Sand in Your Eyes

51st.... and last.... post

2010-02-21T20:07:00.000-08:00

Farewell to the Sandi Beach. No more Sand in your eyes!

We had a good run. But I'm following cue from my fellow bloggers and starting a family blog. It's not all about me, you know.

You can now turn to www.thebullocklife.blogspot.com for all your Sandi needs.

Ciao!

Settling In

2010-02-07T22:04:00.000-08:00

Settling in = less interesting stuff = shorter blogs.

Brent is still working hard at school, as fast as the internet here will let him. We are still looking online and in the classifieds for jobs, we might just start doing plasma. I went to a job interview, but the place was horrible, the man I would be working for was yelling, and there were 10 girls ahead of me... so we left.

We got to go to the temple again this week, that was wonderful. We found out that movies are only 5 bucks on Tuesday (which is good, cause matinee tickets are 8.50 and regular are 11). We can walk to the mall (and theater) in about 5 minutes. Less time than it takes us to drive in Utah.

I'm already 1/4 done with my hours at the Egoscue clinic!

And in less productive news... we finished watching Season 1 of Heroes.

Pics to come... internet is too slow right now.

A Mutual Realization

2010-02-04T22:33:00.000-08:00

Brent and I have been living it up. We eat. We sleep. We eat. We watch Simpson's .We watch Heroes (Season 1 DVD). We watch movies. We eat. We make cookies. We sleep.

And upon trying to remove our wedding rings the other day to shower, we realized something.

Either metal shrinks in lower altitudes... or we're getting fatter.

Yes.

Even Brent.

San Diego

2010-01-31T17:05:00.000-08:00

Welcome. Let me give you the tour. You open the door and see this!

Walk in and to your left you'll see....

Our dining room! (We saved some money on our table....)

If you were to look on your right instead of left

when you walked in you'd see...

BRENT! Doing the dishes! In our KITCHEN!

Walk past the kitchen and on your right you'll see...

Our living room! Not fully organized yet...

Starting to make sense?

So our "bedroom" is adjacent to the living room.

From the front door, you walk in, past the dining room

and it's on your left!

Don't ask me why I'm posting a picture of it when it's so messy... when I took it I was so pleased we had unpacked, everything looked clean to me... at least there are vacuum lines on the carpet, focus on those.

We love our walk-in closet! I gave Brent almost half of it!

He said, "I get ALL this?!" And he meant it, he was expecting much less :)

And our bathroom... the shower curtain has since been raised to an appropriate height.

I work on the 6th floor of a building in downtown, and I love the view!

You can see a tiny sliver of water between the buildings.

I sit here and answer phone calls and schedule appointments when I'm not in the back doing exercises with the therapists and clients.

The plants all have names, I've forgotten most of them, but I know the one on the left is Bernadette.

So on Wednesday, we got all ready to go to the San Diego Temple.... but it's closed for cleaning until the 8th of February. Oops!

So we went to Bed, Bath & Beyond instead.

Friday was Brent's birthday! I let him sleep in while I went for my first California driving adventure in search of an appropriate birthday breakfast...

It took about a half an hour on the phone to make this happen, but it was worth it!

We were determined to go the temple before the month ended, so on Saturday we drove an hour and a half to the Newport Beach Temple. It was gorgeous!

Besides the Krispy Kreme and Papa John's, (which don't really count cause it was birthday food) we didn't go out to eat all week, and we were pretty hungry after the temple... it was inevitable really.

I'm in the very front, Brent's right behind me. (We didn't want to get wet) About 15 minutes from the temple is a magical place called Disneyland, I'm sure some of you have heard about it... We splurged and got annual passes. We figured we'd just have to force ourselves to go enough to make it worth it. What's nice, though, is that we live in Southern California now, and hence, were eligible to purchase the SoCal annual pass! Unfortunately, we didn't have any proof of address, but fortunately, the lady just had us tell her our address and she gave 'em to us!

For anyone familiar with my hiccups: After a ride, we walked off and I, you know, hiccuped. We were behind a group of teenagers and you know what happened next? They all started echoing me! One after the next, it was a chorus of hiccups. They didn't turn around and laugh or anything, they just kept imitating the sound. It was pretty strange. Brent just informed me the ride was Indiana Jones. Must've been a memorable moment.

---

California Dreamin':

A couple nights ago, I had a crazy dream about ants.

They were inside my skin, on my chest, a bunch of 'em. (Have you ever seen Mummy, where you can see the beetles crawl around under the guy's skin? It was like that.) And in my dream, I was FLIPPIN' out! Then, all the ants gathered and I could see them moving down my left arm, into the palm of my hand, forming an under-skin anthill.

In this dream, Brent was driving, and I kept trying to show him the ants in my skin and he kept asking what was wrong and I'm thinking, "Isn't it OBVIOUS?" So I got frustrated and yelled, "I'm not talking to you anymore!" The ants began to chew through the skin around the border of the base and when they had just finished coming full circle, I grabbed the sack of ants and threw it out the window. Sick, I know.

