100 Years of Magic!

Last Saturday I did a most magical thing...I went to Disney On Ice! Hollie and Alyssa decided to surprise me and take me for my birthday (which isn't until December 8th, but Disney On Ice couldn't come back on the 8th just for me because of prior obligations) and it was AWESOME! To make things even better, we rode the FrontRunner there! In case you didn't know, I absolutely adore the FrontRunner, despite one time getting locked in it and having to go clear to Ogden and wait 20 minutes for the workers to smoke before they finally took us back to Clearfield. It makes me feel like Harry Potter on the Hogwarts Express! In fact, I have a plan to one day dress up like Harry Potter, complete with wand and cage holding a large, fake, snowy white owl, and just ride the FrontRunner back and forth, whispering little spells at people under my breath. But that's another post for the future! Anywho, so we get on the 4:23 train so that we can get to Salt Lake in plenty of time, and we're riding along, happy as can be, when I ask Hollie if I can see one of the tickets and she realizes she has left them at home! So we got off in Layton and just goofed around in the freezing cold of the station until kind Natalie brought us the tickets and we caught another train. We left Layton at 5:30 and got there just in time! They even went before it started and bought me some light up Mickey Ears to wear (which I kept on all night long of course)! Now I had found out about the Disney On Ice surprise beforehand because Lyss is a horrible liar, but what I didn't know was that not only had they taken me on a most wondrous birthday adventure, but they had gotten seats on the 6TH ROW! I was so happy/grateful that as I sat down in my seat and the show started, I started to cry! The magic tends to just overwhelm me at times I suppose. After the incredible show that I could have watched for hours on end, they took me out to eat at Applebees, and then to Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory for a mouth-watering chocolate drizzled caramel apple treat! It was a perfect night! Well, other than the fact that on the way home they forced me to eat a large majority of a partially white chocolate covered dog bone Hollie had bought for Ruby. It actually wasn't too bad if I bit the end with the chocolate to mix with the dry, grainy taste.

Hollie was convinced she could put her heels together and bend all the way down without lifting them. She couldn't. But she was a lot closer than me or Lyss!

Bruce was awful hungry....Look how many characters were in the show! And this isn't even all of them.

Lucy Kate Murray

Another new addition! On the morning of November 3rd, my sister Amy went and had her cerclage removed. When she went back for a check up a few hours later, she was already dilated to a 4, so I went over to watch Cole and Grace while she and Adam went back up to the hospital to have the baby! She called a few hours later to say she'd delivered wee Lucy Kate at 6:55 PM, so I loaded up the kids at about 7:30 PM and we went and saw her! She was 3 weeks early, so you'd think she'd be about 6 lbs or so, but oh no! She was an 8 lbs. 2 oz. little chunk! She's a beautiful baby, just like Amy's other kids, and I can't get enough of her! I've taken about a million pictures in just the 2 weeks she's been here, but I'll spare you and just post a few.

She appears to be a little suspicious of something.

Look at these chubby cheeks! Smiling on the 2nd day! Sort of. You can see her little dimples!

She's got such big beautiful blue eyes!

Ruby Jo Leah Gunter

It's catch up day! First off, Ruby! On October 26th, Lyss asked me if I wanted to go after church to a house where she had seen a sign for Shorkie (Shitzu+Yorkie) puppies "just to look." I figured puppy looking at someone's home was an appropriate/super fun Sabbath day activity, so along with Brit, Lyns, Morgan, and Lexi, we piled up in the car and headed to check them out! Needless to say, once we got there we fell in love with all 4 puppies, so Lyss called her parents to ask permission to get a dog (they already had two--adorable Oreo and mad ugly Snickers), and after much persuasion, a trip with her parents to see the puppies for themselves, and $600 from Lyss's own pocket, the little 7 week old girl runt was Alyssa's! Lyss named her Ruby and she is probably the only dog I have ever loved as much as my sweet Pebbles and Maggie. I'm able to spend a lot of time with her because Clark and Jodi's generosity in letting me live with them rent free combined with getting a few months ahead on my car payment has allowed me to, for the first time since I've been in school, have a semester of not working, so Ruby and I pretty much go everywhere together! I think Big Mama from "The Fox and the Hound" probably sums Ruby and I up best: "When you're the best of friends, having so much fun together, you're not even aware you're such a funny pair...you're the best of friends!"

