Ta-da!

With my friend Joleen's help last night, I was finally able to make jam! This batch was raspberry. Next week's batch will be blackberry. Yum! (Don't mind the ribbon bows that badly need to be cut shorter...)

Our (un) successful trip to The Price is Right

Monday, January 26:

5am (Mountain Time) - Kristen wakes up to finish last minute details for the day's trip and gets ready
6am (Mountain Time)- Brant wakes up & gets ready
6:30am (Mountain Time) - left for SLC airport
10:30am (Pacific Time)- arrive at LAX airport
11:30am (Pacific Time)- arrive at CBS studio for the 1pm taping
11:40am - Find out that people have been waiting since 4am that morning to stand in line for the 1pm taping. Continue to stand in line for arrival passes for the next (and last) 4pm taping.
1:00pm (Pacific Time) - CBS starts calling numbers to start processing for the 4pm taping.
1:45pm (Pacific Time) - Still waiting for our number to be called.
1:46pm (Pacific Time) - CBS announces that there is no seats left in the studio.

What the heck?! We had gotten our 'tickets' from online. I knew that it wasn't confirmed seating and that you had to be there early. But 4am??? Thanks a lot CBS - next time try giving out less tickets so people don't get their hopes up.

2:00pm - (Pacific Time) - regroup and think of how to kill time before our 7:30pm shuttle and flight back to Salt Lake.
2:05pm - (Pacific Time) - find a nearby movie theater and watch the next movie showing - "Paul Blart- Mall Cop"
2:45pm - Wonder if this was the best way to spend our time in LA and use of $19.95
4:oopm - movie (finally) ends. Spotted a Johnny Rockets and grabbed some dinner
4:45pm- shuttle back to LAX and flight back to Salt Lake
11:00pm - (Mountain Time) - arrive back home in Orem.

Our worhtless 'order of arrival' passes

Oh, well....You win some, you lose some, right?? At least a day is the sun is a day won! (so great to get out of the cold and snow for a day!)

**For info on how you too can get free worthless tickets to the Price is Right, visit here

Weekend Highlight

Watching this year's Miss America televised live from Las Vegas. I headed over to Rissa's place since she gets cable and the TLC channel it was on (Brant was on a trip- I don't think he minded that he missed out on this...) So fun to eat, gab, and do our predictions (Rissa called Miss Indiana out as the winner from the start- and I predicted that Georgia would place in the top 2. We were both right).

Last year, the Miss America Organization gave out $340,000 in scholarships (about the same given out this year- and this was just at the national level. Even more is awarded at the local levels).

Love it.

Congratulations Salt Lake City

For being rated the #1 fittest city in America by Healthy Living

Hair Cutting Time

(No before photos- only after)

So stoked

For my Ball Home Canning Basics Kit to arrive this week. Until then, I'll be in the kitchen continuing development of my limited domestic skills. We also just today ordered a replacement piece for our bread maker that was lost during our move. Next after canning jam- making bread from scratch with our new wheat grinder and improved bread maker... yee-haw!

Hearthside Slippers

On Saturday night Brant and I went bowling at the local alley (his bro AK that's going to BYU met up with us and brought some of his friends). Never mind that Brant and I tied with the highest score of 119- on the next lane over I noticed a super cute girl with the most darling shoes/ slippers I have seen in months. After she said she got them from LL Bean (I asked as she was leaving) I hurried home and got online to find them.

So sad that they are all sold out (in my size)!

Upcoming Event

Sitting in the studio audience watching lucky/ wild people win fantastic prizes on The Price is Right! We're not holding our breath that either one of us will be picked to 'Come on Down' but are still excited to go!

P.S. I've joined Facebook (my world is now complete) and am having a hayday finding old classmates and roomates/ mission buddies/ friends. If I haven't found you yet, come find me! I'm under Kristen Wilson Harrison.

HGTV Dream Home Giveaway

I was visiting here and came across this sweet giveaway: a home in Sonoma California with all the inside decor. Go here to enter (once daily until February 19th). And if you win, we get to live with you :)

Tonight

I christened my shiny red Kitchen Aid.

By making home-made butter.

What a mess it left over!

Other domestic things I accomplished this week: cooked potato soup (which we ate in bread bowls), cooked quiche lorraine, cooked home made chili and cornbread, and made a casserole. Look at me go!!

I have NOT sat around and watched soaps. Well, maybe I did once this week.

Did you Know?

Tonight, our analog TV that we get about 4 chanels on (2 of them in Spanish) went from looking like this
to a crystal clear reception with 20 more chanels - after we hooked up our TV converter. Who knew that you didn't have to wait until the switch over to digital in February to install the converter to get a good TV picture now?? (we received our government issued credit and have had our converter for a few weeks now). Oh, the simple things in life. Thanks for the tip, Sugi!

