Quarterbacks.

I love BYU football. I really do. The BYU - Utah game 2006 was one of the more stressful days of my football watching life. It also provided one of the happiest moments of my football watching life. I can't describe it, but if watching clips of the last play of the game still takes your breath away like it does mine, then I don't have to.

or here's another one, with different commentary, which also fills me with joy. I couldn't pick just one.

...pause in the ABCs...

I saw this background today and knew Jill would love it. So, this one is a shout out to you Jill Pill.

Puppies!

Especially one puppy in particular: Brandi (1996-2009), may she rest in peace.

She was the best pet we ever had, and not just because she is the only pet we've ever had. She started out as a pet, but really ended up being our youngest sister.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who accidentally would mix up Laura and Brandi's names.

She started as an "outside dog" because my parents didn't really want a dog living in the house. That lasted one night. After that, the doghouse was really just a lawn ornament. The she was only allowed in the family room level of the house. A gate separated her from the rest of the house. Then she just wasn't allowed in the kitchen or bedrooms. But little by little, she took over the entire house.

She used to pretend she didn't like to wear hats, but she got used to it, and maybe even embraced it.

Last time I was home I found a mullet wig that was far too small to fit any normal human head (though it did look quite adorable on nephew Will). Sure enough, it was Brandi's. She had such a great sense of humor.

She loved playing outside, hated all other canines, and got uncontrollably excited whenever I was wearing anything remotely resembling athletic shorts or running shoes. She loved my dad, showing off her teeth, and staring at you with her soulful brown eyes anytime you went near the bread in the kitchen.

Favorite words: outside, bread, daddy, mommy, potty, car, walk.

She was so tolerant

...most of the time (exception: nee nee finglies).

Back in the Saddle Again with the letter O.

Ok, I was running low on ideas for this one.* So I stuck with a no-fail theme of: what do I find amusing? Because I am always grateful for a little amusement. And the O Answer is...onesies!

Exhibit A:

Some treasures Rach and I found at H&M in NYC. Please notice the top 5 features of Rachel's suit:

1. velour

2. belt

3. velour

4. long pants can be hitched up into capris

5. velour

Exhibit B:

One day Janna and her roommates at the time decided to all go buy the onesie footie pajamas and friend Mike decided to go along. Guess who was the only one to actually buy footie pajamas? Of course.

Exhibit C:

This little treasure (ok, fine, I'm bragging because I think it's cool) was hand stitched** by yours truly over the break, and is modeled here by the lovely new nephew, for whom it was created. Really the best part is the family brand (which is a "cross C," as opposed to a "plus C"--don't get it wrong; that's super embarrassing) on the lamb. What can I say besides awesome?

So. I am grateful for onesies and how they pop into my life from time to time.

*And once I skipped one or two days, it was so easy to skip one or two weeks. Slippery slope. My b.

**This process took much longer than expected, so I will partly blame my neglect of this list on the onesie. I wanted a picture of it to include. You're welcome. Also to blame is what else I was doing whilst stitching: watching Season 4 of The O.C. in its entirety in a time period too short for me to feel comfortable admitting. I may have hated on Season 4 a bit in the past (as did many others, as evidenced by the mid-season cancellation), but actually watching it kind of filled me with joy.

And a treat for those of you who read the footnotes (because the children of lawyers who do not read footnotes will STARVE!)...

The Rhino.