It Doesn't Feel Like Christmas ...

until I'm home.

I got home yesterday,

and I am starting to feel like it is the Christmas season!

Now it is time to relax with the fam,

wrap presents,

and watch Christmas movies!

On the agenda:

Meet Me in St. Louis,

White Christmas,

Holiday Inn,

Scrooge,

and that one episode of "Saved by the Bell"

where Zach meets a cute girl in the mall

and then finds out that she is homeless and living in her car

with her dad who plays the piano and sings carols

to the gang after they present him with the gift

of a sweater that fashionista Lisa picked out for him.

I am planning on relaxing with the fam,

feeling the Christmas spirit,

and eating my weight in tangerines!

Merry Christmas to all!

As I Was Walking Out Of Target Moments Ago ...

I walked behind a woman wearing yoga pants

with "Hogwarts" written across her behind ...

#1:

WHY would you want the word(s)

Hog and/or Warts

associated with your behind!?!

#2:

I'm pretty sure that is not what J.K.

had in mind when she franchised out

her novels.

Creepy Stalker Christmas Classic ...

Remember how Hall & Oates were stalking me?

Well I thought I would end my Creepy series

with their creepy classic ...

ENJOY!!!!

Creepy Christmas Classics ...

This Christmas Classic was sent to me

by me dear friend Molly.

And let me tell you it's a DOOZIE!

I can't get over the incredible enthusiasm and stage presence!

Thanks Molls for the great find!

Creepy Kwanzaa Classic ...

WARNING:

This song will get in your head and NEVER leave.

But I love the cute little kids dancing.

The weird guy that looks like Whoopi Goldberg in "Ghost" ...

don't so much enjoy watching him. He is definitely adding the creepy element!

Creepy Christmas Classics ...

You're welcome.

(Mom and Pam,

I think we should recreate this and hit the road!)

I'm Not Going To Lie ...

As much as I make fun of the crazies on

Oprah's Favorite Things ...

I would TOTALLY freak out too.

Last Week I Lost A Close Friend ...

my hairdryer.

It started smoking while I was straightening my hair,

and I took that as a bad sign.

For someone like me,

who straightens their hair,

a hairdryer is an ABSOLUTE necessity.

I hate having to hair dryer shop.

You never know how strongly it is going to blow.

I don't want a wimpy dryer that feels like an elf is blowing my hair dry.

I need to feel like I just put my head in a jet propeller!

I want to dry my hair as fast as possible.

Let's be honest ...

what I really want is one of those machines Judy Jetson had

where she walks in one end with wet hair

and comes out the other dressed, coiffed, and perfectly perfumed.

(That Judy Jetson gets everything!)

Luckily, I found a good hair dryer and I am very happy.

But I will miss my dear friend with the retractable cord,

and bendable handle.

We spent a lot of good mornings together.

Are You As Excited As I Am?

It's Christmas music time!!!!!

Tonight I am starting a series

I call

"CREEPY CHRISTMAS CLASSICS".

Get excited peeps ...

I just wanted to share a few favs with you.

Our classic tonight comes all the way from Italy!!

Enjoy!!!

Today I Found Him ...

in the Target parking lot.

Apparently,

he has turned in his steed for a Lexus.

I Give You ...

one more reason to love

Matt Lauer and Brian Williams.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

(There is link on MSNBC now that will teach you

the "Brian Williams".

I'm dying!)

My New York Walden Weekend (Part 2)...

The one thing I really wanted was to see Central Park in the fall.

Em and Dox kindly obliged.

I was grateful the city warned us of the rabies threat.

Because what I really wanted was to find a raccoon

and snuggle with it!

It was the opening day of the skating rink!

It was so quintessential NYC to me.

We especially enjoyed the middle aged

Abercrombie dressed man who thought he was Brian Boitano.

He kept us entertained for awhile.

Such a great view!

My pictures don't do the colors justice,

but take my word for it ...

they were beautiful!

So was the fanny-pack wearing

roller blading woman

who was putting on quite a show!

