Focus in 2009

Yesterday I sat down and wrote this big long post about my new word for the new year.

Then I re-read it and realized that that big long post was totally contradicting my goal of being focused. So here is a short and sweet note about what I hope for in 2009. I have to write here to make it real for me.

If you know me, you know that I am so very random. Thoughts are racing through my head so quick that I going from "this" to "that" before figuring out what to do about the original "this" all the while, trying to multitask, "the other". I'm sure lots of people feel this way at times, but I have seriously felt this way for WAY too long. Lately I feel like I can barely put together a complete sentence. And sometimes I'm so easy-going that I just go with the flow and never accomplished what I really needed to.

I know that this is partly just one of those quirky parts of me to embrace, but there's no harm in trying to improve. This word has been resonating in my head for the past few months, especially last month when it seemed everything was happening at once.

FOCUS works for me because it can apply to so many aspects of my life. However, I want to FOCUS on three main areas:

1. MY MIND - I need to take a deep breathe and focus my thoughts. Because really, if my mind isn't focused, then everything else seems to unravel and I am just trying to catch up. I know it's funny to joke about how you lose your mind when you become a mother, but I really have lost it. I've been meaning to write a post about how I was smarter when I was naturally blonde. I'm serious. So, it's time to try to recover the lost brain cells and get back to the old "kind of smart" Ashley. And thinking before I speak is always good too.


2. MY BUDGET - With the state of the economy and the unknown future, I have been feeling like I really need to get our finances in order. Now that I'm not working and life is getting more expensive as Anna gets older, it's time to be on a strict budget. Don't get me wrong, we're not in debt luckily (besides those little student loans), but no more shopping carelessly, even if it is a good deal. (I'm a sucker for a good deal. It's in my genes.) I need to focus on whether we really need that instead of just want it. And if I'm on a budget, I can maybe take care of both the needs and the wants. Just more strategically.


3. MY FAMILY - Of course this is where I want the main focus to be. It's what its all about after all. And most importantly, I don't want to lose focus on what matters most when things get busy. I want to really focus on what is best for Anna, not just for today, but for her future. Remembering to live in the moment, while knowing that the moments are what shape her future. And focus on good, quality time when we can actually all be together. And families happen to be the theme for primary this year, which will be a good reminder. I think the theme sums up the best way to direct this focus, "Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ."

That's it! Not exactly short and sweet, but it's at least shorter than my previous one. Guess I just have to get it all out. Now, FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS!

Here's to a Happy Focused New Year!

chopped

I did it! I finally chopped my hair off again yesterday. I was planning on just doing a safe bob, but after being inspired by my cute SIL Darcie going for the big cut (which I haven't seen in person, only via blog. She looks like a babe) and getting over my fat-face fear, I decided to go for it. And I'm glad I did! I feel much better without my ugly pony tail hair. I'm not sure what Anna thinks of it. When she saw me, she just laughed and laughed at me. That could be good or bad.

The question now is, flippy or straight?

I mowed the lawn

Yes. I. did. And some of you ladies may say, so what? I do that all the time. no big deal. But I grew up with 4 older brothers and so I never had to do that chore. And come to think of it, it doesn't seem like that bugged them. I have nice brothers. Anyway, I've never mowed a lawn before. Last week Dave was saying how he doesn't know how he's going to have time to mow the lawn and so we better hire someone to do it. uh-uh! I am not going to use the little extra money that we have to pay someone to do something that I am completely capable of doing. I need to save that little stash to help pay for Anna's dance lessons, soccer, or who knows what someday! I will not stand by and let that happen.

So I said I would do it. And do you know what he said? He said, "You can't mow the lawn!" Are you kidding me? I got so mad. Of course I could. And then he said he meant that he didn't want me to mow the lawn because I might chop off my finger. First of all, I'm not an idiot. Second of all, nice cover Dave, but I'm not buyin it.

