Ten More (for last week!)

Ya, so this post technically should have been done last week....oops!

1.  I've been doing this whole "Feel Great in Eight" thing.  This is week 8!!!  I'm really glad that I've been able to stick it out and actually complete the whole eight weeks, but I'm also very excited that it's going to be over!  I know the point is to get into healthy habits, and I think I have.  But I'm also the kind of girl that likes dessert and baked goods, and I really want some peanut butter chocolate chip pancakes!

2.  This last weekend my parents were in town for my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary.  It was so fun to have them here and hang out as a family!!

3.  My niece pretty much loves me.  And my phone.  I'm still trying to decide which she loves more though!  Over the weekend I downloaded a princess coloring app and she LOVES it.  The moment I walked in the door after work on Monday she said, "Hi Andrea, can I play with your phone now?"  She's so adorable though!

4.  Why does gas have to be so expensive these days?!?!?!  I miss the days where it was under $3.00/gallon (and I realize that still wasn't cheap!).

5.  I worked up in Salt Lake last Monday.  It was super fun because it was a holiday, so it was really laid back and chill.  We let the kids sleep in and the staff just played on our phones.  It wasn't til later that we read the memo about not using our phones while working...Oops.  But then it just became a joke!  :)  I have some pretty awesome co-workers up there, that's for sure.  They keep things fun, even when the kids can be challenging.

6.  Last week I also spent the night at my Grandma's.  It was fun to be up there with her (and my sister and her kids).

7.  Last Wednesday for an RT group we played board games.  It ended up being a lot of fun.  I played Life with some boys and another staff.  The game changed since I was a kid...it was kinda weird.  It was also fun when the boys got frustrated and said things like "This sucks!" to which I replied "Ya, life can be hard sometimes, huh."  They weren't as amused as I was.

8.  My friend at work introduced me to this ice cream.  It's really good!!!  I think their slogan is pretty clever too--1/2 the fat and 2x the YUMMY!

9.  I may or may not have watched the entire season 4 of The Biggest Loser in one week.

10.  I'm in the process of deciding whether or not to move... My lease is up at the end of April, so it's time to start figuring that out.  Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Ten on ... Saturday?

Ya, ya, the whole Ten on a Specific day hasn't been too successful this month... Oh well!  It's still happening on a weekly basis, and that's what really counts, right?

1.  Today was an AMAZING day!  Seriously, it has been lovely. I slept in (although, not as late as I would have liked--I guess this whole being up and out of the house by 8 every day is starting to stick), relaxed, and was SO productive.  My room is mostly clean, my laundry is mostly put away (there's still one load in the dryer),  and things are getting organized!  I went to the gym, and overall just had a nice day only worrying about and taking care of me!  I need more days off like this!

2.  My parents are coming next week!  I'm excited to see them again, and spend time together at my grandparents.

3.  I went shopping this week.  It probably wasn't the best thing to do, but Kohls was having a huge sale.  I ended up getting 3 pairs of work pants, a fleece jacket and a sweater--all for under $40!  I love me a good deal!

4.  My laptop has been so frustrating lately!  I've needed to replace the battery for a very long time, and just never did.  It got to the point where it wouldn't hold any charge, and then my charger/power cord/thing wouldn't even consistently work.  So I knew it was time, and ordered a new one last week.  It got here last night and it was wonderful to be able to not have to be plugged into a wall constantly!

5.  I feel like I've worked up at the RTC a lot lately... and it's been so fun!  As I try to figure out what I'm doing with my work schedules, I know I should probably quit up there--it's far away, it's not an RT job, and it doesn't pay so well.  But when I go work a shift and have so much fun, I just can't seem to actually convince myself to do it.  All those reasons don't seem to matter when I love what I do when I'm there!

6.  I was up in Salt Lake on Tuesday night, and so I randomly decided to go to institute.  My sister and I took a class up there on Tuesday nights during the summer, and then again during fall semester, so I was pretty sure Bro. Case would be teaching a class.  And he was, and it was fun to be at institute up there again.  Those were some pretty good classes, and sometimes I'm bummed that I live in Utah county again because I just can't seem to justify going up there for institute.

7.  I've been thinking how this week how quickly life can change so dramatically.  I said last week that one of my favorite songs is "A Little Bit Stronger" by Sara Evans.  Part of the chorus is "I know my heart will never be the same But I'm telling myself I'll be okay, Even on my weakest days I get a little bit stronger."  Every experience in our lives changes us, and if we let it our hearts will change as a result.  I studied a lot about a change of heart on my mission.  And over the last month I've come to realize that it's okay for our experiences--good, bad, hard, whatever--to change us.  That's what this life is for.  And we get stronger because of it.

8.  February is National TR month.  Can I just say how much I love therapeutic recreation?!?!?!  Seriously, it is the best thing I could be doing with my life right now.  I love the experiences I have with my patients and knowing how this process can change their lives.  And I can't wait for the URTA conference next month!

9.  I am really lucky to have such great roommates!  I don't see them very often, and we're all really busy, but I've noticed it's the little things that mean the most.

10.  Is anyone else ready for summer?  I realize we haven't really had a bad (aka snowy) winter, but lately we've had some really nice days...and it's making me excited for summer to be here again!

Oops...

So this week totally kicked my butt...and Ten on Thursday just didn't happen....So it's now Sunday night, and I'm getting ready for bed (yes, it's super early but I'm just that tired) and knew if I didn't post now, it just wouldn't happen.  So here goes...

