i dreamed i was a superhero

1. the creamery
the creamery has awesome ice cream. last night we may or may not have bought two boxes...one of earnestly chocolate and one of peanut butter cup. and i may or may not have just eaten some while watching psych. haha.

2. naps
today i was exhausted. soooo tired. so i came home and took a nap. and do you know what? i had the best dream ever while i was napping. i dreamed i was a super hero! when i flew, fire came out of my feet, like rockets. it makes me so happy just thinking about it!

3. marissa's bathroom
today while walking home from campus, i ran into marissa. she let me use the bathroom in her apartment because she lives closer to campus than i do. it was very nice of her. also i stayed there for like an hour and she fed me pumpkin pie. (yes, i did eat pie and ice cream today, what of it?)

4. the law-brary
on campus, there is the harold b lee library and the law library. i call them the lee-brary and the law-brary. today i studied in the law-brary with steph and it was very pleasant. there were no distractions and we totally got our work done!

5. the last day of classes
this is happy and sad. happy because it is christmas. sad because i really loved some of my classes this semester. i will admit to tearing up a little bit in doctrine & covenants today when brother esplin bore us his testimony. and yesterday when dr dyer bore his testimony about families in my family processes class. i loved what i learned in both of those classes. tomorrow is my last day of french. i'm sad about that, too, because madame burgon is the best. but change is good, and christmas is coming, so i can't be too sad :)

6. this video
its just so cute. its about expressions of love that couples show each other. watch it. you won't regret it.

goodnight everyone! here's to studying well for finals! ha.

one day a baby was born...with a leetle red moostache.

walker everett hughes. not gordon. (there was some confusion regarding this name once.) not sydney. (when my mom was pregnant, i was convinced we would name the baby sydney, too.) not texas ranger, though he gets that a lot. walker. that's my brother. and today is his birthday.

1. driven

walker is driven. he works so hard for the things he wants. he has worked to become an amazing athlete. he has worked to get crazy awesome grades (he is so much smarter than i will ever be). he doesn't give up, and he doesn't surrender. just like galaxy quest, which happens to be one of our favorite movies.

2. willing

walker is always willing to help. he is willing to try new things (except for salad, because he refuses to eat that). but i'm pretty sure he tried escargot when we were in paris...not sure though.

3. goofball

walker is a goofball. sometimes he may not seem like it because he can be pretty quiet. but for those of you who think this...you are missing out. he is one of the funniest people i know. he knows just how to make me smile and laugh.

4. awesome

walker is so much cooler than i ever have been. you think i'm kidding? that's kind. but it's the truth. he fences, plays football, is the mvp of his team, had 89 tackles this season, has over 100% in his ap bio class, and is just good at everything. he's a great example to me that i can do whatever i want to, as long as i work for it.

5. creative

when walker was little, he always had some sort of project going. today he still knows what's good in the art world. how did this kid get all the good genes? mom? just kidding. but seriously. i'm jealous of his mad skills.

buddy, happy birthday. i love you and i'm so grateful to have you in my life. i'm glad we're stuck together forever. i wouldn't have it any other way. ♡

and now for the photo montage. get ready for cute!!

the day the kid was born.

trampoline lovin.

the classic "sydney has lice so let's stick a beret on her head" sibling portrait.

and then i go through an awkward phase...however, walker remains adorable.

the city. for those of you who aren't familiar...that would be san francisco.

i told you he was a goofball.

our last day in the cedar street house.

i think i was a freshman? walker must have been 6th grade.

and then there was a time warp because my mom has the photos...

first day of school: 8th and 12th grade.

walker's 8th grade graduation.

college

christmas. one year ago!

thanksgiving two weeks ago.

we're the cutest sibs anyone ever did see ♡

well, i guess there's just one thing left to say.

HAPPY SIXTEENTH BIRTHDAY!!

michael bublé, i will fall in love with you this christmas.

so obviously i've been listening to michael bublé. so get ready people.

1. this song

i can't help it. it's adorable. it's about christmas. michael bublé is asking me to fall in love with him this christmas slash kiss him on this cold december night. he doesn't have to ask me twice. just sayin.

2. I'M DONE WITH MY LINGUISTICS PROJECT

I AM SO HAPPY I COULD DO SOMETHING REALLY CRAZY. but instead i got a soft serve ice cream for 25 cents at macey's tonight when we went grocery shopping. it was delightful even though it is freezing. (for all of you who aren't from utah...i would like to clear something up for you that confused me for months. macy's without an e is a department store. macey's with an e is a grocery store. just so you know.)

3. did i mention that i'm done with my linguistics project?

because i am. and i am so happy. happy happy happy happy happy happy happy happy happy. that was a monster of a thing.

4. my cracked corn back

today i'm grateful for the cracked corn bag my aunt carrie made me last christmas. i love it. i swear my bedroom window doesn't close all the way because i can feel the air coming in. i don't understand it...because it looks closed. i'm not crazy, i swear. anyway. i'm grateful to have abe lincoln (that's the cornbag's name since it has stripes and stars on it) today.

5. lotion

because this is utah, the air dries you out. to the point where your knuckles crack and your lips get chapped and it's just not fun. but hallelujah! someone was intelligent enough to invent lotion. and i am forever in their debt.

so there are only 3 more days of class. which means there are only 10 days until i go home and 19 days until christmas. somehow i think my math is slightly off, but i'm too tired to figure it out. good night!

oh, and ps, can we just talk for a second about how amazing my friend april is? she and her family have become a foster family! i read her blog today and definitely teared up a little bit. (i'm a tender heart, okay?) she has been such a great example to me over the years and she continues to amaze me!

here's her blog: funky vintage kitchen. check it out!

i heard the bells

1. church

i love going to church. i love how i feel when i'm there. i love how it's teachings help to make me a better person.

