WASATCH BACK RELAY

Running from Logan to Park City 178 miles

I had way too much fun, not enough sleep (approx. 1.5 hours in 2 days), and plenty of funny memories!

I'm a Big Girl now.... I went on a business trip to Chicago this past week. It was fun, stressful and boring all at the same time. I flew in on Thursday and stayed at the Intercontinental right on Magnificent Mile (where all the high end shopping is). It was a great room and I had it all to myself! We had a cocktail party that night where I met Lauren from Rochester, NY. She just turned 21 and it was her first time at a business meeting too. After an excellent dinner we walked around the city and saw the John Hancock Building, other buildings, a really cool church, and the crazy nightlife. (too bad I didn't have my camera) I got up the next morning and had a great breakfast, meetings, lunch, meetings, snack, meetings. The room where we had the meetings was FREEZING!! Everybody was complaining about how cold it was. I think they were just trying to get us to stay awake. Lauren and I walked around a little more before a car came and took me to the airport. I was originally leaving at 6:15pm and arriving around 10. Not so bad I thought until we (Sharon the dietitian from the U, who also gave a presentation at the PKUDOS meeting and I) got to the airport and found out or flight was delayed. Sitting and waiting followed as well as more delays. Finally after we got on the STUFFY plane and pulled away from the gate (around 8:45pm) we were informed that we would have to pull back into the gate so maintenance could look at the cooling system. Finally we were in the air with a bunch of high schoolers who would not stop arguing. They were in a debate about Marching band being a sport....please tell me I was never like that in High School. No sleep for me so I worked on my talk for Father's Day. We finally landed and had to wait because there was construction and the plane in front of us had to be towed to the gate...... What a long day. As much as I love to travel, doing it for work isn't the way I really want to do it. Oh well it was a great adventure where I met a lot of people and learned a few things!

Sweet dreams are made of this, Who am I to disagree?Travel the world and the seven seas....

I find myself wishing it was last year and I was gearing up to go on my adventure. However if I knew back then what I do now, I would have stayed longer in Ghana, and traveled to many more places in Europe as well as stayed longer there. I would of been gone the WHOLE summer. Hopefully one day I can do that. I'll just dream for now!

I miss the cute little faces, Jess and Tally, Bethany, Leslie, Ali, Ellen, the fun adventures you get when you travel alone, having a fun-work free summer, as well as many other things!

PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN

Where at least I know I don't have to bind my feet, and I thought American fashion was crazy. Leggings, skinny jeans, gaucho pants, pointy shoes, etc....have nothing on these.

A well needed trip down memory lane...

Part 1

After my little spring cleaning escapade, I decided to take my mom and aunt Sara on a trip down memory lane. It was so much fun, I thought you would enjoy it too. Warning: Lots of reading,but well worth it if you ask me.

These are my mini Pound Puppies. I LOVED these things. I would take them to school and put them in my desk and play with them all day long. As you can see I have quite the collection, there are actually a few missing from this. Sorry little puppies it does not mean I don't love you. The ones to the right are the "wanna be" mini pound puppies, they just couldn't quite make the grade.

#1 The troll: Justin gave this to me for Christmas one year. We were at Jobbers Odd Lot (back in the good old days before 7-11 took over the corner) buying each others gifts. I guess I was into trolls back then (don't ask, I only acquired two so I made it out of that time period better off then a lot of others) so being the sweet, thoughtful brother he is, Justin decided to get this for me. Well I walked around the corner and saw him picking it out and didn't want to ruin the surprise so I ran and he didn't see me. I was so excited for my troll and on Christmas morning I acted really surprised. Don't ever tell him, I wouldn't want to break his little heart.

#2 Kitchen Accessories: HELLO only the best toy ever made! I love my kitchen, I had everything to go with it too, the blender, bowls, measuring cups, frosting, and my all time favorite the syrup (it disappeared when you poured it) Too bad my mom gave it away to my little cousins WITHOUT my permission. She kept a few things as you can see (the mixing stand,but where is the mixer I ask?) and my heart broke when she said she had given away my syrup pour thingy. The kitchens these days are more high tech, but not as fun. The have all the sounds, and stuff so you don't have to use your imagination or make the sound yourself (one of the best parts)

#3 Cow and dog: These 2 little joys are the two stuffed animals that both Josh and I have and we would play with them together, I miss those bonding days!

