Newsflash...

...I am a bad blogger. There's a chance you already knew that. I'm aware that my blogging habits are lame and sporadic, but hey...I do my best.

I finally got my grad school applications in! I went through some form of personal hell in the process (including sprinting through local campuses to try and get applications handed over before the deadlines), but it's finally over! Now I can just sit back and wait to see which schools actually decide to let me through their doors.

And with that in mind, I'm off to Mexico for a week! I am SO looking forward to a little sunshine and relaxation. I'll worry about that whole "finding a job" mumbo jumbo after I get back. So, until then...Adios amigos!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

The Holidays were pretty mellow for me this year, but I have absolutely no complaints about skipping the craziness that usually accompanies Christmas and the New Year. It was so nice to spend some time just relaxing with family and friends! I'm so sad that it's all over...in fact, I'm in complete denial and I haven't stopped listening to Christmas music yet.

I spent New Year's Eve in Seattle and had so much fun, even though it was freezing up there! In fact, I almost couldn't make it back to San Diego because my airplane was stuck in the snow. The plane had to be de-iced twice and then tugged away from the gate before we could finally take off amidst a blizzard of snow. Thank goodness for dramamine, because the contents of my stomach were dying to make a reappearance during all of the turbulence.

Here we are sipping cider during the final countdown to 2009!

I haven't ever been very good at keeping New Year's resolutions...so perhaps my first resolution should be to work on following through with this year's goals! That being said, my New Year's resolutions for 2009 include, but are not limited to:

1. Hopefully get accepted to grad schools and decide where I want to do my master's program.
2. Exercise at least a couple days a week...which will be a huge step up from my current frequency of NEVER.
3. Take better care of myself so that I don't get sick so often.
4. Find a job in the psychology field until school starts in the fall...and avoid being swallowed by the country's "financial crisis" in the meantime.
5. Learn to play the guitar! I bought a guitar years ago but I have never actually committed myself to taking lessons and learning how to play. Hopefully by this time next year I will be posting a video of myself playing a Ramones song to exhibit my sweet new guitar skills.
6. Be happy!

I hope that 2009 brings you an abundance of health, love, and laughter! Happy New Year!

Congrats Becky and Weston!

Over the weekend I flew up to Utah for a few days to finalize my letters of recommendation for grad school applications, and my short trip just happened to coincide with the birth of Becky and Weston's adorable little guy, Holland! I'm pretty sure that Becky purposely extended her pregnancy past the due date to wait until I was in town. So thoughtful.

Holland is absolutely adorable and I am so happy for the lucky new parents. Good luck you two...I hope you can manage to get at least a little bit of sleep over the next few months!

Giving Thanks

I love the holiday season! I find so much comfort in the consistency of my family's holiday traditions, and this Thanksgiving was everything I had looked forward to. We cooked all day, ate WAY too much food, and consumed enough pie for five families. Talk about living the good life!

We also had a chance to visit with our Uncle Dennis and his whole clan while they were in town over the holiday. It has been way too long since we have had a chance to see our cousins and it was so fun to catch up!

Does anyone else see a family resemblance here?

Thanksgiving is a good time to reflect on my millions of blessings and all the things I'm thankful for, so to name a mere few...

I'm thankful for Kylie...the best dog in the world. Every single day she makes me laugh, gives me unconditional love, and keeps me warm in bed at night!

I'm thankful for old friends. I love the way holidays bring everyone home again, and I will always appreciate the fact that no amount of absence or distance can ever change some friendships.

I'm thankful for Easton, who has supported me through some of the most challenging times of my life.

Most importantly of all, I'm thankful for my family. I am so blessed to be a member of such a loving family, and I continue to be amazed by their kindness, selflessness, and unwavering loyalty. I'm deeply grateful for my parents and sisters, and I love them so much.

Christmas is right around the corner! I'm definitely going to soak up as much Christmas music, tree decorating, hot chocolate (regardless of the fact that it's practically beach weather outside), Christmas shopping, and pumpkin pie as I can! Happy Holidays!

The Grim Reaper lives in San Diego

Today I decided to celebrate the amazing San Diego weather by hitting the beach with a friend, and on the way we drove by this hearse parked a couple of blocks from Cardiff beach:

Apparently the Grim Reaper enjoys a sunny day at the beach just as much as anyone else!

Tagged!

