happy birthday to my jeffrey d.!

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today is my jeffrey's birthday! he's now officially in his 'late twenties' but please don't bring that up. he's still recovering from realizing that him + taylor swift are the same age. something about the fact that she already owns like, fifteen houses or something? minor details! minor details!

we celebrated today + i gifted him allllll of his favorite foods. because of my lack of self-control around gushers + the fact refined sugar makes me like, so cranky we never have junk food in our house. our pantry is the lamest + would make ten year olds cry with its lack of -ito's + cookies + poptarts. BUT NO LONGER! junk food galore! eighty dollars worth! you're welcome!

but one more time, happy birthday to jeff! he is the funniest, most patient + kindest person. he is easy to please (wink)(but actually being serious. his request today : boxed mashed potatoes, frozen peas + a pineapple upside down cake. shockingly white trash), easy-going + ...also he is very forgiving because i royally messed up his favorite meal, chicken crescents. woops. he is my happy place + my steady. and today he is twenty six!

...now go write on his facebook wall or something.

happy july second // *almost* THREE YEAR OLDS

so, totally not a selfie.

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also can you believe jeff + i are approaching three years? 

i like three-year-old us.

sure, we are dinged-up + chubbier + have been through THE ROUGH PATCH (vol. 1 of 3,203,447, or so i've heard) but hey! three-year-old us has more fun + more depth + less 'what are you thinking about?'-ing. because i freaking hate that question. hahahah. 

round of applause for shotgun weddings everywhere! 

...you are welcome for the most romantic sentiments about marriage + love + other some such things.

you didn't expect much from me, right? 

LOVE IS --- plus some life ramblings.

In the spirit of the month of love quickly approaching (tomorrow), here's a post about love. Also HI! Hello! I am back from my short little internet-vacation. We had both sides of our family in town last week + all my attention went to them. And to Dance Moms. Please, I beg of you, if you see a shooting star tonight or have an extra birthday candle, please please please wish that Netflix will put another season out. My life is not the same without Abby Lee Miller's hoarse threats. Also I am pretty sure hell will be the observatory of the ALDC with Chloe's mom ranting. It's like, Maddie is the best. Get over it.

Now enough about dance mom, on to love.

LOVE IS :

...waiting in the Taco Bell line for five extra minutes because they gave you a hard shell chicken taco instead of a soft shell beef. Also love is driving in the car with Taco Bell even though it makes you dry heave.

...silently watching Elizabethtown for the third time + refraining to make fun of it. (IT IS MY FAVORITE MOVIE! Why does everyone hate it?!)

...rewinding the Friends intro because your TV-partner missed the claps.

...supporting all of the many epiphanies + wild ideas that midnight and too much Diet Dr. Pepper bring (I should be an air stewardess! I should take improv classes! I should be a group aerobics instructor! I should die my hair blonde! I should try out for Survivor!) (p.s. yes, these are all life-paths I have furiously Googled until 5 a.m. then given up on. Ha.)

...pretending to know anything about video games + computer science + football.

...replacing the last Diet Coke in the fridge with a new one. HALLELUJAH!

TA-DAAAAA!

p.s. A PSA :

Jeff + I saw Into the Woods a few weeks ago. HOLY SHOOT. Guys, it was bad. I love me some Meryl Streep and Chris Pine and Emily Blunt Anna Kenderick...wait, actually why was this so bad? It's too much of a good thing. It really was awful though. I was half-expecting the lady giant to be Queen Latifah and then it would loop into the movie Taxi or something. Like all one big joke intro? The end. Happy February. And to ALL, a good night.

Marriage vows. In my head.

Today I mentally updated the marriage-vows-in-my-head to say, 

"I promise to never drag you to a Zumba class against your will."

(but I will force you to watch every season of the Bachelor with me)

(and post gushy things all over the Internet)

That's all.

arm tickles.

i dole out my love fairly easily. i mean, i generally love people until they give me a good reason not to (like donning a foam finger to the vma's...and even then...) + will love any food you throw my way + ...actually, no. this is all foiled. i really don't like cats. onwards! i feel like i've been in love many times, but in many different ways + capacities. there was the, you play football + i need a date for homecoming! type of love that somehow lasted long past homecoming and the you're moving soon + i care about you enough to hang on till april for good face type of love and the you are really funny and have a moped! type of love that transitioned into you are a good friend type of love that quickly fizzled into you are the only person i know at this particular moment in life that watches workaholics + finds costco exciting type of love. 

