Eff

So I took all these cute little pictures of all the crafty things that I made for Christmas. I sat down to finally blog about them and ... I can't pull them up.
They are nowhere to be found... I can see the file on my computer but no image comes up... what the eff?!
My lovely husband says, "Oh, didn't you realize you took all those pictures in RAW format? You are going to have to get a program to view them..."
So.... My DIY Christmas post will have to wait.... lame

Poop Icing

So we have been taking the Wilton cake decorating classes- which have been super fun but have just shown me how far I have to go before I get my own cooking show on Food Network, watch out Rachel!

I have eaten about 4 pounds of  the  Wilton buttercream frosting and so I wanted to try the chocolate version.

Well in theory that was a wonderful idea, in reality- it looked like poop. But, since it tasted delicious I overlooked the fact that it looked like dookie. My flowers have immensely improved- the picture just doesn't do it justice... I promise :D

Roots

I found a book for Father's day for my Grandpa- it was titled "In Grandpa's Words". It was a collection of questions that were to be filled out during a session (or sessions) of the reader and Grandpa. It was such a good idea that I decided it should be inclusive of my Grandma too- sort of an oral history of their lives together and what their thoughts and memories of life are.
I am appalled to say that six months later I have finally started. I am planning on going to both sets of grandparent's every Sunday to sit and talk with them and to get their stories.
I had such a good time listening to my Grandpa Phil tell me stories about his childhood and I couldn't believe all of the things that he had to say- He had been drafted in the Korean War, was in Denver finishing up his physical when the news of his deferment hit him- he didn't have to go to war because of his new born daughter- my Godmother. I just thought to myself, This all could have gone so differently, He could have gone to war, possibly died; and none of us would exist... It made tears come to my eyes.
I regret not doing this sooner, I know hindsight is 20/20 but my Grandma hardly remembers anything since her stroke and it is hard to know what is accurate or not- Thank God my Grandpa is OCD and writes everything down (probably where I get it from :D) It breaks my heart to see her stumble over her words and not be able to express what she wants to say.
It was not as successful with the Archuleta's- I was able to get a few memories and stories out of them, they just didn't seem too into it. I'm going to try a different approach with them next time- giving specific things that I am looking for. Hopefully if I keep coming every week they will get more comfortable sharing with me and hopefully remember more things.
I hope to be able to scan a lot of their pictures and add them to the memories and stories I'm collecting. I want to make a book with everything in it for me and any of my family that might like one. I want to ask for more in depth stuff from my aunts and uncles too. I'm really excited at this project, it seems like a lot to take on but I think it will be so rewarding- I want my kids to know my grandparents too and this seems like such a wonderful way to make sure that they do.

Fertile Schmertile

I'm so excited today! I have a zit!! I know that may not be very exciting to a lot of people, but for me it could be life changing... I ovulated :D
I got off of my birth control a while back so we could 'start' trying to have kids, nice visual for ya there I'm sure. Well everything was great for one month... then shit shut down. No ovulation, no period, no nada.
So after a trial of this a trial of that I have finally ovulated! I don't even care that I'm not pregnant yet, just so happy that my body is finally at a point where I have something to work with.
It is extremely disappointing to not be able to do the ONE thing that almost all women can do, I was hoping to be pregnant by now, planning a nursery and what not- well I am on my way and couldn't be any more excited!!! I know this may be TMI for some people but I am just so happy!!1

New Christmas Traditions

Yes, I love hot chocolate and walking around Christmas Village in the park downtown, but I have added a few different traditions to my holiday routine the last few years, I will share a few with you today because I am feeling the Christmas spirit :D

Elf is my favorite holiday movie now and I must watch it at least 2-3 times in December to be happy. 

 

I also have a soft spot for the original and new The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, Randy reminds me of Max.

We usually go to Christmas mass at midnight on Christmas Eve and then come home and open presents, but the last few years due to laziness/sickness we haven't done so. We have eaten Christmas Eve dinner at ABC Mandarin restaurant and then gone to my mom and dad's house to open presents. I like this for several reasons, no one has to stress out to make dinner and we have the nice relaxed pace of not having to hurry up to someone else's house like we do on Christmas Day.

