And There Was Weeping and Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth

The state of New York cancelled my car's registration because I'm no longer insured in New York. The University of Utah looks at when you got your Utah driver's license in deciding whether or not you get in-state tuition. So I spent four hours today at two different branches of the DMV (because you can't get your license and registration at the same place).
I do not know HOW I am going to be able to find my car in a parking lot now.

Although I did keep the weeping and wailing to my inside, I do think that I might have gnashed my teeth a bit when they took my New York title from me and said they'd send me a new Utah one. I just don't think that was necessary.

It occurs to me that in the four months I have owned this car, it has had three different license plates. Four if you count the one from the previous owner that I drove it home in. And in the 13 years I've been a licensed driver, I have lived in 8 states and gotten licenses in 4 of them. This is the first time I've gotten a new license before the old one expired. And while I was/am super sad to sever these ties with New York, I remind myself that I will be saving several thousand dollars if I do decide to go to the U of U or if the police ever discovered my registration was null and void. C'est le vie.

Funny Things I've Come Across Lately

Because it's my blog and I can post random meaningless stuff if I want to.

How to Be the Favorite Auntie

Since being in Utah for 1.5 months I have NOT found a job. I have NOT taken the GMAT. I have NOT found a volunteer opportunity. I have NOT even painted my room.

But I HAVE become the favorite Auntie to my three nieces.

You may ask how I accomplished this in so short a time. For the benefit of my readers, I have broken my strategies into three easy steps:

1. Download a coloring app onto your iPhone
The nieces will be begging for it (and thus your attention) every time you're near.

Please note: be sure to turn off the sound during sacrament meeting.

2. One word: Birdie Flap Flap
This is a game my sister invented when I was a little girl. I have no idea how she did it, being only 6 years older than me. It is tiring enough with these tiny little girls!

3. My nieces take after their favorite auntie in regards to their love of dancing. I host a dance party very frequently when we get together. In this particular picture, I out did myself with the epiphany of a table-top dance party. (Like I always say, "train them up in the way they should go".) But usually our dance parties consist of us all dancing around on the floor together. (Note to readers: if you want to teach your three-year old niece that the secret to dancing is all in the hips, do not do it where the child's mother can hear you.)

How Office Life Has Ruined Me For Home Life

Today I was baby-sitting for my niece at my sister's house when her phone rang:

Me: Lewis home. This is Holly. How can I help you?
Caller: I'm looking for Jason Lewis.
Me: I'm sorry, he's not in right now. Would you like to leave him a message?
Caller: Yes, please.
Me: Alright, you can leave that message with me.
Caller: I'm confirming his dentist appointment for tomorrow at 4.
Me: Okay. I will pass that on to him. Thank you for calling. Good-bye.

I realized I was being way too professional half way through the conversation, but I couldn't stop myself.

Time Capsule

I'd imagine that you'd be interested in hearing tid bits about my fabulous new life out here in Salt Lake City. Well, I have been having all sorts of fun times and learning lots and having great experiences, but isn't it funny how when you have so much free time it seems like hardly anything gets done? Well, that is my situation and, as you can see, blogging has fallen to the wayside.

But I really did want to share this thought.

Last month, I set off on an unexpected last-minute trip to Michigan. While I could go on and on telling the tale of why I went, how cute my nieces are as traveling companions, and the adventures I had while there, instead I want to talk about my "bedroom" there.

It is the only place I've ever lived that has been preserved through the years just the way I left it. And more than that, it has become a sort-of symbol to me of my parents' love for me, of God's love for me and just of all-around goodness. This appreciation started about two visits ago. (I'm pretty sure it wasn't the last visit due the previously-mentioned run-in with a bat that caused me to sleep on the couch the whole time I was there). While sitting in my room I just felt overwhelmed with love and gratitude. I felt so thankful for the 1.5 years I spent there, grateful to God for guiding me there, and glad I listened to his promptings. But mostly I just so so soul-shakingly grateful to have a real, honest-to-goodness home. So many people don't, due to divorce or family craziness or the death or parents or various tragic things. But I am blessed enough to have a place where I am always welcomed with opened arms by parents who love me no matter what. A place where I love being. A place listed on my phone contact list as "Home."

And in addition to that, whenever I go to my "home" bedroom, if I'm so inclined I can go through my drawers and shelves for a lovely trip down memory lane. I want to share with you a few highlights.

This is a quilt my Young Woman's group cross-stitched for me when I graduated from high school. Talk about love! What a really nice, thoughtful thing to do for a person. And let me show you some close-ups so you can see how totally talented these people were and how much time they put into it:
(that last one was blurred, but I wanted to share it anyway)

I haven't taken this special quilt with me to any of my other homes because I don't have a place nice enough to keep it.

And speaking of special bedding, I always love seeing this much-loved, worn-out bedspread which my mom got for me special (from the catalog) when I was about 10 It warms the heart.

And here is my totally awesome alarm clock that I got for my 8th birthday, so I could wake myself up for school I love it!! (and please note, that I was up being productive at 6am)

While I was thus strolling down memory lane, I looked through my mission scrapbook and realized that my mission wasn't 100% heartache and self-disappointment-- there were fun times too

And I looked at some of my favorite mission souvenirs/recorditas/chachquees (sp?)

Oh man! I LOVED buying stuff on my mission!

But, it occurs to me, I love buying stuff where ever I go, and most of the souvenirs of my world travels are still at home in Michigan. Below is the instruction on a game I bought in China. Please enlarge and read-- it is one of the funnier examples of Engrish I've ever seen (esp. the last two sentences)

And this trip I decided to go through the clothes I left there. HELLO!! What inspired me to not take these with me to New York? I must have been sleep-deprived or something
Elmo socks
frog prince pajamas

Well, that concludes our stroll down memory lane for today.

Pictures not shown here include the tremendously ugly yellowish brown shirt that I loved sleeping in; the Impressionist calendar I bought as a junior in high school and turned into art which I hung on the wall everywhere I lived from 1995 to 2003 (I just counted--5 different places); and the three totally beautiful quilts my little sister made that are currently on my bed at home.