Two

Two years. 

That's right, I've lived in Virginia for two whole years. 

Wow. I can hardly believe it. 

In the past two years I've done a lot. 

Here are a few: 

I moved to Virginia/DC.  

I got a job. 

Got another job.  

Had my first Thanksgiving without family.

I cried. 

Bought a plane ticket home for Christmas. (You know this is a big deal that I bought a real live plane ticket)

Quit one job (two was too many).

Had many weekend adventures. 

I laughed. 

Bought a car. 

Fell in love with wearing boots. 

A trip to the ER (solo). 

I sobbed. 

Made my best friend in UT move to Virginia. 

Bought and wore several pairs of heels. Real heels! (Scary) 

Moved to a new house (I drove a uhaul!)

I laughed. 

Got a new job. My DREAM job. 

I cried and smiled all at the same time. 

Wow

A lot. 

And so many  more fun times, hard times, and new experiences to come! Here's to the next two years and more laughs and cries

, Virginia! 

*clink*

Last

Today is the last day of November. It really has been a great month! Today I am thankful for my job. It's been weird growing up and now having my first real "grown up" job. I love the people I have met and get to work with everyday. I feel very blessed that at each of my jobs over the years i always manage to find new friends. I have had a lot of growing experiences in the last year and it's been quite the ride. A good ride. My job has enabled me to do a lot of things I wouldn't otherwise me able to do and I am grateful. I love that I can support myself and my needs. And some of my wants. :)

Zebra Print Diapers

Today I'm thankful for funny dreams. I don't always remember my dreams but it's always fun when I do. (unless it was a bad dream). Last night I dreamt that one of my managers and his wife were having a baby. They asked me if I would get them some diapers at the store and I said sure. But they wanted specific diapers not just any old diaper. Apparently in my dream Huggies made zebra print diapers, but my manager wanted generic brand zebra print diapers. Weird huh? I went to quite a few stores and could only find the name brand...so weird! Apparently I am on a hot new product idea. Don't steal it you peeps. or if you do and it's super successful, I claim 50% of all profits and 0% operating cost!

And it has now been confirmed by 3 people that I talk in my sleep. Kim said I kept telling her how much I loved her last night. Awesome sauce!

VT

It's the end of the month...and that means visiting teaching! :) I wish I was better about going earlier but eh well. I do love seeing the girls and catching up with my companion. We always end up gabbing for an hour or more. So, today I'm grateful for visiting teaching :)

And for late night Wendy's frosties and fries. Classic!

Spoiled

Today I'm thankful for my BRAND NEW CAR!!!!! I went in just for a test drive and walked out in a shiny, fancy new car! I loooove it. No more worrying about what will break next, and my bum will stay nice and toasty this winter with the seat heaters. Told you. Fancy shmancy.

This is a bad picture but I was excited and it was really late at night.

Oh. And my car has a clicker to open. Lock. And pop the trunk. Soooo fancy!!

Sooo thankful. :)

Oh and Kim put up my mirror on my dresser (I bought it in October...). It looks sooo good!! I am so spoiled.

late

whoops! i was doing so well! oh well...catch up time
Sunday - I am so grateful for my parents. i think i have said it before but they really are awesome. I loved seeing them on their mission but while it was really hard to leave them in small town, tennessee, I also know that they are where they need to be. I am also grateful for a super safe and fun drive home with my sister. She even let me freak out about traffic for a little bit :)

Monday - I am again so grateful for Kimberly and her just being awesome. she is soooo tolerant of my craziness :) i just looove her soooooooo much!!!!

and there you go. catchup x2.

Lights

Today I'm thankful for Christmas lights. Tonight we drove to the Bristol Speedway to see the lights. It was so fun to drive on the drag speedway and on the racetrack! Every year we drive to see the lights, and even though we aren't at home-home, we still
managed to keep the tradition alive in Tennessee!

Traditions

Tonight we played cards. Specifically, Hand & Foot. We called it quits already and it's only 1:00AM. If you know us, you know that this is crazy early compared to other years (ahem, 5:30AM). I guess that's what happens when your parents are missionaries. :) so, today I am thankful for family traditions and playing cards on holidays. It just isn't a holiday until a couple of decks of cards appear. I definitely missed my partner in crime (Amy) and all the crazy shenanigans we would do but we still managed to have a fun time. I even got them to all sing some parts of Saturday's Warrior ;) oh it was good.

Also, at a visit yesterday, I was introduced to a family in my parents branch. They have 11 children and one of the daughters there named each person in a family photo for me. 4 of her brother's were introduced as "Available". So, now, Kim has taken to calling me Available. Loooove my new name.

Food

Today I'm thankful for a lot of things. And one of them is food. Especially potatoes!! I just love mashed potatoes. So so much. I just can't eat enough.

How is that for a Thanksgiving Day post? Pretty special, huh?

Elder and Sister

Today I am thankful for my parents. It is so good to see them sharing the Gospel and serving the Lord. I have missed them so much. And it's only been two months since I've seen them last. I might have to get a frequent Tennessee visitor card.

