pictures, finally

So, I thought it was high time to do a post with some pictures. Let's see if I am smart enough to do it, since it's been awhile.

So, this is a picture of my "nightstand" in my old apartment. I took a bunch of pictures of my apartment, in all it's crazy messiness, before I packed it all up. This is my pile of books and magazines that I had been reading at night.




This is my bookcase, full of books. I spend too much money on books, but I can't help it. On top of the bookcase is Anna Karenina, a book I bought a couple of summers ago. I actually didn't really like the book, but I read it, because it kept me busy for a long time. Most books I read in a day or two, but that one lasted all summer, I believe. I also have my cute "W" and picture frame on my bookshelf. I made those for girls camp the first year I was camp leader. These were the samples I made, the girls got to do their own initial and frame. They had a great time with it, and made such cute ones - much more creative than mine.


I am having issues with picture placement. So sorry.
This next picture is my front door. I was #1. :)









This is my sister Rachelle and my cute niece Carly Jo in my apartment the day we were boxing everything up. Carly was a great help!

Kaylynn came down with Carly from Logan to help me box everything up. I whined a little bit that day, but she really was a great help, getting stuff ready to move the next day.
I had done a lot by myself before she came, but I needed her there to keep me working all day. I am sort of a random girl when it comes to packing. I work better when someone is there helping me.

And, this is the last picture of me in my clean apartment. I went back on Tuesday night and finished cleaning. And Rachelle came and helped me. We got done in about an hour. Luckily we had done most of it on Saturday.

So, that's a short journey through my packing and cleaning adventure. Hope you enjoyed it.

My normal has changed.

Change is ... hard. complicated. good. bad. unnerving. fun. learning. crazy (good crazy & bad crazy). Humbling. different. happy. sad. inevitable.

So, I've been living here for 4 nights. I am still very much learning the tricks of how things are supposed to go around here. For instance, tonight, I learned that if I am not going to get home until 9:30, my grandpa is going to stay up until I get home. (His bedtime is usually 9 o'clock. I didn't think he'd be up when I got home, but he was.) I also learned that he likes brownies any time of day. (Rachelle gave me a brownie for him tonight, and he ate it tonight.) I am learning that he likes to talk a lot. He is just lonely and needs someone to talk to. I know. But, I never knew an old man had so many words.

I am learning how to balance life. I feel like I'm sort of living two lives. My "normal" life with work, and hanging out at Rachelle's to have dinner (which was yummy by the way) and watching The Biggest Loser finale. And then my "other" life, here, in West Jordan. It is still weird and new and different. My "normal" life hasn't changed a whole lot. But, it has, because now I have a new, "other" life. Sometimes when I am in my normal life I feel guilty, and want to be here at home. But, then, when I am home, it is hard to shift gears back to this life. Old people just run on a different time schedule, and do things differently. It is just interesting to switch back and forth. I am sure as I get settled in, that part of things will settle down in my brain, too.

Another thing I am learning, that is hard for me, is learning how to live with someone again. I've been living alone for a good long while. So, I could walk in the door, drop everything right there, and plop down on the couch, grab my laptop, turn on the tv, and just veg, and no one cared. Now, when I come home, I have to talk to someone. Not saying this is a bad thing, at all, it's just something I'm getting used to. I feel like my sense of normalcy is gone. Change will do that to you. But, living alone was normal to me. Not talking to anyone else at home was normal to me. Being able to eat whatever I wanted whenever I wanted was normal to me. Being able to have the TV on in the living room, and the radio on in the bedroom, right next door, and not caring about the noise, or worrying about waking anyone up, that was normal to me.

My normal has changed.

On another note, I finished cleaning and checked out of my apartment tonight. It was a little bit sad to walk out of there. I took a few more pics. I looked around as I closed the door, thinking that it was a good apartment for me. I had some happy times there. Those two years were good two years. Good apartment. good neighbors. good friends. good ward. good callings. good jobs. good times.

Now I am on to bigger and better things. Who knows what the next two years will bring? Hopefully some more good times. more good friends. more good callings in a good ward.

Moving is emotional

So, it was an emotional weekend for me, since I moved. (Am I the only one, besides my sister and my mom, who think that moving is emotional?) I didn't work on Friday, and spent that whole day finishing packing my apartment, thanks to my amazing sister Kaylynn, who is a whiz at doing anything one-handed (with a 8-month old on her hip). Then Saturday, luckily, we got most of my stuff out of my apartment into the trailer and all six cars that drove to my new house before the snow hit. Unluckily, we had to drive in it to West Jordan. Luckily, my grandpa's house has a garage, so we backed up each car to the garage and unloaded that way, so we weren't traipsing around in the snow too much. We made it with 90% of my stuff in one trip. We had to go back for my washer & dryer, a few bookshelves, and my bike that has two flat tires and a old ripped up seat. (Ask me when the last time I rode it?... no idea. At least 2 years, probably longer.)

