long time no talk

bonjour!! i don't know if anyone even looks at this anymore but i have been missing my best friends and wanna be more connected!! as for me, i finally got a job! i work for this non-profit organization called Rise and it's super fun! Natalie works there (but does something different) and Nicole Goettel (once Nelson) works there and I work for her as a family support professional. basically i do one-on-one with people with disabilities or anything that will help the families and their children with disabilities reach their goals-social, mental, or physical. like for one family, i clean their house once a week and for another i take their daughter who has mild mental retardation, schizoaffective disorder, and other disabilities out into the community-it's so fun! we go to the library, to the movies, for walks, or whatever we want to do! i love it and it has been such a blessing in my life. school is kicking my butt-mostly because i am a lazy procrastinator buuut we'll see if i can pull through. i just signed up for classes next semester and am taking an irish dancing class! aahahah it's going to be so fun! for now, i am balancing school (learning french is way harder than i thought), Best Buddies club, roller skating, and karaoking-my newfound callings in life. nicole (my sister) is coming to visit this weekend and i can't wait! my love life is non existent but nicole and i decided "who needs love" by razorlight is our new theme song. look it up. brilliant! ohhh and rick huntington (san francisco 2008) messaged me and him and the boys are going to mexico-then CALIFORNIA this spring break aahhhah reunion? i think so! some recent changes that you may or may not know about: i was going to go to ghana for a field study this spring but in order for it to count for the research for my senior thesis i need more prerequisites so im pushing it back until after my mission. i can turn in my papers in 383 days but who's counting?? so im going to stay home next spring/summer and play with my new niece that will be born this april! jessica's pregnant with baby girl number 2! kevin is still doing SO well and it's the happiest thing of my life! and alex's visa is finaalllllly ready so he'll be in mexico next week! (for those of you who didn't know-all missionaries going to mexico have had to wait for a few extra months for their visas so they go state side after the mtc and wait/serve until their visas are pulled through so alex has been serving in tuscon, AZ since the end of august!
halloween was wonderful. i was a: jack-o-lantern, african queen, snow white, gilly, a bumble bee, and helga from hey arnold. good times! so that's pretty much my life. it is good. my favorite karaoke songs are total eclipse of the heart by bonnie tyler and take a piece of my heart by janis joplin. any other new ideas?? i miss you guys! who's going home for thanksgiving??
this is a picture from when erin and i had the grand pleasure of visiting the one and only candice blackwelder. once again a visit is overdue...love you candice!!
P.S. sorry this is so long but here is a bucket list i have recently started (there is much to add) but everyone make one! i wanna see!!
MY BUCKET LIST:
i wanna be married in the temple
i wanna be: a missionary, an anthropologist, an aerobics instructor, a massage therapist, the best wife ever, super mom, a wedding planner, a gardener, an interior designer
i wanna have: my master’s degree, a big bed, twins, a killer garden, a book club
i wanna go: everywhere. especially a lot of time in southeast asia-cambodia, nepal, tibet, thailand. + all over africa, madagascar, europe, mongolia, sri lanka, new zealand, new guinea, galapagos islands, bolivia, macedonia, bali
i wanna bungee jump (especially in new zealand and switzerland), paraglide, and skydive (again)
i wanna live in a foreign country for at least a year
i wanna go to oxford
i wanna do a night scuba dive with manta-rays
i wanna swim with manatees
i wanna ride an elephant
i wanna sail the greek islands...and from new zealand to the cook islands
i wanna be fluent in a foreign language and i wanna be able to speak a non-latin language (ie swahili or twi)
i wanna be in the temple with all of my siblings
i wanna get a perm
i wanna crowd surf
i wanna go to an andrea bocelli concert
i wanna go on a completely spontaneous road trip and not know where i’m going
i wanna build my own tree house
i wanna fix up a vintage car
i wanna spend a lot of one-on-one time with my kids
i wanna meet the dalai llama
i wanna pet llama
i wanna have a butterfly farm
i wanna be a temple worker
i wanna serve multiple missions with my husband
i wanna carve a watermelon like a jack-o-lantern
i wanna join the mile high club
i wanna have long hair when im a grandma and make my grandkids braid it and wrap it in a huge bun around my head
i wanna work at a rehab center for child soldiers
i wanna do an internship for the UN
i wanna stay in a cottage in canada
i wanna eat cheese in the south of france
i wanna go on a fishing trip in alaska
i wanna coach my kids’ soccer teams
i wanna host foreign exchange students
i wanna hike the sierra nevadas and mount Kilimanjaro
i wanna live in iceland
i wanna scuba dive the great barrier reef
i wanna make macadamia nut pancakes
i wanna skinny dip in the aegean sea
i wanna make my own pinata
i wanna kiss a giraffe
i wanna row boat in versailles
i wanna make my own recipe book
i wanna make lemon bars from scratch and homemade raspberry jam
i wanna make a legit music video
i wanna be published for my research in africa
i wanna own a vw thing and road trip up the west coast at bed and breakfasts
i wanna motorcycle cross country from california to maine
i wanna lobster dive with my brother
i wanna change someone's life

