Making it a Hobby of Sitting in the Lobby of My Heart

Our friends Chris & Teresa have moved to Provo, increasing our friend count significantly. This Monday, they invited us over for family home evening, and our old friend Evan was there. Talk about fun times. We did some reminiscing about our old high school parties and the hilarious songs they would make up (hence the title of this entry). We laughed forever. It's funny how you can forget how much fun people can be. Joel seriously laughed so hard that his kidneys hurt. We're glad Chris & Teresa are in town and that Evan is still good old Evan.

Notice Evan's Jamba shirt and Chris' dirty white t-shirt. Some things never change.

In other news, I've started working on the baby quilt again. I was kind of at a standstill because I didn't have a quilting hoop, but I finally broke down and bought one and have started the next phase: quilting. I have come to understand that I am really bad at quilting. But I hope it will serve its purpose well enough, even if it doesn't look that great. Here is the latest update:

The quilting is going more quickly than I expected, so I'm looking forward to finishing it all up pretty soon. I hope it turns out well. The fact that the baby is coming is getting more and more real. Which is exciting and scary at the same time.

Happy Cow Appreciation Day!

I read in the newspaper that Friday, July 13th was Cow Appreciation Day, put on by Chick-fil-A. (You know those "Eet Mor Chikin" advertisements?) If you dressed up like a cow and went to your local Chick-fil-A, you could get a free combo meal. So I put together a cow costume for myself and a bull costume for Joel and waited excitedly for him to come home so we could celebrate the day.
Funny thing was, Joel was super embarrassed and reluctant about it. That's normal, you say? But I mean, honestly, after all the crazy stunts we've pulled and the ridiculousness we've performed in front of crowds of our own free will, you'd think that going to the mall food court dressed as a cow would be no big deal. Besides, I was the one with the udder. He even made me call ahead to make sure I wasn't just making the whole thing up. But finally, we were on our way.

Joel parked as close as we could to the entrance by the food court to minimize the number of people who would see us. We walked straight to the Chick-fil-A after I promised we could just get the food to go. The lady behind the register smiled at us pleasantly and told us which combo meals were eligible. Joel, still skeptical, asked if we were the first ones to come dressed as cows. Her eyes widened with incredulity as she said, "No, you're like the thousandth ones." Then we looked around and saw several more cows seated around the food court. Suddenly, all trepidations were gone. When she asked if we wanted it to stay or to go, Joel said "to stay."

I thought it turned out to be a rather enjoyable night. And before we left, we noticed some timid-looking people holding cow costumes, not really sure if they were willing to put them on in public. When they saw us, they gained the confidence they needed and got their free combo meals. We felt we had come full circle.

Old Friends

Yesterday I was able to hang out with my old friend Miriam, who was visiting from Wisconsin. We met at Cafe Rio (of course), and I was able to see her baby for the first time. Man, it's been too long. We just caught up on what's been going on, how our lives are so different now. I helped her remember the name of a guy she'd had a crush on once upon a time (heehee!), and we reminisced on good times. It's crazy how quickly life takes you in such different directions. She shared some tips about labor and childrearing--I'm glad I have so many friends to turn to for advice.

Also, two weeks ago my old roommate Kristie was in town, so we chatted for a while, too. She has two kids and is living it up in Texas.

Do I not have the most gorgeous friends ever?

Happy Fourth of July!

We had a nice, relaxing Fourth of July with just the two of us. We bought some kites and flew them in Rock Canyon Park. Here is Joel using his ingenious fishing pole method:


And here's me trying not to look too terribly clumsy:

It was incredibly hot outside, so after we'd had our fill of kite flying, we went home and had a two-person water balloon fight, which definitely helped us cool off.
Then it was time for dinner. I manned the inside cooking while Joel manned the outside cooking, including grilling steaks and corn. It turned out to be a really yummy patriotic dinner.


Finally, we found the best seats in Provo for the Stadium of Fire fireworks show. Sitting right behind the new Gordon B. Hinckley building gave us the perfect view for the spectacular show.

By the end of the night, we were exhausted, but it was a really fun day. The baby seemed to enjoy the fireworks, too.
Happy Fourth of July everyone!