so.. i got my hair cut...

one day, there was a little girl who wished she was a boy. and so she said to the lady that cut her hair, "brenda, i want my hair cut like a boy."

so brenda cut her hair like a boy.

that little girl loved that boy haircut. and that girl's little sister loved that boy haircut. so she got one too.

only somehow she looked even more like a boy than her older sister did. one day at church, a real boy said to the little sister, "how come are you wearing a dress if you are a boy?" the little sister cried. and so the little sister grew her hair out and looked like a girl again.

but the big sister wanted to look like a boy. one day while she was playing at the park, some teenage girls said, "let's let this little boy go first." and they were talking about her.

she was thrilled.

eventually, she grew out of that stage, and so did her hair. she decided she loved being a girl and never wished again that she was a boy.

but she still didn't love her hair long.

and then the little girl was grown up, and she was getting married in only three and a half months. she went home for christmas and she went to the hair cutting place. and brenda said, "what would you like today?"

and the girl said, "just a trim, please."

but then as brenda talked and talked and washed the girl's hair, the girl couldn't stop thinking about having short hair. because even though she was getting married so, so soon, and even though she always had wanted long hair at her wedding, that girl really, truly hated not having short hair.

and so she told brenda to cut it off.

and so brenda did.

it's time to go HOME :)

well.

i'm on the airplane from denver to msp.

i love minnesota.

and i'm very content right now to be watching music and lyrics

and facebook stalking in the sky.

it's a beautiful thing.

now i need to go home.

and i need to eat some fruits and vegetables

and a few home-cooked meals.

((ps i love drew barrymore..

and i wish i had a lisp.)

..just in case you were wondering...

i'm done with science!!!!!

tis the season..

what am i excited about today, you ask?!?!
well, i'll tell you.

a) going home.

this, of course, includes eating oreo truffles (i hope), homemade dinners with two vegetables every night, sleeping in my own (very, very, very) comfortable bed in my own room, no homework, and, naturally, my mom and my dad and my baby sister.

(photo from sisterscafe.blogspot.com)

b) christmas.

the christmas tree game, figuring out what our presents are long before christmas day (yes, we still do that at my house), eggs benedict for breakfast, ham for christmas eve dinner, and nativities.

c) these boots.

which i want for christmas.

(mom, please consider this a gentle reminder. just in case.)

d) going to grandma's for christmas!!

i love colorado, i love playing games at the table with grandma, i love estes park, and i love my grandparents.

e) a roadtrip to colorado.

i adore roadtrips.

f) seeing cristina this weekend!

and maybejustmaybe eating some red robin at some point? i could really use some fries.

g) being done with classes.

to be quite honest, i have been over my classes for about three months now. just kidding, it's not that bad. but i am definitely not shedding tears of sorrow.

oh, and ps, specifically, this means: being done with science.

h) making christmas cookies tonight with jonny and ann and zackkk!!

the fat, thick, delicious kind, with buttercream frosting. mmmmmmm.

i) making new years resolutions.

i really like those things. and i'm in a goal making mood. which is perfect.

i) look. mostly, i am just excited to go home. i miss my familyyyy. so just let it be saturday already!!!!!!

dominic the christmas donkey

well.

the semester is ending..

..and i can't say i'm sad.

at all.

last week was my last week at my early field experience first grade classroom.

loved those kids.

so boyfriend and i went to their christmas program.

i dare you to find cuter christmas donkeys.

(christmas donkeys? what the heck?

yeah, i don't get it either.)

today i love..

i was a little bit early this morning while walking to class

which gave me a few minutes while campus was empty

just to think,

which i don't do nearly enough of these days.

i just had such a feeling of gratitude, for everything about my life

and especially about this school.

i love byu-i.

i love

crisp winter mornings

warm wool mittens

a dad who will take time to talk to me

only having nine days til i go home

christmas lights

the scriptures, general conference talks, and the power of prayer

homemade mac and cheese

sisters who really want me to be happy

my incredible friends

starting class with a prayer, and letting the gospel be a part of class discussions

having a car that works

lindt truffles

a mother who always knows when i need her

that there are only exactly four months until i get married to my best friend

yummmm

i would like to talk about fritadas.

which, as everybody knows, are my absolute favorite.

i don't really make them that much.

zackery makes them.

but, here is how you make a fritada.

1. cook about a third of a box of penne noodles.

2. saute a tablespoon of diced onions.

