Does this Make Me a Giant Dork?

I am seriously considering buying the  Great American Bestsellers: The Books That Shaped America course from the teaching company.   I wish Haley would have never told me about this website, my wish list just grew...

Dear Santa...

For Christmas this year could you please bring me something that would make it possible for me to look like Sophia Bush?  If you cant work that out could you at least make me as tall as her and give me her arms?  I will be sure to leave you milk and cookies and be a very good girl.

Love,
Cara

You're Hurting the Horsey's Ears

I spent a good part of my weekend up at my parent's house helping my Mom put up Christmas and spending time with my sister and her family since they are in town visiting from California.  As part of the all the Christmas decorations my Mom has a great little Playskool Nativity Set for the boys to play with.  So as soon as we pulled it out Drake, my oldest nephew, wanted me to play with him and I happily obliged.  As we were playing he would ask me questions about each toy and I would explain how each one fit into the Christmas story.  One we got  Baby Jesus he asked what he was sleeping in and  I responded with "it's a manger, like in the song"  and then proceeded to sing "Away in a Manger."  Drake had the little toy horse in his hands, he quickly covered the horse's ears and said "Aunt Cara, stop singing you're hurting the horsey's ears"  

Ah there is nothing like a three almost four year old giving it to you straight.  It's a good thing he is so cute, I mean look at that face?

Oh M You are the best...

http://megbd.tumblr.com/post/220353769/for-c-we-can-do-it 

I wish this was my backyard, and my set up for a dinner party.  And while  we are at it, I wish i was a gourmet cook and I was amazing at taking pictures.

Seriously…

I think I may have the worst luck with cars ever.  So I am pulling up to the Junior League building with a wealth of cookbooks in theback of my car that I need to unload.  As I attempt to turn my car off and remove the key the remote portion of my key comes out but not the actual key.  I am standing there going WTF Mate?  Could this day get any worse?  After several attempts to fanigal it out or to have it start my car…I freak out and call my parents.  Because that is what I do….don ‘t judge.  At which point my Dad says “I thought we talked about getting AAA” which I have not done yet because I am lazy.   Of course when he gets there he manages to get it started (you would think that the whole moving it to neutral and back to park would work, but no, it’s locking and unlocking the doors, something I did not think of).  Off to the Nissan Dealership I go, it’s a faulty key.  They get me a new one no harm no foul other than the hour and half of my life wasted waiting for them to program the new key.  Oh and the fact that when I get home the remote doesn’t actually work…..back to the dealership I go to waste another hour of my life in an uncomfortable chair.  At least I had a book in my over-sized giant I call my purse. 

I'm in Love with this Poem...

Leaving is not enough; you must

stay gone. train your heart

like a dog. change the locks

even on the house he’s never

visited. you lucky, lucky girl.

you have an apartment

just your size. a bathtub

full of tea. a heart the size

of Arizona, but not nearly

so arid. don’t wish away

your cracked past, your

crooked toes, your problems

are papier mache puppets

you made or bought because the vendor

at the market was so compelling you just

had to have them. you had to have him.

and you did. and now you pull down

the bridge between your houses,

you make him call before

he visits, you take a lover

for granted, you take

a lover who looks at you

like maybe you are magic. make

the first bottle you consume

in this place a relic. place it

on whatever altar you fashion

with a knife and five cranberries.

don’t lose too much weight.

stupid girls are always trying

to disappear as REVENGE. and you

are not stupid. you loved a man

with more hands than a parade

of beggars, and here you stand. heart

like a four-poster bed. heart like a canvas.

heart leaking something so strong

they can smell it in the street.

— marty mcconnell

Reasons I love October.

1.       THE MLB Post Season…Twins Please do me a favor and beat the tigers today and make all my dreams come true. 

2.       All the amazing pumpkin flavored things that seem to pop up.

3.       Breast Cancer Awareness and all the Pink products that come out.  What can I say I am a sucker for pink?

4.       Halloween Decorations.  They just make me happy and remind me of college when my roommate used to make it look like Halloween had thrown up in our house.  Those were the days.

