Tailor Made Day!

Wow, a post from me and it's not even Sunday! That's how you know I've actually had a chance to catch my breath this week--and it's been sooo nice! I'm the sort of person that can get stressed out easily, (or as I like to think of it, I'm just very laid back and slow going) but the truth is if I have a kind of hectic week I feel like I deserve a hawaiian vacation that lasts twice as long as the hectic week I just had. :)
Anyway, I wanted to shamelessly plug my friend's ebay store because she just blogged about these new crafty things she is selling on her site that some friends of her's sell to Rod Works (which if you haven't been to that store, than you are missing out!) and anyway these things are always sold out (, but now my friend Raelynn sells them too (and for cheaper shhh! j/k). When I told her I would plug her stuff (because I love a good craftiness) she said if people liked them and wanted to order she could come and visit me and just bring them down and save you postage! So how great of a deal is that?! Great deal, and great Christmas presents. So here are some pics. And I'm also posting her ebay website. She sells lots of scrapbook stuff, so I know some of you are scrappers and would like to know her!

Okay, but as you all know, I can't be done with just that. I have also been busy trying to figure out new projects. Life is just not full without projects. Not sure why...it just isn't. I think that should be a scripture in Psalms. Probably is!
Anyway I started scrutinizing my upstairs bathroom and decided that I needed a shelf/table something for storage. I measured it and went my way to DI hoping for a treasure. And of course my discerning (well you may disagree! lol) eye saw a treasure that was someone else's trash. It was a small bookshelf. I took it home, cleaned it up and sprayed it with a new coat of lovely black (which covers a multitude of DI sins) and voila! The only sadness? My measuring was apparently off by about two millimeters! lol. So it's now in my closet and I think that was smarter than my bathroom plan! I am posting a cell phone pic because I was too lazy to go and get my camera downstairs! (oh and please ignore the unfinished laundry in the side of the picture....you know your laundry is hanging out just like mine, right?! Laundry doesn't count as a project bytheway. I just know it doesn't in my heart.) Anyway, just thought you all might want to see my latest find. I'm also re-working a basket I found there to hold towels when guests come to visit. So I'm feeling pretty proud of projects. :)
Is anyone else working on something? I'm always looking for new ideas, so share and share alike!

Lastly, speaking of sharing, huge shout out to Brynn who introduced me to Colbie Callait. I'm now a huge fan, especially of her song Tailor Made. It makes me want to dance around my room singing into my hairbrush. That's right--it will take you back to carefree teenage sing along days. The tune is just so light and contagious--everyone should find that song and have a listen. It will make your day brighter, I promise!
Do you guys have a song that makes you feel that way? Share that too! I think sharing a good song is equivalent to a random act of kindness--it can make someone's whole day to find a new favorite song! If you'll excuse the pun, a song that is tailor made for that day!

Attitude of Gratitude

Wow it feels like such a long time since I blogged, but this week has been kind of crazy. I don't even know if I remember what exactly happened, except that Madeline has been a crank because we have completely messed up her precious schedule (and for those of you who ever had very particular five month olds, you know that this is serious! lol)

The boring news is that Maddy and I both got shots this week, although I beat her in sheer number, and I would like to think, pain! She beat me in screaming though (thank goodness, I don't think the doctor would have appreciated that--although I WAS tempted). I'm not great with shots. In fact, I bite my lip still so that I won't get emotional lol. I'm such a baby, it's true!

Anyway I got my shots because I got my flu shot to protect Maddy (who is too small to get her own) and then had to get this spot on my hand removed and that was not only unexpected (Maddy was at the doctor with me and I had to rock her with my free hand while the doctor basically operated on my other hand...not my best day) but painful because I had to get stitches, which I have never had before, unless you count the c-section (which was just plain old surgery so I count it in a different category). Anyway, it was a big pain, but since I really want to wear my wedding ring again I put up with it (the spot was on my ring finger, and if any of you have wondered why I don't wear a wedding ring, it isn't because I'm hiding something! lol) But the great news is that my sister surprised me (with John's help of course) to a night of free babysitting so that John and I could take our monthly date night! It was such a heaven send after that crazy day.

