one crazy little chicken

v-day 2012

2012-02-14T18:54:00.001-07:00

Happy Valentines Day!

This was my best valentines day ever.

Because I have a valentine who I very much like, and we are 31 days away from getting married.

And I got to spend all day with him!

....in the hospital.

I loved it.

P.S.

He had shoulder surgery a month ago. The wound popped open and is likely infected, so they had to clean it out and stitch it back up.

That's why we're in the hospital.

6 weeks out

2012-02-02T14:25:00.000-07:00

Oh man. Its funny, engaged couples always just say how happy they are! The forget to mention all the hard stuff.

I'm stressing out but, slowly, things are coming together.

And I'm sooo excited!

my latest obsession

2012-01-19T20:08:00.000-07:00

If you follow me on pinterest, you know I'm going crazy with color schemes.

Why?

Because Design Seeds just makes it so fun.

land of enchantment

2012-01-06T20:49:00.000-07:00

I always told everyone I hated New Mexico, but within two weeks of moving to Utah I realized I loved it.

Being back here is amazing. I forgot what its like to see people who aren't so pale they're translucent.

My favorite thing is going outside, and the sun actually warms me. In Rexburg, it just makes light, not warmth.

I'm gonna have to try and sell Tyler on the desert thing.

a year of firsts

2012-01-01T01:05:00.002-07:00

2011 was seriously amazing. I got to do so much new stuff! I moved a total of 5 times. It flew by for me. Here are some of the things I got to try for the first time in 2011 (in chronological order, not preferential)

Living away from home
Writing missionary friends
Working my first retail job at Office Depot
Starting college at BYU-Idaho
Programming / choosing a major
Teaching Sunday school
Visiting teaching
Turning 18
First kiss
Bridge jumping
Taking road trips on my own
Working at Gap
Seeing conference live in the Conference Center in SLC
Running a ward choir
Getting engaged

Not to mention I got to try living in two new states, learning tons of new things, and meeting all kinds of new people! It's kindof amazing, looking back, to see how far I've come. It was probably the most exciting year of my short life (so far). And I still have so much to look forward to!

Happy New Year!

Happy Birthday!

2011-12-24T16:19:00.000-07:00

Christmas... I'm guessing 2005?

Happy Birthday to my Momma!

She's pretty much the greatest ever.

Birthday

2011-12-23T02:05:00.000-07:00

Tyler is the little baby in the top right. Darling.

Anyway, Happy Birthday Tyler!

I plan to be around for many, many more.

sneak peak: engagment photos

2011-12-20T01:49:00.000-07:00

I think the first one is my favorite. Thoughts?

reporting from WA

2011-12-18T02:12:00.001-07:00

Hey!

Hows your break going?

Mine's fantastic.

I started out with an epic trek to Utah to drop off my car. Grandpa, whose super awesome, drove me back up to Idaho. He also took home all the stuff that wouldn't fit in my car.

That night Tyler and I set out for Stevensville, Montana. We got there at 11:30 PM.

The next day we headed out at noon towards Spokane, Washington.

Here's a little hello from our scenic stop in northern Idaho, close to Coer D'alene.

When I take the pictures, I cut Tyler's face out (as seen above). Thank goodness he's a little more coordinated.

This is officially the farthest north I've ever been!

P.S.

Getting engagement pics sometime this week. Its so pretty up here, it couldn't be more perfect!

christmas in appt. 603

2011-12-12T19:00:00.001-07:00

Santa came and visited our apartment on our last sunday together. Here's some of my favorite moments.

new family

2011-12-12T00:10:00.000-07:00

On the left is Jack, the two on the right are Zach and Noah.

Jack is my future nephew, he's the son of Tyler's sister Christy.

Zach and Noah are my future brothers-in-law; Tyler's little brothers.

This was taken when I first met Tyler's family back in September at Noah's baptism.

We went for a hike and I caught a frog! The boys thought it was great. Not gonna lie, it freaked me out a little. But it was so worth it! Love this picture, so I had to share it.

P.S.

When I say 'new family,' that doesn't imply erasing old family. Merely adding to it!

skinny jeans

2011-12-09T18:30:00.000-07:00

Theres been alot of drama here in Rexburg (and apparently all over the country) about the testing center turning away students wearing skinny jeans. If you don't know what I'm talking about, here's some info. For the best account, check out ABC news. Articles appearing in LDS media, like Deseret News and LDS living have printed articles that blow things way out of proportion. The official position of the school explains the story.

That being said, this is my opinion.
On campus, I have seen plenty of girls wearing leggings and even tights as pants. Although the testing center employee may have overstepped his/her bounds, I appreciate that someone is willing to point out the problems with this trend. We are here because we want to be here. I know the standards are high at this school. Those who want to complain about it and find ways around the honor code should go somewhere else. No one is forcing them to be here. I am happy about the standards we have here. They keep everyone more comfortable and allow the spirit to remain on-campus. I have a pair of tight skinny jeans. I will continue wearing them on-campus, but definitely not to the testing center.

In case anyone wanted a students point of view.

Have a great weekend!

2011-11-28T16:11:00.000-07:00

i just bought my DRESS. I can't post pictures because this is the internet and he CANNOT see it .

I've been going all semester, I've been to 4 stores. This is probably the 10th dress i tried on. I love it. I'm getting MARRIED! Ahhhh!

[i said yes]

2011-11-26T23:10:00.000-07:00

So I guess that makes today the best day of my life.

*****
We spent the week in Albuquerque, flew to SLC yesterday and spent the night in Logan at James & Holly's home.

9:00 This morning, I was sorry to here from Tyler that he would be really busy all day, but he had arranged for me to do stuff with his family.
10:30 His dad (Joe) came and picked me up from James and Holly's. We went shooting -.22 rifles - wich was super fun. (I'm starting to love shooting; this is the second time his dad has taken me)
12:00 We were meeting up with his mom for lunch, but she wasn't ready yet. So we went to Jamba Juice then waited at Cafe Rio. She showed up and we ate a yummy lunch! Before Joe leaves, He gives me a small slip of paper with half of the alphabet and symbols below it. It was half of the key to a code. Tyler gives me codes all the time, so I didn't think much of it.

1:00 Shoppint with his mom (Anne), and eventually his sister came and met up with us as well. (Got a super cute skirt at Down East!)

4:00 Anne and I go for icecream and she gives me the second half of the alphabet key. She lets slip that we are going to the temple. At this point, I become somewhat suspicious and text my roomate. She replied that Tyler was proposing at Christmas and not to get my hopes up. So then I figured maybe he had a scavenger hunt or something cute set up, because he's just super good at dates and stuffl ike that.

