It's a Chilly Monday Night...

...and I wish it would snow.

-October is half over! How did this happen?? Taylor and I were discussing the other day that we enjoy this because one holiday just leads into the next great holiday (Halloween to Thanksgiving to Christmas to New Years to depression from lack of holidays after that! Yay!)

-I've been having a hard time using 'is' and 'are' correctly. No, I am not from the south. No, I don't have any other speech impediments. I just get so excited with what I'm saying sometimes that it comes out as, "When is the people coming?" or "the noodles is being made" or "how is you putting on your jacket?" (jk about the last one). I sound like a hick and Derek is trying to correct this foul habit of mine. I do it a bunch more than I realize and there are much progress to be made.

-Sometimes there are little pre-college-ers touring campus with mom + dad in golf carts deciding if this is the sheltered, non-capri school they wish their little ones to attend. ("Ohhhh. This school allows capris? That's a no from us then. We can't have our daughter showing her ankles to all the boys here, wouldn't want her to be a trollop!"). And sometimes the kids have looks of wonder on their faces while driving around campus like its some sort of safari or something ("there's no hall monitors at this school?! Awesome!"). And sometimes I am walking around on campus when one of these chauffered vehicles drives by and they all stare at me in wonder and awe. And I can totally imagine the guide saying, "And here is one of our rarest species, the Five-one-icus femalius. They like techno music and burritos. Lucky to see one of them here today!" And then I sneeze and they give a chorus of "oOoh"s and clap gently.

-One time I awakened to find that I had developed some sort of eye-ailment overnight for no reason. I considered staying home for the day, but then decided that everyone needed a little dose of my beauty, particularly radiant on that day. So I spiffied up and wore my quasi-modo face with dignity.

It went away within a few hours but I thoroughly enjoyed my time as a Disney character. Authentic Disney character. None of that princess crap.

-This past weekend I went to Utah with Taylor and Derek met us there. It was a blast and a much needed break. Sister talks the whole car ride down and back created some interesting quotes:

::"Oh this car is slower than molasses on a bad day!"

:: Sail by Awolantion came on the radio, Taylor-"What band is this? AOL?" 

:: "No pebbles to be thrown at you!"

Time was well spent with the grandparents as well. I loved that once we introduced grandma to the 'voice-changer plus' app on her phone, her first thought was, "You can record your voice and make it sound different and then call people and they wouldn't even know it was you!" Yes, grandma, you can definitely prank call people using this. She's a hoot. And Grandpa was so sweet and was giving away some of his old treasured knick knacks. I got some awesome stuff (mini-binoculars. Watch out world, closet creep is comin out).

I finally got my Chipotle fix in! Sooo delicious. Only I think it just feeds my addiction for more.

Derek and I also went to a Krewella concert! It was uh-may-zing. Best concert ever. (Well, only concert ever, but that will change.) However, the company was less than to be desired. I think I had the widest range of smells I've ever had, from hairspray to B.O. to perfume to weed to who-knows-what-else to beef top ramen. My nose had quite the adventure. And I almost got an elbow to the nose about 50 million times. Ahh, the joys of being a Five-one-icus femalius. 

I'm gonna go punch the hay. G'naght, y'all!

Nutella and Tap Shoes

 It's time for another episode of...

Things I have Learned as of Late.

-Nutella on toast is the food of the angels. I'm convinced that's all we will eat in heaven. I freaking hope so. (which is really weird considering I hated toast before this discovery. Boo butter. Boo cinnamon. Boo honey or anything else that goes on toast.)

-Sissys are the best :) I love having my oldest little sis here at school with me! She listens to my rants about dumb things and gives me advice like what else I can put on my toast (more Nutella). And we go to the gym together (to work off that Nutella) and gossip about her latest date! (And yes, we even go to the gym on Fridays. With all the other dejected and dateless. That's what you call determination to be fit.) It's the best. And then there is middle little sister who sends me funny Les Mis memes for me to laugh at all day...

(are you dying of laughter yet?)

