It took me a week an a half to write this post (and ten other random facts)

Fact #1: Nothing about May feels normal or okay. I keep thinking about how last year I hosted a social event at my home the last day of school. I let my kids invite whoever they wanted, and we had cookies, popsicles, and sodas in my front yard. Who was that person? Why was she able to do that? There’s no way I could do that right now. 

Fact #2: We celebrated our 21st anniversary a couple of weeks ago… by taking our girls to their dance concert rehearsal. 

Fact #3: We have a makeshift pottery studio on our backyard for the summer. Nicky has taken ceramics every year so far in high school, and his teacher let him bring two pottery wheels home. 

Fact #4: Scotty tried throwing a pot yesterday four days ago nine days ago for the first time in 18 years. He was a little shocked to discover that he’s lost his touch.

Fact #5: We have squirrels living under our shed.

Fact #6: I’ve been working on this post for several days. I’m hoping I can finish it before June.

Fact #7: Other than pumpkins, our garden is all planted and ready to grow! Our pumpkins are always ready a little too early, so I’m trying a later plant date to see if they’ll hold off til pumpkin season.

Fact #8: The pumpkins are now planted (I’ve been writing this for a really long time).

Fact #9: The other day I went to see a movie, and this was the seat I picked:

Fact #10: I made six of these at work this week:

Goats and toast are two of my favorite things, but I’ve never considered combining them to make home decor.

Tried It, Liked It

I think more often than not, we humans decide we don’t like something before we even try it. Sometimes we are spot on, but I also think we can be wrong. Lately I’ve been thinking about some of the things I thought I wouldn’t like, but I tried them anyway and ended up loving them. 

Sushi

I understand why so many people won’t try sushi. Aside from the whole raw fish thing, there are strange textures and flavor combinations. Plus seaweed. That doesn’t sound appetizing at all (plus it’s kind of chewy).

At one of Scotty’s former jobs, he was introduced to sushi at business lunches. He always said he didn’t like sushi (not that he’d ever really given in a chance), but after he started going to sushi lunches with work, he became a fast fan. He came home after his first sushi lunch and said, “I don’t know what has happened, but I can’t stop thinking about sushi.”

At Scotty’s next job, his boss took us out for sushi. I was being a good sport going along, but I didn’t plan on enjoying any of it. I imagined suffering silently through a few bites to be polite and then hitting a fast food window on the way home. So boy, was I shocked when I started eating the sushi, and it was really good! And I, like Scotty, couldn’t stop thinking about it for days!

I love sushi. Who knew? (I didn’t!)

Risk

I had a few guy friends in high school that played Risk all the time. They would sometimes talk about it in front of me, and I would glaze over with disinterest. Scotty also liked playing Risk, and 20 years ago, he agreed that I probably wouldn’t like it. 

Somehow I ended up filling in for someone else in a game of Risk. I learned how to play, I saw it through, and I got hooked. Risk ended up being what clued me in to my interest in strategy board games. Would I ever have learned this about myself if I hadn’t taken a risk and played Risk?

Lagoon Passes

We got season passes for Lagoon, our local theme park, last year. I loved Lagoon as a kid, but as an adult, it has always seemed like a fine method of torture. Crowds? No thank you. Hot summer days? Yuck.

It turns out, I love having Lagoon passes so much that I secretly bought more for this year behind Scotty’s back because he said we weren’t getting any.

A Quiet Place

When A Quiet Place came out, multiple friends tried to convince me to go see it with them, and I gave them an absolute no. I don’t like jump scares, and I don’t like creatures. 

So I was very taken aback when I eventually did watch A Quiet Place, and I loved it. It’s one of my favorite movies.

——-

I’m sure if I thought about it long enough I could come up with some more, but these are the ones that stand out the most. I definitely don’t enjoy being wrong, but in these cases, I sure was! I’m glad I gave them all a try.

Currently (May 2024 Edition)

Reading: nothing! For the second month in a row. I think I’m broken. 

Drinking: NOT soda. I’m 15 days soda sober… again… you know how I be. I almost gave in on Wednesday because I bought a fountain drink at Sam’s Club, and the lemonade wasn’t working. I ended up trying to get Pepsi Zero (I figured I would drink a soda, but not a soda that I LOVE. That way I could have a drink but maybe not totally spiral out of control) and that wasn’t working either. Then I tried for Diet Dr. Pepper, and that, too was not working. At that point, I figured the fates were trying to keep me from breaking my streak, so I threw the cup away, and called it a loss. But before I left, I tapped the regular Pepsi dispenser to see if it was working, and it was. 

Cooking: some menu items on this week’s list are crock pot chicken and rice, cheeseburger soup, and spam sandwiches. Don’t be hating on my spam sandwiches. One day they were sampling fried spam on King’s Hawaiian Rolls at Costco, and I’ve been addicted ever since. 

Watching: 

I think this is the third time I’ve worked my way through 30 Rock. It’s kind of lonely because I have a million 30 Rock references available in my head and no one to share them with.

Sick of: church events. I am so burned out.

Wearing: a Cinderella sweatshirt and shorts. 

Buying: food for stake young women camp. I’m in charge of the food, and we are doing every meal as a stake. Big task, but since I love mass food production, I’m in. Although it does involve my least favorite thing on earth… committees. 

I made my first purchases this weekend - Italian ice pops and gluten-free Oreos, and my sister-in-law hooked me up with a bunch of free lunch meat. 

Annoyed by: weeds. It’s not even time to plant a garden yet, and I feel like weeds have already taken over.

Laughing about: today Nicky and I had to explain to my mother-in-law what crop dusting means.

No, mother-in-law, the crop dusting problem at Senior Ball over the weekend was not related to aircrafts or pesticides. 

Dreading: some of our summer obligations. There’s a lot going on this year that I don’t want to deal with.

Sad about: the lack of youth in our ward. 

This week, for the first time since we were moved to a new congregation, I had a good cry. I thought we would be okay with the new ward, but as time goes on, I am more and more sad for my children. 

Missing: soda. 

Craving: breakfast sandwiches. I adore them. 

Thinking about: how amazing it is to wash a breakfast sandwich down with a Coke. 

Singing: Benson Boone. Nicky and Daisy are big fans, so we always have Benson Boone playing in the house and car.

Playing:

I bought the Qwixx Mixx score pads to add a new twist to our Qwixx game. 

Trying: to lower my blood pressure (one reason I’m soda sober). It’s not working. Spam sandwiches definitely won’t help.

Needing: to go to sleep, frankly. 

Missing: my kids’ former love for Daniel Tiger. 

Grateful for: comfy blankets.