7.29.2013

she & he

rain // sunshine
silence // music
crispy bacon // chewy bacon
pacific ocean // lake powell 
sappy love movies // exciting action movies
squints // wears glasses
dreams of seattle // dreams of new york 
spends money // budgets money
musicals // documentaries
frozen yogurt // ice cream 
spicy food // mild food
pinterest // stock market 
asian restaurants // brazilian restaurants 
cautious // adventurous
chocolate milk // koolaid 
ashley // scotty
this summer's been a stressful, crazy, hectic one. scotty and i spend every second of our weekends together, and on monday mornings i want to cry. i miss him so much during the week! we are so different, but i wouldn't choose anyone else. i'm so lucky i married my cute husband. 

7.12.2013

cow appreciation day

I'm one of those girls who checks her phone before getting out of bed. I know, I know. I'm a disgrace to the previous generations and I'm sorry. But you know what? Today I have no regrets. Because there I was, scrolling through my facebook feed in the early morning, when I came across this peculiar link. I read. I laughed. All of a sudden, my morning events and priorities were rearranged! I learned today is "Cow Appreciation Day," and anyone who comes to Chick-fil-a dressed as a cow will receive a free combo meal. Challenge accepted. I assembled some ears, noses, and spots (The website has a cow costume starter kit. Pretty awesome). Scotty and I laughed as we headed out the door for some lunch all dressed up. 
We were relieved to see this sign out front! 
Our barnyard get-up.
We weren't the only ones! The place was packed with fellow chicken-lovers.
Some people got pretty into it. 
The food was so worth the embarrassment! 
Maybe my social media addiction isn't such a bad thing after all :) 

7.08.2013

things i learned from my parents

today my parents are celebrating 25 years of marriage.
in our day, i'd say this is a pretty big freaking deal!
i love them so much, and i'm so blessed. i didn't even realize how blessed i was until high school, when i heard people talk about their parents fighting or getting divorced. i didn't know all couples weren't madly in love like allison and john. they are the best examples to me! i consider myself lucky -- i've been able to observe their habits and interactions for the past 22 years, so i think i entered my marriage with some pretty good ideas of what to do. here are some of the observations i've taken of my parents and their happy marriage:

1. they never fight. sure, they disagree about things, but they just talk it out. they respectfully listen and talk. i've never ever ever heard my parents raise their voices at each other.
2. they spend time together. i can't tell you how many of my friday nights growing up consisted of a little caesar's pizza and a babysitter. i am glad they made date night a weekly thing, no matter how tired or busy they were. it showed me the importance of quality spouse time.
3. they are always talking. it's almost annoying, really. they call each other multiple times throughout the day just to say hi. sometimes when my mom went to girls camp, my dad would write letters to her and send them up with ladies from the ward. it's like they can't stand being away from each other.
4. they act like they love each other. haha, i know they really do love each other. but what i mean by this is that everyone else knows it, too. they always hold hands. he always opens her door. they always sit right next together. they compliment one another. everyone who sees them interact knows they're crazy about each other.
5. they are a team. these two people work so hard. they both work, clean, cook, serve, and worship. they help each other and support each other in all the things they do. my mom goes to listen to my dad speak in church, and my dad makes a special effort to help with dishes and clean-up after my mom has made dinner. they work so well together.

i could go on, but john's probably already tearing up. mom, thanks for teaching me how to be a good wife. dad, thanks for showing me what to look for in a husband. i'm so happy for you two, and i hope you have fun celebrating this special day! i love you.

7.05.2013

let freedom ring

we love the fourth of july! we had so much fun celebrating this special holiday together. we woke up and played racquet ball, went running, and cooled down with some swimming! then we canceled out all of our exercising with some lunch and homemade cookies & cream ice cream. 

yum! we spent the afternoon lounging around in our pjs (what's more american than that?), doing homework and watching tv. for dinner, we wished for a traditional fourth of july BBQ, but decided a bbq chicken pizza was the next best thing. i'd say i did a pretty dang good job. 
 after dinner, we grab some sparklers and headed out the door. i've had our special fireworks-watching location planned for weeks. 
 we went to my school at the edge of west jordan, overlooking the whole valley. 
 a perfect spot on the field with an amazing view! 
we played with our sparklers and watched the skyline of colors.
(amazing picture quality, i know. blah.) 
these next two are my favorite from the night. special thanks to the empty gatorade bottle we found on the field and the self-timer app. 
i love him. 
 it was such a beautiful sight. i love our country and the freedoms we have. 
god bless america, my home sweet home! 

7.04.2013

TBT: fourth of july

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!
i've always loved the fourth of july. it's such a happy summer day, full of fun activities. i'll definitely be missing my family's bbq and pool time today. so, to cope with the separation pains, i will reminisce on 1997. what a great year. and what a great time to reflect on for this fourth-of-july-themed throwback thursday! 
july 4, 1997 was a pretty significant day in my life. my family was up in idaho visiting cousins, and we all dressed up to participate in a parade. so fun! we threw candy and waved like princesses. i even looked the part, all dressed up as belle. 
(my cute cousins and my cute belle dress)

there i was, just minding my own business. throwing candy like i was told to. probably pocketing some. i guess the people of idaho liked what they saw, because someone walked away with a shiny trophy! 
"independence day parade -- cutie pie award"
16 years later, and i'm still a little too proud about it!