I should probably apologize to any of you who felt the world stop spinning somewhere between 7:00 and 8:00 this morning. That’s because Jeremy and I put the world on pause and just allowed ourselves to believe for a moment that we had all the time in the world to just be. We lapsed into a comfortable cuddle–not the kind filled with pointy scapulas, uneven weight distribution, and a little too much muscle tension. This cuddle was perfect and relaxing as we drifted in and out of sleep, and dreamed together about spending an entire day with the world on pause.
Category: Uncategorized
Things Every Man Should Know About a Woman’s Hair
Posted onThis morning I did a braid, turned around, and asked Jeremy if it looked alright in the back. He replied, “I think so,” and then became surprised when I immediately took it out.
“Wait!” he cried, “I meant it looks fine!”
“Exactly,” I told him, attempting another braid.
Thank you for the Fireflies.
Posted onTo My Father in Heaven,
Thank you for fireflies. I am not sure what their specific ecological function is or if you put them on earth just to make me happy, but I am especially glad they are here.
The Redesign
Posted on“Don’t put too much pressure on this next post,” Jeremy wisely counseled last night after correctly reading my body language. Sometimes it is downright irksome that he can read my thoughts before they are corporeal or even conceived. To him, I’m not just an open book—I’m an open book with big print, Braille underneath, and pictures on the side.
SOL: Misery and All Her Friends. She Sure Loves Company.
Posted onI have spent the last several weeks thinking about an essay that was due today. I wrote it last night, and I was… less than satisfied with the outcome. I could feel the teacher’s red pen before I even turned it in–Dangling modifier! Unsubstantiated claim! Too Verbose!
I toiled over this essay, but my professor is a challenging grader, and even with my best foot forward, I might get a B+, if she’s feeling especially generous. All day yesterday, as I was crafting this paper, I tap danced on the infinitesimally fine line between motivation and demotivation. There is something motivating about wanting to improve yourself, think stronger, think smarter. There is something demotivating about realizing that you can’t.
Fortunately for me, as I was feeling all glum about my abilities, I ran into precisely five people from the same class, all turning in the same paper, all haunting the Professor’s office begging forgiveness for their essay’s outcome or pleading for mercy because their essay was so poor.
And I do, I do, I genuinely feel ashamed for this, but– all five of us shared an empathy sandwich and expressed to one another the true massacre that our essays became–and that felt awesome.
One of the students put it nicely. “I knew this class was going to be a challenge, and I liked the idea of the challenge. But now I don’t like the challenge. I only like a challenge when I’m doing well at it.”
So alas, t’is true. I don’t feel like I’m doing particularly well at this challenging class, but all is well. Class let out twenty minutes early today, three other classes got cancelled this week, and I like Thai food.
Facebook Me
Posted on
Every time I get a new facebook friend that is particularly interesting, I do a re-scan of my most recent posts on facebook and try to see me from their eyes. Admittedly, I do this less now that I am married, and know that there are no new boys perusing the old FB. But recently, just for fun more than personality dialysis, I went back to check on my married life persona. I realized the following:
“If you were to judge me by my 2012 Timeline you would think: I am a baby animal/ Ellen freak that blogs all the time, who recently got married and whose friends are having too many babies, and who has a love/hate relationship with “The Bachelor,” and is still holding out for a new Harry Potter.”
All of the above is completely true. I do love Ellen (because she espouses kindness for all and she’s downright hilarious). And baby animals make me happy when I’m having a miserable streak. And it’s true, three of my favorite friends and my sister just had babies (well, Tiffany will have a baby soon) and I’m feeling the sweet baby feet and feeling like I should be feeling something about a baby. Mostly I just like kissing baby’s feets that are not my own baby’s right now. And it’s true. The Bachelor has been… addicting even though I think Ben is, perhaps, the most disappointing Bachelor ever. And Harry Potter. Well. I will always love Harry.