My friend's favorite singer is Mariah Carey- she is obsessed! So every year, without fail; I hear All I Want for Christmas is You. Well last year I seen this video on Perezhilton.com and it is now my favorite! I spent like twenty minutes trying to find the damn thing and then spent the rest of the day singing and laughing about the awesome dance moves... please enjoy

Since we have so many family members and friends to do gifts for, I usually do a treat plate for each family, easier to plan and much cheaper than buying presents for everyone. 

Pinterest has made my life so much easier in this department... but that is a post all by itself.

I made custom plates for each family using a technique out of my Big Ass Book of Crafts book that I got for my birthday... They came out super cute and will post after the holidays so I don't ruin the surprise.

I have taken my love of crafting up a notch and have dedicated this year to being at least 50% home made. That includes presents for all and decorations. So far it has gone well, I will post some of my crafts as I go and some after Christmas... again so that I don't ruin any presents for anyone :D

Since last year was the first Christmas that Armando and I had by ourselves, we were finally married and no roomates, we took time before the hustle and bustle of Christmas day started and opened some of our presents together. It was really nice to sit and just be with him for a little bit so that we could really appreciate what the holiday was all about. I hope to make this an annual tradition.

Sick as Dogs

Oh dear. As I write this I am all greasy-haired, mismatched PJs and snotty nosed on my couch.
I thought I would be SuperWife yesterday and clean, pack, make dinner and take care of my poor husband who was feeling sick. He never, NEVER complains and had come home from work since he was not feeling well- something must be wrong.
I did my thing while he rested and when he wasn't in the mood for the awesome mac'n'cheese and fried chicken I made- I ate by myself and watched a movie... When I could hear the TV in the bedroom go on I got up to go sit with him... We watched the other good Joker, Jack Nicholson, in Batman and hung out.
Then my stomach started to feel a little queasy too... maybe too much mac'n'cheese?? Nope... I had whatever he had- All of the days food made a repeat performance soon after.
Mondo was able to snooze while I made multiple trips to the bathroom and finally just fell asleep on the bathroom floor: me, Randy, pillow and blanket on the tile.
Since I was so sore from moving boxes and stuff I felt like I was dying each time I got sick- not the best way to spend the night.
Now I am sore, empty-bellied and trying my damndest to keep this Gatorade down... Curse you stomach bug!

You'll have to imagine me like this- I was otherwise occupied and unable to take

 a picture to commemorate the situation

Road Ragin'

One thing that I do have a problem with is controlling my emotions while driving.
I hate idiots who don't use their blinker, dirtbags who won't let people in who DO use their blinkers, jerks who try to zoom to the front of the line when everyone else merged when they were supposed to... I have road rage and I am not ashamed to admit it.
The reason this comes up today is that on my way home from work today I heard sirens behind me- I looked in my rearview mirror, saw the flashing lights and PUT ON MY BLINKER and pulled over. The women behind me didn't slow down, pull over or even put on her blinker and pretend that she was going to pull over. That got me started.
Then I heard sirens again- this time a fire truck barreling down the road behind us... same thing- everyone else pulls over except Princess HasNoBrain- so this time I honked me horn, leaned out of my window, and violently jerked my thumb to the side of the road.
Now this may seem a little extreme but let me tell you it was nowhere near where I felt when she gave me the "I'm a dumb girl and I don't know what I'm doing" look and lifted her hands up towards the air. If I could have pulled her nappy head through her windshield I would have. I'm sure one day Mondo will have to bail me out of jail after seeing me beat up some old man for crossing a double yellow line- but seriously people, the lines are there for a reason!!

I also had to share this since I seen it and find it hilarious- please visit the site- download your own pdf version of this card and leave it for those a-holes that are ruining parking lots as well. 

