New Swoon

Don't even get me started.  I thought my giddyness over this had subsided.  Turns out?  Not so much.  It's still there and as fluttery as ever.  Mock if you must, but I am SO excited for this movie!  It already looks and sounds better than Twilight and I'm all kinds of on board.  Kate sent me a link that had a small sneak peek at a scene from the movie and tons of pictures from the set.  Two words -  Fan.  Tastic.  Delicious in EVERY way.  How great is the poster?  The other picture may be a bit steamy, but I had to post.  Mmm, Bella saving Edward in Italy - I can almost hear my brother Marty yelling, "Edwaaaaaaaard!".

I should probably start getting a group of people together that want go see it when it opens, right?  Are you in?  Of course you are, how could you not be.

Moving on...I performed in a Thrillionaires show earlier this morning.  Very early this morning.  At 1:00am.  It's kind of a blur right now, doesn't really feel like it happened.   It was for a graduation party for PG High School.  We did a spin on American Idol and the kids loved it.  We had a blast as usual!  Thanks Matt, Scott, Maclain and Brigham for letting me play in a great show!

After a few hours of sleep I woke up and took the boys over to the Annual Fireman's Breakfast in PG.  The Fire Department cooks a massive breakfast for everyone in the community and there are always thousands of people that come out for it.  The boys played around and I got to chat with my friends Greg and Aubrie!  They drove down from Riverton and I got to see their brand new baby boy who is the size of a cell phone - so cute and tiny!  It was a fun morning, I love the people in that Department.  If you didn't make it out this year, mark it on your calendars so you can attend it next year.  

Do you hear that?  I believe it's....it's a nap...calling my name.  Coming, rest!  I'm coming!

The last week of May...

I have NO idea where May went!  It's all a blur of BBQ's and house selling.  We've been spending a lot of time outside and it's been fabulous.  I love going out to water the flowers and having the boys run around the yard.  We BBQ'd on Monday and Tuesday night and I forsee many more in the coming weeks!   Here's Cody and Cache playing catch while waiting for the steaks to grill...

Cole putting rocks in the lawn mower.  Awesome.

I sliced up some strawberries and made some cornbread muffins to have with dinner.  I finally caved and used my cute, stripy cupcake cups that I got from bake it pretty (Heather!  I couldn't help myself, I had to use them...).  Have you been to that site?  Everyone I know is a fan, you should check it out, addiction will quickly follow.

Yesterday was pretty basic - the boys and I ran some errands, played outside, ate dinner.  Then I found out that my dear friend Ann is on bed rest until her baby boy makes his appearance (she's due in two weeks!) and I realized it would be the perfect time to loan her my 'Twilight' DVD.  I've been meaning to loan it to her for months and bed rest would certainly be sweeter with a little Vampire action!  I threw together some treats to go along with the movie and started to get the boys ready.  Cache was very concerned that Ann wasn't feeling too well and insisted that we bring a book for her to read.  The conversation went something like this...

C: "Why is Ann not feeling very well?"

J: "Well, she has a baby in her tummy and needs to take it easy..."

C: "Is she at the hospital?"

J: "No, not yet. But when she is, we'll go see her, ok?"

C: "I think I need to read her a book, that will make her feel better."

J: "Um, dude, I don't think we'll be there very long, I'm just going to drop these things off."

C: "How about you read the book to her and then she'll feel better."

Um, so cute and thoughtful.  He took his time choosing the perfect book and finally settled on this one.

A Halloween book?  Is he my kid, or what?  We have many things planned in the next couple of days, May is going to go out with a bang!

What I'm Loving Wednesday

What am I loving?...

My new Diesel Neveau Heels.

Aren't they gorge?  I found these snappy stilts at my local Downeast and simply had to have them.  Simply.  The purple patent, the icy gray suede, they just had to be mine!  And they are the perfect pair to wear for R&R's wedding.  Win/Win!  They are also available on eBay and they are only $30!  They come in some other colors, too - if you want to follow in my radical t-strap footsteps, go grab a pair!