5.       And last but not least the way fall smells and feels.   You can't beat the crisp feeling it has.

 

Computer Malfunction

So my computer just managed to set itself to show everything as Friday.  I think that means it wants me to have a three day weekend.  It must know I am in desperate need of one. 

Why Do I Wait?

 

I have a problem....I have wanted this cardigan for weeks, but when they didn't have it in the store I put off the online purchase because I hate spending $7 dollars to ship something (in fact I am not very good at spending in general, I have a tendency to visit things a few times before I buy them).  I know it seems silly, but I have a very hard time stomaching the cost of it.  So today i finally decide to bite the bullet and sure enough they only have XL left....WHY do i do this to myself.  I keep checking back hoping a small will miraculously show up.  Cross your fingers for me.

Shout out to the Roomie

 

Reasons I adore my roommate…..

She will break out into a rendition of “How do you call your lover boy” with actions from the wonderful movie Dirty Dancing, all in a tribute to Patrick Swayze and an effort to convince her boyfriend they should dress up as  Johnny and Baby for Halloween.  (Yes this happened last night)

She shares in my overwhelmed feeling about having too much bad TV saved up on the DVR.

She will get treats with me all while we bitch about wanting to go to the gym more and eat healthier.  I think they something about the path to hell being paved with good intentions….oh well. 

She likes to theme dress, and understands that it is appropriate to buy an outfit to go with a particular occasion.  Even if that occasion is heading to the farmers market or a plane ride to Vegas.

She  likes a good musical

Joel Mchale has nothing on her reality TV commentary.  Really someone should hire her.

She is one of the sweetest people I know.

"In politics we presume that everyone who knows how to get votes knows how to administer a city or a state. When we are ill…we do not ask for the handsomest physician, or the most eloquent one."

Plato

Will you make this for me?

 

Um Peach Pie in a Jar..sign me up.  I would really like to make one of these....but really I just want someone to bring it to me. Anyone, Anyone?

Can you speak a little louder?

So I read this article yesterday about having a Quarter Life Crisis, and as I am reading it I am thinking two things:

1. I am pretty sure I am having one
2. I need to figure out what it is I want to do with my life.

Then I found this great quote....so I am sitting here attempting to listen... but I can't seem to hear it. So heart kindly speak a little louder so I can hear you. I would like to avoid the BLOW.

Very Soon....

This will happen in my kitchen quite often...and I am pretty excited about it. Welcome home Lisa...a little over a week. I can make it!

Things I’m Excited About

1. Jenny, Morgan and Angie all arrive in the City of Salt tomorrow. I am so excited I can hardly stand myself.
2. GPA, Shelia, Mitch, LoLo and Sarah are all getting here today, yeah family :)
3. Kickball Tonight (even though I have a very big fear that I might kick the ball and miss when it is “pitched” to me) Go Team I’d Kick That!
4. Blake and Nellie’s Open House. It is going to have an ice cream sunday bar. There are few things in this world I enjoy more than soft serve ice cream.
5. The weekend, wow do I need one!

P.S. I am working on getting some pictures up from my brother's wedding, my camera has an issue, so I had to use my sisters and I haven’t cleaned up the photos yet since they are trapped on her memory card.

