I was tired

I went to Washington DC in November (which was a pretty good month for me work-wise... because I didn't really do much of it). As per usual, I seriously neglected the picture taking detail, so I don't have much to show for it.   

My friend/cousin/co-worker Cass came with me, which was awesome! This is in Alexandria, VA where we actually stayed.

 

The last time I went to DC, I posted about how much I love Mr. Lincoln, and I still love him just as much, so here are two pictures of Abe. They are basically the same pictures as before, just from this new trip:

 

 

We saw the front and back side of the White House (not because we were over zealous, we were just a little lost).  

 

 

Walked our aces off on the way to Union Station. Which I LOVE.

(And my hair looks EXTRA Bieber-ish here. My apologies.)

Posed with Obama. 

 

Visited the breathtaking Arlington National Cemetary.

 

Felt so overwhelmingly patriotic and appreciative as a soldier played Taps at the Tomb of The Unknowns. It was so beautiful.

 

And that's it. Well, not really because we saw lots more, but that's all I have picutes of. Almost.

 

Cass had never been to DC before so we wanted to maximize our time there as tourists, and booked our flights accordingly. We took the red-eye to JFK to fly into Reagan early in the morning. This is how I spent our layover in JFK:

 

Facedown on the concrete floor. Yeah, I was real tired.

Bavarian Sugar Cookies and also -time in

As Harold took a bite of Bavarian sugar cookie, he finally felt as if everything was going to be ok. Sometimes, when we lose ourselves in fear and despair, in routine and constancy, in hopelessness and tragedy, we can thank God for Bavarian sugar cookies. And, fortunately, when there aren't any cookies, we can still find reassurance in a familiar hand on our skin, or a kind and loving gesture, or subtle encouragement, or a loving embrace, or an offer of comfort, not to mention hospital gurneys and nose plugs, an uneaten Danish, soft-spoken secrets, and Fender Stratocasters, and maybe the occasional piece of fiction. And we must remember that all these things, the nuances, the anomalies, the subtleties, which we assume only accessorize our days, are effective for a much larger and nobler cause. They are here to save our lives. I know the idea seems strange, but I also know that it just so happens to be true. And, so it was, a wristwatch saved Harold Crick. (Stranger Than Fiction)

One more time:

And we must remember that all these things, the nuances, the anomalies, the subtleties, which we assume only accessorize our days, are effective for a much larger and nobler cause. They are here to save our lives.

Now, I'm on the look out for some cookies, ya hear!?

Also, this post could have been done at least 10,000 times different and better than this, but you get what you get, and you don't have a fit.

Timeout

I'm calling a blogging timeout. (Sorry Maga, we will just have to catch up on the phone, or in person)

I missed these posts, but please know:

I love my dad and all of the good men in my life.
I love America.
I am still trying to wrap my head around Jessie having a baby (this post may still come later).
I am really enjoying cooking/baking right now.
I may never be done with school.

For any other news that I may be a part of, please see Kalie's blog. She is way better at documenting things than I am anyway.

Check ya later.

My Team

I ran a half marathon. Me. Lacey Johnson. I ran a half marathon. Nobody ran it for me, I did it all by my grown-up self.  I NEVER would have thought that 13.1 miles was even a remote possibility. I am a SSSLLLLOOOOWWWW runner and I don't look the least bit graceful as I run, but I ran. It was a really hard thing, and I didn't even quit. So take that! I even took 2235th place! Ha!

The whole time I was training I kept saying that "running just isn't my thing." And guess what, it still isn't. But do you want to know the stupidest part about it all??...
I will do it again. I don't have the next one planned yet, nor do I have plans to plan one, but I'll be back to beat my 2:52 time.

My purpose of this post is mostly to talk about my team, though. After running for nearly 3 hours, with every piece of my body begging me to stop and the finish line so close, I saw (and heard) my loved ones standing along the final stretch, cheering me on with signs and all. This was the expression on my face:

I don't think there is any question as to the emotions I was feeling at that exact moment, and I don't feel that I could or should put words to those emotions. I did a hard thing, and there they were, exactly where I needed them.

