Boys will be boys

Yesterday my Mom decided to upgrade my Dad's very archaic cell phone (he has one of those Nokia square phones that were the best things out there when I was in high school...which was five years ago). After considering all her options, she chose to not just upgrade, but make him the coolest kid on the block by giving him an iPhone.

No sooner had Mom purchased it did Jake start thinking about all of the many things he himself could use such an advanced piece of technology for. It started with "Wow, it has Google Earth right on the home page? I could totally replace my eight street maps and use it to locate my properties" and throughout the night all I heard were excuses like, "I could access the MLS and pull more comparable sales while I'm inspecting a house!" As the possibilities seemed endless, my hopes that his excitement would fade dwindled away until I finally agreed that we could get him an iPhone this weekend. Poor Dad, he hasn't even been able to touch his prized present since Jake got his hands on it this morning.

What is it about boys and their toys? First it's hunting gear, then guns, then the 4-wheeler he uses only when it snows, and now it's the most expensive phone on the market.

And he thinks my never-ending shoe collection is bad! At least my beloved flip-flops only cost me ten bucks!

I wonder if I could gear him towards collecting more inexpensive items, like rocks.

Good Friday? It was a GREAT Friday

Just thought I'd share that I'm having a pretty spectacular day. Maybe it's because I decided to blow everything off and play. Much to Jake's annoyance, I kind of skipped out on completing any task I had at the office, but at least I got much needed one-on-one time with Kelly. I took her to her first sushi experience ever...and hopefully she wasn't just being nice when she said she liked it. It was hilarious to see her trying to use chopsticks for the first time, but she was getting the hang of it by the end. To see her face every time the waitress brought something new to the table was hysterical. She was a great sport and tried a little of everything, but was much relieved when the waitress finally brought out something she recognized: cinnamon tea (and the check! haha!). I love Fridays when I knock off the week early and go and do what I want...if only Jake was flexible enough to hang out. He's (thankfully) stayed very busy so he's getting burned out quick. Can somebody say it's time for a Vacay??? :)

Have a great Easter Weekend everybody!! Time for boiled eggs and candy---what a great combination!

Goodbye, Kathryn!

This is a picture from last night's going away party for my very good friend, Kathryn. Her husband took a new job in Spokane, so they fly out this Saturday. It was a great party, but just like any going away shindig, always has the damper of knowing it's the last hoo-rah with the person it's being thrown for.

So, this is a little tid-bit about Kathryn, and how much I'll really miss her. Kathryn and I served together in Young Womens over a year, and it has been a blast. Over girl's camp, baby showers, mutuals, Sunday Lessons, and the occassional girl's night out Kelly and Kathryn can manage, she has become one of my closest friends. It's never easy making friends when you don't have kids that kind of network you in to social circles, so when I find women I genuinely enjoy hanging out with, they are hard to give up!!

Kathryn, I will surely miss the simple things you do that's always good for a laugh-fest, your blunt honesty I can always rely on, and your ability to lift my spirits every time I'm near you. Can't wait until we see each other again!

Simply Me, Kelly, and Kathryn at going away party last night--->

Happy Belated St. Patty's

I meant to post something cute and fun on St. Patrick's Day...but what can I say? I didn't. So, instead, I'll post a belated St. Patty's Day tribute and that way it will give me something to write about. Why the sudden interest in a holiday I have hardly ever observed? (Okay...I do make an effort to wear green, and when I was in junior high I would wear red too because supposedly if you wear red you're supposed to get kissed instead of pinched.)

In any case, I have recently had a sparked interest in family history (only because it's already done for my whole Barrus side and I just get to read all the cool stories) and found that most of that side came from, you guessed it, Ireland. So, with that, enjoy some fun facts below that I found about the Irish.

*St. Patrick's Day marks the Roman Catholic feast day for Ireland's patron saint, who died in the 5th century. St. Patrick (Patricius in Latin) was not born in Ireland, but in Britain.

*34 million Americans have Irish ancestry, according to the 2003 US Census. That’s almost nine times the population of Ireland, which has 4.1 million people.

*According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the highest number of leaves found on a clover is 14!

*One estimate suggests that there are about 10 000 regular three-leaf clovers for every lucky four-leaf clover.

*Legend says that each leaf of the clover means something: the first is for hope, the second for faith, the third for love and the fourth for luck.

