Pyxlin

I was talking with a friend of mine last week, (cough, Vicki, cough) and she shared a really neat website with me. It's called Pyxlin.

I am a horrible journal keeper. I try to make myself feel better about the whole subject by telling people that I keep a blog. The truth is, I know deep down that I am still entrenched in my horrible journal writingness. Well, the subject of journal keeping came up with my friend and she pulled up the website she uses to organize and write her journals. That's right - JOURNALS! I was so impressed, I came home and took a tour of their site and I said, "sign me up!"

The site is http://www.pyxlin.com/ - it pretty cool. Signing up gives you access to the online storage they have for your writing, ability to keep mulitple journals at once, add photos (color and black and white), and you can have them publish it for you or download and take it somewhere else.

There is a fee but it's not bad. If you pay annually ($30) it breaks down to $2.50 a month. You can also sign up for a one month free trial.

So, here goes my "attempt" at becoming more than I am . . . or just actually doing something I shoud really already be doing.

Thank You Sid

I got tagged by Sid to post the 4th picture in the 4th file on my computer. I love getting tagged for this. It's always fun to revisit picture - especially pictures of when my kids were younger.

In this picture Carson had been attending 11 year old scouts and was receiving a rank advancement. Look at how many merit badges he has - 9 of them babies. He now has 53 which fills up the front of his sash and is starting to go down the back. This picture was in a file labeled "Carson's Eagle Slideshow." Carson received his Eagle in 2007. I put together a slideshow that played pictures of Carson involved in scouting from Tiger Cubs through receiving his Eagle. At his Court of Honor there was a table that displayed items he has collected or represented his involvement in scouting though the years. I left a laptop playing the slideshow on that table so people could watch it as they checked his stuff out. This picture reminds me how proud I am of all that he has done - whether in scouting, school, his music or his personality, he has made some good choices and I appreciate what a great son he is. I love you Carson.

I tag . . . whom ever feels like doing it. What a easy post idea! Just pick the 4th picture of your 4th picture file and write about it.

A unlikely friendship

I think we all deserve a feel good story for today. Here's a story of friendship. A story of two unlikely creatures forging a bond of friendship under fortuitous circumstances in spite of accepted norms. There's a lesson here somewhere.



Watch CBS Videos Online

Thanks to Uncle Jack for sharing!

Ice Climbing - a sport for crazy people

Now, I like me some fun outdoor exploring.

However, I just don't think I can EVER envision myself climbing an ice wall. I don't like to be cold. I'm not wild about using axes to keep me from falling. Knowing me, I would probably drop one and severe a limb or impale myself in the chest.

BUT, as with many testosterone driven activities, my husband and son love ice climbing. Carp took Carson up to Bridal Veil Falls a couple weeks ago and did some climbing. Carson came home totally pumped. He recounted to me different manuvers he used and how he had to hurry past certain points because the ice cold spray from the running falls were blowing on him. Wow! That sounds like fun!

It's when I saw the pictures that I could kind of understand the draw. I have seen pictures like these before. However, after Carson's vivid description I did grasp a bit more why he is drawn to the madness, oh, I mean "fun" and adventure of ice climbing.

I have guilt.

I have been on a PTA board and quite active in my kids schools for many years. The last two years I doubled up on PTA boards and helped at the elementary and junior high as the membership chair. I have loved being informed and part of making decisions for the schools that my kids enjoy attending.



This past fall my husband shared a few choice words about how he hated that I got so busy with school stuff and let stuff around the house slide. This frustration is understood because membership stuff takes up a lot of time during the fall. During these "discussions" I told him I would not volunteer for anything extra next year and take a break. I have been resolved to do this for him and my own sanity. It didn't seem like it would be such a hard thing.



Yesterday I received a phone call from the next PTA president for one of the schools with questions about training someone to take my position for next year. When that part of the conversation was over, she asked if I would head up the book fair next year. I explained that I was not going to be able to take on anything next year. She sounded irritated and exited the conversation quickly.



Now the guilt part. I don't feel guilting about promising my husband I would not take anything else on next year - my family is first, always. I would really like to see some more parents involved anyways. What I feel guilty about is having to actually say "no" knowing that it creates a burden for the person asking to find someone else - this knowing that I am an able body person capable of doing it. I just can't shake it and I wish I could!

S.U.C.K.E.R.

Yep. That's me. I am a sucker.

I had my laptop open on my table when Tammy stopped by the other night to pick up Shelby. She took that opportunity to hold me to the, "Yeah, one of these days I'll sign up for facebook" comment. So, she helped me breeze through the process. I am now a facebook sucker, I mean, participant.

