C.H.U.R.C.H.

So today as I was getting ready for church, I watched/listened to John Bytheway's "The Best 3 Hours of the Week" (an awesome gift from the Ray family), and learned a lot. It's funny how no matter how old you are, you can always be reminded of why we go to church. Let me sum this up if you've never seen it.

C-Choose (Choose to learn from church)
H-Holy Sabbath (We have turned Sunday into a day of the weekend, when really it is the Holy Sabbath Day)
U-Unity (It sounds to me like we need to all be friends)
R-Respect (leaders, teachers, Spirit)
Read (read the lesson the week before)
Record (Church journal)
C-Covenants (sacrament)
H-Holy Ghost

It's put simply, and bluntly. Church is up to us. If we don't want to enjoy it, we won't. If we CHOOSE to enjoy it, we will benefit greatly.

Tis The Season

Christmas is one of the greatest times of year, and it's so wonderful to see how people help others, and how the helped are so grateful. Yesterday we were able to give each of our 125 students in the Reading Lab a new book for Christmas, the books were donated to us by one of my coworkers Relief Society. It was a wonderful donation and it was so wonderful to be able to give our students new books.

Each student was so grateful for a new book that was their own! They all gave us hugs, wished us a Merry Christmas, it was absolutely wonderful. The greatest class of all was our last class of the day, our ELD class. Let me tell ya, it was the greatest feeling ever. Here's how it went: "Alright kids, we received a wonderful donation and for Christmas we want to give you all a new book for Christmas". One student responded "Like, for us to keep??" After a positive response that they could even write their name in it, the room burst out in cheers! Not just a little "woop, woop", but a full on standing ovation, clapping, cheering, hugging each other moment. Imagine watching Extreme Makeover Home Edition, the moment following "BUS DRIVER, move that bus!", the moment where most families fall to the ground with overwhelm-ment (yep, made up work), crying, jumping up and down, their whole life changed..that was our class because they were getting new books.

It was one of those rare life experiences where you realized just how lucky you are and how much you have. It would be impossible for me to ever forget that moment. It was the greatest!

So, remember how much you have, how little you have to give to change someone's life, and make a goal to change people's lives.
:) MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love ME, Hailee Melissa Rasmussen!

Life is constantly full of tender mercies...this week, I have been so blessed. Sitting in a first discussion, I was once again reminded of how much my Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ love ME! Heavenly Father loves all His children, Jesus Christ suffered for all of us, and I feel so blessed to have the knowledge that He loves me, Hailee Melissa Rasmussen, faults and all. How great is that? I mean, really, how great is it to know that even when something goes wrong, we are still loved by the most important people in our lives.

I am so grateful to have a wonderful family. Today was definitely a mom day. I needed my mom, to feel the love of my mom is so great, and I cherish my relationship with her so much, there are hardly words to describe. I am so proud to say that my mom is my mom, she is going after her dreams, what a great example she is to me.

I have such amazing blessings in my life, amazing people, amazing family, and amazing friends. Wonderful experiences that teach me wonderful things and remind me of wonderful life and Gospel Principles. How lucky for me :)

Best Job Ever..and more painting.

So I had an awesome experience today at work! I was DIBELing kids (it's this really boring test that is administered to all 850 at the school, different tests for different grade levels, obviously.). There was a student who is pretty low in reading and very unconfident, it makes me super sad. So today, he came in and tested and his scores were way better than at the beginning of the year and so him and I went over it together and he was so excited and happy about being acknowledged and supported that his eyes welled up with tears :) It was the bomb dot com. Happy moment of the day.

SOOOO maybe I'm addicted to As You Wish? I say...SO WHAT?! I am currently in the process of painting a trio of dishes. All TieDye.
A. A plate with a peace sign. B. A bowl with a heart. C. A cup with "happiness" written on it. AKA. Peace, Love and Happiness. I'm so excited! And also, a way for you to know if you're addicted to painting pottery at As You Wish... "hey, Hailee!". That's right...by name...my bad. :)

Optimism Prime.

I've been stuck in a bit of a rut lately, and chose to demonstrate said rut with a picture. I ran across a lot of pictures, could have chosen several, but I felt this one was the most optimistic. In a field of grass, you will always run across patches of grass with no tire marks, but they always end up reappearing, after only disappearing because a great,beautiful rainstorm was what caused the treadless patch of grass in the first place.




AND. I didn't select this picture because it just looks PAINFUL...but at least I'd be able to laugh at myself?






And I didn't choose this one because: a. it takes too much work to get out and b. I hope I don't ever look this pathetic.

Bugaboo Jewelry "Forever in My Heart" giveaway

I'm entering a giveaway for my amazing sister in law, Melissa. Her and my brother lost their baby at 33 weeks along on August 27th. Their strength throughout this trial amazes me, and they continue to amaze me more and more every day. I hope that they will win so she can have this precious keepsake to remember Ethan Samuel Rasmussen by. An angel in our lives forever.
http://babygiveaways.blogspot.com/2010/11/bugaboo-jewelry-giveaway.html#comments

My Testimony of the Gospel

In my times of trial and struggle, I find the most comfort, the only comfort, in my Savior Jesus Christ, through the love of the Holy Ghost and the great faith that my Father in Heaven has in me. It's times like these, that surrounding myself with the love and testimonies of others, helps me the most.

