Megan & Thomas

Look alike?

2012-01-21T08:48:00.004-07:00

Does anyone else see the resemblance? I think it is kind of crazy. Anyway, just thought I'd share.

Joshua Jackson - Source

Thomas Dunford

2012-01-13T08:13:00.002-07:00

Cecil Lily

2012-01-04T07:27:00.001-07:00

I have to post this, so I can pin it. Long story. Enjoy the lily. Here's where I got it.

30 x 30

2011-12-30T16:28:00.002-07:00

Okay. I'm scared. A thoughtful friend asked me how I was doing on my list. So I looked. And that's when the worry set in. I really thought I had done more than what I'm about to show you. Granted I have made progress on a few...but...Ah! I need to get crackin'. Here's the run down.

1.Make an entire wedding out of paper flowers.

(I kept hoping a bride would let me do this, but I'm thinking it's just time to do a photoshoot on my own)

2. Become a mother.

(This one is proving more difficult than my high school health teacher said it would be ;) )

3. Learn song by "The Swell Season" on the guitar. And sing it infront of at least 5 people.

(I'll start practicing)

4. Learn "Nunley's Carousel" by Billy Joel on the piano.

(I'll keep practicing)

~~5. Catch a fish by myself.~~

6. Memorize a poem.

(Working on it)

7. Listen to the "Lord of the Rings" on Audio CD.

(Will reserve it today!)

8. Hike King's Peak. Or just go on a hike.

(A hike will have to do. Katie? You there? Can you take me on one where I won't be too cold?)

9. Read a book by Charles Dickens.

(Kay, I've listened to the Christmas Carol on CD several times - does this count?) (I don't think so, but it might have to if I don't get my butt in gear)

10. Paint a picture.

(I was picturing a masterpiece, but my doodles might have to do.)

11. Do something with my washer collection.

(Got an idea - just need to execute)

12. Sew a shirt or skirt.

(A skirt, need to find simple pattern)

~~13. Make lots of pies, until I find the very best recipe. Become known formy pie-making skills.~~

14. Cook one dish out of every recipe book I own (got this idea fromKatie).

(Need to get rid of some cookbooks)

15. Have a party. A sit-down dinner party.

(Got an idea board on Pinterest - maybe this should be for my birthday party? Great idea Megsie!)

16. Knit a scarf.

(Would it count if I told Lexy exactly what kind of scarf I wanted?) (Nope) (I'll get on it)

17. Go camping with Tom 7 times.

(I've been 3 times and I don't know if I'll make it 7. We'll see)

~~18. Go on a trip to a place I've never been. Can be just a little trip.~~

19. Design something using "Sketch-Up".

(I'll do it)

~~20. Get sucked into a made-for-TV drama. (I have to have something to checkoff, right?)~~

21. Attend the temple at least 12 times.

(I've gone 6 out of 12 - I'll get on it!)

22. Make a garland.

(It is started and it is so flipping cute and ruffly)

23. Serve at the church bakery or cannery or other assignment.

(I've tried several times to sign up, but they always are in the middle of the day. I might have to count cleaning the church - I'll do it next time)

24. Go see the daffodils at Red Butte Gardens.

(Have to wait until March)

25. Write at least 10 letters to people, instead of an email or phone call.

(I'll do this on Sunday)

~~26. Take some family photographs.~~

(Haven't blogged these yet, but we got a couple good shots)

27. Write down 10 childhood memories in my journal.

(Sunday)

28. Plant a garden and bottle some of it.

(Well, I sure did miss this one! Maybe I'll do some jam. Mom? Gonna need some help here)

29. Make rock candy.

(Won't be too bad)

~~30. Go to Antelope Island and/or Spiral Jetty.~~

#30 - Visit Antelope Island

2011-12-04T22:22:00.001-07:00

I loved Antelope Island and I want to go again. I didn't see any antelope, which was a little anticlimactic, but there were deer and hot air balloons, so it didn't disappoint.

# 20 - Get sucked into a made for TV drama

2011-12-04T22:13:00.001-07:00

I've done this several times. I have nothing to report about the quality of these shows, but they sure are intriguing. That is all.

Here's a picture of what my family might look like if we were in a made for TV drama. Just in case anyone is wondering, those are our model faces. We are teaching lessons, in case anyone is interested.

#13 - Become known for my pie-making skills

2011-12-04T22:01:00.001-07:00

I am for sure checking this one off my list because I am so good at making pies. My whole family said so. And if they lied to me, that's their problem, because now I really think I am super good, so they'll be eating pie forever. At every family party. Whether they ask me to bring a pie or not.

But seriously, I made two pies for Thanksgiving and they rocked my socks off. Lemon Truffle Pie and Persimmon Pie. They were delicious! Lemon Truffle came from the Lion House pie book and the Persimmon came from a combination of the internet and my own head. And, to make this whole experience even better, I learned that I like persimmons! I was very happy about this because I have actually never eaten one. I just blindly named my business after one because it is fun to say and thought they were cute. I was nervous to actually eat one in case I didn't like it. But I bit the bullet, sliced one up, ate it, and they are yummy. So then, naturally, I made a pie out of them.

#5 - Catch a fish by myself

2011-12-04T21:47:00.001-07:00

Numero cinco on my 30 x 30 list was to catch a fish by myself and I am pleased as punch to announce that I have accomplished this. Usually when I go fishing with Big T (oh Tom, that's your new nickname p.s.) I make him cast, then I hold the rod, then I catch one, reel it in, and then he gets it out of the water and unhooks it. So my goal was to do all the steps by myself and I did. It was back in August on our way back from girl's camp. We stopped at Jordanelle Reservoir and I caught a small-mouth bass. He helped me a little, but mostly I did it. Small-mouth bass are super fun to catch. Pound for pound, they are the hardest fighting fish around.

So, we didn't get a picture of my bass. But I needed a picture for the post, cause it turns out posts without pictures are boring. So, I stole a picture of Tom and his friend's bass. It's cool. It looked just like this....but WAY bigger. Trust me.

Pocket Post

2011-10-13T11:29:00.000-06:00

Dear Suzie C.,
Thanks for saying you read my blog and that I should update it and that I have clever ideas. You are the best and I will pay you later.

Dear Wild Horses,
I've wanted to see you for a while now and I got to last week! I kind of wanted you to be running when I saw you...but seeing you standing out the field worked really well for me too. I can check that off my To Try Before I Die list.

Dear Lists,
I love making you and crossing stuff off of you. And writing notes to you....

Dear New Camera,
You are such a fabulous investment! I was a little wary about spending the money on you, but you've already paid yourself off. I have better self-esteem now. I am way better looking. And I think I can run faster. So thanks.

Dear Pinterest,
Thanks for being a time-waster that gives you a sense of accomplishment afterwards. Oh! I just spent a half an hour pinning, but I have 212 pins to show for it. Much more satisfying than watching T.V. or staring into space.

Dear Plans,
Like my lists, I really love having you in my life. But I also appreciate the lessons I'm constantly being taught about how to let you go and just go with the flow. Like a hippie (sans patchouli and hairy legs).

So wild.

Granite Rocks!

2011-08-04T11:04:00.000-06:00

I am so excited about this post! My high school (Granite - Home of the Mighty Farmers!) closed in 2009. I was so sad, but I understood enrollment was down. So now I am just so excited about what could potentially happen to it! South Salt Lake City wants to purchase the land and all the cool old buildings from Granite School District and turn it into a community center. I read about it in the paper today and I just want to tell everyone I know about it. Here is the website for more information.

http://graniterocks.org

There will be a vote to pass a $25 million bond to transform the school into the community center. I hope it passes. I am going to volunteer to help it pass. I think it would be such a neat thing for that area. So spread the word and all you Farmers reading this blog...let people know! We had such a great time there, it would be sad to see it turned into another strip mall with no character. Yuck.

Go it Granite!

Movie Trailer

2011-07-18T09:29:00.003-06:00

We're making a movie with our new toy. Filming will take two years. For now, enjoy this teaser.

HP*

2011-07-17T16:26:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was great day! We got back from camping, went to Tim's house to caulk and putty the crown molding, hurried and showered, and made our way to the Gateway to meet my sister and her husband to see Part II of Harry Potter. I was so excited about it! When those students hop on their brooms?!? Man! It's exciting! Seriously, when I think about Harry Potter, it's like every nerdy tendency inside of my body comes out to play. I want to dress up, draw lightning bolt scars on Tom's head, practice my spells...I almost booked tickets to Orlando to see the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter!

I didn't end up going to any of those extremes, but I did get a little crafty. I thought it would be fun to have some treats during the movie, so I did a little research on the interweb and got some ideas for what I could sneak into the theater. I cam up with a simple brown paper bag full of treats mentioned throughout the books/movies! Here's what I did:

Front of the bag:

Butterbeer: IBC cream soda (I wanted Thomas Kemper's Vanilla Cream, but the store didn't have it)

Golden Snitches: Gold Lindor Truffles (I wanted Ferre Roche's, but again the store did not provide)

Pumpkin Pasties: Pumpkin chocolate chip, soft-top cookies

Jelly Slugs: Gummy worms

Licorice Wands: Licorice

Cockroach Clusters: A mix of PoppyCock and Cracker Jacks

All the goodies!

They were fun to snack on during the show. More fun for me to make I think. If anyone wants the tags I made for each of the snacks let me know, I'll send you the pdf so you can print them. I had such a great time and I thought the movie was great! Of course, they left a few things out, but I thought they wrapped it up nicely. I want to watch it again!

*HP is what my little nephew calls Harry Potter - he's cool like that.

#17 - Go Camping with Tom 7 Times

2011-07-17T15:45:00.000-06:00

This weekend was camping trip #2 out of #7. Yes! Makin' progress.

Here's your proof. That's me AND a tent.

I made this goal because I felt like I had lost the desire to camp and be outside. The last few camping trips I'd been on were a big hassle. I was always freezing. I was setting my tent up at 2:00 am (after driving 5 hours in a squishy car). I was tired all day because I didn't sleep well. I got attacked by bugs. I was always forgetting my flashlight, water, or some other essential. They just weren't the funnest trips. I enjoyed the people I was with and the things I saw, but the actual camping was, um, how can I put this nicely?
Lame.

