Feliz Navidad!

It was our first "White Christmas".

Just it wasn't white.  We haven't had snow since my last post on Tuesday.  Then we had two days of rain and the snow was completely gone.

We went up to Temple Square last night to see the lights.  It's a new tradition mom wants to start.  It was freezing, but beautiful.  We then ate at Olive Garden (the OG according to our waiter) and came home to watch movies.

So Christmas morning starts later and later as we get older and older, but for some reason this year, I was jumped on at 7:00 in the morning!  It was an early morning filled with joy and quickly followed by long naps, Pride and Prejudice, a poorly played Laker's game, tons of family, and lots and lots of food.

OH MY SNOW!

Ok, for real...this snow has not let up one bit and it has been going since last night.

Mel's car this morning...

Melanie got stuck in our driveway this morning.  Woke me up so I could help, but I didn't do much.  So we called Phil and he came to the rescue.  It's now noon and I still haven't left the house.  I had planned to spend the day in Springville with my old class, but Nebo got a snow day...crazy.  I have been afraid to drive but I am thinking that maybe I will try a trip to the gym.  Wish me luck!

My Cousin's Baptism

Josers and Mike are here visiting and they decided to have little Sabrina baptized while they were here so that the family could be there.  So cute.  It was a wonderful experience.  And I brought Drew.  He saw Joser and said, "Hey, I know her."  Turns out, he had been in their ward right before he finished his mission.  Pretty amazing.

Las hermanas y la prima

Dancing

Cutest 8 year old in the world with her favorite cousin

You know, us Latinas can't go very long without dancing.  Though, the holding hands and dancing in circles was all Sabri's idea.  Made it hard to shake our hips though.

La familia

Even the tio was there!

I loved this day.  I loved watching Sabrina choose to be baptized.  I loved the spirit that was felt.  I loved watching her receive the Holy Ghost.  I loved being surrounded by my wonderful and quite unique family.

Christmas at the Conference Center

Tonight, I got to go watch the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's Christmas Concert, with guest star David Archuleta.

Syd wouldn't pose for the picture...too bad.

It was amazing.  Not even just that, it was phenomenal!

Ok, so I know I am a little old to be loving on 19 (almost 20) year old David Archuleta, but I can't help it.  His voice is one of the most pure and beautiful that I have ever heard.  He was so genuine and just a wonderful performer.  I might (definitely) have cried through a few of his songs.  He brought with him a strong spirit and everyone was in awe at his talent.

It made for a fantastic way to end my Saturday night.

White Christmas

Today, I came home from a long day of work and a whole list of things to do.

I ran some errands and then came home to wrap presents for my students, put together gifts for teachers, make cookies for a lunch, and figure out a hairpiece that I have been stressing about for a friend of a friends wedding (Mom helped out sooo much on that one the other night).  I decided to do all of these things while watching my favorite Christmas movie, White Christmas.  Then after I finished a good amount of this over two hours of working, I went to the gym.  At the gym, I found White Christmas on TV...  I watched the first half while working out and I am now back at home with it on TV as I finish the unfinished work.

Yes,  I have watched White Christmas twice in a row.  AND I LOVE IT.

Snow, snow, snow, snow!  It won't be long before we'll all be there with snow...

another classic Thork Christmas card!

Check it out!

Make sure you take a look at our old cards as well (they can be found with the first post).  Hilarious.

Merry Christmas!!!

the break up

Yesterday, one of my students got frustrated with me because I was making him work (I know, I am such a mean teacher...making them do work at school!).  I wasn't going to let him go to recess until he finished one math problem.  His response to me:

"Miss Thorkelson.  I am breaking up with you."

mi familia en guadalajara

When I started this blog in the spring of 2008, I was a sophomore at BYU doing a study abroad in Guadalajara.  It has been over two years since then and I have come a long way, but I will forever cherish the time that I spent there.

