Leap Day.

For some reason, I LOVE Leap Day. And I really have no idea why.

Maybe because the reason behind it is Earth Science-y and I love that.

Or because I just love extra time.

Actually, I have no idea why I like it.

But ever since I learned about it (say, elementary school at some point), I've always wished my birthday was Leap Day.

Just to be unique I guess.

Unfortunately I wasn't even born in a Leap Year so I had ZERO chance of that happening but still, one can still wish.

I also wish I had a twin.

Woe is me.

Anyway, today was marvelously wonderful.

Rain, constant babysitting (i.e. money) and down time.

Perfect.

Plus, just knowing that today is Leap Day makes the day so much better.

I hope yours was just as wonderful! :)

Twins.

Happy 21st Birthday to Little Lottie Dottie!

We're basically two peas in a pod and I love her to the moon and back.

New favorite song that (I'm pretending to) relates to this:

"I swear there's a lot of vegetables out there

That crop up for air

Yeah I never thought

We were two peas in a pod

Until you suddenly bloomed

Then I knew

That I'd always love you."

"Honey and The Bee" - Owl City. :)

Plus, this is really just an excuse to post super (embarrassing yet) awesome pictures of us that haven't been seen by the interwebbing world yet. :)

Bus in Turkey. Typical.

Problematic snorkeling gear.

Before our "drunken" evening.

Just hanging out in the City of David.

King Abdullah Mosque.

JRowdy ducking out of the picture. Classy.

A smidge too close BUT we have the same color eyes (aka twins).

Bus ride in Galilee. :) We got lots of practice.

Oh, just hanging out at the Herodian.

Love you Lottie! I miss blogging/talking/venting/homeworking? with you in the Cave.

See you in approximately 5 weeks... hopefully! :)

Bad and Good.

"i love jared ludlow jr."

That is what my sister wrote/wants me to write.

And since she wrote that (for me), here is a lovely picture of her. :)

Anyway.

Here is what I was really going to say/the truth:

[Bad]

#1. I went to work for 3.5 hours today. But I was really only working for the first two hours and then they had me surfing the interwebs for the next hour and a half while sporadically doing about two seconds of work. Which normally sounds great. I know how to spend hours on end at home on the computer... but once you take away my computer (or more specifically, Google Chrome) I have nothing to do. So I very quickly got bored at work. Boo.

I miss days when this was my life. And not when I had to pretend to be productive at work.

#2. Having my hands covered in paper cuts. That's what I do at work. And it really hurts. :(

#3. Once I got home, I had to have BYU send my transcript (aka Jerusalem grades/credits) to BYU-Idaho.

BYU charged me $5 so that they could e-mail an official transcript to Rexburg.

Last year, I had to do the reverse, as part of my application to the Jerusalem Center and BYU-Idaho sent it to me, through the real mail for free.

Does some one want to explain that to me? Something that costs a school $0, they charge me $5. To do something that costs the school $.45 (although it was technically less), and they charge me nothing. So rude slash another reason why I love BYU-Idaho.

BYU, you were great because you gave me the opportunity to hang out with this guy but I don't appreciate you stealing my money.

#4. Later this evening, my sewing/craft adventure is took a turn for the worse. Let's just say it's not going so well anymore. At all. We're going to have to start back at square one. And start with a new whole plan. Cause this fabric is just not working out. Which makes me horribly, horribly sad. :(

Artsy Shot from last night... doesn't look so good anymore. :(

So tomorrow the project will probably resume after a quick trip to JoAnn's.

Hopefully I'll be able to complete the project like I want to because my finished product will most likely be the most favorite possession of mine, ever.

[Good]

#1. It has been gorgeous here in the past couple of days. Over the weekend, it was in the mid-70's. Today it was supposed to rain and be cold but instead it was in the mid-60's. Absolutely wonderful. :)

(I took this picture a couple of weeks ago while babysitting (aka like in January) but I think it adequately portrays the beautiful sunshine.)

#2. I saw a dalmatian at the grocery store today and it was definitely speaking orca. My family thinks I'm crazy but it was really happening. Which has made me decide that I'm going to get a dalmatian that looks like an orca. Perfect.

#3. I got a letter from little Junior. haha so funny. But now I can finally tell him my super exciting news for him which is the fact that his new mission president (in Boston, starting July) is in my stake right now and he was my seminary teacher senior year. Supes presh. And it was funny because he ended the letter by saying "I hope your life is bursting with happiness! (and alpacas, orcas and cassowaries)." hahaha so great. Made my day.

#4. Making this girl's crappy day a little less crappy. I'm glad that her surprise birthday care package got there when it did, even though it was a day early. Love you Lottie Dottie! I hope you have a splendid birthday week! I wish I was there to ensure 21 chair lifts for you! haha :(

p.s. you'd be surprised to hear how long it took me to find a cute picture of us. Sad.

#5. I got paid for two of my jobs yesterday. Nothing makes a day brighter than getting money. Woo. :)

p.p.s. this post was also a post-picture-i've-taken-on-my-phone (except the last one) blog post. Hence the randomness. :)

Sneak Peak.

Your first look at my new hair. And more importantly, your first glimpse into my new craft project (that was mentioned yesterday).

