I've made a few miner changes in my life, and it has lead me to one conclusion. My birthday is coming in August, and for those of you who would like to get me something, there is one thing my heart desires more than any other... more than clothes or art supplies or food or even something from Hawaii (wink wink, Mom), and that thing would be... iTunes giftcards. If I came away on August 2 with a pile of those I would be the happiest camper in the world! Just a thought.
I am totally excited that I will be home in a week, I just might explode! Yes, I know all my loved ones will miss me here in good old P-town, but I've got much better loved ones in California that I'm dying to see and play with! My preparations have already begun... mwahahaha!

Y Mountain

I finally did it! I hiked up to the tippy top of Y mountain like I've been wanting to do all month. This was my second time doing it, and everything was so much greener! I guess that's what happens when you hike in May instead of August. Anyways, here are the highlights: I did it in 4 hours, I saw two rattlesnakes by the path and got really freaked out by it, when I was at the top I sang "All creatures of our God and King, lift up your voice and with us sing!" and at that moment a bird started singing for the first time since I'd started, so I thought that was pretty cool. I saw many sorts of flowers, got super sweaty, actually saw other humans on the trail, actually received a call while behind the mountain, but best of all... I survived! I put all the pictures on facebook, and I highly recommend them because they're beautiful, but here is a video I took. I think this might be the last time I hike that mountain though, because I don't want to run into rattlers again, and it just wasn't as fulfilling as I'd hoped. I can get the same view and beauty from other less grueling hikes. So that's that, folks! But the best part is, I proved Eric Mackelprang wrong! Girls can do it!

My Boys

Here's a cute picture of Wayne and his companion with a couple that was being baptized. I took one look at this picture and said to myself, "Wayne is getting his man face!" It was totally weird to me to think that my boys are actually becoming men out there on their missions. And it's even crazier that they're coming home! I think Talmage is due to come home next month, and Tim and Blaine to return the following month. Red Head Ben comes home in August, and Kirk Kabob, Cousin Ben, and Wayne get back in the fall. Mind blowing. It seems like they just went out, and yet it's been forever. I just hope we can stay in contact when they get back as well as we have since they've been out.

Play Day!

Yes, I did it. I finally played with my new friends today! I got invited to go to Stuart (sp) Falls today, and I actually went! It was such a beautiful little hike with a great view and some lovely falls. The weather was perfect, there were lots of fun friends there, and I was feeling great! So we all came back and many of us went swimming. Holly and Jack came and played too, which was so fun! His first swimming experience, and in MY pool, so grand! And tonight we're going to the bishops house for FHE with another family, and my husband has some fun stuff planned. Even though I've been a bum of an FHE mom, he's doing a great job. And he looks like Zack Efron, so it's great!
In other news, Amanda earned us some M&M and ice cream today, which is rather nice for us. I've got my coming home mix almost done, and my TELL class ends on Thursday. Life seems pretty good.

Dinky Dummy

So I asked Scotty to cheer me up somehow the other day, and he replied by telling me this story. I always loved it when Scotty would tell me stories, because they always had this character called Dinky Dumby, and good ol' Dinky Dumby would always screw up in a hilarious way. So I'll share with you all this terrific story. Hope Scotty doesn't mind, and I hope you all enjoy it!