So, with Tom's help, I decided to make these camping trips easier on myself. First, Tom and I got me a new sleeping bag. A warm one. From Shopko. For $30.00. And it rocks my world. Seriously, I haven't been cold on either of the two trips this year. And I am always cold! Except for right now because my laptop is getting all hot on my legs and the fan is pointing the wrong way but I just woke up from a nap and I don't want to get up to move it.

Second, we are just camping for one to two nights at a time and we are throwing, literally stuffing, our gear into laundry baskets and getting in the car and driving somewhere nearby to set up camp. Not a big deal. We aren't unloading all the gear, we are just using the car as our storage unit and sleeping in the tent.

Third, we are going so simple on the food. We aren't packing a huge cooler full of eggs, sausage, and gourmet dutch oven ingredients. We just buy some bread and peanut butter and fruit and snacks and call it good. Maybe we'll stop on the way and eat at a yummy restaurant and use their restroom and brush our teeth with running water before we set up camp? Who knows? I'm just saying, we are going for simple.

*I'm moving the fan now, I'm going to die of heat stroke if I don't*

These changes I've made aren't rocket science, I am just writing them down so I will remember how fun camping can be! It doesn't have to be a huge ordeal. You don't have to go to some far off place or make gourmet meals every time to enjoy being outside. I'm glad I made time to go this weekend. If I hadn't I wouldn't have woken up to this.

There were at least 12 different birds flitting about, it was so great!

Or taken 50 pictures of these flowers.

Or eaten this giant donut for breakfast.Yes, that is a grapefruit.

And isn't that what life is all about? Taking time out of your mundane, busy schedule to enjoy this beautiful world, to stop and see the flowers, and to eat giant donuts? I am starting to think so.

Dear Lord

2011-07-04T22:36:00.000-06:00

I saw this quote today and couldn't help adding it to a recent photo of mine and sharing it. Source.

#17 - Go camping with Tom 7 times & #18 - Go on a trip to a place I've never been

2011-06-28T06:56:00.000-06:00

I've been camping one out of the 7 times. I took a picture of the view outside my tent to prove it, but I think we deleted the picture. But I've done it once, I promise. So I only have 6 more to go and I better get on it if I don't want to be sleeping in a igloo all winter.

I also fulfilled #18 at my family reunion this past weekend. We visited Kennecott Copper Mine. And it. was. huge. I can't believe what a big hole it was! Wow. You can fit a bunch of Sears Tower buildings in it and you can see it from space. The trucks hauling stuff were probably the best part, I couldn't believe how large and in charge they were. It was fun watching them drive around.

#13 - Become known for my pie-making skills (part 2)

2011-06-05T12:42:00.001-06:00

Made my first cream pie for Memorial Day. It's called Razanna (banana and raspberry) Cream (out of the Lion House Pie Cookbook). I guess, this pie-making adventure would also count towards cook one recipe out of every cookbook I own. Cause thanks to Tom's mom, I own the Lion House Pie Cookbook. Anyway, it took a while for the cream filling to set up, but I finally got it to work. I would also add more raspberry and bananas to the mix, but other than that, it was a success!

My 5-year-old nephew told his Mom that his Aunt Meggie could make money baking pies! I think that might mean I've become known for my pie-making skills, don't you think? I better keep practicing though, I think he's just very complimentary, polite, and likes his Aunt.

#14 - Cook one dish out of every cookbook I own

2011-05-25T10:04:00.000-06:00

This is the first cookbook I chose to cook dinner out of. My step-mom gave me this cookbook (looks like you can get it for 27 cents) - she buys cookbooks from the DI and copies out the recipes she wants to try and then gives the book away. Smart! I've kept this one though because there are a lot of good recipes that you can cook really fast. I like.

I chose the Guerilla French Toast and it was super easy and fancy-looking. I like that it was baked, not fried. You just mix up an egg/milk mixture and add cinnamon and vanilla. Then you take 1" thick bread slices (it calls for Challah, but I used french bread) and cut a hole in the bottom (keeping the sides and top in tact) and stuff it with your favorite jam or fruit. Then you soak the pieces in the egg mixture for 5 minutes (2 1/2 on each side) then pop it in the oven for 20 minutes at 375 degrees. Then after 20 minutes you flip the toast over and bake for another 5 minutes. It turned out really yummy! Would be good for a brunch because you can make quite a few at a time.

Happy toasting!

A little pretty

2011-05-20T21:30:00.000-06:00

Pocket Post

2011-05-18T14:47:00.000-06:00

Dear 30x30 List,
I definitely am still working on you. I've got some plans up my sleeves. No worries.

Dear Rain,
You are kind of stupid.

Dear Apartment,

I love how clean and organized you are! Wasn't it fun to get all spruced up for spring? I vote yes.

Dear Posterity,
Sorry I said 'stupid'. I'm nicer than that. Most of the time.

Megs

Gullible

2011-04-06T21:58:00.000-06:00

California 2011

Henry loves Claire

2011-03-26T09:33:00.000-06:00

The Utah Bride Blog featured me on their site today! I loved this wedding :)
http://www.utahbrideblog.com/flowers/truly-organic-persimmon-floral-wedding-flower-friday/

Another Silhouette Giveaway

2011-03-21T22:56:00.000-06:00

Sorry for all the giveaway posts. I just really, really, really with whip cream and cherries on top, want to win this Silhouette Machine!

So I guess if I want it so bad, I should give you the opportunity to win it too. Cause that's what a nice person would do. A nice person who has to blog about it to get an extra entry....

http://www.decorchick.com/giveaway/silhouette-machine-giveaway-and-a-discount-code

#1 - Make an entire wedding out of paper flowers

2011-03-20T14:10:00.000-06:00

I haven't done this yet, but I got pretty close yesterday. I did wedding flowers for a really cute couple and they let me do paper flowers in the bouquets and centerpieces. I loved how everything turned out.

Bridal Bouquet

Bridesmaid Bouquets

Cake

Groom Boutonniere (for the bridal picture)

Bridal picture bouquet

#13 - Become known for my pie-making skills

2011-03-10T15:12:00.000-07:00

March 6, 2011 will go down in history as the day I baked my first pie. From scratch. None of this sissy pre-made crust or filling-in-a-can stuff. I'm talkin' apple-slicin', sugar-moundin, butter-poundin', crust-chillin', pre-baked snackin' goodness. My mom helped, of course. It was my first time.

It was delicious. The crust was my favorite. I'm sure the butter-flavored shortening had something to do with that. Next time, I'm going to do a crust with all butter. I loved how it looked too, kind of rustic and imperfect. Quite vintage actually. I snapped a few photos on my mom's spanky new phone.

So here's to becoming known for my pie skills. It's going to be a tasty, tasty ride.

golden AND delicious

hand-sliced. with love (that's the key)

handsome crust.

i'm loving those little star cuts.

Giveaway at Domestic Diva

2011-02-23T16:30:00.002-07:00

Domestic Diva is giving away a Silhouette machine. I really, really want it and I didn't really want to tell you all about it, but I have to in order to get another entry. That's selfish, huh? Maybe if you won, you could share it with me? I'd share with you...even though I didn't want to tell you about the giveaway...

http://thedomesticdiva.wordpress.com

Pocket Post

2011-02-22T15:55:00.000-07:00

Dear Man vs. Wild,
I've written you before and told you not to be so weird. But last night I saw you put on a dead seal's skin for a shirt and I'm thinking my messages just aren't getting through to you. Let's work on that, shall we?

Dear General Consumer,
I'm thinking a really good purchase for you (and I'm really only thinking of you), would be to buy me this wonderful machine. Let's think of it as an investment. A really, really cute investment.

Dear Tron,
You know that scene at the very beginning when the programs are on the bikes and they can't cross the path of the other bikes or else they will die? That was SO exciting!

Dear $195,000 River-front Property in Logan,
I wish (and so does Tom) that we could buy you, subdivide you, build our dream house, and fish all day on you. Maybe a little discount would help? Or another plea to the general consumer perhaps?

Love,
Megan

Irrational Fears

2011-02-15T09:33:00.000-07:00

Kay, my new friend Leslie is the coolest. She is an amazing illustrator, really cute, funny, and is dating my friend Brandon (who is also wicked cool, so that works for them). She has taken her illustrative genius to an all new level though with this blog called Irrational Fears. Seriously, I can't handle how fun it is! I can't think of any irrational fears that I have right now, but I'm thinking about getting one so she can illustrate it for me.

Illustration by Leslie Duke

#6 - Memorize a poem

2011-02-08T22:37:00.000-07:00

It's between these three. The Jabberwocky. Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening. Or Evensong.

Any other suggestions? Poems that I shouldn't turn 30 without memorizing?

I have two other poems memorized.

Indian Summer by Dorothy Parker
In youth, it was the way I had
To do my best to please.
And change with every passing lad,
To suit his theories.
But now I know the things I know,
And do the things I do.
And if you do not like me so,
To hell, my love, with you.

(I memorized this in high school when I chose Dorothy Parker for my poet report...actually I wanted Ogden Nash, but Mike Sorenson picked him first! Ha, ha, ha - do you remember that Mike? That was a funny class. Anway, I was happy with my choice and was so pleased with the feminist theme of the poem.)

The Worm by Ralph Bergengren
When the earth has turned to spring,
The worms are fat as anything.
And birds come flying all around,
To eat the worms right off the ground.
They like worms just as much as I,
Like bread, and milk, and apple pie.
And once, when I was very young,
I put a worm right on my tongue.
I didn't like the taste a bit,
Of course I didn't swallow it!
But oh, it makes my Mother squirm,
Because she thinks I ate that worm!

(I memorized this when I was really little. My mom taught it to me and it's stuck ever since.)

30x30

2011-02-07T19:29:00.000-07:00

My friend Shannon started a list of 30 things she wanted to do before she turned 30 and I loved the idea, so here I go. In no particular order.