hey everybody! i sincerely apologize for the time it has taken me to post anything... i am home for the summer and working :) i work for AXA advisors, my dad, and i also now nanny for a four month year old who is really cute. um.. im learning a ton working for my dad and AXA, about investments and such. my arm is sore from carrying around the baby ahaha tomcat just visited me last weekend and i miss him already. we had a picnic at salt creek and then i took him to the harbor and we walked around there. it was really fun! and i got some lovely birthday presents haha im not really finding time to go to the beach, which is sad, but its good i've been working. its about time i grew up a little more. i think im going to study abroad either this winter or spring! if the winter, then london. if the spring, then this one for global diplomacy. i would be going to NYC, Geneva, Vienna, Istanbul, the Hague, and Paris!!!! learning all about international relations and negotiations. who knows though... i feel like i have to figure so many things out right now and i just want everything to freeze so i can. but obviously thats completely unrealistic and thats life. im missing the five of us together. erin and candice, i miss you guys a ton. and i think it is absolutely wonderful ericas in ireland. and nicole now has a HUSband. haha i love you all!

- amanda

change of direction

sorry its taken me so long to post something on the blog! life has been crazy lately and has taken some unexpected turns. first of all, i decided to stay in provo for spring and summer which i've never done before. its fun though. i hear spring and summer are way fun in provo so i'm excited to be here and experience it! the reason im staying is because i got a job finally! i think you all know that though..but they want me to work as much as possible spring and summer so i am taking classes and working 20 hours spring term and then working full time in the summer. i've never worked full time before so im a little nervous but excited! i need the money and its time for me to be a real adult now. summer will definitely be different without the beach..how will i ever survive! hah anyway, i just moved into a new townhouse. moving is always so stressful but its so cute and fun and way close to campus. me and erica are living together which is so great and then carley wells and our other friend lauren are living with us too. its just really great. and my mom drove back up to utah with me for a few days to help me move into our new place so it was so nice having her here to help me. i couldn't have done it without her. anyway, some big news (drum roll please) i changed my major! again. so ridiculous but i promise im sticking with it this time. i changed to speech pathology/communication disorders. im really excited and now i get to graduate a semester earlier, but then i have to go to grad school and get my masters. i just felt like i needed to have more options in life than just being an elementary school teacher so now i will have a ton more options. im pumped :)
these are just some pics of of some things i have been up to recently. my family came up for general conference a few weeks ago which was awesome. i got to spend a few days with them in park city and we went snowboarding. and i also went to the color festival with my roommates last semester to welcome in spring. yay spring is almost here!
love you all miss you
--erin

I can dream can't I...

ALOHAAAA!!!

So I haven't written on here for a while because I keep forgetting the passwords :/ but I've have them on a post-it on my desk so I've got it now! Anyways, next week is finals week and I'm just working away on my last of three research papers. Please remind me why I chose to be an English major and bring this upon myself!! But on a brighter note, I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before but this semester I am taking a photography class. I absolutely love it!! Tony has a Nikon D70 DSLR so I've been learning on that and it's seriously been the best class ever! I've learned how to use all manual settings on the camera and also Photoshop. I love doing my homework because I get to walk around and just enjoy God's beautiful creations. It's really been very peaceful and relaxing. Here are a few of my pictures. My final portfolio is due tomorrow which includes five pictures that I have shot, edited and then mounted and then will be displayed in an art exhibit in one of the auditoriums! I don't know if I'm very good but I really love doing it! I love taking people shots and up close macro shots. Dream job--wedding photographer, but we'll see. So if any of you ever need photos, I'm more than willing to try and take them!!!

