Craving

My favorite soft drink is Diet Pepsi with Lime. In 2006, when Garrett and I moved from UT, I spent months searching for it in every grocery store, but I could never find it! Then, one day when I was in a grocery store, a Pepsi guy happened to be there bringing in boxes of drinks from his truck. I asked him about Diet Pepsi with Lime, and they said they had stopped making it. I was SO SAD! So imagine my surprise a year later when I went back to UT for Emma's graduation and I saw it at WalMart!! I bought a 12-pack and that kept me pretty happy. It turns out that DP w/ Lime isn't sold anywhere within a 250-mile radius of where I live. So in a few years, when Garrett is applying for residencies, we will have to take into account whether or not the areas we want to go sell my drink of choice.

In the meantime, I buy store-brand diet cola and add a splash of lime juice. It works for now!

Do you crave anything that isn't sold anymore?

Around the House

I couldn't think of anything to write today, but I thought I'd post some pictures for everyone to enjoy!

She loves this activity table.

Swinging at the BBQ last weekend
Another Easter photo.
Thirsty girl!

Save Time with Google Reader!

My friend Abbie wrote a blog post a few weeks ago about Google Reader, and I feel like I should share the information, too!

I love reading blogs. I read friends' blogs, family blogs, money blogs, Church blogs, BYU Sports blogs, frugal living blogs, medical blogs, entertainment blogs, news blogs, humor blogs (ok... now I sound really pathetic. I really don't spend all my time reading blogs.).

Anyway, in the olden days, when I found a blog I liked I would send the web address to the "My Favorites" tab in Internet Explorer, and then I would check it every day or so to see if it had been updated with a new post. Needless to say, this wasted a lot of time because many of the blogs I enjoyed were only updated once or twice a week, yet I would check them whenever I sat down at the computer. Then I found "Google Reader" and my blog-reading time was so much better! So... what is Google Reader? Well, Google Reader tracks the blogs you like to read and updates you whenever a new post has been published on each blog (kind of like an email - but it updates in Google Reader instead of sending you an email). So, whenever you sign into Google (or gmail, or whatever), on the top there is a link that says "More" with a down-arrow - and on the bottom of that list it says "Reader". Click that - that's your Reader! (and if you don't have Gmail...well... I guess none of this information really helps. But I'm of the opinion that everyone in the world should have Gmail. It's the best). Anyway, once my Google Reader is open, I can then see a list of all my favorite blogs that have been updated since I last checked in. :) This makes life so much easier!

So, once you've found a blog you like and that you want to keep track of, how do you add it to Google Reader? Well, there are a couple of ways, but here's how I do it: In Google Reader, over on the left side of the page, there is a button that says "Add Subscription". Just cut and paste the URL (that's the web address, Mom...) of the blog you like right there. And Presto! Every time that blog is updated, it will be posted in your Google Reader. You can read the post right there in the Reader, or you can click on the link and read it on the actual blog page. Also, you can separate your blogs into different folders to make everything organized. I have separate folders for family, friends, Church, BYU Sports, humor, news, etc....

I hope this helps at least a few people. And I hope my directions were clear enough that everyone can use Google Reader now! Now you never have to worry about losing track of a blog you like. Including mine. :)

This is not a paid advertisement.

Flashback Friday - Summer 2001

Growing up, we had a lot of lawn to mow. For a while it was okay because we had a couple of riding lawnmowers, but then my parents decided that we weren't getting enough exercise, so they sold them and bought three push-mowers. Sometimes I didn't mind mowing, but it was pretty miserable in the middle of the humid summer. And it's discouraging to mow when it feels like it's never completely done.

This flashback is from when I was in high school, and Mike was living at home. It was the summer between Mike's freshman year and his mission. Anyway, I was mowing the side yard where the raspberry bushes were, and all of a sudden I felt a really sharp sting on the back of my leg. I yelped in pain and stopped the mower, and rubbed my leg, looking around for the bee that I figured had stung me. It was then that I heard laughing. I looked behind me at the house, and there was Mike, leaning out his bedroom window, with a BB gun in his hands. Ouch! I don't even remember if I told my parents what happened, but I do know that I had a bruise there for a few days.

On a similar note, Mike also had a pellet gun for a while and he and his friends thought they were pretty tough. Mike, Brandon J., and Matt P. (and a few others, I'm sure... but I can't think of them now) would use the pellet gun to demonstrate to us just how tough they were. They would hold the pellet gun up to their inner forearm and shoot it, leaving huge ugly welts on their arms. But they had to do it if they wanted to be considered a "cool tough guy". I don't recall ever thinking they were very tough; in fact, as they were writhing around on the floor in pain, I'm pretty sure I thought completely the opposite.

I hope you enjoyed this week's segment of Flashback Friday. I think next week I'll write about Garrett starting Medical School.

Mixed Emotions

Sometimes she's happy...

And sometimes she's not!

But she's always cute! (that's our unbiased opinion, anyway)

And isn't that the cutest rocking chair? My Grandpa O. was a carpenter and he made it for me when I was little. Isn't it just perfect for Abby? I just need to stain that replacement piece on the seat. I'm not sure what happened there.

P.S. That picture of her crying was her reaction when she saw me cutting Garrett's hair last night. I don't know if it was the hum of the clippers or the sight of hair falling from his head, but she was very unhappy about it.

Opening Day!!

Baseball season has officially begun! I LOVE baseball. I love everything about it. And I love my Red Sox! Finally, a team I can count on! With the Red Sox I'm not nervous at the beginning of every game, and they usually don't let me down (*cough BYU cough*).

Today in our season opener in Japan, the Red Sox beat the A's 6-5 in an exciting 10-inning game. Hopefully that is just a preview of all the excitement that awaits us this season! I really hope Garrett and I will be able to make it to a baseball game this year. Unfortunately, the Red Sox aren't playing near us at all this year, but maybe we'll be able to go to a Braves game or something. They're ok, too.

Papelbon

(I took this picture during the World Series last year)

Happy Easter!

Ready for Church

Abby with some of her friends (she just woke up from a nap) She sat in this doll stroller and was content for about 20 minutes - it was great!

Easter was really fun this year (I think all holidays become more fun when you have kids!). Yesterday we had our Easter Egg Hunt & BBQ, which was lots of fun, and today we went to another friend's house for Easter Dinner, which was great! The weather was beautiful so we were able to eat outside, and the food was really good. It's always fun to hang out with friends. And thanks to Grandma W for sending Abby's cute little Easter outfit - it was adorable! And unfortunately, the Easter Bunny didn't quite make it to our house this year... I haven't even eaten one jelly bean! But that's ok. Garrett didn't mind and I know I didn't. And thankfully Abby's too young to know the difference!

I love Easter! And I love the meaning that it has in our lives. I'm so thankful for our Savior and His resurrection, and for the sacrifice that He made for us. I am excited to teach Abby about the true meaning of Easter - hopefully by next year she'll be able to learn a thing or two about it!