Here are this week’s questions:

Here are my answers:

1. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater.  I always reread books before I read their sequels.  Unfortunately, because I wasn’t in the mood to read for a while ( ), I’m a little behind with this one.  Luckily, once I started it, I wanted to keep reading because I enjoy it so much.  I should start Linger tomorrow or Sunday!
2. I don’t leave books in bathrooms.  Too much chance for water damage with a cat that likes to knock things off tables, counters, dressers, desks, etc.  I usually just take the book I’m currently reading into the bathroom with me when I take a bath.
3. Usually, it’s the one in my purse because I set my purse down next to the chair.
4. See #3.
5. Right now, it’s my scriptures and Fellowship of the Ring because it’s on hold while I read Shiver and Linger.  Normally, it’s my scriptures and/or the book I’m currently reading.

*****

Friday’s Fab Five is a weekly event hosted by Froggy at Froggarita’s Bookcase. She asks five questions, which could or could not be book related, so that bloggers and their readers can get to know each other better. Participating can be as simple as answering the questions in the comments for this post. Or, it can be as intense as answering the questions by commenting on her blog, commenting on my blog, and posting about the event on your own blog. The only rule is that you can’t use the same answer twice.

Last Saturday, Corey and I went sailing with his family again.  This time, however, instead of sailing on Hyrum Dam, we went to Bear Lake.  I absolutely love Bear Lake; it’s so beautiful right from the moment you see it when you come out of Logan canyon.  The water is so blue, and Corey said that several times when he was younger (and basically living on Bear Lake) many foreigners asked him what was put in the water to make it so blue.  Unfortunately, pictures don’t do it justice!

The wind was great and the boat was moving at 5.4 knots at one point.  My parents-in-law told me that when they took it out for a test run, the boat got up to 7 knots.  This boat, Moonstruck, has won many sailing races and it has been a family favorite for many years.

Both Corey and I got a chance to steer the boat.  Corey, of course, is an old pro so it was very natural for him.  I, on the other hand, was scared to death and had a very solid grip on the wheel because I was afraid to steer us into another boat, kayaker, or even the beach.  My sister-in-law Jen was laughing very hard while I was in charge.  She said she could see the whites of my knuckles because my grip was so firm.

I wore my new swimsuit while we were sailing.  Thanks to my friend Danylle, I finally found one that fit me with the support I desperately need in a swimsuit.  I put on sunscreen more than once because I hate being sunburned.  I don’t feel like being tan is worth the pain of being sunburned first since that’s what I do being as fair-skinned as I am.  However, even though I put sunscreen on, I still came away with a nasty burn on my back, shoulders, and chest area–the back being the worse.  I don’t think I’ll be going back out any time soon, even though school doesn’t start for another five weeks.

Sunburn aside, it was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed sailing and swimming in the water.  I also enjoyed almost having a seagull land on me because Jen threw a piece of bread right where I was.

My niece Aymee is a very talented crafter.  Her daughters are always so cute decked out in the hair things and clothes embellishments she makes.  When her oldest daughter was born, she started crafting as something to do while she was at home all day.  She makes beautiful hair ribbons, clips, and headbands as well as miscellaneous things like pictures, cards, jewelry, and magnets.

I love her style of crafts because they’re not in the country style, which is my main experience with crafts.  Aymee’s crafts are very vintage looking (she actually made all the decorations for my niece Carlee’s shower and reception, including the bouquet and other flowers) and look as though they could be sold in a Pottery Barn catalog.

In the past, she has sold her stuff at open houses and booths at holiday fairs.  However, just recently, she opened an Etsy store called Kimiko Gifts.  The store is small right now, but she has been slowly adding merchandise to sell.  I wanted to mention her store to help get her name out there.  Her stuff is super cute and super inexpensive.  You should check it out and let others know about her cute stuff, too!

PS–The things in her store right now are mostly for children, but she does make things for adults too.

When I posted about the boot camp exercise program that Corey was participating in, I misspoke about one thing and I didn’t mention another.  The program is actually Monday through Friday instead of Saturday, so it’s a five-times-a-week thing.  It’s also not just exercise; it’s diet too.  For the first month, you’re not allowed to eat bread, pasta, soda (any kind including diet), or dairy.  If you do, then you have to do 20 push-ups as “punishment” during your next session.

I have gone to six sessions now.  During the first three days, I didn’t know about the diet restrictions because Corey has been given permission to eat whole wheat bread and dairy because of health reasons and his already limited diet.  On Wednesday, I was punished for eating dairy the day before.  I haven’t had it since.  And, even though I crave string cheese (for the protein), I’ve been feeling a lot better.  I also haven’t had bread or pasta since then either and I feel great.  I feel like I’m eating the same thing over and over again, but I feel great.  The best thing is I can satiate my sugar cravings with fruit.  As long as I eat a tangerine or some apple slices, I no longer crave sugar.

These workouts are tough!  Last Tuesday, I had to climb up and down two flights of stairs 10 times while wearing the 20-lb. military vest.  I nearly died, but I did it!  After that, though, my instructor made me take the vest off and I haven’t worn it since because my lower back started to ache.  Once my muscles are strengthened, then I’ll be able to wear the vest again.