How precious is this face!

Grace absolutely LOVES her! Almost to death.

Ruby is a snuggler! She's all cuddled up with her beanie puppy.

What's With My Love For Cheesy Movies?

Who attended the High School Musical 3 midnight showing last night? Oh yeah, me. And did I love it? Judging by the fact that I'm listening to the soundtrack as I write this, heck yes I did! I was going to wait until it had been out a couple of weeks so I could use a free movie pass that I have instead of paying 8.75 (movie prices are out of this world these days), but Lyss's little sister Lexi was going with some fellow 6th graders and their teacher (yeah, a 6th grade teacher taking his students to a midnight movie on a school night....kind of weird) and Jodi, naturally feeling a little odd about the situation, asked Lyss if she'd go so she could at least take Lexi home after. So Lyss called me from work and asked if I wanted to go, then I called Hollie and asked if she wanted to go, and bada bing! The 3 Mousekateers were going to the movie! And what a movie it was! Filled with the usual amounts of cheesy, I nevertheless once again found myself wishing that when the producers had offered me the part of Gabriella in the original High School Musical, I would've accepted it instead of turning them down to focus on competing in the 2008 Olympics. I could have easily made the USA gymnastics team again for the 2012 Olympics, but High School Musical was once in a lifetime. You would've been mine Zac.

Maybe I have this poster of Zac hanging in my room. And maybe I also want to get one of Lucas because I love him as well.

The Olympics was still a good experience, despite the knowledge that it cost me the film opportunity of a lifetime. This is a little shot of me on the uneven parallel bars, performing under my fake gymnastics name, Nastia Luikin.

The Blessings From a Flat Tire!

Yes, as you can see from the Montana post, my little baby Gina K. got a flat on our Montana journey! And by flat, I don't mean I ran over a nail in the road and put a small hole in the tire, no, I mean one of the tires basically just started ripping at the seams and almost exploded. I can't say I'm surprised, as her two front tires were both bald as an eagle. In fact, I had been planning on having to replace them 7 months previous (yeah, they'd been bad for quite some time) when I took it in to do the safety and emissions test to get Gina registered, but luckily they slipped by the "thorough" Jiffy Lube check and I was back on the road with the plan to drive them until they couldn't go another mile!

So anywho, we're driving along (aka I'm driving, and Alyssa is still in the semi-comatose state she went into the second we hit the freeway) and Gina, who had been pulling to the right for a couple of months, started REALLY pulling to the right, as well as making a not so pleasant sound. I get out to inspect, and sure enough, flat as can be. It's about 8:20 in the morning by this point, FREEZING cold outside with a nasty wind, and we're 10 miles outside of Dillon, which is only like 50 minutes to an hour from Stacy's. So close! I've never changed a flat in my life and neither has Lyss, and being in Montana, there were hardly any cars going by, so I whip out my phone to call my Dad to have him walk me through a tire change, and....no service. Review: bitter cold Montana morning, flat tire with no idea how to change it, no people in sight to ask for help, and no phone service to call anybody. Lyss and I both start praying our little hearts out, asking Heavenly Father to please let someone stop or to let one of us get service, and what happens? I get one bar! Granted, I can't be touching my phone at all or I lose it, so I have the phone on speaker, on the front of my car, leaning over to hear my Dad over the wind as he walks me through what to do. (He did offer to drive out and change it for us fyi, as my parents were at Stacy's visiting too, but that would've wasted a couple hours and I thought I could do it with some instruction) Just when he's finished explaining and I go to get the supplies to start testing my instruction following abilities, a truck pulls up and a nice lady (Yes, LADY--Montana women are tough!) changes it for us! (I watched her like a hawk though, so I'm pretty sure I could change a tire now if the situation arises.) We were able to then make it the rest of the way to Stacy's on the little spare and then get new tires once I was there!

