a fully-obliged inconvience:

Today marks the 6th time I've been to the mall in the past 10 days...
I know what you are all thinking... "Golly gee! That sure must waste a lot of gas!" just play along and nod your head, saying "yes Emily! that's exactly what we were thinking! what a shopaholic freak! (cough cough.)
But last time I checked, the word wasting has a negative connotation and we all know the mall, nay, the beacon of all that is glorious, does not deserve a negative connotation labeled on it! C'mon now folks! It is just like you and me... It requires some TLC and hates being lonely! Don't worry all, I have put the heavy burden upon myself and decided to be the one to facilitate to it's need!

For the sake of the mall, people! and for those Steve Madden boots...the gorgeous Smashbox lipstick color...those exotic. dangly earrings with precious stones... and that cute purse in Macy's...


It's a hard job... But I am willing and able to be the one sacrificing! I'm so unbelievably giving, right? pssssst: it is in your best interest to agree.

Heavy lifting, I tell you! Woe is me! Boo-hoo! Bah-humbug! Mamma mia! Gee wilikers! Okay guys I am running low on complaints...

Another "inconvience" that crossed my path today was the one... the only... THE CANNOLI! Let's be honest ya'll.... I am Italian and that includes a hefty appetite for anything that stems from my homeland!

I know, I know....I need to work on my self-contol! You are preaching to the choir here, I am trying!! But hey! Can you blame me when all of this is thrown into the game?! No, no you can't because you would do the same if you were in my shoes! Which are stylin', if I do say so myself...

mean people are... mean.

It's 8:26 a.m.
The phone rings. It says Liberty Middle School, my sister's school.
Now I am confused....
Is she hurt?
Is she in trouble?
Did they catch her smuggling in poodles from the black market?
Did she pretend she was on Pretty Little Liars and flirt with her teacher?
and the worst fear:
**Did she get bit by a rabis-infested, human hunting rabbit and begin biting all of her schoolmates, taking all prisoner?

Jordan's happy voice rings over the phone, "Em, can you bring me shorts and a shirt?"
Me: "Why? Did you get dress-coded?!"
Jordan: (said in a quiet, sad voice) "No, just  please. And fast."

Have you ever seen an elephant and a chocolate lab galloping in the Mid-West?
I know you all have and I can guarentee you were all 62% confused and 28% enthralled.
This, my friends, was like seeing an elephant and a chocolate lab galloping in the Mid-West. I was so confused, but man oh man, I was so enthralled as to why.

I drive in a very cautious, law-abiding and police-friendly manner (hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah) and go into the office to see my sweet little sister looking perfectly normal, now I am really confused...

I ask her why she is changing and she replies: "Nothing is wrong Em! It's cool!" Her voice sounded strong and confident, but I see right through her. I heard the slight crack in her voice. I know her too well. There is something wrong... She is putting up a strong suit for the other kids in the office.

As we walk out of the office I force her into telling me why and here is where my heart dropped.
"The other kids told me I looked ugly in my dress. They were making fun of me and said I looked stupid. I couldn't take it."

and then all i saw was red..... (now I know how Dr. Banner feels when he is trying to not turn into the Hulk)

I am fiercely protective of my siblings. My family always tells me I am such a "Momma Bear" because I let no one mess with them, and if someone is daring enough to cross the line I will be daring enough to through them back to where they came from. I am quite proud of it, actually. My moniker is going to come in handy when I have children of my own, that's for sure...

Why are kids so mean nowadays? Goodness gracious! What happened to the Golden Rule?!

YOU ARE MEANING TO TELL ME THAT SHE IS UGLY?!?!?!?!?!? woooooo-ee buddy boy, you better check your facts.

So next time you are tempted to pick on someone based on their looks, remember the wise words of Dieter F. Utchdorf: "STOP IT."

Please and thank you., unless you want this Momma Bear to unleash her madness on you.

**One thing I was happy about was the fact that she was clear of all bunny bite marks. PHEW! She is rabis free!

happiness is

• Waking up at 6 a.m. with Jordan to make breakfast for your mother.
• Combatting bacon grease and coming out slightly unscathed.
• Jordan finding utter humor in every situation (including people almost dying, seriously.)
• Watching Pretty Little Liars with Jordan and having her know every line of every episode.
• Mixing vanilla coffee creamer with vanilla ice cream.
• Waking up early, the human mind is so fresh at the time.
• Bacon for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
• Evening walks with the family.
• Car rides that involve singing at the top of ones' lungs.
• Having nannies that are sent from Heaven (shout out to Rosie and Alma! YOU DA BEST!)
• Being able to use my technical adult status to shut down boys: "How old are you? Like 14?! I am an ADULT! Stop barking up this tree little boy!"
• Cracking your back, even though every one tells you that you have an addiction.
• Smelling Christmas candles in May.
• Realizing you are never too old to play spy.

and...

