Dinner Conversation

It goes something like this…
*Mom to Jake: Why did you draw all over your hands today?
*Jake: I don’t know, I’m not going to say it was because I was bored, that is what everyone else would say
*Mom: Did you do it during class?
*Jake: ummm, I don’t know…
*Tara: You did it at lunch right? (wink, wink, trying to help the boy out)
*Jake: yeah!...I did it at lunch
*Mom: Did you do it to make someone laugh?
*Jake: No, but I did THIS to make someone laugh
**At this point he held up his pointer finger with a mustache drawn on it. You know the kind, one of those French-like curly ones**
*Mom: (trying hard not to laugh)
*Tara: Burst out laughing
*Jake: Joins in.
*Mom: Follows suit.
**Maybe this is one of those have to be there moments, but it was a highlight to my day**

Cat

This is my cat
She is obsessed with string
Particularly string that I am working with when I am sewing
She knows she isn't supposed to jump up on the table
Look at her, peering over, ready to pounce any minute
Naughty

MAACO Bowl

My Utah Utes football team is playing in Las Vegas today
Here is hoping that they don't get stomped on, like some think they will
Don't let us down...pretty please
GO UTES!!!

Date Night With the Jazz

For an early Christmas I thought it would be fun to get Braden tickets to the Utah Jazz vs Miami Heat game. This was a while in the making, I think I had everyone in on it (including Braden without him knowing it... sneaky). Hours of stress went in to the planning because Braden had a final that night at the same time the game started. Was it going to work out?? I was worrying. I worry. So, I had one of his friends meet me at the Energy Solutions Arena to meet with a guy about tickets (I know things about sports, but not enough to go do this alone!), the cheapest he could offer was around...oh... $900...YEAH RIGHT! I came home and got online to see what I could find. Thank you eBAY, thank you mom for helping me e-mail some lady, thank you computer for accompanying me to class one day so I could buy the tickets for a much needed break, and last but not least thank you credit card.

Dear Jazz:
You let me down that night. It was a roller coaster of an evening, up and down, catching up, falling behind. You tried, I give you that. I was giving high fives to a guy next to me, I had no clue who he was. Miami Heat, you weren't just the heat, you were on fire. Next time Jazz, bring your fire extinguishers. Thank you.

Printed Socks

Braden teases me about my printed socks

I have...

polka dots...snowflakes...anchors with hearts on them and many more

The newest ones to the list, gingerbread men with candy canes

How festive!

he couldn't go another day without a pair for himself

He no longer has to be jealous of my sweet feet attire

It's begining to look a lot like Christmas

Bing Cosby sure got it right when he sang "It's beggining to look a lot like Christmas" (except do the people who play the song on the radio know what the weather outside is like??)

Halloween and Thanksgiving have come and gone, and my favorite time of year has crept up fast

My mom has decorated the house with new decorations, and some old ones that she has had for years. We've got 3 beautiful poinsettias, paperwhites, our tree is up and decorated, presents are already wrapped (just waiting under the tree to be opened, but the question is can I wait??), and it sure feels cozy in here.

Here are a few of the decorations we have floating around the house, my camera simply doesn't do them justice!

Oh, and P.S. if you are looking for something to help you get in the Christmas spirit, boy have I got an idea for you!! Do a sub for santa or take part in an angel tree. My little brother came home from school one day, and decided that's what he wanted to do. We know a family that lacks things most people have. They have 4 kids, and so, they all had an early Christmas this year. My mom and step dad are awesome, baby brother is too! He chipped in his savings from mowing the lawn this summer, and I think he is just as happy as can be about it. What-a-stud!!

A bowl of super old, tiny ornaments!

(This is David the Gnome (please tell me I am not the only one who knows who this cute little guy is?!)

Confessions

I secretly have been listening to Christmas music

I know, it's not even Thanksgiving... I don't care

*

I have started my Christmas shopping

Something very exciting is in the mail

I can't wait to get it in my hot little hands

*

I have been to anthropologie 3 times within a week

horrible I know, but... again... I don't care

Love that store

*

I could do without grumpy people

They seem to be everywhere these days

If you are going to be rude, I would rather you not

please and thank you

*

I took a break from school and I went to a movie last night

Morning Glory

I recommend it, if you like the sappy cheesy cutsie movies

I sure do

Tell your boyfriend or husband they can take you to it

Rachel McAdams is in it and she is adorable, they will like her too

I don't feel guilty for going either

*

I started a non school book today

I'm almost finished with it

(School? What's school?? Who has time for that? ha!)

