Another day...another dollar

Well, work is coming along. Both of the property supervisors that I assist were out of the office today, so I was taking all the calls. My learning curve is straight up right now, but overall it's going pretty well. The bad part about working in the same office as your husband is that everyone treats you a little differently and it's hard to make close friends in this situation. I can understand them worried about what I might tell Jim (their boss) but in reality, it's just a job for me and I'm not there to "report" everything I see.

Aunt Wynne's funeral yesterday went really well. The minister that came to conduct the service was really nice and did a great job. It was great to be able to sing with Marilyn, Mom and Grammy with April playing for us. After the funeral we all were in 4 different cars and did a caravan tour of all the old houses Grammy, Dad & Mom had lived in growing up in Long Beach. Then, all of us ended up at the Lakewood Mall and ate at Fuddruckers for dinner. It was just great to spend time with everyone. Stephanie was even able to drive down with her kids which was awesome.

I'm getting ready for our Harborlites Chorus retreat weekend. We're all going to stay at a hotel and rehearse with our coaches on Fri night 7:30-10:30, all day on Saturday, we'll do our skits Sat. night and then rehearse for 3 hours Sunday morning. I'm going to be pooped after this one. It will be a lot of fun too. Kind of like "Girls Camp" for adult lady singers. hahahaha

Have a great weekend everyone! Have fun in Hawaii Steph!!!! I'm sooooo jealous!

These little personality tests are fun...

Your Dominant Thinking Style: Modifying

Super logical and rational, you consider every fact available to you. You don't make rash decisions and are rarely moved by emotion. You prefer what's known and proven - to the new and untested. You tend to ground those around you and add stability.

What's Your Thinking Style?

It has been a fun day for me. I babysat for a lady at church (who Mom has known for years). It was for her 3 mo. old granddaughter. Her youngest daughter got married today at the LA Temple and so I watched little "Ava" (one of the brothers baby). Mom's friend has 9 kids, 7 boys and 2 girls. I think this was the youngest girl getting married. The baby was soooo good and never cried at all. She would open her mouth up soooo wide, smiling and nearly cackling - she was so cute! I came home and the dogs went nuts smelling me up and down. She spit up a lot!! haha

We're going to meet some friends for dinner in Monrovia (1/2 way point) so that will be fun. Work is going pretty well except that Jim bought some extra salsa from this place we had lunch at on Friday and someone in our office took the salsa or threw it out - we looked through the trash - we think they just took it home. Who does that??? Makes me really wonder about the kind of people working there. Oh well, it's just a job for now. Have a great weekend everyone!

Here's another one....

The Part of You That No One Sees

You are powerful, passionate, and dominant. You have a vision of how things should be, and you do your best to make things happen. People rely on you for your strength. You are a rock to many. Underneath it all, you aren't so sure about your passions. So many ideas spark your interest, it is hard for you to get behind a select few. However, you see indecision as a sign of weakness. So you pursue your goals full force - no matter how foolish they turn out to be.

What's the Part of You That No One Sees?

You Are An ISFJ

The Nurturer You have a strong need to belong, and you very loyal. A good listener, you excel at helping others in practical ways. In your spare time, you enjoy engaging your senses through art, cooking, and music. You find it easy to be devoted to one person, who you do special things for. In love, you express your emotions through actions. Taking care of someone is how you love them. And you do it well! At work, you do well in a structured environment. You complete tasks well and on time. You would make a good interior designer, chef, or child psychologist. How you see yourself: Competent, dependable, and detail oriented When other people don't get you, they see you as: Boring, dominant, and stuck in a rut

What's Your Personality Type?

Kickboxing.....

Hi everyone! I just need to document that I've gone to kickboxing twice this week and I'm planning to add one more class next week. There was a different instructor doing the class this morning and it turned out to be a lot harder. She was having us almost in a squat throwing the punches the entire time (it felt like forever). I don't know if it was just because it's Saturday morning or I'm really in bad shape. Probably a combination of the two. Wanting to get into better shape and not have the class kick my butt is a huge motivator for me. It drives me to keep going so it will eventually become easier. Now if I can get these salt water taffy's out of the house - I'll be doing great!!

We went to go see Bourne Ultimatum last night - what a great movie that is. They could just keep making them one after another and they'd all be sooooo good. Matt Damon is perfect for that role. I love it when the theatre is filled up and everyone is clapping after each great part of the movie. It's total drama and it gets you pumped up. (Do I need to get out more or what????! hahaha)

I'm off to run errands and maybe see another movie...who knows. It's Saturday and we have NO plans!!! I love these types of weekends!!!!

Back to work again!!!

