Bloggy Award and Meme

The Amazing Sandra chose me and four other bloggers for this blog award—which was very sweet. Here’s what she said by way of her reason:

3.Josi:  if you don't know Josi, then you don't know how to look at the hard parts of life and still smile

I hope this is true—but I must say I don’t see it very much. I think I whine about many things that are rather trite compared to what I see other people facing. But when people say things about me that surprise me, I try to absorb them and find the proof. So I’m going to be doing that, and I was very touched by the insightful comment. Thank you, Sandra, I appreciate it very much.

So, the five fabs I will give it to are the following: Each of them have a quality I am working toward developing in my life, hence they getting my notice:

LT Elliot—this woman is sunshine personified. Every time I see her she is just bubbly and so generous with her enthusiasm and optimistic attitude.

Ronda Hinrichsen—Ronda and I have been friends for several years and her first book comes out in a couple of weeks (If you’re in the Brigham City Area, it’s October 22 at Reflections of Utah). She's a solid woman with a strong work ethic and unfailing support of the people she loves. I very much admire her calm determination.

Don & Kara—They joint blog, so it goes to both of them, but together, and apart, they are such examples of what life really is. They have some trials, big ones that I can’t imagine, and yet if you ever read their blog they have such joy in their lives, in each other, and in their two daughters. AND, despite their family focus and optimism amid trial, they are generous and motivated toward the accomplishment of their own goals and dreams. That is a very rare gift indeed.

Julie Wright—She is my best (girl) friend and my mentor in so many ways. She just makes me feel good and when life gets hard she’s the first one I vent too—she’s always very validating and encouraging for whatever I might be facing. I just love her.

Jenna--Is the mother I want to be and I find her a very capable, courageous and inspiring woman. AND I love sending her these things because her answers fascinate me.

Now, on to the questions.

1. Where is your cell phone?.... I don’t know. Car or kitchen or pocket of the hoodie I wore last night. I do think it is charged, however.

2. Your hair? ...... Is really icky right now. I wore it curly yesterday, and the product I use is kind of sticky. I pulled it up with a red elastic this morning and need to get in the shower.

3. Your mother? ...... One of the best people I know

4. Your father?..... Gets better with age (probably my age, mostly)

5. Your favorite food? ...... Cheesecake

6. Your dream last night?.... Annoying—or I should say my husband was annoying in it. We were supposed to go to dinner with this old lady, but got distracted by a finance company who’s files Lee wanted to go through. So he rolled himself up in a sleeping bag and snuck into their office with some sidekick woman I think was his personal assistant. I was just ticked off the whole time since we were late for the poor old ladie’s dinner and then some teenagers were playing chicken in the pond out front and I finally left with Ronda Hinrichsen who was just as annoyed, but far more calm than I was about the whole thing.

7. Your favorite drink?.... Honestly, water. Boring huh.

8. Your dream/goal? .... to be at peace with myself and the people I love.

9. What room are you in? ...... kitchen

10. Your hobby? .... Oh, lots. My chickens, reading, bloggging, cooking

11. Your fear? ..... failure

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years?... #8

13. Where were you last night?.....At the Box Elder High School Homecoming game—Jeanie was in the pep band who did the half-time show—it was awesome. First homecoming game I’ve ever been too.

14. Something you aren't?..... Comfortable with myself

15. Muffins? .....bran with craisens and white chocolate chips (Old Grist Mill-mmmmm)

16. Wish list item? ...... Sound canceling headphones

17. Where did you grow up?...... Salt Lake City

18. Last thing you did?...... Made pancakes for the kids and their sleepover friends

19. What are you wearing? ...... black sweat pants, black flip-flops, and an oversized Tommy Hilfiger hoodie. (flip flops were my daughters who hated them; mine now. Sweat pants were $10 on sale 5 years ago and I’ve only recently been able to fit back into them comfortably. Sweatshirt was $2 at DI about two years ago. It’s XL so super comfy and very unflattering. Good thing I’ve already got my man J)

20. Your TV? ..... 15 feet away—The Closer is on. I love TV.

21. Your pets? ......... 1 dog, Tex, and 6 chickens—who Tex would like to eat.

22. Your friends? ...... priceless and unexpected. I did not plan to have these kinds of friendships as an adult. I’m very blessed.

