Sad!

I'm sad that Brooke got voted off! She's so cute and I love her voice; I'm going to miss seeing her every week. I'm sure she will still do very well in her career, though. I think Jason got REALLY lucky but I wish it would have been Syesha to go--she's just so boring! I'm rooting for David A. all the way! I thought it was so freaking cute when Natasha Bedingfield went and hugged and kissed David A. on the cheek--his reaction was so totally cute. And how adorable was it that she said if he asked her she would go to the prom with him?! She's knows who the top Idol is!

Future American Idol?

Here's my niece, Belle, singing "Veggie Tales" into the microphone of my piano:

Doesn't she have the cutest voice ever?!

Speaking of AI, last night was pretty lackluster--especially the first 1/2. I wasn't totally thrilled with any of the first performances. I think they need to stop making the kids do certain genres/songwriters and just let them do what they know and love. David A.'s was the best by far of the first performances but I still didn't absolutely love it. Jason's was lame, David C.'s was bad (I don't like his lower register), Brooke's was pretty cheesy (even though I think she's adorable), and Syesha's was just blah. The 2nd batch was MUCH better. I really liked the two David's performances, as well as Brooke's. Jason's was just OK (I thought he was gonna do really well with Neil Diamond but he just didn't do anything with it), as was Syesha's. I think Jason might go tonight but I kinda hope Syesha will. We'll see!

I feel so old!

I went to Cub Scout day camp yesterday in Gonzales (about 50 min. from my house), which lasted from 8am-4pm (was supposed to go 'til 5 but it rained). I helped out with the Webelos all day (10-year-olds). They made wooden toolboxes, went canoeing, shot BB guns, went swimming (learned water safety), made and cooked tin foil dinners for lunch, raced regatta boats, had an archery lesson, and went on a hike. The hike was interesting because it started pouring and the trail was rough and extremely muddy and had been worked over by horses so it made walking through it very difficult! I also stood most of the day, which is never good for my back. By the time I got home last night, my back was spasming, my feet ached, and I was exhausted. It was a lot of fun, though. They even fed us jambalaya at the end.

The downside is that I was supposed to go straight from there to my niece's birthday party. She turned 3 at the end of March and we had a family party at Chuck E. Cheese on her birthday (it was EXTREMELY crowded on a Sat. night!!) but her parents threw a party for her yesterday evening to celebrate with her friends, as well. I was in so much pain and so extremely tired, though, that I just came home and showered, vegged for a couple hours, took a long hot bath in the jetted tub, then went to bed early. It didn't help that I was soaked through and through and would have had to come home, take a shower and change, then go all the way to their house (30-35 min.). The party would have been way over by the time I got there. Anyway, I feel pretty bad about not going but at least we had already celebrated with her and had a party on her actual birthday. BTW, I don't have any from Belle's birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese because I forgot to bring my camera--something I never do. I was so upset but I will just have to get pics from my brother.

I still feel beat because I had to wake up at 6am this morning to drive to Slaughter for a meeting with their Primary presidency and their branch conference. At least they fed us REALLY WELL afterwards so I didn't have to worry about coming home and making lunch (and Jared ended up having to work all day, anyway).

I finally put pics from my camera onto the computer, so here's some from the last few weeks:

I watched Belle at my house for a few hours on 3/28; here she is feeding the duck in the pond next door:

I babysat her all day on 4/19 and she was having fun singing into the microphone:

She also played on my marimba:

And we played outside for a bit:On 4/20, we all went over to my parents' house for dinner. When we walked in the door, this what we saw (sucker given to her by Maw-maw!):Belle sure does love her Uncle Timmy!

Jared just walked in from work (poor thing got called into work on his way to church this morning and has been working all day), so I'm gonna go hang out with him. Bye!

This week's AI

Here's my weekly run-down:

*David A.--"Think of Me" is one of my favorite songs ever and I would never have expected to hear a guy sing it but I LOVED what David did with it and he sang it flawlessly. That could totally be a pop hit. Loved, loved, loved it! Not sure what Simon was listening to but I thought it was a great performance--definitely not one of the weakest of the last few weeks, as Simon stated.

*David C.--Really like his performance of “Music of the Night” until the last note--I hate how he ended it. Instead of ending it sweet and loving, he screamed out the last note. Kind of ruined the whole vibe of the song for me.

*Brooke--Way too bad she had to start over but I agree with Randy and Simon that it was the best choice. Simon told her he thought it was a brave thing to do and said "It's your opportunity, why not?" And I totally agree. The song was a little shaky but I didn't hate it--I love the emotion I feel from her and I love her husky voice.