And we can't forget youngest young sister who is a tap dancing wonder and every time I put on my tap shoes I think of her and how I probably look like a wanna-be child star from 'America's Got Talent' or something.

-Speaking of tap shoes, my classes are in full swing currently. My clogging class is definitely the most fun (and obnoxious to do homework practice on the kitchen floor. But oh well, we live on the bottom floor), Microbiology is the most interesting (there are more bacteria on your cellphone than on your toilet. ew. I'm turning into a germophobe), Community Health Methods is the most thought-provoking, Epidemiology is pretty meh, and Medical Terminology is a waste of my time (and its online which doesn't help). 

-Everybody's saying that they hate that it's cold and snowing in Utah but I'm ready for a blizzard. A huge one. I love when the world looks like a snowglobe.

-I hate autocorrect. Since when would I use "uif" instead of "the"???

-Sometimes there is flatulence in the middle of the night. And sometimes Derek responds with a proud,  "That's ma girl!"and I think nothing of it. Sometimes the next morning he doesn't remember saying that and I realized that 2 + 2 = sleeptalking!!! Derek is officially a sleeptalker. Prepare for funnier stories to come (I hope).

-I learned that I will have a heart attack if the magical ice cream store that is Thor's disappears. Because it did. After wringing out my shirt of tears and going through a whole box of tissues I have resolved that I have to find somewhere that sells Bubblebear ice cream. So the quest is on. 

-Sometimes Haunted Houses are a rip off. Like 'House of the Seven Gables' in Rigby, ID *cough cough*. We went there yesterday and paid a wad of cash for 5 minutes of people in cloaks trying to grab your feet and some obnoxious screaming coming from upstairs. I don't recommend it. It wasn't even that scary. (meaning I didn't wet my pants) But I do enjoy a good, pants-wetting, long, walkthrough scare fest as much as the next person. Dr. Slaughter's in Idaho Falls is still the one to beat, folks. 

Welp, that's all peeps!

SeaYEAH!ttle

Hey folks.

     Do you ever just stick your head out of the window of your car while on the freeway, going 60+mph and it's so exhilarating and loud and freeing and hectic as your hair gets tangled into an unforgiving mess of tangles (including your eyelashes) and you can hardly breathe cuz so much air is coming at you and people driving by are staring at you cuz "does that girl think she is a dog or something"minus the slobber okay maybe a little? (sorry about the longest run-on sentence in the history of the world). That's kinda how this break has been. (And yes, I did get my baby-thin 4 locks of hair untangled successfully)

    Being home has been a wonderfully needed break. Mine and Derek's parents have been so gracious to open up their homes to us and let us stay with them, eat their food, and take up their time being their at-home children again. It's been so great bonding with the in-laws and the out-laws. haha I couldn't resist. And I have loved seeing my sisters a bunch and going to Chipotle. Those are the makings of a great break, people.

I learned a lot:

:: Derek has opened my eyes to the world of fishing. We tried both fly fishing and regular fishing. I prefer fly fishing, despite the fact that I didn't catch anything. And there are only small fish in the rivers of Western Washington. And all of them are catch-and-release. And when we did catch one larger than 3 inches, we considered keeping it, but I couldn't deal with killing it. (That fish is probably a father to some little fishy family struggling to make a living. I couldn't bear the thought of those baby fishies going "Where's daddy? Why isn't he home yet? Who will take care of us?" and the mommy fishy turning to the little one and saying "You're the head of the household now, little Ted." Tears. Tears.) Okay, that probably wouldn't happen, but still. And for some reason I don't think of that story when eating store-bought fish or any other meat. I couldn't handle being vegetarian.
And we may have dropped our camera in the lake while fishing one time. We got it out, but it is deader than dead. Thus, the lack of pictures. Whoops.

:: I realized watching an entire season of one show all in a row takes about as much concentration and stamina as a triathlon! I started watching ER starting with season 1, and I only got about 7 or 8 episodes in, and I got bored. And it's not a boring show, people are being cut open and operated on every episode!

