Temple Square Tulips

Love, love them.

I already can't wait for next spring.

Who Needs A Truck?

I need a trunk in which to store my pillows.

I can't be bothered to make my bed every single day, after all.

And having my pillows on the floor makes me feel/look like a hoarder. So, rather than take 30 seconds to fully make my bed, I have been searching for a cedar chest so I can just hide my mess (not hoarding behavior).

They are not cheap.

So, I re-directed my search from retail stores to KSL classifieds because homeownership is super expensive. Who knew?

So, the very first time I looked, found the perfect one! Too bad it was $300. A little too spendy for my budget. I found one much cheaper a couple of days ago and I'm so excited about it.

The only problem is that I didn't know how to get it to my house. I measured my car and was confident that I could make it fit. So I drove up to Lindon to pick it up.

When I pulled into the driveway in my Beetle, the guy came out of his house and laughed at me. The nerve!

After a little shuffling, some sweat and (maybe) a couple of strong words, it worked!

I had to drive home squished up against the door, but I had to make it work since the guy laughed at me.

I forgot to take a pic when it was still in my car, so you'll just have to believe me.

Pay no attention to my dirty garage.

It's really nice, huh?

I just need it to be black to match my bedroom decor, so I am in the process of painting it - with spray paint.

It's so fun!

I feel a little bad that I'm covering up the nice cedar, but it's more important to me that it match, so I'm okay with it. I haven't taken pictures of every step of the process (sanding, primer, 1oo coats of paint) but I'll get the finished product posted soon. That's if I don't die of spray paint inhalation. It's strong stuff!

***

In other news, last night I dreamed I was dating Steve Carrell.

Not sure how he sneaked his way into my psyche, but I was sure excited to be dating him.

I hope his wife doesn't mind.

The Bachelorette

I think everyone is allowed one guilty pleasure and the whole Bachelor franchise is mine.

(I am fully planning to break up with Bachelor Pad though - too trashy).

I mean, I have standards, after all...

Here's my list for the Top 4  Bachelors for this season right out of the gate...

#1 Arie 

He's so adorable and I think he'll go far because he's a race car driver and we already know that Emily likes that type. He also seems really nice.

And how great is his hair?!

#2 Jef 

...and not because he lives in PG. He totally has a little John Allred thing going on and he seems the right amount of confident and cute. His hair is a little weird, but I like him.

#3 Sean

He's an insurance agent, so I can relate to him for that, but he seems really nice and it not too hard on the eyes. I'm keeping my eye on him.

#4 Ryan

This one is a bit of a stretch for me since I am not typically attracted to meat-heads at all. I couldn't care less about the fact that he played in the NFL for 8 years, but I do like the fact that he mentors kids. That's very attractive and he's not too bad to look at. Also, it was super cute when he met Emily and he had a piece of paper that said "You are beautiful" on one side and "I'm super nervous" on the other.

And, if I had to choose a 5th, it would probably be 

Doug

He did get the 1st impression rose, but I liked the little letter that his son wrote to Emily.

Pretty much the only one I didn't like was Mr. Helicopter, Kalon.

Way too into himself. Not attractive for that reason alone.

I'm pretty excited for a new season, especially since I actually like the Bachelorette.

It's been a while.

Raisin Anyone?

Last night I made Key Lime Bars.

Yum.

Just as I was sprinkling powdered sugar over them, I noticed a dark chunk of something on my floor.

Thinking it was a raisin, I bent down to pick it up and throw it away.

As I reached for it, I suddenly remembered that I hadn't had anything with raisins in it for a while and that I had definitely swept my floor fairly recently.

(A definite perk to living alone - knowing what should or should not be on the floor).

So, I grabbed a paper towel and scooped it up.

Yep, of course it was a dead spider.

Ew.

(not the actual spider) - it was more raisin-like

I think it's time for an eye exam.

Even though I didn't actually touch it, I still had to wash my hands.

And, I won't be eating raisins for a while.

