Lovin' the Garmin

It's so cool. It's so great. Got me to school when I was pretty late. Need proof? Just look at the time. I'm supposed to be in class in 4 minutes. Woops...

Yes, that is snow. In the end of May. Thank you, Utah.

Anyway, I want a Garmin! This is Tam's. I borrowed/stole it for the weekend. It did a great job, it took us to Disneyland and back. See?

Thank you, Garmin. Thank you.

Finally back in the reading saddle.

Oh, rapture! I've been invited to join a book club. The Writers Reading Club. Ah, what zen.

Our first book is Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, by Jonathan Safran Foer. I need a snazzier name if I'm ever going to write a novel.

That is all.

Smile.ly

Just trying this out...

http://smile.ly/14383.cfm

Why aren't these action dolls on the market?

About 75% of my readership (that is, 3 of the 4 of you) has already seen this video. But it deserves a second view. Enjoy.

For an extra laugh, go to the actual page and read the comments below the video. Hi-lar-i-ous.

Oh yeah, so I did have a birthday...

Here's my cute cake from Nothing Bundt Cakes:

If you try to count the candles, I may have to kill you.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip. With that inimitable cream-cheese-and-butter-divinity of a frosting. I love how they "fill" the hole in the Bundt with frosting. It's good to be decadent.

Can you tell I'm channeling Julie/Julia? I think it's one of my new favorite films. And now to scrounge up Mom's copy of Julia Child's book...

I also got some wonderful things for my birthday: a new cutting mat, fat quarters and squares of assorted blue, orange, and brown fabrics, some more pins and hand needles, and the books below.

I really like getting free stuff!

Yesterday, I got several things for free! Belated birthday prezzies!

First, I got an email from Goodreads that I had won the book First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria: How a Peace Corps Poster Boy Won My Heart & a Third-World Adventure Changed My Life by Eve Brown-Waite. Can't wait to get it in my mailbox... for free!!... in a few weeks. I heart Goodreads. Go there. Be my friend.

Then, Simini dropped the happiness bomb on me last night by giving me a free month's pass to Netflix. THANK YOU!!! I knew that I'd get DVDs in my mailbox but I didn't know there were movies online, ripe for the plucking. I'm watching Julie & Julia right now. So charming. I want to whip up chocolate mousse and incredible pans of butter-seared fish! Ah, to be a hip, powerful woman and a domestic goddess as well. That is my life's ambition.

I also discovered MoneySavingMom.com. I think I have some tuna and some toothpaste coming in the mail. We'll see. Oh, the rapture of shiny packages of free stuff in the shadowy recesses of my mailbox!

More of the Roadtrip.

Some more rockin' pictures:

I must have this chair! It is so cool!

As is this great old record player.

Annie and I thought this how was pretty sweet.

Great front porch. I love that people restore old pioneer homes.

Anyone want a tuna hoagie?

Annie picked out some scrummy bread. Crumbs all over the car on the way home, I assure you.

Annie is shocked by local signage.

With good reason.

I hollered at Annie in a panic to snap a photo of this awesome restaurant. It involved frantically rolling down the window and leaning out, blindly snapping the photo. It turned out AWESOME. Annie titled it, "Accidentally Dynamic."