Short but Sweet

let's catch up.

2009-05-22T15:59:00.005-06:00

It's been over a month now since I've blogged! Wow, how bad am I? And where has the time gone? Seriously. But let's catch you up on what's been going on since I last blogged. I know you're sitting there thinking, "oh my goodness she loves to ramble, we have to read a whole month's worth of ramblings??" haha. Don't worry, it won't be TOO overwhelming. :P
So anyways. Let's go back to April. We had a few snowfalls in April..yep, that's Colorado for you. And Lydia decided to do a small photo shoot of me in the snow. But the day we were going to do that it rained and washed away most of the snow...darn. But we still went out and took a few pictures while it was drizzling and pretty chilly. So I selected a couple of my favorites for you....

Could I look any shorter next to that lamppost?? hehe

My favorite one.

One weekend in April, my brother Tyra and his family came to visit us for a few days! That was quite fun! My nephew, Brayden was crawling and walking along tables and chairs and had gotten ever so adorable! I love that little guy. It's pretty fun having a little boy in the family. :) We of course played lots of pinochle and just had fun together. They left Wednesday and that Friday we drove to California to see my dear sister, Talia and her family! We were only there for the weekend, way too short of time. But oh was it ever lovely! Each moment was wonderful. And I got to meet my darling niece, Rosalie for the first time!! She is just the sweetest, cutest little thing ever. :) I loved her to pieces. And getting some much needed sister and Auntie time was delightful! I got sick that Sunday afternoon when everyone was over for lunch, which was totally lame and disappointing. But sweet Jason came and spent some time with me in bed, which made it better. And Ashlei brought me flowers! :)
We didn't take nearly as many pictures as we should have. And Talia needs to send me the ones of me with Rosalie(hint hint, sister!), but here are a few...

We had a lovely time chatting outside Starbucks.

Emma and I took pictures in the car. She's pretty cute!

We went to Vons and took a few there too!

And I realized I don't have one with Annabelle and me...how awful is that?? I do love both of them though! I hated having to say goodbye that Monday morning to them all...:( Let's hope our next time together isn't too far down the road!

More recently, like this Tuesday, was dear Lydia's 19th birthday! And as she pointed out to me, I'm a terrible sister and didn't blog about it. So shame on me... but for her birthday, Rebecca and I surprised her by taking her to Mimi's Cafe for breakfast!

The beautiful birthday girl!
They give you cake, even in the morning. It was delicious too. Yum!

sisters. <3 style="text-align: left;">And tomorrow is her birthday party, which I'm sure will be tons of fun! I can't wait to give her the presents we got. :)

And in other exciting news...in a couple weeks I'm going to...drum roll please....

SCOTLAND!!

That's right, my first trip off the continent and across the ocean. YAY! I'm going with one of my best friends, Liz and Christopher! Chris has a friend out there so we'll be staying with her and she can show us around. We'll be gone for about two weeks and we plan on seeing some castles, of course, and seeing the bay and who knows what else! I seriously CANNOT WAIT! This next week of work is going to go by so sloooowlyyy. I'll make it somehow. :)
But before I'm able to go I've got some packing to do. We've been trying to move and get our house sold for awhile now and it's finally coming along. The sale on our house closes the 9th of June and we have to be out by the 11th. Wow, not too far away. We're under contract on a house in Northglenn, which is about 25 minutes north of where we live currently. It'll be so nice living up here, being only 5 minutes from work and like 10 from the church. Woot! So we're busy busy busy. So my Memorial Day will be spent packing basically. W've done it several other times, so we're basically experts by now. haha.
And now it's back to work! Have a wonderful weekend, dear bloggers. I hope I didn't get too long and rambly. hehe.
<3<3>

photo tagged

2009-04-17T22:33:00.002-06:00

So I was tagged by my dear sister, Talia.

These are the rules:
Take a picture of yourself right now.
No primping or preparing.
Just snap a picture.
Load the picture onto your blog.
Tag some people to play along.

When I first read I was tagged, I was going to take a picture, I swear I was, but I was at work and really had no way. So when I got home, I was able to take one. But I still didn't primp. I look the same way I looked all day basically. That's the good thing about working everyday, my hair and makeup are always done, so no worries about being caught without it. haha.

And now I'm going to tag

Rebecca

Sunny

Ashlei

Caitlyn

Let's see those beautiful faces, girls!

whatever on a wednesday

2009-03-25T12:04:00.003-06:00

So, how cute is my new layout?! And SO me! Polka dots and cherries...me all the way! I'm kinda in love with it. haha. So thank you Susan for the great link! :)
I'm just working away here at the office. I had my first CAR today, which is a Chiropractic Assistant's Report. Basically just go over office policies and payment plans and such. So that was good.
And I'm so so excited! My bestie, Hannah, asked me to be her maid of honor yesterday so I'm super happy! It's going to be wonderful! :)
And tomorrow it looks like we might get a snow day from work!! They're predicting like 18 inches especially on the I-25 route we take, so that could be cool! We so desperately need snow! And a day off..won't say no to that. hehe.
Anyways short random post, but happy Wednesday people! <3

another one of those catch up posts

2009-03-23T12:38:00.003-06:00

I figure it's probably about time for another 'this is what I've been up to" post right? Yeah, probably.
So let's see. What have I been up to? Last weekend I spend a whole bunch of time with Rebecca which was super amounts of fun! She spend the night on Friday and then we had to get up at 5:30 to head to this wellness fair deal with my mom. And let me tell you, that is entirely too early for me. Especially on a Saturday. Sigh. Oh well. At the fair/expo they had these two mascots who cracked me up. They kept coming up and rubbing my head and hugging me and shoving...almost to the point of being annoying, but whatever. lol. So after that Rebecca and I headed down to Castle Rock and went to Applebees where I got ribs, so very tasty and messy. But there's the fun right? :) And then we went to Sonic and got slushies and to the grocery store for lots of candy to sneak into the theater. hehe. We saw Confessions of a Shopaholic! Such a fun girly movie. I loved it. :) So then we headed back to her house where we hung out with Chris and Elizabeth playing games and watching movies and such. I spent the night there and then went to church with them. So that was my weekend last week.
Last week was spent mostly at work. It's been busier with Lydia gone, but kind of fun in a way. I enjoy front desk work. Answering the phone, scheduling, interacting with all the patients. It's kind of neat. But I'll be happy when she's back too, I'm sure. :)
Saturday, Chris and I went for a bike ride, since it had been quite awhile since we had. It ended up being pretty windy most of the way and we rode against the wind, so it was pretty tiring. But we still rode about 13 miles I think we figured it out to be. The ride back though was so much nicer since the wind basically pushed us. But that tired me out. And my butt is kinda sore from sitting on the seat for that long. lol. So it goes. It was fun though!
My dad's been in Canada since Thursday, so our family is pretty small right now. Just the three of us. It's kinda weird actually. haha. But he gets back today, so that'll be good.
Yesterday afternoon Josiah and I spent most of our time watching tv and playing wii. We found this show called My Big Redneck Wedding and oh my goodness, the things these couples do at their weddings are so just wow. Kinda gross, weird, and just plain completely hick. I mean an armadillo cake and a wild donkey chase? Or a boxing ring and mudpit at the reception? Yep, people are crazy. Lol. It was entertaining, honestly. Might make me kinda lame and white trash but whatever. :P And I totally kicked his butt at most of the wii. Like tennis, yeah I'm awesome. hehe. Fun times.
I talked to Chris on the phone last night for like 2 1/2 hours until my phone started buzzing telling me my battery was dying. I really like his voice being the last one I hear before falling asleep. :) He's sweet.
And now I should probably get back to work. Have a wonderful Monday all!

beautiful baby girl

2009-03-17T13:31:00.002-06:00

Yay, I have an adorable new niece! From all the pictures I've seen she's just absolutely gorgeous and perfect. I SO can't wait to meet her and hold her and just love on my new little niece! *sigh* I'm pretty envious of Lydia right now...
How I love her already! What a blessing.
Congratulations to Talia and Jeremy and sweet Emma and Annabelle!
I love them all!
xoxoxo

Yeah, it's finally me again

2009-03-12T13:28:00.004-06:00

So I've been THE worst blogger lately, my apologies. So let's see what I've been up to in the last few weeks. The last weekend in February we drove down to Phoenix for a Chiropractic seminar. 13 hours in the car between Lydia and Josiah gets a little bit tiring after a while. haha. But they had beautiful weather down there! So Sunday afternoon when we had nothing else to do, Lydia, my mom, and I sat by the pool at the hotel reading and writing. We obviously needed the sun...Lol.

Check out those white legs.....oh my. lol

Last Thursday, some good friends of ours from South Dakota were here so we hung out with them for awhile, which was super fun! They're really quite the wonderful, sweet girls! We were incredibly silly all together and I'm sure many people thought we were ridiculous. Oh well. It was fun getting to spend just some good quality girl time without the boys. I love these girls.

We had lunch at Red Robin! Yum! Very intent on those menus...

The lovely Jenna and myself

Dearest Liz and I

Chris had been sick for a little while last week, so I hadn't seen him for 10 days! But he's feeling much better, so I got to see him last night again! Yay for that! :) I had missed him and his hugs. Because really after being at work all day, I missed coming back to my house and getting to see him and sit next to him while watching American Idol and other tv.

