My life... or something like it.

farewell

2009-05-03T23:11:00.002-06:00

Ok all. Here's the deal. I'm speaking in Sacrament meeting this Sunday, May 10th, Mother's Day, at 1:00 in the Tropicana Ward in the Tropicana Chapel. I realize that Mothers day is a tough day to take time away from family, but think of it this way; if both you and your Mother live in Vegas, you'll see them fairly often. This is the last chance you'll get to see me... so, in my opinion, your mothers can spare you for a few hours. Just be sure to get her a really good present and tell her you love her very much and all should be forgiven. There will be an openhouse hooplah at my house starting at 6:30 pm. Delicious desserts will be there. All are welcome (preferably if I know you) to stop by. If you have any questions or need directions, comment below and I'll answer as quickly as I can.
LOVE,
Soon to be Sister Hastings.

I am lazy

2009-04-08T10:31:00.002-06:00

ok, so because I don't want to spend forever typing what we did all weekend, I'll just upload pictures and maybe the story will come later.

S'pose I might as well...

2009-03-24T22:27:00.002-06:00

So, once upon a time, I did something weird on facebook and now everything from this blog is automatically transferred to my notes there. I couldn't tell you how I did it, even though I consider myself fairly computer savey. I suppose some poking around wouldn't hurt, but I don't really care enough to try. Anyways, I tell you this because even though there are only 4 comments on the last post, someone commented on this from facebook, thus I have my 5. Congrats to Hannah Belanger, Pookie the Pookstar England, Angie Larkin, Loralee Warner, and Beth Garrard. I think I know what I'm going to make, I just have to go get supplies. Here's a hint... Pookie will get something completely different because he's a boy. Anyways... nothing too exciting is happening up here in Provo... School is tedious and I just want to get out of here. 49 days to go...

Pay attention kids!

2009-03-16T12:35:00.002-06:00

Here is the deal: The first five people to comment on this post will get something made by me.
My choice.
For you.
This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make.
2- What I make will be just for you.
3- It'll be done this year.
4- You have no clue what it's going to be. It may be a story. It may be photography, I may sew or paint or bake something. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!
5- I reserve the right to do something extremely creative.

The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must re-post this on your own blog and offer the same deal to 5 of your own lucky blog readers. So, the first 5 people to leave a comment telling me they are in, win a FAB-U-LOUS homemade gift by me! Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it.

I got this from a friend of a friend, Ana Lee. I was number three to comment on her blog so, I should be good for something extremely creative!

And the winner is...

2009-02-27T23:51:00.003-07:00

So, I suppose it might be helpful to finally let y'all know that I'll be serving in the Houston Texas Mission, Spanish speaking. I'll report to the MTC on May 13th. I'm totally psyched. Today, we went to get my first El Libro De Mormon and my Temple Dress. As soon as I get my recommend, (which will hopefully be very soon) I'll be taking a little road trip down to Vegas to take out my endowments.

The only thing left then would be to announce the winners. The Grand Poo-bah winner of them all would have to be Scott Haynie who guessed "Southern Texas Spanish Speaking"... can't get much closer than that. Silver and Bronze go to Nathan Robinson and Laura Cutler who guessed "El Paso, Texas" and "Texas" respectively. So guys, come claim your prizes; any candy, cookie, brownie, baked-good of your choice... just let me know and I'll get on it. (If there's a specific recipe you're looking for, you'll have to forward that along too, or I can look it up on the internet or something.) I'm too tired to update on much else, but if there's any questions, just comment them and I'll let you know!

IT'S HERE!

2009-02-26T15:26:00.005-07:00

Dude... seriously, if you want in on the baked goods action, you'd best be making your last minute guesses now. Any guesses made after 8:30 (Mountain Standard Time) will not be accepted in the raffle. K, If you live in Utah County and would like to come, I'll be opening it tonight, THURSDAY at 8:30 pm in the game room at Roman Garden Apartments. The address is 1060 E. 450 N. Provo, 84606

Guess Where?

2009-02-17T22:16:00.000-07:00

So my paperwork is officially in SLC. I met with my stake president on Sunday (which was good, but intense) and he basically said I’m good to go. It was a long interview too, probably about half an hour. He said there might be a slight hiccup with the mission department because of something on my medical history, so we talked about getting a letter from my doctor, just to say that I’m perfectly fine to go wherever and do whatever.
On Monday morning, I got a call from my Stake President saying that as he was entering the information from my paperwork into the computer, he read what my Bishop had said and thought about what I had said and decided that he was going to send the information in as it is. He said that I should still go ahead and try to get the letter from my doctor so that if Salt Lake needed more information that we could then send the letter in whenever I got it, but why wait if we don’t need to type of a thing. He’s going to be released in 2 weeks (he said I’m his last missionary) and wants to push this through as quickly as possible. SO, this is where I am in the whole process. I’m at the delightful stage of waiting without being able to do anything about it.
To pass the time of boredom and complete lack of anything interesting to do, I’m taking guesses on where people think I might go on this grand and exciting mission of mine. I have a map at my apartment with pins to mark the guesses. As an incentive, I’ll send the winner a really good homemade treat. (I’m a poor college kid about to go on a mission here folks, this is about the best I can do.) If you have kids, they can guess too and if they are too little to eat treats, well hey, it’s like 2 guesses for you… 2 chances to win (example, Cameron Taylor Warner is too little for sweet rolls/cookies/no bakes/brownies… So, congrats to Loralee who gets to guess twice.) Anyways, there you have it. Happy hypothesizing.

25 Random Things

2009-02-01T00:10:00.002-07:00

Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

1) I have a fish named Mr. Bingley. He is 14 months old. He's lived through the trauma of going down the disposal, being out of the water for about 5 minutes, and being rescued by 2 metal spoons.
2) I was the first person to finish my pajama pants in my sewing class.
3) I have never colored my hair. I love the color of my hair and have never wanted to change it.
4) I feel naked without earrings on. It is the one piece of jewelry that I always have on unless I'm sleeping.
5) I have to fall asleep on my stomach with one leg hitched up, on arm under my pillow and the other hand tucking the blankets under my chin.
6) I'm kind of a clean freak. I never thought I was, (and maybe I wasn't,) until I lived in the apartment where I am now. Clutter really bothers me and I have to vaccuum the carpet every couple of days or I feel like the apartment is really dirty.
7) I have really big and noticeable blood veins in my eyes.
8) My right foot is slightly smaller/shorter than my left. I have spacers in a lot of my right foot heels.
9) It takes a LOT of self-restraint for me to resist sales. I am SUCH a sucker for sales. It doesn't even matter what's being sold, if it's a good sale, I'm there.
10) My favorite tv shows are dancing competitions; So you think you can dance, Dancing with the stars, America's best dance crew...
11) I could read the Harry Potter books over and over without ever getting tired of them. I love developing new theories based on whatever new facts I've found.
12) I dry-shave my legs. Yes, it's exactly what it sounds like. I shave my legs dry right after my shower. I don't get razor burn, and I always cut myself when I use shaving creme. It's quicker and more acurate for me...
13) I have 2 recipes memorized. No-bake cookies and Caramel Brownies. I make them whenever I think of any reason to.
14) I cried during my first fire drill in Kindergarten because my house was just a street and a house away. I was afraid that my mom and little sister would be in danger from the fire because we lived so close to the school. I suppose I didn't know what "drill" meant.
15) I have only ever won one trophy in my life. It was for an art contest in the second grade. It was the best day ever... of second grade.
16) Sundays are my favorite day of the week. I love everything about Sundays. I love going to church, I love coming home and taking a nap on the couch with my plush pillow and beloved blanket whilst ( :) ) watching a Disney movie. I love wearing my flirty apron over my church outfit and making food barefoot in the kitchen. I love people coming over to play games and talk not doing homework because it is the sabbath. I love sundays.
17) Dashboard Confessional is probably my favorite band. They are good and great and wonderful.
19) I also love Michael Buble. He is pretty great.
20) My little sister Karalyn stole my baby blanket when we were really little. She still denies it to this day, but I have photo evidence.
21) Not only am I a Lord of the Rings Fanatic, I can quote the Appendicies... heck yes.
22) I am a certified rappelling instructor.
23) I drink a slim fast every morning for breakfast. It's gross, but quick, easy, and effective.
24) I am one of the few girls my age that I know who is completely happy with my appearance.
25) I am going on a mission. I have started my papers and I'll probably get my call in about 3-4 weeks. I'm SO EXCITED!!! (If you know Mike Garrard, Holden Latimer, Colton Wood, Cj Huntsman, or Justin Turner, don't tell them. I have my own secret plans for letting them know all about it.)

I have a problem.

2009-01-27T13:07:00.002-07:00

Every one of these shoes you see here has been purchased within the last 5 months. I don't know how it happened, but I have very suddenly become a shoe fanatic. That's 13 pairs people!! 5 months... I am, however, pleased to say that 10 of the 13 were under $25. As for the other 3, mom (or rather, dad) bought them for me. I love them, and they love me. Usually. They really don't love me if it's the first time I'm wearing them and I'm walking all over campus all day. So... yeah. I have a problem.

There is hope, however. They say the first step to recovery from an addiction is recognizing the problem. I do recognize that I am very poor and were it not for these shoes I'd be quite a bit better off financially speaking. So, no more shoes. At least for a while. I'll keep you updated on my progress.
Love,
Julina

Today was a good day.

2009-01-26T01:48:00.002-07:00

Mostly. And it shouldn’t have been, which is odd. I accidently took a 3 hour nap yesterday and therefore didn’t sleep well at all last night. But I woke up early so I could go to church early for ward choir practice. I sat by Dan Alletto in Gospel Doctrine. That was pretty exciting. After church, my home teachers, Jj Weidner and Steven something (he’s new) came by to home teach. They’re really cool and I like them a lot. They’re way easy to talk to and get along with. Directly after HTers, I went to Choir Practice in the game room. We’ll be singing “Prayer is the heart’s sincerest desire…” or something like that… It’s a pretty cool song, going from singing unison to breaking in 8 parts. It should be really pretty after we’ve worked on it for a few more weeks. Directly after CP, there was a Relief Society Leadership Training meeting. As the RS Publicist, I was invited to go. We basically just talked about our callings and how we can improve them to strengthen the sisters. After THAT, Alli and I went Visiting Teaching. Or at least, attempted to. We had made appointments and everything but neither answered the door. After that, Kelly and I watched Fantasia for a bit and then I took a nap until Mary needed help with dinner. Sad to say, I was not too pleasant to be woken up to help and only did so grudgingly because Rick Kessler was there to eat dinner with us. After dinner, I came back into my room and puttered around on my lap top (for which I have yet to find a name, she’s so pretty!!) for a bit until ward prayer. After ward prayer, Kelly and I went around to visit people because we were bored as all get out.

Then Nathan Robinson came by to have a brownie. He was weird. I didn’t like it. I think like I’ve been trying to make him something he’s not. He seems like the type of guy who would make a really good go-to friend, someone to talk to when I’m having a rough day, but he’s really not like that at all. It’s weird. I really can’t figure him out. And it bothers me to no end. I feel like I’ve already invested a lot of time into making him what I want him to be only to discover that it’s completely useless. That’s not who he is and I’m only getting frustrated trying to make him that way. So I left the room after jokingly (but seriously) becoming frustrated to come back here.

My screen saver randomly runs through all of my pictures. I was watching them filter through and a bunch from high school came up. It made me really nostalgic and border-line depressed. High school was so awesome for me. I had really close, really dependable friends who were always there for me when I needed them. I never felt like I was lacking in close emotional bonds. But not now. I haven’t had that since then. And it’s not for a lack of trying either. Granted, I suppose Eric (Malmgren from 214) is pretty close. I know he really cares about me; he’s a good guy like that. It’s just that he doesn’t have a ton of time to be all buddy-buddy. He’s working really hard on who knows what and he’s really ambitious. He wants to get a masters and a doctorate and go to law school… the kid is ridiculous. It’s just not the same.

I don’t suppose I should expect it to be the same. It’s not. We’re all at different points in our lives now. This is a time where we’re supposed to be focused on what we want to do with the rest of our lives. Lucky for me, I know what I want to do. I want to get married and be a mother.

That’s all.

That’s what I was made for. That’s what I care about. That is what I was meant to do and be. I know that gaining a higher education is important and believe me, that is the only reason why I am still here at BYU. I suppose if I have to work for the rest of my life because I never get married or if my husband is suddenly unable to provide that I’ll be able to. But I don’t want to. I don’t want to work. To some, that may make me sound lazy and unambitious, but I’m not. I know that being a mother isn’t a walk in the park. I know it takes a toll on you physically, emotionally, mentally and every other –ally there is out there. But I want to be the best wife and mother I can be. I want to be able to dedicate myself fully to that calling to which I believe I’ve been called.

So you can sense my frustration. I feel like I’m just sitting here, wasting time and waiting to move on with my life. I know that isn’t the best way to look at where I am so I’m trying to fill my life with positive experiences and opportunities for learning and growth. I try, everyday, to look for what I am supposed to do with that day. Who am I supposed to talk to? What am I supposed to learn? How is today going to be applicable to the rest of my life?

Is that right? Is that how I should be looking at my current life; preparation for whatever lies ahead? Maybe. Maybe not. Some would argue that I should be living in the “now.” This is college, right? The time for trying new things, stretching your perspectives and opinions, exploring routes you’ve never seen before. Well maybe that’s not for me. The world’s expectations seriously bug.

I know what I want. Tonight, I just want to move on.

I just realized this ended very different than it started out. Sorry for the mood swing.

Merry Christmast to ME!

2009-01-09T00:01:00.002-07:00

So, My old Lappy (may he rest in peace) has been dying for quite some time... Ever since he fell out of the car in North Carolina when we were visiting Loralee and Taylor for Cameron's blessing. So, this happy post is coming to you LIVE from Provo, Utah from this beaut!!

I'm pretty obsessed with the fact that it's red. It's basically my favorite color. Here we see that it matches my nails.

And here we see my lovelyness on Christmas morning. Also, how it still matches my nails. (which I've decided that it's the perfect red. by-the-way.)

So... Thanks Parents for making this post (and the smoothness of the rest of my college experience) possible. This is for you.

Bored. and not studying for finals.

2008-12-16T21:00:00.005-07:00

Julina
Mary
Kelly
Kylee

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
Julina: Um. I was named after Julina Lambson Smith. Joseph F's wife, Joseph Fielding's mother. Yep, she was the only one. mom/wife dealio.
Mary: I was named after my grandmother. Also, Mary, the mother of Jesus, YAY!
Kelly: I was named after like this one friend that my mom had in high school that actually ended up being a drug addict. But it was cool.
Kylee: My grandma's middle name is my middle name slash my dad's last name is also my last name.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?

Julina: When was the last time I cried? It was probably over School. School is the most cry-worthy thing right now.
Mary: ok, the last time I cried was yesterday. oh wait, is this hard-core crying, or just tears coming out?
Kelly: ok, mine was on Sunday. directly after Prince of Egypt.
Kylee: December 8th. It was my birthday. Maybe it was december 7th.

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
Julina: um. when it's not fast-like.
Mary: Um, well I have like 5 different types of handwriting, so, AHHH! it really just depends on which one I'm using. The Lazy one I usually use sucks.
Kelly: Um, actually I think actually my entire life have been trying to write like Karen Crawley who was my sister's best friend in 6th grade. It was way vertical.
Kylee: Um, not particularly. But I don't know any one elses that I like better. Sometimes I wish I could write in all Caps. It's really hard.

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Julina: Turkey?
Mary: TURKEY.
Kelly: Uhhhhh, Tuuurrrrkeeey? if I have to? Maybe?
Kylee: Um. Roast Beef.

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
Julina: well, I'd have to get me married first.
Mary: do I have kids? Was that really the question? Why yes.
Kelly: Yes. I have 3 kids. Annabelle, Lisa and Magnet.
Kylee: In my head, yes. But no one would really agree with me if they knew I was saying that. But yes. true.

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
Julina: I'd be an idiot if I said no. But seriously. Yes. I'm awesome...
Mary: Uh, who wouldn't?!
Kelly: Um, I wouldn't date me, but I'd totally be friends with me because I'm really neat.
Kylee: I dont really know. Probably not. I feel like I'm kinda boring and weird. But also... no, I just wouldn't. I don't see the point in being friends with myself. I mean, if we went shopping we'd want all the same things and we'd fight all the time. There's just no point. I need an outside personality.

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT?
Julina: I used to. Then I didn't. Then I thought Kare was cute when She did. So I started to. But I'm not very good at it.
Mary: noooo. (very sarcastically) Thank you.
Kelly: silence... yeah. like yeah. yes.
Kylee: you're gonna have to go with your own judgement on that one.

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS:
Julina: Yes. but I wish I didn't. Cuz then I'd have a cool surgery story to tell. Since I have none.
Mary: I said Yesss...
Kelly: I dunno. What do they look like?
Kylee: Yeah. But that's when you eat a lot of ice cream in the hospital and I couldn't handle the calories. But I'd want to milk it for all it's worth.

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
Julina: Actually. About 3 months ago I would have said Hecks no. But then I saw a facebook video of a friend sky diving and it made me want to be awesome cool too. So yes.
Mary: YES
Kelly: No. I would not do anything that has the potential to kill me. Why would I do that. I don't even drive.
Kylee: No, Never. that is dumb and life threatening. I mean, go on a roller coaster ok?

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BREAKFAST CEREAL?
Julina: Depends on my mood. Healthy; Honey Bunches of Oats in the yellow box. Not so healthy; CooCoo Roos. (Macey's brand of Cocoa puffs.)
Mary: Like every single one ever. Cocoa Krispies. Captain Crunch. Fiber one. Honey Bunches of Oats. I'm pretty sure there hasn't been a cereal I haven't liked.
Kelly: Cheerios. But not the off brand kind. I can tell the difference.
Kylee: Yucko. Cereal is not my favorite. Lots of Carbs, hardly no nutritional value, have some toast, peanut butter and yogurt.

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
Julina: negative friend.
Mary: no. because I don't tie them when I put them on.
Kelly: I wear heals. They don't require untying
Kylee: I don't have tying shoes.

12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?
Julina: always.
Mary: Heck yeah, I'll knock you out.
Kelly: haha.. Physically, no. Emotionally, also no.
Kylee: yikes. I'd beat Mary wrestling. (mary) No you did not! (Kylee) Yes I did Julina. Also, I am strong. Sometimes boys think I am a man.

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
Julina: wow. well. Probably Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. Right now.
Mary: Um, bunny tracks or raspberry and cream cheese.
Kelly: ok, so I had this one blueberry ice cream when I was in Jr. High. and It was really good and probably made out of magic and I haven't been able to find it since.
Kylee: Um. heath, or mint chocolate chip. Or sherbet is also good.

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
Julina: Their smile. Because who doesn't smile when they meet me? exactly.
Mary: Their smile slash laugh.
Kelly: Dude, I'm not even gonna lie, I notice how attractive they are. Or aren't.
Kylee: Physical appearance, Hygine, Clothing, and how dilusional they may or may not be according to previous stipulations.

15. RED OR PINK?
Julina: Crimson. Lately. It probably used to be pink, but I've been on this "finding the perfect red" nail polish trip. So. red.
Mary: Red. actually it depends on the kind of pink.
Kelly: Shoes, red. Everything else, pink.
Kylee: I think pink mostly wants to be red. So probably red. Although there are some merits to being watered down.

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
Julina: My lack of motivation in school. Cuz that's kinda my life right now and it's not going anywhere.
Mary: Myself. haha.
Kelly: I dunno, my skin is kinda vampire pale and if I try to get tan and I'll just get cancer.
Kylee: How much time do we have. Uh, yeah, everything.

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST?
Julina: Hailey. And Cameron. My missionaries are up there too. Like Holden.
Mary: From what? I miss Erin.
Kelly: Sarah. and Catherine.
Kylee: Paris, Siblings, Geoffrey, Home, disneyland.

18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU?
Julina: totally
Mary: no comment.
Kelly: this isn't my survey
Kylee: yes.

19. WHAT COLOR SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?
Julina: I'm not. But my toenails are hot pink. Not red, I know.
Mary: Now? or the ones I was wearing earlier? They had flowers. right now, They're fleshy.
Kelly: I was wearing black cowboy boots earlier. Yee-haw
Kylee: Previously, Plaid gray and purple rain boots. Now, maroon Argyle socks.

20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?
Julina: lots of ice cream at Andrea's house after Brook's dance recital
Mary: A bite of the really gross sandwhich Kelly got.
Kelly: It was a pina colata sorbet thing. But not real pina colata cuz that tastes like gasoline.
Kylee: Too much Caramel Corn.

21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
Julina: Kelly's Dance mix
Mary: I dunno, What is this Kelly?
Kelly: Lil' Jackie I believe the world revolves around me.
Kylee: Kelly's weird idea of dance music.