Anyways, back to my paper. I'll be home in 6 days!! Even though you girls will not be :( but I'll be busy with wedding planing during that week! Love and miss you! Can't wait to hear about your lives! xoxo

maggie mayhem

ahhhh REUNION! i've been dying to see you and escape provo. i might be running away and going home next weekend (don't tell anyone, it's a surprise) or maybe to st george to visit my grandma but if not we should do it next weekend! my family and erin's are gonna be here the next (for conference).

i am loving the sunshine and have resurrected my shorts, dresses, and sandals. YESSSSS! i am so excited for spring, too. i might be getting a job at a calling center (kinda embarrassing but i get paid $10/hour, the people are super cool, and the hours are perfect. plus i call people you signed up and WANT to be called, so im not bothering anyone) but i'll let you know when i get the job and it's official and stuff :)

im kind of overwhelmed right now because so much is happening so fast and everything is about to change. kevin and alex received their calls on the same day and are reporting to the mtc on the same day: june 9th. i got to be there when alex opened his but i ran out of class and was put on speaker phone for kevin's. it makes me so sad that i couldn't see the look on his face or give him a huge hug to congratulate him. i could not be happier-i am so so proud of both of them. but why do i have to say goodbye to the two most important men in my life on the same day?! insane.

i've been watching gilmore girls re-runs and i started bawling last night because it was the episode when rory and dean break up and rory's like: "i'm ready to wallow now" and i freaked out because that's going to be me in a few months. since i'm staying for spring, i have less than 5 weeks left with alex and i will have one week in california between semesters to spend time with kevin. i can't handle it. it scares me...a lot. but it's been a spiritual roller coaster these last few weeks, two. kevin's call got me thinking about the last few years and i can't explain it-it's not really something you can understand if you haven't experienced it. but i want to tell you all (as cliche as it sounds) that i know that there can be miracles today just as there were in Christ's time. i am awed by the power of prayer and fasting. i know that what has happened is impossible, and that's the best part: "for with God, nothing shall be impossible" (Luke 1:37). i can't express my gratitude for the Atonement. i love my Savior. i can't wait till the day when i open my call and get to share the things that i know to be true.

sorry this is so long...

keep on keepin' on

yayy, im happy! got a lot of things checked off my to-do list. almost done with my ankle appointments , so hopefully i can run soon. i gained weight from not being able to exercise the same- the elliptical just doesnt cut it- i cant wait to lose that :/
i went on a much needed vacation to portland. i took lots of pictures, or scott did, on my camera.
these two were taken at a chocolate store, Alma Chocolates, that my mom told me we had to check out. it was delicious. all of the ingredients there were organic and chocolatey. i got the drinking chocolate (just melted chocolate with a spoonful of caramel on the side). seriously, nothing quite like it. scott got a latte and a flourless chocolate cookie that was chewy and yummy.
we played a trivia game, you can see the old fashioned box in the background above, and we actually knew several random facts. its funny what you end up remembering somewhere in your mind.
we had mexican night and i made corn cakes that were so easy, just three ingredients. you mix half corn meal (polenta, dry) and corn flour with water. enough to get the right consistency. you want it to be sticky enough to pat together and make a one inch thick flat cake the size of your palm that doesn't crumble. then put them in a pan with some oil and cook em up. anyway they were quick and easy with refried beans and cheese and some vegetables on the side. yum
explaining something, super intense. i dont even remember what it was. haha. and no, im not naked. although that would make it a little funnier.

so i finished this post two days after i started and good news has come! i went to the orthopaedic clinic and my doctor said my ankle healed perfect and i can run. i am so happy because i signed up for the brain injury association 5k run/walk/roll. its at liberty park in salt lake and a lot of people from my work are doing it because we are a neuro floor. you gotta support the brain people, right? yes, you do.

the sun and warmth is here.

a reunion is much needed girls! we can sleep at my house because my sister is going on a trip and we can lay out in the 56 degree weather (thats warm for us you know) and make food and watch movies and paint nails and tell stories. come quick


love candice

fun list

okay so now that i am single... Megan Nelson suggested that I distract myself by creating a fun list :) thus far I have had so much fun keeping myself busy. I am so proud of myself--i go to the gym twice a week for an hour. crazy because i have never been a regular gym goer. k here are some of the things on my list:

-volunteer to tutor at a jail

-stand in a boys bathroom for ten seconds at least (if i'm feeling brave, try and pee in a urinal)

-make strawberry daquarees ?? and sing and dance to the song if you like pinacoladas

-make wonderfully creative decorations for my room

-and of course, grab a smokehouse boy and kiss him ahaha not sure if this one will happen

i love you girls and thank you for helping me out always. you guys are wonderful--amanda