I'm obsessed with orcas. And I couldn't be more excited for this project of mine. Plus, I feel so crafty right now.

It's Sunday night, my house is empty (well, besides Nallie sleeping), and I'm sitting at the kitchen table with my sewing gear everywhere.

Plus, the computer providing the working music, via my sister's Spotify.

This song is our new current fave. British boy band, yes please! :)

Back to the projecto!

Ch-Ch-Changes.

Today I went and got myself a new haircut.

[Pictures to come probably tomorrow? We'll see how I'm feeling about it then.]

I also went and bought some fabric tonight for my new project.

Which is going to be THE best. I've been looking forward to my project for my whole life but mostly just this entire week which is when I bought a necessary object for said project.

[If you've been watching my pinterest you might have a slight idea as to what my project will entail.]

Seriously, tomorrow is craft day and I can't wait. :)

And I've officially entered "Work-zone" which means that I'll be busy working alllll dayyyyy until I leave in April. Woot.

Activities.

Today's activities included:

-Manual labor (helping a company move) for 3 hours.
-Gift buying adventure with Jack (which was successful, after we had to play the system...)
-My new Italian boyfriend* not believing that I don't straighten my hair... really, I don't.
-He also seemed super impressed that I was an Ecology major when I don't think he knows what it is.
-Sprint to the Post Office (and yes, I made it just in the nick of time.)
-Wagonwheels and peas for dinner, standard.
-Babysitting a sleeping child, nothing easier than that.

And now I'm going to go and write in my Jerusalem journal (yeaaaaah, maybe I'm behind...) and perhaps read a book.

*Since I know you want a story, I was walking through the mall, from Bath and Body Works (after doing a secretive exchange) to meet up with Jack who was just chilling/waiting for me at wet seal. I walk past one of the little booths in the middle while texting Jack. Some guy starts talking to me, but of course I don't realize he is talking to me (especially because he has a pretty strong Italian accent). I kinda ignore him for a while but then he doesn't stop so I acknowledge him and he asks what brand I use (for a straightener).

Obviously I tell him I don't use a straightener. Which he is blown away with. I then proceed to tell him that I don't really mess with my hair, nor use any products, as I answer his many questions for me.

He then plops me down in his chair to show me his cool little straightener thing**. Which, I must say, did work really well. But I didn't really want to fork over $$$ for something I'll rarely use. Even though he says it'll only take me two minutes every morning and that "when girls feel good about their hair, they feel better about their day" or something.

Clearly I'm not one of those girls because I spend approximately 2 seconds on my hair.

But it was a great day. Especially since his name was Giovanni. I almost laughed when he told me. I would've laughed had he told me his name was Guido. It was an adventure though. He even curled part of my hair with his magic wand. Too bad I don't have the patience to care for my hair like that, or he would've had me sold.

** I just looked them up online and I didn't realize they were SO expensive. haha He should've known when I answered his "are you a student?" question with a yes that I wasn't going to buy one of these things. Or I should've had him lower the price for me. Awk.

poprocks chocolate.

I just ate half of my poprocks chocolate bar that I had smuggled home from Jerusalem and that Nicole then gave to me for Christmas (because yeah, we're cute like that).

It's been sitting in the pantry for two months, just waiting to be eaten.

And I haven't eaten it because the most memerable poprocks eating chocolate experience I had was driving through Jordan (or maybe Galilee; all our bus experiences kinda blend together), on a bus we basically lived on, and feeling carsick. And thus deciding that poprocks chocolate would be a good way to make myself feel better. Turns out, it didn't work. Not a good idea, if you ask me.

So I haven't really eaten it since then.

But today, I remembered why it was so popular and why we loved it so much. Deliciously mysterious. :)

I'm now wishing I had brought more back home with us. But it's alright, we'll just have to sustain ourselves on Happy Hippos. It's probably good that we didn't bring more though because my daily walks with Kuma have stopped. And I haven't been brave enough to get back in the pool... yet.

Maybe that will be my goal for March. :)

Busy as a bee.

This week has been mighty busy. And it was a little bit unexpected.

I've been pet sitting for the whole weekend/week which includes feeding Kuma and Topaz breakfast and dinner and then tucking them in to bed at night. So that's kept me busy.

But then on Monday I started back at Ruzzo to work for a couple hours, aka two. Because they didn't realize that I would remember everything from last year and thus they didn't save a whole lot of things for me to do. So I worked all afternoon there. And then I went to the Beehive Bookstore, got some goods and then went to the grocery store. Excellent day.

Tuesday, I babysat with Michael all day long. Which was much better than last time because a) the grandma wasn't there, b) both parents were actually at work, and c) they didn't get me sick! Happy day!

Wednesday, I played with little Michael again. And he was a little bit of a jerk. Eating sand, just to spite me, spitting water, etc. But it's fine, It is pretty good money and it's that hard of work. Plus, I even took a nap while he was taking a nap. Excellent. :)

Today, I went to work helping Bishop Fredrickson's company get ready to move. Which was basically just packing up boxes all day long. Luckily Jack was there so we just worked together and they fed us a pretty delish lunch, so it wasn't all that bad. But it's been so busy.

Tomorrow, we're going back to help pack and move and then I'm babysitting for the Sturts' tomorrow night and then on Saturday, I get to see my favorite boys again! :) So excited.

