Crap noodles

Here's what I love today:

We've been busy!

I don't have time to do laundry. Why? Because I'm too busy doing stuff like this:

hanging out with Shalina and Tyson at Pine Basin. (the way to get Tyson to come sit by you is to take his plate. He'll follow.)


Sleeping over at Pine Basin. We had a Lisa/Lisa bunk, a Brooke/Brooke bunk and a Gina/Keri bunk.

Being trapped in our bunk beds with Lisa.


Pretending a rock is a boat and getting seasick on our hike in Aberdeen with Jeff, Jen, Taletha, Lisa, Shalene and Jess.


Hiking in hell with my car buddies: Keri, Lisa and Taletha.


Lickin icicles in a cave.

Playing on a swingset with Lisa.

Cheering on G.O. Speech Therapy softball team.

Hula hooping ... rather awkwardly.

Winnning a coconut relay race with Gina, Wade and Ashley.

Sharing my Hawaiian name "Poloke" with Brooke

Trying to identify pictures of feet. This is what happens when you leave your camera unattended. Does anyone claim these feet? (if these aren't yours, I have others.)

Climbing on rocks and not knowing how to pose for so many pictures.

Hiking with friends Taletha and Jarom.

Hanging out with rockin' awesome guys. Well, Skyler's awesome. I don't know the guy with the tongue.

Climbing on bridges with Lisa, Kelly and Skyler.

Being afraid of Jeff.

Trying to figure out what the heck Ryan stepped on during our paintball game. (it was a piece of glass)

Shooting people with Lisa and getting welts from lots of paint balls.

So really, when am I gonna do my laundry?

So You Think You Can Dance started up last week and I got Lisa hooked! I'm so excited for this season. Maybe I can change my laundry on commercials.

Enjoy this AMAZING dance from last season. I sure have. Over and over and over and over again.

I am SO not an expert:

So, I've got a lot of projects and stuff to figure out, but I really don't know how to do any of it.

I need a party planner:

I'm burnt out. I'm usually the "committus" (singular form of "committee") and am the first to plan and get things going. I think it's the only child in me that wants to make sure I'm NEVER left home alone when there are friends to play with and stuff to do. It's been fun because there have been a lot of gatherings and events that I've been invited to, and I love that somehow I'm "in the know" on what's going on among my friends. As I told a friend, "You start showing up to EVERYTHING and then you get invited to more stuff!" It totally works! So, last weekend, we went to Pine Basin and hiked to hell. Then, during the week, we went to two softball games, a roller skating party, had a pedicure night and watched So You Think You Can Dance. So far this weekend, we had a birthday BBQ, a super long bikeride and an outdoor movie night/weenie roast. I've been somewhat involved in the planning of all these, and I'm totally burnt out by details and lack of input and committment. I have no idea what I'm doing tomorrow and I don't have any more ideas. A group of us is doing a very similar "hike to hell" that we did last week. Lisa and I have been trying to avoid duplication, but apparently I can't come up with anything else that sounds appealing enough for any sort of committment. Maybe I'll just go hike to hell again. And my birthday's coming up. Every year, I plan a sleepover/canoe/volleyball/BBQ/game/hike weekend at my Uncle's RV park in Palisades. I want to do it. I can't imagine NOT doing it. But I'm burnt out and am really crabby about making it happen. Plus, the house is stinkin' EXPENSIVE to rent!

AND some friends are going to Australia in August and I'm considering going with them. Actually, I'm not considering. I'm totally going ... except that I'm broke and it'd take a LOT of planning and budgeting and figuring out to make it happen, and I'm just burnt out on details.

I need a leather craftsman:

I have a fashion dilemma. I want the PERFECT scripture bag. I've used a different bag every other week or so, trying to figure out what I like. It's not like I don't already have 27 options, but I'm sick of 26 of those. I have one AWESOME hand-crafted leather bag I bought at a street market in Oaxaca, Mexico. I LOVE it! Problem: It's about 3 inches too small. I can either fit my triple, or my RS manual and notebook. Not all three. Now, I keep thinking that I could easily swap out one simple leather panel of this bag for a panel that's three inches wider. Do you think any leather craftsman in Idaho Falls would take on such a simple project? No. I've been turned down by two.

I need a plumber:

My bathroom sink won't drain. Every day there's that nasty toothpaste stuck to the inside of the sink because when I spit, it just floats for several minutes, then sticks. Yuck.

I need a welder:

I have a bike rack that fits rather nicely on the back of my truck. It's old. I think the pioneers used it to hitch their bikes up to the trailer hitch on their wagons. But I like it. It works! Except that last summer, when I lived in Salt Lake, I backed it up into some guy's passenger window. He didn't appreciate it, and it bent my rack a little sideways. It still works, but the bikes hang about a foot over the driver's side of the Blazer, and the whole thing's a little wobbly. I need to get it straightened out.

