Tuesday Pick-Me-Up

Today's song is brought to you by The National. I love them. 



Ignore the video, listen, and enjoy.

my (almost) brush with death

Want to hear a funny story? Ya, I knew you would. So, this week has been spring break. I had all these plans to go to lunch with friends, pick up the house, and get some good Law and Order SVU marathons in. I also scheduled a check up with the doctor.

I went to my appointment on Tuesday and after the regular questions, blood pressure test, etc., my doctor started to feel my throat and shoulders. Totally fine, right? Wrong. The doctor found a lump on my throat in the thyroid area. She told me the left side was twice the size of the right side. At this point I'm wishing Karl had come with me.

 After looking concerned for a minute, my doctor said, I want to get you in for an ultrasound of your throat as soon as possible. She could tell I looked worried and stated, "Okay. Well, in this situation one of two things could be wrong. Either you have hypothyroidism (an under active thyroid) or you have thyroid cancer." I didn't hear what she said after that because I just kept thinking, "Cancer?! I could have cancer?!" I tried to keep it together, but the tears came hard and fast. The doctor tried to comfort me to no avail. She told me I could put my clothes back on and she'd be back in a minute. At this point I was sobbing and telling myself to suck it up and be a big girl. Seriously. I told myself to be a big girl.

Within a few minutes of the doctor returning, I had an appointment for an ultrasound at the hospital in a few hours. I got a tetanus shot and my blood drawn... twice and I was back in my car on the phone with Karl sobbing hysterically. Karl left work, met me for lunch, and then we went to the ultrasound. I regained composure and made it through. They told me I wouldn't have the results for up to 3 days.

By this point in the day, Karl had cheered me up quite a bit and we were making jokes about me having cancer. I also made him do everything for me (getting me water, turning the light off, etc). by saying "But I have cannnncerrrrr!!!" Haha. Obviously I'm really mature. Yesterday, after nursing myself with episodes of SVU (and being glad that if I was going to die, at least I wasn't going to be raped and murdered) I got a call from the doctor. Apparently the "thyroid problem" was just a swollen lymph node, meaning I'm probably getting a cold. I sighed a huge sigh of relief and gave Karl the good news. I felt happy, but also disappointed that I couldn't write a book about a twenty-something girl that gets cancer and lives the rest of her days to the fullest that will inevitably make it to the New York Times Best-Seller List because of its poignant insights into life with cancer, told with heart wrenching details.

I guess you win some and you lose some*.

*Of course I'm more grateful I don't have cancer.

Meet me in the middle. Come on, let's make up a dance.

I haven't done a music post in quite a while, so I figured, why not? Especially because I've been wanting to tell you all about my new favorite CD. Unless you've been living under a rock, you've probably heard "We are Young" by fun. I love this song, so I ordered the CD Some Nights. It's just as amazing as I was hoping. Not better than their last album, but different.

So you may have heard of this "up and coming" band, but you may not know that the lead singer, Nate Ruess, has had his own share of fame in the indie scene. The band formerly known as The Format split up a few years ago so Nate could pursue his own adventures with fun. The Format was one of my favorite bands in high school and I saw them live multiple times. One summer I went to a concert at the University of Utah featuring Jack's Mannequin, Straylight Run, and The Format, among others. I was astounded to see that only the lead singer of The Format had shown up. He did an acoustic show and it was great, but I think everyone knew at that point that The Format wouldn't be around for long. I love them and will always have a special place in my heart for both of their albums, but I'm definitely falling in love with fun. and their upbeat style.

I'm sure you wanted to know all of that. Haha. Anyways, here's fun.'s newest single and and oldie, but goodie from The Format.

Seriously. Could Janelle Monae's teeth get any more perfect?

Side note: My sister and I made up a dance to this song when we were in high school. It's still "our" song.

Happy Tuesday!

I just keep telling myself to make it through the next 3 days. Then Karl and I are heading to Idaho to go to Lava Hot Springs and the next week is spring break! Halleluja! And now for a little something to get us through today:

 Mid-yawn. I love this!

The Weekend

It's time for another outfit post! I'm actually really liking doing these. I get to more consciously put together cute outfits, as well as notice the little changes that are happening in my body as I continue to lose weight! This outfit was for a little date night Karl and I went on last week. We grabbed a bite and headed to Salt Lake Community College's production of The Crucible.

T-shirt and light pink tank top: DownEast Outfitters, Sweater: Target, necklace: Freckled Nest Etsy shop, Jeans and shoes: Torrid.

This weekend Karl and I also did a bunch of grocery shopping, bought some new clothes for Karl, and watched Quigley Down Under (my first time). Tom Selleck is awesome. How was your weekend?

Kony 2012

If you're like me, you've seen the phrase "Kony 2012" plastering the internet lately. Today I decided to follow the link several people posted on Twitter and see what it's all about. The link brought me to YouTube. I saw the video was 30 minutes long and almost opted to not watch it. Then curiosity took over. I watched it. I cried. I felt inspired. I felt like doing something.

I have never posted anything this important on my blog before. I have never felt this passionately about something before.

I am asking you one favor. Take 30 minutes out of your day and watch this video. Think of how much TV most of us watch. Sub out one half hour from TV or internet time and watch this video.



Edit* After doing a little more research on this cause, I still believe it's important to spread the word. I do however, think that if you would like to do something financially, donate your money to the humanitarian fund on tithing slips if you're LDS, or donate to charities like the Red Cross. There are several smear campaigns calling Invisible Children a "shady business," and several articles rebutting such criticisms. Whether the organization is "legit" or not should not stop all of us from spreading awareness and trying to stop Kony, whether he's in Uganda or whether he's in any other country.

The Oscars

Let's not pretend that after the Oscars, I just get on with my life. I don't even actually watch the Oscars (I don't have cable), but I'm obsessed with reading Go Fug Yourself to see what the stars wore. It's my dream to someday have an occasion to wear a dress so fancy or so totally cracked out that people remember it forever. Haha. Anyways, here are my top 3:

1. Jessica Chastain. She looked amazing! I love the gold and black for the Oscars. I just love her. Or maybe I love her character in The Help. Either way. Win.

2. Maya Rudolph. I know she ended up on a lot of worst dressed lists, but I love it! Her dress looks comfortable, but still classy. And she's got great curves. And she's so good in "Up All Night" and pretty much everything else she's ever been in, including Away We Go. Okay, okay. I'm in love with Maya Rudolph.

The front

And the back! Oooh shiny!

3. Gwyneth Paltrow. Sure, her cape was a little cracked out, but in a way that only Gwyneth can pull off. After much deliberation, I love it.

What were your favorite Oscars looks?