Oh The Places You'll Go

box of love

2011-12-14T21:21:00.000-07:00

my sister sent me this picture the other day:

it is a christmas present i gave her years and years ago (we are talking ~15).

and i had completely forgotten about it (until she sent the picture, obviously!)

i was little and wanted to get everyone a christmas present.

well, when you are little, you really don't have money to get big, elaborate gifts.

so, i got creative.

i gave a Box of Love.

basically, it is a box.

and it's filled with love!

and a little love note that was good for 20 hugs and expired in 2020.

guess i should have kept track of that better. whoops

anyways..

wasn't i awesome??

well...i'm still want to get everyone a present,

but don't have the money for big, elaborate gifts.

so, guess what you are all getting for christmas this year?

you lucky ducks!

three

2011-12-03T21:06:00.000-07:00

guess what?

exactly three (yes, 3) months ago today,

i arrived here in dc.

three months ago i discovered:

my new home.

my new neighborhood.

my new grocery store.

my new world.

and guess what else?

i still like it here.

i thought this was funny. . .

2011-11-08T20:54:00.000-07:00

if only it were that easy....

haha

some thoughts.

2011-11-07T20:39:00.001-07:00

so, this past weekend was exciting/exhausting/fabulous.

mom flew into town and we drove up to nyc to watch Karen & Jordan run the NYC Marathon.

it was a whirlwind couple of days, but inbetween all of the fun, i had some thoughts.

1. i live in a beautiful, amazing city and need to take more advantage of my surroundings. so, i'm going to make a list of my "want to see in DC" and "want to see on East Coast". Maybe i'll make tabs on here and then cross them out as i do them, then you can follow along and wish you were as cool as me (or just follow along, we all know i'm not that cool!).

2. i completely understand how people can come and drive along the east coast in the fall to look at the changing leaves. it. is. GORGEOUS. mom might have been tired of hearing me say "look at that tree! OOOOOOOO look at THAT tree!" the entire drive from DC to NYC.

3. i might want to maybe run a marathon one day. or maybe a half-marathon? it really is an amazing atmosphere to be apart of.

4. speaking of marathons: Karen and Jordan are AMAZING and they completed their SECOND marathon! I am so happy I could go and be apart of their incredible experience. i even ate salmon with them for their "pre race" meal...that is how much i love them :)

5. i miss the stars. seriously. i miss them. remember how mom sent me utah's fall? yep, i want someone (yes, i am talking to you), to send me stars. or just a plane ticket so i can come visit and see them myself? yes? yes, that sounds like a good plan.

6. i need to write a book about some of my and my family's crazy experiences. mom got bit by a dog last week during her and my dad's trip to belize. WHO IN THE WORLD DOES THAT HAPPEN TO? seriously. i'll fill you in later. or just wait for the book. goodness.

7. i am tired. yep, t-i-r-e-d. that was a loooooong weekend and it was lovely. but i am in some serious want/need of some sleep.

8. now i don't have anymore thoughts but of how i want to sleep, so i'll try to remember what my other thoughts were :) maybe you will even get some pictures. now, wouldn't that be exciting!

boo.

2011-10-31T19:48:00.000-06:00

happy halloween, my friends!

i dressed up for work today.

i borrowed my roommate's headband,

and hot glued a red pipe cleaner to two black pompoms.

oh and cut up some black posterboard.

and being as ridiculously clever as i am...this is what i came up with:

yep. i took a picture in the bathroom at my work....

classy, i know.

i was trying to be discreet about how much i LOVED my costume.

It was perfect.

the best was when about five people asked me what was up with the dots on my dress.

seriously?

eh, i'll come up with something even more clever for next year.

oh, and i came home from work, and literally sat on my couch waiting with the giant bowl of candy for the doorbell to ring. and it didn't....for almost 30 minutes! Did all those kids out there not know that i was just itching to give them candy?????? well, i must have wished too much because from then on out, there was a constant stream of little trick or treaters (and some older ones too, but i'm not going to say no...i mean, they put the effort in!). And at 7:30 we had to turn off our light because all of the candy was gone :(

so. much. fun!

i hope you all had a fantastic holiday!

ps: if you didn't send me pictures of your kids all dressed up

(yes, you becca),

i want to see them!!

falling slowly

2011-10-27T21:28:00.001-06:00

it's fall here.

and it's beautiful.

but i still miss my utah mountains

(seriously, i never, i repeat: NEVER know what direction I am facing here. it's a bit ridiculous)

i miss my utah fall.

so, guess what momma did?

she sent me my utah fall and a love note.

i love my utah fall.

i love my momma.

and i love getting love notes from loved ones

(and even from those of you that i just "kinda like")

preferably in an

old-school-handwritten-envelope-and-stamp

kinda way.

but texts, phone calls, and emails are all welcome.

oh, and in case i haven't said this enough already:

i love fall.

and

i love dc

well, technically its Virginia,

but you get the idea.

day 22: el mismo (round 2)

2011-09-28T21:02:00.000-06:00

remember that one time i lived in spain for a month?

well, it's been almost a month since i arrived in dc,

and it feels good.

i'm starting to:

feel at home.

not get lost after turning the corner from my street.

meet new people and make friends.

and, last saturday,

i really felt like i was home.

i went to the general relief society meeting.

and, it felt the same.

surrounded by my dc sisters

el mismo.

just like that time in spain.

i love it.

i love the church.

i love the Spirit.

i love.

day 10: the one where i think there is a creeper following me.

2011-09-12T18:31:00.000-06:00

today i woke up to a beautiful day here in dc, and absolutely nothing to do.

(besides the ever-present job hunting adventure)

so, after lounging around in my pajamas, i got a little antsy.

i changed into my workout clothes, hid my house key in my handy spybelt

(thanks heide!)

and off i went to explore my neighborhood.

i walked towards pentagon city, and one moment there was a cement well in front of me, and the next, the most beautiful view of dc!

(i should have taken a picture--whoops!)

it is still incredible to me (and i hope it will always be this way) that i live this close to these amazing sights!

the pentagon, the white house, the washington monument, the big lincoln--otherwise known as the lincoln monument--

seriously, these places are incredible!

i love it.

i l-o-v-e it!

anyways, onto the point of this post

(hint: it's in the title)

i got a little lost. and not terribly lost, but just "i took a wrong turn and not sure what to do besides turn around and come back the way i came" kind of lost.

(the streets are seriously confusing here)

so, i turned around and eventually found where i was supposed to be.

when i was about 5 minutes away from my house

(after a ~5 mile adventure, i was covered in sweat and ready to be home with the air conditioning!),

i noticed a man following me, who had been there for a block or two.

i thought i'd be sneaky and cut through an apartment complex to get to the bridge to my house

(yep, there is a little creek nearby!)

instead of staying on the main sidewalk,

just to make sure that this guy wasn't following me.

so as i reached the bridge by taking my "shortcut", i saw him coming up behind the other building to the bridge as well

(which would have been my original route had i not tried being sneaky!)

i might have panicked a little bit, but decided to just keep walking.

well, my house is 2 houses down from the bridge, and

i didn't want him to know where i lived so i kept walking past,

and went a couple blocks further AND HE WAS STILL BEHIND ME!

so i said a quick prayer, asking which direction to go to get away from this guy.

i turned right at the next block, and thankfully the man kept walking straight.

I doubled back and went to my house, safe and sound.

i never thought anything bad would happen,

but always better to be safe than sorry...whew.

tomorrow i might venture all the way to target.

yep, there is one that is precisely 1.9 miles from my house.

score!

18 days and counting. . .

2011-08-14T21:33:00.000-06:00

I move in 18 days.

far, Far, F-A-R away.

from small-town Huntsville, UT

to the Nation's Capital -- Washington, DC.

I'm a little scared,

a little sad,

and

a LOT excited.

wish me luck.

Party Time. Excellent

2011-07-09T16:54:00.000-06:00

Mom retired....

feel free to jump around screaming with excitment!

So, to celebrate (which you simply must do), 

we had to party.

we didn't want anything to crazy, complicated or dramatic 

(you all know how dramatic party planning can be...)

so we settled on a simple BBQ (hot dogs only) 

and open-house style. 

i didn't get many pictures of the event itself, when everyone was there, but here are a few samplings.

on the menu:

Hot Dogs

Gourmet Condiments 

(seriously, anything and everything you could ever want to put on a hot dog)

Homemade Potato Salad 

(no onion & onion)

Texas Cake

Fritos

we did individual serving cups for the potato salad 

(much easier than a big hunking bowl of it!)

beverages:

Water

Pink Lemonade

Lemonade

the set up:

each table had a cake pedestal 

with mini condiments. 

everything mini is cute. 

so cute.

we also  had utensils and napkins 

at every table to limit what people

had to carry to their seat

the party:

mike grilled for a bit:

the boys (& sometimes girls)

 jumped on the trampoline:

two little girls enjoyed the sun chairs.

adorable:

a couple got lovey-dovey on the bench:

mom talked herself out of a voice: 

the kids kept trying to let the chickens out of the coop:

he got time out for throwing sand

and said he was sorry:

Mom admired her "gold & diamonds" with sarah.:

she played with poe: 

(and maybe even unleashed him once or twice, 

but what kind of party doesn't have a little 

excitement with a giant polar bear dog being let loose?)

the aftermath:

all in all: perfect

-----------------------------------------------------

i adore this website, and got some  ideas (or all of them) from  here, and just modified them all to what i wanted. there are even free printables!

the boys are back.

2011-06-05T23:17:00.000-06:00

my cute nephew and niece are staying with us for a few days while their parentals get some peace.and.quiet. (or get some stuff built at their new house...whichever)

i missed these kids.

after their parents left we decided to let them "get really tired" and took them outside to:
--play with chickens and ducks (never gets old)
--jump on the trampoline (fun)
--play with Poe (the polar bear dog)
---just plain wear them out! (kids needed to sleep good!)

i took scarlett on the trampoline. it took her a bit to get used to the jumping/bouncing part but she never stopped smiling or giggling. it was pretty much adorable.

before we knew it, over an hour had passed (and scarlett is now a pro and jumping with her crazy brothers!)

we brought them in and got their jammies on, read scriptures and said family prayer.

mom and i tucked little scarlett into bed.
she just laid there and giggled as we sang "eency weency spider" and "popcorn popping"
(complete with hand actions....yep, i know)

i would have laughed too with two adults standing over my pack-n-play and singing crazy songs about spiders and popcorn.

then, we let the boys stay up late. (well later)
heehee
we watched mulan and i played with my hair.
the boys giggled a lot. i love their giggles.

after a few minutes of the movie, we decided it was too late and tucked the boys in bed.
i tried to give them kisses goodnight but they kept pulling the covers up! (rude!)
so i just kissed 'em thru the blanket!

they thought that was hil.ar.i.ous.

as we were walking out, luke asked "will someone please lay by me?"
and who can say no to that?

so then solomon wanted someone to lay by him.

mom took solomon and i took luke.

he is so sweet. we chatted for a few minutes.
he showed off his counting skills and told me his plans for while he was at my house.

after our chat, i said "goodnight luke"

and he said "goodnight julie. i like you."

awwww. tender :)

the boys are back. for a few days.
and i like it.

