It's a Girl!

Pregnancy is an interesting thing. Half the time, the women who are pregnant will tell you they don't want to be pregnant, that they just want the baby to come already, they're tired of feeling like a blimp, and all the extra hormones, cravings, sickness, and weight in new places can all take a hike. But, on top of that, they have the added "oooh's" and "ahhhh's" of adoring strangers. I have the most adorable sister-in-law who has two very cute boys of her own (2 years and a 5 month-old) who has told me some of her pregnancy stories. The most shocking, yet the most common that I've heard from her and others is when strangers approach a pregnant belly and proceed to rub and baby talk directly to the bloated area. It's one thing for friends and family to feel, but a complete stranger? Maybe my feelings on the subject are different than others'; but, if a stranger walks up to me and begins to feel my belly, give me unsolicited advice about parenting and breastfeeding, or ask when my baby is due without knowing me, I might just give them a disgusted look and say something like, "Excuse me? That is extremely rude. I'm not pregnant. I happen to have a rare case of IBS that makes my stomach bloat." It would be fun to see their reactions. But, for all those who haven't heard or whom I have yet the chance to tell, my husband and I ARE expecting a baby in late spring (90% sure of which it's a girl)! So, don't feel bad if you've seen me lately and wondered, maybe even had to ask yourself, "Wow, she's really let herself go since she got married. I wonder if that's holiday weight?" We are very excited!

Adventures at Costco

I recently got hired on as a seasonal worker at the Parker Costco warehouse. The job is great, it's low stress, the other workers are fun and friendly, and all in all it's a good place to work. I would really like to be held on as a permanent employee, so we'll see at the end of my "try out" in three weeks.

Everyone should try working at Costco at least once in their lifetime. The greatest thing about working there is the free samples. Of course the free samples are great even if you're just a member, but because I am there a couple days out of the week, I get free samples on lunch breaks, 15 minute breaks, and in between running from the front end to the back end on member requests.

I think my chances of staying on are pretty good, though I see some cons to every pro that supports managment's decision to keep me on the core staff.

1) Pro: Management likes my good attitude, how I smile a lot, and my personality.

Con: For the first week, management thought my name was "McKenzie".

2) Pro: Management asked me to extend my 4 hour shift to an 8 hour shift last week.

Neutral: They also asked the rest of staff if they would extend their shifts (later I found because two guys from corporate were coming to check things out at our store.)

3) Pro: Management has been putting me in a lot of different positions (front end assistant, door checker, self-checkout helper, go-backs, etc.) and teaching me a lot of new things.

Con: The other 75% of the time they don't know where to put me, so they send me to clothing to fold for the rest of the 6 hours.

The bottom line is, I actually really enjoy this job. Whether or not they keep me on, it's been a great experience. It makes for some good stories, I've made great friends and I'm basically eating for free daily.

Time to grow up? Cast your votes

I haven't written on my blog for far too long. I'm up at BYU-Idaho with a client. We went to McDonald's, and because this is our last time together I let her choose whether to play computer games or card games. She chose computer, so I finally have access to the Internet.

I'm leaving the beautiful state of Idaho in one week. It's sad, but I'm excited to be living in the same home as my husband!

The inspiration for this entry was a nice birthday present one of my old roommates gave me. I think the people that know me the best know that I have a pretty good sense of humor, and one way I keep it fresh is by keeping up on my daily Peanuts' comics. I have many Peanuts' memorabilia, and this is cause to ask myself, "Is it time to grow up?"

My old roommate got my a canister of Spiced Hot Cocoa and on the front of the tin can is Snoopy and Woodstock around a festive Thanksgiving centerpiece. I'm 24 years old and I don't think I could have asked for anything cuter!



But, I am 24 years old. Is it time to grow up? Is it time to replace my coffee table comic books with photography books of the mountains, or a Time's magazine or the newspaper with current events? Is it time to collect my stuffed Snoopy, my Snoopy mug, the several Peanuts' t-shirts, and Peanuts' mint tins and store them away in a Tupperware in the basement?

