When we get together . . .

When I get together with my friends from high school, I feel like nothing has changed at all. This weekend we got together for Kim's birthday. We went to a movie, and then to dinner. In between we decided to make a triple-decker piggie back. I'm sure you can guess that a brilliant idea like this one didn't end well.

Halfway there, and Charisse running in for the jump . . .

YAY!!! We did it, well . . . .

For about 8 seconds we did it. Then down we all went!

No worries, no one was truly hurt in this process!

What are the chances?

I am not known for my ability to get places easily. I tend to get lost often, and following a map can be difficult. That is why the following situation was so funny.

Last week I was going into a book store when a man stopped me and asked if I knew of any other book stores in town that bought back books. Since I have NO experience with this, I thought for a moment, then told him the name of a store I thought bought books. He asked where it was, but I couldn't tell him. While I know the name of it, and could get there myself, I couldn't give him a physical address. I did my best to help him, he said thank you and began to walk away.

As he was walking away, a truck pulled up to me, rolled down the window and asked "Do they sell beer anywhere in this town?" Really? Having strangers ask me for directions twice in three minutes? Hmmmm. What is the world coming to. To which I replied "I am sure they do, but I'm the wrong one to ask!" I told him that I was pretty sure that we had a liquor store, but I wasn't sure where. I gave him directions to the area I thought it was in (turns out I gave him instructions to the smoke shop instead, whoops!) and ran into the store before anyone else could try and ask me for directions.

It was an odd, odd day.

Letting Go.

I saw this quote on a friends blog the other week. It has caused me to think deeply about where I am at in life and where I am going. It is one of those things that I need to be constantly reminded of.

Why is it so difficult to let go of expectations?

To let go of what you planned out for your life?

To embrace what you have been given?

Why is it so hard?

Thankful Thursday #16

IsaBelle and I were having fun with the wind while we were skydiving. We were practicing being shampoo girls. That is where this picture comes from. It makes me laugh!

I am thankful for my hair. I enjoy being a redhead. Even though I hated it as a child (it caused strangers to comment on it, and as a VERY shy child I HATED this!) (Plus it was way to easy for kids to make fun of) I now really enjoy my auburn locks. I do have moments where I wish I had Taylor Swifts hair, but I would want it in my color (I LOVE her curls!)

So YAY for being a:

-Red Head

-Copper Top

-Pippi Longstocking

-Big Red

-Carrot Top

-"dumb blond with high blood pressure"

-Anne Shirley

-Ginger Kid

-Tomato Top


Some fun redhead facts:

• Only 4% of the population has naturally red hair (less than 2% in America).
• Bees are thought to sting redheads more than others. (I believe this! Bees are drawn to red hair. Go figure!)
  
• Red hair is a genetic mutation (creepy, eh?)
• In Denmark it is considered on honor to have a red headed child. And since I am mostly Danish, I figure this works for me as well.
  
• Adolph Hitler reportedly banned the marriages of two redheads as he feared their children would be "deviant offspring". Hahahah . . .
  
• In the late 16th century, the fat of a redheaded man was an essential ingredient for poison.
• In Greek Mythology, redheads turn into Vampires when they die.
• A 2002 study found that redheads are more difficult to sedate than most people - requiring 20% more anesthesia.

Blondes may have more fun . . . but redheads are remembered ;-)

Some Thoughts on Jumping Out of an Airplane

I have had all sorts of questions coming at me since I went skydiving. It makes me laugh, because I really didn't realize it was a big deal. It's been on my Bucket List since I was super young (seriously, like 7 or 8). I would have done it sooner, but had no desire to go alone. What is the point of jumping out of a plane if you don't have fun people with you? When a group from my ward said they were going, I jumped on board!

A boy in my ward lost 50 pounds so that he could go skydiving. It was his motivation to lose the weight, so this trip has been in the works for months. We did have to travel a bit farther to find a place that would let him skydive, but it all worked out.

When you get to the skydiving place they make you watch a movie that tells you that before you skydive you have to sign a release form that really signs your life away. They stress the point that they will not be held liable for injuries. You can not sue, and if you choose to sue have to pay all of their legal fees. They really stress this part. Honestly, this was the most nerve wracking part of the whole process!

After that we were assured that only 1 in 100,000 jumpers die. They also told us that they have never had a death, and we wouldn't be their first. Whew!

After that they put you in a lovely jumpsuit, and put on all the gear. As luck would have it, their normal plane was broken the day we went, so we had to use two much smaller planes. They were seriously tiny. There was one seat for the pilot, and that was it. The rest of us squeezed in REALLY tight.

*The second most nerve wracking part of the day was the airplane stalling on the runway. They had to hold the door open as we drove down the runway to get it going. I did have a moment of "Am I really going up in this thing?"

