Is there something wrong with us?

Sorry, this might seem rude, but it isn't really directed at anyone who reads this blog. I just needed to vent my frustrations.

We planned a Housewarming Party / Scentsy Open House and invited people a week and a half before the event and only two people besides our parents showed up. We knew that some we invited would not be able to come since they live out of town, but thought for sure at least some people here locally would come. I know that people have things going on, or things come up and plans change, but apparently 1 1/2 weeks is not enough notice for people to work out their schedules. We had it scheduled for two different days, with three different time frames, and you are telling me that you couldn't fit any time in at all during those times to stop by? Nobody really even RSVP'd. We thought maybe people would just show up, had the refreshments planned and everything ready to go. There were a few that let us know they weren't going to be able to come, and that is fine, since we already knew not to expect them. All we really wanted was people to come see our house and visit with us for a while. Is it too much to ask to let us know you won't be coming (if you are local)?

Please don't take this personally, both Mike and I are just frustrated since we put so much work in to planning this and didn't expect that the turn-out would be this low. We always try to go to other events we are invited to, even if we have to change our schedule a little bit. I almost feel like crying. Is there something wrong with us?

Scentsy!!

So, a little more than a year ago, one of my cousins was having a Scentsy party and I fell in love with the product. For those of you who don't know what Scentsy is, let me tell you. Scentsy products are wickless scented candles and warmers. The wax is melted in the electric warmers using a 25 watt bulb so the wax is heated to just above body temperature, about the same temperature as the wax for a parafin treatment. The wax is concentrated with scent and each bar will last 60-80 hours, longer than most of the popular jarred candles. Since there is no flame, you don't get the soot and smoke damage to your walls and ceilings and there is no risk of fire if you forget about it. I also LOVE that there is no risk to Lance of being burned by a flame and I don't have to constantly tell him to leave it alone.

For about the past year, I have been thinking about signing up as a consultant to sell Scentsy. Well, I finally decided that I would take the leap and do it and now it is official.

The new Spring/Summer 2009 catalog just came out with new warmers and scents. There are about 80 different scents to choose from and over 50 different warmers, including the small plug-in warmers perfect for bathrooms or small spaces.

If anyone is interested in buying anything, let me know, or you can go to my website and place an order there. Also, if you are interested in hosting a party, you can earn rewards, just let me know. It doesn't have to be an in-home party, I can get you some small testers and you can have a basket party, or I can set up an online party for you.

I am really excited for this adventure and Mike supports me 100%. Feel free to direct anyone you know that may be interested to my website. The address is http://www.scentsy.com/KattRicks

Garage Door Adventure

So we were lucky enough to be able to file our taxes early and receive it quickly. We had been planning on a few things that we wanted to get and things to take care of with the money. A garage door was one of them. We received our direct deposit(the only way to get a return)on Friday and went shopping the next morning. We first spent the morning paying all of Kathy's medical bills and other various billings. Then we were lucky enough to purchase blinds for our home. 2" faux wood blinds in a brandy wood stain. They are really nice, oh and a black aluminum blind for the garage window. We went to Blinds.com and saved a huge amount compared to anywhere locally. If you ever plan on getting blinds we would suggest looking into it.
So we eventually left to house to go shopping. Target was our first stop to get new towels and bathroom sets. Diesel(between black and gray) for the master bath and yellow for Lance's bathroom. Also some neat things for the laundry room, like an iron and ironing board caddy. We then headed to Lowes for our garage door opener. We had been doing some shopping around and determined what we liked and what prices were. So we ended up getting a 1/2 hp belt driven model. It's great, keyless entry, real quiet and quick.
So we took it home!
And read the instructions!
And headed back to Home Depot for tools!
LOL
After our tool shopping spree(we have never had a need to own our own tools beyond the very basics)we started to install. Of course to install anything you need to call all the friends over to "help". So the Sunday daily project begun. Surprisingly easy! And here are all of you waiting for a horror story or some slap stick comedy. It ended up taking 6 hours to install and troubleshoot and everything but ultimately was a two person job. Thankfully friends were over to keep Lance occupied and out of the way during the construction. One of them even surprised us with brownies when he came over. Thanks Jake! I guess the friends did help by holding things once in a while and cheered Michael on as it is probably the most manly thing Michael has ever done. Kathy even learned to use power tools! Go Kathy! All in all it was a wonderful weekend.

