It makes me so happy that we have a day to celebrate this.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Don't Go Camping With The Carters
I'm not kidding. Unless you enjoy being rained on every single time you set out to enjoy the great outdoors. Brett and I have some serious bad luck when it comes to camping and the weather. We have been on several camping trips and have been rained on every. single. time. And I'm not just talking a little sprinkle here and there, I am talking about buckets and buckets of rain, sometimes for hours at a time. However, I wish rain was all we had to deal with on this trip...
It all started around 12:30pm on Friday. Brett and I decided that I would take Macy up to the campground while he was still at work so we could be sure to get a spot since it was Father's Day weekend and a fairly small site that didn't accept reservations. 15 miles of steep, bumpy mountainous terrain that could hardly be considered a road later, I come to a locked gate with a sign that says "Closed for Winter." Confused (and pretty angry) I call the Utah parks and recreation office and learn that the site we were planning on going to doesn't open until NEXT weekend. (Awesome...especially considering neither their website nor answering machine message gave any note of this.)
So Brett gets home, we mope around for awhile, then decide that a little site closure isn't going to hold us down and decide to head up to North Fork Campground (about an hour drive) and see if we can get a spot. Luckily, there are plenty of spots, so we get out, get everything set up and get ready to start a fire.
No matches.
Okay, no biggie. We drive back into town (only about a 10 minute drive), buy matches and try to start our fire again.
Still no fire. Due to the obscene amounts of water Utah has been getting lately, the fire pit, kindling and all other firewood is totally wet, making fire building virtually impossible.
We decide to go to bed. At least we'll get a good night's rest, right?
If only.
About 11:30pm, we awake to some very drunk and very raunchy fellow campers in the site next to us. I'll spare you the details, but let's just say it was the longest hour our lives (by some miracle, Macy slept through it all...lucky sucker.)
Then, this morning, we still couldn't get a fire started.
And Macy fell off the picnic table and got a lovely goose egg.
Then, it rained. And rained. And rained.
So, we decided to pack up and come home early. Even the Carters can only take so much. But even after all of it, we're already planning our next camping trip.
But don't worry...we won't make it awkward by extending any invitations.
It all started around 12:30pm on Friday. Brett and I decided that I would take Macy up to the campground while he was still at work so we could be sure to get a spot since it was Father's Day weekend and a fairly small site that didn't accept reservations. 15 miles of steep, bumpy mountainous terrain that could hardly be considered a road later, I come to a locked gate with a sign that says "Closed for Winter." Confused (and pretty angry) I call the Utah parks and recreation office and learn that the site we were planning on going to doesn't open until NEXT weekend. (Awesome...especially considering neither their website nor answering machine message gave any note of this.)
So Brett gets home, we mope around for awhile, then decide that a little site closure isn't going to hold us down and decide to head up to North Fork Campground (about an hour drive) and see if we can get a spot. Luckily, there are plenty of spots, so we get out, get everything set up and get ready to start a fire.
No matches.
Okay, no biggie. We drive back into town (only about a 10 minute drive), buy matches and try to start our fire again.
Still no fire. Due to the obscene amounts of water Utah has been getting lately, the fire pit, kindling and all other firewood is totally wet, making fire building virtually impossible.
We decide to go to bed. At least we'll get a good night's rest, right?
If only.
About 11:30pm, we awake to some very drunk and very raunchy fellow campers in the site next to us. I'll spare you the details, but let's just say it was the longest hour our lives (by some miracle, Macy slept through it all...lucky sucker.)
Then, this morning, we still couldn't get a fire started.
And Macy fell off the picnic table and got a lovely goose egg.
Then, it rained. And rained. And rained.
So, we decided to pack up and come home early. Even the Carters can only take so much. But even after all of it, we're already planning our next camping trip.
But don't worry...we won't make it awkward by extending any invitations.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Flour Power
Lately Macy has been showing a marked interest in helping out in the kitchen...specifically when I'm making anything that has to do with flour.
At first I wasn't too keen on the idea of cleaning up the mess that she left behind, but anything that keeps her occupied for more than ten minutes is pretty much worth it.
Plus, it makes it a lot easier to see where she wanders off to.
