4 weeks notice

well it's official.  either i'm moving to boston to start school in january or i need to find a new job.  either way i'm done with mine officially on december 20th!!

so i had a little boston cream pie yogurt to celebrate.



wuthering heights

fact: i bought wuthering heights based on sandra bullock's saying she reads it every christmas on the proposal.  not that it has anything to do with christmas. i don't think. but she was a book editor in the movie so it has to be good right? oh and the small detail that it's an english classic.

jane eyre is one of my favorites so i'm hoping her sister writes as well.

happiness: my choice

for some reason i got it into my head that my life would just 'fall into place'. because that's what happens to everyone around me. it just worked out. didn't it? so apparently i've been waiting. and waiting. and now i'm 26 and just realizing now that my life is what i make of it. that i am 'dripping with potential' as my old bishop used to say. and i can be anything i want to be.

i can't control everything that happens to me. for that i can choose to be keep a happy attitude. but what i can control why am i not making of it the very best? what am i waiting for?

and so, as of two weeks ago, i am pursuing what will make me happy. because i deserve it. we all deserve it.  my attitude is that of i-am-in-control-of-my-life-and-its-going-to-be-good. so good. and now is the perfect time.



last sunday was this ces devotional entitled 'we are the architects of our own happiness'. no better time could this have come. in so many different ways.  listen to it. you'll love it.

more apples

the caramel apple tradition carried on in my ward.  

i love the ladies in my relief society. they are all so talented and beautiful in their own ways. we always have such a good time when we get together. combine it with yummy treats and you can't get much better.

halloween cuties

what's one of the fastest costumes you can put together the night you need it?  a witch. in a tulle tutu.  and there you have it.

saw these two little cuties halloween night.  julie was all hyped up on sugar and only wanting more. mel was her somber little self.  so cute.  sure missed mason though.

caramel apples have become a fall/halloween tradition. granny smith apples to counteract all the sweet goodness.  favorites include white chocolate with cinnamon sugar, white chocolate with toasted coconut, milk chocolate with pretzels.  so gooyummy. 

a north logan tradition

i couldn't even tell you the first time i went to the north logan pumpkin walk. forever ago probably. it's a north logan tradition and nothing else seems to measure up.  

i haven't been during the day since grade school i'm sure but i may be converted.  

cute julie's face:

there's a trail off the road around the block from my parent's house that made the walk there so perfect.  between a horse pasture and a hay field. the fall colors are still amazing.

can't leave out this little gem. came across a few bikes left at the park. yes that would be a soccer ball for the seat.

happy beginning of halloween season!

tired eyes

someone told me today that i look tired. i hated that. because i feel tired and stressed but don't want it showing on my face. i need a new job. 

so if anyone hears of an interior design firm hiring someone in purchasing/costing holler my way.  especially if it's in boston. or really any job in boston. just throwing that out there.

a little party planning. and throwing

i have a problem.  and i talk about this problem only so others understand the craziness that is me.  and don't judge me for it.  

i get an idea in my head and nothing stops me until it's complete.  even if it means staying up until 2 a.m. spray painting by the light of my porch light, special ordering from a shop on etsy with priority shipping so striped straws get here in time, going to every antique and thrift store in town, and maybe twin falls, to find white milk glass bud vases, and the crazy continues.  

and people offer to help but how can i feel good about asking someone to help enable the crazy? and so i get zero sleep for the week prior. but i absolutely love doing it. because a part of me feels like if i go crazy it'll help others feel special and loved. and it gives me something to focus my energy on other than work and church.

for my sweet friend celeste. . . so happy for her and ryan

and for my cute roommate katie . . . who's leaving me!

and since natali left for new york, thanks to my brother brandon for his photoshop magic.

a fall drive

did i mention i love the fall? so much. can't beat a sunday afternoon drive with friends.

can you believe these girls had never been to tony grove lake before? can't blame katie since she's not from here but sydney's lived in logan forever! glad i could bring some local culture into their lives.  

biking through sun valley

where did the month of september go? it's fine because i love october but my sister informed me she doesn't know what's going on in my life because this blog has fallen on the priority list. so here goes for an update.

i've always heard sun valley is a really neat little resort town. candace moved to twin falls back in july so with the fall colors coming on we decided a day trip to sun valley to ride bikes was needed.  

can i just say i love railroad bridges?

honestly we thought the towns before you get to sun valley were way better but that's just us.

the bright spots to a rough week

it's been a rough week so i've tried to focus on the bright spots, the tender mercies that helped me make it through the days:

bike ride to macey's for an ice cream cone to find we'd forgotten a bike lock.  good thing we live in the 'safest city in america'. . .

my nephew rocking my niece in her car seat. both having way too much fun. i love little boy giggles.

the biggest loaf of soft white bread from a friend who knew i needed it. nothing like healing a heart with a load of simple carbs.