We have moved!!!

We have finally moved into our new home. There are still some boxes to be unpacked, but at least we are living there. We have already had a couple adventures in our new home, and we haven't even been there a week yet.

A couple days after we closed, we went and bought a refrigerator. We got a great deal on one of the floor models and it was delivered and installed a couple days later. We go to the house in a few days and the refrigerator is not cold and the freezer has not made any ice. So, we call the repair man since we have the warranty on it. He finds that the compressor has quit working and a new one needs to be ordered. It was finally repaired on this past Tuesday, so we did not have a working refrigerator for the first 4 days we were there.

Last night, one of the toilets clogged so we thought Lance had used too much toilet paper. Mike gets the plunger and the snake and it seems to not be clogged. When the toilets upstairs were flushed, the one downstairs would overflow. Then, we had the towels in the wash and when the washer drained, we had sewage coming out of the toilet downstairs. GROSS!!!! Luckily we have a home warranty, so we called them up and they sent out a plumber today to look at it. Apparently there was something big clogging the main sewer line to the house, but they were able to clear it. So now we have working plumbing again.

We also do not have the internet or cable right now because our street isn't on Comcast's maps, but we are being very pushy to have them come take care of it since it is roughed in, they just need to pull the cable. Since we don't know when we will have the internet again, it may be a while before we can do another update, but maybe next time we will have some pictures to post of the house.

Happy New Year!!

So, I guess I need to be better at keeping those that pay attention to this blog updated on what is going on in our world.

We are buying a house and we finally will be closing on it on Monday. (It's about time, our offer was accepted about a week and a half before Thanksgiving). I will post some pictures as soon as we take some. It is a brand new townhome and we felt that it would be just perfect for us so we are really excited.

Mike has been busy singing with the Utah Symphony Chorus as well as the Utah Opera Chorus. He auditioned for the symphony chorus and was immediately invited to join. About a month after that, the director asked if he would also join the Opera Chorus. His ultimate goal is to perform opera as a principal, so he is stoked at the opportunity and hopes it will help him out with his opera career. His first production will be in January, and he actually gets paid for it too!

Lance keeps us both pretty busy, he is just full of so much energy. It's hard to believe that he will be four in March. He has been telling us that he wants a bother and sister, and we hope to help him out with that desire before the end of the year. I have recovered very well from my surgery so I don't expect any problems later on.

We wish everyone a Happy and Prosperous New Year!!

Holiday Tag!

Top 3 Vacations
1. Hawaii
2. Trip to CT to see Bob, then to AL to see John, Rachel & Kids
3. Road trip to Carlsbad to see Barry & Krystle and new baby Grayson

Top 3 Favorite Flowers
1. Roses, Fire and Ice
2. Tropical Flowers
3. Any that are pretty

Top 3 favorite comfort foods
1. ice cream
2. Mom's cooking
3. Homemade Turkey Noodle Soup

Top 3 Places to Shop
1. Steve & Barry's - Great clothes, great price
2. Macy's
3. anywhere I can find a great deal!

Top 3 Opinions About Halloween
1. All the little kids are so cute dressed up
2. Too much Candy
3. Big kids should not go Trick or Treating (although I had a different opinion when I was younger)

Top 3 Opinions About Thanksgiving
1. Yummy food and lots of it
2. It's great to see family and spend time with them
3. We really should be thankful for what we have at other times too

Top 3 Opinions About Christmas
1. Everyone seems to be happy and cheerful
2. I love all the Christmas lights and decorations
3. Christmas music is great, just not too early because it can get old

Top 3 things I look forward to during the week.
1. Spending time with Mike
2. Seeing Lance happy
3. Only three days to work this week!

Top 3 Events Happening This Week
1. Thanksgiving
2. Seeing friends and family
3. I need to register the car

I tag Krystle, Rachel, Barry, and Ryan

Our little Photographer

Lance likes to take pictures of everything with the camera. It is really cute! He is getting better at keeping the camera still until it finishes taking the picture, so he actually gets a picture of what he wants instead of the floor or some unrecognizable blurry thing. We are thinking about getting him one of those digital cameras for kids, so that he doesn't break ours.

Here are some of the pictures he took:

A Picture of Dad

His bed

Some Bunnies at the Fair