Because I said so.

The four words that I swore I would never ever say to my future children.

And yet I don't even have my own kids, but find myself saying it to the kids I teach.

Teacher why can't I hit my friend?

Because I said so.

Teacher why can't I throw this toy?

Because I said so.

Teacher why can't I do this?

Because I said so.

Teacher why can't I do that?

Because I said so.
When you think about it, it really is a valid reason :)
......Because I said so.

Currently....

{watching} Full House
{listening} to Kiss Me Slowly by Parachute
{hating} change
{excited} to spend time with family today
{loving} the three day weekend
{thankful} for a working dryer
{wishing} I could go to South America
{blessed} to have a temple down the street. some people travel for days to go to the temple.
{feeling} anxious
{wanting} a tan
{learning} to forgive

Quote of the Week.

You never know what good things will pour in when the heart is open to life

A Day at the Zoo.

Saturday was fantastic.
Mostly because I got to be a kid again.
The giraffe's were by far my favorite part.

Quote of the Week.

Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.

{Albert Einstein}

The Pit and the Peak of a Tuesday.

{the pit} Our washer broke on Saturday and the soonest they can send someone out to fix it is Thursday. This couldn't have happened at a worse time.
Cause last week I didn't feel like doing my laundry on Thursday.
So I didn't.
Now I'm stuck with a lot of dirty clothes.
I've realized two things: One, I am very thankful for a dryer. So glad we don't have to hang clothes on a clothes line anymore. And two, I have a lot of clothes. Even though I haven't done my laundry for a week now, not even half my wardrobe is gone. Time to clean out the closet.

{the peak} Naptime at work is my sanity.
This is by far my favorite time of the day.

And also, I have no idea how I get all 22 kids to bed within an hour.

Talent? I sure think so. 

Currently....

{watching} The Billboard Music Awards
{listening} to Forever and Always by Parachute
{hating} that tomorrow is Monday. Monday's are the worst
{excited} for dinner with Shartel on Wednesday
{loving} the rainy weather
{thankful} for Jamba Juice
{wishing} i had a new car
{blessed} to have friends that serve the lord for two years
{feeling} old. i watched my brother graduate from seminary today. seems like that was barely me.
{wanting} a raise again. 8 dollars an hour isn't cutting it
{learning} how to save money better

The Pit and the Peak of a Saturday.

{the pit} Apparently the world is supposed to come to an end today.
Dun, dun, dun......
So that's kind of a downer.
Whelp, I lived a good life.
Kidding.
The world is probably, most likely not going to come to an end today.
Which is good, cause I still have a lot of things to check off on my bucketlist.

{the peak} Don't tell me this is not one of the funniest things you've ever seen....

Ah man she is so cute.
Good thing I decided to get her behind my mom's back.
Have you ever heard that story before?
I wanted a dog.
So I of course went to my daddy.
He told me ask mom.
My mom said absolutely not.
So naturally I went and got one anyways.
And had my dad take me.
My mom was ticked livid.
She wouldn't touch Ellie.
She wouldn't look at me.
She wouldn't talk to me or my dad- actually, she would only yell at my dad and I.
The couch became my dad's best friend that week.
And I became the receiver of the cold shoulder and some dirty crusties.
Eventually she got over it.
And even admitted she was glad we got Ellie.
See, I knew what I was doing!

Oh Brother.

Sometimes....I worry about this kid.....

My Brother.
Apparently yesterday all the seniors took a panoramic picture.
They all got lectured before about not flashing gang signs.
My brother and some of his friends however decided to ignore this warning and gave the cameras the good ol' straight edge sign.
Which by the way none of them are straight edgers.
(such a boy thing to do)
And a few hours later my dad was on the phone with Mr. Edmunds.
Remember him? He was the worst.
Needless to say my brother got a good lecture and a beating.
Okay so minus the beating.
Just the lecture.
And a threat to not be able to go to Senior Dinner Dance.

Check out the invitations he sent out to people in my family for his graduation...

I found this quite hilarious.
I was also really tired from work that day so anything was funny really.
I pray to the heavens this kid makes it in life.
It's lookin a little sketchy right now.
I know he will though.....eventually :)

Money Tree.

"Money doesn't buy happiness, but it does bring reassurance and comfort." -Dad

Amen to that.
Right about now I'm wishing I had one of these in my backyard...

Why oh, oh why does money not grow on trees?!
Because then I could....

• go to South America to work in an orphanage.
• pay off my school loans. Yes, I'm already in debt and I'm only 20 years old.
• buy a new car.
• pay for school without loans.
• travel the world.
• pay off my car loan.
• solve world hunger.

Just kidding about the last one. That would be nice though.
I guess until I find a money tree I'm going to have to keep doing this saving money thing.
Which is supposed to teach valuable life lessons or something lame like that.

Currently....