*The harp is the symbol of Ireland. The color green is also commonly associated with Ireland, also known as “the Emerald Isle.”

So Sore...So Sore...

Well, it's official. My fragile ego has been shattered. And I'm in a lot of physical pain. When did my body get this old?

I got a call a couple days ago from one of the girls in my old ward (I was her leader in Young Womens). She is on the varsity basketball team for her school and her team made it to their state tournaments next weekend. Their coach is trying to run through all their offenses/defenses to make sure it's pounded in their head, but only has 8 girls on the team, and for those of you that don't know this and seriously need to watch more basketball, you need 10 (5 on 5) for a scrimage. So, knowing that I played basketball back in my glory days she volunteered me to come play with them this week and next until their tourney. I agreed, wanting to meet the head coach any way because I had heard they were looking for a new coach for their JV program next year, and showed up Thursday.

Well, long story short, after two days of playing with those girls, I feel as though I've been hit by a truck. Not to mention, the first day I'm not sure I ran more than five minutes with them and was literally holding back my urge to throw up all over the floor. Pathetic, I know. My 18-year-old self would be calling me all sorts of names for letting me get this out of shape, but it's given me new motivation to get back out on the court. After all, at 23 I can't imagine giving in to the notion that I have peaked on my physical abilities. The best news is, however, that I'm not there to be a good basketball player, I'm there to help the girls out, so at least all expectations of my basketball skills are decreasing low---right where I want them.

Jake's pretty happy because he remembers my athletic figure when we started dating and is excited to see if this ole' body can't return to it's original shape. I'll let you know how THAT turns out! :)

Top Five Tuesday

I have decided to implement one day a week to name my top 5 favorite...whatever. I hear by deem Tuesdays "Top 5 Tuesday". As my first Top 5 Tuesday (aka T5T...can you tell I'm a texter?) I will identify my Top 5 Country Songs of All Time. Being a Texas native, I grew up on Garth, George, Johnny, and Martina. So, here goes:

1. "Boy Named Sue" by Johnny Cash- The reason for giving this the number one spot is pretty simple; it was the first country song I ever heard. Most mothers sang lullabies, children songs, or hymns from church to their children. But my mom? No...we heard this on every road trip, errand run, or any other random time my mom decided to break out in song. She started every line for us, and we would all excitedly reply in unison. From the day my mom first taught me 'My daddy left home when I was three and he didn't leave much for Mom and me just an ole' guitar and an empty bottle of booze' I was hooked. The greatest part about this song is that I was convinced my Mom wrote it and had no idea it was a Johnny Cash original until I was in junior high and a friend of mine was listening to it on his Walkman. I was so disappointed, but it doesn't change the fact it is the greatest country song of all time.

2. "She's in Love with the Boy" by Trisha Yearwood- I think this was the ultimate "chick flick" country song. I'm always up for a good love story, so condensing it into less than four minutes and putting it to song only makes it that much better. When I was ten hearing this for the first time, I would fantasize about meeting my one and only love in high school, get engaged with my boyfriend's class ring at a Tastee-Freeze and have my Dad ready to beat the guy's brains in for proposing. That's true love I tell you.

3. "I've Got Friends in Low Places" by Garth Brooks- This is another favorite for similar reasons to number one; nostalgic sentiment. Again, thanks to Mom, Garth was a family favorite and many a time me and my four siblings would beg her to play this song so we could jam out at the top of our lungs. Just picture it: Five children ranging from 3 to 14 playing our air gee-tars and singing every word we knew. Teaching us kids what one must resort to in order to get over a bad break-up was top on the family moral list.

4. "All My Exes Live in Texas" by George Strait- What a great song. Between George's easy-on-the-ears melodic voice and the creative lyrics, I can always enjoy a great rendition of 'All My Exes" anytime. And of course, the fact it's all about my native state is a huge plus.

And Finally...Number 5...

"Lights Went Out in Georgia" by Reba McEntire- Oh yes. Reba is the Queen of Country. Enough said. But I'll say a little more. For those of you that haven't heard this song need to get on Itunes immediately and educate yourself in one of the best country songs ever. Where else can you get an entire scandal complete with a cheatin' wife, corrupt judges, a couple murders and one woman set out to make them all pay? Every time I hear that line "You see lil' sister don't miss when she aims her gun" I get chills. Reba, babe, you are the bomb.

So there it is. Any you would take off or add? Comment and give me your opinion!