part dos (2 en espanol- this IS los angeles, get with it).

i apologize if anyone has felt mislead.  my most recent post was about the first half of all this summer's/fall's ongoings.  and i made it seem as though i would be returning soon with the last half.  meh, 2 months later is still a return.

LA.

two weeks after we got married, we relocated to West Los Angeles.  when asked where i am from, i have always replied with a simple "st. louis".  i do love that city and am happy to claim it.  and while we are not in downtown Los Angeles, it is our official home. it is also the closest that i have ever come to city living (and it's not just thugs and homeless people!).  1. utah county completely diluted my reality and 2. white collar suburbs/borderline countryside in st. louis county was nothing like this.

1. DRIVING.

we've all heard about the 405 or the 10 and seen the pictures. terrifying. and let's be honest- i can barely reach the pedals, i have no sense of direction and i have been in accidents (believe it or not, none were my fault!) and so i am timid when i am driving with other people in my car. all of this added to my racial and gender stigmas going against me- no bueno (that means "no good" in spanish. i have learned a lot in LA).  but i actually do not mind the driving here.  i have simply come to accept the fact that there will always be traffic.  which means:

a. we rarely venture out beyond the 3 mile radius of our apartment.

b. even in that small vicinity, driving time can be an hour or more.

c. life revolves around parking availability.

d. ALWAYS have snacks. you could be sitting a while.

for the most part, people here are efficient drivers.  meaning that they will let you merge in, but good gracious, once they give you those 4 inches of go ahead, you best go.  and i mean go.  because those 4 inches, mean that you have about 3 seconds to take them.  and traffic laws? i am sure that they are enforced somewhere, sometime, but i have never seen it. but i have witnessed the most creative, hazardous, and obscure driving.  the lack of adherence to traffic laws makes the gridlock game extra fun.  living amongst the rich and famous means that we pretty much get a car show everywhere we go.  there are literally millions of dollars in automobiles in the parking lot of jared's workplace.  i feel really awesome pulling up to jared's building in sally the civic to hand my husband his homemade lunch in a recycled grocery sack.  no really i do.  i have amazing gas mileage (major bonus because even unleaded will cost you your first born), i zip in and around cars like a boss, and i am a pretty good wife to make and bring lunch to him.

2. SHOPPING/RESTAURANTS

within our little area of life, there are stores and restaurants that easily cater to over 30 different countries' cultures. 

a. that's admirable and impressive.

b. we can try new things.

c. for the love of grease, why can't we have taco bell or wendy's!??!

d. small businesses have a chance!

there are practically no chain restaurants here. lots of coffee, yoga studios, dry cleaners and costume shops, but no jr. bacon cheeseburgers. it's awful. fortunately, we have managed to find and settle for decent replacements.  grocery shopping is adventure.  they don't have 24 hour stores or super targets, super walmarts, etc.  luckily the renters before us were subscribed to the sunday paper and we still get it. hello red plum coupon books. and somehow i still spend way too much time and money at target. boo.

3. SOCIAL LIFE.

we don't have one. we are dating each other exclusively.

 between 12 hour workdays for both of us, jared studying for his series 7 (and passing!) test, being new to the ward and having no other contacts, there isn't much time left (or energy). but thankfully yelp and netflix are always at our ready.

luckily, we also get visitors! we've already had several house guests and it's been a blast. and we have become more outgoing over the past few weeks and have had a lot of fun with families in the ward and are grateful for the opportunities we have had to get to know more people. plus- they all have adorable kids. 

la has had it's conglomerate of pros and cons thus far.  taco trucks are always good. and there are a ton of jews- they take their holidays very seriously, it's highly commendable (on yom kippur there was NO traffic!).  amazing retail shopping available, primarily perfect weather, sidewalks everywhere, recycling, the temple, our jobs, the beach...and stuff.

being here has caused me to realize a few things: 

1. i had no idea i actually used the mountains to know my NESW directions (i get so turned around here, all i know is ocean is west).

2. apparently, i used to eat a lot of fast food.

3. there are a bagillion asians (and they still dress weird here too).

4. a lot of houses/buildings look old and small from the outside, but the inside will blow your mind. 

5. people still don't know much about mormons (awesome missionary opportunities).

