In an attempt to bring new life to weekend blogging, I am jump-starting a new thing on my blog that I've always wanted to do. Introducing........

THIS WEEK IN HOLLYWOOD

Branjelina Expecting Baby #.....Um......

(Is it just me, or is Brad channeling Starsky?)



J.Lo Delivers Twins

They named them Max and Emme.




Here's the babies' first photo:

Mary-Kate Olsen

There is just nothing that I can say about this picture
that would make it any funnier.

Mariah Carey

Your 20's called....they want their wardrobe back.

I Am Loving...

My first order from Dandee Designs!

I knew I had to have this giant clothespin the second
I saw it. When I ordered it,
Danyelle told me she knew I'd snatch it up.
It will go SO PERFECT in my kitchen.

Had to have these fun push pins for my bulletin board.

And finally I will have my very own Spring-In-A-Can.

I am loving buying fun, new stuff made by someone I love.

Today as I was pulling out of my driveway to take Payson to preschool, I spotted these:

My tulips have popped up out of the ground! The joy this simple discovery brought me was no small amount. And to top off the perfection, I just happened to discover them on a gorgeous, spring-like day. I am so ready for spring and beyond ecstatic at the thought that I will soon be out working in my yard, making it beautiful again. Working outside in my yard in the fresh air of spring and summer is one of my favorite things in the world. I am loving that spring has sprung.


I also got "happy mail" this week. My friend had a blog giveaway and miraculously, I won!! I was so excited to receive this planner wrapped in a gorgeous handmade cover. When I saw the Oriental fabric, I knew I had to win, and I did!

Little did I know that I would receive this extra little
surprise as well:

A matching wallet/coin purse. I had to fight Macy for it. It totally made my day to get this "happy mail." Thank you so much Susan, and please, check out her blog and Etsy shop. She is one crafty, talented chica. I am loving my planner and wallet.

"I want to squish you, squeeze your head off and dangle you from my rear-view mirror," --Paula Abdul

I pride myself in always being ready and willing to admit when I am wrong. Before American Idol last night, I hated David Archuleta. I couldn't deny that he had talent, but his obnoxious personality and immaturity far outweighed my admiration for his skill. But after his performance last night.....well, I still can't stand him and cringe when I watch him talk and laugh, but at least now I can put those feelings aside because last night's performance ROCKED THE HOUSE. Oh. My. Gosh. Bill and I were blown away. And we both hate him. We both watched in silence, and I'm sitting there secretly thinking, "Oh my gosh, this performance is amazing, how can I admit to Bill how much I like it?" And as soon as the song ended Bill said, "I loved it and I hate that I loved it." In fact, we backed it up and watched it again....a FIRST for us in American Idol history (and we've watched every season.) We didn't even delete it off DVR in case we wanted to watch it again. So Kristen, I repent, I beg forgiveness for bashing your beloved David. THE BOY CAN SING. If you didn't catch his AMAZING rendition of John Lennon's Imagine (one of the best songs in the world to begin with), watch it here.

Now if he can just reign in the schoolboy giggles and goofy grins...he may just stand a chance.

Monday Musings

Well, I guess my movie-lovin' self will always come through. I loved the Oscars, every minute of it. (Okay, that's a lie. I skip over all the technical crap...really, does anyone care about those ones?) As soon as it started I was whisked away into my love affair with Hollywood. The women looked gorgeous, Jon Stewart was HILARIOUS, and the 80 year celebration brought with it several montages that showed us all the winners of the past 80 years. Those were the best parts. I loved seeing each winner and remembering when they won. (Well, at least the ones for the past ten years.) And, I only had to watch it on an hour and a half delay, so that's not too bad. At least I could skip all the categories and speeches I didn't care about. The only downside was Juno's lack of wins. I was sooooo disappointed that Ellen Page didn't win Best Actress, but not surprised. I was thrilled that it won Best Original Screenplay, though. Other than that, there was nothing and no one that I was excited about. But I still loved every minute of it.

