I finally got asked to Prom!

Theme: I Will Always Love You by Dolly Parton



I had my hair done at Stacey and Shannon's Chic Salon. Don't bother trying to get an appointment, they only work with the most exclusive, discerning clientele. I borrowed jewelry from the posh Heather's Haus of Jewelry. Pearl necklace and earrings that came with their own body guard. My blouse came from Denise's Tip Top Tailoring, which was way better than what I showed up in. (Don't blame me, I didn't know!) I did my own nails myself the night before, a completely happy accident.

Denise stayed up half the night trimming these leaves. Not to mention all of the other gorgeous decorations and yummy food! She rocks!

We went to this VERY exclusive restaurant. I'm pretty sure it was one of those things that disappears at midnight. Sorry you won't ever get to go there. They have the best lasagna and jello jigglers around. And the cheesecake? Fugeddaboudit!



I even got a goblet for my china cabinet... now if I only had a china cabinet. :D Geoff's and his siblings' Prom goblets are in his Mom's china cabinet and I freely admit my jealousy of such a trinket and what it represents. And now I have one!

All of this was a complete surprise to me. Geoff set it all up, including a babysitter. (Yep, I was THAT kind of Prom date) ;D So, as the dancing started, I asked if they had all learned a Promenade dance too, without telling me. I know, in Tooele, you have a date to Promenade that may or may not be your same date to the dance and you go to practices and everyone learns this choreographed dance that you all do together and parents stand on the balcony and take pictures and video. I almost got to go to Geoff's youngest sister's Promenade, but I was heavily pregnant (as in due any day) and had to miss it. We didn't do a Promenade... but there's always next year! ;D

Love these ladies!!!

It was fun to have a partner for every dance and never be left sitting there by myself. :D We were the goofy couple that couldn't stop laughing together. We also stole kisses, which is something high school me would never have even considered!

And so it was that after 12 years of marriage and even more than that since I DIDN'T get asked to Prom that I left my 5 children with a babysitter and went to the best Prom ever with my one and only true love and had the time of my life! Thanks, Hubby! You da Bomb!

Lemme tell you about Allie

Every so often, but not very often, you happen upon friends that just click. Like the "exactly-right-size Lego that you didn't even know was missing" kind of click. When they first came down to meet the new neighbors, we learned that their youngest is about the same age as our oldest, they had just recently sent a son off on a mission and married off a daughter and they were totally cool about the Becca thing. Now, that last one was something I was obviously dreading. Moving to a new neighborhood and having to describe all that goes along with Becca is daunting. Not only is it daunting to say (it's a LOT of info!), but there are no guarantees about the recipients' reaction either. I remember being mildly surprised how they just took it all in and asked questions and were so nice about it. They didn't even run screaming down the street! :D

Fast forward to now and their missionary is home and married, their oldest daughter is expecting her first baby, their second daughter is getting ready to leave on her mission THIS WEEK, their second son still says Hi to me even though it probably isn't considered very cool and their youngest daughter is still about the same age as our oldest and is one of my funny, bright, smiley, beautiful Activity Days girls that I will get to see in about another year in Young Women!

Can I just tell you how much I enjoy time spent with this family? They have let me tie quilts and mend clothes and embroider fun things and hang out and eat and just have so much fun. And did I mention that even the Hubby loves them? We all love them! And getting Allie ready to serve her mission has been the awesomest thing ever. Granted, I haven't spent hours shopping with her and then hours returning things and getting the right things for the climate and truly, I've done very little. But to bask in her glow is amazing. She's been reading all kinds of uplifting books and praying and preparing. She is SO excited to go that I can't help being SO excited for her!

A couple of weeks ago, we had a Young Women's activity where I invited Allie and another cute girl in our Ward that has been back from her mission a couple of years and one of our YW leaders who has been back for quite a while to talk to the girls. It turned out better than I ever could have imagined! I hoped that we could put the idea in the girls' heads that missions were amazing opportunities and maybe give one or two of them an 'Aha!' moment. I was so impressed by the Spirit that was there and the wonderful teaching moments the pre- and returned- missionaries were able to share with us. Most importantly that missions are not just what you do if you're not doing anything else at the moment, but that they can be great preparations for everything you do in life... career, family, friendships, education... everything.

I am thrilled for the people in Panama to get to share my friend Allie. They are going to be blessed to be taught by a beautiful, very enthusiastic, Christ-like servant of the Lord that I love very much. Good luck, Allie! Have fun! And may the Lord bless you and keep you safe, happy and healthy.

Day 31 - A picture of yourself.

This is the last day of the picture challenge, which must mean that tomorrow is my birthday! :)

"Challenge" doesn't cover it! This was very difficult. Not to mention a little soul bearing. I am so glad I did it and even more glad to be done. :)

I would have to say that all of these 31 posts have painted a very good picture of myself. Not that I'm trying to get out of posting yet one more picture of myself...

Day 30 - A picture of someone you miss.

