Chat Name

John makes me laugh.

He's programming a chat application that he and I talked about inventing a few years ago. This is an early result:

Adie and Ella Faces

I have the cutest nieces on the planet, who also happen to be absolutely hilarious.

The end.

Splenda Brownies

John decided to go off refined sugar.
Yeah...he doesn't eat it anymore.

He's not religious about it or anything, he still gets it here and there, but he won't eat sugary sweets and treats and junk. It's for his canker sores (you're supposed to be worried if you get 3 a year. He gets 3 a month), and so far it's worked! He's bitten his lip as often as ever for the past 2 1/2 months, but only once got infected and we couldn't really say that it was a canker sore -- or at least not nearly as bad as usual.

Anyway, he doesn't eat sugar.
Instead, he asked me to buy Splenda so that I can still make him all sorts of yummy treats that he misses so much. I've been reluctant (not only because Splenda is about 5 times as expensive as sugar), but on Sunday we gave in to his cravings and made some brownies.

Don't do it.

Splenda these days is supposed to be exchangeable straight over for sugar. Well maybe sometimes that works, but in baked goods it's a disaster. Splenda apparently doesn't absorb moisture the same as sugar, which they say means it just won't be as smooth.
Does not as smooth mean that my batter will be dough instead?

They also forgot to mention that all moisture will leak out of your treats while cooking and boil out on its own.
Basically, we fried our brownies, except that hardly any of the butter actually stayed in the brownies.

In the end, it did taste like my family's favorite brownie...except it also tasted like dusty dirt.

Material Girl

Last weekend my dear, darling mother-in-law took me shopping. This is dangerous. My mother-in-law loves to buy, buy, buy, and I don't know how to say no, no, no.

Luckily I realize this, which means she hadn't taken me shopping in about a year and a half. But it was time.

I came to the conclusion that John's mom has bought me more clothing in the past 3 years than my own mother has in my entire life. This shouldn't be surprising since my mom knew how to say no for me, and most of my clothes growing up were second-hand (I am the youngest of ten belonging to an elementary school teacher, after all). 

I don't want to get you the wrong idea. I love Carol and I love shopping with her. I had a blast spending time with a woman I adore. And let's face it, I'm not perfect; I thoroughly enjoy being spoiled rotten to the core.

Okay, hopefully I'm not rotten to the core.

But I am definitely spoiled.

Two hours in the dressing room and I am exactly

6 cardigans, 7 dresses, 10 shirts, 4 pairs of jeans (one coral colored), and 3 pairs of shoes more spoiled.
That's just attire.
And that's with me saying "I don't think so" a lot.

Oh, and see the heels on the right?
These:

That's right. I own sparkly heels.
This makes me muy happy.
I would never have bought them for myself. I just don't need them, so I simply wouldn't buy them. Carol, however, has no such inhibitions. I tried them on just to try them on, and she insisted I get them.
Isn't she cute?


I gave John a fashion show the next day:

This would make my Sarah Lynn proud (even if there is a lack of scarves)


I bought while with Carol something that John and I have been searching for: a comforter.
We painted our bedroom purple and cream and have been trying to find the right bed spread to go with it. We've found plenty of purple comforters, even in King size, and for a good price. But there's always been something wrong with them. Too "90's," too silver, too tan...so we had finally decided we might need to settle. But then the magically perfect one showed up.

Isn't it purdy?
We've been loving it.

I love our bed. I convinced John that we needed a King size. He thinks it makes us too far apart and he'd be perfectly happy with a double. Ugh. I'm glad I convinced him. Though our bed is somewhat...enormous. We got my brother's old bed frame when they switched, so it's free even if it's not what we would have picked out. But now we have our comforter and our purple sheets (several sets) and as soon as we get the all right pillows it will be perfect.

Almost there.



There is a vague point to all my ramblings here -- surprisingly enough.
As I skipped giddily around my house this week I realized how happy having nice things makes me. This is weird because I don't consider myself very material...and yet clearly I am. So I thought about it more.

Yes, I am a material person. I value material things.
Material things give me happiness, even lasting (time-wise) happiness.
My huge house continues to make me happy. My painted walls continue to make me happy. My gadget-stocked kitchen continues to make me happy. My collection of books continues to make me happy. Some of my random purchases from the dollar store continue to make me happy.

