Maddie

Full Time Fun

2012-01-06T01:15:00.000-07:00

My second home. Sometimes first.

I love my job, and I love event planning -- but sometimes when event time comes around...

...this is lunch. And days are crazy.

But hey, you'll never catch me complaining about chocolate on chocolate.

Sometimes I pinch myself to see if I'm really getting paid to plan events. Best job ever.

Except when I come home and plan my own wedding, part of me feels like I'm still getting paid.

Nope.

You've probably heard...

2011-12-27T00:10:00.002-07:00

...but it's exciting enough to say it again.

I'm going to marry him!

Then we'll have the same initials. That will be fun.

Saturday I played with penguins.

2011-12-13T23:15:00.007-07:00

See that necklace-lanyard-badge of a ticket?

That baby gave me direct access to feed my love for penguins.

(Not to feed the penguins. That's not allowed.)

This family came with Michael and me to spend some quality time with the birds.

Jaren and Lydia were told multiple times that if you are loud or you move a lot,

you have to leave.

They sat wide-eyed and dead still the entire time.

But... they still said they loved it :)

And how could you not! Look at this little guy.

The eleven penguins at the Sandy Aquarium have their own names and personalities.

And their own mate. Except for Ghost Rider. None of the other penguins really like him?

He was kind of a bully. But I thought he was cool.

Lydia got a little freaked out when he came over to nibble on shoe laces.

You can't touch the penguins, but they can touch you.

Jenny had a dream that I put fish oil in my shoes before the aquarium,

and the penguins attacked my feet.

Wasn't a bad idea, really.

This man knew everything about those little guys.

Best job ever, right?

Except for the smell, the 40-degree water, the "bruises the exact shape as their fins" (true story),

the bites from serrated beaks, and cleaning up poop.

Almost the best job ever.

Here's a little sample of the experience:

Such a blast. Throw in lunch at IKEA and putting up a Christmas tree that night,

and life is seriously, seriously good.

Dream Come True

2011-12-09T00:17:00.001-07:00

This will be me on Saturday.

I really did buy a Groupon to meet penguins.

And I am so, so (ridiculously) excited about it.

The Big Easy

2011-11-21T21:27:00.003-07:00

There was a day in July when I mourned the end of field trips.

...but that was before I had ever experienced a business trip.

A little more work, a little less bus -- but still, good deal.

Enter New Orleans.

Last week I headed down to the Big Easy for an education conference.

Dirty city, good food.

Here's the famous Bourbon street, with golden boy dancing for all the drunk people.

I think he made more money than I did that day? But it's cool, I can't dance like he can.

He does have the benefit of being black, though.

We watched another group of street performers in front of this cathedral.

They were hilarious and filled with racial comments that white people could never get away with.

That night we headed to Mulate's for some southern Louisiana cooking.

There was a sweet old man almost half my height that danced every dance that night.

He asked me to do a little country swing number. I was honored.

I found out his name is Bill, he travels around with the band and dances every song,

and after our duet he gave me a little certificate that said I was an "official Cajun dancer."

Even dirty, smokey cities have cute, old Bills.

Over the week I ate (or was talked into eating):

Alligator gumbo, barbecued oysters, fried calamari, Louisiana redfish,

crawfish stew, jambalaya, red beans and rice, bread pudding, dirty rice...

...and beignets from the famous Cafe' Du Monde!

I've been craving one of these since I saw the Princess and the Frog,

and I didn't even know what they really were until I ordered one.

Deep fried dough loaded with powdered sugar.

Yum.

Deep fried (almost anything) loaded with powdered sugar.

Yum.

We ate that healthy (right?) snack while walking along the Mississippi River,

and listening to steamboats play music.

I wanted to be Tom Sawyer.

Ok, maybe Becky Thatcher.

And that was my week of southern hospitality.

Plus, #38. And counting.

Easy as 1, 2, ......3?

2011-11-11T11:26:00.003-07:00

Last night I caught the Michigan GOP Presidential Debate that I missed earlier this week.

Then I threw up.

Flu? Probably. Or maybe my interest in current events doesn't keep politics from making me literally sick sometimes.

You should still watch this though...I don't think it's contagious.

Let's Go Fly...

2011-11-05T13:36:00.001-06:00

Two things always happen when I drive past the Point of the Mountain.

First, my cell phone calls drop. Always.

Do you think they mess with signals around the prison? I could be persuaded to believe that.

And second, I see people flying.

Paragliders of all colors soar around the mountain and give me air cravings.

Recently my friend said she was getting a group together to go experience this driving distraction firsthand.

Had to go!

Michael & I went for his birthday -- unfortunately we had very different experiences, and his was not the better one.

Take-off fail = Birthday present fail.

But he lived to tell the story (of how he and his guide bounced down half the mountain in their attempt to fly),

and he's up for trying it again.

My guide had me climb the top half of the mountain and chase down some better wind.

Thank you, Mr. Guide. I'm all for skipping the bounce experience.

We climbed up the ridge of the mountain, then took off from a steep incline.

He had me stand in front of him, told me I would be jerked backwards, then to sit back. I figured he gave me that instruction as a prep, but he was talking real time.

Before I had even imagined worse-case scenarios, we were flying!

He taught me how to pull the canopy and maneuver the turns. Then he took over to do some fancy 360s and other tricks I could have enjoyed forever. It was like a roller coaster with no rickety track or jerking head.

Bliss.

I risked the life of my phone to capture it all on video,

so be grateful!

Warning: May cause dizziness.

Good night, October

2011-10-31T23:22:00.000-06:00

I'm kind of a Halloween hater.

Strong disliker, at least. But I have to admit, this year was pretty good.

Maybe it's because I didn't go to a Haunted House...

Mostly I think it's because there are cute kids in my life.

Look how brutal pumpkin carving is:

The inside of a pumpkin is about the nastiest thing I've ever touched.

I could never take anatomy.

But look, he turned out pretty cute!

Halloween is a big big deal at my work. People went all out.

Or so I heard. I didn't see any of it because I was a blind mouse. Three of them, to be exact.

And that's my boss, the farmer's wife. With a real knife.

My eyes are closed in this picture? It just seemed like the right thing to do.

Here's my whole department, looking pretty dang good.

Everyone's cute families came at the end of the day to go trick-or-treating.

It was so fun to have Jenny and Jaren there!

Jaren had a refreshing way of labeling everyone.

"Hi, batman costume!"

Then we did a little more trick-or-treating in Lehi to top it all off.

Sugar highs are real, people.

And now, November!

I love the holidays way too much. Christmas music will be played tomorrow.

Then and Now

2011-10-05T22:43:00.000-06:00

I wish I knew how many hours it took to get this piece of paper!

Mmm, no I don't. It's probably better not to know.

It was a lot of hours. And dollars. And late nights. And projects. And tests.
And late nights.

But more than that, it was a lot of great classes, memorable professors, (43!) wonderful roommates...

and many much-needed naps in Memorial Hall of the Wilkinson Student Center.

That paper came from four great years.

Now I'm happily working at THIS place:

I'm an event planner there, which I love.

It's a great company, and I'm so grateful to work there!

I work with seriously talented (and happy) people.

Everyone sincerely enjoys what they do and believes in what we're working toward.

Bonus: the job is close to these cute kids,

so I'm still loving living with family!

Every morning after breakfast Jaren questions me.

J: "Where are you going?"

M: "To work!"

J: "Again??"

Moral of the story: no more asking me if I want to go to grad school, deal?

I just don't. Not now. Maybe later. Maybe not.

And I need you to be ok with that. I'm definitely ok with that :)

Auntie M

2011-10-03T23:25:00.000-06:00

I want to be a cool aunt.

There is no shame in pursuing that status.

It involves letting movies go past bedtime,

driving through those way fun car washes,

and letting my bed serve as an in-house trampoline.

So what happens when the cool aunt is in charge of making dinner?

Yep, cookies and milk.

Lydia can't contain her joy.

I assured Jenny that she could ignore nutritional norms when it involves my future kids.

Cookies are a great way to earn brownie points.

Forever.

2011-09-18T17:21:00.003-06:00

I love my family.

And that's all I wanted to say today.

Just Running Around.

2011-09-11T00:30:00.000-06:00

It's a good thing I love driving,

because that's pretty much all I do these days.

In the last three weeks, Saturn-Saturn has gone from:

Provo to Lehi to Salt Lake to Cedar to Provo to Lehi to Provo to Lehi to ...

you know. Lots of places.

But it's great, because my destinations always involve friends, family, or job interviews.

Kind of loving limbo.

And always loving grandma:

We stopped to visit her on our way down to Cedar today.

Cedar is just a two-day stop on our way to DISNEYLAND!

Happiest place on earth, right?

(Even if you get there with all eight Miners in one car? We'll find out.)

I've been trying to get Jaren excited about his glorious near future...

M: "There are these teacups, and you sit in them and spin fast, and it's really fun!"

J: "You sit in...cups?"

M: "Um, yeah, big cups. It's cool!"

J: "And what makes them...spin?"

M: "Um, you turn a wheel thing. It's cool!"

J: Skeptical look of a four-year-old.

I gave up and let YouTube convey the coolness of spinning teacups.

I probably could have picked a more exciting ride to describe.

Doesn't matter. Two days and he'll see it all for himself!

The Sunny State and Hoosiers

2011-08-31T20:50:00.000-06:00

Look at this beautiful sunset!

And then look at these beautiful people.

After Boston I met up with the Daetwylers in Florida for some beach time! It was the perfect setting to catch up on all the country music I missed out on this summer -- definite beach theme going on there.

Good people, good food, good beaches ... bad sunburn.

Just add aloe into the equation and life is great!

Michael's dad is the captain of this sweet boat, but the wind didn't cooperate too much.

All the grandkids didn't mind though, it still made a great stationary pirate ship for them.

And look! Wild dolphins! I've only seen the SeaWorld kind.

These were way better.

They didn't want to have much to do with us when we got in the water,

but it was so fun to watch them swim and play.

