Merry Christmas!!

I finally finished up on my preparations for Christmas today. Now what do I do??
I was browsing the internet and I found some amazing photographers. I like to browse and look at other people's style with their photography and see if there's anything inspiring in their portfolios... especially family/wedding/engagement photos because that's what I want to do. Anyway, I was really inspired by what I saw on those sites. Looking at pictures like that makes me wonder if I'll ever be as good as some of those photographers out there. I'm still a beginner, and that's good because I have a lot I really want to learn. If you want to check some out yourself, here's the sites:

Jessica Claire Photography
Misty Photography
Jasmine Star Photography

I just realized that all of those are women photographers. Didn't plan that, but that's kinda cool.

I stole this idea from someone else...

I am: Tiara
I know: that Heavenly Father has a plan for me.
I want: to know that plan.
I have: the best friends and family.
I wish: I had more self-discipline.
I hate: gross bugs and seafood.
I miss: childhood days with no worries.
I fear: rejection.
I feel: hopeful.
I hear: my soundtrack running in my head.
I smell: fresh sheets.
I crave: going outside and playing in the snow.
I search: for personal revelation.
I wonder: if I will be able to survive at my job.
I regret: nothing.
I love: taking pictures.
I care: about your well-being.
I always: quote movies and songs.
I am not: an athlete.
I believe: in finding beauty in everything.
I dance: whenever and wherever a good song is played.
I sing: in my car.
I fight: against the unknown.
I write: in my journal.
I lose: my patience with annoying drivers on the road.
I win: my own battles.
I never: go without washing my hands.
I listen: to what you're saying.
I am scared: of scary movies.
I need: company.
I am happy about: life!

It's a bit rainy, eh?

I went to Canada for the first time a few weekends ago! I am glad that I no longer have to be ashamed by having never ventured to this "foreign" land... especially since I live right next to it! My cousin Dave and I drove to Vancouver BC and checked out China Town and this really cool park and stuff! It was a bit cold and rainy that day, but still way fun! Definitely worth the 2 hour drive there... which isn't even that bad. 'Twas fun!! I recommend it to anyone! :)

....

I'm eating popcorn right now and it is de-lish. Also, I am going to starve this next week. My mom is going out of town and we have no food. Atleast we have plenty of popcorn!

Tender Mercies

So the biggest news I need to share is.... I got a job! :) I'm working again at Call Realty. It's actually a funny thing- but it'll be good. Heavenly Father is watching out for me. Apparently I learned the lesson I needed to learn while waiting. Or maybe I shouldn't say that because I might just jinx myself... But this job will help me make some good money, and probably help me learn and grow in certain ways. I'm pretty excited about it.

Things have been fun lately. I have felt so much more at ease and at peace since I knew I had employment. I can still go to institute and everything because I am done at 6 pm. And no Saturdays. So that is AWESOME. Also, my friend Jen and I have been going to the gym almost every day for the past week. I got a sweet deal- 5 weeks for $5!! That is only the trial period, but after that I'll see if I can get some sort of deal combined with Jen. Let me tell ya- I can tell the difference already since going to the gym. :) It's great.
Also, my mom and I have been working on the ornaments we are making for the annual ornament exchange we do at my aunt's house. I'll have to put up pictures when we're done.
AND, I figured out my halloween costume for Friday. ANNNNNDDDD while I was at Good Will getting the costume stuff, I found the CUTEST Steve Madden heels. I fell in love and had to buy them. They were brand new- there was no wear on the sole or anything. So that made me excited. :)

Basically, life is good. Institute is great. I like taking a couple different classes with two different teachers. It mixes it up a bit. So I'm studying D&C as well as Old Testament.

AND. I have the best friends ever. Both here and wherever they are right now. I love keeping in contact with them. And we do keep in contact. Its awesome.

And my family rocks, too! :)

I think I just had an apostrophe

So all in all, it's been a pretty good week.

