Big Hair Scare

Hair has been the source of a lot of entertainment lately. 

Roy wants to grow his long for the Philmont hike he'll be doing later this summer.  But his hair is ridiculously stubborn.  When it grows, it just grows out.  Like in the picture above.  I kid you not, that's how his hair wants to grow naturally.  If he grew it long it would just be an untameable afro.

So Shellena and I busted out the hairspray and gel and went to work trying to find a style I like.  Roy liking it was a plus, but not mandatory.

He's a good sport, isn't he?  Any votes on your favorite?

Shellena and I also recently experimented with our own hair.  I've never done that before.  I've never colored my own hair, and I've never done anything extreme.  Shellena was really excited to indoctrinate me.  

We bought the exact same box of hair dye to see how it would turn out.

 UMMMM, they didn't turn out the same.  In fact, it didn't even look anything like the box.

I probably need more practice with dying hair because...

So I ended up dying Shellena's hair again {after watching her do mine I figured out how it was really supposed to be done} and it turned out much better the second time.

Before...

AFTER...

Before...

AFTER...

Carson wanted to get in on the modeling action too soooo, here he is with his new haircut!  Roy used to cut his hair when they lived in Brazil.  He just taught Shellena how to do it just right. 

I haven't gotten used to my hair yet.  It's very bright!  Maybe I don't love it, but I wouldn't take it back.  We had way too much fun.

 

{Don't mind us, just playing Minute to Win It!}

What We Do in May

Work.

Sleep.

Eat like royalty.

So far this summer our days have fallen into a definite routine.  And my favorite new pattern: the new dinner deal we've made with the Tietjens.  :-)

Three days a week I cook, three days a week Shellena cooks, and every day the boys do the dishes.  I swear we are saving money and lots of time.  Plus it's giving me more reason to go all out and experiment with cooking.  Roy and I are getting the better part of this deal, since Shellena is a master chef.  Look what she cooked up to celebrate my graduation!

That's homemade cheesecake.  Roy might have been a tad bit excited for the excuse to indulge.

Wow- it's a good thing this is only going on for another month because I'm pretty sure we would all get FAT!

But what we will miss after next month is the excuse to hang out every night.  We never just eat and go home—we're always doing something until at least ten o'clock.

Roy is really good at getting Story to smile.  I'm kind of jealous.

Look at this chicken pot pie that Shellena made.  She marked a part for me and a part for Roy.  Mine without chicken.  I thought it was clever.

Just for kicks, I'm posting some pictures from the tulip festival at Thanksgiving Point.  Story was attracting more attention than the flowers, she's so stinkin' cute!  

Fun May days.

Rapture Day

Matthew 24:35-36
"Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only."


Just saying.

But let's step back for a second and say that perhaps Mr. Harold Camping, the Oakland minister and radio broadcaster, is onto something.  What if tomorrow is the start of the end of the world?  And all of the good Christians are brought up to Heaven while the rest of mankind is blown to smithereens over the next few months?

Well...  I guess I won't be making the Heavenly trip tomorrow.  Why?

I stole shoes today.  And last I checked, stealing is a sin.

We were in Target when the thong of my shoe snapped.  They were decayed high school flip flops, so I guess it wasn't the hugest of surprises.  I tried to shuffle along the slick tiled isles, but it just wasn't working out.  The shoe wouldn't stay on.

Roy, being the helpful husband he is, grabbed me a cheap pair of flip flops that were on sale.  Only $8.  They'd have to do.

So we tore off the elastic and the tags, which I slipped into my pocket for safekeeping, and I put on the shoes.  I'd pay for them on the way out.  Right?

By the time we finished our shopping and were at the register, I'd completely forgotten about the new flip flops.  Completely forgot!!!  We walked out of the store and drove through freeway traffic for about twenty minutes before I gasped, "THE SHOES!"

We looked at the time.  11:03.  Target had just closed it's doors for the night.  By the time those doors open again it will be May 21st—"Rapture Day."

