if you traveled as much as I do ...

You would find that a table for one can be quite enjoyable.

You would learn that the Chevy HHR is a little better than the PT Cruiser, but not by much. (ps ... i couldn't remember the name of the PT cruiser so I googled ugly cars and it showed up ... just fyi).

You would find that a brand new hotel is everything it's cracked up to be.

You would get to visit friends you haven't seen in a very long time.

You would know that there's a walkway to the terminal from the 4th floor of the parking garage at O'hare.

You would recognize the gate agents in Memphis, Denver, and Manchester.

You would obtain Premier status at United Airlines, finally. And all that goes with that (separate security lines, first seating on the plane, economy plus seats, free baggage).

It was worth the wait!

no excuses ... just a post

Yes, I'm very very behind in blogging. Since I don't have a good excuese, I won't make up a bad one. But, I do want to be better about blogging ... doesn't that sound like a good new year's resolution? Which means I really have another month before I need to be good. However, it takes some practice. so, a month of practice, and then i'll be better. i promise.

I've had a bunch of pictures on my desktop from my last trip to Memphis that I wanted to blog about. Now that it's been a few months, I don't have a ton to say about it. But, I'll post the pictures anyway.

After my first trip to Memphis, i decided that before I left for the last time I would go tour Graceland. I don't know really why I wanted to, as I've never been a huge fan of Elvis, never really even knew anything about him or his life. I just thought it'd be cool, even though I had to tour alone.

And cool it was. I enjoyed every moment of the tour ... and was thrilled to see that it was an audio tour, so everyone was walking around with earphones by themselves!

There were so many things to see in there, not to mention all the awards (holy crap, there were a lot!) and clothes!

My favorites were:

{graceland's front room ... this white couch is 14 feet long!}

{the pool room ... that is fabric draped all over the ceiling and walls!}

{this is the award room now, but originally it was his personal racquetball court ... crazy!}

I didn't take any pictures of his personal planes, but that was another favorite!!

Anyway, while I'm sure that this wouldn't necessarily be on everyone's to-do list, I recommend it!

rad bike for josie

josette wants one of these bikes and now i am trying to get one too! :) Click on the pic above to check it out!

Travel Blog ... Memphis, TN

I feel like I've spent a great majority of my summer in Memphis. And we're not even opening a center in Memphis! We are, however, opening centers in Holly Springs, MS and Forrest City, AR, which are each about an hour away from Memphis. So, I've been staying at a hotel in Memphis, and driving every morning to whichever center I'm working on that day.

I made appointments with AT&T and with some furniture installers on Monday morning and therefore needed to fly in on Sunday. I really am not a fan of flying on Sunday, for multiple reasons, but I had to do it this time. My flight was at 9:00pm (I wanted to waste as little of my Sunday as possible), which would have put me in Memphis around 10:30. Except my flight was late ... and my suitcase decided that it didn't want to fly on Sunday and stayed in Chicago for an extra night.

So at 11:45pm on Sunday evening, I pick up my rental car and head to the hotel, with no suitcase. The front desk clerk looks in her drawer of toiletries and comes up with a toothbrush (no toothpaste) and a comb. That's it. I figured that I needed at least toothpaste and deoderant for the next day (and would still be sporting the "no make-up, wet hair pulled up" look), so I asked if there was a wal-mart or walgreens nearby. Nope, nothing that's open 24 hours, and it is, after all, almost 1am by now. My best bet will be the convenience store down the road. And by convenience store, she means the gas station that smells like sewage and sells toothpaste for $4 for a tiny tube. So, toothpaste and deodorant in hand, I head back to the hotel.

It is then that I realize I didn't buy anything for my contacts. I'm faced with the "would you rather" question ... sleep in your contacts all night or soak your contacts in water overnight. Seems that neither is a good choice, but at 2am I decided that the water would be better and went to sleep.

I did set my alarm so that I'd wake up at 6:00, be ready to leave by 7:00, and arrive at the center by 8:00am. At 7:45 I woke up, bolted out of bed, and jumped in the shower. I was late, I couldn't get ready, had to put on old clothes, and was worried about what I was going to find when I tried to put my contacts in. The contacts had turned from a shade of blue to an ugly green in the water, and my eyes did everything they could to reject them. But, I got them in and walked around with itchy, red, watery, sensitive eyes all day. It was pretty.

