A United Nations Valentine's Dance

A picture is worth a thousand words, so I am going to save the typing fingers and give you the photos from the evening - oh I will highlight the people and the countries.

From left to right: Amrin (Malaysia), Khalid (Saudi Arabia), Samah (born in American, family from Bangledesh), Lamiaa (Morocco), Seema (Pakistan), Cammy (China), Gaaby (Mexico), Gabriel (Palesitine).

And Grandma Mimi enjoying her night with 8 teenagers...really, she said she was having a good time - I believe her!!!

Dinner was at the Rio Grande and dance was held at Highland High.

Enjoy the UN Valentine's Dance photos.

See it is all about being with friends and enjoying the moment of love & peace.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone

with a big puffy heart!!!

We don't celebrate Valentine's Day!

In the car driving from one Super Bowl party to another Seema and Gabriel and I had a conversation that went something like this...
Mia:  Mamala, we don't celebrate Valentine's Day, but I think it would be fun to get all dressed up and go someplace fancy to eat and do something fun.
Me: Hmmm... well, I think that you should go to the Highland High Valentine's Dance as a group, not with dates, but as a group that is going as friends, nothing romantic.  And get all dressed up and have dinner and then go and dance or not dance... and be together and have a good time. 
Mia: But we don't celebrate Valentine's Day.
Me: Yeah - I think you have some kind of misconception on this holiday that is all about romantic love, sex and dating.  It is NOT!  You get to express your love in anyway you choose, you love your mom/dad, sisters/brother, friends etc all in a some way that isn't romantic and heart filled candy love.  It is caring for each other; go as friends and enjoy being together.
Mia: okay, let's do it.
Seema: What do we wear?
Mia: I want to wear American dressy clothes.
Me:  That is a job for Mimi aka Grandma so ask her.
Mia: Seema, call her, right now!
Seema: calls Mimi/Grandma and she is also at a Super Bowl Party and not answering.
Mia: ask when you get home and call me.

Upon arriving at home Seema gets Mimi/Grandma to agree to take them shopping the next day for dresses.... and to sum this up, they shopped for 6 hours.

Brent Jensen at Paul Mitchell the School was wonderful and gave Lamiaa, Seema and Cammy complimentary hair and makeup in a private room in order for Lamiaa to uncover and get her hair done.  It was so much fun to see them do something they have never done and be all kinds of pampered.

Seema getting makeup with her hair done and ready.  The trimmed her hair and a fun front braid that is accented by the heart clip. 

Cammy waiting her turn for makup.  She wanted her hair in "circles" ~ translated, curly!

Lamiaa - her hair is beautiful and you have to take my word for that - they did it in two braided buns tucked at her neck.  She is almost done with makeup here.

Finished products above and the girls with the masters of their beauty below...

Thanks to Brent for being an awesome friend to make this amazing start to a wonderful night happen.

Yeah - that is right, we don't celebrate Valentine's Day!!!!

The fun part of January 2012...

If you read the Fire of January 2012 post, I am sure you are ready to see the fun part of January 2012.. here it goes.  We separated our vermicomposting worms, these little red wrigglers are awesome at composting..

Then we also went to cheer on the Running Utes...

And Seema, Lamiaa and Cammy volunteered at the Sugar House Rotary's Chili Open / Winter Festival... they ate more popcorn than they gave away and they had a bunch of fun!!!

And they got their faces painted and played with the photo booth props...

Look who we found coming out to enjoy the Winter Festival fun.

January is now a wrap... on to some Valentines fun in February.

ENJOY!!!!

The FIRE of January 2012!!!

OKAY OKAY - Keeping up with the Blog in January was not really happening.  The month was crazy busy because of the FIRE!  Yes, another fire.  This one was more serious at Mimi aka Grandma's house.  It started in the laundry room accidentally and filled the house and caused some serious smoke damage.  Mimi is fine and now living with Seema and me for about 5 months.  Here are some fire photos...

We have been making list of lost/damaged items and Mimi is picking out new cupboard, carpet, paint and more. Today (February 10th) the house looks like this...

So that I hope explains the lack of Blog post for January.... We did have fun though, see next post..

Las Vegas - New Years 2012

Following the amazing vacation to Disneyland, I thought it would be fun to top it off with a few days in Vegas and break up the long drive a bit.  Thanks to the kindness of Carolyn & Robert Wallace, we were able to book rooms at the Wallace Hotel. 

We arrived on New Years Eve at about 12:30 in the afternoon.  I thought I would brave the "Strip" and show Seema, Darby & Lamiaa the local fun before the street is shut down for traffic.  Well, of course, the first moving billboard is for "BabesinVegas.com" - and as anyone that has been to Vegas would understand the picture is of 3 mostly naked women and some line about "Girls 24 hours".  Seema from the backseat seeing the moving billboard asks "does your government allow this"?  Well, yes they do and some would say they encourage this.  Vegas didn't get it's nick name of Sin City for nothing!!!

Having some better judgement for the New Year's Eve festivities we went to an off-strip casino, Red Rock.  Yes, they do need to see a casino.  It was awesome to walk by an older lady in her wheelchair asleep in front of her slot machine.  Lamiaa says, "she looks like she is having fun."  It's Vegas baby!

After a bit of misguided walking about we decide to try our hand at the Arcade games.  Darby is thrilled when I drop $23 to get tokens and dole them out.  Lamiaa & Seema are skeptical of the fun, until the tickets start spewing out of the games... we call that WINNING!!!

Darby was not the biggest winner - hence her sad face.

Seema is clearly concentrating on "Deal or NO Deal"

Here they are holding their winnings.  Both Lamiaa and Seema traded in their tickets for cute Disney photo albums.  Darby got a few smaller items, one was a whistle that was threated to be broken by Seema if she blew it one more time. 

After the Arcade we hit a movie, Tin Tin in 3D.  So here is where I will be totally honest at how stupid I actually am.  When we leave the movie I said, oh I thought that movie was about a horse!  I kept wondering when the horse was going to be in the show.  It got a good laugh.  Darcy did ask how long it took me to figure that out... well about 1/2 way.  I know, blonde.

The next day we hit Ceasars Forum and the Bellagio fountains.  Which after that we were exhausted and needed a rest & dinner.  Both happened.

The one thing Darby was MOST excited to see was a store she had spotted on our first day and REALLY REALLY REALLY wanted to go back.  So on our last day, she and I got up early and hit Trader Joe's when they opened.  Darby finally understands the importance of getting one here in SLC.  I am pretty sure this was the first time she was able to pick a wine for her mom.  We got DeeDee the Happiness Project with the smiley face on it and other goodies. 

But, that wasn't the store Darby wanted - it was, yes, Zombie Apocalpyse.  We found it the night before and jumped out of the car to get a photo. 

So this may be the most interesting store I have EVER entered and when we did both Darby and I looked at each other and said, this could be strange!   Yeah, strange in a your grandmother works here and they sell astroturf, emergency preparedness supplies, stun guns, jerky and zombie stuff...  I am not sure what all Darby walked away with - but later I was told be her mom, DeeDee, don't buy her a stun gun...  good thing we didn't get that cute pink cell phone style stun gun.

That is Vegas Baby!!!