4:30 Anne drops me off at the Logan Temple. I walk up to a beautiful view of the valley at sunset, and a small red box waiting on a bench. Inside was a locket engraved with "I'll always be crazy for you." And inside the locket was a coded message. Still thought it was a scavenger hunt at this point.
Then I sat on the ground and used the codes Anne and Joe gave me to decode the message. The first word was "will." Thats when I knew. But I kept going! it said "Will You Marry Me."
He came up from around the corner. I was still sitting, so he got down on one knee and said "Do you wanna get up hon?" I said "No not really." He smiled and pushed me up. And pulled out a little box. And in the box was the most beautiful ring (He picked it all by himself!)

And I said yes.
His dad was around the corner filming the whole thing, so eventually I'll get my hands on the footage for sharing.

4:30 We walked down the street to where he had a horse-drawn carriage for us. Inside there was a boquet of roses!

5:00 After our ride, we drove over to Pizza Pie Cafe to meet up with everyone for dinner.

He called Grandma and James, So Grandma, Grandpa, Austin, James, Holly, and all their kids were there along with his parents and sister from Logan. My two roomates who are visiting for Thanksgiving came too, and a few of his freinds from Provo. It was so sweet. He did great. He is so amazing!

*****
So now I have a beautiful diamond ring on my left ring finger and about a billion things to do in the next few weeks. But I've never been happier!

jackson, WY

2011-11-14T20:34:00.001-07:00

Last thursday, we took a lovely little drive up to Jackson, Wyoming.

It's 2 hours from here, but we all have class late, so we left about 4:30.

Now, I've never lived this far North, but its super wierd- the sun doesn't come up until 9 and it's dusk at 4:30. The sun is never directly overhead, it just rotates on the horizon so it constantly feels like late afternoon.

Anyway, it was dark when we hit the road. But there was still a full moon so we got to enjoy the beatuful scenery to some extent! Noone remembered a camera, so all we have are these ridiculous iPhone ones. But better than nothing eh?

Left to right: Craig, Andy, Larz, Summer, Camy

Clockwise from the girl in purple/ highest up: Janet, Summer, Camy, Larz, Andy.

Apparently they like hunting there. The park behind us had 4 arches like this, made entirely of antlers! Ew! So redneck. So hilarious.

Anyway, we hung around for a few hours, ate, then drove home. We still had plenty of time until curfew, so...

We rolled eachother up in the rug

And threw muddy buddys at eachother!

It snowed the next day!

Rexburg is freezing.

I've visited 2 new states this semester.

Finals in 4 weeks.

cake off!

2011-11-12T18:22:00.000-07:00

Last night we did an epic 6-couple date! We split into 3 teams, 2 couples each, and all made awesome cakes.

(the judges names were lisa and michelle)

Left to Right: Camy, Landon, Janet, Chandler

Right to left: Tyler, Me, Ta...something (one of tylers FHE sisters) and up above her is Cody (Tylers roomate, her date)

We tried making a castle cake. It didn't turn out but it sure was fun!

Left to right: Kallie, Kylie (roomate from last semester), Andy, Craig (from Albuquerque)

They made a dinosaur cake, complete with river blood from strawberry jam!

It was alot of fun! Afterwards we all went ballroom dancing on campus.

discourse on the Gospel of John

2011-10-22T14:35:00.000-06:00

I'm taking Book of Mormon part 2 and New Testament part 1 right now. In new testament, we've been studying the gospel of Matthew, but part of the coursework involves studying the gospel of John on our own, then writing an essay about it. I am so amazzed by the things you miss when you read on your own! They included so many little nuances that are simply astounding. This has been really fun and I've enjoyed it so much! Here's the opening paragraph of my Discourse on the Gospel of John:

The many testimonies of Christ found in the New Testament all contain important doctrines. Although they each tell essentially the same story, each narrates Christ’s life in a unique way in order to accomplish a specific purpose. The gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke all present the life of Christ in a missionary method by writing for a certain audience. They’re main goal seems to be conversion and the spreading of the gospel. By contrast, John is writing to those who already have a knowledge of Christ and the Lord. He is preaching to members of Christ’s church. The gospel of St. John is organized around five central themes: light versus darkness, water and life, seven signs and the seven discourses, the replacement and fulfillment theme, and the seven “I am’s” of Christ. All of these themes tie together to emphasize the divine nature of Jesus Christ, and His role as the Son of God here on the earth, and to strengthen the faith of the saints (see John 20:31). These three concepts are the most important teachings found in the gospel of John.

Really, it's nothing spectacular. Just thought I'd share. Have a great weekend!

pinned

2011-10-17T18:47:00.002-06:00

Dear Pinterest,
You are a horrible, horrible creation. What you do is wonderful! So wonderful, in fact, I cannot stay away. Since I created my account (yesterday), I've spent upwards of 8 hours pinning. To get homework done, I would work for 30 minutes and pin for 10. I have my wedding planned. I've outlined my dream house. I've picked my top 10 dream vacations. I've discovered enough crafts to keep me occupied for 30 years.
And now you won't show me any of the pictures I want to see, and I don't know how to fix it.
How cruel.

Love/Hate,
Summer

http://pinterest.com/summersusanna/

By the way, went to meet Tyler's family last weekend. We got pictures together! ...But they're on his dad's camera. Anyway, it was super fun and his sisters are so sweet! And it was really exciting to travel farther north than Rexburg. We hit up the beautiful town of Sevensville, Montanna. Shockingly, it makes Rexburg look like a thriving metropolis. Man it was green!

crawdad adventure

2011-10-10T16:30:00.000-06:00

last tuesday, Tyler and some of his freinds wanted to go crawdad fishin.

So we did. At 8:00 at night. It was freezing and we got like 15.

Everyone else wanted to throw them back, but I was like, lets cook them!

Tyler took most of them . I brought home 3 for myself.

They died pretty fast.

But after that I was super grossed out to touch them. So I basically killed 3 crawdads for nothing.

Heres the one I was brave enough to pull apart.

It was all full of eggs. EW! Tyler said his were all good... but I will probably never do that again.

conference weekend

2011-10-03T00:39:00.000-06:00

We had an awesome weekend! We got in at 8 PM friday night, dropped off our stuff at Delos and Mistys, then headed over to Grandma's for a DELISH dinner of Hawai'ian haystacks.

The next day, Tyler got us tickets to the saturday morning session of conference. So we woke up at the crack of dawn.

We drove to the tracks station in sandy and rode to salt lake from there.

Me, Kylie (roomate from last semester), Kallie (kylie's old and current roomate), and Lynelle (Kallie's freind from home)

By the end of the trip, we were the best of freinds.

We all wanted to stand on the train... it seemed like more fun. :D

It was my first time live in the conference center-- so exciting!

The lighting is so good.

