Clayton & Annalise

My Brother Clayton is getting married. I am just

blown away about how grown up he is and what a wonderful choice in a wife he has made. I could not be more proud of him. He is one of my very best friends. And I am so thrilled to have a sister. Anna is lovely and she fits into our family just beautifully.

Allie, Las Vegas, Zion's, Snow, Sleet & Hail: A Weekend To Remember!

This weekend, Hayley, Kelsey & I drove to St. George to surprise our friend Allie for her birthday. (We were all nannies in CT/NY and moved back to UT during the past 6 months.)

What a fun and great trip! Hay, Kels, and I left my house after work on Friday and made the 4 1/2 hour drive to St. George. What a fun drive, I think we should probably make a public apology to the folks of Fillmore, UT however! I don't think they were ready for the 3 of us to roll into their local truck stop at 9pm at night with the mood we were in! Let's just say.. there were some very.. "interesting" photos taken with the statues of the bear and deer outside the store!

And since St. George is so close too.... Las Vegas, well.. we just had to make the trip! What a great time we had!! Loved it! And of course we had to do a little gambling. If you are ever in Mesquite, I recommend stopping and playing a little bingo. It is intense! :)

After a great day in Vegas, we went back to St. George and had a good nights sleep. Which was just great. The next morning, we headed north a bit. Stopped and saw the St. George Temple, and of course hitting In-N-Out Burger before leaving the big metropolis of St. George :)

And then headed into Zion's National Park. Now, I need to mention that in Vegas it was a warm 72 degrees! And then hitting Zion's it was quite chilly. But how on earth can you get a good view of the Red Rocks without being in a convertible with the top down? I am going to guess that it was about 45 degrees :) But we did it anyway.

This is where I should mention that about 1/4 of the way through our drive, it started to hail. Uh huh! Hail. Ask me if we stopped and put the top back up... NOPE! That takes all of the fun out of it! I am sure we looked absurd. And that is why we were laughing so hard. As the hail started to come harder, we were trying to shield ourselves from it, and just ended up with little nicks in our skin on our faces. I am going to call them ... battle wounds. It was worth every second! I have not laughed that hard in ages. It felt great.

It was a really great weekend. Sadly we came home to heaps of snow. We made it all the way home in a snow storm just have the last 100 feet put us as a dead stop. So Kels and I walked to my house in the snow. It was a very rude homecoming!

Answers...

I thought I would try and get my friends to like me again by posting the answers to my "Movie Game" so here you go:

1. Steel Magnolias

2. The Birdcage

3. Because I Said So...

4. Pride and Prejudice

5. Strictly Ballroom

6. Bolt

7. The Other Sister

8. Someone Like You

9. Jerry McGuire

10. The Lake House

11. City of Angels

12. French Kiss

13. So I Married An Ax Murderer

14. When Harry Met Sally

15. My Best Friend's Wedding

16. Dances With Wolves

This was a fun game! If you haven't seen any of these movies, well, you should. Better get on than, eh?

The Movie game (courtesy of Mel)

Here are the rules: You pick 16 of your fave movies and pick a quote from them. then list them below. Send it out to friends and see if they can guess what movie they are from. NO CHEATING!! (takes the fun out of it!) Good luck!!

1. I'm sure he is the perfect gentleman. He probably takes the dishes out of the sink before he pees in it.

2. It's de shoes, they make me fall down.

3. "I love that when I breathe you in you smell like cake batter. And I love that you have this insane way of talking in circles that makes perfect sense."

"I do? Cause sometimes I feel like nobody understands me. But... "

" Me. I get you."

4. "You must know... surely, you must know it was all for you. You are too generous to trifle with me. I believe you spoke with my aunt last night, and it has taught me to hope as I'd scarcely allowed myself before. If your feelings are still what they were last April, tell me so at once. My affections and wishes have not changed, but one word from you will silence me forever. If, however, your feelings have changed, I will have to tell you: you have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love, I love, I love you. I never wish to be parted from you from this day on."

5. "*Hard*? Hard? How hard do you think it's been for *me*? To get you to dance with me in the first place? Wash the coffee cups, Fran, how's your skin, Fran? Hard? You really are a gutless wonder."

