Keep Smiling

Just a few things that keep me smiling:

♥ Sunday movie dates with the boy.

♥ Waking up to a cupcake and your family singing 'Happy Birthday'.

♥ Crossing off the days left until the move to the new library.

♥ Dancing to the Backstreet Boys at full volume in the car with your bestie.

♥ Yoga pants and cozy sweaters.

♥ Waking up to a foot of fresh snow (and being excited for some reason).

♥ Knowing you're only a week away from going to Disneyland for 24 hours straight.

♥ Snuggling with Brody every morning.

♥ Making german pancakes and watching The Bachelor with the bestie.

♥ 80's dancing with your group of friends.

♥ Getting Monday off.

♥ Watching Moulin Rouge for the 50 billionth time.

♥ Bear hugs.

♥ The look in his eyes.

 ♥ Heated blankets.

♥ Having gorgeous mountains right up the road that are covered in white.

♥ Listening to 'Stay With Me' by Josh Gracin on repeat.

♥ Pinterest.

♥ Finding the BEST cake recipe ever, ever, ever. Seriously.

♥ Shaun White gum.

♥ Holding hands.

♥ Finding your favorite ring that you thought you'd lost.

♥ Knowing you'll be off to Europe in 117 days.

♥ Learning music from Tangled on the piano.

♥ Going to dinner with the family.

♥ "Goodnight beautiful" text messages.

and

♥ Knowing there will be many more reasons to smile tomorrow :)

Life Lesson #42

Life Lesson #36

Life Lesson #35

Brody is turing 3 years old this Friday! I love my little guy ❤

He has become such an important part of my life and I honestly can't imagine my life without him in it.

I was a senior in high school when he became a part of our family. We were at my Grandma's house for our annual Christmas Eve party when my dad came down the stairs with a crate in his hands. Inside was the best Christmas surprise I could ever hope for! He was so tiny and so cute. I loved him the moment I saw those beady brown eyes.

Happy Birthday Brody!

I ❤ You

the "Hottie Wall"

So there is this wall in my room that has been really bare for, well, many moons. So last week I was online looking for inspiration when I found these über hot pictures of celebs on Pinterest (if you don't have a Pinterest you are waaaay behind the times). I've been printing them out and sticking them to my "Hottie Wall" one by one ever since. You're welcome ;]

Johnny Depp

Alex O'Loughlin 

Orlando Bloom

Gerard Butler

Matt Bomer

Ryan Reynolds

Alex Pettyfer

Jake Gyllenhaal

Anyways... these are just a few of my favorites. What can I say? I'm a nerd who digs brunettes.

If you have any suggestions of hotties I need to add to my "Hottie Wall", please speak up!

Summer '11 in Review...

Words just can't describe what an amazing summer I had, so I made a video! Videos are more fun anyways, enjoy!

Less than a year!

As some of you may know, I'm going to Europe next summer with my bff! Only 335 more days till I'm on a plane bound for London! I made my first payment for my trip back in February thinking that time would drag on way longer than it actually has. I can't even believe that a year from today I'll be on my way home from the biggest adventure of my life. Words can't even describe how excited and grateful I am for this opportunity to see a place I have always dreamed of seeing.

But while I play the waiting game, it's been really fun piecing together things for my trip. 

- I got my first passport! Yay!

- A new camera complete with 4 extra memory cards and an extra battery.

- A pack of compression bags so I can take extra cute clothes.

-  And a bunch of other odds and ends I've been collecting along the way.

I still have a lot more work to do before my trip, but it has been fun taking the steps to eventually get to where I want to be in 11 months. 

hot candle wax

I stopped writing poetry when I realized every poem I wrote, whether intentional or not, 

was about you.

I didn't think you deserved anything more than "goodbye".

What happened between you and me was a long time ago, after all.

So I stopped writing you down on paper.

A ghost outlined in ink and pencil lead.

And you faded away into a blurry silhouette that reappeared only when I wanted you to.
When I was comfortable with your chalky presence.

I eventually forgot what color your eyes were, the sound of your voice.

Memories we created fell from my mind like hot candle wax.

I forgot you.

Then one day, everything about you, everything I suppressed and erased came rushing back,

almost as if you were standing right in front of me again.

