October 28

Picture of the day has been fun....but I'm burned out! haha whew! So let me catch up....

Oct 27....Zane had his first Pinewood Derby!!!

He didn't win but he sure did well! Lately, whenever I look at him I just see Jeff when he was a kid.

Oct 28...then tonight, we celebrated Ally's birthday....

....mmmm carrot cake! Happy 3? Ally! haha

October 25

Chaz Rose.

But with this shirt on, all I could see him as was a mini Bo Duke! :)

Wow it feels soooooo good to be home! And I get to sleep in my own beds for 11 straight nights! Yay!!!

October 24

Another completely fantastic day!!! There were lots of good things but the very best was seeing Heather, Los & their kids!!!! They drove up to Chattanooga from Newnan, GA. I can't remember when the last time was that I saw them--a year or two I guess--no matter what it was just too long!!!

Me, Hedder & Abby

Thanks Carlos, for talking us into Sticky Fingers.....mmmm.....I'll never eat another BBQ sammich w/out a heap of slaw on it! :)

Charlie & Los

Thank you sooooo much for making the drive, ya'll! I hope the hammerheads & otters were everything the kids wanted, and more!

And it was another fantastic event...I have LOOOOVED Chattanoogo....so sad to leave tomorrow but so happy to have a few days to relax!

October 23

Today was the best day! Carrie & I set up early, then had our event in the afternoon and I will tell you w/all honesty, there is nothin like being in the south!!!! Plus Pam Morgan is here with us and she adds all kinds of fun....like a surprise ice cold bottle of Diet Coke aroud 3pm when I really needed it! :)

We went to dinner at the old train depot with some awesome demonstrators...and saw the actual Chattanooga Choo Choo...

Then I crashed a stamping party created by all these lovely demos.....

Cutest ladies ever....who had so many awesome ideas my head is still spinning! LOOK WHAT I MADE!!!!

And now I have to sleep because I am too tired not too...but it was a very very very good day!

October 22

Another Thursday night...and I'm once again watching Project Runway in my hotel room....this time from Chattanooga, TN!!!

We were delayed 2 hours in Atlanta (booooooo!) but other than that it was a pretty uneventful day....even if it did feel like 8am when we stepped off the plane @ 2pm in Atlanta. I seriously don't do early flights! And every time my luggage appears, it is the happiest moment for me!

Anyway Carrie & I wandered around Chattanooga tonight, which was not so exciting at first. But then we found this delish pub where I had the yummiest Salmon I Am sandwich and Carrie ate The Mother Clucker....a chicken salad of course!

And the trip back to the hotel was the highlight because 1) we found:

Yummy.....

And 2) they have a free shuttle here in which the shuttle driver makes everyone sing! hahaha it was a great time!

October 21

Today we had a special celebration at Stampin' Up!....we celebrated our 2nd Million Dollar Achiever: LISA FAST!!!!

She's one of my favorite demonstrators so I was so happy to have a few minutes to chat with her today....

Plus I had a piece of the best cheesecake in the world!!!

And then we all had a few minutes to stop and chat and relax a bit....

Lisa, moi, Cindy and Karah (and baby)

It was a great day.

And now I must pack....

October 20

A drawing from my sweetie....

No, that is not a rocket ship!

October 19 (and 18th)

Travel day yesterday....was too tired to post last night and forgot all day long to take pictures. In fact, almost went to bed w/out posting tonight too but I had to share a pic from my day off today....

Cheeseburber Boy!

October 17

This morning Donna & I got to drive all around Portland w/Carolyn & Barbara--two AWESOME demonstrators!!! It was such a great time!

And the event today was fantastic too! It seems almost like a blur and sad that my visit to Maine is almost over. :(

October 16

Today's event was just exactly as it should be--AWESOME! And I got to end the day @ dinner w/7 awesome Maine demos....

p.s. HAPPY BIRTHDAY LACEY & VANESSA!

