NY Shenanigans

City view from the pier on the Hudson. 
On the roof of the MET lookin' fine.
Bethesda Fountain in Central Park. 
Killer exhibit on the roof of the MET
I almost pushed her in.
Bus ride to DC equals lots of time to take pictures of ourselves
The important thing here is that Maria got the creepy homeless guy in the background in focus and not us. 
The Great Lawn is close to what my heaven would be. Plus or minus a few people.

Met up with my ladies in NY. Rode around the city in a limo. No big deal.
I miss her already. Kellie is off to Switzerland to get her missionary on. BUT I have a great story to tell ya'll. Yesterday, any old Monday afternoon, I decided to go get myself a delicious Diet Coke from the Chevron by Cougar Stadium. (That Chevron in-particular  has a perfect mix of carbonation and syrup). After being harassed by an old man who loved BYU and hated UVU students, I decided to drive up by the temple and the MTC. I drove with my windows down, a cold soda in hand, and John Mayer blaring from my sweet ride, I came upon the big field in front of the temple full of missionaries exercising. Some were playing soccer(lame) others were running(lamer), when I saw this red-shirted person running. I thought to myself, "I recognize that shirt", then I thought, "Hey, that girl runs like Kellie." What are the odds right? It couldn't be her. I couldn't have timed something so perfectly if I tried. Well my blog friends, get ready to have your mind blown. It was her. Sister Christopher. In all of her missionary glory. Running by herself, sans companion, (which means her Comp. may be one of those who can't run... if you catch my drift). I pointed at her with my mouth wide open, unable to say a word, when Sister Christopher's mouth dropped and she immediately shouted, "I can't talk to you! I'm not allowed to talk to you!" I blurted out, "I love you!" She starts blowing kisses. Both of us close to tears simply because of the shock and awe factor. So I just continued on my merry way, listening to my boy John, and sporting a perma-smile all the way home. 

A few things happened in New York. Becca of course covered the majority of them; let me just add a few of my own.

--I shopped very little, which was complete luck considering who my sister is.

--I got to sport sweet $1 sunglasses all over the city, with people constantly giving me jealous looks. 

--I got to eat out for every meal. I love that.

--And last but not least, I fell in love with a city that at one point in my life I had no interest in at all. I'd even consider living there for a time. Not forever. But a time.

Once Upon a Time....

Once upon a time there were two sisters who went to New York City to visit their friend Mia Fran. They meant to blog about it after they got home but because they don't see each other as much anymore and Kate has all the photos and her internet is really slow it just hasn't happened yet. Well one sister is doing her part and blogging with the photos she does have and expects the other half to add hers as well.

In NYC we:

ate out for every meal

drank lots of coke and diet coke because DP is hard to come by

shopped

learned the subway system

got rained out in Central Park twice

had Pinkberry for the first time

watched the Olympics

slept in

ran along the Hudson-Becca

hung out at the pier

laughed

played fun games with Mia

rode in a limo around the city-Kate

ate cupcakes, cake, and banana pudding from Magnolia Bakery

read

walked around Soho

found out how much it costs to go to NYU

saw the DC and Manhattan temples

had a mouse jump out of a garbage can and almost hit her in the face-Becca

caught a mouse inside of Mia's apartment

saw Jay-Z and Beyonce-Kate

waited in line at the Shake Shack for 45 minutes for some delicious food

rode a bus to D.C.

chilled with the East Coast relatives

rode in an old convertible around a beautiful farm in Maryland

stayed up late

ate 10:00 pm dinners

helped cousin Jessi clean out her closet and inherited treasures

saw Mary Poppins on Broadway

got yelled at by a mean bus lady who is in denial about her not so important job

sat by a model on the bus back to NYC

walked

helped Mia pack for her move to SLC

saw some crazy fashion

had our own medals ceremony for ourselves complete with flowers

went to the MET and saw an awesome exhibit on the roof

ended the summer with a bang!

HOLLLLAAA!!!