The Pre-Dump

So I headed to Sun Valley last weekend, partly to hang out with my BFF Morgan and partly to visit this boy I had been talking to almost every day for the last month and a half. I was excited at the prospect because I thought things were going well and was anxious to see how the weekend was going to play out. I make my way up there Thursday night, hang out with said boy and have a really good time. The next day he calls me after he is done with work, but is being kind of weird and standoffish. I try to shrug it off and head over to his house. I do need to clarify one thing, I am in no way “together” with this boy, we are just hanging out, in the getting to know you phase. He lives 4.5 hours away from me for heaven’s sake, I in no way consider him my boyfriend. And yet all of the sudden I hear him start to spew off phrases such as “It’s not you it’s me (which if you know me you know how much I think this line is total bullocks),” “I have been burned in the past (join the club buddy) and I just can’t let myself get into something else,” and “You’re a really beautiful girl, but I don’t want to give you the wrong impression (too late).” I am stunned…I am getting dumped….but wait I am confused I didn’t know we were together? How is it possible that this could be happening? So instead of saying something witty in the moment that would follow along the lines of reminding him that there is no need to “let me go” because in fact he didn’t have me in the first place and perhaps he is putting the cart before the horse, I sit there in total shock and then cry like a bit of a fool. Because, really I don’t like being dumped, I mean what respectable girl does? And when something happens to me I don't like I have a tendency to cry. Not sure why it just seems to be the reaction I have to that. So word to the wise, ladies and gentleman…if you are going to “dump” someone, you should make sure that you are with them first. Because really a pre-dump is just bad form.

Found this Quote and Loved It

"Decide that you want it more than you are afraid of it." - Bill Cosby

Kind of made me think, so simple yet so true. I was talking to a good friend the other day and we were talking about making tough decisions and how when it really came down to it the actual decision it didn't take all that long to make. It was just getting to the point where you could be OK with the consequences of your decision, because either way you went it was going to be a little rough. This just put it so eloquently. Stop being afraid, I loved it.

I guess we forgot about Ed

An excerpt from an email conversation I had with my BFF Morgan yesterday....she is so funny!

Me: P.S. I think Michael Jackson died today…there are varying reports some people say he has been hospitalized others report him dead. Weird…..Farah and Michael on the same day? Doesn’t it happen in three’s I wonder what other celebrity is going to kick the bucket?

Morgan's Reply: My fingers are crossed for Paris.

Dilemma, Quandary, Tight Spot….Take Your Pick of Words but I am experiencing it

After spending Saturday at a BBQ/Pool Birthday party in the pouring rain for my dear friends Heidi and Jen, I know have a horrendous cold. So here is where the dilemma, quandary, tight spot comes in. I refuse to take a day off from work and sleep this off, because that would be admitting that I am sick and would also require me to use a day off to do nothing but lay in bed. And really who wants to waste a day off on that? You can be miserable at work or at home, might as well be miserable at work…anyway back from the tangent. Do I take a decongestant which will ultimately make my head feel better, but will give me a major anxiety attack and the sensation that there are things crawling all over me? Or do I suffer through the major headache, chills and just plain being uncomfortable?

Four!

A couple of weeks ago I headed to Sun Valley for Morgan's Birthday, with some of my lovely SLC ladies. The city was nice enough to host Ketchum Wide Open (a mini golf tournament, where a bunch of local restaurants create a fun golf hole) in honor of her. I was so happy I could be up there to celebrate. Morgan is one of my best friends and I don't know what I would do without her, I am so thankful to have her in my life. Here are few pictures from the weekend.

Um How Cute are My Brother and Future Sister in Law?

So I might be a little biased but my little brother is marrying the greatest girl in the world and check out how cute their engagement photos turned out!

Quote of the Week

Cara he is holding a black dog. (this was said with a very shocked look on her face)
- My friend Jen, those of you that were there will understand :).

Too Funny :).

OK I have a little obsession with this blog, this one cracked me up today, mainly because I am white and totally love this show and theme parties:

Mad Men Post

My favorite part of this are the comments where people get so serious. Come on people it's supposed to be funny.

I need to start wearing makeup to work becuase I don't know the word No.

So I work for an advertising communication firm and sometimes our graphic designers like to use people in the office when they are a creating proof of concept for a project. I usually like to imagine myself answering these requests with a resounding NO, but as many of you know that word is not one I am very good at using. So instead I get stuck back in a warehouse in front of green screen with no make up on, looking rather chunky and I get to be immortalized into the proof of concept video they are going to send to a group of clients. WOW....I think maybe I should go on a diet. Please tell me that the camera adds 20 pounds, not just 10?

