Pizza Makes Me Happy!

Although eating gluten free does not make me happy, it has its advantages. For one, I don't wreak havoc on my intestines anymore and I don't eat a lot of junk food - chips, donuts, cookies, pizza, etc. And although it does not mean my body absorbs vitamins any more/better than it did before at least I discovered that I needed to supplement certain vitamins when I was diagnosed with Celiac disease. Anyway back to the purpose of this post I don't get to eat a lot of the junk foods and treats I used to enjoy on occasion which is good because it keeps me from eating stuff that is bad for me and only makes my struggle with weight loss that much harder but sometimes I just want a donut or a bakery cupcake so bad that it makes me really bitter and irritable. I think the worst part is that I was diagnosed at 18 so I knew full well how good all that "bad-for-you-food" tasted and I know any gluten-free option will never taste the same. Once again I've gotten off track where was I...oh yes! Gluten free options are extremely expensive and frankly not worth it most of the time but once in a while it is nice to eat some kind of semi-normal treat. Mom's Place Gluten Free is the best thing I've discovered thus far for eating gluten free - they have cream of chicken soup mixes!! Yeah, it's true! Their prices are reasonable and their products are definitely worth it! Cup-o-Cake: best thing since sliced bread but that's a discussion for a different day. ANYWAY I made a pizza crust from a Mom's mix the other day and I wanted to make the toppings BOMB since I don't get pizza often - might as well make it rock right? So I made a homemade BBQ sauce with caramelized onions stirred in, grilled chicken and a little cheese on top of the sauce and after it all cooked I added fresh sliced tomatoes from the garden on top and it was fantastic! Made me happy for like 3 days. Also what made me happy was the occasion - my parents were having my grandparents over for pizza and their weekly pinochle game :) I just love that they do that together! Have a happy hump day!

So much for that...

So apparently a weekly blog theme is not enough to keep me motivated to write but I need to figure something out because I need this little avenue to share my creativity. I am just not one of those people who does something cool and then thinks hey let me take a picture so I can tell the universe about it and probably no one will ever read it. Oh well, no heavy stuff for a while I have too much of that on my brain right now to bother the Internet universe with it. Just random thoughts and fun things, happy things. After all, that's the title of the blog right?

Things that have made me happy lately:
My grandparents' 65th wedding anniversary party and interviewing all the little ones for a video for it :)

Bauer responding to some of the training I've been working on with him :)

Riding my horsie :)

Ice cream and giant foam dominos :)

Crocheting cute hats for the winter :)

Playing guitar :)

Pomegranate tootsie pops! :)

Watching "I'm a Mormon" videos and freshening up my profile :)

From now on that's just it - what makes me happy and how I get happy when things are not going splendidly :)

Thursday Think Tank

So I am a really random person and I decided to keep myself motivated to write on this blog at least weekly I will write some of my random thoughts every Thursday - here goes:

Why on earth would anyone have a garage sale that starts on a Wednesday? (that question is for you, weird people in my neighborhood)

I cannot think of a single instance in which talking about the weather would be deemed inappropriate.

Why do people think they should hashtag their entire Facebook status or picture caption? You will never get #omnomnom #lol #hungry trending on Twitter, sorry but it just won't happen.

Also, my iTunes customer support helper dude (who is persistent in knowing what he can do to help my already resolved problem) is named Boom.

Finally, I think the new Google "6 degrees of Kevin Bacon" feature is probably the best thing I've ever encountered on the internet.

Crazy Days!

We had a great time visiting the cousins in Utah and the new babies are just so precious! The traveling was long and a bit boring but I enjoy the car rides with my mom - we always have something to talk about. Life has been crazy since we got home from Utah! Monday we rode horses which was great after we shuffled saddles around and made ourselves comfortable then we had a family BBQ in the evening which was a lot of fun and the horses were good sports to give pony rides to the kids (some of which I am ashamed to say had never ridden our mounts until last night) and everyone had a great time! We stayed and helped clean up the kitchen and the kids so Rob and Julie could take a ride back to our house to see the newly decorated bathroom. I stayed with the (supposed to be) sleeping children and rocked a cranky baby to sleep but she ended up catching the stomach bug that's been migrating through our family and threw up all over. I am not good with throw up. My reflexes are thankfully very good and I managed to stay clean and keep any of the mess off the couch and ottoman. Luckily the naughty children who were supposed to be sleeping came running upstairs to my aid for which I was extremely grateful! And they made sure I would pass my gratitude on to their mother who would no doubt be happy to know they were still awake for a worthwhile reason. Today was another crazy day - riding, babysitting the original sickies in the family (who are thankfully feeling better - splendid and fantastic in fact, in Max's own words) then I filled out an application to a janitorial service in Boise that is looking for about 50 people to help clean the temple until the open house after all the remodeling that has gone on. I hope I get it - what a cool opportunity to get to see places in the temple I've never seen before! It is also nice that it is a temporary position so I can look for a more permanent job at a vet office but not be completely broke in the meantime. After that we took my brother's oldest two girls to watch a cutting horse competition at the Idaho Center Horse Park which was fun! Unfortunately we only saw a short part before they broke for dinner then we went grocery shopping, had dinner, I went to Tyson's soccer practice then we rode again! It was a fun fun day - being unemployed isn't too bad :) yet.

