Happy New Year!

Let the countdown begin.

Tis' the season.

Christmas has got to be the best holiday ever.

I just love spending this time of year with family and friends, thinking of our savior, 

and eating lots of good food.

This year we spent Christmas Eve at our cousins, which of course included the traditions of eating Mexican food, acting out the Nativity, and singing Christmas carols around the piano. 

Brenna and I singing Jingle Bells. 

Good hair runs in their family. 

The sisters doing what they do best. 

Yes, he is 14 years old and 6 feet tall. Love him. 

Karma Rae opening gifts as Brenna eagerly watches. 

The girls. 

My dad is notorious for being the narrator. 

We 3 Kings bearing gifts and attitude. 

(Pardon all the red eyes...my camera has been very frustrating lately.)

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! 

ICE!

Last week, we went to ICE at the Gaylord Texas Hotel. 

This year, the ice enhibit featured ice sculptures of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and it was amazing. 

A talented team of artisans traveled all the way from China to transform two million pounds 

of ice into a breathtaking winter wonderland. 

Every year they do something different, but with this year being Charlie Brown, 

we thought it would be fun to go with the whole family.

So fun to be with cousins. 

My mom was SO excited to go down the "ice slide."

21.

Last week I turned the big 2-1!

(Me on the right blowing out the candles for my 3rd birthday)

As I look back on the past 21 years, I can only be grateful for the memories that have been made, the friends I have become acquainted with, and the trials I have gone through that have helped me get to where I am today.

Cheers to being 21!
Love you all.

The Nutcracker.

This weekend my parents and I went to see
The Nutcracker.

It has been a tradition to go since I was a little girl, and I never get sick of it. 

Even at age 21, I found myself giggling with the little girl next to me and sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for the Sugar Plum Fairy and Cavalier Pas de Deux.

I just love love love ballets.

They remind me of when I use to dance and when I could wear pink tights 

and a black leotard without looking like a huge blob.
Ohh those were the days...

Joyeaux noel.

If I was in Paris right now...

I would walk around the city at night to admire the lights with hot cider in hand...

and shop the Christmas market on champ elysees...

and go to the Lafeyette everyday to look at this Christmas tree.

Maybe someday. 

Thought of you.

I can't get over how beautiful this is. 

The elegant movement creates such a touching love story, it almost seems real.  

To think how much time it took to choreograph and do the animation just blows my mind.

I'm in awe. 

The magic of Christmas.

I think every house should look like this during the holidays. 

So magical. 

Christmas playlist.

One of my favorite things about Christmas is the music.

Every time I turn it on, it brings a smile to my face and makes all my worries go away. 

(Yes, I am one of those who plays Christmas music starting the beginning of November.)

I just can't get enough of it!

So, here are my top Christmas songs that I just love:

1. Oh Holy Night- Josh Groban

2. All I Want for Christmas Is You- Mariah Carey

3. Baby It's Cold Outside- Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey

4. The First Noel- Faith Hill and Josh Groban 

5. What Child Is This?- Charlotte Church

6. Silent Night- Bing Crosby

7. Jingle Bell Rock- Boby Helms

8. The Christmas Waltz- Harry Connick Jr. 

9. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas- Judy Garland

10. White Christmas- Bing Crosby

11. Blue Christmas- Elvis Presley

12. Breath of Heaven- Amy Grant

13. I'll Be Home for Christmas- Frank Sinatra

14. Happy Christmas (war is over)- John Lennon

15. It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year- Eddie Pola

16. Where are you Christmas?- Faith Hill 

17. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays- N'Sync

18. Please Come Home for Christmas- Charles Brown

19. Santa Claus is Coming to Town! Jackson 5

20. Ave Maria- Josh Groban
21. Christmas baby, please come home- U2
22. Christmas Canon- Trans-Siberia Orchestra 
23. Last Christmas- Hillary Duff
24. Santa Baby- Eartha Kitt
25. Wintersong- Sarah McLachlan 

I would keep going, but my list would probably be never-ending. :)

A Coldplay Christmas.

coldplay + christmas = a very merry niki.

but seriously... this song is just beyond great.

happy friday!

Key to my heart this Christmas season?

 The BYU bookstore's white-chocolate-frosting-sprinkle-covered-christmas-tree-shaped pretzels.

I am addicted. 

One year older but lookin' so good.

happy birthday dad!  

i love you, and am grateful for such an amazing father and for your example. 

i only hope one day i will find a man as good as you :)

love,

your pookie bear.

Replay.

