all that and what-not

i am back from my trip to Utah. it was so awesome!! i feel so blessed to have the family i have. i really had a good time. got some good pictures. it was weird to wake up these past two mornings and not talk to my sister, brother in law, and niece. we had some good laughs and made great memories. i miss everyone so much already!

the las vegas airport is so crazy! it is huge, confusing, and the slot machines are crazy... then there are the people... i mean it is las vegas after all. i think i got lost a few times. somehow, in my confusion and lostness, successfully rechecked myself in to a different airline and made my way to the right gate. dean says that LAX is worse than las vegas... dont want to go there. lol!

i am so tired today.

alright... my capo broke a few weeks ago and i was pretty bummed about it. i told my sister and she told me to use a pencil and some rubber bands, which i did, and make a capo that way. so i tried that out today. it works pretty well! you have to mess with it a bit to get all the strings pressed down... but- it is better than not having a capo at all.

last night my grandma and aunt came up for my moms baby shower. they are helping me get ready for it today. we have a grip load of cooking and baking to do. i think we are going to the grocery store soon.

well, i have lots of shopping, cooking, baking and cleaning to do... so i had better quit wasting time online.

no nuhnuh no no no!!!

thought this was kinda funny

Laughter, Love, and Memories

this last saturday my family and i went up to cambria. it was so fun! my parents, apparently, just woke up and decided we were going to go do something fun instead of work all saturday like we usually do. i was pretty shocked and excited. we dont go do many things like that very often. once we got to cambria we went and ate at a little restaurant called the "indigo moon." it was so good! we all loved it. i recommend going there if you havent. right around that restaurant there were a cluster of little shops. i think that cluster was my favorite. they had cute names like: the paper omelette (and art, stationary, card, paper place), birds of a feather (antique boutique) and lily's coffee shop. i love little coffee shops like that. it was decorated so cute too! before we walked around we all decided to get a coffee... well i got a jasmine tea.... we didnt look in all the shops, there were too many. we are going to go back another time.

there was a HUGE three story antique shop there. i lost my mom in it!! my mom and i were so overwhelmed with all there was to look at that we wandered around, glazed, until we came to the clothes section. there we found some hats and had a fun time trying them all on and took pictures in them all.

from there we decided to go walk around the visitors building for hearst castle. that was cool. ive been on one of the tours before... just a long time ago. we didnt go on a tour then...

just across the street was a beach and a pier. i begged to stop and walk on the pier so i could get some pictures. we did. i got used my fisheye. i want to get the film developed! i hope they turned out pretty good.

all in all, it was a wonderful day. it was so great to be with my family and just spend time together, undaunted by school, work, cleaning, cooking, etc. just enjoyed each others company, shared laughs, and made memories=)

ive always known it but, i dont think i could live without my family. i feel so thankful to have been blessed with their love and companionship. they are there during and for everything. they help you up when you fall, laugh with you, cry with you, and anything else! they are another shining light to Gods love and adoration for his children. so much of His love shines through them. i feel so thankful i could cry.

No Specific Topic

sometimes i just want to go somewhere new and just get away. it would be so nice to be out somewhere else for a while, see awesome things, get some great photos... a break from the stupid drama people create and drag you into. away from disappointment. away from teenage cliques and caddiness. i wouldnt be gone for long... id miss my family too much. still, it would just be nice.

i bought the third eragon book today, brisinger. i am ready to just get lost in its pages. its perfect cover is drawing me. however, history reading calls me unceasingly. i have to get this last american history book done by the third, or no good. i also have some painting and sketching that id love to do. as well as a bunch of random things i want to create.

i had choir today. a friend and i got out of doing a duet today. YES! thank goodness. i was starting to worry. i am going to start opening sunday school with a few worship songs and my guitar soon. i thought that was pretty cool.

i am feeling a little sick. my stomach... uhg. i used to have such horrible pains. they have lessened in amount and intensity since last year. so i am drinking peppermint tea and sitting in bed under my covers.

right now the scene where meg ryan was sick in "you've got mail" came to mind. i love that movie. it is one of my top favorites. it never gets old.

i have been saving the film in my fisheye, for something remarkable and epic. though i spose that remarkable is epic... either way, i have been saving it. i need to go out and find some pictures.

sorry for posting random things with no point or topic. my mind is full and tired. i havent beens sleeping well. i think last night was probably the worst night yet... so please forgive me.

i was able to write a poem yesterday. havent written one for a few months. i was kind of happy about that.

Mr. Butterfly

though i dont know who you are,
or where you are,
you give me butterflies.

