Farewell Carell

Last night was Steve Carell's last episode of the office.

I cried.

I may have been a little bit drunk.

Safari

Tomorrow, mid-day, the Scothern's and the Schlange's are heading south into the desert. We will be spending almost a whole week with our two favorite people and laughing a lot.  It's going to be a glorious week filled with friends, some great scenery, and the low rumble of engines.

We are finally going to Jeep Safari.

I have wanted a Jeep since the day I turned sixteen.  It has always seemed like a distant dream that would never fully be realized, and last year I was so insanely jealous that Chaz and Shay would be going to Moab without us. We couldn't go because I had just gotten a new job and was going to be in mandatory training for six weeks. So this year, when we found Millie, I knew immediately that I had to schedule the time off of work. I have been waiting in anticipation for just over a month now, and tomorrow is finally the day! 

It's going to be fucking awesome.

Cry Baby

For two days now I have been violently ill. Laying on the couch for 48 hours is extremely boring, and I have been relying heavily on the E! channel to keep me entertained. I also whine a lot, which is particularly pathetic because for the majority of the day I am by myself.

Did i mention laying on couch whining...out loud. To no one. Yeah, it's ridiculous. Thank god I don't have some substantial disease or illness. Everyone around me would be on the verge of hanging themselves just to get away from me and you would probably want to reach through your computer screen and bitch slap me right now.

In order to save you from further whining, here are some of the upcoming movies that i saw previews for these past few days and am looking forward to seeing when they are released:










What movies are you looking forward to??

I'd Be Screwed....

.....if hair straighteners had never been invented.

Thank god someone was smart enough to recognize that there was a need for smooth hair in the world, or I'd be walking around with this fuzz ball on my head all day:





 
I don't have any natural curl in my hair, unfortunately, but my hair is so frizzy after I dry it in the mornings. Its just not pretty.

But after it's dry, and I get out my straightener, it looks a little more presentable.







I don't spend a ridiculous amount of time on my hair in the mornings, but the little effort that I do make is a huge difference.

What in the hell did I ever do before I found my straightener?

127 Hours

We have been wanting to see this movie since it came out, but for one reason or another we never made it to the theater to see it before it was no longer showing.  We finally rented it the other day.

All I can say is wow. 

The entire time we were watching it I had mixed emotions.  I wanted to turn away, but I couldn't.  I was so enthralled with his strength and will to survive.  I was amazed with how well he kept his cool throughout the whole ordeal.  It was intense from beginning to end.  Then when it got over, Brett and I just sat there in silence staring at each other.  We were completely speechless and couldn't decide how to react.  It was such a tragic story, but at the same time it was an extremely triumphant story. It really makes you think.

If you haven't seen it yet, I would highly recommend it.

Sister of Mine

When I was a little girl, I idolized her.  I followed her around everywhere she went and always tried to tag along with her and her friends.  She is the reason that I love 80's music, she always knows how to make me laugh, and she is there for me when I need to talk.  We have an endless supply of memories that we will always share, and I know that there are many more to come.

She is my big sister.

As sisters we have obviously been through our rough patches, because that's what sisters do.  It's okay though, because we always find a way to work it out.

Happy birthday sister!!  I love you.

Mardi Gras 2011

Shay and I have decided that Mardi Gras is our new tradition.  It gives us a good excuse to have a party around my birthday, and since Halloween is right by her birthday it works out perfectly.

This year the decorations were more intense and there was an abundance of beads to go around.  Almost everyone came with a mask, and if they didn't Shay had some backups ready.  That bitch is always prepared!

Every time we get together with this group of people, a great time is had by all.  It seems as though each party we have is better than the last, and as a bonus there was no one puking in the sink or bathtub at this party.

Thanks again for the killer party Shaymus!  It was awesome, as usual.

{Kaylyn and Brett}

{Shay and Kaylyn}

{Brett and Chaz}

{Emily and Kate}

{Danielle and Ryan}

{Jen}

{Shay and Kaylyn}

Out With the Old....

In with the new.....

Kindling

Yesterday as I sat on the couch reading, I found myself trying to remember where my love of books began. What was it that kindled my fire?

Like most kids, I have a lot of memories from my childhood of being outside in the summertime climbing trees or riding my bike. I don't remember reading much until my teenage years. I've always liked to read, I just don't remember always being in love with it. Most of the memories that stick out to me involve being outside, without a book in my hand.

After a few minutes of digging through the filing cabinet of memories in my brain, it hit me. I was 13 years old.

For the first time in my life I was boarding an airplane, and I was terrified. I couldn't fight the tears from falling on my cheeks and I was squeezing my mom's hand so hard that to this day I am surprised it didn't break. We found our seats and my mom continued trying to sooth my fears to no avail. She tried distracting me by telling me all of the amazing things that were going to unfold after we landed, because we were going to be in the happiest place on earth.  I could not focus on all of the happy things that she was telling me, because I was convinced that we were on our way into the air only to plummet to our deaths. Why get excited about Disneyland if I was never even going to make it there?

After a few minutes, the woman sitting behind me tapped me on the shoulder. When I turned around I could see that in her outstretched hand, she was holding a book.

"Reading always helps me when I'm upset."

"Thanks."

I took the book that she had given me and started to read it, then the next thing I knew we were in the air and my nerves were completely calm. She was right, it did help.

After our flight had landed I tried to give the book back to the woman, but she wouldn't let me. She told me to hang onto it and finish the story.

I'm really glad that I did, because it sparked something in me that changed me forever.

Burning History

Brett has been working on a project for one of his art classes in which he has to depict a historical event with mixed media.  From the beginning he knew that he wanted to choose an event that no one else in the class would be doing so that his could stand out.  We spent some time brainstorming and he decided to go with Hitler's book burnings.  While doing some research for ideas I came across this quote, and I really loved it so I decided to share:

"Wherever they burn books they will also, in the end, burn human beings"    

- Heinrich Heine