Dreams Do Come True:)

     Alright guys.... prepare to be very jealous....So first off it has warmed up here again so the beach is still awesome!! On Friday my friend Dallin and I decided to go surfing. I worked the night before and had a busy day planned but decided play was going to win over sleep. So we got to the beach. Dallin went out to surf for a bit while I caught some rays. I feel bad when we go because he just ends up coaching me and doesn't really get to surf. So anyways he comes back and says did you see the dolphins? What? No. You mean I missed that? I was kinda bummed. So then we went out together. It was not the best day as far as the waves went. They were either too small, or so big they took me out just trying to get out past them. So we floated around alot. The dolphins ended up surfacing nearby. I was so excited. He was like "do you want to swim out to them?" That was like asking "Do you want a big bowl of ice cream with a large mound of cookie dough, some brownies and caramel on top?" (An awesome combination by the way!) So we swam out towards them. They surfaced a little ways away and then it was just floating out there waiting for them to resurface. I was so excited!! And nervous!! Sure enough they surfaced about 6 feet from us... well Dallin says they were 10 feet from us... we comprimised on 8 feet. It was awesome. I am pretty sure I was like squealing like a little girl. All the manly surfers were probably laughing at me but I didn't care. I have been talking about swimming with dolphins for as long as I can remember. This way I didn't pay $100 bucks to do it. Anyways surfing was a blast. I actually did pretty good this time. I stood and rode some of the waves out. Still not as great as my first time in Hawaii but I am making progress:)
     Saturday ended up being an awesome day as well. We got a group together to play beach volleyball. It had been a long time since we played. It was sunny and warm. Then we tried out a new place for lunch.
   It was an awesome weekend all around. I went to two Halloween parties and today at church we met with a couple other wards and discussed goal setting. It was awesome! I got to set some new goals and gain some insight on achieving them. Sometimes we get discouraged when we don't meet our goals. If we look back though, oft times we have made progress, and that goes a long way. I am excited to do some self improvement. Hope you guys had an awesome weekend as well!!!

Amber's Visit Continued:)

Well I guess I was almost done..... We did some other fun things like walking around in downtown Hollywood. We admired the Chinese Theatre which Amber had to explain the significance of. We went to a museum called The Getty. It was ginormous. Seriously we spent a couple hours there and only saw the gardens and one of the five buildings there. We also went to Runyon Park. Runyon Park is up in the Hollywood Hills. It is known for celebrity sitings. Much to Amber's dismay we did not see any:( It was a really cool place to hike. There were lots of people there dragging (literally) their poor purse puppies up the trails. We saw some yoga going on in the park. Pretty cool popular place with awesome views of the city. I had sooooo much fun:) I was so spoiled last month. I got to visit Jessica in Salt Lake and have Amber visit me here. I can't wait for Thanksgiving so we can ge the whole family together!!!!

Amber comes to LA:)

So I am yet again way behind on blogging. Amber came to visit at the end of September. It was awesome. She wanted to lay on the beach all week. Honestly that week was the worst weather. It is always sunny and warm here, Most of the time she was here it was overcast and gloomy. No worries I had made an agenda and we had plenty to keep us entertained. Most mornings we were up super early (anything before 10 is early for this poor graveyard shift girl) and played all day. Here are some of the top moments on that trip!!!!! Enjoy! We did!

So Amber brought the best invention ever. I have always been so bad at taking vitamins. I do good for about a week and then quit. Whoever thought of gummi vitamins for adults is genius......

WARNING: Consuming vitamins like they are candy can lead to an upset stomach. Consuming vitamins on an empty stomach (because you saw them in the bathroom first thing in the morning and were so excited you couldn't wait to take them) can also lead to an upset stomach. Like everything yummy you are also consuming calories when you consume these.

Speaking of candy remember that one time Amber that I mispelled candy?? Yep thats right. I blame it on being up at 630 in the morning. We were discussing that stage with kids where you have to spell things so they don't know what you are talking about. I was like yeah like when Jeff was little (he couldn't have candy since hes a diabetic) and we would spell K-A-N-D-Y...... Lol. I blame it on the early hour, it did make us laugh:)

My friend Dallin was awesome enough to take us surfing!! We may not be very good at it but it was so much fun. The best moment was when Amber almost took me out with her board. Thats right..... Dallin and I were standing and talking in shallow waters when I hear Amber yell my name. I look up to see her coming straight at me on a wave. I ducked like those birds that swim around and when anything comes close they duck under the water. It was hilarious. I stayed under the water til I was sure she was passed me. We took some awesome pictures with my waterproof camera. Genius me took it out surfing and one of the times I was expertly standing up it slipped off my wrist never more to be seen. Dallin got some after pics of us.

One morning we woke up extra early to beat traffic and headed to Santa Barbara. It was a lot of fun. We took a trolley ride around town. We ate lunch downtown, saw the mission there, walked the pier and walked along the beach. As a side effect of being a night shifter I actually slept on the trolley ride. It was kind of embarrassing. Here we are being touristy and driving around town and I am doing this ridiculous head bobbing thing. Poor Amber sometimes I may not be the best company.

 

We did some typical Buchanan things. We stayed up most nights watching FRIENDS. I love that show. I had stopped watching it for awhile. It was good to rediscover the joy it brings;) We ate good as well. LA has so many good places to eat. We made sure to make a couple stops at Diddy Riese's. Thats a place by UCLA that has rows and rows of fresh soft cookies. For a buck fifty you can get a cookie sandwhich with ice cream in the middle or 3 cookies for a dollar. That explains why there is a line down the block at all times. So good. So being 5'11 I wear heels but not the super cute really tall ones. I just never felt I could with my heighth. Amber has been trying to tell me it doesn't matter and I should get some. So I got a pair. Can I just ask???? WHY DO WOMEN TORTURE THEMSELVES? Seriously they are ridiculous. I was walking with my hometeacher and felt like an idiot because I couldn't keep up. I could be standing still talking to someone and lose my balance. While walking, carrying food from break the fast, I just about broke my ankle cuz the concrete got uneven. I now understand why on tv you always see women take off their heels and start rubbing their feet. I got a cramp in my calf. I towered over people. I will admit they did make my calves (which aren't muscular or impressive in any way) look pretty nice. Amber welcomed me to womanhood. Yes at 27:) I may retire early and go back to my old lady looking heels sometime soon:)

To be continued.....I think its not letting me post anymore.....