Ashlee’s Annals

Makin' Mamma Proud

2010-10-26T16:02:00.000-07:00

....or not. My mom taught me well in every single category. Now, if I chose to follow her teachings or not was always a different story. I will however inform you (and you Mom) that I took full heed to her counsel regarding when to start listening to Christmas music. I've been listening for 3 weeks now. Yesterday the music put me in the mood for some crafts. I'm not very crafty, so a paper chain is all I could come up with. But you can bet I made a paper chain for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and OF COURSE Christmas! They adorn my home and I got to subtly start decorating for Christmas without actually throwing up the tree! I love this time of year!

...Nations Revere

2010-10-10T21:51:00.000-07:00

After all these years, you'd think I'd learn to locate my glasses before I take out my contacts. But alas, time after time I find myself down on my knees, feeling my way around the floor/dresser/table searching for my glasses with my hands because I've left myself blind.

This happened tonight, after a long, Spirit-filled, emotional day. I spent the morning with my sweetheart improving our adoption profile as a part of our special fast to be lead to our baby's birth mother. Then we attended church and spent time with our sweet primary children who melted my heart and made me yearn for children of my own even more. And then we spent the evening at the Mesa Temple Visitors Center with a sweet teenager who finds herself pregnant and unmarried. As we walked through the Visitors Center with this young woman and saw examples of families complete with mothers, fathers, and children lining the walls and the halls, it was hard not to ache inside.

And then we came home, and I had a few minutes to contemplate the blessings of this day, along with the things I need to improve on. After a few minutes of hands-and-knee searching for my glasses, I finally found them and I had a sweet moment of realization. Our Heavenly Father has given us so many things to help us see; the scriptures, living prophets, temples, church leaders, church programs, and the list could go on. But when we stop using the gifts He's given us, without replacing them with other good gifts, we're left as blind as I am without my glasses on. Too often I take my spiritual contacts out without already having my spiritual glasses in hand, ready to put on as to not be left blind even for a moment.

My goal for this week is to never lose my spiritual eye sight. I will commit to knowing where those seeing gifts can be found at all times so that I will never walk blindly through this life. There truly is no reason that we ever have to walk blindly. Heavenly Father knows us, and He remembers us, and that is evident each and every time I forget to find my glasses before I take out my contacts and I some how always find my glasses anyway.

Really?

2010-09-09T21:29:00.000-07:00

Has it really been almost 2 weeks since my last post? I can't believe it. Except that I can. I have 3 words for ya'll. Twenty credit hours. Nuff said. Anyway, I just thought I'd pass on a nugget of a conversation between the mr. and myself tonight;

Me (while saying our evening prayer): And please help us to sleep way better than last night....amen.

C: Amen. Weren't you the one who gave a lesson in Primary on prayer last week?

Me: Yeah, and I said "We thank Thee" first and "We ask Thee" last, that's how you're supposed to do it.

C: Yeah, but you say Thee and stuff to be formal and saying help us sleep WAY better than last night isn't formal.

Me: Oh, sorry.

C: Next time just say, "please let tonight rock".

Me: Will do.

I'm going to go to bed now and ponder my prayer language. Anybody else have fun prayers stories?

Monday

2010-08-30T09:04:00.001-07:00

I've always heard people talk about manic Mondays, or how much they hate Mondays and on and on. And sure, I've never really liked the feeling of an awesome weekend turing back into the mundane, but I've never despised Mondays like most people. Until today. This Monday. Right now.

Not even one thing went as planned after I left the house. Or before I left the house for that matter. Here's the basic outline:

wake up-good

be happy for C as he shows me good news on his website-good

morning tinkle-good

write blog post on Spoiled Eggs-good

phone call saying all plans for morning time shopping have changed-good

phone call a good thing because I remembered that I have a lab at 8:30-good

hurry and get ready, trying on everything but nothing looked good-and so it began

finally settling upon looking like a pioneer-getting worse

grab the key to my bike lock-good

can't find the key to the lock to the shed where my bike slept-bad

call C, he doesn't know where it is-bad

C suggests the scooter-good

find scooter key-good

find lots of change to feed meter-good

try to put bag in scooter seat, doesn't fit-bad

hold bag between my legs while going 40 mph-really bad

finally park, feed the meter, search for building I've never been to-kinda bad

find the building, walk 3 flights of stairs-bad but needed

find the classroom with a sign about my class starting today-excellent

sit down-fine

listen-fine

hear lots and lots of talk about physics-bad, very, very bad

remind myself that I'm actually not taking physics and I must be in the wrong classroom-bad

go look around-awkward

check my schedule and verify the room-i was right

go back to the physics talking room-more awkward

sit down and listen to more physics garble-extra awkward

look at my schedule one more time to make sure-humbling

find out my class is at 8:30 PM-mortified

attempt to secretly escape the room-terrifying

realize my shirt's untucked and I'm showing what my mamma gave me to everyone-perfect

get on the elevator, call C-good

hear his voice and try not to burst into tears-embarassing

get reassured by lover-boy and walk to the scooter-hot

hold my bag between my legs again-dumb

get home, come inside-finally

plop on the couch-currently

consider going back to bed and trying again-probably

drop a class that goes from 8:30-11:00 PM?-DEFINITELY

Me looking quite pioneer-ish.

I've only been awake for 2 hours. Hopefully the next 12 or so are a little better than the first 2. Happy Monday everyone. Hopefully. :)

He Did It!

2010-08-23T08:10:00.000-07:00

Well, after lots of planning, preparation, and hard work, C has finally launched his site all about toys. I'm so excited for him. He's wanted to do this for so long but has been so busy and so focussed on bringin' home the bacon that he's been putting off the things he loves. No longer! This site is going to be so radical. He'll do giveaways, rate toys, talk about toy safety, and do a whole bunch of other really fun interactive stuff. So go check it out! It's called

Playful Factory.

In other news, whenever we're gone for a long period of time (like a week to babysit) when we come back to our house it smells like smoke. It doesn't smell like smoke when we are here, but after our vacations this summer it smelled like smoke and again yesterday when we came back it stunk. I have no idea why, but if I run into you anytime this week and my clothes smell like smoke, here's my apology in advance.

Lastly, school started. I'm taking 21 credit hours. That equates to life being over. But it'll be good because 21 this semester and 21 next semester equates to graduation which equates to never going to school again which equates to pure and complete bliss.

We haven't taken photos in weeks. That's a lie. I just thought of a couple really cool pictures we took 2 weeks ago when I made piping hot soup for dinner. The lighting was somehow perfect for some really crazy shots. I'll add those pictures for your viewing pleasure and call it a day. Then I'll run off to class. Here I go. Happy Monday.

5 Days Down

2010-08-20T19:45:00.000-07:00

Well after 5 days with the little munchkins we have...

missed the bus

gotten diaper rash

wet the bed....3 times

done 7 loads of laundry

had massive diaper explosions

thrown dishes across the kitchen

had requests by the 5 year old to throw him out the window

gone streaking

we have also....

read 17 stories

played tons of games

wrestled til we cried

had root beer floats more than once

heard the sweetest prayers of all time

done lots of tucking in

done lots of swimming

said lots of "I love you too's"

given lots of kisses

gotten lots of kisses

seen a small glimpse of what parenthood looks like and are that much more excited

and fallen more in love with these kids than we could have ever imagined

Only 2 more days to go, and frankly it makes me a little sad.

X 3

2010-08-16T09:41:00.000-07:00

Our family has tripled in size this week. We've inherited 4 kids for 7 days. I tell you this for about 5 reasons.

1. Pity

2. Understanding. So you'll understand if I don't blog much this week

3. Advice. We'll take any of it.

4. Prayers. We need them.

5. Anticipation. Get your hopes up for some killer stories. I'm sure I'll have plenty of them by next week.

We really are happy/excited to be hanging out with these kids. But it's only day 2. I may not be saying that by day 7! Heaven help us all!!

P.S. Be sure to check out my infertility blog for a pretty sweet giveaway.

She's Back...Grandma's Grammar Part II

2010-08-12T10:20:00.001-07:00

Remember her? If not, read this.

This week's little tidbit of information is going to cover the apostrophe. You know, that little tiny mark thingy that's 2 keys to the right of the 'L' on the keyboard? It's such a sweet little thing and can be ever so useful. So here are a few instances when apostrophes are to and not to be used. Observe...

Example 1

One apple, two apples. Correct

One apple, two apple's. Not correct

Example 2

Ashlee's apples. Correct

Ashlees apples. Not correct

The first example is called making something plural, which means more than one. When making something plural, or saying there is more than one of something, simply add an s. That's it!! That's all you have to do!!! Just add one s. Nothing else. Just the letter s. It's easy!

See watch:

apples

cats

humans

cars

toes

flowers

hats

magazines

Easy enough right? Hopefully! :)

Example 2 I gave above was that of making something possessive, which means that something belongs to somebody. When making something possessive, simply add an apostrophe and then an s. That's it!! That's all you have to do!! Just add one apostrophe and one s! Nothing else!