As you know, Lydia is leaving for California today! So while she's gone, I'm the front desk receptionist here at the office. So I'll have extra duties. Busy busy. But it'll be rather weird with her gone I think. We've never been apart for more than a day I think. We're practically inseperable twins. haha. This may be good for us. No, but I'll probably miss her. And let's be honest here, I am jealous of her. Getting to spend two weeks with our lovely sister, Talia and the nieces and especially once the new little one gets here! Sigh. I told Chris and Rebecca that I will have to be spending extra time with them so I don't go crazy.

And that's basically it. Just working everyday, which can have its interesting days and it's good days and its boring days. And this weekend, Rebecca will be spending the night and then we've got a wellness expo to go to Saturday.

And now I have stuff to do, so have a great Thursday!

valentine's day

2009-02-24T11:40:00.005-07:00

Okay, so I may be a little delayed on this post but I just uploaded the pictures this morning(procrastinate much, Jerusha?? lol). So my Valentine's Day was lovely in every way this year! I woke up to do some cleaning before Chris came over and then I put on my Valentiney outfit, including my heart cardigan(people say you shouldn't wear hearts on Valentine's Day because it's as tacky as wearing Christmas sweaters, but I'm like whatever. I like being tacky. Plus it's cute! =]). Chris came over and surprised me with a dozen red roses!! Gorgeous. My first roses too, so even more special. :)

cell phone pic....but still beautiful!

We hadn't decided what we really wanted to do that day. If we wanted to just hang out at my house or go on a date, since it's basically the only day we're really allowed to. So we just hung out for a little while playing pool and watching Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on tv. Then Chris suggested we go to the Downtown Aquarium since he had been forever and thought it was pretty cool. The restaurant was of course already full, but we decided we might as well go the cheaper route for food, so we decided on Good Times on 16th Street Mall. So we went on a date! Super fun too!! And I have pictures! =]

I loved the neon purple fish. =]

Anemones are so strangely cool.

I've always had a thing for jellyfish...

Touching the rays.

Silly gift store visors. =)

My good pal Sharky! What an original name too. haha.

How adorable is he? :) <3

Delicious cherry custard with cherry-filled heart shaped chocolates! YUM!

Eating the tasty custard at Good Times!

And there you have it! Love my boyfriend and fun dates.

sparkly

2009-02-11T11:18:00.002-07:00

Last night it snowed a couple inches. Big, feathery, fairy land flakes too. Gorgeous. But this morning the sun is shining and there's a bright blue sky! So all the white just sparkles. It's rather lovely. And that's how life is: sparkly. My life may not be perfect in every way, I may have boring days(reason why I haven't blogged in over a week or so) and not so great days, but really all in all, it sparkles. Cheesy maybe, yes, but still. :P
I have a wonderful family, an amazing boyfriend, and I have friends coming to visit soon! I get to see Liz from South Dakota whom I haven't seen since the 4th of July next week!! And then another South Dakota friend in March and then California friends whom I haven't seen in over a year in April!! YAY! :) I'm pretty excited!
Friday, Lydia and I have Kid's Night Out again. We're going to make fun heart sugar cookies! And Saturday is of course Valentine's Day! I don't really have any big plans...I'm not even sure Chris and I are going out then, but he'll definitely be with me and no matter what we do, it will be lovely I'm sure!
Last Saturday, Rebecca came over to hang out which was fun! We went and got Starbucks at the biggest Starbucks out there, I swear. And then we went and chilled at the mall for a little while. I didn't feel that great that day, which sucked....but nonetheless still fun! Although Saturday night I think I got like 4 hours of sleep. I laid in bed for hours not able to fall asleep, so I was rather exhausted Sunday and we had company too. *sigh* so it goes. And that's my life. Sparkly. :)
Anyways, back to work. Happy Wednesday folks!!

weekend activities

2009-01-30T22:12:00.002-07:00

So this weekend should be pretty fun. I hopefully get to sleep in tomorrow which we all know is delightful. And then Lydia, my dad, and me are going to see the new horror movie The Uninvited! I'm so ready for a good scary movie. Not to mention a movie in theaters. It's been since July!! since I saw one. Woah, shocking. But it's true. Dark Knight in Imax.

After that Lydia and I have to cook and bake for our carry-in dinner at church on Sunday. Then it's off to an open house at a church member who's moving house. Sunday, we've got church, two services, communion and the dinner. So a long day. But hopefully after Lydia and I get to go up to Greeley to hang out!
Fun weekend!
So do any of you have any fun weekend plans?
xoxo

Saturday in Breckenridge

2009-01-26T12:05:00.005-07:00

Saturday morning, we(my dad and mom, Josiah, Chris and me) drove up to Breckenridge for the day to check out the annual snow sculpture festival! We had been last year and thought it was pretty cool so we decided to go again. It was so very nice up there. It was snowing, but just a light snow and not too overly cold. Lots and lots of people so the drives took much longer than usual, but it was fun! I loved having Christopher along, of course. :) Now for some pictures!

Chris and I in the car.

Fairy snow sculpture.

There were 16 teams from all over the world, China, Switzerland, Bulgaria, and more. They have 65 hours to carve a 22 ton block of manmade snow. Very impressive.

I like the owl.

Roller coaster

Globe.

This impressed us because it must have taken ages

to carve all the snow from the middle.

Cute little dog all bundled up. haha

CBS 4 news sponsor sculpture.

again. with the others.

Parents at the restaurant.

Art gallery fun.

Sun peeking out.

Breckenridge.

I loved the hot pink restaurant. hehe

I love wonderful little day trips to the mountains in the winter.

wednesday=good day

2009-01-22T10:40:00.005-07:00

Wednesday is one of our full days at work and sometimes it can get a little bit boring and long but yesterday was actually a pretty lovely day! Over lunch, Lydia and I went and got some extremely yummy delicious ice cream from Coldstone Creamery since it was warm, over 70! and we had a coupon for buy one get one free. Driving down the road listening to one of the best cds like EVER with the sun shining is pretty nice, I must say.

You must love them. =]

After a full day of work, it was home to watch some tv.

Can't have a Wednesday without Idol of course. haha.

And Christopher now has school 4 days a week so I get to see him most of those days! And yesterday was one of those days! :)

Holding hands makes any day a good day. =) <3

Let's hope Thursday is just as wonderful for me and all of you as well! xoxo

the little things

2009-01-13T17:16:00.002-07:00

These past few days have been rather lovely. Basically it's the little things that get me. The little things that make me smile and brighten my day. Such as:

*Seeing the boyfriend a few hours earlier than expected* Chatting with my sister for her birthday* Late night phone calls with a best friend* Babysitting little girls at church* Starbucks berry chai tea infusion* Writing and reading stories with my sister* Holding hands* Sweet goodnight texts* Waking up to snow outside* Hearing the words "i love you"* Pretty purple fingernails* American Idol premiere tonight* Watching Friends* Weekend plans* Napping in the car* My new green sweater* A cuppycake blog* Laughing at whatever* Inside jokes* Dove chocolates* Tuesday Starbucks chats* A kiss on the forehead* Bubbly Barristas* Dreams* Morning prayers* Not having to eat the same old cereal again* Trying simple computer games and failing* Being teased(this is only sometimes)* Supernatural* The smell of fresh bread* Sunshine* Best friend texts* Wearing warm furry boots to work* Family time* Waking up to a good song* Snuggling under warm blankets on a chilly night* Hugs* Laughing and chatting with patients*Smiles* Having the best of friends, family, and a boyfriend who all love me* :)

five years old

2009-01-09T10:39:00.003-07:00

Happy birthday to my sweet Emma Joy!! Your Auntie Jerusha loves you so very much and hopes your 5th birthday is wonderful and that you have such a fun party! :)