My point in elaborating on the story was just to share one of the tender mercies of our Heavenly Father. Too many times I think, I pass off as coincidence what are instead blessings from Heaven, and I can't say enough how grateful I am that prayers are answered, whether directly from above or through other people. I just hope that I can remember these experiences and work harder to be close to promptings of the Spirit, so that when others are in need, I can be the Lord's hand to help them like that lady was for us!

I didn't take a picture of the spare on Gina, so here's a picture of a spare on my sister Steph's car when her tire blew as we were driving to Jackson Hole one time! They look so funny!

Montana Madness!!

My next semi-recent activity was a trip to one of my favorite places to visit, my sister Stacy's house in Montana! Thursday night at 9:00 on September 25, after our wretched CNA class, Alyssa and I went as far as her Grandma and Grandpa Boyd's, who are, by the way, two of the funniest/cutest people you will ever meet! We got there and talked to her night owl Grandma for a second, then pretty much went to bed because it was almost 1:00 and we were planning on being on the road by 5:30, which we actually pulled off almost! We got up by about 5:10, had breakfast with her early bird Grandpa, and were on the road by 5:45! One flat tire later(see THAT story above), we got to Stacy's around 10 and had a fabulous weekend filled with horse rides(for the first time in my life I'm pretty sure I hit the speed point on the horse where it can be considered RUNNING, not just galloping), motor bike/4-wheeler adventures, and, of course, countless laughs and fun times with my family! Unfortunately, my batteries were dead in my camera, so all the pictures of the trip are on my parents' camera, which I forgot to get from them before I left. So until I get the recent ones, I'll just post a few pictures from other trips to Big Sky Country! My niece Haley, proving that despite being 16 years my junior, she is a better rider than I am.

Stacy's pond freezes in the winter time, allowing all sorts of fun activities! Ice fishing, ice skating, pulling sleds behind the 4-wheeler across the ice. That's right. 4-wheelers on ice! I was terrified I was going to fall through, but other than the death factor, it's SO fun!

Lyss and I on the funnest little motor bikes ever! Notice how large the tires on Alyssa's bike are. She refused to ride my bike because apparently she can't balance on anything narrower than 3 feet, which I don't mind because the bike I'm on is my favorite!

Me, trying to avoid getting wet.

Lyss, not caring if she gets wet as she is already soaking from tipping over in the middle when we were going the other way.

Skeez's Memorial Service

The box we put in the freezer with Skeez in itSkeez's viewing and burial ended up being postponed until the following Monday, September 22, at 6:00 PM. I started off by telling about Skeez's life, such as the time he got lost in our Logan apartment and we found him 4 days later inside the furnace, which I had pretty much taken apart after I heard scratching inside, and then I opened up the floor for others to comment on how wonderful he had been in their lives! After that, Adam, who I had asked to put Skeez in the hole because I didn't have the heart to drop him in there, picked up the shirt he was wrapped in and started to bend over the hole when....Skeez accidentally fell out of the shirt, thudded hard right next to the hole, and then bounced in! We all sat there stunned for a second and then started laughing, as I'm sure Skeez would've wanted us to! I filled in the hole and put flowers on top (Hollie wasn't able to come until later that evening, that's why her rose isn't shown here on the grave) and that was it! There were no tears, other than fake ones, it was just a beautiful remembrance of my son! I love and miss you little buddy!

The attendees of the funeral (Kenz hadn't yet arrived)Me giving a very moving eulogyJill, Kenzie, and Lyss mourning and seriously contemplating lifeMe getting emotional at his grave