I was set to prove him wrong and we've had a busy week so far, and today was the day. I had to wait until Anna was napping and I dreaded the muggy heat, but I went out and started the engine up and got mowing. It actually was a nice temperature outside. I was trying to decide which pattern to do. Diagonal, horizontal, or vertical? I've always admired the pretty lines in others lawns. But once I got started I threw all of that out the window. I just wanted to get this over with ASAP. And then it started to drizzle. It felt nice. And then it started to pour. I was NOT going to let the rain interfere with my lawn mowing! So I hurried and finished the front yard as fast as I could. Luckily once it really started coming down, I was under a big tree. Which was good for keeping me dry, but probably not the safest in a thunderstorm. But rain and all, the lawn got mowed. Probably not as good as Dave does it, but I'm a rookie.

I mowed the lawn. July 31st 2008.

Now maybe tomorrow I'll do the backyard...

The End of a Chapter

Yesterday was officially the last day of employment at McCann Erickson. It has been five years to the day I think. It's crazy to think that I was there for so long and how much has happened over the past 5 years. I feel like it's an end to a chapter of my life. Sure, probably a short chapter in the scheme of things (assuming I live to be over 50!) But, it was still a chapter. If you ever asked me about my job, you know that it was not my favorite, but I stayed there 5 years. Rain or shine. Early mornings, late nights. Good days, bad days. So I want to document this period of my life. Maybe one day when my kids wonder what I ever did before I was a mom (because isn't it hard to imagine your mom being young and anything besides your mom?), they can read this.


This is the building that I walked into every morning and spent 9-18 hours per day in for the last 5 years. Good ol' 32 Exchange Place. I had a love/hate relationship with this building. I love that it is old and historic. I love the cool mosaic design on the front. It's actually one of SLC's official historic buildings. It used to be the Commercial Club Building and my Grandma even had memories of going there when she was younger. I think she even said there was a swimming pool in the basement? Weird. Now there's just a bunch of creative's cubes and a Foosball table down there. And if you think this building looks familiar for other reasons, then that means you are guilty of visiting or knowing about The Vortex. Yes, it also used to be a dance club. And the cool painted high ceiling above my cube that I loved so much used to have cages hanging from it. Yup, it's quite the building, with quite the history. Now on to the hates, it was old. So all of the usual problems of old buildings applied. Horrible heating and cooling system, slow elevators, and the most annoying parking garage ever. Another funny fact about Exchange Place is that shortly after I started working there, I saw a report on the news about problems with male prostitution hang outs downtown. And of course they were reporting right in front of our building because Exchange Place was apparently a problem area. So I guess you could say this building has a lot of history and culture. And I'm glad to never have to step foot in there again!

So what exactly did I do in this building? Advertising. It may sound exciting to some, but give me five minutes and you'll be bored by what it is I actually did most of the time.

I was "an account person." Advertising people are basically classified into 4 groups: "Account People", "A Creative", "Media", and "Operations or whatever". This does not mean I did accounting as so many people assume, surprisingly. It means that I was in charge of specific "accounts" or clients of the agency. I was basically the liaison between the client and the creative team. To explain it simply, I had the relationship with the client, found out what needed to be done, come up with the strategy, then we download a creative team to complete the project and deliver. I started as an Account Manager when we were Boede+Partners and we had about 30 or so employees. At that time we only took up the 2nd and 3rd floor of our building. Over the years, I moved up the ranks to Sr. Account Executive and onto Account Supervisor. Don't let the titles fool you, I wasn't really that important, nor did I get a salary that matched the fancy titles. Eventually Boede+Partners got bought out by a global agency, McCann Erickson, and we grew to be 300 plus employees, filling every floor of the building. The acquisition changed a lot. Somethings were better, but most things got worse. When we were small, the agency had such a fun atmosphere. We had a party for every single holiday, we got summer and Christmas bonuses, everyone knew each other, it was great. Soon we became a corporate atmosphere where there was an attempt to keep the fun, but there was more red tape and paperwork to prevent such fun. Instead of an employee, I became an employee number. But with the bigger agency came more clients, bigger names, more opportunities. (which translates to more money for the company, not necessarily to me)