wonderful new years with the familia

2009-01-09T10:33:00.000-07:00

So, after 7 or so months, I finally got to spend a week with my lovely sister Talia, her husband Jeremy, their two most precious children, and my brother Elijah! And what a week it was too!
While mom and dad and Lydia went off to the airport I had to stay at home and tidy the house up and make the beds and all that. Then I sat waiting quite impatiently, jealous of the others getting to spend the extra time with them in the car. :P They finally got to our house around 1 a.m. and then the hugging and kissing and hellos and "I've missed you"s ensued. We stayed up a little while chatting and all and then bedtime! They took over my room so I camped out on Lydia's floor.
Monday and Tuesday were spent mostly just hanging out and we had work in the afternoons(lame). Wednesday we worked in the morning for only two hours, so that was good. Then it was home to get ready to party! :) We three sisters decided before the festivities began we would go get coffee, so we headed to our nearby Starbucks. It claimed it was open until 6, and we there around 5:30 and it was already closed. The other nearby one was also closed. So we drove around and decided to try this Celtic Tavern that was new. Talia went and looked to make sure it wasn't too bar-y for a pregnant woman and two underage girls. We decided what the heck why not. So we walked in and just stood there looking kind of awkward but this waitress came up and we told her our problem and asked if we could get coffee and hot chocolate and she said no problem. So we found a booth and sat down. It was a pretty cool place and it was very decorated for winter and new years. We got our drinks which were very good. Lydia was debating getting some onion rings but they weren't on the menu so we asked our server about it and she said she could make some. We were like woah. But then our dad called, so Lydia was talking to him and she looked confused/worried. And then Jeremy called Talia and she almost looked concerned too. So our server waited till they were off the phones and we told her we had to go, since we had dinner and everything at home. Now we're pretty sure she thought we had some family emergency or something. So she told us it was all taken care of. On the house. We thought that was way too nice, so Talia tipped her pretty good. Definitely an interesting experience. Then we had to go pick up beer for the people at home, so we headed to a liquor store. So a tavern and a liquor store. Quite the new years eve for a pregnant woman and her two underage sisters. Lol!
So we came home and we three sisters took pictures so Lydia and I could use a couple for Talia's Christmas present. We all wore black tops. But man, did we have the hardest time finding a good spot or way to take the picture. We decided we finally had a good one after some silliness. Of course. :P We had some pizza and waited for the Enochs to get there. Once they arrived we all sat around talking, played some pool and played Catch Phrase. I will never get tired of that game. Such a blast! At 10 we went downstairs and watched the ball drop in NY and toasted with champagne! More Catch Phrase, which definitely got funny with people thinking different things and all. And once Lydia and I were so on the same train of thought. She said something about a weird book I knew immediately what she meant and I was right. Weird sister thing I think. Lol. We hung out doing whatever until midnight when we all toasted and sang Auld Lang Syne. We wanted to wait until 1 so we could toast California as well. So we did, along with random music and videos thanks to Elijah. Chris and Rebecca spent the night so they could go with us to the mountains the next day. So off to bed we all went.
Next morning, all 12 of us piled into the Enochs large van and took off to Evergreen hoping for some snow to play in since we didn't have any down in Denver. They barely had any up there either. But we were not aware that the annual Ice Plunge was going on so we stayed around to watch that for a little while. There were like 100 people who all went separately to jump into the freezing cold water. It was kind of interesting since some people got really into it with their costumes. Others just in their swimsuits. Crazy people. We watched all bundled up in our coats and hats and gloves and scarves and such. The little girls were getting bored so we decided to go find some snow. We drove a little ways and found a nice little patch and the girls were thrilled! They even built an adorable little snowman and made snow angels! So cute. :) We were all getting hungry and some had to pee so we decided to head back to Evergreen to find a place to eat. We found this place called Little Bear which someone said was a family restaurant. Not so much. It was very dark and bar-ish( how you liking my new words?? :P) and they had live music and dozens of bras hanging above the stage. What?!? It was pretty weird. But the music and food were pretty good! After that we headed back home.
Later that night, Tyra and Christine and their two children got here!! Brayden had grown oh so much since we had last seen him. He's seriously the chubbiest little boy. So very adorable with his big smiles! :) Friday was our Christmas! We had brunch, including mamosas(mmm. :)) and then we started our present handing out. After seeing those presents under the tree for the past several weeks just tempting us, we finally got to open them! Yay! hehe. It was really fun watching everyone open all their presents, especially the ones from us. I got some pretty good stuff too! Clothes and movies, a necklace, a game. Out of all our family there were 16 DVDs received and 8 games! Goodness. We had our Christmas dinner later that evening. My very good friends, newly engaged(! :P), Carson and Hannah were in town so they came up for dinner and games. After dinner was birthday time! Since it was Elijah's birthday that day and 4 other family birthdays not too far away, we had delicious cake and presents to unwrap.
Saturday was spent just hanging out at home doing whatever. Poor Lydia was sick on the couch all day. :( Sunday we had church twice and we watched Elf later. I finally got to see it! Very hilarious. Got to love Will Ferrell and his humor.
Early Monday morning, we said goodbye to Elijah and Talia and Jeremy. :( Sad day! I really do hate saying goodbye to family. And how I miss them all.
Back to bed for a little while and then off to work that afternoon. The rest of the time Tyra and family were there was spent mostly playing pinochle, definitely a family favorite, and chilling and we watched Iron Man.
Wednesday morning they all left to head home. :( So now the house seems so very empty and quiet. There are times I actually prefer the chaos and bustle and noise of a full house. Maybe it's because it's full of the people I love dearly.
One of the loveliest weeks and new years! Full of love, laughter, talking, silliness, and wonderful family moments and memories. I had a cold for several days which consisted of a constant runny nose and a very manly sounding voice(lol), but other than that it was amazing! :D
My blog wouldn't let me post pictures for some reason, But Lydia has many on hers! And I'll probably post some later, so Jeremy can be in a few. :P
I hope my relaying of the week wasn't too long and rambly for you all.

christmas day

2008-12-25T18:24:00.002-07:00

These adorable kittens and I would like to wish you all a very merry Christmas!! May your day be extra wonderful and full of Christmas cheer. Let us remember what this season is really about and may the Lord bless us!
Have a most joyous holiday with your family and friends, lovely bloggers!

Peace

2008-12-22T11:04:00.002-07:00

As I'm laying in bed the other night drifting off to the music of Secondhand Serenade my mind is running over the last few days and the days to come. This time of year is always so wonderful and amazing to me. To some it may be stressful trying to get everything ready by Christmas day, all the presents wrapped and bought and all the food cooked and the house all decorated and cards sent out and whatever else comes with it. To me though, even with all the bustle, it's a time of peace. Saturday night we went and heard the beautiful music of Handel's Messiah and I must say it was amazing. Such great voices and instruments. And the words. Always so wonderful. And my dad's sermons lately have been so wonderful and comforting too. And when the snow is falling softly on everything with the Christmas lights twinkling underneath in the dark, the peace is there too. And I know we can only have true peace through our Lord, which we should remember all the year but this time of year it's manifested even more.

"For to us a child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulders.
And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. " Isaiah 9:6

seesterly love

2008-12-19T11:48:00.000-07:00

So Lydia keeps asking me if I'm writing a blog about her. I think she's perhaps joking, but you never know. haha. So I decided, hey why not.
So about my sister Lydia. The one that gets mistaken for my twin almost every other day. the one who can finish my sentences and even say the exact same random thing at the exact same time. The one who gets me and takes part in my silliness and seriousness. The one who I can talk to for hours about practically nothing, but yet everything. The one who I know will always be there for me, as I will for her. The one who teases me continuously just because she's a couple inches taller. The one who seems to be so much more mature than I am. It's pretty unfair sometimes. But how I love her.

She loves me pretty well too. Whether she's giving me kisses,

or scowling at me (ignore Chris as he's not a sister),

or sunburned and not so lovely with me on car trips.

And in just 9( NINE!!) days we get to add another sister to the whole sisterly love experience. Our dearest older sister who is one of the loveliest and sweetest people out there. How I love her too!

Feeling the sisterly love vibe?

It's been one week

2008-12-15T11:22:00.002-07:00

Who knows why I only end up blogging once a week. I guess my life isn't too thrilling or something.
So these are the highlights:

I won Steph's blog giveway! So yay for me! I like never win anything, so I'm pretty excited. Pretty nails, here I come! Thank you, Steph!
It's currently 0 degrees outsides, yep zero. Brrr! And yesterday to church when it was like 2 I wore a skirt with heels, bare legs. Genius there.
Saturday night was our church's Christmas program. We sang a whole bunch of Christmas carols, which I just love. We've got some good voices there too, which is extra nice.
Lydia and I have basically all our presents wrapped and I must say they look just lovely sitting under the tree. We went with a blue and silver theme so they all match with their paper and ribbons and mini ornaments as gift tags.
We finished season 3 of Supernatural. So very sad. Now to wait for season 4. Oh, the suspense!
I cannot get enough of Josh Groban's Little Drummer Boy song. I just love it. Oh so good.
Being with my boy when I'm not feeling particularly well is definitely one of the best get well methods. They say holding hands releases feel good hormones or whatever; so true.
My mom's fudge puddles and rainbow bars are still just as delicious and sinfully good as they are every year.
Saturday I went to coffee with Stephanie, one of Chris's sisters, and we talked for a good 3 hours. That was pretty nice since we don't really talk much. So catching up is fun!
It's only 13 days till I get some sister and auntie time! Goody goody gumdrops for that! :)