I've decided to dedicate this one to my college roommates. We don't get to hang out NEARLY as much as we used to! ;D

There is just something cool about the bond formed with your first family away from home. We had SO much fun figuring out how to be grown-ups and still get our homework done. I hope it's okay with you guys if I use your actual first names... if it's not, let me know and I'll make up a nickname for you! :D

Ricks College Dorm 6
S.L.E.D.N. "Sleddin" on the snowy hills in Rexburg, ID. :) Sara, Lucie, Emily, Diana, Nancy. I need to dig further to find pics of when we were actually roommates. The one of Nancy and I on a particularly freezing night was taken then, but you can't see her face! Never fear! I will find more pics! ;D I don't have any pictures of Emily. She left part way through the term to have her own room.

Crazy answering machine messages... "Well, I ain't all that nARmal..." Playing Ghost in the Snow Building. Boys. :) Boys. :( Racing home on icy sidewalks to make curfew on time. Sleeping in the living room and waking up to Chicago on the CD player. Eating in the cafeteria. Dean, Steve and Jake. :D Jonas, Tory, and Bruce. :D The Jareds. :D All of our other homies. :D





Ricks College Riviera
Lucie, Cammie, Mindy, Holly and Mandy

Eating together. Roommate prayer every night at curfew. Group hugs with heads tilted to the right. Mandy's car Nelly. Hot tubs in the snow. Break ups. Bike wrecks. Carpet in the kitchen. Holly's dating and engagement to Shawn. Man, it was cold!

Mandy is one who will always be truly missed. She died in a car accident the year after we were roommates. She worked so hard the year we were roommates to be accepted into the Nursing program and she was! Mandy was authoritative and our favorite quote was, "How high, Mandy?" because she was always asking us to jump. ;D She was just over 5 feet tall and I had to bend at the waist to hear her when we went to Ricks Basketball games (half the team was in our ward). What she lacked in height, she made up in personality. Love that girl!



USU Moen Hall
Gaylynn, Christine, Meghan, Emily, Shannon and various other roomies that came and went.

Three flights of stairs. Hawaiian haystacks in the common room. Our own personal balcony that could be used up to one week a year when the weather was good. :D Stairs. Archaic microwaves. Getting locked out because my keys were inside drying because I had painted my keychain with nail polish. Calls in the middle of the night for the Asian guy who had lived there during the Summer. Did I mention the 3 flights of stairs? Numerous times a day. Three. Flights. Of Stairs.

Day 29 - A picture that can always make you smile.

I LOVE BEING AN AUNT!

When my nieces and nephews are born, their first picture always stars on my computer's desktop. I get so excited to meet them! I love to love on them. I love hearing the first version of my name... Aunt Nana... Aunt Dinana... Anna (which happens to be the name of one of my treasured nieces). :)

It's fun when my kids have kids their same age to play with at family parties. It's also fun to snag them as they run by and snitch hugs and tickles and smiles from them.

My nieces and nephews can always make me smile!

Day 28 - A picture of something you're afraid of.

I couldn't decide if I was brave enough to post the above picture. Apparently I am. Are you really going to make me state what this means and why it is my deepest fear? There's probably some nueroses connected to the fear of drowning. All I know is, it scares me.

Which makes doing this feel a little impossible. I guess it's a little funny since a plane crashing in water probably has a softer landing than one crashing on land. But if you can't get out, what does it matter? You know that scene in The Abyss where they go to the nuclear submarine and they see the people still in there? I hate that part! And, somewhat ironically, I actually like that movie. I guess, for me, it is a thriller... as close to a horror movie as I'll ever get. Of course, my favorite part is how the characters relate to each other and the changes really deep true love can make in a person. But I digress.

Deep water and I are not friends.

Day 27 - A picture of yourself & a family member.

This is Grandma Sagers. She is Geoff's Grandma. I call her Grandma, too.
I love her SO much!

Day 26 - A picture of something that means a lot to you.

THE ABC'S OF FRIENDSHIP

A lways be honest, would you want THEM to lie to you?

B e there when they need you, or you may wind up alone.

C heer them on, we all need encouragement now and then.

D on't look for their faults, even if you have none.

E ncourage their dreams, what would life we be without them?

F orgive them, you just MAY do something wrong sometime.

G et together often, misery loves company, so does glee.

H ave faith in them, the human animal is remarkable.

I nclude them, you may need to be included sometime.

J ust be there when they need you.

K now when they need a hug, and couldn't you use one?

L ove them unconditionally, that is the ONLY condition.

M ake them feel special, because aren't we ALL special?

N ever forget them, who wants to feel forgotten?

O ffer to help, and know when "No thanks" is just politeness.

P raise them honestly and openly.

Q uietly disagree, noisy NO's make enemies.

R eally listen, a friendly ear is a soothing balm.

S ay you're sorry, don't let them assume it.

T alk frequently, communication is important.

U se good judgment.

V erbalize your feelings!

W ish them luck, hopefully good!

X amine your motives before you "help" out.

Y our words count, use them wisely.

Z ip your lips when told a secret.

Friendship means the world to me. From my family who were my very first friends and will be my very last, to every other person in between. I value good friends. They are what I missed the most after every big move I have made. Which, in turn, is probably why I love Facebook so much! Connecting and building lasting friendships means a lot to me. I try to be the friend I would like to have. :)

True blue through and through.

I apologize for not having an author for the above ditty. If you know who wrote it, please let me know!