WT

For me, the Thanksgiving shootout is pretty much the same every year. This year was no different. Another early elimination means another seductive gun photo shoot... if only you could see the collection of "gun" photos Mike and I have taken over the years. That is for another post. On a positive note, we did bring home a victory! Thank you Chris.

Looks like someone got a new shotgun...

It's happening again, the annual Reeses Cup...and I'm pretty sure that the Parkridge Stews are takin' it home this year. This, by far, is the most WT thing my family does (besides Ads and Brooke's WT BBQ that is held every summer) but it has been a tradition and will continue for generations to come. There is nothing better than family, guns, and the mysterious things we find in the field out on 5500 South and as far west as you can get.

Pictures will be coming after the defeat. Wish us luck!

And, although it may look like it in this picture, my brother is not handi..

Happy Thanksgiving!

For the love...

The Pregnant Man Is Pregnant Again!

WILL SOMEONE PLEASE TELL THEM TO STOP??

So gross...

Greatest show ever...

Okay, I hope you have all seen this 1987 classic at some point in your life. If not, you were deprived as a child. I had to run to my parents and watch Luke for a bit while my mom went to the doctor's. He was asleep so I started channel surfing. Lo and behold, this little gem of a show happened to be on so I caught the last 45 minutes of it. Dare I say, it might be my favorite movie and it gets better every time you watch it. A couple of things to note:
a) we used to watch this all the time as kids and now when I watch it, I realize things that I didn't as a child. It's all about sex AND Hollywood is a nasty, gay man. Apparently, Di and Rich figured we wouldn't know what they were talking about, which we didn't.
b) whoever thought of the storyline is genius..A stock boy falls in love with a mannequin that comes to life at night?? Are you serious? At this point in my life, I appreciate these awesome 80's storylines. The only thing comparable today is "Snakes on a Plane". Although I haven't seen it, I doubt it holds a candle to Mannequin.
c) Roxy's hair is awesome..She is sporting a bun and ponytail all in one. Who can pull that off? Only Roxy.
d) In the end, they get married in a mall window, ceremony performed by Hollywood. It doesn't get any better than that.
e) Kim Cattrell has never looked better. You know this show was a resume booster for her.

If you don't know what I am talking about, this is a MUST SEE!

And in doing some research online, I found that there is a Mannequin 2. Any takers?

Enough is enough

About five years ago, I started taking a tap class. My mom started before me with a bunch of her friends and she eventually talked me into it. I am so glad that she did cause I think it is honestly the highlight of my life up until this point. Is that sad? Anyhoo, when I started, I got a bunch of friends to do it with me. Little by little, each one dropped out for various reasons. I am the only one that is still going strong and as a result, am in a class where I am the youngest by at least 30 years. They are awesome ladies though and they can move like you wouldn't believe! Now to my point. When I switched to this class, I noticed a particular woman who apparently doesn't like to wear a bra. Now I can think of many reasons why at almost 60 years old you should be wearing a bra.

1) Your boobs aren't as perky as they used to be and may hang a little normal than lower
2) You are freaking TAPPING, which involves a lot of JUMPING. Nuf said.

I have often thought of why on earth this woman wouldn't wear a bra. You would think that support would be a priority for her but time and time again, as she stands behind me, I can't help but look in the mirror at her "free boobs" and throw up in my mouth a little bit.

Last night was seriously the breaking point. When I walked in, she had a jacket on, seeing as the weather is getting a little colder. As we started to warm up, she took her jacket off and I witnessed something that I never want to see again. Not only was she not wearing a bra, but she was wearing a nude colored tee that was COMPLETELY see through! Are you kidding me?? The bouncing was bad enough but now she is adding nipples to the equation! Sorry for being so graphic but I seriously am considering switching classes. It's not as if she can't see herself in the mirror as well! Needless to say, I was completely disgusted and am not looking forward to next Monday night. The only other option now is going topless and since we've all seen it all anyway, what's stopping her??

I just needed to vent. And just be glad there isn't a photo.

Always good to be reminded...

"When you're unsure of yourself, when you start pulling back into doubt and small living, she's the one inside saying, 'Get up from there and live like the glorious girl you are.' She's the power in you."

I needed this..

My Lizzie Loo is getting Married!!

Not that Liz has been a big contributer to the blog in the last year but I am happy to say that she just got engaged to a great guy! I couldn't be happier for her! If anything, maybe people will stop wondering who my "friend" Liz is. Just wanted to say congrats to the happy couple!