my update ramblings

2008-12-08T11:39:00.003-07:00

I have no excuse for being such a lousy blogger. Sorry.
Let's see, Thursday Chris came up and we celebrated his birthday. My lemon cheesecake turned out quite delicious and he liked the shirts I gave him, so yay for that. :)
Friday night, Lydia and I did kids night out at our church. We had the theme of church and sang some songs and made paper churches and ate some good snacks, can you say muddy buddies!, and played some games. We had like 8 kids there and my goodness 7 boys together are super crazy! Very weird a few are that's for sure. I couldn't count the number of times I was saying, "Shhhh." haha. But yeah, there's this one boy in our church who I don't think knows how to respect those older than him. He refused to do our crafts because we wouldn't allow guns and gore with his church. He wouldn't listen to us half the time either. I swear, I was ready to wring to his neck, but I'll let you know I restrained myself. So let's just say it was interesting. Hopefully it'll be better next time.
Saturday Lydia and I went and did our Christmas present shopping! That was pretty fun, since we always had to go with a parent before but now it was just the two of us! So we got everyone's presents and I'm quite excited for Christmas now, because I'm pretty happy with the presents we picked out! And I must say I love orange julius'. Yum! Okay, I used to like Hannah Montana, secretly I still do, but she is taking over everything! I don't think we went to a single store where her face wasn't printed on a shirt or a notebook or necklace or something. Honestly. But I must say, I had never been in the Disney Store before and it's so fun in there! Pretty darn cute stuff as well! So yeah.
After we got home Chris came over and helped unload the pool table my dad bought! Yay for pool! Although, I've noticed I need so much practice. lol. Honestly. My dad beat me in like 4 games last night. Pathetic. But practice makes perfect they say.
Saturday evening we all headed down the light rail station to go downtown for the annual Parade of Lights. We got to the station at like the perfect time because there was lighting ceremony going on so we got to see that and they had fireworks and everything, which was pretty cool! So after a few long lines we got to downtown and there were tons of people lining the streets! So we walked and found a reasonably good spot. I was glad for the fence I could sit on, otherwise I would never have been able to see, one of the downsides to being short. haha. Rebecca met us up there then too! So the parade was pretty fun! Marching bands are pretty cool. Good thing too since there were quite a few. One band was called The Snowman Band and when they were by us there was a hold up somewhere so we got to watch them for quite some time. And they were totally fun! They were having a blast trying to keep the crowd entertained. Dancing around, singing, doing whatever. There were some fun, very lit up floats with music and huge balloons. The people watching was definitely interesting as well. So after the parade was over we waited in line for awhile to get on the light rail and then came home, ate Panda Express and Chris put together the pool table. What a hero.
Saturday evening we figured out how truly retarded our cat can be. We had noticed our colored lights weren't working on our tree even though they were plugged in. So I looked at them and saw the cat had chewed completely through the wires! Who does that?? So add that to his list of things he's chewed on. He's like a dog, I swear. Shoelaces, blinds strings, earbuds, light wires. Crazy kitty.
Sunday was our long day at church with two services, communion, fellowship dinner, and Bible studies. So then we came home and relaxed and watching the old Parent trap on tv. I SO love that movie. Let's get together never gets old. Then we watched our weekly Supernatural episode.
And that's the end of my long, rambly post. With no pictures. Sorry.
Oh! On an excited note, exactly 3 weeks till Talia and her family and Elijah get here!! YAY! I so cannot wait. :D
Okay, bye. Xoxo

happy birthday to my boy

2008-12-03T14:16:00.003-07:00

Today is my dear Christopher's birthday! I won't get to celebrate with him today, although he did stay at our house till midnight last night so we could tell him happy birthday. :) But tomorrow, he'll be coming up and I plan on making some cheesecake for him and all. So without any further ado, happy birthday, boyfriend love! Have a most terrific 24th!

I love you, babe.

Christmastime is comin

2008-11-28T09:59:00.002-07:00

It's the day after Thanksgiving now, so I can start thinking about Christmas! But first, I must give thanks for everything the Lord has blessed me with.
I'm thankful for:

My family. My mom and dad who have raised me the past 20 years in the way I should go and have helped me to always be a better, God-glorfiying woman. They have always provided for me and been strong. I love them dearly. My sisters who even though one is close and one is far away, I know I can always talk to them about anything. We have our fun, goofy, sister moments, and our serious discussions too. I so can't wait for Christmastime together again! Love you, my dear sisters! My brothers who even though I may find them annoying at times(Josiah) I still do love them all. My older brothers are very protective and just what big brothers should be. We always have a good time when they're home. My nieces who are the three sweetest little girls. I love my auntie time! And my little nephew of course too.
My boyfriend. He's such a wonderful guy, who's always so encouraging and patient and a great listener. He's incredibly sweet and loving and respectful of me. We can talk about anything and everything and even when I tend to get a tad goofy(what? me?!) he still loves me for me. He's a strong Christian and we share the same beliefs which is of utmost importance to me. I love him so.
My friends. Whether I've known them for 13 years or 3, they're the best. I know they're always there for me whether it's to just listen or give advice or just have a good time with. I love all my girls! And my guy friends too!
My possessions. This may seem shallow, but yesterday we helped with Meals on Wheels and saw some people who are just living in the worst of conditions and it really made me thankful for all I have. For living in a warm and clean home and good food to eat every day and nice clothes to wear and all the other little luxuries I have.
My faith. I don't know how people can live in this world without having true faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Just knowing that all is in His Hands and that everything will turn to our good and that at the end believers in Him shall have eternal life is the most comforting thing. I'm forever thankful that He brought me to know Him and covered my many sins with His blood.

I am so incredibly blessed with everyone and everything I have.

Now on to Christmas! As I sit here there's Christmas music playing in the waiting room(I'm at work) and I love it. Just puts a smile on my face and gets me so excited to decorate our house soon! Hopefully tomorrow we'll be putting up the tree! Yay! :) I found this survey over at Talia's and thought it might be fun!

Egg nog or hot chocolate? This is a tough one. I love hot chocolate on those cold, snowy days. Especially Starbucks signature. But Christmas day we always have egg nog with our dinner. So I can't make a choice.

Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? I wrap all my presents. I just love that part. Buying pretty paper and ribbon and bows and tags and doing them up all nicely and seeing them under the tree all pretty. I like it. :)

Colored lights on tree/house or white? When we put up lights on our house, they're always colored. And we do a mixture of the two on the tree. White are so classicly lovely, but yet there's just something about the colors I love. So I can't say I have a preference on this one either.

Do you hang mistletoe? We never have. Although once I'm married, I'm pretty sure this will be a must. hehe.

When do you put your decorations up? Oh right after Thanksgiving. I love seeing them all up for the whole month of December and sometimes even some of January. haha. I can't properly start Christmas shopping and everything without the tree up, where would you put the presents anyway? So the sooner, the better! Although definitely not before Thanksgiving, that's not allowed at our house. :P

Favorite holiday memory as a child? Let's see. Well whenever we went to Grandma's for Christmas I always loved the red and green jello with whipped cream on top. It just always seemed like the perfect Christmas food to me as a kid. Who knows why. And then there isn't a specific memory with this because it's basically every year. But just when as family we all hand out our presents to each other and sit down on the couches and the floor and we all take turns opening one up, from youngest to oldest. And we take turns until each present if opened. I like that better than just the crazy everyone ripping off the paper at the same time ordeal. We get to watch everyone else and see what they all got plus waiting in anticipation to see what they think of the gift you got them. It seems like the perfect present opening system to me. :)

When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I never believed in Santa as a kid. Although I do remember the times at Grandma's when we would all watch that Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen Christmas movie, can't remember the name, but my dad would always wear a Santa hat and coat maybe too? And that's pretty much as Santa-y(new word) we got.

How do you decorate your Christmas tree? We have absolutely no theme when it comes to our tree. We just put all our lights on and then get out the boxes of ornaments and then we all just grab a few and place them on the tree wherever we see fit. From pretty new ornaments my mom gives us every year to the old ones we made as kids they all go up. With the exception of the few ugly ones we do have. Lol.

Snow! Love it or dread it? Love it! Some of the best memories I have of Christmas have to do with some snow. Like when we lived in Nebraska and it snowed on Christmas day, all the neighborhood kids and us went down to the hill near the highway with our sleds and we would have the older kids stand at the bottom and stop us so we wouldn't get to the highway yet(although it was a teeny town so there wasn't too much traffic). We sled out there for hours. Such fun. And last Christmas, it snowed the 25th as well! There's just something about waking up in the morning in winter and running to the window to see if it snowed that night. And if it did, I would run downstairs yelling all excited. I still get excited to see snow outside in the morning, just a little less energeticly. haha. I love the look of the fresh, white snow covering everything and just glittering. So beautiful. I'm so glad we live somewhere where we do get snow for Christmas.

Do you remember your favorite gift? This one is extra tricky. So I'm going to be boring and just say I love all the gifts I get. The ones that have special memories behind them or even the practical ones I may get!

What’s the most important thing about the holidays for you? Getting to celebrate the birth of our Savior and learning about the true meaning of Christmas. But also, spending time with all my family and giving presents and building snowmen and making snow angels outside in the snow. I love everything about Christmastime!
What is your favorite holiday dessert? I must say I love my mom's fudge puddles and family recipe sugar cookies! Yum yum yum!
What is your favorite holiday tradition? Like I can pick just one! I already said the opening of presents. But also when we make sugar cookies and sprinkle them all and our dinner with the special bread, not even going to attempt to spell it. It's Swiss. I love every little tradition we have and all the memories we make!

What tops your tree? We can't have a tree topper, because our tree is so tall it touches the ceiling. But we used to have this big like 3-D star deal that went on top.
Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? Oh, giving! Just going out shopping and trying to find that perfect gift for everyone. Trying to make the present as fun and meaningful as I can. And then seeing their reaction to my present. I love the whole gift-giving process.

What is your favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night is definitely up there as one of my favorites. It's so beautiful. And I must admit I like Feliz Navidad too. I always liked singing Good Christian Men Rejoice too and God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman. I love all Christmas music really. All the hymns but also some of the secular ones.

Candy canes? I do like to eat a candy cane once in a while. But they're also fun to decorate with. And they do make great stocking stuffers.

Favorite Christmas movie? I love the classic It's a Wonderful Life. But also I like the Santa Clause ones. And I need to see Elf, never have.