23. Your life?...... pathetically crazy

24. Your mood? .... anxious—I’m so far behind on my deadline and it kills me to not be living up to the expectations of my publisher. Ironically, that feeling then blocks my ability to finish the story and yet I’ve spent how much time on this blog post? It’s all very neurotic. I have a book signing today and then family pictures after that.

25. Missing someone? ..... Not really. Maybe myself a little bit.

26. Vehicle? ......Honda Odyssey (apparently creative advertising doesn’t make that big a difference when it comes right down to whether or not you’ll sell the car)

27. Something you're not wearing? ...... Make-up

28. Your favorite store? .......Deseret Industries—love that place. I get to go to the new one in Ogden today! I need some jeans and a Scout shirt. Wish me luck!

29. Your favorite color? ...... Black

30. When was the last time you laughed? ...... Last night, little man pulled his pants up to his armpits, sucked in his bottom lip and turned out his knees for the walk to our car after the game. He called himself Bartholomew Finkelton and kept snapping his fingers and saying “Ah Shucks”. It was the funniest dang thing I’ve ever seen. The kid is a crack-up

31. Last time you cried? ..... A couple weeks ago when I was alone in Vegas and feeling completely incapable of accomplishing anything in front of me.

32. Your best friend?...... My husband. I’d be lost without him.

33. One place that I go over and over? ....... Costa Rica. It is my bliss.

34. One person who emails me regularly?....... Lee—we exchange e-mails about a dozen times a day.

35. Favorite place to eat? ....... Oh, I’ll eat anywhere J

If you’re someone I tagged, be sure to tell me so I can read your answers.

My Valentine Meme

I saw this meme on Annette Lyon's blog and thought it was just perfect for Valentines day, so I stole it. We'll be celebrating 16 years in April--I can't believe it and yet having been here for each day of it, it's gone so fast.

1. Where did you and your husband meet? Weight Training class at Olympus High School. I was a Sophomore and he was a Senior. We were also in the same ward but between his work schedule and my rebellious streak and the fact that he was two years older, we didn't know each other beyond recognizing one another from church.

2. How long before you kissed? Um, about a month BEFORE we started dating. We'd been flirting for awhile and then one day in class I just leaned in and kissed him. He was not impressed, and I've been razed about my racy behavior ever since.

3. Who kissed who first? See #2

4. How long from the time you met until you were engaged? Two and a half years. After six months of dating he went on a mission. Within 12 hours of him coming home we were talking marriage, and we were engaged a month or so after that.

5. How did he propose? We went to a Japanese restaurant in downtown Salt Lake and had a private tatami room. He did all the sweet talk but explained he couldn't afford a ring yet, so he gave me one made of tinfoil and promised to replace it, but wondered if I would marry him anyway. I said yes, of course, and then a minute later the waitress brought our food, with a velvet box right there next to the Miso. Weird thing, we've never been back to that restaurant even though we love Japanese--I guess we just don't like down town Salt Lake.

6. Did he pick out the ring or did you? He did, then we went back and had some chips put on the side. It's simple, but perfect.

7. Do you still like the ring? the only thing I didn't like about it was that it was gold. I'm a silver girl but we couldn't afford a non-gold setting. A couple years ago I had it redone in white gold, but it's the exact same style as it was before.

8. Where was your wedding and reception? Married in the Salt Lake Temple, reception at our ward house--orange carpeted basketball court and all.

9. How many bridesmaids did you have, and who was your maid of honor? No bridesmaids or maid of honor. We were given $2500 by our parents for the wedding expenses, anything left over we could spend however we wanted to. I cut every corner possible and we left on our honeymoon with $1100 in our pockets--sweet.