October 15

Tonight I am sleeping in Portland, Maine! It's been a long day of travel...and I forgot to take a photo. I am super excited to be here though and can't wait to give a better update tomorrow....

October 14

Whew another crazy day at work, couple of meetings, packing for this weekend's event, and some early planning for Leadership in Janaury....

Then it was off to meet LeAnn & Vanessa for a little pre-birthday celebration for V....FINALLY I got to see Whip It!!! Loved it, of course, and will review it on Movie Mavens when I have the chance.

And just in case you didn't know, the new movie theater @ University Mall sells Kettle Corn ($6.50 a bucket--with a refill!) which is basically the regular delish popcorn coated w/sugar. YUM!!!!!

Must go...so much to do before I can sleep:

• Packing
• Laundry
• Watch Glee
• and SYTYCD

October 13

I had today off and since October 13 is such a special day for the West family....I celebrated all day....

Shopping, lunching, ending with family time tonight. At one point, Ally gave Hill $50 and everyone was like "wow that is amazing!" and so Ally took it back and gave her $20 instead. hahahaha

I taught the kids how to make rotten teeth...

And then I had a front row seat watching Chaz slowly demolish what was left of the frosting...

Happy 25th Hill!

October 12

I had a good day at work today and then I rushed home to change, and headed to the ball park to watch my sisters play their last night of softball. Unfortunately they choked and lost the first game (booooo!) but the Little Girls and I stayed until the very end, in hopes that the rude team would lose.

No luck. :(

After all these years, the ballpark still feels like home however. We finally left around 11pm and mourned once again that Frontier Cafe burnt to the ground a decade ago. :( So we went to IHOP instead....

It was super gross but the company was the best!

And now I get to listen to the rain as I fall asleep....one of my favorite things to do....

October 11

Nearly every business in Wichita had this sign on their door....

No, I am not kidding! I'm not really sure why but I imagine that it comes from people going into restaurants, and putting their "heat" right on the table or something. Bizarre--don't you think?

Anyway when you have a 40 minute layover scheduled, it's pretty scary to board a plane even 5 minutes late....so when we boarded 15 minutes late this morning, I was sure we were in for a long and horrible day.

Luckily, it turned into an ok day of regular travel....and when I got to my Rents' house, there were 2 awesome things waiting for me: 1) a hot dinner w/my family, and 2) the kids on the swings...

October 10

I have this weird yet yummy smell on my hands...from the most delish Bourbon BBQ hamburger! mmmm! Today was another wonderful day....

I had the morning to wander around a bit and I found this awesome little coffee shop where I had hot chocolate, breakfast and just sat and read for awhile.....such a cute place......and the view of Wichita from inside....

And the event today was wonderful, as usual. One of my favorite demos, Pam Bert, was there and so we snapped a quick pic after the show.

I always know it has been a good day when I'm exhausted at the end of it....tomorrow we fly home...bye bye Kansas! Thank you for being so hospitable. :)

October 9

Today was an amazing day!!! Ending w/an amazing dinner at none other than our hotel restaurant! :)

Me & my coworkers Ellen & Mark

Indeed it was an exhausting yet wonderful day. Fabulous demonstrators, wonderful conversations, fun presentations, good times, and oh how I love demonstrators!!

October 8

Well, I failed to take a picture today but it was a boring day of travel to Wichita, Kansas! We had a layover in Memphis, then backtracked to Wichita.

And I spent at least half the day feeling yucky so I learned that the result of that is not wanting to take pictures.

So instead I will tell you that we are staying @ the Broadview Hotel and it is haunted!!! For real! We've already heard a few ghosts here and there. SO COOL!

October 7

Today was a crazy day, filled with getting ready for this weekend's trip. But of course I'm always willing to take time for a delicious lunch with my team....

Me, Donna & Carrie @ Bajio--yum!

Time to go pack....

October 6

I loved today!!!!! Loved it soooooo much!!!!

Reason #1: Wahooo! Luggage showed up around 5am....