Also this week we went to my aunt and uncle's house for Thanksgiving. They had a very delicious spread :) and we had a great time visiting with them. My Dad and his wife were also in town and we went up to see them in Bountiful where they were staying.

One funny thing about visiting my Dad is that we arrived a bit late so everyone was already there, and many of the people hadn't seen Maddy. So we didn't but barely get in the door before she was snatched away and a circle of people literally surrounded her and oohed and aahed for five minutes before we could get even remotely close to her again! It was so funny. John and I were just standing there watch everyone moon over her while we stood outside the circle, not even able to get close! It was nice to feel that everyone thought she was so cute.

As for Black Friday, well we didn't go out, even though I actually had every intention of doing so. Instead my Dad came to see our house, and then John and I ended up relaxing (we spent that morning cleaning up the house for the dad inspection lol) and so were pretty tired that afternoon. I did forget it was Black Friday and wandered into Wal-mart to buy some milk or something like that and was amused at how I could forget something like that! I did see my friend Brynn and she had been shopping all morning and looked pretty alert and good for being awake for so long! I was impressed.

Lastly, I spent most of Saturday preparing my talk. My topic was Gratitude--and it was the best topic to get right around this time of year possible. Not just because of Thanksgiving, but because I think I would have gone a little crazy Black Friday/Saturday. But this topic reminded me of everything we have and to be grateful for it. This is especially helpful since I have made almost everyone's presents this year, (for both budget and getting those warm fuzzies of having personalized someone's present reasons) and didn't really need to buy anything.

But anyway, my talk went way too long probably (kind of reminds me of my blogging...I have too many ideas I guess), but I just had so much I wanted to share. The whole experience of writing down what I am grateful for brought the Spirit so strongly into my heart so quickly! I felt like a little kid feels at Christmas, which is something I've longed for these past few years. So I'm hoping to keep up my goal of writing something I'm grateful for everyday. I'm hoping it keeps that spirit of gratitude in my heart this whole busy Christmas season.

Okay, that's my long entry. But since I haven't written for a while, that's what you get! I really hope you all had wonderful Thanksgivings! and P.S. I'm grateful for you!

Primary Lessons

So I thought I would try a short post. We'll see how I do. :) I was just thinking about my cute Primary class yesterday. I teach the five and a few six year olds. During Sharing Time, one of the little girls in my class leaned over to me and whispered, "Sister Savage, I want to be bear my testimony in class after prayer." Well I was surprised, but could just smile and agree. I honestly thought she might forget by the time class rolled around. I should have known better. Kids have the best memories if it's really important to them, and it was for her.
Once we said the prayer this blonde-haired little girl walked right up front and stood next to me and began bearing a pretty "normal" testimony, until something she said made my ears perk up.

"I know that the Liahona is true."

Well...that's a good thing to know. :)

"And I know it was like a compass."

Also true. By this point I'm very impressed with the apparent family home evenings she has paid attention to. And then comes the best part.

"And I know that it has jewels on it like rubies. And it will work if we all choose the right."

Well there you go. lol. :) It was such a sweet testimony, and I loved seeing not only her simple and gentle faith, but also how she obviously saw things in her mind that made the gospel real to her. After that she sat down, and then something even sweeter happened--the two other kids that were in my class decided that they wanted to bear their testimonies too. It was such a great example to me. Here we were, just the four of us in this little classroom. There was no one to impress. There was no microphone and it wasn't a designated testimony time--these kids just felt the simple desire to say what they felt to be true. I took it as a sweet lesson for myself. Sometimes you just got to say what you believe--and when you do, other's will invariably follow. Sometimes you just have to be the first to have the courage to stand up and say what you know is right. And as I learned yesterday, it's always sweeter when it comes straight from the heart like a child's faith.

