About three weeks into working at the brand new store, I felt like I was getting the hang of things pretty well. Most of the other employees would even come to me with questions about various work-related needs and techniques. It made me feel pretty good, because 1) I love helping and teaching others, and 2) it means others can tell that I am skilled and knowledgeable, which just feels great.
On my way out of the store one day after a full morning of work, my boss chatted with me briefly and practically in passing mentioned that she wants to make me assistant manager. Sweeeeeet!! I think some of my co-workers were expecting it. I'll admit I was hopeful, but I wasn't sure if she'd really need one since she and her husband both work at the store pretty frequently. And it's not that I'm aspiring, but I would like to learn various responsibilities of managing the store so that I can use what I learn for opening my own small business in the future. I told that to my boss back in my interview when I turned in my employment application, and I think it's stuck with her and is a big part of why she hired me. She even brings it up from time to time, recognizing that this isn't just some job for me while I'm between other modes of employ. I want to learn how to run a successful small and specialized store so that I can do just that one day. The things I'm learning at work I'm taking to heart and storing away for future reference. I'm not just another girl who wants to work with great people in a fun atmosphere. I don't just want a discount on what we sell. I'm definitely not in it just for the money, because the pay may be decent but I'm definitely not going to get rich off my paychecks. I want to learn everything I can for future purposes.
So being assistant manager is pretty exciting for me to say the least.
At the same time, I'm kind of nervous and worried that I'll start making mistakes or mess up more frequently, because I do that when I'm under pressure. I just hope I can maintain my confidence and excitement about it and not give in to whatever insecurities and self-doubt and low self-esteem issues I might have. I'm strong and independent, not weak and completely reliant on others.... right?
For now, I'm thrilled about it. I just hope it sticks.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Sunday, March 6, 2011
I've Been Hacked!
That's right, my sneaky and subversive husband has hacked my account, and has typed this blog post as a surprise to me. Just so y'all don't get confused, he'll be talking as though he's me, even though I, Janae, had nothing to do with this particular post.
Let's start off by setting down some basics that we can all agree on.
Let's start off by setting down some basics that we can all agree on.
- I'm Janae, and I'm incredibly attractive. Also, I'm lots of fun.
- I have such a wide range of interests and talents that I can hardly keep up with them. I love to cook, bake, sew, craft with paper, scissors, fabric, glue, wood, and just about anything else I can get my hands on
- I have an excellent eye for design and aesthetics, and I love to bring that to play in organizing and decorating my home, and in all those crafty things.
- I want to learn and do so much more! I've always wanted to go hang gliding, I love climbing but don't go enough, and I love snowboarding, but same problem there. I still need to learn to crochet and a bunch of other crafts and hobbies.
- I'm hopelessly addicted to Halo. I wasn't very good a few years ago, but after weekly sessions with friends, I can legitimately hold my own. I've even won a few rounds.
- I really really really want to learn metalsmithing so I can design and cast my own jewelery. Why does everything I want to do cost so much?
- Case in point, I also want to travel the globe. I want to see third world countries and the remnants of the height of European monarchies. I want to see the tropics, the tundra, and be swallowed in the vastness of the Sahara. I want to see all the different places right here in the U.S., from the Painted Desert, to the Redwoods, to Mt. Rushmore, to the Everglades, to New York City, to the coasts of Maine, to the underground Boston music scene...
- Have you noticed how cute I am? I'm seriously attractive, really! Who else do you know that could pull off any hair color, any outfit, any style? We are few and far between. Worship us.
- I throw the BEST parties. ....E V A R R R.
- I am one tough chick. If you had any idea all of the crap I've been through in my life to get where I am, you would probably faint. Or maybe you'd relate if you've been there, too. Respect my journey.
- A side effect of all that is PTSD, which I've written other posts about, from time to time. This makes even the most trivial of matters sometimes insurmountable in the moment. Do you get it? Maybe. But unless you've dealt with it, I doubt it. Like I said, I'm tough. I always make it through it.
- I have an incredible amount of faith, and a very strong testimony of the Restored Gospel. Sometimes the social side of attending church is hard for me to deal with (see above), but I will always love the Savior, the Gospel, and my Heavenly Father. It's unshakable.
- My husband is better than your husband.
- Did I mention how ridiculously attractive I am?
- Have you hung out with me lately? Why not? I promise you that I am outrageously hilarious, and a load of fun! Seriously, what's your excuse?
- I've changed through about 9 different majors in college (lots of interests) so I know a lot about a lot of stuff, instead of a little bit about a lot of stuff or everything about one thing. Except for sewing- my husband thinks I might know just about everything about that, but I don't really think so; There's always something new to learn!
- I love animals and I really want a dog! We never really got to have one growing up and now that I'm older, I want one.
- I love my sisters-in-law and I wish I hung out with them more. What do we have in common? What can we do together?
- I'm going to be the coolest mom ever, except for maybe my mom, who is perpetually amazing. My husband has no doubt that I can live up to her legacy, though.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Like old times...
When I was in high school, and for the first few years of college, I had this whole punk-rock kind of style and mentality. I liked it. In all honesty, I still kind of do. It just seemed to fit me better than anything else, and over time, I've made it all my own. I liked crazy belt buckles, studded leather belts, my favorite band t-shirts, jeans so holey they were falling apart, and music that made me want to jump around or get in a fight.
For my high school prom, I wore my black leather studded belt and nautical star buckle with my red prom dress that I designed and made myself. I had long hair and dyed the tips of it red like the dress, giving me red curls in my up-do, along with strips of a different old studded belt woven through the curls. I think I looked pretty awesome, and my date made the look complete. He had a red suit with a black satin tux-style stripe down the side of his pants, black satin lapels, completed by a Rancid patch among a few others hand-sewn onto it in various places. He wore a black pair of Chucks. I wore a pair of high-heeled Converse-style shoes (that I still have because I love them so much). We looked fantastic! I wish I could find pictures of that night, because we were the best looking couple there and we stood out from everyone.
During my freshman year of college, I tried out fluorescent orange highlights once, and with my long hair, they looked awful. So I asked my friend who had dyed it to chop it all off. She'd been in hair school, so she knew mostly what she was doing, I think. Later on I even dyed my whole head that bright orange color. I loved it. And I somehow got away with it on BYU campus.
I've worn whatever I wanted for just about my whole life--well, from about 5th grade on, when I really started to become interested in clothing and fashion. I've dyed my hair numerous times, dozens of colors, had it in countless styles and lengths, and I've had a lot of fun doing all of that.
I've always liked the fact that people tell me they wish they had the guts to do some of the things I do. I guess I feel like I add flavor to the world, doing some things not many of my friends would, whether with my hair, makeup, clothing, or whatever else.
When I went on a mission, I put a lot of that behind me, because I needed to look the part of one of the Lord's servants and have other people recognize me as such. Short spiky hair and studded belts doesn't really fit that criteria. So I grew it out, wore skirts, collared shirts, and sweater vests for a year and a half, and it was well worth the sacrifice. What an incredible time of my life those short 18 months were!
So I've been back in "real life" for over two years now. I've kept that former style of mine toned down quite a bit. But recently, I've just been having this.... this........ crazy urge to pick it up some more, once again. So here's my most recent splurge:
For my high school prom, I wore my black leather studded belt and nautical star buckle with my red prom dress that I designed and made myself. I had long hair and dyed the tips of it red like the dress, giving me red curls in my up-do, along with strips of a different old studded belt woven through the curls. I think I looked pretty awesome, and my date made the look complete. He had a red suit with a black satin tux-style stripe down the side of his pants, black satin lapels, completed by a Rancid patch among a few others hand-sewn onto it in various places. He wore a black pair of Chucks. I wore a pair of high-heeled Converse-style shoes (that I still have because I love them so much). We looked fantastic! I wish I could find pictures of that night, because we were the best looking couple there and we stood out from everyone.
