Moms. Is there honestly anything better? 

I honestly can't think of anything, especially mine-She is the craziest, funniest, most loving, most caring person in the entire world. this is her last year mothers day. isnt she beautiful? 

The year I graduated from high school I gave a talk in church on mothers day with all the other seniors so I decided to look back at it. I opened with story of Christ and the footprints (short summary, a man wonders why at the hardest times in life there are only one set and Christ tells him that is when he carried him) and then talk about how much I love her and how she is my best friend. 

Nothing has changed. 

Except that my love for her has grown even more, if that is even possible. 

Some of my earliest memories of her- the year she got in a crash for Christmas, and then raked rocks, put milk in the cabinet haha. Then when you broke your knee and dad has his surgery and you would roll around the house on your chair still continuing to make dinner, clean and everything. Not making us watch the great documentaries greggy decided to get us that one summer in pc. Going to ice skating during the Olympics and me getting my goose egg on my head. Her giving me crap for all the funny things I used to say wrong...he got ashed, wanting spuds as earings etc.... 

High school- four of my most miserable and amazing years and she was there every single day. When I was miserable at Xavier and you didn't care what dad said you finally realized I would be happier at dv and you took me out and helped me figure everything out. I loved you so much for that, I still remember driving to dads office to go tell him and you just always having my back no matter what. I remember all the days when you would "force me" to stay home because you wanted a friend to hang out with. The night I took the car out when I was 15 and you simply told me you were too tired to get mad (dad-did you know that?) hahaha. The countless days you made me the best lunches, breakfast. My favorite memories are coming home from school and sitting with you talking about school or life just everything and you would let me cry or laugh and always just have something to say. The day of graduation when you gave me my ring because I was so sad about not wearing my other ones anymore. I know it's so stupid but you have no idea how happy that made me and still does to this day. 

(this is her in london, this is for the women who took over for their husbands during the war...things would not have worked out if they hadnt been there. just like how my life would be a mess without her)

You are the most kind hearted person that I honestly think exists. You always think the best of people no matter what they could have done. You love all my friends and welcome them into our family with open arms. You just love everyone and care for them wanting everyone to be happy. 

Your also one of the strongest people I know. You put up with dad (love you dad) even when he is a big stinker. And you have raised all five of us kids. We have all been rude and annoying and stupid at countless times, but you never give up. You have the hardest job and you are the very best at it. I love you and rely on you more than you will ever know. 

You are one of my very best friends and always will be. I can wait to see you in two weeks I hope you have an amazing day and I hope dad cooks you something great. xoxo

El Clasico

well over this last weekend Blakely and i ventured back to Barcelona one last time for probably my favorite trip so far. 

we got there really late, went to a bar called Obama (their shirts had pictures of africa on them...saying something?) it was really great, they had live music and some old people dancing their hearts out

the next day we slept in of course and then went walking in barcelona, found my favorite candy shop and ate lynch on top of corte ingles which looked out onto a gorgeous view. later that night we went to a flamenco show which are so cool (i saw one in granada during high school however this was blakely first time) i think they are so amazing and show great aspects of the gypsy culture. 

the next day was the best... in the morning we did a vespa tour around the city and up the mountain to look out over the city which was breathtaking, its an amazing city im clearly obsessed. we got to eat lynch in this little restaurant owned by a catalan family, and it was a locals only place with the best food i have eaten while being here. 

that night we went to el clasico (or the barcelona madrid game to non soccer people) coolest thing ever! my dads friend got blakely and i some great tickets and it was a blast. im not a big soccer fan (they lay around on the ground WAY to much) however the ambiance was something i cant explain. they are like yankees red sox fans times a thousand. they love their team, even after they lost they were cheering and singing their anthem i loved it. we went out after that and everyone was still so excited, we walked past madrid fans and had a great conversation with them about how barca was still the best. 

it was a great weekend and got me so excited for when my family comes. however i cant believe that is almost here...where have these five months gone? 

video my friend blakely made: http://vimeo.com/41236587

Semana Santa

Well the past two weeks have been go, go, go.