:: Painting walls is kind of enjoyable. It's relaxing. We painted Taylor's room and it just made me excited for when I have my own house to paint and choose colors instead of our boring eggshell colored walls right now.

:: Being around Sophie has not satisfied my need for getting a puppy of our own. In fact, it has probably made it worse. So much so that husband has resorted to watching dog videos on youtube and sighing. Many times. 

:: C89.5 is the mecca of good radio stations. No commercials. House/dubstep/electronic/techno/modern music. All clean and edited. And they play the best songs before other radio stations get to them. Yeah, I'm one of those music hipsters.  (Have you heard The Fox by Ylvis? Didn't think so. You should look it up on youtube. It's so new, it's not even on iTunes yet!) It's the only radio station we listen to since we've been home. I just wish there was a way to listen to it in Idaho. 

:: Guys. guys. I went to Chipotle not once. No, no. 

Not twice. Heavens no.

THREE TIMES over the break! I am one lucky girl and one happy camper. And each time was            better than the last. I think they must put crack in the rice or something.

Rants and realizations:

:: I got a mini-job over the break and had the opportunity to chauffeur (def had to look that spelling up) two children to and from swimming classes. They were fine at first, but after a few weeks, their true colors came out and I came to find that they were entitled and spoiled children. And I realized that not only was it a job, but yet another example of what I didn't want my future family to be like. I drove them to what started out as swimming, but then to the park, then to doctor's appointments and haircuts, to the movies and restaurants, and a trampoline park. The parents even hired Derek to teach the younger one to ride a bike. Pardon me if I'm wrong, but I think teaching your child to ride a bike should be a milestone shared between parent and child. It only comes once. It felt a little like the parent's couldn't be bothered with their children, which was sad. I wouldn't be surprised if they paid their way through everything else, someone to potty train them, someone to go to their graduations, someone to be present at their weddings. It made me realize the importance of being there for everything you can in your children's lives and show them you love them by supporting them with actions, rather than money to buy their happiness.

:: Derek and I decided to take a Nursing Assistant course over the break. Why, you may ask?
       -cuz the class started and ended perfectly during the break
       -cuz we both need healthcare experience for future careers
       -cuz it can't hurt our resume
       -cuz it seemed interesting
       -cuz it's always good to have another marketable skill in this economy
       -cuz when we graduate, we may not be able to find jobs in our degrees right away
       -cuz we can! Yolo.
      The class time itself was brutally boring and long and I rather didn't like it. (Let's just say it wasn't rocket science. Or college level. Or even high school level.) Many things we learned were not so 'anatomy&physiology' stuff (which I thought it would be) and more just common sense stuff ("should you leave a patient alone on the toilet who can't walk on their own?" dur dur, i dunno.) But out of 23 students, only 12 graduated. Pity.

        But it was the clinicals that really opened my eyes. We got to work alongside a CNA in a nursing home in Seattle for a 40-hour week. Some things were gross. changing old people diapers. Some things were fun. talking to residents about their memories and past. Some things were awkward. getting hit on by 85-year-olds. Some things were sad. resident with alzheimer's asking to see her deceased husband. But overall, it was a great experience. I learned a lot about the job and about myself during that week. It's a very exhausting, hands-on job that requires patience and kindness always. Which I didn't know I was capable outside of family and friends. I always had low patience with previous jobs and didn't honestly care about the customers. But it was much more rewarding than some of my previous jobs selling shoes or making burritos. I felt like I was making a difference in the world. I would be willing to try and work in a nursing home again in the future if the opportunity came.
   I also somehow stumbled upon one career I think I might like that is actually in my degree, health education. Not in a school, but rather in a hospital, doctor's office, or private business. Basically, they teach people about behaviors that promote wellness. I am looking forward to the coming semester to find out more about it and how I can prepare myself.


Okay, deep Yoda-Morgan is done.


