Remember this great song?!

Thank you Nat for providing me with this entertainment.  This has to be one of the best videos ever!

I love me some crab legs!

Last night I went with some friends to Annapolis, MD.  I love it there.  It was fun to get out of the city, and enjoy ourselves some yummy seafood.  I am kind of embarrassed to admit how giddy I get when I order crab legs.  It's not only the taste I enjoy, but the feeling of satisfaction in having to work for your food.  I love to tear open the shell, and find delicious crab meat awaiting my consumption.  Dipping the meat in butter is icing on the cake!  Apparently there isn't much to preparing crab legs, just choosing your preferred reheating method.  I may just have to drop by Costco and pick some up!  Anyway, it was a lovely night with friends, enjoying this beautiful summer weather!

Happy Birthday D-dawg!

Happy Birthday to YOU!  What a great day to celebrate one of my favorite people ever, my dear father!  While the rest of the family was home enjoying the memorial day weekend together, swimming, golfing, bbqing, eating, celebrating, etc., I was here in VA.   Dad, I wish I could have been there to live it up with you guys.  Only one more month and I get to come home to celebrate Stephen's return!  I love you dad!  Happy Birthday!

A fun little treat to wake up to...

I woke up this morning to find a cockroach in my hallway.  I really don't like them.  They just lay on their backs helpless, acting as if we should do something for them.  Well, I will do one thing for you. Grab my handy bottle of Raid, and spray you.  Got to love bug season! 

I heart Howie

Today I had the day off of work.  I love my work schedule.  I get every other Monday off, because I work 9 hour days.  Seriously, it was one of the best decisions I made to get an alternative work schedule.  I am sure you are all thinking how nice it would be to have a day off to schedule medical/dental appointments, grocery shopping, run errands, go to the gym at less busy time of the day, etc., etc.  Typically, I would agree, and try to get all my errands complete on my Monday off.  That wasn't so much the case today.  I am currently wearing the pajamas I wore last night, and decided not to leave the house ONCE today.  It's amazing how much you can get done when you force yourself to stay at home!  I paid bills, wrote thank you notes, sent emails, choose our next book for book club, vacuumed my room, purchased my ticket to go home in June, did the dishes, and read. Exciting, huh?!  Well, maybe not so much, but definitely relaxing!  

Tonight I was passing through the living room, and the television was on.  I haven't been watching too much tv lately, but saw that one of my favorite game shows was on, Deal or No Deal!  Have you seen it??  With the one and only Howie Mandel??  I think he is pretty great.  I soon found myself plopped on the couch, engrossed in the fate of this woman from the bronx.  Will she make the deal, or keep going and lose more money?  I find myself getting very passionate about the choices the contestants make on the show.  Most of them are just too greedy.  They share their story of how they have a ton of student loans, car & house loans, and how their mother raised them on welfare.  But, what do they do?  They are offered $160,000 and they turn it down for the small, VERY SMALL chance they will win the 1 million.  I don't get it.  Plus the family members there, always encourage the contestant not to settle, but to keep going.  If they had any smarts, they would encourage them to play a little more safe.  If you had the opportunity to get out of debt, and leave with more money than you started, why don't you take it??  We always want more, and are never satisfied with what's given or provided to us.   Let me just tell you how I really feel :)  As ridiculous as some contestants are, I still find myself hooked, waiting for the next case to open!  I may just need to research how I could become a contestant on the show!  Thank you Howie, and greedy Bronx woman for entertaining me tonight.  At least you went home with some money :)

My roommates and I got talking about old games shows we used to watch.  Supermarket Sweep anyone?? Hollywood Squares?  Win, Lose, or Draw? Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? The Price is Right?  I am kind of a game show nerd.  I don't watch too often, but I can see myself in 40+ years, sitting in my recliner, shouting at the contestants to do what I think is best! 

Reasons Why I love My Mother

Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal
after you've had a baby ... somebody doesn't know that once you're a
mother,"normal" is history.

Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by instinct ... somebody
never took a three-year-old shopping.

Somebody said being a mother is boring .. somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver's permit.

Somebody said if you're a "good" mother, your child will "turn
out good"...somebody thinks a child comes with directions and a guarantee.

Somebody said "good" mothers never raise their voices.
Somebody never came out the back door just in time to see her child hit a golf ball through the neighbor's kitchen window.

Somebody said you don't need an education to be a mother. Somebody
never helped a fourth grader with his math.

Somebody said you can't love the second child as much as you love the
first ... somebody doesn't have two children.

Somebody said a mother can find all the answers to her child-rearing
questions in the books.... somebody never had a child stuff beans
up his nose or in his ears.

Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and
delivery...somebody never watched her "baby" get on the bus for the
first day of kindergarten ... or on a plane headed for military "boot camp."

Somebody said a mother can do her job with her eyes closed and
one hand tied behind her back ...somebody never organized seven
giggling Brownies to sell cookies.

Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her child gets
married....somebody doesn't know that marriage adds a new son or
daughter-in-law to a mother's heartstrings.

