Not To Brag....

I have been craving a really good French Silk pie ever since that post about the pie fiasco. I just really, really wanted one. So today, as I was planning dinner for the family, I decided to make one. And HOLY CRAP! That was by far, the best pie I've ever made!

Yay!

Saturday's Friday Photo

I failed. I was too busy doing nothing to do my Friday photo. Sorry. This is a picture taken in my driveway in Wisconsin. The moon and Venus. Enjoy!

Whoa Baby!

LOVE COMES HOME TONIGHT!!

Ok, I just had to let that out. Thanks.



In the spirit of wedding planning, I have attempted in being overly crafty. I'm not sure that this endeavor will be successful, but it's growing on me. For the most part, I think that a lot of the big details for the wedding are set. WHICH TOTALLY EXCITES ME! And while I'm feeling on a roll, I'm happy that I'm actually getting somewhere.

So here's the lists of my projects:

Photography
Quilting (especially baby quilts, for some reason)
Scrapbooking
Paper Flowers
Beaded Flowers
Decorating (oh yeah!)
Wedding Decorations


I'm really excited about quilting. I found this really ADORABLE ducky fabric and have made a quilt using it. I also found some pink paisley that I just love and need to put that one together.

So if there are any questions out there on these topics, feel free to ask. I may not be an expert, but I will be happy to give ideas!

Insomnia, What?!

Yep. Another fantastic case of insomnia.


Fabulous.

Photo Friday

This picture also goes back to the trip to Colorado last September. Part of the destination was going to the Great Sand Dunes National Park, and wow... I love that place. I went to the Dunes when I was really little with my family and I remember it being this desert place with this awesome river. Well, in September, the river isn't there. There isn't enough water in the desert to feed it all summer. The tree is actually growing where the river would normally flow in the spring.

It is images like this that really make me want to travel more. As I was trying to pick a photo to put up today, I ended up looking at lots of different photos. Recent ones, like the ones I took this last week at the Botanical Center in Des Moines, or ones from years ago in Israel. I was trying to think of a theme, but I came to this one. Travel to me is a necessity. I fully believe in seeing the world and all it has to offer its inhabitants. I fully believe in seeing not only the natural wonders of the world, but seeing all the works of art that the people on it have provided its surface. I very much want to see everything I can see and do everything I can.

Oh, The Places You'll Go

I've discovered that there are a lot of projects I can work on. But none of them actually interest me.

Or maybe I should rephrase that. I don't want to do them alone.

I've spent the last few days with my MIL (future). I had only thought I'd stay for a day, but I ended up spending two nights. You know that warm, comfy feeling where you are content and just don't wanna move? That's what I had.

Thanks for letting me stay!

Pity Party

I got the job I interviewed for. I walked in, the guy said I had the job, we talked, I filled out a quick questionnaire, said yes to the job, and walked out.


The pity party starts now. No need to RSVP, this is a party of one.


By getting the job, I had to kiss my vacation/time alone with my Love good-bye. He goes to Texas where there is warm weather and sunshine (I know, I know, he's also got classes to attend) and I'm stuck in my living room in an empty house. Except for the bird.

I've been trying to fill out the paperwork for this job, but one of the things I have to do is get a Chauffer's license so that I can drive the kids around. Problem: I still have only my WI driver's license. Meaning, in order to actually get this job, I have to get an Iowa license. Now, this wouldn't normally be a big deal, but I've got NOTHING that says I'd be a resident. I'm not on the utility bills, I don't get paper statements from my bank, we didn't actually sign a lease, I don't have kids to enroll in school and use the enrollment papers as proof... So, aside from the fact that I don't have a way to PROVE I moved to Iowa, I also don't have proof I've lived here for 30 days or more.

So how's this for frustrating circular reasoning? One way I can get an Iowa license is if I prove I've got a permanent job. Easy right? I'm doing this FOR the job. WRONG! I can't sign the papers that say I've got a job until I can get an Iowa license. Grrr.

So last night as I was pouting my face off wallowing in my loneliness, I figured I'd buy myself a pie. That's right. You read that correctly. A WHOLE damn pie. I thought I was going to indulge in it, bathe in it, and stuff my face with silky, chocolatey, velvety French Silk pie all night long. I grabbed my fork. Not just any fork, but one of those really sturdy ones. You know, one of those hefty forks built for devouring a whole pie? One of those. I tore open the package and unearthed my pie. I jabbed my big old fork into it and took a HUGE bite of chocolate and whipped cream.

And I could have cried. The pie tasted like crap. Not like a stale, past the expiration date crap, but more of a too-processed-to-taste-enjoyable crap.

Then to remedy the pie fiasco from last night, I worked really hard this morning to figure out ways to sweet talk the DMV attendant. I put everything that could possibly help me in a folder and hopped in the car, drove to the OPPOSITE side of town, only to to find out that the DMV isn't open on Mondays. Grrr.

I decided that I can kind of count today as a productive day because I got everything ready for the DMV, even if I didn't get anything actually accomplished. So, since I was next door to Hyvee, I went in to fix this pie fiasco. Instead of buying a whole second pie though, I just went for one of those slices from the bakery. I figured, that I'd be more lenient on my tastebuds and accept that if I didn't like it, at least I didn't waste a lot of money on it. Then my stomach rumbled and I passed by the Chinese food counter. I sprung for it. It smelled so good.