I was SO tempted to run away with the jazz band and

spend the rest of my life as their groupie.

Serious talent!

More roller blading lady.

She was everywhere!

The lake!

It totally reminded me of Anne and Gilbert.

We sat and dreamed of the day we could live in

a gorgeous penthouse overlooking the park.

We were disturbed by the creepy

street performers.

But my fav part was sitting and enjoying the view while

listening to these two breaking up.

I had to bite my lip to keep my self from laughing.

I kept whispering the play by play to Em.

My favorite lines:

"Anne saw you at the club with someone else and she said she was wearing booty shorts.

Booty Shorts!"

and

"My mother has never liked you."

"Your mother is our problem!"

Sadly, they left before any resolution was reached,

but we saw him sadly staring into the pond later and he was alone,

so I am thinking that the booty shorts won.

Thanks again to Em and Dox for a GLORIOUS weekend!

My Brother Is Starting To Apply To Grad Schools ...

He is been debating about the best place to go.

He recently sent me this video with a message saying

that he had found his new roomies and he is going to go wherever they are.

If you know my brother,

then this will totally make sense ...

This cracks me up,

and I want to be friends with them.

For My Little Sis Em, Who Has Just Discovered 90's Music ...

this is what MMMBop is up to now!

(for some reason it is cut in half on my blog. follow it to You Tube to see the whole screen!)

P.S.

I have always had a thing for tambourine players,

(it started with Davy Jones!)

but after watching the one in this video

I am pretty sure I am cured.

He is CREEP-TASTIC!

P.P.S.

I still firmly believe that if we all spent more time putting together

large dance numbers in the streets

the world would be a much happier place!

P.P.P.S.

Seriously,

Did you watch the tambourine man?

SO DISTURBING!!!

P.P.P.P.S.

They are so much better without the nasty 90's hair!

My New York Walden Weekend (Part 1)...

I spent a GLORIOUS and blissfully perfect weekend in NYC a few weeks ago.

I flew out to surprise my best friend Em for her birthday.

Em and I have ALWAYS wanted to be in the city together,

so it was fun to be able to finally see it

come to pass and cross it off the list

of things to do before I die.

And now that she lives there,

I know that there will be many more blissful weekends

to come!

(We are too co-dependent to be apart for too long!)

Em and her adorable hubby Dox, live in a FAB apartment

in the Financial district.

After taking a late flight and surviving a cab ride

where the driver thought he was playing Mario Kart

on the bridge ,

I arrived to the apartment about 1 am.

We cried and took a moment to catch up and then quickly fell asleep.

This is the view I woke up to!

They have an AMAZING view of the Trinity church graveyard

which is one of my fav things in the city!

I loved hearing the bells ring from the tower!

That is Wall Street people.

This is THE most comfortable bed I have ever slept in.

I am a serious Tempur-Pedic believer now!

Shout out to Dox for giving up his bed!

Friday was Ems' birthday,

and Dox sent us to the spa for pedis!

We went to Bliss Spa,

and enjoyed the brownie bar

and FABULOUS pedis from

Svetlana and Jane.

They told us how lucky we were to not have Russian husbands

who take off with credit cards for days at a time and gamble.

I love pretty toes!

We fell in love with the red brick

at the 49th street subway stop.

And we loved it even more

when we saw the sign that reminded us of our

beloved Rhonda from "The Starting Over House"!

We shouted out to the universe to see one famous person that day ...

and it worked!

We ran into Tom Selleck!

We saw "Promises, Promises" with Sean Hayes, Kristen Chenoweth

(another thing to check off my list!)

and Molly Shannon!

We laughed and had perma-grins the WHOLE show.

It was so much fun!

The coca-cola sign in Times Square made everything feel complete!

The only thing that would have made it better is if Em Snyd had been there!

(We missed you!)

Part Two to come ...

My New Favorite Snack ...

Honeycrisp apple

+

String Cheese

(and it has to be this exact kind. I have texture issues with others.)

=

Pure Snack Heaven

Seriously.

You should try it.