During my freshman year of college, I tried out fluorescent orange highlights once, and with my long hair, they looked awful. So I asked my friend who had dyed it to chop it all off. She'd been in hair school, so she knew mostly what she was doing, I think. Later on I even dyed my whole head that bright orange color. I loved it. And I somehow got away with it on BYU campus.
I've worn whatever I wanted for just about my whole life--well, from about 5th grade on, when I really started to become interested in clothing and fashion. I've dyed my hair numerous times, dozens of colors, had it in countless styles and lengths, and I've had a lot of fun doing all of that.
I've always liked the fact that people tell me they wish they had the guts to do some of the things I do. I guess I feel like I add flavor to the world, doing some things not many of my friends would, whether with my hair, makeup, clothing, or whatever else.
When I went on a mission, I put a lot of that behind me, because I needed to look the part of one of the Lord's servants and have other people recognize me as such. Short spiky hair and studded belts doesn't really fit that criteria. So I grew it out, wore skirts, collared shirts, and sweater vests for a year and a half, and it was well worth the sacrifice. What an incredible time of my life those short 18 months were!
So I've been back in "real life" for over two years now. I've kept that former style of mine toned down quite a bit. But recently, I've just been having this.... this........ crazy urge to pick it up some more, once again. So here's my most recent splurge:
I got stop-sign-red highlights.
I think it's fun. And my favorite part is noticing how people react when they see me with this color of hair. Some do a double take. Some point it out right away and make sure it wasn't some mistake my hairdresser made. My favorite is when people talk to me like nothing is different, not mentioning the elephant in the room while staring at it the whole time. So what if you wouldn't do this or think it's tacky? I think it's fun, and I like it.
I really just wanted to let everyone know, my hair is bright, bright red right now.
It'll fade, but for now, it matches the color of my shirt.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
I'm great at what I do well.
I'd just like to write about how great I am right now. Not because I'm full of myself. But this is my blog, and my self esteem has a history of being pretty low, so the fact that I feel great about myself today is very important to me.
Yesterday before I left work, my boss handed me the store key and asked if I'd open this morning.
See, the store opened almost two weeks ago, and there are about seven of us customer service reps who also design the fruit arrangements that we sell. Training took three or four days, and we've slowly been getting everything organized and going. By the middle of last week, it was obvious who the efficient, hard workers are. There are only about three of the seven of us who work quickly without jeopardizing product quality. You guessed it, I am one of the three. My boss even acknowledged it to me, asking my opinion on how the others work and what we can possibly do to improve things. The delivery drivers all see it too, and they all secretly tell the three of us that they like us better because they appreciate how we really work for our pay.
The problem is that once business picks up, instead of prepping the fruit until nearly 1pm and the afternoon shift only making five or six arrangements a day, we should be able to have all the fruit prepped by 10:30 and by about noon or so have up to 25 arrangements ready for delivery. Yeah, there's a lot of work for us to do until that point, myself included.
Last week, one of the girls took over two hours to slice up four pineapples. This morning, the guy I was working with took two hours to slice up four oranges. Granted, it's not just peeling and chopping or whacking off what ppl don't eat--things are cut into shapes and in specific ways, but with the machines we use and training we've had, they should be FAR quicker at prepping the fruit! I cut 2 oranges in a matter of minutes the other day, and I sliced two pineapples in about 15 minutes this morning. Really, what is taking them so long? I also came in the other day and found all of the strawberries skewered wrong. When Valentines Day hits, I'm afraid they might be the reason we don't get every order filled on time. It stresses me out. I know it's not my store, but I take pride in where I work and in the work I do there. It seems like they don't.
My boss also comes to me when we have an order for chocolate dipped fruit. Everyone got the same training on it, everyone has practiced it, but everyone agrees that I'm the best at it. (I'll admit, I'm no stranger to gourmet desserts and it's not the first time I've dipped something delicious in chocolate, so I was a step ahead of everyone else when we all got hired.) My boss will generally have me dip whatever needs dipping when I'm there, and when I come on for my afternoon shifts and someone else is dipping fruit she'll have me go back and see how they're doing, and teach them how they can improve if they need it.
I'm also really glad I included so many of my random skills in my resume.
We dip some fruit in peanut butter, and with how crazy peanut allergies are, we have to have to be incredibly careful, and have separate everything for the peanut butter dipping station. Every utensil and dish we use for peanut butter has to have an orange sticker label on it so we know to only use it for peanut butter. My boss wasn't sure how to keep the cloths and apron(s) separate for that station, especially with needing to launder them every day, because stickers + fabric + washing won't exactly work. I offered to sew on some orange tags to the cloths and an orange ribbon across the top of one of the aprons. She happily approved of my idea, and I think she likes my initiative too.
She also asked me to help her with the booth for a bridal fair we're taking part in, mostly because of my experience in weddings and fashion design. It's right up my alley.
So, back to yesterday.
As I was rinsing off several pints of strawberries, in passing and completely out of the blue, my boss says to me, "Don't let me forget to give you the key so you can open the store tomorrow morning."
I thought, 'Has she talked to me about this? Did she forget to talk to me about this? Did I forget that she talked to me about this? ...I guess I'm getting a key to the store.'
I was pretty excited. I'm not sure who else or even if anyone else is getting one, but either way I'm happy she trusts me! I like to think I'm her favorite.
So today I opened the store! It was flawless and I did everything perfectly! We even had four online orders from overnight. It was just me and the slow-orange-slicing guy, and I could hardly get any work done prepping fruit because I kept having to take phone-in orders, walk-in orders, and even another online order. I needed slow-orange-slicer to finish those oranges, so I was taking care of everything else while he took his sweet time peeling the off skin, then the pith, and then slicing two into even wedges and the other two into round slices.
My boss came in around 11:30 and asked how it was going.
I mentioned slow-orange-slicer, and how I wasn't sure what to do about him. Then I told her about all the business we were getting, and she half-jokingly said, "Well you should just open every day!" I just smiled, because really, I would like that. I would love to have enough of her trust to open and run the store without her should she want or need me to. It's important for me to feel needed at work, like I'm an important part of the business. It makes me want to work harder, to contribute more, and to be a part of the business's success. It's just a part of who I am and how I work. Plus, a getting a pay-raise is always nice and is bound to happen at some point, and I'd like to feel deserving of that should I get one.
So I'm feeling happy today. I'm feeling productive, valuable, and skilled.
It's nice.
I'm sure at some point I'll have a bad day at work where everything goes wrong when I'm there.
But for now, I'll just enjoy this day of bliss while I can.
Yesterday before I left work, my boss handed me the store key and asked if I'd open this morning.
See, the store opened almost two weeks ago, and there are about seven of us customer service reps who also design the fruit arrangements that we sell. Training took three or four days, and we've slowly been getting everything organized and going. By the middle of last week, it was obvious who the efficient, hard workers are. There are only about three of the seven of us who work quickly without jeopardizing product quality. You guessed it, I am one of the three. My boss even acknowledged it to me, asking my opinion on how the others work and what we can possibly do to improve things. The delivery drivers all see it too, and they all secretly tell the three of us that they like us better because they appreciate how we really work for our pay.
