Once Upon A Time...

... There was a girl named Audrey. She had a best friend named Rachelle.
(look out! This is a really long and cheesy post!)

Audrey and Rachelle first met at the tender age of 14. They were in two straight classes together at Dixie Middle School and bonded daily during their walk to the seminary building across the street. Audrey thought Rachelle was cool because she had a cell phone. Also, she always admired Rachelle's shoes. Rachelle was really smart and did gymnastics, and Audrey wanted to be just like her.

When the two of them were 15 they took a theater class together. Mr. Saxton and the loony drama kids only brought Rachelle and Audrey closer. They competed in the regional and state drama competitions together doing a scene from the "The Odd Couple." It was a really stupid scene. It required Audrey to wear frumpy mom sweats and Rachelle to squelch and scream like an out of control loony bird. Audrey and Rachelle practiced in the basement of the Doxey's house and the squelches could be heard in the upper floors. And when they competed, they somehow found it necessary to carry around like 5 folding chairs and 2 black blocks from room to room as props in their scene. However, dragging the furniture through the hallways at Hurricane High School was nothing compared to the creepy on-looking Hurricane kids. Audrey and Rachelle left the competition with a few mediocre competition scores in addition to confirmed rumors of Hurricane in-breeding.

At the end of their sophomore year Rachelle called Audrey one day with an invitation to go boating. Audrey replied with an exclamation in the affirmative, and Rachelle commented, "I have decided to make you my designated boating buddy, if you don't mind." Audrey didn't mind. She loved spending time with Rachelle, and well, she loved boating.

Several boating trips ensued. Lots of tubing, attempted wake-boarding (on Audrey's part), cliff jumping, more tubing, and an extraordinary amount of merriment accompanied the two.

Senior year, Rachelle and Audrey were in choir and drama together. Audrey was nervous to sing in front of Rachelle because of Rachelle's musical talents ;). Rachelle was somehow able to teach Audrey how to sing alto, and they sat together all year, laughing at the juniors who were really excited about choir and grades (guess who). Oh, those were the days. They also performed in Fiddler on the Roof together; Rachelle playing the lead (because of her talents, of course), and Audrey playing an ensemble role that allowed her to be involved, but still gave her plenty of time to do her homework in the hallway during performances. There was one scene, however, that Audrey and Rachelle were able to participate in together. During Sunrise, Sunset, Audrey and Rachelle always made eye contact and got a little teary when they imagined the show being over, and high school being over, which would eventually lead to their separation.

Rachelle and Audrey also joined each other on several school trips that year, which included the famed Choir Trip, the RASK Urban Experience Trip (of which Rachelle was in charge), and the senior trip to California. Each trip brought the friends closer together. On the Choir trip Rachelle shared her mittens her Audrey. On the RASK trip the friends found a random store in the Trolley Square mall that was selling hourglass sand things that looked really awesome. Because of its fascinating nature, Audrey and Rachelle committed a good 20 minutes of their lives to the device. The California trip was an altogether different bonding experience; Disneyland was a blast, but Magic Mountain was a bust. On the exhausted trip home, Audrey and Rachelle texted awkward and coded messages to Rachelle's boyfriend at the time--messages he still probably hasn't figured out (example: "The moon is bright tonight... with freckles." Rachelle, I hope you remember that one). They thought they were too hilarious for words.

After a year of separation while Rachelle attended her freshman year at BYU and Audey stayed at Dixie State, they decided to be roommates at BYU. Rachelle found them a place to live in Provo, and one day, Audrey took a call and left class to give Rachelle her credit card information to get the contract signed. Audrey had not even officially been accepted into BYU yet; but she wanted to live with Rachelle so bad (and she had no doubt that she was going to get in), that she signed a contract anyway.

...And so began a pattern of Rachelle finding housing for Audrey. Every place that Audrey lived at BYU is credited to Rachelle's finding (and in most cases, Rachelle signed the contract for Audrey while she was away).

It is hard to describe the perfection that was Audrey and Rachelle as roommates, but I shall attempt it in list format.

1) Rachelle helped Audrey function in normal society (example: Rachelle made me stop wearing my CTR ring on my wedding ring finger. Go figure) and Audrey helped Rachelle remember the small but significant details of her life (Rachelle: Audrey, did I pass the AP Bio test? Audrey: Yes, you got a 3. (Audrey distinctly remembers sitting at the Doxey's kitchen counter looking at Rachelle's new macbook and calling the AP Board the moment scores were released)).
 
