Let's talk about the Oscars...

First of all, The King's Speech won!

So exciting! I got 13 out of 24 predictions

right for my film class. I'd say those were pretty

good predictions considering I can never guess the foreign films or the

sound and art direction nominations. I give up on those. But this year I really

tried to stay up to date on the movies and this made me appreciate

the show even more.

But more importantly, let's talk about gowns!

Honestly, the best part in my opinion.

1) Hailee Steinfeld's princess dress. Elegant and age appropriate.

2) Hilary Swank's beautiful sparkling gown. Look at those feathers!

And lastly, Natalie Portman's beautiful and unique gown. I love

that she didn't flaunt the pregnancy and instead went more subtle.

And I love the color.

And to end, I thought I'd bring some '90's memories back to you.

Ladies and gentlemen, The Amanda Show.

What I'm Thankful for Today

Where I live. (Ok, technically I don't live in San Francisco,

but I live pretty darn close.)

The fact that I may get to go to Maine this summer. :)

Beautiful green hills by my house.

"Oh look a lady bug by my bike! Oh wait, they're

getting intimate." Awkward moments.

Adorable puppies named Amigo. He has the bluest eyes.

What are you thankful for today?

Oh I want to be there in my city

The way I see it
Isn't necessarily The way you see it
Or the way it is, Or ought to be
What's more important Is that we're all
Looking for it, And a way to see it

~ Desi Di Nardo

How gorgeous is this?

Aren't they adorable?

For my mom's birthday, we all went to the Bay Area. It

was supposed to be grey and dreary but instead

the sun was out and shining. So as we were driving over

the bridge, I see the Golden Gate shining in a distance and I

immediately decide we must go over and take pictures.

Because anyone who has lived in the Bay knows that beautiful sunny

days are fairly hard to come by. The Golden Gate never

looked more magnificent.

Then, my sisters and I went to the Justin Bieber movie.

First of all, I was never opposed to him like my sister was, but I

was never fully fond of him either. Now I can say I appreciate his

work and think he is fairly awesome. Don't believe me?

Go see it.

You may become a Belieber too. :)

Fresh coffee in the morning

"look.

i know there are other guys out there.

ones who would give you butterflies when i'd just make you laugh.

ones who would sweep you off your feet when i'd just be your best friend.

ones who would keep your head in the clouds when i'd just keep you grounded.

but would those guys ever call you beautiful with no make up on?

would they wake up in the middle of the night to turn the coffee pot on just so you'd have fresh coffee in the morning?

would they love you with everything inside of them, just like i already do?"

You were given life

"when you sense a faint potentiality for happiness after such dark times you must grab onto the ankles of that happiness and not let go until it drags you face-first out of the dirt-this is not selfishness, but obligation. You were given life; it is your duty to find something beautiful within life, no matter how slight."

elizabeth gilbert

"i love people who make me laugh.

i honestly think it's the thing i like most, to laugh.

it cures a multitude of ills.

it's probably the most important thing in a person."

Yesterday my friends and I went to the park and I took some pictures.

Everything looked beautiful with the sun shining on it. I love the one of the

river. Sometimes I forget how beautiful where I live is. It's nice to step out

every once and a while and remember what a beautiful world we live in.

Enjoy the quotes. :)

(borrowed from teacupsinpeony. she has the best quotes!)

This time last year...

Last years February Break (Presidents week, or a fancy

way of giving us days off because our school board has no money)

my family and my cousins family went to San Diego,

Long Beach, and L.A. (or more importantly

Disneyland) I was one of the best breaks I've ever had.

Just look at the pictures and the video and hopefully you'll

understand as to why:

Long Beach state. It was alright. I ended up not even applying there though.

SAN DIEGO! La Jolla to be exact.

So beautiful.

Disneyland and classic Splash Mountain

pictures.

Fun story: My cousin and I had a bet that it was faster

to walk from New Orleans Square (in Disneyland) to It's a Small

World and he thought it was faster to take the train. But anyone

that goes to Disneyland an obsessively large amount of time (cough me)

would know that the train stops a bunch of times and is therefore a lot slower.

So we decided he would take the train, I would walk and we'd see who won.

Well I cheated and actually ran, and was so proud of my accomplishment

running through the park, with 4 other kids in tow, not being stopped by security.

All we needed was epic Indiana Jones music and it would have been wonderful.

But then Tommy (cousin) didn't meet us even relatively soon after we left him.

This is where panic ensued and I thought I lost a 14 year old boy. Until 30 minutes later,

he arrived out of no where saying, yes the train is definitely slower.

Mission accomplished. Don't take the train to get you somewhere sooner.

Now here's a video I made of the trip.

Song is "Many the Miles" by Sara Bareilles.

Pray for New Zealand.

“At times the world can seem an unfriendly and sinister place, but believe us when we say there is much more good in it than bad. All you have to do is look hard enough. And what might seem to be a series of unfortunate events, may, in fact, be the first steps of a journey.”

"At 12:51 p.m. on Tuesday, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck the Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island, near the country's second-largest city, Christchurch. It is an aftershock of a massive, deeper earthquake that hit New Zealand last September, and has already caused more damage, injuries, and fatalities than the earlier quake. Hundreds of structures in Christchurch have now been severely damaged or collapsed completely. At the moment, at least 65 deaths have been confirmed, hundreds have been injured, and many are still missing. Below are images from New Zealand late yesterday, more will be added as they come in today."

-Alan Taylor "In Touch"

If you would like to help with the relief effort, you can contact the red cross here:

http://www.redcross.org.nz/

Quote borrowed from Teacupsinpeony. It was oh, so appropriate.

I wonder how they feel tonight.

