Awesome April

If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.

- J.R.R. Tolkien

I spent most of April hanging out with loved ones, completing a no carb/no sugar food challenge, and working out. I love it. My life is good.

Karate Kid movie night

One night at home, I watched The Karate Kid and ate the last cookie my mom gave me for Valentine's Day. I'm so happy that sugar cookies freeze as well as they do. I'd forgotten how good the movie is, too. Totally holds up!

Nichole's birthday

The night before Nichole's birthday, she asked if we could just buy a ton of candy and eat and hang out and talk at my house (we also got salads from Trader Joe's). I was happy to oblige. That's my favorite kind of celebration!

(The food challenge started two days later)

General Conference

My parents went to Greece for a couple of weeks. Since they weren't around for the usual General Conference brunch, Adam and Lindsey organized a potluck for between sessions. Because it was also Easter Sunday, the G-unit, Zonks, and Breezy "hid" plastic and hard-boiled eggs for their uncles, aunts, and cousin to find. We ate and played games, and when Conference started up again in the afternoon I stayed to watch with Adam and Lindsey. Such a good day!

Playing a game where you have to get your ball into the basket before
the person behind you does. I got second place during one game!

(I'm not in the picture because I was taking it)

Once the Musical

Theresa and I saw Once the Musical and it was WONDERFUL! Funny, and uplifting, and inspiring. I It's the story is a depressed Irish musician who meets a woman that inspires him. I made it a point not to listen to the music or watch the movie beforehand. I wanted to be surprised and watched with fresh eyes. I absolutely loved it -- no wonder it won the Tony for Best Musical in 2012.*

*If you see it, be warned there are a LOT of swears. It IS set in Ireland, after all.

A few favorite lines:
"You're like Mendelsson, but alive and Irish!"
"It's the voice...and the word." "Never sing." "Ever."
"Do you like being Irish?" "Seriously?"
"Nobody calls it 'hanky-panky' anymore." "Maybe that's why I can't find any."
"More song! Less pants!"

Dinner at The Garden

A few girlfriends got together to eat at The Garden at Temple Square and gab about our lives. I love catching up with these ladies! Must go back when I'm not dieting, because my friends couldn't get over how good the creme brulé was...

Theresa, me, Laura, and Shilene

The view from our table -- gorgeous!

April snowstorm

The biggest snowstorm of the 2014-2015 season occurred in April. I love Utah's sense of humor :)

Jobbiversary

Celebrated my 5 year anniversary at my job! I've never had any one job for this long. I am very grateful for a terrific manager (I seriously adore her), respectful co-workers, and work that I enjoy. I look forward to working with them a while longer (and to the raise, and the extra vacation days I have finally earned). I am lucky!

A glimpse at my ribbon collection

"What if there's no ribbon drawer? Where would all the ribbons go?!!" - Monica from Friends

I ♥ Salt Lake

A snapshot of downtown Salt Lake City, from the perspective of the clinic where I get my allergy shots.

The beautiful Salt Lake Temple.

Nichole and Drew for all eternity

Nichole was sealed to her dear husband Drew at the Salt Lake Temple. I was honored to be invited, and to loan her my umbrella when the rain took its time letting up afterwards. Luckily, it did abate, and Nichole was able to have some professional photos taken of the special day.

Larissa, Tiffanie and I at the Salt Lake Temple after the sealing

Nichole had an open house that night, and they overestimated the amount of food they would need.
I took all of this home and put it in the freezer to eat after I finished my food challenge.
See Larissa's blog for the chocolate-chip cookie recipe.
*POST-CHALLENGE UPDATE* It was all delicious!!

Beloved babys' birthdays

This adorable little monster had a birthday, and his parents and their friends went all out with a Monsters, Inc.-inspired birthday party! It was fun to celebrate my besty's baby with so many of her loved ones!

I love how smiley he is!

My youngest nephew had a birthday, too, and the family spoiled him rotten at his sweet, small celebration. Oh, how I adore this stoic, inquisitive, happy little boy!

Papa and Baby PJ

New flats

Been trying to replace these American Eagle flats for years, but all of the replacements have been disappointments until now. They are crazy-comfortable, and yet, after 5 years of use, the buttons are no longer predictably secure and I've worn holes into the soles. So long, AE flats. I wore you in NYC (twice), Philadelphia, Washington DC, Cedar City, and so many other places. Hope my new flats (on the left) are as reliable. I'll miss you cuties!

Accursed soda machine

The soda machine at work broke down several times. I wouldn't have minded so much if diet soda weren't one of the few treats I can have during this food challenge. #firstworldproblems

Please park inside the lines

Yes, he DID hit my car when he opened the door. He saw me see him, and his half-hearted "Sorry" just made me more mad. This is one of my biggest pet peeves, people! It isn't that hard to be a decent human being!

Flag football

Ended the month at one of the G-unit's flag football games. I'm glad I finally made it to one. It's fun watching him play -- he is so passionate and serious about it. Thanks, Aaron, for taking these perfect photos!

 The G-unit's #1 cheerleaders in proper attire

See the G-unit's face peeking out, third from the left?

And now on to May, a bunch of auditions, a return to regular food, and a much, MUCH needed vacation!

