New Year...Same 'Ole Me!

I don't know what to write, but it's been quite a while. I have been enjoying the quick updates of friend's lives on Facebook, but it never really takes the place of reading my friend's more personal thoughts and photos.

Life is good! Yes, there are days & sometimes whole weeks that are rough and I wonder if I will make it through sane, but for the most part...life is good. I haven't been able (or I guess haven't made the time) to visit family & friends as much as I have in the past and I miss doing that. I'm hoping to make the rounds in the first couple months of this new year though. Phoenix in January, Palmdale in February and that's where the plan ends. Hope to see you soon!

Happy New Year!!

Missing the Gym

Funny...I never thought I would actually miss going to the gym, but I really do. I was planning on going today, but my feet are already hurting quite a bit from a busy week at work.

For many who do not know, I have been dealing with foot pain which has also caused knee & hip pain, thus the lack of time in the gym. It all started back in May, but I didn't do anything about it until June. The pain in my feet just got to be so bad that I was having a hard time walking at work. At first it was worse when I walked in bare feet, but then they started to hurt all the time. I broke down & went to see a podiatrist. I found out that I had a neuroma in my right foot (which is an inflamed nerve) and some inflammation at the base of each big toe. The pain was caused by my tendons attached at the site of inflammation. I was given a cortisone shot between my 3rd & 4th toes (which hurt like hell!), given a prescription for anti-inflammatories and padding to give my right foot some relief. This all helped some, but still hurt especially when I was at work.

After 3 weeks, the anti-inflammatories started to work & I was feeling a lot better. I was told that I would need orthotics as I have a very high arch & it puts extra pressure on certain parts of my foot. I was not crazy about the idea of spending around $300 for orthotics so I asked around at work. I found out a Physical Therapist casts for orthotics & would only charge cost & shipping....HUGE savings!

I am semi-patiently waiting for my orthotics to come in so I can get back into a good gym routine. I have had an unfortunate weight gain which I'm sure doesn't help the foot pressure situation either (hahaha). I am hoping the I can get back to jogging & being able to play raquetball without aggravating my feet. There will be some celebrating going on when that day comes! :)

love to all!

Ohio

Well, after about 2 months of total non interest in getting involved with anyone of the male species (anything other than just friends) I met one who seems to have pulled me out. His name is Jeff "Ohio" & he lives here in St. George, but is from Ohio, thus the nickname. He just turned 38, has been married with no kids, is a very tall 6'5" and has a shaven head (as many of you may know, I really like that look). We met through a mutual friend about 2 1/2 weeks ago and have been talking & spending time together ever since. We've started playing raquetball at least once a week when work schedules allow. I love this as I have been wanting to find someone to play with. I don't have pictures, but he does so I will have to get some from him to post on here. I actually found a guy who loves to take pictures! I know many of you will be excited about this. Well, I will try to update better than in the past, but there are no guarantees. ;)

Starting over....again

*WARNING: This post may seem as though I am whining or throwing a pity party. I am not...I am just posting my feelings & thoughts. You are free to stop reading at any point & encouraged to do so especially if you start to feel as though you want to reach through the computer & strangle me.*

The title of my blog hit me today. Kinda funny how that happens. It's been the title for a while & as I was wondering about what I could possibly write, it hit me. I was reading a wonderfully elegant post by a friend, thinking I wish I could write like that. I mean, to be able to put your struggles in such a positive light...I would love that. I figure most people don't want to hear the thoughts on my life as they have mostly been negative. I try to put the positive spin on it...adding the things I have learned (or think I have). Sometimes I wonder if I really have learned anything as I keep circling back around (or so it seems).

I was starting my new year off in a very positive light. I had a few goals in mind, felt good that this year was going to be a great one and was actually feeling pretty good about my life. I was okay with being alone (something I have been struggling with for several months), excited about what this new year had to offer, wanting to get back into things I have done for years and enjoying the nice cool of winter (love winter!). What happened? I feel like I have been sent back in time and feeling everything I thought I was over. Back to the being at the edge of tears all the time. I found myself allowing others to help me feel like I just wasn't worth their time. THIS was a turning point, or so I thought. I have found that I do not handle feeling sad and insignificant well. I feel like I have no control as I burst into tears because of a dumb commercial or part of a tv show. It was enough to piss me off. Now this is an emotion I can handle, feel like I can control. Unfortunately, I rarely stay this way for long. I was hoping to hang on to it for a while, but NO. I find myself back at the edge of insanity (tears). I HATE CRYING!!!! I feel so dang weak and find that I feel stupid for crying over nothing....really? haven't I shed enough tears over this? I want to be done!

