National Zoo and Sprinkles!

today laura and i headed to the National Zoo! i love zoos more than the next guy, and this zoo is free so it just made it all the better. 

got there around 1 and were there for a few hours. we loved looking at all the animals and we thought it was interesting to go to their section called "think tank" it's about how animals think and it was cool to see how similar orangutans think with humans!

after we got our fill on the zoo we headed over the the cupcake bakery Georgetown Cupcakes. there was a huge line going out the door so we settled for Sprinkles cupcakes instead (still a really good cupcake place) i got the salted caramel cupcake and it was hands down the best cupcake i have ever had. 

i definitely look sweaty in this picture, washington d.c is just so humid!

we then headed home and just rested and had dinner. because we haven't had a true rest day we figured we needed to go to sleep relatively early so we can keep our stamina up. 

xoxo

Chinatown and the White House!

laura and i took the metro to chinatown today. it was quite the adventure. 

we ate food at Chinatown Express and it was actually pretty good. we then headed over to the White house.

chinatown isn't that far from the white house and so it was only a 15 minute walk. we watched some street dancers and just talked about life (haha) 

we then got there and there were protesters prostesting obama about the coo in Eygpt and all about Morsi. it was funny to see them yell, that's for sure. 

even though they were yelling laura and i still enjoyed the beauty of the white house and the park across from us.

we then walked back to the metro and got on and sang les miserables under our breaths for the whole ride. it progressively got louder, though, we have no shame. 

i got some really good compliments about my shirt throughout the night. a security guard even said he will watch star wars if it's good enough movie for me to wear a shirt with it on it! i guess that i'm just a good star wars advertisement or something ;)

xoxo

4th of July In Our Country's Capitol!

today i had the honor of being able to spend fourth of july in Washington, D.C.! 

this was very exciting and tiring experience (especially since i have never been to D.C. before)

we woke up at 7:40, got pretty and then headed to the metro. we then rode the metro to D.C and walked a few blocks and sat down from 9-11:45 waiting for the parade. in my opinion the parade wasn’t even good. so then we got up and decided to walk to the capitol and wait in line to get in for the concert. we walked over and it wasn’t allowing you in til 3. so we walked there for nothing. so we decided to walk over to Johnny Rockets and get food and then walk back. so at 2 we walked back and waited for them to let us in… in the SUPER HOT SUN. gosh it was so hot. we finally got in and it was 3, and we ran to get seats in the grass and got super good seats! but then… the show doesn’t start until 8. so we waited in the hot sun for 5 hours. yes, 5 hours. we took hour shifts of sitting in shade so we could keep our spot. 

 i'm just a girl, sitting here on capitol hill (to the tune of schoolhouse rock)

just chilling with laura and her mom! waiting for the concert to begin!

the capitol is so pretty at night.

in the end... it was worth it. i got to be on national TV (singing my heart out), and i heard Neil Diamond sing Sweet Caroline, LIVE. so it was great. i also got a tan so that was lucky bonus. 

Fourth of July was successful, even though my feet kill.

you probably could see me on tv. capitol fourth concert on PBS. 

xoxo

I Have Arrived In Washington, D.C!

the plane ride was a grind, but when we were close to landing i got some cool shots of virginia.

  once i landed, laura and her mom came and picked me up and we went back to laura's house. it's so cute, its a little townhouse and is a 5 minute walk away from dunkin dounuts, so of course i insisted we get some. :)

so far it has been a very fun day. we have been eating junk all day, the usual thing that laura and i do. i am SO surprised we aren't complete fatties. 

laura and i have soooo many fun things planned! i am so stinking excited! i love virginia already! 

xoxo

Hello

friends, i apologize for the lack of posting. 

anyways, i'll update you on what has been happening..

i have been working during the summer, at pizza factory, and finished my first semester at UVU with a high GPA. what? me? i know... so crazy. 

last sunday was john's farewell. i didn't cry or anything (luckily). but john's talk was really good and i was very proud of him. he didn't cry in his talk or anything... that boy has no soul or something (haha). 

john was definitely a trooper and took like 50 pictures with me, i like this one the best for sure.

also, i have gone on one trip since my summer started in april. and that was last week when i went with john's family to st. geezy. it was a fun trip and we stayed in their grandparents house at the entrada which was really cool, but actually really hot out. i got a slight tan, which is always a bonus.

john actually leaves in 3 days for his mission in Trujillo, Peru. i'm starting to get nervous... i luckily leave in 3 days to Virginia and will be there for the fourth of july so that's fun. 

these next few days are going to definitely be hard, but at least i'll leave to Virginia and be hanging out with my best friend laura! woohoo. 

also, if you wanna hear good music go to spotify and listen to my cousin's band NoSleep, and they are selling their album on itunes, so buy it if you want!

l8er g8er. 

