Thursday, February 28, 2008

Why am I still awake?

It's Friday, it's been a long week. I should be asleep, right? No. I've spent the last hour trying to figure out how to get my blog to look better because I changed mine and ended up with the same layout as Sheryl's. Again! After I hassled her for copying mine the first time. What are the odds? (Sheryl, I look at blogs through Google Reader so I hardly ever see what they really look like. But obviously, we are kindred spirits!!)

I'm technologically savvy, for the most part. I hooked up every piece of electronics equipment I own with pretty much no help and I'm pretty good with computers but why can't I make my blog look cute and unique? I really tried and all I did was screw it up.

I emailed a girl who pretties up blogs but it was going to cost like $75 or so. You all know I love to spend money but that just seems kind of pricey when I could probably talk a guy at work into making me something but he's a guy and it'll probably be all guy-ish. I want to look cute but I will live with the ugly boring Blogger templates until someone takes pity on me and helps me. (Um, Jasmine????) And maybe it just doesn't matter what my blog looks like because most people are probably Google Reader'ers like me. You're all thinking "get over it" aren't you? Okay, fine!

Just a couple of random thoughts because I did just post a novella yesterday:

1. Like most women in America, George Clooney is my idea of pure fabulousness but I also have this huge celebrity crush on Robert Downey Jr. Now I know some of you might question my choice of celebrity crushes. But you know what? I love him. Truly. I first fell in love with him when I saw Heart and Souls and then even more so when he was on Ally McBeal. Naturally, I stuck by him during the whole drug thing. What kind of girl would I be if I just dumped him for falling asleep in a neighbor kid's bed when he was all high and stuff? It was a cry for help! ;) But now he's fine and Iron Man is coming out on May 2. Robert Downey Jr as a super hero? Can it get any better than that? Well maybe. Watch this, this and this too. And let's say it together: yum.

2. I'm skipping the RS activity in the AM because even though I know they tried, it seems to be very much geared toward the marrieds instead of the singles. They're ending with a wedding dress fashion show and that just isn't all that appealing to me. I promise I'm not feeling sorry for myself - I just know it would be better for me personally to stay away.

3. AND, I'm taking my almost four year old niece to the Storybook Theatre production of Three Little Pigs in the morning instead. That will be much more enjoyable AND I can pretty much guarantee I'll leave there feeling perfectly okay about being single, which probably wouldn't happen if I went to the RS thing.

4. My new favorite song? "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz. Go find it and listen to it!

5. I've completed 1.5 items on my to-do list from yesterday. lame.

Goodnight!

The light at the end of the tunnel!

I am feeling less stressed today. Exhausted and sort of drained but less stressed. Here's why:

1. New Beginnings talk is done, given, finito, history. I think it went well. Everyone seemed engaged even though the room was literally 95 degrees and packed with girls, parents and leaders. I got lots of nice comments and compliments afterward and I think I took 20 minutes which is a nice, not-too-long amount. I think I was talking fast though because the room was so warm and crowded and I was feeling bad for everyone sitting on the hard chairs. Um, co-dependent? Who? MOI???

2. I don't have sharing time this month! Woo hoo! Okay, since two of my fellow presidency members are among the five readers of this blog, I should clarify, I don't mind sharing time. It's actually kind of fun. I like that I get to connect with the kids, I get to stretch myself to do things I don't normally do, etc. But it's so nice to know that I'm off duty for the next two months.

3. I'm working from home today (and okay, I'm taking a little break!) It's just a better day when I can be at home, answering calls in my cutest pajamas and a pony tail, making whatever I want at that moment for lunch, etc.

4. I'm still loving the new iPod touch. I bought a pink leather case for it because it has to be protected. Those things scratch so easily. You know, I'm not even really a pink girl (even though my blog is.) I'm a red girl. But there aren't any cute red leather iPod touch cases available so I went with pink. And in case you were wondering, I'm personally against dark backgrounds on blogs. The dark ones with white type hurt my eyes. I know you were dying to know this about me.

5. YCL meeting next Weds but guess what? I already have my agenda figured out. I just have to execute and get the girls to stay focused and on task. Totally easy for teenagers, right?!?!? Anyway, I'm feeling way more relaxed about camp this year.


We talked about time management in institute today. Everyone was talking about their organized selves and all of their lists. Here's my to-do list :


1. Make a dental appt. for a cleaning
2. Make an eye apt. with my cute eye dr. He's just cute. He's married of course but he's fun to look at with my nearly perfect vision. ;)
3. Get my windshield replaced. I've got a huge, white-trashy crack on the driver's side that I'll probably get ticketed for if I don't hurry up and make the call.
4. Schedule sure-to-be expensive car checkup since the light started flashing at me this week. Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh. :( I'd so rather spend my money on fun things.
5. Laundry - blech. I think I have three loads to do. Again, blech.
6. Make taco soup!
7. Buy birthday gifts for friends M. and L.
8. Download my Chicago pictures (and the Primary PJ breakfast pictures!


