Blogs, Names, Breaks

ATTENTION ALL BLOGGER FRIENDS.

I have created a new blog. A "future" blog, you could say.

I'm not really sure when I'll start updating it. And if I'll keep this one.

It's all up in the air.

But the URL for the new one is...

katieandtysonperkes.blogspot.com

Yes, folks. It's a married person blog. OR an almost married person one.

I promise it will still be super cool and hip and not too ordinary. We'll spice it up. Maybe we'll get Tyson into blogging a little too! Ha.

But it'll be goodness, because there is something so joyous about hearing my name as Katie Perkes! Like a little school girl feeling come true. :)

Katie Perkes

Katie Ann Perkes

Katie Ann Clyde Perkes

Katie Clyde Perkes

Katie Perkes

Katie Perkes

Katie Perkes

I love it!

Anyway, just a heads up on the new blog in my life. I'll let you know when it officially is up and running!

Happy finals week to those of you taking finals. I can't wait for Thursday! I'm going to be doing some SERIOUS celebrating. Probably like, Christmas shopping and Laundry. But really, T and I better have some Martinelli's and notebook burning or something. A break from school is always much needed and this time, nothing is different!

Yay for Christmas. Yay for Christmas Break. Not yay for the snow, but we'll deal. Beggars can't be choosers. Right?

Life is good! Actually, SO good. I find myself thinking that every single day. There is something that keeps on reminding me how good I have it, in little sneaky ways. I'm so glad too, because sometimes I temporary forget. So it always feels so good to get those reminders.

I'm so pleased with life! I can't wait for the future, but I'm really content with the present.

There isn't much more to say but that life is good!

Stay tuned for Christmas events and future happenings the exciting life of Katie Ann Clyde (almost Perkes)... :)

Below: my thoughts on finals and school at this moment in time.

BOOOOO!

BUT, I still am loving life. See?

Long Overdue...

Here's the thing. I know this is long overdue (hence the title). But I wanted to share some pictures and tell about our adventures from Thanksgiving weekend.

I had an EXCELLENT Thanksgiving weekend. So good, that I didn't even have time to blog.

Okay, that is probably a lie. I know I time, but I was relaxing and being lazy- therefore, I didn't blog.

BUT today I am with several items. Mostly with one last gratitude post and some pictures from the weekend!

Our weekend had the following things:

- Lots of good food, including a homemade turkey dinner by my momma that was delish.

- The movie The Blind Side (go see it. so good)!

- Chilling/Sleeping in/Naps: it was a vacation, technically, so that's all allowed.

- My old roommate Hannah's wedding reception, so nice!

- BYU vs Utah game. Including sideline passes 3rd quarter. It was awesome! (Right T? He loved it too!... Thanks Dad!)

- The whole fam gathering for a picture and some steak dinner.

Overall, it was a way fun weekend! I loved the break. It was much needed!

So since I missed my gratitude post the last few days of the month, I'll do a summary of a few things I'm sincerely grateful for in my life:

- Family. My own and my future in-laws. They are all wonderful and loving people! I'm excited to spend some more quality time with them over the next big break!

- The Gospel. It is my saving grace and my true happiness. I love it. Click HERE for more.

- Tyson. The best fiance ever! I don't just say that. He's the greatest there is! I'm a lucky gal.

- Photography. I love taking pictures. I love looking at pictures. They capture the good times in life. The happiness we all feel! I love it.

- Blankets, pillows, socks, coats, sweats, heaters, slippers, snuggies, etc. I love to be comfy and during this winter months, WARM. I'm grateful I get to be warm whenever I want to be!

- Music. It makes me really happy! Whether it's an 80's classic, a christmas tune or a hymn.... I love it all! They are all the best.

-Sunshine. I love when the sun shines. I love summer. I love being warm. I love everything about the sun! It is greatness.

-FOOD. It's just so good. I love it. I really do. It's a problem, I'm a food-aholic. Too delish!

Okay, I know there is a lot more that I am grateful for, but that's all I'll share. Those are the main ones anyway! :)

It was a great break from school. Luckily, only one more week! Just gotta ace those finals and then I'm on to enjoy a long, luxurious Christmas vacation! It won't be warm, but will be solid.

Life is good. The end.

Some Photos....

Post BYU Domination.

Yep. Sidelines passes- third quarter.

Tough Guys.

Sisters on the sideline.

Tyson's first trip to the Brick Oven.

PiePiePie.

Favorite jello.

Turkey Time!

Hannah's wedding and the old roomies!

The real end!

Lucky Ducky Me.

I have the best fiance ever.

