Life Is a Highway....

So happy to finally be done driving! Some of the days on the road making the big move were the LONGEST of my life. We saw some very interesting things along the way and learned a few lessons as well...some of the things we saw/and learned by order of state...
Illinois:
My brother is great

My brother likes to sleep...

as does my sister...


Iowa:
You can get just about anything at a gas station....

I get a little stir crazy...

It didn't help that we were stuck in traffic for about an hour because the majority of Iowa is one lane....nice.

Nebraska:
Don't get off on random exits...you may almost be taken by the children of the corn...no joke.

Drinking out of a syringe is a lot more fun than drinking out of a straw...


There is a whole entire island for Mormons!!!


Wyoming:
Paul Bunyan gets his tires delivered

Those random windmills kind of creep me out


Utah:
They have beautiful sunsets...

Driving down from Heber to Provo through the canyon at night kind of makes me claustrophobic...

Some things never change...


Sorry for lack of pictures of Mackenzie but she spent the whole time driving with Dad in this beauty...

All in all it was a good time but I think we are all relieved and happy to be here. Living back in the same house that we lived in before we moved to Indy is a little weird. Provo has changed a bit but the people are the same. It's been so fun seeing all the old familiar faces. Still job hunting.... :(
Hopefully that won't last long.
In the famous words of Brigham Young...this is the place.

Leavin...

Packing.
Taping.
Writing in black Sharpies.
Heavy Lifting.
Complaining.
Not Sleeping.

These are a few of the activities I've been participating in as of late. Sounds fun right? Don't you want to move across the country now too?
I didn't think so.
Moving day officially tomorrow.
Wish me luck!

Happy Birthday Pops!

It's my Dad's birthday today.
I love my Dad for the following reasons...
1. He's so gangsta...he even has P.Diddy pajamas...Holla!
2. He is tall...like me which is fun when we put stuff up too high for anyone to reach.
3. He has an amazing eclectic taste in music that he thankfully passed on to me.
4. He's a very dedicated and hard worker which is an example to us kids
5. He is SO FUNNY...seriously...he's such a crack up- another trait he passed on to me...obviously.
6. He is very strong spiritually. He loves the gospel. He loves his Father in Heaven. He is always ready to teach us doctrine we didn't know or understand and he has a way of explaining it that makes perfect sense. He bears his testimony frequently and we could never question his faith because it is unshakable.
7. He has worked very hard to keep us where we are and as comfortable as we can be through these hard times. I know how much he wants to be able to provide for us and tries as hard as he can.

So Happy Birthday Dad!
I hope it's amazing and wonderful and filled with lemon cake goodness and happy times!
We love you!

Big Trouble In Little China

Recently I have seen some truly amazing movies...one of them was called "Hot Rod"...

honestly...how could I have not seen this movie sooner? My bestest Jen told me about this movie and told me it was basically a documentary of the time we have spent together. After watching it I have to say Mazel Tov to Jen for getting that one exactly right. It was completely brilliant...from the casting to the dialog to the soundtrack (basically all Europe songs...I mean what could get better right?) Here's just a little tid bit....


So after watching that I was thinking...how could it get any better right? Well then I saw this movie...

I was a little hesitant at first because it wasn't a movie that I ever saw promoted in any way but sometimes I have discovered that those kinds of movies are the best kinds of movies. This one was no different. The beginning was a little slow but honestly it was one of the best movies I have ever seen. Fun and so beautiful. I actually cried while watching it. I would definitely check it out if I were you!

And if you are just looking for a great feel good all over classic movie I would go with

I mean c'mon...have you ever seen Kurt Russel look so hot?
Happy Viewing!

Someone Better Do Something About That Monkey

The other night at work was an interesting one filled with one exciting event or another. My first exciting event happened when one of my patients started getting a bit...shall we say...forgetful? at around 11:30 pm. She was in there talking to "people" that weren't there. So I went in to check on her when she started yelling...here is how the conversation progressed...
*"Hey (fill in blank name here) is everything ok?"
~"Someone better do something about that monkey"
* "What monkey?"
~"That monkey over there by the window"
...clearly we all know there is no said monkey by the window...
*"I don't see a monkey over by your window"
~"Well he's there and somebody better do something about it"
at this point I figure I will completely play into her monkey fantasies...it's really easier than trying to convince her otherwise...
*"Oh that monkey! Yeah he's nice though he won't hurt you...you're in the hospital and you are safe I'll be back to check on you in a little while...try and get some sleep"
30 minutes pass...I am casually walking past the room and now the patient is talking very angrily and waving her arms
*"What's going on?"
~"There's this darn monkey in my bed and he's growling at me"
*"Oh really?"
~"Yes you shut up and get this monkey out of my bed!"
she's getting feisty now
*"Honey...I don't know how to get that monkey out of your bed..."
~"Well you better find someone who does!"
*"Ok I'll see what I can do..."
3 minutes pass and I re enter the room as the greatest invisible monkey catcher of all time...
*"Hi there (fill in the blank name) I heard you have a monkey problem? I'm here to take care of that for you..."
pretend to catch invisible monkey
*"Ok we've got him...I'm going to put him in this cage and we'll take care of him"
~"Well who does that monkey belong to?"
*"I'm not sure ma'am but we'll find out"
~"Yeah you better find out who is letting their monkey run around loose..where are you taking him?"
*"Well we'll probably take him to the zoo and then find out he belongs to ok?"
~"Yeah all right."

