wishes DO come true!

I have become a Make-A-Wish Volunteer this year. I felt like I should participate in a volunteer experience and so I chose MAW (Make-A-Wish). A few years ago, my niece was able to have her wish granted from Make-A-Wish. It was a great and tender experience for her and her family. Ever since then I have paid attention to MAW's drive and determination to help grant terminally ill kids their wishes. This is a type of non-profit company I wanted to volunteer for -- one that helped dreams come true.

This September, I granted my first wish. Libby wanted to have a Target Shopping Spree. She was able to get every single toy, game, Barbie, etc. that she wanted. It was fun to watch her eyes light up and get excited for this experience.

She has about a dozen siblings and most of them were able to partake in this wish. They got to travel in a limo (her first limo ride).

And they got to eat in a Chinese Restaurant (her first time).

It was a GREAT experience. Go MAW!!! :)

Marci’s Favorite Face Things

I love it when Oprah has her Favorite Things show. I watch it and I drool over the fact that the audience gets all those amazing goodies. So…I decided to share my favorite FACE things. I have been wearing makeup for 18 years, I was a Mary Kay consultant for 5 years, I read many articles on makeup and other face items, I also feel knowledgeable because I read the back of every label/box/package that I buy. Yep – I am pretty much an expert. :) Enjoy this list.

{ mary kay gentle cleansing crème }
even though I am prone to an oily face, I have learned over the years that if I use too harsh of products, it will over-produce oil -- not good. From all my experiments I have come back to this great standby. It is super gentle, but cleans well. I also love how my face does NOT feel dried out afterwards. { my dear friend Heather uses these amazing "squiggles" all the time and I want to copy her...thanks Heather! ;) }


{ plantidote mega mushroom face serum }
This is the most expensive stuff that I have ever bought and yet I think it is worth it. When I put on lotion in the morning before my makeup, I will get super-glossy face (not good!). BUT -- when I put on this light serum, I feel smooth and my makeup goes on well, plus my face feels great.





{ oil olay regenerist micro-sculpting cream }
if you have been reading magazines, you will have noticed many, many ads for this specific cream. Their claim to fame is that it has ranked in many research studies and is better lotion than the super expensive type of lotions. And you know what? It works well! It does not smell "old-ladyish" like Oil of Olay usually does. You can buy it as a two-pack @ Costco to save a few dollars.



{ revlon color-stay oil-free liquid foundation }
Oh how I love this stuff! It stays on forever. I take naps and the foundation still stays on! It also has SPF in it so that is a bonus.






{ mac blotting powder – pressed }
pretty pricey ($22), but works well with my glossy face. I get "medium dark" in the winter months and "dark" in the summer months -- it adds a bit of a bronze to my skin. FYI: I apply with a brush.




{ l'oreal voluminous mascara }
this works well with my long lashes. Not clumpy. And a tip -- I will put it in my waistband or hands to warm up a bit before I put it on.

{ Revlon Makeup Eraser Pen }
A recent find. When my mascara and eye shadow spill and smear on my face I just use this pen and happiness! It is gone.

I'm so cool now.

Yep. I use to make fun of blogs, bloggers, and blogging. Now I own a blog and have a mighty grip of blogs I follow.

I use to make fun of facebook lurkers. Yep. You guessed it. Now I am a facebook member. Fun times. Find me via facebook so we can be facebook friends. That's all we need in the world -- more typing and lurking on the computer. Only 19 hours since I joined and I have 98 facebook friends. Geez whiz I should run for president!!!

coming soon !!!!!

Get out your credit cards folks! You need to purchase some tixs to a few amazing performances that are coming to Seattle's Paramount Theatre. I am a volunteer usher @ the Paramount so I get the opportunity to watch many, many shows/events @ the Paramount & Moore Theatres. I wanted to give you the heads up to these few favs that are coming up for the 2009 season:

Lion King

This was my first time in the Paramount and I loved the show -- it was great! It was great for adults.

Wicked!

