Time to Shake My Money Maker

Remember my last post that was slightly depressing??? Quick recap: Watched "Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium" Loved the music in it. I missed my piano. Now I want one BAD! But not just a cheapy; I want a Baby Grand. Lots of money and doesnt look likely in the near future...Sad!

So, my dream piano has been on my mind a lot lately. And my husband told me to start saving my money. He reccommended saving $20 out of my budget money every 2 weeks and use that for my piano. Which if you do the math that would be over 5 years!!! But yesterday he offered me a SWEET deal. He asked me to take over his Rustico Blog. It was started when he revamped the Rustico website a few years ago but hasnt been touched again...till now! :) He is going to pay me $25 per post. LOVE IT! This will make my $2500 goal come much quicker than 5 years to get my dream piano. And who knows maybe KSL and Craigslist will have even sweeter deals in the upcoming months. We shall see!

So Im not necessarily going to shake my money maker in order to raise money for my newest dream. But Im definately going to shake things up over at Rustico. At least with their blog :) Im so excited to start. Hey! I wonder if this post counts as a Rustico Blog post! Afterall it will get some traffic their way right? haha! LOVE IT!

Inspiration

I am starting to realize how much I am influenced by the movies I watch. And in this case INSPIRED! Its always a big treat for my boys to go to the mailbox and get our Netflix movie. Today "Mr Magorium Wonder Emporium" came. Didnt know anything about this movie but it was a Netflix reccomendation so we sent for it. I made popcorn after school today and sat down on the couch with my boys and turned it on. What a fun, sweet, magical, feel good movie. It was so different than anything I had seen. Even the end credits were fun to watch :)

But, the most powerful thing I got from this movie was the music. LOVED it! The main character Molly (Natalie Portman) was a composer and she played music all day long in her head. She would always be moving her fingers as if she were playing the keys on a piano throughout her workday. The music that kept playing in her head was my inspiration. I LOVE to play the piano! I dont do it very often any more mainly bc I sold my $500 piano a couple years ago in hopes to get a nicer one. But nicer ones cost $$$$$$! Now after the music in this movie I am obsessed. I miss playing SO bad. Look how beautfiul those keys are :)Needless to say I have been searching all afternoon on KSL and Craigslist for one of these...a girl can dream right :)And now it is almost 1 am and I cant get off Itunes searching for all of my favorite movie ballads...listening to them over and over again. Here are a few of my faves, in no particular order:

"Night Time" Aaron Zigman, Mr Magorium Wonder Emporium

"First Knight Theme" Jerry Goldsmith, First Knight

"Bella's Lullaby" Twilight

"Claire de Lune" Debussy, Oceans 11

"January Rain" David Grey, Serendipity Sountrack

"I am King, I shall lead" George Fenten, Anna and the King

"Battle of Little Roundtop" Gettysburg

I was once told by my mother, "if you dont use your talents, they will be taken away from you". I just hope Im not too late...

The Blue Lemon

The past couple days I have really been struggling with something to blog about. I know right! Can you believe it???? I just couldnt think of anything blogworthy to post. Then I have the pressure of posting something regularly for my readers. After all it had been 2 days since my last post :) Then tonight something FANTASTIC happened!!! My husband and I were invited to a VIP event to the Blue Lemon Restaurant. They just opened a new location in downtown Salt Lake directly across the street from the LDS Temple. Most Incredible location EVER!!!

This is one of my fave restaurants. If you havent been...GO! The Blue Lemon is amazing. LOVE IT! The food is a fresh, healthy, organic twist of YUMMINESS! If you know me I am not into healthy foods at all, yet the Blue Lemon is divine. Tonight I ordered a chicken and artichoke tomato entree. LOVED it!!!! It was a creamy red sauce on the plate, then a delicious mound of garlic mashed potatos, with a petit grilled chicken on top of that, topped with artichoke, and bell peppers. YUM! I wish I took a picture bc that is another unique plus with the Blue Lemon is their food presentation. Love it! We had such a great night with my husbands side of the family. And I just couldnt get over how beautiful this restaurant was. All the light fixtures throughout the entire place were incredible!!! Here are a few pictures of the new location in downtown SLC.
This is the view from the street. They have patio seating as well with these gorgeous fountains throughout the courtyard. I really should have taken more pictures. Dont worry I will go back soon. The atmosphere was incredible!

Just promise me one thing...when you go...and believe me you will want to go...you have to go to the bathroom. The chandelier in there is TO DIE FOR! Love it!