I am excited to go back to school and back to our closet-apartment. I kind of missed it! I'm interested to see how my classes will play out because I'm finished with foundations classes and only have major classes now. And I can't wait to see lots of friends and eat Thor's ice cream! (I've missed that wonderful place) And fall is pretty much my favorite semester. Lots of holidays, lots to do cuz it's not butt-cold yet, and pumpkin-flavored everything! And I'm glad summer is coming to an end, so I can stop working on my summer swimsuit body and start working on my fall sweater body.


xo

I am

1. I am a bipolar hair-doer. Somedays its "let's just throw this wad of wet hair up on top of my head" and others it's "I just can't get this bouffant to look perfecttt."Not much in between, though. Here is a picture of a bouffant. If you were wondering.

2. I am a loud-laugher.

3. I am my biggest critic. Derek always has to help me through that one with some sweet words of affirmation.

4. I am able to see the big picture (most of the time). I am not one for frivolous spending on cruises (because I know one day we will end up in a cellar-of-an-apartment eating only flour and water if we go beserk with $$$) or starting a fight with a roommate the week before a semester ends (because we probably won't see each other again anyways if they've been bugging me for that long).

5. I am a procrastinator. Is there a procrastinators anonymous? Cuz I need to go. Later. (hah.)

6. I am a big sister. Over the years I have learned to take that role more seriously and am more conscious of the example I set and am very protective.

7. I am a firm believer in alone time. And bubble bear ice cream from Thor's. And watching Pride and Prejudice an embarrassing number of times.

8. I am conditionally sensitive. Most things people say don't bother me, but every once in a while a little tiny thing will sting pretty bad.

9. I am a non-destructive addict. Nooohoo thanks to alcohol or drugs. Sour Twizzlers, however- is my poison. It changes after I fully feed that addiction for a month or so. I get sick of it and move on to something else. Like sushi. And then Pringles. And then garlic fries.

10. I am an ugly crier. And I try not to cry too much, but when I do, oh heavens! It's like I've kept in all these things I've wanted to cry about for years and I'm just like "Well, I'm here anyways!" I will cry about how I failed a spelling test in 4th grade, and how the mom dies in 'Bambi', and how I got made fun of in elementary school for wearing a 'Barney and friends' hairbow. It's a big scene.

11. I am a big fan of road trips with my hubby.

12. I am interested in the dumbest careers that I know will never happen for me. Like a roller coaster tester, ice cream flavor inventor, or member of Cirque Du Soleil.

13. I am a celebrator of small victories. Like that one time I got 100 on my math homework quiz today :). Or that time I didn't get the most expensive pencils and got the cheap ones instead. Or that time I didn't forget to shave my legs before church.

14. I am a temple-lover. It's the best part of my day.

15. I am a puppy-coveter. I want one. Like so so bad. Ugh. I just can't.

16. I am a huge planner. Like I need to know if all the lights are going to be green on my trip across the country before I even leave the house (metaphorically speaking). I need to know when my kids will arrive, what their favorite foods are, and what their struggles will be, so I can be already prepared to help. I need to know where we will live in a year from now (!!!) and what my job will be. I need to know how many grandchildren I will have so I know how many quilts to start making. It's quite exhausting.

17. I am a person with a very strong conscience. Like that one time when I was 5 and I told the babysitter I liked her cookies when I really didn't and cried myself to sleep because I am a wretched person for lying. That kind of conscience.

18. I am semi-motivated. One day I will be like "yeah! I'm gonna get my splits back and write in my journal and call grandma and color coordinate my closet and do indexing!" And 24 hours (or less) later, I will barely be able to get out of my pj's. I 'm trying to change that.

19. I am indecisive. If I can't even pick out what color socks I want to wear for the day, how the heck am I supposed to someday pick names for my children!

20. I am optimistic. For the most part. When my toast lands on the floor butter-side down, I remember that "heck, I don't even like butter."And proceed on my merry way :)

Lately 'round Here

Did you know that hitting 'shift-command-4' takes a screenshot of your computer? Well, I didn't. Even after having my computer for almost 4 years. Yeah. I'm dumb.

