Happy Birthday – The Good Stuff

Sawyer June is 1!

July 13, 2018July 13, 2018 Amanda

Today Miss Sawyer June turns one years old!

If you’ve been following along at in the past year, chances are you’ve heard me talk about this sweet little girl or at least seen her picture.

Sawyer is actually my cousin, though age-wise she’s obviously more like a niece. My own sister and I waited 23 years for a cousin on this side of our family and we love her to pieces!

The first word that I’d use to describe Sawyer is sassy. She has such a big personality already! So I laugh, because on this particular day that I took these pictures of her when I was home in Oregon a few weeks ago, I was watching her while her mama napped and Sawyer was about 20 minutes or so away from going down for a nap of her own. So she kind of looks a bit more shy in these photos than she actually is 🙂

She is ALMOST walking and says “danke,” which is “thank you” in German since that’s where her mama’s family is from.

I know its cliche, but its amazing to think that she’s been a part of our family for only year, especially since I don’t actually get to see her that often. But she’s been the highlight of my Snapchat reel and is my favorite scene-stealer when I’m FaceTiming with my family.

Happy Birthday Sawyer June! We all love you so much!

So There's That Series

So There’s That Vol. 27

November 27, 2017November 27, 2017 Amanda

{Sort of like a “Friday Five” or a “Life Lately” except it’s probably not Friday, and I gave up on the idea of a catchy alliteration. These are some bits and pieces of my not-so-glam 20-something life. See past posts HERE}

**********

27 Years Young

My last “So There’s That” post was right before my birthday in October so we are backtracking a bit. It was a pretty low key day because it was a busy work week but those near and far made me feel pretty special… although my sister did try to make me a year older than I actually was.

Sawyer June

What happened to this wee baby?!? Suddenly she is looking so much bigger to me! I’ve been getting lots of adorable pictures lately so trust me this is the already culled lot.

How Y’all, Youse and You Guys Talk

I’ve seen this pop up on Facebook before, but never took the quiz. It anchors around large cities in the area that you most identify with and considering how broad and ambiguous I thought some of the questions were, this is basically SPOT ON for both of the main two places I have lived. The full results give you a breakout based on all of your responses.

Link: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/upshot/dialect-quiz-map.html

Jam Session

I really do want to get back to blogging about what I am listening to someday, but my old “Friday Jam Session” posts just take too much to put together. Until I figure out something different, you know I am over here always obsessing over Ed Sheeran. Recently stumbled across this acoustic version of “Hearts Don’t Break Around Here” off his “Divide” album that I am currently loving.

30 Years

Last week I blogged about celebrating the 30th anniversary of my family’s flower shop by writing this love letter and reminiscing a bit on why its such a special place.

An Ode To the Women Who are “Too Much”

This article was recently passed around Facebook about being “too much” as a woman and I really wanted to share it here too. I appreciate that it was written by a man and I thought that its was sweet, short and effectively direct. There are parts that I can certainly relate to, and other parts that remind me that my home team is pretty great.

Link: https://www.stevewiens.com/2017/11/11/an-ode-to-the-women-who-are-too-much/

Out and About

A few snippets (and Snapchats) of life lately.

Crossing my fingers this sweet girl makes K-State her final choice!

My Life in Memes

Memes that are speaking to me right now… both thought provoking and just plain funny.

Sorry for the language, kind of…

**********

So, There’s That.

Cheers!

So There's That Series

So There’s That Vol. 22

June 26, 2017June 26, 2017 Amanda

{Sort of like a “Friday Five” or a “Life Lately” except it’s probably not Friday, and I gave up on the idea of a catchy alliteration. These are some bits and pieces of my glam #postgradlife. See past posts HERE}

Colorado

During the last week of May, I was in Estes Park, Colorado for a work trip. My mom tagged along and we tacked on a few days for a mini-vacay, which included a great hike to Gem Lake.

Girl Time

Lately the girls from my young adults bible study have been making lots of plans together. Earlier in June, a few of us did the Billy Goat Trail near Great Falls, which was a bit more challenging than I expected… but such a beautiful day to be outside and chat with these girls who have added such a positive light to my life lately.

