over the weekend.

This past week was one of those times where so much is going on that you just plow straight through and only stop and look back when everything's over. Now that I can breathe again, if only for a week :), I've enjoyed reminiscing about the good things that happened these past few days. 

One night we went to Mazza, a Middle Eastern restaurant, and ate some hummus and falafel. We told them right when we ordered that some of us had been to Jerusalem and knew what really good falafel tasted like. I think we were just trying to scare them in to making some really good food. And it wasn't half bad. (Though nothing will be as good as the falafel at the bottom of Damascus Gate.) Eating the pita and hummus brought back a lot of memories. 

Oh, did I mention that Danielle came to visit? She just got back from a study abroad in Mexico and Belize, *cough* world traveler, and stayed for the weekend. She kept me sane while I prepared for my talk and everything. Also, it was her birthday. The big 21. So we celebrated. 

My favorite part of the birthday celebration was taking Danielle on a hike up Bell's Canyon. Here she is enjoying the view and drinking some sparkling cider. 

As soon as we sat down on the bench overlooking the lake, two geese made a bee-line straight towards us. It was slightly freaky. Apparently people feed them all the time. But I couldn't justify giving them any pop-rocks chocolate, happy hippos, or peach rings. They were pretty upset. Here they are leaving us in disgust. 

 On the way down, Danielle's awesome camera was able to snap this beauty of a picture.

I think this might be the only picture someone has taken of me driving in a car. A lot of the week invovled rockin' out to music. Because soon all of that will be over. I think music might be the thing I'll miss most. Besides my family of course. :)

For my farewell, I got this crazy idea to make Eiffel Tower cookies. Let's just say I won't be doing it again. But it was fun to make them with Danielle and see her inner pastry chef. 

My farewell was really a lot of fun. I was somewhat dreading giving a talk in front of my whole ward, but as soon as I stood up I felt really calm and might have enjoyed giving it. Just a little. It was fun afterwards to see friends and family at my house. My mom worked wonders with the decorations and food. And all of it just made me more excited to leave on mission. I can't wait to learn French and preach the gospel to people of France. Can it only be 7 days away!?!?

i'm taking a mental picture of you now.

This weekend was brilliant. And I only have one picture to prove it.

Yes, those are Magnum Bars chilling (literally) in my freezer. 

Let's just say FHE last night was pretty sweet (no pun intended). 

Also, it reminded me of the $$$ I dropped on those little bars during my study abroad.

It's not that they are the best chocolate bar in the world. They're not.

It was just the taste of something remotely American on a hot and sticky bus ride that made me cave in and buy them.  

I can remember all the counter tops where I passed over my shekels and was handed in return 2 minutes of joy. 

But I digress. 

This weekend, Danielle came to visit. This translates into awesomeness. 

We ate Mexican food, 

visited the new shopping mall City Creek. Yeah for the Disney Store, :)

stayed up late talking,

watched funny youtube videos and ate pop-rocks chocolate (in memory of Jerusalem days),

and laughed. 

All without taking one single picture. Even when she brought the clicky camera. Sad. 

Oh, we also officially decided we are backpacking across Europe when we get back from our missions. I. Cannot. Wait. 

I'm thinking a reading of Rick Steve's Europe is in order. 

life is beautiful.

Joy is what happens to us 

when we allow ourselves to recognize 

how good things really are. 

~Marianne Williamson 

Yay for happy weekends! They typically consist of food, family, sunshine, and babies. :) Yesterday, my cousin Jann's beautiful baby Eva was blessed. She is an adorable, happy baby with a tight grip. ;) She didn't make a peep when I held her, so that's a good sign. Seriously, though, babies are the best. I think it would do everyone in the world some good to hold a baby for twenty minutes a day. After the blessing, I got to see my cousins who came all the way from California. It was great to catch up with them.

Temple Square was beautiful on Saturday. The tulips were blooming and the grass is now officially green. I wanted to run around barefoot, but I restrained myself.

Easter arrived with a beautiful church service and then a scrumptious ham dinner. I thought a lot about Jerusalem. Oh, and there was plenty of Easter candy--chocolate bunnies, French and Belgium chocolates, tangerine jelly beans, dark chocolate eggs, cadbury eggs, and peeps.