Personally, I think no. I've got a good 2, 3, or 55 years left in me before it's time to start growing up! Like my dad has said, "Growing old is mandatory. Growing up is a choice!"

Appropriate or Inappropriate?

I flew home this past Tuesday for a grad school interview. I drove into Salt Lake City and parked my car in the Diamond Parking Lot and hopped on the bus that took me to the airport. It was 5:30 in the morning, so I was a little out of it, but I was awake enough to notice the tip jar on the driver's dash board. I peeked into my wallet and realized I had zero cash on me. Suddenly, I was faced with a predicament. I couldn't leave my credit card or my debit card. I had to ask myself, and text my sister, "Is it appropriate to leave a tip in the form of a gift card if you don't have any cash on you?" The only other 3 options: a) Wal-Mart gift card with an ending balance of $68.91 (not likely I was leaving a $70 tip...) b) Borders gift card with a balance nearing $1.00 (I think it actually had like .56 cents or so) c) Dairy Queen gift card for $2.82 So, what did I do? I did what any white girl with three carry-ons-- carrying them by herself without any help getting on or off--would do. I took a free water out of the cooler in the back of the bus as four or five other businessmen got on the bus, prayed that one of them would tip the driver, and was the first one off the bus when we approached the Delta Airlines curb.

My Bed

I'm a floater. I've accomplished a lot in my life, but when it comes right down to it, I don't really know what I'm doing. I have just recently moved into the fourth, and hopefully final, place of residence in under one year. The good thing about moving so much is you get to see how much stuff you really have. This is good, because I think that I have managed to purge three or four giant trash bags full of old things. This is from clothing, to old cooking supplies, to furniture, to a lamp that never should have made it outside of my college apartment. Now, I have moving down to an art. Most of my stuff stays in storage (a good 5 boxes) and the rest I fit into my new room:

If your attention is directed to the green/white rectangle on the floor, you may be asking yourself, "Self, what is that green/white rectangle thing on the floor with the pillows on top?"

To that I would answer you, that is my current bed. Story: I had my parents take my queen size bed back home to Colorado b/c (A) I was pretty sure I was going to move to Utah in September (today, oddly enough) and they had furnished housing there and (B) I wouldn't be living in Idaho much longer anyway, so might as well take it with them so I wouldn't have to lug it around.

Well then, now you probably want to ask me, "Max, are you sleeping on-"

"Yes, I am sleeping on 4 queen-sized egg-role mattresses folded over so it really feels like 8. And yes, I put twin sheets around them to keep them bundled together to make it look and feel like a real twin-size mattress. And, yeah, I guess you could call me cheap for not wanting to buy a $60 twin mattress to use or have to shuffle around for the next 4 months."

Well, well, well....

So Kelly got a blog! Yay!! Check out hers...It's under my quick links entitled "KELLY!"

Welcome to Wal-Mart...

I have made an effort in the past 6 months to not shop at Wal-Mart. They do have such great prices and so much stuff, that when you go in for a dozen eggs, you wonder why you're leaving with 2 for $10 goggles, 3 for $5 pop tarts, 4 for $10 Diet Pepsi 12-Packs, and a cute graphic tee off the $7 rack. Not to mention by the time you drive home and bring your bags inside you realize you forgot the eggs you actually went in for. My reasons for not shopping at Wal-Mart were very hard for me to explain, but ode to MSN.com, someone who is more business-savvy and economically in tune has explained my feelings: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/SaveMoney/the-price-of-wal-mart-coming-to-town.aspx And, what is it with Wal-Mart piggy-backing on Target? I love Target, and I just find the rumors curious (if they are true), why is it that Wal-Mart is remodeling their stores to embody Target's floor plan? Anyway, it doesn't make you a bad person if you shop at Wal-Mart. For me, I would rather spend my dollar for the same stuff at other stores.