such a baldwin

Although when Cher says that in Clueless she is refering to a goodlooking guy and when I saay it I am refering  to a new obsession with Words With Friends. You know the game that got Alec kicked off a plane a few weeks ago?

A couple of weeks ago Lindsey and I started playing. It began with one game and them somehow turned into five games going at once. Then over the Holidays people saw us playing and well the rest is history. Hannah was the first to join, then Cam, then mom and finally Jake gave into the peer pressure.

We were going strong yesterday, all sitting in the same room playing scrabble on our phones, with eachother. Sort of pathetic I guess if you really think about it. We should have broke out a real scrabble board. But no instead we played until our phone batteries died. At which point we got even more pathetic, all sitting around waiting for our turn to use the one phone charger that was at the house.

Have no fear though we rounded out the evning with some good ol family bonding time at Chino Bandido [which can be seen here on Diners Drive-in's and Dives], trying out some sweet Chineese Mexican food. I fully admit I was skeptical, especially when I saw the menu, but it was really good.

gingerbread houses

After working up a sweat on the Kinect dance floor we settled in at the table to stuff our faces with Christmas cookies and candy while we made gingerbread [graham cracker] houses. Audra I am pretty sure ate her weight in candy, including everything that fell on the floor. It was fun to see how each persons house came out looking completely different, in such various styles.

top right: My tree was all red and green, I was going for a Christmas cottage, Hannah claims it was the Grandma house. Even though it was not a contest I am going to say that mine was the overall winner since Gavin asked if he could have it......he didn't want the one that he helped make.

middle: Kevin, Gavin and Lindsey win the award for most original, they made the first gingerbread house I have ever seen with a retractable roof for the spaceships inside, and a stairway to heaven that included all nine reindeer.

bottom left: Jake and Hannah built a very solid (cross beams included) brick house complete with snow covered yard.

bottom right: And Pop's build the most energy efficient home topped off with roof top solar panels.

first night

YAY! Last night I spent my first night in my apartment. With of course the company of my first guests, Jake, Hannah and Cam. And of course becuase it is me nothing simple and normal can happen. So of course I was not surprised when I woke up somewhere in the five o'clock hour to a beeping, that continued once every 10 seconds. I am pretty certain it was a smoke detector informing us that the batteries need to be replaced. Such perfect timeing right?

It seemed too that it was the smoke detector in the spare room, where Jake and Hannah where somehow magaing to sleep through the annoyance.....since it was not coming from my room, or the kitchen. When I left the house this morning it was still beepin strong.

Jake/Cam if your reading this and it is still beeping, let's go find the source. Ready? Break!

****UPDATE****

We got batteries for the smoke detector, I thought it was as simple as that. Again, silly me. Things can't be that simple. We got back close to eleven yesterday, after a fun filled Christmasy night. And the boys set out to change the battery. First off, I didn't realize how high my ceilings were until they had to reach them. Second these smoke detectors do this amazingly annoying thing where they BEEP painfully loud whenever you jostle the battery. So they beeped, a lot. So much so that I though the neighbors were going to hate me. And this was all while just unhooking the detector from it's base, they hadn't even begun to change out the battery yet. Oh but wait, they couldn't. The battery is in it's own little compartment, behind a little door that says it is simple to open, but it lies. Neither of the boys could get the stinkin thing open. See below evidence:

Not very exciting photos, but I felt the need to document it. Because really? They are both very capable, people if they couldn't get it open I have to believe it is not very easy. So after about 30 minutes of attempting we threw in the towel. Sheesh. We might have to get Pops over here to fix this situation.

three two

HAPPY 32ND ANNIVERSARY to the BEST parents in the world!!

slow progress

This has been one of the funniest long term moves I have ever done. Which I guess is not saying a lot since most of the moves in my life thus far have sonsisted of moving in and out of the dorms for college or moving a maximum of 10 miles away............until I moves to Arizona. So I moved here in October, but then was not living here until November. When I moved in with my sister and borther and law and then I got an apartment two weeks ago, but get this I still am not livign there.

Funny, yes? Strange, well yes that too. It just happened that way with prices and storage units and time and what not that that was a good day to start renting, but not a good day to start residing. So now after all those days my apartment now has internet [YAY!] and TV [wahoo!!] and the beggining of furniture.

After a trip to Ikea I spend a good chunk of the weekend assembling things. That store kills me. I love it, I can always find tons of stuff I really like, but I for some reason only like the things that have five million peices and steps to follow. yuck! Things are really starting to come together, ironcially though the sweet abode is still missing some of the largest key peices. Like a couch, a kitchen table and my bed (have no fear the bed is just at the Holt house till Pops moves it - the others however still need to be purchased.)