10. What color were your bridesmaid dresses? See #9

11. What was your bouquet made of? Red roses--the $25 special at The Flower Patch

12. Who gave you away? Not applicable for a temple wedding.

13. Did you cry during your wedding? Nope, I was ear to ear grins.

14. What style was your dress? I rented my dress from a lady in Pleasant Grove for $50. It was a shiny fabric with a full skirt and lacy detail. She let me keep it for 2 full weeks. I wouldn't change a thing about it. I was a size 3 when I got married and had a baby a year later--I'd have never fit into that dress again and I'd have never worn it again anyway. I know I'm an odd duck, but I honestly have never understood buying a wedding dress--I mean the guys don't by the tuxes, and wanna know why? Cause they know they will never wear it again, why spent all that $$ when it's a one day event? It simply does not make sense to me to spend soooo much money on a dress you will wear one time and then pay $75 to put in a sealed box--but I respect the fact that I'm the definite minority in this respect.

15. Was your wedding kiss sweet or sexy? It was in the temple, so it was sweet, but lingering sweet.

16. Who caught your bouquet? Nobody. I didn't throw it--are you kidding me? I spent $25 on that thing. I still have it in my trunk.

17. What flavor was your cake? Devil's food cake, with white frosting and black roses--my colors were red, white, and black. My YW president made it for me, and probably swore a couple times. I knew exactly what I wanted, but it was a hard thing to execute. Black icing is hard to make, and white frosting on a chocolate cake is a pain.

18. Did you smash the cake onto each other's faces or feed it to each other nicely? Totally smashed. It was up my nose, in my hair, all over his tux. But, see, it was a rented dress and a rented tux, so big deal :-) Fun memory.

19. What was "your song" that you danced to at your wedding? No dancing. But we always joke that our son is Turbo Lover by Judas Priest.

20. What did you serve your guests to eat? My aunts got together and made a buffet. I don't even know what was served other than my Aunt Sandy's chocolate chip cookies. I think there was punch and ham sandwich things. I didn't eat any of it, obviously.

21. What did your friends do to decorate your car? they use colored Elmer's glue--which was kind a nice cause it peeled right off. And they filled the car with balloons that took a few weeks to slowly fall out here and there--I left balloons all over Salt Lake (I know, bad for the environment and lazy as hell.)

22. What was your favorite wedding gift? I have two of them--one was the $500 check we got from my mom's great aunt. That was awesome. The other was a framed and matted version of our wedding invitation. It's one of the few gifts I still have and I love it. I've done the same type of gift for other weddings and get great reviews on it. It's something I'd have never thought of doing myself, so I'm glad someone else thought of it.

23. What was the worst wedding gift you got? Dress Pant hangers. But we did use them once we figured out what they were for.

24. Where did you go on your honeymoon? To a bed and breakfast in Midway. We went shopping at the outlet stores and just spent two days . . . together. It was awesome.

25. Looking back, is there anything you would have changed about your wedding? I would have worn less eye makeup, had my hair done professionally, and hired a professional photographer. In our goal to make some money off this little union of ours, we went with a friend of my dad who really just wasn't very good. We did get all the negatives, which was nice, and the price was great ($400 for bridals, engagement, and outside the Temple) but it would have been worth getting someone really good since pictures are the one thing that lasts. I also probably wouldn't have done a reception at all, but instead done a nice wedding breakfast for the 70 people that really cared about me--leave out my parent's old neighbors and the guy in the ward that I can't remember his name and the people my dad works with. I'd have sent announcements to all those people, but kept the wedding celebration for just those people that really knew me or Lee.

Almost sixteen years later, we're still going strong. Marrying Lee was the best decision of my entire life, and every good thing since then can be tied back to him and all the goodness he's brought into my life. I'm grateful that he was blinded to my many flaws enough to stick around.

What have I done

This was a fun meme I found on My days and dreams. I can't think of anything else to say today and I'm working really hard at avoiding my current work in progress, so this fit the bill! Feel free to copy it and use it if you like. You highlight those things you've done.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37.Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77.Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Let me know if you use it so I can come take a look.

A Closer Look~photo meme

Be afraid, be very afraid.

If my tell-all Isagenix thing didn't make you lose all respect, this one just might because though I really tried to do this when everything was clean, I gave up and just did it. So you see me, and my home, in all it's loveliness. Sandra tagged me for this one, and I found it a lot of fun to see hers, so I'm giving it a whirl.