I feel like I am starting over again. I know I have a good life and so I feel like I must be a spoiled brat. I want what I want and because I can't have what I want I'm going to throw a royal fit by kicking, screaming & crying until I get what I want. Of course by saying this I know that when I get what I want I may not want it anymore...lol. I have a great job & work with amazing people, have a wonderful family who love & support me through any & everything, have the best of friends who are willing to listen to my tearful & retarded rants (& I certainly appreciate you not slapping me upside the head because I'm just not getting it) and above all I know that I have a Father in Heaven who does truly love me (I am sure He is past tired of watching me act as if I am not grateful for all the blessings I am constantly given). I guess I am ungrateful as the blessings I want most of all are not the ones I am receiving and thus the tantrums. Does anyone know how to stop wanting something you've wanted for most of your life? If you do I would like to know the secret.

Okay, so now I would like to go back to the beginning of this year when I wasn't bursting into tears at least once a day, when I was happier and my future looked hopeful. I am working on that. Until then I will make it through and hope that everyone will have a lot of patience with me. I know I am truly blessed and that my life could actually be hard. I could actually have something to cry or be sad about. I know I will make it through and be a better & stronger person because or inspite of it all. I have definitely learned more about me, not all of it good, but learning is the key, right?

Many thanks to all you wonderful people in my life! I love you all!!

Thanksgiving to Christmas

Well I have to say that I am glad to see that I am among a group of friends who are also a little behind on their blogs. I figured I could catch up with one covering Thanksgiving & Christmas as not much else has been happening.

Thanksgiving was spent in the lovely Antelope Valley. Okay, so I admit that I don't find much lovely about it, BUT I do have some lovely family there. We had a Bird family reunion during the holiday weekend as the greatest number of family members could attend. We certainly missed the Kenna & Tony Miani family, Carrie & Andy Borman family and Craig & Keri family. It seems as we all get older & the family expands, it's harder to get everyone together. It was great fun to spend time getting reaquainted with cousins I haven't seen in 2 years. The young ones grow up so fast! Here are a few pictures from our good times. I really appreciate all those who put in so much work to prepare the food & games.

For Christmas I was so happy to be in Grand Junction, CO with the snow! While it didn't snow while I was there, I was perfectly happy to enjoy the snow already on the ground. I was able to spend some time with Craig, Keri, Ryan, Ruby, Mom & Dad. It was a nice & relaxing time. I can't believe how big the girls are getting. Ryan is so full of energy, she makes me tired just watching her. Ruby is army crawling & is not fond of smiling for the camera. Luckily we were able to get some cute pictures of her anyway. I also was able to go to lunch with my friend, Monica, before I left to go home. I always love visiting with my friends. Unfortunately I don't always have time to visit with everyone I want to. Even though I get 7 days off, it speeds by & before I know it, I have to come back home to get ready for a week of work. Here are some pictures from Christmas.

I have certainly been blessed to be able to spend time with so much family this holiday season. I also got a new bike for Christmas & am excited to ride on some of the trails here in town. I'm hoping this will be a fun new way for me to get some exercise.

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving & Christmas!

Mexico

Okay, so the cruise was a ton of fun! Yes, I did get some motion sickness, but nothing too bad. I was still able to eat plenty & enjoy my time aboard ship. Mom & I went on the Mexican Riviera cruise on the Royal Carribean Radiance of the Seas. We boarded ship Wednesday (14th) in the afternoon. I was amazed at how quickly people started drinking...we hadn't even left the dock! We headed to the buffet to eat lunch...I was starving! The food was good overall. It was nice to have a variety. I think I did pretty good considering the amount of food available (I still fit into all my clothes).