President Monson was an hour late! He arrived while we were singing "Redeemer of Isreal."

But holy cow! Second temple in provo? Everyone gasped when he announced that.

Before conference started sunday afternoon, it was orange instead of blue!

Kylie on the ride home... so cute!

Tyler trying Delos' stretching machine. (We all tried it, but he's the only one who looks cute upside-down. )

All in all, an awesome weekend! Everyone was super nice and all the girls love the family. They want to make another trip down.

The food was great, the people were awesome, the drive was easy, couldn't ask for a better conference weekend.

******

So here are some pictures of the glow-stick art mentioned in the post below.

Me and tylers: complete with flying fish, dinosaur, and UFO

And the other couples. In the bottom left-hand corner is a little man in a boat! :)

adventures

2011-09-25T17:06:00.000-06:00

I've had such an awesome week! Tyler always has such fun things planned. Too bad neither of us ever remember to take pictures.

Anyway, heres a few of the new things I tried:

Latin Dancing
Pasta Salad (for some reason it always freaked me out until now)
Doubling with a married couple
Canoe-ing (?)
High ropes course (I do have pictures of this, but noone is ever allowed to see them)
Painting with glow-sticks
2-on-2 basketball with all guys
Drawing with pastels
Looking at a freinds ultrasounds
Conducting music in sacrament meeting

Happy Sunday!

roomates fall 2011

2011-09-20T23:00:00.000-06:00

Hey! Check out our gorgeous photos. What a lovely bunch eh?

Me, Bekah, Janet

(L to R) Michelle, Lisa (Shes from canada!), Cami

Me and Janet (Shes my room-roomate and bff from Albuquerque) This ones my favorite! :)

Glamor shot!

And the three girls from albuquerque: me, janet, cami.

top tens: music

2011-09-13T22:53:00.000-06:00

where to even begin on this one?! I think I need two categories:
Songs (and here I have to cheat and make it 15)

Beethoven's Symphony no. 7 - II, lately performed in The King's Speach soundtrack as "Speaking Unto Nations"
L-O-V-E by Nat King Cole
Lucky by Jason Mraz, featuring Colbie Caillat
Can't Take It In by Imogen Heap
Beer for My Horses by Toby Keith
The Planets, Op. 32: IV. Jupiter by Holst, performed by the London Symphony
Sous le Vent by Celine Dion
Glitter In the Air by P!nk
This Is Home by Switchfoot
A Thousand Miles by Vanessa Carlton
Homeless by Michael McLean (from the Forgotten Carols)
Book of Days by Enya
Halleluja Song by Julianne Hough
You're Gonna Miss This by Trace Adkins
Jar of Hearts by Christina Perry

Artists

Carrie Underwood
Kelly Clarkson
Owl City
Jason Mraz
Rascal Flats
Colbie Caillat
Journey
Lady Antebellum
Vanessa Carlton
Mandy Moore

Hopefully getting roomate pictures soon...

rexburg.... round 2!!!

2011-09-11T23:40:00.000-06:00

So I'm definitely here! I'm all moved in, I have great roommates, and classes start tomorrow. I've got some pictures of where I live, in case anyone was wondering. Warning: they are super terrible pictures.

Here was our "entertainment center:"

Super ugly, right? So I bought a little shelf at walmart for it. Janet (below- my wonderful roommate!) and I spent an hour on STEP 1 before we finally called in re-enforcements (a.k.a. my boyfriend Tyler.)

Here's after! (Sorry... I really should start trying to make these not sideways!)

Kitchen bulletin board- I covered it in wrapping paper! Plus my AWESOME green kitchen aid!

Bathroom (check out my little green & blue rug!) and to the left there are to toilette/shower rooms.

My shower! LOVE the ikea curtains.

Storage above my bed

Bed below (with wall decal!)

Desk (That Eiffel tower thing is gonna hang up there... eventually.)

Very full closet.

Awesome semester? I think yes.

First day of classes tomorrow- Wish me luck!

a week of Foleys

2011-08-31T12:21:00.000-06:00

While Emily and Dave visited Boston, all the little ones got to party with us!

Heres what I learned this week...

Our cat is almost the same size as Zoe.

Isaac and Noah love wii.

Everyone likes reading stories.

Feeding the turtle can be fun.

Logan = 7 Zoe's

I don't know how to turn pictures right-way up.

Zoe is super adoreable.

isotopes game

2011-08-14T19:56:00.002-06:00

albuquerque freinds.

top tens: books

2011-08-08T16:03:00.000-06:00

So the other day, and 12:45 in the morning, I felt the need to start recording some of my all-time favorite everythings. So heres one of my many, many lists.

The Princess Bride originally by S. Morgentern, but I like the William Goldman translation. Reading it is just as fun as the movie.
Watership Down by Richard Adams.
The Giver by Lois Lowery.
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Night by Eli Wiesel
Ever by Gail Carson Levine. So unique!
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo. The book was great. Movie was blech.
Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. Heaven knows why I like this book.
The Kite Runner by Khaled Houssiene.

Honorable Mentions: The Hunger Games series (would've made it if the third book wasn't so dumb) and the Harry Potter series.

"isn't that cute?"

2011-08-05T00:32:00.001-06:00

cute: [kyoot] adj. 1) Attractive, especially in a dainty way; pleasingly pretty: a cute child; a cute little apartment. 2) A word used by GAP kids employees to describe everything: this shirt is cute! Those leggings are super cute! These shoes are sooo cute!

I started working at GAP kids with my mom! Absolutely love it. And lucky me, I started just in time to jump on board for tax-free weekend.

And a few updates:

Mom's at scout camp for a day or two with Logan.

Dad just got a macbook air from sandia for work.
Me: "WHAT?! Dad! You HATE macs! I can't believe you got one."
Dad: "I know! Hell must have frozen over. But this one is amazing!"

Haley is starting middle school next week.

I got strait A's on my first semester! 4.0 GPA. Niiiice.

remember this?

2011-07-24T22:31:00.000-06:00

I was looking through some of my families old pictures on my laptop.

I loved that family picture- I thought it was so gorgeous!

I wonder if we'll ever get all together like that again before I get married. (not that I'm planning on getting married anytime soon... I just mean before the grandkids start branching away from the family and things get too crazy.)

roomy

2011-07-23T15:00:00.001-06:00

This is Cassandra Johnson. She sleeps in the room accross from me. She's from Indianna, Wisconsin, Canada, Utah... lots of places. Her dad works for BP, and right now her parents live in Turkey! She's my favorite.