1. My Kitchen sink:

That big brown spot is from when I was burning some butter and so I, brilliantly, poured it down the sink and it burned my sink. I've bleached, scrubbed, sanded it and it refuses to let me off the hook. I know, not everyone is blessed with such intelligence. It's a rare gift. I thought it was cute that both Sandra and I have cutsy bottles for our dish soap. Great minds think alike--I mean no disrespect to Sandra in that, I swear.

2. Inside my Fridge:

Sandra and I both also have milkmen; I'm completely ruined when it comes to milk because I get mine from a dairy. Total milk snob, that's me. As you can see I have a lot of leftover and I like Tupperware. My mother used to use old sour cream containers, made me nuts when I was actually looking for sour cream and coudln't find any even though we had eight containers in the fridge.





3. My Favorite Shoes:

This was easy, it's my Dansko clogs. My sister raved about them for years before I finally wore her pair for a day. I fell head over heels (no pun intended) in love with them and wear them a lot. Now that it's summer, I don't so much cause they look funny with my skinny ankles, but with long pants this will be my shoe most of the time. I bought them with my first Deseret Book Royalty check Love em!

4. My Closet:

It's long, but narrow. See that bowling ball on the floor at the end, yeah, if only you were lucky enough to have won an 18 pound undrilled bowling ball replica of the very ball that won the 2006 bowling national championship. You wish!









5. The Laundry Pile:

The pile in the lower left hand corner of the photo is actually clean laundry and it hasn't been there 24 hours yet so we're good! The basket holds socks, which I need to pair together via a movie this afternoon. We go out of town on Thursday so I've been getting lots of wash done. I really like my laundry room and I don't really mind doing laundry either. I hang everything that requires shoulders. Only pants, shorts, underwear, and PJs go in drawers, so I hang as I sort, then we don't have wrinkled shirts and I don't have to fold as much stuff. Takes lots of hangers though.

6. What my kids are doing right now:

#4--playing with the new puppy. (did I not mention we got a new puppy? More on that in another blog--basically we're nuts) And no, that's not blood on him, it's paint. We like to paint our livestock, it's kind of a hazing thing.









#3--Watching Spongebob












#2 & #1 painting the playhouse. The one on the ground is actually not mine, she's a freind that somehow got suckered into helping, and #1 is actually inside the playhouse but I didn't have time to wait around for a posed shot.



7. My Favorite Room:

I wish I said my study, or my living room with the LaZboy, but my favorite room really is my kitchen. I love to cook, I love the way my kitchen is set up. It's big, it's open, and I love the way it looks out into the backyard and yet still lets me watch TV. I prefer it when it's a little cleaner than this, but still.



8. My Most Recent Purchase:

I'm assuming it's supposed to be something I bought for myself? If so, it's these running shoes. They have pink on them and do not at all match my cute running outfit that I bought because it matched my old shoes. So sad. But they are comfy and I don't have to wear my inserts, which is awesome. I do have a jacket that matches them--thank goodness. So if I had to go anywhere with them on I could make it work. I have a thing about matching my shoes to my shirt, and yet I really don't like owning a lot of shoes, it makes me feel wasteful. It's why I don't get very creative with the colors I wear--or at least it's one reason.

9. My Fantasy Vacation:

This is an easy one, and I'm lucky enough to have already been and get to go again. My husband and I absolutely adore Costa Rica. We've been able to go a few times and at the end of the week we're taking all four of our kids. I hope I still like it with kids in tow. If you've read much of my blog you already know this about me.



10. Self-portrait:

Did I mention you should be afraid. Really, it's summer, I haven't even thought about make-up today and I usually keep my hair pulled way up on my head so I don't get hot until I have to do it for the day--which I don't think I have to do at all today. But anyway, it is what it is.

And I'm gunna tag, Karlene and Stephanie Humphries. Can't wait to see what you got, girls.

Wacky, Wild Seven Meme

I was tagged last week by Wendy at wendwords.blogspot.com and then by Stacy at stayinalivewithstacy.blogspot.com and so I figured I better answer. However, I would like to point out that if these 7 do not whet your appetite you can read up on my other tags here and here and here and here and here and here.

