Friday Confessions...

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it’s that time again…Friday Confessional. Rather than focus on just one I have a few that have been floating around in my mind as of late.


When I grow up and get married, I'm living alone. (Yes I know it's not proper grammar, but I loved it anyway.)

I love living alone. It’s true. The girl who grew up in a big, noisy family, shared a room with her little sister until she was 22, and has never been alone in her life-thus assumed she could never live alone-LOVES HAVING HER OWN SPACE.
I went from this: (artist's rendition-and turn your head sideways because I can't get it to rotate)

To this: (some were taken on moving day-I promise it looks better now)


See? Everything looks better with pictures hung!
It really is great-no roommates to mesh personalities with, I can come and go as I please, veg out on the couch every night, stock my cupboards with nothing but cereal and Girl Scout Cookies (true story), and leave wet towels on the floor, makeup on the bathroom counter, dirty dishes in the sink-whatever I want goes because it’s MINE.

On the flip-side....

I hate living alone, too.
Sometimes it’s depressing to come home to an empty apartment (there is nothing that makes you more aware of your single status then not having anyone to come home to). There are times where the boredom is so intense I sit there, staring at my phone-thinking about who I could call to break up the monotony and tell about my day-just to have SOME sort of human contact. Some other things that have sucked is getting used to the fact my bedroom window faces a busy road (traffic noises at all hours) AND has the fluorescent lights of the parking lot across the street blaring into my room through the blinds at night (hello black out drapes!). Learning the “settling” noises of a new place all alone in the dead of the night has also been NO FUN. Getting used to paying all the expenses alone is a downer too; as is going to the laundromat, learning how to shop/cook for one, and lugging things to and from your car parked light years away. BUT, all that aside I love knowing that-although it’s tiny-all 525 square feet belongs entirely to me. I don’t care who you are. THAT is pretty damn cool.


I am a firm believer a degree is nothing more than an expensive piece of paper.

Before you gasp and judge and berate me with angry posts, let me explain. With few exceptions-doctors, lawyers, teachers, etc. There is nothing a school can teach me that I can’t learn with good old on the job experience. This has become even MORE apparent to me now that I am once again looking for work (thank you economy for being totally SUCKTASTIC). I have experience in everything-from food service to HR to Accounts Receivable/Payable to Office Administrating to management—you name it, I’ve probably done it. But NOW employers are requiring a BACHELOR’S degree to even be considered. These are ENTRY LEVEL POSITIONS people. Really? Yep. Apparently now you need to have a SPENT $30,000+ on a piece of paper to be qualified enough to MAKE $30,000 a year-because somehow that paper makes you more qualified than me. You would REALLY rather have the snot-nosed brat, fresh out of college, with just their degree in hand, no experience WHATSOEVER-armed only with what they’ve read about in books-to someone who has BEEN in the "trenches" and experienced it head on? Really? That’s like saying you prefer the surgeon fresh out of Medical School with no surgeries under his belt to the 30-year veteran who has performed so many procedures he can do them in his sleep. Makes NO SENSE TO ME. I don’t want to do heart surgery. I just want to do Office Administration.



Donuts can pretty much cure all ills. So do waffles. Especially when they involve these:


And this face:

It's love.

Thanks to Netflix having all five seasons of “Quantum Leap” in the instant cue I have realized not only how much I still LOVE that show but also that I have an oober crush on Scott Bakula. Creepy? Just a little. Why? Because he’s almost DOUBLE my age, old enough to be my father, and a year younger than my MOTHER, yet I just don’t care. I’m convinced the man is like a fine wine. He only gets better with age. Oh! AND he plays the piano and sings! SINGS! Do you know that a good-looking man who sings, acts, plays the piano, and is STRAIGHT is like the Holy Grail of men? It's true. Don't believe me? Have a look:




Circa “Quantum Leap” *sigh*

Today-“Men of a Certain Age” *WOW!*


Maybe it’s because he KINDA resembles my Scott? Hmm…































You be the judge on this one.

10 things I hate about you...

Ok, not really. I just couldn't come up with a more clever title.