Just 's. It's easy!

See watch:

Ashlee's apple

Kate's cat

God's human

Collin's car

Everybody's toe

Mom's flowers

Lucy's hat

April's magazine

Easy enough again right?! Hopefully! :)

If there are any additional questions, feel free to comment and I'm sure that one of my brothers would be glad to quickly comment and answer your question.

The Academy

2010-08-10T09:40:00.000-07:00

3 years ago today, we did this

C's parents were driving up, hence the waving.

I still like him enough to kiss him like that.

In 3 years we've found a lot of things, and lost a lot of things

We've found:

happiness

a new home

lots of nickels

an enormous hatred for ants

our first car

our favorite places to eat

lots of stuff on Craigslist

some extra junk in the trunk

that we disagree on unimportant thing

that we agree on anything that matters

Hulu

Netflix

Julia Child

life to be expensive

a best friend

love

We've lost:

hair

Our marriage rocks. I love him. Just for a tiny insight into our lives, here's a G-chat conversation we had just yesterday (I've highlighted my favorite part in red for your convenience):

me: okay cool
1:18 PM collin!!!!!! guess what!!!!!!!!!
1:19 PM Collin: what
me: okay, it's probably not as exciting to you as it is to me, but in my mind it totally warrants all those exclamation marks.
1:20 PM Collin: tell me
me: ANYWAY. There's this blog I've been stalking for months and months. It's actually even bookmarked on my browser as "cute skirt cute hair girl" and I have secretly stalked her. Never commented, NOTHING. And she just became a follower on spoiled eggs.
Collin: thats really cool!
send me the link
me: there must be a way for her to see that i follow her blog right?
the link to her blog?
1:23 PM Collin: you linked to her on your blog first?
me: nooooo
i just had her bookmarked on my browser. i did not link to her
Collin: i dont think that is trace-able
1:24 PM me: i know! this is nuts!
1:25 PM should i tell her or wait for her to say something first?
oh my gosh it feels like i'm trying to date her. holy crap this is fantastic.
1:26 PM Collin: why say something... she is just following your blog... let her follow in peace. thats what i say
unless you want to have your badge on her blog or something
me: let her follow on peace. haha
hahahahah my badge?!
lol oh my gosh
1:27 PM button honey. it's a button.
1:28 PM Collin: i think badge is more correct
just sayin
1:29 PM button is like when it says "submit"
me: lol i will be using it in a blog post
Collin: or "send"
me: hahahaha
Collin: badge, as in an affiliate badge
google it
me: no no, i get it. it's just called a button.
Collin: and i am saying that it is called a badge
1:30 PM like merit badge for girls
me: lol oh my
Collin: the more you have the better blogger you are
me: hahahaha. kinda

So there's our life in a nutshell. I get excited about random blogging friends, he does a really good job of being excited for me and finds some way to make me laugh in the mean time. I love him. Also, a very happy anniversary to my friend Tyrell and her hubs and also our friends Zach and Whitney.

Check List

2010-08-06T15:25:00.000-07:00

I've been doing some major cleaning and organizing lately. In that cleaning I have found some real doozies. Most of the stuff I've found have been my "funny lists". And most of the lists have been written during church. Yep, when I get bored at church I make lists of everything that's funny, right then and there. I know....unrighteous, need to pay attention, more spiritual, la dee da. I will repent. But in the meantime, I will share one of the best lists I've ever made. C and I wrote this while visiting a ward that we were considering moving in to. Enjoy.

My List Of Requirements For A New Ward:

paper sacrament cups (check)

nice bishopric member introducing himself before the meeting (check)

smell of moth balls (check)

loud singer (check)

token hot, skinny, blonde girl to compare myself to (check)

token blonde girl's hot husband for you to compare yourself to (no check, nobody's hotter than C)

bishopric member who looks like Stephen Hawking (check)

C's List Of Requirements For A New Ward:

Priesthood (check)

Fake Plants (check)

missionaries that clearly played football in high school (check)

youth speaker reading their talks (check)

Though the ward was obviously a winner, we ended up not moving into it. Instead we live here.

Do you blame us? You shouldn't. Happy weekend. :)

Pie Anyone?

2010-08-05T08:46:00.000-07:00

There are many things that bring joy to my life. Things that make waking up in the morning seem exciting and dreamy. Things that make each day feel like Christmas. Things that complete me. On the list of joy-bringing, dreamy-morning, Chirstmas-day, completion is, of course (in no particular order);

ice cream

hearing the train running down the tracks

rain

C's pillow

Netflix

Yep. I said it. Netflix. Netflix completes me. We haven't had tv in over 2 years (thank the heavens) and thanks to Netflix, we may never have tv again. Because what's on tv that's not on Netflix? Garbage, trash, and filth. Sure there's garbage, trash and filth on Netflix, but you don't have to watch it, or accidentally catch a glimpse of it while channel surfing. It's like a little slice of pie each time I sign-in.

Speaking of pie, we're in love with Pushing Daisies right now. Let the record show, we have only watched the first 4 episodes and they have all been clean, and we are hereby NOT responsible for any of you watching beyond the 4th episode and finding it to be dirty, foul, or off-colored. Amen.

Anyway, this show. Uhhh! It's phenomenal. It has all the elements of a good series; humor, music, love, a random British narrator, and a really great plot. I encourage you all to go watch the first few episodes and more, but more at your own risk.

This show makes me want to be a better person. I want to be a better wife, and look like this

and bake like this

Sooo delicious! Anyway. You're welcome for giving you something to do this weekend, be it finding an adorable red dress like the one pictured above, making some delicious pies like the 12 billion pictured above, or sitting on your couch and watching a few episodes of Pushing Daisies.

P.S. Go check out my infertility blog. But you might need to take a nap first. It's a doozy.

Comment Slacker

2010-08-03T10:12:00.000-07:00

I just signed onto my blogger account.

Things looked normal and fine.

I considered a new post.

I clicked around a few times.

And then I saw it.

96 comments need to be modified.

96!!

I had 96 comments unpublished.

96 neglected comments.

96 neglected readers.

I'm sorry.

I'm so sorry.

It won't happen again.

Unless it's spam.

Grandma's Grammar

2010-07-27T08:05:00.000-07:00

My beautiful Grandma Martin was an English school teacher. She wasn't from England, she taught English. Just clarifying. Anyway, she passed on the eloquent use of proper grammar to my dad, and my dad lovingly demanded that my brothers and I learn how to speak correctly as well. My dad made it fun though, always teaching us good tricks, creatively correcting our errors, humorously correcting our teachers' errors, and in the end I grew to love the English language as well. I by no means think I know it all, but I do know a few things about English that I fear others may not. So, every once in a while I think I'll bust out with a Grandma's Grammar blog and share a fact or two.

***Please know that I have no intent to offend or hurt feelings. The end.***

Today's fact:

I's is not a word. C's and I's favorite food is not pizza. However, C's and my favorite food is absolutely pizza.

Today's trick:

When trying to decide between the use of me, my, mine, I, myself, or any other funky option, take out the other people in the sentence. For instance, take the sentence,

"C's and I's favorite food is pizza"

and take out the other person (in this case it's C). Your sentence then becomes:

"I's favorite food is pizza."

Doesn't sound correct, right? (Please tell me you're saying right.)

So what does sound right? Hopefully the word "my" comes to mind.

Insert "my" in place of "I's" and you have yourself a happier, smarter-sounding, sentence!

**I can't wait for comments from my dad and/or brothers (or anyone else for that matter) correcting my use of quotation marks, italics, and a bunch of other stuff. Don't worry, I's can take it.

No Painted Desert, No Sedo...wait

2010-07-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

I'd never been to Sedona. So C took me. It was breathtakingly beautiful and the weather was a dream. Thank you Mother Nature. Seriously. We swam with the most amazing view, at 8 p.m. And didn't freeze, or fry, whatever's more amazing to you. Again, a huge shout out to MN. She rocked it. So did we. Sedona, we will be back. Anyone wanna join?

You Should Have Seen It In Color

2010-07-23T07:43:00.000-07:00

Ever wanted to hold a python? Me too. But I never want to again.

Ever wondered what an ostrich thinks? The look on her face tells me, not much.
Ever wanted to play hide-and-go-seek with a giraffe? I won.

Ever wanted to kiss a giraffe? She did. It was naaaassssstttyyyy.

Ever wanted to see a giraffe's ear up close? I'll hook you up.
Ever wanted to feed a giraffe? You can either visit this place, or live vicariously through me.

Ever wanted to be close enough to a giraffe to head-butt it? It was awesome!!

Life In Black and White

2010-07-21T23:06:00.000-07:00

Remember when C gave me a certificate to go on a Safari for my birthday? Two years ago? Me too. And just a few days ago, we actually had the time to go. It was the most amazing thing I've ever done, and by far the best birthday present I've ever received 2 years late. Thanks C. A lot.

Life Has Just Begun...

2010-07-20T22:38:00.000-07:00

We love each other. C took me on a date last week. We went to every thrift/antique store we could find in down town Phoenix, had a scrumptious meal at this little joint, and stopped here for a cupcake to top it all off. Retro is C's fav. C is my fav. And dates are our fav.

