Question...

What do you get when you cross a bored employee with a fan of "The Office"?




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office pranks

It sure was a tasty prank though

Zoo Lights

I went with my family to zoo lights on Monday. Who knew that the fake talking giraffe was more interesting than the actual real life zebras.

Embracing My Roots

Somehow in my family I was the only one born with curly hair, even in my extended family (with the exception of my cousin Ted who became curly at puberty). We don't know where it came from, both sides of my family show no signs of this trait. When I was young I had these little blond ringlets and my dad used to call me Dolly.

As I grew older and my hair grew longer we didn't know how to maintain it anymore. My parents blame it on me but what does a 4 year old know about hair care? So as my hair grew longer the curls faded and were brushed out. I always had a slight wave to it but there was so much hair that it would get tangled very easily and my mom would have to spend time at night brushing it out... many times with me fighting through it. It was also kept in a permi-ponytail...I guess I was scared of change.

In high school I discovered the world of hair straighteners and then spent every morning after that trying to make my hair look like everyone else's. I assumed that I would never have hair like my baby pictures again so I fixed it in the only way I knew how. About a year after I graduated I got rid of the ponytail and when I chopped it off too short for any rubber band. I loved my hair and got such a good response from my friends and family that I kept this look up for quite a while.





Then when I went to Hawaii this past summer for six weeks I realized that it was too hard to try and keep it straight. The humidity was so strong and we were always playing in the ocean that it wasn't worth trying to straighten every day. Here is when I learned that my curly hair wasn't just a phase from my child hood. Having short curly hair was such perfect beach hair. It was easy to do and maintain and didn't ever have to worry about it. My new friends that I made there didn't know that was a new style for me. No one knew me beforehand so I wasn't afraid to change my look. For them it was different on the few Sunday's when I did straighten my hair.

When I came home, half the time I would style it curly, and the other half I would straighten it. Now, I don't know if I'm lazy, or the fact that I really like it, but most days you'll see me with curly hair.I literally only wash it every three or four days. In the mornings I either just get up and go without really having to touch it, or if I have some serious bed head then I just have to spray it with a little water and scrunch a little gel into it.

So there it is, the life story of my hair.

Stay Strong Little Phone

This is currently what my phone looks like... and surprisingly it still works. There is just one life-line of a string holding it together but I'm still able to talk and text with it.

I've had this phone for almost two years now. I'm about a month away from being able to renew my contract and get a new one so I'm still going to hold out with this sorry looking mess. We've been through a lot together and I'm not ready to get rid of it yet.

And I've been thinking lately that I like all the new fancy phones on the market right now but I'm not sure my lifestyle is ready to own something that nice. I'm not very careful with cell phones... as you can tell... and by not careful, I mean I once threw it in the air and let someone hit it with a blow up bat. It flew across the room and into a wall...oopsies. The cell phone I had before this one went through the washing machine... I just took it apart and let it dry out for a day and it worked fine.

How much longer do you give this one? I'm not giving up hope yet

I Love This Baby

Mike and Stephanie had baby number 3 on Friday November 16, Stella Rose Court. She is so cute and small. I've been to the hospital twice now to see her and each time I didn't want to give her back. Yesterday she fell asleep on my chest so I ended up staying a little longer than I had planned.

Way to go Mike and Steph! You sure do make cute babies.

To see more pictures of baby Stella go to
Mike's tumbelog










(Her toes are always stretched out)

One Year Older... Not Much Wiser

Friday was my 22nd birthday and I loved every minute of it. First of all my work let me sleep in, and I got woken up by Mabel and Oliver... which usually doesn't happen till Saturday so it was a nice surprise. Mabel drew me a picture of the two of us on a horse, she is becoming quite the artist. Then I went outside to see that my friends Brittany, Chris and Doug had decorated my car windows... Stephanie almost had to drive to her doctor's appointment in it which might have been a little embarrassing for her.