I wish I were brave enough to share my religious and political beliefs. I wish I could tell people WHY I am a Mormon and WHY I’m a Moderate Liberal, but experience has told me that both of those topics get backlash (and usually the liberal people and the Mormon people have very different comments than the other).
I wish people found the literature that makes me salivate as interesting as I do. I wish I could blog about John Donne and start a fascinating conversation about metaphysical conceits. I wish the whole world would read Fahrenheit 451 so we all remembered what happens to a society that watches The Bachelor on their TV walls all day long.
I hope my readers, and I guess viewers, knew a little more about me. I wish I wasn’t so limited in my ability to share.
Engagement Photo Dump
Posted onI cursed myself: I preemptively blogged! I figured that my visit at the lady doctor would be the genesis of hilarity; in actuality, it was rather routine.
Thus, I’ve been avoiding my little neglected blog. I’ve been haunted by the idea that I must make something funny that… may or may not have been funny, and may just come across as crass. And so I’ve avoided the blog world entirely.
A Disclaimer: This is more “journal-esque” than I typically write. But since my journal is neglected these days too, I figure this is an appropriate forum for my goings-on.
I’ve been watching my the apologies on the blog reel rack up as my blogger friends poetically admit that they’ve been too busy relishing the sun and flattering the butterflies to maintain their blogs. Sometimes I wish my summer consisted of making ripples in the pool with my toes. Instead, I’ve been frantically and gloriously busy.
Doing what, you ask?
Here’s the condensed version (maybe just for posterity’s sake if it fails to interest the masses):
1. I’ve been working four jobs! With varying degrees of success. I’ve been maintaining my TA position in the Theater and Media Department, and loving it with my whole heart and soul. I am a Writing Fellow for an educational law class at BYU, and then occasionally managing content for Jeremy’s web design business. Finally, I admit, I took the walk of shame back to the old Tucanos. It’s a walk that many make with empty pockets and heads hung low. And truth be told, my experience back there has been nothing but delightful. You may even think I’m being sarcastic, but I assure you, I’m not! It’s been fun!
2. 2. I’ve been sending invitations, making decorations, and receiving congratulations for the upcoming wedding, which creeps ever closer every day. It’s been far more stressful than I’d ever imagined, but there are some gratifying moments as well. For instance: Wearing your sister’s wedding dress. Nothing could be more special. It’s my favorite part of the wedding (besides the groom, of course), and trying it on makes me feel like such a bride. And you know what, when I don’t feel like a complete Bride-zilla, being a bride feels wonderful. (Pictures not included because Jeremy can’t see!)
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3. 3. I’ve been battling some serious bouts of anxiety, be it my own or my family members’. The Robinson clan is seeing lots of big changes this year, and while we have momentary moments of panic, I think something characteristic of our little family is our resiliency. When the tough keeps coming, we keep punching back. Eventually, we come out conquerors. But you could probably still send some prayers our way.
4. 4. Jeremy and I put a deposit on our first little starter apartment in Provo. And it definitely has character. It is at the basement of a 100-year-old inn. The entryway is our bathroom and there’s no living room, but there IS a bookshelf with one book on it. If you TURN the BOOK, it opens a secret passageway. It makes my heart sing. To quote my good friend Eleanore Steinmetz: “Sierra, that’s incredible and awful! Incredible for your writing career, awful because we may never see the Will Be Sierra Penrod again. You’ll be stuffed away writing a Potteresque novel in your secret passageway.”—Is it bad that I kind of hope so?
