New Toy PLUS Free Time = Creations

This week was my first week of summer break. Thanks to an early birthday present I have had and enjoyable time of learning to sew! I am have spent much of my time organizing and taking care all the little things I have neglected over the past 9 months. The pictures below show some of the things I have been working on, in addition to messes I have made and cleaned up in the last 4 days!

WHO I AM.

I don't know about the rest of you, but sometimes in the craziness of my life I have lost track of who I am. Not in the churchy sense of Who am I...a daughter of God, but more in the sense of what is it that makes me tick. What have I been passionate about from birth and what are my core personality traits. Sometimes I feel the world can pull me in so many different ways that I start acting and reacting like other people rather than myself and then find myself unhappy because my actions/words/etc are not in sync with my core spirit. So I thought I would dedicate this post to telling you and myself to who I am.

I absolutely love learning and have since birth. I am easily fascinated with the way things work and came to be and can counter any newly learned information with dozens of questions.

I can be and naturally am a very passionate person. I think I get it from my mima who has an amazing ability to be passionate about everything. My passion often comes in forms of gratitude or an overwhelming feeling of "can you believe this!" I am awed by nature, art, history, faith and the little bit of science I understand. I sometimes hide my passion because I have found that many people don't share my love for life. I don't like it when I do this because then I am just another disilllusioned skeptic.

I enjoy creating. Coming from a family of musicians and masters of engineering and science I always felt I lacked creativity, although I have recently learned that is not true. Although I don't build boats or play an instrument beautifully, I get a lot of personal enjoyment out of creating what ever I can. In my profession I love creating new ways to introduce a concept or lesson. In my personal life I love cooking and making simple things like cards. I gain and huge sense of accomplishment when a lesson goes well or a meal is enjoyable. It feels good to create.

I enjoy discussion and deep thought. I love to analyze and make new discoveries about faith, beliefs or relationships through meaningful conversation. Such conversation makes me feel alive, like my mind is opening up channels of electricity that generally lie dormant (Random thought - Bach's compositions on the harpsichord have a similar effect on my). I have learned much about myself and my beliefs through such conversation. Although, sometimes I have found it hard to find friends who are willing to open up enough of themselves to have carry on such conversations.

Sometimes my pull to analyze can be detrimental. I can come home from a social gathering thinking, "Why did they say that?" "What was that look suppose to mean?" "Maybe they don't like me or I said something wrong." This is clearly a waste of time. Who but myself cares that much about such insignificant things. If I am not disciplined I can allow this trait to pull me into self doubt - which it often has and continues to do.

I have a sensitivity to violence, suffering, and poverty. Violence or any thing that remotely portrays suffering have always yanked at my heart strings. As a little girl I would often cry when we passed homeless people in LA, sad for their situation and upset I couldn't do anything to help. I have deep respect for people who can go into miserable conditions to help those who are suffering. Shamefully I sometimes choose ignorance to protect myself from the sorrow of others.

Part of my sensitivity comes from the fact that I am very impressionable and get deeply connected in many things I see and hear. This really shows when it comes to movies. Sometimes I get so involved in a movie that I am emotionally exhausted by the end yet unable to calm down for hours. Sometimes I have been so disturbed by what we have watched I will lay in bed sobbing for hours just trying to come to grips with how cruel or twisted the world can be (I did this recently with the Shawshank Redemption).

I sometimes have trouble accepting that there is evil in the world. I believe everyone was wronged at some point and that's why they have done bad things. I believe in mercy and the power of change.

I am incredibly honest. I hate lying or even with holding information and am bad at it. This makes me the WRONG person to buy a car. I am most hurt when someone I love lies to me.

I thrive in sunshine, warmth and high places. Coldness and darkness is depressing!

I enjoy being active, but would not consider myself an athlete.

I work hard for my friends and families approval and appraisal. It sounds funny, but it really is like fuel, it keeps me going when I know someone is proud of me. My love language is words of affirmation, so when some one tells me they love me, it goes much farther than gifts or acts of service.