2) Rachelle and Audrey live very independent lives. They both have their own plans and like to do their own thing. Their daily activities varied greatly; they were on different ends of campus, they had different friend group outside of the roommates, and they had different time-consuming jobs. Somehow, though, they were always able to meet up at bed time to settle in at about the same time. Never had either person known such remarkable and entertaining pillow talk. It kept the pair of them up for hours and hours, way past their bed time. They would lay there in the dark and giggle ("well that's just FANTASTIC!!"), and their roommates would complain and bang on the wall. In their junior year, when they didn't share a room, they enjoyed pillow talk time in the living room, looking up at the Christmas lights that hung around the room all year long.

3) Rachelle was really good at telling Audrey all of her problems, particularly boy problems, and Audrey was really good at listening and supporting, but never telling her what to do. Audrey just knew that there were some things that Rachelle had to figure out on her own (like the fact that she didn't actually like that one boy, and that she knew deep down that she was going to break up with him eventually). Rachelle was always really good at making Audrey spill the beans. Audrey is really bad at talking about her honest feelings. But Rachelle was really good at giving advice and making Audrey feel secure. Rachelle was very good at making Audrey feel good about herself. She was very supportive of everything Audrey did. After Audrey got a good grade on her first test at BYU, Rachelle made her a cake to celebrate.

4) Somehow Rachelle has always been very good at reading Audrey and knowing what she is thinking and feeling, even before Audrey knows it. Exhibit A: When Audrey decided not to go on a mission (against her life plan, mind you), she called Rachelle to tell her. Rachelle calmly responded: "I know." Audrey: "WHAT?! Why didn't you tell me??!" (telling would have saved Audrey a lot of stress and effort). Rachelle: because you needed to figure it our on your own. But Audrey, why do you think I haven't purchased housing for the fall? Because I was waiting for you." Oh Rachelle, always the smart, intuitive one.

And so Audrey and Rachelle lived together at BYU as roommates-- as an old married couple-- that relied on each other for just about everything.

In the meantime, they also did all sorts of other fun stuff.

Rachelle showing off her mad cartwheel skills

They took a vacation together to Washington, D.C., which was only the dream of Audrey's life (see post #1 of this blog). The two of them ran (literally) around Washington for 6 days, seeing a lot more than the average tourists do on their first trip to DC. Audrey realized later, on her other trips to DC, that after what she had seen with Rachelle, there really wasn't that much left. That's how much they saw. They got really sore feet and were very, very exhausted, but were also highly entertained by the common and not-so-common attractions: tourist families with matching plaid shorts, the chipmunks that Rachelle refused to recognize as squirrels ("Aren't they the same thing?!"), and the many reflective surfaces around the city that served as perfect photo-ops.

They spent a week in Palm Desert, California and basked in the sunlight (and got really tan), went to the gym and worked out for a surprisingly long period of time (yay 0 elevation) played board games, watched Ironman way too many times, and made fun of Joshua Tree National Park. Oh yes, and they also went to Tiffany's and looked at diamonds. Rachelle loves diamonds, and Audrey has been lucky enough to be exposed to the world of diamonds through Rachelle. Thanks to Rachelle, Audrey is very well-versed in diamond language.

They exchanged books, movies, and TV shows. Audrey and Rachelle love to talk about books. Audrey likes to read books and then make Rachelle read them. They also enjoyed watching Friends, 30 Rock, and the occasional Gossip Girl episode together. They tried not to watch Gossip Girl most of the time, but it was too addicting.

They developed a list of rules for their life that include the Rule of the Evil Hour of 6, the "It's okay to be late for most things" Rule, and the "You don't actually have to eat meat if you don't want to" Rule. The most-often broken rule, I think, is the one that states, "Always go to bed when you're tired, and sometimes, go to bed before you are tired." The two of them are really bad at going to bed when they are tired. See this post for the other rules, if you are curious.

Rachelle and Audrey are no longer roommates. They can't be. Rachelle went off and got herself a man. And she married him. Audrey was left with other awesome roommates and more adventures to have on her own, but she misses Rachelle.

The truth is, Audrey needs that Rachelle. She just does. And she is so grateful for her friendship. And for the fact that Rachelle really knows Audrey. She understands.