At work, everyone was awesome and wished me a happy birthday all day long and my boss even bought me lunch (shhhh... don't tell my other co-workers cause they don't get that kind of treatment). Then when I got home at 6 my parents and Mike's family were there to surprise me with cake and ice cream complete with trick candles. Oliver started to get a little worried after a few times of trying to blow them out. He asked me to move the cake not so close to him.(notice Olivers big cheesy smile)

After that, I went out to dinner with Katie, Brittany, and Briley at a restaurant called BJ's. They gave us a free, delicious, birthday pazookie. The four of us then drove over to Graham's Central Station for a night of cowgirl fun. We met up with Briley's brother Wyatt and a few of his friends.

I had never been go Graham's before but it was so much fun. It had four rooms we could wander through. Karaoke, Hip Hop, 80's dance, and Country Western. We spent most of our time in the Country one and even rode the mechanical bullI rocked that bull but it sure was a full body workout. My inner thighs are very sore.

We ended the night with a little karaoke... The lady working there let us sneak to the top of the list so we didn't have to wait for an hour. After that I took everyone home and I crashed on my bed. It was an awesome day and I feel very blessed to have the family and friends that I do.

I Hate Reserch Papers

They only magnify how much of a procrastinator I really am. Hence being awake at 2 in the morning on a Monday... Well technically it is Tuesday now. Of course I've known about this paper all semester, and my professor even gave us a week extra to do it, but did I make use of that time? Not a lick. I hope you all enjoyed your sleep cause I'll be waking up in just a few more hours.

Halloween is Finally over

Does having Halloween in the middle of the week mess anyone else up? By the time my work got done with our Fall Festival on Friday and our ward Trunk or Treat on Saturday I felt like it should have been over by then... but no, there was still 4 more days. Then on the real Halloween my kids at work had a little party so it made it feel like Friday. I was so messed up.

On Wednesday (Halloween night) Brittany and I went to a YSA party dressed as cops and robbers. My clothes came from Goodwill and the accessories came in a pack from Fry's for $3. If I was standing by myself at the party people would ask me if I was a security guard or a cop, but if Brit and I were together they usually got it. The party was fun... no one fun or interesting to meet though... I'm starting to give up hope on that... I mean, I will be 22 next week. Thats pretty much considered an old hag in Mormon standards.
Just jokes... not that I like being single but I'm not in a rush to get married... although it would be nice to have a scrabble partner for family game night.

Then on Thursday the ASU institute did a "Jack-O-Smash" where people could bring their carved pumpkins to the top of the 4 story parking structure and throw it off. Awesome idea.

Did You Miss Me?

Look at me, I'm back and blogging!

I've been super busy with school and working on not getting fired. Lately I've been having a long and tiring schedule with work and school. Tues and Thurs I leave the house by 7 for school and then go strait to work and get done at 6... except for Tues nights when I have soccer games, then I don't get home till much later. One of my co-workers had to have surgery so I've been filling in for her on MWF, so on those days I would go to work at 7 and get home at 6... except for on Wed when I have a 4 week night class from 6-9 at ASU. Plus homework and research papers on top of that... so needless to say I've been very tired and a little burned out. That's why I plan on being in bed by 8 or 9 tonight to catch up on a little sleepy time.

And speaking of soccer, it is my new love. I played one season in high school my senior year and had fun with it but haven't played much since then. So this season Laura and I decided to get a team together and play for Mesa Parks and Rec instead of softball, which we've done for the last year. Our team is called the Slackers since none of the team members had ever played with each other before and we never practiced. The season just ended on Tuesday and we lost every single game. Somehow our team got put in the highest division so we were playing against some teams that have been together for years. I still had so much fun and it makes me feel good about myself to run that much, and that hard, for that long. We improved so much throughout the season so I can't wait till the next one starts so we can get put in the right division and maybe win some games.

