White Trash Party

4th Annual White Trash Party!

This is us last year, and it was held at our house!

This was the year before

The party is THIS saturday, November 1, 2008!
Where: 946 East 900 South in Provo!
When: It starts at 7:00
What: Dress up and enjoy the company of fellow rednecks!
I know it's right after Halloween, but come dress up and have a great time!
Bring a dish of food/snack if ya want!

Fall

Have I ever mentioned how much I love Fall? I don't think so. In California we don't really have seasons and we definitely don't have colors as beautiful as Autumn in Utah. Here are some reasons why I love fall so much:

I love leaves! I love to crunch them under my feet, and
make a pile then throw them everywhere! Today I went outside
and literally watched the leaves fall. It was so peaceful!

This is the view when I walk out my front door.
I love the colors!

I'm not so good at carving pumpkins,
but I love pumpkin pie and pumpkin seeds!
Travis carved this one. It's the Milo symbol but notice
how it says Cook instead of Milo. :)

One more reason: I bought these golashes for 12 bucks.

It doesn't make me dread the snow as much anymore.
I'll be grumbling as I trudge through the snow,
but at least I'll be stylish!
I have another cute pair coming soon! :)

You're the one that I want!

Travis and I were the Grease couple for a Halloween party on Saturday night. I, of course was Sandra Dee and he was Danny. :) We won an award for "most original." I didn't really look the part, but Trav totally did! My hair is too short, but I poofed it out quite a bit. It was a blast.
I couldn't find a modest dress for Marilyn Monroe, so Sandra Dee it was! Let me tell you about this party, there was rock band, food, games, and a PINATA! It was awesome. We had such a great time! We didn't have pictures of our competition, but there were some good ones. The joker was there, nacho libre, the tooth fairy (a MAN), a girl scout (a man also... ick!), malificent from sleeping beauty, and many others! P.S. These are fake cigarettes. We don't smoke. :)

Pure Talent:

Rise Against.

Their new CD is AMAAAAAZING! I can't wait to go to the show. I have all the albums and I must say I'm obsessed. Seriously. So sick!

This stinks!

So I'm sitting here at work and we often play musical chairs here. Without giving away confidential or proprietary information, all you need to know is that sometimes I bring my chair to other cubicals. Well everywhere I've brought my chair has stunk. I don't know if people here have smelly feet or what, but it's fettid! So I'm here waiting for the last hour of work to go by, and I plop down into my chair. Well up wofts that stank nastiness... from my chair!! I dunno who sat here last but they must've had some serious swass or somethin cuz this chair reeks! I swapped out the chairs and I'm feeling much better now. And here I am thinking it's everyone else when everyone else thinks it's me! :/ It's the chair... I swear!!!

I don't know what I did with my gum

P.S. This is my sister Lizzie

So Rachel and I just got back from the Las of the Vegas and had a BLAST!!! I can't even tell you how much fun it was! We did everything we wanted to and we shopped til we dropped! Literally, we were exhausted by the end of the trip. The entire drive down there wasn't a silent moment. We chatted like two teenage girls the whole time, and we continued to do so for the remainder of the trip. It was so wonderful to be able to catch up and share our emotions with each other whether it was laughing, crying, getting frustrated or laughing because we were frustrated. :)

We did some work while we were down there, too. The agency hooked us up! We got our hotel comped, and we got money for food, AND we got paid to work! The work we did while we were down there wasn't even that hard, either. Plus it really helps when you are "working" with your best friend and she can read your mind and know exactly when the perfect switching time is. :) Rachel, I love you.

On Thursday night as we were driving back to our hotel, randomly I said, "I don't know what I did with my gum." Immediately Rachel burst into laughter. But seriously, I do NOT remember what I did with it. I was chewing it and then I wasn't! I cannot for the life of me remember spitting it out, throwing it away, or swallowing it (YUCK). Normally I am completely aware of my body and what I do, and I would remember something like that. I know it is a really random thought, but I have a point.

This trip has been SO good for me. As an interpreter I am hyper aware of what I say and do. If I sit in the chair and start interpreting and I am not aware of what I am saying and also the information I am receiving, I will interpret horribly. However, it's those times when I am aware that I can tell if I am doing poorly or well. If I sit down and I can interpret and make a grocery list in my head at the same time (yes, I've done it, I'm a GREAT multi-tasker and my brain is capable of handling many things at one time) then I'm not really aware and even though my production may be swell, it's not the best I can do. Similarly, if I ever THINK I have offended someone, I will check to make sure I haven't, or if I have, I make amends. Again, I'm hyper aware.

However, on this trip (besides when we worked) I just LET MYSELF GO!!!! It felt awesome to be able to just say what's on my mind, knowing that my best friend won't ever judge me or think less of me. This trip I have said so many random things and a few faux pas along the way. I even jumbled up my words a ton. Rachel would just look at me and smile. It feels good to truly let go sometimes, and know that I'm not going to be criticized or judged, and that she probably won't even remember it. I'll be back on track tomorrow morning for work, but I think I'm going to try letting go more often. It feels dang good. And who cares what I did with my gum... I didn't want it anyway. :)

"Aw... my baby doesn't weigh enough!"