Sorry folks, finals come before blogging. Thus, the long wait between blog posts. Hopefully my grades will be good enough to make up for the lackage of blogage that's been occurring. Hopefully.

Things the end of semester 7 has taught me:

:: I cannot find my school-spirited water bottle anywhere! I keep that purple thing glued to my hand or backpack in order for optimum hydration throughout the day and I never leave it anywhere. At least, I don't think I do. But it's playing an extended game of hide-and-seek with me. And I'm losing. I pretty much gave up. And I checked on the new ones at the bookstore...twenty-freaking-smackeroos. No
-ho thanks. So I'm sipping water out of a teacup right now. Aren't I classy!

:: This video made me almost pee my pants. Those General Authorities are so awesome, and just as much so when they are talking about Reeses. The guy doing the voices should seriously audition for an animated movie.

:: I want this camera reallllly bad. Or any SLR camera. But we don't have that kind of money to spare currently. Or even ever. Hah. Heck, we almost didn't have enough quarters to finish our laundry last night. (Isn't it crazy to think that someday we will have a home that we don't have to pay to do laundry and ONLY our clothes will use it?! Whoa. Talk about luxury.)

:: Speaking of moneys, we are trying not to go to the grocery store anymore cuz there are only 2 weeks left in the semester. So what's the point in buying a gallon of milk thats just gonna get thrown out when we leave for home? None. So we are surviving on the trans-fatty goodness of Pringles and frozen chicken nugs. The best.

:: You know who else likes our Pringles? Ants. Nasty, gross, creepy-crawly, tiny ants. They just decided to arrive uninvited under our stove. And now I have to do a bare-foot awkward cha-cha to avoid stepping on one every time I want to get to the bedroom or the living room. Cuz who likes dead ant bits on their toes? Not me. Don't worry, I got a little 'Raid happy' the other day. So now it looks like an ant apocalyse aftermath on the floor. Until all the uncles come along for revenge. (hah. ants? uncles? get it? That joke always warrants an eye-roll from Derek.)

:: AC is overrated. Me n the hubs are chuggin' along jusss fine with our rotating tiny-breath-of-a-fan while 95% of the neighbors are livin' large with their noisy window AC units. Eh, who needs 'em. We can go to Olive Garden 3 more times than them with that saved moola. So hah. Better to have yummy noodles than cold air, in my opinion.

:: Now I understand why more people don't workout. It's rough sometimes. Especially when you don't see any results riiight NOW. (Yes, I am still continuing my semester-long workout regiment, thanks to a wonderful bestie, Mckenzie) But sometimes, I just don't wanna! I still go 99% of the time, but this week is finals time and school always comes first. I maybe kinda sorta enjoy the break from sit ups and squats. What? errr. I mean- I miss being in that hot sweaty gym with all the other meatheads!

:: Derek has gotten me excited about Dobermans. I think it would be so cute to have a guard dog for myself and my babies when the time comes. It would be a new experience, considering my guard dog at home would just lick people to death. But a fluffy white ball of stupid cuteness isn't very intimidating in the first place.

:: Speaking of little fuzzies, me and Derek found a kitten under the cardboard recycling bin at Wal-mart as we were taking out our cardboard. Thank goodness we recycle! Long story short, the police came, probably thought we were the sappiest, stupidest couple (me, mostly), the Wal-mart manager was a cat whisperer fluent in several dialects of cat, some flat-billed hat strangers helped us use a car jack to lift the bin to get the kitten out, it peed on me, and it went home with a trusted friend. I wanted to keep it sooooo bad. Now, the only reason I go with Derek to the recycling bin is to see if there are any more baby animals in there.

:: Pepperjack mac n cheese. It's a flop. Especially when it calls for cooking the noodles in extremely salted water, adding sour cream, and adding chicken broth. Salty nastiness. I didn't even eat more than 2 noodles. Derek was a champ as usual and had a bowl despite my attempts to stop him. We both had huge bowls of ice cream to wash it down with. Cooking. Sheesh. Who needs it.