We're definitely getting into the full swing of business. haha I think that Bushnell will want me soon too. So exciting and so great.

And now it's time for me to take my fave dog on a walk. :) Highlight of my day.

Two Months.

In honor of me being back in the States for two months, officially, I give you this, compliments of the Jerusalem Center Class of Fall 2011:

You know you've been to the Jerusalem Center when...

1. You get bored in church because the only thing to look at is the speaker and the bishopric. –Katie Robison

2. You think it's strange when you haven't seen your professors in their pjs. –Suzy Butler

3. You miss watching the little cars move around at the far-away intersection during sacrament meeting. –Scott

4. Bible jokes are funny. -Cortney

5. Someone says "problematic" or "reductionist" and you can't help but smile and crave some chocolate... –Kaleb

6. You don't like your new professors because they're not Huntsman, Harper or Ludlow. –Tyler

7. You see Hebrew subtitles pop up on a YouTube video in class and you involuntarily exclaim “HEBREW!!!” Like it's the coolest thing you've seen all day =) –Amy

8. You prefer to walk places over driving. –Kara

9. You know EVERY lyric of (that certain song by that certain artist...) :) –Kaleb

10. Musical numbers by normal people are painful to listen to (no joke, we had the most talented group in the world!) –April

11. You're picky about pita, like chocolate spread on everything, have an opinion on falafel or shwarma, and you're writing to international companies asking why their product isn't in the US. –JRowdy

12. ‎You have odd, involuntary reactions to anything that reminds you of Jerusalem. It's a really strange feeling to realize that you're grinning from ear to ear because someone just said "Israeli-Palestinian conflict." –AnnaLeah

13. You assume everyone should refer (and perhaps bow) to your superior knowledge in all educational questions Jewish, Muslim, or just all around, general, Middle Eastern related. –Robin

14. Someone quotes a BYU professor like Andrew Skinner and you have to restrain yourself from yelling, "Oh my gosh, I know him!" –Adam Farnes

15. You can identify random National Geographic photos of Jerusalem with their street name and whose shops are best on that street. –Adam Farnes

16. You hear someone say that all Muslims are anti-American extremists and you laugh at them for knowing nothing about the Middle East but pretending to. –Alyse

17. You're in situations like Alyse just described and you have the urge to call someone a reductionist –Katie Robison

18. Regular DOUGHNUTS just don't cut it anymore. –AnnaLeah

19. It's strange not having to wait in a line 40 people long to use a women's restroom. –Danielle

20. Your laptop says it's New Years 9 hours before everyone else's. –AnnaLeah

21. Someone mentions "imagining" the Holy Land in church and you smile to yourself and think "Yep, Yes I can imagine the Holy Land, quite vividly in fact." Followed by feeling really really lucky to have lived there. -Jared Maxfield

22. Someone mentions the Olive Garden and you think of an olive garden instead of a restaurant. :) –Tiffany

23. You question everything anyone tells you about the Bible or Church Doctrine including your religion professor. –Nicole

24. You are driving in Idaho and think you see a camel. –Tiffany

25. You get hungry whenever you hear the name Achmed. –Junior

26. You are in your D&C class and they keep quoting Br. Harper... which makes you feel special! –Kate

27. You want to honk at the car in front of you just because. –Junior

28. You get super excited when you see someone in an old school royal blue BYU t-shirt on campus. –Michael-Sean

29. Your friend has to study for his New Testament class and instead of actually studying, he goes to you for questions on things like, the Essenes and the Decapolis, and you can expertly explain it all with little personal anecdotes. –Natalie

30. You thank the heavens for American public restrooms. even porta-potties in fact. –Cortney

31. You get really excited to see someone on campus with a Jerusalem backpack… And then you realize they are a complete stranger. –Kara

32. You see an unattended backpack in a bathroom and get unnaturally concerned for your own safety. –AnnaLeah

33. You start giggling inwardly (or outwardly) when someone uses the phrase vis-a-vis. –Nicole

34. You pick out words like problematic in research articles you have to read. :) –Kara

35. You meet someone named George George and aren't that phased by it. –Maddy

36. You realize that you feel really homesick for Jerusalem, shawarma, the Dead Sea, and camels. –Jared Maxfield

37. You have Chaco tan lines in the middle of winter. –Tiffany

38. You're disappointed that your organist during church isn't world renowned. –Daniel

39. You have lots of GREAT slides and notes to find information from for a Sacrament Meeting talk. –Suzy

40. They hand out Holy Land maps in Sunday School and you just pass them on because you "already know everything." And then you proceed to explain to your dad, on HIS map that you were too good for, exactly where it was that you snorkelled. -Jessica

Perhaps more to come/I'm too lazy to do more right now. I hope you enjoyed! :)

Sabbath.

My favorite way to spend my Sunday evening:

Taking my favorite dog on the planet on a nice little stroll through Los Altos. While wearing my new (favorite) shoes.

Doesn't get much better than that. :)

Lips.

I just received a mighty awkward text.

Well, not really. But it caused quite a bit of misunderstanding slash it couldn've caused some awkwardness, had I texted a response that I first thought of.