I know that my Heavenly Father is aware of me. He knows how I am feeling, He knows it is difficult, but He knows that I will be okay. I have a testimony of this, I know that He would never abandon me and for that, I am eternally grateful. I am thankful for my Savior's sacrifice for me. I know that He suffered on the cross and bled for me, because He loves me. He felt every pain that I feel, He has shed every tear I have shed. His desire for me is to turn to Him and be humble, to put my whole faith in the Gospel and the plan that is laid out for me. I love Him, and I know that He loves me. I am thankful for the Holy Ghost. I am thankful for the opportunities I have to feel his comfort, guidance and love in my life everyday. WIthout the Holy Ghost, I would be lost. I know that to enjoy the blessings of this earth life, I must rely on the strength of my Father in Heaven, His son Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost.

I know that Joseph Smith was, and is, a true Prophet of God. His earth mission was to rebuild Christ's true church here on this beautiful earth. His strength and faith are a light and beacon to all. Joseph Smith would not have gone through his pain and struggles for something that wasn't true. The Gospel in my life is the greatest gift I could ask for.

I know that the Book of Mormon is true. It is a reminder to us of Christ's love. It reminds us of the struggles Joseph Smith went through, and the life he lived for us. It can help even those in the poorest of spirits in the hardest of times.

I know that President Monson is a man of God. He has the greatest spirit about him, and I know that he leads and directs this church hand in hand with our Heavenly Father. I also know that his apostles are men of God and that their mission is to direct us on this earth, to bring forth commandments, direction and love directly from our Father in Heaven.

I know that my Bishop is called of God to directly help those in my ward, including myself. I know that his counselors are called of God to assist in the stewardship of the ward. I am grateful for their constant love and example.

I am grateful for my family, I know that they love me and I am so lucky to have them. I am thankful for my friends and the love they show for me and the constant reminder they are to me of how lucky I am to have them. I am grateful for my trials, however hard they may be. I know that they were given to me for a reason, and I know that I will not be given any trial I cannot handle. I know that as long as I stay close to my Heavenly Father that I will be given aide and love through them. I am so thankful at this time of year for everything I have, the roof over my head, my family, my friends, my trials, my jobs, my opportunity to go to school, for all of the things that I have. I am so lucky to be here on this earth during this time. I am thankful for the faith that my Father in Heaven has in me.

I close this testimony, in the name of my Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Cheesy Christmastime Pickup Lines that will work on me.

Uh, Santa called me yesterday asking for my Christmas list...I said you.

Can I wrap you up and put you under the tree?

...Maybe that's all. But if they were used on me..I'd say yeah. Probably. haha

Oh Michael Buble...

So today....I needed to hear Michael. I had on good ole Pandora and this gem came on. This is gonna be super cheesy of me but whatever: this song is TOTALLY me right now. Just saying.

I'm not surprised, not everything lasts
I've broken my heart so many times, I stopped keeping track
Talk myself in, I talk myself out
I get all worked up, then I let myself down

I tried so very hard not to lose it
I came up with a million excuses
I thought, I thought of every possibility

And I know someday that it'll all turn out
You'll make me work, so we can work to work it out
And I promise you, kid, that I give so much more than I get
I just haven't met you yet

I might have to wait, I'll never give up
I guess it's half timing, and the other half's luck
Wherever you are, whenever it's right
You'll come out of nowhere and into my life

And I know that we can be so amazing
And, baby, your love is gonna change me
And now I can see every possibility

And somehow I know that it'll all turn out
You'll make me work, so we can work to work it out
And I promise you, kid, I give so much more than I get
I just haven't met you yet

They say all's fair
In love and war
But I won't need to fight it
We'll get it right and we'll be united

And I know that we can be so amazing
And being in your life is gonna change me
And now I can see every single possibility

And someday I know it'll all turn out
And I'll work to work it out
Promise you, kid, I'll give more than I get
Than I get, than I get, than I get

Oh, you know it'll all turn out
And you'll make me work so we can work to work it out
And I promise you kid to give so much more than I get
Yeah, I just haven't met you yet

I just haven't met you yet
Oh, promise you, kid
To give so much more than I get

I said love, love, love, love
Love, love, love, love
(I just haven't met you yet)
Love, love, love, love
Love, love
I just haven't met you yet

Love you MBuble.

Great!

Life is great. I love when things are going well and when I'm truly happy. Like right now. Both jobs are great, I'm going back to school in January, which is great. I love my house, it's great. I have awesome friends, which is great. My family rocks, which is also great.

See the trend? Great. That's the trend, and I love it.

So, make this day great, make this week great, just making everything great.

Mmmk thanks.

I HATE SHOTS!

So yesterday I got a flu shot. The first flu shot I've ever gotten in my whole life. A lot of people at the school are getting sick, so some of the girls I work with convinced me it would be a good idea.

Background.

12 years old. Free immunization clinic at Superstition Mall. Every mother was angry at me because I was making their kids crying because I was crying.

17 years old. High school blood drive. All I wanted was to ditch seminary. (bad, I know.) Took a gajillion minutes to find my vein, 3 different techs. Blood was drawn, I went over and enjoyed my cookie and juice. Then passed out. Classically embarrassing.

18 years old. Hives. Urgent Care. A steroid shot in my butt. I was FREAKIN out. The doctor looked at my mom "Is she being serious?" Mom: "yes, she hates needles" dr.: "How old is she?" Mom: "18"

21 years old. Yesterday. Flu shot. Filled out paperwork, nurse calls my name..."Umm I'll just wait till La Trenda is done, she's gonna hold my hand" Nurse: "uh, ok" Needless to say, I let 2 people go in front of me, then when it was my turn, I couldn't calm down and I couldn't breathe normal, after my shot the blood ran down to my elbow...because my adrenaline level was going crazy.