Hump Day Treat

Here is a little hump day treat. With the whole family being in town the past few weeks a lot of reminiscing has been had, therefore I've been reminded of these hilarious moments that have occurred over the years.

1. When we were living in Idaho Falls (between the ages of 4 and 7 for me and 2-5 for Kate) Kate and I both learned how to ride two wheelers. For some bizarre reason we both wanted helmets so we begged Sharon for the specified safety equipment. Is it strange that we had to beg for helmets? Well i remember doing it and finally Sharon caved. I guess you can't feel good about denying your flesh and blood safety equipment. Kate and I were stoked for our new teal and white helmets that clipped very tightly under the chin. As soon as we got home we saddled up on our bikes and rode around the neighborhood with our chins held high feeling so cool. Apparently my mom had errands to run and me being six or seven and very responsible was left in charge of the delinquent Kate. Well we rode for what seemed like hours and then came home to rest and re-coop in front of the T.V. when to our dismay.........we couldn't get the helmets off. Those stupid chin straps would not budge, Kate and I started to panic and soon tears were flowing. We tried for a good ten minutes and finally gave up. We realized we had two options go to a neighbor's house and beg for their help or watch T.V. with our helmets on and wait for our Mom to get home. We couldn't possible stoop to such a level of embarrassment and go to a neighbor for help when we had just rode around the neighborhood with such confidence as if nothing could dampen our spirits, therefore we chose the latter. Picture this two little ladies watching T.V. on the couch with helmets securely in place. She laughed, we didn't.

2. I've always been a girl who appreciates candy, so when I get a craving for candy I usually search far and wide for it. After a rough day at FJH I had a huge craving for candy so i started searching the house and ended up in Cody's room. Jackpot! Spotted, one root beer barrel so I ate it and didn't even feel bad about not asking if I could have it because I honestly didn't think he would notice that it was gone. Well within hours Cody came rampaging into my room demanding the candy back. I was so confused, why would he be freaking out over one measly piece of candy. Well he enlightened me rather quickly, "Becca that was a farting pill and I paid five bucks for it and was saving it for a special occasion. " Seriously???? And he was, very serious, then he went on to tell me that I owed him five dollars. So basically I ruined Cody's special gas day and was out five dollars and I had a stomachache after eating that stupid "pill."

3. Kate and I once clipped Werty's (our old dog-see above picture for the back of her head) whiskers because we thought they were getting too long, no wonder the poor girl starting having seizures.

Noah + Barney = Friends Forever

This is Noah, and he is the epitome of adorable. If this boy can't melt your heart there is no hope for you. He is so curious about life and is not the least bit shy about asking people questions. I've slept in Farmington a few times this last week because the Cody Christensen family has been in town. While I was home one night I dreamed that we changed Rrrosa's name (see side panel if you don't know who Rrrosa is) to Barney, I honestly woke up laughing. So, I started calling the little pup Barney. Well, Noah asked why I was calling her Barney and I told her that we changed her name. Immediately Noah started calling her Barney or Barn for short. It's hard to change someone's name overnight so sometimes he catches himself saying, "Come here Rrros, I mean Barn." I need to record his little voice saying this, it is so hilarious. Poor Rrrosa is going to have a little bit of an identity crisis but it will be worth the laughs, sorry Barn.

1 Year

A lot can change in a year; a month; a week; a day. A lot can change in a moment.  

One year ago today, a lot changed for me. When I say a lot, I mean everything. One year ago today, we lost Seth Cody Fraughton. 

I can't believe its been a year. Its been the longest and shortest year of my life. I can't believe I haven't seen Seth for a year. In some ways it seems like I was with him yesterday, and in some ways it seems like it's been years. It's amazing how much I remember about him and how much I am already struggling to grasp. It makes me want to write down everything so I'll never forget. But I would never stop writing. 

Seth was my best friend. He was the most loyal, kind, and humble person I've ever known. He could make me laugh like no one else on Earth. When I was with him, I felt like the best version of myself. He made me want to be better. 

