For All You Bangerters

I've got a little quiz for all the Bangerters out there. These are pictures from about 1920. They are each of one of your Bangerter Grandparents. Can you guess which one is Mildred Pauline and which one is John Howard?

And Kristi, Cherish, & Anna: don't you think the second picture looks JUST LIKE SUZIE?

I'm dying to know what you all think.

We Were Doorbell Ditched Last Night.

Cookies, nope. Candy, nope. Bag of flaming manure, nope. Someone dropped off a brand new, in-the-box, over-the-stove, stainless steel MICROWAVE! We've been living without one for months and months. Scott installed it tonight. And we can barely imagine who could have given such an expensive, thoughtful, out-of-the-blue gift.

The box had an envelope with our name on it (misspelled and in youthful, feminine handwriting) with a note: "We love you. Heard you needed one of these."

Thank you, mystery giver! How will we ever repay you?

Cooking "The Books"

Something I love even more than the dentist: reconciling my checkbook with the bank. I love it! I crave it! I prefer it to french fries. Once a week I pull up my bank information and I reconcile it against my digital check register in Excel. It's sweet. I keep up to date with all our transactions and check them against what the bank shows.

I even put together a separate budget worksheet that gives Scott a snapshot of where we stand. It shows which bills are paid, which ones are coming in, a rough estimate of how much more money we need for the rest of the month, the balance in checking, savings, the monthly totals for every month of the year, and what checks/deposits are outstanding. I have formulas to help with all that in Excel. I print it up for him almost every Monday. He asks for it (nicely) if I'm late. And thanks me profusely (as if I'm a genius even though I'm not) when I give him that piece of paper. It's good as gold to him. I swear he loves it more than all my affections combined. I get all sorts of uneasy if too many days pass by without my completing that little job. Takes 15 minutes and all is well with the world when I'm done!

I know reconciling ones finances with the bank is a lost art. People don't think it matters anymore in this digital, now, today world. I hear of people who never even bother. I bother. It's my favorite.

Online Bill Pay is my second most favorite thing. I love that 7 or 8 days into the month, I usually have all my bills and I just go online and wham. Done. They go out just in time, no mail, no hassle, no fuss. done.

So, I just can't help but ask, do you reconcile your finances with your bank on a regular basis? Is it something you love more than french fries? Do you online bill pay?

Today's Escapade: A Trip to the Dentist

My mouth is still a little numb from getting a cavity filled today. But I had to pause and say that I love going to the dentist! Getting a cleaning is one thing to love-the fresh, clean feeling of a bright, sparkling smile surpasses, for me, even the joy of chocolate. And I live for a short time afterwards with renewed desire to floss and care for my pearly whites.

But even better than that is the feeling of partial numbness that comes with a filling. I'm not being sarcastic at all. I really love it. I love that the dentist starts with that cotton swab slathered in analgesic-type ointment and after a few seconds brings out the shot of Novocaine and he is so careful not to let me see the needle. He is so gentle, I hardly even know he is poking me several times with it, except for that occasional burst of medicinal coolness. And he tells me that he will be careful and he reminds me to breathe (I honestly would have forgotten).

And then the dentist leaves me for a moment with a good movie to watch on a nice flat screen TV placed strategically above my head to make it easier to see. I wait, and focus on the sensations of the Novocaine radiating into nothingness. And then when it's time, I love to have my chair tilted back so far that my head is just a little lower than normal.

Now, the drilling isn't fun. I'm not altogether crazy. The sound is horrible and there is always a momentary twinge as if the drill went just a tad too far, followed by a grimace and the dentist's reassurance that seconds are all that is required for completion. But amid all the drilling, my favorite part is to lay there while the dentist tells me everything he is doing and he goes on and on about what a great job I'm doing. I'm doing NOTHING, he's doing all the work and he's telling me how excellent I am, practically gushing over my composure like I'm some rare talent. Seriously, I was even late and messed up his schedule and he is still all smiles and asks about my Christmas and works me in like I am his most important patient. He even thanks me for still making it in. And on my way out, when I hand over my debit card for the measly $106 dollars to cover my new, shiny, white filling, the dentist walks by the front desk with a quick pause to tell me again what a great job I did and to assure me that no one will ever know I had anything done.

I honestly love it. Granted, I've never had a root canal so my experience is limited, and this is only my second cavity to fill, but really, don't you love going to the dentist too? Does your dentist rave about you, too.