6. "Ring, ring! Who's there? Destiny! I've been waiting for your call. "

7. "I love you every minute. I love you more than band music and cookie-making."

8. "What is on your neck? "" I bit myself shaving"

9. "That's more than a dress. That's an Audrey Hepburn movie."

10. "One man I can never meet. Him, I would like to give my whole heart to."

11. "I would rather have had one breath of her hair, one kiss of her mouth, one touch of her hand, than eternity without it. One."

12. "Those French. They hate us, they smoke, they have a whole relationship with dairy products I don't understand. "

13. "I'm smitten. I'm in deep smit."

14. "I love that you get cold when it's 71 degrees out. I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich. I love that you get a little crinkle above your nose when you're looking at me like I'm nuts. I love that after I spend the day with you, I can still smell your perfume on my clothes. And I love that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep at night. And it's not because I'm lonely, and it's not because it's New Year's Eve. I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible. "

15. "If you love someone you say it, You say it right then, out loud, Or the moment just passes you by"

16. "Why don't you put that in your book?"

Just listen.... dont' talk

Here it is friends. I have melted into this song already. Wow, these guys can still just... get me, ya know? I love them. I have loved them for years, and this is their new song. I wanted to share.... and just... listen, don't talk.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpVxCrj8hNM

Let me know what you think. This is going to be a great album. Wow... Love them!

YOUNG, true love...

So... Yesterday, I ran across a news story that I thought was just the cutest thing! I wanted to share...

A 5 and a 6 year old decided that they were going to elope from Germany to Africa. And they took the older sister as the "official" wittiness. Honestly, SO CUTE!! (although, quite naughty too!) Here is the link to the article. Enjoy!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7811686.stm

Lord, please give me the strength not to pass out

Last Sunday I was called to be the new Gospel Doctrine teacher. (It makes me sweat just typing it!) Now, I have taught Relief Society. I have taught Primary. I have taught the "Teaching for Our Times" class. I have given many talks in Sacrament Meeting. I have gone on splits with missionaries. I have even taught a little lesson in Stake Leadership meeting. But I have never taught Gospel Doctrine. And I am about to come unglued.

This is one of those callings that I kinda prayed in the back of my head that I would never be asked to do. (I should be more careful, I have also prayed to NOT be called as YW camp director. I'm safe from that for at least another year. Thank you Singles wards!) I can teach on just about any subject. Charity, faith, Word of Wisdom. Visiting Teaching. The Book of Mormon. But to be asked to actually teach the scriptures!? This is WAY beyond my capabilities.

I am a pretty confident person. I feel like I can handle a lot of things. But this calling has me shaking in my clogs! I what am I going to do? I can't fool these people. They are my peers! In every sense of the word. And I am supposed to be there, looking so appealing to those around me because, well, let's face it-- I'm in a singles ward. Everyone there is single.. you do the math. And I am going to look like a blithering idiot.

So as I sit here typing this entry, I have my scriptures and a lesson manual starting me in the face. I hope I come out of this... with a little dignity and maybe some enlightenment. :)

Something to Mumble about...

So we have a DVD player in the van that I drive the kids around in. And I have heard the movie Happy Feet about 15 times. I have not watched it.. just HEARD it. And I have to say that it was funny and I caught myself giggling at the singing. I cannot tell you how funny it is now to hear 3 little kids walking around the house singing Prince songs at the top of thier lungs, thinking that they are only singing songs from Happy Feet.

But today, I watched the movie. And if you put the liberal story line aside and just enjoyed what the kids see in the movie, then it is HILARIUS. I have to say that Robin Williams is in rare form in this show. I cannot tell you how very amused I was while watching it.

And to have Hugh Jackman as an Elvis-like character... well that is just pure entertainment!

Here is just a taste http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCRvSZRdXNE

A Vampire Is Hard to Find

I get a lot of grief about my love for Edward Cullen. Yes, I admit it! I have an unhealthy relationship with a fictional character. And I will say it loud and proud if you ask me about it. I never had a good explanation as to why I feel this way. I just do. I fell madly in love with him the first time he watched Bella sleep.

I feel this way about Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice too. And I think that is okay, as well. (Seriously, have you SEEN Mr. Darcy?)