Reason #2: He is growing up waaaaay too fast!

Reason #3:

Yep, my boys are back! Years ago I signed off ever having new music from them that I love as much as the old. But this CD is really throwing me for a loop. SOOOOOOOOOOO GOOD!!! I love them!

October 5

It's 38 degrees and I just got back from 2 hours of softball observation. WOW my dormant, competitive rage became active again! My sisters lost (so sad) but fortunately the tournament is double elim. See how cold it was?

Me & Pop

Today was an amazing day....filled with funny and awesome things:

• Zoey told me I'm like her step-mom, only not mean.
• Got lots of kisses from my Chubs (really he got kisses from me).
• Went to work, filmed a video, mourned over all the things I needed which are in my luggage.
• My dad gave me a lecture about being a crazy driver....which would be like me telling someone to not wear so much glitter.
• My newest brother-in-law said he learned a lot about the West family by watching the softball game rage.
• Dinner @ Denny's w/Shiloh.....mmmmm yummy!
• And my sis loaned me her phone charger....sometimes buying the same things really comes in handy!

And that's about it I guess. Except this...

LUGGAGE UPDATE: Mary, the nicest and apparently only capable United Airlines employee just called me to inform me that MY BAGS ARE AT THE AIRPORT!!!! How they got through customs and back into the U.S. is a mystery to me but WHO CARES!!!! By the time I wake up I should have all my precious things back!

October 4

Yay I made it home today (miracle)! And it was a fairly uneventful day....as we left Quebec City, we had an amazing view of the autumn trees....it's hard to explain how beautiful they were....

And a close up from the airplane window....

And the Pleasant Grove welcoming committee....

Luggage update: still has not been acquired. Apparently it arrived in Quebec around 5pm today. The only problem with that scenario is that's the exact same thing I've been told for 3 days in a row now. Yep, I've started making a list of everything that was inside in hopes of reimbursement. :(

October 3

Whew it's past bed time....only 6 hours until the taxi will be waiting for us to head to the airport. TODAY WAS AWESOME! With a few devastating moments but still mostly awesome. I encountered 104 reasons/reminders of why I love my job so much: DEMONSTRATORS! They are the best and the same everywhere, no matter what language they speak. :)

After our event today, we went to dinner and I asked my French translator what Pogo Chic Chic was (English menu, I still needed translating). Carrie Marcelin (one of SU!s Canadian employees said) oh they are kind of like corn dogs. Como what? Oui oui mademoiselle--I'll have that!

Mmmm delish! Bathing in BBQ sauce....

p.s. Luggage is still in Chicago--I will wave to it as I fly through tomorrow--at least I hope I fly through--I've been promised I have a seat but we shall see. Luggage has to go to Quebec before they can even try to return it to Utah. Fun, isn't it!

Au Revoir!

October 2

Yessssssss! We made it to Quebec City but sadly our luggage did not....has not....yet. It was a stressful day but we did manage to get a lovely dinner in the old city....and it was so lovely walking around! I only wish it were light so the pictures were more clear.

This next picture is in one of the beautiful streets--there were all these notes hanging in the air--it created sort of a faux ceiling which was beautiful. They were blowing in the wind and they had things written in them by children, in French of course so they all looked simply beautiful!

It was a stressful day followed by a magical evening of good food, scenery & company.

October 1

LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE BEST MONTH OF THE YEAR! (Well at least 2nd best, next to December). I thought I would celebrate this October with a fun blogging game. I have this totally crazy month ahead of me and I thought it would be fun to document it w/one picture a day. That's it. It might be more but might not. Sometimes blogging takes too much time--but I'm thinking I can definitely handle a picture a day.

So to start off with.....yesterday I flew from Salt Lake City to Montreal. Problem: I was supposed to get all the way to Quebec City. Without any further details, you already know it was a frustrating day....hence today's picture.

Me, in Chicago, pouting because our flight was oversold. Boooooooo!