Little Josh is in Jerusalem and we text (him using Google Talk on his iTouch and me using my actual phone) and he just tried to send some emoticons to me but apparently they can only be seen on Apple products. SO I just kept getting jumbled punctuation.

He was trying to send me lips. But I just got 4 upside-down question marks.

And I was going to respond and say something about how I wanted [to see] his lips (that he was trying to text me) but that just would've been mighty awkward. So I didn't say that. But I was pretty close.

Unfortunately, we figured out that only iPhones/iTouches can see the secret messages he was trying to send. Too bad we don't support Apple in this house.

But yep. This long distance marriage is... marvelous. We are only both awake for like 8 hours/day. And in that time, we can talk for like an hour. haha so great.

Airplanes in the night sky.

Since being back from Jerusalem for almost two months, there are still some things that happen that take me off guard.

One of those things is seeing airplanes.

Which I realize sounds really strange. But here's the thing: Jerusalem is a no fly zone. Airplanes can't even get close to flying over the city. Because there is so much tension and that land is the most coveted soil on the planet, to protect everyone, airplanes just can't fly over. Makes sense.

But now, I see airplanes all the time and I get a little freaked out. I guess after not seeing airplanes in the sky for 4 months and then living in between 3 international airports would cause a little bit of a worry for some people. People like me.

It's funny because I'll see an airplane and I'll be like "Whoa, that airplane seems really close" or something along those lines and my mom will just laugh at me. And it also probably doesn't help that there is an airfield within 10 minutes of my house. So we have airplanes flying into and out of San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland and also all the Moffet Field traffic. It's overwhelming, to say the least.

I think I've semi-gotten used to the fact that these airplanes are all safe, although for a while I thought they were going to crash into things. haha And it's not as weird to me when there are moving lights in the sky now.

It's taken me two months but I think I'm finally getting used to the airplanes.

Pasta & Peas.

Here's the thing: when I'm at school, I eat really weird things. And not strange in the sense of like, gross/bizarre things. Strange like I'll eat the same thing for dinner for two weeks or so.

For instance, I went through a quesadilla phase three semesters ago (Spring '10). I would use my newly purchased quesadilla maker and I would eat one like every single day for lunch. Probably not the healthiest option but... oh well.

I also went through a chicken and cheddar cheese phase the following semester (Fall '10). I would cook raw chicken and eat that and then I would eat slices of (Tillamook) cheddar cheese. Weird combination but that is what I ate.

The following semester, (Spring '11) I incorporated the raw chicken and made it even better. One day at Winco, I found wagonwheel pasta and I got a huge bag of it. That semester it was definitely my pasta+alfredo sauce semester. But once I got the wagowheels, I became more creative. I would cook the pasta while simultaneously cooking chicken while simultaneously cooking frozen peas. And I would time it just perfectly so that they would be done at the same time. Then I would dice the chicken (if I hadn't already cooked it Rok-style on the stove), pour the pasta on top of the peas (that were already in a bowl) and add the chicken on top and then pour alfredo on everything.

I liked to pretend that this dinner was nutritious. I mean, pasta, chicken, and peas; very healthy. And let's just say I would eat this a lot. It's delicious though, I suggest you try it.

Anyway, the other day, after going on a little shopping adventure (that included two new pairs of shoes for me!) and trying to play with some puppies at Petco, Jack and I decided to go grocery shopping for my mom. So while wandering through the aisles of Safeway and much to our surprise and excitement, we find: Mini Wagonwheel pasta. Yes!

We quickly snatched up two boxes and collected the rest of our items and headed home.

Now, the weekend was rather chaotic so the sat on the shelf in our pantry until Monday or so. When I decided to make some for us.

When they cooked, they were basically normal size (which was too bad, I was hoping they'd be mini) but I added some frozen peas and alfredo and boy was it delicious.

I've had it for a snack on Monday.

Lunch and Dinner on Tuesday.

A snack/half a meal on Wednesday and I might or might not be craving it right now and already planning on having some when I get off of work.

You could say I'm a little obsessed. When I make it now, I don't cook the peas first and it is still delicious as ever. I just throw some frozen peas (okay, lots more than some) on top of the pasta and it's marvelous.

I would recommend that everyone try this wonderful concoction. But warning: it does taste MUCH better if you have wagonwheel pasta.

Another side note: I do have eating trends that vary from semester to semester but one that is constant is my love (or obsession) for baby items. I've bought a baby pineapple, a baby loaf of bread (that we turned into baby grilled cheese sandwiches), baby chocolate cakes, baby packages of crackers, etc. Which is also why I was so overjoyed with my mini wagonwheel find. :)

Love You Like a Love Song.

Valentine's Day.

For a while, I didn't like this holiday. I just thought it was too... commercial. Which is still is. But recently, I've started to love that it's just a day all about love. What could be better than that?

Everyone loves LOVE. And having a day to celebrate that is great! :)

Sending people "I love you" texts, letting the world know you love those around you and being able to be super cute and cheesy? Yes please.

When I was younger (like middle school), my dad would get all of us girls See's candy. Excellent. And that was cute because it came from him and it was a pleasant little surprise.

Well, today I got to hang out with my mom all day (and dad and brother because they were both home sick) and then we got to have a supes presh dinner. Heart shaped pizza from Pizza My Heart and then I made a heart shaped chocolate cake. So presh.