The flight up was interesting. It took about 15 minutes. The pilot and my jump instructor had fun making my laugh or squeal. I felt way calmer than I expected to. Then, suddenly, it was time! My instructor strapped our harnesses together (I had him make extra sure it was REALLY tight), which was difficult considering the extremely small airplane. We made it to 13,500 feet, and then he opened the door.

LOTS of people have asked me if this was a moment of panic. Honestly, it was not. I don't think my brain believed what my eyes were seeing. My instructor stepped out onto the step and told me to put my foot on it, too. I think I looked at him like he was nuts, but I did it anyway. Next think I knew we were falling. No jumping, no being pushed. We simply fell out of the airplane.

It was SUCH a cool feeling! Cheeks flapping in the wind, screaming so loud, and yet even you can't hear it! A very unique and exciting sensation. I am guessing that it is like flying. Reaching terminal velocity has always intrigued me, and I have to say, it really is fun!

The freefall is 60 seconds, but felt SO MUCH SHORTER! I couldn't believe it when he pulled the parachute. I was kind of disappointed, really. However, I was relieved the chute opened (At least I'm sure I was. I can't remember to be completely honest). To go from the noise of the freefall to the peace of floating downward with the parachute is quite fun. It was gorgeous! The view was fun, we got to do some fun things with the parachute, and we glided gently into the field.

The landing was great! No problems, all safe. I jumped up full of giggles and grins. My friends on the ground said they could hear me screaming and asked if I was okay. You have to realize, I am a screamer. What is the point of doing these things if you can't get in a good scream?

*Fun note: When we opened the door I looked out and saw a bunch of white flecks flying past the door, horizontally. It looked REALLY cool. My instructor was really excited about it, I guess he doesn't jump through it that often. After we landed I asked if it was snow, but was told it was sleet. It was cold to jump through, but led to some interesting findings. It wasn't raining when we took off. In fact, it wasn't even raining when we jumped. The sleet turned to rain as it fell, but we beat it to the ground. It started raining shortly after we landed.

So to sum it up - Skydiving wasn't really scary! Go figure! Truly, I find some roller coasters scarier than skydiving. I can't figure out why, but no one in our group felt that it was as terrifying as you would expect!

I think everyone should go at least once in their life. It is totally worth it. And since dying in a car accident is FAR more likely than dying while skydiving, I would totally recommend it. (Though I am pretty sure I would never go without an expert securely attached to my back).

I really hope this wasn't a once in a lifetime experience - because I am ready to go again!

The Great Skydiving Adventure (in pictures)

Hey guys, we're going skydiving!

Um, guys, we're going skydiving.

Nice jumpsuit!

Sir, do you think you could strap me into this thing REALLY tightly? Many thanks!

All ready to go!

No backing out now!

Yes! The parachute opened!

SO AWESOME!

Hoping for a good landing!

Alive, happy, and ready to go again!

More to come!

Science Experiments and Miss N.

I love the idea of doing science experiments with my students. They are fun and intriguing. The students LOVE them. It really gets them involved in the scientific process. However, the reality of actually doing science experiments does not usually work out like I would like.

• Bread refuses to mold (even after weeks and weeks)
• Beans that we want to sprout go moldy because it hasn't been sunny enough.
• The cool container that is suppose to show how the water cycle works doesn't work!

As you can tell, my luck with science experiments is not so great. The worst part is the disappointed students when an experiments doesn't work out.

So when it came time to do the Celery Experiment I was super nervous. I was told to simply put celery in water with food coloring, and the top of the celery would change colors. This shows students how the stem delivers water to the top of a plant. Could it really be that easy?

We set up our experiment, and then I said a little prayer as I went home. The next day I walked in to see:

MULTICOLORED CELERY!!!! I may have sent out some celebratory texts at 7:40 in the morning. Yes, I am weird like that.

All the colors worked, though blue worked the best, and purple the least. YAY for science experiments that work - even for people like me!

Thanksful Thursday #15

Today I am thankful for something most people my age aren't - Cobblers. No, not the cobbler that you bake and eat (though I am thankful for that as well!) SHOE cobblers.

As a missionary in Brazil I learned to really appreciate these fine people. Even with very nice shoes, the tough cobblestone streets and huge amount of walking wore out even the best of shoes. Since buying new shoes wasn't an option (they didn't make shoes that you could wear for 10-15 miles each day) so I learned to love the cobblers.

I haven't ever had a need to find a cobbler in the U.S.A until recently. Several years ago I bought a pair of high heels. They are lovely. They make me walk a little straighter. They are super comfy. They are my favorite. I love them so much that I walked right through the bottom sole. I thought they were gone for good!

Then my dad found me a number of a nearby shoe cobbler. I didn't know what to expect from an American cobbler, and I was pleasantly surprised. He told me he could fix them quickly, and that it would cost me $5. Totally worth it for my favorite pair of shoes!