it's all very romantic + rambly, no?

but i was never in-love until jeffrey stapleton.

oh, heavens. 

i remember the first time that i realized i was in love with him. we were watching we bought a zoo with all of his roommates in his tiny apartment + were squished together on a couch. he was wearing a dress shirt, tie, and jeans which i noted and found...interesting? what exactly was he doing? (he later admitted he was channeling joseph gordon-levitt in 500 days of summer and didn't quite achieve the look he was going for) it was endearing + weird all at the same time.

right in the middle of the movie, after matt damon turned distressed father turned zookeeper gave his son the speech about "20 seconds of insane courage", i lurched for his hand. oh the stomach flips! oh the excitement! he warmly greeted my hand with his hand + proceeded to tickle my arm. tickle my arm! my arm had never been tickled before! praise the land + the sea + this joseph gordon-levitt, arm tickling man next to me. i was in love. i had to be.

it was early on in our whirlwind relationship, but i felt so loved + cared after + why was he wearing a tie again? it was romantic in a sort of jeffrey stapleton type of way. 

and for the record, in the movie of my life at this very scene i request miss independent by kelly clarkson to be playing in the background. it's all so fitting. 

the end. 

my guy.

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this summer has been so good to me. like, mind-boggling type good. sure, there's been some thing that haven't gone accordingly to plan and some weeks we just sit at home and watch vampire diaries (correction: jeff watches vampire diaries) and eat english muffins but hey! for the most part it has been wonderful. and really, doesn't every one want a week or two of netflix + carbohydrates? thought so.

last night as i was editing a wedding at my ikea desk that jeff had set up hours earlier, i felt content. it was most probably because i was listening to lana del rey with my bra off, but that's besides the point. i could hear jeff chatting to morgan + paige about vampires in the other room and are you really team stephan? i could have sat there forever. i feel so happy where i am at in my life right now. ewww, am i getting sappy here? i don't even know. blame it on the lana.

this summer has been such an indicator to me of how little it takes to feel happiness. i have realized that all it actually takes is my jeffrey. aw, my jeffrey. i could write a sonnet about him. or five sonnets because remember how they are only fourteen lines! ha! for a long while, i thought we were so peculiar. we just aren't super blog cute, you know? seldom does he write me ballads about the way my hair flows in the wind or bring me waffles in bed just because i was such a delight to sleep next to. actually, no that has never happened (i'm a bed hog. oops). nor has he ever walked in the door with an arm full of flowers and a puppy or three.

but woof. he does so much more than that. i didn't realize that i needed a jeff stapleton, but guys! i needed one. he supports all of my wild and ever-changing dreams (for example, in one week i said i want to be a magazine writer! and then i want to be a health teacher! and he said "do it. you'd be awesome!" to both of 'em without even flinching. he was even mildly sincere). i feel like he is my springboard. you know? before i always felt this rush of nerves when i was starting something new; what if i fail?! what will people think!? but with jeff around, i know that even if i am the worst wedding photographer in. the. world, he will still be there at the end of the day. probably in basketball shorts and a button down because that's how jeff stapleton lounges?

he's my guy. he gets my need for commotion all around me (let's go to idaho! let's go to michigan! let's move! let's go to california!), but also gets that i get over-whelmed at the thought of packing and if the bed is not made in the morning, my life is sort of over.
he just gets me. or at least pretends to. i'm a complex human, you know?

awww. i just adore him. he brings out my sappy bone that will start admitting how much i want babies and a garden and why are bunnies so cute?! he makes me huggy and lovey and makes me feel like my quirks are totally okay. no really, they're fine!

and i'm done. i'm done! it's just that the world needs more jeff stapleton's. he's just a good egg. and mine. maha!

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this post actually was supposed to be a love note to july but hey, our one year anniversary is tomorrow so this seems fitting? eh?

my jeffrey.

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yesterday in church jeff poked my side and passed me a note that said, "let's plan a big trip for next year to look forward to" and i could have kissed his face right there in the pew!

that man! i firmly believe july is his spirit month because hot d.a.m.n. (in my mind, i am signing those letters to the tune of 'ymca' and it's awesome), that boy is killing it. my dad was visiting this past week and commented that i found a man who can fix things without mumbling a slew of curse words under his breath (side note : i am nearly positive that jeff was trying to show off, but only a bit. as my dad was visiting, everything seemed to need fixing. the ceiling fan! the lighting fixture! the television! he was like the spicy carpenter man in holes). also he over-analyzes crappy television with me so...