So I woke up and told Brent and he goes, "Ohhh!" Because apparently I had been mumbling in my sleep, and he was trying to ask me what was wrong, and then I just yelled at him, "I'm not talking to you anymore!"

---

Well, folks, that's about it for this week. We are both looking for jobs, still. Brent's working hard at his online classes. I'm working hard at my internship. And we have a blast at home, making meals and watching TV and movies. We would be goners if it weren't for the GPS we got ourselves for Christmas. We went to our ward today, it's definitely, well, a new ward, but I'm sure we'll get used to it! We miss you, we love you, and we'd love to see you and hear from you!

HoneyMOONers!!

2010-01-25T08:13:00.001-08:00

Our first honeymoon pic. I don't know why we didn't get any at the lodge, but this is where we started taking out the camera. Somewhere between Orem and San Diego, this pup is cruisin!

Elegant night on the cruise.

My new handstand photo buddy.

p.s. Our ship is not the big one in the middle, but farther back,

you can just see it on the left.

Just before we went parasailing! My lifejacket was HUGE. Not very reassuring.

Before

After

We got off the ship pretty early Sunday morning, and spent the rest of the day driving around San Diego, exploring for Costco's, Wal-mart's and Target's. It was way fun, but terribly exhausting.

We got this dolly at Costco for 20 bucks. It greatly aided the unloading of our car.... it's a long walk down the hallway to our apartment when your arms are full. On top you'll note a Little Caesar's pizza box. When we passed it, Brent's eyes lit up like it was Christmas so we bought one.... and the lady told Brent she was looking for a girl to hire part time who can speak a little Spanish! Yeah, I know. It's Little Caesar's. But a job is a job and if nothing else is available, we'll be grateful for a little extra cash. Assuming I even get hired. But anyways.... it was exciting.

A couple (ok, a few) highlights:

Got seated with a group of older people for breakfast one day, and as we left them with their oatmeal (literally) to go on our parasailing adventure, someone said, "Cute couple!" I could have turned around and kissed them, but I refrained.

It took Brent and I about half the glass to decide that the virgin pina coladas we had ordered were anything but.

A skinny, tan, beautiful young woman who sat in the hot tub with us one night said, "Comedy, is like, SO funny." Genius.

A man in the market said, "You must be on your honeymoon. And that must be why you look tired and she looks happy."

Another man in the market was going to give us some sunglasses for 15 down from 18, but then accepted 10 because we were Mormons. Said he'd like to find himself a nice Mormon girlfriend.

Our parasail boat driver pointed to Brent's wedding ring, then grabbed a rope, threw it over a pole above his head, and proceeded to act out his own hanging, tying a noose around his neck and making dead faces.

We were waiting for dinner one night, and it was cold, and Brent was hugging me, I was wrapped inside his jacket a little bit. An old man passed, slugged Brent on the shoulder and said, "I didn't see anything, keep going!"

I try to be like Grace Kelly....

2010-01-08T12:32:00.000-08:00

Ok. So I've been to my fair share of bridal showers. And I've teased the bride and rolled my eyes every time she blushed. Get over it. We all know what's going on, what's there to be embarrassed about?

But then today rolled around.

Tonight is my night.

To blush.

To want to hide under a rock and die.

Why?

Because it's MY bridal shower tonight, and I am the recipient of the embarrassing presents.

Even worse, it's the "family" shower. Which means I have my sisters, who will get me something to wear that probably isn't even ok in the bonds of marriage.... and my mother-in-law-to-be.... who will probably get me a card with a picture of the temple on it and... a hymn book?

A GRACEful bride-to-be would handle it all with poise and the right amount of humor and gratitude.... I'm afraid I'm going to choke, literally, and asphyxiate.... people will come up to me... poke me with a stick... and say it's a shame I never got to you-know-what.

I've been waiting for this year to come!!!

2010-01-01T17:55:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to put a post up cause I think it's cool to have a post on the first day of the new year.

Also. I had my bridal pictures taken today, here's a shot of the bouquet (well, it isn't a great shot of the bouquet, but that blob by my face? That's it). It's so pretty (trust me, it is) and kind of expensive and now, it's like, what do I do with this thing?

Times and Seasons

2009-12-29T09:22:00.000-08:00

Life changes fast.

High school.

Freshman year. AKA Snow Hall

Brent leaves.

Sophomore year. AKA The Colony

Moab.

Junior year. AKA 1/2 Year at Stadium Terrace AKA Prison

Spain.

Summer from "Dating H-E- double hockey sticks"

Dating, Engagement.

Christmas.

Each of these seasons in my life had highs and lows. Regrettably, I succumbed to the lows more than I should have. If I could have kept my head up, and endured it well, I would've realized that whatever situation I was in, it wouldn't last long, it would somehow shift, and soon, and I should just make the best of it. Some things went according to plan and some didn't. But I love where it's taken me. Lesson learned.

This is the foreseeable plan. The times and seasons coming up in the near to immediate future. Let's see if I REALLY learned my lesson.

New Year.

Marriage.

California.

Back to Utah.

p.s.