I'm not sure I have room for 7 more things about me, I'm not really all that interesting, but I will try and keep all y'all awake. I'm sure I've mentioned some of these before, so sorry, but like I said I'm not that interesting.

1) I gave birth to my 2nd child in the bathtub. Babies won't breath until their faces hit air, so the midwife held her under the water while my husband and mother ran around crazy for a towel and a suction thing. It was so weird to see this baby just looking up at me from the bottom of the tub. It was not supposed to happen this way, but it was AWESOME. I was up and ready to go home a few hours later, the baby was great, I was great and highly recommend it if you're state allows planned underwater births.

2) My husband a few years back was looking to shoot a commercial for his business and he interviewed a small film company. They agreed to work on it together and then the guy said he'd call my husband when he was ready to start--he had this independent film he was working on and taking to some film festival over the next couple months. We never heard from him again but saw his name in the credits for Napoleon Dynamite a year or so later.

3) After reading Earning Eternity, people have asked me if I've really been bungee jumping. Yes, in fact I have. It was a horrible, terrible, no good, very bad day.

4) At the age of 18 I drove to Phoenix with a friend to go to a Bruce Springsteen concert. My friend left $160 under her pillow at the motel in Flagstaff and we didn't realize it until we got to Phoenix. We were both ready to throw up and called the motel in a panic. The housekeeper hadn't shown up that day so the owner had cleaned the rooms herself and found the money. We picked it up on our way back through. Neither of us had a credit card or checkbook, I'm not sure how we'd have made it home if she hadn't been such an honest person since our parents hadn't wanted us to go in the first place.

5) At that same hotel, the morning we had checked out, I reached into my bag to pull out an elastic for my hair. I was rolling the elastic in my fingers when I looked down and found I was holding the biggest wolf spider I've ever seen by the leg. Honestly, I think my heart stopped beating and I was so freaked out I couldn't even scream. I still get sick just thinking about it.

6) When I was 11 I had a blood disease called Immunethrombocytopeniapurpura, it's a shortage of platelets and I had to go on Prednisone (sp) which made me gain 40 pounds. I only weigh about 5 pounds more now than I did back then. I only wish I could lose weight that fast, I think I was back to 80 pounds in six weeks once I stopped the meds.

7) When I was five I learned that when I grew up and got married, my name would change. I was ecstatic since Josephine was the most horrible name in the whole world. I wanted to change my name to Penny and decided right then to get married as soon as I could. I was rather devastated when I realized it didn't quite work that way.

So, who to tag.....

Crystal (my sister in law)
Alisha (my good friend that I miss since she moved away from me)
Karlene (cause I like learning stuff about her)
Stephanie Humphries (cause I asked her some questions I want answered!)
Don (cause his life is intriguing to me)
Jenna (same reason as Don)
Marcia Mickelson (cause I've enjoyed getting to know her and would like some more)

12 'Tings bout Christmas

Mothering on the Edge tagged me for Christmas so I gotta hurry--

1. List 12 random things about yourself that have to do with Christmas
2. Please refer to it as a 'hoopla' and not the dreaded 'm'-word (Josi doesn't even know what the m-word is but she's trying really hard to think of all the dirty words that start with M that she's ever heard.)
3. You have to specifically tag people when you're done. None of this "if you're reading this, consider yourself tagged" stuff is allowed...then nobody ends up actually doing it. The number of people who you tag is really up to you -- but the more, the merrier to get this 'hoopla' circulating through the blogosphere.
4. Please try and do it as quickly as possible. The Christmas season will be over before we know it and I'd like to get as many people involved as possible.