6. i hoard quarters (ick coin laundry and meter parking).

7. people still smoke and it's gross (and WHY would you smoke inside your brand new aston martin???)

8. that i used to talk on the phone a lot while driving (but NEVER texted, i swear, so stupid).

9. i am a neurotic cleaner. but i love our apartment.

well there is my blurb about LA.  i feel like now i can start posting regularly about our life together in california.  but as you can see, tiny social life, newlywed bank account, and no time means that it may not be anything all that cool.

last week.

last week was spent in las vegas with jared and his family for the holidays. it was quite the experience. this is the first time that i have gone home with a boy other than just guy friends. but i suppose overall, it went well.  our families are very different, so there was and still is a lot of learning to do. but it was fun to get to know them better and understand j better as well. we played a lot of games, ate a lot of food (i had my first real deep fried turkey), played more games, took naps, played with the kiddos, and stuff. it was great.

he has the cutest little nephews. they make me feel so loved and special. i wish i would have gotten a few pictures of them. they really are picture perfect little toeheads. after our morning of shooting lots of stuff, we went to panera bread- that was soooo great. i miss that place a lot. we met up with scotty a few times too and the good times just kept rollin. 

we kinda forgot to take any pictures while we were there...but this is us heading back to provo. awful experience. but we made it.  and jared finally shaved.

i survived off of my favorite road trip snack

see how it is even the new bigger size? this is why america is fat, but it is also why i was very happy.

and now we are officially back in cold, poopy provo. just a couple more hectic weeks before finals and then jetsetting home for christmas. 

in other big news... i accomplished something pretty big. i actually did one of the crafts from my pinterest. i am helping with the corporate christmas party details.  gift cards are so impersonal as it is... so i decided that they should at least be cute.

well it took forever and i realized that being cute may just not be worth the hassle.  especially when i realized that everyone will probably just rip them apart, take out the gift card and throw out my packaging. oh well. tis' the season to be a little fancy. 

and in more great news:

the nba lockout has been ended. phew. the jazz might not be that great this year and i still wish that jerry was coaching, but at least my winter blues will be able to find some solace in the game. 

ps i figured out how to use facetime on my phone... 

security.

i have not changed the door knob on my bedroom since i lived in orem, years ago. but i realized, with the holidays, anyone would know that all of these student apartment complexes become ghost towns. so i decided to get a keyed entry doorknob for my bedroom. i like to think that since i am on the second floor and you cannot reach my windows, that if anyone tried to break in, it would help a little?  i don't know. but it made me feel better about the safety of my things while i am away (i will have princess shiba, my phone, my ipod, and by bike key, and pretty much anything of monetary value with me, but what if they try to steal my shoes or something? or my books? safety first).

jared subscribed to the idea and so we went to home depot last night (i love that store so much) to purchase a new knob (he is also quite the bargain shopper).  upon returning home, he offered to come over and switch out my old doorknob for the new one (he is a kind gentleman). i insisted that i was perfectly capable of switching them out myself (i am a prideful dummy)... well the next thing i knew, i was shut in my bedroom and completely unable to open the door. immediate claustrophobia set in and i called jared back in a humiliated panic to come let me out. by the time he got there, i had taken it apart and gotten out in one piece...but still. moral of the story: i am kinda like a guy- i think that i can do anything and fix anything. and worse, that i don't need instructions. in my defense, i am more handy than most females, but also impatient and hardheaded when it comes to completing projects...and this can lead to being locked in my bedroom with no way out.

i about 4.5 hours, we will be on the road to j's homeland... the fabulous las vegas.by no means to i feel any affinity towards that city. it is filthy, windy, dry and there are no trees. but he insists it is a pretty great place. i am perfectly happy to spend thanksgiving with his family and in the nevada sunshine... but i will have to keep an open mind during this visit as far as coming to a liking of the place.

oh and one perk of being child size is that you can wear shoes from the kids' stores. and in my case, i did just that. saved more than 50% off the adult price. and i love them.

finally got my gray vans.

i hate malls.