Once upon a time, up in Provo Julie was playing with Dinky Dummy. They were playing four square, but it didn't last very long because some dork from the new 420 would hit the ball, then some dork from the new 403 would hit the ball, then Julie would hit the ball, and then Dinky Dummy would kick the ball into the swimming pool. "No," Julie would say, "that's not how four square is played, Dinky Dummy." But Dinky Dummy just couldn't ever get it right, so they had to quit playing (because the Colony's owner showed up and started mouthing off about no horseplay around the pool, and that includes the street now). Then Julie got a great idea. "I have a great idea!" she said. "Let's go visit Scotty in CA!" Dinky Dummy just smiled and nodded. So, that night, after Leesa had gone to bed, Julie stole her keys and her car, and she and Dinky Dummy headed down to CA. On the way, Dinky Dummy kept asking to use the bathroom. "You just went!" Julie would cry, but for fear of leaving Leesa's car with a Dinky Dummy accident, she would stop for him every time. When they got to Vegas, Julie suggested that they stop for some In-n-out. After lunch, Julie made a quick stop to powder her nose. When she came out, she couldn't find Dinky Dummy. "Where could he have gone?" she said to herself. She started to circle the In-n-out and found him out back. He was with a tall dude wearing a coat (even though it was like a million degrees outside). "Hey!" Julie cried, a bit angry. The guy turned around and Julie could see that Dinky Dummy had purchased a bunch of fake Rolex watches. Now they had no money left! Julie was about to demand the money back from the stranger when she was met with a pleasant surprise. The man in the coat was Will! "What's up Julie?!" said Will. "My new summer job is SWEET!" "Will!" cried Julie. "It's so good to see you! Except that you stole all our money we were using to drive down to California to see Scotty." "Really?" asked Will. "Scotty's been dying for some yoga lessons! How 'bout if I give you your money back and then I pay for the rest of the trip so we can all go together!" Julie agreed, of course, but had to endure Will's guitar playing in the backseat the rest of the way (but it wasn't really that bad). Finally, after many long hours of driving, Julie pulled up outside of Scott's house. Scott just happened to be taking out the trash when Julie pulled up, but from there it became a madhouse. Dinky Dummy was so excited to see Scott that he jumped out of the car before it stopped moving, but recovered quickly, sprinting toward Scott and trying to show off his new watches at the same time. Just then, Will darted from the car with his guitar, trying to do yoga moves while running. But as soon as Julie got out of the car, Scott jumped and did a triple flip over Will and Dinky Dummy and landed right next to Julie and gave her the biggest hug in the world! It was the best ever! The End.

A lot of posting going on today, I don't want to get left behind

So it's been a week since Steve ditched out on Provo, and let me tell you, it has been one long week. Not just because of that, but life, school, work, and sleep have been consuming my time like I could never believe. I have gotten some very lovely roller blading in. I'm getting a little color on my arms, and turning blonder every day. If only the silly Utah weather would decide to be nice and lovely all the time.
Nice things about being single: I don't feel the urge to shave my legs every day (which means I haven't done it in a week. Tasty.), I get to bed whenever I want, my eyes are feeling much better (because apparently I really was allergic to him. Who knew?), and I don't bore people with non-stop Steve stories. These are all very lame reasons, but I'm trying here. I've actually been doing well, and by Sunday I think I'll be ready to meet new friends and start my summer partying!
I checked my grades today, and I was pretty happy with what I got: 4 A's, 2 -A's, and one stinkin' -B. Oh, how I hated that dumb creative dance teacher who lost my big papers...
I sent Tim's birthday present away, and I find it so crazy that he's turning 21 this month. I am so excited for all my boys to start coming home. I think Talmage is the first to come back in like June or July. YESSSS!!
I dug up some of my forgotten favorite music today, like Jupiter Sunrise and Kara's flowers. And soon I will start listening to A Tale of Two Cities on my iPod at work. I'm pretty stoked.
I had a dream last night that I was bit in the mouth by a black widow spider. What does that mean?

I Cut My Hair and I LOVE it!

As many of you know, my Steve left for home today, and thence onto an internship in New York City. In the short time we've been dating (since Valentines day) I have gotten to enjoy his fun personality, his thoughtful actions, and his sweet kind words. Never have I felt so appreciated and special to someone (outside my family. Don't worry Mom. ;) I found with him special feelings and experiences that I hope haven't taken for granted, and will never forget. I don't know how I got so lucky to have him, even for just a couple months, but I count myself very blessed. Now as I sit here hours after our goodbye, I think of all the love and support around me during this hard time. There are countless people I know I can turn to for a shoulder to cry on, comforting words, a place to escape, a party to have, or just someone to listen. Heavenly Father is really looking after me by putting all these angels in my life. Thanks everyone.

Leading up to today, I was nervous that I wouldn't be able to handle it. I've had to do this sort of thing before, and I gotta say it wasn't fun or pretty. But after chatting it over with the Man upstairs, He let me know everything was gonna be OK. He gave me a lovely sense of peace, and helped me see that this is one of those things that is for my good, and once again reminded me that He's got a plan for me. I knew I would miss Steve, and I already do terribly, but the sting just isn't there. After talking to Steve about it, he got the same thing. It was a big comfort to know that Heavenly Father put us on the same page. Who knows why we came together when we did, or why we have to be apart now, or what will happen in both our lives in the future, but it's so nice to know that Someone better is in control, and that He put so much love in my life to help me through the tough parts. Steve, I miss you, and I hope you have a grand time in New York!

