bits & pieces of Jason & Stella's wedding

Amiina

here

you should take a listen to my new favorite sound, Amiina. Kurr is my favorite album. it's so relaxing and pretty. Rugla is one of my favorite songs. be sure to listen to Hilli, too. or just the whole album...

also, does anyone else love that Jonsi did "We Bought a Zoo"'s music. i've loved listening to that the last few days as well.
those Icelandic people know how to make pretty music.

here's a special shout out to my beautiful roommate (i'll forever call them my roommates) Megan, happy birthday! you are loved by so many people.

the basics.

it's sick and wrong to climb at the Quarry and not stop for a Seven Eleven Slurpee afterwards...which Carrie and i were on our way to do last night until we spotted that In-N-Out sign and decided that burgers and milkshakes win over any other edible thing on earth. so, just this once, we got burgers instead of Slurpees. 

Torrey, Utah

Kimbo took me on a little road trip to Torrey, Utah. we hiked in Capital Reef, drove the 4-wheeler around, made a classy cake for her Gagi's bday, caught lizards, ate our faces off with good food, saw an eagle's nest (EEEAAGLE!), swung on swings, and climbed things.

& now my feet look like this:

it's from hiking in my Chacos! they have never, ever, ever hurt my feet before. how could this happen, Chacos are the invincible shoe. my tough terrain shoes for heavens sake. 

I TRUSTED YOU CHACOS!

we had a good time being lazy together in Torrey. 

love you Burlz.

climbing and life.

ah man, last night i woke up every hour. why? because i climbed this 10b yesterday up AF Canyon and now it's haunting me. it's all pretty much an overhang, with 5 bolts and then the anchors. i got to the fifth bolt and could not flipping get to the anchors. after falling 10+ feet each attempt my arms were shot and i had major sewing machine legs. luckily a guy was coming up the route to my right and said he could clean my last quick draw if i couldn't get to the anchor. soooo, it didn't finish. gah, that is always the most frustrating thing. and now i can't get it out of my head, i need to finish it. i MUST finish that climb. why must i be so weak in the arms? WHY?! i miss those two months when Carrie and i were at the climbing gym three or four times a week. i miss a lot of things these days.

life is weird. i've decided to plan to not make plans and just trust that the Lord knows what His plan for me is. i'm just about the most indecisive person and my plans are always changing. but one thing is always for sure, i always know that things will work out. i always have this peaceful feeling when i do finally make a choice. i get caught up in making the choice, thinking that one is better than the other for my life right now, but truthfully whatever choice i make i know that it'll all work out as long as i'm making GOOD choices along the way.

now, i'm going to preach a little more about climbing. when i was on this 10b yesterday, i was on that face for prob 20+ minutes. just planning my next move, resting, planning, mapping it out so i could throw what little energy i had left into making the next move. when i was laying in bed last night i kept thinking about the climb and how badly i wanted to finish it and get that last move. and then i thought, hey, every night for the last week i've layed in bed thinking about my next move in life and where to take myself in this world and how to get there. climbing is like life. sometimes it takes a whole lot to get to the next step, and other times it really doesn't take much at all. other times you can't quite get that last move (like me, yesterday), just like in life. buuuut, you keep coming back and trying (like my twenty-five attempts to reach the top followed by twenty-five falls) or you find that a different move or route suits you much better than the initial one. i will get that climb one day though. i know it.

this is so cheesy. whatever though. all in all, life is weird. and things don't happen like you plan, but it always works out for the best if you put your trust in the Lord and make an effort to involve him in every step you take. 

and i love rock climbing. 

the end.

wow.

i saw this over here, and got shivers when i watched it. very powerful.

life as a stormtrooper.

so freaking funny to me.

they should start making wookie ones.

another wedding.

my big brother got married on Saturday! so happy for him and Stella.

here's a few photos from the time at the temple.

surprise, surprise!

another video. i made this forever and a half ago after we took a trip to St. George for spring break. for some reason the video wouldn't compile until today. SO HAPPY. there was much heartbreak over the fact that it wouldn't work, and now it has, and i just miss those girls like crazy all over again now.

a taste of what my beautiful cousin's wedding looked like.

remember to be happy now.

"The lesson here is that if we spend our days waiting for fabulous roses, we could miss the beauty and wonder of the tiny forget-me-nots that are all around us."

