My Wordle

Eight is Great!

Our sweet Rosie turned 8 last weekend, and we were in Utah to celebrate her birthday and baptism with our family. We had about 35 people from 5 states attend! She was so excited and ready to take upon the covenant of baptism. Aunts, uncles, cousins, neighbors, friends, and grandparents were in attendance. She looked so beautiful in white and said she felt "super clean" afterwards.

We had a birthday party for her at Grant and Hollie's house. We are so thankful for all the time and effort they put in to make the baptism and party come together. We are so lucky to have an amazing circle of friends and family. Rosie was swarmed with Hannah Montana stuff (just like she wanted), some gift cards, and clothes.

Sunday morning we went to Temple Square for the Music and the Spoken Word broadcast with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (since we couldn't get on that lousy overbooked flight!) We listened to the choir, toured around the visitors centers and the temple, toured the Lion House, and took lots of cute pictures of Rosie in her beautiful white dress. It was a lovely morning.

A few pics from the baptism

Back in Detroit

I just got home from SLC. I didn't ever think I could be so relieved to be in Detroit. I think I might give up on non-revving to SLC for a while. Rosie and I got on the 7:24 am direct flight, and through the kindness of a few passengers, Rosie and I got to sit together. The GAD actually was very friendly and helpful this morning, which is a first (I've been to SLC 8 times since January and ALWAYS have to deal with her). In her defense, there's a hiring freeze with the airline, and she's been pulling 13 hour shifts (5 am to 6 pm) so I can understand her crankiness.

We did purchase some discounted ZED passes, which would have allowed us to fly standby to Atlanta on Delta in case we didn't make the first 3 flights on NWA. I don't think we'll need them again, especially because we may have some upcoming changes to our "domicile" and flying to ATL on Delta would not require a ZED pass. Hopefully we can get them refunded easily.

I dropped Rosie off for the last 2 hours of school, but she still missed school picture day. I'm supposed to be using this time for napping. Time to sleep....

Non-Revving Nightmare

I've had a lovely weekend in SLC, and stories and pictures will be posted soon. However, I just need to vent a moment on the "perk" of non-rev travel. I enjoy the freedom to travel much more often than I regularly would (although if my husband was not a pilot, I would not be living on the other side of the county and I wouldn't travel home so much to see my family)

I had listed for the 7:24 am flight on Sunday. I checked flight loads the night before, and I didn't like the chances I had. I decided to try for he 1:50 or 5:32 pm MSP flights, but by noon those flights went from open seats to very oversold. I didn't actually "go" to the airport, but it didn't seem at all worth it when the SLC-DTW flight is hard to get on even with a few open seats. There were quite a few open for Monday morning, so I listed for the 7:24 am DTW flight again. Taylor was able to board in a discounted first class seat, but Rosie and I were stuck. We didn't make it on at 8:30 MSP either, and the GAD (gate agent of doom - I've had 6 months of bad luck with her) said she'd list me for the 1:50 MSP....but I'd have to wait until the plane had left before she'd roll over the reservation. So I waited 15 minutes, and she swiftly locked up the desk and ran off while giving me a dirty look. I called up FlightTrack to see if the GAD listed us, and of course she didn't. The reservation agent said the 1:50 was oversold, and 12 were on standby ahead of us....but if we waited for the 5:30 pm MSP flight, we'd be able to get on in first class. We left the airport to spend the time from 9 am to 4 pm in somewhere other than the airport.

When we got back to the gate at 4:30, we were told our chances were still good to board. Unfortunately, a captain and 3 FA's showed up at the last minute who had not been listed on the flight. When all was said and done, there was only one seat left, and I was NOT about to send Rosie off unaccompanied to MSP. So we're trying again in the morning.

Wish us luck.

5000!

Today I hit 5000 unique visitors on my blog for 2008. Lately, I've been checking my sitemeter traffic on a daily basis. It's been interesting to see how people find my blog through Google. Today someone searched "pilot in airplane with brown curl hair about age 20" and got me. I have people from Olmstead Falls, Duarte, Denver, Naperville, Quebec and other random cities that follow my blog pretty regularly, but I don't know people in those cities.