Our first stop was Ensenada, Mexico. My first thought as we were riding through town was, "this looks just like Palmdale!" I guess since the city is only about 2 hours from San Diego, I shouldn't have been too surprised that it looked a lot like places I've been in California. There was a Costco, Home Depot & a few dollar stores. Our tour guide was sure to point out all the gas stations....only 1 brand, Pemex, which is owned by the government. Apparently the government buys up any land that produces oil. We rode on a bus for about an hour to "La Bufadora" which is a blow hole. Yes, very exciting, but it was a pretty area there on the coast. We had to walk through the gauntlet of shops before seeing this natural phenomenom (which I love....ok not really). Mom had more fun shopping, I think. I'm just not a fan of the pressure type selling they do. I like to browse without someone constantly trying to sell me something. I loved how they would say to come buy something I don't need...hahaha.

Our second day was at sea. It was nice to be able to sleep in which was not difficult since our stateroom did not have a window. We had to use Mom's cell phone as an alarm clock because we might have slept all day otherwise. We spent some time at the gym, outside enjoying the sun and of course eating! It was a nice relaxing day. We also went to the after dinner show which was great. We missed the first night's show which we were told was horrible, so we didn't mind.

The next day we were in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. I had the tendering experience since we couldn't pull right up to the dock. We picked sea kayaking which was fun. Mom & I were in the same kayak. We paddled pretty far in some pretty choppy water. It was interesting being so close to the water in what seemed like the boat route. We had water taxis & other tourist boats driving past us & they seemed pretty close to me. Apparently there was an unusually large number of jellyfish in the water. I hadn't noticed any, but felt some stinging on my leg for a short time....not sure what it was though. Mom had one splash up on her leg leaving a nice red welt on her thigh. We got to rest on the beach for a little bit while some crazy people went snorkling. I would have been happy to go if there weren't jellyfish everywhere & a lot of boat traffic. When we were done, we decided to walk through town (sorry Mom...it was my idea). We were surprised at the upscale stores & restaurants. It was SO hot as we were walking around. I was sweating like crazy & poor Mom looked so red & tired. There were a few street vendors I would have liked to stop for, but I was so dang hot, hungry & thirsty, I just wanted to get back to the ship. Several times I was asked if I wanted a Mexican boyfriend after saying no thank you to offers of cheap silver jewelry. I had to laugh as I said to Mom..."I can get one of those where I live". I mean HELLO...there is definitely not a shortage in the USA! We were thrilled to get back to where the tender was & found some ice water waiting for us.....AHHHH refreshing! We got back to the ship & ate & I was back out in the sun for a little bit. I ended up getting my shoulders nice & toasty even with 2 coats of 30 sunblock. I am still peeling!

(the blue line on the sand are jellyfish)

The next day we were at sea again. We had a personal training session and enjoyed some reading time. The day had quickly turned overcast & cool, especially with the wind from the speed of the ship. We watched a towel folding demonstration. It is so fun to see what the stateroom attendants can do with some towels. Later we watched some of the bartenders doing some juggling & mixing of drinks...pretty cool. Later that evening we watched the finals of the karaoke competition. There were some great singers. It was a lot of fun. Our dinner table group was pretty interesting. There was a mother with her 2 daughters & a dad with his 14 year old son. The 2 guys were only there 2 of the nights. The mother & her daughters were LDS! What are the odds?

We needed to be up fairly early to get off the ship the next morning. I was ready to be back, but will definitely be ready for my next cruise! The plan had been to spend a little time in San Diego then for me to drop Mom off in Palmdale (I would stay the night) so she could spend a few days with the CA Bird flock & then fly back to CO. Unfortunately, my cousin's husband had passed away the Wednesday we left and the funeral was Tuesday. So, we got in the car & headed back to St. George.

It was a great vacation & I am so lucky that I have such wonderful parents! This was my birthday present & Dad was wonderful enough to let Mom & I go off on our own. Thank you SO MUCH!!! Love you!!!!