I Never Get Sick

Since I've started working for Kindercare three years ago I truly can't remember being sick. Its pretty common after being around that many kids that your immune system will build up and the many sicknesses that go around won't affect you. This has been very true for me... except for these last two weeks. I don't know anyone else that has lost their voice for a week for no reason (its actually still not completely back, I can't do a high girly voice) so I'm guessing it was some kind of bug or virus. Not sure who I caught it from either and hopefully I didn't pass it on to anyone else. I was fine during the day but at night I would have bad coughing attacks.

And now I've got some kind of stomach bug. I came home from work on Thursday and just didn't feel like eating dinner so I went to bed kind of early. The next morning I woke up feeling pretty nasty but I just figured it was the free hot dog I had for lunch the day before so I went to work at 8:30 thinking that it would pass.(I'll spare the dirty details) I was only there for an hour and a half when my boss came up to me and asked if I was feeling okay. When I told her no, she worked out a few peoples schedules and found a way that I didn't have to work till 2. So I went home and slept for the next three hours. I came back feeling slightly better but not 100%. The next four hours drug on and on. I didn't eat anything all day and I haven't eaten anything today (Saturday) except a little soda.

I don't know what is going on with my body but I don't like it.

You Don't Know What You've Got Till Its Gone

I've never lost my voice before but it sure picked a bad week to up and leave. On Tuesday I went to school and everything was normal and then I went to work and about an hour after I got there my voice just started to go. I have not been sick or straining it in any way. It just left.

Tuesday night we had our first soccer game of the season.
Wednesday night I went to the Diamondbacks game.
Friday night I went to the Toby Keith concert.

All things I'd need to scream for and I couldn't.... I sure did try anyways, which probably didn't help my situation any, but I couldn't help it.

Wednesday nights D-Backs game
There was also a few friends from work sitting in front of us that are not featured in this picture

An these are from the Toby Keith concert. I love country music but I have never been a fan of Toby Keith... however, he sure puts on a good show. My FRIEND Patrick got free tickets from his work. (the word friend is bolded cause I know how people like to jump to conclusions)

I Lost My Voice

I would like it back. Any suggestions?

I Was Wrong... Skateboarding IS a Crime

I just got home from my hearing for "Skateboarding on the Roadway". My mom represented me as my attorney and did an amazing job. I was surprised how official it was. Judge Hazel sat up on his high throne in front of us. My lawyer and I sat at the desk on the left and Officer Smith sat across from us on the right. Both the officer and I had to be sworn in to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth while raising our right hands.

My attorney plead our case in 3 aspects.

First: The ticket was written to a Miss Catherine COOK... not Court

Second: The ticket was written under sanction 10-3-10 which states that no persons riding rollerskates, coasters, or any such devices may be on the roadway except in crosswalks... It says nothing about skateboards. Skateboards have their own separate law which clearly defines skateboarding as not being allowed on stairways or various government properties.

Third: The fact that this law is selectively enforced in the area of Las Sendas... where the chief of police lives.

My attorney did an amazing job but the Judge still favored on the side of Officer Smith on the terms that the bike lane (where I was riding) is "exclusively" for bicycles.

He did, however, reduce the fine by $7... How's that for stickin it to the man... Right?

Say It Ain't So

This week two of my friends had baby showers. I'm pretty sure they're too young to be having babies, both of them are younger than me... only by a couple of weeks but still. I also have two more friends on top of that who are expecting. I can't take it anymore!

I mentioned this to a girl in one of my classes and she was completely taken back by it. I tried to explain that both of them were married but she came right back with "Did they get married because they were pregnant?"... The Mormon culture is a tough one to explain, especially at such a liberal school like ASU.

Californ-i-a

This past weekend my friend Mike and I drove to California to visit some friends of mine that I met in Hawaii. We stayed with a girl named Courtney in Valencia. On Thursday we spent the day in LA. Mike, Courtney and I met up with Rob, who I had met 2 years ago in Hawaii, and his 3 little brothers at the LA temple. We did baptisms and then got some food and headed off for the Dodgers game. Rob and his bros are die hard Dodgers fans so it made the game so much fun.