:: I'm mad at the Bachelorette. They showed us clips from 'next week's episode' last week and it was super dramatic and led us on a bunch. This week, none of the clips were in it, none of the quotes from people were in it, and it left us hanging on what the heck they were talking about when they meant 'next week'. Dumb reality t.v.

:: If you want your fill of cigarette-smoking moms squawking at their kids with tri-colored hair and 14-year olds with playboy bunny tramp stamps, then Rigby lake is theee place to go! However, the water was refreshing and cool in the 97 degree weather and me n' Kenz had a grand time trying not to step on anything gross and squishy at the bottom of the lake and chatting about people's swimsuit choices and temple marriage. It was grand :)

:: Thor's ice cream is my happy place. Quality ice cream for cheap price. (Their gummy bears in the ice cream are NOT even frozen hard! How do they do that?! Derek and I are convinced they put antifreeze in there.) My kind of business. I make up excuses to go there:
 "I did such a good job on my test today, I deserve some ice cream" 
"I did so bad on my test today I need some ice cream to cheer me up." 
"I didn't get Ben n' Jerry's at the store today. Let's get some ice cream to celebrate." 


Are we going there tonight for the 58th time in a row because it's just amazing? Maaaayybbeeee

:: Utah has stolen my heart. Derek and I went on a mini-vacay for the 4th of July and it was magical. Loved: seeing family, going to Seven Peaks, being in the food Mecca of the west (Chili's was right next to Olive Garden, which was right next to In-n-Out burgers, which was next to Panda Express, which was next to Golden Corral, which was next to....), watching fireworks, going on a hike, hustlin' my husband by faking a lack of air hockey skills, watching movies, having girl time at Target and finding various items on sale ($1 sunglasses? SOLD!), getting sno cones, and just bein' carefree! And the mountains so close are gorgeous. I told Derek I want to live in Utah or a place just like it with mountains towering above you right in front of your face (unlike in Idaho, "see them mout'ns waay over thar?"). Plus, they have Chipotle. Which pretty much could make me move to Djbouti if they had them there.

:: I miss my sisters. Raegan is such a 10-year-old hoot. She is so full of energy and sass. I hope it never changes. And Maddie, hah. Oh Maddie. She has a funny sense of humor that makes you laugh your ugly laugh (you know the one) and you don't even care. (or maybe that's just me) And it's fun to see her entering her boy-interaction phase and be all awkward talking about it. I love it. Then there's Taylor-my other half! I swear we were meant to be twins (we look it sometimes) but I am just stubborn so I most likely pushed my way to the front of the family lineup in the pre-existence. Whoops. But I love asking and giving advice with her, talking about stupid things only we are think are funny, and reminiscing about our time-outs together and matching pink jelly sandals from childhood. Plus, she's a beaut. Which gives me hope for myself because we share some of the same genes. She's the smokin'-est person working the donut machine at Krispy Kreme. (Sorry boys, she's taken.) I can't wait to have her back at school with me! And Sophie, my other hairy sister. I love her to death too.

xo peace and blessin's

p.s. Sophie is a dog.

Ice Cream and Summertime

So I guess this is maybe turning into a monthly blog. I get around to blogging about once a month. Whoops, sorry everyone. I'll try and be better over the break. However, after I post a blog post of everything that's been going on in my life, I feel like there is nothing else left to say the next day or week or next week...until it's been a month. So, we'll see how that goes.

The weather here has been so nice! It finally feels like summer! Except for the fact that I'm still in school. But I don't have to wear a jacket anymore, yay! I have yet to go swimming in a river or the mini water park down the road, but it's on the agenda.

Speaking of school, me and D are very ready for school to be over. I'm not super liking my classes anymore, they just aren't interesting and a lot of it seems like busy work. We just passed midterms week, so we're making headway towards the 7-week break. Derek is pretty done with his physics class as well, I don't blame him. Only a month and a half left to go!