*Jason--I thought it was kind of cool for him to pick "Memory", and I like the spin he put on it but he just doesn't have the vocal capabilities to really pull off a song like that. It was way too shaky for me. This was just not a genre he could really do his thing with.

*Carly--I've heard the song “Jesus Christ Superstar” before but don't really know it too well. I liked her performance and vocals--fun to watch. Probably the best I've liked her so far, even though it was a tad bit "shouty" in some parts. Great song choice for her, though.

*Syesha--Most personality she's shown on the show so far. I didn't know the song at all but it was a good song for her. Too little, too late, however, as far as I'm concerned.

I think Brooke or Jason could be going home, with Syesha in the bottom three with them, or maybe even Carly. Who knows. I think the Davids are the only ones who are absolutely safe. I'm anxious to see the results but will have to wait 'til I get home from church tonight (Young Women's activity--we're making buddy burners for camp). I don't want Brooke or Jason to go home. I would love to see what they can do next week with Neil Diamond songs!

Finally!

Kristy Lee Cook went home! She's a very cute girl but was far below the others in regards to vocal capabilities. I don't think she ever sang more than 80% of her notes in tune.

My thoughts on this week of AI:

David A.--not my favorite song but he sang the heck out of it. I just love his voice. And I want to squeeze his cheeks and say "you're so cute!"

David C.--the beginning sounded a little rough to me at first but I ended up loving the arrangment and his performance. The end of the song, when he got out of his lower register, really rocked!

Brooke--Loved her version; had a couple of rough notes and I agree with Paula that she lost confidence and rushed the end but I still enjoyed it overall. I love that I always feel her emotions when she sings.

Jason--Don't know what Randy was smokin' but I loved his version and thought he sang it great. I'm glad he turned the guitar part over to someone else so we could concentrate more on him and his voice. Don't get me wrong, I love when he plays guitar, too, but it was nice to see him without it, too.

Carly--Pretty good, not great. Simon was right on the money about her over-thinking and being wound up. All her smiles while the judges talk seem SO fake to me.

Syesha--I barely even remember that she performed.

Kristy--I agree with Simon--whiny! And mostly out of tune. Yuck. Mariah must have been on crack when she said she gave her goosebumps and sang the song better than she did!

Any bets on who gets booted next? I hope it's Syesha or Carly, not Brooke.

American Idol top 8

Here's my assessment of the performances this week (in order of my preferences):

*David A.--I loved him singing that song and thought he did great; although I have really liked him on the piano previously, I think he could have sung it even better if he hadn't played piano. It was definitely 100 times better than the Jessica Simpson version, that's fo sho!!!

*David C.--I have liked him so much the past few weeks but he really stunk up that song!! I'm sure he'll do much better next week.

*Michael--I loved the performance. I really didn't think he would go to the high notes but he did and I liked it!

*Brooke--There were a few shaky notes ("pitchy" as Randy would say) but I really liked the performance as a whole; I thought it was really heart-felt.

*Jason--Loved his rendition of that song. Suited him very well and I just love his style.

*Carly--Looks way too angry when she sings! Good voice, though.

*Syesha--I just don't ever feel a connection with her. I'd rather listen to her sing any day rather than Fantasia, though!

*Kristy--Eh. OK. I didn't think it was as good as other people are saying. Too many pitch problems. I think she has the weakest voice of the bunch, too.


I think/wish Kristy would go home tonight but I'm pretty sure it will be either Carly or Syesha. If I had to bet, I'd say Carly.


Not much else to post about. Besides the usual piano lessons and playing volleyball every Friday, I've just been doing lots of Cub Scout stuff and gearing up for girls' camp, which includes going to their activities every Wed. night. Now if I can just get the fundraisers done with!

New look!

I changed the look of my blog! Let me know what you think. I'm open to suggestions. Also, tell me what you think about having to log in to look at my blog. Would that keep you from coming to read it?

On another note, I've done the speed test another 5 or 6 times and got up to 86. Trying not to do it too much! :)

Speed test

Try this fun typing test! The score below is from my second try--I didn't realize I had to enter after I typed the first line and that messed up my score so I tried it again. I typed 447 characters per minute and had ZERO words wrong. :)

83 words

Speed test

I'm gonna see just how fast I can get. If I can get a higher score, I'll let ya' know, hee hee!

Long catch-up!