...and that's my braggy post about how i scaaaa-ored in the man department (and boob department too, thanks kim!)(kidding, kidding, keeeeedding). chest bump me later. 

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happy father's day!

happy father's day to the man who, when i teared up as one does during our daddy-daughter dance at my reception, stared at me in confusion and asked if i was okay? who do i need to beat up? why are you crying?!?!

always the protector.

but thanks dad! for everything. for teaching me that there is beauty in the simple things and in routines (wheaties for breakfast every. single. morning), for threatening every and any boy that has caused me any sort of pain (basketball coaches included!), and for loving mom so very much and setting the bar crazy high for how i should be treated. 

you da bestest. 

mama's day + a declaration of love to my own mama.

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here's a secret: sometimes, especially after i have eaten more than i should and the pooch is out to play, i like to pretend i'm pregnant. no, but seriously. i'll hold my stomach and look down i'll lovingly and give a little sigh as if to say, i just can't wait to meet you in five short months, my little macaroon. it's kind of disgusting and horrifying and, while i'm here, this is my a public declaration to never refer to my child as a french-cookie (that kind of suck, don't you think? the hype around those things! head-scratchingly successful! they are like the baked goods version of  matthew mcconaughey!)(though he was mildly decent in lincoln lawyer, i'm told). 

shoot, where was i going with this?

oh! yes! yesterday i didn't even have to employ my master plan of having a pregnancy scare to swindle a meal or five out of jeff stapleton. no, jeff stapleton was on it! i woke up to breakfast in bed (...also head-scratchingly successful...it's so uncomfortable. syrup flying everywhere, juice toppling over; i'm not coordinated enough for that jazz). 

eggs 'cause i have eggs to be specific. and i really don't know if there was some hidden message behind the banana? mayhaps?

and now for some pictures of me. bra-less. you are welcome. 

 

i felt like such a mama's day imposter. but then i was like, what the heck! although i am not a mama, i am well-equipped for it with my wide-set hips, evil-eye, and lady-parts, of course.

because that's all you need to be a mama, right? ;)

when i think about motherhood, i feel seriously overwhelmed. i can hardly keep track of myself, how am i supposed to keep track of another person?! there is so much a need to do and learn! how to do calm a baby down and how to put them to sleep and my boobs are going to do what (?!) and how much is it goign to hurt and diapers cost how much?!? 

good. hell. 

but then i think about my mama. oh, i seriously hope everyone has a kim mosman in her life. now that i've gotten older, i've realized how totally i took her for granted. all those years of lunches made to my exact order and homework drop-offs and homecooked meals and laundry folder and put away! but mostly, i think i took her unwavering friendship and support for granted.

i grew up knowing that my mom was kick-a but i also, sort of believed that everyone else's moms were almost as cool. that everyone else's mother would rather poke their eyeballs out then miss a sporting event. that everyone else's mother would help rub self-tanner on the parts that they couldn't reach (ha!). that everyone else's mother knew the exact and precise remedy for a bad day and would show up right when they needed them...like in supply closets at school!* 

mom, you are my nearest and dearest friend. you have made motherhood look so fun and i feel anxious, like a dog on a leash at a dog park (hashtag brooke attempts a metaphor...errr, simile), to join in. eventually. like, not any time soon-soon but soon. i am so thankful for your example to me and your support and love through all of my awkward stages and fleeting interests. you are the best.

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*no seriously. this happened. i was senior class president (...drops mic...) and was stressed out over planning a silly dance that i didn't even want to go to. the principal wasn't understanding me and my vision (i was such a douche) and i was so annoyed. so, so annoyed. oh the drama! oh the tragedy! i walked to the downstairs bathroom of my high school to maybe have my first at-school cry. it was so ceremonious! how do i even start it?! right as i was about to turn on the water works, my mom walks out of the supply closet! ha! she was grabbing some things or something? i'm just going to hold firm to my belief that she is three parts wizard. i hid in their for a period and let out a few deep sighs. and that's my story. 

throwback thursday.

we took these pictures at jeff's friend's wedding. jeff was a groomsmen and i was there to drool over jeff. i remember looking at them afterwards and being all bummed out -- the lighting was weird, my face was blurry, our foreheads looked like they continued on into infinity...plus we were both oddly sweaty. i blame the mcdonald's we pounded five minutes before.