Happy weekend :)

The bride was beautiful yesterday! And yes, I cried. After a few pictures with the wackiest, rudest photographer I've encountered I got some peanut butter slope from BRC's (best frozen custard in the entire world!) and then we were on the road again heading down south to Utah! We shopped at Ikea and got a milkshake from In and Out on our way down to see the fam - which I was so excited about! As we were shopping around I got a text from one of my favorite people (Megan who was in the vet tech program with me) asking if I was still down to move to Utah sometime which I had just started thinking about two days earlier! I am really excited because I think it will be a fun place to live and a great little adventure for me to experience while I'm single! I would be close to family and not to far from home and it is something I can't wait for! I know Heavenly Father wants me in Utah because He just won't let me forget about it and I am happy to obey! Anyway once we got to our destination in Utah we visited for a whole then all the girls went out to dinner - the babies are so so cute I loved meeting my new cousins and seeing the other older cuties. We got to visit and play with the newborns all evening and it was great! Today is Bryce's blessing then we head back home - I wish we could stay longer because I just love these people! Family is the greatest blessing!

Mawage..mawage is what bwings us togevew today

Well my last day of my internship was today and it was a half day! Woo hoo! I am sad I just love those people and that place but it was a very positive end to a very positive experience and I'm glad it happened! I am excited to have some time off right when the weather is perfect for riding! Especially since I just got a new saddle! So what does any of this have to do with marriage you say? Well I took a half day today so I can travel with mi madre to the eastern side of the state to be in a wedding tomorrow! Yay! This is the first wedding I've been in that hasn't been for a sibling - I am so excited! I love weddings! I love love! This is my good friend Noel's wedding - she was my first good friend I made when we moved to Idaho and I love her dearly even though we fought like sisters in our less mature days we have always been there for each other in the really hard times in each other's lives. I was there for her when her parents got divorced and she faces the horror of become another number in the statistics of a broken home. My heart broke for her and her family but they have all done well with it and I am so happy she will have a wonderful marriage to a sweet guy who really cares about her! She was there for me when I was homesick and miserable my freshman year of college when I had a terrible roommate experience and she was the only one I could find in town that would remind me of home and the people who love me most. She is wonderful and I am so happy for her and her new husband. I am so proud of her for setting a good example for her younger sisters by getting married to a good man in the temple. She has been such a good example to me in so many ways and I can't wait to see her live happily ever after!

Today was...

A bit of a melancholy day. Now knowing it was my second to last day (and my last full day) at my internship
I took greater appreciation in many things there. The following may be a little too dramatic for the actual situation but sometimes my thoughts sound more like poetry than normal thoughts so I'm sharing the more artsy side of my mind when I write this. I was laughing just the other day thinking how I could recite Dr. B's Africa hunting story just as well as he could after hearing it so many times then today I realized I would probably never hear that story again and wished I could hear him tell it one more time while the aroma of chewing tobacco that always followed him was still within smelling distance. I wished I could rush to help Dr. P with whatever he needed only because he asks so nicely. I wanted to savor every Spanglish conversation and every awkward but sweet kiss on the cheek from my Latino friends who always made me feel welcomed and appreciated. I wanted to record Dr. W's sweet southern drawl comforting a horse and calling her sweetheart so I could hear it again on a rainy day (I also wanted a picture of his beautiful, single face but it crossed my mind that that may be out of line). I will actually miss folding those dang blue towels and packing surgery packs as tight as I can without ripping the drapes. And my supervisor - oh how I will miss her stories of chaos and humor and her confidence in my abilities, her patience in my learning. I will miss seeing these amazingly talented and beautiful creatures that God has put on earth as His way of reminding us that He loves us enough to put beautiful creatures such as these in our care. I love horses and I have loved having the opportunity to learn more about them from wonderful doctors and staff. Even though my heart is saddened by my end of work at this wonderful hospital, I know something even more amazing must be in my future!

Below is a picture from last year's internship but at the same clinic. It's gross, I know, but I love this picture - if you know what I'm holding kudos to you (don't judge me for taking a picture). :)