I am so full of emotion today that it is hard to express myself through words. I can't adequately explain what Seth meant to me, and how much the world lost when Seth left it. It brings me a source of comfort knowing that he is watching over us and that I will see him again. But it doesn't dismiss the fact the I miss him and that it has been seemingly impossible to be happy without him here. Knowing that he was my best friend and that he would always be on my side, made me brave. Seth made me brave. And now that he is gone, I have struggled to find myself without the anchor he was in my life. 

I guess all I want to say today, is that I love you Sethy, and I miss you. All I do is miss you. I can't wait to see you again boy, it will be a great day. 

The Secrets of Beaver, UT

Utah has its issues, everyone knows that:

CONSTANT road construction

Hellish winters

Drivers who don't understand the fast and slow lanes

ETC....

But there are a few redeeming qualities that Utah has:

beautiful mountains

temples everywhere

Dr. Pepper readily available at most restaurants (avoid CPK and Applebees)

AND

THE 24th of JULY

What a great holiday, you get school and work (usually) off and it's basically a repeat of the 4th. Well every year the fam (what's left of it) heads south to a little town called Beaver. Beaver is best known for its award winning water (you think I'm kidding, but I'm not). The grandparents reside here, and because I've been going to Beaver for so long it holds a special place in my heart. Here is what this years Pioneer Day consisted of:

-Early 5K run with cousin Will--don't worry my dad ran into an old friend and tried to pawn me off on one of his children, it was very special.

-Parade, and for the record the parade used to be a lot better whoever is on that committee really needs to pick up the slack.

*One great thing about Beaver is they take cool old buildings and do this to them. And Yes that is gun.

-Elevensies on the porch

-Horse Races:once I won $200.00 at these horse races. AND there was a fist fight between jockey's this year, good for you Beaver.

-Trip to the Junk store resulting in 9 pairs of new sunglasses for a total of $9.00. *Note: My grandma doesn't look this frightening in person, she is not photogenic.

-Picnic dinner in the backyard with relatives.

*Awesome old bike from like 1900 found in the grandparent's garage.

-Rodeo, super redneck by the way (see picture)

*Look at that guy coming up the stairs, he's a looker huh?

-Fireworks: surprisingly Beaver puts on a pretty good show.

A Pretty eventful day in my book.

I'm sure if you went to this little town you probably wouldn't enjoy yourself as much as I do, but that is only because you didn't stop at my grandparent's house and spend some quality time with them; I'm serious, these people are hilarious. Kate and I spent most of the weekend laughing and we don't laugh at lame old people humor. My grandma can say the most hilarious sarcastic things and keep the straightest face, I'm sure she offends people daily. These were my favorite things said this past weekend. "Did you get up early Gran?" (ME) "Ya, I've been up for a few hours."(Gran) "Well, the early bird gets the worm right?" (ME) "I don't want that damn worm." (Gran) Next... Kate noticed Grandma's nylon sock had fallen down so she said, "Hey Gran, your sock fell down." She replied, "Oh hell, we can't have that can we." Last but certainly not least, this is a prime example of why no one should boycott hearing aids when they're old. I can't even remember what we were talking about but my Grandparents were trying to listen in on the conversation and somehow my grandma thought kate said, "I hate Adams." My grandma replied, "You hate John Adams?" My grandpa said, "Why would you hate John Adams?" My dad sarcastically replied with, "oh you know, he was kind of a prima-donna." I assure you our previous conversation had nothing to do with John Adams and his prima-donna ways. Someone really needs to cash in on this, these people would be hilarious to watch in a reality show. I'm talking Run's House caliber, I would watch this show and these 2 are 80+ years old. I am aspiring to be like these two when I am old: completely in love, hilarious, and happy.

The Grandpa
The Grandma

If you ever find yourself in Beaver stop at my grandparent's house and I assure you, you will not be disappointed.