What a crappy day to accidentally break a commandment.

 {via}

P.S. Tomorrow morning we plan to go on a hike.  Hopefully we get back with plenty of time to return the shoes ;-)

Roy and Babies

Does this post require words?

Mothers and Thieves

This post has two parts.
One about mothers.
One about thieves. 

They don't overlap.  I'm not implying that my mothers have stolen anything from me.  In fact, they've given me everything.

I have generations of mothers to thank for my life.  Most of whom aren't around to thank, actually.  Great-grandmas, great great grandmas, etc.  But here are some women who have easily been the strongest influences in my life.

Grandma, Mom, and yeah - even my little sister.  She's not a mom, but she's done her share of mothering me throughout our lives.  They've taught me so much!  I'd be a completely different person if it weren't for them.

{Praise them or blame them}

Mom, I love you.  Thanks for everything.  A list of everything you've done for me would just be ridiculous.  It would never end.  So here it is, short and sweet.

You're the greatest mom.  God knew just what He was doing when He sent me to you. 

This year I had a mom-in-law to wish a happy mother's day to!  This lady is so selfless and hard working.  And she managed to raise a a little boy who grew up to be the greatest man in the world.  She's got mama skills.  Thanks Laura!  Love you!

Happy Mother's Day!

______________________________________

Dear Bike Thieves,

Alright... stealing one bike might be somewhat understandable.  Maybe you desperately needed one.  But two bikes?  Really, if you've got an equally desperate family or friends you should just share that one stolen bike.  Why so greedy?

What really throws me is the stolen potted flowers.  It makes me feel like you're just messing with us, because I'm pretty sure no one is that desperate.  Half-wilted flowers in a tin pail?  Really?  

Next you'll probably take our porch light bulb.  I'm sorry that's the only thing we have left out there to offer. 

Love,
The Already Considerably Penniless Student Family in the 4-Plex by the Train Tracks

When Are We No Longer Newlyweds?

With our one year anniversary just two months away, this question has floated into conversation.  When do people stop thinking of you as newlyweds?  Is it one year the mark?

Whenever it is, I guess it doesn't really matter.  I still feel like a newlywed.

I still forget to respond to Mrs. Buckmaster.  Every night brushing our teeth together still has the feel of a slumber party. 
 
But this one is pretty good... I still only have one picture of my own from the Tucson reception. 

  Still waiting on pictures from my wedding?  That's quite newly weddish.  (Or just pathetic)

Breakup

The Sweet Seven...

 are breaking up.

I know, it's immensely depressing.  

But life calls us all in different directions this summer.  Kenny and Andrea are moving to Philly to sell alarm systems.  We know that they'll do great!  But... we're going to miss them.

The pair are moving out today.  By the time they return Roy and I will be gone, pursuing a law degree in Az.  And who knows where the Tietjens will be by then.  We're already planning our trip back up to Utah next summer {2012?!} so we can all visit.  Or maybe we'll meet up at Disneyland or Seattle or somewhere fun.  :-) 

Last week we had a BBQ and played uno for our "last get together".  

Yet last night we were all sitting on Carson and Shellena's bed, playing with Story and hanging out.  Maybe trying to lift the sadness of separation, we got out a piece of paper and made predictions of where we will be in 2020.  Nine years from now. 

Kids?  Careers?  and of course where?  Wouldn't it be nice if we all settled down on the same street someday?  Shared a fence?  Carpooled?  But none of us predicted that.  I guess it's not likely, but I'll keep hoping anyway :-)

College Grad

BYU graduation was spread over a two day period.  More time for celebrating!  Woohoo!

So on Thursday I got up early and headed to campus for my last final: Literary Critical Theory.  We were told to analyze a few Robert Frost poems.  I got a little creative and wrote about racism, minorities, etc.  "Soo... the flower represents white Americans..."