Favorite Color: Purple

Favoite Music: Dub Step (A new discovery for both of us this semester)

Major: Music, Chorale

Interests: Dirt biking, sports (except soccer and baseball), music (she used to be a ward organist like me!), tanning

Track: Spring/Winter, which means I won't see her for 9 months! We'll be rooming together next spring...unless she gets married (which is, sadly, a very real possibility)

2011-07-22T12:27:00.000-06:00

By Rexburg.

I'd say I'm going home, but really I'm just going to visit my family.

I'll be back home in 7 weeks.

*****

last weekend

2011-07-18T15:09:00.000-06:00

We started friday night with a little HP7

We had a freind draw us some legit dark marks!

The movie was great! I loved it.

We spent the rest of the night cleaning our apartment. We had to do white-glove (super deep-clean) for checkout this week, so we pulled an all-nighter! I was up from 10:00 AM friday to 12:00 PM saturday. It was great!

Then lots of studying and programming.

Then I stayed up late to do my sunday school lesson (which went great!)

Its gonna be a busy week. Finals start tomorrow- wish me luck!

adrenaline junky

2011-07-16T22:06:00.000-06:00

Did I mention I went bridge jumping?

No?

Well let me fill you in.

The bridge: about 20 feet, over the Snake river.

Pre-jump psych!

The jump: (one of many)

The buddies:

my roomates, cassie's boyfriend and his roomate

me and kylie

Logaction: The bridge is just down the road from this place- Monkey Rock.

The scenery:

Definitely a great high.

airplane

2011-07-13T22:50:00.000-06:00

I remember playing this game with Ellen and Emily when I was a little kiddo...

apprently, at 2:00 AM, the novelty of being hoisted in the air by someone elses feet returns. :-)

Summer

Cassie

Kylie

Cassie

Roomate Love!

8 days left.

vitamin D

2011-07-10T14:30:00.001-06:00

All the sudden, it got sunny here! It's been low 80's for the last few weeks. My roomates (all from far north) think they are gonna die. But I'm still feeling a little chilly.

2 weeks until I go home! It's gonna be great having someone else cook for me.

Deep thought:
A freind of mine says, "You might not regret the things you do, but you will definitely regret the things you don't do." I try to keep this in mind, especially with all the opportunities I have here. This is why I'm planning a skydiving trip next semester. It's why I want to go spend a week in Hawaii camping out on beaches with freinds. It's why I went bridge jumping. Everyone up here is living so much! And why not? Its the only time in our lives we get to live all for ourselves. No spouses or children to take care of, no parents to say no. I just want to make sure I'm living too. To bad I can't bring myself to spend $600 on Hawaii.

America's #1!

2011-07-06T16:59:00.000-06:00

Frankly, it's really hard to only to sabbath-y things when your all by yourself and very very bored, and for some reason, I couldn't just put myself out of my misery and go to sleep. So here's what I did to stay busy:

It was my first time making sugar cookies! They turned out pretty dang good, taste-wise, anyway. My mom used to make them every year for fourth of July, and considering how pathetic my plans already were, I thought a little tradition was in order.

Here was my schedule on the 4th:
10:00 AM Rexburg Independance Day parade on Main Street

4:00 PM Drive to Idaho Falls with some freinds for the (apparently) grandest firework display west of the Mississippi. Eat lots of cookies.

pics to come.

man, it sure is quiet...

2011-07-03T22:00:00.000-06:00

I gave my sunday school lesson to the whole ward, since so many people were out of town. Still seems like alot were there. None of my roomates were though.

Every single sunday, every single one since ive gotten up here, we've had people over sunday night. We play games and have lots of fun! I've met some seriously awesome people that way.
But not tonight.
Tonight it's just me.

What? But summer! Your so cool! You're so amazing! Don't you always have a rockin' social life?

Let me explain.

Two of my roomates are out of town, one at a family reunion and one meeting the family of her boyfreind/ potential eternal companion.
The other one is here, but off with her boyfreind. (Which means I won't see her until early tomorrow morning, just like last night. Thats why she skipped church and my wonderful lesson today)

The guy I've been seeing is out of town. (At least he took me on a cute date friday before he left)

My freinds from Albuquerque went down to Utah. (I didn't go because I was there last week)

I don't think I've had this much alone time all semeser.

Hmm. I guess I better go frost my sugar cookies.

Please excuse the lame post. If it makes you feel any better, it took up like 10 minutes of my time, so I'm feeling better!

Mercy and Justice

2011-07-02T23:33:00.001-06:00

The lesson I'm teaching this sunday is on the atonement.

Thanks to the atonement, those who live worthily can recieve mercy.

I saw this video when I was in seminary, and it changed the way I viewed the atonement, and brought an entirely new meaning to the word "mediator" as used in the scriptures.

Also-
Planking Update:
Thanks to the variety of people I've introduced to planking, people on facebook are starting to notice-- and lots of them are starting their own planking albums. Other people have started planking at BYU-I! Thats right- Summer Susana Skousen started a fad! I'm such a big deal.

planking

2011-06-27T20:49:00.000-06:00

Heres a few of my favorites:

BYU-I plank

dorm plank

Kylie's tree plank

The rest are on facebook. And now my roomates are into it, so more to come!

concert

2011-06-21T17:44:00.000-06:00

More college adventures:

Cassie (in the middle) had a choir concert, so we painted our faces for her.

Then went for frozen strawberry lemonades at Micky D's.

Awesome night!

Daddy

2011-06-19T19:27:00.000-06:00

Dad in Alaska.

I think the best thing to say about my Dad right now is he got me a set of purple tools for college. The whole shebang- wrenches, screwdriver, anything I might need. Now what dad would think of that? My dad. He always takes care of things, even the things no one would ever think of.

I appreciate him so much more now that I'm off and on my own. At home, if I had a problem, I'd say, Dad, can you take care of this? And within a week, my problem would be gone. It was so great, and I didn't realize how much work he put into making sure I had a problem-free life.

Something else I love about my dad is his great work ethic. He doesn't complain, just goes and gets it done.

He's big and strong and he always keeps me safe.

I've been thinking about my dad so much lately, especially now that I'm dating all these guys. None of them are half as great as my Dad. Thanks Dad- you've set the standard high.

Miss you, Love you. Happy Fathers Day!

next semester

2011-06-18T13:27:00.000-06:00

Just got all registered for Fall, 2011. Heres the classes I'm taking:

FDREL 122 -Book of Mormon part 2
FDSCI 205 - Understanding DNA (meets a general ed requirement)
CS 165- Object-oriented software developement (towards my major)
FDMATH 112 - Calculas 1 (one of 2 calc classese I have to take for my major)
FDHUM 104 - Homer to Tolkien: Understanding Arts (Humanities general ed requirement)

for a total of 15 credits. Earliest class is at 9, and I'll be done by 2:00 every day!

memory lane

2011-06-12T16:30:00.000-06:00

Christmas, 2008

Sledding at the Cabin

Getting home from a ski trip with a freind, finding this on my driveway!

