Come With Me!

Friends, it is time.

Time to close down this blog.

Time to start a new one.

Entitled, "Little Red."

So, come over to my new space, I will keep updating, probably as much as I do now. Hee hee. I would love to see you, and share my thoughts, randoms joys, awkward moments, and adventures!

www.nicoleriding.blogspot.com

See you soon!

-Nicole

Dirty Little Secret

Want to know my dirty little Halloween secret? (OK, it's really not that dirty, but I just like saying "dirty little secret"). I will tell you. Put all the nasty candy on top, and give that to kids before anything else. Case in point:Whoppers, Almond Joy, 3 Musketeers (the dumbest candy bar ever invented), plain M&M's, and Kit Kat. I will take the Reeses' PB cups, the Snickers, Milky Way, and Twix, and proceed to eat myself into oblivion. Thank you.

Our actual Halloween celebration had nothing to do with being dirty, or little, and was not secretive in any way. But again, it's the phrase. Be honest. The innuendo is fun. Anyway...
We had our first official cousins' party, and it was a success! We all decided it was totally stupid that there were a bunch of us Ridings within 1 hour of each other, but we NEVER get together. Truly. So, this is the first changing of that tide. Complete with yummy soup and bread bowls, as shown here by my lovely assistant, Emily, as she samples the feast with grace. Laura brought some pumpkin bread with cream cheese frosting, and I may or may not have eaten half of the 9 x 13" pan.
OK, so, not the cutest of me, but what can you do when it is a self-taken picture? You know you all have them. I love cousins. This is Kelly and Dan, and I like us. A lot. (Does my face look fat to anyone besides me? Don't answer that. I blame the pumpkin bread.).

Super Inappropriate...

I had a really inappropriate moment today. I was in the temple, and a lady that I was interacting with looked just like she could be Amy Poehler's mother. She even made some of the exact facial expressions. I swear, it was like Amy Poehler in 30 years. So, all I could think about was Saturday Night Live and the movie "Baby Mama" in an environment when that was NOT OK. And try really hard not to laugh. I don't know how successful I was. Sorry.

Fall!

I love this time of year. I made applesauce with my mom last Friday, which I have not been around to do in a long time, and that, combined with the yummy fall weather and pretty trees outside, made for a great fall day. I just love the change in seasons, and Halloween is part of that. I kind of think of Halloween as the day that really starts the party that lasts the rest of the year. I am super excited because this weekend, my cousins are all getting together (with cameo appearances by my parents and aunt and uncle) for a party on Sunday. We all live within an hour of each other, and never get together. We are finally doing something about how crazy that is. I also love costumes on children. For some reason, I am not one to be very eager to get in costume myself. I think it takes too much of my small supply of creative juices to think of anything, and to actually put it in action. But still think everything about Halloween is super fun.


These are pictures my dad took outside our windows. Beautiful, huh? I love it.

This morning, as I drove to work, I saw that the crossing guard at the elementary school by my house was wearing a costume. I remembered that on Monday I noticed she had a witch's hat on, and today she was a princess. I was really impressed that she wanted to make the whole week really fun for herself and the kids she helps across the street every day. I don't know, maybe she just gets really bored. But I prefer to think she is just a really cute lady who wanted to get into the spirit of the holiday. I wonder if at Thanksgiving, she will come dressed as a turkey.

This is a picture my sister in law Becca took last weekend on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. I almost can't look at it, I am so jealous I was not there seeing it. But, you know? Utah is great in the fall.

It snowed this morning; I am not quite ready for winter. I just stopped wearing flip flops a couple of weeks ago, and I would like some nice in-between weather before settling in for the duration. But I love fall in general. I have to say I am in a much better mood about the seasons since I left Las Vegas. Can you tell?
Actually, these are pics I took to wish Becca a happy birthday, because I am obnoxious like that. But I thought they were applicable to today's post as well. Happy Fall!

Trio Sings Telephone by Lady Gaga in Concert

Awesome.

I've been absent. I keep meaning to post pics of my awesome South Carolina reunion with my fam, and I keep forgetting. I promise I will get there. But I am still alive, I just don't have much to say at the moment. So, in the meantime, enjoy the above video of some amazing HIGH SCHOOLERS. I died when I saw this.

See you soon!

Things that make me happy.

These are just some pictures from the last year of my life that I love, in no particular order.

The alley next to my apartment in Clinton. Pretty cool, huh? My photographer friends, eat your heart out. A great location. Never saw anyone using it that way except me and my sis-in-law Becca, however.

Below is the Harmony House, in said alley. Come commune with God and a cup of coffee! Works for me...? I love the South.
My niece Ainsley at McDonalds. And yes, that is her bib on her head. Not some cute head scarf.

My girl Steph. It has now been 10 years since we met, the two youngest company members in Les Miz. She was 19 and playing Cosette, I was 21 and an Eponine cover. She is still one of my dearest, most loyal friends. I adore her, and it was SO good to see her in March.

Sibs. The two oldest, Gary and Carolynn, and the two youngest, Dave and me. Not a combination that happens often, but so fun. Sibs make me very happy.


Some artsy pics Dave and I took on our cross-country drive. This was all on the side of the road in some random town in New Mexico. We loved it.
Even the garbage trucks are fancy in Vail. The phrase at the bottom of the truck says, "Satisfaction guaranteed or your trash back!"

Lincoln's fifth birthday made me happy. And I think the crown that covered half of his head made him happy. It sure did me.

My girls at the Eclipse premiere make me happy. Jenkins, Dean, Tater, Meeks, Boyd, Roch, and Emily.

My cousins Kelly and Andrea at Bryce Canyon. Just ignore the weird angle of my body.
A square dancing tour group busting into a spontaneous square dance whilst singing "Singin' in the Rain" after a storm at Bryce. So precious.



Bryce Canyon again, as a really cool thunder storm came in. Summer storms make me happy.

Also, my cute cousins Jay, Brad and Danny doing something super random but really funny at the family reunion talent show makes me happy.


Old cemeteries in Charleston make me happy. (More on my fabulous vacation in my next post.)

Random servicemen who have the courage to ask to take a picture with us at Patriot's Point in Charleston make me VERY happy. I feel bad, I didn't even get his name, but I am grateful for his service to our country!

Doing Girls' Night with Grandma and Megan and Rachel. While the video rewinds, (yes, rewinds), Grandma plays the piano while they dance in their princess dresses with their painted nails and make up. I don't think they are fighting....

And, lastly, Dairy Queen makes me happy.