Little Skeez: November 8, 2006-September 19, 2008

Arriving home from the drive in (see previous post) around 12:30, I went inside, jolly as an elf, and went to feed my children, aka hamsters, Skeez, Reepicheep, and Pipsqueak. Now usually I open Skeez's cage (which is in my room) to feed him, then go into the storage room where I keep the other two (because they stink no matter how thoroughly I clean their cage), feed them, and come back to talk to/play with/hold/love Skeez, who has by this time woken up and is getting a drink or stretching his tiny little legs. This being a nightly routine, you can imagine I was surprised to return to my room after feeding the Little Tinies and find Skeez still asleep. I went over to his cage and said, "Wake up little guy! Come on!" and my heart sunk when he didn't even flinch. I sat down on my bed and started sobbing, which prompted Lyss to come in my room to see what was the matter, and I was pretty much a complete mess for the next hour or more! I took his cage into the bathroom and took the top off, then took him out and wrapped him up in an old shirt (at which point Lyss, who usually pretends she is terrified of him, showed she really loved him after all by starting to sob along with me and saying, "It's just so sad to see him like this!") which was then placed in a shoe box, which was then placed in the Gunter's downstairs freezer, much to Jodi's dismay. Whoops! I figured it was sanitary as he was double wrapped, and it was better than leaving him to rot in my room until I could bury him! I'm sure that wouldn't have resulted in a pleasant smell, since he was already a little stinky and he'd been dead less than 24 hours. It was quite tragic, but I'm happy he's running on that great hamster wheel in the sky! As my sister Stacy advised me, "You should invest in an animal with a little longer life span so you're not crushed every two years." Thank you to everyone who sent their sympathy!

A gift bag from Katherine containing pears, which just may be my favorite fruit!

The note attached to the bag from Katherine

Hollie brought a rose for Skeez's grave, as well as a bag of sunflower seeds (his favorite) and some Dr. Pepper for me! I sprinkled a handful of the seeds on his grave for him to eat in the afterlife!

Alone in the rain...and loving it!

Friday, September 19th, around 7:00 PM I believe, I had a most wonderful idea to go to the drive in! It had been raining most of the day, but the skies had cleared for a moment and didn't look too ominous, so I thought it would be just perfect! I looked on the drive in's website to see what was playing and found a perfect pair: Dark Knight with House Bunny. I hadn't yet seen the Dark Knight, but had really been wanting to, and I HAD seen House Bunny and thought it was hilarious, so I was basically destined to go. The one problem with my plan? No one that I asked could/wanted to go. The nerve. Now I'm not the type to go to movies or dinner by myself, but I had been wanting to go to the drive in for quite some time and it never seemed to work out, so as I was afraid it would be closing soon for the season, I made the decision to go anyway, all by myself! I was a bit flip-floppy for a small bit as, when I went to buy batteries at Walmart for the little stereo I borrowed from Lexi, it started to rain, and I didn't know how fun it would be to go solo, but I went through the Sonic Drive thru, got myself a Route 44 Dr. Pepper, and away I went! When I got there, the Dark Knight had just started, so I hurried and maneuvered around the 3 other cars at my screen to get a nice spot right up front, set up my camping chair in front of my car, and quickly turned the radio on to get to the right station. Apparently Lexi's stereo is Latino, because it wouldn't stay on 106.3, it kept changing itself to this Spanish dance station on 106.4, so I found the station on my car radio, rolled my window down, moved my camping chair to right outside the driver side door, then huddled up in my blankets and settled in to enjoy the shows! And I DID enjoy them! They were both over by about 12:15, and I drove home happy as could be! That's when the night went downhill....

I really like this show, but it left me feeling kind of sad. What a way for Heath to end though! Amazing performance!

I'm pretty sure this is the screen I was on, but I don't know for sure as I got both pictures of the drive in from their website. How I love this place!
Freaking hilarious.

"It Is Time..."

Yes, 51 days after leaving for Disneyland in August, "It is time" as my pal Rafiki says, to remove the Disneyland countdown from my blog. So sad. (Rafiki does not look sad because he has just found out Simba is alive, a happy thought indeed!) What's even more sad is that I would be going to Disneyland again to meet up with the Marshall clan in just 8 days if it wasn't for my CNA class! But we'll talk about THAT trouble later. First off, I need to back up and go in order of some recent events. Starting from the drive in......

Happy Birthday Harry Potter!

Along with Disneyland, July is also the home month to another important birth, that of my good friend Harry Potter! Harry, I just wanted to take this moment to tell you how grateful I am for your friendship these many years. It truly has been a delight knowing you and having you be such a large part of my life! I can't wait to see you, Ginny, James, Albus, and Lily at the BBQ on Saturday! Tell Ginny I'm bringing a salad and drinks, but let me know if you need anything else and I'll be happy to bring it! Happy birthday ol' pal!