1. Make an entire wedding out of paper flowers.
2. Become a mother.
3. Learn song by "The Swell Season" on the guitar. And sing it in front of at least 5 people.
4. Learn "Nunley's Carousel" by Billy Joel on the piano.
5. Catch a fish by myself.
6. Memorize a poem.
7. Listen to the "Lord of the Rings" on Audio CD.
8. Hike King's Peak. Or just go on a hike.
9. Read a book by Charles Dickens.
10. Paint a picture.
11. Do something with my washer collection.
12. Sew a shirt or skirt.
13. Make lots of pies, until I find the very best recipe. Become known for my pie-making skills.
14. Cook one dish out of every recipe book I own (got this idea from Katie).
15. Have a party. A sit-down dinner party.
16. Knit a scarf.
17. Go camping with Tom 7 times.
18. Go on a trip to a place I've never been. Can be just a little trip.
19. Design something using "Sketch-Up".
20. Get sucked into a made-for-TV drama. (I have to have something to check off, right?)
21. Attend the temple at least 12 times.
22. Make a garland.
23. Serve at the church bakery or cannery or other assignment.
24. Go see the daffodils at Red Butte Gardens.
25. Write at least 10 letters to people, instead of an email or phone call.
26. Take some family photographs.
27. Write down 10 childhood memories in my journal.
28. Plant a garden and bottle some of it.
29. Make rock candy.
30. Go to Antelope Island and/or Spiral Jetty.

Funniest 3 minutes of my life

2011-02-06T15:05:00.002-07:00

MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON from Dean Fleischer-Camp on Vimeo.

Do boys read this blog?

2011-02-01T20:05:00.000-07:00

If yes, you should order flowers from www.persimmonfloral.info - cause your lady friend will dig you and probably give you a kiss for it.

If no, all you girls out there, your man may need a hint. So tell him to go to www.persimmonfloral.info to get you some fresh flowers. Tell him you'll give him a kiss if he does.

Day Thirteen: Happy Anniversary

2011-01-13T10:32:00.000-07:00


First official date - January 13, 2006 - Deer Valley, Utah

Dear Tom,
I hope by now you know how much I love your guts. Cause I do. Like I said in the first post, if I loved you anymore, my heart would explode all over the couch. Ewwww. We don't want that do we? I do want to be best friends forever though.

I've probably made a lot of people nauseous from all the gooey stuff I've shared on our blog the last 13 days, but I don't really care. It's fun to be in love. And I'm glad I'm in love with you. I am so looking forward to the rest of our time together, here on this earth, and for all eternity. You do remember that we signed up for that right? I think you do.

Thanks for being my best friend. I like how we laugh together. It's wicked fun. I like how we plan together. And talk. And watch Psych. And talk about Logan. And think about business ideas. And pretend like we are going to exercise. And visit family. And hang out with friends. And. And. And. The list could go on and on and on. AND on.

So here's to you Thomas Coles Dunford. Happy 4th Anniversary! You are an amazing husband, friend, son, and brother. And I couldn't imagine my life without your cute face.

Love,
Megs (Your wife)

P.S. You posted on our blog! Yay! And what a great first post! Thank you for your kind words. You really are the best. Love you.

A short list:

2011-01-13T08:13:00.001-07:00

A clearly non-comprehensive list of the reasons that I love my Better (much much much better) Half, by Thomas:

Megan...

is beautiful. In many ways.
lives her religion.
laughs freely.
treats me like a king.
remembers every joke she has ever heard.
let me have one of her jokes and lets people think it was mine from the first.
believes in having a good time.
is very good at planning things.
can pack all my stuff for a trip and know exactly what I will want later without ever asking me.
has incredible piano playing talent.
sings like an angel.
wants to do cool things with me like build a greenhouse.
knows how to be kind to people, and then is.
can tell what people need.
will be an exceptional mother someday.
has goals and ambition.
recognizes the beauty in flowers and can arrange them to accentuate each blossom's best features.
gets excited about little things.
gets excited about little things. Like actual, literal, mini things. Like cute bugs.
likes Logan, UT as much as I do.
tries to like flyfishing.
values my opinion.
comes from good family.
shares her time with everyone.
has an incredible work ethic.
sometimes comes home with treats.
has befriended all my friends without complaint.
is the favorite with the kids at all family functions.
serves on the board of a nonprofit organization.
remembers important stuff.
has stunningly beautiful hair.
develops her talents and seeks for new ones too.
notices good in the world.
lets me buy the occasional sugar cereal. Maybe more than occasional.
encourages me in everything that I feel is important.

And, to top it all off, Megan had the guts to marry me. Talk about courage.

Day Twelve: Good stock

2011-01-12T12:28:00.000-07:00

Today I wanted to do a little shout out for Tom's family. Tom didn't get as awesome as he is on his own. He had a lot of great people to teach and influence him, and I must say, they did a really good job. I'm glad I got to reap the benefits of all their hard work.

His mom and dad are some of the best people I know. Tom's dad is a baker (Hello Dunford Doughnuts! Thank you for my muffin top!) and his mom is an artist. They are kind, loving, funny, patient, and very accepting people. I remember when I first met Tom, and thinking he was super funny (and you are honey, my next point doesn't discount this), but then I met his dad and I realized Tom was using all of his jokes! I thought it was so funny. So Tom definitely got his humor from his dad. I think Tom also inherited his dad's sense of fun. I see Tom's dad play with his grandchildren and hear stories of when Tom was growing up. They were always doing something fun, like hiding magnets at the Planetarium, hiding army guys in the dirt, making time capsules, getting brand new stacks of one dollar bills all bound together. The list goes on. Tom does similar fun stuff now. I love that he has that characteristic.

From his mom, he inherited all things artsy and designy. She has an amazing eye for detail and can make the ordinary, extraordinary. Her home is beautifully decorated. She is an amazing watercolor artist. She loves small and interesting things. She taught Tom how to appreciate art and beautiful things. She also loves nature and that definitely rubbed off on Tom. I love watching Tom and his mom collaborate on projects together. Whether it is removing a wall, hanging a painting, or designing a garden, they can both see and understand the potential of the project. I think that is an amazing talent. I'm glad Tom got that gene.

His other family members are also wonderful people. His eldest brother is an amazing photographer and even more amazing father. His sister is the most thoughtful, spiritual, and well-balanced person I've ever met. His other brother is a talented designer, entrepreneur, and a serious gamer. Their respective spouses are also amazing! They have engineers, more photographers, and musicians! It really is incredible and slightly intimidating. Oh! And the nieces and nephews? Don't even get me started. Cutest. Kids. On. The. Planet.

What I'm most grateful for is that Tom was raised in the gospel and has a very strong testimony of it. And I know a large part of that was how he was taught in his home. Again, I'm so happy to be married to Tom and I'm grateful for the influence of his family on Tom and now on me too!

Sister, Tom, Mom, Nephew - Sun Valley, 2010

Dad, Sister, Mom - Sun Valley, 2010

Dad, Tom, Sister, Mom - Sun Valley, 2010

Dad & Tom - Sun Valley, 2010

Day Eleven: Full of Thought

2011-01-11T13:53:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I think Tom and I are the same person, because we are so alike in many ways. Passive. Nerdy. Indecisive. Creative. Tall. Chubby-cheeked. Etc. But there is one quality that Tom has that I am super jealous of - and that is how he thinks about things. I am very much a doer. Give me a project and I'll start right in on it. No thinking. Just hoping. And a lot of the time it works out, but sometimes....not so much.

Tom, on the other hand, is very thoughtful when he approaches tasks or problems. He is good at thinking about the process and can understand the big picture. When he builds things, he draws it out, measures twice, and considers all the options. It is the same with other questions, like where should we move, what camera should I buy, what movie should I watch? Don't get me wrong, sometimes I get frustrated with how much he thinks about things (because I just want to do), but usually in the end, I'm grateful he's taken the time to really think about something before he does it.

His thoughtfulness transfers to our relationship too. He is always thinking of me. He always asks if he can go fishing (you really don't have to do that, but I appreciate it), he always takes pictures of butterflies for me, he always watches the romantic comedy (instead of Star Wars), he always compliments my hair do, he always let's me pick the ice cream. I wish I had the same capacity to think like he does. I would be nicer, more loving, and definitely have less incidents of gluing my fingers together during craft time.

If you haven't guessed yet, I want to be like Tom when I grow up.

See, told you he takes pictures of butterflies for me.

Chico, California, 2009

Where is this Tom? I picked this one, cause it looked like you were thinking.

Day Ten: Tom still loves me

2011-01-10T22:44:00.000-07:00

Even though I almost forgot to post today.

Sun Valley, October 2010

Be Well Blog

2011-01-10T09:00:00.000-07:00

My cute friend Heather has an amazing blog about being well. I've enjoyed reading it and now she has a fun giveaway going on! Go check it out. :)

Day Nine: Factoids

2011-01-09T12:37:00.000-07:00

1. Every year Tom reads the Lord of the Rings series
2. Tom served his mission in Mexico City, Mexico North
3. Tom's birthday is on May 28
4. Tom is a really good cook
5. When Tom is trying to get to know someone, he will say "So what's your story?". And he fully expects people to tell him their life story
6. Tom was a cute little kid
7. Tom's favorite song is Beyond the Sea by Bobby Darin

Day Eight: Favorite Picture

2011-01-09T12:21:00.000-07:00

Zion's National Park, 2006

Day Seven: We all have cracks

2011-01-07T15:26:00.000-07:00

Tom was long-boarding with a group of his friends in high school and one of his friends looked down at his board and noticed a crack. Which then caused everyone to evaluate their boards. One person after another mentioned that they also had a crack in their board. Then Tom, being a big believer in summaries, declared "We all have cracks!". Needless to say, this has been a running joke that Tom will never be able to escape. But you can't ever say that Tom is a liar. Cause, it's true...we all have cracks.

Source

Day six: Adventure scale

2011-01-06T13:08:00.000-07:00

Tom and I judge how willing we are to do something using our handy Dunford Adventure Scale. See below for the complete scale, in case you would like to implement it for yourself. When we want to do something (fun or not), we ask each other, "Where are you on the adventure scale?" It has been a great way to assess how we feel about doing something. Here are some of the fun adventures we've had together.

Tom & I at the Garden of Eden (in Idaho) - Level 8

Tom & I at Memory Grove. Before we were married. This was the day
we were taking my family's pictures. Obviously Tom wasn't
officially part of the family yet, we weren't even engaged, but my Mom bought
him a black shirt - just in case he wanted to be in the picture! I guess she approved!
Anyway, I didn't tell him (until later) that my mom had done that because
I wasn't sure how adventurous he was feeling, you know, joining the
family and all. Turns out he was feeling like a Level 10 when he asked me to marry him!

