i'm a nanny.

i spent last weekend with these adorable kiddos. 

a snuggly, giggly, adorable 2 year old. {nora}

a cute, sassy, hilarious 6 year old. {sara}

and a calm, clean, obedient 8 year old. {zane}

i spend a lot of time with these three. and don't know why i've never blogged about it...i wish i could remember all the funny things that they've said/done. but there are just too many. all i know is they sure have me wrapped around their little fingers.

posing in their sunday best.

try saying no to that face.

                            

oh goodness. she makes me laugh.

zane. and fairy wings.

and now you know. they're cute.

a few things i learned...over the weekend:

1. babies. (or 2 year olds) sleep as little as they want. and wake up as early as they want.
2. lip gloss will make a six year old happy.
3. don't challenge the kiddos {or anybody} in mario kart. i get my trash whooped.
4. pack plenty of treats to church. (it's fine if the diaper bag is overflowing.)
5. don't ever skip the 2 year old's nap.
6. don't say you're going to do something if you don't really mean it. it doesn't work. they always remember..what you said.
7. warm weather makes this whole nanny thing a lot easier...
8. popsicles can solve anybody's problems.
9. i couldn't have done it without brian.
10. i'm not ready to have kids.

happy saturday! :)

me. lately.

i would be lying if i said i haven't blogged for a while because nothing's been going on. between -work, wedding invitations, furniture shopping, a new job, trying to remember how to run, savoring ever last second i have with my roommates, more furniture shopping, bridal showers, planning my life, and planning for the big day-i've barely had time to breathe. but it's been good. it's made the time go by fast....i am 2 weeks away from being a mrs.
 a mrs peterson to be exact. :)

so. here are a few highlights of whats been going on lately...
 i'll let the pictures do most of the talking.

summer nights.

i am living the summer dream. no school. just work and play. i seriously cannot believe i went all four months of summer last year with it getting dark at 5. (yes, it gets dark at 5:00 pm in brasil. every night. all year round.) no fun. there is nothing i love more than a 8 pm run. or just laying out on the grass until it gets dark. while still being really warm.  my favorite thing lately has been the park up the street. 

 best friends.

this little lady and i are getting married a week apart. [which i still can't believe] she's on of my best friends...and sometimes we think we're practically the same person--except for physical appearance of course. :) it's been so much fun to be in the same place of our lives together...and talk wedding things with each other. she's one of my bridesmaids...and will be providing the music at my reception in burley...because she is one amazing singer. i love this girll.

our friends wanted to have one last little hoorah before we all moved out. (okay, im the only one moving out)...but you know how it is. for some reason it seems like the end of the world. yes i did wear that "bride to be" while in cafe rio. people kept telling me congratulations..and i kept thinking..."how do they know???...." 

one of my favorite things. us four were lucky enough  enough to all be in the same place at the same time. this usually happens about once a year. hol and mckell came down to provo...and we did our yearly catch up with each other. my favorite thing is not seeing them for months...but then picking up right where we left off. they are seriously the best friends a girl could ask for.

(picture taken last year....of course we didn't get one this last time)

on repeat.

i seriously cannot believe how many times this song has been played by me the past couple of days. you'll love it as much as i do if you listen. promise.

getting married {to do's}.

invitations:

wow...what an experience. this feat made me so grateful you only get married once. i won't go into details...but everyone knows what it's like. and if you don't, you will eventually. im still having nightmares...dreams that someone calls me up and starts yelling at me for forgetting about them. scary stuff. all i can say is thank goodness for brian's family. i couldn't help but laugh when i noticed there were more boys than girls around the table putting together invitations. welcome to the peterson family. :)

our soon-to-be home:

our bed set and couch were delivered to our apt today. (the apt bri and i will be living in) he's moving in tomorrow and is going to be staying in it for the next 2 weeks. (while i crash with my roomies and then go home) he doesn't need to sleep on our bed until tomorrow night, but for some reason we felt like we had to set it up tonight. [mostly we were so just so excited to see it] we started at ten. finished at 2. and both work at 7 am? maybe not the best move. but we love it! 

my little structural engineer at work.