But, what has been helping to keep our spirits up these past few weeks is that...THE BACHELORETTE IS BACK! We (yes, we) watch it religiously and it's just so grand to make fun of those who need to come on a t.v. show to find love. Talk about desperate. More to come later as the season unfolds. (Ben is totally the new Tierra. Just saying. He's so "obenoxious". HAH.)

We've had some fun adventures the past few weekends, me and the hubby. A few weeks ago we went to Fall Creek Falls and got world-famous square ice-cream! It was so cool!

Oh, and remember that denim vest I tried (and failed) to bleach? This one I gave in and bought. Very good purchase, especially after my escapades of trying to DIY my own.

Also, a few weeks ago Derek and I volunteered at the Special Olympics in Idaho Falls. It was so fun and rewarding! We helped out with the cycling event and even though there was only 7 athletes, it was still so great. We guided the athletes where they were supposed to ride their bikes down the roads and cheered them on. They really seemed so happy and excited to participate in the races, the look on their faces said it all! I also got tons of hugs :) Such a great experience!


Then this past weekend, me and my workout buddy spontaneously decided to "Try a Tri". It was essentially a mini-triathlon where we swam 12 laps, biked 12 miles, and ran 3 miles. It was perfect for us, since there is no way in heck we could have done a full. The swimming was hardest, but glad to get it over with first. But once we finished with that portion, we weren't sure how we were going to make it through the rest of it because of how exhausted we were. But surprisingly we made it to the biking area and did our 12 miles. Surprisingly, my legs didn't hurt too bad, it was my rear-end that was killing me! Those dumb bike seats gave me bruises for days. I could have totally done longer if the seat was a couch or even a bean-bag chair. Props to hubby who handles those plywood seats like a champ each time he rides. New appreciation for butt cushioning gained. The last section was the run, but it was a walk for us, being the noobs we are to triathlons. It was midday and hot, which didn't help our exhaustion, either. But once we crossed the finish line, it was so great to have accomplished this new goal! And we got t-shirts! (That was one of the hardest earned t-shirts I've ever had, lemme tell ya.)

The last time Derek and I went to Winco, we decided to splurge and get a bag o' salmon (sounds legit, right?). It has turned out magically and we have rediscovered our love for fish! (and Derek can season salmon like nobody's business). He wants to take me fishing over the summer when we go home, I am looking forward to it, since I've never been before. However, we watched a youtube video on how to kill and gut a fish and it made me quite sad and I think I'll opt out of that part.

Speaking of summer, we decided we are going home for our 7 week break and going to get CNA (Certified Nurses Assistant) certified so we can have that under our belts for the future. Can't hurt, right? And it's only a night class during the week so we can explore Seattle and hang out with families during the day! Win-win situation! We are pretty excited. We have a long summer 2013 bucket list to complete, which I am very much looking forward to.

Have a great week! It's Tuesday, one day closer to Friday!

P.S. Tropical Skittles are the bomb.

P.P.S. Thor's Ice cream by Taco Bell in Rexburg is so good. And well priced too. I highly recommend it.

P.P.P.S. Selena Gomez new song (Slow Down) from her album is awesome. Miley Cyrus's not so much.

Random Happenings

Happy Mother's Day! To all the moms (mother, grandmother, mother-in-law,YW leaders, mentors, coaches, etc) in my life, I appreciate all you have done for me and am grateful for all the hard work you put in as a mother! I'm glad I have so many amazing women to look up to and be examples for when I am a mother someday.

My husband is the best. He made me wonderful blueberry pancakes for breakfast, gave me a decadent cupcake, and made delicious stroganoff for dindin! I am so blessed to have such a wonderful man in my life that treats me like a queen!