This last weekend we had a laid back girls night hosted at my place and then spent another afternoon at Quattro Goombas Winery for wine slushies (insert all of the heart eye emoji’s here) and awesome pizza. The location also has a brewery and a great outdoor space.

Kansas – National Festival of Breads

Earlier in June, I made a quick work trip to Kansas for the National Festival of Breads. Yes, it was a awesome as its name sounds. The festival is hosted each year by Kansas Wheat, and brings together eight finalists (that competed against hundreds!) to compete for the title. The festival also features a small trade show, a demonstration stage, a kid’s interactive section, a BBQ, live music and more. I spent the day of the festival taking pictures and enjoy a “few” samples! This event is a great way to showcase the diversity of bread and the quality of U.S. wheat.

Obviously since I was in Kansas, I made the most of my down time by catching up with friends that I don’t get to see nearly enough.

So many of my favorite things wrapped up in one. If you visit Manhattan and appreciate a good wheat beer, you NEED to try 1863 Wheat at Tallgrass Brewery!

College friends turned commodity colleagues.

Considering I just saw Leah, Ryan and Robin a month ago in Colorado, I was so happy that they made the drive from Topeka (on Father’s Day nonetheless) to see me again. It doesn’t look like it but I swear Miss Robin was happy to see me…

Kansas Wheat Harvest

During my trip to Kansas in I spent a day out on a farm in central Kansas that was in the middle of wheat harvest. In my mind there are few things more beautiful than a wheat harvest. I took lots of great pictures and shared them in a separate blog post.

Ed Sheeran Carpool Karoke

To know me is to know my obsession with all things Ed Sheeran. So really when you combine that with my obsession with James Corden (Craig!!) then basically you know that dreams really do come true.

I have probably watched this at least 6 times now.

Happy Birthday Jancz

My sister Janci turned 23 last week!

True Friendship

Out and About

A few snippets (and Snapchats) of life lately.

Pictures from home make me happy, especially when they include my sister and my favorite little guy Wesley. (Also, super jealous she got to hang with him for the day.)

Sugarloaf Mountain Winery is so picturesque, and their wine is pretty good! Enjoyed a lazy Saturday afternoon there.

Eastern Market finds.

Missed out on getting a group picture, but my work took an afternoon for an outing and enjoyed a Nationals game together.

These adult coloring postcards are my new favorite stress reliever.

My Life in Memes

Memes that are speaking to me right now… both thought provoking and just plain funny.

**********

So, There’s That.

Cheers!

So There's That Series

So There’s That Vol. 19

December 15, 2016December 16, 2016 Amanda

**********

Once again it has been almost two months since my last So There’s That post.

And this time I can’t even say that I was “out of my mind” busy. Oops.

Well settle in, it will be a long one…

1. Celebrated My Birthday

One of my friends from college is in DC for a year-long fellowship and offered to throw me a birthday party this year. It was a great little get together, and though somewhat unplanned it ended up being all Kansas people.

With Logan and Emily. Happy to have so many K-Staters here with me.

We all share Brandi as one of our closest friends, so we decided she needed some Snapchat spam.

2. Beware of Jalapeno’s

I am pretty sure I will immediately regret including this picture, but I always say this blog is about my life, so some funny/embarrassing stories and pictures just are not allowed to be omitted.

So… I love spicy food and I love jalapenos, so when I decided to make queso dip for my birthday party it was natural for me to grab a few (4) jalapenos to add in. Now I have cut up jalapenos a dozen times before and never had any problems but this time was pretty different. A few minutes after I was done chopping, my nose and upper lip started to BURN REALLY BAD. So I immediately washed my hands with dish soap and then washed that part of my face with my normal face cleanser. And then it started to burn EVEN WORSE. So I did what every other brand new 26 year old would do… I called my mom. She proceeded to start Googling what you are supposed to do and I tried a baking soda and water paste, then lemon juice and then coconut oil, all of which helped for a few minutes and then would stop. At one point I went back to the paste, which was a REALLY bad idea because it made things worse after the lemon juice.