* C and I are on our way to being certified for adoption. :)

** Read my other blog for details.

Because

2010-06-28T11:01:00.000-07:00

This week, I take a break from blogging. Why?

Because I wanted to jump on the computer and write a 5 minute note about my soon to be absence, and it ended up taking an hour and a half.

Because I need to re-boot.

Because I am ready to be me again.

Because I need to re-evaluate.

Because I couldn't just not show up, I had to tell everyone that I'm not showing up.

I'll be back but I'm comin as soil.

P.S. Before I left blog land for a few hours/days/weeks/whatev I updated my infertility blog. Go check it out.

See you soon.

Tweet Tweet

2010-06-24T15:51:00.001-07:00

What is it about little, tiny, birds that make things so cute?

I had way too much fun making these today. Imagine opening one of them and reading "thanks for reading my blog". That's what they say. All of them. And they're all for you. Honest. Chirp.

Good Times Never Seemed So Good

2010-06-23T08:38:00.000-07:00

Did you know that on my phone, while writing a text, using T9, my phone recognizes the word Tempe, but not Mesa? I have to individually type each letter of Mesa, but it picks up Tempe with no problem. Must be a sign, that we were supposed to move here. Yes I recognize that I just blamed my being happy with our move on text messaging. Text is a huge part of my life. It's undeniably true. Tempe has been good to us thus far. Living here has done things to me. For instance I've started listening to a new Pandora station which is entitled 'Michael Buble and Neil Diamond'. DELICIOUS!! When your front yard looks like this you have to listen to Neil. Sweet Caroline to be specific.

Other changes include an overwhelming desire to start my Christmas music. I know it's only June. I promise, I do know that. But ocassionally on my new Pandora station, a Nat King Cole song will come on and even though he's saying the words "unforgetable" over and over and over, all I hear him saying is "pa rum pa pum pum". I will do my best to refrain from putting up our Christmas tree.

Speaking of decorating, moving has made me bipolar. Not in the medical sense because in the medical sense bipolar is a term that actually means changing from intense elation to intense depression at the drop of a hat. That's not what I have. I have changing my mind disorder, which is the definition for the slang version of bipolar. Just throwing that out there. Confused? Me too. Here's an example. Remember when we moved into this little 1943 house? And we were certain that we needed to keep the old, vintage feeling going, so we decorated like this:

Well, after a fight with depression over the hopelessly blah wall color, we ditched the vintage and welcomed the modern/Ikea/retro/whotheheckknows/stillnotthatgreat look. It will most likely not look this way tomorrow, so I figured I'd document what it looks like today:

We are in love with Tempe. The people on bikes. The people walking their dogs. The political protests. The yards. Our neighbors. The quiet day times. The trains. We love it. Please come visit.

P.S. Go USA!!!

Crib

2010-06-14T12:58:00.000-07:00

We finally got moved in. I'll choose my words carefully because we are moved in, we are in no way settled, organized, decorated, or finished. But we are in. Per request here are some photos of our new place. More to come, I assure you.

We are the reapers of the previous sewers. They planted a garden that produces like crazy. We could take a lesson from those tomato plants.
One of the first things I made in our new little abode were these butterscotch-chocolate-peanut-buttery morsels of goodness. I had 3 for breakfast and 1 for lunch. I need help.
The first thing to be placed in our home was my piano. It's about the only thing I've given some TLC to, but just look at her. Doesn't she deserve it?

Firsts and Lasts

2010-06-10T22:36:00.000-07:00

I keep telling you that I made a skirt, and so far I've done nothing to back it up. It is true. I promise. But due to the whole camera cord situation I am still without decent photos. I do, however, have a few phone pics of the skirt.

Here's what happened. I found a dainty little shirt on Saturday that I really wanted to wear to church on Sunday. But nothing I already had went with it. So I bought some fabric, and went home, and worked well into Saturday night, and finally finished the skirt. I thought it was adorable. I even made a matching headband. I was on a roll.

So, I woke up Sunday morning, feeling ready to be adorable. I got dressed and felt so cute that I took a picture of myself.

I didn't really like that angle, so I took another one.

It was after the second picture that I went through my daily ritual of strutting my stuff in front of C and fishing for a compliment. Usually I get one. And when I don't, I trust the fact that I married a designer and take his advice. This time, after my long hours of laboring on my outfit, I pranced my way into his line of vision, looking for a "beautiful" or an "I love it"and he said nothing. Nothing, is bad. So I shook my bum. Still nothing. It was then, I, who had to go fishing.

Is it my shirt?

He said no.

My skirt?

No, the skirt looks great, he said.

My hair?

It couldn't be my hair, I spent ample time on my hair.

It's not your hair, he assured me.

Well then what, I pleaded?

It's the headband, he said, it is just plain weird.

I dashed to the mirror, to take what had to have been my 20,000th glance that morning, and I still looked as good as I did the first time. Headband and all. I wasn't taking the designer advice this time. I marched back into where C was sitting and I said, I like it and it's totally in right now. I then proceeded to pull up several pictures of girls who were doing it too.

Silence again.

It was then, and only then, that C suggested what he always suggests when I won't listen to him:

Call Markee.

I was thrilled at his suggestion!! I knew Markee would have my back. We have always had different styles, and heaven knows most of the time we thought the other looked outrageous, but we at least appreciated each other's expressions of fashion. I couldn't wait to send her a picture of my new skirt, and especially my new headband. I picked the second picture I took and sent it her way via text.

What do you think about my outfit, I asked.

She was in church, but she knew an emergency when she saw one and texted back right away.

I see one new text from Markee, and proudly walk over to C so we can read what I am certain will be her words of encouragment. I gracefully sat beside my love, and pushed read text, so we both could read Markee's words:

Your outfit is cute but what's on your head?

Deflation. Pure and utter deflation. And C was right. When I won't listen to him, or anybody else, Markee's the go-to-girl. So I moved my headband up, into a "normal" position, and went to church.

***Daily news. C and I just had our first meal together as a married couple at our own dining room table. Three years of marriage, and just getting a dining table feels like heaven. He had salad. I had honey nut cheerios. Bliss.

Flowers in a jar

2010-06-09T09:30:00.001-07:00

We've had lots of changes in our tiny little 2-person family. I've done my darndest to document the changes with photographs, but being that one of the biggest changes we've made is a move to a new city, my camera cord is buried deep within piles of goodness, so no pictures for now. Coming soon:

pictures of that skirt I mentioned

the move

a homemade video

a clean, organized house

Happy Wednesday.

Yes Day, Good Finds, and other Nonsense

2010-05-31T06:58:00.000-07:00

Weekends strengthen our relationship. No I'm serious, they do. We get to stare into each other's eyes, cuddle for exceptionally long amounts of time, learn quirks about one another, and generally go to the temple together. Weekends are how life is supposed to be. At least I think so. C seems to think that having a job and bringing home the bacon is important too.

So anyway, this weekend we celebrated a couple things. First off we found the most incredible yard sales of the century, and after spending just a few dollars (I think it was $5) we came home with 3 rockin' treasures. Cause for celebration indeed.

I don't know if you can tell what that is, so I'll just tell you. That's a KILLER chandelier with a price tag that read $1. Yep.

And this, well this is an adorable vintage serving tray, with a price tag of $1 as well. Boo ya.

And you see that cute lantern that rests so sweetly atop my piano? Yeah, $3. I actually should have only paid $2 but I'm learning folks, I'm learning.

Secondly we celebrated our 'Yes Day'. That's the day C asked me to marry him and I said 'Yes'. This is our 4th 'Yes Day' which means we've been in love for 3 years. Crazy. To celebrate 'Yes Day' I wrote C a love song. Gross, huh? This year, C suggested that since it's 'Yes Day' all day he is entitled to ask me anything in the world and I have to say yes. That's mostly how it went. I love him. We also went to a late (10:10p.m.) movie on Friday night. We got all dressed up and had a great time. The movie (Letters to Juliet) was horrid in our opinion, but we still had a great time. And who doesn't get all dressed up to see a movie and take a photobooth photo shoot first?

P.S. I also made a skirt this weekend. But that's another story altogether. I can already feel your anticipation. Coming soon.