The problem is that once business picks up, instead of prepping the fruit until nearly 1pm and the afternoon shift only making five or six arrangements a day, we should be able to have all the fruit prepped by 10:30 and by about noon or so have up to 25 arrangements ready for delivery. Yeah, there's a lot of work for us to do until that point, myself included.
Last week, one of the girls took over two hours to slice up four pineapples. This morning, the guy I was working with took two hours to slice up four oranges. Granted, it's not just peeling and chopping or whacking off what ppl don't eat--things are cut into shapes and in specific ways, but with the machines we use and training we've had, they should be FAR quicker at prepping the fruit! I cut 2 oranges in a matter of minutes the other day, and I sliced two pineapples in about 15 minutes this morning. Really, what is taking them so long? I also came in the other day and found all of the strawberries skewered wrong. When Valentines Day hits, I'm afraid they might be the reason we don't get every order filled on time. It stresses me out. I know it's not my store, but I take pride in where I work and in the work I do there. It seems like they don't.
My boss also comes to me when we have an order for chocolate dipped fruit. Everyone got the same training on it, everyone has practiced it, but everyone agrees that I'm the best at it. (I'll admit, I'm no stranger to gourmet desserts and it's not the first time I've dipped something delicious in chocolate, so I was a step ahead of everyone else when we all got hired.) My boss will generally have me dip whatever needs dipping when I'm there, and when I come on for my afternoon shifts and someone else is dipping fruit she'll have me go back and see how they're doing, and teach them how they can improve if they need it.
I'm also really glad I included so many of my random skills in my resume.
We dip some fruit in peanut butter, and with how crazy peanut allergies are, we have to have to be incredibly careful, and have separate everything for the peanut butter dipping station. Every utensil and dish we use for peanut butter has to have an orange sticker label on it so we know to only use it for peanut butter. My boss wasn't sure how to keep the cloths and apron(s) separate for that station, especially with needing to launder them every day, because stickers + fabric + washing won't exactly work. I offered to sew on some orange tags to the cloths and an orange ribbon across the top of one of the aprons. She happily approved of my idea, and I think she likes my initiative too.
She also asked me to help her with the booth for a bridal fair we're taking part in, mostly because of my experience in weddings and fashion design. It's right up my alley.
So, back to yesterday.
As I was rinsing off several pints of strawberries, in passing and completely out of the blue, my boss says to me, "Don't let me forget to give you the key so you can open the store tomorrow morning."
I thought, 'Has she talked to me about this? Did she forget to talk to me about this? Did I forget that she talked to me about this? ...I guess I'm getting a key to the store.'
I was pretty excited. I'm not sure who else or even if anyone else is getting one, but either way I'm happy she trusts me! I like to think I'm her favorite.
So today I opened the store! It was flawless and I did everything perfectly! We even had four online orders from overnight. It was just me and the slow-orange-slicing guy, and I could hardly get any work done prepping fruit because I kept having to take phone-in orders, walk-in orders, and even another online order. I needed slow-orange-slicer to finish those oranges, so I was taking care of everything else while he took his sweet time peeling the off skin, then the pith, and then slicing two into even wedges and the other two into round slices.
My boss came in around 11:30 and asked how it was going.
I mentioned slow-orange-slicer, and how I wasn't sure what to do about him. Then I told her about all the business we were getting, and she half-jokingly said, "Well you should just open every day!" I just smiled, because really, I would like that. I would love to have enough of her trust to open and run the store without her should she want or need me to. It's important for me to feel needed at work, like I'm an important part of the business. It makes me want to work harder, to contribute more, and to be a part of the business's success. It's just a part of who I am and how I work. Plus, a getting a pay-raise is always nice and is bound to happen at some point, and I'd like to feel deserving of that should I get one.
So I'm feeling happy today. I'm feeling productive, valuable, and skilled.
It's nice.
I'm sure at some point I'll have a bad day at work where everything goes wrong when I'm there.
But for now, I'll just enjoy this day of bliss while I can.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Oh yeah, about Christmas...
I've been meaning to post about this, so I decided to give myself until the end of January. So I even have a day to spare!
I loved Christmas this year. It was super fun and fantastic! We dressed up and went to a Christmas party. My hair is barely long enough to curl!
Also, we had out first Christmas tree! We went and bought it from one of those tree lots. Jeez, those things are expensive! I liked ours a lot. It had character. Next year, we're just going to Lowes and to get one from there--better price for a better tree, let me tell you. We still don't have a star for the top of our tree, but we made sure to have the lights start at the very top so there'd at least be something bright and shiny. And Bob's got this ancient electric train set that he was ridiculously excited to put around the tree. We had a lot of fun with it.
Also, it was great to be able to spend the holiday with family. My parents were in town, and two of my brother's families live so close we tend to see everyone frequently. We all slept at Russ & Ashley's house on Christmas Eve, and had a blast. Here are some highlights:
So, on Christmas Eve, Santa stopped by and dropped off presents for everyone. They were all pajamas for us to sleep in. Here are mine, Bob's, and my nephew Owen's. His little pirate PJs were adorable!
Also, I was reading somewhere about gift etiquette. Apparently, a woman should never receive anything related to cooking as a gift, ever. Well, I'm sorry whoever wrote that, but you are SO wrong! I absolutely love cooking--baking especially. I asked for lots of kitchenware for Christmas. If that were all I got, I would be so happy! It is pretty much all I got anyway, and I'm not complaining one bit! My favorite (I know I shouldn't pick favorites, but I really can't help it) is from my sister-in-law, Lauren. I seriously was not expecting this beauty:
I've been saving this space on the wall for something specifically like this! Ah, it's like a dream come true! And what I love about it is that my mom & dad got me a bunch of other cooking stuff, and now I can use Lauren's gift to hang my parent's gifts on. Perfect!
I'm still so happy about it, I sometimes can't contain myself and I squeal as I jump up and down for joy when I walk through the kitchen.
What a good end of 2010 we had!
I loved Christmas this year. It was super fun and fantastic! We dressed up and went to a Christmas party. My hair is barely long enough to curl!
Also, we had out first Christmas tree! We went and bought it from one of those tree lots. Jeez, those things are expensive! I liked ours a lot. It had character. Next year, we're just going to Lowes and to get one from there--better price for a better tree, let me tell you. We still don't have a star for the top of our tree, but we made sure to have the lights start at the very top so there'd at least be something bright and shiny. And Bob's got this ancient electric train set that he was ridiculously excited to put around the tree. We had a lot of fun with it.
Also, it was great to be able to spend the holiday with family. My parents were in town, and two of my brother's families live so close we tend to see everyone frequently. We all slept at Russ & Ashley's house on Christmas Eve, and had a blast. Here are some highlights:
So, on Christmas Eve, Santa stopped by and dropped off presents for everyone. They were all pajamas for us to sleep in. Here are mine, Bob's, and my nephew Owen's. His little pirate PJs were adorable!
And Christmas morning. I ended up getting all the stocking-stuffers for both mine and Bob's stockings, except a snap bracelet Bob surprised me with. We had candy, more candy, clementine oranges for stocking toe fillers, and Bob got a nice pair of wool socks in his. As for our gifts, I made Bob's robe that he got from me (which I posted about earlier), and he got me a new Calle street soccer ball (because someone used mine while I was serving as a missionary for 18 months and never gave it back or replaced it... *cough* Ben *cough* That's okay, I wasn't really expecting to get it back anyway.).