1. My husband left for his mission on December 19 18 years ago (holy cow that's a long time) And he gave me this Christmas mouse made out of a 2 liter bottle he bought at a craft fair at his work. I kept it up for two years and it has survived all 4 kids. It's super cute.
2. My parents make fried oysters every Christmas morning. total yuck-fest. And they are spending Christmas with me this year, gotta clothespin? (do clothespins on your nose really work?)
3. My favorite Christmas song is "Oh Holy Night" Glen Beck did a version of that song where he took out all religious references so it went like "Oh beautiful-non-religious night ... it is the night of no-one-mportant's birth" makes me laugh my head off, but I still like the original version better.
4. I couldn't point out a Bing Crosby song if I would make $1000 getting it right.
5. I used to get into the "designer" tree but I've repented. Now my tree is full of all kinds of hideous ornaments made by my children and I love it.
6. We have English trifle for Christmas Eve every year--without the sherry.
7. I have a sister and a nephew and a second cousin all born on Christmas day--sucks to be them.
8. I have never put up Christmas lights
9. For years my kids were convinced we didn't have lights because their uncle wouldn't put it up for them. I was awesome. However, they are on to me now and know that I'm just lame that way.
10. I watched "It's a Wonderful Life" for the first time five years ago. It's really a pretty good movie even if it is black and white.
11. I'm waiting for someone to remake it, staring Mathew McConehey (can't spell his name, sorry) and the girl that Mr. Holland wanted to have an affair with in Mr. Holland's Opus.
12. I hate most holidays--they're dumb--but I do like this one so long as I don't tell myself it has to be just right.

As for who I'm tagging--Barbara, Marcia Mickleson, Tristi, Piper of Love.

10 Random Facts about me

I got tagged and y'all won't believe who tagged me. MY BROTHER. Yeah, I know I've said my family doesn't read my blog, and they don't (cause if they did they would have claimed the reward $$ and they haven't), but he tagged me on myspace, but I, like, have to play cause a family member actually tagged me! Makes me feel all kinds of special. The tag is 10 totally random things about me, then I tag 10 people and tell why I tagged them. So here we go;

1--I threw away a dead chicken today. Don't know how it died, it was a real pretty one too. Were I a REAL woman I'd have made it into soup and stuffed a pillow. Instead, I used a KFC Bucket (ironic, huh) to help scoop it into the garbage sack, then I threw it in the garbage like I do with all my dead chickens.

2--I was listening to Bruce Springsteen's "Glory Days" when I got my tattoo.

3--I took cookies to my tattoo artist a week later, I'm pretty sure he thought my friends and I were the freakiest people he'd ever tattooed before.

4--I once had a pet iguana named Cruncher. I made a mug with his name on it in my high-school pottery class. He ran away anyway, danged ungrateful reptile. Cold blooded, that was.

5--I've watched 4 of the 5 Harry Potter movies in the last two days--the one I missed is #4 cause it's in the car and it's cold in the garage.

6--I absolutely despise the Simpsons. You will never find the show on in my house, you will never find a sticker, t-shirt, post-it note, or mug with a Simpson anything on it.

7--About once a month I dream that the fronts of my teeth fall off. Totally freaks me out.

8--About once a month I want to throw rocks at the world and everyone in it, that has nothing to do with the dreams though--it's a girl thing.

9--I once took a cat to the animal shelter and let my kids believe it ran away. It was a mean cat though--even if it's name was Rose Angel Star Princess (I had two little girls at the time) It's name would have been pukeface-meany-cat if I'd have named it.

10--If I had to choose between feeding, bathing, rocking to sleep, or changing the stinky diaper of a baby--I'd choose the diaper.

To tag:
Jules--cause she's funny and I like to see if I know everything about her yet
Crystal S--cause she just started a blog and I think she runs deep, very very deep.
Tami--cause I haven't tagged her for awhile.
Luisa--for no good reason other than the fact that she's entertaining.
Kymburlee--same reason as Lousia
Annette--Cause she's annette; I always tag annette.
Heather--Cause I always tag her too.
Jeanette--cause she makes me laugh
Sandra--cause I don't think I've ever tagged her before
Ajoy--cause she wants me to tag her, I can FEEL it

Have fun y'all. Let me know when you're answers are up.

And the truth will set you free! (answers to the Liar meme)

I'm glad so many of you think so well of me, however it puts me in an awkward position as I hate dashing peoples good impressions. Unfortunately I do it quite often and today is no exception. Anyway, here it goes.