So what did I do? You'd be surprised. Advertising is not all TV spots and magazine ads, it's also sales support, events, research, tradeshow booths, web sites, online ads, emails, demos, Christmas cards, and so on. We even had to interior design jobs for my clients when I was there. Random. We basically did whatever the client wanted us to. My agency's niche was B2B Tech. So instead of marketing to consumers, we were marketing to businesses. During my 5 years, I worked on McAfee Security, VeriSign, Verizon Wireless, and Verizon Business. Most my time was spent on VeriSign and VZW.

I became officially jaded on VeriSign, my 2nd account. It all started with the launch of their new brand. I was my own team for awhile (besides my boss) and had no idea what the crap I was doing. I somehow figured it out and barely survived. After 2 years or so on VeriSign, our company obtained some new business on Verizon Wireless and I was asked to help out. I loved my VeriSign team, but I think my favorite account was VZW. I developed a real friendship with my client and was able to work independently with more responsibility, and I was exposed to a lot more new experiences. After I had Anna, they allowed me to come back part-time and I worked on VeriSign again and then some new business for Verizon Business. (Same mother, but different company than Verizon Wireless)

That's what I did for the last 5 years in a nutshell. That sounded weird. I wasn't in a nutshell for 5 years, but my description is small like a nutshell. I skipped over the gory details, but let me just give you a few things that I WILL NOT miss about McCann Erickson:

• deadlines. actually, unrealistic deadlines, that we still had to meet.



• Late, nights. I think my record was 4:00 am. I hope those vertical brochures made an impact on someone, somewhere!



• Pizza on those late nights. Ugh. Too much pizza!



• PMS208 (a color, not quite red, not quite burgundy...see VeriSign's logo)



• Check marks in logos



• posting my time



• Forecasting budgets



• freezing cold building (We had to go home once because the heater broke and we could see our breath inside. My fingers were literally about to crack as I tried to type.)



• The use of the word "creative" as a noun. I prefer it as a verb.



• Secretly crying in the bathroom stall on bad days. Yes, I really did this. multiple times.



• Words like: download, "why don't you ping him on that?", leverage, launch, route it, "flesh it out", greek it, add value, value add, brand identity, FPO, Chief Decision Maker, should I keep going?



• Egos



• Yelling at a certifiably insane proofreader and then feeling bad about it and crying to Christina



• Staff meetings at Wells Fargo



• Being undervalued and underpaid for my work (It's always bad when you find out other employee's salaries)



• Distribution spreadsheets



• Any project that went past 3 rounds



• Client feedback



• Boston Deli



• Weekly Status Meetings

I should probably stop there. Although it sounds like it was torture for me, I did have some good times there. Mostly thanks to the people. It was a fun atmosphere most of the time. These are the memories that will stick with me and the things I will miss about McCann:

• My friends of course. I worked with so many fun, good people. I wish somehow I could arrange a job there where I could go in for meetings, and then just get off the subject and just talk and joke with my friends. The least productive meetings were always my favorite.



• My friend Christina deserves her own line. On her first day we went to lunch and we realized we had a lot in common: Both had Daves, our Daves were both our high school sweethearts, and both Dave's were in their 1st year of grad school at the U. We were on the same team, but didn't get to work with each other at first, until the 10th Anniversary of VeriSign. That was a nightmare launch and we both had to fly to VeriSign for different random reasons. (Christina had to fly to Seattle pick up a video, but it was delayed, so she missed her flight, took the 1st flight in the morning, and got there just in time to deliver the video before the party. It was classic VeriSign. I just had to deliver some stupid posters and one of those fake big checks) We soon started chatting more often and we had similar work styles, work ethic, and personalities. Although, she is much smarter than I am! I eventually schemed to move my cube next to hers so we could be neighbors. Our cube neighborhood was the coolest. I don't think I could have lasted there if it weren't for her. I could always vent to her about anything and everything. We would go on walks down to Nordstrom just to browse and occasionally go to the cafe for our favorite salads. (may the Crossroads Nordstrom rest in peace) I know our friendship will last long beyond the walls of McCann Erickson. And even state boundaries for that matter. I stole this picture of us off of her blog.




