Dating

My dad is currently the 1st Counselor in a YSA Bishopric. Yesterday I went to his ward because they were having a really cool Q&A panel in a combined Priesthood and Relief Society Meeting. They had the kids in the ward submit questions the week before and then they answered them yesterday. As expected many of the questions were about dating and marriage. During the discussion one of the girls in the ward brought up a point about dating that I agree with 100%. She said she has talked a lot with both guys and girls about dating, and their concerns about it. She said that guys don't like to take girls out, because they're worried about the girls thinking that they're in love with them, and then they become really clingy. While this can sometimes be true of girls, there is a reason they act like that. If a guy hasn't asked out a girl for six months, when he finally does ask a girl out, of course she's going to think he likes her a lot. If guys asked out girls on a more frequent dates, they wouldn't seem like such a big deal. So guys, ask girls out on dates! They don't have to be serious or expensive. Dating more frequently gives everyone more opportunities to find out what they like, and will also make it not such a big deal.  Along with the great dating advice, they also gave us a list of dating activities. Please enjoy almost 200 ideas conveniently sorted into seasonal categories.
There are no excuses to not date now :)

Winter
An old fashion taffy pull
Pet the cats at PetSmart
Exercise together
Make dinner at the apartment and then play a game of pool at the Institute
A Jazz game!
Go Caroling
Decorate cookies
With $5 in quarters for each go to the mall arcade
Visit a museum
Play card games - Nerts, Hearts, Scum, Egyptian, 9 down, Idiot, Spades, BS, Pinochle, O'Heck, Phase 10, etc.
Go skiing
Pick out and boil a lobster together
Play tag in the Fine Arts Building
Volunteer somewhere (i.e. Children's house, Boys & Girls Club, Senior Center, etc.)
Build a snowman
"Date Olympics": relays, basketball game, eating competition, ice blocking, etc.
Ping pong & hot chocolate
Lunch date: hot soup and warm bread
Go to the mall; in each store (taking turns) choose an item that reminds you of a story about yourself or childhood memory or family experience. This is better for single dates, and a great way to get to know each other.
Bobsledding
Lean cuisine: with a strict budged go buy an appetizer, main course & dessert, and then prepare it together
Playdoh sculptures
Make and bake cookies together
Racquetball
Make gingerbread houses
Sledding down Old Main
Make s'mores over the electric stove or mini s'mores over candles
Play card games
Dress in formal wear and go out for fast food
Watch a basketball game
Ice Skating
Group date: mystery dinner
Make and decorate cookies and give them to other people
Bowling
Finger painting: choose a location and paint the scenery
Shovel snow to help someone
Picture scavenger hunt (Group date): We made a list of crazy things to do, ie Dance with an elderly person, hug a stranger, etc. and then went out and took pictures of each other doing these random things. Then we went back to one of our apartments an compare pictures with the other couples.
Picnic on the living room floor - it's great to just talk and get to know each other
Baking of some sort together (bread, cookies, doughnuts, etc)
Pool - $2.00 Tuesday night @ the Fun Park
Country dancing @ the Fun Park
Board games and talking
Aggie basketball game or football game
Build a fort in your living room with couch and blankets/sheets
Group date: read a play and assign different parts, make-up weird accents
Make a snowman
Go to a concert
Paint a picture
Game night
Snowshoeing
Rock climbing at the Rock Haus
Do ceramics
Arcade games
Roller blading with a group
Attend a Hockey game
Temple Square to see the Lights
Any spur of the moments things
Sledding with hot chocolate
Snowmobiling
Service date
Backward date: dessert, activity, then dinner
Create portraits of each other using things you find in the fridge
Nostalgia date: do things you enjoyed doing when you were little and eat your favorite foods from your childhood
Go to a comedy club
Dollar dinner: the couple split up and each couple has $1.00 to find part of the meal (Salad, dessert, main course, etc)
Cookie scavenger hunt: go door to door asking for ingredients for cookies. Once you have all the ingredients you need, make the cookies and then leave some on the doorsteps of those who gave you the ingredients.
Snow sculptures (bring bottles of water and food coloring to decorate) an drink hot chocolate
Iron Chef competition
Pick an unusual national holiday to celebrate (national donut day, national you're welcome day, etc)