The "Voo"

This trip was actually over Labor Day but it has just taken me a while to post my pics. My ward, yes, I said my singles ward, went to Nauvoo over Labor Day. Can I just say that it was 5 fun-lovin' days of church sites, long bus rides, the most disgusting food I have ever eaten, sick hotels(especially the Super 8 somewhere in Wyoming complete with stained sheets and hair, not our hair, on the shower wall), and lots of interesting peeps. Let's just say that if you don't like FHE in a singles ward, this trip would not have been for you. And can I just say that if my good friend Brookie wouldn't have been there, I may have been suicidal. Enjoy the pics!

The freaky Community of Christ/RLDS temple in Independence Missouri- pronounced Mi-sur-a
Little known fact- the Visitors Center is actually built around the jail, the exsiting jail isn't there except for the original floor. A replica has been built.
Adam-Ondi-Ahman - not much there...yet.

The first of many disgusting meals.
The view from the Nauvoo temple overlooking the Mississippi River

All of the cute Sr. Missionaries put on a musical that was straight of "Waiting for Guffman". Brooke and I were dying the whole time and in honor, we had to show some guns and give our best dead swan.
The view from the grove where JS used to preach.

Unfortunately my camera died a few days before we came home so some sites weren't documented. Overall, good times were had by all and the memories made were priceless.

Weekend at the drive-in

Who doesn't love a good weekend at the drive-in?? I don't know if there is anything better than putting a lovesac in the back of a truck and piling a bunch of peeps in there. Liz was kind enough to venture up from Provo to enjoy the flick with us. We prayed for no rain and besides a few sprinkles, it was a fabulous night..

This, my friends, is Toby. He will making more frequent appearances on the blog. Although it looks like we just woke up, we just thought we would take a post movie pic at 1AM.

Ally B. becomes Ally N!

One of my dearest Ally Baldwin got married a little over a week ago and so the last few weeks have been nothing but a party! Al and I have been through a lot together and even though she hasn't lived in SL for the last 3 years, I am so glad that we have remained such good friends! She's currently living in Boston so we had to cram everything in the two weeks she was in town. Overall, it was such a fun day and she looked so happy and beautiful. I wish I took more pictures but here is just a little glimpse...



Congratulations Brian & Ally! And thanks to John and Di for throwing a heck of a party!

What gives???

This weekend, I had two interesting experiences that left me having a bit of an identity crisis. For those that haven't heard, I was recently called to be the Relief Society Pres. in my ward. I know what you are thinking... "you, the relief society president??". Believe me, I was just as surprised as all of you. I met with the old pres. last week and she completely overwhelmed me with everything that I have to do! So needless to say, Friday night was spent trying to get organized and preparing the talk that I had to give in Sacrament meeting. As I was sitting at the kitchen table, typing away, Janice (my roomie) came home from a date. She brought the guy in and I was getting the vibe that she didn't want him to stay so I didn't offer to leave. She walked outside with him where he proceeded to tell her that he was glad he wasn't struck down in my presence. WTF?? What the hell does that mean?? I talked to him for all of about 3 minutes, and not once did it come up what I was doing. Maybe he just thought I was a loser for doing it on a Friday night. I have never considered myself as a molly mormon but maybe I'm completely wrong. Jan and I got a good laugh from it.
The next morning, Jan and I went to look at a house she was interested in buying. As we walked through the house with the real estate agent, she was making small talk with me and asked me who was going to live there. I told her it would just be Janice and I. She then asked if we were married. Not realizing that she was asking if WE were married to each other, I casually said no and then I figured out what she meant. I quickly clarified that we were both single, FRIENDS, and just looking for a new place to live. Within 12 hours I was accused of being a molly and lesbian. What gives?? Apparently I need to change my look...

Happy Birthday to my dear Elissa...

Today is Elissa's birthday so I (Liz isn't here but I know she would echo me) wanted to thank her for being the best and give all of YOU 27 reasons why WE love her.

