One more sleep

"There's magic in the air this evening
Magic in the air
The world is at her best, you know
When people love and care
The promise of excitement is on the night will keep
After all there's only one more sleep til Christmas

The world has got a smile today
The world has got a glow
There's no such thing as strangers when
A stranger says "hello"
And everyone is family, we're having so much fun
After all there's only one more sleep til Christmas"

My two favorite verses from that song from the Muppets Christmas Carol, and lucky me it's stuck in my head! Sunday night --Christmas Adam-- a couple families came to our house, and we all gathered around the piano and sang carols, this song being one of them. And now here we are, one more sleep until Christmas day! But I just love how the music of this season brings so many hearts closer together, and it brings that old magic back from when Santa was real ...only now it's better! Happy Christmas Eve everybody! And I hope we'll all strive to make it an even better year!

suddenly emotionally unstable

i killed it.
it's dead.
i just sat on my ukulele.
i don't know if it can be repaired or not.
that put's a damper on things.
:'(  

story of my life:

...minus the eating it part anyway.

Think about it.

At seminary this morning, we were asked to think about something we were sincerely grateful for. We all gave obvious answers of: family, friends, rain, shine, etc, etc... And those are good, but I know I didn't put as much thought to that as I probably should have.

A couple years ago for Thanksgiving, I made a list before I hopped into bed of things I was grateful for. (Which consisted of 500+ bullet points.) Then I thanked Heavenly Father for each thing on that list. (It was a long prayer.)

I know i've been thankful for things around me, but I haven't really thought about it since that one experience. So after much pondering on just these few things, the answer to the question at seminary...

I'm grateful for:

MEMORIES. CHANGE. JOURNALS. TIME. PHOTOGRAPHS. HUGS. PEOPLE. CLEAN-BEDDING. HEALTH. STRUGGLES. MUSIC. LAUGHTER. LISTENERS. LOVE. SOUNDS. BEING ALIVE. 

I've thought about 16 things I'm truly grateful for this morning. Just 16. I know that doesn't seem like much... But, what if you didn't have just those 16 things? I bet it would feel like you're missing out on a lot. Think about it.


"I have found that, rather than dwelling on the negative, if we will take a step back and consider the blessings in our lives, including seemingly small, sometimes overlooked blessings, we can find greater happiness."

—Thomas S. Monson

TRUE STORY

that awkward moment when:

• every single pair of jeans you own has a hole in the crotch and/or knees.
• your 9 and 13 year old brothers have better love lives than you do.
• you paint your nails, then need to pee, then the missionaries knock on the door and you're home alone with your pants on the ground praying that you're not a sinner for not answering the door for the missionaries.
• you cry in a movie theater not because the movie is touching, but rather cause you know you're personally never going to end up with the attractive guy (*cough* *cough* BATMAN *cough* *cough* Christian Bale).
• you're the last one of your friends to have: gotten your ears pierced, gone through puberty, been kissed, read the harry potter series & watch all the super hero movies (which makes you behind on ALL of the hype)....etc, etc.
• not knowing whether to use soap or shampoo on your legs when gravity is taking it's toll and pulling all your leg hairs down ("no-shave-november").
• when you're taller than most of the guys you know.

that AWESOME moment when:

• you can stay awake ALL day without a nap on 3 hours of sleep, and you accomplish more than every other day of the week.
• your best friend makes you chocolate chip pancakes at 3:30AM upon waking up.
• you can jump on your bed at 12:30am with your earbuds in, listening to the best pump-up music in the world, while dancin' like a fool.
• the portrait of captain america that you're painting is starting to look human.

That's a lot of {true} info crammed into a teeny-tiny space ...enjoy it. :)

fo-drizzle

I just love showers. They give you so much time to think (or time to not think) ...they are truly the best. Except for in the fall/winter months... Cause it's cold when you step out.

It's also bad when you have to take a fast shower and don't have time to enjoy it, that's when the hot water steaming in the bathroom taunts me by singing baby it's cold outside! cause it knows I have to step out on that icy floor in just moments.

This happened to me today (hence, the story) BUT today was different. You see, my appointment got canceled, so it felt like such a waste to shower at all.  As I passed by my bathroom again, my shower was screaming BABY COME BACK! but now I have other things to do.  ):

Moral of the story? Well, there really isn't one. But someday when I design my own house, my bathroom will be a top priority and people will have some serious jealousy issues.

life is so demanding

i just need cookie dough right now.

Dear, Santa. Just kidding, I want twins.

Just try and tell me that this didn't make you happy:

That's it. I'm moving to the UK, and finding these twins.  

Yepp. They're babes. And this is what I do on my weekends.

Dear, Santa. I want a man.