A must see! Sell a child or your car if you must...figure out someway to go! Cute songs and clever lil' storyline. But PLEASE!!!! do NOT read the book. I promise that the book is NOTHING like the show. The book is dark, evil, and full of incest and other extreme things that people should not participate nor read about. DO NOT READ THE BOOK -- GO TO THE SHOW!!!! The story on the street is that the guy who wrote the show storyline didn't read the book -- show that is why the show is "happy" and "positive ending." Did I tell you yet to go see this??? ;)

The Fiddler on the Roof

A classic that I'm excited to see.

visit http://www.theparamount.com/tickets/announcement09.asp

P.S. Grease is coming to the 5th Avenue Theatre and I want to go see it. Anyone want to go with me????

High School Tag

Ick Sally!!! I'm sad that you tagged me on this. In retrospect, high school was lame compared to college and then compared to post-college. :) And isn't it ironic that my career right now is high school teacher. ha!

1. Did you date someone from your school? No
2. What kind of car did you drive? My dad's old ugly light tan pickup that he really liked. And then when I was @ school, he would drive his motorcycle up to the parking lot and then take the pickup to drive around farming and such. Then before I was done with sport practice, he would bring it back and drive his motorcycle away. What a sacrifice! Then later, I got to drive our old suburban when we got a newer one.
3. Did you pass your drivers test on your first try? Heck yes! We only had a pickup and two surburbans @ the time so I drove my grandparent's Oldsmobile for the test. I went to Yakima for the test. I got a 84%. The only mistake was I didn't use hand signals when parallel parking. ugh! What a tough guy!
4. Were you a party animal? nope.
5. Were you considered a flirt? Not then.
6. Were you in band, orchestra or choir? No
7. Were you a nerd? I don't think I was?...
8. Were you on any varsity teams? all 4 years for softball & basketball. 3 years for volleyball. (sure be impressed, but remember: there were 26 in my graduating class! ha!)
10. Can you still sing the fight song? We never did sing it. It was written down somewhere i'm sure, but we didn't know it.
11. Who were your favorite teachers? Ms. Russell! I adored her. Mr. Cordell rocked also. They both made their subjects (history, math) seem so exciting and we loved to learn.
12. Where did you sit for lunch? geez whiz...I do not even remember! For reals I don't. Can someone inform me of this answer please???
13. What is you schools full name? Wahluke High School
14. What is your schools mascot and colors? The Warriors /maroon and gray
15. Did you go to homecoming and with who? I was set up w/ a cute cousin of Bonnie Jeane's and the 2nd year I went with someone! I forgot!!! ouch!
16. If you could go back and do it again would you? no thanks. i conquered it.
17. What did you remember most about graduation? I got piles of gifts (I got 8 popcorn poppers!) -- that was when we gave real gifts instead of money. I spoke @ graduation. I don't remember my emotions...Maybe someone else does.
18. Where did you go for senior skip day? we didn't have one, but we did go to Disney Land for our senior trip
19. Were you in any clubs? National Honor Society, SAFTYE club
20. Have you gained some weight since then? dang it yes.
21. Who was you prom date? I think Kevin Price for my junior year and no one for my senior year.
22. Are you planning on going to your 10 year reunion? No one organized one.
23. Did you have a job in high school? I helped my dad on the farm: baling hay, picking rock, driving to town (45 minutes one way) to pick up parts. I also babysat for piles of people in Mattawa.

I hope you enjoyed this lil' background check. Now...who should be TAGGED: Anna Conners, Amy Israel, Rachel Daines, Leslie Sanburg.

You get 3 guesses and the first two don't count...

Guess where I'm going this weekend????

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Moab! It will be my 2nd time. I'm excited for the adventure! It is like a mini-family reunion w/ my mom's side of the family. Watch out -- here comes the Wright family!!!!!

Marci Theory #258: Brake less!

I have a theory. (I actually have lots of theories as you know...) This theory is that if we brake less, then traffic will flow more efficiently. I have piled on 172,000 miles on my little Mazda Protege (FYI: I drove the majority of those miles) I have been driving for 18 years (I started young on the farm ;) ). I have driven big cars, small cars, tractors, and pickups. I have driven extensively on highways, freeways, backroads, gravel roads, off -roading, canal banks and fields of open land (remember -- I'm from the farm...). Thus, I believe I am an experienced driver.

And from my experience as an experienced driver I have concluded a theory that IF we were to brake less and just flow w/ the traffic flow then all traffic would flow more efficiently. In Western Washington, people love to brake. When one person brakes, the next person immediately brakes and so on -- like a rock thrown in a pool that causes ripples. Instead of braking, just lay off on the gas pedal or cut the cruise (cut the cruise withOUT touching the brakes) and then you will lower your speed just flowing along. This will then stop the car behind you from braking.