Rootbeer floats after a halo night!

My first formal event- a place of honor in a Quincenera

So now i'm just trying to figure out ... what happened? How did I end up here? Why is my life so different?

One of my callings is sunday school secratary, and we didn't have a teacher today in church. I don't know who any of the councillors are or where they werer, and the president was out of town, so I got to improv a lesson today on Mathew 13. It was awesome. (That was total sarcasm, for those who didn't catch it.)

My mom hasn't answered every time I've called this week, so I haven't talked to her all week.

My home is now an apartment with 3 other girls who used to be complete strangers.

I do homework all on my own.

I don't have to tell anyone where I am. I can take off, and noone be me will ever know where I went or why or when I'll be back, as long as I come back within 2 days of leaving.

How did this happen?

the dangerous life of a rexburg resident

2011-06-07T22:27:00.000-06:00

Check out this crime report by the rexburg police. Man, I'm so lucky to not have been a victim of eggnog!

grades

2011-06-02T15:48:00.000-06:00

I'm pretty proud of myself, so I thought I'd share.

Last week I took an American Foundations exam. I came out with a 98%, which I was really happy about. Then I found out in class this week that he's curving the scores 10 points. Nice!

Also, I went and got my hair cut today. it took 3 hours. My exam took me 15 minutes, but my haircut took me 3 hours. Sheesh.

Have a great week!

apartment pictures

2011-05-23T16:07:00.000-06:00

Spring 2011 Family Photos!

Left to right: Cassandra Johnson, Kylie Ennis, Me, Jenna Johnson

Scripture Power!

We feast on the word...

i'm walkin on sunshine!

2011-05-15T22:08:00.000-06:00

The sun came out for 3 days this past week! The girls were all lying out in the courtyard. We all wanted to make the best of it because we're all ghosts up here.

I had a date too. There were a few cute moments:

Feeding ducks at the aptly named "nature park."

Airplaines from the chalk-art contest we had with the other couple.

I also went to the sand dunes outside of Rexburg yesterday! unfortunately, noone wanted to get sand in their camera so we have no proof. Maybe next time.

stickers

2011-05-14T20:47:00.000-06:00

If you look close, its star wars characters!

Forget turtles or stick figures- I want these when I have a minivan.

tulip festival

2011-05-10T20:45:00.000-06:00

some favorites:

orange pansies are now officially my favorite flower!

and thanks for all the birthday wishes!
It feels great to be 18, just because everyone got all freaked out whenever I said I was 17.
I don't think I've ever appreciated a change of age this much!

birthday in draper!

2011-05-08T19:53:00.000-06:00

So I drove down friday with my roomate, Jenna. We made the trip in just under 4 hours.

Saturday was my 18th birthday!

First off, I went to the tulip festival with Grandma.

I did a much better job taking pictures of the tulips than of my party, so I'll post those later.

After doing a little shopping for items not to be found in Rexburg, we went to Delos and Misty's for some super delish dinner-

Grilled steak, chicken, and fish, corn on the cob...so much good food!

Then we had to make room for a delish cake-

Super great weekend. I didn't want to come back!

We were a little faster coming back- 3 and a half hours.

And now to finish that cake.

Thanks again Grandma and Grandpa, for letting me come!

and thanks Delos and Misty for the delish dinner!

happy Mother's day!

2011-05-08T19:46:00.002-06:00

A shout out to the best mommy I've ever had! I love you, and I miss you lots!

aaaand my amazing Grandma!

I love you guys!

birthday in rexburg!!!

2011-04-30T22:33:00.001-06:00

We partied this week, since next week I'll be in Utah.

Our epic game of spoons!

The birthday "party"

The Decorations:

Thanks to theses two-

My awesome roomate, Jena J and Craig, my best freind from Albuquerque.

We had dinner at Sammys (a diner where they have bands and stuff on saturdays)

bubble bath...

2011-04-27T19:14:00.001-06:00

... in the kitchen!

Thats what happens when I don't run the dishwasher.

Caused by: Jenna Johnson

Featured here: Cassie Johnson

Kerr 130

2011-04-24T14:21:00.000-06:00

My humble abode for the next few months!

Heres My bed (Its a bunk bed) decorated by Abby and Kate

Heres whats under the bed:

Bathroom:

Kitchen: On the left is Jenna, my roomate (She's from British Columbia) and on the right, our freind LeAnne

Living area: with an awesome old T.V. (left by one of the last tennants) and Cassie (who stays in the other room with Kylie).

Lesson Learned

2011-04-17T23:09:00.002-06:00

If you shower before curfew, odds are a few guys are gonna drop by to say hi. Nice.

(It doesn't help that all my roomates are super cute. )

here!

2011-04-16T15:56:00.004-06:00

I'm all moved in up in Rexburg, Idaho! Pics and (hopefully) stories coming soon! Here's what I've learned so far:

People are crazy nice! They almost never refer you to someone else if they can help it.
Its okay to depend on first impressions sometimes- its why I changed rooms, and my new roomates are way cooler.
Its windy here. ALL YEAR.
All the stuff they say you have to do on move in day, you can pretty much do whenever. (We got my I.D, books, and parking all taken care of the day before.)
I am going to be O.K.

conference weekend

2011-04-05T21:56:00.001-06:00

So we had a super weekend in St. George!

I was all excited to take some gorgeous pictures- I love the red rock and rugged terrain- but my camera died after about 5 seconds of me turning it on.

Anyway, on saturday, I got to go watch Luke play soccer and I took the kids on a walk!

Sunday night, we went to check out the Dixie campus and the temple.

If my camera had been working, my picture would've looked something like this:

Also, I'm repacking my room, and I can't figure out how I fit all this stuff into so few boxes! Ug.

travel

2011-03-31T21:58:00.002-06:00

Since I'll be going to school in the summer (April until July) I am gonna get all my fun trips in as fast as I can. Tomorrow Grandma, Gradnpa and I are driving to St. George to visit Ellen and family. I'm flying to Albuquerque next Friday, and on Saturday my freinds and I are spending the day at white sands. Then my family and I are driving back up here, then on to school.

So 2 weeks until........ BYU-Idaho!

I'm moving in April 15, classes start the 19th.

Right now, my major is "Graphic Design." My schedule is all lined up and I'm super happy with it!

The Rexburg temple is beautiful- its a 2 minute walk from my dorm.

I took a trip up a few weekends ago with my freind and her parents- heres what I picked up.