Eventually I just held ice packs to my face for a few hours. We eventually read that soaps actually do not help (OBVIOUSLY) and realized that every time I used my hands to apply the different mixtures it was just eventually tainting them and spreading the heat to more of my face.

So with the picture to prove it, I really can not make this stuff up, and it REALLY was that dramatic. Just ask my mom about the phone call, I am pretty sure she is still laughing about it.

3. Crop Quality Report

This project took up most of my work life in September and October. It is a report that my organization puts about every year and this year we decided to do a complete redesign with the help of an agency. The challenge is there is a LOT of data that goes into, a LOT of people that contribute to it and it gets translated into five languages.

I was pretty proud of the final product and especially of Steph, my co-worker who put in way more hours than I did. If you are at all interested at actually looking through it, you can find it HERE.

4. The Best is Yet to Come

In October, my church, NCC, celebrated its 20th anniversary with a service that included all eight of its campus at one location, held in Constitution Hall at the DAR. It was such a fun, inspiring evening!

One of my small groups met up for dinner at Old Ebbitt beforehand.

These wristbands lit up in different colors, based on our motions or by the tech guys. They were so fun!

5. “Coloring Book for Me” App

Friends, prepare for your life to be changed.
I can not remember how I stumbled across this app (probably because I was so excited about it) but YOU NEED IT IN YOUR LIFE. It is pretty straight forward… every day there are new blank designs to choose from, you have a variety of color wheels to choose from and then at the end you can add treatments. Honestly, I have done one almost everyday for the past month, but decided that sharing ALL of them might be a bit much for those who do not share my enthusiasm.

And dear creators of the app? Hit me up if you would like to sign an official endorsement deal…

6. Kansas City

In November, I was in Kansas City for a conference that I still plan to separately blog about. But that also meant that I got to squeeze some time in with one of my favorite little families. Baby Robin has become a regular in these posts, but I was also excited to catch up with Leah and Ryan. She was my roommate my freshman year and still one of my dearest friends.

She is 7 months old now!

Her parents are going to regret letting her call me Aunt Amanda someday…

7. Hiking

In addition to the big hike I already blogged about... I also joined my friend Kim for an afternoon on the Maryland side of Great Falls. She recently got a new DSLR camera so she wanted me to teach her a few tips.

8. Sunday Funday

In November, another one of my small groups from church went out on a Sunday to a small winery, lunch and then stopped by one girl’s family farm. It was one of the first colder weekends in the area, but we had a great afternoon! Northern Virginia is absolutely beautiful in the fall!

9. Friendsgiving

This year I went to two Thanksgivings!

On Thursday, I joined my co-worker and his wife, who are also K-State alums, along with many others who have some connection to Kansas.

And then on Saturday, I was invited by one of the girls from one of my church small groups to join a Friendsgiving hosted for another small group that she is in.

In the last eight years I have only been home for Thanksgiving once, but I am always reminded how big my support circle is and the kindness of others.

10. Run DC

Since my plantar fasciitis developed this summer I have not been out on a long run or walk in DC. My foot still hurts, but I have contained it quite a bit so I decided to take advantage of the last semi-warm weekends and ventured out for a run/walk that accidentally turned into an unplanned seven miles. Apparently DC infrastructure is still hard to navigate after living here two years.

Anyway, as expected, it was a beautiful day.

11. The People’s Tree

So I learned this year that you have to get tickets way in advance for the Christmas tree lighting at the White House… but that the lighting at the Capitol is free. This was toward the top of the things I really wanted to do this year so I dragged my friend Logan out in the pouring rain to see it. They had a short but cute little ceremony led by Speaker Paul Ryan. The tree was from Idaho this year!

Error

This video doesn’t exist

I love Union Station this time of year!

12. Christmas Crafts

My apartment is really small, but it had been too long since I had a fun project to do and my little windowsill was perfect to add a few things too. I blogged about making the tree and the sign last week. Read it HERE.

13. Out and About

A few snippets (and Snapchats) of life lately.