I need a cable guy:

We live in the ice age. My dad refused an offer for a DVR upgrade because he didn't know what DVR was and thought he'd have no use for it. Thanks, Dad. So You Think You Can Dance will start commanding the TV waves of Wednesday and Thursday nights! Where is Brooke on Wednesdays and Thursdays? ANYWHERE but home! Therefore, I have to find a way to watch this show! I have thousands of old blank tapes, but only one VCR in the house that's hooked up to cable. If I program it to record, it monopolizes the main family TV. Where are my parents on Wednesday and Thursday nights? Home. In front of the TV. NOT watching So You Think You Can Dance. Can we get cable in my room?

I need a sound system technician:

Yeah, I've been without a car stereo for six months now. I'm getting REALLY tired of listening to my own thoughts.

I need a jeweler:

I have a favorite necklace. I would wear it every single day of my life, except that it's broken. I think this is the reason I feel that I need to own 5,000 others. If I could wear my favorite one every day, it would cure a huge shopping problem. Every time I re-bead it, I can never do the knot right and the whole thing comes undone. One of these days, I'm just going to lose it alltogether, and that terrifies me. (I'd have to go back to Caye Caulker in Belize and talk to Papi and Tracy to get a replacement). So, it sits in a cup on my bookshelf. I want it back. Bad.

I need a mechanic:

My brakes have been squeaking for MONTHS. I took my truck down to my Uncle Bob's shop in Provo and had cousin Ben replace the brake pads. Now they squeak worse. What's up with that?

I need a massage therapist:

I'm uptight and messed up. I get headaches. I have bad posture. I think I probably need a chiropracter, but a massage therapist sounds better. Good friends will play with knots for 3 minutes at a time, but for some reason, they always stop too soon. I think they're taunting me.

I need a psychologist:

For reasons that probably don't need mentioning.

Replies:

So, I often wonder how I'm supposed to reply to comments on my blog.

Here's how I'm going to do it!

Jen--I love you, too! And I only pick the best Silvester pictures out of the ones Amanda posts. She gives me too much ammo! Glad to make you laugh! It was a happy blogging day! :)

Care--How did you know? I ALWAYS need help! What a mess. I often think about that day ... when I got stuck under the bed and my mess was about to swallow me up! Good thing you and Des were there!

Gina-- Hey, EVERYBODY! Guess what? I showed up to Pine Basin to a PLEASANT surprise! This girl was there too!!!

And so was this one!!!

I had no idea they were coming, or they would have been in my pre-Pine Basin post.

We had to leave early for our NEXT adventure. What did I miss after everyone else got up? Oh, and for the record, I didn't sleep! It was CRAZY! I went on a lonely star hike ... and then laid in bed rolling over for a couple hours before we finally left! Whew, what a night!

Andrea-- You nailed it! Yep, it was for Youth Leadership training. I have other pictures of us sledding with Sister Long and Sister Denning! My mom, Chavonne and Wendy Bateman were there too. The girl in the picture with us would be Becca Reeder. Just take a peek under that hat. It's a familiar face. I promise.

Gina again-- Y'are now!!

Alisha-- Thanks, Babe! it was a TON of fun! Did you guys ever go there when you were younger? It seems that everyone from the Idaho Falls area has childhood memories at Pine Basin. I got a concussion in fifth grade from my walking stick. Yep. I'm cool! :)

Since I seem to be having a struggle importing pictures to my computer, I'm going to have to wait for another day to tell of my adventures. But, we're all alive, sunburned and oh-so-happy!

And there are lot of fun quotes to add to our daily vocabulary.

Favorites:

"I'm sorry I hurt your stupid feelings!"

"Naked? I LOVE naked!"

Somehow, so many conversations related to skinny-dipping. I think I have a fixation. :)

Oh, and here's a better picture with this girl. The first one was way fuzzy. This "deer-in-the-headlights" shot is MUCH better.

Shalina was there, too. :)

Kum ba ya

Last night I got to do some of this:

and Today, I'm going here:

http://www3.d93.k12.id.us/district/pinebasin/index.html

with a couple of these:

I haven't been there since this one time:

and that was like 10 years ago. I'm overdue for a trip back, and I'm so excited!

This is what will be missing:

And:

I just wish I'd learned to play the guitar. I doubt Teresa Clark is going to be there this time. :(

Oh, and since I won't be around much tomorrow ...

Happy 2nd birthday to this kid!!

Silvester is two! Watch out. He throws matchbox cars ... and has something against roses.

Is this not okay?

So, there are a lot of things I do wrong. I blame my awkwardness on a lot of things, but really ... I'm just awkward. I say that only children just don't know how to deal with others in conventional ways.

I'm using the line from Friends, "I've never had a maid before. Is this not okay?" I'm kinda confused about what I'm expected to do here. Is this not okay?