No life-changing events happened, but I have seen some tender mercies. Institute rocked again on Wednesday (and I recruited yet another person... mwahaha) and I've been able to hang out with some good friends. One of the best hangings out I did was with Marissa!! Star Wars Episode 2 over the phone. It's kind of our thing... something crazy best friends would do. :) She is in Provo right now, so that's the reason behind the phone thing. We decided that Episode 2 would be the best to make fun of. It was Awesome! :) I'm excited to see her over Christmas. It's been waaaay too long!

So I put in another application yesterday with this courier place...they're not hiring until the beginning of November, but that's alright. It's another application! I've decided to look at this impossible job hunting thing in a new light. It bums me out a lot that I still don't have a job, but I can't change the past. I just need to move forward as if I am just beginning the job hunt. And I know that I need to bend a bit with where I work. I can't be too picky. Oh, by the way, I had an interview set up for Wednesday with that place, but later that day the owner called me and cancelled it. Looks like they are having some issues right now. Figures. But I do feel bad for the guy.

OH yeah, the Chiefs rock! :)

Changes.

Or lack of, I should say. How can my life be so unchanging through such a long period of time? I'm still doing the whole job hunt thing... I gave another person my resume and I have an interview on Wednesday (if he calls me, that is. I'm going to keep my fingers crossed...). This job would be a really great one.

Institute rocks my socks every week. I think I'm going to start going on Tuesdays in the valley and then Wednesdays downtown. It's been really great to have that spiritual upliftment through the week. It helps me survive.

OH! I'm going to be an aunt! For the first time! I am ever so excited for that! :) Yay for my bro and sis-in-law! :)

Yet another week...

So my life is about the same. Nothing new or big. Yesterday I went to my dad's work where there is an open position that I applied for. I went in partially to bring him lunch, but also to meet the HR Manager to introduce myself, and hopefully make a good impression. So we'll see if anything comes of that. I have high hopes... but I'm not expecting anything to happen. I don't want my hoped to get shattered. That job would be absolutely ideal. I'm just praying that I will get the job I'm supposed to. I'm trying so hard to be patient and accept His will for me, and His timing. It is definitely testing me. I complained to my cousin (who's on his mission) about what's going on, and he gave me some good advice. But I also felt very humbled by some of the things he said to me. I need to keep myself busy during this time of waiting. I just need money. I just want to go on a mission, and that requires money which, the longer this job hunt thing takes, the longer I have to wait to go.

On a happier note, I finally got to go to institute this last week!! It was awesome. I am so excited to be digging into D&C! I haven't studied it thoroughly since my freshman year in High School. So it should be awesome.

Last night I went bowling with a group of friends, and that was fun. I haven't gone bowling in quite a while. But we all had a good time. I for sure need to practice my bowling skills, hah.

Today we had a family gathering because my family from Everett came to visit. So that was pretty fun. My family is crazy. I missed a lot of people who weren't there, it just wasn't the same without them. But it's crazy fun to see kids growing up, and some cousins who have babies of their own now. I love them all.

...Well, I have to give the lesson in RS tomorrow (ugh) so I better get going on that...

It's been a while...

And the reason for that is because I have no life. Okay I do, but it's just not very interesting. The most exciting thing going on right now is institute is starting up!!!!! I am soooo excited for that!! I love it dearly. Yay!!! I'm taking D&C this sememster with the best teacher who is the bomb! IT should be aweosme. Did I mention that I was excited? :)

Amazing quotes from 8/15-8/18

If I had a quote board of amazing quotes in the time period of 8/15-8/18, these are the quotes that would be on it.

I feel like I've just soiled myself
-Lindsay

Actually, I have a girlfriend
- EMP guy

If I beat them, I'm the man. If they beat us, you're the woman.
- Taxi driver

They take-a my pikcha!
-other taxi drvier

I'll give you a ticket for your joke
- Glasses guy

I have a black shirt. I match. Can I be part of your gang?
- ?

Once you walk through that door, you ate no longer mortals. You are avatars of rock!
-EMP guy

Let's see some teeth. Let's see some...
- ?