As of Thursday I think I shall be all settled....and hosting my first ever guests! Consider this my formal invitation for yall to come visit. I have a guest room just waiting for you. Feel free to email or comment with your reservations.

ice

In all my years of living in California, I don't ever remember leaving for work and being greeted by a frozen windsheild. So naturally I was SHOCKED this morning when I found that had happened, here in Phoenix Arizona. Never in a million years did I see that coming.

Larry

You know you spend to much time at the post office when you know the workers by name and what you are shipping. The upside however is that now I don't have to answer every time if the package contains anything fragile or liquid. Larry simple asks if it's more pillows. Yes, yes it is.

what a day

yesterday was an interesting day. I don't know what was going on but for some reason I was clumsier than ever. Nothing was going my way. It all started with a simple walk down the stairs. Like every morning. Nothing special. I had my purse in one hand and my coffee mug in the other and started downstairs to put my cup in the sink, grab my sandwich and head out the door. Well let's just say I never finished walking down the stairs. One second I was a couple steps down and the next thing I know I am sprawled across the floor at the bottom of the stairs with my coffee cup held high.

It all happened so fast I really have no idea what happened at all. I must have slipped I guess. And I do think I slid down the stairs maybe instead of rolled/falling. Lindsey said [from her view on the couch] that I came down [coffee mug] head first. All I know is that I felt the rug burn that is now on the top of my foot, and I kept thinking my myself don't spill the coffee don't spill the coffee. Really this has to be considered almost a victory for my clumsiness....I not only didn't break the cup but none of if splashed out on me. I never in a million years would have thought I could tumble down half a flight of stairs with a cup of coffee in hand and not spill a single drop. Yup I'm AWESOME!

I also went on later in the day to bang my knee on my desk, nearly fall in the toilet at Chick Fil A. And for the record that toilet was really really really low.....like made for small children. So you know it was a lot farther down than I expected. And then to round out the evening I knocked over a full cup of water at the Holt house. Thank goodness that cup was plastic, because it crashed into the ground pretty hard.

birthday boy!!

HAPPY 3RD BIRTHDAY GAVIN!!!

like a bee

busy busy busy.
that and the following photos pretty much sum up my weekend [that went by WAY too quickly]

I thought I was busy last week with Etsy orders, ha silly me. I definitely was not prepared for all the orders that came flooding in Saturday. Thanks to nextlix I watched WAY too much TV while sewing my fingers off.......but nearly completing all current orders. Mixed in with signing the lease on my new apartment, and emptying out my storage unit into said apartment. A huge huge huge thanks to Kevin and Doug who sacrificed part of their Saturday morning to help me move.....and especially for hefting my beastly armoire up to the third floor.

Now it's off to pack up the pillows and celebrate little Gavin's birthday!!!

elf'n it

Thats right just call me Santa's little elf. Spending all day at work and all night in the workshop. Due to Christmas and well probably also my awesomeness, I have had a small explosion of etsy orders the last week or so that have been keeping me mighty busy. Between sewing, Christmas Partying and apartment hunting there has just been no fun to be had. Just kidding! Lots of fun having, just no time to post about it all. Thus the silence this week.....and probably a few more days of it unfortunately. 

Please try not to miss me too much - I know your days will not be complete without me. But hopefully they will be almost as great!

And just for an update I have nearly reached one of my two "month two" goals. My future home has been found and reserved. Woot! Saturday shall be the day of signing paperwork.....and at least partially moving. This is pretty exciting stuff. My very first Arizona/by myself apartment.

one

720 hours

30 days

4.5 weeks

2 paychecks

1 month

Thats right I have now been working at my new job for ONE whole month. 

Yikes! I can't barely believe that.

And I just changed my current city on facebook. 

Because clearly that is how we define our lives. 

kidding.

But really I was slackin a bit - especially complicated to getting my license plates on day two.

Now for some month two goals:

1. find a place to live, before the Hold fam get sick of me and kicks me to the curb

2. Make some friends....

let's hope those aren't too lofty :)

lunch

Yesterday I had possibly one of the best lunch breaks better. Today I didn't have to pass time attempting to be entertained reading the newspaper. Nor did I check the clock twenty times to see if the hour had passed. Instead I got to hold the little one.

Pretty sweet that the hospital is so stinkin close to my office!

And if you just can't get enough of me hop on over here where I am guest posting again.