Another Tender Tennessee Christmas!

If you've never heard that song, you've obviously missed out on Tender Tennessee Christmas, because basically it is all that plays on the radio. Snow does NOT = Christmas here in Tennessee! Dad & I @ the airport after he & Mom picked me up @ 1:00 in the morning, when my plane finally came in 2 hrs after the original ETA. My mom & I stayed up talkin till 4am...THAT is late.

A couple nights after I got home we had a get together with all the grown high school buddies. The High School Crewizzle. Tee-Tee, Mitch & I pretending to be a happy family. Jenna, Kels, Me & Mitch @ the College Kid Party, duh! Jenna, Me & Kelsey Spence acting surprised about what is going to be in the box! My 2009 Christmas Ornament! I love it. Deej & I in our Christmas Eve jammies! We danced around like "Whos" all night! This sums Spencer up. We love him.The only 16 yr old boy I know who gets Ben Franklin books for Christmas. Chase is so cute. He was so excited to join the NorthFace club this year! Mom got lots of socks from dad! hahah all individually wrapped as pairs. Better than the Christmas where she got a BOX of socks. Deej w/ her present from me! So, I really love love love my family. I love spending time with them. However, one of my favorite parts of this break has been Skyping with this beautiful face every night. I miss him. xoxoBestChristmasBreakEver!

All I Want For Christmas Is You.

Wow, my last 1.5 weeks in Provo were amazing. Weston is amazing. Our Thursday night date turned into another 5 day weekend long date. Then this past Friday after finals and takin little Syd to the airport, I drove down to Orangeville [folks, all of this made possible by the lovely Sydney Marne letting me use her car to drive to Orangeville, thank you so much!]. I got there and Grandpa Brinkerhoff gave Weston & I beanies for Christmas. He waited until I pulled into town to leave for home, so he could give me his gift. It was so sweet. So he pulls out our hats and gave me mine and I DIED when I saw what he handed to Weston. It was Lavender purple w/ white stripes. I have never laughed so hard in my life. I got Weston to take a picture in it before he changed his mind :) That night we watched a few movies. I couldn't stay awake though, I had a sleep deprived week! (Oh, by the way, finals went well and I came out w/ good grades this semester! ahhh the hard work paid off!) Saturday morning we woke up early and Weston made us blueberry pancakes and played banana pancakes on his ipod...but we didn't have bananas. We went snowboarding up at the run. On the way up tho he pulled over at Electric Lake. We got out of the car & he grabbed my hand & started walking. I asked him what we were doing. He said,"You said you've never been on a frozen lake before, right?" (I said that about a few weeks earlier) It was so sweet. So he walked me out to the middle of the lake. Gave me a piggy back ride most of the way bc I just wore my moccasins up to The Run. We went out & talked to some ice fishers out on the lake. I asked them if I could look at everything they were doing bc I'd never seen it before. Weston gave the disclaimer that I was from TN. Snowboarding was amazing. Weston was a great teacher & so patient. And I have never had so much fun while being so terrified in my whole life. I was actually really good the first run down, I had some intensely insane wipeouts. It was at this place called The Run up in Huntington canyon, so it wasn't a resort, so basically the paths were steep and narrow. So basically you learn to turn or hit a tree. The second time down it took about 10x longer than a normal person, because I was so freaked out the whole time. After we got through it though, he told me the second run is always the worst, but he didn't want to tell me that before because I mightve gotten scared, so he encouraged me to go one last time. So we went a 3rd time and it was SO freaking fun again, like the first time down. I did a lot better too! We had plans up in salt lake that night though so we had to head out. I got in the car and waited for him to talk to a man about a horse. I looked in the rearview mirror and was HORRIFIED. I didn't know it, but apparently I had mascara down to my cheeks. OH MY GOSH. I wiped it all off. The best part was I had been taking off my gloves & wiping under my eyes to make sure I didn't have it all day, because I spent more time in the snow than normal. But my finger was always clear, no black smudges. So when he gets back to the car I go, "ARE YOU KIDDING??? MASCARA???" hahahah he started laughing SO hard, he said that he kept being about to tell me but would forget. Apparently, according to Weston, I was beautiful regardless so it didn't really make a difference to him, oh, and it was funny because I looked like a clown. wow. thanks. All the people we talked to in the trucks on the way back up the mountain after each run probably thought so too. We even talked to more people too because we found a lost cell phone on the slopes so we went up to a bunch of crowds and asked if they lost a phone. & a group of guys asked me to take their picture bc they were snowboarding shirtless. Wow, out of all those people NO ONE TOLD ME I HAD RACCOON EYES? Wow. That's all I can say. Oh and another hilarious story. Weston was teaching me to snowboard and was so patient and riding next to me the whole time. He would be down below me waiting for me to come down towards him and he'd always get out of the way once I got going. One time, particularly though, I realized he wasn't getting out of the way, he was just down below me smiling up at me flying down towards him and then I see the horror across his face when he realized I was going fast & he wasn't going to dodge in time. I yelled "WESTON, MOOOOVE! AAAHHHHH" hahaha and all of a sudden he just totally took me out and knocked me to the ground and I flew into the snowbank! We died laughing. It was so funny, besides the fact he didn't dive out of the way, he not only was trying to be defensive and give me a nudge so I didn't run him over. It was like he was taking out a vengeance on me or something. He threw me to the ground. We laughed for about 20 minutes. It was so funny (just remember that while all this was going on, I unknowingly had black eyes). This is us outside a gas station in Fairview, Utah after snowboarding. The straight hair quickly curled as it got wet. After snowboarding, we went back to my apartment & he dropped me off. I showered & got ready as he Christmas shopped @ University Mall. He then came back and got showered & clean at my apartment. Then we headed up to Salt Lake for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory compliments of my parents (thanks!). We waited for 80 minutes and food has never tasted so good after we were finally seated. People tell me I'm photogenic.