3. add half a bag of spinach to the onions.

4. cook the spinach.

5. add the cooked penne noodles. but don't stir.

6. beat four or five eggs. pour them over the noodles.

7. cover and let cook on medium about seven minutes.

8. use a spatula to flip the entire fritada.

9. sprinkle a handful of shredded cheese on top.

10. cook two or three more minutes, until eggs are firm.

11. eat it with some sweet baby rays.

12. experience euphoria.

seriously, i love these things.

a whole, whole lot.

so make one.

yayyy for to-do lists

i need to go to sleep.

i'll write about my weekend manana.

but for now, i would just like to say:

i am so not looking forward to the next two weeks.

"then it's a date.. let's shake on it."

so last night zackery and i went to fat cats.

and we played pinball.

i wish i didn't have to say this buuut..

..i kicked his butt.

and then we went to tangled

which was my absolute favorite.

seriously, i loved it.

i want to watch it again and again.

mostly, i'm just happy.

also, only seventeen days til i get to go home :)

top five

highlights of my weekend

1. crafts :)

2. matching blue flower tights with abby.. every other month, that is

3. walks through the snow

4. going to the temple.

5. a looooooooooong drive back to idaho at 40 mph

it was an excellent week :)

thanksgiving breaaakkkkk!!

so zackery and i are at his house cause it is thanksgiving.

i really like it here :)

on friday we pretty much almost died driving here.

but thaaaaz okay!

on saturday we went to leavenworth.

it was fantastic.

i have a picture, but it is on zack's camera.

sooo.. stay tuned.

on sunday we ate a FRITADA!!

ummm.. i like fritadas a LOT.

monday i had the most wonderful day.

and i got to see zack's mom's special ed preschool for a little bit which i loved.

and i made a hot pad!! cool, huh?

also i had a tummy ache, because i get those a lot.

so pam gave me a water bottle so i can drink more water and maybe it will fix my tummy aches.

i'm not sure what exactly it is, but this water bottle does something that makes water SO DELICIOUS.

last, i would like to give a SHOUT OUT to keenan,

who sometimes offers to give me a glass of milk when he thinks i want one.

he is fantastic, as you can tell.

this one is entitled "lovers." thank you, keenan.

cars, problems, and good friends

something about me owning cars never works out.

exhibit a: my rav4.
loved this car.
it didn't love me.
four months after buying it, i had to replace the transmission.
six months later, the engine blew.
and that was the end of that car.

exhibit b: my corolla.
this was my car in high school.
i bought it from my parents after the rav.
i like this car quite a bit.
but i woke up this morning to a flat tire.
what in the heck?!
this much stuff does not happen to normal people.
i don't really get it...

luckily, i have the best roommates in the world.
kylie put on her boots and a sweatshirt over her shorts and drove me to school.
i love that girl.

i also love when i come home from class and find notes like this on my desk:

aren't chelsea and kylie the absolute greatest?

i like them. :)

but ps? zack took my car in and they fixed my tire for freeeee.

so, i mean, that's pretty good.

has my room ever been quite this messy before?

it's been quite the week.

it hasn't necessarily been a long week.

it's just been a full week. and i'm tired.

as is evidenced by my current room situation.

love me through it. :-/

the worst part? i honestly don't care that it is such a terrible mess right now.

ha.

i took a science test tonight. and got a solid 64. greaaaaaaat.

i hate science.

i slept through my alarm this morning.

getting ready in 15 minutes is always wonderful, if i do say so myself.

mostly, though, i'm homesick.

i miss my mom.

i miss going home for lunch and just talking to her while she ate leftovers and i ate ham-and-cheese pitas.

i miss her telling me goodnight eight times before i finally go to bed.

i miss my dad.

i miss when he would come into my room and lay on my bed and we would just talk.

i miss him playing the piano while i fall asleep.

i miss cristina.

i miss watching the santa clause movies with her.

i miss sophomore year when we would talk on the phone for hours, her in the basement in her bed and me upstairs in mine.

i miss brianna.

i miss brushing our teeth together in our purple bathroom.

i miss going on runs and drives and to cub foods and making cookies.

i'm homesick. :(

and even a chocolate cupcake from the cocoa bean can't really fix it.

it's only four more weeks. only four more weeks til i go home.

that's what i keep telling myself.

i don't know if it's helping.

happy.

i like snow.

i like skyping with my family.

i like pumpkin cookies.

i like finishing big projects.

i like kylie.

i like sitting in the temple parking lot and just thinking.

i like when the internet at my apartment works.

i like fritadas. (a lot)

i like anticipation.

i like uggs.

i like finishing weekend to-do lists.. on saturday. :)

i like sweatpants.

and i like life.

