Thought of You

 This is an absolutely beautiful piece of art. Animated dance!  That label doesn't give the actual end product the credit it deserves, but trust me and check it out. I loved it!

Thought of You

Food Adventures

My family finally decided to take turns making dinner, so each of us gets a day of the week and are in charge. I don't know why we didn't do this sooner. I have had an absolute blast making dinner and trying out new recipes. Luckily my family is okay with being guinea pigs. Even more lucky is the fact that everything that I have made had turned out really yummy too.

 

 I was especially proud of my pizza (best pizza dough recipe ever!) and pad thai. In the past month I've also made cheddar cauliflower soup, soft tacos, and orange chicken. Food is fantastic!

This month I feel like I've also been baking up quite a few treats as well; cake bites, caramel brownies, and cookies just to name a few. 

If anyone has any great recipes for whatever please pass them along!

Time for an Update

Where does the time go? I can't believe that we are only a week or so away from Christmas. The past few weeks have been filled with all kinds of fun, time with family, and getting ready for the holidays. I absolutely love this time of year!

Sometimes Things Just Don't Work Out

Sometimes things just don't work out, no matter how much you plan, work for it, and even pray for it to happen. Is it the timing? Is it just not what I'm supposed to do? Because on paper it looked perfect. It fit in  just right with my other hopeful plans.

 *Sigh* 

Sometimes things just don't work out. 

I do understand this, but can I just say, for the record, that I hate being told this after a huge disappointment. Let my cry, let me complain, let me mope a little, then I will get up and move on. It's not easy but I'll do it and I know that something(hopefully better) will come into my life and I will realize why that "something" that I had planned on wasn't the right thing for me (Sooner rather than later would be preferable).

Waiting

Why is it that whenever you are anxiously waiting for news that time seems to slow down? Or even better, everything possible happens to delay that news as long as it can. Is this really necessary? It is seriously killing me slowly from the inside out. Please just tell me the news I need to hear!

Injuries

I feel like my life is a continuous string of various injuries;  cuts, bumps, bruises, burns (2nd degree on my feet last summer), knocked out teeth, stitches, sprains, strains, pulled muscles, shin splints, tendinitis, blisters and whatever else. Luckily I've never had a broken bone or had an injury bad enough to have surgery, for which I am very grateful.
My latest injury is a sprained ankle. It's a beautiful purple and blue color with some inflammation thrown in to really bring out the whole sprain thing.
Of course this happened only after I finally decided to commit myself to go more often to the gym. You never know what life will bring. Whatever happens though, I know that I have to keep going. So here's to the journey.

Pumpkin Carving

Every year my family gets together and we all carve pumpkins. We always have a lot of fun, my siblings and I are ridiculous so there's plenty of laughter as well. 

I tried to be more creative this year. I saw a picture in a Martha Stewart magazine that I loved so I thought I would try it out. It didn't turn out like I had imagined but I was pretty pleased with the results, although I have to admit that it looks much better unlit than lit.

Not too bad right?

I love this tradition.

It has everything you could ask for; sharp objects, the potential to get messy and spending time with family. What more could a girl ask for?

Chocolate! Which of course was accomplished with my favorite fall treat, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. 

Good News!

So for those of you who don't know, I have been recently researching the possibility of teaching abroad. Most of what I found on the internet wasn't really what I was looking for and not to mention I would be going by myself and I would have to find my own housing. I almost gave up when everything seemed to fall into place.
A few weeks ago I felt it was finally time to find a second job. I got on the internet and started the search and ended up at the UV job board, which I never check. It just so happens that a career fair was taking place the next day. I went, I found what I wanted, left my information, got a call the next day and was able to ask questions, filled out an application the next day and turned it in, got a hold of all the references I needed including my bishop on his one day off and a week later had an interview.
At the beginning of this week I found out I was accepted to an amazing program that pays for my flight housing and basic needs plus salary! I have an appointment to go in tomorrow to fill out some paper work. I am soooo excited! I'm not sure when I'm leaving yet, possibly at the end of December or sometime in June either way I will be spending 6 months teaching and living in Taiwan!!

Get Your Smile On

For those of you that don't know me well, I may or may not be a complete readaholic. The great thing about this is that I am always finding some new book that I absolutely love and want to share with everyone. One of these wonderful books came into my life during my time in the Elementary Education program at UVU. The book is Clementine by Sara Pennypacker. 

Pretty much this book is one of the most fantastically happy books I have ever read, seriously, every page puts a smile on my face and sometimes I can not help but laugh out loud when I am reading. If you are ever having a bad day or just want a good laugh this book will make you smile I promise. It it definitely on my list of favorites!! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE.