St. George, January 2007, on our honeymoon - Level 8 or 9

One of our first big adventures, moving into our first apartment.
It was an adventure trying to fit all our stuff in that tiny place. - Level 4 or 5

But we eventually did it - Level 4 or 5

Our Europe trip - May 2007 - Level 10

Tom in Italy, May 2007 - Level 10

Eiffel Tower, May 2007 - Level 10

Owning our own businesses has been an adventure! We both get to help each other.
I sometimes help pour concrete and Tom gets roped into making corsages all the time!
Once when I was out of town, Tom had to make this bouquet all on his own! Looks
good, huh? I should consider actually paying him. - Level 10

Bryce Canyon, 2010 - Level 8 or 9

Doug & Tom - San Fran - May 2010 - Level 9 or 10

Sun Valley, 2010 - Level 9 or 10

Dunford Adventure Scale

1 - Let's stay home and watch 10 episodes of Monk straight in a row. And wish we had ice cream.

2 - Let's stay home and watch 3 episodes of Psych. Go get ice cream. Then eat some during the next 2 episodes.

3 - Let's go to a dollar flick at 7:00 p.m.

4 - Let's go to a dollar flick at 10:30 p.m. and order popcorn. And think about getting one of those giant, nasty pickles.

5 - Let's go play games with our friends/family.

6 - Let's make dinner (something new) and play games with our friends/family.

7 - Let's drive up the canyon and eat at Wendy's.

8 - Let's drive up to Logan for the day and eat at Angie's or Iron Gate or Callaway's or Cafe Sabor.

9 - Let's drive to Logan and camp in the canyon. And of course eat at all our favorite restaraunts.

10 - Let's drive to St. George and back. Right now. Get your toothbrush.

The scale is relative. The examples above are for a typical day or week. Sometimes, driving to St. George and back is just the beginning. But no matter the scale, it's nice to know I've got someone like Tom to have all these adventures with. Actually it's pretty rad.

Day Five: Tom's joke

2011-01-05T09:57:00.000-07:00

I remember every joke I've ever heard. It's a gift...and a curse. I wish I could keep information about science,literature, or politics in my brain, but nothing sticks. Except jokes. Tom on the other hand has room* for only one joke and sometimes I have to remind him to tell it. So here it is for your reading pleasure - try not to steal it though, like I said, this is the only one he's got.

Darth Vader says to Luke Skywalker: I know what you are getting for Christmas
Luke says: How do you know that?
Darth Vader says: I felt your presents.

Source

*Because of all the other stuff he knows, see previous posts.

Day Four: 10 Favorites

2011-01-04T12:08:00.000-07:00

1. Psych - my friend Erin introduced us to this show, and we seriously can't get enough of it. We find ourselves quoting it constantly and have hooked our friends and family on it. We highly recommend it. So don't be exactly half of a nine-pound Black Forest Ham and go watch it. (That was a quote).

2. Monk - just thought I'd add this one too, since we are on the TV topic. Every season of Monk is on Netflix (another one of our favorites) and on instant play.

3. Frosted lemon ginger cookies - if we could eat these all day, and not get chubbier than we already are, we probably would. They create the most delightful flavor combination on the planet. I thought I had the recipe with me, but of course I don't. If you want it, I'll email it to you.

4. Birding - I talk about watching birds a lot on this blog and that's because it is one of our favorite things to do. If you needed me to explain.

5. Get Fuzzy - This comic takes a little bit of getting used to, but once you understand the characters, it will have you rolling on the floor.

6. Logan, Utah - Or Zion. Or Land of Milk and Honey. Or Paradise. We want to live there. Forever.

7. Breakfast - Best (and I hear most important) meal of the day. One of the first questions Tom asked me was "How do you feel about breakfast?". I passed the test when I said, it was my favorite. His favorite is French toast and I like scrambled eggs.

8. Crafts - Tom won't like that I'm calling his construction/woodworking projects, crafts, but it's easier to say. We both like to make and build stuff.

9. Photography - We are both amateurs, but will buy a camera. One day. Here's Tom's Flickr account.

10. Frozen treats - Tom loves Slurpees (I can't stand those though, they taste like frozen death). I love Moose Tracks ice cream.

Day Three: Always hungry

2011-01-03T12:37:00.002-07:00

Tom is always hungry. And I'm not talking about his hunger for sugar cereals, cilantro-lime infested salsas, or fine sandwiches. I'm talking about his hunger for knowledge - or maybe I should have said thirst for knowledge? However, that doesn't work for my opening line, now does it? Moving on.

Tom is always learning something new. One day, not long ago, he said "I want to smoke some meat". I said, "that's nice, maybe one day we should", and the next thing I knew he had drawn up plans and watched 10 YouTube videos on how to build his own smoker. And the best part was he actually built one (with his business partner, Doug)! And made his own YouTube video! And we smoked some meats!

Tom and the smoker, Coles Family Cabin, November 2010
Barbecue Smoker Video

Whether it's Star Wars, bird identification, native grasses, or concrete, Tom has a hunger for learning it and I love it. It makes life more exciting. It makes me want to search a little deeper and next time I want to build a rotating thread dispenser, I'll just learn how to do it and make it happen. 'Cause that's what Tom would do.

Day two: Not just a coat rack

2011-01-02T13:34:00.000-07:00

One of the funny memories I have of Tom was when he took me to meet his brother and sister-in-law for the first time. He said he was so nervous. I'm not sure why, I should have been the nervous one. Maybe he was worried they wouldn't like me? He did tell me to keep the puns at a minimum .... hmmmm...maybe I should have taken a hint.*

Anyway, he was nervous and I had recently shared a clever little quip with him that went like this: after doing something remarkably smart, I pointed to my head and said "it's not just a hat rack". He thought that was pretty great and while we were with his family, he shared something profound (maybe about birds or concrete) with the group and then proceeded to use my joke. But instead of hat rack, he slipped and said "it's not just a coat rack".

We about died from laughter. Thought that would be the funniest thing I would ever hear**. So ever since then, when we do something real SMRT, we point to our heads and say "it's not just a coat rack". And it's true, honey...your head isn't just a coat rack...it's good for lots of other things!

Meg, Tom, Mike, and Liz in Bear Lake (our first meeting)

*Just kidding, he didn't really say that. I bet when he firsts reads this, he will say "Hey! That's not true!" and I'll say "I know, I just needed something funny to say right there" and he'll just shake his head.

**You did top this one when you introduced yourself to my family and said "Hi, nice to meet you! I'm Megan's wife". But that's another story.

13 days of Megan & Thomas

2011-01-01T23:41:00.000-07:00

In 13 days, Tom and I will celebrate our fourth year of wedded bliss. We were sealed on January 13, 2007, one of the coldest days ever (17 was the high). But, despite the cold, it was such a happy day. In fact, I didn't think I could be happier. However, I've been proven wrong. Every day since has been pretty amazing and sometimes I think my heart is just going to explode from all the liking going on. Seriously, like it would explode and get guts on the sofa. It's not pretty.

I tell a lot of people about how great Tom is, and usually the news doesn't fall on deaf ears. People already know he's cool. He's just one of those people. I mostly just like to remind them, you know, to brag. So in honor of our approaching anniversary, I would like to ~~brag about~~ share one thought, story, memory, joke, etc. about Tom each day (and honey? If I forget a day, let's still be married).

Day One: Fishy
Tom could fish all day. Every day. He's good at it too and has waders, flies, fancy boots, and a rod (not a pole). He's in a different world I think, when he fishes. I've been with him quite a few times (more when we were dating, sorry babe) and it is really fun to watch him. He knows where the fish are swimming, he knows what they are eating, he knows how to not freak out and jerk his ~~pole~~ rod when a fish bites (again, I'm sorry I lost all those flies). It's pretty neat. But it's not just that he can catch a fish, it's that he is aware of his surroundings and loves them. He can see every fish in the river, he can hear every bird, he notices every shift in the light, he wants to paint every mountain. As I've gotten to know Tom, I've found myself looking around and noticing more. And I have to say, this world is a beautiful place. I'm glad I found myself a pair of Tom-colored glasses.

Sun Valley 2010

merry, merry

2010-12-30T10:10:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! I hope your New Year's is awesome too. I have today and tomorrow off from work and I couldn't be more pleased. I have great plans to organize, exercise, spend my gift certificates, etc. Even if I don't get everything done, it feels nice to have some choice in what I'm doing.
Christmas was very fun this year - did it seem to just fly by for anyone else? I was more ready than ever, but it still seemed to just whoosh by. The week after Christmas is always weird to me - you don't want to work, you shouldn't play, it's just kind of uhh *shrugging shoulders*. I am happy it is kind of slower though, that feels nice.
For Christmas we were spoiled (as per usual). We got our favorite cereals, a really neat picture of our last name - like the ones shown here...but taken by our Shawn, IKEA giftcard, Joann's giftcard, TJMAXX giftcard, Amazon and Itunes giftcards, sushi giftcard, a new sewing machine, cute socks, new clothes, Robin Hood (the one with the foxes), cute little magnet bottles, and my list could go on. We just had a great time. It was fun to get, even more fun to give. Oh yeah, Thomas also made me an incredible rolling island for my kitchen. It is amazing. He's learned how to weld, so there is no stopping us now.

Here she is. If you want one (and I know you do, just go here: www.kingbirddesign.com) (yes, i just did a plug for our business, don't judge)

Welded corners and casters! I can roll her anywhere.

Like the tile? It matches our kitchen perfectly...but guess what? When we move to a new place, we can take the tile out and replace it with whatever surface we want. Tom's a genius, just sayin'. Looks like I need to use that potato, it's gettin' a little saggy.

I've had two weddings this month, which is unusual for December, but they were fun. Here are some pictures.

I'm not usually a fan of the Christmas colors, but the roses and hydrangeas made me a happy camper.

These are the same bouquets, just lying on the sidewalk.

Do you like the feathers? Actually, I don't care if you do or not, they are so awesome.


The groom's boutonniere. Star of Bethlehem (the weird green thing), is probably one of my new favorites. My cute friend from www.rubybloomflowers.com helped me with these. She's the best, I wish we worked together all the time.