It's been almost a month since I last posted, yikes! Here's what I've been up to:

My goofy cat:

I have to tell you about my silly, silly cat, Chloe. She started this thing a little while back where she only wants to drink water straight out of the tap--specifically our bathtub. She started doing it when I would step in the tub to wash my feet every night before bed. Now, just about any time she sees me heading toward the master bath, she runs (meowing happily) and jumps up on the tub and meows until I turn the water on for her to take a drink. So funny!

Trip to Utah:
Went and stayed with Kiki and her family for a week & 1/2 My parents went, as well, so we were busy the whole time doing tons of fun stuff as a family. I also met our new niece on Jared's side. Such a sweetie! Here are some pics from my trip:

{SO Carma! from one of the many walks with her. 3/6}

{Carma LOVES riding the ponies at Farm Country at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi, UT. 3/7}

{These two pics were taken at Kangaroo Zoo--a huge place filled with lots of inflatable slides, bounce houses, obstacle course, etc. The kids had a blast and Kiki and I went on some of the stuff with them. 3/8}

{The kids looking oh-so-cute before church. 3/9}

CARMA'S BIRTHDAY (3/10):

{Breakfast: heart-shaped chocolate chip pancakes}

{Ready for the party to start!}

{Her Cinderella and Prince Charming cake}

{Birthday Princess}

{Party included an appearance by Cinderella herself!}

{How a princess eats cake if no one gives her a fork.}

{One of her gifts was a princess throne that came with a princess dress--Carma started changing right then and there to try on the new dress!}

{Princess Carma--complete with her throne}

{My sister and BIL gave her a Dora tent and a new outfit (which she had to try on right away, of course--that made the 4th outfit of the day); she's such a girl!!!}

{The only way Judson would have anything to do with the princess stuff.}

{Me & Carma at Winger's on 3/13--she had to wear her Cinderella dress, and notice "Cinder-horsey" that she also had to bring.}

{Another walk with Carma--she had to bring her umbrella that she got for her bday. 3/13}

{Nikki, Levi, and I took Judson bowling. It took some major prodding but he finally got up there and tried and he was so cute! 3/13}

{Juddy and Carmie watching "101 Dalmations" together inside Carma's Dora tent. 3/14}

{Carma modeling the felt hat that we decorated with gems. 3/14}

Welcome home!

{This LSU #1 hand was my welcome home gift this time from Jared. So sweet! 3/15}

Easter 2008

{Beautiful Belle. 3/23}

{Belle loves playing with her Daddy! 3/23}

{She fell asleep eating Easter dinner.}

{Yummy chocolate mousse cake!}

I sprained my ankle playing volleyball on Thursday. It's healing pretty well, just a tiny bit swollen now and I'm hardly limping anymore. Still don't feel up to getting on the elliptical, though. I'm hoping to be able to by the end of this week, as I really want to get in better shape before girls' camp in June. Yes, I just got another calling as ward camp director! I'm getting released as asst. ward actvities director. So now I have my stake calling in the Primary presidency, my Pri. teacher calling (LOVE my CTR5 kids!!!), and now I get to go to camp! Woohoo! Lots of stuff going on in the next few months, since I'm over the Cub Scouts in our stake and now girls camp prep. But I wouldn't have it any other way! :)

American Idol Season 7

Overall, I'm pretty disappointed with most of the performances so far--especially by the girls. However, there is one guy who I will be sure to tune in to see every week. If you didn't see this week's AI, check out this performance by David Archuleta:



He is not awesome?! I get goosebumps every time I watch it. And such an adorable kid! Just had to share, in case any of you have not seen him yet. Plus, he's LDS; that is not the reason I like him, though--there have been several other LDS contestants in past seasons that I did not like AT ALL.

I also like Jason Castro, Michael Johns, Carly Smithson and Brooke White (she's also LDS) but they don't impress me near as much as David A. does.

Yep, that's how boring my life is--all I have to talk about is AI, ha ha. I've been pretty busy with my stake calling--going to several meetings, attending ward/branch conferences every other week (went to one on Sunday that was an hour & 1/2 away) and teaching my Primary class in my ward in between conferences. I was just registered as Cub Scout committee chairperson last night--most of the wards in our stake are in one pack, which I will now be in charge of. Oh joy. J/J, I've been involved with Cub Scouts before and it is really fun and I think the program is important. Other than that, I'm still playing volleyball at the church every Friday morning and I now have 7 piano students (and 2 more in the works). Oh, and who can forget all my scrapbooking. :) I'm going to Utah on Tuesday and will be there through the 15th. Woohoo! I can't wait!! So be prepared to see lots of pics on here next week!