22. IF YOU WHERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
Julina: Crimson. I dunno. It's a phase.
Mary: ooo, I'd be one of those crazy ones that's like "my little pony red" or like "mother of pearl" because you can't decide what color it really is.
Kelly: Purple Mountains Majesty.
Kylee: I don't feel like that is a fair question to ask someone on the spot. Maybe like a pale brownish pink something... I dunno.

23. FAVORITE SMELLS?
Julina: Good boy smell. Rain. Caramel Brownies.
Mary: Cookies in the oven. Yummy things. Or Lucky! Yay! Oh also, I really love the smell of Mary Kay lip gloss.
Kelly: Fresh-out-of-the-printer paper.
Kylee: My Grandma's musky Garage. When you first turn on the air conditioning in the car in the summer. Also the elementary school cafeteria that smells like Chocolate milk and apricots. And my mama. And my dad's deoderant.

24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
Julina: My mom. About what Paula can get me for Christmas. I said a Target gift card. Or if that's too boring, some sass jewelry.
Mary: Texting was Kyle and Talking was my sister Christina.
Kelly: A guy who wanted to sell me car insurance and I don't have a car. If you're reading this, I hate you.
Kylee: Like Behnkey. I think

25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU?
Julina: My Pops? oh sure.
Mary: no.
Kelly: no.
Kylee: I love her...

26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
Julina: BYU Football. Also, mens Volleyball. So hot.
Mary: to watch? ooo, that's hard. Probably, I dunno. The only ones I watch are soccer and football. But they're not fun to play. But Austin Collie is fun to watch. Also dancing.
Kelly: Surfing and Speed Skating.
Kylee: Remember the Titans or Rocky. Also Dancing.

27. HAIR COLOR?
Julina: Always has been brown. never colored it. Cuz it's that coveted. But maybe it has some red in it in the summer sun.
Mary: natural slash best color ever. Like the color of happiness.
Kelly: it's like this weird chestnut mousey brown that's not even interesting at all to anybody.
Kylee: I don't really know that I'm prepared to answer that question right now.

28. EYE COLOR?
Julina: Tootsie roll brown.
Mary: It changes. so I call it ocean eyes cuz it goes from gray to green to blue.
Kelly: hazel.
Kylee: Jean blue.

29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?
Julina: EveryDay. (think Jacey Thurston-soon-to-be-Nelson)
Mary: no
Kelly: I have perfect vision. Thank you very much.
Kylee: Me too.

30. FAVORITE FOODS?
Julina: Chicken. And most Potatoes. I live on a lot of Pasta up here. And Chocolate. and fruit. But not Melons.
Mary: Everything!! Um, I dunno. Like Ice cream and brownies. And STRAWBERRIES. and man candy
Kelly: Olives!!! (gross according to everyone else)
Kylee: Steak. Tacos. Popcorn. What else do I love? salad. Oh! Nectarines, Nectarines.

31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
Julina: Happy Endings are usually fairly lame. But so are most Scary Movies. So... Both!
Mary: I don't understand the question. Um, Happy endings.
Kelly: Bad Endings where everybody dies.
Kylee: Not scary, but not necessarily happy.

32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
Julina: um, Terminator 2? But only like 5 minutes. And we decided I'd make way more efficient decisions than most of those characters. A whole Movie? Maybe While you were Sleeping. Karalyn and I quoted a lot. And Alli got mad a lot.
Mary: Terminator 2. But Kelly forced me to watch it!!
Kelly: Terminator which is awesome!! I love that movie so much!
Kylee: Unfortunately Terminator 2. bad judgement.

33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING?
Julina: Beige Cami under a brown Cami under a lighter beige Cardigan.
Mary: it's kinda dark. oh, it's red. It's my soccer shirt, YAY!
Kelly: Um, it's like egyptial white color with sequence on top.
Kylee: royal blue transitioning to a black dress.

34. SUMMER OR WINTER?
Julina: Fall. Summer is Stupid and winter is lame.
Mary: ugh! I'm angry because everyone stole my answer, but fall because of the colors. And winter because of the snow.
Kelly: Summer. I wish that someone would shoot winter with a gun and die.
Kylee: Fall?

35. HUGS OR KISSES?
Julina: Kisses in my dreams. but probably hugs in real life. I can't kiss most people in real life. That'd be awkward.
Mary: All hugs all the time. For a short while longer and then it'll be ALL KISSES!! (scream)
Kelly: uh! Hugs are nice... if I can't get anything else. Can I say that?
Kylee: probably hugs. I don't know what kisses are.

36. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE DESSERT?
Julina: what kind of an endless possibilities question is this? apple pie. Caramel Brownies. what other desserts do I like? I like desserts.
Mary: um, I pretty much love everything, especially triple chocolate utopian brownies. or ice cream. Or pie. well no, not pie but the word is fun to say.
Kelly: baclava.
Kylee: Pie or ice cream. or both.

37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND?
Julina: Andrea. and Dad. Maybe some other random people who feel like they should have been on this list. And MOM!
Mary: no one because I'm not sending it.
Kelly: same.
Kylee: I don't know what that means.

38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND?
Julina: Karalyn. That girl has like 47 thousand NEW emails in her inbox that she NEVER looks at.
Mary: everyone because no one's gonna get it.
Kelly: um, Kyle. He's on a mission.
Kylee: same as above

39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?
Julina: Jane Austen's Guide to Dating. Don't ask.
Mary: Does tv Count? just kidding, my chemistry text book. yay
Kelly: catch 22. joseph heller.
Kylee:I'm not reading one right now.

40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE?
Julina: my finger
Mary: dirt dust nothing
Kelly: I just have a little pad thing and then you can scroll with two fingers cuz it's a mac
Kylee: I don't have a mouse. What mouse?

41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT?
Julina: did I watch tv last night? Yesterday was monday. I don't think I did.
Mary: Supernatural, aka, basically 2 hot males parading around making my life wonderful.
Kelly: Supernatural also. It was really scary though.
Kylee: Arrested Developement

42. FAVORITE SOUND?
Julina: laughter. Unless it's obnoxious. ew.
Mary: I have 3 favorite sounds. Laughter. the sound of wind blowing through trees, you know? whoosh whoosh, and the sound of men um, what's the word? professing their love to me?
Kelly: Male Harmony
Kylee: I dunno. I like froggy voices. Crunchie leaves. Macaroni. That's a good sound. Babies.

43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES?
Julina: Beatles. only sometimes
Mary: uh, beatles because they actually are my... um, not really sure what they are. haha not sure where I was going with that one.
Kelly: how is this even a question? I don't think that's real. Beatles.
Kylee: Beatles

44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?
Julina: Hawaii. twice.
Mary: um. my dreams? Canada or hawaii. or, hawaii was my home so I dunno.
Kelly: japan.
Kylee: Denmark or Italy?

45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?
Julina: looking hot? oh and whistling. not like... at boys, but like... songs. and stuff.
Mary: I have a talent of interpreting things in a way that no one wants things to be interpreted. slash I'm talented at making weird noises that I don't know I'm making. And Faces.
Kelly: making songs with my hands. like this. slash pretending to be an indian. (said by mary)
Kylee: I'm good at making people feel good about themselves.

46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
Julina: Las Vegas. Or Henderson? Mom?
Mary: Kansas. KU Medical Center. The coolio experimental baby ward.
Kelly: That explains a LOT. Louisiana. Alexandria. My parents were gonna name me that but then they named me stupid Kelly. Which I now go by.
Kylee: California. Walnut Creek. Boring.

47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK?
Julina: Andrea's. Or if someone cool picks this up from facebook.
Mary: mine? The world revolves around me. Hello...
Kelly: God? in general? what do you mean?
Kylee: I don't know what that means.

Another survey.

2008-12-09T14:39:00.002-07:00

1.Song that always makes you sad?: Don't wanna miss a thing by Aerosmith.
2.Last thing you bought?: Pineapple. For a centerpiece in my cooking class.
3.Last person you argued with?: Karalyn?... I dunno.
4.Do you put Butter before putting the jelly on?: If you don't, you're kind of stupid.
5.One of your stuffed animals' names as a kid?: Rosie. It was a big Bunny in a rose covered outfit.
6.Did you ever own at one time a Nysnc Cd?: Yes. I did. And then Andrea threw it on top of a UPS building "for my own good."
7.Favorite day of the week?: Saturday. It's a special day.
8.Favorite Sundae topping?:Caramel.
9.Did you take Piano lessons?: Yes. But I never enjoyed them. I quit as soon as I could.
10.Most frequent song played?: So long, So long by Dashboard Confessional
11.T.V. show you secretly enjoy?: Lost. yeah. It's really great
12.Would you rather play basketball or hockey?: Basketball. though only barely. I couldn't be coordinated enough on ice.
13.Date someone older or younger?: Preferable Older.
14.One place you could travel right now?: London. Or Italy.
15.Do you use umbrellas?: Is there something I don't know about them that would make me not want to?
16.Do you know all the words to the Canadian national anthem?: Last I checked, I was 100% American. Memorizing other national anthems isn't exactly the first thing on my to-do list.
17.Favorite Cheese?: hmmm... I really like cheese. But I think I'd have to go with a medium cheddar.
18.Disturbed or My Chemical Romance?: neither. I don't really know anything about either except that they both have creepy names.
19.Do you prefer Blondes or Brunettes?: Probably brunettes
20.Best job you ever had?: my current job as a BYU Intramural Supervisor
21.Did you go to your high school prom?: Yes. twice.
22.Perfect time to wake up?: ideally 8 am.
23.perfect time to go to bed?: ideally 12.
24.do you use your queen right away in chess?: I haven't played chess since the 3rd grade. I don't remember much about it.
25.Ever been in a car accident?: Not... reeeally.
26.closer to mom or dad...or neither?: I'm close to both in different ways... but probably dad...
27.what age is this exciting life over for you?: what kind of a question is that?
28.what decade during the 20th century would you have chosen to be a teenager?: probably the 40's. I love that fashion style.
29.Favorite shoes you have EVER owned?: hmmm... That would probably have to be my red 4 in. heels... They are fabulous.
30.Do you have an article of clothing you have had since you were in high school: Yeah. tons. High school wasn't that long ago and I haven't changed much.
31.Were you in track and field?: I would never!
32. Were you ever in a school talent show?: yeaaaaah... no. maybe?
33.Have you ever written in a library book?: no. That would be defacing private property and I don't do that....
34.Allergic to?: Cockroach. oddly enough. and a bunch of other stuff. but not any foods or medicine.
35.Favorite fruit?: Strawberries. Or maybe fresh raspberries. And Kiwi is really good. I really like fruit. Pretty much all except melons.
36.Have you watched sex and the city?: no. The title kinda threw me off first thing.
37.Baseball hat or toque?: What's a toque?
38.Do you shampoo first in the shower or soap?: I get all wet, then I shampoo, then I wash my face with MaryKay's time wise 3 in 1 facial cleanser, then I rinse out my shampoo and Condition. While my Conditioner is chillin', I scrub down with St. Ives Whipped Silk body wash. It's pretty great. And then I rinse out my conditioner and I'm all done!
39.Wet the toothbrush or brush dry with the toothpaste?: Why would anyone brush dry? That doesn't make any sense.
40.Pen or pencil?: generally pen. But only black ink.
41.Have you ever gambled at a casino?: negative. and I'm a native Las Vegan. :)
42.Have you thrown up on a plane?: no
43.Have you thrown up in a car?: maybe? karalyn always did so I might have once.
44.Have you thrown up at work?: no. But Loralee did once.
45.Do you scream on roller coasters?: if I'm not too scared. If it's really scary, then I sit silently.
46.Who was your first prom date?: Robert Davis. he'll be big one day. Just wait.
47.Who was your first roommate?: Cecily Lemmon. Oh yeah, She's on the BYU cross country team.
48.What alcoholic beverage did you drink when you got drunk for the first time?: well, That would mean I'd have to have been drunk before, huh? That's a shame.
49.What was your first job?: Jujji Juice smoothie maker. It was good. Totally a rip off of Jamba.
50.What was your first car?: Gandalf The Gray. A Gray 98 Toyota Camry
51.When did you go to your first funeral?: I was little. It was in Utah I think. It was for someone on my Mom's side of the family.
52.How old were you when you first moved away from your hometown?: 18
53.Who was your first grade teacher?: Mrs. Fink
54.Where did you go on your first airplane ride?: to Hawaii. For Christmas. Mele Kalikimaka.
55.When you snuck out of your house for the first time, who was it with?: I don't think I ever did.
56.Who was your first Best Friend and are you still friends with them?: um, Probably Kelsey Pinegar. I went to her wedding over the summer, but we don't really talk. I should though.
57.Where did you live the first time you moved out of your parent's house?: 1218 Chipman hall of Helaman Halls, Provo UT
58.Who is the first person you call when you have a bad day?: um. Probably my dad. Although I know he's not gonna comfort me and tell me it's ok. He tends to slap me around a bit and put life back in perspective. Which is what I need even when I don't want it.
59.Who's wedding were you in the first time you were a bridesmaid or a groomsmen: Andrea's. That was a bad age for me.
60.What is the first thing you do in the morning?: go to the bathroom, put my contacts in, and brush my teeth. I hate morning breath more than anything... It's the worst.

To the Men of 214

2008-12-07T02:06:00.001-07:00

With all my love-

P.S. Sorry about thefting the N64 again. If you want it back you can totally have it... we were only trying to help you with your grades and whatnot. finals...

My thoughts on Twilight.

2008-11-22T12:21:00.002-07:00

You know, this is probably the most blogged about topic right now, but I feel like I might as well speak my peace about it. Last night Andrea, Karalyn and I went to see it. We sat in line from 7:30 on for our 10 pm show and we weren't the first in line by a long shot.
Let me start out by saying that I went in with ridiculously low expectations. I force myself to do that with movies being recreated from my favorite books (All of the Harry Potter's, Jane Austen's...) because otherwise, I'll leave disappointed. Always. I mean, prove me wrong! If you went to see it expecting to experience all of the same emotions you felt while reading the book you left completely distraught and/or furious... that's just how it goes sometimes.
But if you go in expecting crap, you'll leave thinking, "oh, that wasn't so bad..."
So that was my overall experience.
Thoughts on the movie...
1) It was not the book. It put as much from the book into the movie as it could and I think they did a good job portraying how Bella and Edward got to know each over several days (making it seem like one continuous conversation, but changing locations, clothes, etc.) and they stuck pretty much right to the plot line. BUT it was not the book. There were a lot of my favorite details from the book that was not in the movie, but I understand that I'm not the director and I can't just stick my favorite parts in there and expect the rest of the Twilight-loving world to think it's great too.
2) The pace was a bit off for me. There were parts that went all too quickly and some parts that lingered a little too long.
3) I loved the scene where Bella officially meets the Cullens. I think they way each of the characters were introduced on a more personal level was great and fit what I imagined of each of them from the book.
4) The movie captured the wit of the book. There were several "moments" where I laughed right out loud, remembering how much I loved little things like that when I was reading the book, (ie, everything about Charlie, Emmett, and Mike Newton...) great stuff.
5) Stephanie Meyer's cameo?? WHAT THE RANDOM!! "Here ya go Stephanie," who's idea was that one? Could we be a little more obvious please? no really, let's hold the camera on her for an awkward amount of time and pretend like she belongs in the town. because she totally looks like she belongs there...?? yeah, for a minute I thought she and her laptop were in the shot by accident.
6) Also, and this is totally random, but I'm sticking it in here... because I can... the first time Bella and Edward show up to school together was classic! SO Great!! oh man... that was perfect. sigh of contentment.
Thoughts on the Characters...
1) Kristen Stewart/Bella Swan wasn't what I was expecting at all. I originally didn't think I was going to like her, but she wasn't too bad. She wasn't a terrific actress, too blinky and not sarcastic enough, but her look and voice matched what I had imagined. I'm kind of indifferent on her.
2) Robert Pattinson/Edward Cullen was pretty much terrible. He wasn't at all what I imagined him to look like, and obviously that's a topic that's been run through the mill 27,000 times becuase he was "perfect to Bella" and not me. I get that, so enough there. But I don't even think Pattinson can act at all. There were pockets of "Edward" here and there-and that kept me from hating him-but overall, I wasn't impressed.
*While I'm slightly dissapointed with the choice and acting skills of the leads, they definaltely had GREAT chemestry togther. No one can doubt that. There was never a moment where I thought, "oh wow, that looked awkward" and for the most part, I believed that they really belonged together. I think that's what saved their characters for me.
3) Ashley Greene/Alice. Really good. I loved Alice in the book and I'm kind of sad there wasn't more of her in the movie, but obviously this isn't her story and she has to be more of a minor character for time constraints.
4) Jackson Rathbone/Jasper. Slightly twitchy. Was that just my imagination? I dunno, twitchy was never the impression I got when reading about his character. To me, he should have been quietly restraining himself... concentrating.
5) Kellan Lutz/Emmett Cullen was GREAT! He wasn't quite as tall as I expected, but captured the essense of Emmett really well. hmm, 'essence of Emmett.' I wish that came in a bottle... Anyways, well done there. Seriously. Good stuff. He's hot.
6) Nikki Reed/Rosalee Cullen is better as a Brunette. I think she's possibly one of the most beautiful women ever as a brunette, but it doesn't convert over for me as a blonde. And being rediculously georgeous is what Rosalee is all about. She's supposed to be the most beautiful, coveted, vain person out there. I think they should have chosen a natural blonde with just as much sass and attitude.
7) Peter Facinelli/Carlisle Cullen. Good actor, bad look. Like Rosalee, he does not look good as a bleached-blonde. Frankly, I don't think he looks that good as a brunette either, pointy features kinda weird me out. But he can act. His performance pulled the character off for me, so it ended up ok.
8) Jennie Garth/Esme Cullen was really good. She really looked like you could tell her all of your problems after a hard day and she would just let you cry on her lap while stroking your hair, telling you that not everyday will be this hard and that you still have a pretty good life. To me, that's what Esme's there for. To be loving and supportive and a young, precious-looking Mother-figure.
9) Charlie, Renee, Billy, Jacob, SPOT ON! I can hardly complain about any of them. They all had the personalities and sense of humor of each of their characters. Charlie was pretty much exactly what I pictured him as. Renee was a little older looking than I pictured, but still pulled off the character really well. Billy and Jacob were both perfect. Perfect everything... I'm really looking forward to seeing how Jacob and Bella will bounce off eachother, it looked really good based on the little there was in the movie.
10)Mike Newton, Jessica, Angela, Eric, and the kid who almost hits her with the van (I can't remember his name to save my life...). Mike Newton was a little less good looking than I expected, but his personality made up for it, so it all made sense. Jessica isn't exactly what I pictured either, but was kinda close and still played the character really well. Angela and Eric weren't anything remotely close to what I pictured, but were still good and it made sense. And the van driving kid... not at all what I was thinking, but great! Overall, I think Stephanie Meyer made them kind of steriotypical in the book, and the movie made them less so and more real... more natural... more like, there really were those kids at my high school. So yeah, well done there.

Anyways, I think that's all I want to say about that. I feel like I've been typing forever so I'm gonna go...

Halloween costumes

2008-10-31T16:06:00.003-06:00

So here are some post-party photos with Mary and Kelly. Alli didn't dress up with us. Mary and I made our dresses and Kelly found her's at DI and made some slight modifications.
The story is that we're dead housewives. The idea was slightly inspired from Desperate Housewives, but really, we happened to find the dress pattern at Joanns and thought it would be a fun idea. Mary died from a slit throat, I died from being strangled and Kelly died from a shot to the head. Morbid, I know, but it's HALLOWEEN. It's lame sauce if you're an "angel" or "cowgirl." Unless you're under the age of 8. Then it's great. I got my apron at FlirtyAprons.com and it's called "sassy black." How could I not buy it? Anyways, I'll post more picture from the actual party a little later because I couldn't find my camera during the party and I have to get them from friends. Also, I can't get this to not be underlined... So... Until then,

Mary, me and Kelly

Me with our no-bake spiders, Mary with our peanut butter cookie eyeballs and the Cauldren cookie/caramel rice crispy treats and Kelly with the tombstone brownies.
Us looking dead ish...
Solo shot...
Me showing my strangled neck. And crying. (totally fake)
And then, Alli wanted to try putting a post-it over the flash becuase she said it would turn the picture colors. This is an orange post it picture. kinda neat.

ok... Here goes nothing.

2008-10-27T13:40:00.004-06:00

So, Nate Davis and I went on a fun group date. We carved pumpkins at our apartment and frosted halloween cookies. It was fun.

Here's Mary and Andrew.
Kelly and Brett
Allie and McKay

Nathan and I- "N8"

"Julina"

And here's the last decent shot of my hair.

The next night and 10 inches later...

