The Meandering Thoughts of Jan

I've had a long term infatuation with the red rock of Southern Utah.  Don't worry, Danny isn't jealous.  You would think I would get tired of the red desert, considering how many hikes I've done in Zion and Arches, but not so.  I can never get enough of that sandstone goodness.  The day after Thanksgiving we took the kiddos up to a look out point over St. George at a place called Pioneer Park (very different from the Pioneer Park here in SLC) so they could play, climb and explore the rock formations.  I loved every second of it.  I was in my red heaven. B. Anu and JanaRae Michele and Super R Super R, Danny and Me and our friend St. George. Dan and Super R Rocks and Love The mighty King E!  I'm sad this is the only picture I got of King E.  I seemed to be watching over his younger bros  while we were there. General J and Super R, bo

Danny and I just got back from a fabulous Thanksgiving break.  We met up with many members of my family down in sunny and warm St. George.  It was a fabulous weekend of eating (lots of eating) , sleeping, playing games, riling up the nephews, fun outings, shopping, enjoying each other's company and more.  Here are a few pictures from Thanksgiving day. I told B. Anu to smile and this is how he responded.  Silly boy! Everyone in the kitchen doing their part. I was over the vegetables this year.  I got this idea for a turkey vegetable tray off of pinterest.  I thought it turned out pretty cute.  I also made the green bean casserole. General J waiting patiently before we could eat.   Funny story about General J.  When he saw the turkey vegetable platter, he told me he wanted to eat the turkey's head.   (Gruesome, but whatever, I thought he was joking.)  So during dinner, General J really took the bell pepper head and put it on his plate. A little later I lo

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I thought I would be giving and share with you my latest find, because you are my friends and that is what friends do.   (Actually Chris Carrabba is the giving one, but that is besides the point.)  If you go to the  Dashboard Confessional website, you can download  4 new songs for free.  Doesn't that just make your day?  It made mine.  The new songs are all acoustic creations from Chris Carrabba.  They are bit more folky and more upbeat than his past tunes that got me through romantic turmoil during college.   (I know I'm not the only one who listened to "Screaming Infidelities" full blast on more than one occasion after a little heartbreak.)   However, I'm really like this upbeat version from Carrabba and I love that he is doing acoustic songs again.  His songs have matured a bit, like myself since those fun-filled college days.  Glad we are on the same page.  Hey remember when I met Chris Carrabba ?  Yeah, that was cool.

So a few things… Last weekend Danny and I had a date for scalp treatments at the local cosmetology school.  I realize “scalp treatment” sounds like we have some type head disease, but this is not so.  A scalp treatment is a half an hour head massage and it only costs like $6-$8 at the beauty schools in our area.   (They cost a lot more if you go to a spa.)   Plus, they styled my hair afterwards.  It was A.MAZ.ING!  I just wanted to share the joy, because I feel you too should have such joy.  Now for something not so amazing, I had to use 1.5 sick days this week and camp out in my bed.  Other than my stomach and I being in a fight, it wasn’t all bad: sleeping in, writing in my journal, reading.  It was nice to have a slow day to actually enjoy such mentioned activities.  I’m feeling better; however, I still don't have an appetite.  I hope that subsides by next week with Thanksgiving and all! Last night we visited my brother Tim, his lovely wife Katie and the kiddos.  Oh

Remember last Friday when all those elevens in a row was a pretty cool sight.  While at work, I made sure to watch the clock and 11:11am to make a wish.   (I can't tell you what that wish was though, I want it to come true.)  That evening Talena and I got together, because we are funnier together than apart and planned a way to commemorate the many elevens.  We came up with the genius idea to build an 11 level tower with 111 plastic cups.  I think the most humorous moment of the evening was when we were are the grocery store and our funny cashier was ringing up our purchase.  He asked us what all the cups were for.  I'm not very good at lying so I said, "To build a tower."  He laughed and said, "So that is what my life would be like without alcohol."  That got us all laughing, of course he was just teasing.  And I would like to add, yes his life could be this awesome without alcohol, but either way, he is still our favorite cashier. Talena and I found buil

#1  Spiral Images by Chan Hwee Chong I'm not sure if any of you have seen this before, but I found it amazing.  There is a video below showing Chan Hwee Chong at work, very cool. #2  The latest Coldplay album Mylo Xyloto I've been listening to Mylo Xyloto for the past week on repeat.  Love it!  It might be my favorite Coldplay album yet.  They seem to be getting better with time.  You can listen to some of my favorite tunes from the album below.   (Yay for YouTube!) Princess of China Charlie Brown Hurts Like Heaven #3  Playing dress ups in my old high school dance dresses I was bored one evening and I found my formal dresses in the back of my closet just hanging there.  So I thought, why not.  They still fit, kind of.   (I'm not the same size as I was in high school, not by a long shot.)   You know, I'm having one of those moments where I'm thinking to myself, "Am I really putting these pictures on the blog?"  And then I do it anyway.  S

I hope everyone had a fabulous Halloween.  Our festivities began on Saturday with the annual trunk or treat which was held in our church parking lot.  The kids were adorable and they thought they were so clever when they visited our car more than once.  I recognized their multiple visits, (the giggles and the fact that I know who they are gave them away) , but honestly I'd rather empty my candy bowl in their little trick or treat bags than have it back at my house tempting me, which would just end in a sugar coma. For trunk or treat, Danny went as a ninja and I went as a witch.  I was a big fan of those socks I found on clearance. For our primary class I made (gluten free) ghost and pumpkin shaped rice crispy treats dipped in white chocolate. I thought they turned out well.  I did learn when you add food coloring, the chocolate isn't as smooth, at least the kind I bought. These were delicious and I still have extras if anyone wants some. On the actual day of Hallowe