Last night I had a dream that has left me thinking about them, especially about my "Mexican dad", Guillermo.  Guillermo was wonderful to me and Nat and we instantly grew attached to him.  He loved that I was Argentine and often spoke to me using lots of hand motions and in perfect castellano.

In my dream, I was in Guadalajara with my family.  We were at some type of meeting and when we left the building, I walked down to the end of the street.  I looked around and recognized it to be the street that Yolanda and Guillermo lived on.  I turned around and started to run back to their house.  I could see Guillermo walking out to the curb, taking the trash out.  He saw me and I could hear him say "Tati!"  I ran into his arms and we cried.  It was a happy cry, a dream cry that has left me emotional all day.''

So, I have contacted my director and gotten their address.  I cannot wait to write to them and see how they are doing.  I have thought about them all day.

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas

1.  We had our first snow fall earlier this week.  As much as I dislike the snow, the way my kids are so excited to play in it, makes me happy.  It actually sort of makes me want to run around, make snow angels, and snowmen, and ice forts. Even though it is freezing out there, they always want to go outside for recess.  I don't know what it is, but it's helped me enjoy it a little more.  Yes, I still really hate driving in it, but maybe I can learn to play in it this winter.

2. O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree.  Alex and I went and picked up our Christmas tree at Smith's on Thursday night.  Such a good buy!  It looks beautiful in our apartment and it has made the whole place smell wonderful.  Picking it up was some adventure.  We had the little boy from Smith's help us get it to the car.  We went out to pick it and of course the beautiful, big, thick one I wanted was right in the middle of all the other trees.  He was a good sport about it and even showed off a little for Alex and I by picking it up and throwing it over his head.  I so wish we had had a camera to get a picture of it.  I asked Kendrick to come help us move it from the car into our apartment.  We had a few light dilemmas but finally fixed them and today it was decorated.  I love coming home to it.

3.  Christmas Music.  I cannot stop listening to it.  Nothing beats Bing Crosby, Carpenters, and Harry Connick Jr.  I love it.

4. Christmas Movies!  The old classics.  White Christmas, Holiday Inn, It's a Wonderful Life.  I could watch these everyday of the month of December.

But, can you believe it is already this time of year?  With the talk of Christmas comes talk of New Years.  2010 has just flown by.

bleh traffic

I don't like it.  At all.  Not one bit.

Tonight, my usual (and already long) 45 min commute home took me TWO HOURS!

For real.  Now I am home, stressed, frustrated, and sick of driving.  Oh it makes me so much fun to be around...

Perfect, especially since I have a date coming to my door at any minute.

Thanksgiving Day

I love today.  The fourth Thursday of every November is my favorite day of the fall.  The older I have gotten, the more I have come to appreciate this day of thanks.

Today has been perfect and many times I have just sat and watched so that I can soak in everything happening around me.  I love doing that.

Other things I have loved today:

- Driving to Ogden to join the Larsens in a food drive walk/run.  They are my second family and it was so much fun to spend my morning with them and catching up with Kelly.

- Raiding my sister's closet and finding my clothes that I thought had been lost!

- Thanksgiving feasting.  Delicious turkey, stuffing, potatoes, salad, cranberry sauce, bread, sweet potatoes - everything made from scratch.  My family knows how to do it right!

- Dance parties in the car with the siblings!

- My car.  I love my car.  I love driving it.  I love how pretty it is.  I love how it goes real fast!  I love how I can blast my music in it.  Yes, it was a good buy.

- Thanksgiving naps (which are near impossible with how loud we are...)

- Spending time with both my Thorkelson and Wilson family.

- Making flowers for headbands and fun things.

- Watching football with my dad, brother, grandpa, and uncle.

- Feeling like a ballerina because of my tights and dancing on the wooden floor (I haven't done ballet since I was probably 5...it was beautiful).