Tom & lucy's Art Shoppe

2011-04-18T21:59:00.000-06:00

Friends, Family, and you,

I am finally participating in an Art Shoppe to show off some of my oozing creativity :)
It's Tom & Lucy's Art Shoppe in Lehi, UT on May 19-21st, 2011!
I am sooooo excited and partly because it is one of the absolute best shoppes i've been to :) so, come and visit/support me (or my homemade goodies...you know, whichever you prefer) and other local vendors...and there is even a super awesome (yes, i can say super awesome) Girls Night Out on Thursday Night! Check out their website for details.

And, on to what I'm creating....

This time I am focusing on some of my lovely, dainty, cute, vintage, contemporary cake plates (which can be used for LOTS of other purposes besides just cakes!). Every single one is unique and oh-so-cute! I can't hardly stand it! (I love them so much, I hardly want to sell them....but i don't think that the parentals would really like their house overrun with cake plates...) Seriously, people...SO much fun! In fact, I already have ideas for what each one could be used for....one is absolutely perfect for stuffed mushrooms at New Years, another is perfect for mini chocolate chip cookies, another one is perfect for french toast (yes! seriously people, soooo many uses), one for just displaying all by itself--seriously, it is like a work of art! anyways, i'm hoping to get some pictures posted soon...so be on the look-out!

And, since you know i can't just do one thing....

I'm also selling my Eye Chart Posters! I came up with some new designs, quotes, etc...and they are soooo eye-catching (pardon the pun!). Again, pictures coming soon! I am soooo giddy about these too! seriously people, i can't hardly stand the love--that's when you know it's good :)

Oh, and, since the sad news about the Phoenix Alliance not hosting an event for the new Harry Potter movie this summer, I am going to be selling some items I created for their past events...perfect for gearing up for your own premiere party this summer for the film!

and, remember, peeps, please be patient as i get my website/blog and shop up and running! You are the best-seriously!

loves,
juliebelle

pardon me.

2011-03-21T01:45:00.000-06:00

there are a few exciting things coming up.

and so therefore work is needed on the blog.

yep, the good ole blog is getting a facelift.

so, as they say in stores under construction

"pardon our dust"

so for me, on this here blog, i will say:
"pardon my dust as i figure out all this blog setting/template/confusing stuff out"

tips? appreciated.

the one about my birthday and my sisters. oh and other stuff too.

2011-03-18T01:22:00.000-06:00

have you noticed recently

how the posts are a big random

compilation of randomness?

this one isn't any different.

except you get a pretty entertaining story at the end.

if i do say so myself.

_______________________________________________

my brother & his family live far, far, far away

in a land called Ireland.

and, my sister-in-law did something incredible last week.

she donated a kidney to her dad, robert.

read all about it here.

___________________________________________________________

two days ago (or is it three now?)

i had a birthday.

a lovely birthday.

i wore a sash

it said "birthday princess"

and

it included lunch at the greek garden with my sisters.

except karen lives far, far, far away in NYC :(

so, i ate her souvlaki

best part of the birthday lunch?

easy.

amy randomly brought up how a zit in her ear had been bothering her.

instead of the usual response

(which should be "ewww, um we are, like, eating here.")

kimberly and i both, at the same time, said,

my ear.

"no way! look at mine!!"

wow, we are related.

___________________________________________________

after lunch, i quickly drove home to clean up the house.

you see, the parentals had been away,

and i was left home to play :)

they had to cut their trips short because of overbooked flights

(silly spring breakers were "spring breaking it up"

and us stand-by fliers have to change our plans)

so, they came home on my birthday!

needless to say...i needed to do a quick clean-up before heading to the airport.

i arrived at home, and decided it would be best to feed Poe first.

i mean, he does need food, a little TLC, and all that jazz.

but, he was gone.

as in, n-o-t w-h-e-r-e h-e w-a-s s-u-p-p-o-s-e-d t-o b-e

so, i ran inside. grabbed his leash and my car keys.

said a quick (and yes, i'll admit a little demanding) prayer that i would find him soon.

and i took off driving around the neighborhood.

i took a left, and there was poe

running in the neighbor's yard

(yes, the love us still...amazing)

so i stopped real quick

(in the middle of the road--hey, it's a small, not super busy town)

and started calling poe over.

well, being the happy dog that he is

(oh i like him lots!)

he came a runnin' right over.

i snapped on his leash right quick

..which probably wasn't that quick, but hey, it got the job done.

and then i was left in a quandary.

what to do now?

i was roughly a mile away from my house with my run-away dog, my car, and not the right pair of shoes. (yeah, i know...smart!)

Option A: do i walk Poe home and then run back to get my car?

cons--1. wearing the wrong shoes to walk ~ 1 mile 2. Poe was slobbering on me--imagine walking with it flying everywhere 3. i'd be late leaving for the airport 4. the house would still be not clean (notice i didn't say dirty!)

pro--exercise?

Option B: drive home with Poe walking alongside the car (while holding the leash out my rolled-down window)

cons--1.by now poe was keenly interested in my tires and so i was concerned i'd run over his big paws 2. what would i do once i got to the main road that is busy! with a dog outside the window! 3. i could just imagine that if poe saw something he liked in the field, he'd take off running....while my arm was wrapped up in the leash while driving...not smart

pro--is there one? i think this idea caused me the most anxiety ever.

Option C: have Poe jump in the back of my car and just drive him home.

cons--1. poe was nasty from running in fields=dirty car 2. poe is huge and probably wouldn't fit in the entirety of my car, let alone leave me enough room to drive 3. i've never driven with a dog/any animal=stress and 4. dog breath (need i say more)

pro-get home quick and have time to clean (a little)

which option did i choose?

of course, option c.

goodness.

somehow poe managed to fit in the backseat

(i think even he was surprised!).

however, at first he couldn't quite get comfortable and somehow maneuvered his paws onto the armest of the driver's seat (in the middle).

this wasn't so good when i stopped a little to quickly and he came stumbling forward.

after that, his head came to rest right next to mine.

he breath stunk

(not to mention his mouth is big enough to swallow my head whole--probably should have listed this in the "con" section)

and he was drooling.

so, i was practically leaning my head out the window.

like most dogs too.

weird.

but, we made it home in one piece.

i closed of poe's escape hole he'd dug

cleaned the house (a bit)

and jetted to the airport (only 30 minutes late).

day one of age 23: drove with dog in car--check.

new adventures: bring it on.

wee bit o' fun and a lost accent.

2011-03-17T13:23:00.002-06:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I was the Queen of Green.

I practiced my Irish accent during my 30 minute drive to work.

I had the story to the Claddagh ring rehearsed and ready.

then i opened the door to work, and out came the good ol' American accent.

with the Irish one never to be found.

oh dear.

but i did look good in my shamrock glasses.

chasing the sun. and other news.

2011-02-04T23:41:00.000-07:00

as you all know, i have been struggling a little (or a lot)

with what i want to do for the rest of my life

(or at least the next little bit).

(any suggestions are welcome--and appreciated)

but, in between making major life decisions

(or rather making many pro and con lists - - hey, don't make fun)

i have been up to this:

1. enjoying stuffed french toast at jeremiah's

2. trying on a patient's SUPER BOWL ring.

as in THE Super Bowl.

he plays for the New Orleans Saints.

it was pretty cool. not gonna lie.

3. rearranging my room.

i got rid of lots of junk.

and decorated it.

it was a lovely time. i enlisted the help of two nieces.

they didn't know what they were in for.

(but i sweetened the deal when i gave them some of the junk)

4. wearing super cute new boots.

gifted to me by Princess Karen.

i love them.

and have worn them almost every day.

5. working out.

no, this is not me working out.

this is momma after working out.

we were surprised with a small blizzard.

momma and i (along with a few other friends)

work out a couple times a week with a trainer.

it's lovely

and not lovely.

all at the same time.

(last thursday ran two miles of intervals...blech)

6. wearing tights.

because it is cold.

as in, COLD.

so, tomorrow, i am going to chase the sun.

wait, i need to clarify that....

the WARM sun.

and i'm wearing my swimsuit.

aloha.

the list of requirements.

2011-01-03T00:57:00.000-07:00

a few (or many) years ago, i wrote a list.

a list of qualities i want in my future spouse (hereafter known as "mr. right" or "mr. perfect").

(as, i am sure, most of you have done as well, at some point or another)

and, over the years, it has changed and grown.

well, i have come up with another quality/talent to add:

must be very capable of making left turns at any intersection.

yep, it is that important.

and, i know that i can't just write out a list of mr. perfect and expect it all,

at least without improving myself to be mrs. perfect at the same time.

(although, i like to think i am pretty awesome, just not perfect)

so, in turn (yes, mr. right, I am talking directly to you, now)

i will practice and perfect right turns.

deal?

deal.

miss me?

2010-12-29T01:11:00.001-07:00

.............................it's been a while.

(as if you couldn't already tell)

i've been a little busy.
and not busy.
all at the same time.

to catch you up:
(and be warned, it will be random...just like me)

i graduated!
(finally...that graduation application finally burnt a hole in my pocket)

everyone asks, "so, what's next?"
and truthfully,
i have no idea.

i planned until graduation.
who woulda thunk you needed a plan after graduation?
definitely not i.

so, for now, there is no plan.
and a million possibilities.

they say the world is at my feet.
but i don't like it at my feet.
i prefer to think it's at my eye level,
because then, i can see it better.
but, how well does "she's got the whole world at her eye level" sound?
i mean, really?
.............................

in other news, i am an auntie again!
i love being an aunt.
i love all of 'them' (meaning the little nieces and nephews).

although, the oldest one just sent a text
asking for my help with math homework.

blech.

but, since he is so busy now with is teenager lifestyle
i will take any time i can get with him.
even if we are figuring out how to solve for y

another niece, dared me to do something silly.
so i said "sure" like any crazy aunt would do.
i now have a picture of prince caspian
(from the chronicles of narnia movies)
as the screen saver on my phone for
two whole weeks.
i think he might stay around a little bit longer ;)

one little nephew is 2
(i think...somehow they all have be bamboozled on their ages and 'order' in my mind)
I like him lots.
for a few weeks we have been working on "julie is my favorite aunt"
followed by a "hooray!"
(positive reinforcements, people! it works!)
and the day after christmas, he started saying it all on his own!
meaning, no urging from me to have him repeat every word after me.
(don't worry, i also taught him "grammy is gorgeous" and "karen is pretty")
it's pretty much a.dor.ab.le

.............................
i love speaking spanish
even though i'm not super great at it
(seriously, i can barely speak english)
last week, zach came over to work on super secret christmas presents.
we had almost an entire conversation in spanish.
it was lovely.
.............................

while christmas shopping with my sisters,
(yes, all of my sisters! --sidenote: karen come to visit from nyc!! hip hip hooray!)
amy was buying her exciting finds.
i wasn't buying anything.
amy asked why i wasn't buying anything
(which, you all know, is strange)
and i said, "no tengo dinero"
and the lady at the register totally commented
"haha me neither!"

it was awesome.
.............................

i was gifted a beautiful copy of "emma" by jane austen for christmas
(thank you karen!)
i started reading it to my niece, lilo.
then she and her sister found the dvd in our library.
so we watched it last night.
lilo prefers the dvd.
i prefer the book.
in fact, each night i can't wait to read more
even though i already know the story.
practically by heart.
.............................

and, there is lots more.
but, it probably is of no interest to you.
and i can't really remember it anyways.

maybe a new year's resolution will be to blog more.
but if i say that, they you know that it
most likely, probably, will not happen.
so i won't say that.

i will say something like
"tell at least one compliment each day"
because,
well,
we all like compliments.
at least i do.

