January results

Can I just say I'm really glad January is over? This whole no spending thing is the pits. I need some real food. Tortillas just aren't going to cut it anymore. My cute visiting teacher felt so bad for me she sent me home with oranges and fruit leather just so I wouldn't have to live on tortillas alone. (I'm not really living on only tortillas, but from the looks of my fridge you wouldn't know that).
So the results for January's challenge. I'm going to give myself a B+. I had 5 cheats I guess you could call them. The first one was when chicken was on sale. Those marque board things outside the grocery store work. I wouldn't have even known chicken was on sale. Dang you advertising!
Second, I'm a mentor for 4-h and I went rollerskating one week with my girl Clara. It was only $3, but still . . . whatever, I didn't fall and we had fun.
Third, I went out to eat with a friend. She has been in Florida for the last 8 months and is leaving for Guatemala like yesterday or today or something. I wasn't going to tell her that I'd just have to pass when I hadn't seen her in FOREVER. Relationships are way more important.
Fourth, I had to put gas in my car. I'm not a fan of walking everywhere. Especially when my ward activities are 4 miles away (one way) and at night.
Fifth, probably the lamest one, I bought the new Star Trek on amazon for a total of 5.78 (includes shipping). 2 disc set! I know, so lame. Whatever, I'm gonna watch me some Chris Pine and love every minute.
Not a complete success but not a complete fail either. Grocery store, I'll be seeing you tomorrow. February, I'm ready for you. Let's try some new food!!!!!

Make a wish!

Last night we braved the wet snow to celebrate Chinese New Year. A student from BYU who is from China brought back a whole bunch of floating lanterns when she went home for the holidays and then she invited all who wanted to participate to come and light a lantern.

It was so fun to look up and see them floating away into the snowy night.

I guess you're suppose to write wishes all over the lantern and then you let them float away and they will all come true. Or something like that. I was a little bit late so I may have missed the explanation. Most people just made a wish in their mind and then let the lantern float away. That was the option I chose.

It was a really fun activity and I think we've decided to find some more lanterns and make a date out of it.

Here's to hoping my wish comes true in 2012.

I love good days.

Friday was a fabulous day. Do you ever just have those days where you wake up happy? That was my Friday. I woke up happy, if not a little tired from staying up too late chatting. I had great hair, made it to work on time, work was good, I went to leave for lunch and my boss told me to go to lunch and not come back. :) Love those days.
Lunch was probably the highlight of the day. I had lunch with an old roommate, Natalie. She's been working in Disney World for the last 8 months and is headed off to Guatemala on Monday for 3 months. It was so great to just sit and chat with her. I love that girl! I'm sad now that we didn't do more together when we were roommates, but toward the end of the lunch she said when she was thinking of people she would want to be roommates with when she comes back, my name was on the top of the list. Man that made my whole day.
I get attached to people and want them to be my friend forever, but sadly that doesn't always happen because it takes two people to make relationships work. It made me happy to be reminded that I have friends in my life who really do like me (I know that sounds really dumb) and who are willing to put in the effort to continue to be my friend just like I'm willing to be theirs. It was just so great.
I followed up lunch with a trip to the plasma center. As I was sitting there waiting the girl next to me started asking questions about donating. She was in for the first time and was a bit nervous. It was fun to sit and chat with her. We discovered that we were at BYU-Idaho at the same time and that we served missions in neighboring countries. It was fun to make a new friend.
After she left, I went in for screening. This is usually my least favorite part, but I had a super friendly person doing the screening and the finger prick didn't even hurt at all. It was glorious.
Then I was off to actually donate.
Some people think I'm crazy for going in twice a week and being stuck with a needle. I really don't think it's that bad. Friday was a new experience for me. My favorite plasma friend David did my stick and when the needle went in there was a lovely spray of blood coming out. Most of it ended up on his hands, but some of it found it's way onto my clothes. I thought it was kind of funny. :) After going home and washing out my clothes, I went to a birthday party for some people in my ward. It was great fun. My friend Pam went with me. It was quite entertaining to watch them play human foosball and we even joined in at the very end. All in all it was a fantastic Friday and I am grateful for such great friends.