After Cheesecake Factory we went to Temple square and walked around while looking at the lights. It was awesome. That night we went and stayed with Aunt Kay & Uncle Tim in Lehi. We watched Home Alone. The next morning we went to church with them and then came home and ate lunch as a fun little double with them because the girls were at a young women's party. Then we napped and canoodled it was a really nice afternoon. Then we headed back to Provo & he helped me pack for home. Well, actually he was really just a distraction. So, I sent him out to the front room to nap (bc that afternoon I napped, but he didn't) while I showered, etc. Then I had him open his Christmas presents. He LOVED them. Oh boy, he was so excited about the Monopoly. I gave him a Navy themed Monopoly game. He was ecstatic. It made me so happy. I also gave him a giant cup, a Relient K cd & a picture of us. He was a happy camper. We headed out to Orangeville & got there around midnight. Then we just canoodled at his house and enjoyed the quiet. The next morning he had a dentist appointment, so I watched a movie with Kellie while I waited. He came back and made me close my eyes. He brought me into the kitchen and gave me a rose with a really pretty ctr ring around the stem & leaves. It was so sweet and I love the ring. It's a little big, but perfect all the same. It was really sad saying goodbye that morning. I'll miss him, but he's coming down to Provo in a couple weeks & we have a lunch date. Anxious? Yes. xoxoHetreatsmelikeaprincess p.s. his beard is being grown out till New Years. These pictures are about after 5 days. My hair stuck to his face all weekend. But it does every day about after 5 anyway. It grows back in about 2 minutes after he shaves it. So, I'll forgive him, right?

Wow, someone is looking out for me...

I got a 90% on my giant 15 pager paper for English! And my final grade came out to a 92% in the class...I have not gotten an A in English in I can't remember how long! I am so ecstatic right now! xoxoWhewy! p.s. I'm sitting at the airport & they have wifi in the SLC airport...lucky me! I still have an hour till they board my plane! p.s.s. this one boy stole my heart and I'll be leaving it in Utah over Christmas break.

I'm sorry, I can't keep it to myself, I am falling head over heels for this boy. Oh my. Can I list some of the non-personal things I like about Weston, please? Well he['s]: most gentlemanly boy to ever exist. ambitious. happy. caring. manly (yes!). nice. helpful. a priesthood holder. handsome. hardcore. likes dogs. eats more than a horse. patriotic. hard worker. uninhibited. romantic. spontaneous. loving. passionate. has sexy man hands. does not have cankles. makes me stand on his feet when it's cold outside. makes me feel good. amazing. funny. spiritual. asks me to dance in the snow. he's dorky. obsessed w/ U.S. History. hates dumb tv. likes sports. watches Discovery Channel, History Channel and Military Channel (okay, Spencer). has a great family. recognizes that I have a great family. loves my family. good budgeter. drives a Jeep. snores. patient with me. confident. loves scratches. gives scratches. does not have a girly bone in his body. thoughtful. has giant toes, the kind that are so fat they squish together. notices everytime I paint my fingernails a different color Best of all: He says he likes me more. Basically, he's pretty great. xoxoOneluckygirl.