Quick list of other things I love about Rachelle:
1. She has a snuggie.
2. She is a super hard worker. She is not afraid to put in the effort to get what she wants.
3. She has a fantastic shoe collection.
4. She asked for Star Trek for Christmas.
5. She has a different color of hair in like every picture she's in.
6. She was really good at getting me to go to the gym.
7. She likes all sorts of random music. Sometimes she's in a Ne-Yo mood, sometimes All-American Rejects. Sometimes country. But she always like Billy Joel.
8. She listens to all my crazy stuff and just laughs at me.
9. She totally appreciates it when I scrapbook roommate stuff. She always wants to see the new pages I make. That makes all the work worth it. :)
10. She taught me how to rinse everything completely before putting it into the dishwasher. And how to use plates all time. Especially for toast. She hates it when there are crumbs on the counter.
11. One time we bought a hot pad for our kitchen together. Just one of them. Just because.
12. She let me drive her car all the way to St. George once- she was in the passenger seat. She needed a break.
13. She often goes along with my crazy ideas-- but she also puts a check on them too.
14. She leaves really, really long phone messages that I actually really entertaining to listen to.
15. She likes to make piles of clothes like I do. And she never got mad at me when my side of the room was a disaster area (as it often was).

So happy birthday, my darling. And thanks for being you.

There is nothing better in the world...

1. ...than weddings. The adorable and lovely Ariel Jackson got married to the charming and handsome Stephen Martin on July 17th, and I was in love with their wedding. It was literally the most fun I have ever had at a reception. There were lots of wardies there, and we all danced and danced to Bieber and ate cake. It was a blast. And so beautiful.

2. ...than Pioneer Day. We are so lucky to live in Utah and get an extra holiday which = an extra day of no work. Pioneer Day this year was a crazy blast. The events included: 1) Thursday afternoon: Lene, Sarie, and I went to 7 Peaks for the $6 after 6pm deal. It was awesome to just be with the girls. There is extra anxiety with swimsuit wearing when boys are involved. 2) Thursday night: campout in Mona (a little bit South of Santaquin). There were a whole bunch of wardies there at first, but when it came time to sleep (and actually camp), most people went home. Me, Dani, Lene, Michael (Dani's bf), and Seth (Dani's bf's roommate) were the only ones that stayed. Dani and I slept in the back of Dani's Subaru. I don't think I have ever had a more comfortable night's sleep camping in the wilderness. We slept with the hatch open so we could fell the lovely night air and see the stars, but we covered at the same time. It was lovely. 3) Friday morning: WATER FIGHT (see number 3). 4) Friday afternoon: swimming at the Moon pool (apartment complex in our ward) and baptisms at the Mt. Timpanogos Temple. 5) Friday night: Inception. Everyone loves this movie. I thought it was cool, but I definitely had mixed feelings. The whole idea just wasn't exactly moral to me. They were criminals, but somehow not in a good way. And I didn't like the way they messed with people's dreams. I don't know. It just rubbed me the wrong way. It was upsetting. But the movie was fascinating to watch nonetheless. 6) Saturday morning: Days of '47 Parade in SLC. Me, Lynne, Lene, Sarie, and Joey drove down. And we got an AMAZING shady, grassy spot on a little hill at the beginning of the parade. President Uchtdorf was in the parade this year. He waved at me.

(Me, Lene, Joey watching the parade. I have a sleepy eye.)

7) Saturday afternoon: the Farmer's market in SLC. We walked around booths for a while, got lunch, and then I went to visit my cousin, Shawn. He was working the booth for his father-in-law. He gave me delicious cherries. I tried to pay him and he said, "We don't take Potty money here." (he calls me Potty. It's short for "Potter" and "Audi Potty") Then we walked over to the Gateway and did a little shopping. I escaped the place without buying anything- except a present for my darling Elise. 8) Saturday night: Dinner with Stephanie at Terra Mia (I can always use a pure and simple Margarita Pizza), and then a sleepover with Rachelle (see number 5). It was a fantastic weekend. And I was so tired.

