The time has come...

After weeks and weeks of preparation, Cookie Booth Sales are officially here. I've been bad about keeping up with my blog because I've literally been thinking about, preparing for, and organizing cookies 12 hours a day. We start our booth sales on Saturday, and I'm already exhausted from the prep work...uh-oh... I helped sort cookies last week, got them delivered to the troop I volunteer with, and picked up cookies for my work troops and the 49 cases are sitting in my condo (you, like most people I work with, probably think I'm a little crazy to be volunteering for the same organization I work for - what can I say...I'm obsessed with Girl Scouts!!). I've deposited so many $1 bills from cookie sales that the bank teller probably thought I do some questionable activities at night...

This weekend I won't get to be with my volunteer troop because my work troop is having their booth sale on the same day. The following two weekends they are on opposite days so I'll get to go to both. Oh, and did I mention that it's unbelievably cold and it snowed here last night. That should make for some happy 5th graders on Saturday morning at 10am!! :)

I'm really proud of my volunteer troop because they sold 1600 boxes of cookies in pre-sale!! I was really impressed and I can't wait to see how they do this weekend!

My volunteer troop's 144 cases of cookies before we loaded them up:


Have a nice weekend! I'll be back when the last case of Samoas leaves my condo...

Valentines Day 2009

For Valentine's Day this year, Marcy and I decided to keep it low key and go out for a nice dinner on Friday to avoid Saturday's crowds. We both had a super busy week, so dinner out was a nice way to end it. I drive past this little restaurant in Queen Anne (a super cool neighborhood in Seattle) every week. It's called the 5 Spot, and every month or so they change their theme and cuisine to represent a different region of the country. The current theme is "Keep Austin Weird." YAY, Texas!! I really wanted to try it, and Marcy thought it sounded fun, so off we went. The food was very "Texas," with large plates, barbeque sauce, and awesome sweet treats!! It was delicious, and we came home with enough food for dinner and dessert the next night! YUM!!

The sign outside the 5 Spot that always changes to announce the current theme:


Me, enjoying dinner and a delicious bottle of wine

Our placemats had cool, random facts about Austin on them:

A GIANT Armadillo greets you as you walk into the restaurant:

Giant paintings hung around the restaurant display all things Texas. There was a painting of the Dixie Chicks, Willie Nelson, Farrah Fawcett, and Keep Austin Weird:


Marcy enjoying chili-cheese fries (very Texas) and wine:

World Thinking Day

Wednesday night I celebrated an annual Girl Scout celebration, World Thinking Day. It's a chance for Girl Scouts all over the world to honor the cultures and traditions of others. I was in charge of organizing the event for my troops at work. It was so much fun to plan and host!! Here's some pictures from the event....

My troop presenting about Jamaica


With the Emcees while another group performs


Some of the troop members at our Jamaica table


(PS - Did you buy your Girl Scout cookies yet? Support your local council, and buy a box or two!! If you can't find any in your area, I'll be happy to send some your way - $4 a box)

Bad Puppy

As I was driving home from work on Friday, I called Marcy to find out about her day. She was at home and had some bad news. Apparently, while we were both gone, Billy decided that he wanted to be a black lab. He found a black ink pen and chewed on it until it burst. Did I mention he was on the mustard-colored couch?? Needless to say, I was a little upset. I got home to find that it wasn't as terrible as I had predicted, but it's still an impossible ink stain nonetheless.

The ink stain (after Marcy worked on it for a while)


The wannabe Black Lab (and this is after a scrubbing by Marcy)


And another shot...


On another note, this week and next are going to be crazy busy for me. With Cookie Time here, it makes for busy weekends of Cookie Booth Sales and sorting and delivering cookies!! Crazy, but super fun!! The Girl Scout troop that Marcy and I are volunteer leaders for has a meeting tomorrow night. We're celebrating World Thinking Day. It's a celebration every February in Girl Scouts when Girl Scouts from all over the world celebrate the cultures of others. Each of our girls picked a country and is bringing a poster to present on her country. It should be lots of fun. Then, Wednesday nights, one of my troops from work is hosting a Thinking Day Celebration for ten other troops. The country they chose to research was Jamaica. It's been fun learning right along with the girls, and of course, I love being an event planner, so that's been great, too. We're serving banana coconut bread and pineapple juice on Wednesday (very Jamaican!!)...The timer just beaped on the oven...My banana bread is done.