Almost done unpacking

Moving from the north to the south side of town is more work than I anticipated! We really don't have much junk, but I still made a couple goals for this last little while of our apartment living.

Resolution #1: Purge all items from our possesion that we haven't used in the past year.

Resolution #2: To avoid any clutter for the remaining duration of our apartment living, not to purchase anything that isn't necessary for basic survival.

Why I could do without TSA

(photo from Google images)

I know that they are trying to be a protection for passengers, but often I feel more annoyed with TSA than anything. Especially when it comes to their consistancy in enforcing their rules- as well as no communication to passengers of what those rules are.

Case in point:

On the way back to Salt Lake City, we stopped in Dallas to visit the in-laws. In my carry on bag were some items I received in my stocking- i.e. hand sanitizer, toothpaste, a seam ripper for sewing, super glue, and craft glue (am I the only one that gets super glue in my stocking?)

Getting through the Atlanta security was no problem. It was when I was leaving Dallas going to Salt Lake that my carry on bag was flagged when it went through the xray. I had put all my liquids in a ziplock plastic bag, although it was bigger than the required quart size (since that's all I had). Well, they tell me that they need to transfer all my liquids from the bigger ziplock to the quart size ziplock. No big deal to me- since I knew it would all still fit. But then the guy who had taken it to switch the bag comes back to tell me that I can't take the super glue or craft glue that I had included in the ziplock bag with me. Hello?! Can someone please tell me where on the airport signs read that you can't pack glue on your carry on? Even Brant had no idea!

The TSA guy didn't care that I got through the Atlanta airport without a problem and took my super glue away. (I'm sure he was on a power trip). Here's the catch- even after he saw the sewing seam ripper I had in my carry on (you know, with its very sharp and pointy end) he had no problem in letting me through with it....?! Had I just taken the super glue out of my bag that went through the xray and into the back pocket of my jeans, they would have never even known that I had it.

Just be more consistant TSA...that's all I ask.

Merry Christmas to all... And to all a good night

I'm still in Georgia... the root canal went well yesterday morning, but now the challenge is finding a flight back to Salt Lake that's not overbooked. Luckily, family is close and I won't be spending Christmas Eve in an airport (Brant's on a trip until tomorrow).

I'm staying put

Brant sent me this photo taken from our apartment porch of what it looks like in Utah right now.

I told him I'm staying in Georgia until winter is over.

Good and not so good

Good: I'm in Georgia right now celebrating an early Christmas with the fam (although Brant had to leave this evening to go back to Salt Lake for work tomorrow).

Not so good: Wish me luck on the very possible root canal I may need tomorrow (the main reason why I'm still here)...ouch.

What's up with the Harrisons?

Q: I saw in your last post that you had your last day of work with KLAS last week. What's the deal?
A: Working for KLAS over the past two years has been a great opportunity for me... and even though sometimes I felt just a tad too in over my head (i.e.... the baptism of fire with HIMSS) it was a good starting point for someone fresh out of college. With recent changes in the marketing department's personnel, and me wanting to take a break from work for awhile, this was an opportune time for me to take an exit from KLAS and the working world (RSNA in Chicago was my last big project with the company and a good note to end on).

Q: What are you going to do now?
A: Brant has since put in a bid to transfer to the Skywest base in Atlanta (my job with KLAS was pretty much the reason why we were still living in Utah, when were are both from southern states). Though with things so slow moving in the industry right now, that transfer will take a little while to go through.

Q: How long will it take before his transfer goes through?
A: Well, it depends. Just like everything else with his job, its based on seniority. At the moment there are 7 pilots senior to him that want to and get to be transferred to Atlanta before he does. We'd actually be surprised if it happened any shorter than a year's time (if not longer), BUT if it's meant to be, it'll happen.... right?

Q: What will you do in the meantime?
A: We've definately had our share of being in limbo and not knowing what we should do over the past month or two. Our lease at our current place is up at the end of this month, and since I no longer work and need to be closer to KLAS (we chose this place because it was 2.7 miles from KLAS) just this evening we signed a lease to a new place- which is still in Orem and close to the interstate for Brant to get up to Salt Lake easily, but is bigger (yay for 2 bedrooms), still offers a microwave and washer and dryer, and is somehow less expensive (by almost $200- remember this is apartment living!) than the 1 bedroom that we're at now. The selling point for me was that the owners agreed to work with us on the contract- so we're not locked into a contract and have a fee to pay if Brant's transfer does happen to go through before the year is up and we end up moving to Atlanta. Plus the owners gave us the keys tonight and are letting us move in- but not charging our first month rent until January.

Sweet deal.