I started blogging approximately 7 years ago. It was back when you had to explain to people what a "blog" was. Back then, I wrote much more openly. I probably only had 3 people a month that read the blog, and those 3 people already knew the details because they'd talked to me in person. This blog actually still exists, but I can only think of one person who would be able to track it down. I kinda miss the days where I could spill my guts without worrying that my coworkers bringing it up the next day. I have thought about going private, but then I'd miss out on the mystery of my sitemeter traffic.

Someone recently told me I should rename my blog to "Stranger than Fiction." What do you think?

Rosie's wish list

1. Hannah Montana clothes (L)
2. Dollar Tree gift card
3. Polka-dot scripture case
4. Vacation to Hawaii
5. Dinner at Chili's

Award Winning Blogger

PartnerofaPilot nominated me for a Brillante award, which is a glorified hoax-ish chain email thing. Part of the deal for me to accept this award is for me to nominate at least 7 other blogs that I love for the award. Since I actively follow close to 100 blogs (thank goodness for Google Reader!) this was a tough decision. Here are some of my absolute favorites.

1. Shelves in the Closet - Authored by dear Lizzie. My sister from another mister. She shares my flair for everything virtuous, lovely, of good report and praiseworthy. Whether it be "Wednesday Giggles" or a review of the latest concert she's attended, her explanations of her life are so vibrant that you feel like you were right along with her.
2. Trolls in the Daylight - Authored by Brett. I'd like to think I'm partially responsible for his venture into blogging (he even has a picture of me on his blog). He's a high school English teacher with a mad obsession with anything Scandinavian. Just look at his posts from May, leading up to Sytennde Mai. You will wish you were born in Norway. An excellent photographer and storyteller.
3. Blogging at FL250 - Authored by Sam. This is the first aviation blog that I started reading. He's worked his way up to regional airline captain, and left a treasure trove of advice for those interested in a career in aviation. If I'd started reading his blog a few years earlier, I'd be in a lot less debt. Also an excellent photographer (especially his pics of the Northwest).
4. Seriously So Blessed - Authored by TAMN. OMGWTFLDSBBQ! This blog is WAY SUPER! I life my live vicariously through her ENTHuSIam! Her Perfect-O preggers life just makes me want to play BUNc-O!
5. A Peek into Japan - Authored by Steve. An American English teacher in Japan, whose wife is expecting their first very soon. Interesting to have a perspective on life abroad from someone who shares many of my tastes in food, music, and pop culture.
6. The Only Reviews that Matter - Authored by Kyle, my ex-husband's college roommate. Step aside Ebert and Roeper, this is where I go to for my movie reviews.
7. Little Wonders - Authored by Brooke. I went to HS with Brooke, but didn't know her very well. However, I've fallen in love with her children via her blog, as she documents their life with vibrant photos and great journaling. She is very talented with crafts, and I am amazed with the fun things she comes up with for Halloween, birthday parties, and other holidays. She probably has no idea how much I love her blog, but it's true.

Here are the rules for the recipients of the awards:
1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog.
2. Link the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the people you’ve nominated.
6. Enjoy your award!

Lansing

At the junction of the 69 and 96 - this sign was the most exciting thing I found in Lansing

Saturday evening, Taylor called me from DTW. He was waiting around for his last flight of the night to Lansing. This particular flight is pretty ridiculous, only 75ish nautical miles and 23 minutes away. He went into his usual complaint about being "stuck in a lonely hotel room with a comfy bed and nobody to share it." I realized that the next day was Labor day, and I didn't have anywhere in particular to be. Rosie and I decided to drive up to Lansing to enjoy the Hampton Inn on the airlines' bill. We left Canton about 10 minutes before his flight left, drove the 70 minutes to Michigan's state capital city, and got to the hotel at about the same time as the hotel shuttle. We grabbed dinner at Bennigans, bummed around the hotel room for the evening, and slept on Taylor's favorite hotel mattress. A decent free breakfast was enjoyed, Rosie and I did some school shopping at the Lansing Mall, and we were back home in time to enjoy an afternoon BBQ at the Medleys.

One of these days, I'd like to fly on his plane with him to somewhere cool. But in the mean time, we have Lansing.

First day of school

Rosie started 2nd grade yesterday. I had to leave for work 45 minutes before Rosie had to get up and ready for school, so Taylor took a few pics to document the morning. Rosie chose a sparkly silver shirt, black cords, and her new Hannah Montana flats. Rosie likes to remind everyone that she will be a tween next week. Just over a week till she turns 8!

(You can tell the summer is over by how brown the lawn is.)