Ha ha ha ha, I'm totally not eavesdropping but let me tell you a funny sentence I just heard, "I'd rather be married as many times as I've been married, than be single as long as you've been single." Funny though it is, I'm inclined to disagree with the sentiment.

Santa Run, '09

2009-12-08T08:48:00.001-08:00

Ok. So I hate to post something recent when there are so many cool stories from the in-between that I have yet to post, but I actually have this pic on my computer, whereas I am still waiting for some other ones.

Brent James had to work, poor fellow.

Charley finished her first ever 5k, and thus is the jolliest winner of the day.

You may observe Mark's leg in the left portion of the photo.

And I, I hoisted my belly as a bowl full of jelly around downtown Provo for 58 minutes last Saturday morning. Don't tell ME there's no Santa. I saw 200 of 'em!

3rd post of the day, this one by popular request ;)

2009-11-25T10:08:00.001-08:00

Click on pictures to enlarge

We're here!

The CALIFORNIA letters were all peppermint-striped for Christmas,

way cute.

'Ze boyz

We were all glad Brent brought his Camelbak,

except for when he drank it so much he had to go potty all the time!

Here's the story:

Mark - Jen, I PROMISE, the front is the driest spot you can be.

Jen - You swear?

Mark - Would I lie? (he he he)

Rockin' the 3D glasses

Major red eye.

A sign that we should definitely NOT be going on this ride.

They don't call it Tower of Terror for nothin!

Space Mountain, I believe. Always a crowd-pleaser.

Tradition:

On the last day in the parks,

when it's dark and cold and no one is in line,

ride Splash Mountain over and over and over again just before you leave.

As Brent would say, "This is an incredible photo."

Universal Studios, Hollywood!

2009-11-25T09:59:00.000-08:00

Click on the pictures to enlarge

The lovable Homer J Simpson (one of the best moments of my life here...)

You may be able to tell from my face, I'm a little confused as to why a picture is being taken at this moment in time. However, when Jen showed us the amazing, blue, purple, AND bright orange background, this instantly became my favorite picture of the trip.

Whispering sweet little nothings into his ear in Spanish. Actually, when he said, "Hablas Espanol?" She actually looked confused. I don't know how it's possible for a costume to look confused, but it was clear the character inside the suit did NOT habla.

Muah!

Something to be grateful for

2009-11-25T09:23:00.000-08:00

Charley...

If only there were more of her to go around.

Born in 1963

A true California girl

Married and sealed to Tim Dawson on December 19, 1981

Bachelor's from UVU, Master's from BYU

Mother of Wendy, Shauna, Sandra, and Mark

Hobbies include:

Social working it up in Pleasant Grove, Utah

Spending time with loved ones

Traveling whenever possible

Being awesome

She's an excellent maker of Nanaimo bars,

each year she recruits her daughters to help

because she has so many requests

she ends up making over twenty batches,

and if you don't know what they are,

go discover them and make your life a happier place.

A mother to more than her own children,

Charley is willing to expend comfort, advice, and food to almost anyone.

She has a distinguished laugh that makes you smile,

and she loves riding in her convertible with the top down.

Now I just realized,

I don't know if this sounds more like a eulogy, personal ad, or mini-bio,

but the point is, this Thanksgiving, among my many other blessings,

I'm grateful for Charley.

Ready for Round 2?

2009-10-28T22:05:00.000-07:00

Volleyball Update

2009-10-21T15:42:00.000-07:00

K, guys, we're up to 11 team members on the roster! Sweet! I know it seems like a ton but it'll be nice on days when not everyone can show up. If we do have 11 people every time, we'll just take turns, it'll be a blast.

Cort, if your guy friend wants on, I need his Net ID.

First game is THIS Friday, 6:15. Come a little early and maybe we can do some warm-ups and make sure everything is good to go. If anyone is serious enough to want to do extra practice, let me know and we'll see how many people are interested.

Jessica, you and Marie can join if you'd like! But I do think we need to get together one way or another!

Questions? Comments?

Cheeky Canadians Reloaded

2009-10-18T12:04:00.001-07:00

Team 148 In Coed Volleyball: Lower Division

Schedule:

Friday, 10-23, 615 PM, 138 Court A

Thursday, 10-29, 915 PM, 144 Court A

Wednesday, 11-4, 815 PM, 144 Court B

Tuesday, 11-10, 815 PM, 144 Court C

Saturday, 11-14, 915 AM, 144 Court A

Current Roster (Please notify me if you should or should not be on here) :

Jordan and Mandee Brame (Confirmed)

Eric and Courtney Bready (Confirmed)

Trevor and Katie Olsen (Confirmed)

Becky Bunnell (Confirmed)

Cort Wright (Confirmed)

Garrett? Last Name?

Sandra Dawson (Confirmed)

Rebecca Weiler (Confirmed)

Laura Wilde (Confirmed)

To get confirmed on the official roster, I need your BYU ID or NET ID.

By Thursday, please.

And $3. (BYU fee, not mine)

Are you ready for this?!

Homer - You tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is 'never try'.