Redemption

I went to the ATT store today....Yep! I am not giving up that easy Apple Care PIECES OF TRASH!!! :) So I walk in tell them my situation and the sales guy asks for my cell # and says he will go get a manager to help me. He comes back out without his manager and continues to tell me how sorry he is and how "this must be so frustrating for me" SHPEEL! I just smile at him like "you gotta be kidding me" look. And then he says, "I know it may have been easy when you registered your Apple Care Protection Plan online you may have just glanced at the fine print and clicked accept. But bc you feel like you were mislead when you purchased the plan we are going to go ahead and refund you your $69.99. So ATT redeemed themselves! But Apple is still in the dog house. It still is going to cost me $200 to get my phone fixed or replaced. Such a joke! They refuse to fix the screen bc they say is will void my warranty bc the damage that may have occured to the software when it got dropped, sat on, stepped on, or who knows what happened to it during our Childs family picnic. But now that I have a $70 credit my phone would really be $130 but still...just one more of those random expenses you aren't expecting. Not fun! Nonetheless my trip down to Orem was a success I got my money back and they still let me keep the WORTHLESS Apple Care Protection Plan. So until my phone stops working or if $130 grows on one of our trees I will have to suffice with being content with my sad touchscreen.

Oh decisions...decisions...

Last night I went with a few of my girlfriends to go see "Letters to Juliet". Lets just say leave the hubby home on this one. As for me...I LIKED it! Amanda Seyfried is so cute! And I LOVE the Grandma in this movie, Vanessa Redgrave. She was such a doll. Sincere, loving, classy, and so determined to find her true love. To me the most important thing in a romantic film is chemistry between the 2 main characters. Bc without it the movie would be terrible! In this case, the chemistry between "grammy" and her Lorenzo was to die for. The way they looked at each other....ahhhhh....It was perfect!

HOWEVER! The chemistry between these two...not so much! It just wasnt there. I wont go into details about the movie bc you really should go see it. Or at least rent it. Its such a sweet love story. LOVE it! But Charlie and Sophie's relationship seemed so awkward. I was expecting something totally different with them especially since Amanda Seyfried had AMAZING chemistry with her man in Mama Mia.

True it might help that they were in swimsuits the whole time :) But their chemistry was unreal! I LOVE the scene where they are singing to each other "Lay all your love on me" Its so cute...and sexy...at the same time. If you havent seen Mama Mia it is definately a must! It is part of my collection at home and I strongly suggest if you see it $9.99 or under, snag it up!!! Yep, look at them...give them another 30 seconds and they will be laying down in the sand in no time. haha!Now for the big question: Where to go on vacation? Both of these movies will make you want to have a holiday BAD!!! So here are some pics for you to dream.

Will it be Italy??? Or Greece???

Oh decisions...decisions...

Everything in Life...You Can Learn from Greys!

Thursdays are great days. I LOVE that after the kids go to bed me and my sis get together on the couch and turn on the tvo with anticipation as we see what masterpiece our two favorite shows Greys Anatomy and Private Practice will deliver to us. LOVE them!!!! Yes, there is a lot of drama and "S". But every Thursday night I have learned yet another lesson from my Dr's at Seattle Grace as well as some useful medical terminology :)

Dr Bailey is a strong willed, no-nonsense, BLUNT, single mom, Resident. People often come to her for advice. However, her biggest pet-peeve is when the interns spill all of their petty problems to her especially when it has to do with their love affairs. Yet, she always has something fantastic to say...its usually brutal but its always exactly what they need to hear.

Lesson #1 Dr Torez (Callie) was struggling in her current relationship of wanting children and wondering when is the best time to start a family since this was something she is really passionate about. Bailey's response, "Never! Its never a good time to have kids! BUT its the best decision you can ever make. There is nothing better than waking up in the morning with your little child jumping into bed with you and snuggling up to his Mommy. It makes your heart melt. You ask when is it a good time? Never, would be my answer bc kids definately throw a wrench in the mix. But honestly I wouldnt want to have a life without my son. He's what makes my world worth living."

