Christmas -- Round 2

Apparently, when some of the companies [that my husband ordered Christmas gifts for me from] said that the items would be delivered by December 18th....

 ....what they REALLY meant was on January 7th!

 Just THREE WEEKS later - no biggie, right?!?  (Not)

Geez Louise, I'd say that was pretty darn unsatisfactory, bordering on unacceptable, as far as customer service goes....We definitely have become too accustomed to Amazon Prime's [free] 2-day delivery being SO NICE!

But, really.....I'm a grown woman, so it's not like I couldn't handle a few less presents on Christmas morning.  In fact, I still received plenty of stuff, so it didn't even cross my mind that I was lacking - Matt just told me later that some things hadn't come.  Better me than the kids, right?!?


So, this all meant that I got to be surprised and open up ANOTHER Christmas package of stuff last night  - Woo Hoo!

Merry Christmas to me - AGAIN!

(since I was semi-conscious on the real day, anyway, this was real swell!)

Big Shot Treatment for Being just Run-of-the-Mill?

We got this flyer in our email last week:

Does anyone else find it odd?
There's a "National Eat Dinner with Your Family" Day???
Since when did that "special day" start?
Since when is eating dinner with your family a big deal?
(Ya gotta have dinner, don't ya?)
AND it's FREE?
It was put on by Davis Behavioral Health - Are they so desperate to get families to eat dinner together, that they will feed the masses (because if it's FREE in Utah, people will come out in droves!) to make it happen?!?  And they're luring you to come even further by offering discounted swimming afterwards!
Apparently so.

Hmmmmm.

I said, "Let's go!"  (Kyle gets out of planning/making dinner for that evening, and I don't have to buy the groceries for that day!)
My husband said, "What's the catch?"
Here's the thing; there really wasn't one!  They are just trying to inspire families to eat together!  As part of the ParentsEmpowered.org initiative, they have done studies that prove that The family that eats together, beats underage drinking together.

So, we went to the event (again, no biggie, we have dinner anyway, last night was just a different location), and there was a line, but not nearly as many as we'd anticipated - maybe it really did reflect what they're so worried about; people can't find the time to have dinner together as a family!?! 
(Matt, who can't bear to miss a meal, couldn't quite grasp WHY families are not having dinner!)  ;) haha.
There was a huge committee of people who were serving at this event, and the very first one we came in contact with (the lady who gave us our plates) said [very sincerely], "THANK YOU for coming to dinner with your family tonight!"   
And I'm thinking, Why are you thanking ME?  We're eating YOUR food (for FREE!)   
Then, as we moved down the food line, practically everyone else else thanked us or said some other encouraging words about us and our actions.  It seemed strange that they were treating something SO NORMAL, as dinner with your family, as a huge accomplishment.  

They even gave us a "gift bag" for coming.  (It had a spatula, hot pad, snack bag clip, and a sticky-note pad, plus a informational brochure in it).  
 Then while we were eating dinner in the park, the youth volunteers came by and gave us another gift.
THEY GAVE US GIFTS FOR COMING TO THE FREE DINNER?!?
The second gift we received was a "Chit Chat" card game for parents and children to play together.

 Do some people have trouble with "stale dinnertime conversation?"  

Come on over to our house!  You'll learn/hear more than you ever bargained for; the boy who's been 'in love' with our [elementary school] daughter for 5 years, personal hygiene issues, their latest Halloween costume ideas, inappropriate bodily noises, complaining about the food, the awkward/stupid/hilarious/outrageous things that happened that day, the "Remember When" conversations where all the past "scandalous" acts of the siblings are brought up, teasing/taunting/trash talking, the weekly haircut/style change of someone we know, the teenage drama of who's asking who to the high school dances, the misbehaving kids in their school classes and what the teacher does about it, the history of one child's "crushes" - all this while usually talking over one another, laughing out loud, then someone else calling out for everyone to be quiet and listen to them!

Anyway, the game had some good topics, too - perhaps more proper than what we're talking/not talking about:

 {The top row was from the "Ask a parent" stack, and the bottom row was from the "Ask a kid" stack.}

That first card makes me snicker - I just don't see my children voluntarily coming up to me and asking, "How can I help you at home?"  ;)

We had an entertaining speaker, too, who ALSO commended us for having dinner with our family that night.  What?!?  It's very natural and ordinary!

At any rate, they treated us like VIPs! 
I'm still taken aback that they have to practically beg and bribe us to have dinner with our family - but it also make me sad if it is (and it appears it has with all these programs in place to bring it back) a disappearing tradition.

But it still doesn't seem that hard to me to eat dinner with your family - what would be hard is listening to the 6 other humans in my home whining because they are hungry, and badgering asking me WHAT there is to eat, all night, if I didn't feed them any dinner earlier.
(And that's not even taking into consideration all the facts and tips that the professionals are giving IN FAVOR of this bonding time called "dinner.")

Worth Every Cent

I had to go in for a root canal yesterday.
My regular dentist didn't even want to touch it - he sent me to an Endodontist.
My dentist found a new cavity that ran pretty deep beneath a previous filling, that was extremely close to my nerve......he said he was very surprised that the pain wasn't killin' me!

