Cars, trucks, and vans, among other things

So I've really been feeling the need to make this apartment feel like home lately, so I've been checking KSL to see if I could find some deals on bookshelves or other furniture for the livingroom. (I have 14 boxes of books stacked in my bedroom at the moment and my livingroom is pretty huge without much to fill it.) I finally found an ad for 4 bookshelves that were only $50 total, which I thought was a great deal. The lady lived in Layton (about an 1 hr 15 min. north of here), though, so it would have been quite a drive just to go pick up some bookshelves. BUT...Steve was planning to go to Logan (about 2 hours north of here) that weekend anyway, so I thought it was a sign from the universe that we needed to get these bookshelves. As it turns out, I was wrong. Remind me to not try to read signs into the universe in the future, okay?

So, we had to borrow Steve's parents' van to pick up the shelves, since we don't own a vehicle that could hold one bookshelf, let alone 4. I spoke to the lady the day before and told her when he would be driving through there and got directions (they were at a storage shed) and everything was good. Well, Steve knew he was going to get there a few minutes late, so he called her to let her know, but she didn't answer. When he gets to Layton, she still hasn't called, so he was just going to go to the storage place, but due to the utter ridiculousness of Utah drivers, ends up rear-ending a guy driving a brand new Nissan. Both cars were still driveable, and no one was hurt, thank goodness. He tried calling the lady again and called me and had me try calling her, to no avail. So to get to the end of a story that probably shouldn't have taken this long to tell...We never got ahold of the lady, so no bookshelves, AND the damages totalled his parents van plus we still have to pay the $500 deductible.

Good signs from the universe, my foot.

Emilia has gotten a LOT better lately about riding in the car, though, which I'm enjoying. For a while there, she would make me play Pooh and Piglet the whole way there (where ever we were going) and the whole way back. And if you don't know, I HATE playing that "game." So, I've gotten into the habit of not bringing them if we go on a car trip, and that problem is solved. Woo-hoo! She likes looking out the windows, though, and she can make it almost the 45 minutes to my mom's house without needing anything else to entertain her. (If I give her goldfish crackers, she can make it the whole way. haha.) But she has to tell me the color of every decently large truck that we pass and make sure I look to see that she saw it. Which can be cute for the first 20 trucks or so. But anything's better than Pooh and Piglet, so I'll count my blessings on that one.

And more quips from my daughter that I've had on facebook (these are all since the end of August).

I find it funny that Emilia speaks like she's a book. Some things that she's said recently while playing: "I wonder, Daddy said." "You scared me, Piglet stammered."

So, Emilia greeted me after church yesterday with two endearing phrases. (For those of you who don't know, she is in a nursery class with other kids her age for the last two hours of church.) Right after church, Steve picked her up from nursery, but I was still in the Relief Society room chatting, so he brought her to me so we could go. As as she sees me, she yells (to Steve), "Momma! I found her!" It would have made my heart glad if that was the only thing she yelled. But as soon as I picked her up, she started yelling, "I didn't miss you, Momma! I didn't miss you!" which she continued to yell all the way to the car.

After waking up early from her nap, Emilia turned to me and said, "I want a present today," and then said something about how it should be outside on the lawn. Haha. I think she misses her birthday.

My daughter is so funny! The last few days, whenever we say things like, "C'mon, Emilia, time for bed!" she yells, "Run away!! Run away!!" and then follows her own advice.

When Emilia has me play dolls with her, they are named Baby and Another Baby. Like this--
Emilia: You need a bottle, Another Baby?
Me: Yes, I'm thirsty.
Emilia: You thirsty, Another Baby?
Me: Yes. (She hands me the bottle, then puts her doll in the bed.)
...Emilia: Baby tired. Goodnight Another Baby!
Me: Okay, Baby, sleep good!

Yesterday Alison came over for dinner and was playing Pooh and Piglet with Emilia while I finished cooking. Emilia kept having Piglet hide under an orange tupperware bowl and Alison pretended she couldn't see him. After like the 30th time, Alison (as Pooh, of course) finally said, "I don't know, Piglet, that bowl seems kind of sketchy." To which Emilia promptly replied, "It not sketchy. It orange!"

I think Emilia thinks she is the cranky receptionist for a company called "Pretty Day." Every time she has a play phone in her hand she puts it up to her ear and says, "Hello...Pretty Day. Goodbye."

A conversation the other day between Alison and Emilia:
Alison: Can I have a hug?
Emilia: No!
Alison: Please?
Emilia: No hugs, not hugs, owls.
Alison: No hugs?
Emilia: They owls.
Alison: So they're not hugs, they're owls?
Emilia: Yes.
Alison: Well, can I have an owl then?
Emilia then nods and runs over and gives her a hug.