Subbing with Style

Yes folks...it's true. I, like Jack Black, have now officially become a some-time substitute. And yes...it's rocks. Well, okay, maybe not really. So far I have done one assignment and it was at a junior high, but because I forgot to take my guitar, the kids didn't seem to respect me as much as my aforementioned predecessor. But that's okay, it actually went better than I overall expected it to, seeing as how it was my first day and I'm pretty sure the kids could smell my fear like just-out-of-the-microwave popcorn. lol.

But seriously, it went pretty well, and I'll be subbing on Tuesday and Thursdays when the fancy (and the panic that we have to pay off baby bills NOW) hits me. I didn't go this past Thursday because of some other things I had pre-planned, but I'm hoping to get a few more days in before the holidays. Should be interesting. Are there any other people out there that have subbed before (I know a few of you said you had subbed in my comments section). If so, tell me your horror AND good stories, plus any advice you have. One thing I don't know is if there is usually a dress code for subs. If there isn't much of one, what should I wear to make the kids fear...i mean, respect me. :) John suggested that when the class first comes in I should go towards the white board (yeah...no chalk boards to those older folks like me that are amazed by this fact) I should take out a piece of chalk and say, "What? No chalkboards? That's outrageous!" and then promptly take the chalk and bite into it. We reckon this will instill both fear and awe (possibly mixed with revulsion?) enough that they will do their work quietly for the hour. I'll let you know how that goes. lol
Anyway, in other news, I have been busy in Santa's workshop this past week, putting together christmas presents for my loved ones. I wish I could post it, but since most of those people look at this blog occasionally, I, alas, cannot. But maybe post Christmas I'll remember to post some pictures, and maybe by then you'll all still be interested in seeing them. We'll have to see.

Okay, and lastly, I have decided that I would like very much to go and see the Mormon Tabernacle Choir concert this year. We went last year and it was amazing! Their guest singer was a lady named Sissel who happened to be the one who sang those haunting vocals on the Titanic soundtrack (not the Celine Dion song). She was incredible! Although my friend Dan was disappointed because he thought he was going to see Sisqo (I wonder when they will get around to inviting a rap star as their guest artist??) lol! Anyway, if any of you have extra tickets to said event and want to donate them, please please please consider me! And if you want to babysit for free too...well I'm pretty sure we might be able to accommodate you there as well. But only if you pay for our gas to Salt Lake. I mean, people are lining up to be able to babysit so you know...we have to make you work for it... :)

Hair and Potter

Well, I have to say that my last post created quite a bit of what I term "controversy." I was a but surprised by it all. So before moving on, I would really like to clarify just a couple of things just in case people got the wrong idea! lol
1. I don't believe in psychics. Do I enjoy their shows? yep. Why? Well I guess for me it's like reading Harry Potter books. It's kind of fun to pretend that something like that could be real. I think you get in trouble when you start thinking they are real. So don't worry friends, you won't be seeing me reading your palms or looking down alley ways for "He who must not be named." lol

2. I don't think I have powers. Seriously! LoL, if anyone got that from my last post, then I am seriously sheepish. Yes, the cat story is true. I'm not sure what it was all about, but it is definitely something that I have always thought was a little weird about my own life. But I haven't really had any experiences since (if so, I would have become a veternarian and made big bucks off of my skills). Especially if my super powers involved anything that was remotely cool. Unfortunately, sigh, my "powers" have been limited to a once in a lifetime cat dying experience. :)

3. Hopefully no one thinks I'm evil. Brynn, I swear I don't use ouija boards or anything else shady! LoL. Wow, actually you guys might want to know where I even came up with the idea to write about how I like psychic shows. I couldn't think of anything to post, so I googled Writing Prompt ideas, and one of them had something to do with going to a fortune teller. Well since I would never do that, I started thinking about how I do think the shows are pretty fascinating. So the whole reason I wrote on that was to do something different. So again, hope no one is freaked out. If so, well, what can I say...the future is looking bleak for you anyway. j/k! :)