So, I don't even know what to title this entry. It seems that I have used update...slacker...and any other appropriate title. Perhaps it will just remain titleless...haha...is that even a word? Anyhoo, life hasn't been too exciting since I last wrote. I am still enjoying the boxes stacked in the exact same places since I moved in. I just haven't had the motivation to get more done. I have decided on a second date for my housewarming party. I was going to have it last Friday, but decided to go visit the CA Birds (with little convincing needed). I REALLY needed to get out of town. So, my party (yes, can you believe I am hosting a party? It's almost scary!) will be on Oct. 2. It should be fun since the people who will most likely show up are good at parties. This should give me the motivation to get things better organized & clean! :)

Another thing that's been happening is boy drama...oh how I love drama (BLAH). I broke up with Kelly. It was a process that took over a month since I was really struggling with the decision. I know it was for the best, but it's been really hard. I find myself looking for his truck everywhere I go (there are so many dang white Chevy trucks here!) I still miss him & it really hit me as I was driving back to St. George Monday night. I enjoyed the distraction of visiting my busy CA Birds and found that returning to an empty & quiet house is not something I was looking forward to. I have been lucky with family & friend's support. For those of you not counting...ok so all of you :)...this is the second relationship to end in 10 months. Each one lasted about 4 months....huh, does anyone else see a trend? Hopefully it's a short trend.

Moving on to happier topics...It did my heart a world of good to be with my family. Driving up into the driveway & having 3 kids run out of the house shouting your name can only make you smile. Bryn (2) kept saying "Shelly home, Shelly home!" It was SO cute! I loved all the hugs & the excitement of having me there. I got to walk Ty & Lori to school on Friday morning. It's fun to see the excitement they have of going to school.

Coming soon....I am looking forward to buying a new bike & going riding with my friend Karalyn. Also, Mom & I will be going on a cruise to Mexico Oct. 14! This is my first one & I am WAY EXCITED!!! I just hope I don't get sea sick. Hopefully I will be better at updating this now that my nights are free...but don't expect too much! hehe

Excuses

Ok, so you may think that I have no excuse for being such a slacker at updating my blog. Well, I think that there are a few good excuses. I have been really busy with work, buying and moving into my new house. June just flew by and then July was just plain horrid. I was way over stressed.

My excuses for no pics of Kelly is that I'm just retarded about taking pictures of people other than family unless they start it. I might have taken pictures when I went camping with Kelly & his son (Chayse), but I wouldn't say we hit it off. I think he may have looked at me 2 or 3 times & said 1 or 2 words to me. It was great to see Kelly with his son & I enjoyed watching Chayse having fun with his cousin. He's a really cute kid, but hasn't had the easiest life.

We'll see what happens in the next few weeks. Maybe I'll surprise you all and have the pics you've been waiting for. I did take a few of the house. I decided that I would share them even though you will all be able to see the mess too. I guess you have all seen a messy house at one time in your life. I'm slowly finishing the last of the boxes & organizing. I'm hoping to get it together soon as some friends are itching to have a housewarming party.

Mobile Uploads

These are some pics from my phone. I know everyone wants pics of a certain guy, but I just don't have any yet. Hopefully soon, when his son comes to visit. Until then you can enjoy these of my family! :)

Slacker!

I know (Monica)! I have been the biggest slacker in updating my blog. You may wonder why... well not those of you who know... Yes, I am dating again, there really wasn't that big of a break. I met Kelly pretty much 2 weeks after things with Derek ended. (Grandma loves the whole Shelly/Kelly thing...I know, funny) So, here's the rundown: he just turned 35, has a son (10) who lives in AZ, has an awesome dog (Chopper), is from Beaver & yes loves to camp, hunt & fish! We actually went camping this last weekend. (It's been a while since I've gone camping without toilet facilities close by.) Kelly is a diesel mechanic here in St. George. I have met some of his family, talked on the phone with one of his sisters and will probably meet his son when he comes for a visit next month....we may go camping again.

Okay....so that parts done. I guess things have been pretty busy for other reasons as well. I went to Grand Junction for Mother's Day & Ruby's blessing. It was fun because the ZBird family was able to come spend a few days too. We got family pictures taken which is always fun....right? I love having updated pictures, it's just harder the bigger the group....especially with an infant & 22 month old.

I promise to add pics later, hopefully not too much later. My next week off I'm spending some time in AZ. Can't wait to see Leslie's baby boy!!!! Hopefully Jen's little guy too!

