Gary and I had surprises waiting for us at home this New Year's Eve. Courtesy of the old New Year's Man.
I got some new pajamas and a New Year's shirt! Such good taste he has.
Gary got his new favorite movie Wall E and an Acai drink! Yummy!
Happy New Year! The adventures of Marci... Well if anyone has ever met my wife you would know that sometimes she likes to speak her mind when certain things happen. Today at the Fashion Place Mall was no exception, to the mind numbingly hilariousness of my wonderful wife.
We had decided to meet my family this afternoon at the Mall, to shop like so many other million Americans do the day after Christmas. We had called ahead and found out that everyone was shopping the sales in Nordstroms, so that is where we headed when we arrived. As we approached the jam packed store, we wondered if we would ever find our family in the midst of the masses of shoppers, trying to find the best deals. During our search, we passed a group of hoodlums wearing darker clothing, speaking loud profanities, and one of them had his mouth stitched up like Frankenstein. Either the kid had been in a bad snowboarding accident or maybe he had what was coming to him from another punk kid. I didn't think much of this particular group intially, and we pressed on to find our family. After sometime we eventually found them all and had a wonderful reunion as usual. We talked and laughed, then Marci and I decided we would journey on to Fossil to find a watch for her.
As we left the store there stood the three hoodlums that I had seen earlier, they were standing in the middle of the mall messing around. When suddenly one of the boys (not zipper mouth), proceeded to punch the only girl standing with them in the breast. The girl screamed out "ouch", and fought back taking a swing at the boy, trying to make him pay for his actions. When out of no where my wife pointed at the young punk and said rather forcefully "that was disrespectful young man!!" The "young man", to his defense yelled out "she did it first!" as we walked swiftly away from them. I was unsure what to say or think at this moment, (the speaking part was hard anyways since I had lost my voice from a cold a couple days earlier) but it was done. My wife did her best to hold back the laughter, but was unsuccessful in so doing, we laughed together, I don't think she even realized what she had done. I'm so proud of her that she stood up for the girl in the mall today. And now I know that, if I ever did something of the sort I would be repremended 10 fold.
So watch out you little punk kids you never know whose going to call you out for your stupid actions...
Christmas Eve was spent at Granny Blanche's. Gary and I helped clean her house to get ready for the mob that would arrive later. Here's my mom and her mom.
I love these girls! Cali, Mitzi and Brooke. I miss spending lots of time with them! It was great to see them.
Christmas morning, my parents hosted breakfast. I love the look on Dallin's face! Classic.
My parents cookin' away. Bob has such a nice smile.
We spent the night at Gary's parents on Christmas Eve. The game we got for Cheryl was lots of fun!
Here's Hali sporting her East High get up. Go Wildcats! (She's older than me)
Gary looks so cute in his new shirt!
It was so fun seeing Calvin and Jace open their presents! Cutest boys ever!
Jace got everything he asked for: a hot dog and a 4-wheeler. Oddly enough, he seemed more excited about the hot dog.
DeeEll in action.
Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas! We love you!
And it MUST BE SAID, I kicked everyone's trash at bowling on the Wii!!! It's really not rocket science.
My first attempt at a Christmas tree. Everything you see in this picture was handcrafted by yours truly. There is even some sparkly red pipe cleaners in there. Once the ornaments go on sale after Christmas, I'll try and make a professional one for next year.
Last night was the Miller family Christmas party! Santa even showed up and I made out with him later...Gary was no where to be found.
This next picture may cause severe retinal damage. Sweet grandma Miller bought all us chicks in the Fifield Clan matching pajama pants! They really are comfortable if you ask me, though we haven't really come to a conclusion on what they are made of. I vote for polyester potato sacks.
Last but not least, here is DeeEll in his prime by the end of the night.
This is the workings of a man in love. Every morning, Gary sets out 3 tablets of Vitamin D because he thinks I'm D deficient, and an airtight packet of multi vitamins. Every time I complain of an ache or pain or ailment, he tells me to take a vitamin. I forget (or don't care) to take them, so he has to leave them out to remind me. He wants me to be healthy, and I don't think he'd encourage me to live longer if he didn't love me.