but now that i look at them, i see how completely lovestruck and giddy we were (are! are! no past tense over here! don't come knockin' when the ship is a'rockin'...or something like that?)(...am i getting sentimental here?). this was the night before he proposed to me! and as with most things in life, i was completely clueless + had no idea it was happening. that sneaky spy! 

in retrospect, the whole night makes a lot more sense when i think about it as our proposal eve. i remember he was so nervous and would not let me get near his phone. he was so, so vague about our plans for the following night "...umm, we are going to a concert...and yeah!" 

but mostly i remember that he kept giving me this look. like a, "girl, i'm about to wife you up!" type of look. and, let me tell you, i am so, so happy that he did. 

did you read through that all? is anybody stil here? ...that was all very sentimental for a thursday. but, you know these things happen. 

and her small heart grew three sizes that year...

this past year, i feel like i have learned how to love things so hard. let me explain:

i never really bought into the idea of love and all of its trappings. the thought of a guy somewhere in the world holding half of my heart really made me want to vomit (the visual!). i always scratched my head at the stories where a homely girl meets a vampire and falls in love with him and becomes this sparkling goddess vampire slayer (...twilight...). why did i need a man to make me glitter in the sunlight? turn up the destiny's child, will ya?

i already felt complete. unquestionably single, but complete.

my roommate in college and one of the three people i feel comfortable using the term best friend with, avery, is your token cool friend. you know what i mean? we had a sort of hunter-gatherer relationship where she would hunt and gather all prospective friends...and i would sit in our room watching netflix with my retainer in. it was a truly beautiful thing. she validates the fact that, because you are friends with her, you are partially cool. you have to be! 

"sorry ma'am, but you are not allowed to be at this party for the world's most elite, i'm going to have to ask you to..."

"...but i'm friends with avery miyahara!"

"oh! in that case! come on in, person dressed like a colonial lady! welcome to the world's most elite party! have a mini corndog?"

you following? i swear, if sweet mary and joseph and just told those pricks of innkeepers that they knew avery miyahara, the entire christmas story would have gone a lot differently. they would have been put up at the finest establishment! is this irreverent? this is irreverent. onwards!

avery and i performed magic in our tiny dorm room at 1121 chipman. those two semesters together, my cool-avery silently helped me to whittle away all the dumb stuff that had burdened my soul all through high school. suddenly, all my insecurities just seemed kind of, well, stupid. thick thighs? pffft. a permanent food baby? pfffft. more-than-occasional upper lip hair? pff...actually, no. that one still sucks. 

in sum, i became complete. 

and then i met jeff.

oh, jeff. 

this past year together has helped solidify the fact that yes, i was still a complete person without him and am still that same complete person with him. meeting him didn't make my skin glitter or freeze my blood or anything major. he didn't come bearing half of my heart (the visual! gross!) or suddenly make me realize that i was a ten-cow woman. t-rust me, i already knew that (joking!). 

but he did make me love things harder. it was like on the grinch where his heart grows three times bigger; i loved things more. three times more, in fact! fountain drinks, television shows, even my idaho and family, things i already loved, i loved more. 

...and, unfortunately for you all subjected to my selfies or occasional brag-fest, this i loved myself more, too. jeff took all the things i already loved about myself and shouted them back at me lovingly. you do have the best taste in apples, brooke! you are suspiciously attractive when you sweat, brooke! (i glisten guys, i really do!) you do find the best drive-through salads, brooke! 

it's like jeff has blown up my heart so big that it could burst; case-in-point: i commented on a friend's instagram the other day that 'my heart was warm' after looking at her pictures. what? when did i become affectionate? (answer: still not; let's not hug, ya?)(kidding!)

i love that boy. more than i love myself, i promise. and i love that 2013 is like this big plot of land with fresh snow that i can't wait to defile. 

because he's always wanted to make out in the music-practice rooms...

 dear jeff: i love you, you modern day renaissance man.

life with you is one long serenade.

one occasionally off-key yet completely perfect serenade.

