weekend in ten.

our weekend in ten simple sentences:

1. work hard, play hard. 

{school and dance all day and night friday, lead to lots of playing.}

2. it's never to late to start new lifelong friendships.

{go ahead and meet them yourself; here and here.}

3. a slice of pie + five scoops of ice cream = a heavenly pie milk shake.

{must go to chile pies. the make one delicious, totally scrumptious, dessert.}

4. a weekend getaway to "our" city, san francisco.

5. a little hooked to watching a thing called, gossip girl.
that's not the issue, it's staying up into the wee hours of the night to do so.

6. leaving your dog at a "day care" for the first time is ruff. yikes.

7. wonderful visits with two of my best friends in life.
{who both ironically live is san francisco now.} 

8. food is a big part of my life. in a good way; i love to eat.

{we ate dinner here. great pizza if you're in the city!}

9. lovebird is a sucker for bubble tea. boba, in particular.

10. i fell in love all over again. 

i'm smitten, i tell you. 

hope you had a lovely weekend yourself.

what are a few weekend items on your list of ten?

i'm hoping to have a full week of blogging- wish me luck.

i've got to get back in the swing of things- 

my life journal here on the blog, has been neglected-

 plus, i feel so out of the loop on all of your darling blogs.

{it looks like i have my writing and reading cut out for me this week.}

i'm anxious to click through to your blogs- leave a comment below and

let's quickly get reacquainted. xoxo.

p.s. happy martin luther king day.
hope you are a lucky one who gets work off; if so, enjoy! 

santa cruz.

labor day in ten:

1. let's go to... santa cruz.

2. our partners in crime: the tibbs, plus baby graham. 

{only the cutest baby ever, and has been from day one}

3. we took a nice long stroll on the boardwalk;

which, consisted of roller coasters, people watching and the

scrumptious scent of cotton candy on a hot summer day. 

4. a tiny, but lovely scenic drive on "west cliff" road.

{do you want a beach house on a cliff as much as i do?}

5. classic stop for ice cream at the town's most popular stop.

6. side trip to capitola;. a darling, quaint little shopping area.

{take me back soon, please!}

7. back in the car for more driving, tired baby cries, and labor day traffic.

8. can't have a holiday without delicious food, right?

our holiday consisted of a gourmet lunch and a 'pit stop' at five guys and fries.  

9. lots of laughter due to talk of nose jobs, comparison in burger joints 

and the argument over the state of always wanting something.

10. all that diet coke didn't affect the exhaustion from the fun day;

back home we went and jumped right into bed.

cheers to awesome friends, holidays that fall on a monday
 and the beach, of course.

how was your holiday? 

take me back, please.

take a peak at our little weekend getaway in

glacier, montana.

oh, what a lovely time we had.

full of nothing but laughter, camping, friends, huckleberry's, 

nature, celebrations, river rafting, hiking, creating memories and food.

lovebird's best friend decided to marry his beautiful bride

up in the gorgeous surroundings of montana. 

{just a mountain range away from canada}

it was quite the destination wedding.

they actually decided to tie the knot on our wedding date/anniversary.

i'm not complaining, because what better way to celebrate than 

to be out of town at your dearest friend's wedding? 

we all know what this means too- lots of future anniversary trips to come!

the wedding was simply perfect for the two of them,

our anniversary was delightful {and busy} and

the weekend was a big success full of bonding moments between our friends.

to top it off, lovebird surprised me big time with a wedding band.

my jaw slightly dropped when i saw a little box from our jeweler.

let me tell you, there's nothing like getting a diamond in the ruff.

my heart is forever captured by his romance and love.

i certainly have a keeper- and i'm holding on forever....

for many more anniversaries to come.

xoxo

{follow on instagram: eleasejane}

"pac heights and epi shots."

little road trip into san francisco.

golden gate bridge. {75th anniversary}

"mamma rich bucks".

six flags. too much fun.

trying on ugly shoes. 

best friends forever. 

silhouettes on a poolday.

lovebird being awfully handsome at blue barn.

laying out {more like relaxing}.

memorial day weekend has been an absolute blast.

but, that's expected when your favorite friends come into town.

we had too much fun together, and were so sad to

have to say goodbye to them today.