bet that you never thought i would say that.
i live for my weekends. usually by friday, i am so burned out from everything earlier in the week, that all i want to do is eat a real meal and go to bed. it also means that j and i get to spend all day together. this weekend was super busy. friday night we went to the byu hockey game and it was a lot of fun. i will admit, the first hour or so i spent my time focusing on this:

having a smart phone is a blast. yesterday while j and i were waiting for interviews, we sat out in the foyer playing games together. when i was waiting in a long line at the store, i played solitaire. it is just great.

after the game we (the boys and me, what's new) went to the cocoa bean. the cocoa bean is actually a really great idea. this little place has all the yummy coffee/tea drinks, sans coffee/tea! and they are super yummy and appropriately priced. i tried out their pumpkin drink and it was chai tea (christmas in a cup) without anything questionable. just yumminess.

saturday after a very productive morning of cleaning, reading and homework, j and i went up to murray to go to the fashion place mall.  the new H&M , Crate and Barrel and this place,

had all just opened. a whole North Face store. even j who thinks that it is boring and overpriced was impressed and found things that he liked. the rest of the experience was a bit overwhelming. i have never been in a busier mall in my life. it was rude, pushy, loudness everywhere. we walked into j.crew which was significantly more open and lacking crowds and we both just let out a sigh of relief. but we were able to find two suits for j, so overall, it was a productive trip.

last night we made a really good dinner together again. i highly recommend 

gold'n plump chicken. they are prepackaged in their marinades and ready to be cooked or frozen right away. the 4 packs go on sale all the time at target. and they have a lot of different flavors. plus they are quality meats and have hardly any calories. 

we leave for vegas tomorrow and i can hardly concentrate. i want to get out of provo so badly. i would like to get out of utah permanently, but i will take a 5 day break for now. i have already downloaded the first 13 hours of Atlas Shrugged for us to listen to on the way down. we cannot wait to get out of here, be someplace warm, play with the kiddos and eat like fat people. mmmm. 

well...hello.

it's been a little minute since i have blogged (approx 648,000 minutes...). i have had every intention to post again but i was just getting so far behind and it was overwhelming trying to think of a way to write about everything that has been going on. because you know me, my life is so exciting and there is always something new and fabulous worthy of cyber report. i lieu of the sarcastic nature of that previous statement, i am going to proceed with this post as though there has been no hiatus.

this past week we had our first snowfall. i was not happy about it because i do not like being cold. however, all things considered, this has been a very mild end of autumn thus far. the night prior to the mini blizzard (like 100 snowflakes total), j and i had been outside in shorts playing tennis. such pleasant weather should have been a red flag. as soon as i felt the chill that morning, i knew that there was only one thing to do.  make grilled cheese and tomato soup for dinner that night.

i never buy bread. and i definitely don't buy grandma sycamore bread. not because it is bad but because it is so ridicuously good, that i could eat a whole loaf in a sitting. however, if you don't have fresh sour dough, it is the only way to go. and i don't believe in kraft singles. cheddar is better. lots of butter, a pan and some heat and yum. pacific organic soups are my favorite. add some basil and you have a warm, yummy meal.  and of course, you may only cut your sandwich in triangles, how else can you effectively dip??

i enjoy cooking. i have a lot of fun learning new recipes, making up my own and trying new foods. it has been fun to make dinner for j and myself a few nights a week. and the best part:

i cook, he eats and then he helps clean (and always takes out the trash), it is a beautiful system we have going. 

let's see....some other things that have been going on besides school and work... ummm oh yeah, the cardinals  WON THE WORLD SERIES!!!

i hope that ya'll watched the series, especially the epic game 6. one of the most amazing displays of baseball that i have ever witnessed. i am so happy for our cardinals! although tony will be very missed. i remember dancing to this song in the fourth grade on his behalf.  aww and remember ozzie?  the good ol' days.

and for some more big news...( that is such a relative term)

i got my first pair of big girl, leather boots. they are a great winter accessory, fashionable and functional, but i could not bring myself to make the $200+ investment. well, thanks to birthday love and bargain shopping, i didn't have to. it is taking a little adjusting to wear something so trendy, but i have suffered through enough cold, wet footed winters.  the time was at hand. plus they go so well with my other accessory obsession.

this is the best bag that i have ever had. they fold up into the tiniest things but hold SO many things! sturdy, classy, leather and waterproof. god bless longchamp. 

