Porter Park

I am, at this very moment, laying under a tree at the famous Porter Park in Rexburg, Idaho. Sadly, I don't know how long my computer will last out here because the battery stinks. Anyways, I haven't used this computer for a very long time and I have found some very interesting things on it. Just one of the many treasures I found is a journal from September and October 2005, right before I started dating the Benji.

"we had some guys coaching us and they were laughing so hard at the jacket. One of them is actually in my ward so it was very ironic that he was coaching. "

This was the day I met Ben... Ty was the guy in my ward. It goes on...

"There was a box of Swedish fish on the table and I was like “wow last night my roommates were throwing those in my mouth” so they started doing that and then this kid Ben and I were like wow we should play 500 with the fish..."

Good times. He was a good football coach. Ok... I'm sure no one really cares, this post is probably lame- but I am enjoying it.

October 9th, 2005 (this is when I had only met Ben a few times at football games...

"ANYWAYS… yeah… I hope Ty brings Ben over later today or maybe tomorrow or maybe just sometime this week. That would just be gloriously wonderful and I would enjoy it immensely."

FYI- Ty didn't bring him over that week... or even that month.

A few weeks later after a ward activity:

"There were fireworks afterwards… I happened to run into Abby, Ty, and Ben. So we decided to all just hang out. Keep in mind that Ben was the “Swedish guy” yeah pretty hilarious! Anyways I think we were flirting a lot."

Hahahaha I am a loser.

There is more but it would just be embarrasing to put on here. So I reallky think I liked Ben before he liked me.

Around this same time I went on a picture scavenger hunt with some friends. Unfortunately I got the slip of paper that says, "you giving a resturant employee a piggy back ride. For some reason we went to KFC for this picture:

I know, this picture is a little scary. I just had to put it on. Well my battery is going to die. It's probably a good thing it is dying because that means I have to stop putting nonsense things on here! Adios my friends...

Another Great Weekend

This weekend was a crazy weekend. Friday was my mom's birthday and Sunday was Wesley's birthday. Friday, we went to Bullwinkle's for dinner. I stayed away from the onion rings because last time they made Ben and me sick, and I didn't order a half a chicken because I now know what that is. On Saturday we went on a bike ride to Big Springs, that was precious. Then we went to Cliff Lake and went Kayaking in the new one-man kayaks my dad got. They were pretty much awesome. It was really windy so I almost tipped over about 100 times. Dallin, Ashley, Ben, and I all hooked our kayaks together and it was so funny. Good Times. Then later that day we went to this little "fun center" between Island Park and West Yellowstone. We went mini-bowling. It was fun, I lost. On Sunday we had to come back down to Rexburg for our Nursery class. Those kids are gems. We drove back up to the cabin after church for a fabulous dinner cooked by Grandma.

Happy Birthday Mommmmmmee

Happy Birthday Wesley! We got him the BYU shirt for his birthday.

Ok we Ben got a little rope swinging action. I don't know what he calls this pose exactly but I would call it an extended scissor kick.

Dallin is kicking the tree off the rope swing.
Ben and Wesley made this ramp for the rope swing this weekend. They were pretty proud of it. The dog even wanted to try it.
Yes... we are matching. Kind of weird, I know. We actually think it is really precious and cute. JK. We just were high or something.

Ben was trying to take a good picture of me. I held out and this is one of the creepiest pictures ever.
This is pretty sick too. On the cabin porch we have a birds' nest. The baby birds are asleep in this picture... it's a good thing too because Ben probably would have scared them. The coolest thing is when they are hungry and they chirp and wait for the momma bird to come back with food.
Here is a close up of the birds... kind of creepy.3 words: They are Weird.
So we pretty much had a good time.

End

Biking and Kayaking

This is on our ride to Ennis... but not really to Ennis, just half way there. We hit a storm and had to turn back.

We call this picture my "man picture" because I look like a man in it.
We got bored on our way to West Yellowstone...


Last weekend the boys went Kayaking.

The end

The Real Question: How hard is it to take a picture?

I stole these pictures from Rachell.