Happy Memorial Day!

Some days just call for a BBQ, don't you think?  It's been a rainy weekend and it might rain a bit today, but all I see out my windows right now are blue skies!  That, my friends, calls for a BBQ.  Grilling outside is so Summer to me.  I love everything about BBQ's - Steaks, corn on the cob, watermelon, lemonade...it doesn't get any better than that.

This past week was pretty packed with fun things.  On Monday I met up with Hailey, Lisa, Amelia, Jenny, Kacy and Rachel for dinner and a movie in honor of Hailey's Birthday.  It was SO much fun!  Dinner was delish and so was the movie - we saw 'Wolverine' and I totally loved it.  Hugh Jackman?  Yes, please!  We talked for about an hour after the movie and then parted ways.

Happy Birthday, Hailey!  I had a great time, girls.

On Thursday my family got together to go see 'Star Trek' and it did not disappoint!  Have you seen this?  I'd heard nothing but rave reviews and this movie totally delivered.  I loved every minute of it, it's SO good.  Cody was at work, so I guess I'll have to go see it again!  To coin my sister's phrase, it was "super space awesome!".

Kate was in town this weekend!  On Friday Amelia, Tanya and Hannah joined Kate and I for dinner at the Pizza Factory.  Tanya was leaving for the Summer the next day and it was so nice to get to spend some time with her - I will miss her so much.  We ate and talked over each other and laughed too loud, it was a blast.  Kate and I came back to my house and watched 'French Kiss' before she had to go.  She and Matt came to my Thrillionaires show on Saturday, but it still doesn't feel like I've really seen her since she's been here!  Never enough time...good thing the Girls Trip is coming up!

Saturday afternoon my Mom, Jess, Randi and I went to lunch at the Foundry Grill at Sundance.  Yummy.  R&R's wedding is just 3 weeks away!  Lunch was fun, we ate and chatted and ate.  The food up there is SO good, I must return soon.  After lunch we shopped for a bit and I got some cute alphabet cards.  Thanks again for lunch, Mom!

And now we're back to today - if I'm going to have a BBQ, I better get to work!  Pies to make, floors to vacuum...there is much to do.  Hope you all have a fabulous Memorial Day!

What I'm Loving Wednesday

It's been MONTHS since I have showcased something awesome on WILW.  Aren't you curious?  Aren't you dying to know what I am loving this week?  Thought so.  What am I loving?

The classics.

(sigh of disappointment...) Truly!  We all know that I played the cello in High School and I have always enjoyed classical music, but lately I have rediscovered my love for it.  And not just string symphonies, but Opera has crept up and made me adore it.  It can be so beautiful.  Go listen to a smidgen of these songs - I know you will recognize them.  They are my favorites right now...

Nocturne No. 2 in E-flat major, Op. 9 - Chopin. 

I am currently learning this song on the piano.  It reminds me of Summer evenings.  Hopefully I will master it so I can play it with the windows open at dusk some night.

Clair de Lune - Debussey.  

I have loved this song since I was little...so pretty.  I also found an operatic version of Clair de Lune that is Heaven.

I know...OperaBabes?  Really?  Trust me, it's great.

Chi il bel sogno di Doretta from La Rondine - the version I have is sung by Kiri Te Kanawa.

THIS song.  This beautiful, glorious song...it brought tears to my eyes.  Have you seen 'A Room With A View'?  Of course you have.  Remember the lovely scene when Lucy comes upon George in a barley field?  And when he sees her he comes over and kisses her?  Such passion!  Such forbidden love!  This is the song that accompanies that wonderful scene.

So, go!  Find these songs, listen to them.  Then get kissed in a barley field.

Yard Sale Extravaganza!