Views from my parents’ new property.

Enjoyed my first “Paint Nite” with Allyson!

I LOVE this picture and this view! Photo credit to my friend Casey Droddy.

Took this out of my plane window on the way home from Guam.

Good morning Union Station.

Snapchats of Jack from my sister are my FAVORITE.

My new tennis shoes are full of inspiration

Enjoyed catching Reckless Kelly with my Kansas guys. We do not get nearly enough red dirt bands live in DC. And I LOVE my new dress, so I had to share.

Miss Robin was the cutest little penguin. Even if she did not think so herself.

True friends send you pictures from Kansas to make you miss it more.

Sunday brunch to celebrate Sherin’s birthday!

13. Chris Stapleton

Three people sent me a link to an article about this song below in a matter of a week. Obviously my obsession with Chris Stapleton has been well advertised.

HE NEEDS TO RECORD THIS!

14. My Life in Memes

Memes that are speaking to me right now… both thought provoking and just plain funny.

**********

So, There’s That.

Cheers!

Family

Get It? Got It… Good.

March 30, 2016March 30, 2016 Amanda

I meant to write this post a few weeks ago, but it got away from me and so I thought I would save it for today.

Yesterday was my Grampy’s birthday, but this post is about so much more than that.

10304343_10152455962286224_3941349490687158181_n — Photo by Josh Ego.

I was talking about March Madness the other day with someone, and after a few of my comments they said, “Wow, you know a lot about basketball, and love sports. What did you play?”

I responded, and then followed by saying, “But I never was very talented, so that’s not really where the love comes from.”

———-

My Grampy is truly one of a kind.
He’s witty, ornery and loves to push everyone’s buttons.
Last year when I moved to D.C., my grandparents flew to Kansas to help me pack up and drive my car and the U-Haul. Obviously I was pretty stressed about the quick move, and we hadn’t even left Kansas before my Mom called to ask how I was handling my Grampy…
I’m pretty sure I had at least three things to roll my eyes at and rant to her about.
But he also gives us quite a bit to laugh at.
We’re talking about a guy who has ran out of gas and been stranded more times than anyone in our family cares to count, and has knack for accidentally leaving and losing spendy items in public places.

But for as ornery as he is, my Grampy is also thoughtful and kind. When my mom was little, my grandparents were in charge a girls group home for a while, and over the years I have seen that kindness extended to so many people. He’s always there to help in any way he can.

33799_1563718888296_1143896_n — Photo by Shannon Boettcher, Fotonovella

My Grampy is adventurous and is always on the go.
He served in the army and is a world traveler.
When he was finishing up his degree after they had moved from Portland to Hermiston, he would hitch hike up and down the Gorge to attend class.
For many years he and my Grammy were known for their beautiful yard and rose garden, a labor of love that filled up the summer months between his job as a counselor and then high school principal. That focus eventually transferred to the family flower shop business after he retired from education, and now it has shifted to the family cabin. He can’t sit still, and has more energy than anyone I know.

———-

But what do any of these things have to do with sports?

Everything.

My Grampy grew up playing sports and has done some radio announcing for a variety of high sports over the years. Early on he coached high school boys’ basketball in Portland, before moving to Hermiston and becoming the head coach for many years. I know that he also spent time coaching youth teams that traveled overseas and assisted in other high school sports, like baseball. Then this past season, my Grampy had the unique opportunity to step back on the court as the head coach of the boys’ basketball team at Hermiston High School, for an interim season.

That influence sifted down to my uncles Jay and Josh, who were both college athletes and then became high school coaches in their respective sports, girls’ basketball and cross country.

But for my Grampy, I know that it has never the actual sport itself.
It’s about what sports can mean for people.

It is about practicing and teaching discipline, commitment and hard work. In a lot of small towns sports are often the key to keeping kids out of trouble and a stepping stone for them to see their potential to apply themselves. He wholeheartedly believes in the value of investing time and heart into students. I have always heard so many stories about his coaching days, and am so thankful that I was able to see that part of him come alive again for these kids.

(This post title comes from the question and response that he ends each huddle with.)

