Ode to eating....

Just some of the things/places I ate the past couple of days while my brother, Keith, was visiting:

If I don't cut this ridiculousness out and get back to the gym soon, I'm going to have to buy elastic waist pants to grow into!

I am a Gigi

I'm sure there are quizzes out there somewhere that you can take to figure out which "He's Just Not That Into You" girl you are. But I don't need a quiz to figure that out...I can tell you that I am largely a Gigi. I identify with Gigi because of the way she is so "desperately" trying to find someone to love her. I'm sure some people thought she was just pathetic and needed to stop trying so hard. But she makes such a good point about herself when she tells Alex that she may do a lot of stupid stuff, but she's a lot closer to finding someone than he is. And that's the point about Gigi...not that she's desperate or trying too hard, but that she is TRYING. And it's frustrating when you are a good person with a lot of love to offer, but there don't seem to be any guys who want to take a chance and see what might be down that road. Which I guess is another reason that I identified so much with Gigi...why DIDN'T those guys like her?? She is cute, stylish, fun, smart, and had so much love to give. It is a frustrating place to be. But let's hear it for the Gigis of the world who are still trying, despite the frustrating, discouraging odds, to find the love that they deserve.

Confession...

I have seen A LOT of episodes of "Hannah Montana" on the Disney Channel. I actually like it...it's clean (you don't have to worry about smutiness), and I think that Lilly and Oliver (Hannah/Miley's friends) are FUNNY! It's gotten to the point now kind of regularly where I'll turn the show on, and it turns out I have already seen the episode that's on! Hey...don't knock it 'til you try it!

Denver adventures with my nieces...

I know...my blog has been post-less for awhile! I've gotten sucked into the world of Facebook, but that's no excuse! :) Here are some pictures from my nieces' visit to Denver after Christmas. They are SUCH cute girls, and it was fun to spend time with them!

Picking up the goods!

Game night eventually got off track...

The off track-ness continues!

Estes Park is LOVELY!

Crafty McCrafterson Jr. wearing one of the bracelets she made

A cute picture of my sister Lizzy walking to the game room

Gramps and his blazing fire!

Getting ready for some serious marshmallow roastin'!

Texty McTexterson in the flesh!

A glimpse of the s'mores/marshmallow yumfest!

Games and snacks (always food for the Johnsons!)

Grandpa ROCKIN' his pink 2009 glasses!

Two cute girls! (Notice Crafty McCrafterson Sr.'s tie-dye shirt she made in Estes!)

I LOVE this little girl!

And I LOVE her big sis!

Dropping the goods off! :(

It was so good to spend time with these cute girls! We ate (of course!), shopped, played games, laughed, chatted, cried, hugged, and ate some more, before we had to send them back home. They are such cute, cute, cute, cute girls...sure glad they're part of my family!!

The Alamo

Here are some pics from my trip to The Alamo:

It is a small little place, quite photogenic as you can see!

My first banana cream pie...

This Thanksgiving, I made the banana cream pie. Now granted, the crust was not homemade (that will probably never happen since I'm not much of a pie person myself...and anyway, why make it from scratch when you can buy a pre-made crust at the store?!), but I made the filling, and I was very happy with the outcome...the filling was smooth and tasty, and the pie looked good too:


I enjoyed every bite:

and so did Lizzy:

Who knows what I might try to make next...any requests??

Have you ever...

Maybe you'll learn something about me here...I've bolded the ones I have done!!

Started your own blog (more than one!)
Slept under the stars
Played in a band (I'm fully counting the elementary school orchestra!)
Visited Hawaii
Watched a meteor shower
Given more than you can afford to charity
Been to Disneyland
Climbed a mountain (part of one!) :)
Held a praying mantis
Sang a solo (5th grade...had a solo in our rendition of "We Are the World")
Bungee jumped
Visited Paris (oh...that's not referring to visiting the hotel/casino here in Vegas?!)
Watched a lightning storm at sea
Adopted a child (I've adopted several as surrogate nieces and nephews!)
Had food poisoning (pretty sure...and from a random veggie/melted cheese plate)
Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
Grown your own vegetables
Seen the Mona Lisa in France
Slept on an overnight train
Had a pillow fight
Hitch hiked
Taken a sick day when you’re not ill (when I was in high school my mom excused me one day so I could go stalk Marky-Mark!)
Built a snow fort
Held a lamb
Gone skinny dipping
Run a Marathon
Ridden in a gondola in Venice
Watched a sunrise or sunset
Been on a cruise
Seen Niagara Falls in person
Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (sort of...depends on the definition we're using of "ancestors")
Seen an Amish community
Taught yourself a new language
Had enough money to be truly satisfied (I agree with Jori...does that EVER happen??)
Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
Gone rock climbing (it was at a Rec. Center in Arvada, CO, but still!)
Seen Michelangelo’s David
Sung Karaoke
Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
Visited Africa
Walked on a beach by moonlight
Been transported in an ambulance (when I was a baby...my dad likes to tell the story on my b-day!) :)
Had your portrait painted
Gone deep sea fishing
Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
Kissed in the rain
Played in the mud (I don't have a specific memory, but I'm pretty sure we all did this!)
Gone to a drive-in theater
Been in a movie (well, it was only the goofy Universal Studios screen test thing, but it was on a video cassette, so it must count!)
Visited the Great Wall of China
Started a business
Taken a martial arts class
Visited Russia
Served at a soup kitchen
Sold Girl Scout Cookies (no, but I've eaten my fair share of them!)
Gone whale watching
Got flowers for no reason (beautiful roses from an unfortunate college boyfriend!)
Donated blood, platelets or plasma
Gone sky diving
Bounced a check
Flown in a helicopter
Seen the Lincoln Memorial in person
Pieced a quilt
Stood in Times Square
Toured the Everglades
Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
Broken a bone (several at one time by jumping off the roof of my house when I was 10-ish. It was my brother's fault...he offered me 85 cents to do it!)
Seen the Grand Canyon in person
Published a book (not yet, but I will!)
Visited the Vatican
Bought a brand new car (need to do that again soon!)
Walked in Jerusalem
Had your picture in the newspaper
Read the entire Bible
Visited the White House
Killed and prepared an animal for eating (uh...do I live on a farm???)
Had chickenpox
Saved someone’s life
Sat on a jury
Met someone famous (I LIVED with someone famous for a few months!)
Joined a book club
Lost a loved one
Had a baby
Seen the Alamo in person (a month ago I wouldn't have been able to bold this one!)
Swam in the Great Salt Lake
Been involved in a law suit
Owned a cell phone (uh...do we really need to ask that question in 2008?)
Been stung by a bee (a wasp!) :P