Dibs

2010-05-20T15:08:00.001-07:00

When I was approaching birth, my mom and my dad had a tiny little dispute over what to name me. My mom wanted to name me Kate, and my dad didn't. Clearly my dad won. That time. Ever since I heard that story, I've been slightly fixated on the name Kate. You see, my dad's mom was named Kate, and her only daughter was named Kate. Both of these women I have enormous respect and love for. So why wouldn't the name Kate have a special place in my heart? To make the affixation even worse, I've never met a Kate I didn't like. In high school I met one of the dearest people I know, who bears that name. We hit it off right away, and she instantly fell into the Kate category of being so easy to love and respect. I've come across several blogs written by girls named Kate and I've found them to be perfectly pleasant. This is going somewhere I promise. Sooo...though C and I are baron, wait can a man be baron? or just a woman? I don't know, I'm just always looking for new words rather than using infertility, or unable-to-have-children, over and over again, so just work with the baron. As I was saying, though C and I are baron we still day dream over baby names on a ridiculously regular basis. We hardly ever agree. We've only agreed on a few names actually. But Kate is one of them. We both love it, and that in and of itself is a miracle. So, I am hereby calling dibs on the name Kate. Those of you (specifically family members) who are currently having, or who will have children before we do, which is most everyone out there (imagine me pointing my finger at YOU personally) don't name your kid Kate. Or they will have a cousin with the same name. And if you so choose to name your child Kate, when the time comes for us to birth our own little Kate, I will refer back to this blog post and remind you that you had fair warning. Because let's face it, with parents like us, our child is going to need a strong, respectable, honorary name to get through life. Props to all the Kates out there in the world. One day another Kate will join you, and you'll all kick trash together. the end.

Here are some links to a couple of Kate blogs I like to visit:

CommuniKate

Kate Lines Photography

I would not mind if my Kate looked like any of these Kates:

Or sang like this Kate:

Or could hold her own like this Kate (I know, I know, but a fictional Kate is a Kate nonetheless.)

P.S. One of these days, I'm going to not use spell check just so you all can laugh as I do at my terrible type-spelling.

boys will be boys and girls will be girls...

2010-05-18T12:50:00.000-07:00

What have your days been looking like?

If you're a boy in our house, your days have been looking like this

And if you're a girl, your days might look like this

We love our days. And especially our nights. Bed time is a gift straight from God.

A Month Gone By

2010-05-08T23:06:00.000-07:00

As you may or may not have noticed (if you didn't notice, just don't tell me) I took a month off from blogging. I didn't do it on purpose, it just ended up being something I could temporarily remove from my full plate. My plate is becoming less full as finals are nearly over and papers are written. So here I am, and what better time to come back than Mother's Day? I never know if it's Mother's Day or Mothers' Day or Mothers Day. For me, it's Mother's Day I think because it's my mom's day right? That's neither here nor there. What is here, and there, and everywhere is my mom. She never stops.

For some reason I had the notion that when I left the house and my mom no longer had children at home she would be so lonely and in such despair that she would just sit on the couch all day waiting for me to call. Oh how I was wrong. I have never called home when my mom was doing nothing but waiting for me to call. She's usually walking with her sister, doing her visiting teaching, having a presidency meeting or preparing for a presidency meeting, cooking dinner for Dad, Grandpa and whoever else shows up, or driving Hue around town.

And you know what? When I call and she's doing those things, it shows me more love and compassion from my mom than if she were just plopped down waiting for my call. My mom's a good woman and I'm grateful for her. Mom, I hope you have the best day ever. I love you.

A Crash of Drums

2010-04-10T10:44:00.000-07:00

This morning we went on a several hour scooter ride. Our adventures included stops at multiple yard sales, Jamba Juice, and the eye doctor to pick up some new contacts. We also picked up these little beauties while we were there. As my husband so beautifully put it, "somebody hit us with the awesome stick and just wouldn't stop".

Happy weekend.

And All. That. Jaaaaaaazz

2010-03-17T07:28:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we purposefully had no plan. We wanted to try as many different restaurants and foods as possible, and visit as many vintage and thrift shops as possible. I have NEVER seen or shopped in better vintage shops. The possibilities and selections were endless! We were in HEAVEN! Some of our highlights included visiting this delicious little place:

The Bongo Room

We had a chicken and pear sandwich with the most delicious potato salad ever. Thanks to Kate over at Raison D'etre for turning us on to the Bongo Room, we loved it:

While wandering down the street, freezing our tooshies off, we saw this sign and I had to giggle:

But this sign was my favorite of the day. Be back in 10 minutes....or so, haha:

We love the subway. Such a cheap form of transportation.

Last night we had the best meal I have EVER had. Now, I want you to keep in mind that my mother is the best cook I know, and I am constantly spoiled by her, my chef of a mother in law and the memory of my Grandma's spectacular cooking, so naturally nothing could ever be as good as what they make, but as far as eating out goes, I've never had better than what I ate last night.

We went to Crofton on Wells. I ordered the farm chicken which came with green beans and a bed of mashed potatoes unmatched by anything I've ever eaten. It was succulent.

A little snap shot in our room after dinner. Check out our view!

We had a yummy banana cream pie after our dinner at Crofton's but come about 10:00 we were craving ice cream. So we took a taxi to I Cream.

They use giant Commercial Kitchen Aid mixers to create your own, private, homemade ice cream or frozen yogurt right in front of you. It was divine.

We're having a blast here. We leave today and are hoping to see Wrigley Field, The Willis Tower (formerly known as the Sears Tower), get some good pizza and a hot dog and not freeze before we go!

For It's Root, Root Root for the CUBBIES!!

2010-03-15T23:33:00.000-07:00

Well after a fairly uneventful plane ride (although I consider snuggling with C for 3 consecutive hours while watching Remember the Titans quite an event) we made it to our Spring Break destination. Where else would anybody go during the windiest season of the year but Chicago? We're happy to be here. More to come from the Windy City.

On the place I asked C to take a picture that would make my nose look smaller, after many tries this was our only option.

We love plane rides.

The view from our room. Floor 25.

Worth It

2010-03-11T15:19:00.000-08:00

I've been neglecting everything lately.
School work.
House work.
Home work.
Blogging.
And anything else that you might think somebody shouldn't neglect.
I'm ready for Spring Break.
We're taking a trip.
A fun one.
I can't wait.

It will be cold, windy, and will involve a fairly lengthy plane ride which will mean a few good hours of snuggling with C.

Speaking of snuggling, we had a kind of AMAZING slumber party for a few nights with these people. We love them. And their baby. He might like us too.

Hide and Seek

2010-02-20T12:09:00.000-08:00

As a kid I loved the game Hide and Go Seek as we called it. I especially loved playing in my grandparent's basement with all of the cousins because there were secret passageways, plenty of closet space, and lots of nooks and crannies we used to conceal ourselves.

Unfortunately, due to the size of our current living space, C and I have found that Hide and Seek isn't a huge option for game night these days. However, today I couldn't find C. I even went outside and looked.

Then I heard a little voice coming from above. And there he was.
 Doodling.
On the roof.
With his pants rolled up.
Like a little boy.

Find the kid inside and do something crazy this weekend. I dare you.


Happy weekend.

Life Is Good

2010-02-18T15:48:00.000-08:00

These last 2 weeks have been crazy. School is outrageously busy and stressful. Church callings have us both going non-stop. Work is and forever will be work. Yet, in our down time we've found ways to live, laugh, love and play. To honor the season of love and to dote on my husband a little, (as he fully deserves) I offered him the 14 days of love. So from February 1st until February 14th I gave Collin something simple each day to celebrate our affection. Some of my favorites included a jar full of 365 things I love about Collin, to be enjoyed daily for the next year. Heart shaped hamburgers for dinner. A flip book of my kisses, similar but not quite as good as this one. Pot Pie etched with my love for C. Lots of treats. And my favorite, a matching game with pictures of our favorite memories. Through all of life's business, it's fun to love.

In other good news, my dearest friend and cousin for life is having baby #2. Check out her announcement here.

And I'm Back In The Game...

2010-02-03T12:33:00.000-08:00

Thank you all so much for your well wishes. I am grateful to say that my nasty bug has left the building. And hopefully for a very long time. Now I can enjoy the beautiful weather and hopefully go for a ride on my new little beauty:

This was right after we finished the bike. We hadn't even put it outside yet. We HAD to snap a few photos!

P.S. Last weekend my dear friend Marcae had a birthday so some of my oldest and dearest friends and I got together to celebrate! I love friends. We missed those of you who weren't there!

Time's Up

2010-02-01T12:34:00.000-08:00

It took my sister in-law ONE week to get strep after going back to school this semester. I guess college students wash their hands a little bit more than high schoolers because I lasted 3 weeks before I got hit with the cold/flu. I thought I'd document the occasion and my illness with a few pictures, because why wouldn't I want everybody to see me look like death?

Look How They Shine For You...

2010-01-25T13:30:00.000-08:00

This weekend was all yellow. Not really intentionally, but it just kind of turned out that way. Saturday morning we visited this serene place, visited some friends who just welcomed a lovely little bundle of joy into their lives, picked up a hopeful craigslist piece and then got to work. We were ambitious, maybe too ambitious. Want proof? Scroll at your own risk.

C gave me this for Christmas. Isn't he sweet? He said he wanted it to be a project for us.

I love it. And a project it became.

I dreamed of a yellow bike, and my man delivered.

So it was on to our criagslist hopeful.
When picking out fabrics, yellow just felt good. So we went with it. Don't worry, we are fully aware of how frumpy it looks. But for re-upholstery first timers, we're trying to be pleased. I have a feeling it will become a project again soon.

