tomorrow will be kinder

this song...i cannot get enough! and it's true. today was SO much kinder than yesterday.

2011 in music

as i reflect on 2011, i like to think about the year in terms of music in addition to the usual year in review list. there are always a few songs and lyrics that stick out and remind me of the year. here's my list for 2011:

+ingrid michaelson, are we there yet
"they say there's linings made of silver folded inside each rainy cloud
well i need someone to deliver our silver lining now.
and are we there yet?"

+mumford & sons, awake my soul
"in these bodies we will live, in these bodies we will die
where you invest your love, you invest your life."

+sara bareilles, the light
"and if you say it'll be alright
i'm gonna trust you babe, gonna look in your eyes
and if you say it'll be alright
i'll follow you into the light."

+avett brothers, i and love and you


what songs remind you of 2011?

we recently took a drive up the beautiful alpine loop which may be the most photographed road in the state right now. there's a good reason, too. the trees are still vibrant and gold and the air is definitely easier to breathe up there.

october is one of my favorite months. we sent it out with a bang by eating the halloween treats we bought since we didn't have any trick or treaters, and i decided that i like chili. but not just any chili, chocolate chipotle chili.

i'm equally excited for november, maybe because we're leaving the country for the longest vacation we've ever had and definitely because it's now acceptable to listen to christmas music. who am i kidding....i've been listening to it for weeks now :) leave it to michael to get you excited for christmas!

traditions

i have been very lazy with my camera lately, so i have no photos, but we have continued a few traditions this year...

kurt bestor. i think he's incredibly talented, and he has nice hair. i look forward to this concert every year. i also leave every year saying "next year, i'm going to learn to play the trumpet." maybe this will be the year that i follow through on that declaration.

pickleville playhouse. we've seen several of their shows throughout the year. their shows are so entertaining. definitely gets you in the spirit of christmas, and i'm excited to continue this tradition with our kids someday.

the ogden christmas village. i guess it's worth the drive. the company was definitely worth the drive. we took my grandpa with us this year and he was in awe of just about everything we saw: the colored lights on each branch of the trees, the immaculate little houses filled with christmas scenes, even the sidewalk made of pavers. he kept saying, "betty jane would have loved this."

sub for santa. mike and i always enjoy picking out a few gifts for some local elementary school students. this year the school forgot to write down specific sizes, so we had a fun time trying to guess what size of socks and underwear a 7-year-old needs. we are pretty clueless on stuff like that. and on another sub for santa related note: today i wrote an article for work about a sub for santa project we're doing. i received an email back from someone in an office in georgia who read the article and needed clarification of what that meant because in her mind, "a sub is a sandwich." i guess she thought we were giving santa a sandwich?

and of course there's the usual family parties, talent sharing, movie watching, present wrapping, baking & eating and hustling & bustling about. for the first time ever, i was done with my christmas shopping at the beginning of december so the month has been quite enjoyable and stress free.

christmas lights, keep shining on

with lovely music like this, how can it not be a happy monday morning? other christmas music i'm loving this year:
still, still, still: jordan bluth
we need a little christmas: glee cast
last christmas: taylor swift
all i want for christmas is you: lady antebellum

i've been wanting to tell you about...

the fascinating and mind-blowing movie, social network.

mike's birthday, which was celebrated with dozens of homemade donuts and dear friends who helped us eat them.

our 4th anniversary.

the debate i'm having about painting my kitchen cabinets white. any of you with white cabinets have an opinion?

my new globe collection.

the ideas brewing in my mind for updated family photos and the best christmas card ever.

the yummy fall treats i've been baking and the naughty dog who discovered she loves pumpkin as much as i do.

the fun evening erin and i had at the ingrid michaelson concert, complete with cafe zupas, a crazy snow storm, and fabulous music. while i wish we saw each other more often, i love that erin and i can go months without seeing each other and still pick up right where we left off.

there's plenty to write about, but apparently i have little to say.

there's something about a man named michael that makes my heart swoon.

both this one:

and this one:

i would gladly fork out $100 to see him in concert again. he puts on the best concert. he is so entertaining, humble (you can read more about that here), and his voice is amazing. my favorite may have been this song:

he made a comment that the hardest songs to hear/sing are often the ones that touch us the most. how true that is; music has a way of saying something that can't be said any other way. he closed the show by taking out his ear piece and singing the final song with no microphone- just him standing in the middle of the stage and belting it out. my mom, kennedy, and i had a grand time.

