A Practical Halloween

Can anyone guess what we were for Halloween this year?

If you guessed an angel and a magician - you'd be wrong.

We were floor managers at Gammage Auditorium! Scary, right? Wilson and I opted to make a little money to fund our trip to Texas for Christmas by working a double shift at our second part time job. But seriously, there are worse ways to spend one's Halloween than getting paid to see Phantom of the Opera. Wilson simply wanted to wear a top hat and cape with his uniform. When I asked "So what are going to BE for Halloween?" He replied "Fancy." I decided that if I couldn't wear a full costume I was going to get the sweetest wig I could find and rock it. It was really fun to change my look so dramatically. (Kirsten, I so get it now!) Afterward we walked up and down Mill Ave to people watch.

Last week we had a pumpkin party. Some friends came over and Dani and I carved a pumpkin together with a teethy flower. When it was lit, we decided it was the flaming flower of death.

Hope everyone's Halloween was Heavenly!

say hello to Mr. September

After 3 months of being nominated, Wilson is now officially September's Employee of the Month at the Crowne Plaza Resort! He went to a luncheon this morning with all the other nominees and the big shots of the company, and was presented with a certificate and a Target gift card. However, this photo is the only record we may have of this honor because less than a half hour later the certificate had been ruined because a lady sitting next to him spilled her water glass all over it. Accident? I think not - she was most likely a hater. And then once he got home and checked the balance of his Target gift card online, he discovered it was $0. Seriously.

But none of that seemed to matter, becuase it's Wilson: the guy that takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'. Even though he literally came home empty handed, he was nothing but smiles today. I know that he is going to do so well in the hospitality business, because he gets told this all the time by guests at the hotel who only interact with him for 5 minutes. Now he's got his sights set on Employee of the Year!

the cup of shame

Wilson and I have several married friends who have young children. As our table is lofted and seats only 4, when we invite these young families over for dinner Wilson likes to prepare the children their own little table. His presentation is actually really cute, he sets out a little place mat and uses my owl plate (yes, the same one from a blog a while ago) and then, for his own entertainment, he sets out the "cup of shame". It's this adorable little plastic cup that matches the owl plate - harmless, no? Wrong. This cup has a water space between the plastic with glitter and floating hearts and butterflies. Inevitably, as soon as the little ones see this cup they go to drink from it. . . . even though it's empty. These cute little toddlers spend the rest of the evening miscalculating how far to tilt the cup, or trying to reach their hands in to liberate the butterflies; all to the amusement of the adults. Now, we love these kids and they are sharp as tacks, but apparently the illusion of the water is just too much, sometimes even for the parents. We had no idea that this would be such an issue when we first introduced the cup and (call us cruel) but now it's just kind of fun.

a new skill

Last year, Wilson and I were walking through Borders, and I found a book entitled The Practical Guide to Napkins and Napkin Folding for $3. It was one of those really beautifully photographed books that you can tell is well put together, but is about a topic so obscure that you can understand why it found it's way to the clearance shelf. I immediately showed it to Wilson and told him that this could be something quirky and fun for him to learn, seeing as how he is going into hospitality.

Actually, it was a little more detailed than that in my head.

Remember the scene in the film The Pursuit of Happyness where Will Smith's character solves the Rubik's cube in the cab during an impromptu interview, and the man is so impressed that he hired him? I imagined a similar situation for Wilson. (side note: I seem to remember that Will Smith also solved a Rubik's cube to impress a college adviser in The Fresh Prince. anybody?) Seeing that book made a similar scene pass through my mind, where Wilson is interviewing for the job as a manager of a swank hotel and his interviewer is saying that his resume is good on paper, but what would set him apart from the other applicants? And as he is speaking, Wilson is artfully folding the napkin that happened to be laying on a nearby desk into something glorious. And of course he gets the job. Extreme? Probably, but that's kinda how things look in my mind.

Flash forward to now, and Wilson is totally absorbed in his hobby of napkin folding. It's not uncommon for us to go on a double date and while everyone is chatting, Wilson is trying to replicate the fold that the restaurant uses. Usually we leave the table with everyone's napkin in a different fold, thoroughly intriguing the servers.

So for his birthday I wanted to get Wilson a set of sturdy, completely square napkins and his own can of starch so that he is no longer limited by the materials in our home. The world of more complicated folds has been opened and the possibilities are endless. Now we just need more people to come over for dinner. . . .

what is a penguin luau?

After sending out invitations to Wilson's 24th birthday party, that was definitely the question of the day from all invited. And the answer is: an excuse to dress up penguins. obviously. Wilson is usually the one throwing parties for others, and so for his birthday I wanted to go all out. For those who don't know Wilson at all, saying that he likes penguins is an understatement. He loves them. So I promised him the best penguin party ever. And I like to think I delivered.

