easter & sunshine

my easter morning was the traditional one and started out w/ easter baskets && church!

my easter duck, treating me well since the early 90's

win. check out that peanut butter fill ! mmm..

at church, my little sister questioned the plethora of hair ties on my wrist. i truly do not know how i accumulate so many throughout the day/week, but it's not unusual to have 3-5 on at a once. i told her that the gray and blue one were being worn to be stretched out. new hair ties only wrap around my monstrous pony tail twice, it takes some stretching to secure a pony tail with three wraps. steph immediately replied by saying, "hymn books are perfect for stretching hair ties!"

she was right. it was the most use i've made out of a hymn book for quite some time! it also spared my wrist some pain, as illustrated in the pic

after church, we headed home && had the infamous, EASTER MORNING FRENCH TOAST!

though we usually have this first thing in the morning, we did it after church so that ryan, nicole, && my best, julianne, could join us. this is something that i've been looking forward to for the past three years since i've missed easter w/ the fam since moving to utah. pictures cannot even capture the goodness.

before the baking: french bread soaked in secret goodness overnight w/ brown sugar, pecan, goodness crumbled on the top

this is mel wishing he could have some

&& this is me excited for it!

it didn't disappoint. i had multiple helpings.

our easter was also spent doing some belated celebrating for ryan's bday! i decided to make his fav, peppermint oreo ice cream cake. good thing we keep a good supply of trader joe's seasonal candy cane joe-joe's!

[i spy a ddp]

i cannot even describe all the food i devoured all day long. everything was ohhh soo good. i told abby that the next morning on my run i felt as if i were trapped inside of an elephant's body. i may have formed a new fault line on moopark's tierra rejada rd.

i've been enjoying the california sun tremendously. it's nice to get up and go on a run without shivering when i step outside. i even joined christie on a hike yesterday afternoon before looking at her soon-to-be new house in westlake! before checking out the house, though, we had to cool down w/ some coffee bean. after we got our cb & caffeine fix, we got through the security to see her house. they don't mess around there. though they have lots to do before they move in, the place it going to be amazing! i'm so excited for them!

check out her new backyard.
apparently bon jovi lives across the street canal. the neighbors said he throws some pretty good parties. i'll be looking forward to that when i return from thailand && they're all moved in.

today steph joined me for lunch at jersey mike's && the camarillo outlets!

i got the wristlet i wanted for my trip && this cute j crew headband! and obvi, had to stop at cb since it was practically on the wayy.

though i love my subway, this fresh joint is quite the treat when i come home. they slice the meat & cheese right before your very eyes. we shared a giant numbaa 7--turkey & provolone cheese!

i had to ask for extra onions on my side of the sandwich. it wasn't enough between the turkey & lettuce, so i asked for more on top of the tomatoes. it still could have used more...but still delish!

my only complaint with jersey mike's is their pepsi products. but don't worry, i came prepared...

roadtrippin

 so. i survived finals! yayy, me. the moment following, i headed to my apartment and started packing. i took a car load to the nana's and we enjoyed a celebration/goodbye dinner at our favorite restaurant, pf changs, and got the traditional lettuce wraps, asparagus, and eggplant. it was the best!

i then did the rest of my packing and cleaning of the apartment thursday night up until about 2 am. i woke up about 6:30 and finished the rest of my cleaning, checked out with my apartment, checked out w/ HELP and then i was on the road to california for a long, solo, roadtrip!

last night in fleur-de-lis, two ohh three--like the emptiness & cleaning supplies?

around one 'o clock, i took off and did my best not to fall asleep after the long week of finals and packing.

my fav part of the drive--canyon through az

kiersti's family was kind enough to let me crash at their place for the night, even though they were away on a trip in california! so, i got this lovely setup to clean up, eat, and rest in vegas for the night :]

i made myself at home in kiersti's room (note the buddha statue) && i was able to finish a paper and write some letters before i passed out at 10 o'clock...but before passing out,

kiersti told me that this treasure was hiding in the garage freezer, so i took her advice and had some for dessert :]

when i woke up, the first thing i thought about was that i was in the same city as a coffee bean location. so, naturally...i make a quick stop before getting on the road again

however, it should be noted that this was not a quick stop--this is the cb in the pallazo on the vegas strip.  it took me over an hour trying to find exactly where it was, find parking (in which i finally parked illegally in employee parking), navigate through the casino, and finally finding my haven. only to wait in line for another 10 minutes.

$6.43 later, i had my iced english breakfast tea latte...it was all worth it

many of you may be familiar with my history with this deserted place, the "town" of baker.

a couple years ago when i made the journey from home to utah...my transmission decided to die and i became stranded a few miles out of baker. only to be towed back and stuck in the taco bell/gas station for a total of 13 hours waiting for superdad to come to the rescue. at least they had the giant thermometer to get me posted on the weather, right?

clearly, i made it to california...where else would you see these gas prices?
in provo i filled up at $3.50/ gallon, the price steadily climbed with each passing city.

this was my attempt to capture "the bumpy road" growing up, this was always a point of reference on our drive. i always thought it was the funnest part, because sometimes you would lose your stomach on the dips like when you're on a roller coaster! my sister, steph, however, didn't care too much for it...she always got sick. and usually threw up. nonetheless, pearblossom rd brings back many childhood memories.