Q: Why don't you just move up to Salt Lake so Brant can be closer to the airport?
A: That's an excellent question. The reason why is that on his days off and while he's home on reserve, Brant still works as a ground instructor for UVU's aviation program at the Provo airport. So, its easier to justify living in Utah County and driving to the Salt Lake airport- than it is to live in Salt Lake and drive to Utah County to do instructing.

Q: Why don't you just take the plunge and buy a house. It's the opportunity of a lifetime, you know.
A: It is the opportunity of a lifetime to buy a first home right now! This is the biggest question in our minds because we could definately go ahead and buy a home now in Utah...but then what if Brant's transfer goes through and we move to Atlanta? All of our $$ will be tied up in a home in Utah- and I don't see how we could possibly sell it or get a second mortgage for a home in Atlanta (which a home in Atlanta is our real goal).

Q: What are you going to do now with all of your free time?
A: Ah, my favorite question! Now I get to do all the things I've never gotten a chance to do before! A few of the things on my list:

• learn my camera better and take more photos (do the assignments from the photo class I took that I didn't have time to do when I was actually taking it)


• learn some software to edit photos


• invest in a sewing maching and make some cool stuff


• learn how to play the piano (my mom always wanted her kids to know enough to at least play church hymns - I've so far been a disgrace...)


• jar those berries into jam that I got at the cannery awhile back


• actually do some cooking- and just be more domestic


• travel with Brant more on his trips... now I don't have to worry that I won't make it back in time for work :)


• be a gym rat - including enrolling in a fitness bootcamp


• watch lots of Good Things Utah


• read books. lots of them.


• organize my mission photos


• plus much, much more!

Keep tuned into my blog for my adventures as a non-working woman!

Disneyland Weekend

Cinderella's Castle decked out in Christmas Lights

Thursday - my last day at KLAS...... And what did we do next? We left that evening and went to Disneyland!

Friday- We spent the first half of the day riding Buzz Light Year, Nemo's Submarine, Space Mountain (after which we realized that we're not as young as we used to be... that coaster kind of messed the both of us up!), the Haunted Mansion, and others before meeting up with the Wright family to take the kids and give Chris and Rebecca the rest of the day to do whatever they wanted (are we awesome babysitters or what? we'll even come on vacation with you and watch your kids!)

Rebecca and stylish Maddy

After their parents took off, we headed with the kiddos to Toontown and after meeting Mickey, it was Buzz Light year (again), dinner in Frontier Land, the Tikki Room, "Honey, I shrunk the Audience" and a few other things. That evening we met back up with Chris and Rebecca to give them their kids and then we all watched Fantasmic... such a fun show to watch!

Saturday - Arrived back in Salt Lake and rested for a couple hours before heading to the Northland Branch Christmas party that night. Afterwards we Redboxed it and watched "Fred Claus."

Sunday - went to church, took a Sunday nap, made Grilled Cheese and tomato soup for Dinner. It was a fun weekend- now I get to catch up on housework and laundry for the next week!

Weekend Wrap Up

Friday afternoon- arrived back in Salt Lake after being out of town last week in Chicago at RSNA. ...A few of my favorite things done in She-kaw-go that I'd never before experienced (a couple which of course, happened after the exhibit hall closed and there were no scheduled events for the night):

Hailed taxi cabs on busy street corners (I personally think special liscenses should be required for driving in Chicago... or any really busy city...it was boarderline cut throat watching people drive out there).

Walked/ shopped down Michigan Avenue (aka "The Magnificant Mile")

Saw Wicked on our final night there (sweet show...though it was a bummer that Brant was working and couldn't make it out to watch it too, like we had originally planned).

AND...this is for Dene... but ran into her dad who is a Radiologist and at the show who passed by our booth. He didn't really remember me, but I have a good memory and remembered him :)

Friday evening- luckily the stomach bug didn't hit me until about 20 minutes before we landed in Salt Lake- avoiding any time spent in Chicago under the weather. Unluckily we missed the KLAS Christmas Party that night that I had been looking forward to all week because I was so miserable :(

ALL day Saturday - couldn't move a muscle from being up all the night before. Must have been a 24 hour thing. By Saturday evening I felt well enough for a short drive in the car (HUGE improvement from the 12 hours before).

Sunday- recovered and able to go to church. Decorated our tree and watched the First Presidency Christmas Fireside (I'll post pics of the tree later since my battery is charging right now). It's good to be back home and hoping that Brant doesn't catch what I had from taking care of me this weekend - he is such a dear.

Happy Thanksgiving

I've got a pie in the oven and a turkey in the sink defrosting. Brant will be back from a trip around 2pm today and then it's lots of turkey/ football watching/ visiting with friends (no traveling this year since I'll be leaving tomorrow for a 6 day trip for work).