Down in the Dumps

I’ve been down in the dumps lately and no matter what I do, I can’t get over this depressed feeling. It feels like there’s just one thing after another dragging us down. Mostly it has to do with the fact that Brian lost his job 3 weeks ago. I’ve been trying to get a job so we can collect Brian’s unemployment, but the job search is going nowhere. I haven’t worked for 5 years, so no one wants me. I still have the capability to work, but no one will give me a chance. One of the jobs I applied for had received over 400 applications. There’s so much competition, I’m afraid nothing will ever come along. Brian is an architect, and there are no open architect positions in the state, so I’m not holding out much hope for us. We are living off food storage and not spending hardly any money, but money will run out in a month or two. Maybe this is to teach us how to live more frugally. The amount we used to spend every two weeks, in hindsight, seems like a fortune. Maybe we needed this wake-up call to stop being wasteful, get our food storage in order, and save, save, save. Even if Brian finds something, it’s likely that this could happen again someday. I hope we are all taking the prophets council to stock up and save money to prepare ourselves for hard times.

YES or NO

Here are the rules:
1. You can ONLY answer Yes or No.
2. You are NOT ALLOWED to explain ANYTHING unless someone messages or comments you and asks. --and believe me, the temptation to explain some of these will be overwhelming nothing is exactly as it seems.
3. Tag some friends.

Been arrested? No
Kissed someone you didn't like? Yes
Slept in until 5 PM? no
Fallen asleep at work/school? no
Held a snake? yes
Ran a red light? no
Been suspended from school? No
Experienced love at first sight? yes
Totaled your car in an accident? No
Been fired from a job? no
Fired somebody? no
Sang karaoke? Yes
Pointed a gun at someone? No
Done something you told yourself you wouldn't? Yes
Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? no
Caught a snowflake on your tongue? Yes
Kissed in the rain? Yes
Had a close brush with death (your own)? yes
Seen someone die? yes
Played spin-the-bottle? Yes
Sang in the shower? Yes
Smoked a cigar? No
Sat on a rooftop? yes
Smuggled something into another country? No
Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes? no
Broken a bone? no
Skipped school? Yes
Eaten a bug? Yes
Sleepwalked? No
Walked a moonlit beach? Yes
Rode a motorcycle? no
Dumped someone? Yes
Forgotten your anniversary? No
Lied to avoid a ticket? No
Ridden on a helicopter? No
Shaved your head? No
Played a prank on someone? Yes
Hit a home run? no
Felt like killing someone? Yes
Cross-dressed? no
Made your girlfriend/boyfriend cry? no
Eaten snake? NO
Marched/Protested? no
Had Mexican jumping beans for pets? No
Puked on amusement ride? No
Seriously & intentionally boycotted something? no
Been in a band? yes
Knitted? yes
Been on TV? Yes
Shot a gun? Yes
Skinny-dipped? yes
Caused someone to have stitches? no
Eaten a whole habenero pepper? no
Ridden a surfboard? no
Had surgery? Yes
Streaked? No
Taken by ambulance to hospital? yes
Passed out when not drinking? Yes
Peed on a bush? no
Donated Blood? Yes
Grabbed electric fence? no
Eaten alligator meat? No
Eaten cheesecake? YES
Eaten your kids' Halloween candy? yes
Killed an animal when not hunting? No
Peed your pants in public? Yes
Snuck into a movie without paying? No
Written graffiti? No
Still love someone you shouldn't? No
Think about the future? Yes
Been in handcuffs? No
Believe in love? Yes
Sleep on a certain side of the bed? Yes

I tag:
Jamie
Maggie
Andrea
Evette
Jami
Heidi
Lettie
anyone else who wants to do this!

Pay it Forward

Here's how this game works-the first 3 people to leave a comment on this post will receive, at some point during the next couple of months, a handmade gift from me. What it will be and when it will arrive is a total surprise! The catch is that you must participate as well. Before you leave your comment, write up a pay it forward post on your blog to keep the fun going (or be lazy and copy and paste like I did). Then come back, let me know you're going to play (comment) and sit back and anticipate the arrival of your gift! Remember, only the first three get a gift, so you have to be super fast!This will be fun! I am excited to see what comes out of it ... HURRY, this will be fun!