I also had to post this great valentine on Shmackely (and then Josh)'s timeline because Jack and I have a pretend obsession with Jimmer and Josh actually loves him.

Speaking of Josh. He went and got himself a girlfriend today. What a good husband. haha happy valentine's day to me? But really, I'm fine with it. She's 16, super cute and let's be honest, this won't really last THAT long (I mean, he moves back to Provo in August...). But yes, it's super cute and I'm excited for him because I know that they've both liked each other for quite a while now. During our nightly chats in Jerusalem, he would ask me for advice/fill me in on the situation so I'm happy for him, especially because he's so happy. :) All I can say though is that those Ludlow boys really know how to do Valentine's day. haha

But yes, today was a great Valentine's Day. Even if my valentine for the second year in a row was my sister. Makes the day even better. :) You surely don't need a boy to have a marvelous day of love.

Missionary Madness.

In less than 24 hours, this kid is going to enter the MTC.

Oh little Junior, all grown up! But it's actually supes weird because he is the person from Jerusalem that I talk to the most now that I'm home. I would say that we text basically everyday. And tomorrow, that'll all stop. So it's going to be sad. We're way closer now, living three states away, than we were when we lived 4 doors away. That's life for you though. But he's going to love Boston and I'm super excited for him! :)

Good luck in Boston, Elder Ludlow! :)

__________________________________________

And in 107 days, this girl is going to enter the MTC.

So strange to me! I can't imagine her being in PARIS, FRANCE and not being able to talk to her about all sorts of exciting shenanegans in life. But seeing her this past week/last weekend was absolutely marvelous. Especially since we got to chat and hang out (and eat Happy Hippos) like the good old days and seriously, Paris couldn't be more perfect for her. She's going to rock it. :) I also think that I have the most unattractive pictures with/of her than anyone else on the planet. What an honor. :)

So stoked for Sister Searle! :)

_____________________________________

In about two days, this girl will be receiving her mission call straight from the SLC.

Too many pictures? I think not. Mostly because I've known this girl for almost 6 years. And she's the girl who I can not see for years and yet once we see each other again, we're bestest friends. (That's actually a true story. June 2006-September 2009 and we saw each other zero times). And even though she was my last friend I saw before I left to Jerusalem, I am anxiously awaiting our splendid reunion. So I'm SO excited for her to get her call (to Italy!) on Thursday. Eeek!

I love me some Sister Young. :)

_________________________________________

This is a picture taken on our last day in Turkey. Of the 8 people pictured: 1 is an RM, 3 currently have mission calls (Boston, Russia and France), 1 has submitted her papers (expecting her call soon tomorrow!), 1 will be turning in her papers in a couple of months and the other two... well, they are figuring that out. :) Exciting times!

__________________________________________

The good thing about all my friends leaving is that I'll be leaving on a mission in approximately 6 months as well. :) Which is good because I don't know how I could live without these kids for so long (I mean, like in normal life). I mean, facebook without Erin Young? That's unheard of.

And it's also kind of pathetic because I really only know like 3 elders out right now and soon my sisters total will like double that. Yay! :)

Excited? Yes.

I just read all 28 available pages of Stephanie Nielson's book Heaven is Here and honestly April 3rd can't come soon enough.

SO good. And I just LOVE NieNie.

Check out the book here.

You won't regret it.

Her writing is enthralling and her story is captivating.

Plus, her faith is inspiring and her relationship with her husband is touchingly tender. :)

Time to pre-order her book? I would say yes.

Also, remember that one time when I was in Provo and I stayed in a house across the street from Nienie's house? Gooooood times. :)

P-town: Part Two.

Let's see, where did I leave off? Oh yes, our wonderful tennis adventure.

Alright, well Wednesday, I woke up and got ready for a big day.

I went to Mission Prep again with Suzy, Kara and Kim (which was really good) and then I went to Human Development with Suzy and Kara which was very interesting. We then tried to meet up with people in the Cougareat but Jru people weren't really there. After seeing basically no one (when usually there are tons of people there), I headed home to get ready for my date with Alex.

I was super nervous for this date because things were going to be a little awkward. I've met his parents, his older brother (and heard all about said brother's son), his sister (and her husband plus three kids). Infact, it was his sister who set us up and I babysit for her kids every week. And I'm related to her husband. So before this date even started, I kind of knew that it would be a little awkward for me.

But he picked me up, we got to know each other, we went to Coldstone to get ice cream, he slowly figured out that I knew like his whole family, and then he drove me back. Haha he made a big connection when I told him that his sister+family lived in my house for 5 weeks and called it the "Google House" and then he really figured out who I was. haha good thing he didn't realize that until almost the end of the date. But yeah, it was a short little date but it was good. Especially since I kinda felt that he didn't really want to be there all that much. But it was fun and I do love ice cream so whatever. (That was date number 2).

Following the date, I went back home and just hung out until it was time for the Bements to come and pick us up. They invited us over for dinner and it was also Haley's birthday so it was fun to celebrate with them. But how is she 7 years old? That's the real question. I remember when she wasn't even born yet! And then when she was a little baby. And now she's 7 years old! Which makes me feel ridiculously old. haha But we got to hang out a little bit before we ate and then we ate a delish dinner and then hung out a little bit more. And Ryker was of course my favorite. He made sure I sat with him at dinner and he kept asking how long we were staying and when we said just for a couple of hours he responded "Oh, so you're just staying for 5 or 3 nights?" hahaha cutie.