i hate school. but i love my job.  i miss my yoga class but have decided to get back into it myself. plane tickets for the holidays are purchased. new iphone is in the mail. the general conference issue of the ensign is here. j is the best and i love him a bushel and peck and hug around the neck. life is going well.

tonight we are off to a cabin in southern utah with his family. should be a great time. more bloggy love to come.

just a bit too early.

once upon a time i bought a plasma tv. two months later, the newer model came out and my tv was discounted $250. another time i bought a nikon camera. one month later the new (and much improved) coolpix came out for the same price that i had paid for mine. oh and princess shiba- while she is a great laptop- same exact thing happened. three months later, the newer edition was in stores.  

well...this weekend we went to st. george. the ladies and i have been excited about this for weeks.  we were dying to be warm, get some hiking in at zions, be bronzed and happy. we planned everything out, everyone got school and work completed in time to go... it snowed and rained the entire time. like big snow. bad driving, slushy stuff and cats and dogs kind of rain. but of course, as we were coming back today, the weather took a sudden turn to this:

it was beautiful. of course, right when we are packing up to leave. but OH WELL! because we still had a fabulous time and it was a great remedy for provo blues.

we may or may have not totally dressed appropriately for the blizzard that hit the first day we were there.

but we managed to stay happy and have fun. 

i think that the gourmet cookies from the shack on the side of the road helped. no really, they were so good. can you not tell from anna's face?

we were fortunate enough to have a free stay at sach's parent's house in st.george. the place was great. i never wanted to leave. it is amazing what a difference a water softener, heated toilet seats, pretty applicances, and big huge comfy beds (with silky sheets...ahhhhhh) can do. 

we caught up on some movies, read books, played games, hung around some shops, saw tdawg and crew and ate. a lot.  it was restful, filling and fun. oh and such a great beiber experience.

i am really lucky to have these girls for neighbors.  there is a bit of an age spread between us, but we all get along so well. we had some great pillow talk about our lives, our families, the gospel, school, pretty much everything and it just reminded me of how blessed i am to have friends like these (and they are females!!! i have girlfriends!!) in my life. they are all quiet, humble and compassionate examples to me.  next year we will be roommates and it will be great. parties in #9.

what happened to doing nothing.

perhaps this will sound rather pathetic (this is my blog...so what's new), but do you know what my favorite part of the weekend is??  doing nothing.

i allow myself to get stupid busy during the week and terribly sleep deprived, so by the time the weekend comes around, i cannot wait to just be lazy. however, these past couple weekends have not really been all that restful. but they sure have been a lot of fun!

the weekend began with a show. tommy and i went and saw the lincoln lawyer. it was so good. we kept looking at each other and whispering "oh my gosh, this movie is awesome." i am not a chick flick matthew mcconaughey fan, but i am a fan of him when he is being a bad ass, like he was in this movie. afterwards i got my fill of guru's (that veggie burrito is worth gold) for the week. perfect

saturday my ward went to manti for a temple trip. it was my first time down in sanpete in over a year. i miss that town. i had been to the manti temple many times but i was not endowed at the time. so this trip was the first time  that i was able to participate in a session and it was a great experience. we stayed down there for quite some time and it was really nice to be in the company of people form my ward. but straight from there i ran errands like a crazy person. then it was off to dinner with the "weekend dinner group" and hung out with them. i do not think that my weekend is complete without some sort of meal with them.

oh and now for the cool part... (not that the other parts weren't cool...so this is the part that makes me cool- according to others' opinions and shock). 

saturday night at about 11:30 PM, andrew and i went to american fork to watch the longest, fully constructed bridge being moved into its resting place. i know, exciting. it was the biggest one in the western hemisphere (so i have been told 11 times). and it moved realllllyyyy slow. but it was cool...construction management majors seemed to get a bit more out of it than i did, but it was surprisingly engaging to watch- until i lost all feeling in my outer extremities from the freezing cold.

i do not know if it was from staying up until 2 AM the night before and then going to church at 9 or what, but i was lazier than ever on sunday.  it was church, movies, sunday drive, lounging, and more movies. i think that i actually exhausted myself with all the nothingness. but it was lovely at the same time. 

