Born on Christmas Day

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BILL!

It's been almost a week since his birthday, but what a week it's been. Sorry I'm only doing this now, but better late than never, right? I love to do little-known facts about people on their birthdays, because it's fun. So here's some interesting stuff about Bill:

• He was born on Christmas Day
• He was born in Guam, so technically, here in the U.S., it was only Christmas Eve
• He's 1/4th Japanese
• He can't breathe through his nose
• He proposed to a girl he'd never met after chatting with her online for a week
• He wants to be a CPA
• He was just made Elders Quorum Secretary
• He is a little infatuated with Transformers
• He has a rockin' wife
• He likes food for its natural flavor, he rarely uses condiments or seasonings
• He is the funnest dad on the planet
• He is hilarious, but most people don't know it cause he's so shy
• He's addicted to Diet Dr. Pepper
• One of his very favorite things to do is service, no matter what kind
• He gets me like no one else, and does whatever it takes to keep me happy
• He can do SO MANY impressions that only I have ever heard
  

I could go on and on, but at least now you have a little insight into my crazy, wonderful husband's life.

Happy Birthday again, Sweetie Pie!

Happy Birthday

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SHAYLA!

Shayla and I lived just down the street from each other for two years before we realized we were twins separated at birth. Okay, not really, but almost. Here are some fun facts about Shayla:

• She is a self-taught web page designer, and she is amazing at it.
• She LOVES to read but never buys books, even if she loves them. She is a regular at the local library.
• She married her high school sweetheart, and was so confident they would marry that she picked out her ring and wedding dress before he got off his mission.
• She is an awesome, loving mother of two beautiful girls.
• She and her husband are best friends and will often sit side by side at their computers and e-mail each other.
• She is very knowledgeable about computers, but is deceivingly awful at math.
• She loves to scrapbook and make cards, and is very talented at crafts.
• She has a sense of humor that most people don't know about. When you first witness it, it's a little shocking.
• She's a great friend who would drop anything at a moment's notice to help someone in need.
• We are often freaked out to find yet another thing we have in common.
  

Happy Birthday to the twin I never had!

High School Musical 2

Hollywood called and threatened to de-throne me if I didn't talk about movies soon. And Blogger is all on my case....apparently you can't claim the title of "Movie Queen" unless you actually post about movies. Huh. So, here's me trying to keep Hollywood and Blogger happy.



We got High School Musical 2 for Christmas. I still had never seen it, as we don't have the Disney Channel at our house. I have had the entire soundtrack memorized since last August, however, thanks to my sister giving us a copy of it. I have been dying to see the movie, and, four months later, I finally got to.

I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised to find that I like it just as much as the first one. Too often sequels just don't add up to the originals, especially if the original shot to unexpected levels of fame and high ratings. (Pirates of the Caribbean II, anyone?) I worried that the newly famous actors, complete with scandals and tabloid appearances, would have changed the way they played the bubbly, virginal characters we all came to love in HSM1. Or, that the director would have played up the cheesy, oh-so-very-Disney musical aspect, which was already just teetering on the border of too much for me in the original. But, with a few exceptions, it was fairly cheese-free.

Here's what I loved:

The music. Isn't that the very heart of HSM in the first place? At first I didn't think the songs were as catchy or addicting as the first one, but after listening to it several times, I was singing along with my very best scoops and forced vibrato. Favorites: Of course the obvious, the give-me-a-toothache-sweet duet between Troy and Gabriella, "You Are the Music in Me." And I love the second duet they sing (although I'm usually not a big fan of the gospel choir endings), "Everyday." My guiltiest pleasure on the soundtrack is Troy's "Bet On It," which has my inner hip-hopper fighting her way out to pop 'n lock. But my very favorite is Gabriella's break-up anthem "Gotta Go My Own Way." If I was a pre-pubescent girl, I'd be sobbing into my Hello Kitty handkerchief.

Troy and Gabriella. Finally past the "Are They or Aren't They?" stage, I was so relieved to see their relationship was more realistically high school than, say, Saved By the Bell, which is to say, they actually spend time together outside of school. Gabriella was the same giggly, doe-eyed sweetheart to whom I don't relate at all, and Troy, well, he's just swell. We love Troy. We love Zac. He's a great actor, great singer, great dancer, great looking. (And is it just me, or would he not be a great Edward?) He's probably the only guy that could play Troy and still maintain his heterosexuality. And the fact that he hasn't been able to get more than ten minutes into either HSM movie without having to turn it off just makes him all the more appealing. Come on, wouldn't you be a little worried if he loved tween musicals?