Spring
Video scavenger hunt
Teach your date how to do something you enjoy: trap shooting, rock climbing, kayaking, fly fishing, etc.
Tie dye T-shirts
Share a bucket of chicken at 2nd dam
Find a new recipe on the Internet; go shopping for the ingredients; make it together; eat it together; and maybe even do the dishes together!
Go on a motorcycle ride
Facials at the beauty college
buy rubber ducks and race them in a creek
Hit a bucket of balls at the driving range
Build marshmallow guns and have a marshmallow fight
Make a bonfire and stargaze!
Sack lunches on the grass at the Tabernacle on a sunny day
Group date: simple dinner and board games
Go feed the ducks
Take a drive up the canyon in a convertible
Go on a walk
Fly a kite and have a picnic
Tennis
Ice blocking
Jump in puddles/play in the rain
Go people watching
Picnic in the rain

Summer
Make homemade ice cream
Play "redneck" croquet
Take a bike ride
Picnic dinner in a park
Watch a sunrise together
Amazing Race: each couple has to make up a clue; race to see which car gets to the "pit stop" first.
Go golfing
Jump on a trampoline with soap and water
Rollerblading progressive dinner (eat different courses at different locations)
"Geo Cashing"
Play hopscotch
Grill salmon and corn on the cob; make lemonade; sit outside; eat, and enjoy!
Frisbee
Campfire up the canyon - dinner & fun!
Play sand volleyball with several couples
USU's Moonlight & Music
Walk down Main Street and have a list of items you have to take pictures of
Duct tape spoons to your hands; then prepare and eat a whole meal with "spoon hands"
Ice cream sculpting
Hike the Wind Caves or Green Canyon
Go get an ice cream cone
Go karts
Concert in the park
Go to the Willow Park or Hogle Zoo
Boating
Float the Onieta Narrows
Run through sprinklers
Build cardboard canoes!
Go Cliff Jumping
Play night games with a few couples
Fishing with a picnic
Go to a county fair or rodeo
Carve bars of soap into sculptures
Tin foil dinners
Play and talk at a playground
Attend a play
Test drive cars
Make wooden boats and get them to float, sail or race
Cornflakes by candlelight!
A glow in the dark baseball game
Watch the Cruise In
Evening Picnics
Trap shooting
Fishing
Being taught to throw a football perfectly or to hit a home run in the batting cage
Put a picnic together and play guitar
Washing cars
Horseback ride
Go for a drive up Logan Canyon
Walk around the cemetery
Tandem bike ride
Walk down Main Street and go in random stores to check them out
Go to the beach (or any body of water) and skip rocks
Get ice cream and then go to a park and swing and talk
Canoeing
Fly a kite
Kickball
4-wheeling
Get in a food fight at the park and play other food games ie eat pudding through tights!
Dress up in hideous clothes/hair/makeup and take pictures at all the famous landmarks in the area
Laser tag
Visit a nursing home
Double our Group date: For the first part of the date we drive to a parking lot. Turn up the music in the car and leave the doors open. Take turns and make up four count dances. Warning: make sure the battery doesn't die!
Frisbee golf
Star gazing
Make a delux cardboard box house
Watch a movie in the back of a truck outside
Eat dinner without using any plates, bowls, or utensils (put it on a tarp and use your hands)
Mud Volleyball

Fall
Play jacks
Miniature golf
Fruit carving.designing: watermelon, pineapple, melons, etc
Buy groceries together
Go to a dance
Make a crazy fun dessert together
Shoot a 22
Long board in the football stadium parking lot
Rake leaves and jump in them
Buy a couple of sub sandwiches, go to a playground, and play tag
Roller skating
Got to a baseball game
Dinner and a movie
Carve pumpkins
USU's Poetry and Beverage
Make homemade pizza
Haunted corn maze
Watch a sunset together
Water bottle bowling
Go to a university or community program or event
Doorbell ditch neighbors
Prank someone
Build a fort and play nintendo
Indoor camping
Chair soccer
Barbarian dinner
Play basketball
Sardines in the Fine Arts Building
Go miniature golfing inside
Group date game night: swedish twister, 3D twister, Smurf, Psychiatrist, Animal Sounds, Human knot, Celebrity, etc.
Make a movie

Dear Phillip, The Beatles, Petey and other Boys

So this was basically going to just be a blog about the first three things in the title, but then it kinda morphed into an entire dear boys post . . . hehehe . . . they may be my favorite thing to blog about :)

Dear Phillip:

I would seriously love it if you would PLEASE work! Since last summer you've now gotten a new engine, air compressor, pulleys, alternator, crank shaft sensor, and tie rods. There really isn't much left to go wrong. If your transmission dies I may just blow you up . . . This month alone you've basically cost me the same as a new mac computer :(. Please just work for realsies!!!