I was tagged through proxy to list ten things that make me happy. Since I have been quite the Debbie Downer as of late it will benefit me I think to list things that make me happy. In an effort to stretch myself I’m going to forgo the “Thanksgiving Table” happies-Gospel, family, friends, and loved ones- as my friend Emmalee called it and list some little known (and not so little known things that make me happy.) So here they are in no particular order:

<!--[if !supportLists]-->1. <!--[endif]-->Most Wonderful Man (MWM): Ok, so he’s my number one, but I promise the rest will be in NPO. It’s funny how when you lose something so wonderful you’re convinced you’ll never find anything that compares to that wonderful again. Then you do. MWM is that wonderful I never thought I would have again. He makes me happy every single day. He is everything I want, could hope for, or need, and he compliments my crazy personality so well. He is my best friend and is always so supportive of everything I do-no matter how hair brained or crazy he thinks it is. He is patient with my moodiness and is always trying to make me happy. Just seeing him smile at my craziness is enough to make any terrible day bearable. I definitely don’t deserve him but I sure am happy he chose me!!

<!--[if !supportLists]-->2. <!--[endif]-->Music: Music is the essence of my being. Just being able to listen to it, make it, feel it is enough to make ANYONE happy. My musicals make me ESPECIALLY happy-because where else can you break into song and not only everyone knows the words, but it has the power to make two people fall in love in a matter of minutes? Now that’s something happy. Being able to know music, appreciate music, and most importantly SING music makes me the happiest girl in the world.

<!--[if !supportLists]-->3. <!--[endif]-->Food: Not only does this have the ability to sustain life, but it brings people together and makes them happy. Even when the food is terrible you can still manage to laugh about it and have a good time. What else can do that? Honestly. The only thing that makes me happier than eating food is making food for the people I love and watching it make them happy in turn. I am so happy that my mother taught us how to cook and not to be afraid trying new things. Because of that I love searching for new recipes, making menus, going shopping, and trying new things. Plus it doesn’t hurt I’m pretty dang good at it if I do say so myself. :)

<!--[if !supportLists]-->4. <!--[endif]-->Being on stage: I have very few regrets, and most of those have stemmed from denying myself new opportunities. Being on stage at every opportunity is one of them. I didn’t discover my love for the spotlight until I was a Senior in High School and 90% of my schedule was filled with music and drama classes. It doesn’t matter if I’m singing in a choir, helping behind the scenes, or acting- I’m usually my happiest on stage. I don’t have big dreams of becoming a star, but what a wonderful outlet! Where else do you have the opportunity to do things you wouldn’t normally do-make out with a complete stranger, strip, or fight over a man (all of which I’ve done, BTW), and not feel the least bit guilty about it? Being on stage is such a great outlet for me, and although it was late in coming I sure am happy I found it.

<!--[if !supportLists]-->5. <!--[endif]-->Choice reality shows: Before you judge me let me say that I HATE the dog eat dog elimination reality shows. I’m into the feel good ones that chronicle more than stalk. I’m such a chick. I LOVE Say Yes to the Dress, Cake Boss, Man vs. Food, Dirty Jobs, Deadliest Catch, Little People, Big World, all the “feel good” reality shows that don’t make you want to throw things at the tv. Except Mary on Cake Boss. She’s a royal bitch, that one.

<!--[if !supportLists]-->6. <!--[endif]-->A car that works: This is a blessing just as much as something that makes me happy. I’ve had a car that wasn’t reliable so now I have one that is I appreciate it that much more. Being able to get where you need to be when you need to be there, and not having to count on anyone else to get you there is enough to make anyone happy. :)

<!--[if !supportLists]-->7. <!--[endif]-->Seattle, WA: It’s funny how a place that I’ve only been twice in my life can make me so happy-especially a place that rains 50 weeks a year. There’s just something about the atmosphere, the community, and the Farmer’s Market that calls to me. It’s enough to make me over look the rain. I love that place.

<!--[if !supportLists]-->8. <!--[endif]-->Disneyland: For those of you who know me well you know that I couldn’t write one of these and NOT include Disneyland! People make fun of me because I have never had the desire to travel abroad. I had the option of taking a Mexican cruise or going to Disneyland. I chose Disneyland. No joke. Aside from when I’m with Most Wonderful Man I’m happiest when I’m here. Many a memory has been made here and I can’t get enough of all the fun little details that are in the park-hidden Mickeys, Club 33, and the attention to detail in general just makes me happy. We want the Redhead! We want the Redhead!