The Force is strong with this one

Star Wars: The Force Awakens will be released in movie theaters at the end of this year. I love the original trilogy so much that I haven't had the heart to get really excited about this new one. I want it to be great. It wouldn't change how I feel about the originals, but -- especially when they're going to the effort of bringing back original stars like Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Anthony Daniels -- I don't want those characters ruined! If this is the definitive version of what happened to these characters after Return of the Jedi, it has to be a story worth telling and it has to honor the reasons why Star Wars became so beloved in the first place.

Happily, if this trailer is any indication, it will:


The music, the special effects, the nods to classic moments, and, of course, Han and Chewbacca at the end looking as bass-a$$ as ever. This is a great trailer. I cried and I cheered and I felt hope flower within me.

After such a satisfying reimagining of the Star Trek franchise, I suppose I trust JJ Abrams more than most to uphold the essence of Star Wars. It looks beautiful. It looks exciting. It won't be bogged down with pre-existing future events the way the prequel movies were -- there are so many possibilities! It helps that I adore actors Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis (I hope he isn't all CGI'd in this one), and Domhnall Gleeson. Fingers crossed that George Lucas's baby is in good hands.

I have a good feeling about this.

"What would we do, baby, without us?"

I finished watching all seven seasons of Family Ties on Netflix (yes, really) and enjoyed the whole thing. Well, it got a bit preachy a little too often, but that didn't kill the charm. I'm kind in love with Steven Keaton. I want to be as gorgeous and self-assured as Elyse. I see why Michael J. Fox was the breakout star (totes deserved it). The 1980s teenager fashion made me giggle -- wow, were Mallory and Jennifer covered up, and the big hair made them look much older than they were. Andy was adorable. 

But, my favorite thing was the guest stars: Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Courtney Cox, Timothy busfield, Peter Scolari, Crispin Glover, Dan Hedaya, Billy Campbell, Judith Light... it's like a who's who of Before They Were Famous.

Loved it!

In one of the final episodes, Alex asks what the meaning of life is, and Mallory shocks everyone with her insightful answer. I like her definition so much that I wrote it on my white-board calendar.

1. Be happy.
2. Try not to hurt other people.
3. Hope that you fall in love.

So long, Keaton family. It was fun to watch you all grow up and share in your adventures.

On to the next!

Bert and Zachary Levi on a lovely, sunny day

It's finally starting to feel like SPRING, and Zachary Levi and Sesame Street's Bert think you should go outside.
Posted by Mashable on Monday, April 6, 2015

It's finally starting to feel like SPRING, and Zachary Levi and Sesame Street's Bert think you should go outside.
Posted by Mashable on Monday, April 6, 2015

March-ing along

After the intense rehearsal and performance schedule for Jekyll and Hyde, the stress of the holidays, and the demanding and high-energy rehearsal and performance schedule for Noises Off, March (not counting the week I performed in Noises Off) was more than a little chill. One could say it was a little bit boring, in the best possible way. I spent some time with friends, ate a lot of junk, watched a lot of Netflix, and with two exceptions because of illness I reached my 10,000 step goal every day.

My adorable brother David gave me these flowers when he came to my play. He is such a sweetheart.

I've talked about Potbelly's sandwich shop, right? It's an East Coast import and I absolutely love it. I went three times in March and bought a custom-made ice cream sandwich every time. Delicious.

Shilene and I treated ourselves to The Cheesecake Factory and then the national touring company's Mamma Mia! Obnoxiously, the pleasant-and-neglectful server at the restaurant made us 20 minutes late for the play, but the plot isn't so complicated that we couldn't catch up. The musical was everything I wanted it to be: great music, fun choreography, a lot of laughter, eye-catching costumes, and a dance party at the end! I'd wanted for years to see it and I'm thrilled I finally got to!

I was on the back row and everyone was taking photos. Otherwise, I would have even told myself to put the dang camera away!

Kate and I found this sign at the Vintage Whites Market (which I will be going to again). Since we were there on Pi Day (3.14) and I LOVE pie, I needed a photo.

Because oblivious people kept walking in front of me and she couldn't tell if the photos were actually processing, Kate ended up taking, like, fifteen identical photos. So I changed up the filters on a few and posted them as a collage of sorts. I am quite fond of the result (and the besty who took these photos for me)!

Saint Patrick's Day was next. Corned beef and cabbage is one of my favorite meals. I've been known to request it for my birthday dinner. Bonus: It was an off week for family dinner, but everyone came anyway. We hadn't all been together since Christmas. Win!

Once upon a time, my dad asked me to make a list of life goals. I recently found the list and I'm proud to say they are all still relevant. I've accomplished a few of those things. I have a ways to go on others. Some will take the rest of my life.

Secret's out: Some of the blonde in my hair isn't natural. I'm normally more of a honey blonde. The curl is real, though, I promise!

Winter finally seemed to give up for good, and it's been warm enough I've started wearing a pair of sandals I bought on sale last October. It's nice to finally debut them!

It was a sad day when I dropped this red pitcher. I'd been intending to put red tulips in them that matched the shade exactly :(

I finished three novels in March, including the second two of Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series which I highly recommend. Fantasy fiction at its best. Bonus: reading outside is lovely.

Work was a little trying, what with a difficult coworker and layoffs (I survived). Fortunately, my team not only finished our latest product release, but we also finally hired a product owner, so we went out to lunch to celebrate. This La Jolla Groves bundt cake was exactly what I wanted my dessert to be: moist, dark, fudge-filled, and just the right size. I'll be going back for another soon.

That's it from March! April will be filled with General Conference, Personal Trainer Food, birthdays, plays, and who knows what else? Guess we'll find out!