#4 My glow in the dark bunny: The little pink bunny was awesome! You leave it in the light all day and at night the stars on it would glow and keep you feeling safe (if your were afraid of the dark, which to tell you the truth I don't think I was)

#1 My Cabbage Patch Baby: The only Cabbage Patch I ever owned was this sweet little baby, The bib held the bottle and it had one of those outfits where you cinch the kids legs up in it. It also had a little tuft of brown hair that I always covered up with the bonnet because I thought it looked ugly. Oh he memories.

#2 LIZARDS: I don't like creepy crawlers in real life but these things were filled with sand and they were so much fun to play with. Remember when your mom would drop you off at the mall and you would collect call your friends mom to come and pick you up when you were done. Well I bought these during one of those outings. The big lizard was the biggest purchase I made when I was little. It was like $45 or something like that (I really don't know where I got my money from or why I thought it was ok to spend that much on something this dumb, I don't think I would spend that much now, lesson learned) I bought it at Natural Wonders....The coolest store in the mall. I would always spend a huge chunk of my time playing around in Natural Wonders...what ever happened to that store?

#3 Bean Bag frog: Brittany had 3 or 4 of these and I was a little jealous, I finally got one and we played with them for hour. Brittany made clothes for hers, I let mine run wild and free.

#4: Bongo: Sara said this was Grandma Frogley's and she must have given it too me, either way it does thumbs up and you stick the thumb in its mouth.

Well that was part one, stay tuned it gets a lot better. I love days like this when you just laugh and think of how fun life was a few short years ago. My question to you is where did all the good toys go? and the good cartoons on Saturday morning? What has life come to these days, my poor kids will have high tech toys and learning cartoons. We all turned out okay, give me back simplicity, imagination, and creativity. Part 2 will come later, be sure to scroll down and check out the other posts, there have been a few good ones this week, don't ask me where I found the time.

Katherine Heigl Leaving 'Grey's Anatomy'?

May 8, 2008 9:29 a.m. EST

The 29-year-old actress - who has found success in romantic comedies 'Knocked Up' and '27 Dresses' - is said to be keen to end her contract with the medical drama to focus entirely on movies.

A source close to the actress said: "She's working really long hours and is ready to move on. She's a smart one. "

"She saw what can happen with someone like Jennifer Aniston, who was crazy successful on TV, but can't seem to carry a film, and she tested the waters early."

However, Katherine - who made headlines when negotiations for her contract renewal on the show were made public 15 months ago - may be locked into her contract and will have to continue starring as Dr. Isobel Stevens.

The source added to Us Weekly magazine: "I don't think she'll be able to get out of it."

Katherine can next be seen in romantic comedy 'The Ugly Truth' with Gerard Butler. Since starring as Rachel Green in 'Friends', Jennifer has appeared in a host of films, including 'The Break-Up' and 'Bruce Almighty', but has failed to shake off her TV character.

It's not ending yet!

Thats right folks after 3 1/2 months of school vacation, I'm headed back! I'm kind of excited. I will be taking a few classes to spice up my PA application (I really want to get in this year) This summer is going to be EXTREMELY busy (I'm not sure if it is in a good way or a bad one.) 

I will be.... 

• Working Full time BOO!
• Not enjoying the sun
• Filling out applications (13 of them)
• Shadowing a PA
• Going to school 3 nights a week
• Studying (lets be honest, this might not happen)
• Looking at new jobs
• Oh yeah and trying to have a social life (haha we'll see)

When I list it out is does not sound too bad, but since work takes up most of my day, there is not much time for the other things.

For those who are wondering (anyone?).... come October, November, December, and January (depending on when the application is due) I will be applying to schools in the following states, and paying way too much money to do it:

• 1 in California 
• 1 in Washington D.C
• 1 in Washington (the state)
• 2 in Florida
• 1 in Maine
• 1 in Montana
• 1 in Oregon
• 1 in Utah
• 5 in New York

What are my odds of actually moving out of Utah this time? I would say pretty good. No matter where (if) I get accepted, I will be moving, no turing it down this time. I can't wait, I REALLY REALLY REALLY hope I get in this year. My odds still aren't great, but I'm another year older (and hopefully a little wiser too) and I'm doing things to enhance the good old resume. This is all I want to do, I don't know if I can take another rejection. I'm ready to move out, begin my career, go back to school full time, work with kids, help people, acquire a LARGE debt, complete another BIG life long goal, and feel successful... PRAY FOR ME. Maybe if I get the 2 of you who read this to pray for the next few months it'll give me the extra umph I need. Where in the world will I end up?