My Talented Brother

I just wanted to post my brother's song on here... I recorded the piano and then he recorded it at my house. I think it turned out really well. It's the first song in my jukebox on the right. (This is a Celtic Women song, if you are interested. It's really beautiful.)

American Idol Disappointment

I've been waiting patiently for Ryan Seacrest to mention the songwriting contest... and yet another night passed with nothing mentioned. So I went online this morning and found an article saying that the contest was canceled and that Kara will probably write the song. The article was a few weeks old, but at the time, Kara said she'd take a stab at it and see what happens. She is taking the opportunity so lightly, when others have been working hard all year and would kill for the chance. I didn't seriously think my song would win, but I wanted a chance to try. Oh well, I'll finish it off and put it on here so at least a few people can hear it. I'm very proud that I actually wrote a song from start to finish that I'm not embarrassed about (except for my vocals). I guess I have to just be happy about that!

Here's the link to the article: http://television.aol.com/american-idol/2009/04/07/idol-cancels-songwriting-contest/

Kids are wonderful!

For those of you that think my blog is only used for complaining, I decided to write about my wonderful kids and the funny things they do every day that make me smile.

Two days ago, Alyssa was acting grumpy and wanted to sit with me while I was sewing. It's really hard for me to hold her while I'm sewing, so I set her on the chair next to me and she fell asleep!

I was reading a book with Dallin yesterday and he saw a picture of a cockroach and he said, "Eww, a coachrock!"

I was looking Alyssa in the eye and said "You are so beautiful." Her response..."Mommy, your eyes are green, just like an alien!"

Anytime Dallin plays a game or we get something that has instructions, he says "We need to look at the "constructions."

When Alyssa says the prayer, she says "thank you for the food" but she doesn't bless it, so we whisper "bless the food" and she says loudly "I already did!"

Last time we went to the zoo, Dallin kept asking us where the "miracle ground" was. I couldn't figure out what he was talking about until he said, "I want to ride the panda on the miracle ground." Merry-go-round...go figure.

When I whisper "I love you" in Alyssa's ear, she always says something unrelated back in my ear, like "I'm hungry" or "Let's go to Nana's house."

Dallin really wanted to jump on the tramp last week, but it was snowing, so we got all our snow gear on and took him out to jump. He had a blast!

Alyssa sometimes has a fit if she has to be buckled in the car. I told her once that the police would take me to jail if she didn't get buckled. She started crying and said "But mommy, you're my best friend." It made my heart melt.

Dallin likes to make up jokes that don't make any sense. They usually go something like "why did the shark cross the bridge...so he could fall in the water!" Like I said, they don't make sense, but they make me smile all the same.

The other day, the kids wanted to ride their bikes. I put a helmet on Dallin and then tried to get one on Alyssa. She got a shocked look on her face, put her hands up to the sides of her head and said, "But mom, it will mess up my hair!" What a girl!

I love my kids. They cheer me up when I'm blue, they make me laugh, they keep me young.

(See, I can be positive!)

Scared for the Future

Some of you may know that I play the piano for the local middle school choir class. Well, occasionally their teacher, my ward-friend Brenda, has them sing a solo of their choice in front of the class. I have unfortunately been present at too many of these "performances." They usually don't practice and show up on the day and stick their ipod in their ear and sing along to a song only they can hear. It's painful to say the least. Even if they do prepare, it's usually an easy Disney song they've known all their life, so it's not quite fair. I know I'm just the pianist, but I had had enough, so I told Brenda that the kids need to step it up. I volunteered to bring in some art songs from home and told her she needed to assign each student a song. They were songs they had never heard before and were somewhat difficult. (She wouldn't let me pick songs in Italian, darn it :0) Anyway, she gave the songs to them about a month ago and occasionally let them practice in class. Today was the day for them to perform... it wasn't much better than the old performances. Half of them didn't even try to have their song memorized (they held music in front of them). I was playing as quietly as I could and still couldn't hear them. When I could hear them, they weren't singing all the words and notes right. One of them even decided to change the song from how I had been practicing it with her. She cut a verse and told me in the middle of the song to skip to the end. I got to help grade them and it's no surprise that only one student got above a 60%. Sad, isn't it? I don't know what I or Brenda or anyone can do to get through to these kids. I've never seen so many kids that have no attention span, no respect, and no ambition. I know I sound negative, but you'd have to be in my shoes to know that I'm being kind right now. It's really so much worse than I'm portraying right now. I cry for the future and what my kids will have to go through and hope that they will rise above.

