Day 15: My Dream House

We actually talked about our dream house as a Family Home Evening activity once. I'll see if I can remember what we decided ;)

My dream house will have a spacious kitchen, with cupboard and counter space galore. My tiny kitchen can be a pain to cook in at times...

And also, a dishwasher. But that goes without saying. 

Stephan wants to have a "media room" of sorts, which is basically a room with a top notch sound system and good acoustics. It would be for watching movies, listening to music, etc. It could be where our kids would hang out with their friends and such. 

I don't think it would be quite like this, but we're on the right track ;)

We would have a nice master bedroom, of course who doesn't want one of those? I would love a bay window, with a balcony, and a nice view.

From veranda interiors

A spacious master bathroom. 

A comfortable living room is also in order :)

Image via Veranda Interiors

If we start saving now, maybe we'll be able to afford a house like this in...forty years. But a girl can dream, can't she? ;)

Day 14: Favorite Shoes

Honestly, I think my favorite shoes are ballet flats. They're comfy, and very versatile because they can be worn with casual or dressier clothing.

I only have one pair of ballet flats right now, because my other ones wore out. I want to find more, preferably in neutral colors.

The pair of ballet flats I own right now....

Are purple.

I'll post a picture eventually--I'm lazy ;)

Day 13: Favorite Outfit

I'm pretty sure the outfit I wore for my most recent pictures is one of my current favorites.


That is all.

Day 12: Something I'm OCD about

I couldn't think of anything from the top of my head, so at first I thought, "Oh, I'm not OCD about anything!" But then I asked Stephan if there's anything I'm OCD about, and he said.....

"Being on time."

*sigh* He's right. I blame it on my dad. You see, he was a bishop for almost six years and he always reminded us that the bishop's family should be on time for church every Sunday. Set a good example, you see. But, his idea of being on time is arriving ten minutes early.

And that has become my definition of on time. I hate being late. A lot. I don't like the awkwardness of it all. I know there are people who don't care, but I do.

Of course, this is bad when I'm part of a religious culture that has MST, which stands for Mormon Standard Time. What is Mormon Standard Time, you say? Ten minutes late.

So there's my OCD tendency.

Day 11: Photo taken of me recently

Well, I guess it's a good thing our wedding photographer had "charitable shoots" last month.

Here you go :)

Day 10: Picture of me taken over 10 years ago

I was about eighteen months old or so in this picture. You can't tell, but I was a grouchy kid that day. In my defense, they were taking way too many pictures and it was taking too long. This is according to my mom.

See those ringlets? Yep, natural. I was the reason for the perm trend in the eighties and nineties. *laughs* That's probably not true, but a lot of mothers at church started perming their daughters' hair to look like mine!

Day 9: Picture I took

I'm not much of a photographer, but...

Day 8: Picture that makes you angry/sad

I have a huge pet peeve with sweatpants that have words written on the butt. Seriously. Do you seriously want guys to have more reasons to stare at your butt? Because that's what they'll do. I thought the feminist movement was about getting men to take us more seriously? You aren't going to be taken seriously when you have writing on your behind. Sorry. If I have offended you, I do not apologize.

With that said...

This angers me.

Day 7: Picture that makes you happy

From our engagement shoot. This was my favorite of the bunch, and it still is.

Day 6: Twenty of my favorite things

In no particular order...

(1) Stephan

(2) Babies (someday we'll have them)

(3) My violin (I need to practice more often...heh heh)

(4) Crocheting

(6) Reading

(7) French

(8) Christmas 

(9)  Japanese food (especially sushi)

(10) My family (every side)

(11) Music

(12) My faith 

(13) Chocolate

(14) Texas

(15) Cooking/Baking

(16) Curly hair

(17) Homemade cherry pie

(18) Purple

(19) My washer and dryer

(20) Cuddling

Day 5: Favorite Quotes

I don't know if this is word for word, but here we go.

"Everything will work out in the end. If it hasn't worked out, then it isn't the end."

--Gordon B. Hinckley

Believe me, I've been clinging to that quote lately.

Day 4: Favorite Book

Only one favorite book? Asking me for one favorite book is like asking me to choose a star from the heavens (I stole that from Ever After). 

I love reading. Let's just say that instead of a "shoe fetish" like some young women have, I have a "book fetish" (as much as I hate that word). My brothers and I all love to read, and have expansive libraries of our own. A trip to Barnes and Noble was like a trip to an amusement park. Okay, not *that* exciting, but you get the meaning. My mom used to complain about spending a fortune there, but then someone told her that she should be grateful that the money was being spent on books. 

Oh, and our idea of a fun date is going to the Orem Public Library. Yes, we are nerds and we are not ashamed to admit it. 

What I'm saying is, I don't have *a* favorite book, I have many. 

Day 3: Favorite TV shows

One problem with this one: we don't own a TV.

But that's not to say I've had some favorites ;)

Let's see...

What Not to Wear

I didn't really get into "What Not to Wear" until my second year of college, when my roommates were watching it. I had zero fashion sense then, and watching this show actually helped me find more flattering clothes for me. This show isn't about dressing fashionably, it's about valuing and taking good care of yourself. Without becoming vain or snobbish, of course.

