Scott Meets IKEA

While Scott was visiting me in Utah, I decided to take him to a store he had never been to: IKEA.  We all know I have an interesting love affair with this store, and now it was Scott’s turn to experience its wonders.

As we wandered through the store, Scott and I discussed how we wanted our home to look one day. Neither one of us are into postmodern Scandinavian design, but he did  like some of IKEA’s more classic peices. We sat on every sofa that looked comfortable and even some that did not. We both found a kitchen style, sofas, and bookshelves that didn’t want us to go screaming for the hills. Eventually, Scott and I stumbled upon an area that sold nothing but desk chairs. Scott chose one of the strangest looking ones to see how it supported his imposing frame. WordPress isn’t letting me insert photos from the computer I am on, so click here and here for a taste of how he liked it. I guess you could caption both of the pictures, “Ooh, springy!”

Not long after that, I was distracted by candles and baskets being sold at low, low prices, and Scott had to practically drag me out of the store. I managed not to buy anything other than lingonberry jam, which is practically a rule that I have to purchase it. In the checkout line, Scott mused that there was an IKEA in Minneapolis, and once he was in the market for new furniture, maybe the two of us could go shopping.

IKEA? I think you have a new convert… and Scott and I have a bright future.

 

Avan

When I was back in Iowa, I finally was able to meet the son of my friend Jen S outside of the womb. If you remember right, the last time I blogged about Avan he was ailing. Well, Avan is now a happy, healthy, six month old boy. I have to admit, I fell in love.

His big blue eyes melted my heart.

It was so sweet to watch him sleep.

Friday morning, Jen came with with me to Waterloo, where Avan had time to charm a woman in another part of the state: my mom. He was such a good baby. He hardly fussed on our two hour trip to Waterloo from Des Moines. While we three ladies caught up at Panera Bread, he would just giggle and smile. Finally we met with another friend and I checked into the hotel.

In a few hours I had grown attached to this baby. I am not usually a kid person, but I seem to like little vipers in diapers more when they belong to my friends. When the kid belongs to my best friends, they are as good as my blood. I feel the same about Jenni’s kids, Sami and Gabrielle.

Evidently, Avan liked me as well. From left to right in these shots: My mother Jeannine, Jen S, and me. I am holding Avan.

And of course, I love the birth mother.

Eventually, Jen and Avan had to go. It was hard to say goodbye to my new baby. However, I was not alone… my seat was there. Any guesses on who it may be? His identity will be revealed soon!

4th of July

Last Saturday was the 4th of July. It was my dad’s birthday, and I was in my hometown of Waterloo.  I went with some friends to see the Waterloo fireworks.

For one, I got to see my good friend Katie for the first time in over a year.

And of course, it wouldn’t be a trip home unless I see one of my dearest friends, Andrew, who is about to move to grad school in Tennessee.

While we waited, I of course had to make a funny face. Honestly, what fun would it be if I didn’t have a goofy picture of myself captured for all of my blog and Facebook to see?

The ending was a lot less spectacular than it was in past years.

I didn’t mind though. I had the best seat in the house.

See, the project I spoke of at the end of May is rather successful. Can anyone guess what this project is, or who it refers to? Leave me a comment if you have any ideas! And for those of you in the know? Kindly keep mum until the final revealing of my mystery man.

Kristin & Emily’s Night Out & Early To Bed

I was supposed to blog twice yesterday.

Sorry.

Anyway, here is today’s “This Is What I Did Adventure”, possibly one of two.

On Saturday, June 27, after Kristin and  I were burnt into crispy red lobsters,  we went home, changed into nice clothes, and headed out for dinner. After dinner, we roamed around downtown. Kristin and I walked around Temple Square at night.

After that, Kristin and I went home and had some Riesling.

Soon thereafter, Kristin and I slathered ourselves in sunscreen and hit the hay. We were tired ladies and needed to be ready for an early drive to Moab the next day.

Next up: Another Iowa vacation blog….

What’s That Smell?

After Kristin and I were on our way home from Park City, I suggested we stay on the interstate and visit the Great Salt Lake. Kristin, being the adventurous spirit she is replied, “How can I come to Salt Lake City and not go to the Great Salt Lake? Let’s go!”

I must admit, she had a good point.

I pointed out the seagulls once we arrived to the marina of the Great Salt Lake. Kristin shuddered to learn that they are the Utah state bird.

On the way out, I got hit by the sulfuric smell of the lake almost instantaneously. Kristin said she smelled nothing but a sea smell. Once we got close though, it was a different story.