As wizard photographs have a harder time uploading on my computer, and people walk in and out of them all the time anyway, I just decided to post this fun little cartoon version of Harry instead of the photos from our last vacation together I was going to try and put on here.

The Happiest Place On Earth!

I felt the need to post today to give thanks where thanks is deserved--thank you Walt Disney! On July 17, 1955, 53 yrs ago today, this glorious man brought to life the only place other than my parents' house that I get homesick for, DISNEYLAND! Quoting from Walt Disney himself, "Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams, and the hard facts that have created America...with the hope that it may be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world." Disneyland is a place where magic truly exists and where emotions can only range from joyful to completely elated because it is physically impossible to be sad when you are in those hallowed gates! My heart aches that I'm not currently flying high over London with Peter Pan, dueling swashbuckling pirates with Captain Jack, or enjoying one of the millions of other wondrous things to do in the park, but I can take comfort in the fact that my second season pass is currently in the mail and on its way to my house for when I am finally reunited with my beloved Disneyland in just 31 days! I have hundreds of pictures I could share of the incredibly amazing times I have had there, but in the interest of time, here are just a few. Sleeping Beauty's castle...yes, I took this picture and yes, it is amazing. Lyss, Lexi, Me, and Aubrie with the big man himself, Mr. Mickey Mouse!

I realize I look OOC in this picture, but I had to post it to show how Disneyland makes you INSANELY happy!

Party Palooza!

If nothing else, pinatas are always good for party hats!

Who In Their Right Mind?

For awhile on the corner of Main Street and Gordon Ave in Layton, there was an insane assortment of some kind of metal menagerie going on that we would pass every day on our way to some of the schools we've been painting at. I don't know who in the world would want to buy these and what they would do with them (perhaps they're some sort of lawn decoration), but if I had to choose one to display for all to see in MY yard, it would have to be my all time favorite, Seductive Monkey. I don't know what his real title was, but looking at the pose he was placed in, there is clearly no name that better suits the little guy. Second only to Seductive Monkey was Little Pink Elephant, but unfortunately, her picture was never snapped in our drive by photo sessions. Seductive Monkey, looking particularly radiant on a hot June morning.

Who Knew I'd Be 3 Feet From Jordin Sparks?

Last Wednesday, June 25th to be exact, I was lucky enough to see none other than the Season 6 winner of American Idol (one of my all time favorite shows), Jordin Sparks, live in concert! It was a freakin blast! I saw she was coming to the Scera in Orem when we were there visiting Bryson and Jaclyn for an Olive Garden/game night fest(yes, the same night we got locked out of B and J's apartment at 4 in the morning because I had an EXTREME bathroom emergency and couldn't bring myself to go in the one tiny bathroom that happens to be in their bedroom), so Lyss and I, along with Sarah Sherwood and Jill Purser, bought tickets and went! They were only 10 dollars, which is a steal of a deal considering she is amazing and we got so close we were only inches from touching her fingertips! She even drove RIGHT by (like 2 feet away) Lyss and I in a golf cart before the concert started while we were outside the gates waiting for my sister to bring us some water. Ah! I only knew 5 of the songs she sang, two of which were remakes of other artists, but I didn't care because I just love concerts and we had so much fun because she's so adorable! Ben and Ashley came too because Ben texted some number for free tickets and won! Hooray for Jordin Sparks! Jordin singing her little heart out! Alyssa screaming for Jordin at the top of her lungs!This is us, just go lucky and happy as can be.

Are Lynn Smith and Elton John One Person?

So last summer when my parents, Ben, and I went on an incredibly fun trip to Oregon, we were walking along a tourist strip when all of a sudden, who should we come across? Why, none other then that wonderful cat/lizard loving Clearfield High English teacher, Ms. Smith! Apparently she was so excited to see me that she wet herself because there is no other explanation to that puddle at her feet. I came across this photo as I was going through some pictures on my computer and knew immediately it was blog worthy. For the convenience of those who may not know Ms. Smith, I have also added a recent photo of her that I just swiped from Clearfield's website and a photo of her at one of her many concerts!