Too Great for Words

xoxolittlekidsrock

OH MY GOSH

I just fell asleep while checking in a patient!

I got a ton of sleep last night, but it's cold at work and so I've been having the space heater blowing on me. Ahhhh, I hope the guy didn't notice!

xoxoIcansleepanywhereanytime

Weekend Getaway

Finals, what are those? Weston came up Thursday night for SEALs PST & workout. He got to Provo late but I made him dinner. Then we watched Return to Me, which we started late and so I fell asleep and just went to bed instead, while the dvd menu played on the tv all night for him on the couch haha poor kid! He drove me to work Friday morning. He came to visit me at work with a new toy...a Jeep 4x4, which he has wanted forever. When he got Roxy he really wanted a 4x4. He said the dealership is letting him test drive it until Tuesday. He picked me up after work and took me to lunch & then kidnapped me to Orangeville for the weekend. Friday night we went up and actually watched the rest of Return to Me, well he did, i fell asleep again, go figure. But that romantic boy carried me to my bed. Saturday he went and ran in the a.m. and then we went snowboarding...well him & his friends snowboarded...I intertubed :) Then, we went back to Orangeville and had dinner with the fam, then took Melissa & Brett back to Price and then went to the gym w/ Tasha and Damion while Wes & Damion did their Spartan 300 workout together. Um, he is hardcore. & hot, but you didn't hear it from me. Later that night we danced in the snow and talked. It was loverly. Then @ 2am he took me Jeeping again. He loves off roading. We went into the mountains and did a thousand donuts. We went to sleep at about 3:30 that night, & I got the lovely wakeup call at 6am....there was a huge snowstorm and we got over a foot that night..he was worried we wouldn't be able to get back to Provo that morning. He went and shoveled his mom's friend's driveway while I made french toast. So then we ate breakfast at about 8 o'clock and then he shoveled his driveway, by this point there was about 15 inches of snow...that kid loved every second of it. I would be crying about it if i were him. It was freezing and still snowing as he was shoveling. He said he is just a little kid with a shovel! I've never seen someone who loves the snow as much as him. The only person I can think of that rivals Weston's love for snow and cold is Joshua Michael Allan. We went to church with his family that afternoon and then headed back to Provo and it took a few hours to get back. When we got to Provo we went to the ward munch & mingle, that was fun being able to introduce him to everyone. Then that night we had the cookie party at the apartment that Syd & I threw together. It was a really good turnout and so fun to see all the girls! Weston was a good sport & still contributed to conversations. Then last night we went Jeeping again in Provo canyon w/ Kristin and her current boytoy :) This a.m. he left for Idaho to job search today and tomorrow. Tomorrow night we're goin to go out again. I can't wait. What am I going to do next semester? Weston & I up to Huntington canyon to the Run where he snowboards Weston Sunday morning SO extatic about all the snow. Look at the jeep and how much snow got on it in the 3 hrs between the Jeep excursion & waking up 3 hrs later. Weston shoveling. Kia out in the snow. Wes driving back to Provo on Sunday afternoon. This is right inside Spanish Fork Canyon. Wow, he is so handsome. Amazing company, incredible scenery. Weston wanted pictures with "The Mothership." Myself and "The Mothership" We found this giant snowman. We tried to claim it as our own. It's mega slick outside. Having issues. xoxosohappy...nowtimetostudy

Look who I ran into today!

sorry I look rough, it's cold @ work so I wear my coat, and I was really tired today. xoxoIhaveamazingfriends

Painstakingly Remembered....

This one time I basically was supposed to show I was in attendance of something. I exclaimed, "HOLLA!" That was the first time I believe I have ever used that word. I have no idea why it was the first word that came to mind. I will never use that word again. xoxosometimesimakemyselfcringe

:)

I can't wait, Weston is coming up tomorrow night and I get him for the whole evening after his SEALs PST. It's almost been a whole week! ah too long. What am I going to do next semester? xoxo<3

Frosty!