2. music

today i've been listening to i heard the bells on christmas day. i love the version by sarah mclachlan. click on the link to listen. my favorite part is the verse - 

"then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"god is not dead, nor doth he sleep;
the wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
with peace on earth, good will to men."

3. karen's crack brownies

holy moly. karen makes these brownies. and let me tell you. i think she puts crack in them because they are so good and addicting. i ate a lot of them today.

4. movies

my roommates and i are really really good at watching movies. we've watched one every night this weekend. i think it's a problem...but one i don't really see a need to fix.

5. christmas lights

we have christmas lights in the living room and around the outside of our front door. they are sparkly and twinkly and happy! christmas lights are definitely one of my favorite parts about this season :)

here's to hoping we don't all die this week...since it's finals prep and all. i'll keep you updated :) 

temple square + not blue hair

today turned out to be a really nice day!

1. relief society breakfast

this morning, we had a relief society breakfast as a before finals get together. we got to talk, eat, and enjoy the christmas lights in kailey's room. it was super fun!

2. homework

i actually got homework done today. usually i'm bad at doing homework on saturdays...but today, i forced myself to actually do it. i'm almost done with my linguistics project. RELIEF. 

3. friends

today i got to spend the evening with heather, karen, brooke, baby j, and alec. we drove up to salt lake and walked around temple square to see the christmas lights. it was sooooo pretty!! i love christmas lights :)

from the ground

from above

4. the christmas season

walking around temple square was a wonderful time for me to think about the real meaning of christmas. there were so many nativity scenes all around the square, and everything about the temple grounds reminds us that christ is at the heart of christmas. he is the reason we celebrate.

nativity scene in the water

this is kind of a funny shot of a statue of christ's hands...but it really shows how much he went through for each of us.

5. i don't have blue hair

kind of random...but we're watching bride wars right now. and i'm grateful i don't have blue hair like liv. because that would stink.

good night!

ps i did blog yesterday. i just got lazy and didn't tell anyone about it.

pps i also got a letter from david today. that was happy! i love missionary mail.

ppps here are a few more good ones of tonight. heather took all of these and i'm stealing them.

brooke, me, baby j, heather, and karen

heather and i actually are roommates. and we do love each other, even if we never take pictures together.

last year...

this year! this must be an annual tradition! we love temple square at christmas!!

photo booths + arctic circle

so one thing i forgot to post yesterday real quick. eating cheerios with a fork is awesome because you can pick up the cheerios on the tines. i discovered this when we had no clean spoons yesterday. haha.

on to today.

1. feeling efficient
today i've actually felt efficient. i've been working on my linguistics project and i've felt so productive. i feel like i've gotten really far on it.

2. photo booth pictures
today becca and i went to lunch and then we went to the mall to take pictures in a real live photo booth before she leaves for china. i'm gonna miss her, but now we have some really cute pictures of the two of us.

3. arctic circle
today i went to arctic circle for the first time, even though it was freezing cold. i got an oreo shake and i enjoyed it thoroughly.

4. zupas
becca and i went to zupas...it was delicious. i love the chicken enchilada chili soup thing. i can't even tell you...it was so good.

5. those silly animal hat scarf things
becca and i have now tried them on in two different stores. previously we tried them on in target...and today we tried them on in the mall. i wore an elephant and becca wore a frog. it was excellent. and highly entertaining.

well, sorry this is short, but i have to finish a project up...so until tomorrow!

IT'S DECEMBER!!

IT'S DECEMBER PEOPLE!! do you even know what that means? it's the beginning of advent calendars, ugly christmas sweaters, eating excessive amounts of chocolate and candy, and the super official countdown until my flight home and christmas! (that would be 13 days and 24 days, respectively.)

1. my ugly christmas sweater

this morning, i woke up and knew that it was absolutely necessary to wear my christmas sweater from d.i. i have since decided that wearing said christmas sweater increases my personal happiness exponentially. i kept catching myself walking around campus with a big dumb smile on my face. it's the greatest!

"the best way to spread christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear." that, and wearing christmas sweaters.

2. my advent calendar

today i got to open the first window on my playmobil advent calendar. YEAH. today's toy was a mailbox.

the mailbox. i think i need to move it closer to the house and away from the stable. hmm. suggestions?

3. running into even more people on campus

today i saw an old roommate from efy! she's getting married in december. it was cool to see her for a second. then i had lunch with my penrose 84 girls. when we were walking across campus and we saw natalie dayton. then we saw sam moffat. then we saw laryssa groll. then we saw steph. holy crow (yes, that was baby j's accidental combination of crap and cow) that's a lot of people. happy!

4. the santa claus

christmas is not christmas without watching the santa claus with tim allen. kinda like christmas is not christmas without doris day. (click on the link and see number 5 if you're interested.) tonight my roommates and i watched it on abc family. it's officially the christmas season, people.

anyone remember this? i think my family still has the vhs version. cause we're just cool like that.

 5. those cookies that baby j makes

baby j and alec made those cookies again. let me tell you, i like them a lot. click on the link and see number 7 for a photo.

6. being done with that paper and presentation

today i had a term paper due in my family processes class, as well as an oral presentation in spanish. it was not pleasant to have all of that due, but it's done! i can breathe! kind of. now i need to finish creating a language for linguistics (this is the point in time where i run away from school because i don't want to do it). but i'm done with the other two!

7. an early bed time

even though i have a lot to do, i think it's important that i get some really good sleep. so tonight, i'm going to bed a little early. and so i will close with, 

"good night, and happy holidays!"