Oh yeah, and I did this one in October. Kind of fun.
Anyway, this season has been great. I love all the hustle and bustle of December, the parties, the food, the presents, the sparkle. And more importantly, I also love the service, the family, the friends, and my Savior, Jesus Christ. I hope to take a little bit of what I felt this December with me throughout the year.
Tom and I sent out a digital card for Christmas this year and I'm afraid we missed some people, so I'm posting it here too (hope you can see it). We hope you had a happy Christmas too!

Post 110

2010-12-02T15:49:00.000-07:00

I thought it was kind of neat that this is going to be my 110th post. I'm kind of sad that I didn't notice my 100th. I would have made it a bigger deal. Maybe thrown some confetti at my computer...or something.

Anyway, I just wanted to show you what I've been working on lately. My cousin-in-laws asked me to help them make a website for their new business. It's called My Everyday Key and it's pretty darn cute. I hope they do really well and make lots of money! It's a very good idea. You should buy one.

http://myeverydaykey.blogspot.com/

Pocket Post

2010-11-17T16:13:00.000-07:00

Dear Blogger Pages,
Love you!

Dear Psych,
It's possible that I've watched you at least twice now, and you are still so hilariously funny.

Dear Homemade, Hand-dipped Chocolates,
You are delicious and surprisingly easy to make. I love your creamy centers and thanks to you, I have neighbor Christmas gifts checked off of my list.

Dear People Who Aren't My Neighbors,
I'm sorry, you won't be getting homemade, hand-dipped chocolates for Christmas. You should move though, cause they are that good.

Dear Thanksgiving,
Thanks for being one of the best holidays. I love seeing my family, remembering what I'm grateful for, and eating pie.

Happy Halloween from a Nerdy Environmental Planner

2010-10-29T16:23:00.000-06:00

A brief background for those of you who don't know: The main client at work is Rocky Mountain Power and we help them place their transmission power lines. So...now you know.

The Kelleigh to Megan line.
Endangered species known to be impacted? The Utah Prairie Dog.

Powell Family Reunion

2010-10-03T12:16:00.000-06:00

Over Labor Day weekend, my family had a reunion at Strawberry Reservoir. We had a great time and I hope the tradition keeps going. We fished, we washer-gamed, we camp-fired, we laughed. A good time was had by all. Here are some pictures.

The first day we woke up to this beautiful sight.

Our boat, former owners called it the 'Lady Jane', however the 'J' fell off and it will now be known to all as the 'Lady Ane'

Probably my favorite picture ever.

Captain Bill

My mom - did you know she's caught two fish with one hook?

Twin cousins! We have the same cheeks, you can be the judge of which set.

Lexy and I love riding on the front of the boat - you get the best view.

Sunshine!

I have like 50 other pictures just like this one - but I'll spare you.

Artsy thistle shot.

This picture needs no caption.

Cute girls checking out the red salmon.

Pocket Post

2010-09-22T11:35:00.000-06:00

Dear AutoCad,
I wish we could be friends. I can draw a line with you, but that's about it. Maybe we should just stay acquaintances?

Dear Logan (the City),
Thanks for having Angie's, fly-fishing, $3 movies, and beautiful skies. I miss you. So does Tom.

Dear Hunger Games,
You are kind of scary, but really fun to read. I'm reading Mocking Jay right now and I'd rather be doing that than working.

Dear Fall,
I smelled you the other day. You smell delicious, like spices. I hope you stick around long enough for me to see lots of coral leaves, drink up some apple cider, bake a couple pies, and buy some unnecessary school supplies.

Love,
Megs

persimmony things

2010-09-17T23:20:00.000-06:00

Persimmon Floral was featured three times this week. Take a look here, here, and here. My website got a small makeover too - check it out and see what you think.

My Sketchbook

2010-08-27T16:37:00.000-06:00

My sketchbook came today. I can hardly contain my excitement. I can't wait to fill it up and send it on it's way. Back to Brooklyn. My theme is "If you lived here". I think I know where I'm going to take it too.

Things I want to remember throughout this mini adventure:
1. It doesn't have to be perfect.
2. Make mistakes. Like right in the notebook.
3. Don't be a sissy. Try something new.

Tom's doing it too. We are going to be such a happy sketchy family.

All Things Thrifty

2010-08-05T16:11:00.000-06:00

Or should I say...All Things Awesome! The All Things Thrifty blog is the best - there are so many great ideas for decorating your house...on a budget no less. I love that story. You should check it out here. Seriously, don't wait.

Happy Shark Week

2010-08-01T22:57:00.001-06:00

It's the most wonderful time of the year. It's a gift to you for enduring the other 51 weeks.* Shark Week on the Discovery Channel! Today we've watched Air Jaws and SHARKBITE: How to survive a Great White Shark Attack.

Every year we learn a few things from Shark Week.

1. There really isn't that much footage of shark attacks or swimming sharks - so it's basically the same shows as last year with newer jazzier titles.

2. Sharks aren't the mindless killers we once thought they were. They are like puppies just taking exploratory bites. If they really wanted to eat us...there would be no survivors.

3. You can sharkify yourself. See the pictures below. Warning - they are not for the faint of heart.

4. Tom will tell you that you shouldn't go swimming in the ocean for at least 6 months after watching.

5. My favorite quote so far is this (in reference to the shark attack survivors that were merely given exploratory bites in the water, even though their leg is gone): "The fact that you have been randomly sampled and ultimately rejected is not a comfort for these shark attack victims".
That is so funny! Can you imagine saying that to someone. You have been randomly sampled and ultimately rejected (by a shark). Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. I'm dying.

6. No matter how many reruns there are during Shark Week, it's just plain fun.

So the moral of this post is: Don't swim in dark, murky water and do your best to not look like a seal.

Sweet & Sassy Natty

2010-07-29T13:56:00.002-06:00

My darling friend (and former roommate - I was her favorite - right Kourt?) Kourtney has a darling sister-in-law named Natalie. She has been diagnosed with Ewings Sarcoma - a rare juvenile bone cancer. I know just from talking to Kourtney that she has dealt with a lot during her life, along with her family and friends. I've never met her, but she seems like a great example of how we should all look at this life. I'm grateful for her example and Kourtney's for doing all they can do be loving and kind.

They are having a benefit concert for her on August 6, 2010 at 7:00 pm at Barker Park in North Ogden. Brooke White from American Idol will be there. Sounds like a fun time to me.

Check out Natalie's blog for more information.
http://www.sweetandsassyasnatty.blogspot.com/

Answered Prayers

2010-07-26T09:20:00.000-06:00

The following two quotes were answers to my prayers yesterday. I'm posting them mostly for my remembering purposes, but also thought some of you might enjoy reading them too.

When we put God first, all other things fall into their proper place or drop out of our lives. Our love of the Lord will govern the claims for our affection, the demands on our time, the interests we pursue, and the order of our priorities. …
“May God bless us to put [him] first and, as a result, reap peace in this life and eternal life with a fulness of joy in the life to come."
President Ezra Taft Benson

Hymn #30 - Come, Come Ye Saints - This song was written by Tom's great, great, great, really great? grandfather and was just what I needed to hear yesterday. All is well, all is well.
Listen here.
Come, come ye saints
No toil nor labor fear
But with joy, wend your way
Though hard to you,
This journey may appear,
Grace shall be as your day,
Tis better far for us to strive
Our useless cares from us to drive
Do this and joy, your hearts will swell
All is well! All is well!

Why should we mourn?
Or think our lot is hard?
Tis not so, all is bright
Why we think to earn a great reward?
If we now shun the fight
Gird up your loins
Fresh courage take
Our god will never us forsake
And soon we'll have this tale to tell
All is well! All is well!

We'll find the place
Which God for us prepared
Far away, in the West
Where none shall come
To hurt of make afraid
There the saints, will be blessed
We'll make the air, with music ring,
Shout praises to, our god and king,
Above the rest these words we'll tell
All is well! All is well!

Pocket Post

2010-05-27T15:52:00.000-06:00

Dear Books,
Thanks for sitting on my shelf and trying to inspire me to read you. Sometimes I just go watch TV, but it's not because I don't like you.

Dear Things I Have To Do,
You're kind of a lot to handle. Maybe we can compromise? I'll pay attention to you sometimes...but mostly you should just take care of yourselves. Deal?

Dear Graceful Envelope Contest,
I am going to enter you, even though the deadline has passed.

Dear Pie Pops,
Hello, I don't think we've met! I'm excited to get to know you.

Dear Wardrobe Refashion,
Let's get going! I am in need of a little makeover and you will fit in quite well with my other friends, Mr. Budget and Miss Crafty-Pants.

Dear Food Co-op,
You're the bomb.

Teaser

2010-05-15T08:11:00.000-06:00

We've been sketching daily (well mostly Tom has).
We've been getting new red shoes and taking pictures of them when we're bored (well I guess that's mostly me).
We've been sketch dining. Join us next time.
We've been making paper flowers.
We've been checking out the beach in San Francisco.
Our lives are pretty sweet.

Two Nifty Websites

2010-04-07T08:42:00.000-06:00

http://www.etsy.com/shop/snapcrafty?page=2 - this is stuff I didn't know I needed.
http://www.assemblyoftext.com/letter_writing_club - I would like to start a letter writing club. Anyone else?

Pocket Post

2010-03-18T22:20:00.001-06:00

Dear work,
I'm glad I have you in my life. Sometimes I complain about you. Mostly behind your back. I still like you though. Let's hang out still.

Dear DI,
How fun are you to visit?! Today I found a little flower dish, a darling kleenex box, and a travel bag that makes we want to pack up my stuff and just drive.

Dear Banana Cream Pie,
Thanks for being in my fridge.

Dear Man vs. Wild,
You should really consider not jumping off cliffs while you are trying to teach people how to survive. It goes against all common sense. Maybe you should try watching Survivor Man. He knows how to do it.

Dear One Sketch Daily,
You're cool.Wish I could do that.

Dear Spring,
Welcome back almost! When you come to stay - we should have a party.

Sincerely,
Megan D.