Just to let you know everything in my nose, eyes and ears froze while walking to the bus stop this morning. My ears were throbbing. I thought, "hmm, I wonder how cold it is, bc my body is kind of in pain." I get to work. Don't worry, the temperature was just -5 & the feels like was -20, no big deal.

and it's 48 degrees in Franklin right now.

Yes, that is a 70 degree difference.

xoxowownegativetemperaturesarecold

AN A?

I got a 92 on my English final. First of all, it's in English, secondly, it was a presentation. I am terrible at English & I have a huge fear of talking in front of people. So I am SO thrilled!! & I have a 96 in Health Promo. I am so academically pleased with myself. xoxoproudofmyself

Christmas Shoes

Have you heard that song?

I have 2 favorite Christmas songs, this is one of them. I heard it on the radio probably 5 or 6 years ago and fell in love with it. It is my favorite song, not that I think its exceptionally pretty, but I love the words and the meaning. Last year my mom got a book that has the stories behind so many favorite Christmas songs. Christmas Shoes was in that book. I loved the story, pretty much goes along with the song, but gave more insight. I pray this year that I will be able to constantly remind myself the true meaning of Christmas. What are we truly celebrating? It's the birth of Christ. This leads me into my second favorite Christmas song of all time. Mary, Did You Know? I love this song, because it correlates the birth of Christ with his life & ministry as well. I sometimes just think of the birth of Christ and the ministry of Christ in two different subjects. However, they are one in the same. Without His ministry and the atonement, Christ's birth would have just been another birth. Let us all remember the true meaning of Christmas. Let us all be filled with more charity. more compassion. more hope. less skepticism. less doubt. xoxothemostwonderfultimeofyear

Jazzy

Last night Weston & I went on a double date with a couple of our favorites. We thought Diana and Ben would be a good match-up. I'm not speakin for her though, you will have to ask the woman herself what she thought! It was my first NBA game! & the only pro game I've been to besides Hockey(The Preds) & Baseball (The Astros w/ Uncle Scrawny Ronny) Weston is always such a good sport. He was sore from his Spartan workout this week & had already worked out that day. However, on our way in we saw a Marine pullup contest stand. The marines are apparently known for their pullups. I told Weston he should do it. So for half time we went down there. He was embarrassed cause he was only able to do 10...yeah, so unimpressive.... He thinks he disgraced the Navy bc he ONLY did 10 and he did them reversed (easier & not military approved). He won this awesome deflated football. I'm so proud. Diana, Ben, Weston and I! We had so much fun! The game was a close one, but the Jazz pulled through and beat the Pacers. After the game we ate dinner @ the Applebees in the Gateway mall. Yum. I still have a crush on a boy. xoxoIamsoblessedinsomanyways

Busy Little Bee

I'm excited for this weekend. I'm going to a Jazz game tonight with Weston! & I set Diana up with his friend Ben. He's a mountain man, just her type, the woodsy, burly kind. I hope that it goes nicely for both of them as well! I'm sure it will, two fun, nice people, what could go wrong? Nothing like a blind date :)

My to-do list is pretty long for today. I love being busy!

After the Jazz game I'm going down to Orangeville with Weston this weekend. We're going snowboarding in the mountains tomorrow and we're going to find a Christmas tree! I can't wait. have to say though, I am missing watching A Charlie Brown Christmas with my awesome family! Oh well, I get home the 21 and we'll have plenty of time to watch it before Christmas!

xoxotistheseason

The feels like in Provo is 14. Just thought I'd throw that out there. xoxobrr!

Is this gonna be forever?

I feel funny.

xoxoconfused

Remember THIS? Dreams do come true & Prince Charming does exist. xoxoblessed

Check.

I ordered part of Weston's Christmas present. I hope he likes it :) I'm thinkin he will! xoxososleepy

Just Keep Typing, Just Keep Typi......

Wowee! Well, after that scare of losing my thumb drive last week, I spent all day finding the files rather than working on them. SO here I am on the day my paper is due...finishing it :) Story of my life! However, it is going quite smoothly! I have 9 1/4 pages done, 3/4+ pgs left, & a conclusion, abstract, & coverpage left to write, 2.5 hrs and then this paper will be in my past! HOORAH! Today is going really well! xoxoIlovemylife.