(p.s. i hope our offspring inherit your musical abilities--

if not they can just clap wildly alongside me.)

promises for a daughter || happy birthday, mom!

this may sound silly, but i always tell jeff that my one wish in life is to have a daughter. and maybe a garden. and also a lightening-fast metabolism? but mostly a daughter.

i make little promises to the high heavens, too. they're bargains, almost.

promises like, 'i promise if you will give me a daughter, i will teach her that what really matters, what's really beautiful, is what's on the inside...but i will also have the dignity to share with her the powers of an under-wire bra, the importance of eyebrow maintenance  and the magic in m.a.c. makeup (and danger in the wrong shade of foundation + liquid eyeliner) at the appropriate times.'

promises like, 'i promise if you will give me a daughter, i will do my very best in shaping her to be a kind and gentle young lady and will protect her from all that's stinky and scary in the world for as long as humanly possible...but i will also let her get her heart broken if she must (and will give him-who-breaks-her-heart death glares into the eternities) and watch her make a few mistakes and bad haircuts.'

promises like, 'i promise if you give me a daughter, i will always, always be there for her-- i will be there at her mind-numbingly boring sixth grade graduation, at her middle-school choir concert where she mouths the words all-too-obviously, and perched on her bedside with chocolate chip pancakes and a good pep talk in tow when she is in one of her inevitable 'napping seven hours a day is normal, mom!' slumps that generally mean something more.'

promises like, 'i promise if you will give me a daughter, i will be her very best friend and sneak her out of school just to guzzle down 32 oz. of diet coke goodness and split appetizers at the over-priced peruvian restaurant a few times...but i will also be her mother and will lecture her till my voice is hoarse if i have to.'

but mostly, promises like 'i promise if you will give me a daughter and beat out the curse (i mean blessing!) of the all-boy-stapleton-streak, i will try and be half the mom that my mom was to me.'

happy birthday mom, you truly are the most wonderful creature. 

(p.s. yes, she was the cheerleading captain! her pep talks are extra peppy and usually end in 'GO LAKE OSWEGO LAKERS!')

(...and no,  i'm not pregnant. or trying. i'm like, thirteen years old, people!)

hippity happiness!

 

last night jeff worked until eight and i decided to make a full-fledged dinner; foil-baked tilapia with parsley, rice with collared greens, and some frozen yogurt with baked apples (COMPLIMENT MY DOMESTIC ATTEMPTS!). as i was putting the finishing touches on the meal and staring out the window like an anxious puppy dog waiting for him to hurry up and come over, i decided that i could be perfectly happy doing this for…ever?  well, maybe not for ever. but for now. isn’t that funny how that works? i mean, i do want more…of course! i want more education and more clothes and more kitchen-counter space but, even if that never happens–even if i had to use the makeshift fold-out counter-top forever–i know i could be happy with this and most of all, with him…and i think that’s pretty neat!

that good-good.

 

::waking up obscenely early and hiking Y mountain…holy, polynesians! there were so many cute families up! and by cute i mean huge! each family consisted of like, twelve kids!

::finding my phone and my engagement ring. yes, i temporarily lost that little sparkler…worst(ish) six hours of my life! i have a sleep-walking problem and evidently slept walk over to my dresser and placed it inside the hood of a gray sweatshirt? thank heavens for answered prayers! bumper sticker that!

::a homemade meal made entirely by jeff. delicious whole wheat macaroni and cheese with spinach and olive oil and extra love…and strawberry shortcake for dessert! he is a dreamboat…so much so that i will disregard his affinity for outfits that make no sense– a button up chambray with basketball shorts? funky?

::long talks with my mother dear on the phone while slurping down a vanilla diet coke (with fresh lemons! thanks jennie!).

::swimming some late-night laps at the gym. wait, actually i am not thankful for this at all. i realized how terrible i am at swimming; i blame my parents, they only forced me to get to the minnow level! let us take from this: i went to the gym.

::saturdays….enough said.

like a train on a track.

thursday it all caught up to me: the never-ending cold i am battling, the $50 ticket for rolling through a stop sign i SWEAR did not previously exist, the sub-par work i had handed in for photography, the upcoming week of finals in classes i have not (mentally) attended for weeks, the disappointing email i received this morning, the fact that i can not find ANYTHING to wear anymore and have had a perpetual hair day for months…

the stars were not in line. i spent most of thursday morning moping around. it felt so good! i rolled around in my self-pity like a…pig in its pig-sty? or something?

jeff noticed that i was in a bit of a funk (…the deep sighs were apparently quite telling…?) and dragged me to macey’s to get some soft serve ice cream and a fountain drink.

that’s when i snapped out of it! sipping on my diet coke heavily flavored with cherry i realized that i had an overwhelming amount of things to be grateful about!

