Road Trip

Last week, a 17 year old kid backed into our car at Gold's Gym so we were given a rental car until Tuesday. They gave us a Ford Escape and I have to say, it was so much fun to drive. Not too big and not too small. We decided to take advantage of having the bigger vehicle (plus we didn't have to put any more miles on our car....it already has 150k) so Erik, his friend Jon, and I went down to Vegas for the weekend. The boys golfed for the first time this year and I got to hang out with my sister and her family. It's always fun to get away for a few days and we really needed it after last week's computer disaster. I'm still waiting on my sister to email me the pictures we took from her camera, but I had to post these two that were taken on mine. I had so much fun taking pictures of my adorable little nieces. Avery (the younger one) didn't want anything to do with the camera at first, but somehow snapped out if it. Ashlyn (curly hair) thought it would be funny to try not to smile. We managed to get a few cute ones. If it was any other family, I would have been really stressed and annoyed about it all, but since they were relatives, I could use more "force" than usual. :) Anyway.....stay tuned for more pictures of our fun weekend in Vegas.

Not So Fast!

For a while now, Erik has been using a laptop computer (on loan from his boss) to do all of his school and investment work. He thought this morning that we would have to return the computer so he asked me to put all of the files onto flash drives because he wanted them moved over onto our desktop computer. I quickly did this and went on with my day.

We got home from working at the laundromats at about 6pm tonight and Erik told me he no longer needed the files on the flash drives because his ex-boss is letting us keep the computer. I put one of the flash drives into the computer and pushed "delete". I put the second flash drive into the computer and pushed "delete" again. A split second later, I realized that I did not "copy" the files onto the flash drives, I "moved" them onto the flash drive. My heart stopped and for that second, it felt like the world came to an end. Everyone of the files that were originally on the laptop were now gone! What had I done?

Usually, my ability to do things very quickly works in my favor, but every now and then it stabs me in the back. After many calls to computer savvy friends and former co-workers we had recovered most of the files but all of the file names were jibberish. For hours we thought Erik was going to have to go through every file and rename it. Thankfully, I did one last search on the Internet for some better software and it worked. The files are back (with their names) so now he only has to put them into folders.

I am proud to say that Erik remained very calm throughout this disaster. Meanwhile, I cried (just like I always do) and told him repeatedly how sorry I was. From now on, I am going to do things a little slower so I don't make any more stupid mistakes; and for all of you out there that are speed demons as well, slow down!

P.S. If you ever delete a file off of a flash drive and you need it back, take a deep breath and download Recuva. You can thank me later.

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Surprising Feeling

I sat in Relief Society today and felt a sigh of well....relief. I had just finished playing A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief as the "music appreciation" number and I was glad it was over. I've been playing piano for 20 years and I still get extremely nervous but that's beside the point.

On the row in front of me, a clipboard was being passed down the line. On it, was an almost full list of sisters willing to have the missionaries over for dinner throughout the next three months. I have to say, I think there has only been one time since Erik and I have been married that I signed my name on that line. Typically, I pretend to read what it is for and then casually pass it along. This time was different. I sat behind watching as the number of open spaces got smaller and smaller until there was only one left. The list was passed to the woman next to me and I watched as she wrote her name on the last open line.

With my parents serving a mission in Bermuda, I feel a certain closeness to the ward missionaries even though I sadly can't even recall their names. I surprised myself when as the last line was filled in, I felt dissapointed. A somber feeling came over me as I realized my eagerness to serve would now be benefited by no one. When I got home from church, I immediately called the contact person listed on the sign up sheet and told him that if there were ever any time that the missionaries needed a dinner, to give me a call and I would happily provide one. Oddly enough, I am anxiously awaiting the time I receive a call from him.

I am so grateful that as my parents serve the wonderful people in Bermuda, I also get to reap the benefits of their hardwork and dedication to the Lord. Little by little their faith, testimonies, and willingness to serve rubs off on me and I am eternally grateful. Through their example, I have gained a greater desire to serve and emerse myself in the gospel.

I know many more opportunities will come my way and I hope I continue to have the burning desire to serve. Thankfully, I know two missionaries that will save a night on their calendar for me, but unfortunately I have to wait another nine months. To my benefit, my parents will probably have many open lines on their list of needed dinner appointments and I guess that makes me the lucky one because I will be able to serve them any time I wish.

What Can You Do In Mid-Air?

Last weekend, Erik and I (as well as some friends) attended the Visa Freestyle International World Cup Arial Skiing event at Deer Valley. It was a lot of fun to do something other than watch TV, workout and play Wii on a Friday night...and it was free! For some reason, I didn't think about the weather before we left (very odd for me) and ended up being FREEZING for a couple of hours; but after seeing the atheletes twirl around four times in the air after going off of a HUGE ski jump, it was well worth it. Some people are so talented! My arial talent is limited to about a foot of air and zero spins.

I wonder what they are thinking about while in these positions?