2009-10-15T10:32:00.001-07:00

The title of this post has nothing to do with the actual post, I just put it up cause Homer's great.

So I've been delaying posting anything new because I've lost my camera and it has some pictures of a pretty big event I want to share with you.

Yes.

My room.

Few are the friends who were lucky enough ever to experience the now-deceased "70's Room" I lived in at my mom's house. Looking at the floor was like looking into the sun; red, orange, and yellow, long shaggy carpet gazed back up at you with joy. It was impossible to know how much life was supported within the shag, but it's all gone now. The walls were a dark brown arrangement of authentic wood paneling. This too, is now a thing of the past. At the beginning of the school year, I decided I needed a better "study" environment. Where did I go? Home Depot! Two weeks, two coats and two new Ikea lamps later, the room was reborn. It's beautiful. It's amateur, but it's my new home, and I love it. Pictures to follow.

My New Love

2009-09-28T22:23:00.000-07:00

I love Photo Booth. I do. What a cure for boredom.

bAck to the MAC!

2009-09-06T20:56:00.001-07:00

from - Moab.

it's labor day weekend and this city is hoppin. long hours and free food have never made a better team. strawberry banana bolthouse has never been so refreshing. the sunset safari has never had better company. (except for maybe rog-a-roni, who came last year...and is now 4, woo hoo)
(Translation: Life is good.)

take a step back. cougars. B-y-u, b-Y-u, b-y-U! Ra ra, ra-ra-ra, Ra ra, ra-ra-ra! gooooOOOOO COUGARS!!! Better luck next time, Sooners. (Translation: No. 20 BYU upsets No. 3 Oklahoma in a brand new stadium, 14-13, the fans watched live, Jacobson is back, and it's gonna be a good season.)

take a step back. Killers. Ingrid Michaelson. Family. Isn't it about time? (Translation: I have been to two concerts. The Wiggles. The Fray. It's been two years. I'm going to two more concerts in two months. Killers with bro and bro-in-law. Ingrid with sis and sis. We shall party like the stars of rock.)

take a step back. Volleyball. ACSM Cert. Springboard Diving. Swimming. Marriage/Family Prep. NASM Cert. Personal Finance. Scuba diving. (Translation: Senior year at BYU is looking good.)

*I truly enjoy reading all your blogs. If I don't have yours posted on the right hand side of mine, tell me your url so I can add it. I promise to add pictures one day and think of something witty or intelligent to share instead of just these random journal-y posts.....ciao

My life on August 3rd.

2009-08-04T10:15:00.000-07:00

I discovered this song on a bike ride a few days ago. I thought, "Man! Who would WANT to be with someone after listening to this song?" As you'll hear for yourselves if you care to listen, "Ooh, it, feels good to be free!" is pretty catchy.

Turns out, however, most people don't like breaking up. At least we have this song.

Sad, but true. Or is it funny, AND true?

2009-07-29T23:02:00.001-07:00

First Time

2009-07-28T00:12:00.001-07:00

I don't usually do this, but today, the blog = journal. Not some wacky post trying to be clever and analyze a little part of life, not a snapshot of some wild adventure, not a complaint, not an opinion poll, a journal.

This is how most of my journal entries run -

Mon July 27, 2009

Was going to go to work, but slept in. (big surprise....) Mom upset I didn't ask to borrow truck.

Took Brent to orthopedist, has to get surgery. Tomorrow. Lazy rest of day, sock shopping in the mall and chicken enchiladas. Life is good. - Sandra Dawson P-J-S-

The PJS has been going on for a couple years now, it's an idea I stole from seminary and started using when I wanted to make sure I wouldn't miss a day of scripture reading. P is for prayer, J is for journal, and S is for scripture, and I try to mark these every day. Confession: I almost always mark off the P (95% of the time) but I don't almost always pray (closer to 70%). I don't know why. I'm embarrassed to admit, even to myself, that I forget or am too lazy to say my prayers.

I can say, though, that in the past 25 months, I have only missed one day of opening my Book of Mormon, and that day I was pretty darn sick, I fell asleep before I could even think about it. My dad's stake president once challenged the stake to read in the Book of Mormon every day for the rest of their lives, even if just a verse. My dad missed 3 days in the first 18 months, another day in the year after that, and then, to the best of my knowledge, hasn't missed since.

In Spain, there was Faustino. And he has one of the most fervent testimonies of journaling (two l's?) I've ever felt. "This is your STORY," he would say, "this is your HISTORY!" What does it mean if the days go by and we forget them; if we don't record the experiences, what will we learn? Your life is interesting, your life is important, and no one knows the events, feelings, ponderings and musings of your life like you do. Write it down, if for no one's benefit but yourself. (yourselves?)

Opinion Poll

2009-07-25T14:11:00.000-07:00

Is this country? (The song, not the windmill, I couldn't figure out how to just do the music, so I made a video. No, nothing interesting happens, it really is just that windmill the whole time.)

Yes: 1.

No: 1.

Looking for a tiebreaker here.

These are a few of my least favorite things....