• The pens. Pilot G-2's in Black, Blue, and Red. I snuck a few home. Don't tell. And no Wes, they're not for you.
• Speaking of Wes, it was fun having him work there for about a year. We didn't work together, he was on the Finance team, 4 floors up, but it was fun to be able to go and talk to him or have lunch.



• The Breakroom. This should probably have also been on the bad list. I think this breakroom contributed to at least 5 lbs of weight gain. When I first started it was always fully stocked with whatever snack food you could imagine. Granola bars, trail mix, cookies, chips, pretzels, licorice, peanuts, and so on. As we got bigger, the options slimmed down to a more basic chips, peanuts, and oatmeal. And soda, but that didn't do me any good.



• Choco. Deserves it's own line. There was this cappuccino machine thing where you could choose your flavor packet of coffee and it would brew it up for you. Well, they did have a hot chocolate variety for a non-coffee drinker like myself. It was delicious. Not too sweet like that SwissMiss crap. And if you add a little French Vanilla creamer, bliss!



• The results of truly talented creative people.



• The first time I opened up the Wall Street Journal and saw my first Ad. (VeriSign)



• The times we set up an obstacle course and had races around the cubes. So unproductive, but so fun.



• Jim. My Verizon Wireless client. How do I even describe him? He's just one of those eccentric guys, but so sweet, caring, and fun. Who would have thought I would become great friends with a 45 year old gay man from New Jersey? I will miss our long random conversations about non work stuff. He was such a hoot and I will always have fond memories of our friendship. He even made sure he was in town for my baby shower at work. He was at times frustrating as a client, but he's such a good, quality person. We still keep in touch every now and then and is so sweet about Anna.



• Going on photo shoots and staying at W's and ordering room service. (I only went on 2 actually)



• Getting my hair cut by a celebrity stylist during a photo shoot (well, she was Mariah Carey's, so not sure if that really counts) It was a great cut!



• Jim took me to "The Ivy" in LA during a photo shoot. He loves celebrity hunting so he was hoping to catch a glimpse of fame. No such luck. Actually, I think we did see a B-lister. I can't remember, that's how famous they were. Good, overpriced food though!



• Focus Groups. I actually really liked going to these and found them so interesting.



• Sitting behind home plate at SF Giants game



• The silly parties. Imagine a bunch of creative people coming up with ideas for holiday parties. It was always interesting! My favorite party was after I first started though. Boede+Partners was 2 years old and so we had a birthday party. They brought in lunch, then we closed early and went to Gateway where they rented out a theatre for us and gave us treats. Then, my favorite part, they gave us $100 gift certificate to Gateway. Stuff like this never happened when we were McCann.
• Halloween parties. It was always fun to see what our creative staff would come dressed up as. There was always a contest with steep competition. I am proud to say that I took 1st place one year! We dressed up as a VeriSign ad with one other guy and a guy dressed up like a girl. And then I got an honorable mention when I was pregnant with Anna. I dressed up as a beauty queen and wore a sash that said, "Miss Conception"

So there's the good stuff. Don't think that it sounds fun because of this stuff though. The bad outweighed the good, but thank goodness for the good or else I never would have lasted! And to prove how great the company is, here is a letter that I received a few weeks ago for my 5 years of service there.

It might be too blurry to tell, but in this letter is says that I am enormously valued and it is also addressed, "Dear Kelly:" Yes, I feel so valued. So valued that they couldn't even get my name right on this stupid letter. Thanks New York.