It is about chasing the science — studying the game and strengthening your sports IQ. Growing up, he called the high school football and basketball games on the local radio for a few years, and I loved to take stats for him because his live analysis and color comments helped me better understand the mechanics of the game. There is a thrill in the chase, countering strategy and risk, and the feeling of pay off when you succeed. My Grampy would tell you that you do not have to be into sports to understand that feeling, just replace sports with something that you are really passionate about, to fill your life with things that you make feel alive and that are worth chasing.

But most of all, it is about family and community.
Between my sister and me, we played quite a few different sports growing up, and our Grampy was always there to cheer us on and prepared to tell us afterward what we could do to improve next time. Even at our dance performances, he wanted to know the ins and outs of how everything worked. When my Uncle Josh stopped playing basketball in high school to focus on cross country and long distance track, something he continued into college, that became my Grampy’s new focus and he would run back and forth across the course shouting times. Similarly, when my Uncle Jay became a head basketball coach himself, my Grampy traveled to so many of his games that he might as well of become a (not so silent) extra coach in the stands. And of course, that support and interest extended past our family to our friends growing up.

I have always known that it is about investing time and finding things that he could do with us. Ever since my sister started taking golf seriously (she is finishing up her senior year at Lewis Clark State College), he was there every step of the way in whatever way she needed him. Because of that, they have played some awesome courses together and even attended the U.S. Open. For me, the past few years have been all about K-State sports for us. When I became a student at Kansas State University, he almost instantly became fan, taking the time to learn about its history and studying up on player’s stats, new recruits and more. He bought my season football and basketball passes each year so that I was always able to go and my friends knew that he was the only person that I would take the time to text while the games were still going on, or he was going to ask for a full summary afterward. Even with me being a news junkie, he would often find out about news before I did. Some of my favorite memories will always be the two football games he came to in Manhattan and going to watch K-State play Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl.

gramps — At the K-State vs. Miami game in 2012.

Grampy and I at the Auburn game. — Grampy and I at the K-State vs. Auburn game in 2013.

10802023_10203303533564503_4968908252865626860_n — Grampy and I at the K-State vs. Auburn game in 2013.

1797495_10202741651454707_2018484053_n — Grampy golfing with my sister Janci in Cabo in 2012.

301148_3852757472830_241472685_n — With Grampy, Mom and Dad at the K-State vs. Miami game in 2012.

537768_4349246444744_1628941756_n — With Janci, Grammy and Grampy at the Fiesta Bowl watching K-State play Oregon in 2013.

———-

I love sports because of how much I love my Grampy, and the memories and things I have learned about other things in life because of his own love for sports.

I know this was a long post, but when I lay it all out like this I hope you can see what special guy he is. He truly embodies the phrase, “for the love of the game,” in every way.

Happy Birthday old man!
And let me casually brag that my bracket definitely outdid yours this year.

Love,
Mandy

With my grandparents at my high school graduation in 2009.

With my grandparents at my college graduation in2013.

So There's That Series

What’s Up Wednesday: October 2015

October 29, 2015June 29, 2017 Amanda

Oh hey, what’s up? This link up happens the last Wednesday of every month with the same list of questions and is hosted by The Larson Lingo, Mix & Match Family and Pinterest Told Me To.

What I’m Eating This Month…

October is National Pasta Month and the 25th was World Pasta Day. In addition to some editorial and social media coverage at work, I organized two “Pasta Day” potluck lunches at my office. I made my Grammy’s stack salad and modified it to go better with a pasta base. Everyone in the office seemed to enjoy the lunches and there were so many yummy dishes!

What I’m Reminiscing About…

Turning 25 is, as the hipsters say, “giving me all the feels.”
For the most part, everything in my life can be addressed with “How did I get here?”
Not funny? Hmm inside jokes are complicated.
Anyways, I thought this Buzzfeed article, 19 Signs You’re Finally Becoming An Adult, pretty much sums up life right now.

What I’m Loving…
Kansas City Royals!!!! #TakeTheCrown
Trader Joe’s Almond Nut Butter
The wonderful reception and feedback I am getting on my new “The Road I Traveled Series”
My new discovery… dirty chai!!!

