Memorial Day Weekend Perfection

This weekend, I celebrated the Memorial Day holiday in the most perfect way...I did nothing! Since April 1, I have either been out of town, played host to weekend guests, or had Amalia and Gordon at my place. I literally have not had my home to myself for so much as two hours since April 1. This weekend, I purposefully made no plans, while I watched everyone go out of town. It was fantastic!!

On Saturday, I had three big adventures: Costco, Susan's apartment and an airport run for Chappy. On Sunday, I had one big adventure that interupted my ironing, organizing and tv-watching: dinner at Matt and Kamae Sandgren's house, which was a lot of fun. I even played hooky from church...just couldn't bring myself to do it. On Monday, I toyed with the idea of going to the Rolling Thunder motorcycle event downtown, but it was 95 blazing degrees, so instead, I opted to do a quick run to Target, have lunch with Susan and Emily, and camp out on my couch reading a magazine and catching up with Tivo.

It was ridiculously lazy and unproductive, but I desparately needed some down time without anyone around. It was blissfully perfect!

Oprah, Please Come Back!!

Today was the end of an era...The Oprah Winfrey Show officially went off the air today. I'm not terribly bummed about it right now...it's summer time and all of the shows are going on a summer hiatus...but I know that come September, I'll be thinking, "Oprah! Where are you??"

After 25 years, she made the decision to end her show. While I completely understand the decision (after only 15 years, I'm ready to hang it up!), I grew up watching Oprah and I'll be sad not to have her on stage bringing us "Oprah's Favorite Things", Dr. Oz, celebrity guests or different tricks of the trade. It was usually a very fun and informative show, and I'm sad it'll no longer be on the air.

Thank goodness I have Jill Chappell as a friend...I was one of the lucky few who was able to go to Chicago to see a live taping. Now, I have to find a new favorite show....just what I need: another must-see-TV show!

Why I Love Amber

This afternoon, I received the following email that reminded me why I love having Amber as my friend:

"Do you think I'm an idiot...if while ironing my shirt this morning I burned my chest because I was wearing the shirt that I was ironing?"

Gotta love a woman, who tries to be efficient in ALL aspects of her life!

U2 Concert in Denver

Aside from getting in some quality snuggle and tickle time with Sawyer and Walker, Susan and I were in Denver this weekend to go to the U2 concert at Invesco Field. She and I both came down with head colds this week, so I’ll admit that our excitement and energy level for attending the concert were dim. Coupled with that was the fact that we purposefully purchased General Admission tickets, meaning that we’d be standing on the field during the concert, rather than in the stands in a seat a la the Dublin concert. What was a brilliant idea two years ago – “Hey, we should really experience U2 up close and personal by getting field tickets!” – quickly became a tempting reason to bag the entire concert. It was more than a few times that I thought to myself, “I’m too damn old to stand for six hours on a football field for a rock concert.”

However…we had a blast!!

The opening act was The Fray, and while I didn’t know a lot of their songs, I knew enough and I enjoyed their performance. U2 finally came on stage to lots of hoopla around 8:50pm and they stayed out there until 11:15. For guys in their early 50s, you have to hand it to them.

Bono and The Edge were all over the stage and even came and stood in front of us for a few songs. Susan has half-convinced herself that she and Bono made eye contact during one of his songs; I quote her: “I think I remind him of his wife 20 years ago.” Sure, you betcha, let’s go with that!You can’t tell from these photos taken on Susan’s iPhone, but we were about 25 feet from the stage so we had a great position to see the band, the stage and the enormous screen. We were with 72,000 people, who were rockin’ out and we had a great time.
Main Set: Even Better Than The Real Thing, I Will Follow, Get On Your Boots, Magnificent, Mysterious Ways, Elevation, Until the End of the World, All I Want Is You, Stay, Beautiful Day - Here Comes the Sun, Pride, Miss Sarajevo, Zooropa, City of Blinding Lights, Vertigo, I'll Go Crazy (remix) - Discotheque - Please, Sunday Bloody Sunday, Scarlet, Walk On - You'll Never Walk Alone

Encore(s): One, Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow - Where the Streets Have No Name, Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me, With or Without You, Moment of Surrender

Meeting Walker

How adorable is this ball of love?!?I finally got up to Broomfield, where I officially met Walker for the first time. Unfortunately, I was battling a bit of a head cold so I didn't love on him as I would have, but I sure did have fun holding him!He's absolutely huge...10 weeks old and 18 pounds!Mom, Susan and I just had so much fun passing him around and he was totally amenable to it the whole time! I love an accommodating man!