like…the fact that i genuinely like my job. i really do! a few months ago i picked up a job at the tanning booth on a whim (…make fun of me, go ahead!), but i’ve ended up loving it. i love my coworkers and the people who come in and…knowing how much people’s backs sweat in utah county?

or that i have a mother that sends me sweet packages on EVERY HOLIDAY and is so patient with me and my terrible help in wedding planning (my response to 99% of the questions: “yeah! cool! do it! okay!” …i have no opinions, officially).

or that i have the best family for me in general. cousins included.

or that i have made some of the coolest and raddest friends here at byu. no, but seriously.

or that i still have the best friends at home that are always so uplifting and supportive and understanding of my terrible facebook chat manners (…sorry, taylor!).

or that morgan called me in a flurry to tell me that when she clicked on my blog link via twitter, an inappropriate picture of manhood at its finest popped up on her screen (i’m sorry, i’m sorry, YOU’RE WELCOME!)?

or that yesterday i literally had the best apple in my entire life! or that einstein’s bagels has bagel thins and $1 oatmeal raisin cookies! or that the semester is almost over! or that i am going to portland to visit my grandma with a slight brooklyn accent in a few weeks! or that a man told me yesterday that i looked like an anthropologist? okay?

or that in four short months i am marrying a boy who puts up with the fact that i only want to listen to jojo, b*witched, and disney on pandora and patiently gives me directions to his apartment when i call him and frantically explain how i am lost! i don’t know how i am lost, but i am! ha. poor guy.

or that it’s the freakin’ weekend! and almost, almost faturday! or that tomorrow it’s general conference!

see? all better. (thank heavens…the deep sighs were really getting tiresome!)

the proposal + video!

a little background (other wise known as: the entire story): i had just gotten off work and he asked me if i wanted to go to a concert. i suspected NOTHING. once we got there, i started noticing that i knew 99.3% of the people who were there–so popular! i started chatting away and completely lost track of where he had wandered off to (in fact, i told one friend that i was purposely avoiding him because we both were wearing blazers and there should only be ONE blazer per group!). all of a sudden, i look up on stage and there he is! he asked me to come up and i took my sweet time (all the while giving him the death glare and trying to telepathically say DO NOT SING JEFF! YOU ARE NOT A SINGER JEFF!). once on stage (still suspecting nothing!), he told me all these really sweet things (why are you telling me this NOW?! can’t you tell me this in the car, jeff?!) AND THEN GOT DOWN ON ONE KNEE. what?! i was NOT expecting it at all! i had told my mom that i was sure he was going to propose in the next few months but figured it would be when we were at his home in california or after winter semester had ended. but nope! he got down on one knee right THEN on march 10th (he told me that he heeded to beyonce’s advice: he liked it, so he put a ring on it–a simple man, that one!). i was really, REALLY excited but really, REALLY confused? had he talked to my dad? through gritted teeth i  whisper-yelled “…oh my gosh? have you talked to my dad?” to which he responded “yes, of course!” to which i responded “yes! of course i’ll marry you!”

…and then we ran off stage because i was getting antsy.

the end!

my crazy talented friend andrew storer was fortunately there (…as was about 353 other people who i knew! it was SO cool!) and filmed the entire thing! this is a short little video that he made of the night.

*also, the song playing in the back is by the band that was playing there, robert & the carrols. it was SUCH a special night! did mention that jeff planned an entire concert just to propose?! and had a fancy little sign made and invited all of my friends?! and that i am engaged to be married to him?! winning!

a special little letter.

yesterday evening, my grandma mosman sent me the sweetest email! i just love her–she sent me a book all about italy when she found out that i was going to study there and then this little email when she found out i had completely ditched that plan because of falling so hard, so fast for jeff. my grandma is such a smart and kooky (in the best of ways!) lady that was madly (read: MADLY) in love with my grandpa; their marriage was so precious so this message was especially meaningful to me!

OK, so I cried….you sound just like I did when I met Grandpa.  So in love that I gave up a full ride scholarship to an Ivy League school, Sarah Lawrence, for the fall, because I couldn’t leave him.  I know you two will be every bit as happy as we were because you both believe, apparently, that it is a miracle you found each other.  And it is, it really is.  Love, G.

happy days and happy wednesday! :)

my summer: a pizza.

 

January 7th: The day that Britney Spear’s released her brilliantly mainstream single ‘Hold it Against Me’ for the whole world to hear.

