Wicked Witch on the loose.

Who is the Wicked Witch? That would be me. 

You see, last night after Ben and I had gotten through about 14 hours of being run-around-like-a-crazy-person busy, we were finally able to kick back and relax. Heaven, I tell you. Just sitting in the cold basement watching season one of Parenthood (which is nice, but not nearly as satisfying as the hilarious Modern Family. It makes me think of Brothers and Sisters if there were more children involved, which I could never get into.) Anyway, while we were watching Parenthood Ben turned to me and said, "There's been a little hiccup with my motorcycle's battery cover."

What the heck is Ben talking about? Well it's a long story- basically the battery cover on his motorcycle flew off while he was riding it, so it had to be put back on. Instead of just getting it put back on, he decided that he wanted a custom battery cover, complete with a spiderweb/number 13/skull/day of the dead design on it (doesn't that sound like a really bad tattoo?) Ben was doing trade work with the guy doing the custom design, so it wasn't supposed to cost us anything. 

Then comes the hiccup.

The guy doesn't want to do trade work anymore, which means that we get to pay for the custom battery cover design, as it has already been completed and is ready to go on his motorcycle. The design guy allegedly felt bad for going back on the trade work deal, so he is giving Ben the cover for 50% off. 

My first thought- oh good! A discount! What's it going to cost?

A whopping $287. Seriously?!? 

Enter Wicked Witch.

Yes, she definitely came out. She gave angry looks. She stewed. She said things like, "I can't believe this! How can he just go back on a deal?" She thought things like, "With $287 I could buy the two pairs of shoes that I've been wanting, plus a new pair of jeans, and a few shirts.... none of which I have purchased BECAUSE I'M TRYING TO BE A TEAM PLAYER AND SAVE MONEY."

And Wicked Witch may have said that last part. 

And may have told Ben that his battery cover design was ridiculous. 

After about 30 minutes of anger and stewing I got over it, because that's how I do. Get super angry for a little bit, probably say some things that I'll regret, and then get over it and be fine. 

Husband though? He had hurt feelings. He felt guilty. He couldn't sleep because he was upset (which gets me started on a whole new emotion cycle- guilt). 

Ben didn't want this any more than I did- he didn't think that he was going to have to pay out of pocket for this, and felt terrible that his plan ended up falling through. Where does this leave me? Still feeling like the Wicked Witch. Not because I'm mad at the husband- because I'm disappointed in my reaction over the whole situation. Did I have to lash out and say snarky things? No. Did I have to go on and on about why paying for the dang cover was the worst thing ever? No. 

Ugh. I suppose this is what marriage is all about- going through things together and learning to get through them. Learning to fight fair and not make mean little jabs. Learning to keep the Wicked Witch locked up and deal with issues and disappointments like a rational human being. 

Looks like I'm still learning. 

Date night.

Last weekend the hubs and I went to the movies to see Crazy Stupid Love. It had been awhile (like a month I think) since our last date and we were definitely ready for for B+C time. Not that we don't love spending time with the D, but all you parents know how important it is to get away and enjoy a few child-free hours away from the house. 

The movie was absolutely hilarious- the whole cast did a great job and brought humor to almost every scene. I forgot that Kevin Bacon was in the movie, and ever since I allegedly saw him doing road work in American Fork I have liked him a little more than before. 

I don't want to ruin the movie for anyone, but there is a little twist near the end. I was completely surprised by it- I suppose I can be less than perceptive at times- but Ben says that he saw it coming a mile away. Either way, the movie was great fun and definitely worth my $8.50 per ticket. 

And if a 17 year old girl ever gives my husband or 13 year old son a naked picture of herself, she will be shot dead. 

See the movie if you're wondering what that's all about. 

Mid-week randoms.

Hello friends! I hope that everyone is having a good week. Things are going great here... just working all day and chasing Dylan around. It's a good life. Here are a few randoms from the past week:

- I met supercute blogger Stephanie of Stephanie and Such while I was out getting my shop on last Saturday. I felt like such a creeper going up to a stranger and saying, "Hi, I read you blog" but she was so sweet and friendly. Yay for meeting bloggers in real life! And double yay that she didn't turn out to be a 50 year old man!

- While at court on Wednesday I heard my client's fiance say, "Yeah, I have porn on my computer. So what?" Didn't want to know that one. Cringe.

- Dylan has been getting more and more fun each day. His verbal skills are growing like crazy and it's so much fun to be able to communicate with him better and better. He's always asking me, "Luck?" which means "love" meaning he wants to hug and snuggle on me. 