there are times in life when words cannot express what you're feeling. the only thing adequate is music. this week it has been the 500 days of summer soundtrack (the movie is as amazing as the soundtrack. loved it.) and this beautiful song by noah and the whale. it just might make you cry.

december daily 8-14

december 8: i love putting wrapped presents under the tree. it's like putting away folded laundry. the hard part is over :)
december 9: after a great meeting in ogden, i spent some time christmas shopping with my mom. i swear every year that i'm going to be done with my shopping before december, but i never am. oh well, i guess the hustle and bustle is part of the christmas spirit, right? my mom and i had a fun afternoon and shopped our little hearts out.

on my drive home through sardine canyon, i had a sudden and very distinct thought that i should slow down and watch for deer. i've driven the canyon hundreds of times and have only seen dead deer or deer off in the distance, so it was weird to me that i would suddenly think about seeing deer in the road. thankfully, i slowed down, and sure enough, as i turned the corner a herd of 10+ deer were standing in both lanes of traffic. had i not been going slower, i wouldn't have been able to stop in time and i wouldn't have just hit 1 deer, i would have hit 4 or 5. i am so thankful for the little 'tender mercies' that remind me someone is watching out for me!

december 10: today...

tastes like

*oranges

*hot chocolate

*fresh honey

feels like

*hot flashes & crying

sounds like

*coco is sliding across the linoleum floor

*the tv & radio are going at the same time

looks like

*it's 40 degrees outside, but it's actually 10

*i must go grocery shopping

*a top secret christmas gift
december 11: another 'tender mercy' as i was driving home from yet another day spent in ogden (no shopping this time though. sad.)...my mom bought me the new hilary weeks christmas cd, christmas once again. i have always loved hilary weeks' music, and this cd is no exception. it really is beautiful. my favorite song adds a couple verses to "silent night." as i heard this song, i felt an overwhelming sense of peace and reassurance that someday, i will be humming this same lullaby to my own baby.

on this silent, holy night
as i hold this precious child
there are no words for this moment.
heaven and earth
meet in my arms, tonight
he is mine, and yet, he is God's.
sleep now, sleep my son
sleep in peace.

december 12: merry early christmas...a front loading washer & dryer! our house no longer rattles when we turn on the washer. it's so quiet that i wonder if it's actually working.

december 13: we braved the awful weather so that i could play the piano in my parents' ward for our neighbors' mission homecoming. (sidenote: i got so nervous that i picked my nails/cuticles the whole time and now they are a bloody, raw mess which is problematic because i have to play again this sunday. there's nothing left to pick or pull!) sometimes i really miss my old ward. such great people and leadership. we also got to visit mark + annika and meet their new baby, hallie. oh my, she is perfect, and we are so happy for them!

.december 14: got to play with my niece and nephew tonight. holly was my little shadow and helped me with the pins on the above-mentioned top secret project.

december daily 1-7

i have always wanted to do a december daily album like ali edwards. of course i don't usually plan far enough in advance to complete an album ahead of time...but i figured i could at least take a picture and write a little bit about each day in december. i know it's cliche, but december is my favorite time of year. and this year is the best december EVER because it has been completely stress free. (yay for no finals)

december 1: i went for the traditional red and green christmas tree this year. unfortunately, tai pan ran out of the big red ornaments that i bought, so the tree looks a little lopsided because there aren't enough ornaments. but i'm really excited we have a pre-lit tree that stands straight...our hand-me-down (thanks becky!) tree was great for a couple years, but we love our new one. *

december 2: finished our christmas stockings. still deciding if i should hand-stitch our names on the top?

*

december 3: coco has tried her hardest to leave the shiny ornaments alone. this is her favorite spot to sit and stare at them. *

december 4: finished our christmas table runner. is it bad that i used the machine instead of hand-stitching the binding? *

december 5: for the first time ever, the annual allen party wasn't held at my grandma's house. since she is in the nursing home, we celebrated there. i love the tradition of reading the christmas story and receiving a visit from santa. we are lucky that my grandma is still with us and her health has improved a lot in the last several months. *
december 6: worked on another little project but ran out of red paint.