Okay, so now that that whole business is out of the way (NO more confessions, funny or otherwise!), I recently interviewed and got hired (apparently you just have to look semi-normal and not have a record) to substitute teach. I decided that I might do this a few times a week when John is home and can keep an eye on Maddy while programming (we'll see how that works). Mostly I'm doing it so that we can pay off some hospital bills more quickly. It's not any urgent thing, but I hate having anything hanging over our heads, and I would love to help out. So I'll probably just go a couple times a month and earn a little paycheck to go right towards paying off my ICU bill and Madeline's birthday bill. So if anyone has ever subbed before and has some tips, let me know! I'm kind of nervous, but I'm sure I'll be fine. I think they are pretty desperate for people because I even got a call tonight for a job (I got "hired" on Friday). I'm sure I'll have lots of funny stories from here on out, so be prepared.

And of random note, I was watching Oprah and she did a show on how to look great in your 30's, 40's and 50's. Now does it mean that I'm tragically un-hip that I liked the styles for the forty year olds the best?? They were more modest and classic looking in my opinion. Here's a pic to show you their takes on "wearing metallics" (is that really in style??) when you're 30, 40, or 50. Which do you like? I think I'll put a little voting thing on my site just for fun so you can say which one you prefer. They are from left to right in the aforementioned order (30's, 40's,50's). Oh and don't feel like you have to agree with my opinion. I like to know what everyone's tastes are! Besides, it's anonymous!

Oh, and lastly, for those of you who haven't seen me lately, I chopped off my hair. Now I'm pretty sure that a lot of people think I look pretty bad with my new haircut, but it's actually the first time where I really don't care! LOL, seriously I don't. Not that I'm trying to be rude to anyone, I just have never had the courage to Ever cut my hair this short, and I finally decided that you only live once, hair grows back, and Maddy was pulling it out by fistfuls anyway, so I might as well get rid of the hair less painfully. :) So once I decided all of that I just went straight into the closest salon and had it all chopped off. And I love it! It's so easy and no more baby hair torture. It's been great. Although I do think Maddy is confused and annoyed by it because she still tries to hold onto my hair and can only grab onto my glasses now. So while I eliminated one problem, I created a new one in its place. Now if I can just convince John that this calls for Lasik..... ;)

I foresee you reading this blog entry....

I have a confession to make. I will make it in the customary fashion. So here it goes.

Hi, my name is Jennifer, and I like psychic shows. And I'm Mormon. So it seems wrong. But I do it anyway.

:) Okay, so now that it's off my chest, I have to say that I really think my obsession with psychic shows is a guilty pleasure. In fact, I'm not even sure where the desire to watch these shows came from. It's like eating the ice cream straight from the container. Something tells me that it's wrong, but something tells me that I'm the Mom, and it's soooo right!

So my two favorite psychic shows are Lisa Williams: My Life Among the Dead (that lady is seriously amazing to me) and Medium (which is a fictionalized show based on a "real" psychic named Allison Dubois). I guess if I were to be completely honest-- which is more fun for my friends to realize how strange I really am-- I think part of me likes these shows because I believe that people can have extra-sensory abilities. Definitely not to the extent that some of these people claim (in fact, I don't know if I believe in talking to dead people unless it's a religious type experience) but I do believe that if you know someone you can get feelings about things that might happen or that they are feeling etc. Some people might call this just knowing someone really well and guessing. I call it something extra.

And since I'm being completely honest, I'll admit that I've had a few times that I've thought I might have felt this "something extra" (whatever you want to term it) myself. Okay people, don't think I'm crazy. Let me explain. For example, as all of my siblings can verify, we once had a cat named Butterscotch when I was about eight or nine years old. Butterscotch was a pretty young cat and in good shape as far as any of us knew. However, one day she was laying outside on the grass under a tree resting, and I convinced my younger (and very attached to cats) sister that Butterscotch was going to die imminently and that we should make her comfortable on a blanket. Well this of course made my poor little sister freak out, start crying, and tell my brothers what I had said (because she completely believed her older sister). My brothers came outside to see if the cat was sick, and got mad at me upon seeing that the cat looked fine. They told me I was unnecessarily upsetting my little sister. (My parents were gone running errands at the time bytheway). Anyway, my sister still believed me and we sat patting the cat until a few minutes later...yep, you guessed it...the cat actually died. No weird spasms, breathing, nothing. She just stopped breathing calmly and died. I think at first my brothers thought I had done something to her, but I didn't. Now...I'm not really sure how I knew she was going to die to this day, other than I had a distinct feeling that it was going to happen. It wasn't a scary feeling or anything. It was just matter-of-fact.