Conference Weekend

This weekend was pretty much spectacular, mostly because of the company I got to enjoy. Friday was Steve's birthday, and I don't know about him, but I had a great time. A bunch of us went to Maglbey Fresh (I think that's what it's called) and had fun eating great food and being with great friends. Afterwards we all went back to the Pirate's for some birthday cake. Rainbow chip with fun-fetti frosting, Steve's favorite. It was delectable. After that everybody ditched out, so Steve and I had a nice evening alone. I gave him some gifts: some socks(to replace his holy ones), some pens(to replace the one's he has lost during our relationship), and some Curve(to give him more confidence). I was glad to hear he liked them.
Then Saturday I woke up and my face was broken! Well, mostly my eyes. They were all red and puffy and watery and dry (oxymoronic, I know). It was awful. So I laid on the couch and slept through most of the first session. Oops! So I took a shower and felt much better. Steve came over for the second session and we listened to it on the radio. Dinner was involved sometime after. I'm sure we did other grand things, but they are slipping my mind... drat.
Anyways, Sunday I went to the Pirate's and enjoyed John Deere's home-made cinnamon rolls while listening to conference. Between sessions I got lots of coloring done for class, and stomped Steve at connect 4 (but don't worry folks, he stomped me right back later that night). He came to Grandma's house and we hung out for a good while over there. Shelby and Cari are just too much fun to handle, and we all decided that Kevin is now 24, so congrats to Shelby for catching an older man. =D When we got home, Steve helped me measure a tree for math homework, then we shared art projects with Barbara (not quite sure how that came to pass). I made Steve promise to help me get to bed earlier this week, so against my liking he helped me get to sleep at a reasonable time. But not before some sweetness on his part, and some secret Japanese dancing on mine. Maybe all that sleep isn't so good for me though, because I dreamed I was pregnant with triplets... strange...

The Weekend of Dreams...

I wrote Tim today and told him all about California. Instead of writing it all out again, I'll just let us all enjoy Tim's letter:

"Dear Tim,
I hope you are having a wonderful day so far. I just got back from a delightful weekend in California, and was pleased to have a letter from you waiting for me when I rolled back into P-town. This weekend was AMAZING! Such a nice break from school and cold weather and SNOW, which I'm rather enraged is still falling from the sky as I write. Holly Jack and her crazy neighbor Whitney and I all drove down on Friday. It was a fun drive, I didn't stall Holly's car once which I'm pretty proud of myself for, and Jack slept the whole time. It was so fun to see Shelley again. I missed hanging out with her and laughing and cuddling with her. And baby Jett is a hoot and a half! He's changed so much since I've seen him, but getting cuter every day. He's a drool machine! He furrows his brow most of the time and is rather temperamental, but he looks just like baby Shelley did, accept as a boy. It was great to see Rick too, and enjoy his deep laughter as someone says something inappropriately hilarious. Saturday, my roommates came down for the weekend on a completely separate trip, but we all met up at the beach. Traffic was crazy, but once I got there, the warm sun, cool breeze, and sandy sand healed my spirits. Good old SPF 50 saved me from any sunburn, and I came home salty and exhausted, but happy. I tried to do my homework that night, but sitting on the sidelines of a particularly entertaining game of Curses is not a great way to focus. Sunday we all drove to Pasadena where Jett got blessed. It was a short but sweet blessing. I always love to see my brothers-in-law use their priesthood. And we gathered afterwards at their apartment for a lunch/picture taking session (which I'm sure you'll get to enjoy... the pictures, not the food). Everyone was there, my mom and dad, Rick's mom and dad, Judith and her boys, my aunt and uncle and their kids, and the Utah crew, of which I'm a part. After the festivities were over, we drove down to see the Pasadena city hall, then home for a nice relaxing evening. And by that I mean furious preparations for... DISNEY LAND! Monday we headed off to enjoy the happiest place on earth. It was Holly's birthday (make sure you wish her a good one if you haven't already), and Disney land is doing this thing where you get in free on the exact day of your birthday. The rest of my family excluding myself has season passes. Darn my Utah residence! Anyways, we went and did everything. It was Whitney's first time, so we did everything, all the big rides and all the little (worth while) rides and saw the shows and visited all our special nostalgic places. It was grand! But the whole experience was quite different since there were two three month old babies and their strollers with us. My mom let all us kids go on a ride and she was watching them both by herself when they started crying. She let a stranger hold Jett to calm him down. It's lucky that everyone is so nice at Disney Land because they are inspired by the magic. But we stayed til the bitter end and had a great time doing it. We got up early on Tuesday and drove back to Utah. Uneventfully pleasant drive. But like I said, I had your letter waiting for me, as well as from my cousin Sister Diane Chatfield and my friend Elder Elliott Clare. Nice welcome home present since the weather wasn't doing much for me.
While on my trip, I had a dream about you. I wonder if you've ever had a dream yet, maybe the mission kick started your subconscious or something... wishful thinking. Anyways, in my dream you were home, obviously, and we were hanging out at a ward FHE and having lots of fun. Then we went on a walk, but we were in Redlands on our family's normal walk route, and we ran into Blaine, but he was like a foot taller than before. It was a delightful reunion. The end of the dream involved a razor scooter and some very nice drug dealers, but you were gone by then.
OK, I forgot to say this before, and I guess I could cut and paste but it would ruin the flow (or what exists of it) in the email, so here it goes... HOLLY IS PREGNANT! AGAIN! She's six weeks along with Jack's new brother or sister. She told us during her birthday dinner at Disney land. This totally blows my mind. it'll be great.
Our Relief Society gave us a challenge to read the book of Mormon from right before Christmas break to easter, and I'm just about to finish. It's been such a neat experience, because I don't think I've ever read it that fast before. There are so many crazy connections and stuff I've never seen before. It's kind of fun to just read it like a novel, and yet have the Spirit speaking important things to you. I can't wait to start it over again!
...
That's pretty much the meat of it.