Not just saying that. And I know everyone thinks that. But I really do have THE best one.

You know the kind who will drive out to see you when you are sick, bring you a heating pad and who will practically hold your hair when you are hunched over the toilet throwing up? He's right there behind you flushing it down and making you drink water to hydrate.

Seriously. The best one ever.

Thanks T, for being my personal nurse last night.

Merry

Thank you ShopKo, for these stylish 'staches making us look just like mario and luigi.

It has been way to long since I blogged.

This weekend was really good.

I'll tell you all about it. Ready? Okay, good.

Friday.

-Went to lunch with my love.

-Spent the afternoon baking: cookies and muddy buddies.

-Packed up and met at the church to head up to Bear Lake for a fun overnight activity with my ward. {Tyson and I are on the activities committee together, so we made sure it'd be extra super duper fun}.

-First of all, this cabin was AMAZING. I was so impressed and I want one when T and I are richie riches one day. {Far away, obviously. But still, I can dream about it!}

-Ate giant pizza. Played lots of games. Laughed. Slept less than 5 hours (not cool part. i think the universal rule should be that you can't wake up before 8 a.m. on a saturday. just saying).

Saturday.

-Spent longer than expected trying to leave, getting stuck in the snow, pushing the car, and finally finding a better route out. I still spent time with my head in my hands chanting in my head over and over again "please let us make it up this hill. please let us make it up this hill."

**Which reminds me, word to the wise people of bear lake: plow your road when there is snow! Unless you want to be sued for stress.

-Saw New Moon {Dear Jacob, you are in REALLY good shape. I approve of the person who decided it was a good idea to make you not wear your shirt most of the movie}.

-Went to Panda for dinner with T.

-Went to an exciting USU Hockey Game with a sick ending, basically it was like a movie.

-Attempted to watch The Dark Knight, by this time the less than 5 hours of sleep had REALLY caught up to me. Thanks T, for letting me always use you as a pillow and sleep during nearly every movie we watch. :)

-Sunday was fabulous. Just the usual. Church-nap time-excellent dinner made by my future mother-in-law (I look forward to it every week!)-and games slash chatting slash planning at the Perkes house.

Successful weekend.

Gratitude post for the day {because I must not forget! thanksgiving is in T-minus 3 days!}

I am grateuful for Christmas Music.

I know this is a shallow and silly thing to be grateful for, but I think it's valid.

If mood rings really worked and if I owned one, then when you turned on Christmas music my mood would go from whatever it was to extremely happy. It makes me giddy.

It reminds me of being a kid and sneaking into the living room to see what Santa brought at 5 in the am and then falling back asleep on the floor until everyone else woke up. It reminds me of Christmas Eve's spent at Grandma Clyde's house. It reminds me of always having to make, eat and clean-up breakfast before we could open our presents and how killer that was! It reminds me of spending time with family with our house fully decorated in green, red and gold and Christmas music flooding through the stereo as Christmas approached.

I love it.

I love Christmas.

Holidays bring out that child in me!

I'm excited to spend them with Tyson and one day {very far away}, with our children!

It will be blissful!

Life is good! I love the Holiday Season. Thanksgiving and Christmas.

They mean food, family and no school. Honestly? Nothing is better.

Have a great day everyone. Hugs, Love and Christmas music. :)

Gelato and the Gospel

This is what I've been missing lately....

Gelato. From ITALIA.

The one and only best place to get the real deal gelato.

I am grateful I got to experience gelato from it's roots. Not only gelato and not only being able to experience Italy, but also, Greece, Switzerland and France. This summer was amazing. It was hecka hard somedays {believe it or not}, but it was sooo worth it.

This weekend I did some reflecting on my European adventures a couple of different times.

It was an incredible experience for me. I know I've blogged about it a time or two, but it really was SO amazing.

This Sunday we were talking about Modern Day Revelation in Sunday School. We got on the topic of the church being the same every where in the world. I wanted to share, but I never did.

This is what I wanted to share:

I know for myself how true that is. The gospel of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the same all around the world. I never really knew how much that meant to me until I was in a foreign country with people I didn't know too well, away from loved ones and home. Although I became more familiar with the places I spent my time and the people I was with, Sundays were always the best days in Europe. They were a safe haven for me. They brought peace and familiarity into my life! They made me realize that although the people sitting in those Sacrament meetings spoke other languages and lived in an entirely different culture, they were children of God. They were members of the church, just like me. It was so comforting. They were so loving too! And took great care of us.