Despite my faults I am happy with who I am and I am happiest when I remember and act just like me.

Great News

Many of you may or may not know, that although Tyler "graduated" last April, he actually had one last class to complete before they would send him his diploma. It is an independent study course for physics 106. He has had one year to do it and the year is up come July.

The great news is TYLER STARTED WORKING ON THIS CLASS TODAY!!! This is so wonderful because myself, his parents, grandparents, my parents and every other person that cares about him have been waiting for him to get started for almost a year. I think all of us have thought at one time or another, "Tyler wouldn't really go all the way through school and leave one class to keep him from graduation, would he?" The answer is NO. Hallelujah!


Just to clear things up, Tyler has been really busy working and has been very successful, which is why the class has been pushed off till now. :)

Happy Mom's Day, Shelley Jean!

Thanks for ALWAYS being there for me, even when it meant putting me in a red tube to keep me safe! I love you :)

Spring Break

I just got back from my Spring break much needed vacation. The 2 weeks before Spring break I got this terrible cold that made it almost impossible to teach, but I still went of course because what good is simply sitting home waiting to get better when there is money to be made! In any case, the combination of my being unable to speak (the cold made me loose my voice) and my students restlessness made actually learning a challenge....We ALL needed a break.

Tyler and I spent Easter at the Conley's, our "family" in Utah, and had a great time which included honey baked ham, Easter eggs hunts and all.

Monday night I flew into Long Beach and had a great time just talking to my little brother Russ, who recently moved to Newport from Miami. I don't know what it is about siblings, but it does not matter how long I go without seeing or even talking to them, I still just love them so much! Russ is doing great and I am proud to have such a happy "little" brother (He turned 20 on Wednesday).

Tuesday I went to the gym with my mama, who has lost 17 pounds since November. I don't know if she wanted that posted all over the internet but I am pretty proud of her. She definitely did not need to loose weight but I am impressed with her discipline! Then I went to the San Diego Zoo with Jen, Max and Audrey. Their new Monkey exhibit is amazing for the architecture alone. The panda exhibit was fun. It is mating season and we were there to hear the female panda giving this cherping mating call that the vet said hasn't been heard for 2 years. So I felt pretty special about that! We also saw an animal I have never heard of before called a pangolin. It looks kind of like an armadillo/ant eater and whole exterior is made of feather looking scales that apparently are similar to nails in textor. hmmmm....! Always learning.

That night we went out to Don Jose's for Russell's B-Day. We all got Shirley Temples and filled up on chips and salsa. Little changes our unique family traditions!

Wednesday I went and walked around the RSM lake with mom and her gym friends then got ready to do some shopping. Nordstrom Rack and Macy's Swimwear were a bust, but Aubrey met us for lunch at Panera and gave us the great news that Joe, her husband, has been offered to play baseball at BYU next year. I am so excited to have my BFF back in Utah soon! The rest of the day I babysat Max and Audrey while Jen taught piano lessons and all I can say is 2 kids are harder than 1! Max had basketball practice (he's 4!) and Audrey starting cutting her front two teeth, but they were still very good kids.

Thursday was a total girls day. I slept in when I should have gotten up and ran a few miles, then Jen, Mom, Audrey and I went and got pedicures, ate at Nordstrom Cafe and shopped! We all got lucky at Nordstrom as the BP in the Mission Viejo mall had racks and racks of sale items. For the first time in a long time I found more than I could justify spending. So I had to cut out some cute shirts and have regreting passing up a little pink zip up since! Oh well, Mom said she would see if she could go back and get it for me. While we were enjoying, Dad worked without a break at the office so he could get out by 2pm to take me sailing. It was sooooo beautiful/peaceful/awe-inspiring to be back out on the boat depending on the elements to get around. It was a little cool but clear and beautiful with wind strong enough to set us sailing around 8-10 knots under main alone. After cleaning up the boat we sung by San Clemente to my favorite bean and cheese burrito with potatoes from Pedros. It was delicious! To conclude my day I went over to Elise and Ryan's to check out their upgrades. I was amazed! My older brother is an artist and a craftsman! He has been putting in these beautiful wood floors upstairs and they look awesome! They also got new windows and their place looks great. I was a little jealous and we are STILL trying to get a place of our own that we can put our lives and maybe talents into.