What do you leave for Santa? Well, since we never believed in Santa, nothing. Just plenty of Christmas goodies for us! :)

Now, it's your turn to fill it out. I had fun with it and you might too! :)

I hope you all had such a wonderful Thanksgiving! I did. And that you are getting ready for Christmas! Only 27 days away, yikes.

frosted chocolate chip cheesecake

2008-11-19T21:10:00.003-07:00

I keep promising recipes and yet I never do post them. Sorry. But I decided this one was so incredibly delicious I had to blog about it!
Note: not my picture. I completely forgot to take one until it was all eaten. But mine did look pretty much like that, minus the raspberry and almond garnishes.

2 cups chocolate wafer crumbs(I used oreos, which worked well)

6 tablespoons butter, melted

3 packages ( 8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup (6 ounces) miniature semisweet chocolate chips

1 milk chocolate candy bar (4 ounces), chopped

2 cups whipped topping

1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted

In a bowl, combine wafer crumbs and butter. Press onto the bottom and 1-1/2 in. up the sides of a greased 9-in. springform pan. Chill for 15 minutes or until set.

In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour into crust.

Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake at 325 degrees for 55-60 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight.

For frosting, in a microwave-safe bowl, melt candy bar; stir until smooth. Cool to room tempature. Gradually stir in the whipped topping. Remove sides of springform pan. Frost top of cheesecake; garnish with almonds. Refrigerate leftovers. Yield: 12 servings.

Enjoy!

week in a nutshell

2008-11-17T10:53:00.002-07:00

I'm not sure why I haven't blogged in a week. Maybe because I haven't done or thought anything worth blogging about. So, way to go, Jerusha.
My usual week goes something like this: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, work from 10-6:30 and come home and just laze around watching tv or a movie. Tuesday and Thursday, work from 2-6:30 and Chris comes up and we hang out till he leaves around midnightish.
It's a very exciting life I lead, I hope you see. Although Tuesday, we have to come up earlier because my mom has a meeting deal so then Lydia and I sit at Starbucks until she's through with that. Mmm, Peppermint Mocha! This last week we were writing our Christmas gift giving list. We have a whole ton of people to give to, since we've got like a family of 14 and then several friends and then I've got the boyfriend. We usually give gifts together, because for one thing it's cheaper(yeah, sorry) and it's also easier and sometimes more fun. It works and no one has complained yet. :P So, yeah. Wednesday, the guys had catechism, so the girls went home and watched Moulin Rouge. So one of my favorite movies! The music is amazing.
Friday, I didn't feel well most of the day, so work wasn't too much fun. Went home, watched Made of Honor, and fell asleep on the couch. Kinda sucked I didn't feel well, since Rebecca spent the night and I didn't get(more like want) to partake in the sleepoever activities. So I slept in Saturday and woke up feeling much better so I was able to go shopping with everyone. Headed to the mall and Lydia and I helped pick out clothes for Josiah so he's somewhat stylish and in longer pants. haha. Went to Aeropostale and Payless where I broke the tenth commandment many a time I'm pretty sure. I just like cute sweaters and shirts and shoes. Can ya blame me? I made cheesecake for guests on Sunday, which turned out super delicious. I'll be posting pictures and possibly a recipe later.
Sunday was church and since we were host family we had guests for lunch. More came than we thought we had invited, which was pretty funny and confusing for a little while. But it turned out just fine. Church a second time and then we had Bible study on Isaiah 2-3. It was a really good study, talking about pride and being thankful and the adornments of women. Then we came home again and chilled and watched our weekly Supernatural episode. Love those Winchesters.
There's the week. Kinda rambly and boring, forgive me.
Oh! This Friday through Monday, the family is headed down to Phoenix for a seminar. So a little getaway should be kinda fun. Road trip and then visiting some relatives down there as well. So I'm excited for that.
Alright, happy Monday all! <3

"when you're here, you're family"

2008-11-10T11:51:00.005-07:00

That's right, Olive Garden! One of my favorite restaurants ever! So Saturday night, Lydia, Christopher, Rebecca, and I went out to dinner for some delicious Italian food. This was Chris's first ever time there(I know, what?! crazy) so that was fun! I always get so excited for that first bite of their amazing breadsticks and fettucine alfredo(I'm super predictable, I don't think once have I gone when I didn't get that. haha). We had such a nice waitress too, who said you're welcome each and every time we said thank you, which was like constantly. Lol.
And you know there's a benefit to not being a big eater, I get to have two meals from one! So last night, I got to have Fettucine again! Yum yum! :)

Chris and I.

He always seems to be talking in pictures..but he's still cute. :)

Since it was his first time,

we of course had to commemorate that first bite of a warm breadstick.

Pretty girls, Becca and Lydia

Sharing their Caramel Hazelnut Macchiato.

i love me a surprise

2008-11-07T12:02:00.004-07:00

Alright, so I have the sweetest boyfriend ever I'm pretty sure! And I'll tell you why. =)
So Thursday is one of the days I usually get to see him, but yesterday my mom, Lydia, and me had a Ladies' Night Out event to attend, so I didn't get to see him. He was just going to go home instead of coming up to the office or to our house.Well, last night I'm ready to head to bed and I'm flipping back my covers and notice a piece of paper. I'm like, "Hmm, that wasn't there this morning when I made my bed." Then I notice that the writing on it looks alot like Chris's! And quick note, his handwriting cracks me up. I've had to learn to decipher it because it's almost non-readable. (You know I like it, Chris. <3) So I start reading it and am almost through it when he calls me! I was so excited to tell him that I had found his letter! It was such a sweet letter too. I get to the last paragraph and it tells me to look in my pillowcase! So I do, and what do I find but a present!! :D This to be exact:

Bad quality picture, but you can still see it pretty well. Lovely, right? I was so thrilled! Just an out of the blue present for me! :)
And he tells me he never entered our house since no one was home at the time. And I thought maybe he left Josiah a note to put it in my bed, but that's no the case either. So I'm going with the idea that there is a surprise fairy who took care of it! haha
Anyways, I am of course wearing it today!
See, what a wonderful boyfriend that Christopher is?! I certainly think so. :)
So thanks so much, babe! Love you! <3

Election Day

2008-11-04T09:42:00.002-07:00

Mmm pumpkin

2008-11-03T12:38:00.002-07:00

There's just something about the taste of pumpkin this time of year. I know my tastebuds crave for it. So Saturday I made pumpkin streusel bread(thanks, Talia!)! And boy, was it ever yummy. :) We took a few loaves to church and I don't think I've ever gotten that many compliments on food before. I believe the words "sinful", "fabulous", and "pretty dang good" were used. And one person asked me how much I liked him and if I did I was to bake him more bread. He also, I believe, said that Chris would be one lucky man. haha! So yay for success!

2008-10-29T11:56:00.002-06:00

So I've been a really bad blogger lately and I really have no excuse either. So I apologize.
Well let's see, what I have been up to? Well Friday night, Lydia and I spent the night at the Enoch's house which is always amazing. Watched Disturbia and stayed up till 3 just hanging out and chatting and getting goofy complete with a small pillow fight. haha.
Saturday I was woken up by 10:30 and then me, Chris, and Elizabeth went and jumped on the trampoline. I swear, those thing are such a blast. I feel like such a little kid. haha. Their dogs joined us up there too even though they hate the bouncing, so they just laid up there and sneezed all over me. Gross! So yeah. Came home Saturday afternoon and had to the clean the house all up for the open house on Sunday. Chris and Elizabeth were such a huge help with that too! Then our family left for dinner at a women from our church's house. She's super sweet and a really great cook! Meatloaf, potatoes, green beans, homegrown tomatoes with sugar. Okay how many of you have had tomatoes with sugar sprinkled with sugar on top? It is the single way I will eat tomatoes and Chris swears he has never met anyone else who eats them that way. Are we just weird? Hmm. And we had delicious apple crisp with vanilla ice cream too! Yummy! :)
Sunday was church and my mom had a seminar in the morning so we had to pick her up from that afterwards and then we were all starving and we couldn't go home all day since the open house was going on. So we drove around for quite some time trying to decide what we felt like eating and then we spotted Red Robin which we all decided was definitely a good choice. Best burgers EVER! As my mom said, "I don't know how other burger places make it." It was quite humorous. hehe. So I got my bacon cheeseburger, hold the mayo, and steak fries! Finished it all, which if you know me is pretty rare. After eating we drove around for a while through this really expensive neighborhood with gorgeous mansions. I'm talking gigantic! They were seriously amazing. We found an open house going on in a little smaller house but still definitely out of our price range. That was quite lovely too. Massive master bedroom with it's private retreat room. So there you go.
We still had about 2 hours before we had to head over for the exchange service. So we stopped at the Denver Museum to basically use their restroom. But we checked out the T-Rex skeleton in the lobby and walked around their grounds a little bit. Quite lovely, except for the fact it was rather chilly and Lydia and I both had bare legs to our knees and my shoes were pinching, but I'm not complaining. lol. So then we headed over to Park Hill OPC for church. I always enjoy that service since they get to sing regular hymns. Don't get me wrong I love our Psalms very much and the old Genevan tunes we sing, but the hymns were what I knew until last year basically, so I still love them and just love singing them. At the church there's this sweet little girl who always talks to me and this time she gave Lydia and me two necklaces. Such a cutie! We finally got to head home to eat some popcorn and strawberries and watch an episode of Supernatural, our usual Sunday evening activities.
Monday, another chiropractor started working in the office on the other currently unused side we have. It's been different with him here. Definitely something to get used to. It's alot busier, since he's been in practice for about 20 years. Lydia has to do his front desk stuff as well as my mom's and I learned his therapy technique which I apply to all his patients. But he's a reasonably nice guy, just has some habits which we may or mat not get used to. His patients are pretty nice too, one told me I have " a gentle touch." haha. I was never aware of that before.
Today, I'm guest blogger for my sister Talia so I'll have to get on that. But all the pictures I plan on using are all at home on the computer, so it shall have to wait till this evening when we get home, unfortunately. So you'll have to check back at her site later for that!
And that's basically what I've been up to. Friday as you all know is Halloween or if you're Reformed, Reformation Day. So we're going up to Greeley for their Reformation party, which should be super fun since we have some really good friends up there!
That's about it. And I do believe it's just about lunchtime for me. So have a good one you guys.
xoxoxo

walk in the park

2008-10-21T12:51:00.003-06:00

Saturday morning we had a house showing and it was rather warm for this time of year, so we all went for a nice walk in the park near our house. It's such a beautiful park too with bridges and a river and walkways and trees and even a little railroad that runs in the summertime. My dad had his camera along so I'll share a few pictures!

trying to balance on the tracks
(note Lydia texting, but of course. haha)

My dad's idea. Lydia victorius!

