Holy Colee!

I left the center a little early because the interstates out of Baton Rouge were already full of folks leaving for the holiday weekend/storm avoidance. I took the back way, which of course for me is always an adventure. I only missed one turn. Using only 1 U-turn means you're not lost.
I sat in the HUGE Baton Rouge airport until about 5 minutes before I was supposed to take off before I realized we weren't boarding yet. There was a weather system is Houston. We actually didn't leave the airport until after we were already supposed to be in Houston. I wasn't really concerned because I had a 2 hour layover. The first time I actually got a little frustrated was when we arrived in Houston and my flight was listed with a 2 hour delay. UGH. Normally not a big deal, but I was already not supposed to be getting home until midnight. So, I went to find dinner.

Note to self, don't eat at Ruby's diner when they are getting ready to close. They were in such a hurry that they forgot to cook my burger all the way thru. They did, however, remember to add the grease. Change the note to self, if you can avoid eating at Ruby's in total, probably not a bad idea.

Things did improve, my flight moved back up an hour :) and I was actually home and tucked into bed by 2:30. Thank goodness for Saturday.

The weather forecast here is much less eventful than Louisianna. The only thing going on here is a cold front that is going to drop our temps 30 degrees overnight. When they say Labor Day is the end of summer, they meant it 96 degrees Saturday - 65 degrees on Monday ...So long summer! It's been great :)

It has been a good week so far. Interesting, but good. I've never been in town when they started preparing for a hurricane :S I can't say I am sad that I should be leaving before it gets close enough to feel. Besides what we are doing at work to get ready, it's on every news channel and everywhere you go you can hear people talking about it. It has given me a lot to think about, really... a different perspective.

Tonight after work, I got to hang out with my friend Justin. We went to see Mama Mia! I must say, if you are a lover of musicals - and ALL that that entails - you will not be disappointed. Cheesy lines, songs that break out of no where, choreography that everyone in town magically knows, songs that no one but the singer can hear, and lots of cute bare chested boys ;)
If you are not a lover of the musical - just stay away. It's not for you, and those of us who love it don't want to hear you complain :P

We'll not so much callin' as visitin'. The client wanted to visit a call center, so, we're visiting a call center :) I am not sad about it. I like visiting the centers. I wish I could find an excuse to do it more often. As is, I let the important people do the visiting instead.
My flights were as boring as they should be. After all the crashes in the news lately, I was glad they were not more "exciting." The only odd part about today is that for some reason - I am driving a Lincoln Town Car. I mean, super nice car, but for me? really? I think there is a note on my account at Avis that just says - give this girl the weirdest car possible...

I've decided you need to see random photos from the fair... They are not too random, as they are mostly pictures of pigs, but well, whatever



McKenzie shows her pig



McKenzie sells her pig... She could smile, but it might kill her.



Kyle - he's my bud.



His twin sister Katelyn.



Cannon talks to the judge about his pig.



Tristan - and some really tall kid in the front.



Cannon sells his pig.




You've heard of leap frog???




Only in Montpelier... this photo was taken out side the Maverick on a Thursday afternoon... really.

I am a Chuck E Cheese Birthday star!



So are Riley, Alice and Karlie :) That's right, it's official, I am no longer 20 something. To be honest, it's actually kind of nice not to be 29 anymore... I felt like I was lying every time someone asked.

I think the last time I was at Chuck E Cheese, it was still Show Biz Pizza, but it's always been the place "where a kid can be a kid." I had my 5th birthday there, and now my 30th, AND I got to share this one with my 6 year old sister. Yay for shared birthdays :D

I am the cool aunt

As I was getting ready to come back to SLC on Sunday, I thought it might be fun for Cannon to come back with me. Dad, Alice, and the girls were coming down on Wednesday to celebrate some birthdays so I figured he could chill with me for a couple of days :)

Monday he was bored out of his mind. I had to go to work. Monday is a really hard day for me not to be in the office, so he came and watched movies on the floor. After work we went to the store and then came home and made dinner for some of my friends. Which, if you ask me turned out ok :) other than the salmon being slightly over done (however, I would rather have my fish over done than under.) The Lewies had volunteered to bring the dessert. They made a fabulous oatmeal cake with caramel frosting. I love birthday week :)

Tuesday I worked from home. This is a much better situation for the 9 year old. He’s still stuck watching movies, but at least there are couches. After work we went out and played in the pool. For dinner we went down to The Gateway and had a lovely Applebee’s meal and then we went to see “Fly Me to the Moon” at the planetarium. I love 3-D movies. He even said “it was enjoyable.”