Macaroon Making With Uncle Will.

yes. Donna and I have always tried to make Macaroons and usually then usually messing up and Donna starts crying (i do not cry.).

But yesterday Donna wanted to try to make Macaroons again, but luckily our Uncle Will says that he is a "master baker". (which we didn't really believe)

but to our surprise... he is a master baker. and here is proof.

Thoughts

i think that that is very very cute. 

sometimes you go through life and everything is confusing, and then other times it makes sense. it's hecka annoying. i wish that is just always made sense. i think that would be a lot easier. 

i just wish that you could put your life in huge puzzle full of pieces and then  take the time and put it together and then after glue them together, and hang it on your wall, and everytime you are confused you can just look at the wall and see the final image. i guess that would take the fun out of life, but it would definitely make it a whole lot easier... 

but i guess that's not the point of life, is it? life is supposed to be hard and we just all have to..... deal with it. 

xoxo

February 23, 2013

the day my life changed forever.

morning: 

woke up

go Einstein bagels with Sam and Bryce and Donna

went to Called to Surf

went to Blickinstaff's to buy John some Aero bars for his match

came home

afternoon:

took care of my mom and dad

looked for my dad's medication

cleaned up my parents room a bit

cleaned up the living room 

made an "I <3 John Pearce" t-shirt for Bryce to wear to the match

went to BYU and hung out with John before his match

went and stayed in John's Dad's office while i waited and did homework

got a phone call from Donna. 

the call: 

Donna called me and told me that my Mom's heart had stopped and she was being rushed to the ambulance. 

i immediately picked up my stuff and left and Donna came to get me, and then we rushed to hospital and waited. 

the wait:

more and more family members showed up as we waited in tiny room to know what has happened

we cried for hours.

we waited a few hours, and then we figured out that my mother had passed away. worst day of my life. 

i will miss my mother more than words can explain, she was the strongest person i have ever known and she was a strong fighter against MS, the loss of this great woman is something that i will never be able to fill, and i have a whole in my heart. 

i feel numb. 

 memories: france trip is probably the best one. 

Fashion Spring Summer 2013

i always like looking at what is going to be in style the next season just so i can be prepared when i ask for birthday gifts, christmas, etc. 

so today i went and i looked at vogue and other sites to determine what was going to be in style for spring and summer of 2013. 

this is what i found. 

 and to be honest, i'm not too excited about this. 

Styles:

Stripes 

Checkered prints 

Metallics 

Oriental prints

Hawaii 

Tuxedos 

Kimono

Safari 

Ruffles

Sixties 

Pleats (mainly nude colored) 

Dots - polka dots (black and white)

Gold sequins 

Fringes 

Colors: 

Main Colors: Cobalt, Khaki, Sage, Goldenrod, Purple, Rust, Creamsicle, 

Base colors: grey, khaki, nude, coppertone

Cool colors: jade, green calcite, olive, acid, lilac, sky, electric blue, crayon blue, ink 

Warm colors: red, cinnabar, peony, gerber daisy, rose quartz, peach, red orange, persimmon, canary, lemon drop

this upcoming season is going to consist of a lot of blacks and whites, and some pastels and some bright neons. which i think is weird because this winter and fall we have been focusing on bright colors -- even though it's usually more burnt and dark colors around this season -- i didn't really like that too much. i don't like how we are losing variety. believe me, it's definitely more convenient, i don't have to buy different clothes for the season. but it doesn't really make me happy. 

i do like the idea that i have been hearing about being more street style, and having more washed out brights. i think that stuff is pretty rad. and i definitely need to get myself a leather skirt, those are dang cute. i like the idea of having oriental style, and the sixties stuff for sure. 

