Phone in critical condition

This:

+
This:
= Bad news!
Ironically however, I put it in the dryer to try and save it :) I will let you know if it wakes up from its coma tomorrow.

Teacher teach thy self

Being around family is so great. I think that anyone who knows me really well knows how much I love my family and miss them when I am away from them. I even cry about it. But there is nothing like being with your family that can make you see the many flaws in yourself. I don't know how being around friends allows you to magically be completely oblivious, but I think I spend most of my time at college being completely oblivious, maybe that is just because I have been blessed with some really patient and flexible people. But interactions with my family almost always "invite" me to see how massive and cumbersome my pride is that nearly always with me.

Throughout my entire life people have been telling me that I think too much. It is probably true, although I hate it when people say that. One of the many products of all my thinking is that I am one of the most opinionated people I know. I think that I know what to do in every situation, and I usually think that my way is better/more efficient than everyone's. I question everything, and am often hyper-rational. I do change my mind quite easily, as long as the other point of view has a valid, rational, logical argument (which is often subjective and therefore a slightly ridiculous expectation). Really, to me the purpose of all this thinking is to avoid mistakes and trouble - to be better at stuff - and that's all.

However, more and more often in my life lately I realize that all of this know-it-all attitude is really not very helpful for anything truly important in life. I have made some incredibly stupid decisions from my rational process of thinking. Usually when it comes to interacting with other people.

In high school, one day Lauren got mad at me for where I hung my towel in the bathroom - she didn't like it. And of course, since I know everything, I gave her this big speech about choosing to have a good relationship with people instead of choosing to have your way to show people that they are more important to you than being right is. It was a pretty good point I think (ha ha :)) if only I had learned it myself.

So this Christmas, I would like to apologize, not really because of some terrible situation/s, I don't want everyone thinking I have been fighting with people all the time, because that is not the case, but just because I have been enlightened and humbled by life in general. To Lauren (thanks for putting up with me, and for fighting back), to Andrea, to my whole family, and to a bunch of other people for situations both incredibly significant and fairly inconsequential, I am sorry. I am a complete and total idiot sometimes. Maybe a lot of times.

Its a lame excuse, I think that I escape to logic to avoid feelings because I find mine to be too intense and sometimes painful for me to want to put up with on a frequent basis. For those of you who have seen The Blind Side, I am a lot like Sandra Bullock's character in some ways - I'm bossy, and I will save face in an emotional moment, but then run to the car and cry.

The point is that I'm going to try to work on it. The teacher is going to try to teach herself.

Equivalents to Happy Pills

1. If you have not been to the website mylifeisaverage.com, go there now. It is guaranteed to make you smile even if you originally totally don't feel like doing so.

2. Way funny roommates. They are the best!

3. Ben & Jerry's

4. Going to the gym way late at night. It makes you feel so much more hard-core than everyone else :)

5. Spending money :) It is amazing what a 2$ "splurge" can do for your soul!

6. Church stuff. I just went to the Christmas devotional, and it was awesome!

Busy

I love the days when I am so busy that I run instead of walk from location to location, I don't have time to even brush my hair, and when my heart pounds, racing against the clock and responding to the excitement of trying to beat all odds that say I won't be able to get everything done that I need to. Today is one of those days :)

Thoughts

1. The most awesome song randomly came on my ipod last night at the gym, its called Come In or Stay Out by Parachutes and the Heyday. I have no idea where it came from, but it was perfect. I'm including it on my playlist to the right.

2. Last night I dreamed about gymnastics again. I keep doing that lately which I don't usually do. I wonder why that is (besides the fact that I still miss it sometimes). I also dreamed that Andrea's baby was a boy. But I am pretty sure that is because we have been calling it Merlin the whole time.

3. I vacuumed my apartment right up until 12:00 a.m. at which it was just too rude to continue. But I love clean floors, and I had just replaced the belt on our vacuum.... so I just had to!

4. I love getting long voice-mails on my phone. If you ever have a story or something that you want to say to someone but no one is answering their phone, just leave it on my answering machine. I will call you back and we will pick up the conversation right where the message left off. Its so convenient!

5. I love that Audrey told me to eat breakfast as she was leaving this morning, in kind of a concerned voice :) She is the best, and truly, its the most important meal of the day! And I don't usually eat much for breakfast...

6. I put three hundred Christmas lights on a four foot tall tree that is in my apartment. And I'm not even done! I need at least fifty more, but since they only sell them in units of one hundred, it looks like my tree is just going to be extra sparkly :) I am a girl after my mother's heart.