*

I have loved not working the past 2 days

I could get used to this life

*

I wish I could tell school to take it easy

tests every week, presentations stacking up, journals to write

we are all starting to check out

May is around the corner

party!!!!!

*

I'm going to go to bed EARLY tonight

I am going to let the old woman in me come out and shine

No guilty feelings over here

My One Ounce of Creativity

This weekend was the kick off to fall break
I decided to get crafty...with the one thing I am able to do
Yo-Yo's
Not your old school toy, up and down on a string type
...fabric.

A few of my friends are moving into a house
They needed a cute pillow
So here it is

(Isn't it cute from the back?? I think so.)

Say Cheese

This boy cracks me up

I was getting ready to leave for a wedding and I wanted to snag a few pictures before I left

At first he said he would smile with me....

He's tricky....

He made me laugh, and it was all over from there...

So, I had to join in... Don't judge

26.2

This is Chicago.

There is going to be a marathon there tomorrow

7:00 a.m.

I know people running in that marathon

My fingers are crossed that they will do well

I will be sleeping.

Can't wait to hear how you do, B!

GOOD LUCK

How Do You Get To School?

This semester I have driven with these lovely ladies every single day!

Not in a car...but wait for it... we ride the scooters every day.

Yes, the weather is getting colder but we are brave women!

Even in the rain, we ride these hogs.

One day when we didn't drive the scooters, we got to ride in the Jeep.

We only had to fill up the gas tank once at the stop light...

We are pretty impressive right?

Study Break

It is a Tuesday night, and I feel like all I have been doing for the past 3 weeks is studying. So in the middle of my studying tonight, I have decided to "study" something else.
I am studying the Anthropologie website

I just created a wishlist...

That's right people, I have given up on homework for the night

Here is to happy shopping, and taking the night off

Fall

Fall has officially arrived today. at 9:02 P.M.

These are what I am excited to see coming in the next few weeks

Does it get any better than that? Maybe it does, but I would be okay with going to see these beauties again.

I promise I have not fallen off the face of the earth. When fall comes, it also brings a lovely thing called school with it. It has officially sucked me in, and I am running as fast as I can to keep up. What a busy semester, but it's been a great one already.

A little update on life:

-Got a pedicure in lieu of the Utes... New York City Big Apple Red

-Went to a few football games, and we've won 'em all..... GO UTES!!

-Went on a few mini bike rides.... and when I say mini..not even a full block

-Studied...lots.

-Bought a tasty treat to make at Williams-Sonoma, but I haven't yet

-Drove out to Magna for the first time

- Went to a family party

-Made a promise that I wouldn't buy anymore clothes until October 27.

-Went on a short 2 mile run, felt great after (though I know that is just a few baby steps to you marathoners)

- Scooted to school almost every day (pictures to come!!) with 3 darling ladies

-Spent a weekend in Park City with Braden

-Decided where I want to do my capstone in my final semester of nursing school

-Decided that I love feta cheese on a salad

-I want to see my Grandma who lives in Tennessee more than anything

-Went on an afternoon walk with baby brother, loved every second of it

-I want to go to Chicago with Braden to cheer him on in his marathon

-I have a fun project to work on when I am on fall break

-I am dying to buy a new pair of earrings
-I have had my eye on a few things at Anthropologie... I think a mid semester reward might be coming soon... but shhh don't tell

-My friend Hailey is getting married in December, and she is taking wedding pictures this weekend, can't wait to see them

-I adore quails, and Braden took me to a park where there are statues of quails and I love it

etc.

etc.

etc.

School hasn't consumed my whole life.

Just most of it.

I have a test tomorrow and I probably should get to sleep.

I will try to be more active on the blog, I just have to tell school to take it easy on me!!

Pizza and Boats

If you are looking for a fun date idea for the summer or fall... try this one out.
Build your own boat, and race them down a river.
Sounds crazy, but it's actually pretty fun.

We went to dinner at Salt Lake Pizza & Pasta, then hit up the store to let our creative juices flow! We each had $5 dollars, and 30 minutes to shop around and come up with items to build our boats. There were some laughs, some doubts, some rocks in the river that were more in the way than anything else, and some major competition (at least in my head).

The Little Guy Again

Baby brother aka Jake is no longer the oldest one at his school.

He started his first year as a Clayton Cougar.

He has a locker, oh the days of lockers... coats getting stuck and sticking out of them, love notes being passed through the slots at the tops, thinking the boy next to your locker was cute... ha!