{we are still trying to convince them to move closer}

i can't count the seconds we spent laughing this trip.

so many inside jokes and memories were made.

life is about friends, laughter, holidays, excuses to shop, poolside relaxing,

frozen yogurt, roller coasters, food, deep conversations, bbq's, hot tubbing,

marriage, big cities, road trips and time spent in the company of those you love.

or at least that was what this weekend was all about. 

happy memorial day!

xoxo

five things friday.

five little things before the {big} weekend:

1. remember when i surprised lovebird at work for his birthday?

go check out the genius {and talent} behind the cake pops!

she has an adorable blog full of incredible crafts and the most delicious goodies.

and on top of that, she's one of a kind. i love her dearly.

2. we have a fun trip planned with my best friend and her hubby.

can't wait to meet them "in the middle" at lake tahoe.

say hello to a much needed trip with them, time to just chill, 

and the beauty of such a gorgeous place.

3. i'm so excited to spend my birthday weekend with lovebird.

he has hidden boxes from j.crew, a weekend getaway planned in the city and 

i can already tell he's spoiled me rotten.

why am i so lucky to be married to such a gem?

4. sunshine is the souls best medicine, while

a sunburn is the skin's worst nightmare.

i've experience the love and hate of both this week.

i blame the burning desire to read my book out in the sun. pun intended.

by the way, i finished my book already. loved it.

i'm not going to tell you again- read it now! 

5.a few of my favorite things from this week include:

crisp and clean bed sheets, sally hansen nail strips, a morning date with

my {other} best friend, lovebird's laugh attack, yogurt mill,

the product of a clean house after slave work,

dry shampoo, reading, mac's new russian red lip gloss, and 

complete freedom in the evenings as a result of not having rehearsal.

you can't pinch me.

happy st. patrick's day!

{yesterday}

we were too busy acting like the irish, i didn't get around to posting.

we had a crazy, lovely and busy day yesterday.

lovebird spent most of the day at work.

i spent the day rehearsing and performing at an "old folks" home.

{what a treat that was. if you know me, you know that old people have a special place in my heart.}

we raced to a little dinner with our dear friends,

and ate the most delicious st. patrick's day pizza.

corn beef, prosciutto, pepperoncinis, red onions.

all on top of a flat bread crust and a mustard brie sauce.  

yum- my mouth is watering just thinking about it again. 

we then had a little dessert run to yogurt mill, of course.

and headed back to our place to finish the night with a good old heart to heart.

it was a fun night with friends. 

joel and i may have had a few st. patty's day kisses,

talked like we were irish and stayed up way too long giggling.

we had a lovely st. patty's day.

i've always loved this holiday. 

hope yours was just as lucky as ours. 

xo

pictures:

1. the little leprechaun brought me an adorable pair of shoes.

2. he also left gold coins, of course.

3. our cute friends. {at concetta- our favorite restaurant.}

4. leapord shoes and green nail polish. 

5. our little mantel decorated for this fun holiday.

surprise!

{before......and.......after}

i'm officially a brunette. 

kind of crazy, right?

i have never been anything but blonde.

but, now i can check something off my bucket list.

i am still getting used to seeing myself in the mirror.
it's kind of shocking every time.

it's weird finding brown hair on my clothes rather than blonde.

touching my hair feels like i'm playing with someone else's' hair. crazy, right?

all and all, i like the change.

change is good.

a drastic change is a good thing too.

i didn't tell lovebird i was doing it... so he was in for a surprise last night

when he picked me up at the airport.

{i tried filming his reaction, but i wasn't close enough to him when he realized.} 

it took him a few minutes to realize it was actually me. 

and when he did, his eyes grew ten time larger

and his head did the biggest double take i've ever seen.

thank goodness, he likes it. actually, loves it.

he's now in love with a brunette.

thanks goodness for change in life.

what's the biggest drastic change you've "experienced"?

p.s. if you live in utah and want a rockin' new do, 

i have just the gal for you!

michelle is simply gorgeous, has an adorable personality and is a dear friend. 

{she'll make you jealous of her eyelashes. just wait and see}

she is also looking to add to her cliental- so help her out! 

check her out at:

tangles salon 

7076 s. highland dr. 84121

salt lake city, ut.