So, I don't understand bees wax. What's my role as a friend? Do I push and ask questions or do I wait for the friend to talk to me when she wants to? I hate the idea of "What would you want them to do if the roles were reversed" because I'm realizing more and more how much of an oddity I am! I would want the friend to PROVE that she's really interested and concerned and she'd basically have to sit on me to get me to talk, but I'd be really disappointed if she didn't! Make sense? I didn't think so.

I hate conventions. I just don't understand them. I need to be able to just be me without boundaries or limitations that I don't understand. But other people have limitations and boundaries that I need to respect. So, while I'm respecting those, I've misconstrued my role. I hate social anxieties. I want to be able to say what I need to say and have others do the same. I am the biggest hypocrite in that one, too.

Does anyone else ever feel this way? Why does communication and understanding have to be so hard? I don't really understand my place, and I want to fight against what I do understand.

Say what you need to say. Why is that not okay?

I kind of like it when things go my way.

Ya know what I love? Crazy-cool stuff. That's profound, huh? But it's true.

Here are some crazy-cool things:

Last weekend I got to go to Women's Conference at BYU in Provo. For those of you who know me very well, you'll understand a bit of the craziness that might happen when my quirky-inappropriate tendencies are multiplied. That's what happened when my mom, my grandma, three of my aunts and two of my cousins got to hang out at Women's Conference. Let me just tell you ... we had FUN! I love all of our quirks and crazinesses! In the middle of fighting with Aunt Lizette over my camera (I'm sure that she wanted to take a picture up her nostril) and feeling Sydney's hairy legs to see how her Nair cream is working, I actually got a little teary-eyed! I get to be with these wackos FOREVER! I am so grateful for eternal families! As an only child, I've developed a very strong appreciation and attachment to my extended family on both sides, and guess what? I've got some of the very best! I'm so grateful that both sets of my grandparents were sealed in the temple and they've passed those blessings on to their children. I'm so grateful that if we all honor our covenants that we will be together in the eternities! Who wouldn't want to live with these nuts forever?!

It's so awesome to me that we got to share in such an awesome event. Women's Conference is amazing. I learned so much that has changed my life already, and as I study my notes and further implement the things that were taught, I know I will only see more and more blessings in my life. I'm so glad I was able to share that with my family.

In addition to recognizing my great family, I also had another strong confirmation of the power of friendship while I was there. One thing that's always concerned me is how easily friendships come and go. I've always craved permanence. I've never had siblings to bond with, fight with, or share anything with. I've grown close to friends and have shared a lot with them, only to have each one slowly fade from my life. It's a heartache that hits a little too close to home sometimes. I have a dear friend in my life right now who is unlike any other. Through the short time we've known each other, we've been able to share, grow, support, teach and learn so much from each other. I am in awe at the blessing she has been to my life and how strong of a bond we've created in so short a time. I'm terrified of the day that will fade or end altogether.

I have started to notice more and more how Heavenly Father uses others to bless our lives. One prayer I have always prayed is that I can be a tool to help someone I love and care for. This last weekend, I was blessed with an amazing opportunity to follow the Lord's direction and to help my dear friend. I am so grateful for the connections we have in this life. I am so grateful for good people who love and laugh and cry together. I am so grateful that we're social creatures and we're intended to help each other. I am so grateful for eternal families and for the wonderful (and hysterical) family I've been blessed with. I am also so grateful for those angel friends who Heavenly Father places in our lives who become like family. I want those relationships to be just as eternal.

I've got good people. Thanks, guys, for being good people in my life!

You guys are my world.

Silvester side: Cousin Amanda, Cousin Jennifer, me, Cousin Heather, 2nd cousins Shyanne and Hunter at Heather's house for a mini-gathering. The four cousins haven't all been together in the same place in maybe 20 years? I love that we've all found each other and developed cousinly-love through blogging and facebook!

The Silvester side: Cousin Brock, Uncle Bob, Aunt Kris, 2nd cousin Shae, Cousin Amanda and me at Shae's baptism. I love how many of us came to represent! We may not be good at communication, but Silvesters are supportive!

Chapple side: Cousin Amanda and Aunt Lizette got hold of my camera in between talks at Women's Conference. What a riot!!

Chapple side: Grandma Ruby, Cousin Sydney and Aunt Lori looking all sweet and Women's Conferency.

Cousin Amanda, me and Cousin Sydney. DANG, we're cute!!

Chapple side: Back row: Cousin Sydney, me, Cousin Alex Middle Row: Cousin Whittney, Aunt KayLynn, Aunt Vicki, Grandma Ruby, Mom Brenda. Front Row: Cousin Danielle, Cousin Amanda. Buncha crazy women all pretending to be normal for the camera. I freakin' love these ladies!

The friend side: Back row: Brooke, Gina, Lisa Front Row: Kimball, me, Lisa. Ever heard of best friends FOREVER? yep. That's what these guys are. They are rockin' awesome, and I'm so grateful they're in my life!