Random thoughts:

1. I love the Oscars, even when I don't watch any of the nominated movies except for one (Juno will be out on DVD in April - can't wait to buy it!) And that's why the show's ratings were down - nobody wants to watch the movies these people nominate. I loved three movies last year: Waitress, Hairspray and Bourne Ultimatum. Bourne got technical nominations (and won) but the others are completely ignored. It's like it's a club and the cool kids decide who's cool enough to be part of it or something. And the American public are the dorky people nobody really cares about.

2. Lost is FREAKING me out! Holy cow. How did Kate get Aaron? My bro-in-law thinks Jack killed Claire (maybe let her die?) and that's why he doesn't want to see Aaron. Interesting theory. And I'm disliking Locke more and more each week. I used to just feel sorry for him but he needs to seriously rein it in. Like now. (Yes I know it's just a TV show. No need to remind me.)

3. I took the music off of my blog because it was annoying me. I will try to figure out how to just list the songs and have you click them to see what I'm listening to right now but I haven't taken the time to do that just yet.

And this is way long. I'll shut up now. Have a fabooooooooooo day!

J.

Friday, February 22, 2008

I'm finally back!

I fully intended to post here while I was in Chicago but just didn't.

1. I had a fantastic time visiting my friends. It was a wonderful week away from my life and so nice to be able to just relax a little. My friends didn't let me pay for anything and one of my other friends who lives there actually bought my ticket out so it was like the cheapest vacation ever! I cooked dinner twice, baked sugar cookies for Valentine's Day and left them with a freezer full of pumpkin chocolate chip mini muffins. I love playing house. All in all, a successful trip!

2. Did you see Priscilla Presley on Oprah yesterday? Holy cow. Why do BEAUTIFUL women insist on getting plastic surgery? She should have just let it go. She looks awful and it just made me sad to see her distorted face. I found a picture so you can see for yourself. She's also going to be on Dancing with the Stars next month so you can see her frozen face in action. Tragic.


3. A good friend from work told me that missionaries stopped by his house last night and he let them in AND he invited them to come back on Sunday. I'm so excited! He and his family took the lessons several years ago but when they were challenged to be baptized, he said he wasn't ready. The elders got upset, told him he was going to hell and they didn't come back. :( Anyway, I'm very excited they are so open and receptive.

4. I got a little bonus from work this week and decided to do something crazy and unneccessary with the money. I enjoy gadgets. I love electronics. I know, it's almost a sickness. Anyway, a friend of mine at work got the iPod touch for Christmas and she showed it to me yesterday and I literally almost started salivating! Then I went to Costco at lunch and bought one! Eeek! Yes, I already own an iPod. Actually, two. It's really a sickness! Anyway, the new one is fantastic because it has wireless internet access (wherever there is a free signal anyway.) I can check email, internet, weather, maps, everything. It has a 3.5 inch screen that really is huge and great for watching videos and movies. Oh and it plays music too! ;) Anyway, my other one will stay at home in the sound dock now. I still can't believe I bought it but it is so pretty and wonderful and I deserve pretty things, don't I???

5. It's kind of a busy time for me, church-wise. I had to give the leadership training at two camp meetings last night then I have sharing time this Sunday and next Wednesday I have to give a talk at that New Beginnings. Just a little stressful. I haven't written the talk for next week yet. Have sure thought about it though...

6. Every year, three of my friends and I get together for an Oscars party. They're on TV this Sunday night and I'm so excited. The only nominated movie I've even seen is Juno so I will be just guessing on my ballot but it's just fun to ooh and aah over the dresses, have yummy snacks and visit with the girls.

7. The lunar eclipse this week was so incredible! I tried to take pictures and if they turn out, I'll add them here. It was just amazing.

Jasmine tagged me - I'll be responding to that soon, promise!! :) And did Autumn have her baby yet? I don't want to ask her directly because that's the last question to ask a beyond pregnant woman!! LOL

J.

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Sunday update

1. Primary was a little out of control today. Glad we survived.

2. I went to the stake Valentine's dinner/dance with some friends last night. My friend's husband asked if I wanted to dance and I said "thanks but that's okay." I told my friend after that I would have just felt like everyone was looking at me like "oh look, someone's dancing with the single girl." A wonderfully sweet gesture but um, no.

3. My first camp meeting with the 2nd YCLs went GREAT! We picked a theme with little to no difficulty, every ward was represented and everyone was thrilled with the results. I may start a separate camp blog to give them updates, let them post updates, etc. Have to figure that out... But I'm excited - things are starting out much better this year than last.