I Loved This So Much I Read The Whole Thing In 36 Hours ...

No Joke!

It was a GREAT read!

Commander In Chic ...

is my new favorite fall nail color.

I'm digging it.

PS.

Did anyone see on the news that Justin Bieber is

developing a line of OPI nail polish?

Does anyone else find that a little creepy?

For Mom and Em ...

Enjoy.

Perfect Fall Day ...

Fall has arrived!

I walked into the Conference Center on Sunday

for the afternoon session of conference and it was 90 degrees.

I walked out 2 hours later and it was fall.

You could feel it and smell it in the air.

Fall had blown in.

It has been raining and cool ever since.

And I am LOVING it!

And since today is my first Fall day off of work,

I am living it up.

Dinner is in the crock pot thanks to Pam!

(and making the house smell yummy!)

I have loaves of bread rising on the counter.

And now I am sitting by an open window

listening to and smelling the rain,

wrapped in a blanket,

with my afternoon D.C.,

ready to spend some time reading.

I love being able to enjoy fall!

Dear Man Who Was Running On 3rd South This Morning ...

I think it's great that you are out their running.

Really I do.

But I think it's a little counter productive

to smoke while you are doing it.

Just a thought.

Sincerely,

Never Heard of an Emphysemic Marathoner

Tonight ...

I took my young women here.

I had been looking forward to it for awhile.

It was AMAZING,

beautiful,

thought provoking,

touching,

insightful,

and

inspiring.

I am grateful for people who are such beautiful examples

of grace through difficulty,

and for their willingness to share their stories

to inspire and buoy the rest of us up.

She is an inspiration.

My New Happy Place ...

I want to live in the library at

Trinity College in Dublin.

Don't these pictures just make you want to sink

into a comfy leather chair with one of these old volumes

and never leave?

I Have A Confession To Make ...

I broke down and listened to Clay Aikens Christmas album today.

I couldn't help it.

I know I am not supposed to listen to Christmas music yet,

but I heard one song when my ipod was on random

and was sucked in.

I PROMISE I will not listen again

until the day after Thanksgiving.

Please forgive me.

I Am Pretty Sure That I Am Being Stalked ...

by Hall & Oates.

Their music has been following me around ALL week.

It has been played multiple times on

the radio a work.

Twice this week I went to the grocery store,

and both times one of their songs was playing.

And today I put my ipod on random

and the 1st, 3rd, and 7th song that played

were Hall & Oates.

And I have over 5700 songs on my ipod ...

Are you as creeped out as I am?!?

Dear Hall & Oates,

Your kiss is not on my list

and you do NOT make my dreams come true.

Sincerely,

Because I am a maneater

and my private eyes are watching you,

I would kindly ask your music to quit following

me around.

Dear Mother Nature,

Today is the first official day of fall.

And I am ready for it!

Bring on the crisp Autumn air,

and all the beautiful colors.

I love FALL!!

Sincerely,

Fall Enthusiast who wants to make sure you really heard her ...

F.A.L.L.

Not winter ...

FALL.

I included the picture to make sure you didn't get confused

like you have in years past.

Like that one year where it was 80 one day,

and the next day I was scrapping the snow off my windshield.

FALL!!!!

Do You Think It Is Possible ...

that Tim Gunn was driving a silver Toyota Tacoma

in Provo today?

Because I swear I saw him!

Just In Case There Was Any Question About My Athletic Prowess ...

Tonight I took the Young Women to play

bean bag baseball with the residents of a senior center nearby.

I was beat by a blind woman named Margaret.

I'm not kidding.

On the way home one of the girls said

"Sister Chalk, I think it was really nice of you

to let Margaret win."

I just smiled and nodded my head.

Tonight I Spent The Evening ...

with my boyfriend ...

Brian Stokes Mitchell !

Just him and me

and a piano

(and about 1200 other people).

He came to sing me all of my favorite

Broadway songs.

Stars, Dulcinea, Wheels of A Dream ...

(I emailed him a list of my favs last week and

he was happy to oblige,

except for he didn't sing that excerpt from

Legally Blonde like I asked!)

