And the AWARD goes to...

Okay Lindsey, I was going to blog about smoked oysters, thrift store clothes, and other essential Yo-Adriane topics today, but since you've honored me (and 6 other stylin bloggers) with the "Stylish Blog Award," I'll fulfill the obligations of the award.






#1 - Thank the person you gave you the award.



Thank you Lindsey! Thanks for thinking I am stylish , and for giving me the opportunity to talk EVEN more about myself. You know I love the attention.



#2 - Share 7 facts about yourself.

• My favorite color is turquoise. And chocolate brown. And jade green. And copper. And red. And....and...and...I love all the colors. Except bubble gum pink.


• My true decorative style is Spartan. Although I may say that I like Tuscan or Art Nouveau, I really like VERY FEW things in my house. Perhaps this is because I can't decide what I truly like? Or, because, sadly, my decorative home skills are severely challenged. Either way, I like to see nothingness because it make me feel calm.


• I can't keep a house plant alive to save my life.


• When I was 16, I let the bakery boys at the local Middle Eastern bakery ("The Jerusalem Cafe") think I was Palestinian so I could get free pita bread (best pita bread BTW). Shameless, huh? I think it was their olive skin, green eyes, and dangerously international accent that won me over. Don't worry though, I've since repented and told the YW in my ward to NEVER accept free stuff from guys who think you cute and who are MUCH older than them and who are probably after just one thing...okay so I didn't exactly say that last part, but you get the picture.


• So on a more somber note, here's a fact I don't readily admit to, but I think it is warranted because I'm trying to reveal some completely "truthful" facts about myself. - I think I've had chronic depression at least twice in my life. The first bout was when I was around 15. Home life back then was defined by a lot of responsibility in regards to taking of mom and the boys and a lot of poverty. However, I could never really say we were poor because I knew my parents loved me and they were doing the absolute best they could to provide for me and the boys. The bottom line though was those were tough times in my life. And yet they were probably the most defining moments in my life. I'd never replace them. The other bout was when I first moved to Camp Verde. I had been married for about two and a half years (i.e., the honeymoon stage had most definitely worn off), I had left all my friends and family in the eastern AZ and knew no one (or at least I thought), I was finishing graduate school, and I was living on a VERY fixed income while trying to pay off various debts. Looking back on those times, some of my behavior was almost laughable. I remember one time I didn't leave my house for two whole days. Yep, I didn't even step out of my front door. I stayed inside. Worked on school work. Cooked meals. Watched YouTube. And read the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and the Complete Works of Jane Austen (although not all in two days). Pathetic, huh?


• Okay, getting back to the fun stuff. I have swam in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Delaware in January. Several Christmas' ago, I spent the holidays with Bucky and Derek and we went to Ocean City for a night. Somehow I had gotten it into my head that I needed to swim in both the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean to be a true American. (Weird, huh?). Anyway, I had already swam on the west coast, so I figured this was my golden opportunity to swim on the east coast. And man oh man was it COLD! Yeah, I lasted about 5 minutes in the water before I called it quits. Funny thing is I couldn't feel certain (and I mean certain) parts of my body for well over an hour.


• I've always wanted to visit Greece. For as long as I can remember I've had this "thing" about Greece. When I was a teenager, I read every book about Greek mythology I could get my hands on. One year for my Seminary Halloween party, I dressed up in a turquoise Grecian dress (think the Statue of Liberty) with a tree branch in one hand and a sword in another so I could portray "the never-ending cycle of war and peace in the Book of Mormon." My fellow Seminary buds thought the concept was cool, but really the concept was a last-minute Adri-idea just so I could wear my Grecian dress. One day, I hope to visit that ancient land and eat a never ending supply of baklava, stand on a rocky cliff overlooking the Aegean Sea in a white dress and tan skin, dance to Yani-esque music in a hole-in-the-wall local eatery, and speak Greek with the zeal and passion (and dare I say sexiness?????) as the women in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding."

#3 - Award 7 new bloggers the Award and LET THEM KNOW they have won by either comment/tweet/text/phone call/grocery store conversation/smoke signal or whatever technology you prefer. Here's my pick:

• Bucksta!


• Shannon


• Kyra


• Teddy


• Alicia S. (hey girl this is a check to see if you're reading my blog...or as I like to think "performing routine surveillance on the content of the YW Pres's blogs in the stake who are under your jurisdiction")


• Eagar 4th Ward Amie (miss you guys!!)


• Montezuma Ward Natalie

--A

Back to the salt mines!

Lately, I've had the hardest time motivating myself to do my chores. Dishes, laundry, scrub the unmentionable parts of our house. I really don't know what it is. Winter blues? Post-holiday depression?



My grandmother AhMu used an expression about housework which I find myself saying a lot these days - "Back to the salt mines!" Yeah, that sounds about right.



Saturdays are my one day to play catch-up on the domestic duties, and sooo often, I fall short of accomplishing EVERYTHING I intended to on this day. Today feels like it's going to be another one of those....