First Day of Fall

today is the first official day of fall. i love fall. it is my favorite season. i love all the rich colors of the leaves on the trees; a last finale of beauty before the winter cold exposed their bark to the world. i love all the fall drinks that starbucks brings back that everyone has been eagerly anticipating. going out shopping for warm scented candles that make your home feel comfortable. some candles that even cause you to be hungry. everyone pulls out their warm coats and scarves in attempt to block out the cold. yet the look of rosiness on cheeks and noses is unavoidable. after being outside, and receiving the reward of rosiness, you come into a warm house (or building) to a hot cup or cider or tea (most of you can have hot chocolate, but i cant. so listing that is useless to me. lol).

fall is amazing.

Pastel Mural

jordie and i got together yesterday! we made this mural:-)

love you jordie<3

it is either the wind howling or some noise in the distance, that is very haunting right now. very eerie.

Spiders Bigger than my Blisters

THE FISHEYE CAMERA 2 HAS ARRIVED i am so excited!

well these past few days we have spent cleaning and rearranging the house. we are finally getting the furniture situated from the changing of rooms. it is looking really good! we are all happy with it. the nursery is so adorable... im going to have to post pictures. however, my mom got a new house hold toy... a steam cleaner. SO the carpet is being steam cleaned one section at a time. making those areas of the house almost unaccessible except under very very necessary use.

i have been working in the backyard as well today and have the blisters to prove it. we have these huge horrible spiders in our backyard during the summer. it seems as though they have become more and more numerous every summer. a job given to me today was the killing of said spiders. i am very scared of spiders. i- after having to kill them last time i had nightmares for a few weeks involving spiders. you know those ones where you wake up waving your arms, jump out of bed, and pull your covers down... my mom finally came outside and told me to quit screaming every time i killed one. psh. that was hard. i cant hide that a few still did escape after she told me not to.

carters birthday is in a few days, though we are having his birthday party tomorrow. (hence, another reason for the cleaning and preparing).

i finally got the duplicate for my permit from the new drive instructor lady. man... i think i will miss bill... however, i am almost there. it has taken way longer than expected but- i cant complain:-)

blah.

i am feeling really sick right now and cant sleep.

there really isnt much for me to say.

i did go play volleyball today with some friends.

it was fun, even though i suck at volleyball.

man i feel sick.

i think i might throw up.

Fisheye2

hey hey

okay i am seriously stoked right now...

i bought a fisheye 2 camera this morning!

oh man i cant wait to take it out and find

awesome pictures:-)

Stencils

So i am making my own stencils now... it is pretty awesome. i mostly use pictures that i have taken. however, there are still a few i just found online.

i used our blowpins to go over the first one i made yesterday. it was pretty epic! i am seriously excited about it. there are so many cool things that i can do with these stencils.

Carter's Quote of the Day

" You will laugh to your head!"

Perfect by Flyleaf

Sick of circling the same road
Sick of bearing the guilt
So open the windows to cool off
And heat pours in instead

Perfect in weakness
I'm only perfect in just your strength alone

All my efforts to clean me
Leave me putrid and filthy
And how can you look at me
When I can't stand myself

I'm tired to be honest
I'm nobody

Perfect in weakness
I'm only perfect in just your strength alone

Perfect in weakness
I'm only running in just your strength alone

I tried to kill you
You tried to save me

You save me
You save me
You save me
You save me

Perfect in weakness
I'm only perfect in just your strength alone

Perfect in weakness
I'm only running in just your strength alone





we try to fix ourselves and clean out our lives on our own strength and it is impossible. everytime we fall we look for where things might have gone wrong. all the possibilities flood our minds and we are overwhelmed. still we look for and go through every route as to where we went wrong and how we could have fixed it. this only causes further falling.

it is so amazing to me that in this weakness, when we have fallen to our bottom-most low, we are perfect. in this weakened state that we put ourselves in, we are perfect in that we have nothing and no one to rely on but God. it brings us to our knees every time. as we sit there on our knees, we are like little children in the darkness of night, calling out to our father to come to our rescue and turn on the hall light. knowing that when he walks down the hall and opens our door, everything will be alright. that all there was to frighten us will dissipate. in this child like faith we are saved.

"But Jesus said," Let the little children alone,
and do not hinder them from coming to Me;
for the kingdom of Heaven belongs to such
as these."
Matt. 19:14

"Truely I say to you, whoever does not receive
the kingdom of God like a child will not enter
it all."
Mark 10:15

how could we receive God unless as a child? otherwise we would be too smart for our own good and not humble at all. a child is weak and knows it needs protection. a child will call for a father in the night after a nightmare. it does not tell itself," this was just a bad dream. i am alive in my bed. everything is as it should be." the only thing that comes into the childs mind is that it is frightened and wants someone big and strong to come and make things better. and in full faith believes that it will be better...