How great is this?
Since it seems like all I've done is watch football this week, I figured it would be appropriate to post this. 
It is definitely one of my favorite campaigns. 

TBWA/Chiat/Day

Thankful.

This year we spent Thanksgiving in Park City with family and friends.

We watched lots of movies, ate lots of yummy food, and even got a day of skiing in!

I feel so blessed to have such amazing people in my life.

The cooks :)

Now bring on Christmas!

OK Go: Last Leaf.

How unique is this video?

The video used 215 loaves of bread that were past their sell-by date and rescued from the waste bin.

I thought it was pretty interesting and wanted to share.

Happy Wednesday!

Quote of the week.

I 100% agree. 

For all you CAT lovers...

Alright, so for those of you who don't already know, I have a hard time with CATS.

And it all began when I was 12 years old...

I was spending the night at my friend Erin's house, doing what little girls do best.

(You know, painting nails, experimenting with make-up, making up dances to Shania Twain, etc etc...)

The next morning, I woke up and went downstairs to watch TV until Erin woke up.

While I was sitting in a huge arm chair, her black cat jumped on the arm rest and hissed at me!

I freaked and booked it to the bathroom, screaming at the top of my lungs...

As I was running I turned around to see that the dang cat was chasing me!

When I got into the bathroom, I slammed the door and locked it.

(Yes, I locked the door. Why? I don't know...)

Feeling somewhat relived that I didn't get attacked by this cat,

I stood on the toilet yelling for Erin to wake up and to come get her cat so I could come out. 

Now, many of you would say that I overreacted in this situation,

but I will have you know that this situation was far worse than what words can describe. 

So, to this day, I hate cats. I'm sorry, but I really do.

But, with all this said,

 I do love this advertisement that IKEA did.

It's just lovely. 

Enjoy. 

Meet Me In St. Louis.

This weekend I watched one of my favorite movies to watch this time of year...

Meet Me In St. Louis
Judy Garland just amazes me in this movie. 

Especially when she sings my favorite Christmas song, 

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.

Growing up, my sister would always tell me that she was Judy Garland and I was "Tootie" Smith... (the annoying little sister). I guess since I would always pull off her barbie's heads, and wear her clothes it made perfect sense for why I was "Tootie." 
Nevertheless, it has been a tradition for us to watch this movie together around Thanksgiving.
Even though she is in Denver and I am in good ol' Provo, I still love to watch it. 
It makes me laugh, smile, and cry...
And most of all, it gets me excited for Christmas and what lies ahead. 

Anthro accessories-only store.

Anthropologie just opened their first and new accessories only store in Chevy Chase, Maryland last week!

The store carries everything from shoes, handbags, scarves, belts, costume jewelry, fine jewelry, 

and estate and antique jewelry, including brooches and even engagement rings. 

First a wedding line and now a accessories store?!

Oh my.

I just love what Anthro is doing.  

Girlfriends and Cafe Trio.

Can I just say how much I love these girls?

We have so much fun together, and I feel so blessed to have them in my life.

LOVE YOU ALL.

xo

Becca's big day.

Today is this girl's birthday:

Isn't she adorable?

We met our freshman year in class, and have been friends ever since!

Happy Birthday Becca!

Love you tons!

My New Life.

Last Sunday in church we watched this beautiful story of Stephanie Nielson.
Her story is so powerful, and she is such an example to me and so many other girls.
I find it amazing how much I take my life for granted sometimes, even during times of trial and hardships.
How blessed I am to have a Heavenly Father who loves me and is always there.


For more about her story and blog, click here.

Octoberfest.

I just love October!

I love walking into stores and seeing all the Halloween decorations and costumes out. 

It always reminds me that some of my favorite holidays are approaching.

This month has been filled with so many fun memories...

A few weeks ago the girls and I thought it would be fun to go to Cornbelly's to pick out pumpkins to carve. 
When we got there, we found out that their pumpkins were $15 bucks each, so we decided to head over to 
good ol' Macy's to pick up some that ended up being about $3 each.

We were happy.

One of our good friends is the drummer for the band Parlor Hawk, 

so this month we hit up a few of their concerts. 

They opened for Matt Costa, so it was fun being able to go support them! 

(If you haven't heard of Parlor Hawk, look them up! So good.)

Last weekend we celebrated Marissa's birthday at our friend Austin Story's cabin.

It has been a tradition since freshman year for Marissa's friends 

to throw a "Hicktoberfest" (her last name is Hicken...) party in honor of her birthday.

This year we did it as a surprise, and it was quite a success. 

It's times like these when I feel so blessed to have such great friends. 

Now bring on November!