NEW BLOG!!!

Sorry blogger, but I have converted. My new blog (that I actually update) is:

runeatlive.com

like my name (R-E-L) get it?!??! so clever, thanks Adam.

I may or may not end up coming back to this one, because I do love it. But not for now.
It is basically documenting all my feelings and opinions on health (which is my passion) and my life. I've got recipes, workouts, health articles, and of course updates on me. Check it out ;)

Where do I start?

Too much going on/has happened and I can't get my thoughts straight. Adam and I walked for graduation, but I still have to take a few credits, including the WORST humanities class of my life. Which I'm suffering through right now. It's very difficult for me to stay motivated. 5 second recap of the last few months:

I feel so lucky that I have an exciting summer planned (more to come on that!). But don't worry everyone, I'm still having a life crisis called WHATSHOULDIDOAFTERIGRADUATEANDGETTOCHICAGO. Yep, never ends! I'm thinking of starting a health blog...so far its the only thing I really care about. Also, I'm much too opinionated about it and need an outlet. Thoughts?

Adam pimped my blog this weekend (all by himself!) and I think he did a great job. He's so clever...running, eating, and feeling ALIVE are my 3 favorite things...and they just so happen to spell out my nickname..R-E-L!

I was cruising my baptist friend's dad-who-is-a-pastor's blog (did you follow me there?) and found this inspiring clip.

The Story of The Jesus Portrait from Resurrection Fellowship on Vimeo.

I LOVE mormonADS...they are so inspiring and uplifting. i was pleased to find this little (but long) nondenominational christian video promoting the same values that the LDS church promotes. I feel so grateful for people who truly seek to embody a Christ-like life, and are always open-minded and non-judgmental. For the most part, people just wake up every day and do the best they can with what they have. There's a difference between 'tolerating' people and 'accepting' people. If you ask me, accepting requires love. You don't have to agree with them, but God loves them just as much as He loves you...treat them accordingly.

Anywho..

I'm pumped about running again. Yahooo! I've missed this feeling. I talked to the assistant coach for the BYU Women's Cross Country team today, and he gave me lots of awesome tips on writing fitness plans, training, and finding balance in your life.

Take-away message:

Where you spend your time is where you'll excel. Professional athletes excel in their sport because they give up everything else.

Also, interval training is the way to go!

the end of the world.

yesterday, my computer crashed. and i can't find my external hard drive. so every digital memory of me is lost into oblivion, and the world will never remember me.

dramatic much?

lots of crying yesterday!

i need some ice cream.

here's a tip.

if you post some ridiculous health/weight loss recommendations or experiences that is not backed up by hard scientific evidence, for example "i lost 10 lbs in 1 week" or "lose 4 lbs in a day by doing this workout", i will probably judge you.

but then i'll repent, feel bad for you, then wish i could help you without awkwardly barging in on your life.

so if you seriously need to lose like 50 lbs, just ask an expert (which is not me, but i can definitely steer you in the right direction) and make sure what you're doing isn't stupid. (HCG diet=stupid.)

that's all.

highlights of my week

1. miraculous computer risen from the dead

adam and have a track record of our property miraculously fixing itself. exhibit A: last week my computer hard drive crashed. ITS A NEW(ish) COMPUTER! needless to say, i was a little frustrated. i waited a week, got all geared up to call HP, then turned my computer on and BAM! it was all better. PEACE AND BLESSINGS!! i'm a happy camper.

2. found out it's not my fault all my food is nasty.

most of the food i make is either way too spicy, way too bland, or burned to a crisp. or (most likely) i read the directions wrong. poor adam. not only am i starving him, but i'm also putting his hard-earned dollars straight down the garburator (urban dictionary it). but, last night, the beautiful Jani Crawley, who is a chef extraordinaire, told me her oven was almost 100 degrees off! we're neighbors, so clearly i can extrapolate this data to my situation. this is great news because it obviously means only 1/4 of the ruined food is my own fault. shhcore.

4. prank war. to the max.

our hilarious neighbors (the conks, cavanaughs, and allreds) have engaged us in an all-out prank war including tying doors shut, incessant snowballing (which is happening as we speak), water throwing, and covering doors in snow.

love it. so much.

5. potential marathoning in my future.

calm down everyone, i haven't committed yet. but i always knew i would run a marathon in college, and now college is basically over. say what?! so i think i'm just gonna do it. obstacle #1: should i eat ice cream or do sprint intervals tonight? haven't decided yet. i'll keep you posted.

so, that's my life. except there's some bad news. my tourette's is OFF THE HEEZY today. like...seriously. put me in a mental hospital.

here's a cute wedding photo, i know you were dying for one.

charity never faileth.

so, the weekend assignment for MCOM was to find someone more stressed than I am and help them out. this is a really awesome assignment, but there are two problems.

