New Appreciation

I have been working out at the Boise State Rec Center now for almost three years. I am definitely a social exerciser, so I enjoy the group exercise classes. I typically take classes over my lunch break - usually lift, spin, step aerobics, or circuit training. I decided to try something new tonight - yoga (Stephanie - aren't you proud of me?!) I am one of the most inflexible people I know, so this class was quite interesting! It's probably a good thing I didn't have a camera with me :-) It amazes me how random unnatural poses can be such a good workout - I can tell I'm going to be sore tomorrow! Take this pose for example - the Eagle Pose:Yeah, I know, she makes it look easy... but I dare you to try it! You wrap one leg around the other, hooking your foot behind the opposite leg, sit back a little, and then wrap your arms up. Try standing still without wobbling and stand there for a while. Not so easy, huh! Here's another:
This one looks even easier, but it's actually kind of painful :-) I think it's called the reverse triangle or something along those lines. Once we held this position for a while, we had to keep the one hand on the ground and straighten the front leg. I am pretty sure that with some of these poses I stretched certain muscles for the first time in my life! In any case, I gained a new appreciation tonight for yoga, and I'll definitely be going back to try and perfect my skills :-)

To Die For

I LOVED the downtown crepe restaurant The Square and was so sad a couple of years ago when it went out of business. Not only were the crepes fabulous, but the tomato basil soup was amazing. Ever since then, I have been on the lookout for a replacement tomato basil soup. Well, I found it! I bought this creamy tomato basil soup at Albertsons this week, and it is to die for... I didn't realize how literal that was, though, until I looked at the nutritional information. Unfortunately, now I realize why this soup is so yummy - one cup of soup is 52% of my daily fat! Yuck! Guess this is the last time I'll enjoy this creamy tomato yumminess.

Punk Rockin' It

Jen and I went shopping a couple weeks ago for our Halloween costumes. We both have two Halloween parties to attend this year and wanted something cool. We loved all the wigs at the Costume Shop, so decided to put together costumes around our hair styles! What I thought was going to be a simple costume turned into quite the ordeal... I not only had to buy the mohawk, but had to buy a bald cap, toupee tape to adhere the mohawk to the bald cap, spirit gum (and remover) to make the bald cap stick to my skin, latex makeup to blend the bald cap to my skin, plus my clothing, shoes, cool pink eyelashes, black lipstick & fingernail polish, etc. Tonight was the first party, and it took about an hour to put my entire costume together. Guess that's a good trial run for Friday night!

Under $3.00!

I have hated watching the gas prices climb over the last couple of years. This summer was horrible, with gas well above $4.00 a gallon (this picture was taken near the end of June). I remember when gas was 97 cents a gallon! I was stoked, however, when I filled up for $2.99 a gallon yesterday... even if that was with a 10 cent per gallon sale Albertsons was having. Gas prices are finally coming down! I have noticed on other people's blogs and facebooks accounts that gas is even cheaper on the east coast and midwest (generally), so I'm hoping that Boise's gas prices will catch up (or down!) soon :-)

Weekend in Rexburg

I have totally missed my baby sister Beki since she went off to college in August so I decided to go on a quick road trip to visit her in Rexburg last weekend. My Blazer was PACKED with food, clothes, blankets, toiletries, etc. for not only Beki, but also for several of Beki's friends (thanks to each of their moms). I guess everyone had been making their lists and I was the lucky delivery girl :-) Anyway, I had a blast visiting Beki. I got to attend one of her soccer games (she plays competitive soccer at BYU-I), go to dinner, decorate Halloween cookies, go shopping, and more. I forgot to take very many pictures, and the couple we did take didn't really turn out, so I just grabbed this one off her Facebook page. I think Beki is a total babe!