My team. The best team in my whole world! (including those who were there in spirit)

Thank you for being there.

Momma J

I'm a little slow on the trend (what's new, right?), so here is my tribute blog to my mother for Mother's Day.

We always (like ALWAYS) give my mom grief for being kind of a nut job, but really that is one of her best qualities. It allows her to be light hearted, and wildly creative, and inventive, and unconforming. On top of all that she can be seriously hilarious with her out of the blue comments and "crazy talk".

I am continually amazed at my mother's talent and her fearlessness in trying something new. Anything from making hair bows and baby clothes, to operating heaving machinery and welding; she is certainly unafraid, and masters the task spectacularly. It seems every type of project she attempts turns out near perfect (if she can find the time to finish it, that is).

She is by far and away the most accepting and loving person I know. She will make friends with the massage therapist, the girl in line with her at the store, and the boy sitting next to her on the plane. Not just have a friendly encounter with them, but a "bare your soul and tell your life story" kind of thing. She loves everyone and always wants to help people. She has an incredible heart and she loves us with the whole thing, leaving nothing for herself.

She really is wonderful. Somedays I fear that I am "turning into my mother", but the truth is that I would be quite lucky to have that happen. I could use a whole lot more of her qualities!

Love you Mom.

1,001...

It's fine. I will just keep eating them. Don't you worry about me.

If...

... you wanted to know what is happening in my life, just read here:

Post Stealer Max

I guess if your camera takes the pictures, your blog gets the posts.... lesson learned.

Also, I suppose I could just step it up and get my own things to blog about, huh? 2nd lesson learned.

The Week of 1,000 Donuts

This hysterical pregnancy thing is getting a little out of control... I may be inches away from a padded cell.

I'm feeling emotional, thicker around the middle, sleepy all the time, etc. etc. etc.

Plus I have eaten like a MONSTER lately! And by monster, I mostly mean goat, because all I have eaten is garbage. Delicious garbage, but garbage nonetheless.

We were out of milk for my usual Instant Breakfast drink, so what did I have instead??? Chocolate mousse pie. 2 days in a row. For breakfast.

After running my scheduled mid-week runs, what do I want? Fast food of course. And not any small amount of it.

I have eaten more donuts this week than the last 8-12 months combined. They have just been so readily available and apparently I have NO self control. Banbury Cross.... seriously.

The list goes on. It's embarrassing, and yet as I write this, all I want is another donut......

To prove that I am still an actual person, Kalie and I went to the Eternal Jazz game on Monday. We had a great time and also wanted to poke our eyes out by the 3rd OT.

BTW- I feel that I have a legitimate excuse for the hysterical pregnancy, and you shall all know it soon.

Hair Yesterday, Gone Today

It finally happened.

This:

Please excuse the crazy eyes.... I don't really have an explanation for that.

Minus this:

Equals this:

(stupid bathroom, cell phone, myspace pics)

Easter outfits with new Easter hairs.

In total, it was somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 inches cut off. I can't believe my hair ever got that long! Yay for Spring and change and new hairs!

Successfully Lented

I gave up soda for lent, and without counting my unhatched chickens, I am feeling pretty good about finishing strong for these last 4 days.

It was more difficult that I had anticipated, but mostly I think that was because of the lack of options. Water and juice are great, but sometimes all you need is a nice tall Fountain Dew.

Because Lent is 46 days long, and the fast of Christ was 40 days, supposedly you get to have 6 cheat days (which I think are technically supposed to be on Sunday's for "mini Easters"). I didn't even use all my cheat days! Which surprised me.

Finally, I really didn't notice a difference in my body or health after 42 days of no soda, so I am taking that to mean that I was well within the healthy limits in my soda intake, and thereby am perfectly fine to go back to drinking it after Easter. So there.

But it still feels good to know that I did it. I could totally be Catholic.

Also, half-marathon training only seems to be getting harder..... dang.

Doin It

Here we go! Also, I realize this image can be slightly misleading.... hence the highlights...

And Talented Sister

We love parties. I think it might be genetic.

Kalie threw a little St. P's Day dinner party and I'd like to show you how great she is:

This is her door decoration that changes for each holiday. Green felt shamrocks (made by Kalie) for March, of course.