SPRING CLEANING!!!

I just got done doing a little spring cleaning in my room. I sure do sleep better at night knowing my room is clean, organized, and beautiful.

My Diploma finally has a home....

After receiving my diploma sometime in January it finally has a place outside of the envelope it came in. I walked at the College of Health Commencement Ceremony and got a little red diploma holder! Now my diploma can be displayed proudly in my room, until it finds its way into a frame and onto my wall. Thanks mom, dad, Justin, Megan, Mike, Sara, Grandma, and Grandpa for sitting through the long ceremony.

(this is my friend Christie Harris)

Five years ago...

It is hard to believe 5 years ago I was getting ready to graduate from Murray High, have a fantastic summer, and move away for my first year of college. I could never have imagined where I would be, what things I have done, and how my life changed five years later. I don't think I thought I would be in the position I'm in, or ever thought I could travel the world all alone. The last five years were a roller coaster ride filled with incredible highs, depressing lows, and some times where I was just coasting. It is weird to think what the last five years has brought me...

• A few more stamps in my passport
• Two different colleges
• One move away from home
• A unforgettable (not in a good way) singles ward experience
• A 3 year YSA calling
• A few dates here and there (and maybe a boyfriend or two)
• One marathon
• A few half- marathons, and some other races thrown in there
• New friends
• Saying goodbye to old friends
• One painful heartbreak
• An amazing African adventure, filled with service
• A different perspective on life
• A sister-in-law
• One return missionary brother
• The last brother sent out on a mission
• Independence
• Adventure
• Two different majors
• One acceptance to grad school
• Declining my acceptance to grad school
• Applying to a different grad school
• Finding out what I really wanted to do
• One step closer to knowing who I am, and accepting it
• The "Aunt Panties" Status (almost twice)
• The death of both a Grandma and Grandpa
• A 40 hour a week job
• Completion of a few of my life long goals
• A blog, and facebook page
• Two parents over the age of 50
• A job offer in San Diego
• A Credit Card (and credit card bill)
• A College Graduation
• A die hard U of U fan
• A fantastic internship (and great friends from it)
• A closer relationship with my BFF Brittany
• The marriage of 90% of my friends
• Meeting the Latham's (the coolest people ever)
• Becoming closer to Jessica and Tally
• Meeting Bethany
• Plus realizing anything is possible!

What I hope the next five years brings me...

• Another acceptance to grad school
• A husband
• A new career as a Pediatric PA
• A fantastic life
• More stamps in my passport
• Happiness
• Another sister-in-law (or two)
• A few more nieces (and hopefully a nephew)
• Success
• One kid (or a preggo belly, don't want to move things to fast)
• Love
• And endless opportunities....

Thanks too everybody who has been there supporting me over the last 5 years, I hope you will be there to see where I am in 5 more (almost 28, wow I'll be old!)

GRADUATION (ugly cap and gown) HERE I COME!

First 40 hour Work Week........Check!

I have done many 40 hours weeks, mostly they included school, studying, and internships (it usually was WELL over 40 hours) but for some reason it was a lot easier then having a REAL job. I'm sure once the first pay check comes it will make it easier. I'm not complaining I'm just amazed at how working at a real job for only 40 hours seems more tiring than not getting paid and working up to 60 hours.

However like always, I'm wishing I was exploring the many wonders this world has to offer, and not being forced to grow up.

I DON'T WANNA GROW UP CAUSE IF I DID I WOULDN'T BE A TOYS R US KID!!

OnE Of My ToP FiVe

This is by far one of my top five favorite commercials. I also enjoy the Jimmy Dean ones, and the Sonic Drive-In ones. Some people are just creative, and if I drank (which I don't and NEVER have) I would pick Captain Morgan because they have great advertising. I am a sucker for good commercials.