You can bike accross the entire town of rexburg in about 15 minutes, campus in 2
Walmart is the party place, K-Mart if you really wanna get crazy
56% men, 44% women
Off-campus housing means crossing the street (campus is its own block)
A new auditorium seating 15,000 people was finished last semester
Every single house in town was built before 1965

I am scared to death.

emails

2011-03-19T23:19:00.000-06:00

Do I want to go to University of Alaska?

Nope.
Happy saturday.

work

2011-03-03T20:26:00.001-07:00

My new employment.

And I think they have a love of tedium.

Yesterday, i spent 3 hours doing the "items finder" test- where they give you a list of 100 items in the store and you have to write down where each item is. Purpose: to increase store familiarity

Today, a spent 8 hours in a cold room (without a warm blanket or coat) and sat in front of a computer to watch training videos. Purpose: to teach me how to sell premium data packages/ patience testing.

Another 8 tomorrow.

living up north

2011-02-09T19:49:00.000-07:00

well, north for me.

The bad:

(complete with an inch-thick layer of ice for scraping off)

The good:

Senior Pictures

2011-02-03T18:02:00.000-07:00

I don't remember if I ever posted them all, so here they are!

Moved Out!

2011-02-01T23:10:00.000-07:00

well, considering that I am currently unemployed, you'd think I'd find some time to blog. well, I have time to blog. But I'm much more prone to napping and reading. So here's a little tour of my new abode in Grandma and Grandpa's basement. I'm formally in the blue room, but I've started leaving stuff everywhere, so maybe I'll just start rotating beds too. (Don't worry Grandma, I'm keeping it clean!)

So this was the first day of packing.

Heres the new shelves!

Complete with homy photos of myself! ;)

My mirror (while watching How to lose a Guy in 10 days)

My desk...check out the lamp! We had to spend forever in ikea to find a lightbulb that fits. Stupid custom lightbulbs.

And my new best freind! I keep the basement toasty warm!

Well, my second best freind. My real best freind is Skype! Its way better than calling because I can see everyone.

Projects

2011-01-17T22:55:00.000-07:00

1. T-Shirt quilt (still need to tie and add a backing)

2. Taking down christmas decorations (now all finished!)

3. Copying recipes (this was a graduation gift from my momma)

4. Family History Scrapbook (A personal progress project)

Holidays

2011-01-07T13:59:00.000-07:00

Well, noone in my entire house took any pictures after thanksgiving, so I'll just have to tell you about our holidays.

Christmas was fun...we didnt get up until 6 and ate lots of food. Then took naps. For church the next day, I got to play an amazing organ-piano-piano-congregation vesion of angels we have heard on high for the intermediate hymn!

Delos and Misty came down with their kids for New Years, which was fantastic! Since our cats make Delos miserable, they stayed in the Marriot Pyramid, which was awesome because they had one of those indoor/outdoor pools like they had at red river! (I sure hope you all remember that). I spent the first part of the evening at the young adult dance, which had the coolest starwars decorations I have ever seen. Wish I had pictures. Then I realized that I didnt know anyone, so I came home for sparkling cyder and Halo Reach until 3 AM.

So... Happy new year!

Carlsbad

2010-12-26T20:27:00.000-07:00

Sorry- this is from way back around thanksgiving when Sara and Co. came for a visit.

We all met up down in Carlsbad, and went to the caverns the next day.

The awesome photo op- Logan declined, pointing out that he had bigger plans in life than the become a park ranger.

The main entrance

Located at various points around the trails

It says "Unsafe for wheelchairs beyond this point." Tactfully located on the trail side of a sheer dropoff.

Our delicious thanksgiving meal

The kiddo's LOVED the dogs!

Placecards made by Haley and Hannah

Happy Thanksgiving!

countdown!

2010-11-29T18:47:00.000-07:00

432 hours left until my last day of high school. 336 school hours. 18 days. 14 school days. 8 finals. 3 weeks. 2 weekends.
After that, I will have oodles of free time to fill up with blogging and such!

2010-11-14T16:52:00.002-07:00

Just got acceptance letters from USU and Dixie, so at least I have a backup plan now!

And counting....

2010-11-09T21:03:00.000-07:00

Just a forewarning- this post is mostly me rambling because I felt like the balloon fiesta was out-of-date. So if you want something legit to do, click here to check out the video we made for our Spanish class at CNM.
*****
I'm done with all my Utah applications! I've applied to dixie, USU, and BYU. In addition, I've applied to BYU-I and (purely for kicks) Eastern Arizona. Now I have to apply to UT. Not to mention scholarships... Ug. Just when I was starting to feel caught up.
Thankfully, I only have 5.5 weeks left of school, then I'm moving to Utah. So some things I've noticed about graduating early
-I don't have to pay for cap and gown (the deposit alone is $60!)
-I don't have to buy the school's lame graduation announcements
-I don't have to go to my own graduation ceremony (which saves about 5 hours of my life)
-I get to have a special graduation party with my other friends who are graduating early
-I don't have to make 3 more video projects

Balloon Fiesta 2010

2010-10-26T19:36:00.000-06:00

This year, it was just me, Mom, Logan, and Hunter. We took a blanket, some chairs, hot chocolate, and had a blast!

While waiting for the balloons to go up, some of us slept. Well, I actually slept. I think the boys were just trying not to freeze.

The faces... hahaha clearly it was a bit early for us!

The Darth Vader balloon had an imperial escort this year. (this dude was one of 5)

They got a new smokey the bear! (If you didn't hear, the last one hit a telephone pole and burned up. Oh the irony!)

A dead cat balloon. Why? Why would anyone want a balloon of a dead cat?

The cool new "Penguin Tourist" balloon. Because we get lots of penguins dressed for tropical weather at the balloon fiesta where is below freezing every morning.

One of my new favorites- Mr. Crab.

Sunrise safari- because the balloon is a zebra! ha ha ha.

cute kiddo

2010-10-22T18:52:00.000-06:00

Watch this! Proving the beatles really are timeless. Haha this made my day because I love this song...so I thought I'd share. Happy Friday!

apps

2010-10-14T22:35:00.000-06:00

I've officially submitted my applicatoin for dixie, I'm almost done with my application for USU, I've browsed the UT (university of texas) app, and the BYU applications come out tomorrow. The UT and BYU ones are the only super serious ones- dixie and USU don't even need essays. So before I get started, any tips? Creative writing advice? Things you wish you'd put on your college apps? I'd love to hear them!

senior pictures

2010-10-07T22:54:00.001-06:00

so I needed some contrast for those less than flattering pics below...

Thanks to kim jew for some great work!

This is one of many, but I don't want to publish the rest until I send out graduation announcements (in less than 3 months).

dorky days

2010-10-07T16:16:00.000-06:00

Aw man. Saw these pics today on facebook. SO dorky! At least I was skinny.

