an explanation . . . or excuse

just thought i should let you know that i misplaced my camera, back around memorial day, yes, half a year ago. so that's sort of why i haven't been too big on creating new posts for my blog, since the quality of my phone photos makes me sad. well, good news- i just found my camera...in the back of a drawer in my kitchen. go figure.

sadly, now my computer is dying. so i probably still won't be posting anything new...until i get this fixed or replaced. just so you know.

however, YOU all should keep blogging, because i love catching up with you and/or your families through your blogs.

happy halloween, 2011!

i am thick and buttery...and i've got the dr's lab tests to prove it!



it was a beautiful halloween day. i took my niece, boo, and her friend trick-or-treating. it was so much fun!



oh yeah, the trunk's stuffed, but the hood ornaments are real.



happy halloween, everyone!

exercise

i got to spend yesterday with three awesome kids. their dad is one of my co-workers and their mom is one of my visiting teachers. the kids and i had a ton of fun going to 3 different parks, 2 different restaurants, the library, and playing a ton of games at home. seriously cool kids. such a tribute to their parents, the epitome of fun, yet well-behaved and good mannered. such a terrific way to spend a saturday.

here's a photo (shot with my phone, so not the best quality) of the exercising we did at the park. one way to guarantee a good night's sleep. that little dude is only 2 and he hung onto that bar 4 different times for about 30 seconds. he probably could have hung there longer, but i didn't want him to turn into stretch armstrong.



the girl on the left, she's the middle child (age wise, for now), and she cracked me up with her vocabulary. she's in kindergarten, very smart, but her brain works faster than her tongue, so she said things like, "we don't have the LICKANODEON channel" and "he blasted off in a space SHOVEL" and "i can VALANCE on one foot"! i laughed outloud at lickanodeon. i wonder what an odeon tastes like.

and the oldest girl was such a good helper and she kept saying, "this day is just so much fun!" YAY!

since i spend 90% of my life with senior citizens and all of my own nieces and nephews are growing up so quickly, it was a nice diversion from my ordinary weekend. i hope your weekend was fun, too! and thanks to my mom and mitchel for taking care of my baby, maggie, while i was off being a goofball.

butter-flavored crisco

i used to have a smokin' hot bikini bod:



but then i turned 5 and things started to fall apart in the health department of my life. so now, i look more like this:



which, really wouldn't bother me, but since my blood looks like this:



and my blood pressure can be found somewhere around here:



i will now begin an "eat healthier, move more" lifestyle. my goal is to reduce my cholesterol and blood pressure enough that 3 months from now, when my blood is tested, again, i will be out of the danger zone...because i will NOT take more medications than what i am already taking for my rheumatoid arthritis.

i wish i was on the biggest loser, because i really would like to win a prize...other than "being healthier" (use a really whiny, nasally voice to say that) if i am successful at this goal.

wish me luck. i'll keep you posted.

pictures that made me lol

seriously tickled my funny bone. which i needed, today, because it was just confirmed by doctors and blood tests that my body is full of crisco.

:(

i have officially been prescribed a dietician. i have 3 months to get my cholesterol under control or i will spontaneously combust...or something. so this means that old saying, "laughter is the best medicine" is a big, fat lie. i laugh all the time.









have a happy day. come visit me. my house is lonely.

mesmerized

ha! i was at my friend crystal's house, tonight, and maggie got to see a hamster for the first time. she sat, mesmerized by the novelty of a possible new friend, or snack, for over 2 hours. it was hilarious. the hamster's name is dexter. he didn't really seem to mind all the attention. for the last 5 minutes of our stay, dexter was inside his little ball, running around the living room, protected from maggie's curiosity by a thin wall of plastic. good thing she's such a wimp...dexter had nothing to fear. i was seriously laughing at how captivated she was with this strange, new creature. i might need to get a hamster, just to babysit maggie. awesome.

new gadget

this:



+plus+ this:



used like this:



=equals= this:



mmmmm

i hope you have strong muscles, though, because it was sort of tough to use.

melancholy

i miss these guys:



and doing fun stuff like this:



buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut.....i am glad to be home, with maggie and the majority of my family. this week has just been a little blah.

'member sylvester?

remember when i posted this post? well, here is a photo of the original Christmas sylvester...see him there, in the background? i was 4 years old in this photo. what an awesome Christmas! you can tell he's older now, he used to have a fuller head of hair and a whole jacket.



he is NOT creepy. no matter what you all say.

saturday crafting

a few weeks ago, mitchel and i went on a little trip to slc. it was a whirlwind of shopping in one day, so we could have a ton of adventurous fun on the other 2 days. on our way home from one of the stores, we passed a yard sale and i noticed this delightful, little cookie jar on the table, for sale.



for those of you who don't know, i am a fan of happy gnomes. i have owned a garden gnome or two, and i may or may not consider them to be good luck charms. (okay, i do...but shhhh...some people think i'm crazy.) this piece may, technically, be a dwarf or an elf of some sort, but i consider it to be a gnome. and it's mine, now, so i am the boss.

anyway, the cookie jar was only $3. i was so excited. but, it was sort of plain. brown. boring. snoozefest. ick. so i decided to paint it to match my kitchen better. i haven't done anything crafty for so long, i was afraid i'd forgotten how, but i think it turned out pretty cute.



probably anything i put inside it will end up smelling like spray paint, so maybe it will have to hold non-edible items. but still...it looks so cute in my kitchen corner.



three dollars, well spent. i say.

love to laugh

i came across my childhood photo album, today. i think i've always loved to laugh...



yep, that trait stuck with me through the years. the rest of me can only be explained by one thing: donuts. lots and lots of donuts. i mean, look at me... i was freaking adorable!



and here is the classis double shot with profile, from my favorite shool year: 4th grade:



and me and my best friend, summer, when we were 4 years old. i love my white-trash-gambler's-half-shirt. awesome. that's how most of my shirts fit me, now, too.

no wonder i'm sneezing all the time

my sister, mitchel, just emailed me this photo. maggie spends the majority of her day at mitchel's house, while i am at work. (yes, i have a doggie-sitter.) anyway, maggie's best friend is a cat named paris. i've tried to teach my "child" not to be prejudice...luckily she follows my advice, rather than my example, when it comes to cats.

it's no wonder i am still having allergy attacks on a regular basis.




in case you can't tell, this is paris, sleeping on top of maggie. (or as i like to say, the cat is trying to suffocate my baby.)

memorial day fun

so, these are the photos from the post that randomly disappeared. i am not going to do the whole post over...my creativity is lacking right now. but here's a brief rundown, keep in mind that these photos are not in order, but i am not in the mood to change them, now.

i drove for almost 7 hours to meet up with my friends. i entertained myself along the way, through miles and miles of road construction, by stopping at mcdonald's, glen canyon dam, and since my awesome bun was almost appropriate, i nearly stopped in colorado city to see if i could become a sister-wife, but in the end i decided against it.

some photos still won't post...like all the ones of me and my friends playing in the pool and stuff. maybe i'll try again later. but anyway, here's some of the scenery i saw along the way. enjoy.