Ya, I know I'm a baby. Whatever. Needles suck.

Tons and tons and tons.

It's been forever since I last blogged and a ton has happened since then!
1. I moved. I'm moved into my own apartment and I'm loving it! I am still working on the organization thing, i just have tons of stuff and still figuring out where to put it all. Here is a sneak peak at what it's turning out like. My mother helped me decorate a wall :)



2. I started a new job! I'm now a server at Texas Roadhouse and I'm loving it! I had my first official, full section, keep my tips shift last night. I will be the first to admit that it started out rough, but by the end it was pretty smooth sailing and after my minor breakdown, recovered by an awesome coworker, I was a lot more confident and had a blast with my tables. I had one lady who was practically in tears telling me how much of a sweetheart I was. It was probably the sweetest thing ever and such a blessing.

3. I have a freakin rad halloween costume. If you don't know who I am...then go to youtube and search "Bed Intruder Song"



4. I don't really know that there is a four, and I know my list looks measly but everything has been keeping me so dang busy! It's a good busy, but a hectic busy.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Obsessed.

I have a ridiculous obsession. To what you ask?
I mean, how ingenious is this company? You pay a measly 9 bucks a month and you can watch tons of movies and tv shows on demand. I have watched Bones, Veronica Mars, Grey's Anatomy, tons of movies and I am currently watching Friday Night Lights. It really is pretty rad.

Another obsession?
They are a yummy combo of milk and white chocolate. They just make me smile.

I also love: Chocolate Milk, Fruit Punch Powerade, bike rides, and perfect weather.

Because I can...

I am going to post pictures with EVERY blog post. Because I can. I think it just adds some oomph. And I like it.

I'm MOOOOVING!

Yeah, I just posted a picture of a cow, along with the title "I'm MOOOOVING". Judge me all you want, I think it's adorable. I have decided that it's time to move on and I'm excited for the next adventure in life! I have been offered an awesome little apartment off the side of an AMAZING family's home. It's cheaper, and I'm excited about that and just a new adventure :) I am, of course, taking any and all donations of house stuff :) haha jk. But really.

Dream Car. 76 Super Beetle.

So, I have a dream car. A yellow 76 Super Beetle Convertible. Or a yellow 76 Super Beetle with a surf rack on top. I would also like wood paneling. That would be cute, but just an extra, not a necessity.





I realize this could take some talent, seeing as it's not super easy to find these all fixed up with people ACTUALLY wanting to see them, and when they do it can be slightly pricey. However, if it requires me getting greasy, I'll do it!

Updated 80's Dream, Plus Some.

Yep. You got it. An update on my dream man. Not only will he be hilarious and fun like Ferris Bueller but he will have charmingly good looks like a young Patrick Dempsey. On top of this dream, he will love to do laundry. Because of all the things in the world, doing laundry is my least favorite. It's never ending, mundane and annoying. This is my 80's dream. A girl CAN dream, right?

Also, my sister and I are starting a blog "Food and Fun on a Budget". Since moving out, I have been able to experiment with foods and I really like some of my creations, so I thought, "Well, let's share!" So, Morgan and I are going to be blogging cheap foods, low cost crafts, and affordable fun! I'm super excited, there is exactly one post right now, but keep checking back there will be new stuff at least weekly :)

I've been watching too many 80's movies. And wish Netflix had more...I may just have to find hidden gems. Oh Netflix. Also, did you know that Molly Ringwald, who stars as the mother in Secret Life of the American Teenager, has her own pregnant teen movie to her name? For Keeps. Isn't that just presh?

V. Mars, Easy A, 80's dream.

Okay so, here's the deal. I love movies, and I love tv shows. Both of which make me love Netflix. Netflix is the bane of my existence. A very good bane of existence. I always get addicted to new shows and stay locked up until I'm done with every season. Newest addiction?

Veronica Mars. This show is ridiculously phenomenal. It's full of fun, mystery, drama, hotties, and it's ADDICTIVE. I can hardly stop myself from watching it all the time. And any stopping is pretty much an epic fail. I'm currently watching Season 2 Episode 9. Mind you, I began watching this show just a few days ago. And season one is like 25 episodes? And they are all 43 minutes long. I really just love this dang show, I'm pretty much half done with it, just one and a half seasons left!

I also love movies. A lot. Yesterday I saw: Easy A. If you can get over the bad language (because there is quite a lot) the it's probably one of the funniest movies I've seen in a long time! Seriously amazing. "Who told you you're adopted?!" Probably one of the funniest scenes in the movies. If you wanna see a freakin hilarious movie that's not super long...then you MUST see this movie!

What did I learn from this movie? Well...I learned that I wish my life was like an 80's movie. . Perhaps I'm like Molly Ringwald in the stellar film "The Breakfast Club" and I fall for the bad boy type...Like maybe John Bender is the one for me? Oh perhaps I'll take the Sixteen Candles approach to Molly Ringwald..and I like to fall for the rich popular kid? Or perhaps....I'll fall for a Ferris Bueller. Yep. I'll take one of the Ferris' in the world. Fun, spontaneous and hilarious. I mean really, who wouldn't love to have fun all the time? I'll take a Ferris.

When anyone finds a Ferris, let me know :)

P.S. Props to Molly Ringwald for all her BratPack work. It was phenomenal, there is no denying that. And props to Molly for the tieback to your bratpack days in the most recent episode of Secret Life of the American Teenager. "Everyone forgot my 16th birthday and i've never forgotten it". It was appreciated.