1.  Life is busy!!!  Work, work, work, gym, church, family stuff, trying to have a social life--it all keeps me very busy!  But I love it!!

2.   My ward had an activity on Friday night.  We went up to Aspen Grove (near Sundance) and went cross country skiing.  It was my first time ever skiing.  All in all, I'd say it went well.  It was dark, and hard, and I didn't really know what I was doing...but I figured it out for the most part.  One the first part I fell ALOT but the second half I don't think I fell once!!

3.  My room is a disaster.  A complete mess.  I've been meaning to clean it for a while now, and it just hasn't happened...Maybe this week???

4.  My sister posted a recipe on her gluten free blog for cheesecake pancakes... They look SOOO good!!  If I wasn't at work when I saw the post, I may have just gone to the store and made some!  What a fabulous idea!

5. I had to chaperon a dance for work last night.  It was a girls RTC and boys RTC combined Valentines day dance.  I thought it had disaster written all over it, but it actually went well.  All my boys behaved themselves!  I however, was reminded how awkward dances were when you're 16...and am so glad I'm not there anymore!

6.  My current Netflix addiction?  How I Met Your Mother.  After a stressful day, I like to watch it for a little while (even if it's only 5 minutes) to unwind before I go to bed.

7.  I made Coconut Chicken and Coconut rice (courtesy of Our Best Bites) for dinner this week.... So yummy!  I forget that I really do like to cook, it's just hard when I don't have lots of extra time at night!

8.  I can always tell when I'm sick or getting sick because it's hard for me to drink 64 oz. of water.  Usually I drink at least 80 oz easily, but yesterday it was a chore to make it to even 64... Luckily my sore throat is already starting to feel better! :)

9.  I took my niece to the grocery store this week.  It was just a quick trip to grab some stuff while we were at my grandparents.  In the 15 minutes we were there, she found a Dora toothbrush/toothpaste/holder, an Ariel bathtub Barbie, balloons, Cinderella Campbell's chicken noodle soup and a few other things she wanted to get.  I finally settled on "colored smarshmallows" (aka the fruit marshmallows) and told her she could get them to eat on the way home.

10. One of my favorite songs right now is "A Little Bit Stronger" by Sara Evans.  Love it!!

Ten on Thursday!

1.  Okay, it might look like I forgot to do the whole Ten on Tuesday last week...because I did.  So then I thought about doing it yesterday.  But then I had another idea.  For February,  I'll do Ten on Thursdays.  Then March go back to Tuesdays, and rotate every month.  Just to switch it up a bit and keep it interesting.

2.  I am exhausted.  I know I shouldn't be, but I am.  I usually try to work out 5 or 6 times a week, and today while I was at the gym NCIS was on...and I didn't want to leave.  So I was on the elliptical machine for an hour--and now I'm really hoping I'm not sore tomorrow.

3.  I love my jobs.  Sometimes life gets crazy and hectic and I wonder why I stick around at the RTC.  I usually only pick up a couple of shifts a month, and sometimes it's just hard to find time.  But I worked up there on Tuesday and realized how much I like being with those kiddos (as hard and trying as they sometimes are) and remembered that's why I stick around.

4.  I am no longer stuck in the dark ages.  I got a new phone on Monday- the Droid Incredible 2.  It's great!  I gave my sister my upgrade back in May (although I don't remember the exact reason why) and have been waiting and waiting for her to be eligible so I could get a new one. It's been fun to play around with it!  I love the feeling of a new phone.

5.  I really just want to be able to sleep in one day.  I know that's probably asking for too much, but just once I'd love to be able to NOT set my alarm in the morning...It's looking like the next chance that may happen (but no guarantees because I'm sure something will come up before then) will be Feb. 11.

6.  I've jumped on the green smoothies bandwagon.  I had spinach and had been toying with the idea for a few weeks now, and so last week I did it.  I was a little bit worried so that first morning I only put in 1/2 cup since I was going to work and needed to make sure I could drink it.  It looked an interesting color, but tasted just like my regular fruit smoothie.  Since then, I've been putting in 1 cup.  It's nice and green looking, but I can't hardly taste the spinach.  The best part?  I get a serving of fruit AND veggies in before I even clock in!

7.  I took my car in to get the brakes looked at on Saturday.  They've been VERY squeaky for quite a few months now, and I had decided it was time to bite the bullet and just get them fixed.  And then guess what?  They're totally fine.  Sure they squeak, but the guy said that it was just the kind of break that is in there and they're still in great condition.  So the squeaking is a little annoying at times, but totally worth not having to pay for new ones!

8.  Remember how I graduated from college a few months ago?  Good news--I'm finally sending out the announcements.  Better late than never right?  And, as a special bonus, I've included a picture in each one...to (somewhat) make up for the horrific delay.

9.  One of my mission companions got married on Friday.  It was so good to be there with her and celebrate with her.  It was also good to see other mission friends and my mission president and his wife.  There is seriously nothing better than walking into the temple and seeing them there!!  I also got to have a really good talk with another companion, and she really helped me put some things in perspective.  She's just so wise, and it's so good to be together again--even if it was only for the day!

10.  Costco is crazy insane busy on a Saturday afternoon.  Remind me to never go at that time again....That's what days off during the week are for.  :)