- Getting the following text from my dad: "K. We're going to byu/utah. Be here Sat by 10am."  This then caused a series of squeals, jumping, football runs, more jumping, inability to speak, finished by me sitting on the floor while my siblings are trying to figure out what my problem is.  Yes, it was the best part of my day.

phone photos

these were all taken recently while on the go...

Blue skies and clouds at the last home football game.  I love LaVell Edwards stadium.  I cannot believe this season is already close to the end.  It breaks my heart, but it is nice to end on a high note!

I got this gem sent to me while I was at work and it made my day.  That is the boy I love more than anything in the middle and those cute blondes are my favorite twins in the world.  What a lucky boy!

This was what I saw on my way to work yesterday morning...

Pretty sure those are real antlers!  I was grossed out, but I hear they are worth real big money

This is my Kendrick who saved me from an evening alone.  Sad it is all blurry, but if you can't tell, we make others around us feel very uncomfortable.  We went to the basketball game with Claire and Amy (who I love sooo much! so fun!).  Then we went to Magleby's for free cake (thank you BYU basketball for scoring 80+ points).  Then it was back to Kendrick's house to watch Forever Strong followed by hours of late laaatteee night talking.  OH and Amy gets her mission call today! YES!

Oh and this is what I found when I went down to my car to head to the gym this morning.  I got doughnut-ed?  This has never happened to me.  A few even have bites missing.  I am not sure if it was just a random act of a few bored pranksters or if someone sought me out, in love or dislike? haha No idea, but it has left me wondering! 

good morning gill...

I said, GOOD MORNING GILL!

Yes, I watched What About Bob yesterday.  Little secret - that was my favorite movie growing up.  In fact, I loved Bill Murray so much that I called him Uncle Bob in every movie that I saw him in after that.  That's right, he became a part of the family!

A little while back, I talked about faces, specifically the faces I make while watching basketball at the gym. Tonight, I watched the first half of the Chargers game.  No joke, I almost fell off the elliptical three or four times.  I clapped.  I cheered.  I threw a fist into the air a few times.  I hope all around me enjoyed it.

Also - the pictures they showed of San Diego throughout the game.  Beautiful.  I lived there.  I grew up there.  Made me homesick.  And the way the announcers talked about San Diego.  "55 degrees here on a Monday night." (while I am stuck in Utah with 30 degree weather and a blizzard warning...) or "Every time we come down here and see how beautiful it is, I am amazed that we all don't just move here."  I don't have many pictures of downtown San Diego, but I have plenty of my favorite places...

Christmas 2008. Beautiful.

Christmas day 2009 with the Beans

Sunset from Oceanside Pier, taken on my phone and still beautiful!

Mom's roses from the front yard.

Mulberry and Cox.  Beautiful.

These are the snowflakes I am used to (please notice how warm it looks outside).  I love the way mom fixed up the house at Christmas time.

returning to pooh corner

Return to Pooh Corner came out in 1994.  I would like to call in a cd of lullaby like songs sung by Kenny Loggins.  I was 6 years old when this amazing cd came out and I remember loving it, so I decided to start playing it in class while we are calming down, writing in journals, reading independently, etc...Well, to my surprise I remember every single word to every song on the cd and I LOVE IT.  I have found myself listening to it outside of school, like right now for example.

It is amazing where smells and music can take you.  I thank my mother for having such great taste in music as I was growing up :)

I looked through all old pictures on my computer and this is probably the only one where I am close to six years old.  It is also a gem of a picture and I am positive it has never been posted for the internet to see (probably for good reason too)...

Big shirts or a vest and underwear...we were a well dressed bunch of girls.  Can't you just hear, "Winnie the Pooh doesn't know what to do, got a honey jar stuck on his nose." or "Why are there so many songs about rainbows and what's on the other side?" or how about "Look and see her, how she sparkles, it's the last unicorn! I'm Alive!" and "to-ra-loo-ra".