Yellow Car Bingo

2010-09-23T22:38:00.000-06:00

Name of the Game: Yellow Car Bingo

Rules: One point is awarded to player who spots a yellow, road-worthy vehicle (only certain road-worthy tractors are applicable) and says "Bingo". Games lasts for the duration of the car ride (from when the engine is started to when the engine is shut off). Game can be changed to accommodate different colors (i.e., White Car Bingo, Red Car Bingo, etc...)

Fun Possibility Level: Gobs and Gobs

Warning: You may start to play when you are alone in the car (and not with your 5 year-old nephew) and randomly yell out "BINGO!" Just like I did today. At least 6 times.

state hopping.

2010-08-04T01:18:00.000-06:00

yep, i made it back home.
safe and sound.
(thank goodness)

getting home was a doozy.
involved one country (unlike getting to Spain...right, i still need to tell y'all that story...)
and a few states.

New Jersey (nearly NY)
Texas
(almost Ohio)
Colorado.
and finally.

oh finally.

Utah.

i visited Mary for a quick sleepover

(she is wonderful. if you don't know her, you should meet her.)

one day i will go and just visit her.
just her.

anyways.

back on point.

i am home.
missing siestas.
glad to see family.
and friends.
busy at work
and glad to be back there.
i actually missed it.
(don't be jealous, i love my job.)

my sister, kimberly, and i went on a walk to the monastery last night.
because we could.
and i missed walking.
everywhere.
to the store.
to church.
to the museos.
to nowhere. those were the best.

i love home.
even if we don't have a siesta everyday.

bikinis only

2010-07-20T10:30:00.000-06:00

it was hot yesterday...
(have i mentioned the heat before?)

so heide, erica and i decided it was time to go to the pool.
after siesta of course.
going before would have been crazy.
it would have been too hot.

so we left about 4:30 and walked over.
nothing like 3 gringas walking around town in their swimwuits.
awesome.

we paid our money, laid out the towels and ran to the cool water.
(oh, and i lathered up on sunscreen. obviously)

i had just put my foot into the lovely water to test it.
i was planning on jumping in.

and heide taps my shoulder.
"uh, she's talking to you."

me: "who?"
and then i see her.

the mean pool lady.

last time, she made heide take off her glasses
(that she had been swimming with FOR AN HOUR...)

i guess it was my turn.

pool lady: "no puedes llevar camista o patalones en la piscina."
(you cannot wear a shirt or shorts in the pool)

me: "como? este es mi traje de bano."
(what? this is my swimsuit.)

pool lady: "NO ROPA EN LA PISCINA. Necesitas un bikini."
(NO CLOTHES IN THE POOL. You need a bikini.)

me: **pulling at my swimsuit trying to show her it was NOT a shirt, but a swimsuit**
"No es una camiseta. Es mi traje de bano."
(it is NOT a shirt. It is my swimsuit)

pool lady: "no ropa. necesitas un bikini" **and she pointed towards the pool exit.**
(no clothes. you need a bikini)

yep. i got kicked out of the local pool for NOT wearing a bikini.

awesome.

oh, and GO MODESTY.

when i get back i'll show you a picture of my swimsuit THAT IS MOST CERTAINLY A SWIMSUIT.

mismo.

2010-07-18T07:00:00.003-06:00

today, i wore my zebra dress.
and black flats.
and walked 25 minutes to church.

i was immediately hugged, kissed, and welcomed into their small branch.
i felt loved.
and they didn't even know my name yet.

i didn't understand every word.
but i understood every feeling.

amanda, a new amiga, even asked me to read.
from the bible, book of mormon, and lesson manual.
i didn't always know what i read,
and i don't think i pronounced half the words correctly.
but we all understood.

carina and logan both said prayers.
que bonita.

we all enjoyed a small snack in between meetings.

our small group increased the size of their branch by nearly a third today.
they all taught me more in 3 hours than i have learned during my 3 weeks here.

some things were different.

but it was all the same.
el mismo.

i love the gospel.
me encanta.
and that i can feel at home anywhere in the world.

oh, and the air conditioning was lovely.

on the walk home, carina and i walked through a small fountain to cool off.

(pictures soon!)

...epic...and icky...

2010-07-16T14:54:00.001-06:00

my bucket list is getting shorter.

But growing at the same time.

Entiendes?

This last weekend we (mis amigos y yo) rented a car and drove around the south of spain.

Sounds lovely. Doesn’t it?

It was.

Well, except the hours in the squished car and the horrendous heat

(silly African heat wave, you need to go back

to your own continent and leave us here

on the Iberian peninsula alone.).

--and when i say heat, i am speaking of

113 degrees Fahrenheit.

at 9 AM--

Other than that, yes, it was lovely.

Positively lovely.

We started with a quick stop in Cordoba.

To see my Mezquita-Catedral.

I learned about it clear back in high school (oh, weber) from miss keim. (oh miss keim!).

And I finally saw it.

I might have been a little giddy the entire time

(just ask heide…I practically ran across the roman bridge when we found a parking space).

Then, we drove to Granada to see Alhambra.

And we stayed in a Palace.

Yep, a palace.

With turrets.

Turrets.

But no moat.

Sad.

We also walked over 10 miles that day.

And I was in my zebra shoes.

BUT we got the perfect picture of Alhambra at night.

And I saw my Mezquita. So all is good.

I am pretty sure we even had ice cream.

Yummy.

From there, we drove straight to the beach.

(oh sand, water & sun)

I love the beach.

Except this beach.

Too many people.

And not enough space.

Have you ever seen those pictures where thousands and thousands

of people are crowded on a tiny stretch of sand?

Yep, I was one of those thousands.

Gross.

All I could think about was how many germs

and micro-nastyness things were hanging out.

But, I have a new appreciation and desire to visit my Hawaii beaches.

Namely turtle bay. (shrimp truck!)

After staying the night on the beach

(seriously, the hotel was ON the beach),

we drove to see Gibraltar.

Or rather.

The Rock of Gibraltar.

Yep, the rock that Hercules put there to mark the end of the world

(or was it sea? I need to look up my Greek mythology again)

…

(silly Olympians, moving around rocks).

But really, it was breathtaking.

Breathtakingly beautiful.

Driving onward, we headed towards another beach town.

Or city, I should say.

Cadiz.

My oh my.

There were more people on the beach than the last time!

But I somehow managed to relax and bake in the sun

(reapplying SPF 100+ twice).

The next morning we drove back to Caceres,

via Sevilla

(to visit the Catedral de Sevilla & Plaza de Espana—

which was under a major construction rehaul).

Oh, and we found a starbucks.

(thank you starbucks for the lovely—ice cold—grande fresa y crema frap.)

When we returned home

(home being our apartment in the pension)

We had just enough time to change into our Espana jerseys and

head over to the Plaza de Toros to watch the

World Cup Final with Espana v. Holanda.

The game was epic.

The crowd was loud.

The crowd was emotional.

The game went into overtime.

Spain Won.

And, now, I think I am a little bit deaf in both of my ears.

So, what would any rational person do?

High-five their neighbor.

What does Julie do in Espana when Espana wins the world cup FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER?

She jumps around, yelling, screaming, and then runs

(with all the locals and the rest of our WSU class)

to the local pond.

Thousands of locals are there.

Jumping in.

over police barriers.

with policia standing by, working on crowd control.

yep, police barriers.

So, we all jumped in.

and got into splashing wars

(I brought my waterproof camera so, don’t worry--there is proof).

Oh it was fun.

But oh so gross…

I have now taken two showers, and still feel a little bit ickey.

But it was so worth it.

Oh, and our little group of wsu students made it into the local paper.

Kind of.

We are in the crowd of 3500 people

But

We are easily distinguishable, if you know where we were sitting.

(which you don’t.

but I DO).

I’ll scan a copy of the picture when I get home.

With the helpful little arrows pointing to me and the hot Spaniard.

heehee

Pictures are difficult to upload

(blame the slow internet)

so, I will include those later.

remember:

patience is a virtue.

the fourth & spain v. paraguay

2010-07-04T04:13:00.005-06:00

i'm really sad that i am not in the USofA to celebrate the 4th of July.
i love huntsville, and spending the day at the park (or running back and forth from the park to the house), the parade, booths, playing on the trampoline with the sprinkler, Popsicles, winning excessive amounts of goldfish (that usually die a week later--RIP Guinevere I, II, & III ), the melodrama--oh the melodrama!--and spending time with the family.

one year, my friend called me on the 4th. this is the gist of the conversation:

friend: "what are you doing?"
me: "i'm at the Fourth."
friend: "what do you mean you are at the Fourth?"
me: "i'm AT the Fourth."

it was completely unacceptable that my friend did not know what the Fourth was, because to me, it simply isn't the Fourth unless I am in Huntsville Park.

this year, i celebrated Independence Day a little differently.
for one, i am in Spain. not in Huntsville.
secondly, i am in Spain.
if that makes sense.

but on the upside, if i couldn't exactly go to the local park and watch fireworks to celebrate my country's independence and patriotism, by golly, i was going to celebrate someway.

spain played paraguay in the world cup last night.
world. cup.
man, i wish the USofA was a little bit more into soccer (ahem, football).
anyways, i bought myself an Espana jersey, and made my way to the local bull fighting arena with some friends.
and, we (along with the rest of the town) watched the game on a big jumbotron.
it was amazing. and amazing doesn't even describe it.
the whole crowd. no.
the whole COUNTRY was there for the game. watching every move.
everyone was at the edge of their seats
(which were very uncomfortable, in case you were wondering)
and.
it gets better.
in the last five minutes, spain scored.

and WON.

the stadium erupted and i am so surprised i am not deaf now.
the feeling of unity, joy and pride in their country was rampant.
patriotism.

and i was just as excited.

it was almost as good as being in huntsville.
almost.

oh, and p.s.
please pardon my hair (especially my fringe).
it's a little hot here.
and my straightener doesn't work.

espana

2010-06-30T00:53:00.001-06:00

Hola :)

I am now writing from Spain (and from where I *promise* to catch up on my Greece/Turkey posts).