Now to photoshop a train with smoke pouring out in the distance getting closer each minute while Lydia won't let me up so I meet my sad demise.

We tend to be a bit goofy as a family. =]

one rainy weekend

2008-10-14T11:30:00.002-06:00

Saturday morning Lydia decided that the two of us should go for a bike ride. Now it was about 37 degrees out and rather drizzly too, but we decided to brave that and go for it anyways! So we bundled up in a few sweatshirts, gloves, scarves, and helmets and headed out. Me on my nice new bike and Lydia on this old school one Josiah uses, where the seat has absolutely no cushioning at all. So we ride, wind whipping in our faces and I thought that maybe I should have put on a hat, but where's the fun in that? We have quite the lovely bike paths near our house that run the right next to the Platte River and especially now that we have fall colors it's pretty! So partway Lydia decides we should trade bikes for a little while so her butt can have a rest. haha. I must tell you, I so prefer my bike with it's straight handlebars, none of those weird curvy ones for me thanks, and my cushy seat. Man, I'm spoiled. :)
After riding for close to an hour, we decide we should go back home since our mom was leaving and she wanted us to get stuff done. She gave us some baking to do! Perfect activity for a chilly, wet Saturday I think. So we made three kinds of bread! Applesauce with streusal, Apricot-banana quick bread, and Blueberry! They all turned out quite fabulously! Even though for two of the breads as Lydia was pouring the batter in the pans, I just looked at her and was like, "Did you spray those first?" And she hadn't. So she had to pour the batter back in the bowl and spray and then start again. And she did that twice! It was pretty funny. And then we made brownies too!
So baking while listening to Mcfly, Metro Station, and Michael Buble(what's with the letter M?) is quite a delightful Saturday activity!
Sunday was another chilly, rather misty, dreary day. We had church and then it was my day to teach Sunday School for the first time. Since we have a small church and not very many kids, we only have one class. So kids from 5-14 in one class. Which definitely makes it tricky. So I taught on Ruth 1 and had printed out activitie sheets before with word searches and coloring pages and crossword puzzles, which totally helped out. So it was a pretty good class, I think.
After church, we were the host family, so the visitors came to our house for lunch. A Canadian couple and this other guy from Boulder. Very friendly, nice people, so that was neat. Then it was back to church again!
Sunday evening two of our good friends came over to hang out! Our friend from South Dakota, Jenna was in the town and we were really hoping we would be able to see her while she was here, so her boyfriend Aaron, who we've been good friends with for like 12 years brought her down! So we just played games like Sorry and Ticket to Ride and ate and laughed and just had fun. Aaron and I were on teams for both games and we got our butt kicked both times. So that was sad. But okay, peanut butter melted with chocolate with popcorn and pretzels to dip in is amazing! Which probably contributed to our goofiness with all that sugar. Lol. Oh and the week before had been Jenna's birthday so Lydia and I were able to give her her presents then too. She likes Hoops and Yoyo, so I had found this giant singing card with them and it was pretty funny. So we quoted the card all night and probably played it about 20 times.
So it was a pretty spectacular weekend I'd say!

sweata weatha

2008-10-10T13:11:00.002-06:00

I'm not sure how many of you have seen Bronx Beat from SNL. Especially the one where they talk about the "sweataweatha." I looked all over and could not find a video of it anywhere! Rather frustating.
But anyway, this week has been just that! Sweater weather! I'm wearing a sweater today! Which makes me very happy. Fall has finally come here! I mean for Colorado we were having some awfully warm fall days, like high 70s to 80s. But today it's reached only like 45 or so. Yesterday was supposedly to be 76, totally wasn't. More like 56. This weekend they're predicting our first snow as well! A little early, but actually I'm ready. I love this weather, I really do. :)

autumn weekend pictures

2008-10-07T11:51:00.025-06:00

There's just something about the gold and red and orange of fall colors that gets me. They're just so breathtaking and make me want to praise the Lord for His amazing and awesome handiwork!
You'll see just what I mean.
Picture time! These are all credited to my dad! Such a great photographer

Check out that sky
gorgeous.

horse riders!

Chris and I on the hike...why do I look so bored?

dew on the leaves

Firey red and orange

Green and gold

Lydia took her senior pictures up there. Oh so lovely!

Classic wall shot.

Group shot minus Lydia

Sisterly love.

beautiful.

from a distance.

Lydia and Lily Lake.

snow-capped mountains

look at all those colors!

climbing. such an amazing view from up there

reflection. one of my favorites.

scenery

Elk Fest. disgusting hair right?

owl.

I hope you enjoyed the wonder and beauty of the gorgeous scenery. Colorado in fall is practically perfect.

lovely autumn weekend

2008-10-06T13:05:00.003-06:00

Autumn is definitely my favorite season. And that was reaffirmed this weekend on our camping trip. Friday afternoon, the family and Christopher headed up in the Suburban, camper behind, to Estes Park. It was amazingly beautiful up there with the cool weather, golden aspens, cloudy skies. We hiked around this lovely lake, Lily Lake, I believe it was called, hiked through the trees, ate at my favorite Italian restaurant, checked out the Elk Fest, and just hung around. It was wonderful and so relaxing as well.

Lydia decided to take a cowgirl photo shoot of me. One of the results.

We came back Saturday evening. Sunday evening Lydia and I went up to our friend, Hannah's house for her bonfire party! It was chilly and rained almost the whole time, but it was still such a delightful time. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows and drank hot apple cider. I managed to burn myself a few times. haha. We all talked and laughed and reminisced over our childhood years.

Hands down, one of my favorite weekends. More pictures to come!

Did you all have a nice weekend?

Days of the Week

2008-10-01T10:22:00.003-06:00

There are definitely days of the week I look forward to more than others. For instance, Sunday is one of my favorite days of the week because I love going to church and fellowshiping and worshipping there, but also just because it's such a relaxing day. I usually get a little nap in and then we just chill at home in the evening watching Supernatural.
But Tuesday and Thursday have to be my favorite days of the week! Those are the days when the mornings and early afternoons seem to drag on forever because I know that around 4:20, I'll get to see Christopher walk in the door and reach out for a hug. He goes to school up in the Denver area those days and afterwards he comes up to the clinic to just hang out or do homework and then come home with us after work for dinner and movie and some good ol' alone time with me. :) Just seeing him walk in that door, puts a smile on my face and I get all giddy. Even when he's just at the computer doing homework, he'll still hold my hand while I sit nearby doing some studying of my own. Even just being in the same room makes me immensely happy.

So today, the in between day, is probably the day I least like. Having to say goodbye to him the night before and then having to wait till the next day to see him again. But I manage.

The weekends are always nice too. Getting to sleep in, sometimes hanging out with friends or shopping or just chilling at home. This weekend will be especially wonderful! Friday we're leaving work early and taking the camper up to Spruce Lake RV park in Estes Park to spend the night and Saturday up there seeing the fall colors and doing some hiking and just some good mountain time! Definitely up there in my top 5 of favorite things to do. Waking up in the camper bunk-bed feeling the crisp, cool mountain air. Heading over to the campground bathrooms, which aren't actually too bad, to shower and then sitting by the little lake next to our camper waiting to head out for some site seeing of those gorgeous yellow aspens and snow-capped mountain peaks. Walking around Estes window shopping in all the little touristy shops and hopefully stopping for dinner at Mama Rose's with their delicious fettucine alfredo and mini cheesecakes and cute waiters. One of my all-time favorite spots up there.
And then Sunday, one my bestest best friends who I've known for over 13 years is having a wienie roast for her birthday! Complete with hay bales and fire pits and hot dogs and marshmallows roasted over the fire. Some amazing friend time, being silly and girly and serious too.
So yes, amazing weekend coming up! Now to get through this Wednesday....

Twenty's Plenty!

2008-09-25T15:29:00.023-06:00

My birthday when I turned 20 was over a month ago, but just yesterday I received my present from Talia in the mail. Now, I so love getting mail! Especially packages! And upon opening my present I discovered just how cool this present really was and also why it took over a month for her to send it off. Twenty presents!! All wrapped and numbered with cute/cheesy little rhyming notes. The sweetest gift ever! =) So thank you very much, dear sister!
So now I shall share with you my wonderful gifts and even some little notes.