Playing Hooky with Susie & Sawyer

Instead of officially working, or spending the day in bed where I really belonged, Susan and I played hooky with our best buddy, Sawyer. We met Allen and Sawyer downtown in Denver and you could just tell that Sawyer was so excited for a play date and overnight adventure with "the aunties."

Our first stop was for pancakes. Bless his heart, Sawyer is one of the most photographed three-year-olds out there. Susan and I can't go five minutes without snapping a photo of him, and before the pancakes had even hit the table, I was already in Annie Leibovitz mode! He took matters into his own hands and hid below the table. Not to be outdone, I shot blind photos beneath the table, and I think they turned out pretty cute!After breakfast, we promised Sawyer a surprise. After driving through Denver for ten minutes and having Sawyer audibly sigh with impatience and proclaim "it's still boring!", we finally arrived at the Denver Aquarium. While we were driving to the Aquarium, we tried to get Sawyer to yell, "My aunties rock!" Didn't happen. In fact, he announced, "I'm not saying that word." Well, $50 worth of admission tickets later, I finally got him to acknowledge "My aunties rock!" Bribery? Yes! But, I'll take the small victories! Our first squatic siting was two sea otters, who Sawyer named Sookie and Sam, then we went on to fish, sharks, lobsters and stingrays.Sawyer seemed pretty taken with everything, and absorbed all of the explanations that Susan and I proviced about the frogs and snakes that we saw. As we looked at all the fishes, he kept dragging me further in to see the "tiger." I kept telling him, "there are no tigers here, only sharks and fishes." He wouldn't stop dragging me until we came this exhibit....hello!I have no idea what a tiger is doing at an aquarium, but here he was!We had so much fun playing with him and crawling all over the exhibits. His favorite, of course, was when we promised to get his face painted. It came as no surprise when he chose to have the Batman symbol painted on...I'm not sure how his parents reacted, but he was quite proud of it!

The Shirlington Ward

I love the Crystal City Ward – I love the bishopric, the Relief Society presidency, the Sunday School teachers, the members – it’s all good! I especially love the fact that I attend the same ward as my buddies, Jill Chappell, Amber Sechrist and Trish Kent, as well as Susan.

But, no more….

Last month, the Mt. Vernon Stake changed the boundaries of nearly every ward in its jurisdiction, including the Crystal City Ward, which has been my home for 18 months. Our ward needed to split – we were at 750 members, when most wards are at 300-350 – but I’m still bummed about the change. I’m now in the Shirlington Ward, and while Bishop Sampson is still my bishop, I’m no longer in the same ward as Amber, Jill, Trish, Susan, Sue Stahle, Jenn Johnston and others who I really enjoyed.

I attended my “new” ward this morning, and I have to admit, it was weird! Not only did we not need to open into the cultural hall, I could have walked in to church 20 minutes late and still found a seat on a pew, something that would have been unheard of last month. In fact, I left my house 20 minutes early this morning and arrived at the church building to find the parking lot and chapel practically empty.

As I sat in a center pew, ALL BY MYSELF, I was struck that I’m definitely a single person in a family ward. While I’ve never before been in a ward with family or close friends, it was really fun going to church and seeing my sister and my friends. We created our own little family unit, but now….all by myself. Now, I need to saddle up to some mom with kids in order to have someone to sit beside. Poor me. Looks like it’s time to change my attitude and embrace the opportunity to make new friends!

Great….another project.

A Piece of Home

Recognize this?It's not at all valuable, but I really like it! It's a Vincent Van Gogh print that hung in my family's dining room for years and Mom said I could swipe it, so swipe it I did! Allegedly, the frame was carved by my Great Uncle Penn (Aunt Katharine's husband). I'm not sure it's true, but if it is, that makes my affinity for the piece even nicer.

I'm finally starting to pull my place together and I think the print looks great on my dining room wall. Valuable or not, I'm happy to have it in my home.