It started two Saturdays ago when I set off for morocco. I took a bus to Madrid then a bus to Seville then a bus to Gibraltar a ferry to Africa then a bus into the city of fez. I honestly don't know how I survived all this traveling but somehow...

 

Fez. The first city we went to. It had this amazing medina (their city, containing 9,300 little streets and over 300,000 citizens...that's more than Salamanca) anyways it was the most confusing thing in the entire world I can't even imagine trying to guide myself through it without a guide. We went to a rug store a leather store a ceramic store and a gold/metal work store. They were all so amazing and I got to buy a few fun things. Oh also we went to a natural pharmacy which was the coolest thing ever. I got coal eyeliner Moroccan oil and spices and such (for mom and patsy) it was an amazingly cool place to see.

The ext day we made our eight hour bus venture into the desert. When we got there we got in 4by4 and Indian jones style drove into the desert. Most fun ride ever...sorry Disneyland. When we finally got there is was so dark so we didn't really know what was going on. Except we were sleeping in little tents and there was tons of huge black beetles everywhere. I surprisingly slept great and woke up in time to go see the beautiful sunrise. The sand was such a beautiful color and the scenery was amazing. That day we took a camel ride into a little town and then walked back. We met some great Moroccan friends and little boys that were so darling. I loved them and wished I could bring one home. The next day we set off for one last city, slept and then finally made our way back to Madrid. All in all it was probably one of the most amazing trips I'll ever go on in my life.

After that blakely and I made our way to the beautiful island of fuerteventura. Don't worry it's back down by morocco, little did I know. It was gorgeous and a much needed week. We literally sat and tanned all week. We made some Italian friends there as well who knew blakely and I by name since the guys in charge introduced us to everyone. And don't worry I was Pollyanna aka Heidi aka baaaaaaa (I still don't get the correlation) but whatever they were great.

I'm back in Salamanca now until thurs. trying to breathe, not thinking about the fact that may is in two weeks.....

milan y verona

Ohhh italy. it Just never fails me.... maybe a little this time. only because milan was a little lame. i mean its italy so its not lame it was only shopping and then this gorgeous Duomo. i wanted a little more history and great people. there simply wasnt. however they do know how to make gelato. in fact its probably the best i have ever had. and i feel like i can be a pretty good Judge because i have had my fair share of it. so anyways they fill the cone with chocolate and then put yoir gelato on top. absoltely amazing. especially since whenever i eat ice cream i always get to the bottom of the cone and am disappointed to find it empty. this makes it certain that will never happen again. oh food wise though, amazing i had apple ravioli with a walnyt sace, patsy find a recipe its great. 

however, verona is a whole other story. im OBSESSED. like honestly Blakely and i are really confused why its not our home, like why do we not live there. there is a beautiful hill over the river and we are determined that our houses are some where up there. we got there on train took this bus that we didnt know how to pay for...so we didnt whoops. and came upon this gorgeous piazza shown in the pic below where we ate an amazing lynch mmm. then we walked around saw all the amazing sights they had. like the house of Juliet. oh how clever those italians are. pretend it was really where she was, have her balcony and even a tomb. dont get me wrong it was a very romantic city and lovely but really people, im sorry that Juliet was not a real person...then we walked along the river and into this other part of town where we saw all these little italian families waiting in line. of corse it was gelato and if all the italians are waiting in line it had to be good, so of course we proceeded to wait as well. and it was a good choice, great gelato and such a great feeling we got because they were all so friendly and all knew each other. i simply love that city and really really want to go back. any day. anytime. im there. 

oh and one last side note. i have never been so absolutely obsessed with a child as i was on my flight back to madrid. the MOST beautiful little girl i have ever seen in my entire life. she had curly hair and was from colombia (a little child speaking spanish only makes them cuter). anyways she was worth the side note. 

off to Morocco this weekend, camel riding and a great time expected. what is this life i live?

paris

paris-the city of love.blinding lights. eiffel tour. etc. 

yeah psych. no body loves anyone in that country. angry angry angry. whoops thats mean. 

well... i will say this it has some potential for sure. they all just need to be a little happier is all.