American Idol Thoughts

When the judges announced last week that there was going to be a change in the contest, I was praying that they would say they were changing the voting procedure... alas, they announced they could save someone...which is a good thing, but not what really would have solved the problem of the best person getting voted off. THEY NEED TO SET A LIMIT ON HOW MANY TIMES YOU CAN VOTE! It's that simple. If each phone number were allowed only 5 votes, the results would be a lot more accurate of what the country really wants. The way it is now, why would I vote at all unless I plan to call for the entire 2 hours straight? The results are showing what a small obsessed group of people want and not what the majority of America would want... case in point, anyone remember Taylor Hicks? How about Ruben Studdard? They had their home states voting for them just for the sake of someone from their state winning...after they won, who could care less about them? The show's numbers would be much less impressive if they changed the voting. Ryan would be saying "we had a disappointing 100,000 votes." I think that's the only reason they aren't changing it. Dancing With the Stars has the right idea. They limit votes and for the most part, I usually completely agree with the results. Another option would be to let America choose the bottom 3, but then have the judges pick which one needs to go. Or let the judges pick their top three and give them immunity... oh, the things I would do if I were in charge!

By the way, did anyone like Adam's song on Tuesday? It was very weird, not exactly the kind of music I would listen to, but, man-o-man, can that boy sing!! He's the only one I look forward to every week, just to see what vocal feat he will attempt (and succeed in)... everyone else is predictable. I want to see them change things up and do something other that karaoke, which almost everyone does! They sound great, but ....yawn...boring.

Ready for Spring!

We are so ready for spring right now. We were teased last week with 2 days that felt like spring. We went to the park (I attached pictures of our outing), took walks, rode bikes, put up the tramp... and then it gets cold and gloomy again. It's just cruel! I think it would be easier to deal with if we weren't teased so much. I was all ready to get out the capris and sandals and now I'm back to coats and long pants. The kids are going nuts inside all the time. We have cabin fever! I have tons of projects I can't get to because the kids are so bored that I'm playing with them 24/7 to keep them happy. Spring will come soon enough and then summer will quickly follow and I will be wishing for fall. Time flies too fast around here!

American Idol Song

I have been working very hard on composing a song for the American Idol finale (I know you are laughing at me... that's ok). For those of you who don't know, they have a contest every year for songwriters to write the song that the new winner sings on the last show. Let's just say.... I am SO out of my league here! Last year, I listened to the songs and every one of them was recorded in a studio with a band and everything. They say that you can just record a rough copy, yet every year, the only finalists they pick are all professional. I feel like I have a decent song, but no way to get it sounding like they want it to sound. Brian's co-worker was kind enough to let me borrow his super-expensive microphone (the one I have been using was only $30 at RadioShack), so that's helping, but the house needs to be absolutely silent. When does that every happen with 2 kids? I'm just frustrated, but just my luck, they probably won't even have the competition this year and it's all for nothing. The cup is half empty today. Just kidding... I really have never tried to write a real song with lyrics and everything, so it's been a fun experience.

Alyssa is 3!

Our little Alyssa just turned 3 on Tuesday! Yay! I love birthday celebrations! I thought I would share some of my feelings about Alyssa.