Of course you don't see me walking down the street muttering Edwards name to myself quietly as if he was there. (that would just be plain nuts!) But my heart does skip a beat when someone mentions his name. So don't send me to the loony bin over strong feelings toward imaginary boyfriends. (YET!)

My Aunt Lu sent me an article that I have read a couple of times now. I feel like explains why I have this deeply moving fascination with a vampire. I thought I would share it with you. It is a bit long, but the first half is great! Enjoy... !!

http://www.ldsmag.com/familyconnections/090114mastery.html

Mini's and things that sparkle

On Saturday, I dragged my unfortunate brother Tyler, to Mini's Bakery on 14 East and 800 South in Salt Lake. What a charming little bakery. Everything was pink--walls, chairs, counters. But most importantly, the cupcakes were divine. It was absolutely worth the extra run on Saturday morning just to have one. This one pictured was called "Breakfast at Tiffany". Tiffany blue icing with silver beads... seriously, can you come up with anything more charming?? I can't!

If you are in the area, I recommend stopping in and having a taste. It was delicious!

Here is the website:

http://mini-cupcakes.com/

My Life in a Song...

So I am a fan of John Mayer. (hate me if you will...) And as I was folding laundry today, one of his songs came on my iPod and I had to grin for a bit. Because it was my life! So I thought I would share the song with you, my blog readers. Just click on the song title below. Enjoy!!

Love Song for No One

Lyrics:

Staying home alone on a Friday

Flat on the floor looking back

On old love

Or lack thereof

After all the crushes are faded

And all my wishful thinking was wrong

I'm jaded

I hate it

I'm tired of being alone

So hurry up and get here

So tired of being alone

So hurry up and get here

Searching all my days just to find you

I'm not sure who I'm looking for

I'll know it

When I see you

Until then, I'll hide in my bedroom

Staying up all night just to write

A love song for no one

I'm tired of being alone

So hurry up and get here

So tired of being alone

So hurry up and get here

I could have met you in a sandbox

I could have passed you on the sidewalk

Could I have missed my chance

And watched you walk away

So tired of being alone

so hurry up and get here

You'll be so good for me

I am absolutely out of my freaking mind...

So today I think I have finally hit the "insanity" wall. Oh yeah, I did. Pretty sure about it now.

I decided to run a 5k. Let me start by giving you a bit of background. First,

I am chubby. I have been-- for oh, all of my 31 years! And I have been doing really well with going to the gym and working out. I have lost quite a bit of weight. And I am very proud of myself. I have worked very hard. And so as I was getting ready for the day, I thought "What the hell am I waiting for?" And so I signed up. Yes, I do realize that 5k is only 3.2 miles. But you see, my mantra up until now, has been "I don't run unless a murderer or a ghoul is chasing me". And now, nothing is chasing me, and I am going to run.

So.. wish me luck! Because, I am going to need it! Yup, I'm sure am crazy!

The true art of cinema

I am going to give my opinion on 2 movies that I saw over the holidays because it is my blog, and I can:

First-- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. What a PHENOMENAL movie. I was absolutely riveted this whole show. It is odd and amazing. And I have thought on this story for days afterward. I think that is one way you know a show is good. I truly enjoyed this show. Please go see it. I have not talked to anyone yet, that has not enjoyed this movie. Also, I have not been a Brad Pitt fan. Ever. But, gosh he is handsome with his aviators and motorcycle.

Second movie is 7 Pounds. I went to see this with my cousin, Jim and brother, Tyler. And I was just so perplexed with this plot. I kept leaning over to them and saying
"Do you understand what is going on?"
The first hour of the movie I had no idea what it was about, or how we were going to get the movie resolved because you don't know what the problem is! And yet, I was so drawn in by the charisma of Will's character, that you sat on the edge of my seat waiting to see what was next. And then by the end, whether you agree with his decision or not, you love this movie!

I think that these to movies are what cinema is about. Being so drawn in and enthralled with the characters on the screen, that you find yourself wanting to meet these people. Go see these films. You won't be disappointed.

Out with the old, and in with the new

Happy New Year!!

I am hoping this year brings us all a lot of joy and laughter! I look forward to new beginnings, and new adventures. CHEERS!