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The Holidays are over (Happy 4th of July), the weekend has ended (Happy Weekend), the road trip(s) are finished (Hello, 700 miles!), the memory card on my camera is full (Thank you, Canon), I only have the teeniest slice of a sunburn right at my hair line (SPF 45 is my friend…if only I could apply it properly), and today, unfortunately, life must return to normal.  Sigh.  

My holiday festivities continue this evening with a Big Family Bash with my Enormous Family.  It’s a 4th of July tradition for my mother’s family to get together and celebrate.  And while we’re a touch on the belated side this year, it’s gonna be awesome.  (When I say “Enormous”, I mean “Enormous”…seriously, check it out.)  I will be back tomorrow with pictures and stories from the weekend, a fantastic but exhausting weekend.

I don’t know about you, but I am so excited that January is over and February is here.  In fact, I am practically giddy.  There are some fantastic bits about February that I am absolutely looking forward to.  Would you like “The List”?  Ok, here it goes:

• February 2: Happy Groundhog Day -how will you celebrate?
• February 3: Happy Super Bowl Sunday -who brought chips and salsa?
• February 5: Happy Mardi Gras!
• February 7: Happy Chinese New Year -any excuse to eat fortune cookies and Kung Pao Chicken is good enough for me.
• February 7-10: Going on Vacation! – Handsome V and I are going on a road-trip.  Itinerary includes Las Vegas & Phoenix.  So! Excited!
• February 12: Happy Birthday Abe Lincoln
• February 13: Happy Birthday heidikins
• February 14: Happy Heart Day
• February 18: Happy Birthday to all the Dead Presidents -do YOU have the day off?
• February 22: Happy Birthday George Washington
• Does anyone else think there are a LOT of holidays in February? 
• February 29: Happy Leap Year

February has more reasons to party than November and December combined!  Can you see why I’m excited for February?  Barring natural disaster or some kind of terrorist attack on my shoe closet, there is really no other option but for February to go down in history as the Best! Month! Ever! 

And, if we’re being completely honest, I may or may not be doing a little Happy Dance at my desk at random intervals throughout the morning. 

Do you like puzzles? Do you enjoy puzzles? Have you ever done a puzzle so completely frustrating that you want to throw it across the room and stomp on it? Well, the last 2 weeks there has been a 1000 piece puzzle in my living room….and at this point I would rather see it in the trash can. What started out as a good idea (the Seven Dwarf’s coming home from the mines, cute house, cute stream, lots of forest) has turned into a hellish addiction. With the exception of the little dwarf’s clothing – the entire puzzle is muted shades of blue, green and brown. The trees are horrific, the leaves and grass are worse and the stream somehow has the same coloring and texture as the bits of sky. “Disney Fine Art,” my eye! This is by far the hardest puzzle I have ever done – and I’ve done some difficult ones. In fact, this puzzle is so hard that finding pieces by color is impossible – each piece must be matched by shape. Which has brought out even more of my OCD tendencies. I’m a little afraid to admit this, as I know I will be teased mercilessly – however, I have lined up all the remaining pieces in groups according to color (green, brown or a mix) and then by shape (one outtie, two outtie, three outtie, etc). Systematically trying to locate the correct shape has proven to be the only way to get this blasted puzzle completed. Every time I pass by the dreaded puzzle table, I am compelled to find a home for at least a few pieces. And my organization (however strange it may seem to you) is the only way to accomplish this. Yes, I’m OCD. Yes, I know it. Yes, my odd-ball methods happen to work out. In the last couple of days I have finished the biggest tree, the house, and most of the stuff inbetween…(also known as “the easy part”) I’m hoping that by this weekend the damn puzzle will be done and I can move onto something else, like organizing the spice cupboard in the kitchen.

DUST SLIPPERS:

Dust your floors every time you walk into a room! Keep your feet warm & clean your floors at the same time. No need to get on your hands and knees to scrub, no need to drag out the broom when these slippers can do all the work. Saves you time and effort. Trendy tartan plaid upper, double loop mop-style sole.

HIDDEN WALL SAFE:

Shhhhh! It’s a wall safe! Keep cash, jewelry, credit cards and more safely concealed in our locakable Hidden Wall Safe. Looks like an ordinary outlet, but opens to a 2-inch deep vault. Made of plastic & metal, set of two, each 7 x 2.5″ – the same as a standard electrical outlet. Key included. Easy to install with included saw tool.

I don’t know how I thought my life was complete without Dust Slippers and a Hidden Wall Safe….

The Girl in a Whirl – by Dr. Suess
(ok, it’s by LDS Overachiever Vickie Gunther, of Redlands, California. But it sounded good!)