School is slowly chugging forward. My Program Planning class is really making me think ahead for what job options are available to me. Which kiiinda stresses me out sometimes. And the fact that the whole semester is one giant project doesn't help either.
 My Environmental Health class is interesting because we talk about things I've never super learned in depth about before, like asbestos, population growth, and birth defect drugs. However, the chapter we are on now is pests and it's kinda grossing me out learning about black widow spider bites and bed bugs. Gives me a little bit of the heebie jeebies.
My Biostats class is okay so far but the latest lesson I've been struggling with, which worries me since it's only week 3 of school. Bleh.
My volleyball class pleasantly surprised me, with dedicated players and willing teammates. It's pretty fun, and its 2 whole hours a day!
My Teachings of Living Prophets class is pretty boring, actually. With the class time and group discussions, we just discuss talks from Conference that we read for homework. Although, there is only so much you can say about them. ("Yeah, I loved that part about the story of the little boy...blahblahblah" "Oh I did too! So inspiring!" "Yeah, me too." "Sooo, next talk. I loved what he said about blahblahblah." "Me too!" "Yeah, me too." *sigh*) It gets old.
My online Community Health class isn't as bad as I thought. Just busywork and a waste of time in my opinion. But it's a required class. Ugh.

Can I just say I love rain and thunderstorms? Okay. I love rain and thunderstorms. When that little lightning bolt symbols comes up on the weather feed for the next few days, my heart does a little yippy skippy.

I am on my way to a healthier me! (And no, this was not instigated by bribery or a school project. Shocking, I know.) Me and one of my closest old roommates decided we are going to go to the workout gym everyday this semester (excluding weekends). And so far, so good! We are determined! It really helps to have a friend that can motivate you, cheer you on, and count on you to go to the gym. I really have stayed diligent because of her! Anytime I feel lazy and don't want to go I think of her all by herself in the stinky gym on the treadmill. So I end up going so we can be in the stinky gym on the treadmills together! haha. But really, it's been actually quite fun! Who knew! And because I am working so hard to get calories gone, I am more conscious of what I put in my body as well. Granted, I still have my Pringles, but I have a few instead of the whole can. :) And I'm slowly switching some foods healthier, like whole wheat carbs and fat free things (Fat free Pringles are delicious!). I'm also going to go a year without sugared drinks. Yahoo! I'm already addicted to sugar-free Crystal Light. If I'm working so hard to get rid of those bad foods, it'll be a whole heckuva lot easier to get that Jillian Michaels body if my diet is cooperative as well. I just need to work on the patience part. ("I've been dieting ALL DAY, why aren't I skinnier yet??") And I'm liking the being sore everyday feeling :)

So remember that one time I was all Crafty Cathy and bleached my own denim jacket? So I guess I got a little ahead of myself and wanted to make my own denim vest from a jacket. Psh, crazy, I know. So I purchased a lovely little denim jacket for $4 at DI and took it home to my laboratory. I cut the sleeves, frayed them with a knife, (Yeah, gettin' a little fancy up in here) and bleached it same way as the jacket. Well, one problem. The jacket wouldn't stay all the way in the water to soak evenly, so I set the bleach bottle on it so it stayed at the bottom of the tub. Well, needless to say, I didn't think that one through. And, well...

That happened. -___-

I tried to salvage it and maybe start a new trend ("Oh, the circle on my side? It's the trademark of this new store that nobody knows about. It's the hottest new thing, everyone has one.") But in the end, frustration got the best of me and I threw it out :( So now when I see girls on campus sporting perfectly bleached denim vests, I have a little vendetta against them. Granted, they most likely bought theirs, which is what I may end up doing. Now I know why more people don't attempt this. But have no fear, my crafting days are not over! I want to make the cutest quilt ever. But no sewing machine. Bleh.

Yesterday I tried something I've never done before. Shooting a real gun! It was so awesome. It made me want one of my own. Just a lil' one though. But it was cool having so much power in my hands!

I even had okay aim! I liked blowing up soda cans. I don't think I could ever shoot something living unless my life was on the line or something. On a happier note, it was a cloudy day and I underestimated the sun's rays peeking through and didn't wear sunscreen. Well, this shirt...

gave me the coolest tan lines! It kinda looks like a sunburned spiderweb or something haha. 

On that weird note, have a wonderful week and don't get sunburned! :)