1) Elissa, hands down, will do anything for anyone at anytime.
2) She is the best sister to her siblings and best daughter to her parents.
3) She secretly has a dirty side to her.
4) She struggles with her job but I bet she is the best damn teacher at her school.
5) She is so supportive of the people in her life.
6) She shares my love of Mocha ice cream.
7) I think she was the best relief society pres. in the history of presidents. She ALWAYS gave 110%.
8) She looks for the good in everyone.
9) She came to my grandpa's funeral by herself. She'll never know how much that meant to me.
10) She has a wicked tennis swing.
11) Her style. Nuff said.
12) Her patience. God blessed her with way more than I could ever have.
13) Elissa is very wise. I can think of several occassions where something that she said has stuck with me.
14) Her sense of humor. Every once in a while she'll whip out a hum-dinger that makes us laugh for hours on end.
15) Her knowledge of the gospel. She continues to amaze me with how much she knows.
16) She is a packrat. If you've seen Elissa's room, you know what I am talking about. I know...you would never guess that about her.
17)Her love of the Utes. She will be a diehard fan until the day she dies.
18) Her generosity. She always seems to have an extra ticket for me to some sort of event.
19) We have traveled the country together and I can't think of anyone else I would rather do it with.
20) She is a great listener. Whenever I need to vent, she lets me do it and gives great advice.
21) Her testimony. Talk about a rock!
22) Elissa LOVES the temple. It is not unusual for her to be there at least once a week. What a great example she has been to me!
23) She is always up for a good skinny dip. Even in her own backyard.
24) Elissa is friends with everyone! I have yet to meet someone that knows her and doesn't love her!
25) She can mingle with people like its nobody's business. I can think of countless families that would die to have Elissa as a part of their own.
26) Her diligence to say she is going to do something and follow through with it. Not an ounce of flakiness in her.
27) And last but not least, her friendship! She came into my life at a pivitol time and I couldn't be more grateful for that! I love you Lis!

New York, New York

Last week I went with my mom, Brooke and the Hathaway gals to New York for a long weekend. Now, when you go to NY, it's not a really a vacation. Our days consisted of waking up at 7AM, walking about 10 miles a day so that we could fit everything in, and coming home at 10 to crash. We squeezed in a bunch of stuff though and had some good laughs along the way. Thanks for the trip, mom!


The crew



On the subway



Times Square





Empire State Building



After a day of shopping in SoHo



Me, Adrien, Lars



L-O-V-E



Brooke and I doing our Busath vs. Jay Lynn photo shoot



The most touristy thing you can do...riding on top of bus around the city. It was 50 degrees and freezing but we got to see the ghetto. For shizzle my nizzle...

The Luke

I'm sorry, but is this not the cutest kid ever?? This is a shoutout to my nephew Luke, aka "the Luke". Holla!!

i miss alli...

yes i am in brazil...and yes i am stuck in an office where i am currently doing nothing. which is why i had time to reminisce about how much i miss alli. no really she is probably not even realizing i am gone because of her new boyfriend. wait, did i announce that? ha ha--dont you miss me already???

I've been....tagged

Thanks, Ange!

Ten years ago:
I was a junior in high school, had just barely moved away from SugarHouse and hated my parents for doing that to my social life but had a crush on all the new boys in my ward.

5 things on my to do list today:
1. Finish work
2. Go to the gym
3. wash my car
4. tivo American Idol
5. Meet/approve of ally's bf from boston

What would I do if I suddenly had a billion dollars:
1. Pay off debt
2. Take my parents all over Europe
3. Start a humanitarian organization
4. Shopping...let's be honest...lots of shopping
5. Travel

3 of my bad habits:
1. Looking at my split ends
2. slouching
3. not drinking enough water

Jobs I have had:
Zuka Juice
Deseret Book
PA for my dad
Marketing Assistant
HR Manager

5 things people don't know about me:
1. I take tap
2. I love be independant and it's going to take someone fabulous to give that up
3. I love dogs, especially mine, more than people
4. I am either shy or not at all
5. I don't want any daughters, only boys

Snacks I enjoy:
1. cherry chocolates in hot chocolate
2. Ants on a Log
3. chocolate milk
4. Dunford donuts

5 shows I like to watch:
1. The Office
2. The Hills
3. Gossip Girl
4. Rob & Big (by far, the funniest show on TV)
5. Snapped

Places I've vacationed:
California, Lake Powell, DC, New York, Hawaii, Peru

5 things I want to learn:
1. How to cook
2. How to be crafty
3. How to drive without having road rage
4. How to play the harp
5. Selflessness

Serious struggles

So....I'm not the strongest girl I know. This was totally magnified when Liz and I were stranded out in the middle of a field because we couldn't start the effing snowmobile. Here is a hint of what this little adventure was like...this happened about 5 times! You'd think that we would learn to constantly give it a little gas to save us from the hell we endured. Sometimes we never learn...