Well, it's official - I'm back working full time and already enjoying it. I will still be in "training" until August 17th, but the lady I'm taking over for was out sick today and it gave me time to really sit at the desk myself and take it all in. I took the calls that came in and went through my inbox throughout the day without too much pain and agony (haha). It was great because I was able to look through things and write down a ton of questions I have for my predecessor when she comes back. Basically, it was a great exercise for me to be there by myself.

Good news on the singing front....I have now passed the first of two visual qualifications for the choreography part of our contest package. They videotaped the entire chorus one night and then the choreo team looks at each person and evaluates them on the tape (no pressure huh?!). Fortunately, they must have been generous to me and qualified me on this first time. I've been working my bunnies off for months now, so it's nice to have something behind me.

I will be getting a new calling in my ward working in the Primary. They will be releasing me on Sunday from the Public Affairs Committee. This was a great surprise for me - I've really been missing being in Primary. I love to hear all the funny things that come out of the kids mouths.

Family Reunion / Harborlites

Well, I'm back to the computer and trying to get back into a normal schedule. The Ball Family Reunion was a blast!!! We had so much fun. We all met at Knott's Berry Farm on Thurs for lunch, then Friday did a temple session at the Newport Beach Temple. I hadn't ever been inside that temple and it is sooooo beautiful!! The ocean paintings in the rooms are really pretty. A lot of our extended family was there and my cousin Bob & his wife Sue were there too. What a wonderful experience. Then, we had a luau party at the Newport Bch Stake Center right next to the temple. Great food, games, lots of laughs, and a hoola hoop contest. I didn't know that Mitty was such a great hoola hooper - he could have gone all day with that thing!!!

Saturday, we all met at Irvine Park for a picnic, family business, games & a lot of water fights (hahahaha). What a great time we had. It was sooo hot though. I think I've gotten really spoiled with this "by the beach" temps! It rarely gets over 80 degrees and there's always a nice breeze. I had to leave a little early to get to a performance at the Ontario Marriot by 4:30. Fortunately another friend in Harborlites lives in Orange, so I used her shower (I was so hot and sweaty from the park) and got ready there. What a lifesaver that was - we didn't end up performing until almost 10pm!!! So, I pulled into my driveway on Sat. at midnight!!! I'm sooooo tired still. I'm glad to have that performance behind me - I still need to work really hard on getting the choreography down on a few of our songs.

I'm on the Public Affairs council and we put on a service fireside Sunday night. It was a huge success and the couple that spoke on their "service mission" to China really had a nice presentation.

Needless to say, I'm pooped!!! I'm really taking it easy today and tomorrow before I start working fulltime on Wed. That's the update folks - it was great seeing all of my family and extended family (cousins,aunts,uncles, etc...).

The picture.....

I just wanted to let you all know that the picture I have posted is one that I took in Kona last summer. We were staying at this home right near the water 1/2 way between Kona and Keauhou. The buildings (hotel) in the background is the Kona Coast (it might be the Sheraton now) in Keauhou. Jim used to work at the Keauhou Shopping Center when we first moved to Kona. I just zoomed in as much as I could with the camera. It always helps me to relax when I see these pictures.

What a rehearsal weekend! We had a special "coaching" session on Fri night 7-10pm and then 9-5 on Sat. Whew! I have been sooooo tired all day today. I didn't know how tired I was until I got back in bed after church today. I felt like a big boulder in the bed!!!! hahaha

I'm helping out a lady at church by playing the piano for the Primary while she's gone on vacation for a month. It was a lot of fun. I really do miss being in the Primary. The lady that leads the music is better looking than Denise Richards (Charlie Sheen's last wife)- a total model. I noticed that the Sen. Primary older boys were pretty distracted and just kept gazing at her. That could be real problem! hahaha

I'm looking forward to seeing Stephanie and the kids this week at the reunion (and the rest of our family). I am only working Monday and Tuesday of this week so I can go and get my braces tightened on Wed. and join in the family reunion activities. We're going to have a BALL! (It's our "Ball Family Reunion") hahaha

Work, singing, and more work....

Hello Everyone! This week started off pretty good with cleaning house/ironing/wash on Monday, Harborlites Chorus rehearsal from 6:00-10:30 on Monday night. The chorus actually kicked it into a higher gear this week and you could really tell the difference with everyone working at a a+ level. That's when it gets exciting. I'm still struggling with the choreo moves on 2 of the songs, but practice makes perfect. It's very hard to practice the moves we do as a chorus on the risers at home by myself. There are 2 ladies in the group that are doing a "get fit" routine and giving hints on how to lose weight and be more physically active. One of the ladies is pretty big (over 100 lbs to lose) and the other is a fitness nut! They call themselves "Hansel & Grissel". hahaha It's pretty funny.