Lindsay: I'm pretty sure he just wanted to meet you
Jenni: I'm pretty sure he's right behind us

It's Wowza!
-EMP Guy

.Wowza. Seattle adventures!

Our friend riding next to us for a while. We named him Otis.



Party in the back seat! Kristin, me, Jen



Shuttle ride!



This was taken after Lindsay chased down a senior couple walking around Pike Place Market. They turned out to be the Mission President and his wife. But they were nice enough to take our picture. Jen, Lindsay, me, Jenni, Kristin



Kristin enjoying the beautiful flowers at Pike Place Market



This is an awesome video of a guy performing on the street corner at Pike Place Market.



At the aquarium!



I met Dwight in Seattle by the pier



The view of Seattle from our cruise ship



Jenni and I on the boat



In the Ye Olde Curiosity Shoppe. That place was awesome. I think that guy's name was Stewart.



Ewww shrunken heads.



We hailed a taxi! It was awesome. This is us in the back seat.



And this is Jen and Kristin in their taxi. Their taxi driver was funny- "They take-a my pikcha!" We were having a race- "If I win, then I'm the man. If they win, then you're the woman!" ....We won. :) Our destination was the Space Needle.



Our name is Wowza. You've probably heard of us... we're kind of a big deal.



Me in front of the space needle after dinner. This was the usual spot where we'd wait for the shuttle to pick us up.


We went to the zoo! These flamingos were awesome! And quite the funny sleepers- the one with his leg up and head all twisted is sleeping, along with some others.






We went to church! This is our proof that we are righteous even on vacation ;)



Fun in the elevator. :)



Cool reflection picture on top of the space needle.






Fun in the Pacific Science Center



I love these girlies.



All the fun things we did :)



Good bye, Seattle. Thanks for waiting until the last day to rain

Faith

I took some pictures of our current foster baby, Faith. She is so cute! :)

Breaking Dawn!

Yes, I am one of those hopeless conformists in love with Stephanie Meyer's series. I have been reading Breaking Dawn for hours at a time these past few days, and the book is awesome! I really ought to get my room in shape... it's been like 3 weeks or something already...

Eh- what's the point? ;)

Home Life

So I've been home for 3 weeks-ish and it's actually been pretty good. It's been good this time around because I have a clear vision of the next few months. And I have a lot of fun things planned. So that's made me pretty optimistic.

The first week I was home, I brought Morgan home with me. We hung out in Spokane for a few days, and took a 2-day journey to Seattle. While we were there, we went to Pike Place Market and to the aquarium! It was way cool because we got to touch a lot of really cool sea-life. :) It was also cool because we got to hang out with my bro, Shon, for a little bit because he lives over there now. And he was kind enough to let us crash at his house. :) It was his birthday, so that was way fun to be there. That night we went to see The Dark Knight, which is just amazing.

^ Morgan touching some.. sea urchins... I believe.

Then while in Spokane, we went to Riverfront Park, and Morgan met the garbage-eating goat! She was so thrilled! Just look at her face! >

<>

We had no knives, so we used the lid of the tupperware. Krystine joined us for lunch!

This past weekend, Dayton, Ashley, and I traveled to the west coast to see the Olympic National Rainforest. And Shon came with us, too! It was really neat- you drove through the forest, and there was a look-out spot at the top, where you could look out at the mountains. Washington is beautiful.

Then we went to this River that had a lot of really pretty wildlife. The kind that you'd only be able to see on that side

of the state.

Shon looking over the bridge >

<>

Ever since I took a horse-back riding class in college, where we observed nature a lot, moss covering the trees has always been one of my favorite things in nature. These trees just look cool, plus they're totally covered in moss. >

Self-portrait

Think about it: if you had to take a self portrait and it had to include one of your body parts (it is a self portrait) and by looking at it, the audience should be able to tell something about your personality and who you are as a person. Are you defined by possessions? By the people around you? Your beliefs and morals?

