The House Always Wins

My family has recently discovered a fun new game. Bananagrams. This game is seriously so much fun! Brian and Sarah told us that in their "house rules," if you can spell the word "sasquatch" you win. 

Sunday night, after our group sadly shrank, we decided to play another round or two of this fantastically fun game. We played on teams, Brian and Sarah, Mom and Molly, me and Dad. Well, it must have been Dad's lucky Father's Day! Check this out! We got all of the letters to spell "sasquatch" (except the C) right away!  

Thank you Bananagrams for making my family even more fun!

Lots of Love

My baby brother got married last Thursday and had a reception on Friday! All of our siblings came home with their own wee families to celebrate! It was a chaotic and fun whirlwind of a weekend. I have to say though, my brothers sure know how to pick 'em. I am so lucky to have the absolute BEST sister in laws a girl could ever wish for.

After the wedding and reception and opening presents, we took some much needed family pictures. We piled everyone on the front steps and took as many pictures as we could. Many thanks to our sweet neighbor Darlene for pushing the button and not dropping my camera! These just may be the best family pictures that we've had so far! And they are going to be the last ones we take of everyone together at this house. The realtor is coming on Thursday afternoon to take measurements so once we get rid of/stow things/finish making last minute repairs and finishing touches it will be ready to put on the market. This is really happening! Mom even found another house for us to go look at that will have PLENTY of room for everyone and our growing families to come stay at! There's even a huge backyard! Keep your fingers crossed! We're looking at that house on Thursday too!

Here are some of my favorites: (don't worry, there are plenty more)

A Good Giggle

Earlier tonight I went with my oldest brother to hang out at Barnes and Noble. We were on our way out when we passed by the "Humor" section. Boy-howdy there were some funny books. I found one in particular that I am planning on checking out of the library. It's called Sleepwalk with Me: and Other Painfully True Stories.

A Break

For over 2000 miles, my car ran perfectly. Not a hiccup. As soon as Breezi and I reach her house, and go out to eat, my car dies. It gave out in the parking lot of Max and Erma's. They make delicious burgers, just in case you were wondering.

AAA came and tried to get it started. The battery is fine. Either the starter or the neutral... something in the transmission is dead and or dying. The guy that came to tow my car was amazingly nice. AND he got it to start and showed me a sweet trick of how to get my car to start again if it acts up. The trick is great, but, I am going to go get this stinker of a car looked at and fixed tomorrow morning. I thought I would be home by now. Oh well. Luckily, I got stranded with wonderful people! Just look at these sweet nieces and nephews of mine!

Now I need to get pictures of my sweet brother and sister-in-law before I leave!

On Applesauce

Applesauce is a wonderful food. In fact, apples in general are terrific. I love them. When my mother was pregnant with me, something made it so that she couldn't eat raw apples anymore. It was most likely that no two people in the same family/body (odd) could like them that much at the same time. So I won. Sorry Mom.

Unfortunately, I did not win tonight. A few days ago, I opened a jar of applesauce. I ate some of it. As I was in the middle of my all work no sleep (except at inappropriate times of the day) week, I forgot to put the applesauce in the refrigerator.

Tonight I got hungry, as most people do. I am moving across the country in a few short weeks and I have been trying my very hardest not to buy more food. I spotted the jar of applesauce, I downed a big glug. It was delicious, and a little bit different tasting than usual. I didn't care. It was applesauce, and I was hungry. I thought it was a good solution to my problems. My insides beg to differ.

Never have I regretted eating applesauce so much in my life. Let's just say these aren't hunger pains that I am feeling. Quite the opposite.

The moral of this story: Always refrigerate your applesauce, and keep air freshener handy.

Road Trippin'

My life would not be complete without change. And I'm not talkin' I finally did my eyebrows this month." I mean moving across the country change. Granted, this time I am moving back to something I know and love, but, I have never moved via ROAD TRIP! Exciting!

One of my dear sister-in-laws, Breezi the Great, is coming out here in a few weeks to drive with me! It's going to be so much stinking fun! And stinking is just an expression, we won't actually stink too badly.
Louise might though. She has been known to toot... She will be given a mild sedative that I will obtain gratefully from my veterinarian, who is coincidentally the nicest vet I have ever met.