• Having the comfort of a mother's love whenever I need it.

just call me mom, folks.

I feel as if I have died (too dramatic, huh?) been transported into a dream world.

Noooooooo, not that dream world. You know, the dream world where George Clooney and Daniel Craig are fighting for my attention? Where homemade malts and goldfish are my main meals? Where every one finds my funky dance moves pure beauty/art? Where my skin is always flawless?

Defintely not that dream world.

Rather, the dream world where time is quickly sped up and I am no longer my BYU student, 18 year-old self.... Sadly those days seem so distant now, folks. The days seem to have transported me to my future adult-self, children and all... (In this dream world I am sans-husband though... Where could this mystery man be? On a mission, maaaaaaaaybe? :])

ANYWHO! I have been dropping off/picking up my little sister at junior high every day which includes me pulling into the parking lot saying, "Now, Jordan, which one of these kids are your friends? Point them out! I want to introduce myself to them!" Which then causes Jordan to say, "Emily, please.. Please... Please, no." And then get out of the car while it is still in motion.... Yeaaaaah, I've become one of "those" people.

After dropping that little ball of sunshine off I arrive home to spend the rest of the day with the trips. (I have 2 year old triplet siblings, FYI. I don't just go volunteer with those rascals, THEY LIVE WITH ME!)

Maybe I am biased, but when we are all together and I am in charge I think it is quite the party. I think I am biased, ahh who cares!

I do Carly's hair (us girls gotta be lookin' fly!) then let her do big-girl things.

like read the ads in the newspaper.....

Is that a grown man reading the morning news? My! He is only 2?! Coulda fooled me!

We have dance breaks to keep things interesting. Don't let this picure fool you- groovy moves run in the fam! Ever seen me dance?

UN.FOR.GET.TABLE!

Sam gets emotional because of the raw beauty he sees when his sister dance.

Psssssst, I spy with my little eye a handsome fella sportin' a BYU shirt! GO COUGARS!

I don't know what to say, I guess mine & Carly's moves just move people.

We play dress-up.

Our love for shoes definitely proves we fell from the same tree, that's for sure!

Sam tried on Daddy's shoes and ended up looking like a thug.

Just call him Little S Dawg. (that's "hood" right?!)

And after a long day we sit and read this book, mentioned in my last post.

The family that reads together, stays together.

PHEW! These siblings of mine are so high matinence! We must be related afterall!

So until that day where I can greet my mystery husband at the door with our adorable kiddos I will take care of these guys... They are kind of cute and all. :)

IS THAT SCREAMING COMING FROM THE NEXT ROOM?!?!?! NO CARLY, STOP TRYING TO FIT JACK IN YOUR PURSE! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Note: Jack isn't included in this post due to the fact that he is always busy wreaking havoc to pose for pictures.

adventure awaits!

Want to know what I did? Even if you say no I am still telling you whether you like it or not... I went to my dad's house in central California all the way from my mom's quaint home in southern California.
Here's the kicker: I got there on a bus/train!!!! I know what you are thinking, "Why in the world would she get there in such ways of transportation?!" My response to you nay-sayers is,  "WHY NOT?!"

When I have children of my own I want them to look at their mother (ehem, me for those of you who cannot keep up...) and see that I actively sought out adventure, that I continued to partake in experiences that a refreshing and teach me new things, even if that means I was slighty pushed from my comfort zone.

So that's what I did, folks! And hey, why not?! Before my little adventure I was sitting at home, eating Magnum ice cream bars and cathing up on The Real Housewives of Orange County (scandalous, might I add!)

Don't even try to act like you've never done that before. I see right through you!

Here's how it went down:
-5 hour bus ride
-1 hour train ride
-1 new book
-1 long letter to be written to Elder Sagers
-1 ipod full of amazing music
-And a bunch of snacks, healthy of course. hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.

Onward, Amtrak! We ride until dawn! .....Or until we get to our destination....