3. ...than breaking world records and starring in music videos. So on Saturday, July 23rd, BYU put on a giant water fight in hopes of breaking the world record. With over 120,000 water balloons and about 4,000 people, we broke, but not necessarily smashed, the record. Have you ever been in a giant giant water balloon fight? Being in the middle of the fight is not really a pleasurable experience. It's painful. I don't know why, but the balloons had a hard time popping, and they would just smack into you, and it felt like getting punched. But who cares? It was AWESOME! Mass chaos, people throwing balloons everywhere, all 4,000 people becoming instantly soaked in water. What better way could there possibly be to spend a Friday morning? There isn't one. I was part of the breaking of a world record. To be put in the Guinness Book of World Records. It was way too much fun. And then after, we dance partied it up in our soaking wet, heavy clothes up by the DJ, and along with a large group of people, were selected to be part of the filming of a music video. And up-and-coming artist, Kyle Andrews, was using our water balloon fight for his music video. We stayed an extra hour or so to film another water fight, dance some more, carrying Kyle around on our shoulders, and so on. And THEN, when we were leaving, the DJ chose to put on a song that should be known to everyone and all as art: "Bohemian Rhapsody." Needless to say, we stayed on the field and danced and sang to that lovely song, all the while Lene filmed us, putting our performance in forever lasting memory. My experience at the water fight was complete. Oh, and then they gave us free lunch. Sandwiches and ice cream.

Video Courtesy of KSL.com

(man standing in yellow rain pants: Kyle Andrews. The artist. And I actually really liked his song. It was called "You Make Me Smile" or something like that. It was Jason Mraz/"Hey Soul Sister" style. Kind of a mixing of the two.)

4. ...than Michael Jackson's 2001 album, Invincible. This is a treasure that I recently discovered/have become obsessed with. It fits in nicely with all the Queen craziness. A Michael break is always appreciated. So, the thing that I am trying to figure out, is why I didn't listen to this album like, at all, before? It just blows my mind, because the album is really good. There are a TON of good songs on it. I even have a new Michael favorite: "Speechless." It is pure beauty. I listen to it over and over and over again. I played it for Lene on the way to Mona, and then on the way back she said something that I will always love her for: "Can we listen to that "Speechless" song again?" I was ecstatic. Let's just say that I might enjoy my music more than the average person enjoys theirs. And I constantly try to make others enjoy the same music I do, because let's face it: I talk about it all the time. I casually bring up, say, Queen, in casual conversation with different people at least once a day. I have been known to repeatedly ask: "So, on a scale of 1-10, how much do love Queen? I'm currently at like a 15." Anyway, when Lene requested a recent favorite of mine, I just about peed my pants in excitement. We listened to it repeatedly, and then I tried to expose her to more of my faves. One a related note, Sarie was also in the car on the way to Mona when I exposed "Speechless." She commented, not about that song in particular, that Michael's voice sounded feminine. She told me she didn't want to offend me, but didn't I agree? I didn't know what to say. I really was speechless. Michael's voice is not feminine. It is not masculine, either (well, sometimes it is). It is just Michael, and that is the way he sounds. And no one else sounds like him. I guess when you think about it, he does sound a little feminine sometimes. But really, the thought had never occurred to me because Michael Jackson just sounds the way that Michael Jackson sounds. Isn't that weird?

5. ...than turtle cookies. Rachelle spent the night at my/our old apartment last last weekend. She came to church with me on Sunday, and then after, we decided that to celebrate Christmas in July (it was July 25, and Elise, the magic Christmas elf herself, reminded me to celebrate it) we would make Christmas sugar cookies and then eat all of them. Ourselves. Well, I went into the kitchen to start the process, and Rachelle was sitting in the living room doing... something. And then I suddenly had a brilliant idea. I GASPED very loudly and exclaimed, "I know what we should make instead of Christmas cookies!" (it's not like we had been trying to think of something to make instead or anything) I looked into the living room at Rachelle and she looked up from what she was doing and yelped, "TURTLE COOKIES!" And it was precisely what I had been thinking of. Same brain wave, Rachelle and I. Funny thing is that it had been over two years since we had made turtle cookies. They were a distant memory to both of us, yet they were the first treats that came to mind in such excitement. I love that Rachelle. So we made turtle cookies. We didn't have any cocoa, though, so we used a packet of chocolate pudding powder instead of both cocoa and white sugar. Chocolate flavored sugar. They were delish, but had a bit of a different consistency than usual. We'll have to make them again soon. But use the right ingredients next time.