Getting here was a doozy. And it deserves a whole post.
For now, just know that it's a miracle i did not die or get arrested....

yes, i just said that.

miss you all :)

Love,

Jules

ummm..yeah, i meant to update.

2010-05-21T14:45:00.001-06:00

soooo, it has been a little busy the past couple weeks.

and internet has been spotty.

i promise will update lots when i get back.
with pictures.

i have taken over a thousand.
yes, a thousand.

just know that it has been loooooovely.
and i might just move to the greek islands.

hope you are all good :)
oh, and i almost miss you....almost.

crazy town

2010-05-03T23:21:00.003-06:00

things are a little crazy around here.
i leave for nyc in 3 days.
3 days!
and from nyc i will fly to istanbul.
(or constantinople--whichever you prefer)
via london (awww london how i have missed you so)
then, i will enjoy a blissful three weeks of lovelyness.
of travelling around on a bus filled with future friends.
and the bus will scream "yep, i am an american tourist!"
it will be wonderful.
then, we will get on a few ferries.
and float around the gorgeous greek islands.
one day, in a few weeks, we will go ashore.
and explore grecian places in athens.
oh, i can't wait.

stay tuned.
i am sure i will have a story or two.
from the trip to nyc.
and, maybe, in nyc i will spruce up the blog.
maybe.

until then, i am sure you will all wait in anticipation.
all of you.

yes, YOU.

the long rambling post with random thoughts.

2010-04-20T02:04:00.002-06:00

last weekend i went to st. george.
it was a much needed break.
and, i have to say, i think i would be a very good tan person.
or rather, a very good at getting tan person.
i changed into my loverly shade swimsuit, and lathered up on the sunscreen
(spf 30, i couldn't find the spf 90)
...oh and spray sunscreen is the best invention ever.
then, i made my way to the pool. ah. the pool. half inside, half outside.
i, of course, went outside. i had my trusty "pool bag" filled with a bottle of water, iPod, two magazines (i should add that they were over a month old from my nyc trip with the nieces, and i never got a chance to read them...traveling with kids is slightly occupying!). anyways, continuing on...a couple snacks, a book for school, sunglasses and extra sunscreen all snuggled nicely into this fabulous bag.

i got in the lukewarm water and played for a bit. then, the lovely (or not so lovely) pool chair called to me. i stuffed the earphones in my ear and tried to read a magazine while soaking up the hot sun. but, i couldn't concentrate and the magazine fell to the wayside.
i was simple being and enjoying. wonderful.
then, my handy iPod (which doubles as my phone...hence the iPhone heehee) started ringing (in my ears, remember, headphones!).
it was my lovely momma. i answered, and listened to her through the headphones, so i didn't even have to pick up the phone! i simply placed the speaker close to my mouth as I laid on the chair and kept enjoying the sunshine during a lovely chat with my momma.
i wasn't paying attention to anything or anyone except for the sun, the heat, the soft breeze, and momma's account of the earthquake (did you know there was an earthquake at home?? there was! you can google it!) and the icelandic volcano eruption (i won't even try to spell the name of the volcano)..
anyways, needless to say i was in heaven. or as close as i am going to get for awhile.
and i didn't even really remember where i was until lori (or was it hailey?) jarred me awake because they were heading back up to the room. then, they asked why i was talking to myself, which i wasn't, i was talking to momma! silly people, but i guess i was the one who looked kinda silly. but i didn't care. i was relaxed and enjoying the moment. (including the blindingly white legs and crazy wet/curly hair....seriously, i was so relaxed i didn't care about anything!)

this trip was a much needed break from the stresses of school, new responsibilities at work, and the upcoming crazy summer i have planned. seriously people, what was i thinking when i planned this summer?? i know that it will be lots of fun (with lots of relaxing in between), but crazy busy and lots of jet lag (but who doesn't love jet lag?).
after this summer, i will finally graduate (what? yes, you read right. i am graduating. giving up the awesome school scholarship, and amazing flight benefits) and eventually (hopefully) grow up. a little bit. just a little bit. trust me, you'll hardly notice.
other big decisions that come along with graduation are coming up as well.
wowzers. who knew life could be so unpredictable, amazing, fun, stressful, and just happy?

oh, and wish me luck on finals. i will be finished on thursday at 5:30 pm, well, i will be if i survive. i do not plan on sleeping much for the next 48 hours. i think professors have secret staff meetings (well, maybe not secret, but i sure don't know about them!) and plan ways to torture students. seriously, who planned my finals week to include FOUR 10-page papers, TWO big group presentations, and TWO exams all on Thursday. they couldn't even just spread them out of 4, 3 or even 2 days. meanies.

speaking of which, i should get back to a paper. yippee.

sorry it was so random (and i apologize to anyone at the pool who I might have blinded with my amazingly white skin). i suspect i will have more exciting posts coming up soon. really soon. oh i can't wait!

confessions

2010-03-16T01:49:00.000-06:00

i have a confession, a confession i will only tell you internets, because i know you will keep my secret.

i read a nicholas sparks book.
again.

and every time, every time, i swear up and down
that i will never read another one again.

because they are sappy, silly, and predictable.

well, i haven't learned my lesson.
yet

i picked up "the last song" because i knew
someone would drag me to the movie,

and i hate going to a movie when i haven't read the book first.

well,
i have never cried so hard in my life.
seriously.
i didn't see this ending coming (even though i should have).
and it took me by surprise.

it was midnight, and i decided to finish the last 50 pages or so,
because i wanted to not read it anymore this week.

well, about 1:00 am, i had tears running down my face.
not a "my eyes are watering because it's sad" kinda tears
but "oh my gosh i haven't cried this hard in months, i am shaking and i know my shoulders are going to be sore in the morning" kinda cry.

i would call it an ugly cry.
super ugly.

i woke up with mascara all over my eyes.
not pretty.

(yep, i forgot to take off my make up before i started reading)

remind me not to read any more of his books again.
ever.
never ever.

obvious

2010-03-08T15:37:00.003-07:00

a couple years ago, claire and i were walking from the business building to the social science building.
a flat sidewalk.
flat. as in, no hill whatsoever.
one minute we were walking.
the next, i was flat on the ground with a bleeding knee and elbow/arm.
how?
i have no idea.

fast forward to present day:

almost every day i cut through the student services building on my way to class.
seriously, it saves me 1.3 minutes.
i timed it.

and almost everyday i trip as i go out on to the main sidewalk.
almost everyday.

it has gotten slightly annoying.

so,
today.
when i inevitably tripped.
i looked down

and this is what i saw.

now i am going to be much more careful.
and miss the uneven sidewalk.
silly me.

good think i have never hit the ground, or had too many spectators.
yet.

writer's block

2010-02-09T20:30:00.002-07:00

last semester i wrote my senior thesis.
it was fab.u.lous.

in fact,
i wrote it twice because it was so awesome.
(not really, the first one stunk, second one rocked!)

(seriously though, if you want to read it, email me. it is fascinating!)

so, all in all (including the other 4 classes i took in addition to senior seminar....yes, i am crazy)
i wrote well over 100 pages. yes, over one hundred pages.

i guess that explains why i am so hesitant to do homework/write papers this semester.
one 6 page paper was due this morning at 10:30 am.
it is now 8:30 pm, and only 4 pages have been written.
i figure i will take the 1 point penalty to turn it in tomorrow morning.
talk about senior-itis

but, my goal was to come home from class today, finish the paper, shower (yes, i might smell a little), and make valentines for some of you loverly people.

as previously mentioned, it is now 8:30 pm, and i am still writing/ procrastinating.
the shower might have to wait until tomorrow morning,
and valentines.
well, they have to be done tonight (deliveries take for.ev.er),
so i guess it will be a late one. but oh so much fun (post-paper writing, of course)

i knew there was a reason you take senior seminar on your last senior semester. seriously. talk about burnt out.

wish me luck on the last 1.75 pages.

and yes, after they are all delivered, i will post pictures of my awesomely awesome valentines treats. i might even dig up pictures from last year, because those were pretty awesome as well :)

Choices

2010-01-27T00:59:00.002-07:00

i have class everyday.

yep, you read that right.

everyday.

which means, i have lots of time to think.

(because who pays attention in class?)

and thinking leads to ideas.

which leads to potential possibilities.

(and ways to make ideas into possibilities).

and that leads to thinking about what choices and decisions
would make those possibilities turn into reality.

too many possibilities have left my brain spinning.

and spinning.

so i guess this means no more thinking for me.

whew.

it took me a long time to pick that one!

2009

2009-12-30T11:38:00.002-07:00

i have made many new year's resolutions.
some of them I have kept, others I have not done so well at.

this year (2009), i decided to make one, and stick to it
. no matter what.

so, i did (for the most part).
every month i wanted to travel somewhere, anywhere,
or do something equally exciting
(even though i was in school full-time and worked part-time).
Some places i had been before, others I just wanted to visit again.
Sometimes i traveled far away, others i explored my own backyard, or so to speak.
who knew utah could be as fascinating as amsterdam?!
and, i must say, i was far more impressed with mesa verde (& cliff palace)
than i was with the eiffel tower (even though that was pretty amazing as well).

this is where i went and what i did this past year:
warning: picture overload & possible/probable repeats from other posts.

january:
nyc/washington, d.c. for president obama's presidential inauguration

walking on the freeway

washington monument

february:
hawaii (shrimp truck, lava flows, turtle bay, and falling asleep to the ocean....looooove)

really gross after the plane, but in hawaii!

at turtle bay's beach!

also, i jumped off the front porch, landed on a flower pot, and broke my right foot.
my mom volunteered as my chauffeur for 6 weeks, helped me navigate crutches, and got me to classes on time. i couldn't skip anymore. fun times.

this is the actual act of the breakage,
solomon documented the jump.

draper temple open house.
i got preferential treatment.

march:
spring break in europe. loverly.
amsterdam, netherlands; brussels, belgium; paris, france (and all the places in between)

in brussels, at some palace, i think

at the eiffel tower!

a canal in amsterdam

april:
april was pretty busy, and i was gone nearly every weekend.

las vegas, nevada

fremont street. we saw the chip n dales booth.
i think leann rimes and kelly pickler performed.
it was exciting, can you tell?

i gambled for the first and last time!
i lost a dollar. boo.