I just LOVE IT when the dentist/dental office personnel say things (in a nice voice!) to give you the message that you're a total idiot for letting your teeth's condition get so corrupt.  Not.

  {They've got passive-aggressive down!}

Lucky for me, I wasn't feeling anything....That's why he still had his receptionist set me up an appointment with the Endodontist ASAP...because he was SURE I'd be feeling something soon. 
When my dentist's receptionist was talking to the endodontist's receptionist, she asked me if I would want the nitrous for the procedure.  I haven't ever had it for cavity fillings or root canals before, so I thought I was "tough enough" to go without.
BUT, my dentist HAD mentioned that a lot of "digging"...and "scraping"...and "clearing" would be necessary AND it would take about two hours, so I didn't say, "No" just yet.  I told them I'd decide later.  They told me it costs $75.00 and insurance will NOT cover it.  Well, money talks.  I thought, when the time came, I'd probably go without.

Well, the day before my appointment (Sunday), I had experienced flu-like symptoms for most of the day, and I still did not feel 100% the morning of my appointment.  (It was too late to cancel, without 24 hrs. notice, though.)  In fact, I hadn't felt 100% over the past couple weeks since returning from Mexico (we're suspicious of a drink of water we had from a Culligan-type water cooler at a shop there).  Add to all that my dread, unease, and tenseness regarding an extensive root canal, and I [uncharacteristically] ended up opting for the nitrous that day.

It was a good thing.....because while laying in the dentist chair, my head ached, my flu symptoms came back, I had waves of nausea, and my post-Mexico stomach was unsettled!  Not to mention I had needles and drills going into my mouth.  And I hate all the saliva that gathers near my throat, and drips down my chin and neck!  (Yes, neck!)  When everything got to be at it's worse, I just closed my eyes, and took the biggest, deepest breath, in through my nose, that I could (repeated a few times), and then......every symptom was pacified.  I was "disconnected" from it all.  When I described this to Matt later, he laughed, and informed me that on the streets, in the drug world, THAT'S called, "taking a hit."   (Ya learn something new every day!)


I actually think I fell asleep for most of the procedure.  Because it didn't even seem close to two and a half hours, which indeed had past!!!  (And, I DID go into the appointment rather tired that morning; according to my Fitbit, I only slept for 5 hrs. 15 min. the night before.)  I did hear the endodontist say the word, "IRRIGATE" four times, though, in the process.  It was MY BEST DENTAL APPOINTMENT I'VE EVER HAD - because I felt nothing, heard no drills, smelled nothing, saw very little, remembered almost nothing!!!  Ignorance is bliss in this situation!

I was kind of surprised that they said I could go right after they took the mask off of me -- well, maybe, in actuality, more time had past, and I just don't remember that, either?!? ;)  haha.  I didn't feel all that coherent at the time, so I just sat there for a while zoning out.  When I checked out, they said I could sit on the couch, but I told them if I did, I thought I'd fall asleep.  The fact that they let me drive myself home after I made that comment was pretty questionable, I think! ;)  While I was driving home, I definitely didn't feel completely with it or in control - I'm not sure they should let people leave so shortly after using nitrous.

Thankfully, I was home within 15 minutes, and my bed was calling me... and I responded to it's call, and stayed for 3 hours! ;)

And about choosing the nitrous, I've never had "Buyer's Remorse" even once ever since!

It Owns Me

Ever since I started wearing my new Fitbit (first full day was Dec. 26) I HAVE to get my 10,000 steps a day.
 
If it is 11:00 p.m. and I haven't yet achieved my steps, I will "sneak out" to go walking around the neighborhood to get them.  Apparently, the first time I did this, someone at home "needed" me (WHEN don't they need me?) and they couldn't find me, and no one knew where I was, and mayhem broke loose.  When I returned, Matt requested I please inform them in the future if I am going out.....ya know, in case something happens to me.  Like what?!?  Get abducted by aliens up the street?!?
If the day is almost over, and I don't have my steps AND we're experiencing inclement weather, I will pace back & forth on our covered porch.  Or run up & down the stairs.  Or do laps in our garage.
If I'm thirsty and need a drink of water, I STOP myself from asking someone else to get it for me......because if I get up and get it myself, that tacks on several extra steps.
If I need something while I'm making dinner from the cold storage room in the basement,  I don't call for Kyle anymore like I always used to......I want the steps myself!
It's no longer one of my kid's jobs to go and get the mail.....because if I get it, I know that's another 250 steps!

I'm telling you - I'm a SLAVE to this Fitbit.
I WILL NOT let myself NOT get my 10,000 steps a day.
EVERY day.
EVEN on the weekend.
If I let myself go just one day without getting my steps, then it'll just be easier to go another day, and then another, and another.....and I DON'T want that to happen!

 (BTW, it says 0 on the water because I would have to manually enter it in....and I don't.  I just like the Fitbit to crunch all the numbers for me.)  

I mostly wanted to start doing it for health & fitness, but ya know what's ALSO happened?  That was a pleasant surprise? 

I'm spending MORE TIME with my family and children!  The kind of TIME where I'm really WITH them.