I felt just what I needed to feel while I was gone on Sundays. At church. The gospel is the same, no matter what you are. And it's perfection. I love it. With all my heart. My testimony grew immensely while I was gone! I encourage anyone to experience the world outside their comfort zone, in any way. It will truly help you see what you have and realize how much gratitude feels your heart! I know that's what this experience did for me.

So, today, I am grateful for peace, and being able to find it around the globe worldwide through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is TRUTH. I know that. It brings many blessings. You just gotta live it. And when you do, you will love it.

PHOTOS from the AMIGA weekend!

Girls gone Wild [Animals]

Mary-Kate and Ashley, our favorite twins!

Handsome Headbands

Us with our crafts- we were really happy.

Kraft Korner

Future House Decor. :)

What a lovely weekend. I had a b-last.

Stockings and NOT the Christmas kind

I have another obsession. Yes, another one.

This one is kind of more minor. I don't think I need any help either, because, I like this obsession.

It's a little something we all own. Some of us own multiple pairs of these. We wear them daily {unless it is summma time}. They keep us warm. They bring comfort to our lives. So why not let them LOOK fun?

You guessed. My obsession is SOCKS.

I love them. I feel the need to buy a pair (or two, when they are buy one get one half off) every time I go to my favorite store, Smith's Marketplace. Sometimes, I do buy them. Which is great, because they make me happy and warm and I love building up my collection!

So it may seem silly, but today, I am ever so grateful for socks. Mostly for the primary reason that they keep you warm, especially when you live in the coldest place on planet earth aka in Utah, Cache Valley.

You gotta have some socks when you live here. Not just some plain white gold toe ankle socks, but some COLORFUL christmas/halloween/checkered/tye dyed socks.

It is a must.

So, I have a few pairs. Here are some photos to share with you some of my collection, my plethora, my surplus of comfy, cozy, colorful, crazy cool SOCKS.

I heart you sockies. You+Me+Winter=Forever. :)

My Kindred Spirits, My Confidantes, My Homegirls

This weekend, two of my besties came up to visit me. Talia and JBod.

It was a really fun weekend!

We did a LOT of laughing and reminiscing, as usual, and I loved every minute of it.

Some of the things we did this weekend:

- Food. And LOTS of if. (Namely, The Beehive Grill, Charlie's, Homemade breakfast, Juniper Take-out, Pita Pit and junk food. All within less than 48 hours).

- Some Wedding website searching. Blog stalking. And such. Because I'm getting married and all, so of course we had to do that kind of stuff! It was really fun. I can't wait to do some more planning and scheming with the gals.

- Movies (The Wedding Singer, Love Happens, Our Lips Are Sealed, Holiday in the Sun {possibly Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen movies. We were just reliving our great childhood!} and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants- dos.) Winter and Snow usually = movies.

-Laughing. So. Much. ("So, warlocks?" "No way!" etc.)

-CRAFTS. This was the highlight. We spent over an hour in the craft store on Saturday. (Sorry, Tyson- again). Craft stores are a little bit like Heaven. There were so many options, that was the problem. We finally got our craft ideas and supplies and headed out. We ended up making some really cute stuff. Mod Podging and Headband making. I was really pleased. So were Tals and Bod.

Overall, it was just a fun and relaxed weekend. We just spent time together, something we hadn't done in far too long. I miss those girlies. I love them too! And all my other besties.

So, surprise, surprise, today my gratitude post is on Friends.

I have some of the best ones.

We've been through thick and thin together.

We've experienced childhood, puberty, Junior High, High School, College and everything in between together.

We have endless memories together.

We always have a good time and we always laugh until our stomaches hurt.

Not only do we have a good time, but my friends are inspiring and amazing people. They are righteous. They are so ambitious. They are independent. They are beautiful. They are just plain awesome. They are GREAT friends. And I mean that, sincerely. I wish we could play more often. But I think this way, our limited time together makes it a little more special.

Friends are great. Mine are the greatEST. I love them. I'm lucky, once again. Thanks girls for an EXCELLENT weekend! Success.

{pictures to come} ASAP.

The Little (and not-so-little) Ones!

I know today I should be grateful for all the moisture.

But truth be told, I'm not. I'm actually a little bit reverse grateful (ungrateful, I guess would be the proper term) for this weather. Snow is yuck. I like it for a limited number of things:

- Christmas time. You have to have snow falling on Christmas Eve and a large blanket of white snow outside on Christmas day. You just have to. It completes Christmas. (Which I love so so much).

- Sledding. I do love to sled, so the snow is acceptable for this activity. Mostly because you have to have snow to sled. If there was any other way, I'd probably consider it.

