Never a dull moment. Until today.

It's a lazy Saturday at my apartment. That doesn't come around very often and I'm enjoying it by reading, napping, eating, and repeating. The napping part has probably been my favorite. :) Since I'm finally having one dull moment and have all of this extra time, I thought I'd fill you in just a little bit on my life.

 In May, we celebrated Sarah's birthday with a Harry Potter theme. Random factoid, I've been re-reading HP and once in a while, I'll send her a little trivia question from the book, she knows them all. She's a Harry Potter genius!

 Jarrett came back to visit us! He left last summer for California as a Pediatric Resident in Loma Linda, California. I'm so proud of the work he's doing. I have missed the Waldo to my Wenda. :)

 Sarah and I decided to take up running. After a couple of weeks of "Turbo Jam" I decided we needed a new workout routine and running seemed like a better choice. I've actually really enjoyed it. I can challenge myself everyday with running. For any of you who would like to start, I highly recommend the "Ease into 5k" app. We started the 8 week program by running 60-90 seconds at a time and by the time we were done with the app, we were running 30 minutes at a time. After that, we downloaded "Bridge to 10k" and started running like crazy. We're ready for our 10k in two weeks! Crazy that I went from 60 seconds at a time to being able to run an hour. I was really excited the day I was able to run 7 miles. I have yet to replicate it but at least I can say I did it!

 Our first run was the Darren Sproles 5k in June. I was so happy just to finish! The 71 year old pictured here stayed with me for about a mile before he decided he just couldn't go as slow as I was going. Haha he definitely kicked my trash. Maybe one day I'll be as good as he is. We did the Glow Run in July, and the Susan G. Komen 5k in August. I dubbed it the summer of 5k's and we will end with a bang in September with our 10k. I'm actually kind of nervous about that one.

 In August, Jennie and I made another trip back to Utah for this sweet girl's birthday party. We had a great time hanging with the family and relaxing. One day, we took the girls to a splash pad and Erin kept telling me, "I can handle this." Haha yes, you got it girl! She is so funny. I love talking to her (when she has the attention span). Rylee was absolutely precious and as love-y and smile-y as ever.

 I just can't get enough of this sweet girl!

 Happy First!

I got to be the lucky one to clean her up. I was happy to do it! I really wish I could see these girls more. :)

The weekend after being home, my friend Tamar came down from Chicago. We took her to bacon fest where she was able to witness good Sarah becoming the first female ever to place in the bacon-eating contest. Her words in an interview, "One small step for me, one giant leap for woman kind." One woman came up to her and said, "You're gonna get some action tonight!" Umm.....haha. We had no words. Another woman came up and said, "You showed those guys that bacon's not just a man's meat." Was that ever a concern? We just love bacon. :)

On a sadder note, my friend CJ from Chicago was recently diagnosed with Bone Marrow Cancer. He used to run triathlons and Jodi and I would be his groupies. He is such a fun guy who has such a passion for life. It breaks my heart that he's in so much pain right now. His friend has set up an account to raise funds to help cover some of the medical bills. They also post updates every now and then so if you're interested in his progress, you can keep checking back.

Help CJ Beat Cancer

And that's pretty much my life right now. I just keep plugging along. :)

Did you know that I am awesome?

 

You only need to watch to about 0:10. Jodi forgot to turn of the camera. :)

The truth is, I'm not the only awesome one but blogger won't let me add any more videos. Here are a few pics from my weekend in Chicago though. 

 Tamar and I schemed to surprise Jodi for her birthday!

 Jodi jumping!

 Jodi falling!

Cheerleader. I was sore for several days after this...

 

Tuesdays in Topeka.

Once a month Jennie and I leave work for about an hour to go deliver Meals on Wheels. On weeks like this week, it's nice to get out. The weather was beautiful and the break was welcomed. Generally we take turns driving and running but there's this one house...

Jennie was the runner last month and we had a new house added to our route. Seemingly no big deal, unfortunately we're dealing with downtown Topeka. Most parts of Topeka that I have been in are less than stellar. (Picture downtown Ogden but somehow older-looking and dirtier.) Jennie gets out of the car to deliver the meal and I'm staring at everything going on around me. There are two bike cops hanging out at the corner questioning some random drunk, the pink house that we delivered to had shutters barely hanging on, and the surrounding houses are not in any better shape. As Jennie comes back, a random stranger is following a little too closely behind. She hops in, unaware of her pursuer) and I quickly lock the doors and speed off. Thank goodness the cops were still nearby. We were seriously a little freaked out. As we were leaving, Jennie informs me that she's never letting either of us go in there alone again. She described this woman's living conditions and honestly, it just made me sad.