Sundays

I love Sundays. I dare say it's my favorite day of the week. Except when I was on the mission. Sunday's on the mission were stressful and not enjoyable or very uplifting at all.
Anyway, today was an especially uplifting and wonderful Sunday. Maybe the fact that I had an amazing time at the temple last night added to my Sunday experience, but none the less it was fabulous.
The talks in church were good. Sunday school lesson good. Relief Society good. Really nothing out of the ordinary, but I felt that all the topics flowed together. I read a bit from the Sunday school manual after church, took a nap and then went to dinner with Aubrey. The dinner was quite delicious, movie afterward uplifting, nice conversation. Ward prayer was good. Even the spiritual thought tied in with the topic from the meetings today. It was really just so great. Then I stuck around while Aubrey's home teachers shared a message. I don't have home teachers (that I know of) and so it was nice to have that. Really it was a very relaxing day and filled with the Spirit. I'm a fan of days like today.
Dear rest of the week,
Why can't you be more like Sunday?
Maybe I'll try and help you out a bit more.
Love,
Cathy

Never fails

Once upon a time I wrote about a guy who asked for my number at institute. He called, we went out, the end. Apparently he wasn't interested and that's okay. Wednesday at plasma as I'm leaving, this guy follows me out and asks for my number. Any guy who has the guts to just go ask a girl for her number shouldn't be rejected in my opinion (unless he appears super creepy or you don't feel good about that, neither of those applies to my situation).
So this boy adds me on facebook and we chat a bit. So far I'm not too impressed.
On the other hand, I have a small (maybe not so small) crush on my friends neighbor. Seriously so cute, really funny, smart, good listener (I'm not talking, sit down and tell him my life story, more like ask what time it is in a room of 10 people and he's the only one who pays any attention and gives me the time), motivated and on and on. I'm sure if I knew him more than the 3 short encounters we've had I could be more detailed. :) Anyway, my friend invited me to a music night last night at this boys house. We'll call this boy Ben. So, I'm definitely going to go because it's at Ben's house (Ben plays the guitar) and I figure the chances are high that he'll be there and who doesn't enjoy a good music night. I go. My friend NEVER SHOWS UP, which I found out later was because she thought I had gone to some other party. Luckily I had met most of the other people who were there before so I wasn't feeling super awkward, unluckily Ben was not there. He came home after I'd been there about an hour and a half, then left. Then came back and then left. :( It was a bit sad, but I had fun at the music night anyway. He did say I had cool pants and I was leaving (the same time he left for the second time) he winked and waved goodbye. Now I'm not going to read into the winking, actually I'm not going to read into any of it because let's be honest, there's nothing to read. BUT, he did notice that I was alive and I at least merited some recognition.
Now to my point after all of that not really very important stuff. Why is it, that the boys I'm interested in are not interested in me? Or maybe just don't show it? and the boys that are, aren't really the quality I'm looking for? Here's a better question that I don't really want to ask, why don't I take a leaf from Mr. Plasma's book and just ask out Ben? I actually know the answer to that, because I'm scared. Plain and simple. It's quite terrifying. I don't know how guys do it at all!! I even know Ben (sort of). I'm not asking a complete stranger and yet, can't do it.
Maybe the problem is me not showing interest. It's not really a secret that in flirting 101 I'd get a big fat F.
Uggghhhh, March is going to be a hard month. Dear friends, I am giving another plea for help to achieve my March challenge. As you can see I'll definitely need it. If any of you happen to know Ben . . . I wouldn't mind being set up with him. :)
Mr. Doughnut man, wherever you are, you definitely have your work cut out for you.

What a weekend.