At first I wasn't too keen on the idea of cleaning up the mess that she left behind, but anything that keeps her occupied for more than ten minutes is pretty much worth it.
Plus, it makes it a lot easier to see where she wanders off to.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
The Fatty List
Remember a few months back when everyone was doing that "25 things about me" list on Facebook? I joked with my mom that a fatty was only thing I could write 25 things about.
Confused? Read on.
1-I call any fountain drink that is over 32 ounces a "fatty." Only my family and select friends actually know what I'm talking about. Most people assume I am talking about drugs....probably ought to be careful who I am around when I call my sister and ask her if she wants to "get a fatty" later.
2-The only time my husband has feared for his life was the day he dropped and broke my fatty mug and had to tell me. The convo went as follows:
Brett: "I did something really bad"
Me: "What? Did you wreck the car?"
Brett: "No...worse."
Me: "What....what happened."
Brett: "I broke your fatty mug!"
3- After getting in my first car accident, the first thing I thought was not "oh, no, my car!" but rather "oh no! I just spilled my brand new fatty!" (True story.)
4-I rate gas stations "good" or "bad" based solely on the fact that they have Diet Dr. Pepper as a fountain drink option (and that it tastes good.)
5-I have one "best" gas station for fatty drinks in every town I have lived in, except for New York, where none of the gas stations had fountain drink machines (I nearly died by the way...2 liters are no where close to as good as fountain drinks)
6-The best fatty gas stations are: Woods Cross-RB's. West Valley-Holiday on 3900 South. Shelley-Stop n' Go. Idaho Falls-17th Street Car Wash (RIP). Logan-the little convienience store on the lower level of TSC.
7-The only person I know who could come close to beating me in a fatty drinking contest is my sister Sarah, and she's more into coffee now.
8-I have only given up drinking fatties twice...once for about 2 weeks when I was living at home and going to the U and once for the first 5 months I was pregnant with Macy.
9-I am now on my third fatty mug…although you can't really call it a mug because it isn't insulated and doesn't have a handle or its own lid. [See #2 for the fate of fatty mug number 1 (aka Ol' Red).] I threw away fatty mug number 2 (Big Blue) in another failed attempt to quit.
10-As of 2-18-09, #9 isn't true.
11-I now drink my fatty from a 52 oz mug I lovingly call "Mugsy."
12-I get fatties at the same gas station so often, that I pretty much can tell you who is working when.
13-Occasionally, I will refer to a fatty as a sodee (sew-dee). Not really sure where that one came from.
14. Sometimes I like some candy with my fatty. My candy of choice? Purple Skittles-occasionally referred to as pupe-skits (again, not exactly sure where that came from.)
15-I waited almost a month after knowing Brett before bringing my fatty mug over to his apartment.
16-He didn't know what to think at first. Now he accepts my love of fatties as one of my many quirks.
17-I can't decide if the plural for fatty should be spelled fattys or fatties. Maybe it should be fatti...
18-I keep trying to figure out a way to convert the cup holders in our Mitsubishi to hold my fatty mug.
19-Until fatty cup holders are invented, Mugsy usually sits in the passenger seat with my purse or other bag in front of it as a makeshift seat belt.
20-A fatty is good with lots of things; pizza, sandwiches, chips, popcorn, hamburgers, Swedish fish....
21-A fatty is not good with a recently toothpaste-brushed mouth.
22-Sometimes my loved ones offer to bring me a fatty when I've had a rough day...I love this.
23-Me and the sibs used to sneak off and buy fattys on Sunday, then take our window screen out and smuggle them through our bedroom window so we wouldn't have to try and carry them through the house and risk Mom hearing the tell-tale "shake of the ice" sound.
24-I know that every time Grandma Barb sees me drinking my fatty, she will ask what is in it, and then proceed to tell me that I should be putting water in my mug instead.
25-I still dream about the day when I will give up fattys for good…but I’m not making any promises.
Confused? Read on.
1-I call any fountain drink that is over 32 ounces a "fatty." Only my family and select friends actually know what I'm talking about. Most people assume I am talking about drugs....probably ought to be careful who I am around when I call my sister and ask her if she wants to "get a fatty" later.
