Happies and Needs of a Sunday Night

I need some of this:

And this:

And definitely some of this:

Please come quickly.

Happies:

1. Italiano: Have I ever mentioned how much I adore Carrabba's? I sure wish we had more than just one of them in Utah- thank heaven that ONE is close to me! Rigatoni Martino for Valentines dinner. Thrilling. Not on the menu anymore- must ask for it. DO ask for it. Oh, delish.

Thank you, cute husband of mine, for two Valentine's dinners. I so needed those.

2. Kilverd: I love my kitty. I hate his fur on my clothes (DESPISE it actually...) but I sure love him.

3. Little Chiddrens: Primary was fun today. I think that, amidst all the chaos of administration, it's important to enjoy the moments. Terribly cute.

:-)

Sunday Sunshine

It was another long and busy week. Phew. I am running around like a wild woman trying to balance three jobs, a husband, a calling, a kitty, and life in general. But- it's all good. Time is passing quickly and I now have a BIG BOAT ride to look forward to (and getting that car paid off...) so I CAN DO THIS!

Here are happies of the week:

1. Stuffing My Face: I love every other Sunday at Chuck's grandparents' home. I love the company and the food and the opportunity I have to call Chuck's quirks out in front of his family. ;-)

2. Addiction:

Chuck and I have a new addiction. I love it.

3. Outwit, Outlast, Outplay: SURVIVOR starts again this week!

4. My Princess: Chuck sings to me- Disney princess songs. And it cracks me up every time. He is funny- and that makes me happy.

(He claims I only write things about him on this blog that make him look like a pansy... he is not a pansy- he is just silly. And that is one of the main reason I LOVE him!!!!)

5. 10%: Chuck and I faithfully pay our tithing. (Not tooting a horn here... testifying...) - Every time we get paid I immediately write that check for 10% of what we made. We give it to the bishopric and move on. Every once in awhile, like this week, we see the blessings that come from the sacrifice we make. Friday morning Chuck called and told me that he'd received a VERY nice bonus (we had NO idea it was coming) that had been deposited in our account that morning. I was shocked and elated. Our big boat ride is paid for - plus some. Paying off the car won't be as far off as I anticipated! I LOVE TITHING BLESSINGS!

6. Memories: SO excited for the big boat ride with my hubby, sister, niece, Daddy, and step-mom. I CAN NOT WAIT to make some great memories and have time with family that we don't see nearly as often as we should. HAPPINESS!

7. Hot Air: Thanks for the feedback on last week's steam blowing blog. I needed to vent, and I hope I did it tactfully. Thank you for the wonderful support and good feedback. :-)

Life is good. And busy. Have a lovely week!

Flynn and Rapunzel

Don't have anything specific to write tonight... but I feel like writing. My posts are incredibly random lately...

Sometimes I read friends' blogs and crack up at the hilarious things their kiddos say and do. And then I find myself thinking, "That would be fun." I guess that's progress, eh? ;-)

My calling is going to make me fat. No, really. I am in a presidency with three fabulous women and at our weekly (or more) meetings, they insist on having treats. I gladly partake. Tonight it was Andes Mints, Cookies and Cream Hershey's Kisses, and doughnuts. Yeah. Fatty me. IT ALL JUST TASTES SO GOOD!!!

* HUGE PET PEEVE * - When someone with a Master's degree can't spell or use correct grammar. Drives me absolutely bonkers. Oh, and when they don't use punctuation. Oh, and even if they DON'T have a Master's it bugs me. But I just can't help but think, "You went through all that schooling and you still can't write?"

Call me a jerk.

I am relatively chill person. I * THINK * I am easy to get along with (though I admit that whole awkwardly shy thing gets in the way sometimes...), and for the most part, things don't bother me. Water off a ducks back, right?

Well, I need to talk about something. There people in life right now that I CAN NOT stand. A thought of, or someone talking about these particular people makes my blood BOIL with fury. I can not believe how angry I feel over it all.

Blogs and Facebook DO NOT help.

I don't want to be like this. I am working to learn and know how to let go of these particular things - why should I be allowing these people to have such power over my peace and sanity? I am a decently forgiving person- but in these particular circumstances I just can't seem to get past it all. I feel like writing mean things on FB and blogs... I feel like lashing out and saying REALLY awful things to these people. Ugh- the natural man in me is in full force when it comes to these individuals.

But that is SO not who I am. Or who I want to be. Some days are better than others, of course. Some days - rarely - I can go an entire day without feeling that blood boil at the mention of a name. But it's a work in progress.

Mostly I would say that this last little rant is something better written in a journal than on the public stage that is my blog - I have class like that. ;-) BUT I am sure that there are some of you out there who have felt/are feeling the exact same way.

Besides all of the Sunday School answers, how do YOU deal with these kinds of feelings?

Being a grown up is way less cool than being a kid, P.S.

* Shudder *

Back to the good stuff!

