Never Trust a Magic 8 Ball!

Dear Magic 8 Ball,
It was very rude of you to lie to me on Tuesday and I find your behavior utterly unacceptable. Please make right what you did wrong.
Un-Affectionately,

Caitlin

 On Tuesday, I went grocery shopping with Bethany and Kaeley. We were at LoLo's when we stumbled across a Magic 8 Ball in the clearance section. It was only $1.50!! Bethany of course bought it and we asked it tons of questions. We were convinced it was correct in all of its fortune telling abilities. Bethany and Kaeley asked the ball a very important question, and it told me that the answer was 'YES DEFINITELY". It may have been in regards to a date I was going on that evening. And it may have been in regards to a certain boy who was taking me on that date. The question also might have mentioned hand holding. Well let me to you! Beware of Magic 8 Balls they lie! But in all honesty, I am okay with the outcome. I would rather wait to hold his hand until he is 100% ready. I can be patient. I guess. ;) The date was still fantastic despite the lack of inter-digitation! ;)

Ps. Maybe I should catch up all the uh...20 readers of this blog, who most likely already know this, but just in case you didn't. I broke up with my dear friend John over a year ago for many reasons. I have been going on dates with boys here and there since then but nothing too serious has happened with any of them. The boy in the Magic 8 Ball story is very charming and sweet. We were set up on a blind date and we have gone out quite a few times since our first date back in June. I will keep you updated if anything progresses in that department. :)

Catch Up

I haven't really been good at blogging lately so I have decided to give you an update on my life. I know, I know, I always promise to be better at blogging but alas I haven't been any better.  Erin's last two posts have inspired me to post something today and hopefully more in the future? I won't make any promises on when the next post will be though.  So here are so new things that have happened since the last time I blogged:

Top 5 New Things in my Life:
1. Colored Hair: I recently did a semi-permanent dye on my hair. I LOVE the color but I have too much hair for a normal application of hair dye. Right now I have some splotchy patches of hair that are not colored. I have another box of hair dye, I just need to get around to coloring it again.

My darker hair and a fantastic orange sweater I found for less than $3.00. 

2. Glasses: Yep, I have had to get glasses. I have had the worst migraines lately and I am trying to figure out the cause of them. Excedrin does wonders for me but it only masks the symptoms so I can temporarily feel better. I had my eyes checked and sure enough I have needed glasses. I am wearing them for the first time today! Some of the other things that might be triggering my migraines are sugar, TMJ, low-pressure weather, and stress. I sure do hope the glasses will help a little with this. It is amazing how many small things I have been missing out on before wearing these glasses!

New Glasses! I bought two pairs..a brown pair and a black one. 

3. Study Abroad:  I am going on a study abroad this summer to study art history in Italy! The program is a 4 weeks and then I will be doing some independent traveling to Switzerland, Paris and London after with some of the other students for about 10 days after the program ends.  68 more days until I leave!
Not like I am counting the days till then...

Cinque Terre, Italy (I will be staying a weekend here! AHH!)

4. Working a Lot for Study Abroad: I have been working at my regular job at school and I went back to my bakery job to help fund my trip. I also work four hours at a call center on Saturday's. EEK! Luckily, I am only taking one class right now or I would probably be going insane right now.

5. Boyfriend: I don't post a lot on here about my relationship status because, well, it has been pretty complicated the last couple years. With a long term relationship tragically ending about a year and a half ago, dating has been an interesting journey that I wasn't planning on ever having to take again.  I did date a guy last summer for a couple months and I was very grateful for that relationship. He treated me really well and was intellectually stimulating. We broke up before school started. I was pretty upset for a while but I am now grateful that he broke up with me for many reasons. I have gone on dates here and there since then. About a two months ago, I went on a date with one of my friends John who works as a freelance pianist. I was excited to go to Cafe Rio with him but honestly I was thinking it was just a friend date and nothing more than that. I was wrong. He is charming, genuine, loving, funny, and also extremely handsome, bonus! We went on a second date a couple weeks later and then shortly after that we decided to date exclusively. It has been an interesting journey dating him and I would have to say I have been happier than I have been in a really long time.  I usually am pretty happy anyways but he has brought a lot more joy in my life that I never knew I was missing. 

John and I at BYU's concerto night. 

Mondays

Do you ever have those terrible, no good, very bad Mondays?

