a rent-worthy movie about renting movies

Or, instead of renting, you could save even more money and just see the trailer, the full-feature isn't nearly as witty or fun.

It's not as bad as all that. Really, it's okay, and I got a really good dose of Jack Black, so I left satisfied.

Good news for those of you who liked it... there could be a sequel.

bravo star

- ordered a turkey sub sandwich, lots of veggies, and said no to the cheese, and picked up a low-fat yogurt from the deli next door instead of getting the chips w/ my sandwich

- found a workout on On Demand at my house instead of using the excuse of "I'm not on campus on Wednesdays to go to the gym" one morning

- only had two bites of the AMAZING coconut ice cream when Rob pulled it out of the freezer

- decided the kitchen is closed when I get home at night, and made lunch and dinner for the day in the morning instead of the night before because I know I snack too much when I make it at night

- only used one of the sweet potatoes for dinner instead of the two I bought, and then gave the bigger portion to Rob

- got the light cake batter ice cream with graham crackers mixed in at Coldstone, and decided it was okay to accept the offer of the small sample of ice cream cake

- went for a long walk on Saturday since making it to the gym never works

- ate my yummy pork and quinoa meal really slowly to enjoy every bite, which made the fact that it was a small portion just fine

- studied for my midterm on the elliptical instead of skipping the gym to study with classmates

- allowed myself a bite of the chocolate covered macaroons that were offered freely, but then had no more, saying "no thanks" to the homemade chocolate white-chocolate chunk cookies, and not taking a cookie sample at Trader Joe's after realizing I was fine w/o it.

- consulted the nutrition labels before buying anything at the grocery store

- made a goal on Monday to wear my tight-ish jeans on Saturday without being disappointed about the choices I made during the week

my favorite view...

I think one of my favorite views in Seattle is crossing Lake Washington on 520, heading westbound. It is breathtaking on a sunny day. On a clear day you can see the city to your left, the Olympic Mountain Range in front and to the right is the University of Washington. When the sun is shining Lake Washington glistens and there are boats all over the water. I just love it. The pictures aren't the great since I was driving while taking them (not safe, but for the sake of the blog it was worth it).

Delicious Tacos

Dad made tacos for Super Bowl Sunday and they were so good. I still think about them...

I BARELY caught the bus this morning

Then I remembered I was supposed to drive.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Another film recommendation.

This one is good. I don't know if this film is playing many places, but if it's playing near you and you're not in the mood for comedy, action, or a love story, you should see it. It's a French film based on a book written by a man who suffers a stroke that leaves him completely paralyzed, except for the use of one his eyes. His only means of communication (including the dictation of his book) is through a communication system taught by his speech pathologist (woot woot!).

I'm going to warn that it's serious and difficult to watch at times. Plus the tinyiest bit of nudity. The first 15 or 20 minutes freaked me out, realizing I was getting myself into more than I had bargained for. Those beginning minutes are viewed through the man's perspective, out of his eyes, and I panicked thinking the whole film would be like that. Bear with it, it's not.

I loved this film on many levels, mostly from a speech pathologist's point of view. But I think I'll spare you all of those thoughts. For anyone, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, is a remarkable film. That's why I'm recommending it, and why you should see it!

This reviewer thinks you should see it too. It's a slightly more poignant review than mine.

hApPy BirThdAY jaCob!!

its his birthday today and i dont know i think he may be turning like 25 or something, but there he is the jacob michael farrar we all know. our brother jacob(or husband for lisa) is all around cool. its almost safe to say jacob=cool. i don't think anyone would object to that. when i think of jacob i think of him laying on my bed either looking at my things or my magazines. i think of him peaking at christmas presents, i think of how funny he is and how he always says something funny, i think of the Mr. T key chain that he got once that we all thought was so funny, i think of how he would pay me to iron a shirt for him, or his phrases he would always use like "go take a long walk on a short bridge" or "i would rather owe it to you than cheat you out of it", or his always good halloween costumes. i think of how he would get annoyed with how slow i would play my turn in a game(now i get annoyed with people HAH), and i think of his great style! i could go on and on, but if anyone wants to add to this list of what you think of when you think of jacob feel free! happy birthday jacob!

