2 Weeks

Ok, so its been 2 weeks. I thought I'd post before someone gets on my case about it...thank you all for refraining from doing so thus far.

So, what have we been up to? Not a ton, but I'll give an exiting-sounding report on our boring lives, so you can all feel like we're cool or having an adventure or something. Feel free to stop reading now if all you came for was to see new pictures, there aren't any this time.

1-Babysitting my friend Holley's kids. I've been doing this for a few months now, 2 days a week. Its fun to have a girl in the house and a playmate for Michael, and a baby around for Michael to get educated about babies (mostly for my entertainment though). And, it has helped us financially a little bit during these times in our life. So, thats been keeping me busy.

2-Eric went to his friend Cory Boaz's birthday party at Chuck-e-Cheese. He was SO excited the whole week before - and it reminded me of why I DON'T tell the kids what's coming up so I don't have to hear about it. He had a great time being gone all day playing and having fun.

3-Michael got a really bad cough that I was worried about. Jim kept telling me he was going to be ok and that we didn't need to take him to the Dr. I'm glad Jim was right. He's better now after about a week of being up at night coughing.

4-Paying the bills. I LOVE our bank (UCCU in Provo). They have free bill pay, which I use every month to pay the bills. I've used it for a few years now, but I've never messed up like this before. My poor dad can confirm to you that I messed up my checks this month, really bad. He got a check that should have been sent to our credit card! I think it will all be OK after this week. In trying to fix my problem, I did learn that my credit card has moved their call center over to what I'm guessing is India...but, if you ask to speak to a supervisor (as I did, kindly), they transfer your call back to America (NV, in fact) where you can actually understand the person you're talking to. And, they could do what I was asking them to do (thank you, Andre). Is that a factor of language, or "power" because he was a supervisor? I don't know...

I've discovered that I guess I have mixed feelings about outsourcing overseas. I see how it would be good for the business to save money, and improve people's lives overseas. We are living in a "global world." I'm used to talking to people with accents, but Indian accents are a little hard for me... and it does worry me a bit that someone in India could access my credit card info, etc... I think I would feel the same if it were someone in China or Egypt or anywhere, I don't have anything against India.

5-Blog hopping. Yes, I've enjoyed some time clicking on all the links on your blogs and seeing if we know anyone you know. Its been fun! Besides, my cousin Jordan's wife Wendi has a really cool music list on their blog that I click on and listen to while I spy on everyone, check my email, etc. (yes, I am listening right now). Its nice to have access to music that I don't own but really like. Thanks Wendi!

6-Applying for Jobs. Jim has been looking for and applying for jobs! He's had an interview and will probably get an offer, but I'm not-so-secretly hoping that something else will come along. This particular job isn't a very good "fit" for Jim... we'll see what else comes along, hopefully soon.

7-Taxes. I decided to do our taxes today. I knew I was going to have trouble doing them due to a lack of organization around here. Luckily, I have been able to find (after a day of looking on and off) about 2/3 of the papers I needed to find. Now its up to Jim to find what is missing...they came addressed to him, and he knows that we actually got them (do you see that I apparently haven't seen those papers so maybe I'm not the one totally responsible for not having found them?). I figure this year we're getting all our money back, so we might as well file sooner rather than later and we can use the money to pay bills or eat or something! I am thankful that we are still "friends" with the IRS. It could have been quite different this year (but, we would have had a company-paid accountant too, so I guess I wouldn't have been complaining anyway). Hey, does anyone know how to itemize deductions? I'm wondering if it would be better for us? Maybe its just not worth the effort to find out? We'll see what comes...

8-Haircuts! I guess I could have taken a picture to post...maybe next time? I got my hair cut on Friday. This only happens about twice a year, so its kindof a big thing for me! It had been ponytail length for about a month, which is about a week too long. So, I chopped it again. In case you haven't noticed, this is a trend with me. Chop it short, grow it long, chop it short... nothing really new, but it is a slightly different style that I'm still adjusting to. THEN, since the boys were LONG OVERDUE for a cut so I took the scissors to them on Saturday (girls can go months longer than boys without a cut...and my boys got their cuts about a month too late). I must say that it doesn't look bad...although it isn't professional either. Michael's hair is thin, its much easier to do Eric's hair which is thicker and more forgiving.

9-A BBQ. We were actually invited to someone's house for a BBQ! That may sound odd the way I put it, but for us its a big deal. I have friends, and so do Jim and the boys, but this is probably only the 2nd or 3rd dinner invitation we've had since we moved here 5 1/2 years ago! We issue many invitations for things, but rarely get them in return. We had a great time getting to know our kindof-new friends, who decided to sieze the good weather and BBQ the next day before it snowed! So, the goal: invite someone over that you don't know very well, or maybe you know them well but never had them come join you for dinner. You may think they have lots of invites and they actually don't! We were grateful for the chance, and the company...thank you to the Lee family!

Looking forward:

1-Michael's birthday is next Tuesday the 11th. He's going to be 3!!! Wow! My mom (Mom-O) was asking me what to get Michael for his bday, which I didn't know the answer to, so I asked him. What was his response? "A belt." He's taken to wearing brother's belt so his pants don't fall down, and I guess he wants one of his own! I thought it was cute. Tonight he gave my dad (Papi) the same response of a belt, and then he said "A new computer"! ha ha ha That was random. He thought he was SO FUNNY! Besides, if we got a new computer, daddy would get it and I'd stop using the "old computer" that I am currently typing on. Yes, Jim does share the new one with me, but its with him all day and this is the "family" computer that is downstairs. But, NO new computer kid, sorry. But, there should be some pictures posted next time, so you all have that to look forward to!

2-STOMP. Jim and I (and 25 of our friends) are going to see Stomp this Thursday. I'm pretty excited, it should be good. We got a good deal...a long story to tell, but we did. The best part: a real date night with Jim!

3-Something unexpected. There is always something unexpected waiting for us, especially this past 9 months or so. You never know what will happen...too bad we can't plan for it...well, I guess we can in different ways so that we are emotionally and spiritually ready to face it. But, I'm hoping that the unexpected will be a job for Jim (but, then, that would be expected, wouldn't it?)

Now, thats a lot of rambling! I hope you all enjoy the rest of your day...and enjoy spying on my friends and family! ha ha ha