7. I keep having this numb tingly feeling in a certain spot in my back randomly throughout the day for the past several days. Oh the mysteries of life that will never be solve. The fact that I felt like (as I told Audrey this morning) my contact was "tickling my eyeball" also falls under this category of mysteries.

8. Candles are the greatest things ever. Fake tree + candle that smells like pine = pretty much the same experience as the real thing. Plus I like to put them between me and the window to fight the draft air coming from those poorly insulated areas. Also, they can create endless fun when you decide to burn about one hundred matches ten at a huge flaming time. Its no secret that I am a little bit of a pyro :)

9. I wear boots with skinny jeans every single day to school. And I love it! For everyone who thinks they are unflattering, at least my feet are dry and warm and my pants aren't soaking up frozen liquid higher and higher up my legs as the day goes on. Deal with it.

My lovers and fun

Me and my roommates and our adopted roommates from across the hall had so many activities to go to this past weekend! Friday night we went to a party, which was super fun (see pictures of jumping on the trampoline in dresses), and Saturday we went to Temple Square with the ward and then went to Gateway. Yesterday for FHE we got to go to the top of the inside of the BYU bell tower, where our FHE dad played the bells for us and we sang along. :) I never imagined I would get to do anything like that. Totally awesome! Also, guess who is unhappy about the snow? :)

Cousins

Gina came to Utah, and a bunch of us cousins met at Rachel's house and had dinner and played with the the kids, and it was so much fun! I love my cousins, and they all have absolutely adorable children! I should have taken a million pictures, but I was busy :) I held 3 month old Gibson for forty-five mins and it was the best! He is so smiley! Anyway, I am so glad we got to see each other, especially Gina, because it has been about three years! Love you all!

Hey guess what

I might have made-up with my camera (see the post below), but I broke up with my boyfriend... As someone wisely put it, not everyone can handle a Doxey. And since I just talked about him in a post, I figured I had to put this on here to clear up any confusion... and hey, now y'all can set me up with yummy bachelors! Happy matchmaking!

I've made-up with my camera

So for the past forever, I haven't bothered taking pictures except in rare instances because my camera is not the best. My old one was stolen while I was on study abroad. We were in Rome I believe, and we went to Sorrento the next day where I was forced to buy a ridiculously overpriced point and shoot that needs converters to charge here in America. But anyway, I have been thinking to myself for a long time that I wanted a better camera before I began taking pictures as a habit, which I still plan on doing, but for right now I am going to count my blessings that I have any kind of camera and repent for my ingratitude.
The point is that I went through my pictures the other day, and I found some pretty awesome pictures of the newest temples in Utah that I have taken with my cute little red point and shoot. Clearly I am not as bad off as I imagine. Also, I would like to note that for the pics of the Draper Temple, I was holding a baby in one arm the entire time. (There are 3 new posts below this, I broke them up so as not to make one ridiculously long one while I was catching up.)

Surgery

So my dad had his knee scoped the day before Thanksgiving. It was very interesting to see the doctor as the patient. He never said that he was nervous, but he did call me twice several days before to have me tell him how my experience was with my knee surgery. Also, he invited me to come to the surgery center before he went under the knife. The doctors and nurses were all teasing him a lot, and we generally had a great time! Except for Dad when he woke up probably. Not that he complained. He is not a complainer, which I am proud of. For the sake of dignity, I won't post the picture of his knee being shaved.... :)

Hot Springs

On the way down to St. George, Tyler, Lauren and I stopped at these fabulous hot springs in Meadow. They are privately owned, and there are no signs for how to get there, but they must be listed somewhere online maybe, because Tyler and his friend once saw two naked Europeans there.... but otherwise, you kind of need to know someone who knows how to get there.
Anyway, as you can tell by the picture of Tyler in the water, they are perfectly clear and steamy hot. What you can't tell by the picture is that they are also a mile deep. Tyler was smart to tell me only after we had gotten out that a scuba diver had died in them because he went too far down and ran out of oxygen. He was also smart not to tell Lauren at all :)
This was such a fun idea, even though we were freezing as soon as we got out and cars kept pulling up while Lauren and I were trying to change outside the car, I am going back asap! Oh and we also got burgers on the way home, which were delicious and I put that picture up of Tyler eating one because I love it when a boy has a hardy appetite. And plus, he is good looking even when he eating.... :)

Hair!

I did it! I achieved my goal of being blonde for nine months, and now I am back to dark hair :) I really like it though it definitely took some getting used to. Shout out to Meredith Beesley who was my stylist on the project, and who is also an awesome visiting teachee! Also, for the most recent fabulous news of my life, please see Andrea and Adam Alba's blog, which is linked on the right...