#4--The Mikes--Only one person guessed this one and Newnorth only guessed it because no one else had (she's such a rebel :-). I really thought this story was rather unbelievable, but maybe it's one of those truth is stranger than fiction--that many Mike's would never work in a book. And yes, the husband was kind of jerk to insist on the name thing. Anyway--it's true.

#3--Gambling--I'm sorry (kinda) to say that my husband and I really did win $800 playing blackjack in Costa Rica. Yes, I know gambling is bad and against my religion, and I know several people that will lose thousands and go right back to it, my hubby and I don't gamble this way. Fact is, my husband is a professional gambler--not in casino's but in profession. He's a real estate investor and is constantly hedging his bets in one business or another. He loves the rush and is very good at what he does. He was a quick study in blackjack and thank goodness for our religious beliefs that keep us cautious. The trick is that he knows when to hold em and knows when to fold em and he taught me how to do it as well. I'm a baby and I only play with nice dealers though, and the other people at the table hate me because I constantly split tens--it's my favorite trick. Really we do it once a year, if that, and won't lose more than $40. But we were on fire that night! 12 people thought this one was a lie. (this is not an endorsement for gambling in anyway and the writer of this blog is not responsible for anything you may lose at the tables)

#2--Free trip to Mexico--I had no idea this 'payback' program existed and went back and forth about even calling them when I got the bill because I thought it was a mistake and didn't want to fess up and have them remove the credit. But I did call and it was awesome--the only thing we paid for was souvenirs and a couple meals, oh and braids that made me look like an 11 year old girl--doubly discomfiting since I was 5 months pregnant. Six days in Mexico for $200, not bad. The fact that the other five transactions I'd made that month weren't the winners was awesome since they were all under $30. 9 of you thought this was a lie.

#1--Hans Solo in my car--Yep, this was the lie. I've never met Harrison Ford. However, the trick to telling a good lie, make it as true as possible. The situation happened just like I said, only it wasn't me, it was my sister-in-law and she wasn't sure it was him until the town was wild with the news. I would NEVER have mistaken Harrison Ford for someone else, are you kidding? Also, did you know people are less likely to guess A in multiple choice? They have a hard time believing the right answer is the first one they read and by the time they read through all the answers, they've nearly forgotten what A was. B is actually the most common answer, mostly because people THINK C is the right answer most of the time, but it actually comes in second. Just some tips for all y'all in case you want to hone up on your dishonesty.

The three that picked it off were Holly, Jen & Tegdir92. My 5 year old is in bed already so my 13 year old drew after rolling her eyes and saying "fiiiine." The winner is . . . Jen!! Yeah Jen.

Please follow this link to my website, click on books and read up on which of the two you would like, Earning Eternity or Tempest Tossed. Then send your address to kilpack@gmail.com and I'll get the book in the mail.

Thanks for playing everyone, that was fun, and I hope no one's testimony was bruised in the process.

I'm a Liar--meme

Jenna at Cranberry Corner tagged me with this one. The game is that I'm going to list 4 things about me, one of which is a lie. You're job is to guess which one is a lie. I'm gunna make a contest out of it and offer a free book (Earning Eternity or Tempest Tossed) to one of those that are correct. I'll enter all the names of winners into a drawing and have my 5 year old pick a winner. So be sure to make a guess.

I should warn you that I'm a very very good liar, it's why I write fiction :-)


1) I once met Harrison Ford--well, met might be a strong word since he didn't tell me who he was and I didn't tell him who I was. He has his own plane and sometimes stops as the airport in a little town called Milford Utah where my parent's used to live. It's really a podunk airport, but it was a good mid-stop for small planes leaving California and celebrities liked to stop there because they didn't get mobbed (John Travolta stops there sometimes too). My brother's friend's dad owned the airport and called my brother to give a guy a ride--he'd just radioed in--to the Chinese restaurant in town. There is nothing to do in Milford Utah, so I went with my brother and we picked up this guy. The sad part--my brother didn't know who he was at all and I was unsure enough that I didn't say anything--he looks a lot older in real life--later that day the whole town was buzzing about it. I couldn't believe I didn't trust my gut.

