Just for Jess

I have one more inspiration board that I neglected to put up yesterday because I was afraid I was getting carried away! HA! But I had a comment left by Jess and she said her friend is doing a Blue and Copper wedding, and that she liked the idea of it, so I wanted to show her this inspiration board. :) Don't worry I believe it is the last one... heh heh heh

This is more of a navy blue so it gives it a bit of a southern feel, but I think it's way cute! You could do a lot with these colors!! Copper never looked so pretty to me! Lol



Ok, I couldn't resist putting a couple more up. I Love the elegance of Black and White. I'm just that kind of person. I would totally be the one to do a black and white wedding. How original huh. But this is a nice alternative. Brown and Ivory. I think it's very elegant and it's totally not something I'd think of! Very smooth!



This is another inspiration board I pulled off of the same blog that the Blue-Yellow wedding was posted. I like purple and this is just a simple color scheme. But this is 'Dramatic Purple' so it makes ALL the difference! ha ha It really does give a dramatic look though, but I think it's still beautiful and elegant.

Ok...ok... I'm finished. For now...Until I find another crazy color scheme that I can't help but put up! It's so fun for me!! Yeeeee!! lol

Every Girl's Dream

So I feel kinda weird coming out and confessing that I've been looking up things for my wedding. But I was reassured by my mother who told me that most girls have been collecting ideas for their weddings since the time they were 12!! So I felt a little better about that! I just enjoy picking out ideas! I know that my wedding is far away but I like thinking about how it will turn out. So far I haven't decided on any colors, I just have a lot of different ideas for color schemes!!

This is the Brown-Aqua-Orange Inspiration Board that I fell in LOVE with. I don't know if I could ever pull something like this off, but I think it's absolutely gorgeous. It's not necessarily 'me' but it appeals to a more daring side of me that I think would be fun to showcase.

This is another Inspiration Board that is so beautiful to me and yet I wonder if I could find enough things to pull it off. It's called Chic French Garden wedding. I especially love the flowers. Kind of a countryside feel to it, and I find it simply elegant.



I've grown to love the color combinations that aren't so typical. This is a Black-Red-Purple theme. I think it's beautiful and so different than I ever thought a wedding could be. It's rich and passionate. I quite like it... (again if I could pull it off!)



Then there's the ever popular Green-Black combination.


Yet I like the Green-Brown combination better.



Also Red-Black. I love all of the fleur de lis accents on the invitations and the napkins. They're so fun and I know that Red and Black is a common color scheme, I think the patterns make it more fun.



I think most everyone thinks of Red and Black and White, but I had never thought of the concept of doing Red and GRAY! I LOVE this too!! I think it's still elegant, yet a little bit more casual one. This would also be a little risky to try and pull off.



And another Red-Gray idea.



Of course my favorite color being lime green, this is a cute spin-off to make it more unique and original. Light green-Light yellow-Silver. I think it's beautiful!! I guess I think a lot is beautiful. It's so Classy!!



And finally another absolute FAVORITE!! Dark Blue and Bright Yellow. I fell in love with this when I saw it posted on another blog. They were sure to point out the Groom's matching socks to the bride's shoes and the string of yellow pearls. Love it! I think it's so fun and classy and it looks a lot different than I imagined it could look.



Of course I fell in love with the idea of having a Blue and Yellow wedding because of the possibility to leave the reception in something as cute and quirky as this yellow taxi. It could be so cute!

Now for my ever beautiful cake ideas! I've brainstormed my ideas for cakes and these are my favorites.




To go along with the Blue and Yellow theme, I would want this cake. It's probably my favorite except I don't like the flower. I LOVE the ribbon on it though and I think it would be such a simple yet elegant look.



This is tied as my favorite cake. Absolutely my favorite.

These are my other favorites. I go for the simple yet elegant look.




I love Gerber Daisies for flowers but really I, again, like anything that's a little bit original and unique.




And now for the most important part. The Wedding DRESS!!

I have found that I'm a very simple girl. It doesn't take a lot to impress me. I don't care if the flowers are fake, or if the cake is home-made, or if the decorations are from Wal-mart, as long as it pulls off the look I want I am a-ok with it! It goes the same for my dress. It doesn't have to be $3,000 to satisfy me. A simple white dress with beautiful detail will do for me. These are the pictures of some of my favorites.

I love the buttons down the back and the shape of the skirt.


However, I have always loved this kind of a skirt. I don't want it to be too puffy though, becuase then I would feel like I'm at Prom. I still want it to be elegant but I LOVE the look of pin ruffles.


This isn't too bad either. Very pretty.

I like these ones because of their shape and detail.