And then we convinced Kare to do it too...
So. What do you think? I have never had short hair in my whole life. Ever. Seriously, the shortest it's ever been is somewhere around 2 inches below my shoulders (5 inches longer than what it is now). So, Kare and I sent our hair home to mom and dad in bubble envelopes. THEY DON'T KNOW ITS CUT SO DON'T SAY ANYTHING TO THEM THIS WEEK!! WAIT!! And Thanks to Kelsey Day for the Sass cuts.

What other proof do you need?!

2008-10-20T16:43:00.004-06:00

Ok, try telling me that's not the best looking pie you've ever seen. Look at those 6 beautiful layers?! And that was my very first homemade pie crust. It was so flaky and delicious, not over-handled at all... ok, you have to try it.

Please excuse the Styrofoam plate with the remnants of Benn's enchiladas. We're college students being thrifty.

Best Pie Ever!

2008-10-13T09:12:00.005-06:00

K, so here is my recipe from last week. My kitchen definitely had the best food item. If you don't try it, you're seriously missing out. MAKE IT! It's actually probably the only one worth making...

Black-Bottom Cherry Cream Cheese Pie

Note: This pie has a standard pastry crust with an oreo crust on top of it (black-bottom). After cooling, it is then filled with the cream chesse filling and topped with cherries, whipped cream and oreo crumbs.

1 (15 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk

1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/3 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 can cherry pie filling

standard pastry (below)

Oreo crumb crust (below)

1/2 cup whipping cream

2 T. sugar

Standard Pastry

1 ½ C. flour

1 tsp. salt

1/2 C. + 2 Tbsp. shortening

3 to 5 Tbsp. ice cold water water

1. Stir flour, then spoon lightly into measuring cup. Level.

2. Place flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Stir together.

3. Measure shortening and use pastry blender to cut the shortening into the flour until rice-like.

4. Sprinkle in water 1 Tbsp. at a time, mixing with your rubber scraper or a large spoon until flour is moistened, and dough almost cleans the sides of the bowl. (The less you handle it, the flakier the crust will be.)

5. Gather dough into a ball. Flatten on a lightly floured board, and roll into a large, even circle. Put in 9” glass pie pan, crimp edges and poke with fork.

6. Bake at 450°. Bake 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Oreo Crumb Crust

1 cup finely crushed Oreo cookie crumbs

3 Tbsp. sugar

¼ cup butter, melted

1. Combine cookie crumbs and sugar. Add butter; blend until all crumbs are evenly moist.

2. Pat ¾ of the mixture over the bottom of a single-crust baked 9-inch pie crust.

3. Use the remaining ¼ of the mixture to sprinkle on the whipped cream at serving.

Filling

1. Soften cream cheese and beat until fluffy.

2. Add milk, slowly, while beating. Add lemon juice, vanilla and beat well.

3. Pour into crust. Chill and then top with cherry pie filling.

To serve: Whip the whipping cream and gradually add 2 Tbsp. sugar. Top each slice of pie with whipped cream and chocolate cookie crumbs.

Free Awesome Purses!

2008-10-04T00:37:00.004-06:00

Yeah, so... Thanks to Laura Cutler, I too have begun to fantasize about winning a free purse! All of them are so cute!

Here's the dealio; you go to THIS website, enter your first name and email address, and you're entered to win one of the free purses! They'll give away one free purse for each of the first 24 hours of their grand opening. Real easy, real rewarding if you win. Shoot, I really want one. Go check it out!

Again, that website is www.handbagplanet.com check it out! Seriously!

Celebrity Collage by MyHeritage

2008-10-03T03:21:00.001-06:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

pictures from Chris and Amanda's wedding.

2008-09-29T01:25:00.003-06:00

Chris cracks me up... every time you look at his face, you can't help but smile.

aw, some of the high school friends. don't mind that I'm the most awkward looking one in the picture.

Amanda feeding Chris the cake. I think Amanda figured Chris would smash it in her face, so instead of making her eat it (or smashing it in her face), he just ate her bite too.
Kelsey, Isham and I. I haven't seen Chris (Isham) in forever. And Kelsey and I always hang out when I come home. good times. I love her.

It was a good weekend home. Too quick, and a lot of driving, but hey! anything for friends, right?

This week's food lab

2008-09-25T01:48:00.002-06:00

ok, here's the recipe's for this week. (Almost) all turned out delish... Try them for yourself. P.S. If you're ever wondering what food I made in lab, I'm kitchen 2. It's usually labeled. So, for example, today I made pineapple-ham fried rice and easy mango salsa, and all of the kitchens made their own smoothies. Working at Jujji juice pays off some times.

Here's what I thought of all the recipes: Smoothies were ok, I've had and made better. The doughnuts tasted very homemade, not bad though. I didn't have the steamed carrots with snow peas, not sure why, must have skipped over them. Our pineapple-ham fried rice was delicious and the mango salsa was surprisingly really good. (I say surprisingly because I don't usually like hot/spicy foods, but this wasn't so bad). The chicken crepes were (yeah, I'll say it) preeeetty gross. I really didn't care for them at all. The Tuna melt sandwhiches were pretty good. They were my lab partner's favorite. The baked apples would have been better a little more tender. They were slightly too hard for me. Fudge was EXCELLENT!

Student Recipes - Small Equipment Lab

The purpose of this lab is to give students exposure to various pieces of small equipment in the lab. Students will also employ safe and clean preparation techniques, as discussed in lecture.

Lecture Demo Peanut Butter Play Doh

All Blender - Strawberry Smoothies

Kitchen 1 Fryer – Doughnuts and Steamed Carrots with Snow Peas

Kitchen 2 Rice Cooker – Rice and Electric Skillet - Pineapple-Ham Fried Rice and Food Processor – Easy Mango Salsa with Tortilla Chips

Kitchens 3 Crepe Maker - Chicken Crepes

Kitchen 4 Sandwich Maker– Tuna Melt Sandwiches and Pressure Cooker – Baked Apples

Kitchen 5 Electric Skillet – Tuna Melt Sandwiches and Pressure Cooker – Baked Apples

Kitchen 6 Crepe Maker - Chicken Crepes

Kitchen 7 Fryer – Doughnuts and Zip-Loc Bag – Fudge (everything is a tool)

Peanut Butter Play Doh

1 C. creamy peanut butter (pack & level)

1 C. light corn syrup (or mild honey) (liquid = eye level)

1 ¼ C. powdered sugar (spoon lightly & level)

1 ¼ C. instant dry milk (scoop & level)

1. Combine peanut butter and corn syrup in a mixing bowl.

2. Add dry ingredients, and mix well. Use your hands if necessary.

3. Divide the mixture into 4 sections.

4. Roll each section into a 1” rope. Wrap in plastic wrap.

5. Refrigerate 2 hours or overnight. Cut in slices and enjoy.

Blender - Strawberry Smoothies

1 C. milk 1 C. low fat vanilla yogurt

1 C. frozen strawberries (10 large) 1/4 C. sugar

2+ C. ice cubes

1. Put milk and yogurt in a blender. Mix.

2. With the blender going, drop in frozen fruit 2 or 3 at a time.

3. When fruit is blended, add ice cubes until it reaches the desired consistency.

4. Add sugar. Serve immediately.

Sandwich Maker or Electric Skillet - Tuna Melt Sandwiches

1 (6 oz.) can tuna, drained 2 oz. cheddar cheese, in 1/4" cubes

1/4 cup mayonnaise 1/4 C. sweet pickle relish

1 hard cooked egg, diced 12 slices bread

1. To prepare egg: Place room temperature egg (if egg is from refrigerator, you can run warm water over egg to warm it) in a pan with enough cold water to cover egg completely (approximately by 1 1/2 inches). Bring the water to a boil, remove from heat, cover tightly with a lid, and allow to remain in the water approximately 15 to 20 minutes.

2. Combine filling ingredients. Mix well.

3. Spread equally on 6 slices of bread. Top with remaining bread.

4. Spread a small amount of butter on the outside of the bread. Cook in a sandwich maker or an electric skillet, turning, until both sides are golden brown and cheese is melted.

Fryer – Cake Doughnuts

It is especially important to heat the oil to the correct temperature when frying doughnuts. Use a reliable thermometer as well as a temperature-controlled frying devise. If the oil is too cool, the doughnuts will absorb too much oil, becoming heavy and fatty instead of light and crisp. If the oil is too hot, the outside of the doughnuts will burn while the centers will stay sticky and under-done. Doughnuts are best eaten on the day they are made.

½ cup granulated sugar

1 cup milk

3 tablespoons melted butter

2 eggs

3 3/4 cups (plus perhaps another ¼ - ½ cup) all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

pinch nutmeg

oil for frying

1. Heat oil to 350° F

2. Mix sugar, milk, melted butter and eggs. Add flour, baking powder, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg to form dough. If dough is too sticky, add a bit more flour.

3. Roll out 3/4-inch thick on floured surface.

4. Cut and drop into fryer until golden brown. Turn and brown other side.

5. Cool on rack or on paper towels. Sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar or dip in frosting and sprinkles. When you are dipping the doughnuts in frosting, use your jelly roll pan with a cooling rack over it to allow the frosting to drain. Put the decorative sprinkles on top after frosting the doughnuts. Use the sprinkles that fall into the jelly roll pan to decorate the remaining doughnuts.

Frosting ( you will be making both vanilla and chocolate frosting)

2 1/2 cups (12 oz.) confectioners’ sugar (spoon in and level off to measure)

few drops of vanilla

1 Tbsp. cocoa powder

6-8 teaspoons water

decorative sprinkles

1. To make the vanilla frosting: Pour half the confectioners’ sugar into a bowl, add the vanilla and enough cold water (3-4 teaspoons) to mix into a smooth frosting.

2. To make the chocolate frosting: Stir the other half of the confectioners’ sugar with the cocoa powder into another bowl and mix in cold water (3-4 teaspoons) to make a smooth frosting.

3. Put sprinkles in a bowl. Dip warm doughnuts in frosting and then dip in sprinkles.

4. Prepare doughnut holes same as doughnuts.

Easy Mango Salsa

½ onion
1 jalapeno
½ clove garlic

1 ripe mango, peeled and pitted
1 tbsp. lime juice
1/8 bunch cilantro, washed
1 can (14.5 oz) whole tomatoes

1 can (14.5 oz) stewed tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste

Cut jalapeno in half lengthwise and remove seeds. Using food chopper, chop onion and jalapeno and set aside. Mince garlic with knife or garlic press. Chop mango with knife. Snip cilantro into smaller pieces with clean kitchen scissors. Assemble food processor with metal blade. Put lime juice, cilantro and tomatoes into food processor. Pulse until tomatoes are consistency you want. Add onion, jalapenos, mango and garlic and pulse just enough to mix. Add salt and pepper to taste. Store in refrigerator for 1 hour for flavors to blend. Serve with tortilla chips.

Basic Crepes (makes about 16 crepes)

1 C. flour

2 eggs

½ C. milk

½ C. water

¼ tsp. salt

2 Tbsp. melted butter or margarine

*Measure the flour and liquid carefully, because the consistency is important.

The batter should be about the consistency of thick heavy cream.

1. Place ingredients in your blender in the order given. Blend 30 seconds. Stop and stir down the sides. Blend 30 to 60 seconds more, until smooth. Or Using a whisk or mixer, combine flour and eggs in a bowl. Add liquid gradually. Beat until smooth. Add other ingredients and mix.

2. Cook, using a crepe maker, or oiled crepe (omelet) pan.

Filling:

1 C. sour cream 2 whole thinly sliced green onion

1 can cream of chicken soup 1/4 C. finely chopped celery

1/4 lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced 2 C. diced, cooked chicken (1 lb. raw)

1/4 C. sliced black olives (sm. can)

3. To prepare chicken: trim fat from chicken and cut into bite-sized pieces. Heat oil in frying pan on medium-high heat. Saute chicken pieces in oil (1 Tbsp.) until no longer pink.

4. Sanitize your counter top so that you can line up the cooked crepes to fill them equally. Combine ingredients, then fill crepes. Put filled crepes in greased glass 9x13 pan. Cover with plastic wrap, vent corner and place in microwave and cook on high for 10 minutes. (This jump starts the heating process. At home you may cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.)

5. Remove plastic and bake in conventional oven (325 degrees) for 10-15 minutes until heated through.

Topping:

1 cup grated cheese

6. Remove from oven and sprinkle on 1 C. grated cheese.

7. Bake 5 more minutes, until cheese is melted.

Note: You may make shells and filling the night before, but don’t stuff them until the morning of the day

you are going to use them. You may bake ahead, cover with aluminum foil, and reheat, if necessary.

Pressure Cooker - Baked Apples (for lab, plan 1/2 apple per person.)

½ apple for each person (4 large or 5 small will fit in a standard pressure cooker)

1/2 C. sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1. Use an apple corer or sharp utility knife, to remove the core from the apple.

2. Remove one strip of peel from the top of the apple. (This helps the steam penetrate better).

3. Place the apples in the bottom of a dry pressure cooker (remove the rack).

4. Combine the sugar and the cinnamon.

5. Fill the cavity of each apple with the sugar/cinnamon mixture.

6. Pour 1/4" of water in the bottom of the pressure cooker.

7. Seal lid and place pressure cooker over medium high heat.

8. Place the pressure gauge on the lid. When pan reaches full pressure and gauge begins to rock, turn the heat off, and remove from heat. Allow the pan to sit for 5 minutes to cool, then place the pan in your sink and run cold water over the side until the handle safety lock disengages.

NOTE: If gauge fails to rock after 20 minutes total time on heat, remove from heat. Let the pan sit until all pressure has escaped (about 20 minutes). If necessary, run cool water on the edge of the lid to release remaining steam. The safety lock near the handle will release.

9. Remove the lid. Cut the apples into fourths, remove the skins, and place apples on a serving dish. Serve with of ice cream.

10. Place the cinnamon sauce that is in the bottom of the pan in a dish to serve over the ice cream.

Zip-Lock Bag - Fudge (1 ½ C.)

(Amounts in parentheses make a single serving in a sandwich bag.)

2 oz. cream cheese - (1 T.) 1/4 C. margarine - (1T.)

3 C. powdered sugar - (3/4 C.) 1/4 C. cocoa - (1T.)

1. Measure ingredients in a 1 gal. zip lock bag. Push the air out of the bag and seal well.

2. Squish the mixture to mix well. It will be dry at first, but will soon become fudge.

3. Roll fudge between two sheets of waxed paper and cut into squares for easy serving (or eat with a spoon, yum).

4. You may press in chopped nuts or coconut.

Steamer - Rice

1 1/4 C. long grain rice 1 1/2 C. cold water 1/8 tsp. salt

1. Fill the water reservoir with cold tap water to the HIGH fill line.

2. Place the steaming bowl onto the base.

3. Place the rice, water, and seasoning directly into the rice bowl.

4. Place the rice bowl with contents into the steaming bowl and cover it so that the cover handles line up over the bowl handles and the tabs fit properly into the openings.

5. Plug it in and set the timer for approximately 52-54 minutes.

6. Fluff with a fork before serving or using in a recipe.

Electric Skillet - Pineapple-Ham Fried Rice

4 eggs, beaten 2 (or more) whole green onions, thinly sliced

1 tsp. garlic powder 2 tsp. oil

1/2 tsp. salt 4 C. cooked rice

2 Tbsp. butter 4 tsp. soy sauce

2 slices ham, chopped 1 can (20 oz.) pineapple tidbits, drained

1. Beat the eggs and add garlic powder.

2. Heat a skillet over medium heat. When the pan is hot, melt the butter.

3. Add the eggs, and allow them to cook until the bottom is set. (See step #4 below. You are not scrambling the eggs). Continue cooking the eggs until they are done, but not dry.

4. Cool the eggs, then remove them to a plate, and cut them into small pieces.

5. Chop the ham into small pieces.

6. Clean, then thinly slice the onions and half the green stem.

7. Put the oil in the skillet and place it over medium heat.

8. Add the green onions, rice, ham, pineapple, egg, and soy sauce. Stir fry until everything is heated through, being careful to not over-stir.

9. Serve with additional soy sauce.

Steamed Carrots with Snow Peas

1 lb. (.45 kg) carrots

½ lb (.23 kg) snow peas

1-2 cloves garlic

1 tsp. dry dill weed

Salt and pepper to taste

Peel the carrots and slice into ¼”-thick rounds.
Break off the ends of the peas; remove any strings; wash.
Place the garlic and dried dill weed in the flavor center of the steamer.
Spread the carrots in the steaming bowl. Cover.
Steam carrots for 12 minutes before adding the snow peas. Add snow peas.
Allow the vegetables to finish cooking for 9-10 additional minutes; stir.
Yields about 4 ½ cups of vegetables.

So yeah. There you have it for today. I'll give you last week's recipes next time... sooner or later.

I was looking at JC Penny dot com...

2008-09-11T23:02:00.003-06:00

So I got bored today (which I shouldn't have because I have a to-do list about a mile long...) and I got on JC Penny's online site. I started looking at the shoes because that's basically my favorite accessory...
Karalyn and I want to get some dress boots for walking to church in the snow. It's not so fun in open toed shoes. Trust me on that one. These are the two I liked best. (click on the titles)
1)St. John's Bay® 'Decade' Stretch Boot
2)Worthington ® 'Kali' Mid-Shaft Boot
And then, because you can't stop at just boots, even though that's all we need for practical purposes, and that's all we can afford on a student's budget, I went looking through some more. Just for fun though... seriously.
Casual (a lot of them look really similar, but I like them...)
LA Gear Honey Low Profile Shoe
Mudd® 'Aggie' T-strap Skimmer
Mudd® 'Chilly' Buckle Mary-Jane
Mudd® 'Davis' Multi Pattern Skimmer
Mudd® 'Felta' Mary-jane Wedge
Decree® 'Barnett' Solid Buckle Flat
Dress Shoes (sooo sassy!!)
Worthington® Reagan' Peeptoe X-band Pump
east5th® 'Victoria' Peep-Toe Pump
maybe these...Softspots® 'Aster' Mary-Jane Pump
Liz & Co® 'Lorna'
Worthington® 'Natalie' Wool Peep-Toe Pump
athletic (because they're always good to have.)
Nike® Reax Run III Running Shoe
ASICS® GEL Frantic 3 Running Shoe
Fashion Athletic (whatever that means)
La Gear Campus Low Profile Shoe
Skechers® 'Spell' Embroidered Mary Jane
Anywho. It's sometimes depressing because I know I'll never have them. But still. They are nice to look at.

Kbye!

Welcome to the longest day of my whole life.

2008-09-10T22:57:00.004-06:00

I'm keeping this short, because I'm so tired, far too tired to do anything productive, but not so tired that I can't spend a few minutes here.
I woke up at 7:10 and was out the door by 7:32. Believe it. It's amazing, I know. I drank a slim-fast on the way to school, which, if anyone is wondering, yes, they are fairly nasty, but quick, easy, and jam-packed with your daily vitamins and minerals. The walk was long and tiring, but I made it to my cooking lab by 8:03. Luckily, because it was the first lab of the year, they hadn't started cooking yet. Let me say, 8 a.m. or not, that is gonna be my favorite class by far! The two other girls in my group are not so cooking savvy, so they made me the "kitchen manager," but they are really sweet and totally willing to do whatever they can to make the process go faster. It was so much fun, I don't know why, but I really enjoy cooking. Then, during the last hour of lab, we get to sit down and eat what we've made. I just sat and talked with my lab partners while eating some of the best stuff I've ever eaten. Here's what we made:

Student Recipes – MEAL PLANNING LAB
The purpose of this lab is for students to make a complete, balanced meal.

All labs will make the same recipes: Soup, Salad, and Muffins

SHELLS AND VEGGIES SOUP

1/2 tsp. vegetable oil
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 clove garlic, chopped
1 can (14 oz.) chicken broth
1 can (14 oz.) crushed or diced tomatoes
1/4 cup small shell pasta
2 Tbsp. dried parsley
1/4 cup chopped frozen spinach
1/4 cup cubed zucchini
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

3 Tbsp. fresh grated Parmesan cheese - This will be put on the serving table, by the teaching assistant, for all to use when the soup is served.

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until the onion is soft, about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Add chicken broth, tomatoes, parsley, basil and oregano to saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat , and simmer covered for 10 minutes.

3. Add spinach, carrots, celery and pasta. Cook 10 minutes covered at a low boil. Add zucchini and cook 7 more minutes.

4. Test for doneness by forking vegetables and pasta to see if tender.

5. Spoon into bowl; add salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese to taste. ENJOY!

BROCCOLI-RAISIN SALAD
Serves: 6

1/2 large head broccoli washed and trimmed
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
1/4 pound bacon, fried crisp and crumbled
¼ cup & 2 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/4 cup sugar

1. Cut broccoli into small florets, peel the stem and cut into 1/2" pieces.
2. Combine broccoli, onions, raisins, nuts (optional), and bacon (optional).
3. In a small separate bowl, make dressing of mayonnaise, vinegar, and sugar.
4. Pour dressing over salad.
5. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
6. Toss before serving.
7. This can be made ahead of time and refrigerated for hours, even overnight.

