Snow and Weekend Trip Home

Well we've been having some fun outside in the snow and when the snow has completely melted and it's bascialy spring.  This was one of those days I cam outside to sun myself and this was an adorable sight of Josh holding nephew Cole pushing niece Kate! So funny!

Cole is obsessed with eating snow, but honestly, who isn't when they have the chance?  I follow his lead.

I was home this last weekend and my lovely horse Buster and I went for a bit of a walk.  Love that horse and kinda wish I had him here in Utah.  I have some other pictures with me and Boo Boo as well when Mom was riding Buster we would hang out.  They're both so feisty that's why I love em!

 Jackie and cute baby Kate in her bear outfit.

 Cole making the snowman

 Swinging Kate

 Jordan trying to grow a mustache

 Buster and me

 hey Boo Boo ( you have to say it with a Yogi bear voice though)

 

I should have more traveling pictures I suppose, but you don't wanna see that, cause it was way too long in the car and waking up way early.  But it was fun and now am looking forward to getting back into my routine.  Especially running, cause I get lazy when I'm on vacation.

To the Date of Today

Valentines day is coming up.  Which reminds me I have to send out some of my cards.  Not hallmark (cause I can't afford that), but the lovely little elementary school cards.  I love those and wish that tradition could carry on through school into adulthood.  If everyone had a list of all their friends and gave them cards and candy!  I like it and vote it should be a requirement.  We'll see how that works out...

Updates for me are similar to what they always are, running, working, and no dating :)  I was able to work every day last week, and the week before a lot.  So that is good news, I just hope I can keep that string of good luck.  I've been applying to lots of jobs, but nothing yet.  I really have been considering the  peace corps as a viable option for my future.  It's adventure for a 2 years and 3 months guaranteed!   I'm still milling around with that one in my head.  The future is still cloudy, let's just leave it at that.

There are some solid things I can look forward to in the future, including a half marathon and 1 week on a houseboat in Shasta with the family.  That is gonna be way fun. On the running side of things from the first of the year I have ran a total of 54 miles! I've only missed a few days and most have been on the treadmill, but when it gets warmer I will get out there! I've upped my mileage a bit though, because I've been watching Biggest Loser when I run.  When the trainers yell at the participants I think of it as me and it makes me push myself! Love it! I've also been working on the splits after running, I don't know why, but I just like being flexible, has to be from all those years of dance when I was little.

Last night I finally learned how to play the card game Bang! I've heard of it a couple times when I went to Provo recently, but never had the chance to play it.  It's like playing Mafia, but you need the actual cards to play.  It takes awhile to get the instructions and card uses down, but it's a really fun game when the speed of play picks up!  I guess I need to add that to my list of games to eventually have in my life.  Monopoly was obviously already number one on my list of games :)

I might be going home for a weekend to see my friend Tammy's parents get baptized in a few weeks! That will be really exciting.  The road trip in it of itself will be exciting as well! Hopefully will have some pictures for that. I think I'm gonna start carrying around a disposable camera since mine died.  Just something to have in your bag all the time to snap the shot, but not worry about breaking it! Excellent plan!

Espero que todos en mi vida les vayan bien y les quiero mucho!

Happy New Year!

Isn't it great that we can start over every year.  It's an annual clean slate.  I love it! Well for this year I have some fun goals, which include finding a full time teaching job, maybe date somewhat, do another half marathon, and if I'm really lucky go on a traveling adventure.  I was lucky enough to go to Mexico this last summer, that rocked.  

I've started running again, and have only missed one day.  Baby steps right?  It will be awesome, I'm thinking about running the Park City half in Utah, cause Jackie said it was a pretty good one. I want to PR from last year of 2:40.  It's in August so I think there's a good chance of improvement.  

Christmas was fun at home, I got to ride my horse a couple times and see all the family.  I even traveled to Sacramento for a few days to see friends, then I flew back to Utah from Sacramento via Seattle for New Years here.  My bag got lost in the hustle and bustle of changing planes, since I only had 5 minutes to catch my flight, so they delivered it the next day! yeah everything intact.  New Years was fun at home in Utah with snacks, Dick Clark's Rockin Eve, and watching parts of Inception while playing Apples to Apples.  I win :)  I'm so competetive...which reminds me I was thinking about getting some sort of basketball activity going for church cause I'm dying to play some team sports and nobody seems to want to organize the activity.  I'm on it!

The last 2 days have been great because I got to see 2 great friends I haven't seen since I graduated BYU 3 or 4 years ago! But it was cool because it was as if no time had passed. Jana and Eila and I met up at the Smith Field House at BYU for a bit of a jaunt.  A mile or so, but Eila went for 2.  Then we ate in the skyroom of the wilk, where Chad Jana's Bro met up with us! Love that kid, haven't seen him since...before his mission? Not even sure! After eating we all still wanted to hang out, so we went to the Carl Bloch exhibit, which mostly is paintings from the life of Christ.  It was my second time and so awesome! I might be going again this Saturday with people from my ward.  Carpooling that's always a fun time for bonding :) 

I came back the next day as well for Jana's cousins party and that was fun.  Just spending time with friends is so great! Especially when they know you and have your sense of humor.  You can really relax and enjoy yourself, you don't have to analyze what people are thinking and all the social hooplah.  

This Saturday there are three parties down in Provo, all dancing :) An appearance is a must! Maybe even country dancing after?  I like it!

