Monday, December 10, 2012

In-love with 1800's

Why is it that everything in the 1800's seems like pure loveliness? The elegant clothing and fashions, the ornate decor, the beautiful way that people used to form their sentences, the formal gatherings and balls, the not so formal afternoon teas and luncheons, the carriages, the courtships, the beautifully kept estates, the fortnights visits to friends and family....ahh the list could go on and on. Of course I have only seen these dreamy things portrayed in movies and can't help but wish that I could take a time-machine back to those times. And then I think about all the things that I would miss from my wonderful life today such as running water. I am way too particular about the temperature of my shower and the water I drink. Lets not forget women's rights either...it seems a tad bit unfair that once a man died all his property went to the first born son, not even his own wife! What about his adoring daughters?? What are they supposed to do with no means or profession?! I've watched Sense and Sensibility too much... There are a bajillion other ways of life and technologies that I could not go without now that I've experienced having them, but I still wonder what it would be like to live with all of those lovely things. I would probably take them for granted as I do the things I live with now. And since I will never know, I will just have to get my fill by watching and reading all the Jane Austen works and related media, and keep on dreaming about the good ol' days.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

A Regular Grown Up Lady

Today I feel like a grown up lady.  I have felt like this on rare occasions, like when I became the Mrs. to my man, or when I got to pick out and arrange the Christmas decorations for our cozy apartment and make it a holiday wonderland of our very own. This feeling came just a few minutes ago when my mother texted (yes, she is very technologically savvy) asking if I could bring an hors d'oeuvr and treat to share at the family Christmas party.  Usually each family will bring something to share, and I just realized that now I have a family unit of my very own, so I get to be included in the sharing of the dishes.  I am quite a grown up lady now.  Another thing that made me feel so grown up, and rather elegant, is the way that I decided to do my hair.  I was inspired by Sylvia Llewellyn  Davies (played by the lovely Kate Winslet in Finding Neverland) to copycat her winsome updo which is pictured below.  To match my hair I decided to wear pearls.





Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Most genuine response, Cutest little girl, and Awesome Parents!


I cannot get over how darling this is.

Thoughts floating around that will only come out on the page...

There are 3 things that I have been unconsciously thinking as of late and are now surfacing into my deliberate thoughts:

1- Cilantro!
Cilantro, cilantro, cilantro... Fresh cilantro...what a palate pleaser! Why did I not know that this glorious herb existed before the past year or so??!  My husband Matt has apparently been a fan of this stuff for quite some time.  I've made Cafe Rio lime rice for him a couple of times over the past year, and both times he exclaimed his love for the said plant.  I didn't think much of it.. But, as of late, we have been including cilantro in our dishes quite often.   This is probably because we have been eating Thai food like crazy over the past couple of weeks.  We've been eating Thai peanut chicken wraps (with cilantro included in the sauce) and a Thai peanut salad (also with cilantro included).  I don't know what it is about cilantro, but I cannot get enough of the smell and the unique taste that it gives a dish.  I have become a crazy cilantro loving woman! Now I will rant and rave about how wonderful it is with my husband when we buy and cook with it.  What can I make next so I can use it?? Oh, and apparently its really healthy with lots of beneficial qualities.  I'm so glad that I have fallen in love with Cilantro and not another something that's terribly unhealthy...like the Extreme Moose Tracks ice cream in my freezer right now...hmmmm...

2-Annoying Red Stop Light!!!
So there's an intersection very close to my apartment.  I must cross the intersection walking everyday at least twice and usually four times coming and going to work and school.  Somehow, the light is ALWAYS red when I get to the intersection. It has become such a big deal to me that I keep an eye on the light as I am walking toward it and adjust my walking pace to try and catch the green light (which never really works). Normally something like this wouldn't be so bothersome to me, but it is the longest stop light in the city of Provo.  I am thoroughly convinced that it is!  I seriously could take a nap while waiting to cross.  Ok, so that's a little bit of an exaggeration, but it feels like an eternity.  It probably feels longer than it really is because I'm focusing so much on how long its taking.  Watched pots never boil right?

3- Smells
In my apartment we have a candle wax warmer.  Yesterday, we melted two different waxes.  The first was something called "Spa."  Sounds relaxing right?  Wrong...unless you call being lightheaded and coughing from the said smell relaxing.  Its not that it smells terribly bad, but it is quite strong in our little apartment.  I decided to remedy this problem by pouring out the strong spa wax, and putting in something called "Zen."  The name makes me happy.  It reminds me of the ninja fruit slicer game you can play on an i-touch or i-pad.  Anyway, the zen smell ended up being pretty strong as well, but it didn't make my head feel funny or tickle my throat. It actually smelled quite nice. I had these waxes melting in the morning and didn't expect them to last into the afternoon, so when I brought my friend over to the apartment to give her a little tour, i was taken aback by the strong smell of cologne.  Then I remembered that "Zen" resembles the smell of a man's cologne (which is why I liked it so much).  I hope my friend doesn't think that my husband drenches our place with his cologne.  After she left I helped my husband prepare for his Scouts activity with the Cub Scouts.  They were creating their own treasure maps.  I helped him crumple up brown paper bags and burn the edges of the bag to look like a legitimate map.  Oh boy did our apartment smell smoky after that! You would have thought that we tried to start a campfire inside our place.  After that I opened the doors and turned on the candle wax warmer so that "Zen" could help me cover the smoky smell taking over our place.  Today I thought I was going to be "smell" free, but I was pleasantly wrong.  I was working in the Mckay technology lab on BYU campus when a girl came and sat down in the computer chair next to me.  The smell that surrounded her was lovely and strong.  I couldn't place my finger on it, but it reminds me of the Bath and Body works scent "Moonlight Path."  It was one of those relaxing smells that makes you feel calmer and almost like you have a clearer head.     Even though it was so lovely, it was distracting because I couldn't help wondering why it was so strong.  Did she put on a gallon of lotion? Or spray herself with a bottle of perfume?  Luckily it was a nice, calming smell, and luckily I could leave when I didn't want to smell it anymore, unlike the incident in my apartment yesterday.