The Visiting Teaching Movie

For my fellow LDS chicks:


Which kind of VT are you?

Just in time for Valentine's Day...

1. How long have you been married? It will be 9 years in July!!
2. How long did you date? 9 mths.
3. Who eats more sweets? Actually, I think he does, especially now that I'm losing weight
4. Who said I love you first? He did
5. How old is he? 31--I'm three years older, yikes! :)
6. Who is taller? He's taller by over a foot!
7. Who is smarter? We are both pretty smart, just in different ways
8. Who can sing better? Um, no contest there! He is totally tone deaf!
9. Who does the laundry? He likes to put the clothes in the wash, I usually fold and put them away (even if it takes me a few days)
10. Who pays the bills? He paid them the first 8 years but I have paid them since we moved to La. (I put most of them on auto-pay)
11.Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do--I have to fall asleep on my right side and I don't like to face someone else because I can't stand hot breathe in my face!
12. Who mows the lawn? He does (I do the weeding, though)
13. Who cooks dinner? I do, Jared would just have cereal most of the time if it weren't for me. :)
14. Who drives? Usually he does because we take his company truck everywhere but he asks me to drive if we're in my car (I get nervous when someone else drives because of all the wrecks I've been in and he gets sick of me "sucking wind", as he says, and grabbing at the door or hand bar thingy
15. Who is more stubborn? I'd say he is overall but I do have my moments!
16. Who kissed who first? He kissed me first (he tried to on the first date but I wouldn't let him but I gave in the very next night, ha ha!)
17.Who asked who out? He asked me out within 10 min. of meeting me!
18. Who proposed? He did, by getting fake arrested by a friend of his who was a cop
19.Who has more siblings? He has 6, I have 4

Tagged

I've been tagged!

A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
C. At the end of the game the player tags 5 people, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment letting them know they've been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

• Where were you 10 years ago: Teaching elementary music and jr. high music appreciation and band in Baton Rouge at a couple of private schools
• Five things on my to-do list today: (1.) work out on my elliptical (2.) tidy the house (3.) scrapbook (4.) watch American Idol (5.) take the dog for a walk
• Five snacks I enjoy: (1.) graham crackers with Nutella (2.) anything chocolate (3.) string cheese (4.) Wheat Thins with Laughing Cow lite spreadable swiss cheese (5.) apples
• What would I do if I were suddenly a billionaire: buy a new house on more land for Jared; travel the world; buy some nice gifts for parents, siblings, and nieces & nephews; buy a boat, 4-wheelers, wave runners, etc.; LOTS of new scrapbooking stuff! :)
• Four of my bad habits: (1.) procrastination (2.) eating fast food (3.) spending too much time on the computer instead of getting more things done around the house (4.) watching a few stupid reality shows
• Five jobs that I have had: (1.) the Super Bar girl at Wendy's [Anyone remember when they had the Super Bar? I was just in charge of keeping it stocked and clean, etc.] (2.) day care (3.) pizza delivery (4.) band director/music teacher (5.) account rep. (business mangagement)
• Five things people don't know about me: Hmm, I'm sure some people know these things but (1.) I have to wash my feet before I go to bed or I can't fall asleep (2.) I still have a baby tooth [the adult one is up in my gums above it] (3.) I LOVE the smell of almond extract [when I was in bus. mgt. I used to keep a bottle of it at my desk and sniff it when I was stressed out] (4.) I always sing in the car (5.) I wash my hands a lot, especially when I'm cooking and scrapbooking--a lot of times I will swear I can feel stuff on my hands (even if they aren't dirty) so I have to go wash them

I'm tagging these people: Molly, Janelle, Jen, Lynn, Debbi

Catching up

It's been almost three weeks since I last posted here. It's getting a little busy with my new stake calling in the Pri. presidency. Ward conferences are every other week through May. I was asked to be in charge of Cub Scouts and 11-year-old Scouts, so I have round tables and pack mtgs. to attend every month. We had a ward conference in my brother's ward the last Sunday in Jan., so we went to my parents' for dinner afterwards (my brother's ward and our parents' ward share the same bldg.). My niece was showing off her tricycle riding skills--she's fast on that thing!:
We have a new niece on Jared's side of the family. I don't have pictures to share yet but I will post some as soon as I do--first I'm going to change the site so you have to have a password to see my blog, though. There was a lesson in Sunday School on internet safety that Jared told me about (since I was in Primary) and we agreed that, with all th pictures I put on here on nieces and nephews, it would be wise to change the blog so that only those with my password could view it.