Cake or Death

(If you understand this post title, you have excellent taste in comedians :D )

For my birthday a friend of mine paid for me, my ma, her, and my sisters to take the Wilton cake decorating classes. I was stoked, I always envision every craft/hobby I start will uncover some hidden talent that has gone unnoticed these 26 years... I could be a cake decoratin' fool!
... or just a fool :)
That shiz is not as easy as it looks.... case in point:

That is two hours worth of teacher assisted cake decorating... at least it looks like a cupcake right?! I have never been able to frost a cake... but by God I WILL learn to do it!
At least it tasted bomb :D

Well Said Sir

You don't have to believe what I do, but your beliefs can't trample mine.

You can't dictate what I can and can't do based off of your beliefs.

Equality for all

...and I did read it in his voice :D

Snow Blows

I love when it starts to snow and fifty people on FB feel the need to post "It's Snowing!!".... I am like 'Really?! Damn, I thought those were cotton balls'
 I don't like the snow, yes I realize I am in the state of the Greatest Snow on Earth... so what?! Doesn't mean I have to like it. I get cold, have to shovel this shiz amd people drive like idiots the second the flakes start to fall.
If I had my way we would skip winter amd go from beautiful crisp fall to beautiful chill spring.
From the first flake falling until Spring has sprung, I pretty much dress like this:

Crappy Halloween

Since I wear OR scrubs to work... this is the best I could do for Halloween. Next year I am taking the day off and going all out :D

Bad Blogging

I am a horrible blogger.
I want to post 1-2 times a week...
I can do this-
I shall do this!

DOB

So yeah, I had a birthday a few weeks ago, September 30th to be exact. 26... doesn't feel that much different than 25 so far but a lot has changed in the last year:
Started and finished school-LPN to RN is a big deal, $6 raise for one...immense load off of my chest for another. I am done with class right now- BSN and possibly Nurse Practioner could be in my future- I'm not sure yet.
Celebrated 1 year of marriage- no deaths, no dismemberments, no arrests- we are doing good so far :) By all means, we don't have this thing down to a science yet- but we are well on our way to many more happy years together.
Checked visiting Costa Rica off of my bucket list... still to go: Brazil (hopefully BEFORE the Olympics), Italy, Greece, Peru, Barbados.... the list goes on and on...
I'm beginning to grow up... finally :D I have a lot of 'quirks' that I am trying to work on in my quest to be a better human being. I'm not changing my ideals, morals or values- those are pretty set in stone- but, I can change some of my bad habits.

Instead of the regular get together we usually have at my parents house for cake and ice cream I decided I wanted to go out to eat with the fam instead. My husband was playing that night with his band and so I figured we could go eat before they started- My sneaky reason was because I already knew everybody had the night off for the gig :D
We all met up at the Union Grill in downtown Ogden- which was delicious btw- for dinner.  I was so happy that everyone could come out, and my friend Rose came through with the best birthday cake ever! I love SpongeBob Squarepants and had shown her this awesome cake I seen on Pinterest... Well she came up with this even better version. I felt very loved and spoiled, it was a great night.

The next day Mondo and I went to Frightmares (Halloween themed amusement park) and I got a lot of my favorite things: One-on-one time with the hubs, blue raspberry Icee, cotton candy and a nice trip on the Sky Ride.

I'm really excited for what the next year has for us... I say this to 26: Bring it on

Costa Rica... the epilogue

Since the drive to La Fortuna turned out to be much longer than we expected we decided to stay our last night in San Jose to be closer to the airport.... First mistake.
San Jose is full of one way streets, tons of pedestrians that don't care if they have the right of way or not and buildings with no addresses. Nobody knows what street is which- they give directions like this "Take a left and go a few streets past McDonald's and then turn right when you see the purple fence"... I shit you not.