Now, they are as good as new. The don't click when I walk, and I can balance on them much better with a sole there.

The best part of taking your shoes to the cobbler - they ALWAYS come back super clean and shiny!

A "Wicked" Weekend!

For years, one of the things on my bucket list has been seeing the play Wicked. I think I have dreams of seeing it since it first started. Sadly for me, getting tickets was nearly impossible. There were no showings anywhere near my home, and when it finally did come to Utah the tickets sold out in a ridiculously fast manner (even with Lacey sitting on the phone for hours). It has been a dream years in the making. So when I saw that Wicked would be in Boise, Idaho, I knew I had to try to get tickets. I can do a five hour drive. I didn't have any friends who could go, but my parents wanted to see it as well. For months we waited for the day tickets would go on sale. And on that day, we got tickets the moment that we could. FINALLY!!! A ticket to see Wicked!

After we got tickets I still had to wait a few months to actually go to the play. This weekend was FINALLY the weekend! We left after Karl's graduation on Friday, and drove up to Boise.

*Funny side note: I came running into the house just as we were leaving and asked Maddie if she had seen Nana. She replied "No, she's gone. She went to a wicked movie" I about died laughing!

We arrived in Boise late, and I immediately fell in love with the hotel. Check out this bed:

Five, yes, FIVE pillows. They must have known I was coming! They also had a stellar continental breakfast.

The next day we slept in and then went to a farmers market. With the exception of China, it was the biggest street market I have ever been to! It spanned several blocks and took us hours to explore. It was lovely! We got to try a variety of interesting foods, including some traditional street tacos for lunch. YUM!

Finally, the time had arrived. We got ready and headed to the theater for Wicked. I was so excited I could hardly wait!

You know how sometimes when you dream about something for so long that when it finally happens you are disappointing because you had unreal expectations? I was worried about Wicked might be that way, but that was NOT the case. The theater was completely and totally sold out. The music was phenomenal (but I already knew that). The storyline is ingenious, clever, fun, and intriguing. The actors were superb. The set was fantastic. Everything was perfect. To describe it in one word, it was truly Wicked!

I left with my mind running a million miles a minute. The only problem is that now I want to see it again! It was well worth the drive, and the cost of a ticket!

I tried to find something to take a picture with that said "Wicked" (A poster, marquee, banner, ANYTHING!) to mark the moment, but it was no use. I had to settle for a picture with my program after we ran through the rain to get back to the car.

If you haven't seen it I would strongly encourage you to go if the opportunity every arises. I would also not research the story too much, it is fun to see it unfold on stage. Also, watch the Wizard of Oz prior to going. I was told to do this, and it made a huge difference! Wicked really does answer so many unanswered questions from Oz!

Anyone want to go to Wicked with me next time it comes anywhere near here?

ConGRADUATION!

Yesterday Karl received his Master's Degree in Rehabilitation Counseling Since Lacey was still at the hospital, and Maddie ended up sick, it was a small group of us that went to cheer him on. While we may have been small, we cheered as loud as we could!

Karl has worked really hard for this, and we were all excited to see him graduate. Congrats, Karl!

*A funny side note, Brookie LOVED the fence that she found by the Spectrum. She put her head through the bars and ended up STUCK. While it shocked her initially, she didn't stay away long. Heheheheh . . . that girl is so funny!

Thankful Thursday #14

Today I am thankful for my newest niece, (#4) Violet Abigail.

I am thankful that she arrived safe & healthy.

I am thankful for soft, snugly newborns.

I am thankful that she decided to come before we left for the weekend so I could meet her fresh from heaven.

Welcome to the family, Violet (our darling May Flower!) We are sure glad that you are here!

Almost Healthy Chocolate Muffins

It is no secret that I love my chocolate. However, I do try to be health conscious, and I am always on the lookout for healthy AND yummy recipes to add to my book. My favorite is when a recipe is not only healthy and yummy, but also extremely easy to make, and cheap! The following recipe fits all of those things! I saw it on a cooking show, and had to make them. I am in love!

Chocolate Brownie Muffins

• 1 box Devils Food Cake
• 15 oz canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling, you want the pure pumpkin!)

Preheat the oven to 400*. Line a muffin tin with 12 muffin cups.

Mix ingredients together. It will look dry to start, but don't stir in ANYTHING else. Keep stirring and it will all come together (I promise!). When everything is well blended, scoop equally into 12 muffin cups.

Bake for around 20 minutes.

These are DIVINE! They don't taste like pumpkin (which I wouldn't mind, but they really don't) they are just super moist and delicious. Plus, they come in around 160 calories (with no fat, and added nutrients!) When compared to what a normal chocolate muffin costs you, these are GREAT! Try them! Let me know what you think!