So, since I'm indulging myself in a late start to my work this Saturday, I figured I'd do at least one thing that made me feel accomplished and post a TOP 10 list. Today's topic?



TOP 10 Things I'm Daydreaming About on this Saturday Morning






10. A visit to societal London during the Roaring '20s (this has a lot to do with me just finishing watching the last season of Upstairs Downstairs...one of the best BBC series ever...the original version of course). I really want to wear chic dress and long pearl necklaces, bob my hair, and talk about silliness in a perfect, aristocratic British accent. "Oh really, darling, jazz is all the rage nowadays. It's just terribly en vouge!"



9. Hiking some of the more remote parts of Arizona in a pair of old levis, dusty boots, and an old cotton button-up shirt. For some reason, I've recently been entranced by the old, mining/cowbow/frontier history in Arizona, and I want to re-live (or really live) the western adventures that play out in my mind.



8. Eating brioche and croissants in a quaint, Parisian bakery while wearing a Coco Chanel-esque striped shirt and very bright red lipstick. Oh yes, all while being so skinny, that my cigarette pants do not bulge and there are no hints of cankles.



7. Swimming on the beach in Hawaii. What can I say? It's cold (even for Camp Verde) and I am so ready to toast my skin in the sun!



6. Growing a beautiful, hobbit-like garden. Nuff said.



5. Having happy, beautiful, hobbit-like (but perhaps not in height...or feet for that matter) children. Also, nuff said.



4. Flying over central Arizona's montains, valleys, streams, canyons, and paradise-like hidden places...with a broom, wand, and Griffindor-colored scarf.



3. Planning a most needed trip for my mum to visit me.



2. Decorating my house in such a way that perfectly combined all my decorative wanna-be styles: 1920s bungalow, Frank Lloyd Wright, 1960s' retro cool, Tuscan villa, Spanish mission with a courtyard, Zen, and thrift store chic. Will it ever happen? Doubtful.



1. Spending a Saturday in which time is suspended long enough to do everything I want and live out enough of my romaticized day dreams to get through the next week's shift of digging in the salt mines.

--A

I'm too ashamed to give this post a title...

"Yo Adriane! Like where have you been for the last 6 months?!"

Yeah, you've been asking yourself this, right? Or, perhaps you're too busy with your own life that you haven't noticed I've been blogger AWOL for like enough time to journey to Mars and back...twice. Yeah, it's been that long.

Someone spoke in our church meeting today about how he doesn't make new year's resolutions because he inevitably won't meet them. I tend to agree...wholeheartedly. So instead of recapturing EVERYTHING that I've missed since my last post, I intend to highlight only those things where a) my life has significantly changed, b) I can remember, and c) I look spanking good in the pictures.

And, of course, I'm doing it 'Top 10' style. Of course.

Top 10 YoAdriane Events in the Last 6 Months

#10 - Sister/Sister Extravaganza

(My older and much wiser sis and her baby boy)

Probably the highlight of the past 6 months was having my sister and her four C-R-A-Z-Y (but in a good way) kids spend a week with Auntie Adri. The downside? It was August, in the desert, in my old retro "house," with no AC. Yeah, that's some REAL family loyalty there.

Anyways, I took the crew to the usual tourista spots in the Verde Valley: Jerome, Sedona, Oak Creek, Verde River, old town Cottonwood, and Clarkdale to name a few. We also went to Prescott and bought a Costco cheesecake which we ate in one night...you know, to like get our minds off the fact that the trailer was a blazing 85 degrees while we ate it.

(The family at Dad and Julie's in St. Johns)

#9 - Abel's Homecoming



The trip to MO to see Abel's homecoming made me realize one thing - I'M OLD!!! While it was great to see family, I was slightly depressed to realize that the generation of kids younger than myself is now driving, dating, going on missions, possibly getting married, and being called "Brother" and "Sister" at church. Too weird.



Weird as it is. It's nice to see those kids grow up when they turn out good. Abel was one of them. I'm pretty proud of him. He was an awesome misssionary (and I don't use that adjective casually). And I'm so proud of the great and incredibly good man he has grown to be. I have to say though, I'm a little jealous of his Spanish-speaking abilities...

(Abel and Mom with her "I can't believe this MAN is my son" look)

(The Family at the airport)

(Walking with RM PRIDE...Hoot! Hoot!)

(My cuz and me at the RM party at Uncle Oliver's)

(Some of the 'da women folk at the RM Party...caution, I'm wearing that green shirt alot in the following photos)

#8 - 'Calling' me Crazy

I don't think I could make a top 10 list and not include my YW Pres duties.

Most of the time I'm doing my calling, I feel like a crazy person...juggling meetings, figuring out what we're gonna do for mutual, making hand-outs, figuring out the best way to motivate the YW to do Personal Progress goals, spending bookoo time on the cell phone talking to everybody, and a hundred other things. And yet, I've had such a BLAST with these group of girls and leaders...I wouldn't have it any other way. We've had the best time in the last few months: making pizzas, raking mountains of leaves, eating the messiest caramel apples EVER, dancing our feet off at the stake dances, driving through Phoenix traffic to see the Mesa Temple Christmas lights, singing Broadway tunes, and the list goes on....