Ok... So I'm done obsessing over my wedding details. These are just so fun for me to look at. I daydream about these things all the time and I can't wait to make that day DANG perfect!! Ha ha But it'll be great no matter what, I just enjoy getting into the details. I just wanted to share and see what you thought about it all. If you have any suggestions or any comments let me know!! :)

Lake Powell and all it's awesome-ness!!!

I love Lake POWELL!!!

I had quite the eventful week!! Monday and Tuesday was SWAT Team Practice and then Me, Britley, and Shelby went to Lake Powell from Wednesday-Saturday with Shelby's family.

We had a BLAST!! After we made it there safely of course.

You see we had to drive by ourselves since we have work schedules to get around so while the rest of her family left Sunday afternoon, we arranged to meet them there on Wednesday afternoon. On Tuesday we left at around 6:00 p.m. and drove to Spanish Fork to stay with some of Shelby's relatives. On Wednesday morning we woke up at 6:30 a.m. to head on our way to Lake Powell. We had a GPS system and figured we would be fine.

Well we typed in Bullfrog Marina into the GPS and it came up as Bullfrog Road in Hanksville. The map showed it right next to Lake Powell so we figured that must be it. We drove for about 3 hours and finally got to this so called 'Bullfrog Road' and realized we were 50 miles off from our destination with no cell phone service. The GPS had lied to us. So we typed in all the landmarks/restaurants we could think of that were near Lake Powell since the GPS lacked the technology to guide us to just Lake Powell.

Finally it showed The Hollow Mountain/Phillips 66 on the map and we made our way there thinking we had finally found our way. When we got to the Hole in the Rock (Hollow Mountain) we had cell phone service and called for directions from one of Shelby's Uncle. Too bad they were the wrong directions. We drove 70 miles on Highway 95 looking for a medical center to turn after. He had failed to mention that you take the first right on Highway 95 and THEN look for a medical center. But we were yet again without cell phone service and had to figure this out by ourselves. The Signs continued to say 'Bullfrog 66' so we figured if we kept driving until mile 66 we would see a building. After we crossed the Colorado River we figured something was wrong. It was actually a relief to find out that we had been given wrong directions and not just that we were too dumb to follow them correctly. So after driving for an hour down the Highway, we turned around to drive another hour back to The Hollow Mountain where finally Shelby's Sister and Brother-in-law decided to come save us by picking us up.

When they got there they took over and were going to drop us off where we needed to go. We drove for about 40 miles in a 65 speed limit zone and the speed limit suddenly changed to 35 going downhill. Well Ben (Shelby's brother-in-law) failed to slow down and we were pulled over by a park ranger. Nikki (Shelby's sister) had to pee really bad so we pulled into a gas station and Nikki got out of the car and ran (she has a really bad bladder) to the bathroom. The cops pulled in really fast and so they thought she was running from them and began to chase her down. Her husband Ben got out of the car and started to say "No! Wait! She's just going to the bathroom!" but the cop turned around and screamed "GET BACK IN THE CAR!"

Since it was Shelby's Dad's car and he failed to put the new registration in his van (he thinks he accidentally threw it away) and Nikki ran from the cops, and Ben was speeding, and Shelby wasn't wearing a seatbelt....

... we got off with a warning. Surprisingly!! It made for a great story though! The cops were really nice and were basically just bored. They gave us a warning about the speeding and couldn't stop laughing at the incident that had just happened. It was a terribly long day and the three of us girls (Shelby, Britley, and I) had just about had it. We arrived safely on the houseboat and entertained everyone all night telling of our days activities.

The rest of the week went smoothly and we had so much fun tubing and swimming in 111 degree weather!!! Lake Powell is so beautiful and pictures do not do it justice but it was so fun! I hope I get to do it again soon!! :)

SWAT Team

****Due to the graphic nature of this post, Viewer discretion is advised!!!**** ha ha ha ;)

Because of my wonderful chance to be on REAL team in High School, we were able to become a part of the Layton City Fire Corps which was a group partnered with REAL team with the intent of teaching kids about fire safety. Because of the chance I had to become a member of the Layton City Fire Corps, I have a thousand opportunities to volunteer all over the place. It is quite fun.

This last Monday and Tuesday I got to volunteer for the SWAT Team training they were holding. It was insanely fun!

They gave us fake gunshot wounds and scenarios that the SWAT team didn't know about that we had to act out. There was a new 'bad guy' picked every time so it taught the team to analyze the situation and not to shoot innocent victims.

The first day went really well! We had 4 different scenarios in which we performed and acted them out 2 times each. It was a group of older SWAT Team members so everything went really smoothly and it gave me FULL confidence in my safety if I were ever in a situation like that. However, the second day was a group of new SWAT Team members that had been training for about 6 months and if it was a real situation they would've killed 3 innocent victims. Ha ha ha But it was still loads and loads of fun!!!