2-The only time my husband has feared for his life was the day he dropped and broke my fatty mug and had to tell me. The convo went as follows:
Brett: "I did something really bad"
Me: "What? Did you wreck the car?"
Brett: "No...worse."
Me: "What....what happened."
Brett: "I broke your fatty mug!"
3- After getting in my first car accident, the first thing I thought was not "oh, no, my car!" but rather "oh no! I just spilled my brand new fatty!" (True story.)
4-I rate gas stations "good" or "bad" based solely on the fact that they have Diet Dr. Pepper as a fountain drink option (and that it tastes good.)
5-I have one "best" gas station for fatty drinks in every town I have lived in, except for New York, where none of the gas stations had fountain drink machines (I nearly died by the way...2 liters are no where close to as good as fountain drinks)
6-The best fatty gas stations are: Woods Cross-RB's. West Valley-Holiday on 3900 South. Shelley-Stop n' Go. Idaho Falls-17th Street Car Wash (RIP). Logan-the little convienience store on the lower level of TSC.
7-The only person I know who could come close to beating me in a fatty drinking contest is my sister Sarah, and she's more into coffee now.
8-I have only given up drinking fatties twice...once for about 2 weeks when I was living at home and going to the U and once for the first 5 months I was pregnant with Macy.
9-I am now on my third fatty mug…although you can't really call it a mug because it isn't insulated and doesn't have a handle or its own lid. [See #2 for the fate of fatty mug number 1 (aka Ol' Red).] I threw away fatty mug number 2 (Big Blue) in another failed attempt to quit.
10-As of 2-18-09, #9 isn't true.
11-I now drink my fatty from a 52 oz mug I lovingly call "Mugsy."
12-I get fatties at the same gas station so often, that I pretty much can tell you who is working when.
13-Occasionally, I will refer to a fatty as a sodee (sew-dee). Not really sure where that one came from.
14. Sometimes I like some candy with my fatty. My candy of choice? Purple Skittles-occasionally referred to as pupe-skits (again, not exactly sure where that came from.)
15-I waited almost a month after knowing Brett before bringing my fatty mug over to his apartment.
16-He didn't know what to think at first. Now he accepts my love of fatties as one of my many quirks.
17-I can't decide if the plural for fatty should be spelled fattys or fatties. Maybe it should be fatti...
18-I keep trying to figure out a way to convert the cup holders in our Mitsubishi to hold my fatty mug.
19-Until fatty cup holders are invented, Mugsy usually sits in the passenger seat with my purse or other bag in front of it as a makeshift seat belt.
20-A fatty is good with lots of things; pizza, sandwiches, chips, popcorn, hamburgers, Swedish fish....
21-A fatty is not good with a recently toothpaste-brushed mouth.
22-Sometimes my loved ones offer to bring me a fatty when I've had a rough day...I love this.
23-Me and the sibs used to sneak off and buy fattys on Sunday, then take our window screen out and smuggle them through our bedroom window so we wouldn't have to try and carry them through the house and risk Mom hearing the tell-tale "shake of the ice" sound.
24-I know that every time Grandma Barb sees me drinking my fatty, she will ask what is in it, and then proceed to tell me that I should be putting water in my mug instead.
25-I still dream about the day when I will give up fattys for good…but I’m not making any promises.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Birthday Rant
Okay, so here I was, wasting time on one of my favorite blogs, Tip Junkie. The other day she was featuring birthday party ideas. We don't have any birthdays on the horizon anytime soon, but I was bored and figured I'd check a couple of them out.
Cute right? Well...these elaborate parties are for three year olds. Well, not all of them. But there are several featured that people have put together for their little-little kids, complete with over-the-top invites, personalize party favors, place settings, costumes etc. etc.
So, here's my question(s).
When are you supposed to start throwing friend parties for your kids? I thought I would still be under the "good mom" category if I waited until Macy was at least in kindergarten to let her have a friend party, but now I'm not so sure.
Was I supposed to do some big shin-dig for b-day number one? If so, I totally dropped the ball, because Macy's first birthday party consisted of our parents and brothers and sisters, and a couple of pink cupcakes. No decorations, no invitations, no special princess birthday tutu...nada.