15 Jokes Only Extreme ‘Gilmore Girls’ Fans Understand
Updates from two of my best girls who are both due with their first babies next spring!
This 3 year old who was devastated when she found out Adam Levine was married…
Fall colors, because #basic
My family’s loving dysfunctional group text messages
The “SWORKIT lite” phone app
And this meme… Holla!

What I’ve Been Up To…
Each month that I live here seems to go by faster! This month I turned 25, and had a pretty low-key birthday weekend because the weekend before I took advantage of having Columbus Day off and made a quick trip back to Kansas for a K-State football game and to visit with friends.

It might be awhile before I make it back there again, so I crammed as much in as I possible could and left with a full heart.

What I’m Dreading…
My always long, and always random to-do list. That’s the problem with being an obsessive list maker. I also finally got around to applying for TSA pre-check (not in time for my next trip) and got my appointment scheduled.

And as ALWAYS, I’m dreading winter.

What I’m Working On…
I finally finished my fall burlap wreath (L) for my new office at work (which I wrote about here) and then my co-worker loved it so much that he asked me to make another one (R) for his entry way at home. I was pretty happy with how they turned out!

What I’m Excited About…
As much as I hate winter, it does mean the holidays. Ever since I left for college, my birthday has always roughly marked two months before I go home for the holidays and when I officially start my countdown — and that had remained the same in post grad. During those two months I tend to get homesick a bit more often than usual. So… today marks 50 days until home sweet home again!

What I’m Watching…
As I mentioned in last month’s “What’s Up Wednesday” post, I was watching Friends for the first time from start to finish on Netflix and had been avoiding the last few episodes of the series because I didn’t want it to end. Well, I finally accepted it and faced the end. I sent a SnapChat of the scene where Rachel is individually saying goodbye to each of the friends to my bestie Megan in Kansas because she just finished the series as well and the scene hit a little too close to home for me…aka I cried. Seriously, every 20-something needs the friends in their lives.

As I’m writing this I am also mastering my multi-channel TV watching skills with the Republican debate, Game 2 of the World Series (GO ROYALS) and the Trailblazers NBA season opener.
I couldn’t decide on just one.

What I’m Reading…
I skipped out last month, but I’ll recap my September and August reading list next week during Molly and Katie’s Bookworm Wednesday link-up.

This week, I also enjoyed this blog post that has been floating around titled, “Screw Finding Your Passion.” It’s a little blunt and definitely has some unnecessary language, but it really breaks down a topic that I have talked in circles about with different people and gives it a refreshing (minus the language) message that really resonated with me.

What I’m Listening To…

I haven’t posted a Friday Jam Session in a few weeks. I just haven’t been all that motivated to work on them throughout the week and when I would get to Thursday, they just didn’t happen at all. But my lists and comments are getting a bit long, so I’ll definitely be back at it this week.
In the meantime, like the rest of the world, I can’t stop listening to Adele’s new single “Hello”

And I’m loving this stripped down version “Out of the Woods” from T-Swift. I think I like it better than the original.

What I’m Wearing…

Like always, I never remember to take pictures of the (very) few outfits that I deem shareable. I did throw on my new blanket scarf this morning that I AM OBSESSED with. I mentioned last month that I spent all of last winter not being able to decide what print and colors I wanted so I never got one. Back in August, I decided that it was a must-have item this season and finally chose this one. It is so warm and soft, and mixes and matches well with quite a bit of my wardrobe. I wore it once over dress as a shawl with a thin belt over the top… and the jury is still out on that style. But I am completely convinced that everyone needs a blanket scarf in their life.

What I’m Doing This Weekend…
Watching the World Series and packing for my next work trip…

What I’m Looking Forward to Next Month…
Early next week I head out to Lake Tahoe for a fall board meeting for my job. Since my Spoo grandparents live nearby, they are going to pick me up from the airport and spend the rest of the day with me. I haven’t seen them in over 3 years, so I’m REALLY excited!