801.424.2724

*email me if you want more details. also, mention my name when you call

to make an appointment and you may get a friendly discount.

xoxo

a new friend and pink lipstick.

sorry for the lack of blogging over the weekend. 

i was busy spending time with dear friends up in the city.

oh, how i love san francisco, friends and ballet.

what a lovely weekend i had. in fact, i didn't want it to end.

p.s. i'm extremely jealous of all you out there who actually get a three day weekend.

for some silly reason, my school decided it wasn't a holiday.

but, regardless i had a wonderful weekend without an extra day.

 pictures:

1. on the way to the city wearing pink lipstick. my current favorite. 

{i had to take bart this time due to the closing of the bay bridge.}

2. ceiling in the theater. {war memorial opera house.}

if only you could see it in real life. it is absolutely breathtaking. 

3. lunch at one of best friend's favorite restaurants. la boulange.

bonus: it's in one of my favorite neighborhoods.

open face sandwiches plus window shopping is delightful. 

4. anthropologie in the city. it get's me every time. 

i'm convinced it's the prettiest anthro store. i die and go to heaven every time i step foot in there.

5. view from best friend's apartment. 

isn't he lucky to wake up to that ever single day?

6. lovely friends i went with to see the san francisco ballet perform. 

i finally got to see chroma live/in person. remember this? 

it completely beat my expectations. and let me tell you- my expectations were set high. 

7. waiting for the train on the way home.

this was definitely the worst part of the trip. 

i didn't want my weekend in the city to end so quickly. 

i wish i could replay the weekend all over again.

i'm grateful for a new friendship that i knew would happen once "the gap" was filled. 

true friends are the best. 

especially ones that bring you together with the ones they care most about.

happy three day weekend.

i promise to be a regular blog poster again. 

p.s. i have a surprise to show you this week. 

i can't wait to see what you think.

make sure you check back daily! 

xoxo

nice to meet you.

meet my cute new friend.

meg from the happy hour.

check out her blog over here.

{she was sweet enough to also say a few kind words about me.}

you'll soon discover that she's a real beauty, very charming and simply lovely inside and out.

i hope you enjoy reading about her fun life with her hubby, her tips on "brightening your smile",

and her cute way with fashion. 

{i want to go shopping in her closet and eat all the yummy things she posts.}

i hope you find your way over to her lovely blog today. 

xoxo

weekend in review.

this weekend was a little whacked out:

friday: girls night out.

all you really need to know is:

we stayed up until 5 in the morning. 

{i honestly don't think i've done this since the dating days with lovebird}

was it worth it? yes. 

was i exhausted? yes. i still am, actually.

saturday: dance and date night.

after getting three [very short] hours of sleep...

i had dance/rehearsal all day.

a new level of tiredness hit me that day.

maybe i'm getting old.

i raced home to shower and meet our favorite friends for din din.

we played games and chitchatted- yet again, far after my bed time.

sunday: a time to relax. well, sort of.

waking up for church today seemed like an impossible feat. 

teaching my little ones in primary was glorious and challenging.

it wore me out a smidgen more. 

{if that was even possible.} 

came home to eat a hurried lunch, and cozy up on the couch for a much needed nap.

spent the night at our other favorite friends house for a delicious dinner.

and came home to finish cleaning, laundry and homework.

weekend overall: exhausting yet necessary. 

girl friends, dinner dates and little sleep can sometimes be therapeutic.

i'm reminded of how blessed i am to have friends, food, a night full of sleep and love.  

{picture: anytime not in public this weekend... was definitely spent in pi's and glasses.}

cheers to a new year!

{last pictures taken of us in 2011.}

i am not the biggest fan of new years eve.

you can call me scrooge. i don't mind.

the two best things about the holiday are:

1. wearing all things that glitter and sparkle.

2. eating delicious food.

don't get me wrong...

 the countdown to midnight, the kiss triggered by the strike of a clock,

 the fireworks and the lovely friends and family 

we find celebrating with are oh so great. 

but..... there is something that just doesn't click for me.

i sometimes think ordering in chinese food, snuggling on the couch

while just the two of us countdown and ring in the new year would 

make me fall in love with the holiday.

that being said, we did have a fun time last night.

it was spent with family up in park city and midway.

we ate lots of yummy {and expensive} food.

we laughed until we were blue in the face.

we cheered on the utes in the bowl game.

we raced down to celebrate midnight with dear friends.

and we came home to fall asleep talking about things in 2012.

two.thousand.and.twelve.

it's here already. 

we've quickly said goodbye to 2011.

funny how that happens.

it was a year full of all good things.