Saturday was the Merritt Yard Sale and boy howdy was it a grand site!  I showed up at 7:15 to help Amelia set things up.  At that hour?  It was chilly!  The sale wasn't supposed to start until 8:00, but you know how eager those buyers can be...we had some people walking through and perusing the merchandise around 7:30.  Once things got started it was pretty crazy!  We sold our old bedroom furniture and rickety grandfather clock.  The Merritt's sold some big ticket items (a fridge and a telescope!) along with a plethora of shoes, clothes, knick knacks, lamps...it was a sight to behold.  We had everything!  Baby strollers, cameras, tables, boardgames, computer games, books, appliances, electronics...it was awesome.

I even sold the beloved Edward cutout.  Cody thought we should have had a silent auction for it...we could have raised a mint!  Things didn't really slow down until Noon and Brett was kind enough to run grab us some lunch.  People kept streaming through until about 4:30 when we started to clean things up.  We were pretty beat, but it was a successful day!  My favorite part?  Probably chatting with our friends and spending all day with Amelia.  It was SO much fun!  Thanks to everyone who stopped by and left with a wee treasure.  

Word has spread quickly through the neighborhood that we're moving.  The most common thing I get asked is, "Did you really sell your house?"  Yeah, I know, can you believe it?  It only took 14 months!  I'm going to have to start collecting moving boxes and getting things ready to pack up.  I'm beginning to stress...in a months' time I have to pack up my house, find a place to live, Rich's wedding, run Ragnar and write a skit for the YW in my ward to perform at Girls Camp.  Then of course there's Thrillionaires, our own yard sale to organize and stuff for the gym that I'm working on.  No big deal, I can handle it...right?

Moving On

I am still in shock that we sold our house.  It's been quite the long road!  Thanks for all the congratulations!  We are very, very excited and beyond thrilled that we can finally start the next chapter.  I will admit, I am quite sad to leave this neighborhood.  We love it here, our ward and neighbors are awesome.  Of course there will be an awesome new ward and awesome new neighbors (hopefully), but it's still sad - we will miss it here!   We got to meet the 'Mrs.' of the couple who is buying our house and she is super nice, really cool.  We were kind of like, "Is it ok that we're talking?  Without our agents present?" 

I make it sound like we are moving thousands of miles away when in reality we have no idea where we're going.  It's looking like PG is still the top contender.  We entertained the idea of staying somewhere in Provo and while that could still be a possibility, I'm thinking PG is where we'll end up.  It also looks like we will end up building a home or purchasing a home that is newly constructed.  It feels sort of scary not knowing what is going to happen, but I always felt that as soon as our home sold everything else would just fall into place.  I don't know how it's all supposed to work out, but I know it will!  

Brett and Amelia are having a ginormous yard sale this Saturday and you should totally come!!  They were gracious enough to allow Cody and I to sell some of our things there, too.  We started to lightly go through some things in the house this afternoon to put in the sale and it was SO hard to stop.  I wanted to clear out the basement and start loading things in boxes.  Lets go!  Lets go!  Move move move!  It's no secret that I am horrified to go through the boxes of who-knows-what to decipher what is kept and what is tossed - moving will be a daunting task, no question.  I know that Cody and I will have to have a yard sale of our own before we move, so come down to the Merritt Yard Sale Extravaganza this Saturday and stay tuned for the Jolley version that will be a few weeks down the line...

SOLD!

Standby...

Thursday.  Thursday Cody and I had a fabulous day!  Our friend Brady stopped by and we chatted for a few hours, then Brady ended up taking us to lunch (Brady picked up the tab, the gent).  It was so good to see him and catch up.  After lunch we went to buy some flowers for our planters out front and around the yard.  We got some beautiful blooms and spent the rest of the afternoon putting them in the ground.  When evening hit Cody and I started talking about what we wanted to do about our house...do we keep it on the market?  Do we take it off and stay for another year or two?  There are some things we would love to do to this house, it would be so fun to stay, we love it here...so that was that!  We thought, "Ok, we can refinance and stay for another year or so."  We called Adam and told him the news, he was super supportive and agreed to start up on the paperwork the next day.