And of course, Thanksgiving!! This year I’m headed down to Raleigh, NC for a little Friendsgiving action with some fellow Oregonian/K-State/East Coast transplants.

This Month’s Bonus Question: What’s your favorite Thanksgiving recipe…

Ugh. Talking holiday food traditions makes me homesick.
Dad’s tri-tip and pork loin. Grammy’s mashed potatoes. Cousin Lisa’s pretzel salad. The Jorgensen family’s sweet rolls and more… Good thing all of those things are usually at the Christmas dinner table as well.

******
Well, that’s what’s up this Wednesday!
Cheers!

So There's That Series

So There’s That Vol. 11

August 19, 2015 Amanda

1. Happy Birthday Mom!

With my Mom at Kyla's wedding. — With my Mom at Kyla’s wedding.

This lady.
Whoever says that parents can’t (or shouldn’t) become your friends are just plain wrong.
She’s funny, sassy, hard working and has a heart of gold.
Today is her birthday and I wish more than anything that I was spending the day with her.

2. Buzzfeed Roommate Video

After I could see straight from laughing so hard I cried I started to get concerned that someone was spying on me and my roommates back in college. My college experience was better than I could have ever asked for and it was because of Kyla and Megan. We had some great laughs and this video, as embarrassing as some of it is to admit, just about perfectly describes what life was like in our apartment.

3. #JanciandJordyDoVegas

Last weekend I took my sister to Vegas for her 21st birthday.
I wrote about it and shared some pictures in yesterday’s post.

4. James Corden Carpool Karaoke

I’m really not sure why I am just now getting around to including this. I LOVE James Corden. I’m a Doctor Who fan and his character “Craig” is by far my favorite reoccurring guest. I was pretty excited when he got his own talk show except for the fact that its the late late show, which is a bit much for me. So I watch a few every now and then online and catch a few clips on YouTube. My favorite bit is his carpool karaoke. Now I have never been a Biebs fan but people, this video is hysterical. I also really enjoy his carpools with Iggy Azalea and Jennifer Hudson.

5. Food For Thought

6. Friday Jam Session

I started up my Friday Jam posts again after realizing that it was something that I missed, but decided to change the format a bit to hopefully make it a bit easier to stay consistent. So my question is, what are your thoughts? What questions need to be added to the list? What should definitely stay?

7. Good luck Janci!

My baby sister is leaving home today for her senior year of college at Lewis-Clark State. She’s a kinesiology major and on the women’s golf team. We’re proud of you Janci L’Amour! Good luck this year!

8. K-State Football
Ok two things…
So Jordy Nelson was before my time as a Kansan and K-Stater, but like most things in Kansas, that is a detail that has become a part of the grey area where I feel like I have always been connected to Kansas in some way. And even if that weren’t true, how could you not like Jordy Nelson?
See what I mean in this article:
An NFL player who has made $28 million spends 12 hours a day working on his family farm in the off-season

And speaking of K-State Football…

We are down to 17 days until Gameday people!!
#besttimeoftheyear
#whycanteverySaturdaybeGameday

**********
So, There’s That

Family

#JanciandJordyDoVegas

August 18, 2015August 18, 2015 Amanda

Because every great event needs its own hashtag.
(just kidding, kind of)

My sister Janci turned 21 back in June and I had told her that since her birthday was in the summer and later than most of her friends’, I would take her to Las Vegas. Can you say #bestsisterever?

We were joined by her best friend Jordy, who had just turned 21 earlier in the week and Sonia, our aunt-in-law to be (not weird…our uncle is only a few years older than me.)

We were there Thursday night through Sunday afternoon, and we had a blast.
Great food, fun sights, lots of laughing and lots of pool time.
It was fun and low-key, with just a little bit of crazy.
Seriously, I think our sore feet were the biggest casualty 🙂

A shout out definitely goes to our grandparents who shared their Hilton Grand Vacation points with us. We were definitely spoiled!!

Thanks for a fun-filled weekend girls!

Here a few of our pics (and fun Snapchats) from the weekend.
If I only could load videos directly on here!