These are the green decorations. Kalie was SO excited to make a green paper chain that she made at least 1,000 feet of it. We used it all over the apartment.

She printed off festive bottle wrappers and put them over Cream Soda and Root Beer bottles. It was super cute. Then of course green treats (cupcakes with green frosting, and mint chocolate cookies, made by her friend Emma).

Me slaving away in the kitchen. Kalie actually glazed her own ham and it couldn't have turned out better! Watch out Honeybaked! I love that we are actually turing into real people, who cook real things. It's fun.

Oh and also, I made brussell sprouts. I think they turned out pretty well for still being brussel sprouts.

The adorable place settings. Each person had their own sack of lucky gold coins. We drank lime sorbet drink with the cutest little flag straws. (They were my favorite part)

The whole table. We were certainly cozy.


The female attendees and Hostess with the Mostest.

Good work Kalie Walie, thanks for letting me come to your party.

I don't want to be anyone else...

... I just want to be me.

Talented Mother

My Mother. There are a lot of times when- though I love her- I have to just shake my head and smile. And no matter how crazy I think she is some days, she is undeniably one of THE most talented people I know. We did a wedding a few weeks ago, it was beautiful, and my mom was the one with the vision. See below for evidence:


Cafe lights can make pretty much any area feel magical.

I love you crazy Katie Mom. You do good work.

Oh, and I guess I should probably congratulate the bride and groom, Ed and Rachel... so Congratulations!

Compliments and Thank yous

Waiting for me in my inbox this morning was a less than friendly email from a disgruntled client, complete with multiple exclamation marks following his very adamant demand (I don't handle those very well [the mean emails, that is, not the exclamation marks]).

I thought to myself "What a great way to start off the day..."

After going about my business with a somewhat defeated attitude, I received this email:

Lacey-
You are so nice. Your customer service and willingness to help set the bar. You are patient and always do your best to help. As I go through life, occasionally I meet people who are examples of goodness. They remind me that I need to do my best to help others. You are one of those people!
Thanks!
Steve

Now, this post is in no way meant to publicly pat myself on the back, because everyone knows that is an embarrassing action, like unto trying to lick your own elbow, or giving a "round of applause" like your cheesy elementary school teacher.

Anyways, my point is that this small action (probably taking no more than 2 minutes of this man's time) made me feel great about myself and changed my outlook for at least the rest of the day, and I'm willing to bet even longer than that.

Therefore, my February New Year's Resolution (BTW, I'm pretty sure I just had a stoke of sheer genius.... instead of only having resolutions in January, I'm going to make one-or more-each month!!! I'm brilliant! AND I already know what March's will be! Yes!) will be to more freely express my compliments and thank yous. It takes only a second, but can make such a difference for someone. I would love to make a difference for lots of someones.

I think maybe I will buy a pack of Thank You cards and see how fast I can use them all... I love an excuse to buy cute stationary!

Destination Shopping

Little Salt Lake is putting itself on the retail map as of late, and while I am thrilled that we are becoming less obscure, it is kind of killing destination shopping for me.

When I travel somewhere, as a general rule, I like to stay away from shops and restaurants that we also have at home. It makes the experience of a new place much more rich. No McDonald's or American Eagle while I'm abroad.

Having said that, there are places that I will visit each time I am in the area. For example: I will eat at a Which Wich any and every time there is one available, or shop at The Container Store whenever I am near one.

Forever 21
In -n- Out
The Cheesecake Factory
H & M
Crate and Barrel
Tiffany's
etc.

All places that I really enjoyed elsewhere. I am happy to have them here, but I guess that means I will have to expand my destination shopping horizons....

And just because no one likes to read a blog with no pictures, here is a picture of a suit of armor at the MET. Completely irrelevant, but cool nonetheless.

I guess not

I thought I was one of a kind, but apparently I'm not.



This is not a mirror. It is another girl. She shared my long-dark-braided hair, exact same white coat, and even though you can't see it- skinny pants inside of boots, a rose gold watch AND red glitter nails. No joke.

It was slightly alarming and very entertaining.