Ever Wondered What to Name Your Kid?

I was talking to Heather (who needs to get herself a blog) and she told me I had to see this site, we both got a good laugh out of it and I hope you do too. I took this from For Your Information if you look at the comments they are pretty funny too. It is a little long but well worth the time it takes to read it!

A few years ago my friend and I thought it would be a good idea to write a book about baby names. Not so much a list of baby names, more of a list of things to consider when naming a baby. I think writing a book like that is a good idea because I'm pretty sure women have babies (still trying to figure out some of the finer points) and women also love buying crap. The book could be a big seller. Also, one of the reasons I decided to go to law school was because I'm not very good at thinking of my own ideas but I am pretty good at showing other people why their ideas are stupid. So writing a book about what not to do just makes sense.

Since there is a chance we will still write the book (in the same sense that there is still a chance that I'm not fat), I'm not going to tell you everything here so you'll feel compelled to buy the book when it is published.

Here are a few of the subjects we will cover along with some thoughts on each.

Chapter 1: Your baby wasn't born a senior citizen and he or she won't be a toddler forever

Generally there are three issues with this rule. There are names that only work for kids; there are names that only work for adults (say like 35-60); and then there are names that only work for old folks.

A name that only works for a kid is Kayden. If you ever go to a professional for help (doctor, lawyer, accountant, basically anything but a sandwich artist at Subway) and the guy's name is Kayden, go somewhere else.

Brenda is a good name that won't work with kids and won't work for a senior. Brenda is a good name for a receptionist and that is about it. I have never met anyone named Brenda, so I can only hope that people have realized the problem with that name. You can see the problem with that name from 90210. They had to keep calling Brenda, Bren (or something like that).

A good example of a name reserved for seniors in Milton. Don't name your baby Milton.

Your baby will appreciate a name that can develop with them and change to their different circumstances.

Chapter 2: Avoid names that limit career options

Let the baby decide what it wants to do with its life. If you name your baby Gage he will probably end up doing construction. There isn't anything wrong with doing construction, but maybe Gage didn't want to do that and you forced it on him.

Chapter 3: You don't decide nicknames so avoid names that sound like body parts

Parents have little control over what their friends and peers call them. For example, my friend's parents wanted their kid to be called Kristopher but everyone calls him Kris. They tried to get people to call him Kristopher (it worked on me), but for the most part everyone calls him Kris.

The only control parents have for a nickname is limiting the realm of possibilities for the nicknames. If you name a kid Amos or Enis your kids will hate you and they should.

Chapter 4: Famous people and their characters

You may truly love someone famous. You may even have the restraining order to prove it. You are a parent now; you have to grow up a little bit. Don't name a baby Calista or Phoebe even if you think they are really cool names and even if you thought they were really cool names before Ally McBeal or Friends was on TV. Some names are just off limits even if you love them.

Remember that celebrities are to be mocked, not admired.

Chapter 5: Places

I have been to Cheyenne and to the Dakotas. They have one thing in common: they both suck. I don't care if names of people became names of places and you are naming the baby after the person. See the penultimate sentence of the Chapter 4 comment.

A noun is a person, place or thing. If you name your kid after a place you end up causing serious categories confusion. When you introduce Cheyenne to a group of people in Laramie they could be really confused. You see the problem.

Chapter 6: Alternate spellings

There are no points for creativity. Just spell the name like everyone else does. You shouldn't be naming the baby a name that has a bunch of accepted spellings anyway (remember Kayden?). If you don't know how to spell the name you choose, choose a different one. Even if you make a conscious decision to spell the baby's name in some crazy way, everyone will just assume you are illiterate.

Chapter 7: Literary characters

No one cares that when you were 12th grade J.D. Salinger changed the way you look at life. Don't name your kid Holden. Everyone is glad that you read, it is a skill that is vital to one's success. But your kid might think Salinger was a hack. He will forever be associated with him and hate you for it. That goes for all authors, especially Jane Austen.

Chapter 8: Consider your last name

One important thing to remember is that rhyming first and last names is a bad idea. For example, I would never name a child Fran. This might only be an issue for those of you with one syllable last names, but everyone needs to be aware of it.

It is equally important to make sure the first name/last name combo doesn't sounds like something. An example with my name would be the name Anita. It just doesn't work.