March thoughts

2010-03-03T10:21:00.004-07:00

I'm loving that it's March. March rocks. March is a hopeful month - there is still going to be snow and rain of course - but there is also hope that there won't be. I like that. March is my birthday month. I still love my birthday - I try to make it last for a long time. For example, I ask Tom if he will bring me a drink of water or some popcorn and always pair the question with "It's my birthday". Works like a charm, although I think he's catching on. Dang. March makes me feel like planting gardens in potholes. Anyone else want to join me? March makes me feel like crafting, sewing and basically creating. It's just that hopeful, happy feeling. Did anyone see this video? It's the best. Hope your March is going well.

P.S. My flowers are going to be famous - Check them out on TV this Friday (3/5) on Studio 5 at 11:00 am. Don't worry I won't let it get to their little flower heads.

Pocket Post

2010-02-22T11:05:00.002-07:00

I recently read a delightful entry on this blog and loved it. So I'm changing the name (from Little Letters to Pocket Post) and doing it myself.

Dear Washing Machine,

Thank you for washing my clothes while I relax and watch the Sound of Music.

Dear Tom,

Thanks for having so much fun with me on Saturday. Who knew fixing a vacuum, cleaning someone else's apartment, and returning clothes at Kohl's could be so much fun?

Dear Lemon Poppyseed Scone Mix,

You were so delicious and if you were any easier, you would make yourself.

Dear Anthropolgie,

I wish you would tone down the awesomeness...just a little. It's starting to make me sick.

Dear Mom,

Thanks for hanging out on Friday night and teaching me how to make my emails not look like forwards. You are the best. Please remember that a dream is a wish your heart makes.

Dear Nielsen's Lemon Custard,

Let's be BFFs. For reals.

Love,

Megs

Quite possibly

2010-02-20T10:19:00.002-07:00

"I am fairly certain that given a cape and a nice tiara, I could quite possibly save the world."
Curly Girl Designs

I saw this card in a store last night. Made me feel inspired to do a lot with my day today. Now to go get my cape...

throwing a party?

2010-01-18T12:55:00.002-07:00

check out this darling give-away & be sure to use the inspiration boards for your future parties!

http://www.birthdaygirlblog.com/2010/01/custom-inspiration-board-giveaway.html

Why hello there

2009-12-31T13:40:00.009-07:00

It's been a month. A month! Since I've busted out a rockin' blog post. Wow. I was going to tell you that one of my resolutions was to keep a better record on my blog, but then you'd know I already failed at that. Don't judge me.
So anyway...Happy New Year! Isn't it cool that we are in the year 2010? I love it. I've been graduated from high school for 10 years. That's weird. Does anyone else think that's weird? I really do. What are your resolutions? Tom and I have a few up our sleeves. Nothing too crazy, just get less fat, be more nice, save more cash, etc. I'm always grateful for the time given to us to reflect on how we can be better. Even if you don't do a great job at keeping them, it is always nice to have a little "shot in the arm" of trying to be better. My sister said on January 3rd that her resolution was to be happier and that so far she had had a pretty good year and expects to be happy for another few days. :) I thought that was funny.
Oh yeah, some of you might be happy to know that our fish found a home with my nephew. HER name is now "Turkey".
Now for the blupdate. {Blog Update} Here is a countdown since my last post.

{10 - thousand presents}
We got so many wonderful presents this Christmas. My mom is really cute and wraps every little thing seperately, so even though the present might not be huge/expensive, it gets its own little wrap job and it is a lot of fun to open all of them. My favorite gifts were a darling little bird nest necklace {from D&A}, a sewing kit made from a Ball jar, so cute {from D&S}, and vintage salt and pepper shakers {from M&B}. Thomas made me an awesome coat rack too, out of pipes & concrete. Oh yeah...we also got a dinner at "Lucy's" from Tom's sister's family. We'll keep you posted about that one.

{9 - different stories}
I thought I had a copy of the stories we wrote at our New Year's Eve party, but B borrowed them. We played the game "What If?" and came up with the most hilarious stories. Again, I will post one of them when I get them back. This New Year's party was so much fun! Usually New Year's is so anticlimactic, but D, G, B, E, C, Tom & I had so much fun. Probably because the cheese fondue had white wine in it...I'm not sure it really was "all cooked out". :)

{8 - lots of food}
Get it? We "8" lots of food? Ha, ha. This post is taking a turn for the worst. :)

{7 - Christmas parties}
We went to 4 family parties, 1 work party, 2 friend parties, and 1 ward party. December flew by so quickly, but we had a great time seeing everyone.

{6 - Games of Settlers}
We hooked our brother and sister-in-law on the game "Settlers of Catan" when we were in Bostonland, so when they came for Christmas that's all we wanted to do. There were many late nights and lots of laughs despite how many grudges were formed. :)

{5 - Different weddings}
This year I got 5 weddings from the wedding show I did in July. Not counting the ones recommended to me by family and friends. I love doing wedding flowers and am glad I've been able to do them even with working full time. Here are a couple of photos from the last few.

{4 - Guitar lessons}
For our anniversary {coming up on the 13th} Tom got me 4 guitar lessons from our awesome friend Brandon {check out his band here}. He is a classic guitarist and is just amazing at what he does. So far I've learned how to play a G major scale and am learning a new song. If I can get my fingers to play a bar chord. I'll keep you posted.

{3 - Years of marriage}
Yes, that's right. We've been married for 3 years. It's been great. I've learned so much about myself and about how to be a better person. I'm grateful that Tom is in my life. We are going somewhere fun next weekend to celebrate, so I'll have to write about that too. {The list of future posts is getting longer and longer}

{2 - Wii-motes}
Another one of our awesome Christmas presents was a Wii. I love it. We have Wii fit and Dr. Mario and Wii Play and Brain Challenge. My mom gave us hers which was really cute and nice of her. If you want to come over and play...then just do it. :)

{1 - Graduation}
I officially walked in my graduation commencement on the 11th of December. It was really fun and it made it seem more official that I was done, even though I already had my diploma. Thanks to everyone {again} who made it possible for me to do that. It felt great to check that off my list.
So there you have it. Life is good. Here's a cool picture we took from our trip to Bryce Canyon...which reminds me of another post I need to do. Maybe tomorrow. Probably next month.

"One fish! Fish for sale. He's going cheap

2009-12-09T22:25:00.003-07:00

Only seven guineas. That or thereabouts."
Name the movie and I'll give you a buck and a fish.

That's right folks, for a limited time only, you could be the proud owner of a smallish goldfish named Les. Les Stroud (he has survived harsh chemicals & freezing water temperatures, however we did not get it on tape). Or Freddie. Whatever you wish, he's your fish. He swims. He eats. He swims. He eats. Did I mention he could swim?
Amazing! Teach your children responsibility! Teach your husband responsibility!
If you comment now, I will throw in some food to keep this little guy happy.
Seriously, you don't want to miss this great opportunity to get your very own goldfish! Christmas is coming and just imagine the smile on the recipient of this happy little creature.

Okay, guys...I really do have a fish that we need to find a home for. Our fish tank is too small and I don't want to get another aquarium for one little fish, not that Les isn't great, we just can't keep him. So if anyone is interested let me know and I'll bring him by.
If not, he might find himself on a ride down the Porcelain Express (name the movie for another buck), but don't tell Tom I said that.

2009-11-26T12:26:00.001-07:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

I like him, because

2009-11-19T23:03:00.003-07:00

he buys 10 boxes of sugar cereal because they are on sale and then proceeds to make a cereal tower.
he still laughs at my jokes.
he knows which bird is sitting on the branch outside my window.
he likes to discuss adhesives.
he always wants a frozen treat.
he likes to hear me sing.
he busts out random dance moves when I least expect it.
he makes me fancy presents, even when I'm kind of mean.
when he reads Get Fuzzy, he curls up in bed and says "I'm gettin' fuzzy" (had to be there).
he likes to get the Led out.
for Christmas he wants a metal detector and equipment for panning gold.
even though he thinks this picture is cheesy, he will still let me post it.

My cute friend A is having a giveaway to celebrate her husband coming back from the Army and all you have to do to enter is tell her why you love your special someone. You should go enter, it is nice to remember all the things you like about someone in your life. Even if you don't win her awesome prize.

New favorite.

2009-11-12T19:16:00.002-07:00

Have a listen.
I like Heartbroken and If You'd Ask Me alot. They are cheery tunes. I also love her website and her name is pretty much perfect.

Stuff.

2009-11-01T14:07:00.005-07:00

1. I love fall.
2. I love pie.
3. I like my new job. www.epgaz.com
4. I have a million loose ends to tie up.
5. I want to be a better friend.
5.5. I have a lot of good friends/family.
6. I need to finish organizing my house.
7. I love decorating.
7.5. Here is Lexy's bouquet.

8. I want to sew some more.
9. I want to serve.
10. I need to do some family history.
11. I love pie. Enough to write it twice.
12. I'm kind of sleepy.
13. Psych is my new favorite show.
14. Tom is cute.
15. Reading other people's cute blogs makes me want to throw up a little.
16. I like pumpkins.
17. I like seeing kid's Halloween costumes.
18. I love thinking about gardens.
19. I should probably buy a real camera.
20. I need to find my groove again.
22. Orange is a great color.
22. I like this bouquet. It's pretty.

23. I have too many things I want to try and do and not enough time to do them.
24. Who wants to live here? I do.

25. I am so hungry, I could eat a whole pie. Mmmmm. Pie.

5 Happy Newsies

2009-09-25T07:40:00.000-06:00

1. My little sister is being sealed tomorrow.
2. I got a job. Like a real one.
3. I get to sleep in the car on the ride down to Cedar City today.
4. I have clean clothes at my Mom's house.
5. I get to arrange flowers this weekend.

Thank you.

2009-09-22T13:41:00.002-06:00

Some kind soul or souls left us a box of food on our doorstep. It was full of Ramen, macaroni, chicken noodle soup, Pasta-Roni, and corn. I just wanted to thank whoever it was. I have my suspicions of course, but I thought I should say thanks to everyone, just in case.
You are the best and we appreciate it very much! I guess we will be around for 8 more days ;)

Just buy it.