I was 'shot' in the leg and had make-up artists put fake gun-shot wounds in me. It was awesome during the scenarios because I wouldn't be able to walk so the Policemen had to come pick me up and carry me out.

They were so into it and it made it easier to act like you were dying! I'm already a huge drama-queen but when they came into the school in their full gear with guns pointing at you it surprisingly made it easy to scream in complete fear for your life and run convincingly with a gimpy leg from the 'bad guy'. Lol

One time with the newer officers we were running away from the bad guy and they didn't know how to analyze the situation fast enough so they decided to make us all lay on the ground. They yelled at us "GET ON THE GROUND!! PUT YOUR HANDS UP!!" and so they made us all get face down on the grass. I was with my friend Anastasia and we were trying to get them to break character. The officer was holding his gun on all of us victims while the other officer searched us one at a time. We innocently asked the officer if he would shoot us if we stood up at the same time to get searched and without cracking a smile he nodded with his gun still aimed at our heads! But they eventually figured we were innocent and let us go! Ha ha

Here are some pictures of Anastasia and Sarah and the fake gunshot wounds given to them. My very good friend Jessica Buckner did them and she is an AMAZING make-up artist!! They were so cool and real looking!!! I was so impressed!


I will never forget it though!! It was so much fun! I know now that when the SWAT Team tells you to get down on the ground... you get on the ground!!! :)

The reason why I breathe!!!!!

Thank heavens I can post as many posts on this blog that I need too because I cannot BELIEVE I forgot to give tribute to the wonderful people who brought me into this world and gave me life. Without them I would be dead. They give me reason to get up in the morning and carry on in a world where standards are plummeting. They give me hope for a better tomorrow. They are the wind beneath my wings. My very rock upon which I build my foundation to grow. Because of them, I know I need to be a better person. They are...My family. (They weren't too happy with my blog because it had no mention of them. So this post is a special tribute.)

First there is my intimidating Father!! You'd think he was anyway. But he's really not. He's a goof-ball to be quite honest. But I can tell him anything and he has ALWAYS been there for me. I mean that sincerely. I've never been too scared to tell him anything unless it involved me giving homeless people money. Or a boy. But even with the boys I try to keep him updated. He always gives sound advice and I know that my friends are jealous with the relationship I have with him. Not many daughters can go sit on his bed at 11:30 at night and talk about all the things swimming through her head. He's the best and always will be! :)

Then there's my ever-beautiful mother. I mean that in the most kind way possible. She is indescribable. Ha ha ha No really, she is the mother that my friends feel the most comfortable around. I can tell her anything as well and we have a best friend relationship. She has always said she is still 17 in her head, and she will always be. She relates so easily to every situation I'm in. She always says "You just wait until you have kids..." when I roll my eyes because I know what she's telling me is the truth. Ha ha She's great at cooking and cleaning and I think she is the perfect mother even if she doesn't do it all the time, or keep up with it, or does it too much (when I have to clean every nook and cranny of my room ha ha ). She has shown me the kind of person I want to grow up to be.

Ben is vain. I'm not kidding. That kid wants to be all that and a bag of chips. But he kinda is. Ha ha It's just too bad that he knows it already! I always tell him that he can't be a typical 'jock', and I don't think he will be, although he's been excelling in his Wrestling and Football. He can't wait to turn 16 and for once I understand how my parents feel. I don't want him to grow up. He's always been my little brother and I've grown up very close to him. He's going to be a stud though!

Jed is a stud too. He's very smart and very down to earth. Where Ben is a bit air-headed, Jed makes up for it in his too-serious attitude. But we're finding out he has quite the sense of humor. Don't ever make him break a rule or guideline though, or he'll go postal. But he's a good kid and I can tell he always will be!!

Heath is our little goober. Our little worm. He is such a handful but he's brightened our lives. I know that people (including my mother herself) were probably critical of our little 'accident' ha ha but I don't think he could've come at a more perfect time. He has taught each one of us kids what the responsibility is like to have kids and he has turned us all against the idea. Ha ha Well for now at least! ;) No I'm kidding! I've seen the boys treat him so sweetly (even though they probably won't admit that) and I think that having Heath as a little brother has taught them skills that will come in very handy when they are fathers themselves. But whether Heath has 'got a big idea' or is 'gonna kick your butt' he is a bundle of fun. Or a handful. Whichever you like!! Ha ha

Well that is my family. They are great and wonderful people. And although I was being just slightly sarcastic in the top paragraph, I am very grateful for them and all they have done and will continue to do for me. I could never repay them!! :)

Summer FUN!!