I will be working Tues/Thurs & Fri until Aug. 1st, then I'll start working full time again. It will be soooooo nice to start bringing home "full-time checks". I'm tired of not being able to freely do some shopping. I've been using an older pair of glasses instead of getting new ones made to replace the ones that are broken. This is a high dollar item that I can do without for now. Also, just because I'm tired of seeing the same clothes in the closet doesn't mean they're worn out. Just putting this in writing makes me get even more excited to start making some more money. I wish $$$ did grow on trees right now.

I'm getting my hair done this afternoon and I need to come up with a new style. I've really got a mop up top right now and it just isn't me. It's making me feel like junk about myself and I need to do something fast!!! Good news on the exercising front - I made it to kickboxing class last night. It was really hard, but that always motivates me to keep going so that it becomes easy which really does happen. It's like magic!!!

Hopefully everyone is well and having a great time this week. Keep smiling everyone - it really does wonders. Oh, and try to have a belly-roll laugh attack once in awhile too! (I love that!!)

Ward Temple Day

Our ward goes up to the LA Temple once a month, so today was the day. It was so relaxing being driven up in a 15 seat van with a bunch of other members in the ward. It's very nice to not have to drive in the traffic so you can be in the right frame of mind to enter the temple.

Missy had her haircut this morning so Jim had to drop her off and I picked her up after I got back. She looks sooooo cute again. Her hair had gotten so long and she was starting to get some matting under her arms. We had them cut her way back for the rest of the summer. Peanut was happy to see her when she got back.

I'm scheduled to work the next few days, so this afternoon I have time to just relax and do some laundry. I always have such a great feeling and attitude about everything when I've gone to the temple.

A NEW WEEK!

I love Sundays and that it is a new week. I'm going to be working 3 days this week instead of 2 and our ward is planning a temple trip on Wed. morning which will be nice. Tomorrow I'm meeting my visiting teacher for lunch. It will be great to get to know her. I think I'd feel better if I knew a few more of the ladies at church. Another lady in our ward invited me to her house for a baby shower of someone I don't know, but baby showers are great events to get to know people. I miss going to some of those baby showers for people in the Palm Springs ward - they knew how to party!!! hahaha

We really relaxed this weekend and went out to see the movie "Transformers" which was sold out so we saw "1408". Wow, was that a scary movie. I definitely would recommend it to anyone that loves a scary show! It did the job! You know you've found a scary flick when 3 people walk out after about 20 minutes! hahahaha I'm usually pretty stoic through these types of shows, but I was cutting off blood supply to Jim's arm.

I really need to get back on track with my work-outs at the gym. Last week was the first time back to kick-boxing and it felt great!! I'm going to add one more class to the schedule this week. Wish me luck!!! Oh, thanks Mom for helping me put that picture frame together - it looks really nice over the fireplace. I love how you put the figurines into the cabinet too! If you hadn't helped, they would still be in the box.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MEGAN (1 DAY LATE)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MEGAN!!! I hope you had a great day yesterday. I thought about giving you a call and then I looked at the clock and it was 10:30pm. I hope you had fun with your friends on Friday! You are growing up really fast - I just love these pictures I "captured" from you at the park on Father's Day.

More pictures...

I'm looking forward to a great holiday week! Doing some cleaning today before working tomorrow to be ready for 4th of July. We had a nice weekend. Went on a motorcycle ride down the coast to Newport and did a lot of people watching. There were so many people at the beaches on Sat. The weather is perfect right now.

Friday afternoon I was able to have lunch with my friend at the doctor's office. Then, I drove down to Huntington Beach, parked the car and sat and watched the surfers. The waves were so small, but they were still out there. Jim explained that that's all they've got and it's just good to get out in the water. It's always so therapeutic to sit by the ocean. I just love that!!!

Even more pictures....

Some family pictures taken lately....

It's a MUCH BETTER DAY!!!

I am finally able to say I'm getting much much better. I stayed in bed most of Sunday too and it paid off. I haven't had that kind of illness in a long time. I've gotten bronchitis that was really bad, but just to have a cold with a fever that makes you feel like you're going to die is horrid!

It feels good to get up and start in on the laundry/dishes/straightening and not feel like you're going to drop. I'm planning on taking it easy today so I can make it to Harborlites rehearsal tonight. I'm getting stressed trying to learn all the choreography and songs that everyone else had learned last year! The pressure is on - we have a performance at the end of July.

Jim will be going to the desert with me for my orthodontic appt. on Thursday. That will be nice.

