See you soon.

I enter the MTC in just a couple of hours.

So I'll be gone for 18 months!

Exciting times, friends.

My address is on Facebook, so write me if you want to stay in touch! :)

Off on a new adventure.

Here I come Colorado! (Well, kind of. First stop: Provo.)



And don't worry, this isn't a goodbye. It's just a see you soon! :)

5000.

My apologies for not blogging in decades (or what feels like decades).

I really should soon.

You know, recount my trip, etc.

But I've been too busy with my looooooong list of things I have to get done.

Packing,
Emailing,
Phone calls,
Organizing,
Tying up last odds and ends,
Etc.

But I just checked on my blog today.

And I just noticed that today I've had 15 page views.
Weird.

Yesterday I had zero. haha so random!

But I now officially have 5000 total views.

Woot.

Okay, time to be productive. I'll try to visit again soon!

Olympics.

This is my life.

Every two years, you can guarantee this is where I am.
You could say I'm obsessed.

(Traveling at this particular time is a little bit of a bummer though because I can't just be lazy and watch the Olympics all day. Woe is me. BUT hopefully we'll be in London in a few days(!!!).)

Peace & blessings (and go Team USA!)

:)

Fast and Furious.

This trip has been a whirlwind.

We're going all day long.
Essentially.

And it has been crazy.

We've hiked through Swiss vineyards.
We've hiked through the Swiss Alps.
We've taken boats, trains and lots of car rides.

We've visited Switzerland, France, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium.

We've eaten Swiss cheese, French croissant (more specifically pain au chocolat), Traditional German food, Swiss AND Belgian chocolate, Belgian friets (fries) and obviously much more.

It's been great.

Tomorrow we're driving to France (from Belgium) to go to a French-speaking ward. Life in Europe is so crazy.

And then in a few days we'll hit up Holland, England (hopefully London!), Ireland, etc.

Excitement.

If you want to see more, follow me on instagram.
@danyelleeq

More to come soon? Perhaps.
:)

Are you a mom?

This past weekend I was a mom.

And it was everything I expected but so much more than I ever could've imagined.

(Which I know doesn't make sense. Deal with it.)

My mom duties started at 1:45 on Friday afternoon.

Three boys.

Me to entertain them.

All weekend.

We jumped on the trampoline, rode scooters, ate snacks, read books, played games, watched some 'Man vs. Wild', punched each other (well, the boys punched each other, I wasn't involved), ate popsicles on the porch, swam in my pool, fought, slept and ate.

All I can say is that I can attest to the fact that I am really not ready for children.
(Even though it would be different to acquire them slowly and from a young age.)

And three boys? Serious insanity.

Good thing the kids are so darn cute (and related) so it made it great.

They were full of funny things to say.
That is definitely a plus about children: they say the funniest things.

Thomas kept telling me he wanted so many babies (while we were playing Life).
Andrew said to my mom "You're a mommy." Presh.

It was fun though. It really was. There were some things about the weekend that made me really excited to have my own van-full of kids some day.

I just didn't like waking up early.

Zero to Three.

Today, I'm acquiring three children.

Ages 2, 6 & 8.

Three boys.

And I get to be their mom for the weekend.

Wish me luck. I'm not sure how this is going to turn out.

Luckily, I they seem to love me and their house is basically my second house.
(Not really but I do love it.)

Plus, I've already planned a fun-filled day of swimming at my house tomorrow.
It won't be too bad.


Right?

Six. Seis. Seis. Six. Seis. Six. Missionaries.

(Since it's mighty hard to tell from that, those numbers are in French, Portuguese, Spanish, English, Portoguese, English. hahaha)

It's weird because I'm the age right now where basically all of my friends are on missions.

And this summer is especially weird. Let me explain to you.
For 6 continuous months, I have a (pretty good*) friend entering the MTC.
[*pretty good means someone that is more than an acquaintance. It's someone I would consider a good friend. haha]

In May, Charlotte entered the MTC.

She's learning French and will be serving in the France, Paris Mission.

[I'm seriously SO excited for her and France is SO perf for her!]

In June, Erin entered the MTC.

She's learning Portuguese and will be serving in Brazil.

(At least that's the hope... she's still patiently waiting for her visa.)

(also, funny story. I told Erin and Charlotte to find each other. Erin recognized Charlotte right away... from the many blogs but Charlotte thought she had a creeper on her hands. But now I think things are good.)

In July, (actually, today), Kayla entered the MTC.

She'll be learning Spanish and will eventually be serving in Ecuador.

(Which is literally perfect for her because she worked in an orphanage there last year and already loves the people.)

In August, I enter the MTC.

English speaking and Colorado Bound! :)

(Which was a shock. But it'll be lovely.)

In September, Suzy Q enters the MTC.

She'll also be learning Portuguese and serving in Brazil.

(Although a different mission than Erin. And she goes to the Brazil MTC so we don't overlap in Provo, sadly.)