*
december 7: i may or may not have been listening to this music for a couple months now...but here are some of the songs i'm loving this year.

jon schmidt + coldplay + taylor swift. LOVE it.

this pretty much made my whole week. can't wait for the sheet music!

staying motivated

sometimes even the fact that i still need to lose 15 pounds isn't enough to keep me motivated to exercise. i have, however, found a few things that seem to be keeping me very motivated lately.

1. coco. running with coco is always an interesting experience. first of all, i know that she will be a force of destruction and annoyance all day long if i don't get out with her and let her release some of her pent up puppy energy. that's usually enough to get me going.

i know that i look completely ridiculous when running with coco. my arm is always being stretched as far as it can stretch without detaching from my body. i'm usually running sideways in an attempt to keep coco from pouncing at anything which attracts her attention, which includes but is not limited to grass, robins, cars, trees, power lines, water puddles, other dogs, and garbage cans. coco keeps me going, though, because i know that if i stop, she will take advantage of the slow down and succeed in pulling my arm out of its socket so that she can catch that bird, or she'll probably strangle herself on the choke collar. either way, it's not pretty. so we keep going.

2. new workout clothes. i owe my mother a huge thanks here because whenever i see her, she has a new something for me to exercise in. i finally have matching workout clothes, and when running outside, i feel like a much more official runner when i at least have matching workout stuff.

3. a new playlist. i have to switch up the playlist weekly or the music puts me to sleep instead of keeping me going. here's this week's list. judge all you want, but if the dog pulling my arm out of its socket isn't enough to keep me motivated, zach effron and a little high school musical can definitely do the trick.

escape: enrique iglesias
lose yourself: eminem
goodnight goodnight: hot hot heat
mr. brightside: the killers
viva la vida: coldplay
fabulous: sharpay, high school musical 2
ignition: r. kelly
crazy: gnarls barkley
up & go: the starting line
what time is it: high school musical
young folks: peter, bjorn, and john
sexy back: justin timberlake
teenagers: my chemical romance

happy exercising :)

in my place

if i wasn't a happily married woman, i'm pretty sure i would find a way to marry this man-can't see him? here's a closer look-the coldplay concert was AMAZING. i don't use all caps very often so you know i mean business when i do. chris martin had so much energy, his voice is perfect, his range is incredible, he plays the guitar and the piano, i could go on. my favorite songs were politik, the scientist, and lovers in japan. it was a fun night and a great concert. i want to go again tomorrow.

*

my mom's birthday was saturday so we had a little birthday dinner and played catch phrase to celebrate today. i love my mom- she is a great example to me and has sacrificed a lot for her family. happy birthday!

so. . .

-I vowed never to buy anything snake skin simply for the reason that I'm terrified of snakes. But I bought a darling bag at Old Navy. It's turquoise. It's big. It was cheap. And yes, it's snake skin.

-I kind of tried to dress up for our first Halloween party this weekend. I put a pen behind my ear and told everyone I was a librarian. When I grow up, I want to get as excited about Halloween as my cute grandparents. I wish I would have captured my grandpa with his whole Batman getup on, he had a cape and hat and the whole shebang. But look at their cute costumes-

The party was fun. Lots of games, lots of food, and everyone was dressed up in a cute costume. The little kids all got medals (a paper plate to tie around their necks with ribbon) for their costumes. They got SO excited when they heard their name and awards called.

Some of my favorite costumes were Paige as Sharpay, Meg as a road, Matt as a 'homliss' guy, and Dot with her cute robe and inflated chest.

-It's never too early to start listening to/playing Christmas music. Okay. . . maybe August is too early, but October is not. As long as you've got a good variety, including Michael Buble, Bing Crosby, Kurt Bestor, and Faith Hill. I raided my mom's piano books this weekend and want to sit at the piano playing Jon Schmidt's Christmas music all day long.

-Speaking of music, I heart Don't Let Me Fall by Lenka. I think the lyrics and music are so sweet.

-Have you ever played the game Psychiatrist? I think I had played it a couple times before, but I forgot how much fun this game is. Mike and I actually stayed up until 12:30 am (which is about 4 hours past our bedtime) playing it with my cousins and sisters.

this week

-didn't do laundry and realized this morning that we were out of clean Gs. oops.

-went to firehouse with erin.

i just love her so much and am going to miss her terribly when she leaves to canada to serve her mission. she is going to be an awesome missionary. the canadians are lucky to be getting her.

-can't stop listening to the world spins madly on and coldplay's new song, viva la vida. only a couple more weeks until the new cd comes out. yay!