No more complaints of monkeys for the rest of the night. Who knew that catching invisible monkeys was in my job description...let alone something I would be so incredibly good at???
During that shift I also had a true blue celebrity as a patient and had another patient try to escape the floor in her birthday suit.
And no I don't work on the psych unit.

Utah or Indy?

So as most people know my family has been pretty heavily considering moving back to Utah...and by heavily considering I mean most likely are. At first I was fully prepared to stay here in Indy. My job is here....oh wait...yeah that's about all that is here. I have a few straggling friends here but some of them (ok one of them...and really the only one that counts) is married, has a baby, and lives a few hours away (shout out to Jen and the entire city of Mishawaka)...so although she lives here I don't see her as much as I would like. In Utah my whole Dad's side of the family lives there and many of my friends live out there...but in true Vanessa fashion I decided to make a pro/con list to help me make my decision.

Indiana Pros

Family

Friends

Fireflies

My job
Colts Football

Crazy Rednecks

Mullets

(I'm really glad I got my boyfriend to cooperate for this photo)
Diversity
the BEST HAIRSTYLIST EVER
living close to amazing cities like
NASHVILLE, MEMPHIS, INDIANAPOLIS, LOUISVILLE, CHICAGO

Indiana Cons

Tornadoes

Crazy Rednecks
Humidity

Utah Pros...

Family

Friends

Mountains

many activities for people in my same age group
closer to the ocean
Grandma Sycamore's bread...mmm delicious

nice breezy cool summer nights
Gateway Mall (the shopping center made by the hands of angels I'm pretty sure)
Park City...home of Robert Redford, The Sundance Film Festival and the Cirque Lodge where celebrities (or just Lindsay Lohan) go to rehab...

Living next to amazing cities like SAN FRANCISCO, SALT LAKE CITY, LAS VEGAS, LOS ANGELES

Utah Cons...

Earthquakes
The Utah "Poof"...a hairstyle I've never been good at
no guaranteed job right away
DRY DRY DRY
too many of the same types of people
David Archuleta




So as you can see I have some big decision making a head of me...any suggestions?

He Wore An Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny...

...green and white striped mankini???

Last week on The Bachelorette my dear buddy Ed broke these little babies out

....remind you of anyone? Like maybe the coolest guy on earth...maybe a guy who wears tight jeans and tiny shorts while FIGHTING CRIME..someone who is SO incredibly cool he is only known by one name...

Magnum (P.I. that is)

Oh Ed if I wasn't in love with you before you sure sealed the deal with those. Next week Jillian picks her man...it's between Kiptyn and Ed...who receives the final rose???

I'm very literally on the edge of my seat.

The Great Hair Debate...

Ok guys here's the deal...I am going to change my hair color. I'm going back to the blonde for a bit- at least through the summer and I'm trying to figure out what kind of blonde to go for. So I'm going to show you some pics and add a poll on the side of my blog (if I can figure out how...) and then have you guys vote ok? And I'm serious I need some help here or I'll be asking the Magic 8 ball and after the great Zack Morris fiasco of 1994...I'm not so trusting.
So here we go...
Blonde #1

Blonde #2

Blonde #3

Blonde #4


Vote vote vote!!!
And as far as cut goes I'm thinking this style...

with some of these sassy bangs...


any thoughts???

Ding Dong the Douche is Dead!

Wes is FINALLY gone....
maybe I have some trust in Jillian again after all???
Only time will tell.

p.s that's a pitchfork on the right...if you couldn't tell by my amazing skills of an artist.

A Fond Farewell

Today was the memorial service for Michael Jackson. I thought it was completely beautiful and touching. Some highlights for me were...
Maya Angelou wrote a poem for MJ and it was phenomenal some of my favorite part of it...

Without notice, our dear love can escape our doting embrace. Sing our songs among the stars and walk our dances across the face of the moon.

He thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style. We had him whether we know who he was or did not know, he was ours and we were his.

We had him, beautiful, delighting our eyes.

His hat, aslant over his brow, and took a pose on his toes for all of us.

And we laughed and stomped our feet for him.

We were enchanted with his passion because he held nothing. He gave us all he had been given.

We are missing Michael.

But we do know we had him, and we are the world.

Then Brooke Shields spoke saying how they were very good friends and bonded over the fact they both had to grow up fast but when they were together they were just two little kids having fun and laughing. She compared Michael Jackson to "The Little Prince" using a passage from the book...

"What moves me so deeply about this sleeping little prince is his loyalty to a flower--the image of a rose shining within him like a flame within a lamp, even when he's asleep... And I realized he was even more fragile than I thought. Lamps must be protected. A gust of wind can blow them out. Here is my secret. It is very simple: One sees well only with the heart. The essential is invisible to the eyes."

She closed by saying MJ always saw things with his heart. It was incredibly heartfelt and moving.
The musical tributes were amazing as well. Mariah Carey singing "I'll Be There", Jermaine Jackson singing "Smile" and my personal favorite Usher sang "Gone Too Soon"



All in all it was a beautiful and fitting tribute. Hopefully Michael and his family can now rest in peace. I will admit that I bawled. You could just feel the sincerity in the feelings expressed and his daughter spoke and broke everyone's hearts. I think people forgot he was a father as well.
Beautiful. He will be greatly missed by many including me.
Long live the King of Pop. The greatest entertainer to ever live. (In my humble opinion)