Look at me, look at me, look at me now!
You could do what I do, if you only knew how.
I study the scriptures one hour each day;
I bake, I upholster, I scrub and I pray.

I always keep all the commandments completely;
I speak to my little ones gently and sweetly.
I help in their classrooms! I sew all they wear!
I drive them to practice! I cute all their hair!

I go to the temple at least once a week;
I change the cars tires! I fix the sinks leak!
I grind my own wheat and I bake all our bread;
I have all our meals planned out six months ahead.

I track my bad habits – till each is abolished
Our t-shirts are ironed! My toenails are polished!
I play the piano! I bless with my talents!
My toilets all sparkle! My checkbooks all balance!

“It’s easy!” she said….
And then she dropped dead.

I have condensed this poem due to it’s hugeness – for the full version please click here.

For all my LDS Women friends – take some time to chill out, relax, and sit on the couch with a good book and/or a girly movie. xoxox

I’m afraid I have to admit a new obsession…although this in no way diminishes current obsessions with shoes, fashion magazines, all things google, traveling and leather-bound books. New favorite past-time: perusing the Pottery Barn catalog, dreaming about redecorating my bedroom, wishing I could afford a REAL couch for the loft, and a plasma TV, and a pair of leather chairs and this fabulous spotlight lamp. Now, because the vast majority of the items included in the Pottery Barn catalog are simply out of my price range, this is a fairly harmless hobby. (Ok, I can maybe afford one of the 35 things that I want – but without the other 34 it just doesn’t work so well. Sigh, I’ll wait. But wouldn’t you just love to fall asleep here??. Or here?? Hmmmmm… sigh. So gorgeous.

In the meantime, (as in, inbetween now and when I win the lottery or inherit an obscene amount of money) I’ll have to make-do with digging out various bits of home decor I’ve collected and mix them up a little. Last nights project: turning my red, Parisian accented room into a dark blue Japanese wood-block paradise. I like to change my room with my moods – and I tend to be awfully moody about things like duvets and shams! Ok, so mostly that’s just an excuse to get my Martha on and see what it turns out looking like. Before and After pics coming soon. )

OBSESSION WEBSITE: Pottery Barn

Berkley & I have been dating for over 6 months now – and, so far, have only spent 36 days together. Yes. I did the math. Berk went back to California yesterday, ending the longest chunk of time we’ve ever spent in the same time zone – 12 whole days!! Before the holidays we’d only had a whopping three-and-a-half weeks (24 days) of face time. What do all these numbers mean? That we are geographically challenged sweethearts. We see each other every-other-weekend, which sounds more like a custody battle than a healthy relationship. And while it’s true that we would not still be dating without the free nation-wide long distance, skymiles and mini-vacations that sustain us, may I offer a few upsides…ok, one upside….who the hell am I kidding?!? There is no upside! It sucks having him so far away! I can’t wait until June when Berkley graduates & moves a little closer (like, 900 miles closer). In the meantime, delta.com and t-mobile have become my new best friends. Sigh.

I am typically kind of bad at New Years Resolutions. I write them down every year in a book, and typically don’t read them again until the next January when I’m resoluting again. However, I have decided that this is my year, and I’m gonna do everything I can to a) make kick-ass resolutions and b) keep them. The only way to do this is to have an action plan; so, here it goes – Resolutions & The Plan.

1) Physical: Maintain current weight, turn wobbly bits into muscle.
The Plan: Excercise 4 times per week.
2) Spiritual: Read scriptures daily with intent to understand.
The Plan: Read Book of Mormon or other scriptorial text 30 mins daily.
3) Domestic: Cook 2 new meals each month. (baking doesn’t count)
The Plan: A new “domestic diva” cooking class with Cosy.
4) Material: Spend less money, save more money.
The Plan: Evaluate wants vs. needs. No major purchases on credit.
5) Uh, Other: Obtain passport & plan to use it twice.
The Plan: I have the application, will purchase tickets to Mexico shortly.

I think I’ve covered most major areas of my life that could use improvement. I will keep this post handly to refer back to – hopefully I’ll have better luck in ’07 than I have in previous years!

• London is the Best City in America
• The End of Poverty
• Three Cups of Tea
• Pride & Prejudice
• The Alchemist
• PS. I Love You
• Count of Monte Cristo
• Horses Like the Wind
• Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
• Man’s Search for Meaning
• The Poisonwood Bible
• The Devil Wears Prada
• Cry, the Beloved Country
• Elegance
• East of Eden
• Catcher in the Rye
• There Are No Children Here
• Kite Runner
• Teacher Man
• Mandela: The Authorized Biography
• Blink
• Running with Scissors
• Reading Lolita in Tehran
• Freakanomics
• Sex Lives of Cannibals
• Hypocrite in a Pouffy White Dress
• Tipping Point