-went to a wedding reception for an old roommate. she looked beautiful and it was fun to see her.

-broke down and turned on the heat. then opened all the windows today because it's so warm.

-deep cleaned the bathroom. yeah for organized and clean shelves. (my mom would be proud)

-excited for the weekend. a picnic and bike ride. a late birthday lunch. celebrating the best dad in the whole world. hope you all enjoy your weekend.

rain-induced thinking

I love days such as today, when it's rainy, and dark, and cold, and green, and foggy. . . the perfect kind of day to be nestled in the reading chair with my friends Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester. The rain has me feeling all nostalgic. And so I share with you my random thoughts induced by rain. . .

*when we first got married, mike wanted new scripture hi-liters. so we bought this little package of 8 and he kept them in his scriptures and he still treasures them. i borrowed the yellow one once when i was reading. while we were driving home from church one day, he noticed that a hi-liter was missing and asked where it was.
"At home," I said.
"Why is it at home?"
"Because I like to hi-lite when I'm reading but I don't like to take hi-liters to church."
"Okay. Well don't lose it."
After this comment, I broke into tears and cried for the rest of the day. Mike wondered what he'd said wrong. He felt so bad and kept apologizing. It wasn't that he'd said anything wrong. He just married a girl who likes to cry and bursts into tears at any given moment.

*my sweet grandma isn't in the best mental or physical health and everytime we walk in to her house she yells, "why didn't you bring your kids?! where are your babies?!" based on her comments, pressure from my little sisters, and my baby-hungry in-laws, i'm starting to feel that all i'm good for is producing children.

*the most relaxing thing to me is driving around and singing at the top of my lungs to music. (michael buble is especially wonderful for singing along with). people who pull up next to me at stoplights think i'm nuts. since the oil companies are making a whopping $4 a gallon on gas, driving isn't the cheapest form of relaxation, but it's cheaper than a massage, right?

*i love to have sore muscles after exercising and that is my main motivation to exercise. when i'm having that internal debate with myself of "to exercise or i'm too tired to exercise," the first thing that comes to mind is not the fact that i need to lose about 50 pounds and get my poor self back in shape. instead i remember how good it feels to be so sore that it's difficult to walk and hurts to laugh and i'm suddenly motivated to exercise.

*sudoku has become a new obsession. (thanks didi) i played it once and thought it was just a guessing game. but then i realized there's actually strategy behind it and now i can't stop one of the dang puzzles until i'm finished with it. it sucks me in almost as much as a vampire love story.

2 things

#1: i've never quit reading a book in the middle of it, but i am so done with "love in the time of cholera." i was hoping for a sweet love story, passionate characters, or something of substance- the book won a nobel prize so i was sure it would be good. but it's not. 150 pages in, nothing has happened. i don't know who the characters are. i've only ready 2 chapters because they are each 75 pages long. the whole story is told in summary. i would not recommend this book. stephanie meyer- i hope your new book can pull me out of the reading rut i'm in.




#2: itunes has made some money off me this week. here's what i'm loving right now-

For You- Duncan Sheik
Reasons to Love You- Meiko
Today- Jeremy Larson
From My Heart to Yours- Laura Izibor
Follow Through (acoustic)- Gavin DeGraw
Sweeter Than This- Katie Herzig
Gotta Have You- The Weepies
Won't Go Home Without You- Maroon 5
Samson- Regina Spektor
Dreaming With a Broken Heart- John Mayer
If Work Permits- The Format
Just a Ride- Jem
Oh, It Is Love- Hellogoodbye
Come to Me- Koop
Parantheses- The Blow

6 Things

Because it's November 6th, here are 6 things I'm grateful for:

1. My Husband. He's the best, what more can I say? :)

2. Christmas Music. I realize that it's still early in November, but I love Christmas music. This CD by Hilary Weeks always gets me excited for Christmas.


3. My Family. They're pretty great!



4. School. Even though I just wish I was done, I'm glad I have the chance to earn my degree. And I am working hard for it!

5. Diet Coke. Sometimes I can't make it through the day without a little Diet Coke goodness.

6. Dr Laura. This woman is brutal. I can only handle her in little bits at a time. But I'm glad someone with her influence will stand up for kids who have irresponsible parents, speak out against people who "shack up," and advocate for husbands who have crappy wives. And just when I think I'm having a rough day, I listen to Dr Laura and remind myself that my life is very blessed.