So after a Saturday of yellowness, is it any wonder that this is what I pulled out of my closet come Sunday afternoon? Yes, C wore a yellow tie and yellow socks. He's dreamy.

Speaking of the dreaminess of C, he brought a little bit of color and a lot of charm into our yellowy weekend with this breakfast masterpiece. French Toast went in the middle of the plate. And it was delish.
What color was your weekend?

Happy Monday.

L Is For The Way You Look At Me

2010-01-12T09:32:00.001-08:00

Being married to C is magical. We just have fun. Lately our fun has included lots and LOTS of dance parties. Last night we found ourselves dancing at 11:00 p.m. both being completely exhausted but when this little song by Mika came on we couldn't help it, who could? On Friday night C took me on a little dinner/frozen yogurt date in Tempe. It was delicious, entertaining and proceeded by a dance party and a photobooth photo shoot. Check out C doin some type of robot/walk-like-an-Egyptian/running man. Life with him is fun. I'm in love. And I don't care who knows it. :)

Sometimes...

2010-01-05T15:59:00.001-08:00

Sometimes you take a week to take down Christmas decorations.

Sometimes you stay in your exercise clothes all day long.

Sometimes you cook from a Julia Child cookbook and pretend you're in a movie.

Sometimes you eat way more yogurt than you should.

Sometimes you forget to put deoderant on.

And...

Sometimes ya just gotta wear pigtails.

Tis The Season

2010-01-01T19:48:00.001-08:00

The holidays this year were absolutely wonderful. Each day since December 23rd has been completely filled with family, friends and fun. We wouldn't have it any other way. We were so happy to see everybody. Even Mark and Eric came into town. Things just couldn't have been better. (Unless Matt and Jan would have surprised us all! :) ) We hope your holidays were wonderful as well. Here's a brief, photo recap of ours.

2009-12-21T21:49:00.001-08:00

Am I the only one who ever wishes they could go out in public like this?

When I am in the middle of a full blown break out, I'd rather go out in a full face mask than risk the embarrassment of somebody saying or thinking 1 of 2 things.

Either "Oh wow that poor teenager, hopefully she'll grow out of it someday" or "I thought people grew out of acne".

I don't know if I'd rather be the poor teenager or the still-have-acne adult.

They should call acne something more exciting and happy. Like pleasant polka dots or .... yeah I just sat there for a good 30 seconds trying to think of something else, realizing that the first wasn't even very good. Truth is, I'm exhausted. I shopped (my least, lEaSt, LEAST favorite thing in the world) all day long and I have a pizza face. So trying to be clever or funny isn't going to work tonight. But hopefully going to bed is. Merry Monday.

I'm It

2009-12-16T20:01:00.001-08:00

My adorable, and practically famous cousin Alex over at It's A Love Story tagged me. I figure I oughta deliver. Is oughta even a word? Spell check doesn't think so, but my home town does. And so do I. So per Alex's request, here is my 2-part tag starting with the top 10 things that make me oh so happy.

Happiness To Me Is:

10. A clean house. See the previous post and the following before/after pictures...

during finals:

after finals: ahhhhhh

9. Being around family. Nobody gets you like family does. I always feel that my true laugh comes out around family and that all my other laughs aren't quite as genuine.

8. Being finished with this semester. It was such a relief to walk away from ASU campus today and not look back. For a whole month! Holler.

7. Skype. You see my very best friend and her baby live far away but with Skype I can be in their living room in seconds!

6. Screen shopping. It's like window shopping but online. I don't really buy anything, ever, just look.

5. Mail. Real mail. I love opening up the mailbox and finding something for me. It's like I really do exist if I get mail!

4. Mashed potatoes. This is my ultimate comfort food. When I'm down in the dumps, or not feeling well, or when I need to celebrate, I go for the mashed. Can't live with out them.

3. Really good photography.

2. Long scooter rides with my hair blowing in the wind. I love riding stuff, like horses, boats, riding in airplanes, but the scooter with C takes the cake.

1. C. Loving him takes no effort.

Now for part 2

A few honest facts about myself.

10. If I could go back and do everything all over again, I would major in something completely different, go to a very different college/university, and do a totally different song and dance. The only thing I wouldn't change about the last 3 years is falling in love and getting married.

9. I want to do/be about 10 million things when I grow up. Here are a few:

Plan weddings, big occasions, and parties.

Open a restaurant.

Run a book store.

Create my own clothing line.

Be an amazing photographer.

Be on Broadway.

Be famous for my hair.

Be an esthetician.

8. I have dreams. Big ones. In the next 2 years I want to graduate from ASU, pass my board exam, become a licensed music therapist, save enough money to buy children, lose 15 pounds and cut my hair like this;

7. I don't like my hair color. I wish it were A COLOR. I don't like that it's not black, or brown, or blonde. It's somewhere in between. And I know, I know, somebody wishes they had my color of hair.

6. I did most things when I was in high school because my brother Sherrod did them when he was in high school. Soccer. Show Choir. Rollerblading. Hurdles/track. Yep, I'm a poser. And a completely large fan of my brothers. All 4 of them.

5. I blog stalk. Bad. And sometimes it leaves me depressed because I see all of these amazing women with these big families, and the girls are skinny and beautiful, and they're crafty and their house is clean, and if I'm not careful I blog stalk my way into depression. Then I remember, people get to choose what they put on a blog. It's not reality. We only see what people want us to see on a blog. I'm guilty of it. Why do you think I never post pictures of my house or my stomach?! Because I don't want you to see my dirty house or my flubby stomach! Rant over.

4. When I go jogging my legs itch. Coll gets embarrassed because they itch so bad that I have no other choice than to stick my hand up the leg of my pants and scratch.

3. I think people with psychotic disorders are awesome. I love learning about them and what goes on in their brain. It's fascinating.

2. I've never read a single page of the Twilight series. Chances are, I will in about 5 years. But I just can't bring myself to jump on right now.

1. I'm chubby, none of my pants fit me anymore, my house is hardly ever clean, my car is even worse, we buy our furniture from Ikea and walmart and get most of our stuff from thrift stores, I honk loudly when I blow my nose, I'm average at all the things people think I'm good at, I only pretend to have any sense of style, I haven't been grocery shopping in 2 months, I shave my legs on average twice a month, I only teach dance because I teach 3-9 year olds who would never know I actually stink at dancing, I can't have children, I'm not always nice, sometimes I do the smallest thing possible for visiting teaching, I'm never organized, rarely on time, and I haven't had a good tan since I was 12. Why do I tell you all of this? Because this was an honesty tag, and I want all of you who read this to catch a glimpse of the real me, not the me I like to front on so many posts. Somebody who is TOTALLY imperfect. But somebody who is happy. Just to make any of you who might be feeling bad after a couple hours or blog stalking, and seeing beautiful, glamourous photos, here's a picture of me that should make you grateful for who you are! Enjoy.

I hereby tag just a few of my favorites:

Markee from Stoney's Stones

Karen from The Martins

Kate from Kate Line Photography

Tami from Love Love Love

Whitney from Ach and Winnie

Lauri from Putting My Two Cents In

Sarah from Martin Momentos

What's worse than a dirty house?

2009-12-14T20:22:00.000-08:00

Nothing. Thank heaven I don't have finals tomorrow. Disinfectant here I come. Merry Monday.

Little Thank Yous

2009-12-11T09:06:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite blogs to read does a little something called "little letters" every now and then. The writer publishes little letters to different things that have affected her throughout the day. Here's an example. Today I am feeling overwhelmed, in a good way, and I want to get some of that overwhelmedness out, so here's my attemp:

Little Thank Yous

Dear car,

Thank you for having a heater. It made going to take my final at 6:45 this morning bareable.

Dear sisters-inlaw,

Sometimes I feel bad for you. I think when you find amazing men (like my brothers) to marry, you expect that their sister would be at least half as cool, but the truth is that sometimes I'm way less than half as cool. More like 2% as cool. And today as I was thinking about how grateful I am for all of you I realized that you have all pretty much had to watch me, or still are watching me, grow up. You've dealt with me saying insensitive things that I didn't even know I was saying. You've dealt with me being obsessed with my brothers and calling or texting them non-stop. Some of you've dealt with me being snotty and 16, and know-it-all and 18, or somewhere before or after that. And the truth is that sometimes I plain ol' stink. But you love me, and you've become some of my very best friends. So thank you. For not disowning me and banning me from all family functions, as you probably should have.

Dear mamma,

Thanks for praying hard for me. I felt your prayers during my final. I think I passed. :)

Dear mamma in-law,

Thank you for being willing to drop anything and help me. You saved the day 3 days in a row with our RS meeting, C's birthday, and yet again feeding me on dance night.

Dear C's family,

How did I get so lucky? I love you all so much. Thank you for accepting me.

Dear Daddy,

Thank you for telling me the story of "The Three Bears" a billion times each night when I was a little girl.

Dear Markee,

Thanks for making time for me each day. Even being a billion miles apart.

Dear C,

Happy birthday. It comes as no surprise to me that your birthday falls right in the middle of the happiest time of the year. You make me happy. And I love you. Thank you for ALWAYS making me feel like a princess.