First thing I found at the center when I arrived ...

I'll just tell you ... cockroaches. And all the locals know how to kill them. We saw about 3 of them throughout the day.

By the end of the day my suitcase had been delivered to my hotel, my eyes had been relieved by my glasses, and I had another center open and crossed off the list. yay!

On Tuesday I hit the road again, headed towards Forrest City, AR. There's not a lot in that city, let me tell ya. Our IT guy found 3 pairs of underwear in the ceiling. I have NO idea how they got there ... but he pulled one out to prove it to me ... so I took a picture.

And, by the end of Tuesday, I had another center finished. Woo hoo! That's 5 centers down, 3 to go!

Before I left Memphis, I had to check out Graceland ... by myself, because Gina and Robbie wouldn't join me. It was excellent! I'll post about that next ...

Cirque du So-lame? I think not!

This past weekend we went to see Cavalia, a horse themed show under the big top that was created by one of the co-founders of Cirque du Soleil.

I was originally introduced to Cirque du Soleil about 7 years ago. My original thought when my hair stylist told me was Cirque du what? And what did she tell me? That while it seemed expensive, it is worth every dollar you spend on the tickets. Doubtful, right? But while Stephanie and I were in Orlando shortly after that, we were looking for something to do and bought $100 tickets to Cirque's "La Nouba". And now I agree. It IS worth every dollar we spent. In fact, we were wishing we had spent more to get the closer tickets.

Fast forward a few years, to Stephanie's 21st birthday weekend in Vegas. I decided that $80 was too much to spend on a Cirque ticket when no one else would go with me, so I stayed at the hotel and instead wasted $80 at the Blackjack tables. Bad idea.

A couple years ago when we were in Vegas again, I helped convince a doubting crowd that we should go see a Cirque show. With everyone on board, we went to buy tickets. Except all of the shows were sold out. I guess that's what we get for waiting too long. But, the concierge told us that "Le Reve" was just as good or better, so an even more doubtful crew handed their money over for the tickets. According to the concierge, Le Reve was originally a Cirque show, purchased by Steve Wynn so it could run exclusively at his hotel. A Cirque show it was ... from the 1st and 2nd row of the round "theatre", we watched amazing acrobats, aerialists and dancers in the water-based show. It was amazing.

I shouldn't have doubted that Cavalia would be just as good, but for some reason spending that much money for a couple hours of entertainment leaves me thinking it won't be worth it. But I was proven wrong, once again. I recommend it to everyone, horse lover or not. It will leave you wishing you had a horse of your own and wanting to learn how to do tricks galore.

Lesson learned, I think. I will no longer pass up the opportunity to see a Cirque show (or one created by the cofounder). Starting this fall. I'll be going again to see "La Nouba", just because I can.

You May Not Know ...

I feel like I should be blogging more often ... but then I feel like my life's too boring to blog about. And today I decided I don't care. So what if people think I'm boring? So here ... 10 things you may or may not know about me:

1. I'm a nerd and I'm OK with it. I like crossword puzzles, gadgets, useless knowledge, puzzles, numbers ... you name the nerdy thing, i probably like it.

2. I'm a TV junkie if I allow myself to be. Among my favorites: Law & Order, Ace of Cakes, Wizards of Waverly Place, Chelsea Lately, Friends (I'll always watch a rerun!)

3. I judge restaurants as much for their bathrooms as for their food. I heard one time that bathrooms will always tell if a company cares about their customers. The restaurant i go to regularly with the best bathrooms? probably Cheesecake Factory

4. I really enjoy making new things ... particularly crafts and recipes. And I take great pride in something when it turns out well.

5. My favorite summer food is BLT sandwiches with white bread and tomatoes fresh from the garden.

6. I am totally a night person. It's not that I'm grumpy in the morning or anything, just that I prefer night.

7. I try to not let people know how easily I become annoyed. I know it's not a becoming trait, but if I can't get rid of it, it's better if I hide it, right?

8. Sometimes I think I should stop drinking soda. And then I decide that I need a really good reason to stop. So far I haven't found one, so Diet Coke continues to be my drink of choice.