But kids, I did have a good run there. 5 years. It was bad at times, but I'm glad I at least learned something and gained experience. Basically, it just didn't suit my personality. I felt bad making people stay late to finish a brochure. I wanted them to go have dinner with their families, not with me. Even though this is SO different than medicine, I at least can have empathy for Dave after he's had a long, stressful day at work. Now I just need him to gain that same empathy for motherhood!

And I wasn't going to put this in, fearing that it seemed braggy, but this is for my kids, and it's my blog, so who cares what other readers may think. Plus, most readers probably didn't make it this far in the post! Here is the goodbye email that my boss (the partner) sent to the agency on my last day. It almost made me tear up. not really. But it was nice I thought.

Almost 5 years ago, Ashley walked into this agency with her kind personality and ambitious attitude. She started as a Jr. AM on the McAfee account, pushing through stacks of data sheets and brochures but learning everything she could. It wasn't long before she become the most coveted Account Supervisor in the agency. I had Directors in my office begging for her to work on their accounts! That was no surprise, because she always maintained her positive attitude, an eagerness to help others, and became incredibly capable at managing clients expectations. Sadly, Ashley will be leaving us today. With her husband's new medical residency in Wake Forest, North Carolina will be her home for the next 7 years. I want to thank Ashley for everything she's done at this agency. As a member of the Boede + Partners staff, she helped us develop our clients so we could keep growing. She helped wrangle in Verizon Wireless in the early days. And she's just a wonderful person. If you have a minute, stop by her desk before she leaves to bid her farewell and say thanks. Thanks again, Ashley. I will miss you!!

I must admit, I thought I would be skipping out of the building, jumping for joy that I was finally done, but it was kind of sad on my last day. Bittersweet. I was going to miss all the friends I made there and the good memories that came of it. But as soon as I walked in to my mom's and saw my sweet Anna, any bit of sadness vanished immediately. I have a bigger and better job now. The best! It's harder and the hours are way worse, but there is nothing else I'd rather be doing.

I'm not saying I'll never work again. Just for now, this is where I need to be. With my joy. my baby girl.

The greatest work you will do will be within the walls of your home.

-Harold B Lee

I Quit!

As of March 31st, I will no longer be an employee of McCann Erickson! I gave my notice today and I am couldn't be more giddy about it! It has been 5 years too long at that place. However, before I eat my words, they offered possible contract work that I might agree to if the price is right. But the sooner I'm done there, the better. See ya later suckers! (Although I am the sucker for staying there for so long!) Yes, funds will be tight the next few months, but it will be well worth it for me.

In other developments, Dave returned home from Guatemala late Sunday night. We are glad to have him home, but to be honest, I've only seen him about a total of 3 hours so far. He immediately started a new rotation at the SICU (Surgical Intensive Care Unit, i.e., crappy schedule) Monday morning and has been on call, so hopefully I can hear all about his trip tonight. I'll try and post some more pics after I get to actually have a conversation with my husband!

In 2008...

I was going to post about our weekend in Vegas, but I felt a little funny putting that post after the President Hinckley post. And earlier today I was reading over some of my favorite quotes from President Hinckley and I came across this one...

“All of us ought to pause once in a while and just stop and think. … We are prone to talk too much and do too little. I think it is a wonderful thing to just indulge once in a while in moments of introspection and see what we are doing with our lives and what contribution we are making and where we could do a little better than we are now doing. I feel we would all benefit from that”

I am very guilty of talking too much and doing too little. If you've ever had a conversation with me you know that I am always jumping around from subject to subject and barely make out a complete thought or sentence between subjects. My mind goes so fast that my mouth can barely keep up, so I'm just confusing to most people. Although I do have a few friends and family that seem to make sense of it all. Anyway, my point is that I need to pause and stop and think once in a while. See what I mean?

Two weeks ago I started this post about my resolutions. I never finished it because it was getting too long and I know what I wanted to do in my head, so I didn't need to try and write some sort of inspiring post about it. But after I read this quote I thought I should finish it up, inspiring or not, it's just for me and what I need to do with myself.