 676 miles later, i reached my exit

home sweet home!

here's the route of the whole trip! didn't look at this until after i arrived home. i wanted to challenge myself to see if i could make it home w/ no directions or map. turns out, i can--lucky i've become very familiar with the LA freeways

happy easter, everyone! easter post soon to come :]

b & n

"I have seen that girl studying more, in this store alone, than I ever studied in my whole college career of eight years..."

--this is what i hear the manager tell the barista at the cafe as i sit at my regular table with my head buried in my social psychology book at barnes & noble, my home away from home. 

i pretend not to hear.

moments later he comes up to me, asks the typical questions that every college student gets (where do you go to school? what are you studying? when will you be done? what are your career plans? etc.) he then condones me for my work ethic and expresses his disbelief for how much i study...i think it was more of a, "this girl is a freak" disbelief rather than a, "wow this girl is incredible" disbelief. regardless, i smile, give a "...thanks?" kind of response, and return to my studying for a few more hours before i pack up my books and head to my apartment to begin yet another study sesh.

like the picture? you have now seen the world behind the eyes of jamie.

barnes & noble is a favorite study spot, as clearly evidenced. nothing tops studying at the cafe in my all time favorite bookstore (unless, of course, the cafe was coffee bean instead of starbucks). this barnes & noble obsession started early in life, and heightened once i received my license at 16 when i could then drive myself there. needless to say, i used a great amount of gas driving about 20 miles to the nearest location in westlake. well worth the drive and gas, though. every time.

the only complaint that i have with b&n is the operating hours: 9am-10pm...is it too much to ask that a bookstore be open 24/7 so i can study there at any hours of the night? pleeeeasee?

i'm progressively making my way through finals. four down, two to go + one more paper--all to be finished by wednesday so that i still have time to visit the nana before i leave and pack up all my belongings in the apartment to be one step closer to my move to thailand for the summer.

i simply can't wait for this to be over so that i can go to b&n and read a book that isn't assigned for me to read! now that, sounds heavenly <3

welcome to death week

if you couldn't tell by the title of this post...or this picture, let me introduce you to finals week.

yupp, it's here. filled with endless readings, studying nonsense terms, making a plethora of flashcards, drinking immense amounts of caffeine via diet dr pepper, and simply wanting to end your life (as illustrated above). side note: picture was changed to b&w because this week deserves no color.

now don't get me wrong, i really don't hate school. nor do i hate my classes. i actually love school. in a wierd, unhealthy kind of way. i also love all my classes-especially all the psychology ones!

however, this does not make finals enjoyable by any means. as if i haven't slaved over my books all semester long, i am required to take yet another exam that will literally make or break my grade that i have been so diligently earning all semester. talk about pressure, right? cramming six big, heavily impacted, exams all into the course of five days? say it with me: kill me now.

i just keep telling myself that this will have an end! i just am hoping it will be a happy ending...

after i finish my exams (i'm hoping to finish by wednesday) i will need to pack all my belongings, move out of my apartment, and journey back home to california to enjoy easter with my family for the first time since i moved out three years ago (can you say easter morning french toast?). then, shortly after, off to thailand for me!

well, back to the books for me...and it's also a time for a refill-as you can see, i'm running low!

spring & 257 days

so, it's been awhile since my last post. mostly because i've been extraordinarily busy. this is the busiest i have ever been in my life. with sixteen credits, working as a TA, doing research for a professor, and getting ready for thailand--i have been on a go nonstop. i also have been blogging on my other blog which i will be keeping all throughout the summer for my HELP-International progress and all my thailand adventures--so you should definitely check that out :] 

jamiesjournie.blogspot.com 

utah weather has been about as normal as my own personal schedule. rain, sunshine, snow, hail, sleet, you name it. dropping and raising over 30 degrees in one night...it just can't seem to make up its mind.

well, last night our apartment had our infamous dessert party! this is pretty much a re-blog of abby's seeing as i stole all her pictures, but she obviously took the best and i can't display anything less than the best!

it should be noted that abby did the majority of the baking: the delicious & beautiful looking cookies, the banana cupcakes with some creamy delish frosting, and the ho-ho cupcakes--all homemade and from scratch, of course. she is the host of all hosts-monica geller would have quite the competition with her.

the beautiful oreo truffles made by liz & the lemon bars, yours truly!

the night was a success and i am still on a sugar high today.

i wish i could blame the sugar high on me falling going up the stairs today at school. twice. once as i was walking in front of some students causing a traffic jam on the stairs and the second time as i was walking up to my professor's office. with my professor by my side. but no, i think that was just my clumsy self.

...and for those of you keeping track, 257 days till christmas.