You found a way to fill the transparency with solid lines and shadows.
And now I'm once again filling in the rest with ink and pencil lead.

life opens up when you do

The reason I've been a bit off the radar lately is because I've really been trying to make this summer amazing. And so far so good! I've spent the past couple of months doing all things summery and I've loved every second of it. Hence the reason I've spent more time outside than on my computer.

I guess sometimes when things are going really well you have time to stop and take a good long look at life. So far I've learned that:

A. I have no idea what I want to do with major I'm currently majoring in. No idea.

B. Hence the reason why I'll only be taking Spanish and math the next couple of semesters until I figure it out.

C. And also because I need to save up for my month long excursion to Europe that I'll be taking next summer. Win, win.

D. After going to Europe I plan on re-applying for the Disney College Program and moving my butt to sunny California. I guess the one thing I really know I want to be someday is a Disney Imagineer. 

E. After the DCP (that is, if I get in), I'll hopefully know exactly which direction I want to go in at Disney, so I can go back to school confident in my decision.

So now when people ask me what I want to do with my life, although lengthy, I'll finally have an answer. 

Change is good, right?

Summer Lovin'

Summer is my all-time favorite time of year. No snow, no ice, no freezing wind. Just sunshine, heat, bare feet and the smell of freshly mown grass and gasoline. 

Here are a few things I'm looking forward to this summer...

flip-flops s'mores swimming African Ice tanning oil the lake

camping driving with the windows down cold watermelon Lagoon 

4th of July lemonade hiking picnics hotdogs campfires shorts

 roasted starbursts  pineapple cool nights under the stars kool-aid

bike rides swimsuits slurpies running through sprinklers sand between your toes

sandals the pool sunsets roadtrips movies at the capitol 

the smell of wet cement night games seashells popsicles the state fair

farmers markets flowers concerts country music warm rain

fireworks baseball games the beach days of '47

 no school sundresses thunderstorms the smell of sunscreen

the sound of crickets shooting stars tubing rootbeer floats barbecues

What are some things you love most about SUMMER?

Infinite Potential

The other day I was standing at the sink washing dishes and watching my dog run around outside in the backyard. I noticed him playing with something and saw to my horror that it was a baby robin. I raced outside and stopped him, but the little bird was really hurt. He had been out with his mom learning how to fly.

I realized that he would never know what it felt like to fly. He was born with all the potential to do so, but his chances were cut short so early in his life. And then I thought about how often we cut ourselves short of our own potential. We are born with the ability to do whatever we set our mind to and work hard to get. And although outside forces sometimes hinder our ability to measure up, the majority of the time we are the ones standing in our own way of greatness. 

So live each day to your fullest potential. Say the things you mean, and do the things you say. Never give up hope or lose faith in yourself, because you have everything you need to achieve anything you want.

When you need a little smile...

I apologize for falling off the face of the earth. Finals are upon me and they aren't treating me well. Luckily I only have 2 more to go. In the mean time, if you need a little smile, look no further than this adorable picture... It managed to bring a smile to my face when all I wanted to do was crawl in a hole and die so I wouldn't have to take my finals. 

Hakuna Matata!

In terms of forever...

"The Great Commandment" 

by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin

"... There once was an elderly man and woman who had been married for many decades. Because the wife was slowly losing her sight, she could no longer take care of herself the way she had done for so many years. Without being asked, the husband began to paint her fingernails for her.

'He knew that she could see her fingernails when she held them close to her eyes, at just the right angle, and they made her smile. He liked to see her happy, so he kept painting her nails for more than five years before she passed away.' 

That is an example of the pure love of Christ. Sometimes the greatest love is not found in the dramatic scenes that poets and writers immortalize. Often, the greatest manifestations of love are the simple acts of kindness and caring we extend to those we meet along the path of life.

True love lasts forever. It is eternally patient and forgiving. It believes, hopes, and endures all things. That is the love our Heavenly Father bears for us.

We all yearn to experience love like this. Even when we make mistakes, we hope others will love us in spite of our shortcomings—even if we don’t deserve it.

Oh, it is wonderful to know that our Heavenly Father loves us—even with all our flaws! His love is such that even should we give up on ourselves, He never will.

We see ourselves in terms of yesterday and today. Our Heavenly Father sees us in terms of forever. Although we might settle for less, Heavenly Father won’t, for He sees us as the glorious beings we are capable of becoming.