The Hair Week

So, I decided that if in fact I do find & buy a house, I won't be able to keep up the darker hair color. It is also almost summer & a good time to go lighter. I went to have my color closer to my natural color so the growth wouldn't be so noticeable. Well, apparently I shouldn't have chosen a gold toned color. My hair just soaks it up & the girl put me under the dryer because the last time I went in my roots wouldn't take the color. This made the color more intense & more of an orangey color. This wouldn't have been so bad if it was more throughout the rest of my hair, but NO....I had orangey roots & the rest was dark....not too cute! I went back the next day for almost 3 hours to have it fixed. They had to first use bleach to pull out some of the darker color & the roots. This caused flaming, "carrot top" orange roots! Now I don't have anything against that color hair....it just doesn't look good on me. Thankfully it is much better now, but I didn't have any of my natural color left for the second girl to work from. My hair also got a little damaged from all this so today I got 2 inches cut off. Kinda sad because I've been trying to grow it out, but it really needed to be cut. I like it & can still pull it up for the summer heat & work. I'll have to post pics when it looks cute. The cut is the same as I've had, just the color is different.

House Hunt Update:
This is not fun! 2 houses I've put offers on didn't go through. Really bummed about the second one. I now understand what many of you have been through....looking & looking for your house. My enthusiasm has died down, but am still kinda looking. I'm just afraid that what I really want is too far out of my price range. I'm trying to keep it all in perspective....this is only my FIRST place and I AM still single & don't need a lot of space. It'll happen one of these days.

Update in Pictures

This is my update for the last month. You may notice I had a hard time keeping my eyes open in some of the pics....what's up with that? hahaha

There's NO crying in baseball...

Ok, so these different sayings kept running through my head last night.
-If life is like baseball and there's no crying in baseball....this girl can't play
-If there's no crying in baseball then it's a good thing:
1.I'm not playing
2.the game is over
3.life's not a baseball game.

Any preferences as to which one sounds better? I put one on my facebook profile. Some of you may not know what the fascination is. Well, for one thing, I love that movie quote and the other is it was a pretty up then down week.

I started off last week enjoying some time with family and seeing my new niece, Ruby (even if it was just for a few minutes). One of my remaining grandpas died on Wednesday so I took Saturday off to go to the funeral in Riverton, UT. I had to be back to work on Sunday, so it was one of those "fun" quick trips. I'm glad I was able to go. I am also no longer going to be giving updates on my dating life with Derek. Ahhhh, the fun of ending a relationship! I know many of you have gone through this many times and now I know how much is SUCKS! I hope that I don't have to do this many more times. I think I have surprised a few people at how well I am doing. I am trying to be "real mature". We'll see how well that works for me! haha We are going to try to be friends. We'll see how that works too. There's no anger.....just sadness.

I'll do a much better update after my CA Birds come to visit! I'm so excited!!!

Valentine's Day Remains the Same

Some might look at that title as quite sarcastic or negative (which in some cases may be just right). Well, it's neither negative or positive....just a stated fact which I am completely okay with. Valentine's day has not been a HUGE deal in my family. Sure, we'd get a few little treats from Mom & school, but it never has been the whole....you must buy expensive & elaborate gifts to show your love to one another. Dad has always said that it was dumb to have just 1 day to show someone you love them when it should be done every day. I TOTALLY agree! Yes, it's always fun to get gifts, but not when 1 feels they HAVE to because it's Valentine's day. The thought of this day can bring with it a lot of unnecessary pressure. I hinted of this to Derek in the days/week leading up to Saturday. In fact I believe I told a few people that we didn't get each other anything because I wasn't expecting anything. Also, he has his kids this weekend which pretty much meant that there wouldn't be the "Valentine's day date", which, again, I'm totally used to & okay with. Well, to those of you whom I told this lie (unknowingly of course) I apologize. I had breakfast with Derek this morning while his kids were at their ward & before mine started. Who would show up at my house with gifts.....He got me some perfume & a box of chocolate. I felt dumb because I only got him some chocolates at Costco. Granted they are his favorite. I was just going to give them to him just because so he didn't feel bad for not getting me anything and just because I know he likes them. Guess who felt bad! Well I told him that I'd give him a "real" massage (as I've just given him back rubs). So I guess that turns out to be a pretty good gift, right? (Matt can attest to this as he was many a time the "client" for Monica to practice on) Massages run $35 & up (not that money is any indication of one's worth) & well I've been told I'm pretty good so it should be a good gift & thoughtful too as he's always complaining about how his neck & back hurt. THANKS for agreeing with me. All your support is helpful :). He was very nice about it all & said it really wasn't a big deal and he didn't want me to stress about it. He was very willing to say he'd take the raincheck on the massage. LOL, who wouldn't?

