I Know You, I Walked With You Once Upon A Dream...

Anyone who knows me well knows I am addicted to US Magazine! It's a pleasure I 'fess up to willingly. I am star-struck, what can I say? Every year I watch the Oscars, then pore over the magazine to check out in close detail what each star debuted as her gown for the evening. I have dreamt of evening gowns (literally!) since I can remember. Too bad I don't know how to sew or I might have been tempted to be a gown designer! The flowing chiffons, the shiny satins, the bedecked and bejeweled--love them all! So, it was with great excitement that I learned Shayne and I had received an invitation to attend the Governor's "Moonstruck" Gala--and the dress required? Black-tie! I didn't even get to wear a long formal gown for my prom! Needless to say, I was stoked! After searching all over for a dress (a little less fun when you realize modesty isn't exactly "red carpet"), I was really happy to find a beautiful black dress complete with ruffle and rhinestones (my two favorite fashion obsessions of late!) Throw in some incredibly blingy shoes, smokey eyes, long, curly hair and voila! I felt like a cross between Cinderella and Rapunzel!! And, oh yeah, that big guy who was my date wasn't too bad either in his snazzy penguin suit! An added bonus was that Mom and Dad also attended the event for Mom's company, so we had a great time mingling with them and others throughout the evening. To my delight, the program for the evening was performed by local dance and music celebrities that I was thrilled to see "live" on stage. I had a fantastic evening and only had to chastise my honey at the end as we exited the venue: "Shayne, don't walk so fast! This may be my only chance to walk the red carpet!" (Okay, it was only the carpet leading out to valet parking, but, hey, it WAS red!!) So much fun...

It's A Dead Man's Party, Who Could Ask For More?

S-T-R-E-S-S! Yep, that's what I feel every year when my two lovely friends, Emily Horsley and Marisa Skousen, deliver their annual invitation (and might I add, it was spectacularly clever this year!) to their joint Halloween costume party. It's not that I don't really enjoy going to their party and seeing what fabulous theme and decor they've come up with each year, but I just hate finding the appropriate costume to go with the theme! There, I said it! Halloween is not my favorite holiday, but I love those two girls and am always impressed by their effort and creativity (and am happy to be included!) This year's theme was to come as a literary character. I raided Mom's costume closet and came up with this little ensemble as Daisy Buchanan from The Great Gatsby. And what did Shayne choose to go as? Little surprise--Superman (the boy does love a good comic book, after all!) The party was held at Rick and Emily's new bookstore cafe in downtown Provo. It was really fun to see everyone's costumes and I have to say, Walbruchs' Three Little Pigs and Horsleys' Things were pretty dang funny. But for me, the "costume of the event" was none other than the hostess herself, Miss Marisa as Julia Child was hysterical! I could not stop laughing every time I looked at her. So glad to have such great friends as pictured (l. to r.): Marisa as Julia, Emily H. as Thing, Kristi as Moby Dick, Jessica as Hester Prynn, lovely me, Emily W. as the hottest strip of bacon on the block! Thanks girls for the great party!!