The most cherished and sacred moments of our lives are those filled with the spirit of love. The greater the measure of our love, the greater is our joy..."

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The pictures I included in this post are of my Grandparents Jack and Nell. They loved each other more than anything in the world. When my Grandpa died several years ago, one of the main things that was said at his funeral was how beautiful their love for each other was. They were together for nearly 60 years and never had a single fight! 
One of my favorite stories was of their first date. My handsome Grandpa had just arrived home from fighting in WWII and all the girls were after him. My Grandma happened to be in his ward and out of all the swooning girls fawning over him, he asked my Grandma on a date. On their date he drove her up to a spot overlooking the Salt Lake Valley that us young kids now call "The Ocean". Even back then it was the prime make-out location. My poor Grandma was uneasy about being there, and her fears grew even more when he casually put his arm around her in the front seat. But instead of going in for a kiss, he reached into the backseat and grabbed his guitar to serenade her! How cute is that? He was the perfect gentleman.

Their story is what I dream for myself to someday have. Even though I was young, I knew just by watching how they would look at each other that their love was pure and unwavering. Sometimes it's hard not knowing if I'll ever find someone who will treat and love me as much as my Grandpa loved my Grandma, but after reading this talk by Elder Wirthlin I know that if I never give up hope, someday I'll be able to start my own love story with someone just as loving and dear as he was.

March '11 Obsessions

1.

I bought my very first pair of TOMS shoes earlier this month and now I want a pair in every style! Not only are they cute and comfortable, every pair bought has a match somewhere in the world belonging to a child in need. So not only are you buying yourself a very nice pair of shoes, you are also buying a pair for a child who doesn't even have shoes. It's one purchase you won't feel guilty about buying.

You can buy your own pair of TOMS online at http://www.toms.com/, or at a store near you! 

2. Funky Jewelry

While I was at the mall buying TOMS, I stumbled upon another new obsession. Long necklaces with funky charms, and big chunky rings!

So far in the necklace department I have an elephant, an antique telephone, a fish that can wiggle, a little book that has real pages, an antique key that Catherine gave me for my b-day, and a dreamcatcher. They are really fun to collect!

In the ring department I have a tiger, a huge turquoise stone, a hibiscus flower, a fake diamond ring that is HUGE, a "soccer ball",  vines, and then my favorite ring made out of petrified wood that was my great-grandfather's. 

I bought the majority of the jewelry from Forever 21 and everything was under $8! 

3. New Music!

Here are a few songs I just can't get enough of this month...

'Boy With a Coin' by Iron & Wine

This song makes me want to dance around a campfire. The lyrics are beautiful and I love the flamenco dancers in the video! I can't wait to see the real thing next summer in Spain! (Thanks RayCray for introducing me to this band!)

'The Cave' by Mumford & Sons

Brilliant... just brilliant! 'Little Lion Man' is also just as wonderful.

'Alligator Sky' by Owl City featuring Shawn Chyrstopher

Let's just admit it, everything Owl City makes is amazing.

4. Pretty Little Liars

This show is SO addicting and intense! The first season just ended this week :[ But good news is that the second season is starting up this June! If you haven't seen this show, go watch it now!

5. EF College Break

Next summer I am going to Europe through EF College Break! Their prices are insanely cheap and they plan all of the nitty-gritty stuff for you so you don't have to worry! Every tour group has about 40 college kids from all over the US that you will meet and become friends with. If you have ever wanted to see the world, EF College Break is the way to go!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Top o' the mornin' to ya!

I hope you all have a fantastic Saint Patrick's Day!

Maybe it's just the Irish in me, but I have always loved St. Patrick's Day. I love seeing everyone in green and pinching people who aren't, I love tiny little ginger men, and I love putting green food coloring in everything I eat.

Day at Night

These pictures may look normal, but they aren't. Although they look as if they were taken during the day, they were actually shot in the middle of the night!

The key to taking pictures at night is setting the shutter speed to last anywhere from 30 seconds to an hour (or more) in order capture enough light. 

After seeing these pictures, I grabbed my camera to see if I could do the same thing; sadly, I have a dinky digital camera and it only allows me to set the shutter to 15 seconds at the most :[

But if you have a nicer camera with more options you should definitely try it out and let me know how it turns out!

If you'd like to see some more of these photos, go to this website! It's really neat!

Gizmodo.com