Game Day

Halftime score

Rosie showing off her Utah pride

Wearing red in a "blue" city on game day is only safe if you are as cute as Rosie

(I'm a bit squinty from the sun)

We wore red. And Utah won. And Rosie didn't get a beer can thrown at her head.

Heartbreak revisited

Sunday morning, I was checking my email, and had an offline message from yahoo messenger. It was from someone I never thought I'd hear from again. It was from a man who broke my heart in such a cruel way. He was the first one I'd dated after my divorce. I fell for him hard and fast. I felt more compatible and attracted to him than anyone I'd ever met (at the time). We'd shared the depths of our hearts to each other. He'd spent time with my family, and Rosie adored him. I thought we were in love, and we started making plans for the future.

And one day...it was over. The email he sent said he never wanted to talk to me again. He didn't respond to my emails. He didn't have a cell phone. He moved out of his student apartment, and his roommates told me they were forbidden to give his new number.

A few weeks later, I tried emailing him again, asking if we could get together to talk. I needed to understand why he abandoned me so suddenly. He responded with "coming back to you would be like coming back into a nightmare."

I was devastated. I was already emotional and vulnerable and had hardly started down the road to healing from my divorce, but all I could think about was him. I didn't understand why things went wrong, when I had no inkling that he felt any differently than I did for him. I had never been more heartbroken from a breakup. *

(*Heartbreak from a divorce is a much different feeling. It's more of a feeling of your family ripped apart and identity as a wife stripped away. Maybe I'll blog about that one day)

So flash forward 5 years. I get a short apologetic message, saying he's glad that I've found someone whose made me happy. And it's true...I have a husband who adores me, and I'm very very happy with him. But hearing from Tim opened up a deep Pandora's box of emotion that was buried long ago. From a current perspective, he's not the person I could have seen myself with now. I don't have any pictures of him, but I still remember clearly his face and features. I sent him back an email, but of course, he didn't respond.

I wonder if the emotional rollercoaster his message put me on this week would have been better than never hearing from him at all.

Loyalty?

My co-worker Kay helped hook me up with tickets to today's Utah vs Michigan football game. Rosie and I are about to get ready to drive into Ann Arbor. Any guesses for what color we'll be wearing?

(Rosie is scared to wear red because someone told her she'd get a beer can thrown at her head)

From one pilot family to another...

Last night I was bumming around looking at blogs, and I found out about a couple that were severley burned in a plane crash. Stephanie Nielson, was burned over 80% of her body and her husband, Christian, over 30%. There were just 3 people on board and the pilot was killed in the accident. This couple has 4 children that were not with them and a LONG recovery ahead of them.

Christian had recently completed his private pilot rating. Hearing about this crash took me back to 2005 when Taylor had just completed his PPL. He was so new at flying, and although his instructors frequently commented at his natural skill at flying, a part of me would panic everytime he drove to Salt Lake Municipal Airport #2. My ears would perk up when weather reports were sketchy, or an airplane mechanic failure or crash was mentioned on the news. Even though he's flying passenger jets now, I know there is always a risk when flying (although Taylor will always pop out the statistic that you're more likely to die in a car crash on the way to the airport than you are to be in a plane crash.)

My heart goes out to the families that have been affected by this accident. To hear their story, and see how you can help, www.nierecovery.com

Random Quote from Hannah Montana

"I'm from Detroit - I don't find anything charming"
Hannah's anatomy teacher

Life in Balmoral

A few weeks ago I was reconnected to a bunch of my Balmoral friends' blogs through Lia. Today I was thinking a lot about the three and a half years I lived on Archmore Court. My ex-husband Steve and I excitedly bought our first home, naively hoping that a new home may smooth over our marital problems. It was only a few blocks from work, was in our meager price range, had so much more space than the bungalow we were renting in Sugarhouse. Our ward was comprised of the townhomes, and a few streets of houses. Most people were young families, with young children, in school, or just starting their first careers. It was nice to be in a ward that had so many people in the same situation as me.

Unfortunately, not all was well in Balmoral. My nearly 5-year marriage quickly landslided into catastrophe, and I was filing for divorce (for many reasons that do not need to be mentioned in a public blog). I became a single mom, and felt so out of place. In between working two jobs, and begging for my $45 (!$%&@!) of monthly court-ordered child support, I was flat broke and took in a few roommates to be able to avoid foreclosure. I was trying to keep things together emotionally, and was grateful for the ladies who listened to my woes and offered support. Taylor came along and won my heart more quickly than I expected, and we were married less than a year after my divorce. If felt good to be a "normal" person in Balmoral again. We lived in Balmoral for 18 months before moving to California.