I will close with:

Somewhere out there, beneath the pale moonlight.  Someone's thinking of me and loving me tonight...

weekend

Friday was BYU's Season Home Opener!  We played Fresno State and won 83-56!  I sure do love this time of year, it even makes the snow almost ok.  The way my heart pounds as the lights go down and the amazing basketball for the new season starts playing.  The thrill from the crowd screaming "Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh GO COUGARS!" over and over again.  The player introduction now followed with the players circling around a dancing Davies.  The way we say, "You got Jimmered!"  Being surrounded by fans all in white.  The way that we have gotten cake because the boys have scored over 80 points EVERY game!  The way I get to walk down to row three and sit behind my favorite couple at mid court, surrounded by my favorite fellow BYU fanatics.  The jumping up and down.  The winning!  Oh it feels so good.  I love BYU basketball, can you blame me?

A compilation of the last three season's photos.

Saturday I went to Porter's championship football game!  They were playing to keep their perfect record and they did it!  It was a long freezing game.  The score was 0-0 up to the very end.  After the Bingham team fumbled, Alta took it and ran for a touchdown.  Seeing my brother so excited, running into a huddle of teammates and jumping up and down with them, almost made me cry.  Mom said that men only cry over sports...uh oh.  It was a tender moment.  I sure love that brother of mine.  Grandpa came to the came too and since it was in Bountiful, a few of my cousins were able to join us.

Isn't he the best looking football player there ever was? I loveeee this photo.

After the game, mom and I went winter shopping at TJ Maxx.  I wanted tights and boots.  I bought some bright and colorful tights and two pretty cute boots (Side note: I wore the bright pink tights today.  I am not quite sure if I am used to them yet.  I have always been so bleh about tights, never wanted to wear them.  But I am determined to fit them into my wardrobe the winter!).  Then we walked through a cute boutique closer to Michelle's house.  It was darling and mom might have bought me a Christmas present that I am currently trying to forget about.  This little boutique was a part of three separate houses that provided various shopping.  Example, one little house was full of cute antique like furniture, the other with darling anthropologie style clothes, and the last with something else cute I am sure.  It was fun to have some one on one with the mom.  I love her.

Later that night, everyone came down to Provo.  Porter and Dad to eat at Golden Corral with Grandpa  in celebration of Porter's win.  Mom and Hannah to go eat at Rumbi with me to visit Kelsey.  Then we all had hopes of visiting the dollar theater to see Inception (since mom STILL has not seen it!).  Well, the movie was sold out, but Andy Larsen AND Jess McMaster ended up joining us at Rumbi and so did Porter and Dad after their fill at the Corral and we sat in Rumbi and talked for forever.  I went home happy and ready to write a Sunday School lesson.

Then today we had family dinner.  Everyone was there.  Empanadas were devoured.  Old family videos were watched.  It was very happy.

Now onto a new week!

My BFF Roommate's Big Day!

Alison got married on Friday!  I wish I could have been there with her.  She has been one of the greatest friends that I have made out here and living with her for two years was always so much fun.  We partied together all of the time and once someones said, "It is so cute that you two are like BFF roommates."  It has stuck.  That's what she is to me.  Since I could not make it to the wedding, I made her a hairpiece.  I think it turned out pretty good.

Anyways, I love Mrs. Alison Cundiff (ahh! So crazy to say!)  She has grown so much while we have lived together and it has been so neat to watch.  She has helped me to grow so much too.  The self control she was continually practicing, goodness, this girl can do anything.  I am so happy for her and I love seeing her so happy.

We have made so many memories together...we wen't everywhere together.  She even got me to run for an entire summer, a huge feat considering how much I dislike running.  We were always supporting our then DJing friends in all of their dance extravaganzas!

Oh and football.  She was so much fun to have at games!  She went through a whole year at BYU without football - I fixed that our second year together.

Road trips!  It was so convenient that she lived off the 15, on the way home and even came down to good old San Diego for Halloween festivities.