Yep.

Today Today Today....Today(meaning 4 days ago when I started this post), my phone broke. And when I say break I don’t mean “Oh hey, this can be fixed” or “Eh, a little dent gives it character” or “Lame, I’m gonna have to go get an system fix for this...”. I mean, full on, my screen is SHATTERED. Like, you know when you get a chip in your windshield? And then when that devastating accident occurs where you go over a bump and it spreads? Ya my phone screen is 10 times worse than that. There is not a square half inch anywhere on my phone where there isn’t a crack. And let me tell you, it SUCKS. I was in a bad mood ALL DAY LONG. Dangit.

My volunteering at the Gilbert Prosecutors Office is going great. I’m having a lot of fun sitting in on court cases learning the ins and outs of the court system and learning my role in it. I’m a victims advocate and it’s my responsibility to help victims of crimes understand what’s going on and how they are being affected throughout the arraignment, pre-trial and trial. This volunteer position even requires me to wear professional clothes. It’s weird. I’ve never had to do that before!

Today! ( for reals this time.) I went to a great fireside with Elder Cook from the 12 and it was great, very insightful and thought provoking.

Also today, Carne Fries and a movie, Easy A. Seriously so funny, but inappropriate. But I still laughed a ton. “WHO told you you were adopted?!”

What have I got to complain about?!

A list of reasons why I shouldn't complain about life :) In no particular order.
My Heavenly Father loves me.
I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
I have a great ward.
I have a wonderful family who loves me.
I have a great job that gives me wonderful opportunities.
I get to work with kids, which is my passion.
I am starting a volunteer opportunity tomorrow with the Gilbert Prosecutors Office as a victims advocate.
I bought cute new shoes that made me feel so good today.
I have chocolate milk.
My roommate made me a mickey mouse waffle today that I topped with crunchy peanut butter and honey.
I have awesome friends that I know love me.
My friend Jodi and I are going to see How the Grinch Stole Christmas at Gammage.
September 23, 2010. BONES. Season 6, episode 1.
September 21, 2010. GLEE. Season 2, episode 1.
September 23, 2010. GREY'S ANATOMY. Season 7, episode 1.
September 23, 2010. PRIVATE PRACTICE. Season 4, episode 1.

September 14, 2010. JONAS BROTHERS CONCERT. AHHH!

...really I could go on. I am so lucky to be Hailee Rasmussen. Remembered.

Driving, Joe and Shoes

So I just recently got back from Utah and decided if I never had to drive ever again in my life that would be totally fine. I mean really, on a two lane highway don't people know that the left lane is for FAST drivers and the right lane is for them. Aka. I get to drive in the left lane and nobody else. As for the dam, really why is it necessary to make me wait for TWO HOURS?! Because lets be real here, they just let us right through after laughing at the idea of making everyone stop at an unnecessary stop sign. Dam police suck. Seriously.

AHHHHH I'm going to the JoBros concert on Tuesday night. I bought tickets for me and my little sister to go for her birthday and I bought the tickets Sunday, they were supposed to be sent immediately to my inbox and apparently since immediately means 4 days in TicketMaster time, they gave me 2 free tickets, how great is that news? In addition to this wonderful news, I went shopping today and found my JOE GLASSES. As seen in my blog picture. I can hardly wait to go to the concert. I feel like a teenage dream. For a definition of teenage dream see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lm_n3hg-Gbg I love you beenerkeekee. hahaha

SHOES. Have you ever realized that shoes just make everything amazing? Like you can be having a perfectly fine day and then you find amazing shoes...and then...your day is AMAZING. Case in point :
I'd be lying if I said these shoes didn't just make my week.

Super Sunday

This weekend my family and I came up to Utah to attend the graveside service for my nephew, Baby Ethan Samuel. Although this is a difficult time for my brother Ryan and sister-in-law Melissa, they are staying so strong. They have 2 of the strongest testimonies I know and are such a great couple to look up to. Seeing them together makes me have high expectations for myself and for my life when I get married. Through this trial, they have remained so close to Heavenly Father and have a great knowledge of the truthfulness of the Gospel. What a great example they are to me!



Today we went and visited my Great Grandpa Leslie Samuel Holt's grave. My Grandpa Holt was born in 1911 and passed away a few weeks before my oldest brother was born in 1983. I got to look at some awesome pictures of him this weekend and I know that he was such a happy man. I believe he is doing so awesome missionary work in heaven. He has the warmest smile and I look forward to meeting him someday.

We also went and visited my nephew Ethan Samuel Rasmussen (buried quite close to my Great Grandpa). There was such an awesome spirit at his graveside today. I know that Heavenly Father has an awesome plan for him. He was much too perfect for this world and I know that he will remain an angel in the lives of my family here on earth, what a great blessing this is to us! He is a beautiful baby and my brother put it very sweetly when he said "Baby Ethan passed away 2 days before he was born".

I also got to go visit my Uncle Jeff. Jeffrey Scott Hoopes passed away on November 3, 1993 when I was 4 and a half years old. I remember how amazing Jeff was. He was such a happy-go-lucky person who could always make me laugh. He had a dog that he absolutely loved and just the greatest love for life. I know that he is helping out Heavenly Father and doing a tremendous job at it. I know that he looks out for his family every day.