Today was my work's Christmas luncheon where all the employees reeived their bonus over a plate of salmon. I wasn't expecting ANYTHING because I have only worked for them for 6 days. But, much to my enjoyment, a little white envelope was placed in front of me! I was thinking it would just be a gift card for a free Jamba Juice, but again, I was surprised to find that I too had received the same bonus as everyone else! It was so generous of them and I have been so happy about it. They really are great people to work for. I'm told on a daily basis by someone that they are glad I'm there and that they appreciate all I do. Here are the girls whose company I have been frequenting during the work day. Melissa, Brooke, Brie and me!
One of my favorite things about Winter time, is the abundance of almonds, walnuts, and oranges. During this season, I average at least 2 oranges a day. Something about them makes me so happy! Also, I love getting almonds and walnuts in their shells, in bulk. I'll sit on my living room floor with a bag of them, just cracking away! Sadly, those are quite a bit more pricey than the oranges so I don't eat them as often or in large quantities. Dee-lish!
My first day of work I was asked by my co-worker Brooke if I would like to go bell ringing with her. Without asking what she was talking about, I said yes. After committing before even knowing, I thought I had better get some details. Brooke had volunteered to ring a bell in front of an Albertson's tonight for the Salvation Army, and needed someone to be with her. I was actually really excited! One of my favorite things to do is service projects so this was right up my alley! It turned out to be really fun and it was so interesting to be on the other side of the situation. One thing I found was that more men were willing to give than women. I wondered if they were drawn to me by my outfit...then I saw the picture and realized that was not the case. And yes, I did say Merry Christmas to everyone that passed me. 
Winter is upon us. Icy, arctic, bitter, Winter. I scraped about 4 and a half inches of ice off my car windows this morning. Here is Gary, adorned by 2 Alpaca scarves and 1 Alpaca hat. Courtesy of Peru (Rick). And yes, his eyes are really that blue. No colored contacts.
I don't have email, a badge, a login account, or scrubs yet, but even with those things missing, I'm a much happier camper already. The people are nice, the doctors are nice, and I'm enjoying waking up conscious again. I'm climbing a lot of stairs, making my way from the admin office to the clinic a few times a day, so my thighs are in some kind of muscular funk. My boss is too nice and one of the docs brought me a cookie that tasted a lot like sugar paradise. Hurray for day 2nd!
The end! I'm done with working at HCA and I just finished a bag of peanut M&M's...BEST DAY EVER! I'm feeling superb about this decision to switch jobs. Of course I'll miss everyone...as well as the fridge stocked with free Diet Coke and Propel Water, but I will not miss the job!
I'm pretty sure my husband is hot, and I'm pretty sure he knows it. Look at these candid photos Neil took of him during our outing to Gardner Village. Yes I said candid. This is how Gary is naturally, in any setting, at every moment of the day. Pure Vogue if you ask me. He should be a Victoria's Secret model. 
Here is the gang at Buca di Beppo. Gary, me, Felicia and Neil. We're not a real gang with dew rags or anything. We just like to eat at Buca's. Granted the service is wretched at the one on Fort Union but the food makes us happy, as well as the company of the Larsons.
Shout out to my sisters! Candice on the left, Stacey on the right. Here we are at Thanksgiving dinner surrounded by the pies that Stacey made. She made them all! She's a culinary genious! Candice is doing some type of "look at me" pose...which is actually about right.
I have been the queen of impending doom the past while. The reason for my misery has been my job. I took the job because it was an amazing opportunity and I would learn things I'd always wanted, and be involved in some really important things in the company. My boss was someone I had worked with prior, and recruited me for the job. I really enjoyed working for him and actually doing all the things I was hired to do. Then things took a downward spiral. They put me in charge of credentialing (I won't even try to explain), which I had experience in, but absolutely loathed doing. Slowing it took over my entire job, and eventually it sucked all the happiness out of my life. I tried to keep a positive attitude and just be grateful that I had a job in this economy. But really, it was so depressing. I was sick and miserable with it all. I wasn't actively searching for a new job, but then one fell into my lap! My good friend Brie is leaving for a mission in February, and her employer needs to replace her. And who better to replace her, than someone who already knows how to do the job, knows the system they work on, and knows the boss personally as well?? ME!! So I met with them right away, and right away they offered me a job where I KNOW I'll be much happier. It's like the weight of the world is off my shoulders. So today, I actually smiled and meant it. And then Gary came home from work with some flowers!! The note said he wanted to do something nice for me during such a crazy time. He's been really supportive during all this and I adore him! YAY FOR ME!!