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| This is our new kitchen, with our new table and chairs! We have a new stove and a newly installed fridge. Also, white tiles. |
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| This is the before shot of our bedroom. |
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| Don’t be fooled by this seemingly innocuous bookshelf. |
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| Or our (so far just MY) giant mountain of stuff. |
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| Seriously nothing sexier than a man doing the handy work. Jeremy’s been hard at work making all our cabinets close tight and straight. He makes living in a fixer upper so much fun. |
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| This is the secret passage way I told you about! Aren’t you just riddled with excitement? Aren’t you just dying to peek inside? |
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| This is the bedroom’s current state. This is just my stuff, since Jeremy won’t move in until we are properly wedded. The bedspread is likely to change. The bear stays. |
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| Another picture of my handyman. Couldn’t resist. |
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| My handiwork. I’m no decorator, but books do a nice job of looking nice on their own. |
5.I5. I’ve been showered! I had a lovely and classy and slightly embarrassing bridal shower thrown by my sisters Bethany and Kristy and my best friend Chloe. I had some transcontinental friends, Kelsey and Jenni travel in for the affair, which made me feel so very special. My friends far and wide spoiled me (and Jeremy) rotten.
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| Wouldn’t you like to know what was in this present? |
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| Jes and Caitlin came even though Jes really should have been having her new baby girl that day. |
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| Just because the photo loaded weird doesn’t mean I love these girls any less. |
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| Some of my oldest and dearest friends at the shower. |
6. 6. I’ve been family-ing in Colorado, California, and Utah! We had a great weekend getaway where we could let go of the wedding stress and just enjoy our new family members and relax in the Colorado mountains.
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| My aunt Margie got married! Never a more deserving bride, and we sure do love Mike too! |
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| This is sweet Doug who brought a bouquet of flowers to his mommy. Thank goodness this woman is procreating! |
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| Teeny has indeed bonded with “Uncle Jeremy.” And to be honest, I think he has a little soft spot for her too. |
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| Jeremy and I in the Mountains on Memorial Day. My family is patriotic. Please note the flag my father hung on the tree. |
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| Jeremy sharing his love for entomology with the smalls. Kiana was especially excited that he caught a butterfly for her. |
7. Mere moments after I had just been asserting to Jeremy that I was man enough to change a tire–I got a flat tire and had to put my money where my mouth was. Conveniently, I was wearing overalls that day (Because the 90’s are coming back, don’t you know?!)
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| Dang straight. |
7. 8. I’ve been spending time with my future husband and enjoying every single drop of time I get to just relax, cuddle, and be with him. We are that gross couple that accidentally alienates their friends with their PDA. But you’re only engaged once, and through the stress, I am loving it all.
Oh my gosh. My blog is becoming a Mormon Housewife Blog. Next blog, I will repent, I promise.
Tell Me True
Posted onSo, a recent survey of Google Analytics yielded some interesting results. I have readers in Yemen!? What?!
Basically, I am curious to see where my blogger readership actually comes from. Who is simply surveying my site, while who is actually reading it? Please comment on this blog and provide your state or country, but you can exclude all personal username info.
However, if you would like to tell me anymore about yourself, I am dead curious to know :).
Thanks friends!
Furthermore…
Posted onA man with a Hitler mustache and a BYU hoodie just walked past me.
Robins in Winter
Posted onToday was one of those miserable, sucky days (with the exception of the three blissful hours I spent in a high school English class, details forthcoming).
One of those days where I woke up a heavy mass of dark, tangled human, trying to be remembered by my memory foam mattress that I was trying to sink back into.
It was one of those days where my cramps literally pushed me up against a wall and pinned me, immobile, but mentally kicking and screaming.
Today was one of those “parking permit gets revoked” sort of days.
And just as I was beginning my solitary t r u d g e home from campus, feeling burdened by the impending cumulus-nimbus and the pervasive cold that was marching into my ears—a little one of these guys burrowed out from a bush beside my path.
A robin! A robin?! In Winter?!
I didn’t even know that there were robins in winter! I thought they were strictly spring creatures. And actually, as it were, there was a whole family of twenty beautiful robins puttering around the bushes and looking for frozen worms. And while I was scaring innocent passers-by, accosting them by enthusiastically yanking on their shirts and forcing them to notice our feathered friends, I realized something:
Sometimes, you gotta stop and look down. Especially when you’re already looking down to begin with.
Oh! And watch this: The Weepies