And when he sang

"Some Enchanted Evening"

he totally winked at me.

(I totally saw him do it from my seat

high in the balcony.)

My fav moment was when he sang Soliloquy

from Carousel.

Love that song.

(I also loved it when Ben Newton sang it

oh so long ago at the Macys Theater competition

when I was a junior in high school

ALL the girls were SMITTEN with Ben Newton!

I wonder what happened to him ...)

His last encore was my all time fav ...

"The Impossible Dream".

If you ever drive by me and I am sobbing while I drive

there is a 99% chance that it is because I am listening to

him sing this song ...

Thanks Bri for a great night!

P.S.

If they ever make "Obama, the Musical"

I think you'd be a shoe in!

Dear Lovely, Darling, Fabulous Fed Ex Person,

Thank you!

Love,

Not Leaving My Room Until I Have Finished Reading

Mockingjay

Remember How My Boyfriend Chuck ...

also sings?!?!

I seriously love him.

Dear Mr. or Ms. Fed Ex Person,

I am sorry.

I apologize.

I am not sure what I am needing to apologize for,

but I figured you must be angry at me for something.

What other reason would keep you from delivering

my copy of "Mockingjay"?

Please forgive me for whatever I did.

Apologetically yours,

Still Waiting For The Copy Of Mockingjay That I Specifically

Pre-Ordered So I Would Have It As Soon As It

Came Out And So I Wouldn't Have to Fight With The Crazies At Barnes & Noble

AND I Seriously Cannot Wait ANY Longer To See Who Katniss Picks

Dear Mandy Moore (the singer, not the choreographer),

I've never really been a fan,

but I owe you a BIG thank you.

A few months ago I saw you on "The Bonnie Hunt Show".

I almost fast forwarded through your segment,

because as I stated earlier

I am not a fan.

But I didn't,

and for that I am REALLY glad.

During the segment you mentioned that you were obsessed with

Gain laundry detergent because of the smell.

I had never used it,

but was intrigued.

The next day while I was at Target

I popped a bottle open and took a whiff.

And I was transported to a magical place.

A place I never want to leave.

I.

LOVE.

THE.

SMELL.

OF.

GAIN.

It is serious heaven.

So thank you Mandy Moore.

I am sincerely appreciative.

So much so,

that I might forget what a jerk you were to

Mia Thermopolis

in "The Princess Diaries".

With Deepest Gratitude,

Can't stop sniffing my laundry

Happy Day!!!

Just wanted to give a shout out to my Bro

to say congrats on his last day of chemo!!!

He was feeling well enough to eat Courts veggie lasagna tonight.

So happy he gets to be done!

Please Don't Be Afraid Of Me ...

One of the many things that I learned at

Education Week today is that there is such a thing as

"Melissophobia".

Seriously,

it's a word.

Luckily, the definition is not

a person who has a fear of people named

Melissa.

(Although, I have been known to scare off a few people in my day!)

It is a fear of

BEES!

How ironic is it that I my name means "honey bee",

and yet I am allergic to them.

So next time you run screaming from a bee,

just think of me!

You Know That Feeling You Have On The Last Day of School ...

when you know you have the whole summer

ahead of you filled with endless

possibilities?

That is how I felt when I woke up this morning

knowing that at 2 pm today I would start

my 11 day weekend!

I have 11 work free days ahead of me with

NOTHING

planned!

The last 3 months have been jam packed,

overwhelming, and stressful

(except for that week I laid on the beach).

With being thrown into Young Women

and having youth conference

and camp,

house guests,

work,

and lots of busyness

I haven't had a lot of free time.

I am going to spend these days

enjoying the time and freedom.

I am starting with Education Week.

I have already been to a few evening classes,

and can feel my bucket being filled.

I love being able to spend the time learning

and reflecting on what I can do better at.

Then I am going to catch up on my stack of magazines

while enjoying the sunshine.

I am going to deep clean my room,

and my car,

and reorganize my drawers.

There will also be some serious sleeping in!