Yup. Me too. It makes Tuesdays that much more exhausting. Thank goodness for a cute husband and custard. Otherwise, I may have not survived my terrible, no good, very bad Monday. 

I'm grateful for new days. It's like a clean slate. Ready to start again and make a better day than before. I tried to set up my morning for success by listening to Elder Holland's talk "Like a Broken Vessel" and some awesome music to pump up my morning. These are my favorite songs for the moment:

"Come to Me" by the Goo Goo Dolls

"Hello My Old Heart" by The Oh Hello's

"Step Out" by José Gonzalez

"Benny" by Mideau

Here's to a brighter, happier day than before! Thank you Heavenly Father for new days!   

Giving

How often do I see a beggar on the street and I strategically look away so I don't make eye contact with them?  If I don't look them in the eye I can pretend that they do not exist (horrible, I know) or that they won't see me (A second graders logic: If I can't see you, you can't see me). 

I don't have a lot to give because like most college students I am struggling to put gas in my car as it is. I feel guilty for not giving more. What I feel worse about is how I have been treating these people who I try to ignore. I may not have a couple bucks to give but I do have kindness that is free. 

It isn't hard at all to give someone a smile or a wave when you drive or walk by. I too often forget that these people are my brothers and sisters. They are children of God. If Christ were to be in my shoes he would not simply ignore the beggar even if he had empty pockets. He would reach out to them in kindness and show them charity. So I have a challenge for you starting this Christmas season. The next time you drive by someone with a sign look them in the eye and smile at them. 

Merry Christmas Everyone! 

Fall Lament

I logged onto Facebook and Instagram to realize that is is officially the first day of Autumn.  Friends posted beautiful pictures of the mountains back in Utah changing colors.  Some pictures depicted fall clothing, bundled up in beautiful sweaters with leggings and boots.  Others talked about picking apples at an orchard.  Another posted pictures of a pumpkin patch.  It made me miss fall.  Badly.

Now don't get me wrong, I adore Florida.  I really do.  I love the humidity breathing on my neck, the sun shining on my face, and knowing that there is a beach not so far away.  I love it.  I love the fact that I won't have to scrap my car of ice during the winter, or slip and slide while the roads are icy.  Florida is also beautiful with its palm trees and greenery.  It is gorgeous here.  But I am a fall girl.  Fall is my favorite of seasons, and I find myself wishing the air would be crisp and that the leaves would turn colors.  Then it can go straight on back to being beautiful fall weather.  Oh, I miss the fall.  I really, really do.

I find myself looking at the calendar, and immediately going to my closet to pick my best chunky cardigan, layered among cute tees and tanks.  I grab my tights and find myself reaching for my scarf and boots, only to remember that I do not have fall weather.

I miss corn mazes, and crisp nights wrapped up with hot chocolate and a blanket.  I miss driving up the mountains and seeing the beautiful array of colors.  I miss bundling up and finding new ways to layer clothing.  I miss everything about Fall.  My heart is yearning for it.


Florida, I love you very much, but can you please, just maybe consider fall for a short while? Pretty please?

Saturday Night Surprises

Caitlin and I played this past Saturday.  We didn't have much planned: Shop here a little, shop there a little, return an item, you know.  Pretty boring.  So we were pleasantly surprised when we happened upon a free, outdoor concert down at the Riverwoods in Utah.

 

 

They had 3 local bands:

Blue Aces: Three 16 year old girls and a 14 year old girl on the drums provided quite the amazing experience! We were rather impressed, especially for their age, and their amazing energy and stage presence!  We secretly hoped that they would win.

The New Electric Sound: There music was fun and energetic, but it felt similar to the Neon Trees.  We didn't care too much for the voice of the operation, but it was fun all the same.  We felt them to be the lesser of the three bands.  However, they took away the first prize of a thousand dollars.  We were a bit disappointed at that.  But they were still fun, I suppose.  Judge for yourself!

D'if:  Similar to the Postal Service.  They had a great sound and was very enjoyable to listen to.  We liked them a lot and would have been happy if they took first.

Meanwhile, as we listened to the bands, we got FREE chalk!

It is for their upcoming event in September, "Chalk the Block".  So of COURSE, we immediately had to chalk it up.  Pronto.  Besides, I won't be in Utah in September.

 

Free chalk, free music, great company....Seriously...All the night needed was a snow cone shack just behind us.  Then it would have been perfect.  