Taylor had ended an engagement to a girl shortly before meeting me. The relationship did not end amicably. All post-break-up communication was on her terms. For instance, she sent out an email to say she was marrying someone else, and when he responded to congratulate her, she flipped and told him to never contact her again. A few months ago, he got a Facebook friend invite from her. He cautiously accepted it, and we looked through her pictures. Imagine our surprise when I saw a picture of her in front of her Balmoral townhome, with a bunch of common friends. How awkward would it have been if we'd still lived in Balmoral?

This blog ended up being a lot more jumbled than I intended, but in closing, I'd like to thank all you Balmoral ladies for the love and support and friendship from 2003-2006. Keep up the blogging so I can know what's going on with your families, and maybe I'll be able to make it to one of your upcoming reunions.

A Jumble of Thoughts

- We decided to have Rosie's baptism in Utah. I had been convinced about California, then realized that a 2-day car rental at LAX would be $108 with tax. I can borrow my dad's car in SLC, and my aunt offered her home for a potluck afterwards. Taylor will have to fly in the morning of, so it will be late afternoon. If you're in SLC and want to come, let me know.

-I'm without my husband again on a Sunday. It's been 3 months since we've gone to our ward together. Thank goodness he has Sundays off for September. He actually has a good schedule for September, 15 days off.

-I cut off another 4 inches of hair yesterday, totaling 7 total inches chopped this month. The first cut wasn't quite drastic enough. Unfortunately, I haven't ever had medium-length hair in a humid climate, and my natural curl is overpowering my flat-ironed effort.

-I've been craving all sorts of things I can't get in Michigan: Honolulu Harry's sweet potato stack, La Tolteca's cheesy beans, El Pollo Loco, fountain horchata, Cafe Rio pork barbacoa, Leatherby's, In-n-Out animal fries, Federico's marzipan, Arctic Circle Pop Rocks Sundae, The Pie pizza, etc...

-I went to the Plymouth library yesterday. It's one of the neatest community libraries I've been to. Downtown Plymouth is a fun place- it reminds me of Star's Hollow.

-My sister Mary is leaving for BYU-Idaho in 10 days. Thinking about her has made me a little nostalgic for my year in Rexburg. I really liked my time there, but it's hard to think of anything past December without thinking of my courtship with my ex-husband. I only had one set of roommates when I was at Ricks, one of them was Stacey. In July I spent a weekend with Stacey and her family in Kentucky. It was fun to reminisce of our time together, the way we've changed since, and swap mommy stories. Her daughter is so much like Rosie, I'm planning on another trip so they can bond over Hannah Montana, HSM, Webkinz, and all the other stuff they love.

Phelps Phan!

Could my recent renewal of swimming interest have anything to do with this man?

Two homes for sale

My parents have finished the packing, cleaning and repairs on their house in Murray, and it's on the market now. It's sad to think that this house may be in someone else's name the next time I'm in Salt Lake. They have lived there for 15 years.
Also, my Grandma Watson has decided to sell her house in Tualatin, OR and to move to Salt Lake. She wants to spend the time at the Family History Library and live two blocks from Temple Square. If she sells her house quick enough, she might be living in the same apartment building as my parents. She's lived there almost 20 years.

So many memories in both of these homes. It's hard to believe that they'll be out of the family soon.

Destination baptisms?

Rosie turns 8 one month from today. She is adamant about getting baptized ON her birthday. We can't make solid plans until Taylor gets his September schedule on August 21. We've been thinking about who would come, and realized that no family would be there. We'd have some people from our ward and a few friends if we had it in Michigan. And maybe Aunt Liz would fly out. We started talking about our own baptisms, and how great it was to be surrounded by extended family, and thought about the possibility of having the baptism in Utah or California. If we traveled, we'd have a aunts, uncles, grandparents, and close friends. However, if we choose one location over another, we'd have the other side of the family feeling left out. I could probably take the day off before, but it would be another stand-by quick trip.

I know that it's the act and ordinance of baptism that's the important part. It only requires consent of the bishop and two witnesses. But is it a better option to be with family?