Every penguin in the house was dressed to kill, in full grass skirt and flower leis. (And they were of course treated to a large bowl of goldfish)

Jared and Danielle came over that day to help us make the most fantastic penguin cupcakes.

This was pretty much the face Wilson had on all night.



Wilson had his chance to demolish a penguin pinata full of his favorite candy. He knocked the head off in one hit, so it's just the penguin's body hanging from the tree.


And everyone had a chance to guess how many penguins Wilson owns. Kylie won with a guess of 101, because Wilson actually owns 110 penguins, including 2 mousepads, an ice cream scoop, a blanket, a loofah, socks, 2 bookmarks and a LOT of stuffed penguins. Ridiculous, right? I can't believe I have room for 110 penguins in my little townhouse.

He acquired a few more that night, including a real one! Kinda. As a birthday gift, Adam and Jenni had adopted a penguin on Wilson's behalf. He got a certificate and everything! He also got some Penguin brand shirts, some stuffed penguins, and other fun gifts. Jenni and Matt even made a penguin quotes game for the party, to quiz his knowledge and see if anyone could come close to him, and Kelly actually tied him. It was a fun party for a guy that really deserves it. Thanks to all who came to help celebrate and make my wonderful husband's birthday so special!

seven years later

So seven years ago today I met the love of my life. Or one of them I should say - because for those of you doing the math; it's not Wilson. Wilson and I only celebrated our 2 year anniversary last month. Today marks my seven year anniversary with Jenni. Seven years ago, after moving into the dorms at ASU and feeling completely lost, I met a girl in an elevator that would change my life. And even though she is a thousand miles away now, and we have both found our soul mates in two wonderful men, she is one of the greatest gifts that I've ever had sent to me. I love you, Jenni.

Which makes today even more special, because I have truly come full circle. Today I helped my youngest sister, Danielle, move into the ASU dorms. I watched as she filled out paperwork, found her room, and organized every little detail of her room with everything that would fit into two suitcases. I felt so parental making sure that she had a bus pass, laundry detergent, shampoo, and the loveliest bedding we could find. Wilson and I helped her carry up her things to her 9th floor dorm room, helped her make and loft her bed, and took her out to lunch before saying goodbye. Watching her set up her closet and organize her jewelry brought back so many images from seven years ago, when I fit everything I could into two suitcases (and a carry on) and got on a plane with no idea what was on the other side. And while I wont go into the details of that initially bleak situation, It gave me so much to learn from. I knew exactly what I wanted to make sure she had and felt like I had more insight into what she was going through. I guess that is a big sister's life long job?

I also realized that I might not be as tough of a mom as I thought, becuase as we were saying goodbye, all i wanted to do was tell her to come stay with us for a few more nights! So much for being strong. I'm so excited to have her here. Big sisters need little sisters too, and I am already feeling uplifted from having her closer. She is going to be brilliant and I get to be here for it all.

99¢ can buy a whole lot of weird

There's always something satisfying about shopping in a dollar store. Not Dollar General or other impostors, but a true dollar store where everything is only a dollar. Most people seem to prefer Dollar Tree. I love dollar tree, they actually have a lot of really good stuff and great seasonal displays. However, if Dollar Tree makes you feel thrifty, then the 99¢ only store makes you feel like an archeologist finding lost artifacts. Seriously, it is like the garage sale of products that never quite make it. And it's fantastic! Some of my favorite finds have been wild berry Tootsie Pops, limited edition gift wrap by Scotch brand tape in all their various plaids, the best smelling honey hand soap, and themed Friends DVD's like all the birthdays, or all the weddings etc. Wilson's favorite snack is Reeses so each time I go I bring home a freak Reeses product that didn't make it in the real world. Yesterday I went to kill some time and I found 2 new favorites that made it to the top of my list. I'm sending both of them to someone I know would appreciate them; so get psyched, Roxanne. #1 - Finger Twister: a small version of the Twister board game, meant to be played with your hands. It even included sock stickers for your nails. #2 - Belly Flops by Jelly Belly - I guess Jelly Belly saves all of the reject jelly beans, like the ones that are big blobs or conjoined twins, and then sells them in their own sad little bag. My heart went out to these misshapen jelly beans, rejected because they didn't meet the standards of confectional society. I of course took them home to be loved. Where else can you get a bag of Jelly Bellys for 99¢?! So what if they are abnormal - all the better I say. So that's it, my ode to the place were product failures go to die, the freak show of all dollar stores, the 99¢ Only store.