CORNMEAL MUFFINS
Makes 6 muffins

½ c. all purpose flour
½ c. yellow cornmeal
2 Tbsp + 2 tsp. sugar
½ tbsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1½ tsp. finely chopped onion
½ c. cream style corn
¼ c. mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. + 1 ½ tsp. vegetable oil
½ egg (please give the other half to another group or to your instructor)

In a large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and add all remaining ingredients. Stir just until mixed. Spoon into 6 greased muffin tins. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. NOTE: If you have dark muffin pans, reduce oven temperature by 25 degrees.

Anyways, it was tons of fun... made me wonder what I could major in so I could take more classes like this. After lab got out at 11, I ran down to Kare's dorm (my sister is a new freshman this year) to help her reconnect her printer to her computer and straighten her hair. While there, I typed up a 1/2 page paper for my religion class on a relationship I would like to improve. At 12:40, I left for my 1:00 Parenting and Child Guidance Class where I read the information I was going to be quizzed on in my Religion class, LDS Marriage and Family at 2:00. I did well and normally I love that class, but the kid sitting to my left kept up a continuous conversation with the kid sitting behind me, and that was pretty distracting, so I didn't enjoy it quite as much as I normally do. After that, I ran down to the JFSB for my 4:00 Western Humanities class where I read as much of the Illiad as I could because I was going to be quizzed on that as well. I did not do well on that quiz and had to leave class early so I could make it home in time for work. It took me 25 minutes to walk home where I changed and made myself a peanut butter and Strawberry jam sandwhich and drove off 10 minutes later than I should have for work. Because of that, my field got a late start (about 15 minutes late) and the clocks wouldn't work correctly because they were on the wrong channel (which they never have been before so I therefore didn't know how to change them) so I had to keep time on my phone which was a huge hassle because I didn't realize until now that I have a timer on there... The games (I was supervising soccer) got progressively easier, and the opposite field had 2 forfeits, so the other supervisor watched my field during one of those so I could sit down (yeah, we get to stand for 4 hours of soccer games without sitting down because it's "unprofessional"). I sound like such a whiner. Sorry about that. But like I said, Long day. Anyways, when I got home, I changed straight into my pj's hopped in my bed with my lap top to tell you all about it! Then, my roommate Mary came in my room to tell me about the boys that stopped by the apartment and how they fixed our tv remote and microwave (handy guys to have around) and then the two of us decided we needed a little Audrey in our lives. So, the 4 of us (me, and 3 Roommates, Mary, Kelly and Alli) set my computer between my and Alli's bed and watched Funny Face until we fell asleep. I woke up alone this morning (thurs, 9/11) so I'm assuming Mary left when the movie was over. Anyways, and here I am now. And this has gone on for long enough so I'll go. But seriously, those recipes sound weird, but they are SO GOOD! Try them!

Just to help a friend

2008-09-04T13:16:00.002-06:00

This is a friend of mine, Sara, who I went on a Church History Tour with. She's the sweetest girl in the world and is trying to get her photography business up and off the ground. Check out her website!

"I started my own photography business and am in the beginning stages and could use your assistance. You might be asking yourself, "Well, how can I help Sara?" Well, I need to create a magnificent portfolio and I need you, your family, your children, or even your friendly neighbor to be my model(s). I do portrait photography and I eventually want to specialize in just children. Spread the word, Sara is open for business! Be sure to check out my website: http://neverforgottenphotos.blogspot.com for further information.

Note: Since I work full time at Orthopaedic Institute of Henderson I will be doing these photo sessions Saturday mornings/afternoons and possibly on Fridays. Please contact me via email so that we can set up a time and a place that will work for both of us. If you have children that will be a part of the photo session; make sure that your child is fed and well rested before the session. Bring snacks and water just in case. Feel free to bring a change of clothes, make it simple, solid colors; we want the focus to be your little one.
Thanks for your consideration,
Sara Young
Never Forgotten Photography
neverforgottenphoto@gmail.com
702.290.7786"

typical mom moment

2008-06-05T21:12:00.003-06:00

So this is a typical moment for my mom and anything technologically advanced... if you can really call a basic digital camera that technologically advanced. :) we love her.

It's just occured to me, (as this video is uploading,) that this may not be as funny to "outsiders" as it is to people who know my mom. To those who don't know her on such a personal level, know that I laughed for quite some time after seeing this video. And that is why it is being posted today.

for the lack of anything better to report...

2008-05-30T19:56:00.002-06:00

AUSTRALIAN BRICKLAYER' S ACCIDENT REPORT
Possibly the funniest story in a long while. This is a bricklayer's accident report, which was printed in the newsletter of the Australian equivalent of the Workers' Compensation board. This is a true story. Had this guy died, he'd have received a * Darwin Award.

Dear Sir,
I am writing in response to your request for additional information in Block 3 of the accident report form. I put 'poor planning' as the cause of my accident. You asked for a fuller explanation and I trust the following details will be sufficient.
I am a bricklayer by trade. On the day of the accident, I was working alone on the roof of a new six-story building. When I completed my work, I found that I had some bricks left over which, when weighed later were found to be slightly in excess of 500 lbs. Rather than carry the bricks down by hand, I decided to lower them in a barrel by using a pulley, which was attached to the side of the building on the sixth floor.
Securing the rope at ground I went up to the roof, swung the barrel out and loaded the bricks into it. Then I went down and untied the rope, holding it tightly to ensure a slow descent of the bricks. You will note in Block 11 of the accident report form that I weigh 135 lbs.
Due to my surprise at being jerked off the ground so suddenly, I proceeded at a rapid rate up the side of the building. In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel, which was now proceeding downward at an equally impressive speed. This explained the fractured skull, minor abrasions and the broken collar bone, as listed in section 3 of the accident report form.
Slowed only slightly, I continued my rapid ascent, not stopping until the fingers of my right hand were two knuckles deep into the pulley. Fortunately by this time I had regained my presence of mind and was able to hold tightly to the rope, in spite of beginning to experience pain.
At approximately the same time, however, the barrel of bricks hit the ground and the bottom fell out of the barrel. Now devoid of the weight of the bricks, that barrel weighed approximately 50 lbs. I refer you again to my weight. As you can imagine, I began a rapid descent, down the side of the building.
In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel coming up. This accounts for the two fractured ankles, broken tooth and several lacerations of my legs and lower body.
Here my luck began to change slightly. The encounter with the barrel seemed to slow me enough to lessen my injuries when I fell into the pile of bricks and fortunately only three vertebrae were cracked.
I am sorry to report, however, as I lay there on the pile of bricks, in pain, unable to move, I again lost my composure and presence of mind and let go of the rope and I lay there watching the empty barrel begin its journey back down onto me.
This explains the two broken legs.
I hope this answers your inquiry.
Kevin Roben Wagga
Glass &Aluminium Pty Ltd
PO Box 5004 ( 11 Dobney Ave )
Wagga Wagga N S W 2650*

today is April 15th.

2008-04-15T22:04:00.000-06:00

It snowed today. Boo.
And Goo.

the end

college is a pain in the neck... quite literally.

2008-04-09T16:19:00.003-06:00

I hadn't realized how long it had been since I last posted until just now. I'm in the last week of school and can't see past tomorrow. My to-do list is almost as long as my stress level is high. In fact, I had to go to the doctor last week because of what we all think is "stress-related" pain in my neck, lower back and hip. They took 5 samples of my blood and are in the process of testing it to figure out what the heck is going on. The Dr. gave me a prescription (that I have yet had time to go fill) for some generic anti-inflammatory, hoping that it will help relieve some of the pain. I should probably try to fill that sometime tonight seeing as it's my night off. I'm just hoping that something IS wrong so it can be fixed otherwise, I'll be in a fairly frustrating situation.
To Do list for the next 5 (or less) days:
1) fill the dang prescription so I can physically move.
2) finish figuring out my MaryKay tax crap; give to dad tonight cuz the tax man is coming tomorrow.
3) read article and take the online quiz for my Student Development class for tomorrow.
4) Read Mormon 1-End of BoM and answer all study questions (approximately 75) for the quiz (starting tomorrow.)
5) Find apartments to look at tomorrow morning (so I have somewhere to live next fall).
6) Watch "Amadeus" and write up a paper for Music 101.
7) Write up the report for my Service Learning experience for FofDAP.
8) Write up my 5(+) pg. Major Self-Assessment for St. Dev.
9) Research and write 2 papers for biology.
10) Go to work for 4 hours (at least 3 more nights before the end of the season).
11) Register for Fall class schedule (Monday night, midnight)
12) Solidify a summer job.

Things that should be accomplished but probably won't be:
1) Go to all of my classes in the mean time.
2) Visit teach in a good mood with a smile on my face.
3) Write back to 6 missionaries, some of whom have been waiting since February (note my guilty conscience.)
4) Set up my finals study schedule
5) Buy the Conference edition of the Ensign at the Bookstore since I was told today that having one is essential to my eternal salvation.
6) Eat three meals a day
7) Sleep 8 hours a night

Aaaanyways... I'm gonna go. I don't think blogging was very therapeutic this time.

"Strengths"

2008-03-25T22:07:00.002-06:00

So, in my Life Planning and Decision Making class, we're discussing values and strengths and whatnot... One of the assignments for this week was to go to this website (registration is required, but free) and take the VIA Signature Strengths Survey. It's 240 questions and is supposed to take 15-20 minutes (I took longer because I'm so dang indecisive). Anyways, I thought it was interesting and since I'm so behind on posts, I figured I might as well blog it. If you find out something new about me, you should leave a comment about it. It might help me with the assignment which is due on Thursday.

Your (my) Top Strength

Kindness and generosity
You are kind and generous to others, and you are never too busy to do a favor. You enjoy doing good deeds for others, even if you do not know them well.

Your Second Strength

Spirituality, sense of purpose, and faith
You have strong and coherent beliefs about the higher purpose and meaning of the universe. You know where you fit in the larger scheme. Your beliefs shape your actions and are a source of comfort to you.

Your Third Strength

Forgiveness and mercy
You forgive those who have done you wrong. You always give people a second chance. Your guiding principle is mercy and not revenge.

Your Fourth Strength

Gratitude
You are aware of the good things that happen to you, and you never take them for granted. Your friends and family members know that you are a grateful person because you always take the time to express your thanks.

Your Fifth Strength

Capacity to love and be loved
You value close relations with others, in particular those in which sharing and caring are reciprocated. The people to whom you feel most close are the same people who feel most close to you.

Strength#6

Modesty and humility
You do not seek the spotlight, preferring to let your accomplishments speak for themselves. You do not regard yourself as special, and others recognize and value your modesty.

Strength#7

Citizenship, teamwork, and loyalty
You excel as a member of a group. You are a loyal and dedicated teammate, you always do your share, and you work hard for the success of your group.

Strength#8

Fairness, equity, and justice
Treating all people fairly is one of your abiding principles. You do not let your personal feelings bias your decisions about other people. You give everyone a chance.

Strength#9

Judgment, critical thinking, and open-mindedness
Thinking things through and examining them from all sides are important aspects of who you are. You do not jump to conclusions, and you rely only on solid evidence to make your decisions. You are able to change your mind.

Strength#10

Perspective (wisdom)
Although you may not think of yourself as wise, your friends hold this view of you. They value your perspective on matters and turn to you for advice. You have a way of looking at the world that makes sense to others and to yourself.

Strength#11

Honesty, authenticity, and genuineness
You are an honest person, not only by speaking the truth but by living your life in a genuine and authentic way. You are down to earth and without pretense; you are a "real" person.

Strength#12

Bravery and valor
You are a courageous person who does not shrink from threat, challenge, difficulty, or pain. You speak up for what is right even if there is opposition. You act on your convictions.

Strength#13

Hope, optimism, and future-mindedness
You expect the best in the future, and you work to achieve it. You believe that the future is something that you can control.

Strength#14

Leadership
You excel at the tasks of leadership: encouraging a group to get things done and preserving harmony within the group by making everyone feel included. You do a good job organizing activities and seeing that they happen.

Strength#15

Social intelligence
You are aware of the motives and feelings of other people. You know what to do to fit in to different social situations, and you know what to do to put others at ease.

Strength#16

Caution, prudence, and discretion
You are a careful person, and your choices are consistently prudent ones. You do not say or do things that you might later regret.

Strength#17

Love of learning
You love learning new things, whether in a class or on your own. You have always loved school, reading, and museums-anywhere and everywhere there is an opportunity to learn.

Strength#18

Appreciation of beauty and excellence
You notice and appreciate beauty, excellence, and/or skilled performance in all domains of life, from nature to art to mathematics to science to everyday experience.

Strength#19

Humor and playfulness
You like to laugh and tease. Bringing smiles to other people is important to you. You try to see the light side of all situations.

Strength#20

Curiosity and interest in the world
You are curious about everything. You are always asking questions, and you find all subjects and topics fascinating. You like exploration and discovery.

Strength#21

Zest, enthusiasm, and energy
Regardless of what you do, you approach it with excitement and energy. You never do anything halfway or halfheartedly. For you, life is an adventure.

Strength#22

Industry, diligence, and perseverance
You work hard to finish what you start. No matter the project, you "get it out the door" in timely fashion. You do not get distracted when you work, and you take satisfaction in completing tasks.

Strength#23

Self-control and self-regulation
You self-consciously regulate what you feel and what you do. You are a disciplined person. You are in control of your appetites and your emotions, not vice versa.

Strength#24

Creativity, ingenuity, and originality
Thinking of new ways to do things is a crucial part of who you are. You are never content with doing something the conventional way if a better way is possible.

HAHA, I love how it says my "24th strength..." when in all reality, it just means I'm severely lacking in "creativity, ingenuity, and originality" and "Self-control and self-regulation." Although I don't really know how acturate those are... eh, whatever.

my weekend

2008-03-18T12:27:00.003-06:00

SO, Hayley and Bo came up for their spring break (which BYU doesn't offer... what's up with that? Not that I'm complaining, the sooner I'm out of here, the better) and they invited me to spend the night at the house of those who they were visiting (sounds weird, especially since I have no connection to them, but it was really fun and totally chill.) A well needed break from the monotony that is my apartment. I drove there in horizontal-flying snow. That was an interresting experience. Saturday night, we played Rock Band, which if you've never played before, I highly recommend it. If you've never heard of it, it's like Guitar Hero, but with 2 guitars (one guitar, one bass) drums and a microphone for singing. If you've never heard of guitar hero, well, I can't really help you there. After a hearty helping of Rock Band, we watched The Forgotten; it was pretty good, I got a couple of good jumps out of the more suddenly-scary spots.
It was nice sleeping in on Sunday, we had French toast for breakfast, which was good. They had the animated bible stories on dvd, which I grew up with, so it was almost like being home. :) We watched Daniel, Ester, and Moses. Church was at 1, (I normally have it at 9) and sitting through Sacrament made me remember how peaceful student wards are. I guess it didn't help that I was severely distracted by the cutest little girl with fat cheeks and curly brown hair who kept wandering up and down the isle.
Answer me this; why is it that when I have a comment to make all throughout Sunday School, I can't just raise my hand and say it? I mean, I almost felt like I was waiting for the right moment, because I found it right after the right moment... But then I wonder, was it good that I didn't make it? I mean, some people get totally bugged when you go back to topics that have already been covered, but then again, the comment/scripture I had was kind of all-encompassing for the over-all message of the lesson. You know what? I'm going way to far into this... Long story short; I had an insightful comment all throughout sunday school and I never raised my hand to say it.
After church, we played this game called Ticket to Ride which was pretty great. I won by 2 points... beginners luck, I guess. It's one of those games that is really fun as long as people don't get too competitive or offended if you take the route they secretly wanted as well. (I really don't like playing games with severely competitive people. They take all the fun out of it. Sorry if you're one of those people.) It reminded me of The Settlers of Catan. Anyways, good times. Dinner was really good, spaghetti, tortellini, garlic bread and some sort of sausage. Rice Krispy treats for dessert... I love rice krispy treats; they made me want to make some. Good stuff. Anyways, here's Hayley and I after Church

We look somewhat formal looking... odd. Anyways, it was lots of fun. The family sent me home with very good cookies and my roommates consumed them faster than I thought possible. And the best part is, I didn't think about school once the whole time I was there which was delightful.

Defeating Death

2008-03-10T00:20:00.002-06:00

You'll notice I haven't posted in a few days... (despite my 100-posts-by-one-year-mark) well, that's because I spent the weekend on deaths door. Or not, but my story will sound much more adventurous from that perspective so, just go with it.
Update on my health; Thursday, I was supervising women’s basketball and it was going ridiculously slow and I told the participants I was sick so they’d be nice to me. There was a forfeit my second hour so I laid down on the other court behind the supervisor’s table and the refs said they would look out for me. I don’t know if I ever actually fell asleep cuz I was on the wooden floor and I could feel everyone running and the balls bouncing and my head was pounding… oh wow. I was lying on the floor… (Sigh) when I’m sick, my awareness of sanitation goes out the window… Anyways, third hour, there was this punk of a husband who got on my back for missing ONE point when I was explaining how to keep score to the scorekeeper, and when I asked all of the spectators to go to the stands (they’re not supposed to be on the court for “safety reasons”) the husband didn’t go. So I turned around and asked him if he was planning on going to the stands and he said, “Are you planning on keeping track of the score? Cuz you already messed up on that one.” And in my head I was like, “Oh no you didn’t!! I am sick and I was busy at the time the shot was made and I put it on the scoreboard about 4 seconds after it was made, so you can GET OFF MY BACK OR GET OUT OF MY GYM!” But as Phil (my boss) always says, “no one can misinterpret silence” so I turned around and ignored him. About 10 seconds later, when he hadn’t left, I turned around and gave him a “you’re still here” look until he turned around to go to the stands. I was seriously bugged. So I basically hated on that team for the rest of the game. In my head. It’s not like I jacked their score or anything. Anyways, 4^th hour there was a forfeit so I packed up to go. Oh, in the gym, I was wearing 5 layers, the outermost 2 were a sweater and my heavy coat and I was still freezing. Lame. So when I walked outside to put the stuff away in the RB, my vision started blacking out around the edges and I started freaking out, but I just kept telling myself that I’d be warm in the RB soon.
When I finally got home, I walked in the door and just started crying because I was so miserable and Sarah came running after me asking what was wrong and I told her everything and she felt my face and said we should take my temperature. So we did. 103.0 my friend. Heck yes. By then, Natalie had come in and they started freaking out at calmly as possible (ironic?) saying things like, “oh my gosh, do we need to take her to the hospital?” so I started freaking out less calmly of course, (I don't think my head was in the right place) and I called my mom and told her and then I sensed the panic in her voice and I really started freaking out and she told me to calm down and take a cool shower to try and bring the temperature down. So I did and bawled the whole time and when I got out my Aunt, Tammy, who’s a nurse, was calling me and she told me what to do/take and all that good stuff. Then Sarah’s boyfriend, Tate, and Natalie’s friend Matt gave me a blessing and then Tate and Sarah went to the grocery store to get me some Tylenol and Vicks vaporub and ice cream (to bring down my temperature, of course…) and picked up No Reservations from red box. That’s a good one. I enjoyed it. Anyways, I went to sleep sometime around 1, woke up at 10:30, went to the bathroom, drank some water (Nurse Tammy told me I was dehydrated) and then went back to sleep and woke up at 3:30. I had 9 missed calls so I checked my messages and called everyone.
I relaxed all friday, started writing back to Mike's last letter from my birthday package, painted my nails, and watched The labyrinth. (wow...) I wasn't going to eat except for that I realized I hadn't eaten anything all day because I wasn't hungry, so I made some soup and ate that...
Moral of the story; I defeated death. And a moronic husband who seriously bugged.
SMILE!

The results are in.