 so anyways.... went to paris over the weekend with my friend Blakely and my darling friend Nick from home (he came out for a week for his spring break). we left Thursday got there checked into or hotel and everything was great. then we decided to go out to dinner...yeah good luck we finally picked a place and i got Boeuf Bourguignon and freckled onion soup. and that was very delicious. (however mom yours is better. and i need you to make it when i get home please) then we decided we wanted a mcflrry from mcdonalds. well apparently that is not okay because the lady wouldn't even look at s when we ordered and acted like she had to go milk the cows herself. calm down lady. oh and we got locked in and had to ask to get let out? what... 

the next day we woke and went off to the Eiffel Tour. so excited since its something i have always wanted to see obviously. We even had a guy playing the violin on the metro on or way it was perfect. And i loved it, it was beautiful. (nick did about five back flips in front of it which made the best pictures ever) then we walked the river and saw all sorts of things. We ended at this little restaurant in the Jewish district and got falafel...okay yummy we loved it. then we ventured to the Arc de triumph which was a cluster of a roundabout  im still confused how there arent a million accidents daily. so props to their driving skills. that night we went the most beautiful little white church on the top of a hill. so romantic and so pretty i loved it. then we ate cheese and bread for dinner. so great. 

the next day we went to versailles. why is this not my house? im really confused. but honestly, most beautiful palace i have ever seen. i am so envious of those who can walk around and live in something like that. we ate lunch there at a place called angelina it was delicious, and we drank so much hot chocolate it was insane. after we went and walked around shopping and exploring

all in all it was great. 


P.S. Blakely made this lovely video.  http://vimeo.com/38788468

spanish padres dia

today is padres day in spain...

so i thought i would write my dad a little note. 

Greggy...aka the worlds best dad. BY FAR. there is nothing i cant go to him for. nothing i cant cry to him about. nothing i can say to him to make him hate me or judge me for. he is the only guy that will always think im beautiful, always love me and always tell me how stupid any boy is. always take my side, or at least tell me how it is. 

there is a nursery song that goes something like "im so glad when daddy comes home glad as i can be clap my hands and shout for glee and climb up on his knee pit my arms around his neck pat his cheek and give him what a great big kiss" and i always loved it. because its so true. those days when i just want to go sit in his office, watch t.v. and talk i know he is there.

being here in spain has only made my appreciation for him grow. im honestly the luckiest girl in the entire world. i can not express the gratitude i have for the ability to do the things i get to do here, and its because of him.

pues gracias padre, te quiero. (so thank you i love you)

my new obsessions

1) first off is Mallorca. It's a little island of the east coast of Spain. And it's gorgeous. My friend blakely and I ventured here this past weekend and It was the best 70 euro spent ever (30 euro for the flight and 40 for the hostel...so great) it was a little colder than we wanted but it was in the 60 which compared to how cold Salamanca is it was perfect. We were the only ones not in parkas and people thought we were INSANE for laying out...but it was worth it. I would love to go back when it's warmer and hopefully I will. However apparently Spain has some gorgeous places so we wanna experience some others. But still a new obsession of mine.

2) the families here. They are adorable. There are so many old married couples that walk around the plaza (women in their fur coats of course...still need one) and just talk and are all so happy. We have decided its because the men here treat the women like princess's. Seriously... Even as young couples the girls are so sassy and make the boys work so hard to get them. And are so mean I don't get it. But it's adorable.


3) the children... It kind of ties to the families because you always see the grandparents pushing their kids around in strollers. It just makes me think of my parents especially my dad who i know will be just like this and love them to death. Buuutt anyways the kids are seriously all adorable it's not even funny. I already wanted a kid and it just got ten times worse here. Probably because every single one of them dresses so well, they have the cutest strollers and all of them are darling. Im obsessed.. A few times some of us have come a little to close to kidnapping.