and now it is back to work, back to school, back to life. but our furnace was repaired, i got 2 free samples from sephora today, this month's yoga journal just arrived and tonight i am going to a concert. so the exhausted thing will probably be a continuing trend this week, but all is well.

spoke too soon...

the world decided to remind me that i forgot to knock on wood yesterday as i was relishing in all my blessings and awesome life. because i woke up late and as i was stuffing all my things into my bag and running out the door, i remembered to grab breakfast and feed sully...

sully was dead.

floating. gray. dead.

i know that it sounds a bit melodramatic to be saddened over the loss of a $2 fish, but he was more than that. we almost had a full year together.  he survived a lot of my carelessness, babysitters, soapy rocks, etc.  he was a great fish to have. sully was the best and one of the longest relationships that i have ever had. he never cheated, he never lied, he just swam around and was happy. and now it is over. when i first got him, ang and i sat at the kitchen table just watching him for really pathetically extended amounts of time. but he made me smile.  again, i know- he is just a fish. but it was nice to have some sort of life with me for more than a semester at a time.

luckily for my broken little pet owner heart, kenny was there to make it better (his 13 year old puppy just died last week- tragic...really...it made me feel bad for being so sad over a fish. but what's mine is mine). we took a nice, long, evening walk to the river where we let sully out to find his final resting place. breakfast will be lonely without him.  but ode to sully, such a great fishy. he will be missed.

it is all in my head.

It has been scientifically proven (I am kinda making that up, but pretty sure it is true) that there is a direct correlation between school (the actual place) and headaches (the kind that make you frustrated, impatient and hungry).  But I don't have time to be frustrated (see, the whole impatience thing). So I will just make sure to keep my lavender and peppermint oil on hand (it actually goes on your forehead and relieves headaches like magic), a prayer in my heart, some good tunes in the car (most of the time i prefer the silence as a nice change of pace) and a smile on my face.  Free time is slipping into the abyss of responsibility, but i will just

.

oh and luckily, I have a yoga class. and a new cupcake cookbook. and excel spreadsheets for my life. and sundays. and running. and sweet boys. and sully. thank god for sully.

bloggy blog.

So it has been a little minute since I have shared anything with the blogging world. You know that point when so much time has passed that even a simple task seems like a completely overwhelming undertaking (love how those two words can work together)? 

(Eg: when I have not written in my journal for a time, I feel like there is so much to write that I should just abandon ship all together... or another example....there is a guy that I have ran next to at the gym for over two years. We exchange hellos everyday and small talk- but have I ever posed the basic quandary of what his name is??? nope. And now it just seems silly.)

Well here it goes:

Books: 

it is raw and not for everyone. but i loved it.


• Hunger Games Series. Good and bad.
  
• The Glass Castle. Stellar.
• Ron Paul's The Revolution.  Enlightening.
• A couple church books, the entire Book of Mormon, the Cycling magazine that my friend has subscribed me to, a few hippie books (being a vegetarian midwife will take a lot of educating).

Men:

i am going to miss my joely so much. but no fear, he will be back in january (hooray for T and Lauren getting married!!) for a visit and then to Reno i go in feb. I only cry a little when I walk by his empty parking space.

• I have the best guy friends in the world.
• Am I getting married to any of them in particular?  That is still to be determined.

Dates have been fun.  Winter provides a lot of fun outdoor opportunities to get to know people.  Take a look at this sexy man...(he was only slightly excited about the resorts opening)

yep. that's blakey and he is adorable and keeping Sully alive while I am home for Christmas....at least he better be.

Family:

driving to CO.

baby aves sleepin like a doll. a squishy doll.

Nastia...truly enjoying that Wyoming scenery...

sleeping like a rock and dreaming of john mayer.

• I am home! My family is spectacular. I have finally spent some time with the babies, my sisters and my fantastic parental units. We have a fun, busy, snowy week ahead of us. 
• Plus, welcome our little Russian, Nastia!  Utah got the best of her and she has gone blonde... luckily you can always dye it back. But she is a gem.
• Speaking of parents: They are going to FIJI for their mission in January!  Fijian Christmas 2011? Sure.

