Decking the Halls

 

Mitchell was so excited to wrap and display some of the presents he got for me … one problem … we didn’t have a tree to put them under.  Mitchell solved that quickly … and boy do we have a tree. 

You may have to treat this picture like one of those I Spy books. 

This tree is very portable. Fold it up and it can fit in your back pocket. It helps cut back on the electricity bill. And since we don’t use those trendy reusable grocery bags or plant a tree each Earth Day we were feeling a little guilty. So we thought we would give Mother Earth a break. Instead of chopping down an entire tree … we are using a mere 1/8,333 of a tree. Just trying to do our part in reducing our carbon footprint people.

 

Mitchell also wanted to display our classy reindeer. After all it does say that it is for INDOOR/outdoor use on the box. We received this as a wedding present if you remember … click here

Mitchell opened it. 

Shock. Dismay. Crushed dreams.  Tears.

The reindeer was no where to be found. For those of you who don’t have your thinking caps on … yes that means we didn’t really officially  open this wedding present … ever. For 1.5 years we believed we were the proud owners of this festive decoration.

Heartbroken?

Maybe a little.

But we will get over it now that we are the proud owners of some authentic oriental dinnerware. 

Bring on the egg drop soup.

Hot Tubbin’

Erin Fillmore: Hot Spring Specialist. 

I have researched every hot spring in Utah known to man within the last week or so.  One day Mitchell and I will trek down to Spanish Fork to visit the mother load of all springs

The Fifth Water Springs

But for now Mitchell and I had to settle for the hot springs in Ogden.  How the heck did we live in Ogden for an entire year and never know about this?  Such a shame.

What better way to spend your Thanksgiving morning than soaking in a poor mans hot tub? I don’t think there is a better way.

I’ll admit, I was kinda sorta maybe nervous to embrace this murky hot abyss when it came right down to it. Visions of dead animal carcasses, bacteria and poop filled my head … but when you are standing in single digit weather with a slight breeze… you don’t care.  You just want in.

I don’t think it would pass the white glove test  … but it was surprisingly clean. 

It was a balmy 12 degrees as we headed out on our hot tub adventure.   The whole hot spring mist thing mixed with hair and icelandic type weather made for frozen/crunchy hair. 

 

Now getting out of the spring and into dry clothing again was a entirely new adventure/challenge. 

 

I must say, our first encounter with a hot spring was rather delightful. Mitchell and I will be back for more.

Little Red Riding in da’ Hood

awesome silky lacey pink nightgown? check.  snout? check.  authentic wolf fur? check.  red hood? check.

once again … Savers provided for all our halloween needs this year.

awesome silky lacey pink nightgown:  we were thrilled to find this little pink number.  i just wasn’t thrilled to be sifting through a bunch of gross “night wear” at savers.  i get creeped out by used things that people sleep in.

snout:  it was originally a tiger nose.  shoe polish works wonders.

authentic wolf fur:  mitchell and i found this fur a couple months ago at a great price …. so we bought some … quite a bit actually. 

red hood:  a red flannel sheet at savers + hood tutorial online

teen heartthrob

“Has anyone ever told you, you look like Justin Bieber?” 

I was just minding my own business working at a temp job in a warehouse, when the woman working next to me in the assembly line threw that at me.

Whaaaaaaaaat?

She insisted that it was a compliment.  Since when is looking like a 16 year old boy a compliment?  I guess she did have plenty of time to assess my looks considering we were standing side by side for 8 hours. I laughed and said … “Uh …. thanks?”

I would much rather hear, “Has anyone ever told you, you look like Beyonce?”  Oh well.  I’ll take whatever I can get. 

Move over Justin Bieber.

New Kids on the Block

Perks of the New Apartment

1.  Natural Light –  above ground windows rock my world.

2.  Carpet – We can now lay down on the floor without breaking our backs on tile.

3.  Room to Decorate – When I get stressed … I like to create … thank goodness for this outlet.

4.  350 additional sq ft – need I say more?

5.  Man Cave –  just like Bruce Wayne needs a Bat Cave … Mitchell needs a Man Cave (aka our 2nd bedroom)… so he can do manly things … in … the Man Cave.

6.  Washer & Dryer – Laundromat is a swear word. 

Welcome to our humble home. 

I think my favorite thrift find so far is our  $4 lego lamp.  It was originally brown … a little red spray paint and … viola’.

Liar Liar Pants on Fire.

For the past 3 months my pants have been on fire.  I extinguished my pants yesterday and they are no longer smoldering or smoking. 

I quit my job. 

I had a lovely (and when I say a lovely I really mean ugly) 40 minute phone conversation with my boss over my lunch break.  I told her I didn’t agree with what was going on in the clinic and I felt very dishonest.  I was lying to people by not telling them the entire truth.  I didn’t want to be associated with the company any longer.  Excuses and reasons were given as to why things are the way they are. I told her that my morals and standards were and are not going to change.

  This whole experience has really opened my eyes.  The owners of the company are LDS and yet we disagree on what is honest and ethical.   Mitchell made a very excellent point the other day.   Everyone has a different definition for what ethical and honesty really mean.  He said that if anyone else thinks you are dishonest then you probably are playing too close to the line.  I couldn’t agree more.

Was I nervous making the phone call?  Absolutely.  Was I nervous to tell someone that I thought they were dishonest? You betcha’.  I was in a cold sweat the entire day just knowing that I had to have that conversation.

But next to marrying Mitchell and going on a mission … this was the best decision of my life. 

 I am very happy to have my nose back to its original size.

Pillows and Monsters and Interviews. Oh My.

I have discovered a slight fetish … a pillow fetish. 

As you can tell … I don’t like matchy matchy when it comes to decorating.   And yes … that is a rabbit/wild fox/bigfoot hair pillow. And yes … I am wearing jean cut off shorts … go ahead … judge me.

Mitchell and I wandered over to the park today on a mission.  A branch finding mission.  Mission complete.  I have a little decorating project up my sleeve.  I have all these ideas in my head … and I never just know how they will turn out. Pictures will follow in the following weeks … IF all goes well

Lil’ Champ sprouted a massive mast and Mitchell sailed us home.

I created a fur child a couple weeks back … and I love her. Mitchell and I went to the SLC arts festival and some girl was selling some adorable plush monsters … for $75. I made a $6 version. And her name is Harriet.

 

As you can tell by looking at the calendar … job interviews are taking place … I am on the job hunt … again.  You might be thinking … “Wait! Didn’t you just get a job a few months ago?”  And the correct answer is .. “Yes. Yes I did.”    To make a long story short:  I don’t go home at the end of each night feeling right… morally. I hate being associated with the business and the things that go on there. Shady. The end.

 

On a side note … I cut my hair.  Like a little boy. And I love it. My name is now Aaron.