All numbered from one

to twenty!

one of my favorites. :)

not a rhyme(or a good picture) but it was too cute!

plus as you look at the presents you should be able

to figure out which one went with this.

the card! picked out by darling Emma and Annabelle!

I heard they really loved this one and even played with it some before sending it off.

=) too cute

an adorable little cut off cardigan

yum!

cuppycake! you know you think they're super cute.

more candy!

love these super cute notebook and pens

fun rubber gloves! now I'll be ready to clean anytime.

cute stationary is definitely a must

they smell delicious.

sweet frame. now to find a picture of us three sisters.

bees frighten me something terrible usually,

but how can they when they're this cute?

love me some mike and ike's

cute(getting overused perhaps? haha) mini hoody

yay cherries!

lovely floral pen

who doesn't like pretty shirts?

and of course to finish it off, starbucks!

Pretty sweet right?? I love every piece! What a perfectly neat idea for a golden birthday!

I love you, Talia! My dear cuppycake sister. =)

I'm it!...again.

2008-09-17T13:27:00.002-06:00

So, here’s the rules and then on to the fun! 1. Link to the person who tagged you 2. Post the rules to your blog 3. Write 6 random things about yourself. 4. Tag 6 people at the end of your post and link to them 5. Let each person you have tagged know by leaving a comment on their blog. 6. Let the tagger know when your entry is posted.

I was tagged by Ashlei this time around.

One: I hate cilantro. The smell, the taste. It makes me gag.

Two: I fall asleep almost every night listening to an Angels and Airwaves song, usually The Adventure.

Three: I'm rereading the Anne of Green Gables series for like the 10th time. Those books will never get old to me. They're like kindred spirits. :)

Four: The first movie I ever cried in was Ladder 49. I'm not a big movie crier really. It's more like I tear up. But in that movie, they actually fell.

Five: I once had a dream where I married Steve from Blue's Clues. How's that for random?? Lol.

Six: One of my favorite places is the beach. There's just something about walking barefoot in the sand with the waves lapping at your feet. I so would love to honeymoon in Santa Barbara.

Now, I'm going to break the rules and not tag anyone. My excuse is that I have no one left to tag. Oh well.

Tag! I'm it!

2008-09-15T16:44:00.003-06:00

I was tagged by Susan! Thanks!

So, here’s the rules and then on to the fun! 1. Link to the person who tagged you 2. Post the rules to your blog 3. Write 6 random things about yourself. 4. Tag 6 people at the end of your post and link to them 5. Let each person you have tagged know by leaving a comment on their blog. 6. Let the tagger know when your entry is posted.

Number one: I may be the lamest 20 year old out there. I have never had my driver's license. In fact I haven't even driven in over 2 years. I had my permit in California and took 2 behind the wheels, but never got to the license point before we moved. Then we thought we were moving again, so I never got it here either. I do currently have my permit, but haven't used it yet. I think my parents are frightened to go driving with me, since I made a few mistakes back when I did drive. I just need more practice and I'll get there eventually...I hope.

Number two: For some reason I never ever wear eyeliner on my eyelid, just below my eye. In fact I never even knew how to put eyeliner on till a couple years ago. Whenever I wanted it, Lydia always did it for me. She's definitely more in key with the fashion, makeup, hair world than I have ever been.

Number three: I am a certified K-Laser technician. Pretty professional sounding, right? Even though, I get to handle a rather expensive piece of equipment, it's really not very hard. A few online classes, safety course, 100 question exam, 4 hour training course, and ta-da! I'm certified! If you're at all interested in what it really is, here's a link.

Number four: Since I'm rather short, okay maybe tiny is a better word, I'm not even 5 feet, I get teased quite regularly about it. By everyone too, it's one of my dad's favorite subjects, my boyfriend teases me, good friends. I'm now the shortest in the family, since my little brother passed me up. Just this year, I was asked by a guy on the plane if I was 11. Thanks so much, man. I get asked if I want a kid's menu all the time at restaurants too. When I tell people how old I really am, they like to argue with me, "No, you're not. You can't be." You're right, sorry, I was mistaken. But actually though, it really doesn't bother me all that much. it used too, my mom claimed I would need therapy for all the teasing my dad does. haha. But being short is sometimes fun. It has it ups and downs. I don't have to worry about wearing too high of heels around my boyfriend. haha Especially since he's a whole foot taller than me. Yep, it works. I use my tip-toes quite often. :)

Number five: I love cherries. And I don't mean just the taste of them, although yes, they are quite delicious. But I mean the look of them, the design. I have cherry printed shirts, necklace, earrings, coin purse, pencils. And someday when I have my own house I want to do my kitchen on cherries. Red cherries with black and white. Kinda retro, don't you think? Black and white checkered tiled floor, with red accents. My mom even has some cherry printed dishes she plans on giving me as wedding gifts. I just think they're so cute and fun!

Number six: I absolutely can't stand Sheryl Crow. Whenever a song of hers comes on the radio, I seriously moan and have got to change it. When I'm in a public place where I have no control of what music is on and one of her songs come on, I practically go nuts. Don't ask me why, it's just the way it is. Even the look of her annoys me. No offense, to anyone who's a big fan.

Now on to tagging others. I need to get more bloggers I think, Lydia still stole everyone to tag.
So I'll just tag Jeremy, since he hasn't written a blog in a while and I'm sure he can come up with something interesting. And Raymond, since he's new! And whoever else reads this who hasn't been tagged, you're tagged!

5K: the story.

2008-09-09T09:34:00.004-06:00

You all know that I participated in a 5K, so now you get to hear how it went!

Here's our team! I think I need to get better running shirts, otherwise Aeropostale will have to start paying me for advertising. :P

So we arrived at the golf course where it was taking place, got all registered and were given our numbers and chips. My mom, Lydia, and Josiah had numbers all together, 73, 74, and 75. There I was with 180. What's the deal there? The race didn't start for another hour and a half, so we just sat around talking to people my mom knew from the Chamber. It was definitely interesting watching the 250 or so people show up, quite the interesting bunch. Is it just me or does anyone else think the rat-tail hairstyle or the style with the thick mohawk is super ugly?? The number of young boys I've seen lately with those...yuck. But anyways. The Chick-Fil-A cow was walking around having a good time with everyone, so that was rather entertaining. The weather was perfect! Not hot, and too chilly either. The clouds were looking a little threatening but it only started misting afterwards.

Everyone started getting lined up at the starting line, which also happened to be the finish line too. The gun went off and we were all off! The beginning was rather awkward because everyone was right there all trying to start their own pace, I was afraid I was going to get trampled there. But then once we all got out onto the course, it was all good. Lydia had asked if I would stay with her the whole time since she didn't want to run the whole time. But I like to run, so off I went at my own pace. Sorry, Lydia!

I started out by just jogging slowly and Josiah was right next to me for a little while, until he started huffing and puffing quite a bit, so I told him to slow down a little and keep at a slower pace since we still had a ways to go. So he dropped back and I kept going. We ran along the back nine of the golf course, which went up and down and had some hairpin turns. We were on pavement most of the time, except for the time we ran on grass, which definitely is different.

They had water stations at a few points where volunteers (those are people that help, right, Lydia? haha) would hand out water. Drinking while running is rather difficult, I tell you. A few people definitely sloshed all over themselves. Haha. I was running with the same group of people the majority of time. There were like 3 boys around 13 with me, which made me feel a little bad. But then I figured that they were probably in sports at school that required more physical stuff that I ever did. Just trying to make myself feel better you know. :P

Once in a while I had to slow down and just walk so I could breathe better. We go on 3 mile walks regularly, but running that is just a little bit different. We were getting close to the parking lot where the finish line was and I was thinking, "Alright! the end! " So not the case, we had to turn and run for quite a bit more, on grass now. Shoot. But since we were nearing the end, people were all along cheering you on. But being that close to the building and parking lot had it's downfalls too, all the food was being prepared and boy, did it smell amazing! Tempting rather. Just taunting you the whole way.

I finally turned the last corner! Some people just walked into the finish line, but I wanted to keep going strong even to the last little bit. I ran through, camera flashed, chip beeped, and I came to a halt. All I wanted was to sit down and get some cold water. They had a whole cooler full of water bottles, so I grabbed one and went to get my goodie bag and sit down and wait for the rest of my team to arrive.

Next after me was Josiah, 7 minutes afterward. Then came Lydia, 10 minutes after me. And a little bit later comes Mom running to the finish line. We three start cheering her on for the last little bit. We're all hungry and ready to go get some of that delicious smelling food. So we head inside with our sore legs and throats. We headed over to the Outback booth, got a plate of meat and salad and Lydia and I went to find a empty space at the tables. We were checking out our freebies and eating. We got some good stuff, tshirt, water bottle, pedometer, keychain screwdriver set, other drinks and energy bars, coupons, and other random stuff.

I went to grab some strawberry shortcake, which was very tasty! And I made Lydia come with me to get some chips. So I made her miss receiving her medal. My bad! But yes, Lydia received a medal in her age group! Second place in the 19 and under girls. Too bad it wasn't a few weeks earlier, so I could've been in that age group too! I so could have won first place. I knew there would be disadvantages to no longer being a teen. Kidding. But go Lydia! We watche everyone else receive their prizes. The first place overall woman was just 9 minutes ahead of me! The overall winner ran it in just 16 minutes! How crazy is that?! As for me, I was in 37th place of the women, out of about 100. 31 minutes was my time! I was not terribly disappointed with that. :)

We hung around for a little while longer for the door prizes. No wins there for us. It was after 9, so we decided it was high time to head home to just relax.