Two hours in and I got a little bored:

Two hours and three minutes in I got a little more bored:

Two hours and seventeen minutes in I got wayyyy bored:

And by two hours and twenty-eight minutes I had fallen asleep, with goldfish on my face...

Funny what can happen in a matter of twent-eight minutes, eh?

We drove through parts of California that I didn't even knew exsisted! It was a pretty ride, that's for sure.

Didn't think the Golden State had rolling green hills, eh?!
We don't only have the beach kiddos!

And the beauty was rudely interrupted and we drove through here:

I add this picture to prove that the Zombie Apocalypse is real and happening before our eyes.... They have been to this down and left it deserted... RUN, AND RUN FAST!

Current read, it's fabulous, I promise.

One, eight page letter, seven chapters, an entire goldfish bag and three playlists later I was reunited with my beautiful sisters.

Go and do something that pushes your comfort zone! Take a trip, even if that means you get there in an obscure way!

To the fellow passengers I encountered: Sorry for dancing and fanitly singing under my breath Whitney Houston, Santana, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros and Hall & Oates. I bet I must have looked slightly alarming.

......and when I say sorry I mean sorry for not being sorry.... You know you liked it.

happy thursday! {ed.5}

Let's set the record straight here, folks. I am beginning this post 3 minutes until the clock strikes midnight and Thursday flees to the calendar pages until it comes out to play next week...

I would try and finish this post in these 3, fleeting minutes but you know as well as I that my humorous words cannot be condensed in such a time constraint! I'M SORRY BUT I HAVE NEEDS, OKAY?!?!?!

Goodness people! Now I know how J.LO feels when she requests only blue M&M's in her trailer and they accidentally leave in the green. Gosh, let me and my girl J.LO breath! Our talents need to be upheld, not rushed or trodden! (Or in her case, don't expect her to share her talents with you if you screw up her chocolatley goodness order...)

Thankfully I am not J.LO and will not burst out of the door shouting, "WHEN I ASK FOR BLUE M&M'S I WANT BLU M&M'S! NOT GREEN!" rather, I will write this post simply because I do not have an excuse to not write it... I mean I am home for the summer with not much to do; and that's what this edition of Happy Thursday! is for...

YOU. Yes, you with the eyes. 

YOU should do something that causes you to tap into something you didn't know you were capable of doing. Try something new. Read a book on the New York Times' Best Sellers list. Paint a picture. Sit outside and tan. Turn off your phone. Log out of Facebook (don't just put offline people, actually log out! YOU CAN DO IT!) Listen to music that moves you, music that radiates to your soul. Write in your journal. Help someone. 

As for me, this Thursday started out as just another day.

But I decided I didn't want it to be just another day.....

So I made it an excellent Thursday by doing Temple Baptisms with some ward buddies. My mere words cannot even begin to explain how magical it was.

So here is to days where you refuse to settle to label it as "just another day." Every day is a gift... Treat it like one!

Happy Thursday!

banana euphoria!

Did you know that in Jennifer Aniston's wedding vows to Brad Pitt she vowed to "love you continually and make you you favorite banana milkshake whenever you want one"?
Not that we should take pointers from their relationship or anything (you know because it crashed and burned... Thanks a bunch,  Angelina!) But the fact that Brad loves banana milkshakes and Jen was willing to make them for him for the 5 years they were together is diddly-darn special!

Brad and I have something in common.
Massive amounts of facial hair? No.. Good guess though.
Sexy body? Well that's up to your judgement... Kidding, folks!
Obsession with banana milkshakes? BADDA-BING! You got it!

Bananas are awesome as a stand alone food, let alone when you add in the heavenly sweetness that is ice cream.

Simple steps to achieve a euphoric banana milkshake:
this is not a detailed recipe... if you need one to make a milkshake you have serious problems.
-Banana (one will do since we both know you won't be sharing this with anyone!)
-Golden Vanilla Ice Cream
-Whole Milk (we don't mess around here. The real deal is only allowed in my kitchen!)
-Butter churner..
-^^Kidding, but i bet it would come out creamylicious! A blender will suffice I guess....
Blend that sucker and and BAM! life.is.good.

So when your day seems to be going a little south, or even when things are going your way... Make yourself a banana milkshake. I drink them quite a bit and to avoid feeling guilty I just keep reminding myself that half of what I am drinking is fruit and ignore the whole other-half being ice cream.
I'm not in denial or anything....