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December 19, 2013

So Much to Do...

Pick one of these, and this is how I feel.



On the bright side, I get to go home for Christmas tomorrow!!! (And there is SNOW at home!) And I get to see my family, and my sister (who could use prayers and love, please!). Blessings come to those who... are good? (or something?) And my sister is definitely good, so I know blessings are just around the corner!

Lots of jumbled thoughts, but I hope the holiday season is lovely for you!

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November 21, 2013

That Time I Turned 28

Remember that time I turned 28? (A year ago?) And remember how I said I'd post photos and then never did?

do you see this AMAZING cake my friend Karly made for me?? AH-mazing!! Replica of my favorite Jr's Cheesecake.

Yeah, about that.... Better late than never right? I figured since my 29th birthday is next week (Golden birthday, guys!), I'd finally post about my last bash. I tend to go a little overboard with my birthday, and 28 was no exception.

See? I have the burn marks to prove it. In fact, I still do.
I had a 50's themed party complete with costumes, swing music, awesome virgin mixed drinks and lots and lots of desserts. That's how I got the burn mark; I made nearly all of the desserts myself. (Don't worry; I don't plan to do any birthday cooking this year.) It's super belated, but I'd like to give a shout out to my friends Maggie, Becky, Caitlin B., and Sunni, for letting me host my party in their lovely home.

And now, a few photos of some awesome peeps! HUGE thanks to my friend, Janan, who took photos for me! :) Thank you for preserving these memories, so that I could wait a whole year to share them. ;)

candid shot with the photog! (no, really. it was candid.)


some of my favorites!! and to think little lizzy is on a mission now... look for this gorgeous redhead at Temple Square!


OK, and I mentioned the sweet costumes, right??


Roomie photo from two celebrations! The top one is from this party.

And, of course, I had to have finger waves. I'm not gonna lie; these are NOT easy for hair like mine. They're not quite authentic, but I did my best! Here I am, feeling nonchalant about it.


There was also dancing. Lots of dancing!

aren't they darling?? i'm pleased to report they are now engaged! :)
annnnd David just being a ladies' man. which is funny, bc he's NOT a lady's man, if you catch my drift.
And then there was all the suuuugar! Karly made me the aforementioned AMAZING birthday cake! Isn't this just adorable?? She is SO talented! If you're looking for a good baker in the DC area, I'll put you in touch with this gal. You will NOT be disappointed! Unless you're diabetic; in which case... sorry!

with the artiste herself!
i really loved my cake. :)
and i'm not gonna lie; i really liked my eyeshadow.

and Brett made me the most AMAZING neopolitan cheesecake! It was seriously to die for! Easily in the top three best homemade cheesecakes of my life.

annnd here's the chef with his now-wife, Emily (his now-pregnant wife!)

It was truly a lovely evening. THANK YOU to everyone who made my 28th birthday so special!

November 19, 2013

Roommates!

I just did a quick headcount, and in the past decade of living in college, intern housing, YSA apartments, etc., I've lived with almost 30 different roommates. And right now, I live with two of the very best! (It used to be three of the very best, until Amanda decided to leeeeave us and move to the other side of the Potomac! *sniff* She's in the photos below anyway, because... Well, because we love her!)

And I just wanted to let you all know how very grateful I am for that. I love living in a place that feels home-y, not because we have designer decor (because we don't), or because we have candles that smell like autumn and a basketful of blankets (which we do), but because...

Because we genuinely care about each other (it's ridiculous. in a good way.), and because we try really hard to make sure the Spirit is in our home. We cook together, eat together, clean together, set goals together, learn about the gospel together, and even pray together at night. Basically, it's the best, and during this time when I'm away from my immediate family and don't yet have a family of my own, I'm grateful to have these wonderful girls in my life. :)

And now, for your viewing pleasure, an assortment of roommate photos:

this is pretty much what happens at our apartment every night.
standing proudly with our Air Force officer, Lieutenant Bills!
honoring our veterans at Arlington Cemetery (photo courtesy of Kathryn)
and then there were three... :'(
group date!
no love for Kathryn. ;) jk! there's always love for everyone! (photo courtesy of Kathryn)

October 30, 2013

Harper's Ferry


I went to Harper's Ferry for the first time this weekend with a group of friends (DC bucket list item -- check!), and... it was absolutely GORGEOUS!! I haven't done a corn maze/hayride/haunted thingy in a few years, and when I saw a Living Social deal come up last month, I knew I had to get a group organized to go.

I've now been to West Virginia twice, and let me tell you: West Virginia does NOT disappoint!

To kick off our Harper's Ferry adventure, we did a little nature walking and caught a beautiful sunset.

the group
You know my theory about benches. There had to be some love on this one! Even if it was just friend love. :)

Then we did some more walking around the town (which is adorable, btw).

The gentlemen, getting informed.

We saw a beautiful church (where a ghost tour was about to start!),

ghost tour! (photo by Joel)
night shot

and the ruins of a church (where Joel maybe took some model shots of us girls?). The following photos are all brought to you by the one and only Joel:


What we all came away with from this experience is that... I can't keep a straight face. I just can't do it! I laugh every time.

nope. can't do it.

And, of course, we ate food. Lots of food. Lots of delicious food.

"wet" walnuts over pumpkin ice cream = amazing & life-changing!
The adorable B&B where we ate dinner. We felt so welcome here. ;)
delicious, local apple cider!
West Virginia's finest pumpkin butter, made from West Virginia pumpkins

We finished the night with our haunted house/hay ride/corn maze excursion at Ridgefield Farm & Orchard (which is also where I bought the above-featured pumpkin butter. It's delicious!).

hayride!

A funny story about the hayride. We got on the cart, and a girl got on after us who was all alone. The tour guide asked her if we should wait for her friends or group, but she said she'd come alone. The tour guide thought it was weird, but we decided to befriend her. "Come sit by us!" we said, and Jordan introduced us one by one. She scooted closer and told us about herself (her name was Maggie, she was a local, yadda yadda).

In the middle of the hayride, the tractor "broke down" (oh. no. <insert sarcastic tour guide voice her>), and we "had to go the rest of the way on foot." (aka- the haunting was about to begin!)

Out of nowhere, the haunted guys jumped onto our cart, and... they took Maggie! Only then (the tour guide's sarcastic "oh, no" comments helped) did we realize... Maggie was one of THEM! She wasn't a newcomer there to enjoy an autumn hayride! She was a co-conspirator! A haunter! 

After the excursion was over, the tour guide (whom we like to call "Prince Eric") remarked on how friendly we were to her. He said never before had he seen such a friendly group in all his years/months of haunting!

My response? "We're Mormon." :)



I'm so glad we all got to go on this adventure together! We had a blast, and the scenery in Harper's Ferry just took my breath away. I hope to visit again soon (maybe on a Sunday afternoon?). :D