<!--[if !supportLists]-->9. <!--[endif]-->Blog-Stalking: Since I put so much effort into mine and hope that people will read it, I HAVE to do the same for others. I typically only read the blogs of people I know-and let’s be honest-if I happen to stumble across a blog from someone I knew in High School, you BET I’m reading it. If this makes me crazy, oh well. I just love to read various blogs from friends and family. I also love reading the different writing styles that are unique to each author. Keeping in touch with loved ones is certainly enough to make ANYONE happy.

<!--[if !supportLists]-->10. <!--[endif]-->Blogging: Believe it or not I really do enjoy keeping you all posted-plus let’s face it-we’re all a little narcissist and LOVE the opportunity to talk about ourselves and not be judged as a result.

I have never been the best at journal-keeping-this fact made obvious by my three-month break between posts-but what a great way to post standpoints, feelings, as well as the standard here’s what’s happening in my boring life post. Awesome. Simply awesome.

Well this is my list. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I’m stealing yet another idea from Emmalee and will be posting a Confessional. Hopefully every week,but we all know that’s not going to happen. Peace out.

Time to play catch up...

As I'm sitting on Scott's bed watching him play Ghostbusters (at my insistence; I try not to be the bratty girlfriend who doesn't let her man do anything fun...) I decided I would be productive and update everyone on the happenings (or lack thereof) since my last post. Let's see...all the way back to June. That was a long time ago. Here is where Hollywood would insert the flashback complete with narration-just to warn you it's kinda long and there are a lot of pictures-most of which are in chronological but not chronological order... if that makes sense...

June: I branched out and did Beauty and the Beast in Murray. After a rocky start on my end, I ended up having a great time and made some fabulous friends in the process. Aside from the wettest June in like the history of Utah-thus leading to us being rained out not once, but twice AND a rain delay on closing night I had a great time and hope to call Murray my home again soon...plus it wasn't NEARLY as hot as the Sugar Factory-although I'm sure the rain had something to do with that...*sigh* The joys of doing outdoor theater.







July: Sparky, Kimmy, Scott, and I all bought season passes to Lagoon. I've never had one, and I didn't get to use it until after B&B, but it actually turned out to be pretty fun. It's no Disneyland, but let's be honest...there's only one Disneyland. Well one day Kimmy and I met up with some of my friends from B&B- Madman, Myranda, and Chris. I'm fairly sure it was the hottest day of the year, and NATURALLY we had to have the Old West Pictures taken. For some reason I looked ridiculous in all of them--everyone else looked great:

August: Amber and I took the girls to my parent's house for a girl's weekend to see Annie at Tuachan. This was my first show there and if you haven't been--GO. It's really worth the drive. I'm not sure who had more fun, my family or Ashton and Makayla. They both absolutely fell in love with my brother and sister in law Casey and Darla, and his menagerie, got henna tattoos from my mom, and helped my dad with the pond. The trip also served a triple function so Amber could take family pictures--for those of you who remember the last time we took them my dad had long hair--and for me to meet my newest neice, Allison Mae. It was love at first sight for me. I can already tell I'm her favorite aunt...










September: MY BIRTHDAY!!! My awesome friend The Chris-not to be confused with the previously mentioned Chris-- took me to lunch and made me the cupcake tower of goodness complete with a candle and my FAVORITE kind of cake--Red Velvet...oh, and did I mention both my parents FORGOT my birthday? Yeah. They totally did. Kinda put a damper on the rest of the day, but I can laugh about it now...good thing I had Scott that night to lift my spirits--I really am a lucky girl. :)


October: The long-awaited trip to Disneyland was FINALLY here!! I was so excited to get away from everything and spend some much needed (and well-deserved) time with my family. I was especially happy because Scott faced his fear of flying and came with me.
We got tickets to the trick-or-treat party in California Adventure and decided to dress as Mousketeers--except dad because he wanted to be Captain Jack and Scott because he's a party pooper. Joan and I bought iron-on letters before we left and my mom made the shirts once we got to the condo. Well, after making three shirts she ran out of letters and had to fashion an 'N' for her name...leading her to misspell her own name-'Melaine' instead of 'Melanie'. Apparently she STILL can't talk about it without laughing to the point of tears. They still turned out great though:












We had a good time the first two days, but on day three Scott woke up and said he wasn't feeling too hot. By 8 pm that night he was in bed with a fever. The rest of the trip was pretty much a bust, but Scott was great and humored me by not only attempting to go to the park every day for a little bit but going to a character breakfast AND taking pictures with the characters and photo-ops-although he HATES having his picture taken. Looking back I'm 99.9% sure it was the Swine Flu...especially because Joan was diagnosed with it three days after we got home...