2008-03-05T17:17:00.002-07:00

So today was the big day (well, a big day in a series of big days that I'm sure I'll go through here at BYU). I had a music 101 test covering the "Classical Era." After cramming as much information on Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven as I possibly could, I walked knowingly to the almost overwhelming doom that awaited me at the Heber J. Grant building (aka, the TESTING CENTER). I called my dad on the way (as I always do), told him my predicament and asked him to pray. Pray that somehow, Heavenly Father would be gracious enough to bless me, the procrastinating college student, with the knowledge I knew I didn't have. When I picked up my test and paid my late fee of $5 (why do they charge late fees on the last day of the test? Because they are Nazi's!) (Only I don't really believe that, I just severely dislike the idea of paying to take a test for a class that I've already paid for. I'm sorry), they told me to finish the second half first and then to come back because all of the MP3 players that are needed for the first half/listening portion of my test were being used. So I said my own prayer, did the second half, then went back to get my MP3 player where I realized there were 10 other people waiting there in my same situation. So I waited in line for about 15 minutes, got my MP3, and answered 22 of the 25 questions when my MP3 froze. I tried play/pause, power on/off, nothing. So, I had to go back and get another one to finish my last three questions. And the whole thing was annoying because I knew I was failing the dang test that I had paid $5 to take. Normally, I would only check my score if I knew I got an A or if I knew I failed (occasionally I surprise myself). If there's even a hope of my passing, I don't look because it's almost always lower than I think it is. Or I fail. And who needs that ruining their day? Not I. Anyways, I knew I had failed, so I looked to see how bad it was. 74%. As in 74% out of 100%. Not only is that passing, but that's a good passing compared to thinking I had failed for sure. Smile upon my face, (I'm easy to please as far as grades go) I took a water/ladies room break and then sat down to prepare for my Book of Mormon quiz covering Helaman-3 Nephi 11. I ate my Yoplait Orange Creme Yogurt and my Strawberry Nutri-Grain bar (because a college brain doesn't work very well when it doesn't have any nutrients supporting it, or when there's a growling stomach distracting it) and sat down to answer the remaining study questions. About 2 hours later, I had finished reading and reviewing all of the material that would be covered and I headed in, feeling fairly confident that I could take it for free today vs. paying to take it tomorrow (which I didn't have time to do anyways). About 15 minutes later, I walked out and checked my score (still fairly confident, you see,) and a 92%. Hoo-Rah for me! I walked home in a much more pleasant attitude than I had walked to campus with earlier that day despite the biting wind that was freezing my face and the hand that was holding my phone telling my dad the news.

I've given up on Lent. I discovered there wasn't really a point anymore. I wasn't losing weight (not like I expected the pounds to just fall off or something,) and I was consuming more supplemental sweets in non-chocolate form than I otherwise would have. Plus, I still have tons of chocolate from my birthday, and birthday Chocolate milk that would have gone bad had it been neglected for too much longer. So, yesterday after waking up from a 4 hour nap (yeah, I probably should have been studying for that music test...) and saw that Sarah had just made chocolate chip cookies that were sitting oh-so-lovely and warm on the oven, I made the swift decision to drop it. But this much I will say, I did lose a lot of my cravings and I developed a lot of self control during my choco-free month. So my over all crap-consumption rate should go down. "Should" being the key word there.

Tomorrow I'm going to observe at the BYU pre-school for my FofDAP class, and then head on over to Farrer Elementary to Tutor the lovely children of Ms. Tomlinson's 3rd grade class during their reading hour. I'll let you all know how that turns out.

Flu season = Midterm season.

2008-03-04T15:01:00.002-07:00

Why is that always the case? I have every typical symptom in the book... sinus headache, congestion, sore throat, cough --> sore muscles everywhere, that heavy feeling in your chest, and I can't seem to get warm except for my head. My head is really warm, but my body feels freezing. And I don't have any ibuprofen left because I used the last of it on my sore back. Which is still sore. Luckily, Andrea just called and was buying some antibiotics for Karalee Jo who has double ear infections (this is her 2nd one in 6 weeks, but the doctor won't put tubes in until she's had at least 4 ear infections (E.I.) within 6 months... poor little. Brooklyn had the same problem and hasn't had a single E.I. since they put the tubes in her ears.) and she said she'd pick up a new bottle of Ibuprofen for me. It is such a blessing to have Andrea as close as she is. I like to think that we're both a blessing to each other. Anyways, I had my semesterly interview scheduled with my boss today, plus a staff meeting, and then work, which luckily (again...) I was scheduled to be in the one gym that always has two supervisors. So I called the secretary and asked her to talk to my boss and see if it was ok that I didn't do any of those things. Call me a slacker, tell me to suck it up, but seriously, it hurts to move and I'm exhausted. And I don't have the time to be sick forever. I need to get better as soon as I possibly can. I have a Music 101 test to take tomorrow which I have yet to find the time to study for and a Book of Mormon quiz (ditto to the above). Add all the reading and assignments that I have and I'm basically done.

Done venting. Thanks for reading if you still are. I will say that I'm extremely grateful that I was healthy for my birthday. I prayed for that all last week and I got it, so thank Heavenly Father for that one. My next post will be less depressing, I promise, but for now, this is what you get.

real quick

2008-03-02T23:39:00.002-07:00

I just noticed that in 25 days I will have occupied this blog for one year. I have posted 75 posts. If I blog once a day for the next 25 days, I will have 100 posts by my one year mark. I wonder if I could even do that? We'll see...

Happy Birthday to ME!

2008-03-02T22:42:00.009-07:00

This was me one year ago yesterday! Note the balloons in the background...
And here was me yesterday! On my birthday!!

How did my wonderful day go? Wonderfully. I spent the night before at Andrea's house, went to bed at 1:30 ish, got a phone call from a good friend back home at 1:45 and then really went to bed at 2. Except for that my back was killing me again. Like the same way my back hurt in one of my very first posts... (remember Garrards? the whole "pregnant" issue...) Anyways, Andrea got me a hot water bottle to lay on and a couple Tylenol... I think I finally got to sleep midway between 2 and 3. I awoke to Brooklyn crawling all over me, ready to sing to me around 8. Exciting stuff. We watched an episode of TLC's What not to wear, tvo-ed of course. Then we got ready for the day and went to Magleby's for breakfast where I had a HUGE stack of the best french toast I've ever eaten with fresh berries and cream and honey syrup on the side. (it's endless too, so if you've got big eaters, they keep bringing them out) SOOO GOOD!!! If y'all are ever in the Provo/Orem area, you should DEFINATLY check it out. After breakfast, we went back to Andrea's house and played on the swing in a neighbor's backyard, which, apparently is a totally chill thing to do in Springville.
Me and Karalee Jo. She's a chub.

Here's me and Brooklyn. She was laughing... we had fun.
I went home mid-afternoon to a beautifully clean apartment and a lovely display for my birthday! And because it was my birthday, I got chocolate (lent-free holiday) and I'll tell you what, I got a lot of it. So, I showered and got ready for the evening, and then went with the roommates to dinner at Goodwood bbq. Not as highly recommended as Magleby's, but fairly decent. After dinner and a surprise dessert, we went to the dollar to see Enchanted. We laughed hysterically the whole time!! it was pretty cheesy, but cute. After the movie, we came back to the apartment to open presents and to eat Pizookies.

Note:Chocolate covered Cinnamon bears, Reese's Easter Eggs, Toblerones (my absolute favorite), you can't tell, but there's Oreo's in the green thing, and you can barely see the end of a Symphony (almonds and toffee) bar on the far left. Also, the picture of me in the red frame is my drivers license picture... bah haha
Checkin out the menu. Nice Candid shot by Jacey Lynn.

"FOR ME?!"

Compliments of Grandma C.

Because I'm always stealing Casey Jo's to do my make up in the front room. (it's a mirror)

"For your current and future home" -Casey Jo

Good times. It was SUCH a good day, and I didn't feel my back at all until after dessert when I could barely walk to my room to go to bed. I downed 4 ibuprofen and said a prayer and fell asleep pretty quickly. sigh. It was a lovely birthday.

another survey

2008-02-19T00:49:00.002-07:00

What is your ideal wake-up time in the morning? 8:00 to have a productive morning
What are some of your favorite movies? Lord of the Rings, Pride and Prejudice (masterpiece theater), You've Got Mail,
What is your favorite TV show? the office, What not to wear, Flip that House
What is your favorite breakfast? Chocolate Chip pancakes with Strawberries and cool-whip
What is your favorite cuisine? classic bbq
What foods do you dislike? sushi, mushrooms, peppers, coconut.

What are your top 5 favorite candy bars? Toblerone, Milky Way, 100 Grand, Hershey bar, Reeses
What is your favorite music group? Dashboard Confessional
Favorite sandwich? Grilled Cheese, tuna, and tomato on Sourdough
What do you wear most often? jeans, t-shirt, flip flops
If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? cruising anywhere warm. (I'm cold right now and sitting at my desk)
Favorite item of clothing? shoes, definitely
Where would you want to retire to? Probably California
Favorite time of day? Late night
Place you were born? Henderson, Nevada

Favorite Sports to watch? BYU Football, college volleyball
Person who will respond first to this blog? Beth. She usually is the first.
Are you a morning person or night owl? Definitely a night owl, unless I didn't sleep much the night before.
Favorite animal? I've only ever had a pet fish; Mr. Bingley is his name. He's kind of boring though.
Any news you'd like to share with everyone? I just drove to and from Vegas the whole way for the first time. Go me.
What did you want to be when you were little? A 3rd grade teacher. (post 3rd grade, obviously)
In regards to parenting, children are : Opposition or blessing? I'm not a parent?

What are some of your favorite things to do in your free time? take a nap, read, blog/facebook, write missionaries
Favorite flavor of ice cream? Ben & Jerry's Half Baked (heaven in a pint, I swear it)
If you could make one wish? To suddenly be able to understand everything I need to know to graduate from college successfully and then have amazing motivation to get strait a's.
Favorite baked good? oh man... chocolate caramel brownies
Favorite season? Fall, hands down (except for the fact that it brings school with it. But that won't be such a huge deal in a couple years. or maybe it will.)
Favorite cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory? Dulce de Leche
Ever done something you could've been arrested for? Uuumm, if I have it would have probably been with Kenny Harmer and/or Kirby Okuda...
Favorite color? green, black. But in a classy way. Not like all gothicy.
favorite sport/ activity to play? volleyball
Favorite flower? Gerber daisies
Favorite fast food restaurant? I really don't like much fast food; maybe panda express.
How many times did you take your drivers test? once. I'm a champion.
Favorite grocery store? Maceys, SO cheaper than Albertsons.
How many tattoos do you have? twenty seven (

Who sent this to you and what is something you love about them? Andrea Lemmon; My sister, she's pretty dang great. She motivates me to be more organized and productive and has never made me feel like she doesn't have time for me even when she's crazy busy ALL the time. She always has a couch for me to crash on.
What materialistic thing would you ask for if you had one wish to make? A full-tuition scholarship
pizza or hamburgers? pizza
Mr. Darcy or Mr. Knightley? Mr. Knightley
Snacking: sweet or salty? Sweet most definately
Who's worse: Stephen A. Smith or Charles Barkley (sports broadcasting)? I don't know about either. I'm so uncultured, I know.
Beverage of Choice? A&W rootbeer, Water
Favorite Disney Cartoon? Hercules
book you want to read? Lord of the Rings, Anything byC.S. Lewis; I've heard his books are amazing.
banana split or rootbeer float? rootbeer float; bananas only ever roll solo for me.

my valentines day

2008-02-15T00:42:00.003-07:00

So, I awoke this morning to the doorbell at 8:03 am. Casey Jo was already up/showered/dressed, so she answered the door. I proceeded to make my bed. IN walks Casey Jo with yellow roses from my dad. He's pretty great. I love him lots.

Here is an example... He got a new camera for Christmas, I got a new Camera for Christmas.

I'm his favorite. I'm not supposed to tell anyone about it, but I couldn't hold it in any longer. But seriously. I am.

Then, because it was a holiday, (and at the beginning of this lent thing we decided that we'd skip birthdays and holidays) I made CHOCOLATE CHIP pancakes for breakfast. I just about died they were so good. It's only been a week, but I haven't had any chocolate at all... While eating breakfast, my roommates and I watched Pride and Prejudice, in honor of the day. At about 11, I showered and got ready for the day, then did homework, then walked up to campus with Hannah for my 1:00 class. That was great and wonderful and whatnot... When I got home, Sarah was watching Return to me (with Minnie Driver, Bonnie Hunt, David Duchovny) so of course, I dropped right down on the couch to join her. Somewhere I fell asleep, woke up, went to my bed and set my alarm for an hour later. Ah, naps. I rarely get one. As in, even rarely on sundays... When I woke up, I made no bakes, because everyone wanted some, and then I got ready for work. At work, I was sure to wish the basketball teams a happy valentines day during pre-game, and they all seemed much more pleasant. I wish every day was a holiday so the teams would be nice. Some kid made some comment like, "aren't you glad you get to spend your V-day evening with 10 guys..." Smart. Also, during the 7:00 game, I felt the ramifications of a week without chocolate and then a day entirely comprised of ONLY chocolate. Headache for sure. Anyways, after work, I rushed over to the Provo Town center mall theater to meet my roommates. I was about 20 minutes late to the chickflick (of course, hello, what else are 4 single girls gonna do on v-day evening?) but I got the general gist of it and enjoyed it. When I got home, I ate a couple more no bakes, watched a video with songs and pictures of Casey Jo and her missionary, then came into my room to blog. Let me just say, after a day of eating nothing but Chocolate Chip pancakes and no bakes, I FEEL like I never want Chocolate again. Luckily, my head knows better and after I pick up lent for a few more days, I'll be set and ready for Casey Jo's birthday (feb. 21st).

Tomorrow, come rain, snow, hail, lightning, WHATEVER, I AM coming home! I haven't seen my baby yet (Ryan and Kacy's baby) and I want to! Really, the justification of the drive is that I have to renew my drivers license. So bring on the Dr. Pepper (caffeinated beverage of choice), cuz I'm in for a long drive that I have not yet made on my own. ugh! I'm ready for a snow-less town, it's been a while. K, well I have to get my sleep if I'm gonna drive for 6 hours, so for now, this is it.

Saturday is a special day.

2008-02-10T01:43:00.000-07:00

At least, today was special. But 100% ordinary at the same time. hmm...
I woke up at 7:30, my favorite thing to do on Saturday morning, (oh wait, just kidding) showered and got ready for work. Work today was actually really good. I enjoyed all four hours of games, and the two officials I worked with, Kyle and Steven, were really fun to work with. I was laughing every time I talked to them. When I got home, I went to a bridal shower for Christina McLaws, a girl who lived across the hall from me in the dorms last year. When I came home, I ate some food, then went back to my room, put my ipod on shuffle and turned the volume up preeety loud. I looked out the window/slept/woke up and looked out the window again for about an hour. Then, I went back out to the front room and talked to Casey about her missionary for a bit. After eating some dinner, I decided I was bored and so I made cards. Like I have nothing better to do. Anyways, here are the evening's results.

I started with this black/white/silver theme going on, then I decided that those weren't very practical because I'm probably never going to use them. So I moved on to green and yellow.
Then, Sarah and Tate (her boyfriend) came back to the apartment and Tate said, "so, are you sending out black valentines?" I totally forgot about valentines day, so, I made more for V-day.
Anyways. I feel like it was a good day's work. I don't do scrapbook-y type stuff very often, but when I do, I really get into it. huh. I don't think I could have the patience to scrapbook my life. holy cow. That would take a lot of time. SERIOUS props to scrapbookers.

LENT!

2008-02-05T20:33:00.000-07:00

It starts tomorrow you know. And before today, I never knew what Fat Tuesday was or that it had anything to do with Mardigras or Lent... Talk about cultured... I had originally decided to give up Chocolate, but then Jacey and Natalie told me they were giving up baked goods. So, I decided to add a poll for the next week or so, see what I can come up with. I needed more than two options so I added facebook up there, cuz I'm on that a lot. I think giving up Chocolate would be more beneficial, but at the same time, more difficult to accomplish. Baked goods would be good to give up too, but part of me is thinking, that's mostly chocolate anyways. Any opinions? Well, back to Fat Tuesday. Since I was going to be giving up Chocolate, I had to down my Cocoo Roos (cheap, non-brand-name Cocoa Puffs) and my Chocolate covered Cinnamon bears. When all of that got old and I started feeling sick, I gave them to my roommates, who downed them real quick.
I tell you what, my roommates are like vultures (in the best way possible) when it comes to good left over food. My mom was up here for the weekend and she took Andrea, Karalyn and I to Olive Garden and as soon as I got home, my roommates looked at me with that, "are you gonna eat that?" look on their faces. So of course, being the oh-so-generous person that I am, offered it to them, and they downed it faster than I could have imagined.
But I now know the meaning of Fat Tuesday. And why Lent is the next day. Well, I don't know all about it, I just know that you eat a lot of whatever you won't be able to eat because you're giving it up for Lent. Something like that. Maybe I'm not as cultured as I thought.

more stuff.

2008-01-29T00:40:00.000-07:00

So, for my MFHD 221 class, we were assigned to create a "symbol-gram" which could basically be anything that told a bit about ourselves so that we could create a community of caring (or something to that effect) within our class. That's not really an every day type situation for college courses, in case we forgot, but whatever, sure, I'll do an easy A assignment if you'd like. I decided to tell something about myself using each of the letters of my name. Here's what I came up with.

Julina; I was named after Julina Lambson Smith. She was the wife of Joseph F. Smith and the mother of Joseph Fielding Smith.
Ultra-soft skin. Basically the next best "u" option was "ugly" voted by Casey jo. nice. There really aren't a lot of positive "u" words out there. I do freak out with dry skin though.
Letters. I spend a lot of my time writing letters to missionaries.
Intramurals. I work for the BYU intramural sports program as a supervisor.
Nineteen will soon be the number of people in my immediate family once Loralee has her baby in 3 weeks!
Autumn is my favorite season!

Harry Potter; I've read them all several times. I've debated all possible aspects of horocruxes... I cried when Fred died...
A&W Rootbeer. I really like it.
Shoes; my favorite accessory. If I could afford to splurge, I would.
Toblerone. my favorite candybar
Incapable of going anywhere without Chapstick. It’s true.
Normal? really, at this point, I was lacking in ideas.
Green is my favorite color.
Sudoku; my choice for passing the time.

I liked the idea so much that I did the same for Mike's name and put it in the letter I sent off today. I highly recommend the idea to everyone who is lacking in ideas of things to post.

So, I finally got the pictures from our family photo shoot scanned into my computer.

Here's the siblings.
Nate, Ryan
Karalyn, Me, Loralee, Andrea

And add the parents

And the in-laws and grandkids.
Taylor, Loralee, Mom, Dad, Kacy, Ryan
Karalyn, Brooklyn, Kyle, Andrea, Karalee Jo, Holly, Liz, Nate, Sydney, and Me.More later!

MLKjr. Day!

2008-01-21T23:26:00.000-07:00

I woke up from a dream filled with acts of youth delinquency to a window full of snow. Basically. That's the short of it and the long version isn't worth telling. But my roommates and I decided to go out and play in the snow. We made snow angels and a snow man. But remember Harriet? I don't remember if I put a picture of her on here before, but here's the story. My mom was in Provo around Halloween time and got this "candy bowl" type thing that looks like a witch's head. Whenever someone would leave an article of clothing, we would add it to Harriet.

Well today, we decided to make a snowman. It was a perfect snowman and it took it a long time to get that way. When it came to making the head, Casey Jo suggested we bring out Harriet. So we did. Here she is!

So she's kind of creepy, right? Well, she is in the dark when you forget she's there and you drive into the parking lot and see her reflecting eyes by the lights of your car.

Also, we had another FHE photo shoot because we switched up FHE groups at semester. The boys didn't participate much, but that didn't matter since my apartment really gets into those anyways. We brought props this time, so it was way more intense. I'll post some as soon as we get the cd copies. Great, bye!

Pessimistic in Provo

2008-01-19T15:36:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting at my desk in Provo. It's Saturday afternoon and I am not in Las Vegas as I had previously planned. Hannah has been called as the new Relief Society Secretary and as such has training tomorrow afternoon. Even when she couldn't come, my sister Andrea said she'd come with me as long as she could be back in Provo on Monday for her birthday. Kyle took work off so he could spend the day with her. Well, she and my mom got to talking about the weather (which, as of this morning, is probably as nice as Provo weather could ever get at this time of year) and they decided that if it did snow, we didn't want to get stuck in it. So Andrea decided against coming with me. So here I sit.

And I'm kind of in a crappy mood. Firstly, there are some roommate issues going on that I wish were resolved but not everyone is here, so that has to be postponed. It's putting a huge "distancing void" in our apartment. Does that even make sense? Secondly, I feel like there should be things for me to do, but I can't think of any. At least, any that sound appealing right now. Thirdly, I bought/put together a binder for all of Mike's letters and emails. (Let me say, that boy doesn't capitalize a single thing when he types.) I've spent the past few days doing that/reading them again and that's kind of put me in a "missing the crap out of Mike" mood. I just want to talk to him. Fourthly, I keep thinking that a lot of these issues would not be issues if I were in Vegas. My dad just got out of a rough trial yesterday and has called me a lot yesterday and today and I'm thinking it's because he has all this free time now. Great! I love talking to my dad. Except that it's making me really homesick since I should be there and not here right now. And last, I had the weirdest dream last night and so I just woke up in a weird mood... as in not good. I dunno. I think I'm going to read a book. Maybe that might help to cheer me up.

"I should probably blog something..."