This weekend was crazy! I'm learning that I'm just not as young as I use to be and staying up really late multiple nights in a row just isn't as easy as it once was. But it's still really fun.
Thursday started off the madness of it all. I'm a mentor for 4-h and we went roller skating. I had not been roller skating in about 8 years, but I managed to not fall down a single time. Go me! Sadly though, the skates gave me a couple blisters on my right ankle and my back was pretty sore by the end. After dropping off my mentee I got a text telling me about a s'mores party so I headed over.
I was instantly a hit with my awesome jacket my brother gave me for Christmas, not that that's important, but it was still fun. We sat outside with the coals for a long time and had a delightful time. When the coals died down we headed inside and played around on the guitars. (I just sat and observed since my guitar skills are non-existent). We had a nice chat and finally headed home at 12:30. Night one over.
Friday night I took my friend Aubrey out to dinner for her birthday. We had a lovely time at Brick Oven and then headed to a birthday party for another friend who shares the same birthday as Aubrey. After a couple games of Bananagrams, an amazing trampoline routine, and the movie Thor, I headed home. This night wouldn't have been too late (I got home around 12 ish), but Aubrey's birthday was Saturday and I still had not finished her present so I stayed up until 2 binding the quilt that I actually made for her last year. Hurray for finally finishing.

Saturday was Aubrey's birthday party and I went over early with her to help her set up. What a party it was! So many people and such a great time. I stayed and helped with clean-up and then helped her carry her stuff in when we got home. It was a 1 am bedtime.
Sunday I had a baby blessing to attend at 9am. Thanks to my multiple late nights I woke up at 8:40 and only barely made it to the blessing.
It was a fantastic weekend, but man, I really can't stay up so late all the time.

Bucket list continued

- Go on a cruise
- Go skydiving
- Learn Italian
- Visit Italy
- Learn to play the guitar
- Go to the festival of colors
- Run a 1/2 marathon
- Ride in a hot air balloon/ go to the hot air balloon festival in New Mexico
- Shoot a gun
- Write a children's book
- See Josh Groban in concert
- See Wicked
- Go to all the temples in Utah
- See a firefly
- Watch a meteor shower
- Hike the Y
- Be in a flash mob
- Visit Prince Edward Island
- Swim with dolphins
- Visit all 50 of the United States
- Be the voice of an animated character
- Be complaint free for 30 days
- Ride a tandum bike
- Run a Marathon
- Run a Ragnar
- Go to a Brad Paisley concert
- Visit Europe. A lot of it.
- Go on a spur of the moment trip. on a plane. to somewhere random.
- Be a volunteer at a telethon

The Challenge

Okay, so it's a new year and I have some resolutions, but I was trying to think of something new. So I came up with having a challenge to complete every month. Only problem is I can't think of things, so I'm asking for some suggestions. I have 9 so I need three more.

January- No spend month. I can pay rent, pay for my tires, and other such bills, but no groceries, gas, eating out (except for friends birthdays), etc.

February- Date Month. This one scares me. I have to go on a date a week and since I don't get asked on many dates, it's going to be up to me OR (and this is the better option) my friends can set me up. Be thinking people.

March- March Madness. Read the Book of Mormon in one month.

April- New Recipes. Try 2 new recipes a week. I'm open to suggestions of things you really like. :)

May- No treats. No candy, dessert, soda, etc. I can have gum, but that's it.

June- run 100 miles. (modified 4/30 since I almost ran that in April, I thought I'd better stretch it) I suppose this might kill me so then I won't need anything for the next 6 months. :)

July- Cowboy month. Go to a rodeo, shoot a gun, ride a horse, and any other cowboy thing we can think of.

August- No facebook

September- Temple month. Attend the temple twice a week and every day for one week. Provo is even open Monday mornings.

October- Vegetarian month.

November- Service month. Find planned service activities to do every week.

December-

As for December I'm open to any suggestions. Ready, set, go.