EFY (Neverending Fun)

This is what has kept me busy almost every minute since I got back from the U.S. (EFY--for more info, click here.)

Our team at the start of the week:





Our team at the end of the week:




Our team cheer:




Can you see there were good times had by all?

Tomorrow I'm going to sleep as long as possible so I can keep more unbelievable hours next week at the Young Single Adult conference.

Sparkling Sisters

Writing backwards with sparklers when your camera is on the stars setting is pretty awesome, especially when joined by your sisters. (Tip: the cheapest silvery sparklers work the best.)



Or when you all look great together at a viewing.




Come to think of it, just being with your sisters is awesome, especially when they're as awesome as mine.



Miss them already.

Stanford Visit

My sister Amy wanted 1. me to see where they live on Stanford's campus and 2. someone to help her drive her two kids to Utah for the Clyde G. Smith family reunion and her high school reunion, so she bought me a ticket to Cali. Unfortunately, the cheapest tickets had a transfer in Long Beach, where the gate was changed three times and the plane was an hour late, but I didn't mind because after much debate I had caved and put three books in my shoulder bag and got through one and a half. I finished Note to Self (a collection of essays by women about hardship) and started on I Have Lived A Thousand Years (a true holocaust story). Also, I have to share that while I was reading with my sunglasses on because of the sunset blinding everyone, there was the following announcement made: "Excuse me, if your eyes are hurting from the bright light of the sun, it's because you left your sunglasses at the security check. Please come claim them." Ha ha.

After spending the night on Amy and Paul's enormous, white, wool couch, and saying goodbye to Paul, we read several books to Sadie and James.





Then we took the Margerite A-Line bus to the most famous part of Stanford.





We saw the cathedral and the languages building and went up a tower where we could the whole surrounding area and the organ-looking instrument that is used to play the bells on campus (I would love to try that thing. The guy said the keys are played with fists because they're heavy).








Then we went to Target to create a San Francisco-themed basket for the raffle at the family reunion. Amy stopped by another store to get So I Married An Axe Murderer, and I entertained the kids by yelling boo and grabbing their legs after hiding behind my book.

When we got back home, we made muffins and played in the toy-filled sandbox in the courtyard between all the married housing buildings,





which was followed by baths and the finishing up of the holocaust book (recommended).





Then Amy and Paul headed to a party.

The next morning, we got in the car and drove. I don't think any sane person would make a trip like that, but I'm not sane. I'm insanely blessed to have Amy, Paul, Sadie, and James, not to mention all the good books from the library. Thanks!

Salt Lake Trip Until Now

I gratefully got an extension on my master's thesis, meaning I could stop freaking out and spend time with my family.

I have been:

-catching up on barely putting a dent in my enormous lists of mostly-suggested movies (several French) and books and music from the local library.

-spectating (that is now a word in my book, in case you were wondering) my dad and brothers' softball games, where my mom holds other people's chubby babies--check out the roll in the middle of this kid's forearm.
















-eating mom's gourmet cooking (who knew homemade pizza could be so good?).













-cleaning off counters, washing dishes, etc. (And no matter how many reasons I hear, I will always think that having 8 brownie pans is just an excuse to not have to wash them as often.)

-barbecuing with friends.

-doing tae bo in the mornings.

-getting frustrated with the lack of fast internet and the build-up of things I can only get done online.

-working out what I get from Grandpa's house before it gets sold (I can't stand to think of it. I miss him dearly).

-sleeping on beds that make my back hurt and couches that make me forget about the beds that make my back hurt.

-going through my stuff that stayed behind in Salt Lake and realizing how much my books, journals, scrapbooks, etc. are items that in some way are connected to my identity. I love them.

-doing anything that people open up with "does anyone want to . . ." because how often do you get to do things with your family otherwise?

-getting through a sinus infection/cold (are Germans right about air conditioning causing infections, or was it triggered by these mountain desert weed allergies?)

-working on the details of Chopin's "Minute Waltz" and finding a nice version of Pachelbel's "Canon in D" for Petula's wedding.

-visiting my brother and sister's singles ward (where Jeff laughed at me for riding Heidi's bike to church in a skirt).

-going to ward activities like the dessert social, the neighborhood barbecue, and the ice cream night.

-trying to arrange EFY and JAE Conference details.

Time's going fast. I don't have time to do all I want to, and I still have a lot to do for the last point. The last few weeks have been just what I needed and the next few should be awesome.

It's Good to be an Eternal Family

Grandpa's funeral was great. And we have a new family picture. Finally.

Take Off Your Pants and Jacket Shoes

When I finally got an MRI on my knee two weeks ago (five months after the original injury, and after injuring my ankle as a result of a weak knee), I was told to take off my pants and shoes and left to undress. Unlike with the CT scan I had last fall, I didn't receive any kind of robe. (Note 1: I've come a long way since the days where I cried about undressing for a doctor. Note 2: How weird is that, that they let you undress as if the process should be private but the results don't matter.)

So there I stood, pantless, talking to the technician. While she explained a few things and had me sign a form, I thought, "How weird is this, that we're talking normally, as if nothing were abnormal about the fact that I'm standing here without any pants on."












I finally decided to do something more since my knee gets tired from being in one position for two long, it doesn't like to be jarred (I hold it in the air when I ride my bike over cobblestones), and I cannot leg my leg dangle over chairs (yes I'm short) so I have to put a box on the floor to support it.

The results of the MRI? My orthopedic surgeon, who also happens to be the husband of my favorite student, who also happens to live across the street, said that the meniscus looks "unquiet," but not surgery-worthy. I got a nice paper instructing a physical therapist how to help me and was told not to play football for a while.

Sica, I think I'm still up for that hike if you're up to wrapping my knee with your mad sports injuries skills.

Group Effort 4th of July

Being patriotic is not about the individual. Happy 4th of July!