2009-06-28T00:15:00.000-07:00

I'm too lazy to put a picture up, and I have faith in y'all that you won't need a visual.

Mosquitoes.

Hate them.

What's their purpose?

It's 1:20 am. I have to shower before I go to bed. I have to get up by 7:30 and make myself look nice. But here I am, blogging, because I am so upset at the bloodsucking bugs.

Now, if you'll please excuse me, I'm going to put my fingers to use doing something far more helpful than typing.

Tradition...kind of

2009-06-18T11:00:00.000-07:00

I have this friend I do this thing with.

Friend: Rebecca
Thing: Go to Utah temples

We are the differentest samest people I know.

We're both hilarious, for one.
We're proud fans of Cougars, scooters, and missionaries.
We're Utah girls. We raft, we hike, we camp, we fish.
We like swiss chicken. (That doesn't even count, everyone likes swiss chicken)

She's blond, I'm brown.
She's focused, I'm scatterbrained.
She's logical, I'm emotional.

Ha ha, blond, focused and logical, she's out of the ordinary.

And although I'm eating a Rebecca food at the moment, carrot sticks, I'm planning on devouring a Sandra food in a couple minutes, white chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies. Freakin yum.

Anywho, we both believe in documentation. Hence, this blog post. I hereby document the June 3rd visit of Sandra and Rebecca to the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple open house, in which said persons skipped the orientation video, oo'ed and aw'ed at the pretty-ness inside the temple, and then enjoyed cookies and water in a nearby "tent" that could double as a prom or wedding or bar mitzvah location.

I'm not sure I spelled macadamia or bar mitzvah correctly, and although Rebecca might be the kind of person to look that up before publishing, I am Sandra.

Kauai

2009-05-13T07:40:00.000-07:00

Myself and Shauna, exploring along on oceanside trail

Nothing says family vacation like piling into the back of a minivan

Here I am trying my hand at deep sea fishing.
I can't believe I had time to stop and pose for this picture, you know, between the four hour boat ride and not catching a single thing.....I was pretty busy.

"The Bat"
In case we caught something that I couldn't beat to death with my own two hands.

The trip consisted of:

-Late night visits to the hotel fitness center
-Early mornings with a way too energetic Shauna
-Reading "Angels and Demons" by Dan Brown to get caught up

before the movie comes out
-Making purchases at Costco of course,

including the ultimate Costco dog. The hot dog.
-Teriyaki pineapple burgers and coconut shrimp
-Aloe vera lotion and lots of it
-Snorkeling, snorkeling and more snorkeling
-Kayaking
-Hiking
-Walking under waterfalls
-Jumping off of solid ground, swinging on a rope

and plunging into the water
-Cruising around the Na Pali coast on the Zodiac with Captain Joe
-Taking pictures
-Long plane rides

That's about it....until next time.

Aloha HOY!

2009-05-02T05:52:00.000-07:00

I definitely should have blogged more and captured more experiences from Spain, but I didn't. And I'm not going to sum it all up now. Maybe later. Moving right along.

I'm starting my day in Orem, Utah, wearing my favorite PJ combo of boxers and a T, eating a bowl of HONEY NUT Cheerios. How will I end it? I don't really know. But I'll be in Hawaii.

My mom just graduated with her Master's degree (woo hoo!) and we are going to Kuaui (spelling?) for a week to celebrate. Celebrate on the beach, celebrate on a hike, celebrate on a pineapple, celebrate on a snorkel set...you get the picture.

So that's all for now, I mean, I have a plane ride to catch. I wish you could've come, anyone. My sister is bringing her boyfriend, my brother is bringing his best friend and as said sister so lovingly put it, I "have no one". But! Do you really need someone when you're in Hawaii? I mean, come on, I'll have 2 pina coladas, one for each hand.

I just haven't blogged in a while, and it's May, and I felt the need to put something up. Even without a photo. Who knows, maybe something interesting will happen on my trip and I can post about that. Like if I get bit by a jelly fish and have to be peed on.

You. I would pee on your sting wound if you came, you know. Hasta lasagna.

I found him.

2009-03-03T03:35:00.001-08:00

Movies!

2009-02-22T13:30:00.000-08:00

This happens a LOT, we stand there, looking like fools, THINKING that we're about to have a picture taken, and no, it's a video.

See? A LOT!

Flamenco in Sevilla

2009-02-08T08:09:00.000-08:00

Typical Spanish Dance.
Easily one of the funnest things I've seen in Spain.

Behold the Woman

2009-01-25T06:58:00.000-08:00

Ladies and gentlemen, it's my pleasure to introduce you to....Pilar.

In some ways, this is a very fitting picture of her, she's regal, she's Spanish, and she's covered in fur. (with a matching purse, if you didn't notice)

In other ways, I'm looking forward to snapping more of a candid shot and introducing the REAL Pilar, the one I see every day. See you next week on "Sand in Your Eyes"!

(Click on the picture to enlarge)

Home Away From Home

2009-01-20T08:40:00.000-08:00

I have labeled this photo, "Happy Camper." I really, really am.