2008-01-16T17:00:00.000-07:00

yup, that's what I just said after reading up on everyone else's blogs. Congratulations to Nate and Stacy, I'm really happy for you guys.

So last post I said I'd tell you a bit about my chosen major. Well, last Monday, I was going to the McKay building with Casey Jo because she's planning on majoring in Elementary Education and while we were waiting, I pulled out some brochures. I found myself interested in one of them so I signed in so I could talk to a counselor, (not thinking it would even be possible because upon mentioning it to my mom, she said that that major was pretty competitive.) When I was called back, I started out by saying, "I've heard this is a pretty competitive major to get into..." at which point my counselor interrupted, "Oh no, not really, about 90% of our applicants make it into the program." So we logged into my account to see what I would have to do to raise my GPA and what pre-reqs I'd have to take and whatnot and after about half an hour, I left her office feeling very very optimistic and finally settled on...

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION! (ECE)
Basically, it's about a 2 (2 1/2 for me) year program that, once I get a teaching degree, will allow me to teach k-3. And after somewhat choosing 3 or 4 other major/occupational choices that I never felt very settled or sure about, I feel really good, like this is SO right for me. I definitely feel like Heavenly Father is... I can't think of a more reverent way to put this, but... is smacking me upside the head saying, "duh! why didn't you think of that before?!" This is one of the very few times where I've had a feeling this sure and I'm SO grateful to finally have it. Yay!

This last week, I made two batches of no-bakes with some vague intentions of sending some of them to Mike, but they never made it past a few hours. I have no excuse for my apartment of 6 girls.

The un-healthy vending maching in the Widstue building ate $2 of mine. Then, when I tried to buy a V-8 Splash, I got a regular V-8. Goo. If that's what I get for trying to be un-healthy in the first place, then I'm doomed.

Hannah and I have decided to road-trip down to Vegas this weekend. I have to renew my drivers license and it's Dan Lee's Mission farewell. We've decided to study for our Music 101 test that will be Wed-Fri of next week while driving down. It sounds boring, but we have big plans!

Did I even tell you guys my schedule for this semester? Here it is!

MWF at 11 I have Music 101 with Hannah. I'm liking it a lot so far. We'll see how I feel about it after the first test.
MW at 1 I have the 2nd half of Book of Mormon. I LOVE my professor, he's really good and really entertaining at the same time- a good thing for an in-depth course like BoM.
MWF at 3 I have Biology, which I failed last winter, but since I'm taking it from a completely different professor with a completely different curriculum, and Casey Jo and Sarah are in it with me, I'm feeling like I'm going to do really well. Get this; there's no textbook and no tests or quizzes. Our grade is based on 8 short research papers of our choosing. We just have to prove it's relevance to biology. I'm so excited.
Monday from 4:30-6:10 I have Foundations of DAP. Don't really know what it is yet, but it's a pre-req. for ECE, so I'm taking it. The teacher is really nice, wants us to call her Dodie, and the only thing I need to do so far is a symbolgram. Iiiiiit's gonna be a good class.
TTh I have Life Planning and Decision Making which I was originally planning on taking to help me decide on a major, but after the 2nd class period, I had that one figured out. Talk about effective, eh? It's still a good class though; small with LOTS of class discussion.
Sooo basically, that's it. Pretty chill schedule, but hopefully I get my GPA up and focus on what needs to be done to get into the ECE major. I know I'm going to have to do some observing at different levels of schools, but the plan is to try and get that done during the summer, so not a lot to worry about right now.

Also, my apartment has decided to participate in Lent. I've decided to give up chocolate. I don't think there's a day that goes by that I don't ingest some in one way or another. I do, however, get a break on my birthday (march 1st). Wish me luck.

Happy New Year!

2008-01-10T16:23:00.000-07:00

I know it's kind of late... but, there's me for you.

So, I sat down once I got back up here and decided to write out a few New Years Resolutions. Here are a few of them;

1) Exercise every morning
I've done pretty good so far, I didn't do anything Sunday, but I wasn't planning on it either. I've gone jogging on the treadmills at the Liberty Square Gym and done abs and pilates via dvd on my family room floor. I know I wouldn't be able to do this on my own, but luckily I have some amazing roommates who want to be all healthy too. I'm not such a fan of jogging... totally GOO. But I know I have to have a strong respiratory system and I'll burn a lot more when I'm jogging vs. abs and pilates. I much prefer abs and pilates because I can stay barefoot and in my pjs on my family room floor... which is way more comfortable than having to put on "exercise clothes" and running shoes to cross the snow/mostly ice covered parking lot to the club house where the gym is and having your chest seize up after your first breath of icy air that pierces your lungs so much that you'd rather not breath at all, which unfortunately would kill you so you have to keep up these short shallow breaths which quickly becomes very annoying and you have to concentrate on that while focusing on where you put your feet so you don't slip and fall right onto your tail bone. After pilates, your abs feel all tight (not sore) for like an hour. It's so awesome. I MUCH prefer that to all of the other stuff involved in "jogging."

2)Lose 5 lbs.
It's not too much, and shouldn't be that hard at the rate I'm going at now.

3)Study Scriptures for 30 minutes a day.
This one shouldn't be too hard because I have to study Book of Mormon for half an hour for my BoM grade anyways. After doing it for an entire semester, it should become habitual. At least, that's what I'm hoping for.

4)Write a Missionary every week.
After going through Mission prep last semester (which I LOVED!!!) and watching the best two years, I realized how much missionaries look forward to mail. If I DO end up going on a mission, I'll feel better knowing I sent missionaries letters when I had the chance. Plus, I've decided to type out the mass of information that I'd send to the majority of them anyways and then make adjustments according to who I'm sending it to. I just don't have the time to sit down and write 6 or 8 missionaries 2 page letters. Which I can't help because I have a lot to say most of the time. There's an exception, sometimes two, but other than that, I'm sure they'll be grateful to get mail in general. And it's important for me to keep up correspondence with these boys. I spent most of my high school with them right?

5)No grades lower than a C
My GPA will never get good enough to get into my major (which I'll discuss more about later) if I keep slacking off. So, I figure, if I have a goal to keep it in the B or above range, I'll be good. It's gonna be hard, I'm not a very good student, but that's why I have this goal.

6)Be in bed BY 12 and up BY 8.
I wouldn't have set this one if it wasn't a huge issue. All of my roommates go to bed at a fairly early hour(also 12), but then here I sit, READY FOR BED, on my computer, reading other's blogs or checking up on facebook or cleaning my room even, basically anything to keep me out of my bed until 2 or so in the morning. And I DON'T KNOW WHY! I love sleep. I'm betting there's some deep underlying psychological issue here that I just haven't quite figured out yet. I've done ok on this one. There's room for improvement.

7)Go on one date a month.
Yes, my social life is that pathetic. And I'm not looking for any sort of a relationship or anything, (I obviously don't have things strait as it is) but I've found I am SERIOUSLY lacking in social skills. I mean, once I have friends, I'm a good friend, really loyal, but it's the making friends that I have a problem with. I have the hardest time with being outgoing around random strangers (like people in the ward) and I'm afraid it might give off a bad first impression (like I'm arrogant, or better than they are or something). More than really getting a date once a month, I gave myself this goal so that I'd concentrate on how I act around people when I first meet them. I figure IF I do this, I might get a date once a month or so.

8)Be less judgmental
This isn't a huge issue, but it started out with something my Book of Mormon professor challenged us with. We're supposed to choose 3 scriptures and try to improve ourselves on that weakness. The first one I chose was Moroni 7:18. I tried it one day and every time I thought something like, "She's so rude" or "Wow, why did he dress that way?" I think to myself, "How would Heavenly Father see him/her?" And it is AMAZING what a difference it makes. I'm serious, as crazy as it sounds, I feel a love (however strange or random) for that person because I know God loves them regardless of what they say or wear. Everyone should try it. It's amazing!

Anyways, I think I'll discuss my new major in my next update (which I promise will be in the month of January (reasonable goals for myself, see?)) because it's time for my 30 minute study now.

So go make someone smile today!

I thought I had appendicitis

2007-12-04T15:57:00.000-07:00

My lower right abdomen has been pretty tender the past couple of days and I was talking to some friends about it and they thought it might be the beginnings of appendicitis. All I knew about appendicitis is that you have to have your appendix removed.

What does your appendix do anyways?

But if it's such a big deal that you have to have something removed, I figured I'd look up on it. So I did. On Wickapedia. And it basically said if you ignore it, your appendix explodes and the poison it releases kills you. "So," I thought to myself, "this might be one of those times where a call to the health center could be beneficial." I finally got myself talking to a nurse and she said that what I was describing could be appendicitis but it might not be, but that it's always better to be safe than dead. I agreed. So over to the urgent care of the student heath center I went, with Jacey, for moral support. The doctor decided, after some poking around, that I should go to the lab and take a urine test and a blood test, neither of which I have ever done before, so that was pretty exciting. When the blood extractor guy found out I had never had blood taken before, he leaned back and told the lab receptionist lady, "hey we have a virgin here!" ah... BYU jokes, they're always so clever. Anyways, since I had never had it done before, he was explaining everything and had me feel my "rippling veins," (always a good sign when you know they won't have to go searching) and then I sat and watched as he sucked it all out. I really can't understand why that's so hard for some people, but there you have it. At least I know I don't have a phobia of needles or my own blood. Then Jacey and I went back to the urgent care waiting room and about half an hour later the doctor called me back in. He sat explaining what I didn't have for about 10 minutes and then took another 15 on what I did have which is some other kind of -itis. He prescribed some kind of anti-inflammatory that I should take with food and where I can't lay down for half an hour afterwards.

So we were there for about 2 1/2 hours... I missed my volleyball class, which stinks. That's one of the few classes I actually enjoy going to... psh. Whatever. But at least I'm not going to die from the poison of a ruptured appendix. That's always a good thing.

I love Christmas time

2007-12-02T22:53:00.000-07:00

Can I just say this is the happiest season of the year... But before I get into it, I have this theory going... When Heavenly Father saw what Provo was going to look like at the end of winter semester, he knew the poor college students would need something, ANYTHING, to look forward to in order to avoid the inevitable death following (or proceeding, or during, depending on the results of) finals. Now, I know that Christmas has been celebrated on Christmas for a long time... maybe like 2000 years or so, but I think the "season" of joyfullness is incorporated for the sake of Provo people's sanity.

So I've decided that I'm going to list my favorite things, because if I list them, it's easier to remember to be grateful for them, right? And what better place to make lists than on a trusty blog.

1) I love that I've spent the entire weekend cutting out paper snowflakes. And then we framed them in our living room.

2) I love that I found THE perfect gift for my S.I.L. Liz for a VERY reasonable price at Big Lots that goes along with the 3 other things I had going for her. I'm so excited to hear about her reaction. I'm kind of sad she and my brother won't be at our house with the rest of the family, but her brother is getting married, (maybe?) and will be spending time with her side. Also, that's another thing; drawing names for Christmas presents is a whole lot less fun. Andrea (my oldest sister) and I were talking about it, and we both love giving gifts that we think people would like, but it's just not practical with so many people and so many of us being students. (aka, really poor) But still! I really think Liz will like what I've gotten for her.

3)Christmas music is my favorite!! I don't think anything can bring the spirit or make me as happy as music can. And my roommates are the same way... there is ALWAYS music playing in our apartment, often coming from all 3 bedrooms. And we all love singing. The ward music...person(?) asked our apartment to prepare a musical number for the ward Christmas program. We're going to be singing a song called "If this child were born today" which is an arrangement with "The first noel" and "away in a manger" incorporated in it. Hannah and Natalie are singing the soprano part, Jacey and Sarah alto, Casey tenor but an octave up, and Me bass an octave up. oh man, it's awesome.

4)I love that even though it's freezing outside, people are so warm and friendly. Everyone is more open and cheerful during the Christmas season. Our parking lot is completely in the shade of our building and when it snowed on saturday, it didn't have a chance to melt before it froze into a solid slat of ice. I've gotten my car stuck while attempting to back into my spot twice, and both times, someone was there and helped push my car while I backed it in. How nice is that? And how often would someone just walk on past on any other freezing cold day after Christmas?
A view of our parking lot from our front window.

5)I love that I can drink hot chocolate whenever and however often I want. And it doesn't matter if I put on a couple pounds because I'm bundled up in about a thousand layers of clothes anyways. :)

6) I love that there are decorations up everywhere. People string up lights and wreathes and Christmas trees are all over the place. I can't even begin to tell you how many snowmen I've counted. It just makes me happy...

well I have to be off to my mission prep class now, it starts in 15 minutes. I hope you all love Christmas as much as I do though... I'd be sad for you if you didn't.

late at night...

2007-11-29T00:39:00.000-07:00

These are some of my all time favorite pictures. Well, out of the ones I have saved to my computer. They aren't really necessarily great pictures, but they remind me of really good times...

picture update

2007-11-19T23:35:00.000-07:00

I don't have a ton to update on right now. College life is stressful as usual, but that's how things go during mid-terms, right? But I think I can safely say I have the best 5 roommates anyone could possibly ask for. I am so grateful for them and their willingness to do anything they can for me, even when I don't ask.

I'm also really excited to be going home tomorrow! I should get there around dinner time; mom said she'd have my sheets nicely washed for me. Isn't she the greatest?! She knows how much I love my bedroom, especially my bed. It's been the longest time since I've been able to stay in it though because Nate and Liz stayed there over the summer and before that, they were there for Christmas as well. I don't mind giving it up, I love spending time with my family more than anything, so it's well worth it, but it's been a while. I am... SO... excited.
And she said she'd hold off the pedicure til I got there. HA! I'm pretty excited for that.

Anyways, because I haven't posted in 17 years, I figured I'd add a few from my life recently. The first set is from a recent FHE. The first counselor in our bishopric is a photographer, so we had a really really fun photoshoot at his house!
This is the whole family (minus Hannah)

A few favorites...

And last weekend, Hayley and Bo came to visit. We had a really fun night! We used the tickets we won at the Nickel Arcade to buy Mike some toys. I'll be sending him that package ASAP.

So that's it for now. It's pretty late and I DO have to go to one more class tomorrow morning before coming home. I bet there isn't a single one of you out there who envy that.

so I got bored.

2007-11-09T00:29:00.000-07:00

So... this is basically the week of unending joylessness. 3 midterms and a paper. But I did have time to check out blogs... because I definitely don't have time to write my own. And this is what I found. I've been to this site before and when I took the Celebrity look alike test I found out that I look pretty asian. Or at least I look like a lot of asian celebrities. Others too. But it was a while ago, maybe I'll have to re-do it and blog up the results. Anyways, here's my "looking like my parents-ness."

It's late, and I'm planning to wake up at 6:30, so please pardon my lack of incoherent verbalige.

halloween (I added more)

2007-10-31T17:07:00.000-06:00

just thought I'd update with some pictures of me and my roommates during our ward trick or treating... Hannah was busy with homework, so she didn't participate.

Casey, Me, Sarah, Jacey, Natalie

our apartment door setting... Jacey, Sarah, Natalie, Me, Casey Jo

Natlie has some cool settings on her computer. This is us looking in the bathroom mirror after realizing just how creepy we looked.

Me, Jacey and Sarah. Casey Jo and Natalie ran the booth and we glared at passers by.

Here's a fun one.

last week.

2007-10-27T12:40:00.000-06:00

So, I've been pretty busy without getting a whole lot done this past week. I'm really not a fan of that. I'd like to feel like when I'm constantly doing something that I'm getting things accomplished, but I guess that's how the pages fall sometimes.
I got a letter from Cj Huntsman on Thursday. finally. I wrote him over a month ago, so I thought maybe he had died or something. No, I understand that missionaries are very busy, and I'm just a random friend who won't be getting a very high priority, but still. AND! his companion is Scott Christensen who is a friend of mine from my BYU ward last year, so they had both stuck a letter in the envelope. What are the chances of that actually happening? Especially because they have been out close to the same amount of time. Scott has maybe been out 2 or 3 months longer, but that's it. Weird.
I had work last night. Coed Volleyball. I wrote my cousin Colton back who is serving in the Talahassee Florida Mission and then started writing Cj back... all while at work. It helps the time to pass by faster. Also, there were a ton of halloween parties going on, and people would show up to the games late, like entire teams would show up late, and expect me to undo their forfeit. I really don't like it when people do that.

k, you know what, this blog is getting really boring. still. so I think I'm just going to post it. call it good.

Except that today was really productive and I did get things done. I woke up and did the dishes, then I cleaned the bathroom, then I ate breakfast (brunch?) then I showered, got my hair cut, and picked up Natalie from the airport. Good day eh?

8 things

2007-10-21T18:47:00.000-06:00

Stacy "tagged" me (or rather, everyone in her link list) so I get to write 8 weird or interesting facts about myself that everyone might not know. Basically because I am bored. And it is Sunday afternoon. And I am full, seeing as I just ate dinner. And I'm soon going to be eating dessert. And I don't want to do anything productive. And I'm getting help from my roommates because I'm not really on top of things myself today.

1)I analyze people. I'm pretty perceptive. I like to know as much about people's personalities as is possible. I like to know how I can/should act around them. And it bothers me when I can't find out what's bothering them. Some people shy away from conflict, and I'm all about avoiding it when I can, but if the conflict already exists, I can't resist investigating the problem and talking about it so it will be fixed. Unless there will be a greater conflict by nosing about. Then I suffer alone... in utter agony... right.

2)I unconsciously pucker my lips when watching kissing scenes in movies. yeah, I know.

3)I am the queen (THE QUEEN) belcher. oh yes. You wouldn't believe it, but it's true.

4)I sometimes pray in a hispanic accent.

5)I broke my bedroom door. (here in my apartment) Pulled it right off the hinges. And not out of rage... out of shear strength...

6)I play spider solitaire while waiting for pages to upload on my computer. always. and I generally end up playing more solitaire than getting anything done.

7)I'm in love with all of my roommates. Seriously. We never fight. Does that ever happen in real life? not very often... not very often.

8)I value people. Actual people. Not what they can do for me, not how I can make them like me, but them.

what I got from him.

2007-10-19T01:55:00.000-06:00

This is the response I got to the very short email I sent him (about as long as his). It's not much, but it's what I got.

yeah the actual physical writing was kind of missed this past week by
both of us. i don't want to make excuses, but i usually wait for your
letter and write back to respond. but again, no excuses, i'm sorry.
i'm in the process of making another tape. it's longer, so i should have
it finished in a little less than a week. i got your pictures of the
baby too. cute. both of you. i saw your blog pictures. dang.
just... wow. anyways, i gots to go write my family.
i miss and love you too. bye.

I wrote the short email wednesday just before I knew he was going to be checking his email. I told him I was in the middle of writing him a letter and that he'd get it soon (er or later).

Turns out he's checked out my blog... don't know how much time he spent on it, but in my letter, I kind of lectured him on not checking my blog, especially because I could write semi-distracting things on here that I wasn't writing to him on purpose, or post semi-distracting pictures... hopefully he'll avoid that from now on. I mean, look what he said about the pictures. I feel like satan, dang it.

mission prep "celebration"

2007-10-15T01:35:00.000-06:00

So, I have mission prep once a week on Monday nights from 5-6:40 pm. Last week, Brother Bott (such a great professor, knows EVERYTHING, but in a different way than Brother Millet, my new testament professor, who also, knows EVERYTHING) gave us our first take home test aka "celebration". He likes to try and make us think it's gonna be this really great fun thing. It's not so much. It is now 1:37 am Monday morning and I'm just settling in to start it. Why am I blogging? you might ask. Because. This is just like me. I have had an entire week to spend researching the answers to this OPEN BOOK TAKE HOME test, and I haven't even started until the wee morning hours of the day that it's due. I was considering not going to any of my classes tomorrow, but that's just a bad habit waiting to happen. I'm trying to make some sort of a turning point in my education techniques... well at least in some aspects of it. Like going to every single class. I still find it a little difficult, knowing that I don't HAVE to be there, to actually motivate myself to go. I've been doing pretty good recently. Haven't missed any in the last two weeks or so. I think...

Church today was SO wonderful. I really needed it. Conference was wonderful last week, don't get me wrong, I really soaked in all of the talks and felt so enlightened. I think I missed the sacrament though. I think I got into the habit of taking it for granted and then when I didn't get it one week things kind of crashed... huh... Jacey, one of my roommates spoke in Sacrament; all of the talks were on the Atonement, (one of the most difficult topics to speak on, in my opinion) but she did wonderfully. She was up until the wee hours of this morning writing it, and all her hard work paid off. One of the speakers was out of town which left Bishop Lundberg to talk for a while. It was a really good meeting, very inspiring and uplifting and motivational...

