Her little carb baby.

That's what my mom calls me. 

Occasionally. 

She says I need to watch it. And eat more vegetables. 

I guess it's kind of embarrassing. 

But mostly just funny, cause it's sort of true. 

Don't get me wrong, I love vegetables. 

Carrots, peppers, and celery, to name just a few.

And let's not forget the BLT, which has tomatoes, lettuce, and avocado. 

(well, avocado is my special addition.) 

But, don't forget it also needs bread.

So. Ask yourself this question.

Are you going to get full munching on some carrots or eating some of these delectable items? 

Let's be serious. 

*all pictures from pinterest.

At the risk of getting too hungry, I'll stop now.

 But I think this case is closed.

In other news, I can't wait for the weekend. I'm going to make cinnamon roles.

(The best part is cutting them with the wire.) 

xoxo

triple-a monday. (a day late.)

source.

Sooo, walking on campus today I saw the last "a" encounter I needed for my triple-a Monday blog/post/thingy. And even though I'm a day late I thought, why not? (That phrase reminds me of an awesome movie you should see. Check out the trailer here. Impressively clean, inspiring message, excellent script, Matt Damon. What more could you want?)

Anyway...

Awkward:
Walking past a guy with skinny jeans skinnier than my skinny jeans. Uhhllll. Seriously, if boys need help with how to wear pants, I suggest they check out Ryan Reynolds in The Proposal.

Annoying:
Going to my favorite place in the library, only to find it overrun with a bunch of random people. Where did you all come from?!?! Now I have to, *shudder*, share a desk with another person. ;) And in case you were wondering about rules of the BYU library, here's an interesting one. Once you sit at a desk to study, the next available seat on that desk is the one in the opposite corner, as far away from you as possible. Once someone sits there the desk is full. No discussion. Unless the following exceptions occur:

• Couples. 2 seats are still used and then the table is full, but the seats are on the same side of the table. Positioned as close together as possible. Obviously.
• Groups. 2+ seats are used, and it doesn't matter where they sit, because they all know each other. But these people usually find a study room so they can be noisy. 
• Finals week. ALL 4 SEATS CAN BE OCCUPIED. I know. It's crazy. This strange phenomenon occurs because students start stressing about upcoming tests and race to the library to suddenly become an excellent studier. 

Awesome:
Spending the week with this girl. So. Much. Fun. It's like Jerusalem all over again. Only in Provo, with normal food, and normal clothes.
Also, adding avocado to my BLT. Brilliant idea. I thought about calling my sandwich a BLAT, but that just seemed to degrade the awesomeness of the sandwich. So, it will remain BLT + avocado. Try it.

source.

Hope you've found some ordinary little moments in your day that can thrill you, too!

Not all those who wander are lost.

Thanks Nicole for the sweet pic!

"Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Wandering around the Old City might be my new favorite thing. After living in Jerusalem for over two months, I'm starting to feel like this is my city. I know my way around the different quarters, can point out which way is north, south, east, or west (this took a while because I lacked the trusty Rocky Mountains as my guide), and I've visited most of the major sites around town. Now when I go in the city, I'm not as rushed to see things; I take my time and enjoy every moment. I open random doors, explore hidden allies, and interact with the locals. The past several days have been filled with exciting discoveries, good friends, and amazing food. 

The Kings' Tombs. This site is in someone's backyard which made me jealous.

This wheelbarrow is in honor of James and our Grand Canyon hike. :)

Random cave at the rock-cut tombs in the Kidron Valley. The entrance looked
like a piano. This made me happy. So naturally a picture was taken.

Creepy crawler.

Jewish school children near the Western Wall. (Thanks Danielle!)

Early morning at the Western Wall.
(Awesome photo credit, above and below, to Eliza!)

Women praying at the wall. 

We found a playground in the Jewish quarter. This may or may not
have been the first thing I did when I saw it.

Me and Eliza riding down the slide. :) 

Me, Jared, and Eliza eating pita and hummus at Lina's. Soooo good!

Door to the Greek Orthodox church we got to see.  

The little Greek lady that invited us to see the above church.
She was so friendly and gave us all hugs and kisses after we talked to her.
I love the friendly and accepting the people I have met here in Jerusalem.

Every generation gets a chance to change the world.

Coming back to Jerusalem after our week adventure in Turkey felt good. Like coming home. Despite the sudden inundation of classes and homework, I made sure to get out in the city. I love how I can finally find my way around most of the Old City.

Yesterday, I went out to the Old City with Eliza, Shalyn, Kristine, and Tiffany. We rushed over to the Dome of the Rock and barely made it before the guards' lunch break. It was my first time there and even though I've seen the Dome of the Rock in pictures, it still was a little unreal. I had never fully appreciated the blue decorated tiles all around the structure and the sun was shining perfectly on the golden dome. Also, there were very few people there, so it was very peaceful and quiet.

First time seeing the Dome.

I love the contrasting blues and golds. 

Me, Eliza, Tiffany, and Kristine. 

After the Dome of the Rock, we meandered through the Jewish Quarter. The Jews are currently celebrating Rosh Hashanah, their start to the New Year. Hey, this would be a perfect time to make some goals. You only have to keep them until January 1st! We stumbled across this sign at the entrance to a home close to the Western Wall. 

Yeah for Fiddler on the Roof. :) "Tradition!" has been stuck in my head ever since. You're welcome.

Our final stop was for some challah at a local bakery. This is bread that the Jews make on Shabbat and holidays. It is a specially braided sweet bread and tastes absolutely delicious. I will have to restrain myself from eating challah every Sabbath ;)

Me and Eliza outside the bakery. 

Falafel in the Old City.

Random thoughts of the night:

Despite the 60+ pages of reading I have before class tomorrow, all I can think about is the delicious falafel I had in Jerusalem today. Take a pita and add falafel, pickles, tomatoes, fries, and mystery sauce. Sooo good. I can't wait for more. 

I love walking around the city and simply soaking in the surroundings. At a forum tonight, our speaker told us to taste, smell, touch, and see the city, down to every brick. This is one of the best ways to understand a culture and people. I have started this and can't wait to explore this Holy Land. 

In Hebrew, I learned the most common phrase that the people say to each other: "Ma Neeshma?" (basically, what's up?) You typically respond by saying, "Be'Seder," meaning everything's in order. 

Oh, and check out my view.