Nicole had to leave before we could do presents so Uncle Todd drove us back to Provo and Millie came in the car with us. Which was adorable because she is so big now! And she and I sat in the back together just laughing. And Selena Gomez's song I Like You Like a Love Song came on the radio and she knew every word. SO adorbs. It was a great little drive back to Provo and just a great night in general.

Once we got back to Cougarland, Nicole did homework and I went upstairs and visited with Bethany, who I haven't seen since 2008 or so. Crazy. haha but it was fun to catch up with her and reminisce about Jerusalem and the like. And after we talked for a good hour and a half, I returned some tennis clothes to Suzy and told her about my date and then I went to bed. Long day.

Thursday was an equally long day.

Started out by waking up and getting all ready. Including starting to pack and clean up.

Then lunch with Lottie, Suzy and Eliza. So fun. It was definitely a much needed last minute catch-up sesh with some of my favorites. Especially since they all kind of staggered their arrivals so I got to mingle with Lottie first, just the two of us. Perfection. haha but after a wonderful hour lunch, they all had to go their various ways (to study or to class) and so then I went home to throw on a skirt and to go the temple with Junior. It was so good to see them all one last time before I left though. Love those girls. :)

I got home, threw a skirt on and then I headed to the Provo Temple with Junior. Which I guess you could call a date. But really, I just needed to get another temple in our Temple Race. And he was kind of the only person who had nothing to do, ever. (Not that I don't like hanging out with Junior!). But the temple was great. They do things kind of different in that temple but it was still marvelous. And I met a friend named Kate. :) And Junior baptized me, which was fun. Oh, one of the weird (but smart) things the Provo Temple does is have you write on a little slip of paper "Sis./Bro. (Last Name)" so that when you're doing the ordinances, they know your last name. Which gets rid of one of my favorite byproducts of going to the temple: having people struggle with my last name. The guys confirming did a marvelous job pronouncing 'Quist' and of course Junior did as well. But actually, I love when guys I know baptize. So that was good.

Following the temple, which only took an hour and a half, we headed to his grandparents and skyped with his parents. So presh. I miss the Ludlow fam. And then we went and picked Marianne up for our Apples&Peanut Butter adventure. And clearly, the whole time we were eating apples and peanut butter, we were continuing Jerusalem gossip. Aka figuring out who actually liked who and such. SO great. I'm pretty sure that was everyone's favorite pastime while we were in Jru and it still continues to be. It was great.

Junior then drove both of us home (from our little polygadate) and then I changed my clothes, finished packing and before I knew it, Mark and Danielle were knocking on my door. We talked for a few minutes while we waited for Nicole to get home and then we headed up to Salt Lake. It was fun to catch up with them after so long. The last time we saw them was for a very brief lunch the day of our Jru orientation and then before that, I don't think I've seen them since their wedding. But I forgot how confusing it is when your cousin marries a girl with the same name as you. haha :/ We drove to Murray and went to Cheesecake Factory for dinner which was delicious (especially since it was my first meal of the day, and basically the first real food I'd eaten) and conversation was great. They then drove me to the airport and I breezed through security, got on my little plane and flew home.

The flight was uneventful (except for it was SUPER hot) and I did get a little bit sad to have to come back home to my life that is so... dull. But it'll get more exciting soon I feel like. Hopefully. Once I landed in OAK, we literally sat looking at our gate waiting for a plane to push back for 20 minutes. That was fun. Then I got off the airplane, ran through the terminal, and reunited with Shmackely and Mom. So presh. haha and we drove merrily on our way home.

Going to Salt Lake/Provo was definitely a good idea. :)

P-town: Part One.

This was a weird trip because I finished packing in the morning. And when I say finished, I mean I packed like an hour before I left. Normally, I fly out at like 6 am so I stay up late packing and then I have to wake up early to get to the airport. But for this trip, I woke up at 8, packed and got ready, left for the airport at 9 and then got to the airport in plenty of time for my 10:45 flight. Which ended up being delayed until 11.

My flight was rather uneventful. I sat on the window seat with no one next to me in the middle and some random guy on the aisle. Perfect. They fed me cran-apple juice (a tradition) and honey roasted peanuts (the best).

Then I landed in SLC right on time and walked out to the pick-up zone where Suzy Q was waiting for me in her cute little teal truck. We had a marvelous little drive back to Provo where we then had a wonderful lunch of spaghetti and string cheese. And just hung out. She tried really hard to think of something fun to do in Provo on a Saturday afternoon and so we found ourselves at Macey's to get $.50 soft serve ice cream. And we invited Junior, which was presh. Following our ice cream, we helped Junior pick out some hummus + pita for our Jru reunion party at the Shalom Chalet.

Suzy and I then headed back over to her cute little apartment and made some delicious cookies (chocolate cake mix + peanut butter chips!). And then at approximately 6:30, we picked up Charlotte and then Nicole and Rebecca and headed up to Midway and to the Ludlow Cabin. Probably the funniest part of the drive was when Junior called us to see where we were and we told him we were in Salt Lake and he flipped. So great. And then when we arrived at the party, he was a little mad at us, but like the fake kind of mad.