2009-09-15T10:47:00.000-06:00

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?sid=&nid=443&tab=list/view&ad=1586459

It's raining, not pouring, and this blog is boring

2009-09-13T17:24:00.002-06:00

I've been checkin' out my blog lately and realized it has been pretty lame. Our life is interesting, lots going on and all that, but when I sit down to write a post, nothing catchy comes out, so I usually delete it. I might have to do the same with this one. We'll see.
This is what we've been doing since I last wrote.
1. My little sister (Lexcellent) and her hubby (Scottastic) are being sealed together in the St. George Temple on 9.26.09. I am super happy for them! They have made a lot of great progress together and I am excited to see them make this happy step. I have been busy planning a smallish party for her, which has been really fun.
2. We moved. Many of you know this from experience and will know to come up with better excuses for next time. We are loving our new apartment though. There are no neighbors above or below us, there's a garage and a lovely little courtyard to look out on. Most of our stuff is in its place, but the decorating is far from done. Everyone that visits tells me that it "screams Megan & Thomas". We like it muy mucho.
3. I have been busy with {Persimmon Floral}. Tom has been busy with Kingbird Design (new site coming soon). I went to the Avenues Street Fair to advertise. I would have done about a MILLION things differently, but it went pretty well. I also attended a conference for women entrepreneurs, which was so great! Very inspiring. If any of you have considered starting your own business, let me know and I can get you in touch with the people who put it on. Tom just finished up a deck and is working on some other random jobs. We are both looking for other steady jobs so if you hear of any, let me know. We have however, been very blessed with work and talents that let us go out on our own. Even though we are struggling to make ends meet, we know we have been blessed. Thank you to everyone who has supported us.
4. Over Labor Day, we went up to Strawberry Reservoir and stayed at Daniel's Summit Lodge with my Mom and Bill and Scott and Lexy. It was a great trip, although no fish were caught. On Monday, we went up to Tom's family cabin and had a work party. We stayed there most of the day, came home exhausted, and went to bed. There is nothing like a hard day of work. It was very satisfying.
Okay...well I thought I had more than four things to write about, but apparently I don't. I guess it is hard to sum up all your busy days in one post. I will leave you with what Thomas just came into tell me and my new favorite scripture.

Thomas (with the whole block of cheese in his hands): This cheese tastes like fridge. Taste it. (offering me a slice).

It did taste like fridge, but did he really have to share? :)

D&C 136: 28-29
28 If thou art ^amerry, ^bpraise the Lord with singing, with music, with ^cdancing, and with a ^dprayer of praise and ^ethanksgiving.

29 If thou art ^asorrowful, call on the Lord thy God with supplication, that your souls may be ^bjoyful.

You gotta have these...

2009-09-03T10:01:00.001-06:00

http://indiefixx.com/Feed_your_soul/downloads.html
Bye!

Boston Baked Beans

2009-08-21T15:35:00.004-06:00

Boston has been a delight. We've seen lots of amazing things and we've been given quite a few hints about moving ourselves here by T's family. :) We have loved it so far, except for the humidity (which we have been assured only lasts 10 days out of the year). Here are a few pictures to get you excited about seeing more. 'Cuz I know you want it.

Oooh...starting off with a fancy shot of the word Boston. How exciting. :)

Outside of the Museum of Industry on our bike ride along the Charles River.

I love, love, love public transportation!

Quincy Market outside of Fanueil Hall. I want these in my yard.

Park Street Church.

Creepy.

Everything here is brick & covered with Boston Ivy.

This is the only lobster we could afford to eat. :)

Off to Massachussetts

2009-08-11T08:18:00.003-06:00

We are going to Boston in 4 hours. So excited! I will post up the pictures as I go...hopefully. :) If anyone that reads this blog has been there...tell me what we need to see...especially if it is free! Hope you are all doing well! I need to catch up on blogland soon!
Bye!

So much

2009-07-13T11:47:00.003-06:00

Where to start? Haven't blogged in a while. Life has been crazy busy but a lot of fun. Here are a few highlights.
#1 - We are moving...again. I hate to move. I hate paying rent to other people. I hate asking people for help. However we are going to be in a nicer apartment, about the same size, and it has a garage. It is on the Avenues...again (in our old ward) and costs less than we are paying now. So even though it is highly disappointing to move, we are getting a great deal.
#2 - I did a wedding show at La Caille this weekend. Check out my Persimmon Floral Blog to read all about it.
#3 - The fourth of July was awesome. We celebrated "Still dependent day" by having a bbq at my Dad's house and then by visiting my high school (which is closing) and watching fireworks and seeing lots of great friends, then we went to Tom's cabin (on the fourth) to relax and hang out. It was great! We went on a hike to the Red Door Mine...which had a lot less Red Door than I was expecting. Apparently you used to be able to see the Red Door, but now it is all gated and restricted. Oh well, it was still fun.
#4 - My website is in the process of becoming awesome. Right now it is a mish-mash of 2 different websites. I will let you know when it is up and running again.
Today I am cleaning my house, feeding the missionaries, and figuring out my weekend. I hope you are all doing well and having fun! Here are some pictures.

Relay for Life

2009-07-01T10:05:00.001-06:00

This last weekend (June 26 and 27) I had the great opportunity to serve at the Relay for Life in Murray. It was a great opportunity and so much fun to see how much good a few people can do. My team raised $1,180.00! It was fantastic. Thank you to everyone who donated. The whole event raised $30,000.00. It will go to fund cancer research and programs here in Utah. Thank you also to all of you who came and walked for my team. Candi came and walked around the track for 2 hours in the middle of the night! You are awesome. Izzy's cute family came and walked on Friday night and Saturday morning and they had a bake sale (raising $80.00). My mom came and facepainted and we raised a bit more money there. It was great. I got to make some flower arrangements for the Survivor's Reception and make a cool backdrop of the Hollywood mountains. I never got a final picture of it, but you can see it in the works below. Tom walked a lot and helped with setting up too. We got totally dumped on on Friday night, but it was followed by a beautiful double rainbow. People kept going too even during the rain. I am excited to be involved with it again next year.

Sitting on babies

2009-06-14T20:46:00.005-06:00

Babysitting is such an awkward term, that's why I had to make fun of it in the title of this post. I don't really sit on babies. However, Tom and I did get to watch a couple of them recently.

From May 18-June 4, I had the opportunity to tend my next door neighbor's little girl, T. My next door neighbor teaches school and her husband was starting school, so they had a weird overlap of time where neither of them could watch her. It was a lot of work, but also a lot of fun. She would come over with her Mighty Mouse lunch box in hand (a very popular item with J's and J's boys) and we would just have a great time. I got her to take naps by putting her in my room, shutting the door, letting her cry, coming in to console her, and then she would fall asleep on my shoulder. We watched Sleeping Beauty almost everyday. In the car we would sing "I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream"...she would sit in the back and yell "I know you, I know you" until I started singing. Her other favorite phrases were "No way" and "Thank you". We got to go to the zoo (thank you J), where we rode the carousel and saw the elephants. She also had a wicked sweet pair of Ranger Rick binoculars (another popular item for the boys). We only had one incident at the zoo, when W(?) threw part of the binoculars into the giraffe cage. J risked life and limb to retrieve it for me and even gave me a wet wipe to wash it off. What a great friend. I was glad to give her back to her parents at the end of the day, but I do kind of miss her now. This was the only picture she let me take of her.

Tom also had the opportunity to watch a youngster (just for an hour or so). He got to hold our little nephew E, while his mom and dad and older brother went on the Alpine Slide. He really liked Tom and sat there cuddling him just like this the whole time. Just darling. Tom may or may not have been glad to give him back. I'll have to ask him. He looks like he's having fun to me. :)

UP

2009-06-03T21:25:00.002-06:00

T and I just got back from seeing the movie UP. It gets like 50 stars. You have to go see it, if you haven't already. We loved it and don't be late, the first 15 minutes are the best. Happy watching.

It's a sign

2009-05-31T22:24:00.002-06:00

Click on this site
http://www.apple.com/getamac/ads/
Then go to the one titled 'Elimination'.
I've been wanting one...and I really think that this is my cue.
Sorry Jessica! I just read your post, but I can't help liking the Mac) :)

Swaner Nature EcoCenter

2009-05-25T22:36:00.003-06:00

For Tom's birthday (which isn't until the 28th), my Dad and Shawn gave us tickets to one of the Bird Festival field trips. It was so much fun! We saw a lot of birds...two life-listers for both of us: a Sora and a Savannah Sparrow. We were the youngest people there and we met a lot of lovely people. Bob was my favorite, his license plate said 'Bird Nerd' and he wore a wicked sweet jumpsuit. He knew a lot about birds and had all sorts of bird calls programmed into his ipod. He had a little speaker that would project the sound and call the birds, which is how we got to see the Sora. Birders are very interesting people, it was fun hanging about with them.
Part of the field trip took us to the Swaner Nature EcoCenter. I highly recommend it. It is a beautiful place and they've done a lot of neat things there AND its free. They are on their way to becoming the first Platinum LEED certified building in Utah. I think they are going to be the first one anyway...they seemed pretty confident about it. Pretty cool.
Here are some pictures.

Two promises

2009-05-11T15:14:00.003-06:00

I said I would post a picture of the 3rd grader picture from my Mom's school that illustrates the power of graphic communication. Here it is.

My second promise? I promise not to get my doctorate. That was just a little jokey-joke.