Have you ever seen an episode of Hoarders? So this week rolls around and this house is on our list once again. I park the car and we walk in together. I open the door (the woman can't get up so we take it to her) and immediately am overcome with the smell of smoke and filth. I look around to find where she's sitting which is difficult to do as she's shorter than some of the surrounding piles. She notions for me to put the meal on a stack of who-knows-what and then we turn and head out. As I leave that neighborhood, I am overcome with gratitude that I was able to be raised in such good living conditions. Thank you to my parents who worked to keep me out of that kind of neighborhood, even if it was just north of that kind of neighborhood. ;)

On that note, seriously Kansas? Topeka is the state capital? Fail.

Days Go By.

I figured since it's been almost a year since I've blogged, we're about ready for an update. In the past year I've experienced some of the most entertaining events in my life thus far. I dated, fell in love for the first time, and ultimately broke up with a guy who will forever have left a mark in my life. Survived a tornado (well mostly just a tornado siren but still.) Took somewhat spur of the moment trips to Miami and Utah. Went through the St. Louis Temple to receive my endowment. Saw Josh Groban in concert. Tried new foods including Indian, Middle Eastern, Cuban, Caribbean, Greek, etc. Bought a car! Moved to a lame college town but moved in with an amazing roommate. Met my newest niece who is not only adorable, but thrilled to be around other people. Planned and attended numerous ward activities including a Pinewood Derby. And really the list goes on and on. I don't really have pictures to share right now but maybe one day I'll upload some. Here are a few details of the experiences listed above.

-I had the humbling experience of going through the temple for the first time to receive my endowment. My friends Liz and Jodi came from out of town and I am forever grateful that they were here to be with me. I had several friends from KC travel up with me-Ben, Jarrett, Sarah, Brittany, James, and Marta. We made a little day journey to St. Louis and had a great time. I am so lucky to have made the friends that I have. I have been so lucky to have the opportunity to attend a temple each month ever since I've gone. I've been to St. Louis, Winter Quarters (Omaha), Nauvoo, Bountiful and Salt Lake. On my year anniversary, I will actually be able to attend the Kansas City temple which will open on May 8!

-My friends Amy and Hollie came out here to visit and go to a Josh Groban concert, something I never thought I'd do. :) Joshie was great but the girls were even more fun to spend time with. While they were here, we made our way up to the Winter Quarters Temple. They were such troopers to travel three hours to the nearest temple. Being from Utah, they most they have to travel is about 30 minutes! The good news is we had that time to catch up on one another's lives and it was as though we hadn't been separated for the past 7 years. I'm so glad they got to come see the joys of living in KC!

-Ben and I had several adventures while he was here including visiting his entire family in small-town Kansas, going to his medical school graduation, watching Brian Regan live, eating at his favorite (all new to me) restaurants in KC, seeking shelter (and stopping for slushies) during tornado sirens, packing him up and saying goodbye. He moved to Florida and we did long distance for a couple of months before we realized the distance just wasn't going to work for us. I learned and continue learning a great deal from that relationship.

-I bought a car! While Amy and Hollie were visiting my car door kind of broke in the fact that it wouldn't open from the outside anymore. After all of the many minor issues I had, that was the last straw. I went to several dealerships and ended up with a KIA Sportage. After I signed my life away, I walked out feeling accomplished. Then a few hours later I realized 100 different things I could have done to get a better deal. Ha! I'm so sure I could have been such a great negotiator.

-I moved to Lawrence, Kansas, home of the Kansas Jayhawks. The good news is that I moved in with a K-State Wildcat! She (along with several other of my favorite coworkers) has made me a fan too. Inasmuch as I'm a fan of any sports team. She and I made a trip to Utah in October to visit my family. I introduced her to the Park City outlet malls, Cafe Rio, LaVell Edwards Stadium, General Conference, and my wonderful family. She fell in love with them, the mountains, and my dad's Harley. It was a wonderful vacation.

-My sweet little niece Rylee Mae was born in August and I took a quick trip to see her in September. She is such a doll! I got to hold her and cuddle her and love her. I wish like crazy that I was around my girls more often. Wouldn't it be nice if my family all just moved out of Utah? Let's put our heads together and come up with somewhere wonderful to live. Deal?

