New Home Tour: Carpet

Old:

New:

We recarpeted everything in the house that was carpeted. The guy the sent to tear out the carpet and lay the new carpet called me in the early afternoon asking if he could come back the next day and finish. I came to the house to lock up and he told me he had hurt his knee by dropping a roll of carpet on it and he was in too much pain to finish. He felt bad that he couldn't finish that day so I convinced him to do the stairs like this, rather than the waterfall style we had paid for. It would have cost us an extra $5 per step for this, but we got it for free. They look so much better like this.

New Home Tour: Master Bedroom

First of all, we haven't yet thanked all of those who have helped work on the house. Thanks to Shoshanah ( who further damaged her rotator cuff painting walls in our home), to Dad, Mom, Megan, Uncle Gary, Matt (for the 20-30 minutes of actual work I think we got out of him), Grandpa, Sam and Jen. We only have one before picture of the master bedroom and it is of the ceiling fixture (Jorden was the photographer and we didn't think of before and after pictures until afterwards). Anyways...

Old:

New:

We did the following to the master bedroom:

1. Painted the walls "Chocolate Froth."

2. Painted the closet shelves white.

3. Recarpeted.

4. Broke our vacuum cleaning up all of the little carpet pieces. A new vacuum was just another of the many surprises we've had to purchase since we moved in.

New Home Tour: Entryway

New:

We did the following to the front entryway:

1. Painted the walls "guacamole green."

2. Replaced the front doorknob and deadbolt, which we also had done in the kitchen and dining room on the doors to the outside.

3. Replaced the doorstop to chrome to match all of the door handles throughout the house. (This is something I forgot to mention on the post about the entire house, we took down the gold doorknobs and made everything chrome.)

New Home Tour: Dining Room

Old:

New:

The changes we made to the dining room are:

1. Bought and assembled two stools so that we can eat meals sitting at the island.

2. Painted the wall that connects to the kitchen the "guacamole green."

3. Painted the wall that connects to the stairs and hall "chocolate froth."

4. Put a cover on one of the exposed holes in the wall that used to be an outlet.

5. Replaced the blinds on the left window.

6. Removed the chair rail, only to find they had left wallpaper underneath it. We had to steam off the wallpaper before we could prime, texture some parts of the wall, and paint.

7. Couldn't find a sconce that matched to replace the one that was missing so we removed the other three and patched the holes.

New Home Tour: Entire House

As Shoshanah mentioned in her comment, there are a few things that we did universally through all the rooms:
1. We cleaned every room top to bottom.
2. We sanded rough spots on every wall we painted.
3. We spackled all of the holes throughout the house.
4. We prepared all of the rooms except the bathrooms to be painted. I think we would be happy if we never saw another roll of blue tape or another bucket of paint.
5. Jorden wants it specifically stated that all of the baseboards were painted!

New Home Tour: Kitchen

We've been super busy working on the house getting ready to move in, so over the next few days we'll give you a walkthrough of the house as well as let you know what we've done with every spare moment we weren't working.

Old:

New:

Don't mind the mess of painting supplies and tools, but we made the following changes to the kitchen:

1. Painted the walls a green we call "guacamole green" over the old red/maroon.

2. Replaced the surge protector that was hanging from the microwave behind the stove with an extension cord that sits along the wall.

3. Replaced the fluorescent light fixture with a 3 bulb fixture that we can point where we want and won't have the sensation that we are still at work in a cubicle.

4. Fixed the broken hinge on one of the cupboard doors.

5. Bought a new fridge because the old one was not left open at all during the months they had been out of the house without power and it was covered with mold inside.

6. Tightened the loose faucet.

We Finally Did It....

We bought a house!!! Today at 4:00 pm we closed on our new home in Orem. We don't get keys until tomorrow so it hasn't quite set in yet that we are homeowners, but we are super excited to get into a home of our own. We'll be living much closer to both of our offices, which is nice. Over the next few weeks we plan to paint and recarpet before we move our things in. Here is the view from the outside. When we've moved in we'll get more pictures posted. Wish us luck!

Happy New Year!

As I was sitting here on New Years Eve contemplating 2008, trying to remember all of the important events that occurred, I noticed that I had been tagged. Now, this is not just any tag...it is a list of "Things to do before you die". And if any of you know me, I LOVE making lists of things to do before I die. So, imagine how thrilling it is when someone else makes a list for me! Below is the list, and the idea is to mark the ones you have already done. I am marking them as follows:

The ones I have done are in BLUE.
The ones I want to do are in RED.
The ones I plan to do in 2009 (or every year following until I am successful) are in GREEN.
The ones I don't want to do or will likely never do are in PURPLE.
Let the fun begin:

Started your own blog
Slept under the stars
Played in a band
Visited Hawaii
Watched a meteor shower (the day my grandpa died)
Given more than you can afford to charity (and I call that charity the LDS church...)
Been to Disneyland
Climbed a mountain
Held a praying mantis
Sang a solo (two weeks ago in Primary...)
Bungee jumped
Visited Paris
Watched a lightning storm at sea
Taught yourself an art from scratch
Adopted a child
Had food poisoning
Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
Grown your own vegetables
Slept on an overnight train (Fun Train!)
Had a pillow fight
Hitch hiked
Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
Held a lamb
Gone skinny dipping
Run a Marathon (not likely!)
Seen a total eclipse
Watched a sunrise or sunset
Hit a home run
Been on a cruise
Seen Niagara Falls in person
Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (I hope the German airport counts!)
Seen an Amish community
Fired a rifle, shotgun or pistol (and practically burned my hand off. Here's a tip...don't hold the barrel when you fire a pistol!)
Michelangelo’s David
Sung karaoke
Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
Bought a stranger a meal
Visited Africa
Walked on a beach by moonlight
Been transported in an ambulance (hopefully I will never have to experience this...)
Had your portrait painted
Gone deep sea fishing
Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
Gone scuba diving or snorkeling (and I could add "Learned how to swim")
Kissed in the rain
Played in the mud
Gone to a drive-in theater
Visited the Great Wall of China
Started a business (making people's scrapbooks...I'll start with you, AJ!)
Taken a martial arts class
Visited Russia
Served at a soup kitchen
Sold Girl Scout Cookies
Gone whale watching
Got flowers for no reason
Donated blood, platelets or plasma-- NEVER going to happen...unless they drug me first!
Gone sky diving
Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
Bounced a check
Flown in a helicopter
Saved a favorite childhood toy
Visited the Lincoln Memorial
Eaten Caviar
Pieced a quilt
Stood in Times Square
Been fired from a job
Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
Been on a speeding motorcycle
Seen the Grand Canyon in person
Published something (several articles in my HS newspaper)
Bought a brand new car
Walked in Jerusalem
Visited the White House
Had chickenpox
Sat on a jury
Met someone famous
Joined a book club
Lost a loved one
Had a baby
Seen the Alamo in person
Swam in the Ocean
Owned a cell phone
Been stung by a bee
Seen Mount Rushmore in person
Learned to play an instrument
Held a tarantula
Touched an iceberg
Changed a baby’s diaper
Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
Had a food fight
Had a snowball fight
Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
Ridden a roller coaster
Visited all 50 states--So far, I've only been to 16, and I only count them if I have urinated in the state!
Taken a road-trip
Milked a cow
Been in a movie (an MTC movie...)
Crashed a party ("Crashed" would mean I was not invited, right? Well, I'm ALWAYS invited!)
Made cookies from scratch
Gotten a tattoo
Rafted the Snake River (maybe when I learn how to swim...)
Performed on stage
Been to Las Vegas
Eaten shark
Bought a house
Been in a combat zone (of a Civil War re-enactment in Rhode Island...YES, of a real one, no)
Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
Touched a stingray
Broken a bone
Ridden a horse
Eaten sushi
Had your picture in the newspaper
Gone back to school
Eaten fried green tomatoes
Killed and prepared an animal for eating (I am totally counting fish)
Dyed your hair
Caused a car accident (um...with a church...)
Saved someone’s life (technically, I save my own life regularly but I don't think that counts).

I figured this would be the easiest way to share my New Years Resolutions for 2009, since they are both on this list (and since they have been on my list ever since I got married, and will be probably FOREVER!) I tag anyone who is interested in this sort of thing, but I am very interested in what Shoshi, Jen, and Tia have to say.

I love tags!

I love tags, because it helps me think of things to write on the blog when nothing big and exciting is going on in my life. Dan hates them...but I'm going to do them anyway!

1.Where is your cell phone? couch
2. Where is your significant other? work
3. Your hair color? brownish
4. Your mother? JoAnn's
5. Your father? celebrating
6. Your favorite thing? Friday
7. Your dream last night? stealing
8. Your dream/goal? baby
9. The room you're in? messy
10. Your hobby? crafty
11. Your fear? infertility
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? home
13. Where were you last night? snuggling
14. What you're not? perfect
15. One of your wish-list items? house
16. Where you grew up? Seattle
17. The last thing you did? showered
18. What are you wearing? PJ's
19. Your TV? huge
20. Your pet(s)? fat
21. Your computer? overloaded
22. Your mood? anxious
23. Missing someone? family
24. Your car? cold
25. Something you're not wearing? ring
26. Favorite store? Costco
27. Last thing you read? uplifting
28. The last thing you ate? cookie
29. Last time you cried? tender
30. What you are looking forward to? vacation

I tag...Tia, Shoshi, and anyone else who wants to play this game.

Thanks Brooke!

Tag...Buon Natale!

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? I LOVE both, but I have to pick hot chocolate, because it always hits the spot after you've been out in the freezing cold snow (and, if you use milk, it helps fight osteoporosis...)

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? He always wraps! Like Santa has time to put together all the toys! That's what we have parents (and husbands) for!

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White on tree, either on house. I had Winnie the Pooh lights growing up, and I would put them on the tree now if I had them...

4. Do you hang mistletoe? When I was single...yes. It is not really necessary now...

5. When do you put up your decorations? This year, never...but I want to put them up right after Thanksgiving.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? No bake fruit cake (or as my friends call it, butter cake).