Today we got up and made a proper breakfast. Which must have sausage in it, according to the boy. His new favorite movie is Remember the Titans. What this means is over the last 2 weeks, I have watched a movie about football at least 20 times… take into account the days we didn’t spend at home last week, and you can understand why I might be ready to go a little bit crazy. We are currently taking a break back out at the pool. My internet connection carries, mostly. It’s probably good I didn’t know that before today or there might have been a few more days working at the pool ;)

Ok, so those of you who watch(ed) strongbad can say the title of this post appropriately. The rest of you, well... anyway...

The fair is officially over. Cannon's pig was purchased by Recreation Realty (Thanks Uncle Jive). Most of the pigs went for around the same price (between $500 - $700) except for a few outliers. The grand champion went for more than double that. The grand champion steer went for $4100. The rest of them for about $2000 The market value on a steer is about $1000. The market value on a hog is about $150. Now you understand why the kids like to sale at the fair instead of at market.

After the stock sale - we went home and took a nap :) It was fabulous. When I woke up it was time to go back in for the tractor pull. I've mentioned that I am white trash before ;) I love the tractor pull, almost as much as the demolition derby. We took Cannon and his friend Tristan. Those little boys "know" more about trucks than I do. My favorite is the tractor with the 5 engines. The boys liked the diesel trucks - mostly because they were real for them. The modified trucks and tractors are just cool to look at, but the local boys' trucks - now THOSE are cool. Apparently Dodges are the best, then Chevrolets. Fords only get excited about, if they are the tractors.... Yeah, like I said. They "know" more than I do.

I really do enjoy the fair, we look forward to it all year. And all week- we look forward to the end of it :)

This week, I thought it might be fun for Cannon to come to Salt Lake and chill with me for a few days. Dad, Alice, and the girls are coming down on Wednesday. We're going to Chuck-e-Cheez for the August birthdays :) Hopefully he won't figure out just how boring I am before it's time for him to go back. Next week the kids go back to school, so one last summer adventure(ish).

Thursday morning was the pig show. Here are some things I learned. They do the pigs before the other livestock because they can't stand to be out in the hot sun. Pigs don't have sweat glands, that's why they play in the mud to keep cool. Even pigs need a warm shower. When we got there at 6 AM to wash the pig (again) we were pleasantly surprised to find the watering system was using warm water. Can you imagine? a cold shower at 6 AM... I was glad to see we weren't being forced to subject them to the torture.
I also learned that pigs can be too fat. So, apparently Fat Pig is an insult, even to the pig. I learned about what the judge is looking for to see if the pig has enough muscle, that the body length matters, and that double chins are just as unattractive for pigs as they are on humans.
Cannon's pig was not morbidly obese, just a bit on the heavy side. Unfortunately, he was not muscular enough for the judge. He received a blue ribbon in showmanship, but the pig got a red ribbon.

Thursday night at the fair, was the first rodeo. They had a pig chase. Cannon is apparently not bored of raising pigs, because he ran with all his might to catch the little one running around the arena. He didn't catch it. However, he is not easily deterred. He spent most of today working out a strategy to figure out where the pig would run so he could get their first. Tonight we went back to the rodeo... on the program it said there would be another pig chase. When the time came, they did something else instead. I am not sure if he was mad or heartbroken. Probably both. He wouldn't even stay to watch the bull riders. So, we left and went to pick up eggs for tomorrow.

Tomorrow morning is the pig sale. Technically it is just called a stock sale, as there will also be sheep and steers in the sale. I volunteered to help make the deviled eggs for the buyers' breakfast. Cross your fingers... Who buys what can be a bit interesting. It's a bit of a popularity contest. Most of the time the businesses are there to buy their employee's kid's animal. We're not so sure who will bid on our little pig - I guess we shall see.