My Funeral

2009-01-18T07:16:00.000-08:00

Ok. I know it's morbid. But this is completely hypothetical.

If I die within the next few years, I think I want this song played at my funeral! (Ok, maybe not seriously seriously, but maybe!)

The thing is, this is kind of a goofy song. Kind of weird. Like me. And not everyone gets it. But I do.

So I'm going to give you a play by play commentary on why this song is so awesome. Especially for my funeral.

"If I had my time again, I would do it all the same. And not change a single thing, even when I was to blame." I have done a lot of fun things, I would live my life the same way, and even though I made some mistakes, the theory is that you learn from them, and every experience is a part of your development. It's what makes you YOU.

"How I love to be your (wo)man, through the laughter and the tears." I love laughing til I cry and crying til I laugh, and to have THOSE kinds of experiences with friends and family are some of my favorite memories.

"Rush for a change of atmosphere" I'm the kind of girl who wants to experience every kind of scenery, situation, ATMOSPHERE. From moving to a different side of campus every year, to Moab and to Spain, I like to experience the different lives this world has to offer.

"I can't go on so I give in" Typical Sandra. "Gotta get myself right out of here."

Enter fun piano.

"Now I'm fully grown, and I know where it's at." From experience comes...knowledge. Taste the different atmospheres and you find your true home.

"Somehow I stayed thin, while the other guys got fat." That's just funny. (Plus, the drums are kickin it in the back)

"All the chances that are blown, and the times that I've been down" Another good line from another song: It's not always rainbows and butterflies, it's compromise that moves us along.

"I didn't get too high, kept my feet on the ground." One of my favorite quotes: Manage your expectations.

There are so many things going on in the back, piano, guitar, drums, it's so funky, I love it.

Enter funny Englishmen. First, the singer goes nuts, and he actually sounds like me, how I sing, in the car. Best line? "Mm, I wish I could sing like that."

Now the song changes. I love when songs change their feel halfway through. And this one even goes back. But life is like that, sometimes we whistle different tunes so to speak.

This part with the organ, can you feel the bounce in it? This is when the pall bearers start moving my casket, and they bounce to the beat as they carry me to the hearse. "A time to cry and a time to laugh." And by this part in the song, no one will be sad that I'm dead, they'll just be laughing and thinking, "Stupid hilarious Sandra, what the freak is this song?"

Then there's like, this 80's piano or something, I don't know... and it sounds like my soul is rising to heaven.

"And of all my friends, you been the best to me" This is to make everyone in the congregation feel like I'm grateful for them coming, and for those who are really close to me, each one of them will think that that line is for them, and they'll be right.

"Soon will be the day, when I repay you handsomely" Like, cause I'm an angel, now, get it? I'll send you a cute date, or shorten the line at the DMV, other little things that I can do from the beyond. And when something goes right in your day, you'll wonder if that was because I pulled a string for you with the Big Guy.

"Broken hearts are hearts 'll mend." This is for y'all to know that it's ok to be sad, but you'll get over it.

"But life just carries on, even when I'm not there."

Now, during the chorus, it sounds like a plane is taking off, this is my soul REALLY leaving and going to heaven (or the other place) as it says ,"Gotta get myself right outta here."

Cool, right?

RUSH!

Who on blogspot decided that every blogger is creative enough to think of a title for every post? Sheeshum.

2009-01-12T06:08:00.000-08:00

This is Allyson making fun of my double thumbs up.
Also...it's a pic of the ice cream making room

They know me here.

Today is a good day!

I had class at 9, with Rebecca, we got our Spanish books (prepaid for), we got hot chocolate at Starbucks, checked out the local "Correos" (post office), had a grueling conversation class at 12:30, Pilar made us MAC AND CHEESE for lunch, and now we are doing homework.

Unfortunately, the internet is on and off so I could only upload 2 fotos for now, but I suppose I shouldn't subject you all to seeing my face over and over again anyways.

Oh, by the way, mi tarea consists of writing the plural form of about...10 words. Que dificil. I love study abroad.

We have religion class at 6, FHE at 7:30 (to which we invited our Holland-ian roommate, who has never heard of the Mormon church before, but has now listened to MoTab, seen The Best Two Years, and been to all 3 hours of church.)

Oh, and after that we may be purchasing tickets to Palma Mallorca??? It's an island below Spain we can visit on our free weekend on the 23rd and the flight would cost....30 dollars. We'll see.
Out.

Espana Uno

2009-01-09T10:50:00.000-08:00

Well, folks, I made it. I was going to post the rest of my pics, but it takes forever to upload and I just ran out of time. Soon. Soon. Here is the unbelievable snow. And probably my favorite saying in Spanish, EVER! Excluding, of course, "a veces" y "tu cuerpo necesito dormir". Be good, you Americans! See you en Abril!

Finals done, playtime begun

2008-12-21T15:39:00.000-08:00

This semester is done! Woohoo! Every student at BYU is that much closer to graduation and 'real life'.