This had to be the hardest assignment in photography as of yet. For some it might be easy. I applaud you. I don't want to sound cliche, but I had such a hard time with this beacuse I don't define myself by my possessions or something physical that could be portrayed in a picture. I didn't particularly enjoy this assignment because it's quite difficult to look inward and think of the things that really really matter to me and try to be creative in showing it in a picture. OK, realizing the things that matter was easy. I know that much. I just really really really wanted to do an excellent job with this picture because 1) I wanted to do really well on my last assignment 2) I wanted it to be something I could look at and be like, "yeah, that's me in a nut shell" and 3) I HATE being misunderstood. (It's a frequent problem because I often have a hard time communicating, so the wrong things come across a lot) I wanted this picture to really portray who I was and for it to be clear and artsy at the same time. I think essentially I just over stressed about the project and made it a bigger deal than it needed to be. There ya go... I don't even understand myself sometimes.

But ANYWAY, if that made any sense at all....

What ended up happening was I finally got some pictures that I really liked, and some others, and my professor didn't give my favorites the time of day. Go figure. I can never please that man.

But here they are:

This was my first choice^

This was my second choice>>>

And the one he picked.

And for your viewing pleasure, here is the temple:

And a fuzzy, white kitten:

Now back to Scripture Mastery study....

Pachelbel Rant

Hi-larious! Watch this video. Please excuse the language in the last 20 seconds.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdxkVQy7QLM

Jon Schmidt- amazing.

Tonight I went with some friends to see Jon Schmidt play here at school. It was so cool and fun. Jon is an aamzing performer- and he has some fun antics that he does to spice things up. This is a pretty good promo video for him. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5mqWdc0ZoA
I think the coolest part is that he's LDS. :) Great entertainer, gorgeous music, I would definitely but his albums. Man was it cool.

After the concert, we went to the stadium and played frisbee for a while. Then we started goofing off with some crazy antics, like spinning around and running across the stadium. Haha, it was way fun. That's what youth is all about. I don't see why people insist on acting "grown up" or trying to be mature all the time. Even Jon Schmidt will put on a huge white wig and shake his groove thing while playing piano. It's the cool thing to do. Pretty much.

Doesn't particularly surprise me

Results of Your Type A Personality Test

Personality Type
Your score = 23


What does your score mean?
You seem to be far from having a Type A personality. Your attitude to life is more of the "smell the roses" kind. You know how and when to relax. The hostile, aggressive and competitive part of you surfaces rarely. You are easy to be around, and people tend to feel relaxed and comfortable in your presence. It's a very healthy attitude towards life. Just make sure you don't miss important opportunities because of being too cool and relaxed. Picking up a challenge and competing a little bit for your place in the sun can add some spice to your life.

The list of things I will be doing while at home

Things I WILL do while at home

Exercise every day- in the morning or evening
Only eat junk/treats once a week
Be confident and find a good job
Go on trips to Seattle
Take glass-blowing classes
Take fencing classes
Go to Institute
Go to Singles’ Ward
Go to Mission Prep
Take pictures all the time
Finish Dave’s tie
Tune up the Geo
Ride motorcycle
Hang out with friends
Read Eldest
Read Harry Potter books
Be happy!

There are others as well, but to some people they are a surprise. And I'm hoping to add more things as time goes.

Two Weeks' Notice

So the semester here at school is ending, which means I will be moving on and finding a job at home again. I have mixed feelings about going back to Spokane. I am excited to be with my family and friends from home. And I am excited for the things I have planned for the Fall. However, I am going to miss terribly just being at school. I will miss learning, meeting new people, the independence factor, and having spirituality conveniently placed before me. It's easy to get on a spiritual high being at a church school. I'm going to try not staying on a spiriutal plateau, but to continue increasing while at home. I'll have to look for it more, but that'll make it more the worth it, I think.