I had the pleasure of attending an Alumni Event for the Alpha Gamma Chapter of Chi Omega last weekend. It was such an amazing experience that was made possible by Patty Halaufia. Thank you for planning such a wonderful event. It was definitely bitter sweet and I did get a little teary eyed, but being able to see a group of 150 very accomplished woman ranging in age from 18 to 80, from all over North America gather in one room was a reminder of what a powerful organization Chi Omega is and how much it means to me. It was so much fun to be back with all of my sisters and to get to spend a little time with them. They really do mean the world to me and I wouldn’t have meet most of them without Chi Omega. Joining this organization is one of the best decisions I have made in my life, I believe it has helped me in so many ways to become a better person, and I am constantly reflecting on the lessons it taught me in an effort to improve myself. It’s being a part of something bigger than yourself, and I really do feel connected to all of these women and its inspiring to see them again and here about their accomplishments. I included some more pictures from the event :).

Love in Chi Omega
1846

This is almost everyone that was there when I pledged :).

It wouldn't be a Chi O Event without a funny face picture.


Pledge Class Fall 2000, the best pledge class ever!

Seriously

Insurance Deductible on Car that has Been Side Swiped by a Semi: $500
New Battery Because "The Fix it" People Drain Yours and Forget to Tell You Before you Break Down in the Middle of One of the Busiest Intersections in Utah: $88
Tow Truck for Car Dying Next to the Homeless Shelter Downtown and Being Hauled to the Dealership Two Weeks After You Get a New Battery: $65
Mazda Dealership Diagnostic Fee: $85
Mazda Service Man Calling to Tell you the Battery Wasn't Connected to the Negative Charge because the "Fix It People" Left Out a Part that Holds the Battery and it Has Worked Itself Loose: Priceless.

There is always time to Blog

So I am super busy at work today, and yet I am finding the time in my day to write this post. Seriously there is always time to blog. And I have more than a few things to be excited about today. In the interest of the whole I am busy at work thing I am going to just list them out, no time to come up with coherent witty paragraphs.

1. I am getting my hair cut and colored tomorrow. I need this bad, the ends of my hair are in fight and are starting to split. (Don't worry I did find time to Google images of celebrities whose hair I like and place them in a nice PDF for my wonderful hair dresser Peggy. Seriously I love her even if she is ridiculously expensive)

2. I am going to Sun Valley tomorrow with my fabulous friend Elizabeth to visit my fabulous BFF (yes that means Best Friend Forever) Morgan.

3. In about two weeks more than a few of my BFF's are coming into town. I will get my Lisa, Heidi, Morgan and this just in possibly Jenny, my BFF cousin friend. I am so excited I can hardly stand it.

4. It's my birthday on Wednesday. Which I don't really like hence it means I am one year closer to 30 and I have a moments of realization that I might be in the middle of a quarter life crisis, but you do get presents and fun dinners with your friends. So that part is exciting.

5. My brother is getting married, and I get to throw a shower for my new sister-in-law at the end of April. I really like this kind of thing because I am a weird human being who likes to come up with themes that having matching decor, food and invitations. Plus I absolutely adore Nellie and cannot wait to have her as my sister!

6. I don't have to go to work tomorrow! So basically it's like Friday and who doesn't love Fridays?

Shopping for Ski Stuff Online Is NOT Cutting It!

After having trouble making it out of my parents driveway last night, due to the mass amounts of snow that was dumping down, I woke up this morning and seriously tried to convince myself that I had a case of powederitis that needed to be addressed. Unfortunately that whole rational, responsible side of me won the little war that was going on in my head. Now I am at work wasting time constantly checking EvoGear and TramDock.com to make up for the fact that I am not skiing. It's not working, I need to get better at convincing myself to be a little bad.