Also, I was reading somewhere about gift etiquette. Apparently, a woman should never receive anything related to cooking as a gift, ever. Well, I'm sorry whoever wrote that, but you are SO wrong! I absolutely love cooking--baking especially. I asked for lots of kitchenware for Christmas. If that were all I got, I would be so happy! It is pretty much all I got anyway, and I'm not complaining one bit! My favorite (I know I shouldn't pick favorites, but I really can't help it) is from my sister-in-law, Lauren. I seriously was not expecting this beauty:
I've been saving this space on the wall for something specifically like this! Ah, it's like a dream come true! And what I love about it is that my mom & dad got me a bunch of other cooking stuff, and now I can use Lauren's gift to hang my parent's gifts on. Perfect!
I'm still so happy about it, I sometimes can't contain myself and I squeal as I jump up and down for joy when I walk through the kitchen.
What a good end of 2010 we had!
Monday, January 10, 2011
confusion
Have you ever laughed and cried at the same time? I don't mean laughing so hard you cry--I'm talking about squeezing out tears while sobbing and between those sobs you're somehow cracking up laughing.
I'm not sure if ironic is the right word, but it's the only one I can think of at the moment.
Bob and I have been discussing our plans for the future, trying to decide what we need to do, where we need to go, and when we need to do various things. Back in November, we both were so sick of living in Provo that we were ready to just forget about all the junk we own and stay in San Diego after Thanksgiving rather than come back up to Utah at all.
Over Christmas break, something changed somehow, because we suddenly realized last week how much we actually love living here right now. We have a wonderful and cute home, we have fantastic friends, we live close to some family, snowboarding and rock climbing are practically right out side our front door, and we love the people we go to church with. Life feels pretty good here, really.
There are still problems we're having, with Bob hating his job and wanting a new one but unable to get hired anywhere else he applies. My job as an industrial designer has turned out to be pretty miserable. My willingness to work extra hard and to please clients has been taken advantage of, to the point where I'm the only one working and making projects really progress. I'm done there and would rather not be run into the ground anymore, so I'm finishing this last project (because I don't want to pawn it off onto anybody else like they did to me) and then I'm quitting. In light of that, I've been looking for a better job, more suited for me.
Speaking of which, I seriously have a passion for industrial design, but what with all the PTSD crap I've been struggling with for so long and finally taking care of for the past year, I've got some major creative blocks that I can't seem to get past when it comes to sketching and designing and learning about the creative process. The weird thing is, even with all of that keeping me from really excelling in that field, I've always been able to sew and make jewelry--even design those things from scratch. For some reason, I can still be creative in that area, but not when it comes to positioning simple shapes and forms, sketching out ideas just to get more ideas flowing, and building 3-D objects out of balsa wood and foam core board. I don't get it.
So for my emotional well being (which I've ignored my whole life until now--this is a new thing for me to actually think about), I changed my major--again, I know. I really don't know if I'm ever going to graduate--not from BYU anyway. I'm an open major for the 4th time. So I've been taking some sewing classes instead of finishing the last of my GEs. Not that I don't know how to sew (obviously, from many of my blog posts), but I've never learned professional techniques and skills related to sewing. I've always just taught myself, so it's been great to learn and improve my skills.
In light of my deep distaste for my job, I decided to job search a bit as well. Bob's job is kind of hit or miss on whether he will or won't have work, so it's been kind of unreliable. In order to try and have a steadier income, I looked for a job on ksl.com the other day at the perfect time to find out that a new Edible Arrangements is opening up here in Provo and that they were taking applications and hiring employees! So on Wednesday of last week, I put together a resume and drove over to apply. I got there and the owner was doing on-the-spot interviews with everyone. Thank goodness I dressed professionally! There were about five people in line waiting to be interviewed, and another person filling out an application at a table. So I joined in, waited, and was interviewed. I tried to not only make a good impression, but to also be memorable. The owner said to expect a phone call on Friday or Monday letting us know if she hired me or not. All weekend I was really banking on getting it, praying at every chance to get hired, because I really think I'd love it and the steady paycheck would be great!
Thursday morning, however, things began to really change again. Bob got an early phone call that woke us both up. His grandma on his mom's side was having heart problems and was in the hospital. Late Friday afternoon he got another phone call, and this time his aunt told him that his grandma had just passed away. Grandma didn't want a funeral either--she just wanted to be cremated, then have her ashes placed next to her husbands at a military cemetery. No family gathering or service--just put where she wanted to be.
With that, it seems like a lot of options are opening up for us suddenly. We might have some opportunities in San Diego to get life going down there. It's even felt like Bob doesn't have much going on up here anymore and he needs to go somewhere so that he can get a real career underway. I kind of make my life progress where ever I live with the various skills I have, so I'm content just about anywhere.
Today I got home from class, and Bob and I talked about what to do now. I started really doubting that I'd get the job at Edible Arrangements, because let's be honest--I'm not the most qualified person and there were tons of applicants. My sewing class professor is willing to let me advance more and also take a pattern-making class due to my experience. I've also looked into transferring to FIDM in San Diego to get a degree in something fashion related. (Honestly, I've always wanted to do that, but I just never thought it was realistic or logical.) Bob is looking at going down to San Diego even within the next month or two to start working on a possible property management career. We feel like that's what he should do, and yet we both feel like I should stay and finish some classes here. We decided that that's just what we'll do. Bob will go on to San Diego relatively soon, I'll take the sewing classes here to get as much experience as I can, and then go down to San Diego this summer, and we'll get settled there.
Once we decided that, Bob went to finally take a shower for the day, and I got online to look at FIDM stuff. Not even five minutes after I sat down at the computer, my phone rang, and I just knew exactly what that phone call was before I even pulled out my phone.
Edible Arrangements wanted to hire me. This is the first time that I've ever applied for a job anywhere and they want to hire me purely out of my skills, personality, and how I look on paper. I've always gotten jobs in the past because I knew someone who knew me. Any time I've applied for a job otherwise, I've never been hired, and I've tried it that way a lot with zero success.
After I accepted and hung up the phone. I just sat on the floor for a moment in shock. Then I felt like crying and laughing at the same time. So I did.
There I was, pathetically laying on the floor confused out of my mind as to what to do, because we'd just made a decision about life, and it needed to change again. Emotional whiplash is what I call it. If I work, I know I won't be able to take that pattern-making class. I'm already doing some other things (bridesmaid dresses and a freelance design job, on top of everything I'm already doing for other people) and there's no way I can handle all of that and a job.
So I cried about it, plus the idea of having Bob be away from me for a few months sounds really lonely and hard for me, and that made me cry more. I laughed because this situation was so typical of what Heavenly Father likes to do to challenge me. There's just too many good options for me to choose from. Funny, right?
Now it looks like I'm only going to take the intermediate sewing class and work at Edible Arrangements. And if I really like it, I know I'm not going to want to leave it and move to San Diego. I'm hoping I can transfer to work at one there or even open up a new one down there. I guess I'll have to wait and see how I like it.
Either way, this was just way too much for me to handle, so I had to write it down and get it out of my head. I know, that was long. But now I don't have to sit there and let it stress me out. It's all written down and if I forget about it for a little while, it's okay because it's not all completely gone.
Thanks for reading, if you did.
I'm not sure if ironic is the right word, but it's the only one I can think of at the moment.
Bob and I have been discussing our plans for the future, trying to decide what we need to do, where we need to go, and when we need to do various things. Back in November, we both were so sick of living in Provo that we were ready to just forget about all the junk we own and stay in San Diego after Thanksgiving rather than come back up to Utah at all.
Over Christmas break, something changed somehow, because we suddenly realized last week how much we actually love living here right now. We have a wonderful and cute home, we have fantastic friends, we live close to some family, snowboarding and rock climbing are practically right out side our front door, and we love the people we go to church with. Life feels pretty good here, really.