4. We went to the temple on Friday night. Loved it.

5. Found this very interesting thing on another blog. I actually think it's pretty close to being me. How does that work? Do it and see if yours is exactly like mine or if it's close to right.

And with that, I'm out! Must get ready for my trip on Tuesday!! Wahoo!

What Jeanelle Means
You are fair, honest, and logical. You are a natural leader, and people respect you.You never give up, and you will succeed... even if it takes you a hundred tries.You are rational enough to see every part of a problem. You are great at giving other people advice.
You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone.You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together.At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together.
You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection. You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive. You have the classic "Type A" personality.
You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people.You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts.You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.

You are relaxed, chill, and very likely to go with the flow.You are light hearted and accepting. You don't get worked up easily.Well adjusted and incredibly happy, many people wonder what your secret to life is.

Thursday, February 7, 2008

Still slightly annoyed but also relatively happy...

1. My neck still hurts.

2. I bought some expensive-for-me-but-oh-so-worth-it-because-my-feet don't-hurt-at-the-end-of-the-day black dress shoes recently (I heart Zappos!) I stepped onto the elevator at work yesterday and my heel went into the space between the floor and the elevator and totally ripped a hole in the leather on the heel. They're like one week old. And did I mention I spent more on them than I usually do? Oh okay, I did say that already. Sigh.

3. I got asked to speak at a New Beginnings for a ward in another stake the end of this month. She said "you can take 20, 25, 30 minutes - whatever you need." Oh my gosh. What am I going to do? The topic is "Becoming the girl of your dreams." I will gladly accept any input you might have that might help me fill up the 20, 25, 30 minutes. And guess what I'm going to be doing during my free time in Chicago? Um yeah, writing and pondering. By the way, my VT conference talk went okay but I cried WAY too much. Annoying habit of mine... I've decided I am speaking WAY too much in the month of February (especially when you add on the fact that I'm doing Sharing Time this month too.) I'm getting sick of hearing me already and it's only the 7th.

4. I am in the most fun Primary presidency. And no, I'm not just saying that because two of the five people who read this blog (SO FAR! You know EVERYONE is going to read this blog eventually!) are also in the presidency with me. We had the most fun non-agenda'd meeting last night. We are all so different (aka special) and I think it's really fantastic that we can have so much fun together while getting our work done.

5. No more Mitt. Sad. Sorry, Sheryl but I'm not a McCain fan. Green Party, here I come! Kidding!


6. I finished watching Jane Eyre. If you haven't, you should all watch it - but it might be a little scary/intense for smaller children. I might need to buy this one. It was so not like anything I expected and it was truly wonderful and entertaining. It has everything -- romance, intrigue, great British accents. Next from Netflix is North & South (and no, not the one with Patrick Swayze.)

7. I used to subscribe to "Everyday Food" and I've decided that rather than continue to keep every one of the few dozen magazines I've accumulated, I will rip out the recipes I want and toss the magazines away. Yes, my friend Jeni did this eons ago. I'm not nearly as smart as she is. It's so great to throw things away! Oops, I mean recycle. Sorry, Green Party people.

8. I finally tried out the DDR yesterday - it's very fun. I've only tried "easy" so far because I'm not the most coordinated girl in the world. It's fun because it's like Guitar Hero but with your feet. Plus on the Wii, you use the controller and nunchuk to do hand movements too. It's a total body workout!

9. If you live here and have digital cable from Comcast, channel 936 is so fantastic. It's all Broadway music. Very fun.

10. I've eaten here twice this week. I'm afraid this place might have overtaken this one as my most favorite restaurant. Shocking, I know. Has anyone tried the cinnamon crunch bagel? YUM! But seriously, get the Broccoli Cheddar. You will not be disappointed.

And with that, I'm going to go reheat my leftover Broccoli Cheddar right now! Have a fabulous day!!

Monday, February 4, 2008

Just Killin' Time...

So it's 11:16 PM and I'm awake. Yes, I have to work in the morning. Yes, I'm beyond exhausted. I'm making some Valentine's gifts that have to go into the mail and I finished making the cards and the other little somethings to go with the cards. I decided to make one last thing using my computer and it's taking forever. Normally my computer does not annoy me. Tonight, it's annoying me. If this slowness in doing the simple task I've asked it to do is a sign of bad things to come, I will be very sad. My computer is going to be three years old soon. I'm not ready to buy a new one just yet.

1. Something else that annoys me? My neck is messed up. I was just getting ready to leave the house this morning when I noticed my neck getting stiff. I didn't do anything to tweak it - it just happened all of a sudden then got progressively worse as the day went on. I did make a chiro. appt for Tuesday so hopefully that will help. Any sort of neck or back pain is annoying but I'm thinking I would prefer a sore neck over a sore back. At least you can get around and do what you have to do with a stiff neck. When your back is out, you're pretty much stuck.