(but i don't like squooshy grapes.

that's something i have a pretty big problem with right now.)

i'm siiiiick :(

my throat hurts.

and i'm exhausted.

i think i'm getting sick.

so that's going to be fun.

on the bright side, i drank my first hot chocolate of the season.

i like hot chocolate.

except when i burn my tongue.

which is, to be honest, every time i drink hot chocolate.

oh well.

my holiday rant

i would like to dedicate this to miss karly percifield.

thank you for your inspiration, karly.

it has come to my attention that only fifty percent of the holidays are really worth celebrating.

not saying i boycott the rest.

just saying i'm being reasonable.

let's start at the beginning.

valentine's day.

everybody knows valentine's day is ri-dic-u-lous.

i just don't understand how you can manufacture romantacism.

am i right or am i right?

saint patrick's day.

who even really knows what this is? i definitely do not.

and yet i always super dread that day in case i forgot to wear green.

weird, huh?

easter.

i like easter.

i like easter egg hunts, and that my mom still hides easter baskets for us.

i like decorating eggs.

i like easter music.

so easter's all right.

fourth of july.

i've always been kind of whatever about the fourth.

i love america.

i'm all for patriotism.

but i think it's kinda dumb in general.

i missed the fourth for like three years in a row.

and i didn't mind one tiny bit.

but this year i quite liked it.

i mean who's going to pass up barbeque and fireworks?

birthdays.

(this comes after the fourth in my list because my birthday comes after the fourth.)

birthdays are most often a buzzkill.

i'm not really a huge fan.

i mean i like when my mother makes me ribs.

and i like cake as much as the next kid.

but birthdays in general?

i'd rather skip it.

halloween.

there are three genres of halloweeners.

first, the people who are obsessed, plan their costumes for months, and liiiive for the day

second, the people who are kinda whatever, who just dress up because everyone else does.

third, the people who would rather the holiday didn't even exist.

i fall firmly into the third category.

i hate being scared. hate it. i'm serious.

i would so, so much rather just watch a chick flick.

maybe decorate halloween cookies. i mean that's fine.

also pumpkin cookies. that's fine too.

but that's it. that is where i put my foot down.

thanksgiving.

i know thanksgiving is all about being thankful, about families, about being together.

and i'm all for that. really, i am.

but how many people really spend meaningful time pondering how thankful they are at thanksgiving?

the moms are worried about cooking, and the dads are worried about football.

in the end, it's really little more than a celebration of the obesity of america.

christmas.

like most of the world, i love christmas.

we have our traditions.

watching the santa clause movies 800 times, the christmas tree game, figuring out our presents, making christmas food..

and i love every part of it.

except christmas day. i hate christmas day.

because it means it's all over.

and that's lame.

in conclusion.

holidays are pretty dumb.

i mean i know they're not going anywhere.

and that's fine. i pretend i like them.

but the truth is?

ehh.

i think they're silly.

another week begins...

well.

ann got married.

and it was suchh a cute wedding.

laura and zackery and i went down to utah friday night.

my grandma fed us homemade bread.

it is honestly my absolute favorite.

someday i plan on being able to make bread like that.

saturday i got to see cristina for a little bit.

so that was fun. plus she gave me like eight new recipe ideas.

then we went to the temple.

ann's so pretty :)

and thenn we went on a walk.

it was way, way too cold.

that's what's happening right now:

it's getting cold.

i'm sure i'll get used to it.. i always do.

after all, i'm from minnesota, dontcha know?

but for now it's just cold and windy and cloudy and i don't like it one bit!!!

anyhow it was a pretty good weekend..

i like being home better.

but utah's alright.

ps i aced my ed241 midterm today. i'm really proud.

and i got an A on my science quiz.. which is quite unusual.

okay, to be honest, it's never really happened before.

and i'm sitting across from two people having a full-on picnic at the david o. mckay display.

it's weird. people don't do that.

particularly because of the rather large sign saying "no food or drink please."

and they have a whole basket of food.

whatever..