There are still problems we're having, with Bob hating his job and wanting a new one but unable to get hired anywhere else he applies. My job as an industrial designer has turned out to be pretty miserable. My willingness to work extra hard and to please clients has been taken advantage of, to the point where I'm the only one working and making projects really progress. I'm done there and would rather not be run into the ground anymore, so I'm finishing this last project (because I don't want to pawn it off onto anybody else like they did to me) and then I'm quitting. In light of that, I've been looking for a better job, more suited for me.
Speaking of which, I seriously have a passion for industrial design, but what with all the PTSD crap I've been struggling with for so long and finally taking care of for the past year, I've got some major creative blocks that I can't seem to get past when it comes to sketching and designing and learning about the creative process. The weird thing is, even with all of that keeping me from really excelling in that field, I've always been able to sew and make jewelry--even design those things from scratch. For some reason, I can still be creative in that area, but not when it comes to positioning simple shapes and forms, sketching out ideas just to get more ideas flowing, and building 3-D objects out of balsa wood and foam core board. I don't get it.
So for my emotional well being (which I've ignored my whole life until now--this is a new thing for me to actually think about), I changed my major--again, I know. I really don't know if I'm ever going to graduate--not from BYU anyway. I'm an open major for the 4th time. So I've been taking some sewing classes instead of finishing the last of my GEs. Not that I don't know how to sew (obviously, from many of my blog posts), but I've never learned professional techniques and skills related to sewing. I've always just taught myself, so it's been great to learn and improve my skills.
In light of my deep distaste for my job, I decided to job search a bit as well. Bob's job is kind of hit or miss on whether he will or won't have work, so it's been kind of unreliable. In order to try and have a steadier income, I looked for a job on ksl.com the other day at the perfect time to find out that a new Edible Arrangements is opening up here in Provo and that they were taking applications and hiring employees! So on Wednesday of last week, I put together a resume and drove over to apply. I got there and the owner was doing on-the-spot interviews with everyone. Thank goodness I dressed professionally! There were about five people in line waiting to be interviewed, and another person filling out an application at a table. So I joined in, waited, and was interviewed. I tried to not only make a good impression, but to also be memorable. The owner said to expect a phone call on Friday or Monday letting us know if she hired me or not. All weekend I was really banking on getting it, praying at every chance to get hired, because I really think I'd love it and the steady paycheck would be great!
Thursday morning, however, things began to really change again. Bob got an early phone call that woke us both up. His grandma on his mom's side was having heart problems and was in the hospital. Late Friday afternoon he got another phone call, and this time his aunt told him that his grandma had just passed away. Grandma didn't want a funeral either--she just wanted to be cremated, then have her ashes placed next to her husbands at a military cemetery. No family gathering or service--just put where she wanted to be.
With that, it seems like a lot of options are opening up for us suddenly. We might have some opportunities in San Diego to get life going down there. It's even felt like Bob doesn't have much going on up here anymore and he needs to go somewhere so that he can get a real career underway. I kind of make my life progress where ever I live with the various skills I have, so I'm content just about anywhere.
Today I got home from class, and Bob and I talked about what to do now. I started really doubting that I'd get the job at Edible Arrangements, because let's be honest--I'm not the most qualified person and there were tons of applicants. My sewing class professor is willing to let me advance more and also take a pattern-making class due to my experience. I've also looked into transferring to FIDM in San Diego to get a degree in something fashion related. (Honestly, I've always wanted to do that, but I just never thought it was realistic or logical.) Bob is looking at going down to San Diego even within the next month or two to start working on a possible property management career. We feel like that's what he should do, and yet we both feel like I should stay and finish some classes here. We decided that that's just what we'll do. Bob will go on to San Diego relatively soon, I'll take the sewing classes here to get as much experience as I can, and then go down to San Diego this summer, and we'll get settled there.
Once we decided that, Bob went to finally take a shower for the day, and I got online to look at FIDM stuff. Not even five minutes after I sat down at the computer, my phone rang, and I just knew exactly what that phone call was before I even pulled out my phone.
Edible Arrangements wanted to hire me. This is the first time that I've ever applied for a job anywhere and they want to hire me purely out of my skills, personality, and how I look on paper. I've always gotten jobs in the past because I knew someone who knew me. Any time I've applied for a job otherwise, I've never been hired, and I've tried it that way a lot with zero success.
After I accepted and hung up the phone. I just sat on the floor for a moment in shock. Then I felt like crying and laughing at the same time. So I did.
There I was, pathetically laying on the floor confused out of my mind as to what to do, because we'd just made a decision about life, and it needed to change again. Emotional whiplash is what I call it. If I work, I know I won't be able to take that pattern-making class. I'm already doing some other things (bridesmaid dresses and a freelance design job, on top of everything I'm already doing for other people) and there's no way I can handle all of that and a job.
So I cried about it, plus the idea of having Bob be away from me for a few months sounds really lonely and hard for me, and that made me cry more. I laughed because this situation was so typical of what Heavenly Father likes to do to challenge me. There's just too many good options for me to choose from. Funny, right?
Now it looks like I'm only going to take the intermediate sewing class and work at Edible Arrangements. And if I really like it, I know I'm not going to want to leave it and move to San Diego. I'm hoping I can transfer to work at one there or even open up a new one down there. I guess I'll have to wait and see how I like it.
Either way, this was just way too much for me to handle, so I had to write it down and get it out of my head. I know, that was long. But now I don't have to sit there and let it stress me out. It's all written down and if I forget about it for a little while, it's okay because it's not all completely gone.
Thanks for reading, if you did.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Christmas stockings
I didn't want to buy stockings.
So I made them.
And it was easy.
Here's how:
I cut out iron-on interfacing the shape, size (including the seam allowance), and orientation I wanted them to be (toes facing left as I look at it).
I cut three more stocking shapes out of some left over golden satin, taking into account orientation again for backing and lining.
I cut out scraps of Christmas colored fabrics.
I ironed them onto the interfacing.
I trimmed off whatever extra was hanging off the edge of the interfacing.
I used embroidery thread and tightly zig-zag stitched between the patches.
I sewed two of the satin pieces together for the inside lining.
I sewed the patchwork piece and the last satin piece together for the outside.
I put the lining inside the patchwork and satin outside piece.
I sewed the lining to the outside around the top.
I sewed a loop for hanging the stocking in place at the top.
I sewed a strip of satin around the top.
I pressed then hand sewed the satin strip in place on the inside.
Stockings!
Original and there is not a single one exactly like either of these in the world.
(Except maybe my mom's, who I got the idea from--but she used different fabric than I had and made hers years ago.)
And in case anyone is wondering about those tags on our stockings...
It became a tradition in my family when I was growing up for each person who served a full-time mission for church to clip their missionary name tag to their stocking (thanks to my oldest brother Russ for starting it). I want to keep that tradition going, so Bob and I put our name tags on our stockings this year. Besides, missionaries teach about Christ every day--His birth, His life, His atonement, and His resurrection. I think that in today's world, missionaries are full of the Christmas spirit year-round, so what a great time of year to keep in mind the importance of missionary work and sharing the Gospel with others as we celebrate the birth of our Savior.
So I made them.
And it was easy.
Here's how:
I cut out iron-on interfacing the shape, size (including the seam allowance), and orientation I wanted them to be (toes facing left as I look at it).
I cut three more stocking shapes out of some left over golden satin, taking into account orientation again for backing and lining.I cut out scraps of Christmas colored fabrics.
I ironed them onto the interfacing.