9. I like reading the book before I see the movie. Maybe it's because i don't like surprises, but I think it's just because I like to compare the two afterward.

10. I wish I could write well. And I hope that "practice makes perfect" applies to writing. I have so many ideas that I want to make into books ...

Travel Blog ... Claremont, NH

This week I've got a couple trips planned ... I'm only in Claremont overnight, but I LOVE this hotel and wanted to share! It's brand new. The only hotel in town. The city has taken a deep interest in renovating a bunch of these old mills in the heart of downtown. The Common Man Inn just opened in one of them.

The hotel is right on the river and the rooms overlook the falls:



The rooms all have wood floors, antique(ish) furniture, flat screen TV ... it's awesome!

I plan to stay here anytime I return. I like it. Now if I can only figure out how to get to this hot tub!

GPS, lizard, and OOOOOKLAHOMA!

(thanks to taber for the catchy title ... i told you i'd use it!)

So Kim told me about this place called Discoveryland in Tulsa ... it's kind of a dinner and theater (OKLAHOMA!) kind of thing. We, however, opted out of the dinner and did our own thing, italian style. The night went something like this:


Kim, Taber, and I get in the car and head to Carrabba's for dinner. Mostly uneventful except for 2 things. The first was this conversation between Kim and the waitress:


Kim: I'll have the lasagna.
Waitress: soup or salad?
K: Salad
W: What kind of dressing ... house or caesar
K: Caesar salad
W: house salad with caesar dressing?
K: Caesar salad
W: house salad with caesar dressing?
K: Caesar salad
W: I'm confused


And the second was this conversation between me and the waitress (we should have known by now what we were dealing with):


Natalie: this diet coke doesn't really taste like diet coke, could you bring me another one?
Waitress: (picking up the drink smelling it) oh, that's definitely diet coke
N: well could I have another anyway?


I thought she was going to take a sip of the drink ... so i was happy when she only smelled it, but still. Can you really smell the difference between coke and diet coke? I think not.


After dinner, we were headed straight to Discoveryland for the play. We type it into the GPS and hit the road. Before we know it, we are "arriving at destination" according to the GPS. Except that we weren't actually arriving at our destination. Far from it, actually.


We call the real Discoveryland, they give us general directions, and we type a general address into the GPS. This time, as we're approximately 2 miles away, there's a "road closed" sign. Except Taber points out that it's closed to thru traffic. So we go down that road thinking that they're ok with local traffic using the road. A couple miles down there's a sign that says "bridge out ahead". What do you think ... only for thru traffic? Forge ahead. We get to the bridge, which actually is there, only it's rough ... dirt, etc everywhere. But there are tracks around the sign, and we can see the opposite side of the bridge, so we decide to go around the sign. On the other side of the bridge, there are also signs. Only there isn't room to go around them this time. We made Taber get out of the car, move the sign and sandbags, and help us through. All while laughing hysterically. I almost peed my pants we were laughing so hard!


We finally found the real Discoveryland! A little late, but it was OK. We bought our tickets and took our little hike down to the amphitheater. A quick trip to the bathrooms before we took our seats. I looked up, and saw this:


yes, a lizard, or some kind of nasty reptile! Luckily, it was dead. At least I think so.


Intermission brought snow cones. During the 2nd half, Kim and I were sitting there eating our snow cones. I was holding a spoonful of ice when I leaned over to say something to Kim. I believe I had gotten out "eating this is like chipping ice off the iceberg that sank the Ti ..." when a gun shot went off in the play. It scared me so much that I jumped enough to send all of the ice on my spoon flying! I think Kim and I laughed through most of that scene!

Here's a couple quick pictures of the show. The lights are too bright for the photo, but at least you can see the scene!





The return trip took significantly less time ... and all in all, it was a fantastic evening ... complete with good fun and great friends!

Travel Blog ... Tulsa, OK

I was super excited to go to Tulsa last week. It didn't disappoint!



Fact: It's easy to think "oh look, someone else named Natalie has friends meeting them at the airport" when you are generally headed straight to the car rental counter. And then when you realize that there are two adorable almost 3-year olds holding the "welcome natalie"sign, you look up to see smiling Kim, who you haven't seen in almost 3 years!