However, my happiness does not hinge on material things. I am quite happy without all these things, and was before I had them. All of these things are just added bonuses on an already wonderful life. That's how I see them. And that's why I think my life is amazing.

I have everything I could need: a wonderful husband, loving and lovable family and friends, my basic needs taken care of
I also have everything I could want: A loving and successful marriage, a home of our own, time to spend with those I care for, financial security, health, the ability to learn and grow,
Then I get all these extras: A house we could never outgrow, an overflowing wardrobe (with a closet that makes it seem small), a gorgeous kitchen, the money to buy most whimsical desires, a cute puppy to keep me company

People who know me know I am a very happy person. I always have been. But I'm pretty sure everyone else would be too if they had my life. My life simply rocks.
Yet, that's not really what makes me happy.
Choosing to be happy makes me happy.
And I choose to love the small things.

Banning Baby Bandwagon

I'm pretty sure at least 15 people I know have announced in the past week that they(/their significant other) are pregnant, or have announced what the gender of their coming baby is, or have actually had the baby. Add another week or two before that and the numbers increase. I'm pretty sure at least a 1/3 of my facebook friends(/their significant others) are either pregnant or just had a baby.

I can't post this on facebook because then my family will jump on it and assume I am pregnant and I'm not in the mood to combat all that. (And yes, that means I am not pregnant)

The point is, why on earth did everyone have to make it a bandwagon? I hate bandwagons.
Okay, not really, I just hate it when something I want to do becomes a bandwagon. Because I hate jumping on bandwagons. It takes all the fun out of it. Not that I have to be original -- I just don't want to be just like everyone else.

Except really...having a baby is no fad. I know I'm being silly. Anyone who falls into the category determined in the first paragraph would tell me that the third paragraph has nothing to do with them. And it doesn't, really. No one intended to all get together and have babies this year. (At least I hope not.)

But if John and I decide to never have children, I'm still blaming it on the sudden abnormal increase of baby-ness in my acquaintances lately.

Not Not Crush

John confessed something to me the other day.

"Quick! What is the actress's name who plays the reporter in the Hope?" (he means The Help)

"Emma Stone" (saved by Elise)

"Thank you! I certainly do not not have a crush on her."

Me to Amanda: "What a jerk I married! Boo!!" (teasingly, of course)

"Well I do not not have a crush on Hugh Jackman."

(I wish I had an iPhone)

Success!

It's about time!
Thank you witty, amiable skank!
                 (only because of the hilarious though inappropriate Easy A. It's actually a compliment.)

I am a Horrible Aunt.

So, on facebook earlier this week this happened:

So...this is interesting because I am also friends with this person:

And so when the first Jennifer requested my facebook friendship, I was confused. I figured it was the second Jennifer, but I was already friends with her. She is my sister-in-law's sister. She's a handful of years short of being old enough to be my mother and she's just the type of person you don't see running around making multiple facebook pages -- or even spending all that much time on the one she already has. So the back of my mind was confused, but I overlooked it. Especially that cute but cheesy picture of the wolves.

Then this happened:

Which is weird because this was into the ""Lynn Nelson Family" group, defined as:

Lynn is my Daddy.
So my brother adding my sister-in-law's sister made no sense.

Then it hit me.

...

But it's okay. I just never refer to my darling Jenny Ann as "Jennifer Christensen."
That's awkward.
So it's natural that that combination would not make me realize that my Jenny Ann got a facebook account the day she turned 13.

Also it's okay, because John said that when he saw

He thought of

Whose name is not nor ever has been "Jennifer." (at least we're pretty sure)

Have You Ever Been to Mexico?

OK Stick Man

:)

Random PRTSC

Sometimes, I take a screen shot
(you have a little button that says "PRTSC")
because my life is hilarious.
      ...and my life exists on the computer?


Of course I save the hilarious bits, but they're only so hilarious if I don't share them.
So I am going to share
Because they are hilarious.

Crime Scene Hot Shoe

Am I the only one who thinks this picture looks like it was taken straight from a crime scene?

Facebook Anniversary Reminder

Thank you, Facebook. I had no idea.

John Smack Brin

I swear, officer, I just ran into a firewall!

Volatile Savings

Disclaimer: 

I have never been to a crime scene.

I know when my Anniversary is.

John does not beat me.                                                   (physically or at games :P)

We are fairly smart with our finances.