Counting down the days...

So Shawn got me hooked and I no longer have control. I started snowboarding last January ('08) and have loved it since the 1st day. Well, almost every day. There were the days I came away with some nasty bruises, and even a broken bone! (I broke my rib going on rail my 3rd time out. Hey, I didn't want to be the one who couldn't anything anymore!) Anyway, it's been a great ride (literally) and I thought I should share some great memories made on my Feelgood with Shawn and his Twin and Alli and her K2. Us 3 have had some pretty great adventures on our boards, the greatest among them was our trek out to Montana. Speaking for the 3 of us, we all think of our days on Lone Mountain in the days of stress, school, work, and all the yuck that comes with it. I've been counting down the days till I can strap on my beautiful board and shred the gnar again!Here's Shawn getting ready to actually do this box. He's awesome. He's my inspiration.Alli's learning, she pretty much started this season. She did a box perfectly out in Montana, and rocked it! Like so...
The lodge we stayed at was the greatest! They were the most hospitable staff. They made us a made-to-order breakfast each morning and partied with us at night. Shawn and I took advantage of the LAST quarter-cent pool table in the countryBelieve me, Alli and I take advantage of our time on the lifts. If you were anywhere on Lone Mountain on the days of Jan 8-13, you probably heard/saw us singing and dancing on the chair lifts.We all feel quite at home in our shredding gear, I don't think any of us would have a problem making Montana our REAL home! A group shot from the *near* top of Lone Mountain on the Big Sky side. It was pretty exhileration coming down from those hights, and Alli had her biggest struggle of all when she found herself in about 4 ft. of soft powder and had to fight (roll, splatter, scream in frustration) her way out. It was hilarious. You need to see the video, maybe I'll post it if I can find 10 hrs of free time :)

All and her boarding mentor, Shawn. I could be mentor if I had more to say than, "Just bend your knees and don't fall!"
Alli and I had our groove/rap/weirdy/black barbie session every morning while getting ready. It was hot. No, literally. I advise everyone to not dance around for long periods of time wearing long johns and wool socks. Sweaty.
Bye bye, Montana. See you soon if I win the lottery or decide to disown my lifelong goals and familyor get amnesia and wake up as a pro snowboarder or become a anthropologist and want to find a baby sabertooth tiger on Lone Mountain and then just snowboard around while my team digs it up, but then I'm there in the newspapers and my family contacts me and says, "Hey you got amnesia, but we're your family! Come back to Minnesota!" and I'll be all "Do you have mountians and/or frozen 30 million old sabertooth tiger babies in Minnesota?" and they'll be like, "Well, no..." and that's when I'll be like, "Then you're not my family!!"

Dance with Me!

I never thought I'd be a fan, but the dreaded day has come- I watch (and enjoy immensely) Dancing with the Stars.

Here are my favorites: Melissa Close second! Shawn Johnson

It's coming down to the finals so you should check it out on Monday and Tuesday nights on ABC. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

I'M ALIVE!!

This is a survival message to all my followers (the three of you). I have survived the 1st half of my LAST semester at UMD. School, school, and more school are the only reasons I can think of for not keeping up with my blog, and for that I am extremely sorry. But once I get my B.S. (you all know what that stands for I trust) it will be all worth it. I'll get a job right out of graduation and be making big money, big money, no whammies. Right? Here's hoping.
I'm thinking in order to catch up from where we left off (was it really Dec. 14th??!) we should start at the very beginning, a very good place to start. 20 points for whoever can name that movie. Well... basically Christmas break started the way most college kids' does: with a dead battery. Robby reminded me of the power of prayer when we prayed after charging the car for a while hoping it would start so I could head home. It worked! I love God.

Here's some pics of Christmas break.

Back to Basics

So I'm realizing my gift ideas have been a wee bit on the steep side, so I wanted to give some $10 bucks and under options. Here's some goodies I absolutely love and absolutely need for that so-fresh-and-so-clean feeling. You know what I mean.

Keeping my Norwegian skin clear, I love exfoliating cleansers. I'm currently using Clean&Clear scrub, but I'm always up to something new, as long as it smells fresh and leaves that cool tingling feeling on my skin afterwards, ahhhhhhhh!

I'm also in love Velocity from Mary Kay, both the cleanser and the moisturizer.

Who doesn't love that "seriously, feel how smooth my legs are!" post shower attitude? That's why my intuition razor is a must in my shower caboodle. No nicks, just smoothness.

As for the auburn flow of beauty that is my hair, ask the only lady I allow to mess with it, Auntie Barbie. She's seen the best and worst of do's ontop of my head, and she knows what's best for me. She's my hair mom. I love her. Call her up if you want to get me some product. 218.747.2563

Colorful, lovely, cute jewelry. You can't go wrong.

Beads I can make colorful, lovely, cute jewelry with. Yay!

Socks. Although I love the comfy thick ones to lounge around in, I would use the thin moisture-wicking wool kind. Great for boarding!

Anything from the Pink section at Victoria's Secret. I wear size M. I like lace hipsters!

Although I'm a fan of Bath & Body (mango mandarin, coconut lime verbana, cool citrus basil, pink grapefruit) I adore Aveeno products, especially the positively radiant line.

Crossword puzzles. I love them! Shawn and I do them when we drive anywhere for a long time together. (i.e. Ashby) They are sooo good for vocabulary and thinking about language in different ways. A cool book of crosswords would be a perfect gift.

A Glimpse into the Past

Old pictures make me laugh. They seem to resemble more with each passing year. Originally, I was going to post a picture of Alli so it makes Karley feel bad about NOT including Alli, but I've devised a way to include them BOTH. So hold onto your pee...Alli breathing in the sweet aroma of Lutefisk, a cod that passes all understanding.

All holding Miles, who strongly resembles an egg.

Apparently we are very excited about Sam and Dad carving the ham. Nice face, Alli.

Alli and I, sexy and tan.

p.s.-I think this is the last trip the Exploder ever made to Fargo.

To this day of my most treasured pictures. This is Dixie, our first dog who made us laugh with her vocal expressiveness.


Can you believe Karley ever did her hair like this??















Well, that's it (for now). I hope you enjoyed these as much I do! Took my mind off the stress of finals, anyway. Peace & Love

Accessorize!

An early Christmas present came with a black Friday deal I couldn't pass up. I got an 8G Sansa Fuze, but alone its kinda naked. Here's some accessories I would love to dress it up a bit with:

A travel cover/adjustable arm-band

and/or a FM transmitter

Per-fume, her-fume, Jill-fume

Even though I love that post-workout sweat smell (Jill-fume), I acknowledge that a dash of perfume is good everyonce in a while. I adore Hollister's August perfume, but it's been discontinued [tear] (although you can still buy it on ebay, nudge-nudge).

Anyway, [wiping off the tear] I am ready to move on to bigger and better fumes. I've decided on one to add to my Christmas list. Burberry Brit Gold, yum!