Because I'll ask if anyone wants to go out and walk with me - and someone usually does.  Katelyn & I just walk & talk about her favorite subject - The Pioneer Woman (she's the one who "introduced" me to the Fitbit in the first place).....and then Katelyn asks when we can do that again!  ;)

Matt has decided he has to protect me against those "aliens," so he'll come out walking with me at night and we walk & talk.

One day, I needed a bunch of steps, so Brookelle, Katelyn, & I went up to our church.  I thought we'd just do laps around the church, but, NO, they had a grand idea to play "Tag."  So I obliged.  We were up there all night.....or at least an hour!  And I was "It" the majority of the time! (Because I kept getting caught!)  They LOVED it and didn't want to quit, even though I kept "suggesting" we did. (my bladder can only take so much "Tag!")  Again, Katelyn repeatedly asks when we can do that again! 

I ask her, "WHY?" 

And she tells me, "It was so fun." 

And I say, "Really?!?  'Cause I totally stunk at it."  

And she says, "No, you didn't.  You were really good.  You can run fast.....for a Mom your age!" 

And I say, "No......you always tagged me, and I couldn't catch you very much."

And she said, "THAT'S why it was so fun!"

Instead of driving my child to her friend's house to play, I walk her over there......and then I walk back when it's time to come home.  And Brookelle talks my ear off the whole way.

Same goes for getting Katelyn to Activity Days.

I'm also walking to the school after school to meet my girls and walk home with them (& their friends - gotta take advantage of that while it's still happening).  I heard Katelyn explaining to one of her friends, "Ya know how some moms pick their kids up from school and give them a ride home?  Well, our mom picks us up from school and then makes us walk home!"



I'm liking this "by-product" of my Fitbit (more time spent together with my fam) that I didn't realize would be one of the results.  My family is all on board with the idea.  They will frequently ask where I'm at for the day - and WANT me to accomplish my 10,000 every day.  Good thing, because my obsession dedication would exist with or without their support. ;)  I love it!

I ALSO overheard Katelyn tell one of her friends, "My mom has a Fitbit, and she HAS to get 10,000 steps a day.  She's going to do that EVERY day until my brother gets home from his mission, and then she's going to be SKINNY!"

Oh, WOW!  The pressure's ON!

So Thankful.....

On Thanksgiving, right before we were getting ready to eat, my text went off, and I checked it, only to see an unknown number.....with an attachment.

Should I open it?  Was it OK?  Would it make my cell phone crash?  Was it spam?

I hesitated.....but I opened it anyway, and to my great delight (& surprise) it was pictures and a message, "Your son with his companion after a fun game of touch football this morning."
(I love how she clarified that it was touch so I wouldn't worry about him getting hurt in tackle football or breaking the rules by doing so!!  She's a mom - she knows how we think!)

 My son, as in Ryan, who is away from home, serving a mission, on his FIRST Thanksgiving.

 A minute later, I got another text; this one with the message, "It was quite muddy!  This is Kristi H.....a sister from the ward."

I have heard so much about this GOOD family from Ryan's letters.  They are so great to him; having him over for dinner often, accompanying them when they teach the people, working hard to get permission from the Mission president for them to proselyte at a high school football game where there would be many important contacts, serving him, driving long distances to help, etc. etc.  The list goes on and on.

I sent her a text telling her I've heard all about her family and thanking her for all she does for Ryan.

She replied, "Your son is a wonderful missionary and we love having him here."

By this time, the Brenchley's were READY to start our feast, but Matt & I were on our phones looking at the pictures & texts.  Matt's mom (I don't think she knew what had happened?) had to scold us saying, “Now, I made the teenagers put away their phones for Thanksgiving – you put yours away, too!”  And I was like, “I’m getting photos of Ryan, I’m not putting it away!!”  What a rebel "teenager" I am!  ;)
This is about as close as we can get to having any contact with him - except for the Christmas and Mother's Day phone calls (or Skype?) that are allowed in the future.  The way technology has changed the whole missionary correspondence - amazing!  I was so thankful for this "tender mercy."  I did get a little emotional and teary after that, though.  Just KNOWING he was OK - more than OK.....Turkey Bowl?  Nothing could be better!!  He's so passionate about that annual tradition!  But, he's away from us, yet he's still getting taken care of.  It's a mixture of feelings; not really too sad, but relief, assurance, and thankfulness. 

A little more than an hour later, my text went off again.  Kristi was sending me more....

 ....with the caption, "I promise he's not starving today!"

"We were happy he could spend Thanksgiving with us."

There were actually two families from the ward in this photo.  I guess they both wanted the missionaries for Thanksgiving dinner (along with 5 other families from the ward - what competition!) so they combined forces and did it all together.  

I have heard a lot about this other family from Ryan, as well.  In fact, Ryan has already "pegged" one of their daughters as Kyle's future wife because he wants to be a part of their family, they're so awesome!  ;)  This family has done so much for Ryan, too.  For example, they have been known to drive 30 minutes to sit in on & fellowship at an investigator's lesson, just to be "stood up" and they have to drive all the way back home for nothing.....but, at least, invite the missionaries for dinner still.  (It makes me feel lazy!)  They have a missionary son out, too, so they understand the life.