When we brake, it imeediately slows the flow down -- and then when you move forward again, you have to gun your car and that doesn't seem very nice to the car. Therefore, today, try to just flow through traffic. Instead of braking, lift off the gas pedal and flow until you really do have to brake.

growing UP.

It is time for me to advance to a new ward. I have been attending singles wards since I graduated high school. I felt it was time for me to move on to a family ward. I was very hesitant to attend a family ward. I had a few hesitations in attending a family ward, but I decided to take the plunge.

Pioneer Valley Ward
Puyallup South Stake

My new ward is fabulous, the new Bishop is so kind & insightful, I have two sets of married friends who are in the same ward, many friends in the stake, and enjoy the nice building that doesn't smell like mold. It is also only 4.5 miles from my abode -- instead of a 1/2 hour drive. I already have a new calling in the ward: Relief Society teacher. (One of the callings I always wanted to have...) It is a weird adjustment to be single in a family ward, but Heavenly Father has a plan for all of us and right now I get to hold random lil' babies and get spit up all over my cute skirts each Sunday. :)

College football rocks!

I love college football. I hope whoever I marries is okay with us going to college football games often. I love the raw intensity of the players -- unlike the pros who are sometimes so slick in their playing & seems so political @ times. I love watching a great ball game in the fresh fall weather and enjoy the roar of the crowd. I rather watch a football game then a broadway show -- even though I like broadway shows. I really do enjoy football games. (In case you care, my fantasy football team this year is doing okay -- Matt Hasselback is my QB and he needs to step it up a bit!)

I was able to attend the much anticipated BYU vs. Huskies (University of Washington) football game on September 6th. Most of my family attended the game.

We had a dilemma though...My dad LOVES the Huskies. He has even informed me that he would like to be buried in their stadium. :) Thus, we were brainwashed as lil' kidlets to love the Huskies. I have even gotten to play flag football on their field a few times. I have gone to several of their games. I love them. BUT...I went to BYU. I love BYU. Two loves playing against each other! Oh my!!! My dad came decked in a purple hat while the rest of us sported BYU colors. (Oh, and my bro-in-law was for UW too.) We were sitting in a BYU-infested area during the game so my poor dad was a bit lonely with his cheering.

My friend Leslie also came and she sported Huskies attire -- even though she is a BYU alum. :) She grew up like me --with a Huskies-loving-dad.

A great fall day, seats in the nosebleeds, tons of crazy fans, and an intense game -- can you ask for anything more?!!?? :) BYU won by uno point. It was a GREAT game. Sorry if you missed it.

O U C H ! ! !

Have you ever got out of bed and couldn't walk? Yeah, I felt like a 108 year old women last Thursday. I got out of bed and my right foot hurt!!! I wanted to cut it off it hurt so bad. I had to hobble around and when I got to school I asked the school's athletic trainer, Tiffany (my friend), to assess this situation. She said I had Plantar Fasciitis.

Plantar Fasciitis: Plantar fasciitis is an inflammatory condition that causes intense heel pain. The main cause of plantar fasciitis: overstretching the plantar fascia ligament, the muscle that stretches from the heel to the ball of the foot and also supports the foot's arch.

this probably happened from the activities the days before: running, softball, basketball, hiking for two days, wearing heels...It is not good because I had an 8K (5 miles) race to run in two days!

Tiffany was so kind and did some physical therapy on my foot Thursday & Friday. With the miracle work of Tiffany I was able to run the 8K on Saturday. My friends Anna & Jodi also ran the race. Anna was a lightening bullet and passed Jodi & me in the first nanosecond; but Jodi & I ran @ a calm & collected pace while enjoying the rain falling on our sweaty bodies. And yes, I ran the entire 5 miles -- even with plantar fasciitis!

The unfortunate thing...I hurt it worse a few days later. On Tuesday, I was playing in a softball game and while rounding 1st base, I heard & felt fibers ripping on my foot. I hobbled off the field in distress. The next day, I was literally hopping on one foot sometimes. I learned that when I sit for a while, it isn't "warmed up" and it is hard to walk. Ugh. The next two days, Tiffany worked on it again. So now here I am, 10 days after the initally pain and it still hurts but I haven't ran, played basketball, or any other sporty thing. BUT...our softball championship games are on Tuesday and I have to play! (I hope to play!) Wish me luck.