So, you may ask what I did with my day and being the kind soul that I am will tell you! I was a good girl & went to the gym early (well for me...). I have been kinda slacking lately & can tell, so it's back to it for me! I ran a few errands waiting to hear from Grandma. She & Grandpa were working a few hours at one of the Parade of Homes homes in the morning. (starting Friday we are having the St. George area Parade of Homes). I have never been since I've lived here & this year decided to buy a ticket & go look at some of the crazy homes people spend their money on. I went with my grandparents to 5 then they kindly took me out to eat. It was a very nice afternoon spent with a wonderful couple. I appreciate them for spending time with me & taking me around.

One of my great accomplishments of the week was to make it through the first 2 groups of songs on Aerosmith Guitar Hero on MEDIUM! I had a hard time passing "Sweet Emotion" and I had to practice it a few times, but I DID IT!!!! Very exciting times in my life!hahaha I really didn't think I would be able to do as well on medium and was pleasantly surprised. WATCH OUT TY!! We will battle it out one of these days & I'll show you what your Aunt Shelly is made of wah ah ah!

My love to all.....as always....everyday you are all the BEST!!!!

side note: i have been enjoying driving a rental car for the last week while my poor baby is getting fixed. pictures to follow....

A Little Freaked Out

Friday afternoon Derek wanted to know what I was doing Saturday. Now this was a little odd as he now has his kids the weekends I don't work. He proceeded to say that maybe all of us could do something if I was up to it. Up to it? Meeting his kids? SCARY!!!! Honestly I was more nervous about meeting his daughter (14) than his son (12). Look, I was a teenage girl once...I didn't understand them then & don't think I am any better at it now. I guess I figure 12 year old boys are a little easier.

Whenever someone would ask me if I've met his kids, I'd happily say...."No, I'm waiting for him to be ready for me to meet them". Well, I guess I thought it would take a bit longer. My grandma said, "it's about time". I'm not so sure I agreed with her, but I AM HAPPY to meet his kids when he wants me to. I don't think I would ever be less freaked out, so I might as well suck up the fear & press forward, right?!

I have to say that my fears were put to rest when he told me that his daughter had opted to hang out with a friend, so I would just be hanging out with him & his son. THAT was definitely doable.(sp?) We went out to eat & then played laser tag. It was pretty fun & I didn't make a complete fool out of myself. On our team, Dylen got 1st, Derek got 2nd & I followed along in 4th. Not too bad for a girl, right?

So, there you have it....I met one of Derek's kids. Could have met his daughter yesterday, but I had already told my friend I'd come over for a little Super Bowl party....GO STEELERS!!!! Have to say that was a good game! We'll have to see what the future weekends hold.

side note: thanks Mom for your encouragement. it really helped! i really tried to be myself & have fun.

My New Year

So, HURRAY, it's a new year! I can hardly believe how fast 2008 went. I was all set to have a fun New Years Eve. I mean, aren't you supposed to automatically have a date for such occasions when you're dating someone? I guess I'm still learning. I woke up Wednesday (12/31) morning feeling like a cold was coming on, but still feeling ok. I thought I had several options for spending the night & ringing in the new year. I found out that Derek had a party he was going to (no, apparently I was not invited) and then a friend of mine decided to go out of town @ the last minute. I could have hung out with my grandparents @ their annual party with 2 other couples, but by the afternoon my cold was getting worse. I figured I probably wouldn't be much fun with my congested head. As the night went on, I just got worse & felt achey. I ended up waiting in line @ Walgreens @ 11:45 thinking I would welcome 2009 with a bunch of sick strangers. I did make it home in time to watch the ball drop then quickly make it to bed with the help of Nyquil.