He has 7 classes... I thought keeping track of 3 these days was hard

He is heading into teenage years... buckle up... it will be an adventure!
(Gearing up for the first day... not quite ready for the flash of a camera at 7 in the morning)

A Perfect Day

Today was a perfect day.

Driving to grab lunch on your lunch break when there is not a cloud in the sky, the weather is warm enough to crack open the sun roof and let the wind dance through my hair, knowing that I had a date with my man tonight.

Love days like this.

E-Bay wars

Have you ever seen anything like this?

Have you ever heard a little boy squeal "WE WON!!! WE WON!!!" over and over again?

As I sit here I hear Jake say, "I've never felt like I have won stuff, but we are winning!"

My stepdad and little brother are currently.... obsessed.

Can't stop bidding. Love the competition.

I think mom is just along for the ride.

When my mom was little she started a U.S. Postage Stamp collection, and today, they are working on making that collection bigger. From the sounds of it, A LOT bigger.

(Sorry for the poor picture quality, I had to hurry and snap a picture of all of them staring at the computer)

Sidewalk Chalk

I know he is 12...I know I am 23... but there is something great about sidewalk chalk no matter how old you are. I came home to a driveway filled with sidewalk chalk and a little message for me where I park my car, done so lovingly by my little brother Jake.

A small miracle

Today, I witnessed a miracle! Braden and I planned on going to dinner and a movie so I headed on over to his house so we could be on our way. I got there before he was out of the shower so I was sitting at his computer waiting for him to finish. He did, came around the corner, and what do I see? BRADEN WAS WEARING JEANS!!!! He would always tell me that he didn't like them when he was little because they were so stiff and tight, and when they got wet at the feet, they would take ages to dry. Well, mark the calendar on this special day, because I have a feeling this was a rare sighting! But boy does this boy look cute in them!

Dave Matthews Band

Last Night Julia and I went to the Dave Matthews Band concert. I was certain I wouldn't know any of the songs, since I haven't heard any of his new music in years! He played some classics, and I was happy about that. One thing I love more than anything is people watching, and boy did I get my fill last night. Thanks Dave for putting on a great show!

Summer Treats

This is not your typical sweet, cold summer treat, but it sure is one of my FAVORITES!

Fresh, straight from the garden tomatoes, with balsamic vinegar and mozzerella cheese.

YUM-O!

(Sorry the lighting is not the best, and makes it look kinda gross, but I promise you it isn't, go try it before summer ends!)

California

How lucky am I? My boss goes on a yearly trip to California, aka I have an entire week off of work. Usually I stick around Salt Lake and feel really lazy for the week he is gone. Not this year. I ALSO went to California the same week he was there! Braden invited me to go with his family, and some of their family friends. Okay, okay, so I was lazy this week too, but I think it's okay to be lazy when you get to sit at the beach all day, every day, for 8 days!! What a vacation!

We didn't just sit at the beach. We....













Went to sea world!! This was my first time to Sea World and I think I was more excited than the kiddos that we were with. Turns out, the sign that says splash zone...means it! We were drenched by the end of the show. While we were there we also saw some of these...
















If you know me at all, you know how much I adore these creatures! It was fun to see these fellas just hanging out, waiting for people like me to take hundreds of photos of them.

One night Braden and I decided to go to a baseball game. Dodgers Vs Padres... Hello Dodger Stadium, highest tier in dodger stadium (I got my work out for the trip just walking up the stairs) dodger dogs, nachos, and sprite! I know gross right? Wrong. It all tasted so good! The drive home wasn't long, traffic in L.A. can be wild, but thanks to the GPS, a wrong exit onto the toll road, we made it back to Laguna beach in no time!






















This trip was so much fun! We ate lots (at a yummy place called wahoos at least 3 times), had a baby announcement, had a proposal, had a few dolphin sightings, as well as a shark sighting, right under us! It was a little guy, but don't worry...shark week would not have been complete without that happening right? boogie boarding, body surfing, naps and paddle ball on the beach! I was also able to meet Bradens oldest brother Ryan and his wife Camille and their 2 kids Bennett and Eliza, and soon to come baby #3. The drive home was a bit less exciting than the trip. I ended up catching a terrible cold, but thanks to everyone in the car for putting up with me!

Thanks for making it such a fun trip Brades!

The Big 23

Happy Birthday to a dear friend! Julia cracks me up every time her birthday comes around. Each year she tells me that she can't wait to be how ever old she is turning. This has been a great year for her and her many accomplishments, and now she can add turning 23 to the list! Happy Birthday Julia!