And I couldn't go to Rexburg without visiting my college roommate Sunny! Sunny & Steve were gracious enough to let me stay with them one night. I had fun going to their ward dinner and activity on emergency preparedness, playing with Sunny's adorable kids Ruby and Jack, and staying up late talking with Sunny. We also had dinner at a Thai restaurant (I love pho!), and had a fabulous dessert from a cupcake store. I got a pumpkin chocolate chip cupcake and it was so yummy. Thanks for everything Sunny - hope to see you again soon!

I Voted

It's that time of year... my mailbox is filled with political postcards, the presidential and vice-presidential debates are a common topic of conversation, and it seems like every other article in the newspaper has to do with one candidate or another. It is our civic responsibility to research and vote for the political candidates who best represent our beliefs. This year I requested an absentee ballot and was able to vote early without even having to wait in line at the polls. I won't get my "I Voted" sticker, but I know that my vote counts!

Reba & Kelly

Earlier this week I was offered two free tickets to see the Reba & Kelly Clarkson concert. How awesome is that!?! I felt even cooler when I found out the tickets were $60 each, so I scored myself $120 in free tickets. Jen & I went to the concert tonight and had a blast. The music was really great. Kelly & Reba sang every song together - it's amazing how well their voices blend, even when they have such different styles. I not only loved the concert, but loved the people watching. It is amazing how much some people get into concerts! I loved watching these two girls who were sitting near us - you could tell they were HUGE Kelly Clarkson fans as they sang along and waved their arms to each of her songs. I had to keep reminding myself to watch the stage and not them :-)

Fourth Album, Fourth Picture

I saw this on Liz's blog and thought I'd play along. You are supposed to post the fourth photo from the fourth album on your computer... So here's mine! It's a picture of me and Allison. This was taken in September 2002 - I had graduated from college and was on a campout with my single's ward in beautiful Garden Valley, Idaho (notice the camping shirt!). I look kinda young - I think it was the braces! So, like Liz, I think I'll tag anyone with a little time on their hands who wants to play along. Can't wait to see your picture!

Oh What a Difference!

This is a picture of the giant ugly florescent light box in my kitchen that I have hated since the day I moved in. Yes, it is hanging by chains from the ceiling. While it has always been ugly, I seem to notice it more and more as I do upgrades in my kitchen. Ever since I got granite counter tops and new appliances last year, that light box has stuck out like a sore thumb. Getting beautiful hardwood in my kitchen was the tipping point. This morning an electrician came out and replaced my box florescent light with recessed can lights. I love them! Removing that light box has totally opened up my kitchen and it is not only brighter, but looks bigger too. Here's the end result. I still have to fill in the holes where the chains hung, but the major work is done!

Thoughts on the Bailout

In case you didn't know, I love Google Reader. I get all the headlines from all my favorite sites all in one place. It saves me loads of time, and I like to think that because of Google Reader, I am pretty well informed about what's going on in the world. With the exception of my friends' blogs, I typically just skim the headlines (a lot of times the headlines tell me all I need to know), and only read the entire article when the topic jumps out at me as interesting or important. So imagine my surprise when at dinner on Monday, Jen started talking to me about the Bailout plan. Um, I think I had seen this in the headlines somewhere, but was ashamed to admit that I had never actually read the articles and had no idea what she was talking about. I immediately went home and started reading and reading about the plan. Both sides of the argument (for and against the bailout plan) were pretty convincing. No, as a taxpayer I don't really want to have to help pay for irresponsible home buyers who bought more house than they could afford (I'm sure it will come back to the taxpayers somewhere along the lines), but I also don't want to have the next Great Depression. Regardless of my thoughts or opinions, though, the Bailout plan passed yesterday and was signed into law by President Bush. What does this all mean you might ask? I came across this article that explains a little more about how it might affect us.

One interesting side note - As part of the bailout (not quite sure how they relate), it looks like insurance plans will start better covering mental health issues. I know several people who suffer from some sort of mental health issue (depression, bi-polar, etc.), so I am happy to see this legislation passed.