We also saw a (small) shark, an alligator, and plenty of jellyfish.

We didn't try to play with those.

But in Nashville we ate some fried alligator tail. That's even cooler than seeing one, right?

(I'm not going to tell you what it tasted like because you have to try it,

but if you're guessing it's like chicken you may very possibly be right.)

We stopped to walk around the Opryland Hotel, it was incredible.

I've never seen so many beautiful plants in one place!

From there we drove the rest of the way to the famous Evansville, Indiana.

It's famous to me just because Michael has been defending it to me for the past year --

I had no mental picture of Indiana before I met him. Then when I finally decided on prairies

fields and fields and fields, he got pretty defensive.

Now I have to admit I was wrong.

It's green and beautiful and full of fireflies, but it could use some mountains.

(I can't admit total defeat or Michael will just run with that.)

We visited a neighbor's farm to get the whole Indiana experience --

or maybe just to see lots of fun animals.

Miss Ella found a pony just her size!

I'm sure she wanted to take that home to Japan with her.

Cows are my favorite.

You just look into their eyes and they're nothing but pure.

Not stupid, just pure. Don't confuse the two.

Maybe milking goats isn't actually a typical Hoosier thing,

but it was definitely fun.

And so was this.

That little white stream is exactly what you think it is.

Florida and Indiana and the road trip between was such a great time.

The Daetwylers were so nice to let me join them!

And I can't think of a better way to put off the dreaded job search.

But now I'm home, and I'll grow up ... kind of.

Creativity in a Bottle

2011-08-27T21:23:00.001-06:00

Sorry my blog took some time off.

I'm still taking some, but my blog is back in business.

I've been running around BostonNewHampshireFloridaAlabamaTennesseeKentuckyIndianaUtah...

but I'm back now.

I'll tell you more soon.

Possibly the tomorrow kind of soon.

But for now, you just get this playdough hint of what I found in Florida.

It's kind of a big hint.

(For the record, that is a smiling dolphin. Jaren kept calling it evil,

so I don't want anyone else getting that very wrong impression.)

Back to Beantown

2011-08-12T23:33:00.002-06:00

Left DC with these on my lap. Naturally.

Got to Boston and picked up Al's. Naturally.

But yes, I do love my sister much, much more than cupcakes and sandwiches.

So this pic captures the best of Boston :)

And miss Rachel came along!

I'm so glad she did. Except we took her to the beach in New Hampshire our first day,

and sent her home with a sunburn that committed us both to never getting a sunburn again.

For real this time.

Look at beautiful Boston! This is a view from a Duck Tour...

...driven by yours truly! I'm not even ashamed of how excited I look about it.

The Duck Tour boats go straight from the road, to the water, back to the road.

Incredible.

I really do promise this isn't turning into a food blog...

but we had to take part in the Cannoli battle in Boston.

Mike's Pastry vs. Modern Pastry!

Just get both.

This was Rachel's first time to Boston, so she needed the Freedom Trail experience.

I love the old cemeteries in the middle of downtown.

On Sunday we walked around Harvard after church.

We're thinking these steps had something to do with Legally Blonde?

Mt. Auburn cemetery has a great view of Boston.

Stop noticing how sunburned we are.

We had a nice woman take a picture of us and Paul Revere,

but Paul Revere didn't make the shot.

He's there though. Picture him on a horse.

Beautiful Boston Common.

I'm sad the week is already over!

Wrapping Up Summer

2011-08-10T18:10:00.004-06:00

Last day of work!

Had to throw this up to prove I didn't just move to DC to play all summer.

I'm going to miss taking walks in DC, and constantly stumbling upon history.

The theater where Lincoln was assassinated is just a couple blocks away from my office.

And Lincoln himself (ok, the commemorative version) was just a couple blocks away from the Barlow.

I'm going to miss taking walks to his memorial and thinking about life on those steps.

That right there is my favorite spot in DC.

So long, July.

2011-07-31T22:42:00.000-06:00

Maddie meets August.

I wish I could tell you I was on the right.

Pretty sure I heard life plans are overrated, anyways.

Life on L Street

2011-07-25T21:52:00.000-06:00

These are my roommates.

Yep, all of them.

Ok, minus the missionaries & professor+spouse. But they're around a lot too.

I love them.

It (unexpectedly) hit me tonight, during our very entertaining Barlow Center variety show,

that these bright people are my last fellow BYU adventurers.

They'll go on adventuring. I will too. But I'm guessing we won't all live together again.

I had a roommate once that told me she felt like she went through life collecting people.

Every stage/semester/day of life brings you people to meet,

and learn about,

and love,

and usually miss.

But collecting them is always worth it.

It's kind of a snowball effect -- you just roll through life getting a bigger heart,

and a bigger list of people you love,

and a bigger list of people you want to catch up with,

and a bigger list of memories you laugh out loud about...

...I'd roll with these guys any day.

Clubbing.

2011-07-23T21:46:00.000-06:00

This weekend the PR girls of the Barlow paid a visit to the National Press Club.

On the left, the club member that put the tour together for us.

Next, Cardell & his wife. He teaches the political science classes at the Barlow this semester.

Then Haley & Janet, my PR friends.

Next to me is Sister Sowby, half of the wonderful missionary couple assigned to the Barlow Center here in DC.

And the far right is Gill, a former president of the press club who gave us the tour.

This is the view from the upper floor of the press club.

Recognize anything?

Two buildings away is the east side of the White House.

As Gill put it,

"The club is just a stone's throw from the White House. And we provide the stones."

I will forever love the love/hate relationship between media and, well, everything.

On the way home the Sowby's took us to the New York Ave Presbyterian Church,

and we saw an original draft of the Emancipation Proclamation.

It's hard for me to comprehend the reality of pieces of history.

But, you can't lie in church, so this is has to be the real deal.

Guess whose pew we are sitting in...

I'm just going to tell you. Abraham Lincoln's!

That's cool, right? He attended church here and sat on that very bench.

I'm glad Mormons aren't the only people that enjoy consistency in their meeting seating.

Pause.

2011-07-19T20:58:00.001-06:00

I love summer adventures.

D.C. has definitely been just that.

But this particular adventure has been a little tainted by my lack of post-summer plans.

When I packed up my all too familiar life in Provo,

I didn't really know why I was leaving.

I left this...

and found this...

I guess the loss is written on the wall - confidence.

But you know, as the end of the summer gets closer,

I'm realizing that the only worry going on here is too much freedom.

And there are a lot of people in this world I wouldn't share that complaint with.

***

So in three weeks, my life isn't on a schedule of four-month homes anymore.

No classes, no campus, no clear-cut days.

It sounds like a potential rough patch.

But, it doesn't have to be.

You don't always have to read the writing on the wall.

Sometimes you can just make your own.

Zero to Sixty

2011-07-18T21:32:00.002-06:00

I went HERE...

And rode THIS...

And I'm still happy about it.

That right there is Superman. The people just about to race down that drop are SO happy.

Especially the lucky two sitting in the front row.

I know this, because I was in that seat four times on Saturday.

Roller coasters and I have come a long way. I used to refuse to go on any ride with an incline past a 50-degree angle, and never even considered a ride that involved going upside down.

When you turn something upside down, the stuff inside falls out.

Basic gravity, right?

But then, one fateful day in 8th grade, we took a school trip to Lagoon (it's what fun is!).

I could go on an emotional tangent right now about how much I love Lagoon.

Let's just remember to talk about that later.

Back to the fateful day.
All my friends headed straight for Colossus long before I was mentally prepared.

I was terrified. Not only does the ride go upside down, but it goes upside down TWICE.

Who would build such a thing?

Well, whoever it was, they're a genius.

Thanks to pride and peer pressure, I conquered Colossus that day.

Then rode it again. And again. And again...

And now I have a constant roller coaster craving.

Six Flags America definitely satisfied it. For at least a week.

Dessert First

2011-07-15T23:50:00.000-06:00

Bless you, Twitter.

Every day the delicious bakeries and ice creameries of Georgetown tweet special "code words."

You walk in. You whisper said code word. You receive free deliciousness. You embrace the excess calories.

First stop today: Georgetown cupcakes, of TLC's "DC Cupcakes" fame.

"Chocolate mint crunch," Rachel whispered. Then Sarah. Then Amanda. Then Maddie. Then David.

I don't think businesses around here love the Barlow students too much.

Next stop: Good old Ben & Jerry's.

Walk in, pass the motion-sensored cow that moos, whisper "milk & cookies," leave with a very summery treat.

Sprinkles cupcakes. Stop #3. Don't judge us.

I'm in love with these cupcakes. True, true love.

It's time to leave DC before I officially turn this into a food blog.

To Do List

2011-07-14T21:58:00.000-06:00

West Virginia: #32

Here's what's left people:

That's why Ali and I hit the road when she visited over the fourth of July.

We drove 800 miles during two days of her four-day trip.

Had to check off North Carolina and West V! Both beautiful.

I'm addicted to road trips, and I'm not afraid to admit it.

This is called an Atlas. People used them before the GPS fad hit.

Ok, more than a fad.

And ok, sometimes we used a GPS. But not too much!

This picture would be a lot cooler if I wasn't cursed to miss every "Welcome to (insert state)" sign that we pass.

It's a problem.

But I have 18 more chances to fix it!

Well, ok, 17...I don't plan on road tripping to Hawaii.

My LAST Field Trip. Ever.

2011-07-12T19:57:00.001-06:00

Isn't that the saddest blog post title you have ever read?

The truth hit me hard when I started this post.

Our trip out to Harper's Ferry and Gettysburg last week really was my last field trip.

Ever.

Ok, as a student.

You get to go with your kids on fun field trips, right?

Enough sad stuff, look how much fun we had!

Harper's Ferry is beautiful. AND it's in West Virginia. State #32, people!

I recently learned that I need to hit all 50 before I turn 25,
because Ali is trying to hit 50 in the next 3 years.

I don't want to be left behind.