2) Ten years ago, my husband and I had never had a real vacation and we finally decided to go on one cause this travel agency by our house was giving a great deal. We used our credit cards now and again, but never for purchases we couldn't pay off in 30 days. But we were desperate to go on this trip so we charged the whole thing and had a good time in Mazatlan. The next month, I get the bill and it shows the charge AND a credit for the exact same amount. I called the credit card company and it turns out they had this program where every transaction made goes into a monthly drawing and then they pull out a few charges to credit back to the person. Somehow, our charge for the entire vacation package was drawn. We went to Mexico for free.

3) My husband and I went to Costa Rica on vacation about five years ago, and one night took a taxi to this little casino--little means about 4 tables. We're the only people there and figured we'd either lose or make $40 before we left--we are both great blackjack players, though we don't do it very much. We ended up winning over $800--enough to pay for the hotel stay for the entire six days we were there. They actually made us leave, telling us they closed an hour before they really did. We stayed in Costa Rica for free.

4) I once babysat for a woman who had a ten year old son named Mike. He was named after her first husband, Mike, but they divorced and she'd married another man by the name of Mike. Her second husband had a tradition that the first son is always named after the father, hence, this man was named after his father and grandfather--all named Mike. The woman I babysat for was pregnant and scared to death that it would be a boy; her husband was insisting that they would name it Mike, even though she already had a son with that name. Sure enough, she had a boy, and they named him Mike. So she had an ex-husband, a husband, a father-in-law, a grandfather-in-law and two sons named Mike. I think she also had a brother named Mike, but I can't remember for sure. Incidentally, I have a brother named Mike as well.

So, what do you think? Which one is a lie? I'll wait one week for the answers to file in. AMENDMENT: Because I got such fast responses, I'll answer it on Friday, November 2 :-) Thanks for playing.

As to who I'm gunna tag--let's tag Kathleen, Julie Wright, Traci Abramson & Carole Thayne Warburton.

Middle Name Meme

Annette tagged me for the middle name meme, so here we go. My middle name is Snow. Because most y’all are Mormons, you probably already assume it’s because I’m related to the famous Snows of Church History lore (Erastus Snow to be exact. His cousins, Lorenzo and Eliza are more commonly known). I once fantasized that my parents chose Snow because they were wigged out hippies determined to raise me with a love of all things free and natural. Not so. My mom was a Snow and all but 3 of my siblings have Snow as their middle name. No creativity at all.


S—It’s a really bad sign when the very first letter stumps me. Sweet (Julie, stop laughing!) Snotty (someone please start laughing?) Sarcastic—ah, that’s it. Sarcastic works.

N—Nerdy. But not in the cool “Let’s ask Josi, she’ll know” kind of way, more in the “Did you see what she was wearing?” kind of way. I’ve never been the cool kid, the one that got asked to the dance, or even the teacher every kid wanted to have in Sunday school. I tell jokes people don’t understand, say things I shouldn’t, laugh when its not funny, and get things stuck in my teeth. I think I’ve had less than 2 dozen days in my whole life where I felt like I was wearing the right thing. Oh well, me and the guy I’m sleeping with don’t mind too much and my kids don’t know the difference since I’m the only mother they’ve ever had. What do I care what other people think? If only I were nerdy enough that not caring was an option.

O—Overwhelmed. There is so much in life to do, to learn, to write, to read, to accomplish, to discover, to experience, and to watch. I have not yet learned to take things slow, do one thing at a time, and so I spend most of my life completely overwhelmed. I often tell my husband I’ve run out of room in my brain, I can’t hold anything else. And then I see a flier for Jazzercise and I’m juggling my calendar again.

W—W? What can I do that starts with W? Wonderful is out. So it Wholesome. Weird works, but honestly—have you met my friends? They have the corner market on Weird ☺. I’d like to use Wise, but I had a friend in high-school that was struck by lightening and he said it really hurt. Hmmmm. Whiney might be the best I can do. I love to whine, I’m actually trying to make it a nationally recognized sport. I’m going for the gold.

I’m tagging Ajoy (since she’s forgiven me for being negative toward her friend Stephanie Meyers) and Carole Thayne Warburton, my paradisiacaly glorious friend who has greatly blessed my life.