For All the Women in My Life...

A good friend sent this to me

and I forwarded it to my friends and family.

I think it is a beautiful message.

Dear God:
The lady reading this is beautiful,
classy and strong
and I love her.
Help her live her life to the fullest.
Please promote her and cause her to excel
above her expectations.
Help her shine in the darkest places
where it is impossible to love.
Protect her at all times,
lift her up when she needs you the most,
and let her know when she walks with you;
She will always be safe.

Spa Day for Two

Photo added ONLY AFTER Rick showed his feet to his Thrifty guys.

I figured that he opened the door for me to share.

Yes...that really is elf green glitter polish.

Yesterday, Rick and I spent the afternoon at the spa. It was incredible!!! After our crazy week last week full of work stress, children's activities, life's little dramas, hurt feelings, Christmas Home Tour, cancelled concerts, etc., it was very nice to relax.

We had a couple's massage where I giggled quietly to the sound of Rick's loud snoring. We drank tea and water in front of a fireplace with subdued lighting, funky couches, and statues of Buddha everywhere--Rick said it looked like an Asian whorehouse. We ate frozen grapes. (Well...Iate frozen grapes while Rick kept saying "This is weird.") After that, we had manicures and pedicures before we went home to have lunch together.

It was such an enjoyable afternoon.

Can You Believe It?

So...Rick doesn't feel like he is "a part of this blog." Seriously? I included his name in the title. His name can also be found in a few stories and in "Our Profile." In fact, there are a few things listed under "Our Favorite Things" that he likes...for example...ummmm...well...let me think...

Okay, Rick, to validate your comment, there are more items listed that are mine. However, in my defense, we have had our blog for a while and the first time he looked at it was last night.

So, for anyone who is confused, Rick IS "a part of this blog."

Happy babe?

Oh, and Rick likes kissing (especially if it leads to sex) and karaoke.

I'm Done! I'm Done! I'm Done!

Okay...as an update on my previous post about my complete lack of Christmas (Holiday/Seasonal) spirit:

I Found It!!!

That is...after Christmas shopping with Rick (I'm going ALONE next year), wrapping Christmas gifts with Rick (I will figure out how to tie a bow without his finger next year), and decorating my house for Christmas, then cleaning with a toothbrush every nook and cranny so women with white gloves don't find dust somewhere while they meander through my house tomorrow...

I Found It!!! It is really here...my Christmas Spirit!

ChRiStMaS hOmE tOuR

PoLe DaNcInG

For those of you who may not know...I love pole dancing. I take a pole fitness class (and teach a pole fitness class) and I absolutely love it. I have never been the girl who could stay focused at the gym or at home on the treadmill. But, I am entertained with learning pole dancing. I enjoy learning and then teaching new tricks. It is truly a fantastic work-out!

For you non-believers, please check out the YouTube video. Look at the beautiful muscles (and dancing, of course) of the woman. Then, sign up for a pole class. :)

The Main Thing...

I once sat through a training meeting with the owner of Young Automotive Group. I remember him giving each person a small slip of paper and asking each of us to write what we thought the "main thing" was. Well, the paper was fairly small, maybe an inch wide and 2 inches long. I thought to myself, "How can I ever write the 'main thing' on such a small piece of paper?" After each person had labeled their microscopic "main thing," he bestowed this piece of wisdom on the group.

The main thing is keeping the main thing the main thing.

"What?!?" I asked myself. I truly thought that he had lost his mind. I was nineteen, maybe twenty-years-old, and I lacked any true life experience. You know those experiences. The ones that knock you down and humble you. Those that teach you pride, responsibility, courage, humility, compassion...and so many other valuable life lessons. The periods of time when, as a mom, dad, sister, brother, friend, etc., that you work so hard to keep EVERYTHING the main thing.

Now, as a thirty-year-old mom, partner, sister, friend, student, employee, and all the other many labels I put on each day, I realize the value in his statement. The main thing is what is in front of you, what you value, and the main thing is to keep that main thing the main thing.

Sometimes when I am overwhelmed, discouraged, have been a poor mom, partner, sister, ... , I think about the "main thing" and ask myself, "Are you keeping the main thing the main thing? Or are you too worried about the minor things?"

So, the point (this is what makes the ranting so much better for the reader)-especially during this holiday season, but keep in mind always...

Are you keeping the main thing the main thing?

Ahhh...the Joy of Christmas

When I was young, I used to spend Christmas Eve at my grandma's house in Orem. Each year, my family would make the looong trek to her house. On the way, both to and from her house, we listened to my parent's favorite radio station...KISN 97.1. I always laughed each time one certain song came on...maybe you've heard it...it's a spin off on "The Twelve Days of Christmas." You know the one--the child who wants a Transformer for Christmas at the beginning of the song and is crying loudly by the end of it. (If you have children, you have been embarrassed by your own child doing this at the store.)

Well, this year this song speaks to me, but not just any part of the song. You know the man who kindly sings that he is "putting up the lights" at the beginning and cursing that same string of lights by the end? Yep...that's me. I have had a MESS at my house for weeks in an effort to decorate every room of my house for Christmas Home Tour. I have had enough lights, snowmen, santas, reindeer, bows, wire for bows, ornaments, broken ornaments, tree limbs that won't light up, and so on. I am "HO-HO-HO'd" right out.

BUT...my house does look very nice. So, stop by and check it out. And, don't worry, it took me so much effort to put it up that if you can't stop by until March or April, it might still be up.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!