I have to go back tomorrow after work to finish cleaning and to get the rest of the garbage that we left. Oh, and the food in the fridge. I am really afraid I'm going to forgot that part, and that would not be a good welcome to the new tenants. :)

My new house: that has been part of the emotionalness of the weekend. I moved in with my grandpa. He is lonely and needed some companionship. He is in fairly good health right now for an 86-year-old man, so I am not his nurse or caregiver. I am just here as a warm body in his house, for the most part. I will be helping out with certain things, as needed. It is going to be interesting and challenging, for both of us, I'm sure, as we settle in and get used to each other's schedules. It is hard for me because I've been living alone - footloose and fancy-free, and hard for him because he is 86, and I just invaded his house. He thinks I have a lot of stuff. He watched it all get brought in and was a little overwhelmed. Lucky for me he has a nice big house with a nice big basement which I took over, pretty much.

I had a good cry about it this morning, with my mom and dad. I think it helps just to cry once in a while. I guess I have been crying way more than normal for me lately. Maybe that will stop, who knows. But, I am feeling good about it. We will be ok. My biggest stumbling block right now is food and the kitchen. I don't have any space in the kitchen, for anything. Ok, not totally true. I have two random cupboards. But, I knew that was going to be the case. I packed up most of my dishes, and I'm just going to use his stuff, for the most part. But, the eating thing is a challenge. He feels like he needs to feed me. I don't want to be fed, because I'm on Weight watchers, and therefore trying to be picky about what I eat. But, I've been eating with him, which is ok, but I can't do it all the time. So, I tried to tell him about WW, and that was why I wasn't eating everything he offered me. But, he still offered cookies and ice cream after that. So, the food is going to be a challenge for a little while, until he figures out that he can just let me do my own thing and he can do his thing, and we can eat dinner together once or twice a week, and be ok with that. For now, I am just doing the best I can, trying not to offend him, because he gets offended when you don't want to eat his food. I figured I earned lots of activity points this weekend moving, packing, hauling, unpacking, sorting, etc. that I am sort of ok to eat whatever.

Church was also interesting today. Everyone knows grandpa, and therefore knew of me at least. Some people knew I was coming, so welcomed me when they saw me. They tried to get me to go to a singles class for Relief Society, but I refused. Was that bad? Probably. But I think that most of the girls that went were 19 or 20. Not really my idea of fun. Then, after church, I was supposed to meet grandpa outside the relief society room. I got stopped, and was talking to a nice lady in the ward. I saw grandpa peek in the room, and then leave. So, I finally was leaving, and couldn't find him anywhere. I got stopped in the hall again by 2 nice ladies, so I talked to them for a minute, then I asked if they knew where grandpa was. They told me he had walked out the door. So, I was afraid he had walked home without me. I went quickly out the door, couldn't see him anywhere, tried to go look down the street to see if I could see him walking, wasn't sure what I was going to do. And of course, I looked lost. Another nice lady, the bishop's wife, got out of her car, and asked if I needed help. She started walking back in the building with me to see if we could find him, and luckily he walked out right then. We had been going in circles looking for each other. We need to do better next week with that one. I shouldn't talk as much, or he should just stick to the original plan.

But, my mind was going, as I was looking for him, thinking, "I can't even keep track of him for an hour, how am I supposed to do this for 6 months? or a year?"

I feel a little bit responsible

So, I spent the afternoon at my sister's house, had dinner with them, helped (mostly watched) them make a gingerbread house, made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, and just hung out with them. I was playing with Lindsay's hair (she is 3), telling her how pretty it was, and long. Hailey was sitting next to me, and said she wanted to cut her hair, so I said I would. She went and found some scissors, and I jokingly pretended to cut her hair. Then, of course, Lindsay wanted me to cut her hair, so I pretended to cut her hair. Then, I realized that I was planting a bad idea in her head. So I told them that we don't cut hair, only professional hair people cut hair. I was afraid Lindsay would do something she wasn't supposed to. And, unfortunately, my suspicions were right. She came back a while later with her hair chopped. It actually could have been much worse, she didn't cut it completely off. She just gave herself a little bob. With a little mullet in the back. I was going to take a picture, but I wasn't sure that was a good idea, as her mom and dad were not amused, and trying to teach her that what she did was wrong.

I feel like I am slightly responsible for her cutting her hair, as I put the thought in her head. But, I guess that's what a good aunt does, huh? Get the kids are riled up, teach them to do bad things, and then I just get to go home and leave the mess for the parents to clean up. :) Ok, that's not how I really feel. In fact, I feel really bad about this. Not that they are blaming me, but I still feel bad. I guess everyone makes mistakes.

50 things

My friend Clarice just did this on her blog, so I thought I'd do it. Sorry if you are sick of reading lists on my blog. Maybe someday I'll post some pics again... :)

50 things you didn't know about me until you read this...

