back to business.

I had a fantastic trip to TEXAS!! so fantastic I didn't want to come home.
Jess has been married for about 4 years now(I think it's 4??), and we went on a bachelorette trip before her wedding and that was the last big thing, and the most time the three of us have spent together since. It was so nice to take off and be with my besties!!
*I"ll try to keep my synopsis brief with minimal photo overload...
My highlight of the trip of course was the Houston Rodeo. It was held in Reliant stadium, which I learned was originally built for the superbowl, so think of how many people go to the superbowl and that's how many rodeo people were crammed packed in there. it was awesome : ) Houston knows how to rodeo and they kept things running smoothly and there was never a dull moment. After the rodeo the concert that night was Lady Antebellum and they are also amazing. They sound just as good live!
I could have stayed and lived at the rodeo grounds but there was more to see : )
That weekend we went shopping at the Galleria, drove to the woodlands and stayed in a hotel for Kyle to run his marathon the next day. Then cheered him on as he ran an amazing 3:05:44! we hung outside the medic tent as kyle got checked out. Then drove home to lay by the pool and get ready to go get dinner. Roamed around awesome stores, and hung out the chocolate bar where every hour is happy hour! I also ate a Texan size chocolate covered strawberry. Had a lazy day Sunday. ate jenny's delicious dinner, played with cute friend max, walked around Hermann park. played games, made treats, and went wild over "Get up off of that thing! Shake it till you feel better!" and almost became YouTube sensations...Beach day Monday turned into Poolside Monday for J.Love and B.da.Bomb following a slight mishap : ) hours later with sunburns a blazing we found out the hard way that Houston shuts down on Monday nights and was later eating our frustrated emotions out on Vietnamese food, and topping it off with Krave cupcakes and Bluebell ice cream over a redbox movie. Prior to heading to the airport Tuesday found us back at the Livestock show on the rodeo grounds. We found ourselves gone full circle as we strolled around the masses of shops and checked out(okay I checked them out, not jess) the mass amounts of cowboys! Bought souveniors, and ate THE BEST bbq sandwich I'd ever had. J.Lo aka J.Thug dropped us off at the airport and we started the longest flight back to utah. Great trip! did I mention how much we ate?? BBQ, Mediterranean, Italian, TexMex, American, and Vietnamese etc...
It was so good to just be our goofy selves and be careless. Did I mention how much we laughed?? Thanks Kyle and Jenny for being amazing hosts! Thank you Texas for being awesome, and warm during our visit. Thank you Jessie for being a superb travel partner. Thank you Kyle for putting up with 3 crazy girls for a week, and for being our free photographer. Thank you Danny for letting Jess have a getaway. Love these girls! until next time. #bestiesreunite2013:)

positivity

day of love spent with these two cuties.


and of course surprise valentines, like every year. This year it appears my parents are putting that spare key to good use... : )

The weather got crappy again(which was not positive) however, I made good use of my last Thursday off by compiling my biggest excitement for the upcoming summer aka rodeo season : )

Work has improved, slightly. At least I'm averaging 15-16 patients and logging at least a 20 min break some nights instead of no break, and 18 patients. Also, the 14 hours shifts has started to decrease. I did however have another code episode Sunday night-NOT FUN! and obese patients make you even more sore after compressions than skinny ones. just sayin.

Presidents Day was great. Spent in in SLC hanging out with Jeni which is always an adventure. And Tuesday I re-united with Daphnee. Both visits got me thinking about things such as moving, and most of all living solo aka alone. Thoughts are a brewin!! Talking with Daph we started making summer plans and the return of my best friend Jacqui. Let's just say I have hope for the summer which I hadn't had in a while. I'm so excited for the 3 amigos to be reunited I can't wait. Vegas trip to re-visit JW, sky diving, rodeos, dance party after dance party are just to name a few : )


ps. one week from tomorrow I'll be finding myself in the Lonestar State!!!

hope.

On my way to work the other day I passed a dad and his five little girls on bicycles, currently stopped at a stop light. All decked out in helmets I was reminded of my dad, and I knew instantly how lucky those little girls were.