ANYWAY, adventures and pictures and stories will be had, taken, and told! Get excited!

Cactus Update

So I have an update on the cactus. It's alive! Brian told me that my little cactus buddy was still alive! Thank goodness for brothers that know whether or not a plant is alive. Obviously I do not.

Here are a couple pictures of the little guy. He is struggling, but alive. Phew!                                    

Yes, it is in a water bottle. And yes, I did label it.

(beware: this cactus will poke you in the bum if you get too close)

And Then...

Yup. And then after I'm home, I will get my hiney over to Columbus.

Hazzah!

Spinster-Hood

Here it goes. I have been thinking a lot about life and what I can do in the world that would be of some good, you know, the kind of thing that improves the quality of life for others. I want to make a difference. Seriously, I have given this a lot of thought. And I know that if I stuck with shoe design I could be happy, but let's face it, as wonderful as beautiful shoes are, they don't make a difference in the long run. (Just so you are aware, that is a painful thing for me to admit.)

Anyway, I was talking with my mom the other night and I'm not entirely how we got onto the topic, but I started ranting about how I felt like so many women did not understand that they could do so much with their lives, and that even in today's society, women are still under appreciated. She told me to get down off of my soap-box because she didn't need to be convinced. But it made me realize that this was something that I was passionate about. My mom suggested that I look into Women's Studies. Now. This is something that my mother would never bring up without some provocation or prompting. I talked to her today, and she has no idea why she said it, or how she came up with the idea. Anyway, BYU has a Women's Studies minor, and I have been looking at everything that I can get my little hands on. And I am hooked. Completely hooked. I talked to an advisor in the Women's Studies department and it just made me wish that I had done this all along.

Anyone that knows me knows that I don't generally have good feelings toward school and learning. But, now, I have found something that I am genuinely excited about. I just want to dive right in and soak it all up! All day today I was just bubbling over with excitement, it was hard to think about anything else!

So here is the plan for my bachelors degree: BFA in Studio Art, and a minor in Women's Studies.
Tentative plan for my masters: MFA in Studio Art, and either an emphasis in Women's Studies or a second masters degree. (This could possibly make my life miserable. But as long as I take classes that are relevant, I can always change my mind.)
And the grand possibility that is making my head spin like a top: a PhD in Women's Studies.

Ah! But ahhhh! Wouldn't it be so mind-blowingly amazing if I was a professor in both Art and Women's Studies! Hah! Yes! Yes it would! And that's what I'm going for. And I am really happy about this prospect. Really happy.

I am going to be an awesome professor. I can feel it in my bones.

I know that some may fear that I will end up being a spinster. But don't worry, if that's what happens, I will be a cool spinster. Never fear. I'll get a dog.

And contrary to whatever your beliefs about extreme feminist ideals, I don't hate men. I am quite a fan of them. I still want to get married and be a mother. In all honesty, I do. But, because of who I am, I think this could make me be able to do those things better.

P.S. I've been reading a bunch of stuff by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. She is a feminist writer, and it isn't what I had expected. She writes about things that are sensible. Her writings, from what I have read so far, are focused on how women should be respected as people. Pretty smart, huh. I really like her short stories The Yellow Wallpaper and If I Were a Man. I love the ending of If I Were a Man. I would definitely recommend reading these stories.

So, So, I Lied...

In my sincerest of voices, I apologize. To you. And you.

I have come to the realization that, as excruciatingly fun it would be, it is futile for me to stay in little Provo for spring and summer. I wanted to stay, but I just can't. Sad.

My baby heart is not that happy. But, I won't lie again, I am kind of happy.

I miss my family, minus Brian, because he lives 2 blocks away. (I like that.)

The east coast is FAR superior. If you go, you will understand.

There is no conceivable way that I would be able to pay to live here all summer, take classes, eat, and still be able to afford to be here in the Fall. I'd like to graduate. Not gonna lie.

It's always good to get away from wherever you happen to be stuck. Mostly because when you end up going back to where you were stuck, you don't feel so stuck anymore. And I feel a little bit stuck right now.