Fact: The first night in a new town is more enjoyable when it's a BBQ at an old friend's house, sharing laughs with the family and a short swim in the pool at the hotel.


Fact: When the Combat Vets are having a huge "meeting", there are still rooms available at the hotel. Don't think you're going to find a parking spot though, with all the motorcycles filling the lot!

Fact: A short meeting in the morning and receiving email on your phone constitutes a day of work. 2 days in a row. :)

Fact: Lunch at Chick-fil-A and the Oklahoma Aquarium with the Wilsons is a day of fun! And the air conditioned aquarium provides a cool afternoon on a REALLY HOT DAY (think 100 degrees and HUMID!)

Fact: Dinner and Discoveryland = a post all it's own. Get excited.

Fact: A movie and lunch with the girls is the perfect end (or so I thought) to the perfect 3-day!

Fact: It is smart to double check your flight status prior to arriving at the airport and returning your rental car. I did not, and ended up stuck in Tulsa overnight again ... which was fine because ...

Fact: Spending Friday evening and Saturday morning with the Smith family was like old times ... it brought back all the fun memories from the last 19 years!

Fact: Seeing old friends does not make you miss them less. It was so good to be with Kim & family again!

waiting ..

I don't like waiting. Rather, I don't like unplanned waiting. For example, if I have an appointment scheduled and I arrive an hour early, I don't mind that. What I do mind, is when I have an appointment scheduled, I arrive early, and the other person arrives late.

I'm sitting at our brand new center in Aurora, CO (yes! it's open on time!) waiting for the director to come pick up a key so I can check out of here. She said she'd be here around noon. It's 12:30 now. Maybe I should have defined "around" with her before I decided it was a good idea.

All i really want to do is grab some lunch, put gas in my car, and go to the airport to go home!

Just thought I'd share ...

Travel Blog ... Aurora, CO

While it's not my first time to Aurora, CO ... with any luck it will be my last trip here for a while. Not because I don't like it, just because if I don't have to come back out here it means the center I've been working on is open and running as it should. Happy day!

I haven't explored much around Denver, but I spent a few weeks in Colorado Springs a couple years ago and LOVED it! I wanted (and still do) so badly to experience all of the "outdoor" stuff they're so proud of out here ... but didn't want to do it alone. Someday I'm coming back out here on a vacation and am TOTALLY getting in a couple days of Pike's Peak, some white water rafting (bigger and better (easily done) than what we did in Wisconsin last year), and anything else I can find to do! Who's coming with me?!?

I don't know if it's me or if it's just "regular Colorado weather", but days here seem to start out bright and sunny, but by 1 or 2 pm, the clouds have rolled in and it starts to rain, snow, hail, etc. Yes, I've seen all of it this year, in my 8 full days in Aurora.

In April, the weather started off gorgeous! By the end of the week, I found myself scraping 8 inches of snow off my car with a credit card in a lightweight hoodie. Lesson learned: take a coat, make sure the rental car has a snow brush, and don't trust the Weather Channel. The good part was my rescheduled flight was late departing, so I missed my connection in Salt Lake. Why is that good? I got a free weekend trip in Provo with Jay & fam!

So far this trip (that's about 27 hours), I've had rain and hail. But at least at the end of that storm, I saw this:

Maybe I just don't get out enough at home after it rains ... but it was kinda fun to see last night!

And now, before it starts raining again, I'm running out to get some schtuff for the center that's SUPPOSED to be open tomorrow.

Good Day / Bad Day

Indicators of a Bad Day:

1. email conversation (for work!) between 11:45pm-12:15am last night
2. 8:15am email discussing a potentially offended client
3. big blob of cream cheese. on my lap.
4. confirming a friday night stay in denver ... creating a work day on saturday

Indicators of a Good Day:

1. $2 bagel & drink at Einstein (thanks to a reusable coupon from Mia!)
2. volunteering at the food bank tonight ... I love sorting frozen meat!
3. free lunch from my accounting friends, just for picking up theirs
4. an upcoming trip to tulsa, where i'll see Kim for the first time in years

If one good = one bad, i guess that just makes this a day. luckily for me, the good very often shows up when you least expect it, overshadowing the bad.