nyc-easter/girls' weekend
we enjoyed brunch at sarabeth's, and saw guys and dolls (with lauren graham!).
it was positively lovely.

i met the easter bunny. this one was kinda creepy.

momma, karen and i at rockefeller center.

phoenix, arizona
great aunt fay passed away, and we flew to phoenix for the funeral.
can i just say that family rocks? seriously, they are all lovely. and slightly crazy,

i made friends with a bear. we're tight.

i hugged a cactus.
one word: ouch.

may:
nyc-las vegas
lori and i went on an adventure.

we ate at the famous shake shack.
not so sure what all the hype is about.
kirts is much better.

rock of ages was awesome.
the perfect one to see with lori.

june:
lasik eye surgery
me and valium are not friends.
i bawled for four straight hours afterwards.
nonstop.
just ask mom how fun it was. i dare you.

wicked cool eye goggles

blood shot eyes (had them for a month!)

july:
ireland for leeza & brett's wedding
i didn't get any pictures. so i stole one from facebook.

the happy newlyweds in their fancy wedding car

august:
uintah's for the first annual nielson family reunion extravaganza!

one morning we had a race.
sarah was my partner.
1 mile is a lot for a two-year-old. but she managed it.
you go girl!
yes, she nearly fell asleep on my head.
no, it wasn't comfortable.

cute kids on the porch.

girl party (candyland theme)
my camera died, and this is the only decent surviving picture.
but it gives you a small idea of how wonderful and amazing it was.

the walkway into the house.

and the girls' handmade lollipops.
just say it with me. awwwwwww.

four corners (utah, arizona, new mexico, & colorado)
mesa verde (cliff palace!) arches national parks (and a few others...)

i kinda like the desert.

i am in four states, at the same time. yep, soooo cool!

me at cliff palace. seriously,
one of the most incredible places
i have ever been.

this is me and my man at the monticello temple.
can you see him?

i thought it was funny.
dad didn't.
but mom still took the picture :)

september:
preston, idaho (napoleon dynamite)

no pictures.
well, none that i want to show you
let's just say it was a bad hair day.
and i spend the entire drive over avon with my eyes covered.
there might have been a little screaming.
have you ever been on that road?
in a ginormous truck
and meet other trucks, cars, atv's, etc... on the road.
but when my eyes were open, the leaves were loverly to look at.

october:
forks/la push/seattle, washington; portland/sandy, oregon
(business trip) okay, a little business, and a lot of fun.

world's largest spruce tree (you can't see it)
we are a special brand of people. can you tell?

we posed by the spartan. at forks high.
during the football game.

bonfire & smores at first beach.

just say it: nerds.
but you know that you are secretly jealous.
even just a little bit.

november:
i thought i broke my toe, but i didn't. however, it did look pretty nasty and i still can't bend it right. good thing i didn't. two broken feet-ish in one year. nope, not happening.

i threw a little (or not so little) event for new moon, and dressed up like victoria. it was awesome.

after the event, at like 2 o'clock in the morning.

delta, utah (topaz internment camp)
and the next day i took my first solo trip and drove to delta, utah
to interview a lady about my senior thesis.

scary black birds surrounding me & the car

what is left of Topaz: desert.

december:
i didn't go anywhere because there was a lot going on all month
finals.
christmas.
family. friends.
you know, the usual holiday madness.
but it was still awesome,
and i think the rest of the year's overload balanced it out.

2009 has been awesome. it has definitely had its ups and downs, but overall: awesome.
i worked hard and played even harder.

i wrote my thesis (and got an A, thank you very much)
--want a copy? just ask. it is actually interesting.

and, i have already made some big plans for next year.
i can't wait.

but now, i need to find/make an equally challenging and fun new year's resolution for 2010.
ideas?

and this picture is just cute.
wouldn't you agree?

battery park sketch/scam artists

2009-12-04T01:38:00.005-07:00

this past may lori and i went on a new york city adventure.

first place on our list: the statue of liberty.
so we rode the subway to battery park, and saw the tiny speck out in the harbor

afterwards, we walked back to the subway
(on our way to the brooklyn bridge)

we passed a sketch artist.
thinking it would be fun,

(and that he must have some talent based on his "examples")

we sat down.

it was somewhat awkward having everyone stop and watch and stare at us.

but whatever, we were enjoying our adventure.

at the end,
somehow, our initial $10 portrait,
ended up costing $35.

man, that guy was good.
or we were just weak.

either way.
this is what we ended up with.

which one is me? and which one is lori?
does it matter?

where, oh where could it be?

2009-10-21T03:39:00.002-06:00

good news: i finally found my car keys and can stop using the emergency spare!

bad news: i lost my brain in the middle of midterms. please help!
**feel free to post this poster on other blogs/websites.
this is a dire situation**

surprise?

2009-10-12T22:29:00.005-06:00

last friday, dad "surprised" us with a dog, Poe.
Poe is the biggest, furriest, friendliest dog you will ever meet.

one thing he was lacking: a house. and the nephews were quick to point this out.
so, they took matters into their own hands and started building Poe a house
with our newly chopped firewood.

yep, we let them hammer away with real nails and real hammers.

and most of the time there was an adult supervising the construction.

aren't they just precious?

oh, you want a picture of this dog you say?

he won't fit in my camera. he is that big.

a day in the life of a (commuter) college student

2009-09-22T00:21:00.005-06:00

everyday i have to pack up (part of) my life when I go to school.

most days it gets thrown around my car
(two hour+ long breaks between classes=need for a variety of "projects")

Math

2009-09-19T00:53:00.004-06:00

This:

Plus This:

Equal This:

CONGRATULATIONS!
You can add!
Now, to celebrate, let's go get a lava flow?
Eh?

MJBTYAAA (Miss Julie Belle Thinks You Are Awesome Award)

2009-09-09T16:39:00.005-06:00

So, I have decided that there a lot of of people that are AWESOME!

(some might even be more awesome than me, but don't tell them that!)

Last week, Karen won the Awesome Award.

See, my computer (my beloved Mac, oh how I love thee, let me count the ways...) was having issues. And, I didn't have time (or the money) for it to be having these issues. So, I made a Genius Bar appointment (another reason why Apples are a.maz.ing).

At my beloved computer's check-up, the "doc" informed me that I could either (A.) upgrade my software (to Leopard) AND my Microsoft Office OR (B.) I could purchase a new computer.

Well, I didn't really like these options:

Option A: $300
Option B: $2000

Having A Sister With Connections? PRICELESS

I was talking (aka whining) about my computer issues to Karen that afternoon on Gmail Chat (gotta love Gmail) and can you guess what she said? It was something like "Oh, I just upgraded my computer, and I bought the family pack, so I have an extra code that you can use them" (FOR FREE!) I nearly fainted with gratitude.

This is one reason why she is awesome (another: she bought me the best paperclips, pushpins and magnets ever--don't make fun of my love for office things: claire, i mean you--). She is always doing really nice things for everyone around her like this. And she just radiates Awesomeness. And she is my sister, and I love her.

Therefore, she wins Last Week's Miss Julie Belle Thinks You Are Awesome Award (MJBTYAAA).

Wait, you are wondering who won this week's?

Easy Answer: Hailey.

Just watch this video. You will understand.

Fairytale-ish

2009-09-07T03:40:00.005-06:00

Once upon a time there was a girl named JulieBelle.
JulieBelle had loooong, red hair (that was in a constant ponytail/bun-type hair do) and very white skin that held several thousand freckles (and that is just on her arms!)

JulieBelle was in need of a new 'do for her hair.
(And she can't go short yet, she has goals to meet!)

So, she called up the Amazing Kindle and made an Emergency Hair Appointment

(and one for her Mummy as well,
you know JulieBelle & Mummy must
do these sorts of things together)

Late one night (remember, it was an EMERGENCY), Mummy & JulieBelle walked into Kindle's fabulous salon, and had the most amazing time.

When it was JulieBelle's turn in the chair (oh how she loved the chair!),

Kindle's first words out were,
"What do you think about bangs?"

"Umm, I like bangs, sure, why not?" was JulieBelle's reply.

After a lovely hairwash/headmassage, Kindle's fingers and scissors went to work. (-sidenote- the word scissors needs a 'z' in there somewhere, don't you think?) After all of the cutting, hair drying, and styling was done, Julie couldn't recognize herself.

Indeed, she did wonder, at one point,
who that GORGEOUS girl was in the mirror!

SHE HAD FRINGE!!!
(choose definition #4).

And once again, it was reinforced that Kindle is a genius!

After a few weeks of adjusting to her fantabulous new 'do, JulieBelle decided to take one of her bestest friends, Michelle, out for a little Mission clothes shopping. (Michelle was leaving in only a few short weeks, and this provided an excellent excuse to hang out, discuss how JulieBelle will not write letters, but draw pictures (probably snow-caped mountains, you know, like a 3rd grader)...and most importantly be "productive" and find Michelle clothes.

They decided to venture out to the Outlet Malls of Park City, Utah. Here they found several stores with many tempting goodies inside. While looking for Mission-appropriate clothings, JulieBelle happened upon a dress, a beautiful black dress just begging to be tried on (and it should probably be mentioned-not Mission appropriate). After minutes of begging, JulieBelle gave in, and tried on the dress (while Michelle wandered around comparing cardigans).

JulieBelle and the dress became fast friends and knew they couldn't be separated by anything. After several minutes of contemplating, and at least two consults with Michelle, it was decided the dress would be giving a home in JulieBelle's closet.

Then, JulieBelle saw the pricetag, and hesitated. After much explaining, JulieBelle told the dress she would be back (she is on a student, aka "nonexistant" budget and needed to get financially creative.)

All JulieBelle could think about the rest of the day was the PERFECT black dress that waited for her at The Gap, and
how FANTABULOUS it looked
with her new fringe
(despite the rest of the hair being tied up).

So, she made her way back to The Gap, and back to the dress, using her bit of plastic to make it possible to give the dress a home. (all the while praying that her FAFSA would be approved!)

After the plastic had been swiped (and approved!) Michelle and JulieBelle decided that finding California Mission-appropriate clothing was a difficult task to complete when Utah was in the mood for Fall, with long-sleeve sweaters and jackets, and drowned their failed Operation Mission Clothes in lovely Cafe Rio salads

On the bright side, they all
(JulieBelle, Fringe, & Dress)
lived happily ever after.
(And plan on sending Michelle a drawing of the dress).

The End.

Moral of the Story: JulieBelle+New Hair+New Dress=Happyness

Eyemask

2009-08-18T00:35:00.004-06:00

i attempt to sleep on airplanes.

i also like to make the flight attendants & other passengers do a double-take when the see me.

so...

i wear this:

awesome, right??

Why I Love Post-Its

2009-08-18T00:04:00.003-06:00

last semester, i got a little overwhelmed with all of the homework, reading, quizzes, tests, assignments, and other miscellaneous school-related things i needed to get done.

so, i got creative.

by making this wall sized "to do" list, could visualize better what needed to be done for each class.