And where do these little three year old social butterflies come up with enough "friends" to invite to their elborate parties? Even if I was to throw a major Macypalooza, I can only think of three kids that we know well enough to invite, and they're all from the same family.
Anyways, just curious to see if I'm the only crazy one out there. I am totally not anti-birthday parties, and actually plan on filing some of those party ideas away to use someday...like when Macy turns 16.
Cute right? Well...these elaborate parties are for three year olds. Well, not all of them. But there are several featured that people have put together for their little-little kids, complete with over-the-top invites, personalize party favors, place settings, costumes etc. etc.
So, here's my question(s).
When are you supposed to start throwing friend parties for your kids? I thought I would still be under the "good mom" category if I waited until Macy was at least in kindergarten to let her have a friend party, but now I'm not so sure.
Was I supposed to do some big shin-dig for b-day number one? If so, I totally dropped the ball, because Macy's first birthday party consisted of our parents and brothers and sisters, and a couple of pink cupcakes. No decorations, no invitations, no special princess birthday tutu...nada.
And where do these little three year old social butterflies come up with enough "friends" to invite to their elborate parties? Even if I was to throw a major Macypalooza, I can only think of three kids that we know well enough to invite, and they're all from the same family.
Anyways, just curious to see if I'm the only crazy one out there. I am totally not anti-birthday parties, and actually plan on filing some of those party ideas away to use someday...like when Macy turns 16.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Feeling Average?
Need a little Wednesday "Hump Day" pick-me-up? How about a few words of wisdom from our Office favorite, Michael Scott.
"My mother always said average people are the most special...that's why God made so many of them."
Monday, June 1, 2009
I Want to Ride My Bicycle
Throughout my life, I've always had a love/hate relationship with bikes. As a kid, I loved 'em. Me and my brothers and sisters rode them constantly. They were our ticket to freedom and one of our main sources of entertainment, especially in the summer.
Then, around late junior high to high school time, I started hating bikes. Being one of the younger ones in my grade, I was one of the last to get my driver's license, and was forced to ride my bike on the occasion that I wasn't able to bum a ride off of one of my luckier, licensed friends. Even after getting my license, I didn't have a car, so I still had to make the occasional dash on my bike (with my hair stuffed under a baseball hat and with sunglasses on in hopes that no one would recognize me.) I remember on several occasions telling my mom that I would "rather die" than ride my bike to school, work, etc.
Now I'm back to liking bikes again. Maybe it's because the weather is nice, or maybe it's the fact that biking is a cheap, fun activity that Brett, Macy and I can all do together. Since I am now back to loving bikes, we decided to buy these babies...
We've wanted to buy another bike (Brett already has one) and bike trailer ever since last summer, but had to wait until we'd saved up enough cash. They have already proved to be well worth the investment. In the past two weeks, we've checked out a couple of trails, ridden to various parks for picnics and even rode to the grocery store to pick up a few odds and ends.
The only down side of riding a bike now is that it reminds me how ridiculously out of shape I am. How come I don't remember my thighs burning while riding my bike as a kid?
Then, around late junior high to high school time, I started hating bikes. Being one of the younger ones in my grade, I was one of the last to get my driver's license, and was forced to ride my bike on the occasion that I wasn't able to bum a ride off of one of my luckier, licensed friends. Even after getting my license, I didn't have a car, so I still had to make the occasional dash on my bike (with my hair stuffed under a baseball hat and with sunglasses on in hopes that no one would recognize me.) I remember on several occasions telling my mom that I would "rather die" than ride my bike to school, work, etc.
Now I'm back to liking bikes again. Maybe it's because the weather is nice, or maybe it's the fact that biking is a cheap, fun activity that Brett, Macy and I can all do together. Since I am now back to loving bikes, we decided to buy these babies...
We've wanted to buy another bike (Brett already has one) and bike trailer ever since last summer, but had to wait until we'd saved up enough cash. They have already proved to be well worth the investment. In the past two weeks, we've checked out a couple of trails, ridden to various parks for picnics and even rode to the grocery store to pick up a few odds and ends.
The only down side of riding a bike now is that it reminds me how ridiculously out of shape I am. How come I don't remember my thighs burning while riding my bike as a kid?
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