Friday me, Mike and Courtney spent the day in Hollywood. I'd never been there before so it was fun doing the walk of fame and seeing all the street performers. We also went to the House of Wax and the Guinness Book of World Records.
Then at night we went to 3rd Street and the Santa Monica pier. It was fun but those street performers were so greedy. Any time we would stop to watch one of them they would stop what they were doing and yell at us to put money in their bucket. I understand that its mostly how they earn their income but I'm not going to give money to someone that's rude to me.

Saturday we spent the day at the beach making sand castles and enjoying the weather.
Then that night we went and saw Hairspray. Me and Mike had already seen it but Courtney hadn't and there are really no other good movies out right now that one of us hadn't already seen. I probably loved Hairspray even more the second time. Its such a cute movie.

We drove home on Sunday since Mike and I both started school this week.

Not in the Budget

Yesterday me, Mike and Jordan went down to the Mesa Municipal Court to take care of our longboarding tickets. I thought the hearing would be right then and there but really we each just had to go up to a window and say if we wanted to pay the fine or schedule a hearing.

(Mike wore this on his shirt)

Apparently the fine for "Skateboarding on the Roadway" is $57 So while the other boys paid their fines, I still thought it was an injustice so I opted for a hearing. We were on a residential street at 11 o'clock at night in the bike lane! Now I am due to appear in front of a judge on the 27th of this month. Really the worst that could happen on that day is that I will have to pay the fine so why not try and fight it? Maybe the officer won't even show up then I don't have to pay anything.

And plus, if I would have paid the fine I would have over withdrawn from my bank account because T-Mobile decided to abuse the automatic bill pay by taking out $130 instead of $50. I'll have the $80 back into my account but not till sometime next week.

And Then There Were 28

I officially went from 32 teeth to 28 yesterday and I'd do it all over again just to get put under. All I remember is laying in the dental chair looking at the light above my head and then getting into my dad's car. I don't remember falling asleep or standing up out of the chair or if anyone said anything to me in the process. I barely remember seeing my dad's bright blue car and then I fell asleep again on the way home. When I got home into the kitchen my dad had me take the gauze out of my mouth to take my medication and then I stumbled down the stairs and passed out on my bed for the next 3 hours. I woke up a few times to wipe the drool from my face but other than that I was just out cold.

Don't read this next part if you have a weak stomach...

When I woke up from that state of unconsciousness I went into the bathroom to discover that it wasn't saliva I was wiping from my face. When I took the gauze out of my mouth to take my medicine I didn't put any back in and I had just been bleeding everywhere... not drooling.

Other than that I've just been keeping frozen vegetables on my face, sleeping and watching the beginning of movies... it doesn't help that I already have a movie watching disease that I never stay awake anyways, but add some good strong drugs on top of that and its a sleepy combination.

Wish me Luck!

I'm finally going in to get my wisdom teeth out today at 2. I've been putting it off for a while with the excuse that I couldn't afford to take the time off. So now that its summer and the weekend and my teeth are starting to bother me, I think its about time. It kind of happened all of the sudden though, so I don't have much time to prepare. I called the dental office yesterday at 11:45 after I got home from school to set up a consultation and the receptionist said "Can you be here at 12?" So I called work and told them I would be late and went down to their office. Then after an x-ray the doctor said he had a cancelation for today (thursday) and they could fit me in at 2. So here I am, I haven't eaten since dinner last night and will probably only be on soft foods for the next day or so.

Can anyone recommend any good movies or stay at home activities?