I am so thankful for these fantastic families who are working in the Lord's vineyard located in West Virginia!  I'm so thankful for these "surrogate mothers" he has to watch out for him while he's away - it's such a blessing!  They are doing such a good job!!  I love them (his family away from home) and I've never even met them.

Something funny happened in the middle of all this, too.  I kept looking and re-looking at the texts on Thanksgiving and somehow the wrong button got pushed because all of a sudden, I see that my cell phone has dialed Kristi's phone number.  When I realized it, I was like, “Oh No!  Oh No!” and I was frantically trying to end the call as fast as I could, but it wasn’t working.  That would be a big NO-NO to try to call him - or her if she was with him - but I didn't mean to, I PROMISE!  I don't want to be One of Those Moms!  ;)  I don’t know if she answered and heard all the commotion, but if she did, I also hung up on her!  ha-ha. 

Ryan's end of the story was that when Kristi's phone rang (from my inadvertent call), she pulled out her phone and showed Ryan the screen.  He was like, "Oh, no!" and he shot out of the room!  But, she did realize and told him it was just a "pocket-dial."  Whew!

Again.....I'm so thankful.

The Benefits to Having a Missionary in the States

Both Matt and I served our missions [for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints] outside of the country (Okinawa & Fukuoka, Japan).
My sister and both my brothers served their missions outside of the U.S. (Ukraine, Mexico, & Brazil).
All of Matt's brothers (5 of them!) served missions outside of the country (Puerto Rico, Spain, Chile, Uraguay, & Venezuela).
SOOOO.....I've always associated missions being synonymous with out of the U.S.  So, when Ryan got called to serve his full-time mission within the States, it was a NEW CONCEPT for me.

And I've come to realize how GREAT it is as far as the MAIL situation is concerned!!!
I can actually send him mail AND packages [for fairly inexpensively]......AND he actually receives them!!!  So many other MM's do not have that luxury, they will not be able to send their missionaries anything for the whole 18 month/2 years - I have been told I am very lucky, and I believe it.

Even before he ever got his mission call, I saw an idea of what I wanted to do for my future missionaries' care packages......and then his IN STATE mission made it possible.
It has been very fun!!
In the beginning, I sent him a small box tied up with 12 different colors of ribbon or pipe cleaner.

It included an explanation that he'd be getting color-coded care packages each month for the first year.  The color of the package would provide the CLUE to which tie he was suppose to cut off that month.  At the end of 12 months (and 12 color coded care packages), he could open the tie-free box.
(Shhhhh.....but inside the box he will find a picture of Christ, and a message from Him to Ryan, because he is one of the missionaries for His church.  The letter contains gratitude and encouragement to serve for one more year, etc.)

Did I mention this is FUN?!?

The first month (September) was GREEN.....BECAUSE that's what he was - GREEN, fresh out in the mission field.  For some reason, I did not take a picture of it before I sent it, but PICTURE THIS:
Each flap of the box was covered in green decorative paper, and I wrote on each one:
"Good Luck, Greenie!"
"How's our favorite 'Green Bean?'"
"We LOVE our 'Greenie.'"
"It's not easy being 'Green'" ~ Kermit the Frog

It included things like:
a can of green beans
Andes mints
Sprite
Apple Jacks cereal
Mike & Ikes
Listerine strips
a green Sharpie
Wet Ones wipes (green pkg.)
sour cream & onion Pringles
green apples
Ghiradelli mint chocolate squares
winterfresh gum
pad of paper (green border)
plus.....several other green items - you get the picture.

In October I did ORANGE.  But, this time, I had my brain and I took pictures.

 {The contents}

{All packed up in the box}

These FLAT RATE boxes (provided for FREE by the post office) are the way to go (if you're sending more than 2 things) - whatever fits in the box, can be sent for one rate - it can be as heavy as I want it to be, and it costs me the same!

In contrast, if I were to put it in my own box, and they determined the postage off of weight, it'd be  like $40+ just to ship.

The 4 flaps say:

"ORANGE you glad you're a Missionary?!?"

"ORANGE you glad it's time for another care package?!?!"

"ORANGE you glad We Love You!!!"

"ORANGE you glad you survived your 1st Transfer?"

To which Ryan responded in his next letter back to us:

"Thank you so much for the care package....ORANGE you glad I got it?"  ;)

Are you having fun, yet?!?  

In November, it was BROWN.

 {The contents}

 {All packed up, ready to be sealed shut}

The flaps say:

"A little BROWN-NOSING never hurt anyone!!"  :)

"What can BROWN (substitute Elder Brenchley) do for you?  ~UPS

"Yes!  We're trying to score BROWNIE points!"  :)

"Oh, the WONDERFUL THINGS Mr. Brown (substitute Elder Brenchley) can do!!"   ~Dr. Seuss 

In the upcoming months, hopefully, I'll post them as I do them, once a month, instead of in a group, playing catch up....
Colors still up on the docket:
Gray
Red
Yellow
Pink
Purple
Blue
Black
White
Fuchsia


My other kids all LOVE these packages, and wish they were for them, saying it's not fair, but I try to tell them, they live at home and get our presence, love, & attention (not to mention free access to the pantry) every day, but Ryan does not, so THIS is an attempt to give him some of that, too, while he is sacrificing/serving away from home. 