It's fah-lippin' cold and frosty outside. Want to know a secret? A boy man to make me breakfast right now would be just great. Because this morning I'm clearly incapable of doing it myself. Bahh to heck with it, I just want a man to snuggle-up with. Lemme have this one people, cause I secretly know you want one too.

As if that weren't enough, I found out that 106.9FM is playing Christmas music online (cause waiting a few more days for it to start on the radio just won't do) ...Am I ridiculous or am I ridiculous? Don't answer that.

a moment of appreciation

I'm grateful forrrrrrrrrr:

1. that little boy who wouldn't stop waving at me from the back of the school bus when i was stuck behind them/running late to a ukulele lesson. :)
2. homemade apple sauce
3. despite my freezing fingers, it's finally feeling chilly outside ...SNUGGLE WEATHER!
4. happy people at seminary despite tiredness 
5. christmas music that will be starting on the radio in just a few days!!
6. the knowledge that after november i will have razor blades to shave off ma nastayy leg hairs. {NO SHAVE NOVEMBER!!}
7. old movies. (ils sont incroyables)
8. Having enjoyable, great, understanding, happy, lovable, amazing, caring,  friends!
9. no facebook this month.  
10. this picture: {it just makes me so happy inside}

happily content

My fingernails filled with the color orange as they peeled back those small clementines that are now coming into season. I did this several times, and ate those juicy fruits! I tossed the peels into the smallest pan we have, covered them with water, and threw open the spice drawer. There I found my good friends, Cinnamon! Cloves! and you can't forget about Nutmeg! I sprinkled those bad boys onto my orange peels and turned on the stove. Almost immediately the succulent smell was filling my home, and we all knew that November is here.

If you mix that smell with the smell of my rainy northwest, then you will do exactly what I did ...which was, find the one spot in the house where you could open a window and breathe in the rain in one nostril and the citrus in the other. Perfect.  

It's proving to be a lovely Autumn. Today I spied some lovely Christmas CD's on sale in the store (i know, already), smelled the sweet holiday candles that are returning to the shelves, and tasted of the peppermint milano cookies; I am surrounded by complete bliss. (Plus I got a CD of complied music by Dean, Nat, and Bing!) 

The next two months will soon be full of holidays, merry-spirits, lovesick boys and girls, yams, limited-time-only items, wonderful moments, busy schedules... But for now; I am happily content.

happy halloween!

Today marks 12 years of me living in Gig Harbor. Through these years (on Halloween) Mom has passed out stickers, oranges, lollipops with crickets, MY CANDY (when all else has failed), honey, (and yes, there has been talk about doing chicken broth!) ...No wonder kids don't trick or treat here; I wouldn't even trick or treat here! :) Happy halloween you little sugar infested goobers.

Oh yes, and happy bestfrieniversary to Olivia. I don't know what I'm going to do without you next year. :(

Hit the road Jack!

We have one night left until we're home safe and sound... Making that 6 of the 7 day vacation full of driving--er, sitting in the back seat. We stayed in 5 different hotels, stopping at 11 different restaurants multiple times along the way (ONE OF WHICH WAS CAFE RIO), and seeing lots of people we love with what felt like zero sleep.

Needless to say (but i'll say it anyway), I'm pooped out.

In Rexburg-Idaho, I checked out the campus of "BYU-I-do", went to a class with my cousin, caught up with my friend Hannah who was in my home ward, and then we hit the road to Provo. In Provo we found my sisters, and I got a taste of what college life is like by staying with my sis in her apartment. I went to more classes at BYU, and I definitely loved the feel of getting lost in a big campus rather than a smaller campus (byu-i). We had a mini family reunion with Grandpa, siblings, and cousins. We ate, and it was awesome. I ran into my friend, Cami (also from the home ward), and I saw my friend Austin. The weather --as expected-- was hormonal and couldn't decide on snow or sun... so it did both?  Thursday came around and I was stuck inside the BYU creamery (which was nice for 5-ish minutes) so I stepped outside and called my friend, Easton ...which was awesome because I was apparently right outside his dorm and he had time to say hello. *fist pump to the air* He just got his mission call to Spain. Which is OH SO COOL. 4 friends in one trip; boom! I got BYU sweats from the mens section which are real comf, and they make we feel like I have a boyfriend that I stole them from. Speaking of boyfriend, (no I don't have one) BYU is LOADED with pretty faces. I think the whole forever alone thing will change once I get there someday. ;) And if it doesn't, I guess you could flush my self esteem down the toilet. But not really. ...Maybe a little bit... Until then, I'm happy being single.