{staring school for me. new job for lovebird. house guest for a month. trips home to utah. friends tied the knot. more friends engaged. contract with cwb. holidays. visits from family. our one year anniversary. romantic getaway to monterey. got a piano. moved apartments. straight a's. lovebird's quarter of a century birthday. made new, and now close, friends. lovebird tore his cal and got surgery. crew going through the temple; crew getting his mission call. many day trips to our city: san francisco. new church callings. and the list goes on.}

we fell in love all over again in 2011.

and plan on doing just that in 2012.

365 days: so much to do, see, explore and feel.

we are anxiously awaiting everything that comes our way

whether by choice or by fate. 

happy 2012.

cheers to the new year! 

playing catchup.

is it weird that i feel guilty when i don't post something for a couple of days?

i wish neglecting the blog wasn't a result of life being so busy.

however, being busy for the holidays is something i truly love.

the hustle and the bustle of it all.

running here and there. wrapping this and that. going from party to party.

this weekend {and now week} has been crazy busy.

we spent a beautiful day in san francisco eating seafood, walking, shopping 

and exploring the crazy city with my family.

last night we hosted a little christmas party for my friends from my ballet company.

we did a little {white elephant} gift exchange.

we ate homemade lasagna and yummy goodies all while playing apples to apples.

and lastly, we visited one of our favorite families who just had baby #4.

we are so happy for them. congrats tui's! 

due to the"big event", we lucked out and got to babysit the three other kiddos.

who we try to steal and call them our own.

{i'll post pictures soon amongst getting approval}

after all the business that the holidays bring in,

lovebird and i find ourself cozying up next to our christmas tree and a fire...

sitting for more than five minutes on the couch. it's a miracle, i tell you. 

recap

here is a little recap of the last few days.

lovebird brought me baby roses to work.

we shared a cheap din din at costco. you know what that means: hot dogs.

we went to spamalot. with these lovely people. 

we saw "morning glory". cute movie. 

lovebird enjoyed his last few days of spring break.

while i worked. every. single. day.

we looked at a few pianos. yes, to buy. yay!
we had our dear friend from germany over.
and we woke up with happy bodies from fixing our bed.
what a delight. 

friends are forever.

wanna know who i miss?

them.

lately, i've been craving seeing my "old" friends.

the ones that i grew up with.

the ones i went to high school with.

the ones that i've created millions of memories with.

simply put: i miss them.

my wedding was actually the last time i was with most of them.

boo. 

i wish utah and california were closer right now.

but just this once. because life is just peachy here in cali. 

shout out to our famous friend.

get ready to be amazed.

will cheng, lovebird's best friend, is nearly a superstar.

he has an incredible clothing line.

check it out here!

the cool part about it is...

on mine and lovebird's little stroll thru a neighborhood in 

san francisco, we came upon this store....

and low and behold, 

the west is dead items were staring right back at us.

if that wasn't cool enough, we walked across the street to 

yet another store... Hello Stranger,

and there his stuff was again.

playing naive, we asked the workers what they thought about this line.

the words out of their mouths, "we love it. every person who works here owns a hat 

and we wear them all the time." they went on to tell us a little about the company,

which of course we already knew everything. 

we left the store feeling happy for will.

how impressive.

ambition is key, and following dreams too.

oh, and last but not least, we spotted this guy hanging on the wall as we walked out.

this is a big shout out to you will!

congrats on your clothing line making it to the "big world"!

holiday fun

 christmas has come and gone already,

but as busy and sick as i've been i'm just now getting 

around to posting about it. 

we'll let the pictures do the talking!

{going to the nutcracker for the 12th time, literally}

 friends.

we had a yummy dinner at red butte.

and a lovely night catching up.

the snow was falling like crazy,

it was a perfect night for lots of cozying up,

laughing and sharing stories.

cute linds, em and laura.

sure love them.

jules, jane and cait.

what babes.

friends are the greatest.

this break with friends:

movies, parties, dinners, double dates,

new years, chitchats, black tie event and pictures.

happy 2011!!!

here are lovebird's friends.

we brought in the new year with them.

apples to apple, toasts, and....

our own ball drop.

 {first picture in 2011}

a puppy?

meet oatis.

no words quite describe his cuteness.

you could say i'm in love with him.

only one problem....

he's not ours. he belongs to crew.

santa brought him fro crewser.

ironic, right? considering i was the one who

asked for a puppy.

it's okay, i'm still in love.