Kali's reception

I went to Rexburg to attend Kali's wedding! I'm so happy for her, I can't even describe it. There had to be a slight change of plans. The dedication of the Rexburg temple was postponed until after Kali was going to be sealed. She had waited so long to be married in the temple in her home town, so they decided to wait to be sealed, but to still hold the reception. I will have to miss the sealing, but I was just as happy to attend the reception. 

Here she is looking quite beautiful with her husband (I mean, her fiance). 

Kali, me, and Jenny. Jenny is Kali's cousin and the three of us were roommates at Ricks in 1998!

Rexburg Temple

My apologies to the girls of Davenport #10

I tried to make popcorn the other night at Monica's apt. I swear I know how to pop popcorn in the microwave, so I'm not really sure what happened. From now on, when they smell burnt popcorn, they'll think of me. And that's all I could ever ask for.

This is me and the microwave on their front porch. Monica's roommate was smart and just took the whole thing outside. The kitchen (and the back bedroom) was already full of smoke.

oops.

fake-me-out

I did not eat at Costa Vida, I didn't even eat at Cafe Rio. Bajios, in Rexburg, was as close as I could get - and boy, was it good. 

ps. dear Seattle, I would like to be able to eat at one of these restaurants without having to leave you. Even any fake-me-out establishment would do, as long as it has a salad like this (although, I do prefer Costa).

i made banana bread!!

this semester i became more brave and have challenged myself to bake and cook more.  i am not so scared to pick up a recipe and make it. usually when i pick up a recipe the lingo makes me nervous so then i put it down, but i have decided to ask someone what something means instead of letting it get the best of me. for those of you who don't know or haven't caught on; i don't cook. i have never really learned and was seldom in the kitchen growing up. i owe this to the fact that i am the youngest and also i don't follow written instructions very well. one of the things i have made this semester at school is banana bread. my roommate had some bananas in need of some loving and so last night i got a recipe and went for it! i had to ask a few questions but it turned out delicious! so moist and just drool worthy.  

Check out my 4 posts, following this!

I finally posted, and I did it all by myself. A big accomplishment for me. So be sure to read all 4. I meant for the last one to be the first one, but forgot that you have to do things backward. I'll get better at it. ENJOY!

Bad hair day?

The other day we went to the mall with my mom. this is what leah's hair looked like (below). While we were there she took out her hairbands, and looked like a monster. My mom and I were both a tad embarrassed to be seen with her. I went to the nearest bathroom and tried to wet it down, but wasnt too successful.

But luckily after her nap it just looked like this (below), a Texas-style bouffant hair-do!
(sorry, I do not know how to rotate the pic)

A bad mom & the snow

A week ago we got a few inches of snow. We decided to bundle up and go play in it, with Mark too. So this is the bad mom part. The whole time Leah was complaining and whining, very unlike her. She kept wanting to take her boots off, which I figured she just didnt like wearing them. So when we got home and took off her boots....her feet were frozen! Oh I felt SO SO bad, my heart just sank. She was complaining about her feet the whole time. I had only put one pair of socks on, and her boots were just rain boots...and we were out for nearly an hour! It still pains me to see these pictures.


Her outfit was so funny. She looked like the kid from A Christmas Story. She could barely move her arms!

Leah's First Haircut

This is a post I should have done a couple months ago, but since I am retarded at such things, I didn't. Leah got her haircut in December, the day of our family Christmas portrait. Her hair really needed it. She sat still the whole time and cooperated, amazing! It looked so cute!

Steph, this one is for you

I am definitely technologically challenged. I mean really, how hard is it to make a post on this blog? So this is my attempt at doing this with out any help, let's see how it goes. So Steph, here is a pic of Leah reading the book you gave her for Christmas!