Awkward and Awesome Thursday!

Awkward:
- When you're stopped at a red light and rocking out to the Florida Georgia Line song in your car and look over to see a confused man looking at you. Excuse me, didn't your mama teach you not to stare? That's rude.
-Everything about swollen lymph nodes.
- You happen to go to the park and your little 4 year-old cousin is adamant that you swing with him so you get in the swing only to turn around and find a group of kindergardeners wondering what the heck an adult is doing in their swing. And then you spend the rest of the afternoon wearing the shameful "Yeah- I- just- deprived- children- the- joy- of- swinging- in- their- child-sized- swing" look.
-When you meet people and you say
     "Hi, I'm Kelsey"
     "Nice to meet you Chelsea"
   Two weeks later:
      "Good to see you Chelsea!"
Seriously happens more often than not.
    Oy.
- When you wear a skirt to work and look down to discover you haven't shaved your legs in who knows how long. I'm in college people, I don't have time for that nonsense.


Awesome:
- You can't get your 21 month-old cousin to stop crying so you turn on your iPod as a last resort and he curls up against your chest and falls asleep. Baby sweetness.
- Up to your eyeballs in college work and your 4 year-old cousin comes in asking if you can read him a book. Okay, I'd much rather read about the latest endeavor of the Berenstain Bears than about nihilism. Picture books are where it's at anyway.
-Pumpkin pancakes for dinner. And then again at midnight :)
-When your daddy fills your car up with gas AND washes it.
- L.A. Marathon and all it's glory.
- Getting to bed before 11:30. Seriously- that just happened.
-Wearing shorts after being confined to pants for 4 solid months. My legs can breathe. Now, I just need to be a lady and shave. Yikes.

Bliss, good tidins' and Montana!

Having practically been raised in Montana, this trip was just what I needed. Overwhelmed with school and work and life, going to Montana during the winter and snow and slush was just perfect.

I knew this trip would be bittersweet for many different reasons. One, I miss my grandpa more than ever right now for some reason. And being at my grandparents house with his empty lounge chair and gigantic bible next to it, is just so hard to see. And two, my momma couldn't go because her mom was in the hospital and she flew out to Oklahoma to see her so we wouldn't be able to spend Christmas together. I had enough time off of work though to spend time with her.

Anyway, on a lighter note- I had about 5 weeks off of school and my boss was so generous enough to give me two weeks off, and so I left! I threw clothes in a bag and left. We packed my dog (which he was high maintenance about his space in the back) and took off one afternoon. 

We drove through Las Vegas and made it to Cedar City (pronounced Chedder City on behalf of my younger brother when he was little) for the night. From there we left the next morning at about 6:00 so Caily could see  the sun rise. She had this novel idea to do a 2012 Bucket List and waited until the last minute in December to watch a sunrise. Seriously? She got us all up for this. I hate being woke up- let alone by those stupid people at the front desk calling on the phone to wake you up. Who invented that anyway? I wanted to see the sun rise anyway but I couldn't wait to go back to sleep in the car. We were on the road for fifteen minutes and after we pulled over to watch the sunrise, my dad got gas and said "Okay, Kelsey's gonna drive." Excuse me? My objection was overruled and I was put in the driver's seat and I drove for 3 hours while everyone else slept. Needless to say, the view was gorgeous and I was no longer so bitter. 

We made it to my grandmas and spent  a few days with her and then off we went to Big Sky, Montana to this adorable little cabin nestled against this canyon where the snow fell beautifully and the view was indescribable. 

It's hard to leave that place. It's therapy for my soul and boggles my mind as to why my parents settled in the desert of California but whatevs. So thankful that I have that place to go and it has given me some of my best memories throughout my childhood. 

Taking off.  Note the excessive room Sparky has.

Cracker Barrel at 10 at night. 

The glorious sign!

Word to your mother

When you're 12 and carve your name in a bathroom stall in the restaurant
you use to eat at all the time and go back years late
and can still find it. 

We rarely get along- but when we do you can find us on the same couch.

Love this weather

Hi daddy! I see you!

Gramps' gun

Christmas meal. And if course, he has to be in the center of it all.

New baby Tavyn

My mega-sweet brother took his sisters out to lunch.
Seriously the cutest!

Note his bitterness on how much room he doesn't have. 

Hotel mobbin'

When fools steal your snowboarding gear so you have to make do
with snowmobiling clothes.

Me: Grandma look we're thuggin'!
Grandma: What?! Did you say "thuggin" or  "druggin"

Don't mind if we do.