Alright, so this is at the Idaho Falls Temple when Hayley and Marshall got married. I really think I have a problem with being not photogenic. I know, I'm sorry, I ruin pictures. Hahaha I seriously look like I have issues... big issues in this picture and what is Ben looking at. If it weren't for us the picture probably would have turned out nicely.
Oh... I think Ben is watching a line of ants on the ground. This one is almost ok. I think Lindsay fell asleep.
Ok, I admit it, I was about to do a ballet move. Where's Miriam?
I really enjoy these pictures. It was such a fun weekend. Seeing everyone was GRRREAT! FYI Rachell picked up a lot of guys while on the BYUI campus. I'm excited to hear how she is doing at BYU in the fall!
Here is a good picture of us in all of our cuteness.

Good Bye

Yay for the bike

We basically look like pros.

No Pictures Yet

I have some sad news... our Internet is down. Yes, I know, it is depressing. Until it is up and working again I will not be able to post pictures of my new bike and my stretchy shorts. I am sure everyone so desperately wants to see me in my riding gear. I don't blame you. Hopefully I will be able to post them soon.
I want to Congratulate Ashley on her new bike. We are excited to see it... thrilled actually.
Well we did have a good weekend. We went on a bike ride. I lasted for 26 miles. It was super windy and cold. We also had a sing-a-long to Tenacious D songs on our way to West Yellowstone. It was a real treat.

***THRILLING NEWS***

The Ryster got a road bike today. She also got a jersey and some nice stretchy pants (actually shorts) to ride in. Well I know one thing for sure... you can expect pictures of it up here SOON. Thank you and goodbye.

Life

Here are some random pics:

After working 11 hours on Saturday Ben came home and his skin was a different color because of how much dirt was on him.

Friday evening we had a picnic with the Dashley... there was some trouble keeping the fire going.
We made shirley temples and it was divine.
Ben is getting the meat ready to cook... he got a little hungry.
Here is us in all of our cuteness yesterday.

Pictures

Wow... what cute boys in matching biking jerseys! THis is after the race.

Here is the Benster, looking good, like always.
Here Ben and Dallin are somewhere in the middle... they still have quite a ways to ride.
Family pictures!
The Boys
The girls

The fam... and the tractors

Oh yes, this last weekend the little one was blessed. Isn't she a doll? I think that dress is eating her.

My Biker

My dear Biker Benji has accomplished a great accomplishment. He has dared to go where no man has gone before... and was victorious! On Saturday, May 12, 2007, he competed against 150 others in a race of courage, strength and above all biking. Sadly, our camera has been lost and we do not yet have pictures of this joyous event. He covered 64 miles in about 3 hours with only his bike and his buddy Dallin. They rode like fierce tigers in the lands around Yellowstone. The women of the family were there to cheer the bikers on as we drove past them in the car. They didn't look tired at all so we didn't feel bad yelling "Faster!" at them. The Ben and the Dallin were in the lead for almost the whole race... they had to pass a few people at the beginning. Trevor, Dad, and Nate also finished in the race! They were all racing maniacs that day. We hope to soon get pictures of the event to share with all. ON the count of three lets give a hurrah for Benji and the boys... One, two, three HURRAH, HURRAH, HURRAH!

This is Quake Lake... they rode past it in the race.

Scandalous!

Sometimes I wonder if Ben is embarrassed by the pictures I put up here of myself. I know this is a little bit scandalous but it's all good! Obviously the one on the left is me and the one on the right is Christine. She was one of my bridesmaids... the one with a sunburn. Anyways, this picture just make me laugh and I had to put it up!

Hi Christine!

So I was looking at this picture, and it really made me laugh! I'll start with Trevor. He doesn't have anyone to lean on his shoulders but it looks like he has an invisible person on his shoulders. I'm not sure what he is doing. The left side is really struggling as well. The facials on Nate and Wes seem very unpleasant. I'm sure there are other awkward things we could point out but I will stop there.