As some of you may know, I am a big fan of the flip flop. The rule is, as long as there is no snow on the ground, I can wear them. And it's more of a "will" than a "can." So for the birthday party we had last night, my mom had found this design a while back and my cousins made it happen.... I thought it was pretty cool :)



Happy Birthday August kids! We have a slew of them!

Last night was the start of FAIR WEEK. If you've never been a part of your county fair, I highly suggest it. If you're looking to actually just kick back and enjoy a fair - go with your state fair instead.

This year Cannon has a pig in the fair. Which is a little more involved than I normally am. It's been a source of contention though, so I would be surprised if he has a pig again next year... we are slow learners though, so you never know.

Our fair kicked off with Mom working her shift in the food booth that the hospital is running. They are donating the money to help the elementary school build a pavilion, so it's a good cause. Cannon and I ditched out and went to the movie with Wewe, Riley, and Karlie. After the movie Cannon and I caught a little bit of the team roping.

Tonight was the Demolition Derby. There are very few things more white trash than sitting around an arena cheering for beat up old cars as they purposefully try and hit each other. The awards are for Hardest Hit, Most Aggressive, and of course, Last Car Running. They do two heats (half the cars each) and while they go back and try to get their cars running for the final round, they bring out a handful of 2 man teams on 4-wheelers. These guys entertain the crowd by riding in circles while the 2nd guy tries to hit the other teams' 2nd guys with a baseball bat, in an attempt to knock the balloon off the other person's helmet. I think the saddest part - is how much I REALLY like Demolition Derbies :) I've never really been to one where I didn't know at least some of the contestants though. I think that helps.

Anyway, good times :) Tomorrow is the parade. YAY candy!

I HATE bats... especially when they are flying around INSIDE the house. And that, my friends was what was going on Friday night after we got home from Heather's baptism. The cat was watching something pretty intently. At first we thought maybe she'd heard a mouse. We then realized she wasn't looking down any more. Mom sleeps with a tennis racket by her bed for just this kind of an event (which should tell you this is not the first bat we've had inside.) Tennis racket, by the way, because the bat's can't "see" them, like they can a broom. Cannon and I hid in his bedroom while we let mom be the brave protector. In the mean while we called Tanner to come up. He arrived to find the bat knocked out and trapped in the bottom drawer for safe keeping. Cannon gets a little braver when other people are around; he took Tanner's gloves and took the bat outside.

I know that bats serve a purpose. They eat the mosquitos and other bugs that would otherwise make life unbearable, but that doesn't mean I have to like them.

The Arctic Circle that is dangerously close to my house is a test site. What that means is that you can get things there that you can't always get at other ACs. One of the things they are market testing right now is Sweet Potato Fries.
I had tried similar fries in another establishment. I drove by and saw the sign going up, I have basically been craving them ever since. Last night I gave in.
I have this to say about them - pick one or the other. They are fries and served with ACs fry sauce, but they were also slightly sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. It was the equivalent of kettle corn, which I strongly oppose. Salt or Sugar, but NOT both. I tried them as sweet and they were actually quite good. I tried them as salty and also quite good, but I just can't get on board with them being both.

Now you know :)

Oh yes, John got his letter from the London Embassy today. Onward, ever onward...

Saturday I got the letter from the National Visa Center :) Both stateside approvals have been achieved. The next step is John's interview at the London Embassy :D He should have the documents and directions within the next 2 weeks.... It's getting closer!

So tonight I finally made time to make use of a wonderful birthday present from last year (yes, really, I know). It was a gift certificate for a "total relaxation" massage. It was amazing... I might be a little high maintenance. I try really hard to hide it, but I really do love to be pampered. Surrounded in soft sounds and aromatherapy - which is not at all as strong as I had expected - and muted lights. I haven't felt that disconnected in a really long time. It was great. A person could get used to that :)
It's probably good I waited almost a year to use the gift, it's one less year of knowing how much I am wanting to go back ;)