So the other day I downloaded all the pictures off my phone and here are some I just like :)
1. Me and mom
2. Shaely and Eliot
3.Roli and me
4.Me and Tati
5. Me and Buster(love my horse)

Utah

Well it has snowed twice in the past few weeks, which gets me excited for winter, but I've forgotten about the cold that comes with it.  Especially at night when your body heat just isn't enough to warm up the bed.  I have made several strides to get to know people in my new ward by going to service activities and ward parties.  One we went on a trick or treat food drive (people were a little confused because as we were all dressed up, and we came early) and people responded very generously.  The next thing I did I went to my ward Halloween party as the Johnny Depp mad hatter! So much fun, but hard to make friends when you don't even look like yourself.  I brought Kristina with me and we ended up being invited to go country dancing that same night! Love it! So the social part is coming slowly, but surely.  I did go to a ward Family Home Evening where Sarah Larsen performed songs from her CD Find a Grove.  I highly recommend listening to her music.  It made me think about how much I'm loved by my Savior and that He does know who I am.  I am not alone in this world and never will be.  I felt so calm and happy about the testimony I have of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Living with Josh and Jackie right now we are doing a thankful tree and writing down things we are thankful for during this season of gratitude.  I'm thankful for the opportunity to live in a home with family I love.  I'm thankful for the many years of school I have attended that have helped me become a more rounded person and also has taught me to never stop learning.  (I recently started French on a free library site, can't get enough of languages!) There are so many things to be thankful for each and every day, I will enjoy my continued listing of them on the tree we've put up in the living room :)

NEW ADVENTURES

Okay it's here! I'm finally leaving! The date is set, the clothes are out(well at least more organized than usual) and I'm filling up boxes baby! Who knows what is gonna happen in the next few little weeks. I am a little disapointed to leave because I just discovered yesterday that my favorite author in the world, Tamora Pierce, will be in Portland October 18th, and I alas, will not be. So frustrating, maybe one of my siblings will go and have her sign a book for me? That would be exciting! But still so disapointing!

Despite that, I'm excited to go. I haven't packed to move in like 2 years! So we shall see what I forget and what I should have left behind. I want to bring all my books, but we'll probably only take about 6 or 7, and then a couple suitcases of clothes for now. I am taking the mini cooper of my mom's though! Only for a little while, but I will be stylish for a little while anyway. My main focus is to get a job there, and goodness I hate that part. Can't wait to go see old friends though and make some new ones, best part of all!

I did make applesauce with mom and dad yesterday. It contained red hots, which gave it a pinkish hue and a little extra festive flavor. I got to peal the apples with a fun contraption that you turn, and it cored them at the same time in less than 10 seconds! SO much fun. But the rest of my life will be packing for the next few days! Wish me luck!

The randomness of my life.

I just like this picture me and Kristina took in Mexico.

Today I made some delicious brownies (the ingredients of which include Oreos!). I found them online and they are super scrumptious, but I have decided they still do not surpass my obsession with cake. I went to a wedding reception this weekend and we were there for 3 hours before they served the cake, but I had to leave before then! SO DISAPPOINTING! I have decided that when I am married, at the reception, the first order of business will be to cut the cake!

Another crazy thing today, is that I received an email, from a possible long lost relative! She introduced herself as somebody doing work on the same last name as me and saw my name for contact info. I emailed her back introducing myself, and we shall see if we're related or not, but it's kind of exciting to see something like that happen. It's just like the movies. My life, it turns out, sometimes is just like the movies.

I was also going through some of mom's pictures on her phone and found some that needed to be shared from the Scandia 10k in August with my brothers. It was so much fun with all those people there!

1. After the race, we're still cool!
2. Me and the 4 bros before the race :)
Me, Josh, Jackie, Candice, Matt, Jackson, Seth, and Jordan! What a bunch of troopers!
3. All four siblings before running (I know they're in a random order)
4. This is one of the only pictures of me running a race where it looks like I'm running not speed walking.

Changes

I have done some pretty amazing things in my life and met some pretty amazing people. My question is... What do you do when you've finished most your goals you had in life? I mean that little check list of things a person is supposed to do is finished? I finished college twice now, and have traveled. I go to church, don't do drugs or anything illegal, I exercise and am active in parts of my life to be considered a "well rounded" person. I' m looking for a job but in this economic climate it is extremely difficult. I would like to date someone, but that is out of my control...
So I've come to the conclusion that the next steps in my life are on me. I can't control when boys want to date, me and I can barely control the job situation (I just keep putting the applications in). I keep asking the simple question "What am I supposed to do now?" I keep getting the stupid, generic answer "whatever you want." SO ANNOYING! and yeah...I don't believe that. If I could do whatever I wanted I would have a teaching job and would be dating the most amazing guy ever who spoke many different languages, or at least understood my need to learn them and the deep rooted desire to see the world, but that isn't what has unraveled here. I would also be able to date characters from books :)

Facts: I will be moving soon
I have family support for what I do(yeah!)
I don't have a car
I don't have a boyfriend
I don't want to get married
I have limited resources
I don't have a job where I will be moving
I have 3 or 4 places I could move in with friends or family
I speak Spanish and English
I like nutella
I have an amazing horse
I'm a messy person...

My future is uncertain
Usually after writing down my dilemmas I feel better or something becomes clear to me, but nothing yet. Maybe I'll keep adding to my list of facts. That's always nice to see what is true in your life. Overall, I hate that everyone else has something figured out...stupid organized people. Fact: I will figure something out!