And that brings us to now. Looking back I've had a busy couple of months. Nothing of note is happening this month...unless you count me paying off my car, Thanksgiving, and Christmas music starting on the radio...you gotta love this time of year. Hopefully I will be better at keeping everyone posted.

Thanks for reading. :)

So now I'm private...

Yeah, I bet you're all wondering why I invited you to my blog. Well. It's a LOOONG story, but I decided to go private for a bit, but I still want people to be able to read it. And in order to go private I have to add you as a reader by your e-mail. Lame, I know, but I will pontificate on the specifics later to fill you all in. Loves~ Kristen

Why it's great to be single...

Hey y’all. I know, I know. I’ve been a bad blogger. I wish I could say I have a great excuse—like I was abducted by aliens for the last three months and after a daring week-long stand off I just now made it off the Mother Ship; making it my first priority to update you all. Yeah, that’s not the case. My only excuse is that my life is SO unbelievably boring I haven’t had anything exciting to share. I still don’t, but I have been thinking about this the last few days and thought it would be fun to put out into the "blogosphere".

It’s become obvious that it’s spring. Not by looking out the window; because just yesterday it looked like a day in January, not April. But I digress. You know that it’s spring because everyone and their dog is getting engaged, getting married, getting knocked up, or getting ready to pop like an over-filled cream puff. Everyone that is, but me. Now don’t worry. This isn’t going to be a down-on-life-woe-is-me post. It’s also not a big fat boo on being married, pregnant, or anything of the sort-well not directly anyway. ;) I’m just merely reminding myself and all my single friends it’s not as bad as sometimes we may think. So-for your enjoyment here’s my list of why it’s great to be single:

I don’t answer to anyone but me-I do what I want when I want. I don’t have to put plans on hold while I find out what my hubby is doing and if it will interfere with what he has going on.

Relationships are disposable-Although I’m not a “serial dater” it’s nice to know I can be if I REALLY want to. Some guy bugs the hell out of me? Kick him to the curb and move on to the next one. That whole “I’m in a committed relationship” thing doesn’t get in the way. I can throw my hands up and walk away at will.

My credit is my own-I’ve worked hard to make my credit almost blemish-free. This is something I’m very proud of. Not many people my age can say their credit is almost perfect. I don’t have to worry about the credit card my husband defaulted on two years out of High School keeping me from being able to buy a car—or a house.

I have free reign to be completely and utterly selfish-If I want to buy that pair of jeans at Aero or the new ipod touch I can get them without worrying who will be going without.

Traveling is so much easier-I go where I want, when I want. If I want to go to Disneyland six times in one year or pick up and go to Washington to visit friends on a whim it’s ok. I don’t have to worry about everyone making arrangements for taking time off work and school, saving for months in advance, and if everyone is having a good time. I also don’t have to worry about looking into alternative modes of transportation because my husband is afraid to fly or my kids can’t handle a road trip. Packing for one is also a whole lot easier than packing for six.

I’m not a 24-hour caretaker-I don’t have to worry about tending to sick children in the middle of the night or helping my husband find his misplaced car keys--again. I'm the only one I have to worry about.

I'm the only one who can humiliate myself-If I'm embarrassed it's because of me and my ineptness-not my husband for making a joke at my expense or my child yelling choice words/phrases at inopportune times.

Saturdays are still for sleeping in-I don’t spend my days running errands and doing yard work or peeling fighting children off one another because they both have to have the toy in the cereal box. If I choose to stay in bed until 11 it’s perfectly fine-I don’t have to worry about fighting crowds at the Grocery Store or waking up to the cereal toy carnage.

