About me

I received these questions via email and since I don't do forwards I decided to use them here. I tag anyone who wants to have fun!

WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
My middle name Ann comes through my mom's line where it goes back four generations. It is also, Amaya's middle name.

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?
On Saturday I watched Hope Floats and it made me cry.

DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
Sometimes, it depends on the pen I am using.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Honey Ham, the deli sliced kind not the prepackaged stuff.

IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
Sure, I think I am fun and a good friend.

DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT?
Yes, except when I want to be serious, which I am becoming more and more.

DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS
Yep.

WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
I used to think NO, definitely not, but now I would consider it.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
Captn' Crunch with the berries.

DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
Yes, but most of my shoes do not have laces.

DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?
Yes. I have beeen through a lot in life and I have had to be strong.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
Breyers Cookies and Cream

Posting and comments

At the risk of sounding completely silly and sad I have a secret to share. I love when people comment on my postings. In fact it makes me feel quite special. you know, like someone really cares about what I think and is interested in who I am/what I do. So, I have been looking back on my posts to see which one's yielded the highest comment return. I have also been looking at other people's posts to see their rate of comment return. I thought that posting something that had a deeper more thought provoking theme would encourage my friends to respond. Some did, but others didn't, which is fine. I have learned one thing, the funner, cuter posts get better responces. So, from now on I have pledged to make my blog funner and cuter to hopefully encourage more comments since I love them so much.

30 years in the life of me

Today I turned 30. So, I have decided to pay tribute to myself via a picture road map through my life. I hope you all enjoy!



6 months old



18 months old



3-4 years old



8 yrs old



6th Grade



Freshman Cheerleader



Senior Prom



Early 20's



Mid 20's/wedding reception



30 yrs old today!

skype

Ok, so I dowloaded skype on my computer because of Michelle's posting about it. I put Michelle on my callers list and that night at about 1am my time (I am having a bit of insomnia, may be due to thyroid problems I don't know yet) I got a little ring on my computer and Michelle's name popped up. To my suprise it was not Michelle, but Laura and Mark. We had this cool video chat on the phone and it made me feel like I was back in San Diego again. So, I am asking that all of my friends who have a web cam go to skype.com and download the software so that we can start video chatting. It's so fun and all calls made between skype members are free as well as the download. So, here is my echoing plug of skype, thanks for the tip Michelle. I look forward to chatting with all of you!!!!!!

politics

Who to vote for, that is the question. the only decision I can make so far is that McCain cannot be allowed into office. If he is we will have another Bush admin in practice and our economy will continue to suffer greatly. So, I listened to the democratic debate last night and everytime Hillary spoke I would think, I could vote for her. Then Obama would say something and I would think, He is our next President. This went back and forth for me all night and I am still confussed about who to vote for. So, I am looking for imput as I am a virgin to this voting proccess. Any insight???

origin of racism

So, I have been taking a lot of anthropology classes lately to fill my minor requirements and it's really got me thinking about the origin of current issues. With all the talk about racism because of Sen. Obama I have been thinking a lot about it. Based on history we can see that there have always been division of class and that American was not the only country stealing Africans from their country for the use of slavery. But, what I have been wondering is the possibility of the blackening of skin on Caine as the justification or origin of racism. I know that Heavenly Father never intended for it to be that way, but is it possible that we as man see it that way??? Any thoughts???

job search

So, we are still looking for a job. It's been really interesting. Aqeel has applied to hundreds of different jobs and attended a job hiring conference. At the conference he interviewed for a warehouse manager job for a Petsmart distribution center. He has been told that they are very interested, but we still haven't talked with them to discuss pay and benefits. The other issue is the job is about 30 miles southeast of Atlanta, which is basically still Atlanta. However, we really love our neighborhood and I am really begining to enjoy our ward. Also, it takes so much work to sell a house and then move and then find a new house and we feel like if we're gonna go through the proccess we might as well move somewhere with either friends or family. Which brings me to my point. We would seriously consider moving back to San Diego if there was a job. So, I am asking for you ladies to keep your eyes open for any type of buusiness management jobs and maybe you could employ your husbands to help out. Anyway, Aqeel has experience in procurement and sales and some experience in HR, which he would like to explore more. So, if you ladies can help out in any way we would really appreciate it!!!

Great Food

I have recently been exploring the art of cooking and thought I would share some recipes that I created to see what everyone else thinks. So here is recipe number one. I love pizza and I love tacos. So, when I went to make tacos tonight and realized I didn't have any tortillas on hand I decided to try combining the two. Now, we all know that taco pizza is not a new concept, but here is my new spin on it. Maybe you've already had it this way, but it's different for me.



First I started with making my own crust. Here's the recipe...

1 yeast packet
1cup warm water
1tsp. sugar
1tsp salt
Combine these and then add...
2tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2cups flour
stir til elasticky and smooth and then add
2cups flour
Knead for 5 mins. Put a bit of oil on your hands and smooth around dough. Place dough in oiled bowl and cover with saran wrap. let rise for about 1hr. Punch down the dough and separate into two balls. Roll out onto pizza pans and cook at 375 for 10min. Add toppings and cook an additional 10 mins. This recipe make two medium size crusts
Top pizza crust with salsa, mozzarella cheese, black beans, cooked ground beef (flavored with a guacamole packet), quartered grape tomatoes, & shredded cheddar. after baking top with lettuce of choice.

Ok, so my spin on this pizza is salsa instead of regular pizza sauce, grape tomatoes cause I think they're sweeter, and use a guacamole seasoning packet in the ground beef instead of a taco seasoning packet (it adds a sour creamy flavor and its not as spicey as reg. taco seasoning which keeps it from competing with the other flavors).

Baptism

Hello Ladies - I need your help. Aysia is turning 8 in May and I am contimplating either making her dress or buying one. She won't actually be baptised in the dress, but wear it after and then at church. So, to purchase all the materials I need to make the dress is gonna run me around $70 and I was thinking if I could get a cute one for close to the same price or cheaper then I wouldn't have to go through the trouble of making it. However, I have no idea where to look for a dress. So, if you ladies have any ideas please let me know.

been a long time

For the past two weeks we have been off on vacation. We traveled to Oregon and Idaho to visit with my family and had a good time. We started our vacation in Burley, Idaho visiting with my older sister and her family. The highlights of that visit were the Easter Egg Hunt, and riding around on the 4-wheeler. Aysia and her cousin Emma (who was driving) went off on a ride and turned the 4-wheeler over on them. Luckily no one was hurt too badly, Emma had a few bruises and Aysia walked away without a scrape.


After spending a week there we were off to visit my Dad and Stepmom who are currently serving a service mission for the church as caretakers of a church lodge/girlscamp site in Oregon. The lodge is about 45mins from La Grande, my home town, and we spent an entire week up there. The weather was sooo cold. We also brought my brother's two daughters with us so that Aysia and Amaya would have some entertainment. I think the highest the temp ever reached there was about 40 degrees. The highlights of that visit were a weenie and marshmallow roast and Aqeel and my dad fell some trees to clear camping spots.



We ended our trip in Boise at my closest cousins house. We spent a couple days there and had the opportunity of attending church and I fell in love with their ward. I would love to move there, but the market is much higher than here and I am begining to fall in love with Greenville.