1.What color is your tooth brush? yellow and white
2. What were you doing 45 minutes ago? eating Cafe Rio pork salad
3. What is your favorite candy bar? Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
4. Have you ever been to a strip club? Nope
5. What is the last thing you said aloud? To go
6. What is the best ice cream flavor? mint cookie
7. What is the last thing you had to drink? Diet Dr Pepper
8. What are you wearing right now? comfy gray pants and my long sleeve Life Is Good shirt
9. What was the last thing you ate? Cafe Rio YUMMY pork salad
10. Have you bought any new clothing items this week? Only if a new purse counts
11. When was the last time you ran? I did for a few minutes at the gym on Monday morning
12. Who was the last person to send you a message/comment on your blog? Clarice, my old Archivers friend, I think
13. Do you take vitamins daily? no, but I should
14. Do you go to church every Sunday? yes
15. Do you have a tan? no, I just sunburn, but that hasn't happened for a long time
16. Do you like Chinese food over pizza? Definitely.
17. Do you drink soda with a straw? that's my preferred choice, a fountain drink with a straw
18. What does your last text message say? let me confer with my husband really quick & then I'll get rite back 2 u (my sister, Rachelle)
19. Are you someones best friend? perhaps, mostly I have lots of good friends
20. What are you doing tomorrow? cleaning and packing and moving, then going to Art Market
21. Where is your dad? in Idaho Falls, don't really know what he's doing right now
22. Look to your left, what do you see? the pile of books, mail, pens, watches, and the remote on the back on my couch
23. What color is your favorite pair of shoes? brown, kinda boring, I know
24. Do you use chap stick? yes, and I tend to lose them constantly, so I just keep buying more
25. Whats your favorite thing to do in your free time? Read a book or be creative
26. Do you go in at a fast food place or just hit the drive thru? Drive thru!
27. Do you have a dog? no thanks
28. Last guy you talked on the phone with? my brother-in-law Matt
29. Last girl you talked on the phone with? my sister Rachelle
30. Any fun vacation plans soon? going to Phoenix in February to see my sister Sharon
31. Do you dye your hair? I do get highlights sometimes, but it is an expensive habit
32. Can you say the alphabet backwards? zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcba
33. Do you have a maid service clean your house? it's a dream, but no, I do the cleaning
34. Are you jealous of anyone? jealous... I don't think so
35. Do you love anyone? Yes, lots of people
36. Do any of your friends have children? yes, most are married with kids
37. Do you use the word Hello daily? I think so, it's one of those words that you don't think about
38. Do you like cats? no, not really a pet person
39. Have you ever been to six flags? no
40. How did you get your worse scar? Falling off a plastic slide in my unfinished basement and hitting my head on the pipe for the toilet, had to have stitches
41. What is your favorite smell? i love the smell of fresh cut grass
42. What is the last DVD you watched? Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2
43. Have you ever been to Disney world? No
44. What is your favorite number? 5
45. Do you toast your pop tarts? Haven't had one for ages, but when I did eat them, I think I just ate them cold. yum
46. Have you ever waited tables? No
47. Where did you have your first kiss? i don't kiss and tell...
48. What should you be doing? packing
49. Do you enjoy wasting time blogging? love it, but i don't count it as wasted time, because I keep up with friends and family this way
50. Who do you want to tag? Anyone who wants to do this too!

Bad Service

I don't want to complain, but I have to tell you about two experiences I've had in the last 24 hours. Last night I stopped at Sonic for dinner, and ordered the grilled chicken wrap combo. On the menu it was $4.89, so I was expecting $5 something to be the total, but the guy told me it was $6.22. What? I couldn't figure out why. So, when the girl brought out my food, I asked her why it was that much. She didn't really understand what my problem was, didn't think there was a problem, and after trying to make her understand for a minute, just decided to give in, and gave her the $6.22. But, I shouldn't have, because I was mad about it all night last night. I'm not always good at fighting for myself in those situations. It is only $1, but still, it's the principle of the thing. I've had issues with that Sonic before. So, I will try not to go there anymore.

My other fun experience happened at Walmart just now. I know I know, I should expect it at walmart, but I actually like Walmart, they have good prices, and I've had pretty good service at this one. I didn't have a lot of stuff, maybe 12 items. I put some of my stuff on the belt thing, and then it moved, so when i put the rest of my items down, they weren't right next to the first pile. There was a space, but no little wooden bar separating orders. So, I must be tired or something. He rang up my items, I ran my debit card, I thought he did it fast, and that the total wasn't very much, but once again, must be tired, because I didn't think too much of it. I paid him, took my bags and left. And then I got home. And was missing 1/2 my items. milk, eggs, yogurt... grrr. I was, still am, pretty annoyed. How hard is that? I know, I should be paying more attention, but he, the dumb 16 year old cashier boy, should have been more aware of what he was doing. So, I'm guessing he tried to make the lady behind me pay for my milk and eggs. Oops. My only consolation is that he didn't charge me for them and then not give them to me. But, still, I needed those things. And, I don't want to go back to get them.

I'm just wondering where good service went to?