And last but not least, we got to visit my Great Grandma Leona Irene Holt. She is one of the greatest people I know. We went to her center where she lives and introduced ourselves (she's pretty old, doesn't remember a ton, I've met her A TON of times haha). We took her to the front room and were talking with her about life and she reminded us it's her birthday next week. "How old are you gonna be next week grandma?" I asked. Her first response? Leave it to grandma to use colorful vocabulary "Dam*ed if I know!" haha. Grandma Phyllis reminded her that she will be 96 years old!!! (that's right, she was born in 1914!) The next statement out of my g. grandma's mouth "that's right, 96. People start dying around then..." And then she chuckled a little bit. She's right, they usually die before or around 96. Usually before. She went on to tell us she painted her whole house by herself and that moving the tree to the front room was a "bugger". She was very pleased with all the playroom there was for the kids because she wasn't pleased with the basement (in her old house a LONG time ago, they had a house with a terribly small basement. Probably in the 60's or 70's.) She was also pretty ticked that people were being aloud to "build their houses to close to ours!"...apparently she doesn't like her neighbors? She seems to forget she lives in an old folks home..but that's quite alright! We'll let her remember whatever she'd like, she hasn't got much longer to use her great imagination.

Needless to say, there was an awesome spirit at the gravesides and at my great grandmas. It was pretty cool to see the history that cemeteries have to offer, the one that my Uncle Jeff is buried at has headstones from the 1800's..one in particular that lived from 1856 to 1956, 17 days away from 100 years old, crazy! What a great blessing the knowledge of the gospel is. I know that I'll be able to see all of my relatives again someday and in the meantime they are watching over us.

School's in Session

A. I finally got a car.
B. I got the cutest blue vans.
C. Mesa Public Schools are in session which means I'm back at work!
D. I'm tired.
E. I take too many naps.
F. B12 makes me have trippy dreams.
G. Dream 1: Crazy black man broke all my toes.
H. Dream 2: Crazy spinning elevator leads to a combo of lampchops and big comfy couch.
I. I have a great new comfy sweatshirt that I love.
J. I love The Last Song
K. My brain is SO tired of thinking.
L. My legs are tired.
M. I put more music on my iPod.
N. I might just take another nap in a couple minutes.
O. Stapley Pool. I have to work tonight.
P. I think I'm getting sick.
Q. Bacon is great.
R. My fingernails are turquoise.
S. I want to go shopping.
T. I want to make a rad quilt.
U. Detention never lasts as long as iCarly leads you to believe.
V. I love SNL commercial parodies, and Netflix even more for having it.
W. Dippity Doo.
X. Nap Free: Day Three. Maybe not happening.
Y. My room is dirty.
Z. Paradise Bakery coconut chocolate chip cookies reign supreme.

Maybe I'll get pics of my car up soon. Maybe not.

:)

Life's what you make it, so lets make it rock.

Sleeping.Nightmare.Awake.

I was driving to pick Katie up at ASU in the pouring rain. I was getting of the freeway and stopped at the light on the onramp I guess a little too close to the motorcycle in front of me because all of a sudden this crazy black man starts ranting and raving screaming at me. His white girlfriend is driving the motorcycle and does nothing as he screams at me. He stops screaming and I think I'm in the clear until he gets off the motorcycle then breaks into my car door with HIS FINGERNAILS! I'm freaking out screaming "no, no, no, no, no, I'm sorry!" he screams at me and then closes my door and we drive away. I pull up to park and get out and call my friend and let her know I'm there and I'll meet her half way, she informs me I'm at the wrong place. I am too afraid to walk back to my car alone so I call the police nonemergency number to have an officer come walk with me to my car. A girl shows up and says "Which of you called for an escort?" I raise my hand then it occurs to me and I start screaming "You're that guys girlfriend I'm not going with you!" She breaks down in tears and says she is going to sit there for a minute because she is too afraid of what her boyfriend will do when she gets back. I tell her I'm sorry she has to deal with that but I'm not going with her. Instantaneously I'm sitting down on a flight of stairs and someone reaches up and breaks my toe! The man that screamed at me grabs my keys and begins to break all of my other toes. I call 911 and then I woke up.

Life is Life is Life

Recently I've been thinking a lot about where in the world I'm going! After much thought and stress I think I've decided a path to begin on! The switch is stressing me out so much and makes me so worried but I feel good about it! SO.....instead of going into Elementary Education I have decided on Social Work. Well, I guess I've actually chosen both...I'm going to complete my Elementary Education degree then get my masters in Social Work.

Plan for this semester:
Work at the elementary school
Try to get a tutoring job
Volunteer at the Mesa Police Department in their Center for Family Violence working with the kids who come in to be interviewed- we'll just play and have fun until they get to go get interviewed.
Get back in the school mode-SPA101 here I come, please be nice to me!

You probably don't need to know what I'm doing but I just thought I'd share because it makes me way excited for the next few months to come! YAY!

Drugs, Lobsters and a Mile.

Oh how I love the pool! It makes for great stories, I have no idea what I'm going to do when the summer ends...so lame. On Saturday I was privileged to hang out with the cops..again. I'm just brainstorming, but in my mind it's a lot smarter to choose not to smoke weed at a public swimming pool. Silly kids thought they could trick us and get away with smoking weed in the bathroom but we are way to legit for that crap! STORY: So a guard walked through the bathroom and smelled weed, went and got another guard and they decided it was definitely weed so they opened the door to the handicap stall and sure enough, saw 2 boys getting stoned. Sweet. They thought they could get away with it too! "Can we just go?" they ask, and were angered by the response "No boys, we've got a problem here". They were brought to the office and I was so lucky to get to call the cops and let them know what happened then sat in the classroom babysitting them. When the older kid was mumbling constant cuss words under his breath so to mix it up I threw in a "I'm really offended so you should probably just stop talking..." You can just imagine his response....it wasn't nice. The cops got to the pool and handcuffed the boys, interrogated them, and the results made me so sad!