sometimes i can't believe i'm actually getting married in 2 weeks. 9 months ago i was starting to seriously think about a mission in the summer of 11. in fact, i'd talked to the bishop about it numerous times...and he put me in the "mission prep" class at church. well, guess who was the teacher? yep.....you guessed it. (what can i say? his teachings skills blew me away......but seriously.) so..9 months later...here i am. 

i'd say it's a pretty good place to be. :)

rainydays&mondays

i am officially burnt out.

tired of 7am workdays.
tired of cold weather & wearing sweatshirts and jeans.
tired of not sleeping well.
tired of treadmills.
{and} i really don't think i can do one more wedding to-do list.

but, things i'm thankful for today?

having a fiance to do the hard things. [heath insurance, car insurance...etc]
that my family will be here in {one month}
naps that go for as long as you want.
the best big brother in brasil that does favors for me.
a fiance that makes me laugh when i'm feeling like this.

 yeah..he's funny.

and cute.

just a peek...

we got our engagement pictures back today...

and are in love with them. to say the least.

it's tough to compete with my dear fiance.

 [who looks like a model in every picture. no..but seriously]

hey, i'm not complaining. :)

i'm not planning on posting any on facebook before i send out invites.

[what a surprise ruiner.]

in fact, i'm sure i'll never post them.

so you'll have to come to {the reception} to see the rest. :)

photographer: michelle kemp.

she's amazing! :)

this is the life

my much needed girls trip to jacksonville florida.

[included]

four best friends.

5 am mornings&travel pillows.

a visit to peach tree city georgia. 

 golf cart rides

beautiful running trails.

a cute beach house.

on a beautiful beach.

one overcast day.

swimming suits....

and sun glasses...all day. every day.

four girls in a king size bed. 

cool places to visit. [st. augustine]

lots of car time.

and car pictures.

delicious food.

 girls nights out.

and curly, frizzy hair.....

for a week straight. :)

as you can see i had the time of my life. trying to soak up my last couple weeks as a single lady. [not that i need any more single lady time....six more weeks is way too much]

but it did remind me [once again] that i have the best friends in the world. 

lots of orange.

i'm feeling very antisocial. {which is unlike me} we just had an opening social for our new ward. (brian and i are staying where we have lived all year just until we get married) [but] it's hard to be social when you're engaged. i don't want to take the time to try to get to know/make new girlfriends. because lets be honest, when would i ever hang out with them? and i don't like talking to the boys-because well, when you're a college student, every conversation includes lots of flirting/checking each other out..and is eventually leading to.... could i date/marry this person? no joke.

so instead i stick to brian's side-so that all the cute new girls in the ward know he's taken, and so that the boys stay away. and when he's not around i flash my perty ring as much as possible.

 and believe me, the boys DO stay away.

so i'm kind of a loser. but oh well. it'll be worth it.

and now for some pictures.

saturday brian and i did a walk for ms. [multiple sclerosis] it was such an awesome experience to see so many people come together for one cause. (and to see so many family members) my cousin abram put together a team (our team had about 40 people) we all had matching bright orange shirts and walked three miles together in downtown salt lake, with thousands of other people. it was really cool. 

this picture below is of one of my {favorite} uncles. he did this awesome pose for me at the walk.

also, i have a funny story to tell about him. 

so i called him on friday and asked him if he'd left for salt lake yet. (i needed him to bring some of my bridesmaid dresses down-that had been shipped to my house) he agreed but then wondered how we were going to meet up. 

me: you can just give them to me at the walk on saturday.

him: okay.......wait, aren't you in FLORIDA?

me: no, i'm not leaving until next week... how did you know i was going to florida?

uncle chad: well, i was reading your blog the other day, and it said you were in florida. 

whoa whoa whoa. uncle chad?? reading my blog???? haha. how funny is that!? 

i'm guessing his wife or daughter was doing some blog reading and he read over their shoulder.

 or something like that. 

moral of the story: you never know who's reading your blog. :)

one more thing. i'll be here in approximately 3 days. woohooo!

the sun is shining

today is going to be a good day. 

why?

it's 11:30 and i'm already done with work.

it's warm outside.

i've already chatted with my pops today.

just finished an effortless five mile run.

my apartment is clean.

no school to worry about. [for four months]

i'm leaving with my best friends to florida. in one week.  

and, i'm engaged to this boy.

what are you loving about today?