-I was "blessed" to receive the calling of Ward Activities Committee Chair which basically means I'm in charge of entertaining 30+ people once a month. In October we headed to a corn maze, November was the American Jazz Museum/Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, December we went ice skating outdoors at the Crown Center Plaza, January was small group dinners at the bishopric's homes, and last month we had a Pinewood Derby. We had about 16 cars participate so I'd say it was a success! Jennie's dad let a few of us girls come by to play with his tools. He showed us how to properly use some tools and I mostly inhaled sawdust. It was a blast.

And that sums up the past 12 months or so of my life. There are a few humorous dating stories and some seriously embarrassing wipe outs that have both literally and figuratively left scars all over my body, but those stories will be for another time. Maybe a time when I don't have oodles and oodles of other adventures to catch you up on.

Guest Post from....

Sarah. i am ashlee's new significant other. and by that i mean, we both live in lawrence, so we carpool everywhere. ashlee is doing GREAT. she just celebrated a birthday this week and received a box of candy from her momma and jennie ate all the sour punch straws, but i'm over it. they're just so delicious, you know? it is cold here in the KS, but there is no snow yet, so that is just grand. ashlee is doing a great job as the ward activities chair. we are going ice skating this saturday and then having a white elephant gift exchange. (p.s. i have a superfly white elephant gift)
i tried to load a photo, it was to no avail.
happy holidays!
sarah

In case you're wondering if I died.

As it turns out, blogging is on the bottom of my priority list. There is a very good reason for my absence, however, and I hope that this post might prove that I simply have not had time for updates.

So, if I can even remember back as far as my last post, I will update you with what's been going on. January came in with a bang. We celebrated New Year's Eve at Ben's house. A bunch of people came, played games, snacked, and watched 2010's NYE ball drop because we couldn't find a live feed online. Obviously we Youtubed it and made it work. We're crafty like that. And that's where my crazy-busy year started. Almost every weekend since then has been packed with activities. I won't bore you with all of the details but some of the highlights include:
*Eating at Bonefish Grill and me actually ENJOYING fish. Tilapia to be exact. I highly recommend it.
*Staying overnight at a coworker's house to avoid the 70 mile drive home after work during crazy snowstorms. These stays included my first viewing of any of the Desperate Housewives, finding new clothes at Wal-Mart, driving through the blizzard for lunch (priorities), and lots of coworker bonding.
*Going to a community theater to see a friend star in Steel Magnolias.
*Getting a promotion at work. I am now the Associate Buyer for International Kids'. Whoa. Did not see that one coming.
*Taking a couple of road trips to the nearest temple in Omaha, Nebraska. There's nothing quite like hitting 4 states before 10 am.
*Thoroughly enjoyed General Conference Weekend.



*Meeting almost all of Ben's family. (Oh yes, Ben would be the good reason for me not having time to blog.)That wasn't stressful at all. Oh wait, yeah it was. Turns out they're awesome and I had nothing to worry about.
*Had a work party where I received a gift of an autographed Daily Universe article about Jimmer Fredette. Awesome! During said party, I was told I should try out for American Idol. Obviously those making the suggestion had been drinking.
*Danced the night away at a friend's wedding. Seriously we were the last ones there besides the DJ.

 PS I just loved that Jarrett had to hold all of the girls' purses for the photo above.

 *Game nights and fun outings with the gang. We decided to go bowling one night and had a grand ole time!

 Ben's pre-bowl stance.

 Check out that follow through!

 Poser.

*Ben and I took a quick little jaunt to Miami. Ben is graduating Med School from KCUMB this month and is moving to Miami for residency (just my luck). We decided to take a little trip down there to find him a place to live. While we were at it, we enjoyed the sun, warmth, delicious Cuban, Puerto Rican, and Caribbean food, the beach, driving down the A-1-A (Beach Front Avenue!), and friendly Floridians.

 I'm not exaggerating when I say that Ben's new place is 6 blocks away from this. HEAVEN.

*Quick trip to the new Kansas City Temple. This temple will be ready early next year and then we won't have to drive all the way to Omaha or St. Louis to visit a temple.

And I think that's it. I know I missed a lot but there's still a lot more to come. Next week I'll be going to the St. Louis temple. A few friends will be coming to go through with me and I'm very excited about it. The weekend after that is Ben's graduation and we'll be going to a Brian Regan concert. I'm already laughing. After that, we'll probably go to a Royal's game. The last weekend in May is reserved for my girls from Utah to come visit. That's Ben's last weekend before moving to Miami. I do not know what I'm going to do when he's gone and I have all sorts of time on my hands. I'm probably also moving closer to work so I won't have a long drive to occupy my time. Guess I'll finally have to learn how to play the piano and maybe take some Spanish lessons. Oh man...let's not think about that yet.