Just 18 to go...

Look how much fun they're having! We were incredibly jealous.

They're just tubing down the Potomac, then meeting up with the Shenandoah.

West Virginia is SO beautiful. I could live there.

We were wishing for our swimsuits...but this was almost as good.

Except for Jon and Sean. They needed the full experience.

This was right before they both surrendered and just got completely wet.

We made friends with a guy that was hanging out on a little island in the middle.

When I told him I was from Utah, he said, "Are you guys Mormons?

I mean...I can definitely tell those two out there are Mormons, but are the rest of you too?"

Then we laughed at Jon and Sean a little more.

I love how green it is, but is it worth the humidity?

Still deciding.

I like trains.

Miss Jacqui Bird! This is the Gettysburg Battlefield, full of monuments and history.

This picture is very appropriate because Jacqui's smart pretty head is also full of history.

And someday she will teach it.

Red barns.

On my church history trip last fall they taught me that red barns are red because they were painted with ox blood.

That was the cheapest color of paint to make. You painted yellow barns if you were rich.

I kind of wish I never learned that?

Blood is gross.

We climbed a tower. And this is what we saw.

I love mountains, don't get me wrong...but I love it here too.

This is Sean shooting a Canon. On a cannon.

And this. This is David Sentman's focused, focused face. Notice that he is about to finish that nugget.

One of forty that he finished that day.

Alex, on the left, challenged David to a nugget-eating contest.

David won.

I am still amazed.

And that, my friends, was my very last field trip.

Didn't even cross my mind during the day. It was too much fun.

I know I'll miss being a student in the fall when 92% of my friends are back on campus with backpacks and books and class schedules and...other student-ish things I won't have anymore.

But I'm excited for my next chapter. Whatever it is :)

Independence.

2011-07-10T22:18:00.003-06:00

America's birthday. In America's birthplace. WITH a sister.

Perfect, yes?

Two years ago we spent July 4th together in Boston. We kicked the day off by hearing a reading of the Declaration of Independence downtown.

Boston 2009 / DC 2011

So this year...we did it again! This time at the National Archives.

Then we hit up the parade down Constitution Ave, consisting of all things American.

It was pretty great. It was no Delta parade though -- nobody threw any candy?

Boston 2009 / DC 2011

Burgers on the 4th, definitely a must.

Last time, by the Charles River. This year, at the Chevy Chase chapel.

We walked around the International Folk Festival on the Mall for a while,

then staked out a spot for the fireworks show at the base of the Washington Monument.

Jo Dee Messina even sang to us while we played cards and waited for fireworks.

We thought we didn't know any of her songs. But then we knew them all.

Thank you, CMT.

Ali told me not to just smile for this picture.

Then we both automatically assumed this Washington-Monumental position and facial expression with no vocal communication.

I love having a sister.

DC 2009 / DC 2011

Sure do miss the rest of our family! It's been too long since I've had a Utah summer.

I'd be ok with a burger from Delta next year, I think.

The fourth of July has always been one of my favorite holidays. I'm really grateful I spent this one in the nation's capital and experienced the patriotism that's overflowing here.

Proud to be an American.

Midmorning Joy

2011-07-07T23:16:00.001-06:00

Soon I will tell you about my very patriotic Fourth of July,
complete with a sisterly visit and 800-mile weekend road trip.

Yeah, 800.

But right now, I just want you to know how much I love this:

That right there is 4.6 oz of pleasure.

Is it bad that I need a snack every 90-ish minutes at work?

This one usually gets the 11 a.m. slot. And I always sincerely look forward to it.

Georgetown Beauty

2011-07-01T09:28:00.000-06:00

I could live here.

And be very happy.

I think there is a direct correlation with your life satisfaction and the color of your door.

I'm looking into it.

Oops.

2011-06-29T19:23:00.003-06:00

This watermelon was meant for my dear dinner group.

But then it ~~got rabies~~ experienced fermentation.

Did you know that can happen? Me neither.

I decided against serving watermelon wine to my pure and sober friends.

Making My Mother Proud.

2011-06-27T16:46:00.002-06:00

I don't know how everything in DC is free, but that's pretty much true.

The Kennedy Center has a free concert EVERY day of the year at 6 pm. Even Christmas. That blows my mind.

It's just a short walk from the Barlow Center, so great. And if the walk isn't short enough for you, you can take the free shuttle there. Seriously, who pays for all this stuff? Ok in this case I'm going to guess the Kennedy's, but you get my point.

Remember these guys?

Ok Go! That's who came to play for the Kennedy Center's 14th birthday this week! They were so much fun to see, in case you can't already figure that out based on the large amounts of confetti in the picture below.

They were crazy. But cool. Not really crazy cool, though.

Another favorite freebie is just down the street: Sprinkles Cupcakes. You guys, so good.

I moved into the middle of a cupcake battle here in Georgetown, but didn't think anything of it because I've never even liked cupcakes. Then we found out that Sprinkles sends a code word out on Twitter every day, and if you go whisper it you get a free cupcake. Free! Even non-cupcake people can't pass that up.

So I went. And I love them. And I want them every day.

I hate that their advertising campaign totally worked on me.

This is also why none of us have chosen to weigh ourselves since we moved here. If calories are free, they don't really count, right?

Plus I just love the walk through Georgetown to get my cupcake fix -- we always see lots of free fireflies :)

Shady Squirrels

2011-06-26T21:36:00.003-06:00

People gave me a lot of cautionary advice before I moved to D.C. They said it's not the safest place.

So far the squirrels make me feel more threatened than anything.

I don't like that they're not afraid of me. See for yourself:

This little guy crossed a street and climbed 20 stairs to hang out with us.

I affectionately named him Petey. But I also stayed away from him, so maybe not so affectionately.

I thought all squirrels had rabies? No one believed me.

Summer is.

2011-06-24T23:44:00.000-06:00

I love Washington D.C.
I love its busy days and busy people.

But, it's still summer. And sometimes, summer just means simplicity.

Friday's simplicity meant resting up after sand volleyball with a Shake Shack shake and E.T. in the park.

And good friends.

Afterwards, I phoned home.

Summer is family too. Miss you and love you!

A Tuesday Morning

2011-06-24T23:28:00.001-06:00

Spent a morning at the neighbor's house.

They were very hospitable, aside from the multiple security checks.

We were there to welcome German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

We saw Hilary, Michelle, Joe...the whole gang.

The welcoming was a great experience, and definitely interesting -- it was the first State visit from a European official in Obama's administration.

Formalities are funny.

Maybe I misjudged May. MAYbe.

2011-05-31T22:38:00.003-06:00

You may remember how I feel about May.

I had my doubts again this year. May had a (typical) shaky start.

But I must say, the rest of the month sure did make up for it.

Why did I end up loving May? Let me just tell you.

REASON 1: Porta Parties.

You throw a mix on everyone's iPod, pick your preferred place, and dance. Our first one: the White House lawn. If Obama looked out his window, he had to have laughed.

Outside the White House - you just press play at the same time and you're good to go.

Jacqui! Sweetest girl ever.

And to make it all a little more perfect, it rained on us the whole way home. I suggest everyone walk down Pennsylvania Avenue in the rain with good friends and good songs. Preferably John Mayer.

Rooftops work just as well as White House lawns. Stay tuned for future locations.

REASON 2: The Temple

Third largest temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

Bryndee and I discovered we have the exact same dating life. Good thing I love her or else I might miss my sense of individuality.

REASON 3: Love.

We helped Noah sweep his girl off her feet last weekend. She came to visit and he decided it was time they got themselves engaged.

We set up floating lights all over the tidal basin between the Jefferson Memorial and Washington Monument, then set up flowers on a cute bench while the cute couple went out to dinner.

Jeanie had nooo idea. It was the best. Even when the homeless man came out of the bushes and scared us all, it was still the best. Even when mosquitos bit me a million times. Still the best.

Magic makers. She said yes.

Gotta be honest though, it did not all go as planned. We spaced a bottle opener. David said smashing bottles of sparkling cider on the ground works just as well as any bottle opener.

But...then this happened to his finger.

Love is pain.

It was disgusting, people. All the brave people that could handle blood quickly took care of the situation.

Lesson: Just bring a bottle opener.

REASON 4: Memorial Day

We kicked off Memorial Day weekend by going to THIS Memorial Day concert on Sunday night. It was extremely momentous because I saw my very first FIREFLY!

Fireflies are about 72% of the reason I moved to DC. I have never ever seen one, and I just want to catch some in a mason jar very, very badly.

I unintentionally tackled Jacqui when I saw the little guy because it was so exciting, but when I got to it I realized I didn't dare catch it. Even if a bug glows, it's still a gross bug. But brave bug people caught it and I just watched it glow for a while. They really do look electric! Better than I ever expected.

I will catch a jarful soon.

Summer starts when you bust out the watermelon. And apparently when temperatures reach 100 with 100% humidity.

The next day, Memorial Day, we went out to Arlington Cemetery for the memorial services.

Everyone got a flag, and a rose to place on a grave.

I gave mine to Edna. The name has a special place in my heart because of an Edna at Hebrew Rehab that I just loved.

Rumor had it that Obama wasn't coming to the service...

But then he did! I promise. But you have to just trust me because I could only take a picture from my phone, and you can't see him too well. I brought my camera, just no memory card.

That's ok though, it was just the first time in my life that I saw the President speak in person.

Dang it.

REASON 5: Old Town Alexandria.

Cutest place ever.

Perfect place for a Sunday walk.

I liked that they left the same year. I think that's a good deal.

They have old flags and new flags and cute doorsteps.

A trolley takes you to the boardwalk. What more do you need than trolleys and boardwalks?

You're right. Nothing.

Boats. I want to watch a sunset here.

REASON 6: Learning that you actually can lick your elbow.

That's all that needs to be said for that one.

REASON 7: Philly!

Funny tour guides with three-cornered hats.

Valley Forge

George Washington

Pierre, my french frog. Acorn hats look good on him.