For me, the end of finals meant having time to hang out with Abby P. She's the dearest friend anyone could ever wish to ram their car into. Man, do I wish I had pictures of THAT!

It also meant making good on a New Year's Resolution. It was possibly the only resolution I've ever kept (yet) and I'm pretty sure it will always be one of my favorites. Going to all the Utah temples in 2008 was one good friend's idea...my outfit was another good friend's idea.

Logan, you were my last and my hardest, but you're beautiful and worth the wait.

Merry Christmas all!

Catch up!

2008-12-08T16:10:00.000-08:00

Ok, so these pics are going to be all out of order, but bear with me. Here...is fishing!

And here...is Idaho!

MAC Girls at the Reunion

Lauren and I are really happy to wake up this cold morning and go down some huge whitewater!

Twenty years old. Technically.

With my favorite skeleton in the whole world.

I'm wearing my green beanie, on the right side of the picture. And Lauren is smiling at me, probably because I'm freakin hilarious.

Ta-Da!

Howdy folks! It's been a while, a LONG while, since my last post.
Simply put, you haven't missed much. Moab was great, it's a place unlike anywhere else. Anyone who knows me knows I loved it down there.
I need to post some pictures from Costa Rica, I went there with Lauren at the end of the summer. We went with her sister Tamara, Tamara's friend Becky, and Mr. Remington Atwood.
After Costa Rica, I moved to my apartment in Provo at Stadium Terrace. If nothing else, the management is FANTASTIC here!
I couldn't stay away from Moab for long and went down for a couple weekends; once to work, once to run Westwater Canyon. We also had a Moab reunion at Scott's "cabin" in Midway.
I celebrated my 20th birthday after spending Halloween as a UNLV fan. Yikes!
I started donating plasma twice a week, I'll post a picture of my glory wounds...
Que mas?
Laur had never been to Idaho, so....ROAD TRIP!
Thanksgiving was a nice break from a semester that's been alternating between dull and overwhelming.
Now, I've got to push through these 2 weeks, make it past finals. Then there's Christmas, I'll be a bridesmaid at my dear pal Courtney Bean's wedding, and then I've got to get ready to go to Spain!
THEN maybe I might have something interesting to post :)
Oh, but first, how could I forget? Fishing! Fishing is always an interesting thing to post. Even if you don't catch anything. This was a highlight in the semester. In spite of the mosquitoes.

More Moab

2008-08-30T18:54:00.000-07:00

Ken's "Lake"

Remake of the Kitty Litter Ad

Just chillin on top of Maravia

Raft for the Cure!

Me and Ms. Taylor, Corona Arch hike

Superman Shad with the waxed "S" in his chest. I thought it was for Sandi...

Daniel and I, after he, um, helped me down from the boat

Dancin with Shadrach

MAC Party

2008-07-25T09:01:00.000-07:00

I really like this new blogging form of posting pics and brief descriptions as opposed to essaying clever paragraphs about your life. Lazy girl that I am, here's another picture post.

This is Kaitlin and I doing the Karaoke thing, then there's Ryan and Lauren. Ryan was so close to losing his VL and planting one on her, he failed to carpe diem. Then I'm trying to get Dodger to look at the camera, and true to form, he pulls an Erik.

Family First

2008-07-14T10:36:00.001-07:00

The Whole Crew (well, almost)

Hooray for no carnage! (well, almost)

On the Sunset Hummer, Hell's Revenge

Our Little BeeKeeper

Cataract Canyon 2-Day Express

2008-06-26T19:50:00.000-07:00

At times the home of the biggest whitewater rapids in North America, Cataract Canyon boasts such horrors as Capsize, Satan's Gut, Big Drops 1, 2 and 3 and more.

Rapids aren't the only highlight of a CAT trip. The night sky, the food, the swimming, the guides and passengers, the interp, the CANYON. These all combine together for the experience of a lifetime.

Add a little fishing and you're pretty much set. Good thing I had Rebecca to hold the broken pole.

We experience new things everyday and hopefully we learn from them. On this trip, I learned it's no simple thing to hold a 7,000 pound boat to shore while fighting the current. I learned not to pull a backwards sweater off whilst in a cot. Although I already knew this, I learned in a practical application that your friends will always have your back when you need it, maybe even just a bit longer. I learned it's better to remember to say things in the moment, it's never quite as good on speakerphone.

Weilers, you rock the boat. That's a good thing. And this one's for you.

Bridge to Bridge

2008-06-14T17:17:00.000-07:00

Old guides call it the 2 day 1 day, new guides are calling it the daily double. Either way, we put in at Dewey Bridge, raft to Onion Creek and set up camp, and the next day we raft to the Moab bridge. We do our daily stretch, but break it into two days. Holy smokes, the food is so good! If you are looking to gain weight, hop on a Western River Expeditions trip. We will set up your camp, cook your food, and do your groover duty! (not to be confused with your groover doodie, but closely related)

One important thing is to stay out of the tammies by the shore. You can see they're close, but I steered clear!

All that matters, though, is that it's June 14, and I'm finally starting to look a little like a river guide!

