I still hate pickles. 

But I do love spring, breakfast foods, dark chocolate, and this kid.

 (and balloon animals. Shouldn't I have outgrown them by now?)

Who celebreates Presidents Day anyway?

Presidents day inspired me this year, and I thought it fitting to start a book that has been untouched on my shelf for years, Presidents and Prophets. Have you heard of it? Well, if you're like me, you heard it was boring and not worth reading. I today stand corrected. I am only a few presidents into the book and already I have been enlightened on a level so profound, that is is worthy of breaking  months long Blogging boycott. Not only has this book brought me back to my history loving days, but it brought me to the ever so obvious realization that God. Does. Love. Us.

HELLO! It's true people!

Here's where it started. President John Adams. A man I know virtually nothing about wrote this in a letter to Thomas Jefferson after his wife died:

"I know not how to prove, physically, that we shall know each other in a future state; nor does revelation [i.e. the scriptures as they were interpreted by the clergy] as I can find give any positive assurance of such felicity. My reasons for believing it, as I do most undoubtedly, are that I cannot conceive such a being as the human, merely to live and die on this earth. If I did not believe in a future state, I should believe in no God...And, if there be a future state, why should the Almighty dissolve forever the tender ties which unite us so delightfully in this world and forbid us to see each other in the next."

I have had a few very special moments in the last few months, that in all of my stubborn glory, I have not acknowledged as I should have. They are moments that are very very precious to me, but because I have only one feeler in my entire body, I have not lent myself to feel these experiences as they should be felt. UNTIL I read this entry. What a wise, wise old man, that President John Adams was. I however, would like to add to his words (much less eloquently I fear).

Not only are we to see each other again after death, but the people who pass before us CAN BE and STILL ARE a part of our mortal lives.

Sounds weird, I know. And yes, this could be taken in a creepy ghost stories kind of way. But what I'm talking about here is a peaceful, joyful feeling that only comes from one place.

Loved ones that are no longer with us physically are there; watching us, helping us, and waiting for us. I'm for reals people! Wait for the little heart taps that suddenly bring back memories you shared with those people. Wait for the hidden momentous that you forgot even existed anymore to show themselves. Wait for the time when you use something that person taught you. Savor the joy you feel when you even think of that person.  And then, if you can hold it all in... think of the moment when you'll get to see them again.

God. Loves. us.  Watch for it, I dare you.

Ay yay yay

New Year, new things right?

-Brookles is going on a mission, to Barcelona. Ay yay yay!
 She'll leave on May 1st, speak Spanish, and eat lots of sea food. We've been reading some books about Spain and have decided that it will be a cool place. For one, Barcelona doesn't allow bull fighting. Now, I'm not a crazy animal activist or anything, but I did a little happy dance when we read that in Barcelona they don't gladiator slay the large misunderstood animal just to prove that they are hard A's.
This however, I'd totally watch.

-We got a dog.
Her name is Maya. We got her from the shelter. She was super skinny, but other than that we have found no crazy side effects from the time she spent there at what I believe to be the saddest place this side of the Mississippi. As long as she goes on a walk that day, nothing gets chewed up and she sleeps through the night. We like her.

and she likes her duck.

-We are having a baby.
On May 22 (or so they say). Ever since the bean has been the size of an onion, we have called it (ever so endearingly I might add) "the Onion." I'm hoping the name doesn't stick postpartum, but for now it works. The Onion's favorite past time this month seems to be having Onion parties, which take place right on top of my bladder...honest. Sitting through movies is fun. We will find out the gender in exactly 5 days. Oh baby!

Here's to new things.

Frog to Prince

I always knew that I wanted to get married, but that doesn't mean that i didn't kiss a bunch of toads that I knew were nothing but bad news. I had a serious case of the bad-boy thing that needed to get out of my system. Is that some kind of right of passage? Get the whole bad-boy thing over and done with so you can move on to an actual healthy relationship? If I was looking for a man to actually marry, why was I so drawn to the frogs? It just makes no sense.

Until one day I met Will, and I knew that he was no frog. I don't know why I knew. I mean, he was 100 percent different than any of the other boys i'd ever been interested in, but for some reason I liked him... A LOT (the ridiculously good looking smile helped I'm sure).

As far as I can tell, when you meet the right one, you know because all of the feelings that were driving you before you met him (excitement, anxiety, uncertainty) are gone, and you're happier that way. This is what happened when Will and I started dating. I thought, "This available, reliable, predictable, totally righteous boy...he is the love of my life." Morning breath, dishes on the floor and all. That is what I want for the rest of my life. And that's the most exciting ending I can think of.

Happy two years chicken.

I don't have a favorite season

I don't have a favorite season, I have a favorite feeling. It's the windows open, dirty bare feet, sun on your back feeling. It's when I can walk straight outside without getting a jacket. It's zipping up a life jacket and jumping into the lake. It's morning drives with the windows down when the air it is still a bit chilly from the night before. It is sunsets and watermelon for dessert. It's the sound of lawnmowers, crickets, and rain against the window. I don't have a favorite season, I have a favorite feeling.

Ode to the season

If We Are Going to Be Friends

Every time I try to make a grilled cheese sandwich, I end up burning it.

I love drinking anything with a straw.

I'm 5'7. Average. Even though my Dad is 6'4.

I pee in front of my hubby...shamelessly.

I'm good at doing laundry, right up until things have to be put back into the closet.

When I was a kid I had a crazy obsession with dolphins, but was too afraid to pet them at Sea World.

I decorate my dinner plates with left over food before doing the dishes.

I love my long hair, though I don't do it very often.

Vacuum lines make me happy. 

What does OCD stand for again?

I knew Will and I would be good friends the first time I saw him...yes, really. The first time.

I sit on the same row every sacrament meeting.

I get excited to fold fitted sheets, thinking that I'll get it right this time. Truth is that after a few attempts I just wad it up and shove it into the closet. 

I'm partial to putting things {all things} on the left. Putting them on the right just feels wrong.

Cookies need milk, and milk needs ice.

I pray before making decisions.

Cuts and scrapes sometimes make me want to faint.

I don't always pull through to the next stall when parking.

I have lived in the same house for almost 20 years, and I am still unsure about the correct spelling of our street, Scirlein {Scirlien?} Drive {but I do know P.Sherman 42 Wallabee Way Sydney}.

I put quilt ties in my ear {I've been doing it since I was a kid}.

I put lotion on my feet every night before bed. 

Everytime I use vanilla, I smell the bottle.

{Watkins is the best vanilla just so you know for future reference}

Muchos Besos

This post was brought to you by...

John Tyler

My Dad took me to get a Slurpee when he thought that I punched a boy at school. My Dad let me skip school and go skiing with him when I got a 4.0 in high school. My Dad shared his testimony at girls camp. My Dad said I was the best looking baby he'd ever seen. My Dad used to bring me bowls of ice cream as I sat at the computer for hours pumping out homework. My Dad scoots the car that I'm leaning on away as I pee. My Dad gives me the biggest hugs you can ever imagine. 

I just don't know how to even begin to describe him.
Hero comes pretty darn close. 

Love you Dad.

Oh the painful Cliches! 

 Doesn't matter, all of it is so so so true.