Yes!  I can see, now, how it's pretty beneficial having a missionary in the States....how did I, and Matt, and all our siblings ever get our packages in those foreign countries?  Oh, yeah......we didn't.
Or they were just few and far between (If they even made it!)  And they took forever.  And cost an arm and a leg.

BUT, this may backfire on me, too, if my other children all go foreign, and they don't get any care packages......but remember that Ryan DID.....uh oh!

The Day of Awakening

You gotta get through 18 3/4 years of the [back breaking, heart aching, mind going crazy, blue-in-the-face] daily grind FIRST, but it finally comes.....it's the day when your child realizes AND admits JUST HOW GOOD HE HAS IT!  (and always has had it.)

We got this letter from our missionary son, Ryan, this week:

The letter was partially spurred on by him receiving some family photos we had taken before he left on his mission this summer.  They finally came back from the photographer, so I sent them to him in a little album:

We were kind of surprised to have our letter addressed to us in such a way, "My Eternal Forever Family" - such an upgrade from the usual, "The Brenchley's."  ;)

Then the content of the letter provided even bigger "revelations" to us:
"I am so grateful for what a great family I have!  The pics are just too precious!  Maybe it's the great color scheme or all our great smiles, but The Pictures just glows every time I look at it.  I took the album to church with me Sunday to show to some families and it got passed around to a couple of the other sisters in the ward.  Everyone who saw it was all, "Oh, what a Beautiful family you have!"  The other missionaries around the house were all commenting how much younger my family was.  (They're just jealous because their family grew up and isn't as cute as my family!)  I love you all so much.  You are all one of the main reasons I'm serving a mission.  I KNOW the happiness I have knowing my family can be together forever and I want nothing more than to share this message with others, and have them have the same Happiness I have!  I Love You all so much!"

(I think I want him to stay with this current group of missionaries who refer to us as the "YOUNG" family amongst the group!  ;)  In fact, when Ryan was telling his companion that his parents went on a 20th anniversary cruise, his companion pointed out that he's older than Ryan's parent's marriage!  His companion was born a few months before we were married....and he's the 4th child in his family to give ya an idea of the age difference in their parents!)


So, basically, now Ryan thinks we really are great!
(That's why we send them away!)  ;)
One child down, four to go!

Make a Customer, Not a Sale

I work in Customer Service.
I know it can be hard, at times, to satisfy the customer.
Especially when they're asking for the STARS - and the SUN & MOON for that matter!

But, lately, I've been on the OTHER SIDE.  I've been the recipient and I thought they deserve a shout out.  Little things go a LONG way.

SMITH'S

Matt & I were doing a late night, Saturday night none the less, shopping trip and stocked up on cereal because they were having a "Buy 4 and Save" type of sale.
First we tried self-check out......is it just ME, or does it NEVER work?!?
So, then we went to a real, live checker.  The cereal STILL didn't come up at the right sale price - even though we'd purchased the minimum of four.  It was discovered that the reason was because one of the boxes Matt had chosen was the larger box, the size that wasn't part of the deal, so it wasn't registering the price break.   
BUT, instead of making us return back to the cereal aisle to get the smaller box, she just said, "That's OK." and she re-scanned one of our qualifying [smaller] cereal boxes in it's place, so the computer would calculate the sale price....AND SHE LET US KEEP THE LARGEST BOX!
"Low Prices.  Market Fresh" - they made TRUE on their slogan! (I got a BELOW low price.)

CHICK-FIL-A 

 I don't usually order a drink at restaurants because I ONLY like one kind - diet Dr. Pepper - and not a lot of places have it.
(Although, more & more are coming out with it!  THANK YOU for finally responding to all my "Letters to the Editor"  ;)  haha.  J/K I never wrote....at least not that I can remember, and we know how volatile
 my memory has been over the past several years.)
Anyway, so I just ordered food, a sandwich & waffle fries, without a drink.  A few minutes later, I was at a different part of the order counter to get napkins, and I saw that the fountain drink machine over there DID, in fact, have DDP.   
Dang!  I'd already paid and I should've got the combo!
SO, I just approached the counter and explained to them I didn't know they had MY DRINK when I first ordered, but now, post-order, could I please change it into a combo?  The nice woman, who kept saying, "My pleasure." by the way, asked her manager how to enter it into the register and then she prepared me a drink and gave it to me.  I asked her what I owed her, I guessed it would be about a dollar to bring the total I had paid up to the combo meal price.....AND SHE SAID THEY WERE GIVING ME THE DRINK AS A PROMO because I just didn't know about their DDP when I ordered.
(And then they gave me free refills, too!!)
"EAT MORE CHIKIN" is their slogan - I WILL thanks to this experience!

KOHL'S 

Matt gave me a purse for my birthday (last September) that he had purchased at Kohl's.  I tend to put about 50 things in my purse - no joke!  (I have to be prepared for whatever I MIGHT need!)

