Back to School

Oh my, what the blazes?!?!?!?! School has started!! Can you believe it?! Where did the summer go???

So...I'm ridiculously busy and my emotions are running on high. I keep telling myself that once I get into the swing of things that everything will calm down, especially me. I hope I'm right! :) I'm not sure why I thought it was a good idea to change jobs while working on a masters degree. Not the best idea I've had...ha ha. On a happy note, my class is darling and I'm really excited for the year!! Everyone has been so kind to help me and I am constantly reminded of how blessed I am to work where I do with such great people!!

My angel mother has been an absolute life saver. She has tried to run errands for me and help me in any way she can. She has been making dinner, taking my dog to the groomer, picking things up at the store, etc. All of this so that I have less things on my already freakishly long to do list. It's so nice to not have to do it all by myself! How did I live alone and do so much by myself for so long?? I guess I wasn't trying to work full time at a new job while going to grad school. But regardless, this is way better!!

So there you have it...that's what's up with me. I'm just trying to keep my head above water at this point. But hey, I've got a great team of friends, family, and fan-tab-u-lous coworkers that are keeping me from drowning...so it'll be okay...right??

Quote of the Day

"When you judge another, you do not define them, you define yourself."
Dr. Wayne Dyer

Dippity-Do

The first item on my list of things to do before I turned 30 is to go skinny dipping. I won't give you too many details (cause...um...gross) but let's just say that Newport Beach, California will never be the same. Also, I must note that the sting ray were out and it was a full moon...however there were no incidents to report. :)

Would I do it again?? Absolutely!

California Road Trip

One of my really good friends from college has lived in California for a few years now and I haven't found a good time to go see her. So a couple weeks ago, another really good friend from college and I took a road trip to California to remedy this problem.

Just a tip...don't drive from Las Vegas to L.A. on a Sunday afternoon. It results in hours of your speedometer looking like this...


Okay, so funny story. Because we were driving to So Cal on a Sunday, we decided we would bring stuff to make sandwiches, snacks, and drinks so we wouldn't have to buy anything but gas. Yeah, good thinking right?? Well my travel buddy, Mecqae, had never driven to California (her dad works for Delta so they fly everywhere) and therefore was unaware of the "Agriculture Check Station" and I had forgotten about it. She had brought some fruit, bananas and apples, for us to eat. Well, while stuck in traffic it dawns on me that we'll have to chuck it at the check station. Keep in mind that neither Mecqae nor I like bananas and I can't eat apples unless they are cut (because of my teeth...sad face). Instead of considering the fruit a lost cause, we took it upon ourselves to eat it ALL. Picture this...we forced down 3 bananas and 3 apples in less than two hours. Mecqae had to cut the apples with a plastic knife so I could eat them...then she had sticky hands and couldn't touch anything for about an hour until we could stop. It gets better... we got to the check station with one banana and one apple left just to find out that apparently bananas are fine to take into California and the variety of apples we had were also okay.

Here's the check station...we're all ready to discard what is left of our fruit...hee hee.


Well we finally made it to Sarah's house...thanks to Wanda (my mom's GPS...a road trip essential). Speaking of Wanda, for the rest of the trip we tried to force Sarah to give directions like Wanda. She thought we were dumb so Mecqae would translate her directions into Wanda. "In 300 yards, bear right then take the motorway" (in a British accent of course). :)

Sarah has magical powers (meaning she's a So Cal resident) so she was able to get us a 3-day park hopper ticket for $99 (a 1-day hopper is $97 for us muggles).


Ya know, this is kind of funny considering I've been to Disneyland so many times I've lost count (but I love it more every time, never gets old) but I've never purchased ears of any form. So...I got my first set of ears!


Here's a closer look at my name on the back...in pink no less!


It's a small world and I have cute friends...hey!


Just a tip...just because there is a pizza place next to Space Mountain does not make it a good idea to eat a lot of pizza right before you ride Space Mountain.


Here we are on my all time favorite ride...Splash Mountain!!

You might notice the mom and her kids behind us. She kept telling them to hang on so they wouldn't fall out and die...whatev. It was hilarious. My favorite part?? They bought the photo too.

This was absolutely the only time we rode this ride together. We used a fast pass this time, but the rest of the trip we road it "single rider". That means you go in the exit and they stick you in when they have an extra spot. You don't have to wait in line but you can't ride with your group. I personally kind of prefer this because you get to be in random family vacation photos. For instance, I was once in the back of a log with a bunch of Koreans. They were hilarious and they bought the photo. So yes, in some Korean family vacation photo...there I sit in the back in all my non Korean-ness. LOVE IT!! It is always fun after we get done to tell stories about our ride with other people...adds to the enjoyment in my opinion! Plus we can ride as many times as we want without waiting in line. This allows me to ride Splash Mountain 16 or more times a day (not kidding...it's been done).

One evening we went for dessert at The Jazz Kitchen at Downtown Disney. Loved the live music and the crazy awesome piano!

After dessert we went to see Harry Potter at the AMC theater at Downtown Disney. I fell asleep, but I'd seen it before so it was okay. It started at 10:30 (which is 11:30 Utah time...and therefore to my body!) and it's a REALLY long movie.

We also spent a day at the beach. I don't have any photos of that because I left my camera in the car. :( But we went to Huntington Beach and Newport Beach. They were both very sandy (in fact there are leftovers from the event in my car if anyone wants to fill their sandbox) and fun. We played in the waves like 10 year olds...it was awesome!! I also crossed something off my before 30 list...but that needs a post of it's own!

Mecqae found this GREAT little cafe called the Monkey House Cafe in Huntington Beach. We had great sandwiches and Italian sodas...yum!


It was a great vacation! It was good to spend time with Sarah (and Mecqae for that matter, we only live an hour and a half apart but we hardly ever see each other...sad). Thanks for the good times girls!

Bear Lake 2009

My mom's side of the family has a reunion every year at Bear Lake. A couple weeks ago I spent 3 days camping, swimming, and chillin' with the fam. It was AWESOME!

I puffy heart this place!!


Check out my tent assembling abilities...


Nice huh?? Yeah, I'm a professional.


There is a whole friggin' lake, but my nieces and nephews choose to play with a pole...go figure.


And when the pole got boring, they moved on to a flower pot.


Here's my nephew, climbing the same trees his dad used to climb.


Campfire!


By the way, s'mores with nutella are AMAZING! It solves the chocolate not being melted issue that I hate. Not to mention the fact that nutella is way better than chocolate anyway.

The obligatory Daisy photo :)


Thanks family for a great time!! I'm so glad so many of my cousins were able to make it!!!!! I love you guys!!!

Four?!?!?!?!

Okay, time is flying by too quickly! One of my nieces turns four today! In some ways it seems like forever since she was born, but in other ways it seems like just yesterday.

She is a little ball of fire, this one! She has serious personality! She cracks me up. For instance, she likes to play "family" with little things. In this photo she is using a milk box as the daddy. Ha ha ha, creativity at it's best!


She is helpful. Whether in the house or in the garden, she is always asking what she can do to help.


Isn't that seriously the cutest photo?? LOVE IT!!

I love you little lady!! I am so thankful to have you as a niece. I hope you have an amazing birthday!!!