Have a great week!!

Friday Night

We just got back from a nice walk on the beach. It's a little chilly, but it was so nice to be by the water for the sunset. When we got back, I responded to a tag on Facebook with this....

25 Things About Me

Once you are tagged in this note, you must write one of your own, stating facts, quotes, things about yourself, habits, etc.

1. I LOVE (and, yes, in an all-caps kind of way) "Mary Poppins". It is and forever will be my most favorite movie.

2. I am slightly obsessed with hotel shampoos, lotions, and soaps. I have a rather large collection under my bathroom sink, yet I never use them. What am I saving them for? I really don't know...

3. There's not any bad day that can't be cured by a glass of red wine and a really good chocolate brownie (with frosting...and chocolate chips)

4. I would really love to own a craft store someday. And now that Dayme and I live in separate cities, we're thinking it'll have to have two locations - Dallas and Seattle.

5. If I could, I would keep my Christmas tree up year round. I'd make ornaments for each holiday, and I'd update the tree throughout the year.

6. I talk to my dog like he's a person. Sometimes I even use baby-talk. Don't judge.

7. My all-time favorite television show is "Friends." It takes me a few months to watch the entire 10 seasons, and then I start them all over again.

8. Speaking of "Friends," I've been likened to Monica on several occasions due to my obsession with cleaning, eating sweets, and having an annoyingly perfect brother...whom I love dearly :)

9. When I was in 8th grade, I was a cheerleader. There were like 82 of us and they didn't cut anyone who signed up (no tryouts necessary), but that's beside the point...

10. My favorite meal is a basket of fish and chips from Zesto's, this tiny little restaurant in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle. Come visit me, and I'll take you there.

11. When I leave the house, I must check 3 times (exactly) to make sure that everything is turned off/unplugged/locked before I go. Slightly OCD? Yes, I think so.

12. I love to blog, I love to read blogs, I love to plan what I'm going to write about next in my blog. It's fun! Try it!

13. A lot of my friends say I'm a 14-year-old trapped in a 27-year-old body because I like to read teen novels (like "Three Willows" - it's great, read it!), watch "Privileged," and re-read and watch "The Babysitter's Club" again and again. I guess it doesn't help that I also sell Girl Scout cookies....

14. I love when people ask me to help them brainstorm party ideas, gift ideas, and craft projects. It's so much fun to plan!!

15. I talk to my parents multiple times a day. I call my mom on my way to workout in the morning. I call my dad on my way to work, and I call my house on my way home from work and talk to both of them.

16. Disney World might be my most favorite place. Every time I go back I get a certain thrill walking down Main Street USA in the Magic Kingdom. I also love riding with my Dad in a Doom Buggy in the Haunted Mansion and seeing which hitch-hiking ghost will follow us home.

17. I love taking pictures, and I'd like to own a really nice camera some day to capture awesome images.

18. My perfect weekend day would be a nice brunch, followed by a long hike in the sunshine, ending with watching the sunset on the beach while sipping a glass of red wine.

19. I want to visit all 50 states. So far, I've got 38!

20. My brother and Leann are getting married in May. My mom and I are busy planning the rehearsal dinner. Our theme is the symbol "&" and I've bought some wooden & signs. Bryan & Leann, Love & Marriage, you get the idea...It has been fun to plan!!

21. I love going to concerts...especially outdoor concerts sitting in the grass on a warm summer evening.

22. I think it would be really cool to watch the sun rise on the east coast and set on the west coast all in the same day. (Doing that is actually on my Life To-Do List)

23. I love shopping for school supplies. Even as an adult, I get a certain thrill out of buying a new pack of highlighters, glue, crayons...really anything from Office Max. Maybe I really am a 14-year-old girl?!?!?