Lib Bell

Signing the Constitution

Founding Fathers. Kind of creepy.

West Philadelphia. Where Will was born and raised. And on the playground spent most of his days.

Delaware River

See, May did a pretty good job of redeeming itself.

And I'm definitely stoked for June :)

I like dirt.

2011-05-23T21:10:00.000-06:00

Guys, I have a desk job.

I thought I loved desk jobs, because I had one in Provo. And I loved it.

But turns out that wasn't quite a real desk job. It was a... go to work for two hours, go to class, go back to work, go back to class, go play at work, go work at work kind of desk job.

Now I have a real, true, 9:00-5:30 desk job. It comes with its challenges.

That's why Elder and Sister Sowby thought we would be very excited to go to a Foggy Bottom service project.

Foggy Bottom is the name of the neighborhood I live in. It got its name from the way the river looks around here sometimes. (Foggy...on the bottom.)

So about 20 of us headed down the street, ready to ~~play in the mud~~ serve.

The project people were so surprised to see us all. They asked if they could help us with something, but we told them we were there to help them! They were so excited.

The picture above is our before picture. This is when the park and street still had lots and lots of leaves. And weeds. And trash. And a dead cat. (I wish I was making that up.)

Maybe you can't tell. But this is a plant with roots in a tennis ball. It was strange.

We threw it in front of a dog. It wouldn't play fetch.

And this, this is after. Forty bags of leaves and weeds and trash after. Noah looks beat in this picture, but don't let him fool you. He was singing Justin Bieber at the top of his lungs just moments before this pic. Plus dance moves.

There were other groups of BYU students with areas just like this all over the street. So many bags!

Luckily it was one of those other groups that found the sad, forgotten cat.

So gross.

The whole crew!

This is a cute news spread about the day, plus another article here for your reading pleasure.

What a good day.

No desks. Lots of dirt. AND they sent us each home with an azalea. Mine is still alive because last time I let a plant die, Michael and his green thumb judged me.

I should go water that...

Sisters M.

2011-05-13T19:30:00.001-06:00

There's a party going on right now.

A birthday party. I wish I was there!

Yesterday was my sister's big b-day, and I MISS her. We are just on the same wavelength, you know?

Ever since these days.

I think we bugged Logan sometimes. But we sure love him. (He loves us too.)

Ali never wanted a dog. Obviously we had different opinions on the subject.

But for most things, we're pretty much on the same page. She has ALWAYS set an example for me. And I'm always trying to follow that.

I know we're not twins or anything, but we have the same vibes. If one of us is ever feeling an unexplainable emotion, it's usually because the other one is feeling it then too.

I hope I don't throw up when she's pregnant.

I cannot explain to you how much I love my sister. We have the same random aspirations in life, and no one is more fun to check those off with than this girl.

For example, yelling off the Brooklyn Bridge just like (the beautiful) Jack and Spot Collins .

Or going to a Keith Urban concert just because.

Or touching all 50 states (getting there).

She moved out to the East Coast a few years ago because she's just fearless like that. And extremely cool. I love visiting her in Boston SO much. So much.

Who else would take a night tour of NYC in the rain with me, on the top level of a double-decker? We frequently find ourselves in random situations like that.

We have mastered the art of the self-timer.

And the art of ridiculous nicknames. And inside jokes.

Kookaburra.

(No one laughed but Ali. Don't feel bad.)

She's an (extremely) avid NBA fan. Particularly the Jazz, but...well, it was a rough year for Jazz fans. Celtics are up there too. I owe her all my basketball interest, she keeps me posted.

I also owe her my stick shift abilities. My dad gave me a good foundation, but she taught me how to shift and turn the steering wheel at the same time.

That's kind of essential.

Sometimes people tell us we look like twins. Other times people don't believe we're sisters. ?

I promise we are.

I love her because she will do illogical things with me. In fact, I think she is the person who taught me to do illogical things. Like, jump in the Atlantic ocean on New Year's Day.

It doesn't make sense to do that.

I loved doing it.

I love how open she is to traveling. I think I learned that from her, as well.

Spanish steps in Rome!

Venice! If you ever go backpacking, take her.

But if a bird poops on her again, don't laugh too hard. I mean, you can laugh later, but don't laugh right then.

It makes me sad that we went from sharing a room to living in different states, but we still talk just as much as we did then :)

Church in Rome! Just another area I've always looked up to Ali in -- she has such a strong testimony and dedication to the Church.

Like I said, take her backpacking. Some people just look at the Colosseum.

She has gladiator fights there.

(But it looks like I won.)

Easter Sunday in London! I love that she's always open to have an adventure with me.

Fourth of July in Boston. I lived with her that whole summer, and I loved it.

We were sisters, roommates, friends, coworkers...pretty much everything.

That's why I learned so much that summer!

She is one of the few people in my life that understands my love for driving.

She'll frequently take the long way home for me. It is definitely appreciated.

This is our future :) These lovely ladies are sisters, and residents at Hebrew Rehab (where we worked that summer).

She lets me wear her clothes. I miss that shirt.

This is right before she conquered a half-marathon in New Hampshire! I can honestly say she is my true source of inspiration in this area of life, too.

I read Harry Potter for two hours that day. She ran that whole time.

It blew my mind.

She is always open to a road trip (this may go back to the "willing to do illogical things" principle).

This was the Hill Cumorah pageant in New York a couple summers ago. We even slept in a car for it.

That's not really as adventurous as we thought it would be. Especially when you set the car alarm off at 6AM the next morning.

I prefer my cell phone alarm, thank you.

DC and my dad's photography skills. He sometimes chooses to not count, which is never helpful on bright days.

I love that my sister has the same family as I do. That might sound slightly ridiculous, but I really do appreciate that we love and understand the same people in a way that no one else does.

Ali always understands what I need. Like this day, she committed to being my personal photographer for as long as I wanted. She followed me around to find all my friends even though she had just sat through a long and boring ceremony.

I love my sister. Always have, always will.

Happy birthday, Ali!

Doing the DC Thing

2011-05-10T21:35:00.003-06:00

This is my neighbor. I walk by the place on my way to work every day. It's a good reminder that I did, in fact, move to DC without even coming to terms with that decision.

Look, there's my finger. It moved to DC, too.

I figure a walk to and from work every day gives me a pretty good chance of an Obama sighting. Only 49 more work days here to live that dream though (who's counting?).

Capitol. The front yard is infested with squirrels. Who knew?

I live in the Barlow Center, right in the Georgetown area, with almost 40 other BYU interns. We have ourselves a good time, probably no better times, though, than when we make our way to Target and watch our carts ride the cart escalator. Yeah, we're not in Utah anymore.

National Cathedral. Beautiful. It was weird being in a young church though. All my cathedral visits in London (like the time I managed to get lost in Westminster Abbey or learned that some cathedrals are a constant fire hazard) made me think that if you didn't build your cathedral by the year 1312-ish, you were out of luck. Apparently America wasn't letting that rule fly.

We didn't finish it until 1990. But it's done now, so you should come see it. Tell me when you're here and I'll buy you some Joe-Joe's. Don't tell Oreos.

To: Mom

2011-05-08T15:37:00.002-06:00

Happy Mother's Day, mom! I love you!

This sign was at the flower market at the National Cathedral yesterday. I wish my mom was there too! She loves flowers, and loves making things beautiful.

My mom is an amazing mother (and grandmother!). I have always appreciated the selfless way she serves not only her family, but everyone around her.

She's just so nice.

I sure miss her right now.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms in my life! I'm lucky to know quite a few amazing ladies :)

Love you Mom! Happy Mother's Day!

It happened.

2011-05-06T23:27:00.000-06:00

This happened two weeks ago...feels like two years ago? So much has happened since then! BUT it's momentous enough that I'm still doing a little recap.

(Andrew. Worked with him in Career Services. He has a great job lined up in Texas in November, so he's just gonna go kill some time in China at culinary school this summer...no big deal.)

My time as a BYU student is no more, people. Unless you count this summer in DC, but I feel kind of grown up out here. So...the statement stands.

(The roomie! Elise. She graduated in Advertising, so it was fun to walk together in the same commencement! She's headed to an internship in Chicago next month.)

This is Susan Walton, a professor I had for a lot of my PR classes. She's such a firecracker, I'm going to miss being in her classroom.

I was so happy to have my family there that day! Ali couldn't make it since Jerusalem is taking all of her vacation days this year, but I am totally supportive of that :)

Jenny was a wonderful photographer, as always. Allison even came all the way down from Seattle for the occasion! Or maybe she came for another friend's wedding. Hmm...

Gotta love Career Services. This office was a big and enjoyable part of my BYU experience! My boss, Monte, and coworkers Cody and Marsha made it such a fun place to work.

BYU was hard. In all sorts of ways. The first year hardest of all, though, and I'm glad I can see why I was supposed to go there now.

Ok. More recap on more life changes soon.

2011-04-20T16:08:00.001-06:00

“Pooh," Piglet whispered.

“Yes, Piglet?”

“Nothing," said Piglet, taking Pooh’s paw. “I just wanted to be sure of you.”

I'm so grateful for all the people I'm sure of.

BYU PR Program, Check!

2011-04-15T17:10:00.000-06:00

Based on the amount of hours I've spent with this group this semester, you could maybe call this a family picture.

Meet "Communicare: your healthcare communications resource."

(We did not intentionally cut Ben's daughter out of this picture. She's way too cute for that. It was an unfortunate accident.)

Jordan, Jenna, Maddie, Amie, Ben

Yes, we did have to make up little a team name for our capstone group. No, we did not make it up until the day before our presentation. Actually, a lot happened the day before the presentation. Probably a lot I shouldn't publish in the online world? Just know we are all immeasurably grateful for Jenna's ability to pull an all-nighter and STILL give a flawless presentation at 9 AM.

The capstone project of the public relations program at BYU involves getting a class client (sorry, can't tell you who, confidentiality laws...), splitting up into groups, then competing to develop a campaign that the client chooses to implement at the end of the semester.