(The Gang on the concrete pink chair in downtown Mesa)

#7 - Holidays with the Ragans

About two months ago, Justin and I prayed that we could visit our family more often. And, incredibly, we got to do just that. Thanksgiving was spent in Tucson with J's mom and family, and on the way home we spent a little time with his dad and step-mom. Then, for Christmas, I got to go to MO and see my mom (and Justin was supposed to but a stikin elk hunt and overpriced train tickets got in the way...but that's a whole 'nuther story), and then J and I both got to spend a little time with my dad and step-mom. Can you believe that? All four parents in 2 months? Incredible!

(The Ragan Yule tree - a lovely blue spruce from Green's Peak, AZ - hand cut)

Anyway, because of all the traveling (which really all occured in a 2-week time frame), we decided to spend Christmas and New Year's at home, just the two of us. And it was really nice to spend the holidays watching movies, eating junk food, playing with our little porker of a cat, and getting some good 'ole R&R.

(Taking advantage of the "self-portrait" feature on the camera)

#6 - A Picture's worth a Thousand Self-Esteem Points

So another highlight of Bucky's visit was that I got to take some saweet glamour shots....you know because only sisters (as opposed to husbands) are patient enough to indulge in their sister's vain wishes to have at least ONE respectable self portrait of themselves. I like these ones that Bucky took because they're kinda artsy, and hence, make the pictures seem less narcissistic.

#5 - O, Mie Amici!!

My friends! My friends! Let's just say that the last 6 months would have been near complete drudgery had I not had some good friends to laugh with, eat food with, talk about woes with, and just be girls with. Since I was a LAME friend and didn't send out cards this holiday season, I hope you will all accept my letter of gratitude below...

"To my friends: in my town, in my old towns, in cyberspace, and beyond,

Thanks for bringing sunshine to my day. For caring about me and my oftentimes trivial problems. For giving me hugs at church. Beatiful necklaces in little red velvet pouches. Watching my cat like your own child. Text messaging me when I'm visiting your home state, but forgot to ask what you were doing. Driving me to the shuttle station at 5:30 in the cold morning. Sending me "We miss you!" notes on Harry Potter memo pad paper with your kid's lovely crayon drawings on the back. You are the cherry on my Sonic limeade. And I only hope to be that kind of friend in return.

Merry (very late) Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Adriane"

#4 - Food!

Do you remember the commercial for Meow Mix?...."Meow, Meow, Meow, Meow....Meow, Meow, Meow, Meow..." Remember? Yeah, well I think my theme song for the last 6 months could be "Food, food, food, food...food, food, food, food.."

I've had so much GOOD food in the last 6 months. I can hardly believe it. Potlucks at work (and good ones too!). Ward socials. Christmas parties. Mommy's home cooking. And I've even suprised myself a time or two with my own concoctions.

(I admit I staged this photo just so I could blog about it.)

For Christmas, I did an italiano meal - Roasted lamb with anchiove sauce (don't let the anchioves fool you...this was magnifico!), braised peas with prosciutto, sliced potatoes with butter and swiss cheese, lovely baby green salad with vinegar and olive oil...and for dessert a layered Sicilian cake with ricotta cheese, chocolate, and butter....divine!

#3 - There's some perks with that job...

Work has kept me B-U-S-Y, but I think I'm finally getting the hang of my new job so I can't complain. Some days, I even get to go out to the "field" and see some cool things. Like the day above, I got to ride the ski lift to the top of the San Francisco peaks and take notes for the scientists' in the Forest Service. Yeah, that was a good day!

#2 - The REAL Herminone Granger please stand up, please stand up, please stand up!

(Harry Potter Jr. and buddy)

So this year I thought I'd honor one of my favorite literary characters by being her for Halloween. I even found myself a little Crookshanks too.

For those who know me well, you'll probably admit that I AM the real Hermione Granger. Puffy hair, smarty-pants-teachers-pet mentality, borderline nerd, the whole nine yards. Sadly, though, I was kinda of disappointed by the new HP movie...why on earth does Hollywood always have to add that "one scene" of trash to every decent movie?!! I'm sick of it. If they do it again, I'm quitting the movies and sticking with the books.

#1 - La Mia Bella Casa

(La cucina - before the move in)

(La famiglia room - also before the move in)

So the big news for Justin and me is that we bought our first house this last year. Woohoo! I can't begin to tell you what that felt like. It was like Christmas, our wedding, my birthday, and the lottery all wrapped in one lovely gift. I feel soooo blessed to have this special little (and yes it is little!) home for ourselves. So blessed, that I hope each of you come and visit me sometime! Though you may have to sleep on the couch or the porch or the shed...nah...if you RSVP in time, I'll make sure there's a nice comfy air mattress in the spare bedroom JUST FOR YOU.

So come and see me, and we can talk all night about cool stuff, take pictures of whatever we fancy, eat like there's no tomorrow, and stick it all on my next blogging post. Yeah, that sounds like a good idea!

--A