Dear radio,

Thank you for playing this clip as I drove home from school today. Having just finished my scariest final, I finally felt relieved and stress-less enough to truly listen to the words. And I cried.

Dear Christmas,

Thank you for coming, and for coming so quickly this year. You make everything wonderful.

I am so thankful for this season, and for my Savior. He is the reason things are so good.

Party Time

2009-12-10T19:34:00.000-08:00

We have had quite the array of parties these last few weeks. Our Killer-Apron/Thanksgiving Party in Utah, our Temple-Square Party while in Utah, our Get-Your-Steel-Band-On Party last weekend, and most recently, this evening we partied hard for Coll's birthday. Can there be too many parties? I submit that there can not. Enjoy the random order of photos exhibiting our recent adventures.

Thank you to our WONDERFUL family for supporting us and playing with us. You make the party a partay!

In case you were wondering...

2009-12-10T08:35:00.001-08:00

I TOTALLY accomplished (if you can even call it that) the 2nd list, entitled Most Likely. I'm not proud of it, but I am well rested, which should help me try and conquer that other list today. We'll see. Happy Thursday.

It's Reading Day...

2009-12-09T06:50:00.000-08:00

What does that mean?

Potentially it means:

finishing my term paper

writing up my final reports for my therapy sessions

studying for exams

FINALLY updating my blog

cleaning the house

shopping for Collin's birthday

organizing my life

Most likely it means:

watching a lot of Quantum Leap...yep, Hulu it

video-chatting with Markee

ordering make-up online

sleeping

eating crap

making the house more dirty

never getting dressed

Check back later to see what I ACTUALLY use this day of bliss for. Also, still to come are my pictures from Thanksgiving and my concert. I've had so much fun stuff going on lately and NO time to tell you all about! It will come though, it will come.

Get The Party Started 2009

2009-12-01T20:07:00.001-08:00

The Christmas season has officially begun in the Smith home. We kicked off the holidays with

*breakfast for dinner

*making advent candles

*burning our candle while reading a Christmas story

*buying a tree

*hanging the first ornaments

*blasting Christmas music

*and all the while, wearing our most comfy Christmas P.J's

Welcome Christmas!

Before (we had scrambled eggs, hash browns, bacon, stuffed french toast, and bacon)

During

After

The latest addition to our family; General Willard P. Wallabie (if he's a boy) and Precilla Ash Wallabie (if she's a girl). Yes, we know it's HUGE. We overestimated the size of our house.

Making our candles.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

Wear It Like A Label On Your Breast

2009-12-01T13:17:00.000-08:00

Today is my very best friend's birthday. We're getting old. This last year has been a year of trials for Markee and me! Okay, not really trials but it is the first time in our whole entire lives that we have gone more than a week or so without seeing each other. She now lives 1,038 miles away and I haven't seen her for months. It's killing me. All I can say is thank heaven for video chat. I feel like I can at least get through the day and I won't miss Nash growing up completely. With all of this distance between us she still is and always will be my best friend.

Mark,

I hope you have the happiest birthday of all the birthdays. Sorry your birthday present to me was 3 days early and your present from me will probably be 3 days late. Kind of telling of our whole lives. You've always been on the ball, and I'm always just one step behind. But guess what, that's how we roll and that's why we're best friends! I love you so much and I wish we could go to dinner tonight, or have a sleepover or something. But since we can't, I just hope you have the best birthday in the world! You're the best!!

-Ash

P.S. For last year's shout out to Markee go here.

P.S.S. Stay tuned for pictures from our "Get This Party Started" holiday kick-off, happening tonight at The Pool House Le Smith.

I hope

2009-11-25T22:37:00.001-08:00

I hope you're all enjoying time with your families and not checking out blogs, BUT if you are, go visit the sites below for some fun, inspiring thankful lists! We'll be spending our Thanksgiving in Utah this year. Happy Thanksgiving!!

Rockstar

My Awesome Sister In Law

Lovely Alex

P.S. A VERY happy birthday to my daddy! I love you!

...my lips hurt real bad

2009-11-24T22:32:00.000-08:00

Today you will be graced with the presence of Mrs. Whitney Vance. The first time I met her, I knew we'd be friends. I think you'll all like her too. Here's what she's thankful for:

I am thankful for...

Bath time: Zach takes Presley and I get to get things done without a little stinker pulling at my legs.

My bed: Seriously our bed is the bomb dot com. Not even joking. Its like paradise.

Technology: I feel like I need to start singing " yes, I love technology. Not as much as you you see..." It keeps me connected with family members that dont live close and with friends who I dont get to see often.

My family: I truly have the greatest family ever. We are all "I Love you" Whores. We say it to each other atleast 3 times before leaving the house. Its ridiculous but just in case I want them to know I really do.

My calling(primary chorister): I prayed for this calling. I was in primary before as a teacher and the chorister was seriously lame-o. I love that I can teach the kids music which is one of my passions. Plus- They sing so good now that they actually learn the words. Who wutta thunk?

Zachy-Poo and Miss P: Life would be boring without them. They both make me laugh constantly. They make me so happy. And I cant seem to take my eyes off of them.

See? Isn't she cool?

...somtimes when I leave the house, the curling iron comes to life

2009-11-23T18:50:00.000-08:00

My amazing friend Kate graces us with her thankful list today. Be inspired.

today i am thankful for

hot chocolate

sharp cheese

matching pajamas

landons beard

my record machine

and, really good lyrics

all the time i am thankful for

my marriage

the church of Jesus Christ of latter-day saints

music

my relationships

love

opportunities

a new day

and, my mother.

Thanks, Kate.

..as long as I'm living

2009-11-22T20:06:00.000-08:00

One of the people I am thankful for the very most is my mother, and here is her list of things she is thankful for:

To be an American

Family

Health

The Gospel of Jesus Christ

A home

To still have her Dad alive

The holidays

Obedient children

I promise I didn't add that last one in there, she really said it! I love my mamma and I think her thankful list takes me back to the basics and the things that really are important. Enjoy.

5 minutes or less

2009-11-21T22:22:00.001-08:00

I asked my dearest friend, Markee what she was grateful for. I couldn't agree more with what she came up with!

I'm grateful for microwaves. What would we do without them?

Well said Flo, well said.

P.S. You can check out Markee and her cute life here, and go check out her adorable jewelry here.

...high as a mountain and deep as a river

2009-11-20T21:20:00.000-08:00

Who better to start off the week of gratitude than C himself. Here's my handsome husband's thankful list:

thankful for...

the futon that provides so much more space in the pool house, for projects, wrestling, and organization.

there are a heck of lot more things, people, truths, experiences, special powers, foods, and feelings that I am thankful for but this one pretty much sums it all up.

I have to admit, our futon does rock. Thanks C.

...just in time

2009-11-19T17:51:00.000-08:00

It always amazes me how The Lord works miracles at exactly the right time. For instance, something usually happens right before Easter to make you realize the importance of The Resurrection, or right before a loved one passes away The Lord gives you an opportunity to spend quality time with them or to receive a letter from them that you can cherish for years to come. Or, in my case this year, right before Thanksgiving, The Lord has given me thing after thing to be grateful for. Some would call it coincidence, I call it the love of God. What am I grateful for? Here are just a few things:

friends. good, true, loyal friends.

family. i have over 10 brothers/brothers in law, 10 sisters/sisters in law, a billion nieces and nephews, a kabillion cousins, tons of aunts and uncles, the worlds greatest parents/parents in law, and grandparents who are heros in my eyes, all 8 of them. that doesn't happen every day.

school. yep, only during the Thanksgiving season though. :)

C. he got a job. didn't even know he lost his job? yeah, it's cooler to tell people that your husband lost his job after he found a new one.

this book. read it.

pop tarts. yeah they're not that good, and pretty unhealthy, but when i don't have time for anything else in the morning, they do the job quite nicely.

not having to cook dinner. 3 nights in a row. thanks Mamma Smith and Joe.

waking up every day. health is a huge blessing i take for granted all too often.

obviously this list is a summarized version, but it's a start. I hope this gets your wheels turning about some of the miracles you've experienced lately.

P.S. For the next week, until Thanksgiving I will be posting the thankful list of some of my very favorite people, so be sure to stop by every day to be inspired by those who inspire me.

Weekend Bliss

2009-11-17T14:59:00.000-08:00

I am finally getting around to posting the happenings of last weekend.

Highlights include but are not limited to:

finding Collin a killer 60's suit that fits like a glove and cost $10

hanging out with family

watching Chantz play ball (poor kid messed up his ankle and couldn't play for long)

visiting this lovely couple

attending this place of peace

and going to Sam's Club with Dad and Mom totally makes the list

pictures below

Work it C, work it...

before

after

If you're wondering if that's my 89 year old grandpa sitting there, in the freezing cold, having made a 4 hour drive to watch the football game, it is. He rocks.

P.S. Don't mind the blur. Camera problems.

Instant Kid

2009-11-16T20:54:00.001-08:00

Well, today we got a kid. Don't get your hopes up. It's not what you think.