A Mexican Night with Cherstyn & Matt

Cherstyn and Matt brought 4-month-old Luke for a quick trip to Washington and it was so fun to see them and meet their little bundle of love. The little guy is enormous...loads of fat rolls on his arms, legs and neck. None of us could get enough of him! It was so fun to have my friends together again in my home and made me wish for a reunion with everyone. Still, it is really nice to have my friendships and my life in DC evolve to include new friends and neighbors, like Amalia and Gordon, who are going to be living about five minutes away, which will be so much fun!For dinner, we had fish tacos and all the fixings, which was so good. Since I'm somewhat scared of cooking fish, I left the grilling and deep frying to Gordon and Matt. Unfortunately, we had a minor incident with the frying process that left my apartment smoke-filled and little Luke's eyes bloodshot, but after some open windows and fanning of open doors, we were back in business and had a great night!

A Little Antiquing

Thanks to Jill Chappell, I'm now a bona fide lover of Virginia barn shows! The latest one I visited was Ekster Antiques in Hamilton, Virginia. They have the most unbelievable treasures! I was smitten with so much...mirrors, tables, dressers, accessories, chandeliers, laterns...you name it, I loved it!

I loved this display of candle lanterns in one of the barns. In front of huge mirror, they hung a rough wooden stick from the ceiling using rusted chains and then strung candle lanterns along the length of the stick. It sounds a little odd, but I loved the rustic look of it.I also LOVED this wood carved mirror...it was so spectacular....and it came with a spectacular price tag: $598! Yikes...I resigned myself to admiring it and then moving on!I also loved some of the larger furniture pieces - there was an enormous coffee table that wasy to die for, great dining room chairs and several beautiful armoires, bookcases and hutches like this oneThe owner also had a lot of knick-knacks scattered throughout four separate barns, all of which were great. These were some old clay sconces. Once or twice a year, the owner goes on European buying trips to France, Belgium and Holland and brings back these treasures. If I had to outfit and entire house, I'd be in hog-heaven! If only I had more room in my little townhouse!

So what did I buy?? A couple of random pieces that I think I like if for no other reason than no one else has them!

The first piece that caught my eye was this full-length mirror:It's a little too shabby chic for my tastes, but I think it's ok and I desperately needed a full-length mirror. One day when I'm feeling adventurous, I may strip the paint and take it to it's original wood stain. A DIY project for another time!

I also spied this hall coat rack, which I absolutely do not need, but I really liked the intricacy of the wrought iron work. It may need a little TLC as there's some paint on the piece, as well as some rust and some natural patina. Again, a DIY project for another time!

Finally, I grabbed this bamboo table which I LOVE!I hemmed and hawed about whether to buy it and I'm so happy I snagged it. It was off to the side and everyone was walking right past it because it didn't look like anything special. I now have it in my front window and am pleased as punch! It doesn't hurt that I have my favorite peonies at center stage!So there's the damage...a mirror, a hallway coat rack, a side table and two kitchen utensils from Holland that I liked. Quite a bit of damage for one morning, but I'm very happy with all of it....or at least I will be right up until the time I get the bills! That's a worry for another day!

Mother's Day for Juju

My friend, Juju, has been a real trooper for the past month. Since receiving the call that "Baby Johnson" had arrived, she's been living out of suitcases, cars and other people's homes. I think the longest she's slept in one location is five nights...and she's been toting along a two-year-old and a one-month-old. The poor thing is exhausted!She, Louie and the newly-named Blake, stayed at my home over the weekend. I was happy to host them - though I was trying to be sensitive to the fact that Amalia and Gordon were also staying with me - but I'm also very happy that she's finally received clearance to go home to Salt Lake. My Mother's Day gift to her was eight-hours without baby Blake (I stayed up with him until 5am...whew!). During the day, we lazed around and got her ready for her trip home on Tuesday.

Here's hoping she lines up some immediate help upon arriving in Park City!

Tomato Babies

Ama, Gordon and I drove out to Herndon this morning to buy our "tomato babies" that we'll plant at the back of my garden. Gordon found this place off of Craig's List and we were practically the first people there, so we had a great selection.I walked off with five tomato plants, four basil plants and a pepper plant. Amalia and Gordon bought 6-7 tomatoes, a couple of peppers, an eggplant and some basil.Now, my great challenge will be to not kill all of it!

Christmas in May

After a three-week absence from home, I walked in the door tonight to this surprise:
Gordon had planted an entire garden on my backyard patio!!! I was so excited when I saw it that I started jumping up and down like a kid on Christmas morning!He put in hosta plants, dahlias, petunias, azaleas, climbing vines and bushes.


The best part is that he put in an irrigation hose that's set to a timer, so the garden will self-water while I'm in Pittsburgh!