I trimmed off whatever extra was hanging off the edge of the interfacing.
I used embroidery thread and tightly zig-zag stitched between the patches.
I sewed two of the satin pieces together for the inside lining.
I sewed the patchwork piece and the last satin piece together for the outside.I put the lining inside the patchwork and satin outside piece.
I sewed the lining to the outside around the top.
I sewed a loop for hanging the stocking in place at the top.
I sewed a strip of satin around the top.
I pressed then hand sewed the satin strip in place on the inside.
And voila!!
Stockings!
Original and there is not a single one exactly like either of these in the world.
(Except maybe my mom's, who I got the idea from--but she used different fabric than I had and made hers years ago.)
And in case anyone is wondering about those tags on our stockings...
newly recovered throw pillows
When Bob and I got married, we moved into an unfurnished apartment. That meant we were taking any furniture anyone wanted to give to us, no matter how stylishly hideous it was. In fact, the other day I realized that we've only bought three pieces of furniture that we use on a regular basis, and we we got some wicked-good deals on them--our entertainment center, one of our dressers, and our bed. Otherwise, it's all been free.
So before we got married someone told me their apartment complex was getting new couches and just throwing out the old ones. I was all over that. I couldn't afford to care what it looked like--we just needed a place to sit when people come over and to snuggle while watching movies.
Since we've been married I'd been looking at couch covers on a regular basis. For a while I used two huge blankets--two because it's such a massive beast of furniture that one wouldn't cover it. Then some friends of ours gave us a bright red cover that they weren't using anymore (Thank you, Zach & Teresa!!). I have to say, almost any solid color is better than that navy, green, red, and tan plaid. (Although, with our green carpet it looks like Christmas year round in our living room with that red couch cover. Good thing I like that holiday!)
So for a while we've had this pretty red couch, and the plaid pillows matched it okay, but let's be honest, the pillows really were hideous regardless of what color they were paired with.
The other day while at the fabric store, I found a rockin' deal on some upholstery fabric. There I was, standing in line to get some fabric cut. Of course, the cutting counter is right next to the discount aisle. I find this nice fuzzy cross-hatched looking brown fabric and liked it. Then I looked at the price. It was originally $9 a yard, marked down to $6, and that day it was half off of that. $3 a yard later, I was all stocked up and ready to go.
Using that, I finally decided it was time to give those plaid pillows a face lift.
The process:
The outcome:
So before we got married someone told me their apartment complex was getting new couches and just throwing out the old ones. I was all over that. I couldn't afford to care what it looked like--we just needed a place to sit when people come over and to snuggle while watching movies.
Since we've been married I'd been looking at couch covers on a regular basis. For a while I used two huge blankets--two because it's such a massive beast of furniture that one wouldn't cover it. Then some friends of ours gave us a bright red cover that they weren't using anymore (Thank you, Zach & Teresa!!). I have to say, almost any solid color is better than that navy, green, red, and tan plaid. (Although, with our green carpet it looks like Christmas year round in our living room with that red couch cover. Good thing I like that holiday!)
So for a while we've had this pretty red couch, and the plaid pillows matched it okay, but let's be honest, the pillows really were hideous regardless of what color they were paired with.
The other day while at the fabric store, I found a rockin' deal on some upholstery fabric. There I was, standing in line to get some fabric cut. Of course, the cutting counter is right next to the discount aisle. I find this nice fuzzy cross-hatched looking brown fabric and liked it. Then I looked at the price. It was originally $9 a yard, marked down to $6, and that day it was half off of that. $3 a yard later, I was all stocked up and ready to go.
Using that, I finally decided it was time to give those plaid pillows a face lift.
The process:
The outcome:
A tip: My original throw pillows were super flat and pretty worthless. I made these pillows an inch smaller so the stuffing would puff them out more and not get so flat.
Bob likes them because they're firm and fluffy. I like them because of that too, and because they're pretty.
(I also really like the holes in Bob's socks in this picture.)
home made gifts from me
I decided to try and make several Christmas presents this year, since Bob and I have thinner wallets than normal. I wanted to try and make everyone's gifts, but I think someone stole all my time sometime this month. Seriously, whoever broke in and robbed my time, I'll find you and get it back one day. So I only made a few gifts.
Lucky for me, after posting about my roll-up pencil case a while back, my sister-in-law, Lauren, mentioned wanting something like it for all of her crochet hooks and things. I know it wasn't a huge surprise what she was getting from me for Christmas, but I hope she liked getting it anyway. I love cute little ribbons and I tend to get my overall theme for a project from whatever is printed or designed on the ribbon I use for it. Just FYI, those appliqués took a ridiculously long amount of time, but they were so worth it. Merry Christmas!
Lauren also mentioned an idea for something similar that I could make for one of her sons who has a lot of little toy cars. I can't take credit for the idea. It came from here. But I made my own adjustments to the pattern and idea, and I like how it turned out. I hope Grant does too. And I hope some of his cars fit in it. Sorry if they don't.
I wanted to make a few other things for Lauren's other kids, but I just ran out of time. So Lauren, I'm sorry I took the easy way out and bought some toys and dress-up stuff for the other two kids, and I had no idea what I could possibly make for Cam, so I was planning on buying him something anyway. I hope Christmas was great for y'all regardless of how well our presents were or weren't received!
The last gift I made was for Bob. I still think it's lame, but I couldn't afford to go out and buy anything, and Bob has expensive taste so everything he'd like to get as a gift costs about two or more of his paychecks combined. So I sucked it up and made him a nice flannel robe. He only mentioned a few times this year how I have one (that I made in high school) and he wished he had one.
So I found some fabric I already had and dug out the pattern I used 6 years ago. Then I had to figure out ways to get him out of the house so I could work on it. When he had work, it was easy. But when he didn't have work it got tricky. I got him to run some errands for me one day, and what normally would take him at least an hour and a half took him 45 minutes! I saw him drive back up to the house as I was in the middle of hemming the bottom. Really, Bob? The ONE time I NEED you to take a longtime, you take finish of everything in a ridiculously fast amount of time?! So I stopped where I was, quickly wadded up the nearly-done robe, hid it in the closet among the massive amounts of fabrics that I have, and jumped in the shower to avoid suspicion because I'm a terrible liar.
Somehow I got it all done. He claims to like it a lot, but I still think it was kind of a lame gift since it was the only thing I got him, while he got me a new Calle street soccer ball and new snow pants. Although, I did take care of all the stocking stuffers (not that I mind because I got EXACTLY what I wanted in my stocking this year), so I suppose I'm allowed to slack off a little bit on him, right?
Lucky for me, after posting about my roll-up pencil case a while back, my sister-in-law, Lauren, mentioned wanting something like it for all of her crochet hooks and things. I know it wasn't a huge surprise what she was getting from me for Christmas, but I hope she liked getting it anyway. I love cute little ribbons and I tend to get my overall theme for a project from whatever is printed or designed on the ribbon I use for it. Just FYI, those appliqués took a ridiculously long amount of time, but they were so worth it. Merry Christmas!
Lauren also mentioned an idea for something similar that I could make for one of her sons who has a lot of little toy cars. I can't take credit for the idea. It came from here. But I made my own adjustments to the pattern and idea, and I like how it turned out. I hope Grant does too. And I hope some of his cars fit in it. Sorry if they don't.
I wanted to make a few other things for Lauren's other kids, but I just ran out of time. So Lauren, I'm sorry I took the easy way out and bought some toys and dress-up stuff for the other two kids, and I had no idea what I could possibly make for Cam, so I was planning on buying him something anyway. I hope Christmas was great for y'all regardless of how well our presents were or weren't received!