These are from EFY 2007 by the way. The other girl who is in both pics is my bff Britany Strobelt who moved to Gilbert Arizona in 2005.

She also went with me to EFY in 2009.

conference

2010-10-03T20:58:00.000-06:00

"Your probably wondering, what does this have to do with airplains?" -President Uchtdorf

Best conference ever! Today, we had some people come over to watch with us. They have Joey, who is my age, Josh, who is 14, and then two little girls. Joey and Josh are the mom's stepkids, so they are new to the ward. It was so much fun to have them over! We had cinnimon rolls, chocolate chip muffins, bacon, a ton of candy, and suday dinner.

Next conference, I'll be in Draper.

missionaries

2010-10-01T23:07:00.000-06:00

Since all my bestest buds just graduated, a few of them are getting mission calls these days. So the first one is Paul Collette, my best freind for 3, maybe 4 years. I know none of you know him, but to me, this is awesome.

Paul will be in southern Mexico, spanish-speaking in a city that translates to "beautiful city." (I don't know the spanish name.)

fun website

2010-09-30T19:15:00.001-06:00

magmypic.com

my sister haley

my freind alex

my freinds craig and erin

lots of popups though.

Homecoming- the actual event

2010-09-27T17:19:00.001-06:00

This is for the benefit of all who don't have facebook. If you have facebook, youve probably already seen these. Oh well... enjoy again! :)

How he asked:

Summer

Will U Go 2

Homecoming

With me!

And then the crazy puzzle bit with string all around the seminary yard.

How I answered:

I cut up "YES" into tiny peices and put them into ballons.

Then I put all 115 balloons in his room.

The Guy:

Steven Flores

The Gentlemen:

(from left) some dude i dont know, Ty, Alex, Craig, Steven, Andrew

The Ladies:

(from left) Christine, Cassie, Chelsie, Moi, Hannah, Jana

The Group:

12 mormon kids

look at my face in this one....

The Evening:

1. Pictures (see above)

2. Light the Night walk for Leukimia (we all got balloons with lights in them and we walked to miles in our formalwear)

3. Dinner at Dions with faux candelight and silver plastic silverware

Steven made a game of hiding his camera and taking peoples pictures when they didn't know it. This is how mind turned out.

4. Drive to the Dance

5. Games at Alex's house until 1:30 Sunday morning.

Me:

My face.....haha

And my bestest freinds who did there own thing. They were my getting-ready buddies!

THE END

Summer 2010

2010-09-22T17:01:00.000-06:00

Trip to Sante Fe

homecoming, ect.

2010-09-21T21:42:00.004-06:00

So- he asked me by writing in chalk on the sidewalk up to the seminary building. Someone does it every year, and its always awesome because everyone knows about it when your names written in giant chalk letters. Then to figure out his name, I had to do this ridiculous alphabet puzzle.

So- I replied by filling up his room with balloons and cutting up the letters "Y-E-S" into little tiny pieces. Thats what he gets for making me do his ridiculous alphabet puzzle.

So- I decided that since this is my last school dance I better dress up. I went dress shopping at the mall last Thursday, and found nothing. I went to dress barn today and found this cute little black dress with sparkles on the collar and hem. Very excited! So- the plan for the date is ... questionable... but I have no say so here's the dealio: we are doing a Light the Night walk for Leukemia, then going to Dions for dinner, then going to the school dance (SUPER SKETCH), then going to one of the guys houses. The dance is terrible because theres everyone in the middle doing all that stuff that good children shouldn't do, and then the Mormons make this awkard circle on the edge of the room and dance like its a stake dance. Sometimes people come join, but on the Monday after, everyones always like, "Were you in the mormon circle?" Obviously, I reply "Heck Yes!" But I would still rather skip going to the dance dance. Its just not a good environment.

So- I just finished selecting senior pics from Kim Jew. So much fun! I'll post a few when the email them to me.

And- I am officially graduatin' December of 2010! My plan is to stay in Utah for a few months before I start college, probably summer session. Yay!

In addition- Hunter is kickin' booty at football, Logan and my mom are enrolled in a Spanish I class with me at CNM, and Haley is rockin' the top as a fifth grader at her elementary school.

homecoming 2010

2010-09-10T17:40:00.000-06:00

Just got asked. updates on the way! Love, Summer

car theft and kittens

2010-07-22T14:07:00.003-06:00

You may have seen this story on msn about car theft. Well, I predicted that New Mexico was in the top ten. I was right. I rock.

Also, we got another kitten! Her name is Aspen.

She's the lighter one. The darker one is Rose, Aspens sister. Rose belongs to our neighbors down the street.

Ironically, the cat was acquired while Delos was visiting. :) She and Bella are getting along much better now than they were last week. Aspen likes to chase Bella, then Bella tackles Aspen and sits on top of her until one of us come in. But its better than hissing and running away!

fun weekend!

2010-06-01T15:35:00.009-06:00

This last weekend, we took a trip up to Sante Fe to see Bandalier Natl. Monument. My dad has lots of "Marriott Points," so we got two rooms and stayed in a hotel overnight for free! We did lots of fun things, including shopping on the plaza and hiking around Bandalier. Me being me, i got about a million scenery shots. Here's a few!

And now some pictures with people in them:

Hunter conquers some Kiva ruins

Haley chills on some lava formations

Dad takes a picture of every rock and crevice

And the kids ride some Sante Fe public art. So bizarre! The art, I mean.

They had weird fish things all over down town. Anyone know whats up with that?

netflix

2010-05-29T22:24:00.003-06:00

Lately, we have expirienced a wonderful variety of movies at our house, thanks to netflix.

I always saw those commercials for netflix and thought "really? who does that?" Well, now the skousens do. While my dad was on a business trip, he signed up for netflix and so we watch instant movies that stream from our Xbox every night now.

Whenever I come home from wherever I am (partying with freinds usually) Logan and my dad are watching some movie or other. Lots of weird stuff, like mega pirannah and such. Yay for netflix.

one more year of public school left!

2010-05-27T12:46:00.007-06:00

School is done!

I got B's or higher on all my finals!

I have all my final grades- 4.0 GPA two semesters running! I've been tryings super hard to make up for my less-than-stellar GPA for the last two years.

.....

So lets see. In other news,

I am now 17 and Haley is 10. Among other things, Haley got an iPod nano for her birthday and I got silverware and glasses to go with the dishes I got for christmas.
Logan, my mom, and I are going to be a team for the family triathlon this summer- I'll be running.
Teenagers are stupid.
Our washing machine is broken
We went 4 weeks without a stove top
We have to fix my car. (see 6)
I got my first ticket because my insurance tags are expired and we cant renew them until we get the emissions test passed, which can't happen until we figure out why my engine light won't turn off.