The Worst Way to Spend a Weekend

The week started out so well; work, checking things off of my to do list, and spending time with friends and family. So, what went wrong? I got sick! and let me tell you having the stomach flu is definitely the worst way to spend the weekend. Not only was I up all night on Friday but I had to go into work on Saturday afternoon because I couldn't find anyone to cover my shift. Needless to say I was very ready to go to bed last night and thankfully today I woke up feeling fully recovered. Thank goodness it was only a 24 hour thing, because I absolutely loathe being sick.

Erik William!

Today is my not so little brother's birthday(He's already 5'10"). Erik turned 14 today, I can't believe it! Seriously it makes me feel a little old.  He is such a great brother. He is always so considerate of me and everyone in our family. He can be such a goof ball sometimes but at the same time can be one of the most serious kids I know. If you don't know my little brother you are missing out. He is one of the greatest.

 I love this boy!!

Happy Birthday Erik!!

Zumba Surprise

I started taking dance when I was eight years old and continued to dance until the end of high school. Dance was a big part of my life so it's no surprise that I fell in love with the show So You Think You Can Dance(SYTYCD) that came out the summer after I graduated from high school. I watched it faithfully every week and every season, dancing vicariously through those beautiful dancers. I still dance now and then but my exercise now comes in the form of taking classes at Gold's Gym, which I absolutely love! 

So, 2 things I love SYTYCD and the gym.  Today when I went to take a zumba class at the gym guess who was there? Randi Evans from SYTYCD!!!   Randi was one of my favorite dancers on that show and I took a class with her!! 

Tennis

This perfectly depicts my tennis playing abilities to a T.  I can hit forehand and can get the ball over the net and I can even complete the occasional serve when I practice by myself. What happens when you ask me to play with others and expect me to actually be able to play? My lack of skills will baffle you.

Inspired

Obviously by looking at the date of my last post you can conclude that I am definitely not a consistent blogger. I just don't know what to write about. Today I took the time to look over a couple of your lovely blogs and was inspired! The consistency and the topics of posts were an inspiration to me. I have felt lately that there is really nothing in my life worth writing about on this blog; I go to work, I try to make it to the gym, and I try to stay in touch with friends that no longer live close to me. 

But seriously, my life is wonderful! I have fantastic friends and family and I also work with a lot of great people. I am so blessed! If I have all this going on how can I not find something to write about? So, my new goal (one of many) is to take the time to write and to share with you all the little things that are going on that make my life so great. Thank you for inspiring me!

HaPpiNeSs!

Lightning and Thunder. My Family. Museums.  Art, impressionism is my favorite. Reading pretty much whatever I can get my hands on. Traveling. French pasteries. Cake pops. Libraries. Old books. Camping. Hiking. Shoes. Making lists. Summer. The beach/ocean. Star gazing. Drives up the canyon. Fall leaves changing colors. Sunsets. Friends, I am blessed with some of the greatest! Movie nights. Dance, Dance, Dance. Audrey Hepburn. Men who can sing and play guitar. GLEE the songs are amazing. SYTYCD. Smell after it rains. Chocolate. Temples. The Book of Mormon. Gold's Gym, specifically Zumba with Kass. Robin Hood. Sundays. Jane Austen.

There is obviously much more I could add to this list but this is what I came up with for now. Happiness in a post. Enjoy!

My Life Goes On

I seems that I am always making plans about what I want to do with my life, then after all the work that I put into those plans, or sometimes the lack of work that I put into my plans,  my life goes in a completely different direction. Frustrating much? YES!! 

I graduated with my degree in Elementary Education a little over a year ago. I thought that teachers would be in high demand and that I would easily find job. Unfortunately despite my best efforts, countless job searches on the internet, revisions of my resume, networking, and a good number of interviews I have still not managed to be hired on as a teacher. Apparently my Heavenly Father has other plans for me, too bad I can't figure out what exactly those plans are. Luckily knowing that my life in in His hands is what is keeping me going and allowing me too live and love my life despite the challenges and frustrations of trying to find a job.

My life goes on. Most of the time I feel like I have no idea where exactly my life is taking me but it is a  never ending journey that continues to surprise me and has made me the person I am today. Thankfully I have a great family, wonderful friends and my faith to help me through the rough patches. I just wanted to give a shout out to all you amazing people in my life, I love you all!!!

Parhelion

Have you ever been somewhere or seen something and suddenly wished you had your camera? I had one of those moments today and I am killing myself for not keeping a camera on hand at all times. On my way to work today I saw what looked like a rainbow colored cloud. I have never seen anything like it. It was absolutely beautiful. Today when I got home and told my family about it my mom called it a sundog, so I looked it up. A sundog is also called a parhelion. There are different ways that they appear but here is a picture that gives you an idea of what I saw today:

Workin' at the Car Wash

That's right! I work at a car wash, and yes this is the first thing that popped into my head when I got the job. Seriously, who hears the words "car wash" and doesn't think of this song? I absolutely love it. 

