Lately...

Life has been crazy. Like SUPER crazy. And so, I have gone into hibernation mode. Why you ask? Oh...let me count the ways.

1. I've been super sick. The feeling sorry for yourself, sneezing, moping around, snotting and sleeping a LOT kind of sick. It has sucked.
2. I've been lesson planning. I start my final semester of student teaching next Tuesday...which takes a lot of planning. I'm scared.
3. I've joined a book club. Jane Austen's melodious words have captivated me.
..."'Here's harmony. Here's repose. Here's what may leave all painting and all music behind, and what poetry can only attempt to describe! Here's what may tranquillise every care, and lift the heart to rapture! When I look out on such a night as this, I feel as if there could be neither wickedness nor sorrow in the world; and there certainly would be less of both if the sublimity of nature were more attended to , and people were carried more out of themselves by contemplating such a scene.'"
Oh how I wish people still talked that way!
4. I've been painting, cleaning, painting, and then cleaning some more. My sister's house has been in full renovation mode for quite a while now. eh. That has sucked. But it's DONE. At least almost done.
5. I've been babysitting my little bay-boosh-kas. The little stinkers are time consuming.

So, my life has been consumed by craziness as of late, and with school starting tomorrow it will be even crazier! Let the games begin!

***In Charlotte news, that little terror decided to clean the toilet with my toothbrush. Grrr...why is she so naughty?

Look at the devilish glint in her eyes. She knows she's bad!

Drugs and Texting

If you were considering taking drugs, and then attempting to have a conversation via text...DON'T. It always ends badly. Always.
EXAMPLE:
I recently went to the dentist. My biggest fear on the planet. If given a choice between the dentist or open heart surgery...I would choose the surgery every time. No joke. So, when I went in to get two measly, little fillings this week, I had to dope myself up on anti-anxiety drugs. No, I didn't go raid someone's medicine cabinet, they were prescribed to me by the dentist. Three little blue pills. I thought they would take the edge off my anxiety, but instead they turned me into a walking (barely), talking (barely) comedy act. According to my dear older sister, I was a sight to behold as I stumbled and slurred my way to the dental office (no I did not drive myself). Not that I'm complaining. The whole experience is a blur, which is totally fine with me. It's kind of hard to get scared when you're barely conscious!
However, I then tried to have a conversation with my loving husband through texting. It was not too successful...as you can see. The translations are in parenthesis for your benefit.

Graham: You done?
Me: Yesh (yes)
Graham: Good! It wasn't that bad was it?
Me: I don't kneo. my brains jnsjt functioninf (I don't know. My brain isn't functioning)
Graham: That's a good thing!
Me: But in still living. N. I'll (But I'm still living. not entirely sure what the second part means...)
Graham: What? Go to bed!
Me: What does that mewn? (What does that mean?)
Graham: You can not spell, you are obviously drugged, you need a nap!)
Me: Balahg...whatqva (Balahg...whatever!)

See what I mean...don't try this at home folks. And he must have been right, because I went home and slept for five hours!

Kiddos

Since I don't have my own kids (yet)...I like to claim my nieces and nephews as my own.
And since I claim them as my own, I also like to take credit for how cute they are.
Wouldn't you?

A Big ol' Birthday Bash

See this guy here?

He's pretty awesome.
Don't know who he is? Or do you want to know more about him?
Well, then check him out HERE ...or... HERE (I especially love the video! The baby picture? SO cute!)

This girl loves her prophet.

(I can't believe how big she looks...7?? When did that happen??)

...and because she loves him, she wanted to celebrate his birthday. He turns 84 this month. So she asked her mommy to bake him a cake, and we sang happy birthday as a family.

I love seeing Sophia's testimony grow. She knows that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God, and without knowing him personally, she loves him. I sat down to watch President Monson's biography. It's pretty long... over an hour (But OH so good!). As I started the movie, Sophia came in to ask me a question, and then proceeded to watch the ENTIRE thing with me. She was full of questions, laughs, gasps, and more as she watched the chronicles of his life. At one point, President Monson bore his testimony that Jesus Christ loves little children, hears their prayers, and responds to them. I watched Sophia's eyes grow big, and she turned to me with a huge grin on her face. She knows her prophet and she knows her savior. It's such a sweet thing to see.