One thing that I am nervous as heck about is snatching a decent job. I want a photography job. It's time to start working on my career and increase my abilities for the future. I know that I could get a job at Kiddie Kandids or JC Penny Photo Studio pretty easily... anyone could. You don't need any experience. That's the one thing that isn't appealing about those places. I want to learn new things, not start over. My dad suggested to me to make a resume, dress professionally and walk into one of those photography studios that do senior pictures and weddings and what-not, and pretty much ask for an internship. And if they like me, they can hire me on. The plus is that I have some experience, and my major is photography, so that might be a good incentive for them to consider me. But... going in and asking for that even if they're not accepting anyone right now scares me a ton. Then I think about it... what's the worst that could happen? They could say "no." Then I woud move on and try someone else. And if all else fails, I'll have Kiddie Kandids.
A year ago, I never ever ever would've done something like that. There's a reaosn I want to be a free-lance photographer. There is not a lot of confrontation or intimidating situations. So I will most likely end up doing this. I just hope and pray that I will find something. I can't imagine how amazing of an experience that would be working in a professional studio, when I'm still in the early stages of my learning of photography. But I am willing to learn and grow.

12:30 am

This video speaks for itself. I still stick true to my goal in acting immature or "childish" every once in a while. It keeps me sane. And, it's just plain fun.

One VERY exciting thing, tho, is my newest splurge. I downloaded onto my itunes a video called "Where The Light Is: John Mayer Live in Los Angeles." It's amazing! It just got released yesterday, and it is definitely worth the purchase if you are a true John Mayer fan. It has three sections to it. The first is just him performing some acoustic songs. Next is the John Mayer Trio, which is some great blues music. And lastly is him with his band peforming some great classics along with his new stuff. Here is a trailer of the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kM4m7NMcBvk

Definitelty amazing. Maybe I'm just a pathetic, crazed fan.

Happy Fathers' Day!

"It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood, a beautiful day for a neighbor! Would you be mine? Could you be mine?"

Yeah Mr. Rogers was a genious.

So today it's Fathers' Day! Yay! Happy Fathers' Day! My Dad rocks!

The weather has been gorgeous and that puts me in a good mood.

Last night, we made a fort. It was... amazing to say the least. And Morgan's mom is a Mary Kay lady so we borrowed her samples and played with them. Morgan introduced us to this new game- you put someone else's make-up on, and the both of you have your eyes closed. So you don't know what you're doing, and the person can feel the make-up being put on. It was hilarious. This was the outcome:

Christy looks the best. Oh my goodness was it funny.

update...

Quite a lot has happened in these past few months. School is awesome, as usual, here at BYU-Idaho. I know this is where I am supposed to be. I always learn so much here- it's glorious.

This semester has a different feel. It feels so different than previous semesters with a new apartment, new friends, new ward, new environment. I still see some of my old friends, which is nice. I've learned that I'm not very accustomed to change. But I've been blessed, and this time, the change is good. I'm learning to stretch.

The past few months here have been full of new experiences-

Paint fights

Exploration of different cultures

Learning my physical strengths- especially in sumo wrestling.

So it's been pretty fun.

I did get to go home for Memorial day weekend. It was great- I've never had an appreciation for home until I came to school. My first breath of Spokane air was filled with the smell of lilacs from our huge bushes. It was green everywhere and the flowers were beautiful. The air was easy to breathe. It was good to be home. My brother and sister-in-law and I walked around Riverfront Park for the day on Saturday, and it was sooo great. I got some good pictures for my photography class, as well! The Spokane River was way high. It was pretty awesome.

That same day, my Aunt had her baby!!!!!! I was soooo happy to be home for that. His name is Kwin Weston. He is soooo cute!! I am so excited to finally have a cousin on that side of the family! That baby is going to be so spoiled! He's gonna get a lot of love in his life, that's for sure. That was great to be there for that! :D

The next day, Sunday, some of my closest friends from home and I had a glorious picnic at Manito Park. :) After that, we went to the Lilac Garden (that I had no idea existed) and the Rose Garden (with lack of roses during the spring...) and then the Japanese Gardens. I am so grateful for my wonderful friends. They are amazing. I feel so blessed to have a great support system in my friends and family. I miss them terribly while I'm here at school.

Me, Kristin, Lindsay, Jenni, Jen in the rose garden.

I love these girls.

Life is wonderful.