I remember how confused I was that day, sweet January 7th, driving my light blue Corolla across the icy streets of Moscow to procure an equally icy $1.06 Diet Coke at McDonald’s. The radio was dialed to the always-trusty Z-Fun 106.1 and the playlist had been a rotating mix of Lil Wayne, T-Pain, and annoyance.
Still driving, the music became apart of the background; nothing but mere noise. Until my ears were met with sweet, sweet bliss and felt like they were in ear drum heaven. Britney Spears was blaring over my sound system (ALL CAPS!) Could that be Britney? Has she finally come back? BRITNEY?! I was so excited to hear her voice again, singing raunchy lyrics in a sexy voice to a catchy beat–the familiarity felt like the wearing the coziest, most favorite-est sweater after a long, hot summer.
But then I remember thinking: Wait…I don’t even really like Britney. Why am I so excited to hear her? Why are my inner thoughts in italics?

Answer: Because she left. And shaved her head. And popped out a few children. And was once married to K-Fed. And now she’s back.

Perhaps I was trying to generate the same feelings with the few blog readers that I have. I wanted you guys to miss me and my raunchy lyrics just liked I missed Britney; I wanted you to forget how much you really didn’t like me and be blinded by your cravings for my return.
And I’m back! Fortunately during my three-month blog hooky I didn’t shave my head or have a baby or get married to a back up dancer. I did, however, have the best summer of my life to date! I feel like I did so much and combined so much great stuff into one that it should be illegal; my summer was like a romantic-comedy-drama that starring Meryl Streep, Dianne Keaton, Meg Ryan AND Jennifer Anniston. And Ryan Gosling. Set in Italy. With a wonderful soundtrack and lovely resolve. A movie that makes you pee your pants laughing and cry from happiness and sadness and allergies-ness.
Or maybe it’s like a pizza. That has pepperoni and sweet onions and bell peppers and sausage and pineapple and pine nuts and bacon and basil and pesto and a thin crust dough and tomato-y sauce and mushrooms, lots of mushrooms (‘lots of mushrooms’: that is not a hint about how I spent my summer…mind you, I was at BYU). But it also has zero calories and doesn’t cause my stomach to break out in WWIII fifteen minutes later. Yeah, like a pizza.
In other words, it was too good to be true.
And now it’s over.
And now I’m back…and craving pizza.

dear moscow high school...

 

Dear Moscow High School,
We have had a great four years together. Though many times I openly cursed you and rarely was I present for the whole SEVEN hour day (seven hours!), I’d like to thank you for everything.
Thank you to the teachers, both the good ones and the bad ones, for teaching me daily how to text behind my back, utilize SparkNotes, and build the perfect barrier for sleeping during class. Oh, and thank you, dear teachers, for being so kind when you woke me up, you truly mastered the gentle yet firm tap on the shoulder.
Thank you for the bathrooms that were seemingly ALWAYS occupied whenever I had to do some serious bathroom business every morning and after lunch (blame the Fiber One bars…). And thank you for the etchings in the stalls, especially the one that said ‘Why so serious?’ with the reply ‘Because I’m taking a s&*%!’ written right underneath. That one made me chuckle.
Thank you for the school dances that always served as an affirmation that I am, indeed, as white as they come and do, indeed, have no rhythm…whatsoever. Also thank you for having no rhyme or reason to the songs you played, dear dances, and constantly playing songs that no one knew how to dance to including ‘Gold Digger’ (inevitable: fake shoveling), ‘Airplanes’, and the legendary ‘Come Sail Away.’ Also thank you for always playing ‘Hot in Here’ by Nelly and making it easier to weed out the d-bags (answer: the ones who, at the end of the dance, are in their wife beaters…yelk).
Thank you, dear high school, for providing me with friends of all sorts and also for Arts Fest, I liked that. Thank you for old-fashioned chocolate milk in the vending machines (but NOT for jacking the prices up a quarter this year!) and packs of gum for $.75 at the student store. Thank you for making it so easy to unblock YouTube and Facebook at school and thank you for gossip magazines and comfy couches in the library.
Thank you for 4 years, good days and bad days included. Well, maybe not ALL the bad days (like the one where my iPod was stolen, or the one where some boy ate my entire lunch including my peanut butter and banana sandwich, red jello, and carrot sticks).
Thank you for all of it. But most of all, thank you for only being over.
Sort of sincerely,
Brooke Mosman