Somebody said a mother's job is done when her last child leaves
home....somebody never had grandchildren.

Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don't need to tell her ... somebody isn't a mother.

What a beautiful day we have to honor and celebrate motherhood and the women in our lives who have had great influence on our testimonies and the road to becoming more like our Savior. When I think of my mother, I am overcome with emotion.  My mother truly is my best friend and the best example to me of living the gospel of Jesus Christ.  My mother testifies to her children that she loves the Savior and Book of Mormon. My mother calls me frequently to check-in and make sure I am doing okay.  My mother supports me in the decisions I make.  My mother often times puts others needs before her own. My mother loves people, and does what she can to lighten their load.  My mother is a woman of faith.  My mother loves to laugh, and make her children laugh.  My mother taught me correct principles.  My mother is beautiful.  My mother tells me often she loves me.  My mother makes others feel comfortable around her.  My mother is energetic, and optimistic about life.  My mother places her family first.  My mother's love comes nearer being like the love of God than any other kind of love. 

I love this statement made by the First Presidency issued years ago.  It really captures the importance and eternal nature of motherhood. “Motherhood,” they wrote, “is near to divinity. It is the highest, holiest service to be assumed by mankind. It places her who honors its holy calling and service next to the angels.”  

Mom and I at graduation in NYC

Mom & I in Time Square

Mom & I over the holidays 2008

Lauren, Mom & I in DC 2009

Mom celebrating her 50th birthday

I LOVE YOU MOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What would your memoir be titled?

For book club this month, I've been reading, Barack Obama's book, "Dreams from My Father: A story of Race and Inheritance." Overall, I've enjoyed the book, and enjoyed learning more about our current President's life experiences.  It helps give me a better understanding and insight to who he is.  

Sunday evening, Brian & I were still in Utah, and stayed at our friend's cabin in the Provo Canyon.  We took turns reading a loud Obama's book.  We though it would be funny to come up with memoir titles for each member of our family.  What can I say, we are easily entertained.  These are all kind of family inside jokes...Here's what we came up with:  

Dad:  A Giant Among Men: Reflections on the Plan of Redemption

Mom: 6 Children, 1 Coach: A Mother's Take on Sports Psychology

Lesley: Tricks of the Trade: How to Cope with Radical Children

Jared: The Professorship: Mugs. Prestige. Service

Michele: Unsung Hero: Bridging Gaps of Social Injustice

Brian: A Defining Moment: Childhood to Manhood

Stephen: Adventures in a Foreign Land: Calling on Angels

Jeff: Overcoming Standardized Tests: An Insider's Look of Gaining an Extra Few Points

Lauren: The Art of Decision Making: Preference vs Principle

Haley: Unanswered Questions: What It's Like to be Me

Natalie: It's A Hard Knox Life: Enduring Sibling Dominance

Mollie (dog): Bug: Perhaps I had a Wicked Childhood

We are so funny!  

p.s.  Inflight Trivia saved my life.  I went from SLC, to LA (waited 3 hours) to Atlanta, and finally to Baltimore.  What we will do to save a few pennies.  MRM was kicking some trash on the plane.  

Family Time!

Why is it that every time I visit with my family, I come home rejuvenated, and determined to be a little better.  Family time is seriously the best!  I went to Utah this past weekend to attend the funeral services of my grandpa Mickelsen.  All but two grandchildren (my brother, Stephen serving in Taiwan, and the other Stephen in New Zealand) were able to attend.  It was so great to visit with my extended and immediate family.  My coworkers asked me how the services were, and how I was doing.  I went on to describe how wonderful and fun it was to be with all of my family.  Although funerals can be sad, and a time to mourn the ones we love, it is also a time of gratitude, and family togetherness.  I am so grateful for the knowledge I have of the Plan of Redemption.  It provides us with so much peace and hope!  

This picture has to be one of my favorites.  Aren't they adorable?!

Don't worry, in true Mickelsen fashion, we gathered at Chuck-A-Rama to honor our dear Father/Grandfather.  The great grand kids were loving it!  I have to admit, it wasn't as bad as I remembered.  It was Chuck-A-Rama, Golden Coral, or the Sizzler.  Take your pick :)

I love this picture of my grandparents.  Married in the Manti Temple in June 27, 1946.

My two handsome brothers, Brian & Jeffrey.  Of course, the most handsome is in Taiwan :) 

Friday night the four of us siblings stayed at a hotel.  I love late nights with your siblings.  Everything is always so much funnier :) 

We didn't even plan the semi matching outfits.  We must be sisters.  And yes, we love our flower clips.

My cousin Cara!  One summer Cara and I met up at BYU basketball camp.  Cara and her husband Kyle came to visit in NYC when I was in grad school.  Cara, it was so great to visit with you and your adorable family! 

Michael, Brian, Me, Linda

The Mickelsen Family at the Cemetery in Spanish Fork, UT

Thank you family for a wonderful visit and the support you are to me!