Alyssa is so special and we just love having her in our family. She is so funny and makes me laugh all the time. She is also so compassionate. If I'm crying, she will come pat my back and put her head on my shoulder and sing me a song to make me feel better. It's so sweet. She seems so much older and wiser than three sometimes. She has been getting really interested in art lately. She would draw, paint, and play with playdough all day if I would let her. She also loves to dance and pretend she's a pretty princess ballerina. She wears pretty dresses and skirts everyday (all her pants are going to waste because she just won't wear them!)

We got Alyssa a scooter for her birthday with Disney princesses all over it and streamers coming out of the handles. It's a girly scooter through and through and she loves it. When we first put it together, we let her ride it in the house. She rode it in the kitchen and then rode it upstairs to the bathroom and then to her bedroom and had to sleep with it right next to the bed. In the morning, she rode it into my room. It was funny to see her so attached to it already.

We also got her a new princess blanket that lights up. She showed it to me and gave me her best silly smile. I'm not sure what she's trying to do, but she looks hilarious!

We love Alyssa so much. We are blessed to have her in our family.

Love It!

We just bought the greatest new gadget. I'm so excited about it. It's kind of like a Tivo, but not as expensive and no service contract and you don't need cable to use it....just good old-fashioned rabbit ears. It's a Magnavox DVD recorder with a 160MB internal memory (got it on Walmart.com, but they are all sold out right now :0(
I can record a show to the hard drive that I want to keep forever, edit out all the commercials, and burn it to a DVD. (Tivo can't do that!) I can pre-set all the things I want to record and, ta-da, they are recorded in perfect HDTV quality. I know I'm behind the times if I think this is awesome, but I've been looking for a long time for something that would work with an antenna and not have a service contract. Can I help it if I'm a little excited?

Random Stuff

So, someone (I'm not naming any names) told me I need to write on my blog more. I told her that I don't have many interesting things to say, and I'm not witty enough to make boring stuff interesting. But, in any case, I'll try to write more.

I was talking to this same person about trials and why we have to go through them. I mentioned a quote I had heard and she was interested in getting the quote, so here it is!

Elder George Q. Cannon (1827-1901) said "The Saints should always remember that God sees not as man sees; that he does not willingly afflict his children, and that if he requires them to endure present privation and trial, it is that they may escape greater tribulations which would otherwise inevitably overtake them. If He deprives them of any present blessing, it is that he may bestow upon them greater and more glorious ones by-and-by.”

I really like that. It helps to know that there's a reason we have trials...not just some quota of misery that God has to fill. :-)

Hmmm, what else can I ramble about while my house remains a disaster. (I'd much rather type than clean.) Oh, I can vent about the most painful choir practice ever last night. It was for a stake conference choir that will perform in 2 weeks. I guess I've taken it for granted that our ward is especially musically gifted and that others are not. We are singing 4 verses of a hymn and, get this...3 of the 4 verses will be sung in unison! I couldn't believe my ears. And then on top of that we had to sit and practice it for half an hour! (and we will practice again next week for half an hour and then again 20 minutes before the Stake Conference session... can I pull out all my hair yet?)

I shouldn't be this critical. I actually feel really guilty that I am criticizing. We are supposed to do the best with what we are given, and if that's what our stake choir is capable of, then they shouldn't do more than that. It's just hard for those of us who like a challenge to have patience in that setting. Can I just say how grateful I am to live in a ward where there happens to be a lot of musical talent? I'm not sure I could attend a choir like our stake choir on a regular basis.

Have I filled my quota for blogging yet? At least for today? .... Good!

THEY ARE FINISHED!

I finally finished my couches (well, at least they LOOK done...I still have some hand-sewing to do). They turned out better than I could have hoped for. We found some really nice micro-suede at a discount fabric store and got a great deal on it. Now I have to make new curtains for the room to be complete. And since the couches turned out so well, Brian wants me to re-upholster a chair in our family room. I think I need a break from upholstering furniture though.

I Must Be Crazy

I'm determined to take on the craziest project ever. I'm going to attempt to re-cover our living room couches. I have no upholstering experience whatsoever, but then again, I had no sewing experience whatsoever before I was married and have figured that out pretty successfully, so why not? I just hope it doesn't turn into a disaster! I'll post before-and-after pictures in a few weeks... maybe months :0)