"While we may not be able to control all that happens to us, we can control what happens inside us." Ben Franklin

Today ... 6/8/09

I stole this little "survey" from my friend Frances. As she doesn't read this blog, I doubt she will ever know or care.

outside my window: cloudy and wet ...

i am thinking: that i'd rather not have to plan alternative activities for FHE "in case of rain" ... since it seems to only rain on Mondays around here.

i am thankful for: my family, my friends, and a job I love most of the time.

from the kitchen: nada ... the McDonalds kitchen made me a bacon & cheese bagel this morning.

i am wearing: black pants, pink "pretty top" (according to mia), and black sandals. I love sandal season!

i am reading: Emma, but am having a hard time finishing it.

i am hoping: I finish work early this week and don't have to stay in Denver until Saturday night.

i am creating: a mental list of things to pack.

i am hearing: Tina's blog playlist. I listen to it almost every day.

around the house: no laundry ... finished that yesterday.

one of my favorite things: $1 diet cokes at McDonalds.

a few plans for the rest of the week: FHE (blah), Food Bank, Denver.

Travel Blog ... New Hampshire/Vermont

I get to travel for work. Yes, get to. I like it. I'm allowed the opportunity to see new places & faces, while getting my lodging/car rental/gas/meals paid for. Could it be any better than this? Well sure, I could be doing it for fun rather than for work. But hey, it's pretty close to fantastic if you ask me.

This week I find myself working in Claremont, NH, which is right on the Vermont border. The place I'm staying at is the closest "chain" hotel I could find. It's in Brownsville, VT, and it's technically a ski resort. Snow skiing. As in, the-place-is-dead-and-creepy-and-there's-nobody-around. It's really quiet at night, and even though i wasn't hot (gasp! it's true, for once), i had to turn on the air conditioner so that i had a little white noise. But I shouldn't complain too much ... this is the view from my hotel parking lot:

The downside is the absolute lack of internet service. Already today I had to camp out at McDonalds and Chili's to allow myself a little internet surfing/email catch up time.

The people here are friendly ... what would a stay in Brownsville, VT be without a date proposition from a sweatpants-wearing, fanny-pack-sporting, 50-something man? And not just any date ... a "date" to walk around the empty ski-resort. Now if that doesn't sound like an invitation for date rape, I don't know what it is.

I walked out to my car today and realized it was the exact same model that Edward Cullen drives in Twilight. Imagine my delight! It's the Volvo C30 (he drives it in the movie, not in the book ...). I wouldn't buy it for myself, but it's kinda fun to test drive new cars through the winding, tree-lined roads of New Hampshire!

The area is awesome. I wouldn't mind coming back here on vacation sometime ... with someone else, of course. I'm thinking the fall season would be gorgeous ... with all the trees changing colors and all. Maybe I can swing a mid-semester check up on my new Claremont center?

Go-Kartin & Water Parkin!

So we just got back from the Dells ... Wisconsin Dells, WI for those of you who don't know where the Waterpark Capital of the World is! Way fun. And I'd recommend any/every thing we did to everyone!

We stayed in the Wilderness Resort. Can you say "most awesome hotel room ever"? I can. We had a 2 bedroom condo for 3 of us to share. And, where else can you find a moose walking around the lobby?

The Dells doesn't just have moose in the hotels, they're on top of cars as well!
We were guided through the Wisconsin River & Lake Delton by Jake on an Original Wisconsin Duck (a 7.5 Ton boat/car that weighs slightly less than Jake's Ex-girlfriend). It looks like this:

Jake had LOTS of fun facts and jokes for us ... they were never ending! I won't give them all away here, just know that you should take the tour and hear them for yourselves ... I laughed for the whole hour! The biggest joke of all being the "accidental" splash into Lake Delton, soaking Terri, Mia, and I (sitting unsuspecting in the front row like eagar tourists). At least we could go back to the hotel to dry our clothes! And I still highly recommend sitting in the front row regardless; watching the tour guide's face while he's laughing at his own jokes is almost as good as the jokes themselves.

After purchasing our matching "3-fer" t-shirt sets ... a short sleeved t-shirt, long sleeved t-shirt, and a hat for just $30! ... we went to Mt. Olympus! Big time roller coasters and go-karts!