Libros

Summertime is my time to read. Alright...ALL the time is my time to read. At any given point in time, I'm usually in the middle of about 3-4 books. Summertime, however, is when I read, read, and then read some more.
Here's what I have been reading lately:

The Help: by Kathryn Stockett
Like most every woman in the country, I recently finished this ol' chestnut. Every time I see a novel-based movie, I try to read the book first. I don't know why I do this to myself, because inevitably, I am NEVER satisfied with the movie. But...I hear this adaptation was fabulouso, so we shall see.

As far as the book goes, I quite enjoyed it. I LOVED the characters, the setting...the fact that I felt like I was IN 1962. 

I give it 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Why the -.5?? Because the ending was lacking something for me. I'm not quite sure WHAT...but it was missing SOMETHING.

The Forgotten Garden: by Kate Morton

Oh how I love this book. I read this little jewel last summer, but have been passing it around my family this summer, so I needed to re-visit it. This book follows the story/mystery of a little girl who was found all alone on a dock in early twentieth century Australia. It crosses oceans, continents, and centuries as the characters attempt to discover who this little girl is and where she came from. If you can't tell...I give it 5 out of 5 shiny gold stars. I just loved it.

Other books I'm in the middle of you ask? They're not worth mentioning. Yeah...they're that good.

BUT??? Next on the list...

Graham

This handsome fella is a very private boy.

Which is why he would kill me if he knew I was writing this post.
He probably will kill me once he reads it.
But tough pa-toot-ies!
I have been saying for months that I wanted to start a blog...but this boy put the nix on it. He becomes squeamish with the idea of his life being put on display. For this reason, I have yet to make Graham the sole star of one of my posts. If it were up to me, this blog would have debuted with a dissertation on why my husband is better than yours, backed up with research and evidence to prove my thesis. However, I thought I would ease into this post...get the husband used to the idea of a blog before I brought out the big guns and revealed to the world why my boy is so GREAT.
Well...today is that day.
Graham and I met as little tykes, but since he had cooties at the time, I wasn't interested. However, we both grew up, and by 18...I decided that he had been cured of the dreaded cootie disease. So I pursued. Long story short (those who know me are aware that this is a big deal...I shortened a story...hallelujah), we started dating... He left on his mission...I waited...he came home...we got engaged...and then sealed the deal (and by that I mean we were married, not the other thing, get your minds out of the gutter!).
I was a patient girl.
But he was worth the wait.
Here's why:
Graham is funny. Like, hurt your sides laughing kind of funny.
He's thoughtful. WAAAAAY more thoughtful than me. Example: while camping this last week, I went up two days earlier. Graham stayed home to work a few extra days. Before joining me, however, he cleaned the "house," because he knows I like to come home to a clean house after a vacation ( I get that from my mom).
He has unwavering faith. I'm a questioner...it's part of my nature. I overanalyze, re-think, and over-think every aspect of my life. (Not to say that I have EVER doubted my faith...EVER). But he's a rock. Steady, unmoving, unshakable.
He's responsible. I am too...most of the time...but he puts me to shame. I grew up in a house where my mom does the bills/responsible "adulty" stuff. I assumed that's what wives do. Well in this relationship, that's what husbands do. Fine by me!
He'll be a REALLY good daddy one day. Proof...Graham is CONSTANTLY playing with all of our nieces/nephews.