In October, Suzanne enters the MTC.

She'll be speaking English and serving in Texas.

(We're kind of twinsies.)

So yeah. It's pretty insane actually.

I seriously love these girls.

 Ecuador, Texas, Colorado. (We were the three pre-missionary friends.)

And this was our final picture until we're reunited again. :)

 France, Colorado, Brazil. 

After Hezekiah's Tunnel. 

[We're statues.]

Brazil and Colorado.

Everyday is an adventure.

So, Six months.

Six friends.

Six happy reunions. :)

Until Fall 2013/Spring 2014.

Blog Hopping.

I don't know about most people but sometimes, I get in a mood where I am really into blogs. So I'll start reading one of my friends blogs and then I'll read one of their friends... etc.

The other day, I did this and I ended up at this blog because I read on a different blog how bizzare their love story is. (And it really is, see?)

I then kinda became consumed by this blog. I started reading through the archives. Until I got to a post where she mentions this blog. (And their super crazy love story.)

I then read through alllllll the archives. And I mean I literally read every post she's ever written.
Because, you know, I have tons of spare time, at the moment.

And I kinda love their family. It's a super strange story but it's really cute how she was there when he really needed her. And it's interesting to see how she has really taken on the role of mother, for kids who are almost old enough to be her peers.

I think I especially liked her when she mentioned she started blogging because of nienie. And how she impatiently waits for CJane to update her blog. Love it.


And most importantly, I feel in love with her in this post.

In case you don't want to click on all these links, I'll tell you what she posted about. She mentions how she loves to travel and how one of her favorite places is here:

 In fact, the first picture she has is of the Dome.

(And to clarify, the favorite place she is talking about is Israel in general, not just the Dome.)

It's funny how I feel like I have a connection with anyone who has been there.

And you know what, I still miss it everyday.

Don't judge.

Maybe all I've worn for the last week is pajamas.

Maybe I sleep until 11 and than stay in bed until... the late afternoon.

Maybe last Thursday, I only left my bed five times. And 4/5 of those times was a quick bathroom break. The other time was at 10pm to visit the real world (aka rest of the house) for 70 minutes.

Maybe I feel no shame eating pudding 4 times a day. And ice cream in between that.

Maybe I hate how food doesn't taste normal to me currently.

Maybe I should start being more productive (while still being in bed, obviously).

Maybe I only have two more days to be lazy (because my post-op is on Friday and I said I got to be
lazy until the doctor tells me otherwise.)

Maybe I can't wait until I can eat a really good sandwich. Or strawberries. Or cereal. Or really anything.

And maybe, I'm really glad that I've had two little nurses here to take care of me and that my mouth/throat is healing so nicely. :)

recovery.

Yesterday, I left my bed a total of 5 times.

And I was only gone for a total of 2 hours.

But I waited a full 24 hours of laying in bed before leaving for more than a quick trip to the bathroom.

ha. surgery is fun.


random fact: yawning is literally the most painful thing ever.

Life Lately.

Just a few pictures to recap my life, as of late.

(I'm really regretting not taking my phone to capture all my surgery memories: hospital gown, socks with paws, and my party hat. oh wellll.)

Wednesday:

Road trip to Oregon. Look at our little driver.

Wednesday evening-Sunday Morning:

Albany, Oregon.

Sunday Morning:

Erin's lovely Farewell.

(And a rather long drive home...)

Monday evening:

FHE at Girls'  Young Women's Camp.

This is the view of the ocean, which is covered in a thick layer of fog. 

Gorgeous. :)

Monday night:

This is my inbox after a lovely (and last) chat with ERY.

I already miss that girl!

And yes, as already mentioned, my tonsils got removed yesterday. The recovery has been swell. 

(And, my blog readership is down to approximately one. Now that Sister Searle and Sister Young are both in the MTC. Bummer.)

iStalk.

When you think of summer you think of pools, the beach, barbeques, freedom, sunshine, warmth.

And leisurely bike rides.

Yesterday, Jack and I decided to have our first one of the summer.

Mostly because we have some friends from Hollywood in town.

aka Ashton Kutcher, and a whole bunch of his friends.

When I say friends though, I really mean film crew (although I would bet that they are friends too!)

Jack and I rode our little bikes through a few streets, then stopped and stared.

And just watched them film.
They did this motorcycle part over and over again.

And on the first take, we almost saw motorcycle guy wipe out. (I think it was Matthew Modine but I'm not entirely sure.)
It was funny.

And everytime he got back on the bike to shoot again, thy had to jump the bike. Seems a little ridiculous? But great.

Plus, it was really funny to hear all the movie lingo and be a part of it.
They said "quiet on the set".
"Cut." (And my favorite guy working there would say "Cut-o").
Etc.


Movie sets are fun.

Oh, and I forgot to mention why they're here.

They're making a movie (entitled Jobs) that is about Steve Jobs and the starting of Apple.
So what they're currently filming is inside Job's childhood home (and the garage that they built the first Apple computer in).