2010 In Review.

Here's my annual pictorial recap of the happenings of the past year. Enjoy!

January 2010: Party at Ashlee's! We had a huge New Year's Day feast at my place. Jodi donated a turkey and we decided to be brave and cook it ourselves. For the first time in our lives, our moms were not around when there was a huge piece of poultry to be cooked. We may have missed pulling out a few of its guts, but it tasted good nonetheless. It was a wonderful smorgasbord with everyone's donations!

February 2010: Liz comes to Chicago! We did all of the wonderful touristy things one should do while in Chicago and it was a blast.

 It is important for you to understand though, that Liz did not come to Chicago to see the sights or even to see me, really. She came to help me which is why she is one of the best friends you can have. Not too long before her visit, I had called Liz and had a bit of a breakdown with her. I was seriously doubting myself, my ability to endure to the end as a member of the Church, and where I was heading in life. I had hit an all-time low and Liz came to the rescue. I am very grateful for that visit because though I didn't think so at the time, she is just what I needed. I am happy to say that after much study, prayer, counsel, patience, and faith I am doing much better and loving life as an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The struggle I have gone through has made me a lot stronger and I am grateful to be where I am today.

March 2010: Erin turns 1! I went home for this kiddo! Who could resist that face?

April 2010: I took only one picture! This is the only picture I have from April. Blake and Jess matched and since it was adorable, we documented it.

April was actually quite an interesting month for me. I was interviewing like crazy for jobs and didn't know where I was going to be in the next couple of months. Major stress in my life! No wonder I didn't have time for pics.


May 2010: San Francisco! I was offered a job in San Fran and went with Sears on a pre-decision trip. It was on this trip that I received my offer to work for Payless and well, we all know how that ended up. SF is a beautiful city and I'm glad that my mom and I got to visit!

 

Jodi and I also made a trip to KC this month to look for housing. I was a traveling fool this summer but I kinda loved every minute of it. The minute I walked in the door after getting home for KC, I started taking the pics down in my apartment and packed up. It was really bittersweet.
 

June 2010: Aus and Nicole get married! Just after I moved to Kansas City, (3 days later to be exact) I flew home for the big wedding. I'm still so happy for Austin and Nicole! It was so much fun (except for explaining to the wedding guests that a-no I'm not married or dating anyone, b-yes I just left Chicago and turned down a job in SF to move to Kansas, and c-my life is kinda crazy but that's what makes it fun!)

July 2010: Made friends in Kansas! I found some friends to have adventures with and did the best I could at making my life in Kansas City fun. I'm sure that based on the happenings of the summer of 2010 that the summer of 2011 will be even better!

 I also started my job this month and moved teams this month. I started in girls' and moved to boys' and kids' athletics. Let's see how else we shake up my world...


August 2010: Another baseball game to add to my collection! The Royals tried to play the Sox but as you can see, it got rained out. Doesn't matter though because it turned out to be my favorite evening in Kansas City to date.

September 2010: Quick trip home! I was getting a little homesick and found the perfect opportunity to take a break during Labor Day Weekend. I went home for a few days and it was just what the doctor ordered! I LOVE this picture because it goes so well with the picture below it. :) Still friends (and still stand in the same positions)!

October 2010: My first real Halloween costume in years! Jarrett came up with the awesome idea of being Wenda and Waldo for Halloween. It was kinda fun!

I also visited St. Louis this month to see my friend Ben and got to see the arch. It was a blast! I'm always up for a good road trip!

November 2010: Puppysitting! My buyer needed a puppysitter for the weekend so I volunteered to take Rocky. We had a really good time together. :)

My family also came to town in November for Thanksgiving and we had a blast eating dinner at my place, hanging at the hotel, shopping at the Plaza, and just enjoying one another's company. One my favorite Thanksgivings ever!

December 2010: Happy Birthday to me! My friends in my ward threw me my first surprise birthday ever.  It was amazing! I had such a blast and love all of my friends here. My coworkers decorated my cube and my family sang me all sorts of Happy Birthday renditions. It was a great way to turn 25.



I went home for Christmas as well and have tons of pictures of my adorable niece but that will be a post for another day. 

As far as New Year's Resolutions I have many but for some reason am hesitant to write them all down. I will share at least the ones that I might blog about. :)

*Cook at least once a week

*Read Sunday School and Relief Society Lessons before class

*Finish the books on my bookshelf that I haven't read yet

Happy 2011 everybody! I think it's going to be a great year!