I loved doing healthcare communications with these people. They are all so impressive, and we had way too much fun together throughout the semester. Thursday alone involved about 10 hours together plus every variety of junk food available. Did you know that pretzel M&Ms exist? They do. I even had that feeling moms always allude to, that if-you-eat-too-much-of-that-you'll-make-yourself-sick feeling. Kind of always thought they were bluffing?

This project marked the end of the PR program at BYU. I graduate next Friday, then move to DC at the end of April! My internship is technically my last requirement to graduate.

Stoked.

You should live here.

2011-03-31T19:21:00.000-06:00

Look, this kitchen is so cute. And it frequently has baked goods.

Living room. Also cute. Frequently has girls staying up way too late and laughing about who knows what doing homework.

So you should buy this contract. Preferably if you're single, female, and living in Provo.

Unfortunately, I think I just eliminated the vast majority of my readership. But at least now you can share in my stress :)

13.1

2011-03-21T10:09:00.002-06:00

Race Day. Have you been to Moab lately? The whole town is organic and made out of granola and mountain bikers. It made the whole experience feel just a little more hard core, even though we have a long way to go before we would qualify as a Moab-ite.

I haven't been there since we hiked arches when I was 13. I kind of just remember we went to buy ice cream after, but then my dad made us boycott it because all proceeds went to draining Lake Powell.

Anyways.

This is our before picture, somewhere during the time everyone waits for the shuttle and uses the bathroom a million times.

Kimberly's sisters came down with us and cheered us on. I love being around sisters even though it makes me miss mine. My parents met us in Moab, too. They got in that morning so I didn't see them before the race.

It was SO fun turning the last corner and seeing the finish line and my parents at the same time. I did a little dance for them. Then I kept running.

My Aunt Tanya ran it as well! She's a professional at this, I don't even know how many races she has done. It was so fun to see her there!

The race was great overall. Kimberly finished in two hours and I am SO proud of her!
Then she was there to cheer me on when I came in 30 minutes later :)

Kimberly and I are happy happy happy to be done with the training process. Now we get to choose how long we want to run instead of following a calendar. And I get to eat Reese's Eggs whenever I want.
Right?

Race experience made possible by:
Kindal's running mix, ibuprofen, Ali's coaching, the man who offered everyone beer at mile 6 (took the laugh, not the beer), Clif Shot energy gel at mile 8, the old women who played bongos at mile 9, Alma 30:44, my parents' cheering, and lots of grateful prayers for a body that can run if I teach it to.

Feels weird to have the race finished!
Now we're just ready to finish being sore :)

By Popular Demand

2011-03-15T22:00:00.001-06:00

And by popular, I mean Michael's.

This is the most vicious, terrifying harbor seal we could find on Google Images.

I guess it does add a little legitimacy to his story.

Seattle | Long Post, Long Time Coming

2011-03-15T01:35:00.003-06:00

I think Michael and I possibly drove farther than any other BYU students over Presidents' Day weekend. Maybe that's why I'm not blogging about it until now? A lot of homework time was sacrificed in the making of this trip.

Look, Idaho! And that, my friends, is the only picture of a "Welcome to (insert new, exciting state here)" sign that we got. BUT I added two to my list; this was my first time to Oregon and Washington. Northwest corner, check.

We drove up to visit Allison and her fiance, Adam. Even though we heard a lot about Adam last summer, we still wanted to check him out before she marries him in June.

We approve.

Adam is going to medical school in Seattle, and Allison moved there after Jerusalem. They were so nice to give us the grand tour of their city! We loved visiting them.

Seattle in one word: colorful. Interpret that as you will. Look, the city has trolls under bridges. Three Billy Goats Gruff style. We climbed it.

And picked its nose.

The market! Saturdays and markets are just meant to go together.

London taught me that.

Sometimes that lesson causes some sentimental Saturdays when I have no market access.

Pike Place Market. It's famous.

We watched a movie in 8th grade once to learn about being positive employees no matter where we worked.

The whole movie focused on Pike Place Market.

Must have been memorable because I don't know why I'm bringing that up.

They really do throw fish a lot.

This...is the gum wall.

I just really like it because every piece on that wall is not on the ground, and not on my shoe. They're also not under a desk in the library. I am very grateful for this wall.

Mmm, more markets. I wish I did my shopping here every week.

And I wish someone brought me these every week.

Flowers from a market, what's better than that?

Don't worry, that was hypothetical -- I know you won't be able to come up with anything.

They're getting married in DC on June 18th, people.

And I will be there! That's where I'm doing my internship to finish up school. Then after that I will ... oh wait. I have absolutely no plans after.

Let's not dwell on that.

I just liked this.

Don't tell Allison, but the REAL reason we went up to Seattle that weekend was for the Pacific Northwest Yo-Yo championship. Michael is obsessed.

Ok, that's not true. But we did spend two hours a few minutes being jealous of a lot of insanely talented yo-yoers. I felt like we discovered an entire hidden community. But then we saw other BYU sweatshirts and I realized that we didn't really discover anything - Mormons are all over free entertainment.

We rode a ferry out to Bainbridge Island one night. People can bring cars onto ferries. I tried not to think about that too much... but I feel like any boat with cars on it has a good chance of sinking.

Water robs me of my faith.

It was incredibly windy and enjoyable. The front of the ferry was almost too windy to handle. There were some small children that couldn't get enough of it, actually. I was convinced they were going to be blown off the boat.

Water, no faith, remember?

Michael has a rough past with the Puget Sound. I shouldn't tell you this because Allison has the copyright to the story, but he once faced a vicious harbor seal in those waters. He was just paddling along, then suddenly a growling seal emerged from the water and tried to climb onto his kayak. Somehow he managed to fight it off with his paddle, but once he pushed it back, his kayak flipped over.

I think he was a little nervous during the ferry ride, but it was good for him to get back to the scene of the incident. Closure.

See? Vicious.

We accomplished a lot over the weekend, including this ridiculously hard puzzle. Don't be fooled by the picture, in real life all of the pieces look pretty much identical.

Really, though.

See? It was hard. But we did it. For some reason we just couldn't leave Seattle without seeing the finished product.

And then ... we had to get in Saturn Saturn and drive home. Fourteen hours, again.

I thought I would finally experience the feeling of wanting a road trip to be over and actually get sick of driving.

Didn't happen.

If fourteen hours isn't my limit, I wonder what is? I need to find out...

Look, Washington is beautiful.

The entire weekend was sunny, the whole rain reputation must be a myth.

We spent all of Thursday in the car, played Friday, Saturday and Sunday, then drove...

and drove...

...home on Monday.

I. Love. Road Trips.

p.s. This is Oregon. We stopped at a lookout point because I had to touch it. Now it is officially counted on my list :)

Next weekend: Road trip to Moab! It's race time, people.

Here's to you, Jerry

2011-02-12T00:17:00.001-07:00

The Jazz just lost.

Lost to the Suns (better them than any other team ... except maybe the Celtics), and lost their longtime legacy.

The news of Jerry Sloan's resignation didn't really sink in for me until I watched the game tonight. I drove Jenny and her kids down to Cedar this weekend, and I'm glad I got to watch the game here. This is where I remember loving Jazz games with my mom, popping popcorn and watching Stockton and Malone read each other's minds. And Hornacek wear short shorts. We always popped popcorn. Could be the source of my addiction?

And Jerry Sloan was always there on the sideline. He started coaching the Jazz when I started, well, life. No denying 1988 was a good year. It felt so weird to watch the game tonight without him on the screen.

Nobody took his resignation harder than Ali, I love how much she loves him. She needs to come back home and draw the Jazz logo on our street in chalk again, like she did with her friends back when her team was in the playoffs with the Bulls.

I think people would still drive around it like they did then.

Here's my favorite article about Jerry from the Washington Post. So, all in all, emotional week ... but, go Jazz. :)

Enemies turned addictions:

2011-02-04T20:12:00.002-07:00

Running. Sometimes I still dread the getting-started part, but definitely addicted to the feeling you get once you're in your groove. Plus I love any chance I get to listen to Kindal's hand-picked running mix, while I run around in the SUU Track shirt she gave me. Basically, she's my sponsor. Thanks girl.

Garlic. Random, I know. But I used to avoid anything and everything that came into even minor contact with the stuff. Ever since my cooking class last semester, I have entered a mindset that everything I cook should have garlic added to it. Like I'm depriving (insert almost any creation from allrecipes.com here) of its full potential if I don't give it garlic.

Waking up before my alarm. This used to just seriously make me mad. I always felt like I had started the day as a victim of instant deprivation. But a week ago we heard a wonderful devotional from Elder Kikuchi that made me realize waking up too early is wonderful. He challenged us to wake up just 7 minutes earlier and read the Book of Mormon every day. Now when that happens, I just get excited :)

Road Trips. Oh wait ... I've always been addicted to those. Good thing I have two planned in February! Cedar with Jenny and her cute kids, then Seattle the next week! Thank you, Presidents, for giving us a Day. And thank you, Allison, for being in Seattle and letting me come visit you! SOON! Is it weird that I'm excited for 12 hours of driving?

Trying to Embrace Winter

2011-01-23T18:59:00.001-07:00

Friday was an adventure up at Aspen Grove. A randomly connected group of us went cross-country skiing, and I call it an adventure since most of us had never been before. And when I say randomly connected, I mean it. Ready, try to follow this: On the left is Neal, who went to Jerusalem with us this summer. His date is Grace (also Jeru) who is next to Michael's sister Rachel (Jeru again). Then Lauren (Jeru) with her date Dave, who is in my ward. Dave is roommates with Jordan, who is also Michael's friend from freshman year, who came on a date with Kimberly, my roommate. (Kimberly and Jordan: not pictured. They were too busy being good at cross-country skiing). Then Michael, and me, and Tyler, Rachel's date, who went to Jerusalem as well.

Did you follow that?