God is so amazing!

Mostly Nothing

hello

today i am a bit excited. you see it is our first church band practice... and i am playing guitar for the church. i am pretty happy about that. i might even play piano now and again. i am not sure. they metioned that but it didnt go much further than that. we shall see. it is at 6:30.

other than that there really isnt much going on today. or hasnt gone on. and i am sure that after practice there wont be anything going on...

Dead End.

well, the first day at home has been nice. we just spent the day cleaning and getting ready for sunday.

my kitten, chip, was mad at me i think. he wouldnt let me pet him at first=( he isnt so mad now. so that is good.
btw! we have five new kittens! they are all so cute. there is a calico female that i love. we arent allowed to name any of them though, since we arent keeping any of them. if anyone wants a kitten let me know!! they are still too little.... but eventually.

i want to get my hair cut so bad. but i have to wait for a while. my mom is taking a friend to go get their hair cut together some time this next week. i am babysitting for both of them. i HOPE that i will be able to get my hair cut the next week following their hair cuts. i may even get lucky and go the same week.... ??? my mom says that my hair doesnt look that bad... but i feel like it is. i have to make and appointment anyways. which could mean that i HAVE to wait another week or two. we shall see.

i am looking for a new song by the format to learn to play. i am not sure which one i want to do. i would really like to do either dead end or compromise right now. i finished learning she doesnt get it. i am debating whether or not i want to put up a video of me playing the song. i would like to wait until i can sing the whole song and play. however, for some reason, this song is harder to play and sing than i thought. there are other songs i can sing to and play... i dont know why this one has to be so much harder. oh well. hopefully ill get it.

there really isnt much for me to say.

i think i may watch a movie...

good night.

Home On The Coast

i am home now. it is so good to see everyone! and we have five new kittens:-):-) the weather is amazing... so perfect.

i am so very tired. i dont know what it was but i had such a hard time waking up this morning. dad came in and i was like, please no.... i dont want to wake up. last night i woke myself up in the middle night talking in my sleep. also i was sleeping on my hand and i had a huge indentation from my ring. nice.

tomorrow is just cleaning day. i dont think that we will be doing anything else.

Train Ride Home

going home tomorrow.... i am still not sure of the time that i will be going... i know it wont be early in the morning though. which will be nice. i can actually sleep this time=)

today looks like it will just be chill. i think i may go in the pool. it is my last day to go in... so i think that i should. dad has a friend coming over that has a little girl for lainey to play with. also i think i will be doing some house work.

i decided to pack early this time. it is such a relief to be completely packed and not have to think about it anymore. i detest packing. i dont mind unpacking though.

i decided to draw cartoon characters to my own phrases... like the one that was in my last post. that has been fun. i have notebook pages filled with those now. i like drawing the robots from that guys page. oh and his page is: explodingdog.com


well, ive got to go...

peace

Zombie

sleepless again.

Sleepless

wow, i cant believe the time! i am so wide awake. i have too much on my mind to sleep. i was just laying in bed staring at the darkness with my thoughts all over the place. sometimes i wish i had an off button for my mind. usually i pray until i fall asleep... that wasnt working tonight. you know when you are praying and other thoughts, not related to prayer, come through your mind and interupt? ya that bugs. i wish that i had a button for that one too. i just want to focus on prayer and not have all this influx of thought to interupt...

it looks like i am going home this friday. i chose friday because my dad had to go into work monday to wednesday morning and that would give us all of thursday together. ill be watching lainey tomorrow. so hopefully lainey and i will have some fun. im sure we will. then on tuesday (and on) the nanny will be here.

when i go, i am excited to take some neat pictures at the train station. the train station in san diego is beautiful. i would never have thought that a train station would be beautiful, but it is. i want to take some pictures there that create a story. that sounds nice right now... i dont really know why.

i really dont have anything to say at one in the morning.

okay i think i feel sleep creeping in... i had better run to bed before it is gone.

View From A Lens

i decided to straighten my hair in this picture. i havent done that for a while and thought it would be fun. please excuse my tired look... i was very tired. it takes me a while to fall asleep while here sometimes, and at this point i had had quite a few long days and nights;)

lainey#1

lainey#2


during this time i had been babysitting lainey for three days straight. dad and lori gave the nanny the week off, which was nice, so i could watch her. usually she is here and it is hard to spend time with lainey. i mean she has to do her job and all, i being a big distraction. you know i recall this one time where i was in my room playing guitar and lainey came in the room to sit with me. the nanny came in, took her out and closed my door. ya, i think i get in the way of her job=) SO it was really nice to take care of her msyself. both dad and lori were at work, leaving lainey and i alone from about 9 a.m. to 6 or 7 p.m.