Perfectionism At Its Finest

I learned  to crochet years ago and what do I have to show for it-- nothing. I am known to be a perfectionist and it comes out most when I crochet. If it doesn't look perfect, I unravel it all again and again until I finally give up for good.

The most recent example of this was in January when I attempted to make a babies blanket for my unborn niece due in April. I gave myself plenty of time to complete this task, despite the fact that it could be completed in a day or two. That niece is now almost a month old.. Has she gotten her blanket yet? No. She even has a name now, Eliza. 

Drum-roll please. I finished Eliza's baby blanket tonight! I honestly can't even count the number of times I have started over. I have tried many different colors and textures of yarn hoping that something would work, but to no avail. Every time Andrew would come home from work or school he would ask if I started over again. He finally stopped asking. (Smart man.)

Before heading out on the long journey to Spokane, I decided to give crocheting another whirl. Things were looking up until I noticed that my blanket was expanding which is usually the problem I face time and time again. I always gain or lose a stitch. After asking Andrew how bad it looked and seeing his face, I decided it was worth starting over... again. Hey, I had a 10 hour drive. 

Things started to look up until I ran out of yarn. After searching 4 stores in Utah and Washington, I gave up on finding the perfect pink to match the one on Eliza's blanket. Stores had both the darker hue and the lighter hue, but never the one I needed. I ended up taking out some of the pink and adding more purple. 

I finished!

I even added little tassels on the ends to try to make it look cuter. (Choking hazard, I know.) Here is the final product:

 I hope Eliza's Mom doesn't see this before it comes in the mail... Thank goodness I didn't join the family years ago because I would have had to make like 26 of these puppies... 

And for the record, the next nephew is due in July and I'm proud to say his blankie is well under way. :) (Shh.. Don't tell Annie)

Memorial Day Weekend

Spokane was a fun place to be on Memorial Day weekend. Andrew and I drove all night Thursday and arrived at his house at 3:00am which was 4:00 our time. It was a lot of driving and felt like it took forever, but it was worth it. I don't know that we will ever make that drive through the night again though. I could hardly keep my eyes open, but didn't want to fall asleep to make sure that Andrew didn't. 

On Friday, we had dentist appointments with Andrew's brother. (which is why we drove through the night) Every time we go to Spokane, we visit the dentist. At first I was a little embarrassed to let my cavity-filled teeth be seen by Andrew's brother, but I'm over it. People have much worse teeth than me. The good news is that I didn't have a cavity this time and that I didn't have to watch Logan surgically remove a cyst on Andrew's head this time. 

Andrew also took me on a pretty drive by his old house. I had never seen that area of Spokane and it was absolutely beautiful. Here is a picture.. 

We topped the night off by having a BBQ at the park with lots of family. The weather was less than ideal, but we still had a blast. I won the "worst aunt award" by not taking my nieces and nephews to find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Hopefully they'll forget about that. I made a new dessert recipe called "Cookie Monster." It was pretty tasty.

The majority of Saturday was spent at Kelly and Annie's house. My job was to sit there and look pretty while Andrew helped build a massive fort for his nieces and nephews. Things got a little dicey when the whole thing collapsed and they had to start over, but it worked out in the end.

Cafe Rio was definitely a highlight. I'm thrilled that it is within 10 minutes of Andrew's house. This probably isn't good for my budget, but does wonders for my happiness. After Cafe Rio, we hit the Theater and saw "X-Men." Not my first choice, but it ended up being pretty entertaining. 

Sunday was relaxing. I didn't love meeting another one of Andrew's past girlfriends at church and having an awkward conversation, but oh well. I have the ring. :) Once again, lots of family and nieces and nephews, and lots of fun. The girls may or may not have won in Catch Phrase.

Monday morning we attended the temple for a special session. It isn't usually open on Mondays, but because it was a Holiday, they decided to open it for a few hours. The Spokane temple is quite small compared to the temples in Utah, but it is beautiful. Just in case you were wondering, I met another one of Andrew's old girlfriends in the temple. Aren't you jealous? 