So the story goes I was on my way home from teaching dance and I was listening to talk radio, mistake #1.

The talk show host was talking about his wife wanting to put "we prefer gift cards to Target or Best Buy instead of gifts" on their 10 year old kid's birthday party invitation.

It outraged me.

So I called in, mistake #2.

I got a busy signal, but I kept calling until I got through, mistake #3.

I finally got through, I was on the air and I was telling the host how tacky that was and how kids these days are spoiled and need to be taught lessons and yada yada yada and then the host says "So how many kids to you have"?

I say "Not many" mistake #4.

Then he says "Not many? How many is that?" and I say "Just one", mistake #5 and a whopping #5 it is.

So ladies and gentlemen, at the risk of having my point not be validated (by admitting that I was outraged and don't even have kids) I lied.

And we instantly got a kid.

Just one though.

Happy Weekend!

2009-11-13T06:51:00.000-08:00

After this week full of long hours, lots of hard work, and tons of fun (thanks to my amazing husband for treating me to an adventurous day of Laser Tag with 12 year olds on Wednesday), I've needed to soak my feet more than once this week.

But now, it's the weekend.

My family's coming to town to watch my cousin play in a state football game. I'm sure my mom and I will do some major shopping (for us that means Sam's Club and yard sales). And C might even take me on a date tonight...

Woo hoo! Pictures of our lovely weekend to come. Enjoy your weekend, and if need be, go soak your feet. Does the trick every time.

The Whys

2009-11-09T20:11:00.000-08:00

We can't have kids. You all know that, or at least you do now. It's no big deal. It is what it is. It is who we are. We see it as a broken leg or not making the basketball team; not the end of the world, and nothing that can't be fixed or helped. It stinks but we don't try to hide it. In fact we've even become unbelievably good at sharing our situation with people in really awkward ways. (Sorry Lines, we knew it was awkward the second it came out, but by that point there was no turning back. Thanks for still being our friends). That being said, I have a bad habit of asking why about everything. Not even because it will change my point of view, but sometimes just because I'm curious.

For example; why are there 365 days in a year? Why not an even 350 or 400? Not that it matters, but I figure there's got to be a reason and I might as well know what it is. The same goes for us not being able to produce offspring. I've thought, probably way too much, about the whys. I've come up with a few fairly decent answers. We all know that if we were capable of spawning, I would have dropped out of college long ago. Now there's a pretty good reason why Heavenly Father might be postponing this little adventure. Or maybe it's because our batch of little Smith people is coming all at once and they're just not ready yet.

There are a kagillian possible reasons why we can't have babies, but just yesterday I came up with what could possibly be one more reason why. I was walking from our little pool house into what we affectionately refer to as "the big house" (my in-laws' home) and C said "Hey Ash, catch" as he tossed a football my way. It was a good throw, nice spiral, good speed, but a touch over my head. So I quickly stepped backward to try and snatch (grab, snatch, YES!) the ball, and I fell into a hole in the yard which had a large, ragged-edge pipe inside.

And yep, I sliced my foot wide open. It hurt. But there were little people around so I acted tough. I made my way onto the porch, blood trailing behind me, and popped a squat. Just then the littlest of the children around came up to me and said "Why weren't you wearing shoes?"

And there, my lovely readers, is answer #548 why we can't have kiddos. Because if a mom can't even remember to put on her shoes to play outside, how is she going to teach her children to put on their shoes to play outside?! I suppose I have a lot to learn between now and then. In the mean time, enjoy some photos of my blood trail... I'll spare you the shots of my foot. You're welcome.

The blasted pipe:

The blood trail in reverse:

Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree...

2009-11-06T15:15:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was my 6th music therapy session of the semester. I meet with a group of people in their 70's and 80's who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. We meet once a week and do music therapy to help maintain their current functioning and hopefully improve in some areas too. The sessions generally go really well, and in fact I got 100% on my last session which was graded by my supervisor. Then there was yesterday. I tried a few new activities and nothing really was working. I got a lot of blank stares, and even some looks telling me I was completely stupid. It wasn't until later in the day, when I was explaining to C what happened, that I realized why the session was such a bust...and just how funny it is. The conversation went something like this:

C: How was your session today?

Me: It was AWFUL.

C: Oh man, what happened? Give me details.

Me: Well I tried playing Name That Tune with Alzheimer's patients....

Enough said.

A Few Of My Favorite Things

2009-10-22T11:25:00.000-07:00

Dear blog,

Happy 150th post.

150, when turned into days, is something neat.

On the 150th day of the year, C proposed to me.

In almost exactly 150 days it will be 3 years since our first date.

150, when turned into years, and multiplied by a million, is how long I'll love C.

150, when turned into my favorite things looks a little something like this:

(I'll spare you the entire list of 150 things and instead give you a little taste of my favorite things, what better way to celebrate having posted 150 time?

Fall; the colors, the decorations including my lovely array of fall-ish veggies and a beautiful bouquet of fall-ish flowers.

Blogs; here are a few I simply can not live without:

Rockstar Diaries-Thank you Kate for introducing me

Nie Nie-duh

It's A Love Story-this is my cousin's beautiful wife and her take on life rocks my world

Kate Lines Photography-just have a peak, I dare you

Green; sometimes I don't even realize that I'm wearing enough of it to be a citizin of Oz

C; how could I not? This is a paper Collin. Almost as cute as the real thing.

My red sunglasses; they make days without makeup not look so bad

The Farmer's Market; I so inexpensively picked up all of these beauties

My wedding ring; Collin knew what I wanted, pearl, gold and something with meaning, and he delivered. This beauty was worn by my mother in-law before she so graciously shared it with me.

Music; it's all about Pandora baby

My blue wall; whenever I look at it, I just smile...

Sunday Morning Breakfasts; C makes me breakfast on Sunday mornings. They never lack beauty, flavor, or love

Surprises; My family came into town for my birthday...they're the best.

P.S. A very special happy birthday is in order for my birthday buddy Baxter. Happy 3rd man. You're the best little nephew a girl could ever ask for...and to share a birthday makes you that much cooler. Hope you're a little more perked up today! :)

We love Pandora

2009-10-15T16:11:00.000-07:00

Pandora is a big part of our lives. Free radio that plays only songs you like. And if you don't like it you can give it a thumbs down? Seriously? Best thing ever. C and I even have our own logins designed for our own individual tastes. Some of our stations are the same but when he's home alone he listens to different things than I do when I'm home alone. Well, he was home alone today and when I got home I found that he had added a new station to his radio. What is this new station? None other than Taylor Swift. Yep, my husband listens to Taylor Swift when he's home alone. I'm still laughing. It's pretty much adorable. And funny....

What do you say...

2009-10-14T06:20:00.000-07:00

....to the person who brought you into this world? There are so many things; thank you, sorry, why'd you do it, the list could go on and on. But today, I choose to say only one thing to the person that gave me life; HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMMA!!! I love you!

The latest addition to our family...

2009-10-12T12:47:00.000-07:00

...sounds like heaven.

Aren't we glad...

2009-10-09T07:36:00.000-07:00

...that this wasn't our heads.

We're learning

2009-10-07T21:15:00.000-07:00

Now she can't bite our hair and necks...

We're Bird Sitting

2009-10-06T20:51:00.000-07:00

Our lives rock!

Blondes do have more fun...

2009-09-28T20:08:00.000-07:00

Ya know that old saying? Blondes have more fun. Well, it's true. When we went up to Eagar for Labor Day Sarah dyed my hair (thank you!) back to brown. It was a change badly needed. My roots were grown out to my ears and let's face it, nobody's ever as blonde as an adult as they were as a kid, as hard as we try to hide it, it's the cold hard truth. So, I was glad to go back to my brunette self (sorry mom) but there have been some interesting things that have come with it. For instance since returning to my state as a brunette I have:

taken on 7 new students for private lessons

started teaching 3 dance classes

literally forgotten important things like brushing my teeth and showering way more often than I'd like to admit

added 5 additional meetings a week to my already loaded down 17 credit hour semester

gained a new sister to Visit Teach

become the temporary provider for the family

been almost hit on the scooter too many times to count

been buried in homework every single day and night except Sunday

and I have successfully failed 3 of my last 6 tests

After looking at this list I was realizing that blondes really do have more fun. When I was blonde I didn't have any of these responsibilities and I still had that summer relaxation thing going on. Then I dyed my hair and the fun abruptly stopped. Just as I was starting to murmur, okay more like after a long period of murmuring, I stopped to look at that very same list in a very different way. Here's the old list, in a new perspective:

Since becoming a brunette I have:

met 7 new students eager to learn and grow who teach me more than I'll ever teach them, and I'm all the while being paid to spend time with them

boogied with 3 classes of PRECIOUS tutu wearing, fun loving, tender hearted angels who brighten my Mondays, every Monday without fail

learned all over again that hygiene really is overrated

started doing music therapy in a clinical setting and get to meet with people on a weekly basis who can help my understanding of the process increase and grow

met a brand new convert to the church who has a tender testimony and I'm certain will become one of my dearest friends

been able to know what it feels like to have big burdens on my shoulders and I now appreciate what Collin does for our family tenfold

been watched over and blessed by a source bigger than us who has protected me on my long scooter rides to and from school

learned how to study and be a diligent student

learned to appreciate a passing grade instead of beating myself up for anything less than 100%

Ya know, all in all, being a blonde I may have had more "fun" but since becoming a brunette I have felt significant joy. I think I'll keep my hair brown for a while longer...