6. ...than working at the Special Collections. I pretty much choose my own schedule. I get to take days off. I get to read obituaries everyday, which, most of the time is very interesting. I get to look at old stuff. Recently I found a document signed by Brigham Young. I showed it to John, my boss, and he got all excited. He told me that that piece of paper/signature was worth probably 5 or 6 thousand dollars. I am so grateful for my job, even if I complain about going a lot of the time.

7. ...than spending time with cousins that I love. I spend Wednesday through Friday with Dallin, Dustin, Daxton, and Dawson while Dave, Sherry, and Dallas were out of town. I was on little boy cousin babysitting duty, and let me tell you, it was exhausting. And I got really sick of cooking and cleaning up. But I loved the time that I was able to spend with my boys. Look below to experience the adorableness. I didn't get a picture of Dallin. He was too consumed by his xbox 360, which is a whole other story that, frankly, I don't want to get into. I hate video games. And none of the pictures I took of Dustin turned out. That boy has no patience for the camera. He turns his head or refuses to smile. Anyway: below are Daxton and Dawson. Possibly the most adorable 2 boys of ages 8 and 4.

 8. ...than watching Zac Efron play a troubled but very talented sailor who won a sailing scholarship to Stanford. Charlie St. Cloud, ladies. See it. The movie is a B or a C. It's weird. And sometimes cheesy. But Zac is actually a good actor, and he does a very good job. The movie is worth the money if only for Zac and his "handsome, rugged, chiseled, and great" features. Also, I might add that there is nothing better in the world than the student deal at the Wynnsong theater at the Riverwoods in Provo. $5.75 for a movie. That's cheaper than a matinee in St. George.


9. ...than Harry Potter birthday parties. See next post.

10. ...than the unexpectedness of Freddie Mercury. Once again, surprised. He has two solo albums. One is titled, Mr. Bad Guy. WHAT? Coolest album title ever, right? Mr. Bad Guy. That's hilarious. The second one is called Barcelona, and is actually not quite a solo album- he shares it with Montserrat Calballe, a female Spanish operatic soprano. They made a whole. album. together. Question: did anyone expect that? And you know what, it totally works. Here's a small taste: (she comes in at like 1:43)

11. ...than the BYU all-sports pass. Those things are literally my favorite thing about BYU. Actually that might not be true. But I do love them. A lot. I have been counting down to BYU football since basketball season ended in March. I. Am. Excited. And I just bought an all-sports pass. One more year of great BYU sports before I graduate. Wow. That actually sounds awful. Why do people have to graduate from college? Why? Let me say forever.

12. ...than turning down the internship at the Library of Congress in exchange for the awesome summer that I have had in Provo. I do not regret that decision. I never have once.

My world in Provo is just such a good place.

I am True Blue

TRUE BLUE BYU.

My first year at BYU I did not have genuine school spirit. I SO do now, and I would argue that I am a bigger fan than you (that excludes you, Dani). I like to like things more than other people like them. It's kind of my theme in life (aka Harry Potter obsession. Please do not tell me that you like Harry Potter more than I do. It gives me great stress. Unfortunately.).

So, here is the story of my BYU school spirit so far this year....

1. The Oklahoma game. Final score: 14-13. Dani and I watched the first half at Kaitlin's house and the second half at Legend's Grill among dozens of other screaming fans. It was a blast and a half, and after the enormous victory, we partied in the streets. I swear, joyful riots broke out all over student neighborhoods, and all down University Avenue. Dani and I parked at the stadium and joined the crowd there. BUT, we didn't stay for long, because THEN, we went to a bonfire in the canyon. YIP. And THEN, at 1:30 in the morning, we drove to the Provo airport to GREET THE TEAM!! There were hundreds of students there, all lined up, waiting for the team to fly. There was much happiness and rejoicing. BTW, winning this game brought us to #9 in the rankings.

2. The Tulane game. Final score: One million to hardly anything. It was a BLOWOUT. Which is SO FUN. I went to the Smith Fieldhouse to watch it on a giant screen with Paul. The student activities people gave out free food. That night, once again, we went to MEET THE TEAM at the airport and join in the celebration of sweet victory. Dani was very excited because she actually touched Max Hall's hand. She tried to pull him in, but he pulled his hand away. I have to remind her, almost daily, that he's married. Bronco gave a little speech thanking us all for being there to meet the team. There were a lot less people than the week before and he said, "You guys are the true fans," because we showed up even when it wasn't the biggest victory of the last 10 years. After this game, we were #7 in the rankings (that's even better than our best ranking at the peak of last year!!!)