Drive

Today I'm thankful for my sister Kimberly. She flew from SLC to DC today and then got in the car and drove from DC to Tennessee. All so that I didn't have to drive by myself. It was so much fun and we spent the whole 7.5 hours talking and laughing. I didn't realize how much I miss my family!

tomorrow

today i am thankful for tomorrow. (isn't that a trippy sentence?)

I really am though. here is why:

tomorrow i get to see my sister.
tomorrow i get to see my mom.
tomorrow i get to see my dad.
tomorrow is my friday this week.
tomorrow my sister and i get to embark on an awesome road trip.
tomorrow i get to eat road trip food (aka junk).
tomorrow i get to change into jeans at work at 5:01PM.
tomorrow i get to start a mini vacation.
tomorrow is one day closer to PUMPKIN PIE.
tomorrow is one day closer to ORANGE ROLLS.
tomorrow is one day closer to a hand and foot marathon. 
tomorrow is one day closer that i can finally take a trunk full of stuff to my mom. (it's been piling up at my house).
tomorrow i get to be with family. while i will miss those i won't see...i'm super excited about those i will.

and for today...i am also thankful that i am almost done packing. then i can get some much needed sleep for the road trip tomorrow. it shall commence at 5:01PM (please cross your fingers that traffic will be light and nonexistent tomorrow).

surrogates

Okay, I've gone a bit sappy. Eh well.

Today I am thankful for friends who are like family. I have been blessed with many friends who I am not sure what I would do without them. The Lord has always placed people in my life exactly when I need them. Especially since I have moved away from my immediate family. Today I am especially thankful for my surrogate Virginian family and them welcoming me into their home :)

there. Cheese-fest over.

Here's to a few more hours left in the weekend .... Enjoy!

Dishes

Last night I had a great dream. I was 12 years old and babysitting my nieces and nephews at my sister's old house in South Ogden. It was after lunch and the dishes were piled high in the sink. I pulled out the rubber gloves and the dish rack to start washing. I washed each dish by hand....the majority of the dishes were cereal bowls and spoons. (I think that is still a favorite in their house.) I washed each dish and placed them in the drying rack. Then, I started drying them and put them away so that both the counter and the sink were clean. And then, I woke up.

Now this wasn't so much a dream, as it was me dreaming of a memory. For 2 summers I played with my nieces and nephew while their parents worked during the day. And washing the dishes happened daily in their small kitchen. At the time I remember thinking that it would have been really nice and convenient to have a dishwasher but still, the fact of the matter was that the dishes needed to be washed. And someone had to wash them. Since then life has changed a lot. My sister and her family moved to a new house. One with a dishwasher. And I eventually moved away as well to a house with a dishwasher. Not that the dishwasher is important, but it is a symbol of a change. That old way of life is no more. I don't have to wear gloves and use scalding hot water to clean each dish. All I do is put the dishes in the washer and an hour later put them away. Simple. Easy. But somehow this simple and easy lifestyle has developed into something very different and somewhat complicated in my life and the life of my sister. No, not all bad but not all good either. Just a completely different life.

Today I am thankful that I had the simple memory dream of washing dishes at my sister's old house in her tiny hallway kitchen. I am thankful for the fun and simple times of the past. I am hopeful for the future and hope I will always appreciate the good and the bad. One day things won't be as they are now. They might be better. They might be worse. I don't know. But I do know that right now I am enjoying where I am and I hope you are too.

Redundant

I may have said this one already...but I am so glad it is Friday!! It's been a really long week. Long but fun. I am also thankful for blackout curtains. I am going to sleep in soooo late tomorrow. So excited!!

Friends

Today I am thankful for all of my friends. I am so glad I have you all and even though I am crazy a lot (all) of the time, you will still be seen with me in public. Love you all!! Oh, and Twilight...you may be a kinda silly story but you've provided entertainment,amazing experiences and incredible friends. Love it!!

Different

Today I'm thankful that we all (everyone in the entire world) is different. I mean, seriously, how boring would it be if we all liked the same things and did the same things? Boring! I'm glad that we don't all just love brownies because then we get cookies, pies, and other yum yums. Just for a small example....tis the season! Oh differences. They are what makes the world go round.

Oops

I'm thankful you guys are soooo forgiving if I miss a day! To catch up:

Yesterday I was/am thankful for the federal holiday yesterday that I had to work. My commute was super quick and super easy due to everyone else that had the day off.

Today I am thankful that Breaking Dawn part 2 comes out in 2 days!!! 2 days!!!!!!! I hope y'all have your tickets!

Run Jordan Run!

I'm super thankful that there are crazies in the world who run marathons so that I can cheer them on! Karen and I teared up more than once as we cheered, clapped, and screamed along the race course. Run Jordan Run! Oh and Karen attempted to make a speaker to blast music ... With paper. It wasn't super successful.

Hmmmm

Went and saw the new James Bond today. Meh.

I know...shocker. Especially with all the rave reviews. It had some moments, however...It didn't hold my attention and I found myself daydreaming often. Eh well. It's okay because today I am thankful for....$6 before noon matinee movie tickets!

Guess who isn't going to a movie after Noon ever again? Me! #budgetfriendly
#imgettingold