I'm in love with this place...

the past two weeks.

well its been a while. 


lets start with the fact that im completely in love with Florence its by far my new favor city. i love it. i got there friday after an awful experience with the trains. we went walking around the city and then had the best pasta for dinner i was so excited. Saturday we got up and went to a museum  with this lady who was an art history teacher so she took s around and explained everything. i finally now have a true appreciation for art. probably because of the birth of Venus. it is one of the most beautiful things i have seen and im obsessed. i now know why patsy is so in love. then we went to lunch at her hose and actually got vegetables in or salad. instead of some iceberg lettuce. mmm. then we walked around and had a great evening with gelato and yummy pizza. Sunday we saw the david...absolutely amazing. i walked in and i stopped and stared for probably five minutes. the fact that someone could do that is beyond me. so well im in love and ready to go back. any takers?


the week was not very eventful except for the america party i went to with some friends. 


this weekend we went to seville. i told my dad after i went during high school that its the place i want to have a villa someday. its gorgeous and i love it. the architecture is amazing and its all surrounded around a river so insanely gorgeous. and WARM we loved the sun except my legs haven't seen it for way to long...i dont think i have ever been this pale. oh and i pretty much broke my tailbone falling in a little canal thing in the ground at the 3rd biggest cathedral in the world...its fine. i cant move or laugh or sit comfortably. whoops. 


its valentines day this Tuesday... and i dont really like this holiday. especially since im not home where my dad always seems to make my day, with a teddy bear or roses or something.  however, im excited because we are all gonna go to dinner and hang ot at the plaza. not to shabby. 


i pretty much am in love with this place and wold like to live here again someday. thats all for now. 
xoxo

discovering salamanca

this week i was in salamanca and still cant believe i get to live here. it was my last week of class so that was nice, i got all A's and a certificate. they are big here on certificates its really entertaining you get one for everything you do. 

something very interesting happened this week while me and a couple friends were walking home from class. we were walking our usual route ready for lunch (still not used to the stupid times of meals here) when we came to a huge crowd of people. so we walked up and saw a bunch of fire trucks and then looked up and saw firefighters on top of the cathedral. since in spain no one ever really has to be anywhere they were all just hanging out so we decided to practice our spanish and ask what was going on. luckily we got this nice lady to tell us that there was a young chica who drank alot and climbed to the top of the cathedral, took her pants of and her shirt and continued to run on top of the cathedral dancing and singing. umm what? we hung out for a while to see if the firefighters would ever get her down but she was sitting not budging and threatening to jump if they grabbed her. finally our hunger took over so we left and i still dont really know what happened. 

(This is the cathedral and if you look really close up at the top you can see the men. she probably shouldnt have picked such a historical building to climb up but im sure her brain wasnt really all there)


we made a great accomplishment this week (when i say we i usually mean me, liz and blakely...liz is my roommate and blakely is my other pretty much roommate the only thing she doesnt do in our room is sleep at night) we have always been away from the spaniards that live in our residency, they dont talk to us so we dont talk to them. however...blakely had a crush on one of them....finally talked to him and now we are all friends. its great because now there is no awkward tension during meal times. 


one last thing. church is great. there is a way cute missionary from texas that translates for me and helps me remember america. hahah. but im kind of nervous because people keep asking me if i would like to come to their house for dinner or something and i say yes and then remember i can barely understand what they say half the time. so this will be interesting. 


mom-i miss your cooking. dad-your texts make my day i love you. peter-please update me on your girl situation. patrick-stay cute. patsy-TALK TO ME! preston-i love you get out to utah again soon haha


thats all for now. xoxo

ginebra

well... i went to geneva last weekend and am deciding i should probably put this all down before i forget. it was such a beautiful place i loved it. we went friday morning the journey wasnt very eventful except for the fact that you know swiss chocolate is the best since swiss air had some of the best chocolate i have ever tasted. so anyways we get to geneva and its pouring, but its okay because i have my lovely yellow rain coat. so we just walked around the city close to the lake and just took in the scenery. then we went to the hostel put all our stuff down and then ventured to the other side of the lake..by boat...so fun. we walked, shopped, took in the scenery had lots of fun. then i kind of just had a freak out wishing i was with my papa...so i decided i would go get a great dinner (thanks dad). 