Yesterday Travis and I took a little drive up the canyon to have dinner with our friends. I had just woken up from a nap so I didn't feel like driving, so Travis offered to drive my car. Now, I rarely sit in the passenger side of my own car. (Duh, I'm the one driving it, so why would I sit there?!) As we're driving along, Travis (out of the blue) says, "Awww, my baby doesn't weigh enough to trigger the passenger air bag... how cute..." Immediately my eyes flashed up to the light that indicates whether the passenger airbag is on or off. It's supposed to be on when someone sits in the seat... except for me.

I kept slamming my butt harder into the seat hoping it would trigger; maybe I was sitting in the seat wrong and my center of weight was off... not triggering the censor. I panicked!!! It would be on for like 2 seconds and then it would go off again! I'm thinking to myself, "Something's gotta be wrong; it's the censor, not me!" However I recall Travis sitting there and the light being on the entire time. Do I need a vest with weights on it? Well gee whiz, I'm never sitting in the passenger seat of my car again!! Travis will just have to drive me around limo-style. "Charles, get me a martini!"

For those of you who are reading this thinking, "oh man, I wish that was my problem..." There are worse things. Like... think about me when I'm dead cuz I got in a car accident and the air bag DIDN'T go off. Now do ya wish it was your problem?? Yep, never sittin there again. :)

couldn't find a sitter?

So I'm sitting interpreting a class and in walks a student with her child. She's not the first person do have done this in her class, and I have a feeling she won't be the last. So I just gotta say it really bothers me when parents bring their children to class, ONLY because I cannot stop staring! May I just add that this little boy was so well behaved! He sat quietly for the majority of the class. On occasion he peered up at his mother from behind her laptop with his gorgeous blue eyes as if to say, "Mother, why are these people so quiet and why is that big man up there yelling at us?" He didn't whine and ask for candy every 5 minutes! I was impressed. ESPECIALLY because yesterday while Rachel and I were out for dinner there was a mother with her 3 boys and they were everywhere. At Bajio I'm pretty sure when you are ordering there is a sign that says "Please do not touch the glass." Not only was the sign ignored but the 3 children were up sitting on the ledge and acting like monkies. The ledge is pretty high up and I'm assuming the oldest boy helped himself up but the other 2 must've been lifted up and put there by their mother. Yikes-a-bee!! My heavens they were out of control! I don't have children yet so I cannot possibly fathom how hard it must be to literally juggle all of your children at once but I would hope I'd have a little more tact than to let my children run wild... in a restaurant!

"I wanna be like youuuuu"

So you all know I have this thing for being unique, and you've all heard me complain when people "copy" me, etc and I'll have you all know I'm doing a lot better about that and I'm slowly getting over it! So if you want to know where I got my super cute gold shoes with the pearls on them, I'll tell you, and you can buy them if you want. :) I'm realizing more and more that I am unique just because I am me, so it doesn't really matter if someone has the same hair or clothes as me.

That being said, I totally have a confession to make!!!! I desperately want to be like someone. I know, I know, I'm such a hypocrite! This person has been such an example to me ever since I met her and actually I used to think we were sooo alike and now I'm thinking we are SO not! Let me just explain some qualities about this person and you'll see why I want to be like her so badly!

-She is sooo kind. She rarely says a negative thing about anyone. In fact, I don't think I have ever heard her mutter a negative word or gossip about any person.

-She is slow to anger. I've never seen her truly upset.

-Her heart is HUGE. She has so much love to give and she gives it freely.

-She is HILARIOUS! I laugh so hard when I'm around her.

-She defends those she loves

-She works hard

-She is gorgeous

-She is creative

-She is spiritual

-She's a great interpreter

-She is not critical or judgemental

-She is forgiving

-She's got her head on straight. She's very emotion driven but logic based, too. She always gives the best advice because she can see both sides.

-She is very positive and uplifting

There's so much more but this is the list I could think of for now. I've realized that she is such a role model to me. When we first met we basically thought we were the same person, and I've had to admit, I did have some of those qualities. We still have a lot in common regarding our likes/dislikes, favorite movie and fav places to eat, but she has grown and progressed while I've stayed stuck in a rut. I don't know how I've gotten here, but when I think about her, the only thing that comes to mind is that we are soooo different. I've somehow become more abrasive and less sincere. I haven't been around the most positive people and it really affects me! I need positivity and affirmation. To all who I've offended, I sincerely apologize for it! I want to be like this person, and I know I can improve and do better. Please help me out and be positive around me and let's not gossip anymore! This person emits positivity wherever she goes and she is sooo humble. I want to be like that too. I love her so much and I'm glad we're such great friends.