i'm a mess at funerals and my grandpa's was no exception but what a legacy he left to remember him by. this photo of my grandparents makes me smile.

one day a year i get to be an suu fan among my town of usu die hards. and i wear the shirt proud. (it says sout hern utah all on different levels since you can't read it). such awesome girls i get to hang with. 



a waffle series: pumpkin chocolate chip

i am so ready for fall. ready for the weather to be cooler, the leaves to change, scarves and boots and layers, and warm yummy comfort food. so now if the 90 degree weather would stop that'd be great.

pumpkin chocolate chip cookie with a cream cheese frosting

grandpa a

one of the classiest men i know passed away today.  grandpa ackerman was 85 years old and ready to join his sweethearts and daughter after a long full life. 

i'll always remember him for his giant mugs of dr. pepper, beautiful paintings, sense of humor, clocks set minutes apart so you'd hear them all chime, singing little tunes about people's names, especially my little sister's: katie, big long hugs that lifted you off the floor, telling us to 'drive honest' meaning 92 mph, bottles of tums that we'd eat like candy, driving crazy down the street in his little black truck, gorgeous landscaped yards, and his sweater vests.

he sure will be missed. love you grandpa. have fun with grandma again.

kayaking, yep kayaking

twin falls, nyc, where next. all my friends are growing up and leaving me. and i just can't make the move. yet.

the weekend before the 24th i went and visited candace in twin falls when she called so excited: let's go kayaking up the snake river to the falls! 

at that point i wondered how well she really knew me. or if she'd ever met me. so not my thing but her excitement won me over and it was a blast. who knew that little gem was in the middle of nowhere idaho?

here's a little collage of pictures she put together for me:



my fav holiday

the 24th of july. known only to utahn's and latter-day saints. full of small town parades and carnivals and bbq's. my kind of holiday.

ever since i can remember the parade has gone down the street in front of my parents' house so the entire extended family congregates at 8 a.m. for breakfast, the parade at 10 a.m., carnival activities at noon, and a bbq at 3 p.m. it may or may not turn into a 12 hour affair. that's a lot of findlay family time. 

we missed a lot of family this year but had a fun time with those who made it:



didn't get pictures of our fish pond, popcorn stand, or game of human battleship. or my poor niece when she got caught in the middle of a water fight with us and one of the floats in the parade. found her drenched and crying on the blanket when things calmed down. whoops.

favorite memory from last year: the m&m game got a little intense and my cousin connor sat back hard in his chair and kept going back falling and hitting the table with the 5 gallon jug of homemade cream soda and knocking it over. everyone jumped more concerned about saving the soda leaving connor to get up on his own saying, 'don't worry about me'. maybe you had to be there.

a waffle series: salted caramel

maybe it's a girl thing or maybe it's my addiction to salt (if i could eat popcorn for every meal i would) but salted caramel is so yummy. a little unexpected flavor but i think unexpected is the trend right now.

chocolate cookie with a subtle caramel frosting drizzled with caramel and topped with sea salt.

26 and such a good day

i struggled turning 25 and worried i would be the same with 26 but had such a good day i hardly thought about how old i was turning.

with trina and mason in town we did a birthday dinner with dutch oven pizza, s'mores, and lemon custad aggie ice cream and just spent the evening chilling in the back yard at my parents. the night was perfect.

this picture represents julie and mason so well, one not interested, the other eating.

and what more can you ask for on your birthday than a few surprises from someone far away:



i have a feeling it's going to be a good year.

a waffle series: the neapolitan

i love the strawberry most in neapolitan ice cream and this cookie definitely doesn't lack in strawberry flavoring. 

mini chocolate cookies with a strawberry infused buttercream drizzled with white chocolate. 

a little disclaimer: this cookie is still in the works so you may see another version in the future.

a new mario game

my sundays aren't normally too crazy but yesterday was an exception. started at 9:30 a.m. and ended at 9:00 p.m. but it was a great day. caught this picture while out doing visits with the r.s. presidency:

he said they were waiting for trick-or-treaters. and they'd even had some already. all i kept thinking about was the 90 degree weather and his long sleeves and hat. but he was having fun and that's all that matters. seriously so funny.

i hope my kids have some crazy ideas like this little man. and that i don't stop them from doing them.

apostate emails

what does it say about the quality of friend you are when you receive an email with the subject line: hafta send an apostate email geez. and this is from the missionary who is only supposed to email family and the rest of us rely on the snail mail of canada. but it had been so long since she's heard from me she felt the need to break the rules and deny herself the blessings associated with it.

i'm a horrible friend. any way to get her those blessings back?

a waffle series: the turtle

a variation on the classic, generally for a more mature audience (what kid likes nuts?)

chocolate cookie with chocolate frosting topped with pecan halves and a caramel drizzle.