Oh, and check out the sunset:

Gorgeous, eh?  It was quite the fabulous evening.  Now, for picture overload:

This is Erin and Caitlin, signing off! Happy day to you, good person!

Less Than Two Weeks...

In just less that two weeks I will be in one of my all-time favorite places.

The place that I dared to try something new.

The place that I left home, and lived in a place far, far from home.  No four hour drives to and from home, but somewhere that I wouldn't be allowed to visit for a few months.

The place that I spent my first Christmas away from home, and you know what? It ended up okay.

The place that I made some of my best friends for life.

The place that I ended a relationship, which opened up other possibilities that I needed for my life.

The place I constantly yearned to return to.

The place that my husband-to-be would live most of his life and would call home.

The place where I was proposed to, and began the great journey of eternity with my love.

The place that feels like home, even though I have never lived there for more than 4 months.

The place that is so close to my heart, and hope to one day return to raise my family.

Florida.

I'll see you oh, so soon Florida.

Blogging From My Phone

Can the world get any better? I just discovered the app that lets me update the blog from my PHONE. Awesome. Enjoy some pictures as I lazily lay in bed and blog. On my phone. This is awesome.

Surprise! You've been fired? I hope not...

Well, I came home the other night to this:

What the heck is Donald Trump doing in my apartment?? It nearly gave me a heart attack.  I thought about screaming when I discovered him, but as I continued to think about it, I decided I wasn't that scared.  So I took a picture instead.  

I think I'm going to dress him up as the Easter bunny. Mwahaha.

Planking

The phenomenon of planking.  Does anyone really understand?

New Goals

Sometimes, it is time to make new goals.

It happens anytime life starts falling into a routine.

But usually, my goals tend to explode into wild dreams.  I just can't seem to tame them.

Such as:

My goal to travel.  New York, Paris, Tokyo...anywhere.  Get me out on the road! Or on a plane to somewhere new.  Ryan and I hope to go to Paris or Tokyo in a year or so.  Fingers crossed.  It would be amazing.  

My goal to graduate college.  Oh wow.  This one feels so far away.  With a full time job, it is hard to work a schedule in for school.  I hate it.  I checked classes for next semester.  Looks rather impossible.  I may have to work something else out.

My goal to one day (not in the nearest future, mind you), to be a mother.  Oh man, thanks to Primary, I have discovered that I have low patience.  Perhaps I need to start learning patience now.  Also, the thought to be a mother scares me.  I am not ready now. but it is a dream and a desire of mine.  Just not quite yet...But I should start learning motherly qualities in preparation for that day.

Caitlin's and my goal to update the blog more so.  We have been slacking.  And it is sad.

A goal to go through my wardrobe and create new clothes and outfits from the depths of my closet.  Who says one has to keep buying new things to keep things fresh? Besides, I am poor.  I have enough clothes that I never wear.  Wear 'em or lose 'em, I say.  Well, I try to tell myself.

Be more adventurous.  Stop being afraid to spread your wings and try new things.  There is always, always, ALWAYS room for growth in this area.

My goal to one day write a children's book.  That has been a goal of mine that I have had for years, but have since put on the back burner.  It is time to whip it back up and start writing again.  It has been so long, and I used to enjoy it so much.  

Actually...speaking of writing, I think I'm going to get off of this right now and begin writing again.  I need to.  What? I am writing, you say?  You're right.  But I'm still leaving you. 

Goodbye for now.

Snow Day.

Today it snowed.

The alarm went off around 7:35.  We slept in until 8:30.  Take that alarm clock.  I blame the weather.  It seems whenever there is miserable weather, your body just KNOWS and refuses to get out of bed.  I finally made it out...Ryan was still trapped underneath the blankets.  Finally, we both made it out alive, and made it to 9 a.m. church.

But the snow...

Oh the snow!

I think we'll move to someplace warm, thank you very much!  Like here:

Eyes of my Phone: A Drive Home from Work

Alive.

Hello! Erin, here! I just wanted to let you know that I'm alive!!!

I can't even remember the last time I posted.

Sad.

But!  I am alive.  And well.  Very well!

See for yourself:

Bliss.  More to eventually come in regards to the wedding, honeymoon, and more! :)



Oh, okay...and one more for good measure! ;)

So cute.

Attention: Music Lovers!

Caitlin...I thought of you!