Let's All Go to the Movies!

I love the Oscars. I look forward to them every year, and while I recognize the superficiality of them...I can't help myself. I still love them. The gowns, the glitz and the glamour get me every time. But mostly just the gowns.
Here are a few of my favorites:

I loved the black on gold in Jessica Chastain's gown. I'm the queen of gaudy, so anything that stands out and SPARKLES is right up my ally! That's probably the same reason that I drooled a little bit over Sandra Bullock's dress. The totally 80s sequined appliques spoke to me. We had a connection. I'm into all things nude (the color, not the state of dress), so of course I loved Kristen Wiig's airy little ensemble. And Emma Stone always looks fabulous as far as I'm concerned. While my husband openly laughed at the "huge bow" at the top of her dress, I thought it had just the right mix of quirky and sophisticated.
But the show-stopper for me was this thing of beauty:

It got ripped apart by the fashion critics, but I thought it was stunning. Berenice Bejo in Ellie Saab. Mint green is such an interesting and unexpected choice, and it SO worked for me...especially paired with her contrasting copper locks. I was also quite pleased when her movie, "The Artist" won for best picture.
Despite the fact that I had been traveling all day (home from Arizona...more on that later), and didn't have time to fill out my "Oscar picks" ballot, the night was a hit...and I'm already looking forward to next year.

A Weekend of Celebrations

This weekend was spent consuming WAY too much food/dessert. But since we were celebrating a plethora of birthdays (including my brother-in-law, Robert...and my mother-in-law, Sue), I don't feel as guilty.
Saturday night, we went to this little place:

The Station Tavern in South Park for Robert's birthday. If you haven't been, I recommend it. The food is tasty and super inexpensive, and I LOVE the setting. You get to sit outside on picnic benches, underneath the cutest strung lights amid dogs and kids. SO fun. I also loved the fact that they had sweet potato fries...my favorite. The one drawback?
The waiters/waitresses.
It's a cool little place with equally "cool" servers who act like they are too cool to be polite.
But, the food/experience more than made up for it.

As the birthday celebrations continued, Sunday and Monday, were equally as bad as far as food consumption goes...hamburgers, pizza, cookies...the list continues. As much as I would love to say that I'll eat better next weekend, I know that's a lie...because the whole family is heading to Arizona to celebrate this little girl's birthday...

...and I'm sure there will be even more delicious treats to consume...including those little cheeks. I can't wait.

Cupid's Surprise

I'll be honest. Valentine's Day last year sucked. My husband had class until 10 p.m...and I sat on the couch watching "The Bachelor." Not my idea of the ultimate romantic celebration, especially because I had such high hopes for our first Lover's Day as a MARRIED couple. Unfortunately, this Valentine's looked like it was going to follow the same routine: Graham in class, and me watching "The Real Housewives of Orange County" on the couch.
Then Graham threw me a curve ball.
He called me on my lunch break at 12:30 with this stunning request:
"Hey, how about we get off work early and drive to Orange County to buy me a dirt bike?"
WHHAAAA?
Yeah, I know...a MAJOR curveball.
But, let me rewind.
My husband has been riding dirt bikes since he was a wee little one. While I am not a fan of the two-wheeled monstrosities, I have known since the day I started dating the boy that he would one day own one...and he has been wearing me down ever since.
I finally gave in this week, and said he could get a bike.
I just didn't think he would fine "THE ONE" so soon!
So, while I expected to spend my Valentine's Day alone, my husband and I had a lovely drive up the coast to Orange County where he purchased this beast:

A 2011 Yamaha YZ 450F (whatever the heck that means).
Then, we stopped at Dana Point for dinner in a cute little Mexican restaurant by the harbor. We were the ONLY people out on the patio and were able to enjoy the cozy fire and delicious food all by our lonesome. It was a romantic spot.

Then we made our way home. I was greeted by these flowers, this ridiculous card, and my favorite candy of all time:

He was greeted by this "man" bouquet, an assortment of all his favorite candies accompanied by a grip of SUPER cheesy sayings. He loved it:

While this Valentine's Day may have delivered a MAJOR surprise, it turned out to be a lovely day spent with the boy I love.
While you're all probably thinking that he scored big, while I got relatively little, don't worry. Before agreeing to the above purchase, I made him PROMISE to take me here in the very near future, and he ALWAYS keeps his promises!

Bonnets and Biscuits

I look forward to the Mormon Battalion commemoration in Old Town EVERY year. Why, you ask?
Is it because of pride in my pioneer ancestors?
No.
Because it's a great opportunity to spend time with my family?
Nope...not that either.
Maybe I enjoy it because it's an awesome missionary opportunity?
Eh...wrong.
While all of these things are definite pluses, the REAL reason I look forward to the commemoration each year is this:
 I REALLY like get to dressed up in pioneer garb.
No, really.
I was born in the wrong century, I tell ya. I just feel at home in a bonnet. If I didn't get weird looks, I'd probably rock one every day. I even got the whole get-up for my birthday last year, because my mom knows I like it THAT much. I've been asking her to make me a bonnet since I was a little girl. When I opened up my present, my sisters looked at my mom like she was crazy, and then they had a good laugh at me. I, on the other hand, was ecstatic.
I've been counting down the days since last summer, and it finally arrived on January 28th, which was ALSO Michal's birthday. What a great way to celebrate, if you ask me. We were in charge of the "biscuits on a stick" booth, which was quite popular. At one point, a small family asked to have their pictures taken with us. Ha. I felt like a celebrity...or maybe a Disney Princess. Either way, I was in heaven.