{watching} Glee
{listening} to Good Life by One Republic
{hating} having a 80 year old women's back
{excited} for Friday
{loving} my new white iPhone (thanks Daddy)
{thankful} to have a job
{wishing} it would stay warm
{blessed} to have a nice warm bed to sleep in at night
{wanting} to go skydiving
{learning} how to welcome change with open arms

Garage Sale and a Change in Wards.

Daybreak is great for many things.
Scenic walks, a lake down the road from my house, good eats and now community garage sales.
I've never been to a garage sale in my life before Saturday.
I loved it.
I think garage sales are my new favorite thing.
....and of course I came away with a few (too many) goodies.

On another note....
For some reason the church decided to make a change to the singles wards.
Which means I have a new ward that I get to go to know.
At first I was really upset about this.
If you know me at all I don't do change well.
A new ward would mean having to socialize and meet new people.
Heaven forbid. Jokes. I can do it if I really want to and try.
It's just not my forte. Not at all.
But for some reason I feel so at peace.
Like this change is going to bring something great.

Quote of the Week.

Be youself. Everybody else is already taken.

{Oscar Wilde}

The Pit and the Peak of a Friday.

{the pit} My classroom at work is absolutely freezing. It seriously is the Tundra in there. Promise every day I go home with snotsticles. I'm surprised I haven't caught a cold yet.

{the peak} Jayde came running up to me today very upset with this in her hand.....

"Miss. McCall, Miss. McCall! I found a dead potato bug!"

I honestly think she was about to cry.

She was so concerned for this bug that probably has an average life span of two hours.

The best part was that she insisted on carrying around the dead potato bug for the rest of the day.

It was thee cutest.

Currently....

{watching} Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part one
{listening} to Just the Way you Are by Boyce Avenue
{hating} the bipolar weather
{excited} for a close friend to come home from his mission
{loving} being out of school
{thankful} that the doctor finally found out what was wrong with my mom
{wishing} money grew on trees
{blessed} that I have such an amazing family
{wanting} to go to Disneyland to play with Mickey
{learning} for about the hundredth time that friendships change so quickly. one moment you're with each other and talking all the time. and the next it's done with. just like that.

Quote of the Week.

What if one day you woke up and all you had was what you thanked God for the day before.

Good Night.

Last night was fantastic.

Mostly cause I got to spend it with my mom.

We went and saw this movie...

Which I loved by the way.

John Krasinski was so good in this movie.

And I may or may not have a little crush on him?

After the movie we went and got some Gelato at a litte cafe called San Gelato by my house.

It was delish.

I found out tonight that I am a little a lot like my mom. I've always been told that, just never realized it untill I really stopped to look.

We're both quiet, calm, don't need/want to be the center of attention, love other people's company and care deeply for people.

I look up to my mom a lot.

She's been through so much.

Hopefully one day I can be half the women she is.

Cinco De Mayo.

Feliz Cinco De Mayo!

There is probably nothing I am more proud of than my culture.

For reals though.

I take such pride in where I come from.

Nothing makes me more happy than when someone asks me what nationality I am.

Love, love that question.

For those of you who don't know what Cinco De Mayo is, it's a day to commemorate Mexican heritage and pride.

And my family and I did just that.

We went and ate some delish food at a restaurant called, La Hacienda.

It was fantastic.

And authentic.

Which you can't find very many places.

Cafe Rio? No way.

Mexicans don't eat salad and sweet pork.

Oh and we got cake bites after.

Shhh that's not Mexican food.

But still oh so good! 

Wishful Thinking and Some Good Tunes.

If I could have one wish in the whole entire world it would to be able to sing.

Beautifully of course.

Cause I can sing, but there sure is nothing beautiful about it.

I want the kind of singing voice that makes grown men cry and sings restless babies to sleep.

(Don't ask about the analogy)

Ya know, the kind of voice that makes peoples mouths drop when they hear it.

That's the kind of voice I want.

Where's a  magic jeannie when you need it?

Speaking of singing...

You know those songs that no matter how many times you listen to them they'll never get old?

Well here's my list of those kind of songs.....

(And yes, pretty much all of them are Alternative. Cause well that's pretty much all I ever listen to)

If it Means a lot to You by A Day to Remember

Brass Bed by Josh Gracin

Think of You Later by Every Avenue

All the Same by Sick Puppies

Don't Let Me Stop You by Kelly Clarkson

Rush by Quietdrive

What Hurts the Most by Rascal Flatts

Helena by My Chemical Romance

Blue and Yellow by The Used

Where is the Love? by Black Eyed Peas

Tell Me What to Do by Metro Station

Your Guardian Angel by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

Take a Bow by Leona Lewis

Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol

She is Love by Parachute

The Way by Big Surrender

Quote of the Week.

Be where you are. Otherwise, you will miss your life.

{Buddha}

Viva Las Vegas.

Vegas weekend could not have been any better.
Good places, good chats, good food, good weather, good people, good times.
What could be better? Probably nothing.
Here's a few pictures from the weekend. Enjoy!

Special thanks to Jackie for always having her camera around!