Thursday night Gary and I went to the Trans Siberian Orchestra concert, and I lost my sight, hearing, and my voice. I wish I would have lost my sense of smell because of the rather large, unbathed man in front of us. Apart from the hinderance on my senses, I had a wonderful time! They were absolutely amazing and the lighting in the show was nothing like I had ever seen before. There were pyro-technics, lasers and lights so bright that I regretted not taking my sunglasses. I don't have pictures because they weren't allowed. The only thing I have to show for my good time is the voice that comes out of my mouth, that sounds something akin to an old man on quaadludes.
I'm not the most crafty person in the world, but lack of funds has forced me to create my own home decor. You've seen the "BOO" blocks that I did, and they worked for me, so I just did the exact same thing for Fall with some cute paper.
Now, Christmas is coming and turns out, it costs a butt load to decorate a tree...so yes... I am making my own ornaments. There will be more than just the two pictured below, but the basic theme of our tree is red and white and green and all types of Winter and Christmas stuff suffocating the tree to death. And it's all going to be sparkly!!
I told Marisa many moons ago that I would post a picture of my purple purse that I kind of splurged on and got in a little bit of trouble for. Yes, that's correct, it's an $80 purse. (I got it for $40...ha!) And while it's not exactly runway worthy, it's a darn cute purse in my opinion. But then I found out that a couple of 60-something year old women in my office collect the same brand of purse...meaning they scout these purses out and change them up everyday to match their sweaters with the scottie dogs and apples on them. One lady is up to 27 of these purses in all shapes, colors, and sizes. What I'm trying to say is that had I not bought this purse, then they would have bought it for themselves. So now I'm wondering, am I behind in the times or are my co workers too cool for school? You be the judge.
So...I just don't know what to do. I never wanted to go private, and then I did for a bit, but then I changed my mind, and now with all of this hollabaloo, I just don't know now!! I mean, we all knew the web was never the safest place to share anything personal, but for crying out loud, do we all really have to go private?? I'm torn, stay tuned for my next move...
4th Picture in the 4th Folder Tag!
This picture makes me so happy! It's my 2 nephews, Peyton and Jace. Jace is the one holding the sword with the excited look on his face, and Peyton is the one who has just been smitten by Jace's lethal blow! And at the top you can see my other nephew Calvin's little leg trying to excape. Cutest boys ever!
I never know who to tag so it's up for grabs!
This last Saturday I was introduced to Girls Day Out by the female members of Gary's Family. Gary's mom bought our Halloween t-shirts to wear for the day, as well as a cute Halloween bracelet. Here is Hali, me and Cheryl at Archibald's in Gardner Village. I had the enchilada salad. Excellent. You may be wondering about my cheesy smile in this picture. Well, Hali was rubbing my leg under the table and it took me by surprise. 
This is all of the girls. We happened to be at Gardner Village the same day as Witches Weekend, and it was SO crowded!! So we spent the rest of the day at Tai Pan (I had never been) and the Fashion Place Mall. It was really a lot of fun and I love my inlaws!
Given my current state, having the flu and a whole day off work, I thought I would post the last of our trip to DC. I can't bring myself to do a lot of commentary today so I hope pictures will be sufficient.
Gary and I got put in the stocks in Colonial Williamsburg. I didn't think it was warranted.
This is us dressed in the traditional garb. Gary's face makes me laugh.
I truly enjoyed the National Art Gallery. This was one of my favorites!
Our day in Gettysburg was quite enlightening, thanks to the historical insight of my father in law.
Beautiful fall leaves!
Best part of the entire trip! Hershey's Chocolate World! I have never been so happy in my entire life.
And singing cows!
We love chocolate!