Home Improvement

Hilarious and heartwarming at the same time. We've been renting it lately :)

I admit, "Golden Girls" has been a guilty pleasure, since some of the humor is uhhh....yeah. I keep the watching to a minimum.

Very witty, and very well-written. And of course, the funniest dog ever.

Ah, M*A*S*H. Truth be told, I liked it better with Col. Potter, BJ, and Winchester.




And I think that's all for now.

Day 2: Favorite Movies

I have a few of these as well, and I don't know if I can say if I have an absolute favorite movie of all time. But here are some of them:

Hands down, this is my favorite version of Pride and Prejudice (besides the novel of course). Yes, it's six hours long, but it is six hours well spent. I really didn't like the Keira Knightley version (don't hate me), even though I wanted to. It lacked the character development that this version has. There were a lot of other things I hated about it, but I'll spare you. I love this movie so very much, and I recently converted Stephan to it. 

West Side Story will always be one of my all-time favorite movies; I was raised on it. Stirring music, good acting, and a powerful message at the end. Not to mention the choreography.

I know some people will find this controversial, but I don't care. The only thing I didn't really like about it was that the costumes were historically inaccurate. Other than that, I loved it. If you're wondering, I think Christine did the right thing by going with Raoul. 

I was introduced to Star Wars when I was about five years old, when my older brothers begged to rent it. After that, I was a fan. If you're wondering, I like the original trilogy better than the prequels, but I do not hate the prequels like some people do. 

Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney movie. I can really identify with Belle, because people often think I'm odd. And the relationship between Belle and the Beast reminds me of mine with Stephan. It wasn't love at first sight (for me), but as I got to know him better, he grew on me ;) 

These are just a few. Hope you enjoy!

Day 1: Favorite Song

My favorite song changes depending on my mood, really.

"You Are Loved" by Josh Groban. I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety when I was a junior in college, and I listened to this song a lot during that time. It reminded me that even though I was feeling crushed by the weight of the world, God still loved me. This song was one of the things that helped me to continue on, even though I was miserable. I listen to this when I'm having a bad day.

"When I Fall In Love." This was originally performed by Nat King Cole, but has also been performed by Rick Astley and Karen Carpenter (my favorite versions, by the way). Stephan decided after listening to the Rick Astley version (after we were married) that this was *our* song. I originally heard the Karen Carpenter version when I was a teenager (my mom raised me on her songs), and I decided (as the song says) that "my first love will be my last." Stephan was my first true love, and I intend to keep it that way ;)

"Honesty" by Billy Joel. I'm sad this isn't more popular, because it's a really beautiful song. I like it because it echoes my sentiments about the world. Honesty really is a lonely word.

"Bring Me to Life" by Evanescence. I can't really put my reason for liking this song to words. It's very powerful, and I know that Amy Lee (the lead singer) wrote this song about her husband.

"What Love Can Be" by Charlotte Church. This is from the movie "A Beautiful Mind", and it has a beautiful message.

There are many others I could share, but I don't really remember them all right now.

Get to know me...for thirty days!

So, my cousin Jacey is doing this on her blog, and since I've been having some writer's block lately, why not? Stay tuned.






day 1- Your favorite song
day 2- Your favorie movies
day 3- Your favorite TV show
day 4- Your favorite book
day 5- Your favorite quote
day 6- 20 of your favorite things
day 7- A photo that makes you happy
day 8- A photo that makes you angry/sad
day 9- A photo you took
day 10- A photo taken over 10 years ago of you
day 11- A photo of you recently
day 12- Something you are OCD about
day 13- Your favorite outfit
day 14- Your favorite shoes
day 15- Your dream house
day 16- A song that makes you cry
day 17- An art piece
day 18- My wedding/future wedding/ past wedding
day 19- A talent of yours
day 20- A hobby of yours
day 21- A recipe
day 22- A website
day 23- A youtube video
day 24- Where I live
day 25- Your day in great detail
day 26- Your week, in great detail
day 27- Your worst habit
day 28- Whats in my handbag/purse
day 29- Hopes, dreams and plans for 365 days
day 30- A dream for the future

It's been a while

Hi...does anyone still read this?

As you can see, it's been a while since I last updated. I haven't had much to say, mainly because last month was a pretty bad month for us. It goes without saying that being laid off the first Monday of the month was not such a great start. Then midterms happened and Stephan was very busy with that. I also started watching a neighbor's four-year-old son a few times a week (with pay), which means going over at 6:30 right as she leaves for work. Thankfully, he's a pretty easy kid to watch. And he likes Star Wars.

And there were plenty of emotions. And arguments to go with them. Oh joy.

But don't worry, we're doing fine now. Stephan doesn't have anymore tests for now, just homework. And he has to register for next semester's classes. I'm still looking for work, until further notice. Please do me a favor and don't ask me how the job hunt is every time you see me. Thank you.

I don't really have much else to say. Just thought I'd update.

Later.