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? One year it snowed really hard one night, so my mom and dad debated for hours about whether or not they should go out and get the four of us M-O-O-N B-O-O-T-S (yes, they spelled them out, but I was smart enough to figure out what they were saying). My dad ran off to the store and bought us each a pair, and as soon as he got home we went out to play in the snow. When we woke up the next morning, the snow was gone...and it didn't come back for the rest of that year. By the time it snowed again, we had all outgrown our moon boots. I could use some moon boots right now...

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? "Truth"? What "truth"? What are you talking about?

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Not growing up, but we do now. We buy a gift for each other specifically for Christmas Eve.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? With ornaments, silly.

11. Can you ice skate? No. I can put on ice skates and hold onto the wall of the rink really well.

12. Do you remember your favorite gift? I have received too many wonderful gifts to have a favorite. However, when I was younger I collected nick knacks, and one year my dad built me a special shelf for all my little animals and things...I still have the shelf, and am putting little reminders on it of the fun trips Danny and I go on.

13. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Spending time with family...but that is always bitter-sweet for me because I never get to see mine during the Holiday season.

14. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Pumpkin anything (pie, bars, cake, pudding, custard, whatever...I love pumpkin!)

15. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Growing up, I loved going to Grandma and Grandpa's house on Christmas Eve and playing with my cousins. But I am excited about the new tradition we are going to start with the pickle ornament (thanks mom!)

16. What tops your tree? A star since we've been married, but I've been looking for a nice angel...

17. Which do you prefer: giving or receiving? I've always loved giving...specifically trying to find something that I know someone else would really enjoy.

18. What is your favorite Christmas Song? Baby, it's cold outside...I don't know if that is what it's really called, but I love that song. At church, my favorite is Far, Far Away on Judea's Plains.

19. Do you feel Christmas is too commercialized? YES!!! The strength of friendships and family relationships should not be determined by the gift that is given or received at Christmas.

I Tag...AJ, Tatia, Jen, and Anne.

Goodbye Sandy...

My office mate and dear friend has decided that she would rather go and live in Hawaii with her hubby than continue to work back to back with me...and I'm a little traumatized by the situation. Who is going to try to distract me while I'm working now? Who else can possibly understand my "chocolate" addiction? Who will I go to the gym with every morning (or every other morning...or once a week...oh, who am I kidding? I don't go to the gym!)? Who am I going to play guitar hero with on our days off, and have a "bitter" college rivalry with? Who is going to leave little "chocolates" all over her desk for me to "sample"? Well, old chum...I hope you have fun in the sun...and that you come back to visit sometime. Actually, I hope that you will have a change of heart and decide to stay right where you are...but I don't think that is going to happen, so I'm trying to be a realist so I can get over my grief and loss sooner. Adio Sandy...it's been fun.

We talk about the book, I swear!

Four years ago, my dear friend Becca had the bright idea of forming a sassy book club with a group of our friends. Since that time, we have read dozens of books, rotated through dozens of members, and enjoyed pounds upon pounds of delicious food. Our current group consists of the lovely ladies below:

Natalie, Heather, me, Lucy

Emily and Shoshi

Some members wish to remain faceless...Marie

Some might say we have one of the most "diverse" book clubs in the Valley. We usually spend about an hour discussing the current book selection (most recently The Book Thief by Markus Zusak), then two to three hours catching up on world (and personal) events. Book Club is one of the highlights of my month...I love having an excuse to read a good book, and to spend time with good friends. It is sad that so many of our members have "passed on" and are no longer able to attend (we miss you girls!). Thank you Becca for bringing the book club into my life!

Golf Season Recap

As the golf season is getting ready to come to a close, I thought I would comment a little bit on the past season in one post, rather than bore everyone by blogging after every time I golf. So here goes (Score in parenthesis):

Favorite New Course I Tried: Talon's Cove (95) and Soldier Hollow (96 Gold, 102 Silver). Talon's Cove was a real fun, yet challenging course with a lot of blind shots. Soldier Hollow is another great course up Provo Canyon with a lot of challenging shots up and down the mountain.

Least Favorite New Course I Tried: Jordan River Par 3 (39)...we went here for Jorden's birthday, but as is the case with most par 3 courses they get a bit run down.

Other New Courses I Tried: Wingpointe, Riverbend

Best Scores: Sleepy Ridge (42), Wingpointe, (91), Eastbay (93)

Worst Scores: Riverbend (117), Homestead (116)

First Round: February 29th, Sleepy Ridge (47)

Last Round: Today, Sleepy Ridge (47), unless the weather stays nice and I get out again...does it mean I'm not improving if my score is exactly the same after 9 months of golfing?

Biggest Regret: Not taking my clubs to Washington and playing at Chamber's Bay. Luckily I'll be taking more trips up there and I won't miss the chance.

Change in Handicap: 28.0 in February to 25.8 currently

Anyways, I hope I can get out again this year, if not I'll have to sneak out early next year. Thanks to everyone who went along on my many golf outings.

Three years ago today...

Three wonderful years down, an eternity to go...