Ok so a couple weeks ago, me and my friends went to institute together like good girls do! Afterward, we decided we would go out to eat and catch up on the few days we had been away from each other! :) Well...from then on we hatched a diabolical plan!!

Our good friend Gerin is dating a boy named Jaron, and Shelby is dating a boy named Adam. They were the designated targets for this night's festivities. (Mine and Stasia's boys are on Missions, so they lucked out!! Ha ha ha) Luckily we knew these boys could not resist the temptation to come over so we had Shelby trick them into meeting us at her house. They drove in the same car so we were ready to trash it!! We hid in the garage waiting for them to pull up. They thought we were out buying treats so Shelby told them to go inside and wait for us, and that was the beauty of this plan. They would not see it until they were leaving.

In order to make a quick attack, we had to prepare the pads for quick sticking. We unwrapped them all and stuck them all over our bodies so that we could rip them off our clothes and stick them without it taking too long. We looked insanely ridiculous and couldn't resist taking a thousand pictures for posterity.

It was such a fun night and it really kicked off our summer. We decided we must have been 'inspired' to do such a random deed of...'kindness'... because we had gotten the idea right after being spiritually fed. Those poor boys didn't even see it coming! Especially from us! The girls they love oh so very much!! :) We're so evil...

Japan!!

So I guess I left out a huge part of who I am. That would be my ever wonderful Friends!! :)

My Best Friend having just left on a mission to Hiroshima, Japan. He's pretty much been the one who would get me through the crazy times, and drove me a little crazy as well ;) but it's safe to say if he was still here I'd still be spending every waking moment with him! Ha ha ha

He's pretty much the studliest boy ever!! Look at this picture!!! :)

Let's see, he's a National Champion for Cycling in Utah. He used to race almost every weekend and (I'm probably either giving him too much credit or not enough) biked 200 miles every week. He is determined in everything he does. Not only is he an amazing athlete but he was always doing his best in school. His Senior year every class for both semesters was either AP or CE except for Seminary. So he is pretty much the best, and I LOVE bragging about him!! :)

As for his mission, it's changing him into someone more wonderful than I thought he could be! He has always wanted to be a Rocket Engineer. I don't know why because he hates chemistry. He loves engineering though and was willing to go through all of the terrible schooling because he wanted a job that could support his family. His intentions were great! Well, in the last letter I got from him I had asked him if his plans for the future had changed. He told me that although he still thought a Rocket Engineer sounded pretty cool, he wanted to make sure that he was home for his family. In Japan he sees a lot of husbands mistreating their wives and children and he said that he can now see that the family is the center of the Lord's plan. His exact words were "I'm beginning to see things more in an eternal perspective. When you see the world in the eyes of the Lord, really only the family is important. Money, fame, fortune, etc. only last for a period. I intend to strengthen that which will last forever." That is something I have and always will admire in him!! :)

We loved being crazy! He took me to a couple dances. He was my first date, my first dance, and my first kiss! Maybe that's why I'm so attached to him, but I know there are so many things I've had the opportunity to learn from him! He has become a huge part of me and I'm so glad I get to be there for him as he serves faithfully for the Lord. He is doing amazingly well and has told me "You are locked in my heart. Continue to strengthen those around you emotionally and spiritually. You are my best friend." And he is mine!

To introduce myself...

I am new to this whole blogging business...but I'm hoping it's something I can keep up and have fun with. To be quite honest I'll probably do it more for myself than anyone else because I enjoy keeping things like journals so that I can look back frequently and look on all of the great times I've had. So I'll start by introducing who I was in High School.

I just recently graduated from Northridge High School on June 4th, 2009. I am so happy to be done but I really had a lot of fun being involved in so many different clubs. I was the president of Excalibur which is Northridge's Jazz Choir!! Because of it I am IN LOVE with jazz of all types! Just ask me and I will go on for hours about how much I love Jazz. Basically as President all I did was pick outfits and delegate when Snarr (my choir teacher) wasn't there! But I sincerely LOVED it!! We are such a good looking group!! :)

I was also part of Northridge's Repertoire Theatre, which is the advanced theatre group. They are my second family. I love them so much. Out of all the things that I did in High School, that is the group of people I will miss the most. They all changed my life! As cheesy as it sounds, if it were not for the time spent with those amazing people, I would not be who I am today!! :) We had so many great times and performed Dinner Theatre Shows and everything! So Fun!! :) Some of our best times were when we were performing together!! :)

Finally I just loved having fun with all of my friends. We were on REAL team together (Ridge Educators and Leaders), we went to dances and overall made the best of our senior experience. I never wish to go back to High School, but I'm glad to be done without having any regrets!! :)