Ryan. A likable, minor character in HSM1, he evolved into a fully funny, lovable character in HSM2. Best line: (Ryan's dad) "Have you been working out, son?" (Ryan) "Yoga."

The scenery. Suddenly Albuquerque is at the top of my list of places to live. But only if it's at a country club with a lush, green golf course and a pool with a rock waterfall.

Things I could have done without:

Troy's dance number to "Bet On It." My hubby told me about a spoof on YouTube they did where they put that scene to "The Hills Are Alive" (Sound of Music). I never saw it, but watching this scene made me laugh, just picturing it. I can totally get where their inspiration came from.

When Troy touches Gabriella's nose as they sing their final duet, and she responds with a giggle, her 55th of the movie. I was choking down the bile.

Seriously, could they not put Troy in anything other than blue? I kept track during the movie. He wore two shirts (of about 12) that were not blue. We get it, he has amazingly blue eyes. I half expected Chad to show up in a scene wearing one of his expressive t-shirts that said "Troy has amazingly blue eyes." It would have been less obvious.

Claim To Fame:

The coolest thing about High School Musical 2 is that my awesome cousin Jen and her husband, Cory, are in it. They walked on as extras and made the final cut. In the talent show scene at the end, they're sitting behind Ryan and Sharpay's parents, smiling and clapping. (Cory is the really tall guy.) It's so cool, and I still can't get over it when I see them sitting there. I'm trying really hard not to hate Jen for being in a movie before me, but who can hate Jen?

So here's hoping HSM3 brings just as much great music, sweet romance, and a polychromatic wardrobe for Troy.

New Do

Okay, my fans have spoken, and they will be heard. To respect Nicole's privacy, I won't name any names. But it has been made known to me in no uncertain terms that I need to get my butt back online and update my blog. So here I am, in all my glory. Oh, and I have to welcome back my fans who have just recently realized I am blogging again. I apologize that you couldn't find me, I swear I wasn't trying to give anyone the slip. I'm so glad you've found me.

So I'm going to have to cram all the posts I've been wanting to do into this one, to make up for lost time. Things have been kind of exciting around here lately, which is really weird. I actually have stuff to blog about, just no time to do it.

So here's a rundown of what's been going down in my world:

• I chopped my hair off to just below my chin. Aaaaahhhhh! I LOVE IT. I will not post a picture for two reasons: 1) Because I attempted to fix it today and hate it. I have to go back to cousin Heather to get a tutorial on how to fix my hair. And 2) Because what's the fun in seeing a picture? I can't get feedback through a computer screen. If you all saw a picture of it first, then the next time you see me it's old news and not, "Oh my gosh, your hair!!" I need that verbal feedback, people. I'm not ashamed to admit it.
• Last night we had to take my daughter to the ER. She couldn't breathe. I've never had a child who couldn't breathe before, I had no idea what to do. I was pretty sure it was croup, and I'd always heard to take them outside, so we bundled up my poor, sick, miserable, gasping 6 year old in her coat and blanket and stood outside in the freezing cold. She was so confused, couldn't figure out why we were making her stand out in the cold in the middle of the night when she was so sick. It helped a little, but not enough, so we took her in. All they did was confirm it was croup, gave her a steroid, and told us that if it happened again, to take her outside in the cold again. (I had to give myself props for figuring out on my own what the doctors said to do. Yay me.)
• Tonight I got an unexpected surprise. A phone call at dinner had me on on a massage table ten minutes later, getting a free massage. Me likey free. Me likey massage.
• It's official, again. I don't have celiac disease. Again. I went to Dr. Gastro to find out once and for all, and he said that with the biopsy results showing no signs of it compared with the blood test results (the numbers when I wasn't eating gluten compared with the numbers when I was were almost identical), that it was almost definite I don't have it. He said the original blood test that made them think I had it must have been a false positive. Imagine that. All this over one false test result. So my theory? It's the acid reflux. I've been symptom-free since I started taking A.R. medicine, and when I don't take it I feel sick again. The only problem occurred when Dr. Gastro said I was self-medicating and needed to try to control it through diet changes. This is the list he gave me, I kid you not: NO mint gum, NO pop, NO sugar, NO greasy fast foods. Um, huh? Is there other food out there? Does he want me to starve?
• But quite possibly, the most exciting thing to happen here was the completion and distribution of my Christmas cards. Hallelujah! I can get back to life.