Lobsters.
So today I woke up early to go and scrub algae off of the gutters at work, gross yes I know. I was outside for two hours in the blazing sun then helped teach LGT for 2 hours then worked with my guards on their skills for a while and then I swam and now I am a lobster. Well, I actually just got so tan it hurts. But whatever!

A Mile.
I swam a mile and I almost DIED! But it was great, I felt so wonderful. But so terrible.

Summer is almost over. SOB!

I'll just take one for the team...

Alright, alright everyone...since SOMEONE has to do it, I guess I'll take one for the world. Joe Jonas and I are pretty much MFEO...I mean really, have you seen how cute he is since Jonas LA started (because I know everyone watches it, just like me haha). Like, I mean really, he is WAY cuter than he used to be. So, I'm willing to take him off the market so no one else has to handle the burden.
...Yes i'm aware I sound like a 12 year old and no, I don't care :)

I've decided that people think it's REALLY funny to have all the fun stuff happen while I am at work. 2 rescues Saturday, one of which resulted in the Fire Dept coming to the pool. Also, today somebody VOMITED in the pool. Really, like, how is that necessary and why do people come to the pool when they are VOMITING???? Also, in case you were wondering what it looked like, let me just tell you. Have you ever eaten Circus Peanuts, like those totally gross orange foamy things? Yeah..that's the ONLY thing that could have created this vomit.

It was then following by a bloody nose, as if I wasn't queasy enough already, I almost lost it with the snotty bloody nose. It was terrible. I had to go to the front of the office, bend over and put my head between my knees so I didn't freakin puke all over the place.

Also. The Bachelorette: I think we can all agree that last weeks recess fight between Jake and Vienna was huh-lare-ious. Possibly the comedy hit of the century. "Stop interrupting me."...."you're doing it again! You keep interrupting me"..."There you are, undermining me again!"..."He always does this! He's the meanest man I have ever met!"..."When my dog was sick..blah blah blah" Oh my goodness I can't get over how great it was. I was, after all, feeling a bit sad about not being at the school all summer, so I guess I'll just have this moment in time suffice until I get there again.

Team Chris L....Eventhough I KNOW she's gonna choose Roberto. It only makes sense. Jungle Fever. BUT that means that Chris L. just HAS to be the next Bachelor, so all is well. Just sayin....

I realize that I haven't posted much about summer. ReasonA: it's been an awesomely busy summer and I all ever want to do when i'm not working is sleep. Reason2: If I make these stories into humor it makes it WAY better and Reason Final: I'm so ADD this summer that I haven't had the patience to sit here and write this.

9-1-1 what's your emergency?

I may have had to call 9-1-1 for work today, it made my day feel that much more productive. The kid was fine, but no fine firefighters were present, dangit.

Bicycle riding to and from work is going great! The sweat that is released from my pores makes me feel as though I must be making a dent somewhere in these lb's...I'm still waiting for the day that my legs don't hurt as I'm riding, I am remaining quite optimistic. I get random honks and shout outs..but really--what the heck is a proper response to that? If they're mocking me, I feel as though others might give em some special finger. If it's a compliment they simply cannot hear my "thanks", so perhaps a bell ring is in order? Perhaps this is just one of those make it up as you go things? Maybe I'll get signs or something....

Made more green salsa today, bought a blender, that's how bad I wanted this stuff! It turned out decent, but not as spicy as I'd hoped, if we're being honest here. However, it will still be enjoyed! Because you cannot have tomatillo salsa and not enjoy it, I mean really, it's like heaven on a chip!

SO Random...

^Name that TV Show

SO....My roommate has recently purchased a bicycle and the past 2 night we have gone on leisurely bicycle rides and they have been wonderful. As she put it "If I could quit my job and just ride my bike...oh that would be great". Seriously. On Sunday I installed my basket and bell. Updates to the bike are already under way, it's so great!

Lifeguarding!!! So, lifeguarding has begun. It's the beginning of tan lines and blonde hair. I've been a busy bee just working away at decorating the office, writing nombre's on cups, and thinking about summer. It really is my favorite time of year! I can't wait to smell of chlorine, sunscreen and sunshine!

PHONE! I got a new phone. It is so great. The motorola cliq, yep, you can be jealous. I even got a freakin cute purple cheetah case to go on it! I have installed billions of apps (by billions I mean like 20). I love to play toy story memory, solitaire, and make farting sounds with my fart machine app.. I can update my FB status with the simple click of a button, google whatever my heart desires on my home screen, and download as many ridiculous ringtones as I want (most ridiculous to date: Protazoa, from Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century. One of the greatest Disney Channel Original Movies.) Oh, and don't forget I can watch whatever YouTube videos I want!

Latest meal creations: Rice a Roni with Condensed Chicken Soup and chicken breast. Pretty good! I still love BBQ Chicken Pizza Sandwiches, and I'm now addicted to Hawaiian Punch Lemon-Lime Splash. And Brownie Cookie Bars.

I better get to bed early so I can ride my bike to work en la manana.

Peace, Love and FOOD!