Um and tid bits:

• My birthday was amazing. seriously one of the best ever. We literally sold out Pantruca's. Much to their delight of course. They are so good to me. The whole day was just fabulous. I received some stellar presents too. The best: my coloring books and my hour and a half long full body massage. bliss.
• Thanksgiving with the Murphy's was more than I could ever ask for. Let's face it, I am a pseudo murphy and we all know it.

so...at both my christmas and birthay party the male to female ratio was about 6:1. Like I said...awesome guy friends. still lacking on the female end. But making progress!

White elephant was extremely successful.

• Our christmas party was a total bash. Cops came and everything. seriously. it happened. 

bit of a flour explosion when baking 6 dozen sugar cookies for the party.

some of the party guests' artwork.

• Basketball is in full swing, work is steady, school is out for another couple weeks, and I love it.

I am just so happy.

a couple of weeks ago...

I had the best weekend of 2010. 

Lily, Whitney and I went down to St. George to run around in the red rock and get some sun. It was a weekend of many firsts, lots of laughs and bonding.

Some of the highlights of the trip:

1. talking in the car- sounds silly but these girls are intelligent, kind, funny and creative, the conversation is animated and stimulating. 

2. the man at the hotel desk..."yeah".

3. breaking glow stick stuff all over pre-race and LOOKING LIKE AN AVATAR!!

4. running in the mass of 100's of people in the Midnight 5k.

5. cheering on the last runner- an 80 year old, breast cancer survivor named Susie. It was so great to see her finish with all her friends, family and a bagillion other people rooting for her. What a great reminder of how grateful I should be for my body and its abilities.

6. discovering Crystal Light Pure Fitness. Fabulous.

7. going to Zions.

8. hiking Angel's Landing on a BEAUTIFUL day.

9. jumping in the freezing river.

10. the trolley...we made it back luckily "cuz this is as far as she goes".

11. Rio- we were starving...we went the whole day on water and soy nuts.

12. outlets.

13. the most entertaining and enlightening conversation of my year on the way home ;)

14. i got my first sunburn. finally. it happened!

So yes, it was amazing. I am so blessed to have these girls for friends. I loved that Lily was able to finish her first race. It was the most fun run that I have ever participated in. Zions was truly breathtaking.  I couldn't stop running (sorry Lily and Whitney...), it just felt like flying and there were so many fantastic places to climb and run! It made me feel so small and sometimes I really need that. Aside from the temple, no places or times bring me closer to my Heavenly Father then when I am bathed in the sunshine out in beautiful, pure nature. We were in Kolob (really, we were). It was an awe inspiring experience.

So that was our weekend. I cannot wait to go back. I love my friends (they are such good people!), my body (ok...that one is a half lie...but I am trying to be more grateful for it), nature (I need to get out of provo more often), and that it is SUMMER!

busy bee.

Thursdays have become the busiest day of my week. Perhaps it is to catch up on things that I have put off during the week, or perhaps it is in attempt to get ahead so that I may enjoy my weekend as much as possible. Regardless, Thursdays are go, go, go!

For example, today:

Wake up early (sore), work (rotten moods today for some reason), temple (finally some peace, but still busy), dinner (veggies. hooray for diets), a bagillion errands (nothing makes me as ornery as the post office… ), laundry (i had no idea i use so many clothes), pack (st. george!), gym (I am still sore…),read (only 45 pages left), movie night (I plan on passing out).

holy. pooh.

And that is just the BASIC schedule for the day. This does not include all the little things, the driving time, the showers,  breathing, etc. (etc being: the internal whining that will happen on the treadmill, the swearing in my head when the people are shootin’ the breeze at the bank, the first batch of veggies I will burn, bleh).

But, while this is today, tomorrow will be SO much better! (and yes, I am aware that things could be much worse than a busy day…besides I actually kinda like ‘em??) 

So tomorrow: I am mini road tripping to St. George with my Lilikins and Whitney (no men, this is a first for me).

We will be bronzed, little running girls and I will be experiencing Zion’s for my first time.

I think that a little PTO, running in the red rocks, and playing with the ladies is just what the doctor would order…if I believed in going to doctors. 

hooray.

Guess who works with me now?

My kk! someone to share einstein, taco tuesdays, maverick runs, workplace woes and happy moments with. It is the best. (luckily she is several flights of stairs away...so running up and down them a bagillion times a day- in a dress no less- kinda evens out our snacking)