Big Moments

A couple of weekends ago Dan and I took a little road trip.

My brother Garet (who by the way is moving to Logan in the fall, is a complete stud, and totally available!) graduated from Snow College and we spent the night in Ephraim.  It was about a 3 hour drive, and a nice physical getaway from Northern Utah.

We stayed the night in a hotel with my mom and grandma which is always a good time... especially in Ephraim.  Besides the unusual sleeping habits that every person in the room had, (snoring, reading till 4:00am in the bathroom, and sleep apnia) there was a cat fight between to girls at 3:00am, both of which were screaming at the top of their lungs- and a few gunshots to follow.  I'm grateful that I have always been blessed with the gift of deep sleep and didn't hear a thing all night!

There were a few other crazy people we ran into during the 14 hours we were in this little college town, and am 100% confident in saying I will NEVER live anywhere in Utah south of Spanish Fork, unless its St. George!

But besides our exposure to the little town of Ephraim, we had a great time celebrating my brother in his achievement. (WARNING: I look horrendous in these pictures, but hey it wasn't my big day!)

 The Graduate!

 Proud Mom

My Brothers: Gavin, Garet, and I

 My cute Grandma Anne

The whole gang

A little secret, I cry when I see other people during big moments in their life.  For example, the Ragnar race runs in front of my mom's house in Morgan every year. It's actually the point where there is a hand-off, the next person is being tagged to run. The person who is doing the tagging just ran miles and miles of hills and they are always exhausted.  I can see from the front window, this whole process of the runner, booking it down the last hill with every ounce of energy they have. I cry I every time.  I am so inspired by people who meet the challenge and do hard things.

So it was a really great moment to watch my little brother (who is actually taller than me) finish his time at Snow College. He received the best grades he's ever had in his life; he took hard classes and was really diligent in his studies. He worked hard and earned a great reward! He now is has a scholarship to Utah State and will be moving to Logan in the fall.  I'm pretty excited about this, it'll be nice to have a family member close by and to have some good sibling bonding.

This last week my pretty much only cousin graduated high school from Mountain Crest here in Cache Valley.  I again couldn't help but get a little teary eyed again thinking about all she has done and accomplished! She is coming to USU in the fall too.  I'm so excited for her to start college and experience the joys and learning curves of freshman year-- it's the best!

I love accomplishments in life. I love the progression, maturity, and wisdom that comes from WORK, dedication, discipline, and drive.

PRANCERCISE

So every once in awhile, you come across a little something in life that makes you laugh so hard you cry every time you think about it. So before you continue reading, I insist that you watch the video below! It's only five minutes, and if you wanna catch the highlights, forward to the following times:

The Prancercise Walk: Start at Beginning

The Prancercise Trot (It's really hot!): 1:17

The Prancercise Gallop (cut the noose and let it loose!): 2:23

 The Prancercise Shadow Box (it's better to be punching into space, than in your face!): 3:30

The Wrap-Up: 4:43

If you think this is great, wait until you check out her website! 

 http://prancercise.com/

And if you think that is great, wait until you click on her book at Amazon.com and read the reviews!

 http://www.amazon.com/Prancercise-Physical-Spiritual-Excellence-ebook/product-reviews/B00APLQTT0/ref=sr_1_1_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1

 Oh my I cannot get over this picture with the photoshopped horse!

 So now you have met Joanna Rohrback, Owner/MGR.M of Prancercise LLC!

Sometimes I don't know how people come up with this stuff! 

 

 

So next time you are out walking your dog, doing your morning exercise, or walking through the mall, don't be afraid to get a little prancercise in! And remember, "Get out there, and have some fun!"

I'm a Google Wife

Well anyone one who's ever tried to get a job in Logan knows that it is no small task. Dan has been looking for like 9-10 weeks for a job. And I'm so happy and proud of him because he finally landed himself one, with Google!

 So for the next 8 weeks, Dan will be driving a Google car with this massive camera on top of it. He'll drive around Cache Valley and other small towns surrounding the valley and record the "street view" for Google maps.  It's a lot of driving but he'll know this place like the back of his hand when he's done

 

There is a movie coming out on June 7th called "The Internship".  Here is the plot: 

"Billy (Vince Vaughn) and Nick (Owen Wilson) are salesmen whose careers have been torpedoed by the digital world. Trying to prove they are not obsolete, they defy the odds by talking their way into a coveted internship at Google, along with a battalion of brilliant college students. But, gaining entrance to this utopia is only half the battle. Now they must compete with a group of the nation's most elite, tech-savvy geniuses to prove that necessity really is the mother of re-invention."

 

I think its so funny that Dan started working for Google like a week after we saw the movie preview! I think it may be totally necessary to go see this movie... and have Dan drive the Google car to the movie theater... and then take a picture.

So Dan flew out this week to Tuscan, AZ and picked up his Google car and received the training, and is now en route back to Logan.  It's funny the opportunities and experiences that come our way in life.  Hopefully this will open doors for an analyst internship with Google next summer... then I'll really be married to a Google intern and this movie will have even more hilarious relevance to our lives!

"I Don't Know about You- But I'm feeling 22... I mean 24"

TWENTY FOUR...

Well it was a little less painful than turning 23 surprisingly. I thought I'd do a little self reflection and come up with 24 things I love in life.

1- I love the sun. I love the feeling of being just a little sunburned. It gives me this feeling of being alive.

2- I love ART. I love looking at art, and wandering through museums full of it.

 

3- I love Asian people! I love their food, I love their natural beauty, I just love them.