REEEEEEMIIIIIX

I bet you didn't know I could play the organ!? Well, I can. And today was a momentous occasion. I was playing the organ for sacrament meeting today. First hymn, The Iron Rod. I was just fantastical. Second hymn, Jesus, Once of Humble Birth. Sacramental. Final and most fabulous hymn: Secret Prayer. (Hold on to your hats, THIS is where the story gets good!) I began playing and it was going just dandy, I am about a measure away from the chorus and realize I'm not totally mentally there, kind of zoning. What occurred? I began playing the chorus too early..nobody was singing with me. So, I stopped. and....REEEEEEEEMIIIIX! hahaha I rewound myself and began the chorus again. I started giggling like "Well, that was smoooooooooth". I played through the rest of the hymn and it turned out just fine. After the closing prayer everyone came up to make their announcements and one of my friends came and sat on the organ bench next to me and I asked how much he LOVED the closing hymn. His response? "I wasn't sure how to respond then I looked up and saw you giggling and realized I could laugh...so I did" Haha, I'm just there to entertain. It was pretty hilarious. I then thought and decided I should have yelled "reeeeeeeemiiiiiiiix" to lighten the mood to let everyone know that they can totally laugh at me. It would be that they would laugh with me. Not at me. haha. It was quite possibly one of the funniest organ experiences I have ever had.

Ode To Carne Asada Fries

Not really an ode, just a shout out. I love Filiberto's. Carne Asada fries to be exact. What, might you ask, are Carne Fries? Well friends, they are the most delectable heart attack ever. Simply put, it's a Carne Asade burrito thrown up on a mountain of delicious fries. Adding beans and drenching with red sauce only adds to the deliciousness of this plate. I had them last night at 1am and I got to enjoy my leftovers today after church. I always crave these things, it's sad really, but SO AMAZING. :) Don't bash em till you try em.

I want to ride my bicycle...

I want to ride my bike! I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride it where I like!!!! So I gave up on car shopping for a while and have decided to save some dinero by riding a bike until I find a car I actually want instead of being told what to buy from car salesmen. I hate those guys. Just saying. So, I bought this luxurious Huffy 24" wheel Cranbrook Mint Green Cruiser. It is so great and I just feel happy when I'm riding it :) I mean really, it's so cute, it makes me feel healthy (and will eventually give me a rockin bod haha), I got a sweet tan today...could it get any better than that? I submit that it can not! As I rode to Katie's house today, I kinda had a smile on my face. It was wonderful. Also, on my way home from work, I stopped at Tia Rosa's and got some Chips and Green Salsa and beans, then that way I had something great to look forward to when I got home! I found a residential route to Brown from work and enjoyed my chips and salsa! Then, when I didn't want to make my own dinner, I rode my bike a mile to my mothers where I enjoyed a burrito-ey thing with chicken, cheese, lettuce and soy sauce all in a tortilla. Yummy! My main reason for mooching food off my mother was because they also had Glee recorded and I really wanted to watch it. Slight obsession-no. Extreme obsession? Yes! I <3 Artie. I just can't help it. :)

Just call me Purplicious!

My favorite color is purple. Purple glasses, purple otter pops, purple fingernail polish, purple Miley Cyrus clothes...and Now??? PURPLE hair!!!! Hahaha. Since I just finished my year working at the elementary school and I have about a month break until anything super official as far as work goes I decided well heck, why not put some purple in my hair? So I did it! And now I just want MORE!! AHHH. I need to stop while I'm ahead :) Purple hair. Just thought you'd all like to know that Yes, I watch Aquamarine and yeah I get jealous of her blue hair...
:)

RIP Diego...I think... :/

So last night as I began my long trek home from Buckle I noticed my car singing to me. This song had no words, rather, a consistent pattern. Spudder, spud, spud, spudder, spud, spud... (considering selling the lyrics...) I thought welp it is an old car, perhaps it just needs a little check up. Despite my positivity to the situation, deep down I feared my car had reached it's limit. Like 170k miles was a lot or something. I made it home and awoke this morning to my car driving me to work, just singin its song! With a FB status of "Oh my gosh, my car is spuddering. Are you kidding me? Well if you hear of an exploding car it's probably me :/ " I was obviously fearing the worst since the spuddering just continued on... I got a phone call from my brother Ryan asking what was wrong with my car. Apparently my response of "It's sputtering" didn't do much justice to the issue. Since my check engine light was on when I left work, I drove to AutoZone only to find that they don't do diagnostic tests on cars that are 20+ years old GAYTARDED is what that is! So I drove poor Diego to Gunnell's. I went in requesting a diagnostic test and they said yep! we can do that bring him back at 1 and we'll check it out for ya! Sweet, I'm on my way to getting this figured out. I call Ryan to inform him of what is going on and just as he answered I turned the key, car started and BAM 3 seconds later, it was off. I immediately begin to bawl, enter Gunnell's tell them Diego is just going to have to stay there, I sat in Gunnell's for 20 minutes, bawling...in case you were wondering. As I await the dreaded test results of my poor 1989 Honda Accord, I have the new dilemma of how the heck I'm going to buy a car...

But don't you fret (katie, this is for you)...Tia Rosa's for dinner made it a little bit better. Not to mention my Birthday Fried Ice Cream drenched in delicious strawberry sauce that I was able to enjoy. Didn't even think about Diego ONCE during my dessert!!

Also, I bought a new dress. So what if I'm and emotional shopper?? haha

I like food, so what?!