"done" side "to do" side

i know, i know i am crazy!

but, it was a HUGE thing when i could move one post-it from the "to do" side of the wall to the "DONE!" side.

i didn't just throw the post-it away because, COME ON, that was a LOT of work that went into each project!

"done" side "to do" side

all finished!

now, i think i might make one for this coming semester, but i think i need to find a different location (i don't think that above my bed was the best "stress free" place", you know what i mean???)

am i the only one who does crazy stuff like this
to try to keep myself somewhat sane and organized???

Awkward? I think so. In fact, I know so.

2009-07-16T16:20:00.005-06:00

Without going into lots of boring details, this story begins with me transferring my life insurance policy. Not a big deal, right? Right.

All I had to do was sign a few papers.

(I probably signed away my first-born son or something, I didn't really read the fine-print...should I admit to that?)

Then, a random phone call from a man wanting to take my blood (some medical exam they have to do...) led to one EMBARRASSING experiences.

Here is the gist of our conversation: (Oh, and he was a very handsome fire fighter, this is important...i tend to get tongue-tied around them)

Nate: "Sorry I am so late, traffic was really bad out in Roy."

Me: "That darn traffic, also messing with everybody's business" (i am SOOOOO clever)

Nate: "So, are you currently on your period?"

Me: (Blushing profusely) "Uh, No?" (seriously, no transition whatsoever!)

Nate: "Is that a question?"

Me: "No?"

Nate: "Alright, while I am getting set up here, can you go, um, go in the bathroom?"

Me: "Sure! I just drank two bottles of water for this very purpose!"

Five Minutes Later...

Me: "Umm we might have to wait until the end of the exam because, uh, nothing is gonna happen for awhile..."

Nate: "Uh, alright, that works, let me see your arm."

Me: "Sure thing."

Awkward silence has he checks mundane,
but amazing, things like blood pressure and heart rates.

Nate: "K, I am going to take some blood, "

Me: "alright, i can't look or i might faint....you know how that goes"

Nate: "Sure."

Well, needless to say, my veins are small...so he had to use a different arm, and the positioning was awkard because his face was RIGHT NEXT TO MINE,
really really really awkard.
And silent.

Turns out I have pretty red blood :)

Nate: "Do you think you can, you know, uh, go now?"

Me: "Huh? Oh, right. Um, yes, I think so."

Two minutes later...

Me: "Here you go!"--still blushing, i mean come on! you know what I am handing him!

Nate: "Alright, thanks. you are all done."

Me: "Awesome. Thanks for, um, yeah. Thanks."

Smooth, Julie.
Real smooth.

And not the least bit awkward,
right?

major dilemma

2009-05-12T23:50:00.002-06:00

my "bucket list" has grown.
it's more than 100.
and growing still.

i don't know what to do. the possibilities are endless and i can't decide what to do first!
i almost think that picking a favorite sibling would be easier!!

any suggestions on what i should do first?

scuba dive at the great barrier reef? climb the great wall of china?
disneyland? visit the island of santorini?
build a well in africa? go on a safari?
visit the monks in spain? ride an elephant in india?
easter island and the monstrous statues? dumdum
gamble some more in vegas?
roadtrip across the country in an old, orange vw van?
maybe i should just cross the northern border into canada, eh?
or attempt to contract the swine flu down south in mexico? think i could get a killer deal on a cruise? and i do, in fact, mean killer?

see what i mean? the possibilities are overwhelming and i can't pick what to do first!!

i think i need a week on a tropical island before i make my final decision.

but what island?

back to hawaii? or move on to fiji? tahiti? canary? galapagos? maybe even madagascar? japan is even a possiblity, it is technically an island, right? or australia, isn't it just a really, really big island!?

see how my mind works?
one decision leads to a million more that beg to be made!!

any input will be taken into consideration. on island choice and next adventure choice.
please.

this all reminds me of that quote by Socrates,
"The more I learn, the more I learn how little I know."

and this cool quote by Elbert Hubbard,
"No man needs a vacation so much as the man who has just had one."

sums up my life to a t.

Shark Attack

2009-05-12T23:29:00.004-06:00

last year, august 8th to be exact, i did an amazing, out-of-character thing.

i swam with sharks. about 30 of them

willingly.

and yes, that is a three-zero, thirty.

shayne invited me to go on an adventure with his family while we were in hawaii for karen's wedding.

sisters. we are so obviously related...

and i am always up for an adventure, so i said yes.

i woke up super, super early and mom drove me to the docks in haleiwa and we found the "shark attack" sign. it was comforting. mom kissed me goodbye after shayne and his crew arrived and left me for the fish. literally.

iilona and i planned to go in together so we could scream, hold hands, and cling to each other for dear life while surrounded by blood-thirsty sharks and protected by a few measley pieces of welded metal.

this plan changed quickly.

captain advised shayne to take in another adult because two little girls would be difficult to handle as the water grew more and more choppy (weather wasn't the greatest on this wondrous morning). so, iilona and shayne were to enter the cage with the two girls and i was to go with two other crazy strangers.
joyous moment of realization right there.

the first couple to go out didn't last very long. the girl had a fit within minutes and it took a long time to calm her down after we brought her back aboard. i was up next, and i did not want to be anything like the crying, hyperventilating girl, mainly because i didn't want to wimp-out in front of my brother, sister-in-law (who said she would only go if i did), and especially my nieces.

i freaked myself out that the sharks would bite my toes as i climbed down the side of the cage, so i quickly flung myself into the safety of the cage. i refused to look under the water until we were "safely" released from the boat (much less rough water) because the sight of all the dorsel fins above the water was enough to send me into a panic. as the water settled slightly, i took a deep breath and pushed myself under the water. i screamed. needless to say, i came up for air pretty fast and choked on the water i had inhaled. i was literally surrounded by sharks, peaceful looking sharks. while i loved looking at them as they swam gracefully (do sharks swim gracefully?) it was still an experience that kept my heartbeat racing. i loved looking at our feet because we were all kicking like mad as if we were swimming away from the sharks, even though we knew we were safe in the cage.

i guess you never lose
the "flight or fight" instinct.

soon enough, my turn was up and i handed my goggles off to iilona, who decided to follow through with it all because i did (which is the main reason i refused to let myself hyperventilate. talk about control!). so, i watched as my family also surrounded themselves with sharks and i held on to my cute little nephew (i also couldn't have been shown up by my nieces!!) while his parents and sisters enjoyed the sharks. it was really cool to see all the dorsel fins surrounding the boat too, slightly less unnerving than when you are in the cage.

it was quite the experience, one that most people should do,
just like skydiving.
Remember this?

remind me to get the video of my experience from shayne for your's and my viewing pleasure.
i bet i am quite entertaining.

dear las vegas....

2009-04-06T23:01:00.009-06:00

dear citizens and visitors (you most of all) of las vegas,

thank you ever so much for the delightful entertainment you provided this past weekend.
from your drunken attitudes, random dancing/singing, and most of all, the outfits, i thoroughly enjoyed all of it.

(pictures coming soon)

yes, the outfits especially. i loved the devil-horns, see-through shirts, and feathers most of all. you all provided the most interesting game of "your team" that i have ever played.

and to the man i watched get arrested outside the apartment during general conference, good luck to you, and especially with that nasty black eye (and the handcuffed wrists, i hear those can leave some wicked bruises).

my experience would not have been the same without you all. i am forever in your debt and sincerely hope to not see you again for a long, long time.

keep up the great work (or not).

with regards,

julie

Memorable

2009-03-31T23:46:00.001-06:00

i started this post a
thousand times
and meant it to be up months ago,
but each time it sounded like a
journal entry
and i am positive that you do not want to read about every detail.
(i never want to forget anything and have been told i am extremely introspective)
So, i ultimately decided to
just show you photos of this
truly spectacular adventure.
with a little narration.

(let's start with: neener neener)

it started out with laundry and moving karen and jordan between apartments in nyc.

we quickly moved on to DC.
sightseeing is interesting with a couple other million people there.

this man had a lot of causes. a lot.

jordan was sad when i told him to make a "normal" face.
(this is pennsylvania avenue, by the way.
right smack dab in front of the president's house)

it was a bit chilly. i wore many layers.

mass of people in front of lincoln memorial.
reminds me of Forest Gump.
"jenny!"

karen bought a new $8 coat for the occassion.
it was a swell coat, and brought a smile to my face.
i never lost her in a crowd.

thank you senator bennett.
the tickets were pretty snazzy looking.

we woke up crazy early and walked on the closed-down freeway to our entrance (blue).
this was my favorite.

we were kinda far away. but still. it was. incredible
and we didn't wake up early enough for the good spots
(we heard they were gone by 4 am...yeah, not happening)

obama is in there ,somewhere, giving his inaugural address.

karen and i high-tailed it out of there afterwards.
we had a plane to catch!!
and my feet hurt.
some words of advice:
don't wear high-heel,
super-warm boots
when you have to
walk 2+miles
and
stand for over 7 hours at a time.
trust me..

ps. best way to describe it:
like a rock concert.
but better.

Netherlands...

2009-03-06T05:50:00.002-07:00

My plane successfully landed in Amsterdam.

unlike this plane's attempt

We are off to a great start.

Now,

I am going to go crash. into the bed.

Jet lag is starting to kickin...my head feels funny....

snow sillyness

2009-02-17T18:36:00.004-07:00

you may have heard...
it snowed today.
a lot.

campus closed down
so did work

lovelyness

it took dad 2 1/2 hours to get home from the temple.
i only took me an hour.

booyah.

there was so much snow
i decided to jump off the front porch.
just like last year.

i love jumping into soft snow

except for one small difference this year.

i forgot to jump far enough out to miss the big plant pots.

and i did something funny to my ankle.

hopefully it will be better tomorrow.

but for now,
i am enjoying watching movies in bed.

and having dinner in bed.

roman holiday is fabulous entertainment.

i think i need to find me a gregory peck.
he's handsome.

star bright, star light

2009-02-17T01:07:00.003-07:00

i wish i may,
 i wish i might
have the wish,
i wish tonight.



i wish i was sleeping.

oh no!
it's snowing, no stars in sight
 and i told you my wish.

so much for that wish.

eh.

there is always tomorrow...

I was cold. No other reason.

2009-02-02T13:31:00.011-07:00

I was cold.
I had worn every coat with every scarf in every combination.
I was tired of wearing 283 layers everyday.
I missed my swim suit.
I missed swimming.
I missed the warm sun.
I didn't want to do any homework.
(Biggest motivator)

So, I went here.

North Shore, Oahu

And this is what I did.

Shrimp Truck,

Giovanni's is the absolute BEST!
Why didn't anyone tell me I had mascara underneath my right eye?!