P.S. peeps, in my personal opinion, are nasty. But my brother loves them, so what can we do? :) The way I see it is, it's all sugar, but if you're going to get fat eating it, the stuff better taste pretty darn good. And peeps are just like eating straight-up sugar with no flavoring. So I'll stick with my European chocolate thank you very much.

P.S.S. When we were little, my mom hid Easter baskets around the house for us to find in the morning. And we always had a huge Easter egg hunt in the afternoon. I loved racing around my grandparents house in St. George looking for the eggs. I always got less than my brothers, though. They are legit Easter egg finders.
My mom didn't like the Easter Bunny idea when we were little, so we always knew the Easter Bunny didn't exist. Which is funny because we still believed in Santa and fairies. Go figure. Anyway. The Easter Bunny still kind of creeps me out. And I think I have some solid reasons to back up this fear.

Exhibit A:

Seriously? That is the creepiest bunny suit
I have ever seen. It's like the killer bunny
from Mounty Python. (source.)

Exhibit B:

Yeah, kid. I would be trying to get away
too. I'm so glad my mom didn't make
me go through that. (source.)

Exhibit C:

And finally, the Easter Bunny at the White House. Don't be fooled by their
smiles. Look closely at Natasha--she's giving the bunny a worried look.
And Malia looks a little scared too. Plus, notice the wide gap between
the family and the Easter Bunny. Need I say more? (source.)

Happy Monday!

sun today, snow tomorrow.

the weekend consisted of...

sunshine, rain, snow, hail, wind, sunshine, clouds. in no particular order.

hiking a little ways up Mt. Olympus with Peter and pretending to make a movie.

watching quite a bit of this.

playing with peter's clicky-camera (or as Nicole likes to call them, Digital SLR cameras). I really miss using Danielle and Nicole's one in Jerusalem. Focusing the big lens and then pressing the button and hearing the "clicky" noise is so. awesome.

listening to James talk all about tour and feeling a little jealous.

spending half of Sunday making cinnamon rolls. huge time commitment. huge success. proof? my dad ate three in a row. and then proceeded to tell us that if we kept making them he'd get fat. good thing they take forever to make.

eating pork burritos with the cousins.

finishing the hunger game series. i know, i've read them before. but i forgot most of the details and what with the movie out and everything, i figured it was a good time for a refresher.

playing the ultimate april fools joke on my dad.

teaching ginger to roll over. hooray!

happy monday!

That awkward moment...

...when you call every. single. person. in your family in a row and NOT ONE of them answers their phone. And this includes the home phone. And none of them call you back, either.

This might be a sign that I spend maybe a little too much time at home. But home is just awesome. And funny. And comfortable. And clean. And full of food.

Plus, there's a cute little ball of fur that greets me every time I walk in the door. This past weekend I might have gone a little crazy with videos of her. See for yourself.

Happy Wednesday!

hahahahahahahahahahaha.

Reminiscing about Freshman Year. Yeah. This picture. Hilarious on so many levels. 

This weekend involved lots of laughing, which is always good. :) I was also practically tickled to death on Saturday, something that hasn't happened in years.

But this post's title is actually referring to the silent laughter that I held in ALL THE WAY across campus today while walking behind a kid singing the lyrics "always something there to remind me" in the lowest/deepest voice I've ever heard. I almost cracked up once, but I bit my lip and thought about being on fire. However, I couldn't help but curl my lips in a grin as I passed someone who gave the kid a look of pure disgust. Hey, I agree with you too, random BYU student. It was waaaay too early for someone to be happily singing. 

On second thought, maybe this blog title is referring to me going to all the trouble to get some shorts, capris, and sandals down to Provo, since the weather was in the 60s all last week, only to have it snow yesterday. Yeah, I can hear mother nature laughing at the irony of it all.

In all reality though, I think this post is referring to me hitting my alarm at 6:30 AM this morning, thinking that I would rather die then get up that early, and then realizing I'll be spending the next 18 months getting up even earlier then that. Every. Single. Day. What was I thinking?? Cue sarcastic laughing. Hahahahahaha. I can't wait. 

But seriously, I cannot wait. 

For this,

source. 

But ten million times more, for this.

source.

I was thinking about driving up to the MTC the other day and asking if they would take me early, but I decided that might not be the best idea. So here I sit. (72 more days!)

Happy Monday! 

my monday night at the provo police department.

Before I delve into the police department story (don't worry, I didn't do anything illegal), 

let me tell you about my weekend. It was great. (Hence happy Calvin.)