So we had a fabulous weekend last and this week! Sadly, no pictures were taken except for this one... we went on a stroll through the park. The first weekend was Hayley's wedding and we got to hang out with Ben's family. We saw our adorably lovable nephew, Beckett, for the first time. it was quite the experience. We rode some wicked sweet go carts. Some people got a little bit crazy on those things. Ben and I hope to have a go cart track of our own someday. That would be neat.
This last weekend we hung out at the cabin with my fam. We got to see our preciously tiny niece, Devynn, for the first time, and our other insanely crazy niece, Ari. Ben was playing with her and every time he would start talking to other people she would get his attention by saying, "Hi Ben" it was funny. Ben loved holding Devynn, who is 2 months old and only 8 pounds. She has almost doubled the size she was when she was born.
We also had Rachell stay with us all week, it was a blast. I just hope she had fun.

Benji's Bicycle update: The big race is on Saturday!!!!! WOO HOO!

The Drink

Brittnee... Way to be faithful to the drink!

I shall try to get back on the drink!

Complete and Utter Randomness (that doesn't even make sense)

I just really enjoy Ben's posing skills in this picture of us being models. He's a natural.

yes, That is my husband. He has great form... especially with his arms. Nate looks ready to attack in the background and Brittnee is about to take Ben out so Wes can get the ball.

Yes, I like pickles

I was bored and thought I'd post some random pics. Ok, I'm done. The end.

"Can You Ever Just be Whelmed?"

"I know you can be underwhelmed and you can be overwhelmed, but can you ever just be whelmed?" - 10 Things I Hate About You

Recently while reading a book about languages and how they got to be the way they are I was reminded of the line above. Seriously, what is a whelm and how can you be over it?

From this reading I have learned a lot of interesting facts about the English language and a lot about other languages. It seems like more and more people are trying to learn and use English... although sometimes it doesn't sound how it should. For instance, in Tokyo there is a warning to motorists which states, "When a passenger of the foot heave in sight, tootle the horn. Trumpet at him melodiously at first, but if he still obstacles your passage, then tootle him with vigor." Another example is an announcement in a Yugoslavian hotel which says, "The flattening of underwear with pleasure is the job of the chambermaid. Turn to her straightaway." These little phrases humor me a lot. I'm not going to lie, the English language is very complex and so interesting phrases such as those above seem to be expected.
Some Fun Facts:
-There are now more students of English in China than there are people in the United States.
-About 200,000 English words are in common use compared to 184,000 German words and 100,000 french words.
-Many languages do not have words to distinguish house from home, man from gentleman, or mind from brain.
-English is the only language where a thesaurus is needed.
-Other languages have words that we don't such as in Scotland there is a word for the itchiness that overcomes the upper lip just before taking a sip of whiskey. The Eskimos have 50 words for types of snow but they don't have a word for just plain snow. The Italians have over 500 names for different types of macaroni... one of which is strozzapreti which means "strangled priests." New Zealand has 30 words for "dung."
-Some countries have phrases that may not be very kindly directed at other cultures. In Japanese the word for foreigner literally means "stinking of foreign hair." To the Czechs a Hungarian is "a pimple." Germans call cockroaches "Frenchmen." The French call lice "Spaniards." Italians call syphilis "the French disease." French and Italians call con games "American Swindle."
- It takes the Oxford English Dictionary 5 pages and almost 15,000 words to define the word "what."
-Different languages describe animal sounds differently. A dog goes oua-oua in France, bu-bu in Italy, mung-mung in Korea, and wan-wan in Japan.

Alright I'm sure whoever reads this is bored with my fascination of languages. Most of the information I got for this blog was from the book called "The Mother Tongue: English and how it got that way" by Bill Bryson. It may sound boring but it is really well written and quite intriguing if I do say so myself.

ME ME ME

Hello Everybody,
Ben is at work today.... and I am bored. I'm not going to lie, I have a ton of homework I could be doing, but I just don't feel like doing it. So i decided to take some nasty pictures of myself and post them...WHY? I really don't know. I really don't know what possessed me to do this, it might have to do with the fact that I had a lot to drink this morning... chocolate milk. I'm sure I will regret it but oh well.

Here I am being angry because I'm bored.

So I decided to do something maybe a little devilish and mean but it sure makes me laugh. I have found a few close ups of people and I just wanted to post them... some are not very attractive but some I was actually very suprised at how well some people take close ups.

Now that I've probably made everyone a little angry I am going to go and hide...