JULY memories: {day 2: our PERSONALITIES}

We took a super official, completely accurate personality tests back in May 2008.  Here were our results:

Emily is {The Scientist}

You have a head for ideas - and you are good at improving systems.

Logical and strategic, you prefer for everything in your life to be organized.

You tend to be a bit skeptical. You're both critical of yourself and of others.

Independent and stubborn, you tend to only befriend those who are a lot like you.

In love, you are always striving to improve your relationship.

You have strong ideas of what love should be like.

At work, you excel in figuring out difficult tasks. People think of you as "the brain."

You would make an excellent scientist, engineer, or programmer.

How you see yourself: Reasonable, knowledgeable, and competent

When other people don't get you, they see you as: Aloof, controlling, and insensitive

Dustin is {The Protector}

You live your life with integrity, originality, vision, and creativity.

Independent and stubborn, you rarely stray from your vision - no matter what it is.

You are an excellent listener, with almost infinite patience.

You have complex, deep feelings, and you take great care to express them.

In love, you truly see relationships as an opportunity to connect and grow.

You enjoy relationships as long as they are improving and changing. You can't stand stagnation.

At work, you stay motivated and happy... as long as you are working toward a dream you support.

You would make a great photographer, alternative medicine guru, or teacher.

How you see yourself: Hardworking, ethical, and helpful

When other people don't get you, they see you as: Manipulative, weak, and unstable 

...

I'm not sure where or why we took these tests, but it's fun to look back and read the results.

JULY memories: {DAY 1: that ONE room}

Dustin and I lived in Idaho Falls for about 3.5 years.  During that time, we had a heck of a time deciding on how we wanted to furnish one particular room.  It was a long and narrow room with a lot of doors, so not a lot of available wall space.

At first, it was our office.  We had an awesome desk and things looked great.

But, then it became apparent that we needed more seating, so we downsized the desk to accommodate more space in the room.

And then we downsized the desk even more when the whole thing was just too overwhelming.

Eventually, we bagged the entire office idea and turned the room into a family room.  No desk.  Just a TV, same chairs and a couch.

And then we moved.

the AGENDA for {JULY}

My 10 year anniversary is this month - July 30th.  It's hard to believe that Dustin and I have been married for nearly a decade.  I seriously remember that time in my life like it was yesterday.

I thought it would be fun to reminisce about the last 10 years by writing about a different memory throughout this month.  I mean, I have a blog.  I may as well write on it, right?

It seems a tad daunting to come up with nearly 30 memories, but between houses and kids and pets and vacations, I should be able to swing it pretty easily. 

So, stay tuned.  And enjoy my trip down memory lane!

#july30th #10years

a {DAY}

 I keep this note in my phone.  Obviously, November 19th was a bad day, but I honestly don't remember any of the details of how things went down.

Unfortunately, I still have days like this.  I imagine every mom does.

And the thing that never ceases to amaze me is that even though, logically, I know I'm not alone when it comes to the hardships of raising children - emotionally, I always feel like there's no one else who understands what I'm going through.

And even though I allow my daughters to influence me to feel like the worst person in the world, one millisecond of bliss within our home can make up for a week of obstacles.  And suddenly I'm the best mom in the world.

Motherhood truly is fascinating.  I'll never master it.

{#hardest #job #ever}

Pretty Little Liars {the SOUNDTRACK}

I've learned within the last little while that I like my entertainment to be mindless.  In all seriousness, when I sit down to watch a show I just want to be entertained.  I don't want to be challenged or uplifted or educated.  I want to be entertained.  This does not mean my taste in TV shows is bad (hello, 30 Rock.  Best TV Comedy ever), but it may explain why I've suddenly found myself watching Pretty Little Liars.

There's little to be said about the writing for the show.  For crying out loud, I'm four seasons in and there are still no answers to the cliff-hanger from the pilot episode.

But, who really needs good writing and realistic situations any way?  I mean, the "teenagers" in the show are all played by people well into their 20s and 30s, so, clearly, we're not striving for perfection.