So there you have it. An update. Hopefully it'll tide you over for the next two weeks. Just kidding, I'll try to do better, Nicole.

Busy, Busy, Busy

It seems like whenever I have a million things I want to blog about I can't spare two minutes to sit down to the computer. I've even worked up a fun little ditty about how busy I've been in my head but I have no time to sit and put it on my blog! Between making my Christmas cards, Christmas shopping, playing chauffer, trying to get my house clean and laundry done, making my Christmas cards, returning things to the store that I changed my mind about, wrapping presents, making my Christmas cards, paying bills, and making my Christmas cards, I have been the equivallent of a recently beheaded chicken. As soon as these blasted Christmas cards are done, I'll have a lot more time to do what I need. So, check back soon for some real blogging. And sorry to those of you who have e-mailed me and such, and to those whose blogs I'm ignoring, I promise I will get back to you asap!!!

Change

An many of you know, our stake recently re-did it's boundaries and a new ward was added. My old ward, 6th, was cut in half, and we wound up in 3rd ward, which is weird to me, since this is the ward I grew up in. I had mixed feelings about this. I had been so excited about the upcoming split, mainly because of the probability of me being released from my calling finally. But I was also excited at my ward getting smaller so that we could actually know the people in it, and they could know us. It never occurred to me that not only could I be part of the group leaving the ward, but that almost all of my friends were staying behind. But, I'm always up for meeting new people and making new friends, and....I WAS BEING RELEASED!!!!

Yesterday was our first Sunday in our new ward. It was so weird, but exciting. I was shocked to see how many fellow 6th warders made up the new 3rd ward. It was very comforting. Especially in primary (where I went to help out for a while, I knew they'd need help). Old 6th warders made up more than half of our primary. It was nice for the kids.

And then for the first time in three years, I got to go to Relief Society! I was so excited. It was so nice being in with adult women, having gospel discussions and being inspired. (Plus, I got to hold a precious little baby the whole time.) But I was shocked at how much of me wanted to be back in primary! I know, I know, I can't be pleased.

Anyway, by the time church was over, I was very optimistic about our new ward. Some familiar friends, some familiar faces from my old ward that I've never gotten to know and now I can, and some new faces that I can't wait to meet. And of course, I can't wait to see where I'll end up, calling-wise. BUT I STILL MISS 6TH WARD!!!!

And The Winner Is.....................

MARY ANN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Woohoo! All the way to AZ!

And honorable mention goes to Kim, who got 6 of my 12 items right, more than anyone else, although I am completely amazed at how close everyone came. (And some people came up with some that Kim didn't!) I think Kim will get a small secondary award, maybe something small, green and minty.

M.A., give me a few days to finish getting it ready and then obviously shipping time, but I promise to have it to you by the 12th. Oh, and e-mail me your addy. Enjoy!

And thanks to all who played, I had SO much fun doing this!

If you want to know what my actual list of 12 was, let me know, I'll e-mail it to you.

12 Days of Christmas Giveaway Part II

I was asked if I was going to tell what the winner of my giveaway would actually win, and I so badly want to say except I don't want to ruin it for the winner, since they will all be wrapped presents. But.......I thought it would be lots of fun (for me) if people thought they could guess what my 12 items about me would be. I would love to see how well people know me, or think they know me! As an incentive, if you take the time to guess my 12, I'll put your name in the drawing again, even if your guesses are all wrong. I would just be happy that you tried! So come on people, help your chances at winning and humor me all at the same time!

(If you're just reading about the giveaway for the first time, refer to my last post. You still have one more day to comment. You can comment on either this post or the last for it to count.)

12 Days of Christmas Giveaway

I've always wanted to do a giveaway on my blog, and I thought that Christmastime was just the time to do it. I loved the idea of doing stuff that I love, some of my favorite things, like my good friend did for her birthday. So all you have to do is comment on my blog before Tuesday at midnight (I guess technically that would be Wednesday morning), and you only have to comment once. Each person that comments will be entered into a drawing. The winner, who will be announced Wednesday morning, will win my personal Twelve Days of Christmas. Twelve gifts, to be opened starting Dec. 12th, and each day following, until Christmas Day. OR, the winner can open them all at once, whichever they want.

Ready.....set.....comment!