So, when the purse started to get a few rips around the area where the straps meet up with the bag part, I figured it was just because it wasn't designed to handle the weight.  What's interesting, though, is that a friend of mine had actually got the exact same purse at about the same time.  She'd showed me that hers had some tears in it, too.
SO, when I was at Kohl's the next time (with my purse), I mentioned it to them and asked what we could do.  She told me to bring in the receipt and they could help me.  I actually did still have the receipt, but I thought for sure when they saw the date (8 MONTHS AGO!) that they would just tell me that it was normal wear & tear. (PLUS I am guilty of overloading)  BUT, NO!  I took in the receipt.....AND THEY TOLD ME TO GO GET A BRAND NEW PURSE OFF OF THEIR SHELVES.
She performed an "even exchange" and let me empty out everything from the used purse (I thought she would reconsider at this point when she saw the 50 items as the culprit of the purse's damage) and I put it all in the new purse, she disposed of the old one, and I was on my merry way!
"Expect great things" - they sure made TRUE on their slogan!

BLUE IGUANA RESTAURANT

Matt & I went out to dinner here Saturday night and our waitress had to deal with our (my) usual indecision on what to order.  She was trying to explain mole (the Mexican sauces) to me because I wasn't too familiar with it, and honestly, by reading the description of the ingredients in the menu, it sounded kind of NOT delicious, yet she was saying they WERE!  She really wanted to help me, so she said she'd be right back.  She went into the kitchen and came out a while later with a plate of all 8 or 10 mole samples on it and brought me a fresh basket of tortilla chips SO I COULD TRY EVERY SINGLE ONE.

Through that taste testing process, I was able to point to the ones I liked, and she could identify them, and we were [finally] able to make an order!
Their slogan:  "The most delicious recipes you'll EVER encounter" - she made sure I could have my encounter!  ;)


I appreciate all their EXTRA service they provided me......it makes me want to be sure to always give it in my job, too!

There are no traffic jams along the extra mile. ~ Roger Staubach
 
Make your product easier to buy than your competition, or you will find your customers buying from them, not you. ~ Mark Cuban

Here is a simple but powerful rule: always give people more than what they expect to get. ~ Nelson Boswell

AND.....when in doubt if you can have something or not....ASK!!  ;)

Simple Surprises

I went on a trip last week, and I had quite the streak of Good Luck.  Or maybe more than luck - just a bunch of happy things that happened.....which left me pleasantly surprised.  They weren't HUGE events, necessarily, so I'll call them "Simple Surprises."

1. Southwest Airlines has Diet Dr. Pepper as a drink choice on their flights!
2. There are GAMES like Connect 4 and Solitaire on the treadmill - it really HELPS the workout go by faster!
3. The "mystery guest artists" at The Grand Ol' Opry didn't end up being a mystery....it turns out Mark Wills sings "19 Somethin',"  "And the Crowd Goes Wild," and "Don't laugh at Me."   And Brett Eldridge sings, "Don't Ya"...all of which I knew!
4. The operator politely called me by name when I called to ask a question!
5. The factory outlet mall was actually pretty close to our hotel (within walking distance) instead of far away like we'd thought it looked from the taxi!
6. I didn't throw up the raw oyster I ate, right out of the shell, at THIS restaurant, in the presence of 5 people who were egging encouraging me on.
7. I was ID'd - that means the "bouncer" COULDN'T TELL IF I was over 21 or not, right?!?  And it has nothing to do with it being policy or anything.....  ;)
8. The Nashville airport provided foot covers (like the ones you'd wear in open houses) for us to go through security - I always think it is gross to walk on the floor in my bare feet when I have to take off my flip flops!
9. When I got done eating my Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory apple pie flavored apple, there were moist towelettes in the bottom of the bag - just what I needed!
10. There was Dish TV access on my iPad on one of the flights I took - I finally watched several of the episodes from season 8 of The Office for the first time.  I'm only 2 years being the times!
11. My girls GOT ON (standby) a "100% booked" flight....and we're able to sit by their Dad!
12. My Jamba Juice gift card money had NOT expired even after a couple years of non-use!
13. I came upon a "test" security checkpoint, where we didn't have to take off our shoes, remove our liquids from our bag, unload our laptops, or any of the usual things except pretty much walk through - that's as EXPEDITED as security can be!

There IS Such a Thing as a Free Lunch

Baseball season is upon us, so we are finding ourselves AT the ball park during dinnertime these days, which is always tricky. 

Well, to feed our brood one evening, we brought along two Little Caesar's pizzas for "dinner" - which we discovered is NOT ENOUGH to sufficiently satisfy our family's hunger anymore. 

So, later that night, Matt wanted to go and get dinner, since, he considered, the couple of measly pizza slices he ate were just a snack.

We headed over to Wendy's since we had some "Buy (something), Get (something else) Free" type coupons.

(AND they have the awesome 2000-flavor-drink-machine!)  

As is often the case, the employee working the cash register didn't quite know how to make the coupons work, or the computer wasn't calculating the correct amount - or SOMETHING!  This problem resulted in him calling over a manager for "help." 

The manager started pushing buttons on the register - while calling instructions back to the cooks - so she must have got distracted, because then she exclaimed, "Oh No!" 

She stared at the register for a few seconds, and then she blurted out, "I can't believe I did that!" 