-Snowboarding. I'm a beginner when it comes to this, but last winter I started to really learn how to snowboard by taking a class. I didn't know I would fall so in love with it, but I did. It put me on this adrenaline rush like nothing ever has! It was incredible. I am excited to see how much I suck this season since I'm definitely out of practice. :)

- Honestly, that's all I can think of. So without further ado, I'll right this note and end this topic.

Dear Snow,

I do not like you. You might be pretty sometimes and required for some things, but you are cold and get dirty and stay for far too long.

Sincerely,

Katie

Okay. Now I better show some gratitude and love for the beautiful things in this world.

Today's gratitude post will be on...

Nieces and Nephews.

This might seem kind of broad, but I am SO grateful for those little rascals.

I love my nieces and nephews quite a lot. They are not only ADORABLE, but also quite hilarious. I can't believe how old they are getting. I love that I've been able to see them from birth to where they are at in their lives right now. They really are the cutest kids around and I love them so much. I'm kind of obsessed. Just slap that on my obsessions list.

As well as my original nieces and nephews, I'm inheriting 9 new ones. I can't wait.

I thought the cutest kids on the earth were already discovered, but then I realized I was missing out on 9 of the OTHER cutest kids on earth. I'm so blessed to be getting such great in-laws with such cute kids! I love them too.

My nieces and nephews really like Tyson. They've already dubbed him in as the other favorite uncle, along with Brandon (since there are SO many other uncles on that side. :) Just kidding. These guys are great and they'd be the favs no matter what).

Anyway. I don't have pictures of ALL the nieces and nephews, but I will post what I do have.

(Sorry Casselman's and Baby Easton!)

I love these kids. They are great. They are funny! And they bring such liveliness and joy to my life. I think they help me maintain my kid-like attributes. They're so fun! And so full of love.

I love them! My (almost) 16 (2 on the way) nieces and nephews rock.

They're the best ever.

And here they are....

Ryan

Emma Lou

Joshy

Clairey

Baby Lauren

Isabel

Brooklyn

Baby Hunter

Parker and Alana (and Tyson, one of the kids too:)!)

Missing: Connor, Chase, Abby, Easton, Baby Spence and Baby Henrie!

I'll get on that, as best I can. :)

T.

Warning. This post may be cheesy. It's all true sincerity though. It's goodness.

This one time, this summer, I studied abroad. I was in Rome for four weeks, Athens for one week and Switzerland/Venice/Paris for a week. It was an incredible experience. I learned more in the those six weeks than I ever thought I would! More than I ever had in six other weeks in my life.

I could really go on and on about the things I learned. The places I went. The food I ate. Etc. Etc.

But for my gratitude post today, I will say this:

I am grateful to not be in a long distance relationship.

I am grateful I get to see that boy every day! We haven't missed a day since I saw him at the airport on August 18th, welcoming me home from my trip.

I am grateful that we don't have to rely so much on the World Wide Web, just on Face-to-Face communication. It's the best kind, just so you know.

And I am grateful for these lyrics by an amazing artist {who I wish I could have play at my wedding} Kalai.

"In these crazy days, far away as you are, you will be my only one. So when everyone doubts and I am living without, you give me everything I need. And the one I lack, you can give me right back. When you tell me you're happy and you tell I'm kind. You tell me your faithful, and I trust that you're mine. After the laughter but before the storm, I can breathe easier, I can stay warm loving you. Loving you. Loving you. Baby, I'm loving you now."

GREAT lyrics. SO cute too. Obviously.

I have a distinct memory to do with this song. I was on a ferry ride in Greece. We had just gone from Athens to visit a little island close by. I sat on the top as the wind was blowing through my hair and the song was playing on my ipod. Of course I thought of T the whole time. I remember missing him a lot. I remember thinking of my love for him. And I remember being really excited to see him once again. I also remember just feeling so blessed, because having that experience in Europe taught me SO much. Like I said before.

It also really strengthened my relationship with T. Which is now short-distance, thankfully. We've come a long ways together! I know that will benefit us a lot in our marriage. We have a tight bond. We're best friends. Seriously.

He's the one I want to turn to when I am sad.

He's the one I want to tell when I trip up the stairs on campus numerous times in one day.

He's the one I want to make plans with.

The one I want to have adventures with.

The one I want to grow old with.

He's such a cool cat. Really. I'm lucky! What an excellent future husband I'll be inheriting.

I'm excited.

I'm happy.

I'm blessed.

I'm grateful. For T.

I knew I'd write a gratitude post on him sooner or later, but I didn't know it'd be quite like this. So here it is. Take it or leave it.

I'll take it. And one fantastic fiance, please. :)