I'm literally SO excited to sit on my backyard patio and enjoy the flowers. On Saturday, we're going to head out to a tomato seedling dealer and pick up some "tomato babies" that I can plant in my back corner, along with lettuce, carrots, basil, peppers and other vegetables.

I cannot wait!

Baby Johnson is Official

Julianna emailed last night to tell me that Valerie signed the consent order so Baby Johnson is officially theirs! They still have to file paperwork with the Commonwealth of Virginia and the State of Utah and there will be a six month probationary period that's mandated for adoptions, but everything is in order. It looks like Julianna will be cleared to return to Utah next week with two babies on her hip. Now, comes the hard part!

If I Could Be...

If I could be a month, I’d be September.

If I could be a day of the week, I'd be Saturday.

If I could be a time of day, I’d be 3 p.m.

If I could be a sea animal, I’d be a sting ray.

If I could be a direction, I’d be up.

If I could be a piece of furniture, I'd be a big, deep, comfy bed.

If I could be a liquid, I’d be Diet Dr. Pepper.

If I could be a gemstone, I’d be a sapphire.

If I could be a tree, I’d be a magnolia.

If I could be a tool, I’d be a hammer.

If I could be a flower, I’d be a peony.

If I could be a kind of weather, I’d be a crisp fall day.

If I could be a musical instrument, I’d be a piano.

If I could be a color, I’d be rich camel/taupe.

If I could be an emotion, I’d be happy.

If I could be a fruit, I’d be a pineapple.

If I could be a sound, I’d be falling rain.

If I could be an element, I’d be water.

If I could be a car, I would be a fully-loaded luxury sedan.

If I could be a food, I'd be molten chocolate cake.

If I could be a place, I’d be the Kauai Hyatt Resort.

If I could be a material, I’d be linen.

If I could be a taste, I’d taste like Lindt milk chocolate.

If I could be a scent, I’d be a Jo Malone floral.

If I could be an object, I'd be a warm, hewn coffee table.

If I could be a body part, I’d be hands.

If I could be a facial expression, I’d be a smile.

If I could be a song, I’d be a piano composition by John Barry.

If I could be a pair of shoes, I'd be a pair of sassy high heels.

A Measure of American Closure

I arrived in Pittsburgh tonight to news reports that Osama Bin Laden, the mastermind of the September 11 attacks, had been killed by U.S. forces.

According to tonight's news reports, President Obama has been overseeing a military / intelligence operation since last Fall to target and kill bin Laden. U.S. authorities believed they had identified bin Laden's whereabouts - only 35 miles from Pakistan's capital city, not, as was believed, in a series of caves in the Afghani mountains - and President Obama made the decision in March to move forward with the operation. On two occassions in April, the SEAL team performed practice runs to ensure they could penetrate the compound where bin Laden was hiding, kill him and extract his body. Today, they succeeded.

As soon as the news hit the wires, the U.S. people started to celebrate. There were impromtu gatherings in front of the White House...and at Ground Zero...and in Times Square. I love this picture of the FDNY watching news coverage in Times Square. It's fitting that they're among the celebrants as they lost more than 300 firefighting brothers on September 11.As I'm watching the news coverage, its hard to believe that it was nearly 10 years ago that the attacks occurred. I will never forget walking into work a little after 9a.m. on September 11 to find Becky Anfinson, Congressman Hefley's scheduler, standing in front of our TV, watching as the second tower was hit. Everyone on Congressman Hefley's staff stood around our TV and watched for about 30 minutes until we heard reports that a third plane had struck the Pentagon, only 3 miles from where we were on Capitol Hill. When we looked out our office window, we could see thick, black smoke rising in the distance. It was only then that Capitol Hill and the rest of the federal government agencies immediately shut down.

On my drive home from the Rayburn Building - which took quite awhile because of the unbelievable gridlock - I had my sun roof open. I clearly remember the sound of a fighter jet flying over the Capitol and National Mall and being terrified that it was a commercial plane heading toward the Capitol building. Everyone in the cars around me looked out their windows and up to the sky to see the plane. It was only later in the day that we learned that it was a fighter jet from Andrews Air Force Base. When I finally got to my neighborhood, a D.C. police man in full SWAT gear was standing in the middle of my intersection with a semi-automatic rifle. It was truly unbelievable, and sadly, the beginning of what has in many ways been an elimination of many civil liberties, freedoms and conveniences.While we can never go back to the way we were, it does provide a measure of closure to know that the man who orchestrated such destruction knew his death was coming at the hands of the U.S. military.