I was still congested the next morning, but not feeling as bad as I had & headed over to Grandma & Grandpas for a late breakfast....yummy! I stayed for a few hours, then headed over to Dereks for the rest of the day. Gotta love drugs that relieve sinus congestion!

Friday (1/2), I headed to Grand Junction. Some of those elevation changes were killer! I thought my head might explode. It's not my favorite way to travel...stuffy then runny then pressure... I made it well enough.

It was fun to be home & I got to celebrate Christmas with my parents. I was excited to have them open the gifts from me. Unfortunately I wasn't able to see Craig, Keri or Ryan. My parents were very generous as usual. My big gift was a Wii! How fun is that? I also got some great flip flop slippers. I think this was one of the first years that pretty much everything I got was from my list! :) I got several movies (thanks to the CABirds too!)

I spent the weekend sick & grateful to have my mom taking care of me. It's always nice to have someone around to help you when you're sick. My dad gave me a blessing Sunday night which I know helped since I felt tons better Monday then even better Tuesday.

I got to spend a few hours with my friend Monica on Tuesday before I left for St. George. It's always fun to catch up. It's funny how you can be away from a friend for a while & when you see each other again you can start up where you left off. I guess that's a true friend. I'm blessed to have several. I was sad that I couldn't visit with my friend Jolie too. I'll be back!

Yes, I went to see Derek when I got home. I'm still not sure if this was my best decision. My car got hurt while it was parked outside his house. There is now a lovely dent in my rear driver's side door & a little on the driver's door. I realized how bad it was today when I went through the car wash & ended up with some soap suds in my back seat! It's been over a week & I finally heard from the insurance company of the car that hit mine. They informed me that they are going to accept my claim & fix my car. Well, isn't that nice of them since that's why drivers have insurance....so they can take care of these things! The thing is, I wish I could get them to pay for my whole car to be painted! It is in desparate need of a paint job! Oh well. Here are a few pics.

I'm hoping there isn't more damage than the dents. The rear wheels were moved closer to the curb. Derek said he could see the marks left by the move. The rear door is hard to close & my door sticks a little.

I hope your New Year started off much better than mine. Oh, I'm not really complaining. I know it could be much worse!

HAPPY 2009!

Christmas 2008

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures to commemorate my Christmas day this year....so sad. It was an interesting day & quite different than any other Christmas. I started my day working at the hospital (8-12). I then made a few phone calls. Ty & Lori were way too distracted with the excitement of the day to talk much, but I got the lowdown from Zack & Michelle. When I called Mom & Dad...Dad was home alone starting dinner & working on his life story (I'm excited to read it). Mom was at the movies with Craig, Keri & Ryan.

Next, I set out to deliver a few things to my cousins & Aunt & Uncle. I struck out at the first 2 houses. This left me feeling quite sad. I mean who doesn't want to spend some time with family on Christmas? I finally found my way to my cousin's house (I'd never been there before). Here I found my aunt & uncle. I told them I had been hunting them down! It was fun to spend a few hours chatting & watching the chaos that tends to go along with the day.

My final visiting stop was @....yup....Derek's. He had his kids most of Christmas Eve & Christmas morning. (We went to the movies Christmas Eve while his kids were @ a family party with their mom) So, Derek bought a Wii & to go along with that Guitar Hero Aerosmith & World Tour. He got me started on a song and was supposed to get ready so we could try to find some place to eat. Let's just say that I got to his house about 6 PM & we ordered our (mexican) food @ 10 PM. I was starving! We did have fun playing Guitar Hero & bowling. I must say that I kicked butt in the bowling....watch out Ty! I even beat him on a few songs, but I don't really count those as he was playing on medium while I stuck with easy. I did play medium with him on one song & he got a little perterbed because he felt things should be even. (I know ahhhh...so cute, right....blah. Okay, it does make me smile a bit) He is pretty funny when we've played games. He is pretty competitive, but still tries to help me out so I don't fail miserably. We played Monopoly on his Xbox & I was the second one to go bankrupt....he said he was sorry & set out to kick the other computer players trash! :)

So, that was my day. Exciting, I know. I look forward to having Thanksgiving & Christmas off next year so I can spend it with family. It's just not the same without them. I love you all....my wonderful family (and those friends I consider family & ok....all my friends)! I hope everyone had a great Christmas & made some wonderful memories.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Oh Alright!