It rained here a lot for a period of about two weeks, up until the end of last week. It was raining pretty hard one day, with thunder and lightning and I went to check on the dog and let her in if she wasn't wet. I couldn't see where she was, so I opened the door to see where she was and she came from around the corner of the house. Instead of staying dry under the patio, she was out playing in the rain and mud! Silly girl! I couldn't resist snapping some photos of her:

It's been pretty warm and sunny the last 5 or 6 days--it's 68* right now. I bought tickets to go to Utah the first week of March and I'm sure the weather will be a shock to me! I can't believe how much snow they're getting when we're wearing t-shirts here. I miss the snow. It never snowed that much the whole 9 nine years I lived in Utah so I'm kind of jealous. Don't miss driving in it, though!

New toy, LSU celebration, funny video, lots of pics!

I got a brand new elliptical! I am actually excited to work out! I started a "health plan" on Jan. 2 and have lost ~6 lbs. so far but felt like I wasn't getting much out of my work-outs on the mini trampoline. Jared and I were supposed to join a gym last fall but never got around to it so we decided to invest in an elliptical that we could both use at home, instead. We went with a Sole E95. It is AWESOME!! It has all these features plus some:
*built-in cooling fan and water bottle holder
*built in speakers which allow you to hook up any MP3 player or other audio device
*pulse sensors for monitoring your heart rate
*oversize foot pedals with durable foam cushioning for a comfortable workout
*2 degree inward slope to the foot pedals which reduce ankle and knee stress
*adjustable foot pedal angle (can raise and lower the heel), which reduces numb toe effects and sore Achilles tendons
*Weight capacity of 400 lbs. (this means it can take a beating and will last a long time!)
*Extremely quiet and smooth operation (I'm actually very surprised at how quiet it is)

Sorry if I sound like I'm bragging but I am way too excited and would like to thank Jared for getting it for me! :) Here's a picture of it:

It's in Jared's TV room--we removed his recliner. For the record, I wanted to put it in our bedroom but Jared insisted we put it in his TV room so he can exercise on it and watch his Tivo'd shows on his big screen (our bedroom just has satellite, not Tivo, and a small TV).

OK, what else has been going on? We bought one of those little hamster balls for Zoe, our Russian dwarf hamster. I don't know why but I think it's so cute to see her run around the house in it!
I went with my brothers, SIL, niece, and a couple other guys to the National Championship celebration at the LSU football stadium this past Sat. It was SO cold but at least it didn't rain while we were there (it had rained all night and morning, so we almost decided not to go). There were 25,000 people there. It was fun, though, and I am SO happy to be living here for this championship. SO FUN!! :) Here are some pics from the celebration (we went to the Mall of Louisiana first, where we ate lunch and my niece rode the carousel a couple of times):

My brother and niece:

The coach and 4 of the team captains holding up the $30k crystal ball:

The hoisting of the new National Champions flag in the stadium:

The people I went with (L-R=my brother's neighbor, my SIL, brother, niece, brother's friend, and brother):

Me, of course:

Speaking of the championship, I know most of you have heard Jared say that I am spoiled. Well, I can't help it if he's the one spoiling me! I bought a nat'l championship t-shirt a couple days after we won. Jared came home the next week with two more t-shirts plus these penants and a bumper sticker for me:

THEN, he came home yesterday with ANOTHER t-shirt! Keep in mind that he is not an LSU fan so he buys all this stuff just for me. What a sweetie but he is the one to blame for me being spoiled! No complaints from me, though! :) :) :)

Last week, I took a bubble bath in the jetted tub and put just a little too much bubble stuff in it! I had to turn the jets off or it would have just kept growing and growing! It was funny, though! I'm only posting this because you can't see a thing. :)

One more thing, from last night. Jared asked where the camera was and I thought he was gonna take pictures of the elliptical but he asked me to put his dinner dishes away for him. He was in the living room, holding the camera, and I knew something was up. I was looking around the kitchen, trying to find some clue as to what he was up to but didn't see anything, so finally decided to just put the dishes in the sink and rinse them off. And here's what happened:

He had put a rubber band on the sprayer nozzle so that it sprayed out when the water turned on. He's so naughty! But it was pretty funny. It wasn't so funny, though, that he did it again, ready for it to squirt me when I got up at 6am this morning to make him oatmeal before he got up for work!

So that is our past couple of weeks. If you made it through all of that, thanks! :) I'll try to post more often so I don't have so much in one post next time.