Lava Flows,

The highlight
(oh, and haagen-daz bars with Mom @ midnight)

Swap Meet,

I bought two amazingly gorgeous skirts.
No picture.
It wouldn't do them justice.

Ocean, Sand, Surfers

               Notice Mom's eyes are closed.  I woke up unusually early.   

and, of course, the pool. 

Underwater cameras rock.

All Hawaiian Traditions were packed in a 18 hour period before leaving Oahu.

Maui awaited.

New and Unfamiliar

but lovely nonetheless.

Whale watching

Better "official" picture to come...

 and we were "Maui Mugged"by whales

I was much to excited to take any "good" pictures on the boat.
So, here you go.
A bit of a tail and a bit of a charge.
Enjoy.

and of course the beach and pool (round 2).

 I relaxed far too much 
to remember a silly camera
to this beach session.

And far too soon,
I was back to reality.

I think I can survive the winter now.

P.S. This made me smile

2009-01-26T16:04:00.001-07:00

Dearest Sleep,

I miss you an awful lot.

Where did you go?

I am sorry I let school come between us,
but I promise
it will be
worth it one day.

Deprived,

Julie

2009-01-15T00:36:00.006-07:00

In 5 days I will be here:

(US Capitol)

with her:

(The Lovely Karen)

witnessing him:

(President-elect Barack Obama)

replace him:

(President George W. Bush)

as:

and hopefully eat here:

so I can enjoy this:

(Yum Yum Yum)

at least once.........

Cola?

2009-01-06T22:24:00.002-07:00

Classes started

Joy.

And I've already had some "Julie Moments". You know those moments where you think, "Only Julie would ever be as silly as this?!" And then you realize that you aren't Julie and you thank your lucky stars because then stuff like that doesn't happen to you on a daily basis?

Yes, those moments define my life.

Why just this morning I had a Julie Moment.

I was no more than 2 minutes late to Spanish 1020, due to weather conditions.
I sneaked into class as quietly as I could while wearing my amazing, new snow boots (seriously, you have to see these babies! They rock!!) and big puffy, super warm coat. Well, I grab the closest seat and settle in for the next 48 minutes of class. I drop my book bag, pull out a writing utensil and notebook, then I take off my coat.
This is when I notice that something is a little weird.

I'm unusually tall.
I suppose you could say "obscenely tall".
I am literally towering over the table.

Some person in the class before had lovingly readjusted me chair! (Unless they were shorter than short, and in that case, I apologize) So....Life goes on, right? WRONG! I am utterly absorbed in figuring out how to lower the chair and hardly paying attention to the "oral activity" that was going on....big mistake!

We then split into groups to do a Conversation Exercise.
And I fixed my chair to an acceptable height.

Yesterday, Wes was my partner and he wasn't so up-to-speed on the Spanish aspect of class (he hadn't taken a class in nearly 6 years) so I felt somewhat smart and capable. Today, Matt (or maybe it was Mike?!) was my partner. In my opinion Matt/Mike should be considered fluent! I couldn't think of any Spanish words and I said "Ummmmmm...," more than a few times. I felt like a babbling idiot.

So, back to the activity. It dealt with someone going to the airport and getting on an airplane, so basically all we had to do was put the statements in sequence.
(EXAMPLE: He got into a taxi. He arrived at the airport. He waited in line to check his baggage. He boarded the plane. He had a window seat, etc...)

Well, as we were figuring the order out, I pointed to one sentence (and in my defense let me just say that I hadn't read the full sentence when I started talking), and said "Hey, this one goes later because he has to be on the plane to order a coke." And I thought I was so smart. Matt/Mike (I REALLY NEED TO FIGURE OUT HIS NAME BEFORE TOMORROW!!) looked at me a little strangely and said "Como?"

WHY DOES HE HAVE TO TALK IN SPANISH ALL OF THE TIME!!??

And then I looked at the vocabulary on the previous page and realized my big, humongous, silly mistake. Cola isn't "coca-cola". In Spanish it means "line". I should have known that!!! Yes, I had made a big fool of myself. I attempted to make a recovery and say something clever, but of course my brain doesn't think that fast in English (let alone Spanish), so I awkwardly moved on to another sentence and hoped he didn't notice. I'm sure he did. And I'm positive that my face went bright red.

Thankfully class wrapped up a few minutes later and I ran out of there pretty quickly.
I can't wait for tomorrow's class

Oh, and if you are interested, the sentence was, " Hago cola para facturar el equipaje." Directly translated, " I stand in line to check my baggage." Indeed, it does not mean "to order a coke".

I hope this isn't an omen of how the rest of the semester will go!

Bet

2008-12-04T10:19:00.000-07:00

And you said I couldn't do it.

Have just a short, non-narrated post.

Well, there, HA

I did it!

And now I owe myself $20 bucks......sawwweeeeetttt

Boys

2008-11-26T20:16:00.004-07:00

As you know, or as you don't know,

I have many nieces and nephews.

In the beginning (and as i wrote that all I could think about is Dad's joke that they played baseball in the Bible...yeah moving on...)

In the beginning (no baseball Bible reference here), there was only one nephew, Trevor.

He was spoiled rotten, and me being only 8 (welcome to Utah!), had a new playmate. Then, Trevor was joined by a few girls. Four to be exact, Katelyn, Alexa, Zarra and Elizabeth. And shortly after the 4 girls, we finally got one more boy. Solomon. And another boy, Benjamin. And yet THREE more boys, Luke, Tyler, and Noah (not sure in the order there...), and FINALLY we got one more girl, Sarah. Life is good. And 2 more babies are on their way...One is a girl (at least that is what the person with the medical degree says) and the other one is a....SURPRISE! And by "surprise" i mean "it's 50/50 and could go either way". So I think the total is up to 10 plus two on the way so, TWELVE. Not that anyone is counting...

Back to the point of this post (as you can tell I get sidetracked easily and can give WAY too much background).

Boys. There are 6 little boys climbing around in my immediate family tree. Three of the six are currently in my house running around. Okay okay, it's not MY house, but you get the idea. And let's just say that sometimes chaos (i love that word) best describes it. Or warzone. Or a cornicopia (tis the season to use that word) of other synonyms.

Other times, it is peaceful.

Yes,

peaceful.

I love them! I love them all!

I love listening to Solomon explain (quite calmly) to Luke why he is upset that Luke took away his lightsaber without asking. I love having Solomon cheer me on when I'm painting my room and telling me that I am doing a great job. And to anyone else that happens by, "My Julie is painting her room and My Julie is doing a great job!".

I love Luke's sly grin as he holds up a new, unopened pack of gum and asks for a piece. And after I open it up and give him a piece, he takes off running down the hall, dropping the newly opened pack of gum in my purse (I knew it looked familiar). I love spending hours with Luke and Solomon "wrestling" and Luke's amazing "no fear" attitude.

I love how I am repeatedly 10 minutes late for work because Luke is telling me to "drive safe", "buckle up", and "you come home after work to see me before I go to sleep, okay?".

I love that when Noah saw me for the first time in a long time he ran up to me and gave me a hug and told me how much he had missed me. I love how he is content with juice, crackers and Pirates of the Caribbean.

I love when I go to play with Ben, he meets me as I'm getting out of the car, barefeet and all, telling me that his name is "Denahi". I love taking the boys out for "special dates", and going to the treehouse.

I love how Tyler actually started to like me after our Treehouse date.

I love how Tyler and Ben both knew about the temple and wanted to go walk around the grounds after playing for hours at the Treehouse.

I love how Luke cries when Solomon leaves for school (and you have to hear him say "school") and I love how Luke is so understanding about his limited diet and loves to eat crackers and cream cheese.

I love talking to the boys before they go to bed and listening to what they have to say. They have opinions and ideas and thoughts and I love to hear them.

Wow. Stop me now.

Apparently I could go on forever and ever about how much I love those little guys and why. So, I think you get the picture...

And I know that I mentioned Luke and Solomon more, but that's just because I live with them...comes with the territory I guess.

Again, the point of this post was to show that

I love and am thankful for

the little boys in my life.

You big guys are important too, but the little boys are just SO cute! So, to sum up, I am thankful for boys. There, I said it. I know, I know. I am crazy, but we all already knew that, so get over it.

Wow. I just wrote a long blurb about boys.

oh well. read it. all of it. word by word.

you know you want to.

Boys Rule.

The Blurb---

2008-11-13T21:34:00.003-07:00

Alright, I must have not hit "publish post",

so this is a little late.

And I know you were all dying to read it.

So, here you go.

Don't judge, criticize, or be jealous.

Just enjoy my insanity :)

What makes me the biggest Twilight fan? Among all Twilighters, and there are a lot of us, we've all been "changed" by reading the Twilight series. One thing sets me apart as being the most dedicated, committed Twilight fan (while not crossing over into crazy fan territory... much!).

Let me share what sets me apart by giving a little background, and tell you that I have attached a few photos to help illustrate.. I was born in Utah, and have lived here my whole life. So, when my sister decided to get married in Hawaii this past August, we turned it into a HUGE family vacation (there are 7 children in my family, plus spouses, kids, etc...So, when I say huge, I mean huge!). One of my first concerns when she set her wedding date (August 7th, 2008) was if it was interfere with the release of Breaking Dawn (Priorities first, right?) !

I breathed a little sigh of relief when Stephenie Meyer announced it would go on sale August 2nd, 2008. It would be tight, but I could pre-order it, pick it up at midnight and make my flight to Hawaii all on the same day. I had 8 hours to read on the plane & hopefully finish it up in a day or two by sneaking away claiming I was tired and read in bed! Plenty of time to read it!

My sister wasn't too happy about this plan and actually tried to ban everyone from bringing Breaking Dawn to her wedding. Was she kidding? Kind of, but she wasn't a Twilight fan at the time and hearing more about Twilight than her wedding wasn't warming her up to the series. We (meaning my two sisters and two of her friends and my Mom all jokingly complained to her about her making us miss the Breaking Dawn concert series in California August 7th because we had to go to her wedding!)

With all the travel and the wedding activities, it took me three days to finish the book and Ruth (my friend and the wedding photographer) didn't get much time to read again until on the flight on the way home. (see picture: our books on the plane!) But, as I said, that was all just background to set the stage for what sets me apart as the biggest Twilight fan!

Coming back to the wedding, we flew on the red eye flight- departing Honolulu at 10 pm Sunday night and landing in Salt Lake City about 8 am Monday morning. Ruth and I rushed off the plane, picked up the car, stopped by our houses briefly to shower, change and hastily exchange all our dirty clothes in our suitcases for clean clothes and then jumped back in the car to pick up our other Twilight fan friend, Jen. We had to be ON THE ROAD by 11 am or we wouldn't make it to Seattle in time!

