holly and ivy

 Merry Christmas Eve! 

Have A Mella Christmas

Cassidy and Jeff decided to throw a Christmas party. It was the best Christmas party I have ever been to. They did not miss anything! 

We played minute to win it games, had name tags put on our backs that we had to guess who we were, ate finger foods and drank homemade eggnog, and exchanged white elephant gifts... It was a blast. The perfect before-finals holiday party. 

Simply Having A Wonderful Christmas Time

And that is why I am, once again, doing a collective blogpost for pretty much all of December. But just for the record, every day was an adventure. . . even finals days (which were pretty much the worst). I had a cozy, cute little home in Provo and decorated it all festive. I found a wonderful coconut milk eggnog and peppermint ice cream. These cute little kids were handing out candy canes to everyone that exited the library late one night. My best friend came home from her mission. There were weddings, Christmas parties, crazy white elephant presents, good gifts, wonderful friends, and funny families.


 A most thoughtful gift.

the best gift ever! 

The most festive place.

A very close game.

 A cute love story.

 Anna Marie.

the Piano Guys.

A sacred place

decking the halls.

My guy.

I love Christmas. I love the glow of Christmas lights and the warmth of fireplaces. I love Christmas movies and Mannheim Steamrollers blasting through the house. I love using peppermint shower gel and candy cane hairspray and wearing a different Christmas outfit everyday. I love love LOVE trying to find the perfect gift for everyone on my list. (this year I went a little artsy because I'm a little decoration obsessed at the moment). I love going in to stores and seeing how fun and festive their windows and displays are. I love the stack of Christmas books my mom puts on our coffee table. I love Christmas puzzles. I love the colorful trees across campus on gloomy test-taking days. And I love the spirit of everything.

This time of year is not all about gift giving and receiving or the golden star on top of the tree, but everything that they stand for. I love this time of year because it is all about Christ. The love and peace of joy that He brings. He truly is the gift. And it is so important to remember that.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

my california boy

This kid. Where do I start. . . .  He is my very best friend.

A sappy post about him being the light of my life and solid ground beneath my feet should be written here because every word of it would be true. But I don't know how to be sappy without leaving a bad taste in people's mouthes and this kid should never leave a bad taste in someone's mouth. He is amazing! He saved me from (literally) my darkest moment. He has been so patient and kind and loving and wonderful to me these past few months. And believe me, that was no easy task. The last few months (11 give or take a few) have been really hard in so many ways. I cannot believe he has stuck around through all of it. But he has weathered it, thick and thin. And I am so grateful that he has! I am scared to think of where I would be without him.

He has done so much for me. He has held me through my hardest nights. Celebrated my best days. He has eaten more tacos than should be humanly possible with me by his side. He has, on multiple occasions, prohibited me from spending $100,000 on candles but on more occasions witnessed me go a little too crazy at Target. He has taken photos and videos galore! He has given the most thoughtful gifts, written the cleverest notes, and helped organized the most exciting adventures. He has held my hand through more chick flicks than any boy I have ever known but he secretly (not so secretly) loves it. He has taught me so much about love and life and friendship and what it means to truly care about someone--enough to never give up on them or let them go. He has kept me laughing and smiling through it all. And I love him for it.

So excuse the not actually engagement engagement pictures. We just like capturing our memories.

I just like you a lot Travis Richard the seventeenth Irwin :)

a little Thanksgiving

Due to this:

And this. . . .

And then this. . . .

 I had to take this:

 Home to California where he could recover from his miserable week with gallbladder troubles by doing a little bit of this:

Before I had to head back to Utah to do a little bit of this

 And eat a little bit of this:

And do a little more of this:

 And a little black friday bit of this:

But here is a long list of a things I am grateful for.

My family. My home. My second home in St. George. The GOSPEL. The Tudor House. My roomies. BYU. My education. Travis. California get-aways. Thanksgiving meals. My best friends from high school. My last genetics test score. Thrift stores. Deals. The internet. Google searches. Cameras. Warm Weather. Style. The Killers. Music in general. Cars (especially because I no longer have one). pianos. Kind random strangers. Inspiring youtube videos. Pinterest (again, for the inspiration). unlimited text messages (weird I know but I was reading my journal from when I only had 45 texts a months and let me tell you, THOSE were the DAYS!). My dad. The priesthood. My cute grandparents (all four of them). Vaccinations (recently watched Contagion). Good movies (I loved Mockingjay and Interstellar!). BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS FOR DAYS (I recently discovered books at savers and I am never going to barnes and noble again....this month). crushed ice. Petroglyphs and other neat historical artifacts. Cool hikes. This amazing state of Utah. Leggins/long socks/over-sized sweaters. eyelash extensions. Inside jokes. Sweet dreams. Special text messages. Or when your boyfriend leaves you cute notes next to your bedside table for when you wake up. Extra credit (we all need it). Good food and Good people.

There are so many things that I am grateful for...this is seriously just a quick quick list. Every year around this time I say a prayer where I do not ask for anything but spend the whole time telling my Heavenly Father what I am thankful for. This ends up being one of my favorite things to do and it makes me realize how many things I take for granted. I love that quote you hear that goes something like "What if you woke up today with only the things you thanked God for last night?" There are several variations to this idea, but it is very thought-provoking. We all could be better and appreciating what we have because we are so freaking lucky to have it. 

It was a wonderful thanksgiving break. I always love this little pause we get in the semester before crunch time to the end! Now it is time to buckle up and floor it. FULL SPEED AHEAD. 

. . . . . . . .

ok....so I was obviously suppose to post that a few days ago. But I  forgot. Instead, I just finished my next to last wednesday of my last semester of my undergraduate education. Holy. Cow. And I got a lot finished today so I am feeling really proud of myself and splurging by catching up on social media. I seriously continue to grow more grateful for the amazing people and examples in my life. I have a few friends, a few family members, and a few teachers in particular that I wish I could fall on the ground and do some type of awkward gratitude grovel for them because of all they have done for me these last few crazy months. I love the kindness and goodness that is still in this world and I hope to contribute my own light to the world throughout my life. 

So thanks to anyone who happens to read this. I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. And Happy Holidays!

XOXOXOX