Cross-country skiing stole any sense of coordination I thought I had. The skis are super thin, and I never really did figure out the technique of slowing down or turning. You know that whole pizza thing they teach you in elementary school? It wasn't working too well. And sometimes when we went uphill I would go uncontrollably backwards. Michael would kindly stick his pole back and pull me the rest of the way. It was greatly appreciated.

We got the hang of it by the end, though. I even made it down the steepest part of the course without falling my last time around. I turned around to brag to Michael, but he was coming at me at full speed with no sign of stopping. We collided into a small mountain-ish pile of snow. Would've been a soft landing if Michael's ski wasn't between me and the ground. I'm so proud of my bruise though! It's all sorts of colors. Too bad it's not in an appropriate place for me to prove that to you. Just take my word for it.

I was so glad Kimberly came with us! These days I feel like I only see her when we're running or falling asleep, which means we don't get to catch up enough. I'm no conversationalist when we're making each other run mile after mile in Provo's freeeezing weather, and I make no sense when I'm tired. No sense at all.

On our way back to the car we stumbled upon a Youth Conference dance at one of the lodges. Kimberly and I limited ourselves to two songs, then we decided the leaders were onto us. We just couldn't pass by a perfectly good dance party, even though the average age was 14.

I guess the tables have turned -- the last dance I went to at Aspen Grove was with Ali and her roommates when I was still in high school. It was fun to tell the boys I danced with that I was still a senior when they would ask me what my major was. Maybe not as fun for them though.

Boston. Finally, Boston.

2011-01-20T23:03:00.008-07:00

I did actually make it to Beantown for New Year's...after failed attempt #4. The flight I was on that Wednesday night was canceled again, but not because of weather this time. Apparently Delta just could not find a pilot. There were a lot of people on my flight who had been waiting all week to get to Boston, so I felt bad for the nice Delta ladies that were taking the hit for it all. But still, missing pilot? They put all the passengers of my flight in a hotel for the night and made us a new flight for 6 am sharp Thursday morning. It was kind of fun. I jumped on my bed.

When I got into Boston I changed my flight so I could stay there until the last possible minute Monday night. Then we hit up some candle pin bowling! It's like real bowling, but much less satisfying. Even if you send your shotput-sized ball right down the middle, it might only knock down three of the ten straight sticks. Bogus.

The shoes are definitely the best part. I wanted to keep them. I would wear these regularly if they didn't live in Boston still.

I can't be in Boston too long without a sandwich at Al's, so we hit it up the very next day! Go there. Get a chicken salad sandwich. It's famous. It should be more famous.

This is outside the Garden right before our CELTICS game! Best Christmas present ever :) Thanks Ali! Ironically, they played the Hornets, so I've seen New Orleans play twice this year. And ironically, the Celtics lost...even though they've only done that three times at home. Well, four, after they play the Jazz tomorrow.

We had a little bit of time before the game so we hit up Modern Pastry for a Canoli. These things are growing on me. Then we buried my water bottle in the snow so we could have a drink out of it after the game. It brought back memories of when Ali would do that on campus my freshman year with egg nog. She's so resourceful.

The boys! Shaq is so big. SO big. We were pretty high up, but he still looked big. (Seriously, big). There were no uncooperative Hornets fans providing sideshows at this game. Ali and I danced our way onto the Jumbotron though! We weren't going to stop until it happened. Our neighbors were very supportive. "You go girls, get us on TV!"

After the game we went to look at the ice sculptures and skaters in Boston Common. The fireworks were beautiful! And Boston had record high temps for New Year's, it was just wonderful. I'm carrying the Celtics shirt I bought in this picture because stuffing it inside my coat only lasted for so long. If you do that, it falls out and then you step on it and wonder what crazy person left their shirt on the ground. Then a man behind you tells you that you dropped your shirt, and you realize that crazy person is you. Whoops.

We made it home in time to officially "stay in" for New Year's Eve, because years of experience has taught us that's the best way to do things. We grabbed Thai food on the way, then got our annual dance party started. Highlights included learning Jessie, Lisa, and Kelly's timeless music video routine in the emotional Saved by the Bell caffeine pills episode.

The real crazy people in this post, however, are these guys...These Bostonians are on the beach on New Year's Day, ready to take a dive into the Atlantic. Who would do that?

Actually, we couldn't resist. I mean, with record high temperatures, it was the year to do it right? So we jumped out of bed, bundled up, and drove to Castle Island. Here we are, ready for Atlantic Dive 1102! We were going for 2011. Rachel told us we did it right, but apparently all three of us are dyslexic.

It was fun watching each group run into the water together...fun because we were avoiding doing it ourselves :) Finally, we had to make our dash. ~~Weirdest~~ ~~Coldest Worst~~ Strangest feeling ever. Ali dove under and I knew I had to do it, even though all my survival instincts were against the idea. So I dove.

Then I lost my (well, Ali's) shoe. I remember thinking, "Dang, too bad her shoe is lost forever" because the alternative was going farther out to find the shoe. That didn't even cross my mind as an option because survival instincts were still my dominant thought process. But Ali kept a cooler head through it all and pulled me out to rescue my (her) shoe.

Surprisingly, when we got out, it wasn't even cold anymore. I'm going to attribute this to numbness. We walked the mile back to our car with just a towel, and it didn't even faze us. When I noticed my flip-flopped feet were going through snow and I wasn't even aware of it, I decided numbness was definitely happening.

We gradually added layers as we made our way to our car (oh the parking in Boston), and then I felt my toes again.

And then, just hours before my flight home, I had to go to Al's again. Oh man, I miss that place.

Other highlights: meeting Ali's cute residents at her new job, ice skating and watching all of Ali's highly-skilled spins, going to Church in Boston's new Stake Center, driving by the Harvard chapel that is still recovering from the fire, buying new running shoes to bribe myself to March 19, seeing the piles and piles of snow that stole half of my week, playing with Rachel again...OK that's going to have to be the end of the list, because it could go on for way too long.

Thanks for the fun week, Ali! I'll be back soon :)

Change of Plans

2010-12-29T12:16:00.002-07:00

You know that "travel nightmare" all over the news? It's real, people. One of my sources says 9,726 flights have been cancelled. Would've been 9,723 without my Boston attempts, so I'm kind of famous. That's Ali's house, which I should be at...so much snow that it turned blurry.

I had a wonderful week in Cedar, then flew out from Vegas. After my first flight was cancelled they gave me a layover in SLC. Then...cancelled again. Luckily this cute family lives close to there and rescued me :) And made multiple trips to the airport so I could be on standby for more unsuccessful flights. It was kind of fun to watch a bunch of people in Red Sox apparel getting frustrated.

So after another flight failure, we headed to the Hogle Zoo. I am in LOVE with zoos, even though this one didn't have penguins? But giraffes and elephants are also high on my list, so it was ok.

This turtle shell was way to appealing to pass up, but I don't think it was made for my size. It took some serious maneuvering to get in and out.

Jaren was way freaked out by all the animals, fake and real. I made him ride a fake tarantula, with him kicking and screaming through the whole event, and I don't think he has forgiven me quite yet.

We ate lunch with the giraffes! Because if you just hold out for a minute, you don't smell them anymore. I had flashbacks of my last trip to Hogle Zoo when one licked me. Then I had more sympathy for Jaren and his hesitant nature.

Logan was much more cooperative than Lydia. There's an infant-sized monkey shadow behind her, but she wasn't having it.

This was much more successful than the tarantula.

Prairie Dogs!

Then this morning I woke up to Jaren telling me that we needed to go outside real fast and build a snowman! I'm not on good terms with snow right now, but I swallowed my pride. First we built a snowman, but Jenny has far more advanced skills...she turned it into a bear. She even wanted to dye it brown and black, but we had limited resources.

Now we're heading up to SLC in an hour for attempt #4! If the snow on this end causes problems, I may possibly remove winter from the position of my second favorite season.

It's getting serious.

Um, what?

2010-12-18T22:10:00.000-07:00

So, I love my new roommate. Really I do. We were both (embarrassingly) terrified to meet each other at the beginning of this semester, but only great things have happened since. Can you blame us, though? I mean, there are A LOT of people at BYU. A lot of people.There are high risks.

But once I realized I was afraid of getting random roommates again, I knew I had to do it. Last chance, right? Enter Kimberly Bluth.

And now we're friends. I mean real friends, because she's the only person I know who loves Reese's as much as I do. Like, the dance-party-anytime, Office-on-Friday-afternoons-because-we-don't-have-a-TV, make-each-other-eat-baked-goods-so-we-don't-feel-guilty-eating-them-too, kind of friends. Oh, and apparently the trick-each-other-into-a-half-marathon kind of friends.

Shoot.

You need to watch that video, for a lot of reasons.
First, enjoy the beautiful Canyonlands.
Second, be inspired by Mayor Moab's tender words.
And third, feel the fear that fills you when you hear the man yelling at the runners, telling them that if they haven't gone to the bathroom they will no longer make it. Terrifying.

The Moab Marathon is a big deal. You have to enter a lottery to be able to run it. So one night Kimberly and I discussed our (slightly unrealistic and numerous?) New Year's Resolutions.

K: "I'm not gonna bake all the time anymore."
M: "Yeah, I'm going to bed before 12:00 next semester; scriptures in the morning, too."
K: "My room's going to stay clean. Really though."
M: "For sure, and I'm going to be as cool as Willow Smith."
K: "Definitely. And I'm going to be on time for church."
M: "I want to run more."
K: "Yeah, I want to run multiple times a week."
M: "Yeah, I need to do a 5k or something. 10k maybe."
K: "Yeah, we need to do a half-marathon!"
M: "Yeah!! Half-marathon!"

What?
Then we found the Moab Half-Marathon and saw that registration is a lottery. Sign up in November, find out December 10th if you're in. We totally fell for the buy-now, pay-later game. The process combined two of my innate issues -- my firm belief in fate, and my suppressed love of gambling (which has only expressed itself in arcades, thank you, but that alone has made me very aware of it).