Land of Food

2008-05-16T18:03:00.001-07:00

I had an interesting experience today. I paid 9 dollars, about the amount I would expect to pay for a nice dinner at a restaurant, on grapes. Grapes! For the same price I would pay to get 3 junior bacon cheeseburgers, a drink, two orders of fries, a chicken sandwich, chicken nuggets, and a frosty at Wendy's, I received approximately four servings of grapes.

Looks like it's time to buy some seeds and plant some produce. No, not so I can have cheap fruits and vegetables at my disposal, so I can become a millionare. While I'm at it, I can buy chickens to sell ridiculously expensive eggs, and of course, a cow for milk and steak. Farmers have it good.

And we wonder why people in this country choose the drive through.

Long Distance Tag, Eh?

2008-04-30T17:53:00.000-07:00

From the infamous page of becksterpenny, the wonderful game of tag now approaches your eyeballs on sandibeach. If you read this, you're it! (I don't know if those are the real rules or if Rebecca just made them so, but hey, I'll play along) Answer these questions -

What were you doing 10 years ago?

-In April of 1998. . . . I was going to elementary. Not a super great year. Could be worse.

What are 5 things on your To-Do list for today?

-Go to work

-Find credit card

-Call the temple

-. . . Shower

-That's about it, not a bad life.

What are some snacks you like?

-This might not be a good question for me, since my snacks are usually the caloric equivalent of meals, but . . . I like most fruit (although I'm picky about the ripeness), I like a quickie quesadillar (aka you slap some cheddar on a tortilla and nuke it, then apply ketchup), and I'm becoming a super fan of toast. There's so many things you can do with it.

What are 3 bad habits you have?

-Eating and watching TV late

-Complaining

-Waiting until the last possible moment to do my laundry . . . oh wait . . .

What are 5 things people don't know about you?

-That there are 5 things they don't know about me

-I obviously can't disclose the rest, or it would ruin the first :)

And to any, um, curious readers. Yes, I know. The idea from the picture is a stolen idea. Yeah, you can be proud of yourself.

Be Prepared

2008-03-17T20:18:00.000-07:00

I'm currently taking a first aid class at BYU and it turns out these things come in handy. Minutes after taking a test in said class, I was taking a break, reading the newspaper, and a man started yelling, "Does anyone know 1st Aid?!" I panicked and thought, "Oh shoot, mouth to mouth, here we go."

Then I thought, "I can't say yes, I haven't passed the class yet, I don't even know what I got on my test!" Nevertheless, I said, "I'm in the class, what's wrong?" He informed me his friend had started seizing and sure enough, there was a woman convulsing on the floor. He wanted to know what we should do. I couldn't remember for sure, but I said, "I think we just let her go." So we moved some chairs to give her some space. We checked her wrists for medical bracelets and her keychain for any extra information. We asked a man to call emergency services. They were there lightning fast (not always the case) and then, just like that, it was over.

I was lucky (or maybe she was lucky) that it wasn't more serious, but it goes to show you never know when you'll need those skills. So let's all take 1st Aid and be there to help each other out.

Ninja Attack!

2008-03-16T17:20:00.000-07:00

So basically, I live in the coolest apartment at BYU. Well, maybe not the coolest apartment, but definitely with the coolest girls. A couple boys "Spidey-Attacked" our place one night, and we decided to fight back so a couple nights later we ninja-ed those boys to Timbuktu. This was SO hilarious. If you don't laugh . . . I'm sorry.

Mother Of All Bombs

2008-03-11T15:11:00.001-07:00

A dear friend informed me of this acronym the military uses. Also known as MOAB! I am headed to Moab for an awesome summer job this year, and I just want to be clear that I mean the city, not the bomb. So come on down, hit up the river, take a hike, you know. Explore new places. I may even be your guide! . . . I know, it scares me, too.

I'll keep you posted of the trials and triumphs from down south. Let me just say, now, though, in case I forget when I get down there, that I whole heartedly believe in doing hard things, things you may not even want to do, because it builds character and you can move forward to your next challenge. (Of course, I'm talking about hard GOOD things and GOOD things you don't want to do. It's ok if you don't want to do something hard and stupid.)

Oh, Canada

2008-02-17T18:30:00.000-08:00

Well, I am blogging from Canada tonight. I have a couple pics from the trip, but they aren't on my computer yet, so I am putting up a random one. I'm sorry to say that tomorrow we are headed back home. It's been fun and I've quite enjoyed procrastinating my schoolwork. I have met a bunch of Sabeys and Cooks and Ripleys and Wildes and more and more and more, it's a very tight-knit community up here. Anyway, that's all for now!

Entering the Blog Scene

2008-02-14T06:57:00.000-08:00

Lookout bloggers, a novice is coming your way.
I'm glad I finally even know what a blog is, let alone have my own.
Sadly, this is not because of my own wisdom.
My blog would like to thank Rebecca Weiler, Abby Porter, and Wendy Harding for showing me their blogs, because without them,
Sand in Your Eyes would never have come to be.
Now, like the 'busy' college student that I am, I gotta run!