Warning: This is a boring post. I need to do it for myself though. So if want to see a picture of Anna, scroll down, or wait until the next post.



Instead of making a big long list of hopeful resolutions, I decided to pick a word (or 2) that would encomposs all of my goals for the year. I know a few people did this last year, and my SILs did it this year, and I think it's a good way to go. That way, instead of keeping (or losing) track of specific goals, I can just remind myself of this word(s) and regain my focus. I've been thinking about words all year (all 2 weeks of it) and it is quite fitting for me that I can't decide between two. That's the story of my life. I can't decide, so I'll just do both! They can be sort of similar, but they bring different emotions out of me.



1. grow ˈgrō\, verb, to spring up and develop to maturity; to be able to grow in some place or situation; to assume some relation through or as if through a process of natural growth


Based on what we have ahead of this year, I know 2008 will be a year of lots of change. With change comes new opportunity, for me, it's an opportunity to GROW. If I would have had a word last year, it would have been ADAPT. I felt like life suddenly moved so fast, all I could do was adapt. Adapt to having a baby, being a mother, work, church callings, events, disasters, etc. Oh yeah, then that newborn baby starts changing and guess what, it was time to adapt again. I am sick of just adapting. It's a given that you need to adapt in every new situation, but I want go beyond adapting this year. I want to GROW with each situation and challenge. I know that if we move, there will be lots of challenges for me: meeting new friends, being away from family, new ward (church), figuring out a new city, etc. It's all kind of scary, but I think I can (and need to) GRoW a lot from all of this to come.

Another way I want to GROW is spiritually. Although my church calling continues to challenge me, I learn so much with each lesson preparation. This year, I hope to worry less about what I'm going to say and how to fill the time and worry more about how I personally can GROW from the lesson and hopefully that will result in a good lesson in itself and an increase of faith and testimony for me. And all the while GROW closer to the Lord and our Savior. I also want to GROW spiritually so that I can always be a spirtual strength and pillar for Anna as she grows.

I also want to GROW closer to those around me. Sometimes I get too caught up in my own life that I am completely zoned out from what's happening with my friends and family. Again with the potential of our move, I want to keep strong relationships and hope to GROW closer even with distance. I am going to look for ways this year to grow closer to all my peeps and to not be afraid of strangers. (except for the Brian David Mitchell looking ones)

There are countless other ways I want to apply this word in my life. I obviously don't want to grow bigger in size (quite the opposite actually), but I want my physical strength to GROW. I want our finances to GROW and not shrink. You get the idea...And to take this quite literally I would like to GROW something! I love beautiful flowers and gardens, but I am clueless about the whole botany thing. I have planted the same flowers and bulbs in our front yard every year because I don't know how to do anything else. Depending on where we end up, it might be a nice flower bed, or possibly (and more likely) just a small plant in a window, but I want to GROW something to help remind me of all the other ways I want to GROW this year.


2. embrace \im-ˈbrās\, verb, to take up especially readily or gladly; welcome; To clasp or hold close with the arms, usually as an expression of affection; To avail oneself of; Eager acceptance

If you read my post about "Embracing the Benefits" then you already know a little bit about the importance of this word to me. That Relief Society lesson has really stuck with me and I am really trying to incorporate this into my life, no matter how many times I fail at it. I can not only EMBRACE the benefits of the challenges that may happen, but I think I can apply this verb to every aspect of my life.

I want to EMBRACE who I am. Sometimes I feel like with my job and being a new Mom, I forget who Ashley is and when I do remember myself, I am really hard on myself. I need to EMBRACE who I am, for what I am (with the potential to GROW). I am certainly not perfect and I can't do everything, so I just need to EMBRACE the good things, the quirky things, and the bad things about me, and just like me and be the best me that I can.

