Disneyland - where dreams really do come true!!

This past weekend Jason and I spent a wonderful weekend with his family. We flew into the Long Beach Airport on Friday evening and started our Disney Dream Vacation early Saturday morning by waiting in line so we could be first in line for the ever popular Finding Nemo submarine ride. We ran all the way there and were the first ones on for the day -- which was a very good thing since the line generally stays around 75 min long, which is 55 min longer than any line we ever waited in! Anyway, it was a dream vacation, so wonderful Jason and I decided to buy annual passes!!


Cinderella's Castle, waiting for us as we waited for the park to open.


Everybody loves the teacups!


The love of my life and one of the places I love most, I couldn't be happier!


The mouse that started it all. . .


And his goofy pal.


I love these girls!


We got all wet, and it was cold.


This is dedicated to, well, you know who you are :)


The End.

It's about time. . .

Well folks, it's about time for an update. Our most recent big news is that Jason and I moved from our cute little apartment in Provo to our cute not-so-little apartment in Orem. It's an increase in rent, but a decrease in commuting time to and from both of our jobs. I tried to get pictures of us moving, but Jason is a very task-oriented guy and didn't feel like letting me take his picture. So this is the best I could do:



He's cute isn't he? We're mostly settled into our new place. Since my parents just moved and got a lot of new furniture, we've been fortunate to inherit what they no longer need/want. So we still have a bookshelf, a hutch and a guest bed to move from their old house to our new one.

I finished up my internship at The Daily Herald. It was a great experience and I'm going to miss working there. For your enjoyment, here is what is likely my last "Skinny" column ever.

The Daily Herald

Little problems with age: I am 5-foot-2 and 95 pounds - barely.

And not only does my body type closely resemble that of my 12-year-old sister and her friends, but my cute little face makes it hard to pick me out of a crowd of freshmen - as in high school freshmen.

Now I realize this is all well and good, and I will be grateful for my youthful looks when I'm older, but when I am trying to make it in the adult world, looking like I should still be reading Seventeen magazine and worrying about who might ask me to Junior Prom is not a good thing.

Last summer, I went to the Cartel concert at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, where you had to be either 16 years old or with a parent or guardian to get in.

No problem, or so I thought, until I was the only one there who was stopped -- twice -- and asked for proof that I was old enough to be at the show without my mommy.

One guy even laughed at me and asked, after seeing my over-21 driver's license, "Now, you're not really going to try and buy alcohol with this, are you?"

Well, I wasn't going to try and buy a drink, but the point is, I could have if I wanted to.

And sadly, I get the feeling the bartender would have called over security and had me hauled out of the show for attempting to use a fake driver's license.

I could go on for days with stories like this; such as the one time my then 11-year-old sister's friend asked me in awe if I attended the local junior high school. When I told her no, that, in fact, I was a senior at Brigham Young University she laughed at me. Now, every time she sees me she calls me "Little Miss Junior High."

Sometimes I want to teach her a lesson and clock her in the face, but, frankly, she's twice my size and I don't stand a chance against her.

-- Jessie Evans

Best Cupcakes EVER.

I have so much to update you all on, and I know I need to post more pictures!! But I couldn't resist sharing this amazing recipe with you all. I found it on the Cup Cake blog, and it's to die for. I won't post the whole recipe here since it's long, but here's the link! They're blueberry/rasberry ricotta almond cupcakes, and Jason and I loved them.

Tag, I'm it!

My mother-in-law Cheryl tagged me, so here it goes!

4 Jobs I've had

1. Official war plane movie-watcher at GenM.
2. Campus/Metro assit. editor at The Daily Universe.
3. Photographer at The Daily Universe.
4. Circulation Manager and Associate Editor at Utah Valley Magazine

4 Places I've lived

1. Orem, UT
2. Nauvoo, IL
3. Provo, UT
4. Um, Orem again.

4 Favorite Foods

1. Orville Redenbacher regular butter popcorn
2. Potatoes
3. Hagan Daas ice cream
4. Asparagus

4 Websites I visit

1. Blogger
2. GMail
3. Facebook
4. MyFamily.com

4 Places I'd rather be

1. Italy
2. Dubrovnik, Croatia
3. Southern France
4. Nauvoo

4 Favorite Movies

1. Stardust
2. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
3. Shakespeare in Love
4. Notting Hill

4 People I tag

1. Betsy Brown
2. Brittany Andersen
3. Rissa Merkley
4. Whitney Tanner

Back to School No More

While everyone is going back-to-school shopping and buying all new pencils, notebooks and school clothes, I am entering the world of "official adulthood." No more back-to-school madness for me, and truth be told, it's a little sad. I remember taking my list sent out by the teachers to Staples with my mom and we'd weave up and down the isles looking for just the right notebook or the cutest mechanical pencils. I'd delight in picking out folders and binders and dream of being the most organized and stylish girl in my class. I'd pack up my back-pack and set it in my bedroom, all ready to go for the first day of school.