She is strong and beautiful.  I am so proud of her and I love her with all of my heart.  I have been so blessed with such a fabulous influence in my life and the greatest BFF roommate a girl could ask for.

faces

While watching a basketball game at the gym, I realized that I was making some really ridiculous faces.  I think it was to make up for the fact that I couldn't really scream and yell without getting some really strange looks.  Then I looked at the girl to my right, who was trying to text and ride on the elliptical at the same time, causing her to make a great face which then cause me to smile.

Since then I have been thinking about silly faces.  I might be the queen of silly faces.  I am so animated (I think that's what I'll call it) when I talk, especially when I teach!  My poor students.  I had never realized I made faces until a few summers ago when I had Kelsey come take pictures of me teaching some swim lessons...

I make faces.  Sometimes they aren't the most attractive.  The best part is that I am not talking about silly faces you make in posing.  These are faces I make when no one has a camera.  Melanie has been great at catching them with hers though.  Then she laughs at them for hours.  Rude.

Ok. That's all for today.   :)

today's thoughts

1. It suddenly became winter on Monday.
         I had to leave work a half hour early because a storm was coming in.  Very considerate of my administration staff at school.  So, this weekend was BEAUTIFUL.  The sun was out and it was really just one of the prettiest weekends this fall.  Sunday was a little bit cold, but come Monday - it has been freezing ever since.  I am not ready for snow.  I never am.  I have decided that this year, I need: tights, boots, closed toed shoes, and legitimate gloves.

2. Basketball is on!
          The Season Opener against Fresno State is on Friday!  I seriously love BYU ball.  It is amazing how happy it makes me.  We have had a tent up since mid last week.  Of course, I have been to every preseason game.


          We played BYU-Hawaii on Friday and I had to meet up with everyone at the Marriott.  I hate going to things alone, especially where there will be a lot of people, even if it is just driving the the Marriott and waking to meet up with my friends by myself.  At this point, I had no idea that they (my amazing sport fanatic friends) had set up tent already.  I turned the corner of the Marriott, saw all my friends and TENTS and I might have started crying...just a little.  Call me crazy, but I love that atmosphere, I love the people that I have gotten to know over the last few seasons, and I love having games to look forward to.

3. Halloween catch up
          Melanie and I were ninja turtles.  I say we look pretty sweet!

4. Grey hair...shoot
         Today, out at recess, I was talking to Cami and one her aides, Loretta, when all of the sudden Loretta goes, "Oh my goodness Tati!  Are those grey hairs?!"  She found tons and wanted to pull them all out.  Oh no.  I am only 22.  Sad.

5.  Nice lady at Thanksgiving Point
         Planning field trips for 18 students with severe disabilities is not an easy task and Cami and I get to do it once a month.  Of course, we 9 teachers and of course, we want to try to get them all in for free. Then we want it to be a fairly cheap trip since we do it once a month.  So we decided we wanted to go to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point this month.  I called and asked what type of accommodations they might make for a class of students with severe disabilities.  They were SO wonderful and we are getting all of our teachers in and the lady thanked me for the work that I do.  She told me that she had worked in a school, never with special ed, but she was so impressed with all of the work we do.  Sometimes it is nice to receive that recognition, especially from a stranger.

6.  CRAZY day in basketball!

          I went to the gym tonight and watched the highlights of some wild games on SportsCenter.  The JAZZ beat! the Heat!  They were down most of the game (up to even 22 points!) and the last quarter they were on fire, but never let by more than 3.  Millsap who has only made 2 three pointers in all of his career scored 3 tonight and made a total of 46 points during the game!  The Jazz turned around to win 116-114 in overtime.  AND then the Pacers had a nearly perfect 3rd quarter making 20 of 21 consecutive FGs.  They missed the very last one with less than 2 seconds left in the quarter.  They made 54 points in the 3rd quarter alone beating the Nuggets 144-113.  I got an adrenaline rush just watching the highlights of these games!

AND of course, the Lakers are 7 - 0...Still UNDEFEATED!!!