Chapter 9: Using the same letter for every kid

David St. Hubbins said it best. "It's such a fine line between stupid and clever." There was a family in our neighborhood that had seven kids and each kid's name started with K. I don't know if they were ostracized because of their names or because they all had perms (even the boys). It was probably a combination of both. But neither one did them any favors.

One of the big problems with this is that inevitably you will have to break the rule in Chapter 6 to think of a name for one of the kids.

Chapter 10: Naming your child after a quality or an attribute only means they won't have that quality or attribute

How many wholesome girls do you know named Chastity? You don't know any. Trust me on this one. Likewise, Hope will always despair; Faith won't believe a word you say; Charity will have problems with sharing. The list goes on.

If you want your daughter to grow up to be a hooker, name her Chastity. Otherwise, find something else. Maybe you could try the opposite quality or attribute and see if the rule works. Maybe name your son Cocky or something that like. That would be funny.

Well, I hope these chapters give you an idea of where we're going with the book. There are many, many more chapters that I am not including.

Naming a child shouldn't be taken lightly. If you aren't sure about a name for baby, save it for a pet.

I would be more than happy to tell you why the names you are considering are bad ideas. 

NOW WASN'T THAT WORTH ALL THE READING?

Being the Lang "outcast" is going to pay off in the long run!!

I am one of the few brunette Lang girls in the family, and definitely the cousin with the darkest hair, well thanks to a recent study done by lycos.com I'm going to be loving my dark hair come marriage time!

"Blondes are said to have more fun but it seems brunettes steal the hearts of billionaires. Brunettes such as Microsoft boss Bill Gates' wife, Melinda French are more likely to marry a successful man than their blonde sisters, a study today said. Experts checked the hair colour of the wives and girlfriends of the world's top 100 billionaires. Most – 62 percent – were brunettes. Fair-haired women came in a poor second with 22 per cent of the world's top billionaires marrying blondes. Raven-haired women enticed just 16 per cent of the world's wealthiest men, while not one of top billionaires is married to a redhead." (sorry redheads)

You know what my fair-haired friends, you go ahead and pretend you're having more fun, but I'll be loving my financially stable life. (A Billionaire would be nice, but I wouldn't pass up a man with a little less! ok maybe I would pass this loon up)

If I Could Turn Back Time...

(This song reminds me of "Will and Grace" when Jack starts doing a Cher impersonation and sings this song, HILARIOUS!)

Still working on my photoshop skills, how am I doing?

Professor Randy Pausch was also on Oprah for all you faithful Oprah watchers out there. 

It Worked! Just testing out my digital scrapbooking skills- not very creative but it works!

 There should be a PhotoShop-a-holics Anonymous

 Well after downloading a free 30 day trial, I decided its a good thing I got a job because I am already addicted to Photoshop (after less then 24 hours). With my first paycheck I'm going to be FORCED to buy the real thing. I have already made a few different blog headings and can't wait to switch it up.

If you didn't catch the sly comment in the first paragraph.... I got the job at the U! I could not be more excited. On April 14th I will officially be a Clinical Research Assistant for the Medical Genetics Department  (mostly Pediatrics) at the U of U Hospital (sounds prestigious doesn't it) After they approve the salary through HR and I fill out some paperwork, I will be a real 40 hour a week, rollin' in the dough workin' woman. Crazy! 

Question-How do you turn off your brain?

This is my problem, ever since the San Diego/Utah/Moving/Not moving/Packing/Stress- filled situation I have not been able to sleep. I get tired and go lay in my bed. This is when the problem starts my brain goes CRAZY. I could not even tell you what I think about. The other night I laid in bed around 10, watched some t.v. (cause I couldn't sleep), turned off the t.v. at 12, brain activity hit an all time high, finally fell asleep around 2, woke up around 4, got out of bed and wandered around my room with frustration, laid back in my bed, more restless flopping around, maybe a little shut-eye, gave up and got up around 7. This has happened every night for the last 6-8 weeks. (not the exact routine, but something close to it) Can you see why I'm going crazy? I think if this continues I will be put in an insane asylum before I turn 23 (which is exactly 4 months away). I give up! This lady looks so peaceful sleeping on a heavenly, soft, cloud-like bed. I wish...