Our little reunion was splendid. It was SO nice to be able to talk to Charlotte again and reminisce and all that good stuff. And be super exclusive, like normal. It was fun to see everyone again, like Catie and Jessica (who was in town from Canadia!) But it was so marvelous (and so strange!) to see everyone. I'm sad that some people couldn't make it but I did run into a bunch of people randomly during the week who didn't show up, which was good. I love the Jru crew. :)

We got home pretty late which was expected. And it was lucky that church was late so that we could sleep in (especially me because I was still sick). Nicole's church started at 1 but I went to church with Charlotte (and her brother Matthew) and their church starts at 12:40 (yes, such a random time.) And it was pretty presh. People kept coming up to me and saying to me "I'm so sorry, I forgot your name!" And then I'd tell them that I was just visiting. haha but in Relief Society, we did an activity where we wrote a letter to our future kids... but there wasn't enough paper so Charlotte and I just talked quietly. Good times.

And for Sunday School, we went to Temple prep which was great. And Sacrament meeting was great.

After church, I went home (to Nicole's) and just hung out until the rest of the gang came home. Then Nicole and I cooked dinner. We made my super normal college dinner: pasta, chicken and peas in a bowl with alfredo sauce; delicious!

We then invited Lottie over and we watched 10 Things I Hate About You which was great. And then I headed back home with Lottie because I slept over Sunday night! We went to Ward Prayer, watched great videos on Youtube, talked with her super great roommate Jacqui, got really confused because random people were hanging out in her kitchen, etc. It was great.

I slept on her couch which was marvelous and the next morning, I woke up and got all packed up, walked the 3.5 blocks north to Nicole's and then got all ready because I had Brother Bott's mission prep class to attend with Suzy, Kara and Kim. I met Suzy in front of the SWKT at 10:55 and then we walked over to the HBLL where class was. And when we got there, Kim was talking to Katie R. Perfect! :)

After class, I walked to the MOA where Charlotte was doing a project and so I waited for a second for her and then we walked back to her little apartment. And wasted time. And then we went grocery shopping where she bought avocados, bread, granola bars and the like and I bought a pack of gum. Which she laughed at.

We hung out for a while and then I went home so she could take a nap and I had to entertain myself which was tricky. And then Nicole got home from school and we didn't go to FHE because she had lotsa homework to do or something. I don't remember, but we had an enjoyable time.

Tuesday was the beginning of my very busy days (and also the beginning of my dating marathon).

Nicole and I first went to look at a potential new apartment for her and her friends. So we met up with Erin (who Nicole served with on T^2) and then Jacqui (Charlotte's roommate who might live with Nicole). We looked at a cute little house that was super nice but Nicole doesn't know about it. We then went back home and ate some rice for lunch. Delicious. While eating lunch, we also watched some quality youtube videos. She then went to class and I went on a date (?) with Junior.

We first went to the Bean Museum which if you know me, is always a good idea. I love me some animals. That was fun. And then we went bowling in the Wilk, which was embarrassing because people go in there and do their homework and watch people bowl... and neither Junior or I bowled that well... But it was still fun. haha following two games of bowling (both of which I lost) he then took me on a driving tour of Provo. He showed me all the hotspots aka the Tabernacle that is being turned into a Temple and his parents' house. And then we went back to his grandparent's to watch a movie. We watched The Sting which is ridiculously long and we kept being interrupted by his grandparent's/uncle. And I had to meet Nicole for dinner at 6 at the cougareat so we didn't get to finish the movie, sad day.

He then drove me back to the Wilk, where I met up with Nicole for some dindin. And it was fun because AnnaLeah was also there. Love her. So we ate some delicious Crunchwrap Supremes and then got some creamery ice cream for dessert. I walked Nicole back to work (in the Eyring) and she even showed me her super secret underground lab. And then I walked back home to get ready for my intense tennis match.

At 8:45, I headed over to Suzy's where she got me all suited up in her tennis gear and then we headed over to the RB (after Junior arrived) and the four of us (Junior, Suzy, Suzy's roommate Kristin and I) played a super intense game of tennis. Except not really because no one knew what they were doing. Following tennis, we went over to Adam and Jeff's for Adam's birthday bash. It was fun to hang out with some more of the Jru crew. And I love hanging out with Catie so that was great. We all left together and as we were walking back to our cars, we noticed that the Provo Parking Enforcement guy had just given both their cars tickets. So we talked our way out of those and drove merrily on our way home.

It was a jolly day. I love hanging out with Suzy and it was actually really fun hanging out with Junior as well. Especially since he leaves for the MTC SO soon. AHH!

Great first couple of days. :)

Back from P-town.

Well friends,

I'm no longer in Provo which is sadder than I imagined it being.

The 6 days that I spent in Provo were some of the funnest and craziest times I've had in ages.

(And by ages, I mean in the past 6 weeks or so).

Provo successfully landed me more first dates in the 5.5 days I was there than I've had in the 4 semesters in Rexburg.

And technically, I had a three day- date marathon (three dates, three days in a row.)

Although one of them was a second date? haha

I also got to hang out with my favorites from Jerusalem lots and lots.