- Your frustrated owner

Dear the Beatles:

Why does every song I want to play contain a bm chord? I really suck at them! I would really like to play one all the way through without failing.

Sincerely, 

My fingers are killing me

Dear Petey:

I knew I heard you in my room last week, but now it's official since you chewed on Stacy's granola bar all night. She went and bought mouse traps last night, so you'd better watch yourself. If you leave peacefully and quickly we can pretend this whole incident never happened.

Cordially, 

The Girl in the back room

Dear Owl City,

Pretty sure I'm addicted to the song Deer in the Headlights. It's just so darn catchy. I'm currently dancing around my room lip syncing to it :)

Love, 

I promise I'm not a crazy fan girl

Dear Ward Boy,

I really enjoyed having an actual conversation with you. Hopefully I wasn't super awkward . . .

Love,

Michelle

PS I still think you're pretty darn attractive

Dear Neighbor,

Thanks for reading my blog! Hope you enjoy it :)

Sincerely,

The Girl Next Door

Dear HC,

Thanks for always making me smile :)

Love,

Michelle

Hacked

I believe I'd like to thank my roommates Stacy and Paula for my last post. I suppose this is what I get for leaving my computer unattended and my blog signed in, hahaha.

You looked at me again when I was chewing

Michelle is gone at the moment....muahahaha.  I like cheese and triscuits.  I hear footsteps....ah! run away!

If a guy can beat you up . . .

We just had the best conversation on the way home from FHE. I was telling Paula that a guy that was there was tall enough for her, but she replied that he was too 'lerpy'. Stacy kept inserting 'nerdy' at every moment she could, and Paula kept going on how he can't be too skinny. Here's how it went from there :

Paula: "I could probably beat him up."

Stacy: "So, you want a guy who can beat you up?"

Paula: "Yup."

(Insert much laughter - and a conversation about wanting a guy to be able to beat us up)

Stacy: "That a could be our new code. That guy's cute, but he couldn't beat me up."

Michelle: "Hey, there's the prison!"

Elina: "I bet there's a lot of guys there that could beat us up."

Hahahaha, good times. Gotta love the roomies.

So, if you see any guys that could beat us up, send them our way :)

Gourmet Meals and a Baptism

This last weekend my friend Mark wanted to make fancy dinner for fun. He had some halibut and a recipe, so we decided to experiment. It took us about an hour and 45 minutes to make it, but it was super delicious. The sauce had habanero peppers, pineapple, and mangoes in it, which was a bit interesting with the whole spicy/fruity thing, but it was quite good.

Saturday morning we headed down to Provo at 6:30 so we could be there by 9 for Jess's Baptism. Jess met Mckenna about four years ago while doing a pageant, and they've been friends ever since. She transferred to BYU last year from North Carolina, and now she's getting baptized! There were over 100 people there, and it was such an amazing and spiritual experience. It's so amazing to see how the Lord has placed people in Jess's life to lead her to the Gospel. She has so much faith, and is such a great example to me. Love her!!!

Jess and the beautiful cake Steph made

After the Baptism we all went to lunch at Zuppa's in Provo. It was super good, and it was all around hilarious. It was super fun to go with Brad, Jaylynn, Kip, Cory, Aubree, Mckenna, David, Steph, Elina, and Jess. We just sat around laughing, which is seriously the best thing ever :)

Wrong Number

Have you ever sent a text to the wrong person? As of yesterday, I could honestly say I'd never done that. Sadly, that record is now shattered.  Last night I meant to send a text to my friend Mark. He tends to joke about making out all the time, so I was going to send him a text that said "So, convince any girls to make out with you last night? ;)" Unfortunately, I ended up sending it to my friend Mitch. As soon as it said sending to Mitch, I was like CRAP!!! Cancel!!! I then quickly sent another text that said, "Sorry! That was an inside joke for a friend!" He replied, "Hahaha, sadly I was alone last night." Yep, definitely a new embarrassing moment.

Yesterday I guess things just kept coming out wrong. I was playing Ticket to Ride last night with Paula, Mitch, and Jon. It was Paula's first time playing, so she kinda cheated some time. Mitch kept teasing her about it, so I decided to remind him when he cheated at a game. I said, "What game were you cheating at, Idiot?" Meaning, the game named Idiot. It just came out as me calling him an idiot. I'm pretty sure I'll never live that one down, hahaha.