(http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49229184/ns/world_news-americas/#.UHDAx5jA8Qo)

We had booked a fairly cheap room in a new hotel... second mistake. No one knew the new hotel so we spent the better part of an hour or two trying to find the room. Once inside it wasn't bad- but we were in the nice part of the ghetto... how would I eat?? Answer? Armando made friends with the security guard and he escorted us to a yummy restaurant and had his friend, a cab driver, come pick us up at a certain time.... Bless their hearts
We woke up at 5:00am to be ready and at the airport- got stuck in traffic jam (caused by a man whose car died and was PUSHING IT DOWN THE FREEWAY, not onto the shoulder- but down the freaking road like it was such a fabulous idea) and ended up getting to the airport an hour and a half before our flight.
Getting all our stuff up to the counter, the woman asks if we paid the 'exit tax'..... Say what?! WTF is that lady?? You see, Costa Ricans charge you a tax to exit their country- $28 per person to be exact... whatever. So I leave Mondo filling out paperwork as I run to the other side of the airport to pay the damn tax. When I get back we wait in line to check-in. As we get to the counter the guy BS's with us for ten minutes before he looks at our tickets and says "You are late, we aren't boarding anymore"
Cue the freakout.....3......2.....1.....
He claims that we have to be at the airport 3 hours early for our flight and are not going to be allowed to board. Much pleading and begging ensues... meanwhile a couple from Canada, a woman from Texas and a Grandma/Mom/Daughter trio come up behind us at the counter... They are given the same story- we can't get home.
LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG story short... We are told we can change flights and go to Miami in 6 hours then fly to Dallas then fly to SLC.... for a fee.
Meanwhile the couple from Canada and the Grandma must have sunshine and rainbows shining out of their butts because by some fluke that no one to this day can explain to me, are allowed onto the plane... When we tried to get an explanation from the supervisor, Mery, from American Airlines, she told her collegue, in Spanish, "Get them out of here", stepped around us and walked away. As God as my witness if I ever run into Mery again I am going to snatch her ponytail off of her pretty little head.
So after eating in the little cafeteria and reading two different books in two different tourist shops we board for  Miami.
Even more BS in Miami from the American Airlines family, but eventually I nag the man into giving us a free room for the night, we would have just slept in the airport if not. At least we are in America. I can call my work and tell them, Oops, I'm not going to make it in tonight and let everyone else know that we are alive.
So finally 30 hours after we were supposed to be home, we finally stepped onto Utah soil... The best feeling ever. Vacations are great but nothing is as good as home.

The complaint process is still ongoing with American Airlines... I will keep you updated if .... 1. We ever get an apology from anyone, 2. Get any sort of reimbursement for the ridiculous amount of money we paid to change flights or 3. I ever find Mery again... watch yo' back!

Costa Rica Part II

We hiked up several trails around the volcano

Can't get enough of those Indiana Jones bridges of death...

By far my favorite animal we seen... Piggies in the jungle! There was surprisingly a lot of livestock, one of our guides told us that if the families could prove that they owned the land before it was made a national park, the government allowed them to let their animals roam the land, lots of cows, bulls and horses just chilling in the jungle

My new friend... There were so many stray dogs running around- it was everybody's job to feed and love them, they were surprisingly well taken care of

Of all the days we were there, this was the only day that the volcano was clear and free from clouds

I have tons of pictures of all the plants and flowers, I want edit them and put them up in frames.

Driving down one night- we went in the wet season so it would monsoon rain at least once a day and then clear up again- looks pretty cool with all the clouds.

 

I thought it was vulture flying across the road- when we stopped to look it was a little owl.

The place where we went ziplining had a little 'petting zoo' type area for butterflies and froggies

These are the 'poison dart' frogs that are hallucinogenic- no, we didn't lick them. 

Random lizard running around-

There was this restaurant called Las Iguanas, the owners opened up about ten years ago and had around 8-10 Iguanas. They feed them fruit and vegetables from the kitchen and in turn they have a built-in tourist attraction. The owners said that today they have hundreds of these huge Iguanas hanging around just loving the sun, food and tourists.

We went on one of our last days to a nature reserve, Cano Negro to try and see what I wanted to see the whole trip,  monkeys!

We seen Caimens, which are smaller and less aggressive than crocodiles- still pretty fierce looking.

 

 At first I thought they were leaves... they are bats!