24. Every season Vera Bradley comes out with a new pattern that I can't seem to live without. I don't know how they do it, but that company catches my eye every time I get a new catalog.

25. Back to being OCD...I love making lists, so this was super fun. Thanks Julie Adams!

And since some of you blog more regularly than you facebook, I tag Paige, Allison, Jill, Summer, Wendy, Cristin, and Megan - Have fun!!

My Week...

This week has been crazy busy, and productive!!

Early Monday morning, I opened at Starbucks - 4:30 AM!! Jealous?? It's not so bad once I get there, but it's hard to go to bed early Sunday night, and I always freak out throughout the night and wake myself up scared that I missed my alarm....

On Monday, Seattle schools had off for a teacher work day, so that meant I got more time in the office, which was nice. I got to prepare for my week. Monday night was Girl Scouts with the troop I volunteer for (did I mention that I not only do I work for Girl Scouts, but I also volunteer for them...I really do LOVE the organization!!). My troop sold 1500 boxes of cookies!! Can you believe it? I couldn't! I was so proud of them for all their hard work!

Tuesday I took the bus to work so Marcy could have the car. I met with my 5th grade Girl Scout troop. We did a Girls Circle. This group of girls is VERY drama driven, and a Girls Circle is a safe place for them to voice their opinions, talk out problems, and work together for a solution. Three of the girls have been getting into fist fights, and it's affecting the rest of the class, so we worked through that. It was successful!!

On Wednesday, my 4th grade troop meeting was cancelled because they were on a field trip. I did have a troop meeting with my Kindergarten - 3rd grade Bilingual troop. They are SO cute and fun to work with. Between the 10 of them, there's 4 different primary languages, and they are all working on their English. It's so fun to see their excited faces when I arrive, and we do a lot of craft projects and reading together.

Wednesday night I worked at Starbucks. Have you tried the new Apple Chai? It is delicious - and low fat/low calorie, too! I love it! I really like working at Starbucks in the evenings because it's pretty slow, and relaxing, and I get to clean (which I love, and is such a stress reliever for me!!)

Today I got a lot of work done at the office, and then had an after school program with 5th-8th graders. We built structures out of gumdrops and toothpicks. Their structures had to be at least 3 inches tall, and strong enough to hold a text book. They did great, and were successful!! Tonight I'm baking Cookie Dough Brownies (from Bakerella - try them - they're delicious) for a "Comfort Food" Potluck at work tomorrow!! I'm also going to catch up on some TiVo'd shows (Top Chef, Scrubs, Martha Stewart). I can't wait for the weekend!! What are you up to?

This is for you, Julie Adams....

So Julie Adams told me my blog was boring her and that it needed to be updated. Those of you who knew Julie in college like I did, know that she says what she means and she expects a response. That's one of my favorite things about her. And since she said my blog was boring, I thought I'd spice it up a bit with a story about her from college....

Julie (Adams....is it confusing that we have the same name?? I don't talk about myself in third person, so just assume that when I write "Julie," I mean Julie Adams...) intimidated me right from the start of my joining Kappa Delta. I remember that I had only been a new member for about three weeks when we had our first conversation. Julie told me quite frankly that I was too shy. She said it'd be nice if I opened up a bit, and invited me to come out with her and some friends that weekend. I was really nervous, because I was one of those "goody-goodies" as I heard a lot, that didn't drink until I was 21. I was scared that people would think I was a loser for not drinking. I went to the party anyways, and decided I'd make the most of it. Julie came up to me after a while and said hi and asked me if I wanted a drink. I told her I didn't drink, and she laughed and said, "This is water. Let me get you a cup of water. People will think it's something else, but they don't have to know, and as long as you keep the cup full, no one will ask if you want something else. It works like a charm." I was SO incredibly relieved, and I used the water trick on many occasions....

Another favorite "Julie Adams" memory is when she made me an awesome DVD with pictures, video, and music memories for my birthday. It was definitely one of the best, most thoughtful gifts I've ever received, and it always makes me smile when I put it in the DVD player for a reminiscing session....

There are tons of "Julie Adams" memories, but these two are definitely my favorite!! Love ya Jules!! AOT