We couldn't resist. Then I semi-forgot about it.

BUT December 10th did come. And we got it.

March 19th seems soooo dang close. Bring on the training :)

Oral History Project (a.k.a. Mad & Dad Interview)

2010-12-08T00:22:00.000-07:00

For Media History, I had an assignment to interview someone 60 or older who was involved with the media in their life.

I love my dad :)

Not that he's 60 or older. Oops.

Part of the assignment is posting the interview online. So that will be part of this post soon! The link has to be included with the assignment, so I did a little pre-posting to hold a place for my project.

Be excited. Be glad you're not transcribing it at 12:15 AM right now.

Know what else I get to do in Media History? Find Philo T. Farnsworth's grave (invented the TV -- he's a big deal) and take a picture by it. Did you know he was buried in Provo?

Did you know the Provo Cemetery has a State Street and a Center Street? Those are all the facts I'll throw at you for now.

Lost in Translation

2010-11-29T18:04:00.000-07:00

Ali and I got new phones while she was home for Thanksgiving. It had to be done then because she's insistent that we keep getting the same phone.

I guess talking on the phone is more fun when you know it's the exact same experience on both ends?

So this week the LG Vortex rocked our worlds. Now we have scriptures, Jazz scores, dad's frequent forwards, and a variety of other distractions at our fingertips.

(No I will not tell you which of those Apps we downloaded first - priorities are personal.)

The new features are great, it was the basics we had to turn to the manual for - like how to call someone, how to turn the phone off, etc. Remember land lines?

Anyway, favorite new-phone moment: Voice Texting. You speak into your phone, it writes your text for you, and sends it off. Perfect for when you're driving, or you hate your touch screen. Foolproof, right?

Wrong.

We practiced a little before dinner the other night. Ali held up her phone and said, "I'm ready to go, Mads."

But my phone got: "I'm a dumbass."

Guess we'll work on that.

All That Jazz

2010-11-26T23:44:00.001-07:00

The whole family was together this year for Thanksgiving.

It's been a while.

The inside jokes came back fast. So did the sharing of past embarrassing moments.

So did contention. What? Didn't say that. (We're happy, really. Lots of love.)

And definitely a lot of the love for the Jazz.

Yeah, we beat the Hornets. But we didn't get on the Jumbotron.

It was not for lack of trying.

The camera man was favoring cute kids and people with posters.

Our dance moves didn't cut it for him.

Alison was in her element. I think Michael and Rachel had fun at their first NBA game, but maybe our Jumbotron efforts embarrassed them?

My parents are never phased by us dancing in public places.

We got hot dogs, but I think that just made Ali miss Hot Rod Hundley?

Then a Hornets fan stole the show.

The Jazz Bear wanted to slide down the stairs on a sled, but the man refused to get out of the way.

Loser.

Then the timeout ended, and the Bear couldn't slide. The whole Delta Center (I will not conform to this Energy Solutions fad) booed him.

But then we cheered when ushers took him out.

But then he came back. We watched a mother give him a finger-pointing lecture.

I liked her.

The whole energy died in the place a little.

Loser.

But then, the Bear came back from behind (foreshadowing of the Jazz-Lakers game tonight),

grabbed the stubborn Hornet man's hat from behind, tied it to a balloon ... and let it fly.

The man was not happy.

He did not cheer up at all when the Bear came from behind again and shoved a cake in his face.

Yeah, the energy came back.

And yeah, he left.

And the Jazz? They didn't cheer him up at all either. 105-87, and we left happy.

Then we made it to Cedar in time to watch them play the Lakers tonight. You're welcome, Kobe.

The Irony

2010-11-18T13:35:00.000-07:00

I'm exhausted. It's only because I have to stay up tonight. Ok, GET to stay up tonight...

Harry Potter, people!

BUT, still...I go to bed after midnight every night. Every night, right? But if I am forced to stay up that late (which only happens on Harry Potter movie premier nights and New Year's Eve), I can't do it.

Last year Ali and I had to take a nap from 9:00 to 10:30 on New Year's Eve.

I haven't been asleep at 9:00 PM since then.

It makes no sense. No sense at all.

Hurry, Boston!

2010-11-17T23:44:00.002-07:00

She's coming!!!
That's what I'm grateful for this Thanksgiving.

Monday.
Stoked.

Battery No Longer Included

2010-11-17T00:37:00.004-07:00

My car and I are very close.
Ok, maybe I don't even know what model it is...but I love it.
My parking permit says it is a Saturn Saturn. They wanted a model and a make. Two?
Saturn Saturn.
So that's its name now. And Saturn Saturn has spent its last two weeks sporting a "Service Engine Soon" light. That's the one you can ignore, right?

I left Saturn Saturn for a week (church history called). It rebelled.
Came home, refused to start. Michael charged it (it likes him).
Two days later, Kimberly and I had wonderful sushi plans.
Denied.
Saturn Saturn rebelled again. I resorted to negligence.
But then I needed to go somewhere.
So Michael charged it. Again. And we got in the zone (Auto Zone!)
They told me to turn on the car. Rebel. Wouldn't even start for them when they wanted to find out why it wouldn't start. Talk about stubborn.
The battery...it was shot. So we got a new one. They asked us if we needed tools. We looked at each other. Sure?
So we got the tools. And went outside. Looked at the battery.
Went back inside.
Asked the nice tool-owning Auto Zone man what he would recommend doing with the tools.
He gave some very good advice. Then we followed it.
Things went pretty smoothly, after we located and retrieved the tool that we (well, Michael, but I won't embarrass him) dropped into the car.
Pretty soon, new battery. We went inside to wash up, because we looked very legit with car stuff all over our hands.
Auto Zone's inventory was piled high in front of the Ladies bathroom door.
Sexist.
I made it in though, and washed my momentarily manly hands.
They told me Saturn Saturn needed some more TLC, but I thought it had enough for one night.
We drove home. And the Service Engine Soon light?
Gone :)

I hope I have a friend who needs a new battery soon! Except I don't because that's sad..but really...I'm a pro.

Shout out to Cali!

2010-11-15T20:00:00.003-07:00

Provo misses you! And I know you miss the Brimhall...

Love you girl!

Church History Tour

2010-11-14T23:41:00.007-07:00

Last fall I was mad at Kendra. She got to miss school for a week, and go to Church History sites with her religion class. It's impossible to stay mad at Kendra though, so I decided to be happy for her and take the class this year. (Kirtland Temple above.)

Best decision ever. Missing a week of school was interesting, but luckily I had no problem forgetting about life back in Provo once I got on my plane to NY! (Kirtland above.)

I didn't even think about the other people going on the trip...I figured one week wouldn't make any lasting friendships right? Wrong. Our class had a BLAST with each other, and Bro. Bennett has lost all control of us back in Provo now. It's wonderful. (Sacred Grove above.)

The trip felt like a relapse into Jerusalem days. Bus rides, site stops, an expert telling you what happened at the site, too many pictures, never being alone but loving who you're with, spiritual moments at any given moment...except this time I was wrapped up in coats and blankets instead of constantly sweating. Improvement? Yes. (Smith farm above.)

I've seen the East Coast in Spring (unemployment tainted my view, but it was pleasant), Summer (total blast...so fun, in fact, I thin I'll do it again!), and Winter (at least I love coats and gloves?), but NEVER in the fall. That doesn't even make sense. So I was stoked for our October trip, and the leaves did not disappoint! (Smith farm above.)

Look at these fun people :) Bro. B on the right is a Church History expert, and a Phase 10 extraordinaire. We spent our days learning from him and our nights pressuring him into card games and story telling in his hotel room. His wife loved it, and we loved her stories. He loved us, until he lost at card games. Then he just wanted us to go to bed :) (Joseph's bedroom above, where Moroni appeared.)

Another bonus of the trip? FOUR new states on my slowly (but steadily) growing list. I'm trying to decide which state to leave for last, because that has to be a cool trip. What if I somehow left Kansas for the big 5-0? Probably an anti-climactic ending of the goal. (Newel K. Whitney store above, Kirtland.)

So checked off the list was Missouri, Illinois, and Ohio. And....Iowa. I'll explain that later. (Grandin print shot above.)

I've been to Palmyra two times before this, but this time I finally got to do baptisms in the temple. It was beautiful, and the temple president took time to speak to our group that morning.

During the drive to Nauvoo we couldn't pass up stopping in Hannibal, Missouri -- home of Mark Twain! I love how he thinks. The museum we went to was plastered with his hilarious quotes.

"But we were good boys...we didn't break the sabbath often enough to signify -- once a week, perhaps." - Twain
"Now and then we had a hope that if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates." - Twain
Can't you totally see little Tom & Huck growing up here?

The missionaries in Nauvoo were the best. They taught us all sorts of skills that I'm sort of glad I don't have to use...but it was fun to watch! (Barrell-making above. I'm being serious.)

The print shop...my Nauvoo dream job?

Brother Bennett would voluntarily begin signing the books he'd written in all the gift shops we went in. We loved it. He thought it was weird, how much we loved it.

The Mississippi River! It was so windy. So cold. Then I'd feel guilty for thinking about how cold I felt when I imagined crossing the frozen river and leaving my life behind to move (again) out West. The more I learn about the history of the Church the more grateful I am to the Saints who constantly sacrificed.

The freezing carriage ride around Nauvoo was SO much fun. The horses hated each other, though, so I was sort of distracted by their contention all through the tour. One was a biter. It was frightening. But the city really was beautiful, I'm so glad we went in the Fall.

And on our drive back to the St. Louis airport, I noticed I was closer to a little piece of Iowa than I'd ever been before (or will ever be again?). Couldn't pass up the chance to check it off! So with a little convincing of the bus driver and Bro. B, they stopped to let me touch it :) So that's number 27, people! I figure if I keep up this 1.2 states-a-year average, I'll be doing alright. Gotta get down South...

Just 14 credits to go...