Not Very Neighborly

I'm still pretty much neglecting my yard. Honestly, who has the time?! I pretty much just avoid it all together (altogether?) because there's so much to get done I don't even want to look at it, but I did head out there yesterday to sit on my patio while I talked to my mom on the phone. As I was sitting in the sunshine enjoying the conversation and the general splendor of my dandelion grove, I noticed something had changed over by the back fence.

I got up to investigate and saw this:

What the...?

Since I'm pretty sure it didn't fall from the sky, I'm seriously bugged with my back neighbors.

Who I have never even met.

{Is it who or whom? Ross on Friends would know. Man, I am struggling with English today.}

In my neighbors' defense, they probably assumed that my backyard isn't landscaped yet and they were just adding to a dirt pile. 

It's still rude though.

So, for the past 24 hours - I can't possibly work on the Sabbath day, c'mon -  (lame excuse!), I have worried about it and come up with the following possible resolutions:

1. Clean it up and not say or do anything - you know, WWJD.

2. Throw it back over their fence at night.

3. Or in the day (what would satan do?).

4. Clean it up, then leave a passive/aggressive note on the fence informing them that I do, in fact, have grass and that their laziness/dirt is killing it.

4a. and that their tree drops branches in my yard and it's driving me crazy!

4b. and that my 'lawn girl' is tired of picking up the mess.

5. Shovel it into a bucket and dump it on their driveway.

6. Or their front step.

7. Invite their kids over to play on my dirt pile and maybe they'll get the hint (Beth's idea).

I have clearly had way too much time plotting my revenge. The worst (best?) part is that I don't even own a shovel (I should, I know) so I had to borrow one (thanks Norrises!) and I cleaned it up just now.

(And it was harder today than it would have been yesterday because my sprinklers made it all muddy and gross).

And I didn't exact any sort of revenge.

But, I have such a bad attitude that I'm sure not to win any neighborly awards.

However, the dirt is still in a bucket in the garage, so they'd better watch out!

33 Days!

I know I'm not supposed to count, but Jordan will be home from her mission in 

33 DAYS!!!

I am so excited I want to scream.

Time is such a weird thing. This past year and a half has gone pretty quickly, but at the same time, I feel like I haven't seen her in forever. I am so anxious to hear all her crazy mission stories (I know she'll have 100's) and to see how she has grown and changed. We're going to have the best summer.

(the 'mishap' was the fire alarm saga)

I love that she thinks of me when she drinks orange Fanta. It really is pretty much the most delicious thing outside of the United States. Yum!

Speaking of, Lisa found this at Home Depot (of all places!)

It is so, so good in a bottle. Not quite the same as Fanta from Europe or So. America, but still pretty tasty.

(I accidentally spilled some on my carpet tonight ---> I just about had a stroke. Thankfully, it didn't stain. Whew! Apparently, I need to invest in sippy cups.)

My Aunt Cheri was supposed to come down to see my house tonight. She is one of my very favorite people on this planet and I was so looking forward to seeing her. It didn't work out that she could come and I'm so bummed (like ridiculously sad), but hopeful that she can come see my house really soon. Or, at least that I'll get to see her when I'm in Idaho next month.

In preparation for her coming, I spit polished my house last night. Here are pictures of my clean house:

Let's see how long it lasts!

And, finally, one of my 2 favorite sisters-in-law, Carolyn sent me the best package today!

2 of my very favorite things! Especially the Chapstick. I CANNOT live without Peppermint Chapstick...and it's super hard to find.

Thanks Carolyn! You're the best!

Tulip Festival

One of the highlights of my whole year is the annual Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point. I haven't gone for the past 3 years, so I was bummed that I wasn't able to go this year either...and it ended last Saturday.

Well, we decided to go a week late. A lot of the tulips were wilted and sad looking, but a lot were still awesome and I'm so glad we went. I forgot my big camera at home and forgot my little Nikon in my car, so I was 'stuck' with my iPhone, but I had this cool little lens, so I actually got some ok shots.

Be ready for photo overload!

Flowers - especially tulips - make me so happy!

Hopefully today will give me motivation and inspiration to work magic in my yard.