So I was wondering how many people would comment that I mentioned Derek's name in my last post. I certainly wasn't disappointed....so thanks! :) So there....I mentioned him again! I have to admit that there have been a couple times in the last 2 months when I thought that maybe I was more interested than him. This is such new territory for me that I am struggling with these new situations & trying not to be a psycho girl. (haha....is that possible?) He has more of a life than I do so sometimes when I want to hang out...he's busy. I don't make a big deal out of it....who wants a girl like that? I know that would be a major turn off for me. He has moved into a house. He is really happy to be out of his parent's basement. He has a cat now (hmmm...I am more of a dog person) & she is quite skittish. I have not met his kids or his family....that is up to him to decide. He hasn't met any of my family either. I thank my family for being fairly patient even though I know it's hard for you. :)

I've decided that I'm not such a fan of this "dating" stuff. Wouldn't be nice to just find someone & get married without all this uncertainty about how you feel....how he feels....blah blah blah. NO! I am not saying that I am ready to be married anytime soon. There are definitely still those times when I see a young family with adorable little kids & I long for that day to be much closer. But, there are also times I continue to enjoy being single. I think the longing for a family of my own is still much stronger than wanting to be single & have my own space. I think that dating someone has made it a bit easier to handle not having that family...does that make sense to anyone?

I hope this helps some of you & your curiosity about the Shelly/Derek situation. I still don't have pictures of him....sorry.

snow...Snow....SNOW

So we've been getting a bit of snowy weather here in St. George over the past week. I love the snow, but not necessarily driving in it. It's so beautiful to watch, especially when it's quiet with no traffic outside. Last night it really started snowing & sticking to the roads. I had a fun time driving home from Derek's last night....slipping & sliding around a few corners. I had to take some pictures of the snow. It was so pretty & I love how it seems so much lighter outside. All I was missing was a wood burning fireplace & a nice huge picture window. (sigh) Today the snow has melted off the roads & is slowly disappearing from the ground. The weather was sufficiently snowy enough so that my trip to Colorado was stopped....:(

I went to Las Vegas for a few hours with a couple friends on Wednesday. It was a fun time, but it started snowing on the way home. We had lunch at Margaritaville for my friend Karalynn's birthday. It was a fun place to eat...very tropical inside while it snowed outside.

Wednesday night

Thursday morning

I know it doesn't really look like a lot compared to some pictures I've seen...even Palmdale got a ton of snow! I heard Ty was so excited he didn't have to go to school....AHHH I remember those days. I LOVE WINTER!!!

Thankful

I know I'm a little late with this post. I am finding out more & more about who I am and it's a little scary at times. I've always thought I was pretty laid back, but have come to find out that I'm a bit of a control freak! YIKES!!! I'm also more needy & obsessive than I thought as well. These are traits I am NOT thankful for, but I guess I should be thankful that I am able to recognize them so I can limit the damage I could do with them (at least that's what I'm hoping).

Mom, Dad, Craig, Keri, Ryan, Aunt Karen & Uncle Byon all came into town for Thanksgiving @ Grandma & Grandpa Bird's. I didn't get to spend as much time with them as I would have liked as I was working, but the time that I did was fun. We celebrated Ryan's 5th birthday @ a pirate themed pizza place that is new in town. Dad helped me get more pumped up about looking for a house as we drove around & looked @ a few places. I am SO thankful for his help. We played card games & I played with Ryan. She has quite the imagination! We were playing "jail" and I got arrested for stealing a remote (what was I thinking?) Come to find out my "pretend" husband was a drug addict! (again....what was I thinking? marrying a drug addict? :) ) Later we played "restaurant" and Ryan went ALL out preparing for my "pretend" boyfriend. She pretended to decorate & was SOOO excited when he arrived. She is so funny! She gave me the biggest hug when I first saw her...I love it when all the kids get excited about seeing me! I had to include some pictures of Ryan in her pirate getup & her birthday present...dressup clothes.

I am so thankful for family & friends. How can anyone make it through this life without their support? I love you all!