I’m dead tired and extremely sore after each workout and especially the next day.  But, I’ve been sleeping better.  I don’t wake up nearly as often as I use to, so I feel more rested.  I still feel tired because I’m still out of shape and because of my low vitamin levels.  But, hopefully, as I get more in shape and eat healthier foods, I won’t be so tired anymore.

We take measurements each Monday and I’ve already lost one and half inches off my waist.  I’ve lost inches off most of the areas we measured, but my waist was the largest loss!  I’m very excited and I can’t wait to get in better shape and start feeling better.

PS–If you want to know more about this program, check out their website.  If you end up signing up, let them know I referred you.

I had a crazy busy weekend, so I didn’t get a chance to post my Project 365 pictures yesterday.  There’s an extra picture this time around, which means there’ll be one less next week.

July 17: Corey and I went to see Inception (awesome) and while we were waiting for the movie to start, we got a smoothie at Orange Julius. I thought this sign would make an interesting subject.	July 18: Corey and I went up to my niece Aymee’s house for dinner and a haircut. We ate popsicles for dessert and Aymee decided to give Sophie one. At first, she wasn’t so sure, but then she dug right in.
July 19: These rocks were in our garden. Corey has been in the process of weeding and de-rocking our soil. The rocks are gone mostly, but the weeds are the bane of his existence.  Anyway, I thought the rocks looked cool together.	July 20: I feel like my desire to keep up with this project is waning more and more each day. I don’t feel like I have anything interesting to take pictures of, or I’m taking pictures of the same things over and over again.
July 21: I thought this was a pretty good picture of my snail. I love how alert he seems with his eyes straight and taut like they are.	July 22: I thought this wildflower was pretty. I often think wildflowers are prettier than regular flowers and can enhance a garden to make it more beautiful.
July 23: I haven’t read very much lately. I want to read, but apparently not badly enough because I just can’t seem to do it. I always get distracted by my dadgum computer or TV.	July 24: Corey and I went sailing on Bear Lake with his family.  I thought this was a really cool angle of my in-law’s new boat’s sail, especially with just a hint of the sun behind it.

Here are this week’s questions:

Here are my answers:

1. Brandon Sanderson, even though I’ve only read one of his books so far.  He’s a fantastic writer and I look forward to reading his others.
2. There are too many to count since my TBR list is over 800 books long.
3. I’ve never had a problem with this and books.  The people I loan my more treasured books to have to go through a major screening process before I let them borrow them.  I don’t loan Twilight, New Moon, or Eclipse out to anyone because they’re signed, even though I’ll loan other signed books out to people.  I just experience separation anxiety when I loan my Twilight books to someone.  I experience a small form of separation anxiety when I loan my Harry Potter books to someone, too.
4. Any one of my favorite authors would be included on this list: Kristin Cashore, Cassandra Clare, Suzanne Collins, Stephenie Meyer, Melanie Rawn, JK Rowling, and Maggie Stiefvater.
5. Any one of my favorite books would be included on this list: Twilight Saga, the Harry Potter series, The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, the Mortal Instruments trilogy, Graceling, Fire, Shiver, The Dark Divine, The Host, The Dragon Prince trilogy, Dune, These is My Words, His Dark Materials trilogy, You Are Special, and Fox in Socks.  I just haven’t had a chance to read them over and over again because my TBR list is so long and I want to experience new things.

*****

Friday’s Fab Five is a weekly event hosted by Froggy at Froggarita’s Bookcase. She asks five questions, which could or could not be book related, so that bloggers and their readers can get to know each other better. Participating can be as simple as answering the questions in the comments for this post. Or, it can be as intense as answering the questions by commenting on her blog, commenting on my blog, and posting about the event on your own blog. The only rule is that you can’t use the same answer twice.

I decided that growing my hair out in the summer without air conditioning in my car is for the birds.  Not only am I extremely hot because my hair’s on my neck, yet not quite long enough to pull up all that successfully, I’m also dealing with it becoming snarly each and every time I go anywhere because of the unrolled windows.  Snarls and a soft head don’t go together.

Also, you can call it laziness, but I’m not one to spend a lot of time on my hair.  I like to sleep as long as I can before I have to get up and go to work, and I could do so much other stuff during that 45 minutes of hair-doing time.  (Yes, it takes me 45 minutes to straighten my hair.  It takes a very long time to dry and I have to flat iron my hair in a bunch of layers because my hair is extremely thick. Waah, right? )

Anyway, I decided to cut my hair.  I was considering, for a time, to chop it all off again, but I decided that I do like the versatility of being able to do different styles.  So, after a lot of consideration and help from my niece Carlee, who actually did my hair, I decided on a very short a-line cut in the back and longer sides to frame my face.

The best part about my do is that I only have to style the sides and top.  No back! And, I can even do it messy still.

PS–I hate posing for self-portraits.  They’re so annoying and I think I look hideous.  Oh well.