the next morning we went on a heck of a journey to go skiing. we had to take a bunch of trains and buses and im really still not quite certain where we were. but it was BEAUTIFUL. when we finally made it to where we got on a gondola to go to the mountain i was stoked. then the real fun started...we get to the top its snowing like crazy (i have no goggles) and it is so foggy. but its fine. then i get to the chairlift fall doing the splits because the stupid track thing made my skis go in opposite ways..then i get up a little and the chairlift stops because i didnt put my bar down..whoops. 

when i finally got to the top and started skiin it was great. there was so much snow and the mountains were gorgeous. it was an amazing experience and im so glad i got to go.

soccer

last night was a barcelona madrid game. like a yankees red sox game times about a thousand. so we all decided to go out to a bar and watch it. luckily we got there at 730 (the game started at 10) and actually got some seats in order to watch. i was wearing my barcelona jersey and luckily there was about half and half fans in the bar. the jumping and screaming that happened was really entertaining. i have never been so into a game before. although i still think soccer players are a tad bit dramatic (ex. falling over every time someone even touches them, or saying they got hit in the eye when the persons arm wasn't any where near their face etc.) it was a fun few hours.

there is another game next week so im really excited. we are all hoping to get to madrid or barcelona in order to actually go to a game but none of them compare to these two specific teams. it was a great welcoming into the spanish culture of sports. 

preston

its my oldest brothers birthday today and so this post is dedicated to him. he is pretty much the coolest person i know and i look up to him in so many ways. its fun being here in spain and thinking about the last time i was here with him. we had so much fun and we actually got to hang out for once. then he lived in utah last spring so i got to see him all the time. he is someone that i know i can always count on and can actually talk to about things.

 so happy birthday Preston i hope your having fun in Houston 

i love you.

las noches

nights in salamanca are the best. walking around is amazing because your walking around a school started in 1200. the buildings are made of stone and beautiful (plus they have a law against building buildings higher than the cathedral so you can always see it). i love walking around here because you always discover something new. 

the Plaza Mayor. by far one of the most gorgeous buildings i have ever seen. at night its lit up and you can go sit at a cafe and just enjoy the evening talking and experiencing spanish culture. i'm lucky because the plaza in Salamanca is by far the most beautiful and one of the main reasons i chose to come back here. 

one last thing... i wish i could dress the way they do here in the states. all the men including young to old have such suave style and wear the coolest shoes and jackets. the women are such fashionistas. EVERYONE and their mom (literally) wear fur coats and always look so put together. i love it.

first week of school

school started this week and its been really fun. i have realized how much work i have to do but i cant wait to keep speaking the language. there has been some shopping... i think my obsession here is going to zara... its the best and can cure just about anything. 

this is the beautiful river i get to run by everyday

salamanca is beautiful and i cant wait for the next months to explore it all.

finally at my home

my new home

well... we finally made it to salamanca and i couldnt be happier. 

tomorrow school starts and finally i can get busy on my spanish.

this is my room IT IS HUGE! 

we have our beds. desks. our own closets. 

and a huge living room area where we hope to put a couch.

well i love it and cant wait for the adventures

P.S. GREG AND PATSY ITS FREEZING HERE! 

im gonna have to buy another jacket ASAP

my new obsession with madrid

(it is said that if you walk on this plaque you will return to madrid. i did last spring with Preston and i guess it really came true because i got to walk on it again today)

i have been to madrid two times before this- once when i was in a wheelchair from my bull incident and once with my brother while we stayed in a very...strange area of the city. this time around i have actually really enjoyed the place. last night my new friends and i went to this amazing parade in the downtown area of madrid. it was for their christmas and the floats were absolutely breathtaking. plus they chucked candy at your head which provided some great entertainment.

I made it

Well I made it here to Madrid. I already got to use my Spanish with my taxi driver who wanted to know about Obama and if Mormons only had one wife. It was pretty entertaining. Tomorrow is Madrid's Christmas so I get to look at more trees and celebrate again. So far so good on my travels can't wait for more adventures to come.

Newest Blogger!

starting a blog for my semester abroad!