Memories started flooding in as I thought about growing up and times like that with my dad. I realized that not all kids are so lucky and I immediately felt hope that if/when I have kids one day that they can have a dad like mine:
-One who will ride bikes with them all down the town's parkway.

-Sleep out under the stars in the summer knowing how much his kids love it and being there for protection even though it wasn't comfortable for him and probably wasn't the best nights sleep.

-attend every school or sporting event their in. Dad never missed even the reflections assemblies (and there were lots of those seeing as how us Olsen kids and our mom kicked butt at reflections every year!)

-Pull them on sleds behind the truck on a dirt road in the winter.

-Teach them how to work-helping out around the house, garden, farm etc... one time the cows got out in our neighboring property in Carbonville and all us kids had to go help round them back in.

-Help out others. Whether it's shoveling snow for neighbors for hours, helping grandpa down on the farm(hauling hay despite hayfever), helping out at the church, or even letting "the homeless" use his home phone, he's always helping others out.

-Teaching to ride horses and the importance of saddling up again after getting bucked off (true story with me right here!)

-Letting his kids bang up and abuse a tree in his front yard so they could have a "tree house" with the neighbors.

-Help out with endless hours of math homework. Even if kids lost all patience.

-Teach them how to drive. Even if an attempt to teach a particular daughter manuel transmission ends with the farm truck in the ditch....
Granted there were many things that my dad had a hand in growing up-these are just some of my favorite memories that came to mind. Don't get me wrong my mom is equally as great but the dad and girls sparked it : )
thanks for everything daddio

there's an app for that.

I love my iPhone, I really do. I love it so much that my camera (my real canon camera) doesn't get much attention if any anymore. Along with liking and using my convenient phone camera so much I happen to like a popular Instagram app. so fun!
So here's some updates on the ol life via instagram and iPhone photos...
1. First experience @ color me mine: My candy dish creation. Pink in this picture but fired red :)

2. My brother became a Ryan Gosling look-a like with his new haircut. Or at least I think so...
3.I tried Sushi for the first time with Brynn. Also tried Thai food for the first time which was also with Brynn although it's from a different day and not pictured below....
4. Enjoyed some rainy days with this cutie.

5. Made Jax have a photoshoot with my boots : ) I'm working my cowboy magic on him!
6. Went to the Westerner!!! and it's my new favorite place. Seriously though, wood dance floor, live bands, cowboys everywhere, and mechanical bull is my kind of a good time. Thank goodness for my new friends (okay not "new friends"-just starting be outside of work friends).
(Not a work friend. However, he was my favorite person last Saturday night. cheers to country dancing the night away with a Georgian cowboy!) 7. Loved driving around with my windows down in the two day 60 degree spell we had.
8. Bought this lil beauty today to use as my carry on for my upcoming Texas trip in T-17 days. I can't wait to pack it up and go : )

Lastly- a picture of my footloose moment cupid shuffle style. It's technically cheating since it comes from my friends phone but nonetheless so fun.

one of those days....

Since gorgeous George or sexy Strait, whichever name you prefer to use, always says it best...
"Girl you had one of those days
Seem like they been going around
You are a long way from being where you want to be.

When the world isn’t going your way
Or ever bad luck is getting you down."

this is how I feel, only substitute the word days for months(as in multiple months). Holy Hannah Montana it isn't going away any time soon. The other day I was once again down in the dumps feeling alone, and having yet another pity party for myself when I see news about Josh Powell and his little boys.
Crazy stuff right there!! All the while realizing my pains, hard times, and sorrows are nothing compared to what those poor grandparents are going through right now. Suddenly gratitude overwhelmed me for my amazing family. How lucky I am to live so close where I can pop in and visit (which I do everyday nowadays), without having to worry about those horible things that the Powell family has suffered with. I'm grateful instead to find amazing examples and friendships. Let's just say that all this Powell drama has also made me grateful that I don't have a husband to worry about going all psychotic on me. PHEW!!!

Things can always be worse. Even though in the moment it's hard to remember that, so in those moments I think how grateful I am to be an Olsen, not a Powell.