So there ya go. I'm back in Idaho, and it seriously is pretty almost nowhere. How did Jesus mess up on this place? Yeah, it could use some work. Also, who the freak allowed it to snow before Halloween? Cause I love snow, I do, but NOT when there can't be Christmas lights, and Christmas music, and Christmas trees, UGH. NO! STOP SNOWING! I seriously only had flip flops as we roamed the streets, sliding everywhere, and oh yeah, a toe froze and broke off my foot. Seriously. Okay not seriously. I think I would have sucked it up better had an attractive male specimen been walking with me! But I can't wait to be home sweet home. Tomorrow I see the brother at WSU, and then I'll be home in the Gig. Overall, glad we did this trip. Pictures will be posted soon. 

the season of pumpkin

The way to a mans heart is through his stomach; the way to Hannah's heart is through breakfast.

(And this time I think I met the standard kitchen health code by wearing pants... you're welcome!)

Pumpkin Pancakes Recipe

1 1/2 cups milk

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 egg

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

2 Tbsp. vinegar

2 cups all-purpose flour

3 Tbsp. brown sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. basking soda

1 tsp. ground allspice

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

Directions

1. In a bowl, mix together the milk, pumpkin, egg, oil and

vinegar. Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder,

baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, ginger and salt in a separate 

bowl. Stir into the pumpkin mixture just enough to combine.

2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium 

high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle using 

approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides

and serve hot.

• 
  

Sweet Dimples & Single Pimples

The other day in my Facebook newsfeed, I saw one of the many hardships of a teenage girls life... What was it might you ask? A photo of the one (that's right, I mean that in a SINGULAR form) zit that practically took up the whole cheek on this girls face (total sarcasm by the way) and I just thought how awfully hard it must be to have one itty bitty zit.

Ahhhh yes, then I see my reflection in the back of my spoon sitting on the table, and guess who decided to join my face for lunch? Not one, but a plethora* of red dots covering my face. My face (and the "dots" thereon) remind me of the stars in the night sky in that they are innumerable, and full of constellations. What was that face? The other morning I woke up surprised with a new constellation that looked very much like the stars that aligned in one row in the Disney movie Hercules? Very thoughtful face, very thoughtful.

So to all of you dear girls struggling with the great woes of having sweet dimples and single pimples, i'll be here playing connect the dots with my face whilst counting down the days till my acne is no more.

THE END.


*yes i learned that word from Caillou when i was little

captain america

Thissssss is me.

Some people go out to fabulous events such as homecoming on their weekends, but for those of us who don't get asked, we do this. Cry? Oh-ho-ho-NO. Well, yes, but not over that.

These tears would be a mix of cry #1 and #9 on my cry scale I made up at the beginning of the year (found here). ...Which kinda then turned into cry #6 (just cause I looked like godzilla ...see above picture).  

What brought on the flood of emotion?! THIS MOVIE:

And it wasn't just because he is freaking gorgeous/humble/masculine/heroic/buff/everything-i'd-want-in-a-man/etcetera&soforth, but because of the ENDING. 

Now, I had no idea how Captain Americas story went, actually, I did things COMPLETELY out of order when it came to the super hero movies. I watched The Avengers first, then Thor, and now Captain America (it's all starting to make sense!) so I had NO idea why good ol' Captain America was introduced in The Avengers as beating up a punching bag. BUT NOW I KNOW, and am practically DEVASTATED. Don't try and tell me it's JUST a movie, because this poor guy lost his lover because he decided to take a nap at the most inconvenient time, and now he's forever-alone and STUCK IN THE WRONG ERA. {story of my life}  But it was actually a really great movie, and I didn't cry for hours (maybe only one ...maybe).

That's all I got.

Now look at my happy friends from tonight, because... they're happy:

p.s. did i mention i dreamt i made-out with a very attractive man last night? only in my dreamssssss.

The M's Game

When you look forward to something for a long time, it's easy to imagine the event and how it will pan out... But the thing you never fantasize about, is how time is merciless and won't slow down even for a day as anticipated as this one ...before you know it, the day is gone. That's how last night was; it came and went, leaving nothing but a memory that will indubitably fade in days to come.

So to help preserve the memory, here's what happened. 

A little over a year ago I went to a Mariners game for my 16th birthday, (see here) and since then I've been dying to go back! My experience this time was altogether different but downright amazing. When we first walked into the stadium, I felt like I had entered a panoramic photograph. Seriously, MLB on tv is great, but there's NOTHING like going to a baseball game. I brought my friend, Coleman, we took the Subaru (come on, we would have frozen to death in the stang), the air was chilly {snuggling under blankets was needed to avoid hypothermia}, we actually had to walk around to find food, the sun went down faster, and our seats were so close to the game you could practically smell their sweat! It was wonderful! And with a view like mine, I was seriously thanking God for baseball pants. ;) This time I was privileged to get a foam finger (completing one of my wishes from last years game) and I guess the camera is a fan of those foam fingers because it helped us catch the attention of the "FanCam" THREE times, so we danced around like idiots on television. (Mother would be proud!) Mariners beat the Angels 6-1 which means I've never been to a game where the Mariners lost. (knock-on-wood) Booya.