I just spent a very hilarious weekend in Sun Valley with some really good friends. Totally adore them. It was way too quick, but I was feeling OK about the fact that we had to drive four hours there and back to have two very fun filled days because Chad promised me he would drive home. Well when it came down to it this is how the conversation went down (or at least how I remember it):

Cara: Don't even think about getting in the passenger seat Chad! You are driving.
Chad: Um don't think I can do it (as he pushes me away from the passenger side door and puts himself firmly in the seat)
Cara: But you promised!
Chad: I can't it won't be good for anyone
Cara: I am not sure we can recover from this, but it might be OK if you buy me Starburst Jelly Beans.
Chad: I think I can make that happen

Really what is wrong with me? I drove four hours so Chad would buy me a $2.15 bag of Jelly Beans. I should raise my standards, but really I love those things.

I am pretty excited about my new skis!

I just got a new pair of skis! And I am super excited about them, yes I had to throw in "Super" because excited just doesn't cut it. I am going to try them out tomorrow for the first time and the very thought of it is what has helped me get through a very long Friday at work. Here is a picture of what they look like, it's OK to be jealous. :).

Does anyone want some bacon, because I smell pork?

Seriously is this really happening? IF you don't want to take the time to read 800 pages worth of the pork stuffed stimulus package here is a nice little outline of the debt our children will be inheriting.

$25 Million shall be available for tribal alcohol and substance abuse drug reduction as.sistance grants
$150 million for “producers of livestock, honeybees, and farm-raised fish”
$50 million for habitat restoration and other water needs in the San Francisco Bay Area
$198 million to compensate Filipino World War II veterans
$87 million for a polar icebreaking ship
$1.7 billion for the National Park System
$650 Million to the Forrest Service for hazardous fuels reduction and hazard mitigation activities in areas at high risk of catastrophic wildfire
$545 Million for Indian Health Services
$100 Million for the Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control Grant Program
$850 million for Amtrak
$150 million for the Smithsonian
$300 million for energy-efficient-appliance rebate programs
$4 billion for job-training programs, including $1.2 billion for “youths” up to the age of 24
$125 Million for the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority
$50 million for the National Endowment for the Arts
$1 billion for community-development block grants
$4.2 billion for “neighborhood stabilization activities”
$650 Million for Digital Converter Box Program, coupons and converter box installation.
$55 million for Historic Preservation Fund
$7.6 billion for “rural community advancement programs”
$150 million for agricultural-commodity purchases
$1 billion for the Census Bureau
$1.368 Billion for grants or loans for energy retrofit and green investments in as.sisted housing
$40 Million to the Bureau of Indian Affairs for Operation of Indian Programs
$1.5 Billion for NASA, Science, Aeronautics, Exploration, and Cross Agency support.
$198 Million for School Lunch Room EQUIPMENT
$ 9 Billion for ‘Broadband Technology Opportunities Program’
$1.256 Billion for NOAA, Operations, Research, Facilities, Acquisition, Construction and Management
$300 million for Violence against Women Prevention and Prosecution Programs’,
$954 Million to carry out the immunization program
$545 Million to carry out chronic disease, health promotion, and genomics programs
$60 Million to carry out environmental health programs
$50 Million to carry out injury prevention and control programs
$40 Million for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to carry out research activities within the National Occupational Research Agenda
$40, Million for the National Center for Health Statistics
$390 Million Dollars for the Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund
$600 Million Dollars for acquiring motor vehicles with higher fuel economy
$400 million for hybrid cars for state and local governments
$34 million to renovate the Department of Commerce headquarters
$500 million for improvement projects for National Institutes of Health facilities
$44 million for repairs to Department of Agriculture headquarters
$350 million for Agriculture Department computers
$88 million to help move the Public Health Service into a new building
$448 million for constructing a new Homeland Security Department headquarters
$200 Million to the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund Program
$200 Million for direct loans and grants for distance learning and telemedicine services in rural areas
$6 billion for university building projects
$4.5 billion for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
$200 Million for developing and implementing a nationwide Integrated Wireless network supporting Federal law enforcement
$1.2 Billion for TSA procurement and installation of checked baggage explosives detection systems and checkpoint explosives detection equipment
$15 billion for boosting Pell Grant college scholarships
$2 billion for renewable-energy research ($400 million for global-warming research)
$2 billion for a “clean coal” power plant in Illinois
$6.2 billion for the Weatherization As.sistance Program
$3.5 billion for energy-efficiency and conservation block grants
$3.4 billion for the State Energy Program
$200 million for state and local electric-transport projects
$1 billion for the manufacturing of advanced batteries
$1.5 billion for green-technology loan guarantees
$8 billion for innovative-technology loan-guarantee program
$2.4 billion for carbon-capture demonstration projects
$4.5 billion for electricity grid
$89 billion for Medicaid
$30 billion for COBRA insurance extension
$36 billion for expanded unemployment benefits
$20 billion for food stamps
$380 million in the Senate bill for the Women, Infants and Children program
$2 billion for federal child-care block grants
$79 billion for State Fiscal Stabilization Fund (for bailing out your local politicians overspending)
$145 billion for “Making Work Pay” tax credits
$83 billion for the earned income credit
(largely welfare now defined as a tax cut)