Such a stud my brother is

Cousins.

five (things).

I was tagged in this by my sister,  Caily, who might clobber me if I don't do this;) Ain't she cute everyone? Anyway, it originally started with an Instagram post and then the adorable Sydney Poulton brought it to the blogs.

So here it is- just a little you might want to know about me. I added a picture of a photoshoot I had with a friend which I very well might be obsessing over. 

one:

I have never been the type of girl who "needs" a boyfriend. I think most boys are obnoxious and immature and downright cowardly. If you can handle my sassiness and my constant need for white chocolate, then by all means. You miiiiiiight have to be able to sing like Chris Ledoux as well- but that's not mandatory. You will also have to be able to have political conversations with my dad without him throwing a frying pan at you (i.e. you MUST be Republican), you have to be able to cook with my mother, and my brothers must like you. 

two: 

I am in love with my car. A 2000 Toyota 4-runner which never ceases to impress me.  It's  a 2-wheel drive and can still climb up snow-covered slopes everyone. I have had that baby since I began driving and it has been with me through everything. I also have my older brother's tires on it- which makes it THAT much cooler. 

three:

I am not a woman of patience. And I may have a tad-bit of road rage. Just maybe.

four:

One of my favorite childhood memories is climbing up on my grandpa's lap and him reading the bible to me or telling me funny stories which always ended in him chuckling up a storm and sometimes popcorn.

five: 

My nickname when I was little was Fussy Kussy. Sometimes my family still calls me that. I was a cranky baby and my mom would have to dance me around the living room as she vacuumed to get me to calm down- thats where Fussy comes in. And then Kussy just because it rhymes and when my brother was little, he just couldn't pronounce Kelsey. So that nickname was born. 

I want FAHH-BU-LOUS.

Hello once again! Before I blow up this page with pictures of  Montana (yes I promise, they are coming), let me tell you about my FAHH-BU-LOUS red pants. I hate obnoxious clothing but when i saw these, I threw them at the cashier and said "ring me up homegirl!". They are the most comfortable things and I'm in love. And you're gonna see a lot of pictures of me in them because they are pretty much glued to my body. I think that homegirl at the cash register knew that too because she gave me 'the eye' that said either "make sure you wash these right so all your other clothes don't turn red", or "I am NOT your homegirl". Whatevs. Anyone who gives me red pants is the top of my list.

Oh hey! Sorry I've been MIA since beginning of December. I know. EPIC. FAIL. It's been pretty busy in my neck of the woods- finals, finishing up my first semester of college (I'll take my bow and indulge in some red velvet cookies right about NOW), trip to Montana for a glorious 10 days and now coming back. I have plenty of picture to occupy you for hours but I just finished unpacking and I can hear the shower calling my name. So for now, I hope your holidays were filled with family and fun and I'll leave you with this little gem.

5 and a half days. just five. and a half.

I'm officially done with school! First semester = OVAA!
I finished my last final about 37 seconds ago and I'm ready for a bag of confetti and my snow boots!
Montana, here I come for a glorious 10 days!

Let me get this straight.

So before I tell you about my awesomely fun weekend in Costa Mesa, let me get this straight:

Obama is President?

For another four years?

That is gut-wrenching.

Now, let me straighten this out: I am a Republican. You can love me or hate me for it but I was raised being taught that hard-work is one of the most rewarding attributes on earth. I hate it when people are leeches and suck off people who work hard to provide for themselves and their family. I can't stand it when people tell me I'm racist when I don't vote for Obama. Really? Is that how you handle an argument and a difference of opinions? I grew up in a conservative family and can remember having discussions with my grandpa about his farm and how he provided for himself, his wife, and 6 kids. My dad is a business man so I grew up with those genes. Growing up with my dad, I inherited his political outbursts and I manage to spout off things in the middle of class which eventually led me to getting kicked out of Language Arts in 9th grade when my teacher made us watch the Inauguration speech Obama made for the 2008-2012 term. 

Fine. I didn't want to watch it anyway. So sue me. Three other kids followed me and we sat outside the door until the bell rang for 3rd period. 

So Tuesday, I went over and sat with Chet and while we were determined to do homework, we didn't get anything done. Instead, we sat there stalking about 12 different websites with the live votes being counted for hours. We had dinner and dessert but just kept sitting there. When we saw Obama's results spike over 270 to 275, my heart dropped and I threw up a little in my mouth.

You have got to be kidding me.

"The government will never make everyone equal.
  They will just make people equally miserable."

On that note. I'll go be bitter elsewhere but here is a little something to brighten your day.