I Like Smiling, Smiling's My Favorite

When I lived in Hawaii I fell in love with Melona Bars. They are an ice cream bar that tastes like you're eating a freshly cut honey dew but colder and 37 times better. Ever since I've been home(3weeks) I've been craving them but no store I've seen has carried them. So last night I went on a Melona Bar google scavenger hunt and ended up on some random person's blog who was having a similar predicament. This man said that he found them at a Korean market, so I continued on with my scavenger hunt and found an Asian Market right by MCC where I'm taking summer school. So today after class I went to this Asian market and felt completely uncomfortable and out of place being the only non-Asian in the store, but ended in victory with the precious Melona treasure. I bought two boxes and opened one as soon as I got in my car and became overwhelmed with the glorious Melona flavor that brought back so many wonderful memories. I was literally smiling and laughing out of pure glee for the rest of my drive home while I enjoyed the sweet sensations filling my mouth. I am happy.

Only in Las Sendas

Saturday night me and 4 friends went to go longboarding down the hills of Las Sendas. We would all take turns, one person drives the car down behind the other four going down the hill. We were on our fifth run of the night and I was at the head of the pack when a cop pulls up coming the opposite direction and shines his big spot light on me and tells me to go sit on the sidewalk. As I'm getting up and looking back at the other guys coming down the hill I see Mike biff it and skid on his back and then start rolling. He ended up getting a little bit of road rash on his elbow and a soreness in his shoulder. The officer informed us that it was a violation to be skateboarding on the streets in Mesa but they only enforce it in Las Sendas. (no signs posted about this law in the area) He took all four of our IDs (not the driver of the car though) and wrote us all tickets... not even a warning.
Officer Smith wasn't aware of the fine associated with this violation but gave us a number to call and a court date for a month from now. He was then nice enough to give Mike some first aid for his elbow and went on his merry ticket writing way. Blasted Mesa City Cops!


The fine shouldn't be more than $20... Do I pay it? Or go to court and fight it...

I'm HOME!

I'm back in AZ, back in the heat...(how did I ever live like this?) and back to reality. It's kind of weird not to have people around that want to just play all day. I go back to work on Monday and then a week from Monday I start summer school. Play time is over for me. I made a lot of awesome friends that I know I'll stay in touch with... and got a decent tan. I'm very happy I went but its nice to be back in Mesa with my family and friends.


And contrary to Abbie's blog, I'm not looking to move out just yet. My bed was so amazing to sleep in last night and my shower actually got all the shampoo out of my hair.

Sea Life Park & Stairway to Heaven

On Monday Erik, Heather, Matt, and I all went to Sea Life Park. Its kind of a very very small, not as interesting version of Sea World. They had an exhibit for sea turtles, penguins, sea lions, and a 10 minute dolphin show.
It may have been more worth it if we wanted to pay the hundred bucks to swim with the dolphins but that didn't seem worth it to me... heck I've done that in the ocean with just fins and a snorkel.



Then that evening we met up with a few more people to do a hike called Stairway to Heaven... Not even lying its literally just stairs all the way up the side of a mountain. The group made it about 45 minutes or so and stopped at a platform.

(this is a tricky picture because that's not really the top, it just keeps going)

Me and a three others kept on truckin another 30 minutes to see how high we could get. We made it pretty far up, high enough to be engulfed in a cloud, but ended up turning around because it started getting dark and we knew we had a long hike down. I think if we would have had another 30 minutes of daylight we probably could have made it to the top but I am completely satisfied with where we ended. I think going down was way harder because of the darkness and the shaky, jello-y legs. I am going to be completely sore from the waist down for the next few days. I can already tell

(The fogginess of this pic is because of the cloud)

Waimea Falls and Swap Meet

Friday we went on a hike called Waimea Falls. It cost $5 to get in and the whole thing was paved and was only about a mile and a half there and back. The hike ends at a waterfall that we swam out to and played around a bit.

Then on Saturday we headed out to the swap meet to get some needed souvenirs and then down to Honolulu to do more shopping and get some lunch. I had to buy some new tennis shoes at Nordstrom Rack because I haven't seen mine in about 4 weeks. I have no idea where they ended up.