Pardon Me

2009-09-22T20:27:00.001-07:00

You'll have to excuse my blog break. School has officially taken over my life, as I suppose it should. Amidst all of this school stuff we've been able to catch up with lots of old friends. We've had out of towners come for visits, we've been so kindly invited to dinner twice and it's these little interactions that have kept me sane! Today, more than the stresses of school, the stresses of teaching, the stresses of starting to actually do music therapy, more than anything, I love my husband. Jack couldn't have said it any better, we really are better together. And besides, how could I not love somebody who rocks these shorts?

No Wonder...

2009-09-12T09:33:00.000-07:00

What do you crave when you're sick?

Today....

2009-09-11T09:36:00.000-07:00

This morning I had to get up and take C to work at 5:30 a.m. I was dragging my feet a little but on my way home it was about 6:00 a.m. our time and 9:00 a.m. New York time. So as I listened to the radio I was hearing live coverage of things that were happening at Ground Zero. I heard name, after name, after name of people who died that day being read by family members and volunteers in the community. I heard stories of survivors and stories about those who didn't make it. One guy was there for work and when the first tower was hit he rounded up his crew and ran into the city to help. He called his wife on the way there and during their conversation the second tower was hit and they lost all communication, for 2 days. It made me hurt for his wife. Even though they found each other again and all was well, I bet those 2 days were unbelievable for her. There are thousands of stories like that, stories of pain, confusion, hurt, guilt, loss and sorrow. It's my hope that today we leave the politics aside, stop blaming our country for things that happened before and after the attacks, stop trying to forget, and instead take the time to stop what you're doing and say a prayer for those affected by the attacks. It's not about all that other stuff, it's about God and what His plan was. And no political view, no interview with the president, nobody is going to be able to explain it, just ask God and find out what His plan is for you. Here's one man's story about why September 11th happened for him.

May God bless all of those who are hurting today.

What our weekend looked like...

2009-09-08T22:25:00.001-07:00

We got to chill with these lovely nips, taking their family photos and kicking their trash in Rook. Texas? Really?

Since Dad and Mom decided to get rid of the van (quite possibly the best decision they ever made) we have a little trouble fitting in the truck, so the cute boys rode to Booga's in the back and I thought it was adorable.

Going home is like going to a resort; dreamy, cool, breezy, relaxing and lots of fish.

Don't mind me fishing in my, I mean in C's p.j.'s. Just one of the perks of fishing at Grandpa's.

C went mountain biking and came back with these gorgeous pictures. I kinda wished I had joined him.

Quite possibly the cutest thing of the weekend, Baxter and Sherrod sharing a bowl of cereal. It also doubles as possibly the grossest thing of the weekend.

And the best part? Family. We were all there. Did we get a picture of us all? You bet we didn't. But we were there. And we loved it. And we laughed. A lot. I love Eagar.

**Just an insignificant side note, while in Eagar we played St. Johns and beat them with the help of 2 of my cousins...Duskin and Chantz. Chantz Davis you're my hero...

Here I Sit...

2009-08-25T11:18:00.000-07:00

School started yesterday. I wasn't excited, but then I went to several classes and got excited. I think I'll like this semester. I should be doing homework but instead I'm in the library, sitting with other students behind me waiting for a computer so they can probably actually do homework. And so it begins....

Adornments

2009-08-21T09:56:00.000-07:00

Buying a home stinks. The paperwork, the waiting, the rushing, the money and everything else that comes with it BUT planning for a home (and I assume actually getting one) is awesome. Here are a few things I want in/around my home some day. Enjoy.

This beautiful crib from classymommy.com.

The next 2 things are 2 of my favorites, but I don't recall where they are from. If anybody knows I'd love to site the photos and/or the products.

This funky cool piece from poshtots.com

This awesome 4 player ping pong table with bumpers. I first spied it at the toy show in NYC.

This LOVEly little item from bodieandfou.com

A noodle forest, I saw it at the Phoenix Children's Museum.

A sand table also on display at the PCM.

And last, but certainly not least, this MUST be in my future home.

Speaking of this handsome man, (who I am terribly in love with) he prefers to takes pictures with his mouth open. See?

And I think it's cute. Happy Friday!

Old Friends

2009-08-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up my school days were filled with homework, going to bed on time, eating healthy, wearing clothes that matched, soccer practices, piano practicing, and lots of other mostly important things. But my summers, well they were filled with enchantment. You see, one of my greatest childhood friends would come visit every summer, all summer, and we would laugh, rollerblade, slurp popsicles til our mouths turned blue, chase boys, chase cars, chase frogs, chase anything, and play until my mom or her dad would come outside and yell that it was time to come home. Often times one of us would go home with the other and stay until way past our bed time. I remember dancing, swimming, and eating. Though I don't remember details, and some of my memories are sketchy, nothing could make me forget the sweet laughter and feeling of pure bliss that came from my summertime friend. She made everything fun and light and bright, and she still does. Go check out her blog. You'll leave feeling happier, having laughed and learned, and you certainly won't be sorry.

Love Notes

2009-08-17T11:12:00.000-07:00

On our anniversary I got this from C:

I am sending you flowers... digital ones that I made for you.

I love you. Thank you for marrying me. It is the best thing that has ever happened to me.

colly

A few days before that I got this from him:

I drew you holding a baby

Nothing makes me feel happier than knowing that he thinks of me during the day, while he's at work. And I like that he pictures me with a baby. Someday.

Getting Through Today...

2009-08-13T14:52:00.001-07:00

The days are getting long. I might even be looking forward, in a very, very small way, to school. I have lots of stuff that needs to be done but so much of it requires money or things we don't have. So I've been trying to get creative so that the days don't just drag on. I suppose creative is an overstatement. I've watched a few too many episodes of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and other mindless shows. I've also finished a book that should have taken someone like me a long time to finish and I did it in about a week total. I have been trying to be creative though, and amongst my failed attempts is a dress that I'm deeming hopeless. However, I did have what I would consider at least one success. It only made the cut because Collin helped me though, and I'm okay with that. I'm even okay with his anniversary gift being only half way done because I couldn't finish it without his help. I love that I need him. I think being the youngest has made me a lot less independent than I'd like to admit, but who better to rely on than Collin? Back to my one and only success story of the summer's attempt at making me creative. I made what I refer to as "Nursing Nicer". I don't really like the name but it's the alternatives that I dislike more. Not that the other names are bad, I just can't bring myself to say them. So I made a receiving blanket, nice, soft, and square (which means doable). Then I added a couple buttons to the thick seem at the top and with the help of my mom and Collin I made a strap with some appropriate looking button holes (the second time around) and turned my blanket into a nursing cover. The premise of course being that it can be used to nurse a little more modestly and then be used as a blanket all at the same time. It turned out nice. By nice I mean it wasn't a complete disaster. I gave it to a good friend who's about to have a baby girl and the people at the shower were shocked that I made it. I wasn't sure if that was good or bad but I took it as a compliment. Anyway, without further ado, here's the finished product.

I also liked playing around with the idea of making a purse. I've stepped away from the diaper bags for a while :). Maybe a purse is more in my reach.

Picture Problems.

2009-08-11T09:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was our 2 year anniversary. It was a fun filled day. Coll got off work early and we exchanged a present or two and then we went to dinner at a modern restaurant in down town Phoenix and then got gelato and then went to a movie. I'd give my present from Coll a 10, the movie a 9, the gelato an 8 and dinner a 4. I picked the restaurant based on online reviews and photos. It turns out anybody can say anything online and anybody can make a picture look like something it's not. Case in point: when there are just two of you it's hard to get a picture together, so we started out by taking pictures like this:

Then we moved on to just taking pictures of other things. (Coll gave me that adorable frame and silhouette picture of us. I hooked him up with socks to make puppets out of and that gigantic circle of our heads.):

We ended up taking a picture of us separately but in the exact same place and photoshopping ourselves in:

We for sure had picture problems, but that was just about the only problem we had, and the only problem we've had in 2 years. Okay not really, but pretty close. Yesterday was full of sap and love and I'm pretty sapped out but I will say that I love Collin and marriage is bliss. We are happy campers.

Pardon that my pose in both pictures is EXACTLY the same. When you find what works, you stick with it right? :)

Today I found a nickel

2009-08-06T15:49:00.000-07:00

It seemed to say

"Good job on the baby blanket you made."

and

"Don't worry, you'll find a house soon."

I also think it said "I love you."

3rd Nephi 14:11 "give good gifts to your children."

(I think she's giving the best gift of all when she delivers one of these.)