First, I got to go home and chill with my family. 

Second, I didn't do any homework all weekend long. Not quite sure how smart that was. ;)

Third, I went skiing with my cousins at Deer Valley. (Dear Snow, why didn't you come one day earlier?)

Fourth, I ate real food cooked by my mother.

Fifth, I drank hot chocolate on a snowy day. 

Sixth, I watched a movie with my family...

Which, by the way, was hilarious. Not the movie. Actually the movie was intense and slightly creepy. I got it because the names Jude Law, Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, and Marion Cotillard were all on the box. Sounds good, right? The movie was about some crazy pig-bat disease (don't ask) that starts spreading around the world like a modern-day outbreak of smallpox. Anyway, back to the funny story. Earlier that day Matthew got sick, so when we went downstairs to watch the movie, we found him dying on the couch. Halfway through the movie we're all freaking out because everyone's dying of this infectious disease. Suddenly I realize that Matthew's sick, too. I yell, "Oh no! Matthew's contagious!" Then Peter and James are like "Stay away from us! We don't want to get sick and die like Kate Winslet." Then my dad realizes he's sitting on Matthew's t-shirt so he jumps up and rushes to the bathroom to wash his hands. The whole rest of the night we'd occasionally yell "contagion!" (that's the name of the movie) and look at Matthew with terror. He just rolled his eyes. It was awesome. 

..................................

Now, on to my crazy night at the Provo Police Department. 

Last week in the mail I got all the visa stuff I need to fill out for my mission. And I discovered that I also had to get FBI cleared (including fingerprinting). I'm not quite sure why. Anyway, I realize today that I need to get the FBI application in the mail asap because it takes them 6-8 weeks to process the information and if I don't get it done in time, I'm delayed entering the MTC by 6 weeks. Which would be super lame. So, I looked around the interwebs and discovered that I can get my fingerprints done at the Provo Police Department. I rush over there at 5:30, thinking it wouldn't take to long. Hahahahahaha.

I arrive at the police department, and can't even find the door to go in. That should have been the first sign. Eventually, I find the door and walk in. To the right of me, I see this little reception room surrounded by glass with at least 10 people squeezed in there. And some of them look scary. I'm like, "That couldn't be where I get my fingerprints." So I walk down the hall until I find the receptionist desk and ask her where I get my fingerprints done. It's right back in that waiting room where I didn't want to go. Of course.

So, I go back in there and everyone just stares at me. I go up to the desk and the following conversation follows.

Officer: "What can I do for you?"

Me: "I need to get my fingerprints taken."

Officer: "Ok. I need some ID."

Me: "Here you go."

Officer: "Thanks. What's the reason for the fingerprints?"

Me: "FBI clearance."

Officer: "Ok. One second." [Leaves to go fill something out.] 

Random guy behind me: "Are you joining the FBI?!?!?!"

Me: "Um....nope."

[awkward pause]

Random guy: "So what are you doing??"

Me: "Going on a mission."

Random guy: "Oh, cool! That's weird that you have to get clearance."

Me: [courtesy laugh] "Yeah, I guess."

Then, I went and waited. And waited. And waited approximately 1.5 hours to get my fingerprints done. Fortunately, people watching in the police department kept me entertained. Here are some things I observed.

• A very mad guy complaining about the line. And I don't even know why, because he was ahead of me, people. Seriously.
• Some woman talking to an officer about this lady wanting her flat screen TV back. But the woman wouldn't give it to her unless she personally came to get it, because apparently there was a warrant out for the TV lady's arrest. Yes, it was a very confusing story. But it kept me entertained for 20 minutes. 
• A boy came up to me after getting fingerprinted and asked if I was going on a mission. I told him yes and then we both said where we were going. He was so happy and his happiness rubbed off on me and then I wasn't so impatient about waiting in the long line because, hey! I'm going on a mission. :)
• And finally, my favorite moment. A mom came in with her little son and they sat down next to me. The little kid sat there all quietly and then suddenly he starts singing at the top of his lungs, "Baby, baby, baby, oh! Baby, baby, baby, oh!....you'll always be mine!!!" His mom tells him to be quiet. I was shaking with laughter because how often do you hear a 3 year old break out into Justin Bieber? Personally, I thought he sounded better than Bieber. It was hilarious.

And that was my adventure at the Provo Police Department. Hopefully I won't have to visit there anytime soon.

