pioneers mean more carnivals...

Given that I've been to two carnivals already this summer, it's no surprise that I jumped at the chance to attend a third. Pioneer Day in Utah means more festivities and fireworks -- how could I miss it? I truly love carnivals and fairs and festivals -- so much to look at, so much to do, and so many people to watch. So much life!




And so many dreams came true...as in I can cross them off my bucket list:



1. Go to a carnival or street fair with a special someone - check. I was lucky enough to go with my best girl and most wonderful housemate you could ask for, and my best man.

2. Receive a surprise gift while there because said special someone was paying attention to what I was looking at - check. Yeah - Adam was watching me window shop and noticed me lingering on a set of earrings. And he bought them for me. Aw.

3. Have a special someone win a prize - this wasn't always a bucket list item because I do not trust any games whatsoever, but because he won - check. We named her Zelda.




4. Take silly pictures and wear funny headgear - check. We were celebrating the baby prince in our princess garb and jewelry. Just, you know. Because we can.

5. Watch fireworks while holding hands with a special someone - check.

 

small = cute...

Unless it's a spider. Spiders are small (usually) but they are not, I repeat, NOT. Cute.

But these little guys are!

These are our new fosters!

They're about two and a half weeks old now. They recently received their names, after a period of the black on being called Tan and the cream one being called Black (a la Psych Season 5, Episode 15 "Black and Tan: A Crime of Fashion").

We now call them Thor and Tasha. Thor, the big one on the left, is so named because he is twice the size of his sister and big, blonde, and beautiful. Tasha, the one on the right, is short for Natasha Romanov because of her sassy little attitude and her ability to pull herself out of any kind of scrape with ease.

They can sleep anywhere.

Thor hates having his picture taken, funnily enough.

Aw.

Tasha is "my" puppy, though she will let anyone cuddle her as long as they produce body heat.

Yeah. I love being a foster mom.

puppy lovin'...

I love these kids -- so, so sweet.

Chelley and I are happy, happy mommies.

da babies is HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I  know this probably looks super, super weird. There is a legitimate reason for three grown-ups of both genders to be pushed up against each other in the bathroom.

BABIES!!!!!!!

Our three little foster babies are here!!

These three kiddos were on the kill list of a Denver shelter. Chelsea saw these three and three other puppies from the same litter posted on Facebook as needing a foster home asap. We eagerly volunteered our home and have spent the last three days dying in suspense.

And here they are! Highly in need of a bath, some dinner, and lots of love -- all of which they received with little hesitation.

Here we have Jeffy with little Lily and Chelley with Baby Bowser.

Here's me with my tiny Theodore, or Teddy Bear as I call him. And there are the babies all in a row.

Our photographer, Adi Bear.

And after a long day of travel, bath time, and play, it's time to sleep.

temple, temple...

One of the few places that I feel total peace is on the grounds of the temple. In this crazy, noisy, topsy-turvy world, I often find that my head and heart start being just as crazy, noisy, and topsy-turvy. Just walking in the gardens and sitting on the steps of the temple helps me get my spiritual bearings -- I drop my cares and worries for a moment, basking in the glow of the sun on the temple walls.

Sunday saw a visit to the St. George temple -- we stopped there before returning home from our spur of the moment adventure. Jeff, Chelsea, Adam, and I took turns taking pictures of one another on the grounds, soaking up the sunshine and enjoying one another's company.

Pretty much perfection right here, folks.

     I think we're pretty sweet together, don't you?

Except when he does this...not quite as sweet...

Yay, friends!

housemates, bromance to the max, best friends

What a wonderful world it is. 

Spring fake...

BYU has an age old tradition of not giving its students a spring break. The reasons they give seem to make sense, such as "you get out of school a week earlier than everyone else" and "it only prolongs time until finals." But we all know the truth: it's because they want to keep us away from all of the other colleges who are out partying, where we might get into trouble.

True story.

Due to dire need of a reprieve from school, work, and regular life in general, my housemate and I put our feet down and told our men that a holiday was in order. Late Thursday night saw hotel plans and grocery lists set, and 12 hours later we four were in the car for a St. George vacation, our very own fake break.

Adam, Jeff, Chelsea, and me at Fiest Fun enjoying a game of mini golf

Never a dull moment with these two around.

You see what I mean?!

      

I love this man so much.

Shhh!

Oh! You caught us!

Yep. We're all adorable. Such fun!

a taste of the outdoors...

I love the smell of pine trees. Which is one of the many reasons why I'm still glad that Chelsea and I got a real tree for Christmas.

First, we stopped by Mater and said hello. We just like him for his body. And then, we found our tree! Beautiful, isn't it?

All ready to go!

Happy Christmas from the girls in 83!

PS Thanks to Jeff for taking all of the pictures, for helping us get the tree standing up straight, and for helping tie it to the car.

Jack didn't build this house...

After a weekend of studying for finals and a Monday of one monstrous exam followed by studying for a second, I was worn out. So when Jeff and Chelsea called me and invited me to make gingerbread houses with them and Jeff's family, I didn't even think about saying no. To heck with studying! Let's have some fun!

Fun it was. Lots of fun! We came away with some graham cracker masterpieces, blistered fingers from a hot glue gun (at least in my case), and sugar overload because of all the candy that ended up in our mouths instead of on the architecture.

Chelsea made a beautiful Eiffel Tower, and I made a replica of my favorite building on BYU campus, the Hinckley Alumni Center.

Happy girls, happy houses, and Happy Christmas!