We ended our trip with a bang in Spokane. Brent and Deena had us over for a BBQ and volleyball. It was tasty and the weather was better this time. I made s'more cookies which I think are absolutely delicious. Here is the recipe: http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2013/08/smores-hersheys-kiss-cookies-recipe.html

We had a fun and jam packed weekend in Spokane. I'm blessed to have married into such a neat family. I feel so welcome every time we visit family. And for once, I might have found myself actually wishing that I lived in Rexburg to cut off 3 and a half hours of the drive.

Books Worth Reading

Lately, I've had a lot more time on my hands which I'm loving! I have spent a lot of that time reading. If you knew me as a child, this would come as a surprise to you. When I was growing up, I hated to read. I was never interested in any books. I thought they were boring or weird which is probably why my parents instigated the idea that when they put us to bed, we could stay up later, but only if we were reading. Every little kid wants to stay up later, so it worked! 

Even today, after all these years, I am still choosy when it comes to reading. Andrew agrees. We like to read books together and the last one we "attempted" to read was his choice. (Which is rare. I usually choose.) We have polar opposite tastes in books. He is very into Fantasy and I would rather just avoid that entire genre. That being said, the book we read was one in this genre. I had a really hard time through the entire book and dreaded reading it. Finally, about halfway through the book, I gave up and told Andrew to finish it on his own. I don't know that I have ever seen Andrew happier. He was excited to get to read the book quickly and not have me complaining every time we read it. I was happiest though. 

Enough rambling. The three most recent books I have read and enjoyed are: "The Book Theif," "The Fault in Our Stars," and "Tending Roses." 

"The Book Thief," by: Markus Zusak

I saw this movie before reading the book. I typically like to read a book before watching the movie, because so many details are left out and it helps having some background knowledge. I enjoyed the movie (other than the fact that it dragged on a bit) and decided to read the book. The book is very well-written and hard to put down. I highly recommend it. I don't know of any other book narrated by death. It's fun to get to know the characters on a deeper level. 

"The Fault in Our Stars" by: John Green

This movie is coming out soon! Read the book before seeing it. This book is a feel good book. It is about a group of teenagers that are in a cancer support group together. This book teaches to enjoy your life and not let things like health hold you back. My one warning is that this book has a lot of bad language which is unfortunate. I still think it is worth reading though.

"Tending Roses" by: Lisa Wingate (Almost finished) 

I like realistic books with characters that I can relate to. This book hit the spot for me. It's about a family that grows apart after the loss of their mother. This book emphasizes the importance of family and motherhood. The main character is looked down upon for wanting to stay home with her new baby instead of returning to the work force. 

I don't know what book is next on the list, so if you have any suggestions, I would be happy to hear them. (I can't guarantee that I will like the book you suggest though...)

Life-Long Calling

I've noticed that in the church, there is definitely a trend when it comes to callings. Oftentimes, people serve in the same calling for many years which makes sense because they are experienced. My Mom has had Young Women's callings for nearly 30 years.

We are back in the ward I grew up in for the summer and the day our records arrived, Andrew and I were asked to meet with the 1st counselor of the bishopric. I was not surprised to hear that being the primary chorister was in my future. The summer before Andrew got married, I was the primary chorister as well in this same ward.

I'm excited about this calling and enjoy coming up with fun activities/games to teach the kids during singing time. In our Rexburg married ward there wasn't really a primary. There were only like 4 kids in the ward, so it's fun to hear a little sound during sacrament meeting and have the opportunity to work with children. In my family ward, I think there are about 100 primary kids! My first official day was yesterday and things went well. I'll get to teach the kids a song for Father's day and lead them in performing it for sacrament meeting. I'm going to do my best not to block the children, so there parents can actually see them. (This has been a problem in the past and it is something that I don't want to be repeated.)

I'm not too sad about the fact that I will leave to go back to school just a few weeks before the Primary Program. Watching the Primary Program is one of my favorite things to do, but I am glad I won't have to lead all the songs and keep the children quiet on the stand during the program. I will get to prepare the children for all the songs though and make sure they know all of the words.

I work with children a lot these days. I could complain about it, but honestly, I don't know that there is a calling I would rather have. If working with children is my life-long calling, I'm ready for it. We can learn so much from children.