This is me, on the go-kart:

That worker in the background was tromping around the go-karts with a big stick most of the day ... an intimidation tactic maybe? My favorite part of Mt. Olympus?

This bathroom. About two years ago a group of us (the BJAMN crew plus Sharla and Gretchen) went to the Dells for some go-kartin fun. Josette had to go to the bathroom so we headed that direction. She ran straight into the bathroom and into a stall. It was about that time that a woman walked out of the other bathroom, making us realize that Josette had gone into the Men's bathroom. She claims she didn't see the urinals, though it seems a little unlikely, since there are 6 of them! I'm still laughing about it!

This is me, in my new Ducks hat, showing you what a fantastic weekend we all had!

mmm, buffet!

Continuing on the annual BJAMN (I just made that up, but I like it. It's like Mad Gab for Blogger. Be Jammin ... you know?) trips, Vegas 08!! We added a couple players, Terri & Joe. I can't change the name of the trip(s) though, because T & J don't add a whole lot to the BJAMN name I've previously devised.

So we're staying in a hotel off the strip, in a time-share that Mia's mom lovingly let us borrow for the week. The hotel offers a free shuttle to Harrah's, where the monorail runs. The monorail is genius. Those hotels all look close together, but believe me, it's a hike to even get through one hotel. We learned our lesson the hard way. We took the monorail to the Hilton, where we were going to see (and hopefully participate in) the $250,000 Game Show Spectacular ... a game show experience combining the Newlywed Game, Name that Tune, the Dating Game, and a variety of other game shows. The plan was to get to the Hilton early, buy tickets, grab some lunch, and then wait in line for the show, where we'd inevitably be chosen to participate and win thousands of dollars. It didn't go exactly as planned.


We arrive at the Hilton, walk inside, and find a listing of all the restaurants. We decide we're going to go to some little cafe there, but when we ask for a table they inform us that their restaurant is having a water problem, so they can't seat us. Walking to the other end of the hotel, we're told by the buffet people that they, too, are having a water problem and cannot seat us either. It would have been nice of the cafe people to tell us that BEFORE we walked through the entire hotel twice, but whatever, right?

So we have about 1 hour before we want to get in line at the Game Show Spectacular. And we're ALL hungry. So we decide to go to the closest hotel for food. And that happens to be the Sahara. Joe decides it'd be faster to walk, as the monorail only comes every 10 minutes or so. And SURELY we can get to the Sahara faster than waiting for the monorail. So we start walking. 25 minutes later we finally get to the Sahara. (have I mentioned that i don't mind walking ... in comfortable shoes, cool weather, with plenty of time to spare? well i had none of those, so I wasn't happy to be walking).


The only thing that even seems edible at the Sahara is the buffet, which we run to, since we have approximately 15 minutes to eat if we're going to get back in time. We run in, pay for our buffet, and get down to business filling our plates with food that now seems less than appetizing. However, we're hungry and it's going to be a while before we get another chance to eat. Plus, we just paid $15 to get in the door. That's about a dollar a minute. Worth it? You decide.

The buffets in Vegas are big. Lots of different places to go for food. We all split up (speed walking) to different parts of the buffet and meet back at a round table to eat. I have seriously never seen 5 people eat so quickly. We had each grabbed 2 plates or so (saving time by not having to go back up for more) and brought them to the table. With no time for conversation, the only thing I can hear is the food review:

Aaron: I got a little of everything, anyone want to try this?
Terri: MMM, this Kraft Singles cheese sandwich on white bread with ketchup is delicious.
Mia: Everything I got is gross. I'm going to get some of what Nat has.
Joe: Mia, don't waste that food, I can't stand to see anyone throwing food away!

OK, so maybe that wasn't it exactly, but it was close. Within 10 minutes we had each made a few trips to the buffet, tried a little of everything (salads, entrees, bread, soup, desserts ... you name it), refilled drinks a couple times to wash everything down, and were walking back out the door.

My favorite part? All 5 of us were drinking on the way out of the buffet, leaving our half-full cups on the last table before we left. I wish I had a video of it.

Group Photos!

Josette read my last post and just didn't want you all to have to just imagine the group shot (or she didn't want you all to think I was lying!) ... so she sent some proof. Very attractive on all parts.