pantone has their ideas for color as well, i guess we will have to see how it pans out. all i know is that i like the idea of more polka dots - but i want there to be more of a contrast to our fall winter colors we have had going on. 

i definitely knew that cropped pants were going to last

i like color blocking. 

i don't know how i feel about that... ^ never been one for the flairs

yes, yes. bring on the asian influence.

i think that this just hurts my head a little. but it is still interesting 

i feel like in utah, that will be too hot. 

i love mixing materials and patterns. 

lace is probably my favorite fabric

i love vintage looks, so much and this definitely is a good one. 

you can never have enough silk.

i think this is nice and alll, but no thank you

mod is very good, i think that it just pops. 

i think that the teen look is pretty freaking rad. even though these pictures don't look too good

i don't like the idea of the women tuxedos.

i think this is too old lady for me

i think these dresses are adorable. 

i got all these pictures from here

have a good day, ya'll. hopefully your weekend is brighter than mine. 

Little Kids

today i realized how much i love little kids, even the ones that are complete suck ups. 

every wednesday i go down and help my friend, becky (or miss shepherd as i should call her), with her 4th grade class. i always bring treats for the kids (cause i'm a suck up to them as well), and i do the reading with them in groups of 3 -- me included--. before i start reading with the kids miss shepherd does something that they call 4 a day. the kids must answer 4 questions that miss shepherd writes on the board and if they get them right they get to go on a break. these are the questions asked today: 

it is kind of hard to read, but the first question is "who is the coolest person in the world?"

miss shepherd did this because she wanted to find out who the suck ups are in the class, and so i wrote my name on the board so they could make sure they spelt my name right (cause i am the coolest person in the world, duh) 

and these were some of the responses: 

so i guess they truly are kiss ups? or i am just the coolest person ever. 

and then after their break i got to reading with the munchins

and they are all very good at reading! i am so proud of them all. 

after the day is over, i give them their candy and miss shepherd and i go and help out the 4-H club, the one for sports. 

i sat by this little cutie for a bit, the was very sad because he wasn't able to play kickball cause he was too scared of getting hurt. :( but i learned that he loves baseball, and the yankees... so we were instant besties. and his eyes are so beautiful i couldn't resist his friendship. 

then miss shepherd and i posed for the photos for 4-H's final day. 

and the picture is terrible quality because the little boy took it for us. hahaha

have a great day, all of you guys. 

. 

Stress.

sometimes i get overwhelmed. i get stressed out and have panic attacks, it's pretty ridiculous and i feel embarrassed after because i was stressed about something so small and stupid that it really wasn't worth the the tears or the panic. and during these times of panic i turn to my family, i go upstairs to my mom and i cry, and cry, and then hyperventilating. it's pretty lame. 

then my mom gives me some pretty solid advice and all the worry goes away. it's pretty amazing. 

sometimes when i am stressed about school, family, friends, or finances yes, i'm a 16 year old who worries about finances, i decide to take refugee to lds.org, that site is truly amazing. you look up a word, and there is practically always a talk that you can read to make you feel better. 

today for instance, i have many stresses that i am thinking about: 

my dad is getting a full knee replacement, 

my mom is dealing with her health issues from a staph infection,

 i need to read a 650 paged book for american heritage,

i need to take my classes for drivers ed

i need to sign up for classes for the summer semester,

and i need to make sure i finish all my homework so i can help out more around the house. 

so... i decided to take a step back, and think. and during my thinking time, i decided to go to lds.org, and see if there is something to make me feel better, and so i searched 'stress', and not to my surprise all these talks popped up, talks by the infamous: 

Thomas S. Monson

Gordon B. Hinckley

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

these particular talks all spoke about what i have been dealing with stress, i didn't throughly read through them all, but they did give me a message i needed to hear. 

"Stresses in our lives come regardless of our circumstances. We must deal with them the best we can. But we should not let them get in the way of what is most important—and what is most important almost always involves the people around us. Often we assume that they must know how much we love them. But we should never assume; we should let them know. Wrote William Shakespeare, “They do not love that do not show their love.” ³ We will never regret the kind words spoken or the affection shown. Rather, our regrets will come if such things are omitted from our relationships with those who mean the most to us."

