20 June 2009

Best Bestie Ever

So, Eryn and I jokingly tell each other that we're the "best besties ever." We overheard some girls in the mall one day say that and we about died. So in honor of them, that is our nickname for each other. However, today Eryn went above and beyond the call of duty. When we talked on Wednesday, I still had not heard anything about this job in Cedar City, and I was getting very nervous and frustrated that it wasn't a good sign... And she cheered me up like always. She decided that the man with whom I'd been in contact over the last several months had the perfect name to make use of. His last name is Yoder, and we decided that we were now going to describe situations like this as being "Yodered."

Last night, I finally got a call and it turns out they "found room" for me. I have a job!!! I start Monday! YAY!!! I will be digging near Cedar CIty for the rest of the summer... 9 hours a day/ 6 days a week... which means about 14 hours overtime every week. YAY!!!! I'm SO relieved!!

Well, I've been running around trying to get everything ready today. And I came home to this Facebook Wall Post by my best bestie ever.

Eryn Sinclair: "So I just read a nonfiction book on the making of the Oxford English Dictionary, and I need to redeem my utter nerdiness. So- I am going to write you a definition:

Yoder- (yO-dur) English, 2009, inv. Dana and Eryn, origin: Yoder- last name of offending individual

Derogatory term; An individual with a relationship of authority or significance to oneself, who knowingly, or unknowingly, misleads one to believe that one’s actions will lead to certain outcomes. Said outcome is usually one of substantial import (i.e. graduation, employment, marriage, etc.), then, always at a pivotal moment, the desired outcome does not materialize, leaving one confused, angry, frustrated, and sad. A yoder can redeem him/herself ONLY by restoring the situation to fulfillment of the understood outcome.

n: yoder; v: yoder; yoder-ed; yoder-ing

The man who did give me a job is such a yoder.
You totally got yodered when he left you at the alter.

**i.e. person who totally screws you over.

LOVES"

17 June 2009

Oreo Cream Cheese Chocolate Covered Truffles

The original recipe is in the "Cooking the Costco Way" cookbook (thanks to Sarah for picking me up a copy and making these so I knew how yummy they are). Here's our recipe:

3 packages of cream cheese
2 package of oreos
3 cups of melting chocolate (we used ghiradelli 70% pure cacao chocolate chips)

let cream cheese come to room temperature
crush 1 package of oreos (use a plastic bag and a rolling pin)
mix both together thoroughly
refrigerate mixture for 10-20 minutes
use gloves if possible to roll mixture into 1 inch balls
refrigerate for 30-45 minutes
melt chocolate in a double boiler (metal bowl inside a pot filled with 2 inches of water on low heat) *** do not allow water/steam to get into chocolate!
line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil
crush 10-12 more oreos
roll oreo/cream cheese balls in chocolate and place on pan
Sprinkle oreo crumbs on top
Refrigerate until chocolate coat hardens
Eat and Enjoy!
store in the refrigerator and give the rest of the oreos to the kids so you have more truffles to enjoy :)


We made these for the reunion, and they were super easy and incredibly delicious! MMMMMM!!!!!!!

Jerusalem

Well, I had my final admissions interview for Jerusalem yesterday. It's definitely official! I'm going to Jerusalem!! And I am very excited! It definitely does not seem real, but my experience has shown that it won't seem real until it's almost over. Regardless, though, I have a lot to do in order to get ready to live abroad for the third time!

Blackburn Family Reunion

Well, we had our Blackburn Family Reunion last weekend, and it went great! We had a good turnout from Ken & Shirley's Family and Tom & Diane's Family. We also had some of Kay & Shirley's family represented, as well as some from my (Shawn & Vickie) family. We all had such a great time! We played some games, had lots of food, and just really enjoyed visiting with everyone. It was definitely a lot of work, but so very worth it! I've never even been to a family reunion before, let alone be in charge of putting it all together! But luckily I think my first try was as successful as it could've been! I definitely enjoyed getting everything ready, though. I made up some Family History Games... totally nerdy I know! But I Loved it! I made everyone break into teams and arrange a 4 Generation pedigree chart starting with my grandpa Blackburn. SO FUN! Everyone actually did surprisingly well... though I think there was some cheating involved. haha I also made a game "How Blackburn Are you?" which was hilarious to watch people take. Out of 110 possible points, my mom ended up being the winner with 87 points, which was so funny! Of course, we didn't take the quiz, along with the majority of the Blackburn clan. So, I'm sending copies of it out to other family members so they can join in the fun, too. All in all, everything was very successful!




08 June 2009

2 Years

Today is the 2 year anniversary of my father passing away. A day that I will always remember as one of the worst, and yet one of the most peaceful days of my life. Last year on this day, I was finally able to get up the courage to write in my journal about the day he died. I was in Jordan, and I had the day off from digging. So I spent hours on the rooftop just writing and crying and writing and praying. It was what I had wanted to do but hadn't been able to. I'm grateful I was able to take that time and write about my experiences and my feelings, though. Not that I'm worried I will forget how I felt... because I don't think that will ever happen. However, it has allowed me to embrace the present and the future, honoring the past but not focusing on it.

Today has been a wonderful day! Because I've been in LA this week, I've been able to spend a few days here with Tim and Jan, my aunt and uncle who are currently serving as the mission president of the LA Mission. Tim is my dad's older brother, and his only full brother. Though my dad has 7 older half-siblings, they are all much older and didn't know him very well. I have been able to enjoy several hours (which is rare when you're running a large mission!) of reminiscing and discussing the past, including stories about my dad, my grandparents, and our extended Blackburn family. It has truly been a wonderful blessing for me in my life. Especially on this day. I ate a hamburger today, in honor of my dad. I talked with everyone in my family today, and I even received an email from Logan today, too!

It really has just been a day of my heart filling with gratitude and love for my father, for my wonderful family, and for the incredible sealing power of the Priesthood that gives me the opportunity to be with my family forever, not just until death. I know I will see my father again. Though gone from this life, he isn't gone. He exists, and he is going about God's work on the other side of the veil. I look forward to the day when I will finally be able to run into my father's arms and give him a giant hug and a kiss on the cheek. But gratefully, I am no longer wishing that day would come tomorrow, but am content on living my life to the fullest with him just watching over me from above. Though I am convinced that he is not as far away as he seems to be. :)

Another One Bites the Dust

Well this weekend I was able to come to LA for my roommate Joanna's wedding. It was absolutely beautiful! She was gorgeous! And we were happily able to lend some helping hands in taking care of several things. I was able to spend time with Teri and Jeralee, two of my other roommates during the first few days of my stay in LA. We had a blast! Aside from wedding things, we also got to go to Disneyland and California Adventure... for free!! Teri works at Disney World, so she gets a few passes a year to get 3 people in for free. It was awesome and we had such a great time! The consensus: California Screamin' rollercoaster was definitely the best ride out of both parks! By the end of the night though, our feet were achey and our heads were pounding! So we tried to get some good sleep for the wedding the next day.

Out of my 13 roommates that I've had at BYU and BYU-Nauvoo over the last three years, Joanna is only the fourth one to get married... I think that low of a percentage is pretty rare at BYU! But I think the problem is that these girls are just too absolutely incredible for any young man right now... haha. But most of my roommates are some of my best friends that I hope to stay in touch with forever. They have influenced me immensely, and I'm so grateful for all that they have taught me!