When it rains, it pours! :)

team jacob

2010-05-26T22:45:00.007-06:00

Ya, i know, i know, ... after an eventful month of not posting (including my birthday, Haley's birthday, mothers day, deciding to run a 5k, finals, goodbyes, general teenage drama, and parties) I am choosing to post about twilight. Sorry.

*Sigh*

Anyway, I figured I should let y'all know that, after my experiences with teenage drama this month, I have realized that Edward's relationship with Bella is totally parasitic! Its only bad for her. As much as she loves him, she is an idiot for thinking that something so obsessive an unhealthy is the right choice. Besides, I think she loves Jacob just as much, but Edward got to her first! Oh well. She can have the vampire- I'll take the werewolf.

Plus, who wouldn't choose Taylor over Robert? Seriously?

finished

2010-05-26T22:29:00.002-06:00

Hey! I just thought I should let you know, I am still alive and well. Its just been intense these last few weeks! I finished my finals today and now I'm going to spend the next few weeks recuperating and catching up on sleep. Yay for summer vacation! Also, I am now a SENIOR of 2011!!!!

boredom

2010-04-15T16:04:00.007-06:00

On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday my teachers gave us TONS of homework. I worked really hard all week so I could get it all done. I got it all done And now I am experiencing boredom. We have a ward fundraiser tomorrow, so i need to make cupcakes But I'm supposed to wait for my mom. I'm playing all new (for me) hymns on Sunday. So I could learn those. But I have to go to the church to do that, and mom could be home soon. I could read, but I don't really like my book. I'm bored. I guess I'll blog.

famous last words

2010-04-07T20:07:00.004-06:00

"What the heck is that?!"

Usually, when people say that,

they die.

I'm just sayin.

...

Hope your Saturday was more fulfilling than mine,

Summer

eating healthy

2010-04-07T20:02:00.004-06:00

So. We had a nutrition-based mutual tonight.

I saw a carrot and thought,

"Man. That looks good."

I'm still feeling sick and after hacking up a lung in front of everyone, I decided to leave early.

So when I got home, I thought

"Alright, lets eat a delicious carrot!"

It was not delicious.

If you eat raw carrots,

you are weird and have no taste buds.

reading

2010-04-06T20:00:00.002-06:00

I've come down with one of those super icky colds that makes you ache all over and sit up coughing at night, so I haven't been on the computer for several days (no, not even facebook). I have, however, been reading. So far, I've finished the first three Fablehaven books. I decided to re-read the series while the rest of my family fights over the new book. But tonight, I took a break to read the beautiful Larson biography that grandpa put together. Just the David Larson line for now. It was sure fun to read- I'm so glad everyone wrote in it! Grandpa, Mom, Delos, Sara, James, Ellen, Emily. Thanks from me- surprisingly, I found alot of comfort in reading about your high school experiences. P.S. Grandma, you should write your life story and send it to me. I would love to hear it!

teen tip #3: Shoes

2010-03-31T15:19:00.002-06:00

As tempting as it may be, never let you daughter wear high heels to school or work.

Mind you, I'm already experienced enough to know better than to attempt such a thing. My mom on the other hand... well, lets just say, she's got a few blisters. In her defense, the shoes did look very comfy, even for heels....

promises, prom-misses

2010-03-29T18:40:00.006-06:00

So. Prom.

I promised to go with the friend of a friend because she wasn't allowed to go without a double date.

Literally, we dressed up,

took pictures,

drove to a Shell station to buy propane,

sat around,

ate hamburgers,

went to DQ (where I ended up buying my own ice cream),

and went home to watch some "Ultra-Violet" movie.

Needless to say,

It was awful.

But here's the pictures anyway.

Sorry, this one wont get big....

... but thats okay because they are all pretty much the same!

We took them in front of her front door.

I got bored after (seriously) about five minutes of picture taking.

Obviously.

SO, to make me feel better, what are your worst date stories?

Flea Market

2010-03-29T18:33:00.006-06:00

Spring Break 2010

Part 3

Last day there we went to the swap meet and found lots of funny stuff, like alot of red/purple hats.

And a sock booth.

Hunter

2010-03-29T18:25:00.004-06:00

....is 12!

His birthday was over a week ago, on the 17th, but yesterday he got the preistood!

bad situation

2010-03-26T15:30:00.001-06:00

Look to the right.

Please tell me.

How do you fix this?!

cartoon of the week

2010-03-25T21:44:00.001-06:00

the giant carousel

2010-03-23T22:13:00.004-06:00

Spring Break 2010

Part 2

The beautiful, Giant Carousel

Even dad rode! (Middle right)

In the same mall, we also found

A giant turtle

and a giant gumball machine.

And we saw "The Blindside"- mom's newfavorite movie

killing trees

2010-03-23T21:27:00.006-06:00

Spring Break 2010:

Arizona!

So this is part one of several, because we did allot of stuff.

Mostly I got pictures of Haley because Logan and Hunter don't want to be in any pictures. Anyway

The first day, the neighbors across the street were having a palm tree cut down by some dude named Frederick.

We know his name was Frederick because the dude at the bottom was yelling at him.

So we sat and watched for a while. (That white seat was where I was sitting)

Here is the same house by the end of the day, tree-free

And while we were there, we sat around. Allot.

It was awesome.

teen tip #2: Prom

2010-03-11T15:46:00.010-07:00

Finding a date

My date to prom is actually the friend of a friend's friend. He lives in clearfeald and I have never met him. So here's three tips for finding your kids dates:

Start a phone chain with family and friends because friend, cousins, neighbors, and foreign exchange students are all appropriate candidates.
Check formal wear stores - an employee in such a store may already be dressed and ready to go
Order pizzas from multiple establishments and select the most attractive delivery person. Tip well.

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Chauffeur-ing

If you must drive, there is no need to embarrass your son and/or daughter.

Disguise yourself to protect both yourself and your teen from possible embarrassment. Wigs, fake noses, and glasses are all acceptable.
Speak in a cultivated, sophisticated accent. Call your child "Sir" or "Miss".
Do not talk to the passengers, even to fill in an awkward silence. No need to fill the gap with musings of "the good ol' days."

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Surviving the date

Big dates can be stressful. To prevent any date anxiety, prepare with the following tips.

Do not get out a shotgun. This will scare off the date, potentially leading to a fight between you and your teen.
Give your teen a watch that is set ten minutes fast.
Play games while waiting up. Guess the arrival time: Each parent guesses the exact arrival time of the teen. When the guessed time is past, guess a new time. Whoever guesses the right time wins. Pick the excuse: Each parent will guess three excuses the teen may use for being home late. Whoever is the closest wins.

Adapted from "The Worst-case Scenario Survival Handbook: Parenting"