 

(Dustin Ackley is my favvvveeeee)

  ...First time eating hot peanuts...

Oh yes, did I mention how we were probably on television a lot? Well, I found a video on the official Mariners website and I spotted ...us! Coleman doesn't always get to be on tv, but when he does, he's being slapped around by my foam finger! Timing? Perfffffffect.

(and a screen shot incase the video is being stupid)

Well. Until next year! (:

{a bright idea}

As I sit here contemplating what this world (specifically my town) really needs, I decided that it is this:

waffle takeout.

(possibly delivered.)

Why would that be such a bad idea?!

Why can't we have someone pitch that idea instead of building more banks and grocery stores?

Even if it were just a waffle truck then this town would seriously be the best place on earth.

....

Priesthood Blessings

Priesthood blessing are really cool.

I got a belated "back-to-school-blessing"

from my home teacher, and he knows 

me, but he doesn't REALLY know me,

yeh know? So it kind of was really great

hearing him say things to me, that only

Heavenly Father and I could know. 

He talked to us beforehand and said

that his Dad died when he was only 12,

and he remembers that he would have

blessings from worthy priesthood holders,

and even though his dad wasn't giving 

him the blessing, he learned that it doesn't

really matter who gives you the blessing

because they're only a mouthpiece for the

things that God has to say to you.

I really liked that because I'm in the same

 boat. Dad died when I was 11 y/o, and

 I always have felt strange when it's not

 MY dad giving me blessings because I

 can't help thinking that Dad is missing out.

I decided to take a quick power nap before

they were to come over, which was about

40 minutes long, I woke up, and we went 

straight into the blessings. I was first. And

some things he said have answered some

questions I've been asking, and I thought it

very neat that he said something that is in

my patriarchal blessing I got over a year 

ago, and how that still stands for me today.

And I decided that although it is nice to be

able to talk to God through prayers, I think

I additionally like blessings also because 

He's talking back.

And it's not just a one-sided conversation.

All in all, I felt this overwhelming peace

in my home, over my family, and my heart.

evolution of hair

Natural hair:

 Then it lost it's virginity, was awful, now beautiful:

So as you can tell, I was a blonde baby. Then over time it darkened up, and I just wasn't a fan. Lara came home to "babysit" the kids while mom was away, and we found ourselves in the hair section of Target and that was the night my hair lost it's virginity. And it was okay...for awhile, but it did weird things to my hair, and I finally made a professional appointment, and now it's this cool ombre thing.

That's my story.

In other news, 

...to me!! I'm 17. As of the 9th. 

And THIS is gonna be my best year.

I don't know why, but I just know it will.

And for my birthday, I got a

*U*K*U*L*E*L*E*

That's all it for now. (:

crêpe

Here's a story {pictures included} of a girls eventful morning which began with waking up... Hannah had slept many hours, was very well rested, and dreamt of sweet nothings.

Upon waking up, her empty tum tum filled her thoughts with food, GLORIOUS food!

{Okay~okay fine, so maybe it went more like this:}

Hannah had hardly slept a wink, and couldn't really make sense of her dreams at all, when she awoke at an early hour to a grumbly stomach and decided that breakfast was a good idea.

So Hannah grabbed her kitchen instruments which resulted in a symphony of awesome on her tastebuds

As she patiently waited to flip~flop her flap~jacks, she pondered the meaning of life and did the no~pants~happy~dance

Besides the fact that she had accidentally flipped her pancake off the griddle and onto the white part under the stove, which then dripped onto the floor and resulted in her stepping in gooey pancake batter and dragging it all over the kitchen ...She was practically a Martha Stewart prodigy! 

It was freaking delicious and an awesssommmmeeee way to start the day! 

Until she saw the sink...

Moral of the story? Eat breakfast no matter how early or late you wake up, or no matter how messy the kitchen gets... Because: 

"If you skip a meal, you over indulge in the next" 

and because people are just grumpy without it.

I like to call this "Forever Alone"

Like I mentioned in my previous post, I have nothing to do in August.

So I decided to channel my nothingness into genuine pieces of art.

My mom encouraged my creativity ...But then laughed at the final project.

Without further adieu, my masterpieces:

{what all couples are thinking as they see me pass by on the street}

{my imagination}

{actual scenario i've been in}

{actual scenario i've been in}

{potential future scenario}

This is where Olivia comes in... We both only have each other and our dogs... She drew the following:

{she drew me in this one...}

Today, I would have thought I got it all out of my system and would have found some friends... BUT... these happened:

{incase you didn't catch on, i'm the one in the middle....on the penny farthing bicycle}

So there you have it. I've chosen to go public with my work. ;)
#imisspainting
#ineednewfriends
#sofreakingbored
#theyrehappyandimnot

P.S. Just saw this on Pinterest... I found it worthy for here:

FOREVER ALONE