I was raised by Bob:

As a child, there was one show I watched more than any other.
The Smurfs? Nope. Inspector Gadget? No. Jem!? Wrong again.

I was lucky enough to get my fill of my favorite show every weekday at 10am. That's 5 days a week, I would bounce out of my bed bright and early at 9:45, grab a bowl of Golden Puffs cereal, and join my Mom in the Family room for a beautiful thing.

Nicole ___________(because I didn't know what my last name would be), COME ON DOWN!
You're the next contestant on The Price is Right!

I would imagine those sweet words in my head just about every day. I had it all planned out. I would come up with something very clever for my T-shirt, proclaiming my love and adoration for Bob and his beauties. And, because of my hard work, my stay in contestant's row would be very short. One bid is all it takes. There are quite a few guidelines I developed over the years of my training. When spinning the wheel. If your first spin is under $0.65, SPIN AGAIN. If it's over DON'T. And when you are the top contestant for the Showcase Showdown, if the 1st one doesn't have the trip in it, the second one definitely will.



I learned many lessons from Uncle Bob:

Take care of your pets.

If you kiss old-men on the cheek, they'll probably give you something.

You will always look silly jumping up and down screaming, but sometimes it's what you need to do.

Pay attention to details. $1.00 can make a very big difference.

You may think the vast knowledge of this show would never serve a purpose in the life of a 31 year old SAHM, but you would be very very wrong.

I am convinced my love of all things numbers can be linked back to my beloved Uncle Bob.
I memorize phone numbers, addresses, license plate numbers, and yes, even prices all the time. If you ask me how much a package of strawberries cost at Wal-Mart yesterday, I will not tell you $2, because they actually cost $1.98. Did I buy strawberries yesterday? No, but I walked past them, and the huge sign burned itself into my brain. All thanks to Bob. Because you never know when you might be asked to fly to Cali to be a very special contestant. I must be prepared at all times.

Very recently, this upbringing of mine came in VERY handy. My calling in my ward is Enrichment Leader. A few months back, I was handed a script for an Enrichment Night focusing on Food Storage titled "The Price Is Right"

Talk about validation!

My childhood was not in vain. All of my knowledge of this show came into play. I am amazed at some of the useless information that surfaced during the preparations. Here is the poster I made for the evening:

I wish I had pictures of all of the games that we played. We recreated Higher or Lower, Hole In One, Pick-A-Number, and one of my very favorites: Cliff Hangers. If only we could have recreated Plinko or Punch-a-Bunch or even The Money Game. Can you imagine?

While I did not realize my dream of being a contestant on The Price Is Right, I did get to see four lovely women in our ward come on down, bid on various items, and play our fantastic games. When all was said and done, I thought it all went very well despite a few last minute character replacements. The commercials were the real meat and potatoes of the evening. Thank goodness someone else took those over since I was uselessly distracted by my love for the show, and I don't know the first thing about food storage. Details.

Someday, I will get to Television City, and I will sit in the studio audience of my all-time favorite show. I will make the perfect T-shirt informing Drew of my love for all things Bob. And maybe if I'm lucky, I will hear those five little words I've longed to hear.