Some Vids

DISCLAIMER: Ignore my sick narrator voice in all of these please. He's a lot more brave, or stupid, than I am. It was about a 50 drop off the edge of every side of that rock. He's such a boy.

Thought it was a photo; trying to document my first cactus encounter. He felt awkward. He got a good score on Mexican trains and was doing a victory dance, I missed the dance, but still think this video is funny.

xoxowishingitwastheweekend

Two Is Better Than One.

I love that song. I loved this weekend.

I got down to Orangeville on Tuesday and Weston took me to see New Moon! It was so fun, even though Jacob didn't even compare to the boy sitting next to me!

Weston got paid vacation for Wednesday too so we got to spend it together! Wednesday we had a morning workout and then got all dolled up and headed down to Loa in Wayne County where his grandparents live!

Kellie did my hair in curls. It was so nice of her, I should have taken some better pictures of it!

That night we were getting all prepared for Thanksgiving meal.

Making noodles at Grandma & Grandpa Stevens' house!

About 3 of the nights we played games, it was so fun. This is a picture showing Weston's pouting. Probably the funniest thing I've ever seen.

If he ever tells you he's not competetive, he's lying. Every year the Brinkerhoff boys go bunny hunting Thanksgiving morning. Weston was so excited because it was his first thanksgiving back home in 2 years. He said I could be an exception and go with the boys. Turned out everyone was grown and married, so Melissa, Weston, Grandpa Stevens, Papa Dave and I all went bunny hunting, it was not successful. We only saw 2 bunnies the whole time, but Weston did get a bird, so he was kinda happy. I'm happy I didn't have to hear any crying bunnies... ew.

Handsome, huh? Bunny hunting Thanksgiving morning. Weston & I before Thanksgiving dinner. Kellie, Melissa, Me & Tasha before dinner.

We all wore beanies at the dinner table for Tash.

She had skin cancer and a side of her head was shaved for her surgery.

She had melanoma skin cancer that was successfully removed 2 weeks ago!

Thanksgiving spread!

All of us were full & ready for a nap!

L to R: Mama Joan, Grandpa Brink, Me, Weston, Kellie, Papa Dave

Friday Weston took me all around Wayne County. Which is geographically huge, but is the 2nd smallest populated county in the state... We hiked in the Capitol Reef National Park & he took me over to see his family's ranch! Hiking in Capitol Reef He is one handsome man.

So happy. Also, very happy. Amazing trip We like eachother.

In front of Chill's in Bicknell. Top secret This is a look he gets often.

Friday night Weston passed out while we were watching a movie. & passed out is an understatement.

Saturday morning before the Utah game we went out to the gravel pits and shot clay pigeons. It was so fun! I was terrible, but am really good at not falling over when shooting the shotgun! Shooting clay pigeons. Yes, I got one! He likes being tough. I'm not so good. It was freakin cold. He gave me his coat, but then got another out of the truck..it was about 34 w/ a 1,000 mph wind!

Saturday night, Weston, Melissa, Kevin & I watched a scary movie out in his grandparent's giant camper! Then Weston, Melissa & I slept out in the camper. The space heater we used was about the size of my hand...so small, but somehow we all survived the night! Yikes, don't know what's going on with the hair. Slave boy.

We were going to chop down a Christmas tree on our way back to Orangeville on Sunday, but weren't able too because the only tarp available was covered in animal blood. His uncle is a butcher... Anyway, we packed everything in the jeep to leave the cargo carrier empty for the tree. The only items packed not approved for the inside of the Jeep were Weston's NASTY firefighter boots he's worn every day since May.... We wanted to preserve our nostrils and appetites. You might be a redneck if...

Poppa Dave found this when we were shooting and thought I should mail it home so everyone back home knows just how redneck the people are that I'm spending my time with. Bullseye.

Don't tell, but I've got a crush. So happy.

I was the only one with phone service all week, so when we got to the summit Weston's phone exploded with texts. He's popular.

We got back to Orangeville Sunday afternoon and I got to spend the rest of the day there before driving back to Provo with Ben's sister. For purpose of saving me from embarrassment, his mom got a couple sleeping pictures, but this one was the least scariest. This was my entire lazy Sunday afternoon. xoxoIstillhaveacrushonaboy