Friday we drove to St. George for Ben, Jodi, Paige, Jesse, and Jensen's family sealing. When we got to St. George we just sat by the pool and relaxed. It was great seeing all of the James family again as everyone was there for the event. Tyler came down from Provo and we all went out to Cafe Rio for dinner. The sealing on Saturday was beautiful and quirky as you would expect it to be with 3 kids under 5, and 1.5 year old having a complete agenda of her own. We all went to a picnic at the park after and just enjoyed eachothers company. Tyler of course had a golf appointment and stayed for an hour then got to go enjoy the great weather and company of his Uncle Tim. That night we went to the Pizza Factory with my family, Mike and Megan James and Heather (Haldeman now Barnett). Again it was just great reconnecting with family.

So now that I have a complete history of my Spring Break I feel rejuvinated and ready to go back to my little prima donnas who are still taller and more mature than their male peers.

Something That Really Bust My Chops!

Alright friends and family, I have lived in Utah for over 5 years now and I am still happy.

I have found myself becoming increasingly annoyed when people say, "Your staying in Utah?" with a look of disappointment on their face. Or even take a further saying things like, "How could you betray your home of California," "Your getting stuck in the Utah bubble," "But how can you be happy so far away from the beach," and on-and-on the list could go.

I am staying Utah and I don't see anything bad about it. Although other people feel like California is Heaven on Earth, to me, it is not. So I thought I would create a list of why Tyler and I have decided to stay in Utah, so the next time I get some snotty-California-zionist remark I can simply refer them to this post and not let my feathers get all in a ruffle over it.

1.) Tyler and I are both employed in Utah AND have job security, neither have jobs in California.
2.) Tyler and I have family on opposite sides of the country. Utah is an excellent meeting place to see both sides of our family as often as we can.
3.) I have an excellent job at BYU, an opportunity that would be difficult to come by at a CA University.
4.) Tyler and I both plan on buying a house SOON with a 2-3 car garage and a yard we can actually have a medium sized dog in. No matter what happens to the real estate market, Utah will always be cheaper than Southern California.
5.) Tyler loves golf. In Utah he is able to golf for free almost all the time.
6.) Tyler and I DO NOT SURF. We love all the outdoor sports Utah offers such as mountain bike rides and boating in the summer and snowboarding and hunting in the colder months. (I don't hunt).
7.) We have really great friends and family here in Utah that we love being around.
8.) We love being close as our siblings and other family members come to BYU. We like to think of ourselves as the new little freshman's home away from home.
9.) The mountain ranges and lakes are equally as beautiful to us as the scenery in California. Nature regardless of where it is brings peace and happiness.
10.) My hair dries about 10 times faster in Utah than California.
11.) California's political and economic situation is an absolute disaster. I don't even want to get started on this, but it's no wonder Californian's are taxed for everything under the sun!
12.) I don't trust the CA Supreme Court. Enough Said.

Finally, we really just feel that we have the best of both worlds. We love our jobs, friends, family and situation here in Utah, but can go visit California just about any time we want. When we do go to California we can enjoy our family, the beach, the superior shopping (Utah will never compare), and mild weather without having to deal with the expense and political, social and economic turmoil.

Our priorities may be different from others, but it is okay, we are happy. I am not going to start wearing bekanstocks with socks, poofing my hair 3 feet high or assuming the "Mormon" way is the only way. Tyler sure as Hades will not turn into an overbearing patriachal maniac or start drawing out his vowels. Although I live in a different place I am still me and I still appreciate being accepted and respected!

WE ARE BOTH HAPPY IN UTAH. ALTHOUGH YOU MAY NOT BE, PLEASE JUST LET US BE!!!

Happy Valentines!

This Valentines Day we did something we will never forget....We went to the Monster Truck Rally in Salt Lake. It was awesome. Here are some pics. :)