Meanwhile, both the initial employee and Matt & I were standing there in confusion.
 
The manager then said, "Don't worry about it.  It's on the house."   

We replied with a very intelligent, "WHHAAAT??"

She retorted, "I cashed the order out [by mistake].  You're good.  It's on us.  Nothing's due."

We said we were ready and able to pay, but apparently she couldn't do anything - after she pushes the "final" cash out button, the register CANNOT accept any payment on that transaction.  (THESE AMAZING COMPUTERS!  What would we do without them?!?)   ;)

So, there we sat in Wendy's dining room with two of THE CHEAPEST combo meals we've ever [not] bought!  It was our LUCKY day!

There's the secret:  use a coupon, and it will confuse them into giving you free food!

We DID decide to stop by the counter on our way out and order a few sandwiches TO GO for our teenage sons who are ALWAYS please with a late-night Fast Food "snack."  Then we felt better that we DID spend SOME money while there.

I was received at home with hugs and utterances of, "You're the BEST Mom!" from my boys.
(SOMETIMES you get it right.)

Is Your Dryer Trying to Tell You Something?

MINE WAS.

You see, my dryer has started taking an obnoxiously LONG time to dry a load of clothes lately. We're talking like more than two hours!

And that's just not conducive to getting much laundry done in a day. And, over here at my home, with the seven of us and multiple clothing changes, I can't afford to NOT get a lot of laundry done in a day.

I always scrape clean the lint screen, so I didn't know what was going on. My dryer needed MORE from me! More attention and coddling, I guess. So, I obliged. Today, I felt inspired to reach my arm down into the the lint screen crevice - and I discovered that it goes much lower than the height of the lint screen. I felt a ton of junk deep down there - including THIS:


Pennies are quite common to find, but $5.06....WOW! I hit the Jackpot and I didn't even have to drive up to Idaho to buy a lottery ticket that's all a buzz right now - and my odds were much better! My dryer rewarded me for my efforts. Now, let's dry those clothes SPEEDY fast!

My dryer was telling me I needed to make a deposit in THIS:

{I have a "Finders Keepers" rule with the laundry and it goes right into this jar.}

So, I'm set, girls. I'm feeling rich! What shall we do?

Any good movies out?
Know any "must try" restaurants?
The Trampoline Park?
Who's in concert?
Wendover's only, what, 2 hours away? (j/k)
My "no candy" Lent period ends in 4 1/2 days!
Do they do "Strobe Light" bowling anymore?
NYC Girls' Trip?
Oh....gotta go, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory is calling me!

:)

My Husband Must Be on Pinterest OR Why My Husband is Awesome - Reason #368

...Because I woke up to this in my bedroom this morning! :)

A note on my bathroom mirror explained,
"25 balloons that describe what I Love about You!"
(and there were a few of my favorite candy bars attached to some - BONUS!)

I tried to get him to admit he had gotten the idea off of Pinterest - but he vehemently denied it! I was teasing him about this since, when I first signed up for Pinterest, I had to do it under HIS facebook account because I don't have one (and don't want one!) so his name and photo were showing up every time I "pinned" something. He was worried that "all these people" would think it was really him! I tried to assure him that "all those people" would probably figure it was ME! (right?!?) (I have recently been able to change the name, but haven't figured out how to change the photo.)

So, if he hasn't been wasting time gleaning inspiration on Pinterest, then this means he REALLY put TIME, THOUGHT, and PREPARATION into this Valentine's Day surprise!

Which I totally LOVE! :)

Opening my Mind

We made wall clocks at our Super Saturday.

When we were signing up for our projects ahead of time, there was a wall clock on display made by our own "decorating Guru" in our ward. So, of course, it looked fantastic!

It lured me in - and I registered for the class.

We were to provide our own paint color of choice, but I just found out the EXACT color & brand that the "example" had been made with. (Since I figured if it was going to look good, it had to look like that one.)

Much to my dismay, when I went to Robert's Craft Store, that color was no where to be found! So, I got another paint that was as close to a medium beige-ish that I could find (that's how her paint color was described.)

And then I fretted about it, since it wouldn't look just like the "model."

I came to Super Saturday and would not get started right away because I still wasn't sure about the color.

This is so stupid, huh?!?

Well, another lady at my table had brought some pink & green paint with her to try out along with her color in the medium beige-ish family.

And then it hit me...Could I do another color besides medium beige? Could I do COLOR - period? It had never occurred to me before since I was "STUCK" on following the "example."

I LIKE RED. I really am quite fond of it. My mind started turning. Why didn't I ever consider doing any other color? I knew I had some "Barn Red" paint at home, so I went home to fetch it.

It was a pretty bold decision to make a 24" Wall clock in a COLOR other than "medium beige" but I was going for it. And it was kind of exciting!

There was only 1/2 a bottle left, so we barely made it. And this is how it turned out:

{Either my camera - or the photographer - needs help, but I could not get a photo without a glare on the clock!}

At first, mine was the only COLORED clock amongst a sea of beiges & browns. As I was painting it, I was questioning whether or not I should've done it! But, everyone really liked it. Others even said they wished they would've done it. Another gal even decided to do RED because she saw mine! I actually wasn't sure I liked it for a while, but now that it's been in my home for a week - I DO!

