can I get some of your pictures of the food?)


Scott is so great letting me get braces... and he's only called me braceface a handful of times. I may look fifteen again, but he's not telling me that! Here we are, Miles and Bella. Miles: a famous 20's racecar driver. Bella: a rising opera star. Little did we know... our characters were secretly twins!


My mom and dad were so great and let us throw the party at their house. The Murder Mystery took place on a figurative yacht, so being at my parent's house instead of our tiny apartment felt like we were on a luxurious yacht! We even got trick-or-treaters! Thanks so much for coming friends!!!!!

The Many Faces and Shades of Fall (now that I'm listening to Christmas music)

Oh the catch up that will come this evening. In the meantime, I wanted to record these pictures before giving my mom back her hard drive in about ten minutes. I took all these pictures at the cabin the weekend of conference!