Sometimes, I look outside, and I think that a lot of other people have seen this snow before. Just like I think that a lot of other people have read those books before. And listened to those songs.
I wonder how they feel tonight.

-The Perks of Being a Wallflower

(picture by me today at lunch.)

Fill in the Blank Tuesday

1. I am happiest when I'm busy, independent, a coffee lover, determined, always laughing, and learning something new every single day.

2. The bravest thing I've ever done was oh this is hard. Probably go parasailing and go tubing in Mexico with the craziest drivers ever. It was insane.

3. I feel prettiest when I don't worry about makeup or my hair and everything seems to work out anyways.

4. Something that keeps me awake at night is my mind wandering. I will start off praying and then that escalates into random thoughts. Then I try backtracking to see how I got to the thought I was currently thinking of.

5. My favorite meal in the entire world is oh it's always changing. Right now it's probably French Onion soup in a bread bowl from Panera Bread.

6. The way to my heart is kindness, to have your own opinions and to share them with me, interest, and coffee. Maybe some flowers too.

7. I would like to go skydiving soon and go back to Europe. Or just travel. Either one works for me.

That picture at the top is quite old. But I love how it has some of the

main characteristics of me included in it.

Have a fantastic Tuesday!

Does this mean Spring has arrived?

Today was my day to walk the dog. Usually I am hesitate to just walk

around the block with her, but today it was breathtakingly beautiful.

The sun was out, there were clouds dispersed everywhere, and the

beautiful pink trees that bloom in the Spring were finally

greeting us with their presence. All I could do was look up at the

tiny pink flowers and thank God for such incredible trees.

It's always the little things right?

source:http://coeurdpirate.tumblr.com/

One of the best movies I've ever seen

This movie was pure genius. It had comedic relief,

brilliant acting, and a fresh story-line. Colin Firth did

an incredible job putting on a stammer and Geoffrey Rush

was a fantastic speech therapist who broke the rules a little

to ultimately see what would work for the patient.

Everything in this movie was crafted to perfection. I really hope it

sweeps the Oscars on Sunday.

The real Lionel Logue. (Speech therapist) What a handsome man!

Portrayed Lionel Logue. Not so much the same. But hey, it's

Geoffrey Rush and he is brilliant.

This movie made me even more eager to begin my journey

towards becoming a Speech Therapist. When can I start?

Mind if we talk about college?

No? Ok good. Because it is really the only thing on my mind

anymore. Oregon vs. Washington. It's on.

3 Reasons why Washington is awesome:

It's in Seattle. Coffee and city life. Enough said.

Stunning architecture. It looks like Hogwarts!

More opportunities for internships in a big city.

3 reasons why Oregon is awesome:

They're the ducks. Enough said.

The architecture is fantastic! Architecture is a huge part for my

decision process. It has to feel like a college campus and remind me

of UNC Chapel Hill basically, since I can't go there for undergrad.

All of which, Oregon does.

Major football school. Which means major school spirit. I like this

a lot.

Some negatives include:

1. Super bad weather in Seattle and pretty bad weather in Oregon.

(definitely more rainy in Seattle)

2. I apply to the Speech Therapy program 2 years in at Washington.

Meaning I may not even get into my desired program.

3. Eugene is 2 hours away from nearest big city-Portland.

4. I have to find a car pool for Oregon and I fly home from Seattle.

(Flying seems easier yet more expensive.)

Thoughts?? Please help!

What I am Looking Forward To

Disneyland in April.

Graduation in May.

Kentucky in April.

After spending time with my aunt and uncle from Kentucky,

I am getting more and more excited to leave.

I am ready for all these exciting times to finally come

and for me to finally graduate. I have been waiting for this day for 4

years now and it's been a long time coming. I don't know if my thought

now have anything to do with my family's loss, but I just know

I'm ready for some good change. Whether that's in me, around me,

or just a new location. Oregon and Washington? You ready

to accept me? (More Washington since I'm already in

to Oregon.) 'Cause boy, am I ready.

source: http://weheartit.com/entry/7218271

Celebration of Life

Today was my Papa's funeral/ celebration of life and it was wonderful.

As wonderful as one can be. Sure, it was exhausting and

saddening, but it all turned out beautiful. My sister sang and brought tears

to my eyes and I have never felt more loved.

Wow I say that a lot.

Here are some pictures from today:

Papa, the sun poked its head out today for you. :)

We all huddled around Scotty's guitar and sang our hearts out.

Pretty flowers I was able to keep to remember the celebration.

I have a special place in my heart...

for this novel.

Love Walked In grabbed me at the first line. The

writing is witty and references old movies and classic

film stars, and has a cute ending to top it off.

Perfection.

Seriously, go out and read this now!

"Jimmy Stewart is always and indisputably the best man in the world, unless Cary Grant should happen to show up."

What I'm Grateful for in These Hard Times

Watermelon in my fridge.

My beautiful, strong, and loving Grammie who just

lost her best friend of 53 years and is working through

the difficulties day by day.

My rain boots which would have come in handy today. I love how

bright they are.

My teal tea cup.

Today wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, going back to school since

the death, but it's still hard. I used up so much energy at school that

I am pretty exhausted now. No more social interactions

till tomorrow please. :)

I hope you had a good Thursday!

Today was Difficult

My wonderful Papa died today. (Grandpa) He lived 78 fantastic

years and was a great figure in my life. My Grammie said the sweetest

thing today, she said, "Sweetie, we spent 51 years together. I only hope

that you find someone who you truly love and want to

spend 51 years with." It made me happy, while I was sobbing.

But then, as I was going through photo albums to grab pictures

for his slideshow, I ran into these of me and my cousin. They

were too cute not to be shown. I love the one of us dancing. :)

Good night and love on all the ones you really love.