"The happiest people I know are not those who find their golden ticket; they are those who, while in pursuit of worthy goals, discover and treasure the beauty and sweetness of the everyday moments. They are the ones who, thread by daily thread, weave a tapestry of gratitude and wonder throughout their lives. These are they who are truly happy."

 i always find myself reading President Dieter F. Uchtdorf's "Forget Me Not" talk. it's one of my favorites. the section about remembering to be happy now really stood out to me tonight. i always seem to be waiting for something amazing to happen, or i'm always anxious for a certain event or time of life to come along. and i often forget to love my life RIGHT NOW. i needed that reminder. you can read the whole address here.

life in video.

i am so glad i have this weird thing about me where i have to video/take a picture of every little thing in my life. i can open up my Vimeo and remember all the memories i never want to forget. when i was making this video i had already forgotten most of these moments, so thankfully they were caught on film. even if it was only for two seconds. man, i love having an iPhone. i can't say it enough times. that thing is so easy to document your life on.

April of 2012 was definitely one of the best months of my life. so many things were packed into those few weeks. what a good time of life.

roommates.

[i found this post in my drafts, i wrote it a few weeks back but never posted it. it's just me preaching about my best friends. big whoop. it's all true.]


i was talking to a friend at work the other day, and of course i started preaching about my roommates to him. he just laughed and said, "all freshman girls think their roommates are the best thing that ever happened, they get up in testimony meetings and start crying about how great their roommates are" that comment made me a bit angry. i snapped back with, "hey! my roommates really are the best though, they are going to be my best friends for life". and that's when i realized how stupid i sounded, BFFL?? anyway, no one understands the relationship we have here in 29, these girls really are my very best friends. i can talk to them about anything and they make me feel loved. even though we're all going to be in different places this next school year, we're always going to be close. 

Carrie. Shmee.

we all know i'm in love with Carrie. she's my woman, my shawty, my go to person for everything and anything. she's my favorite person to dobe around with and have late night conversations with. we've been going strong for a good number of years now and i don't think we'll ever stop being best friends. she is so beautiful! everything about her is beautiful. i love her courage and devotion to the gospel. she is very opinionated and i love that about her; she knows what she wants and she knows what she believes. Carrie cannot be swayed into crossing the lines when it comes to her standards and she lets people know that. i look up to her in so many ways. she is my favorite person to climb with, "reliability is key" haha. she's one of the only people i trust to belay me actually. i'm always feeling safe when she's at the other end of the rope. life is always funny and good when she is around. i think everyone could use a little Smeifs in their life. i love her so much!

Kim. Kimbo. Burlz.

Kim makes me feel like a rockstar. she is always willing to sit and listen to what i have to say, or any problems i am having, or to just about anything. she always gives the best feedback and advice. i value her opinion so much because i know she has a level head on about a lot of things. i wish i had her dance moves as well, she is so G status. if i were a guy i would be so afraid of Kim, intimidating to the max. Kim is one of those people that you can always count on to have fun with. seriously, she makes everything so much more fun than it should be. like trips to Walmart are famous with Kimbo, they are always so funny. one more thing, she is so loyal. you can always trust that she will be there when you need her. always.


Mia. Mihuh. Mishk.
Oh, Mia. Mia is such a nerd. at the beginning of the year when we figured out we both have a deep love for all things HP, LOTR and Star Wars, it was love. i love when i hear her giggling as she's looking at her computer screen and i know she's found another nerd pin on Pinterest and i can always count on her showing it to me so i can giggle with her. nerd love! Mia is my hero as well. she knows what she wants and she sticks to it, i am so proud of her in so many ways. she always makes me feel awesome, she's always complimenting me or laughing at things i say or faces i make. i'm not that cool but she makes me feel like a rockstar. love you mia!


Tarah. T-Dizzle. T. 
T is probably the coolest girl i know. really though, i've never met a girl who is as awesome as Tarah. i wish i could have her patience and her cute laugh. i can remember the first time i met Tarah and i just thought she was the cutest and i still do. nobody has ever seen T in a bad mood, nobody, it's not possible. she never complains, she never joins in on gossip, she's always happy and always excited about life. she sees the best in everyone and everything, the littlest things can make that girl so happy. when you come home from work or class she always asks how your day was and is genuinely interested. if i were a guy i would date her in a second. one day she is going to make a special guy very, very happy. and he better deserve her or so help me.


Megan. M-dawg.
Megan, Megan, Megan. i admire Megan in a lot of ways. i wish i could feel her passion for life and love. she has this incredible ability to love people very deeply and it comes to her so easily. she also has this ability to draw all sorts of crouds to our apartment because of her cooking skillzzz. boy, she can cook, bake, you name it. one time at church we ended up not having a Sunday School teacher for that day so Megan just jumps up to the front of the classroom and starts teaching. how cool is that?! i love her desire to try new things and she's always, always good at whatever it is. when she sets her mind to something she sticks to it.


i love these girlies.