But, that's okay.  

Pretty Little Liars is an entertaining show that I can watch after a long day.  For whatever reason, it helps me unwind.

Plus, there's Ezra.  Adorable-English-teaching-dating-your-student-so-you're-basically-a-pedophile Ezra.  What's not to love?

But, more importantly, the show has a killer soundtrack.  I usually find a song I love during every episode, and thanks to someone who has more free time than I do, I can view the songs from each episode at this handy website.  And then add to my music library the songs I like best.

I particularly like the song called BONES by MS MR.  Their songs are $1.29 on iTunes, which usually means they're popular and/or played on the radio.  So, I may be late in the game when it comes their awesomeness, but better late than never!

 Enjoy!

#mindless #entertainment

MUSIC mondays: my PLAYLIST

I have a few different playlists on my iPhone.  Generally speaking, I have a list that is more chill music and a list that is more upbeat.  Every once in awhile, I'll go to my entire library and shuffle the songs, but for the most part I stick to my playlists.

And, because I'm weird, my playlists have to have cool names.  Names like Playlist 1 and Playlist 2 just doesn't jive with me. Today, I'm sharing almost all of the songs on my playlist titled 

{Coffeehouse Rock}

Amos Lee - Colors

Band of Horses - No One's Gonna Love You

Band of Horses - The Funeral

Band of Horses - I Go to the Barn Because I Like

Band of Horses - Is There a Ghost

Depeche Mode - Personal Jesus {Acoustic Version}

Family of the Year - Hero

Imogen Heap - Hide and Seek

JJ Heller - When I'm With You

Rufus Wainwright - Hallelujah

Jack Johnson - Cookie Jar

First Aid Kit - Emmylou

Flunk - Blue Monday

Elton John - Your Song

David Berkeley - Fire Sign

The Cure - Lovesong

Ben Harper - Forever

Ani DiFranco - You Had Time

Coldplay - Fix You

Chris Isaak - Wicked Game

Alexi Murdoch - Orange Sky

Damien Rice - Cannonball

Emma Louise & Husky - The Sound of Silence

Mazzy Star - Fade Into You

Tracy Chapman - Fast Car

John Mayer - Free Fallin' (Live)

Snow Patrol - Run

Richardard Thompson - Persuasion

VAST - Don't Take Your Love Away From Me

Shake Shake Go - England Skies

Metric - Gimmie Sympathy

The Morning After Girls - Alone

The 6ths and Katharine Whale - You You You You You

A Great Big World - Say Something

Amy Stroup - Just You

Be sure to check out some of these songs.  They're great.  I'm always on the lookout for more music.  Send me your favorites.

{CURRENTLY} May Edition

My life, in a nutshell....

Current Book

The Grapes of Wrath.  This book is killing me, but I'm determined to finish it.

Current TV Show
Have any of you seen Black-ish?  Hilarious.
 
Current Drink
Water.  And more water.  That's pretty much all I drink these days.

Current Food
 I find myself wanting sugar cookies too often.

Current Music
So, the playlist I find myself listening to most often {complied by yours truly} is called Let's Do This. It includes songs by Tori Amos, The Cure, Dandy Warhols, Bjork, The White Stripes just to name a few.

Current Guilty Pleasure
The Bachelorette.  I know, I know.  It's pathetic.  However, if it makes a difference in terms of salvaging any respect you may have for me, I usually fast forward until the end to see who gets eliminated.

Current Troubling Thought
How is it possible that Isabelle is almost done with Kindergarten?

Current Wish
I would love to go on a vacation.  Just me and Dustin and a new city to explore.  Maybe one day.

Current Looking-Forward-To-Events
I have two friends coming into town for visits during the summer.  It's gonna be awesome!

Current I'm-Sick-Of-This
The rain.  Yes, I said the rain.  Shame on me.  But, seriously, it's been raining almost every single day this month and I'm just over it.

 Current Oil{s}
I've been diffusing a blend of Lavender and Wild Orange.  It smells amazing!

...

What are you {currently} doing?