Boren Sisters: October 2011

Thought you'd like to see Amanda's participation in the Fry's annual talent competition. I'll try and get the video up. She didn't end up winning, but she got about $150 in Fry's gift cards.

She sang "At Last" by Etta James. I tried talking her into singing it to a karaoke track because I think that's what the judges and crowd want. But she said that wasn't her. So she sang it without music. It was awesome.

But I think they should call it "Fry's Has Entertainment" because they're just looking for the entertainment factor. Here she is with John Flora, president of Fry's food stores recieving her plaque. We joke about John Flora and his best chicken in town.

So the next time you shop at Fry's, your cashier or bagger or deli worker could secretly be a singer or play the guitar, or breakdance. You never know.

Ok, well I guess when we've reached the point of blogging about our FISH, then we KNOW that this blog needs some serious help. haha. jk Becky :) (I actually enjoyed the psycho, secretly-hoping suicidal fish story). So since everyone is always sharing fun little updates, I thought I'd share what's going on at the Parris home.

So I confess.........I've gotten sucked in to Blogland!!! I blame Grandma for being so creative and wanting to copy and buy everything in her house!!! And for telling me to check out Miss Mustard Seed's blog....it all spiraled from there because EVERYONE has a blog list, who has a blog list, who has a blog list. Yep, it never ends as I'm discovering. But I love it :) And Dustin hasn't said anything yet.........well, I'm lying if you count all the times he's rolled his eyes when I tell him "don't close out of my blog windows" when he sits down at the computer......and then says "ALL 50 OF THEM?!?!" (quite literally. The Internet, I discovered, is quite able to have 50 tabs open at one time....I'm not sure how many it can handle before your computer explodes but....we'll try not to go there ;) ...I guess I would be lying about Dustin minding if I told you about all the times I said "we're going to Walmart" and then stop by the Dollar Store or Michaels or Goodwill for "just 5 minutes" and end up spending an hour there. haha. We've found some AWESOME deals though...which is why I have about 1,000 projects going on right now. Ok, probably more like 20... At least I have my own craft room/spare room w/a bed/future baby room to put it all in. haha. When I told Dustin that when we have a baby I'm going to have to move all my craft stuff into his computer room, that boy started making plans to convert our garage into another room faster than you can say "forget about it." haha. Yeah I got the hint..... I don't know why he doesn't think a pink polkadot desk would be cute next to his computer...or why bows, buttons, and ribbon don't go with computers, speakers, and visual effects editing stuffs. Maybe I'm messing with his manhood?! haha. Well anyway, we'll figure that out when baby time comes.....in another year or two for all you curious people who have already begun replying to this post before I've even finished typing..... ;)

So yep, crafting is my new thing...and writing music...and yes I'm still working in the Primary. And when I say WORKING, I mean WORKING. Me and the president have been running the whole deal -- we lost our chorister, we're losing our pianist, we're short on teachers for 2 classes AND our newly-called 2nd counselor has been out of town for 2 months and is scared to teach Sharing Time. Yep, ALLLLL them little kiddies know Sis. Parris real well since I have to get up and teach every other week. Last week was the Primary Program (the 1st counselor is supposed to write that (I'm sure Becky knows all about this and as Primary Pres just sighs with relief that she skipped out on that kind of stress. haha.) Well lucky little miss ME did NOT get to skip out cuz lo and behold IIII am the 1st counselor. haha. .... So yes I wrote the Primary Program for our ward... and it actually wasn't too hard :) Thank goodness for other creative people out there who post their outlines. I picked and chose what I liked from their's and then filled in the rest with my own ideas. :) The performance went pretty good -- my mom was there and can testify for or against that statement. haha. Pretty smooth compared to practice. Oh my holy freaking out when like 1/2 the kids showed up on the Sunday before practice and didn't have their parts memorized and were not cooperating. I couldn't take the heat and almost lost my cool. hahahaha (brilliant line Shaleice, if I do say so myself).. Only 2 little uh-oh's --One 9 year old started crying cuz he forgot his part and got really embarrassed, and a sunbeam boy got up there and just stood there...frozen. This kid NEVER EVER talks. He won't answer your question, he won't tell you his name, and he would NOT say his part. haha. Finally we had to pick him up from the pulpit and move him next to the kids who had already said their parts. Too funny.

This was supposed to be short... "Let me start at the beginning. No, there is too much. Let me sum up. Humperdink is going to marry the princess in less than 24 hours unless we break into the castle".............. ok, so maybe that's not the EXACT line from "The Princess Bride" but...that's what came to mind :) Love that movie. Anyway, summing up, we're working on getting Dustin into the Art Institute of Phoenix. He's tried school at the community colleges and they don't have the program he wants to go into (Visual Effects) to be one of those crazy awesome guys who make the fire/water/bullets/scenery in all the movies these days. Dustin is always leaning over to me in movies and saying, "that's totally fake. They just used visual effects...and blah blah blah more words that I don't understand." haha. Here's a youtube example of what Dustin wants to do. It shows a good breakdown of what kinds of things the visual effects ppl go back in to the video footage and add:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NpAXMdBWTQ&feature=related

The programs that are used to make all this stuff are INSANELY confusing to me but Dustin get it so.... :) In April he formed a business with some close friends making short films/commercials for some big local companies. Dustin does all the video effects stuff in those films. They've had a few big jobs and have more lined up so they're all hoping it really takes off soon. School and work (Blue Sky Pest Control) for now.

Me - working at the Univ of Phoenix and counting down down the days til I get my Bach degree and can move on. That's still a year away. *sigh... (It's all your fault Shaleice for switching programs.)haha. I'm not going into teaching anymore and am instead doing Human Services. Not exactly sure which direction I want to focus on yet (kids, elderly, pregnant teens, homeless..) ...it's a pretty broad degree. I'm hoping to use it more as back-up and hope to stay home with the kids in a few years. Maybe sell crafts/re-do furniture on the side. haha. We totally posted this outdoor fireplace thing on Craigslist that we got for free, and within 15 min. of posting it, we'd sold it. hmmm....that got my wheels turning. ;)

ANYWAY, goodness, ok, that's enough about us. I'm going to post some pictures of us and my craftiness. I haven't decided to jump on the bandwagon and paint my cabinets white...... cuz Dustin won't let me until I finish my other 20 projects. So maybe in a few years eh? ;)

Cute? - yes. Ours?- No. haha. Our neice, Ellie.

Stenciled cloth (bought at Goodwill for 30 cents.) Top pic--Dustin's attempt to *brilliantly* use spraypaint. Bottom pic - my (awesome) attempt using acrylic paint.