So today is a typical Monday morning, I'm on the computer and Payson is laying on the ground playing Transformers. He has been cracking me up lately with the stuff that's been coming out of his mouth. (Okay, I just re-read this and thought that considering what he did all weekend, that might have been poor word choice.) Last week we were grocery shopping, just me and him as usual, and we were looking at all the toothpastes trying to pick a new one for him. The "boy" toothpastes were limited, with Cars and Spongebob being the only two options. I quickly directed him towards the Cars one (I'm not a big fan of Spongebob). He took it off the shelf and looked at it, then looked at me and asked, "Does it taste like Piston Cup?" I have no idea where that came from, but I thought it was pretty hilarious.

Soon we'll eat lunch, take our naps, then get Macy from school. I really need my nap today, as I was up til 2:30 last night reading Nicholas Sparks' Dear John. It's soooo good. And I'm babbling.

And The Oscar Goes To........

It's that time again.
The biggest night in Hollywood.
Usually the day I anticipate with glee,
the day I spend all giddy,
counting down the clock til they roll out the red carpet.

But this year.....
not so much.
WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?!
I feel like a part of me has died,
like I'm a traitor to the crown.
(Do you think they'll de-throne me?)

I've pondered my change of heart all month
and this is what I've come up with:

1. The Writers' Strike. Seriously? What else could they ruin? First they take away all the good TV and now my love of the Oscars? I think it's safe to blame all of the world's problems on the Writers Guild now, from Global Warming to Britney Spears.

2. The nominees. I can't even tell you who has
been nominated because they all starred in movies
I've never heard of. I hate that,
when the Best Picture Nominees are all
Rated R indy flicks that no one has ever heard of or cares about. Did any of these ever even make it to our theaters? I know there are some exceptions (Yay, Juno!)
but the rest just make it so hard to care.
I haven't even summoned the desire to Google the nominees.
Now you know how bad it is.

3. I CAN'T WATCH THEM LIVE!!!
You have NO IDEA what this is doing to me. Watching the Oscars DVR'd, to me, is like missing my baby's first steps
in real life and having to watch it on video.
Seriously.
What is the point?
It's all said and done.
I have to be there, up to the minute, IN THE NOW.
As luck would have it, I didn't even go to church today.
I'm home with Pukey Pukerson #4 (Yup, four people
in our house, four weeks, four cases of the flu).
And there is no family dinner tonight.
So that eliminates two of my three scheduling conflicts!
But there is NO WAY I can miss my
song practice/dress rehearsal for Stake Conference
at 6:30. It's like I'm being tested.
It's like someone's dangling the forbidden fruit
in front of me, daring me to eat it.
Just kill me now.

Oh, Oscar, why must you torture me so?

TEN THINGS NOT TO DO WHEN
ACCEPTING YOUR OSCAR


1. Don't be a weepy, crying mess

2. At least attempt to sound like you didn't memorize your speech.

3. Don't forget to thank your husband
(who is watching, bawling like a baby as you
stand and thank everyone else down to the caterer.)

4. Don't assume for one second that holding that statue
makes us care what your political views are.

5. Avoid sounding like you were preordained by God
to win your Oscar

6. Don't play the race card.
It just makes everyone squirm in their padded velvet seats.

7. Although it can be extremely tempting and instinctive upon
hearing your name called,
avoid jumping across the tops of the
occupied seats on your way to the stage at all costs.

8. Don't out your favorite high school teacher on national television.

9. Winning an Oscar does not make you the "king of the world."

1. Always remember that what you say in your speech will be recorded,
and probably picked apart, mocked, and ridiculed.
Choose words accordingly.

COME FOR A NIGHT OF
STAMPIN' FUN!

Tuesday, February 26
7:00 pm
at
my sis. Amy's house
(let me know if you need directions)

It's SELL-A-BRATION
which means
FREE STUFF!!!

For every $50 spent, you get to pick a stamp set or other merchandise from here.
No limit. The more you spend, the more free stuff you get!

Come and have a fun night socializing with fun people making fun stuff.
Learn new techniques, take home super-cute projects, and if you want, build up your stampin' or scrappin' supplies and get free stuff! It will be a blast!

To view the entire Stampin' Up Spring/Summer Catalog, click here.

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!

P.S. A HUGE shout out to Shayla for my FANTABULOUS new template!
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!