1. i am not that stressed out. don't worry, i am taking 18.5 credits and working and have a normal life, so there are DEFINITELY some stressors being thrown at me. but i've just decided that life is great and school isn't the most important thing. i have no doubt that i'm gonna graduate and...well frankly, C's get degrees. not that i'm aiming for C's, but the world won't end if i get a few.

2. I DON'T TALK TO ANYONE BUT MY HUSBAND. it's not that i'm one of those newly weds who is obsessed and can't live 5 minutes without a slimy wet one--no, no. i have a few friends like that and let me tell you, it's repulsive. i've just come to the realization that i don't actually think anyone else is as cool or funny or gets me like adam does, so i don't go out of my way to hang out with anyone else. plus, i'm busy.

HOWEVER, i still want to do this assignment because i have a few lofty personal christmas goals this year. things like 'feel charitable towards all God's children', 'put Christ as my priority', and 'fight poverty of the soul'. you know, all those things that get you eternal salvation, and such.


so this is my plan for the weekend assignment: tomorrow, after i go to the grocery store, i will be making treats and writing heartfelt notes to ladies in my ward who need a little lovin'.

side note: this is my fridge. there are 12 items here. one of them is a jar of jalapenos. good thing the in-laws live close.

152 insights into my SOUL...

all i want for Christmas is world peace and an awesome imagination. neither of which are even remotely in my grasp.

guess I'll have to settle for one of these bad boys.

ILFT

if there's one thing you should know about me, it's that i love free things. seriously, i'm that girl who will stand in line for hours to get a free sandwich JUST BECAUSE it's free. it gives me such a thrill!!!!!

most likely this stems from my childhood. i had to pay for almost everything that wasn't necessary to my survival since i was like 14. i appreciate my parents for instilling in me a love for saving and for teaching me the value of a dollar...however it wasn't until college that i realized what a monster i'd become. it also doesn't help that my BFFL growing up was the infamous bethany ogletree, the greatest moocher known to mankind (except for my brother, dustin). seriously, we would spend hours walking around, trying to get free stuff--conning boys (JOSH ERICKSON) into buying us things and seeing how much fun we could have on a friday night with only $3.

the bottom line is, i have a problem. last night, adam and i went to macaroni grill (ironic that i married such a spender. #mfeo) and discovered that they were lighting up the Shops at Riverwoods! FUN! a little elf gave me a golden ornament (boo yah) and told me if i waited around in the freezing cold for an hour, i might win a prize.

of course we stayed. poor adam.

and it paid off because look what i won! woot!

so the moral of the story is:

i accept donations.

for time and all eternity

will this count for last week's blog? hopefully? cuz i definitely forgot. and the REASON i forgot is because i was all wrapped up in this:

for rills tho, it was the most magical day of my life, besides my own wedding. which is a DANG GOOD THING because i poured so many hours and prayers into it the week before. i don't even know how to describe the joy i felt all day, or how magically beautiful the reception was! leave it to Grace to pull off the most fabulously vintage wedding of the year.

in other news, Adam went to Chicago for his final round interview with Sears and the verdict is....drumroll please....

WE GOT AN OFFER! BOO YAH!

this is sooooooooooooo exciting, it's the perfect job for him, i love Chicago...not to mention it pays really well ;) we are ecstatic. good thing we got it, because we might have some slit wrists on our hands otherwise...we've been planning like he already got an offer for a few months now. haha!! i always jump the gun.

all my procrastination because of exhaustion and wedding planning will bite me in the butt this week. i didn't get anything done this weekend. lets just say wedding+Castle+NZ reunion+THE alex ingersoll+contagion+too much food and not enough sleep=FUN but UNPRODUCTIVE weekend.

oh well! such is college. as the country song goes...i can sleep when i'm dead :)

this is SOOOOOOO good.

The essence of all religions is love, compassion, and tolerance. Kindness is my true religion. The clear proof of a person’s love of God is if that person genuinely shows love to fellow human beings.

~Dalai Lama

LOVE THIS.

fall.

despite my best efforts, it is apparent to me that fall and i were not meant to be together. here's why:

1. i can't pretend to like the cold. why would anyone want to wear multiple layers of clothing but still have a freezing nose? why would anyone want to wear anything but a swimsuit is what i'm really wondering.

2. fall=crafts, which i hate.

3. fall=cooking yummy soups, pumpkin things, cookies, etc. i have tried all these in the last week. all have failed miserably.