Two thumbs up!

If you ever get a chance, go to Shrek the Musical. I had free tickets and went @ the beginning of September. I would never have guessed that it was going to be good --- it sure surpassed my expectations! The opening act had me laughing so hard. I even convinced my friends to go watch it for their First Anniversary Date. And yes, they loved it.

A few days later I went to Phantom of the Opera. It was my 2nd time seeing that show. It is a great classic. (I loved the movie version too -- I want to own a corset!) While watching this show, I even cried a couple times. Ridiculous I know. I do love cheesy things sometimes. :)

While I'm on the topic, there are a few other shows you SHOULD see:
Lion King
Wicked

Some that were good if you get the chance to see:
High School Musical
Mary Poppins
Hairspray
My Fair Lady

And a couple shows that I felt wasted my time watching them:
Spamalot
Young Frankenstein

Sheep Lake.

9.12 - 9.13.08

A few of us went camping @ Sheep Lake. It was a 2 mile hike in to the lake. The next day, we hiked a bit more to the pass and saw some great views of Mt. Rainier. The lake ran right next to the Pacific Crest Trail (the trail that goes from Canada to Mexico). Enjoy the slide show. (make sure you read the captions for extra tidbits of knowledge...)

Ferry Ride.

When I was a little kidlet, we use to drive over to Seattle for vacations. One of the highlights was to ride the ferry. And still to this day I love riding the ferry! A group of us walked on the ferry to Bainbridge Island and ate pizza on Bainbridge and then rode the ferry back. I love the view of Seattle skyline, the fresh air, and the opportunity to "live it up" on the ferry.


I learned that seagulls will eat saltines out of your hands. I got pecked a few times!

Day Four: hiking out.

time to hike out of the beautiful Enchantments. I was just getting use to backpacking: sleeping on the ground, no makeup, no shower, no cell phone, no Internet, amazing freeze-dried scrambled eggs, no Olympics. I know, I know...how did I survive without all those necessities in life? :) It was a great life just simply living out a backpack, the great views, and most importantly the great people I was able to be with on this trek. Each one of them taught lil' novice me so much about backpacking. They were so patient with me and my fears. They a great! Thank you sooo much!!! Life was great in the Enchantments. I'm sure those goats miss us. :)

the last Enchantments Lake.

I did hate them for about an hour though. I was packed waiting for them, and they informed me that I could go forward hiking (alone!) and they would catch up. Well, little did we know that the huge granite slab was so soon to our campsite. Thus, I had to manuver this unfortunately steep and scary section by myself. Yep, I was praying a lot. It is hard to pray when half of your brain is mad that I had to do this portion alone. :) I made it though. Their training from the other days paid off. I guess you could say this was my post-assessment.

Just one of many logs we encountered on our 7 hour hike out. Notice how I'm hanging on to Tony's pack -- afraid to fall off the log. The only scared one. ha!

During our lunch break, I accidentally dropped some tuna fish and lo & behold, little birdies came up to nab the tuna droppings. Yes, that is my hand -- befriending that little bird.

These are my nails. Nice paint job huh? Well, they were freshly painted the night before we left on this hiking adventure. Within 4 days this is how they fared. Lots of scrapes, scratches, and some bruises on my body. But I did it!!! 20+ miles in 4 days. Thanks Janae for planning & organizing this amazing trip. It will go down in the history of my fav memories in life.

Day 3: Lower Enchantments.

This day was the most low-key. We ventured further in the Lower Enchantments. There are several lakes, a myraid of amazing views, and great waterfalls through this journey. The following are a few pictures of this beautiful hiking experience.

We landed upon another campsite. A different site each night. Great experience @ packing. ha! Most of us enjoyed mini-cliff jumping into the super-duper frigid cold glacier water. My extent was a bitty jump and I was out quick. But others enjoyed jumping in over and over and over again. Brave souls. After the wetness we kicked it in the "family room" (i.e. rock slab) with goats wandering around us.






And what a joy to have an almost full moon to see every night.