Tomatillo Salsa-SUCCESS!!!
So, today (which happens to be a Monday, which happens to be a day that Tia Rosa's is closed) I really wanted some freakin delicious sweet green salsa! SO----I was given no other choice than to make it! I looked at a couple recipes then made mine up, and it turned out pretty dang good :) With some fresh tomatillos, a fresh jalapeno (17 cents, in case you were wondering), some fresh cilantro from my back yard, a fresh lime, and some salt and garlic and the great spinning of a blending, I made a sweet mixture of green/mexican deliciousness. MUY DELICIOSO! Since I boiled my tomatillos to soften em up (next time I'm going to try broiling them in the oven) I have to wait to eat my salsa because I don't like my salsa warm...so as I sit here waiting for my salsa to cool down, all I can think about is the fastest way I can get the deliciousness in my BELLY!

This could very well turn into a food blog. I have a new obsession with making things from scratch and enjoying them. Some stuff has totally worked out...some has not :) Live and learn

So, enjoy Monday, make something delicious and eat it! Yum!!!

Food Love

So now that I have moved out and have been living sans family for almost a month (crazy!!!) my new favorite thing is to cook yummy food for myself! Todays mission: BBQ Chicken Pizza Sandwich (with fresh cilantro). It was SO good! And the sandwich bread that I used was whole grain sandwich flats from Costco, which proved to be really good! I also made some stir fry today for lunch (have some for dinner tomorrow :) just thinking ahead!) I put fresh lime juice in it, which was a yummy twist~ except for I realized that fresh parsley is not my favorite, I think I'll stick with fresh cilantro as my favorite herb to season with. The other night I got a ton of grief for my choice of dessert, my roommate Jodi has named it : Otter Pop Soup. 4 parts frozen otterpop (squished with a rolling pin of course), to 1 part unfrozen otterpop. Squish together and enjoy!...I also got crap for eating it with a fork, but it's so that I could continue squishing to the consistency of my liking!
Next meal to conquer: Slow roasted tomato soup...like from Paradise Bakery.
Also on the list, a homemade frozen yogurt to DIE for!..now I just have to figure out a recipe.

For the love of FOOD!

Oh what do you do when you're feeling sick...

Oh what do you do when you're feeling sick and all you wanna do is breathe...
Do you watch prison break, and wish wentworth miller was yours?
Is that what you do? So do I.

Oh what do you do when you're feeling sick and all you wanna do is breathe...
Do you play the piano, and attempt way difficult songs?
Is that what you do? So do I.

Oh what do you do when you're feeling sick and all you wanna do is breathe...
Do you eat lots of pretzels, dipped in nutella?
Is that what you do? So do I.

:) Yep, my own version of "What do you do in the summertime". I am great. And bored. And I wish that I could stop watching Prison Break and stop being lazy! I am tired of not being able to breathe. And I can't wait for summer to start so I can work a lot. Being lazy is SO boring. I was going to work on some handstitching on my dinosaur quilt but I can't find my stitching needles. Sad day. I would totally work on that so that I could be productive. Dinosaurs are sitting on my bed currently, waiting to be stitched to their block world...eventually. For now, I will finish season 2. And attempt to breathe. :)

Yay for Birthday Weekend!!!!

Birthday weekend was so great! I am so lucky to have awesome family and friends! Friday night: Bonfire. Saturday: Shopping-I got the cutest yellow top and adorable Steve Madden heels, I also got a freakin cute Lucky bracelet and Lucky BFF necklace from Britt! We got dressed up and went to PF Changs, it was DELICIOUS! Then Joshy and Austin took us to see The Last Song, it was fantastically wonderful! What better way to spend you birthday than with some awesome friends? Sunday I went to an Easter/Birthday celebration at Britt's Grandmas, then later than night Katie brought me DISNEY MOVIES!!!!! I am currently enjoying Lion King, and will later enjoy The Little Mermaid, Mulan and Beauty and the Beast. I am so lucky to have awesome friends!

My mom and little sister are currently on their way to living here. I am so excited to see them! It will be so fun to have more family back in Mesa, now we just need to get Ryan and Melissa here :)

Life at my new house has been great, I am loving the fact that I moved out. It has already been awesome, and is sure to continue to be awesome! Oh yay!

Current Loves:

Song: Lucky, Jason Mraz. So great.

Movie: Lion King

Book: 50 pages left of Last Song...

All Grown Up!!!

Today was moving day! It was definitely crazy and I am most definitely tired! After getting a whole 3 hours of sleep last night, I worked for 4 hours in the morning then headed home to move all day! My sister Morgan was so awesome and came and helped me out a ton which was so much needed...help and spending the day with her! Went on my first official trip to the grocery store, not just to buy foods I crave... I had to actually shop for things to mix together to create something people call meals...interesting concept! haha I'm now sitting on the couch, enjoying my spaghetti with turkey meat sauce and watching Chocolat. Nothing like some good old Johnny Depp to wind down.

Book I'm currently LOVING:

The Last Song

I want to finish it before I see the movie! It's definitely an awesome book!

Song i'm currently loving:

Jason Mraz-I'm Yours

Such a happy-go-lucky, smile, be cheerful song!

And now it's time for a 10pm bedtime to make up for the lack of sleep I got, or didn't get, last night!

Blogging V

I always swore I would never get a blog until the day I got married, but that's not coming anytime soon! Haha So now I'm getting a blog because I'm moving out and I want to remember everything fun that happens on my new adventure! Packing will be the death of me, as will unpacking I'm sure! I keep throwing stuff away and can't think of anything else to possibly throw away but when I unpack I'm sure I will find more! I have so many freakin clothes that I have NO idea how I will be able to fit it all into my closet :/ Maybe those "suck the air out" bags will work for my jackets and such...I have an addiction. To new clothes. It's bad. Very bad.