I've been called to be an enrichment specialist. We had our first meeting today after church. Basically since we're doing quarterly enrichments now, we, as a committee of specialists, get to plan smaller scale activities that groups who are interested can participate in. A couple weeks ago, we sent around a clipboard for ideas on what these activities could be, and a lot of girls were interested in a spa/relaxation night. Heh, guess that's were I come in. At the meeting, I suggested that since I was a MaryKay consultant and that I just happened to have all the necessary supplies ready anyways that I could be in charge of that sort of thing. So, next sunday, I'll be sending around another fun little clipboard asking girls who are interested for the phone #'s and free times etc. It should be fun. All of the girls I've talked to so far are pretty psyched about it. yay.

I had dinner at Andrea's house today. brook was dressed pretty cute-ily. Yes I made that up. So we took a picture.

Mom's been there all last week and will continue to be there this week helping out with Karalee Jo and whatnot. Andrea told me yesterday to come and do my laundry there, which we got started before the game, but not done. So when I went over today, my mom had finished all of my laundry and folded it nicely for me... wasn't that nice of her? She's pretty great. And then she sent me home with left-overs. I was in charge of changing Karalee Jo's diaper after she ate... let's just say that was an experience and a half. And it's not like I've never changed a diaper before. Hello, I was a young woman once and babysat for everyone and their mother in the ward. But I'd never experienced THAT before. oh my gosh. Mom had to take over it was so ridiculous. and continuous. and goo.

Then, when I got home, we decided to create Harriet; a lovely addition to our apartment that freaks us all out when we see her out of the corner of our eyes.

She has acquired a skirt and boots since this picture was taken. It's pretty hilarious. My mom got me her head; it's a candy bowl for halloween, but of course the candy was gone within a few hours of it being noticed. so we decided to make her useful in another way; to creep people out. However, it mostly just creeps us out. so there you have it.

Also, fun little work story from last week. I was supervising soccer and we had no score cards in the binder like we ALWAYS do... so I had to improvise.

K. So I'm gonna go ahead and get started on that Mission prep take home test. It should be fun, right?

ha! get this.

2007-10-10T10:38:00.000-06:00

Free Online Dating from JustSayHi

good times.

and the pictures...

2007-10-08T17:20:00.000-06:00

an explanation.

2007-10-07T16:21:00.000-06:00

So, I'm not sure if I mentioned it or not, but for the past two weeks, we have had a fort in our family room. And I mean a full blown fort taking up the entire room, complete with a "lounge area" and an ironing board in the center to hold it all up. It was really awesome. More than awesome. It was our claim to fame. People we had never met, let alone ever seen before, came to our apartment to see this fort of fame. We had several movie nights, girl talks (that occasionally included boys), and photo shoots in/involving the fort. It truly became a large part of our life, and we were intensely emotionally attached to this fort.
Cleaning checks are this Tuesday and, therefore, the fort had to come down. Friday, as somewhat of a joke, we decided to have a "taking down the fort ceremony." We decided it would be appropriate if we all wore black out of respect for the comfort and memories the fort provided during difficult times. Then, as we were getting ready, we added a little red here and there. Then the really Red lipstick was brought out and there was no containing us. We largely poofed our hair, I busted out the red heels and cameras. We pretty much lost control, but had a ton of fun doing so. Then, since we had not had dinner, we went to the Malt Shop (all of us but Natalie and Casey Jo, who stayed to let in the visitors) and little did we consider the fact that it would be totally PACKED. We got a few interesting looks and a lot of boys asking us if we were part of a salsa dance team or something. They found our real explanation much cooler than the lame "salsa dance" excuse they had come up with themselves. That was fun. When we got home, there were tons of people there. It must have been close to 20 people there just to see the fort come down. Jacey and Casey Jo had prepared a few words (which were HILARIOUS) and we had the Lord of the Rings sound track playing in the background for some mood music. After the speeches, we threw rose petals on top (we really got into it, I'm telling you, it was awesome) and then took it down. Then we proceeded to take pictures again.
Man. That night was badly needed by me. I had taken 3 tests friday and was completely burnt out. I know most of these pictures are pretty dumb, but it's college, and I figure, I'm not going to be able to be retarded freely forever, right? K, and since I'm in my apartment and the Internet is being slow, I'll post pictures tomorrow on campus.
I got a letter from Mike. He told me he was going to send something in the envelope and that I should be ready for it. When I got home from work on Friday and the letter was sitting there, I was, of course, thoroughly excited. I opened it, but there was nothing but the letter and some shards of plastic in the envelope. Then I noticed there was a 2 inch tear on the opposite end of the envelope. The poor boy had tried to send me a tape (I sent him one in his package) but he didn't realize that you should probably use a bubble envelope for things like that. So, since my letter wouldn't get there by his next p-day (I was planning on waiting so I could write about conference) I wrote him a short email saying it would probably be wise if he would consider the not-so-fragile nature of the US postal system the next time he tried to send me something somewhat-fragile. Also, the tape had a lot on it apparently, because the letter kept saying, "but I talked about that in the tape, so never mind." So hopefully, he can fill me in on everything he said in the tape in his next letter. I know he wanted some addresses, he kind of alluded to that in the letter too... hmm...
Speaking of conference (kind of) how awesome was it!? Oh my gosh. I think that was the most influential conference I've ever sat through (and stayed awake through). I found something applicable to me in every talk I think. Some of the talks just had things that I wanted to talk to mike about, so that was kind of cool in that way too.
Also, Katie Brunson spent the weekend here. That was really fun. I was busy a lot, but she had other friends to visit as well. We went to visit Andrea and Karalee Jo and of course, we soaked that up. It was really nice to be able to hang out with Katie especially since I never see her anymore. Good times. Love her.
K, that should be about everything, and I need to get to bed. I'll probably add more when I get up on campus tomorrow, but we'll see.

a preview for upcoming blogs

2007-10-06T02:16:00.000-06:00

Snow In September

2007-10-01T19:53:00.000-06:00

We thought we were going to be getting a little cold front here, but that turned out to be a huge understatement...

Snow... In September... I thought the snow last April was bad. Not fun.

My new niece was born last Friday and we went to visit them in the hospital. Mom and baby are both perfectly fine. And she is precious! See?

So, I'm trying to get Mike's letter finished so I can send it off today. Not like he'll get it by tomorrow, but still. Katie Brunson is coming up to spend the weekend here. I need to go grocery shopping because I have no food. And that's fine when it's just me, but I feel like I should have some food available when I have company. Odd how things work out like that. Also, today should end up being a HUGE catch up day as far as homework goes. I have a bunch of tests this and next week. yay. I love college.

ah, friday.

2007-09-28T09:52:00.000-06:00

Normally, I should be in my geography class right now on fridays. heh. Obviously, I'm not. I'm sitting here at my desk, in my pajamas, blogging. Activities as of this morning; woke up, brushed my teeth, continued my letter to Justin Turner (who is serving in Columbus Ohio) and upon realizing my internet was finally up, checked up on blogs, (I'm so jealous the Garrards are going camping) and now I'm updating.

To answer Daniel's question, I'm sure Mike would love for me to tell him "you're the only one for me," "no one even compares to you," "don't worry about the wait, I'll be right here when you come back..." but I also think he really wants to know about my dating life so that he can be aware of what's going on, vs. no news and all the suddenly, "I'm engaged! Surprise!" But, I do try to slip in little assurances here and there without being distracting. Little assurances like a scrapbook, brownies and a tape! Which, turns out, he finally got on wednesday. (I'm sure the brownies are disgusting rocks by now.) He wrote me a VERY short email telling me that his mission president would be bringing it by for apartment interviews and that he was going to Wal-Mart to get a tape player so he could listen to the tape. Hopefully I'll hear just how much he loved it in a letter today or tomorrow.

Andrea is having her baby today. Her Doctor is going out of town for two weeks on Tuesday, so they decided to get induced today so her doctor could deliver the baby. Her name is going to be Karalee Jo Lemmon. Named after 3 of her aunts, Karalyn, Loralee and me, Jo. Yes, I get the middle name all to myself. SO, while others will be calling her Karalee, she will be nothing but Karalee Jo to me. So please, keep Andrea in your prayers today, we'd all appreciate it. I'M SO EXCITED FOR A NEW BABY!!!

Also, I've discovered (well, Hannah's homecoming date discovered) a group called Tally Hall, and I love them! They sound a bit like Queen. You should check them out, they're really good.

Work was fun again last night. Men's Soccer always is. I had a guy come a little late and as I approached him to check him in, I noticed he had about a weeks worth of a beard, and since BYU intramurals goes by the honor code, he was going to have to shave. Here was the conversation.

Me: Hi, I'll need to see your id (and upon seeing his face) oh, and you'll need to shave before I can check you in.
Guy: Which do you need first?
Me: I can't check you in until you've shaved
Guy: K, I'm just going to run to my car to get my id (totally nice guy)
(leaves)
meanwhile, one of his teammates finds a shaver and is waiting for him.
Guy comes back: ok, so why do I have to shave? (with an attitude now)
Me: Because it's the Honor code and I can't let you play without shaving.
(it's supposed to be clean shaven, but if I can tell they've shaved within the last 24 hours or so, I generally let it pass. This was not the situation)
Guy: well what if I'm not even taking any classes this semester?
Me: This is still BYU intramurals, and you're playing on a BYU intramural team, and we play by the BYU honor code which says you have to be clean shaven.
Guy: Well I would understand if I was going to a class or taking a test (testing center has the same situation)
(Meanwhile, Tristan, the other supervisor, comes over asks what the problem is, I tell him and he explains the exact same thing I explained to this guy)
Guy: (to Tristan) well you aren't clean shaven
Tristan and me: I/He shaved this morning.
Guy: well fine, but it's the way she approached me with the whole situation
Me: How did I approach you. (aka, what the crap! are you kidding me? tell me you're kidding)
Guy: you said it like the first thing...
Me: Because it is the first thing you need to do and I can't check you in if you are not clean shaven.
Guy: Fine, I don't want to give you guys a hard time, but this is rediculous. I can't believe you're telling me I have to shave before I can play.
(meanwhile, his teammate is standing there with the shaver telling him to just shave)
Me: It's your choice, you don't have to shave if you don't want to play.
Guy: well I think I'm just going to sit out this time then, I can't believe you're being so rediculous about this
Tristan: (as he's walking away) I can't believe that you aren't going to play just so you don't have to shave.

And then the guy sits on our supply bin, like he's making some sort of a statement. What I don't understand is why people can't just comply with the rules. I mean, it's not that hard to shave that day, let alone when someone in shoving a shaver in your hand. He was just trying to be difficult. I love it when that happens.

So, I think I'm going to shower and get ready for the day now. Perhaps finish my letter to Justin and then mail off his and Cj's, which I finished yesterday. Tonight's my night off. Yay. More baby time. I'm excited.

I bought that book

2007-09-25T13:11:00.000-06:00

You know, The People Code (formerly known as The Color Code). I started reading it yesterday while waiting in the bookstore for some pictures to be printed off and got so into it that I decided to buy it. I've learned a lot about myself and why I do/don't do the things I do/don't do. Like why I'm writing this blog vs. doing the homework I'm so behind in. I've also learned why some of my relationships are the way they are. I'm very much a white with some blue tendencies. I figured as much... It explains my lack of motivation in almost every situation (homework, planning events, work, etc.) Eh, I'm not going to dwell on that though. Whatever. At least I have the things I need to work on narrowed down.

Also, I got a letter from mike on friday. He told me about the rediculous day of rain, ("No joke, we might as well have jumped in a pool, gotten out, and went and knocked on people's doors. Like anyone's gonna let us in...")
and the getting used to the bike riding, ("All through the MTC I thought it would be cool to be on a bike, but apparently here in this area they don't believe in flat ground. So we're either flying down a hill or going up what feels like an 80 degree slope. I just keep saying in my mind, 'Ooo bring on the blessings!' ")
and the ghettoness of his area ("Our area is totally 'the ghetto.' 85% of the people we talk to or see are black. It's fun, especially since I'm so in touch with my ghetto side. And when there's 2 white boys on bikes that are not-so-ghetto looking, we get a lot of comments. And these aren't like MySpace comments that make you happy. THese are like 'ok, thanks crazy person' comments. So if you want to pass that along to my fmaily, I"m sure they'd enjoy it. If you wanted to put it in a blog, I bet they'd love that. I'm sure you haven't posted since I left.") PSHAW! whatever. But I'm passing along the message, as he asked.
And then he decided he wants to hear about my dating life. Like I'm really going to be telling him about that. How unfocused does the boy want to be? (Not that I'm a dating machine up here or anything. I've only been on one "date" if you can even call it that. It was an assignment for my marriage prep class.) But even then, holy cow, that would just be stupid of me to tell him about any dates I go on. Let's just say, as of now, he has no need to be worrying about that.
Anyways, there are things that need to get accomplished today, and blogging isn't the best way to get those done. I'm such a procrastinator. But hey! Have a lovely day, k?

I'm in geography.

2007-09-19T10:20:00.001-06:00

and I brought my laptop to class. I'm totally paying attention though, we're talking about... high manufacturing areas in the United States? anyways. I don't know if hauling my laptop up to campus is really worth it. It's pretty heavy and I was also hauling my scriptures for my new testament class. All in all, pretty much a load of bricks. And I was walking up that massive hill on 5th E and 8th N. ish. goo.
ALSO! I figured today is mike's p-day and I want to be able to read his email asap. Does that make me completely rediculous? I haven't heard from him in over two weeks, so I'm kind of sad about that. Obviously I'm not going to give him a hard time about it because he needs to stay focused and if he doesn't have time to write me, then he doesn't have time. But still.
Work last night was rediculous. Let me just say that supervising lower division women's volleyball is not the most interresting thing to do, especially when I have homework to be doing and can't do it because I'm needlessly "supervising". And then, one team started to care about the net height... I almost lost it. There I was, thinking, "if you're a good enough team to be caring about the height, then adjust! If you're not good enough, then get over it, IT'S INTRAMURALS!" Luckily, I held my tounge and patiently told her that everyone plays at that net height and if I were to change it for them, it would change the advantage for other teams. I might have let, "it's just intramurals..." slip in. She didn't find that too amusing. She retaliated with, "So you're not going to do anything about it?" and I looked her strait in the face and said no. With attitude I might add. Honestly, who do these people think they are that the playing conditions should be changed only for them?! really. suck it up, dang it. Lucky for my sanity, the schedule people saved the upper division for the last hour of the night so I wouldn't go crazy. These are the girls who actually ARE good and have been playing for years. They know the rules and intramural system well enough to check in efficiently and not complain about the rules. And it's interresting to watch. And if I'm allowed to complain about the joys of PMSing, add that to the mix. If not, then never mind.
We are now learning about the agriculture of the United States.

I went to the True Blue today with Natalie, one of my roommates. It was a BLAST! Of course, we took pictures because that's basically the reason why we went. We weren't even going to go in the first place, because I had work and Natalie had class, but two boys from our ward came over and convinced us otherwise. But I've never laughed so hard in my life. ok, maybe I have... but it was fun. And it just occured to me that you people reading this may not know what "true blue" is. Let me explain. They cover the Helamen fields with this blue foam and people play frisbee and flag football and they have a slip in slide, all in this blue foam. I dont exactly know what the blue stuff was, it might have been soap foam, but it did NOT taste good, I know that much from experience. Anyways, it turns your skin blue. I couldn't risk taking my camera on the field, (you could lose it see) it's seriously a foot deep in some places. But I brought it with me, left it in the car, and Natalie and I took pictures afterwards... AFTER we had rinsed off. Here they are!

Or not! I'll post them the next time I go to the library.

Aaaand now it is 11:00 pm. I got back from work about an hour ago and here are some things I've noticed in the past hour.

1) I opened a new box of cocoa puffs yesterday. I threw the empty box away about 5 minutes ago.
2) Mike is such a punk. Wasn't today p-day? So tell me, where's the email?
3) Men's volleyball is SO much more interresting than women's lower division volleyball. Always.
4) Losing 3 chapsticks in one day sucks really bad.
5) I'm still blue in places I don't want to think about.
6) I was supposed to meet with the bishop tonight to get a calling, but I had work and forgot to call them to tell them that.
7) Liberty square internet access SUCKS.
8) I need to print out some pictures to send to missionaries. I have 3 letters waiting for the pictures to go into the envelope so they can be sealed and sent off.
9) Lower division women's volleyball may suck, but it's always better than soccer where I have to stand for 4 hours. At least I get a chair in the gym.
10) I really shouldn't eat an entire box of Cocoa puffs in two days.

ok, so there you have it. The pictures are coming. Just wait, and in the mean time, pray Liberty Square will work out it's internet issues.

scrapbook pages

2007-09-17T22:31:00.000-06:00

So I'm at the library and I'm going to attempt to blog the pictures. I have a better internet connection here than I do at my apartment. I was finally able to send pictures via email, but Beth, my email said it wouldn't send to you, so here it is... hopefully. We'll see. This is the final order I got them in as well. It SHOULD be in chronological order. So for all of you who have NOT seen it, here it is in it's final glorious stage. I've decided I think Mike DID get the package. Based off of past letters, I don't think he'd be smart enough to complain about no packages, (I'm getting this from his not sending any of us his address in the email that would reach us so much quicker than the snail mail, not telling us the city he's in, not telling us much of anything besides the fact that he's sore from the waist down... Sorry, that was mean...) so that whole "(JULINA!!)" must have meant he got it. If that made any sense... that's my theory. K! pictures!

mike's email

2007-09-13T12:58:00.000-06:00

It was a good email. I wasn't expecting to hear anything for another week and a halfish or so, so that was a pleasant surprise. SO, for all of you who read it, I have one question. The part at the end that says, "packages are nice too, (JULINA!!)" do we think that means he got my package just fine, or he has expected one from me before now and hasn't gotten it? Thoughts?

the grief of a bite.

2007-09-11T13:08:00.000-06:00

So, I have this massive, and when I say massive, I mean, like, slightly larger than a baseball sized bug bite on the back of my left calf. And let me tell you, it has caused more grief than any bite ever should. It all started Sunday night when Sarah, Casey Jo and I were playing this game called Famous with 4 girls that live above us and three guys from our ward. We had the front door open because it was so stinkin hot (again, the lack of air conditioning in our apartment is thoroughly frustrating) and of course, a mosquito ("freaking huge moth" as Casey Jo claims) flew in. Casey Jo had it within reach, and not really thinking she could, caught it, and then disgusted, threw it back into the air. And it was still alive... none of us really thought anything of it until I felt a little pinch on the back of my leg... I've always had bad experiences with bugs, so I groaned as I looked down and brushed the bug off. Little to my surprise, Monday morning I woke up with a golf-ball-sized reaction on the back of my leg. All day, I tried to resist scratching and did pretty good... I applied hydrocortisone anti-itch cream all day and did my best.
This morning, I woke up around 8 and started scratching my leg, while still in bed, totally delirious, forgetting what my problem was. Then I looked at it, and again, groaned at the baseball-sized, red and puffy bite. Hannah (my roommate, in case you forgot) said she had some stuff that would take care of it, so I put some on and tried to use all of my self control to just lay on my bed and not think about it.
Then I heard my phone vibrating on my desk. I looked at the number and didn't recognize it, and decided that it was best to not be distracted during my focused non-scratching time, and therefore did not answer. About a minute later, it said I had a message, so I listened to it and this is what it said.

"Hey pretty lady. I can't believe you're not answering your phone. This is Elder Garrard. Right now I'm at the Salt Lake air port. It's almost 8:30. We fly out in a little more than 2 hours. Um, I really wish I could have talked to you. I'll probably call you back before we leave, so, yeah. I'll talk to you later. Bye."

So... yeah. Needless to say, I was pretty ticked off at myself, but more so at the freaking retarded mosquito. I waited for two hours... postponed not only my shower, but even going to the bathroom, but no call. My mom called and I started crying to her about it... a lot of good that did. but hey, there's always Christmas, right? Anyways. That was my morning. I tried to get some homework done, but I wasn't really focused. ah, my life is so great right now.

Preocupied in Provo

2007-09-09T00:02:00.000-06:00

So, I've been attempting to blog pictures for the past week and a half ish... and Provo must hate me and my computer habits. I could post pictures in Vegas, but not here. I don't know what it is, but there you have it. Last night, I made caramel brownies and then pulled an all-nighter in order to finish Mike's scrapbook. I think it turned out pretty good. And I took pictures of all the pages, but a fat load of good that's gonna do anyone now seeing as I can't blog them or email them out. Anyways, I had also bought a tape recorder, and I made him a little tape as well... When it was all done this morning, I called my cousin Emily, who teaches Italian in the MTC and she delivered the book, brownies and tape to the mail office for me. There's a chance he got it today, but it's more likely he'll get it monday, which is kind of unfortunate, but there you have it. (which I have noticed I now say a lot... "there you have it...") Also, I got his first two letters today that had been lost somewhere in the system. They finally got to me. That was kind of a weird experience; reading things I already knew about, but hearing him saying it. (rather, reading him write it, but I read with his voice in mind, that's where I get it.) I almost felt like I could read his feeling overwhelmed. They were short, but good. And that contributed to another rough day with Casey Jo and I. We both sat and gave ourselves pity parties for missing our boys. But it was ok. They normally don't last that long and we end up telling funny stories and laughing it off anyways. So all in all, a healthy emotional day for me. Anyways, it's late and I want to attempt to catch up on my sleep again before I have to start another week of school.

palindromes.