I want to EMBRACE motherhood. The giggles, the stinky diapers, the cuddles, the runny noses, the learning moments, the sleepy moments, the messy floors, the sweet smiles, the naughty looks, ALL OF IT! I just want to soak it all in because I can't believe how fast this first year has flown by. I'm excited (and a little scared!) for this next year of Anna's life because she will really start growing from a baby to a full on kid. Lots to learn and do (for both of us) and I don't want to take a single second for granted. This means embracing the mess and realizing that this is just a season of life. My house will be messy for a few decades, but I am grateful to be blessed for the reason for the mess. Cute babies are way more fun than a clean house ever could be!

EMBRACE serving others. EMBRACE receiving service from others. (I'm really bad at that!) The EMBRACE theme could go on forever. I don't need to spell out every situation, I just need to readily welcome all things in my life. EMBRACE the benefits, EMBRACE life. That sums it up. Why did I even write all of that other stuff?

So those are my words, my resolutions, if you will. If you catch me in a rut sometime this year, please remind me of my words and hopefully that will help. I am setting my sights high, but honestly I would be happy even with the slightest progress. In moments throughout the year I will try to pause, once in a while and just stop and think to see what I am doing with my life and where I could do a little better. And hopefully I benefit from that.

Blog Tag

So I can't sleep and I thought I'd do some blogging and I found out that I've been tagged and I didn't even know it! Sorry, I've been out of it lately. So here goes...

4 Jobs I've held:
1. Subway sandwich artist
2. Nordstrom girl
3. Billing/secretary at doctor's office
4. Advertising Account Supervisor (still holding on to this one unfortunately)

4 Movies I can watch over and over:
1. Charlotte's Web
2. Napoleon Dynamite
3. Any Will Ferrell movie
4. Pride and Prejudice

4 Places I've Lived:
1. SLC
2. Hawaii
3. chi o house
4. Sugarhouse

4 Favorite TV shows:
1. 24
2. The Office
3. Grey's Anatomy
4. Seinfeld

4 (unique places) I've been to:
1. Slovenia/Croatia
2. Israel
3. Brazil
4. Tahiti

4 Favorite foods:
1. The Pub's french onion soup
2. any kind of cookie
3. Sno-cones and popsicles
4. Massaman Chicken

4 Favorite websites that I visit (almost) daily:
1. email
2. blogs
3. daily candy
4. bank

4 Places I'd rather be:
1. In bed asleep
2. Anywhere by the ocean
3. Disneyland
4. NYC

4 Blog Buddies that I want to tag:
1. All family members!
2. Everyone else!

OK. I think this made me tired enough to try to get some sleep again. Goodnight.

Girlfriends and Boyfriends

Isn't this picture priceless? I just love it! Last night we had such a fun night out with my friends and of course all of Anna's boyfriends. Aren't they adorable? Our babies are are all within 4 months of each other and Anna's lucky enough to be the only girl. Watch out guys! Max Pohlman is in the upper left corner, then there's little baby Will Rogers who is only 2 weeks old, and Parker Deming, and then of course Anna. I can already tell that they like hanging out together. Anna's just barely the oldest (Parker was born 1 week after Anna), but I think she likes younger guys. Just don't break her heart boys!

I absolutely LOVE getting together with my friends. We always have so much and the nights go by way too fast. No matter how much our lives change, whenever we get together I feel like I'm 17 again. I seriously wish I could see them everyday. Jill was so nice to have us over to her cute new house and she served up some delicious Cafe Rio-style pork salad. Yum! I have to get that recipe! I just had to laugh when I got there because it was like a feeding factory. Sara, Abby, and Trish were all on the sofas nursing. Then I figured I'd join in since it was almost time for Anna's dinner. It was pretty funny site. (sorry, no pictures of that one thankfully!) We laughed all night long and I was out way past Anna's bedtime, but I really wanted to stay all night. My friends are seriously the best and I love them each to pieces. I'm just glad they put up with me and are always such good friends to me. I'm already looking forward to the next get together.