The last gift I made was for Bob. I still think it's lame, but I couldn't afford to go out and buy anything, and Bob has expensive taste so everything he'd like to get as a gift costs about two or more of his paychecks combined. So I sucked it up and made him a nice flannel robe. He only mentioned a few times this year how I have one (that I made in high school) and he wished he had one.
So I found some fabric I already had and dug out the pattern I used 6 years ago. Then I had to figure out ways to get him out of the house so I could work on it. When he had work, it was easy. But when he didn't have work it got tricky. I got him to run some errands for me one day, and what normally would take him at least an hour and a half took him 45 minutes! I saw him drive back up to the house as I was in the middle of hemming the bottom. Really, Bob? The ONE time I NEED you to take a longtime, you take finish of everything in a ridiculously fast amount of time?! So I stopped where I was, quickly wadded up the nearly-done robe, hid it in the closet among the massive amounts of fabrics that I have, and jumped in the shower to avoid suspicion because I'm a terrible liar.
Somehow I got it all done. He claims to like it a lot, but I still think it was kind of a lame gift since it was the only thing I got him, while he got me a new Calle street soccer ball and new snow pants. Although, I did take care of all the stocking stuffers (not that I mind because I got EXACTLY what I wanted in my stocking this year), so I suppose I'm allowed to slack off a little bit on him, right?
Thursday, December 30, 2010
November Holidays 2010
Life just doesn't slow down, does it?
Here I am trying to simplify and get things off my plate without taking on more, and it just doesn't seem to work! Well, I'm finally at a point where I have time to post blogs again. So before this year ends, let me catch up.
Here's what happened in November:
Bob applied to be a snowboarding instructor at Sundance, and after multiple interviews, they invited him to take part in a skills test, after which they would let him know if he got the job or not. We were both really pumped for it. I want him to finally get a job he loves. So the skills test was coming up and we were informed that it would take place at Brighton on the Saturday before our anniversary. We decided to make a big holiday out of everything, so here's what we did.
Friday, November 19th. We cleaned the house and packed the car. We went to dinner at Tucanos, then headed up to Brighton to celebrate our anniversary early by staying the night in a cozy little cabin at the resort.
Saturday, November 20th. Bob made breakfast (and if you don't know, my husband makes the absolute BEST breakfasts), then he took off for his skills test. I tidied up and got our stuff ready to leave, then went out and hit the slopes for some sweet, sweet snowboarding.
It was snowing the whole time, making every one of my rides down incredible from all the fresh powder. Then it started to turn into a blizzard with tons of wind while the temperature dropped. By noon I was pretty shot! I finally met up with Bob, exhausted and frozen. But we wanted to get at least one run in together, so we squeezed it in before I we had to be out of our cabin.
Then we left, hastily loaded up the car, changed, and drove over to Elko, Nevada where we had dinner with my wonderful friend Monica. We stopped and bought tire chains before driving further, thinking we'd need them while in the Sierras. It started snowing on us the closer we got to the California border, and right at the state line the interstate was closed, CDOT claiming there was zero visibility. So we turned around and drove about 20 miles back to Reno and stayed in a Motel 6 for the night. It was a fun adventure. (Really, it was something like 3am by this point and I had a terrible cold, felt drained and miserable, and was beyond ready to sleep in a bed, and there are no hotels anywhere around there but all the way back in Reno. So I got a little frustrated and whiny.)
Sunday, November 21st. We've been married for one year!! It really doesn't feel like it at all. It's weird to me how completely normal being married to Bob feels. It feels like our wedding was only a couple of weeks ago, and at the same time I can't remember what it was like not to be married to him, making it feel like it's been years and years.
Anyway, the roads had finally opened again, so we drove on to North Lake Tahoe, California. What a breath-taking drive it was! The snow was just stunning. I could definitely get used to living somewhere like that, even if that means shoveling our driveway every day. We visited Bob's Uncle Jim, who lives in a cabin in the woods (really, the whole neighborhood is in the woods, so it feels like your're more alone there than you actually are). It was small and rustic, and Bob and I got to stay in the tiny loft upstairs. When we arrived, Uncle Jim was supposed to be at work, but had gotten snowed in, so he was shoveling his driveway instead.
After taking our things inside, Bob helped shovel snow and I laid down upstairs to take what I thought would be a quick nap. I woke up almost three hours later, feeling very much rested and quite a bit better than I had for the past couple of days. We went to lunch, and while driving through town I completely fell in love with that place. The town consists of little specialty stores and shops--no big corporate giants, and everything was old cabin-style. It's the kind of place where I dream of living. Bob's cousin Tani came home that night and we got to visit with her briefly. She's quiet and really funny, and beyond artistically talented. She's far more gifted than I could ever be.
Monday, November 22nd. We woke up and shoveled the driveway again, because it had snowed during the entire day before and all through the night.
Then we took off and drove around Tahoe to visit Bob's Uncle Joe in South Lake Tahoe. Afterward we took a very long and very beautiful drive through the snowy Sierras. We passed the Kirkwood resort, where a gas station had unleaded for $4.36 a gallon. Ridiculous. But the drive was incredible!
We made it to Uncle Jeff and Aunt Sue's for the night in Clovis, CA, right outside of Fresno. We had fun there--we ate dinner and then sat around telling stories and joking around, mostly laughing. My cousins Eric and Kimmy were constantly making references to funny books and movies, and Bob joined right in because he knew everything they were talking about. He fit right in, and I think everyone was pleasantly surprised by it, except me--I expected it. We got to take a look at Uncle Jeff's shops, look at his airplane he's been building for years now, and even a newer project he's taken on--restoring a late 40s Indian motorcycle. We had a great time, and wished we could have stayed longer.
Tuesday, November 23rd. We drove to San Luis Obispo, CA to visit Bob's Grandma Mary Alice. We made it around lunch time while she was working at the Family History Center. So Bob's Aunt Leslie (Uncle Jim's wife, who's in SLO for now taking care of her aging mother) took us out to lunch at a great little Mexican place in downtown SLO. We timed it just right and ended up having Bob's cousins Cody and Eric (who are brothers) and Eric's girlfriend Karen come to lunch with us.
That night we went to dinner in Morro Bay, to another little Mexican place, with Grandma Mary Alice, Bob's Uncle Tom and Aunt Linda, and Bob's cousin Carrie and her daughter Sierra. It was a fun time. Tom and Linda made Bob a mini-birthday cake since his birthday was the following day, and we all got to sing and celebrate together. Then we went back to Grandma's house and relaxed before going to bed.
Wednesday, November 24th. Bob turned 26!!!! We left SLO and finally made it to San Diego. We got new tires for our car (thanks to Bob's parents!), and while waiting for those we went thrift store shopping and landed some awesome buys! Bob found some nice Volcom khakis for $4and I got a pretty green dress for $3. Sweet!
Then that evening we had a birthday dinner and one of Bob's best friends Eric and his wife Lora came over for dinner. There was birthday pie and presents and everything. Bob's friend Christina also stopped by that night to visit and to wish him happy birthday.
We spent the rest of the week there in San Diego. Every day brought gorgeous weather and relaxing afternoons.
The rest of our time there was great. We saw a matinée showing of a movie one day, another day we went to a drive in movie, and we made sure to sleep-in every day.
Bob's other best friend, Stanly, was in Hawaii for the holiday. He has lots of pets though, so Bob's mom got to take care of his parrot, Farley while he was gone, so we got to take Farley on adventures in the back yard while we were there. It was fun!