Ice cream, tennis and class(es) with Suzy.

Lunch dates, grocery shopping adventures and sleepovers with Charlotte.

Bean Museum, Bowling, movie at the grandparents, apples and peanut butter and the Provo Temple with Junior. :)

It's funny how I didn't really have any plans going into the week, besides JC reunion at the Ludlow Cabin on Saturday night but by the end of the week, every second of my day was planned out.

And it was fun seeing Mark & Danielle and hanging out with them for a couple hours. Oh cousin bonding. :)

I think I'm going to give a full run-down of my activities and adventures in another post (or 2) but I just figured I needed to update this little blog for now.

Hold the phone.

BYU-Idaho is introducing Competitive Water Polo for women starting this Fall.

This cannot be real life. Why are they starting it the semester I won't be there?

I mean, I guess they could've started it last fall and I would've been equally upset about it... but seriously? :(

And, this means that if it doesn't do well, they'll get rid of it, before I even have a chance to play.

Ahhhh.

I guess I'll just get to play in the Fall of '14. Which is so far away.

Tis life I suppose.

Fantastic Friday.

Remember that one time how I go to Provo tomorrow?

Yep, and I just started packing approximately 20 minutes ago. But I'm not worried about it. Especially since my flight leaves at 10:45... when normally I fly out at 6am. And I'll only be gone for 6 days. Plus, it's been super warm there (for Utah standards). So I'm packing warm stuff but I'm not packing my warmest stuff. Ish. I don't know, it's kind of a weird trip.

Because I also have to be super cute all the time. Uhllll. What a pain.

But I spent the majority of the day (okay, really all of it) watching The Amazing Race. Which is my favorite show. I watched the entire past season in the past 24 hours. And I am feeling much better, although I have a little bit of a cough. But that's why I needed to rest today. :)

So I should probably go and finish packing for my little trip.

I was just on a blogging spree this week so I figured I'd finish it up.

I probs won't really post while I'm gone so just know that things are going great, I assume.

Another funny thing: Michelle is trying to set me up with her brother while I'm in Provo. So maybe I'll be going on a hot date with my future husband? We shall see.

Tonsillitis Thursday.

This morning, I woke up with a much worse sore throat. And I knew that it wasn't just a cold type of thing. Definitely some sore of infection.

So clearly I sat around and relaxed because I've just felt super lethargic and I haven't wanted to really do anything.

Popsicles and TV all day.

We then went to the doctor in the afternoon time and lo and behold, I have tonsillitis. I could've called that one. I'm on antibiotics and so hopefully I'll be feeling all better by Saturday.

Here's the super lame thing though, apparently next week is midterms week... everyone is going to be busy. So lame. I'm sure that people will still take a little time out of their crazy school schedules to spend time with me though. :)

Oh and my babysitting job for tomorrow got cancelled. Boo. :( Oh well, it's probably better this way.

Time to get better!

Take me back.

Can't wait to see the full movie in Imax 3D.

It's fun seeing this because I've been to all those places and churches.

Take me home.

Wonderous Wednesday.

Happy February!

It is so marvelously strange to me that it's already February. Anyone else?

But, in honor of this lovely first day of the month, I'd decided to go back on Pinterest. Which is weird because I missed it for a little while but then I kinda forgot that it existed. And now that I'm back on I'm just like, "wait, I missed this?" I don't really find it addicting or exciting at all. SO I guess Josh Ludlow deserves a special shoutout/thank you for breaking my addiction. What a great husband he is. :)

If only he could just do that for facebook now... I feel like this weekend-ish in Provo will help my facebook addiction. Oh, and the worst thing about the facebook thing is that I went like four months without it. Maybe that's why I am constantly on it now... interesting.

Did you hear about this guy?

Makes me kind of want to do it. But I know that I don't have enough friends or things to do here to keep my time occupied. Plus, I feel like I kinda did that a little bit in Jerusalem. Granted, we did have most internet (like email and blogs and such) but without facebook and youtube and without a cell phone, we were pretty disconnected. And it was so nice.

Anyway, I'm here sitting at work again. Such an exciting life I have.

This morning I printed out some tax returns.

I chatted with Studlow on facebook for like 20 minutes.

I caught up on all my blogs.

Assembled two tax returns, with the assistance of Ron, while talking about RV trips.

I pinned a couple of things.

And now I've just been sitting here kinda bored.

And the phone has only rung like 8 times in the past three hours.

So yes, it's been a party.

Now I just have to wait for the mail to get here and then I get to do my favorite job at my job.

Oh, and did I mention that my brother has been home sick with a sore throat all week. And today he woke up crying at like 6 because he felt miserable and his throat was killing him and he has a fever? So like a good mother, my mom took him to the doctor and guess what? Strep. And I woke up this morning with a sore throat. And I get strep whenever anyone in the neighboring state has it. So looks like I'm going to need to get myself drugged up before I leave the state. But here's the thing: having strep is WAY better than having some sort of virus. Because you just get your antibiotics and you are feeling better in no time! Virus' just have to "run their course". I hated when doctors told me that.

So yes, clearly my immune system hates me because this is the second time in a week that I've gotten sick. But oh well.

Provo weekend will not be ruined. :)