Wyoming Wonderland

The whole crew

Liz and I were fortunate enough to spend President's Day in Star Valley, and let me just tell you, it was one of the most pleasant weekends I've had in a while. Couldn't have asked for better company, food and all around good times. In previous trips, we have invited super random people and although this trip's randomness was similiar, all our peeps bonded! Hopefully there will be more trips to come! Here are a few pics from the trip!

Liz and I at lunch before we went shopping for mass amounts of food that were consumed throughout the weekend.


The crew at breakfast one morning


A harmless game of "I've never". Let me just say that I was so fascinated by the things that people had done. I guess they weren't as innocent as I thought!


The gals!


So...I became slightly obsessed with Bruiser and Zoe while we were...parting was hard.


Heading out for a little ride


A bunch of us at the "love cabin".

I think by the end of the trip, we all wanted to be adopted by the Kennedy's! Thanks for good times, Liz!

Come on folks....have some class

So this is a blogworthy moment that is definitely worth talking about and sadly, the pictures are dark and don't do it justice. Sometimes on Tuesdays nights, I venture up the the Institute to take a class. Last night I got my times mixed up and got there at the very end. I was sitting out in the lobby waiting for Elissa and enjoying the people watching that comes with attending the Institute.
There was this cute little pubescent couple who were so in love, it almost made me sick. On a side note, isn't it funny how the older we get, the younger everyone gets?? I kid you not, these kids looked like they were sophomores in highschool. As I watched them embrace and stare into one another's eyes, my phone rang and it was my brother Adam. We were in the middle of a convo when all of the sudden, these two little lovebirds start making out in the middle of the Institute lobby!! Honestly, who does that?? I was so infatuated by the whole thing that I just couldn't stop staring. No really, my eyes could not leave them. This was no little kiss, it was definitely passionate. He kept pulling her closer and closer, it was almost too graphic to watch. But, let me assure you, I was not the only one watching. There were several others around me who were also intrigued.
They must have decided that it was a little odd to be standing up so they moved their session to the chair. I was surprised that she didn't strattle him because they continued to get it on for quite some time. I know the picture is dark but this is the best one I could get. Come on folks...get a room.

where oh where have we gone?

I know that alli and myself have a loyal fan base. Because of this, i not only question how much spare time you have on your hands...BUT ALSO i decided it was about time i took a break from very important gossip girl (mon @ 7) to talk about our lives.
so you ask yourselves, "where have they gone"? I can only answer for myself, so that means i challenge alli to fill you in on her life...

Jud and i got little bored in Vegas seeing as how we don't drink, not too fond of strippers, and every time i tried to sneak away for a lovely little hand of blackjack- Jud decided to conveniently quote President Hinckley's talk about gambling. well let just say that ruined that plan!
Next stop on Liz's tour bus of fun...

We successfully found ourselves in Park City during Sundance, but we VERY unsuccessfully stalked celebrities. Dan might have scared them away.
and then there was the day we...

yes...we scarificied our health as you can see (alli had an eye disease and i had a minor stomach problem resulting in some serious issues) to get a kiss on new years eve. Apparently our "hotness" was over looked because no one got any except, of course elissa (who kissed an in the closet gay man...).

***QUESTION for the wise: Why does alli always hold a drink and look drunk? hmmmm...
Next stop:
I feel like this is so obvious-- but it IS winter and what can you do in the winter besides get hot chocolate and a dunford at the SEV....play in the snow!

I wanted to tell you about the day alli and i broke into wheeler farm to meet some of our furry friends, BUT i cant because alli ha the pictures....hint hint.
Did i mention EVERYONE should watch gossip girl? oh, i think i already did...

Happy New Year!!

So...we didn't blog at all in the month of December because we were super busy with all the festivities! We made a trip to cali to watch the Utes, stopped off at Vegas on the way home, celebrated my bday along with ringing in 2008! First off, Cali...

The Utes pulled out a victory. Wahoo!!


A salute to the Navy



Hammer was nice enough to let us crash at his pad.


Our trusty rental, the cobalt....

After a few days in LA, we headed off to Vegas with a stop at Buffalo Bills to be the only ones riding the rollercoaster in 30 degree weather. Ask Elissa, everything that happened there, stayed there...


Our orange dream machine that took us there.


Thanks for letting us crash at your house Ernie!



A great time was had by all! Go UTES!