Capuchin Monkey

Howler Monkey

Spider Monkey

Much smaller wild Iguana

Rescuing my new friend Papi from the Caimens

River rafting in Sara Picqui

Helmets always look sexy

Still mad because the man at the other side didn't think I would make it across... so he THREW me over the edge...

Costa Rica Part I

We started our adventure August 19- our flight went from SLC to Dallas/Ft. Worth Texas and then onto San Jose Costa Rica. No delays- weather was wonderful... yay!
Once we got into Costa Rica we headed for the car rental place- According to Google Maps we had about 1½ hour drive to our hotel in La Fortuna... that would be a lie (Damn you Google Maps for failing me!) it was really about 3½ hour drive on reaallllly narrow roads in the middle of the night... with fog. We had called ahead to the hotel and so they had given our room key to the security guy, Gabriel, and we were able to just crash and check in the next day.
We stayed in a beautiful little town and this was the view from our room every morning:

The town was super small and just had a lot of little shops, places to eat and the town centered around the church. I have to admit, it was the least creepy rendition of Jesus I have ever seen.

(I mean that in the least blasphemous way possible)

Since La Fortuna sits at the base of the Arenal Volcano, I wanted to go hiking ASAP, so we hooked up with the cutest little trail guy and headed into the rainforest.

Volcan Arenal

The shrine made from seashells to keep the town safe from more eruptions

The land is so fertile that the broken tree branches that they stick in the ground to make 'fences' will start growing leaves and turn into live trees again, it's crazy

During the hike it started raining pretty hard, like it did everyday, so we chilled in a cave for about 20 minutes while our tour guide Franklin, yelled and laughed at all the hikers running from the forest trying to find shelter. 

He showed us all kind of cool things on the trail, the different plants like Anise, wild pepper and the Mimosa plant, Mondo took a video of it... It hides its leaves from predators to show the spikes underneath

We were so lazy, sleeping in, walking around town, eating and just hanging out- no real plans, just tried to keep it pretty low key. We had seen the signs for the 'Fortuna Cataratas' and heard it was a pretty hike so we headed out in the rental car to find them.

Not the most flattering picture, but that was our trusty Yaris and the crap roads that Costa Rica has... largely unpaved and full of pot holes.

Imagine walking in the rainforest.... and walking and walking and then all of a sudden you reach a clearing and this is what you see:

Amazing, then you follow various signs in lots of different languages that lead you down the rocky, jagged, steep as sh*t stairs of death to the most beautiful, refreshing waterfall I have ever seen.

Smiling my pretty smile as I tried not to slide down the wet rocks on the trail

Another trail and some more steps led you away from the waterfall to another little spring, not as pretty though so we went back up to the falls and I swam  like a little kid.

Hiking up was not nearly as 'easy' as walking down and I would have paid someone to put me in a carrier to save my calves/glutes the trek back up to the car, it was just so beautiful though, I couldn't even whine about my sore muscles. Every night I would try to catch the little geckos that creeped around our room... They are much more wily than you give them credit for. 

Antelope Island

I wanted to go hiking but the mountains were sooooooooooo far away, so one night a few weeks ago Mondo took me and Randy to Antelope Island.

It was so fun, I hadn't been there in years. I though Randy was going to be a pansy but he was so manly! He chased pheasants, rabbits and mice- he is quite the outdoorsman.
All was going well, Mondo was trying out our new camera when I noticed something moving in the bushes... A GINORMOUS SPIDER! Oh dear Lord, it was awful, huge and ugly- with a monstrous web all throughout the bush it was perched in. Well, once I trained my eyes to pick out the one spider- I could see them all.... we were on Antelope Spider Island. Every bush on the trails had several webs and each web had this massive arachnid in it... 

Disgusting creatures... I was karate chopping down webs with my trusty stick and Randy was busy running through the damn things... ugh..

Facing Egg Island

My little hunter... chasin' rabbits and such

One of the elusive rabbits

A buffalo! I was so excited I made Armando pull over so I could get out and get a picture... I had to get back in the car though- he kept yelling "Don't get so close! He's gonna eat you!!"

A beautiful night out with the two men in my life