Finding Joy In the Journey (General Conference October 2008) by Thomas S. Monson

if you are ever stressed, like i usually am, it is always a good idea to read a mormon talk -- even if you aren't mormon yourself-- it still tends to help you out.

this is a talk by Dieter F. Uchtdorf, that i think you might enjoy also.

i hope you all can deal with you stresses, and still remember what is most important in life. 

remember that if you keep packing up a lot of tomorrows, you'll realize that you'll have a lot of empty yesterdays. 

Friday and Saturday Tennis

when dating a BYU tennis player, you watch a lot of tennis. my weekends usually consist of me watching tennis from 5:30 in the afternoon to 10:30 at night... yes, 5 hours of tennis watching almost ever friday and saturday. 

it's fun, i admit. and BYU won the match 5-1

but nerve wrecking at the same time.

when i watch john play tennis, and he is either winning or losing... my heart is like... t i g h t? it is just ridiculous, i get nervous, and when he gets mad at himself while playing i get nervous even more. 

especially last night. the match was close for his doubles. his double partner, keaton, and him were losing and then winning, and it was super close at times too. and john was getting angry, and keaton was too, who usually doesn't get angry. i just sat there, worried that they'd lose and then i'd have to deal with the poopy mood that john was going to have for the rest of the night. but luckily, he didn't lose! they pull through and broke them in game, and then they headed to the win. 

what does it mean to break someone in tennis? 

yes, i was wondering about this when i first started watching john playing. 

but i think i know now? 

to break someone in tennis is to win a game when they are serving--because it's easier to win when you are serving-- so if you manage to win a game when the opponent is serving you have the upper hand in the rest of the set.

yes, i know a bit about tennis... at least i think i'm hoping that i'm write about what it is to break someone. not like i've almost been watching tennis for a year now... i have

tennis is tricky though, there are so many rules... maybe i'll be able to understand tennis by the time it's john's senior year at BYU, so maybe in 5 years? haha

But i'll be watching tennis for many more weekends this season..

wish me luck!

next weekend BYU plays against their rival UTAH!

wish them luck as well!! they will probably win anyways, cause utah isn't that good. 

i stole this from facebook, patrick's sister posted it..sorry about the bad picture quality. this is from the friday match against UNLV

Thanksgiving and Black Friday

Thanksgiving is a wonderful day and I do get excited for it mainly because black friday follows it. I do have a lot of things I am thankful for though.

My family

My friends, especially Giuliana Damiano

My Darling Dog

My cousins

My Aunts

My Uncles 

My two wonderful Grandparents

My Mother 

My Father

Ryan

Melissa

Brandon

Bryce

Donna 

Tanner

My Body

The Church

My Home

The Gospel

The Holy Ghost

Water

Food

Money

Education

School Teachers

and most importantly

God. 

I find Thanksgiving to be very important and I think when people say it's useless I just want to slap them because it's a worth while family Holiday.

Now to something less serious. 

Black Friday

My most favorite Friday of the year, the friday I stay up late on Thursday and don't sleep all night because  what do you do on Black Friday??

You shop. 

You stay up all night Buzzed on Energy drinks and Diet Dr. Pepper.

The Drinks I drank that night??

2 Rockstars

1 Monster

1 Diet Dr. Pepper

I know.. not the best drinks i should ever be drinking, but it was in the moment. 

Black Friday is full of fun things...

Laughing you head off

Taking Pictures

Walmart

Walking around the mall for HOURS

Falling asleep for two seconds on a random bench

Taking pictures of Hot Abercrombie and Fitch guys that are paid to sit outside the door

Laughing at gingers sorry to any gingers

Taking pictures with a random worker at Express who welcomes you at the door

Going with some of the funniest people that i do love

Dressing up, cause you know pictures will be taken

Doing Shelby's hair

Being careful for what you say or you might get choked by KT ;)

Playing a Stick Figure game on XBOX 

Trying on shirts

Trying on Shoes

Getting sick stomaches from too much Caffeine

Not sleeping until 11am and only sleeping until 2:30

Not sleeping all day long and still living it up

Buying gifts 

Getting cranky from being tired

Laughing at everything when you've gotten no sleep

Laughing at KT and her jokes and craziness

Feeling like someone is going to trample you cause you are so small

All things that happen on a Black friday... and great things too

I will have pictures.. I just have none on this random computer I am using

I WANT THEM

Heres one I stole from Facebook. I'll have a little more... later