Christmas time and Amazing roommates

It is Christmas time at the Red Door house! We have a tree! It is the perfect little tree for our family room. Without any lights, it is cute, you've got to admit. (Especially that little reindeer in the middle right? Courtesy of my kindergarteners)

But when you turn the lights on, POW! Thanks to some LED lights we borrowed from Mom and Dad, this thing really shines.

It looks great :)

So, just to reiterate, I have really great roommates. It has been finals week at ASU and Monday night, as I was studying some more for law, Melissa, Cara and I were talking about brain foods and what can help your memory. We decided that blueberries and chewing gum were the ultimate aids.

And what did I wake up to the next morning? The cutest good luck note in the world and a pack of Blueberry Gum :)

I told you. They are awesome :)

Girls Night!

It was a a rough weekend for relationships here in the Red Door House. After a few ex-boyfriends began dating again and current boyfriends broke things off, we decided it was about time for a Girls Night In!

We had the works: ice cream, pizza, brownies, no bake cookies, and, most importantly, chick flicks. We watched Steel Magnolias and He's Just Not That Into You.

Before the festivities began, I had some of my 5th graders make a "no boys allowed!" sign, which we proudly have displayed on our front door :)

All I want for Christmas is...

A working alarm clock!

This morning marked the 7th time since I moved into the Red Door House that my alarm has not gone off and I nearly slept through my day.

I was up late last night working on Spanish homework, and then Melissa, Kara, Tarina and I had a little pow wow in my room. So, I was super sleepy to begin with.

But, I made sure to check my alarm clock and reset it so I would not be late for my Spanish test this morning.

Alas, I failed to listen to the little voice in my head that said "Set your phone alarm too." But fortunately for me, Heaven smiled on me again and someone (miracle of miracles) was up and making noise upstairs at 6:30. As they walked down the creaky stairs to turn on the heater (because yes, it was freezing) I sat bolt upright and flew out of bed. In my nonsensical rush, I failed to realize that taking a shower would just make my morning more difficult. I didn't make the connection until I was already wet. O well. Wet hair for one day won't kill me. It was chilly though!

But, through Grace I made it to a 7:30 exam with clean hair and an even mind. (And fortunately I didn't put pen on my eyes either. As I was quickly putting on some makeup in my room, I accidentally grabbed my Capitol Times pen and held it up to my face! Thankfully, I was a little more cognisant this time around.)

The end of the semester always kills me ha ha

Youtube-ing it

So, after a great day of family and more food than I really should have eaten, I packed up some leftovers and headed out to my car. Then, after a second thought, I ran back inside to take with me a few of my Christmas cd's. (It was after dinner, so officially acceptable to be playing Christmas music. You won't catch me listening anytime sooner!)

I took my Michael Crawford cd and, feel free to laugh, my John Denver: Christmas with the Muppets cd. It's strange, and very juvenile. But I love it :) Nothing rings in the holiday season quite like a four part round of "Christmas is Coming" by Miss Piggy, Scooter, Gonzo and Robin!

It has put me in a very Muppet mood.

This afternoon, as I was working on my last story for the Cap Times, I got stuck on a line and started dinking around on the web, checking my various emails. First, I watched (again) a video of Rep. Ray Barnes giving a very bizarre speech on the floor during special session. Always makes me laugh. If politics amuses you, check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/ArizonaCapitolTimes

After checking my little used Yahoo account, I saw a news clip that talked about a hit Muppet viral video. So of course I had to click.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgbNymZ7vqY

I laughed so hard! It was fantastic :) I hope you enjoy and get a good side ache!

Leggo my Eggo!

So I read this article on azcentral.com that said the Kellogg company, due to plant complications, will face a shortage of Eggo waffles next year.
My first thought was to Kyle. He eats 3 or 4 Eggos in one sitting. They are a staple in the Macdonald house. So I texted him the news. I said what are you going to do?!
This was his response: "Hahaha I guess I'll go hungry. This is indeed a sad day in the eyes of breakfast fans."
Oh brothers.

Day Off

Holidays in the middle of the week are definitely my cup of tea. I managed to get the day off from the Capitol Times and spent the day catching up on homework and reading, but also go to lunch with my mom, grandparents, and two aunts :) Cafe Rio! yum. They toured the Red Door House to see all our unique features. It's a great place, we love it, but it has it's quirks! Like our very bright kitchen...

We're hoping to paint the walls soon and maybe stain the cabinets. Please send any decorating tips our way! :)
This morning, after cleaning the kitchen, my roommate Tarina and I found out that the toaster didn't feel like toasting anymore. Or at least it wouldn't toast on it's own. We had to stand there and hold the button down to keep the bread down. But someone else must have a toaster because this little thing popped up a few hours later:

My friend Holly also came over today to see the place and brought me the cutest housewarming gift. She knows how much of a salsa lover I am ;)

She's so sweet :)

New Home Sweet Home

I'm all moved in! After a rapid house search, I found a great place in Tempe. I'm super close to campus (4 minutes to school rather than 25!), the freeway and half an hour closer to Phoenix. What a difference that makes!

I am living with 5 other LDS girls in a big, six-bedroom house, (fondly known as the Red Door House) and we are getting along great. Our newest roommate just moved in Friday. I am the only one from the Valley, the other girls are from St. Johns, AZ, OR, WA, ID, and CA. Four of us are students and two just recently graduated.

I like Tempe; it has a very community, neighborhood feel. They have several large libraries (one across the street. Woo Hoo!), farmers markets and events at the Lake frequently. Yesterday, I read that to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of the Lake, renting kayaks, paddle boats and small rowboats is free for a period of time on Saturdays. We missed it yesterday, but are planning on going boating next week!

Sundays we have decided to hold roommate breakfasts, so we get at least one day a week to all eat together. In the evenings it's always hit or miss to see who's home for dinner.

Apparently, our house is infamous in the ward. We're all new to the house and ward, but the Red Door House has quite the reputation. So far, we've discovered that previous tenants threw good parties, but weren't too fond of cleaning. The latter has definitely changed. We're all neat freaks around here, which is appreciated :)

Since I moved in on Monday we have:

- cheered on a successful University 4th Ward softball team

- celebrated a birthday at Organ Stop Pizza

- accidentally killed two carnival-won goldfish

- and decorated Halloween cookies to ding-dong-ditch (even though it's post-Halloween)

More adventures to come!