4. fall makes me want to throw parties, which i am, but i don't really know what i'm doing. so far my halloween party has turned into a fall party with random mismatched foods and costumes. HAHA!!!!! i'll be sure to take pictures.

i think arizona is calling my name after graduation. the midwest is great, but i'm a summer girl!

BUY YOU A DRAAANK

ok, ok. bad song reference. my apologies.

my weekend assignment for MCOM was to buy someone a coke (or something of equal or greater value) then blog about it. i put it off until Monday right before class. here's the story:

i was hanging out in the testing center, creepin' around the vending machines waiting for some unsuspecting student to buy a snack.

eventually, i walked up to a guy and said, "i'm supposed to buy you something for my advanced writing class. here's a dollar." haha! he tried to give me a dollar back, but i wouldn't accept it. then he could buy a POP TART instead of just some crackers. what a great day.

so...not really a cool story, but i felt warm and happy inside :)

i like ten dollars.

today at the bus station (random, i know) a mexican man came up to me and said, "you are very beautiful, you know?"

SO NICE, RIGHT?

wow, thanks random mexican man.

#truth

you guys, general conference is so great!!! and the weather is perfect. gooood weekend. funny story, i was unrighteously browsing my twitter account when i realized the current talk was about not abusing social media. i am well on my way to becoming obsessed with social media, a "you-twit-face" as my husband calls it. lol.

well this week was a little crazy, and i disappointed myself multiple times. ever since i started caring about grades, my life has been stressful and my confidence in my future career has been a rollercoaster ride. BOO grades are so overrated. please come back, freshman and sophomore years. anyways, i went visiting teaching and ended up getting way more out of it than the chika i taught did. i love this quote by president gordon b. hinckley:

“I believe in myself. I do not mean to say this with egotism. But I believe in my capacity and in your capacity to do good, to make some contribution to the society of which we are a part, [and] to grow and develop. … I believe in the principle that I can make a difference in this world, be it ever so small.”

moral of the story: i don't need perfect grades or a perfect career to be good enough for my Heavenly Father. i am here to do follow HIS plan. no matter what happens, if i do my best (D&C 123:17), it's gonna be ok!
so if you find yourself asking, "what am i to the Lord?" here's your answer:

ENOUGH.

i am sick.

today has not been the best day ever, except for the gorgeous weather.

BUT

I popped some of these babies:

which helped. but even better than that, I found this inspiring little message:

Thank you Halls, for making my day. I will now recommend you to everyone I know.

i don't know what to blog about this week.

this is funny:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fh0NLQJfAYU

look mom, i'm famous!

my dear friend jeff has a friend who blogged about me. SWEET!
ok ok, not directly. but he did reference my engagement video.

go watch it everyone, it will "make you want to fall in love".

while we're on the topic of my wedding, i received some pictures from my photographer's assistant who is FABULOUS and wow, i am impressed. here's a little sneak peek:

somebody needs to pimp my blog. any volunteers?

and the winner is...

PROFESSOR SHAYNE CLARKE

MCOM teacher, freelance writer, and falconer extraordinaire.

yes. i creeped on his linkedin profile to get this fuzzy picture.

after telling myself for quite some time that i would get into blogging and tweeting, i am FINALLY converting, as the afore-mentioned advanced writing teacher has made it a requirement. part of my GRADE. good job, shayne. will he like my terrible grammar, casual diction and inconsistent capitalization? probably not.

eh.

on another note, i am taking 18.5 credits this semester (kill me now). pity gifts will be accepted in the form of ice cream and massages.

last but not least, i love this man.

fine.

i give in. i have decided to become a blogger. most of me is disgusted with myself , but there's this little part of me that's anxious to prove myself.

the problem with blogging is that it wastes my time, which i am already exceptionally good at wasting. also, it's difficult to figure out how it all works. to me, blogging falls in the 'technology' category. and when it comes to technology, i fall in this category:

you've got mail anyone?

it's not that i'm ANTI technology...i just don't seek it out. i'd rather it just fall into my lap, and download the instruction manual into my brain. fortunately, i married the right guy for that :)

ps, it took significant time and brain power to get that picture on there.

my sudden interest is spiked because of my alone-during-the-day-ness here in Minneapolis, and also because i'm avoiding training for my scary triathlon (more to come on that) and studying for the gre (also scary). it's been tough because we don't know very many people, and the people we do know have lives of their own. and i'm still working on this 'be a self-starter' thing :)

and so, my blogging adventure begins. i can't promise this won't turn out like the last time i tried to get into blogging (feel free to browse my new zealand adventures below) but..i will try.