Friday.  Friday morning we get a call from Adam and he says, "Yeah, uh - someone wants to come see your house this afternoon.  They have seen at least 100 houses but they are really excited about yours.  They love the area, have friends in the neighborhood...it's totally up to you guys".  We agreed to show it and got the house ready.  During the showing Cody and I talked about where we would move IF we end up selling it to these people.  I mean, we don't HAVE to live in Pleasant Grove.  It would be more convenient, of course.  But we both love Provo, so there is an excellent chance that we would stay around here if we end up selling!  Adam called us later that evening and said, "I'm not sure if this is good news, but they LOVE your house.  No negatives, they loved everything.  They're going to think about it over the weekend and get back to you on Monday."

Monday.  Adam called us this afternoon and said that an offer was being drawn up tonight and it was probably going to be on our house.  Holy crap.  Seriously?!?  Of course we are very excited, but still a wee bit skeptical.  I mean, what if it's totally low?  What if an offer doesn't come through at all?  So we sit...and wait.  We actually showed the house again this evening and best case scenario?  Bidding war!  But until we hear from Adam, we sit...and wait.

Mommies

Instead of posting the traditional tribute to the outstanding Mom's in my life, I'm going to talk about why I love being a Mom.  I know we all have days where we don't want to get out of bed and get our kids dressed, or give them baths and handle all their questions.  But there are some golden days - days where you feel like you totally have it together and you truly believe that being a Mom is the best thing in the entire world.

I love the first few weeks after having a baby.  For me, it was just me and the little guy - hanging out, sleeping, eating...relaxing.  That 'together' time is awesome.

I love that my boys want to be where I am.  Naturally, this can also drive me NUTS.  No matter where I run to hide or escape, they always seem to find me.  And when they do they latch on to my legs...

After they get hurt I am the first one they run to for comfort.

I love covering their clean little bodies with lotion after a bath.

I love tickling them so much that they are laughing hysterically...which in turn makes me laugh hysterically.

The things they say are priceless.

I love to sing with my boys.

I love being able to introduce them to so many things.

I also love that I am surrounded by so many wonderful women who are great examples to me.  Even those who don't yet have children influence me in so many ways.  Women like my sister who is a marvel to behold with her 3 kids.  Women like Ann who is expecting her first little baby next month and all the other women in between.  None of us know what we're doing, but somehow we all get through the craziness and relish in the radical moments of motherhood.  Mom's rock.  Happy Mother's Day!

17 Again

Lets be honest, I still act like I'm 17 (and dress like it, too).  After hearing much praise about this movie I rounded up some ladies last weekend to go see it.  Amelia, Lisa, Tanya and I grabbed some quick dinner and then headed over to the theater to meet Amelia's friend Chelsey and her cousin.  It was SO fun!  And Mr. Z.E. was fantastic eye-candy, who are we kidding.  The show was hilarious and we had an absolute blast!  We ended the evening with some frozen custard and promises to do another Girls Night soon.  Love those ladies.  Have you seen this movie yet?  Go see it!

Last Wednesday my cousin Natalie and I had a movie night with our Grandmother.  She was very excited about our glamourous evening and showed up wearing a feather boa.  We had tons of delicious treats and my Grandmother's beverage of choice?  Dr. Pepper.  Are we related, or what?  We sighed and swooned our way through 'Pride and Prejudice' and had an absolute ball.  I can't wait until we do it again next month.  Any movie suggestions?  You know, besides '17 Again'...

The next few days are supposed to be GLORIOUS.  What does this mean?  It means it's time to plant my flower pots.  And host some BBQ's, and have picnics, and lay in the sun, and...

Jump Start

I had a meeting with the CrossFit ladies last week about offering women's only Jump Start classes at the gym!  We've wanted to do this for a while and we're all SO excited.  The price is great and the results will be even better!  I created this flyer to help spread the word - this is a rough draft, but you get the general idea.  What do you think?  Or more importantly, when are you signing up?