Danny came over Saturday night to use our washer/dryer and he was able to have dinner with us. Jim put a pot roast into the slow cooker with potatoes/carrots/etc. and it was sooooo tasty. I know Danny enjoyed a home-cooked meal! It was fun to have him over. It picked up my spirits for sure. Thanks to Mom for helping me with my dishes and folding clothes!

Have a great week everyone - enjoy the first full week of summer!

We've had a week of FUN!!!

Well it's been a week since I last posted anything. Wow, what a week we've had with Steph and her family here and Mom and Dad staying the night! What fun!!!! I knew this fun had to end but to be as sick as I am today - I never thought it would be this bad.

It is helping me feel better by at least documenting this in case I'm found sicker than a dog by evening. I've got a horrible cold with a fever that's just getting hotter and hotter. It's just over 100 now and I'm hoping that my body is doing what it needs to to get the bad bugs out!

I was asked to teach Relief Society on Sunday, so I called the Pres. and she said she'd take care of everything and not to worry. She offered to bring me whatever I need - she is such a nice lady!

Hopefully no one else is getting sick. This is AWFUL!!!

Yeah, It's FRIDAY!!!!

It's so nice that it's Friday and Stephanie is coming into town with her family to stay with us.

I started working part-time at Jim's office this week. It is nice to get out of the house and be somewhat productive. His office is very calm and quiet most of the time. It sure beats that cardiology office that I was at. I actually spoke with one of my co-workers from the dr office and she said two more people quit after me - I guess I wasn't nuts after all.

Yesterday I worked until 3:30 and then took the dogs for a walk, brought them back home and took my own walk where I'm not be tugged by Lil. Missy and I can get a good stride going. You just can't beat the ocean breezes here.

I'd better get back to my housecleaning before Steph gets here. So many things to do today to get ready for the weekend. Looking forward to seeing all my family this weekend and to celebrate FATHER'S DAY!

Feeling much better today!

Thanks everyone for your concern over my stomach issues. I'm sorry Steph, you have been in much worse of shape these days than I have. I hope your back is feeling a lot better.

Harborlites Chorus had an all day rehearsal on Sat. We were on the risers from 9am-5:30pm with 1 1/2 hours for lunch. I am soooooooo pooped! I'm too young to be feeling this way while I look around the chorus and the average age is 70 y/o. I'm feeling like a pansy! hahaha

I figured out that my stomach hurting all the time was from the antibiotics I'm taking for the dermatitis on my face. The rash is gone now and I've stopped taking the medicine. I hope this doesn't make it worse by stopping it. The dermatologist prescribed it to me to take for 2 months. It's only been 1 month. I'm just hoping that the stomach aches will go away. It's tetracycline - anyone know if it's OK to just stop taking it??

Here's some news....I went back to the gym on Friday and burned 280 calories on the elliptical machine. It's been so hard for me to get my motivation back into working out. I'm hoping that I'll keep this up this week.

Have a great week everyone - I hope you all enjoyed your Sunday.

My stomach is hurting again!

I can't believe it, but my stomach has been giving me grief for about 2-3 wks. now. I need to get ready for a meeting at church for the public affairs committee and now my stomach is hurting again and making me feel like I'm going to be sick. I'm getting tired of this already.

Needless to say, I haven't been able to get my camera downloaded and post some of the fun pictures. Maybe tomorrow. Yeah, I don't have anything pressing for tomorrow on the calendar!! I love that.

I hope everyone is feeling better than I am right now. Steph, is your back getting better today?

I can't believe it's June!!!

I can't believe it's June already. Where did the time go??? Mom and I had such a great time up at Stephanie's house last week. It was great to play with the kids and be up there for Casey's 6th Birthday Party. Mom and Steph made up a treasure hunt for pirates and we all dressed up and had the kids find the clues and the treasures hidden in the sand. There is a great beach park at Avila Beach with a pirate ship playground for the kids. What fun that was.

Thank you Steph & Todd for letting me stay at your place. I'm sure glad Stephanie's hair turned out - it was touch and go for awhile. hahaha

Mom and Dad stayed over last night and we all had dinner together. Then Mike came by after fishing and ate too. We all watched a movie and the tennis match. Of course we did a lot of laughing...(at night). Haha I was able to go and see Mike's new place today. It is really nice and spacious! I'm so glad he has a nice place to live and kick back in. Great TV too!

I'm excited about this week - tonight is Harborlites and we're taping 2 more songs that we have to be graded on. Basically, we hold our tape recorders in front of our mouths with the entire chorus and sing the songs. The "tape listeners" then grade us and send us back our tapes with a score sheet to tell us how to improve or correct ourselves. Tuesday (tomorrow) is my orthodontist appt. out in the desert. I'm always happy to go because it means one appt closer to getting them off!!!

Have a great week everyone! I'll post last weeks pictures tomorrow.