Oh yeah, I defended my thesis

2009-05-07T08:41:00.005-06:00

I can't believe I haven't written about my most favorite recent event. Hello? Get with it. April 23rd was the BIG day. My Mom, Bill, Tom, and I drove up to Logan on the 22nd by way of Syracuse where Tom gave a bid to work on a deck. We then ate at Cafe Rio and (upon my Mom's insistence) bought me some comfortable black kicks (shoes) for the defense. We stayed at the Crystal Inn in Logan and got some rest.
The next morning I woke up around 6:30, got ready, tried to eat some weird rubber eggs, and headed up to the school. I got to the room at got everything set up. I had no problems with the projector or my presentation file, which is unheard of, right? I also set up the most important element of my presentation...Dunford Doughnuts! I didn't even need to prepare or write a thesis I'm sure. The doughnuts speak for themselves.
I met up with my professor, John, and we laughed at joked about how I wasn't going to pass. My other professor showed up with a box of Kleenex. Ha, ha. I picked some "funny" people for my committee. My third professor came and I found out that his father sat on my Grandma's committee when she was getting her Masters from Utah State. Small world.
Anyway, the presentation went fabulously! I used the following graphic to illustrate a certain point in my thesis. A kid at my Mom's school drew it and it drove home the power of graphic design in communicating a message (which is what my thesis is all about).
After I presented they asked me a few questions (which I knew all the answers too) and then asked me to leave the room. I waited outside for a moment and they finally let me come back in, made me sweat a little and then told me I passed with MINOR revisions. Whoo hoo!
They loved it and they want me to try and get it published. That's a weird thought...but it would be really cool to say "Yeah, I've been published". :)
After the defense and all the paperwork we went to Angie's in Logan and then Bill and Tom dropped my Mom and I off at the DI where we totally scored. We found brand new shoes, darling teacups, a dress for my sister's wedding, and some giant iron candleholders for my Mom. In the meantime, Tom and Bill found the Logan River, they caught 3 fish.
My Mom and I found so much cool stuff and we started to walk up to the mall and realized that our bags were really heavy...so we went back into the DI to try and find something to carry our purchases. We finally found a luggage cart and strapped our stuff onto it. We looked pretty funny. We stretched my Mom's sweatshirt over all the bags so they wouldn't be flying all over the place. :)
Tom and Bill finally came to pick us up and then we headed to the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. Check out my bird nerd list on the side. It was so fun!
A very happy day...I feel so much lighter...now all I have to do is decide to join the real world or pursue my doctorate...?

Cherry, Cherry

2009-04-29T23:36:00.002-06:00

Oh cherry baby. This view outside my window makes me smile.

Lunch Breaks

2009-04-14T23:35:00.001-06:00

This is what I've been doing on my lunch breaks recently. I heart sewing. It is so much fun. I made the first bag from a pattern found in Lotta Jansdotter book (see list of Talented People) and the second one I found from a link called madebyrae.blogspot.com which I found through Little Cumulus (thanks A!). The second bag was made by me and my sister Lexy. She picked the fabric and it is SO her. I think they turned out pretty cute. I've made two other bags, one set of placemats, and one set of coasters...but I gave them away before I took pictures. Maybe...if those people read my blog...they could send me a picture of them? I also made a miniature quilt and pillow for a fairy garden, but that is a post for another day.

04/23/09

2009-04-07T19:20:00.003-06:00

There's the light. It is so close. It is so pretty. April 23, 2009 is the day. The day my silly thesis antics will be over (at least until they tell me all of the things I've done wrong and want me to revise). But defending is a huge step towards that glorious light. I'm in love with the light. Can you feel the light? Its lovely. Ahhhh! I've got a lot to do. My heart hurts. Bye!

Relay for Life

2009-04-05T12:50:00.002-06:00

Hi Everyone!
I am a part of the Relay for Life! Check out my team at
http://main.acsevents.org/goto/TheChargers for more information to join my team or donate. Every little bit counts.
The reason I started this relay was because of my great friend Erin. I met her shortly after she finished her Leukemia treatment. I was so grateful that their were people and funds available to help her get through that difficult time so that she could be a part of my life now. I want to help other people that are going through a difficult time now and hope you will join me!
So please join my team or give just 5 dollars. That could help drive a patient to treatment. A cool way to spend your dough. :)
Have a lovely day and if you want more information let me know!
Thanks!

Stress Management - Easter Style

2009-04-01T23:11:00.004-06:00

I usually consider myself a nice person, but there is something so satisfying about biting the head off of a peep. It's a little disturbing and remniscent of Ozzy Osbourne I know, but I do look forward to the Easter season to let out all of my pent up frustrations. Give it a whirl! It really works! Next time I'll show you how funny it is to microwave one of 'em.
Now I'm really scaring you aren't I? I'm not the only one.

Washers, Thesis, Tulips, Salsa Garden, and a Pisa Party

2009-03-24T13:36:00.006-06:00

Haven't written in a while...Now you get to see a whole bunch of pictures! Yay!

First my washer collection. I told my Shawn (my cute step-mom) about my collection of washers and she wanted me to post a picture of it on my blog. I found my first washer on my first "official" date with Tom. Ever since that day I find washers wherever I go, it is really fun. I asked Tom if it was because I was special or just lucky. He said special. I love him.

Next...my thesis (which is the reason I haven't written in a while). I am making really good progress on it. I will defend in April! Here is my outline on color coded index cards and taped to a rubbermaid lid. :)

My cute friend Chelsey gave me some tulip bulbs for Christmas and I planted them a couple weeks ago. I don't know if they are going to work, but they are starting to pop up...so I'll keep you posted. Also, Tom and I have started some seeds for our salsa garden. We are starting the seeds at our home and will plant them in Tom's dad's garden. Get excited for that!

Finally...Tom and I hosted a party with some friends. It was a party celebrating the day (Feb. 27th) that the Italian government asked for the world's help in restoring the Leaning Tower of Pisa. In short...a Pisa Party! Everyone brought their favorite Italian dish and we talked about our Italy trips. Very fun. I didn't get a picture of all of us or all the yummy food, just the appetizers. It was delicious. I wanted to have a party on the 27th...so to come up with a theme I went to The History Channel website and plugged in the date and it tells you what happened on that day. Great for a quick party theme.
If you want to party today...you can celebrate the day that Elvis joined the army. :)

That's all for now. I will post more about the garden and my thesis soon. Also...my latest sewing ventures. I've been inspired to start sewing and I feel the need to get good at it...so it is going to be interesting at first, but I am excited!
Happy collecting, schooling, gardening, partying, and crafting!

Kingbird Design

2009-03-11T10:51:00.002-06:00

This is my husband's design company. The site is still hatching, but check it out when you get a chance.
Kingbird Design LLC

Two of my favorite people

2009-03-10T09:36:00.004-06:00

A lot of you are my favorite people...but for this particular post I am narrowing my list down to these two lovely ladies: Gina Day & Martha Stewart.
Gina recently entered Martha Stewart's "Green Thumb Contest" and is one of three finalists. She is an amazing gardener. Last year she turned her tiny little patio into a wonderful garden. She had watermelons hanging off the balcony and an apple AND a peach tree hanging out outside her window. There were herbs, native grasses, and MY favorite...lots of flowers.
Anyway...if you have some time today (and you can keep voting throughout the week) go to this link http://blogs1.marthastewart.com/radioblog/2009/03/vote-for-your-favorite-green-thumb.html and click on her story to vote for it. Read the story too...it is very cool.
In high school I was voted "Most likely to become the next Martha Stewart". Little did I know that it would manifest itself into my very good friend actually becoming Martha. Hmmm....This could work out. Gina? Could you have me on your show?

Dear Weather,

2009-03-03T15:07:00.003-07:00

Dear Weather,
You can't trick me. I know that you are out there pretending to be all nice and sunny just to taunt me. I know you are giving me a slight breeze with little or no chance of rain just to mess with my little head. I know that you are sucking me into your lies. "Spring is approaching" you say, but I know from past experience that it is still far away.
I can't say that I don't want to believe that the time has come to start planting my garden, cleaning my house, and visiting the canyon. But I should wait. I've seen you do this to me before. Get me all excited, then when I least expect it I will be knee high in snow. All my hopes dashed.
So no, capricious weather, I will not succumb to your sunny rays and happy spring smells. I will wait until I know that no storm clouds will persist.
So, even though I bought some seeds, organized my closet, and stopped writing my thesis for a time...you haven't tricked me. Yet.
Sincerely,
Waiting for Spring

Valentines email

2009-02-19T10:47:00.002-07:00

I received this from my darling niece yesterday. I just had to share. I love kids. Thanks Izzy for helping her send it. It made my whole day!

Hi,

This is from Anna. I have some poems I wrote today.

The love day is here

Friends love each other

Love days are here

Valentines

I like the treats in Valentines

I like the notes in Valentines

But most of all

I like my mom in the world

And she loves me and my dad

I hope that you are having a fun time. I got an orange sucker from someone who was my friend. I thought it was from you. But maybe it was from someone in my class.

Can you make some fairy stuff for us to play with?

Love,

Anna

The Snuggie

2009-02-19T10:34:00.003-07:00

Every time I see this commercial I giggle. It is funny on a lot of levels.
I've always called the phenomenon that happens when your underwear gets stuck in your behind a snuggie. I've since learned that no one calls it that, but it is still planted in my brain. So keep that in mind when you watch this commercial. My favorite parts are when it says "One-size fits all" and "Buy one get one free".
Sorry, this isn't the classiest of posts, but I just had to share.
The Snuggie

Stuck on the moon

2009-02-16T09:25:00.002-07:00

Two nights ago I had a dream that I was stuck on the moon with the cast of Lost (mostly Jack and Kate, for those of you who are familiar with the show). The only resources we had to get off the moon were a soccer ball, a plastic plate, and a really fat lady. It was a hopeless feeling dream. During the night I also ripped the blinds off the window. So when I woke up the blinds were on the floor and I had the most hopeless feeling inside and was suddenly very worried about getting my thesis done.
I think that the dream was telling me something. Writing a thesis is like trying to get off the moon with only a ball, plate, and 1 fat lady. Impossible.
Luckily, I went to church and life was good again. I'm going to rock this thesis...or get off the moon, whatever comes first.

Counterfeit?

2009-02-08T16:21:00.003-07:00

So yesterday I went to the bank to deposit a check and some cash monies I had acquired. I pulled up, filled out the deposit slip, put everything in the sucky up machine, and waited for a friendly teller greeting (hoping for a sucker of course). As I waited, I look inside to see all the bankers examining my bills. I thought to myself, "Self, wouldn't that be funny if those were counterfeit?". Just then I hear the teller's voice telling me that my bills were in fact just that. I was so shocked, I couldn't believe it. He asked me where I received the money. I told him from my friend Doug, who we did some work for (trying to make it sound like it wasn't some crazy undercover job). He proceeded to explain to me why they were counterfeit and how he wasn't going to give it back to me. I was kind of freaked out, but luckily they didn't take me down to the Big House. I just told them I was real sorry and tried not to peel out of the drive-up.
I called my friend Doug afterwards and asked him where he got the money. He had found it in the apartment we had been helping him fix up and told his cousin not to worry about paying us. I told him that if he was counterfeiting money he should let us in on it. I mean, come on, what are friends for? Luckily he hadn't tried to spend/deposit his yet. I think this was the closest I've come to breaking the law. Kind of exciting.