:)

things i love about my life:

rice lunchboxes from japan

doing art projects in class almost every day

wearing uggs because its finally getting cool enough

grilled pizza

roommates who make cheesecake

kylie

haircuts

finding a fantastic parking spot.. right away

budget binders

a boyfriend who will come unlock my car.. twice in ten minutes.. when i lock the keys in the car

tights!

home teachers

carmel apples

ann and jonny getting married in five days

the fact that someday i will get a new phone

my sisters

sunday postsecrets

the candy corn bowl at work (love those things)

general conference talks

leaves changing colors

science quizzes

oops just kidding about that last one..

wish me luck.

it's friday.

fridays are long.

as are mondays and wednesdays.

that is because, on these days, i have two two-hour classes.

it's wonderful.

actually that's not true at all.

there is only one thing that is getting me through today.

they are called nilla wafers.

i am 100% certain they are the most delicious food on this planet.

unfortunately there are only two more nilla wafers currently in my backpack.

bad news?

yes.

my teacher just told a joke.

we're talking about dew point.

and she feels compelled to say,

"i wonder if there was a manna point in the old testament.

i think it was probably just righteousness point though."

thank you for that brief distraction.

rancho mirage

so i went to palm springs with my family last weekend.

i definitely wasn't complaining about the 95 degree weather.

we stayed at the coolest resort.

the best part was some guy in knee-high argyle socks at 11:30 saturday night.

he decided the pond by the golf course would be a great place to go fishing.

umm.. hello?

i'm thinking not.

it wouldn't have been a family vacation without a family picture, of course.

so that was fun.

also dad turned i-don't-really-know-how-old

on 10/10/10!

cool, huh?

we went for a little hike, mostly through the desert.

but also through a palm tree forest.

it was awesome.

very swiss family robison-esque.

and the last wonderful part of my weekend?

finding my next craft :)

i'm going to make a heart like this, with skeleton keys inside.

i am so, so excited.

isn't it adorable?!?!

[insert some really clever title here]

it has been an excellent week.

we went rollerblading by the river in IF

i positively love rollerblading.

and i saw taylor!!

so that was fun. since it never really happens.

we watched the sunset on a mountain.

it was magnificent.

we went to the waterfall..

and had a picnic there!

could anything be better than that?!

probably not.

also we watched the sunset.

surprised? :)

we went kayaking.

and it was gorgeous.

seriously, i love this state.

it's raining right now.

it hasn't rained for a long, long time.

i'm not really used to it not raining.

unfortunately i left my umbrella at home..

..for the third day in a row.

bummer.

i have a science exam tomorrow.

eww.

but also tomorrow..

palm springs with my family!!!

cannnnnottt waaitt :)

camera one closes in.. the soundtrack starts.. the scene begins

there's something about having school and work from nine to five that results in a permanent state of not enough hours in the day.

but, i guess that is life.

anyhow.

life's been good.

i love this place.

here is my life ahora:

we like picnics.

especially with picnic baskets, picnic dishes, and dinosaur sandwiches.

(okay, that's just me, actually)

we like picnics even if we're not the greatest at taking pictures of ourselves.

next.

this is the face zack gives me a lot.

i think it means "what in the heck are you thinking, amy?"

but it might not.

i mean, maybe it just means that he likes me.

but i don't really think so.

last weekend zackery and i went to provo.

we went to a safteysuit concert.

it was fantastic, i tell ya.

zack's a little selfish though..

he says i'm not allowed to be in love with them.

not even a little bit.

not even just as backup.

rude, huh?

also we saw cristina and dan.

which was just wonderful.

especially her new picture frames.

they're rather attractive.

and one more thing.

we got dinner at this place in chubbuck.

it was hands-down the best ham grilled cheese i've ever had.

and the fries were to die for.

so i just wanted to say that.

so tonight i'm just pretty darn happy.

tomorrow i get to see taylor, which is rather exciting.

and ann's getting married in less than one month.

and next weekend is general conference. :)

and then the weekend after that i'm going to palm springs for a sweet 48 hours with my family.

i cannot wait.

i'm loving my classes, especially early field experience.

today my cooperating teacher told me i have the best first grade teacher handwriting she's ever seen.

thank you.

also i love children's lit.

the teacher's all about a "zion class."

so we spend a lot of time doing unity-building activities.

and it's actually pretty cool.

as always i love my job.

enough said there.

well.

that's my life in a nutshell.

i'm pretty lucky :)