- My heart is hurting for the darling Taylor family  who lost their sweet daughter Ruby earlier this month. I've been following their family for a few months now and the mother Ani is such an amazing example of faith and strength. 

- I'm trying to convince myself that I like to run, so I've been running 2 miles about 3 times every week. Still waiting to love running. 

- I finally joined Pinterest, but I've been extremely halfhearted in my Pinning efforts. This pin cracked me up today:

Thanks Stacey!

Please share some of your mid-week randoms!

A kickoff to the celebration dinners.

A few months ago I decided that I wanted to do something a little special every month when it came to dinner time. Honestly, I got this idea from NieNie, as every year her family has a back to school feast and celebration. I love this idea, because what she is doing is creating a great tradition and her family has wonderful memories as a result. 

And as I've said before, that is what I want- to create a happy home filled with memories.

Since Dylan is nowhere near school age, I decided that on the first of every month I would make a meal that was a little more special than our normal dinners. I'm not looking to spend tons of extra money or time on these dinners, but I just want to do something a little special and fun. I really think that it's the little things that add up, but this is one little thing that I can do and want to do. I don't have the time or energy to go the extra mile with all aspects of being a wife or mother, but this is a goal that I can achieve and feel good about as a result. 

To kick off my 1st of the month dinner celebration was August's dinner- Summer Picnic.

See, I told you- nothing amazing or difficult. 

I made the most summery dinner I could imagine- barbecue chicken, corn on the cob, and fruit salad which we ate in our backyard under our grape tree (yes, a grape tree).

 See what I mean by our grape tree? Grape vine + clothes line = grape tree. 

Poor, angry Dylan.  Little one got mad at me for not letting him have the salt shaker, so he ran and cried on his trampoline. 

Overall, our August 1st dinner was a great success, and I can't wait until September 1st for the next dinner, which will be a birthday celebration. Dylan's birthday is on the 29th and Ben's is on the 30th. 

You'd better believe that cake is involved. 

Watershed date.

Note to self:

Today is a very important date in my history of being a mama. Today I was able to paint my fingernails while Dylan was awake!

If you're not a mom you may be confused as to why this is such a cool thing, so let me tell you why it rocks:

It means that Dylan is old enough to entertain himself for 20+ minutes without me having to worry about picking him up or do constant behavior interventions, thus ruining mah nails.

I've always waited until Dylan was asleep to do my nails, because he would inevitably need something from me as soon as they were painted, but I'm happy to say that Dylan is one self-sufficient kiddo (for the most part, at least).

TGIF.

1. This morning I had to get ready for an early court hearing. Despite my workweek being Mon-Thurs, courts are still open on Fridays, which means that I have the occasional Friday hearing- boo.

2. To make matters worse, my blow dryer bit the dust and there was no time to get a new one before court. Good thing the Judge doesn't mind a messy, damp ponytail.

3. The day has still been just fine- after court, I picked up Dylan and headed to Target for a new blow dryer and ended up picking up a cute birthday gift for Dylan. When I told Ben that I had gotten a gift for Dylan he said, "Of course you did." Somehow he wasn't as excited about Dylan's gift as I was. 

4. Dylan is currently on hour two of his nap. After getting some cleaning done, I have been kicking back watching one of my favorite movies, Stardust.

5. Ben and I have a date tomorrow- hooray! Not quite sure what we're going to do- I'm open to suggestions though!

What are your weekend plans?

Ready for my dunce cap.

A few days ago I needed to make a quick trip to the grocery store. You see, my nice neighbor (not the creepy one) pulled an awful eyesore of a bush out of my side yard without us even asking. What a nice neighbor, right? He pulled it out and loaded it up in his truck so he could haul it away. 

Naturally, I felt the need to make him a cake, as that is my universal way of saying thanks. Unfortunately, I was missing some vital ingredients, such as butter and eggs. 

Dylan and I got into the car and drove to the grocery store a mile or two away. We picked up what we needed, paid, and headed to the car. I loaded Dylan up in his car seat, put my cart away, and headed home. 

When we got back to the house, I realized what I had forgotten. Can anyone guess?

I forgot my groceries in the cart.

They were still in the grocery store parking lot! 

It was just one bag, but still- how does one forget to bring home their food from the grocery store?!?

I immediately called the store, made them aware of my level of idiocy mishap, and let them know that I'd be right over to pick up my food. When I got to the store, the manager had my food waiting. 

I asked him if that had happened before and he said that he'd never seen someone drive away without their food. Please tell me that he was joking... I can't be the only dunce out there!

The Help: My review.