See it in eye-popping 3D!

source. 

I've never been a fan of 3D movies.

I don't like the idea of the movie

popping out at me. 

I am the viewer,

you are the movie.

Stay in your space, and I'll stay in mine.

Also,

I feel like 3D has become this cop-out 

for movies today.

Hey, we may have a crappy plot,

and terrible actors,

but guess what?

It's in 3D!!! Awesome, right?!

Nope.

Not to mention, the tickets almost double in price.

Why would I spend more money

to see the exact same movie

just with annoying glasses I have to

re-adjust every 5 minutes?

I guess I'm still

a big fan of the 

dollar theater.

(Unless of course HP or LOTR or something of that caliber is coming out. 

Then it's the midnight showing, no questions asked.)

Anyway,

Last night I went with my roomies to see 

Beauty and the Beast...in 3D. 

(You saw it coming, didn't you?)

I wasn't particularly excited...

(don't get me wrong, I love Beauty and the Beast, but

cartoon?

already seen it?

3D?)

...but turns out it was awesome!

And it wasn't because the movie was in 3D. So the above rant still is true. :)

I just loved sitting in a movie theater and watching a movie

from my childhood. 

It has everything you could want:

mystery, romance, adventure, and humor.

I may or may not have gotten chills during this part of the movie: 

source.

I want adventure in the great wide somewhere,

I want it more than I can tell.

And for once it might be grand,

To have someone understand,

I want so much more than they've got planned. 

I love discovering lyrics that apply directly to you.

I also loved being in a theater with a bunch of college kids

that all laughed when I did.

Remember this little gem?

source.

Lefou, I'm afraid I've been thinking...

A dangerous pastime?

I know. 

Seriously, such a good movie. 

In summary: fun night, happy movie, great roomies.

Life is good. 

Who are you? Excuse me, I think the question is, who are *you!*

I went home this weekend. And it was awesome.

Here are some highlights from my two (or too) short days in Holladay -->

Eating thai food from Pawit's. Seriously, it was time for something besides Mexican, Chinese, and Italian. Did I tell you I'm in love with curry?

Sitting around the kitchen table at dinner, while my mom read to us from Where Will You Be 5 Years from Today? It's a book that's supposed to inspire us to plan our future and live our dreams or something. The following conversation ensued: 

Mom: Ok, here are some questions the book asks that can help you identify your top values. I'm going to ask you the questions and then you can respond. First question, "What are the three things I like most and least about myself?"

Peter, James, Charlotte (responding individually): blah, blah, blah. blah, blah, blah.

Dad: blah........blah.......blah. Did I tell you about that one time?.... oh, yeah, blah......blah.....blah.

Mom: Great. Ok, here's the next question, "Who am I?"

James: Who am I? Excuse me, I think the question is, who are you!!! We're in a war, man! There's no time for stupid questions!

Dad, Peter, Charlotte: [break out into hysterical laughter] hahahahahaha

Mom: [shortly joins laughter] haha

James: [looks smug :) ]

And that, people, is why I love my family. Oh, I've trained my brother well in the art of quoting movies. ;)

Watching The Help and denying that I cried during it. Although I might have during the very end. "You is kind, you is smart, you is important." The movie made me realize that it's not very often I go to a movie nowadays where I leave feeling good and inspired and uplifted. I've decided there's something wrong with that. (Speaking of good movies, you should watch We Bought A Zoo. Soooo good. Plus Matt Damon's in it. That is all.)

Playing with Ginger in the freshly fallen snow. (Yes, it actually snowed!) I'm convinced she's a polar bear or something. We'll just send her outside to do her business and she never comes back! She loves to bound through the snow and eat icicles. Peter, James, and I spent 30 minutes making snowballs and then having her chase after them. Once she gets to the snowball she proceeds to destroy it with her whole face. 

Hearing this conversation:

Dad: Peter, I'm going to keep you home from school until you finish that online health class.

Peter: sa-weeeeet.

And this one:

Dad: Ginger, it's a good thing you're cute, or we'd have sold you a long time ago. 

*we're still training the dog, and it's a long road...

And *almost* getting my mission papers in. I just meet with the stake president on Tuesday and then they are sent off to church headquarters. Ahhhhh! I have a feeling it will be pretty hard to focus these next couple weeks waiting for the call. :)

I'll just be sitting, waiting, wishing...