Lesson #2 There was a women who had been in a car accident and was pinned under her burning car. She was admitted into a burn unit for several months. During that time she met her best friend (another burn victim). The woman was coming to have a surgery to get hair implants bc her head was bald on one side from her bad burns. She was so excited to look "somewhat" normal but in her pre-op visit her Dr realized 3 of her fingers needed to be amputated which meant she would not be able to do her cosmetic surgery bc of her severe infection on her hand. Needless to say this devistated the woman! And her friend quickly responded, "We can do this! You need to be greatful to even be alive! We have each other. We will get past this" The woman responded with frustration, "Im losing 3 of my fingers!" Then her friend repeated, "We are so lucky to be here. We have each other. Be positive, look at the bright side..." Then Dr Bailey interrupts, "NO! No, you dont have to be positive. Your allowed to cry! You were coming here for an exciting surgery to give you your hair back and instead your losing 3 of your fingers. Its ok to be mad. Its ok you can cry! Tomorrow you can be happy! But today lets cry."

To sum it up:

I LOVE that I have 3 beautiful kids.

and

Its ok to cry today."Tomorrow you can be happy".

OMG!

"You make me wanna say, O...O...O...O...O...O...O...O...O...O...Oh...My...Gosh!" Yes, I am quoting my man Usher. Usher is definately my favorite celebrity out there. Love his voice, love the way he can dance, and I LOVE his lips! I am a lip girl. Most people like abs, muscles, dimples, butts...not me. I am obsessed with lips. And he has good ones just like my "other" man. But right now we are focused on Usher so back to him. :)

Last night an awful thing happened!!! My Iphone was out of my possession for 10 min while at a family picnic and I heard it ring so I go to my purse pick it up and what words come out of my mouth? OMG! My screen was totally cracked/shattered. Seriously! How the H did this happen????

No worries, right? BC I have the Apple Protection Plan. "It covers everything except water damage"...or so I was told. Long story short. I have been on the phone with Apple reps and ATT reps. Both are saying it will cost $199 to replace my phone. So why again did I drop the extra $50 on a protection plan that does nothing? Good question! So to wrap it up, I HATE the APPLE PROTECTION PLAN...YES...HATE IT! And if you know me I do not use this word lightly. So this is serious business. EW!

However, it will be ok. Why is everything gonna be ok you ask???? BC Usher Hearts me! :)

Beyoncé

I have always thought Beyonce is so beautiful. She is a great dancer, has gorgeous hair, AMAZING voice, rockin body, and she always seems so classy on awards shows. When I first heard her song "If I Were a Boy" on the radio I loved it right away. Not bc I understood what it was about but bc it was such a beautiful song. Well one day I wanted to know what she meant by "if I were a boy", so I YouTube'd it! Here is the video...Its pretty much a little mini movie where she is a police officer and compares 2 of her relationships: one with her boyfriend and the other with her partner at work. I LOVE this music video! And the ending is so not what you would expect. Its one of those story lines that make you really sympathize for one character and then in the end it all changes. Watch it! You will love it too.

Cancer...HATE it!

Breast Cancer Sucks! Well any Cancer sucks, but in this case I am focusing on the Breast. A good friend of mine recently had a Masectamy due to Breast Cancer and my friend Kelly and I decided to make her paystees to brighten her day. Afterall, who
wouldnt want a fun set of paystees to cheer you up!

We put them on clear bandaids to make them really POP! :) And yes those are dangly jingle bells. LOVE it!Cancer...Hate it! Paystees for a friend with no nipple...She LOVED it! And if you really want to go all out; here's an idea for Testicular Cancer....LOVE it!

Tony Stark and Sherlock Holmes

Why is the first post always the hardest!!! I have so much to say. What should I write about? Movie reviews, fashion finds, favorite song on the radio...hmmm. Im feeling so much pressure! :)

Ok here I go! Tony Stark...Robert Downey Jr. I love his characters he has been playing in movies lately. Iron Man 2: Love It! I love his "bordering narcisism". I love his dry humor. I love the fun relationship between him and Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow). She is so perfect for him. Just when he is about to get out of control she knows just what to do or say to put him in check. And you can tell he totally appreciates her and respects her input. I dont like Peppers new assistant however, Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johannson). She bugs! Ever since she cheated with a married man in "He Just Not That Into You" I cant stand her nastiness! But Iron Man 2...Dig it!

Sherlock Holmes: LOVE IT!!! I love how his mind works. He is a genius...a crazy genius but nonetheless a genius. The relationship between Sherlock and Watson is so much fun to watch. They are hillarious together! Again, Sherlock tends to get out of control and yet Watson is there to bring him back to reality and help him be more appropriate (just like Pepper with Tony Stark). Sherlock Holmes is now one of my top 5 favorite movies.

Im sure your just dying to know my top 5 favorite movies :) Well you will just have to stay tuned...