He's loyal. Fiercely loyal. Once you're Graham's friend...you will always be his friend.
He's perceptive. He can read my moods like you wouldn't believe. On top of that, he can snap me out of whatever crappy mood I happen to be in (this can sometimes be detrimental...when I want to hold on to my grumpiness, he forces it out of me).
He loves his family and mine.
He will do anything for anybody. Seriously, if you need help, call him up and he'll be there in a jiffy.
He's humble...not an arrogant/conceited bone in his body. He HATES being the center of attention. If it were up to him we would have eloped because all of the attention placed on him during our wedding day was his worst nightmare realized. But...he okayed the big wedding because he knew I wanted it.
He's not a fighter. I am (well...more of a debater). When I'm rearing for a fight/debate, he refuses to participate. Hence the reason why we NEVER fight. Honestly...never. Most of my family/friends think that this is weird/abnormal, but it's just fine with me!
He lets me be ME. Whether it's how I dress, what I say, or how I think, he encourages my independence. Granted, if he doesn't agree with/ like what I say/ wear...he'll vocalize it. BUT...he doesn't try to change any of it...and finds me beautiful no matter what.
I could keep on going and going like our good ol' energizer bunny...but I'll stop there and say that this post is...
TO BE CONTINUED.
Because, honestly, I find a new reason every day why I love this boy.
Including this funny face.

Surf, Sun, Sand, S'mores...SUMMER!

My family camps at South Carlsbad State Beach each and every summer. This has been a family tradition since I was a wee little one.
As a child, my main concern was how many hours I could spend in the water. Unfortunately this always led to about a pound of sand caught in the crotch of my bathing suit (I have always questioned why they have that little mesh pocket thingy in little girl's bathing suits...that is a flawed design if you ask me!) But despite the sun burns, the peeling skin, and the somewhat irritating chafing caused by that rather impressive accumulation of sand, beach camp was always the most anticipated week of the summer.
Moving into adolescence, my focus became boogie boarding. I would spend hours trying to catch that perfect wave...and I became pretty awesome at it. I knew which waves would take me all the way to shore, and which ones weren't worth the effort (I tried revisiting my boogie boarding glory days last summer, and ended up nearly drowning myself...I have obviously lost that skill in my old age).
By the time I became a teenager, my attention was occupied by what every 16 year old girl fixates on...BOYS. I would go out "trolling" every night with my sister and whatever friends we had brought with us to beach camp that year. We would spend hours walking up and down the street of South Carlsbad making sure that were were SEEN. There may have even been a time when an anonymous boy or two was invited into our tent. I will say, however, that this was NOT my idea and that NOTHING ever happened...probably due to the fact that our older sisters ratted us out each time or more likely, I was all talk and no play!
Thankfully I grew up, and found my very own boy to occupy my thoughts. My current focus at beach camp revolves around two very important commodities: the sun and a good book. I plop myself in my beach chair each day, and crack open the cover of whatever book I happen to be reading. While this might sound boring to some, it sounds like a dream to me. Each night is filled with delicious food (thanks to an awesome mom), yummy s'mores/woofums, a game or two, and lots of visiting.
While I love the relaxing week of sun tanning and reading, I'm also looking forward to the next "phase" of beach camping that I'll one day enter...having my own children to share the experiences with.

A recap of the week's events...

Mom and aunt Jeri. We celebrated Grandpa J's 91st birthday while there...all of the family that wasn't camping came up for the shindig.

 Ash and that rascally Danny! So glad that they were able to come all the way from SLC.

 My favorite person on the planet enjoying himself some calorie-infused birthday cake!

 Mr. Noah...his poor eyes were blood shot the whole week.

 Yum!

 We got to watch this each night.

 Cousins!

 Big T enjoying the sunset...and me riding in the background.

 Yep...that's Charlie skateboarding all by her lonesome. Look how fast the background is wizzing by!

 Gross...

 Cousins! Part deux!

 Aunt Jeri and uncle kev...

 I had a better picture of the two of us, but this one captured his personality. Plus my mom's face in the background is rad. Haha...that's what you get for ruining my picture mom! Your crazy mug for everyone to see!

 "Smarsh smellow..." as Charlie calls them.

 The moon looks so much more lovely reflecting on the water.

Soph REALLY enjoying her woofum.

This is what happens when I sit in the sun for a week...freckles and coldsores. Aren't I a pretty sight??