Friday the 13th

This week's been a bit of a lazy week for me. I work until 5, I get home and make dinner, and then I usually don't feel like doing anything. Sure I've done things like cleaning my room and the dishes, but that's about it. I'm pretty sure my freezing cold house is what keeps me from feeling motivate to do anything but sit in a blanket and drink hot chocolate. Last night Stacy, Paula, and I watched Monte Carlo. It's a cheesy chick flick, but I love it. It's so adorable, and lets us fantasize about traveling to Europe and meeting gorgeous men :) After the movie was over we just sat in the dark in our living room talking and eating brownie bites, courtesy of Stacy.  It was quite relaxing being all bundled up and sitting in the dark, hahah. We're so cool, jk ;)

One thing I did learn this week is to trust my instincts. How so? Well I made homemade mac and cheese last night. The original recipe called for nutmeg, which I thought was a bit odd. Did I listen to myself and not add it? Nope. I added it, and I can now tell you that nutmeg should NEVER be added to mac and cheese. It just doesn't belong! Sadly my mac and cheesy goodness was ruined by that nutmeg. Moral of the story? Listen to your gut feeling, even if it's just mac and cheese.

I can't believe I almost forgot! Today is January 13th. Why does this matter? No, I'm not talking about Friday the 13th and bad luck and all that jazz. January 13th is awesome because it's Orlando Bloom's Birthday! Ever since about 8th grade, my friend Kaylee and I have been celebrating his birthday. It used to consist of us watching his movies and eating large amounts of brownies and mint chocolate chip ice cream doused in chocolate syrup. What better party is there than that? Hopefully we'll at least be able to fit in the ice cream this year :)

And people wonder why we love him

Dear Boys

Because I'm lacking motivation to write anything else, here's another Dear Boys post :)

Dear Insulation,

You are very attractive, but I would have loved you anyway because you insulated our freezing house.

Love,

The girl who answered the door

Dear Basketball,

Seeing you a couple times this semester made me realized that I still may have a little bit of a crush on you ...

Love,

Michelle

Dear TDH,

If I wasn't so shy I'd have talked to you. Oh well, I guess I lost my chance because odds are I'll never see you again.

Sincerely,

The girl from last Wednesday

Dear Plaid,

I actually can't think of anything to say to you ... how odd.

Love, The Prettiest Girl You Know ;)

Dear HC,

I love that you laugh at everything. It seriously is so great. I quite enjoy being friends.

Love, One of your new bffs

Dear Robin,

You are seriously one of the nicest, most considerate people I've ever met. Thanks for being such a great friend.

Love, Michelle

Dear BFTP,

So very random, but still fun. Thanks!

Sincerely, Michelle

Dear the Other Guy,

You Sir, have excellent taste in music. We should be friends.

Love, the girl who wasn't your date

Dear BF,

Sometimes I catch a glimpse of the boy I used to like, but most of the time he's gone, and I wonder why I ever liked you so much.

Cordially, So Over You

2011 Year in Review

Just like everyone else in the blog world, I've decided to do a 2011 Year in Review Post :)

January -

Heidi moved in!

Jumped into First Dam at midnight

Todd turned our entire apartment upside down

Shot trap in the freezing cold and beat all the boys :)

February -

We stole all of Todd's plaid shirts

Girl's Choice Institute Dance

March -

Spring Break to Cali!!!

Festival of Colors

April -

Lots of Roommate Craziness

Last time I ever rode a long board - fell flat on my back and butt.

Took my final finals!

May -

Graduated from Utah State University!!!

Chopped my hair

June -

Jordan left for the MTC!

Went boating :)

Attended an awesome FREE Parachute Concert

July -

Went to New York and Connecticut!

Planked all over Hartford on the 4th of July

Camped in the Tetons

August -

Attended Kathy's mission Farewell

Played Mudd Volleyball with my Dad's ward

Moved to Logan and into a fabulous little house with five awesome girls

September -

Went to a Real Salt Lake Game and One Republic Concert

70's Roller blading in Provo for Jess's Birthday

October -

Started my new job

Helped sew a ginormous movie screen out of 7 sheets

Halloween!

Met Parachute again :)

November -

I turned 23 with a Dobby birthday cake

Played Sardines in the FAC

Thanksgiving!!!

December -

White Elephant Party

Built three Gingerbread houses

Christmas!

Rachel got married!

Had our Annual New Year's Eve Party :)

Thanks for a great year 2011! I hope 2012's even better :)