Monday, November 29th. We finally left to drive back up to Utah. We stopped and visited Grandma Tweedie in the evening and stayed the night with her. We had a nice visit and wished we could have stayed longer. Hopefully next time we'll have more time and be able to afford a longer stay!
Tuesday, November 30th. We left and began the very last part of our trip. We stopped in Cedar City to have lunch with Aunt Judith, and she took us to Cafe Rio. We visited for a few hours and just talked, then had to be on our way. We finally made it back home in the early evening.
There were a few things that I learned from this trip.
1. Bob and I are happy and have a fantastic relationship. All of Bob's relatives said something about it. Every aunt and uncle and even some of his cousins brought it up at some point, and commented on how lucky we are. It sure feels great to know that other people notice it, even if we don't.
2. I'm really glad we cleaned the house really well before we left. I enjoyed coming home to clean house. It made me want to keep it clean, so I put away everything I brought home from the trip right away (except my clothes... I'm still working on that...).
3. A well planned vacation, no matter how far you drive, when spent with as much family as possible can make it seem twice as long while also being way more fun and relaxing. We needed a break, and this road trip was the perfect therapy for feeling overworked, overstressed, and under-rested.
Here I am trying to simplify and get things off my plate without taking on more, and it just doesn't seem to work! Well, I'm finally at a point where I have time to post blogs again. So before this year ends, let me catch up.
Here's what happened in November:
Bob applied to be a snowboarding instructor at Sundance, and after multiple interviews, they invited him to take part in a skills test, after which they would let him know if he got the job or not. We were both really pumped for it. I want him to finally get a job he loves. So the skills test was coming up and we were informed that it would take place at Brighton on the Saturday before our anniversary. We decided to make a big holiday out of everything, so here's what we did.
Saturday, November 20th. Bob made breakfast (and if you don't know, my husband makes the absolute BEST breakfasts), then he took off for his skills test. I tidied up and got our stuff ready to leave, then went out and hit the slopes for some sweet, sweet snowboarding.
It was snowing the whole time, making every one of my rides down incredible from all the fresh powder. Then it started to turn into a blizzard with tons of wind while the temperature dropped. By noon I was pretty shot! I finally met up with Bob, exhausted and frozen. But we wanted to get at least one run in together, so we squeezed it in before I we had to be out of our cabin.
Then we left, hastily loaded up the car, changed, and drove over to Elko, Nevada where we had dinner with my wonderful friend Monica. We stopped and bought tire chains before driving further, thinking we'd need them while in the Sierras. It started snowing on us the closer we got to the California border, and right at the state line the interstate was closed, CDOT claiming there was zero visibility. So we turned around and drove about 20 miles back to Reno and stayed in a Motel 6 for the night. It was a fun adventure. (Really, it was something like 3am by this point and I had a terrible cold, felt drained and miserable, and was beyond ready to sleep in a bed, and there are no hotels anywhere around there but all the way back in Reno. So I got a little frustrated and whiny.)
Sunday, November 21st. We've been married for one year!! It really doesn't feel like it at all. It's weird to me how completely normal being married to Bob feels. It feels like our wedding was only a couple of weeks ago, and at the same time I can't remember what it was like not to be married to him, making it feel like it's been years and years.
Anyway, the roads had finally opened again, so we drove on to North Lake Tahoe, California. What a breath-taking drive it was! The snow was just stunning. I could definitely get used to living somewhere like that, even if that means shoveling our driveway every day. We visited Bob's Uncle Jim, who lives in a cabin in the woods (really, the whole neighborhood is in the woods, so it feels like your're more alone there than you actually are). It was small and rustic, and Bob and I got to stay in the tiny loft upstairs. When we arrived, Uncle Jim was supposed to be at work, but had gotten snowed in, so he was shoveling his driveway instead.
Monday, November 22nd. We woke up and shoveled the driveway again, because it had snowed during the entire day before and all through the night.
Then we took off and drove around Tahoe to visit Bob's Uncle Joe in South Lake Tahoe. Afterward we took a very long and very beautiful drive through the snowy Sierras. We passed the Kirkwood resort, where a gas station had unleaded for $4.36 a gallon. Ridiculous. But the drive was incredible!
We made it to Uncle Jeff and Aunt Sue's for the night in Clovis, CA, right outside of Fresno. We had fun there--we ate dinner and then sat around telling stories and joking around, mostly laughing. My cousins Eric and Kimmy were constantly making references to funny books and movies, and Bob joined right in because he knew everything they were talking about. He fit right in, and I think everyone was pleasantly surprised by it, except me--I expected it. We got to take a look at Uncle Jeff's shops, look at his airplane he's been building for years now, and even a newer project he's taken on--restoring a late 40s Indian motorcycle. We had a great time, and wished we could have stayed longer.
Tuesday, November 23rd. We drove to San Luis Obispo, CA to visit Bob's Grandma Mary Alice. We made it around lunch time while she was working at the Family History Center. So Bob's Aunt Leslie (Uncle Jim's wife, who's in SLO for now taking care of her aging mother) took us out to lunch at a great little Mexican place in downtown SLO. We timed it just right and ended up having Bob's cousins Cody and Eric (who are brothers) and Eric's girlfriend Karen come to lunch with us.
Wednesday, November 24th. Bob turned 26!!!! We left SLO and finally made it to San Diego. We got new tires for our car (thanks to Bob's parents!), and while waiting for those we went thrift store shopping and landed some awesome buys! Bob found some nice Volcom khakis for $4and I got a pretty green dress for $3. Sweet!
Then that evening we had a birthday dinner and one of Bob's best friends Eric and his wife Lora came over for dinner. There was birthday pie and presents and everything. Bob's friend Christina also stopped by that night to visit and to wish him happy birthday.We spent the rest of the week there in San Diego. Every day brought gorgeous weather and relaxing afternoons.
Thursday we had a fantastic Thanksgiving feast.
Friday we went to a birthday party for Bob with lots of food and even more friends.
The rest of our time there was great. We saw a matinée showing of a movie one day, another day we went to a drive in movie, and we made sure to sleep-in every day.
Bob's other best friend, Stanly, was in Hawaii for the holiday. He has lots of pets though, so Bob's mom got to take care of his parrot, Farley while he was gone, so we got to take Farley on adventures in the back yard while we were there. It was fun!
Monday, November 29th. We finally left to drive back up to Utah. We stopped and visited Grandma Tweedie in the evening and stayed the night with her. We had a nice visit and wished we could have stayed longer. Hopefully next time we'll have more time and be able to afford a longer stay!
Tuesday, November 30th. We left and began the very last part of our trip. We stopped in Cedar City to have lunch with Aunt Judith, and she took us to Cafe Rio. We visited for a few hours and just talked, then had to be on our way. We finally made it back home in the early evening.
There were a few things that I learned from this trip.
1. Bob and I are happy and have a fantastic relationship. All of Bob's relatives said something about it. Every aunt and uncle and even some of his cousins brought it up at some point, and commented on how lucky we are. It sure feels great to know that other people notice it, even if we don't.
2. I'm really glad we cleaned the house really well before we left. I enjoyed coming home to clean house. It made me want to keep it clean, so I put away everything I brought home from the trip right away (except my clothes... I'm still working on that...).
3. A well planned vacation, no matter how far you drive, when spent with as much family as possible can make it seem twice as long while also being way more fun and relaxing. We needed a break, and this road trip was the perfect therapy for feeling overworked, overstressed, and under-rested.
I can't wait to take another road trip with my best friend and husband!
There's something special about road trips to us.
After all, that is how and why we met in the first place.
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