Secrets (that aren't so secret)

Guess What I Just Did?

Well, I'm sure we all know about my little issue of deciding whether I should go back to Redlands or stay in Provo for July and August. I was thinking about this in the temple the other week, and Elder Oak’s talk came into my mind of good, better, best. I was like, well, both my choices would be good, but which one would be better... and wait a second... is there a third option that would be best? Then the idea popped into my mind of being an EFY councilor. At first I was like, NO WAY! and I left the temple more confused than I came in. I hadn't really thought about it much until this morning. I went back to the temple, and asked that same question again, should I stay or should I go? And the same thing happened, what about EFY? Then I thought about it for a minute, and decided that maybe that is a good idea. I don't really understand that, because I've always been generally anti-EFY for various reasons (mostly the cheesy music). But I decided to be obedient and just give it a try, looking at dates and opportunities to do it. I came home and looked online. Lo and behold, EFY is coming to Redlands this summer! So, all of a sudden, I find myself applying to be an EFY councilor in Redlands during July 20-25! How weird and crazy is that!? If this happens, then I'll stay in Provo until the July 18 or 19, go back to California for EFY, then stay in Redlands until after my birthday on August 1, then come back to Provo and find a better job for my new schedule in the fall. As I'm thinking about it, it kind of is the best of both worlds. Interesting development... Please, input would be nice on this plan, so feel free to comment.

Rock Climbing

(not an actual picture from our trip)

The Pirates' friend came into town this weekend, so to celebrate she made them dinner (I don't know how they swung that), and we all went rock climbing at the Quarry. I've never done indoor style, and the last time I went real rock climbing was for the mia maid activity when I was like 14. It was a complete BLAST! Going into it, I knew I would be belaying for Steve, which made me a little nervous since he's so much bigger than me. But thanks to the ancient technology of pulleys and whatever, his life was kept safe in my hands. And vise-versa. Thanks for not letting me die, Steve-o!
I felt pretty pathetic after my first climb. I did get to the top, but it took me forever and my arms were so tired I had to have Steve undo my rope for me. What a good sport. But after some expert advice from John Deere, I tore up those rock faces! I finished just about every wall I tried, and not too slowly either (well, by my standards). It was fun watching everyone else climb too.
But I was glad to hear yesterday that I'm not the only one of our group who has dysfunctional limbs afterwords. Now I know which muscles are used to climb with though.

Corbin's Camera

My work friend Corbin left his camera at my house when some friends came over to play, so naturally I took that advantage to leave some saucy surprises for him. Now we will all enjoy the fruits of my trick...

thanks for the memories, Norman

This is a beautiful painting by Norman Rockwell that holds special memories for me. It used to hang on the wall of the T Hall basement, and I would sometimes go down there to do homework only to get distracted and stare at that painting. When Steve and I went to the MOA it was there, and it took me straight back to freshman year. Fun trip by a nice painting.