2010-10-17T16:40:00.000-06:00

I would like to tell all future college graduates that yes, Senioritis does exist in college. You might think it doesn't because you never know who the seniors are (or even if you are one or not), but trust me. It exists. School is requiring more time than I'm letting it take from me, and energy that I'm not very good at replenishing. BUT I found this quote today and realized that even though my homework is important...it's not. There are plenty of other things worthy of my time right now, so even though Norm (my online accounting teacher) is almost constantly nagging the back of my mind, it's OK if I want to spend time with my real friends instead of him. And even if I have to take a test on a Saturday (illegal at most universities), it's worth it to have a sleepover with Jaren, Lydia, Jenny and Logan.

And even if my bed and I spend far too little time together, there's no denying I'm happy. :)

And we're back...

2010-10-13T22:53:00.002-06:00

I think my blog is dying. Cause of death?

Provo.

But life is good, so I should blog about it soon.

Fake Lake

2010-08-26T13:41:00.001-06:00

Cedar built a lake. Can you just do that? Build a lake? I guess not, because once you do, it's a reservoir. So I guess we got one of those.

It was coooold. But we eventually sucked it up and swam. They put fish in it! Why?

Good times with the niece and nephew. Jaren stole my chips, so I ate his crackers. I like our relationship. Lydia strikes frequent Yoga poses (downward dog is her favorite) to cope with having an older brother. They might be tantrums, but it's more fun to think of it as meditation.

Excuse

2010-08-23T17:33:00.002-06:00

I'm avoiding my final Jeru post...because it's just that. My final Jeru post. Then my blog will once again be based out of Provo, and I'll go back to posting about cookie dough and stolen banana suits and various other things that are significantly less cool than the Dome of the Rock.

Inevitable.

It is my fourth and final year in Provo, though. I'm hoping that works itself into renewed motivation to get up to P-town and hit the books. I'll go up on Friday.

Or Saturday. Maybe Sunday.

Moral of the story: You'll get your final Jerusalem pics and stories. But they're being held hostage for at least a few more precious days.

More to Miss

2010-08-15T20:29:00.006-06:00

Left my home.

Enjoyed 17 hours of flying (thanks to Nyquil).
Would have been much harder if I didn't get to...

Eat this,

and wear these,

and hang out with them.

Still...
intensely missing Jeru.
And the friends I spent every minute with.

Jet lag is not helping the missing.

One last Jeru post coming soon (a.k.a. an overload of pictures).

Southern Utah?

2010-08-06T13:48:00.001-06:00

Nope, Jordan.

But Petra felt like home.

Looks like Zion, yeah? Maybe Bryce Canyon. Either way, I loved Petra. Partly because it's just amazing, and just because the colors of it all felt just like a hike with the fam in Southern Utah.

The Treasury. Thanks for making me watch Indiana Jones with you before I left, dad.

A Garage? Not pictured: the goats surrounding it.

The Monastery. Worth the hike, but donkeys smell bad.

Mt. Nebo

Tyler found an umbrella in a hidden room we discovered in the Center. His famous words: "I think I'll hang onto this..." I think Sister Brown was glad he did, because he was a gentleman all through Jordan.

No, we did not visit Hogwarts. But we did go to the King Abdullah Mosque, so we had to be sufficiently modest.

Jordan River (I liked the little gold church.)

We're about as low as you can get on earth, on a day that's about as hot as it gets...sweating together is a bonding experience for us all.

Jerash -- the most preserved Roman ruins outside of Italy.

They stole Ramzi from our group and put him in the gladiator show. He was totally in his element.

We stopped for a fireside. And cookies. :)

Dead Sea Scrolls!

We spent a night in Amman hanging out with some seriously talented skaters. We taught them how to play Ninja. Good thing that game knows no language barriers.

Every hotel needs a good roof. Even if it means getting locked out and finding creative ways to get down four floors from the outside when you're done staring at the city.

As much as I love Tells, sometimes I miss London's castles. I got excited when we stopped at Shobak Castle...but it looks mysteriously like the other ruins we frequently explore. Still liked it.

And those are some Jordan highlights! Minus the long list of pirated movies people bought and the high high high temperatures. I loved the trip, except field trips stole July.

We left our heart in Jordan.

2010-08-06T10:31:00.001-06:00

This little guy was all alone next to our hotel in Amman. And we fell in love. We made it a home for the night out of box we begged out of the hotel front desk man, with an over-sized pita for a roof. Then we went back to the hotel to plot out how to sneak him across the border.

But we didn't go through with it. Our group has had bad luck at borders, so I guess we chickened out. It was a sad, sad moment. I sized up every hotel worker I saw the morning we left to figure out who would most likely care for our kitten. I settled on the sweet security guard out front.

Hopefully our tears softened him up...we were definitely attached.

I'm going to assume the little thing is thriving and happy...and I still feel guilty for letting Israeli border control intimidate me out of keeping a moral obligation.

Marhaba! Sabah el kheer?

2010-08-05T16:19:00.000-06:00

Our class had dinner at Ayman's house, our highly entertaining Arabic teacher.

The sunsets are enjoyable on his roof, too.

Pizza and the Dome

2010-08-05T15:58:00.002-06:00

Thank you, Austrian Hospice, for your roof.

And thank you, Adam Ottley, for letting me borrow Allison for the summer.

Last, but not least, thank you Tim Bradshaw. Your recommended sunset location was definitely enjoyable.

Bucket List

2010-08-04T16:52:00.000-06:00

The Med.

The Red.

The Dead.

Getting Impatient

2010-08-03T06:54:00.002-06:00

If you walk down this hall...

You will find this bird...
But you still won't find squabs.

Come on, Delilah.

The Simple Life

2010-07-31T12:06:00.016-06:00

Ten days in Galilee did us all some good. We spent half of our days visiting bible sites around the area, and the other half in New Testament class or swimming in the sea.
My nights and mornings involved a lot of beach-sitting, life-contemplating, and frog-avoiding. I miss the sunsets. Apartment 309! We were a little nervous to leave for 10 days because Delilah (our pet dove that lives in our light fixture outside our door) is going to have hatching eggs any day. Luckily, we didn't miss the squabs being born (yep, that's what baby doves are called. Google it if you don't believe me, because that's how I learned it too). Sometimes Delilah doesn't move for long periods of time...but I now know that it's ok. And I also know that she doesn't want to be poked if she isn't moving for a while because she flies at your head and doesn't come back the rest of the day, leaving you feeling responsible for her abandoned eggs.

Bonfires. My summer needed to have more of those, but no regrets. It needed more concerts too, but Alison went to more than enough for the both of us. Luckily Israel's delicious strawberry marshmallows inside of my S'more slightly eased my jealous feelings toward her.
I caught one a couple of times just to prove I wasn't too scared. But then I would scream, and (unintentionally) throw them when I felt how squishy they were...which sort of just confirmed how scared I was after all. Dang it. This is obviously not my hand because I couldn't hold one that calmly long enough for a picture.
President Brown's knowledge never ceases to amaze me. Here he is telling us all about the ruins of Bet She'an.One morning we took a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee and had a devotional. We sang Master the Tempest is Raging and I tried to imagine witnessing all the miracles we are studying in the New Testament.Caesarea Maritima...apart from the bats in a cave and the guard who really hated Americans that climb on aqueducts, it was a good time.We ate fish in Tiberias that looked way too alive. My waitress had to come over and take its head off for me after she witnessed many failed attempts. I think I could have enjoyed it at least a little more if Tyler wasn't examining the anatomy of its brain next to me, and Nick wasn't eating the eyeball across from me. Guess I had to have the experience?Church at the Galilee Branch was amazing. The view of the sea was beautiful, even though I'm still kind of partial to the Dome of the Rock out my window. The hymns are posted in English, Spanish, Hebrew, and Russian.We checked out a Syrian bunker site (Israeli controlled now) in the Golan Heights. No explosions occurred.The few hours we spent in Nazareth on the drive up to Galilee was awesome, Bro. Emmet used to live there so he gave us an expert tour. I love his understanding of all sides of the conflict here, and the stories he tells about when he was a student in Jerusalem.The Mt. of Beatitudes was one of my favorite sites we visited. Go read Mathew 5-7.
Adam crashed our girl's picture. He has a knack for that. We took a break in our field trip day to swim at Gan Ha-Shelosha, which would have been more fun without the biting fish. I kept moving the whole time so they never touched me...way too stressful. And I hit a wall in the process, but I'm glad because now I have a Jerusalem scar. Free souvenir.
Gamla -- cool hike, sad story. And this post has not left me with enough patience to give you details. Find me in two weeks for a live description.

Overall, Galilee was unlike any other 10 days I'll ever have. No technology, no distractions, no worries (besides stepping on the frogs). All free time went to scriptures or laying on a banana chair/hammock/genius chair thing, or talking to my friends that I love more every day. Abby was my roommate, and she just got her mission call to the Belgium, Netherlands mission! And Erin is going to the Russia, Moscow mission. Life has been exciting here at the JC...now if only it would slow down a little.

And then came July...

2010-07-29T18:32:00.000-06:00

Apparently tomorrow is the last day of July. Jerusalem stole my sense of time, and I don't really want it back. But I do want to throw a few catch up posts today while it will still say July at the bottom of them so I can feel slightly better about documenting this month.

I wasn't sure what the Fourth of July was going to be like in Israel, but it was a blast. We decorated the Oasis for a barbecue and carnival, complete with a fishing pond, bobbing for apples, face painting, and sparklers. We thought we would be able to light fireworks since Palestinians do that nightly. False. Sparklers are almost as good though.

We thought this was a very appropriate place to have a picnic that day.

The signatures on the floor of the King David Hotel kept us entertained for a while. I wish I was there when Winston Churchill was.

Brother Whipple played patriotic songs on the YMCA bells for all of Jerusalem to hear that day, too. I decided to stick with Come Follow Me though, because of its non-intimidating key signature. Then we left for Galilee the next morning! To be continued...