I drove all the way home, checked the mail, turned on The Golden Girls, and cracked into my lunch. The pie tasted like the one from last night and aside from being cold, the Chinese food was basically flavorless. Two whole packets of soy sauce couldn't add anything to the rice.

So that's my party chock full 'o pity. Happy St. Paddy's to you too.

Photo Friday

Back in September 2008, right around my birthday, my Love and I went on a road trip to Colorado. We got to see so many beautiful places. I think I took somewhere around 600 pictures. All of them I loved and couldn't delete. Even after I uploaded them to my computer, I still kept them on the memory card.

This photo is at the Air Force Academy's Cadet Chapel. I hadn't ever been here before, but on our way home, we stayed on base and got to tour the Academy. The Chapel is truly awe inspiring. The colors are so brilliant and the design is stunning. I love it!

Singing In The Rain (Or Shower)

For those that have the pleasure of meeting Zoey, you'd know that she is a really awesome parrot.

Today, as I was sitting in the dining room with her, she started puffing up her feathers and dunking her head in her water dish. She was dirty and wanted a bath.

Now, I know that a lot of other people's pets really hate baths. Cats are not big fans of water... dogs just make a mess... It happens. But Zoey? She LOVES the bath. If we could leave the water on all day, she would totally take advantage of it. Sometimes, it is even hard to get her out of the bath.

One of the lucky features of this house is that the shower has a "mist" setting that allows Zoey to stand on a perch we attached to the wall of the shower and she just chills on it as the water mists over her.

So the point of this blog today?


Zoey sang in the shower today! On top of that, she just sat there in a zen-like state letting the water land on her.

She is by far, the most goofy bird I've ever met.

Much Ado About Nothing

These last few days have been dragging on. And on. And on.

I'm impatiently waiting (and REALLY nervous) for my interview tomorrow. I really want something to do. Something to keep me busy and I would really like it to be something that I really want to do and would really enjoy. That's one of the big reasons that I really want this job.

I'm not made to sit at home and hang out for the day. It sucks. Most people would think that having this much time off would be just amazing, but really... There's nothing good about it.

I was so excited when they called for my second interview that I almost screamed into the phone, "YEAH! YES, I'LL BE THERE ANY TIME YOU WANT ME TO BE FOR AN INTERVIEW! PICK ME!"

And then I forgot to ask all of the general questions like where I'm supposed to go for said interview and if they would like me to bring anything extra along with me.

Oh, well.

On another note, my Love is leaving for Texas in two days and I still don't know if I'm going with. A few posts ago, I was teasing a lady that didn't know when her vacation was. Now I get it.

Photo Fridays

I'm planning on starting a new trend on my blog.

Proudly Presenting: Photo Fridays!!!

Every Friday, or at least hopefully every Friday, I'm going to post a photo I've taken on here. Aside from them being photos I've taken, there isn't going to be much of a trend between photos... or at least I don't think so.

So here it is. My first Friday photo:

This is the big Dutch style windmill in Baldwin, WI. Baldwin prides itself on it's Dutch background and heritage. As a kid, I went to the Dutch Days festival in town where the Klompen Dancers don their wooden shoes, wash the streets and dance all day. Fun memories.

Enjoy!

Things That Make You Go, "Hmmm"

What's the online equivalent to perpetual window shopping?

Whatever it is, I think I've got it. I can't stop myself from surfing gap.com for shirts, ae.com for my favorite kind of jeans, and jcp.com for everything else. What is this terrible addiction?

Well, it might be more terrible if I were actually buying things. Instead, I torment myself by looking at things and then never making up my mind about what I want to get and then I never actually buy anything only to start all over the next day. This is awful. Downright heinous. Who does this?

In addition, it isn't just things for the current wardrobe. It is furniture for our house, it is cabinets to remodel the kitchen, it is shoes for the wedding. It is paper for the wedding or fabric for quilts. But no matter what you do, do you ever buy yardage online? Of course not! You'd never know exactly what you are buying. And I can't buy furniture without sittin my tush on a chair to see if it is really that comfy or shaking the dining room table set to see if it is sturdy. You can't just look at stuff and assume you'll like it online, YET all I do is sit and surf to find other random crap that I would never buy to begin with. Stupid.

What is my deal anyway? I even sit and think about all the different things I could buy with coupons. This is the Embarassing Admission Part Two: I have a weird and curious interest in coupons. This is a recent phenomenon for me, but it kinda freaks me out. I just can't stop thinking about going shopping with coupons. I have a secret stash in my pocket right now.

Weird.

All Moved In

It's official. Well, maybe not yet, but it will be. Tomorrow I change my address for the last time in hopefully a long time. I'm moved back and all sorts of jumbled, but I think this is really gonna work!

I'm pretty sure the post office hates me though. In July, I transfered my mailing address to my Love's apartment. Then in October, I changed it to my parents' house. Now I'm back to living with my Love and need to make it permanent.... I'm sure the post office is confused.

Other updates:

-I saw our wedding rings for the first time today! I LOVE them so much. My Love did an excellent job picking them out. I knew he would. He's awesome about that sort of thing!

-I got an email about the Africa mission trip. I'm still not sure where that sits. Hopefully a few more weeks of prayers will enlighten me.

-I'm waiting to hear back about a job. It makes me nervous, but I really need a job and I'm really excited about this one.

Other than that, I've been tagged in a photo blog of sorts and I'm trying to decide what photo to use. I know that's cheating. I'll work on that blog next.