My time is my own-If I want to take 17 credit hours, work full time, AND do a show I can. My biggest concern is where to fit sleep into that equation.

I support me-I don’t have to count on someone else to bring home a paycheck. Because of this I choose how, when, and where my money does or doesn’t get spent without consulting with someone else first.

I'm old enough to be a realist-Not a cynic. Because I'm 28 and still single I've had time to experience some of life's highs and lows and learn that not only am I stronger and smarter because of it-I also don't need someone there to hold my hand every step of the way. Because of these trials I can be a better wife and mother because I can relate to my child having their heart broken, or understand my husband's fear of being alone. I feel bad for people who have no life experience to draw on when someone they care for is hurting and in need of help.

And most importantly-when I’m playing with a baby or my nieces and nephews if they misbehave or poo everywhere I get to turn them back over to mom and dad to handle. Not to mention I can load them up with sugar or get them all wound up and then send them home. I get all of the highs and none of the lows.

Although this list may not show it I can’t wait to be married and have a family of my own. This is just a reminder for all me and my single friends how good we actually have it. While I plan on enjoying it while it lasts I’m still eagerly (and somewhat impatiently) looking forward to the next step. :)

Hooray for Disneyland!!

This summer I started having "girls night" on Thursdays with two of my dear friends, Aaron "Sparky" Sparks, and Kimmy. It has been so nice, and I'm sure Scott appreciates the weekly break. :)
Anyway, in July Sparky mentioned taking a trip to Disneyland. He told me later he didn't ever think that it would come to fruition, but apparently he didn't know me as well as he thought. Aside from the fact I'm a Disneyland addict, I love a project. So I did the research, made the presentation, and before you knew it, we were in Disneyland! Kimmy ended up having some things come up and was unable to go, so it was just me and Sparky. We had a ball!! We spent six days in the park--which some people would say is excessive, but in spite of all the time I've spent there I still did things I've never done before! We took TONS of pictures, and walked onto almost everything. Pirates was by far our favorite.
Here's some photos for your enjoyment:

I'll be home for Christmas

So I'm cheating and changing the dates on this, but you all love me so you're just gonna deal. :)
Every year since 2005 I've been able to go home for Christmas. For those of you who don't already know, home is now St. George. For everyone but me, anyway. Well-Christmas with my family has changed so much over the years. We've gone from our small little family spending the day together to in-laws and grandkids, sharing the day with everyone. As different as it is, I wouldn't change it for anything. I love my sisters in law and my nieces and nephews so much.

This year is especially neat because Jon and Michelle are expecting their first baby-something I thought wouldn't happen, that's for sure. :) Jon really met his match in Michelle; she puts him in his place and I love to watch them together. He loves her so much and will be such a good dad. He's got a great empathy belly going, as you can see here:

Although Darla and Casey aren't pregnant, Casey needed to throw his hat in the ring:
I think he's pretty impressive...
This Christmas I also spent with a lot of time with my mom. I love her so much, and I am so lucky to have her as my mom. Even though I am grown, she still continues to teach me. For Christmas she gave me the best gift. She made a cook book for each of us with our favorite recipes when we were growing up. Then we made cookies together. I think they turned out great-although my mom's side of the family didn't appreciate them like they should have. My co-workers LOVED them! I think they're cute:

I normally stay the entire weekend, but I cut my trip short for the Vander Linden family Christmas party. Scott and I have been dating a little over a year, and so I decided it was time to introduce him to the family. (actually, my wonderful family was giving me grief and questioning whether or not he was real, so I HAD to call their bluff.)
I spent the weeks leading up to the party telling him about my family-who is married to who, who their kids are, and how they're related to my mom. I also prepped him for the noise. You know how loud I am, and I come by it honestly. Scott comes from a very small family-one sister, and his parents families don't live near by. His mother is from Kentucky, and his dad is a farm boy from Tremonton.
My family on the other hand is like the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding". My mom has seven siblings, they're all married, and they all have kids. I have TWENTY FIVE first cousins, and most of them are married with kids of their own. Needless to say my family is HUGE and LOUD. Scott was fantastic. He remembered most everyone, and everyone seemed to really like him. It's always nice when your family likes the person you're dating.
All in all my Holidays were fantastic, but I'm SO ready for spring!!