Angela tagged me on her blog a couple weeks ago and I somehow completely missed her post, so now it’s time for a little belated tagging action. Sorry it took me so long Angela!

Apparently I’m supposed to tell seven weird or interesting things about myself, and then tell seven other people to do the same and leave them a comment about it. I can’t promise anything very interesting, but here ya go!

1. I love nail polish and I tend to buy a lot of it, but all nail polish must meet TWO requirements in order to be considered worthy of my purchase: It must be an outrageous color, and it must be sparkly.

Here is an extremely flattering (not) picture of me at a concert last month. You can see my bright turquoise nail polish...one of my favorites!

2. I eat my biggest meal of the day around 2:00 in the morning. I have always been a night owl by nature and I am generally awake until ridiculous hours, and for some reason I get ravenous when the 2 a.m. hour rolls in. Last night at the aforementioned time I ate a bowl of spaghetti, a piece of pumpkin pie, a packet of fruit jammers, some canned pears, and a few potato chips. I fell asleep with an uncomfortably full stomach and told myself that I really need to break that habit…but I guarantee that I’ll be gorging myself again tonight.

3. I am obsessed with flip flops. I have a huge tub full of them but I never feel like I own enough. One of my favorite things is when I find really cheap flip flops at a grocery store or gas station, which is exactly how I found my favorite fluorescent pink ones in a barrel at Food 4 Less. I wear my beloved flip flops all year round, even during frigid Utah winters. You can take me out of San Diego, but you can’t take me out of my flip flops.

4. I hate R&B music and I think it physically raises my blood pressure. There have been times where I have started to feel really irritated for no reason, and I find myself flustered and annoyed and can’t figure out why…and then I realize that there is R&B music playing in the background somewhere.

5. My pupils are ridiculously oversized. I hate having such big pupils for a plethora of reasons: My eyes are more black than they are blue; I flinch every single time I walk outside and the bright light hits me; I look like the devil in pictures because my eyes turn bright red; and I am already getting horrible crow’s feet around my eyes from squinting so much. The only silver lining I can think of is that I have pretty good night vision!

This is a totally raw picture of me with my beautiful friend Lisa. She is a total knockout...and I'm just evil.

6. I am completely obsessive-compulsive about cleaning my teeth. I don’t know why I’m so fanatical but I hate it when my teeth feel dirty. I usually brush about four times a day and every night I have a ritual that includes brushing, flossing, using a tongue scraper and gum stimulator, and rinsing with fluoride. Make fun all you want, but I have a very clean mouth.

7. My biggest vices in life are Dr. Pepper and fruity candy. I don’t believe all of that mumbo jumbo about how food can’t make you happy, because if I have a Dr. Pepper in one hand and a strawberry Laffy Taffy in the other…I guarantee there will be a smile on my face.

I'm not sure if there are seven people who even read my blog, but I tag: Courtney, Jessica F., Sam, Tisha, Mallory, Anna, and Hilary!

Happy Halloween!

 

Pumpkin Thief

Last night Easton and I carved pumpkins in an attempt to fully embrace the Halloween spirit. We roasted pumpkin seeds, baked pumpkin muffins, watched scary movies, and spent a few hours meticulously carving our perfect pumpkins. Easton carved an impressive witch and I chose a kitty (with adorable whiskers and everything!) for my pumpkin.

After working for three hours with those tiny little pumpkin-carving utensils, I finally finished my masterpiece and couldn't wait to put it on the front doorstep. Easton and I put candles in our pumpkins and brought them outside to view the full effect. After briefly admiring our handiwork, we went inside to eat a pumpkin muffin and find the camera to immortalize our creations. We were in the house for no more than ten minutes...and when we came outside again my pumpkin was GONE! I expected to find it smashed in the street by some little hooligans, but there was absolutely no trace of my cute pumpkin. I still have absolutely no idea what happened to it, and I don't even have a single picture to illustrate my hours of hard work.

This is Easton's beautifully crafted pumpkin:

And here is Easton proudly displaying his artwork...
while I proudly display my anger:

Still pouting. So sad...

On that note, I have a message for the dirty pumpkin thief that ruined my night: I sincerely hope that you run into the Blair Witch, or Freddy Krueger, or Hannibal Lecter, or Jigsaw from those awful "Saw" movies, or any other equally terrifying villain...and I hope they teach you a lesson about stealing other people's pumpkins!