Fun Fact: For those of you who don't know, Steve Jobs went to the same elementary school, and high school as I did. And the same middle school that I was would've gone to had I not done the whole private thing. And the Chipotle that I frequent, is the one surrounded by Apple's campus. Essentially I would lunch with Apple geeks frequently in high school. (That's like my big fact when I need to feel cool about myself. ha.)

So yep. That's what's going on now. They're filming for three days.
And today, the entire street was blocked off.
Too many nosey little neighbors.

Definitely a good beginning to the summer.

Oregon, here we come!

Two Tourist Days.

The Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, my cousin Mark flew into SFO with his wife, Danielle (which is literally the most confusing thing ever).

Mark has visited us before but Danielle hasn't been here.

Which means it was time to be tourists.

Monday, we did San Francisco and Oakland. Aka:

Golden Gate Bridge (first from the Marin Headlands).

Fun fact: it was the bridge's 75th birthday the day before we were there.

This is probably the picture I took that I love the most. I took it without looking, just pointing my camera up towards the sky (through the car window) while driving across the bridge. A+.

Allie, Dan, Jack, Nate, Danielle, Mark.

Just uploading a picture to facebook, of course.

This poor kid got a little abused at Pounder's beach (in Hawaii) shortly before arriving here.

Lombard Street

More Golden Gate Bridge (from Golden Gate Park)

 Oakland Temple

Fenton's

(we were also celebrating my birthday!)

Tuesday, we went South.

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Henry Powell Redwoods

 Danielle, Mark, Jack, Mom and Dan.

(Nate and Allie were at school and my dad at work. Bummer.)

 Just a little scale. Do you see little Mark in front of the tree? Yep, he's a good 6'4".

Inside the tree!

And we ended the evening with dinner at Rok. Which I don't have pictures of.

But it was a super fun and fast-paced two days.

And Wednesday, being the nice cousin I am, I woke up at 4:30am to drive them to the airport.

It's always fun to be a little tourist.

End of May

These final days of May have been hectic.

The good thing about it though is that I've taken lots of pictures.

San Fran. Monterey. Santa Cruz. Etc.

I just haven't had a chance to look through them all and deal with them.

But the reasoning for the pictures was my lovely cousin Mark visiting with his cute wife Danielle.
aka time to be tourists.

Yesterday involved a quick trip to the airport (at 4:30 am) to drop those kiddos off. And then resulted in me having a huge realization: I'm entering the MTC soon. As in three months.

But Charlotte is there now. And that's freaky.
(She's already gotten a letter from me. I'm so great at writing letters.)

Today however, I spent writing my final paper.

Last homework assignment until Spring of 2014. Stoked. (And it feels so great to be done!)

And then I got to hold the cutest little baby for a good hour.

Yeah, it was great. I love little Jane. :)

Tomorrow is another drive to the airport. And relaxation.

plus, life is so great now because I can pinterest all day long and blame it on researching for missionary clothes. 

The real reason for this post was this: I can't believe it's June. 

This summer is going to fly.

There's a bird outside right now whose internal clock is really screwed up.

It's 12:17 am and it's chirping like crazy.
Ridiculous. Can't it see that it's not daytime?

I think it's funny.
Cause I'm sitting here texting Erin but the rest of the house is sleeping.

Silly birds. Time to sleep!

A Magical Letter.

On my birthday, I got a text that said this:

"YOUR CALL ARRIVED!!!"

This was sent to me from my dear mother.

Charlotte and I obviously started freaking out. 

I was still going to be in Salt Lake until Monday so that little letter was just going to be sitting at my house all weekend long. Waiting for me to open it up.

Every so often during the weekend, Charlotte or I would, out of the blue, just say:

"Your/My call is just sitting at your/my house!"

The suspense kept building.

Even friends of Nicole's knew that my call was sitting at my lovely little abode. 

People were excited.

The weekend was full of suspense and excitement. 

Charlotte and I just assumed that I was going to be going to Paris with her. Clearly.

So much chatter regarding it.

Even random people in her ward, whom I didn't even know, wanted to make sure that I would call Charlotte, and that she would tell them where I'm going. Hilarious.

Anyway, the weekend passed way too fast and way too slow at the same time.

Too fast because it was my last weekend with Charlotte until 2014.

Too slow because I wanted to open the letter.

Once I got home on Monday, I had to wait for everyone to get home too.

From school, work, etc.

The time finally came. 

And that sucker got ripped open.

And I read these words:

A letter from President Monson as a birthday present? Sure, I'll take that!

EXCITEMENT.

Although, if we're being honest, I was way shocked. 

I was kind of anticipating going foreign.

And if I was going stateside, I didn't expect Colorado at all.

Especially since it's Jessica's mission.

And I know others who live there too.

[source.]

But it'll be an adventure! And I'm excited for it! :)

See you in September, Denver!

[Now onto the struggle of finding cute missionary clothes. Wish me luck!]