3. The pep rally. It was the Thursday before the first home game. Dani and I got sweet seats at the front. The cheerleaders did their thing (which, we really enjoyed because the boy cheerleaders are totally awesome when they dance/sing to the fight song. Seriously, watch them next time you have the chance. It's pretty great.), and then the football team came out and introduced each other. They were funny. And we saw Cosmo. And Dani said, "I love that CAT!"

Please excuse my non-BYU apparel. I had had a very, very busy day. Namely: school, work, Presidency meeting, group project on campus, then straight to the rally.

4. The Florida State game. We don't like to talk about it much because we lost. But Dani and I had a jolly good time anyway because our row was randomly selected, out of every row in that ginormous LaVell Edwards Stadium, to win free pizzas from Papa Johns! Cosmo came and hung out with us for like half an hour, and we were put on the big screen with the pizzas that we won! That night we celebrated our free pizza winning and cheered ourselves up over the loss with Cafe Rio. A perfect celebration/mourning mix. Unfortunately, after this game, BYU went down to #19 in the rankings. :(

5. TRUE BLUE FOOTBALL. What can I possibly say?!?!?! LOVE IT. I have an uncommon love for wrestling around in foreign substances, namely, jello, pudding, mashed potatoes, and now, BLUE FOAM. It's a habit I learned in high school. We did that sort of stuff all the time. BUT SO, I went to True Blue football with Dani, two of our BFFs from our new ward, Kevin and Ted, and then Brad and Andrew met us there. There were masses of people there and masses of blue foam. Someday I'll figure out how to produce such a large amount of foam and host foam parties in my backyard for the neighborhood kids. And we'll have a giant slip 'n slide and everything. Best moment at true blue football: when I smashed a bunch of foam in Dani's face and she started choking and coughing, and THEN, Hannah didn't notice that Dani was already convulsing because of what I did, and SHE DID IT AGAIN with ANOTHER load of blue, soapy foam. Dani, I think, kind of almost died. It was very sad that she was choking, and we all stood there awkwardly while she coughed on the ground, but seriously, IT WAS HILARIOUS. It was also pretty great when we stuffed the foam under our shirts and in our pants and looked like giant, blubber foam smurf people. I crashed into people, splattering foam all over them. It was fantastic.

In case you can't see people through the blueness, from left it goes: Stephen, Dani, Hannah, Andrew, me, and Brad.

6. The Colorado State Game. A lazy win, a predictable game. But it was super great anyway. I sat with Dani at first (but then she went home because she wasn't feeling good), then with Kaitlin, Spencer, and Kyle. Kaitlin was my football buddy for the last couple years, so it was just peachy to be with her. I miss my old girls. (Meg, come back to me!!!!) I don't care if a game is exciting (I mean, an exciting game is preferable, but not required), because I just love to sit in the sun, be in a football stadium, and be matching with everyone I see. (I LOVE it when things/people match. Some people don't like to match. I LOVE IT. That's why I love weddings so much. Because everything matches.)

In conclusion, I am true blue and proud. School spirit is one of my favorite inventions.

To sum up last Saturday, there are two other events I must mention.

1) The rope swing. I went with our ward BFFs, Kevin, Ted, and Josh, and our FHE mom, Jessica, to a rope swing in Mona. The weather was perfectly warm, but the water was FREEZING cold. But it was really pretty, and the rope swing was awesome. There were platforms built up in trees like treehouses to jump from. It was quite elaborate. I want to go back.

2) I went to "Up" with Cameron and his gang on Saturday night. LOVE THAT MOVIE. It's just precious. Dug, Kevin, Russell, and Mr. Frederickson: you rock.