I'd pick my outfit out weeks in advance, and the night before school started, I'd lay it out on my floor. I usually tried to go to bed insanely early so I'd be sure to be well rested. I always got up way before the sun so I could make sure my hair was just right and my clothes looked just as cute as it did when I picked it out.

Ah, those were the days. As I got older, I became less and less consumed with back-to-school festivities. Towards my later years in college, there were times when I wouldn't even buy the books until weeks into the class, when we finally needed them for our first assignment. Often, I went to the first day of school without a back-pack and just bought a pencil in the bookstore on my way to class. I guess after sixteen years of school, the "first day" starts to lose its charm.

Luckily, as the magic of a first day of school wears off, it is replaced by the excitement of a full-time career job. I started on Thursday at Utah Valley Magazine, and I couldn't be happier. I love the office environment and everyone I work with, and I'm excited about what I'll be doing there. I feel blessed to be given this opportunity - and now I'm dying to go "back to work" shopping at See Jane Work, where they have the CUTEST office supplies I have ever seen. In fact, I'm thinking of ordering one of these mouse pads (pictured above) just because I can.

Tagged!

I was tagged by the worlds most outstanding florist, Audrey at Studio Stems. I guess the deal is I'm supposed to post 10 random things about me, so here it goes!

1. I just got a job at Utah Valley Magazine as the Circulation Manager/Assistant Editor. Yay for me!!

2. Popcorn and ice-cream are my two favorite food groups. They're food groups, right?

3. Ever since I was little, I have loved to read. I read everything in my house growing up at least three times -- and this includes all the Don Aslett cleaning books my dad got for free while doing promotional videos for him. I used to get grounded from reading.

4. When I'm stressed and need to calm down, I usually cook or clean. I dunno, maybe those Don Aslett books paid off!!

5. I love to travel. I love everything about traveling. My ideal job would be to travel the world and get paid for the articles I write and the pictures I take along the way.

6. I don't eat meat. I just don't like it. So don't try and make me eat it.

7. Magazines are my weakness. I love reading design magazines, fashion magazines, photography magazines and travel magazines. And now I have a job working for a magazine!

8. My dad is my hero. He is such a good example of one who lives a Christ-centered life. He is also the hardest working person I know. He is incredibly visionary and knows how to makes his dreams a reality.

9. Although some women dread becoming like their mothers, I don't think that'd be such a bad thing for me. My mom is incredible with people and has no problem making friends wherever she goes.

10. The sound of a keyboard typing is one of the most soothing sounds. I loved working in a newsroom where all day you could hear the tiny tapping of keys all over the room.

And I am tagging:
Alyssa Williams
Annie Jacob
and Macie Stratton (this means you have to get a blog Mace!!)

A season of change

I feel like I've been neglecting the main reason I set up this blog, to keep our loved ones updated on the lives of Jason and Jessie Evans.

A lot has happened since the last post. First of all, I've been interviewing with Utah Valley Magazine for a job that I'm just dying to get. I got a call from the publisher on Friday saying they were putting together a job offer for me, so we'll see what the offer is come Monday.

Second, because of this potential job in Orem, and because neither Jason nor I are currently students, and because Jason's job is in Orem, we see no reason to stay in our apartment in Provo. Things really fell into place for us on this one. I happened to run into Jason's aunt and uncle on campus. They have a son getting married this week and he and his bride have nowhere to live and mentioned they'd be interested in our apartment if we decided to move. Then my brother mentioned his girlfriend's parents are looking to rent out their basement apartment. Long story short, it's an amazing deal and so close to both Quomation and Utah Valley Magazine that we just couldn't resist. We sign contracts tomorrow.

I helped Rebekah Westover shoot another wedding yesterday, it was such a good experience. I'll be posting pictures of both this wedding and the last sometime this week -- so keep checking back!

My brother Geoff came home on Thursday from D.C. where he was selling alarm systems for APEX. It was fun being able to spend time with him before he headed down to Price where he'll be attending the College of Eastern Utah studying something in the computer graphics department.

I realize this is a long post, so I'll make it worth it with pictures.







1. My mom and me playing with Boston.
2 & 3. Boston, isn't he cute? I can't believe he's already 14 months!
4. Geoff and his new hair, I guess it's hot in D.C., and even hotter with hair.
5. Jason, isn't he handsome?