You can BUY ladybugs?

I came home from work a couple of days ago and did the usual check of my garden. I picked any weeds I saw and complimented my amazing veggies on their hard work and then bent down to look at my tomatoes...THERE WERE DISGUSTING PURPLE BUGS ON MY PLANT LEAVES!!!! I immediately freaked out and called my dad. He told me to take my problem and a leaf to a professional. I tore off a leaf and went to Zamzows. After all "nobody knows like Zamzows"! (Hehehe to those of you who got my joke).

After I walked into the store and found a worker, I told them of my problem and showed my leaf. The lady hhhmmmed and told me that I had a couple of options. She said they had some spray that I could use and it would kill them, or I could get some ladybugs to eat them. The Zamzow lady recommended the ladybugs because they were less harmful on the plant and later the harvest. Me, being the nerd that I am, asked how I was going to get ladybugs. She turned around and opened the mini fridge behind her and pulled out a small sour cream sized container full of ladybugs. The container had about 100 ladybugs to eat all of our "aphids" as she called them. She gave us instructions on how to place them and then we were off.

So, for those of you who did not understand the title of my blog, you really can buy ladybugs. They just cost a pretty penny. Ladybugs aren't cheap.

Those ladybugs ate our aphids and now we are in business. I sure hope that we have beautiful red tomatoes to eat. I LOVE TOMATOES!!!

Happy Birthday to ME!

For my birthday, Stephen got me a mountain bike. It has been so much fun to just ride where ever I want. On the day of my birthday we went mountain biking with Krystal and Shane. To help you get a better picture of this, imagine the most athletic, in-shape, outdoorsy couple you can and that is my sister and brother-in-law. I hadn't been biking in about three years and my first ride was with them.

Shane led us up a mountain behind their house (I know...we're in Boise and there are NO mountains, but pushing myself up that thing sure felt like it). I think I rode my bike about sixty percent of the time. Fifty percent was the downhill portion. You do the math on how much I was on the bike going up. It was rough.

All in all, it was a lot of fun, but I am WAY out of shape in the biking area. Stephen and I have been running three times a week to prepare for our 5K, but that didn't seem too help. Biking uses all different kinds of muscles.

My man, The Piano Man.

For Stephen's birthday I got him a beginners piano book with some flash cards. Let me just tell you...this guy is AMAZING! We're going to be playing cool duets in no time!

This is what our first lesson consisted of: learning the notes.

FACE = face
EGBDF = Every Good Boy Does Fine
ACEG = All Cars Eat Gas

And finally this is what Stephen came up with. I don't think he'll forget this one.

GBDFA = Good Boys Don't Fart Aloud

How many people does it take to operate a balloon launcher?

Four.

Two to hold the cords tight.
One to pull the balloon back.
One to drive the get-away car.

Turkey Burgers for 5K

So....as a few of you may know, Stephen and I are running a 5K in September. I know, I know, it's only 3.1 miles, BUT you don't know how out of shape Stephen and I are. We have officially started training. Last week was our first week of dedication. We ran on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday. My legs are SO sore, but I feel great! I love that "I'm so sore and tired that I want to scream" feeling. Don't you?

To help in our workout, we've tried to eat a little bit healthier. In Winco I found these frozen turkey burgers on sale. I know what you are thinking, disgusting, right? We fired up the grill last night to try them out. After opening them and sticking them on the grill, we had some serious doubts. They looked like squished up pieces of bologna. Yeah, not very appetizing.

Five minutes later they came off the grill and were doused with mayo, mustard, ketchup, tomatoes, lettuce, and a bun. We were hoping that if they were disgusting, we could at least cover up the taste. Stephen took the first bite. Chewed for a minute...and said, "Wow! They're not too bad! I actually think I like them." I tentatively took a bite. They were good! They were a little different from hamburgers, but they had a really good taste! POWER TO THE TURKEY BURGERS!!!

The Weekenders

Stephen and I are getting really good at these weekend trips. We went to Utah this weekend to be with Stephen's grandpa as he went through the temple for the first time. Stephen's grandpa is the coolest guy. He is always so chipper and happy! He also has a great sense of humor. Ever since I met him, he has teased me. When we saw him on Thursday I gave him a big hug and asked, "Are you excited?"

Grandpa responded, "Ever since you walked in the door!" Wow...it's good to have a grandpa around again.

Home

I moved out of my parents house about eight years ago. Ever since then I have still considered that my home. Through the many places that I traveled over those years, I always said that my parents place was my home. On Tuesday night we had a gathering of women in my church, otherwise known as Enrichment. We went to another sisters' house, went swimming, and ate salads and desserts. While I was there, I realized something. I have finally found and cultivated my own home. It's a weird feeling...growing up.

Midnight Adventures

At 11:30pm, I was still awake last night. My mind was crammed full of ideas and it refused to shut down. Therefore, I was awake to witness Stephen at work.

Stephen sat straight up in bed and said, "Did you see that?"

I ignored him thinking that he was talking in his sleep.

He said it again, "Did you see that?"

I then asked him in a whisper, "Are you awake?"

With his full voice he replied, "Yes I'm awake. Did you see those kids?" He laid back down next to me. "They were trying to shoot me with the staple gun! They had it backwards and were shooting it...." He was asleep.

I guess when we reupholstered our kitchen chairs last weekend with the staple gun he was a little traumatized. I love my hubby! Isn't he entertaining?

cOUpoNs

As per the title of my blog, I have become a coupon clipper. This is a giant leap for me. A few of you may know from previous posts that I HATE grocery shopping. Well, this coupon clipping thing has allowed the greatest opportunity of all. More time at the grocery store.

Last night at 9:30pm, I tried my luck with the fabulous double coupons at Albertsons. It didn't really go that well, but Stephen was there to hold my hand the whole way. I tend to freak out and overreact to things like this. I made it away with a few good deals, but not anything great. For those of you who are experts at this so called craze...PLEASE!!!!....just give me a hint on how to do this whole thing!

HOA

This was an acronym that I had never heard before I moved to Boise. Now I am about to become an expert. The current Home Owners Association in our subdivision is kind of non-existent. We are currently in the process of establishing our HOA to hopefully get things the way that we want it.

Last night we had our first HOA meeting with the builder who bought the subdivision and first started to build. He is currently the "president" of our HOA because it is just getting started. At our meeting we met a lot of really cool people that live in our subdivision. You could tell from the complaints that we were all on the same page. We'll get this thing whipped into shape soon...

Stephen and I arrived at the meeting right on time. About 20 minutes into the meeting I realized that I had at least came prepared for Stephen...he was bored. Handing over my pen and paper, he began to draw. I whispered to him, "You have the attention span of a five year old." Stephen began to eat the animal crackers that I had brought for a snack.

The only thing Stephen listened to was an older gentleman in the back. The man raised his hand and after being called on asked if anyone had met the owner of the landscaping business that took care of out lots. He then proceeded to explain the personality of this man, "HE IS A BOOB!!" Stephen began to giggle. I'm serious. He was giggling. For the rest of the night Stephen ran around the house saying, "HE'S A BOOB!!" and would then giggle...I have now become the mother of a five year old.