That's what I love about English.  If you can find a shred of evidence to back you up, no one can say you're wrong. 

I hope that will prove to be true in the real world too.

Soon after I got home, the fam arrived.  Here's the crew!

Doesn't Zac look like he's just having the time of his life?  {Honestly, I don't blame him.  Graduations that aren't your own can be kinda dull.}

That picture was taken after I walked on Friday.  Notice the absence of one of those quaint caps.  Well... I'll get to that story later.  Here's the cap, if you were disappointed by the first pic:

So back to Thursday.  I grabbed my cap and gown and the fam dropped me off in the parking lot where the humanities majors were to meet.  Luckily I have a few other friends in the humanities college, otherwise the whole standing-and-freezing-my-butt-off-in-the-parking-lot-for-an-hour thing would have killed me.

We floated along the sea of blue gowns down through a tunnel that let us up into the Marriott Center.  We listened to speakers.  Lots of speakers!  On both Thursday and Friday!  I don't blame anyone else for playing Scrabble– but I was totally into it.  It's different when it's your own graduation.  I especially liked the Dean of English, who was hilarious and compared professors to troglodytes.

Walking was awesome.  I went by my full name, including the new last name.  I watched the announcer out of the corner of my eye to see if he would smirk, burst into laughter, or do a double take.

He did a good job.  Very good at suppressing any emotion.

After the final speaker, as we all stood to watch the faculty file out of the building, I turned around and asked Amelia to throw her hat with me.  The guy next to me was in on it too.  At my high school we were forbidden to throw our caps at graduation, which was devastating.  So I had this Hollywood image in my mind.  We were going to throw our hats and everyone would get excited and join in.  Roaring applause!  There would probably be some confetti or something.  Something!

Yeaaaaah, three flimsy caps flipped into the air and that was the end of it.  I did get a few cheers out of people in the audience, but the graduates were acting like they were participating in a funeral procession.  Sometimes, BYU, you gotta lighten up and have some fun, k?  At the very least on graduation day.  Anyway, hence why I'm missing the cap in some of the pictures.  Just as well—they're not exactly flattering.

Then Amelia and I went outside to ring the bell.  It's a BYU tradition for grads to ring the bell to announce to the world their accomplishment.  I'm adding my own superstition that it's good luck for finding a job.  :-)

Meet Amelia:

Oh, you might have also noticed that really "cool" professor in the background.  I was hoping to get a picture of one of some of the professors in their colorful hoods and funny page boy hats but this is who we got.  The professor who refuses to be stuck in tradition.  Love it!

Back to Amelia.  I may have mentioned her before.  Last fall semester she and I randomly had every single class together but one.  It was obvious we were meant to be friends.  She may be one of the main reasons I was able to survive the last year of school.  Thank you Milz.  

While I'm at it... thanks to all the people I met at school-- both BYU–Idaho and BYU--who helped distract me when I needed it, and who made school an absolute blast!

 And thanks, Roy, for being patient with my late nights of studying and essay-writing.  But especially thanks for being the best cheer leader ever!

And thank you Cosmo for providing such a great photo opp. 









Thank you BYU for the "sample" diploma.  Truly.

It will look most excellent on our wall for four months {while I wait for my real one to come in the mail.}

Thank you everyone who sent their congratulations via snail mail or facebook {yes, I succeeded in my fast and though I am again frequenting facebook, I don't feel as addicted.}

But in all honesty, I never would have had these amazing experiences without these two:

Mom and Dad—
When the moment came to flick that tassel from one side of my cap to the other, I wasn't thinking about how many assignments I'd finished to get there.  I wasn't thinking about that C in college algebra or the A+ in geology.  I was thinking about how lucky I am to have parents who pushed me to succeed.  Parents who let me choose my dreams and then provided me with the opportunities to accomplish them.  {I was also thinking about how weird it was to have a Jimmer backdrop for your graduation photo, but it was less important.}

Thank you SO MUCH!