This is the only picture I have of my sweet apartment. It's beautiful, clean inside and out, and my contract NEEDS TO SELL! If you know any girls in the Provo/Orem area looking for a great apartment full of great girls, please tell them I'm selling my contract. It includes:
I have three pieces in this show. It's being put up in the JFSB on Tuesday with an opening reception at the bottom of the spiral staircase Thursday evening from 6-8 pm. Hope to see you there!
Mike and I found a little yellow house to rent today! We are renting the main floor and we are so excited! The kitchen has a navy blue and white checkered floor. :) Also, ironically, the current tenants are sweet Ali (now Spittler, formerly Close,) and her husband. They're moving to DC in December and we lucked out to snag their contract before they took off!
I recently joined a book club run by the two and only (ha!) Jules Ferreira & Brittany Bland. We read this book for our first...book reading? It was very fun. And somewhat predictable. But still fun and engaging!
2 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes
2.5 teaspoons garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
3 Tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
1/2 teaspoon fresh oregano, chopped
2 Tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped
black pepper
Heat oil in a large saucepan. Add garlic and cook for about a minute. Then add parsley, basil, and oregano. Stir in the crushed tomatoes. Simmer for 30-45 minutes. Taste the sauce and adjust as needed.
2-2.5 cups freshly chopped spinach
14 oz. ground beef (the recipe called for Italian sausage, but I don't trust sausage to be gluten free)
1 10 oz box Tinkyada brown rice lasagna noodles
1 egg, beaten
15 oz. ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Prepare the marinara sauce and allow it to simmer while you prepare the rest of the dish. Cook the noodles according to the package directions. Brown the ground beef. Add the ground beef and chopped spinach to the marinara sauce. Mix the ricotta cheese, chopped parsley, and beaten egg in a small bowl.
Spread 1/3 of the sauce mixture in a rectangular baking dish, 13×9x2 inches. Top with 4 noodles. Spread 1/2 of the ricotta cheese mixture over noodles; spread with 1/3 of the sauce mixture. Sprinkle with 2/3 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat with 4 noodles, the remaining cheese mixture, 1/3 of the sauce mixture and 2/3 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Top with remaining noodles and sauce mixture. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Cover with aluminum foil and bake 30 minutes. Uncover and bake about 15 minutes longer or until hot and bubbly. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.
Okay so this lasagna was very spicy and delicious. By spicy I mean rich and flavorful, and full of the spices that it is drenched in--not a hot kind of spicy. It's also a great recipe if you are trying to use up old veggies (I think the sauce would be delicious with more vegetables in it. It called for mushrooms but I ignored it. Sick). Anyway, Mike and his roommates have devoured the entire pan in less than three days, so, I'd call it a success (especially since his roommates usually shun gf food). :)
I just wanted to congratulate my nerdy little sister for getting 95% on her grammar test. Anyone who went to East high and took a class from Miss Lake knows that's a big and ridiculous deal!
I am a huge fan of gladiators.
I realized today that I am an entity. Entire classes of BYU students have come and gone and I remain on campus, haunting the Harris Fine Arts Center. I wander the halls, stare at art, and meander over to my studio in the Jesse Knight Building to paint, paint, paint. I have witnessed the retirement of several professors in my art career, but still I remain. I have spent countless hours in the same studio space and have watched BFA students come and go. Final show after final show goes up in the HFAC and comes down from the same walls, yet somehow I still have not completed mine. As our dear friend John Lennon once told us, "life is what happens when you're busy making other plans." So here's to you, Lenny--from the HFAC ghost. I always knew you were smart.
This bug is the closest representation I could find to what ate a chunk off my shoulder today. This is not a joke. I felt a stinging, biting pain and took my sweater off to find this Ambush Bug's cousin CRAWLING UP THE INSIDE OF MY CLOTHING. It bled and hurt and swelled to 3x its original size in a few minutes. The wound had to be iced for three hours, and there is still a red sore from the miniature pincers. 
Mike and I spent the past week up in McCall, Idaho with his family. We stayed in a beach cabin and enjoyed a 80*-90* week full of waterskiing, wake boarding, and water football. As you can tell, it was absolutely torturous and the lake wasn't very pretty.
I got to hike The Narrows Monday & Tuesday with Dad, Nat, and Mike. I did this hike with Tyler and Dad in high school but we did it all in one day. I recommend camping overnight--it was fantastic and helpful to spread the distance over two days. Pictures to come.
If only I weren't going to school full-time, trying to finish my finals a week early, working 30 hours a week, and planning a wedding. 
Well folks, she did it. My sister-in-law Kristin gave birth to a blubbery baby boy on July 31, 2009. I was going to say that he was a bouncing baby boy, but he wasn't--he was jiggling. He weighs 9 1/2 pounds and is a very snuggly and cute. Oh yeah and his name is Kimball Neal Johnson. Both he and mom are doing well!
Ever since I was little (and unable to sleep without a perfectly tidy room), I have known a large part of my personality involves perfectionism. Sometimes it isn’t as apparent in certain areas (last year I never completely moved into my room and it was often messy), but this trait is always present somewhere in my life. Whether it’s grades, relationships, appearance, my living space, or not allowing one ounce of gluten to enter my body, I always want everything to be perfect. I am not controlling of other people but I am literally obsessed with self-control no matter the cost.
My teacher also added a few sweet afterthoughts—things he think a lot of people suffer from without realizing they are rooted in pride.
Then he shared this quote, which I love, from President Samuelson:
“Often those who struggle the most with perfectionism are among the most talented people. Some, however, become so obsessed or consumed with their every thought, action, and response that they become far too extreme in their perceptions of what is expected of them. Those suffering from perfectionism tend to be wonderful, contributing, and effective people, and yet may feel no matter what they do, it is never enough” (“What Does It Mean to Be Perfect?” New Era, Jan. 2006, 10).
I'm not saying I'm one of the most talented people out there, I just liked the focus on unrealistic expectations of self. I think everyone can work on pride and all the unexpected tangents of it. That’s all.
Krisy is 40 weeks pregnant today. Every morning for the past week I have been sending Dave the same text. This is how our conversation goes:
I'm not sure why, but for some reason I'm feeling very nostalgic today. It could be because I just got back from a simple and wonderful trip to Fairview with my family (and M). It could also be because I'm trying to avoid studying. Perhaps the fact that my life is full of huge (and wonderful) changes is making me antsy and desperate for something sturdy to hold on to. The past doesn't change, so I think that's why it's on my mind today. I was looking through some of the (literally) thousands of pictures on my computer and found a few that made me smile. Ironically enough, most of them are from times when my life was changing dramatically. This makes me content and excited about the changes that are happening now, because these pictures represent some of my fondest memories.
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