But, in a desperate attempt to stay in contact with people that suck at keeping in touch with their nearest and dearest as I do, I am going to reactivate my Facebook. But ONLY for the summer. Got it? Good.

Plus, I have a phone, and I definitely know how to use it. Hopefully, my friends, so do y'all.

Maybe I can convince my parents that it is alright if they move, and I can bring home a puppy for them to love while I am home, and then they won't miss me so much when I'm gone. Because, let's face it, puppies are pretty dang awesome. So are old dogs. Canines. They're great!
And so, I will be able to watch fireworks from the Pagoda on the 4th of July. And my daddy will let me drive. Hazzah!

I'm Back...

I'm back in Provo. And I'm not gonna lie, I was not excited to be back. And I am still not excited to be back. I am, however, excited to leave after April! Sweet Freedom, come to me!

I made a New Year's resolution. I am going to try to be nice. Honestly I am. I'm trying not to make little snide remarks about other people, or gossip, or blah blah blah. Either way, I'm trying to be nicer. But really, it wasn't just because it was a new year, I just feel like it would be a good thing to do. And let me tell you, it's definitely easier to say that I'm going to be nice than actually BE nice.

It seems like as soon as I started trying harder to have good feelings toward others, I just have worse feelings towards some of them. Like, today, for instance, I walked into a room, and it felt like all of the good that was inside of me, left. And I was just standing there, quivering with anger, or loathing, that's probably too strong of a word... But, you get the gist, right? In some cases though, it has become easier to be nicer. I was very surprised. Very. Very, very, surprised.

I knew that this was going to be hard for me because I have tried to do it before. And, obviously it was hard, because, here I am again. A little meany out trying to be a goody. Bah. Cross your fingers for me, eh.

I have devised a plan to keep my sanity. I will be studying at the Provo library from now on. Okay, not Mondays or Tuesdays, but the rest of the week is all about the library. From 5 pm to 9 pm, I'm there.

I am really glad that I got to see my family over Christmas. They brought me back from my world of bad smells and imminent and impending doom. I wish I could have all of them here with me. I don't know what I would do without my family. They're all pretty awesome. Personally, I think that they're the bees-knees. Yeah.

Things That I Have Learned

I am now twenty-one, and I am obviously much wiser than I have ever before been.

And so, I have learned a few things on my way to this ripe old age.

1. I have zero balance and I generally bruise when I fall on... anything. As evidenced by my birthday present to myself, a fall down icy stairs and a gigantic bruise on my "whosiwhatsit". I'm putting a picture of it on here, but I will place it at the very end... just in case you don't really want to see it. But let me just say, it's amazing!

2. I have a very short attention span/tolerance for math, and for things and people that I don't like. However, I am determined to make it through and conquer College Algebra. And my other classes. Or else, this will most likely be my last semester in college for a while.

3. I hate smelly people, smelly rooms, smelly shoes, smelly anything smelly. (Smelly in the "oh my gosh, I think I might puke my guts out that smells so bad, and look my skin just crawled off of my body" bad smelly smells. Of course, I might be exaggerating a bit)

4. I am not very organized. But I am currently trying to overcome that. I'm trying very hard.

5. I do NOT wake up until I have had 8 hours of sleep. Don't be fooled if I'm talking to you while I am asleep, because I do do that. As such, I will be going to sleep early. At 11 pm MST. I want to function like a human being. And so I will.

6. Voting is important. Period.

7. My family loves me, quirks and all.

8. I love them, more quirks and all. LOVE!

9. I am happiest when I am doing what I am meant to be doing.

10. The gospel is an essential part of my life, and I love it.

11. I have learned most things the HARD way. Someday, hopefully, I will learn something the easy way.

12. I don't think the way most other people do. It's frustrating sometimes.

13. It's irksome when one person constantly tells you "you're weird, and I don't know how we're friends! But we are!" Personally, that doesn't sound very nice, or friendly. I mean, once in a blue moon, okay. But all of the time. It gets to be a little much. I might think things like that, but I don't say it out loud to them. Geez Louise.

14. I forgot what else I was going to write. So. Beware the picture below....

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