What was in Seattle that we were so anxious to get to after a long (as fun as weddings are, they are A LOT of exhausting work!) week and taking a red eye flight?

STEPHENIE MEYER!
Need I say more?

Remember how we complained to my sister about getting married on the day of the Breaking Dawn Concert in LA? Miracle of miracles, we managed to score some SWEET tickets to her Breaking Dawn Concert Series in Seattle, but just got them a few days before we left for Hawaii. It was on Tuesday, August 12th and our plane landed in SLC at 8 am on Monday, August 11th. Flights from SLC to Seattle were ridiculously expensive so, being the poor, starving college students we are, we had to drive! But even though Ruth and I were nearly dead to the world from sleep deprivation (Ruth had frantically scrambled to finish Breaking Dawn on the flight home), Jen took the wheel and drove us to Seattle to indulge our Twilight Dedication. Ruth fell asleep quickly in the backseat of our sweet ride (a VW Beetle), and I settled into talking to Jen about our Hawaiian adventure, debating the pros & cons of Breaking Dawn, and, of course, rereading our favorite Twilight Series passages (don't ask how we fit all 4 books in the series in the Beetle with 3 girls, 3 suitcases, 3 pillows, and 3 blankets, not to mention the bulky GPS system and snacks). We drove all day to ensure we would make it to the concert on time. We drove and drove, and then we drove some more, finally reaching Seattle at 1 in the morning!

Along the way we celebrated various milestones for us, such as crossing the Idaho, Oregon, and Washington state lines (all within a 12 hours). Then, the biggest celebration of all. We were in Washington State when it was twilight. How incredible is that?! And to top it off, we passed a sign for "Clearwater Blvd" just minutes later!

This trip was meant to be.

I even sent text updates to my sister while she was on her honeymoon so she could share the joy. Funny, she never replied to any of those texts... Oh, and to follow-up with her, she won a bet with her husband and she was able to take Breaking Dawn on her honeymoon, her husband wasn't too happy about that....

Anyway, we barely made the last ferry to Bainbridge Island and arrived in one piece at a friend of friend's house who kindly offered to put us up while we were in town to get our books signed by Stephenie Meyer. We all quickly feel asleep and got a few hours of sleep before the big day!

(See picture: Ruth and I fast asleep in our bed, minutes before we woke up)

We didn't wasted a minute after we dragged ourselves out of bed when the sun came up. We made the early ferry into Seattle and tried to enjoy sightseeing. (The second picture is of Ruth, me (Julie), and Jen on the ferry coming into Seattle) Seattle's a beautiful city, but all I could think about was the excitement for the concert and meeting Stephenie!

Finally the time came! Of course, we arrived at the concert hall obscenely early and to anxiously check out our seats, buy all the fan gear we could and then wait and wait and wait after all the hurrying to get there! It was hard to be patient! But when it finally started, it was better than I could have imagined.

The concert was amazing, incredible, wonderful, and every other good adjective out there. I waited in line for 30 minutes to have my book signed and was in awe when I finally saw Stephenie Meyer up close and actually was able to talk to her for a few seconds. She really loves her fans and put together such a unique book signing, with a concert highlighting some of the music that inspired her while she wrote the Twilight series and patiently answering all her fans questions- questions she'd probably been asked a hundred times each over the past week and half.
(see pictures: Ruth & I with the Twilight calendar; Ruth, Jen, MaryAnn, and I waiting in line to the concert; Ruth, Jen, and I with the posters; Me with the WHOLE series; My view of the concert hall)

The event was over far too soon, we were now beyond exhausted, but we couldn't stop now! How often would we be in Washington state? And Seattle was only 4 short hours from Forks, Washington, the small town where Bella and Edward meet and fall in love. How could I not, if I'm the biggest Twilight fan, go to Forks when I was that close!

Again, we had to rush, rush, rush because I'd taken all the time I had to take off of work for the wedding and the concert and would again be pulling an all-nighter to make it back home in time for my job! Really, after flying on a cramped plane from Hawaii to Utah and driving in a cramped car from Utah to Seattle, what was a few more hours?

As we drove trough Port Angeles, stopped in Forks, and walked on the beach in La Push, I felt the same thrill I felt the very first time I read Twilight. Stephenie Meyer's writing is very descriptive and experiencing these places in reality made her story really come alive. What an amazing little hidden jewel we discovered in that corner of the world! Ruth, Jen, and I drove all around Port Angeles, stopping to take LOTS of pictures. We also drove through all of Forks, finding everying on our list of "must see" like Bella's house, Bella's truck, the Cullen house, Forks High School, Forks Hospital and more. We even stopped at Forks Outfitters and Thriftway where I bought a hoodie, shirt and beanie to prove I had been there!
(See pictures: Our SWEET ride, the bug, on the road to Forks)

As suggested by Forks locals (who amazingly enough don't look at you like you are completely insane), we drove into La Push and stopped at a restaurant, ordering Werewolf Burgers and Vampire Shakes. After receiving our order, we took it down to First Beach. I was in awe. There are no words to describe how breathtakingly beautiful it was (and i had just been to Hawaii days before). We played in the sand, imagined where the bonfire was actually held and kept our eye out for Jacob. After nearly 4 hours at the beach, we sadly looked at the time. We realized we had lost ourselves in the world of Twilight and now we were late getting back to reality. None of us wanted to go, but since neither Edward or Jacob or Jasper or Emmett had shown up yet, we had to leave.
(See picture: Ruth & I at First Beach!)

So we said our sad goodbyes to La Push and left behind promises to return again soon when we could stay longer. We drove all afternoon, all night, and most of the next morning to make it back to Utah in time for work. It was a stressful 14-hour drive and the exhaustion of the past two weeks took it's toll. I barely made it back in time for work and barely kept my eyes open all day while I managed the patients, scheduling appointments, and insurance companies at the Clinic where I work.

After reading this, I know you can see how I'm not just any ordinary Twilight fan. I am the biggest Twilight fan because because immediately after getting off the plane from my sister's wedding, I spent over 24 hours in a car during the next 72 hours driving to Seattle for Stephenie Meyer's Breaking Dawn Concert, and continuing on to experience the now famous towns of Port Angeles and Forks, and First Beach at La Push. If that doesn't show true devotion and make me the ideal Twilight's biggest fan, I am not sure what would. So, go ahead, you know you want to! PICK ME!!!!!!

And now you are wondering why I'm not in an institution...well, don't ask me, because I don't know either :) and in the end, they did pick me, as if you didn't already know.... :)

A little blurb goes a LONG ways....

2008-11-13T08:25:00.003-07:00

A few days ago my sister, the lovely Kimberly, told me to enter into this contest. Yes, it was a Twilight-related fan contest. (I don't know why but I am really embarrassed about this, but at the same time, I am completely jazzed!) Anyways, I wrote a little blurb on what made me the Ultimate Twilight Fan, sent it in, and forgot about it. Until today. Today, I received an email saying "Congratulations! You have won our Ultimate Twilight Fan Contest!"......and all I could think was, "NO WAY!" So, knowing me, I started calling people. And, NO ONE answered their phone. Punks. Anyways... good news is that I won (miracle of miracles, and I'm not sure how I feel about being considered one of the Ultimate Twilight Fans, I swear I am normal-ish) and the GREAT news is my prize! I won ONE ticket to see the advanced screening of the film! Four days before it is released!

(Scream with me now!)

(oh and don't think that I'm super crazy, because I like to think that I am somewhat normal)

...............................................................................................................................................................

Toe Placement and Billowing Cheeks

2008-11-07T08:30:00.004-07:00

As most of you know (that is if anyone reads this), I have been wanting to go skydiving for awhile. You also know that I am the biggest whimp in the entire world. So, whenever I would find someone with the same crazy desire to jump out of a perfectly good airplane, we made plans, plans fell through, everyone was happy, especially me. It was perfect. I really thought that I wanted to jump out of an airplane, but as it turns out, I was all talk.

One day, that all changed.

A new girl was hired on where I work, Candi, and one day we were talking, getting to know each other a little bit while waiting for patients to arrive. Somehow the subject of skydiving came up, and how we both had been wanting to go for a long time, but plans always fell through with other friends. So, naturally, we made plans to go. I wasn't worried. It never worked out before, and I had no thoughts that it would actually happen,
just like every other time.

Again, one day, it all changed.

I received a call, asking me if I was doing anything on the 6th of September (the date is burned in my brain). As the 6th of September was a few weeks away, I didn't have any plans. At the end of the phone call, I had plans, definite plans (we had to put down a deposit). It was also Candi's birthday, so there was no way I could back out.

This time was different.

As the days grew closer, my butterflies in my stomach slowly changed from random, fleeting thoughts, to permanent residents. I never allowed myself to think about what I was going to do for any length of time because if I did, I would stop breathing. Nearly every night I had dreams. Not just dreams, nightmares. I read everything I could about what to do if the parachute didn't open (not recommended), and this led to more dreams.

Then, "one day" turned into "today".

I woke up shaking, and then, I couldn't move at all. I asked mom to call the airport to check on the weather (I ignored looking out my window). Turns out the weather was PERFECT for skydiving, a day that every skydiver hopes for. Great. I really did have to jump.

Bright colors filled the sky as we walked into the airplane hanger. 6 in all. I watched them all float around, turning left and right, and just a few minutes later, I watched all 6 of them land (safely), with smiles on their faces. I took my first real breath of the day then.

After watching the amazingly scary "prep" video (really all it talked about was legal paperwork you had to sign and what all of the legal jargon meant), Candi and I were pulled out of the TV room, and started putting on our harnesses.

It all happened so fast.

Soon, I was taking off in an airplane, but I wasn't going to land in it, I was going to jump out. I was surprisingly okay with this.

I was, dare I say, excited?

As we climbed up to 12,500 feet, all I could think about was opening the door and jumping out. However, I wasn't dreading it like I thought I would, I was looking forward to it.

Before I knew it, the door was open, and we were all taking turns jumping. I saw Candi disappear out the door, and then it was my turn. All I could think about was my toe placement and maintaining the "banana" position. I didn't once think about that fact I was actually jumping out of an airplane. I was flying. We flipped and floated and I forgot to breathe (again). It was the most amazing thing I have ever experienced. The lake was on one side and the mountains on another. And then the videographer was all I could see, and all I thought about was how bad my cheeks were billowing out. And then, we pulled our lifesaver, the parachute, and it opened. Then, Blake (awesome instructor) let me steer. We went left, then right, then left again (I was very creative), and then, we did a flip. with the parachute. That was more scary than jumping out of the plane. Way too soon, Blake and I were coming in to land (he made me relinquish my control of the parachute). And we landed, and I didn't die.

And now, I am
counting down the days
and
saving my pennies
until the next day that I willingly jump out of an airplane again.
So, now I'm more crazy than before and a little bit less of a whimp.

Better believe it.

Watch my amazing adventure here