The smell hit Kristin like a ton of bricks. She wasn’t so much a fan.

There also about a million mosquitoes swarming around. My theory is all the bugs of northern Utah stay out of the valley and take up residence at the Great Salt Lake.

With smell, the swarms, and the seagulls, needless to say, we didn’t stay long. We left after about fifteen minutes to get ready for our night out on the town.

Kristin & Emily’s Park City Adventure

When Kristin was in Utah, we paid a visit to Park City.

While there, Kristin’s travel companion Lawndart made friends with Park City’s local bronze bear.

I got reacquainted with the town moose and her latest fashions.

Then Kristin and I stood in line for way too long at a zipline, which we decided was too short for the hour long wait. We also were fried into Midwestern Lobsters.

Oh, well, at least we got to take in a pretty view.

Sunburn, short ride, et al, it wasn’t a total bust. We had a good time. Did I mention the view?

That’s all for now. Stay tuned for another adventure… in fact, maybe tomorrow there will be three!

Kristin Meets Froggy

While Kristin was visiting me here in Salt Lake City,  she met Froggy. Evidently, she found him irresistible, cause I caught them like this…

Sadly, Kristin did have some Froggy smooching to do when she arrived out here, and thankfully, I didn’t need to myself. More about that later…

So how were my two vacations? Awesome! This week, I will be posting one or two blogs a day with a photo of what I have been up to the last two weeks to catch you all up. I will be keeping them short and sweet, because I like said, there will be two a day! So if you keep coming, I will keep these coming!

Pink Ballet Lady Greets You From Moab

The Pink Ballet Lady (who is formally named Minerva) wanted to greet you all from Moab. She got rather bored sitting on my desk at work and jumped at the chance to go to Arches National Park in Southeastern Utah with my friend Kristin and me. Here is our lovely lad enjoying a view of the Salt Valley in Arches:

Minerva is prety tired now, so she might stay at the hotel when Kristin and Emily go hiking at the park tonight. But tomorrow she will greet you with a shot a Delicate Arch!

Blog Surfing

There are some of us out there who enjoy reading a blog or two. And then there are those of us who are obsessed! (Zelzee? Jenni? I am looking at you.) We enjoy having peeks into lives of people different than us, or perhaps we enjoy reading theology, finance, gardening cooking or any other topic under the sun from a more down-to-earth perspective. Either way, people like me are always out on a look for new and interesting content. What does that lead to? Blog surfing!

I have found a few websites that make blog surfing much easier. You can use blogrolls and get reccomendations from blogs you already read. If your blog subscriptions feed into Google Reader, the system will suggest blogs that you can subscribe to based on what you already have subscriptions to. Blogger and WordPress both have blog surfing functions that will take you to a random blog.

I discovered two more websites that will pull random blog content as well.

http://www.alphainventions.com

and

http://www.condron.us

Both of these sites give you a quick peek at the main page of a blog. They both flash the content on your screen for a few seconds then jump to the next blog. Its like flipping through channels on the TV to decide what you want to watch. If you like what you see, you simply click on the blog and browse. If you don’t like what you see, wait a few minutes and it will jump to the next blog. If you are seriously bored, I suggest trying one of these two sites. It can be amusing.

In the meantime, I have a busy next few weeks. The youth group from Maranatha Baptist Church from Grimes, IA will be here this week to put on a Vacation Bibe School for my church. I am looking forward to this because the team is being led by one of my favorite professors from college, Dr. Paul Hartog. Its like a little slice of home coming to me! Kristin, one of my dearest friends, will be here next Friday. And July 2…. I will be heading back to the Iowa! I will make advid use of the new camera and try to blog often. They may be short, but I don’t want the long-winded updates that I gave after Christmas that took forever to finish. Tonight I will try to post a What In the World?… sorry I didn’t post one this week! In the meantime, enjoy blogsurfing… but try not to forget A Shot In The Dark!

What In The World? RV Edition

Welcome to this week’s What In The World, where the subject is camping. Some people love it, though I have absolutely no idea why. I like nature, but please give me a bed to sleep in.

A good alternative for those of us who prefer not to sleep on the the ground and leave the comforts of home is to utilize a recreational vehicle, aka RV, which is basically a studio apartment on wheels. Some RVS are pretty tricked out while others are purely functional. What I am trying to decide is the function this particular RV plays.

Is this one for duck hunts? Does it have webbed feet and float in the water? Cause it makes me want to start quacking.

Any thoughts or ridicules on this particular design of oddness?