Now, if I were a truly good mormon, I would probably say that it was the Holy Ghost. And honestly, it really might have been. But since I have no idea why the Holy Ghost would tell me about my cat dying, I have considered the whole story with interest ever since. And, I will admit to playing games with my fellow writing tutors when I worked at the Writing Center at BYU, telling them their fortunes as they related to their love lives. Was I ever right about those? No idea, but I seriously doubt it lol.

Okay, so does everyone think I'm cooky? :) Probably, but that's okay! I just thought I'd write something that wasn't just about my everyday life, and this was the first thing that came to mind. I've never really told anyone this stuff--so enjoy at my expense! Free readings to all friends LOL! j/k! (And for all of my single friends...I see you meeting a tall, dark, handsome stranger soon!)

The Finer Things and Mini-Carpets

Well we finally had our book club, now dubbed the Finer Things Club, thanks to a fortuitous Office episode that nailed what we are ALL about lol. :) Especially the treats part. Next time, I want to see everyone dressed up in head kerchiefs or something having to do with the book. If we do end up reading The Life of Pi, that should make for some interesting animal costumes. I'm stoked. j/k :)

No, but in all seriousness, I had a great time. It was so nice to have a bunch of good women over to talk about not just the book, but about different ideas and life in general. It's kind of like group therapy at times lol. And that's what I love about book clubs, it's not just about reading a book to impress other people about how smart you are, but it's about socializing, seeing other people's points of view, and remembering what it was like before your brain was taken hostage by such interesting topics as spit-up and avoiding dishes. Or if you want to put it simply, just remember what Pam told Jim..."it's a return to a time of civility and refinement." :) I really hope even more people want to join, since many of the people I thought might come from outside of Tooele I have given up on. So there are definitely some openings. I really enjoyed having everyone over though and hearing their opinions, even if they didn't really love the book that we read this time (more light-hearted books to come! Well that's the rumor I heard from people who might host in the future, since if you host, you get to pick). So thanks again Anne, Missy, Heidi, Lori, & Lindy!

Anyway, beyond that there really isn't much for me to write. We had a pretty low-key weekend. I did go to a shop that both Missy and Heidi mentioned called Sweet Pea. I'm a fan for sure! I bought Maddy some over-priced but adorable hair bows (I know everyone else just looks at them and then figures out how to make them, but I was too lazy) and some hats that actually fit her rather intellectually-sized head. All for very reasonable prices. I also went into a couple of of the local crafty type stores. On one of the shops' doors it said that it welcomed "local crafters" and their wares. Now I would never NEVER consider myself a crafter, but I have recently taken up something called needle punch, which my Mom taught me to do when I was an aimless pregnant drifter and needed a hobby to pass the time. Since I didn't see anything like that in the shops, I considered seeing if they would try to sell a few pieces, but I don't know that it would be worth the effort put into them for the price people would probably pay. I posted a picture above of what needle punch looks like (and no I didn't make that one, I was too lazy to take a picture of my own, so I found that one online). It's basically like a miniature carpet (that's how I think of it) made into cute designs. I made Maddy a rabbit design for her Beatrix Potter themed nursery. Anyway, I'm still considering it. We'll have to see. Christmas is a busy season, and I'm planning on being cheap/cool and making as many of my gifts this year as possible. It's a first ever for me. I've never really had any skills before to make anyone anything, but I've got a few ideas this year which I can't reveal in case certain eyes are reading....
Okay that's it! Sorry to go on so long. That's why I post once a week practically, I write waaaay too much!