 

4- I love eating Indian food. Especially at Tandoori Oven in Logan (which shares its venue with a Sinclair gas station).

5- I love pretty things.

6- I love getting dressed in the morning and finding a new combination of clothes to wear every day. And someday I will have a closet as great as this.

 

7- I love cleaning and organizing. This is super therapeutic to me. It almost feels like it's in my blood-- I can't live any other way but in an organized mess :)

8- I love progression. I love moving forward, overcoming, and achieving. It's so fulfilling to me no matter how large or small it may be.

9- I love reading. Mysteries, Fiction, Scriptures, the news, blogs, whatever.

10- I love the color pink.  I always have since forever. I don't wear it too often, but it will always be my color.

11- I love bargains.  I have a life policy that I never buy anything full price. If you don't already know this, there is such thing as a "shoppers high"... and it's fabulous.

 

12- I love people who are comfortable with themselves.  I really enjoy people who just are open and honest about who they are: their like, dislikes, feelings, mistakes, etc. They accept themselves and accept others.  They value difference and individuality.  They make me feel so good about who I am right now.  It's really hard for me to be around people who are comparative to everyone around them about everything. (Sorry, that was a long one!)

13- I love hockey games and demolition derbys. They are probably the most "violent" forms of entertainment I enjoy. There is just something so thrilling about them!

 

14- I love Egyptian culture.  I think it is so fascinating.

 

15- I love understanding people's thought processes.  I like asking questions to understand why people act/react, or make the choices they do.

 

16- I love Chocolate.  Yum yum yum!

 

17- I love space.  I love movies about space. Every once in awhile when I'm looking up at the stars,  I'll have this overwhelming feeling of how incredible and amazing the universe is.

 

18- I love ocean life.  I think the plant and animal life is so COOL! Sea World is better than Christmas for me.

19- I love making lists (Ha bet no one could guess that). It's just how my brain thinks and it's how I stay organized.

 

20- I love candles. If I can afford to do so, I will always have a candle on hand in our apartment burning.  The smell of my home is really important to me.

 

21- I love traveling. I really enjoy the change of pace and life it brings, I love how refreshing it is to enjoy different sceneries, people, culture, etc.

 

22- I love survival situations. I love movies about surviving through natural disasters, space invasions, zombie apocalypse, etc. I kind of have always wanted to experience some sort of natural disaster- not to major, but enough for an adrenaline rush!

23- I love eyelashes.  Whenever I meet someone, one of the first things I look at are their eyelashes... super weird I know. I just think they are so flattering on people! Maybe someday I'll be able to afford getting them done.

24- This last one is a summary of the most important things: I love my dearest husband Dan the Man, I love my Family, and I love my religion.

The Classic Battle... Blonde vs. Brunette

 Well it's time. Time to do something with the hair.  It's always a dilemma to know whether to go darker vs. lighter. I know it's summer and everyone is supposed to be going lighter... but I don't feel like the seasons should determine my hair color. 

Take a looksie and cast your vote- blonde or brunette? 

Tunes, Jams, and Jingles

I have the strangest taste in music. There is nothing consistent about it. My Pandora list on "shuffle" is quite range of genres. Which always makes for a good time.

Just thought I'd share a few songs that I've loved lately. DISCLAIMER: I think music videos are the weirdest things. The stranger they are, the better (so it seems). I usually hit play and then open a different window because I think music videos always ruin the song!

The Dog Days Are Over- Florence+the Machine

" Happiness  hit her like a train on a track
Coming towards her stuck still no turning back"

Happy days are coming this summer. I'm sure of it.

Arms- Christina Perri

I became obsessed with this song when our videographer

used it in our wedding video! 

Elements- Lindsey Stirling

She is actually Mormon and totally her own thing. 

Violin+Dubstep= kind of love it

Anything Can Happen- Ellie Goulding

This is a great song to run to. And too bad she ruined

her hair with this weird cotton candy look.

Here Comes Your Man- Meaghan Smith

I just think this song is cute. I love the little beat it has.

Hello Summer!

Glory Hallelujah!

Dan made it through finals. Bout killed us both. But the deed is done. Oh wait, summer school starts on Monday...

I'm so ready for summer.  In prior years, I'm usually peacing out of Logan this time of year and missing (what I hear) is the best season to live here!  Perhaps this hundred days of Summer can convince me that there is actually a reason people live here by choice.  Okay I know Logan isn't THAT bad, but I think I've decided I'm am not a Western US kinda gal... I like the east coast and the south a lot better :)

But enough daydreaming about warm, southern hospitality and a house with a wrap-around porch...

Summer Bucket List in Logan 2013:

- Go to Bear Lake at least once a month and drink raspberry lemonade
- Go camping up Logan Canyon
- Hike the Crimson Trail
- Have a campfire in Green Canyon Cave
- Make a boat and float it in first dam.
- I am going to a Demolition Derby! I love those things!
- There's a Cache County fair during the summer right? Yeah I'll check that out.
- I want to fly kites!
- Sand volleyball... all the time. (recruiting team members now)
- Ride my bike to work everyday! (ha we'll see how this goes!)
- Going running every morning with my pal Kaitlin! She's going to whip us in shape. I'm excited.
- Not kill our flower box full of pansies!
- If we go out to eat, I only want to eat at local restaurants the whole summer
- I want to walk to the farmer's markets with Dan on Saturday mornings and buy fresh produce!
- Did I mention sun? I think I need more vitamin D than most people. I love the sun. I love sun-kissed skin!

We are definitely going to need a hammock strung between two trees when I live in my southern dream home. Oops- off topic again.

Well here's to summer, and it being a great one!