Weekly Review (3/22-3/28)

Monday through Thursday: nothing exciting except American Idol- Motown week. I am sincerely in love with Motown music. I actually purchased a Motown #1's album on iTunes. I love it.
Friday: Something exciting that I will tell about in a future post, and RACHELLE'S BIRTHDAY! Yay yay yay! She turned the big 21, and that means that I AM NEXT! I am not prepared to be that old! For her birthday, she decided that she wanted to cook everyone dinner, which was fine by me! She made some amazing spaghetti sauce. Yum. And we opened presents, then went Stephanie Abraham's. It was her birthday too, and Megan Knell threw her a surprise party! The night was complete with a movie- "Breakfast at Tiffany's." Love it. I bought Rachelle some books for her birthday. I love buying books, and I love going in book stores. It's totally a win-win.
Saturday: baptisms at the Provo temple, the gym, then THE COLOR FESTIVAL!!! See the next post for this one... I'm building anticipation, see? We had caramel apples for dinner, and then went bowling! I am like the worse bowler in the history of China. I totally lost. Like by far. Sad day.
Sunday: see another post for this one too.

The weekly review idea has grown a little old for me, but it's kind of nice still because I can lay everything out, and I won't forget what I wanted to write about. I can just look at the reviews and see what I am missing! It's really quite handy.

Also, make sure that you scroll down and read the next two posts. They are new, but I did so many right in a row that they might get lost a little. Don't let it happen! They are good ones. Especially the one about Kaitlin's bridal shower. :)
Loves!

THE DREAM OF MY LIFE

Ok, so I have several "dreams of my life", but this summer, one of them was fulfilled. I went to WASHINGTON DC! It probably wasn't the best decision of my life (because I spent ALL of my money), but it was probably the most memorable, educational, and enjoyable decision of my life. So it all works out, right?

I went on my little vacation with Rachelle and we stayed with her sister, Andrea- who is really awesome, by the way. We stayed for six very busy, action packed days, and had a blast every moment besides those moments when we succumbed to the pain in our legs and feet from walking so much.

There is just too much to tell, so I'll just include a few (15 to be exact) of the most memorable moments:

1. When the man on the plane asked me if I worked in DC (During our flight I had been shuffling through tourist guides and finding tour information in the packets that Senators Bennett and Hatch had sent me). I wish with all of my heart that I could have said yes. And someday, I promise, "yes" will be the answer.
2. When we accidentally stalked the same family all around Arlington National Cemetery.
3. When the security guards at the National Archives stopped the line (that was several hours long) so we could come in through the exit and go the gift shop. See? I already have Washington wired. I had to go back to the gift shop because I desperately wanted a giant replica of the Declaration of Independence.
   
4. When we saw a group of anti-abortionists petitioning outside the Supreme Court. They had tape on their mouths to represent those who "don't have a voice." (We talked to the spokesgirl).
5. When we FINALLY found the footbridge to Theodore Roosevelt Island after over an hour of wandering. (That Island is made of wood!!)
6. When we did cartwheels on the Capitol's lawn (and took pictures)
7. When we rode the Merry-Go-Round at the National Mall with all the little kids.
8. When we seriously considered buying rainbow tie-dyed t-shirts that said, "I <3>
9. When we fed the squirrels in the park by the Senate office buildings (Rachelle kept calling them chipmunks!). Those squirrels were crazy- practically sat on the bench next to us.
10. When we saw the camera crews who, just moments before, had filmed the press conference announcing the end of the Anthrax case from several years ago. Apparently we walked by the FBI building just a couple minutes too late!
    
11. When we just missed being able to witness a Republican House of Reps meeting in the gallery at the Capitol. Our senate-scheduled tour dashed down the stairs to get in on the floor to watch, but the meeting ended right before we got in there. :( We were lucky that any of the Reps were even in Washington because Congress isn't in session in August. It is for this reason that we thought the anti-abortionists were so odd- didn't they know that no one official was even in the Supreme Court building?
12. When Rachelle and I pretended to be poor homeless people with the statues at the FDR Memorial.
13. When we saw the "Caution: low-hanging branches" sign only like a foot in front of the actual low-hanging branch.
    
14. When we got breakfast at the Eastern Market with Andrea, and the man at the register bluntly told me that I couldn't order ham eggs benedict. I looked at him, amazed, and didn't quite know what to say. He proceeded to order me french toast with pecans instead. BEST BREAKFAST EVER.
15. When we took pictures in front every reflective surface we came upon. It was hard to take pictures with both of us in them, so whenever a mirror-like surface presented itself, we took advantage of it.
    

And my all-time favorite part- being on the National Mall and looking one way to see the U.S. Capitol, and looking the other to see the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. It was just breathtaking and beautiful and wonderful to be in a place that has such a history. I love history, and I love Washington D.C.

I'm going to live in Washington D.C. someday.