I got a good coupon the other day! "Buy one oil change, get a second FREE"! Oh, I love good deals... now I have to run up the miles on my car so the coupon won't expire before I actually NEED an oil change! - SMIRK -

Thursday is pay day. I love pay day.

A friend (Thanks, Nicole...) told me that Chuck and I are like Flynn and Rapunzel. It made me little girl-y happy.

Do you see the resemblance???? :-)

Sunshiney Day

Oh, how thankful I am for Sundays. Even though a few hours of my Sabbaths are spent in the arena known as Primary, I consider these days restful and peaceful. Which reminded me of something...

Lets talk about ten years ago...

Ten years ago I couldn't remember much about the ten years prior. How is it that now I can remember almost EVERYTHING about the past ten years? Sigh.

I bring all this up because not since a time, ten years ago, have I cherished my Sundays as much as I do now.

Actually, I started thinking about that time of life when I saw a status on a friend's Facebook wall about PLAYMILL auditions.

Ten years ago this summer, my adventures at the Playmill began. That truly seems impossible. I remember, clear as day, the night that Roger Merrill called and invited me to be a member of the 2001 cast. I was giddy- and that one phone call changed my life for the next few years.

Oh, they were happy times. Busy, busy, happy times. I worked like a crazy person, and when Sundays came I would CRASH. Much like I do now.

* Feeling sentimental. *

Ten years goes by really fast.

Which leads me to my next point:

I mentioned awhile back that I am afraid of LIFE. (Silly for a girl who genuinely LOVES it, I know...) With things that have happened in our families the past year or so, I have become keenly aware of how HARD life can be and that REALLY bad things can happen- even when you are just going about living the good way that you should be. Sadly, I think it all has spooked me a bit when it comes to living.

I am scared of getting old.

I am afraid of having babies and them growing up.

I am frightened of accidents and illness and osteoporosis....

I am terrified of only having x amount of years left with grandparents, parents, ect.

I ache over losing friends that I love. (Time does that, ya know?)

"So," you ask, "Where is your eternal perspective, Ames?" It seems to have been a little scared off in the last year. Could someone please help me find it?

It may take a little while to get back into my "Go Get 'em Life" mode.

... I'm waiting...

OK. Let's talk now about my vacay: "St Maarten, St John/St Thomas, Castaway Cay, and three relaxing days at sea." Thank you, DCL, I will TAKE IT!!!

Um- have I mentioned that I am now the person who oversees the Cub Scouts in Primary? I. Have. No. Idea. But Chuck's Grandma gave me a super cute picture of my husband as a seven- year-old Cub Scout. I want to eat him up. And that concludes my current knowledge of the Cub Scouts.

OH! Not true: Wolf, Bear, Webelos....

Next thought:

I am blissfully giddy over the fact that I got married at 27 and lived a bit of my life. Life is wonderful because of it.

And what else?

I bite my nails when I am anxious. My nails have been growing this week- which means less anxiety. Awesome. (Details of the "princess" that you never knew, right???)

Cruise = Pedicure.

Pizza is delish.

I get a massage tomorrow.

I love Mondays.

Nowadays

A quick update on my life (because I have been somewhat MIA lately in the bloggy blog world):

- I bought myself the AE coat. I love it, and so does my cat. I think he truly believes it is the mother who bore him in the barn. Needless to say I make sure it is always hung up...

- Still lovin' me some "Bachelor." I look forward to Monday night every week! Fun little tidbit: I dated Michelle's brother.... And Emily looks like my old roomie Lisa.

- Remember the Sunset Boulevard audition? Yeah- didn't get in- and let me tell you, it was TRAGEDY for about a week. All of my friends who had auditioned with me were cast, and that, let me tell you, was rough. I haven't been so irrational about an audition in a REALLY long time, but that whole thing just struck me to the core and deflated any motivation I have to perform. I skipped an audition I'd planned on doing the following week, and now I am just busy living my life. Work, Primary meetings, planning an awesome vacay- Life is good. And I am happy.

And I totally got over not making the show. That feels nice.

(It didn't hurt that I have the cutest husband in the world who wrote me a cute note and brought home the "Tangled" soundtrack to make me feel better!)

- On Mondays and Fridays I clean my house.

- I used to run five miles a day. That sure is in the past...

- My dear friend Sam and his wife Emily had a baby this week. I am THRILLED for them.

- Trip planning meeting with the fam tonight! Can't wait!!!!!!!

Giant Boat

Yes, friends. I am still alive. Been working like I crazy person, but I am proud to announce that I have finally caved.

Taking a break from paying off the car. It's going going to put me off a few weeks, but I'm preeeeeeety sure it will be worth it. So now we're shooting for a payoff sometime in April. Not bad. And I will stay sane in the process. Ha.

The opportunity presented itself unexpectedly, and we have decided it's time to go float around on a giant boat again - this time with my sister, niece, dad, and step-mom.

Happy. Can't wait.