TGIF

This week has gone by a lot quicker than I had expected, which I am thankful for. It's already Friday, and the week has been pleasant and fairly uneventful. Movie night at Holly's was super fun, with the added spice of Dahl cousins and derby pie. A delightful and unexpected call from Steve brightened up the evening even more, and I was glad to hear he's having fun in Texas.

Yesterday, a little less homework was completed than I had hoped, but it was still a nice day. I was so disappointed when I looked outside before work and saw the snow, but I knew it would all be gone by noon, which it was. And I got a pretty sweet homework assignment from drama class for the weekend: make a sock puppet. I think mine is going to turn out super awesome, and his name will be Eppo Jr. A classic.

Today I'm having a bunch of work friends over for a movie party. We're going to watch Sleeping Beauty and eat cookie dough, and laugh and laugh and laugh. (or so I hope). I wonder what my night will hold... maybe some Mario Kart? Another movie somewhere? Dance party in the street? Who knows?!

All I can say is tomorrow can't come fast enough, if you know what I mean.

Also, shout out to my mom for uploading all those sweet pictures from Jack's blessing. They are so fun! And extra shout out to Roxy, just because she's awesome!

Welcome!

I have been informed by a very reliable informant that I have some new readers on this very fine blog. You are very welcome! And now I shall be a little more strategic with my words, but don't worry. It will still be totally awesome to read. And a special thanks to Scotty for being my publicity man! PUTNAM!

Yesterday was the most perfect Sunday I've had in a long long time, mostly because I got to spend it all with Steve, but for many more reasons which I shall present now.

It began with some spiritual enlightenment at Stake conference in the Provo tabernacle. I got to sit with a delightful mix of pirates and wenches (apt. 420 and 403). Then we all came home and made a huge breakfast for lunch. March 1st rang in the first day of springtime, and it was glorious! It felt so lovely outside that we enjoyed our breakfast lunch out on the grass and got our daily measure of vitamin D. After a period of general rest and relaxation, we had our first respectable stoop party of the year. All down the streets people were on their lawns: Frisbees and footballs were flying, guitars and ukulele's were being strummed, cards and spoons were being thrown, scooters and bikes were being ridden... it was magical.

Soon Shyla and Russell came and picked up Steve and I for a lovely evening at Grandma's house, full of delicious food and good company. Other than my throwing a good measure of gravy on the floor, it was rather uneventful.

When we came back, Steve and I parted company for the first time that day, he to call his mom and I to do whatever I wanted. Apparently I wanted to talk to Carlie and get great ideas from her for a story. SHOUT OUT TO CARLIE FOR HER CREATIVITY AND ROCK AWESOMENESS! Then I worked over my story (which I turned in today, and it's pretty great) and read it to as many people as would listen.

The rest of the night was spent helping Steve deliver nice notes, and playing in the sweetest fort 403 has ever seen.

Don't you wish you had been there enjoying the day with me? I do.

"The only thing that would make this situation any better would be some moon boots."

Brother Brigham

This is what Steve and I did last night: Played Uno, ate M&Ms, talked, laughed, and most importantly, visited Brother Brigham. Brother Brigham is the beloved anematronic Brigham Young that lives in the Crabtree. He is my greatest friend and ally. Steve was pretty freaked out, especially by the space where an eye should be that you can look into and see his wirey brain. I hope he warms up to him some day.














I know I'm making a weird face in this one, but I just wanted y'all to see just how much taller he is than me! Crazy.

Magical Powers

It's funny what magical powers sleep can have on me. As posted before, the start of my week left me feeling really weird. Monday afternoon/night turned into a complete melt down, and I couldn't pin what was wrong. But after a delightfully long nap yesterday, and an early to bed night, I'm feeling so much better. It might take another night or two of real sleep, but I think I'll make it to real human status. I like normal Julie much better than emotionally out of whack Julie. And a special sorry to all those who fell victim to my sleep-deprived antics!

Non-rested:
















Yes-rested:

Today I finished my last lecture of PE, and I am done! Even though I loved that class, I feel so free! The sun is shining, I took about a 3 hour nap in memorial hall, my homework doesn't look very menacing... things are good.