Photogramania

I have a couple posts that I want to write, but I can't do it until I figure out how to pull videos off my camera. So until then, this will have to do.

The game: Nauvoo 2007. The point was to go to Nauvoo, IL before Billy & Josette moved to Utah. Josette hadn't been before and it's really worth at least one trip in your lifetime. More than one might be pushing it.

The roster: Billy, Josette, Mia, Aaron, and me

How you win: Have lots and lots of fun in 3 days

And fun was had by all. We played "do you know where the temple is" (visit back for a dedicated post on this), tried blowing up a bottle of Diet Coke with Mentos (this will make it into it's own post as well), watched Aaron "talk" his way out of a ticket (in the police cruiser, asking about all the electronics, etc), and even met some young friends in the hot tub (who we continued to run into all weeked, as Nauvoo is about the size of my thumb).

We took pictures from just about every angle at the temple, easily the largest structure in Nauvoo, not to mention the most beautiful.

We decided to take some night shots of the front of the temple. And, as usual, there were no serious pictures taken.

It was all fun, seriously. But my favorite part of the picture taking was this night, at the temple. We were trying to fit all of us in one picture, which isn't easy to do when you're doing it "self-portrait" style. Apparently we had the camera on video mode, so while we were waiting for the flash, the camera was recording all of our idiocy. There's no picture, as it was dark outside, but the sound is hilarious.


the first try

the second try

We did, eventually, get a group photo, but of course I don't have it. This is close to what it looked like, just pretend Aaron & Billy were in it too.

All in all, it was a success. So much so, that we decided to make it an annual trip. The trip for the next year was decided at the end. Vegas '08!

Gum Balls of Fire

My family lived in Dillon, Montana for 2 years, plus or minus a few months. I lived in Dillon for 2 summers. The summer of 1999 was filled with work, sorting rock in the washplant at Barrett's Minerals (interesting? yes ... fun? no). I worked 12 hour shifts, from 3:00 to 3:00 (3pm-3am or 3am-3pm, depending on the week). 2 days on, 3 days off, 3 days on, 2 days off. When I wasn't working, I found myself either sleeping, trying to get to sleep, or trying to wake up.


The summer of 2000 was NOT filled with work. In fact, I didn't have any responsibilities at all. So, when the ward camp leader came to me and asked if I'd assist her at Girls Camp 2000, I was thrilled and accepted right away. I poured myself into helping plan meals, activities, lessons, songs, packing lists, skits, sleeping arrangements, etc. Girls Camp in Montana is not the sleep-in-a-cabin-eat-meals-prepared-by-a-cook Girls Camp of Michigan that I was used to. But, I figured the idea was the same: we'd be in a tent rather than a cabin, use an outhouse and a solar shower rather than indoor plumbing, and cook our meals over a fire instead of in a mess hall.

Wanting to be the "fun & cool" leader, I found a simple but fun thing to share with the girls all week ... Double Bubble. Hello, this is hours of entertainment packed in a 2 gallon bucket. How many of us haven't had fun with bubble blowing contests or playing "how many pieces can you fit in your mouth?" at 2:00 in the morning?

So off we went, to the rustic (at least for me) girls camp. Among other things, we always had a fire going at the camp. We had to use it to cook every meal and there was really no point in letting the fire die between meals. This actually worked out well because while the younger campers were off certifying in knot tying, compass reading, outdoor cooking, etc, the older campers (4th year campers who decided they weren't certifying in anything) would tend the fire.

This particular day, I was helping some of the younger campers with their certification in the area set aside for large group gatherings. I had forgotten something from the camp, so I walked back toward the tent. As I'm walking, I hear Stephanie & friends around the fire; telling stories & jokes, laughing, having a good time. Getting closer to the tent (and subsequently the fire), I suddenly feel something burning on my left hand. I bring my hand into view and I see what appears to be a piece of ash. I tried to brush it off with my right hand but, as I swipe at it, the black ashes smear into bright pink. Still burning my hand, I had to brush it harder to get the entire blob off my hand.