It really got me thinking...I was so closed-minded about how to do the project that I didn't even consider any other color besides the one on display until the very last minute. In this case, my "thinking outside the box" turned out to be delightful! How many other times & situations have I not been able to "open my mind" and see multiple possibilities and solutions? What amazing things have I missed out on because I put my creativity to a standstill? Have I been hindered by my "medium beige thinking" that everything has to be done a certain way - that there is no other way?

That reminds me, I had a mission companion from the South and she had all kinds of great sayings (which, of course, I'd never heard of before, and required translation) but one she'd frequently say is.... with her accent,

"Sis-tah, There's more than one way to skin a cat!"

And I found one - and I hope I do it more often.

NYC Myth Busters

I had A LOT of preconceived notions about New York City.

And because of them, I will admit I was a bit anxious, even felt a little uneasy leading up to our Anniversary trip to NYC. I don't know if my preconceived notions came about from watching too many movies, listening to too much "here say," or what. Maybe things have changed, but what I was scared of really wasn't there!

Preconceived notion #1: There are RATS "as big as dogs" crawling around the streets & sidewalks.

Actual: The ONLY rat I saw was this "pet" sitting on his owner's head & shoulders.

Preconceived Notion #2: I would be an absolute "Fashion Outcast" there in my "Utah duds" compared to all those stylish New Yorkers.

Actual: I realized I had nothing to worry about when I saw these folks...

Since this is a "G" (OK, maybe "PG") rated blog, I'll cut this photo off here, so you won't be able to see how far up before the clothes start, but the rest was as interesting as the shoes! :) {Oh, no! I think she caught me snapping this photo!}

Can't exclude the men!

Preconceived notion #3: The Subways are dangerous, scary, (think The Fugitive, Die Hard 3, Ghost, The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3) dirty, & full of people with B.O. (with their armpit right at your nose level.)

Actual: We experienced none of that. And I'm pleased to say that we only got on the wrong Subway twice! Note to self: just because you took a certain Subway getting to your destination, does NOT mean the same one will get you back! Also, Don't let "Downtown" confuse you. It is not the center of the city as I naturally will refer to it in these parts - but, in NYC, it's down, as in more south from where you currently are ~heading towards Lower Manhattan! Also a big help: HopStop.com

Preconceived Notion #4: You will get mugged/jumped/attacked - or even witness a murder.

Actual: Although, I did frequently keep one hand on my purse at all times, no one touched me...except I did get pushed by a stiletto donning woman as she walked by (and commanded, "Excuse Me.") since I was stopped on the sidewalk she wanted to walk by on - and avoid the alternative, the grates covering the Subway below which would surely have been a disaster with her shoes!

Preconceived Notion #5: The hotels that are in the price range below $300/night are "hole in the walls" - a regular dive.

Actual: We were so happy with our hotel. New, no noise, so comfortable, free wireless, complimentary bottled water ($5/bottle at other hotels), a candy jar at the front desk!...And the price was right!

{In our Lobby}

I've fallen in love with their signature "Sheraton Sweet Sleeper" beds. (They tell me you can order them online....)

It really did the trick - we slept until 11:00a.m. one morning, 9:45a.m. another!

Preconceived Notion #6: The weather isn't nice. Too humid, too cold, too muggy. Unpredictable summer storms.

Actual: Just look at these skies...

I ended up wearing my jacket around my waist every day "just in case" I needed it. Didn't!

Finally, on the 5th & last day, I left my jacket behind (since I'd never needed it yet!)

THAT DAY, we went to the top of The Empire State Building....

it was just a tad bit windy clear up there!

Yep, Murphy's Law applies to me again, THAT would be the ONE day, I didn't have a jacket! :)

Preconceived Notion #7: It's practically impossible to get tickets to Letterman.

Actual: WE DID! (They actually called me ahead of time, before we left, asked me a "trivia" question - What kind of store does Rupert have? Answer: Deli. Done - we're on the guest list.)

Our show will be airing tonight, Friday, Sept. 11th. We're in the audience on David's desk side , about 7 rows up! The main guest was Michael Douglas. I don't know if it was just because we were there, but "our show" seemed to be better than all the others I see on T.V. Tune in tonight to see for yourselves!

Preconceived Notion #8: Movie Stars are walking around all over the place.

Actual: Negative. Unless you consider him...

We also DID see all this hub bub happening on the street one day with a big film crew. I see no stars, do you?

We found out they were filming Sex and the City 2.

OK. OK - there WERE a few of my Preconceived Notions that were right on...

Taxis, Taxis, & more Taxis
{we never took one}

Pigeons, Pigeons, & more Pigeons
{a flock even made a landing on the field in the middle of the Yankees game}

Garbage, Garbage & more Garbage
{put out at night, and it miraculously disappears by morning}

People sleepin' around
{I only saw this kind, not the other kind!}
Fancy Cars
{A Rolls Royce}

What a wonderful surprise to have most of my preconceived notions proven wrong! :) Now maybe another time, another place, those things are happening....? We'll just consider ourselves LUCKY!

Now in closing, Imagine the New York, New York song by Frank Sinatra playing in the background!