Truth be told, it is kind of fun to see what everyone writes. I especially like seeing all the teenage kids interact with the adults. It's interesting what they hold back and what they don't. I also had no clue my son was commenting on all of MY friends facebook pages. Who knew!

There is one thing that has really made the leap worth it for me. Through a "mutual friend" I have located one of my favorite Young Women's leaders. I thought getting new paint on my hallway walls was best part of my day until I got the email from Anita responding to my inquiry as to whether or not she was who I thought she was.

I admit, I am a sucker. Apparently being a sucker can be worth it!

Happy 17th Anniversary

I was under the weather yesterday and did not post about our 17 year anniversary. That's right - Carp and I have been married for 17 years. The story . . .

Carp and I met at BYU. Yep, we are one of those couples- but not so typical. I worked in the Cannon Center bakery and our fix it guy was on vacation the morning the plug to my mixer blew up in sparks and flames. The fix it guy from Deseret Towers was covering for him and headed on down to my building with his student assistant. That student assistant was set to task fixing my mixer plug. While we worked he engaged me in typical BYU coed conversation, "Where are you from? What's your major?" Etc . . . The conversation went along jokingly with fun punches until I asked where he was from. Lancaster,PA you say? That's were my Dad is from.

Stop in conversation.

There was a definite change in this student assistant's demeanor when he found out my Dad was from Lancaster. He had all kinds of questions for me. Where did he grow up? What high school did he graduate from? And so on and so forth. He continued our chat session until he was done working. See ya later. My thoughts on the conversation: Hum, I wonder if I should call Trent (my boyfriend) when I get home? Actually, I did mention to my roommate I met a cute guy at work. She might find him interesting.

It's strange, but after that day I saw more of that student assistant around the Cannon Center. No biggie - he said "hi" in passing and started up a small conversation occasionally. I figured he must have just started working at D.T. and was hanging where ever his boss went.

Note: This student assistant had been doing fix it stuff at Deseret Towers for quite a while. The fix it boss from the Cannon Center and the fix it boss from Deseret Towers thought it would be a good idea to push him into asking me out because they thought we would be a good couple. Little did they know that the student assistants RED personality only allowed him to do things on his terms.

Back to the main story. Speed ahead about 6 weeks. I was working a double shift (summer)and was not feeling very well. Trent and I had broken up the night before - hence the not feeling very well. I was at the end of my second shift and the student assistant shows up to ask me out on a date. First thought: What the #$^%&! Second thought: I look like *%&U%#! (I was after all, working in a kitchen.) Third thought: Yeah right! I'll go out with you - men are slime - go out with you, use you and throw you to the side. So, I said yes.

As you can see, it did not start off very well. That first date Carp took me to see Ford Fairlane - a woman bashing movie. He laughed through the whole thing! The rest of the night was just as bad as the movie. I really didn't think I would see him again. I did. It was a summer fling. I didn't expect to see him again after he went on one last outing to Arizona before school started. I was actually quite relieved at the thought.

Then the call came.

Carp broke his leg and was going into surgery. Later he told me he wasn't going to call me when he got back from Arizona. He wasn't even sure why he called after he broke his leg. I felt bad for him and helped take care of him. The fix it guys finally figure out we were dating. Took them a couple months!

A year and a half later we were married.

It was a rocky start and a rocky first few years of marriage. I am grateful I went with it though. Carp is a wonderful man and a great father. He is funny and kind hearted. I can't imagine what my life would be like without him. He is my life!

Here are some pics to peruse. (I love the word peruse - it's so cool to write.)

Carp and I visited my parents and grandparents at Thanksgiving in 1990.

Carp had just got a haircut from my roommate. I don't know what I am doing in this picture.

But I sure know what Carp is doing in this picture! (Preference 1991)

Half the reason I married Carp is because he has a great family. The other half is Carp! ;)

(At the farm in PA Christmas 1990)

We were engaged in this picture. August of 1991 we went to Yellowstone with Dale Aston and Lanette Lagerstom. I'm not sure which is more disturbing - my balloon shorts or Dale's polk a dot pink shorts.



The Wedding - January 4th 1992

Carp's sense of humor. How many of you have a picture of your husband sticking his tongue out at you? The reason he's doing it is because my brother-in-law was trying to get "serious" picture of Carp on his knees looking at me. Come on! How could I keep a straight face during that! So - he stuck his tongue out at me!

I don't know, it kind of goes well with his tux.

Carp swooped me up for a picture. I tried as quickly as I could to cover my buttock with my beautiful flower arrangement.

Let's just name it and then we can work at solving it.

It's greed. It's not healthy and something needs to change.

(Click on picture to see full size.)



I hear stuff on the news and shake my head in disgust. Now I am wondering, what can a insignificant peon like myself do to help?