2007-09-05T23:58:00.000-06:00

Today was like the first day of school... because I only had volleyball yesterday. I started out the day with Geography, which is looking like it won't be terrible. The professor seems really nice. She's not going to try and trick you in the tests you know?, and she'll prepare you as best as she can. Then I had New Testament with Brother Robert Millet. He is SUCH a great professor of religion. He knows everything. I know I'm going to love that class. He taught my book of mormon class last fall. Then I went to marriage prep. I've never laughed so much while being so scared. It's taught by a brother barlow, who's hilarious, but he guarentees a 50% marriage rate from the students in the class. And it's not that I'm not really worried, but the statistic kind of scared me. And in the middle of class, he told us to look around at all of those of the opposite sex within a 5 foot radius, and said, "of you 50%, some of you might be marrying one of these who you're looking at... Anyone want to move?" That was pretty funny and everyone laughed, but I didn't see who was sitting exactly behind me. Turns out it's this RM RA from my ward last year, and he stoped me and said hi and said he didn't remember my name and I told him and he said, "hastings right?" k, how often is it that someone remembers your last name but not your first? Awkward. Anyway, I didn't remember his name, so he told me, and I didn't know what building my next class was in so he walked me there... he's totally not my type, not like I'm looking anyways, but after the lecture brother Barlow gave us, I had to laugh at the situation. Then I went to what I thought was statistics, but it ended up being a book of mormon class... it took me almost 10 minutes to realize it though. And don't laugh, it was decieving!! There were math problems on the board and all we had done was sing an opening song and had a prayer (not like that would be odd for a statistics class at BYU anyways.) and then he started talking about the demographics of the class a little bit and how he ran it and then he said, "we've been asked by the department to ask all the returned missionaries to leave, since this is a pre-mission book of mormon class" and I turned to the girl next to me and asked, "did he really just say book of mormon class?" and she said yes and I asked, "this isn't statistics in room 1102?" and she said, "no that's next door." So... retarded me... I guess that's what happens after the jolting experience I had in Marriage prep. So I totally missed everything that happened in that class, but oh well. The walk home was lovely. I was just hoping I wouldn't get poured on, its been raining on and off. And I didn't. So it was good. But theres this HUGE hill I have to walk up and down every day, (at least it's better than the huge set of stairs) and the huffing and puffing totally makes me aware of how out-of-shapely I am. Anyways, I did some laundry and Sarah and I made some delish chicken and pasta... She wanted corn for our vegitable... I like corn, but it takes an awkward digestive track. Whatever, I told her she could choose, so there you have it. The bishopric came to visit. That was fun. And for the past hour or so, I've been talking and laughing hysterically with my roommate Hannah. Who's name is a palaindrom. Like racecar, or level.

update! on life.

2007-09-01T22:52:00.000-06:00

DISCLAIMER:
Beth, this may sound really familiar. Yes. I did copy and paste (and then edit) some of my email to you into this blog so I wouldn't have to re-type the general news. You can skim over the familiar stuff. Or skim over it all if you so choose. Whatever.

So... I'm moved in. mostly. The rooms still aren't done. I think that's mostly what I was waiting for... to be totally done so I could post pictures. but whatever. It's not that important and as soon as the apartment IS done, you'll all be the first to see it. k? wonderful. We set up our living room and chose to go with the whole green/beige/black color scheme. We went to Wal-Mart and got some really cute green couch covers because the couches we have are hideous, (of course) and Casey had tons of black picture frames she wasn't using so we arranged them cutely on our wall. yes I just made up the word cutely. They also bought black and beige pillows for the couch. All-in-all, it's going to turn out really really cute and I'm pretty excited about it. Again, pictures as soon as it's done.

YESTERDAY! was a wonderful day. yesterday, I got my first letter from my missionary. I had written him through dearelder.com, (a nice way to send letters for free to missionaries in the MTC) and he got that monday, and he was responding to that. He said he had already written me, but that if I hadn't gotten it, that it was probably just lost in the mail system somewhere. I'm thinking that IS what happened because we weren't receiving any mail during the first 3 or 4 days we were here. So, it's a good thing I did get a letter yesterday, because I was starting to get a little depressed with the whole situation. It was a really good letter... mostly just telling me about his schedule, and how the sister missionaries get all the mail... a completely unfair situation. PSH! I've talked to the Garrards, so I know he's getting stuff. Whatever. Liar. Anyways, his letter not only brought a few tears (of joy, of course) but also sent me on an hour long tangent about how mike and I met, and all about our relationship to my new roommate... HANNAH GEARHEART! Luckily she's not the kind of girl who's gonna get annoyed with my stories. hopefully. sweet girl.

I went to a "retreat" for my job here as an intramural supervisor. Phil Kelly, my boss, says it's mostly to get to know all the other supervisors so we can "bond" and "enjoy work" when we go. Happy employees make happy work, right? So this all occured last wednesday through friday morning ish. Wednesday was hard just because we had a ton of free time that we were supposed to use for "bonding" and there is 30 of us... I dunno, I really had to go out of my comfort zone to talk to complete strangers, half of which already knew each other and were already friends. Thursday was easier because we had less free time and I didn't have to meet as many new people. All we really did Friday was wake up, eat breakfast, vaccuum and had a last minute "announcement session." Then we came home. So I got back to my house around 9:30 am. Not too bad. The evenings were hardest, just because I would be tired from the days activities, and... other reasons.. I had to spend a few minutes to myself wednesday night because I was so tired and stressed... not too fun. All in all though, it was ok. Not a complete waste of time.

SO. I went to visit Erin, Sarah, Stacy and Howard Garrard who had all come up for Swiss days last night. There wasn't a parking space available under the house so we all decided it would be a good idea to park next door in the school parking lot. hehe. right. So after spending a lovely hour and a half ish with them, and watching Sarah's stelthy MTC goodbye video (I don't know why I decided to watch that there... eh, oh well) and sheding a few tears, I left to leave. Erin walked me out to make sure there wasn't a boot on my car or anything, and low and behold...

k, I was gonna paste the picture here, but that didn't work... LAME. but uh, yeah, there was a boot on my car. Erin did her best, but alas, we were cut NO break. anyways. long story short, it's 12:20 and I've got 9 am church. and with 6 of us to shower... I've got to get up early. so. there you have it.

Thanks again for breakfast Brother Garrard! it was delish.

finishing up for real

2007-08-16T23:59:00.000-06:00

k, so we went to Disneyland yesterday. It was a lot of fun as far as that all goes when you're going the pace of 2 toddlers. Karalyn, Ryan and I left the group at the beginning to go ride Space mountain twice. There was hardly any line because we went first thing. Also, while we were standing in line for Star Tours, I saw Emily Zippi, who was the first counselor in my relief society. I said hi and whatnot, but there's not a whole ton you can do when she's just walking by and you're standing in a line. Anyways, the girls got to see the princesses and take pictures with them and whatnot. Then there was this really great "learning how to be a princess/prince" hoopla which was mostly great to watch because Kyle and Nate were dancing with Brooklyn and Sydney. We took pictures. Again, I re-sunburned my arms throughout the day. People like to scold me, but I put sunscreen on 3 times... I think my skin is immune to it. Luckily, very luckily, it's looking like it's just going to turn into a tan, which never happens to me. Sydney got scared on almost all of the rides, with the exception of it's a small world. That turned out to be every one's favorite because it was cool inside and we went during the hottest part of the day. I was not the only one falling asleep. I felt old. We also got a little drowsy during the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, which turned out to be Brooklyn's favorite. Liz didn't even attempt to put Syd on that one, esp after freaking out in Snow White's adventures. Needless to say, we mostly rode kid rides, but we stopped every once in a while to ride a real roller coaster. The only bad thing there was that it took twice as long as the kid rides because we had to go in two groups so there were always people to watch the kids. We ate dinner at the Pizza Port, which flooded back memories from Candlelight with Chaparral's choir... Good times... They changed the submarine ride into a Finding Nemo deal, and line was over two hours long ALL DAY! Trust me. We checked back like six times. Another highlight of the day was when we stopped for frozen lemonades. I had a shot of raspberry squirted in mine and then everyone wanted a taste. Ryan's "tastes" are a lot bigger than Karalyn's. or anyone else's for that matter. At the end of the day, we had fast passes for SPLASH mountain, so again, we went in two groups, the first being me, Karalyn, Loralee, Mom and Ryan, and the second being Andrea and Kyle. (Nate and Liz had gone home right before that cuz the girls were getting tired.) Order of sitting; ME in the very front followed by Ryan then Karalyn, Loralee and Mom. Let me just say, I didn't miss much swimming just because I was at a theme park. There were three drops where I got 'wet', and after the first, I thought I was soaked enough. Apparently not. The last drop, where they take the picture, was like a tidal wave, no kidding, and I was soaked through my under-clothes... and it was really scary from the front. I felt like such a wuss and I screamed pretty loud. I had to discard my shirt and settle for my sweatshirt alone after that ride. Luckily, that was the last thing we did and got to go home after that. It was a hard day of "joy... and... joyfullness." Good times.

Anywho. Today, we (meaning Kyle, Andrea, Brooklyn and I) carried on the tradition of our Father (since he couldn't be here this year) and went to the surf shop to buy a t-shirt. I'm pretty excited about mine, it's really dang cute. I'll be wearing it Saturday if anyone wishes to seek me out to see it. Also, I think I slept in the sun long enough today to even out my burn on the back side too. At least now I'll look like a normal retard who's burned all over, vs one who doesn't know how to do it properly. I thought I'd get some quality reading done too while I was out there, brought out my "Daughters of God" book and everything, but I fell asleep almost as soon as my body hit the sand. Well, towel, on sand. So much for that idea. Must have been the after effects of Disneyland.

Also, we watched the outcome of So You Think You Can Dance. I'm just happy Lacy didn't win. I personally thought she put a skanky image on the LDS name. I did like Niel though. He was pretty awesome. That was kind of a shame. BUT LIFE GOES ON!

Also, today was Dutch's birthday. Karalyn, Marissa and I called and sang to him. We're sad we missed his party, but he said we could through him another one. So gracious of him. I've missed him and Dan. They're pretty great kids. Loads of fun.

Also, I still haven't showered. That's what happens when there's 13 of you sharing a one room, one bathroom apartment. Showers take all evening and I get the shaft to go last. I'm ok with it though. Like I'm ok with most situations in my life. I just don't complain and everyone else is happier. So that's what I'm off to do now. And I'm going to enjoy it. So ok, bye.

finishing up.

2007-08-16T23:36:00.001-06:00

hello dude. my name is eric. i am julina cousin. i miss mike he was a good guy. i am 16 years old. i am tall and have blonde hair. this movie is confusing. good night.

a beach update

2007-08-14T23:45:00.000-06:00

yes. I am at the beach in Carlesbad California. The weather has been SO nice, but the humidity... goo... so it turns out that I can get the internet here. "Which is a real nice feature" since we haven't had it in years past, and I was smart enough to even bring my laptop with me... even though it's such a pain in the airport security lines. Um, lets back up a few days.

Sunday was mike's "farewell" and pre-mission open house. Suprisingly, it was not as hard as I thought it was going to be. It went really smoothly, at least from my perspective. I can't really say much though, it's not like I had to prepare anything my but myself. No house, food, musical number or talk to prepare. Sunday night

K, mike just called. I'll be finishing this after my disneyland trip. He's a little more important than this blog. k,loveyoubye

home - by michael buble.

2007-08-08T00:55:00.001-06:00

There is no purpose for this blog. I dont really know what I'm going to say. I feel like this summer has flown by so much faster than I wanted it to. It's like I'm watching it slipping through my fingers without being able to just stop and collect myself. I feel like I haven't taken advantage of the relationships that are surrounding me that won't be there in a couple weeks. My heart feels like it's expanding, but filling with emptiness, nothing substantial. I'm surrounded by people all day, hardly ever getting a minute to myself, but I feel so alone sometimes. And I find that it's times like these that I want only to be alone. Because the noise and crowds of people make it so much harder to calm myself. Then, the great contradiction starts all over. I'm alone. And soon, I won't have the opportunity, when I want it, to be with the people i'll be leaving. it's a cruel irony, huh?

tagged by erin...

2007-07-23T19:58:00.001-06:00

4 Jobs I've Had:
1. Smoothie maker at Jujji Juice
2. "file clerk" at M&J's Insurance. (although I pretty much ran the place. Now that I've left, they've gone bank-rupt... no joke)
3. "file clerk" at Dr. Joseph Johnson's office.
4. I haven't started yet, but I'll be an intrameral sports supervisor when I hit provo-town this fall.

4 Movies I Can Always Watch:
1. You've Got Mail
2. Pride and Prejudice. k, the one NOT with Kiera Knightly
3. Hercules (the disney one)
4. any of the Lord of the Rings

4 TV Shows I Enjoy:
1. The Office
2. Unwrapped
3. What Not To Wear (k, sounds lame I know, but you can learn stuff from that show)
4. Myth Busters

4 Favorite Places or Things to Eat:
1. Cafe Rio
2. Mom's Lasagna
3. Mom's Caramel brownies
4. Red Robin

4 Websites I Visit:
1. blogs...
2. oldnavy.com
3. Mugglenet.com
4. byu.net

4 Places I Love to Be:
1. in my bed
2. the beach
3. BYU's football stadium
4. Knotts Berry Farm

K, great! you can do it too if you're bored!

tonight is the night...

2007-07-20T14:43:00.000-06:00

The night I've been waiting for for many many years. I'm pretty excited about it. HOWEVER, I'm not one to stand in line for hours and hours waiting for something. I figure I'll probably go to some grocery store around 11 or so, maybe see if/where Hayley and Bo are going, and make a decision later on. As of now, life will most likely be put on hold for a couple of days until book 7 is done. I just realized I think I have to teach a lesson on Sunday in Young Womens... crap. Way to put a screaching halt on my reading plans for the week. Actually, I might just plan my lesson all tonight before I go to get the book. A last minute plan, but there you have it.

Also, I'm at work right now, on my lunch break, and I'm freezing. Dr. always has the office either freezing cold, like now, where I have goosebumps to the point of driving home with no air conditioning just to thaw out, or uncomfortably warm... like "sitting-in-a-chair-doing-nothing-and-sweating" warm. Awkward.

Today has been a really good day. I slept in, (like 8:15 is sleeping in) like I have been doing for the past couple weeks and woke up to clear off Karalyns kitchen island and dresser. Long story short, our room is generally messy, even though I'm a generally clean person. It's her that normally rubs her messiness off on me rather than me rubbing my freakishly neatness off on her. However, shocking thing happened last night, I came in to go to bed, and there wasn't a thing of hers on the ground and she was sitting in bed reading HP. So I asked her to read out loud while I picked up my stuff. Blah-de-blah-de-blah... clean-ish room. When I woke up, I decided to continue the job, hence cleaning off her kitchen island and dresser. Now all there is left to do is vaccuum, dust, and windex the mirror closet doors. Which I will do when I get home. yay. And after spending an entire paragraph on cleaning, I think I'll move on now.

Today has been a really good day. (cont.) As I was getting ready for work, Liz came in and asked if I would like some pancakes for breakfast. HECK YES I WOULD LIKE SOME PANCAKES FOR BREAKFAST! nice break from the slim fasts... (more of that later). Anyways, I had peanut butter and syrup on them and if you're saying "gross" and have never tried it, repent and change your ways. I had never tried it before this morning, but it was delicious. Karalyn even woke up and graced us with her presence this morning for breakfast, which was delightful since she's always asleep when I leave for work. It was like... togetherness... pleasant togetherness... good stuff. Anyways, I left for work at 9:55, got to work at 10:15, listened to Nine days (quite possibly one of my favorites) and only got annoyed with one retarded driver. I mean, going 68 in the left lane isn't cool. It's just stupid. Then! forgetting that starbucks was coming today, I had a lovely cup of hot chocolate waiting for me on my desk when I got here. And it wasn't scalding hot. Nice. And I've kept myself busy since then. good times.

Now this diet thing. I've never been good at them, and I'm still not. Not really. But it's easier with other people to diet with, and so Nate, Liz and I are doing it together. Now it's not even really that hard-core. It's a lot like Weight watchers, but instead of point counting, it's just calorie counting. I get 1600 a day, which isn't bad at all, I just have to remember to write down everything I eat, which is the annoying part. To make it easier though, I normally just have a slim fast for breakfast, and a slimfast for lunch, and that leaves roughly 1160 for dinner and dessert. Pretty easy. But I also have to count the calories in a glass of orange juice, or one oreo... thats the annoying part. But all in all, I think it'll be good.

Anyways... the lunch break is now over, and I should probably get back, not like there's gonna be tons to do, but... there you have it.

"soon" can be such a relative term...

2007-07-09T22:28:00.000-06:00

So, when I say I'll blog soon... this is what I mean. ish. Anyways, I tried to talk in the blog with the pictures, but my computer is being retarded and wouldn't let me. Thanks. So I'll just comment on them now. I realize I haven't blogged for something like 3 weeks, and yes, shame on me, but hey... I've been busy, as we all are.

I went to Camp, which was Excellent! Wonderful! Grand... Really, I spent 90% of my time at the rappelling site. And don't get me wrong. That's pretty much the only reason I went to camp this year. So Hayley and I could pretty much run rappelling. I only brought my camera on the day my ward went... didn't really take advantage of the awesomeness, but there you have it. Last year, Hayley and I took a picture in this crevice (is that even the right word?) at the bottom of the cliff, but we never saw it, so we decided to take the same picture again this year. Please, don't look too closely. It's camp. I didn't wear makeup. Or shower for that matter. I think we'll make it a camp tradition. Also, Karalyn was pretty much awesome for only doing it, what? twice in her entire life. We raced down. Of course, I kicked her trash, but she landed oh so gracefully (being the dancer she is...). Also, I took my mom over, which was fun, but once she's up there, she's in such a rush to get back down that she forgets to look where she's putting her feet. So that was a bit of a challenge. Sister Cranor, the brand new stake camp director, had been the rappelling guide for the past 5 or 6 years, and was down at the site with us every day. I technically went as a ward leader, but that was pretty much a retarded idea because I was rarely with my ward and was helping with a stake activity the entire week... Anyways, long story short, Sister Cranor and I got to talking about it and she decided to make me a quasi stake leader half way through the week. I felt so special. Also, because of it, Hayley and I are both going to go as stake leaders next year and we're going to tent together. Or rather tent-trailer next year. Because the Golightly's have 2. Tent-trailers. K...

Also, sad story, CJ left for the MTC last week. It was such a bitter-sweet night, the night before he left. I was going to go hang out with Mike, CJ, and Chris at Mike's house, but before I knew it, they were over at my house to help me and my dad tow our dead station wagon home from Maryland and Trop. Weird way to spend Cj's last night, but there you have it. It was a lot of fun and we took a bunch of pictures at my house and ended up talking until the wee hours of the morning. I'm going to miss him so much. I already do. And it's a good thing I have Cj's leaving to "warm up" with. The hardest part is yet to come.

And I've had a cold the past week or so, in addition to my twitching eye... which has been twitching for the past 11 days. The combo has made for a fairly annoying physical condition. Luckily, I haven't noticed it twitching today, so hopefully, it's gone.

We've attempted a Harry Potter Marathon. As you know, I have finished the 6 books, yet again, in preparation for the 7th and final book. In addition to this, we (mike, Hayley, Bo and I) started the movies. We watched 1 on, what? friday night? Saturday night kind of fell through though because Bo decided to ditch out on Hayley for some random presidential campaign hooplah. So we girls had a very successful shopping trip (7 items for $60.82...) and watched a movie and ate shakes and popcorn. Then Sunday, we watched #2... not exactly sabbath worship, but hey, I'm blaming Bo. We were going to watch #3 tonight, but Mike had volleyball and it was my mom's birthday dinner, I think Bo had to work too... Still, blaming Bo. (haha I'm totally kidding) So basically, we all get to watch #3 and 4 on our own, so that's what I'm off to do once I finish this. (just 3 tonight) I'll probably end up watching it in bed on my laptop. That's sounding really appealing right now.

And let me just say, ever since Mike opened his mission call to Charleston, West Virginia, I've been on the verge of every emotional edge (nice alliteration) there is. I'm so happy for him and I know he's going to be an amazing missionary. I just know it's gonna be pretty rough. At least I'll be in a new environment a couple days after he leaves. That should make it easier. Anyways, this is it for now, I'll post again "soon".