SeatKarma

SeatKarma is a cool new website that happens to be the brilliant idea of one of my close relatives. They were recently featured in an article on Technology News and here’s a little bit of the write up:
• Elevator pitch: A Kayak-like service for tickets to live events.

• The idea: SeatKarma searches various ticket broker sites such as RazorGator and StubHub to help users find the best seats for the best price for sports, concerts and plays. Users can also see pictures of the view from various seats at professional sports stadiums nationwide as well as NCAA football venues. The site also boasts 3-D renderings of seating at some theaters. Once consumers find the tickets they want, the site redirects them to a broker site to purchase from directly. The company takes a commission of an average 7 to 12 percent from the broker and says it gives 10 percent of its monthly revenue to charity.

• The brains: Founders Chris Nicolaysen and Ohad Nezer met while getting their MBAs at Texas A&M. The pair founded the company in 2007. The site went live in March.

• Users: The site doesn’t require registration, but Nezer says it averages 10,000 unique visitors a month.

Check them out the next time you need great tickets!

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I’m So Done

Well, I couldn’t throw away the pile of papers I’ve acquired in this home search without documenting it. To read about the process I’ve used in the search click to read “Still Looking.” We numbered on a paper map and drove by at least 50 houses. (I’m not going to count, because I am so done with spending time on this.) And then there were the dozens we made appointments to see the inside of too, but weren’t quite right. Now that we have just what we were looking for, I feel like all of the time was worth it. And I feel very blessed that the Lord has always taken care of us so well. It definitely has not been easy, but I feel like He knew where we will be happy and led us to it. I can’t help but think of my s-i-l Holly and her current situation too. I respect her so much for following a prompting to go to an unknown city and start from scratch. I’m sure it has been difficult, but I know that things will work out for her there too. Hang in there Holly, I’m praying for you!

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We Found A Place!

After a long search we found our new home! It should be a wonderful place for our family, especially because now Hunter and Emma will both have their own rooms and it is the same rent that we are paying now! Also, there are some great extra perks like an upstairs laundry room (by all the bedrooms) and a beautiful kitchen. Maybe I’ll actually want to try cooking again. Here are a couple of pictures: one of the back yard, and one of the kitchen. Tomorrow we will try to set things up with the movers and can move in as soon as October 22nd. A little crazy, so we’ll see how it all plays out.

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Getting Back on That Horse

I got a friendly note from my blogher friends reminding me that I have not posted for two weeks. So in order to keep the ads up I need to “get back on the horse.” For some reason when I read the email this phrase popped into my head, and since I sort of lost my groove over the summer and want to get it back I started thinking of things to blog about. Of course there are a million since I was such a slacker all summer, but I decided today to write about literally getting on a horse.

I grew up in an agricultural community where there were lots of animals. Especially cows and horses. We didn’t have anything like that at my house but I would see them every day driving to and from school, church, etc. You would think I would be used to the idea of them, but horses freaked me out, and cows grossed me out. Horses were so big and I was terrified of getting on one and having it run full speed toward the cliff’s edge at high speed, then stop suddenly, kick up it’s hind legs, and boost me up and over into a deep ravine… My imagination had the whole scenario worked out.

When I was about fourteen, there was a youth church activity where we all went up to the mountains and did scary stuff like repelling down a cliff and riding horses. Not being known for an adventurous spirit, I did not want to do either one. But my pride and a greater fear of looking like a chicken convinced me to give it a try.

My bishop at the time, Bishop Gardner, who has now unfortunately passed away but whom I will always feel love and respect for, was leading a group of horses along a ride through the woods. He tried to convince me that it was not a big deal. I was still afraid of falling off and he told me, “just hold tight onto the saddle horn and you’ll be fine. If you do fall, you’d better have that saddle horn in your hands.” So with trepidation I got up in the saddle and rode with the group. He was right, it wasn’t all that scary. The horses were obedient and good at following the guide. However, after several minutes there was a large fallen tree in front of us and no way to get around it except to jump over. When it was my turn I held my breath, closed my eyes, and gripped the saddle horn as tightly as I could. As soon as the horse jumped I felt myself falling down to the ground. When I opened my eyes I was laying on the ground and the large dark horse was rearing up above me on it’s hind legs, probably just trying to get around me, but scaring me so that I froze and just prayed he didn’t step on me. When the horse was under control and out of the way, I was helped to my feet by the bishop who was I’m sure relieved that I was okay. I don’t remember what happened after that, or how I got back to the cabin, but I do know that the bishop and I created a bond that day. He loved to tell this story and laugh at how obedient I had been. The reason I had fallen from the horse was because the cinch (the belt part) had broken and so the saddle had fallen off,  me along with it. And apparently when I fell Bishop Gardner saw the saddle laying next to me and I still had the saddle horn in my hands.

I’m still not big on horse riding, but I have been back on one a few times since that day. So now you know one of my most embarrassing and terrifying moments ever. Sometime I’ll have to tell you about the time I was tricked into cleaning out a cow’s corral and how that scarred me forever too. Needless to say, I don’t envision myself ever living on a farm.

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Emma Turns Nine

Happy Birthday To Emma!

Emma’s Favorites:

Book: Harry Potter – she read the whole series this last summer. All 7 books! Also Ballet Shoes too.

Ice Cream: Reeses peanut butter & French vanilla

Movie: All Harry Potter Movies

Color: Burgundy & Light Brown & Aqua

Dinner: Crepes or Pizza or Mac ‘n Cheese

Season: Winter

Song: Breakaway & Matt, Rescue Ranger

Smell: Cinnamon or Vanilla candles

Game: Handball

Catch phrase: “What up peoples?”

Jelly Belly Flavor: Coconut & Toasted Marshmallow

Animal: Hummingbird & Lion

Candy: M&Ms & anything chocolate

Holiday: Christmas

What I want to be when I grow up: Author or Actress & Mom

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