After 79 Years at USU ....

My heart has been a little heavy this week because the Alpha Gamma Chapter of the Chi Omega Fraternity was officially closed at USU this past week. My experience at Chi Omega had such an impact on who I am today. And I am truly saddened that the women of Utah State will no longer have an opportunity to experience what I did. This was such an amazing organization that had such an impact on the person that I am today; it changed me for the better. It taught me important life lessons about leadership, organizational politics, delegation, graciousness, being a part of something bigger than yourself, believing in myself and my sisters and more importantly it helped me develop friendships with women I can truly call my sisters. They mean the world to me and I don’t know who or where I would be without them. I know there are countless times in the last 8 years of my life when I have called on my sisters knowing they would be there no matter what I needed.

The one thing this news has allowed me to do was to reflect on all the wonderful memories I have from my experience with the Alpha Gamma chapter. I am reminded of all the items we used to talk about in preference, and the ones we liked to add to the list. It’s hugs and excitement on bid day surrounded by a sea of new faces who in a short time will become the best friends you’ve ever had, it’s Monday meetings, and nights at the factory, sisterhood retreats, and Owl Pals. It’s a helping hand, sleepovers in the big pit, Lazy Sunday Afternoons in the chapter room and prank calls around the kitchen tables. It’s table dancing to Tiffany, Monefia and the Carpenters, big and little sis week, and laughing for hours on end about nothing at all. It’s window watching, Halloween carnivals, Chi-O-Fest and Rush. It’s remembering the dinosaurs and raising a glass to the birds. It’s knowing you have a shoulder to cry on and using it, it’s being surrounded by a group of the most beautiful and diverse women whom you share a common goal with and have the privilege of calling your sisters. I could go on for hours, don’t worry I won’t. I just felt like I had to talk out a little last goodbye. :/

I have a new obsession. I am not one of those “I know about everything the minuet it comes out people” I am more of the “oh everyone knows about this maybe I should too people” so I am sure everyone else knows about this but me, including the lady who told me about this months ago, who by the way has five children and is 41, talk about making me feel like I was behind the curve. I finally decided to see what she was talking about and I feel in love this afternoon.

What could be better than a website that plays music based on what you tell it you like or don’t like? I feel like this along with my newly decorated office are going to help get me through the fact that I am a little stuck in my job because I don’t really want to be the new kid at any company in the middle of a recession (not that there are many jobs out there for me to head to). So I am thanking Pandora.com for my new found attempt at a positive attitude towards my work day. Check it out if you’re slow like me and have yet to learn about this awesome site.

Christmas Day!

I had so much fun on Christmas Day this year. It had been three years since my family had all been together and it was so much fun. We all spent the night at my parents house which was so much fun to see the boys wake up and open all of there presents. Having kids around just makes Christmas so much more fun.

The Barrus' were supposed to come up in the afternoon so we could have our soup and game day but the weather was so bad we all decided they better not brave it. So instead we all went outside to build a snowman with the kids. It was so much fun! Here are some pictures from the day.
The Family with our Snowman


Ta-Da



Making the Snowman