Last night I was able to see "The Help" with one of my favorite girls, Allison. We had both read the book previously and were excited to see the movie. In a word, the movie was fantastic. The casting was wonderful- each character (even poor Mae Mobley) exceeded my expectations. The movie was serious at times, hilarious at others. The movie looked just like what I imagined Jackson, Mississippi would look like in the 1960's- complete with the pink bathrooms and mile-high hair. If this movie doesn't get nominated come awards season, someone's going to be eating a few slices of Hilly's pie.

I'm telling you, this is not a movie to miss. Run to your movie theater and see "The Help."

My rating:

Wednesday craftiness.

Here's a look at my little craft table. It houses my scrapbooking and card making supplies, pictures, and old magazines that I want to keep. The table also houses Dylan's video monitor, which I am obsessed with. 

I decided to make a little change to my craft area- see if you can spot the difference.

Before:

After:

I decided to brighten up the area a bit by spray painting the shelves with Krylon's Ocean Blue. This had to be one of the easiest and cheapest crafts, as I already had the primer and paint at my house. 

A quick coat of primer and then a few coats of the Krylon, and voila! Happy, pretty shelves. 

Weekend in pictures.

On Friday I decided to channel my inner 14 year old and french braid my hair. It had been at least 8 years since I last rocked this hairstyle and it felt good. Made me remember my cheerleading days- ha! 

I took Dylan to Provo Beach Resort for a playdate with some friends and their kiddos. 

Saturday was a major bad hair day, so I pulled it up and added a headband to camouflage said bad hair.

Loaded up on some In-N-Out, as I needed to get my mood and energy in the best place possible to prepare for my next location....

Yes, you see correctly. I went to Walmart, the place I try to avoid at all costs. Something about the fluorescent lighting and the plethora of, ahem, interesting people gives me hives.

On Sunday I made a ridiculously delicious dinner- Pioneer Woman steak and mashed potatoes. Doesn't it look fancy?

I also attempted a photo shoot with Dylan. Simply put, it was a massive fail. 

Fine, Dylan. Don't smile for the camera.

Ben's mini-me.

I feel very lucky to have not just one, but two skilled men on hand that are willing to mow the lawn. 

It's actually very cute, because Dylan is obsessed with mowing the lawn and gets so excited when Ben gets his lawnmower out. They mow the lawn together, and then use the edger and leaf blower to finish off the job.  Dylan is  all about getting in on the action and wants so badly to be able to use all of his dad's tools. Dylan loves to watch his dad at work, whether it is fixing the vacuum, answering phones at the office, or putting in the basement and he tries to do exactly what his dad is doing. 

And now Dylan is singing this dang song.

This is a song and video that four professional golfers on the PGA tour put together. For the most part it's pretty stupid, but I guess that it's mildly funny because these guys are usually all buttoned up and serious on the golf course. Ben thinks that it's hilarious and decided to teach the song to Dylan. Now I have Dylan running around the house saying "Ohhh lally, lally!"

The video is probably a little more funny if you 1. Are a golf fanatic, like my husband and are fans of these four yahoos, or 2. Are a the wife of a golf fanatic and unfortunately know who all four of these golfers are.

Rules to live by.

According to me, at least. 

1. When it doubt, wear black

I don't know how many times I've been trying to get ready for work and needed to wear something nice for court. After standing in front of my closet, paralyzed by indecision, I always choose black. And you know what? It always works. 

2. Always keep a set of tweezers in your car.

Hooooooly cow. I don't know what it is about the natural light in your car, but whenever I flip down my visor mirror I end up seeing about 50 things that I did not notice in my bedroom mirror. Namely stray eyebrows. Keep some tweezers handy so you can be rid of the offending eyebrow and not look like Frida Kahlo.

3. Never get a tattoo that can't be easily hidden.

As if this really must be said- sometimes tattoos can be an extreme turn-off to and employer or customers. It could hinder you getting a job. If you choose not to abide by my blanket rule of "Don't get tattoos, period" (as I am not a tattoo person), please don't get tattoos on your hands, face, or neck. 

True story: I had a client at work who had "I'm for real, baby" tattooed on his neck. No wonder why he couldn't get a job. 

4. Never get a tattoo of your special someone's name. 

Because you will inevitably break up. 

What are some of your rules to live by?

The frog game.

Dylan and Ben started playing a new game during bath time- Mr. Frog. I love Dylan's hilarious reaction and how happy a little washcloth frog can make him. 


I also love that my husband is such a good dad to Dylan. These boys have so much fun together and are best friends- always wrestling around, playing games at the dinner table, and making bath time hilarious.