2. Happier topic: I'm so excited about the new First Presidency! President Monson is an incredible man who will continue to be a great leader for us. Of course, I would have been excited with whomever was put into the presidency with him but I was thrilled to hear Pres Eyring was still a counselor (he is my favorite Apostle - forgive me for sounding like a groupie!) We in my stake love Pres Uchtdorf because he was the one who set apart our current stake president so that was equally wonderful news. I am even more excited for General Conference than I normally am. I love that we'll get to hear from these phenomenal men even more than we already do. I'm so grateful that as I watched the news conference today, I received a confirmation that these three men were called of God.

3. I have to speak at the VT conference tomorrow night. Have I written the talk? No. When I do write the talk, will I take the 10 minutes given to me to cover a very narrow topic? No. Hey, it just means everyone gets home in time to watch American Idol. I'll consider it my act of service for the day. Oh but Ryan Seacrest? Majorly annoying.

4. Have I mentioned that my boss resembles Mitt Romney? He really does. The other day he had a blue blazer and white dress shirt on and he just totally looked like Mitt. They have the same hair, facial features, etc. One time while my boss was in Chicago, he walked into a bar downtown and some guy said "hey, are you Mitt Romney?" My boss, who has been well-versed in all things LDS said "Isn't Mitt Romney a Mormon?" The guy goes "uh, yeah." My boss went on to say, "Do you really think Mitt would be drinking in a bar in downtown Chicago? I think not. So, no, I'm not Mitt Romney." So now I call him Mitt all the time. I think he secretly enjoys it.

5. I leave for Chicago one week from tomorrow. Holy cow. I need to think about what I'm bringing with me besides Guitar Hero. Like maybe every sweater I own. I also need to find some black gloves. A new pair of jeans would be nice too. I just checked the extended weather forecast and it's snow, snow, snow. Great.

Finally my computer is done and I can go to sleep. It's 11:46 PM. A 10 minute task took about 45 minutes. Sigh.

Goodnight!!

Saturday, February 2, 2008

Baking Day

It's Saturday already and I didn't post once this week. What's up with that? I just didn't do anything blog-worthy, I guess. But here's some of the events of the week:

1. I'm baking up a storm this weekend because I'm co-hosting a missionary open house tonight (Jasmine, you'd better come!) So far I've made Peanut Butter Pound Cake and Sour Cream Chocolate Chip Cake. Both are new recipes to me but I figure if someone on the internet has made them, they HAVE to be good! LOL. That first site, Bake or Break is one of my favorites. The blogger takes great pictures and writes honest reviews of the things she makes. Anyway, I'm also making about 4 different kinds of cookies and another bundt cake but thought that having little snack cakes would be a nice change from all of the cookies. I'll post a review of the new recipes later.

2. I am obviously a hyperlinking fool (see post above.)

3. I am heading over to Mom's in a bit to watch President Hinckley's funeral. I honestly wasn't sad when I heard the news of his passing. I truly just felt joy for him...joy that he no longer has the weight of being prophet and president on his 97 year old body and soul; joy that he gets to be with his sweet wife again; joy that he gets to meet the prophets who came before him. This was my favorite picture of him. You know what his face says? JOY! And strangely enough, my sister Jenilee used this same pic on her blog too. Great minds...

4. I got the full meal deal at my hair salon last night (cut, color, highlights, brows waxed.) I feel so much better without gray roots. Gray hair just stinks (unless you have that perfect silver hair that looks so strikingly beautiful, which I don't.)

5. I watched Pride and Prejudice every day except for Thursday this week. There is seriously something wrong with me. Is there a P&P Rehab Center anywhere? Ooh, maybe it's at Pemberly (Darcy's home!!)

6. LOST! Okay, seriously, that show just made me sad. I felt such heartache for Hurley and the pain he's in and then knowing that this week we saw Jack (aka Jen's BabyDaddy) BEFORE he got all bearded and ugly and more drunk and depressed. I can't wait to find out who the other three people are in the Oceanic Six. So there's Hurley, Jack, Kate...who else? Sun because she was pregnant and had to get off the island to survive? And so do you think the show will end with the Six going back to the island? You all know it's only going to be on one more season after this one, right? Anyway, this was SUCH an entertaining episode but I was hiding my eyes when Hurley was going to that cabin. Scary!

7. I had to change my blog format because someone I know started a blog and used the same template and I'm a lone wolf, a rebel...gotta do my own thing! :) But I don't like this template either so it will likely change. And I really need to figure out how to change it altogether. Another day when there's less to do!

Must go shower and head to mom's. Thanks to all of you who are commenting - it's so fun to read what you think and I really appreciate you stopping by!

xoxo

Jeanelle