As it turns out, Stephanie and the other girls who were not certifying that day had decided to have a contest to see how many pieces of gum they could fit in their mouth at the same time. When this game proved to hurt their jaws, the pyro in them took over and they stuck their wads of gum on roasting sticks and held them over the fire. The gum mostly melted off, but in order to clean the stick off entirely, Stephanie had "roasted" her gum until it was black and dripping off the stick. She then began waving the stick in the air, back and forth so the gum would come off. And a tiny piece of that gum flew 50 yards and landed on my wrist.

Bingo Lingo

I really don't like Bingo. It's not that I mind the game so much (after all, how difficult is it to cover up a bunch of small squares with a piece of candy?), but I dislike winning bingo. Sure, in your head it seems great. All you have to do is listen for the number, cover that number up when it's called, and call out "BINGO!" when you've got 5 in a row. What they don't tell you is that when you do so, everyone else (even your friends) will turn and glare at you, since they were all just one number away from winning themselves. Then they'll watch you go up and claim your prize ... that prize that should have been theirs. And none of them clear their cards, secretly hoping that you covered a number in your winning row that wasn't actually called, meaning they have a chance after all.

And so it was, in March 2003, I found myself in this situation. Stephanie and I had bought a travel package including a week at an all-inclusive "resort" in Cancun, Mexico. We invited Jay & Aaron to go with us. The more the merrier, right? It was spring break time, meaning lots of college kids, lots of drinking, and a pool-side DJ every day ... complete with music, contests, and games. And you guessed it, Bingo. We were relaxing that day, spending a sunny day at the pool. So when the DJ announced that Bingo would be starting in 10 minutes, we went to get our cards.

With so few people playing (this is where the "resort" part starts to make sense, it was tiny and there were maybe 20 people playing), the odds that someone in our group would win were pretty good. They announce the prize (Strawberry Daiquiri in a giant yard glass) and start calling the numbers. I quickly cover a full row on my card but I don't want to announce my win for two reasons. 1: I hate the attention of winning and 2: I didn't want the prize. Jay sees my card, sees the completed winning row, and calls out "BINGO!" for me. (thanks Jay)

I go to claim my prize (or rather, hope to switch my prize for another ... they've been giving away T-shirts all morning long too). I took French in high school, I don't understand Spanish at all. So it comes as no surprise that I don't know what the DJ is saying into the microphone, asking for my name. At the same time, I'm asking him if I can switch the drink for a t-shirt instead. So everyone at the hotel hears:

DJ: "¿Cómo te llamas?"
Me: "t-shirt instead?"
DJ: (laughing, clapping, and in perfect English) "Let's hear it for T-shirt instead!"

The good news? I DID get a t-shirt for all of my embarassment. The bad news? Jay stole it.

Diaper Bed

It's October 2006. Sharla, Natalie, and Mia decide to take a long weekend and go to Provo, Utah for fun. We're staying in the Comfort Inn, Room 202. Since we have so many guests coming and going, we get 2 double beds and a roll away bed. While it's just the 3 of us, Mia and Sharla will each get a bed and Natalie will sleep on the roll away, lovingly named the diaper bed because EVERY time i moved, it sounded like I was wearing a super loud, plastic diaper.


This night, we happened to have 3 guests. Lindsay, Gina, and Brandon. With 6 people and only 1 bathroom in the room, I decide to go directly from the car to the bathroom in the lobby. I walk to the hotel room and am AMBUSHED by at least 4 people: they grab my arms & legs, throw me into the diaper bed, fold it up, and lock it closed.


This is not a new thing for us. Just a few hours earlier we did the same thing to Mia. We threw her in the bed, locked it up, and put her in the hallway. Not 1 minute later, she had wiggled her way out of the bed and come back to the room. Game over.

So I think, hey, this isn't so bad, I'll just let them have their fun. They'll put me in the hallway, and I'll wiggle out. However, as it usually goes, the 2nd time around, there are more genius ideas than the first time. I hear "let's put her in the elevator and press the down button!". I immediately imagine the horror of the elevator door opening in the lobby to some stunned guests, looking in to see me locked in the diaper bed. There is NO WAY I'm going to let that happen.


I start wiggling to get out of the bed. This does not go as well for me as it did for Mia. I tipped the diaper bed right on it's side. Still unable to unlatch the lock myself, I could only lay there laughing while my friends came running out of the room, cameras in hand, asking if it was "picture worthy". And picture-worthy it was.