Randomosity

Well, now that the boy child is FINALLY taking a nap, I thought I'd sit down and blog a bit before moving on to my next task. I say "FINALLY" because for some reason he was being very defiant this afternoon. For the life of me I could not get him to go to sleep, which is strange because it's usually not a problem. He enjoyed throwing his pillows and blankets out of his bed 1087 times and crying for me to come in and get them before finally giving up and conking out. Oh, sweet silence! Vessel's new thing to say lately is the phrase "Get It" and it basically sounds like he's bossing me around all hours of the day. "Bobby. Get it." "Monkey. Get it." Well, his wish is my command, what can I say? I have been trying to teach him the word "please" for months now. I think he's not learning to say it on purpose. Just to show me who's boss. :) Cute kid though, cute kid.

Okay, so get this. It's such a small world. We went to the grocery store the other day and as Mike was paying I was just sitting on a bench with Vessel when I saw someone familiar. I kept gawking because I recognized this kid I went to college with like 5 years ago. (I'm tellin' ya, I've got a photographic memory.) Anyway, he kept looking at me funny probably wondering why I was staring him down. Then I waved him over and that's when he realized he knew me too. We made a really funny video together back in the day as part of our literature assignment. After talking for a bit, and catching up, he and his wife invited us over for dinner.
Oh, and another small world moment: I was trying to find something online last week, and the link took me to someone's blog and surprisingly I knew the person! I think my mouth dropped when I realized who it was. It was a girl I used to work with back in Idaho, and the other kicker is that on her blog was a link list which included the name of another girl I used to work with and her husband who I went to high school with! It's been probably about 5-6 years since I've seen or heard from them. So we recently made contact and it was kind of cool to see what they had been doing with their lives. Weird, eh?

In other news, I am over my cold! Hooray! Don't worry folks, it only took almost 2 weeks! And just as I was getting over my cold, the boy child came down with Strep and an ear infection. The poor lad must've been miserable. After some consideration, we elected to take him to the doctor (despite the fact that we don't have insurance YET) and it's a good thing we did because according to the doctor it can get pretty serious if not treated early. So props to me for following that motherly gut-instinct and taking him in rather than waiting a few days for improvement. The doctor also said that Vessel had the sorest looking throat he'd seen all day, which explains why he wouldn't eat or drink anything. I wouldn't have known he even had a sore throat otherwise since he has such a mild disposition. Even when he must have been in a lot pain he didn't cry or whine at all. What a trooper. After taking antibiotics for a week now, and getting plenty of rest, he is in tip top condition again. And I am back to chasing him all over the house. :)

So the 4th of July came and went. It was a pretty good day. It was nice to be with Mike and the boy and especially nice that Mike had a 3 day weekend. We went to visit my aunt in Boulder and I think it was the first time I'd ever been to her house. So it was me, Mike and the babe, my uncle from Idaho, my aunt and her husband, and 2 other couples that were there. It was a pretty interesting group, to say the least. Vessel had a great time playing with the dog, and the dog was just happy to have a buddy follow him around all day. It makes me want to get Vessel a puppy...
My aunt's husband and I actually had a pretty interesting convo that consisted of religion, politics, and society. I'm not a big fan of conversations which include any of these topics because it usually means there's going to be a debate. When 2 people with really abrasive personalities come together you never know what's going to happen. I'm happy to say I could hold my own for the most part, and somehow we were actually on the same page most of the time. I can honestly say that I even ENJOYED the talk quite a bit.
Later that night (after the exceptional meal we had) it was time for fireworks. I'm not big into fireworks but Mike certainly is. I would be surprised if my aunt's husband (why I don't call him my uncle, I don't know) spent less than $1000 on fireworks. And so when Mike was invited to help light them all, he got pretty excited. I think that little pyromaniac was in heaven! Those who weren't lighting them went up on the deck to watch. Vessel fell asleep in my arms despite the booming noise. There was a lightning storm happening at the same time the fireworks were going off. It was a crazy sight. Then everyone started worrying that we were going to get struck by lightning (we were under a huge deck umbrella with a long metal pole...) so we went down and watched from the lawn. Fun times. I think the boys had a good time even though they were getting wet. The best part of the 4th was just seeing some familiar faces. I was feeling a little homesick, so it was nice to visit some family.

So, this week I'm preparing for two things. One is my talk this Sunday. Ah, the joys of moving to a new ward, eh? I get so nervous speaking in church or basically in front of any big crowd. Heck, I get nervous speaking in small crowds. Even teaching in the YW got my heart a thumpin'. But it'll be okay, right? The other thing is Mike's birthday. Yup, gonna be the big 2-6 on Sunday. So make sure you all wish him a glorious day, will ya?

Anyhoo, I guess you're all wondering how life in Montana is these days. Things are getting better and better. Even the apartment is starting to feel more like home. And the smell is gradually getting less and less gross. Well, it's getting more bearable I think. My secret? Febreeze, baking soda, Glade carpet powder, and Glade plug-ins. I just have to keep in mind that this isn't our home forever. Speaking of which, Mike and I have been thinking about buying a condo instead of a house after our lease ends. We have been checking out real estate online and it would be about the same price to buy a NEW condo than it would be to buy an OLD house with the same sq. ft. that we'd have to fix up. I'm not really into buying a "fixer-upper" because I don't know the first thing about remodeling a house or anything of that nature. Either way, it'll be OURS, right? The goal I'm looking forward to is being able to build our own house. It'll happen. Once we know for sure where we're going to settle.

Okay, here's another thing I've observed about living here. The radio stations play pretty much only 2 things. Country and Christian Rock (which Mike and I have dubbed "Crock.") I don't mind either of those in small doses, but I crave a little more variety than that. Praise the heavens for satellite radio.

Well, here's enough random-osity for ya. Hope ya stop by again real soon!