Working at the car wash is a pretty fun job. I work with my brother and lots of other great people. There are some things that I wasn't counting on: I get absolutely filthy and I'm not even cleaning the outsides of the cars, my hamstrings and my butt absolutely kill after a 6 1/2 hour shift, my hands are sore and cramped and I am COVERED in bruises! 

Good times at the car wash. 

The Days Go By

Since I last wrote I feel like so much and very little has happened. My days are mostly composed of lazily reading, baking, watching my favorite movies and that's pretty much it. The job hunting has continued, although the flurry of filling out applications has stopped, and as far as finding a teaching position I am completely out of luck. I did finally get hired working at a car wash with my dear brother Rob, who is in fact one of my supervisors. I just started this week so I'm not sure how I feel about it yet but I just feel grateful that I finally have some source of income.

As for the other activities that I have been up to since I last posted here is the short version: Mesa Verde and the Grand Canyon with the family. Volunteering at the Orem Library. Interviews. Calls and emails telling me I didn't get the job I interviewed for. Wedding receptions. Golds Gym. Working 40 hours in 4 days up in Salt Lake City at a convention. 1st day of work at Supersonic. Way too many movies. Spending time with people I love.

So far it's been a pretty good summer. One can only hope that it will just keep getting better. 

 

 The cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde were amazing. We obviously give them a big thumbs up.

This ladder was 30 ft tall! I have a slight aversion to heights so it's possible that I might have been a little shaky and this wasn't even the worst of it.

 

The Grand Canyon. Both beautiful and a fun place to take ridiculous pictures.

Nostalgia

Today I discovered something wonderful.  I discovered that my picture uploading problem could be solved by using a different internet application!

In honor of this great occasion and in recognition of past memories that occurred this time two years ago, here is a little something that shows what I've been missing and what I hope I will be able to do again, hopefully sooner than later.

The Trevi Fountain. Where wishes begin.

Roma, Roma, Roma

 Venice. Absolutely amazing!

Hanging out with Peter in London.

Wicked. Enough said.

I was pretty impressed with my photo taking skills with this picture. So don't tell me if you hate it.

Arch de Triomphe

My most favorite museum of all time. The Musee D'Orsay. Impressionist art galore. I was in heaven.

Deciding to go on study abroad was one of the best decisions I ever made. I loved being surrounded by all the history. I loved my professor, Steve Bule you rock! I loved the endless museum visits and all the cathedrals and sculptures. Thank you Europe for an absolutely unforgettable experience.

Point Hope

First of all, I just need to say how glad I am that I finally got an image to upload. Victory!
Now, for the randomness that is my life.
Once upon a time about 2 months ago at the teacher's fair at BYU I handed out my resume to many schools. It was not my intention to apply to all the afore mentioned schools so I didn't think too much about it. Then one day I get a call from a school I never applied to for an interview.
Yay! Interviews are wonderful and are in great demand so I readily agree, even when I hear that the school is in Alaska.
Little did I know exactly where the school was in Alaska that I was interviewing for.
Meet Point Hope Alaska:



Point Hope is a little town in the middle of the frozen arctic about a hundred miles ABOVE the arctic circle. Population about 800 souls most of whom are Native Americans or Eskimos, temperature high is below 70 degrees, things to do are almost non existent, chances that I will actually move there if I get the job. Zero.

Blasted Blogger!

Okay, so for the past few days I have been trying to upload pictures and trying to keep up with the whole blogging thing. Unfortunately, either Blogger is ridiculously stupid or my computer is. I prefer to think that it is not my computer, but deep down inside I know it probably is. Because I live at home I decided to wait before getting a computer of my own and just save money by using my home computer, which is actually very nice. However, if any of you have older parents that like to try new things out on the computer you know that it can cause some weird things to happen. Lately, my computer had taken to randomly shutting down right in the middle of whatever you are doing. Needless to say it is very frustrating and in my opinion completely preventable. No offense parents, I love you, but please stop playing with the computer. All of that aside I am still going to try to blame the problem on Blogger, mostly because it will make me feel better. So, in reference to my picture uploading problem I say: "Blasted Blogger!" and I will try again another day.

Aspiring Bloggist

I'm not exactly sure how long I have been wanting to start a blog, but I've finally decided to get to it and just write. I have to admit up front that I am not the most eloquent with my words. There are some blogs that I read that immediately put a smile on my face and make me laugh out loud. I'm hoping that although I maynot be up to par with some of those amazing blogs, that this aspiring bloggist will still be able to do just that. Also, since I am possibly the slowest scrapbooker on the face of the planet it will be a happy alternative to cutting and pasting, and a good way to preserve some memories. So here's hoping that I can keep it up.