And there you have it! Sorry I'm not the best writer in the world, but I did use paragraphs this time! Just for you, Jeremy! :) And it's tough to take pictures while running, so that was the single one we got.

5K

2008-09-04T12:14:00.002-06:00

I'm participating in my first marathon! This evening, my mom and two siblings and me are going as a team to the Metro North Chamber's 5K run/walk.

We'll see how it goes. I'm not expecting to win any prizes at all, but hey, it's fun! And I'm looking forward to all the good free food afterwards! :) I mean come on who can resist Outback Steakhouse?? Not I.

Party pictures!

2008-09-02T13:35:00.011-06:00

So my birthday party was pretty fabulous! And I shall show you through pictures, over a week later. =]

Many people say I look like Miley Cyrus,

so I got a picture of her that said Jerusha, Secret Star.

There were actually people who thought I was being given a picture of myself.

ready to open presents! (note the cake and lovely flowers)

Supernatural!! Best tv show ever!

How me can we get? :)

Yes, I received a sock monkey

Me on the new bike! We go well together, right?

Chris and I

Playing some bocce ball, in the rain.

Friends!

Hannah, Chelsea, me, and Aaron

Piled on the chair! =]

So yes, quite the excellent party!

Floral Fever

2008-08-28T15:03:00.008-06:00

Edit: I figured out how to upload pictures from my phone! Yay for me! So these are my flowers now!

There's just something about the look and smell of flowers that just gets me. They can bring a smile to my face and just make me genuinely happier. I love them, no matter the color.

So when Chris and his family showed up to my birthday party a couple hours late, I was a little peeved, gotta admit it. But when Chris walked in the door holding a big bouquet of flowers, he was immediately forgiven! Might be just because it was him, or maybe because I adore flowers.

Not actually mine, but we'll pretend. hehe. Daisies have got to be some of my all-time favorites. It's like in You've Got Mail when she says they just seem so friendly. I so agree! And those bright colors! Every time I walk past the dining room, I just have to stop and admire and breathe them in.

And sunflowers were also included! Oh yay! Another of my favorites. He did good. :)

Bicycle, bicycle

2008-08-26T11:29:00.004-06:00

So since I had my birthday this past week, I received a few presents. Now Chris and I had been discussing what he should get me. And he decided a bike would be a good gift! I had not had my own bike since I was about 11 or so. One of those mini 5 speed mountain bikes that was this shiny purple color. I loved that bike and rode it constantly, even letting my neighbor friends ride it at times. Now Talia gave piano lessons to this family with 3 boys. The middle one was a a few years younger than me and was always trying to impress me and Lydia with his stories and everything he did(never really worked much). So I let him ride bike once and I'm inside when by brother, Elijah comes inside holding this extremely bent and twisted wheel. I'm like, "Um, where this at from?" "Your bike," he says. So this kid had been riding it when I guess he ran into a Schwann's truck, so he jumped off and the bike was ran over. This was rather tragic to me and I must say I was not very happy at all with this kid, nice way to me impress, dude. So since then, never had my own bike. Just rode my siblings and friends and all.

So Chris decided it was time I had my own, plus then we could go bike riding together!

Now I really had no idea what kind I wanted. There are way too many styles, I mean cruiser, mountain, hybrid, comfort, road, all-terrain, classic, you name it. So we decided to just browse around in stores to see what I liked best. So off we went on a rainy Saturday afternoon, along with our younger siblings(we're not allowed to totally out alone together). We headed to Target first. My eyes always went directly to the pink bikes first. :) So we get one down and I ride it up and down and the aisle. We're standing there in the aisle along with one of the employees, and I, being the complete and utter klutz that I am, completely fall over on the bike! Into a rack breaking one of their hanging deals. Wow, I'm sitting there thinking what a retard. They run over afraid I'm hurt, since apparently I almost impaled myself on this metal hook. I'm fine, the bike is fine. My pride and dignity on the otherhand, a tad bruised. So we decide to go check out a few more places. We head over to Sports Authority and I try out a pink(yes, I know, I'm rather pathetic) mountain bike up and down and aisles. Not my particular favorite as far as comfort goes. So we know of this bike shop so we head there. Bike Source is a rather sweet store, I tell you. Three stories worth of every kind of bike you could ever want and plenty of room to test them out. They have like a million cruiser type of bikes with some pretty extreme paint jobs. Orange and yellow with flowers, blue and white striped with "sail with me" on the seat, hideous lime green with pink hibiscuses and of course you can't forget the streamers and baskets. Not exactly what I'm looking for. Also I'm not really into the high, curved handlebars of these types of bikes. So we head downstairs to see about bikes down there. I test out a few riding them all around. Our younger siblings, Josiah and Elizabeth are having quite a ball riding all around as well. The main one we were considering was Globe Carmel, a hybrid type I guess. And not pink! So it's getting late and we need to pick up pizza for dinner. So we do that and then go and look at WalMart to see their selection. They've got a few nice pink mountain bikes. I really couldn't decide which one I wanted at all. There were too many pros and cons and price differences.

The day of my party comes, a week later, I still have no idea which one I want. So during my party Chris leaves for a little while and comes back in time for food and presents. I had no idea where he ran off to. So after opening all my presents he asks if I want another one. I'm like why not.

So he rolls in this! Bow tied to the handlebars and all! The Carmel!

So I really didn't get much chance to ride it until last night when Chris came over for the specific purpose of going bike riding with me. So my dad decided after some arguing and skepticism and persuading from my mom to let us go by ourselves! I have not yet gotten my own helmet, so I had to borrow one from him. It's a little too large so the whole time I'm riding it's falling back on head, practically choking me. But we took this bike path near our house, which was quite nice! I had never been all the way before, so new places! My dad calls later telling us it's just about dinner time, and all he hears from me in the background is "I can hardly breathe." I happened to be adjusting my helmet and whining about it. haha. And then once we're home I'm talking about the helmet and Lydia comes in the room just as I say, "I was being choked." I have impeccable timing obviously. So she decided we had been mugged. lol

But my bike rides incredibly well, uphill and down thanks to the 21 speeds, the seat is comfortable, and I can reach the pedals and the handlebars comfortably.

So there's my bicycle story. Thanks, Chris! :)

Purse game!

2008-08-15T21:50:00.005-06:00

So Miss Ashlei tagged me to play this game. So let's go snoop in my purse shall we?

My oh so cute purse, gift from dear Lydia!

Alright, starting from top left.

Post-it note holder.
Photo holder
Powder compact
Floral necklace
Chocolate tootsie pop
Orbit gum
Make up bag with all the make up inside
Mesh bag with 5 things of lip gloss plus a pair of earrings
Wallet, gift from dear Talia
Cell phone
Ponytail holder
Mechanical pencil (cherry printed of course!)
Lotion
Wedding bubbles
Gum wrappers

Alright, I hope you enjoyed that!

Camp Eden

2008-08-14T10:32:00.018-06:00

So, last Friday through Monday, my family and I went up to church camp in the mountains. It was a small camp, only about 35 people at most I think. Several Canadians came, which was fun. There were a few keynote speakers with wonderful messages concerning Christians in a Christ-less Christianity Culture. So those were very interesting and educational. We had good food(I even ate french toast, which I have been known to hate, and liked it! berries and whipped cream definitely help), great fellowship, good hiking, thunderstorms, which I am always a fan of, and the scenery and location were awesome! Being with our church friends everyday was kind of a fun experience, hanging out with all the guys was rather fun. We have basically no girls in our church besides me and Lydia, which sometimes gets weird. Haha. I played floor hockey for the first time, and man, that is quite the intense workout! And tip here, don't wear flipflops to play that. Lol. And they had this zipline that went across the lake and down this hill. Super fun!! Oh my goodness! But yes, all in all it was a great camp! I'm hoping we do it every year and get more people to come!
And now for some pictures! I have not yet figured out how to order them....so they're actually backwards in sequence, haha. But whatever, it still works I suppose.

Lydia on the zipline!

My turn! They did this thing where on the opposite side they grab the line and bounce it up and down so you get quite a bit of air! Way fun! :)

See? Across the lake! And yes, that is me!

Me and Lydia at the end of the hike up the mountain side. It was rather steep, but amazing views uptop!

The lake at camp

The lake and rocks.

Gerad with his ladies. His wife and me and Lydia. haha, long story.

View from uptop!

Gerrit and I on the hike!

More views from uptop!

Lydia and Johan

And there you have it! I thought for sure I had posted more pictures....hmm. So it goes.

Jumping on the bandwagon

2008-08-13T16:59:00.002-06:00

Well, so everyone(Lydia, Ashlei, Kourtni) are all getting blogs now, so I decided hey why not me too! So here I am starting off in this new blogging world. We'll just have to see how this goes. I still need to do the whole picture thing and all, but I'll get there. Now to get some interesting stuff going on so I actually have material to blog about. Haha.
Alright, I think that's it for now. I'll add more later with pictures from recent occasions.
Ta-ta